#also- some thoughts on why he could fight but not run: a) its fiction

[arsenicflame]

so, this ones technically not a fix it because its still major character death but this is how i would tweak the canon story to give Izzy's death meaning and weight.

First of all, Izzy doesn't get shot by Ricky. The crew of the revenge may still be absolute rookies by Izzy's standards but even they know to take all the weapons off a hostage and unload any guns. Ricky still escapes and alerts the Navy, and our crew are running through the woods, down to the beach and Izzy is still falling back. For all his new prosthetic has helped his mobility immensely, its no good for running. Its clunky and dragging behind him and Ed and Frenchie and Jim and everyone keeps slowing down to make sure he's keeping up with them, but in doing that the navy are quickly catching up to all of them, they're being swarmed.

They break through the trees onto the beach, with more and more men coming up behind them. Izzy's struggling even more across the beach than he was in the woods, the hoof sinking in and sand shifting as he tries to run, and he stumbles. All the while Navy men continue to appear from all directions- and it hits him. That this is it. There's no way they will all make it out alive.

But he's Izzy Fucking Hands and even if he cant run anymore, he can still fight. He can fight for this crew, this family, these people who have given him so much, who have opened their arms to him when he was at his lowest, who have allowed him to feel free. He can still fight. He can buy them time.

So he turns, and draws his sword.

There was never any way he could win, of course. Even when he truly was the best swordfighter in all the Caribbean, fighting dozens of navy men at once would have been beyond him- but he can distract them, hold them off long enough the revenge sets sail. Its a glorious sight, one man against dozens, bodies falling around him as he holds them back. Its impressive to watch, and maybe, for a second, the crew allows themselves to hope. But then, he takes a cut to his sword arm, and another to his side.

And then he goes down.

But he goes down fighting.

Izzy Hands, who spent his whole life fighting dies that way too, fighting for the safety he spent his whole life searching for.

[alientee]

This is rated 18+ just in case minors don’t interact Maugaxreader

🌋🌋🌋🌋🌋🌋🌋🌋🌋🌋🌋🌋🌋🌋🌋🌋🌋🌋

I’ve had Mauga brain rot since he came out and there not enough fan fiction for me so I’m weighting this because it’s a funny thought I had in my mind I may even make it into a series. Reader is AFAB. Mauga x reader, some fluff, just a lil smut (barley) maybe more in the future enjoy!!!!!

You were relatively new to overwatch, but you were strong. The team knew you had their back, and that’s all that mattered; it also helped you have omnikinesis. But you couldn’t control it that well; you were unstable.

That’s why you reached out to overwatch, to control yourself before you hurt the others around you again. It’s a good thing they found out about you before talon or who knows what could have happened?

Speaking of Talon, you are having a team fight against them now. They tried to destroy another omnic and human peace event. Some of the richest humans and omnics were attending.

So you, Ana, Mei, Winston, and Lifeweaver were on guard duty. And lo and behold, here comes Sigma, Sombra, Reaper, Moria and some other big guy you didn’t know to ruin the party. Everyone began to run around in the grand dining room.

Sombra was hacking communications, so you couldn’t check on your backup. Mei and Ana were dealing with Reaper, and Moria, Winston, and Lifeweaver were dealing with Sombra and Sigma. That left you with the hulking, raging giant with tribal tattoos.

You quickly dodge his machine guns, using everything around you in the room as a shield. You quickly hide, trying to regain yourself; if you lose focus, you lose control.

“HEY HEY HEY WHERE DID YOU GO?!”

You hear smashing and bullets flying, trying to think of a plan in your head.

“EITHER YA COME OUT OR I START SETTING SHIT ON FIRE YOUR CHOICE HAHAHA!”

“Ok your completely insane” You whispered

You snuck around the hulking hot head. You hype yourself up to do a sneak attack that hopefully won’t take down the whole building. You focus on all the skylights and chandlers, bringing them down on top of the hulking man before jumping on his back, ready to detain him.

Until you were encased in darkness.

You find yourself squished by the man who was trying to kill you just moments ago. You were lying on his chest and straddling his waist while he was scrunched up and bent forward. You look up at him, seeing the snarl on his face.

“Ummmmmm hi there” , his eyes narrowed at you.

“What the fuck did you do!”.

You look at him startled and confused. “What do you mean I thought this was you?”

He looks like he’s about to yell at you again untill you both hear somthing.

“(Y/N)! Can you hear me!” It was Ana “YES!”

“Sigma got you two stuck in there!”

The large man shouted right in my ear while his chest rumbled underneath me. “HE DID WHAT!”

“Ah Mauga my friend would you like to hear about my new project. I was trying to trap the other one but you’ll make a great tester as well!” you could hear the collective sighs outside.

“It’s a black cube! One could say it’s a miniature black hole, but not a black hole at all, just a void in cuboid shape. It’s supposed to hold matter and keep it stabilized in place. It’s purpose is to hold things until it fully disappears on its own. Can you hear the melody within the universe? ”

You could feel the man named Mauga stiffen beneath you, you stiffen as well.

“Does that mean we dissapear to!” You scream

“Hmm possibly or maybe it will disappear without you in it the possibilities are endless.”

Your about to speak again when you hear Mauga grunt, you look up seeing him move his head down, that’s when you realize it’s shrinking now.

“It’s shrinking now!”

“Don’t worry (Y/N) given the circumstances we will work together until your both out”

“Don’t die in there Mauga I still have use for you” You shiver hearing Moria speak in such a way it’s gross.

You look up and see Mauga looking annoyed and uncomfortable “I’m sorry”

“Why you didn’t do nothing”

“It’s just that, if it shrinks without disappearing you’ll die. I could probably protect myself if I think of a way but I don’t know how it would affect you I can’t fully control my powers.” All he does is hum in response.

“(Y/N)! Can you use your powers to force the cube open!” Now that’s and idea but before you could even think about it Sigma speaks again.

“If you try to force a black hole to seperate it may disrupt everything around it destroying us all”

but sigma speaks again “But if she uses her powers and makes a black whole within a black hole?”

“Then Mauga dies, it would be such a waist but it may be an easier option” Moria spoke again, you could see Mauga rolling his eyes “Fuck you”

You look back up at Mauga you can still see the cube slightly shrinking again. “Mauga who are you?” He looks at me confused not saying a word. You sigh and speak again.

“If I’m going watch someone die in a cube I at least want to know them.”

You can’t help but stare into his eyes; he looks very handsome. Just something about him being a giant hunk of muscle with a sharp tooth smirk had you enticed.

He looks at you and puts a smirk on telling you the basics: he fought a war, he got two hearts, he lives his life as he pleases, and the rest is history.

You learned he liked video games, he takes pride in being strong and actually works out, letting you know he’s not an experiment with Moria, he’s a hot head but he’s passionate, and you even learned you both own a pair of shark slides.

The cube really did seem to be some type of black hole because you lost track of time and talked for what seemed like hours.

“Since you wanna know me so bad you mind doing me a favor” you nod looking at him

“If I die in here do something for me” You stiffen and look away sadly; you didn’t want to think about him dying in here, especially being responsible for someone’s last wishes.

You may be able to save yourself with your powers, but not at the expense of Mauga's life. You could only hope you would get out before then.

“I need you to tell Bap that I was mad at him for trying to blow me up and for leaving me behind. I was willing to drag his ass back; I missed him. Tell him the next time he grows a conscience, don’t skip out on your friends.” You looked at him confused, but nonetheless agreed.

“Ummm ok I’m not even going to get into that, is that all” He looks away and ponders “Make sure my turtle plush and guns are buried with me to and make my funeral a celebration of me not some sad ass drag of a day”

“Considering we’re technically supposed to be enemy’s I don’t think I’ll be able to plan that who knows what they’d do to your body, but I’ll try my best”

“That’s all I ask”

We stare into each others eyes what seems like forever. Until he leans down more moving his forhead to mine “One more thing?”

You look into his eyes shyly looking away when his gaze got to intense. He looks at me giving me a wink and that damned smirk of his. “What is it?”

“I always said if I died, I’d be on my terms. I wanted go out happy with a gun in each hand and a smile on my face. But right now I think the only thing that could make me happy is if I was taken care of by a beautiful lady?”

You blush looking at him with wide eyes “Are you asking me to have sex with you!?”

“Can’t really do that in this position doll” He’s laughing his ass off, you want to wipe that smirk off his face.

“Then what do you mean?”

He looks down your breast and you blush getting and idea of what he wanted. “If you could let me lay my face in those big tits of yours that’s a way to go” he smirks.

You feel your blush go from your face to your neck. “We don’t even know if your going to die Mauga, they could be done getting us out any minute.”

You listen outside to see if I can hear anything.

“We are not destroying the cube Moria!”

“Why not Mauga can be replaced and that girl can cause the destruction of our universe she’s a liability and a threat”

You could only mumble under your breath. “Your ugly face is a liability and a threat to everyone’s day and stomach”

You hear Mauga chuckle. “Don’t worry I’ll make sure to fuck up all her lab shit if I get out of this”.

You noticed his words if. And you couldn’t deal with that. If he died you’d have been to useless to stop it and in that moment you didn’t want to think about him dying.

You can see the cube shrinking more but Mauga doesn’t make a sound of discomfort, it’s like he doesn’t want to bother you every time the cube gets smaller.

“Hey Mauga”

“What’s up?”

You wrap your arms around his broad shoulders and push his face down into your breast. You don’t know what possessed you, but the thought of giving him his last wishes made you confident in your decision.

Mauga snuggles his head in your chest. You hold him there pushing his head down , not wanting him to see your blushing face making this even more awkward.

As if he can sense your distress Mauga motor boats your chest making you laugh. “Hahaha what the heck Mauga!”

“Just enjoying my new home. I love it here.”

He pushes his face deeper in your breast, inhaling your sent. “Hmmmm I really love it here” You feel him lick your chest.

“Mauga! W-what are you doing”

You pull back to find him looking at you with lust in his eyes and a shit eating smirk.

“You looked nervous I wanted to break the ice. I want you to enjoy this too. Can I?”

You don’t know if it was the way he looked at you, or because this was the first time you’ve felt a man’s touch like this, or maybe it was the fact that you wanted to help him; either way you nodded your head giving him the green light.

He puts his forehead against yours once more. “I need words sweetie, tell me what you want”

You look down refusing to make eye contact “I want you to touch me Mauga”

He slowly moves in and kisses your lips, his lips are surprisingly soft he pulls back biting your bottom lip. He moves his face down back to your breast, kissing and biting them slightly, leaving read marks on your skin. You use the front of your hands to pull down the top of your dress, thanking yourself the dress you had on didn’t require you to wear a bra.

He looks up at you as he slowly licks around your breast, taking a nipple in his mouth. His hands cant reach your chest so he settles on placing them on your ass.

Your eyes roll back in pleasure as he suckles on your nipple, his tongue flicking against it softly. He gropes your ass, squeezing your cheeks roughly. You can’t help but moan softly in his ear.

He releases your nipple with a loud pop giving the same attention to the other while nibbling it.

You can feel something slightly poke at you. You realized Mauga got hard. He felt so big even behind his pants. You slightly raised yourself to sit on top of his dick and begin to grind on his erection.

Hoping to give him and yourself some relief, your panties were soaking wet from the attention. You didn’t want to think about the wet spot you were about to leave on his pants.

“Fuck~, you feel so good sweetheart.”

You were about to respond but the cube starts to shake rapidly. You quickly pull your dress up and hold on to Mauga. All you can think about is his safety wanting to put both of you in a shield that could protect you no matter what.

And it seemed like your powers agreed. Because the next thing you know, you and Mauga are in a giant bubble floating above everyone.

