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hatsukeii · 2 months ago

Text

the curious case of kageyama tobio's love life / kageyama tobio x reader

genre(s): crack + fluff! timeskip au (third year/graduation), investigative report format, secretly dating trope, drunk x sober LMFAO

warnings(s): drunk people and house parties... (underage drinking is not! recommended here!), defs multiple/many uses of y/n because of how the fic is formatted but you need to trust the process PLEASE (sorry!) also reader's ass gets slapped by kags as a dare...

wc: ~4k

tldr; below is a transcript, recounted by partygoers hinata shoyo, tsukishima kei, yachi hitoka, and yamaguchi tadashi, of the happenings at hinata shoyo's graduation house party, set on the night of 29th march. any and all hearings have been sworn to be the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth. they think. probably.

[Report #1- Initiated by Hinata Shoyo]

Date of occurrence: March 29

Time of occurrence: 7:20pm

Location of occurrence: Living room

Kageyama Tobio is the third guest to arrive at Hinata Shoyo's residence, twenty minutes after Tsukishima Kei and Yamaguchi Tadashi. He carries with him the items that were agreed on the night prior- two twelve-packs of beer, one two litre bottle of coke, one Nintendo switch, and two Nintendo Pro controllers. Upon entry, Hinata Shoyo greets him at the door, and the following conversation ensues between Hinata Shoyo and Kageyama Tobio.

[Transcript #1- provided by Hinata Shoyo]

S. Hinata: You're here, what's good! You got the stuff too?

T. Kageyama: Yeah. Where's everyone else?

S. Hinata: Daichi's on patrol until eight, Suga's picking him up when he's done. Yachi's lining up to pick up the cake with y/n-

T. Kageyama: Cool, I'll put the stuff down there. (He signals to the kitchen counter across the living room)

[End of transcript #1]

Kageyama Tobio proceeds to the television, where he sets up his Nintendo on the dock. He then offers a controller to Tsukishima Kei, who accepts, and joins Kageyama in a game of Super Smash Bros. Upon opening the character menu, half of his characters are unavailable for use, evident by the following conversation that ensues between Tsukishima Kei and Kageyama Tobio.

[Transcript #2- Provided by Tsukishima Kei]

T. Kageyama: What the fuck?

K. Tsukishima: For someone who's had this game since release, you're pretty shit if you can barely move past the starter characters.

T. Kageyama: Shut up. [He proceeds to the home page of his console.]

K. Tsukishima: Sure.

[End of transcript #2]

Kageyama Tobio then leaps to the dock, unplugging it for a total of forty-two (Hinata Shoyo estimates) seconds. During its downtime, he is seen to be wiping his neck with one hand, tapping at the screen with the other. The game of Super Smash Bros ensues when he replugs it onto the dock, to reveal a fully unlocked character selection screen. Kageyama Tobio, who plays Sonic the Hedgehog, loses 1:2 against Tsukishima Kei, who plays Sora. But don't tell him that Hinata Shoyo kept count. Thanks.

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[Report #2- Initiated by Yachi Hitoka]

Date of occurrence: March 29

Time of occurrence: 7:46pm

Location of occurrence: Living room, kitchen

Yachi Hitoka and y/n are the sixth and seventh guests to arrive at Hinata Shoyo's residence. By the time they step foot into the house, Hinata Shoyo is three vodka redbulls in, courtesy of Tanaka Ryunosuke and Nishinoya Yuu's contributions to the party's catalogue of available drinks, and is shooting down a fourth with Yamaguchi Tadashi, who is on his first drink of the night. Tsukishima Kei is one can of beer in, and is wrestling Kageyama Tobio on the couch, who is two cans of beer in. Upon entry, Hinata Shoyo slings an arm around Yamaguchi Tadashi, and drags him along to greet the two guests. The following conversation ensues between Yachi Hitoka, Hinata Shoyo, Yamaguchi Tadashi, and y/n.

[Transcript #3- Provided by Yachi Hitoka]

Y/n: What is going on...?

S. Hinata: You're heeeere! C'mon, take a bit from me! [Hinata Shoyo proceeds to tilt his glass too far into his face, and breathe in roughly 250mL of redbull mixed with vodka. He chokes. Yamaguchi Tadashi attempts to worm out of Hinata Shoyo's grasp. His attempt is unsuccessful.]

H. Yachi: If this is what forty minutes looks like, I don't think I wanna know what happens later.

Y/n: Why are they wrestling like... that?

H. Yachi: Men.

T. Yamaguchi: Men.

S. Hinata: [coughs]

Y/n: Understandable.

[End of transcript #3]

Y/n heads to the kitchen counter, where they set a cake into the fridge. Kageyama Tobio breaks free from Tsukishima Kei's sloppy side pin at this moment. Tsukishima Kei heads for the bathroom, and does not return until twenty minutes later. It is unsure what occurred in the bathroom, but not of importance. Kageyama makes a beeline for the fridge, and stubs his toe on the corner of the kitchen counter. He is...unusually uncoordinated, and barges into the space beside y/n, only to grab a third beer and push his way out again. Y/n shoots him a side eye, one that nobody else notices, except for Yachi Hitoka, who is currently writing this report. It's pretty scary, actually, they're a little scary with the side eye. But that is besides the point.

Y/n does not take a drink, but instead heads to the now empty couch, where they pick up the discarded Nintendo Pro controllers off the ground, and invite Yamaguchi Tadashi and Yachi Hitoka to a game of Super Smash Bros. Upon entering the game, y/n selects Sonic as their character. Kageyama Tobio returns to the couch with a can of beer at this moment, and the following conversation ensues between y/n, and Kageyama Tobio.

[Transcript #4- Provided by Yachi Hitoka]

T. Kageyama: Why aren't you picking Ness?

Y/n: I feel like Sonic today, so why not?

T. Kageyama: Sonic's difficult, even for me. Fun, though.

Y/n: I never get to play Sonic, so now that I can, I'm using him.

T. Kageyama: ...Fair enough.

[End of transcript #4]

Following the conversation, Kageyama Tobio does not leave the area. He leans with his forearms against the edge of the couch, and his hands hanging just above y/n's shoulders. He does, however, watch the game and the game only. Y/n, who plays Sonic the Hedgehog, ties with Yachi Hitoka, who plays Kirby. They both lose to Yamaguchi Tadashi, who plays Joker.

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[Report #3- initiated by Tsukishima Kei]

Date of occurrence: March 29

Time of occurrence: 9:02pm

Location of occurrence: Living room

Disclaimer: Tsukishima Kei would like to preface that from this point onwards, his recounts may be liable to errors in continuity and/or accuracy. This is because by 9pm, he was three cans of beer, and one can of Jack Daniels and coke in. Daichi Sawamura, in his fancy police uniform and all, insisted on staying sober, so he will be fact checking any of Tsukishima Kei's recounts up until the point when he leaves the party prematurely. Daichi Sawamura will be aided by Sugawara Koushi, who also insisted on staying sober. For the children, he said. From Daichi Sawamura and Sugawara Koushi's departures onwards, any and all informtaion provided by Tsukishima Kei is subject to human error and inaccuracies. Apologies for the inconvenience.

[The following is fact checked by Daichi Sawamura and Sugawara Koushi]

Hinata Shoyo, who has managed to hold in four vodka redbulls, one can of beer, and half a vodka cruiser thus far, makes the suggestion to play drunken truth or dare. At this point in time, Kageyama Tobio is three cans of beer, and two cans of Jack Daniels and coke in. He is half-asleep on y/n, who looks visibly distraught, like when a guy you're not really into thinks he's allowed to sleep on your shoulder. At Hinata's proposal of truth or dare, y/n speaks into the air, however, it is inaudible to Tsukishima Kei, who has just returned from another twenty minute break in the bathroom. What can be said? The guy needs his downtime away from the rest of these drunk idiots. (This is a Daichi Sawamura approved comment)

In y/n's hand is a red cup, however, it is unconfirmed whether its contents are alcoholic or not. Everybody sits in a circle on the ground of Hinata Shoyo's living room, and in the fourth round of truth or dare, the following conversation ensues between Hinata Shoyo, y/n, Kageyama Tobio, Tsukishima Kei, and Yachi Hitoka.

[Transcript #5- Provided by Tsukishima Kei (aided by Daichi Sawamura and Sugawara Koushi)]

S. Hinata: Who's to SAYYYY...it isn't somebody...RIGHT HEEEEERE! [Hinata Shoyo swirls a bottled vodka cruiser in circles, and spills rougly 15mL of its contents onto his carpet. Nobody notices this. The carpet is not cleaned until the next morning. This will be of importance.]

T. Kageyama: Yeahhhhh...YEAAAAAAH! It HAAAAS to be somebody here, riiiiiiight?...RIIIIIIIGHT? [Kageyama Tobio nudges y/n's shoulders as he prods on. His inquisition is futile, as y/n does not respond directly to his advances. However, they shoot him a look. You know, the look of panic when a guy that you're a little bit into starts totally hitting on you in front of everyone.]

Y/n: Yachi's question was are you into anybody. Yes, I am. Who's next?

K. Tsukishima: Well...it's no FUN if you're not telling us whooooo! C'monnn, a guy hits on you every other day...it's BOOOOORING if you don't tell usssssss...specifics! Yeah, specifics!

T. Kageyama: You're...stiiiiiill getting hit on by OTHERRRR GUYSSSSS? [Kageyama Tobio proceeds to grab y/n by the shoulders, and turn them to face himself. Y/n is visibly taken aback. They shoot another look. the kind of look where your mouth is open and you suddenly stop blinking because you aren't sure how to anymore.]

Y/n: Can we...can we please move on to the next person? Thanks! [Y/n taps Kageyama Tobio's wrists two times. Kageyama Tobio releases y/n from his grasp, and folds his arms.]

H. Yachi: Goooooootcha! [Yachi Hitoka takes a swig from a red cup. Its contents are known to be cream soda and vodka in a 7:1 ratio, courtesy of Hinata Shoyo's contributions to the party's catalogue of available drinks. At this moment, Yachi Hitoka is two drinks in, and that is already two drinks too many.] So, Yamaguchi! Truuuuuuuth...or dare?

[End of transcript #5]

This round of truth or dare continues for another thirteen minutes. No further interactions are recorded between Kageyama Tobio and y/n within this timeframe. Daichi Sawamura and Sugawara Koushi leave the party prematurely at 9:20pm.

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[Report #4- Initiated by Tsukishima Kei]

Date of occurrence: March 29

Time of occurrence: 9:52pm

Location of occurrence: Living room, kitchen

[The following is not fact checked by Daichi Sawamura or Sugawara Koushi, and may contain inaccuracies. Ensure to cross check with multiple reliable sources. As reliable as you can get with a group of hammered, freshly graduated young adults, and their enabling seniors, at least. For the record, Tsukishima Kei has ceased his consumption of alcohol by this point in time. Tsukishima Kei's brother, Tsukishima Akiteru, gives him the talk when he returns home the following day, but that is not of importance. So don't worry about it. Just know that Tsukishima Kei was the second most responsible drinker of the night. Thanks.]

At approximately...9:52pm? Yes, 9:52pm, sure. At 9:52pm, y/n separates from the truth or dare circle, and proceeds towards the kitchen. They are seen filling up a red cup with coke, and nothing else. While y/n is away from the larger group, the following conversation ensues between Nishinoya Yuu, Kageyama Tobio, Tsukishima Kei, and Hinata Shoyo.

[Transcript #6- Provided by Tsukishima Kei]

Y. Nishinoya: No...I'VE GOT a GOOOOOOOOD ONE FOR HIM! ...KAGEYAMA! I...daaaaaare YOU!

K. Tsukishima: He asked for a truuuuuuuuuuth, not a...DAAAARE!

S. Hinata: GODDAMN LET HIIIIIIM FINISHHHHHH....

Y. Nishinoya: Yeaaaaaah, asshooooooole. Leeeeeet me FINISHHHHHH! [Nishinoya Yuu sniffs, and stares into the ceiling for four seconds. Not a single thought is coherent in Nishinoya Yuu's mind.]

T. Kageyama: Whaaaat am I dooooing! I'm gaaaaame enough...for ANYTHING! ANYTHIIIIIING! [Kageyama Tobio possesses a look that is a little insane, and proceeds to...beat at his chest? What the fuck? Did he actually beat at his fucking chest? (This is not Daichi Sawamura approved. Please cross check with reliable sources.)]

Y. Nishinoya: I daaaare YOU! To smack y/n's aaaaaaaass...hahah...ha.... [Nishinoya Yuu falls over to the side. He remains in slumber for the next thirty-two minutes.]

S. Hinata: Thaaaaaat...is CRAAAZY! Kaaaageyamaaaaa...are youuuuu! Gaaaaaame enoughhhhh!

[End of transcript #5]

Kageyama Tobio pushes himself off the ground at Hinata Shoyo and Nishinoya Yuu's provocations. He snickers to himself, and walks to the kitchen, where y/n is placing the two litre bottle of coke into the fridge. Kageyama Tobio proceeds to advance towards y/n, and smacks their behind, before…squeezing it? And then jiggling it in his- what the…fuck is going on? (This is not Daichi Sawamura approved, please cross check with reliable sources.) Y/n snaps around at the abrupt impact, and empties the contents of their cup onto Kageyama Tobio. It's a shame Nishinoya Yuu is too knocked out to witness what he has provoked. Sucks. The following commotion ensues between Kageyama Tobio, and y/n. Please note that parts of the conversation were inaudible from the truth or dare circle's location.

[Transcript #6- Provided by Tsukishima Kei, Yachi Hitoka, Hinata Shoyo, and Yamaguchi Tadashi]

Y/n: WHATTTTT the FUCK KAGEYAMA.

T. Kageyama: [inaudible]

Y/n: Oh...my fucking God! You are! Very drunk!

