#This isn't the first time someone tell him that

[reignpage]

Hi!! If you have the time- how would the jjk guys react to the reader giving them the silent treatment?

I hope you're having a wonderful day!

Gojo:

Would try to make you laugh at first When that doesn't work and he notices you're just getting more irritated, he'd start bribing you Buys you flowers, handbags, dresses, jewellery you name it If you're still silent, then he'll go deadly serious Would confront you in the dark, sitting on the sofa like he's been waiting for hours 'Is there nothing I can do? Are we done for good? Are you leaving me too?'

Geto:

Gets snarky Two can play that game He's not the calm and patient guy everyone thinks he is He just reacts in subtle ways Makes passive-aggressive comments But eventually will get tired, sighs and just asks you straight up what he did wrong 'Alright, what happened? Let me inside that head of yours.'

Choso:

Keeps asking you what's wrong Gets really sad and depressed Very much kicked puppy vibes Just follows you around everywhere Until you crack 'I didn't know what I did but I'm sorry. Please talk to me? I'm scared'

Toji:

LOL LMFAO ROFL This man would be soooo annoying He'd be smug as hell at first Says shit like 'It's nice to have peace and quiet here' 'You should get mad at me more often ma' BUT eventually realising you're not gonna crack He'll start to get nervous Starts cleaning up after himself Double checks to make sure the trash is out, he hasn't left any dishes in the sink, didn't miss any appointments or anniversaries etc etc Would send Megumi in to get a feel for your mood 'make yourself extra cute kid' 'ask her why she isn't speaking to me. no don't tell her I told you to. whose side are you on?'

Nanami:

Would ask you immediately if there's something wrong Is so mature and healthy it's irritating 'please communicate with me, darling. I can't apologise and fix whatever I ruined if you don't talk to me.' Eventually, he'll give you space But then you'll start feeling really bad because he'll assume that you hate him or something Like, he'll start buying sandwiches to take to work cause he thinks you won't make lunch for him like normal or sleeps on the couch eats dinner and watches shows by himself so you cave first and the smile he gives you is so worth it

Sukuna:

Doesn't notice a thing at first He isn't the type to be clingy, he's not the affectionate one, he mostly returns it So there'll just be a period of silence Until he begins to feel your absence in which case he'll seek you out and then becomes the clingy one 'it is a pleasant day out, would you care to join me for a stroll? gets sooo offended if you don't say anything 'no? would you prefer to stroll with someone else? tell me who and they will be killed. in fact, continue to remain in silence and everyone will be killed.'

Yuji:

Confused :0 asks Nobara for advice 'you're a girl, she's a girl. so tell me what's going on' 'is it the time of the month?' uses loads of different tricks to make you break performs dances and skits gets Gojo involved tries to get Megumi involved (no chance) he's so stupid you just have to cave and explain he's an idiot and he'll nod happily

Megumi:

yeahhhhhh you'll be having a silent off for days and weeks you'll both continue to co-exist in silence it's just not smart

Inumaki:

annoying as hell texts you shit like: 'when she copies you' 'ho is u good?' 'can you be original at least?' when that doesn't work he'll break into your social media or gaming accounts right in front of you and threatens to release a post pretending to be you like 'you know, hitler wasn't that bad' or an ugly picture of you then you'll have to cave and he gets so caught up in the victory, he'll accidentally post it yep, he's a dead man walking

[copperhawks]

You're not the first person to make this comparison on this post, but when I wrote this, I hadn't done a re-read of SOTL yet (and the last time I'd read In the Hand of the Goddess was... a LONG time ago, so I couldn't really make a good comparison between these two scenes), but I have now and I've been sort-of thinking this over and have some thoughts on it.

For me, this isn't so much an indication of them being similar so much as it is just an unusually similar narrative beat. A character chooses to disobey an order about not crossing a border during a war in order to go save someone who has been captured and, in so doing, takes out a major antagonist that leads to the end of the war.

But the MOTIVES behind the two actions seem very different to me. Jon goes to save Alanna because he's in love with her and can't bear to lose her. Kel goes to save the refugees because she's responsible for them and takes that extremely seriously. She does CARE about the people, obviously, it's still being done out of love, but she's not doing it because she can't stand to live without them so much as that she's INSANELY duty-driven. She goes up to save Lalasa for similar reasons after being told that a noble's duty to their servants is basically sacrosanct. Kel goes across the border because she believes it's the honorable thing to do. Jon's motives aren't about honor and are, arguably, somewhat more selfish in origin.

So while this is obviously a very similar storyline, I don't find that it's an example of these two characters being similar to each other.

Kel is willing to give up EVERYTHING out of a sense of duty to the people she's responsible for. While Jon is someone who does a LOT of things for his people and spends a lot of his time and energy making life better for them, I can't recall a moment where Jon is ready to give up everything he wants and everything he's worked for just to save his people. Jon actually tells Kel in Squire that he and Thayet work pretty hard to keep themselves OUT of that kind of danger whenever possible, that's the point behind all of the compromises. All of the arranged marriages for his kids are to try to ensure peace through political connections and stop fighting in wars.

This is where they DO differ because Kel feels like someone who, at least at this point in her life, is willing to die to protect her people. But Jon is someone who will do whatever it takes to LIVE for his people for as long as possible. Jon understands that, in his position, it's more beneficial for everybody for him to make compromises in order to stay alive so he can keep making changes that will make people's lives better in the long run. This is a lesson that, while we do see Kel LEARNING it a little during Lady Knight, isn't one that really plays into the final conflict of the book. It's possible that Kel will end up being even more like Jon in this way as she gets older, more willing to stay back herself and trust others to do what needs to be done in her place, but by the end of Lady Knight, that just isn't who she is yet.

And maybe that's what's interesting about the comparison. Kel isn't all that much like Jon YET, and she's certainly not all that much like Jon when HE was 19, but Kel shows signs of being a lot more like Jon as he is during HER series as she gets older and gains more experience. Kel is very righteous, very inclined to just act and get things done, but over the 9 years we get to know her, she has to learn more and more about when to act and when to WAIT. She has to learn when to push and when to bend a little.

As a woman, she's going to be held to different standards than her male counterparts like Raoul or Wyldon, she'll be dealing with different limitations and setbacks than they ever did. And so her approach to leadership will, by necessity, have to be different than theirs was. She does look to them for inspiration, but in execution, I think she'll likely end up far more like Jon. Jon is obviously not a woman himself, but as King he's ALSO held to different higher standards than his compatriots and he was very young when he took the throne and has been very progressive throughout his reign which means he's dealing with certain limitations and setbacks that more conservative people might not.

Kel has strong opinions and firm ideas of what the world SHOULD be like, and that's going to lead her down a similar path of trying to CHANGE things, but she'll be dealing with all of the same limitations that Jon is, which will force her to approach things the way he does. She's going to have to compromise, she's going to have to bend, she's going to have to learn when a fight is worth having, she's going to have to learn to give a little in order to get a little later.

Kel would probably not have crossed the border for just one person. If it had been Neal, for example, and Neal alone, she may not have decided to take that risk. Neal is a trained knight like herself and probably won't thank her for giving up everything to come save him. Kel could probably have been convinced not to cross the border for him, as much as it would've pained her. And Jon I think would not necessarily give up everything to save a few hundred people the way Kel did, even though it would pain him to have to make that choice.

Kel IS like Jon and will likely become even more so as she ages, but crossing the border just isn't one of those places where their similarities are showcased to me.

The funniest thing to me about Kel, and maybe one of the most interesting because of how understated it is, is that Kel becomes a good commander in the end, not by emulating Wyldon who was cold and implacable and insensitive, or by emulating Raoul who mostly only disobeys orders out of principle or because he has an issue with what the order says about his personal relationship with Jon, but by emulating JON.

