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sunderingstars · 6 months ago

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✩ ‧₊˚ ⌞ IDLES & EXPRESSIONS ⌝

sampo analysis m.list

— what the stars reveal: analysis, elation!sampo

— word count: 1.6k

— overview: (as of 2.2) a look at sampo’s idles, expressions, and general outward demeanor in the context of confidence and performance, as well as how they relate to elation!sampo theories. i decided to combine these since they had such overlap :3

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✩ ‧₊˚ ⌞ INTRODUCTION ⌝

There are two major facets to the ways Sampo’s outward demeanor may relate to a higher state of Elation: confidence and performance. These can further branch into the confidence of his body language and the performance of his expressions.

The Path of Elation is well-known for its emphasis on “performance” and exaggeration, so it would make sense that higher beings (whether Emanator, Aeon, or otherwise) would gravitate in higher degrees towards these concepts. For example, Sampo’s overwhelming confidence in his idles and kit may speak to the kind of confidence an extremely powerful being would have in their own ability to handle conflict — a surety that comes naturally with being in the upper echelon of consciousness.

Additionally, the clear exaggerations to his expressions would pull him closer in orbit to the core of Elation, the “performance” of the self. While it is important to note that other Masked Fools like Sparkle have exaggerated expressions as well, the combination of Sampo’s confidence and laid-back personality tempers this exaggeration into something older and more mature (i.e. the nuanced balance between power and longevity).

✩ ‧₊˚ ⌞ IDLES ⌝

Sampo’s first idle shows him flipping through a stack of bills and seeming very pleased with himself. His body language is especially notable here (as it is with both his idles) — open, casual, and relaxed. The confidence comes not just from his expression, but from the way he easily shifts from foot to foot, steady and balanced while he flips through the money with open arms and an ease that comes from practice.

Additionally, his expressions show an ease of movement from whistling to smiling, the crease to his eyes showing he’s pleased with himself. There’s a clear communication here: this is his realm of expertise. He’s done this so many times he barely has to think about it, flowing through the motions without so much as a hitch. This can also speak toward his adeptness at deceit and trickery; the money represents scams and generally “shady” business deals, so it shows he’s practiced at faking identities too.

His second idle has to do with his weapon, taking one of the blades and twirling it around. Again, he easily shifts from foot to foot and hand to hand, handling a sharp weapon with the ease of practice. His stance is once again open, shoulders broad and head tilted. When he catches the blade, he looks close to the camera with a determined look, showcasing a lack of nervousness or embarrassment to be showing off. He is also only handling one blade — if we are operating under the idea that his dual blades resemble dual “sides” to his being (whether consciousness, identity, or form), then he is maneuvering a single one with ease.

Personally, I think this single blade represents his mortal form, with him showing us how easy it is for him to maneuver due to being in it for so long. This mortal form would also be directly “Sampo” and everything associated with him, so the ease with which he handles the blade could speak to the ease with which he carries out multiple facets of his identity as Sampo (fighting, scamming, smooth talking, etc.).

Together, these idles show two important parts of his character: money and blade. The deceit, the trickery of lying about one’s own identity is handled with ease, as is the singular blade, the fang of a mortal form. Through this, he shows us that he is not the bumbling idiot he makes himself out to be — that act is reserved for when it benefits him; when he really needs to, he can flip through those bills without a mistake, twirl that blade as if it poses no danger.

The casual nature of it all is what sticks out to me most. Not only is he confident, not only is he performative, but it seems to come so easily to him. They’re practiced motions, refined with time, to the point he can handle such things as “idles,” something to simply while away the time. Perhaps that’s what it means to be immortal (or somewhere close to it) — the steady march of time flattens all, and what once was difficult or dangerous becomes as easy as breathing.

✩ ‧₊˚ ⌞ EXPRESSIONS ⌝

Now, let’s move on to his expressions. This is where the “performance” in performative emotion really kicks in:

As we can see, Sampo has a wide range of expressions. In comparison to other characters like Welt or Gepard, he is quickly able to go from raised eyebrows and a stretching smile to sharp, angry eyebrows and narrowing eyes. While we do see this with other expressive characters like Tingyun (not the best control example, though, since she ended up being an Emanator in disguise), Serval, and even Jing Yuan, I want to note how Sampo’s expressions match very closely with the “stereotypical” emote symbols.

His shy, grumpy, and gentle are especially exaggerated, enough so to match the “performance” of the emotes. His eyebrows especially seem to match, creasing up and down when needed, as do his eyes, opening and closing and narrowing in accordance to which emotion is being “performed.” He is good at projecting emotion, but not at expressing it genuinely — his surprised face seems more carefully guarded than the rest, not confident in the wide smile or the deep frown but rather genuinely caught off-guard, unable to find a true place to rest when not “smiling” or “frowning.” We can really only tell the emotion from his eyes, which have slightly widened.

I feel like this heavily ties into the idea of “masks,” the idea of being able to perform a range of emotions with the ease of practice but getting tripped up when something genuine approaches. It’s easy for him to put on his wide smiles when he’s shy and gentle, to put on his deep frowns when he’s grumpy and confused, but the surprise stays locked behind his eyes, never truly able to make it past the mask. He never opens his mouth, either — in many of the other expressive characters, they open their mouths somewhere in their expressions to show emotion (i.e. Jing Yuan’s confused and shy, Serval’s confused and surprised, and Argenti’s surprised). Even Tingyun gasps in shock. But Sampo? His mouth stays shut like a mask.

Although both the Masked Fools and Aha have masks that open their mouths, I feel like this “closed mouth” pattern is supposed to heighten the idea of the over-exaggerated “smiling” and “frowning” motif of a mask, perhaps even Sampo’s inability to speak or be honest about his identity, intentional or otherwise. There’s an almost silencing feel to it; despite the gaud and the glamor of performing each emotion, he isn’t able to really speak for himself, to open his mouth and say what he really thinks or feels.

This could be read as an Emanator!Sampo who is restricted directly by Aha Themself or is hiding his identity for safety reasons, an Aha!Sampo who is restricted by the Primum Mobile or the effects of a mortal form, a Doll!Sampo who, for whatever twisted joke, is unable to voice his true identity as a creation of Aha, or even a general Sampo who has been so constricted by the Elation for so long that all he is capable of doing is going along with the masks, the “performance,” unable to truly figure out how to express himself genuinely, if at all.

Here are some other examples of Sampo’s exaggerated expressions, because damn, this man has range:

Again, I really want to point out the movement of his eyebrows, mouth, and body language. He’s not only expressive with his face, but his hands and legs and chest. Every part of his body seems to be an extension of performative emotion, performative confidence, carrying through that close link with the Elation. He is also very smug, like he knows something we don’t at any given time.

✩ ‧₊˚ ⌞ CONCLUSIONS ⌝

Overall, I feel like Sampo’s idles and expressions scream “smug confident performative powerful entity” (try saying that five time fast lol), which fits both Aha and Their Emanators to a T. He very much operates in the “extremes” of emotion, never able to truly sit somewhere neutral, somewhere free from the Elation. His confidence speaks to power, to longevity, yes, but it also speaks to a mask, an almost unwilling need to constantly perform.

His expressions further solidify the extreme performance of it all, the almost stereotypical level of ups and downs without truly settling at a neutral. Thus, it would make sense for his identity to be more closely intertwined with the Elation than that of simply another Masked Fool — he seems too constrained, constricted by that winding snake to breathe. This is a state I would associate closer to Aha, an Emanator, or a Doll, as those beings would be closer to the “core” of Elation (and thus, compulsory states of being), the true constriction of a winding snake.

Honestly, this all just made me feel worse for Sampo; it seems like the guy truly can’t catch a break. It may not even be that he’s choosing not to show genuine emotion or that it’s hard, but rather that he can’t do it at all. Depending on how far up the theory chain we go, an Emanator! or Aha!Sampo may be so rigidly constricted by the nature of his existence that he physically can’t show the kinds of emotion he truly wants. It’s no way to live, that’s for sure. I wonder if that’s why he’s constantly clad in bones.

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.𖥔 ݁ ˖ જ⁀➴ thanks for reading to the end!

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#⌞ ✎ sunder.writes ⌝#⌞ 🎭 ⌝#hsr #honkai star rail #honkai: star rail #sampo #sampo koski #sampo hsr #hsr sampo #sampo honkai star rail #analysis #hsr analysis #hsr theory

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elle-p · 4 months ago

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Akira Ishida's Persona3 The Movie #4 Winter of Rebirth blu-ray comment translation

Ideas about Persona 3 The Movie

For Makoto Yuki, the 4 chapters of Persona 3 The Movie were the story of how, after Death was sealed within him and his heart became hollow, it began to fill up and repair through his interactions with the Specialised Extracurricular Execution Squad.

I feel like as a part the adroit way the narrative is structured around the recollection of Makoto's memories, the timeline and timing of what is revealed is shifted, so that the audience members who hadn't exerienced the game version may have felt a sort of eerieness when seeing Makoto's position when he first appears. Moreover, many of the plot points that happen in every chapter, for example things like the misunderstanding regarding Yukari and her dad, the case of Junpei and Chidori, and Aragaki-senpai and Amada-kun's relationship, seem depressing and gloomy. However, it's not because they are cheerful and happy, but because they accurately depict the wounds that people carry inside themselves that Makoto, by meeting and understanding them as he progress through the chapters, is able to aquire the precious things everyone should have.

I believe that the reason why Persona 3 The Movie's 4 chapters were well recieved by the audience was not just due to their interest in seeing the story they experienced in game in a film, but also because the scenery that Makoto sees made an impact and they related to it, and were curious to see how things would develop. This is how Persona 3 The Movie depicts the various ups and downs of the experiences that make up people's hearts, but my understanding of the word 'Persona' is that it comes from psychology.

When I first heard about the title and contents during recording, I wondered why you would call the incarnation of yourself for battle a Persona. A mask that people wear to represent themselves externally. It becomes a weapon to fight your enemies, the things that face you. This seems like everyday communication itself. So, when I think about the original meaning of Persona, I can make my own satisfactory reasoning as to why Makoto's Persona isn't in the form of a single one that evolves, but instead uses multiple from the beginning. The empty minded Makoto has no desire to be seen externally. It doesn't matter to him; he doesn't care how he's seen, so there's no reason for him to limit himself to one mask. What do you think? Personally, I quite like this reasoning. By viewing Makoto as having been an empty vessel, it makes it a major necessity for the story to develop him as a character in the film. Is it too much of a stretch to say that Makoto Yuki's story isn't just limited by the framework of a game, and has the potential to withstand the development and adaption, so therefore it was inevitable that it would be made into a movie? Speaking of which, the climax scene of Winter of Rebirth. After all he's been through, regaining his lost humanity and filling himself, Makoto reaches the point where he is willing to sacrifice his own life for his friends, just like his mother once did for him. There is no recklessness that comes from the indifference to the fear of death as in Spring of Birth. In order to achieve their shared goal of protecting the proof of existance people leave behind, Makoto decided to save the friends who had filled him and given him the elements to reconstruct himself and the world in which they live. And, as you all saw, this action was based on a self-sacrifical idea. For this reason Makoto, who can wear the masks of many Personas, gets every one of them shattered, and in the end can only move forward without wearing a mask. Don't you think this is a very symbolic scene?

