#also welp seems i also had the same problem with tagging people so only 4 now

[sunshineandviolets]

Rules: Make a poll of your favourite female characters (no limits - as many or as little as you want) and see which your followers like the most! Tagged by @ava-du-mortain tyvm 🥰💕

Tagging: @maburito, @askweisswolf, @grapecaseschoices, @nerdferatum, & who else wants too <3

[thejustmaiden]

So out of nowhere I was tagged and quoted by a SR shipper for a blog of mine posted in August of last year. Talk about throwback but, hey, gotta appreciate that level of snooping. 😉

Back in the day I actually used to encourage discourse amongst Inuyasha fans- both shippers and antis alike- but I've since realized that it's a lost cause. But for you, @feministmetalgreymon , I'll grant this exception. Just 'cause it's been a while so why the hell not. haha

I want to assure you, however, that nothing you say will ever convince me that Sesshomaru and Rin are meant to be together romantically or that the story intended it so. Nor will you find any validation here. You can ship them for all I care, but please for all that is good and holy while I have your attention try- I mean really try- to understand why it is so many of us Inuyasha fans are so against this pairing in the first place (newsflash: it's not about ship wars), and why we believe a romance between the two of them is completely and utterly out of character.

For those of you interested in reading this, the blog of mine in question that the above shipper mentions in their counter-argument is here for reference. It's titled "Jaken = Rin's Dad?" I'm going to try and keep this short, but I'm also making no such promises. After all, I'm not exactly known for my brevity. haha Now let's get crackin'!

Like you, feministmetalgreymon, did for your recent blog here where you took screenshots of mine to address certain parts, I will be doing the same and dissecting yours accordingly.

[Snippet 1]

I worked with kids for many years as a teacher, and many people in my family have too or still do. Two of them happen to be just over 5 feet which is quite short for the average adult woman living here. I've also worked alongside many a women of short stature, and never did I hear any of them complaining of issues with their students having difficulty differentiating them from their own peers just because they were short as well. I'm sorry but that's just ridiculous. Kids are quite smart and pick up on a lot more than you seem to give them credit for. Height is not the only characteristic they look at to determine who's an adult and who's not, and it's foolish to suggest otherwise. So unless you're a babysitter who's still in their teens and/or who has very childlike features or behavior then I'm afraid what you're getting at is total hogwash. This is just another example of how you shippers offer nothing of real substance to your reasoning, it's only ever cherry-picking or strawmanning from you guys. Stop deflecting from the real issues please, because this certainly isn't one and only winds up being a complete waste of time for all parties involved.

[Snippet 2]

Okay, calm down now. I wasn't insinuating that relationships between parents and children can't change over time in terms of how they get along. Of course that's possible, as all families experience their fair share of estrangement and abuse. What I was speaking about was in reference to the overall dynamic between the two. Because a bad mother or father can still be viewed as a parental figure to their child even if say they're not in said child's life anymore. Since Sesshomaru and Rin share a healthy bond- and just a friendly reminder that in my blog I even said that he doesn't have to necessarily be labeled her father but that a romantic relationship later would still be inappropriate- I didn't deem it necessary to address what you brought up. Plus, it kinda, umm, misses the point?? Please, let's stay on topic. And it's not captured in the screenshot, but stop acting like there isn't a small part of them that idolizes their parents at some point during childhood. Just like you mention later on how it's normal for kids to have innocent crushes on adults that they eventually grow out of? Well, guess what, the same concept applies here. Kids eventually learn that their parents are far from perfect and make mistakes too. Rin is so damn young in the OG series though that we never even get to see her reach that maturity level.

[Snippet 3]

LOL! Alright, okay, so the "unbreakable bond" bit you're mentioning was actually me quoting you sessrinners. Did you not catch that? I literally spelled it out. *sigh* The whole point I was making is that shippers like yourself make hypocritical and contradictory statements all.the.goddamn.time. One moment you guys claim that Sesshomaru and Rin were essentially strangers and meant very little to each other, only to say in the same breath a few seconds later that they were destined to be together and their bond is like no other. I agree, their bond is special, but why must that mean they're going to fall in love?

That is the root of the matter here. Too many animes/mangas have romanticized this older adult man & young girl growing up falling in love trope that it's become way too normalized and widely accepted across the world- and yes, in some cultures more than others. Sadly, you lack the awareness to recognize how this all works. You know how we know that? When we see that you shippers are so desensitized to sexualized images of girls in the media that you share posts like this one below which *subtly* imply a future romance although one half of that pairing is still just a child in the pic and then try and pass it off as cute. That's like super fucking problematic and it scares me that you can't see that (or deny you do). 🤢

After all that's said and done, Sesshomaru leaving Rin in the village with Kaede is to me the strongest indicator more than pretty much anything else he's done for Rin that proves he is her adoptive father. It's so funny to me how you somehow see the exact opposite though. 🤔 What I think is happening is that you got yourself on some squeaky clean ass shipper goggles fresh out of your little echo chamber. Because I hate to tell you, but what you're fantasizing is what you want to see and not what's actually there on screen or was written into the story. I'm strictly talking about Inuyasha and the manga of course. [For the TL; DR version skip to the last paragraph.]

Parents looking after their kids is what parents are supposed to do. A good parent will do anything to keep their child safe and ensure they are cared for, so what he did for her by leaving her there was in her best interests clearly. Besides, as a babysitter, you more than most people should understand that parents aren't always able to be there for their kids so sometimes others gotta step in to help. Haven't you heard of the saying, "it takes a village to raise a child?" Which in Rin's case is literally true! 😂 Sometimes kids are even sent off to stay with grandparents and that's who raises them instead. Or maybe they have to temporarily live with an aunt or uncle because their single parent's job requires they work out of town 4-5 days of the week so they're hardly home. But that doesn't mean that the parents care or love their kids any less, and it's foolish to assume that Sesshomaru must have thought very little of Rin simply due to the fact that he made the decision to leave her in the village. Come on, y'all are acting like he abandoned her there!!

It's just given the circumstances Sesshomaru finally came to learn that Rin traveling with him was no longer safe. I also like to think it's because he wished for her to live a more normal life and to learn how to fully trust humans again. Plus, continuing to travel with him as young as she was would have proven dangerous and unwise. Now for you to know all this and still manage to turn his past actions towards her while she was just a child into a romantic gesture is what boggles my mind. Regardless of how you look at it, from my perspective or your own, Sesshomaru is in the wrong. Either he's a father figure who impregnates his daughter at the young age of approximately 14. OR he's this man she used to travel with who maybe isn't a father to her but who nonetheless basically rapes her since kids her age can't consent to sex with an adult. Idk about you but it sounds to me like nobody here wins with either scenario we're given. In other words, you should be just as mad as we are. If only one side didn't choose to forsake their morals they know we both have in common for the sake of a ship. Welp. 🤷‍♀️

I agree, incest is disgusting but that's not the only problem we have with this pairing. A romantic bond forming between Sesshomaru and Rin would also constitute as grooming.

You realize that over the years he visited her in the village that he brought her gifts too and essentially watched her grow up right before his very eyes, right? I mean, I know you do, but I really shouldn't have to explain further why pursuing a romantic/sexual relationship with each other is plain and simple wrong. And before you say it's not because he didn't have any malintent, please understand that considering their history and power dynamic up to then that yes this is still considered grooming even if Rin supposedly "wanted it" or "made the first move." Whether you consider him her father or not, as the adult who took on a role resembling that of a caretaker in her early life- a critical developmental time for a child- Sesshomaru is obligated to turn down any advances by Rin and most definitely should not initiate any himself. As the first close adult figure she's had in her life since her parents died, it's unfathomable to imagine how Sesshomaru could go through with taking advantage of this young girl who was under his care and supervision since they met. To think he could be capable of betraying that trust sickens me to the core.

This. Now THIS is how a parent/guardian or a similar adult caretaker (babysitter, teacher, etc.) talks to a child. And, in turn, this is how some young children talk to adults. You'd be insane and delusional to deny it! We see it in our everyday lives, do we not? From where else do you think our stories draw most of their inspiration? Yes, obviously these fictional universes have aspects of fantasy that don't exist in the real world, but so how then do you suppose we're able to relate to them? The reason for that being is because these stories are written by people for people, so naturally there are going to be real life aspects embedded throughout. Sure, a little escapism doesn't hurt as we don't need to take everything so seriously, but ultimately we all need to recognize that the messages in the stories we tell matter. Most stories possess a combination of both light and dark themes, but when it specifically comes to the latter we gotta be careful with how we tackle this in children's media since kids are far more impressionable.

So if at the center of a story we have two of the main protagonists whose mom is basically their same age and to top it off she knew their dad when she was just a girl and who just so happened to help raise her, wouldn't you say that's beyond fucked up or at the very least so fucking weird? Like why would we think it's even remotely okay for our children to watch this garbage?? Really think about it. Try and be objective for once and think about how it would sound explaining this storyline to an outsider who's never watched IY or HNY. Well, antis have tried this before many times and we always get the same reaction: Ewww!

Like I said earlier, if you wanna ship it then fine, but 1) please stop seeking our approval or trying to change our minds - your ship wish came true didn't it, so why do you need us to validate it? 2) even though it's not canon, respect that we don't support this sequel portraying pedophilia in a positive light. It's harmful af to not only allow but glorify the continuation of sexualized images of young girls everywhere. And I shouldn't have to say this, but just because this trope is popular as you say does not make it right. Lolicon themes in the media have been an issue forever and it needs to stop. Yes, even some people in Japan or "the East" would agree. Shocker!

We're pissed off and rightfully so because Yashahime's TV rating is 14, not to mention it airs at the prime time kids in Japan watch TV after getting home from school. That's Towa and Setsuna's age, true, but if Rin being the mom when she's like only a year older than them (please don't argue w/ me about the math- antis have so far been right every time with it) is straight-up disgusting and not something we should be supporting or endorsing. Rin's a whole ass child!! Please don't start with the "but times were different then so her having kids at 15 is acceptable" argument either, because we've already debunked that and every other single excuse you guys throw at us. Besides, how or why would you expect young viewers to know these historical "facts" anyway, especially if as you suggest fiction doesn't affect reality so what does it matter? Yet here we are, arguing over a fictional show in real life almost a year and a half into the "Sesshomaru fucks?" sequel being announced. My ass, your ass, hell all our asses fiction doesn't affect reality!

Look, I do apologize if the tone of this blog came off as snippy or condescending at times. I do not wish you any ill will, it's just I'm not really sure what you expected to get out of all this besides maybe getting on my nerves perhaps. haha A lot of you shippers have been desperately scrambling to interact with us, lurking in our tags, jumping onto our posts screaming canon and getting so defensive even though you sought us out first. We've been sticking to our tags, so how about you stay in your lane too. By the way since we're on the topic, have you seen Twitter or Reddit?! SR shippers there are the actual worst and many Inuyasha fans (not just antis) have complained of not feeling welcomed to engage in fandom spaces anymore. Shippers swarm them and scare them off simply because fans don't like your ship and refuse to accept it. It's pathetic, really. No one should ever be bullied or harassed just because they don't like something you might. We're all fans of Inuyasha, aren't we? So let's act like it. Yashahime on the other hand, you guys are welcome to that pungent heap of trash. Fans have a right to criticize it too, but if you like it then good for you, so keep on liking it and don't mind us.

I'm almost done, but real quick back to Jaken! Let's not forget about how the official Yashahime website- which came out after my blog, mind you- described Jaken. This translation isn't the best one available but it's the only version a fellow anti friend could track down. They do recall a better one done by a native Japanese speaker who was also an anti, and that member confirmed that Jaken is indeed called Rin's babysitter. So you see, I was right in my interpretation. In the original post I did compare Jaken to a brother, but after talking to others (some comments can be found under said post) I did acknowledge that he's more of a reluctant babysitter who's not related. And if he's not at least a brother to Rin, then he's definitely not her father.

At the end of the day, the creator Rumiko Takahashi has the final word. Which is guess what? Hogosha. 💖 Probably should've just started out with that and saved us all the trouble, huh? Good day/night to you.

