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bitchsister · 8 months ago

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soooo I need luckycharms!AU Bucky and Curt on vacation somewhere.. slutty. your choice. john wants to show his boy from the bronx the world. maybe rome? like in EYY but this time they get to truly experience and enjoy it without the fear of doom & war & death ?!!? ya kno

Ohhhh you know I love a good Italy trip lmaooo. Cattonquick in Liguria was my favorite thing to write. Now I get to write Bucky and Curt being sluts? I’m so lucky. Ripping the nude beach idea right out of my Cattonquick fic and putting a Curtbucky twist on it.

Andiamo!

This request got pregnant with this other one ⬆️ it felt right so we went with it!!

HONORABLE MENTION;

Don’t read if you aren’t down with these: More vibrating butt plug, nude beach filth, ‘daddy’ is used twice, spanking, very very very very light dom/sub vibes if you squint but hardly, Curt is a cunt, abundant use of pet names

All it took was a few planted magazines on the coffee table for Bucky to quickly realize where Curt had wanted to visit, and the places he absolutely did not.

“Paris would be so fun, don’tcha think?” His legs were stretched over Bucky’s thighs who had been intently eyeing the score of the Brewers versus the Reds, dramatically huffing and puffing as the score continued not to work out in his home teams favor.

“Yeah, baby.” Bucky nodded, acting as though he was hardly listening but he was instead taking permanent mental notes. Paris is added to the possible itinerary, as is Aspen, Madeira, Lagos and Porto.

Then came ramblings of Barcelona, ripe springtime strawberries held between Curt’s lips as he flipped through pages filled with beautiful images of Casa Batlló, La Sagrada Famila, and the Picasso museum. “Look.” He turned the magazine around, pointing to the water. “Look how blue the water is, Ducky. We ain’t ever gonna see that here, huh? Closest we got is Coney Island.” He chuckled, again oblivious to Bucky’s mental note taking, the itinerary growing longer and longer with each new travel magazine Bucky hid around the house.

“Why do you got all these, anyway?” Curt grabbed the latest addition, a travel guide of Italy. “You got like thirty of the things.”

“I get ‘em for free at the office.” Bucky lied, and felt bad about it. “Guess Harding never cancelled the subscription when he was cruise shopping. I snag ‘em before he can realize they were even delivered.”

Curt hummed and nodded his head, puffing at the joint between his lips, all sprawled out over the cushioned window bench like a sunbathing feline. “I’d do anything to go to Italy.” He whispered, and alarms went off in Bucky’s head.

Bingo, bing, bingo.

Ding, ding, ding!

“My Nonna tells me stories about growin’ up in Bologna.” He hung upside down, the magazine held over his face as he multitasked like never before. A couple puffs, a flick of the page, ashing his joint, running his gorgeous mouth. “Oh, look!” He scrambled to his knees and sat upright again to turn the magazine around like it was his turn for show and tell. “Pompeii!” He flipped the page, his excitement growing. “Look! Tits! Dicks! Ass!” He pointed to all of it, the page covering the top rated nude beach in the country, Guvano.

And so, when Curt went back to his campus dorm room for a few days to hunker down and study for finals before summer break, Bucky did his own studying on hotels, which quickly had been switched to villas, vineyards, tours, beaches, restaurants, you fucking name it.

He had eventually enlisted the help of a concierge, but it wasn’t for a lack of trying. He didn’t speak Italian and he wanted to know what was really worth seeing, according to the locals.

Come Friday evening, Curt looked and felt like he’d been beaten with two cinder blocks, trudging into Bucky’s stretch of hallway once he stepped inside.

He barely had any energy left to announce his arrival, quiet footsteps wandering into the kitchen where Bucky stood with his hip jutted, his phone an inch away from his face and a wine glass in the other as he read closely each step of the recipe he’d chosen to make for dinner.

Cacio e Pepe and scottadito. Earlier, he prepped for the perfect Caesar salad, ready to eat since he knew Curt would be starved to death after his finals.

“Hey.” A voice squeaked after the source had snapped an incognito photo on his phone of that version of Bucky — quiet, contemplative, focused.

“Jesus.” Bucky dropped his phone onto the counter. “Baby, you gotta make some noise or somethin’. I’ll have a heart attack.”

Curt huffed a laugh through his nostrils and shuffled the floors toward him to wrap himself around Bucky, his eyes closed as he rested his head against the mans chest. “Oh,” Bucky cooed, rubbing circles into Curt’s back once he’d sat down the glass of wine he’d become rather familiar with in the last hour or so. “How’d it go?”

“My brain.” Curt groaned, pressing his face into Bucky’s chest. “It hurts.”

Curt, as Bucky had quickly realized, was a goddamn genius and he knew just how to work it. Never to speak out of turn, always raw and honest and never pretending to be something he isn’t, that thick New York accent poking through even the most intelligent sentences Bucky had ever heard in his life.

Listen to this, listen to this. Alright. Here we go.

Curt stood in front of Bucky, reading part of his final presentation project as practice with one of Bucky’s sweaters hanging to his mid thigh and another joint rolled with pink papers between his teeth.

The potential of shape memory alloys in morphin’ wing technology with adaptive geometries that adjust in real-time could greatly optimize performance across various flight conditions.

Curt took another puff, his eyes locked on Bucky instead of the paper in his hand. He’d memorized it all and knew it by heart. After all, it was a touchy subject he felt passionate about.

Furthermore, research shows that this could increase fuel efficiency, reduce emissions, and could have a hand in improvin’ maneuverability.

Bucky was speechless, his jaw slack, hearts spilling out of his eyes and onto the floor. He was no help really, because every goddamn thing Curtis did was absolute perfection.

“Feed it.” Bucky held Curt to his chest with one hand while the other grabbed a plate, built an excellent Caesar, and offered it in front of a barstool at the island in the middle of the kitchen where half of it was still occupied by Bucky’s iPad, his knives, his cutting board and all of his oils and seasonings.

“You’re a real homemaker, you know, Egan.” Curt reluctantly detached himself from Bucky and plopped into the stool, stabbing forkfuls of lettuce and shoving it in his mouth while Bucky poured him a glass of some orange-ish hipster rosé, because the red shit gave him headaches and made him feel sleepy.

Good taste, Bucky would say.

You’re a natural at spending money.

“Yeah?” Bucky leaned against the island, pressing sweet kisses to Curt’s face despite the way he was feverishly shoving salad into it. “You gonna have me all kept at home while you make the dough, hm?” he was teasing, but knew once Curt got his foot in the door at a job after graduation, he’d be making his own natural hipster wine budget.

Big time.

“You think I will?” Curt murmured through a full mouth, booping noses with Bucky who nodded.

“Obviously, baby. No other choice, I fear.” Bucky watched intently as Curt sipped his wine, giggled, blushed, rolled his eyes. “How you feelin’ about the final?”

“Dunno.” Curt shrugged, watching Bucky continue on his prep for dinner and dessert. “I did good on the presentation part. It’s the fuckin’ multiple choice that I get so fucked up on. I’m indecisive! The shit’s outdated — how long they been makin’ us poor brain dead fucks fill in some bubbles, ya know?” He gulped more wine from his glass, “Like, since the dawn of time, I bet. And ain’t that shitty? You’d think they would—“

A red envelope was plopped in front of him, sealed with wax.

“What’s this?”

Bucky shrugged, sipping his glass of wine nonchalantly. “Dunno. Found it. Think it might be yours.”

Curt gave him a look of confusion, shaded with hints of brattiness and sass.

Bucky could eat him up.

His fingers deftly peeled the envelope open, his eyes taking in the words that he could hardly comprehend. “Italy?” He whispered, his heart sinking to his gut. “You’re kiddin’, Bucky..”

“I was going to wait until we got your score back from the final. But I know you’ll pass and I just couldn’t wait.” Bucky braced himself for Curt’s suddenly energized squealing and jumping and screaming and hooting and kissing and licking and all of it.

So. There they were, beach Guvano, the very same one in the magazine Curt had brought with him to compare and contrast magazines versus real life — so far, not a single thing had disappointed him.

“How’s it look?” Bucky asked from beside Curt, sprawled out on their beach blanket as he shoved sweet grapes into his cheeks.

“Less people here than in the pictures.” Curt had stripped down, of course, as he typically found any reason at all not to wear clothes at any time, no matter the location. “But I like that. ‘Cause some of these people in here shouldn’t be seen with clothes on.”

Bucky swatted his thigh, a dumb grin tugging his lips. “Bad boy. Be nice.”

Curt smirked and rolled onto his belly and closer to Bucky who still wore his skimpy little black speedo that he purchased simply to fit in with the rest of the Europeans.

American swim trunks didn’t feel authentic.

“You gonna lemme see the rest of ya?” Curt pressed a kiss to Bucky’s unbelievably tan, warm, sweaty neck. “Or you gonna be a perv?”

Bucky shrugged, scrolling on his phone in his left hand, his right buried deep in Curtis’ loose brown sea-salty waves and occasionally grabbing more grapes to chomp on. “Do pervs keep their swimsuits on at nude beaches?”

“Yes, actually.” Curt nodded, wagging his little ass once a warm breeze had tickled over it, his favorite plug between his sunburnt cheeks — the one that he’d worn to dinner with Bucky and Gale not long ago.

And Bucky had already started playing with him.

“I think the real pervs have vibrating plugs in their asses. In public.” Bucky gave Curt a look of mock-surprise once he’d flicked the level up to two, meeting Curt’s look of real shock with one of pure theatrics.

His mouth agape, his brows furrowed, his chin quivering as he moaned.

“Goddamn it.”Curtis cursed.

“Feel good?” Bucky whispered, the shade from their umbrella almost hiding them from the rest of the beach where the closest visitor seemed about thirty yards down the shoreline, minding their own business with their tits out. “S’your favorite one, isn’t it?”

Curt nodded quickly, his gaze softening into little horny feline slits, thick black lashes practically fluttering over his own pink cheeks, the freckles over the bridge of his nose accentuated by hours spent outdoors sipping wine or cappuccinos and eating all the finest culinary in the city. “Mhm.. M’favorite. Yeah.” He spluttered, practically drooling already.

Bucky laid his phone on his chest, reaching forward to caress his sweet boys soft cheeks instead, gathering the moisture from Curt’s wet lips onto his thumb and licking it clean. “God, you’re so fucking sweet.” He fawned, admiring again a practically frozen Curtis who whimpered softly in response.

“C’mere, my baby.” He hooked a hand around Curt’s waist and pulled him closer, the top half of his body resting over Bucky’s chest while the bottom involuntarily rut against every warm gust of wind with his ass or the blanket atop the soft sand with his cock.

Curt’s lips had found Bucky’s fingers, sucking them like he would his cock, or Gale’s, whenever their schedules aligned these days. “I passed my exam.” He breathed, pulling away from the hand he held with both of his own, half the size of Bucky’s. “Gotta ninety.”

Although he was expecting a one hundred or more including the bonus questions that saved his ass, he was nowhere near unhappy with where his GPA stood going into his second year.

Bucky lit up, of course, kissing him like it could be their last. “I fucking knew it.” He whispered between kisses. “My fucking genius boy. God, you’re so fucking smart. It’s so sexy.”

Bucky would eat him if he could.

Carry him around just like that, wherever he went, there Curt would be.