T. Kageyama: [Turns to the truth or dare circle.] TOOOLD YOU! I'M GAAAAAME ENOUGH! FOR AAAAAAAANYTHING!

Y/n: [inaudible]...NISHINOYA! [Y/n shoots a look towards the truth or dare circle. One of disdain. Contempt, even. In hindsight, the dare was much too inappropriate. Here is a reminder for everybody to apologise at the next available chance.]

T. Kageyama: Soooorry, [inaudible].

Y/n: [inaudible]...God, I should have never did it to you the first time. Not the place. Not! the place! [Y/n proceeds to grab Kageyama Tobio by the shoulders, turning him around. Kageyama Tobio is ushered into the bathroom, alongside y/n. Y/n shoots one more look at the truth or dare circle. Tsukishima Kei, as he writes this transcript, is beginning to understand Yachi Hitoka's slight fear of y/n. It's the side eye. They are definitely a little scary with the side eye.]

T. Kageyama: Ouuuuuu, the BAAAATHROOM! Thaaat's a firstttttt. [Kageyama Tobio wiggles his brows, and it's kind of creepy. Like when a guy is trying a little too hard to get laid, and is throwing every existing pickup line at you. Y/n smacks him in the side of his head, and pushes Kageyama Tobio into the bathroom. They slam the bathroom door shut and lock it. The two do not return until fifteen minutes later. It is unsure what occurred during that timeframe.]

[End of transcript #6]

When Kageyama Tobio and y/n return to the living room, it is approximately 10:12pm. Nishinoya Yuu is still asleep on the floor, and shows mild signs of...nevermind. Yachi Hitoka and Yamaguchi Tadashi have moved on to drunken karaoke. Hinata Shoyo and Tanaka Ryunosuke learn to do the Rasputin beside Nishinoya Yuu's unconscious body. Kageyama Tobio and y/n settle beside Yamaguchi Tadashi and Yachi Hitoka respectively, and pretend to be at a concert where the singers can barely remember their own lyrics and aren't sure what notes to hit. Tsukishima Kei wants to go home, but hasn't gathered a satisfactory amount of blackmail yet. Therefore, Tsukishima Kei stays the night. He passes out on the living room carpet at 12:03am.

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[Report #6- Initiated by Yamaguchi Tadashi and Hinata Shoyo]

Date of occurrence: March 30

Time of occurrence: 12:12am

Location of occurrence: Living room

Disclaimer: Any and all recounts made my Hinata Shoyo and Yamaguchi Tadashi from this point onwards may be liable to errors and inaccuracies. Since Tsukishima Kei made the disclaimer, the two believed they too were responsible for making one of their own. They admit that they were not responsible drinkers. They also admit that this will, undoubtedly, happen again.

12:12am is a time of silence. By this time, Tsukishima Kei has fallen asleep on the carpet, just beside Hinata Shoyo’s cruiser spill. He does not wake until 11:13am of March 30. Yachi Hitoka leaves the residence at approximately 11:30pm, alongside Tanaka Ryunosuke and Nishinoya Yuu, who are all picked up by Kiyoko Shimizu. Yamaguchi Tadashi and Hinata Shoyo are positioned at the kitchen counter, where they eat the graduation cake with their bare hands. At this point in time, Yamaguchi Tadashi has ceased all alcohol consumption, tapping out at two vodka redbulls, and two cream soda and vodkas in a 5:1 ratio. Hinata Shoyo, who has thrown up twice between this report and the last, has also ceased all alcohol consumption, tapping out at four vodka redbulls, one can of beer, and one vodka cruiser. Does cake work as a hangover cure? So sinful, so decadent…who gets to eat the happy graduation chocolate sign? Pay that no mind, for it is unimportant. What is of importance, is Kageyama Tobio and y/n’s current form.

Kageyama Tobio, who has tapped out after three cans of beer, two cans of Jack Daniels and coke, and an additional shot of pure vodka, stirs in his half slumber. This is no regular half slumber, but is one of intimacy, and of lovesick vulnerability, evident by his entire body splayed across y/n’s lap. At the time of this report, it is unsure whether y/n has consumed any amount of alcohol, but their sobriety is to be applauded regardless. (Please do not inform Kageyama Tobio of Hinata Shoyo’s comments on his character. Thanks.)

Y/n proceeds to bounce their leg twice, no, three times. Yes, three times is what it takes for Kageyama Tobio to stir awake. Hinata Shoyo and Yamaguchi Tadashi advance towards the couch at this moment, with the intention of smearing cake over Kageyama Tobio and y/n. However, upon entering the vicinity of the living room, the following conversation ensues between Kageyama Tobio, Hinata Shoyo, and y/n. Please be reminded that Hinata Shoyo and Yamaguchi Tadashi are both drunk out of their mind, and that the conversation was one of whispers. For that reason, any and all details of the transcript are liable to errors, redaction, and/or inaccuracies. Apologies for the inconvenience.

[Transcript #7- Provided by Hinata Shoyo and Yamaguchi Tadashi]

T. Kageyama: [inaudible]…leave?

Y/n: Do you? [inaudible]…car [inaudible]

T. Kageyama: I don’t [inaudible]…ow. [Kageyama Tobio rubs at his temples. Hinata Shoyo believes he is crying, but also don’t tell Kageyama Tobio he thinks that. (This is not Daichi Sawamura approved. Please cross check with reliable sources.)]

Y/n: Alright. Upsies now, I’ll drop you off. [Y/n pushes Kageyama Tobio’s body off of their lap. Kageyama Tobio whines. Hinata Shoyo is recording this entire ordeal, but there is frosting on the camera from fumbling for his phone with cake-covered hands. It is unclear who is speaking in the video, or what is happening, really.]

T. Kageyama: Drop me…offffffff? BUT I THOOOOOUGHT- [Y/n proceeds to punch Kageyama Tobio in the side, to which he doubles over. Kageyama Tobio begins to giggle uncontrollably on the ground.]

Y/n: Yes. I'm dropping you off, Tobio. Hinata? [Y/n turns to Hinata Shoyo, who throws his phone onto the ground upon being spotted. They leave the couch, and attempt to pull Kageyama Tobio to his feet. Kageyama Tobio is still giggling, and is unable to find his grounding.]

S. Hinata: Y-yeeeeeees...? [Why are they looking at Hinata Shoyo like that? No, seriously, he's getting scared thinking about it again as he writes this transcript.]

Y/n: I think I'll head out, Kageyama needs a drop off and I'm getting tired. This was fun! Thanks for holding the party, happy grad! I'll catch you around, yeah?

S. Hinata: Of COUUUUUUUUURSE...! Youuuu're NEVER! Getting rid of USSSSS!

Y/n: Yeah, of course. See you soon, Hinata. Good luck with the cleanup. [Y/n has finally managed to pull Kageyama Tobio to his feet. They yank Kageyama Tobio by the arm, and push him out the front door.]

[End of transcript #7]

At 12:15am, Kageyama Tobio and Y/n leave Hinata Shoyo's residence. Yamaguchi Tadashi, and Tsukishima Kei do not leave until the day of March 30.

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[Report #7- Initiated by Tsukishima Kei, Hinata Shoyo, Yamaguchi Tadashi]

Date of occurrence: March 30

Time of occurrence: 11:13am

Location of occurrence: Living room

Tsukishima Kei is the first to wake from the stench of the cruiser spill by his nose. God, fuck, everything hurts. Is this what death feels like? A hangover? Also, that spill? Foul, fucking rank. It comes as no surprise that vodka, steeped into the fuzz of an unwashed carpet, would undoubtedly stink. That is beside the point. Tsukishima Kei leaves the ground at the stench, and searches for his phone. He is afraid. He promised to be home by midnight. His brother is going to kill him. Following two minutes of mindless smacking at the ground, Tsukishima Kei finally finds his device. Upon closer inspection, however, the following conversation is shown on the phone.

[Transcript #8- Provided by Y/n]

Y/n: r u dead???? -1:02am

Y/n: hurry up i wanna sleep:( -1:02am

Y/n: im not hearing water istg if ur not showering im gonna fucking drown u babe i dunked SODA all over u -1:03am

Y/n: r u hearing me -1:05am

Y/n: kageyama tobio r u hearing me because i still am not hearing water from my bathroom -1:05am

Y/n: if you don't shower ur sleeping on the ground tn -1:07am

Y/n: tobio r u done omg hurry up i wanna sleep sb -1:27am

[4 missed calls from: Y/n]

[End of transcript #8]

Upon this discovery, Tsukishima Kei wakes Hinata Shoyo and Yamaguchi Tadashi, who sleep on the couch for the night. The three ruminate on their next course of action, before the phone rings. The following conversation ensues between Tsukishima Kei, and y/n. Hinata Shoyo and Yamaguchi Tadashi choose to act as bystanders.

[Transcript #9- Provided by Tsukishima Kei]

Y/n: ...Fuck.

K. Tsukishima: So.

Y/n: He dropped it while wrestling you, didn't he.

K. Tsukishima: ...We wrestled?

[End of transcript #9]

[Case Closed]

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bonus:

When you realise that Tobio's phone is MIA, he finally returns from your bathroom. Barely clothed, he shakes his head, and droplets of water come flying from his hair. His feet are heavy against the floor, and he isn't sure if he'll even make it to your bed at this rate, until you come darting out of your room, phone in hand.

"Tobio, where is your phone?"

"My phone?" His phone, it's in the bathroom, like it always is when he showers, right? Tobio grunts, annoyed at the extra return journey to the bathroom. He swipes at his T-shirt on the bathroom counter-right, that's where his shirt has gone. What meets his fingers is cold porcelain, and he frowns, pulling his shirt over his head.

"Not...here? Good question...where is it?"

You drag Tobio to your room, shutting the door behind you. When he spares no time to roll into your bed, blissfully unaware, you glare at him, and remind yourself that you do, in fact, love the guy. Even if he drunkenly slapped your ass in front of everybody four hours prior, forgot about your warnings and drank much too far past his limit, and has by now, probably outed your relationship to everyone at the party, despite keeping it perfectly hidden for over a year. Unfortunately, you remind yourself once again that you indeed, do love Kageyama Tobio, so this can wait. What is important now, is catching up on lost slumber, and forcing Tobio to join you.

Crawling into bed beside him, you finally melt into his arms for the first time tonight, away from the eyes of the Karasuno volleyball team. Tobio smiles, satisfied with the way that you're relaxing against him, instead of pushing him off and smacking his head. He inhales the scent of your shampoo, slips his hands beneath your shirt to hold your bare waist. This is comfortable. You are comfortable. Better than whatever he was on at that party.

"Oh well, who cares? You probably dropped it while wrestling with Tsukishima."

"...I wrestled Tsukishima?"

author's note:

I hope this is as fun to read as it was to write and i also hope it's actually good because it's so crack that there's not really any fluff until the bonus bit at the end BUT i'll come back with some proper butterfly inducing fluff and or angst soon!! love u all!!

tags!!

@chuuya-brainrot @staraxiaa @catsoupki @hiraethwa @laughingfcx @akaakeis @kuroppiii @tulip-room @wyrcan @wishi-selfships @fiannee @bailey-reeds @zzwon

ok thank u for waiting n reading love u all see u soon bye bye

193 notes · View notes

onlyjaeyun · 11 months ago

Text

𝐒𝐓𝐑𝐈𝐂𝐓𝐋𝐘 𝐁𝐔𝐒𝐈𝐍𝐄𝐒𝐒 – 𝟔𝟎

𝐂𝐇𝐀𝐏𝐓𝐄𝐑 𝐒𝐈𝐗𝐓𝐘: 𝐦𝐢𝐬𝐬𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐚𝐜𝐜𝐨𝐦𝐩𝐥𝐢𝐬𝐡𝐞𝐝

↬ 𝐩𝐚𝐢𝐫𝐢𝐧𝐠: 𝐏𝐚𝐫𝐤 𝐉𝐨𝐧𝐠𝐬𝐞𝐨𝐧𝐠 𝐱 𝐅𝐞𝐦𝐚𝐥𝐞 𝐑𝐞𝐚𝐝𝐞𝐫

↬ 𝐠𝐞𝐧𝐫𝐞: 𝐬𝐭𝐫𝐚𝐧𝐠𝐞𝐫𝐬 𝐭𝐨 𝐥𝐨𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐬!𝐀𝐔, 𝐂𝐄𝐎!𝐉𝐚𝐲, 𝐬𝐞𝐜𝐫𝐞𝐭𝐚𝐫𝐲!𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐝𝐞𝐫

↬ 𝐰𝐨𝐫𝐝 𝐜𝐨𝐮𝐧𝐭: 𝟐.𝟕𝐤

"Y/N, honey, where are you?"

The sound of Sora's voice makes its way through the now empty hallways of your new home, just loud enough to reach you.

"I'm in the kitchen, doing the dishes!"

You let out a soft sigh of exhaustion as the events of today finally get the best of you and you actually catch yourself craving absolute silence.

The housewarming party went exactly as planned and you couldn't have been more grateful. After weeks of living such chaotic days one after the other, you're simply relieved that not a single thing went wrong tonight. The food was amazing, your guests were only the people closest to you, everyone had a great time and there was not an ounce of negativity.

When the girls had basically kidnapped you to go and get yourself all dolled up only ghree hours before the first guests were set to arrive, you couldn't help but feel stressed and anxious but now after not only receiving a compliment to your look of the night from basically every sinfle guest, but also realising just how much more comfortable you were once you felt a little bit more presentable and didn't have to worry about that part yourself, you're that much more grateful for your friends' thoughtfulness.

Seeing your boyfriend's sweet and genuine reaction was just a bonus to it all.

Now that most of the guests are gone and it's just your closest circle, you feel a little less stressed and a lot more relaxed than about an hour ago.

You know subconsciously hiding yourself behind household chores isn't the most mature way to get yourself the few minutes of aloneness you've been craving for the past twelve hours but at this point you're way too exhausted to even care enough.