He entrusts his friends with the same word his mother told him: 'live'. If a mother's love for her child is the ultimate, unsupassed thing, then you can say that Makoto's inner self, which can pour out that selfless love from the bonds with his friends, has completely regained human form. In addition, there is a mechanism in place which means that you can only go to the last stage without wearing the mask of a Persona. This can be seen as a message that the power to stand up to Nyx, the last opponent, the environment, and the world resides in someone's true essence, and that it is impossible to do so while wearing a false mask. It is also suggested by the composition that it is necessary to wear the mask of a Persona when defeating enemies, and to expose your true self when protecting loved ones. I would like to say that there is no way that exposing your true self could lead to strength, but once reset and gained new experiences, Makoto reached the next stage before others, attaining the answer to life. He is no longer an ordinary person. Even though it's fiction, I'm glad that it was Makoto and the others that were given the mission to fight Shadows in the Dark Hour. If it had been me, since I still haven't found the answer to life, the world would have ended on January 31st as planned, and these ideas would have never come into the world. If you think about it, that could have been okay, too.

劇場版「ペルソナ3」にまつわる妄想

結城理にとって劇場版「ペルソナ3」の全4章はデスをその身に封印され、心が虚ろになってしまった彼が、特別課外活動部の仲間達とのふれあいを経て、その中身を満たし直していくまでの過程をたどる物語でした。

理の記憶の甦りという物語構成の妙として、時間軸とそれが公開されるタイミングがズラされていたりしたので、ゲーム版に触れたことがない観客の皆さんは初登場時の理の立ち位置に一種の不気味さを感じたのではないかと思います。そのうえ各章で起こる事件は、例えばゆかりの父親に対する誤解や順平とチドリの一件、荒垣先輩と天田くんの関係など暗くて重いものが多い印象です。しかしそういった明るくてハッピーなものばかりではない、人が内側に抱え込んでいる傷の部分をきちんと描いたからこそ、彼らに出会ってそれを見つめることになる理も、章が進むにつれて、本来、人として持っているべき大切なものを、欠けることなく獲得していけたのだと思います。

劇場版「ペルソナ3」の全4章が観客の皆さんに受け入れて頂けたのも、ゲームで体験したストーリーを映像で見てみたいという興味の他に、そんな理の見る景色に影響され同調することで、その先の展開が気になったからという部分もあったのではないでしょうか。このように人の心を構成する様々な経験の起伏を描いた劇場版「ペルソナ3」ですが、そもそもペルソナという単語は僕の理解では心理学周辺で出てくるものですよね。

一番初めのゲーム収録でこのタイトルと内容を知ったときに、バトルをするための自分の化身をペルソナと呼ぶなんて、何でシャレてるんだと思ったものでした。人が対外的に自分を表すためにかぶる仮面。それが敵、自分に向かってくるモノと戦うための武器になる。これは日常のコミュニケーションそのものに見��ます。だから、そういうペルソナを本来の意味を考えると、理だけが一つのペルソナの進化という形ではなく、初めから複数のぺルソナを使い分けられるというところにも自分なりに納得のいく理屈をつけることができそうです。心の中が空っぽの理には端から対外的にどう見られたいという願望がありません。そんなことは彼にとってはそれこそ「どうでもいい」ことであって、どう見られても構わないからこそ、かぶる仮面を一つに限定する理由がないのです。どうでしょう。自分としてはこの理由付けの仕方、なかなか気に入っています。理が空の器であったと捉えることで、映画の登場人物として物語を展開させていく大きな必然性を持たせることにもなるのです。結城理の物語はゲームの枠にとどまらず、映画化という展開にも充分耐えうるポテンシャルを持っていた、だから映画化されるのは必然だったというのはちょっと暴走し過ぎでしょうか。暴走ついでに、第4章『Winter of Rebirth』のクライマックスシーン。これまでの経験を経て、一度無くした人間性を取り戻し、中身を満たすことができた理は、かつて母親が自分にしてくれたように、仲間を生かすために自分の命を投げ出すという境地にまで達します。そこには第1章『Spring of Birth』の頃の己の死の恐怖に対するどうでもよさから来る蛮勇はありません。自分たちが存在した証を守り残すという全員の目標を果たすために、理は自分を満たしてくれた、自分を再構成するためのエレメンツをくれた仲間と彼らが生きていく世界を、今度は自分が救おうとしました。そしてそれが自己犠牲的発想に基づく行動だったのは皆さんも感じられた通りです。そのために数多くのペルソナという仮面をかぶることができる理が、ことごとくそのペルソナを打ち砕かれ、最後はその仮面をかぶらずに先へ進む。これはなかなか象徴的なシーンだとは思いませんか。

「生きろ」と自分に伝えてくれた母親と同じ言葉を仲間に託していく。母親が我が子を思う母性愛が、究極、無上のものであるならば、仲間たちとの間にその無償の愛情を注げるまでの絆を楽いた理の内面は、完全に人間としての形を取り戻したと言えるでしょう。それに加えて、ペルソナという仮面をかぶらない形でしか最後のステージに上がれないという仕掛けが用意されているわけです。これはニュクスという究極の敵、環境、世間に立ち向かえる力を宿す場所はその人の本質的な部分にしかない、虚飾の仮面を被った姿では無理なんだというメッセージにも見えるわけです。また、敵を倒すときにはペルソナという仮面をまとい、大切な人を守るときには自分の素の姿をさらけ出すことが必要だったという構図も暗示的です。自分なんかはとても��ゃないけれど素の自分をさらけ出したところで強さに結びつくとは到意思えないと言いたいところですが、一度リセットされ、新たに経験を積み直した理は、人より先に一つ上のステージ、命の答えに到達しているのです。もはや凡人ではありません。フィクションとはいえ、影時間でシャドウと戦う使命を与えられたのが理達で良かったとつくづく思います。もしも僕だったとしたら、命の答えにたどり着くのはまだまだ先のことでしょうから、世界は予定通り1月31日に終わっていたでしょうし、そうなったらこの妄想が世に出ることもなかったでしょう。そう考えるとそれもアリだったかもしれませんけどね。

#persona 3 #p3 #makoto yuki #spoilers #calls it delusions somehow manages to be one of the best analysis of not just makotos character but p3 as a whole i dont understand #this might not be entirely accurate but should be close enough #i know theres an english version of the blu rays but i neither own them nor have access to them so

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yurimother · 2 years ago

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Yuri of Absence and The Chair of Yuri: Combining Lesbian Manga and Science Fiction - The Secret Garden

This article was originally written in 2021 as part of The Secret Garden, YuriMother's exclusive series of articles, available only for Patrons. If you want to access other articles and help support Yuri and LGBTQ+ content, subscribe to the YuriMother Patreon.

In the “olden days” of Yuri, which is really to say anything in the ‘00s or earlier, there was not much variety in the mainstream Yuri market. If you wanted to read a manga about the romance between two women or watch an anime with clear lesbian elements, choices were between a sweet school story or a classic tragic school Yuri story. As I have mentioned many times recently, one of the most significant advancements in the recent Yuri genre is the advent of sub-genres. Once considered an element or subgenre itself, Yuri hosts various works from isekai to feminist literature. However, one of the most curious and certainly most well-known subgenres is science fiction.

Yuri science fiction is in the spotlight right now, with everything from visual novels like Synergia to webcomics like Ratana Satis’s Soul Drifters. However, one of the most prolific and rightly celebrated titles is Iori Miyazawa’s Otherside Picnic. The series began publishing under Hayakawa’s Bunko JA imprint in 2017, and over the past few years, it exploded onto the scene. It has an upcoming sixth book, a manga adaptation serialized in Monthly Shounen Gangan, healthy overseas publishing, and of course, an anime adaptation helmed by Kase-san and Stiens;Gate director Takuya Sato. It has garnered praise from critics CBR, Anime News Network, and Erica Friedman of Okazu. I wrote glowing reviews for the first few books, complimenting its worldbuilding, pacing, and characters. However, Otherside Picnic did not spring out of anywhere. Indeed, it is the product of gradual shifts in Yuri and sci-fi storytelling and Miyazawa’s genius theories and knowledge of the genres.

The mixture of Yuri and science fiction is not anything new; it predates most other forms of Yuri save Class S school romances. You may not picture many of these when you think of modern Yuri sci-fi, but as early as 1975, we had Yuri stories like Boku no Shotaiken that included small sci-fi elements, in this case, transferring the mind to another body. Over the next two decades or so, a time during which so few Yuri titles surfaced, it is occasionally referred to as Yuri’s “era of Darkness,” multiple titles sci-fi titles including Dirty Pair, Project A-Ko, Bubblegum Crisis, and Iczer featured science fiction settings and Yuri elements. At this time, Yuri was not much of a genre as we think of it today, but more of a factor inserted into a larger narrative. Think of Yayoi and Shion from Psycho-Pass for a more contemporary example. In fact, except for Iczer, none of these titles feature any outright lesbian characters, just female casts with “Yuri-ish” moments of women standing close together and being companions.

These titles feature two key elements that many current series have shifted further away from, soft sci-fi and Weak Yuri. Soft, as opposed to hard science fiction, is the more established of these two scales. Science fiction can be separated between outlandish and impossible ideas, sometimes known as science fantasy, and those based in reality, research, and the hard sciences such as physics, astronomy, and mathematics. Sorting works between these two labels is, ironically, not an exact science, and fans and critics alike argue about their precise definitions. However, let us consider soft and hard science as a spectrum, with outlandish premises like Dragonball on the soft end and the reality-based concepts of Space Brothers at the other. One can sort most titles along this continuum. M Alan Kazlev does an excellent job dissecting this scale in further detail. Many of the titles we enjoy today, including Otherside Picnic, inhabit this transitory space, as it is not fantasy. Still, its reliance on anthropology and psychology’s soft sciences may put it a small step below more grounded hard sci-fi. Still, it is far above the aliens and superpowered robots in ‘80s anime, so we shall consider it hard sci-fi for the sake of this argument.

*Note: Many science fiction circles use the abbreviation sci-fi for soft science fiction and SF for hard science fiction. For ease of readability and common vernacular, this article uses “sci-fi” for both instances.*

Sci-fi Yuri did not break out of soft science fiction territory until very recently. In the 1990s, Yuri underwent dramatic changes thanks to Sailor Moon and Revolutionary Girl Utena, which helped reform it as a genre rather than a feature. Maria Watches Over Us revived S Yuri traditions, and new titles were set in schools and focused on modern girls’ lives. In the 2000s, Yuri magazines began serialization and featured stories such as Kisses, Sighs, and Cheery Blossom Pink and Strawberry Shake Sweet (both serialized under different names). Despite being primarily aimed at adult women, the magazine found success with male audiences, prompting new stories appealing to men and boys. These works reintroduced action and science fiction into the genre with pieces like Kannazuki no Miko: Destiny of the Shrine Maiden, Blue Drop, and Kashimashi: Girl Meets Girl (Yuriboke does a better job breaking all these down). However, all these were still vehemently in soft sci-fi territory, with Kashimashi’s only surreal element being an alien because the author was, to simplify grossly, unable to fathom the existence of transgender people (coming full circle from Boku no Shotaiken). Possibly the only contemporary mainstream hard sci-fi title to include Yuri and enjoy a modicum of success was Qualia The Purple. However, this series did not have the genre-defining power that later works would.

However, what changes between these series and those mentioned earlier is the Yuri itself. The relationships become much more explicit and central to the plot. You can deliberate whether or not Bubblegum Crisis is sapphic, but just try sitting someone down and arguing that Kannazuki no Miko is not built around the crux of two women holding romantic interest in each other. Yuri science fiction author Gengen Kusano proposes a dichotomy similar to soft and hard sci-fi to analyze these titles, Weak and Strong Yuri. He explains it in his own brilliantly convoluted and philosophical way, but in short, Weak Yuri relies on using logic and the mind to make the real imaginary, while strong Yuri is about emotionalism and realism, making fiction into reality.

