#also imagine lots and lots of side characters standing around wasting time

[duhragonball]

Dragon Ball Super 011

We’re still on Beerus vs. Super Saiyan God Goku.

This episode is pretty thin on story, but it makes up for it with some nice visuals.  It’s not necessarily well animated, per se, but the screenshots I took look really cool.  Let’s enjoy a few, shall we?

Okay, I think that’ll do it. 

Phase 2 of this fight is mostly Beerus attacking Goku with bigger and bigger offensive moves, basically daring Goku to discover more and more of his new power.  For example, he launches a big energy ball at Goku, and he manages to deflect it into the air.  So Beerus makes an even bigger one, which Goku can’t hurl away, so Goku crushes it instead, which seems like it ought to be harder, but I dunno.

Goku soon catches on that Beerus isn’t using anywhere close to his full strength for this fight, and he presumes that this is because Beerus has lived such a long life with such supreme power, that he rarely, if ever, gets a chance to fight with his full strength.  So Goku can respect his need to draw this battle out, if only to savor the experience, but Beerus suddenly whoops Goku’s ass, warning “Don’t try to understand me.  You have no idea.”

In an effort to push Goku further, Beerus launches him into space, then threatens to destroy the Earth in order to light a fire under him.  Goku manages to neutralize his attack with a Kamehameha, so Beerus raises the stakes...

... by making more hakai blasts for Goku to deal with.  So Goku blows them away with an even bigger Kamehameha...

And then Beerus punches a hole in his liver like it’s nothing.  Goku plummets down to the ocean below, while Beerus monologues about how he was mistaken, and Goku wasn’t the rival he had been hoping for.

This whole part of the episode feels like some overwrought dramatic scene in a manga, the part you read and wonder what the hell is going on.  I don’t necessarily mean this as a compliment, since I’m pretty sure they only went in this direction to cut corners.  There’s no lip flaps, and not much movement from the characters.  It’s like someone at Toei looked at the budget and started trying to find ways to do more with less, and they looked to comic books for storytelling tools.  I respect the resourcefulness, but I have to point out that it didn’t have to be this way.  We already had the Battle of Gods movie.   Making a TV anime version was redundant at best, and doing it cheaply is just insulting.

So what the hell does Goku do about this?  Nothing, that’s what.

As he sinks to the bottom, his wound magically heals, and he powers up all over again, and becomes excited to pit himself against Beerus’ strength one more time. 

And that’s pretty much the narrative of this fight so far.  Every time Beerus and Goku think that Goku is out of gas, the Super Saiyan God power puts him back in the game. 

Which... it kind of what works against this whole five-episode fight.  It worked in the movie because it was so short.  Goku just held his own against Beerus, and then the power wore off, and he continued to fight on that level anyway.  And that’s basically what’s going on in DBS 10-14, except they’re spending more time on showing Goku’s resilience, which is kind of irrelevant.  Goku’s not going to win this thing, but this fight has been constructed in such a way to make it look like he could.  It reminds me a lot of the early portion of Goku’s fight with Frieza on Namek, where Frieza kept trying to beat him down and Goku kept finding new depths to his strength and stamina, until he finally turned into a Super Saiyan. 

Except, that’s not what’s going on here.  Goku’s already transformed, and he can’t turn into a “Super Saiyan God 2″ or whatever, because that’s not how this story ends.   Beerus keeps pushing Goku, but there’s no payoff to it.  Beerus isn’t going to lose, and Goku isn’t going to get some big Superman comeback. 

And that wasn’t a problem in the movie, but it’s a problem here, because it’s so much longer and there’s no way to add a believable twist to the story without drastically altering the outcome.  They tried to fake out the audience by making it look like Beerus killed Goku, but did anyone really buy that?  Beerus waited 39 years to fight this guy.

[vulpixisananimal]

(The characters Wren and Polaris belong to @fungal--wastes and @neoncityrain respectivley)

"Neeeearly there~"

(Isabeau was waiting in front of the homestead, so you decided to try something else. And that something else was breaking into one of the rooms from outside!)

(You were standing on Ramos' shoulders to get into one of the guest rooms on the second floor. You were digging your knife under the rim of a window to cut out the small lock. The rain didn't help, but Ramos was surprisngly sturdy.)

"T-take your time! I really wouldn't want you to fall a-and hurt yourself!" (Mira says, concerned.)

"Ha! Not like that'd be an issue anyways-"

"No!!!"

"H-hey careful, Isa might hear." (Ramos comments. They're right, gotta go quick. It should just be a bit more and. . .)

"Theeere we go!" (You say, smugly opening the window and climbing in.)

"W-what should we do, Siffrin?" (Mira calls up to you. You think a bit.)

"Try not to get touched? Maybe just be a distraction?" (You shrug.)

"We'll figure something out!" (Ramos gives you a thumbs up. You nod. Now, the room.)

(Small room. Single bed. There was a heavy looking pack by one side and a few clothes spread around the floor. There was a small desk with a well worn book on it, and a few papers. The bed was sloppily made, probably by someone who wanted it to look neat but still didn't want it to be a mess. There was a spear leaning against a wall. It was surprisingly chilly.)

(Whos room was this, anyway? Single bed, so none of your familys. Jans? No it would have more stuff, they lived here right? Not that bickering pair or bonded couple, you imagine they would have had a shared room. So that left that traveler.)

(Convenient!)

(You start at the pack, you had to move fast. Looking through it, it had a few changes of clothes, some rations, and a lot of things you didn't know what they were. Although they looked like something Odile would use. Maybe she was a researcher AND a traveler? Ha! Those two would get along. Some of the clothes looked wildly different, though. Fashion too?)

(You look up at the spear. . . Yep, that sure was a spear. Looked sturdy, long, and- dulled? Huh. The tip of the spear was blunt. Maybe it was for training.)

(Okay, then what about the papers and book? You go over to the desk and take a look. The papers were newspapers, a few letters from different people, oh it's research! They were all about the King and Time Craft. Didn't Odile say one time that scholars were really interested in Time Craft showing up?)

(None of the papers had anything you didn't already know about. You open the book.)

(. . . . . . Huh.)

(Flipping through the pages, you notice a lot of things. Theres a lot of drawing of landscapes, and people, and monsters. A lot of them had notes, too. That traveler must have a vivid imagination. There were notes about all sorts of things. Reminders written by the writer. And it looked like they were writing conversatons? Hmm. . .)

(You flip a few pages and stop. There's diagrams here. Measurments. Circles and symbols you didn't exactly recognise. Advanced craft? It looked VERY advanced whatever it was. You tried reading more, but it was getting more and more complicated. Maybe if you brought it to Odile-)

(You jump as a gloved hand reached around and covers your mouth. A second grabs you neck, both were freezing cold.)

"What the hell are you doing in our room." (You hear from a voice behind you. It sounded, very, very angry.)

(Ooooooooh stars oh that's, that's not good. Okay, okay you can deal with this Siffrin. And besides, you can also just try again. You mumble into the gloved hand.)

(Your assailant huffs, and uncovers your mouth.) "Quietly, now."

(Stars, what do you say?!?) "I-I uh, I-I was just looking around."

"Cut it!" (You feel that hand on your throat tighten, a familiar feeling.) "We are not in a mood for jokes."

(You hear the door to the room open and someone run inside, before closing it again. You smell mint. There's a new voice.) "Miss Vixul I- Who?!?"

"A thief, probably." (You hear, who you assume to be, Vixul say.)

"Unlikely, that is one of the Saviors of Vaugarde." (You hear the new voice say the title dripping with sarcasm.) "Although I suppose he could be both."

"N-nope!" (You squeeze out.) "J-just wanting to make sure the inn is s-safe to sleep in!"

"Lying." (Says the new voice.) "Miss if you could deal with this, I have to tend to Polaris."

"How is he?" (Vixul asks.)

"Befuddled still. Whatever is effecting his mind, it's strong."

(Wait!!!) "H-him, too?" (You mumble out.)

(There's a pause, and then the new voice talks.) ". . . Are others being effected by it, Savior?"

(You nod, frantically.) "M-my uh, u-uh, t-traveling companion, h-he, he's not himself right now."

"Traveling companion?" (You hear Vixul say in the same tone of voice Odile would use when talking about you two.) "Big buff guy?"

(You nod.) "T-that's why I'm here. It spreads by touch, a-and, I think you were the last to, to touch him, s-so. . ."

". . ." (There's a silence, Vixul speaks up eventually.) "You've dealt with this before, haven't you?"

(You nod.) "It smells like mint, spreads through touch. It changes your memories, or controlls you, o-or just, looks through them?"

"You do not sound very confident." (The new voice comments.) "But, that seems accurate."

". . . . ." (You hear Vixul sigh.) "I'm going to let you go. You're gonna help us with this, and we'll help you back. Don't even try to fight me, got it?"

"Can do!" (You laugh a little, your heart not in it.)

(She lets you go, you rub your neck and finally turn around to see who these two were- oh, three. The third person was unconscious and on the bed. You assume that was Polaris. The curly haired one was standing next to him. Vixul, was standing a few feet away, having grabbed the spear off the wall. She was glaring at you.)

(You breathe in, and out.) "Good to meet you two~"

(The curly haired one rolls his eyes.) "My name is Wren. This idiot is Polaris." (He says, gesturing to the unconscious one.)

"Vixul." (Says the tall one. Few words, huh.)

"Siffrin." (You smile at them.) "So! What happened?"

"Nope, you first." (Vixul says, glaring at you.) "You broke into my room after all. How do you know so much about mind craft."

"R-right. ." (You lean against a wall. Stars, where to start. Well, hmm, keep it vauge?) "Well, I experienced it first hand. Few weeks ago in Jouvente someone was going around messing with things."

"Details, please." (Says Wren, glaring at you.)

(Stars.) "Well. . . The person who was messing things was also being messed with. After sorting everything out, they uh, actually joined us on trying to find out who started it."

"Really?" (Vixul looked at you with a look that screamed dissapointment.) "That doesn't sound suspicious at all."

"I know I know!! Listen it just, made sense in the moment!!" (You shake your head.) "They still know some mind craft, and if they try anything they know I'll be after em."

"Stupid. If they know mind craft they'll just change your memory so you don't." (Wren retorts.) "You can't be that idiotic, right?"

(You wince, well, he WAS right.) "I. . . Have my ways?"

"There's a way to resist mind craft?" (He tilts his head.) "Tell."

(Stars above. Great. You look between the strangers you were talking to. No way you could bring THAT up here.) ". . . It's personal."

(You see Vixul and Wren give each other a look.)

". . . Fine, alright, how do we undo it." (Vixul asks, looking tired.)

"Last time there was a sort of charm that, once broken, dispelled the Mind Craft. It looked like a star."

(There was a silence as the two of them started thinking. You were thinking, too. Who was this trio anyways? They didn't seem like just ordinary travelers. You couldn't place Vixuls accent, and Wren seemed very. . . attentive.)

"So, what about him?" (You say, asking about Polaris.)

"Oh! Right." (Vixul huffed.) "Well that guy Isabeau, he went upstairs, came downstairs, said hi to me, hi to Polaris, Polaris said he felt sick, started acting weird, and Wren put him to sleep to take him up here. I got here first and found you and you know the rest."

(You nod, following along. So Isa started spreading mind craft after he went upstairs then back? Maybe it was someone up there who spread it to him. Then- wait a second.) "Why aren't you being effected by mind craft?"

(Vixul opens her mouth, then closes it, then looks away.) ". . . It's personal."

(Personal? What would be personal that could- oh.)

(Oooohhh. . .)

(She wasn't writing a conversation in her book, she was writing to herself. She resisted the mind craft. And she did say "we" instead of "I" earlier.)

(. . . . . .)

(. . . . Somehow, this makes you feel less alone.)

". . . Any other questions?" (Wren asks.)

"N-nope! That's all!" (You smile at them.)

(He nods, and sighs.) ". . . Then you should get going. Me and Vixul will look for that charm once Polaris is safe." (It was a very clear message of 'please leave'.)

"Sounds good to me~" (You say, walking over to the door.) "Don't be strangers now! Though, might want to work on your introductions."

"Same to you." (Vixul replies. Rolling her eyes.) "Try not looking through peoples stuff."