"Oh, goodness, you really are doing the dishes!" Sora's sweet giggles fill the soace of your kitchen with this certain type of warmth and as soon as your eyes meet the sweet gaze of Jongseong's mother, you know the exact reason behind the sudden change in atmosphere.

Sora, Nayeon's mother and your boyfriend's bonus mom, as well as Mirae, have been giving you the motherly love you've never experienced in your life and as they come to stand next to you, it definitely takes a lot of self control and willpower for you to suppress the urge to just burst into tears. Their constant words of reassurance, affection and appreciation are simply something you're not used to and with each time they smile at you with nothing but love and adoration in their calm eyes, you can physically feel yourself heal from everything your inner child has been through.

"Do you need any help, sweetheart?" Mirae asks oftly and caresses your hair softly, something you'd usually feel incredibly uncomfortable with yet with her it's never bothered you, not even on the day Jongseong had introduced the two of you to each other.

"No, thank you", you reply calmly and shoot her a quick smile back, "I'm almost done anyway. The dishwasher's running and I finished most of the pans and pots the chefs had used."

"You're amazing", Sora is quick to praise you for your hard work, "but how about we help you with the drying so you can come back and join everyone on the balcony for some wine, hm?"

"Jay's asked about you at least four times since you disappeared and I'm pretty sure Yeonie's gonna punch him very soon if he doesn't stop." Mirae's little comment has you all burst into loud laughter as memories of the two siblings actually physically fighting each other during the traditional saturday brunch because of the most random things.

The fact your boyfriend not only grew up but still very much maintains the close bond he has with the women in his life makes you incredibly happy and grateful to be a part of. You never knew what it felt like to have a loving mother, a sister or a sibling who not only appreciates and loves you, but also enjoys your presence and makes you feel special and valued.

With Jongseong, you didn't just find the love of your life but he actually gave you the one thing you've always been missing: a family.

The longer you think about the actual kmpact and influence your boyfriend has had on you and your mindset despite the rather short amount of time you guys have known each other, the more you find yourself falling in love with him.

He's the first man in your life who kept all of his promises, who gives you the love you're giving him, even more at times, who cherishes and appreciates every little thing you do, be it for him or yourself. Jongseong has managed to heal the deepest wounds in your heart and your soul, sometimes with nothing but a simple look of gratitude and happiness.

You know that to some people you might be exaggerating, but you know deep down in your heart, that Park Jongseong was always meant to be yours, it just took him a little to find you.

"You've got lost in your thoughts, hm?" Mirae smiles and starts rolling her sleeves up before she reaches for a towel and then one of the pots you had just finished washing.

To Jongseong's luck, it seems like you're perfectly occupied, since he hasn't seen you in about twenty minutes, giving him and everyone else involved enough time to secretly set up the baclony for the proposal.

The past four hours felt like a whole decade to the young business man. Every time he talked to you or literally anyone who has absolutely no idea about the little black box he hid between his socks right before you came back from your hair appointment, Jay felt like losing his mind.

Keeping this to himself turned out a lot harder than he could have ever expected. Of course the guests had managed to distract him well enough, but every now and then, especially when you found your way to him, Jong couldn't help but panic.

He really wanted everything to go as planned, not because of his perfectionist nature but rather because he wants to give you exactly what you deserve. The best and nothing but that.

Thankfully his boys and your friends had managed to take care of everything, even going as far as subtly sending the last guests home just to make sure it's only the people you both care the most about.

Jongseong nervously allows his eyes to roam the little set up his sister had organised in under an hour, saving him and his one perfect opportunity the way she's done it one too many times already.

Jaeyun and Sunghoon quietly carry the last two lighted letters to their designated spot, while your best friends are busy throwing rose patels all over the floor and Heeseung takes care of giving the surprise its last touch ups by lighting the little candles, which are basically leading the way from the door.

"Moms are distracting her just a little longer", Nayeonie suddenly says and appears by his side out of nowhere, "how are you feeling?"

For some reason, Jay struggles to find words to answer that particular question.

He's excited and nervous, of course in the best ways possible. Yet, there's still that little voice in the back of his head which has been spitting the worst, most frustrating things for the past few hours and has easily turned all of his joy and happiness into worry and anxiety.

Jay knows you're going to say yes. But then again – does he, really?

You two have talked about this multiple times and each time you made sure to let him know that you'd definitely not reject him if he ever asked you the big question, regardless of the timing.

So why is it that his head is filled with scenarios of you being disgusted, horrified and at one point even angry at him for doing something like this?

"Stop overthinking it", it's Yeonie's soft voice yet again, one of the few people in his life who're not only able to read him like an open book but also find their was through those messy thoughts of his.

"I'm nervous", Jay finally says and lets out abloud sigh as his fingers nervously fumble with the ring box in his pocket, "what if she says no?"

"Oh, shut the fuck up", Yeonie rolls her eyes and lands a firm slap on the back of her brother's neck, eliciting a round of laughter from everyone around, "you guys talked about this like ten thousand times. Plus, you're disgustingly in love with each other. I promise you, she's not going to reject you."

"And if she does, I'll take the ring, brother!" Jaeyun is quick to make a random comment to lift his best friend's spirit and before he can actually laugh about it, Jay and the other two boys basically form their well known choir as they question the young man's mental stability.

"Sim Jaeyun, what the fuck?"

"Anyway", Nayeon laughs and comes to stand in front of her younger brother with the proudest expression in her eyes and a huge smile on her face, "let's do this."

And as you're casually refilling Sora's wine glass, the women can't help but smile at how awfully unaware you are of what's been going on on the other side of your apartment.

You don't even notice the way one of them pulls out their phone to respond to a message, too lost in your own thoughts and the feeling of exhaustion overwhelming your body after such an eventful and social day.

Jongseong knows you're at a point in your day where all you can think about are your pyjamas and sleep, which is why he's pretty sure the surprise is going to do exactly what it's supposed to do.

"Let's go and join the others, hm?", Mirae says and smiles at you ablittle bigger than just a few minutes ago, leaving you a little gonfused why she'd be so enthusiastic all of a sudden but you're way too tired to even question it as you nod and follow them into the big living room.

To your surprise, the lights are turned off, the only source of light coming from the balcony and with your brows furrowed in confusion, you don't even wait for your boyfriend's morhers and quickly make your way to see what's going on.

It takes your brain a whole minute to process what you're currently looking at and as soon as your eyes meet the gaze of your lover again the end of the candle way, a thick veil of tears blurrs your vision.

"Oh, my God", you whisper and read the lighted letters behind him over and over again, just to make sure that you're actually reading them right.

Both Mirae and Sora come to stand next to one of the boys a little further away from you as all of your loved ones watch the shock take over your body with big smiles and emotional eyes.

Jongseong, on the other hand, is basically about to pass out. The sught of your pretty eyes filling with tears the longer you look at him makes his heart slam even harder against his rib cage and for a moment it feels like his lungs are hyperventilating.

Your body moves to approach your lover before your mind can follow and by the time you come to stand in front of him, tears have already stained your cheeks.

"Hi, Baby", Jay sighs and chuckles when he notices the look of pure shock in your usually so excited eyes.

"Hi, Jongie", you respond almost instinctively, your voice breaking at the end of your greeting and if it wasn't for the fact that this is about to become the best moment in yojr life, you would have been a sobbing mess already.

For a short moment, Jay allows himself to stop and just look at you. He carefully and attentively takes in the way you're looking at him, the details of your beautifully crafted facial features, his gaze dropping to your quivering bottom lip and right back up into the eyes he's found home in.

"Y/N", he begins softly, knowing (or hoping) the usage of your name is going to make it feel a little realer, a little less like a dream, "my one and only love. My everything. My home."

Just as usual, Jongseong's words are carefully chosen, well thought through and hit the deepest parts of your heart in a way only he's ever been able to.

"I always wanted to believe in love and soulmates, fairytales and romance but the older I got, the more I started losing hope. Until you stepped into my office and looked at me with those breathtakingly beautiful eyes", Jong lets out a shaky sigh, not quite used to being so vocal about his feelings in front of others but right now, nobody but you matters to him.

"My sweetest angel, my sweet souled girl", he deeply inhales and reaches for your shaking hands, gently holding them in his own to calm your racing heart down and in that moment, you're reminded of just how beautiful Park Jongseong is.

"You're my best friend, my soulmate, the one person I've waited for all my life. I don't think you have a clue what your love has done to me", with each and every single word falling past his lips, another tear of joy and happiness finds its way down your cheek, yet you never once dare to avert your gaze away from his. Too mesmerized by the love and adoration gleaming in the sweetest shade of brown you've ever had the privilege to look at.

"You saved my soul, Y/N. With every joke, every pun, every single sassy comment and comeback you've brought me back to life just a little more. And here I am, Baby. Alive and happy, because of you. Before you came into my life, I never really knew what I wanted or what I was working so hard for. But now I know", Jay whispers as the rawness of his words get the best of him and tears start pricking at the corners of his eyes. But before you can even reach for his face, he lifts your hands up to his lips and places a row of soft kisses on your knuckles.

"Everything I do, everything I own, everything I am belongs and is dedicated to you, my sweetest angel. You make me want to become the best version of myself, a better man, a better human, a better friend and son. Loving you, being by your side is my joy, my happiness, my biggest achievement and privilege I've ever received."

Just when you think your heart has reached its capacity, Jongseong looks at you with gentle eyes, slowly lowers himself on one knee and smoothly pulls out a little black ring box from his pocket.

However, he doesn't say anything until he's made sure to hold your right hand in his again, the skinship easing his thoughts, calming his soul just how he needs it.

This is it. This is the moment he's been dreaming about and waiting for all his life.

"You're my best friend, the love of my life. My home. It'd be an honor to make you my wife and spend the rest of my life loving, appreciating and cherishing everything you do. So, will you marry me?"

For the very first time in your life, there's not a single doubt, worry or an ounce of hesitation in your system and without missing another beat, you start nodding your head.

"Yes, yes, yes", you say and finally throw your arms around his shoulders as nothing but happiness and the feeling of being completed in a way you've been craving for far too long finally takes over you.

"I love you so much", you whisper against his lips, Jongseong's breathtakingly beautiful face firmly placed in your palms as he looks at you with literal stars gleaming in his dyes.

"I love you so fucking much", is the only thing he says before you go in for another tight hug, knowing life has finally given you exactly what you've been waiting for all this time.

All those dark nights you spent by yourself, all alone, unloved, heartbroken and abandoned will now forever remain in the past. They can't hurt you, not anymore.

You've finally found your missing piece.

← 𝐩𝐫𝐞𝐯𝐢𝐨𝐮𝐬 — 𝐦𝐚𝐬𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐥𝐢𝐬𝐭 — 𝐧𝐞𝐱𝐭 →

(A/N: i don't even know what to say exceot excuse the spelling errors pls it's 2am and im stressed bc SB is now officially finished im gonna go cry..see you guys for the epilogue tomorrow 🤕 thank you SO much for everything babies. i love you.)

TAGLIST CLOSED: @soonigiri i @xrr-s4sha @kwiwin @heelcvr @deobitifull @kpoprhia @doodlelibrary @abrazosolorcereza @certifiedmoa @sleeping-demons @heerinnie @ohmy-moonlightx @heeswif3y @hoonieluv @fakeuwus @jongszn @cheybabey @ineedsomezzz @super-amberlynn @kshoshi @tinie03 @jseongies @mimikittysblog @primroselover @heebrry @jebetwo @donghyckl @07myonlylove @enhamysunshines @quemirasboboandapaya @lostwonderwall @seuomo @enhaz1 @teawithbucky @beomgyusonlywife @dammit-jjk @lhsvibez @azurez @boutyouwonu @finchyyy @ocyeanicc @jaylaxies @in-somnias-world @zerasari @spookyauthorspopmusictrash @capri-cuntz @fluerz @3amstarlight

#enhypen social media au #enhypen smau #enhypen x female reader #enhypen x reader #enhypen jay social media au #enhypen writers #enhypen jay smau #enhypen angst #enhypen fluff #park jongseong smau #park jongseong social media au #park jongseong smut #park jongseong angst #park jongseong fluff #park jongseong x reader #park jay x reader

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mingyusluvr · 4 months ago

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eighteen | kmg (ongoing)

a/n: this is my first fic here! I hope it's decent— I'm also used to just reading here so i'm figuring out how to make shit look cool here, bare with me please

Sora and Mingyu have been best friends pretty much since the beginning of their careers. He has always secretly harboured feelings for her, she’s never realised this. But she’s also never realised her own feelings for him… until she’s forced to make a choice.

Idol!au; best friends to lovers eventually, sfw for now, 97 liners are the surrounding characters in this story. Ever so loosely based on 18 by one direction?? (I just got the title from there)

second a/n: taglist is open!! just reply or send me an ask!!! this is a mix between written and smau elements

profiles

zero: prologue

one

two

three

four

five

six

seven

eight

nine

ten

eleven

twelve

????

#svt fanfic #svt smau #mingyu smau #seventeen #svt x oc #idol au #97 line #fluff #smau

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sailforvalinor · 1 year ago

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Things I constantly forget about Ventus:

He’s an astronomy nerd. This is not only evident from his excitement over the meteor shower, but also the fact that he has astronomy books in his room and astronomical symbols on his walls. He also has his own telescope!

He also keeps plants—he appears to be a green thumb. He also has an empty birdcage for some reason? It’s very possible that he found it and thought it was cool and just has it for the aesthetic, but it’d be fun to think he had a bird at some point.

At some point he learned to breakdance—but WHERE??? WHEN???? There’s no way in heck it was Eraqus, so it’s possible he learned during his Union Cross days, which means this is more of a muscle-memory skill to him.

He was probably only around eleven or twelve years old when he became a Union Leader and he was possessed by Darkness and killed Strelitzia.