“What can I say?” Curt grinned, lips drenched in shared saliva. “Somebody besides J.Lo has to make a name for the Bronx.”

Bucky snarled a laugh. “Christ,” he chased the moan that escaped Curtis into his own mouth to devour it. “Better graduate early, then.” He teased, his hand grabbed again and the fingers enveloped once more in the soft hallows of Curt’s cheeks that grew pinker by the minute.

He wiggled his ass again against the plug that was stuffing him, eventually moving to sit on his folded legs and rut against his own heel, Bucky’s gaze watching all the while beneath a pair of sunglasses with rather transparent brown lenses.

Curt loved to be watched.

He loved, so very much, to be the center of Bucky’s world.

He’d put on little shows for him, all sweaty and panting and begging for it. He’d become a mess, held together by prayer alone at the altar he worshipped so reverently - theirs — their love, their passion, their unbridled blazing hearts that had morphed together somewhere along the way, or perhaps in lifetimes before this one.

This love, the one that gushed so unabashedly, was the reason Bucky was able to stomach the sight of Gale between his baby’s legs, or the way Curt sucked on his fingers while Gale fucked all of his courtroom rage out of him, his pretty blue eyes in the back of his head.

Whatever they did with Gale was an extension of their love, yes, but it would never get between it.

Could never harm it.

Bucky caressed his parted thighs but didn’t dare to touch Curt’s cock that leaked sweet little milky white droplets down his smooth shaft, a sight to behold since so much was typically impossible without a belly full of Bucky’s cum. “You’re so fuckin’ wet. Getting yourself all messy.” He whispered.

Curt was aroused beyond reason — every one of his milder kinks (amongst many others that wouldn’t be appropriate beneath the blue sky) were being fulfilled. Bucky’s eyes on him, sweet little words muttered in praise and adoration.

The sun on his shoulders, the sea breeze sending shivers down his spine.

His bent legs spread wider until he was sat between them, his ass plopped onto the beach blanket which he ground himself into. “Look’it what you done to me, daddy.” His voice was low and rasped through breathy gasps and moans, “I want your big cock in me so bad.” He chomped his teeth at Bucky, proving to be all bark and no bite.

Bucky hummed, ignoring the rumble of thunder that hung above their heads, and his cock that stiffened so much his Speedo struggled to conceal it. “Not here, honey.” He adjusted his sunglasses to sit perfectly nestled in his brown curls, his usually loose waves tightened and accentuated from the saltwater still in it from that morning. “Laws still exist in Italy, you know. I looked it up.” He had no reason to study European law, but for this, he did a little research.

“But —“ Curt whined, his palms flat against his thighs as he rode the plug like he would Bucky, feeling the intensity of the vibrations kick up a notch when Bucky flicked a little green bug off his phone screen, the notch set to its maximum which they’d never done before. Especially not after sitting on a three for so long.

Curt hardly knew what to do with himself, the fire in his loins growing and growing, just like the storm cloud that hung above their heads. “Too much — I can’t —“ he panted, scrambling to reach between his legs and get rid of it but Bucky abruptly stopped him.

“Ah, ah.” Bucky tsked, “Don’t you dare.” He pressed gentle kisses over Curt’s knuckles that held onto him like a lifeline, tight white and shaking.

“Please,” Curt whined, looking between his legs and down at his own cock that had yet to reach its climax but continued to trickle with a steady stream of excitement and arousal, toes curling as he squealed.

“You gonna come?” Bucky sat up, then. He thought maybe he was going to witness history — Curtis Biddick making himself come without being pumped full of it first. “Oh, honey. You’re so close. I can see it. Fucking look at you.” Scrunched nose, back arched, nails digging into his own thighs. “Make a mess, baby. I’ll clean you up.”

Curt huffed and puffed, their umbrella swaying in the wind and a drizzle of rain peppering his warm shoulders. “I’m g’na come.” He said through rapid huffs of breath.

“Give it to daddy, baby. C’mon.” Bucky was doing that sexy little thing he’d do. He’d pout his lips and mutter filthy encouragement through a clenched jaw. He grabbed Curt’s cheeks and severed their gaze, instead redirecting his attention down to his own cock. “Watch with me.”

Curt was wailing, watching his body react instinctively to everything happening to it but the closer he crept, the lighter he felt the vibrations becoming until they were gone completely.

And then came the torrential downpour.

“What happened?” Bucky asked once Curt began cursing, pulling his hands away from their restrictions in Bucky’s grasp to pump himself but there was hardly any hope in it.

“It fucking died!” Curt was angry.

He pulled the thing out of him and tossed it harshly into their beach bag, pulling on his so very American swim trunks and his Blink-182 tshirt. “Fucking bullshit goddamn technology, Bucky! I could make a better fucking goddamn fucking thing than that — fuck!” Curt was still panting but every other sensation he felt only a moment ago had been so abruptly ripped away from him.

“Well do it, then.” Bucky grumbled, sitting up and gathering their things as the storm raged on and Curtis stood with his arms folded, clearly pouting and being no help at all. “If you’re so fucking disappointed. It’s your job to charge it, Curt. It’s going in your ass, after all.”

Bucky rummaged for the keys to their rental car, soaked by the rain but still looking so rideable despite Curt’s suddenly horrendous attitude. “But you’re the one that fucks the battery!” He waved his arms, “With your fucking bullshit!”

Curt was left there, standing in the rain while Bucky made a beeline for their big Audi SUV that was similar in size to Bucky’s Range Rover, but he’d made several comments about maybe thinking about switching to something a bit more like this back home. “If you’re going to drain the battery, I’m just fuckin’ sayin’ you should also be held accountable for chargin’ it, too.” His voice followed behind, catching up eventually.

Bucky had opened the passenger door for Curt to get in before he even made it back over to the car, hoping he’d curl up for a nap and fall asleep before Bucky was done loading up the car again.

He couldn’t be so lucky.

“You still runnin’ your mouth?” Bucky furrowed his brows, shaking sand out of their beach blanket before folding it neatly.

“Yes!” Curt whined, wanting to fucking cry. Bucky wasn’t hearing him — he wasn’t understanding. He was so, so fucking close. He felt the butterflies wake up in his belly, his heart hammered in his chest, his legs felt like they’d turned to goo.

And then nothing.

“You aren’t listenin’ to me!”

Bucky closed the trunk before he sauntered to Curt, his neck craned downward to look at him. “Bend over.” He pointed to the passenger seat, voice stern but steady.

Sharp, but buttery smooth around the edges.

Curt stuttered for a moment, “I — Bucky,” but suddenly realized it would be his pleasure to do just that.

A silence settled between them as they stood in the rain, their narrowed gazes in a standoff until Curt backed down and draped himself over the leather interior, his trunks pulled roughly below the plump curve of his ass that fucking jiggled when he spread his legs a little, perking his ass out for Bucky to spank.

“Make it a good one.” Curt quipped, his tone almost bordering mockery. “Or it’d be a shame you bent me over at all.”

Bucky had been a little pissed off by that one, but knew whole heartedly that had been the exact point — Curt knew what he was doing.

The buttons to push.

The buttons he licked with his tongue and bit with his canines until he drew blood.

The buttons he knew all too well.

A loud and heavy handed crack left a vivid and splotchy pink handprint over the delicious and a little bit sunburnt strawberry milky white skin of Curt’s right cheek, his knuckles bitten as he whined.

“I want an apology, Curtis.” Bucky bent over his body, nipping at his ear. “Not fair to take your frustration out on me, is it?”

Curt rolled his eyes, grinning into the leather of the seat beneath him as they replaced the new car smell with their own. “Fuck you.” He mumbled, going to sit up again until a hand forced him back down.

“What was that?” Bucky shoved Curt’s stance wider with his knee, feeling a hand back again to spank Curt’s left cheek that time. He hardly tensed up at it, seeming to melt under each crack against his skin.

What am I gonna do with you, Biddick?

“Hm?”

Curt wasn’t so tough eventually. All it took was three more good whips of skin against skin before he was back to begging for it. “Just let me sit on it while you drive.” He begged, clearly unaware how unrealistic and — even moreso— unsafe that sounded.

They had a schedule that day that allowed little wiggle room and Bucky had warned Curtis of this plenty before they made the reservations that they did.

We’ll have no time to play in between, Curtie. You realize that, right?

Curt nodded his head, encouraging Bucky to confirm their reservations.

I’m not an animal, Bucky. I can control myself. Jesus.

Lie.

“C’mon. We can make it work. Please.”

Bucky checked his watch and shook his head. “We have the tour you wanted to do in an hour, Curtis.” He pulled Curt’s trunks up and manhandled him into his seat despite his resistance. “And we’re not going to be fucking late because of your bullshit.”

He closed Curt’s door and made way around the vehicle to his own where he hopped in and turned over the engine, blasting the AC against their warm skin as O Mio Bambino Care droned through the speakers.

“I’m sorry.” Curt whispered, leaning over the middle console and pressing kisses to Bucky’s bicep and shoulder. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean what I said — I — I was havin’ an outburst.”

Those happened often.

Curt was simply a hothead, too used to acting out on his first instinct, which was always anger.

Gale was helping him work through this, but wasn’t always around to be the mediator.

Bucky wasn’t going to let him hide behind that excuse forever, though. “No, you weren’t.” He mumbled. “You were being shitty just to be shitty.” He rolled a window down and lit a cigarette. “I didn’t come either, you know.” He looked toward Curtis again. “You don’t hear me crying about it.”

Curt scrambled in his seat, crawling into Bucky’s and subsequently falling into his lap, his back smashing against the horn but he didn’t give a fuck. At the very least, it made Bucky smile. “You’re right. I’m shitty. I was bein’ shitty just to be fuckin’ shitty. And I’m sorry.” He inhaled the smoke Bucky shared with him, their lips slotting together perfectly.

Bucky could never deny Curtis the satisfaction of an accepted apology — this wasn’t a real fight. It was nothing of the sort.

It was a squabble, yes, but in the end, it wouldn’t make or break anything.

Except a few of Bucky’s fragile nerves.

“Still doesn’t mean I’m gonna fuck you, honey.” Bucky smirked, cigarette between his teeth. “C’mon, back in your spot. We gotta get goin’.”

#💌#yoyo writes #I love these two #curtbucky #this one is so long #masters of the air #lcau

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jungleindierock · 10 months ago

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Rebjukebox 2024 - No 1

Here's my first playlist for 2024, it's not gonna be a monthly thing, just once i have 40 tracks i like, then i will share it. So could be one or two or even three in one month and other months maybe none, this is why it's numbered. I am already close to No 2 being finished, cover done, just need to cut down to 40 tracks from the 80+ tracks in the provisional draft playlist. So could share this next week!! These playlists are great way to find new bands and artists and saves us having to post each on sepearatly.

I used to do these just through Soundcloud, but thought i might as well add it to my Spotify also. So i will add two links to the playlist and can use which ever one you prefer.

If your a solo singer or a member of a band, then follow me on my Soundcloud page here, if i like your stuff, i will follow you back, if i don't follow back then sorry but your not my thing. Whatever style of music is fine, i like many stlyes and will take a listen. You should always trust your own ears with music.

You can only follow 2,000 people on Soundcloud, so am limited. But if am following you there, i can see when you share new music, which means you could be added to one of these playlists or the main JIR playlist (one per month). What style of music is fine, i like many and will take a listen.

Enjoy and share, stay free, see you soon with No 2!!