Strong Yuri is Yuri that focuses on realism through feelings and emotions. Kusano describes it as fiction characters having real emotions. They have strong connections and affection for each other that are real and powerful. The audience experiences the feelings between the characters as they are felt and portrayed. Think of how emotional the exclamations and love, sorrow, confusion, and affection are in titles like Bloom Into You and Citrus. In a sense, they can be so strong that they transcend their fictional confines and become real, as they are experienced by considers, a stage called “radically Strong Yuri.” Most explicit Yuri, which is not subtext or suggestive content but in-your-face lesbianism, is Strong Yuri, although not all Strong Yuri is outright depictions of lesbianism; it is a square rectangle situation, not all rectangles are squares, but all squares are rectangles.

Weak Yuri is cemented in the areas of thought, logic, and epistemology. It deals with the theory of mind, the ability to attribute mental states to others or ourselves. For example, when we see someone smiling or laughing, we may not feel their emotion ourselves, as we do not have direct access to their mind, but we recognize that they are happy. In Weak Yuri, one uses their theory of mind to observe facts and deduce the existence of a Yuri relationship, even if one is not present. So-called “Yuri-ish” titles like Yuru Camp or K-ON! do not outright state or depict romantic or sexual attractions, but is attributed by the viewers onto characters. Said observer witnesses the interactions between girls and, using that factual and observable data, puzzles out a lesbian attraction they prescribe to the subjects, whether real. Shipping culture relies on Weak Yuri’s logic Kusano’s most extreme, “Radical Weak Yuri,” the relationships of real people, like idols, become imaginary through these projections.

Blue Drop and Kashimashi may have been soft Sci-fi, but unlike the soft sci-fi, Weak Yuri series of the twentieth century, they featured Strong Yuri and placed it more as a central aspect of the work with other elements built around, rather than as a side element. The next revolution in sci-fi Yuri came when hard sci-fi titles began production. A few of the principal players here are Kusano himself, Otherside Picnic Creator Iori Miyazawa, and editor Rikimura Mizoguichi, all of whom feature in the viral Yuri Made Me Human interview of Miyazawa. Most of the theories and ideas discussed in this article, including Kusano’s Weak and Strong Yuri arguments, came from these seminars.

It all started with Kusano’s existential widescreen Yuri baroque proletariat hard sci-fi Love Live AU fanfic of the popular ship NicoMaki, consisting of Nico Yazawa and Maki Nishikino. The revised edition of this story, Last and First Idol, was published in 2016 and became the first debut title to win the prestigious Seiun Award in 42 years. Satoshi Maejima’s post-script essay at the end of the Last and First Idol collection gives far more detail into these works’ history. However, Idol was the first prominent story to feature Yuri in a hard sci-fi narrative. It was not perfect. In fact, in its push to feature gruesome content and insane hard sci-fi that Yuri is pushed to the wayside during most of the story.

*Author’s note: The first time I read Last and First Idol, I was completely unaware of its contents, which was a shocking experience; the story comes with a severe content warning).

Last and First Idol did not create a woven hard sci-fi, Strong Yuri narrative. However, it was a definite proof of the concept, a testament that the sprawling details and imagery of hard Sci-Fi could work with Yuri relationships. Kusano’s next short story, Evolution Girls, which would appear alongside Last and First Idol in the collection of the same name, saw the author focus more on emotionalism and create a Strong Yuri work. Nevertheless, Last and First Idol was a massive success. Future hard proof that Yuri hard sci-fi was coming in force came in December 2018, when Hayakawa Shobo ran a special edition of its long-running S-F Magazine featuring Yuri stories. The issue, planned by Rikimura Mizoguchi, proved so popular for the second time in its then 59-year history, the magazine had to reprint before release.

While Kusano was developing theories on Yuri and Hayakawa Shobo worked to push the public eye onto Yuri sci-fi, author Iori Miyazawa was refining his own Yuri premises, ones that, though he did not know it at the time, would not only see Strong Yuri and Hard sci-fi standing side by side in the same story but would synthesis the two into a unique product that could attract new fans and expand the borders of science fiction and Yuri. The work in question, of course, is Otherside Picnic. This light novel series about girls journeying to another world to hunt creatures from occult internet lore is to date Yuri science fiction’s best execution.

As Miyazawa admits, he strives to create Strong Yuri by focusing on emotionalism and realistic characters. However, such character-driven narratives are often at odds with hard science fiction, which requires dense walls of text to explain the complicated science behind its concepts and world. Miyazawa avoids this trap by utilizing Yuri tropes, specifically scenic Yuri and “Yuri of absence,” and integrating Yuri relationship into these explanatory literary lectures. Examining the latter first, rather than using narrative or exposition dialogue to unravel the intelligence behind the world or elements of science fiction, Miyazawa uses the relationship between Sorawo and Toriko.

In Otherside Picnic, explanations of the mysterious Otherside come primarily from two sources, dialogue and Sorawo’s inner monologue. When Sorawo and Torikko discuss a nuance of the paranormal creatures they investigate, it no longer becomes a large infodump but a Yuri scene about their relationship through their interactions and responses. According to both the strong Yuri theory and Yuri’s traditional definition, these emotions and discussions are the crux of the genre – stories about females’ relationships. Similar emotionalism fills Sorawo’s inner monologues, specifically in the frequent romantic admirations of Toriko. Thus, an explanation existing in that same space becomes Yuri, as it mirrors the same emotions and attraction. Merely by placing the usual exposition into interactions and relationships, Miyazawa was able to open hard science fiction to new readers, who may have been apprehensive before because of these text walls.

Miyazawa’s other secret weapon is, as he describes it, “Yuri of absence.” Relying on the principles of Strong Yuri, that Yuri is fiction made real through emotions, Yuri of absence extends these parameters outside of characters. As Strong Yuri relies on feeling, not observable data like characters, anything that invokes two women’s feelings together is Yuri. It could be a song, or an empty bench, as one can imagine two women on it and feel emotions tied to that. Of course, taken to its extreme, nearly anything can then be Yuri, as I have joked before, gesturing to an empty chair proclaiming, “Behold, a Yuri!” However, Miyazawa uses this Yuri of absence sparingly, rendering it closer to scenic Yuri’s intimacy.

Scenic Yuri, a particular type of Yuri of absence, focuses exclusively on setting and imagery, a feature that works particularly well in science fiction as according to Masahiro Noda’s “sci-fi is all about images.” Traditional Yuri uses character interaction and supplements it with images and sights that help communicate characters’ emotions and intimacy, like fleeting shots or descriptions of the sky. Take the shot from Kase-san and Morning Girls where Yamada stands by the bus stop. The distance between the girls, the tree in the foreground on Yamada’s side, and the pole on the right all invoke emotion and help tell the girls’ story, distanced by their differences and upcoming life paths. Now remove the girls, the scene remains, as does its meaning and emotions, whether the characters are present or not.

Scenic Yuri is employed vigorously in more male-targeted S Yuri (a minority of the Class S genre). Here, the imagery provides intimacy so that the voyeuristic viewer could look into the characters’ private and forbidden lives, specifically the girls in all-girls schools. Take the shot from Strawberry “Mo Man May Enter Here” Panic. The sweeping view of the Strawberry Dorms atop Astraea Hill, a place where men are forbidden, gives the consumer an exclusive inside look at the private home of its subjects. Otherside Picnic uses these same scenic Yuri principles in its descriptions. In this case, the intimacy does not come from a place where men are prohibited or a shot describing women’s relationships. Instead, the reports of abandoned ruins and deserted open fields where only Toriko and Sorawo exist provide extreme intimacy. It is an emotional view of two of the few women in this world with nothing but each other; thus, Yuri.

Yuri science fiction is easily the most exciting place in the genre right now. Its creators are experimenting with new theories and storytelling methods to expand the boundaries of what science fiction or Yuri alone could never do. The subgenre has undoubtedly come a long way from its Weak Yuri roots and continues to grow. Industry leaders like Miyazawa and Mizoguichi will continue to push into this excited and uncharted territory, using tactics new and old to bring together Yuri’s emotional and romantic core with science fiction’s epic and provoking imagery. I have few doubts that we have seen all these pioneers have to offer and that Last and First Idol and Otherside Picnic are just the beginning.

Sources

Friedman, Erica, and Kishiji Bando. “Shoujo Yuri Manga Guide.” Yuricon, 29 Mar. 2011, https://www.yuricon.com/oldessays/shoujo-yuri-manga-guide/.

Hanson, Katherine. Yuri No Boke 百合のボケ〜百合が好きだ〜: Sci-Fi Yuri Anime and Manga. 17 Feb. 2012, http://yurinoboke.blogspot.com/2012/02/sci-fi-yuri-anime-and-manga.html.

Kit, et al. Tomo Choco Podcast Episode 58: A Trip to the Otherside. https://directory.libsyn.com/episode/index/show/tomochoco5287491142565609/id/14974343. Accessed 18 Feb. 2021.

Komatsu, Mikikazu. “S-F Magazine’s Yuri-Themed Issue Gets Reprints Before Release.” Crunchyroll, https://www.crunchyroll.com/anime-news/2018/12/18/s-f-magazines-yuri-themed-issue-gets-reprints-before-release. Accessed 18 Feb. 2021.

Kusano, Gengen. “[R-18] #SF #矢澤にこ【SF合同サンプル】最後にして最初の矢澤 - 節足原々（セッソクハラハラ）の小説.” Pixiv, https://www.pixiv.net/novel/show.php?id=4992326. Accessed 18 Feb. 2021.

M Alan Kazlev. “The Scale of Hardness in Science Fiction.” Futurism, https://vocal.media/futurism/the-scale-of-hardness-in-science-fiction. Accessed 18 Feb. 2021.

Masayuki Sakoi. Strawberry Panic S01:E21 - Like a Flower. Madhouse, 2006. tubitv.com, https://tubitv.com/tv-shows/558933/s01-e21-like-a-flower.

Maser, Verena. Beautiful and Innocent: Female Same-Sex Intimacy in the Japanese Yuri Genre. ubt.opus.hbz-nrw.de, https://ubt.opus.hbz-nrw.de/frontdoor/index/index/docId/695. Accessed 18 Feb. 2021.

Miyazawa, Iori, et al. Yuri Made Me Human, Part 2. Translated by Kati_lilian, 24 Aug. 2018, https://teletype.in/@kati_lilian/S1yjBCJgH.

Miyazawa, Iori, and Rikimaru Mizoguchi. Yuri Made Me Human — Interview with Iori Miyazawa. Translated by kati_lilian, May 2018, https://teletype.in/@kati_lilian/SJA8KwjjN.

Moore, Caitlin, et al. “The Winter 2021 Preview Guide - Otherside Picnic.” Anime News Network, https://www.animenewsnetwork.com/preview-guide/2021/winter/otherside-picnic/.167892. Accessed 18 Feb. 2021.

Nicki “YuriMother” Bauman. The History and Future of Transgender Representation in Yuri - The Secret Garden, January 2021 | YuriMother on Patreon. https://www.patreon.com/posts/45495024. Accessed 18 Feb. 2021.

---. “Yuri Is for Everyone: An Analysis of Yuri Demographics and Readership.” Anime Feminist, 12 Feb. 2020, https://www.animefeminist.com/yuri-is-for-everyone-an-analysis-of-yuri-demographics-and-readership/.

Pinansky, Sam. Interview with J-Novel Club’s Sam Pinansky. Interview by Erica Friedman, 1 Oct. 2019, https://okazu.yuricon.com/2019/10/01/interview-with-j-novel-clubs-sam-pinansky/.

Sarantos, Constance. “How Otherside Picnic Breaks the Yuri Genre Mold.” CBR, 10 Jan. 2021, https://www.cbr.com/otherside-picnic-breaks-yuri-genre-mold/.

“「SF冬の時代」は雪解けを迎えた早川書房・溝口力丸 Vol.1.” KAI-YOU Premium, https://premium.kai-you.net/article/201. Accessed 18 Feb. 2021.