He was sixteen in Birth By Sleep, which made him the oldest KH protagonist up until that point.

The Keyblade he wields in Union Cross is Missing Ache.

Though his heart was asleep housed within Sora’s throughout his childhood up until KH3, it’s implied that he was semi-conscious the whole time, and it’s possible that he remembers Sora’s adventures.

#kingdom hearts #kh ventus

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blacklegsanjiii · 3 months ago

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i absolutely adore your young sanji au!! If you don't mind, could you write more about him? Like, how did the other crews that know him react to his actual age? Or even some random interactions between the straw hats after finding out!

I'M TRYING TO BE ALIVE AGAIN I PROMISE I AM SO SORRY

Young!Sanji!!! Ahh, lovely boy, precious and soft and absolutely hating everyone find out how old he actually is. He feels no one takes him seriously after they find out. They always falter and stumble and it just...doesn't feel good to him?

I feel like Law finding out would full on make him trip and face plant into the ground because Robin probably mentions it off handedly but knowingly. She knows Sanji doesn't like Law calling him Stealth Black and this seems to be the quickest way for her to stop it. Sanji is walking ahead of them to a tea house somewhere while they're in Wano. Like she specifically phrases it in a way to show how cruel Judge is and when Law full stumbles it makes Sanji look and ask what's wrong. Law is stumbling up onto his feet and is confused and asks Sanji if he's really /seventeen/ and Sanji says he is with a shrug. Law knows he's not the youngest on the crew but understands because of his love of the Sora comics that they were closer to the truth than he had realized, even after the raid suit. Germa was far worse than he knew to even its own children. When they're sat and drinking tea, Law can't help but ask why he is physically not seventeen. Sanji just goes 'ahaha, that's Germa for you' and Law is reeling that the cook is also a child on the crew. Law doesn't really change how he acts with the cook though, he doesn't see his age, only his accomplishments which are numerable even if he was twenty one, he just admires the guy more now.

Sanji is not pleased at how people keep trying to baby him after finding out how old he is and how his family is, the rescue team is especially bad. Chopper keeps asking for more and more check ups on him and Sanji is trying to just deal with it, Zoro seems to be holding back during their spars when he doesn't have to be, when they're out at a bar he keeps stealing Sanji's drinks even though he's not even buzzed yet and Zoro hates wine. Zoro, for the life of him he doesn't want to view the cook differently, but finding out about the experiments and how young Sanji was when he went through everything that led him to Zeff makes him softer. He fucking hates it but he feels like he needs to give the cook an actual chance at being a child that was denied to him. Even if he didn't get a chance he and the other kids at the dojo did play as well as train, especially when they were younger, before he left and he plays with Luffy and Chopper all the time. So when he assists Robin and Nami with the cook and making the guy take breaks. He's started doing the dishes fully on his own and shoving the cook out of the kitchen after meals.

I feel like when Zeff found out his kid wasn't ten, his kid is six and looks ten. Zeff frowns deeply at the boy who acts like a ten year old in a lot of ways, most ways, a fucked up and traumatized one albeit, but he's still ten. Except he's not and Sanji's age really shows when people flirt or try to take him to their ships for activities more fitting for an adult or teenager. Except he's not one of those, he's twelve when someone first propositions him and Zeff loses it at the customer and talks to Sanji about what they're doing, what people want from him and that he gets to decide if he wants to or not. Because Sanji is physically four years older than he actually is and Zeff wants to kill the fucking bastard that did this to the kid. Zeff knows his kid is younger than he looks but he treats the boy like how he holds himself, he's smart, impulsive, thinks he owes his life to Zeff when he doesn't. Goddammit Zeff wants him to act like a damn kid but the kid doesn't want to! Kid feels like he can't because the kid needs to be useful so on the rare nights the Baratie is closed Zeff and the others will take the kid out to the upper deck or the top of the restaurant and teach him the constellations and if the kid falls asleep it's all the better.

The kid will never act his real age, but he has people to make sure he's taken care of. That's more than enough for Sanji.

#burnouts a bitch #scratching my way out of this goddamned hole #black leg sanji #vinsmoke sanji #redleg zeff #red leg zeff #roronoa zoro #trafalgar law #trafalgar d water law #zoro roronoa #answers #young!sanji

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jays-supersonic-dynamo · 1 year ago

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lloyd has so much lore that comes with him that i think sometimes he should forget that he has it. offhandedly he references that he’s part dragon or related to the fsm or that he had a Whole Ass World-Threatening Prophecy at twelve and scares the shit out of sora and arin because he just assumes everyone close to him just Knows

#textpost #lego ninjago #ninjago dragons rising #lloyd garmadon #lloyd about to do the biggest fucking loredrop while they’re eating their lego cheerios letsgo

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tobiasdrake · 5 months ago

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Digimon Adventure 01x26 - Radiant Wings! Garudamon / Sora's Crest of Love

Previously on Digimon Adventure: Mimi buried herself in an escapist fantasy to get away from it all, at the expense of the people living there. But then she watched WandaVision, declared "She just like me fr", and undid it all. To apologize, she hosted karaoke night for everyone.

Both groups have found their Digivice radar blip, so it's time to meet back up with everyone.

Something about this return trip across the lake, hard to say what, seems a bit more difficult for Taichi and Jou. The swan boat's moving slow enough that Mimi and Palmon can comfortably sit up on top of it, where Agumon had to drape himself across the roof before.

Not sure why. I guess the boys are just getting tired. Plus it was visibly damaged in the TonosamaGekomon fight so that might also be a factor. Yeah, that's definitely it.

(In seriousness, she's up there because it's a two-seater. Jou's the responsible senpai, Mimi's the youngest, and Taichi's an experienced athlete. This is the correct way to divvy up the available positions on the swan.)

But with time and pedaling, the kids make it to the far shore.

Taichi: Hey, we're here! Jou: (sits back and sighs) So tired....

Taichi disembarks the boat and holds up his arms to help Her Majesty down from the roof.

Taichi: Come on, Princess. Mimi: Ugh, don't call me Princess! Taichi: Just joking around!

Though there are practical reasons for them to have divvied up the positions like this, the irony of the situation is not lost on Taichi.

Would it surprise you to know that the dub rewrote this exchange so they'd have an opportunity to be mean to Mimi about it? Because it didn't surprise me.

Tai: Come on, Mimi, get off your throne! Mimi: (scoff) I wouldn't exactly call this a throne! Tai: Yeah, well, I wouldn't call you a princess!

It starts off about the same, then Mimi's given a shallow response to provoke a comical retaliation. The punchline is Tai directly insulting her for being entitled, out of an exchange that was originally Taichi gently ribbing Mimi for the past episode's behavior and Mimi getting embarrassed and flustered about it.

Yamato's group arrives to meet the swan boat team and the two teams reunite.

Palmon: You've gotten smaller since last I saw you. Tsunomon, Motimon, & Koromon: Cut it out!

Palmon, you were there when this happened to Koromon. XD She's just being a dick.

In the dub:

Palmon: It's been so long since I've seen you! My, you've... shrunk. Tsunomon, Motimon, & Koromon: Don't rub it in!

It's a long walk to that punchline but I get where they were going with this. Palmon's quoting what was basically a stock phrase among distant relatives that kids in the target demographic have heard a thousand times. If you were twelve years old in the U.S in the 90's, this was hilarious.

I am no longer twelve years old so I don't know what they're saying now.

While Palmon savagely teases the other Partners for the consequences of Perfect-stage evolution, conversation turns to the one member of the nakama still missing: Sora, who's been floating around offering small bits of aid in each episode.

Except Koushiro's for continuity's sake, because Sora was across the lake helping Mimi while Koushiro's episode was taking place. Koushiro and Tentomon are the only pair that managed to unstick themselves from their situation without anyone's help.

Taichi: Where's Sora? Yamato: We didn't see her. Taichi: I see.... Where could she have gone? Mimi: I... I might have seen Sora-san. Group: Huh? Taichi: Where? Mimi: The Gekomon castle. But that might have been a dream....

Mimi flashes back on Sora's visit to Mimi's bedside, prompting discussion of Sora's eerie hit-and-run assistance.

Jou: So that's what happened. Koromon: Come to think of it, the voice that told me not to eat the mushrooms... I feel like it sounded a lot like Sora's. Taichi: Are you sure? Takeru: But if that's true, then why hasn't Sora-san come back to us? Yamato: It's no use thinking about it. We aren't Sora.

Yamato, Taichi, and Koushiro check their Digivices to see a new signal beeping in the distance.

Yamato: We'll have to catch her first. Taichi: This is like playing hide and seek. Koushiro: It's coming from this direction.

Taking point, the three lead the way, following their Digivices towards Sora.

In the dub, Joe is bafflingly clueless about the context of this conversation.

Joe: I think you're right. It must have been a dream. Koromon: Actually, I forgot that when I was just about to eat one of those Mushrooms of Forgetfulness when I was Agumon, I heard a voice that sounded a lot like Sora's! Tai: That's real weird! T.K.: But then, if Sora's actually close to where we are, why doesn't she come out and tell us? Matt: Maybe Sora just doesn't want to. Even worse, maybe she just can't. (Digivice signals beep) Matt: All I know is, we've gotta find her quick! Tai: It's almost like we're playing tag with her! Izzy: Come on, the signal points this way!

Original Koromon can be excused for this oversight because he's just realizing right now that the voice he heard was Sora's. Dub Agumon pegged her as Sora back at the moment it was happening, so it's kinda weird he waited this long to mention her.

Meanwhile, at Vamdemon's castle, PicoDevimon is getting the worst punishment yet. We don't even see it; We only hear four straight seconds of bloodcurdling scream before coming in on PicoDevimon falling down a flight of stairs, visibly bruised and beaten.

At last, Vamdemon emerges from silhouette.

(Oh my god, I always forget that he's blond. Why is he blond? XD I love the guy but Blond Dracula looks goofy as shit.)

Vamdemon's emergence prompts him to finally receive a rundown too. Vamdemon is a Perfect-stage Virus-type Undead Digimon. He debuted in Nightmare Soldiers, the same V-Pet that gave us Devimon, as the Perfect-stage evolution of Devimon and Bakemon.

In fact, many of the Digimon we're going to see associated with him are also Nightmare Soldiers. This arc is basically "The Chosen Children throw hands with that one specific V-Pet release."

I don't remember if I mentioned this before but his name, Vamdemon, is a portmanteau of "Vampire" and "Demon". Meanwhile, his English name Myotismon comes from the myotis genus of bats.

Vamdemon: I've grown tired of your incompetence. Narrator: Vamdemon. An exceptionally brutal and cunning Undead Digimon. His special attacks are Night Raid and Bloody Stream.

This is one of the less helpful rundowns. Thank you for just reading the attack names that were printed onscreen for me. This told me nothing.

The dub retains PicoDevimon's tortured scream, but they cut it down to about three seconds and also dial the volume way the hell down so it's easy to miss under the background music.

DemiDevimon handles Myotismon's intro.

Myotismon: Because of your stupidity, all of my evil plans have failed! DemiDevimon: Oh boy, Myotismon! How'd I ever get stuck working for this guy? And he's got all those bats! I hate bats!

The dub makes a judgment call that Vamdemon was the one coming up with all the schemes, which isn't quite the impression I've gotten. It's felt to me like Vamdemon gave PicoDevimon a task - Steal the Crests and prevent them from activating - and then set him loose to go figure out how to make that happen for himself.

The forgetfulness mushrooms demonstrated quite a bit of personal initiative. Bribing Digitamamon to drag Yamato into Jou's plight also seems unlikely to have been premeditated too far in advance, since it was a reaction to Yamato showing up like ten minutes ago. And with Vademon, he didn't so much bungle a plan as the plan was just bad from the outset.

PicoDevimon's schemes have featured a lot of improvisation and rapid adjustment to changing circumstances. So I think Myotismon owes credit where credit is due: Because of DemiDevimon's stupidity, all of his own plans have failed!

PicoDevimon: Please forgive me, Vamdemon-sama! Vamdemon: Courage. Hope. Friendship. The children's Crests have regained their light once after another. PicoDevimon: I-I'm ashamed! B-but, Vamdemon-sama, not all of the Crests have activated yet!

PicoDevimon scries up footage of Sora and Piyomon, sitting along on grass.

PicoDevimon: Like this kid. Her Crest of Love will never glow. Truth is, that's because I gave her some advice. The other six should be coming to her shortly. If we strike there-- Vamdemon: When the time comes, contact me. I will send those children straight to Hell. PicoDevimon: YES, SIR!!!

This time it's Vamdemon's turn to be unfair. My guy, the Crest of Courage was shining before PicoDevimon was even involved in this. Absolutely unfair to pin that one on him. Go take it up with Etemon.

This is, of course, case in point: PicoDevimon's having to explain the situation with Sora to Vamdemon because Vamdemon has no idea what PicoDevimon did to her. He's not involved in the "how"; He cares only that the task gets done.

In the dub:

DemiDevimon: Forgive my mistakes, Master Myotismon! I beg you! Myotismon: Courage. Hope. Friendship. The children's Crests are beginning to glow one by one! DemiDevimon: Everyone makes mistakes! Remember disco? Besides, sir, not all the children's Crests have begun to glow yet! (DemiDevimon conjures the scrying portal) DemiDevimon: That girl has the Crest of Love and it's still not glowing thanks to me! Anyway, according to my schedule, she'll be meeting up with the other children very soon! And when she does, Master Myotismon, when they are all together, that's when I'll get 'em! Myotismon: You think you can!? If you fail me again, my bats will have a new chew toy: YOU!!! DemiDevimon: Ehehehehe... I hate bats.

Goddammit, I forgot what a punching bag disco was back in the 90's. XD That got me. I know he's speaking in a broad sense about people as a whole but the way he uses it sort of implies to me that Myotismon had a disco phase. And I refuse to let that mental image go.