He’s looking at you with wide eyes his frown turning into a giant smirk. “I made you feel so good you broke the cube huh”

Your embarrassment must have faulted your concentration, because you two instantly fell from the sky. You land on top of him in front of everyone making it even more awkward.

Everyone looked down at you two before you quickly got up and walked towards your team while covering yourself, just incase you didn’t put your dress on quite right. Reaper spoke up

“Next time you all die”

Ana spoke before anyone else “Oh shut up Gabriel I’m sick of the death jokes”

As they begin to leave Mauga turns towards you giving you a wink.

“It was fun sweetheart”. And he walks away with the rest of talons members.

Mei spoke up while everyone else looked at me “Did he hurt you (y/n)?”

“No he didn’t, he’s just messing with me”

They all nodded and we all begin to retreat back to headquarters. You could only guess sombra hacked everything before you even tried to get back up because no one showed. You started to wonder if you’d ever see Mauga again.

That thought alone made you blush. Lifeweaver tapped your shoulder. He gave you a smirk showing you he was laughing at you. You look at him confused wondering what was so funny.

“What is it?”

He leaned down and whispered in your ear.

“I hope he wasn’t to rough with you”

You looked at him in horror and confusion how could he even know! You looked down to your chest seeing dark red marks all over your breast.

Dammit Mauga!

[alicerosejensen]

Where It All Began

Warning: a little angst, fear for the loss of a partner, caring, open final, fem/reader.

Synopsis: He will always be afraid of losing you and will not forgive himself if something happens to you.

A/N: I don't know what it is. It's just necessary to throw out these emotions somewhere. I like to write such lyrics to sad melodies that make me long for someone who's gone… (I am the queen of drama)

Leon never wanted to let anyone get too close to him. Long-term scars respond with pain and fear that at any moment a zombie will appear behind his back, clutching his shoulder with its jaws, tearing off the flesh, so he was always calmer alone. Perhaps of course not always, before Raccoon City he was less traumatized, even loved the girl with whom he naively thought to spend his life until she left him before leaving, but now Leon thinks that it was for the best. That rookie cop has been gone for a long time. He remained buried under the ashes of the destroyed city.

In his eyes there remains a lost light and not dead nobility. The desire to save every innocent life that is being taken away by corrupt corporations. There are few like Leon, but… he never fully appreciated his life. It wasn't even modesty, he just considers himself an instrument of the government. An ordinary pawn and never denies it.

Love is disgusting and causes pain when the object of your adoration is not around. Leon ignored that dull ache in his chest just like he ignored his feelings for you. He couldn't even figure out exactly when it started with him, you were one of those he saved and who didn't haunt him in nightmares, but you appeared in others and brought fleeting comfort, making him want to feel warmth and affection, You made him be so needy, but when he flirted with you, you only responded to a minor flirtation with your friendship.

Perfect love comes softly

Do you know all these poets beautifully praising a deep light feeling that also becomes a sweet poison that drives you crazy? Beautiful words will come to mind, the heart will want to do things for the sake of a loved one and Leon really wants to hold you in his hands and his heart. At the same time, he is afraid of being tied down, but this feeling grows in him like a branching tree that he gently cherishes looking at you, helping to do some little things.

No matter how much his soul broke into pieces after all the encounters with bioweapons, it was you who arranged it to blossom with renewed vigor with your beautiful inner light.

It was as if your hand was always outstretched for you to take him home, and he could heal all wounds and dispel longing by pressing his head against your rhythmically beating heart.

But Leon is not going to say "I love you." He is so afraid of these words, as if after their utterance there will be another outbreak that will take the lives of thousands of innocent people. He doesn't want to bring you to tears, he doesn't want you to worry about him, and he knows that he has nothing to offer you, so why then does this feeling that you evoke in him so much choke him, causing tears in his eyes when he sees that someone else showing romantic interest in you?

To his angel, who each time leads him out of the darkness to the warm light. For which he is still fighting.

Actually, this guy is cute, he doesn't hurt you, but Leon can't be happy. Only time after time he asks himself why, out of many saved, it is you, an ordinary civilian, who arouse such a feeling in him?

The storm clouds melt with you when you walk with him along the snowy sidewalks with a cup of hot coffee in your hands, discussing some everyday things, and Leon again catches every word, suppressing the desire to take his beloved by the hand, running his thumb over your knuckles. He looks into those lovely tired eyes that shine for him like a monument to the hope of something else worth fighting for. Then these tales of eternal pure love no longer seem so cloying and fictional.

And if something happens to you again, God forbid, he is ready to dig one grave for two.

Some new kind of love and Leon doesn't care at all that your boyfriend looks so enviously at how you dance with him, laughing joyfully, hugging him as a friend. Let someone dare to touch you - he can be rude not only to the bastards of the zombie creator.

Once you told him that despite the monsters living in the world, this world is not bad at all.

"Only you will never be mine in this world,"

Leon did not say it out loud, but clenched his jaw, lowering his gaze. From this thought, the world really became more and more terrible.

You were his angel even though he has big problems with religion.

Paradise could be found in your arms. You were more reliable than any honest words when you stroked his back hugging him in a difficult hour while he was not ashamed of his helplessness squeezed you in his vice. You've never manipulated him. They broke him, beat him, and you healed him. It was possible to be silent with you without feeling awkward. It is when Leon finally breaks down that he finally comes to you because his love poisons him. It hurts even when it becomes difficult for you to breathe and your lungs can't inhale enough oxygen because of this steel grip.

"I've lost so many people, but I can't lose you…" his head was buried in your neck and you could feel warm lips on your skin.

He could have hidden you from everyone, but he didn't let his selfishness get the better of his mind. That's why Leon doesn't want to leave, grabbing your face, staring intently into your eyes, leaning against your forehead. He wants to make tender love to you, forcing you to grab his shoulders, shouting a long "Leon" so that the sheets crumple to hell and your cheeks turn red from the heat while he takes possession of you. he wants more than anything to cover every inch of your body with kisses, grab your hands, interlacing your fingers and tell the stupid guy to get off you.

Leon loves to kiss this nose, although he does it for the first time being afraid of what is happening in it. The world will stop being so disgusting again because there is a house in which there is love….

And yet Leon is afraid. He allows himself an acceptable amount of destroying the fragile edge of friendship by laying you under him, whispering various pleasant epithets promising how you will feel good with him but then… You know yourself that this person is afraid of attachment and in the morning your heart will break into a million pieces when he leaves. Therefore, with tears on your cheeks, your palms are on his chest when you push him away from you, looking away.

"I'm sorry," Leon whispers, holding his hands on your waist when he realizes that this is the end.

You didn't accept his love and it's his fault that salty tears flow down your sweet cheeks that he loved so much. His wounded heart begins to bleed and if you understood this, you would never turn away from him. It wasn't worth destroying this fragile friendship because now that he realized that you don't have feelings for him, everything collapsed like a house of cards. Despite the fact that his soul screams from injustice, Leon does not dare to accuse you, so he calmly lets go of his love, knowing that he will look for a ghostly trace in the beloved place where you most often met.

Every day.

His beautiful love that still burns in his chest. He wanted so much to know the desired happiness with you, but you can't force someone to love, so he leaves, closing the door behind him and not understanding the reason for your tears, because you, just like him, were afraid that your heart would break…

[slugtranslation-hypmic]

Hello,

Is there any way you could translate Samatoki's newest solo, Rinka/Blue Flame? I've been looking for a translation everywhere, but cannot seem to find one.

Best regards and thank you very much.

Oh my God I am desperate slug-san, please please pleaaasee tell me you know where to find a translation of Samatoki's Rinka/Blue Flame!! OTL I was so surprised a translator wasn't already linked in the wiki which is where I usually look first & then I couldn't find anything by searching on twitter or google or tumblr and I just really wanna know what his song is about!! T°T I can't believe I found a translation of Honobono's song but not of Samatoki's song?? I must be doing sth wrong.. Help :')

Hey slug-san! A follow-up of the Rinka/Blue Flame message. I've searched some more, and I think there's actually no translation of it so far anywhere.. T~T Would you be willing to translate it? A standard/literal translation with a lil clean-up like you did with Akuma no Hana would be totally alright!! Thank you so much for giving us the opportunity to engage with Hypmic in a way the official creators haven't made possible yet! :D <3

Sure. Under a cut for length.

I'm running at a speed faster than grief, going so fast I leave even the smallest bad feelings behind me. I spit on my dead-end future, spit in the dirty puddles. Now I'm clinging to the guardrail, tears tracing scribbled lines down my cheeks. I bet it looks pretty comical. C'mon, laugh at me, why don't you? Let's start somewhere around the unhappy ending. Why not? Works for me. The clear, blue sky waits for sunset; but to hell with that. I don't need that crap! Let's do whatever we damn well please, here in this vacant city. Just the thought of them makes me light up a cigarette. Look, I don't wanna tell people we gotta fight each other to get what we want. I just think we have to, because there's things out there that're worth keeping safe. There's a stray dog baying at the rain streaking down the glass, and that SOB won't shut up. Hey, fuck your umbrella. Who needs that kinda crap? Throw it away and let the rain drench you too. The beat's entrenched in my soul, a stupid requiem for this unfair world we live in, lying on its sickbed. C'mon, get in there and pay your respects to it. You don't have the time to sit around feeling sorry for yourself. You know lashing out's the answer, right? You'll be okay. And I'm not gonna tell you you're running from your responsibilities. So c'mon. Quit your sniveling and come ride with me. The brakes don't work; those emotions never get any slower. And we're burning ourselves out, but don't let that stop you from coming along with me for the ride. Ride with me through thick and thin. Ride with me all the way to the grave.

A few final notes:

Sunset is a metaphor for melancholy. When Samatoki rejects that in the third verse, he's rejecting sitting through his feelings of loss. He uses this image again later in the line I wrote as "sit around feeling sorry for yourself."

The gender and plurality of the "them" Samatoki thinks about isn't specified. While it's most likely referring to his family, the verse immediately afterward sounds like a direct reference to Ichirou and Samatoki battling to save their siblings in the TDD breakup.

"We're burning ourselves out" could also be written like "We're burning ourselves down to ash" which connects with the cigarette image.

Given the prevalence of stray dogs in hardboiled/yakuza fiction and their recurrence as an image in Samatoki's other raps, the stray dog should be understood to be Samatoki himself.

[khepiari]

Will Garp Return As Zombie? Spoilers for One Piece 1087+88

Few things before my deep dive:

I have no sympathy for Garp.

Koby, good job being the kind boy you are. You deserved a better world.

But, we all know, one good apple makes no difference when it’s left in the company of a rotten buffet.

Disappearance is not equal to final death

Pretty sure, Odachii is going to bring Garp back with a lost arm or a leg or lost soul in zombified form.

What I mean to say is—if Blackbeard got Gekko Moria’s powers or subjugated him to be his underling, Garp’s corpse will be a great addition to his arsenal.

It will be a great battle for Luffy, psychologically speaking. We all know he never got to sit and talk or punch and scream with Garp about the shared grief of losing Ace.

Only Garp knows what Luffy felt after losing his big brother, but Luffy doesn’t know what Garp felt after the death of a grandson he could’ve saved.

I am sure Luffy has been angry, and he would’ve definitely punched Garp until both were bleeding if they had a reunion but, Luffy would’ve never wanted his only family that he knew since his birth to die.

Now imagine the pain and grief and hurt he will have to overcome to fight his grandpa’s corpse.

It will pierce Luffy’s heart by 1000 cuts, because whatever chances of closure they had, it is no more.

The only hope from this battle for us as readers will be the last remaining consciousness of Garp’s body gaining some control, like how Victoria Cindry’s corpse did during the Thriller Bark Arc.

Since Garp has more will power, maybe he will apologize or ask Luffy to let go of his affection and end him. With that, the last of Luffy’s anger with for good, once Garp dies, and he embraces the fury of the sun god that resides in him; its final show down.