Reb

Ok the links for the playlist:- Soundcloud I Spotify

Tracklist

1 - Paramore - Burning Down the House (Talking Heads Cover) 2 - The Delta Shake - I’ll Be Your Man (Alternative Version) 3 - Anja Huwe - Rabenschwarz 4 - Fat Dog - All The Same 5 - Loupe - Tested Waters 6 - Wynona - Feeling For Edges 7 - Nothing Rhymes With Orange - Friday Is Over 8 - Shannon and the Clams - The Moon Is In The Wrong Place 9 - KAWALA - American Adrenaline 10 - overpass - Stay Up 11 - Camens - Cynical 12 - Cinders - Going Nowhere 13 - Linn Koch-Emmery - Ebay Armour 14 - Grace Petrie - Start Again 15 - Neon Dreams (Ft. Matthew Mole) - The Art of Letting Go 16 - This Rebel - Same Every Time 17 - The Holy - Any Given Day 18 - Soundwire - Shake The Fever (Radio Edit) 19 - The Snuts - Millionaires 20 - Neck Deep - Moody Weirdo 21 - Softcult - Heaven 22 - Lurve - Pesnya O Lyubvi 23 - BARSTAFF - Tracy Island (Radio Edit) 24 - Sasha Assad - Bad Nature 25 - Red Rum Club - Hole In My Home 26 - No Windows - Song 01 27 - Mourn - Could Be Friends 28 - Sunglaciers - Cursed 29 - POND - Neon River 30 - Slow Time Mondays - Don’t Threaten Me With A Good Time 31 - Jeen - So What 32 - stillcorners - The Dream 33 - The Marra - Masterpiece 34 - The Hubbards - Hiding & Reading 35 - The Cheap Thrills - Last Orders 36 - Aqualine - No Answer 37 - Torrey - Bounce 38 - Low Blows - Normal 39 - ParisBlue - Remedy 40 - Bombay Bicycle Club (ft. Lucy Rose) - Willow

#Rebjukebox 2024 - No 1 #new music #playlist #indie rock #indie music

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tugoslovenka · 1 year ago

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Warding Bond - Chapter 9

Trapped

A/N:

We love a good bit of angst and symbolism in this one!

Also posting on AO3!

“How daft do you think I am?”

Althea pressed her lips together. For the first time since waking, she was acutely aware of her body—the bruises, the aches, the tears that all throbbed. The old scars had faded, just about, but the blows she’d received from Astarion were now becoming a rather constant reminder of the failure of this entire endeavor.

The pierced lung too, was recovering at an annoyingly slow pace. It was a novelty, hearing a soft wheeze each time she soothed herself through a deep exhale. It was clear to her that any attempt to deceive the vampire of her intentions would prove more troublesome than she’d expected.

“No, don’t answer that. I would rather not hear it,” he interrupted with a sigh before she could respond.

“I can help.”

Half-truths were important.

“To what end?”

“Completing the ritual.”

Lies were necessary.

The ragged breathing certainly did not help her efforts. Her hand crept up until she felt the side of her back, gently massaging the raw skin. A full recovery was going to take longer than anticipated.

Astarion watched her for what seemed like ages. The glint in his eyes was indicative of his attempt to ascertain the endless falsehoods in her words. A hand rested under his chin while he did so. Althea’s head began ringing again, voices clouding her senses, slithering themselves into the recesses of her mind. She wondered if this was a punishment from Mephistopheles for her embarrassing display of combat ability, that his powers were freezing her insides until she too became a glacier befitting his palace.

“Why would I trust the word of someone who just tried to kill me?” he finally asked, noticeably interested in what she had to say next.

“Self-defense,” she rectified. “You started it.”

A pause. A hum.

“I suppose you have a point…” he yielded. “Still. If you had been a little more clever, you may have convinced me of this, say, two days ago.” He waved his hands expressively.

Two days.

Had she been unconscious for a full day?

“Evidently, circumstances change.”

“They do indeed.” He nodded. “Which is why, whatever this is, can continue brewing inside your pretty head until I inevitably tear it off.”

Althea’s attention shifted to the staff. If it hadn’t been such a wretched weapon of evil, she might have admired the craftsmanship of its design. Though, given Astarion’s status as part-ascendant, part-spawn, she did puzzle over the abilities he had obtained. Vampiric mist was seemingly one of them, and turning others into his minions could have been another. Yet he still could not use Cazador’s staff, not in a way that their former owner could.

The wielder had changed, the master did not.

“If you kill me, you destroy the one remaining chance of becoming vampire ascendant.”

He cackled. “Oh I can’t wait to hear this. Go on.”

The tales of his overconfidence might have been understated, considering his predisposition for vicious mockery even in the face of obvious uncertainty.

“I can’t know for certain, but seeing as I did not blow to cinders the moment I arrived in Caz—your estate, I believe the ritual’s intended result was compromised on account of someone’s meddling.”

“Congratulations, you’ve—”

“—Cazador,” she continued. “was not supposed to be included as an offering—he was the party procuring them. I imagine it doesn’t bode well for business when the livestock elect to sacrifice the farmer to the butcher. Not to mention, adding a soul to terms agreed in blood is not the same as scratching off a name in paper.”

In truth, Althea was not privy to infernal contracts of the highest order to know how this worked. However, given the meddling of an archdevil’s son even before the obligations had been met by either side, it was a wonder Astarion had gained any powers in the first place.

“A detective, an assassin, and now a solicitor. Honestly, you may very well be the second coming of—”

“—I am trying to help you.”

He scoffed. “You are buying yourself—and wasting my—time.”

“Test me,” she challenged. “Compel me to speak true and I shall.”

“Gods take me.” He exhaled in aggravation. “I don’t care to hear more of your theorizing.”

Honesty was not to work on the lordling, not with the image that enveloped him. Information regarding the way he handled his dealings ranged from cocky confidence to unreasonable obstructionism. There was not a single important person in Baldur’s Gate that hadn’t experienced the regrettable repercussions of trying to persuade Lord Ancunín of—to her knowledge—anything.

Another strategy would have to suffice.

She wobbled forward, the trembling in her muscles not having ceased since she had first noticed it. The vampire looked blasé, though he too seemed physically weaker than when she first fought him. With concerning difficulty, she raised her arms until her hands curled over the railings.

“The ritual is incomplete, but it cannot be reversed. If you attempt the Rite of Profane Ascension with dead subjects, even with the last living soul joining, it will not work.” She sought his eyes, hoping he would catch onto the concern in her words. Whether he would care, was another matter entirely.

He shrugged, as if it made for an appropriate response.

“It’s going to kill you too…” she stated, lowering her volume with each syllable in an effort to coax him closer.

“And why would that be?”

The slightest furrow in her eyebrows dug a crease into her forehead, as she licked her lips, swallowing slowly with the hope it didn’t come off too theatrical.

“Because you are the lamb he’s shepherding to slaughter, Astarion. You cannot change that by marking him.”

Flared nostrils, if only for a second. The slight clenching of teeth. An irregular intake of breath. Seizing the opportunity, she bowed the crown of her head against the bars. A wave of numbing pain pulsated inside her cheek, and she grimaced at the memory of Astarion’s heel nearly cracking her skull in the tower.

“You came all this way, evading guards, infiltrating my estate, putting on the most pathetic excuse of an act, burned my favorite vest, tried to kill me—failed it all, mind you.” He quickened his tempo as he counted on one hand. “To… convince me to complete my ritual under your advice?”

“You let me live.”

A lengthy sound that was supposed to be a laugh exited his lips, though it resembled a scoff by the end. He didn’t respond. Only stared in disbelief.

“If you were so certain that killing me would have completed the ritual, you would have already,” she prodded, seeing the skin at his temple twitch in quiet agitation the more she spoke. “But you’re not. Because you are scared it will take away everything you’ve—”

“I am not scared!” he roared, raising both hands as a thunderous energy hit Althea like a rogue wave, catching her off guard and tossing her deeper into the cell. Her back hit some of the corpses—cold, stiffened—whose lingering bones burst into dust. Groaning, she reached out to find balance, accidentally pushing her hand through the mouth of some poor soul.

Another sting of loud noise, gnawing at her ears, forced her palms against the sides of her head. She did not appreciate whatever affliction had been creeping up in full force since she had entered the Lower City. It was beginning to become an issue.

“Save your breath, my dear.” Came Astarion’s distant whisper. She opened her eyes to see him bending over to pick up the staff off the ground, admiring it for a second before turning to look at her. The playfulness in his tone was gone, now carrying a disquieting monotony that made the hairs on her body stand when he said,

“You’ll need it come morning.”

Varra was not good at counting. In fairness, she was not good at many things. Raphael tried teaching her chess, though he quickly lost patience when she answered him truthfully each time he would ask her next move. Jesting—teasing—was how he liked to express superiority over his servants. Often, he would mention Hope, his favorite project before her arrival . It took Varra over one hundred years to learn that it was a person, and not more of Raphael’s symbolic riddling.

It was tormenting Hope that brought him the most joy. Though, she was not as special, not as routine as his little lamb. He sometimes told her they were similar to each other, and while it was near inconceivable to break Hope due to a nature she would never—could not—understand, it made for an all the more fun challenge when it came to Varra.

Fogs of war bore resemblance to those of mind prisons. There was never a way to confirm whether the visions within were memories or mirages. Very rarely did those trapped in this forest find their way to a clearing. And yet, the days were starting to unwind themselves. Though she could not know for sure, she thought—counted—a number of days, that when added together formed three weeks since visiting Cania. If that were true, then the debauchery she endured with Raphael and his concubine was only a week ago. Five days. Or maybe seven. Ten at the most.

Five winters. How long was that?

Winter, a phrase that held no significance beyond the hunting season that preceded it. Pelts, for clothes. Meat, for food. Horns, for weapons. The elk migrated towards warmer pastures, where winters were not as brutal. Following the rivers that took them past Baldur’s Gate, they moved through Neverwinter—Baldur’s Gate. Neverwinter.

She scrunched her nose at the memory. Mirrors, large enough to fit monstrosities.

Portals.

Varra began counting, first in her mind, then with fingers. Six portals.

Her legs acted before she could fully comprehend their direction. The heat of the marble guided her like a crumb trail. She walked, passing by the hallway of the east wing, knowing not to glance at the feast hall. She walked, nodding at the debtors that had just arrived at the House of Hope. She walked, and only when she felt the tops of her toes hitting cold marble was when she froze, as if compelled to.

To her left, a room that Raphael had taken her to, once. To her right, the dining chamber reserved for guests only.

Varra looked at her trembling feet, which by now had begun to sweat. Her upper lip curled and eyebrows tensed, as she lost volition of every muscle in her body.

Varra D’allrnir of Cloakwood was trapped. Althea of Cania was not.

Squeezing her eyes shut, she gritted her teeth with enough pressure that she thought they’d break. Willing her trembling hands into a fist, she took deep breaths. Very slowly, she unglued the right foot from the floor, tissue nearly splitting in the attempt. It rose for barely an inch. The muffled grunts she tried to mask were now impossible to contain, breaking into groans of pain as she exerted every fiber of her being to overcome the invisible barrier which held her in place. One step was all it took. One—

“Varra?”

The heavy thud of her foot startled her eyes open. The sweat which had begun at her feet was now also spilling down her back and temples. What energy it must have taken out of her.

