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gaymer-hag-stan · 2 years ago

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Daily reminder that while Hwayoung is in no way innocent and was actively an asshole to Core Contents Media staff members and playing coy about whether she was actually bullied or not, she is absolutely not the sole reason for T-ara's downfall and should not be painted as such.

I want to clarify some misconceptions people seem to have about the situation. At points I will be using other groups as reference points (NOT to pit them against T-ara) and also using my own opinions and speculation at certain points, which I will make clear to point out from the actual facts of the story.

For all intents and purposes, yes, Hwayoung is a nepo baby. Her father is rich and he was also friends with Kim Kwang-soo, the CEO of Core Contents Media, T-ara's old company (now known as MBK)

Hwayoung wanted to be an actress but Kim Kwang-soo thought it would be better to be part of an idol group to gain popularity first and then launch her own acting career easier. It is not unusual to use idol groups as a launching point for later solo music projects or acting so all makes sense up to here.

It should also be noted that T-ara had already worked hard to make a name for themselves. They released Bo Peep Bo Peep and Crazy Because of You, two massive hits that both sold over 3M digital copies and were on the rise to become one of the most popular groups of their generation. They faced fierce competition, having debuted alongside the likes of 2NE1, f(x), 4Minute and After School (2009 was such a strong year) and initially faced severe backlash for their debut performance of Lie. They even had to literally perform in the streets outside of malls during Bo Peep Bo Peep promotions to get people to listen to their song. The internet wasn't what it is now back days so they also couldn't rely on their fans spamming everyone online to listen to their songs or artificially increase views by watching the MV again and again.

So the original six girls had built a strong bond by training together (Jiyeon, Hyomin and Eunjung at least, Qri, Soyeon and Boram were kind of last-minute additions after Jiwon and Jiae quit) debuting and promoting together for a year and facing backlash and severe working conditions together. I imagine Hwayoung being added after they worked to make themselves known might have been a "yeah ok I guess" moment for OG T-ara. K-pop fans seen to be easily annoyed by constant lineup changes too so adding or losing a member after the group has already become famous is never a good thing.

Like I said, Hwayoung wanted to be an actress, but for the most part she played along with the idol part. That being said, I fee like CCM never made an effort to present her as an actual member of T-ara in their songs, the title tracks at least. She always felt like a featured act to me or a backup vocalist, not an actual member. You could argue Qri and Boram also got very few lines, but it's not just that, Hwayoung was supposed to be the new rapper or whatever so that Hyomin and Eunjung could start getting more singing lines now that they had someone else to do the raps but... In the first two singles Hwayoung participated in, What's Wrong and yayaya, Hyomin and Eunjung are still mostly doing the raps and Hwayoung gets a few adlibs, basically... So what was the point of making her the "rapper" then 😬 And then after that Hyomin and Eunjung stopped doing the raps completely but Hwayoung was still only doing adlibs and 2sec raps in the bridge. In Roly-Poly all the girls have mostly equal parts. Even Qri, Boram and Hwayoung, who usually got very few lines have the same amount of lines. But while Qri's and Boram's parts are actually memorable (Qri has the intro and the start of the second verse and Boram sings in both verses) while Hwayoung, who actually sings in both verses and the bridge, is still only doing adlibs and 2sec raps. In contrast, let's take 2NE1's I Am the Best, that released around the same time. CL actually sings more than an entire minute of the song, but because the parts of the other three are still memorable, it doesn't feel like she's hogging the entire song. Each of them has their moments.

But like I said it's not just about the amount of time you sing, Bora was consistently the most popular member of SISTAR and she, basically, got the same type of lines as Hwayoung after 2011. Hwayoung's styling and stage presence also fell off. She's taller than the entire group (I don't remember if Eunjung is taller than her but I think she's not) and she wasn't a very skilled dancer so it showed on stage. On top of that, her outfits, hair and makeup always looked like shit to me. But then again, the stylists and staff members said she was a nightmare to them so maybe it was intentional after all lol. But my point is, if you have a member that's not good at singing, dancing, is the rapper but doesn't actually rap and is dressed and styled worse than the rest of the group, when in theory she's the daughter of your friend, you're essentially making her yourself to look like the outcast.

What's ironic is that by 2012 things seemed to have been slowly changing? Her styling looks considerably better, she actually got sizeable parts in Day by Day and she was even picked to be a part of the We Were in Love collab with Davichi, where she also got lines and it became a hit so maybe if she hadn't started slacking things would have improved for her?

Then again, as I said Hwayoung had zero interest in being an idol, she wanted to be an actress, an she was literally the only one that CCM never booked an acting gig for. All the others (sans Areum) were acting. Even predebut Dani, who was supposed to become T-ara's ninth member, got to act in Day by Day's MV, so I'm not sure how important to her the fact that she got decent raps that lasted for more than 2secs in two songs would be. Not to mention, that she actually got back to sharing the raps as, in the unreleased version of Sexy Love, she's only doing the rap in the bridge and has to share it with Areum. Maybe Shinsadebt Tiger just hated her 🤣 I'm betting that if she was still in the group by Number Nine she would only get the "I'm addict I'm addict parts" 🤣😭

Now, it's also worth mentioning that T-ara were BIG in 2012. It was the peak of their popularity. They were the third most popular girl group in Korea, behind only Girls' Generation and 2NE1, and the third most popular K-pop girl group in Japan, after Girls' Generation and KARA. Jiyeon was winning popularity polls against Yoona. Yoon. A. They were still going strong and might have even overtaken 2NE1 too, especially considering how YG stopped promoting them properly around that time and with CCM wanting to turn them into a nine-membered group they were, essentially, declaring open war against S.M.. They had five different singles sell over 3M digital copies (Bo Peep Bo Peep, Crazy Because of You, Roly-Poly, Cry Cry & Lovey-Dovey, I actually think maybe We Were In Love did too?) which, before 2012's SK Music market inflation prices, was considered an astonishing feat. For reference, the only other girl group to have ever had five singles sell over 3M digital copies is 2NE1.

Take all this into account along with the fact that they were constantly flying back and forth from Korea to Japan to keep up with their extremely demanding schedule and, honestly, I can't really blaming Hwayoung for finding an excuse to weasel out of a few performances, we all would, be honest.

The thing is, that the Budokan performance wasn't just any performance. It's a very prestigious Japanese venue and even it it wasn't it's still a concert that people paid money to see. Idols may occasionally half-ass or lipsync performances on music and other TV shows but concerts are where they give it their all (or at least second gen idols did 👀) and all the other girls actually wanted to be idols so, maybe it wasn't a big deal to Hwayoung, but the rest of the girls had every right to be pissed about it.

Shading her on Twitter, while hilarious, was probably not a smart idea, because it was essentially the beginning of the end. Before that no one was really paying attention to Hwayoung's relationship with the rest of the group, and if she was actually being such a menace to the stuff, sooner or later someone would speak, and even if there were doubts about whether OG T-ara and Hwa were friends or whatever, no one would really question a possible expulsion from the group and company if it was a known fact that she was being rude to the staff.

And that was actually the official line by CCM. Hwayoung has been fired because she can't work well with the staff. But because of the Twitter thing and Hyoyoung, Hwa's twin, also (kind of) directly antagonizing T-ara online and Hwayoung agreeing with her, people started speculating and finding previous "evidence" of bullying.

CCM's silent approach didn't work. I get that maybe KKS didn't want to publicly announce that his friend's daughter was as asshole and a liar and the rest of the group was kind of done with it but why on earth would you literally throw your main (and let's be honest here, only) moneymaker under the bus like that? Why shoot yourself in the foot? I don't get it.

To Hwayoung's defense, she literally said "they didn't bully me, stop harassing them" at first... Before settling for a conveniently vague "I was going through hard times" line every time she gave an interview afterwards, but the first time she actually outright said she wasn't a victim of bullying.

But people didn't really care about that. T-ara's fall from grace was never in defense of Hwayoung. Hwayoung was not a very popular member to begin with so it's not like her individual fans were actively campaigning against T-ara, this is in no way a Jessica's individual fans vs. OT8 SONEs type of situation. They definitely lost a lot of the more "casual fans" and lost a lost the general public, but Sexy Love and Number Nine still charted within the top 10, so their core audience was still there.

My personal opinion, which is half fact and half speculation that is still based on facts, is that while they probably did not create a rumour, companies like S.M. and YG whose profits were being reduced by competition from CCM could have easily influenced it's spread. We all know how S.M. treats their former artists and YG also tried to block coverage of 2NE1's Coachella performance to reduce its impact and didn't they literally force Naeun out of Apink? Is it a stretch to assume they might have been a little too eager to help remove competition? But maybe they didn't even have to involve themselves personally.

Misogyny in the K-pop community was at its PEAK in that era. SONEs and 2NE1's fanwars with constant slut and body-shaming of the rival group's members, S.M. associate producer, Teddy Riley, LITERALLY calling the Wonder Girls flops and saying SNSD are better, Krystal and Sulli's and Amber's individual fans CONSTANTLY at war with each other, HyunA and Suzy's fans trashing the rest of 4Minute and miss A.... Need I go on?

Like I said, T-ara were on the top with GG and 2NE1, and their respective fans did not miss the chance to throw them right off when the opportunity presented itself in the form of a fabricated rumour. What's worse is that this is not even the... Worse fabricated rumour. SONEs started a rumour that HyunA left the Wonder Girls because of a PREGNANCY... She was FIFTEEN... Luckily this did not affect her career in any way.

So, next time you want to talk about T-ara's "bullying scandal", do remember that it was a combined effort of misogyny in K-pop, enforced by entertainment companies and fans alike, Korea's obsession with idols having squeaky clean images and never doing wrong (the women at least, a boy group would have EASILY gotten away with all of that), gross mismanagement by Core Contents Media and Kim Kwang-soo, nepotism, Hwayoung taking advantage of a tricky situation, and Hyomin, Jiyeon, Eunjung, Soyeon and Boram (because remember, like Switzerland, Qri was neutral during the War) deciding it was a good idea to ratio Hwayoung on Twitter after not wanting to sing "I likey likey this, I likey likey that" for the nth time.