Because we know Blackbeard vs Luffy is going to be about Ace, but if it is about Ace and Garp, Luffy will have a really hard time winning. And most probably this fight will be part of the final war we have been building towards.

As my friend put:

“I can totally see Goda doing that. Luffy beats the crap out of his zombie grandpa, who with his dying breath gives Luffy the apology he’s been owed since Marineford.

And, because symmetry, he does it during the biggest war SINCE Marineford.

There’s also something horribly, appropriately Goda about the idea that Luffy’s first “kill” would be laying a zombie Garp to rest…”

Now time for Anti-Garp Hate Rant! You can stop reading

Yeah, bet your future on the corrupt institution that protects the scum of the world.

My thoughts after this panel.

I hope you rot in hell.

Hero my foot.

Don’t disappear. Just die.

Look, Monkey D Garp is a well written character! And trust me, I understand his position too well; his behaviour and actions are not new to me in fiction!

“Wise overpowered old men helping the wrong side” are very common in Indian/Asian Epics who have pulled similar bullshits in name of duty/justice/greater good. Who later get killed by trickery is everywhere, read Mahabharata or Ramayana, it is full of Garps.

But his decision to not help Ace escape but run after Koby all across the Grandline is enough to fuel my anger against him.

This panel Fuelled my rage further. As my friend put: "All lives are equal, except pirate lives, apparently."

Some argue Garp did everything to let Luffy get close to saving Ace on purpose. He did everything he legally could do. And if he saved Ace, the peace and protection his name brought to Windmill Village would be lost, and it would become the target of Pirates and Marines alike. Sounds plausible, but it's in the realm of speculation.

Old men in a position of power, refusing to intervene when they could’ve, have always used morally superior sounding arguments to get away from being held accountable.

Pushing Ace tragedy aside, If Garp was so strong why didn’t he stop Blackbeard when he had time?

He is no better than Bhishma Pitama from Mahabharata.

I am talking about the two years after Marineford.

What stopped him? He saw Blackbeard wield two DFs, did he and Sengoku only had the duty to protect Marineford? Why did he wait two years? Why didn’t he go after them himself?

Right after Marineford, he should’ve nipped evil in the bud by hunting down Blackbeard. What was holding him back then? The Grief of losing Ace still? Worry about missing Luffy?

Blackbeard is a Pirate, his enemy— who had two of the most powerful DFs in the world. What stopped him? Garp is the only one who could’ve fought because all he needed was Haki! What moral reasoning he had to not wreak havoc to stop this pirate?

Did World Government stop him because Blackbeard became a Yonko?

We now know how strong Garp is, so it was not a question of being injured after the war, we also know he cares not for permission or authority!

So why waste two years?

Only when his favourite student is kidnapped is when he felt the need to intervene.

If it's so-called sense of duty towards the future that made him bet his life on young navy; I am calling it bullshit.

I don’t care for whatever justification he has; if he could fight Blackbeard pirates head-on, he should’ve done it sooner and not let him gain so much power and let him terrorize the world.

I was really hoping that Blackbeard broke his spine. In the end, it's pathetic, he didn’t even die (not confirmed) at hands of Blackbeard.

How did his inaction help the powerless masses he swore to protect?

Who is Garp the hero supposed to represent? Isn’t it Justice? Who is he as a marine supposed to protect? Isn’t it the masses? Who is funding his salary? The taxes collected from masses.

In the end who is he serving?

The Gorosei and Celestial Dragons— yes, he hates them, but his indirect actions or refusal to fight them helped change nothing.

His inaction kept the status quo is intact!

Garp is nothing but a glorified a sell-out too! A poster boy of rebel with a good heart that Marine can capitalize for their propaganda.

You cannot change the world for better if you are part of the system that makes the world a bad place.

I hope he becomes a Zombie under Blackbeard!

[ribbonverse]

Chapter 2

Notes on chapter 2.

Rukia is the most difficult to write for me, emotionally speaking. Maybe because she's the most like me, or maybe I appreciate her too much and don't think it's really possible for me to do her character justice when writing from her perspective.

This is also the only chapter written completely from Rukia's perspective. Most of the rest is from Ichigo's perspective, and occasionally from someone else's.

What I am satisfied with in the last two chapters is the charaterization of Ichigo's time with Rukia in terms of how hard the work was for him. I consider this a very lore friendly element.

Already in Bleach chapter 7, Ichigo complains about losing some of his sleeping time to Shinigami work. This isn't really brought up again as far as I remember, at leat not directly, but in the anime episode 10 (or at least one English translation of it), Rukia states how there's going to be more difficult fights in the future. Which indicates that things didn't really get easier for Ichigo over time.

In the same chapter, there's a pretty sweet moment where Ichigo is surprised to hear that Rukia cares about his well-being. We don't hear these thoughts of his in the anime episode, though you can still see his surprise.

In any case, this moment does make clear that Rukia does understand the need for a Shinigami to rest, but in my continuity, she doesn't yet understand how much rest a living human needs. This is one of the ideas I like the most, as it draws from Rukia's canonical background. Since she died as a small babby and has lived her entire life as a spirit, she would have had no personal experience on what being alive is really like. This would've affected how she treated Ichigo while he was helping her with Shinigami work.

Just a note on Rukia being a 3rd Seat now. I really don't like it when promotions are used in fiction as rewards. It's a dangerous way of doing things when it comes to running a serious organization, though that's sometimes how it works in real life as well, so I guess you could say it's realistic.

It's just really dumb when at the end of a story there's a time skip to show where everyone's life has gone since the story concluded, and instead of the characters having done something that fits their previous charaterisation, it turns out everyone and their mom has become a Captain/CEO/President/insert-highest-position-here. You know, because after everything that happened, the author still needs to highlight how the main characters are Very Special And Amazing People™ and therefore they must occupy the highest positions in the Hierarchy of Life™.

That's not why I made Rukia a 3rd Seat in this story. Similar to the Reiatsuppressors, it just arose as a device to fill a purpose, in this case to give her enough autonomy that she could leave for the Human World on her own initiative without getting into too much trouble.

The hierarchy within the Divisions isn't really covered enough where you could say how much power the position below a lieutenant would have, so I decided to just make her a lieutenant. And since the 13th Division doesn't actually have a lieutenant/2nd Seat and instead has two 3rd Seat officers, a third person sharing the position didn't really seem so far fetched.

It also served as an excuse for Rukia being buried in work and was the catalyst for making workaholism a coping mechanism for her. Her insecurity about her position also adds a dash of realism, I think.

I'm not all that satisfied with the conversation between Byakuya and Rukia. I say conversation, it's basically just Byakuya talking and Rukia listening, which is how it would go, seeing how their relationship is depicted by the end of the Soul Society arc. This part of the chapter was incomplete for the longest time and held up publishing the fic almost all on its own. I finally decided to just finish it up the best I could, even if it still leaves a lot to be desired.

One aspect of Byakuya that was mentioned but never explained in canon (as far as I can remember, anyway) was that Byakuya has never really looked at Rukia. In light of the reason for her adoption to the Kuchiki family, the reason should be pretty obvious, but IMO it should've been mentioned explicitly in canon. So I've just gone ahead and done it here.

For the record, I don't like "the Old Ways" as a name. It was originally just a placeholder or a colloquial in-universe name, and I intended to come up with an "official" one at some point. But I'm terrible with names and just couldn't come up with anything better. It would've held up publishing even more, so I'll just leave it as-is for now.

[folliesandfolderols]

Writing prompts day 84

From this prompt list. If you’ve read this far, I’m not sure you need any explanation, but the short version is I hadn’t written any fiction since 2019, I set a goal to write at least 150 words/day in 2024, and this list was my way to restart. Also I abruptly decided on day 2 I would write an entire Tim/Damian story connecting all the prompts, because I am Good at Judging My Limits. /sarcasm Anyway, I finished the rough draft a while ago and am now unlocking the old entries as I edit.

Read from the beginning here, or on ao3 here.

Days 76-83 here

***

127. "I don't like people touching what's mine."

***

When Tim woke up, he was held securely to Damian’s side with one strong arm. He could tell by the rhythm of Damian's breath that he was awake. A glance at his phone on its charging stand told him the alarm was going to go off in fifteen minutes.

“Morning,” he mumbled, kissing the skin closest to his mouth. “Did you sleep okay?”

“I did.” Damian's arm tightened around him and lifted till Tim tilted his head back to blink at him. 

Damian’s tone held none of its usual bite this early. Tim’s belly quivered with a jumble of emotions he didn't want to pick apart.

“Hey.” He rolled to overlay Damian and peck his lips. “You should kiss me. Or I should kiss you, I'm not picky.”

Damian's whole body melted under his, going loose-limbed except where he embraced Tim. "Very well, I suppose I can humor you for a little while." He kissed Tim, mouth slow and leisurely, like neither of them had a single obligation that wasn't to the other. Tim made an appreciative sound and let his muscles unwind from their customary readiness. There were few places safer than here, in the fading darkness of his bedroom, with Damian. He could afford to let his guard down a little.

They kissed and kissed and kissed, and though Tim grew half-hard and could feel Damian's same response beneath him, it didn't seem like a precursor to anything. It was worthwhile for its own sake.

With their chests pressed together like this, it felt entirely possible that the tangled knot of emotions at Tim's core could unwind and knit itself into Damian. He would carry it with him through his day, picking apart each stitch with his clear-eyed scrutiny. Before long, he would have a better idea of Tim's emotions than Tim did himself. 

Terror, sharp and cold, streaked down his backbone. Shit. He was in so fucking deep.

Well, like Cass had said, he could just pretend he wasn't scared. Lifting his head, he whispered against Damian's swollen lips, "Five, four, three, two..."

Damian gave a disgruntled "tt" as the phone screen started to brighten beside them, the alarm chirping at its lowest volume. "Let's both call in dead to WE. Force Father to run his own corporation for once."

Tim reached to tap the screen and turn off the alarm. "Let's be honest, if you were gone, it would have that effect. If I stay home he's just out an R&D grunt." He shrugged. "Plus, you would want to demand updates every five minutes, convinced that everyone there was fucking up your work."

Damian gave Tim a reluctant hum of acknowledgement, running his hands up and down his sides. "It's true; I don't like people touching what's mine."

Am I yours? Tim thought about asking.

Before he could say it out loud, assuming he could’ve gotten up the courage, Damian sat up and kissed him one last time, then rolled out from under him. "May I have the bathroom first? I'll have to go in early to put on one of the spare suits I keep in my office."

"Sure." When the door closed behind him, Tim knew he should get up and at least get out some oatmeal bars or fruit Damian could take on his drive. Instead, he collapsed on his belly, pulled a pillow over his head, and groaned with frustration. Why couldn't he just get over himself and enjoy what was happening right now?

And it was super enjoyable! Last night had been amazing. Even now he had to fight off sex flashbacks: Damian kissing his palms, Damian asking him wordlessly to fuck his mouth, Damian responding like a dream to any word of praise—

Oh. Tim had called him sweetheart.

He tried to remember what Damian's response had been to the endearment, but his memory failed him, veiled by all the sex. He was pretty sure Damian hadn't responded in like fashion, though. And who could blame him? The last time he'd said that sort of thing Tim had run away for months.

Well, Alfred had always told Tim, "When in doubt, do the next indicated thing." In this case, the next indicated thing was feeding the man in his bathroom.

"Damian?" he called toward the door. "What do you want for breakfast?"

"Tea and fruit, please," was the response, muffled by splashing.

Tim dutifully went to the kitchen and flipped the kettle on, then got to work peeling an orange. He'd been paying attention enough to notice that Damian only drank Rishi Earl Grey in the normal course of events, so he'd bought a box to have around. Just in case.