Kel doesn't even LIKE Jon, she BARELY respects him as a person. He's a good enough ruler that she's willing to fight for him and swear loyalty to him and to at least mostly believe that he wouldn't work with Blayce to make his own killing monsters, but that's as far as it goes for Kel. If he's kind to her, she finds it uncomfortable and almost untrustworthy because she assumes he doesn't care about her and so his kindness and respect towards her must be fake.

But from the outside, as readers, we know just how much Jon fought for Kel. We know how much he does respect her right to be a knight. Jon is the sole reason that Kel DID get the opportunity to prove herself, if he'd capitulated to Wyldon completely, she just wouldn't have ever been allowed to join. Kel doesn't KNOW THAT, obviously, but we do. We know that Jon did everything he could to find a way to convince Wyldon to let Kel become a page. While Wyldon claims later that the reason he chose to let her stay at the end of the probation year was because his better judgment convinced him she'd earned it, I'd be willing to bet that part of that better judgment also included knowing if he couldn't prove to JON that she needed to go, then he'd be in trouble. Kel was training and working in front of plenty of other trainers and teachers who could easily contradict Wyldon's lies if he'd tried it, many of whom are closer to Jon than they are to Wyldon.

Kel's experiences and feelings about that experience are entirely valid, and she doesn't have the knowledge we do about how hard Jon fought for her, so it's not shocking that she's upset with him for a good portion of her series. She never even discovers this truth by the end of her series, even though she does get a lesson from Jon and Thayet (and Raoul to some degree) about how politics and compromises work in order to make changes happen. So her opinion of him by the end is boiled down to the quote from Squire: "good kings weren't always good men." It makes sense for her to think this, but because Kel's knowledge base is so limited (and her worldview so black and white for much of her series), it makes her an EXTREMELY unreliable narrator about this particular issue.

Kel believes that while Jon generally does his duty and keeps the peace, he doesn't actually care all that much about his people as individuals. But in their only meaningful conversation in Squire, Jon is able to point out that he (and Thayet, who is actually equal to Jon in power, something Kel either doesn't know which would be a failure in her education or just tends to ignore so she can focus her ire on Jon) has to make a LOT of compromises in order to get ANYTHING useful done at all. Sometimes, often, it means making deals with people he doesn't like or people he just fundamentally disagrees with, because it's the first step in a multi-step plan to help more people in the long run. He also points out that just throwing his weight and authority around in order to be able to change everything he wants to change immediately regardless of what anyone else thinks about it is a great way to get himself and his family killed. Because even if he had good intentions, that would be tyranny. It does make Kel think a little, but she doesn't tend to like him much still afterwards, her resentment from her page years will always color her opinion of him a little.

However, then she gets to Haven and she's suddenly tossed into a position of leadership over a lot of other people, many of whom disagree with each other or disagree with her or both. And all of the sudden, Kel has to make compromises. She doesn't LIKE the way the sergeants often treat their men, especially the sergeants whose men are convicts, but there's very very little she can do about it without really pissing off those same sergeants and that's not something she can afford to do. There's a moment when Neal starts getting frustrated about the treatment of the convicts and she takes him out to vent to her so he doesn't vent to the sergeants, something that the sergeants would then take out on their men. Kel's reasoning as she does this is that she "preferred to avoid battles with them now so she would have authority with them later if she needed to use it." Later, Kel is talking to Daine and she says "That's all this job is... Trying to please everyone and pleasing no one. And it will only get worse, not better."

Both of these moments showcase Kel choosing to make compromises. She may not like the way the sergeants treat the convicts, but she needs to stay on the sergeants' good sides because she doesn't have enough resources to butt heads with them nor enough authority to just force the issue, and even if she DID, it could cause the sergeants to become troublesome or take out their frustration with her on the men in ways she can't see as well. But staying on the sergeants' good sides might mean letting some of their maltreatment slide if it's not physically harming the convicts. And even setting that aside, she's dealing with nearly 500 refugees eventually, all of which are from different towns in the area and have different needs, not all of which she can accommodate. This requires compromise. Sometimes she can please some of them and not others, but mostly she probably just ends up not pleasing anybody because that's often how compromises WORK.

She never makes the active connection to Jon and his lesson on leadership from Squire while she's in Haven, but that quote up there about how this job (aka being a commander) is all about trying to please everyone and pleasing no one? It sounds a HECK of a lot like "good kings weren't always good men." You can try your best to help others, but often doing the right thing can involve making everyone unhappy. You can't be everybody's friend if you're going to get anything done.

Some of this she might've learned from Raoul's style of command, but Raoul commands a fairly small amount of people (at least in comparison to a King), and so we see him able to be pretty friendly to the people he commands in a way that Jon is perhaps unable to do. And she might believe that she learned some of this from Wyldon, but Wyldon had a tendency to be very unfair and biased due to his raging bigotry and conservative values, as well as the fact that he doesn't actually even LIKE being a training master and that likely impacted the way he treated the pages (he's almost never that kind to the pages, whereas we see him capable of being quite kind with the refugees later, which is where Kel comes to the conclusion that he hadn't enjoyed being a training master).

But Jon makes an entire speech about how he (and Thayet) have been working THEIR ENTIRE REIGN to change laws that help people. He explains how they have to consider the needs of merchants, nobles, farmers, street people, priests/priestesses, and mages. They have to consider not only what these people might need or want, but also what they could do when they feel sufficiently offended and how that could impact not just the royal family or the nobility but the realm as a whole. Jon points out that they HAVE made changes, for the better, and that just because they don't always succeed at everything or because they have to compromise sometimes, doesn't mean they aren't working at making changes or that they don't care about helping people. Not everyone you have power over is going to be your friend, they might not even be someone you like. But if you're going to take on the job of leadership, that's something you have to be willing to accept and work with, which often means making compromises with people whose needs and values are contradictory to your own.

Jon probably knows when he makes the compromise with Wyldon that it will likely impact a lot of people's good opinion of him. Alanna is right there and clearly angry, and we know Thayet doesn't like the decision, either. And it's entirely possible that Jon knows in the moment that Kel herself will put the blame on him because he's the King. But he also knows that if he insists on Kel being allowed to be a page without trying to compromise with Wyldon, Wyldon will quit over it and he'll end up with ten DIFFERENT problems that could cause a lot bigger issues to far more people than just one girl. So he makes the compromise. He sacrifices Alanna and Thayet and even Kel's good opinion of him in order to ensure that Kel gets the opportunity to become a Knight without turning all of his nobles against him which could ultimately lead to a civil war. Is it fair? No, and he knows it. But it's the best option he has in order to get the outcome they all actually want which is just for Kel to have the chance to prove herself.

Kel has to make similar choices once she's finally in a position of leadership of her own. And whether she realizes it or not, without ever even spending more than a few minutes with Jon, she ends up emulating his leadership style more than anybody else's because it WORKS and it works WELL. She'll probably never admit it, she might never even realize it herself, but she's so much more like Jon than any of the other men she sees as role models. And I love that. I love the dramatic irony of that, that the one person Kel only barely respects because of a compromise he made on her behalf that she'll never even know about, is the person Kel ends up most resembling. Jon is the reason she has the opportunity to become the Protector of the Small in the first place, Jon is the person who created that environment that allowed her to nurture those values, and she'll probably never even really be able to acknowledge that, because sometimes that's what being a good leader means.

[erinwantstowrite]

I love the idea that Jason is the one to finally put Skip down, but I raise you: Dick should do it.