He was a young Devimon with parachute pants and roller skates once like, "I'm going to invent a NEW evolution all on my own, and it will be DISCODEVIMON!!!" Years later, Myotismon is just like, "We do not speak of DiscoDevimon."

Obviously, "I will send the children to Hell" wasn't making it past the censors. Though it's a bit of an odd choice to remove Vamdemon's instructions entirely, and instead assert that DemiDevimon's going to go take them all out by himself.

Also, "according to my schedule". XD He is trying so hard to sound like he still has control of things.

Meanwhile, the kids continue their search for Sora.

Wandering through the jungle as the sun begins to set.

Taichi: HEY!!! SORA!!! Koushiro: SORA-SAN!!! Jou: Hey, let's stop here for today and find a place to rest. It's too dangerous to wander around in the dark. Mimi: (collapses to her knees) I'm tired.... Yamato: But she should be somewhere around here.

Yamato checks his Digivice to confirm, and Sora's blip is practically right next to his own.

Would it surprise you to learn that the dub rewrote Jou's line so that he's just being a weenie instead of a responsible senpai? Yeah, they picked on Mimi earlier so now it's time to pick on Joe.

Tai: Soraaaaa! Izzy: SORA!!! WHERE ARE YOU!?!? Joe: Why don't we find a spot to rest for the night? Or better yet, for the next couple of weeks. My feet are killing me! Not to mention every other part of my body! Mimi: (collapses to her knees) I can't go another inch.... Matt: Hold it! I'm getting a reading on my Digivice. T.K.: Really? Well, what is it?

Matt doesn't even dignify Joe's whining with a response, instead announcing the radar blip as it it just appeared for the first time.

Also, T.K., you know what the blip is. It's been explained to you. Multiple times. What the fuck, T.K.?

Suddenly, Patamon's ears perk up.

Patamon: Huh!? Takeru: What's wrong? Patamon: I can hear something! Takeru: Eh? Maybe it's Sora-san! (low buzzing starts getting louder)

Only Patamon's giant ears can pick up the sound at first, but then it comes into focus, getting louder and louder as it approaches.

The dub doesn't really change the dialogue but they do change the timing of the buzzing, and the results are hilarious.

Patamon: Oh! What's that buzzing? (low audible buzzing starts getting louder) T.K.: I wonder if it's Sora!

Okay, T.K. ate the poison berries shortly before this scene started. XD

You know how Sora would sometimes open her mouth and the sound of a million angry hornets would emerge to signal that the end times are upon us? Or that she's just hangry? Yeah, that's probably what we're hearing.

Nope, actually, we're under attack.

Sora's really let herself go.

This hornet digimon erupts from the woods and attacks. Koromon identifies him as Flymon. The kids run for cover as Flymon makes a strafing run, raining projectile stingers down on them as he passes by.

Koushiro pops open his laptop and opens up the Digimon Analyzer, giving us the first diegetic rundown of the original.

Koushiro: I can bring up his status using the Digimon Analyzer that Gennai sent me! (Koushiro pulls up the DIgimon Analyzer screen on his laptop) Koushiro: Here it is. Flymon. An Insect Digimon. Adult-stage. He's a Virus-type. His special attack, Deadly Sting, sprays poisonous stingers. POISONOUS STINGERS!?!?

Flymon is something of a distant cousin to the Gazimon from the Etemon arc. He evolves from Gizamon, Pagumon's other branch.

Though the original just makes insect buzzing noises, Dub Flymon talks. They also cut "Deadly Sting" for obvious reasons.

Flymon: (firing) Brown Stingers! EEEEYOW!!! Izzy: Maybe this Digimon Analyzer that Gennai gave me could help us out. (Izzy pulls up the Digimon Analyzer screen on his laptop) Izzy: Here he is! Flymon. Classified as an Insect Digimon. A Virus-type. And I think we already know what his attack is - and it's not very pleasant! AND HERE HE COMES NOW!!!

No mention of his stingers being poisoned in the original. To be fair, given that they're the size of Taichi's torso and he's shooting them, we're probably in more danger of being impaled than poisoned.

Koromon and Tsunomon evolve back to their Child-stages, and the kids unload on Flymon. He's too fast for them, however, weaving around the Child-stage Digimon's attacks before coming in for another strafing run.

Out of nowhere, Birdramon appears, firing down at Flymon with Meteor Wing.

Flymon can dodge some of Birdramon's fireballs but not all of them at once. A direct hit sends his smoldering body plummeting into the forest.

Recognizing that Birdramon's presence means Sora's nearby, Taichi and Yamato bolt into the woods to give chase - With Takeru following along behind them.

Splitting up from Yamato, Taichi impressively manages to get ahead of Sora offscreen so he can emerge from the underbrush and cut her off.

This whole chase goes by for a good 20-30 seconds without any silence-destroying dialogue or jokes added by the dub.

Caught between Taichi in front and Yamato behind Sora has nowhere to run.

Taichi: Sora! Yamato: Why are you running away? Taichi: Explain yourself, Sora! Sora: ... Yamato: Sora...?

Finally, Takeru shows up with Agumon and Gabumon. None of them could keep up with even Yamato's sprint, let alone Taichi's. Takeru's gasping for breath, but he has an important question to ask.

Takeru: Sora-san, do you... hate us? Sora: Nnngh... That's not it! Piyomon: (arriving from the sky) Sora, why don't you tell them?

Fittingly, Takeru is the one who finally gets her to open up and speak, just a little. Taichi and Yamato were just being met with stone-faced silence, but she couldn't let Takeru believe something so cruel.

In the dub, Tai sounds inexplicably surprised to see her.

Tai: Sora! It's you! Matt: So why were you running away!? Tai: Enough running! Tell us what's going on! Sora: (groaning) ...mrrrr.... Matt: Sora...? T.K.: (arrives) Sora? Does this mean that... you don't like us anymore? Sora: No... Of course not. T.K.: Then what's wrong? Biyomon: (arriving from the sky) Sora, why don't you tell them?

It's a very small change but she seems a bit more conflicted in the dub. Her stone-faced silence is replaced with a vocalized groan, as if biting her tongue and wracked with indecision.

At Piyomon's urging, Sora finally comes clean about what's going on with her - And, in the process, finally explains this "Crest of Courage, Crest of Friendship" thing that PicoDevimon and Vamdemon have been talking about to the kids themselves.

She starts off choking out her words as if even trying to have this conversation is painful for her.

Sora: When Piyomon and I... left that night to look for Taichi... I... saw them... I saw PicoDevimon talking to someone. Takeru: What were they talking about? Sora: They were talking about our Crests. Taichi: The Crests? Sora: Yes. Each of our Crests has a different meaning. For instance, Taichi has the Crest of Courage. Taichi: Crest of Courage?

Taichi flashes back on Etemon's pyramid, when he found his nerve again and braved the firewall.

Taichi: Oh. That's why my Crest glowed back then! Sora: Yamato-kun has the Crest of Friendship. Yamato: Friendship? Takeru: What about mine? Sora: Takeru-kun has the Crest of Hope. Takeru: (happy) Eh!? The Crest of Hope! Sora: Koushiro-kun has the Crest of Knowledge. Jou-senpai has the Crest of Sincerity. Mimi-chan has the Crest of Purity. (sadly) And mine... is the Crest of Love. Taichi: Heh, Love fits you perfectly, Sora!

While Sora goes over these last three Crests, we see Koushiro, Jou, and Mimi crossing a creek that we had to chase Sora across earlier, trying to catch up to everyone. It's devoid of dialogue, but Koushiro hops across the stepping stones Sora used, Jou tries but slips and falls in, and Palmon pulls Mimi across on her vines to skip the creek entirely.

We've talked about most of these Crests as they came up. This is the first we're hearing of Jou's, however, since he shared his episode with Yamato.

Jou's Crest is 誠実の紋章 Seijitsu no Monshou, translated as the Crest of Sincerity. We talked last episode about Mimi's Purity, what that means from a Japanese perspective, and how it maps onto "Sincerity" in English. Now, here we are again encountering Sincerity from the opposite side.

This is not the last time that the English and Japanese scripts will use the same word for different things. So Mimi's sincere and Jou's sincere. Is this a redundancy?

I think it's easiest to grasp this distinction by thinking of it like honesty. Mimi and Jou's virtues are both forms of honesty, but they are not the same. Mimi is honest in the sense that she is true to herself, forthcoming with her feelings and thoughts and intentions. She doesn't lie or misrepresent herself; She says what she thinks and she thinks what she feels. With her, what you see is what you get.

Jou is honest in the sense of being forthright and dependable. He has a strong moral center, adheres to societal obligations, and earnestly strives to do what is expected of him. He abides by social contracts and behaves ethically within those boundaries.

Mimi is honest in her words and expression of her self, while Jou is honest in his actions and expression of social standards.

I would probably go with something like Crest of Responsibility or something than Reliability, though. The latter sounds like he's. Like. Generally successful at doing the things you need from him, when the results of his attempts to uphold his obligations aren't really the point. He doesn't always succeed in being the voice of reason or shepherding these kids in his care to safety, but he always tries.

Over in the dub, Sora for some reason feels the need to vividly describe DemiDevimon as if we all haven't met him already.

Sora: Okay. It happened the night that Biyomon and I left camp to try and find Tai. I saw a strange Digimon. He looked like a bowling ball with wings and he was talking to something in a giant bubble! T.K.: So, could you hear what he was saying? Sora: Yeah, I heard him talking about our Crests. Tai: What about them? Sora: He was saying that each of our Crests has its own special meaning. For example, Tai, yours is the Crest of Courage. Tai: The Crest of Courage? Oh! (flashback) That's right! And then the Crest started to glow! Sora: And the Crest you have, Matt, is the Crest of Friendship. Matt: Friendship.... T.K.: And mine? Sora: Yours is special, T.K. It's the Crest of Hope. T.K.: Alright! I hope we can get back home! Sora: Izzy's Crest is the Crest of Knowledge. Joe's is the Crest of Reliability.

The dub gives Gomamon a line after Joe splashes helplessly into the water during their creek crossing.

Gomamon: Thanks for being there, Joe! Sora: And Mimi's is the Crest of Sincerity. And finally, mine? Mine is the Crest of Love. Tai: Wow, the Crest of Love? That's just perfect for you, Sora.

I have no idea what Gomamon is thanking Joe for. I guess he's just trying to cheer him up.

The exposition here is mostly the same. She does call out T.K.'s Crest as special, but doesn't elaborate on what that means.

In any case, Sora fucking explodes over that last remark from Taichi, full-throated screaming at him at the top of her lungs. However, her voice sounds wounded and scared more than angry.

Sora: NO, IT DOESN'T!!! IT DOESN'T FIT ME AT ALL!!! Taichi: B-but you're always thinking about everyone-- Sora: I DON'T CARE ABOUT THEM!!! YOU DON'T... YOU DON'T KNOW WHAT I'M LIKE SO STOP PRETENDING THAT YOU DO!!! Taichi: (stunned) .... Sora: (gasp) I'm sorry.... Taichi: Wh... What's wrong? Sora: My Crest. It won't glow. Because I don't have any love.

Just because she's been out there helping everyone, that doesn't mean she isn't going through some shit too.

From an English perspective, Sora's last line and her emotional crisis there might sound a bit unclear. We're often taught to think of love in the specific terms of the relationship between two people.

Sora! Calm down! You're 11! It's okay that you haven't found love yet! Your mind has been poisoned by children's cartoons about finding your soulmate at age 6!

But that's not what she's on about. No, we're going much deeper than that today. Her Crest is 愛情の紋章 Aijou no Monshou. Aijou is the expression of care for others. It represents tangible, demonstrable, quantifiable displays of affection, for people or animals or things.

When you snuggle your favorite stuffy on the bed, you are expressing aijou. When you pet your cat in your lap, you're expressing aijou. When you give a friend a hug because you haven't seen them in weeks, that's aijou.

Sora is saying that she is incapable of expressing affection for others. And that's just fucking tragic. It calls all the way back to her very first focus episode on File Island, when she had internal strife over how readily Mimi gave Palmon her hat. Mimi's expression of aijou freaked Sora out.

Sora has love in her heart. But she isn't comfortable showing it. This episode is going to talk about that.

The dub plays this scene verbatim.

In the original, we go to commercial here and come back to follow up on what those ominous words from Sora meant, after a brief misogyny break. The dub skips that commercial break because they have a different spot in mind. Remember that they could have put it here.

Takeru: What did you mean about not having any love? Taichi: I don't get this at all! Women are such a hassle! Yamato: (sternly) Don't make fun of her, Taichi. Taichi: I'm joking.

[Sora will Remember This]

Taichi's last line is delivered with all the dismissive emotion of "Yeah, yeah, whatever."

Seriously, Taichi. She is clearly torn up about having to talk about something that is affecting her on an intense and personal level. Now was not the time for "Ugh women amirite high five!" Complete with It Was Just A Joke disclaimer when pushed back on.

I hope Mimi gets here soon.

The dub makes no significant changes but elaborates a bit on Taichi's unhelpful misogyny.

T.K.: You love us, don't you, Sora? Tai: I don't get it. Why is it that girls always have to get so emotional when it comes to love!? Matt: (sternly) Leave her alone, Tai. Tai: I was just joking around!

"Women amirite high five!" is now "Women and their feelings amirite high five!"

Once Taichi's finished forming another memory for Sora that will haunt him if he ever asks why she went for Yamato instead, Sora recounts her confrontation with PicoDevimon.

Sora: PicoDevimon told me. (flashback) Sora: Who are you!? PicoDevimon: Well, well. You saw something that you weren't meant to see. Did you hear about the Crests? Sora: I did! PicoDevimon: You're Sora-san, aren't you? Ehehehe... The Crest of Love, eh? Sora: What's so funny about that!? PicoDevimon: I feel bad for you. You were raised without knowing any real love, so your Crest of Love will never glow.