He was taking the tea bags out of the travel mug he'd prepped when Damian walked in, toweling off his hair. "There you are. Here, take this before you go?"

The hesitant smile Damian gave him melted some of the ice that threatened to rime his stomach. Tim walked him to the door and kissed him goodbye.

He avoided looking at his own eyes while he shaved and brushed his teeth, afraid of what he'd find there. He didn't look as he applied the scar-covering makeup they all used to the hickey Damian had left on his neck. Even once he got to work, he found himself steering clear of his reflection. What if there were visual proof there of his own cowardice? Nobody else seemed to notice, but then, maybe they already thought of him that way.

By the time he got home, he was desperate for a distraction and grateful the ice had done its job so his ankle was healed enough to go out on patrol. As soon as he was under the open sky, he fired his grapple and soared away, letting the cool rush of air past his face put him into the right frame of mind for surviving whatever the night held. Out here, he didn't have to pretend. Out here, he had made certain he possessed whatever it took to do the job. It would have to be enough, for now.

day 85 here

[ayoharuko]

Love at first fight (Eijiro Kirishima x Villainess! Reader)

Hello! This is actually a request so thank you @oyasumimosura​ for requesting this! and sorry for this also taking so long :(

I hope you and you guys enjoy my first onehsot of bnha!

REMINDER: This character does belong to me but belongs to Kōhei Horikoshi and keep in mind that this is simply all fictional work so try not and take this too seriously :)

Note: Reader here is obviously female hence the ‘Villainess’ thing, our readers quirk is inspired from the ‘Scarlet Witch/Wanda’ from Marvels. Long and a bit fast pace, contains fluff yet angst. Enjoy :3

��How did I get into this situation again?’ You ask yourself while running away from some heroes that were casing you

‘’Stop right there!’’ A hero yelled at you.

You smirked and stoped running. The heroes that were casing you stopped as well, getting ready to attack and apprehend you.

You pull your hood down that was covering your face and just smirked at the poor heroes ‘’To be honest...I didn’t expect such..rookies to chase after me~’’ You said basically mocking them.

‘’You have no right to judge us, villain!’’ The hero yelled clearly mad and telling his partner to go and attack you.

You use your telekinesis to throw his partner at him, and it looks like..oh no! they fell off the roof that you all were in...how sad~

Giggling...you turned around and were about to jump onto another building until you heard a yell coming from behind you, turning around you see a red-haired man. Running at you with his arms...harden?

You widened your eyes in shock and dodge the said man. The man then stopped and grinned at you with his shark looking teeth...

‘My my~ another hero.’ You thought onto your head scoffing at how your luck is today.

‘’Sorry villain lady, but this is the end of the line for you!’’ He declared still grinning, ‘’Hah...as if, you’d have to catch me first~!’’ You scoff and then yell while jumping from one building to another with the man casing behind you.

‘’Take this!’’ You hear the hero yell, looking behind you, you saw a large rock being tossed towards you, you gasp and barely dodge the large rock, but it knocks off your hood revealing your hair...

‘Is that hero serious!? He could have killed you!’’ You yell at your mind obviously mad at that action he just did.

‘’Hahahaha, I told you..theres no use in running, a manly man like me doesn't wanna hurt a lady, but-’’ Kirishima stops his sentence mid-way when he takes a great look you.

Wow and damn....you look so....beautiful...

You notice him staring at you and you just smirk ‘’What? Am I too beautiful for you Mr.Hero?’’ You ask teasing the man. 

He blushes and just looks away, you giggle and just think ‘Wow..didn't know he would be kinda cute, wait...CUTE? NO WAY! Y/N DON’T THINK LIKE THAT, YOUR A VILLAIN AND H’ES A HERO! AND PLUS, THIS IS THE FIRST TIME YOU’VE MET!!’ You scold yourself.

‘’You know what..this was a fun game of cat and mouse but I really do need to get going Mr.Hero’’ You say making a portal for yourself, which you should of made mins ago-

‘’Ah! Hey, no wait!’’ Kirishima yells at you running towards you.

But boom...just like that....you were gone

Why...why is his heart beating so fast? Why is he blushing so hard?

Oh no...is he....in love.....with a villainess!?

- 3 Months later -

Its been 3 months since he last saw you..and he can’t get you off his mind.

Is this your quirk? What did he find so special in you when your a villain?

Eijiro Kirishima was so confused...

Meanwhile you had to stay low for these past few months as the heroes and police were on you like a brunch of gum on your shoe. But you also can’t help but think about...that hero that chased you down.

In all honestly he actually looks...cute, if he was a villain you’d totally date him~

But as we know villains and heroes hate each other and that guy probably forgot about you since it has been 3 months.

Oh how wrong you were....

- A few days later -

‘Shit shit shit shit!’ You cursed inside your mind as you were running, yet again from the heroes. You thought that you could make a proper negotiation with the supposed new panthers you were gonna meet but it turns out they were spies.

‘’Looks like we meet again!’’ A cherry voice behind you said, you looked behind you and saw that same hero...red riot was it?

‘’Ara~ we meet again’’ You said smirking and fully turning around to face him He grinned and ran towards you preparing to attack but you were quicker.

You used your energy manipulation quirk(that was already apart of your whole quirk) and he slowly started to stumble, ‘’H-Huh? what..d-did you...do to m-me?’’ The hero asked you, but you just stayed quiet and watched him pass out.

You turned around to leave but..something inside you was forcing you to take him with you, wait. TAKE HIM WITH YOU?? HIS A HERO FOR CRYING OUT LOUD!

But you ended up taking him to your base-

Yes. Just yes.

You tied the hero at your bed since even if your a villain you still have manners after all~ 

You waited for him to wake up and you couldn't help but look at his features...he really is handsome and cute....

Nice face, pretty hair, shark teeth that complements his looks and most important of all, nice and hard abs~, I mean look at it! 

‘’Hehe...like what your seeing~?’’ Your face instantly turned red as you looked at the hero with wide eyes. ‘’You were awake the whole time!?’’ You yell out flustered.

He just chuckles and asks you where he was, and why he's tied up, to which you answered both his questions, the last one being a half answered answer since you don't know yourself why you took him-

‘’Are you..gonna torture and then kill me?’’ The hero asked ‘’Hah! Now now dear hero, I might be a villainess..but I'm not like those scrums that kill just for fun~’’ You asked answered with a smirk.

A few hours had passed and you both had just kept talking and talking....huh you actually got along with a hero...

You learned that his name is ‘Eijiro Kirishima’, he went to UA, His favorite hero is ‘The Crimson Riot’ and from talking to him he loves saying the words ‘Manly’ and ‘Unmanly’.

Omg...your actually getting interested at him! *Sigh* Whyyy...why does he have to be....so damn perfect?

If only he was a villain....then you’d actually give him a chance.

‘’Hey y/n?’’ Kirishima called out to you, you look at him with a questioned look and he just smiled and said something that caught you off guard...

‘’I...I like you..a lot..hahaha..I know, a villain and a hero? Ridiculous..but..trust me..when I say it was love at first sight..it was love at first sight’’ Kirishima confessed chuckling at the thought and just looking away from you face.

‘’I..’’ You were speechless...he liked you? W-Why though? You were a villain for crying out loud...

you did terrible things to people...

your quirk was horrible and..you...

you were just...a horrible person...

‘’H-Huh!? W-W-What are you doing!?’’ Kirishima yelled out flustered as you climbed on top of him straddling his lap.

‘’Tell me...are you lying?’’ You ask with dead serious eyes looking down at him, he widened his eyes and nodded still having a flushed face.

You read into his mind and...whoa...he was actually for real...

He likes you

This time it was your turn to be shocked and face to turn red, you just covered your flushed face with your hands and just tried to think when suddenly ‘’H-Huh-AH WHOA!’’ You were suddenly flipped over by Kirishima.

Now his the one above you...damn his hot-

‘’I-i..h-how did..’’ You clearly couldn't function well and just kept stuttering over your words to which Kirishima chuckled at, he then looked at you with the same level of seriousness you had a second ago.

‘’Do you like me? Y/n?’’ He asked leaning just above your face, lips barely touching yours....

‘’I-I...’’ You were trying your hardest to resist these feelings you were feeling...because...even if you do love each other, what if this is just a one time thing and he finds someone else? Or worst...

What if he betrays you?

‘’I....I..like you too, as well ’’ You answered his question looking away from him, Kirishima smiled but soon frowned when you continued your sentence.

‘’But...we can’t be together’’ You declared looking back at him with sadness in your eyes ‘’Is it because I'm a hero and your a villain?’’ He asked 

‘’Yes..and also many more reasons why we can’t..’’ You answered trying hard not to tear up ‘’I don’t care’’ Kirishima suddenly said ‘’Huh?’’ You looked at him with confusion.

‘’I said..I don’t care’’ He said again looking at your eyes, determination present. ‘’Are you crazy? I just said-’’ Your sentence was caught off when he suddenly hugs you tightly, whispering at your ear.

‘’I like you..and you like me back...I know..I know we haven't known each other for that long but...’’ He stopped hugging you and looked at you with loving eyes ‘’I know that..I...like you..no, I love you’’ He said and smiled.

Now he really has done it, for you, have started tearing up. How can someone so nice and kind love someone as horrible as you? You really didn't get it...

‘’So..will you..go out with me and want to get to know each other more?’’ Kirishima asked you leaning his forehead onto yours.

‘’Yes...yes..’’ You smiled and let your tears fall down your face as you took a bold step and kissed Kirishima tenderly....

Kirishima at first widen his eyes in shock but soon kissed you back~

You knew that one day or any day he could easily betray you and even get tired from being with you. 

You also know that this relationship will be hard to hide with media and other heroes around...

But...even with the little time you've known him...he really did break his way into your cold heart, in a way...you could say that, that fight of yours last time was actually you guys love at first fight.

Done~~

I hope u guys enjoyed my first oneshot of bnha/mha!

Thanks for requesting this @oyasumimosura​ and thanks for being patient and understanding~

thanks for reading this far!~

Reblogs and Feedback/Comments are always appreciated! :3

[dukeofriven]

I mean it was a Hell-like dimension, its demons having lives just like Holly would, but not the literal in-service-to-the-Devil sort, being why I put ‘Hell’ in air-quotes. To say Artemis wasn’t dead at the point he was there, just in a location outside of known space and time (though he did literally die later on, as mentioned, and avoided having to go to an afterlife via the circumstance mentioned — an actual afterlife was also confirmed to exist in the world of ‘Artemis Fowl’, unrelated to this).