Now hear me out, Dick is known to do a hint of murder among his years as Nightwing, and I want just like the moment where Dick is fully beating him down, and this time there isn't a Bruce to pull him off and stop him. And if you stick with Jason actually being the one to kill him, I think Dick would want to be there, to just see the man who hurt his kiddo bite the dust.

i really wanted that too, but upon thinking on it further, i struggled to see Peter being able to cope with it

because as far as he knows, Dick is not a murderer. he follows the same rules as Batman, the same rules that makes Spider-Man who he is. Peter is scared to meet the man that killed Ben because he's worried he'll lose Spider-Man and Ben's last lesson to him in the process. And he certainly wouldn't want to waste that lesson on Skip, even if every fiber of his being hates the man, even if the scared kid inside of Peter wants him gone. Because Ben, and Bruce, and Peter all understand that staining their hands with someone else's life would bring them to a place they can't return from.

And in Peter's eyes, if Dick does that for him? I'm not sure that's a guilt Peter would ever get over. He wouldn't hate Dick for it, but it would devestate him. He wouldn't be sorry for Skip, he'd probably even hate himself for being upset that he died. It's the fact that Dick killed him for Peter. He'd be reminded of Skip every time he saw Dick, and that can never happen because Peter wouldn't recover from it.

In Jason's case: he's killed before. Peter is aware that Jason has killed before. He's never once asked the details, he just knows that as far as he knows, Jason does not kill when working with the Bats. He doesn't ask and Jason doesn't tell him about it. Peter has to trust Jason and he knows Jason is a good person. Jason has used rubber bullets for a while now and even then, he's pulled back on deadly force. There are times, however, where he still believes the line has to be drawn. He took thus burden upon himself and he's made his peace with it. He's not near as murderous as he was when he first came back, but he's still got that reputation on his head, so it keeps people in line. They know he'll do it if he has to.

However, Skip's death is a very complicated one. Peter will not be aware of Jason's involvement, and it'll stay that way. Jason doesn't mind taking on that burden for the kid. He'd do it for any of his family.

[secriden]

THK's Fadel is such a character of contradictions and curiosities:

He's so casual about the assassination stuff: look at the careless, almost silly way the guns are 'disguised'; the nonchalant way he's carrying himself right before he kills.

But then look at the precision and care he's taking while prepping tomatoes for his cover job. The way he leans down to salt the meat for his burger - he's taking it incredibly seriously.

He takes the time to chide Style about road safety even whilst trying desperately to get away as soon as possible because he literally has murder evidence in his car.

The whole assassin thing is a family business that has "ethical reasons", but is this a cause he has chosen, genuinely, for himself...

...or is it just what he tells himself to make it easier to keep living this life because he knows there's no escape?

Was this a lesson learned in theory from their mother, or from painful experience? Who hurt you, baby boy? Could it be related to the (knife?) wound on his chest (heart)?

For someone who supposedly just wants to get rid of Style, he sure lets Style get close and deliberately gets very handsy with him. Not to mention it was Fadel that sought Style out first after their initial encounter. Was Style's the only auto shop he could go to? I'd assume money isn't actually an issue for them.

I love that the show makes it clear that he loves Bison and is genuinely worried for him. The show sets up Bison to be too trusting but also naive and impulsive (Bringing a loaded gun to karaoke? Really, Bison?), so Fadel's worry and protectiveness may well be warranted. And even then, for all of Fadel's strictness, he gives in to Bison a lot and the way Bison speaks in that whiney pleading tone hints that he knows he's got his older brother wrapped around his finger. He's Katherina, but they're signposting why.

He fascinates me on so many levels and I can't wait to learn more about him. <3

[unknownplane]

The Court Jester Part 4

Yandere Batfam x GN Reader

Pt. 1, Pt. 2, Pt. 3

Waking up (Y/N)'s head felt fuzzy. Somehow, they felt constricted even though they could move. Looking around, they found themselves in a large room. The bed felt as if it was encasing them. They felt themselves looking for their weapon. Not being able to find it, they get up and start looking around the room.

The room was blank, as if it was a canvas waiting to be painted. It irritated them. 'Where the fuck am I? The last thing I can remember was... oh fuck. Dads gonna be soo pissed! I never got him his drink!'. (Y/N) frantically began looking for a way out realizing they were asked to get something for there dad. They went to the door and found it locked.

Just as they were going to open the other door in the room, the locked door burst open. Bruce Wayne flung himself into the room. "My baby! You're awake! God, what did that monster do to you?" Bruce questioned as he got closer to (Y/N). As soon as he got close enough (Y/N) tripped him and forced him into the ground. "Where am I?! The fuck have you done with my dad?!" (Y/N) yelled. "No need to be hostile kid. We just saved your ass." Jason stated walking into the room. Amused that Bruce had been caught off guard by your violence. Bruce suddenly got out of the hold as (Y/N)s attention shifted to Jason and held their hands behind their back. "You bitch! The fuck are you doing! Let me go!" (Y/N) screamed with struggling in his hold. "No (Y/N) went just got you back and we are going to help you get better." Bruce stated in a firm tone. "I don't need fixing you limp dick son of a bitch! My dad molded me in his image and I'm perfect because of that!" (Y/N) howled. "I think my dear sibling need some alone time." Jason said. Bruce nodded his head and let go of (Y/N) and left the room. "Just so you know (Y/N) because ,even though you are fucked, and I still love you the Joker is dead." Jason professed before he left the room and locked the door.

"No, he's lying. He can't die. He always comes back." (Y/N) whispered and unknowingly started crying. They began to grow themselves around the room, trying to find a way out, and ultimately broke an arm. It took an hour before it eventually healed. Their mental state making it more difficult to heal.

About an hour later, Damian entered the room with a change of clothes. He fought with his sibling for this opportunity to talk with (Y/N) and was going to take advantage of the situation. "Hello, sibling. I have brought you a change of clothes as the ones you are currently wearing are covering in blood and dirt. I hope we can get on better terms during your stay here." Damian spoke calmly, as if he was talking to a terrified animal. "Ah, if it isn't the other basterd child of Bruce Wayne. Tell me how does it feels to know that if your nepotism wasn't taken into account, you would be just another pawn in Al Ghuls game. Stupid and replacable." (Y/N) spoke in a knowing tone. No anger in sight, only a smirk on their face.

They have watched the batfamily for years. They knew all the ways to get under their skin and prod where it hurt most.

Damian's face fell into a look of shock. (Y/N)'s words hurt in a way he had not felt since he first came to the manor. He felt the fear of being useless and replaceable. He dropped the clothes and left the room with a mortified face as (Y/N) started to laugh manically.

After Damian left the room, the Joker seemed to appear before them. As if a god. "My dear child, I am dead now, but soon I will find someone to take over. And when that is over, I will find you, and we will make the bat regret taking you away from me. My darling child." The Joker claimed. (Y/N) find with joy began shaking their head rapidly in agreement. "Of course, dad! They'll never know what hit em!" (Y/N) said and started laughing.

-----------------‐-----------------------------

In the batcave

"Their mental capacity seems to be dwindling. They've begun hallucinating. The best course of action would be to start over. I would recommend you get in contact with Martain Manhunter." Tim told Bruce after watching you on the screen. Tim had been watching you since the moment you were brought home. There was something comforting about knowing exactly where you were at all times, no matter what. "Let's wait another day. We don't know what reproductions there might be for doing this to them. If it would even work. You saw what happened with their arm. Their healing ability could stop it from even working!" Stephanie argued, not wanting to lose anymore of you. A broken you was still a masterpiece in her eyes. It showed everyone your hardships and would be used as a reminder to them about how they affected you and your life. No matter how rough you were, you and she didn't want to lose you again. "We'll wait one more day. If they continue to break down like this, we will have no other choice." Bruce stated. "But for now, we will just have to wait and see"

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

Hey guys, sorry for the wait. College has been kicking my ass and Comp has been making me not want to write anything. Hope you enjoy it! Remember, I am always looking for ways to improve.