Papamaru bids you adieu now. 🤞

[boarix]

Fallout OC Interview!

Thank you so much for creating this and tagging me @robobrainmurdermysterytheatre you are a peach!

Rules:

1) Choose an OC

2) Answer questions as that OC

3) Tag 5 people to do the same

I’ll tag @nuclearmu5hroom @pistachiozombie @red-flare-art @free-hugs-for-ghouls @juliannahandart no obligation, only if ya wanna

1)      What is your name? Well, most everyone calls me Wraith… or I guess I should say I have everyone call me Wraith. My parents named me after my dad, Philip and my mom’s middle name Lynn, so Philippa Lynn Wolf. When I married Nate, I changed my last name to his; Keita-Johnson. So all together; Philippa Lynn Keita-Johnson. First fuck-nut who calls me Pippa will wish they’re dead.  

2)      How old are you? *sighs* Creeping up on two hundred forty…  

3)      What do you look like? You know what a brown kiwi bird is?

4)      Where are you from? Where do you live now? My parents were from the Midwest Commonwealth. The mitten. *laughs* We moved around a lot… spent a few years in the Columbia ‘wealth… Now I live just north of Boston, in a Minutemen settlement called Sanctuary.

5)      What was your childhood like? It wasn’t bad, honestly. I had a really good relationship with both my parents and my… adopted? Yeah, let’s say adopted, brother named Bartholomew.

6)      What groups are you friendly with? Are you allied with any factions? I’m the general of the Minutemen and a former Heavy Agent with the Railroad.

7)      Tell me about your best friend. *sucks in air over teeth* Welp… is it possible to be best friends with someone when you don’t know their real name? …I…we… next question, please.

8)      Do you have a family? Tell me about them! I have a habit of picking up strays so yeah, my family is pretty big. *laughs* I’ve got like, a dozen brothers and sisters from other mothers and misters, a grandson, a bunch of four-legged kids… BIG family!

9)      What about a partner or partners? MacCready and Hancock are my boyfriends. It didn’t seem right to make them pick each other or me, ya know? *attempts to waggle eyebrows suggestively*

10)   Who are your enemies, and why? Anyone who would hurt innocent people. ‘People’ includes ghouls and synths, by the way. You know what? People are anyone who is just trying to live their lives! *stands up and starts gesticulating excitedly* So, if you’re a super mutant, or a, I don’t fucking know, an intelligent deathclaw and you’re just trying to make it in this ridiculously dangerous… oh… sorry. Umm… I don’t like shitty, mean mother-fuckers. So, yeah…  

11)   Have you ever heard of The Brotherhood of Steel? What do you think about them? I love Danse. I kinda stole-adopted him. *laughs* The rest… They have the capacity to do great good for folks. They… ultimately fail to see that people are what they should be saving technology for not from. Their definition of ‘people’ needs work too.

12)   What about The Enclave? Maybe Mac mentioned them but I really don’t know…

13)   How do feel about Super Mutants? I love Strong! He’s my big green monster! As for the others… I feel sorry for them. Honestly. That being said I cannot allow them to hurt anyone.

14)   What’s the craziest fight you’ve ever been in? Oh damn… that’s hard to say. I have this bad habit of going full berserker when I fight… I don’t remember stuff and will start throwing shit… and people… and pieces of people… Just recently I fought a woman who was possessed by an alien artifact. She had telekinetic powers and was floating and had a bunch of crap flying all around her like a shield, ya know? Anyway, I threw some beds at her. It was unreal. Sad too.

15)   Have you ever fought a Deathclaw? *rolls eyes* Who hasn’t, amiright? I don’t really like to though; they are just animals after all.

16)   Do you like fighting? I like Judo and Jiu Jitsu. I like practicing the martial arts. I like target shooting with Mac. I don’t ever like to hurt anyone or anything but I’m not so naïve as to believe that I can save others without hurting others. Does that make sense?

17)   What’s your weapon of choice? Judo chop! Knives are fun too. I’ve never been great with guns but Mac has helped me a lot.

18)   How do you survive? Your wits, your charm, your skills, brute force, some combination? (a.k.a. what’s your S.P.E.C.I.A.L?) My strength is… well let’s just say it’s higher than… it’s high. Outside of that, when I took the test to enter the Marines my base S.P.E.C.I.A.L, starting at Perception,  was four, four, three, six, seven and my luck was one *groans*. Having low luck and charisma kinda bites but I can usually think my way out of stuff. If that doesn’t work I’ll just lose my shit and start throwing furniture. *sighs*

19)   Have you ever been in a vault? What do you think about them? I’m the sole survivor of vault one eleven. Vault-Tec is madness. Pure and simple.

20)   How do you beat all the radiation around here? Has it affected you? I had run-ins with Vault-Tec even before the War. I think they had their evil eye on me as soon as I joined the military. After the car accident that killed my parents, they ‘helped’ with my hospital stay. I’m also pretty fucking sure they messed around with my genes. My augmented strength and rad resistance, not to mention my longevity, are the results of their mad-scientist bullshit. I’m ghoulish. I can withstand quite a bit more rads than the average human and I even heal a small amount from them.  

21)   What’s your favorite wasteland critter? I wish mole rats weren’t so interested in biting my face off… they’re kinda cute, ya know?

22)   What’s your least favorite wasteland critter? Bloodworms. Gross.

23)   How do you feel about robots? You know I love Codsworth! KL-E-O, P.A.M and Ada are good friends. Well, as much as P.A.M is anyone’s friend. Robots are people too.  

24)   How many caps do you have on you right now? Zero. They make too much noise and slow me down. Mac always carries them for me. I trust him.

25)   Nuka Cola or Sunset Sarsaparilla? Nuka Cola! Quantums up!

26)   Do you do chems? Not recreationally. I don’t have a problem with recreational use, so long as it doesn’t interfere with whatever it is I’m trying to accomplish, you feel me? *tries to mimic Hancock’s voice: fails miserably*

27)   Do you ever think about the Pre-War world? Not as much as I used to. I’ve made so many friends, reconnected with some old and fallen in love… I’m trying to live in the present as much as possible. Gotta keep moving forward.

28)   What’s your deepest regret? What would you do differently? Father and Maxson. I…  I couldn’t get through to them… *sniffles* next question, please.

29)   What’s your biggest achievement? Or what do you hope to achieve? I’m proud of the Minutemen settlements. I’m happy to have been a part of their comeback story. I hope to expand and make safe trade routes and farming possible for as far as we can safely and efficiently reach. For those who would have us of course; not interested in any tyrannical bullshit.

30)   What do you want for the future? For yourself? Your friends? The world? I want what anyone wants. Peace and love, friends and neighbors. Peace and love.

[khadij-al-kubra]

Can I Bar-row Your Attend-tion (Bar & Grill AU)

Pairing: Roman/Patton

Characters: Roman, Patton, Logan, Virgil, Thomas, Joan, Talyn, Deceit (Dio)

Summary: Roman and Patton are two bartenders at a local bar & grill with some serious chemistry. However, the only people who don’t realize it are each other, and one of them is in a relationship…on the rocks.

Author’s Note: Hey friends! So here’s the next chapter finally in my Bar & Grill AU. I wanted to get it out sooner after seeing all the kind and positive feedback, but you know how it is when you have to adult. Not so conducive for writing time. Anywho, here it is, and apologies for the length. (i really need to keep a more strict word count)  If you’d like to be in the tag list for future chapters let me know. And as always feel free to leave a comment in the messages or reply if you have any notes or constructive critiques. I’m always open to writing advice. Disclaimer: Puns ahead. Many. (muahaha)

<--PREVIOUS

Chapter 2: One Roman Coke, Hold the Crush 

(POV- Patton)

Patton knew he should feel grateful, happy even, to have a boyfriend like Dio. After all, they’d been going steady for six months now and there was still a lot to like about him. But he’s not Roman, Patton thought guiltily as his boyfriend drove him to work. They just had a brunch date this morning and Dio offered to give Patton a ride. Even as they sat there eating chocolate chip pancakes (Patton’s favorite), he’d been thinking about his co-worker. What kind of a boyfriend was he?

“Thanks again for the ride sweetie,” said Patton as they pulled up to the curb. “And for brunch. I had a nice time.”

Actually, Patton had spent most of the time trying to tell a funny story while Dio either scrolled on his phone or half-heartedly listened while nodding his head. Patton wasn’t as naïve as people thought he was. He could tell when people weren’t really interested in what he was saying. Roman would have been interested.

“It’s no trouble kitten,” said Dio. “I had time before work anyways, so I’ll probably head to the park and perform for a while before clocking in.”

“Sounds fun. Hope you get lots of tips. People always like watching you dance.”

He sure did. Watching the unusual yet beautiful way the man could move his body was what had drawn him to Dio in the first place.

“I know,” he said.

Dio reached over to unlock the door for him, his lean muscles flexing and the sunlight brinigng out the golden yellow in his snake tattoo. Patton stayed in the passenger seat, waiting (hoping) for some parting sign of affection form the other.

“Aren’t you forgetting something?” he asked, tapping his lips with a finger.

“Oh of course,” said Dio, his voice silky. “How could I forget?”

Dio leaned in the kiss Patton, his lips tasting faintly like that matcha tea he liked to drink. He even gave another peck on the spot beneath his ear where Patton liked, but the gesture had been tainted by the tone of voice. Sometimes Patton couldn’t tell if he really meant what he said or not. Patton smiled, said goodbye and stepped out of the car. He watched Dio drive away before walking up the block, the taste of his lips still lingering. I wonder what Roman’s lips might taste like?

He stepped through the doors and felt the day’s bad feelings wash away with the familiarity of his workplace. Sanders’ really was such a cozy little establishment. With its seat cushioned chairs and redbrick walls, the sunlight streaming in during the day and warm hanging light bulbs at night. The modern acoustic covers that played in the background loudly enough to enjoy but not so much you had to shout over. Logan had asked Joan to help put together the bars playlist, and good thing too. Otherwise they’d be listening to Mozart or Beethoven all day. Classical music wasn’t exactly Bach in style.

The old place opened at 3pm, so there were only a handful of familiar faces so far. People either came here for a late lunch or were waiting for the bar to open.  Patton smiled and said hi to every one of them, and they smiled back. He’d always been a people person, and why not?  His motto was, strangers are just friends you haven’t made yet.

“Hey Patton,” said Joan. The waiter was setting fresh napkins and silverware.

“Heya kiddo!” said Patton. “Oh! How’s Talyn doing? I hope they’re feeling better after last night.”

Speak of the pastel angel, Talyn popped out from behind him. Their arms were loaded with menus, probably fresh with a list of today’s specials.

“Feeling a lot better thanks,” said Talyn.

“I’m so glad!” Patton said, giving the tiny waiter a big hug. They really were like a colorful little kitten, which made Patton love them even more. “Now make sure you drink plenty of water during your breaks and don’t strain yourself too much.”

“I’ll do my best Pat.”

“Great! Welp, my shift’s about to start so I’d better get to work. I wouldn’t want to bar-row your attend-tion for too long.”

Patton grinned as the duo gave a simultaneous eeyyy, then he hopped behind the bar. He got the earlier shift from 4:30-11:30pm and Roman had the later shift from 5:30pm-12:30am; a half hour before Logan closed up shop. So his charismatic co-worker wouldn’t be here for another hour. Oh well. They still got to have six swell hours together, and Patton enjoyed every minute. Heck, seeing Roman’s smiling face every night was honestly Patton’s favorite part of his job.

Customers rolled in and out of the bar. Talyn and Joan went from table to table with orders, Thomas occasionally popped out from the kitchen with food or to chat, and Logan seated incoming customers. Meanwhile Patton made drinks for the small batch of happy hour customers. Patton thought it was a fitting name for that time of day, because so many of his customers at the bar seemed just that- happy.

