#These are all valid potential titles

[risky-witchy]

Thinking about the new episode of cr and about Dorian and Orym but I’ve seen a lot of people making jokes about Dorian’s dad seeing everyone intrusive themselves and is like ‘wtf is that my son’ and so true so valid but consider.

You are the father of the Wyvernwinds, a family who essentially serves as royalty in their culture. Several years ago your youngest left, likely against your wishes, and just a short period of time ago your oldest dies, and now all of the worlds leaders are gathering to develop a plan to deal with a potential Calamity level event. You spot someone who looks similar to your only living son. He is then a part of the group of, frankly, hooligans who are fucked in the head brave and are gonna be the main task force against this event and summons your goddamn wyvern dragon horse, while wearing the sluttiest outfit you’ve ever seen, as well as a sending stone that matches with the halfling who approached you after who very clearly is fond of your son. Not to mention he doesn’t go by his birth name and title but is wearing gold to symbolize the death of his older brother. What would you do then

[naamahdarling]

I'm probably going to piss some people off with this, but.

The use of AI and machine learning for harmful purposes is absolutely unacceptable.

But that isn't an innate part of what it does.

Apps or sites using AI to generate playlists or reading lists or a list of recipes based on a prompt you enter: absolutely fantastic, super helpful, so many new things to enjoy, takes jobs from no-one.

Apps or sites that use a biased algorithm (which is AI) which is not controllable by users or able to be turned off by them, to push some content and suppress others to maximize engagement and create compulsive behavior in users: unethical, bad, capitalism issue, human issue.

People employing genAI to create images for personal, non-profit use and amusement who would not have paid someone for the same service: neutral, (potential copyright and ethics issue if used for profit, which would be a human issue).

People incorporating genAI as part of their artistic process, where the medium of genAI is itself is a deliberate part of the artist's technique: valid, interesting.

Companies employing genAI to do the work of a graphic designer, and websites using genAI to replace the cost of stock photos: bad, shitty, no, capitalist and ethical human issue.

People attacking small artists who use it with death threats and unbelievable vitriol: bad, don't do that.

AI used for spell check and grammar assistance: really great.

AI employed by eBay sellers to cut down on the time it takes to make listings: good, very helpful, but might be a bad idea as it does make mistakes and that can cost them money, which would be a technical issue.

AI used to generate fake product photos: deceptive, lazy, bad, human ethical issue.

AI used to identify plagiarism: neutral; could be really helpful but the parameters are defined by unrealistic standards and not interrogated by those who employ it. Human ethical issue.

AI used to analyze data and draw up complex models allowing detection of things like cancer cells: good; humans doing this work take much longer, this gives results much faster and allows faster intervention, saving lives.

AI used to audit medical or criminal records and gatekeep coverage or profile people: straight-up evil. Societal issue, human ethical issue.

AI used to organize and classify your photos so you don't have to spend all that time doing it: helpful, good.

AI used to profile people or surveil people: bad and wrong. Societal issue, human issue, ethical issue.

I'm not going to cover the astonishingly bad misinformation that has been thrown out there about genAI, or break down thought distortions, or go into the dark side of copyright law, or dive into exactly how it uses the data it is fed to produce a result, or explain how it does have many valid uses in the arts if you have any imagination and curiosity, and I'm not holding anyone's hand and trying to walk them out of all the ableism and regurgitated capitalist arguments and the glorification of labor and suffering.

I just want to point out: you use machine learning (AI) all the time, you benefit from it all the time. You could probably identify many more examples that you use every day. Knee-jerk panicked hate reflects ignorance, not sound principles.

You don't have beef with AI, you have beef with human beings, how they train it, and how they use it. You have beef with capitalism and thoughtlessness. And so do I. I will ruthlessly mock or decry misuse or bad use of it. But there is literally nothing inherently bad in the technology.

I am aware of and hate its misuse just as much as you do. Possibly more, considering that I am aware of some pretty heinous ways it's being used that a lot of people are not. (APPRISS, which is with zero competition for the title the most evil use of machine learning I have ever seen, and which is probably being used on you right now.)

You need to stop and actually think about why people do bad things with it instead of falling for the red herring and going after the technology (as well as the weakest human target you can find) every time you see those two letters together.

You cannot protect yourself and other people against its misuse if you cannot separate that misuse against its neutral or helpful uses, or if you cannot even identify what AI and machine learning are.

[cyberclouddream]

How to Spot: Fire Signs Edition

Aries Rising

- they walk into the room like they own it—or should

- often physically active or fast (talking, moving, etc.)

- they’re prone to taking things personally or holding onto grievances

- expect them to indulge in something today and regret it tomorrow

- they have a short-attention span in communication

- grew up with loving or potentially overbearing caretakers

- flirtation is a performance that they expect to be celebrated for

- hate routines but are obsessed with doing things right; either they’re all in or completely neglectful

- they can love hard and fast, and be domineering in relationships

- they want passive or accommodating partners who let them take control

- they don’t stick with the same philosophy for long, and may seek meaning through extreme experiences

- complain about what it takes to succeed

- naturally drawn to positions of authority and management

- crave admiration for their individuality

- escape looking weak by distractions like work, arguments, or impulsive actions

- refuse to acknowledge their sensitivity, don’t like to admit when they’re struggling emotionally

Leo Rising

- walk around like they expect others to notice or admire them

- their sense of value is tied to how perfect or put-together they seem

- they always try to be the peacemaker but often steer conversations towards themselves

- they’re possessive and deeply emotional behind closed doors, often getting into power struggles at home

- had a childhood or family life with power struggles or deeply emotional experiences

- they love showing off their wild side and being seen as the “fun one”

- type to boast about how busy or disciplined they are

- relationships can be seen as unstable because they want to feel special but struggle with compromise

- tend to pretend they’re fine when they’re not because they don’t like dealing with the messiness of emotions

- natural talent for managing resources or strong interest in exploring the mysteries of life and death

- constantly planning the next adventure or proudly proclaiming their beliefs or views

- throw themselves recklessly into new cultures or ideologies

- seen as a inspirational figure who encourages others to expand their perspectives

- they like to pursue careers that let them indulge in luxury or at least appear wealthy

- often brag about their achievements

- they’re the social butterfly of the group, constantly jumping from one friend to the other

- constantly networking, making friends, or keeping things light

- deep down they fear rejection or not being loved for who they truly are, but deflect signs of weakness with arrogance

Sagittarius Rising

- often rambles about some new philosophy, trip, or project they’re working on

- practical and careful about how they handle money, even if they seem reckless in everything else

- they can be condescending towards those who think traditionally

- they can romanticize family dynamics or avoid facing emotional issues

- emotional needs weren’t fully validated, often feeling neglected or being over-sensitive

- they need to be fun, best, and most daring in everything they do fun, like dating or hobbies

- thrive on a solid routine for work and health, and prefer sticking to their habits than deviating

- they have commitment issues because they get easily bored or distracted, jumping when things get too predictable

- they can be secretively possessive and clingy underneath their free-spirited persona, when it comes to trust and intimacy

- they see themselves as worldy or enlightened, whether they’ve done the work to earn that title or not

- they put a lot of pressure on themselves to succeed, even if they don’t admit it

- they’re often seen smoothing over conflicts or playing mediator, even if they don’t have strong convictions of their own

- they don’t like people probing into their inner world, so you’ll notice them deflecting or withdrawing when things get too personal

[linderosse]

Super valid question that doesn’t really have a set answer.

The Wisdomverse definitely started off as an LU spinoff, since it was always planned to progress in parallel with The Secrets We Keep.

But since then, I’ve changed quite a few things to fit the story I want to tell. These changes largely stem from actual Zelda canon, or certain fan canons that have been around in the LU fandom for some time. Back when I began planning this AU, many of these things hadn’t been confirmed for LU yet, and fans had their own theories. I chose the ones I liked, and also ones that maximize emotional damage (😇) and better match the stories I want to tell.

Spirit and Phantom are not Wind and Tetra

The FSA manga is canon

FSA takes place directly after FS

Legend and Fable are siblings

All relevant characters remember Hyrule Warriors (if they’ve already fought in the War of Eras)

Echo is Aurora, not Fable. Cadence of Hyrule is canon now, and is Echo’s second adventure (AoL is her third).

Smash is peripherally canon and some characters can remember it.

As I go on, I’ve sort of been viewing this more and more as its own thing that is also compatible with the LU Links. I’ve been using tags like #wisdomverse, #wielders of wisdom, and #wis sun or #wis echo for a while now, to differentiate the Zeldas from the potential LU versions.

That said, I still don’t mind folks tagging this as Linked Universe content when applicable, and I’m still going to be keeping the crossover going with the paired arts and The Secrets We Keep. This really still is an AU of LU, even if it’s also its own thing.

Essentially, full credit to @linkeduniverse for the awesome Links-meet idea that I’ve taken my own spin on. Mad respect to them; I’m a huge fan of their ideas and content.

And shoutout to the rest of the LU fandom for the Zelda names (Sun, Lullaby, etc). I continue to stress that, though the personalities, characters, stories, designs, and profession-titles (founder, rogue, etc) of Wisdomverse are either motivated by canon or a creation of my own, the Zelda names in particular were created by the LU fandom as a whole, and I’m using them as a tribute, and to maintain consistency with LU.

Tl;dr: Wisdomverse started off as an LU AU, but it has since sort of evolved into its own thing. The LU Links are still going to be in TSWK and crossovers, and I don’t mind folks tagging LU when relevant. Though some of the details may not match up anymore, I still think of these Zeldas as compatible with the core personalities and adventures of the LU Links.

Masterpost

[goldfishgrahamcracker]

Upon a recent rewatch I noticed that the distorted singing that plays in the background of Irving's death is his own voice singing "Hampstead Is the Place to Ruralise" during Carnivale, which makes me feel wretched.

Hampstead Heath was historically a popular gay cruising ground, and while the song was published in 1861, well after the events of the story, the intense level of detail in the material culture depicted in the show suggests that the creative team knew what they were doing and went out of their way to pick this song for the euphemism.*

Throughout the series we see Irving afraid of Hickey, or rather his own desire for men that he recognises in the other and the associated "chaos" that could ensue. Add to that David Kajganich saying that Irving thought Hickey and Farr were having intimate relations and approached them to "stop it or to touch it", and Hickey's attack seems to subtextually validate Irving's fear that were he to entertain his desires, disaster would strike. The song with its euphemistic context, a distortion of a merrier moment, highlights Irving's nightmare.

This ties to the whole personal tragedy of Irving's end. When he meets Koveyook and his companions, Irving introduces himself first by rank and title, before simply "John". His sheer joy and relief at connection and Koveyook's kindness hints at the possibility of building a sense of self based not on what the Empire wants him to be, but only who he is as a person among persons. It's hardly guaranteed that survival would have led him to accept himself wholly, but I feel that all these details suggest a potential for further growth, untimely snuffed out.

*EDIT: I did not know this anachronistic song choice was an honest mistake (according to David Kajganich’s Q&A) when I made this post. Forget what I said about intentional creative license. However, the euphemism still works for me.

[moraxsthrone]

⊹✧˚｡⋆ title — sir kaeya

⊹✧˚｡⋆ pairing — k. alberich x f!reader

⊹✧˚｡⋆ wc — 5.7k

⊹✧˚｡⋆ cw/an — nsfw. mdni. alcohol consumption (duh it's kaeya). kaeya being a bit of a tease (duh it's kaeya). oral (m & f rcv'ing). snowballing (how fitting). clit slapping. this fic sprang forth from the very first genshin thing i ever wrote (the scene at angel's share) so it's really special to me. kaeya was my first genshin love and will always be my favorite. 💜

surprising as it would be to most, you’d never been to mondstadt before this week’s multi-regional summit. as a diplomatic representative of your region, many would guess that you’d been all over teyvat. but you’ve only held your current office for a little less than a year, and although you did your best to absorb as much information and knowledge as possible from your predecessor, it’ll take a lot more time and experience than what you have so far to be as efficient as they had been. so, for now at least, the job keeps you busy - too busy to travel for pleasure.

so when the final meeting of the last day gets canceled, rather than go home early you take the opportunity to do some much-anticipated exploring of the city of wind and its culture. 