#T-ara #Jiyeon #Hyomin #Eunjung #Qri #Soyeon #Boram #Hwayoung #Areum #K-pop #Core Contents Media #Kim Kwang-soo #Girl Groups #South Korea #Korea

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riseofthecommonwoodpile · 2 years ago

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advice for someone looking for a dom, tips for first irl meet or anything? i think the way you openly share about your sex life inspired me to get on fetlife lol

so, sorry to take a long time responding to this, i was mulling it over in my mind for a while to see if i have anything much useful to say. i don't know that i do, but here's something, at least:

the best thing you can do, in my view, is to go to local munches and sloshes, meet people, get to know the community around you. as someone with terrrrrible social anxiety, i know that can be a terrifying prospect, but if you're looking for something longer term than a one or two night thing, even if you aren't looking for something romantic, you'll want to actually like any dom you're playing with as a person and not just as a kink dispenser, and making friends in the community makes it easier to meet additional people anyways. it's the difference between going on a date with someone you've met a few times irl and know you have a rapport with versus someone off tinder where you have no idea how you'll vibe, and i personally much prefer the former (though i do still meet plenty of people on tinder or grindr, so hey)

if your anxiety is too much to do something like that, then look at local groups on fet and see if there's any personal ads that strike your fancy, or post your own. talk to people for at least a few messages before meeting up, and always meet in public first and let someone know where you're going and when they should expect you back or to hear from you. weird tip, but relevant i think: masturbate and cum before you agree to meeting anyone or doing anything, so you know it's something you are actively interested and not just horny for at the moment. may sound dumb, but i've definitely almost made some very bad decisions while super horny that i avoided by just jerking off and getting that post-nut clarity of like "oh wait, that's a bad idea and i don't want to do it".

additionally, i would highly, *highly* recommend not doing any play involving restraints the first time doing a scene with someone in private. any type of kink play involves a lot of trust and some inherent degree of risk, but being able to get away or fight back if something bad starts happening is super important. risk mitigation, especially early on when you're still learning, is crucial shit. in general, if there's any kink clubs near you, i would really recommend playing there first, because if someone is going wrong or if the person you're with is ignoring you safewording and saying no, there will (at every public space i've been to) be people whose job for the night is monitoring the dungeon and intervening if need be.

no matter which method you choose or how you meet someone, be clear and honest about any experience or lack of experience you have, both for your safety and theirs, mental and physical. if you've only done something to yourself, say that explicitly and not "i've done X", because those are very different situations. there's nothing wrong with being a beginner in something, as long as you are honest and direct about it, and you'll have a much healthier and more enjoyable experience versus being thrown into the deep end because you fudged your experience level with X or Y or Z. also: aftercare is important for almost everyone, and even if you find you don't need it, which is very unlikely (i used to think i didn't need aftercare, but it turns out i was just ignoring sub drop because i was so depressed generally it didn't seem abnormal lmao), the other person very likely does, even if they're the top or dom in the scene. common trick is also have some dark chocolate in the fridge for the day or two afterwards lol, it sounds silly but it has genuinely helped me with sub drop.

uhhhh i mean there's a lot more i could get into, but it gets into a lot of things that require knowing specifics on your situation, and you're much better off meeting people in the community IRL and learning from those with more experience, asking for help and answers to questions when you don't know things or even just need clarification. hopefully that's at least somewhat helpful though

(also brought up in mentions, there are people who offer classes on kink 101 stuff and there's books as well [Screw the Roses Send Me the Thorns is a common rec i feel], but i personally don't love them [at least for beginner stuff, i have done and loved plenty of classes on more specific subjects], and a lot of "you should do this in a kink relationship" advice is incredibly specific to the personal outlook and experience of the person writing, and not usually something that can be easily universalized)

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alexthegamingboy · 2 years ago

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Toonami Weekly Recap 03/18/2023

Food Wars: The Fifth Plate (Promotion Exams Arc) EP#74 (01) - Final Exams: With the finals for Totsuki's first term arriving, Soma and his classmates in the Elite Ten are given the challenge to renovate an abandoned beach restaurant and earn a 3 million yen profit within three days. Meanwhile, the rest of the class are given easier assignments to run existing restaurants. In addition, the exams are being overseen by a new instructor, Suzuki. Suzuki seems to take an interest in Soma, who gets the impression he has met Suzuki before. Soma and his classmates are only able to open their restaurant on the third and final day due to the renovations they needed to make. However, they are able to attract a massive crowd thanks to their special yakisoba, which uses a combination of vegetables, minced squid, squid ink, red olive oil, and soft boiled egg yolks. By the end of the day, they are able to make their quota and pass the exam. However, as they make their summer vacation plans, Dojima arrives and informs them that the most prestigious cooking competition in the world, BLUE, is set to begin soon.

My Hero Academia Season 6 After the PLW Arc EP#129 (16) - The Hellish Todoroki Family, Part 2: When he was a child, Keigo Takami lived in a poor and abusive household. His father was a villain who went on the run with his mother after killing someone, inadvertently having a child, who he would treat terribly. Keigo would watch news broadcasts of Heroes, but never believed in them beyond fantasy, clinging to his Endeavor doll as his only source of happiness. One day, his father is arrested by Endeavor, reinvigorating hope in the boy that Heroes are real. He and his mother are left on the streets, as she begs him to use his wings to do something. After Keigo saves some civilians from an incident, they are approached by the Hero Public Safety Commission, recruiting Keigo to be a hero while also cutting all ties of the "Takami" name for them both. In the present, Best Jeanist and Hawks drive through the city, where they explain how they were able to put Best Jeanist into a "death-like state" to fool Dabi before he was revived. Best Jeanist stops a group of thugs on the street, where he learns the police are too busy rounding up the escaped convicts, and the hero offices nearby have shut down, causing them to notice how much the faith in heroes has dwindled. They arrive at Hawks' mother's home where he finds a letter from her explaining how Dabi had sent men to force her into revealing his past, and that she has fled to not cause him anymore trouble. Hawks laments on his failure to save his mother and instead run from his past, and declares his intention to do what he wants to do now and help Endeavor. Meanwhile, civilians have started to take matters into their own hands using support items to fight villains, but their inexperience only leads to more damage and more decrying for the Heroes being late. Endeavor regains consciousness in the hospital, breaking down over Dabi and his past sins coming back to haunt him. Shoto and his siblings awkwardly walk in on him as he tearfully attempts to apologize for his guilt and actions. He is then confronted by Rei regarding his current state, telling him they need to talk about Toya.

My Hero Academia Season 6 After the PLW Arc Arc EP#130 (17) - The Wrong Way to Put Out a Fire: The Todorokis reminisce on their past history that led them to this moment. Enji and Rei had discovered that while Toya possessed a fire Quirk greater than his father's, he had his mother's constitution, making him resistant to ice but weak to his own fire. In an attempt to protect him, Enji ceased all training with Toya, but when that refused to deter him, he decided to have more kids to make him lose his resolve. After Natsuo's birth, Shoto is born with the Quirk combination Enji desired, to his joy and Toya's devastation. After an incident where Toya had a breakdown and nearly attacked Shoto, Enji banned all interaction between Shoto and the other siblings. By the time he was 13, Toya continued to grow more emotionally distraught with his siblings and mothers, while also training his Quirk to the point his fire grew from red to blue. He wanted to show his father his progress, but upon the realization he had continued his training, a furious Enji took his anger out on Rei. This reached her breaking point, resulting in the incident of Shoto's burning and her hospitalization, followed shortly after by Toya's supposed death as his Quirk went overload and burned the entire mountain down. In the present, Rei declares to Endeavor that he isn't the one suffering the most, and they all carry a small weight in Toya's downfall, so they will help deal with him together. Hawks and Best Jeanist then arrive, telling Endeavor about the current state of the world and requesting a team-up to help solve their problems together. Hawks then asks him about "One For All", as Endeavor's mention of it during the battle with Shigaraki has spread to the public asking questions, leading him to tell them about Midoriya. Meanwhile, All Might continues to watch over Midoriya alone, knowing he is currently having a conversation with the predecessors of One For All.

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#Toonami #Toonami Weekly Recap #Toonami Game Review #Food Wars: Shokugeki no Soma #Food Wars: The Fifth Plate #Provisional Exams Arc #My Hero Academia #My Hero Academia 6 #After the PLW Arc #Digimon #Digimon Ghost Game #Cult of the Lamb

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maciek-jozefowicz · 2 years ago

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My Silly Puzzles

“My Silly Puzzles” is a 600-page* book of word and logic puzzles.** It is the second book in the “My Silly…” series. (The first one is “My Silly Poems”; the third one will be “My Silly Thoughts”.) What makes this book distinct from other puzzle books is the way that the various puzzles are presented—with humor and with rhyme. Many of the puzzles begin with a poem and that poem is the inspiration for the scenario, written in rhyming prose, for that particular puzzle set.

Here is an example of a simple, traditional Truth Teller and Liar logic puzzle (of which type there are numerous variations in the book, each with different characters and a different scenario, one set includes Sherlock Holmes, Dr. Watson, Professor Moriarty and Inspector Lestrade):

“The Lion and the Mayan”

Two little lies / Put on disguise, / On Halloween— / One is a hungry Lion, / The other a lonely Mayan.

Heidi and Monique put on costumes to seek sweet treats on their neighborhood streets. But who is who? Even their mother can’t tell one from the other. She knows that Heidi always tells the truth, and Monique, being so clever, does so never. But the mother, having more than a bit of her own wit, unmasks—“Is either of you Monique?” she slickly asks.

And if the Mayan replies, “Mom, of course one of us is Monique,” then who is the Mayan and who is the Lion?

Besides Truth Teller and Liar puzzles (also known as Knights and Knaves), there are Cryptograms, puzzles in which digits have been replaced with letters. An addition problem is given where the addends (the numbers that are being added) are represented by letters and the sum is a number. Using this problem, you can determine which letter represents which digit.

Once you solve which letter stands for which digit, you have to decode a secret note that’s been written using those digits by replacing the digits with the corresponding letters. For example:

straight + starts = 15,898,016

Secret Note: 5645’173265!

(To make them easier to solve, these types of puzzles are formatted differently in the book than in this example.)

There are other logic puzzles, like Elimination Grids / Logic Grids (“Neighbors,” “Who’s Got Kenny’s Teeth,” “Monique, Missing in Mozambique,” “The Apartment”), as well as word puzzles (“Daisy Goes A’Kissin’,” “Bad Luck, Stadium Stuck,” “Ticktionary”) that are also introduced and explained with poems.

For example, “Bad Luck, Stadium Stuck” begins—

In a broken stadium elevator, Thirteen spectators with bad luck Get stuck! How many can you list? An illustrator. An innovator. An imitator. Do you get the gist? There are thirty, sturdy, other fans (Where is my pen? That is wrong, There are only ten!***) From a variety of clans, Tapping the floor with their toes, As their tetchiness grows, And their souls, unseated, Get overheated. While their teams on the field play, Who are they?

A clue in the form of a short poem is given for each spectator that is stuck in this useless elevator.

“My Silly Puzzles” also includes a new type of puzzle—the Poetry Path. The Poetry Path puzzle is my own creation, an amalgam of two puzzle types—the Maze and the Word Search.

In Poetry Path, instead of looking for individual words, like one does in a Word Search, you are looking for a poem, a combination of words that link together to make the correct path through a field created from letters. (There is no actual “maze” as such, and there are no walls that would define paths because there is no need for them. Words are the paths.) The poem that the player is searching for is not given. It has to be discovered. Only visual clues as to where the poem begins and where the poem ends are given.

“My Silly Puzzles” is a book that is fun to read and fun to solve, and it can be enjoyed alone or in a group,**** in lieu of a board game, by children and by adults. It’s a great way to unplug and give your eyes, and your mind, a respite from digital over-saturation.

————————————————————

* The softcover and digital versions are each 608 pages. The hardback version is 544 pages. The content is the same, but I was forced to condense the presentation of two puzzles to fit under the Amazon 550-page limit for hardback books.

** In addition to puzzles, sprinkled throughout the book are some of my silly riddles.

*** The narrator of this poem is wrong on both counts. There are 21 puzzles in this set.

**** With Truth Tellers and Liars puzzle types, for instance, each person can become a character and read his/her lines while the remaining players try to figure out who is who.

The book is available from Amazon at:

https://www.amazon.com/author/maciek_jozefowicz

#humor #puzzles #logic puzzles #puzzlebook #word puzzles #wordsearch

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dogtrainingjourney · 2 years ago

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Different Types of Dog Training

Dog training can be done in several ways. This method can help you and your dog to get started and make sure that you both understand the rules of the game.

Another popular type of training at https://www.k-9culture.com/ is reward-based. This approach encourages your dog to work harder for rewards. These can include treats, pets and games. The key is to make the process as fun as possible for both you and your dog. If you're a beginner, be patient and practice frequently. You don't want to be tempted to give your dog a reward for something he's doing wrong.

Another popular type of training is socialization, which helps your dog learn to be calm and friendly with people and animals. Some dogs are trained to assist the disabled and others learn to hunt and retrieve. Using this technique, you can teach your dog not to attack other animals or humans.

Another common method of dog training is using a remote collar. Using this device, you can train your dog to hunt, fetch and even perform fieldwork. But beware: Remote collars aren't always effective and can leave your dog vulnerable to injuries. Know more about Dog Training here!