So far his shift was filled with regulars he knew and a few new faces. Most of them were ladies tipsy with laughter after a few drinks like Valerie, Jasmine and Calypso. Others were men or non-binary folks like Sean and Nellie who shout-swapped stories after a few shots. Once in a while a customer would spill their woes as Patton served them drinks, and he would do his best to either offer advice or just a sympathetic ear. If anyone came in looking like gloomy goobers, Patton did his best to turn that around while he built their drinks behind the bar.

“I juss dunno padre. Maybe after all this time she’s finally *hic * bored or me,” said the near-weeping man in front of him, nursing his fifth Manhattan. “Maybe I should juss let her go. Save her the trouble.”

“Now that’s no way to go about things Mateo,” said Patton. “I’m sure she doesn’t think that at all. Besides, you clearly still love her and I’m sure she feels the same. Maybe it’s all just a miss-communication.”

Mateo looked at him with watery eyes and sniffled. “You really think so?”

“Absolutely kiddo! I think what you need to do is talk to her. Tell her how much you still care and want to work things out. But you also have to be a good listener and hear how she feels. It’s all about honest communication. Once you’ve got that, I’m sure you two can work it out.”

Mateo smiled and finished his drink. Then he handed Patton his credit card to pay with, letting the bartender know he was done.

“Thanks Patton. I really appreciate it,” said Mateo. To Patton’s delight, he also dropped a whole five dollars into his glass tip jar.

“Glad I could help kiddo, and thanks for the nice tip yourself!”

“How much’ve you got for *hic * vet school saving coming along?”

“Aaahh it’s…coming.”

Truth be told, Patton still had a long way to go. Bar attending kept the lights on and food on the table fine, but it wasn’t exactly a scholarship. He would know, given how many he’s tried applying for after Logan has typed him up a list of ones to try.

“Nice guy like you’s sure to get it,” said Mateo, waving goodbye.

Patton had to smile. Despite feeling a bit discouraged about Veterinary School, moments like that make it all a little bit better. Sure this wasn’t his dream job but he still got to help people in some small way and do a little bit of goodness in the world. Until he was finally a Vet, why couldn’t he do that as a bartender?

Dio had chuckled the one time Patton told him so. It wasn’t the nice kind of laugh either. That was the first time his boyfriend had made him feel…wilted inside. Patton couldn’t remember the last time he hadn’t felt wilted with Dio.

A sudden vibrating in his apron pocket pulled Patton out of his thoughts. He took out his cellphone to see who texted him.

Dark Strange Step-Bro: Hey Pat. Out on a parkour run. Can I stop by for a take-out order? Gonna be a long night.

Patton smiled at the message from Virgil. His street artist brother had been doing those parkour runs for the past year and a half now, and it seemed to have been a big help with his anxiety. Sometimes Patton worried about his brother getting hurt from those speedy stunts, but if the positive adrenaline outlet made Virgil happy and mentally healthier than who was Patton to stop him?

Dad-Bro: No problem kiddo! I’ll have Thomas whip up your favorite.

Dark Strange Step-Bro: Cool. See you in a few.

Dad-Bro: Kk. Love you Virge <3

Dark Strange Step-Bro: Love you too Pat >//<

When Patton was in high school, his widowed father had fallen in love with and re-married a kind woman named Beatrice Alighieri. Along with a new step-mom he also gained a new younger (by two years) brother in Virgil. Sure he’d come off as dark, edgy, and a bit prickly at first. But with time and some good doses of love on Patton’s part, Virgil slowly opened up. Sure he was still dark and edgy, but now they were super close and protective of each other. Patton loved the anxious artist like a son, even if they were brothers.

Patton put away his cell phone. He made sure his customers were all taken care of before stepping out from the bar. He knocked on the kitchen windowsill.

“Hey Thomas,” Patton called into the kitchen.

“What up Patton?” said Thomas.

“Virgil’s coming by. Mind making him some mozzarella sticks to go?”

“No problem Pat.” The cook turned to the kitchen and shouted, “I NEED AN ORDER OF CHEESE STICKS IN A DOGGY BAG, BLOOD ON THE SIDE!”

Patton knew that was code for ketchup but still, ew. Being a pacifist, or a Pat-cifist as he liked to say, he didn’t do so well with blood. Logan once asked him how he was going to deal with that later on as a Veterinarian, aaaand he had yet to figure that little detail out. Ah well. He’ll figure it out.

About fifteen minutes later Virgil popped into the bar and grill. He was in his usual ripped black jeans, high tops, eye shadow and his favorite purple-patched hoodie. His satchel filled with spray paint cans hung across his shoulder and Virgil removed his large headphones with loud music blaring as he walked in. In most places Virgil went into what Patton liked to call ‘turtle mode.’ But at Sanders his brother actually relaxed a bit. Another reason Patton liked working there.

“Salutations Virgil,” said Logan, excusing himself from the customers he had seated.

“’Sup Logan. I see the gang’s all here,” said Virgil. “Except for old Romano.”

“Roman had another audition for his professional make believe last night but has assured me he will be at work today. Speaking of work, did you receive my email about employing you to create artistic content for the bar’s Facebook page?”

“The one to ‘get more youths’ in here?” Virgil air-quoted. “Yeah I got it. Web design isn’t exactly my medium but I’ll see what I can do.”

“Excellent. We can discuss commissioning and creative content at a more convenient date.”

Virgil and Logan came over to where they all were and Patton greeted his brother in the usual fashion. With a big bear hug.

“Hey kiddo! Good to see you,” he said.

“He Pat,” he said, one arm hugging him back. Patton was the only person Virgil let hug him. “You really need to stop calling me ‘kiddo’ in public. My order ready yet Thomas?”

“Should be five more minutes. Lucky we just dunked some mozzarella sticks in the grease fryer,” said Thomas.

“Patton kindly retrieve some more olives and maraschino cherries from the back storage,” Logan said to Patton. “You seem to be running low on them. Then promptly return to your duties.”

Patton turned back to the bar and, yes, he was low. Woops! Guess he’d let himself be too distracted. Logan was a really fair and nice boss (and their friend, although he’d never admit it), but he didn’t like them slacking off. It was easier to stay on top of everything when Roman was there working with him. They made up for each other’s weaker areas, which is why they made such a good team.

Take last night when that big intimidating customer got a little too drunk and started disrespecting those ladies. Patton was no good at confrontation but Roman swooped in like the chivalrous man he was as stopped him. Heck, Patton had slipped up and called him his hero out loud. So embarrassing! Not that someone as perfect as Roman would ever be attracted to plain pudgy tummied Patton. He really was a Disney Prince come to life. Bad Patton! Stop it with those thoughts. You’re taken.

“No problem boss!” said Patton, smiling through his troubled thoughts. “I’m berry happy to do so because I love olive my customers and want them taken care of. It’ll be the cherry on top of my day.”

While Thomas and the nearby patrons laughed or, in Virgil’s case, snickered at his top-notch dad jokes, Logan just groaned. He didn’t quite appreciate the fine art of puns, but Patton had made it his personal mission to make his boss laugh at one.

So far, no luck, but he was persistent.

“That’ll do Patton,” said Logan, breathing audibly through his nose.

“I hate to stem off topic,” said Joan, walking up to them, “but we need more bread baskets for tables 4 and 12.”

“They’re right,” Talyn said joining in. “We’ve gotta make sure the customers stay happy and our tips fruitful.”

Logan squeezed the bridge of his nose. “Good Lord, please—stop. I can barely tolerate the word play from one of you.”

“Well that a-pear-ant,” Thomas said, popping out from the kitchen door to join in.

“Thomas, that’s not even the same fruit!”

“Guess it doesn’t a-peel to the boss man,” shouted one of the other cooks Enrique from inside the kitchen.

“Guys come on. Lay off the poor guy,” said Virgil, serious at first but then he smirked devilishly. “We wouldn’t want him to get a pit in his stomach.”

“GrrAAAGHHH!” Logan marched away from them to his office, flames practically steaming off the side of his face.

They all burst into rib splitting laughter. Sure they all worked together but really everyone at Sanders’ Bar & Grill was like a big, happy, sometimes silly family. He could tell that their customers sensed it too and that’s why they kept coming back here. He just knew it.

After calming down and checking on his customers, Patton went to the supplies room for those cherries and olives. He really did need to stay on top of the bar until Roman got here. Finding himself alone in the semi-cramped room, surrounded only by supplies, pantry goods, and two spare chairs, Patton couldn’t help thinking even more about Roman. Specifically how different his co-worker was from his boyfriend.

Dio was a great dancer, but Roman was a talented actor with a voice like caramel. Dio was charismatic but Roman was charming. Dio was cool and mysterious but Roman cheerful and passionate. Dio was attractive but Roman was downright handsome. What with his red leather jacket and black work t-shirt that hugged his strong protective arms just right, his chestnut hair, chocolate brown eyes, dashing smile and perfect soft looking lips…

No! Stop thinking about another mans lips. You’re happily taken. Was he really happy though? He hardly ever laughed with his boyfriend anymore. Sometimes Dio even seemed to laugh at Patton only to convince him otherwise. Plus they hadn’t exactly been intimate in a long time. Only cuddles during the rare movie night at best, and even them they felt halfhearted. Sure they were both busy with work, but Patton at least tried. It was like Dio wasn’t even really there with him half the time...but he was still a loyal partner. Dio never looked at another man besides him. Surely that meant he still cared and found Patton attractive. Maybe it’s just a bump in the road. We’ll get over it. This was the longest relationship Patton had ever been in, his first serious boyfriend, and that was worth staying for, right?

…So then why did he still dream about being with the creative, cheerful, and romantic Roman Prince?

Patton vigorously shook his head. He reached into his apron pocket for his half open bag of mini chocolate chip cookies. He always kept some in there in case he or anyone else at the bar & grill needed cheering up. He treated himself to two cookies; the sweets already perking him back up. Then he grabbed the jars he needed and went back outside, only to find Roman now talking with Virgil. He must have arrived while Patton was in the back. He couldn’t help the flutter in his tummy at seeing the handsome actor/bartender. Couldn’t stop the smile that climbed up the corners of his cheeks like grapevines reaching for the sunshine. Patton was so enchanted by and happy to see Roman that, as he rushed over to greet him, he tripped on a chair.

“Woah!” Ohnothejars! The face-plant crash and shattering of glass never came. Roman had dashed over and caught him beforehand. Being heroic really was second nature to him, wasn’t it?

“Careful there Patton,” said Roman, his face concerned. “I know you get excited but I don’t want you hurting yourself.”

“Whew! Thanks Roman. I guess you just caught me off guard.” The toothy smile Roman gave him was enough to turn Patton’s insides into goo.

“Ehh you didn’t miss much Patton. Sir sing-a-lot here just burst into the bar like his usual dramatic self practically shouting that—

“Oh no you don’t emo-nightmare! Only I get to tell Patton my good news.”

“What news?” he asked, setting down the jars. “Does it have to do with your audition last night? How’d it go?”

“Well as general guy-liner here just heard—

“Along with everyone else in Florida—

“I GOT CAST AS TOM COLLINS!”

Patton gasped with glee, unable to stop himself from attack hugging him. “CONGRADUALTIONS! Roman I’m so proud of you! I just knew you’d get cast.”

Patton savored the sensation of Roman hugging him back, strong arms wrapped around his waist. When Roman let go, he was more disappointed at the loss of touch than he probably should have been. Roman was scratching the back of his neck, and if Patton didn’t know any better, he’d say the other man almost seemed bashful.

“Thanks Patton. That really means a lot to me,” said Roman.

“Guess you’ll be busy talking off your cast’s ears from now on Prince Underarm Stink,” Virgil grimaced.

Roman turned to him serious faced. “Don’t feel too sad, Brad Pit-iful. I’m sure you’ll find someone else to spread your snarky doom and gloom to.”

The two glared at each other for a few seconds, but then laughter spilled out from smirks. Patton smiled at his brother and co-worker. The two had definitely come far from when they first met a year ago. They’d started out as quite the prickly pair, which wasn’t surprising since they were so different. The big icebreaker happened when learned their shared love of Disney. After that they put away their claws, warmed up to each other, and became thick as thieves. It made Patton happy to see them get along. Plus Virgil now had someone who shared the same sarcastic humor that he did.