“i’m famished! pray tell, sir kaeya, where would you recommend we go to enjoy the most authentic dishes of mondstadt?”

kaeya alberich, cavalry captain of the knights of favonius, has been charged with keeping you safe. as your security detail, he accompanies you almost everywhere you go - keeping a low profile during policy meetings - blending in with the background while also being close enough to stand between you and any potential threat or danger.

“we?” he asks, looking slightly confused. “will someone else be joining you?”

“if you’ll be so inclined…” you say before biting your lip and looking away shyly.

“me?”

you’d have to be blind not to have noticed his striking good looks the moment you were introduced to him on the first day, and it certainly wouldn’t hurt your feelings one bit to allow the captain to keep you company. likewise but unbeknownst to you, the gorgeous knight has stolen a few glances of you when you’ve been too busy to notice. he has especially enjoyed your pretty smile and the sway of your hips when you walk. more than once he’s allowed his gaze to linger on your curves perhaps a little too long.

“but of course! i don’t want to eat at a restaurant alone while you just stand there and watch. can you think of anything more depressing?” you joke.

“you make a valid point,” he says with a quiet laugh. “very well. allow me to treat you to good hunter. you’d be hard pressed to find a more impressive menu! miss sara makes a mean sticky honey roast - i can’t recommend it enough!”

as the two of you dine together, you enjoy easy conversation, becoming better acquainted with one another. when kaeya introduces you to miss sara, she goes out of her way to prepare for you a sampler of sorts, citing it as the perfect solution to your conundrum of deciding what to order because everything looks so tasty. she also insists that your bill is on the house, refusing to take any mora you offer, but you leave behind a handsome tip anyway. if nothing else, you want miss sara to have it as thanks for her warm and welcoming hospitality.

“what would you like to do next, m’lady?” kaeya asks, walking alongside you towards the city’s center.

you should be used to this title by now, but something about the way the cavalry captain looks at you when he says it sends a small rush of heat to your cheeks.

“oh, i don’t know. why don’t you surprise me?” you say, flashing him a coy smile, which he finds irresistibly adorable.

he takes you to marjorie’s souvenir shop before leading the way to the anemo archon statue in front of the cathedral. from there, the two of you take a stroll outside the city walls, engaging in playful banter along the way. your personalities blend well - he’s pleasantly surprised at your ability to keep up with his wit, and his charm wins you over with ease. by the time the sun is setting over the edge of the western horizon, your conversation is flowing effortlessly. the two of you haven’t been able to shut up for hours when you ask him,

“so where’s the best place to get a drink in this town?”

the knight’s smirk spreads into a full smile as he hums. “i know just the place.” 

⊹✧˚｡⋆

the tavern is packed, and you’re inclined to believe kaeya’s got that pirate blood he claims to have since he’s standing on one of the big wooden tables, surrounded by other rambunctious patrons of angel’s share, singing along with the bard’s songs about legends of sea and treasure. their energy is contagious (obnoxious if you ask diluc who just rolls his eyes and shakes his head from behind the bar). 

you’re right there with them, clapping and laughing when kaeya reaches out, takes your hand, and pulls you up onto the table with him. neither of you are sure if the visible heat on the apples of your cheeks is because of the alcohol or because of the sudden proximity of your bodies. with an arm around your waist he pulls you right up against his side and wow! he’s more powerful than he looks. the song is about finding love on the run and kaeya is acting out the lyrics with you, embarrassing you to no end but you’re having too much fun to ask him to stop, so you just go with it. 

the song’s story ends with a kiss and you think you might just die when kaeya’s arm flexes against the small of your back, fastening your hip to his thigh. he brings his lips right up to yours, but they don’t quite touch. your eyes go wide as you stare into his periwinkle orb that sparkles with mischief. he practically whispers the last line of the song, his dandelion wine breath wisping over your lips. 

the cheering of the men around you grows distant, drowned out by the blood rushing through your ears. 

kaeya’s heart pounds against the palm of your hand resting on his chest.

you watch with bated breath as his ice-blue eye darkens with his diamond pupil. he shifts his weight and your knees feel like jelly when his lips but graze yours before he smiles and pulls away with a laugh. 

raising his cup, he cheers along with the surrounding audience before hopping off the table. setting his drink down, he reaches for you again, this time to help you off the table. you accept, and he pulls you closer before his deft hands clasp your waist, lowering your feet to the floor. 

a tease that kaeya alberich, you think, but a chivalrous one. 

while you find yourself mingling with other patrons it seems kaeya never lets you out of his sight. he’s never too far away, engaged in his own conversations with some of the other locals when you look over to find him looking at you over the rim of his wine glass. 

when one of the gentlemen offers to buy you a drink, kaeya seems to appear out of nowhere and places a hand on your lower back. 

“oh, that won’t be necessary,” the knight interjects, voice filled with cool honey. “all her drinks are on the knights of favonius this evening, but a kind gesture, i’m sure.” 

“why, sir kaeya, if i didn’t know any better i would think you’re trying to keep me all to yourself tonight,” you say with a teasing lilt.

his lips part as a slight blush appears on his cheeks, but he quickly recovers. “just performing my knightly duties to keep you safe, m’lady.” 

when you’re ready to go, kaeya’s having such a good time that you don’t want to end his night. so you make your way to the bar to pay your tab, only to be told that your drinks have been bought and paid for already (oh, he wasn’t lying).

you wander out into the cool night, the sound of the crowd and the smell of booze muffled behind the thick wooden door. no longer had it shut behind you than you feel your back being pressed against the tavern’s exterior wall. you gasp, only to breathe easy when you find yourself pressed between the wall and your now-tipsy chaperone.

“thought you could get away so easily, hm?”

your eyes are glued to his smirk. those lips that promised to kiss you earlier won’t soon leave your mind.

you laugh breathily while giving his chest a gentle push. “i didn’t want to put a damper on your fun.”

“who said my fun is over for the night?” no sooner than the words leave his lips, his eye widens as he quickly realizes how inappropriate it was to say that. “oh dear, it seems i’ve forgotten my manners. please accept my apology, m’lady…”

his panicked attempt at clarification is interrupted by your laughter. “relax, sir kaeya. i won’t hold it against you.” 

he really wishes you’d stop calling him that. it makes his dick twitch every time and you both know his pants will leave little to the imagination if he gets a hard-on.

he stumbles walks you back to the goth grand hotel, removing his cloak along the way and draping it over your shoulders when he notices you shivering in the cool night breeze. when you reach your door, he lingers as you unlock it with the intention of ensuring you make it inside safely. the bolt unlatches and you turn to face your chaperone again. 

he’s looking down at you and opens his mouth to bid you good night when you pull him in by his shirt and kiss him. it’s a huge risk, one you never would’ve taken were it not for the liquid courage coursing through your veins. maybe he isn’t really interested in you and that’s the reason he didn’t kiss you earlier.

much to your relief, he kisses you back. passionately. 

his warm tongue swipes across your bottom lip and you eagerly chase it with your own. you slide your fingers inside the opening of his shirt, balling it in your fist to lure him inside. his chuckle is low and breathy when he smiles against your lips which never leave his as you slam the door with your foot and push his back against the nearest wall.

“hahh…who knew you could be so forceful, m’lady?” he pants.

“sorry, but…” you say between kisses, carding your fingers through his soft hair, “...you teased me earlier and…” another kiss, “...i really wanted that kiss,” you finish with a whine.

“well, why didn’t you just say so, hm?” kaeya says, sucking on your lower lip with a hum.

his thumbs slide under your top, massaging little circles into your skin. there’s not a hint of humor in his voice when he rolls his forehead against yours and rasps, “i’ve been wanting to kiss you until you can’t breathe anymore…”

in one swift motion, kaeya spins you around effortlessly until your back hits the wall, his cloak falling off your shoulders as he catches your gasp in his open mouth, making it clear to you that he’s the one in control now. his fingertips dig into your lower back and pull your hips from the wall, forcing them to collide with his so you can feel what you’re doing to him. you let out a quiet moan at the feeling of his semi pressing against your thigh. his lips leave yours to venture along your jaw before trailing down the column of your neck, his blue hair fluttering in your breath and filling your senses with the cool, clean scent of his cologne.

you reach down and fumble with kaeya’s belt, swearing at it under your breath when it doesn’t cooperate. with one hand and a couple flicks of his fingers, it hits the floor with a clamor of leather and metal. you have much better luck with the fastenings of his pants, his lips returning to yours with a shuddering breath just as you free his cock and start stroking his wide shaft, so hot and hard.

he quickly pulls his gloves off and hikes your skirt up to your hips, exposing your creamy thighs.

“so warm…” kaeya whispers, raking his long, slender fingers along your skin until he reaches your apex. “n' so wet…”

“hhhgods fuck…” the words leave you in a huff, making him groan when you rub your thumb over his slit to collect his slick bead of pre. “f-hnn-fuck me, kaeya~”

with your blessing, he wastes no time pulling his now fully hard cock out of your hand in favor of grabbing the backs of your thighs and picking you up. you lock your ankles behind him with a whimper, the back of your head rolling against the wall when the underside of his dick glides over your dripping pussy lips through your damp panties. kaeya’s got two handfuls of your ass, his deft fingers curling and pulling your underwear to the side to let his leaking cockhead seek your naked opening. he begins to push himself inside, dropping his forehead to your shoulder with a long groan as his tip pops through your tight ring. 

you cry out, one of your hands flying to the wall behind you as you loop an arm around his neck for stability. kaeya spreads his legs a little further apart for leverage as he sinks a little deeper inside you, his arms wrapped tightly around your waist. before he’s even fully sheathed inside you, he retreats just to push in again and starts fucking you, slow and shallow. he’s barely halfway in and you already feel so full, the thick vein on top of his shaft rolling under his skin as he pushes and pulls at your slick, gummy walls.

“so tight~” he breathes, open lips ghosting across your face as he goes for your lips again. “are you okay?”

all you can do is dumbly nod as your eyes roll back behind fluttering eyelids and a huff of a laugh bubbles from his smile. “feels so good…so good to me, kaeya~” 

you’re practically singing for him already and he hasn’t even bottomed out yet. it would probably go to his head were it not for the fact that he’s too far gone from the wet heat of your pussy sucking him so hard, the lip of your ring catching on the head of his cock with every draw of his hips, driving him too crazy for his ego to remain intact anymore. 

your elegant neck is exposed to him, letting his open lips drag along your moistening skin as your back moves up and down the wall with his thrusts. kaeya’s long, slender fingers grab your jaw and pull your lips to his. you’re so nice and wet for him that your need is spreading to his hips and balls. the sound of his thighs hitting yours when you finally take him all the way goes straight to your head. it’s one thing to feel kaeya fucking you, but hearing him fuck you - moist slaps of skin, his quickened breaths and quiet groans so close to your ear - it’s driving you out of your mind.

the cryo wielder pulls you away from the wall, your hot tongues swirling as he carries you to bed. his fingers squeeze the plush of your ass, guiding you along his throbbing shaft as he goes. kaeya lays you down before reaching behind his back to unlock your ankles and spread you open for him. 

he pulls out and stands up, looking down at you and letting out a breathy chuckle when you whine a little at the loss of his girth. but the view is delicious so you don’t complain. his rigid cock is thick with a large vein running his length and an angry, almost purple cockhead that’s dripping with fresh precum. his tan shaft glistens, wet with your slick. it bounces under its own weight as he kicks his boots off and pushes his pants down. 

you both watch the other undress with urgency; he makes quick work of his shirt as you shimmy out of your skirt. save for the battle scars, his lithe body is flawless - tall with long, lean muscles. seeing him like this makes you bite your lip and rub your thighs together.