Snapshot. https://www.cbr.com/otherside-picnic-breaks-yuri-genre-mold/. Accessed 18 Feb. 2021.

Takuya Satou. Watch Kase-San and Morning Glories. Sentai Filmworks, 2018. vrv.co, https://vrv.co/series/GYQWD1X1Y/Kase-san-and-Morning-Glories.

Walter, Damien. “Science Fiction vs SciFi vs SF: What Is the True Definition?” Damien Walter, 7 Aug. 2018, https://damiengwalter.com/2018/08/07/science-fiction-vs-scifi-vs-sf-what-is-the-true-definition/.

YuriMother. “LGBTQ Light Novel Review - Otherside Picnic Vol. 1.” The Holy Mother of Yuri, 12 Dec. 2019, https://yurimother.com/post/189635367305.

#Yuri #otherside picnic #the secret garden #miyazawa yuri #yuri of absence #scenic yuri #lgbt #lgbtq #lgbtq+#queer #gay #lesbian

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stopper-my-heart · 4 months ago

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Heartstopper library posters: Part 1/3

CW: Images and mentions of Ben Hope. No non-consensual physical touch is shown in the images but short descriptions of actions are given as part of describing the library meeting scene between Ben and Charlie in S1E1.

Yes, the library posters in Heartstopper are complicated enough to need multiple posts to attempt to unpack them.

How many layers are intentional? I can't say. All I can say is that the layers haven't stopped making sense yet.

Here in Part 1, we're taking a fairly straightforward approach to the quotations on the posters in S1E1 with a bit of cinematographic interpretation.

Let's get acquainted with the posters (text below, don't strain your eyes) --

We have:

"I am no bird and no net ensnares me" -- from Jane Eyre by Charlotte Brontë (photo 1, left, above)

"To love oneself is the beginning of a lifelong romance" -- from An Ideal Husband by Oscar Wilde (photo 2, middle, above)

"To thine own self be true" -- from Hamlet by William Shakespeare (photo 3, right, above)

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Here's the context of when we first see these posters, at the very beginning of S1E1:

As Charlie walks into school and enters the library to meet Ben (who doesn't show up that time), he walks in between the first two posters to get to their meeting spot.

The third poster ("To thine own self be true") remains out of focus during this trip to the library. It partially comes into view when Charlie arrives at his and Ben's meeting spot (photo 1, left, below).

After Charlie checks his phone and sees Ben's text ("actually can we meet up at break instead?"), when we then see him start to type his reply, a little bit more of the poster becomes visible (photo 2, middle, below).

The poster's quotation is only fully visible (but still out of focus) once Charlie has sent his text ("okay 😊❤️") (photo 3, right, below). Note that this also corresponds with the start of Headmaster Stephen Fry's announcement reminding students about the new vertical form groups.

It seems like the poster is acknowledging that Charlie's not fully ready to admit to himself the truth of what's happening with Ben or to stand up for himself, but that he's maybe getting closer (or the poster's trying to help, anyway). If nothing else, the poster seems to be gently calling Charlie out, especially with the text he sent. We can see by Charlie's face (photo 3 above) that even he doesn't believe it's "okay 😊❤️".

(Maybe the poster is also indicating hope: hope for the new form group and a certain someone Charlie might meet there, someone who will want Charlie to be true to himself.)

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When Charlie and Ben finally do meet in the library later in S1E1, we again see Charlie walk in between the first two posters. Charlie and the posters begin fuzzy and come into focus together. "I am no bird and no net ensnares me"* is especially prominent.

*Note that the full sentence this quotation comes from is: "I am no bird; and no net ensnares me; I am a free human being with an independent will, which I now exert to leave you." More on this in future posts.

This time the third poster ("To thine own self be true") is also in focus, though partially out of frame (photo 1, left, below). Ben's head moves to block some of it and then the camera angle shifts a bit so that the poster is fully obscured behind Charlie while his and Ben's index fingers are interlocked (photo 2, right, below).

After Charlie looks at the smiley face Nick drew on his hand, a little bit of the text of the third poster is again visible in between Charlie and Ben, but it's in the background, out of focus. As Ben kisses Charlie, the words are once again blocked by Ben's head.

Clearly these posters are trying harder and harder to Talk To Charlie -- they want him to love himself, believe he's worth more than how Ben is treating him, be honest with himself and act accordingly, and break free from Ben -- and they finally succeed. Seemingly later on the same day is when Charlie breaks up with Ben.

#And we all cheered #Well #we were upset for Charlie #and obviously he could only “break free” as far as was in his control #but he exerted his independent will to leave Ben #and we were happy Charlie dumped him #Anyway re:#Heartstopper library posters #Good job Alice and/or set designer and/or other people whose names and jobs I don't know. I'm trying to notice your work!#heartstopper analysis #heartstopper appreciation post #charlie spring #ben hope #heartstopper S1 #heartstopper

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britt-kageryuu · 3 months ago

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The stream is taking place in what appears to be an huge empty aircraft hangar. Donnie, who is the one streaming, has dodged any questions on how he got access to such an area. Donnie was dressed in mechanics coveralls that were purple and had multiple custom patches, along with some steel toed boots. His tail lazily swaying behind him at he works.

The audience is watching Donnie working on a modified motorcycle of some kind. Donnie had explained that this has been a side personal project for a good chunk of the last year or so. Which makes many watching curious as to what caused this project to take so long if it's just a modified motorcycle.

And since Donnie goes into long moments of focusing on their work while talking out loud, or asking his drone-robot children to grab him something.

One of the big surprises was that Shelldon was now using a bipedal robot body instead of his drone form, which many of the chat was adoring or calling cool and awesome. The other was just that Shelldons body is a good 1ft/30cm taller than River, who was, in between grabbing things, looking around and wanting to run and explore the hanger.

Donnie stops what they were working on to grab his drink, and double check his work. "This is actually prototype version 14.5 dash 5 codename Current Racer. And while I have most of the systems finished, part of the engine keeps giving out or over powering everything which leads to a sudden crash or the mechanical parts just melting. Annoyed Chuff." Donnie walks around the motorcycle while sipping on his drink.

It's at this moment that the audience is able to see that the engine area on the bike was nothing like any normal motorcycle engine, gas powered or electric powered.

It was hard to even describe because none of the audience, even those who work on vehicles, can figure what kind of engine Donnie is working on. Then there were some bringing up the 'engine melts the mechanics' comment that Donnie made, and seriously wonder what the heck was going on with this project.

"Well, everything looks good. Now to just test if the who system will work this time." Donnie says while walking offscreen to grab some safety gear, and a helmet.

Once they come back into frame with the motorcycle gear and helmet, his tail appears to be shoved into one of his pant legs for safety. Shelldon and River are moving all the equipment and tools out of the way, double checking that nothing small might not get sent flying.

Donnie, once he also checks things over once more and does his own check for potential debris, mounts the bike, and starts the engine.

The engine doesn't so much as make a loud noise as much as start to glow while giving off a loud hum. Donnie then flips a switch, and the tires shift, turning sideways and the bike starts to hover a bit off the ground.

Then Donnie shifts his weight and the bike speeds off quick. The drone-robots quickly move the camera to show the modified hover-cycle is zooming around the hanger. Donnie making tight turns and flips near the ceiling before speeding along the wall.

This is when the chat is filled with audience members comparing it to one of the bikes from Mario Cart, and wondering if Donnie plans to make this a public released thing.

After a good number of laps Donnie returns to where they began, and lands to bike before turning it off. They then launch into doing system scans to check if everything did work, or if something small may have gone wrong internally.

The audience is still shouting questions, and a bit upset that the notification system was turned off because Donnie didn't want to get distracted while working. Which was pointed out as ironic since he decided to stream himself working.

No questions were answered, and the audience could only watch as Donnie careful took something apart to check for something that popped up during his post test checks.

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

Masterpost

The idea of Donatello wanting to recreate the vehicles from Mario Cart has been stuck in my head. And this was what my mind quickly started drafting instead of letting me focus on reading.

#VTurtles!#vtuber au #rottmnt donatello #rottmnt donnie #rise donatello #rise donnie #rottmnt fanfiction #rottmnt au #tmnt au #rise of the teenage mutant ninja turtles #teenage mutant ninja turtles #tmnt #rottmnt #tmnt 2018 #rise tmnt #rise of the tmnt #tmnt rise #rottmnt shelldon

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arcane-abomination · 9 months ago

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Let’s Talk Otherkin

I’ve been questioned more than once about this…even have people I barely know swearing that I’m an otherkin because “they can tell” and I can’t help but feel very disheartened by the thought that someone has the audacity and entitlement to push their way into my life and try to control my headspace in such a way just to validate their own beliefs. Inquiring of my views on the matter of my own making is fine, I haven’t a single problem with that but assuming you know me better than I know myself is another matter entirely.

First of all, to be otherkin often implies the notion of a life before this one. A time which you experienced and lived in a different form. But that is not me. I’m not an old soul seeking to pick up a broken past and piece it together once again. On the contrary, I am a new soul. A brand new being that is only just now making its journey. I have no past, therefore I just am. How do I know? It’s common for old souls to be drawn in to self discovery of their past lives. The need calls like a desperate voice longing to be realized, but that’s something I don’t have the pleasure of hearing. Nor do I feel even the slightest nudge to do anything in regards to a past life. The thought seems completely pointless to me. Which tells me that there’s nothing from a past seeking to find me. I’m alone…new…pure.

Secondly, how I view the spirit/soul/etc can negate otherkin for the most part, or at the very least altar the view on how it presents itself. I feel that the soul is a formless thing, no gender, nor physicality to speak of. It’s our perception that gives us form, that molds us into something we can find useful for whatever reason. Our soul is as fluid as water and our perception is the mold it’s poured into. With that understanding, once we detach from our living vessel (death) we become formless again and we recognize our true nature once again…our fluidity. From that we can reconnect to a living vessel if we so choose and that’s where the path of multiple lives comes from. However, because we are a limitless being without form, we can take on any new vessel, not just what we were prior. (It’s uncertain if we get to choose this new vessel or not.) But I do believe these other lives and other forms taken can continue to present themselves within our minds. Our comfort of the form that life on once took, still exists within us and we subconsciously seek out that comfort again…That’s why we tell ourselves we are otherkin. A being beyond the human body we are now.

This psychic memory can be very insistent sometimes and perception, a reality that already easily fools us, can only add to the confusion. Most otherkin (at least lots of the ones I’ve conversed with) often talk about their memories of that past life and insist on their soul feeling like it’s a different form. In my eyes this only further proves my point. Memories of a form from the past that the perceived reality hasn’t quite let go of. Only when we remember we are formless do we finally feel at peace, as or soul begins to reform and shift into the current fleshy mold we inhabit. It’s a lot like trying to shove an ice cube into a round hole. But instead of giving up it’s been jammed in, forcibly making it fit which is why many otherkin describe their current form as feeling unnatural. But recognizing the limitless that we are can help us to accept the change and allow us to alter ourselves from the cube we were convinced we were to the sphere we need to be right now.

Now there’s nothing wrong with wanting to be something else and as I said, we are formless beings. We can make ourselves into whatever more comfortable form we like after we die. The astral as well can serve as a momentary burst of freedom in that way, as our astral bodies act a lot like our souls do. They are moldable formless beings, but fitting the mold you have in the physical can help to bring ease where there isn’t any. Can help to calm the restlessness many otherkin feel they have.