There are also more advanced programs available at PetSmart. These programs can include private lessons and group classes. In addition to teaching your dog basic obedience, these training programs can also help you to improve your pet's behavior in public or off-leash settings.

Another type of dog training is called resource guarding. This approach is used by many police, search and rescue and hunting dogs. While they aren't as effective as mechanical devices, the risk of being bitten is lessened. However, it's still important to keep your dog out of areas where it might be able to get into trouble.

Another approach to dog training is using clickers. These are small, bent metal strips that make a "click" noise when the dog completes a desired behavior. Depending on the size of your dog, it may be easier to use a smaller treat for this type of training.

One way to help your dog become more responsive to you is to teach him the name. When he first arrives at your home, you can use the name to help him get familiar with you. After a few times of this, you can begin using it in different contexts.

Using the name as a reward can be confusing for your dog. Some dogs will respond to the name only in certain situations. That is why it's important to focus on one behavior at a time.

You should also avoid giving your dog attention when he's frustrated. Instead, you should wait until he's calmer to do so. It's best to practice each behavior until it's done fluently.

Finally, remember that all behavior is conditional. Your dog will only be able to learn what it's doing if it's consistently done over time. Choosing the right type of training and working with the right dog and handler can make all the difference. Learn more about dogs at https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dog.

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thecreaturecodex · 2 years ago

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Demon Lord, Eltab

Image © Paizo Publishing, by Andrew Hou. Accessed at the artist’s deviantArt here

[Commissioned by @tar-baphon. This is the single longest monster entry on the Codex. This is because it has full listings for three types of fiendish boons, plus an artifact, plus a demigod level creature. And it could have been much longer. Eltab is a demon lord from the Forgotten Realms with a frankly ludicrous amount of backstory, involving such setting highlights as the Witches of Rashemen, the Red Wizards of Thay, the gods of Mulhorand, and a group of real world Russians. The commissioner paid for three additional entries around Eltab and his cult. So I have decidedly pared down the backstory here, but still think it’s pretty intensive. It’s also kind of redundant with the Worldwould--both Eltab and Deskari seek to bring the Abyss into the fabric of the planet. If you’re using Eltab’s demoncysts in a game, I would advise not using Golarion as your planet, or at least put him on a different continent from Avistan.

Also, as an aside. The carnivorous plant angle is new-ish to this interpretation. Champions of Ruin, the book with the most detail about Eltab, makes a lot of hay about his Abyssal realm being filled with carnivorous plants, and the art makes his horns look somewhat like branches. I went with it in order to keep myself entertained, and avoid yet another Death/Trickery combination of domains]

Demon Lord, Eltab CR 29 CE Outsider (extraplanar) This hulking humanoid has skin like bark studded with thorns, particularly along his neck and shoulders. He has hooves for feet and a pair of irregularly branching, antler-like horns. Although bindings of metal and leather surround his wrists and jaw, he appears unencumbered by such fetters.

Eltab Lord of the Hidden Layer, the Chained Beast Concerns carnivorous plants, patience and terror Domains Chaos, Death, Evil, Plant Subdomains Demon, Fear, Murder, Thorns Worshipers evil druids, the vengeful, witches Minions glabrezu, fiendish carnivorous plants, succubi Unholy Symbol A chain stretched between the tines of two antlers Favored Weapon greatsword Obedience feed something or someone to a carnivorous plant, and watch the process of ingestion and digestion for 1 hour. During this time, meditate on those that have wronged you. Gain a +4 profane bonus to saves against the extraordinary and supernatural abilities of creatures of the plant type. Boons for Eltab’s obedience are below the cut.

Eltab, Lord of the Hidden Layer, is something of an anomaly among demon lords, in that he does not live in the Abyss. He was called to the Material Plane in a mythic feat of conjuring more than fifteen centuries ago, and after he broke free of this control, decided to remain. Part of this choice was pragmatic, as the spells binding him could only be broken by sundering the Adamantine Binding, a mythic item that can only be sundered by a particular good aligned artifact. Part of this is out of peace—the many enemies Eltab faces on the Material Plane are easier for him to deal with than rival demon lords. And part of this is out of ambition; Eltab seeks to merge his layer with the Material World he is trapped on, eventually sucking the entire planet into the Abyss. He maintains his connections to his original layer through his seneschal, the balor lord Ndulu, who plots to somehow kill Eltab and take over his layer in total.

The key to Eltab’s plan are the demoncysts, self-contained patches of the Material Plane where the fabric of the Abyss has seeped in. Eltab has planted more than two dozens of these wicked seeds, which are slowly expanding in size, and their occupants in influence. The largest of these cysts is Eltab’s truest domain, the Hall of the Hidden Throne, where he was originally called to the Material in the first place. Eltab himself travels between his demoncysts regularly, stoking their growth, encouraging them to calve off, and stirring the demons and other Abyssal life within to glorious violence.

Eltab is a powerful combatant, but he doesn’t deign to face ordinary foes himself. These he leaves to his armies of minions—among demons, he is fondest of glabrezu and succubi, as they often share his gift of patience. Most enemies who reach him are sent scattering by his aura of fear, and those that stand firm are slain with a mere glare, charged with enormous amounts of negative energy. Anyone who survives these onslaughts is faced in melee, with Eltab wielding a huge greatsword, Stormsplitter, along with his natural weapons.

Moaning Crown of Ndulu Major Artifact Ndulu the balor lord sought to conquer Eltab’s layer for himself, and forged himself a crown using the essence of six dread wraith necromancers in order to signify his rule. When Ndulu visited the Material Plane to inform Eltab of his stake, Eltab beat him within an inch of his life, sundered his crown, and sent him back to the Abyss to serve as a puppet regent. Eltab kept the broken crown, which now sits in a silenced vault in the Hall of the Hidden Throne—Eltab only wears it on special occasions.

The Moaning Crown of Ndulu appears as a broken crown made of black smoke and distorted humanoid faces. It is incorporeal; both Eltab and Ndulu can manipulate it easily with their ghostly grasp ability, but other creatures need to wear ghost touch gauntlets or the like in order to manipulate it. Regardless, once affixed to the brow of a sapient creature, it will remain there on its own. Any creature that wears the Moaning Crown of Ndulu must succeed a DC 23 Fortitude save each round or take 1d8 points of Constitution drain. Any creature slain by this Constitution drain becomes a free willed dread wraith in 1 round.

The Moaning Crown of Ndulu moans constantly, as the name suggests. This moaning causes intense despair, as the crushing despair spell, in any non-evil creature within 60 feet that can hear the crown as long as they remain in the area and for 1 minute thereafter (Will DC 23 negates). Evil creatures that can hear it are instead empowered, as per a bard’s inspire greatness, as long as they remain within 60 feet of the crown. An evil creature can only gain the bonus temporary hit points from this ability once per day. In addition, three times a day by command, the wearer of the Moaning Crown of Ndulu may use it to cast wail of the banshee (CL 21st, DC 23) Aura overwhelming necromancy; Weight –

Eltab CR 29 XP 6,553,600 CE Large outsider (chaos, demon, evil, extraplanar) Init +10; Senses darkvision 120 ft., Perception +48, tremorsense 60 ft., true seeing Aura fear (60 ft., Will DC 38) Defense AC 46, touch 19, flat-footed 36 (-1 size, +10 Dex, +27 natural) hp 752 (35d10+560); regeneration 20 (deific or mythic) Fort +26, Ref +31, Will +29 DR 20/cold iron, epic, and good; Immune ability damage, ability drain, charm effects, compulsion effects, death effects, electricity, fear effects, energy drain, negative energy, petrification, poison; Resist acid 30, cold 30, fire 30; SR 40 Defensive Abilities Abyssal resurrection, freedom of movement Offense Speed 40 ft., fly 40 ft. (good), burrow 30 ft. Melee Stormsplitter +54/+49/+44/+39 (2d8+27/17-20 plus 1d6 electricity), gore +47 (2d8+7) or 2 slams +49 (2d6+15), gore +49 (2d8+15) Space 10 ft.; Reach 10 ft. Special Attacks death glare Spell-like Abilities CL 29th, concentration +40 Constant—freedom of movement, true seeing At will—blasphemy (DC 28) (B), command plants (DC 25), detect good, detect magic, detect thoughts (DC 23), greater dispel magic, greater teleport (self plus 50 lbs. objects only), major curse (DC 26), suggestion (DC 24) (B), telekinesis (DC 26) (B) 3/day—control plants (DC 29), control undead (DC 28), mass suggestion (DC 27), empowered stormbolts (DC 29), summon demons or plants, quickened thorn body, quickened wall of thorns (B) 1/day—power word kill (B), shapechange, unholy aura (DC 29) (B) = Eltab can use the mythic version of this spell-like ability in his Abyssal domain Statistics Str 41, Dex 31, Con 41, Int 32, Wis 30, Cha 32 Base Atk +35; CMB +51 (+55 overrun); CMD 75 (77 vs. overrun) Feats Acrobatic, Blind Fight, Cleave, Combat Reflexes, Critical Focus, Empower SLA (stormbolts), Great Cleave, Greater Overrun, Improved Critical (greatsword), Improved Overrun, Lightning Reflexes, Multiattack, Power Attack, Quicken SLA (thorn body, wall of thorns), Staggering Critical, Stunning Critical, Toughness Skills Acrobatics +52, Bluff +49, Climb +50, Diplomacy +46, Escape Artist +45, Fly +54, Intimidate +49, Knowledge (arcana, history) +46, Knowledge (planes, religion) +49, Perception +48, Sense Motive +48, Spellcraft +46, Stealth +44, Swim +50, Use Magic Device +46 Languages Abyssal, Aklo, Common, Celestial, Draconic, Sylvan, Terran, speak with plants, telepathy 300 ft. SQ anchored, demon lord traits, ghostly grasp, item use Ecology Environment any land and underground Organization unique Treasure triple standard (Stormsplitter [Large +5 shocking burst greatsword], Moaning Crown of Ndulu, other treasure) Special Abilities Anchored (Ex) Eltab is anchored to the Prime Material Plane and cannot leave it, willingly or unwillingly. If subject to a banishment or other spell that would otherwise send him to his home plane, Eltab is transported to the Hall of the Hidden Throne and cannot leave it for 1 week. Aura of Fear (Su) All living creatures within 60 feet of Eltab must succeed a DC 38 Will save or be panicked for 35 rounds. On a successful save, the creature is shaken for 1 round. A creature that succeeds this save is immune to Eltab’s aura of fear for the next 24 hours. Demons are immune to this effect. This is a mind-influencing fear effect, and the save DC is Charisma based. Death Glare (Su) As a swift action, Eltab may cast his gaze upon a single creature within 30 feet. That creature takes 290 points of negative energy damage (Fort DC 38 half). Eltab may only target a creature with his death glare once per day, but may use it at will. This is a death effect, and the save DC is Charisma based. Ghostly Grasp (Su) Eltab’s natural weapons, as well as any weapon he wields, affect incorporeal creatures as if they were ghost touch weapons. Eltab adds half his natural armor bonus as a bonus to his AC against incorporeal touch attacks. Item Use (Ex) Eltab can use any spell completion or spell trigger item as if Eltab had that spell on his spell list. Summon Demons and Plants (Sp) When Eltab uses his summon demons ability, he may call plant monsters with the fiendish template instead of or in combination with demons.

Eltab’s Boons Exalted Boons 1. Servant of Thorns (Sp) thorn javelin 3/day, warp wood 2/day or command plants 1/day 2. Verdant Endurance (Ex) You gain a +2 racial bonus on saving throws against paralysis, poison, polymorph, sleep and stunning effects. As long as you spend 8 hours a day in sunlight, you do not need to eat. 3. Call Thorny Vassal (Sp) Once per day, you may summon a fiendish viper vine as a standard action. This viper vine remains for 1 round per character level or until slain, and obeys your commands. This is the equivalent of a 9th level spell.