kaeya’s lips curve into a small smile as he crawls towards you on the bed, his hands gently caressing the tops of your thighs as he kneels between them. he leans down to kiss your cheek, his long rat tail licking your breasts. “you are so fucking beautiful,” he says, barely above a whisper. “i've been dying to taste you…”

a sigh leaves your lips as he makes his way down your body, kissing and licking, sucking and nipping in all the right places. his breath feels so warm against your skin, save for the few times he purses his lips to blow cool air on the spots he just licked. he swirls his tongue around one of your nipples, only to replace it with his cool fingers while he gives the other the same treatment. the juxtaposition of warm and cool makes you arch off the bed, moaning when your clit brushes against his naked belly. 

gradually, kaeya makes his way further down, ghosting kisses along your bikini lines as his hands spread your thighs open just a little more for him. he watches your dewy petals unfold for him, exposing the hard little bud they’ve been hiding. “fuck…” he mutters, “...such a pretty pussy…”

“kaey-” you start, but your voice is cut off by a gasp when his warm tongue swipes swiftly along your slit. a single periwinkle eye stares up at you as he flicks the tip of his wet muscle over your clit, soft and light as a feather. he’s teasing you. you can see the mischievous glint in his eye as he dips his tongue into your hole. finally, his lips latch onto your needy clit, making your hips leave the bed when you thrust into his mouth. 

his taste buds rub your tiny erection, your flavor making him moan as he sucks you harder. one of his hands finds yours, your fingers interlocking while his other hand grabs and kneads at your heaving breasts, your soft tummy, and the plush of your thigh. 

he pops off you, drool and slick coating his chin. “your flavor…fucking delectable~” he breathes before diving back in.

he nearly sends you over the edge when he pushes two of his long fingers inside your clenching cunt, curling them to find that unmistakable rough spot within. your walls squelch helplessly around him as he finger-fucks you. your free hand grabs and pulls mindlessly at his hair, hips rocking to fuck his pretty face as he gives you the head of your life.

“ohh~ kaeya~” 

the searing coil that’s been spooling deep in your belly is getting impossibly tighter and when the cavalry captain hums on your clit, the vibrations send you. you cry out for him, back arching, walls clenching around his curled fingers. he pins you to the bed with his free arm and moans, a wet spot forming where more of his pre leaks out of his throbbing cock when your fists tighten around his cerulean locks. you cum for him, thighs clamping around his head while his tongue pulses over your clit until you’re fully spent.

kaeya situates his hips between your legs, wiping your spilled essence from his flushed face with a breathy chuckle before pressing the underside of his cock between your slippery folds. you taste yourself on his tongue when he kisses you, and he relishes your gasp when his swollen cockhead catches on your overstimmed clit. 

grinning against your lips, he says, “oh? feeling a little sensitive, hm? perhaps you’re not quite ready to take my cock again so soon…” he teases, pulling away but you squeeze your thighs around his hips, impeding his escape and making him laugh.

“i can take a lot more than you think, sir kaeya…” you purr, twirling a strand of his blue hair around your finger.

there’s that glint in his eye again when he licks his smirking lips. “is that so, m’lady?” he croons, reaching between your bodies to grab the base of his cock. biting his lower lip and holding your gaze steady the cryo user slaps the head of his cock hard against your clit, swallowing your cry at the sharp pressure. “fuck,” he groans. “you make the prettiest sounds for me…”

“so mean,” you whine, digging your nails into his biceps when he pushes his blunt tip inside you.

he drops his mouth to your ear as he slowly spreads you open around his girth, whispering, “...and you love it.” 

his sultry voice shoots down your spine straight to your core, making him moan deliciously when your weeping walls clamp down on him. kaeya starts slow and even, pulling almost all the way out before easing himself balls deep a few times, making you feel every inch as his cock drags and pulls along your slippery insides. 

the lingering effects of your orgasm have left you even tighter than the first time he fucked you. he can already feel the heat pooling at the base of his spine, his balls drawing closer to his body when his hips begin to snap. there’s no way he’s going to get enough of you before he cums. you feel too fucking good - the way your little cunt is squeezing and sucking him so hard, drooling and soaking his entire length as he fucks you. the pretty little sounds your mouth and your pussy make for him…your whines and cries of his name, the slurps and squelches of your juices all over his cock. 

he’s got to get more of you, plunge his cock deeper inside your hot, wet cunt. 

kaeya pushes up onto his knees and props your ankles on his shoulders, still fucking you through it all without missing a beat.

“oh gods, kae- kaeya~...feels so good, don’t stop!”

“wasn’t planning on it…” he pants as he leans forward, putting you in a deep press so he can hit the spot that makes your hips leave the bed. “...gonna fuck you until this sweet pussy of yours creams all over my dick…”

you’re twisting the sheets in your fists above your head, the firm ridge of kaeya’s cockhead bumping against your sweet spot with every snap of his hips. strands of blue hair are sticking to his tan skin, a bead of sweat trickles down his chest before dripping onto yours. his palms are planted firmly on either side of you, veins popping out along his sinewy arms as muffled grunts form in his throat.

your walls are closing in tighter around him, both of you can feel it. his name is leaving your lips in broken syllables, coming out in huffs with the force of his thrusts: “kae-ya…y-you…fuck…g-gon-na…” is all you can manage before he fucks your next orgasm right out of you. you’re pawing at his chest, crying his name, clenching so hard around him you’d push him out were it not for him pounding into you harder, fighting to stay inside, determined to fuck you all the way through it with his brow furrowed and jaw clenched.

his balls ache, but he’s able to hold out for a few more seconds before the coil snaps inside him. he swears and pulls out quickly, his narrow hips still jerking and his arm flexing as he spills his hot, sticky seed out onto your belly and tits. you watch the pleasure wash over his beautiful face as his cock twitches in his own hand, a groan giving way to a satisfied sigh as the last of his cum oozes from his slit.

one at a time, he lowers your feet to the bed on either side of him. both of you are out of breath, chests heaving as kaeya dips down and licks a glob of his still-warm semen from your skin before bringing his mouth to yours. you moan in his mouth at his flavor, eagerly swirling your tongue around his to let him feed you his fresh, salty cum. 

when he rolls off of you, both of you just lie on your backs in comfortable silence for a few moments, catching your breaths and basking in the afterglow. 

“i guess this means you’ll be leaving soon, hm?” you finally ask. 

with one knee bent, kaeya turns his head to look at you as you gaze up at the ceiling. “is that your way of kicking me out of your bed?” he asks with a forced smirk. 

“no,” you chuckle. “i just didn’t take you for the type to stick around after a one-night stand…” you turn onto your side to face him. “but if i’m being honest, i really don’t want you to leave.”

“just how big of a whore do you think i am?” kaeya asks, contriving to sound offended and making you chuckle. he mirrors you and rolls onto his side, tenderly tucking a strand of hair behind your ear. “i’m glad you want me to stay. i’ve had more fun with you tonight than i’ve had in a really long time.”

“is that right?” you say, biting your lip and dragging a fingertip down his enticing cleavage. “then why should our fun end?” you lean in and kiss him, his lips meeting yours softly.

“i didn’t say it should...” kaeya says before pressing his lips to yours again.

you press your hand against his chest, prompting him to lay on his back. goosebumps rise to meet your lips when you kiss his tan neck. he leans his head back and gasps quietly when you gently palm his softened cock. your touch is exquisite. he wants more of you but first he’s content to enjoy the wet kisses you leave along his skin as you work your way down to one of his dark and tightly budded nipples.

you smile and look up at him when he moans your name at the feeling of your tongue flicking over what’s proving to be one of his most sensitive spots. continuing on down, you take your time ghosting sweet kisses along the valley of his taut abs, all the way down to his cute navel and blue happy trail. you’re appreciating the time and care he obviously puts into his manscaping when you wrap your fingers around his still-sticky cock, surprised to find it so hard again already. 

with a couple of fingers holding his base, you swirl your tongue around his salty cockhead and fuck he tastes good. you close your lips around his tip and give it a little suckle before popping off again to kiss the underside of his rigid shaft. you can still taste yourself on him too, somehow making you want to suck him even more. 

sliding his slender fingers into your hair, kaeya mutters, “y/n…please…”

you finally take him in your mouth, your saliva coating him as you slowly sink down until his tip touches the back of your throat before hollowing your cheeks and pulling back towards his tip. with a slight tremble of his open legs, kaeya’s fingers tighten in your hair - not to control your pace or depth, but because the sheer pleasure coursing through him has all of his muscles tightening. 

“ahh~ feels so…nnh~” he sighs as you take him in again, “...good.”

the sounds and words leaving his mouth are going straight to your pussy. you want to know just how good you can make him feel so after a little more cocksucking, you pull off him and move to straddle his hips.

you and kaeya hold eye contact as you line him up with your slit, dragging his tip between your pussy lips a few times. you’ll never forget the pleading look in his eye or the way his lips part when his blunt, leaking tip catches on your opening and you begin to lower yourself on his length. kaeya takes your hands in his, intertwining your fingers as your eyes flutter shut at the sensation of being filled once again with his girth.

you lean down to kiss him as you begin to ride him, slowly at first but gradually working yourself into a frenzy. kaeya’s hands grip your hips as you pop your ass on him, gliding along his filling cock. your moans turn to whimpers as you feel yourself approaching another orgasm and you start bucking your hips. 

“ka-hahh~ kaeya…” you sit up, your hands anchoring themselves to his chest, using his body as leverage to drag your clit along his happy trail. 

kaeya’s fingertips are digging into the plush of your butt, aiding your thrusts as he whispers words of encouragement. “that’s it, y/n. you’re doing so well…fucking me right…you’re almost there, keep going~”

and just like that, your fingertips dig into the muscle of his chest as your orgasm rips through you. you’re crying his name out over and over as you spasm all around him and the very fibers of your being feel like they’re being torn asunder until your body begins to go limp. kaeya welcomes you into his embrace as you lower your chest to his, your hot breath bathing his neck as you try to catch it, still whining here and there as he kisses the side of your head and tells you how fucking amazing you are.

with some of your strength and mind returning, you rise just enough to kiss him again, finding a fleeting look of sheer adoration in his eye before he lifts your hips and pulls out of you, his rock hard, creamy cock slapping against his happy trail. he moves you onto your belly while he positions himself behind you, pulling your weak hips up until you’re presenting for him.

“is this okay?” he mutters, dragging his tip along your quivering slit.

eyes still closed, you nod weakly against the bed. “ye-yes…please, kaeya~”

with one hand on your lower back, he guides his cock inside you before hooking both his hands around your hips. he fucks you slowly, pulling almost all the way out before sinking himself fully inside your heat again. but it isn’t long before kaeya’s wet hips are slapping against your ass and he’s watching the creamy ring you’re leaving on his cock, mesmerized by how beautifully it contrasts with his darker skin. the thick vein on top of his cock is rolling under the pressure of your tight, sucking cunt - every time kaeya thrusts inside you. 

you’re whimpering again. “s-sir kaeyaaa~” you whine at him over your shoulder. 

“love it when you call me that…” he pants.

“i- hahh~ i know~” you say with a sly, exhausted smile. 

his balls are tightening again - rolling around in his sac as the muscles around them seek to force his seed out again, making him moan and exhale a long “ah, fuuuuuck~” behind you. “gonna cum…”

after a few more stuttered thrusts, kaeya buries himself deep inside you, his tightened balls pressed hard against your clit as he unloads himself. “i’m...nggh...i'm cumming~” he can’t help but moan loudly as he coats your walls with his hot, milky seed. a couple of thick globs leak from the rim of your hole, and drip down his tight, dark-skinned balls.

kaeya nearly collapses on top of you, but manages to land on the bed beside you, pulling you close to him. you’re facing each other but your eyes are still closed as you both kiss whatever part of the other’s body or face is closest, too exhausted to mutter a single word. 