“Do not make me ask you, Varra.”

Whipping around like the obedient servant she knew to be, she recognized the devilish form of Raphael’s, two hands resting on his hips, observing her.

“Raphael.” She bowed, lifting the sides of her dress in the process.

“What are you doing here?” His glance darted towards the room to her left, then her right. “You know the feast is not for you, little lamb.”

“Yes, master. I’m sorry, master,” she spoke hastily, knowing her damnation neared.

The devil seemed intrigued. It was the first time in a very long while that she discerned a look of confusion. She could maybe think of two other instances where he’d been stunned into silence. A couple of strides, and he was standing in the circular corridor her feet could not take her to. Varra followed, still incapable of stepping past the line he had drawn into her mind, all the while knowing to face her master when addressed. His head looked to his right, left, then back to her.

“Is this defiance, Varra?” His tone oozed with astonishment at whatever realization had formed in his head.

“No. Not really…” she answered flatly.

“Not really?” He stared unblinkingly. “Then how do you explain the screams of agony which only sound when you don’t do as told?”

She scrambled for an explanation, though none came that would have made for an appropriate response. “I… don’t know.”

Raphael snickered.

“Of course you don’t.” He moved closer, cupping the side of her face. His thumb gently circled her cheek. “I shouldn’t expect more from a tortured soul. You always were a bit naive, weren’t you?”

“Yes ma—”

She yelped when the hand squeezed down on her skin, tearing at the soft flesh until she could smell blood. Raphael yanked her head closer, his lips partially burning her ear from the fury radiating from him.

“I, however, am not. Another stunt of this kind will earn you a visit to the Spectators, so that they can doll you up for eternal paralysis. You cannot fool me, Varra.”

The charring on her skin would remain as a reminder of the punishment that had been carried out. She was almost relieved, knowing it would only be a few days before Raphael requested she be healed for the throat fucking that followed such partial retribution. Though it did perplex her, the violence with which he reacted to this specific misdoing. She could not remember the last time she was scorched by his flames. It was usually reserved for the debtors or damned souls who were only beginning their training in complete obedience.

The fire burned through until she felt it hit bone.

Varra didn’t yell, or scream, or tear herself away.

She refused to.

Only when he released her from his clutches, throwing her on the ground did she let out a noise. She clambered to her feet, standing at attention.

“Dismissed.”

“Yes, Raphael.”

Walking back to the balcony, blood pouring from the side of her face, dripping down her neck and seeping into the white fabric of her dress, Varra again counted on one hand. Five corridors. Five corridors separated her favorite resting spot from the six portals she had seen, once.

Varra D’allrnir of Cloakwood was bound to Raphael’s whims. Althea of Cania was not. The only thing left was to learn how to become her.

#astarion #astarion fanfiction #astarion x tav #astarion x original female character #astarion x ofc #wb #baldur's gate 3 #my fics

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xarrixii · 6 months ago

Text

Chapter_43 : " 'Sight' "

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CW: archive masterlist | masterlist

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Alph heard the sound of a foot scratching along the ground and kicked left, leg stopping on the area they’d hit until they could run a hand along the little dots along the wall. Then the sound of a hand swiping over a table. They punched, again feeling the dots where their hit had connected with the wall they were training with.

“You ever get enough of that?” Mark’s voice drifted in from the, left. The hallway.

“Not particularly.” Alph grins and starts up the buzzer again, connecting their fist straight into the braille on the ‘head’ and pulling their hand back to wave it off.

Mark’s quiet for a little longer, letting Alph use the different sounds to make hits on the standstill wall. “You get tired of having to put the mannequins up each time? Just taped it all to the wall instead?”

Alph grumbled.

“There are people you could spar with, you know. The decommissioned ones.”

“Like me,” Afyer, by sound of it, had joined the conversation. “I’ve got not much else to do around here, if you’re really up for it. I’m also notorious for being easy to fight.”

“You say proudly?” Mark questions.

“It can be good for a multitude of reasons. Like being a living training exercise. Being a reference for minimum skill levels for the science team. Getting underestimated on the battlefield and managing to hit a surprise attack.” Afyer pauses. “I shrugged, by the way, Raiden. Sorry. But fighting people that are too busy laughing at how unassuming you are is very funny when you punch them in the face.”

Alph snickers, “He gets it.”

“I do agree though. Fighting the wall is not much fun, so you can fight me instead. It also won’t be the same sounds over and over again.”

“If anyone asks, I didn’t leave two pyrokinetics alone to spar.” Alph hears Mark’s footsteps recede now that they ceased punching the wall.

“Oh, I get it. Because one of Storm’s goals is demolishing that. Raiden, I’m nodding right now.”

“Thanks for the callout.”

“Really good time for Storm to invest in earpieces, right?”

Alph is digging blind through a bin full of stuff. “What do you mean?”

“Oh, okay.” Afyer giggles slightly before clearing his throat. “Storm’s big on the nonverbal callout stuff. Like, you always gotta be looking at other people. But that’s such a thing of the past, and I’ve been trying to advocate for earpieces, but everyone keeps saying it’ll encourage talking and giving info away to the enemy.”

“In a roundabout way, yeah. It would.”

“But you can’t see nonverbal cues. And you’ve quickly become one of Nacht’s favorites around here, so Nacht will definitely start adding more additions for disabilities around here. Which is really great to see.”

“Afyer,” Alph chuckles. “Not many disabled people really join the fighting business.”

Afyer considers this, suddenly a lot closer to Alph. “Oh you’d be surprised. Some of Cinder’s most powerful operatives are disabled somehow. Like Five. Five would be your uncle, right? ‘Cause Nacht’s your uncle, and Five is one of Nacht’s brothers. Five is also blind.”

“Think I could sneak in for some tips?”

“No, Five would see you.”

“You just said Five was blind.”

“Yes. But Five sees, like, heat. It’s super cool. I’ve been experimenting with it.”

“Oh.” Alph frowned. “Get anywhere?”

“No.”

Alph grumbled, still digging through the bin. “Any others? Or is it just the one? Because then, we as organizations would be even.”

“There’s also Isle. Jackstalk’s closest confidant. Really great telepath. Also deaf.”

“All of these people seem like they’ve been handed cheat codes to their disabilities because of their kinetics.” Alph sighed, finally finding, through texture and sheer will, the protective plates to give Afyer.

“I know, right? So who’s to say you won’t, too?”

“‘Cause. I’m, like, super average.”

“No,” Afyer laughed.

“No, really. I am. Like, Urban’s really, really precise, Mum’s real damn powerful, so are all her siblings. I’m just kinda, I don’t know. Some PY lucky enough to stand near a fire alarm and get accepted into a police academy program.”

Afyer hummed, randomly delighted. “That’s not average.”

“Just⸺here,” Alph tosses the plates to wherever they remembered hearing Afyer talking and gets in stance.

“Also, Nacht’s son, Raijin, has inherited some of Nacht’s power. Also, kinetics are far more likely among kinetic-wielding parents. So we know kinesis runs through blood. It’s very likely you just haven’t needed to tap into the power Amaterasu passed on.”

“I’d rather be less like my mother if at all possible.”

“Storm was a good start. Smiling, by the way.”

Alph nodded, dawning a smile of their own. “Storm was.”

next chapter

━━━━━━━━━━━━ ▲ missing a content warning? let me know

#FLASH/BURN ARCHIVE #fiction #original story #original characters #magic #dystopian #fantasy #angst #writing #writers #writeblr #afyer doing the magic worldbuilding through conversation #afyer you rascal!!!

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artcalledtattoo · 1 year ago

Text

Where’s

Where’s the lead singer

The terminator 2 brotha

He never added a thing

R n R h o f

Run err off

What the fuck

I just read it too

Not our faults

It did just happen in my eyes as I punched buttons and ur eyes as you read them

It happened for the same of us

What

Interview has just started

September23, 2022

Does anyone bring him up?

I’m still watching!

Art bleeding money

Slap him Charlie

Cover watch

Theirs that dude from Filter

I feel so dumb

I watched Head Like A Hole after a move

In a Muskogee town paid for on pbs free tv around 1:30 in a morning

I didn’t recognize

Him on stage

This whole writing seems meaningless

PrettyHateMachine

Apartment complex

You shined me on

To Psalm 69

Heroine

Never had the pleasure to stick

And Finck is speaking

Looking like

There will be Blood Preacher

If a NIN movie is being thought up!

Or better Year Zero movie or better than any other series!

I made it into Nine Inch Nails

Let my words prick

Rip tear into the flesh of skins I’m un-reptilian my skin enriched from the indifferences play an hour and half on tour

See the left

The lower

The ones who paid for tickets

Unlike a parents weekly allowance in a middle class family

Signed to death

To see a concert

Gear’s Danny

1993

The one should’ve been slapped

One soundtrack blah

Speed

Uhh ahh

Move on from dumb ass

Swirling in g dude

You need a fix

I’m skipping uhhhhhhhhb

You hear things, she speaks

Blue phone in hand

Should you relate what you listen too

Otherworldly

Outside

Records

The calm one speaks

Let the flow begin

Just what happens

Loner fucking up the interview in background

Playing over in thee enclosure

Auditioning

Loner right eye

Commercial break

Speaking

A picking over lovelies

i adour le mar

Limitations

Cleverly spoken

Close up upon eyes

👀

Memoirs

Keep the edge

And give more to ur own writings

Ummm

Rambo Rambo Rambo

In tight pants

Don’t get bored

Trust in thee inside jokes

In the flesh with it

New understanding

When doing the watching

And reading

Hear Hear

Why Danny!

Sure any song can grab you in a different way than when you first heard it!

The carpenters

And Tequila

Wholly Bully

Whole lot of Bully

We are the bulls!

Air Jordans

In Jordache

Tight around

the ankles

A fuck you just above

.|.

Or give ur self a

MM a Gunn

Along having a fun with it

Old recording don’t take offense to it

I ending it out no one to talk too or is it to it can’t be two I think I’m through or is it inside out and thorough I’m a thoroughly speaking even while holding my breathe I love still you deeply under all the handkerchief’s I run like a thoroughbred throwing lasso’s never under slipknots, never falling off of cliffs

Or sucking thee exhaust, I’m still present

In all of this, way beyond thee interview

Cinders and floaters

I have thought of

Just inches from top of water

My life consists of playing watching writing after interviews

I’m no God!

Where’s ?