Evangelist Boons 1. Death Dealer (Sp) ray of enfeeblement 3/day, death knell 2/day or inflict serious wounds 1/day 2. Item Mastery (Ex) You may use spell trigger and spell completion items as if those spells were on your spell list, as long as those spells are of the conjuration or necromancy schools. 3. Mournful Cry (Sp) You may cast wail of the banshee once per day as a spell-like ability.

Sentinel Boons 1. Demoncyst Warrior (Sp) divine favor 3/day, barkskin 2/day or thorn body 1/day 2. Crown of the Chained Beast (Ex) You grow a pair of antlers and gain a gore attack as a primary natural weapon. This deals damage as normal for a creature of your size, unless you already have a gore attack, in which case it deals damage as the superior gore attack at one size larger. This gore attack overcomes damage reduction as if it were a chaotic, evil weapon. 3. Channel Stormsplitter (Su) As a swift action, you may grant a single weapon you are holding the shocking burst weapon quality. You may use this ability for a number of minutes per day equal to your character level; these minutes do not have to be consecutive, but do have to be in 1 minute increments.

#demon lord #demon #eltab #pathfinder 1e #forgotten realms #D&D #commissions #dragon magazine #demigod

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barbwritesstuff · 3 years ago

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Okay.

I need to talk about Roe.

I've kind of talked about them a little already. But I need to talk about them properly now because I am going around in circles and I need some other perspectives on this.

Blood Moon is at first draft. Kinda. There is still a missing chapter and the epilogue needs some zhuzhing up (by probably a few thousand words, let's be honest). But, overall, it's done. You all know, if you've played the demo all the way through, the story.

And, as many of you have noticed, Roe isn't currently a big part of that story.

This wasn't my original intension. The Pack B storyline didn't come out the way I planned it. I thought I had enough space between chapters 6 and 12 to:

Develop 3 additional ROs (Shawnie, Roe, and Farro)

Foreshadow and introduce Jay

Showcase how Pack B is different from Pack A

I was wrong. I had to change things around to make Farro and Shawnie work as ROs, was only able to very awkwardly shoe-horn Jay in, and really didn't explore the differences between the packs much at all.

But Roe got the worst of it. I originally imagined their romance as very slow, intimate, and conflicted... but that doesn't really work with the story as it currently stands. So they were left with a big fat lump of nothing.

I don't like it. In fact I hate it. I want to include Roe and their romance in the story. And I can, it just won't be the slow, intimate, tender thing I first pictured. It'll be a hint of something. A spark, but not a flame, and only available to a very niche group of players (those that become Alpha, flee the city, and don't romance anyone else until the very last chapter).

Or (and this is a painful idea I've been toying with for months) I could cut Roe from the story. I don't want to do that, because I love Roe. I love that they're an enby Alpha. I love that they're this quiet tragic hero. I love everything about them. But I can't deny this cut would work. Having a more morally questionable (and totally non romanceable) Alpha in charge of Pack B will make the middle part of the story more intense, and would help explain why Pack B isn't a reliable ally in the end.

It would also make Jay and showcasing the differences between the packs easier.

But the trade off is Roe which is just... a huge price to pay.

I genuinely don't know what to do. Every day I think I've made a choice, but then I open the files to action that choice (be it making Roe an obscure ending or cutting them entirely) and I change my mind.

I keep thinking I can save Roe for another book, or another game. But I also keep thinking they won't be the same. This is where they belong. But then I think about how shitty their ending is right now and I just... I don't know. I really don't.

I guess I just need an outside opinion on this. What do you guys think? Should I keep Roe even if they get a stunted romance and a kinda bad ending? Or should I pull them and save them for another story?

To make things extra hard here are some clips of them that are currently sitting in Blood Moon's 'extra scenes and stuff' file:

Please just take me out back and put me out of my misery. Being a writer is too damn hard.

#the Roe dilemma #this has literally kept me up at night

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pastxlscorp · 3 years ago

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Bully! Mitsuya Fanfic (pt.3)

Chapter III: Abidance

✿ Word Count: 3.2k

✿ Pairing: Takashi Mitsuya x reader

✿ Topics covered: (Eventual) Enemies to lovers trope, Hakkai POV, Y/N POV, Mitsuya POV, tsundere-Mitsuya, bully! Mitsuya, fem. reader, minor manga spoilers, slight angst

Awakening from his slumber, he found that the woman was no longer taking up space in his bed. He heaved a sigh of relief, only to, unfortunately, see a message from an unknown number on his phone saying “Text me when you’re free ;)” Ignoring the text, he found he had a message from Hakkai and remembered that he had abandoned him to sleep with that damn woman. However, Hakkai didn’t confront him about it, but instead acted as if nothing happened.

🗨️ Hakkai: Is the party still on for today? (Sent 2:00am)

🗨️ Mitsuya: Yeah, sorry about yesterday. I wasn’t feeling my best, I should have let you know. (Sent 10:00am)

🗨️ Hakkai: No hard feelings. Ya feeling better now Taka-chan? (Sent 10:01am)

🗨️ Mitsuya: Not really, but it’ll pass. What’d you end up doing yesterday after I left? (Sent 10:02am)

Picking up on the subtle curiosity of Mitsuya’s text, it became clear to Hakkai that he did see him with you. As much as he admired Mitsuya, the anger building inside of him got the best of him. Therefore, in response, he chose a reply that he knew would get Mitsuya boiling.

🗨️ Hakkai: Caught Y/N outside of your class, had a wonderful lunch with her! She’s so nice, Taka-chan! Why are ya so mean to her? (Sent 10:04am)

Vigorous fingers typed in reply.

🗨️ Mitsuya: Why the fuck were you hanging around that slut? She’s just gonna try and get in your pants. What did she say to you? (Sent 10:04am)

🗨️ Mitsuya: Hakkai? Hello? (Sent 10:05am)

🗨️ Hakkai: Sorry Taka-chan, I’m back. She didn’t say nuthin bad, actually she was so sweet. She saw I was alone and we both had some tea together back at her place. Ended up sleeping over, I’m still here actually! (Sent 10:05am)

🗨️ Mitsuya: BACK AT HER PLACE? I told you, she’s just trying to get in your pants and you let her win! I can’t believe you let a whore like her win you over, Hakkai! Where the fuck is your brain? She probably was enjoying every minute of your sorry ass. (Sent 10:05am)

🗨️ Hakkai: Who said we slept together, Taka? (Sent 10:05am)

Silence enveloped the room.

🗨️ Mitsuya: Sorry… I just assumed that’s what you meant by sleeping over. (Sent 10:07am)

🗨️ Hakkai: Awh, it’s okie Taka, I know you were only looking out for me. (Sent 10:07am)

Absolutely, looking out for Hakkai. That’s what this was, that’s what he was doing. There couldn’t have been any other reason why he was so upset at the thought of you sleeping together. He was just being a good friend.

-----

┃ “Y/N!” the hoarse voice spoke to you, feeling the smooth cloth of his jacket pressed against your face as you bumped into him.

You looked up only to recognize Hakkai, kind thoughts flooding your mind, diminishing your anger stemming from your interaction with Mitsuya moments before. He grinned at you giddily, eyes relaxing any sort of tension left in your body. You slowly began to forget why you were mad and allowed yourself to indulge in his presence.

┃ “Good afternoon Hakkai! Waiting for Mitsuya?”

┃ “Mhm, you takin’ Designer 101 too, right?”

┃ “Yup! How come you aren’t taking it? You’re very fashionable, y’know?”

┃ “You’re too kind,” He giggled, his grin beginning to somehow grow wider on his cheeks as he raised his hand to pat your head.

┃ “I’m serious! Why don’t you join the class? It’s not too late, the second semester is about to start!” You eagerly pushed on, rejoicing in the positive energy he emitted.

┃ “ ‘m not really into making clothes, just showing them off...” He let out a hefty chuckle before getting cut off by you.

┃ “You don’t have to be good at making them! Some students choose to learn how to stylize different clothing and patterns, it’s all about the latest trends.”

┃ “Really?” He went silent for a few moments, smile morphing into a straight line as he contemplated your words carefully. Not to fret, as his smile quickly returned as he said: “Well then, might have to ask Taka-chan to help me sign up!”

You both shared a laugh and began to discuss the enrollment process in order for Hakkai to join the class-- if he were to drop another class, what class would he drop, or would he simply add it to his current schedule? While your conversation was nothing more than an innocent developing friendship, unbeknownst to you, Mitsuya had witnessed it all and declared it once more another betrayal. You were such a slut, flirting with anyone and everyone. Irrationality began to consume him-- instead of seeing your interaction with Hakkai for what it truly was, a genuine developing friendship, his brain refused to comprehend your behavior with other men. He never got to the level of comfortability you had with Takemichi, and he had lost the sense of ease you had with him to Hakkai and god, god did it piss him off. Unfortunately for that kohai, she was just another doll for him to play with just until he could get your attention again. Even a single drop of your attention, your attachment, it was enough to drive him for weeks just to be able to be near you again. Your kind words squeezing his heart tighter and tighter the more you spoke, your laughter ringing in his ears at a corny joke he told you during club meetings, it enveloped him into infatuation which later developed into a larger feeling. Such a large feeling over the progressing months that when he began bullying you, when your lack of presence and absences during meetings began to grow, an emptiness began to root in his heart, waiting for you to touch it once more and let it grow.

He could go on and on listing things about you-- the way he loved your sense of fashion, the way he loved your sense of humor, your compassion to helping others, your intellect that allowed you to read everyone like a book, everyone except him. Why couldn’t you see that he didn’t hate you? Oh, but that jealousy, the first time he’d admit that it was jealousy, it gripped him so tightly around his neck that it felt suffocating. Every shove, every clasp of your hand, your wrist, your chain, your chain, it made his heart shutter seeing that dead watery look in your eye, but your attention was like a drug that he just had to keep getting more of. It would never be enough to satisfy him, not until he could call you his and you would call him yours. He pitied using them, he really did, but he needed someone to satiate his needs. He was a womanizer, after all-- if one left he would just charm another into his bed. They all had high respect for Mitsuya, his intellect, his charm, his skill, and his kindness. Yet no matter how hard he tried, all those women, they were never you and they could never try and be you. He found that he no longer sought sex for his own pleasure anymore, but for your own, pretending so desperately that the one trembling out of pleasure beneath him was you. Imagining, no, fantasizing that he was making you happy and leaving you satisfied.

Upon seeing your interaction, he quickly left with his kohai for their own exchange, leaving Hakkai unfortunately confused as he waved you goodbye, patiently waiting for his friend to meet him. You were still on campus because you had taken additional extracurricular activities to build up your transcript to make up for your absences in Mitsuya’s Home-economics club. At first, you attempted to make it through the club meetings but he made every single one as unbearable as possible. The second semester, could it come any sooner? Hakkai, too focused on organizing his schedule with you previously, had failed to notice Mitsuya leaving with a woman. He waited, he waited, and he waited, coming to a good hour until he realized Mitsuya wouldn’t have left him waiting for this long without a heads up. He looked at his phone, expecting some sort of contact-- a phone call, a message, anything. All that awaited him was several unread messages from group chats and friends, none of them from Taka-chan. He sighed, placing his phone away just as he noticed your presence once more, planting a fake smile on his face to disguise his obvious disappointment. Unfortunately for him, his smile only instantly alerted you something was wrong.

┃ “Hakkai? Why are you still here, weren’t you supposed to be meeting Mitsuya?”

┃ His phony smile stood in place as tears began to fill his eyes. He croaked: “T-taka-chan left me. Do you think he’s mad at me for sumthin’, Y/N? I don’t ‘member doin’ anything.”