⊹✧˚｡⋆

dawn comes, bringing with it her harsh light. your eyes flutter open with a squint, turning away from it only to find an arm lying limply around you. 

oh. oh right. that happened. 

you smile weakly at the fresh memories of your drunken fuckfest with the cavalry captain of the knights of favonius.

the fact that your duties in mondstadt have been fulfilled and you’ll be leaving to return to your homeland give you a low, sinking feeling in your heart. after a few minutes of replaying the events of the previous night and considering your options, you gingerly move the cavalry captain’s arm off your body - slowly and carefully so as not to wake him. 

⊹✧˚｡⋆

kaeya wakes with a groan, his eye blinking open to find himself alone in the hotel bed. he sits up and looks around, calling your name once but to no avail. he thinks ‘how predictable’ when he realizes you left without even saying goodbye. he tries to ignore the ache in his chest, reminding himself that he should be used to it by now. he throws the covers back to start getting dressed when from the corner of his eye he catches something flutter: a folded piece of parchment that had been resting on your pillow. a thread of hope dares to weave its way through his heart as he picks it up and begins to read:

“you looked so handsome and peaceful in the morning light, i didn’t want to wake you. thank you…for everything, but especially for the night before. i don’t want to call it “last” night because i truly hope it wasn’t our last. please reach out if you feel the same. i’d love for you to visit my homeland so i can be your tour guide and return the favor…i’d love to see you again, sir kaeya alberich…”

you’d signed it with your name and a simple, small heart before writing your address below your signature.

a couple of days later, you receive a letter inside an envelope with the seal of the knights of favonius. 

“of course i feel the same. our time together was far too delightful to have been so brief. i would love to visit you and experience all that your homeland has to offer. the acting grand master has been urging me to take some time off to relax anyway. so just tell me when and i’ll be there with bells on. we’ll paint the town red and enjoy as many more nights together as you please, my lady.”

— sir kaeya

kaeya m.list | main m.list

⊹✧˚｡⋆ 18+ reblogs, likes, comments, and follows always appreciated !! i give you all kithkith !!

[chaifootsteps]

if that leak is accurate that Stella and/or Andrealphus are going to die in the s2 finale, it's going to make parts of the fandom dogpiling on Octavia look even more ridiculous

like she just lost her mother and possibly her uncle because her father's affair partner (as far as she knows) just murdered one or both of them and she maybe also had to get involved herself by making the incredibly traumatic choice of saving her father's life from her mother/uncle by potentially hurting and killing them both

and she just discovered she has incredible magic powers which her father has not prepared her to use or handle at all

and to top it all off as far as she knows her father broke his promise not to leave her for Blitzo. like even if Viv goes the route of 'Stolas is kicked out of the palace as consequences for lending out his book', Stolas still bears responsibility for that. He did break his promise to be there for Via when he decided to risk his nobility and titles on sexually extorting someone with his grimoire (a grimoire that's also her inheritance) - he keeps talking about breaking demon law so he knew the risks. that'd be the same if he'd made the more sympathetic choice of having a business arrangement with Blitzo to loan him the book instead of exorting him for sex. and he could have avoided all of this if he'd tried to get Blitzo a crystal in the first place, since he knew full well they existed

and when Via's understandably upset by all of this Stolas doesn't validate any of those feelings but just tells her she 'doesn't understand' and he didn't leave her (presumably Viv is going to pull a 'Stolas tried to call but couldn't get through bcus Stella' to get Stolas out of this, despite all the stuff I mentioned with the book above being entirely his fault).

He tells her she's the best thing in his life but doesn't address any of the ways he's completely failed her - didn't stop having a monthly fling when he knew how upsetting she found it, didn't teach her enough magic if any magic at all, didn't take her away from Stella even though the situation was miserable for everyone involved, didn't explain the arranged marriage situation when she got old enough, didn't bother telling her Stella tried to assassinate him, didn't bother to beef up security to protect her while he was busy negging Blitzo, presumably got distracted again when Blitzo finally folds and gives him the love he wants, etc.

like objectively he's a terrible father even if Stella is worse, but the fandom thinks Via should just be able to switch off caring about Stella at the drop of a hat for Stolas' benefit, even though it's Stolas' fault she'd be attached to her mother because he chose to try and play house for 17 yrs

like supposing Stolas was around Via's age when they first had Via it's understandable he wouldn't know the perfect thing to do. but he was definitely an adult when she was around 5-7 years old and was presumably well aware Stella had been a nightmare for most of that time, yet he insisted the family stay together

it's such a huge lack of empathy and understanding of how abuse works that even if Via had some awareness that Stella is the worst, she'd probably still have mixed feelings about losing her mother. most children struggle to break off attachments with abusive parents because of the good times and because they still love them and want them to be the person they hoped

and Via is facing that exact issue with both Stolas and Stella. it's unreasonable to expect her to immediately be on Stolas' side if the fandom is also arguing he managed to hide what Stella was really like from her for so long - and how would she even know he's telling the truth if he does finally tell her? he's lied to her and let her down before and it'd be very convenient for him to blame Stella for everything (including lending out the book, which was completely his choice) - it's not uncommon for divorcing parents to demand their child's allegiance by throwing the other parent under the bus, after all

Those are all excellent points, and if it does pan out according to the leak, it's not going to matter a particle to this fandom. They're going to rip into that broken, hurt, grieving child like a swarm of lampreys.

[anglercrit]

I never was a fan of CherriSnake at all, mainly because the dynamic was just like the others: Fanservice.

None of these characters have the SPARK needed for me to ship them. I usually don't mind canon ships as I would with crackships. But I've recently gotten to the Demisexual Logic when it comes to shipping characters.

Like if a character has a few moments type deal. Or if it's a Dating Sim type deal where 3 integeral moments happen for me to consider "Hey, this is it. This is ENDGAME" but with Saint Repentious in Heaven (That was not an idea of mine, I wanna clarify his name was inspired by Journey of The Light and possibly others.) and Cherri in Hell. I don't think that CherriSnake is ever gonna be a thing.

It was just like Martha and Mayberry. Completely there just to go "There, you got your silly WLW relationship! Now shut up!" It feels like any remote relationships that doesn't consist of MLM or Gay is often the centerpoint of attention while the other letters of our rainbow is often sidelined for Men.

I mean, I myself is Orientated AroAce. The feeling of validation is wonderful! But the fact Viv does not give a damn other than to reuse plots from Yoai BL infuriates me.

This was not a main point of mine, as this is leading to an idea, I wanted to say my peace before introducing this.

I am working on a Hazbin Hotel Rewrite (It's commonly referred to as "Left To Rot" but the working title is Redeeming The Hotel AU or known as Hazbin: Rewritten.) currently, Sir Pentious is the main characters love interest (as with Husk) and the storyline is:

Main Character is not Charlie, as she eventually loses her "interest" in the Hotel, after being belittled, taking after her father.

This leads to the MC taking over as the actual owner/founder of the Hotel in her wake, attempting to try and help with regaining Charlie's hope.

The Hotel is called Happy Hotel, but as time went on, she refers it as Hazbin as she believes it was a space for "has beens" and not "want to bes"

So the way I had the MC know Sir Pentious was interacting as his "Guardian Angel" (Although at this rate, the MC was being created in the Angel Ethereal pool) she was his guardian angel. When she was left in Hell, and she meets with Sir Pentious he recognizes her which led to Husk getting jealous.

Poly, Husk x OC x Pentious?

ok I have a lot of thoughts here (dw all of them good) so I'll just bullet point this

I honestly REALLY like the dating sim approach- I feel like cherrisnake COULD have worked, I like the idea of pent trying to seem cool to impress her but it really did feel fanservicey. And Cherri being in Hell and Pentious in heaven has some angst potential but I doubt it'll be explored.

even as someone who admittedly enjoys some trashy gay romance novels, yea the way viv handles her gay relationships frustrates me. It's probably because she hypes up how good the gay rep will be and then just recycles Hayes code era stereotypes.

your rewrite seems neat! I like the idea of someone else trying to reignite that hope in Charlie- honestly instead of the war against heaven the season 1 finale being Charlie beginning to lose hope and the hotel gang working to convince her that a sinner COULD be redeemed would be a sweet moment. Also I'm all for poly relationships so hell yea

[thyandrawrites]

On "dream doping", or the lesson to be learned from despair

Alteratively titled: why breaking up with your high school sweetheart is vital for a career in soccer (with or without said sweetheart. Signed: Ego Jinpachi)

buckle up, this is a long one

We know that Reo went into this match with several hungups as to why Nagi would leave him behind, even going as far as asking Chigiri and Kunigami why they'd pick him

And his voice shaking (notice the wobbly speech bubble) as he repeats the validation, like he doesn't quite believe it to be true anymore. And then during the match he kept alternating between talking himself up and trash talking Isagi with increasingly frantic urgency. He needed to test his worth against Isagi and come out victorious to prove that he was worthy of being the genius' partner, yes, but one important factor is that he did all of this specifically seeking Nagi's approval. He needed to hear it from him, because it's Nagi's departure that crushes Reo's confidence in the first place. Before that moment, Reo was self-assured and cocky, even looking down on other players he felt were beneath him. But we could argue that confidence was born from a shaky foundation—the idea of staying a team with Nagi until the world cup and their eventual victory together for Japan.

I think a factor that doesn't often get brought up in Reo commentaries is that Reo derives a lot of his winning self-image from tag-teaming with a genius

And it's from "borrowing" his talent that Reo feels he lifts their collective value to genius level

And in the process, Reo also tends to undersell his own skills by comparison, and letting them stay an accessory to Nagi's brilliance,

despite how it's been remarked that Reo's a bit of a genius in his own light. If he honed that potential, he could be a big threat, too. Alone.

This is by design, of course. He foils pre blue lock Rin for this reason, too. Reo and young Rin are similar in that they both consider their soccer partner the true star of the show, subordinating their own skills as just a fancy accessory to make their partners shine and become world's best with them right at their heels.

The unfortunate consequence of this is that they end up internalizing that their dream is not achievable without their partner(s), because they ingrained being a sidekick so deep into that plan that they simply see themselves unwilling or unable to chase it on their own.

Hence why, for the continuation of their dream, it becomes vital to have their partner's approval. They just don't see the point in going on alone. Losing the partnership means losing the reason to play altogether.

Now, of course this mindset is incompatible with blue lock. Nothing really new there. Reo was always framed as the delusional oddball for signing up for the program with the intended goal of using it to make Nagi the best, rather than himself. In other words, for trying to bend the system into accommodating his dream rather than accepting Ego's philosphy and playing by Ego's rules. And of course, that plan was bound to be put to the test when Reo&Nagi got the first taste of "despair".

The series posits that despair is the feeling you get when your dream doesn't measure up to reality and threatens to crash and burn. Ego posits that there's only one way out of it that doesn't involve self-destruction. And that's avoiding the trap of the so-called "dream doping".

But what does "engraving despair" even mean in simple terms? I think Ego's point is that after experiencing a crushing, frustrating defeat, some players (the normies, or those who don't go very far) simply think "next time we'll win" without putting any active energy into changing their playstyle and rebuilding it anew to face the growing challenges and "devour" them along the way.

Think of Barou, and how he managed to come back after Isagi and Nagi made him effectively useless in the field. What Barou did was evolving into someone even more chaotic and unpredictable, and devouring them right back. Barou himself cites the despair he felt during that match as the catalyst of his growth and winning goal. In other words, instead of dream doping, Barou adapted and survived in a battlefield that would've otherwise left him in the dust.

But not every player has the presence of mind to pick themselves back up as the match is still unfolding, and when the defeats rolls around, they fold under the weight of that despair. We see this in action. When Sae evolves so rapidly in Spain and eats Rin for breakfast during their 1v1, Rin's reaction to despair is dream doping (at least at first). So is Reo's when he loses to team white. Faced with opponents that had an explosive soccer growth, they struggle to keep pace, and then refuse to face reality and admit they also need to change their playstyle to keep staying in the game.

In Reo's case, he even goes as far as saying he doesn't have "the courage to let himself be destroyed and reborn." And that defeatist attitude is what leads team white to choose Chigiri instead. A real egoist doesn't think "I cannot do it" but instead keeps fighting tooth and nail until the end.