I mean it doesn't have to be literal hell: my issue is that the scope of the series escaped the reasonable bounds of its introductory novel's excellent framing. I remember being flummoxed by the second book when we're faffing around a nuclear waste train in Siberia for some god-forsaken reason. Artemis Fowl should not have been the kind of story where Artemis saves a city, a planet, a civilization, or a universe, from pseudo-demons or god-like time travelers or otherwise. There's nothing wrong with a formula: a series of crime capers with Artemis pitting his mind and his cunning against Holly's, a grudging antagonistic friendship and a constant clash of legalism, technology, criminal deviousness and good old fashioned moxie would have been great. But Fowl makes the choice to be an adventure story, it ignores its own subversive premise of fairies being a technologically sophisticated but fundamentally human mirror of ourselves, and... well, has an afterlife, and not-hell, and Holly and Artemis swapping bodies and becoming clones and going on huge blockbuster-sized epics. And it all sucks. It sucked in the second book. It sucked in third. It sounds like it just got so pointlessly bloated with nonsense and missed what made the story great: it was very, very small and contained. Artemis Fowl 1 is a kid in a house with maybe five people max scheming to out-think some magic cops. That's it. That's the story. And I loved it. And I was and am disappointed by everything afterwards. You ever read the Airborne series, ny Kenneth Oppel? First book's about a cabin boy on an airship and the cruise has to deal with some pirates. And then in the third book he's trying to go to fucking space. I never understood this. There is just no reason for this action movie escalation: you could write a dozen books about a cabin boy aboard an airship with nothing more pressing as stakes than 'getting promoted to steward' and it would delightful. You don't have to go to an alternate universe. you don't have to go to the moon (see also the Fast and Furious movies). 'Raising the stakes 'doesn't have to entail huge, external narrative catastrophes: in one of the latter books in the Vorkosigan saga, the stakes for Captain Lord Miles Vorkosigan—alias Admiral Naismith of the Denadrii Free Mercenary Company and hero of the battle Hegen Hub— are that his dinner party go-off successfully to help romance a girl he's fallen for. Nobody dies in that book. Nothing explodes. Someone come sback from space, but we don't visit there. (It's got the first transman I ever saw in literature and there's a sideplot about him overcoming his shitty society and claiming his title of 'lord.' It's great.) And the stakes feel huge for our characters. And that's enough. It's better in fact, because saving the world can get exhausting and runs out of tension fast (see the RTD years of Doctor Who. He should not come back). What I loved about Artemis Fowl barely survived into the second book in the series and by the... fifth or ninth when he's a clone with Holly's eyeballs and traveling though time to fight god-Opal or whatever I don't... I got nothing. It leaves me cold, bored, and disappointed. And it's emblematic of genre fiction's problem as a whole: an escalation of scale without any thought as to whether the story's growth is meaningfully improved by getting larger and more 'epic.' (And one of these days I will write that essay about how 'lore' has ruined more series than it improved, and why I wish more people drew on Lewis than Tolkien, because Tolkien was a master of worldbuilding, and the average writer isn't and will never be. And it makes me a hypocrite given my own writing but at least I'm aware of the danger.)

[shoheiakagi]

Can you give me your thoughts of what you think of Homra alphabet boys? It could be who’s your favorite and who’s not, what you like and hate about them, who would you date and why. Etc etc…

of course i can!

i absolutely adore all of the abc boys and wish there was sooo much more content on them - fan and official content. although im a little more biased to some of them more than the others, i dont think im capable of disliking/hating any of them. theyre a lot more interesting and attractive than a lot of the major characters to me

i would literally be content with reading more stories on them getting drunk and causing chaos, despite serving no relevance to the plot lol

im gonna share some opinion/headcanons on each of the boys, so more under the cut:

Ask me shit!

akagi shouhei:

i think anyone that scrolls through my blog for like atleast 5-10 minutes will figure out that he's my favorite character in the entire series, even though he is a minor character. he's different from a lot of the other male characters that i typically go far (i usually go far guys with darker hair who have a similar personality to yata or even a quiet, cold personality similar to fushimi), but i remember reading mor for the first time and finding him super cute?? thats when i realized that even tho i typically prefer darker hair, im a huge sucker for guys with messy hair in general, especially when its tucked under a baseball cap. especially if theyre the rebellious type 🤭 think i got more interested in him when i reread mor around late 2018 and started analyzing the little details (he owned a motorcycle before joining homra, how he was all cocky and smirking when he raided that gang who kept his friend captive) that gave me this impression that hes not this generic nice guy that he likes to portray himself as. not ashamed to label this man as my fictional crush, 100% would date him irl, and 100% do think he gives chitose a run for his money when its comes to their face card (in the manga, at least). my least favorite thing about him has to be the lack of content on him. this applies to all of the boys, but i feel like the very few content we see on him, ends up relating back to bandou for the most part (i will get to that in a bit). like fuck, i want to know more about his daily routine, life before and outside of homra, his family, his friends out of homra, how hes like when hes drunk, how often does he party, whats his type, does he go to the gym, whats his views on life, etc. i also think that he can pull of the yandere stalker vibes very well cause first, he knows how hack into devices lol. second, i always see shouhei as someone who pulls this false, cheery facade to hide his true emotions. you can't really tell if hes angry or jealous unless youre closely paying attention and notice that his eyes seem darker than before, fists clenched, jaw locked, etc. and when he fights, he has this borderline psychotic grin on his face. like look at the material:

like yes daddy, pls fuck me

bandou saburouta:

i dont remember if i ever mentioned it here but out of all the boys, i related to bandou a lot when i was younger, with the whole introverted earth sign with dark hair who is jealous of their extroverted best friend who has better luck with the opposite sex lmfao. i really adore this idiot and he has me dying with how petty he can get, and how he seems to be the punching bag for some of the members (*cough* yata *cough). its so weird tho cause physically hes more of my type, but i guess its bc hes always decked out in a hoodie and shades, its hard to remember that hes actually pretty cute. the only thing that rubs me the wrong way is how the writers made his dynamic with shouhei erase some of shouhei's individuality. like even tho mor started off from shouhei's perspective, the minute we find out about bandou and him being friends, the narrative switches to bandou's inferiority complex around him. i love bandou's plotline, it definitely gives him more depth, making him one of the more developed abc boys along with eric. but i HATE how the writers made everything about shouhei, relate back to bandou. mor started off with shouhei joining homra to save his friend, which he succeeded in, great! but i feel like we learn more about bandou as a character, and whatever we do learn about shouhei, its mostly from bandou's perspective. there was also this series of short stories for each character, and boyyyyy you dont know pissed i was to see that shouhei's story was about bandou being jealous of how popular and friendly he is with girls. but when you read bandou's story, it was cute little heartfelt conversation between him and anna. i do feel like this is a reoccurring issue with the homra abc boys (we learn more about chitose and eric than we do about dewa and fuji in their respective chapters) but fuck man, at least in dewa's short story, we learn that he runs the bar when kusanagi is not around, making him popular with women, and that he loves extremely spicy food. granted, shouhei's story does provide some details such as how well liked he is and that he would take anna out shopping if totsuka and kusanagi are busy, but then most of his story morphs into bandou being jealous of him....like we get it, can we please move on from that topic? platonic banshou? 10/10, fucking love that shit. romantic banshou?? ehh, im indifferent

chitose yo:

chitose is my third favorite abc boy!! he's hot and a super fun character. its truly a shame that hes a minor character so the anime has him just standing around with a blank expression and maybe have him making a one-liner or two. hes genuinely the type of person i cant imagine staying silent and not giving his two cents, whether its during the more serious moments or the chill, laidback moments. im currently rereading mor and some panels of chitose got me like 😳🥵 cause hes fucking hot lol. but! im not a big fan of playboys/womanizers, so i never got into him the same way i did with shouhei and eric. at first, i was happy when i read one of the more recent post rok stories where it was stated that he finally found someone and got into a stable relationship! but then thinking about it, i feel like the writers should have made him seek therapy first, and then get into a relationship. cause from what we know about chitose, he was so scarred by how his first relationship ended with his late gf passing away, he avoided committed relationships bc he does not want to be emotionally vulnerable like that ever again. so clearly the guy had some psychological issues, which should have been addressed with therapy, instead of drowning himself in casual sex and alcohol. so i cant help but feel a little skeptic about him being ready to enter another relationship so soon. also hate how the writers make him say some suggestive comments about anna (getting married by 16, proposing to buy red lingerie for her as a bday gift, worry about her gaining weight for eating at night). like stop it, that shit is fucking gross and its making chitose go from a relatively harmless playboy to a creepy pedo. i never read the lost small world manga, but i remember coming across this omake (?) where chitose and dewa were talking and chitose made some comment that implied that he was willing to (or already had) have sex with a drunk girl, which is a huge no.

dewa masaomi

i would totally date dewa tbh. he fits my type irl (dark hair, introverted, can be witty/sharp, etc). it also helps that since he hangs out with chitose a lot, hes not really fazed by conventionally attractive women lol. along with fuji, he lacks a lot of depth since we don't know much about them. but hey, thats what im here for! i like to think that dewa makes all of his life choices by doing the exact opposite of what chitose does. where chitose would date and sleep any pretty girl that comes his way, dewa would be super picky and not just fall for a pretty face. chitose loves women in mini skirts and cropped tops, dewa prefers his women in suits and form-fitting long dresses that accentuates their curves without showing any skin. i think a general consensus for dewa is that he joined homra bc of chitose, which i definitely agree with. although some of the members may not be as brash and aggressive as someone like yata, i can still see them fitting in. dewa, on the otherhand, seems to be the odd one out. like the man seems like he would fit in with s4 better. but i do like the hc of dewa, despite how different he is from the other boys, dislikes authority figures trying to control his life, which is why he chose to stay with homra. cause its easier to join a gang for a friend, but its harder to stay in a gang if they dont align with your values/goals. i also like to think that dewa actually comes from a well off family, which reflects on his mannerisms and sense of dressing. but he doesnt share a close relationship with his parents. while theyre not emotionally or physically abusive, they are very emotionally absent, which is why he grows up detached from them. that doesnt stop them from trying to make his life decisions for him (i.e. have him take over the family business after college, settle down with this girl who is also from this well off family, etc), so dewa doesnt think twice before moving out once he hits 18

eric soult

my baby boy, my second fave abc boy!!! i think hes probably the only white character i like in anime lol (but then again, i dont really watch a lot of anime). i was veryy attracted to eric when i first read mor and found him so handsome (still do tbh), but now i feel so soft towards him??? like i still would tap it, but did you eat??? you look so cold, let me wrap a blanket around you!!! oh, youre telling me to back off or else you'll stab me??? aww, youre soo cute 🥰 all jokes aside, him and bandou are the most developed out of the abc boys, which makes sense on why theyre more popular than the others. i also wish we saw more of his dynamic with yata, cause i felt like their banter was fucking hilarious and i loved how eric was not scared to show him sass despite being new to homra lol. i recently started having this headcanon that eric has this old fashion mindset where as a man, you have to provide for your girl, even if its the most ridiculous and expensive thing ever, so whenever the guys talk about buying gifts for anna or any other woman in their life, hes always suggesting expensive jewelry and clothes. this also makes him very vulnerable to the wrong women, who would probably drain his wallet and emotionally abuse him if she doesnt get what she wants. i actually got this hc from the mor movie where fuji tells him that he'd fall for the type of wrong girl when he proposes buying designer gifts for anna lol. i was soo emotional when i read that eric makes the choice to travel the world by himself and taking pictures of beautiful sights. cause not only does it seem like he's honoring one of totsuka's hobbies, he's also getting this opportunity to see the world from a different and healthier perspective!!! he's going to be able to see more color in a world that was previously in shades of black and white for him!!!!

fujishima kosuke

my fellow taurus!!!! i remember thinking that he was related to mikoto when i first read the manga cause of his hair lmaooo. idk why but i always visualize him to have a deeper voice?? hes just so manly but yet so caring and nurturing, so i cant imagine him without a deep voice. i like to think that out of all of the guys, hes the only one who has a good relationship with his family, hence why he still lives with them, despite being part of a gang and having a bad habit of taking in stray animals. i know that in the same official story where chitose ends up in a relationship, fuji ends up being a carpenter, but i like the idea of fuji deciding to go back to school and becoming a vet so that he can take care of sick/injured animals. or atleast opening up his own no-kill, animal rescue agency!

[writingwell]

I have read all your Castle fic, some multiple times and need something new to read. I was wondering if you had any favorite Castle fics or authors you love/would recommend?

I'm bad about remembering fic I've read, but I do have some faves marked on my ffnet page, if you want to suss that out.

But authors! I will always hold a few especially dear:

Jennifer Egan (Visit from the Goon Squad, The Keep, etc) - Each of her novels have affected me in different ways, but the consistency of the quality of her writing is what sucks me in each time I start a new one.