You instantly rushed over to comfort him, witnessing what appeared to be an intimidating giant become undone into a fragile teddy bear at the thought he had upset his best friend. Your disdain only kept growing for Mitsuya, first it was his lack of maturity during class, and now he had abandoned his best friend for whatever reason it was. Hakkai was a sweetheart, you couldn’t imagine what he may have done to upset someone. Therefore, you came to the conclusion Mitsuya had thrown a tantrum of sorts and took it out on him. It irked you, however, Mitsuya always remained respectful and loving to his best friend in addition to Yasuda-san, so you couldn’t help but raise your brow wondering what got him so upset for him to entirely ditch his friend. Pushing those thoughts aside, you placed all of your focus on bringing a smile back to Hakkai’s face, gently rubbing his back and placing your forehead against his temple as he crouched over in defeat. You desperately attempted to think of anything to cheer him up.

┃ “Ah, how about some tea?”

┃ “...Tea?”

┃ “Listen, I have absolutely no idea what you like and I want to calm you down so-”

┃ “Tea sounds good.” He said softly, a small smile returning to his face.

You escorted Hakkai comfortably back to your dorm, located on the east wing of the campus. Women and men could go to each other’s dorms, they just had gender-separated wings because it was just easier to contain the chaos if everyone was allowed to sleep with their girlfriend or boyfriend. The boys had their dormitory on the west side, thus you noticeably got some glances as you strolled with Hakkai. Mitsuya was always surrounded by Hakkai and Yasuda-san, so obviously most of your classmates were shocked to see you hanging out with his right-hand man. Were you both sleeping together? Ooh what a scandal (not). Although you didn’t mind the glanes too much, Hakkai on the other hand made sure to shoot down them all with a nasty side glare, quickly causing them to turn their cheek. It was a cute sight after all, seeing how you subconsciously had reached for his hand and began to rub gentle circles on it in order to ease him, which succeeded in doing so. Once you arrived at your dorm, you opened the door and gave him a show of jazz hands as you toured him around your dorm. Your dorm wasn’t the largest compared to his and Mitsuya’s dorm, which made him realize the privilege of not having a financially aided dorm. Your queen bed comfortably rested on the right side of the room, covered with a curtain and fairy lights on the wall behind it. Your desk was not too far away, maybe a good 15 feet across your bed, not too messy but not too neat. It was obvious you were working on something, as there were papers still out and scattered but the rest of the desk had the pens, pencils, and stapled papers sorted in a clean pile. Your pinboard was half-covered with your calendar, cluttered with small sticker reminders while the other half was your schedule, nicely decorated with washi tape sticking it to the board. Next to your bed was a wooden closet and you led him into the cramped kitchen that made him gasp, seeing how you make such a tight space so comfortable and presentable. You had a small glass coffee table in the middle, a small fridge cramped in the kitchen underneath a cupboard and next to a cabinet holding the sink on top. Next to that was a stove with a microwave on top, both color-coordinated black, contrasting the white of the room. You guided him over to the table and motioned for him to sit and he obediently did. Walking over to the countertop holding an old-school kettle, you used it to strain and brew the tea. Gleefully, you dropped a few ice cubes in his glass and carefully poured his tea and then your own, sitting across from him at the table. He took a sip of the tea you had placed in front of him, smiling not at the delightful taste but the awaiting face you had fixated, putting your hands under your chin waiting for a response.

┃ “This tea is delightful, thank you Y/N.” He said warmly and you basked in his praise.

┃ “Ah, sorry if I made you uncomfortable with the staring. I don’t… really get visitors. It’s nice to have someone over.” You replied, your face beginning to glow a light pink as your lips formed into a slight frown, embarrassed to admit how you had no friends.

┃ “Mm, I should be the one thankin’ you,” The softness in his voice made your crouched posture fix itself as you looked up to him. “You made me sum tea, opened me to your home, all ‘cuz I was sad and overthinkin’. You ain’t hafta do that, but you did anyway. I appreciate ya!” His iconic grin was now back where it belonged as his eyes glazed over you in pure adoration. You smiled in return, both returning to take a sip of your tea.

Hours passed and he was still at your house, you both gossiping and talking like old friends. You discussed your classmates, praising them and disapproving of the behavior of others. He began to confide in you about what he witnessed during his time as the second-division’s vice captain. You eagerly listened to him as he described to you his tales with his brother and his amazing sister Yuzuha, anything and everything was up for debate. At least, almost everything. Despite being the main reason he was so upset, you and Hakkai had not discussed Mitsuya’s treatment of you. He was mentioned in a few gang stories, but it seemed as if Hakkai was opting out of speaking about him out of respect for you. However, his head began to slump, implying he was tired. You grabbed your phone, which had been placed upside down on the coffee table, and looked at the time and saw it was well past midnight. You leaned over to rub Hakkai’s shoulder and you gasped when his head turned back upright, alert as if he just remembered something. Drunk on drowsiness, he began to speak:

┃ “Mmh, y’know Mitsuya used to talk about you a lot. Always went on about this pretty girl who was awfully sweet, really smart…” He trailed off, fighting off the sleep that clung desperately to his eyelids. “He never gave me a name but after club meetings when I woulds wait for him, he would tell me about his conversations. I always saw him looking at ya. What did ya do to make him so pissed off?” Although he had no malicious-intent in his questioning, it was enough to cause goosebumps all over your body.

┃ “I didn’t do anything, ‘kai. Really, nothing different happened that day. All of the sudden, the next day during his club he humiliated me in front of everyone and then made me stay after hours to yell at me even more.” You went silent for a moment, before your curiosity got the best of you and you questioned: “He used to talk about me? Are you sure?”

┃ Ignoring your question, he replied to your initial response. “You didn’t do anythin’ different at all that day?”

┃ You contemplated his question carefully, before realizing the one event that was an outlier to the rest. “I was waiting for my friend outside campus gates that day. He offered to wait with me but I insisted he didn’t, mainly because my friend had said Mitsuya wasn’t very fond of him so it was better if he didn’t see him.”

┃ “Who’s the friend?”

┃ “Hanagaki Takemichi.”

┃ The tired man in front of you took a full minute to process your sentence before bursting out and crying of laughter a few moments later. You looked at him, pure confusion coating your body as he continued to sob. Finally, after a few minutes, he wiped his eyes and sat back up, gleaming at you. “Well that’s your problem, Mitsuya fucking hates Takemichy. Probably spied on ya because he was worried, saw Takemichy, and boom-- he got jealous AHAHA!” He went back to crying of laughter, leaving you a few moments to yourself to process his words.

It was embarrassing to admit how Hakkai was half-asleep in front of you and somehow managed to put together your puzzle of confusion together months after said incident had happened, in under 20 minutes. However, you couldn’t find yourself disagreeing with his theory. Suddenly, Hakkai stopped laughing and looked up at you, all serious.

┃ “Now wait… that’s not funny! He’s been pushing ya around all the time just cuz he’s jealous of you being with other guys?! That’s fucked up! ‘M gonna beat his ass, Y/N! Just for you!”

You now began laughing, taking Hakkai’s hand in yours over the glass countertop and tapping it gently.

┃ “That won’t be necessary, ‘kai. How about we come up with a solution?”

┃ “My solution is beating his a-”

┃ “A non-physical solution.”

┃ He went silent for a few moments, looking away from you to the window to think. You could tell he thought of something when a smirk began to plaster itself on his face. “How about we test our theory?”

┃ “Elaborate.”

┃ “If that pain in my ass is done with whatever it is he’s doing, there was supposta be a party tomorrow. Not at our dorm, but our friend’s. You might have heard of him, Manjiro Sano?”

You responded with silence.

┃ “Mikey. The Invincible Mikey.”

┃ “Not ringing any bells.”

┃ “Brother of Emma Sano. Brother of Izana.”

┃ “Emma Sano is so nice!”

┃ “Captain of the Tokyo Manji Gang, Y/N.”

┃ “Oh.”

┃ “Point is, he’s having a party tomorrow. We could get some revenge, I bring you as my date~”

┃ “Won’t that make him angri-

┃ “That’s what revenge is.”

┃ “Why don’t I just talk with him?”

┃ “Has he tried talking to you?”

┃ “...no.”

┃ “I rest my case.”

Silence enveloped the room once more. It wasn’t an awkward silence, no, it was quite a comfortable silence actually as he patiently awaited your response and allowed you to process and think.

┃ “When is the party exactly?”

✿ tags: @haiq-trash @blackmysticalsimp @the2ndl @bren-heron @delicatejudgecopcowboy @skiwalkers

✿ a.n. // First of all, thank you so much for 102 followers <3 I appreciate the support being given to me! I would like to address one thing, however, please don't rush me to write! I've gotten very kind messages of support but others have been demanding more of me and it's important to remember that I have classes, chores, a social life, and many other things happening. I love writing but rushing me makes it unenjoyable and it won't be my best work. My goal for this ongoing fanfic is to post weekly. Just a little ted-talk there, I hope everyone enjoys this chapter though! I had such a fun time writing it :)

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sturchling · 4 years ago

Note

I've read your stories where the Justice League is banned from Paris, and I love them! What if the League and the Avengers were in the same world, but the Avengers didn't ignore them while the Justice League did? I imagine that Steve would convince Tony to help because these are KIDS, like Peter. So, the Avengers help, but since the League and Avengers are at odds, the Avengers don't tell the League. Team Miraculous is perfectly fine with that. (Big Team Miraculous and more users if possible!!)

Team Miraculous had practically begged the Justice League for help when Hawkmoth was still active. But they received no response. But the Justice League weren’t the only ones they reached out to. They also sent the same video asking for help to Tony Stark, who everyone knew was Iron Man, hoping the Avengers might help them. They sent the video with little hope for a response. After all, the Justice League had ignored all their requests for help. Why would the Avengers be any different?

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Tony Stark received hundreds of emails a day. Emails from people at Stark Industries, SHIELD, and the avengers. But he didn’t often get emails from an unknown address from Paris. That is what initially caught his attention. The message was simple. The subject simply said Avengers, please help us. When Tony opened the email, there was no text to it. Just a video attachment. Tony called the team into the meeting room and played the video.

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They watched the video as two kids in animal themed costumes explained what was happening in Paris. These kids couldn’t be more than 14. When the video was over, the group sat in silence for a moment before Steve spoke up. “We need to help them.” Tony sighed, turning to face Steve. “It’s not that I don’t want to, but we can’t just go to Paris and help. Not when they are still discussing the accords. We can’t go unless France’s government asks for our help.” Steve stands up from his seat, angry. “So what? We just ignore this? You heard what they said, France wants to keep this under wraps so they don’t lose the tourists that come to Paris. They aren’t going to ask for our help, then they would have to publicly admit there is a problem!” Tony stands up too, walking towards Steve. “I know that! But our hands are tied. With the UN still discussing the accords, we can’t go making the situation worse then it already is!” Steve rolls his eyes and starts to walk away in frustration. “Oh come on Tony! Those are kids! Those are KIDS who are having to fight against a terrorist all on their own with no training! They need help! If it were Peter in Paris, would you leave him to face this alone?” That made Tony pause. In the quiet, Thor decided to make his opinion known. “I also feel that we should help them. I am familiar with these miraculous. The power they grant users is great. A terrorist powered by one is a sobering thought. I am especially familiar with the Black Cat miraculous, as is Loki. And I do not believe either of us wants to be on Plagg’s bad side again. We should help these children immediately.” Tony just sighs, shaking his head. “I feel like I am going to regret this. Fine, lets go to Paris.” The Avengers quickly made preparations to go to Paris. Before they left they sent an email back to the kids who sent the video to let them know that help was on the way.