"No promises!" (You laugh a little. And open the door out.) "And if you need m- Oh!"

(Odile was standing in the hallway outside the room looking at you.)

(You wave to her.) "Morning, Odile! I was just-"

(She raises a hand towards you. What was she-)

<MOVE>

(You feel your body move on instinct at the sudden screaming inside your head. You jump back into Vixuls room You feel some powerful craft spell in the spot you were just standing-)

<Keep moving. Dangerous.>

(What?!? WHEN did you show up-)

"Oh what now!" (Vixul says, grabbing her spear and standing up.)

"I-I don't know! One of my companions, she-" (What WAS Odile doing?!?)

<Dangerous. A seal, or craft break, or->

(What do you MEAN?!?)

"She's likely effected by mind craft." (Wren takes up a position between the door and Polaris.)

(You see Odile appear in the doorway. She's not saying anything. She's sweating, like she's trying really hard to focus on. . . Something. She holds up a palm again.)

"Move it!!" (Vixul knocks you out of the and takes whatever craft spell Odile was using. She stumbles back.) "Hrrgh-"

"Miss Vixul!"

"I-I'm fine! Hey! Lady!! What's your problem?!?"

"Odile. . ." (You mumble, what, she's, being controlled too?!?)

<No time. Find a way out.>

(But, she, there's no way, right? She's too smart for that! She would have helped so much with this! And, a-and-)

<Enough. You look around the room. Window, Wren, books, Vixul, Odile, bed->

<Odile raises up her hand again, it looks like she's trying to say something.>

"Leave us alone, please." (Wren says, annoyed. He holds up a paper sign of his own, crackling with craft. You see Odiles spell get caught mid flight by Wrens. Counterspell?)

"O-Odile! What's going on what's, w-what-" (You stumble out.)

"That's Odile?" (Vixul asks, looking between you and her.) "I think she's trying to kill you, bud."

"B-but-"

"Go, Siffrin." (Wren says, preparing another counter.) "We will be fine."

(You open your mouth to protest, but your words get stuck in your throat. B-but, but she-)

<It's time to go.>

(Null wait, I- WAIT WAIT- WE NEED TO HELP ODILE!!)

<You make a dash for the window and jump out.>

[emlan]

Finished DLC!

Here's some Elden Ring: Shadow of the Erdtree ramblings, spoilers under cut.

.

.

.

.

. DLC catered to me a lot since I'm a Zanzibart cutscene enjoyer who loves map exploration and Vista money shots but I'm kinda HUH-cat.clip when it comes to some new lore bits and in general the world feels divorced from main game even though main game characters and topics are around?

I don't remember how much souls DLC tied into the other story, but I'm using The Old Hunters from BB as base and it really added extra value to its world and characters and there's just nothing new of real interest in SotE from what I can see…

In a vacuum I can only appreciate even more (literal) brother on brother action but Miquella seemingly being deeply obsessed with Radahan is so out of left field??? Granted I'm not an lorester but what I remember as Miq's key things from flavor text when it comes to ties to other people is him being sad about being unable to cure Malenia of her rot and also sad about not being able to grant Godwyn his true death. The only ties to Radahan is by proxy of his sister fighting him? (Was she even fighting him just to bring bro his crush to him? This makes Caelid getting nuked by her even more of a waste.)

It's so out of nowhere that the Epic Prime Version of him comes off as a cheap soyjak pointing bit pandering to Radahan fanboys (pretty sure he's like no1 fav guy for players right), but fanboys will obviously not be happy about him just being a hollow shell again (?) that might not have wanted anything to do with Miquella (?) so I just can't see this as satisfying for ANY kind of player even on a full Gamer Dude to Deranged Fujoshi spectrum? I imagine deep lore enthusiasts also feels a bit… Ambushed.

I'm not against Miquella doing dark unpleasant or just stupid desperate acts since it was already a popular theory that he was a brainwasher type, but the issue for me is that I'm not sure if this Miq/Rad union is "intended" to be read in such a twisted way even when it's the only way I can read it.

Though I guess the fact general consensus going from "wow Mohg is so messed up claiming Miq no matter Miq's consent" to "wow Miq is so messed up claiming Radahan no matter Radahan's* consent" is poetic….?

*I'm writing Radahan here but really it's also a synonym for 'Mohg' considering he's the one getting desecrated the most.

I'm sure I'll end up watching some vid or writeup making pieces fall into place later but I can't believe Miyazaki is handing me visual age gap brother incest and all I can do is force a strained smile in response!!!

Anyway general whining time:

As much as I love filling out up the map I feel there was too much big "empty" areas. Climbing the dragon mountain was the worst presentation of anything I've seen in a FS title, extremely cheap unfinished filler feeling with the spirit jumps instead of at least adding some kinda atmosphere like the open flower/gravestone fields. The Abyss gimmick overstayed it's welcome since it's too miserable checking if you missed a shiny somewhere without your horse, but at least the stealth parts was such a non-issue it might as well not be there.

While I like that you can see several inaccessible areas from where you stand, and I do think it leads to some fun moments when you're taking a random path halfway across the map and ends up on the other side as an a-ha moment, it was a bit frustrating not being able to tell more clearly how to reach sections. Plus I would've died 10000 times from drops if it wasn't the fact Rainbow Stones protected me from making bad choices.

What mindbroke me most was trying to get into the flower field area north east, having an "oh boy, beating this guy will let me reach it for sure!" moment for both Gaius and Sunflower was such [record scratch SFX]. I did figure posing in front of the statue was most likely the entry afterwards but somehow I had missed the gesture needed (most embarrassing DLC moment considering I tend to fine comb pretty well and the gesture pickup is just sitting there out in the open………. why am I even admitting this shameful thing). Watching trees get knocked over from something moving under the water in the church district was really cool and unnerving and then you realize it's just branch dragon number 800……………..

The wicker men has a great design but fighting them was either a boring slog or a frustrating jankfest trying to toss the bombs right. Peeved that you HAVE to use a furnace pot for the sleeping one blocking the ruin puzzle, hefty should've been fine too.

Bosses are too hectic/aggressive for my taste but that's just business as usual for ER so whatever, last boss really is way too punishing compared to other Hard bosses tho, in fact I just watched ending on YT since I'm stuck still on them :V Camera also makes a glorious return as the toughest challenge of them all.

Think my biggest highlights was seeing the bizarre finger/tongue path under the church and the finger mom boss visual itself and the black humor of the miserable living jars stumbling around with the pot on their head. Ansbach is a hot new waifu and it's very precious how such an upstanding man stays all-in loyal to a Deranged Satan (said lovingly) soooo cute you actually get a "Um, so about how Mohg died…👉👈" prompt with him. There was more NPC voice lines than I expected which was fun. St Trina's design was very neat and shoujo manga. Having to sip syrup 4-5 times instead of the classic Third Time's The Charm is a crime however and I missed making the Trina fanboy jealous until it was too late :/

The open world for all of Elden Ring is such an incredible experience that I'm happy I got to play and I had such a good time and I can't imagine any other studios will be able to reach these map heights but I also hope they never make an OW game again because it's too much when you "need" to replay it.

[nburkhardt]

Heyyy girlie!!!! Came to give you a prompt for you to try! Hope you enjoy this little angst fest.

Also to be very honest, I was listening to "Friends on the Other Side" as I was thinking about this prompt lol.

Steve gets cursed by Vecna and he is shown instead of horrible things happening to him and the people he cares about, he is shown actual events of people ridiculing and insulting him. Dustin calling him names, Robin shown distain whenever he talks, Eddie flat out ignoring him for DND, Hopper saying how he feels bad for Steve. All things angsty!

And Vecna says, "See? They don't care about you. But I do. You and I can give each other what we never were given - A true family."

And Steve accepts, while everyone is oblivious to what they have created.

Imagine the DEVESTATION when they all discover that it's entirely their fault Steve is now a puppet under Vecna's control.

You can decide the ending there!

Anywayyssssss, hope you have a good day!

(Also the prompt you asked is on its way!)

I want to begin to say that when I originally read this prompt I was dying. It was already hurting me reading this then i decided I could do it. I could write it out. But I went with Steve as a victim instead of puppet, thought that would also be so good. Like just imagine with me real quick before I get into the fic… maybe he gets infected by the bats and that’s how Vecna uses him and it isn’t until it’s too late for anyone to save him. OR OR Eddie becomes Kas and them along with Vecna is unstoppable because none of The Party wants to fight them. ANYWAY, onto the fic:

WARNING: Major Character Death, lots of hurt and no comfort.

——————

He doesn’t notice he’s cursed until it’s too late.

His hearing has been shit for a while, so hearing the clock ticking is too much like the nearly non-stop buzzing already in his ears. The grandfather clock is shown to him while he’s in the middle of looking around at the school. It looks like it belongs there.

The vision?

It’s his actual memories.

It’s reality, it’s too much, it’s draining.

An old memory of his dad calling him worthless, his mom pushing him away when he’s hurt and the endless babysitters that brush him off. There’s memories of Tommy and Carol hanging off him but putting him down for wanting to hang out just the three of them instead of a party with drugs and alcohol. There’s the “bullshit” and “you’re an idiot” from Nancy thrown in there.

The memories with Robin before they became best friends, memories of her making fun of him for another girl telling him no. The memories of all the kids putting him down or demanding things of him while calling him asshole.

The only reason he realizes it’s fake, that he’s one of Vecna’s victims is the quick fake-memory of Eddie. He doesn’t have many memories with the guy, he’s talked to him maybe a few times before this week.

The fake-memory starts with a promise of weed, of Eddie agreeing to meet him but it ends with Eddie laughing at him before walking away.

It’s then that he stops, the panic is still there but he’s standing still and slowly the area around him fades and in it’s place is the Upside Down.

“Oh Steven” a voice speaks up and he freezes, “Isn’t it time to realize they don’t care? That the love you give is wasted?”

He shakes his head, hands covering his eyes to think and wipe away the tears, the evidence of how true it is. He can’t move, he’s frozen and he feels more than sees Vecna come up to him.

Hopefully the others have noticed him, he thinks, hopes they’ll notice. They do care, in their own way- he knows this. Robin cares, says they’re soulmates.

She has to care… right?

(Eddie notices Steve first. How still he is and then he notices his eyes and it makes him freak. Robin pales when she notices and immediately shakes him, begging him to knock it off.)

There’s a noise, movement in front of him and he refuses to move his hands. Doesn’t want to give Vecna the satisfaction of knowing it’s getting to him. He’s fucking twenty years old, he can handle this. Max managed to beat him and she’s fourteen.

There’s a sigh, and it’s close. Too close. He feels something grab hold of his wrist and he shuts his eyes as his hand is forced away, “Steven, Steven, Steven. Why are you fighting? They don’t love you, they don’t care. With me, you’ll be cared for, you’ll be loved and away from all those who hurt you. Doesn’t that sound wonderful?”

He feels his wrist being pulled away, tries to fight it but Vecna or whatever it is pulling is stronger. He holds still and keeps his eyes tightly shut.

“My, my. You are stubborn, Steven.” Vecna lets out a cruel laugh, “Why fight me, you know you’ll lose”

Fighting is all he has. It’s all he’s known. He’s fought his whole life, he couldn’t stop even if he wanted to, it’s his reality. It’s who he is.

Steve Harrington is a fighter. Has been since he was a little boy. Memories of his dad yelling, of kid bullies and eventually his mother pulling his arms as he panics. Fighting is what he knows, just, he loses.

Losing is easy. Winning is hard and it seems, he isn’t supposed to be a winner.

Vecna must know this, because his arms are yanked down and it’s such a shock, his eyes fly open and he’s face to face with Vecna.

A vicious smile on Vecna’s face, “Stop fighting me, Steven.”

He shakes his head, ignoring the stinging of his eyes and the pain in his wrists. He can do this, he can hold off like Max did. The others should know what’s happening by now.

He isn’t weak.

There’s a hand on his cheek, it’s gentle and it hurts how much he craves it. Without his say, he leans into it. It’s been so long, a few tears betray him falling down his cheeks.

“With me, you’ll be cared for.” Vecna speaks out with a soft tone, something he didn’t think was possible that’s willing to kill anyone, “you’ll be loved and respected”

(Steve is floating, he’s floating so far up that no one can reach him now. There’s tears falling from his glazed over eyes. Everyone is screaming, trying helplessly to get to him.)