NK Jemisin, Naomi Novik, Tracy Deonn, Rachel Yoder - a quick run through of some women in sci-fi/fantasy whose books are STELLAR and who don't get enough play in the usual round-up. For me, I'm not always gonna talk about them because I don't know how formative they've been yet, but damn they have some awesome story-telling, and I am SUCKED IN.

Mary Stewart (Touch Not the Cat, This Rough Magic, Merlin series) - Gothic romance for most of her career, MS wrote a Merlin series which I read grudgingly: they were the last books of hers I hadn't read. And I adored them, lol. She's easier to read than Daphne DuMaurier (Rebecca, My Cousin Rachel) but if you want to jump in, then I would suggest her short stories which are deliciously Gothic.

Edith Wharton (House of Mirth, Glimpses of the Moon, etc) - Gillian Anderson was going to be in HoM, I think, and she was interviewed in Entertainment Weekly magazine back in the day, and she quoted this book. I was perhaps 19? and I snatched it up the first chance I could get, wrote a paper for college, kept reading Wharton. As my twitter and ffnet handles show, Lily Bart, a woman fighting against the strictures of her society, absolutely had my heart. Want to know the quote GA used? "What Lily craved was the darkness made by enfolding arms, the silence which is not solitude, but compassion holding its breath." Holy shit, how can you not be immediately caught?

Madeleine L'Engle (Wrinkle in Time et al, Certain Women, A Severed Wasp) - What most people don't know is that L'Engle wrote adult fiction as well as what is now termed YA (or Children's, depending). Her adult stuff is poignant and devastating and just as hope-filled as her literature written for younger audiences, and I don't think even those books can be said to be just for children. A Swiftly Tilting Planet still makes me think about how righteous is pacifism in this day and age (ie, maybe it's not, and that's horrendous) plus A Wind in the Door is this really beautiful grappling with childhood disease/death/mental health. It's very lovely to have a gentle-handed author shape elemental Truths around your imagination and plant the seeds for both questioning the world and also loving it, flaws and all. And that both of those things can exist.

Chaim Potok (The Gift of Asher Lev, Book of Lights) - I realize I have a lot of women on this list, but Potok is a man who gets the creative experience inexorably tangled with the spiritual one. If you're not of some kind of seeking orientation, I don't know that Potok would resonate with you as it did and does with me, but there's something wholesome and agonizing about a man who knows he is put on this earth to create and yet everything in the earth is an obstacle to that calling. Even God, who ostensibly called him. It's really quite impressive a theme.

Colette (The Vagabond, Cheri, Claudine series) - Like I said, a lot of women, but these are the authors I go back to. The Vagabond, when I read it over again just a few years ago, was this huge light bulb moment for me: oh THIS is why I'm like this. I read it the first time in SF, plucked from my aunt's shelves (she was, I thought, so very cool, and if my aunt had this book, I should be reading it). It was both a book about a single woman writing a book, but also a book about a woman determining her own selfhood, and I latched onto both those concepts. Made for me. This led me to many of her others, but also to Anaïs Nin (also on my aunt's shelves), at about 18 years old, also formative. Delta of Venus is her erotica, and I will admit I skip some of the body violence/horror shorts and the child molesting stories, but others are expansive and sensual forays into women's sexuality that I just had never read before. Not outside of fanfic, anyway. Nin has some short novels that are also in that vein—a woman exploring herself—but I think you'll have seen mostly quotes from her letters and diaries. If you want nonfiction, and something of an epic read, go there.

Nick Hornby (A Long Way Down, About a Boy, High Fidelity, Funny Girl, Just Like You) - I've been reading him since early college, and I can't even remember what got me started first. High Fidelity? Because it was a movie about music and starred John Cusack? Who knows. Anyway, I think his novels stand up against time, and I met him at a book reading once and he was both hilarious and deep. I'd been working with a boy with autism at that point, and I had just read A Long Way Down, and it was evident to me that this author knew what it was to Suffer™ and sure enough, I found out later that he has a child with autism. He just seemed to understand, in both speaking and in print, that life isn't easy for anyone, that we all have a story, and books/stories/music are often the only ways we get any relief. Also he's hilarious. I said that, but it bears repeating. And if you want to understand Brexit at all, Just Like You was eye-opening for me about that. (Being American, I got it in the way of like, oh shit we elected This Cheesehead, but I didn't get it in the way of like, culture and national health care etc).

John Scalzi (Old Man's War, Locked In, Kaiju Preservation Society) - Sci-fi standby. I mean, if I want to read science fiction and I want to laugh and also Get Something Out of It, then I pick up Scalzi. He has a funny twitter presence and a blog and all that, but I don't have much to do with it. I just read his books and laugh and feel like I've managed to escape while also not ingesting something totally bullshit patriarchal. He's aware, he's looking around at the world, and he's imagining a future where that shit, yes, does happen, because we are people, but also like, more and more people or aliens are striving to eradicate that shit. So I like that. Becky Chambers is doing some really good, captivating sci-fi as well, if you want less humor in it (not that she's not funny, she's just not as tongue in cheek or expressly sardonic as Scalzi) and I have one of hers on my TBR shelf.

Ungggg, I feel like this is getting TL;DR and so I need to rattle off a few more names and go: Howard Thurman (meditations), David Maine, Neal Stephenson, Toni Morrison, Larry Niven, Ben Bova, Lucille Clifton (poetry), CS Lewis, Rainbow Rowell, Flannery O'Connor, Maggie Stiefvater, James Baldwin, Celeste Ng, Henry James, Thomas Hardy, Richard Castle (lol but not lol, I seriously love those books).

[ecargmura]

Delicious Party Precure Episode 13 Review - Narcistoru Takes The Helm

So, you’re telling me the reason why Amane got possessed by Narcistoru and the Bundoru Gang was because she just happened to be in the area? That sounds a bit too contrived. It’s just “oh, I just happened to kidnap and possess the first person walking in the corner of this alleyway” sort of thing and it feels dumb in a sense? Where’s the flashback? I feel like this was a bit of lazy writing.

Though, as a villain, Narcistoru is pretty much a level up version of Gentlu. If Gentlu was easy mode, he is normal mode. What makes him more fearsome than Gentlu is that instead of food tasting bad when a Recipeppi is captured, civilians lose their memories of the food. In all honesty, that’s a lot scarier than food losing their signature taste. Good food can make good memories too. Takumi’s mom An is an example of this as she eats Shirasu-don when she thinks of her husband and Takumi’s father, Monpei. When Narcistoru takes the shirasu-don Recipeppi, she loses the happy memory of her husband. It’s scary because she used to be so lovey-dovey when it came to her husband, but now that she’s not behaving that way, it’s understandable why Yui, Akiho and Takumi were worried for her.

Speaking of An, this episode also introduces Takumi’s parents into the story, integrating him into the main plot of the story. Takumi’s mother An runs the guesthouse and is a long time family friend of the Nagomis. She’s extremely lovey-dovey with her husband who also behaves the same whenever they have the chance to be together. Takumi is sick and tired of their PDA, but he’s still a good son, nonetheless. His father is Monpei, who seems to have a connection with CooKingdom and his Delicious Stone chose Takumi as its new wielder.

I think that Takumi’s hostility towards Rosemary is justified because of this. He has no idea his father was from CooKingdom until about a year ago and he’s been living in Earth and has been his father for over twenty years without any signs of wanting to return or needing to return to his hometown. While he doesn’t seem to know the full story of his father’s possible connection with Rosemary, knowing that he met someone with a Delicious Stone and is making Yui, someone he’s known for a long time, fight these odd monsters would raise some suspicions towards someone with some knowledge of it. Rosemary keeps CooKingdom a secret, after all. Takumi has no idea what Rosemary is after, so that’s why he’s a bit wary of him. I think this part of the storytelling here is well-written.

I have to say, for a show aimed towards little girls, there are a lot of male characters introduced here and they’re very pretty. Rosemary and Narcistoru are always good-looking from the start, but then you add in Takumi, Amane’s brothers Yuan and Mitsuki, and now Monpei; Yui’s father Hikaru isn’t pretty, but he’s rather handsome in a rugged way? I don’t think I’ve seen a Precure episode that has this many male characters in one episode. I can tell that many of them could become little girls’ first fictional male crushes.

The second arc starts off strong because of Narcistoru becoming the second arc villain and Takumi possibly joining the Precures as an ally. I know that he won’t be a Precure because Tsubasa from Hirogaru Sky was introduced as the first official male cure. I do wonder what his role in the story will be other than protecting Precious from fatal attacks. What are your thoughts on this episode?

[mediaevalmusereads]

Days Without End. By Sebastian Barry. Penguin, 2016.

Rating: 2/5 stars

Genre: historical fiction

Series: N/A

Summary: Thomas McNulty, aged barely seventeen and having fled the Great Famine in Ireland, signs up for the U.S. Army in the 1850s. With his brother in arms, John Cole, Thomas goes on to fight in the Indian Wars—against the Sioux and the Yurok—and, ultimately, the Civil War. Orphans of terrible hardships themselves, the men find these days to be vivid and alive, despite the horrors they see and are complicit in.

***Full review below.***

CONTENT WARNINGS: violence, racism (including violence against Indigenous peoples, minstrelsy/blackface, and use of the n-word)

OVERVIEW: I don't remember how I learned of this book, but this might be one of those instances where I saw it at a bookstore and decided to give it a go. Overall, I had very mixed feelings; while I admire the work that went into creating such interesting prose and gorgeous atmospheric narration, I also felt like the story lacked emotional depth and did very little to explore how the characters were complicit in colonialism and racism. I can understand why some readers loved this novel, but personally, I can only award it 2 stars.

WRITING: Barry's prose in this novel is a first-person mix of conversational tale-telling and literary profundity. By this I mean that the style is defined by sentence fragments, casual syntax and diction, and a lack of quotation marks, imitating the speech of a poorly-educated Irish immigrant. At the same time, it offers rich description and deep insight that one might expect from literary fiction. I particularly liked the way Barry described the natural world and the poetic rendering of the atmosphere; it made me think of American Hudson River School paintings, all Romantic, sublime landscapes and rugged wilderness. I found this mix particularly effective because it mixed the mundane with the profound, and it made clear that lower-class people can be just as observant, insightful, and wise as any learned poet or philosopher.

Still, there were some things that made this book somewhat difficult to read. For one, some of Barry's paragraphs could get overly long, spanning two or more pages. While I understand that stylistically, such a long paragraph can convey a continuous, run-on thought, I also felt like some paragraph breaks would have been helpful. For two, Barry tends to repeat certain words - namely, "queer," "caterwauling," and others - to the point where it becomes distracting. For three, this book is not one of emotional depth, which means I had a hard time with the dispassionate narration. Perhaps Barry's prose was emotionless on purpose, but for me, it was hard to connect with the narrator because it felt less like he was psychologically distancing himself from horror and more like nothing truly affected him.

PLOT: The plot of this book follows Thomas McNulty, a 17 year old Irish immigrant who joins the U.S. army during the Indian Wars. Thomas enlists with his companion, John Cole, a boy from New England with whom Thomas is in love. Together, they struggle to survive amidst the horrors of war, which includes violence, cold, famine, and disease.

I think I would have liked this story better if Barry had injected a bit more emotion into the narrative. Though I think some of the prose evokes a sense of awe and terror (due to its lyricism), Thomas himself feels somewhat cut off from the world and from the people around him. We know he is in love with John Cole, but there isn't a telltale sense of longing or affection that one might expect, nor is there much of an emotional reaction to the horrors that Thomas witnesses as a soldier. Perhaps this done on purpose to show how being treated poorly/living in desperation makes one numb to the world, but even so, I had a really hard time feeling like *I* should be horrified at that.