In the dub, Sora and DemiDevimon's confrontation almost sounds like they're gossiping.

Sora: (bitterly) The Digimon thought I was funny too. (flashback) Sora: Is your name, by any chance, DemiDevimon? DemiDevimon: It sure is! And you're one of those kids, the DigiDestined. Tell me something, did you hear about the Crests? Sora: Yes. In fact, I did. DemiDevimon: Oh yeah! You're that kid Sora! Heehee heehee... (sneering) The Crest of Love! Sora: And why are you laughing about that? DemiDevimon: You just think you're so hot! But guess what! You'll never be able to make the Crest glow! NEVER!!!

Sora was walking through the woods one day, eavesdropping on vampires as you do, when suddenly DemiDevimon showed up and did some mild bullying. And that's what she's been so freaked out about this whole time.

Sora's bitter retort to Taichi goes so hard and I love it but then the actual flashback is just... Wow.

Back in the present, Sora explains what PicoDevimon meant and why it affected her so badly with another flashback.

Taichi: Don't be stupid! PicoDevimon just told you a lie. Sora: No. It wasn't a lie. It happened back when I was in Girls' Soccer Club... I was their ace striker....

Sora flashes back on a confrontation with her mom.

Sora: Please understand, mom! I have to be there! Toshiko: Please lower your voice or the flowers will wilt. Sora: Today is a really important match! Toshiko: And how do you intend to play on that leg of yours? Sora: This is....

The camera pans down to show that Sora's left leg is bandaged up.

Sora: It's nothing! Toshiko: Sit down.

Sora's soccer injury makes it difficult for her; She flinches as she folds her legs under her to bend into the traditional seiza position, kneeling down with her heels under her.

Toshiko: You can't even sit correctly because of soccer. You should quit. Sora: NO!!! I like soccer more than flowers! Toshiko: Sora! How are you even my daughter?

Sora flinches as if she's been struck. She sits there, eyes filling with tears, soaking in the hurt for a moment, before standing up, screaming, and running off.

Sora: WHY CAN'T YOU UNDERSTAND!?!?

Sora sprints on her bad leg to the soccer field while the kids in the present discuss her story. Onscreen, we see that her team lost 6-3.

Taichi: Sora, your family is famous for kado, right? Sora: Yes. We're iemoto. Takeru: What does iemoto mean? Yamato: It means her mother is a master who teaches flower arranging.

Let's all thank Yamato for explaining both of those important Japanese words so that I don't have to.

Meanwhile, in the flashback, Sora arrives too late.

Sora: In the end, we lost that game. I couldn't stay in that club anymore. My mom doesn't see me as anything more than the daughter of a kado school. She thinks our reputation as iemoto is more important than I am! That's who she is!

This flashback is fucking powerful. Holy shit, there is so much going on here.

Note the careful shot composition in Sora's memory of Toshiko. Toshiko is shot in such a way as to obscure her face and instead draw attention to the flowers she's arranging. As if Sora was raised by the concept of floral arrangement, and not by a three-dimensional person.

That Sora's mother is iemoto lends a lot of important context to their argument. Sora is an only child, and it's traditional in an iemoto family for the iemoto to pass their skills and knowledge down to a child as their successor. Sora was obligated from the moment of her birth to become the next grandmaster to the Takenouchi school of floral arrangement, or whatever their school is called.

But she wants to play soccer instead. It's what she enjoys, as a three-dimensional person and not just Toshiko's Successor.

Presumably, she joined the soccer club that Taichi and Koushiro were in after losing the big game forced her to leave the girls' soccer club in disgrace.

So here we have another plot point that is thoroughly baked in Japanese culture. Good luck with this one, dub team.

Tai: That's it!? I thought it was something serious, like they were gonna stop making those stuffed bean bag animals. Besides, DemiDevimon is a liar. Sora: (silently flaps her lips for three seconds) It's true. It started back when I was on a girls' soccer team. My family owned a flower shop. It was my mom's whole life. (flashback) Sora: Please, mom! I gotta go to the soccer match! The girls are counting on me! Toshiko: Don't talk so loud, dear. The flowers are very sensitive. Sora: But this match is to win the title! Toshiko: Sora, you can't go with your knee injured like that. Sora: But mooooom! My leg's fine.... Toshiko: I'm sorry but you can't go. Sit down, we need to talk. (Sora drops into seiza, flinching in pain as she does) Toshiko: I want you to stop playing soccer and come to work at the flower shop after school. Sora: Do WHAT!? I won't stop playing to work with smelly old flowers! Toshiko: I can't believe a daughter of mine would act this way! My decision is final! Sora: (recoils, tears forming) ... WHY CAN'T YOU UNDERSTAND ME!?!? (stands up and runs off) Sora V.O.: I walked around for hours. I found myself at the soccer field. The game had just finished. Taichi V.O.: What happened? Sora V.O.: We lost the game 6-3. My teammates were so depressed that they didn't even notice me when they walked by me. I felt like I let them all down. Like it was all my fault. (back to present) Sora: My mom said I had to be part of the family business. No questions. That's how she is. It's like it's the only thing that's important to her. She doesn't understand.

Okay. Yeah. I have. Uh. I have notes.

First off, this hits way different when Toshiko is a small business owner wanting to bilk her daughter for free child labor, instead of the grandmaster of a long and storied art form trying to pass down her talents and knowledge to her next of kin.

They tried, but we just don't have the same culture of ancient disciplines and centuries-long generational inheritance. Kado and ikebana can trace their roots farther back than the concept of colonizing the Americas.

They had absolutely nothing to put in place of the iemoto discussion so Sora vamps over the footage and we end up with "I wandered aimlessly for hours and then arrived at the soccer field by happenstance." Why would she do that? Why wouldn't she go to the game straightaway?

Oh, and Tai continues to be even more of a condescending misogynistic prick in this version than the original.

Still, while the nuance of Toshiko's position is inevitably and unsurprisingly lost, the heart of this scene - How Sora's falling out with Toshiko made her feel - comes through intact. We still grasp the central idea: That Sora believes she's incapable of affection because she, herself, has been unloved throughout her childhood.

Sora, in a fit of total emotional breakdown, pulls back her arm to hurl her useless Crest into the woods. Taichi, at this moment, finally steps up to help.

Or. Uh. Tries to, at least.

Sora: So... I was raised without love, AND THERE'S NOTHING I CAN DO ABOUT IT!!! (Taichi grabs Sora's arm to stop her from throwing the Crest) Taichi: STOP IT, SORA!!! Sora: LET ME GO!!! Taichi: Whether it's true or not, you shouldn't believe anything PicoDevimon said.

Sora lowers her arm and doesn't throw the Crest. Instead, she breaks down completely, opening the floodgates and bawling out her emotions right there on the spot.

(Sora is so emotionally closed off that this cry is probably something she's needed for a long time.)

Taichi is, of course, completely useless in the face of Sora's raw, exposed pain.

Taichi: Hey, don't cry! Sora: (continues loudly crying) Taichi: H-Hey, Yamato, what should I do here? Yamato: If she needs to cry, then let her. Agumon: Yamato is so mature! Gabumon: Much more than Taichi, at least.

I shouldn't laugh while Sora's exposing her rawest nerves, but Agumon and Gabumon fucking taking turns dancing on the grave of Taichi's dignity got me. XD Eat shit, Goggle Boy.

In the dub, Sora quotes DemiDevimon for things he never said in this version.

Sora: That's why I know he wasn't lying when he said I grew up not knowing what love is. RAAAARGH!!! (Sora attempts to throw the Crest but Tai stops her) Tai: SORA, STOP IT!!! Sora: LET GO!!! Tai: Even if what you said is true, you shouldn't believe a word from that loser DemiDevimon! He's just a creep that's trying to hurt you! (Sora's arms fall limp and she starts bawling) Tai: Wait! Wait, don't cry, Sora!

HEY KIDS ENOUGH ABOUT THAT DO YOU WANT TO GO EAT AT MCDONALDS!?!?

Yeah, remember that commercial break we put a pin in? The dub slides it in right here. Let's talk about how cool Hot Wheels are instead of Sora's mom not loving her. They go all the way around the big wheel in the track somehow!

Have you ever had a nice, hot Toaster Strudel fresh out of the oven? Oh boy, I sure do love Toaster Strudel.

Oh, and be sure not to miss the new episode of Beast Machines. Yeah, we're gonna be airing some new Beast Machines. We all love Beast Machines, right?

Okay, back to Sora's traumatized heart shattering into a million pieces on the ground of this alien jungle we're stranded in.

Tai: Don't cry, Sora! Matt, help me out; I don't know what to do with her when she starts blubbering. Matt: Just let her go, Tai. She'll be okay. Agumon: Boy, Matt's like a real grown-up. Gabumon: Now if only he would cut his hair.

Sora, he didn't say you grew up not knowing what love is. That was the original Japanese script. In this version, he just said "Your Crest won't glow NEENER NEENER!" Sometimes I swear Sora binge-watched the subs in preparation for appearing in the dub.

Full disclosure: The second Tai opened his mouth again after the commercial, I wanted to go back to Toaster Strudel.

Agumon still gets to puff up Matt but Gabumon sinking the shot on Taichi's face is replaced by a quip about Matt's unruly hair. As if Tai's any better on that front.

Once Sora's crying has begun to slow and she's gotten out what she needed to - and once Taichi's brain has fully melted down into an ineffectual blue screen - Takeru approaches her.

Takeru: Sora-san? Thank you.

The gradual slowing of Sora's crying now halts, as she opens her eyes and looks down at Takeru.

Takeru: You're the one who told us not to eat the mushrooms, aren't you? Piyomon: We knew PicoDevimon was plotting something, so we followed him in secret. Also, when Yamato and Jou were working in Digitamamon's restaurant.... (Flashback to Sora replacing the stolen brick) Yamato: I didn't know. Taichi: You didn't have to hide from us. Piyomon: Sora wanted to be alone. But she couldn't abandon the rest of you either. Please understand. Takeru: I love you, Sora. (Platonic daisuki) Sora: Eh...? Takeru: So don't leave us again, okay? i don't like when my family-- (Takeru stops himself abruptly and is silent for a second, trying to find his words again) Takeru: ...I mean, when everyone separates. Sora: Takeru-kun... Okay. I'm sorry.

Hahaha Sora triggered Takeru's divorce trauma ISN'T THIS EPISODE SO HAPPY AND FUN? T_T We're doing character drama through the roof today.

The dub plays this scene almost entirely straight, but cuts the reference to T.K.'s parents being divorced. Though they replace his divorce trauma with stranded child trauma.

T.K.: Sora? I like you. Sora: Huh? T.K.: So please don't go away again. I don't like being away from you. (T.K. pauses for a second for no particular reason) T.K.: Haha, when you're around, I don't miss my mom as much! Sora: T.K... (voice breaking up) I'm so, so sorry!

Oh wow, that's heartbreaking in a completely different way. ISN'T THIS EPISODE SO HAPPY AND FUN? T_T I know we've all been having a great time talking about how unloved Sora is but did you know that that Takeru is 8 with divorced parents and he's been lost in hostile wilderness for months?

Maybe shows need a maximum age rating too because I have been at full-throttle WON'T SOMEBODY HELP THESE CHILDREN since the moment Sora started sharing.

Finally, the slowpokes arrive. At long last, the kids are finally all together again.

Jou: HEY!!! Taichi: (cheerful again, back in his element) Hey! What took you so long? Mimi: Jou-senpai took his time after falling in the river. Jou: Mimi-kun, you kept sitting down and complaining about how tired and hungry you were!

Unbeknownst to them, however, a stalker has been observing them from the bushes while this whole trauma unpack has been going on.

PicoDevimon: They're all here. I must inform Vamdemon right away!

No change in the dub.

Once night falls, Vamdemon's carriage emerges from his castle, carted across the sky by a wicked beast. Devidramon specifically, but we aren't introduced to them yet. At the same time, PicoDevimon decides he wants to begin the slaughter early.

PicoDevimon: Hehehe, they're all fast asleep.

He pulls out one of his Pico Darts, brandishing it at the sleeping children.

(They've been apart for so long, they forgot to set a night watch rotation. Complacency is the bane of survival.)

PicoDevimon: I'll pick off a few of them before Vamdemon arrives.

Piyomon wakes up just in time to see PicoDevimon preparing to throw his Pico Dart. She dives on top of Sora, shrieking for Sora to wake up. The syringe jabs into Piyomon's back right as Sora wakes, and she falls limp in Sora's arms.

The last time we saw DemiDevimon fight was in T.K.'s amusement park episode. There, the dub cut all footage of the Pico Darts, presumably due to obviously being syringes. So you might be wondering how they can play this scene without showing the Darts.

And the answer is they can't. DemiDevimon debuts his version of Pico Darts here, calling them Demi Darts, and most of the footage of them makes it in.

They do cut one part, and it's the moment the Dart strikes Biyomon. Instead of seeing the needle sink into her flesh, they cut away to DemiDevimon's grinning face while we hear it strike her offscreen. However, there's also a closeup shot of Sora pulling the needle out of Biyomon's back that makes it into the dub unedited.

Sora's shrieking about Piyomon wakes the rest of the kids. PicoDevimon cowers away, afraid to have to fight them all at once. But then he arrives with fucking dramatic flair.

His coffin air-dropped from his carriage, just so he can burst out of it mid-descent.

He didn't have to do it that way. He did that for the aesthetic. It's a show of intimidation. He doesn't just want the kids thinking a vampire has shown up; He wants them to know that Maximum Dracula is here for their blood.

As he touches down on the grass, he speaks in his booming yet quiet and reserved voice.

Vamdemon: Chosen Children. Sora: THAT GUY!!! That's the guy PicoDevimon was talking to! PicoDevimon: Not "that guy"! This is Vamdemon-sama! Taichi: Vamdemon? PicoDevimon: No, Vamdemon-sama! Vamdemon: Hahahahahaha... Your journey ends here. Night Raid!