Just then Thomas popped his head out the kitchen window. He was carrying a brown paper to-go bag. “Order up Virg. Mozzarella sticks with a side of ketchup.”

“Thanks Thomas,” said Virgil, taking the food. The cook then disappeared back to the kitchen.

“Now kiddo, I really wish you would order one of our salads from time to time,” he said, crossing his arms. “You can’t live off of just mozzarella sticks for long.”

“That’s the plan Pat. A quick and cheesy death.” Patton knew his stepbrother was joking, but he didn’t find it funny. His face must have said as much. “Kidding! I promise. Anywho, I gotta split. This mural isn’t going to finish itself.”

“I’ll be invited to the grand reveal I hope?” Roman asked carefully.

Virgil fidgeted with the zipper on his hoodie but said, “Uh…sure Princy. So long as I get good seats to your show.”

“Done and done! Thanks Virge.”

“Don’t mention it. Seriously.” He reached into the bag, grabbed a streaming mozzarella stick and stuck it between his teeth. “Later.”

As soon as he was out the door the anxious artist slipped his headphones back on and broke into a run. Patton watched through the glass of the windows as Virgil flipped over the sidewalk bench. Hardcore parkour.

“I’m so excited for you about the play Roman,” said Patton as they both returned to the back of the bar.

“Yes, I am truly excited to start rehearsals, although it will take time out of my bartending schedule,” said Roman, tying on his apron. “I might have to cut back on my shifts, especially when the tech week and show dates get closer.”

“Oh…” That meant he wouldn’t see Roman as much. The thought made Patton too sad for words.

“It would only be for a couple months,” Roman said quickly. “And I’ll only have rehearsals two or three nights a week until then. So I’ll still be here with you the rest of our shifts.”

‘Here with you’. Patton liked the sound of that. “Great. I’m really glad about that.”

“I’ve already spoken to Logan when I came in. He’s going to have his cousin to fill in for my shifts on the nights I’m rehearsing. So you won’t be left hanging.” Roman placed a strong yet gentle hand on his shoulder. “I’d never do that to you Patton.”

The touch sent a warm shiver through Patton’s body, reawakening the butterflies in his tummy. Here Roman was, taking on a new responsibility on his journey towards his dreams of stardom, and he was worried about Patton. It made him feel so special. He placed his hand over Roman’s.

“I know you wouldn’t Roman. After all we’re…work partners,” he said, trying to smile more happily than he felt.

“Right. Of course.” They broke contact. “Well, let’s get to it…partner. We’ve got thirsty customers to attend to.”

“Hi-ho, it’s off to work we go.”

Roman smiled at him. Then they got back to taking orders and building drinks for their loyal customers. At he poured drinks and shook the shaker, Patton stole glances at Roman. Even though it wasn’t the work he wanted to be doing, Roman still threw himself into the task with flair and fervor. Just like how he did with every task he was faced with. It was something that Patton admired most about the man. Dio was equally creative in a different way, but he couldn’t hold a candle to Roman’s passion for just about everything!

…But he was loyal. Very. And he never did or said a bad thing to him ever. Patton couldn’t betray that by have feelings for someone else. It would be like cheating on him, even if just emotionally. Besides, even if Patton didn’t have a boyfriend, Roman was way out of his league! He was strong, charming, sweet, talented, and super-duper handsome. He could have any guy he wanted. As for Patton, well, at best he got called ‘cute’. Every guy, girl, and non-binary person he’d every had a crush on said so. It was a miracle that Dio had even given him two looks. To hope that Roman ever would see him as more than that, to feel more for him, was just fantasy.

Patton reached into his pocket for another cookie and took a nibble.

Oh Roman…What would a handsome prince like you ever see in a plain old pop-er like me?

NEXT-->

Tag List: @altruistic-skittles @thekeytohappiness-is-you @canadian-crofters  @icecoldparadise @bluebloodstains @purpleshipper @patchworkofstars @axyzel @hissesssss @beautifully-terribly @pink-and-purple-flowers @jynxlovesluck @thatsanswitch @6tick6tock6 @hanramz-the-fander @azlinne

[ayahne]

i can’t write, i say as i write 8 pages on Word

I discussed this simple little idea i had with @adelmortescryche from 2AM to 5AM and now it’s not a little idea. A lot of ideas thrown mostly randomly together on the same fic idea i will never write cause i write baaaad.

I call it : EdRi!!! On Para-Ice

- When Yuuri arrives at Wayne State to major in buisness and become a pro skater, he meets the four people with who he's going to share lodging.

- Ling is his age, he's a Xingian diplomat son that want to keep it low-key, and he's majoring in political science. He's a funny, eccentric kind of guy, and he makes Lan Fan mad.

- Lan Fan is « totally not » his body guard, and she's majoring in chemistry. She's a strange blend of calm and hot-temper. He likes her.

- There's also Phichit, ; he's younger, but so nice and enthusiastic ; he wants to do photography. (he's Thai and doesn't speaks much english, but everyone helps him and stick colored notes cards to everything and he learns quickly).

- And there's Edward Curtis, who is half cyborg, hot tempered, foul mouthed and full of shit and loyalty. He's younger than him, but more advanced than him in his studies. (« He's a genius », explains Lan Fan.) They got on like a house on fire.

- Strangely, even if they're so different from each other, they share the apartment fine. Lan Fan and Ed go run in the mornings, Ling cooks, Yuuri and Phichit go to the ice ring... They fit.

- Ed is a bit hyperactive, and when Lan Fan is too occupied to spar with him, he gotta finds something to do. (« No Ed, you can't punch people in the face. ») He visits Yuuri and Phichit at the ice ring, and he tries a bit of skating ; it's challenging, he likes it.

- Yuuri starts to teach him simple figures : a single-toe-loop, a sit-spin... Ed spend his time falling on his face because the automails are destabilizing him, but he's tired and happy when he masters a new move. From there, you can't stop him. Skating becomes the escape to his problems, and the guilt he feels.

- He comes to every of Yuuri's event to cheer him on ; he manage the panic attacks like it's nobody's buisness, and Yuuri starts to feel more confident. It's great time, they have fun.

- But one day, there's an accident ; the huge score board fall on Yuuri that just finished his routine. They have to amputate his arm.

- Ed has lived this before, and acts quick. He's there through everything, the hospital ride, the hospital stay, the therapy. With the others, he persuades Yuuri to get an automail (« Hey, we match now. ») He never let him wallow in his depression, and he puts him back on his skates with his therapist acceptance.

- They fight, with all the others, through Yuuri's terror of the ice, and slowly, slowly, he finds back his love for the ice ; he starts to skate again, to being confident. Ed does it all with him, he's his crutch. (« I miss two limbs. If i can do it, you can do it better. » And Yuuri does.)

(beware of the cut)

- "dude you can fucking make a quint and fly on the ice " says Yuuri "dont care still jealous" answer Ed, and they laugh and Phichit posts it on instagram

- Yuuri's like, welp, if you can do it, I should at least try and everyone screams NO because he's older than Ed. Except Ed, who's rolling his eyes being like, he could totally do it, he's older than me and just as flexible.

- They're both ULTRA flexible

- Cue Ed teaching Yuuri how to make some of his fighting moves on ice

- Cue Yuuri teaching Ed more quads

- All those EdRi comments. The first few are just fujoshi slobbering over them and their bromance, then someone who actually knows something about skating figures out what they're seeing and they sCREAM.

- And the skating fandom has a meltdown.

- Phichit posting out of context photos, like warming up when they're in weird yoga poses, and it seems a bit more intimate than it is.

- With tags like '#MySmolSonsBeFlexi' '#MustNotLetEdSeeTagsHeWillSlayMe'

- Phichit and all the others being DEADLY TIRED than his frighteningly prodigious friends not getting recognition just because they've got automail.

- Doesn't people realise that automail makes it harder ?

- “It's easier with automail ?” * Ed proceeds to detach his own arm and dump it on the stupid fuck's lap who crumble under the weight. * “Try lifting something that weight more than yourself higher than your head, and even spin with something ressembling grace when you have a brick instead of an arm”.

- Pole dancing class as part of the automail recovery therapy. Yuuri smiles, and he's like, this was totally for medical reasons.

- The ports gets cold and hurt when they're too long in the ice ring, so for when they train Phichit knitted them horrible arm socks (and leg sock for Ed). Knitting is not Phichit forte, and the mitts are ridiculous at best.

- Yuuri's favorite is a kaki monstruosity with purple polka dots, orange stripes, and some brown squiggles that are supposed to be flowers.

- Ed's are one atomic pink with red hearts on it, and a blue one with barely recognisable hamsters.

- The photos of them with it become viral.

- He decides to go back to competing, and he slays the handisport section. He wins all of the gold medals in the juniors, and then in the seniors.

- He's got a new coach ; she's pretty, kind and maternal, attentive to his anxieties and the fact that Ed is basically is contra-phobic object ; she's perfect, and exactly what he needs. Her name is Gracia Hugues.

- For his galas, he always do something with Ed (and either they do funny shit things, either they some mind-numbing show of skills mixing Ed's talents in flying martial arts and Yuuri's adaptability- anyways they're breathtaking)

- There's a fanbase dedied to their bromance, and some people do RPF with them.

- Ed browsing deviantart and diying a little bit (but save the nice, bro, safe ones on his phone.)

- Yuuri reading fanfictions, selecting the crack fics and the AUs to laugh with Ed, Phichit and Lin. (and Lan Fan. She's there, silently laughing)

- They're so much more low key about the bromance than Phichit and Yuuri that people have a lot more opinions about their bromance. And are sure it's a romance.

- Yuuri obviously finds it hilarious.

- Ed and Yuuri doing shit like this on purpose.

- One day on tv, some jackass ask if he doesn't miss his limbs, and Ed answers "thats equivalent exchange" while looking at Yuuri. The shippers goes mad, Yuuri goes awww cause he knows Ed meant it very innocently

- They only pop up in Phichit, Ling, and Yuri social medias because they dont take vids themselves or photos and even less post them

-  One day, there's an hORRIBLE rant made by a dude that says that Ed and Yuuri are lucky to have found the other because who would want any of those disgusting cripples

- and they're a bit hurt but not much because they told themselves the same thing since they got their accidents

- But Phichit sees red. He takes THE photo.

- the one after the showers after practice, where you can see skin, soft scars, glinting metal, muscles and cloth making it SFW, and no comment under it like he use to.

- It broke twitter

- (Yuri totally roasted the guy that DARED insult his idol.)

- Roy Mustang is an ex-man-single prodigy. He was adored by the public. When he retired, he decided he wanted to go into Amestrian politics (ie, the Army).

- He's the one that presented his old buddy from the army, Maes, to Gracia. (people all around the world whined when they announced that it was Maes marrying Gracia and not him.)

- Roy isn't sure if he's happy for both his friends because Maes became 1000% more annoying after meeting Gracia. (That's a lie, he loves them both and is more than happy.)

- When he became a state alchemist, his fans where like “fire alchemy ??? U SURE ?”

- Yuri Plisetesky is a die-hard Yuuri Katsuki fan, and he finds it unfair that

    1. no same sex couple on the ice, and it sucks because those two could do some pretty awesome shit

    2. Ed doesn't compete because not enough money and he don't care much for the competition ; he's there for the fun and for Yuuri

    3. he'd love to skate on the same ice as Yuuri but, eh, handi sections and mainstream ones doesn't mix. He hates the federation so much.

    4. no one knows about the handi athletes apart of Yuri and Otabek (because he whines at him) and he finds it the most irritating thing in the world, it's a TRAVESTY.

- And just, one day, he goes to Yuuri's ice ring, and he watches him, film him for future reference and manage to catch on film a *quad axel*.