0 notes

angelmichelangelo · 2 years ago

Text

hopping onto this post to say i second what op said! i love the design of the lair. it’s one of my favourites out of all the turtles homes, it feels the most homely

the pit feels so warm (for an sewer) but i always loved how put together it felt. like all the little bits and pieces i imagine either splinter or the boys found over the years and added to their home. the turnstiles being the entryway is such a neat detail too! idk how the hole in the ceiling ever worked (like, what’s up there?) it made for a pretty cool setting and i like to imagine the turts head up there and do some basking when it’s sunny out :)

out of all the bedrooms we see mikey’s the most. and it’s messy and chaotic but i love that it encapsulates his personality so much. the shark bitten surfboard (which has CIPES on it and is a cool lil reference to the fact that mikey’s va was/is a surfer!) the action figures, the posters on the wall. and you can’t see it in this screenshot but his bed is pirate themed, with a big ship wheel and a pirate flag which makes me wonder: did mikey go through a pirate phase as a kid? anywho, his room is cool and it makes sense they hung out in here the most out of the other rooms

raph’s room is the only other turtle bedroom we got to see (we were robbed!) but again, it totally frames his personality perfectly. i like his tiger bedsheets and the posters on the wall. as one drum player to another, i like that raph has a decent looking set in his room. i wonder if splinter got it all together or managed to collect it piece by piece to give to him? raph’s room is cool and i love the design :-) im thinking that stack above his bed is perhaps comics? as he seems to have a good collection he’s always reading through? also! paint supplies! raph 100% spray paints the sewers in his free time. the cinder block shelf is also another nice touch - such a scrappy room but it works! they make do and i love it :)

THE KITCHEN IS MY FAVOURITE !! not sure why it’s actually here and how it’s functioning but i imagine donnie hooked it all up and got it working. you can’t see it here but they have a big DINER OPEN sign over the oven which is cute. i just imagine splinter searching dumps and alleyways for things for their home aside the essentials. him seeing that and bringing it home for their little kitchen is a nice thought. i like the gumball machines - i don’t think they ever use them but it’s just a cool background touch. obviously their home isn’t gonna be filled with a lot of stuff, so their kitchen is somewhat bare but seeing them hang around the makeshift table is such a family thing to do, i like that it translates to mutant families too :)

and the lab !!! they probably spend the most time in here :) this is donnie’s space and you can see that so clearly. i always enjoyed the human, rat and turtle posters on the wall - i imagine donnie either printed them out somehow or ripped them out of a book or magazine and poured over them for hours just studying them all. he also has been shown to have a bunch of framed photos of him and his brothers and splinter and their friends. it’s just really cute. the algae pool is also really cool and i wish they used that more. all of his inventions being scraped together bits and bobs that somehow work is so cool. donnie is clearly always the smart one in each iteration, but in 2012 he literally made everything from trash and old kraang parts (remember he doubted himself because of that? in the space arc? like, boy, that makes you even MORE smarter cos that’s impressive as hell!)

ANYWAY! i could ramble on about the design for the lair forever and ever (and complain about the lack of donnie and leo’s room) but i won’t hijack this post any longer than i already have so i’ll just leave it at that :) thanks to the 2012 design team that made their little underground home feel so alive !!

This might've been said before, but I just gotta say:

I love the vibe Tmnt 2012 is giving off.

Especially when it comes to the lair and Donnies inventions/gadgets. Everything looks makeshift, but it has its own beautiful charme. Since they cannot show their faces to the city of New York, they have to grab old thrown-out devices and use trash and old spare material to make furniture and gadgets and it's just so realistic, while looking amazing all the same. Like, what do you expect from them, in such a situation?

The lair is easily one of my favorite fictional headquarters ever. Like yes, it's an abandoned subway station, but it still looks homey in my opinion. Not gonna lie, I would instantly feel at home if I visited. The family tried to make it cozy to the best of their abilities and I think they truly succeeded.

Whatever that kitchen table was in its former life, it now serves its purpose as a table and it looks amazing as it does so.

And the bedrooms?? I love them so much?? So makeshift, so beautiful. And don't get me started on Donnies lab, because I am obsessed with the way it looks. Like yeah, maybe the lair is lacking some color, but what do you expect from a family with limited abilities in interior design? It's truly realistic looking in the coolest way and I cannot stop talking about it.

Although I probably should.

Also Donnies inventions. The Shellraiser has to be my favorite fictional vehicle ever.

The cool graffiti on the outer shell?? Its ability to drive on train tracks and the street?? THE DAMN TRASH CANNON?? THE MANHOLE COVER CANNON???? They literally grabbed trash, compressed it and used it as a weapon. Donnie came up with this. Donnie drew blueprints for this thing and then built it. This man can build functioning vehicles and devices from trash.

The most impressive thing? He taught all of this himself. All of his knowledge probably comes from books and experience and later on certainly also from the internet. He's too powerful and he deserves credit for this.

Sorry, I just wanted to ramble about the 2012 gadgets and lair for a bit. I love the makeshift-ness of it all. I love how you can truly see, that the furniture is old and used. It gives the show the true Tmnt charme. It's the type of lair you'd expect some mutant turtles and their rat father to live in.

I'm not the best at explaining things, so I hope you get the point, lmao.

#tmnt 2012 #tmnt

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green-jackdaw · 3 years ago

Note

whats that about blowing the entire marketing budget on an ad in times square?? am i misreading or did wildworks do that for cinder??? bc if so holy fucking shit

Yes that apparently happened. Note that, one: this picture is photoshopped because according to someone from the Fer.al discord who knows someone from New York, that particular screen really hard to to take photos of or to even look at during the day. And two: someone else on Reddit told me that Time Square is completely invested with NFT ads!

#okay maybe I should at that I don’t know if it is the entire marketing budget #but a ad there is at least 5000 a day #and I don’t see any other Cinder ads #fer.al #feral game #feral wildworks #wildworks #fer.al critical

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salt-warrior · 2 years ago

Note

This may be a bit odd of a request but it’s something I’ve been thinking about for a while now. Could you write a fic where the rampion crew is somewhere where there would normally be fire. (Like a camping trip or just somewhere where fire would be normal.) and they all kinda forget that Cinder doesn’t like fire, and that it kinda freaks her out. So they are having this fire and cinder starts freaking out and Kai has to take her away from the fire and help her calm down. Thanks!!

Thanks for the request! This was lots of fun.

Mind Reader

Summary: The whole Rampion Crew gets together for a reunion of sorts about a year after SOSN. Kai momentarily forgets about Cinder’s fear of fire. (WC: 2.5k)

The sky beyond the trees of the Benoit farm was pink, tinting the clouds a soft gold. Kai could hardly take his eyes off the progression of the sky, marveling at how much closer the clouds here felt than the ones back home. He thought that, if he tried hard enough, he could reach up and touch one.

Beside him, Cinder clutched his hand, fingers intertwined with his. He squeezed her hand, turning his gaze from the angelic sky to look at her, face bathed in golden light and eyes bright with happiness. He was about to say something when Thorne—curse him—snagged Cinder’s attention away.

“Turn the heart eyes off for a moment, your majesticness,” Thorne said, nudging Cinder’s shoulder hard. He pointed at a tree, his hand raised in the air, displaying his missing fingers. “How much do you bet I can climb to the top of that tree?”

“I will never in my life bet anything that you can climb,” Cinder drawled. “Let alone a tree.”

Thorne made a face. “Is this because I’m missing fingers? You don’t think I can climb a tree without them?”

“Please, Thorne,” Scarlet cut in, knife in hand as she cut vegetables at a small camp table. “Not this again.”

“She’s just bitter we won’t let her in the club,” Thorne replied. He stood and placed his hands on his hips, glaring down at Cinder. Kai wrapped his arm around her. “I’m sorry, Cinder, but we took it under consideration, and the cyborg hand cancels out the lack of a hand of flesh and bone.”

“For the millionth time, Thorne, there is no stupid club,” Scarlet said, pointing her knife at him like a witch would a wand.

“And even if there were,” Cinder added, “I wouldn’t want to be in it.”

Thorne turned his gaze to Kai, giving him a look that seemed to ask whether he wanted to go to war with him or not. Kai simply shook his head, and Thorne stomped off, head turning every which way until he found Cress, who was having her hair braided by Winter.

Kai leaned toward Cinder, his lips brushing her ear. “You were pretty bitter when he said he wouldn’t let you be a member of the missing fingers club,” he teased. Cinder rolled her eyes and turned to him.

“You’re just butt-hurt that you weren’t even taken into consideration.”

“How could I be?” Kai postulated, sliding a little closer on the wooden bench. “I’m not—” he held up both hands, wiggling his fingers “—missing any fingers.”

“We could change that,” Cinder whispered, leaning her face closer to his. “I don’t know which method you prefer—gunshot, ax, whatever—but we could make it happen.”

“Hmm,” Kai hummed. His nose brushed hers. Cinder’s lashes fluttered. “Those are some tempting options. But I think I’ll pass for now. Maybe some other time?”

“Sure,” Cinder breathed, lips barely brushing his. Her hand reached up to entangle with his, pulling his arm tighter about her neck. Kai’s eyes closed for only a second, then startled open as someone plopped down beside him.

Kai turned, his heart pounding, having forgotten where he was, to see Wolf. He looked forlorn, despite the tuft of hair Winter—or possibly Cress—had braided with purple ribbon and the festive floral-print button down Thorne had gotten them all. In his hand he held a beautifully red apple with a single bite taken out of it.

“Hey, Wolf.” Cinder smiled, tucking a strand of hair behind her ear.

“Hi,” Wolf responded, taking another hesitant bite out of the apple. He grimaced, but continued munching on the fruit all the same. “Scar says if we make a fire we can have s’mores. You guys ever had those?”

“No,” Kai and Cinder said in unison. They looked at each other, goofy smiles tipping the corners of their lips up. Between growing up in a palace and a suspended-animation tank respectively, neither had gotten around to it.

“Oh, well,” Wolf said, “they’re good. You’ll like them.”

“I really wish,” Iko cut in, sitting on the bench beside Cinder and wrapping an arm around her waist, “that you guys would stop talking about how good food tastes while I’m around. It’s annoying.”

“Not as annoying as you,” Jacin said, walking toward the pit before them, a stack of wood in his arms. He wore a rare smile—or, at least, a smile that used to be rare. These days, it was more common than not, but Kai still found it odd to see the once-serious guard happy—carefree.

Iko stuck her tongue out at Jacin, but moved to help him all the same. Kai smiled as he watched his friends, all wearing the same ridiculous shirt Thorne had gotten them for their ‘reunion,’ laughing and talking and enjoying one another’s company again.

It had been Wolf, of all people, who’d suggested the get-together, saying how nice it had been to have everyone at the farm the year before for the wedding. They’d all agreed and decided to make it a thing: a gathering of war heros turned friends, coming together to reminisce and catch up and take a break from their regular—crazy—lives. Of course, they all saw one another from time to time. All of Thorne’s proclaimed ‘Rampion Crew’ was invited to the annual Commonwealth Ball, and most of them still traveled enough to see one another here and there, but the friends hadn’t had a gathering just to themselves since…well, since the war.

“I’m so happy we’re here,” Kai said, tapping the side of his head against Cinder’s.

“You’re not stressed?”

“Not at all,” Kai replied. “I know Torin’s got it all under control. And as excited as I am to marry you, it’s nice to just be with you and not have to make plans about how many guests we’re gonna have, and what colors will decorate the ballroom, and who will marry us.” Kai closed his eyes and released a breath. “It’s nice to just be here. With you, with friends.”

“Without the world watching us.”

“Yeah.”

“I feel…” Cinder paused, feeling out her words. “Young.”

Kai looked at her.

“I know it may sound strange, but I never…well, I never had friends. Or family, really. Except for Peony and Iko. But with everyone here tonight, it feels like home. It’s twilight and there’s laughter in the air and I love every single person who’s here.”

“Even Thorne?” Kai grinned.

Cinder laughed. “Yeah. Somehow.”

“I know what you mean,” Kai said. “About being young. It’s like being happy and light at the same time. Like we can make mistakes and the world won’t collapse in on itself.”

“Like that,” Cinder agreed. She leaned her head on his shoulder. “Exactly like that.”