@cooki3dough @asillysimp @kitty-from-daaaa-voidddd @redkarmakai @horror-lover-69 @bat1212 @wisefuncherryblossom @chericia @vannessa-boo @resident-cryptid @staarflower @sirenetheblogger @definitely-not-sammie @lovebug-apple

[unrealization]

Ashlynn. Something dangerous. Fighting a powerful threat or going somewhere that could get you killed. She is, first and foremost, a guardian. Generally, she would accept, and assist where she could. Unless the person asking her was untrustworthy. She tends to view strangers as inherently untrustworthy, so it would depend on the specific request if she doesn't already know you or have a trusted ally to vouch for you.

Firmian. Anything that specifically concerned his area of study. Namely, black magic. Due to the fact he's playing host for Evie, he's less likely to risk his own life than most other adventurers. If its for a close friend, though, he will walk through fire to help them if he has to.

R'Thina. If you need someone to talk to, Thina is pretty much always happy to oblige. Whether its just a casual chat, or venting about your personal problems. Also, if you need something punched really hard, she's also pretty good at that.

J'yura. If you're asking him for help and you're not a fellow Garlean conscript, its quite likely the worst day of your life. The most likely thing you'd need was healing, and as a Medicus he will gladly help you. If you're not a fellow soldier or innocent civilian caught in the crossfire, he might have to make sure his superiors aren't watching, though.

Anders. You won't have to ask. If he sees you wielding a weapon incorrectly he'll just show up and act as if he's been your instructor all along. And if you need someone to test your martial prowess against he'll gladly oblige with a sparring match that he will inevitably take too seriously.

Lalaku. If you're trying to study any kind of ancient history, she's probably the best person to ask. Especially if it concerns ancient Allag and their magic. If you get her going, she'll never stop talking about it, in fact.

Niveus. If you need help getting a story out there, Niv has the media connections to make that happen. So long as you don't mind it being published in an extremely biased Garlean newspaper. She would certainly try to help, but its likely that anything that the Garlean State didn't care for might end up getting scrubbed out by the time it went to print.

Senah. You're probably coming to her because you're sick or injured and looking for healing. She'll grumble about it and try to get you to pay for it, but if its obvious you're desperate and don't have the money she'll act super annoyed but do it for free. She'd be secretly ecstatic if you came to her for fashion tips, though.

[No image found]

Aikou. If your name isn't Goro Akechi, she's probably going to tell you to go fuck yourself regardless of what you're asking her to do.

Akira. Pre-tragedy you might go to her for advice on makeup or because you were an actor who needed someone to bounce lines off of. She might try to help, but would likely be completely unable to due to her 'talent' getting in the way of a normal social interaction.

Post-tragedy... Yeah she'll help you find a new purpose for your pathetic life as a member of her... Well she wouldn't call it a cult.

Etsuko. You don't want her help. In fact, it would probably be best to keep your distance from her if you don't want to end up as a pile of gore. Its not a 100% guarantee that she'll do anything violent, but why take the chance?

[No Image Found]

Skitch. Do you have a rat problem? She'll take care of your rat problem, so long as you give her something to eat and a place to stay out of the rain. You'll just have to make peace with being a subject of the Rat King from then on.

If someone asks your OC for help, what are they most likely asking for assistance with? Would your OC agree to help?

[thankskenpenders]

IDW's Knuckles 30th Anniversary special

I'm still working on finishing Shadow Generations and writing up a big thing about it (yes, yes, it's taken me a month to finish a four hour game, I know), but in the meantime we've got another new Classic era comic out from IDW! Let's talk about that.

The last Classic era release we got was the Fang miniseries earlier this year, which I mostly enjoyed but also found a bit underwhelming. It felt like we were getting diminishing returns with the Classic comics. Ian seemed to be struggling to make the Classic era feel fresh within Sega's current restrictions for that branch of the brand, a branch that by its very nature discourages experimentation and new ideas in a way that the ever-evolving Modern era doesn't. He was mostly just playing the hits, sticking the currently permitted Classic era characters next to each other in straightforward one-off adventures and letting the art team do their thing. We were getting the Ian who was happy to simply be able to take these toys out of the toy box. Again, these comics have been fine, and the art's always a treat, but the novelty of simply seeing a comic with the old character designs was wearing off for me when the stories didn't have as much meat as Ian's (or Evan's) excellent Modern era work.

And then along comes this Knuckles 30th Anniversary special, which is by far my favorite Classic Sonic comic Ian's written for IDW.

...I can't really talk about why it's so good without getting into spoilers, though. The short version is that it's a really nice little story about Knuckles and another character from the games, who's used as a great foil for him... except the solicit didn't even say which character it is, so I'm hesitant to say here. But if you're a fan of Knuckles, you should definitely just go read this. It's great. This one's mandatory reading to me.

And with that out of the way, let's dig deeper and get into the spoilers.

The spoiler zone

After an opening that very blatantly homages Tyson Hesse's old Knuckles comic (yes, the very same one that helped inspire the name of this blog), Knuckles realizes that Angel Island has drifted near the Northstar Islands from Sonic Superstars, and decides that the Master Emerald must be giving him a mission to train the archipelago's own resident guardian.

Yes, this isn't just a Knuckles comic. It's a Knuckles and Trip comic!

I was really delighted by this. I like Trip a lot, and it's nice to get this chance to expand upon her as a character. I think this is her first speaking role, even? I'm glad to see her stick around, and I'm glad to see her appear in the comics so soon, especially since we're still waiting for the mainline comics to incorporate Sage. She's still clumsy and fairly timid, like in the game, but without the looming thread of Eggman she gets to let loose a little. She's very exuberant and expressive and playful, especially thanks to Aaron Hammerstrom's fantastic art throughout the issue (complemented with inks by Rik Mack and colors by Valentina Pinto). It makes sense why she gets along so well with Amy. I hope we get to see those two interact more in the future!

Anyway, so Knuckles shows up on the Northstar Islands after contemplating his lot in life, and realizes that he and Trip have a lot in common. She's not as strong or confident as him, but they're both the last of their kind, these lone guardians of these ancient magical gemstones. He's showing up under the pretense of training her, but you can tell it's nice for him to have a kindred spirit, someone who might be able to really get him.

And then Trip's like... wait, you think I'm the last of my kind?

Yes, the Northstar Islands have actually been inhabited by a whole civilization of sungazers like Trip the whole time! We just didn't see them in the game because, y'know. Eggman was attacking. So Trip told everyone to find shelter and hide from the Badniks. (This actually makes a lot of sense, since you pass by this very village in Speed Jungle Zone. Somebody's gotta maintain those straw roofs and light those torches, and I can't imagine Trip managing all that upkeep herself.)

This also includes a grandfather for Trip, who's been training her as the archipelago's new guardian. Naturally, this has led to some speculation from fans about the old "mandates." In the wake of the Penders lawsuits and Archie's reboot, Sega declared that the comics could no longer create comic-original relatives for the game characters. Has that changed now?

Well, I'm hesitant to read too much into this. For one, as Ian has tried to drill into peoples' heads for years now, the so-called "mandates" aren't a set of concrete commandments from Sega, they just have some general guidelines for the brand, some of which have more wiggle room than others and some of which have changed over time. There's also the simple fact that Sega is working way more closely with the team at IDW, and that people like Ian and Evan are literally on the official Sonic lore team now. Ian can presumably work with the lore team and Sega to figure out Trip's family, and then go and work what they've decided on into a comic, so it's entirely possible Trip's grandpa isn't considered a comic-original character so much as he's a character conceptualized at Sega who just happens to have appeared in an IDW comic before anything else. The lines are a lot blurrier now with all this cross-pollination, compared to the Archie days when it was a separate creative team and a separate canon.