Moreover, I think Barry fumbles when exploring the conflict between the U.S. army and the Indigenous peoples of North America. It's clear from the narration that we're not supposed to sympathize with characters who view Indigenous peoples as subhuman, but at the same time, Thomas and John partake in horrific violence that goes relatively unchallenged. Not only do they kill Indigenous women and children, but they end up adopting an indigenous girl themselves (though they aren't cruel to her, they do take her away from her people). Not even Thomas and John's brief career as cross-dressing dancers was of much interest to me because multiple stints were done as a minstrel show (complete with blackface). A number of reviews criticize this book for being too politically correct while others praise the violence for its "realism." Both critiques feel way off to me for the simple reason that this violence/racism simply had no point other than creating a sense of "historical accuracy." In other words, it seemed to me that Barry was interested in using the Indian Wars as a backdrop and simply describing what happens, but was not interested in the question of what responsibility (if any) does a poor, desperate immigrant like Thomas bear for participating in the colonial project. Perhaps I'm being unfair and there really is something in the novel that explores this; personally, though, I just did not enjoy reading about violence against Indigenous peoples and the blackface was just tasteless.

In the same vein, I think the transition to the part about the Civil War was a bit abrupt. Both Thomas and John enlist in the Union army when the time comes, but because neither character seems to have strong convictions, I felt like Barry was struggling to give his characters meaning without war. I think the transition could have worked if this book was interested in exploring what it meant for someone like Thomas to take on a (white) American identity, but as it stands, it feels like Barry is more interested in writing about the things that go on during war than he is about the motives or impacts on the people fighting it.

CHARACTERS: Thomas, our narrator, is kind of fun to follow purely because of his dialect and method of narration. I thoroughly enjoyed Thomas's humor and little turns of phrases, and I appreciated the way he looked at things like desperation and war. Beyond that, however, I felt like there was very little to him. We're told he's in love with John, but that love isn't shown in a way that makes it feel real. We're told he is attached to Winona, but we don't get many scenes of them bonding until the last 40 or so pages of the book. We're also told that Thomas may be trans, and while I would find a trans character in this setting interesting, Barry doesn't do much to explore Thomas's feelings until the end of the narrative.

John, Thomas's partner, is even less interesting in that we see very little of him. He's alway in the periphery, and though we're told he and Thomas are in love, again, it's difficult to feel it in any useful or impactful way. Thomas even has a line towards the end that says he loves John because he's a perpetual mystery, and personally, I don't find that kind of character compelling when talking about romantic attachment.

Side characters are kind of a mix, with some of them seeming like kind people who are just doing their best while others are horrible racists who should be in prison. I was somewhat sympathetic to the major, who seemed like he wanted real peace with the Indigenous peoples but was forced to fight (until the end, which was disappointing); however, others such as the sergeant and a soldier named Starling Carlton were uncomfortable in that they were clearly racist yet not awful enough to be rejected by the protagonist. I don't know - maybe Barry was trying to show how different kinds of people form bonds in horrible circumstances, but again, I don't see why the slaughter of Indigenous people had to take center stage and with so little pushback.

TL;DR: Days Without End is admirable mostly for its gorgeous prose and atmospheric writing. However, my enjoyment of this novel was dampened by the matter of fact slaughter of Indigenous peoples and casual racism; even if such attitudes are challenged within the book, it wasn't apparent enough for me and I don't know why Barry included these things other than for some sense of gritty realism.

[madraleen]

Attack on Titan manga Post-Time Skip Overall Thoughts, Part 1: Only Ymir Knows.

I decided to do an overall-thoughts first and then post the commentaries. It kind of turned into an essay, so I split it in two parts. None of it is mean, but it is critical. To be clear: I love Attack on Titan; just thinking about it gets me emotional. This is why I’m writing this- to make peace with my gripes, get it out of my system and watch the anime in peace. These are fairly initial thoughts. It’s been less than a week since I’ve finished the manga (and lost my mind in the process, lol), and it’s such a rich and complex narrative that I’m sure I’ll change my views here and there. Proceed at your own discretion.

To begin with: Few works of fiction have made me so engaged and have made me feel things so strongly and viscerally like Attack on Titan- both parts of it, regardless of my gripes. I consider everything pre-time skip a masterclass in writing. I consider a lot of things post-time skip absolutely great, a lot of them decent, and some of them sloppy. 

The ideas presented range from good to great, but the execution of  some of those ideas is poor. I don’t think the ending is awful. It’s decent. But decent compared to the brilliance of Part 1 and some of Part 2 is a little insulting for such a body of work; I know it could have been done better; we all do.

I will not touch on Eren in this part. He gets a Part 2 all on his own, because Eren’s handling is my major issue in Part 2. Here are the miscellanea.

My boy Armin: His mind was criminally underutilized. All his strategic genius went out the window. He upped his compassion and pacifistic nature, but the brilliant thinker of Part 1 just wasn’t there. He also never got closure in his story. He never felt like he lived up to Erwin, he tells himself he hates himself, and none of that gets resolved. He never gets a conclusion with Annie either.

Mikasa the world-trotter: How did she get back to Paradis with Eren’s head? How did she manage to establish a life on the very island she betrayed?

Mikasa and Armin, our lords and saviors: It should have made sense, but it felt unearned. Mikasa and Armin were far from central to the story in Part 2. They were part of the ensemble, and suddenly the fate of humanity comes down to Mikasa’s choice and how it relates to Ymir’s love, and Armin’s supposed to save everyone? Great concepts, unbelievably rushed and sloppy execution. These things needed foreshadowing and time to breathe.

My one and only Levi: It’s such a shame that we never got to see flashbacks in his own POV, especially how he got to join the Corps and how he came to be so close to Erwin.

Our Queen Historia: I cannot understand how she became so irrelevant after becoming the Queen.

The ammo conundrum: Unlimited thunder spears and gas. Their running out has been such a prominent, limiting thing in the series, yet it never was an issue when they were fighting on Eren. I’m half-convinced that they just didn’t fly around much, so I’m not sure if this is actually an issue.

No one seems to care about the Hallucigenia creature. No one questions it, questions if it's dead, questions what it is or where it came from. It’s the one thing that causes everything, it’s legendary, IT’S RIGHT THERE IN FRONT OF YOUR EYES, and yet.

The time paradox: I don’t like wibbly wobbly timey wimey narratives. I don’t like it when characters from the future affect characters from the past and create a time paradox where the past was never different and the outcome was always the same because time exists all at once. I can’t wrap my mind around there not being a starting point. This is 100% a personal preference and I do not hold it against the manga.

All in all I just think it became too complicated for its own good. Too many POVs to do them all justice, too many threads to give them all a payoff, and… well,  not enough Eren. Which leads us to Part 2~

[libbys-braincell-loss]

I WANTED TO SHOWCASE SOME OF MY HEADCANONS AND EXPLANATIONS BEHIND DESIGN ELEMENTS VIA SMALL SKETCHES BUT SINCE IM LAZY AND EEPY AND BUSY I WILL JUST LIST THEM HERE

Basically this is an au where pretty much everything is the same except Beeg and Eggdog are like. actual children and do child things (as well as their usual shenanigans), and smg4 and smg3 are basically their parents, but seeing as they are smg4 and smg3 they aren't quite the best at parenting, seeing as (technically) they are single dads (despite hanging out so much beeg and eggdog see each other as siblings at this point) but they try their best and thats all that matters

Eggdog isn't fully in on the dark/evil/emo aesthetic SMG3 is into, but he does like some of the styles occasionally and so thats why he has the signature SMG3 skull as his vest buttons and some dark purple

Eggdog's vest bares a striking resemblance to SMG3's vest he wears in WOTFI 2023, cuz it looks neat

I made Beeg look more like a stylized young version of SMG4, the fit is mostly the same except he doesn't have gloves (his actual design doesnt have gloves either) and i have him a bandana and a long sleeved shirt under his short sleeved shirt

On Beeg's actual design, for some reason one of his arms overlaps an overalls strap? I tried to pay homage to that by making that overall strap hang off his shoulder instead of... phasing through his arm

SMG3 tells Eggdog he loves him so much and Eggdog has become a very affectionate person because of it

SMG4 doesn't often tell Beeg that he loves him that much (not that he doesn't love him, its just he's not big on verbal affection either, like Beeg) which probably affects Beeg a bit to make him very much less affectionate; the two will have moments though

Eggdog got his nails painted black by SMG3! SMG3 wanted to try painting his own nails black and Eggdog thought it looked neat so he got his nails painted too (SMG3's nails are hidden by his gloves, slightly out of embarrassment, but Eggdog loves his nails)

Beeg sometimes picks fights with other kids and other random people and memes. The lil man is reckless as all hell. Thats why he has tears in his overalls and he has bandages on him here and there

Eggdog is actually part dog in this design, i couldn't just not have him be a dog (ig i kind of made him into a dog-human hybrid? me when i accidentally project my own species from my own fictional world into a fictional world that doesn't belong to me:)

I gave Beeg a bandana! No reason, i usually draw SMG4 and SMG3 in turtlenecks and i could have done a turtleneck for Beeg, but i have seen other peoples interpretations of SMG4 have a bandana too and i REALLY like it so i gave Beeg a big bandana around his neck. Plus i think it makes him cuter

Eggdog's top hat is essential. He loves being a lil dapper feller

The hat that Beeg wears onscreen looks more like a baseball cap than a Mario cap, so i made it a baseball cap -- SMG4 shoddily made the SMG4 patch for the baseball cap and somehow managed to attach it together and gave it to Beeg as a gift. Beeg will never admit he loves it

I gave Eggdog red eyes to make him look more related to SMG3

Beeg's eyes are blue just like SMG4's as well

There is no real significance behind Eggdog's watch. I just think it makes him look cooler

Eggdog has freckles on his face! cuz eggdog has whiskers, which kinda looks like freckles in some way, plus it makes him look more like a cutie

I gave Beeg some freckles too, but they are like those baby freckles that vanish as he gets older

The two treat each other as siblings. Beeg acts like the older sibling but is actually younger lol

Beeg has definitely accidentally called SMG3 dad at least one, and Eggdog also has definitely accidentally called SMG4 dad too (SMG4 and SMG3 are around each other so much while they are around, its hard not to at this point)

Beeg definitely is one of those rebellious kids who has tried to run away from home at least once (and by run away from home he means packing some snacks and hiding behind SMG3's coffee shop and wait for SMG4 to feel bad and start looking for him, or until he gets hungry for dinner and comes back to the castle)

Eggdog can't stand being away from home, or being home alone and not knowing where SMG3 is, but he can party just fine at home alone if he knows SMG3 is safe and will come home at some point

Beeg def seeks attention a lot

Eggdog sometimes gets tired of Beeg's bs and will occasionally snap at him about it, but very rarely, usually he politely tries to cooperate with him

SMG4 and SMG3 are not the most qualified parents out there, but they love Beeg and Eggdog so damn much and will do anything in their power to keep their kiddos alive

...Should I even call this an AU? Cuz nothing really changes, its just Beeg and Eggdog looking different and being treated like actual children,,

so. i created humanoid designs for beeg smg4 and eggdog ,,

im trying to get better at drawing little kids and make them look like. kids

also tried something a lil bit different with the rendering style, not that you'll notice

they are such small babies i love them

the stepbrothers of all time

notes below:

was gonna draw other sketches of beeg and eggdog interacting with smg4 and smg3 and doing lil shenanigans together but. tired

[blazenka]

Forthcoming

Returning to Mystic Falls for a visit, Elena awakes to find she's been sent unwillingly into the past. Not only does she have to avoid changing past events; she must also deal with a cold and detached Damon who is the only one who knows she's there.