Now I recognize that there maybe a lot more nuances to the otherkin then the surface level I’ve scratched. And that there will be many that disagree with my thoughts on this whole subject and that’s perfectly fine. We each have different beliefs that take us to different realms of what we view as reality. And personally I’m not one to deny anyone their own personal reality if they aren’t hurting anyone and it brings them joy, understanding, and a love for themselves along the way. They have a right to live it and think however they want and I will always defend their right to do so. This is just how I believe and how I see the evidence the universe has sent to me. It is only my intention to share this perspective, not control how others use theirs.

EDIT://

I forgot to mention a crucial detail. As I mentioned our perceived reality (our perception) can often play tricks on us, and tell us what we want to hear rather than what we need to hear. So it can also be possible the thoughts of otherkin could be nothing more than wishful thinking. A response to anxiety, depression, even trauma brought on by feeling less than, or being either neglected or bullied. It’s common to withdraw inwards and create a safe space for ourselves and make ourselves feel important in some way. Especially when that feeling of importance is something we’ve desperately been craving.

The mind can be a cruel beast. Because our true nature is formless it can often unconsciously hold the mentality “I think therefore I am” And it’s this mentality we can often fall victim to, especially during periods of loneliness and stress. Our subconscious side doesn’t always consider our limited mold but rather continues to treat us as if we are still limitless. I think therefore I am, only works when in a limitless state and as I mentioned that is either the astral or death. We need to teach our subconscious minds the difference. Train them not to over fill the mold and let it spill over, creating a shape that doesn’t fit the way it needs to while in our current fleshy prison.

#paganism #witchcraft #pagans of tumblr #chaos magician #chaos magick #witches of tumblr #chaos witchcraft #otherkin #death witch #witch #pagan witch #witches

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knifefightandchill · 9 months ago

Note

who do you think would ultimately when in a fight?

saddler, simmons, or wesker?

I know this is a joke ask, but I’ve legitimately put thought into this. Also coming from your armand blog makes this question so much better. Also the fact that you said when not win.

I’ve been wracking my brain over this all night long, because every time I think I have a solid answer, something changes my mind.

Because there are so many different factors and scenarios that could come into play. Especially when it comes to Wesker. Like are we talking just prototype virus? His injections in 5? full blow Uroboros Wesker? Does he have any resources? Like he’s a wild card. Is this DBD? Do I have to think about eldrich horrors??

So, let’s break this up into multiple parts; Saddler vs. Wesker, Saddler vs. Simmons, Wesker vs. Simmons, and the massive mess that would be all 3 at once.

Before we get into the the fun part, I wanna go over like their respective abilities and mutations ahead of time to make it simpler.

Starting with Lord Saddler.

(and I will be taking RE4R into account.)

We’ve got his human form, his final boss form, and the giant wreathing tentacle mass that is his final final form. He's also able to mutate parts of himself on a whim, and quickly go back.

With his human form he’s extremely fast, has a healing factor that allows him to not only heal literal headshots in a matter of seconds, but shoot projectiles back at assailants. When he wants. He’s very resilient. and terrifying.

His ability to call and bring in novistadors in both his human and final boss form makes for some really useful backup.

In his final boss form he’s slower, but massive, and can jump pretty fucking high. He's got sharp points at the end of his spider-y legs and those sharp boney tentacles at his disposal. Sure his weakspot is out in the open, but he can also crush people with the pincers(??) on his head.

The final final form is a massive immobile mass of writhing leviathan sized tentacles. Those can pack a punch by simply slamming down into things. Granted, he's the most vulnerable in this form.

Now onto Mr. Bolo tie, Simmons.

With enhanced C-Virus, Simmons has the ability to mutate indefinitely, and without the need to turn into a chrysalis like with regular C.

He can shift/shuffle back and forth to his human form regardless of a couple of his forms. which is both useful and a really really big disadvantage. Makes it easy to kick the shit out of him.

So, that being said, his notable mutated forms are beast/centaur, gigantosaurus, and the giant fly. The first being very fast, and able to shoot projectiles. Plus claws and all that. The second is well, a big ass B.O.W. dinosaur. He's big, has some bone plating, and has some really big teeth. Imagine dinosaur things, he can do those.

Without zombies or something to consume in order to heal and mutate further, I don’t think his giant fly form is applicable. Though maybe he could eat novistadors? if it came to that? But regardless, it has its sheer size going for it. we need really really big fly tape.

And now the ball of worms that is Wesker.

After injecting the Prototype virus, Wesker gained super human abilities. He can move so fast that it looks like he’s warping. He’s strong enough to punch a hole through a person’s chest, and catch and hold back rockets. What were the developers of RE5 on.

Being very skilled in both armed and unarmed combat, his melee is just as strong if not stronger than weaponry. If we look at him in Mercenaries, and Rev:2 raid mode, he’s a force to be reckoned with. especially with that big knife.

Throw Uroboros in the mix and things really start heating up.

It makes him bigger, even stronger, and gives him so many worms. Err, tentacles?? Tendrils?? Uroboros is one of those nasty viruses that consumes all organic matter it comes in contact with, and uses it to grow.

Wesker, however, doesn’t really use it in that manner? But I imagine it’s painful for others just getting touched by it.

Uroboros also makes Wesker extremely resilient and resistant to most damage. This man had to take a rocket launcher to the face in order to die, despite sinking in literal lava. So this generally unstable virus gives him one hell of an advantage. But does he really need it to be a threat in this fight?

So lets get into it finally !!

Saddler Vs. Simmons;

So ultimately, I think Simmons would win.

They’re relatively evenly matched, I don’t think it would be hard for Saddler to handle Simmons’ centaur form. He has the speed, the ability to throw his projectiles right back at him. Doing enough damage would cause Simmons to shuffle back to normal, which makes him really vulnerable. Even if Saddler had to mutate, his final boss form could deal with him easy. But Simmons always comes back.

Gigantosaurus Simmons has the upper hand. Most of his head is just a giant mouth with some big teeth.

He also has a lot of bone on him, which helps him get some defense. Final boss Saddler is all limbs and tentacles. One good bite from Simmons can cripple him. I think it’d take more than one bite to rip off a piece of him, but biting and tearing is still going to do damage. Sure, Simmons’ weak point is in his mouth; but aiming for that comes with the risk jaws closing around said tentacles.

If Saddler is able to do enough damage to cause Simmons to shuffle back into a human, then he could crush him or impale him easily. However, it’s a matter of can he do that much damage fast enough? Before he goes down? Or is badly hurt? The odds would be super close. BUT. He keeps coming back.

Saddler wouldn’t be doing too hot by the time he turned into a fly, and sure, that form isn’t as strong, Simmons’ attacks are really meh. But it’s fresh, it’s at full health, and I think our dear lord would be limping into that fight.

It’d be bloody and long and close, but I think Simmons would come out on top. Based solely on his dinosaur form and having whittled Saddler down over time.

Saddler Vs. Wesker

Against Saddler’s human form, Wesker could hold his own without weaponry. It wouldn’t be easy, Saddler’s ability to heal alone would be a massive pain. With weaponry, even if it was just a gun and a knife, he’d do infinitely better. I do think Saddler would be able to get the drop on him like he did with Ada though, in the right circumstances. Then he can dangle him and lure chris into a fight.

As far as final boss form goes, Wesker can hold his own for a while without weaponry, but he wouldn’t win. Saddler is too big, and too strong. Honestly, it’d be a really long game of cat and mouse. With weaponry, even just a knife and a handgun, he’d win. Listen, if Leon could do it, Wesker can do it easier and better.

If he was infected with uroboros, then it would be a more intense and interesting fight. Both have ranged attacks involving tentacles/tendrils. Despite still being a lot smaller than Saddler’s boss form, his amplified physical strength would put him on same level regardless of body size. Not to mention he becomes much more resilient against attacks. It’s a matter of out-surviving the other one.

I think Wesker would ultimately win. He’d find a way regardless.

Simmons Vs. Wesker.

The same thing applies when it comes to him vs. Simmons. If Leon can do it, Wesker can do it even better. Granted in this case, Leon needed help. So I’m keeping that in mind. Without uroboros, Wesker would need weapons of some sort and a way to use the environment to his advantage. Especially against the dinosaur form. Because it does have that armored plating, and only has one weakpoint.

His speed would help him dodge centaur projectiles, as well as rush attacks, also any stomping done by the dinosaur form. But doing damage to his stronger mutations is where he falls short. Or at least, doing damage quickly. Uroboros would put him on equal footing. He’s a smaller target than Saddler, a bit harder to get. Has some good ranged attacks that can chip away at his defenses. And the best part? Simmons can bite off his tendrils. It wouldn’t hurt Wesker. Sure he’d have to reabsorb the pieces, but it wouldn’t hurt him. Hell they could start truing to consume Simmons if he doesn’t spit them out.

And once Simmons shuffles back down to a person? He’s going to get wrecked. Even if he manages to reach his fly form. It just might take Wesker a little longer.

All 3 of them in one giant fight;

It’d be one giant mess, and honestly someone should just nuke the whole thing. Wesker wouldn’t win, he’d get away to survive. Saddler and Simmons? That’s a fight to the death. A big bloody fight.

In conclusion;

Wesker is OP. When I started writing this whole thing I didn’t think it would be Wesker. In fact I was almost certain it would be Simmons. Sorry Saddler :c ily. but after looking into things, Wesker really stood out.

A great litmus test for this is if Leon can kill it, it’d be a lot easier for Wesker to do so.

Ultimately, I’m no expert. I’ve confused myself so many times while writing this, and I’m sure there’s contradictions. But I still had fun with it and put some thought and research into it.

If you made it this far thank you! I hope you enjoyed it, or found it interesting.💕💕

I really love questions like this, and sharing my thoughts. (even though I go overboard.) And if anyone wants to weigh in with their thoughts, opinions, headcanons and all that, please do! It’ll be a fun conversation. I’m also down for more asks like this ngl xD

dividers are by saradika-graphics who can be found here!

#asks #meta #listen i can't guarantee next time i get an ask like this i'll go this crazy with it but there's always a chance!!!#also listen i had to make the little graphic for it because i've had those clanmaster pictures for ages #derek c simmon #albert wesker #osmund saddler #sorry for any like big grammatical errors i have been up aaaaaallllll night with this and i really wanna get it out into the world #re

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thatndginger · 10 months ago

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Hello and happy STS!

I'm very curious about Shapeshifter's universe. How and why can the Pack, ya know, shapeshift?

Hello! First, I need you to know that this ask was the impetus for me making a pseud-wiki article about shapeshifters for the Shifter!verse, which I then proceeded to lay aside for a little break, and then existence happened and it's now been enough time I'm now genuinely a little guilty about it.

That said, I'm gonna leave you with the section of "Shapeshifting Mechanics", under the cut because I cannot be normal about this...

III. Shapeshifting Mechanics

Proven facts about the mechanics of shapeshifting are few and far between, due to a bevy of factors. Modern laws about human experimentation have made it difficult to study metamorphs with modern scientific instruments, and historical attempts at studying metamorphs have fallen far short. There are many theories of how shapeshifting works, shapeshifting transmission vectors, transformation triggers, and the like, many of which are in direct contradiction with each other. The one aspect of shapeshifters that all agree upon is that each metamorph is capable of transforming into one animal species only. The rest is actively debated to this day.

Shapeshifting Transmission

Shapeshifting is unique among magical conditions in that it is able to be passed on genetically as well as from individual to individual through specific events. Many researchers have remarked upon the observation that a metamorph’s progeny will not always inherit the animal form of its parent. While it is common for the same animal form to be seen throughout a lineage, there is always a possibility that a shapeshifter will have an animal form different from its parents or siblings, albeit a small possibility. Some believe that a shapeshifter’s animal form is representative of their personality, though there is no scientific way to prove this. Others maintain that a metamorph’s animal form is determined by geography and nearby animal populations; a theory that is also impossible to prove.