But Reo isn't there yet. If you analyse his body language at the end of the match, it's clear he expects a rejection before it even comes. Notice his posture

Having just had a taste of the limits of his skills against strong opponents, his reaction is resigned. His stance is defensive and closed off. His arms and legs are crossed, he's the only one on the ground, his head is hung in defeat and avoiding Nagi's eyes. Even the camera angle looks at him from above, like he's already doomed himself by deciding to stay on the ground, not picking himself up. Remember, it's Kunigami who lifts him from his collar. Reo doesn't have that strength alone.

This transition here also shows it well imo. True to fashion, he only shows a reaction when Nagi's directly addressing him. A part of him is still wishing for things between them to mend, to go back to how they were. There's hope written all over his face in that second panel, but the moment he hears what Nagi has to say, it abruptly morphs into pain.

Nagi echoes the words Reo wanted to tell him when they split, but to Reo it doesn't come across as the approval he was seeking. Rather, as the opposite: while Reo couldn't bring himself to encourage Nagi to go ahead in fear that Nagi wouldn't look back (that is, in fear Nagi wasn't as attached to him and their dream as Reo was)... Nagi says them easily enough. And to Reo, that's more crushing than the loss itself because he misconstructs it as indifference towards their promise.

It all circles back to Reo's insecurity. While Nagi just showed him he's able to change even without Reo as his partner, Reo is insecure about being able to do the same because he sees them as his biggest weapon, not anything inherent to Reo alone. Thus, once Nagi mines the foundation of Reo's confidence (their team up), any step Nagi takes in an effort to get them closer to the world cup in Reo's eyes is just another step away from it (and from him). Reo always assumed they'd crossed that finish line together, that he'd build Nagi up into the world's best striker. He wasn't prepared for a path where Nagi teams up with other people, leaving Reo powerless in the sidelines—their combo (and thus himself) a weapon that outlived its usefulness.

Much like Rin declaring that he'd lose his reason to play soccer if he can't chase his dream with Sae the way they had agreed to, Reo metaphorically sees his future as the "abnormal monster duo" crumbling away (notice the decaying effect on the square with his internal narration). Instead of taking steps towards ensuring their dream still has a chance of happening in the future, he sees it as already doomed.

The thing is, Reo isn't ready to give up on it, though. He doesn't want to. I could be wrong about this but him seeking out a clean cut from Nagi came across to me less as if he was blaming Nagi for leaving, and more like he seeked a fight as self-punishment for his thoughts during the match. In the previous chapter, he tried stifling Nagi's potential and then resented himself for it. Now, his internal narration is almost goading Nagi's anger. I think it's still up in the air whether he was lashing out because he was overwhelmed by his conflicting feelings or if he was seeking out Nagi's rejection because he hated himself for not measuring up to his own standards during the match. Maybe a bit of both.

Point is, Reo is refusing to face reality. By saying "then pick me", to cite Ego, he's denying that he was powerless in the match, and putting the entire brunt of his loss onto Nagi's shoulders for not choosing him. Simply put, he's relying on Nagi to open up the door to go further in blue lock instead of growing into the player that gets to choose who to pick.

And Nagi recognizes this and feels hurt by it, cause if Reo refuses to evolve, switch up tactics and try new things, he's also implicitly refusing to go further in the program. From Nagi's perspective, it's Reo that's breaking their promise by being unwilling to put in the effort to keep staying in the game. Remember, the consequence for failing blue lock is no longer being allowed to play professionally for Japan. If Reo quit putting up a fight, his dream would be over for good.

And the story tells us, the measure of a great striker is how they react to the challenges thrown in their path. Nagi's growth happens specifically because he doesn't tie his success to Reo, but knows when to throw in other variables and when cooperating with Reo makes them stronger. In Nagi's eyes, their dream is not reliant on their combo, but their combo is a weapon that makes their dream achievable. Whereas Reo based his plan to get the world cup around his partnership with Nagi, and let his own skills lay dormant and underdeveloped cause he always defaulted to passing to Nagi to score.

But when Nagi leaves the equation for good, Reo's forced to address where his own strengths really lie and how to weaponize them to avoid elimination. That's why the chameleon awakens for the first time. It gets roused by Reo's despair, which gets "engraved" only when it dawns on Reo that their combo is not an option anymore, and it's on Reo and Reo alone to fight his way back up, evolving and devouring rivals along the way. And much like Nagi's talent for trapping, Reo's stregth was also inherent, and never just reliant on them being a team.

[mikimakiboo]

And now for the backstory saga, our favorite knight...

Cross !

Knights in the middle ages were usually from the noble class, except for a very few who could be from the lower class, which is Cross's case !

He was a very determined and motivated boy, even though he was an orphan after the early death of his parents due to sickness it never stopped him from believing in his dreams, the biggest one being: becoming a knight

He kept bringing his candidacy over and over again even though he kept being rejected as he wasn't a noble or the son of a knight

Eventually tensions between the kingdoms amplified and the king needed more knights in case a war started, so at age 12 Cross finally got accepted and started his training (that would usually start at 7)

However, Cross was looked down a lot due to him being older than the other recruits and being from the lower class from a family without honors, and was often asked to do more than what was required as to "prove himself worthy of the job"

The only one supporting him was a boy two years older than him who had already started the second phase of the training (out of four): Blue

Blue saw Cross's potential right away and often encouraged him when others would talk down to him

They eventually became friends and Blue would sometimes offer him private training to help him improve faster, and he did, Cross was a fast learner

Cross officially became a knight at age 26 ! (When all the others would become knights at 18/21) He was tasked to guard certain places such as the castle or other living places for important people

He also was gifted a land as it was a custom at that time and had a little house build as he wasn't rich enough to live in a manor (Blue lives in the castle with some other knights and pays him visits when he's off duty)

Nowwwwww the mandatory trauma:

Due to him being from the lower class and being constantly talked down during his training Cross developed a fear of never being good enough and deserving of his title, so he works hard, very hard, and is often too severe with himself as he desperately needs validation that he's doing a good job

He's scared he'll never be good enough for anything and truly craves approbation from anyone willing to give him some

He also has a slight imposter syndrome ? He was really determined to become a knight but once he was accepted and started training and saw all the other recruits who came from noble families he started to feel as if he didn't belong here and that he got accepted purely because they were tired of his coming back again and again and not because they needed him. He really wanted to become a knight, it was his biggest dream, but he also became scared that he was taking someone's place, someone more deserving than him, someone who would make a better job than him, and that is also a big reason he feels he has to prove himself everyday now

He also has attachment issues, as he'll literally be loyal to anyone validating him regardless of their rank

[tavyliasin]

Raphael - Archduke of Asexuals

Welcome to another essay from Tavylia! We need some words about the handsome devil himself now, darlings, do we not? Because there's something very Ace about him - and I don't just mean "what a nifty guy", strap in (but not on) because we're going on a deep dive on...

Why Is Raphael the King of Asexuals and What Is It About Him That Draws So Many Of Us To Him Like He Is Made Of Garlic Bread: Another "Short" Essay by TavyliaSin (Who Frankly Rebels Against The Idea Of A Concise Title) ((Because This Is More Fun)) (((I Might Have Some Volo In My Family Tree)))

((Side Note - Ended up discussing more of Asexuality in fandom in general, but that's cool, right?...Right, well, the sections are marked, read as you so wish~)) Alright, this time we're not going to go too heavy into any darker topics, but there will be a deep examination of character, lore, asexuality, and a large heap of headcanons. There will also be a lot of microlabels, so I'll pop a short glossary at the end and some resources.

Also, please remember that no headcanon of mine is ever intended to override canon, or anyone else's HC - each HC is true and valid to the head it lives within~ that's the beauty of them, they are ours, and even when shared they remain our own to enjoy too.

What in the Hells is Asexuality Anyway? Aka, is Lia really trying to say the man she writes so much smut for is not sexual at all? (A brief overview of Asexuality)

Asexuality, in the most basic definition, means quite simply: "Experiencing limited or no sexual attraction." Now, look very closely. Some Asexuals, or Aces as we are sometimes called (and will be in this essay) experience absolute 0 sexual attraction. Some experience a very limited amount, or only under specific circumstances. It's also about Sexual Attraction and does not necessarily include feelings towards Action. I find this is best explained by the Split Attraction Model: Sexual Attraction - Attraction with a sexual component. Romantic Attraction - Attraction with a romantic component. Libido - Arousal, physical desire to act on arousal whether alone or partnered. Sex Drive - The desire to engage in partnered sexual activity, with or without arousal. A lot of people might look at those criteria and think "but those are the same thing", and for many that would be a fair assumption if they tend to be experienced simultaneously. But many among us only experience some parts, or they're not connected. The key is that whilst some Asexuals may experience little or none of any of those four, the only one relevant is the first, and an asexual with high libido or sex drive is no less asexual than any other, there's just no person attached to that libido or drive. So there are asexuals who enjoy sex, who have sexual relationships, and there are also asexuals who have no interest in any of that - the best part is, we're all valid!

Alright, But What Does This Have To Do With Raphael? The Devil Who Seduces In Every Other Sentence?

Right, see, here's the thing. He does flirt, but it never goes further. Seduction is just another tool that he uses, the same way he uses intimidation, promises, and bargains. It would be foolish of him to ignore the potential to bend someone to his schemes when he notices the colour rise to their cheeks when he talks, his goals need a lot of pieces to fall into place. None of it feels genuine. Raphael simply needs people to agree to his terms, and if the promise of sex secures a signature then so be it - besides, he has a hungry incubus at home who can fulfil that side of the deal without him ever having to lift a finger~ It isn't uncommon either for asexual people to make innuendo, lewd jokes, or to flirt without intention - some may even find that it's very easy to do this when there's no attraction or expectation. So for that... He reads as very Ace to me, it's all a part of the manipulation and the grand scheme. There's no actual attraction there. Interest? Certainly, the player character can be a very useful tool in his needs.

What About Haarlep? How Do They Fit In If Raphael Is Asexual?

Haarlep is an extremely sexual being, by their very nature they feed on sex and sexual energy, and we know by what they say that Raphael does indeed sleep with them. The canon would lead one to a logical microlabel when looking at Raphael and Haarlep together: Autosexual - This means experiencing more sexual attraction to yourself than to anyone else. This is a rarer microlabel, but still under the Ace umbrella as "limited sexual attraction" which can mean "attraction is very infrequent" and/or "attraction is only experienced under specific circumstances". And, of course, the HC territory can veer into Haarlep feeling like a safe enough option to deal with Libido and Sex Drive without having to find another partner or worry about attraction. You can also, if you really want to, bring in the canon that so many Anti-Raphael people love to scream about, "Haarlep says Raphael is bad in bed". Perhaps he is, perhaps he's just not into it beyond the simple release of tension and need. I'm not judging him for that, even if my HC is wildly different.

Why Is It Asexuals Like Him So Much? Is It Just Because He's Ace Too?

Well here come the deeper theories, based more on my own personal angle than anyone else's, so please do not assume this is the "only correct interpretation" nor the only way an ace may adore him. Plenty of aces don't feel any sexual or romantic attraction to Raphael, they're simply very fond of him as a character. He's interesting, oddly non-threatening because that flirtation is never pushed too far, never acted on, it's just there, a part of his clear interest in the player character (and he is obsessed, in his way, those diaries read like self-insert fan-fiction Raphael, my love, I see you). There's depth, intrigue, and the same things I've talked about before with villain fandom. So we can look deeper. Flirtation can be nice for anyone to feel, and oddly enough as an Ace I have often preferred characters who are open and overt in their attempts to seduce. This isn't necessarily true in life, real people and fiction are very different (hello, fellow FictoSexuals, good to have you here darlings~) but there is something appealing in the casual manner and clear tone. We also might have more of a draw to villains in general, but I've covered some of that in my last little ramble~ Reciprosexuals may also feel more for Raphael as he's initiating the flirtation, expressing potential attraction. Demisexuals are also likely to find that getting to know him is what draws them in. There's an element of "Forbidden Fruit" at play here too, in the way there isn't a romance for him (Haarlep does not count, they are their own being, a different personality). Then, of course we have kink.