Original source: https://www.fanfiction.net/s/7073903/1/Forthcoming

Chapters: 17

Published: June 12, 2011 - December 31, 2011

Words: 41434

Rated: Fiction M - Language: English - Genre: Romance/Supernatural - Characters: Elena G., Damon S. - Reviews: 117 - Favs: 132 - Follows: 95

Exported with the assistance of FicHub.net

Chapter 1

Chapter 2

Chapter 3

Chapter 4

Chapter 5

Chapter 6

Chapter 7

Chapter 8

Chapter 9

Chapter 10

Chapter 11

Chapter 12

Chapter 13

Chapter 14

Chapter 15

Chapter 16

Epilogue

Chapter 3

~Ѱ~

2014

Damon rolled over to scoop Elena in his arms as he did every morning until she woke up, except that morning she wasn't in the bed with him. He sighed, maybe she went to call Jenna or possibly make breakfast. Damon laid back in the bed for a moment before he finally got up and pull on a pair of jeans. Running a hand through his slept tangled hair, Damon made his way down the stairs.

"Elena?" he called out only to find an empty silent kitchen. Panic soon rushed through Damon's veins along with adrenaline as he checked the house. All her things and luggage were still there and she wasn't in any of the rooms or bathrooms and he couldn't find any note left from her. Damon quickly found his cell to called Ric, hoping he was really playing the jealous boyfriend and was just overreacting.

"Damon, what's up? Thought I was going to hear from you later in the afternoon?" Ric answered, happy as could be. Damon took a breath - he didn't know. He couldn't be mad at Ric just because he was ignorant to his problems.

"Ric, have you heard from Elena today?" Damon said hoping she was sitting there safe and sound in the kitchen with Jenna and Jeremy.

"Uh, no. I haven't. Why?" Ric's concern rising - once you find yourself in certain situations like fighting vampires and werewolves, those feelings never go away.

"I might be overreacting but she wasn't here when I woke up this morning and I can't seem to find a note from her. Maybe she left in a hurry and I didn't get her text or…"

"Or she was kidnapped by some supernatural baddy we thought was behind us?" Ric answered his fears for him.

"Yea…" Damon muttered, he really did not want to think about it.

"Look, call Caroline and Bonnie and I'll talk to Jeremy and Jenna," Ric offered.

"And if we can't find her?" Damon asked, trying not to sound whipped or worried but dammit, this was Elena - his Elena.

"Then we found out why she wasn't there and we find her - period." Ric answered confidently, "We always do."

Damon offered his thanks to his friend before calling Caroline. Of course, Blondie hadn't heard from his girlfriend and sighed in defeat after he had to inform her all he told Ric already. Damon was just about to call Bonnie when he was hit with a gut feeling that maybe he should visit the witch in person instead.

Elena awoke to an obnoxious nudging as someone tried to get her attention. "Damon, please, just a moment longer?"

"No deal future Elena. I went through this trouble to get you something to eat so you need to eat it and then answer some of my questions," he answered as he continued to nudge her.

Elena sighed, she had hoped the whole ordeal was a bad dream but reluctantly turned over to come face-to-face with Damon and a white paper bag. "Breakfast?" she guessed as she looked over the bag and its grease marks skeptically.

"I said I got you breakfast, not make it. That's Stefan's deal. At least I got you something in the first place. But hey, I thought you would be more cooperative if I got you some food. I'm that kind of guy." He smiled before tossing her the bag.

Elena looked through the contents to find a simple breakfast sandwich. She kept starring at the greasing bagel and melted cheese with some kind of meat in between wishing it was something Damon usually made her in the mornings. He was always a great cook.

But apparently she was taking too long in thought before Damon snapped at her, "Just eat it already before it gets cold!"

Elena couldn't help but glare at the man before taking a bite out of her so-called breakfast. Was that really the man she fell in love with? Well, she always told people how much he changed over the years. This just happened to be a very harsh reminder of exactly how much.

"What do you want to know?" she asked between bites as she watched Damon lean against the dresser.

Damon smiled leeringly before stating, "Well, I should probably suggest you get dressed," he looked down Elena only in her tank top and boy shorts before continuing, "Then you're going to be my own personal soothsayer."

"Alright, I have conditions though," she stated as she finished her sandwich and pulled on her pants before reaching for the shirt she put on the day before.

"Is that my shirt?" Damon asked insulted.

"Sorry," she muttered before she returned the shirt to the chair she found it before turning to him. "I can't stay here," she demanded as she crossed her arms.

"Why not?" he asked as he took his shirt and threw it into the armoire.

"Because if I run into my past-self, it is going to cause some really complicated problems," 'Like when Katherine masqueraded as me…' she finished to herself, "And you can't keep me locked in here because then Stefan will become suspicious."

"You have a point though I doubt Stefan would ever figure out you're not 'his' Elena," he managed to get out while he tried not to stare at her. She really wasn't like Stefan's Elena though - she was matured in… certain areas and appeared older, more confident. It was kind of sexy - if it wasn't Elena he was talking about.

"He would eventually and I have no clue how long I'll be here, despite how much you want me to leave and how much I just want to go home," she admitted as her defiant stance turned to one of comfort as she hugged herself.

Damon just nodded, not feeling like correcting her, as he reached for a fresh shirt and handed it to her, "There's a bed and breakfast outside of town you can stay at for a while," he informed her.

"I don't have my purse, I can't afford to stay anywhere," she informed him.

"Elena, I wouldn't offer if I didn't think of a way you could stay there," he smirked before turning to the door, motioning her to follow.

"You're going to pay for my stay?" she wondered out loud - maybe he was closer to 'her' Damon than she thought.

"Don't need to. Vampire, remember? I'll just compel the owner," he admitted as they headed down the stairs.

Elena sighed in disappointment, 'Maybe not'.

Damon drove his blue Chevy Camaro along the only highway through Mystic Falls with Elena laying down in the back seat. "Can't believe you stuck me back here…"

"You said you had to avoid your 'other-self' so I can't have you visible in the passenger seat. Besides, we're almost there," he said right before he managed to hit a pot hole.

"Ow! Are you sure?" she gasped out in pain as she almost fell off the back seats.

"Yes," he informed her as he stopped the car, "In fact, we're here," turning back to her with a smile, "Now, get out."

Damon quickly got Elena a room from the manager after being invited in and then led her up the stairs to a room in the back of the house towards the woods. Despite its appearance the room had a small refrigerator and kitchen and full bathroom with one bed just for her.

"Leave your window cracked so I can visit you later," Damon announced as he moved towards the door.

"Thought you were going to ask me questions?" Elena reminded him as she settled on the bed.

"Well, I'm going to come back later so I'll talk to you then." He stated as he opened the door but not before he left with some parting words, "Oh, by the way, I know where the grimoire is now. Thanks for your help."

Elena watched him leave, all the while shifting uncomfortable upon her bed. If he knew where it was then she knew what was going to happen tonight. Elena sighed, debating with herself as she finally cracked opened the window. After tonight, Damon might not be so willing to trust her.

Elena awoke later that night to heavy footsteps pacing by her bed.

"How can I trust you anymore than I can trust her?" she heard Damon spout before he stopped and slumped in a chair with the grimoire in hand.

"Damon? What are you doing here?" Elena asked the covers off her and got out of bed.

"You had me fooled, both of you. How can I possible trust you when the supposed younger version of yourself just betrayed me with my brother?" he demanded from her, his voice rising to an uncomfortable tone as he stalked towards her.

Elena took a couple steps back till her thighs reached the bed. All she could do was shake her head before admitting, "At this time, you can't. You can't trust me anymore than you already do."

"Then what's stopping me from just snapping that thin neck of yours?" he snarled while Elena could almost make out his vampiric features in the dim light.

"Same thing that stopped you from turning me tonight," she stated simply.

Damon's face softened as he stared at her curiously, "How did you know that? You weren't there…"

"I've told you before - I've lived through all this. I know what's going to happen over the next four years to some extent because I've seen it."

Damon gripped her arms, "I don't believe you," he stressed, his anger clearly visible once again.

Elena took a deep breath before she looked straight into his blue eyes, "Before we went to Atlanta, you saved me from my accident," she paused for a momentary laugh, "I ever did thank you, did I? You stopped the vampire and helped me… and I never said thank you. But anyway, you told me to take just a time out from my life, step away from it for five minutes and all my problems would still be there when we got back to Virginia. Then I saved your life and we trusted each other, almost became friends and thought we wouldn't betray each other's trust, but I did. And even after everything that happened, I still regretted betraying your trust that night… this night. You looked so disappointed I had nothing to say or excuse myself - even if I believed stopping you from opening the tomb was the right thing to do." Elena looked away for a moment, almost getting herself lost in the memories. Ones she shared with 'her' Damon.

"Then make me trust you again… tell me what happens," he urged her, gripping her shoulders tighter, silently begging and willing her to.

"Damon, I want to…"

"Then tell me."

"But that could mess up everything. Everything, every details, every misdirect… every death happened for a reason. And I wouldn't change anything because where am I or was until I got sent back here… was everything I could have possible wanted after everything,"

"You mean a future with me? How could you possible want that? Do you even know me?"

"I know the man you hide behind that vampire," she admitted as she tried to break his grasp. The whole situation was suddenly too intimate for Elena and she felt like she needed to deny things all over again like she used to all those years ago.

But Damon was relentless when he was trying to obtain something he wanted, "You mean my humanity? Elena, that's been gone for a while now."

"You think you have flipped some switch but you haven't. I've seen it. I saw it Georgia and I felt it when you held me tonight despite how scared I was it was all a show for Stefan because you would never hurt me…"

"Like Hell I wouldn't!" Damon argued as he pushed her back onto the bed and leaned over her, "Why do you and my brother keep saying that? You know how many people I've killed? Do you?"

Elena nodded as she tried to look into his eyes again but found she couldn't without tears forming in her eyes.

"Give me something Elena, something to tell me your telling the truth," Damon reasoned as he tried to ease away from her.

"I already have," she argued, now she just wanted him to leave.

"I don't believe that. I saw her - Katherine has to be in that tomb."

Elena took a deep breath. He couldn't change anything now since he already had the grimoire - a couple sneak peeks couldn't change the future at all now.

"Alright, alright," Elena gave in before as she got into a sitting position on the bed and Damon took interest in her words, "Right now Anna had probably just kidnapped me and Stefan has realized I'm gone. Stefan will go to the boarding house asking for your helps but you'll refuse - probably because you're still mad at him but he rescues me and Bonnie anyway," she stopped to compose herself - hated remember everything Stefan once told her Damon had said.

"You'll tell him you hope I die. But then later you meet Anna at the square and she'll threaten to kill me. For some reason, probably Katherine, you agree to help. I come to the boarding house and we talk about Atlanta… you put your trust in me again so we head to the tomb to meet with Anna and Stefan. Anna's already told you she just wants her mother out of the tomb but what you don't know is when she gets her mother out she'll tell you the truth about Katherine - how she won't be in that tomb."

Damon growled before gripping Elena's arm once again, "I've told you once, Elena. Katherine is in that tomb! I saw them put her in that church, she'll be there and I will release her, you got that!" he informed harshly before pushing her back flat against the bed.

By the time Elena managed to sit right up again, Damon was gone through the open window. With Damon so focused on Katherine he couldn't ask for his help to send her back. Bonnie wasn't strong enough yet and by tomorrow night Shelia, Bonnie's grandmother, would be dead. No one could help her. All Elena could do was crawl back under the covers of the bed and hope her Damon knew she was gone and was searching for her.

It didn't give her much comfort at that moment so she cried herself to sleep.

~Ѱ~

a.n.: I was going to stop at the last line break but I wanted to give you guys a longer chapter. Big thanks for the Vampire Diaries Wiki for existing so I can keep some of the continuity in check. Hope I continue to try to keep the time-line correct but I mostly going off of memory (which is about a year old).

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