The ability to shapeshift also appears capable of lying dormant for multiple generations before becoming active once more. This can account for stories of humans spontaneously gaining the ability to shapeshift, though it’s unknown how many generations can be skipped before the ability is lost altogether.

It is impossible to accurately determine the percentage of metamorphs that are born vs bitten, just as it is impossible to accurately determine the number of shapeshifters alive at a given moment, but it is safe to say that most shifters are likely born shifters, since the process of becoming a bitten shifter is extremely dangerous. It appears to take a specific set of events for one to be ‘turned’ by a shapeshifter’s bite, as there are many reliable accounts of an individual experiencing no ill effects from a shapeshifter bite. Like most magically-influenced things, intent seems to be a deciding factor in if a bite is a transformative one. A metamorph must bite with the intent to transmit their shapeshifting abilities to the victim. An accidental bite, or one that does not contain the intent to transmit, is therefore probably a safe one. The process of being transformed into a shapeshifter is often deadly, with some sources claiming up to an 80% mortality rate. What little has been learned about this process points towards the magic behind shapeshifting altering the victim’s body at the genetic level - altering parts of one’s DNA, which in turn affects aspects of the body’s function at a cellular level. With this in mind, an 80% mortality rate does not seem too unreasonable.

The Shapeshifting Process

By far the most incomprehensible aspect of shapeshifters is the process through which they transform. First-hand accounts are varied and occasionally contradictory on the exact mechanics, requirements, and effects of shapeshifting. It is generally agreed upon that shifting is a painful process, with reports ranging from mild discomfort to intense distress. Shifting has a not insignificant energy requirement. Some think that metamorphs with animal forms smaller than their human form expend less energy transforming, while those with animal forms larger than their human form with expend more energy. Some maintain that frequent, consistent transformations can ease both the energy cost and pain associated with shifting. This cannot be proven, but seems to be a generally accepted idea among shapeshifter communities.

The concept of control when it comes to shapeshifting is much debated. Some shapeshifters have reported having near-perfect control of their abilities; able to transform at will, and rarely, if ever, experiencing an uncontrolled, spontaneous transformation. Others report having very little control, and transforming primarily when in a heightened emotional state or when exposed to certain external stimuli. A sliding scale or bell curve is the most common way of conceptualizing how much control a shapeshifter has over their abilities.

Perhaps the most intriguing and least well known aspect of a shapeshifter’s transformation is the disappearance of a metamorphs clothing, accessories, and certain items found on their person during the transformation. These items appear to vanish into thin air, when common logic would dictate that while a shapeshifter’s physical body was affected, their personal items would remain untouched. There are many, many theories on where these items ‘go, some of which have interesting implications for our understanding of the universe. Unfortunately, there is answer, and any attempt to find one have failed. Technology such as cell phones, GPS trackers, and RFID units all cease to function as soon as a shapeshifter begins their transformation, only to automatically resume function once the metamorph returns to human form.

Some biological and natural components - such as dirt, blood, water, or dead plant matter - will remain on a shifter between shifts, begging the question of just how connected a shifter’s two forms are. Injuries that are inflicted on one form will be present on the other, and if one form was recently doused in water the other form will also be similarly soaked. Yet, clothing and ‘unnatural’ items a shifter may be wearing will simply cease to exist until the form they existed upon first is returned to.

Shapeshifting Limitations

There appear to be many limiting factors that determine the animal form an anthromorph can have. First and foremost is the matter of mass. Animal species that are either too small or too large seem to be inaccessible, likely due to limitations with magic being able to transform mass at a certain level. There has never been a documented shapeshifter with an animal form smaller than 10 grams, or larger than 1000kg. The second limiting factor is intelligence level or brain capacity. This appears to be due to issues with fitting a human-level consciousness into something less capable of complicated thought. The last limiting factor seems to be evolutionary closeness, though there are enough exceptions to this theory that some have suggested disregarding it entirely. But the predisposition for shapeshifters to have animal forms that are a type of mammal cannot be disregarded. While there are notable exceptions, most metamorphs have an animal form that is of similar body plan (4 limbs, two eyes, air-breathing lungs, etc) to a human one, likely because it is easier to adjust to a body that functions similarly to one’s base form. Aquatic metamorphs such as weresharks or dolphin shifters have acknowledged a difficulty in adjusting to their animal forms at first, though their ‘animal instinct’ apparently kicks in quickly and allows for easy adaptation. Avian shifters have noted a similar instinctual response or understanding that allows them to fly without a lengthy learning period.

#storyteller saturdays #wip: shapeshifter #i have put so much thought into shapeshifters lol #and idk why but i love writing things from the pov of a researcher/character in-world

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woman-of-balnain · 2 years ago

Text

You Don't Form in the Wet Sand (I Do) - Part 2/2 (Alpha Rick x Omega Reader)

Prev. Part | Masterlist | AO3 Ver.

Pairing: Rick Grimes/Fem!Reader

Request: You and Rick share your first heat/rut together.

A/N:

Ok so if anyone reading this hasn’t read my other story ‘the Claim’ (specifically referring to chapter 5) then I don’t do knots in an alpha’s rut. I mean you can always request that, but I have my own version which was requested here (and which I use in my original ideas). Basically Rick stays hard and cums multiple times before he’s sated. At least for a while before he’s ready to go for another round lol. - Because heats and ruts are basically designed for the sole purpose of reproducing, my hc is that the bodies of omegas are biologically equipped to handle it. Still, since this is the reader’s first time with an alpha, she is a bit overstimulated and Rick eventually gives her a bit of a break in the middle. -

Just a reminder that Rick is behind the reader at the start of this chapter (his chest pressed up against her back) -

Let’s just hc that the gun holster is detachable from Rick’s belt… (safety is important lol) -

There’s too many clothes in the beginning of this chapter, hopefully it doesn’t stall things too much. -

I also added a little bit of insight into Rick’s thoughts during the smut. If it’s weird lmk and I won’t include it again in future smut. -

Warnings: Smut, a/b/o dynamic (some non-traditional), established relationship, dominant Rick, possessive Rick, unprotected sex, creampie, spanking (both with hands and belt), multiple male and female orgasms, independent omega Reader, female Reader.

Word Count: 6,387

Divider by: @cafekitsune

You let out a startled moan as Rick pushed you up against the nearest wall. Your hands automatically lifted up to press against it as his own moved down to your lower stomach. His lips continued to tease your mating gland while his fingers worked to unbutton your jeans and before long, he was tugging them - and your panties - down your legs. Then he was pulling off your boots, letting your jeans be completely tugged off too. Rick was still behind you, as you faced the wall. But you started to turn when he remained stepped back and away from your body.

“Don’t move, ‘mega,” he ordered, stopping you.

“But –”

You were cut off as Rick’s hand slapped down on your ass and your words morphed into another moan. The sound of him unbuckling his belt could be heard and then the tell-tale noise of him unzipping his own jeans followed. You had become hot all over in record time and you knew that his rut had triggered your own heat. The fact that slick was rapidly pooling between your thighs just confirmed it. Then Rick was pressed up behind you again, his bare thighs against yours as one of his hands pushed down on your back.

“You’re gonna listen for once,” his tone was dark and heated. “Bend over for me, omega.”

“And if I don’t?” You challenged again, as a deep and previously undiscovered part of you was secretly loving this new side of him.

You moaned shamelessly, even louder now, as he spanked down on your ass again. Only this time, he used his belt and the sting on your skin was more prominent. Your heat made everything feel different though, so the contact felt good more than it did painful.

“That’s it,” Rick used his fingers to gently soothe away any last remnants of the slight ache. “That’s the only thing I wanna hear from you, baby. How much you love being good for me. You know what’ll happen if you keep talkin’ back, right?”

His accent, that southern twang you loved so much, only seemed to become more noticeable as his desire grew – as well as his impatience. Part of you wanted to bite back some more, but the need for him to just fuck you was greater, so you nodded eagerly.

“Good girl,” he praised you, voice husky and addled with lust. “Now bend over for me, sweetheart, and spread your legs.”

You let out a sound that was between a whimper and a sigh of need as you shifted, doing as he’d commanded you to. Your hands were pressed hard against the wall, since it was the only thing you could use for support. As you bent over, legs spread wide and presenting yourself to him, you felt your slick trickle down your thighs as your body yearned for him needily.

“Fuck, baby,” Rick moaned, his fingers falling between your thighs and spreading your folds. “Your pussy’s so wet. You’re ready for me, huh?”

“Mmm,” you moaned.

“That’s my good girl,” he praised you.

He seemed to take your moan as all the confirmation he needed, because then he was thrusting into you, deep and hard. He let out his own sound of deep gratification as he pushed himself in to the hilt.

“You’re so tight, ‘mega,” Rick grit out, taking a moment to just enjoy the way you were wrapped snugly around him. “Baby, you’ve been wasted on betas. I can tell I’m your first alpha.”

You had told him as much; he was just getting cocky about the fact that you’d never taken anything so big before.

“And I’m gonna be the last,” he continued, promising that after this you’d never want anyone but him. “Ain’t I?”

You didn’t answer, too wrapped up in the way he filled you so perfectly. All you wanted was for him to start moving again and stimulate you further. But he kept himself torturously still, teasing you until your mind was frazzled with an aching sense of need.

“Answer me, omega,” Rick grit out, his voice more demanding now.

“Maybe…” you replied, intending to tease him just as much as he was you.

But then you felt the force of his belt on your ass again and all that left you was another sound of blatant desire.

“You’re mine,” Rick reminded you. “And I’m the only alpha you’re ever gonna need or want.”

He spanked you once more, as if to prove his point because it was like he just knew how you’d respond. Your back arched and your pussy spasmed in reaction, showing that he was right, even if you didn’t verbally confirm it. Your body was already desperate for him and only him. But Rick still wasn’t satisfied, and he began to pull out of you.

“I’m yours,” you told him hurriedly, feeling like the worst thing imaginable in that moment would be if he refused to fuck you.

“You’re only mine, omega,” Rick reminded you.

“Yes,” you breathed out in agreement and then he slammed back into you. “Oh god…”

You felt his long and thick cock stretching you out and suddenly all you could do was moan helplessly and wantonly, as he began to set a ruthless pace moving in and out of you. His hands were holding onto your hips tightly and if it wasn’t for that, you likely wouldn’t still be standing. He made your mind dizzy with lust and your entire body responded to him.

Rick’s scent was wrapped around you, and you realized that the slight difference you’d picked up on before signified his rising desire and the fiery escalation of his rut. All you could think of or feel was him, and as the symptoms of your heat increased rapidly, the only thing you wanted was the sweet and blissful sense of release.

You could feel every inch of his cock as your walls wrapped tightly around him. The velvety skin that covered the steel hardness underneath, the veins which protruded and provided further stimulation, the precum spilling out and deep into you. It was as though you were hyperaware of every single aspect, as his hips smacked against yours and you felt him going in and out, in and out, over and over and over again.

That familiar sense of rising warmth and desire, low and deep in your belly began to form and you knew that you were getting closer to where you so desperately wanted to be. Apparently, Rick sensed it too. He pulled you back against his chest, changing the angle of his thrusts and you felt his cock press against the bundle of nerves inside you, driving you crazy.

When one of his hands moved to trail down towards your pussy, you clamped down around him, and he groaned out but didn’t stop his torturous descent. When his fingers spread your folds and his thumb came into contact with your clit, you let out a strangled sound of pleasure.

“Need you to cum for me, ‘mega,” Rick murmured, his tone betraying how close he was too. “Need to feel you cumming around my cock.”

You had never heard him sound so open and desperate; it turned you on completely, because he had never seemed sexier to you.

“Will you cum inside me?” You begged.

“Fuck baby,” he moaned. “You want that?”