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Marinette and Adrien could hardly believe the email in their inbox. They hadn’t expected to hear back from the Avengers so soon, or hear that they were taking this seriously. This is incredible! By now, team Miraculous had revealed their identities to each other to make it easier to communicate to each other. Marinette sent out a message in their group chat. Group project meeting. Meet in the usual place, 30 minutes. Half an hour later, team Miraculous was meeting in their secluded area of Chloe’s hotel suite, which had been sound proofed so no one would hear them. Marinette and Adrien filled them all in on what had happened involving the Avengers and everyone was excited. They would finally get some help with Hawkmoth after all these years. It wasn’t long before they received another email saying that the Avengers had landed and asking where to meet. Marinette sent them the location of a secluded warehouse to meet in and Team Miraculous transformed, leaving to meet the Avengers.

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

The Avengers weren’t sure what to expect when they arrived at the abandoned warehouse the kids asked them to meet at. But they certainly weren’t expecting a small army of kids in costume, in addition to the two that sent the video. In addition to the original two dressed as a ladybug and cat, there appeared to be a fox, turtle, bee, horse, snake, monkey, dragon, and bunny. And they were all children. The girl in the ladybug outfit and boy in the cat outfit stepped forward. “I am Ladybug and this is Chat Noir. We lead the miraculous team. Thank you for your help.” Steve stepped forward, being the first to recover from the shock of seeing this army of children. “We are glad to help. We have the basic idea of what is happening from your video, but could you explain in some more detail what the situation is?” Ladybug spent the next few hours going over everything with the Avengers, giving a more detailed picture of the ongoing battle with Hawkmoth and Mayura for the last few years.

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

At the end of the explanation, the Avengers are horrified. The situation is worse than they thought. And the Justice League had been ignoring these kids? That just made it worse. Tony, his head still reeling from all the information, said “I am glad we got your message when we did, seems things are pretty bad here. We can help you track down this Hawkmoth and end this. But we need to keep our involvement in this quiet. With the UN still discussing the accords, we aren’t technically supposed to be here.” Ladybug looks visibly confused, asking, “Accords? What are the accords?” The Avengers fill them in on the accords and what all it means for them.

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Ladybug was shocked that they would even consider agreeing to this. “You all agreed to this? To be monitored by the UN and restricted in what you can do. And anyone that they view as a threat could be imprisoned just because of that, regardless of if they had done anything wrong. That is insane! The Avengers I know wouldn’t agree to that. I remember watching you Agent Romanoff, testify before congress and challenge them to put you in prison. The world needs the Avengers and other heroes to be able to act in a crisis without worrying about if a panel will let them.” Tony tried to argue his point, and Marinette continued to say it was wrong. The two argued for a while, which was concerning for both team Miraculous and the Avengers to watch. But by the end of it, Marinette being Marinette, had managed to convince Tony that he was wrong and that they wouldn’t agree to the accords. The Avengers were a little shocked that this young girl had changed Tony’s mind, but you wouldn’t hear them complaining. With all the discussions out of the way, they got to work.

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

Tony got Jarvis to start running analyses to see who in Paris was likely to be Hawkmoth. It had to be someone with a lot of time on their hands, a large amount of resources, and had to have a supply of these butterflies he was using. He also compared these results with the typical behavioral profile of a terrorist like this. Then the Avengers went over the list with Team Miraculous and started eliminating suspects. Anyone that didn’t already have an alibi was tailed by either Hawkeye or Black Widow until they were cleared. Meanwhile, the rest of the Avengers helped train the kids in combat and how to work as a team in the field so that they were better able to face akumas. It took weeks, but soon, they were down to only one subject. Gabriel Agreste. Adrien didn’t want to believe it, but as the weeks went by and neither Hawkeye or Black Widow were able to clear him, it became clear to Adrien that his father was likely Hawkmoth.

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

By now, the Avengers knew of the kids identities. All the Avengers felt bad for Adrien, and also didn’t want him to stay in that house a minute longer. Besides how his father treated him, having another miraculous user in that house, especially the Black Cat that Hawkmoth craved was a recipe for disaster. So Tony had his lawyers help Adrien file for emancipation. That made Gabriel frantic. He didn’t want to lose his control over Adrien. He was so close to getting the miraculous and his wish. He could have his family back again. But that can’t happen if Adrien is emancipated and leaves. Gabriel became more desperate with his akumas and became sloppy. That was his downfall.

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

By the end of the week, the Avengers and team Miraculous were facing down Hawkmoth. By this point, Hawkmoth was so frantic, that they fight was easily won. When he revealed why he did all this and what happened to Emilie, Master Fu, who had come to collect the missing miraculous, was able to reverse the damage done by the peacock miraculous on both Emilie and Nathalie. Gabriel was arrested, as was Nathalie, and Adrien was ecstatic to be with his mother again.

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Once Hawkmoth was defeated, news of what had been happening in Paris spread like wildfire. It wasn’t long before the Justice League swooped in to do damage control. They landed in the middle of the city, already starting their spiel about how they were here to help with any damage and chaos from the final battle. But they were shocked to see the city in perfect condition, and the police surrounding them, telling them to leave. Over the heads of the police, they see the members of the Avengers standing with some kids in animal costumes. Two of the kids are familiar, from the videos asking for help all those years ago. Batman fumed at seeing the other group of heroes allowed to be in the city while they were being forced out. “Why are we not allowed here, but they are!? They aren’t local heroes.” The girl in a Ladybug themed costume stepped forward through the crowd, “They get to be here because they actually answered our call for help and were instrumental in the defeat of Hawkmoth. They arrived before the ban, followed my team’s lead, and respected the wishes of my team as well as the city. They proved to be good allies. You and your group on the other hand, ignored and denied our requests and now want to come in and do damage control. Now you leave, or we will make you.” While some of the members of the Justice League have the good sense to look embarrassed and back down, Batman got right in Ladybug’s face. “And how are you going to make us little girl?” Ladybug turned around and walked back to her team, not sparing Batman another glance. Batman looked smug, thinking he had made her back down. But when she got back to her team, she turned to the horse themed hero. “Pegasus.” Without another word, the horse sprang into action. All the Justice League heard was him call out “Voyage” before they were back in the watchtower, wondering what had just happened.

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Finally, it was time for the UN meeting on the accords. When asked if they would sign, the Avengers officially declined to sign the accords so they could actually help in Paris. Team Miraculous watched the live coverage as all of the Avengers said they wouldn’t sign the accords. The head of the UN panel stood up, angry at their defiance. “Maybe we should just go ahead and toss you all in a cell. Clearly you are a threat to the world. While we were discussing these very accords, you went into France without permission and acted as the Avengers. You cause untold damage in each fight, do nothing to fix the damage, and won’t allow for a little over sight to make sure you don’t destroy everything. Seems pretty dangerous to me.” There were mummers of agreement through out the room. Tony was the last one to speak. “You won’t put us in a prison cell. Here’s why. As Agent Romanoff once said, you all need us. Yes, we have made the world a more vulnerable place. But, we are the ones most qualified and able to defend it. So, if you want to arrest us, do it. You know where to find us. But then you will be even more vulnerable to even bigger threats than us.” Angry voices sounded from around the room, but the Avengers just turned and left. Most other heroes followed suit, officially stating that they would not be signing the accords. Eventually, the UN realized that if they arrested every hero that didn’t sign the accords, they would have no one left to defend the Earth and they dropped the issue.

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

Things quickly returned to normal, for both team Miraculous and the Avengers. Team Miraculous was happy to have defeated Hawkmoth and not have to constantly guard their emotions. The emotional toll on the citizens of Paris was huge, but the Avengers weren’t done helping. Tony Stark brought in several therapists and took care of all the bills, so all of Paris could have access to mental help as needed, after enduring the trauma of living under Hawkmoth’s threats for years. And the Avengers kept on being heroes and helping everyone they could all over the world. And team Miraculous would often give them a hand with missions as needed. The Avengers and team Miraculous remained close allies after everything and were happy to have helped each other.

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kenkamishiro · 4 years ago

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Lost in Translation: Choujin X chapter 1

Fun fact, I was planning to do fan translations for Choujin X with a scan group until it could get a simulpub release, though I didn’t expect it to get one from the very first chapter lol. I’m happy though since it means everyone can read it right away and it doesn’t mess up my schedule.

So instead I’ll be making comparison notes between the EN and JP text to supplement the official translation. I’m not doing this because the official TL is bad (I actually think it’s pretty solid and I hope it will maintain this quality) but because it’s inevitable for something to be lost in translation, and it’s nice to have that additional context for theory crafting and whatnot.

If you want to read it on Twitter instead, the original thread is here, but this is the proofread and way more detailed version 😄

This translation isn’t wrong, but there’s an emphasis on それ (which is TLed as ‘it’) that connotes a stronger, “other, that thing” feeling that isn’t present here. The general idea behind this sentence is: That [becoming a Choujin] resembles more of a disease [than a transformation].

Ely talks like a tomboy, she uses rougher speech patterns and the pronoun オラ (ora), a derivative of the masculine 'ore'. But it's a bit old-fashioned (eg. すまなんだ) which makes sense considering her upbringing with her grandfather on a farm. Hence her country bumpkin speech pattern in English.

Not sure if I should use Ellie or Ely? Ellie makes more sense based on the kana, but Ishida explicitly called her Ely so I might stick with Ely for now... (also istg that blond guy with the huge chin is a reference, I've seen him somewhere)

Tokio, I know your teacher is annoying, but it's rude to call her that lol. This is basically the oppai equivalent of paisen (senpai backwards, it’s slangier). Similar thing actually happened with Ely describing her dream hubby as Goldilocks instead of blond; ‘kinpatsu’ (blond hair) was inverted to become ‘patsukin’, hence the translation as Goldilocks.

Kurohara Tokio (黒原トキオ) and Higashi Azuma (東アヅマ). Kurohara is a common surname, means 'black fields'. Tokio is in katakana, so it’s hard to say what kanji it could be. 'Toki' could be 時 (time) or 外喜 (outside + delight). The 'o' can be the common male name suffix 男 (boy).

But when I think of Tokio, I think of TK's song called 'tokio'. You can read the translated lyrics here. If these lyrics end up being relevant to Tokio's character development I will eat my shoe lol.

Higashi means 'east'. Azuma (which can also be romanized as Aduma, it’s a softer ‘zu’ sound which is why Tokio called Azuma ‘Aju’ earlier in the chapter before correcting himself) is an archaic form of ‘east’. So...this guy is literally East East. The Choujin X equivalent of Moon Moon 😂

Someone also informed me that Higashi Azuma is a station in Tokyo, though the kana are slightly different (アヅマ／あづま vs. あずま). They effectively sound the same though nowadays, if I have to be honest. It’s like comparing the difference between 애 and 에 in Korean.

Tbh this is minor, but worth mentioning just cause it changes the meaning a bit. Tokio is saying something more like, “Why are we even talking about this [the roly-polies] again?”

I think I heard people talking about how the official TL doesn’t match the original text, but personally I really like how this was translated! Sis is using the expression 「爪の垢を煎じて飲む」, which literally means “boiling the dirt under someone’s fingernails and drinking it”. By taking the dirt/grime under the fingernails of someone that you admire, and boiling it and drinking it like a tea, you can become more like them.

But because idioms don’t tend to directly translate well between languages, translators often have to adapt it so that the meaning still remains the same. In English the closest idiom we have to this is “rubbing off on someone.” The “holding hands” bit was added to replace the physical aspect of “taking the dirt from someone’s fingernails” and also contribute to Sis’s sassy and very informal way of speaking.

So Sis is saying in JP (ignoring her personal speech style for now):

You should take the dirt from under [Azuma's] fingernails and boil it so you can be more like him.

And now in ENG it becomes:

You guys should hold hands or something, then maybe he’ll rub off on you.