“come now, we both know you’ll lose.”

He’s not fighting the tears anymore, they’re falling freely and he wishes for someone- anyone to save him. Wishes to be stronger, be the person he always wanted to be.

But he’s so tired. He’s so exhausted and so fucking sad. Tired of being someone he’s not. Tired of ignoring the sting of words, jokes from his friends.

He wants, he wishes.

Wishes for exactly what Vecna is promising.

Blinking hard and he breathes, not fighting against the vines holding him now. Looks up towards the red sky, it’s scary.

It’s nothing like he wanted.

But he doesn’t know anymore.

“You’ll be okay, with me” Vecna says, it’s not a promise and it’s not soft. It’s sinister, it’s just a saying.

He knows and hates himself.

Hates how tired he is as he gives up.

He knows he’s a victim, a pawn in Vecna’s plan.

It doesn’t stop the relief he feels, even as he listens to Vecna’s sinister laughter at him.

(His arms are broken, Steve’s arms are broken. He’s still floating and his arms are bent in different directions. There’s screaming, crying and everyone is shaking.

How did they miss this? How did they not know?)

Letting go is the easiest thing he’s ever done. Even with the knowledge that he’s a victim and it’s disappointing to his friends, it’s letting the bad guy win.

But he’s tired, so tired.

There’s no pain for him, not anymore. With this he doesn’t need to try, doesn’t need to ignore the jokes or the poorly disguised mean behavior towards him. Doesn’t need to be useful to be around those he thought of as family.

He doesn’t need to fight anymore.

