#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.)

[screaming-in-the-streets]

my submission for malloysical secret santa!

(also available on ao3)

this is my first (published) fan-fiction, so lmk if there’s better ways to format/ make accessible

written for @lobotomy-jpeg 

The first time Rose saw the Knight, she was more surprised than anything. She knew the likes that came into the establishment, and this one… wasn't one of them. Suits of armor didn’t belong in speakeasies. And then, when the Knight took off the helmet, the face held an even more out of place air. There was purity to it, a knowledge of what to do next, a light that made Rose want to follow into battle– until the Knight shifted, and the person looked just as tired and world-weary as any of the other patrons. Just as well, Rose thought to herself, I know what to do with weariness.

The Knight sat at a barstool in front of Rose with an air of exhaustion– no, more than that. This was a husk of a person now. The knight glanced up at Rose with big, doe-brown eyes, and smiled a sad, empty smile, and asked quietly if there was any gin in stock. Rose could feel herself blushing. Blushing? Since when did patrons, no matter how gallant, ever make Rose blush? She shook the thoughts off, and tended to the Knight. 

That night, Rose dreamt of a bear and the knight– the knight was fighting the bear— or was the bear fighting the knight? There was a man there Rose did not recognize who was screaming at the knight– wasn’t he? Why was the stranger screaming “Pearl”? Why did Rose feel so angry? The bear turned from the knight and charged at Rose. Both the stranger and the knight cried out. Why did either of them care if she got hurt? She hardly knew the one, and didn’t know the other at all? Why wasn’t she afraid of the bear galloping towards her? The bear roared as it approached. He was coming faster and faster, closer and closer. Why wasn’t she running away? Was it that she couldn’t? Wouldn’t? Rose steeled herself, trying to stand firm for the oncoming impact. The bear was close, she could feel it’s breath, hot and heavy on her face. It’s jaw opened, wider, wider, until Rose was sure it could open no further. The bear lunged, and as the moment of impact stared her down

She awoke with a start, sweating and panting. All she could remember was the overwhelming need for honey.

The next day was as dusty and gray as any before it. The Knight returned, once again, tired and woeful. The Knight– named Soldier, she said– and Rose made small talk over the moonshine Rose poured. In a lull of conversation, Rose remembered her dream. 

“Do you know anything about honey?” she asked Soldier, not really expecting an answer. After the initial shock wore off of the Knight’s face, she slowly reached into a pouch at her belt and pulled out a thin, clear vial filled with golden liquid. 

“In my time,” Soldier explained ruefully, “Our generals gave us these. They said they were filled with God’s blood that he spilled to encourage us that our bloodshed wasn’t in vain. Never stopped to question why we followed a god who could bleed…” The knight’s face twisted some, and then smoothed over with a shake of her head. “Regardless, one of the others broke, and then we all realized what it actually was. It was too late by then, the war had run its course, on our side and the other. No one won.” Soldier’s face had gone dark again, and Rose thought of the boys who had come home from their war–and the ones who hadn’t come home– and understood far more than the knight said. 

Rose had almost expected a dream that night, but the crashing visions that overcame her felt more like memories than stories made inside her head. This time, there was no bear, but instead a dimly lit treehouse. Rose could hear laughter filtering from the window, the crash of waves on the beach. Despite the apparent calm, Rose felt unsettled, angry. She ascended to the treehouse, each step pushing the anger further and further into her veins until she burst through the door. The only thing she could feel was rage, white-hot and burning. 

“You.” Rose couldn’t tell if she was screaming at the woman– Pearl, she knew her this time, her sister, how could she— or the man— the man, the Astronomer, her former lover, the man who took what was hers and passed it off as his own. God, it felt like she didn’t know anything other than the fury that burned inside her chest, the pounding of her heart against her ribcage, the agony behind it all. All she knew was these two would pay.

When Rose awoke, she knew what she had to do.