Even Vamdemon's laugh is a quiet and reserved chortle. I went back and forth on how to spell it because it's closer to Hnhnhnhnhnhn but that doesn't look right as an onomatopoeia.

Taichi, at least show some proper respect to his honorific before you die. :P Notably, Taichi has an issue with that in general. It's something I've noticed but haven't talked about: Taichi doesn't use a lot of honorifics when talking to the others. Fitting his personality, he is inappropriately casual with his language choices.

A fact that is now pissing off PicoDevimon.

Vamdemon himself is a man of few words. He just shows up like, "Hey kids, killing you now," and opens fire. This is what Etemon wanted to do for his entire arc.

Meanwhile, in the dub, Myotismon is chewing scenery with his more boisterous persona.

Myotismon: MUWAHAHAHAHA!!! DIGIDESTINED!!! Your journey ends here. Sora: That's it! That's the thing DemiDevimon was talking to! DemiDevimon: He's not a thing! He's Lord Myotismon! Tai: Myotismon? DemiDevimon: That's Lord Myotismon! Myotismon: WUHUHUHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!! These DigiDestined are making me feel a little... batty! Grisly Wing!

Sora calling Myotismon "THAT THING" gives me life. XD

Taking bickering over the -sama honorific and turning it into bickering over a Lordship title is pretty standard for anime dubs.

Vamdemon fires off his Night Raid, finally showing us the thing that he's been torturing PicoDevimon with.

It's a wave of pure darkness and bats.

Mochimon evolves to join the other Child-stage Digimon, and they put up an initial front line. Firing on the bats to hold back the assault. But it's not enough, and the bats breach the line, reaching the kids behind.

Seeing Mimi harassed by bats, Palmon evolves to answer quantity with quantity. Dub Palmon drops a one-liner:

Palmon: Let me try to get my point across! Needle Spray!

A million needles answer a million bats, buying the kids a moment to breathe and return fire. Specifically, a moment for Artillery Cannon Ikkakumon to return fire, sending out six Harpoon Vulcans to converge on Vamdemon.

The missiles explode on impact, obscuring Vamdemon in smoke like this is Dragon Ball. Then he emerges, seemingly unscathed, launching himself into the air.

Throwing himself into the fight for real, Vamdemon unveils his other technique: Bloody Stream.

A pair of whips, presumably made of blood, which he lashes out at the Partner Digimon. The dub calls it Crimson Lightning for obvious reasons.

(I wonder if this is a Castlevania reference? Associating Dracula with whips makes me immediately think Castlevania.)

While savaging the Digimon, Vamdemon gives off the most monotone and robotic evil laugh I've ever heard, and it's the scariest fucking thing.

Vamdemon: Ha. Ha. Ha. Ha. Ha. Ha. Ha. Ha.

While Myotismon is having the time of his life.

Myotismon: Ahh HAHA Ahahahahaha!!!

As he hits the ground, Agumon declares:

Agumon: Taichi... He's strong....

But. Uh. Yeah, you're Child-stage and he's Perfect, that is not a fair assessment. The only Digimon we have that can Super-Evolve just recovered enough for Child-stage today, so we're up shit creek right now.

Once Vamdemon's finished taking apart the Partners, he advances on the children. In the back of the group, the last Digimon struggles to break free from Sora and fight.

Piyomon: I have to go... I'm the only one left.... Sora: You can't! How do you intend to fight him with your injuries!? Piyomon: Please understand, Sora. I have to go! (Piyomon starts trying to wriggle out of Sora's grasp) Sora: YOU CAN'T!!! Piyomon: LET GO!!! Sora: YOU CAN'T GO!!! Piyomon: WHY CAN'T YOU UNDERSTAND!?!?

Just like that, the shoe is on the other foot. Sora's stunned by Piyomon echoing the same words she'd said to Toshiko in her flashback.

Sora: Mom... It was really about me... She was worried about me!

Whatever ambiguous injury fucked up Sora's leg, that's what the argument had really been about. Toshiko didn't want Sora playing on an injured leg, and she didn't want Sora playing at all if it was going to push her so hard that she thought playing on an injured leg was okay.

It wasn't about the fucking kado school. Sora made an ass out of u and mption. Poor mption didn't deserve that.

Over in the dub:

Biyomon: I've gotta do something to help them... Sora: Huh? Biyomon: I'm the only one left to fight Myotismon.... Sora: It's no use! You can't do anything in your condition. Biyomon: Please understand... I have to go! (Biyomon starts trying to wriggle out of Sora's grasp) Sora: No, Biyomon, you can't! You'll get hurt! I WON'T LET YOU!!! MY DECISION IS FINAL!!! Biyomon: SORA, WHY CAN'T YOU UNDERSTAND!?!?!? (flashback) Sora: I always thought my mom was thinking about her flower shop, but she was really worried about me getting hurt....

Hey look, they added "My decision is final" to the flashback earlier so they could echo it here. For a dash of extra "Sora has become her mom" symbolism. I like that she absorbed that language from her mom without even realizing she was adding it to her lexicon.

Because people do that. You are the influences you surround yourself with, especially during childhood.

It's worth noting that Dub Toshiko was pushier about the flowers, though. In the original, it was Sora who brought "I don't want to flowers" into the argument. Go back and check!

What Toshiko said was "How do you intend to play on that leg of yours?" and "You can't even sit correctly because of soccer. You should quit." She never made it about kado. That was an assumption Sora leapt to. With the new context Sora provides here, it's clear that she really was just freaked out by Sora's leg injury.

(Though Sora's kneejerk assumption does imply that the pressure to become the next iemoto has been a point of contention between her and Toshiko in the past, it does not mean that Toshiko doesn't love her daughter.)

In the dub, she gave Sora the "We need to talk" and then followed up with "I want you to stop playing soccer and come to work at the flower shop after school." So it's not exactly Sora's fault that she assumed this was about the flower shop. Toshiko said as much.

This schism isn't so bad that it undercuts Sora's realization here, I think. But the difference in Toshiko's tone does affect how she comes across as a parent nonetheless, which is kind of important to the whole "Was Sora unloved?" thing.

Original Toshiko was trying to have a conversation with her daughter, only for Sora to get the wrong idea and unexpectedly explode on her. To which Toshiko reacted badly and said some shit she shouldn't have said.

Dub Toshiko was laying down commands from on high for her child to obey. Her intentions weren't so bad, turns out, but she still kinda sucks. Like. In general. Making sweeping life decisions for your child without so much as consulting them and then doubling down when they get upset about it is not good parenting. Dub Sora still isn't unloved, but her mom seems pretty domineering.

While Sora's having revelations about her mother, Piyomon breaks free and evolves into Birdramon. And then Sora gets to see her fears realized.

Birdramon's Meteor Wing glances harmlessly off of Vamdemon's cape. He retaliates, sinking his Bloody Stream into Birdramon's gut and knocking her from the air with a single shot.

Sora runs for her, screaming in sheer terror.

Sora: BIRDRAMON!!! BIRDRAMOOOOOOOOOON!!!

The dub makes this a little more on the nose.

Sora: Birdramon! Birdramon, no! I love you!

Now that she's over her internalized emotional blockage, Sora's feelings erupt and her Crest activates. Birdramon CHOU-SHINKAAAAAA!!!

Birdramon Super-Evolves into her Perfect-stage Garudamon. And then immediately ignores Vamdemon while he shits himself over his exposure to the sacred power of the holy device and Crest, now glowing inside Garudamon.

Vamdemon: W-What is that light!?

Garudamon ignores him to pick up Sora and talk to her instead. That's fair.

Garudamon: Sora, your love... I felt so much of it.Sora: (crying tears of relief) Piyomon... So cool....

While they have this moment, the narrator cuts in for the rundown. Garudamon is a Perfect-stage Vaccine-type Bird Person Digimon. Her name is a reference to the god Garuda, the king of birds in Hindu mythology.

That she's been promoted from a bird dragon to a male humanoid god who governs the domain of birds is why she looks like that.

Narrator: Garudamon. A Bird Person Digimon that evolves from Birdramon. Through justice and order, she is the guardian deity of the natural environment. Her special attack is Shadow Wing.

In the dub, Myotismon seems even more confused than Vamdemon.

Myotismon: What!? Where is that glow coming from!? (Garudamon picks up Sora) Garudamon: (growly beast voice) SOOOOORA! I CAN FEEL YOUR LOOOOOOOVE! It's making me strong! Sora: (crying tears of relief) My Crest... It glows.... Tentomon: (here now) Garudamon is the Ultimate form of Birdramon. She commands the sky and protects the earth. Her attack is a flaming bird called Wing Blade.

Sora's more interested in her Crest than Garudamon. Which is fair because Dub Garudamon became fucking terrifying holy shit. That was a choice and a half. I'd be trying to focus on literally anything else too.

Now that she's properly introduced, Garudamon turns her attention on Vamdemon.

Vamdemon: Rrgh, the Crest of Love just had to activate at the most crucial moment! Garudamon: I will protect Sora! Shadow Wing!

Her Shadow Wing takes the form of a flaming bird. Vamdemon matches with his Night Raid, resulting in a momentary tug-of-war between their dueling attacks.

But Night Raid roots Vamdemon in place while he fires it, while Shadow Wing is self-sustaining. While Vamdemon is rooted in that spot, Garudamon snatches up the kids and Partners and takes flight, leaving him behind.

In the dub, "Hey Digimon" fires up as Garudamon lets off her Wing Blade, and its upbeat positivity is absolutely tone-destroying. Like we are actively fleeing for our lives from Dracula to the tune of Don't Worry Be Happy.

When their attacks collide, the dub gives Myotismon the line:

Myotismon: I did not anticipate such strength!

Did... Did you not? You've been pretty upset each time a new Crest glowed.

Garudamon carries the kids to safety, and they unpack Sora's realization by a nice river the next morning.

Taichi: See? There was nothing to worry about. Your Crest glowed just fine. Sora: Before I knew what I was doing, I started acting like my mom. Pyokomon: Sora.... Sora: That's when I understood. My mom loved me all along. Pyokomon: I felt it too! I felt your love! Sora: I'm sorry about before. Pyokomon: I'm just glad you're back to normal! Taichi: Aww, I want Sora's love too! Jou: Taichi, you moron! Do you realize what you're saying!? Takeru: Huh? Jou-san, your face is beet red! Mimi: Jou-senpai, would you like some of my love? Jou: Huh!?

Mimi deposits various seeds into Jou's hands. I honestly can't explain this one. It's clearly meant to be a visual pun but fuck if I know what it is. The other kids clearly get it, though, and they all have a good laugh at Jou's expense.

Jou: (tired) Mimi-kun... okay.... Group: (laughs hysterically) Narrator: The children accepted Sora back into their group and their unity was stronger than ever before. However....

In the dub:

Tai: All you had to do is stop worrying about it, Sora, and you got your Crest to work! Sora: When Biyomon was in danger of getting hurt, I realized that I was acting just like my mom. Know what I realized? My mom loved me all along. Yokomon: And it was your love that helped me Digivolve, Sora. Sora: I'm glad. Yokomon: You see? You are capable of love after all. Tai: I felt something. I guess it was your love shining through! Joe: I felt something too. It made me feel uncomfortable. T.K.: Love shouldn't make you feel like that! Mimi: That's right, T.K.! I know why you felt uncomfortable, Joe. Joe: Hmm? Why? Mimi: (deposits the seeds in his hands) These were in your pocket! Joe: Oh, I guess it wasn't love. Group: (laughs hysterically) Matt V.O.: Sora joined up with us again and we were closer than ever. We finally thought things were going our way. And then....

Okay when and why was Mimi rifling through Joe's pockets? I do not understand the Japanese joke but I somehow manage to understand the English one even less.

Tai's bit here is also notably different. In the original, he's whining because he wants to feel Sora's love too - with Jou-senpai immediately calling him out on how flirtatious that sounded. Either he's intentionally hitting on Sora or he's innocently saying something that sounds like hitting on Sora. Either way, senpai doesn't like it.

In the dub, he's celebrating the fact that he did feel Sora's love shining through a similar metaphysical connection to the one she has with Piyomon. Implying exactly the sort of relationship between them that Taichi may or may not want to have with her, depending on if he's started thinking about that yet.

Suddenly, the sky darkens. Black clouds fill the air and Vamdemon's eerie "Ha. Ha. Ha. Ha." laugh emerges from them. We close this episode out on the dire words of our new villain.

Sora: That voice! Vamdemon: Chosen Children. With only seven of you, you won't be able to defeat our evil power.

Uh. Cool. Thanks for dropping by to tell us that. He's hinting at the existence of the Eighth Child, which is going to become important to this arc going forward. Not sure why he's showing up to do that, though. This cliffhanger could have been an email.

The dub overlooks the importance of the number and instead plays it as a general gloat.

Sora: I know that laugh! Myotismon: You foolish DigiDestined! The seven of you are no match for my powers! Prepare for your ultimate destruction! MUWUHAHAHAHAHAHA!!!

So, no foreshadowing here. Just a more aggressive cliffhanger to really get you biting your nails about his impending attack.

Which. Uh. There is no impending attack. We'll start next episode with the kids hanging out at this river, perfectly safe. He can't attack in broad daylight like this. He really was just coming by to say "LOL No Eighth Child? Scrubs."

You salty, bro?

Assessment: Well that was an emotional fucking roller coaster. I did not remember this episode very well and for that I am ashamed, because this was fucking good. Toshiko and Sora's drama tore my heartstrings right in fucking half.

The dub certainly made some questionable choices but on the whole I'd say that this is one of their better ones. Sora's character arc is preserved as intact as they could get it despite the untranslatable cultural elements to it, and that's the heart of the episode more than anything else.