He can rest.

~~~~

The sound of bones breaking and screaming makes him want to run away. But he’s stuck in place, face wet with tears and his throat hurts from screaming.

He can’t look away.

Up in the sky is Steve Harrington. Floating much like Chrissy, eyes glazed over and frozen. The difference, tears are freely falling down his cheeks. His arms are now bent in different directions and he can’t look away.

He hears everyone around him fall down, sobbing still. He’d look around, but he can’t look away from Steve.

Refuses to look away.

Refuses to run away.

How did they not know? How did they miss this? Why didn’t Steve mention anything? What happened? How did this happen? How did his friends, his family not know he was hurting?

The sounds of everyone around him sobbing, the sound of Steve’s body break is making him wish to be deaf.

This is all too much.

This is too heartbreaking.

It feels like losing.

Hearing a loud crash, really sets reality in. They are losing. They lost the moment Steve stopped moving and his eyes glazed over.

It’s with that, that makes him fall to the ground with tears falling down his face. His gaze falling onto the pile of limbs that was Steve Harrington.

That was the man who willing to dive into Lover’s Lake to find a gate, the same one to bite a demonic bat because it was choking him, so determined to be the last one out of hell.

How did they miss this?

What are they supposed to do now?

————

I’m sorry 😭

I couldn’t turn it around, I couldn’t figure out how to make this with a happy ending. So I didn’t and it’s heartbreaking, I made myself tear up so much I had to stop writing the other night.

If you have any prompts or ideas, send them my way!

Permanent Tag List: @spectrum-spectre @itsfreakingbats @mysticcrownshipper @artiststarme @thereindeerlady @justforthedead89 @ronniescontinuum @freyaforestafay @harvesteee (if you want to be added, let me know!)

[gribok-art]

Hi!! U are the one of my favourite artist and tofu artist also! I really like ur works and wanted to ask if u have any headcanons for this ship and if u have than may u tell them ?👉👈

Thank you, this makes me so happy to read <3 !!

I have so many, bear with me for this long post. And they're just ones I remember at the moment. Sometimes I have headcanons I relate to that I think would fit them well, other times they're just ideas that suit them.

I’ll say a bit of everything, character and ship headcanons.

About Byakuya

- I like to think Byakuya is asexual, as for the romantic part, he'd be unsure.

- To add to it, he hasn't had the chance to explore his emotional side and feelings unlike most kids during teenage years. So it would happen during adulthood. I can imagine for simple situation he'd run it through his head or mimic but not for deeper/more complex situations. 

- I like to believe he was quite rebelious, stubborn, aggresive as a child, for a few reasons. One, with no parental attention, and having to fight for it against many other siblings (even outside of that killing game the Togami were doing), it could be one way to get it. Two, he'd experience things that are unfair, unjust, mean in his eyes, and it would upset and frustrate him. As an example maybe, honesty is important to him, yet his father would present himself differently in front of other people and talk about them badly behind their back. Also if as a child he never learned to express his feelings, they'd throw tantrums.

- Then his father's education would influence and shape him too much that it'd be normal for him, that nothing's wrong, and he'd bury those values and feelings inside, letting in his god complex. Of course they’d be resurfacing after DR1.

- I love to think about what kind of relationship he could have had with his butler. For short I’ll say it has the same vibes as Iroh and Zuko from ATLA.

About Toko

- Before DR1, during their years at Hope’s Peak, I like to believe Aoi and Sakura had more time to approach Toko, and outside of the killing game context, it was easier for her to trust them over time. They wouldn’t be best friends, Toko wouldn’t go out of her way to hang out with them, but she wouldn’t mind if they came around. Unfortunately they’d be witnessing her fantasy moments, and failing to show that Byakuya uses her. 

- I think she’d have an opposite path than Byakuya. After Despair Girls she would assert herself more, have little patience, stand up for herself as a woman, for instance hating when men talk over her, mansplain, not take her seriously etc. - I like to think since Byakuya's butler is still alive that he'd be her parental figure. Like a grandpa she's never had. He'll love and protect her and lecture Byakuya like a ten year old if he doesn't treat her well.

I have a little less about Toko I realize

And as a ship

- While Byakuya would be a perfect model to help her gain confidence and assert herself, speak up, be more “selfish”, Toko, as a romantic novelist, who I think has a great knowledge about emotions and relationships (maybe not how to deal with it, but know about it. I mean, how did she so precisely pointed out Komaru’s brother complex ? how would she even know this term ?) would help him get in touch with his feelings, put words on it, not judge and without viewing him differently.

- They’d be each other’s best confidents. Beside what I said before, they’d be the ones to relate the most to each other among the survivors (bad parents, high expectations, no friends/loneliness, trust issues, murders).

- If Toko is hypersexual and puts a lot of importance into the sexual part of love and relationships, Byakuya is the opposite, thinking it’s a waste of time, disgusting, not considerate of his person. They’d have to balance each other out if they really love each other. Toko learning to be loved for her personality and love him for his, Byakuya learning to be loved through physical non sexual touch. - With time and healing they could also be best friends. The kind that would tease and embarass each other. Changing Byakuya’s pen to a glitter one before a meeting, putting her favourite cup on the highest shelf.

Those are the big lines I follow to find stories for the ship.

For lighter/more fun headcanons

- They’d be both out of touch with memes. But Toko would know some from Komaru and show them to Byakuya. She’d slowly get better at picking ones he’d understand. And she was the only one so far who found one that made him chuckle.

- If he reads an interesting book he’d buy a copy and give it to Toko as recommendation. - They’d gossip/vent together about people they don’t like and saying the best one liners.

I don’t have more in my mind at the moment. I usually draw it whenever I come up with something if it’s short enough.

[oc3anawrites]

Shattered Reflections

Listening to this while you watch will feed the angst

A/N: Loosely based off of the Marvel Tv Series- MoonKnight. There will definitely be show spoilers but I highly doubt any comic spoilers as I have barely just started reading them. The first few chapters will be used to help the reader understand each character, what they know and don’t in this AU and set up relationships. This is my first time posting a fic and actually letting other people read it so please be nice! Constructive criticism is welcome :) I apologize if it gets slightly boring at some points, I just want to paint a clear picture of what is happening in the story so that no one will be confused on what’s going on or who knows what. As the story goes on you may notice the moonknight boys stray a little from how they are in the show but I tried to keep it as similar as possible while giving differences to create a story that wasn’t just a copy of the show with a different love interest. This fic will have fluff, HEAVY angst, triggering themes, talk about mental health, major character death and contain the relationships marc spector x oc / steven grant x oc and eventually jake lockely x oc. Also it is definitely a slow burn so im sorry. I know a lot of people don't like reading OC's fics so if that's not for you then don't feel forced to read, although you'd be missing out haha. There will be quite a few chapters so I hope you'll tune in. :) also not every chapter is depressing i swear

summary: Amaya Young meets a man named Marc Spector, they fall in love and get married, one day he disappears and a few months later she receives a phone call from a timid british man, steven grant.

please check out my introductory post for my OC, hopefully it'll help you warm up to her. You can find it linked here

Enjoy!

MINORS DNI 18+ !!!! CW- this chapter includes topics such as: toxic relationship, drugs, divorce, alcohol and unaliveing attempt and panic attack

Please read at your own discretion.

Chapter One- The flashback.

10 years ago in Cairo.

The air is cold, silent. The day has been long and boring. Today’s mission of recovering an Ancient Egyptian artifact was a bust.

“This was a waste of time.” Amaya mumbles to herself..

 Grabbing her climbing gear, she headed to the exit of what was supposed to be the tomb of Alexander The Great, but contained nothing more than an empty sarcophagus.

“How am I supposed to pay the bills this month? This was gonna be a great score.” She continued mumbling.

As Amaya exits the underground structure, she spots a man standing tall by the vehicle she used to get here.

“Can I help you?” She asks the man.

 He stands with confidence showing in his posture. He has dark brown hair with slight curls, messy and covered in sand from the desert. His eyes are dark brown with a piercing gaze. His skin is an olive tone, covered in dirt and grime. His white shirt is stained from the sand. He looks rugged and muscular. He is as beautiful as what Amaya imagined a god to look like. 

“Couldn’t find anything huh?” The man replies.

“Bad intel I guess.” She says back, scoffing.

“What’s your name?” The man asks.

“Amaya Young.”  

“Hi Amaya, I’m Marc, Marc Spector.”

✦

And that was the day Amaya Young (against her better judgment) fell in love. The relationship had a rocky start as it was clear they were both hiding things but eventually things started to work out.

5 years after meeting Marc, he proposes to her. Another 5 years pass where in that time Amaya finds out about Khonshu and that Marc Spector is his avatar. Over the next course of those 5 years, she and Marc worked side by side to recover ancient artifacts around the world, giving them back to their rightful owners.

Occasionally she’d pocket one or two to pay the bills, each time Marc would give a disappointed scowl but let it happen. Marc randomly disappeared at times for missions, never allowing Amaya to come along. He always stated they were too dangerous.

When Marc worked as Khonshu’s avatar he sported a white, hooded ceremonial suit with a crescent moon symbol on his chest, which added to his mysterious and formidable presence. He called himself Moonknight and said his mission was to “protect the travelers of the night”.

Eventually, Amya and Marc get a place together in London as they were sick of traveling the world, hopping from hotel to hotel. She never found out much about Marc’s past besides that he used to be a mercenary and that he doesn’t have a good relationship with his parents. Marc likes to keep his secrets and while Amaya may not be a fan of it, she puts up with it because she loves him. Their relationship works because unbeknownst to Marc, Amaya has a few secrets of her own.

Besides trying to convince Marc that he should let her go on his missions with him, they are happy, sort of. If only it weren’t for Marc’s ability to do anything but tell the full truth and Amaya’s ability to never let herself be happy. The relationship had its ups and downs but they keep each other grounded. 

However, one day, Amaya wakes up alone. Marc is gone. She assumes Khonshu called him for another mission until 24 hours of missed calls and texts passes. 24 hours turns into a week, which turns into 2 weeks, a month, and then someone knocks on her door.

knock knock

“This is for you Mrs. Spector.” The person hands her paperwork as she opens the door. Divorce papers from Marc.

“He didn’t even have the balls to sign the papers?” She asks as she shuts the door.

A few hours later 

Amaya stared at the paperwork in her hand, “Divorce? Divorce? First he disappears, let’s me think he’s dead and now he wants a divorce?!” She screams out loud talking to herself as if somehow the louder she screamed, the more it would ease the pain. Amaya clutched her chest, she felt like the world around her was crumbling. She couldn’t breathe.

“Breathe, just breathe.” She said, trying to bring herself back to reality. It felt like the world was spinning around her, her vision cloudy her mind full of a million thoughts at once.

‘Fuck it.’ She thinks to herself. Suddenly her vision is clear and her heart rate returns to a normal pace as she grabs a pill bottle on her nightstand. Sometimes, Amaya felt like the less sober she was, the more it was like Marc was there with her. Like the tingling numbness that rushed over her body was Marc’s soft touch, like her blurry vision meant her ‘reality’ is actually just a nightmare and in the real world Marc was in bed next to her. She proceeded to take a handful of pills and felt the bitter taste in her mouth, gagging so much she nearly puked. She pulled out a bottle of vodka from under her bed in hopes to numb the taste of the pills from her mouth. But before she knew it, the bottle was empty too and she was now on the cold, hard tile of her bedroom floor.

A/N: Posting chapter 2 right after this bc i know this is super short!

read chapter 2 here

[daidonzo]

Don't go wasting your emotion

A/N: This is a oneshot of Aguni x Reader/OC. She doesn't have a name, but after seeing this gif of Camila Morrone in Daisy Jones and the Six I couldn't imagine her looking any other way, so I added a description of the character. Feel free to ignore it or substitute her features for whatever you like. •ᴗ•

I based this oneshot on a post by @glooomreach ♡

It's also my first time writing Aguni (definitely not the last), so I hope it's not too bad or too out of character.

Takeru had dragged him to the bar.

'Come on, come on. Just a couple of drinks, it will be fun!'

He had refused, at first, but eventually conceded. Just as his friend knew he would.

The only thing was that on Thursday night, only four types of people went out: the rich and famous, university students, groups of young girls who thought for real that Thursday was the new Friday and the older men wanting to flirt with them.

Where did that leave them?

Aguni sighed, with a beer already in his hand, while Takeru went through the book listing the songs one could choose to sing in the karaoke.

'This one!' He exclaimed, triumphant, his index finger pointing to an ABBA song.

Aguni couldn't help but smile faintly, nodding. The bar would be empty by the time they had finished. They were that good. 'Sure.'

He looked around him while his friend wrote down both of their names and the song title on a piece of paper and gave it to the person in charge of playing the songs of the karaoke.

Just as he had thought, there was almost nobody - just a group of businessmen who were staring, like a starving wild animal, at a table of young girls, sitting close to where the stage was. Four of them. The one further right had short hair and an athletic figure, another had dreadlocks and a blue crop top and the third one looked like she had just left work, a briefcase on the floor by her side. He couldn't see the fourth girl very well, only the back of the white blouse she was wearing and her long dark hair.

'Oh! The next one is going to be great!' Takeru said, clapping his hands together excitedly. Whoever was next would sing Believe, by Cher.

And it was the girl with the long hair and white blouse, who stood up and walked to the stage, her friends cheering her on all the way. Apart from the top, she was wearing flared jeans and brown high-heeled boots.

Aguni couldn't help but think she was beautiful, her eyes big, dark and slanted. Her lips full, a shy smile present in them, while she tried the microphone to check that it worked and adjusted it to her height.

'No matter how hard I try, you keep pushing me aside…' She started, not moving much at first, seemingly nervous, but by the time she sang the chorus, she was jumping and dancing, having gained confidence while she sang. 'Do you believe in life after love!? I can feel something inside me say, I really don't think you're strong enough, no!'

'Yeah, fuck him!' Her friend with the dreadlocks said, loud enough anyone could hear.

'She's quite good.' Takeru nodded towards her, looking impressed. Aguni agreed.

She was not the best singer, but she knew how to pull the audience in. The businessmen were in a frenzy by that time.

She finished her song, and Takeru joined her friends when they started clapping and cheering. Aguni did as well.

She noticed, and flashed a bright, charming smile towards them, mouthing 'Thank you.' before pretending to bow.