The gang gathered together, Jacin building a fire as the rest settled in on benches surrounding the fire pit. They ate food that Scarlet and Wolf had prepared, and snuggled under quilts Michelle Benoit had made many moons ago. They swapped stories about time shared aboard the Rampion, near death experiences, and all the times that they’d made one another laugh when the world had felt bleak and lifeless.

When they had finished their food, Wolf handed them all little metal poles and placed a bowl of squishy puffs called marshmallows on the camp table. Scarlet and Thorne got to work, stabbing their mallows and moving them over the fire while the rest watched in awe as the white puffs turned golden. Cinder’s fingers tightened on Kai’s as Thorne’s once-beautiful marshmallow caught on fire. Kai laughed as Thorne blew out the flames, revealing a black-crusted mallow, but Cinder only drew herself closer to him.

“Do you want to make one?” Kai asked Cinder. She gave him a tight smile and shook her head. Kai looked at her quizzically, trying to gauge the shift in her mood. He’d seen her eyeing them with curiosity just minutes before, and he knew from almost a year of living together that she was not one to turn down new food experiences.

“Alright,” Kai finally said, shrugging. “I’m going to make one.”

Kai went to the camp table and gathered his supplies, stabbing a marshmallow onto his stick and taking two chocolate cookies as he’s seen Scarlet do for when his mallow was done. At the last second, he grabbed a third cookie for Cinder, knowing for a fact that this she would enjoy.

He raised his stick high above the flames, leaning forward with his elbows on his knees to achieve the optimal angle. He stared at the mallow until his eyes burned, from smoke or concentration he did not know. Leaning back a little, Kai looked around at his friends, smiling. There was Winter, weaving strands of gold through Iko’s blue and purple braids, and Scarlet beside her, talking about this and that as she ate her marshmallow. There was Cress, sitting on the dirt, cooking perfect mallow after perfect mallow and handing them to Wolf, the corners of his lips sticky and white. There was Thorne, who kept catching his marshmallows and fire and bringing them close to a scowling Jacin’s face to blow out for him, even as the once-guard complained that the cadet could easily do it himself. The world felt more whole than Kai had ever known it to be.

“Hey, supreme overlord,” Thorne called over the fire, drawing Kai from his thoughts. “Your puffball is on fire.”

“Oh stars,” Kai hissed, flicking his stick toward his face and blowing on his marshmallow.

Beside him, Cinder jumped, falling off the bench in her effort to get away from Kai. From around the fire, all his friends cried out, some jumping from their seats to get to Cinder. Kai stared for only a moment, then dropped his half-lit mallow into the fire.

“Cinder,” Kai said, hopping over the bench and kneeling beside her. “Cinder, what—”

“Sorry,” Cinder said. She sat up, and it was only then that Kai recognized the expression on her face. Behind the humiliation, she looked scared. “I just… I…”

And then it clicked.

Cinder was afraid of fire. She had been burned nigh unto death as a child, and to this day she still dreamt of those flames consuming her whole. How many times had Kai woken with her after such a nightmare? How many times had he seen her fear of fire written across her face. He felt like the biggest idiot on all of Earth and Luna.

“Are you okay?” Jacin asked, suddenly beside Kai. Iko knelt on Cinder’s other side, looking from Cinder to Kai, trying to figure out what had just happened.

“I’m fine,” Cinder said. She shook her head, shrugging off both Jacin and Iko’s concerns. “Really, guys. I’m fine. I just got freaked for a second.”

“Thought your boyfriend was going to burn your face off?” Thorne asked, extending a hand toward Cinder. She took it and he pulled her up. He tried to smile, but his eyes gave away his concern. “I would jump too.”

“Yeah,” Cinder said, giving them all a half-hearted smile. Jacin patted her on the shoulder, and they all moved back to their seats, leaving only Cinder and Kai standing. He looked at her, and it was then that he noticed that she was holding her right hand. Gently, he took it from her, noticing a small cut on her palm, already bleeding.

“Kai,” Cinder whispered, her voice tense. He knew she didn’t want him to draw attention to it—she didn’t want to bring the mood down.

He dropped her hand, giving her a look. “Come get water with me?” he proposed, picking up his water bottle and shaking it. "All this fire’s got me parched."

She gave him a grateful smile.

Together, the pair trapsed toward the backdoor of the Benoit farmhouse and into the kitchen. Once inside, Kai flicked on the lights and led Cinder to the kitchen table. He found a first aid kit in the bathroom and brought it to where Cinder was sitting.

“I’m sorry,” Kai said, head bent as he took Cinder’s hand, examining her bloodied palm. “I don’t know what I was thinking. Clearly I wasn’t. I mean, after all we’ve been through, you’d think I’d stop being such an idiot, but this just goes to show how dimwitted I can be.”

“Kai. It’s not your—”

“No, Cinder, it is. Dammit, I know you. I know that you hate fire. And yet there I was,” Kai looked up, meeting her eyes, “sitting there perfectly oblivious to you and your discomfort, and flinging something that scares you right at you.”

Kai dropped his gaze again. He rummaged through the first aid kit until he found an antiseptic wipe, then ripped it open, wishing for something stronger to release his anger on. He could feel Cinder watching him.

With careful fingers, he cupped her hand in his, rubbing the antiseptic over the cut, brushing away the blood and dirt until all that remained was a red, angry-looking cut about the length of his pinky nail. He uncapped a tube of ointment and squeezed a drop on the cut, then placed a bandaid on top. He held her hand in both of his own, thumbs smoothing over either end of the bandaid.

“You didn’t fling it at me,” Cinder whispered. She was looking at him, lips downturned. “I overreacted. I do that sometimes.”

“Don’t joke,” Kai said, squeezing his eyes shut. “I should have realized that you didn’t like the fire. I know you hate fire. But I forgot. I’m such an idiot.”

“Hey, don’t say that,” Cinder admonished. She placed her free hand on Kai’s cheek, lifting his face so that he had no choice but to look at her. “I could have said something, but I thought I could manage my fear. This was in no way your mistake.”

“I should have known,” Kai said miserably.

“Kai,” Cinder said, her tone low and sweetly threatening. “I know you better than anyone in the world, but I don't always know what's going on inside your head. I don’t always remember every single detail about you, even when I know them. I can’t read your mind, and the same goes for you.”

Kai let out a breath. His eyes searched hers for any trace of lingering fear or any resentment, but found only fondness.

“I feel awful.”

Cinder laughed. “I know. I don’t know who thought it would be a good idea to make you a politician, because you are the words at disguising your emotions.”

“I can do it when I have to,” Kai grumbled, his cheeks turning pink.

“You can,” Cinder said, nodding. “But not with me. You’re all you when you’re with me. It’s one of my favorite things about you.”

Kai grunted, but smiled all the same.

Cinder leaned forward and kissed him, trying to say everything he couldn’t seem to understand. She kissed him until all the frustration—the fear, the disappointment with himself—evaporated.

“Now,” Cinder said, her face inches from his, “what do you say we go back out there and you make me one of those s’mores?”

“Only if you make me sit on the ground,” Kai said.

“The Emperor of the Eastern Commonwealth upon his throne of dirt,” Cinder said. She gave him a peck on the cheek and took his hand, leading him out the back door. “You better not let the media hear about that one."

Tag list: @hayleblackburn @sadolescence @grxceful-ly @spherical-empirical @kurlyfrasier @healing-winston-pratt @cosmicnovaflare @gingerale2017 @fangirlforever0704 @fishbook123 @shellyseashell @cinderswrench @cindersassasin @slmkaider @zephyr-thedragon @just2bubbly @wassupnye @lani-sleeps @impossiblesuitcase @the-jewel-of-ketterdam @kaider-is-my-otp

#linh cinder #prince kai #emperor kai #carswell thorne #cress darnel #iko #scarlet benoit #ze'ev kesley #jacin clay #winter blackburn #kaider fanfiction #tlc fanfiction #the rampion crew #mind reader #the lunar chronicles #tlc #hurt/comfort #found family #salt warrior stories

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goldsrc-hl1 · 1 year ago

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"The Main rule of writing, is literally show don’t tell. If your excuse is they said it worked and didn’t show us it working."

The fact that we don't see much racism in places like Vale and Mistral is proof that it is working.

"You also don’t know what nuance is if your rgument is that they told us it worked, and then you’re arguing that Adam was radicalized and the main point of the entire plot is that radicalization is bad and absolutely nothing else."

*argument

No one is arguing that. You are, once again, strawmanning both the show and my argument and attacking it. That is a logical fallacy. You are losing credibility here even faster. I recommend you learn what logical fallacies are so that you can avoid them in the future.

The point of the plot is that Adam is generating more hate for the Faunus, and the Faunus have to stop him from doing that. That's the main message. Not that radicalization is bad 100% of the time. Radicalization, when it goes as far as Adam was taking it, is absolutely bad. But Sienna? She's absolutely a radical, yet she's never villainized or even criticized. She's just there, and it's up to the viewer to decide if she was justified or not.

"That’s not nuance. That’s not how it works. Lmfao."

Yeah, cause you strawmanned the entire message to the point that there was no nuance anymore. That's on you for literally making up the message.

"If they are straight up telling you one thing and one thing only, there’s no nuanced to it. They’re not exploring anything at all for that to be a nuanced take. Because the only enemies in that entire plot line is the Faunus."

They are not even telling you that. You are, once again, strawmanning the entire show's point regarding the White Fang plotline and then attacking your made up version of what the show is arguing.

Seriously, that's not something you should do in ANY discussion. It makes you lose credibility FAST and shows that you have no idea what you're talking about. Which, I mean, we all already knew, but still.

"Adam was part of all of that. Adam was doing all of that. He was the main focus and the main point of that, because once again and I have no idea why you’re not understanding this, Adam is the only relevant Faunus in the entire Faunus plot."

I'm not understanding this cause it's just blatantly incorrect. Blake, Ilia, Ghira, Corsac, Fennec, and Sun are all Faunus characters other than Adam that are relevant to the Faunus plotline. Adam is the main issue, yes, but he's not the only thing in the plotline.

Sauron may be the main problem of Lord of the Rings but he sure as fuck isn't the only relevant character lmfao.

"Sienna was introduced and then died. You can erase her from the entirety of the plot and nothing changes because the plot line didn’t need her and she added nothing to it. She’s not even the reason Adam is doing what he’s doing in the series, because the attack on beacon was because of CINDER and not because of Adam."

youtube

Watch it. Sienna is the reason Adam became so radical. She unintentionally contributed to his massive hero complex and fall to villainy. Without her, Adam wouldn't be the way he is.

Adam attacks Beacon cause Cinder makes him and because he just wants to. It's not Cinder that made Adam hate humans, it was the SDC that made Adam hate humans. Cinder might've led the attack, but she also delivered a massive victory to Adam on a silver platter, and since Adam isn't stupid and won't let his hatred for humans blind his judgement, he takes the offer.

"So what you’re saying, is that sienna was wrong and that she radicalized Adam and if it wasn’t for sienna that Adam wouldn’t have turned out the way he did. So you’re literally saying sienna was wrong and that her way was wrong."

This is another strawman.

Sienna ACCIDENTALLY radicalized Adam. She did so by calling him a hero for his violent actions, which causes him to develop his hero complex that feeds into his ego. What she did in and of itself isn't a problem, it was just that she did it to the wrong person.