- And the regular skaters, they're like "wait what" when they see the video of the first quad axel in history

- "but we don't know that guy"

- and Yuri goes in a screaming rant about how they're all stupid, it's “FUCKING YUURI KATSUKI YOU HEATHENS HOW DARE YOU FORGET HIM HE COULD HAVE BEEN THE BEST RIVAL FOR GOLD IF NOT FOR THAT ACCIDENT HE HAD TO LEAVE MAINSTREAM SKATING AND NOW YOU DON'T EVEN REMEMBER HIM?!”

- And one day, Viktor, dense fridge that he is, find irl EdRi doing some figures in a public ice ring. He goes to Yuuri, says something like you skate nice, have you considered going pro, and ed punches him because the dunce doesn’t remember sharing the ice with Yuuri

- "I was too fucking kind i should have decked him with the metal one"

- Yuuri is nrgh between "he punched Viktor" and "am i that forgettable"

- Yuuri's also like Ed No Ed Stahp. While smiling happily because spiteful savage Yuuri. Who doesn't want Victor to get hurt, but he forgot.

- "We said no punching, Ed"

- ”Ed we talked about this.”

- ZE discussion they have all the time ; "Can i punch that dick in the dick" "No u cant"

- And he can only punch people if Yuuri is okay with it because everyone deem that if Yuuri thinks a dude deserve to be punched then he deserves it.

- If Yuuri thinks it's time to punch someone then it's time. Yuuri's everyone's moral compass. Except he isn't a good moral compass, because sometimes he's sassy and spiteful.

- Yuuri with really long hair after he stopped mainstream mens singles.

- First he was too depressed to cut it, then he realized it's easier for the automail. The hair gets stuck less in the joints and if they're long you can take them out easier.

- Phichit doing artistic© photos of tanned light hair Ed and pale dark hair Yuuri and destroying Instagram

- Al and Ed have been apart since they were 8 and 10 and they had the failed transmutation that left Al in a coma for 3 years with nearly no memories of his brother, and Ed without limbs.

- They went to different foster families ; Ed with Izumi and Sig, Al with the Rockbell. And Al doesn't remember Ed much, only what Pinako told him (he loved you more than anything, he was persuaded the accident is his fault)

- Olivia Armstrong is Ed social worker. The whole Briggs team work in social services.

- Ed refusing to search for his bro cause he's sure Al hates him, and, sure, Ed hates himself but not to the point of subjecting himself to that.

- Yuuri comforting him when he has nightmares about it, not saying a thing when Ed cries at night cause he misses Al.

- Phichit  stalking the whole internet to update Ed on how Al is doing.

- Al being so admirative of E.Curtis works in "Alchemy Actual". Pinako wince in the background.

- Al finds it hard to connect E. Curtis to his brother because E. Curtis is notoriously secretive. No one knows anything about him.

- Al doesn't watch ice-skating, and isn't much a fan of phichit-chu. And no matter how many times he falls on a video of Edward C. he can't connect either of them to his brother. Pinako's starting to wonder if he's ever going to realise Ed-on-screen and Ed-the-alchemist is Ed his brother. She shighs in exasperation and wonder why he's so dense.

- May being Ling's pint sized badass little sister (one of many but his favorite even if loves giving her shit)

- May is irritating and wonderful and god he wishes he could introduce her to Al.

- May find Al by herself and is like “... most beautiful boy i've ever seen in my entire life omg”

- She posts photo of her and him on insta, and Phichit send them to Ed, he becomes crazy.

- Al being in a perpetual state of “Wait what” concerning her.

- “Beautiful girl came out of no where to talk to me and flirt with me and take pictures with me what'

- She starts talking alkahestry and suddenly he doesn't register her pretty face anymore she's clever who cares about pretty I can talk about alchemy with her !!!

- May finds him adorable

- Cue budding romance while their big brothers are having aneurisms on the side. Yuuri, Phichit and Lan Fan finds it hilarious.

- And at LEAST Ling can interact with his sister and NOW AL but ED REFUSES and he is sad and frustrated so he goes skating cause he has too much energy and "you can't punch people for the lolz Ed"

- Yuuri just sighs and pats him on the back while Ed screams at the sky and goes throwing quads all over the place.

- So frustrated he tries a quint toe loop, but "not a quad axel, i'm stupid but not dumb, only quadsuki can do that"

- Ed having super nice automail that Yuuri offered him with the skating money ("look, we match !", he says, a twinkle in his eyes, echoeing what Ed told him a few years ago.)

- Since Ed doesn't want to see the Rockbell and has a « 0 interaction » policy, Yuuri found that guy that lives in a remote part of Australia that does incredible machinery. They go once a year with the gang.

- Ed considering himself « toxic » to those he loves. Lan Fan decked him in the gut, Ling rolled his eyes so hard it had to be inscribed in a book of records, and Phichit insulted him in Thai. He tried this bullshit with Yuuri exactly once and never did it again.

- Mari straight up hit him with a pan. She reminds Ed of Izumi.("My foster mom hits me with her pan, too.")

- Following that sentence, people start to be suspicious about his foster mom, until they figure out Izumi and Ed love each other. Their love is just... violently displayed. And filled with martial art montages.

- Izumi and Sig already have a biological son when they adopt Ed. Aoi is totaly enamored with his « big brother »

- They adopted another child, a little girl named Nina. Her dad tried to kill her, and as of such she's sick. Her and Al are the reason he started studying organic alchemy in more depth.

- Envy is Ed biological punk rock but so nice older half-brother. He's androgynous and loves confusing people. ("Are you a girl or a boy ?" "no.")

- Envy avoids Al cause he feels guilty too. He felt he shoud have been there for his two lil bro, no matter how angry with their dad he was.

- When Ed and Envy gloom together, Lin/Phichit/Yuuri/Lan Fan comes to hit them and like "no we love you yes we said love shut up, up, we going petting rabbits"

- Hiroko, Izumi and Minako being BFFs and drinking together. It terrifies everyone. They comiserate about their spawns.

- Izumi's kid is in awe of Mari (as he should)

- EdxAngst + Yuuri/coming-to-terms-with-his-anxiety

- "Where did your... special style of skating came from, Mister Curtis ? *behind, a video extract where Ed is doing a double backflip on the ice, before launching into some capoara moves while Yuuri smiles and just cartwheels for the lolz*"

- Roy calling Ed “a backflipping maniac”

- Cuts to Ed doing a triple back flip and a single hand cartwheel or something right after. Just to see the expression on Roy's face.

- Roy having ten cardiac arrest a day. Riza laugh in the distance. (She laughs at his pain all the time)

- "Curtis, when your in an ice ring you spend more time in the air than on the ice, it's not natural"

- One of Phichit most liked photos is one of Yuuri and Ed twirling Elicia around

- Even if Ed isn't an official competitor, he has die hard fans, that calls themselves « Ed's Homunculi », and they're led by 5 people that nicknamed themselves with the primary sins.

- Yuuri snickers at just their mention. Ed complains all the time. (« NO FUCK LET ME GO IM NOT EVEN A PRO DONT PuT YOUR BOOBS IN MY FACE DONT EAT MY HAIR WTF. Why are you all so DISTURBING »)

- Envy founded the fanclub because he finds this deadly funny, now he’s mostly in charge of the social medias.  Ed is horrified.

- Scar is married to Lust and follows her everywhere, to every competition sighing all the time.

- THE PRESIDENT OF HIS FANCLUB IS THE FUCKING FURHER OF AMESTRIS

- The idea of Amestris’s Furher being enamored enough with Ed's skating to give himself a stupid nickname kills all of his friends of laughter inside

- Aerugo is near greece

- Xing is in east asia

- Creta is near italia

- Drachma is between finland and sweden

- Amestris between germany and poland, and Ishval between poland and Austria

- Father couldn't arrange another full country array, and eventually decided to let it go.

- Envy's real name is Nichola Elric

- Lust is Veda Campos

- Wrath is King Bradley

- Pride is still Selim Bradley

- Gluttony is named Emilio Abatucci

- Scar is Luca Campos

- Izumi’s kid is named Aoi Curtis

[humblydefiant]

10 questions

Sooooo... I was tagged by several wonderful, amazing people on this and I decided to just tackle them all in one big post (but I’ll put it under a cut so I don’t make people’s thumbs bleed). Thank y’all for being patient and for including me (and at least it didn’t take me a month this time!). I know I haven’t been around much lately and it’s driving me nuts cause I miss talking to everyone. :( But, here are the lovely peeps and their questions and then my questions and tags below. Oh, and I’m answering in the order I received these, but you are all my favorite children (don’t tell the others).

My beautiful new friend @sweet-ree asked:

1. What’s your sign? Birthday? I’m a Taurus still (I think - wasn’t there something a while back where they were adding a new sign? Did I dream that - I don’t keep up with the news). My bday is April 26, 19xx.

2. Favorite cocktail? (If you don’t drink, favorite concoction?) I like Jack on the rocks (yes the drink and yes my husband, preferably both). If I’m mixing, then I use Ginger Ale with Canadian whisky. I call it a Canadian Ginger (I dunno if there is a real name for it).

3. Do you have any special/unusual/secret talents? I really want to degrade myself here (I’m really good at that!) but I will refrain. But honestly, I can’t think of a thing. I got nothin.

4. What is a personal accomplishment you are proud of? Did anyone tell you that you couldn’t do it? Breaking away from my parents’ world view. I’m the only one in my family who isn’t wrapped up in religious bull shit (and please understand I’m not dissing religious people in general - just their particular brand of it). Like I still wonder how I did it. Being gay had a lot to do with it I guess.

5. What is your favorite stuffed animal? Current please (and don’t tell me you don’t have any, I’m over 40 and I have lots incl a giant Appa, I wont believe you) LOL  Um... I don’t have any. I swear! Well, that’s not true. I have an old Ty stuffed bear (do you remember those Ty animals that were so big in the late nineties/early 00s?). An old boyfriend gave it to me. I got rid of him but I still have the bear somewhere. So I guess it’s my favorite by default. (I swear sweet-ree... I would totally own up if I had stuffed animals.)

6. Favorite fic writers? Oh lawd. I am surrounded by so many amazing fic writers here on tumblr it puts me to shame. And I don’t have the time I wish I had to read everything. But I’m lucky that pretty much all of them have me as a mutual (and that makes me really happy). And some of my mutuals have done a couple of short fics and I wish they would do more! And I’m stalling cause I’m terrified I will name some and inadvertently leave others out... and I’m sorry if I do... but... @nightmarestudio606 @bagog @bardofheartdive @ellebeedarling @estalfaed @missannaraven are the most prolific ones but there are many others that I love to and oh shit I’m sorry if I can’t list everyone.

7. Phrase from a video game which became like a mantra to you? (one of my favorite questons!) I don’t know about a mantra (maybe an internal one) but Zaeed’s battle cry in ME2 of “Sit down” is great. I was actually thinking of this the other day. I’d really like to say this to a lot of people as I knock them on their ass.

8. Who was your first fictional crush? (another favorite) I think it was Aquaman [don’t judge]. I really couldn’t tell you why. 

9. Any kinks you’d like to share? Oh, gee. Probably what I would think of as a kink others might think of as vanilla. I guess the dirtiest I ever get is water sports (and its not that I’m really into that but I’m not opposed to it either). Plus, I’m better at giving than receiving - if that’s even close to the right terminology cause (as I was told by a urologist once) I could strip the bark off of a tree and I can do it while erect. Hmmmm... I think I might have just identified a new career path... ;)

10. Post a gif/smiley face/pic/emoji of your current mood.

Me reading the answers to the questions of the people who tagged me. :)

The über talented @missannaraven asked:

1. If you could only eat one thing for the rest of your life, what would it be?

Dark chocolate. Not too dark. 80% max. But yeah. I love it. And, if it were all I was eating then I wouldn’t live long and I’d want to die happy.