'It's our turn! Go, go, go!' Takeru was already standing up.

Both of them grabbed their microphones, making an awful rendition of Lay All Your Love On Me. It may have sounded bad, but both of them gave it their all, singing with a lot more feeling than a cheap karaoke bar on a Thursday night deserved.

The businessmen had turned silent, gone back to their drinks, but the group of girls were cheering them on, clapping and moving their bodies to the rhythm of the music.

The girl with dark hair kept looking at them. No, actually, her eyes were focused on Aguni, her lips curved upwards.

He knew the song from memory (it was their go-to in Karaoke) but almost forgot the lyrics once or twice.

At one point, during the last chorus, she leaned over to her friend in dreadlocks and whispered something in her ear, her eyes still not leaving Aguni. Her friend started going through the book of available songs and apparently found what she was looking for, because she gestured and said something he couldn't hear, clearly thrilled, to the other two.

When the song ended, Takeru and Aguni hugged and patted each other in the back in celebration, laughing. His friend used that moment to whisper to him. 'That brunette couldn't keep her eyes off of you.'

As if summoned, the dark-haired woman lifted her glass at them, still smiling playfully over the rim of it, and took a sip of her drink.

Takeru elbowed him, raising both his eyebrows. He even tried to push Aguni in the direction of the girls, but he was a lot stronger and much more muscular, and didn't even budge.

'She clearly likes you, Aguni.' He said once they were seated again on their table.

'I don't think so. She's just being nice.'

'She is being nice, but she also looks nice and she likes you.'

'Takeru…'

The conversation went on for a few minutes, in which one of the men at another table sang a truly vile cover of Take on me by A-ha that, truth be told, didn't get the same reaction from the young girls. The brunette, especially, used the song as a bathroom break, leaving almost as soon as it started and returning after he was done.

It was her turn again, but this time the whole group went up to the stage.

And the first notes of Gimme! Gimme! Gimme! (A Man After Midnight), also by ABBA, started playing.

'Half-past twelve and I'm watching the late show in my flat all alone. How I hate to spend the evening on my own…' The girl sang, her dark eyes on Aguni's.

Takeru just looked at him, dead in the eye.

'Case closed.'

'Well, maybe…'

'Gimme, gimme, gimme a man after midnight! Won't somebody help me chase the shadows away?' They all danced out of sync something they had clearly choreographed but not practiced enough. It was still kind of impressive.

The song ended and they went back to their table, all of them laughing.

'If you don't go, I will, and…'

'Okay, fine. I will.'

Aguni shook his head and stood up, Takeru smiling widely and giving him a double thumbs up.

'Go, tiger!'

She was, clearly, very beautiful but she probably was just having a drink with her friends and didn't want a random guy approaching them. Maybe that was just her personality: flirty, playful, confident. He still went to their table, because if not Takeru would have and he preferred to deal with this kind of things his own way.

'Hello…' He started, not really knowing how to approach this. He wasn't used to that kind of stuff. He was struggling to find an amusing way of introducing himself, so he just opened his mouth and trusted his luck. 'Can I invite you to a drink?'

Could have been worse.

The dark-haired woman smiled. She had her arms crossed over her chest, and was rocking her chair onto its back legs. She nodded. 'Of course. Was wondering when you would ask.'

She stood up, and turned around to bid farewell to her friends.

'Don't take too long, some of us have to work tomorrow.' Said the one with the briefcase.

'All of us have to work tomorrow.' The one with the dreadlocks rolled her eyes until only white was visible. 'But some of us…'

Aguni felt the arms of the girl surrounding one of his. 'Let's get out of here, quick, before this ends badly.' She muttered, but she was giggling.

She led him to the bar area, where she ordered some kind of fruity cocktail without alcohol. Aguni just asked for another beer.

She had yet to let go of his arm, which she was still holding.

Aguni was used to fighting. It was part of his training as a SDF officer. But he was not used to receive so many blows conversationally-speaking. She was witty, she was smart, she was clever. He was struggling to get more than a couple of words in without stuttering.

He was extremely disappointed when her friends stood up and gestured at the woman to end the conversation and get ready to leave.

She looked at Aguni, apologetically.

'I'm the designated driver.' She shrugged.

'Ah, no. Don't worry.' He didn't know what else to say.

'Would you like to do this another time?' She asked. She finally let go of his arm (he wished she hadn't) and started looking around in her bag, getting a pen out of it after searching for a few seconds.

She grabbed a napkin and wrote her number, along with the drawing of a heart.

'If you do…' She slid the paper towards him. He realized he had yet to give an answer.

'Yes, yes I would. Like to do this another time.' He added that last part, in case it wasn't clear already.

'Great. I'll… Wait for your call, then?'

She waved goodbye and went back to the other girls.

Takeru suddenly appeared at his side. He pursed his lips in approval.

'Not bad. I told you she liked you. What's her name?'

'I… Didn't get it.'

His friend burst into laughter, but Aguni's eyes were focused on the napkin he was now holding with his right hand.

He might not know her name, but he was determined to find out.

[balsa-margarita]

Why I'm disappointed in Starbound (and why I still like it, somehow)

So, Starbound. It's an indie game you may or may not know of, whether you've seen it in furry art or heard people call it "ripoff Terraria" or something, or perhaps even played it. What is it, though?

To put it simply, Starbound is a 2D procedurally generated space adventuring game, created by Chucklefish. (I got some images from their press kit to show you what I mean.)

As you can see, there is a lot going on here. First off, there are multiple sapient alien species other than humans in Starbound (it's most obvious with the Floran in the third image) and there's also a distinct storyline to follow. All of that means lore, and this is where the issues start. Immediately.

Starbound takes the idea of "culture as costume" as a model to work off of, rather than a criticism. Take the Hylotl, a race of fish-people. Everything about their culture is taken directly from Japanese culture in real life - they have anime, samurai, and Japanese-inspired architecture. None of this, though, is very deep or well-thought-out. It's just kind of... there, you know? And this is how it is with most of Starbound's alien races (Avians are ripoff Mesoamericans in a lot of ways, Novakid are stereotypical cowboy Western characters) with only a couple of exceptions. At times, this weird lack of thought can be downright insulting, such as with the Floran - who are carelessly modeled after stereotypes of the "cannibal tribe." There are also over a dozen races in the game, and you can only play as seven of them. The others' lore is even less thought out.

Now, you would think that the actual story would be better, right? Well... sort of. The overarching enemy is an entity called "The Ruin," which is a literal living eldritch planet monster (which you kill at the end of the game in a scene much more badass than anything else Chucklefish came up with) which is being aided by a xenophobic human cult that is trying to wipe out all of the other races in the universe. Pretty interesting, aside from the very generic name... but the generic name gives it away. Not only is the Ruin one side of a pure good/evil dichotomy - which, in my opinion, is a bit of a tired way of doing things - but the rest of the writing just feels lazy. Not enough actual eldritch horror in the story where the big bad is an eldritch horror, and not enough focus on the space xenophobes' xenophobia. When you play through it, it feels kind of cheap, and as someone who talks a lot about lore (and writes fanfiction) I have issues with that. But the problems don't stop there.

Guess why it feels cheap? Because it is.

Starbound is one of the worst optimized games I've ever played, up there with things like Pokemon Scarlet/Violet - possibly even worse - and is riddled with half-baked mechanics and terribly shoehorned game progression and design. (Multiplayer in particular is horrific - the game has no strict physics update at all, which basically means people playing the game at different FPS play it at different speeds. As you can imagine, this ends terribly for all involved.) All this is because Chucklefish used unpaid labor - often from teenagers trying to get into the game industry! So, of course, when these people inevitably left because they weren't paid, no one kept working on whatever they had been in charge of... it was a disaster. A total, unmitigated disaster. That's where Starbound stands today.

Unmodded Starbound, at least.

The core concepts of Starbound - bumming around on procedurally generated planets, questing, and being a space landlord, among other things - are still really cool. But it could have been so much cooler! Wasted potential in a way that no other game I've ever played is. This is where mods - and one mod in particular called Frackin' Universe - come in. Frackin' Universe does its very best to fill in the holes left in the basegame, and add new systems that rival some Minecraft tech mods in complexity. It can't fix everything, but it's the closest Starbound will ever get to being a really complete game. (Part of me really wishes I could take the IP from the idiots at Chucklefish and give it to the Frackin' Universe guys. They could make an excellent remake.)

That's it. That's the rant. I just... I really wish Starbound was a better game with development that hadn't been led by a moron who bailed from Re-Logic.

[ridiasfangirlings]

K seem to have a lot of important stuff just later created or expanded through years worth of extra materials. If the K anime had been created after all of these things had been made instead of the other way around, how different do you think the anime's story would have been?

Less flashbacks in ROK, probably :/ One of things with K is I think they tried to make the side materials supplement the main anime story without being required in order to actually understand the anime, so I don't necessarily think they would have added a bunch of extra stuff to the anime if the anime had been made last. I do definitely think there would have been some streamlining and switches of focus in the story for both seasons though. Season one I definitely wonder if the show would have spent less time meandering at the school island with those characters and more with the Reds and Blues, since Homra and S4 are ultimately more important for the story as a whole.

I think S4's place in the narrative might have been altered somewhat too, at least to be less...sinister, I guess? I've mentioned before that I feel like they get much more of a villain treatment in the early part of season one and I wonder if we would have gotten less of things like Awashima discussing violating Mikoto's human rights or Fushimi looking vaguely unhinged if we had more characterization for them (the episode five Sarumi fight is particularly interesting as a possible point of change, because on the one hand LSW does explain his behavior there but on the other hand Gora walks it back a lot in all subsequent media, without having that moment there first I wonder if Fushimi would have been at least a little more gloomy and less yandere from the start if the side media had come first). I also imagine season one would have had more foreshadowing for the rest of the series, I definitely think we would have at least gotten Kotosaka talking to Colorless to give more of a hint as to who was behind all this. I personally would have liked them to add maybe a couple mentions here and there of the Gray King, even just saying he died in the Kagutsu Crater, just so we know that King exists and it feels a little more organic when Iwafune appears. Giving Zenjoh at least a cameo would have been nice too, again knowing that he'll be more important later.

Season two I could see the changes being largely what was done in the novelization, stuff like adding in an actual storyline for Neko that the anime just hinted at. I'm actually kinda curious about how the novelization came about versus the anime, if some of the additional bits in the novel were things Gora wanted to put into ROK but couldn't because they felt limited by runtime (and possibly budget, I wonder if episode ten in particular wasting time on flashbacks was GoHands being cheap). The stuff with Fushimi's 'betrayal' I think was also a lot stronger in the novelization, especially since the novelization actually bothers to make it clear that yes, Hisui and co know that Fushimi was once in S4 and yes they are actually suspicious of him because of that, which the anime was really frustratingly vague on. With the novelization being just completed I think that stands out pretty strongly as what Gora 'would have written' if they could when the anime aired, it still follows the same basics as the anime did but makes the story a lot stronger and spends a lot less time on filler, which was for me very much the weakest part of ROK.

[lesser-mook]

GARO: The Animation (anime recommendation) - Action, Dark Fantasy (Shonen Elements done right)

(light spoilers)

I saw this once a few years ago, didn't leave much impression at the time.

After a re-watch (Autumn 2023); Surprisingly character driven, character development was well paced (so well paced for some, It left room for a lot of remaining exploration for others)

The show technically has more than one mc, and it works because instead of NPC's hijacking the story from the mains, the mc's are given focus, thus time isn't wasted or robbed from the characters that should have priority. And the extras serve to world-build, & some filler I found myself enjoying.

Well executed action. (Not a fan of some of the CGI)

Music production is from Monaca, Keiichi Okabe's studio (NIER Game series).

Story isn't deep, it's simple.

The setting fits the tone well. (Dark fantasy, Medieval)

Sub is better, Dub is satisfactory. Both good.

Likable core cast, Ema is the Goat. Alfonso the Legend, Leon the beast. Germán the OG Playa.

Again, the side characters fit appropriately to give some world building, everyone isn't contrived to have the same level of importance despite being NPC's.

No, when it's the extras time to shine, they shine, then they bow down as they should. And the main characters are the main characters.

The fanservice didn't overstay it's welcome, didn't annoy me:

(Translation: Not a lot of stock jailbait/schoolgirls getting bent over, ya know, for the "kids"*), majorly it's played casual, it's just women that look sexy for the most part.

Not like a *Camera ZOOMS in on cleavage with bounce animation, sparkle filter, with Anime "WOW" sfx** (holds shot for 5 seconds+)

[Look look! Breasts! You like those right?! Give us a 10/10 please!] Shonen schtick.

As for GARO:

It has gags, comedy, but overall it's executed where it works, and when it's go time, it's go time. I was waiting for Ema's turn for the obligatory lingering, 5-8sec crotch shot while she's talking mid-sentence, followed by goofy sfx.

Just a 2 frame closeup you could miss if you blinked, Fanservice that flows with what's going on organically... Imagine my disappointment.

The situation doesn’t STOP________ To make sure you fully absorb the artistic significance of her crotch in the camera.

There was an occasion where the crew would've been stuck in an illusionary world if it weren't for Ema and her skills, so how she played into the events was unexpectedly not typical.

I didn't expect her to pop off the way she did at times. Heavy Femme Fatale energy. A professional. The only one in the show that can do what she does.

(I prefer her over Gina *Garo: Vanishing Line*)

Her (Spider-Woman) wire swinging scenes is some of the best content in the series.

So this anime is one of those weird series that for the most part treats their characters seriously while having sexy, but not oversexualized characters. (Again: Imagine my disappointment)

The characters read like characters with a stake & purpose, a story; Not caricatures with lines and a weekly scheduled cliche.

The movie, is decent, the plot wasn't the best but it was also well paced, doesn't drag or waste time, served as nice sendoff.

Recommended, I didn't get to see it the first time around, so watching it after the series served the anime to be more of a full package story.

Similar to (Kamen Rider x Kamen Rider Drive & Gaim: Movie Wars Full Throttle) technically being the sequel, true ending to Gaim.