If you REALLY want to take a contrarian stance on this, then RWBY is against glorifying violence. Sienna is never criticized for being violent, but through the subtext it's shown that being so nonchalant about violence is bad. That's fine. You should always acknowledge that it is a tragedy that you must resort to violence.

Not me, nor the show, said that Sienna's way was wrong and that she was wrong. She was wrong to lionize Adam, but other than that? The show really doesn't take a stance on her. She's there, and the viewer makes up their mind on whether or not she was justified. It just so happens that I do think she was justified in using violence where it was necessary.

"So you’re blaming the ignorance of others on the fact that minorities are fighting back.. that’s racism 101. That’s how racism works. That is what we call propaganda."

Adam is not fighting back against racism. He's fighting back against all of humanity in a revenge quest. If all racism suddenly disappeared, Adam would keep killing.

Honestly, I don't think you understand what I'm saying at all. I'm not saying that racism is justified due to Adam, I'm saying that people will use Adam as a justification for racism. I do not agree with the justification.

Correct, that is propaganda. That is the problem. People are pointing at Adam and generalizing all the Faunus as being like him, which is racist propaganda. I am not saying that racist propaganda is justified. I am saying that it exists, and the show provides a potential solution to the spread of racist propaganda.

"You are literally spouting racist rhetoric, and the fact that you don’t see it is as racists tell me that your yourself are completely ignorant and don’t know how it works or what it looks like. Because what you’re saying is racist. Point blank. Educate yourself because you clearly don’t know what you’re talking about. In fact, we’re seeing that propaganda now. I hope you’re paying attention."

It is racist. Generalizing the entire Faunus population by using Adam as anti-Faunus propaganda is racist. That is the rhetoric that the racists, in the show, are using. I do not agree with that rhetoric. The show does not agree with that rhetoric either. Instead, the show is actually fighting back against that rhetoric by pointing out how you can stop that rhetoric from spreading.

At this point you're calling the show racist for accurately portraying racism lmfao

"Nah, you clearly do think that way. Because your entire basis and your logic align a with that sentiment. Because you are that ignorant

Also, lmdao, the fact that you think typos don’t exists makes sense."

Unwarranted assumption, another logical fallacy. Also guilt by association, to an extent, which is another logical fallacy.

I absolutely adore the fact that you couldn't even be bothered to spell "lmfao" correct in the sentence about typos. That's so adorable.

The fact that a subplot about racism, in which the writers decided that the racists aren’t the actual bad guys it’s actuallythe oppressed minority that’s actually the bad guys, is being defended by rwby Stans in scary.

#anti rwde #Youtube

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arc-misadventures · 3 years ago

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Prank War III

Usually I’d wait a few days before adding anything to a story. But, for the life of me I can’t wait.

///

Cinder: H-Hey, Jaune…

Jaune: Ah?! Cinder?! N-Nice too see you…

Cinder: Relax! Relax! I-I’m not here to pull any pranks or anything!

Jaune: You’re not…?

Cinder: I’m not honestly!

Jaune: Then why are you here?

Cinder: I wanted to talk to you about some things and clear up some miss understandings…

Jaune: Such as?

Cinder: Okay, bout the other day, in your dorm room with me in the… m-m-maid outfit…

Jaune: Oh…! That… Uhh.?

Cinder: That wasn’t meant to be a prank or anything.

Jaune: Wait, it wasn’t?!

Cinder: I wanted to thank you for what you did for me against, Cardin.

Jaune: By dressing up as a se…?! By dressing up as a maid?

Cinder: Emerald thought I was going to play another prank on you. Not thank you for how you’ve help me in these past to weeks.

Jaune: All I did was pull an alarm and take some towels… there’s nothing really that big to thank me for.

Cinder: It was more than that!

Jaune: Eh?

Cinder: After they pulled their prank on me; I was just left there on the floor, covered in that slimy stuff, e-exposed to the world… all those people pointing and laughing at me… I have never felt so fragile since I was a poor orphan girl… When I saw you, I saw my childhood, when I was bullied and abused by my stepsisters… I was terrified! I was so terrified that you would do something, anything, the thought of you so much as laughing at me, scared me to my core… But, then next thing I knew, you had wrapped me a blanket and carried me to the nurses office. And you didn’t leave my side till my teammates found me. I never felt so… exposed and in danger to being so safe before in my life ever before… And I wanted to thank you for saving me Jaune. It meant the world to me what you did for me.

Jaune: Cinder… I always saw that there was an unspoken line that we never crossed in our pranks. Cardin crossed that line by a mile the day he did that to you. I couldn’t let you just lay there while everyone gawked and belittle you! So, I acted and did what I thought was right. T-There’s no need for you to thank me. As I said, I did what I thought was right.

Cinder: I know, that’s how the Knight acts doesn’t he?

Jaune: The Knight?

Cinder: A knight swoops in and saves a fair maiden from the beasts of the forest. I’m not so sure about the fair maiden, but you definitely were the knight that saved me. And for that Jaune, I want to thank you properly. So…w-would you like to go to Vale with me, there’s this really nice place I found that serves Mistral foods there. Say we meet around 6 by the courtyard statues?

Jaune: W-Wait… Are you asking me on a date?

Cinder: Y-Y-Yes… Yes I am, what do you say, Jaune?

Jaune: I would love to, Cinder. I guess I’ll see you at six then…

Cinder: You will! Wonderful! Oh uh, Jaune…?

Jaune: Yes?

Cinder leans over and plants a soft kiss near the corner of his lips.

Cinder: Don’t be late.

Jaune: Wouldn’t dream of it…

#rwby #jaune arc #cinder fall #jaune x cinder #cinder x jaune #rwby knightfall

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kaider-is-my-otp · 3 years ago

Note

Can you do a fic of Kaider during their time on the rampion at first?

Thank you for your request, anon. I've never written a fic set during the timeline of the books, so this was... interesting. Hope you like it :)

Cinder and Kai try to find a way to approach their blossoming relationship during their time on the Rampion.

New and Unfamiliar

Cinder stood in front of Kai’s room, gathering courage to knock. She didn’t have a good excuse for visiting him. She didn’t even have a question to ask him.

She simply wanted to see him.

After months of being apart from him, and with the gloomy day of their separation approaching faster than she wanted, it felt like a waste to spend few relatively peaceful weeks they had together on different parts of the ship.

When she finally knocked on his door, her stomach was tight with anticipation. She wasn’t used to feeling like this—wanting to see someone and be with them so much it caused a visceral reaction.

“Come in,” Kai’s soft voice called from inside the room.

Cinder took a deep breath before entering. She found Kai sitting at a small metal desk pushed to the side of a far wall. His room was as small as any other room on the Rampion, but he seemed to have adjusted to its size despite living his whole life in a huge palace.

It’s been barely a week since they kidnapped him, but Kai had already become a part of their crew. He got along well with everyone else, he ate everything they ate and he never complained about doing physical work. It was still so very obvious he was completely out of his element, but Cinder couldn’t deny it was absolutely endearing to watch him try to maneuver his new surroundings.

Kai turned around to see the newcomer, and smiled immediately as his eyes fell on Cinder. “Hey.”

Tight knot in Cinder’s stomach eased a bit. He looked genuinely happy to see her. “Hey. Am I interrupting you in something?”

Kai shook his head and locked a portscreen he was typing on just seconds ago. “I was writing your revolution speech, but that can wait.”

“Oh,” Cinder said, immensely grateful he’d taken upon himself to write a speech for her. Words were not her strong suit. “Is it going well or am I just going to sound like a female version of you?”

Kai smiled and stood up from the chair. “It definitely lacks your feisty charm and wit, but we can work on adding that together.”

Cinder rolled her eyes and sat down on his bed. The mattress was so firm and sturdy it was almost painful. “Thank you. For doing that.” She twiddled her thumbs. “It’s not really in description of your job.”

“Well, I did test high on verbal intelligence. It would be a shame not to use it,” he said and sat next to her. His clean soapy smell made her relax completely. “I want to help in any way I can. Sadly, there’s not a lot of ways I can help you to begin with.”

She reached out and placed her hand on his. “The time will come when you’ll have to use all the charm you possess to help move our plan forward. Better save your energy for that.”

Kai stroked metal fingers of her hand. He then raised her hand and pressed a soft kiss on the back of her palm. “I’d much rather use my charm on you.”

Cinder was breathless, but managed to ask, “And when has that worked well for you?”

Tingly sparks running through her body were a clear indication that his charm was in fact working very well right now. Kai must have noticed her lie as well, and he only smiled into her hand.

It was hard to put into words what this thing blossoming between them was. Feelings they had for one another were strong on both sides, but Cinder was hesitant, scared, to name it. It felt fragile, like it might break if things don’t turn out well in the end. If they lose.

Not to mention it was quite surreal to be kissing the Emperor of Eastern Commonwealth.

Sometimes, when she was around him, it felt like she was walking on eggshells. Their relationship started as something so innocent, almost like an escapism for them both, but quickly took a turn for the worse. And now… Now they were together, far away from Luna and Earth, planning to take down the enemy with their new friends.

Deep down, she knew if they wanted to succeed they needed to trust each other completely. She just wasn’t sure where he stood in that regard.

She got up from the bed and turned her back to him, not daring to look at his face as she asked, “Did you really mean it when you said you weren’t mad at me for lying to you about being a cyborg and lunar?” She rattled the air filter and found it a bit loose. Digging a wrench from her pocket, she started to tighten the screws. “And kidnapping you?”

She heard Kai’s short laughter from behind her. The bed creaked when he got up. “If anything, I’m grateful you kidnapped me.” He was now only a few feet away and the warmth of his body warmed her like early spring sun. “And I’m not mad at you. We both did things and said things we didn’t mean. You should be mad at me for throwing you in jail.”

She bit her lip and turned around to look at him. He was right behind her- tall, but not imposing; safe, but not suffocating. Just there, with a slight smile on his lips. Beautiful.

“No need to be sorry for that. Who knows if I would’ve ever met Thorne if you hadn’t deemed us both criminals.”

The smile on Kai’s lips fell a bit. Not noticeably to the naked eye, but definitely noticeable to Cinder’s retina scanner.

Kai averted his gaze on his shoes. “Right, your trusty escape accomplice.”

It took Cinder’s brain four seconds to calculate the tone of his voice and the look on his face, and it came to a simple conclusion- jealousy.

She fought the urge to laugh in his face. The idea of it was ridiculous. “Kai, don’t tell me you were jealous of Thorne?”

He shot her a defensive look, crossing his arms over his chest. The gesture was weirdly impressive on him, and Cinder felt a strong instinct to curl closer to his chest and stay there. “I was not jealous of him.”

The orange light she saw in the corner of her eye confirmed what she already knew. “You’re lying. I would know.” She touched her temple. “I have a built in lie detector.”

He had found out a lot of shocking things about her in the last few weeks, but this seemed to shake him to the core. He stared at her with an open mouth, barely blinking and at a loss for words.

Cinder put her two fingers under his chin and lifted his jaw. “Close your mouth or you’ll catch a fly.”

Kai shook his head and blinked a few times. “You have a lie detector? Seriously? How does that even work?”

Cinder shrugged. “I think it’s based on physiological signs of lying. Things like voice change and facial expressions.”

Kai was still staring at her, but this time she recognized what almost looked like wonder on his face. “That’s unbelievable. There are so many things I don’t know about you. It’s like every new information you tell me is a miracle in itself.”