It now sounds natural in English, still carries the same meaning as the original text, and also suits the character’s speech pattern.

Moving on, in that same panel the literal TL of Tokio’s dialogue is, “Policeman Azuma got dispatched again today,” emphasizing Azuma’s heroic deeds along with his family connections to the police. Another thing I want to note is that this is the second time Azuma has been called 偉い (erai) so far - noble, and now great guy. I’ll just dump the general English definition of 偉い from Jisho here so you get the general idea:

Great; excellent; admirable; remarkable; distinguished; important; celebrated; famous; eminent

But you can tell from how people describe Azuma as 偉い that others look up to him, think he’s a great person and Mr. Perfect. Always being placed on a pedestal by others. (What are the odds this will affect his mentality after the Choujin serum?)

The meaning is still pretty much the same, but I’ll offer a slightly different perspective. Sis mentions that if she were Tokio, she’d burst from the [Azuma] complex. (Clearly Tokio and Azuma's relationship is gonna crack at some point)

Tokio mentions an idiom about hawks (taka) before recalling his childhood memory about vultures. Vultures are called 'hagewashi', but in the chapter it mentions they can also be called 'hagetaka' (buzzard/condor, literally bald hawk).

The kids call him names like "Hagetaka Tokio" and "Hageo". But Hagetaka Tokio only really works in JP cause Hagetaka kinda mimics his last name (Buzzard Tokio doesn't give the same vibe). Same with Hageo. Hage-o = Bald-o = Baldy.

I also think Buzzard was chosen over another name for a vulture like Condor because Buzzard can pass off as an insult.

I would have translated this as, “I wanted to be a lion too...” but this is just personal preference.

A continuation of the 「爪の垢を煎じて飲む」 expression Sis used earlier. Without the adapted idiom the exchange goes something like this:

Tokio: My sister said I should bring home the dirt from under your nails. Can I have some?

Azuma: ...huh? What for, that’s scary. No way.

Tokio: I have to boil it and drink it, apparently.

Azuma: Don’t even think about boiling or drinking it.

But since the 「爪の垢を煎じて飲む」 expression was modified to make it sound natural in English, it means this conversation has to be modified too.

JP: My sister said I should bring home the dirt from under your nails. Can I have some?

EN: My sister says we should hold hands...so I can be more like you. What do you think?

The “dirt from under your nails” part got adapted to “holding hands”, hence how the 1st line from Tokio becomes, “My sister says we should hold hands...so I can be more like you.” “Can I have some?” makes no sense now in this context now, so it was changed to “What do you think?” as a question to Azuma to keep the similar conversation flow going.

JP: ...huh? What for, that’s scary. No way.

EN: Huh? What’re you talking about? No thanks.

Azuma’s next line is similar enough to the JP text except for the removal of “scary”. I think the reason it was most likely removed is because leaving it as it is could be constituted as homophobic (2 boys holding hands, absolutely nothing scary about it as bible thumpers would like people to believe).

JP: I have to boil it and drink it, apparently.

EN: She said to hold hands so you’ll rub off on me.

Tokio’s response to that is explaining what he meant by his proposal. In the original text he lays out the latter half of the idiom (he doesn’t even realize it’s an expression, poor boy), and in English he does something similar by going into why his sister said they should hold hands (so Azuma can rub off on Tokio).

JP: Don’t even think about boiling or drinking it.

EN: C’mon. That’s not how things work.

Azuma’s then rebuts Tokio’s proposal as ridiculous. In the original text he drops a typical straight man response (don’t do *insert whatever ridiculous thing the idiot suggested*). But since Tokio’s proposal in English isn’t as preposterous, his rebuttal is toned down in response by telling him not to take it literally.

Ultimately, even though a lot of this dialogue was changed, I still think it was successful in maintaining the original’s intent. Tokio takes his sister’s sarcastic suggestion literally and brings it up to Azuma, who dismisses it as silly. It would be nice if we could keep the expression as it was in Japanese, but in instances like this where it’s played off of in multiple lines, that’s easier said than done.

軟体 isn’t an actual word, it’s made up of the kanji soft + body. So kinda like Elastigirl, but Flexi was chosen instead. It doesn’t sound 100% right, but I don’t think I could come up with anything better.

Replacing the しい in 楽しい with the C plus that elongated pronunciation makes Johnny sound even more like a stereotypical Yankee, which is why he sounds like that in English 😂

Random but I found it interesting how Azuma called Johnny a youkai (妖怪) instead of something like bakemono (化け物) or obake (お化け) since they’re shapeshifting monsters.

Tokio is worried that if he doesn't do something right now, he's going to lose his friendship with Azuma. The sentence is fine as it is though.

Azuma’s line can also be worded as, "No hard feelings, okay?"

Bestial = 獣化 (juuka) = beast+change = beast transformation

That’s it from me, if you have questions about the TL feel free to send an ask or reply to this post, I promise I’ll check my inbox more often this time 😂

#Choujin X #Translations #fyi i also went into the holding hands TL #tl;dr i don't think it's bad and suits it well #but that's just my opinion

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chemicalpink · 4 years ago

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대취타 (DAECHWITA) | EMPEROR!YOONGI X READER | FINAL

Pairing: Emperor!Yoongi x Assassin!Reader

Words: 3.5k

Genre: Emperor AU, Historical AU (kinda), smut, angsty

Warnings: mentions of death, mentions of historical public execution, oral sex (male receiving), lowkey breath play, unprotected sex

A/N: FINALLY IT’S HERE. I hope you enjoy, I had a hard time trying to make this not seem lame so here it is! please let me know what you think!

Summary: You used to be an assassin, got caught and works at the palace as a servant up until you are escorted to the main palace, either to meet your inevitable destiny or for a change of plans.

PART 1 | PART 2 | PART 3 | PART 4

Forehead resting against your own as you found yourselves panting, him sliding out as your spasming cunt dripped with both of your releases onto the floor, placing one more soft kiss on your lips with his eyes closed “Marry me”

You almost sat up with a start. Suddenly the world was bright and hazy. Yoongi had opened his eyes and they were digging like daggers into yours, an unusual look on him. You looked at the emperor apologetically before turning your gaze to the end of the room where there was a pile of books, silently detangling yourself from him.

The silence was deafening.

Then again, who in their right mind proposed marriage while having their cock buried deep inside some assassin turned royal slave. All the same, Min Yoongi wasn’t exactly known for having a right mind. But it wasn’t just the fact that he had proposed seemingly out of the blue, more than it was everything that came with it. The words seemed to tangle themselves inside your brain as you hear him say them over and over again. That he couldn’t think of himself marrying some woman that was inferior to him in mind and spirit. That he had wanted to marry to someone he loved. To think that Min Yoongi had proposed you marriage not in the heat of the moment but fully conscious of his actions would not only mean that he was in it for the great sexual escaped you two regularly went on, but because due to some fucked up mindset the royal had, he believed he could love you.

Yoongi reached for your hand in an attempt to get your attention, face soft with post orgasmic bliss as he repeated the ill fated words “Marry me, Y/N”

You snapped out of his hold. “Yoongi I don’t think you understand the situation”

“What is it then, please do enlighten me, Y/N cause from what I understand is me asking for your hand in marriage, twice now” he blinks a few times, looking at you expectantly, crossing his arms like a petulant child

“FUCKING READ THE ROOM MIN YOONGI ARE YOU OUT OF YOUR MIND”

“Well I’m not, but you seem to be”

“I’m a fucking assassin, my hands? they will forever be tainted red” you look down at your hands and the blond man comes near to hold both of them inside his

“Y/N I couldn’t care less about that, it’s not like I’m a saint either”

“You just don’t understand”

“Then help me out” somehow his ever consistent and aloof tone gave you more chills thana you could’ve imagined if he were to raise his voice at you “Y/N I’m serious with my proposal, the sex is amazing, but you’ve proven to be an excellent addition not only to my court, but to my life”

You are shaking, voice trembling and just above a mere whisper “I was the one that killed your mother on that freezing December night”

He freezes in place.

He seemed oddly composed for someone who had just been told the responsible of his mother's death was none other than the woman he thought he wanted to marry

You remember how a few years ago, he had gone on a killing rampage, exposing heads outside his palace as if they were homemade decorations, swearing to find the person responsible for his mother’s death and get revenge. It had been months of bloodbath. Some had considered the emperor’s son to have gone completely out of his mind.

You storm off. Not before accepting the responsibility of your actions, perhaps Yoongi had also been a good addition to your life “I’m fine with you deciding to execute me for my crimes, I understand whatever sentence is best fitted for me, your majesty” for the first time since you had arrived at the palace, you don’t dare to look him in the ye, opting to follow court protocol and bow deeply before taking your leave, attempting to detangle yourself from your messed up robes and even more messed up string of thoughts.

The following days to that conversation were a blur and for the most part, uneventful, the emperor had opted not to gravitate your way unless strictly necessary, oddly enough, the air wasn’t awkward at all, it was as if nothing had ever happened between the two of you in the first place. Yoongi had retreated to being an aloof ruler, along with regular trips to meet his once very occupied and spoiled rotten concubines, all the while you were kept apart from. Sometimes, you would receive jobs outside the palace and were expected to fulfill them according to instructions. More times than not, you were left wondering if you would make it back to the palace or if it was one hell of an excuse to execute you.

Hearing approaching footsteps, you couldn’t help but hide the best that you could behind one of the hostel’s walls. Hooded and well muffled with the cape, as you did your best to camouflage yourself into the shadows and become a mere wisp of darkness. A maid from the hostel trudged to the open window and closed it, grumbling. Lightning illuminated the landing. You took a deep breath and reviewed the plans that you had so painstakingly memorized throughout the three days you had been guarding that building on the outskirts of the kingdom. Five doors on each side. The target’s bedroom was behind the third one on the left.

Stealthy as a specter, you walked down the landing. You pushed the target's bedroom door, which opened with an almost imperceptible squeak; waiting for another thunder to rumble to close it carefully. A second flash of lightning illuminated the two figures sleeping on the canopy bed. Young Hee must not have been over thirty-five. His son, small and beautiful, slept soundly in his arms.

“I’m not murdering a poor kid’s mother”

“So you’ve gone soft”

“No I haven’t gone soft” “What could a poor merchant woman have done to you for her to deserve such an end to her life”

He sits down on his throne “You didn’t even hesitate when killing my mother, though”

“Yoongi I-” he turns his head to you, a sharp gaze following your every move, as if he was a predator waiting for the precise moment his prey took a wrong turn to jump on them. You turn your gaze to the floor immediately “Your Majesty”

“Listen Y/N- I’m a very busy man, so I’ll make it easier for you” he stood up from where he was sitting, and although you weren’t looking directly at him, you could hear him move around the room until you were able to see him stop right in front of you, a hand you were so familiar with once caresses your cheek as he grabs your chin and forces you to look at him face to face “It’s either her life, or your life. Easy choice, Y/N”

You can feel your heart wanting to burst out of your ribcage at that exact moment, finally understanding the importance behind such a horrifying task, the mirroring in the situation. And the choice was as simple as it could get. “Kill me instead”

You could see the rage inside his eyes, even as he stood still for a few second, steady as ever, unfaltering as he called over one of the palace’s servants to get him the royal seal, the infamous red ink that decorated the skin of those in line to be executed by the royal himself, an utmost sign of rage, of personally wronging the monarch. A sense of longing crossed his gaze for half a second as he locked eyes with you before he took your wrist in his hand and stamped the cold ink on it; you couldn’t keep your body from reacting to the action, whether it was having him touching you again, the almost imperceptible stuttering of his movements when he did so, or the knowledge that you’d have to face an execution, making you shake lightly as adrenaline filled your veins.