That night at the bar, they had a band playing. It was a small affair, playing songs that did nothing to alleviate the heaviness that settled with the night. When the Knight arrived, Rose felt the same spark of rage light inside her chest. She needed Soldier gone, and she needed that vial. She took her onto the dance floor, in the hopes that proximity would allow Rose to get to the vial. She was spinning in the dust with this stranger and all she could see is her sister’s face– but it wasn’t her but it was her and everything felt heavy and the knight was crying and Rose couldn’t stop and couldn’t reach the vial and everything was heavy and she felt the gun she had snuck under her skirt beat against her leg and—

Rose froze. She turned quickly, taking the steps out the back way, into the dark alley, in the hopes of seeing the stars, of gaining some sense, of catching her breath– Rose didn’t know what she had hoped for. Was she really going to kill some stranger because of some dream she’d had? No, no, that would be crazy, that would be wrong, she wouldn’t do that, would she? Could she? She wrenched the gun out, staring at the black metal. She spiraled, unsure of anything, when a gentle hand touched her back

“Rose,” Soldier whispered, with a look that felt knowing and forgiving and permissive. “Rose.” And with that, the Knight pulled her against her chestplate, wrapped in a hug: a hug of warmth and of friendship, a hug of understanding. Both of them seemed to be weeping, and Rose felt as if she’d known this Soldier all her life, all of her lives, and knew she loved this one more than anything, that this one loved her, and that was all that mattered. The flash of light startled both of them, and Soldier staggered back against the alleyway wall. “O-oh. Oh Rose,” the Knight looked up at Rose. “I’ll see you in the next one,” and the look on Soldier’s face was the same as the first glance— surety, purity— until it faded, leaking through a hole in the silver armor. 

Rose was never sure if the gun had gone off on purpose. All she knew is the blood stained vial in her fingers felt heavier than lead. 

(https://archiveofourown.org/works/43603726 the link I think?)

[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!

[canmom]

continuing to read Worth the Candle, circa ch43.

this continues to clear the bar of being an actually interesting litrpg isekai and also (sigh) ratfic, which I didn't realise at first, but i saw an article on the author's blog which named it as such - which mostly seemed to mean 'fiction which spends a lot of words on thought processes' - but now a little of that bayesian stank is getting in there. but nevertheless, well first it's About Grief in a way that's written in a way that feels raw and genuine enough that it resonates; chapter 42 in which are shown how the protagonist went to pieces has some particular insights on what it's like, thinking particularly of

Looking back, I have to wonder how much of Reimer being a dick to me was just him trying to process the grief in his own way, in the same way that I started to lash out at pretty much everyone around me for every little slight, or anything that could possibly be interpreted as disrespect to Arthur. I was his best friend, and he was mine, that was how I saw myself after his death, and I applied as much paint to our relationship as possible, until it was sometimes hard to remember that I’d been anything but a perfect friend.

and it makes me think like. i wasn't one of Fall's closest friends by any means, indeed for most of this year she wasn't speaking to me for complicated psychosis reasons, and although we'd started to rebuild things at the end and i was really looking forward to spending more time with her, the huge public show of grief I made - it was genuine, but i was certainly partly grieving that i hadn't done a better job of being "Fall's friend" when she was alive.

and second is the author has clearly spent many years reading the same sorts of D&D board I grew up on, so the metafiction aspect builds on a familiar suite of concepts and is thus quite compelling. the author's game design digressions are on point.

and third, or I guess continuation of second, I'm in a very well run D&D game at the moment which is like, highlight of every week no question, so it's on the brain. this is unapologetically a self insert story, but that results in the author/MC's D&D games and the thought and passion he puts into them ringing very true.

it's way longer than it needs to be, I think, and puts little attention on prose styling - it's perfectly serviceable, and does have a recognisable voice, but mostly just 'gets the job done'. the ratfic angle means a great deal of time is spent analysing, planning and deliberating in enormous detail, which doesn't stop people whining in the comments.

but the virtue its prose does have is that it's frictionless. I'm like a little under a fifth of the way in, which means I've read about a sizable novel already, but it really doesn't feel like it.