Aces In Kinky Spaces

Here's the controversial one, loves, but I do ask that you approach this with understanding and compassion~ Not all aces are kinky. But there are a good portion who are. Kink is not always sexual, although it very much can be there are some people who enjoy, for example, "subspace" in BDSM - this is where a submissive reaches a kind of blissful inner peace as a result of being made to submit, their senses brought to focus on bondage, pain, or following orders. It varies from person to person, but it often described as a floaty feeling, freeing, relaxing, deeply satisfying without necessarily including anything sexual at all. Of course, kink can be sexual too, which you will find in a whole lot of my writing, don't think about it too hard darling let me have this one~ This can be helpful for someone not experiencing sexual attraction, but instead finding sex drive and libido from kink instead, allowing them to engage in sexual relationships and activity in a manner they are comfortable with and enjoy. There is also the safety of trust and rules with kink play. So the obvious reminder goes here: Consent is key Safe words and signals are binding and must be instantly respected when used Nobody should be shamed for safe word/signal use Aftercare is important and not optional Negotiation needs to happen before a scenario, not during/after When I write with Raphael, there's almost always the kink angle because he so naturally falls into D/s and Power Play tropes. On the surface you have a very Dominant personality, so it's easy to see him continuing that role in the bedroom. But then there's the other side, Raphael as a sub, not only because of what Haarlep says (and do remember "sub" and "bottom" are not the same thing), but because people who are often in control and making decisions in their daily life find freedom and enjoyment in giving over that control to someone else, not having to worry about anything but enjoying the situation while another takes on all those decisions. So he fits very well with plenty of kinky ace themes, and I quite like that feeling of "he's not just going to get into bed with someone who is pretty, there's going to be a genuine interest and desire there that's beyond the surface, a deeper need and longing for who they are". That's rather nice, honestly.

Aces and Spicy FanWorks

Alright going to draw this in to a close now loves we are running long with this one! FictoSexuals will be more aware of this than most, but fictional characters and works often have more draw because there's a layer of disconnection to it. There's no actual partner with expectations or needs, you can step away from fiction at any moment. You can close the app/browser, scroll past the art, stop reading, save and exit the game - there is complete control in how and when you engage with the content, whether consuming it or making it. So there are a fair few of us, playing around with those fantasies in art and writing, things that are fun and comfortable in our own ways, and I'm grateful that we have this space to do so~ I've met more than one fellow ace in the creative side of fandom and I'm simply never surprised by it. We aren't defined by our attractions, and we are collectively rather talented at this little hobby of ours~ The fun theory there is that when we don't experience much (or any) sexual attraction, we are looking that much closer when writing about it. We don't tend to skip it, we analyse what is attractive, where it comes from, how it might feel, why it feels that way, and that can present itself as deeper and more detailed fictional works. Whether that's in the posing and expressions of visual arts, or in the narration and dialogue of writing, we are paying attention to trying to get it right, whether it's an experience we can ever relate to personally or not.

Alright, Is This Thing Ever Ending?

It really should, you're so right~ Raphael Fandom, and other more niche characters, do have a fair amount of Asexuals for all the reasons above and likely a whole lot more too. I love that for us, and I love talking about it because there is so little Asexual visibility sometimes that people take many many years to even know they're ace because it's simply not an option they're aware of. So hello to all of you who slid down the OverCompensating Bisexual/Pansexual -> Asexual pipeline because you thought "feeling the same way towards any gender" was all that meant and didn't realise "feeling nothing towards any gender" is actually different and its own thing, oops. We're here now, and that's just fine~ Take care, beloved Aces, regardless where you are under the Asexual Umbrella, or what microlabels you wear.

You are valid, seen, heard, and loved.

^ Raphael realising he's not Bi/Pan, he's Ace and owning it, like the king he is. Or perhaps not king... Archduke of Asexuality~

---------------------------------- ---------------------------------- ASEXUAL RESOURCES AND MICROLABEL DEFINITIONS ---------------------------------- ----------------------------------

Asexual - Experiences little to no sexual attraction Greysexual/Grey Asexual - Experiences limited sexual attraction Demisexual - Only experiences attraction after an emotional bond has formed or knowing the individual well on a personal level Fraysexual - Sexual attraction is brief and does not last once an emotional bond is formed Fictosexual - Experiences sexual attraction towards fictional characters (art, writing, film, games, other media, but not real people) Autosexual - Attraction is towards the self more than to other people Reciprosexual - Only experiences attraction after attraction towards them has been clearly expressed --- This is not a full or comprehensive list of microlabels! Nor should people feel a need to use them. They are there to help us understand ourselves and to relate to others in the community. None have to be strict, and it is perfectly valid for your sexuality to shift during your lifetime for any reason. --- For more information and resources on Asexuality, I strongly recommend seeking out Ace communities, even on places like Reddit, and this website:

Asexual Visibility and Education Network (AVEN) Website

[stellas-et-abyssum-vincite]

I Just Love to Look at Him ~ *Wriothesley*

Summary: You are expected to marry before you become Queen. Your mother and closest friends are helping you find a suitor. It doesn't take you long to find a Mr Right...

Pairing: Wriothesley X Fem!Reader

Genre: Fluff Drabble

Word Count: 793

Warning: N/A

Masterlist

A/N: Inspired by the Princess Diaries 2 scene.

You knew ever since you were young that one day you’d have to marry if you ever wanted to be Queen. And now that you were finally of age and eligible for the throne, an arranged marriage was in order. You weren’t terribly fond of the idea, but you weren’t afforded much of a choice. Nevertheless, you were at least allowed the opportunity to pick who you married.

It was your mother, the Queen’s, idea to have her secretary, Charlotte, compile all the potential suitors into a presentation. You invited your best friend, Navia, to be there, as you believed her opinion was just as valid as anyone else's. So in the theater with you to pick out your future spouse was your mother, Charlotte, Navia, and the Head of Security, Clorinde.

“Baron Tartaglia,” Charlotte began. “Resident of Snezhnaya. His hobbies include hunting, fighting, and spending time with family.”

Your mother shook her head. “No, not appropriate. He’s a compulsive gambler.”

The slide changed. Before his name was even announced, you gasped. “Yes! Oh yes! I absolutely accept!”

Charlotte chuckled as she read the slide. “Prince Al Haitham. Resident of Sumeru. His hobbies include reading and sleeping.”

“He’s not eligible because he’s in line for his own throne.” Your mother stated.

“Oh.” You couldn’t help but pout. You hoped he wasn’t the only perfect guy in the mix that Charlotte and your mother put together.

Clorinde finally spoke up from her spot leaning against the wall. “If he’s not eligible, why is he included in the line up?”

Charlotte sighed. “I just love to look at him.”

“Me too.” Your mother mumbled.

“Your Majesty.” Clorinde chuckled more to herself, though you could still hear. You chuckled to yourself. Let it be said that under her no nonsense exterior, Clorinde definitely could joke and play around when she wanted to.

“Next.” The slide changed again. “Kaveh. Also a resident of Sumeru. His hobbies include architecture, pranks, and gossip. No title, but a good family.”

Navia leaned over to whisper in your ear, “What about the title husband?”

You shrugged. “Yeah, he’s cute.”

Clorinde hummed. “His boyfriend thinks he’s handsome also.”

Both Navia and you fist pump at that fact. “Right on.”

“No matter.” Your mother tapped Charlotte’s shoulder so that she could take down a memo. “Put him on all the invitation lists. He’s a divine dancer.”

“Next.” The slide changed again. “Sir Zhongli. Resident of Liyue. His hobbies include games, art, and making money.”

“Too old.” Your mother shook her head.

You frowned. He didn't look that old to you. If anything, he looked rather dashing and young. Nevertheless, you didn’t argue with her. You learned that lesson the hard way a long time ago.

The slide switched again. “Prince Venti. Resident of Mondstadt. His hobbies include playing the lyre, singing, and drinking.”

Another shake of your mother’s head. “Too young.”

“Does this popcorn taste different to you?” Navia leaned over again to ask you all of a sudden.

You shrugged. “Sigewinne made it. You know how she is in the kitchen.”

“Ah, I thought so. It tastes amazing!”

The slide switched while you weren’t looking. “Lyney. Resident of Fontaine. His hobbies include magic, pranks, and spending time with family.”

It was Clorinde who had an objection to this one. “Arrested too many times.”

“Really? Him?” You asked, bewildered. "He doesn't look like he could hurt a fly!"

She gravely nodded. “I should know. I’ve been the one to arrest him at least twice.”

Your mother huffed. “Wait, no. We need someone titled, someone who can help you run a country without ego getting in the way. Someone attractive, smart, but not arrogant. Someone with compassion-”

The slide changed.

“Someone like him?”

“Duke Wriothesley.” Charlotte announced, her voice holding a hint of pride. “Resident of Fontaine. His hobbies include drinking tea, fighting, and helping others.”

“Yes!” Your mother all but shouted. “Someone very much like him! Good choice, dearest! I wonder why I didn’t think of him before!”

“Duke Wriothesley.” Ryujin muttered before giving a small nod. “Sounds like he’d be a good choice for you.”

“Well he looks,” You tried to pick a suitable adjective. “Decent.”

As you mentioned before, you weren’t really interested in getting married just so you could become Queen. You thought you could handle the task on your own. But the law is the law, and you couldn't argue with it. Besides, maybe this could work. Even if you didn’t fall head over heels in love with him, perhaps the two of you could get along with one another. His extended biography that Charlotte had given you along with all the others made him sound like quite the gentleman.

Who knows, maybe this could work out after all.

[scrub456]

INKTOBER DAY 5: JOYFUL: Supernatural

This is a belated birthday gift for @imnova, and there's a short story under the cut. Sorry it's so late! And sorry if your boys are out of character, as I'm not in this fandom, but for you I tried! 💙

Thanks to @bluebellofbakerstreet for the prompt!

Title: "Celestial Influence"

“I'm starving!” Dean exclaimed, slamming the fridge door, unsatisfied with the sparse contents.

“You could make a grocery run for once,” Sam suggested, not looking up from the ancient, dusty book he was flipping through.

“Ugh,” Dean groaned as he rifled through a cabinet. He stopped short when he spotted a beautifully decorated birthday cake, depicting an intricate design of stars, under a fancy crystal cloche, sitting in the middle of the table.

“Sam, where did this…” He turned quickly and crashed right into a stunned Castiel. “Holy shit, where did you come from?”

Castiel turned his eyes heavenward, “Well…”

“No, not what I meant,” Dean interrupted. “Just, you gotta stop sneaking up on a guy like that.”

“I didn't mean to startle you,” he laid a hand on Dean's shoulder apologetically.

“I'm not startled.” Dean narrowed his eyes. “You didn't scare me.”

“‘The lady doth protest too much, methinks.’” Sam marked his place and stood with a stretch. “Hey, Cas. Who got cake?”

“Oh, right to the matter at hand.” Castiel lifted the cloche with a flourish. “Happy birthday, Dean,” he announced matter-of-factly.

“Um, it’s not my birthday,” Dean replied, glancing at Sam for support. Sam shrugged, raising an eyebrow.

Castiel tilted his head, a sign of his confusion. “I consulted the new astrological signs. Apparently, there’s been a recent shift that alters our understanding of celestial influences. It appears you have a new birthday. Congratulations.”

Dean crossed his arms, skepticism written all over his face. “New birthday? So you’re telling me that because of some cosmic change, I’m suddenly a year older?”

“Not just you, Dean,” Castiel said, stepping closer. “Everyone’s birthdays have been recalibrated. Mine is now on July 24th.”

“Wait, wait, wait,” Sam interjected gesturing to the cake. “So you’re saying… You made Dean a birthday cake?”

“Yes,” Castiel replied, looking pleased with himself.

“Well. Isn't that precious?” Sam smirked and moved to grab plates and cutlery. “It's nice, right Dean? Super sweet.”