Preparations were something the emperor certainly didn’t scattered in, back when he became known as the cold hearted borderline psychopath he had a vaste fame of, ikt was mostly do to the whole antiques that surrounded his personal executions, the way that they seemed to mimic a kingdom’s festivity was almost breathtaking, were it not for the fact that the main entertainment of the day would be having you publicly executed. You had been waiting for that night for a whole week. Sitting in the wooden corridor nestled to one side of the golden dome of Min Yoongi’s personal library, remembering how the last time you had been there, things were so different from how they were now, where the emperor had asked you to marry you in the worst way possible and you had confessed the greatest murder of the dynasty; you let yourself be carried away by the music that rose through the amphitheater. With your legs dangling under the railing, you leaned forward and rested your cheek on your crossed arms. One could almost swear the palace was preparing for a wedding, if the way you were constantly dressed up and down during the week, the way the palace’s servants were constantly bustling around the building to ensure the greatest quality for the evening, the greatest night for the kingdom. The execution of the Empress’ murderer.

“You seem oddly calm for someone who's about to be executed” Jungkook mentions as he approaches where you were currently hanging out, a few minutes to spare before a small group of designated maids were to call you to get you ready for the night.

You look up at him tiredly, without separating your head from where it was laying, catching him taking a seat by your side in the most infantile way you had ever seen the royal guard do, shrugging to no one in particular, you add “You know, accountability and stuff”

“Oh and she grew a moral compass during her time here” if he was expecting a bickering comeback, the way you used to do back when he was designated to look after you, he was certainly not getting anything other than be met by an extended silence that seemed to rise the tension and seriousness of the whole interaction between the two “Why are you letting this happen to you?”

“What are you talking about” this time, you do turn to face him, confused as to where he was expecting the conversation to go.

“You didn’t kill his mother”

“I did”

He huffed out air, sounding a bit exasperated at your response; you could have even sworn you saw him roll his eyes faintly “No you didn’t, you were a mere 15 year old” there was a bit of laughter behind his sentence before he regained his composure and went back to his former self from a few minutes ago, looking at your face quizzically as if there was something hidden in there that held the answer to his question “So why are you doing this”

You try and miserably fail to convey a nonchalant look on your face as memories of your time with the emperor fill your mind, not just the carnal ones, but those where you would watch him work for his place in the royal hierarchy, the soft sides around the rough edges that were publicly hidden on purpose, turning away from the guard you say softly “Yoongi’s a great man”

“Okay sure, he could do with a more...tame temperament, but what does that have anything to do with you chopping your own head off”

You try your best to ignore the way your heart seems to physically ache at the thought behind the answer; you almost don’t get enough strength from within to mutter “I’m hoping to get him some closure, be an even better ruler”

“That’s- definitely not how it’s supposed to work Y/N” Jungkook says incredulously

“I was technically part of the killing so, it’s all the same”

He huffs before going to stand up, dusting off his uniform and already facing away from you, before you can hear him call for you one last time “Yoongi’s in his room, you know, he was looking for you a few hours ago, in case that information helps in any way”

So perhaps you were naive for thinking that he would answer his door, he would have no reason to do so, especially given the circumstances, if it were you, opening the door to the person that had confessed of murdering your mother, and having them come up at your room, you wouldn’t even need to think it once to decide not to further interact with them, but Jungkook had said Yoongi had been looking for you before, so the chance of him wanting to see you alive one last time were there. Unless you were reading it all wrong. You turned your back on the huge wooden door you had come to know as the emperor’s bedroom a few months back, resigned, when you heard the creaking of a door opening and a calm steady voice.

“So you’re going to just knock on my door and run away the same way you entered my life and are now leaving it forever?” his frozen tone still having an effect on your body as you turned to face him properly for the first time in what seemed like an eternity “Came to discuss a bargain for your life?”

“Not at all” you lock eyes with him when approaching him, until you were practically inside the room, his judgemental gaze still on you “I wanted to say my goodbyes properly, your majesty”

“Then don’t waste my time and come in already, Y/N”

The royal wasted no time in cornering you against the door, face so close to yours you could feel his breath on your skin, the tip of his nose nuzzling the side of your face and you knew him enough to know he had his eyes closed to keep his composure as he talked “I’m going to miss you like a fucking mad man”

It felt like falling back into routine, the way he kissed you, down to your neck up to your collarbone, pushing past the robes that covered your skin, in preparation for the ritual, his hands roaming freely in a familiar way, grabbing all the right places as he draws little sounds from your throat, all while he worked the both of you to where his bed was placed, although he was giving your body and pleasure a decent amount of attention, you couldn’t brush off the fact that he irradiated an angry aura, words left unspoken as he got his anger out by pleasuring both of you. Maybe himself more than you, as he removes himself from caressing your body as he usually did and positioned himself above you, his member laying flat on your already expecting tongue,as soon as you realised what his intentions were when he started undressing himself, his hips thrusting a few times in an experimental manner, soon enough finding a pace at the same time as you bobbed your head up to capture as much of his length as you could inside your mouth, your hands captured under Yoongi’s weight, unable to help you work him further, the way you’d done before.

You feel him start to thrust further into your throat at one particular kitten lick of yours to the tip of his cock, your head starting to hang from the edge of the mattress you two were on as he picked up the pace, his cock filling you up all the way until it hit the back of your throat a few times, you trying to whine around him, only further encouraging him to take a handful of your hair and push you further against him, your gag reflex taking the best of you as he held you there, nose close to his navel, deep grunts ripped from his lips, the air leaving your lungs and becoming slightly light headed after a few seconds of you tapping his thigh in a motion to let him know to let you breathe, at which Yoongi locked eyes with you, a mix of anger and longing in his yes as he thrusts a few more times as saliva started dripping from your mouth, tears decorating your pink stained cheeks before he removed himself from you, giving you a few seconds to gain air before he repositioned both of you. A deafening silence taking over both of you, as you were still catching your breath and he positioned his cock at your entrance, his tip, wet with your saliva, playing with your folds for a few seconds, as you take a sharp intake of air when he enters you and immediately sets a slow deep pace. You can feel his member filling you up perfectly, mind racing with flashbacks to all those other nights before where the emperor and you shared endless nights all over the palace.

The knowledge that this would be the last time creeping up in the back of your mind. You feel an unfamiliar wetness hit your neck where Yoongi was kissing your skin, rolling down as you identified it as tears, as he was still passionately thrusting into you.

“I don’t want to lose you” his voice barely above a whisper, trying to conceal the way his chest was tightened with sadness

“You have to let me go, Yoongi” one of your hands comes up to caress his locks as he pushes up to stare at your face, anger long gone and replaced with utter sadness before one last thrust has him filling you up with his seed, warmth enveloping you, a soft whimper leaving your lips as his cock leaves your cunt, a briskly wind coming from the window causing your body to shiver for a second at the loss of body heat on top of you.

“I guess this was it then” his cold and unnerved facade was on again, making the cold shivers in your body that much worse as you watched him adjust his clothes and walk out of the room, leaving you to dress yourself and ultimately face your fated destiny at the end of the day.

The palace’s front plaza is filled to the brim with spectators as the news got out that the Emperor was finally getting revenge for his mother’s killing, people from the kingdom and even some people from neighbouring ones all lined up in the outer sides of the fire marks that decorated the space to illuminate the middle path where you were placed in the end of it to walk your way up, two unknown guards on each side of you as each grabbed your elbows to push you forward, the rope certainly leaving marks on your skin as it was wrapped tightly around your wrists.

You could only catch a glimpse of Yoongi’s blond hair, wrapped in his infamous black and golden hanbok, drums roaring in unison, people screaming as you watched him take the sword from the swordsman that had prepared the ritual beforehand, as someone wrapped a cloth around your eyes and you were promptly pushed forward, legs buckling every few seconds as you came to realise what you were about to face, it hadn’t been clear before, mere seconds away, finally falling to your knees, head bowed down in resignation as you could barely hear the sharp sword cutting the air around you, gasps from the crowd filling the air along with the constant sound of the drums around you. You could only hope your death would bring much needed peace to the monarch and his kingdom. Your heart seemed to want to burst out of your chest, if anything, Yoongi was known for being an espectacular swordsman, which hopefully made the whole execution that much easier. You could hear cheers and a metal cutting the air before your body fell limp to the ground.

But your consciousness never left, the drums couldn’t be heard anymore, cheers were replaced with confusion as a pair of hands helped you up to your knees, fumbling with the cloth around your eyes to come face to face with Min Yoongi kneeling before you, a subtle smile on his face as one of his hands caressed your cheek before helping you up beside him.

“I’m sure you all must be confused right now” he announced to his subjects “This woman right here, has got more courage in her than anyone that has ever worked for me, any of us, for that matter. Which is why I’m asking once again, publicly, for the first time, for her hand in marriage” he turned to face you, as you were still dazed by the whole ordeal, his hand in yours being the only thing holding you down “Marry me, Y/N”

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tokidokitokyo · 4 years ago

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Why is kanji stroke order important?

I have been learning, reading, and writing kanji for over 10 years, and have TA’d first year Japanese in addition to belonging to many study groups. And one of the questions I get frequently is why stroke order is important for kanji.

In reality, most times writing the strokes out of order does not make the kanji difficult to read or change it too much. I will admit that I do not always write in perfectly correct stroke order, and I definitely do not remember the correct stroke order for some kanji (but still think I’m doing it right). But I still recommend learning stroke order when learning kanji.

Two rules will help you get closer to remembering the correct stroke order for any kanji:

Strokes go from top to bottom,

And left to right.

Stroke order was standardized for schools following WWII and has been used to make teaching kanji easier. With a pen and pencil, the stroke order does not change the appearance of the kanji much. But one of the common ways to indicate a particular kanji if you have a question about which one is used in a name or in a word is to “write” it in the air or on your hand. I do this a lot when I want to know how to pronounce a certain kanji, or I ask people to do this for me when I ask about which kanji is used for a particular word or in their name. If you "write” with a stroke order that differs significantly from the one that is traditionally taught, it might be hard for them to understand which kanji you are trying to write (especially if there are a lot of strokes). It might also be difficult for you to pick up which kanji is being written if you don’t know the general stroke order.

One place where stroke order mistakes become glaringly obvious is in 書道 shodō or calligraphy. Writing with a brush and ink, the direction you came from and the direction you are going are very important. They are visible in the lines of the kanji because of the long brush used in writing. The pressure and direction of your stroke make all the difference in calligraphy, and so having the wrong stroke order will change the appearance of the kanji significantly. My very genial calligraphy teacher could tell with a glance when I wrote a stroke out of order and very cheerfully marked it with his red pen of death. I learned the stroke order for the assigned calligraphy pretty quickly that way!

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So, when beginning Japanese learners ask me if stroke order matters, I say yes, and I encourage people to practice writing with the correct stroke order. But it only matters to a certain point and it doesn’t have to be something that you stress about - and if you are writing and accidentally write stroke number 7 before stroke number 6, it’s not a big deal. The important thing is that you remembered how to write the kanji, and no one will fault you for that. I used to get a lot of anxiety about a lot of things when I started learning Japanese, but as I have steadily improved, I have realized that some things (like stroke order) don’t require as much of my attention the more I do them.

One final tip, is to memorize the stroke order of particular radicals (the parts of the kanji) or types/groups of kanji early on (you’ll start to see patterns as you study them), and then you will be able to write most kanji correctly when you first see them. Paying particular attention when you first start out will help reduce the amount of time you need to learn new kanji later on. And you will build on your existing skills instead of having to relearn them each time you learn new kanji. Now, when I learn a new kanji, I almost never study or memorize stroke order, because I have built that skill base from early on (and obsessed about it in my beginning days). I might check to make sure my intuition is correct, but I am not spending a lot of time on it anymore.

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