2. Do you have any nicknames? If not, is there one you’d like to have?

No official ones, no. A lot of my friends call me Ty. A certain circle of friends call me Tysonia (er, you’d just have to know them… they’re special lol). And most of my tumblr friends call me Humbles or some variation thereof, even when they know my real name. It’s funny, when @bardofheartdive came to visit me and she met some of my friends, she referred to me as Humbles and it took my friends a bit of time to realize she was talking about me. haha

3. If you won the lottery tomorrow, what’s the first thing you’d buy?

Buy? Hell, I’d put it in the bank. I could just live off the interest. But, I would however pay off my school loan (cause I live in America and it costs a lot of money to obtain useless degrees)

4. Are you a morning person or a night person?

I used to consider myself a night person but I’m old now and suddenly not so much. At 10:30 I’m like, guys I gotta get home my jammies are calling. Well, I don’t wear jammies but it works metaphorically.

5. Do you consider yourself a good cook?

No. I cook. But I don’t consider myself a good cook. I’m not sure if anyone else does either. And I obsessively follow recipes. Like I’ll stand with a cup of sugar in my hand and look at the recipe five times. Is this where I put it in? *that’s what he said* And what the hell does “fold gently mean”? I’m baking a cake not doing laundry.

6. What kinds of things really make you laugh?

Oh, I’m a sucker for sarcasm. But anything can make me laugh really. And I love to laugh.

7. What is your favourite way to spend a day off?

The answer to this is really sad. But playing video games. There are lots of other things I enjoy doing but my favorite thing is just getting lost in a game. Or, if other people are with me, I love playing board/card games to. I just like to have fun.

8. Do you have any pet peeves?

Yes, more than I will admit. I guess the biggest one is arrogance. It drives me freaking nuts. Like you human just like the rest of us. You didn’t put yourself here so get over yourself.

9. Who is your best friend?

Hmmm… this is a really tough question. It’s weird because the person I consider my best friend, I hardly ever see.  But he was there for me when no one else was back in some much darker days and I bonded with him in a way that has never been broken. He says the same but he lives far away and we both suck at actually checking in with each other. But yeah, I still consider him my best friend.

10. What should I know about you that I’d never think to ask?

Hell if I know. I’m not that interesting. I don’t really know what anyone would want to know about me. Hmmmm… let me think. Well, I mentioned school loans earlier. A lot of people don’t know that I have a masters in education though I’ve never been a teacher. I did student teaching and loved/hated it. I had a student find me on facebook and said I was the best teacher she had which made me super proud. I dunno, it’s the first thing that came to mind.

The splendiferous @you-are-a-program (he’s also one-half of Europe’s greatest power couple, just sayin) asked:

1 Favourite Bioware romance?

Anyone want to guess? Anyone? MSHENKO baby. Like, it’s the OTP to end all others.

2 Dragon Age or Mass Effect?

Mass Effect. Though I love Dragon Age (and actually played it first). They are both so good but Mass Effect has mshenko so...

3 Favourite game?

Ok, I’m going to steer myself away from Mass Effect *put it down boy... drop it! good boy* and go with the Uncharted series. I loves me some Nathan Drake. Non-video game-wise, @bardofheartdive introduced me to Pandemic which is a really awesome game.

4 Favourite song (right now)? 

“Can’t Afford It” by Runaground

5 Pizza or pasta? 

*bites nails* Um, pizza? Yeah. That’s my final answer. But barely. I love Italian food!

6 On a scale from ‘throw it into hellfire’ and ‘blessed item’, where do you think pineapple on pizza falls?

I am on the “throw it into hellfire” camp. I hate pineapple period. And I love pizza so it seems to be an unholy combination. BUT I have no problem with people who love it. Just because I don’t like it doesn’t mean others can’t. We can coexist.

7 Favourite 80s song? (come on guys we all have one don’t be shy)

Oh, hell, I ain’t shy. I love 80s music. And my fave song is “Don’t You Forget About Me” by Simple Minds. (Technically, “With Or Without You” by U2 is my fave but it kinda transcends any time period for me so...)

8 High socks or ankle socks (trying to sort out a fierce debate with the boyfriend tbh cause he’s part of the heathen ankle sock clan)

Gotta go with the BF on this one dude. Sorry. But, then, I am a heathen so - I guess that makes sense.

9 Cats, dogs or foxes?

Cats. Can’t have a cat cause of the hubs but I prefer them. But I love dogs, too. I’m sure I’d love foxes if I knew any.

10 And finally the most important question of all that tests a person’s character: opinions on Boney M’s Rasputin?

*throws down pencil* Welp, I’ve failed. Cause I don’t even know what that is. Does this make me a bad person? Or just an uncultured one?

Finally, the magnificent @shotce asked:

Which (video game) character do you most empathize with and why?

I’m tempted to say Shepard but that would be a lie. Shepard is someone I would love to be but could never. I really connect more with Ryder. They basically are just a regular person who gets thrust into a leadership role they weren’t prepared for and are constantly asking “um, am I doing this right cause I have no idea.” Plus, they have a sarcastic wit. So, yeah, that’s something I can definitely connect with. 

In ME3 did you pick Control, Synthesis or Destroy? Or which one did you favor when playing multiple times? If you didn’t play ME, which type of endings do you usually choose?

I tend to choose Destroy but not really for the moral reasons that most people do. More of a selfish reason that I can’t stand to see Shep sacrifice themselves and I hold out the hope they survive. However, I understand why Control and Synthesis are choices though. 

What is an otp you don’t post as much about? What about your notp?

Probably my other bioware OTP which is Garrett Hawke and Anders. I post about it some on my pinterest but I don’t love them so much to spend much time about it on here. And there are other ships that are in my head but aren’t true otps. A notp? I have plenty ships that I’m not interested in but I don’t rain on other people’s parades so I just keep those to myself. :)

Would you be interested in a flat Kaidan/mshenko sent out through the community?

Mmmm... I’m not sure what the question is. I’m sorry! If you clarify in the notes I’ll try to update!!! But I’m pretty much in support of Kaidan/mshenko in any form so I have a feeling the answer will be a YAS!

What is your favorite type of xover to read/see? Don’t like xovers? What’s a show/movie/fandom you’re into that’s rarely on your blog?

Oh gosh, I love the idea of crossovers and really any combination. @mshenkowithoutadoubt and @bardofheartdive have both brought up a Sense8/Mass Effect xover that sent my head spinning with possibilities. I’ve seen a lot of ME/Dragon Age crossovers that were really well done. Others that can be mixed/matched with reckless abandon: Fringe and Star Trek are just two of many that come to mind.

What trope is your favorite and which one do you despise?

Shotce, you are really cooking my noodle here. LOL I know what tropes are but don’t really ever think about them. So, I don’t know. haha

Do you have any gaming/writing rituals? (I.e. Cocktails, mood lighting)

For gaming, not really. I tend to get really ultra-sucked in so all other conscious awareness of reality kind of goes out the window. For writing - I can’t say I have a ritual (it would probably help me if I had one). I have a playlist I tend to put on when write. Cocktails help! lol But I rarely take part when I write.

What way do you like to shake off a bad day? Or what motivates you?

Playing video games help. As I said above, I tend to block out the rest of the world when I play. So goodbye bad juju. I also enjoy just browsing tumblr in bed, chatting with friends and soaking up some mshenko feels.

If you joined the Inquistion (or moved into a castle) where would you park your butt? Tavern? Library? The gardens? Stable?

The ramparts. I love the view!!! I’d have to make regular side trips to the library and chat/make out with Dorian. (I’ll just cut through Cullen’s office to ogle him teehee) 

What is your weapon of choice in most video games? Powers/biotics? Shotguns or arrows? Wit or strength?

Oh, I’m a vanguard boy. It’s a parallel for how I live my life. Rush headlong into situations without thinking about it, take stock of the situation, shit myself, then fight out of sheer desperation to get out of there. Conversely, my weapon of choice is a sniper rifle. Weird huh?

Ooookaaayy.  So I know I’m supposed to write my own questions and tag people but it took me so long to do this (not that I’m complaining at all - I normally eat this stuff with a spoon but I’m just pressed for time these days) that I can’t do that part right now. Maybe later and I will reference back to this??? Anyway, thank you for your time and attention. I know this was a lot. And for some reason I’m still babbling so... bye.

[courage-a-word-of-justice]

Grimoire of Zero 10 - 11 | Royal Tutor 11 - 12 (FINAL) | Kado 10 | Boku no Hero Academia 25 | Tsukigakirei 10 - 11...plus summer 2017 anticipated anime.

Just gonna put this here so it gets more attention while it’s open.-> http://www.strawpoll.me/13311671

Grimoire of Zero 10

Geez, the staff pulled a Kado 0 - 1 on us here…i.e. the ending of one ep is the same as the opening of the next ep. It’s just to a lesser extent than Kado did.

Seriously, who is Him??? They still haven’t told us!

Welp, there’s my answer. It was too obvious to centre a 12 episode series around, I would’ve given a plot point like that about…3 or 4 eps, tops.

Grimoire of Zero 11

The thing about this show is that you can just turn your brain off and watch along. It’s a tad slow, but enjoyable and that’s why I’ve stuck with it.

LOL, I understand what it’s like to have “messy, wormlike handwriting”…

I don’t believe a wisp of that karate chop, Holdem. The hand was at the wrong angle.

Finally, the show gets funny again. There’s the Zero we know.

I love the sense of scale the animators have demonstrated with the spells. Just saying that before I have no more chances to.

Ooh! Oh, that man. I actually side with Holdem on this one, he deserved that punch.

“I-“ – Ooh, at that moment I got completely engrossed in the cliffhanger. Normally shows don’t cut off in the middle of a sentence, do they?

Royal Tutor 11

I can’t believe they forcibly took Gregor. Isn’t there some kind of legal offence for-oh wait. That’s called kidnapping. (partially sarcastic)

I’ve always found it interesting that the princes have to refer to the king as such, rather than “dad”. That seems to be a problem in every single piece of media you get about royalty, although these guys have a conscious sort of “I am no longer the king, but your father” (and vice versa) switch which is controlled by Viktor.

Oh, so it’s basically all the Dickensian stuff you get in Oliver Twist…(I haven’t read it, but you know how it is with classics *rolls eyes*).

Heine’s movements are believable, but there’s some suspension of belief needed for Viktor’s (because he faints a little too fast, I think).

Welp, this ain’t quite crying material, but I can tell there was a “climax” where the audience was expected to cry. Knowing this is anime-only material keeps my eyes dry, I guess. However, knowing that Heine’s resigned as Royal Tutor really made my heart drop…after all, this is the second last episode, and I’ve really had fun watching these princes and their diminuitive tutor.

Royal Tutor 12

Bruno really likes Gendo poses, doesn’t he?

Heine’s voice is great for a noob VA. It really sells the character.

I always thought “hai-neh” was a weird pronunciation, but that’s what it says in the katakana.

Seeing Heine tell others their strengths really makes me feel like I’m missing them already, in a good way. I’m not tearing up yet, but it’s real heartwarming and I know if I were in the same situation, I’d cry too.

“Goodbye” isn’t quite “excuse me”, but I guess it works context-wise.

This is one of those shows where “show, don’t tell” works well and I think the show’s nailed it for the most part.

University degrees don’t necessrily make good tutors. Any student knows that, especially in uni.

I can see why even the author cried at this now, even though I’m still not crying.

W-Who’s that? With the dark hair? Eins???

Ah, there’s my answer. It was indeed Eins. Why does he have dark hair???

Welp, there’s one finale for the spring season over. The anime staff really couldn’t have done too much about Eins, though, which sucks. Come back another time for a different show, ‘kay?

Kado 10

I’m in that weird stage where I want to like Kado, but because everyone’s jumped ship, I won’t want to like it either…what a weird thing peer pressure is. *feels like crying*

I feel like I’m in Superhero Project (one of my stories) where protag Keisuke wakes up in a white expansive room to be trained in his powers. Only this time, they gave the room fractals.

Interesting. It’s like an alien LINE convo.

Sarasouju tree…apparently, it’s this thing. Commonly known as “sal”. I’ve never heard of it, though.

“Humans are ephermeal creatures.” – You remind me of Haibara (Detective Conan).

“There’re guns everywhere in America!” – LOL, that sure ain’t the truth, as much as America has gun problems.

Let’s play another common anime game. It’s called “Spot the Main Character from their Hair Colour”.