Dean rubbed his temples, feeling the weight of yet another potential supernatural mess on his shoulders… Yes, that's what it was. And not any other sort of feeling or… emotion. “So we've had some sort of astrological realignment, and your first thought was cake?”

“Cake is a form of celebration,” Castiel insisted, his tone earnest. “It brings joy and recognizes the importance of friendship.”

“Joy? Friendship?” Dean shook his head. “Not sure where you've been…”

Castiel once again turned his eyes heavenward.

“Not what I meant,” Dean rolled his eyes. “I'm just saying, we don't get much joy around here, if you haven't noticed.”

“Hmm, you make a valid point,” Castiel said, his expression deadpan.

“No time like the present, right?” Sam pulled the cake to him and started to cut into it.

“We're just going to skip over the fact that there's been a reality altering celestial shift, and just… eat cake?” Dean took the offered plate and glared at it as if it had personally offended him.

“You were the one whining about being hungry not even two minutes ago. Say thank you to Cas and eat your cake, birthday boy. We'll be knee deep in the consequences of this cosmic disaster soon enough.” Sam handed Castiel a plate and then took a bite of his own slice. “That's really good, Cas.”

“Fine.” Dean let out a weary breath. “Thank you very much for the cake, Cas.”

“Cheers!” Castiel grinned and tossed a handful of glittery confetti at Dean.

“Oh, for fu-” Dean grumbled as he slumped into a chair and cut into his cake. “Next time, make it pie.”

[sad-endings-suck]

GRRM Loves Convoluted Succession

Stark Succesion

Bran is technically heir to Winterfell except he is believed to be dead and cannot father children/heirs.

Which would make Rickkon heir to Winterfell, but he is also believed to be dead.

So Sansa is heir to the North, but she has been disinherited due to marrying into the Lannister family. However, if Tyrion is believed to be dead then she could potentially be restored to succession as the Northerners know her Lannister marriage is the only reason she was removed from the line of succession.

Though if that never comes to pass, then Arya is heir, but she is also believed to be dead.

Ah, and Jon has been legitimized by Robb, which makes Jon heir to the North, but only if the Northmen come out of the war victorious with a Stark monarch. Because only a King can legitimize a bastard (and whether or not Robb was a proper King is debatable and depends on if the North successfully achieves independence). Not to mention how Jon’s Targaryen blood could further complicate things.

Targaeryan Succession

If Young Griff can actually prove he is Aegon son of Rhaegar, then he would be heir to the iron throne (never mind the Targaryen’s were usurped). However, Rhaegar and his children were taken out of the line of succession and Viserys was made Aerys heir (whether or not this is valid who knows).

If it is valid, then that means Daenerys’ claim is the best. Plus, she can actually prove she’s who she says she is, and more importantly she has dragons and possibly lots of powerful backers in the near future.

Jon would have a solid claim if Lyanna and Rhaegar were married, except even if they were no one would see that marriage as valid (the show was so dumb for that). Because Rhaegar had consummated his marriage to Elia and produced heirs with her. Ah, but if Young Griff is a Blackfyre then Jon’s claim would potentially still be better than his. Also, regardless of his bastardly, if Jon were to become consort to Daenerys that could strengthen both their claims and Young Griff would be in a very poor position politically if they did so.

Lannister Succession

Jaime would be heir to Casterly Rock, except that he is a member of King’s Guard and cannot hold lands or titles. However, he could potentially be released from his King’s Guard vows (due to the precedent set by releasing Barristen Selmy), and in that case he would be heir to Casterly Rock.

Tyrion would be next in line in Lannister succession, except that he is a kinslayer and for all intents and purposes an exile with no real claim. Unless of course the throne was usurped again, and the new monarch restored Tyrion as heir to Casterly Rock.

As it stands right now, Cersei is the rightful Lady of Casterly Rock. However, as stated above, that is likely subject to change once she no longer possesses the Iron Throne. Plus, if Jaime were released from his vows he could challenge her claim (he probably wouldn’t, but who knows).

Greyjoy Succession

So technically Theon is the heir to the Iron Isles, except that he is believed to be dead, was presumably passed over in favour of Asha, and cannot produce heirs himself.

Which leaves Asha with the best claim. Except that a Kingsmoot was called (fuck you very much for that Aeron) and Euron was declared King of the Iron Isles.

Except, that due to the fact that Theon is actually alive (and has the best-ish claim) but was not allowed to press his claim at the Kingsmoot, that makes the Kingsmoot, well, moot. Seeing as Theon is alive and was not allowed to be “voted for” so to speak. Making Euron’s claim via the Kingsmoot invalid. Also, it’s already tricky enough for a brother to press a claim against a daughter, but for a brother to press a claim against a daughter and a son is a hell of a lot harder. Especially when your whole claim relied on, A) a man having more rights than a woman, and B) a one night popularity contest. Still, he’s a King as of now and will be hard-pressed to give it up.

Victarion… lmfao

Aeron. This is even more pathetic somehow.

Martell Succession

Arrianne was heir to Dorne, but then (presumably) she was betrothed to Viserys with the intent being for her to be Queen of the Seven Kingdoms. But Viserys died, which means she is again first in line for Dorne.

Quentyn was (presumably) meant to rule Dorne until Viserys died and he was pushed back in succession.

Tully Succession

Edmure is now Lord of Riverrun, except that he has no heir. So if for some reason he and his wife Roslin Frey die before they have children, then one of Catelyn’s kids would be heir to Riverrun (as she is the next in line due to seniority, but dead herself).

Arryn Succession

Robert Arryn of course, has the best claim, but if he doesn’t make it to the end of the series then Harry the Heir is next up. And who knows who would be next after him.

Baratheon Succession

As Robert and Renly are dead, Stannis is definitively Lord of Storm’s End. However, he only has one heir, Shireen. Who GRRM has confirmed will die, likely quite soon. Which leaves Stannis without an heir.

As such, Stannis could legitimize one of Robert’s bastards, probably Edric Storm. Since he has two high born parents, that like Shireen, are a Baratheon father and a Florent mother respectively.

However, that hinges on Edric Storm making it out of the series alive, because if he doesn’t, then the claim to Storm End’s is going to be a bloody free-for-all between all of Robert’s bastards, cousins and other relatives. And at this point the realm can’t survive too much more in-fighting.

The Tyrells are the only ones who have their shit together. For now.

[roserunodays]

Kotoko and the Number 10: Sharing Aspects of All The Other Prisoners

Number 1: Haruka

Hi hi!!! This will be a 9 part series where I analyze Kotoko's similarities and parallels between the other prisoners, since I don’t think many people have talked about it on here!

I really wanted to highlight this because of her number being 10, which is a combination of all the other numbers before it, just like how Kotoko shares aspects with every other prisoner including Es. The number 10 is considered "the Pythagorean symbol of perfection or completeness". This notion of perfection is also highlighted in YONAH, where Kotoko specifically calls out Es on what she considers an "imperfect" justice based on their actions as a warden because of them getting attached to the prisoners.

Kotoko: "You can't even do your justice. All imperfect."

Kotoko is the last prisoner Es meets, which sets up her role as their mirror (and thus, the audience’s mirror) in the story. Because of her role as the mirror and asking to act as Es' fangs, she also tries to judge the other prisoners based on her own merits, although this quickly gets distorted during T2 when her ideals get validated and her bonds with them all get severed as a result.

But despite trying to separate herself from the others and place herself above them, Kotoko’s own character shares a lot of similarities with the rest of the prisoners. Whether she realizes it deep down or not, there’s something very tragic when you realize this woman has thrown away everything, including her own potential bonds and mercy, just so she can act as a tool for justice.

Her lack of bonds in the prison and her subsequent self-isolation after T1 all culminate into a character who refuses to acknowledge her similarities with those she calls "sinners", people who are just like her and ones she could’ve potentially related to if she didn’t cut herself off from the rest of the prison. This is specifically what I wanted to analyze for these posts! I will be going into parallels with each of them, as well as their own personal relationship they have with Kotoko.

Let's start with Haruka:

Surprisingly, Haruka and Kotoko have interacted a lot! Despite how different they are, it seems like Yamanaka really wanted to highlight their parallels and dynamic in Milgram, especially through the timeline conversations. So what do Haruka and Kotoko have in common?

Aspect 1: Weakness/Cannibalism/Children

The most obvious aspect connecting Haruka and Kotoko as characters is the concept of "weakness" and how this plays a role in both of their characters. For Haruka, this is what he views himself as. Because of his childhood abuse and neglect from his mother due to him being "different", Haruka views himself as "weaker" than others. He wants to continue being weak because being a "pitied and loved weakling" will help him get the love he hasn't had since he was a child, despite Haruka himself not wanting to be "weak" in the end, wishing he was stronger. Kotoko, in contrast, wants to protect innocent weaklings, but she also despises and looks down on them as well, distancing herself from them in the process because she also sees herself in them.

Haruka's T1 song is literally called "Weakness", and the Japanese title of it can be linked back to cannibalism, as shown below:

I do think this is also what "Metamorphosis of the weak" refers to: it refers to Haruka's transformation from himself, a weakling, believing he was right in killing another weakling. The weak are meat after all, so they must be devoured in order for someone to become stronger:

Es: "You have killed a person. Surely out of a deeply personal reason - a person who was young and weak. Is that right?"

Haruka: "I– I-I CAN KILL ANY BEING THAT'S SMALLER THAN ME, YOU KNOW!"

Where does this prospect of "cannibalism/the strong eat the weak" also show up? In the story of Jacques Roulet! Where a man who turns into a werewolf ends up killing and devouring a child:

Before the judges, Roulet acknowledged that he was able to transform himself into a wolf by means of a salve which his parents had given him.

The wretched man, whose name was Roulet, of his own accord stated that he had fallen upon the lad and had killed him by smothering him, and that he had been prevented from devouring the body completely by the arrival of men on the spot.

His hands dyed in blood. His nails were long as claws, and were clotted with fresh gore, and shreds of human flesh.

Kotoko also had significant motifs that link back to children: The 子 (ko) in her name means "child", she often has significant interactions and connections to the younger members of the cast (i.e. Haruka, Muu, and Amane), and children are usually part of the group of "weaklings" that Kotoko vows to protect.

Haruka always links himself back to his childhood self in his mvs — because that was when he was happiest. A “weak” and happy child who didn’t have to worry about being shut out, who didn’t have to worry about catching up to his peers, who didn’t have to worry about whether or not he would be loved.

Aspect 2: Self-Image/Usefulness (and Self-hate)

Both Haruka and Kotoko do not like themselves (with Haruka being more apparent about it while Kotoko repressing it), and they want to be useful to other people, which plays into both of their own dehumanization of their self-image. To be used to be worthy, to be used is to useful, to be used is to have a purpose, a reason to keep living:

Haruka: "So what if she's using me? Isn't it a good thing to be used? For someone to think of me as worthy enough to use me… isn't that something to be happy about?"

Haruka wants attention. He wants to be his mother's favorite, because that will finally make himself "useful" in his own eyes. For his mother to finally accept him after so long of rejecting his whole existence, if he can just be useful to someone, then he will be happy.

So it's really ironic when Kotoko of all people criticizes him for this. She notes his general weakness of latching onto others as a "doltish parasite" in Deep Cover, calling it a "codependency of the weak":

But is she any better than him?

"From the beginning I've never asked for your understanding! My actions, one by one, are bringing earth closer to peace. Useless weaklings should just shut up and let me protect them!"

Isn't she just another person willing to do anything to be useful to someone else, just like the very weaklings she criticizes for being dependent on others? We clearly see in YONAH that once Es begins to criticize Kotoko for her actions as their fang, she immediately starts freaking out at the notion of this purpose being taken away from her:

Kotoko: "If you don't have strength on your own, let me take care of it, Es! I can do it in MILGRAM!"

Es: "Your power has value, and you can do a lot with it. But MILGRAM is mine. Even if I continue to work with you, I'm the one in the lead. You're just a tool. Don't get too carried away."