But, again, I don't want to speculate too heavily about what goes on behind the scenes. Regardless, Ian was able to use this comic to expand upon the world of the games and the characters that inhabit it, and I love it for that. It's the first of these Classic comics that feels like truly mandatory reading for the way it builds upon the games. These days we so rarely get to see communities like this in the Sonic world with their own cultures. It's not like we know anything about "hedgehog culture" or whatever. So this is a nice change of pace. The Northstar Islands feel totally different now that I know they've actually been inhabited the whole time, and knowing that Trip is part of an active community with their own history and customs puts a whole new spin on her as a character.

It also makes her a great foil for Knuckles here. He showed up on the island thinking he'd have a lot to teach Trip as someone who's got more life experience as a lone guardian, only to realize his assumptions about her life were completely wrong. Trip brags to her grandpa that Knuckles is gonna train her, but he quickly realizes he doesn't have much to teach her. She may be kind of cowardly, but she knows her way around the island, she can think on her feet, and she can handle herself well enough in a fight, in her own slapstick way.

He doesn't say as much, but you can tell Knuckles is embarrassed about all this. This clumsy kid is showing him up, even though she won't even really listen to his advice! He's also, perhaps, a bit jealous. It's not like he had a grandfather to train him in the ways of being a guardian. (Not in this continuity, anyway.) He doesn't get a whole village of echidnas to teach him about his heritage. He doesn't get fancy ceremonial armor. It's just him, a big green rock, and his two fists. He thought he had this whole guardian thing figured out, and he'd be able to give a kindred spirit like Trip some advice, but it turns out she's lived a whole different life, making him question if he even knows what he's doing. He quickly gets fed up with both Trip and himself, blowing up at her a little.

After reflecting a bit, Knuckles goes back to Trip and comes clean. He doesn't really know how to train her, because no one ever trained him. He figured things out on his own. If he had anyone there to raise him, they've been gone since he was too young to remember. He just knows he has to protect the Master Emerald. That's it. It's a pretty vulnerable moment for Knuckles, one where his dissatisfaction with his life comes to the surface.

Still, Trip sees things differently. He may be used to the fact that he lives on a giant floating island powered by a giant magic emerald, but she thinks that's, like, the coolest thing in the world. HER islands don't fly! And while Knuckles might wish he had someone to train him, Trip thinks that Knuckles becoming such a fearsome fighter all on his own, without even armor to protect him, makes him super awesome and admirable. With both of them feeling better, Trip takes Knuckles to Golden Capital to talk about her heritage as a guardian of the Northstar Islands a bit more, and Knuckles tells her that he thinks she'll be a great guardian before he heads home, once again feeling pretty good about himself.

While this is a pretty straightforward little story about how the grass is always greener on the other side, it's a very effective and sweet one that I enjoyed reading a ton. Aside from the fun of learning more about Trip and the Northstar Islands, it's just a great showcase for Knuckles. (It's definitely a way better showcase for him than his Paramount+ show, as much as I took sick pleasure in that show's baffling creative decisions.) There are also some fun details about his life in here, such as the fact that Sonic, Tails, and Amy have taken camping trips to hang out with him on Angel Island, and the fact that he trained Amy in using her hammer better.

It's just real good, and it feels like the most meaningful addition to The Canon out of any of these Classic era comics Ian's written. We're still gonna be getting more in the future, so hopefully this is a sign that Ian and the lore team have found that happy middle ground where they can keep the Classic comics familiar and nostalgic while also being able to branch out and expand upon things.

Speaking of future comics!

Coming attractions

The end of this issue confirms some things that are in the works for IDW Sonic. For one, we're getting a Chaotix 30th Anniversary special next year. Neat! They also mention some kind of Shadow one-shot dropping following the movie, however fans seem split on whether this is referring to a new story or just the "Best of Shadow" compilation one-shot that's coming out next month. So don't get your hopes up about that in case it's the latter, I guess.

And while we're still waiting for issue #75 of the main series, the IDW team is already thinking all the way ahead to #100, which should drop sometime during the 35th anniversary of the franchise in 2026. Clearly the team's still confident about the longevity of IDW Sonic and excited for the future. And I am, too! Bring on #75!

[thefirstlioveyou]

Mike only fights back against bullies after they hurt someone he loves, but never for himself.

When he was tripped? When he was pressured to jump off a cliff? he just took it and never fought against it later. He never got back at them for it.

Mike's learned to take it, but he's ashamed of it. Watching back the clip where they trip him, you can notice Mike is trying not to cry. You can hear it in his voice with the way it cracks and shakes, and especially with the noise he makes at the end. He hides how they actually make him feel.

He tries to hide the real reason why he had a mark on a chin from el, afraid she'd think of him as a wastoid/loser. He just wanted one person - just one - to not think of him the way he thinks everyone else does - the way he thinks of himself.

He hides the reason for the bruise from the first girl that's ever shown interest in him. He doesn't tell his parents. (there is zero implication his parents are aware of the bullying until finally when his son is wanted by the whole town s4. karen is right there in front of him to see the scab but we never see acknowledgment from her). There's a good chance nobody but Dustin and El know about the whole cliff thing.

We are explicitly told how Will and El feel about the bullying and hate they've faced in their life, but not Mike. They are hiding him cause LOOK AT HOW HES OUT OF FOCUS IN BOTH OF THESE SCENES!! DURING THESE LINES!!!

MIKE UNDERSTANDS THEM. He knows where they're coming from!! why isn't he just saying that? pride. shame. fear. downplaying his emotions because his parents have taught him what he thinks/feels/does does not matter. not that they insult him.. they just ignore him or things that matter to him. that's enough to make a child feel insignificant.

buddy all you did was slightly open up about feeling not needed and insulted yourself in the process...

karen failing to call it by the actual name implies she doesn't remember details about him -- the things that matter to him. his correction implies it's important to him that she refers to it by its actual name, and this is most likely not the first time he corrects her by the way he says it casually.

the fact mike has zero reaction to any of this implies this is a normal thing for him to hear in his house (another instance in which he doesn't defend himself from insults, because he himself believes it)

His parents do not go to him. They do not intervene and rather wait for him to feel better on his own. Mind you this is a 12-14 year old boy. Why on earth is it all on him to manage alone???

"how is this bad?"

this plays exactly after we get a scene of Joyce not confronting Jonathan - her son - crying in his bedroom. Jonathan is parentified. He doesn't receive the same attention he needs as a child the way Will does because he needed to help provide. Although they're entirely different situations from each other (put down the fucking pitchforks), they both include a parent avoiding emotional connection with a child that's dealing with grief to let them take care of it by themselves. this is a clear parallel that's meant to be noticed.

they continue to just wait for mike to fix it all himself.

Mike feels worthless. He feels like a loser. He feels like he doesn't belong the same way El and Will do. He doesn't feel needed. But he's not gonna say it because he's learnt it doesn't matter. We have all the reasons to believe why he would feel that way.

Instead, during scenes where Will and El talk about bullying making them feel worthless, the director and cinematographer will simply just make sure he's in the background and out of focus, much like he his to his parents. Much like he is to the GA. Much like how it feels to suffer from depression.