(SPOILERS for White Parasite from now on!) zaShunina’s still teetering on “cuckoo” from his facial expressions here. It’s sad, because I wanted him to be mysterious and beautiful like La Luna forever...that’s why I killed La Luna off!

*sigh* Okay, evil mastermind pretender, put your hands back on and please just negotiate like you wanted to in the beginning. (*on the brink of tears* Hey, I realised something. I keep making comparisons to White Parasite, but people find it confusing. By making those comparisons, I seem to have almost jinxed Kado to be this way.)

*crying because Shindo* La Luna’s force of living was the goodwill that it used to create its powers. Does that mean the anisotropic run off trust in the same way? (By the way, please don’t resurrect Shindo. That would break the laws of reality as we know it – even anisotropic laws.) (end spoilers)

Welp, I guess not. B-But, my dreams just got ruined by Saraka kissing Shindo (although the Kado tag spoilered it for me anyway)…

Pffffft. Okkkkkkay, Captain Shang, hold up!

Shindo’s angry face at Saraka wearing his shirt had me dying. He really is Captain Shang.

Kado. You were so beautiful at first. I placed my faith in you. B-But you changed, and now all I can do is see you through as you become a cliché fest I could have easily created with my own hands. In fact, I did create a Kado with my own hands - White Parasite. So I am the one to blame…I will have to see this through as I have seen through White Parasite.

Boku no Hero Academia 25

Well, that certainly threw me for a loop. Between two forces of roughly even power, it’s unpredictable who’ll win, but the ability to humanise a character comes with weaknesses. I know that already, as a writer and reader of hero stories.

All Might is such a fatherly type. I don’t think I could write a character like him – both OP yet grounded at the same time.

Plus Ultra!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Wait, the woman with red streaks is his…aunty? Sister? I’m not sure at all.

Aw, this Shouto segment was just too good. I’m worried about Iida though, because from the Stain stuff I’ve seen floating around, he will not take the defeat of his bro lightly. Also, amazarashi is coming in the next part of BnHA! I loved Speed to Masatsu, so it’s good to meet him again here.

Tsukigakirei 10

“An Encouragement of Learning” is a Fukuzawa work.

From Kawagoe to Chiba it really is about 2 hrs. Look.

Oh great. Bad CGI people strike again…

Monzenyokocho.

Did Hira have kawaii eyes just as the other people thrust trash at him?

Imokoi is a Kawagoe specialty involving…wait for it…sweet potatoes. That’s why the sweet potato mascot makes sense.

My eyes!!!!!!!! Bad CGI people stand out more in night scenes (compared to day scenes, of course).

Toki no Kane, apparently also known as the Bell of Time.

The “game” in question, that rock paper scissors, was probably a batsu (penalty) game.

I guess I should’ve guessed Kotarou would’ve gotten angry at Hira eventually. I just didn’t think it would be now.

That shot of Kotarou walking down the street looked a little awkward because it looked like he was walking on a flat surface when it’s actually slanted.

It’s not just my video, is it? Akane’s crying got sped up and that pulled me out of what was meant to be an immersive scene.

Chotto matte means “wait a bit”, but I feel like “I’ll be right there” is warping the meaning a lil’ too much.

Well, I never expected this show to portray anger. It pulled Kotarou’s anger off really well.

I never thought I’d see the day where Kotarou would rely on the potato mascot, either. I like a show that goes out of its way to be unpredictable like this. Too bad it came a little too late in the game.

Tsukigakirei is all about following the heart and not necessarily the mind, so this is a pefect way to show it.

Oh! That was another good unexpected thing, but then they’ve been teasing that since the fireworks. Too bad they kept part of Kotarou’s face hidden right after it.

This end of ep LINE convo is about a couple that can’t sleep, so one of them starts talking about their part time job…then it gets cut off.

Oh, so that’s how Sakura is related to the main events…okay.

Tsukigakirei 11

“To decide that I’m hopeless before I even begin is nothing but laziness.” - Wise words, Dazai.

Were there always two potato mascots at the top of 13.70? I think one appeared there when Kotarou first received his, actually, although I’m not bothered to look…

The people aren’t CGI now…or I’ve somehow gotten used to them…? Either way, they’ve stepped up their animation game (in exchange for ep 12 being late, according to a note on the CR page).

That’s a cute jumper, Akane.

The fact Kotarou changes his message is something I can relate with. Even one forum post can take hours to type, even though time is always never on my side.

What’s that purple thing on the onigiri plate? A pickled plum? No, those are red…

A “root for the underdog” story is a classic, so I can see why Roman’s rooting for Kotarou.

Hahaha…yeah, let’s just sat I can’t understand the science for the life of me and leave it at that. That stuff’s chemistry, I haven’t touched it since I was 14 or 15.

The stuff about circles appears to be on segments, equal angles and so on (you know how you find the angle of a triangle based on where it is in a circle? Yeah, stuff like that).

Oh yeah, I never thought this but…Kawagoe Seminar. It’s named like Sailor Moon’s Crystal Seminar, and for good reason – both are cram schools.

There’s a grade score near Kotarou’s wrist, so understandably he got an A in Japanese.

Parents aren’t like that, Kotarou. They don’t always hope for your failure, they just hope you’ll do well in life…says someone whose parents have aways supported them.

Instead of having CGI people moving, they’ve finally done 2D people. However, the tradeoff is that now the people are not moving, which is just as weird if not even weirder.

“PoPo” is such a weird name for a shop, LOL.

No wait, I take part of my comment about 2D people back. There is still CGI, it’s just less prononced now they’ve bothered to put in 2D background people as well.

That scarf goes well with his outfit…says someone who sucks at coordinating outfits.

Why not just talk with her when you’re ready, Kotarou? If The Royal Tutor taught me anything, it’s that it’s always good to talk things over if you can’t understand each other.

Aitai can mean “want to meet”(like you’re meant to do to make the fish a heart), but the ai is in hiragana (so it doesn’t mean anything) and the kanji for tai used means “red snapper”. As in, the fish.

There’s a lot of ganbaru (try your hardest) used in this ep, and Kotarou says benkyouganbaresou in this “Sorry it didn’t turn out so great” convo. The nuance is therefore lost in the translated version, “I feel like I’m ready to study again starting tomorrow”, although I can’t suggest a better alternative.

Yeah, Kotarou’s mother is right. If you have a normal sleep schedule, you’re able to work better, despite how great it may be to sleep in.

I get easily lost on public transport, so I understand the vibe Kotarou’s parents are giving off.

This ep’s ED LINE convo is two people (one’s a guy, the other I don’t know the gender of) talking about studying and, at the start of the convo, the guy’s mother being angry. At the end of the convo it turns out the guy’s notebook was blank (and that’s the punchline to the convo).

Well, I’ll confirm my lineup for summer here and now. Licensing’s already being doled out as we speak so some of the lineup’s set in stone already. In order of hype:

Definite hype:

Boku no Hero Academia 2* (carryover)

Katsugeki Touken Ranbu*

Reflection*

Nana Maru San Batsu

Kaito x Ansa (already binged Nazotokine to prepare)

Nobunaga no Shinobi ~ Ise to Kanegasaki-hen ~* (see below, carryover)

Medium - low hype:

Vatican Kiseki Chousakan

Princess Principal 

Jikan no Shihaisha (seen the first chapter or so of the manga)

Isekai Shokudou* 

18if

Youkai Apato

Clione no Akari

Konbini Kareshi

Zannen Onna

Asterisks mean licensing’s been confirmed already for me as of this post - I’ve asterisked anything confirmed to be by CR this season, because that’s likely to be worldwide bar Asia. Katsugeki is the only known show out of the asterisks that isn’t a CR stream. 

Funi’s opened up its services to my region (due to the CR x Funi merger), I could probably watch 18if there, but 1) I feel like Funi doesn’t have a good enough player, and 2) I feel like it’ll show up on a service that has a better player.

You’ll notice Nobunaga no Shinobi, a carryover from the last season I previously didn’t care for, is on the list. I was looking at YouTube videos of people’s favourite OPs and I fell in love with Shirayuki (by Renka, it’s the OP for the current season) recently, so I binged the existing content in one day. However, it being a short series means it’s not eligible for simulcast commentary and I’ll have to make a separate ranking for short series once I make my year-end rankings (to include ~ Ise to Kanegasaki-hen ~, and because watching Kenka Bancho Otome has screwed my rankings over enough as it is). After all, my 2016 ranking policy was “a show I saw at least once over in 2016 and had at least one seasonal entry in 2016″, which if applied to this year would make Nobunaga no Shinobi eligible, but it would be unfair to pit it against any shows with standard 24 min eps.

[knightofbalance-13]

Dual Boss: Bluepulserjaime & Sokumontaka

Welp, time to hit two of the biggest ones,

First up is bluepulserjamie

The worse part of this so called ‘‘‘‘crtq’‘‘‘‘ tag is that the RWBY criticism and RWBY critique tags already existed, which only cements that the only goal this tag has is weak sugarcoated ~acceptable~ criticism that stinks to RT/Miles cultdom, and complaining about the rwde tag.

Yeah they do and guess what: It’s almost entirely populated by rwde posters as well who just post their attempts at criticism there so the problem still remains: People think lowly of criticism from RWBY so we created a fresh new tag that isn’t abused to high hell to attack literally 90% of the fandom.

Not only that but you say it’s sugar coated when when we have just professional and not insulting everyone every two minutes. If that;s sugar coating then your life sucks.

And saying that we complain about RWDE as a major focus doesn’t really work when only one post is about RWDE...out of 46. SO that’s like 2% of our blog at the time. Not enough to be a major focus. In other words: You fail.

And now for Sokumontaka:

Sadly all you do is prove their point, multiple occasions of blowing situations out of proportion, “Anyone who likes the white fang supports the kkk.”

Mind showing us proof of that? Because that’s a pretty harsh and radical thing to say. Much like Dudeblade going around on the blog harrassing us because I am a member, using terror tactics to try and alienate me and silence me (https://knightofbalance-13.tumblr.com/post/160300668855/httpdudebladetumblrcompost160270497031dudeb / https://knightofbalance-13.tumblr.com/post/160312823455/boss-battle-vs-dudeblade ). And you have done very similar stuff as well so y6ou can’t distance yourself from it (https://knightofbalance-13.tumblr.com/post/160171911535/httpssokumotanakatumblrcompost160164872264r)

Also shut uuuup! people don’t think miles/jaune are the antichrist now who’s freaking projecting.

And neither does he think that way, you guys are just acting in a way that seems highly illogical and hateful to the point of very old Catholic Church like degrees, thus Takashi0 (The person he’s responding to) was using hyperbole. Something all of you have done to me in the past then claim that as absolute fact for months, this being a one time thing. So by your own standards, you should be the one to shut up.

people just want the protagonist of the show to step up and be that, if miles didn’t put his foot in his moth often as well maybe people wouldn’t call him out rightfully.

Hence why ruby is the focus of the plotline with her in it with the person you claiming to replace her (Jaune) having so much of his screentime devoted to her that his own stand alone screen caps at barely six minutes. For the record, Yang had well over sixteen minutes.

So that line about putting one’s foot in their mouth and being rightfully called out not only applies to you, the way it implies negate’s Miles and shows you have zero self awareness.

“6-8 months.”  "If you keep it vague, you don’t have to worry about the plotholes.“

Mind you, even if Soku provided a link as proof which he didn’t, Miles was put on the spot both times so neither is a good indication of what actually happens.

Motherfucker – you make it specific and concise and you have a plan to make sure that everything stays consistent. That is how you avoid plotholes. What your doing is asking to generate potholes. How are you supposed to avoid contradictions arising if even you, the author, doesn’t know what the time scale it? You don’t have to tell us what the timescale is, but you do need to have one. Because if you don’t, it’ll show though. Your show will look chaotic and nonsensical. It won’t feel planned. It won’t have a direction. It’ll just drift along, going through the motions, conjuring up whatever it needs to keep plodding along on the long road to fucking nowhere. And that pretty much sums up Vol.4, now doesn’t it?