My gripes would be the CGI look of the Knights themselves, that aesthetic is almost exclusive to them, almost. Clunky at first but they actually look surreal with how flexible and masterful they fight.

A lot of the monsters are 2D, but the Knights themselves are almost if not always CGI, this is my headcanon but I see it as an artistic choice to maintain the illusion of them being an interdimensional force. So they stand out the most in a sense.

It grows on you, eventually.

The villain, for me, was not interesting at all. I did like his stake in everything, the man was a menace, he just wasn't interesting (to me).

German's decision to not save Anna, when he had to power to do so? (In one scene it's shown she's alive when he retrieves the baby, so unless she was technically dead & her looking at him was just an aesthetic decision, I don't see why he doesn't try to take her too). Never understood that. Not a lore breaking gripe, obviously she was as good as dead but still, smells off to me.

Grandpa and those goddamn seeds (If you know, you know), the needless outcome of that situation drove me nuts the most.

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

Overall, well produced, decent writing, no masterpiece, naturally; Better than I remember. Underrated.

Medieval Kamen Rider-esque but with Wolf Armor, my favorite of the GARO series trilogy.

The other 2 were OK (Vanishing Line could've been so much more if they focused on the better characters instead of Sophie) but the first, "The Animation" had a better execution about it.

[novemberfyshenuke]

Tranquility

“I remember being a toddler, running around my grandfather’s house and giggling as I played with my younger sister and my dog,” he kept quiet as he leaned against the bark of the tall birch. His gaze never left the small patch of tulips we planted together just a few hours earlier.

“My grandfather would be sitting at the dining table; reading a book on any normal day. I always thought it was a waste of time. I mean, why read books if you don’t have a class or test to study? Hardly seems entertaining.” He chuckles, shaking his head at my words. I couldn’t stop myself from smiling when I asked him what he found so amusing.

“You seem to enjoy reading with me on rainy days.” He commented, shifting his body as he sat closer. “What a silly thought. I can’t imagine not seeing you standing in front of a book shop and examining all the covers with no intent of actually purchasing one.”

I scoff, rolling my eyes as I hugged my knees to my chest. “Believe it. I liked playing a whole lot more than reading characters talk about God and math problems.”

He let out a breathy sound, coming to a realization. I let my eyes wander, scanning every bit of the garden the sun and wind graced. “I didn’t really expect to find books with characters who had their own lives and struggles; things not bound by just theoretical sciences and what was right or wrong. That was what bothered me when I was younger y’know. If I was right or wrong. Especially in the eyes of God. I detested anyone and everyone who did anything that might have offended him.”

“Oh, how devoted you are.” His tone dripped with sarcasm; head thrown back against the trunk as he took in the sunlight peeking between the leaves. I shoved his arm, grimacing lightly while he laughed to himself.

“Anyway, that’s not really the point. When I first started to read as a hobby, I begged my mom to get me an entire set of books for preteens that I kept my eyes on. Money was tight, so I never really got the answer I wanted.” I fiddled with the blades of grass that tickled my sides, rolling them across my fingers. He responds with a small hum at the small pause of my story, signaling me to continue.

“She would take me to a second-hand bookshop and let me pick whatever book I wanted, just as long as it was in our budget. After a while, I garnered a small collection.” I smiled, a bubbling warmth filling my stomach as I thought about the stack of beat-up novels and short stories I stored in the corner of my room. “I really loved those books. It got to a point where my mom would boast about how well-read I am. Which is bizarre if you think about the fact I hadn’t learned to read until first grade and I read at a snail’s pace too!”

He cracks a smile, finally facing towards me with a playful look. “Not much has changed. The only difference is that your slowness transferred to your comprehension.”

“Hush!” I bared my teeth at him, leaning my head on his shoulder with a small thump. “It’s as if you never run out of insults when it comes to teasing me.”

He doesn’t respond. Instead, he laughs while his arm snakes around my shoulders, holding me firmly and closer to his warmth. I sigh, pursing my lips before speaking once again. “My aunt was one of the many who hear from her often. She would also let me borrow some of her books, let me enjoy them, then talk to me about the plot.

My grandfather also has a large collection to share. Whenever he bought new copies of the books he liked, or maybe old books he enjoyed and wanted me to treasure as well, he would talk about the plot with the biggest smile on his face. I’d accept them, of course. I read them too. Recently, none of them have really caught my attention.”

I frowned, looking down at my hands. The wind bellows a silent tune, brushing through his short blond hair; much like the color of ripe wheat in a field. I shivered, his hand rubbing along my arm as he held me closer, the heat from his touch warming me from the crisp afternoon air. His other hand reaches over to hold mine, and squeezed it gently. With a deep shaky breath, I continue.

“I…felt guilty. It was something he was so passionate about and I brushed it off…but it wasn’t like I wasn’t interested in reading it. I just…felt drained.”

His thumb moves along the base of my palm. He silently sat there as he patiently waited for me to steady myself. “Passion, motivation, my entire will—I lost all of that for more than four years. I don’t even know how I kept moving.

And yet it feels so wrong. Why should anyone else have to experience the repercussions of my heartache? Why should they feel like they’ve lost me just because I lost myself?”

He parts his lips, ready to rebut. I speak before he gets a word out, “It was rhetorical, don’t answer that.” He simply looks away. I continue, “I just…wish I could have done some more, you know?”

“I know.” He replied in less than a beat, planting a small kiss on my head. The silence sat for a moment before he added, “I know all too well, darling. But you’re the one who’s said not to dwell in the past.”

“Ah, so I’m just a hypocrite.”

“Yes.”

“…”

He smiles, fingers interlocking with mine as he hums a small tune. “Cherish those memories; but don’t let them overshadow the ones you’re making in the present.”

His words were soft as they fell on my ears. A rather short-lived tranquility before he pinches my cheek, exasperation lacing his tone. “Like the memories we’re making now. Don’t go daydreaming on something so important.”

I yelp, wrestling away from his hold while protesting his actions.  

|Yeah so...idk. That's all I got|

[freesia-writes]

The Bad Batch: Tech and Vel [Part 2]

A fun action/adventure/romance with Tech and an original character, set during the Clone Wars. Rated PG-13 for passion and peril. ;) And just a heads up -- so far, it's got about 27 parts, and I anticipate about 30-32. It kinda got away from me. ;)

Also, I did my best to keep a steady plot line and tried to think of all the potential plot holes or questions or whatnot, but ultimately, this was just an excuse to indulge in imagining a little romantic adventure for Tech. So forgive any inconsistencies or inaccuracies and enjoy the ride. ;)

(STORY STARTS BELOW THE PHOTO) Also, I'll publish the rest on Wattpad for those of you who want to read it all at once. But I probably won't finish it til the end of the month; want to see how Season 2 ends!

The Bad Batch: Tech and Vel - CT-9902 - Wattpad

PART TWO: INDIGNANCE

Vel's eyes cracked open, confused by the brilliant display of colors and buttons on the panels above her. She opened them fully, rubbing her forehead with her hand and looking around. With a start, she scrambled to her feet, realizing where she was. Or rather, realizing that she didn't know where she was.

"Good morning," came a velvety smooth voice, "Would you like some caf?" Crosshair chuckled at his sarcastic offer, not pausing his careful weapon inspection. "Hunter, your friend is awake," he called, practically hissing the word "friend". Casting one last scrutinizing look at Vel, he got up and retreated to the bridge.

Hunter passed him on his way from the front, stopping in the doorway to maintain a distance between himself and Vel. He leaned against the wall, folding his arms across his chest. Vel stared back at him, standing awkwardly like a cornered animal whose fight or flight response was still buffering. "Why were you after Lank?" Hunter asked, wasting no time in getting right to the point.

"Why did you kidnap me?" Vel responded evenly, feeling her head clearing up. "You interfered with our mission, and you fired a live round at a target that we needed to bring in for questioning. Who sent you after him?" "Bob," came the pert reply, as Vel stood taller and crossed her arms, matching his stance. "You know Bob, from Dantooine? The human, with the eyes and the hair?" Hunter furrowed his brow for a second before the realization dawned on him, and he fought to keep the corner of his mouth from curling into a smirk. "Ah yes, Bob. The notorious crime boss," he replied sardonically, "And what did he want with Lank?" "Ugh, just give it a rest," said Vel, turning away from him to sit on the floor facing the hatch, "You know I'm not going to tell you anything." "Fair enough," Hunter replied, "We'll just bring you in and let them figure it out then." He shrugged and turned back to the bridge. A million questions raced through Vel's head, having no idea who these people were or whom they worked for. She knew it would not go well for her to have botched the job so badly, but she had confidence that she had proven her worth so far and it wouldn't be the end of the world. *** The Batch was instructed to try to return her to the Bounty Hunter Guild, which could give them a lead on her assignment. So they set off for The Rig, the outpost of Crimson Nova. 

"You'd better have a lot of money or firepower if you think you're going to walk in there and ask questions or demand anything for my return," Vel snapped from the back of the bridge, angry that they had somehow narrowed down her employer so quickly. "Stroth knows what I'm worth, even if I got captured."

"We'll see how it goes," Hunter returned evenly.

"We can be pretty persuasive," Wrecker growled, cracking his knuckles and grinning from the side seat. 

***

They entered a dark chamber, an odd mix between a bar and a conference room, and approached the table where a few sordid characters were gathered. A Trandoshan hissed a warning as they got closer, and Hunter stopped the group. 

A human stood from the group, walked around the table, and leaned on the front of it, regarding them with mild interest. If this was Bob, "with the eyes and the hair", Hunter mused that Vel could have used some more prominent descriptors in her account of him, such as the fact that he was bald on top of his head but had long hair all around the back and sides, and was missing one entire arm below the elbow. 

He noted Vel standing among them and a smile broke out across his face. He beckoned toward the service droid, who immediately began pouring a tray of drinks and quickly rolled it over to him. 

"Well look who we have here," he said congenially, taking a drink from the tray and motioning the droid toward the Batch. Wrecker grabbed two from the tray, Hunter politely declined, and Crosshair took one but held it without drinking. Tech and Vel remained motionless. 

"You've brought back my newest bounty hunter." He looked at Vel, "And how was your endeavor?" She stayed silent, staring at the floor in front of his feet, unsure how to reconcile her utter failure with his apparent warmth. 

"Ah, I see," said Stroth, "Perhaps we began with a target a bit out of your league." He gave a big sigh, taking a long draught from his glass mug. Wrecker looked from Stroth to Hunter, then downed one of his mugs in a few sloppy gulps. Hunter's senses prickled in the seemingly-casual atmosphere, and he lowered his eyebrows as he spoke.

"We will return her in exchange for a small piece of information," Hunter said. "Why were you trying to kill Senator Lank?"

The only sound in the silence was a poorly-concealed burp from Wrecker, followed by a sigh of distaste from Crosshair. Stroth raised his chin, regarding the crew from his jaunty lean.

"Kill Senator Lank?" Stroth said, with theatrically feigned surprise, "I would never. The Separatists surely wouldn't appreciate that."

Hunter didn't believe a word, and his silence made that clear as he continued to wait for a real answer. 

"But what kind of other reward could I offer you, for the wonderful return of my asset here?" he asked, motioning toward Vel. She looked up at him, feeling her confidence rise at his positive mention of her. He smiled at her again before returning his gaze to Hunter.

"Who wants Lank dead?" Hunter repeated, resting a hand on his hip in apparent ease yet intentional proximity to his blaster. 

"Mmm," Stroth mused, finishing his mug and setting it on the table next to him. He clapped a hand on the shoulder of one of the figures at the table, a Rhodian bent over some schematics, and looked at the motley crew gathered there. "I can see you've got your mind made up. I don't want to make a mess of things, you know," he said, with an air of surrender. 

He signed, standing to his feet, and gestured carelessly. "Kill them all."

Vel's mouth dropped in shock and horror. 

In one solid blur, blasters were pulled from every holster in the room. Wrecker threw his empty mug at the nearest bounty hunter as Hunter flipped the table to their right, throwing Vel down as he dove to cover behind it. Crosshair flipped himself over the bar, crouching behind it and leveling his sniper at the group. 

Lights flashed on all sides as blaster bolts flew. The Rhodian hit the ground as a couple Trandoshans continued shooting from behind him. Stroth pulled his own blaster and fired a few careless shots as he ran out of the room. Hunter threw a knife after him, but it landed in the door just as it slammed. 

Tech fired evenly with both hands, leaning out from behind a pillar to stun another human. Crosshair's perfectly-placed shots dropped two more, and Wrecker met some reinforcements at the door with a huge arm to clothesline them into oblivion. It was over as quickly as it began.

"Stroth will undoubtedly be back with more," Tech surmised.

"Let's go," Hunter said, grabbing the schematics from the table and tucking them into his belt. 

"What about her?" Crosshair asked, nudging his sniper barrel toward Vel, on her knees behind the table, still in complete shock at the turn of events. 

"Leave her," Hunter responded, peeking out the doorway and beckoning to the others.

"She will be terminated," Tech pointed out, "Perhaps her knowledge could be of use to us as we determine the motive for Stroth's bounties."

"Fine," Hunter agreed, his sense of urgency outweighing his disdain for extra baggage, "We've got to go." 

***

The light turned blue around them as the Marauder jumped to hyperspace, and Vel sat on the floor on the back of the bridge once again. Her mind was reeling. She was abandoned, again. No matter what she did, she was never enough, never worth keeping around. She fought from spiraling into despair, sinking her head into her knees. 

She barely heard the hologram on the front panel, assigning the crew to a new mission on a planet in the Abrion sector, and offered no resistance as she was shown to her new quarters -- a makeshift prison built into the corner of the cargo hold on the lower deck of the ship. 

There were larger matters to attend to.

[shoyoist]

Hi rekhaaa! I was wondering on what are the Tokyo revengers boys' quirks r gonna be if they're in mha!! Any thoughts??

𝐓𝐑 𝐁𝐎𝐘𝐒' 𝐐𝐔𝐈𝐑𝐊𝐒 𝐈𝐅 𝐓𝐇𝐄𝐘 𝐖𝐄𝐑𝐄 𝐈𝐍 𝐁𝐍𝐇𝐀

been a long time since i got over my bnha phase but this shows that i'd enjoy giving tr characters quirks and writing spin offs for them LMAO — not proofread, but i had a lot of fun thinking of these <3 (i did say my inbox is closed for reqs) but if you sent me individual characters that i havent done, i'll answer w/ quirks for them too!! short hcs are fun hehe

ぞ | hmmm, TAKEMICHI would have the ability to see glimpses of the near future. if he were the protag of bnha, his story would be that he wasted the potential of his extremely useful quirk by choosing to live a plain, ordinary life without aspiring to become a hero. then something absolutely terrible happens, but he gets the opportunity to turn things around for himself and for everyone else, if he goes back in time and claims the rank of top hero and saves the world. op music starts playing and takemichi starts his hero's journey ☆☆☆