speaking of which, I've never seen a more condescending set of AO3 commentators. it seems like litrpg attracts a certain kind of reader who isn't shy about saying they think the MC is unbearably stupid, and then backseating the writing in general and the character's build decisions, which seems an absurd thing to get hung up on.

the way this kind of thing works, you've got the small scale series of arcs - 'how will the character solve this problem' - and the longer mystery arc - 'what is revealed about the System underlying it all' - but all of that is just kind of arbitrary really, because what it's really about is the gradual unfolding of theme and character.

why does Juniper have to fight a unicorn? because his reasons for designing 'unicorn as possessive, controlling man with timeline alteration' gives insight into his relationship with Tiff, and more generally serves as an illustrative example of the reasons we play D&D and write fiction. because that's one of the things the story is quite overtly talking about. oh, but you'd better write another post about how the protagonist is unsympathetic because he didn't put a point in luck lmao

anyway i think this is kind of what Baru Cormorant might look like if Seth was less ambitious and of course a less ruthlessly demanding editor. this might seem like an odd comparison because Seth's prose is punchy, poetic and rich with information and Baru is a grand epic about imperialism etc. with a highly driven protagonist, while the characters in WtC spend most of their time trying to solve the problems their last adventure caused and it's a more personal story. but the reason I draw it is that both wear their themes on their sleeves, both seem to be written by caring and passionate people with 'approximate knowledge of many things', both are shaped by desires to write fiction which approaches character in a certain way, both prefer to communicate directly rather than dissemble through subtext and implication... maybe it's just that the image of each author i receive through the text is someone i think i can understand.

anyway no more tonight i must sleep.

[mmmthornton]

Abbott Elementary D&D Episode WHEN baby?

What can I say, I'm a simple lesbian. I see a show with a great group dynamic and I gotta think about what they'd be like at the tabletop.

Plus, I'm...responsibly imbibing and putting off work so HERE WE GO!

Jacob becomes determined to start some kind of gaming club at the school, but he hadn't actually DM'd before so he asks the other teachers if he can do a "practice run" first and bribes them with takeout and beer to let him run a game for them in the gym in the evenings. Surprisingly Barbara has come around to it NOT being a tool of the devil thanks to her and her husband watching Stranger Things together ("If it can help those kids beat a demon and learn to appreciate family in the god-forsaken 1980s, it can't be all bad"). Melissa says she could learn a new game since its no fun card sharking the same five people at her local bar, and Gregory is pretending really really hard that he's not EXTREMELY excited about this because he's always wanted to play but never did as a kid. Ava laughs until she cries when Jacob first asks if she wants to join then flips when Gregory will be there..."and when those craft beers go right through his skinny hipster body" she wants to be there to see his "wild" side. Janine knows nothing about the game but is excited about a new extracurricular activity and thinks its a great way to bond with the kids, and Mr. Johnson wasn't invited but shows up with Coke and a Costco-sized bag of Smartpop because he KNOWS whats up.

Barbara : Definitely a Cleric. She is willing to physically fight Jacob though if she has to "choose a god" from the pantheon, so to keep the peace AND the immersive experience they agree Not To Go Into It but its enough that her healing and spells are faith-endowed. Early on though, she gets some REALLY good rolls to hit when they're surrounded by enemies and she becomes more of a "warcaster" in addition to healing. Lots of buffs and she gets into the idea of a powerful warrior who gives holy blessings with her presence. Probably should've chosen Paladin from the getgo with how she ends up playing, but she makes Cleric work for her.