And throughout Deep Cover, we see her acting as Es' fang with her own warden outfit and everything. While she compensates with clinging onto this role for her self-acceptance, Kotoko projects onto others what she's thinks of herself. She doesn't want to be considered weak. She doesn't want to acknowledge the self-hatred she has for herself deep down.

Similarly, it's pretty obvious that Haruka...does not like himself. Not even after T2, does he like himself despite his confidence growing as a person. This can be noted through his T2 interrogation questions, where he still states how "every single thing is wrong about him" and that "no one in the prison is most like him because they are all great people" implying that he does not see himself as a "great" person.

And this similar idea was already hinted at in HARROW, that Kotoko does not like herself at all either. It’s one of the main reasons that play into her training herself to be a vigilante. Because handing out that sort of justice gives her a reason to be useful in some way. She does want to protect people of course, but this path of self-destruction she's been walking on and dedicating her entire life to is the only thing that gives her existence meaning.

In her T2 Interrogation Q11, Kotoko has been shown to see herself as a beast through projecting her onto the question. It is quite obvious as to who she's referring to, with Deep Cover showing her shadow, something that is a part of her, as a monster with human flesh and blood, including her own self stained with it:

Q: Is there really no chance to start anew for wrongdoers? A: No way. Once a beast gets a taste for human flesh, it will always come back for seconds.

This is what makes them such good parallels in their self-hatred: Haruka plays himself down and brings it all the way up to the forefront. His self-confidence issues and the abuse he suffered through his mother are clear enough for the audience to acknowledge. With the other prisoners, Haruka sees the best in all of them while playing himself down.

But with Kotoko, because of the way that she is, she doesn’t let any of that be her main focus in her mvs. She tries to play herself up and present herself as better than the rest of them. But that self-hate is still there, she's just highly projecting it onto others, especially people she considers "weaklings". This is why Kotoko distances herself while still trying to protect them. She is afraid of seeing herself in them. She is afraid of being seen as weak.

In Kotoko's T2 Interrogation Q16, Kotoko further encapsulates this idea with claiming that those who are "weak" will easily turn to evil, which sounds eerily familiar to her current circumstances right now: someone who has strayed from the path and her core ideals, a prioritization of destroying evil over protecting the weak.

Q: Do you think there are the ‘weak’ among the other prisoners? A: I’m sure there’s a lot. Those with weak wills will easily turn to evil. The only thing we can do is firmly instill the risk of turning to it.

Aspect 3: Potential Victim (This will go into theorizing for Kotoko's crime and her possible true victim just a heads up!)

We know that Haruka's confirmed victim is a little girl. We don't know what their exact relationship is currently as of now (potentially younger sister he might've shut out or a childhood friend of his), but it's clear he and the girl were close when they were kids. I am assuming this girl is grown up now in the present around the same age Haruka is, but the way in which her childhood self is shown heavily throughout Weakness, as well as how Es points her out as "young and weak", goes to show that she is represented the same way the other girl (Lucky) is in Deep Cover: someone who is young and weak.

Throughout Weakness, it's shown that Haruka is aware that what he did was wrong, but in his T2 voice drama after his inno verdict in T1, Haruka begins to latch onto the idea that he actually didn't do anything wrong by killing his victim.

If we take into account both the indirect murder theory, then Kotoko's true victim being Lucky would parallel Haruka's victim really well, with both of them being little girls who got killed by the one person they were presumably close with.

This also ties back into their cannibalism motifs: Haruka directly kills the little girl (a weakling) so he can get his mother's attention and be her favorite. Kotoko ends up indirectly killing Lucky (a weakling that she saved before), as a result of her negligence and failing to prioritize the weak over targeting the evil in the world.

Personal Relationship with Each Other:

Like I've noted above, Haruka and Kotoko have interacted a lot, mostly through timeline convos because Haruka has visited her on her birthday 3/4 times:

Their first interaction isn't too noteworthy. It just shows him trying to tell her about the warden but failing to do so, which makes Kotoko miss Es' call. This sets up how he views Kotoko as "scary" and not easy for him to talk to and approach:

But the next 3 after that involve him visiting on her birthday specifically! The first time, Haruka is still afraid, but he does manage to say happy birthday to her before immediately running away again:

The second time, Haruka is visibly more confident due to interacting with the others more, as well as his inno verdict in T1. It's interesting to note that he mentions Muu's importance to him to Kotoko this early on before T2, so Kotoko is pretty aware now of how much she means to Haruka. This is also where Kotoko notices how the verdicts are affecting everyone's mental states:

And we're now in the present showing us where their current relationship stands. Kotoko's view of him changes drastically in the most recent convo because of her inno verdict in T1: Haruka is now a "sinner" to Kotoko despite his inno verdict. Kotoko doesn't even bother differentiating because her thought process is pretty distorted by now -> everyone here is a sinner and should be guilty (including her but she doesn't want to address that for obvious reasons) -> she wants Es to vote everyone guilty so she can continue having said purpose of being a fang.

Regardless of what she thinks of him now though, Haruka still goes to her and asks her to not get involved in his plan, even explaining to her that he wasn't doing this for himself, but instead for Muu:

I find it interesting how Haruka tries to clarify to her that he's only doing this to protect Muu in the end. He uses it as some kind of key word to gain Kotoko's attention and to convince her to help him. Because what does Kotoko keep saying she wants to do? Protect weaklings.

Haruka knows Kotoko well enough just based on their interactions to mention something that is important to her: protecting others. He's pretty observant to notice that protection means a lot to Kotoko, so he mentions it in hopes of getting her attention because he seems familiar with her distorted thought process by now.

Kotoko: "If only all sinners were like you." Haruka: "No...that's not it...I don't mean it that way...this isn't for me..."

His choice of words here seem to imply that he knew what she was thinking in her mind: that he was only planning to kill himself because of his own "selfish reasons" or as a way to "escape punishment", but Haruka quickly tries to clarify to her that that's not the case.

Kotoko also knows how much Muu means to Haruka, and Haruka knows Kotoko's priorities, as well as her affiliation with protection. It's really interesting to show two completely different people (at least on the surface level), share a bunch of similarities and who both know each other better than they let on.

Haruka’s view of Kotoko:

She seems to be someone he can trust after their multiple interactions, even having the confidence to tell her specifically to not get involved in his plan. I guess that shows the faith he places in Kotoko, knowing she would likely listen? Or at the very least, she is someone he can turn to, talking to her about something so dire and self-destructive.

Kotoko’s view of Haruka:

I do believe that Kotoko has a bit of a soft spot for the younger prisoners in Milgram, so her willingness to even hear Haruka out and respect his wishes (including to not harm Muu) is very noteworthy coming from Kotoko. Although, her view has sadly been muddled given Kotoko’s inno verdict and her ideals becoming more distorted, so of course she’ll keep her distance from Haruka, call him a “sinner”, “abnormal”, and not stop him from killing himself.

[glade-constellation]

We try to stay away from interacting with drama, as it can be very stressful on us, but yesterday’s TSAMS episode was genuinely upsetting and it’s something I feel needs to be talked about.

TW for alcoholism and suicide, do not continue reading if you feel you cannot handle these topics!!!

(I would like to state that I am not just throwing my opinion around. These are both topics I have dealt with in my life, either from someone I know or myself. I have personal experience with these issues. These opinions are based off of real events in my life that I had to go through.)

Let’s start with how the episode was set up. The thumbnail is funny, the title is obviously mean to get people’s attention. Looks like a normal TSAMS episode where Miku does some weird shit and leaves. Starts out pretty funny. Sun randomly is being given a child and Miku is trying to get him to pull some friends to lovers speedrun that is failing.

There are no TWs on screen anywhere that potentially triggering topics were about to be discussed. They just started talking about alcoholism and suicide.

They made it look like a completely normal episode and gave no warnings that heavy topics would be discussed. They used a joke video to talk about things such as alcoholism and suicide.

That is 100% not how you handle a situation like this. The VAs all have social media, and are in the TSBS discord server. If they were having a problem with people forcing their headcanons to be made canon, they have the ability to use these online platforms and talk about these situations as adults. Literally a kind PSA to the fandom would have done the trick.

“Hey TSAMS Community! We just wanted to give you all a quick reminder that, while headcanons are nice to have, they aren’t factual to the canon. Bullying and harassing others because they don’t agree with you is bad etiquette, and creates an unsafe space with in the fandom. Please be considerate to others around you, even if have different opinions!”

Post that on their social medias and boom. You don’t have to make an entire episode to explain one quick fix! Not a single TW needed! When you are an online content creator with a decent sized fan base, you have to step up and be able to handle situations in an adult way. Using a roleplay YouTube video was just not the way to handle this situation.

Now, Miku is supposed to represent the TSAMS community. Sun was representing the TSAMS staff. When Sun was talking to Miku, it was really the VAs of the show harshly criticizing the audience for having opinions. This is a disgusting way of treating your fans, especially with the topics being talked about. Like I said earlier, you need to be able to be the adult in the situation. You need to treat your fans with respect or they will stop watching your show.

Next, the topics of alcoholism and suicide. With the way the situation was presented, it could definitely be read as Sun becoming an alcoholic. A bottle of wine every day after having never drank before? To a human, that’s a lot of drinking, and a lot of sudden drinking. Until Sun explained that a bottle to us is a glass to him, it sounded like he was getting drunk every night. That would definitely make him an alcoholic. Even then, small drinks each day can eventually lead into addiction. There was valid reason for the fans to believe he was becoming an alcoholic. If you guys didn’t want your fans to see Sun as an alcoholic, then why even turn it into a possible plot point in the first place? It would have been better to just completely dodge the situation if you didn’t want it happening. “How would we address all the wine bottles in the house?” Easy, it’s sparkling grape juice. It’s a fancy cider. It’s some sort of non-alcoholic beverage packaged as one to make it fancier and cost more/sell better.

The part of the episode that upset me the most was how the handled the talk about suicide. Specifically when Earth and Sun were talking about “there are signs that people show when they are suicidal and Sun wasn’t showing anything”.

Sometimes there are signs. Sometimes it’s obvious when people aren’t okay. But it is 100% incorrect to say that every single person who has contemplated suicide, attempted suicide, or died by suicide showed all of the same exact signs of how they were feeling. Not everyone is going to show the same signs. Some signs are so minor that they don’t look like signs at the time. Sometimes signs are overlooked because people close to the person believe the person will tell them if something is wrong, so obviously nothing is wrong since they haven’t said anything. Sometimes the person who is hurting doesn’t want people to know they’re hurting, and they hide it as best they can so people won’t notice. Yes, there are signs, but those signs are so rarely actually caught and treated because people don’t want to believe another people would ever actually go that far.

Sun is a character we have seen past suicidal tendencies from. Often times, these urges or emotions come back, even is situations that don’t seems stressful to others. We as fans were being told that a character with past suicidal tendencies was showing concerning behavior most would associate with relapse (drinking alcohol, becoming more reclusive, etc.).

Calling your fans crazy and gross for being concerned for someone’s life is disgusting behavior.

Saying that the fans are projecting their own problems and then making fun of them for doing so, especially when what they’re projecting is suicidal tendencies? Downright fucking deplorable.

Once again, all you guys needed to do was actually use your social medias.

“Hey guys, we know you’re all worried about Sun right now. We just want to clear up a few misconceptions. As shown in [list of specific episodes], Sun is not dealing with any sort of mental health issues right now. He’s perfectly fine! Please remember that, while it’s okay to have headcanons, your headcanons are not actual canon and are not something to fight other people over.”

That would have stopped both problems addressed in the video without doing so in a harmful and completely unnecessary way. What you guys did was disrespectful, rude, and insensitive. Especially to your fans that are dealing with these things.

When you want to handle talking about heavier topics, you have to be an adult about it. Especially with the big following that TSAMS has. There are moments where you guys have to step out from behind the characters and straight up address the community.

I’m sure that are still a few minor things about the episode that I could talk about, but these are the main things. The fans had every right to believe what they did with the evidence given. Turning it into content for a joke video was not the way to handle this.