[rui-ayaki-lower5]

*He happily accepts the pets glad to actually have someone care for the first time in two decades.* "I hope so too, maybe I'll start being able to remember things properly soon as well especially since muzan isn't able to tell me to stop sleeping since we can't die or get sick if we don't sleep anymore" *he guessed as he thought aloud. Part of him wanted to be able to remember everything that had happened so he didn't make the same mistakes but another wanted to lay the past to rest and focus on the current time* "I will, thank you again" *he chirped cheerfully before noticing your expression, to him you looked a bit sleepy* "Do hashira usually sleep during the day too?" *he asked curiously. Since the hashira were still human and as such had to sleep at least once every few days, he had began to wonder when they did since he figured they were all active at night like he and his fellow demons were. He figures he should probably explain about the raccoon's a bit more* "Not exactly, My friendship with Sugar and her eldest daughters was...A happy accident if that makes sense. One of the bandit groups that decided to intrude on my territory had robbed the entire stock of a candy store in one of the towns at the base of my mountain and had accidentally abandoned one of their crates of stolen sweets like konpeito and mochi when they got chased off by a rather large and irate buck in the area. Since I can't eat human food I had no use for it but had recently noticed the sweet hearts you see here; wandering around the clearing and looking for food when most of them were only kits. So I went back inside to check one of my books to see what they could and could not eat safely and after finding out they could have most human food's I let them have what they wanted every-night until the crate was empty and they decided to stick around. The others you saw were probably Sugar's younger adult kits since the actual kits like her younger kits and her grand-kits are left at home. They will be alright, if there is one thing i learned about raccoons it is that they are very capable of taking care of themselves especially in large groups." *He explains, gesturing to the raccoons in the room with you both as he tells their tale. He smiles reassuringly as he tells you the raccoons will be alright on their own for a bit*

*One quiet night you happen to get the feeling that you are being observed from somewhere by someone with a strong sense of curiosity. Rui was perched in the branches of a nearby tree, watching you. He had yet to actually even see the infamous flower hashira even through his spiders and had only heard about her from other demons that had only caught fleeting glimpses, which on one hand was a good thing he supposed but on the other it had gotten him a bit more curious that usual and had been bothering him like an unreachable itch. He was already quite terrified of the insect hashira after the last raid and getting so deep into her territory was unnerving enough, but from what Rui could tell, Kanae actually seemed rather nice.*

She listened around for the demon that she felt nearby. She didn’t notice any malicious intent so she hoped that she’d be able to redeem and save it. She quietly wandered through the forest before vanishing and appearing next to Rui. “Hello there little on. Are you looking for me?” She smiles kindly at the young boy and inspects his appearance. He didn’t look too strong but looks can be deceiving.

[thebroccolination]

KAWI WAS ALWAYS OBSESSED WITH PISAENG

Hey, hi, how're you? Do you ever think about this kiss here:

and how, in that original timeline, Kawi was, like, definitely more obsessed with Pisaeng for twelve years than he was with Pear?

Because, I mean, think about it, right?

Look at his face when he's reminiscing about Pear (left) compared to Pisaeng (right):

I'd argue that if Pear had dated and gotten engaged to anyone else, Kawi would have gotten over it. Because it's not Pear he wants, even in that beginning timeline.

It's always been Pisaeng.

And that's the underlying message throughout the series.

When Kawi thinks he's in a dream, he uses what he believes to be a consequence-free opportunity in the past to…follow Pisaeng around all day. Kawi could, at any point, go find Pear. I mean, when he gets to the classroom the gift exchange was in, he's only just missed her. He could have easily turned right back around and asked someone where she went and found her.

Instead:

He meets Pisaeng, and his inner gremlin activates.

Kawi bothers Pisaeng,

steals his clothes,

follows him to work,

naps on him,

and antagonizes gang members with him.

And every now and then he mentions Pear, but obviously he's not trying that hard to find her. The entire first episode is Kawi telling us that he wants Pear and showing us that he actually wants Pisaeng. Which makes the writing in this show so stupidly brilliant it makes my teeth hurt.

And the episode's ending shot is the strongest representation of that:

And of course, it keeps going!

After Pear leaves the mall with her friends after Kawi and Pisaeng's terrible failed attempt to set up Kawi and Pear on a date, Kawi calls Pisaeng.

When Kawi reminisces on the Mystery Man's advice to "be sure where your present is," he decides not to check on the future and smiles fondly at the turtle Pisaeng won for him.

When Kawi gets his first kiss from Pear, he invites Pisaeng to see him record for the first time.

When Pear invites Kawi on a date to meet her father, Kawi dips and runs to Pisaeng.

When Kawi gets the timeline where he does date Pear, he loses her because he cannot let Pisaeng go.

LIKE! The midpoint of Be My Favorite is so perfectly written because yes, the pivotal action that changes everything is Pisaeng finally walking away from Kawi for good. But I'd also posit that Kawi finally looks at his own behavior and realizes he was using Pear to hide from his feelings for Pisaeng all along.

Which is why, as soon as he goes back in time again, he's completely platonic with her in every measurable way.

He still cares for her because of everything he thought he loved about her. He just isn't in love with her, and now that he's accepted it, their friendship can become the support pillar in their lives that they both need.

Which leaves Kawi open to admit what he's been lying to himself about from the beginning:

To me, this is the scene where Kawi finally says aloud what he always wanted, but was too afraid to ask for.

And he spends the second half of the series fighting himself every step of the way to deserve their happy ending.

THIS! FUCKING! PERFECT! SERIES!

[ask2ps]

2p Italy and 1p England would be besties. I can see they shit talking people and being a general menace/chaotic evil together. You can see it as ship if you want to, but I like to see it as platonic/found family. Two chaotic evil creatures bonding over the fact that they’re both menaces to society.

/lh /nay

You know, since 2P!Italy goes into the 1P world first, he and 1P!England actually have a LOT of time to interact!

As my mind turns, I consider the following:

Arthur is definitely amused at first by "Feliciano" suddenly acting kind of different. They've never been particularly close, because Feliciano's... (gestures) er, joviality doesn't really settle well with Arthur. He'd appreciate the change of pace with 2P!Italy. Misery loves company, and 2P!Italy is nothing if not miserable.

Of course, it couldn't be too obvious: a fun part of the 2P!Takeover to me is that (with some poor actor exceptions hem hem PRUSSIA hem hem) it's hard to tell who has been taken over and who hasn't. Really fuels into the paranoia later.

In the beginning, I could see them being pals for sure. But I also consider both of them too closed-off and distrusting to really get close to one another. For the following reasons:

2P!England is sure to let each and every nation know that the 1Ps are, like, totally evil** and whatnot. So 2P!Italy isn't interested in getting too attached to "England's Evil Twin." (you see, of course, the joke is that, actually, Oliver is evil or something?) 2P!Italy regards everything that the 1P's do with quiet scrutiny... (except for 1P!Romano, of course, but that's for later.)

2P!Italy also isn't really excited on getting attached to someone who is going to cease to exist soon, overwritten by his ACTUAL Good Friend England. (Yeah, I imagine 2P!Italy and 2P!England are friends. And as we've seen, 2P!England is kind of jealous of his counterpart, and 2P!Italy knows not to get too close for that reason.)

On the other hand, while England initially takes "Feliciano's" changes in stride, that's only because he's the first. When it happens again, and again, and again-- and it finally occurs to the 1Ps that hey maybe something weird is happening? -- it quits being endearing and starts being frightening. So. Friendship over. Not that it ever truly began. For reasons not even related to the 2P!Takeover, he's just a grumpy old man with trust issues and a lot of self loathing. He didn't trust "Feliciano" when he was too nice, why would he trust him when he's getting a sudden mean streak?

TLDR: They could definitely be chaotic friends. In another universe, that friendship might even have some truth to it. But with the circumstances being what they are (2P!Italy is possessing Feliciano's body to help with a plan that will result in Arthur's eventual "death," and on some level Arthur is aware that something is wrong with "Feliciano,") the fun doesn't last long. A very interesting thought nonetheless, and a little bittersweet. Thank you Anon!