Melissa : Definitely a Rogue. Okay, I promise all my thoughts aren't basic but also listen to me. The whole concept of the rogue network is SO up her alley. She almost seems like she's not even playing a character at first, but then JACOB surprises her with his NPCs and the two of them roleplay thieves cant as a sort of south philly slang. I think Jacob would be an AMAZing DM so he's ready to meet her where she is (not really invested at first, kind of skeptical on the whole thing), and draw her in by accurately using terminology and making the world feel gritty, lived-in, and familiar - and Melissa LOVEs it. She starts to really get into the fiction of this fantasy world and take the threat/plot hook seriously. Gets yelled at by the support for jumping into fights and going unconscious because she's not a tank class; maybe multiclasses into Barbarian or at least takes a feat or two so she's not going down every fight.

Gregory : The archetypal wizard; old, beard, pointy hat, the whole deal. I hear you thinking "Why not human fighter?" but no. Gregory will not do human fighter, he's been waiting to play D&D for like twenty years and hes researched EVERY aspect of every class. Could be a minmaxer, but moreso is just WAY overthinking the choice so finally Jacob just gives him a premade, high-fantasy, Gandalf-ass wizard named something like Geoffrey Jankins or whatever. Gregory spends a lot of time making his : [ face, worried that he's already destroyed his chance of "having fun in a tabletop game with work friends" because he's THAT kind of person. Once he relaxes, he starts to feel a lot more kinship with his wizard character; he's got a backstory in the premade sheet where he's trying to find a spellbook that was stolen from him that contained years of his hard work and research. Over the course of the game Jankins kind of works with the others the same way Gregory did as he warmed up to them as a substitute, and in the end has the Real Emotional Moment in-game as he realizes what his work was keeping him away from (the relationships with the others in the group being his found family). No one leaves that game with a dry eye.

Ava : Elf Bard, College of Swords. She refused to make a character when Jacob mentioned it involved adding numbers because she's too hot for math, so she got another premade that he knew she'd enjoy. She's actually pretty stoked on the idea of a Creative and Powerful Artist who's dripping with charisma enough that she actually gets the ins and outs of the spell rules really well and is very generous with her Bardic Inspirations ("even to Gregory's old-head-ass"). She does however seem to only use Cutting Words on her own team, specifically Janine ("Jacob! How could you let her use that spell?" "In my defense I didn't think she'd even read the spell sheet!"). I say College of Swords because the worst thing about being a bard is having to share the spotlight with someone else, so she decides she wants to be the hero AND the sexy song vixen who makes the ballad about it.

Janine : Some kind of Genasi or fey druid. She wants to connect with the nature in the world and tries to channel a kind of Pan-from-mythology-meets-Steve-Irwin-depicted-by-Simone-Biles character. Her character motivation is she wants to write a guidebook of the animals - both common and magical - that they come across but keeps absolutely failing her rolls. She rolls a one and slaps a Mystical Enchanted Forest Deer in the face, launching a fight that the party is NOT prepared for. IS very good in a fight; she'll transform into an owlbear and headbutt an enemy away if one of the other party members are in trouble. Only remembers how to use like, three spells total and doesn't tell Jacob that she has no clue how things like spell slots or materials work so she just doesn't track it / makes up a number when asked how much she has. Jacob catches on pretty quickly, but side eyes into the camera to let us know he's deliberately letting it slide because she keeps rolling badly and could use the break.

Mr. Johnson : Makes his own dwarf warlock who's ABSOLUTELY minmaxed to hell. The overall playstyle of the group though is more laid back, but he's after a harder core play experience and only drops in sometimes if he hears there's a boss fight. Can do things from the book that are completely legal but have Jacob looking up obscure status effects and rules to try to keep up. Would probably make a good DM, but says he's more of a Warhammer guy.

Jacob : Obviously the DM, but I imagine that once the kids get into the game one of them might want to take a turn DM'ing. Jacob, gleaming with pride, would be happy to pass the DM screen to the "younger, brighter, woker generation". He joins the party as a ranger ("...which in the fifth edition classic is not the most capable class however with updates and features can be utilized in very specific cases for role-play and battlefi-" "For f*cks sake Jacob just take a shortbow proficiency and lets get on with it"), and spends most of the time that they're playing being extremely proud of his student....until the kid catches him on a technicality on his animal companion range.

[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.