You just nodded eagerly, and he continued to rub his thumb against your clit as his head tilted to tease your mating gland again. Your pussy spasmed around him, stimulating him even more and Rick let out a sound that was filled with unrestrained lust. Then his lips were sucking down hard, on the spot where you ached to feel his teeth sinking into you. If he hadn’t already left a mark before, he would now, and you relished in the possessiveness of the action.

You tightened even more around him, desperate to cross that threshold which was only just out of reach. The action caused Rick to bite you – still not in the way you wanted, but enough to drive you over the edge. The way his teeth teased your sensitive spot caused your entire body to feel like it was in a state of complete euphoria. As your orgasm washed over you and your pussy squeezed down, milking him with everything it was worth, you felt him push in even deeper before he let out the sexiest sound you’d ever heard.

Rick was completely caught up in how you were stimulating him and the iron tight grip your pussy had on his cock. He came hard, deep inside of you, his cum spurting against your cervix and filling you up with its warmth.

“Oh my god!” You moaned out, the sensation only prolonging your own orgasm.

It was like nothing you had ever felt before and when he began to thrust slowly into you again, you realized that he was still fully hard and not even close to being sated. He fucked his cum deeper into you, his cock still throbbing, and you remembered what you’d always heard about alphas and the stamina they had during their ruts. But that was nothing compared to experiencing the way he continued to tease your sensitive pussy, not even giving you time to recover from your first orgasm before he was ready to go again.

You already knew he was right. There was no going back after this. A beta would never be able to satisfy you again and the only alpha you would ever want was Rick.

“Feel how full you are of me, baby?” He groaned.

Your mind was a lust addled mess, but if there was anything you were aware of, it was how completely fullyou were, just as he had pointed out. It wasn’t only his cock stuffing and filling you now, but his cum too.

“Rick…” you breathed out. “I can’t – I need…”

He didn’t seem to mind how incoherent your words were. It was like he already knew what you wanted, and he moved back to gently pull out of you. The action caused further friction to your already sensitive walls, and you made a sound that conveyed your slight discomfort. But then his cock slid completely out, and Rick stepped away from you, leaving you to hold yourself up on wobbly legs.

Your hands were still pressed against the wall and that was the only thing keeping you upright. You turned around slowly, letting your back be supported by it instead and you looked at him through half-opened eyes, already feeling spent. But Rick just smirked, his own gaze intense and fiery as he took in how it was obvious that you’d just been thoroughly fucked. He was slowly unbuttoning his shirt, eager to get rid of it as his rut continued to get worse and the material scratched at his skin.

“Baby, I ain’t even close to being done,” he told you like it was a promise. “You sure you can handle it?”

Your only response was to pull your own shirt up and over your head, before throwing it off to the side, followed by your bra. When you were both completely naked, Rick moved closer to you again, caging your body under his and trapping you against the wall. He lifted up one of your legs and wrapped it around him before pushing himself slowly back into you.

Your pussy still felt almost hypersensitive, but it also gave you a strange sense of completion to feel him deep inside you again. Your eyes fluttered shut and your head fell back to rest against the wall as he gradually picked up the pace again, still feeling mostly pleasure but also like it was all too much. Then you felt Rick move closer until his chest was touching yours and his lips pressed an affectionate kiss to your cheek.

“You’re okay, ‘mega,” he murmured. “I’ve got you, just let go.”

You turned your head until his lips met your own and Rick reacted instantly, molding his mouth to yours and kissing you deeply. His lips were always so soft and yet also passionate whenever he kissed you, and this time was no different, there was just the added addition of him thrusting into you at the same time. You tried to do as he said, allowing yourself to just open up and forget about your reservations, but with the way his movements were now a lot gentler, your fears came crawling back in.

Your inner omega wanted nothing more than to just be vulnerable and take comfort in how he was soothing the burning ache of your heat. While your mind was still stubborn and afraid to show any kind of sensitivity around him. Rick must have picked up on it, because he slowly pulled his lips from yours and your eyes fluttered back open, only to find him intently looking at you.

“Y/N,” he murmured. “What’re you so scared of?”

You looked away, down at his shoulder, but then Rick’s fingers were on your chin and coaxing you to meet his gaze again.

“I don’t want you to see me as weak,” you admitted softly.

“Baby, I know you’re not,” he assured you.

“I want to be your equal,” you continued.

“You are,” Rick promised, a small smile curving up on his lips. “But it’s okay to let go. I’m gonna take care of you, give you what you need.”

He gave another deep thrust into you and your eyes rolled back from the force of it and how it caused a wave of euphoria to roll over you. Then Rick was pressing kisses along your neck, and it was almost like they were a soothing balm, washing away the discomfort from what had happened earlier.

“You don’t have to be in control all the time,” he spoke against your skin. “Let me help you feel good, ‘mega.”

As his teeth nipped down playfully against your skin, your body seemed to make the decision for you. Your back arched again, pressing your chest right against Rick’s and your mind seemed to finally release all the doubts and reservations you had, allowing you to just feel.

You felt the way his cum and your slick mixed together, coating both his cock and your walls as he pushed it deeper and deeper into you with each smack of his hips against yours. You experienced the way his scent mixed together perfectly with yours, the fiery elements of his rut and your heat entwining within them. You reveled in the way his skin soothed the burning sensation of yours as it touched you and how his lips and tongue lavished your mating gland with attention.

Rick was calmer now, with his initial anger and frustration being vented out after he came for the first time. But something about his gentle and affectionate touch still brought you towards that peak of pleasure you craved and when he bit down a little harder on your scent gland, all reason started to leave your mind, becoming replaced only with a deep sense of want and need.

“You’re mine,” Rick murmured, fingers digging into the skin of your thigh as he continued holding it up and thrusting into you. “Mine, ‘mega.”

“Am I?”

You couldn’t help but question his declaration, as frustration overcame you. If you were his, then you wanted him to just bite down properly into your mating gland already. Your retort had the desired effect to a certain degree though, as he bit down harder and sucked around the skin in retaliation. But then he was pulling back and looking at you with so much heat in his gaze, that you became transfixed.

“You know you are, baby. Don’t deny it.”

Rick moved his free hand to the back of your head, letting his fingers tangle into your hair and tugging it back slightly. The last of your resolve faded and all you cared about now was making it undeniably true.

“Prove it,” you challenged him.

Rick hesitated for only a few seconds, before he saw that you were serious and then he was pulling your head back even further and tilting it to the side so that your neck was offered up to him. Your eyes fluttered shut again, right before he bent his head and sunk his teeth deep into your skin, causing a deep and guttural moan of satisfaction to escape you.

You had never felt anything so intense and primal as him possessively staking his claim on you. The sensuous feeling it elicited spread out from where he was leaving his mark on you and extended throughout your entire body. You squeezed down around him as he thrust into you again, feeling another orgasm wash over you from the intensity of it all. Rick’s hips stuttered against yours in reaction to the way your pussy spasmed around his cock, attempting to milk him dry again of everything he had to give you.

He groaned with rampant desire, the sound vibrating against the tender and sensitive skin on your neck that he had just bitten into. Rick held himself still for a moment, his cock pushed to the hilt inside you and his teeth buried into your mating gland. But then he was cumming once more, filling you up again and moaning out sounds which conveyed his immeasurable pleasure. He released his tight grip on your hair, running his hand down your back and pulling you as close as he could possibly manage.

You weren’t quiet either, your voice becoming hoarse from how you couldn’t stop moaning and you wondered briefly if the way your nails dug into his skin hurt him. But Rick didn’t make any protests, seeming like he was too absorbed in the way you were wrapped around each other, and how your scents seemed to collide and become one.

Eventually, his teeth loosened their grip on your flesh, and he lapped his tongue around the wound to soothe it further. Your body had become weaker though, from both the force of your orgasm and the new sensations running through you from being claimed by him – your alpha.

“Rick…” you breathed out. “It’s too much…”

He pulled away from your neck, leaning his head back to look at you and his gaze softened as he regarded how utterly ravished you were.

“It’s okay,” Rick calmed you.

He carefully pulled out of you again, before setting your leg back down gently. You felt the mix of your slick and his cum trailing down your thighs, but barely paid it any mind. After giving you a moment to recover, he led you over to the bed and let you lie down. Your mind was in a bit of a daze as he climbed on top of you, and you wondered if he was just as desperate to keep you close as you were feeling about him.

Rick’s fingertips moved to trace soft patterns around your claiming bite, his gaze transfixed on the spot like he couldn’t believe he had actually done it. But you were more focused on the way your body grew uncomfortably hot again, still unbelievably desperate for more. Now that you were lying down and no longer working to hold yourself up, your inner omega demanded for you to continue.

Your legs were spread, and Rick was settled between them, so when your hips thrust up and your dripping wet pussy brushed against him, he turned his gaze back to yours with clear amusement.

“Omega…” he murmured, tenderly brushing his fingers along your cheek. “You sure you’re ready for more?”

“Yes,” you breathed out. “I mean… no… I don’t know, but I need something.”

“Okay, darlin’. Just relax.”

Rick seemed to understand what you couldn’t put into words, and he pressed himself closer to you, lowering his head to kiss along your neck again. His lips didn’t linger there for long though, and he kissed a path down to your collarbone as his hands moved up your sides. Then, simultaneously, one of his hands squeezed your breast as his lips enclosed over your nipple on the other.

His lips were gentle at first, lightly sucking on the sensitive peak as it hardened from his attentive touch. His fingers teased the other, gently pulling, tugging and then caressing so softly that it felt like sweet torture. You squirmed underneath him, conflicted between so desperately wanting more and yet also feeling like you wouldn’t be able to handle it.

Rick sucked down harder on your nipple, letting his tongue flick out and stimulate the tip of the delicate and hardened nub. Your back arched yet again and you squeezed your eyes shut, feeling so hypersensitive everywhere and all at once. Then, Rick let his free hand move down your stomach, until it fell to that eager place right between your thighs, running tantalizingly over your clit.

You didn’t think you could take more of his cock for the moment, but your clit was aching for more attention and from the enthusiastic sound you let out as he made contact, Rick seemed to realize exactly what you needed. You felt his lips curve up into a smile against your breast, as he continued to spoil them both with attention. His teeth playfully, but ever so gently nipped at your nipple and you squirmed beneath him again.

So, then Rick lifted his body slightly, so that he could continue rubbing his fingers over your clit, back and forth. The movements were languid at first, gradually working to increase your desire. His long fingers just kept gliding over you and stimulating your sensitive nub repeatedly. But then he picked up his rhythm, little by little until your hips were bucking wildly and the sound of his skin moving against your wetness reverberated all around you.

He was relentless, moving his mouth to your other nipple, bringing it between his teeth and then licking at it fervently. The mix of the pinch from his teeth and the sweet licks of his tongue drove you wild. And as his hand rubbed against your clit enthusiastically, you felt another orgasm approaching. You were moaning constantly, your wanton cries echoing through the building, but you didn’t care. All you wanted – needed – was to cum again.

Rick must have sensed it, because he pulled his hand away briefly, before bringing your clit between his thumb and forefinger, pinching down slightly on the sensitive nub.

“Fuck!” You practically screamed out.

A sense of ecstatic release finally washed over you and you swore that you could see stars. Your entire body seemed to spasm and tense as it crashed over you like a tidal wave. Your legs shook and your fingers found their way to his thick hair, gripping onto him desperately. Rick never let up, continuing to tease your nipples and gently running his thumb over your clit.

You didn’t even get a chance to fully recover, as he then began kissing further down your body, and continued to stimulate your sensitive skin. As his lips descended further and fell to your lower stomach, your hips seemed to buck up of their own accord and Rick let out a light, amused laugh. You opened your eyes again when you felt his mouth leave you and saw him looking up at you affectionately.