ぞ | MIKEY would have the ability to put people to sleep. not just sleep, actually, his quirk enables him to turn people's systems off and render them comatose. if we're talking side effects, he's just sleepy ♡♡ and falls asleep real quick when he gets tired. he's quiet, a little shady but also very sweet, and whether as a hero or a villain, he'd be super powerful and useful <33

ぞ | i'll do DRAKEN a favour and let him have his motorcycle body. he's a cyborg. like genos from one punch man !! he has to get his prosthetic limbs removed and maintained regularly, and needs oil changes LMAO. imagine being the mechanic that takes care of him though <33 or the scientist that creates new body parts and weapons for him.

ぞ | BAJI is like Four Arms from Ben 10 SKHFHKH, he's big and muscley and has four arms. the perfect person to turn to, when you need a good sukuna cosplay. by the time he graduates hero school, he stands at 6'10" ♡♡ and so popular with everyone. holds fan events and meets, is super fun and friendly, good with kids — and he never turns down those calls asking for help bec a cat got stuck in a tree and needs saving LMAO

ぞ | ok ok KAZUTORA would have blood iron manipulation. realistically, your blood doesnt have THAT much iron so this is leaning towards the fictional side — but yeah, he can control your blood (maybe the flow of it out of your body, after a slash?) via the iron in your blood cells. he would be a hero turned villain <33

ぞ | MITSUYA definitely works in the rescue division. he has restoration abilities. i'm not calling it regeneration because it doesnt work on living creatures or people. it works on non living formations and structures, like stone and all. he's one of the front liners of the rescue teams. they locate people trapped under fallen buildings and such, and then mitsuya carefully restores walls and pillars, fixes cracks in the ground, and creates a safe path to reach the people from. he's also really pretty, a good leader, and skilled at providing guidance and reassurance, so everyone has a lil crush on him <33

ぞ | PAH-CHIN would have super strength. he's a lil like sakura from naruto (are there other sakuras? bec i dont know lol) and he would work in rescue, too, but in the opposite way that mitsuya does, i guess. he breaks down obstructing structures like walls and rubble, and paves way towards the people in need of saving.

ok that's takemichi + the toman ot6 but let me think of some more.

ぞ | of course KISAKI has an intelligence quirk. his ability allows him to make foolproof, precise plans that lead him straight to his goal— the catch being that they're only arranged according to his heart's desire. every step of his vision has to be followed out thoroughly to completion, to reach the end goal. however, some steps are incredibly self indulgent (step four: kill takemichi. LMAO) therefore, he's a loner at work, and more of an anti hero type. he does what he wants, how he wants, by himself. unless he met someone that was fine with doing things all his way <3

ぞ | HANMA can speak to the dead. if you come to him with enough grief and longing in your heart, for someone that's dead, he can summon their soul by channeling the power of your longing, and bring their spirit back to the edge of life for a short period of time. he would be a villain with a tragic backstory that's only revealed much later — and he works as the recruiter for his organization, by scouting people with useful quirks that have lost loved ones. "hey kid, if you do this for me and my boss, i'll let you see your sister one last time." that typa beat.

ぞ | i feel like SANZU would have some sort of energy absorption quirk. he absorbs fear. growing up, he was timid and more afraid of others than others were afraid of him, so his quirk was kept in check. however, once he joined the villains' side, he became ruthless — his gruesome murders, skilled escapes and endless number of successful heists make him his organization's beloved poster boy (which honestly only helps people to recognize and therefore fear him even more u_u).

ぞ | SENJU has a camouflage quirk. she's able to change her body to match the colours of whatever she places both her hands against — and therefore, she's part of almost every stealth mission the heroes carry out. she's leader of her division, and gets invited to a lot of workshops and expos — she's got a million fans, and the bnha universe twitter is full of senju stan accounts i just know it !!

ぞ | KOKONOI has charmspeak. it fits him really well — he's an excellent talker, silver tongued to begin with, so when he applies his quirk and slides in, he's able to coax information out of anyone he wants, and get his way no matter what the circumstances. he would've considered being a hero as a kid, but then he gets strung into a villain organization, where he decides to stay.

ぞ | if i mention koko i must mention INUI, who has a shielding ability. he's able to reflect the effect of quirks off him to some extent, giving him some level of immunity to quirk based attacks — and he uses this alongside physical shields provided to him by the hero association's weapon devs, to be both a physical and a mental shield to himself and any one he partners up with.

[tobiokuns]

— morning after with haikyuu boys

summary: when you wake up after an amazing night, you’re sad to see that he’s not there anymore. [start / next] tags: suggestive content + aged up characters, hurt/comfort + angst to fluff, insecurities featuring: bokuto koutarou, miya atsumu, sakusa kiyoomi, hinata shoyo image credit: @seerlight on twitter

—bokuto koutarou

when you wake up and bokuto is no longer in the bed beside you, you think, ah, i should’ve expected this. he’s always been popular, going off to do big things, and there was no way that he would settle for you.   

you think that the way his eyes sparkled as he rocked into you last night, chanting you’re amazing, y/n, must have been just in the heat of the moment, because there’s just no way bokuto, larger than life, would want someone as quiet as you. then your phone pings, and you see a text from him.

bokuto [10:12am] hey hey, i had a great time last night  ヽ(o＾▽＾o)ノ bokuto [10:12am] have a good day y/n!!!

your heart lightens a little, but you notice that he doesn’t say that he wants to see you again, so you turn off your phone and leave him on read. he was probably just being nice anyway. 

a day passes, and you don’t receive any more messages from him, so you think you’re right. but then the door bell rings, and you open it to see bokuto standing there, his hair deflated, his eyes downward, pouting at you. 

“koutarou?” you urge him inside, tamping down your own feelings, “what’s wrong, can i—”

“did you not have a good time?” he bursts, holding you by the shoulders, “cuz i had a really good time, but you didn’t answer my messages, so if you didn’t, please tell me what i could do better!”

you look at him, bewildered, but also a little embarrassed. you could’ve at least replied to his text, you think now, but you were so sure that he hadn’t wanted you back.

“s-sorry,” you blush, “i-i just thought you were being nice. you left so i thought you didn’t want to see me again—”

“that’s not true!!” he exclaims immediately, wrapping a strong arm around you, “i was just excited, i didn’t want to scare you so i left, to give you some space or something. was that wrong? i won’t do it again if you don’t want me to!”

he’s talking so much, his voice booming. you start to melt into him, your face in his chest, just like last night. he stops when he notices your cheek rubbing against him, and lowers his voice just a little. 

“i should’ve just stayed, huh?” he asks sheepishly, holding your shoulder tightly against him. you nod, laughing lightly. yeah, you agree, but just don’t leave next time.

—miya atsumu

atsumu shows up at your door exactly a week after he’d left you alone in bed, a dozen roses in his arms. you stare at him for a few moments, taking in the sight of his pleading eyes, and shut the door on him.

you had been completely ready to roll over and tell him all your feelings that morning: how you’ve been watching him since high school, how amazing you thought he was, despite all the bad things people say about his personality and attitude. you didn’t care about any of that, and you wanted to tell him how much you admired him, but he hadn’t been there.

you laid in bed for the next few hours, wasting away your sunday, and when you get up to wash your face, you decide that if he’s not going to at least call to say where he’d gone, then maybe he was as bad as people say.

“y/n...” his voice cuts through your thoughts, but it sounds muffled, as if he had his head against the wood of the door. “y/n, can ya hear me?” when you don’t answer, he continues: “i’m sorry fer leavin’ ya... ‘samu said i was stupid, and y’know he’s never right, but since ya haven’t talked to me... i think he might have been this time...”

there’s a pause, and you wait, still refusing to open the door. it’s been a whole week, you reason.

“how do i put this...” he mutters, lightly tapping his head against the door, “i guess i was jus’ feelin’ awkward ‘bout it... i never done that before so—”

you rip open the door, cheeks red, “never? ‘tsumu, you’re a virgin?”

you think about all the girls that have flocked to him over the years and the way that he easily interacted with them. you thought you never had a chance, not against the girls with the prettier faces, the curvier bodies, the glossier hair. but when he had kissed you last night, sloppy and desperate, you felt all those feelings melt away.

“...ya don’t hafta say it like that...” he pouts, and when you start to giggle, he scowls even harder. “i was just... waitin’ for the right time, y’know?”

when you don’t say anything, staring at him dumbfounded, he manages to stutter, “s-so? w-will you take the flowers?”

your eyes soften, covering his fingers with yours, “yes,” you agree, “but only if you agree never to leave me again.”

— sakusa kiyoomi

sakusa hadn’t meant to stay the night—he knew he had an early morning practice that he needed to be properly rested for, but after the way you had clung onto him, and realizing how good that felt, he decided he couldn’t just leave you. and when he wakes up, glancing over at your peaceful face, he also decides to just pull the covers up to your chin and text you later.

but when you wake up alone and a little warm, with no new messages from him on your phone, your heart sinks. you think of the way he let you pull down his mask, the way he pressed forward to kiss you, and wonder if it all meant nothing. you leave him a message anyway, pressing send before you second guess yourself. 

y/n [9:52am] kiyoomi, if you didn’t want to see me again, you could’ve just let me know. i don’t blame you or anything.

you throw your phone on the bed and proceed with your day as if nothing had happened. life goes on, you tell yourself. but when the doorbell rings that evening, the last person you expect to see is sakusa, who looks a little worn out, still dressed in his training attire.

“kiyoomi? what are you—” 

he cuts you off, his voice so deep and serious that you shrink a little:  “i had practice. i left my keys here, so i was going to come back anyway.”

“so you just needed your keys?” you repeat, a little numb, and turn away to grab them from the bowl in the doorway. you hand it it to him with a tremble, mumbling, “...here you go.”

he takes them from your hand, but intertwines his fingers with yours anyway. “no,” he says slowly, “not just my keys. i forgot to let you know where i was. i’m sorry.”

“i-it’s not like you have to tell me where you are all the time...” you’re blushing, your heart thumping in your chest. 

he grips your fingers tighter, “yes, i do,” he pulls you closer gently, “we’re together now, right?”

— hinata shoyo

when you wake up, the spot next to you is still warm, but there’s nobody there. you blink, thinking about how gentle hinata had been with you last night, the look in his eyes as he pressed into you, and wonder if he’d changed his mind.

“shoyo?” you call, but there’s no answer, which only confirms your worst fears.

hinata had always been too nice and a little immature. you can’t imagine that if he wanted to leave after a night like that he would be able to effectively communicate it to you without messing up. well, you think as you turn over, staring at the ceiling, maybe this is better than rejection.

but then you hear the front door open, and someone’s bounding up to your bedroom door. hinata pokes his head in.

“y/n, you awake? i got food, i didn’t know what you wanted so i kinda got a lot but if you can’t finish—” he stops when he realizes that you’re curled up beneath the covers, your glassy eyes blinking back at him.

hinata scrambles over, dropping the bags on the floor, and burrowing into your side, “what’s wrong? are you sore? was it me—”

you start to wail midway, cutting him off, “i-i thought you left!” you hiccup, “you weren’t there when i woke up so i thought you regretted it and—”

“no, no, i would never—” he protests, and his gaze softens when he sees your patchy face, “y/n, please don’t cry! i-i won’t leave you ever! come on, let’s go eat, okay?”

you wipe your tears hastily, lip still quivering. but you believe him, his eyes as bright as they were the day you met him, and you say okay.

[tokrev-roses]

Cool Cool Boy

although you are happy with your love, your ex-boyfriend wants to be a part of your life again. jealous boyfriends and phones involved + NSFW (original request)

🖋Genre: Smut (Mikey, Draken Chifuyu), Fluff (Baji)

⚠️Warnings: 18+ for everyone but Baji, description of the female body and sexual acts, bad writing/grammar/spelling

👥Characters: Mikey, Draken, Chifuyu, Baji

❧ Keisuke Baji

Fancy dates are not his thing

It was not only that he had a budget, being a middle schooler and everything, he also simply didn’t vibe with it

But it was your anniversary, so he saved up all his pocket money and tried to behave so mama Baji would let him out

Cue to him waiting in front of a popular restaurant for young couples, wearing his edgy street clothes

And to both of your surprise, everything went smoothly

He excused himself to the restroom for a sec, and while you were waiting at your table, daydreaming about the beauty of this evening, someone sat down on Keisuke’s chair

You turned towards the person, fully expecting to see your boyfriend, but were met with a less than pleasant view. Your ex-boyfriend greeted you with a satisfied smirk.

“Enjoying yourself, y/n? You know, I always thought you were one of those girls who loved fancy stuff, considering how much you loved our dates and my presents. That you’d settle for someone who is unable to offer you more than this…” He made a derogatory gesture towards the other tables.

This was no high-end restaurant with view over the Tokyo skyline, but it was Baji who put a lot of effort into this, and it meant more to you than anything else

As you were about to respond, a shadow towered over your ex

“What do you think you are doing her punk?”

“This is the trash you left me for, y/n?”

As he was about to laugh, Baji seized him by the collar, lifted him up, and threw him away like actual trash

Knowing Keisuke, you tried to stop the enraged berserker he was about to turn into. No need for a brawl in the middle of a restaurant

You managed to calm him, nonetheless the manager kindly asked all three of you to leave

Keisuke kept quiet on your way home. You knew why. He actually wanted everything to be perfect, to show you how much you meant to him and it was ruined by his temper and a slimy asshole

„♪Kei-Su-Ke♪“, you poked the dimples of your grumpy boyfriend. “I loved this evening. Minus that idiot, but that was none of your fault.”

“Hm.”

He kept walking.

Ok, you’d have to bring the big guns in

With two big steps you were behind him to give him the strongest back hug possible

“Ya, you punk. Wanna pick a fight?”, your effort to imitate his voice didn’t go unnoticed.

“As if a small fry like you could win against me.”

With that you knew the ice was broken. What you didn’t expect was him turning around fast as lightening, picking you up and throwing you over his shoulder.

You tried to scream but it ended in heartful laughter

A perfect anniversary indeed.

❧ Manjiro Sano

(Future!Mikey, Dark-Haired)

King of jealousy and most possessive out of all the boys, so you can imagine his reaction as you told him your ex-boyfriend visited you at work

The mood instantly shifted

“Come on, Manjiro. He didn’t ask me to marry him or anything.”

This joke was not appreciated by him, and he stayed broody for the rest of the evening

You should have known that he was up to something as he suddenly became very touchy with you, but you pinned it on his neediness

Things got even stranger when he didn’t let you touch or pleasure him, but instead kept making you feel like wax between his fingers