Now I'm going to go get some McDonalds and process paralyzing adult fears for a while.

#digimon #digimon adventure #revisiting digimon #revisiting digimon adventure

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takethistoyourstardust · 4 months ago

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chosen one

a musing on riku’s status as the chosen one (aka i wrote this in an absolute fervor last night please be niceys)

—

you were five when the man handed you the big key. you barely remember what he said, let alone what he looked like. he seemed to think you were meant to be the “chosen one”.

you were fifteen when a somewhat familiar looking man ripped you away from your friends. he forced you to become a puppet to your own darkness. he seemed to think you were meant to be the “chosen one”.

you were fifteen when you hid your eyes to try and embrace the darkness. your best friend’s body forced you to embrace your darkness. he seemed to think you were meant to be the “chosen one”.

you were sixteen when your best friend fell to his knees and sobbed. he was just happy you were alive, even if you looked almost unrecognizable. he seemed to think you were meant to be the “chosen one”.

you were sixteen when you dove into your best friend’s dreams to keep him from forcibly becoming a puppet to his darkness. you were branded with the symbol of his protector. they all seemed to think you were meant to be the “chosen one”.

you were seventeen when you came to escort the blonde girl to the island. you were escorting her on behalf of the replica of you she created two years ago. she seemed to think you were meant to be the “chosen one”

you’re eighteen now. your best friend has been stolen away to a world beyond reality. you are the chosen one.

your best friend was four when the pretty woman told him to protect you if you ever strayed too far. you both saved her from the darkness twelve years later. he was never the chosen one.

your best friend was fourteen when he saved you from the darkness. you were on the other side of the door and he promised to find you. he was never the chosen one.

your best friend was fifteen when he finally found you again. he fought alongside you and was ready to stay in the darkness with you. he was never the chosen one.

your best friend was fifteen when he took the exam with you. his darkness was potent enough to be manipulated into near eternal slumber. he was never the chosen one.

your best friend was sixteen when he disappeared. he gave up literally everything to save everyone and destroy the man who lead you to darkness to begin with. he was never the chosen one.

your best friend is seventeen now. he’s trapped in a world of fiction. he was never the chosen one.

you’re eighteen now. you’re the chosen one.

your best friend is seventeen. he was never the chosen one.

your best friend is still out there. you’re willing to do almost anything to find him again. you say goodbye to your friend before chasing his heart to this unknown reality.

for the first time since you started this journey, you feel like the chosen one. you finally feel like you’re getting to choose this. and you’re making your best friend your mission.

your chosen one.

you’re choosing sora.

#the Mage rambles #kh #my writings #riku kh #this isn't soriku btw i just have so many thoughts abt riku and sora and their relations to the idea of the chosen one #i feel ill

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venusvity · 11 months ago

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.ﾟ۪ ♡ ۫ VENUS VICTRIX ... THE THRID FULL ALBUM !

Venus Victrix is the third full album of the fictional South Korean girl group VENUS. The album was released by Flowerbank Entertainment on December 18th, 2023. Before the release of the highly anticipated album, the girls released two pre-release singles, "DRAMA" and "I AM THE BEST," both getting two weeks of promotions and being met with widespread praise. With a total of twelve songs, VENUS would promote "THE BOYS", "UNTIE", and "BYOB (bring your own bestie)" for three months.

Venus Victrix has a total of 12 tracks, with all the girls having writing credits on every song. The tracklist is nearly entirely produced by other people as Venus decided to take a step back from producing for the time being, with the exception of "Making The Bed," which is written, composed, and produced by Chloe.

Long-time creative director Adrian Reyes produced a majority of the album alongside Ideal Music producer CLOSURE AKA Zion of Arm Candy, THATZTY AKA Tyler of Sunlite, Piper of SNS, Yuki of SNS, LULU formerly of ALLUME, SOOORA AKA Sora formerly of ALLUME, TSUISON AKA Noah of DeepDive, DOWN2LEE AKA Finn of DeepDive, and most notably Lee Chang.

The girls were given the honor of picking a song from the Flowerbank Vault, choosing "I Love You" out of the 50 songs within the Flowerbank Vault. All money earned from the song will go to his mother.

TRACK OO1. THE BOYS

TRACK OO2. I AM THE BEST

TRACK OO3. DRAMA

TRACK OO4. UNTIE

TRACK OO5. I LOVE YOU

TRACK OO6. BYOB (bring ur own bestie)

TRACK OO7. 7SECONDS

TRACK OO8. THAT GIRL

TRACK OO9. WE'LL TALK LATER

TRACK O10. THROUGH YOUR WINDOW

TRACK O11. TALLY

TRACK O12. MAKE THE BED

Venus Victrix, received an impressive number of pre-orders, indicating its widespread appeal. Within just six days of the pre-order period starting, the album had received over 800,000 pre-orders, and by December 12th, the number of pre-orders had reached one million. Out of these one million pre-orders, 670,000 came from Korea, while 340,000 were from the US and Europe. Moreover, a limited edition vinyl of only 18,888 copies had sold out within days, further highlighting the album's popularity. As per the latest reports, the album had accumulated 1.2 million physical sales worldwide by January 12th.

The album debuted at the top spot of the Gaon Album Chart and broke the record for first-week sales on Hanteo among girl groups. It sold an impressive 590,000 copies in just one day after its physical release date. Gaon Chart would go on to announce that Venus' album received an official million certification after selling over a million copies in South Korea on January 22nd.

Undoubtedly, their highest performing album yet, VENUS, would be virtually unavoidable for the three months they were promoting, whether it be their songs being played on the radio or their faces on billboards; Venus was everywhere. Citizens would dub this era "The Venus Virus" as it seemed everyone and their mothers were listening or talking about the group during this time.

Venus was gaining popularity not only in South Korea but also worldwide. Venus Victrix made its debut at number two on the US Billboard 200 chart, with a total of 110,000 album-equivalent units. This includes 81,000 pure album sales, 26,000 stream-equivalent sales, and 2,000 track-equivalent sales.

Pitchfork would go on to rank the album 8.1 out of 10, making it the second highest-rated album on the site. "Venus not only pushes the boundaries of K-pop with their stellar vocal performances but also elevates the genre with 'Venus Victrix.' The album's catchy hooks and dance-worthy tracks are complemented by lyrics that delve into deeper themes, making it a standout release in the world of pop music."

Multiple Youtubers would go on to review/react to Venus Victrix. Music reviewer Anthony Fantano would be the first to review the album, giving it a 7.8 overall.

"While 'Venus Victrix' has its merits, I can't help but feel there's a missed opportunity here. The vocals and lyricism are commendable, but the overall sound lacks a certain adventurous quality. It's a solid 7.8, but I expected a bit more risk-taking from Venus."

Twitter's favorite reactionary Zach Campbell would go onto react to "The Boys" music video, heavily praising the girls and the song for it's energy and visuals. Unlike Fantano, Campbell would go on to become a darling amongst Constellations.

"This music video is like a visual feast. [...] Venus is playing in a league of their own!"

Most notably, AJay Delux would post her video "Venus Victrix - First Listen." just two weeks after the album dropped. Her review of the album was very positive, praising the girls for their vocal talent and versatility. Sena and Jiah would go on to post the video on their stories, thanking her for her review and mentioning how much they love her videos. AJay would go on to rate the album a 8 out of 10.

"Alright, that was a wild ride through Venus's 'Venus Victrix.' The vocals and lyricism held it together, and the diversity in sounds across the tracks kept it interesting. I'm giving this a solid 8 out of 10. Venus delivered the fun pop with meaningful lyrics they promised."

OO1. LOTS of interactions with other idols, especially for TikTok! Venus tends to stay in their bubble most of the time, but this time around, they really put themselves out there! Even bliss was socializing more, which is something constellations haven't seen since FOREVER. They mainly did the "BYOB" challenge with other idols, but for a few (mainly girl idols, lol!), they did the "UNTIE" challenge, which constellations ate up!

OO2. The long promotional schedule seemed to confuse a lot of fans with how fast-paced the industry seems to be nowadays. "I felt like we missed out on an opportunity with Burn The Witch by only promoting it for such a short period of time," Creative director Adrian Reyes would go on to explain at a press conference, "Things move too fast, and I want to change that. Venus is supposed to not be like other groups, which is why we went with what I feel is a proper promotional schedule. If it was full up to me, I'd promote this album all year." And while a majority of the internet knew what he was getting at, disgruntled K-pop stans on Twitter took this as an opportunity to frame Venus as "Pick Me's" and "Not Like Other Girls," which caused a multitude of fan wars on the site. None of the girls use the app, so they didn't see or care.

OO3. For the three-month promotional period, they will promote a different song and b-side for that month. For Dec-Jan, they promoted "The Boys"; for Jan-Feb, they promoted "BYOB" and concluded promotions with "Untie" in March. This gave fans an insane amount of content to be and look forward to, making sure none of their fans were bored. Even then, they still caused problems on every social media site they could.

OO4. Through their reality-styled web series, "VenusVentures," they would give their fans an exclusive behind-the-scenes look at the making of Venus Victrix. However, the chaos backstage would turn out to be more entertaining than anyone expected. From funny bloopers during dance rehearsals to unexpected moments during the photoshoots, the web series was a hit, with many of the clips taken from the show going viral.

One of the more notable clips to go viral was a clip of Baebi and Chloe arguing over what they're going to have for dinner after they finished filming.

"I want a fruit bowl," Baebi would snap at Chloe over her shoulder, who would huff and flip her hair over her shoulder, looking annoyed as usual.

"I want Thai food. You always want nasty fru-"

"And action!" The director would shout, cutting the girls' fight off. Both of the girl's expressions would change in a split second, their annoyed ones being wiped away and replaced with fierce and confident ones, and the intro to The Boys would play. The clip, while not only hilarious, showed off the girl's professionalism and dedication to their craft.

OO5. Though there were A LOT of fan events organized by Flowerbank, one of the most notable ones would have to be the art gallery they put on. Venus invited Constellations to submit their fan art to Flowerbank to be displayed in a "Venus Gallery" as well as hold an art competition where the winners would receive not only VIP tickets to their upcoming tour but also to have their art incorporated into Venus' official merch, and also $10,000. The members of Venus personally selected the three winners. The event became one of the most special and heart-warming events between constellations and Venus, causing much buzz and conversations around all corners of the internet.

OO6. Though the girls are known for their versatile concepts, the music video for "Through Your Window" surprised many fans with its controversial yandere concept, which was a bit surprising due to the song's light and almost mystical sound. The visuals, though beautiful, depict the girls stalking their love interests and presumed murdering him after they see him talking to another girl. "We could've gotten Venus as fairies, but instead, we got them killing men," one fan would tweet, though another fan would quote the tweet in defense of the video, saying: "I would actually like to see Venus kill more men idk why yall are complaining," causing an internal fan war. Though the video's concept was questioned, the girls acting and visuals were highly praised, and a selfie of Bliss with blood splattered on her face soon joined the "the most annoying mfs have this picture as their icon" list.

OO7. Of course, it's not a Venus comeback without some drama. Chloe's iCloud would be hacked, leaking multiple pictures of her with a lesser-known actor, Jeon Juyeon. What really caused controversy around this was not the fact the pair might be dating but that Juyeon was Chloe's long-running fansite "CozyChloe," having over 50k followers on his fansite Instagram account. This blew up the internet essentially, causing just a shitstorm for literally everyone. The rumors only got worse when Juyeon went on to deactivate CozyChloe and private his personal account. Chloe would catch a lot of heat for this, a lot of people saying she's abusing her power as an idol and taking advantage of her fans. Though their relationship was never confirmed, Chloe would go live on the official Venus account, issuing an apology in front of the infamous "apology wall" at Flowerbank Entertainment.

OO8. More importantly, they'd collaborate with Tate McRae! Venus would release an English version of Untie with Tate on it, even performing the version with the pop star a few times. Most notably, they'd perform with Tate on the show with her acting as a six-member, causing a lot of jokes and memes between the two fandoms. While Tate was in Korea, Venus would make her an honorary sixth member, letting her stay in the dorm and taking her to their favorite restaurant. While the collaboration was a bit sudden and off guard, many people found the girl's bond cute and wholesome. The vlogs, including Tate, would go on to reach a collective 12 million views.

OO9. The outfits for Untie would come under fire by religious organizations, saying the outfits were too promiscuous and revealing for television. At first, the girls would ignore the accusations, but once the internet caught hold of them, it blew up and was impossible for them to ignore. "While I don't agree with them, I do understand why old people would think a strappy tank top is promiscuous," Sena would go on to say when asked about the controversy, "I think it's important as artists that we're allowed to express ourselves even if that means showing our shoulders. So, I guess don't watch it if you don't like it. It seems kind of easy. We're adults. I thought we knew that." And she'd give a cute smile and a fingerheart, causing the audience to laugh.

O10. Towards the end of their promotions, VENUS would announce their third world tour! In April, the girls will travel to 22 countries, performing 66 shows all around the world. This will be their most extensive tour yet. The tour was announced via a promotional video posted to their YouTube channel. The video was set in a cyberpunk setting, with the girls dressed in sleek and futuristic outfits while walking through a city, being the only ones in black while the citizens are dressed in white. "Do you feel different?" The girls would ask in various languages, such as Korean, English, Thai, Mandarin, Japanese, and Vietnamese. The video ends with all five of Venus in front of a massive screen that is surrounded by little screens. The screens glitch for a moment before flashing white, the phrase "(IM)DIFFERENT." appearing on all of them, revealing to be the name of the tour. It's a short video but effective. In the description was a link to VENUS' official website, where tickets will be sold.

.ﾟ۪ ♡ ۫ OUTFITS #1 ... THE BOYS !

.ﾟ۪ ♡ ۫ OUTFITS #2 ... BYOB (bring ur own bestie) !

.ﾟ۪ ♡ ۫ OUTFITS #3 ... UNTIE !

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