“You’re so impatient, baby,” he teased you.

“It’s your fault,” you practically whined out in response.

You were so caught up in the unrelenting sense of lust and desire your body was subjecting you to, that you didn’t care anymore if you were being vulnerable. You trusted Rick and you knew that he wouldn’t treat you any differently because of it.

More than anything, the bond you now had with him after he’d claimed you, made you certain of that fact because you could feel the way he was so unrestrained and open in how he felt about you. But that new bond also told you that your words had unintentionally made him cocky again, and the smirk that crept up on his lips only confirmed it.

“Tell me what you want, ‘mega,” he requested.

“You know what I want,” you moaned out with desperate need.

“No, baby,” Rick denied. “I need you to tell me.”

You threw your head back in frustration, but you could tell that he wouldn’t give up until you gave him what he wanted.

“I… I want…”

“Go on,” he coaxed you, fingers now gently caressing your inner thighs.

“I need your lips, your tongue…”

You trailed off, feeling embarrassed, but Rick didn’t mind. He loved the way you had come undone and seeing this new side of you.

“Where?” He spurred you on. “On my pussy…” you finished telling him, raising a hand to cover your face self-consciously.

He didn’t torture you any further because you felt his tongue give a light lick to your clit and then your hand lowered down to cover your mouth, curling into a fist and slightly stifling your desperate moan. Rick acted like he was testing out what your reactions would be, now giving another, firmer lick from the bottom and then directly over the sensitive nub until he reached the top.

“Rick…” you were definitely whining now. “Oh god, I can’t…”

He buried his head between your thighs then, his lips sucking down while his tongue gave fervent and relentless licks to your clit. Your fingers found their way into his hair again, holding him there, like he actually would have tried to pull away. But Rick was too lost in the sweet taste of you and the swell of pride he felt within him over the fact that he was making you react like this.

Rick didn’t have any plans to stop until you were cumming again. Within the fog of his rut and the way his cock throbbed and pulsed, aching to be inside of you again, he never wanted to stop. In that moment, he felt like he could have fucked you endlessly, brought you over the edge over and over without ever getting tired.

His fingers moved up your thigh, gently testing how sensitive you were as he carefully pushed two inside of you. Your only response was another moan, and he felt the way you clamped down around him, giving him the answer he needed. Rick began to thrust them into you at a steady pace, curling his fingers up occasionally to stimulate the bundle of nerves within.

You bit down slightly on your curled fist, as your hips moved wildly, thrusting upwards in desperation because your body still wanted more. Rick’s free hand moved to steady them, and he continued his torturous licking, sucking and the thrusting of his fingers. You were getting closer and closer to the edge again and he knew it, so Rick refused to let up. When his fingers curled inside you again and he rubbed them sensually against that spot, your legs spasmed once more, and so did your pussy.

“Fuck!” You cried out, like you couldn’t comprehend much else than that word. “Rick!”

And his name of course…

He gave a playful but gentle tug to your clit before he pulled his head back. You were breathing heavily as the euphoric feeling of release continued to rush through you and then you looked down at him. His lips – especially that bottom, more prominent one – were slightly moist with your slick and you felt yourself already aching for him again.

“I love the way you moan out my name baby,” he grinned, tongue darting out to lick his lower lip.

Your eyes were transfixed to the movement, and he just got even more smug.

“That good, huh?” Rick asked, the grin forming into a satisfied smirk.

“Shut it, cowboy,” you quipped, and he just huffed out an amused laugh.

“Move over a little,” he requested then.

He wanted to lay down beside you, and you shifted over so that he could. But you also saw that he was still hard and while his stamina left you both shocked and amazed, you’d known what you were getting yourself into. Besides, your own body was still desperate for more, so you sat up.

“Where’re you goin’?” He asked, reaching out to take hold of your arm.

You turned your head to look at him with a devious smile.

“Just relax,” you repeated his earlier words to you.

Rick frowned in confusion but relinquished his hold on you. Lifting yourself up to rest on your knees, you turned and swung one of your legs over him until you were straddling his thighs. You looked down at Rick – your alpha – and loved the way his hands seemed to automatically come to rest on your thighs.

“Baby, I know you’re tired,” he acknowledged. “You don’t have t– oh, fuck…”

You cut him off by rubbing your pussy along his still hardened length, teasing you both. His eyes drifted shut and his fingers dug into you, telling you how much he wanted it, despite his attempt to give you more of a break.

“Alpha,” you murmured.

Rick’s eyes snapped open, because it was the first time you’d ever called him that and he loved the way it sounded coming from your lips.

“I need it too,” you continued, reassuring him.

That was all the confirmation he needed, and Rick was quick to move his hold to your hips, lifting you high enough so that he could thrust right into you. You both let out eager moans and when his hips settled back onto the bed, you placed your hands lightly on his lower stomach to support yourself.

You could feel his muscles flexing under your hands and the way his cock throbbed inside your pussy. He was so god damned sexy, stretched out beneath you, with his body on full display. You loved how toned he was, the rise and fall of his chest as his breathing quickened with lust, the strength of his arms as they held onto you tightly.

Then there was the light but coarse hair covering his chest and below his stomach, trailing down to the place where your bodies met. The curls on his head stuck to his brow, meeting with his sweat slicked skin and his lips were slightly red and swollen from both kissing you and teasing the most sensitive parts of your body. Everything about him drove you crazy, but in the best possible way.

You began to grind your hips, slowly at first, as you enjoyed being the one in control. He let you fuck yourself onto him, only slightly guiding you where his hands still held your hips. You gradually picked up the pace, now letting your pussy slide up and down his cock as your hips continued to move in circular motions. But as your movements became more rapid and desperate, you felt the need to be closer to him again.

So, you leaned forward letting your hands come to rest beside him on the bed and the new angle caused more friction inside you. Your head bent down to kiss him and Rick was just as eager, meeting your lips enthusiastically with his own. They were still slightly swollen, so it felt different, but no less good. And when his tongue met your own, sensually pressing against it, the motion reminded you of what he had just been doing to your clit and your pussy clamped down on him at the memory.

Rick moaned into your mouth, one of his hands sliding up your back to pull you even closer. Now he was the one in control again, raising his hips to thrust into you wildly and you were forced to pull your lips from his as a cry of desperation left them.

“Oh god,” you moaned.

Your eyes rolled into the back of your head as all you could feel was the way he was stretching and teasing and pleasuring you again. He fit inside you so perfectly, like his cock was meant for your pussy. The only thing you could hear was the slapping sound of your skin smacking together. The only thing you could smell was his scent, perfectly entwined with yours. The only thing you could feel was Rick – all of him.

Your head fell against his shoulder as he continued his ruthless but no less perfect pace. Then, you tilted it until your face was pressed against his neck and your lips were right against his scent gland. You kissed against it tentatively at first, before becoming more passionate, licking and sucking as well.

“You’re driving me crazy, ‘mega,” Rick breathed out, never letting up with his quick and enthusiastic thrusts.

“Please, Rick,” you moaned against his neck. “Please let me…”

You didn’t have to elaborate. He knew what you were asking.

“Look at me, omega,” he gently asked of you.

You reluctantly pulled your head back to meet his gaze and found it filled with unrestrained desire, but also affection.

“You sure?” Rick asked.

“Yes,” you replied without hesitation. “Can I?”

“’Course you can, baby,” he assured you. “I’m yours too.”

The affirmation only made you want him more, so you didn’t waste time and brought your head back down, briefly scenting him one last time before you sunk your teeth into his skin. Rick groaned from the intensity of it, likely feeling what you had when he’d done the same to you. A feeling of warmth and completion overcame you and your teeth continued to press into him possessively.

Rick pushed into you again, holding himself deep inside you as he let out those sounds of complete and utter pleasure, which you were quickly realizing meant he was about to cum. His cock twitched and pulsed inside you, bringing you closer to the edge as well. When he came again, that familiar and delicious warmth filling you up once more, you finally felt the fire within you burst and your walls contracted around him.

You relaxed your jaw and pressed kisses to the new claiming mark you had left on him as you both reveled in the ecstasy of another shared orgasm. Rick finally seemed to be getting to the point where he would be sated, but you weren’t done yet. You lifted yourself back up, his cock still spurting the last of his cum inside you, and you leaned back. Then, you began to thrust above him again, teasing his cock even more.

“Baby…” Rick groaned. “I can’t stop…”

You just smiled, glad that he was just as desperate for more as you were. You continued your movements, slowly getting faster and slamming down on him harder. It felt so good; you’d barely felt that incessant inferno that was always present during your heats. The constant stimulation and multiple orgasms were keeping your body satisfied. You almost felt like the rest of the world faded away, and the only thing left was your body and his and the way they joined so perfectly together.

You were bouncing up and down on his cock now, still unsated, still needing to cum just one more time. Rick was reaching the end of his limits for now, so it didn’t take long before you felt him cumming again. But you still needed more, like you had become addicted to the feeling – addicted to him. So, you didn’t stop and just leaned back further, resting your hands on his thighs.

The new position caused his still throbbing cock to hit that bundle of nerves inside of you and you cried out in ecstasy, feeling your own release washing over you again. You became mindless amongst it all, like your body was reacting out of a sense of pure, primal instinct. Because you just kept fucking yourself onto him and thankfully, Rick didn’t seem to mind.

“Y/N…” he groaned out. “Fuck baby, I can’t–”

“Please don’t make me stop,” you begged, desperate for just a little more.

“No ‘mega,” he managed to say, encouraging you to keep going.

He held on tightly to your hips, grinding you down against him and you both let out a simultaneous moan. His cum was leaking out of your pussy again, covering his cock as you were completely stuffed full. You continued to grind down against him, your walls squeezing around him and coaxing him towards another orgasm.

It didn’t take long, but it was less intense this time as your pussy drained Rick greedily of the last of his cum. You threw your head back, enjoying the mixed sensation of the warm liquid and the way his cock pulsed deep inside you. It felt like your mind was separate from your body, just briefly, as your own orgasm washed over you, just as intensely as the last few times.

Your body seemed almost stiff as it contracted with unmatched pleasure. Your breaths came out in heavy pants and your entire body was covered in droplets of sweat. You kept your eyes squeezed shut as your legs quivered and your pussy continued to spasm, while your hips just kept grinding against him, albeit less frantically. Slowly, the sensation died down though and you felt blissfully complete, in a strange way.

It took a while for both your mind and body to completely settle, but when you came back to yourself, you realized that he had finally begun to soften inside of you. Lifting your hips up, you let him slip out of you and then carefully moved to lay beside him. Rick turned onto his side, looking thoroughly spent and satisfied. Yet, when his gaze met yours, it became filled with adoration, and you smiled tiredly at him.

“Get some rest, ‘mega,” he told you gently, wrapping an arm around you and pulling you closer to him.

You just nodded and let your head rest against his chest as you let out a content sigh. The insatiable lust and desire you had felt just moments ago began to melt away and your eyes drooped sleepily. Rest sounded good and being wrapped up in Rick’s arms felt even better. So, you let yourself begin to drift off, now finally feeling utterly sated.

A/N: Sorry that the end is kinda abrupt lol but these rut/heat smut chapters take A LOT out of me lmao and I’ll be doing it again for my next Rick request haha but that one is very different (involving a sheltered virgin omega reader) so hopefully it will feel new and different too. Anyway, I hope this wasn’t repetitive or too much like the Claim.

#so this is literally almost 6.4k words of pure smut lmao #rick grimes smut #rick grimes x reader #alpha!rick grimes x omega!reader #rick grimes x fem!reader #rick grimes x f!reader #rick grimes/reader #rick grimes x y/n #rick grimes x you #rick grimes/y/n #rick grimes/you #alpha rick grimes #omega reader #female reader

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