And demanding on the spot, specific details for shit out of the blue and demanding the creator answer them on the spot is also begging for plotholes, which both times did. Also, since you haven’t given a link to when Miles said this, I can just assume this is another joke you took out of context to attack him,

And considering the fact that a major plot point like the Maidens was thrown in RIGHT after Volume 2 without any foreshadowing and I have not heard a word of this from the rwde tag, I can also assume you are making shit up on the spot as well to attack Miles.

Just as well, writing on the spot can have an order and can have focus: Look at Dragon Ball in it’s entirety which was all written on the seat of Akira’s pants and...need I even explain why this works? Need I explain Dragon Ball’;s quality, legacy, popularity and influence? SO that point doesn’t work either.

It’s not like people can support and relate to the white fang’s want of peace and equality but still disagree with homicide.

A. you have said that the WHite Fang are justified in what they do.

B. They break up peaceful protests as shown in Episode 1 of Volume 1

And C. The WHite Fang have nothing t do with this conversation.

No everyone’s the same to you, so overly aggressive on all points.

Says the guy who regularly bashes Miles and tells his critics to kill themselves, none of which Takashi0 or Miles or myself have done.

Yeah like there’s noooo reason people would think you’re irrational. Quick to childish tantrums and haven’t attacked, annoyed or had your followers spam people or you yourself with messages of the same one argument

You know, replace “Same oen argument” with “threats and slander” and he’d be describing RWDE.

Well, that explains why the White Fang is being brought up: he’s projecting himself onto them and trying to make them look better so he can look better.

Face it both sides have their good and bad points let’s not act like we’re saints here.

Call back when we have suicide baited you, attempted to alienate and silence you, used fear tactics on you, called you a pedophile and an abuser, blocked you and slander you and attack you personally on all accounts for over a year.

Yeah, this isn’t a case of Grey/Gray morality you idiot, it’s Light Grey/Black morality now. So either accept defeat or stop deluding yourself.

[quarkie-blog1]

Thoughts on Arc-V

Welp, finally finished it. Now that more than a day has passed, I’ve been able to properly sit down and think about it more carefully. This is just really a ramble of what I found was cool and what was terrible in the series. Some of them were from reading online (with points that I consider valid), others were more of my own observations/opinions. 

While I don’t have very strong opinions, I may be brutally honest...

So let’s start with the beginning, what I found was really awesome about Arc-V. 

1. Yuya’s personality Following the cheerful and naive Yuma, we have Yuya the entertainer. The first thing I had noticed was that his father had also disappeared, like Yuma’s. Yuya does act goofy, but one could easily tell that he was doing it purposefully, to make others get a laugh out of it. For me, this way of speaking and acting intentionally is something I can relate to on a very fundamental level. While the first season shows that it’s not the best solution to simply laugh it off, I was impressed that he did something rather than staying depressed. The other that did make Quarkie like him is that he handles kids well. It’s just that in the previous series you don’t see it too often (Even with Yuma, who was only looking after Haruto for a little while). Yuya was able to make the kids at Yushow school laugh, and he certainly cared very much about Reira. 

2. Entermage/Performapal deck I know a lot of people found it laughable, but I found it refreshing. The previous MCs had decks with warrior/dragon/magician monsters as the majority. (I don’t know about Yusei’s main deck yet, but I’ve been seeing a lot of Junk Warriors and Stardust dragons). Again, it means that Yuya’s ideal wasn’t to show “strong via strength”, but “if it can make people smile”.  The other reason why I liked it was also because it seemed like a troll deck... when people won’t take the circus animals seriously and the odd-eyes pendulum dragon appears next minute. 

3. Female characters (mostly Yuzu and Serena) The best of the female characters in Yugioh were never able to beat the main character in any duel. Now enters Yuzu, who does so in episode 2. Furthermore, they had given her duels and moments where she develops her dueling. I don’t know about Akiza but this is not seen in the others. Serena’s duelling seems more consistent but you see how her views on Academia change as she is with the Lancers, and how she forms a bond with the other Lancers.  I’d like to take this time to address about Rin and Ruri being “neglected”. I do not know if it really was necessary to have all counterparts having more even screentime, but I was happy enough if there was just one or two properly developed females. Or maybe some just like Ruri or Rin more. 

4. Synchro arc This was where things were most interesting to me. Yes, it was another tournament, but the situation isn’t as safe for our characters anymore. I enjoyed all of the duels, and don’t consider them a waste of time. When the Lancers were up, I could compare their dueling to season 1. I think Serena and Shun’s had the most difference. I wouldn’t have gotten as attached to all the Lancers if it wasn’t for the Synchro arc. On top of that, Yuzu had continued to demonstrate the fruits of her hard work in dueling.  The Lancers had also struggled with the values of the society in this foreign world. Particularly Yuya, and he had to climb up his way so that he can be heard. I found this rather realistic. I do suspect that other than because he had no name Jack Atlas was more critical of him not being honest to himself. 

@homura-bakura had also made an interesting take on Yuya’s egao, and how that develops throughout the series. You can read it here, and I believe that the Synchro arc had significant influences. 

5. Pendulum summoning Like before, a new series meant making summoning monsters quicker. In a similar manner: - When synchro summon came out, you can special summon a monster without waiting for the polymerization card - When XYZ summon came out, you don’t need to wait for that tuner card to come out.  In this case, you can summon several monsters at a time, no tributing needed either. Oh, and your monsters don’t go to the grave if defeated in battle.  I imagine at the beginning there was perhaps rage about this, but there was encouragement and hype also for the other types of summons. By incorporating the dimension wars and summons, they were able to show a wide variety of duels of different styles. In Arc-V, there were specific duels that could easily show that pendulum summoners could still be utterly destroyed.  

6. The music Kotaro Nakagawa was the one who composed the music, the same one who arranged the music for Code Geass. Obviously I wasn’t let down. 

7. The themes Very early on, we’re shown about there’s something lurking in the background. And we come to know about the tension between the dimensions. I found this clash of ideals between different dimensions/societies rather interesting. It’s not just with the differing views about carding people in the series, but also how to resolve conflict as well. There are a lot of people (mostly from the XYZ dimension that believe in defeating enemies and carding them back is the method, while Yuya and his friends simply want to stop them). The stakes are really high, which realy adds more onto the challenge of how is Yuya going to achieve by “bringing smiles to everyone”? The other theme of course is “the other self”, which is common in all Yugioh series. I found it interesting at first how all four MC counterparts already had physical forms, but they were linked by the same conciousness when they are in a desperate duel, or brought together. 

There’s other things that made me really like it, but those were the main ones. Now in terms of the things that I can’t help but notice was terrible... this is in no particular order. 

1. Action cards and Tag Duels For me this isn’t absolutely bad, it was just something I wasn’t too fond of. I have heard that many Japanese fans were also not happy about how the tag duels were handled? I’m not saying that they were a bad idea, but rather it felt there was more plot armour incorporated at times. This could just be me though... 

2. Animation quality Admittedly I watched the Synchro arc and everything else after finishing Zexal. So... it was disappointing seeing the animation wasn’t as consistent. I mentioned before, I suspect that it seemed likely because of the DSOD being in development at the same time. This honestly saddens me. 

3. Yuya’s personality Yep, I like Yuya’s personality, and I do like some of his flaws incorporated in, but there are some that seem a really strange to me. Namely, when Yuya feels like a bit of a hypocrite to me. From Synchro arc, he begins to tell others the importance of smiles (perhaps he started in the previous tournament but I don’t quite recall as much). While he has good intentions, he hasn’t been doing much of a good job with maintaining his own smile as compared to season 1. Particularly when he goes into berserk mode by Roger tampering with his helmet. I guess you could argue that it was showing that Yuya’s previous method of laughing things off isn’t working, but I find it questionable that they would make him seem like a hypocrite. (Also I guess I just didn’t like this flaw in general, but that’s my own opinion, it just doesn’t sit well with me since I don’t feel like it ever got properly addressed). 

4. Side characters (Part I) - Kaito Tenjo, Edo Phoenix & Jack Atlas I haven’t watched much of Jack Atlas, so I won’t talk about him too much. My issue is not that “Arc-V versions made them OOC”, since if I was to write a fanfiction it’d probably be even worse... In Arc V, they are like alternative selves in a parrallel universe but with the same name. Unfortunately, Kaito and Edo were introduced when there were obvious pacing problems. Edo’s abrupt change to accept that “duels can make you happy” was something of a problem ongoing since early Yugioh, but I felt the need to mention it anyway. (Yes I see this issue at times even in Zexal...). However, I can completely understand the issue with Kaito Tenjo. In the context of ignoring what Zexal Kaito, Arc-V Kaito seemed to be acting OOC. How did he suddenly decide to help Yuya and the others when they were surrounded by the Obelisk force? What made him become more accepting of people from the fusion dimension? The questions were still not answered... I know that these three (and Crow, and Asuka, etc) are to be considered side characters and we shouldn’t be too invested in them, but this is creating a plot hole....

5. Side characters (Part II) - Asuka & Sora Sora was a character we see since the first few episodes of Arc-V. I admit that I might have gotten a tad too excited to see his cute but also scary persona. When he had left the Standard dimension there was an unfinished duel against Yuya left hanging. The next time we see him again in Synchro arc, he seems too agreeable with helping Yuya? I legit thought that he was perhaps faking everything, but by the time we reached the 100 episode it didn’t seem like the case. In which this leaves another question, what made Sora do that? Now with Asuka, I don’t mind her having less screen time as with all of the previous gen characters. However, I just question what was her purpose in the duel against Yuri. Maybe they ran out of time, but I was a bit confused when I saw Yuri holding a card. It was then I realised that the duel didn’t even take place at all on-screen. 

6. The last arc: Episodes 141-148 - Responses from the characters By this time, I had low expectations already, since I had a feeling it would be hard to salvage everything after the dip from episode 100ish. However, I felt that there were a lot of questions that could have been addressed. How did the Lancers feel about Yuya being Zarc? What about Reira? (Do they still think of Reira as being too young?) What made Reiji’s mother suddenly care about Reira a lot more? Shun was obviously devastated about Ruri and Yuto not coming back at first. How the heck did he come to the conclusion “Oh, I should accept the duel with Yuya because it’s alll I have left”?  The story really falls apart here.. Overall, I felt that there were a lot of people becoming happy a tad too quickly, and there was no one questioning Yuya’s identity. I know that duels are more important (and it seems that the japanese audience sees them as just as important as plot), but surely some could have already been incorporated in?

7. The counterparts This isn’t a complaint about how they’re all inside Yuzu and Yuya now. It’s not the happiest ending, since they were the most loved side characters in Arc-V but it is oddly realistic. The problem is that it really doesn’t leave much of an impact. (The closest I can relate to is when Atem left for good in DM, but they had spent episodes building towards that) I’ve mentioned that things were really glossed over already, and once again Yuya seemed to have accepted too quickly when Yuri suddenly was talking to him. On second thought, since when did Yuri become so encouraging?

Final thoughts: 

Did I enjoy Arc-V? Yes. I loved the characters and the music. I was very focused on each duel. However, at the back of my head, my alternative self would always go “HAH....” at the end of several episodes. 

There were many things I don’t think were executed well. Whilst I wasn’t raging or angry, there were a lot of unanswered questions in the end. (I don’t expect them to be answered, since it seems like it’s left to our own interpretation and imagination now). EDIT: Yes, I know it is a kids’ show on card games, but it seems that towards the end it wasn’t getting good reception even in Japan (based on Nico nico video rankings. Whether it was due to trolls I don’t know, but glossing over duels didn’t help). 

Seeing the fanfiction section yesterday, I see that people are going be creating stuff to fill in these gaps we are left with at the end of the series. (Either due to rage, or wanting more out of it). Whatever the case is, I think all readers/viewers should be additionally appreciative of others making something to give you maybe a version that should have you more satisfied with. 

That was a long ramble... thanks for reading, and it was enjoyable being in the Arc-V fandom.