[universalzones]

"Since you're so obsessed with freedom how about you give me the freedom to do what I want with my life. If it involved turning myself over to GUN then I'm going to do it." Surge had data that Sonic had always pushed for freedom, though seeing it in actions made it came of as some sort of obsession, at least to her. "Besides, I gotta clear Kit. I get arrested, tell them Kit had nothing to do with the town attacks or anything, and you back that up. Hard to deny two people saying the same thing."

"I personally don't know much about GUN, though if this is how they normally act then I agree with Sonic," Belle said, which earned her a death glare from Surge making her take a step back. "Though I completely respect your choice and have nothing else to say." The tinkerer doubt she could even say anything to convince the tenrec anyway. Though her attention went to the speakers along with the other speedsters. Why did she get the feeling this wouldn't stop Surge?

"I ain't going, so you can have fun. I'm going to dash my happy ass over to the check point and stand right in front of it. Dare them to attack and see what happens. They want to be all big and threatening let's see if they can handle someone like me staring at them right in the face." Surge then dashed off, kicking up a fair amount of dust as she did so.

Belle was quick to stand in front of Sonic. "Please, don't chase after her. It sounds like she isn't going to attack them first, and it's not the worse idea. If they're only on standby until Lanolin gives the word we're standing down then they shouldn't attack Surge. Having her just standing at the check point and looking scary isn't that bad." The tinkerer was clearly used to the hedgehogs impulsiveness to be so quick to stand in front of him.

"We'll see what Lanolin wants first, and hope there's a plan to at least leave peacefully. Besides, it'll give you a chance to talk things over with Tails and see if he has a good idea, right?" Belle wasn't sure how much Sonic was willing to listen to her, though was sure he'd listen to Tails much better. "And yes, I could use a ride. Even if I might feel a bit sick afterwards," she said, holding out her hand. Moving at the speed of sound wasn't a fun experience, though it was only a short run and they were short on time.

===========================================================

"Not an option to add that upgrade right now. My hydrokinesis is more of a chaos skill, and while I can control water outside of my pack its not as good because when I suck water into my back the chaos drive inside pumps it with chaos energy. This allows me to control it a lot better. Though to slowly add at a time would require more power to be used, and that'd deplete the chaos driver faster. That's why I always add the water to my pack first before using it." Kitsunami didn't expect Miles to know that, though didn't want his input.

"Not to mention we just want to look tough, not like we're gearing from battle. If the numbers suddenly double it might make GUN more hostile. The turrets are stationary so if they see more it'll just make them nervous at best." Kitsunami didn't want to put too much pressure on GUN as they could easily backfire on them. The fennec then looked hearing Lanolin request quite a few people to the command center.

"Just get the holograms set up and then head to the command center. It shouldn't take that long as I doubt you'll set up that much." Kitsunami was just guessing with that one, though wouldn't be surprised if Miles didn't have that many on his person. "I'll go on ahead." The fennec's not so subtle way to get away from the vulpine. He was dealing with it so far, though really didn't like being around him. With all that said he left and began making his way to the command center.

Honestly? Listening to Surge's plan it wasn't as awful as she made it out to be. her intent was to give herself up no matter what right? So if that was the plan, one last hurrah wasn't awful if he was being pragmatic. Did he like it? No, of course not! He hated the idea of her giving up her freedom to anyone! But she was pretty set on it and if it allowed them plausible deniability then it was a way forward. Even if he was sure it was also an excuse for her to have one last shot at him. She was as eager to throw hands with him as he was to throw hands with her... weird how that worked wasnt it? As for the soldiers they weren't sure what to think. Most of them didn't look ready for a real fight with GUN.

" You are right i don't like it, but... If we had no choice i guess it's a good plan. I just don't know if GUN will buy it or worse try and take us both out... "

He sighed and gripped his wrist rubbing it as if it was sore

" I still think this is a whacked out idea, you giving yourself up and all... Belle will agree with me i'm sure! Giving yourself up to GUN no matter the good intentions is bound to be bad for you... i know you are dead set on this--- but i wanna say it one last time! there has to be a better way..."

Surge wouldn't even get a chance to respond before Lanolin came over the intercom. Calling Sonic, and the others back to the Command center. Which had sonic looking up at a nearby speaker. This was either Lanolin having a killer idea, or bad news for everyone. Sonic was leaning toward bad news... he just felt it in his gut.

" Looks like we might not get a say either way... you need a lift Belle? i bet she'd want you there to..."

He'd hold his hand out to Belle offering to take her to the command center with him. Either way it seemed like this was the end game, either they pulled out victory or GUN Won and restoration came crashing down.

===============================================

Miles tried to ignore how displeased Kit was with calling him his friend. That said he didn't intend to stop calling him that, he wanted to be Kit's friend. But seemed like no matter what he did they'd always be enemies. Chaos was he pulling a Sonic on this one? He didn't want to think about it. But Kit was right about seeing through the holograms but the idea was just to buy them time to form a counter offensive.

" You aren't wrong a sharp eye can see through them, but its meant more to just make the enemy pause. This is a deterrent after all not a means of attack. "

He tapped his chin and slowly looked up to the roof

" As for water... if things do get dicey we can set off the sprinklers. That should flood the room with water and give you enough offense to push back any attack. Heh you ever thought about hydroscopic water filtration for your pack? is always water in the air, you could probably pull water in that way, slowly refilling your pack over time. "

The head Nurse only smiled at the two seeing the tension and fidgeting with her Wispeon. She let the two speak before placing a hand on her hip and speaking up with a cheerful tone!

" Why holograms? I can alwaos duplicate more of myself! i can do around 200 at max... though that's stressing myself a bit. The more i create the less intelligent the copies become. but if you just need me to stand around and look intimidating... we can do that! Though i'd prefer not getting myself killed as it were--- i kind of remember when that happens... its not pleasant. "

She squeaked as if remembering several moments her copies died, and she had to deal with the consequences. Miles figured anything the copy experienced she also experienced. So they were probably a sort of hive mind, the more copies there were, the more connections she made the more of her was spread out among the copies. So this was how Altiss kept his base safe--- his nurse was a real power house when you thought about it from a numbers game. Though clearly she was acting brave, and probably not a good fighter.

" Neat... i gotta say that's a killer gift... but let's not put you in more danger then your in. Plus, you have patients to care for to... let's just stick to holograms... unless we need the extra firepower. "

Miles stopped as the intercom went live, and Lanolins message went out calling all of them to the command center. He gave Kit a glance wondering what changed but, guessed they should grab the belle bot and head to the command center. though he hoped Dawn and the others would be ok till they returned.

" Guess Lanolin is up to something... might as well put our plans on hold for now... "

[smorkulon]

Lucanis romance route is so poorly written only thing carrying him through it is his looks lol

No you're so right. I love Lucanis so much, but he has so little content? Like genuinely, in my first completed play through I was begging my friends who'd already completed the game if they knew about more content or maybe a quest I missed or something, but there's nothing. And then there's barely any mention of his childhood, what it was like growing up as a Crow, unless you're a Crow Rook yourself in which he lets De Riva answer for him, which isn't much. Not to mention the fact that he tells Emmrich that this is his first relationship in banter. Banter I haven't seen in 100+ hours of game play and only saw it on Twitter. If I hadn't seen it, I would have never known that he's supposed to be a virgin and has never been in a relationship before. I really want to see that fleshed out instead of... The nothing we get. I understand he's tired, but as someone who's lived in conditions where I barely got any sleep for days on end and battling through depression and severe existential dread, I still made time to talk to my family and friends, I was still able to forge bonds and feel like I had crushes. Being tired isn't exactly an excuse because I don't want steamy sex, just talking with him would be enough. I also want to see more about how Spite is practically obsessive and in love with Rook himself, I'm not even joking! Lucanis has the set up for a lot, but there's practically nothing, it's not even a slow burn, it's just momentary sparks in a cold dark rain storm.