It wasn’t just the way he abused your neck with longing kisses or how he caressed the sides of your body with featherlight touches as he made his way downwards. Not the way he fondled your breasts with the utmost care, kissing and sucking your nipples until you couldn’t keep your whimpers from spilling.

The satisfied smile he gave you as you made the first sound should have shown you that there was more to it, but you were so lost in pleasure, that you really didn’t care

Things got worse (or better) for you as he reached your most intimate spot

If he was skilled at pleasuring you before, he was a god at doing so today.

White pleasure blinded you as his velvet tongue explored every part of you. Every moan and whimper you gave him was met with a pleased hum that vibrated through your body.

When you couldn’t stop your own need from feeling every part of him on you, you used your hands in his dark hair to push him closer to you.

Instead of understanding your silent plea like he usually would, he just kept going and going until your vision got blurred by tears and your voice was hoarse.

Only then he let you go, mumbling something you were too tired to understand.

You slept well that night, with Mikey hugging you loke a koala

It was only when you looked at your phone the next morning, that you realized what he had done.

A chat with your ex-boyfriend, who must have written you last evening about going out for dinner, cough your eye. Your answer, which you definitely didn’t send, consisted of a 30 second audio.

Innocent you played it, of course, and it took you a second to realize what exactly you were hearing.

That was you. You, moaning in ecstasy. You were frozen in place an listened all the way through it

The audio ended with a raspy voice you knew all too well

“She is busy with me.”

❧ Ken Ryuguji

Your phone was broken.

It did not show you, who tried to call you and called people you never meant to call. That’s why instead of putting it in your pockets, it usually laid somewhere beside you. Like today as you were cooking dinner for your finance who was about to come home from his bike shop very soon

The last days had been a bit stressful, he had a lot to do, couldn’t spend any time with you and you went to meet your ex-boyfriend for coffee, as he himself was about to get married soon

Ken tried to be understanding, but the amount of your time this past fling consumed annoyed him

That’s why he wanted to make up for lost time this evening

He didn’t hesitate when he saw you standing in the kitchen, stirring something in a pan and looking so perfect

On swift move and the giant had placed you on the counter, standing between your spread legs, face buried in your neck

“Well, someone seems eager.”

He wasn’t willing to waste time with your teasing but begun to assault your lips

Heavy breathing filled the room as he cupped your chin with one hand and tried to get rid of your clothes with the other

Your bodies soon met with a pleasurable sensation, moving in synch.

You held on to him like your life depended on it, ankles hooked behind his back

He wasn’t one to moan, but his heavy breathing had something so unexplainable erotic to it, that it made up for the missing foreplay

One couldn’t be without the other and if it wouldn’t have been for the laws of nature, you would have said that your brains your hearts and your pleasure became one

Sweat made the counter slippery, and your voice became raspy as you finally reached your high together

“Well, hello there.” You could literally hear the smirk on his lips as he said this.

“…hello?”

You thought you were hallucination from your post-orgasmic bliss as you heard another voice talking to the both of you. But Ken’s shocked face as he looked towards your phone woke you up

It couldn’t be that your phone called your ex-boyfriend, right?

Right??  

❧ Chifuyu Matsuno

It’s not like Chifuyu needs your attention all the time, but he kinda needs it when he wants it you know?

And today he really needed it

He had given the shop into the hands of his partner, Kazutora, to spend some time with you, as a surprise

The thing with surprises was, that they usually came at the worst times

His mood went downwards as he came home and instead of giving him a confused hug, asking him why he was home already, you were on the phone with god knows whom

He thought you’d end the call soon, so he gave you some space, but as you kept laughing 30 minutes after he arrived, he got annoyed, to say the least.

He didn’t mean to listen in on your conversation, but your constant laughter, bickering and smiling made him…curious

It seemed like your former high school sweetheart had called to “remember the good old times”, and although it wasn’t like him at all, he slowly but surely felt anger bubbling inside of him.

You had settled for the couch, and although the other party was on the phone, he felt the need to touch you, so he laid down between your legs, head resting on your stomach

You, of course, noticed the sour mood hanging in the air (not just because he followed you around like a lost puppy while you were phoning this old friend of yours)

So you petted his hair, knowing it would calm him

But the time for appeasement was over, at least for Chifuyu. He knew that you knew that he wanted you to hang up, yet you didn’t

It started as an innocent kiss on your stomach, which you answered with a silent chuckle, shaking your hand to signal him to stop

That he ignored it would be an understatement

Something you realised as he started caressing your intimate part through your clothes

As your friend on the other side was continuing to tell you about his life, your attention was captured by the innocent puppy-dog eyes your boyfriend gave you as he got rid of the annoying layers keeping him from feeling you

He began giving you kitten licks, that literally took your breath away. Good for you, the other man didn’t notice

Chifuyu, that devil, knew what he was doing, keeping eye contact with you while doing the most sinful things to you

It got worse as he took your pearl between his soft lips and started sucking

You had to press your fist on your mouth to keep any sound from spilling

He continued his assault with a steady pace, and you wanted him to stop as much as you wanted him to continue

“Y/n, are you still there?”

You hadn’t noticed that the excited voice on the phone had stopped

Faster than you could react, Chifuyu had snatched your phone away from you.

His breath tickled your now wet parts as he answered

“Something came up just now, and she needs to come. Try again, pal.”

[dreamkidddream]

Those Doll!anon fics were really amazing! I really wanna do something like it if you don’t mind. Could I maybe get a Yorkie!MC? Like, a really short, really friendly MC until they feel like they or one of the brothers/undateables are being threatened or insulted, then they try to pick a fight they’d obviously lose? I’m just laughing at the mental imagine of this short, unthreatening human yelling at and trying to square up against a demon lol.

Awww tysm!! 💙I missed writing for Obey Me (and we also hit 666 followers at this point 😈💜) and since this was so interesting I decided that I’m gonna do the Undateables first and then do the brothers cause I feel like I don’t show them enough love 😔 reader is gender neutral!

The Undateables with Yorkie!MC

Diavolo

He is LOVING your energy

Your happiness is so contagious, it just adds onto his already cheery demeanor. He honestly feels his cheeks hurting from smiling even more when you’re around (and he doesn’t even care!)

He’s gonna buy Lucifer so much Demonus as a thank you for picking you for the exchange program. Seriously, you’re PERFECT (for him)

As the President of Student Council and future King, he loves seeing you interact with the other students, and he’s glad that they’re reacting positive to you. At least some of them do

Now, no one is to foolish (or powerful) enough to threaten Diavolo or do anything to you that can bring you harm. They can try, but they won’t be getting the results that they hope for

But he can’t help it but find it amusing when you try to “defend his honor” when someone bad mouths him. He makes sure to not let it show (gotta be professional after all) but he does tease you about it later. You’re so small and seeing you just yelling square up to this demon is hilarious. He has no idea what geometry has to do with this, but he’s learned some new slang thanks to you!

He’s finally found someone who’ll go along with his antics and more. Whereas other people may complain about him wanting to do fun activities that seem basic, you just flash a big smile, grab his hand and tell him to lead the way

(You even made matching friendship bracelets and he refuses to take it off, ever)

You really make him happy MC. He doesn’t remember the last time he’s ever felt this lighthearted, and he doesn’t feel the sense of loneliness that he felt himself getting used too

Also Lucifer gets twice the headache now, but the Demonus helps it go away (temporarily)

Barbatos

Ah, so another Luke, except older and that you take your threats of violence very serious, if what he sees (both in the present and the future) holds true (which it does)

You’re still harmless in his eyes though

Your friendly personality makes it easy for you to be forgiven for a lot of things…even if your actions make him give you the side eye at times

Despite how energetic you are (which is something that he’ll never grow tired of) your presence has a relaxing effect on him. Even if he has to warn you sometimes to be careful with the way that you bounce around so much, especially when he’s in the kitchen

He unfortunately can’t be by your side as he is Lord Diavolo’s butler, but that doesn’t mean that he can’t keep watch on you, even without the use of his powers

With how outgoing you are, you’re bound to attract trouble, in which you do at a constant rate. What was comical however, is that it seemed like the trouble you attracted was on his behalf

“MC, what seems to be the issue here?”

“BARB! You won’t believe this! This jerk has the nerve to call you stuck up- well I can show you stuck up! After I stick my foot up your- Huh? Hey, why am I the one being dragged away?! W- count yourself lucky that Barb is saving you right now demon! But this isn’t over- MPH!”

“I hate to spoil you before our tea party, but you were already late and I have been meaning to have you try my new recipe that I’ve been working on…”

You were too busy trying to savor the delicious flavor to focus on what just happen, which was his plan all along. You get to try more of his delicious treats and he gets to enjoy your touch and company. Crisis averted!

He’s crafty enough to have plans to evade you “fighting” and you haven’t caught on yet (or maybe you did and just feign ignorance? Either way works for him)

It doesn’t bother him what people say about him, he doesn’t care in the slightest (and they’re not bold enough to say it to his face). What he cares about is making sure that you keep your carefree energy, and that he keeps to see you with your radiating smile on your face

Simeon

You remind him so much of Luke. Are you sure you’re not from the Celestial Realm too?

Don’t worry he’s only teasing you (kinda) but you do have just as much energy if not MORE than Luke

And you don’t mind helping him either, no matter how “silly” his requests may be

“You’re doing great Si! See, you didn’t even need my help!”

“MC, I couldn’t have gotten to this point without you. My pictures are still coming out a little blurry, but that could be because you wouldn’t stand still- but it does add special kind of charm to them…”

He’s keeping them btw

He was shook when he saw you go off the first time, like he really wasn’t expecting it (Solomon did try to warn him, he was laughing but he did try to warn him)

“Don’t think just because he’s an angel means I’m bout to act like one! I will end you!”

MC please don’t make this demon “catch these hands” violence isn’t necessary

He doesn’t know what that means but he’s scared that he’s gonna find out if he doesn’t hold you back

He has reprimanded you each time when you try to fight others. He knows that demons see him as weak and talk behind his back, but he chooses to ignore them, to turn the other cheek. But just because he does, doesn’t mean that you do, and he sees that now

Simeon really doesn’t want you to fight, and it’s not even because it’s against his nature (it’s part of the reason, just not the whole reason). Fighting leads to injury, and injury leads to distress, and that’s the last thing that he wants to happen to you. And he’s not going to let anything happen to you!

He truly believes it’s a waste of time and energy, and you could find better things to do. For example, by spending time with him!

Simeon may not be your guardian angel officially, but he’s your guardian angel. Always

Has definitely written a character based on you

Luke

Is immediately upset that you don’t stay in Purgatory Hall with him, and even more upset that you don’t live in the Celestial Realm

You’re like the best older sibling he’s never had! And you don’t treat him like a baby either!

Or he’s just admiring you too much to notice

You never hesitate to help him with anything; baking, homework, pretty much anything and everything. He may try to make it seem like you need his assistance, but we all know it’s the other way around (with the exception of Luke himself)

We all know that Luke gets teased by the brothers and even his roommates sometimes (looking at you Solomon), but it’s just harmless teasing (for the most part). It’s when he hears what the other students say about him that gets to him- he tries to show that it doesn’t bother him and he tries to stand up for himself but- their words really hurt him

And no one hurts Luke and gets away with it

You already get onto the brothers for their teasing when it starts to bother him, and now the brothers have to jump in to stop you from trying to rip this demon horns’ off

You can’t really reach them and they’re pretty sure you won’t do any damage, but they rather not take the chance of you getting hurt

It’s not the first or last time that you do this either, and it just makes him feel horrible. He’s the angel here, the one that’s suppose to protect you, not the other way around!

You help him out so much, either without defending him you do so much for him already. How can he ever repay you? He feels like whatever he does won’t be enough…WAIT- he figured out what he can do!

He can get stronger and protect you! He can go to Beel so that you don’t have to fight for him anymore, or maybe have Solomon make some potions that’s like demon repellent but only for those jerks. If those mean demons see how serious and strong he is, then they’re bound to leave you guys alone! Maybe he can show you some tricks too once he’s done. He has to hurry up and tell you the plan then, you guys can’t wait any longer!

Their words do hurt, but so does seeing you putting yourself in harms way to protect him. You can’t do all the protecting MC, he needs to watch out for you too, no if ands or buts about it!

You and Luke are the duo we never knew we needed

Solomon

Ah, it’s about time he found a human as interesting and adorable as you. Where having you been hiding all his lifetime?!

He has wayyyy more fun teasing you than Luke. Your pout just makes things x100 better and cuter

Congrats on becoming his new victim MC

Another one to find you very amusing when you try to fight and won’t stop you either

He will dead serious be recording you trying to fight on his DDD. He’ll make sure that it doesn’t escalate but who is he to stop such entertainment?

He has become tempted to cast a superhuman strength spell on you, and he ends up doing it “on accident” (which has happened more than once)

Lucifer has done the “I’m watching you” thing to him every time he has lmao

But no seriously, he won’t let you get hurt; he won’t even let the chance arise. He’s already pulling you away before you can get yourself worked up fully, dragging you to the library or his room to test some new spells (one that he tempts you can use on these demons). It’s enough to get your attention back on him

You’re a daily source of his amusement and someone that he wants MC, but that doesn’t mean he can afford his favorite human getting hurt on his watch!

He’s no stranger to the gossip about him, nor is he clueless. It’s just all talk anyway, he doesn’t care and neither should you. But it is touching to know that you care this much about him and how he feels…

But he doesn’t want you to do this for him. He’s a powerful sorcerer, he can easily solve this without breaking a sweat if he wanted to, but he doesn’t deem it worthy to even waste a drop of potions on. But since you’re so concerned, maybe a quick kiss would make him feel better?

He thought you were a little gullible, but that’s not the case. You just have a very open and bright personality, one that he finds himself getting attached to more and more as each day passes

If he’s not careful, he might get more enamored with you than he already is-