[thoughtcascades]

What are the consequences to keep in touch with an emotionally unavailable man that tells you that for now he doesn’t want anything serious and wants to see you only as a friend and know each others more?

Staying with an emotionally unavailable man who's already told you - "I don't want anything serious" - is signing up to get hurt, over and over again, and calling it love. It's self-destruction masquerading as patience. You're standing in a queue, waiting for a train that never comes. You already know it's not coming, but you tell yourself that maybe the timetable will magically change just for you. Spoiler: it won't. That guy is not a mystery to be solved, or a misunderstood anti-hero in a Netflix drama. He's just someone honest enough to tell you what he can't give, but selfish enough to keep you around anyway. And that's the game. He gets the comfort of your presence, your attention, your hope, without ever having to give anything real in return. It's exploitation on a vibratory level. He's feeding off the space you hold for him, while giving nothing but breadcrumbs. The audacity. The consequences: First, your self-esteem will take a hit. You'll start to equate your worth with his mood swings. If he's responsive and nice? You'll feel high, maybe you're winning him over. But if he pulls away or reminds you of "the rules" (friends only, remember?), you'll spiral. This inconsistency rewires your brain, making you crave the highs so much that you tolerate the lows. You become the one clinging to the possibility even though it's killing you. And he's fine because he's not attached to any of it. He's got his limits, his freedom. And you? You're drowning in his emotional currents. He doesn't want to "get to know you better". That's code for "I like what we've got going, so why mess it up by adding responsibility?" He's keeping you at arm's length, just close enough to keep you invested, but far enough to avoid accountability. He knows. He knows you care more than you should, and he's fine with that imbalance because it works for him. This isn't cluelessness. It's calculated selfishness. People like this thrive because society romanticizes this toxic nonsense. Movies, songs, social media - they all sell the idea that if you love someone hard enough, they'll finally wake up and see their worth. It's a lie. Love doesn't fix people. Your patience won't magically unlock their ability to care. And yet we keep buying into this garbage narrative, thinking we're the exception to the rule. We're not. Staying in this dynamic isn't just bad for you - it's bad for everyone. You're enabling his behaviour. By staying, you're teaching him that it's OK to use people as emotional placeholders. You're telling him that he can get the benefits of intimacy without the responsibilities. He'll keep doing it with you, and then with the next person, and the next. It's a cycle. And every time you make excuses for him, you're not just hurting yourself - you're hurting the world in a kind of existential ripple effect. You're losing pieces of yourself. Your sense of independence, your boundaries, your ability to recognise when you're being abused - it all erodes. You'll become someone who settles for less, someone who settles, someone who thinks they have to earn the love that should have been given to them for free. And for what? For a man who told you in advance that he couldn't give you what you needed? People will tell you to "just walk away" because it's sooooo easy. It's not. Walking away feels like ripping your own heart out. But staying? Staying is like letting them rot from the inside out. Choose your poison. Either way it hurts, but at least there is a way to heal. You deserve to be with someone who doesn't make love feel like a waiting game, someone who doesn't treat your feelings like a convenience store to be visited whenever they feel like it.

[fangsandfeels]

I really don't like that the game tried to make the First Warden that unreasonable and aggressive meathead who doesn't even try to listen and blindly accuses. For a moment, the First Warden is a man who:

Is deeply involved in politics and making connections to ensure that the Order has enough resources and support.

Shows active and vivid interest in anything that might be of use to Grey Wardens.

Stayed away from Mage vs Templar war because the Order needs recruits and he would rather not limit its options by choosing one side and pushing another away forever. It's more than understandable given how fast people forget the horrors of the Blight and start looking for the ways to screw you over.

Allows a Grey Warden blood mage (who is complicit in deaths of many of his fellow Grey Wardens and guilty of experimenting on humans) to perform experiments in order to find the cure from Calling and regularly receives reports from him.

Made a horrible decision to corrupt the griffons with Taint for the sake of saving more refugees and minimizing deaths.

In other words, he doesn't sound like someone narrow-minded - and there is a value to gain or a threat to prevent, he responds. And since the First Warden is described to let his Warden-Commanders handle most of the Order stuff, the fact that he came to talk to Rook in person should mean that he'd want to do more than to threaten them. He would want to know what happened.

Yes, Rook's explanations are worded horribly, but still the man recognizes that the taint spread through that village extremely fast, which is not normal. So, whether he trusts Rook or not, he wouldn't want to lose them from his sight: if he suspects them of being connected to the new type of Taint, he wants to know what they're up to. Telling them to stay out of the Grey Warden business and trying to arrest them is counterproductive - especially when we know that the First Warden isn't a stranger to controversial allies or horrible decisions. It would have made more sense for him to appoint Davrin to work with Rook - and to secretly order him to kill Rook if his suspicions are confirmed and Rook actually works with those responsible for dangerous type of Taint.

Also, he isn't the one to crap on potential allies (Mortalitasi and Mourn Watch) or judge extreme decisions. He made plenty of those himself, like many Warden-Commanders in his charge.

Needless to say, Alruna didn't punch him. First of all, out of all my OCs, Alruna is the one who doesn't punch - why bruise your knuckles when you can telekinetically lift your opponent and slam them into the ground for a good measure?

Second, that's not how she handles stuff in general. If she wanted the First Warden out of the way, she'd have put him to sleep magically. But, she needed him. She ignored writers' shitty attempt of creating a punchable character simply because writers hate Grey Wardens now saw the tired, exhausted man and spoke to him. Not pleading, but reasoning. Honestly, it was a much more satisfying outcome than punching him, loss of approval be damned.

If only the game gave him the dignity of killing the Archdemon, instead of spitting on him for the final time.

[cl-0v3r]

How are you feeling about act two? Specifically the Meljay storyline? 👀

HIHI im so sorry for replying so late ARGHHHH

I'm feeling everything and nothing at the same time. IM SAD, IM ANGRY, IM GIGGLY, IM SAD AGAIN, EVERYTHING AT ONCE I TELL YOU.. This act was SICK AND TWISTEDDDDDUH.

First of all, the Medarda lore had me seizure-ing on my ceiling, Jayces storyline had me jumping around on my walls, AND THEY DIDN'T GET ENOUGH SCREENTIME TOO LIKE THATS NOT FAIR?!? I'M STILL PISSY OVER THE FACT THAT MEL APPEARED IN ONE EPISODE ONLY, THEY HUNG US ON A VERY TALL CLIFF AND LEFT US THERE FOR A WEEK. THEY'RE SO EVIL 😭

I've cried so many times at Mels storyline, the fact that it wasn't kino, the fact that Mel fell into that mess in general, I'm afraid i'll never get over or shut up about it i fear,,, The fact that Mel ISN'T her "father"s daughter? The theory that she could be patheons daughter instead?? What is LeBlanc going to do? What is MEL going to do?? Everything is coming from every single angle, its hard to clear anything out and its just SO GOOD.

the parallels with MelJay are so interesting aswell??? they're going through very similar things and it makes me wonder if they could take the same path, I'm desperate to know what happens to them, if they'll stick to eachother to the end or not, heart tells me they will because they're all they have left, without eachother they'll crumble. They're eachothers only source of sanity within this hellhole.

The fact that Jayce's life was saved by Mages TWICE, protecting him and his family and possibly SECOND family?? The theory that Mel is pregnant has me flipping all over my bed and I want to see if its actually true or not as well, the idea of both their reactions to that just makes me scream.

We're one day away from the last act, and im scared to see what they have for them, but im excited nonetheless!!

and I have no idea how to watch ir immediately becaude i don't have Netflix so if someone has any idea on how I can, I'd appreciate it