“Then expect a lot of miracles, because there’s a whole of 36.28 percent of me made of them.”

She was trying to be sarcastic and dismissive, but Kai had taken her words seriously. He stepped closer to her and wrapped his arms around her waist. His face was so close to hers and his breath fanned her lips when he whispered, “I look forward to discovering every single one of them.”

Then he pressed his lips gently on hers and her body reacted in its usual way. She pushed away all the warnings in her system, and circled her arms around his neck, pulling him closer. It was still unfamiliar ground- to kiss and be kissed- but with every new touch they shared she felt the bond between them tighten, forging a path to something that could grow and develop into a wonderful future she never imagined she could have.

Kai’s lips were soft as they moved under hers, and she felt them tilt up in a smile. She untangled her fingers that had found a way to his hair and leaned back to look at him. The glint in his eyes was unmistakable.

Cinder cleared her throat. “Did you kiss me only to distract me from the fact that you were jealous of Thorne?”

Kai exhaled, holding her close in the security of his arms. “I wasn’t jealous per se,” he said in a not very convincing voice. “I just wished you ran away with someone less attractive.”

“Does that mean you consider me handsome? I have to admit I’m deeply honored, Your Majesticness, though not surprised.”

Thorne strolled into the room, gripping his cane and taking long strides to reach Cinder and Kai who were still embraced in a loose hug. Cress leaned on the doorway, giving Cinder an apologetic look.

Kai leaned closer to Cinder and whispered in her ear, “But then I met him, and realized I worried for nothing.”

Cinder lowered her head to stifle a laugh and stepped away from Kai for the sake of their audience. The distance between them already felt too big.

“What are you two lovebirds doing here all alone?” Thorne touched around when he got close to them and searched for their arms. When he found them, he threw his arms around Kai and Cinder’s shoulders, pressing them in a tight squeeze. “I thought we had a revolution to plan, and you are wasting time canoodling.”

Cinder swiftly ducked down and released herself from Thorne’s hold. “We were just talking.”

Thorne scoffed. “Right, you seem to be in a deep conversation.” He still had his arm thrown over Kai’s shoulder, and Kai looked like he didn’t know how to politely extract himself from Thorne’s grip. “Were you telling His Majesty how you had him at gunpoint in front of his guards?”

“You… What?” Kai’s eyes were even wider than when he found out about her lie detector.

Cinder glared at Thorne, wishing it was moral to throw a wrench at a blind man. “No, but I guess the cat is out of the bag now.”

“You had me at gunpoint?”

Thorne waved his hand, leaning on Kai’s left side for more support. “She wasn’t actually going to shoot you. Oh, did you tell him about that time he hit his head—“

“I think that’s enough, Thorne.” Cinder’s voice was final. “Do you need something or were you just born to annoy me?”

“Ah, Cinder. Dear cuddly cyborg.” Thorne tried to pet the top of her head, but missed and touched her nose. Cinder swatted his hand away. “Don’t get all violent on me just because you want to be with your boyfriend.”

Cinder was grateful that the word boyfriend couldn’t elicit a blush on her cheeks. “You’re even more annoying when you can’t see.”

“I’ll take this verbal attack as my cue to leave.” He reached the door and offered his arm for Cress to take. “Let’s go. We’re clearly not welcomed here.”

Cress, who blushed deep crimson, took his arm and helped him out of the room. When the doors closed behind them, Cinder turned to Kai only to see the shock written all over his face.

“Do I even want to know what was happening while I was unconscious?”

Cinder nibbled on her lower lip. “Probably not. Let’s just say it’s kind of miraculous we all came out alive.”

Kai exhaled and pinched the bridge of his nose. He recovered quickly and cleared his throat, suddenly finding the floor much more interesting to look at than her. “Cinder, I wanted to ask you… Um…”

“What?” Cinder approached him and grabbed the sleeve of his military uniform. It was a bit weird seeing him in something that wasn’t his formal emperor clothes. He looked good, though. Very good.

“This… This whole thing between us is so new and unfamiliar to me and I’m not sure I’m doing the right thing half of the time.”

She smirked and started playing with the button on his collar. “Hmm, and I was under the impression you were a heartthrob prince.”

Kai laughed, deep and quiet. “Not even close.”

Cinder looked up and met his copper eyes, filled with weird unease she wasn’t used to seeing on him. “It’s new to me too.”

Kai gulped and took her hands in his. “I know it’s hard to define what this between us is, but I was wondering if you would consider going on an actual date with me after all of this is done?”

He had asked her on a date so many times she lost count. Just to the ball he invited her three times in person, and several times via comms she never answered to. “You’re never going to give up, aren’t you?”

Kai smiled and ran his thumb over her knuckles. “Not until I finally get that date.”

She released one of her hands from his hold to push the hair that fell on his forehead. It stunned her how easy it was to reach out and touch him, even in the most meaningless way. She doubted she would ever get used to it. “I will go on a date with you. If we survive this mess.”

His grip around her waist tightened. “We will. I know we will. You’ll lead a revolution and save the world, and I’ll write you an amazing speech.”

She leaned her head on his chest and let out a weak laugh. “Always an optimist.”

He kissed the top of her head. “I still can’t believe all of this. You being Selene, the person I spent years trying to find. And to think you were right there all this time, just out of reach.”

“It’s weird, isn’t it? Like some twisted game of fate.”

Kai stayed silent for a second and placed his chin on her head. “It almost feels like fate when you think about it. If your mom never died, you and I would probably meet eventually in our adult life.”

Cinder mulled over his words in her head. He was right. There would probably be a moment when they would meet- a crown prince of Eastern Commonwealth and crown princess of Luna. She tried to imagine what that would look like- meeting him for the first time as her equal, not as someone on such a higher social level than her. It almost felt weird, unnatural, like everything about her potential life as a lunar princess.

“Not sure how well that would work out for us. I would probably be just as horrible as the rest of my family.”

He lifted his head to look down at her. “I don’t think you would be. There’s something inherently good in you that would have been there whether you were a princess or a mechanic.”

He said it so casually, like he didn’t just erase one of her worst fears with a single sentence. She didn’t know how to thank him with words, so she leaned on him, placed her hands on his shoulders and kissed him. Short and sweet, like a sudden gust of fresh wind on a hot summer day.

She pulled back and reached for his hand, dragging him towards the door. “Let’s go find the others. The sooner we save the world, the sooner we can go on our date.”

tags: @just2bubbly @gingerale2017 @shelbylmkaider

#kaider #emperor kai #linh cinder #the lunar chronicles #fic request #carswell thorne #cress darnel #tlc #fluff #cute awkward kaider

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doofazoid100 · 2 years ago

Note

would you mind going into details abt the differences in the arc?? it sounds cool and i haven’t read the manga, if you don’t i’ll just search it up np:)) thx

Was going to make a post about this later but for this ask I’ll post it now! I’m not going to go incredibly in detail, and I may not list everything!

⚠️ mogami arc spoilers

⚠️ cw for suicide, animal cruelty, abuse, and dismemberment

!reminder that manga panels are read from right to left/top to bottom!

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

Anime: We dont know any information prior to Minori's first appearance. The first time we see her is in the bed behind the glass.

Manga: Some footage of Minori before she was possessed is shown, it introduces her bratty and spoiled attitude. We then see Minori in the bed behind the glass.

Not sure why they didn’t add this, it would have more clearly established Minori’s character and would have given context for her actions in the fake reality.

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

Anime: We're not told how Mogami died, just that he disappeared from the public eye and he reveals later himself that he died.

Manga: Mogami ran off into the woods during a live broadcast show and was found hanging. We find out later that this was intentional so he’d become an evil spirit.

I get why a scene like this wouldn’t make it in, and nothing too big is lost from not having it in the anime.

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

Anime: Minori says that the cat is better off dead then says she’ll take it to a shelter. Mob tries to interfere and gets beat up. (Right before he’s awaked by negative emotions)

Manga: Minori's lackeys beat the cat to death in front of Mob. (The scene where he’s beat up and is awaked by negative emotions doesn’t happen till later.)

This is the scene I wish was adapted into the anime the most. It’s sick and twisted, but makes Mob’s snapping point much much more understandable.

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

Anime: Goes straight from Minori begging for forgiveness to her lackey hitting Mob's head with a cinder block.

Manga: Minori takes out a pocket knife and stabs Mob in the stomach. (Was supposed to be in the scene mentioned above)

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Anime: Minori meekly threatens Mob that her Dad's bodygaurds will beat him up. Mob says, "So what?"

Manga: Minori meekly threatens Mob that she'll get her Dad make sure Mob will never get a job. Mob says, "So what?"

Mob’s “So what?” comment has a lot more meaning in the context that he doesn’t care about a job or a good future. This much more out of character than him not being scared of physical threats, and shows he’s truly out of the loop.

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

Anime: During his fight with the spirits, Mob gets defeated, and we see ???%, very straightforward.

Manga: The spirits bite and tear Mob limb from limb. This is what "shatters his vessel" and reveals ???%

Again, this probably wasn’t adapted due to censorship but this arc is supposed to feature some of the darkest stuff in the series, sucks it wasn’t added in.

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

Some other notes:

- The scene with the most differences is the fight between Mob and Mogami/Evil Spirits.

- The violence in this arc is watered down in the anime.

- Despite its differences compared to the manga, the episode is really one of the best of the series. It’s THE “Mob Psycho 100″ episode.

- The manga featured a lot more scenes of Mob being bullied and abused in the fake reality:

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

All in all I definitely recommend you read the manga if you've only seen the anime!! It's the source material and as such you get a better understanding of the story and messages and junk.

#mob psycho 100 #mp100 #discussion #mogami arc

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lonesilverw0lf · 1 year ago

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Like Pyr saving both Knight and Agents? Not realizing Jaune is trying to do his duty? Or during some other fight?

Don’t know if Tumblr ate my ask to @noneatnonedotcom (mostly because I was being lazy and didn’t wanna look for this post) so I’ll surmise it here anyway.

The girls’ relationship with the Knight could start off on the wrong foot. They first meet him right after he gets done with some Grimm so he’s running high on adrenaline and the lingering fear miasma and these girls radiating magic clearly aren’t normal so he fights. They sense Grimm essence on him and assume he’s some kinda monster and fight as well. Being a more skilled, scrappy, and dedicated fighter he gives it a damn good go, but ultimately has to run. The girls take it easy on him because of course they do, their arrogance and ignorance blinds them to their reality and we can’t have Jaune dying yet. The girls ‘win’ because the Knight runs away, but are left feeling like they lost. Jaune lands many hits that are normally decisive, but the power difference is just too great so didn’t do any damage. The girls are shown their over reliance on magic, how unskilled, uncoordinated, undriven, inexperienced, undisciplined they are, the whole enchilada. If it was a real enemy, things would’ve went very badly for them. Somehow they realize he was just some dude under that helmet, not at full strength either, adding to their shame. The whole god hacks vs. git gud scene.

I like the Raid Shadow Legends SunWukong trailer, especially the part where Sun lines up two enemies for a head butt. I know a lot of people love the Elder Scrolls online trailer where the Breton Knight is a beast during the 3on1.

The girls would all have their own thoughts about that night. It could be the first time Pyr has ever been knocked down before, the first taste of loss, making her want to challenge him again. It didn’t hurt, like getting hit with a pillow or those foam wipeout courses, but the shock is still there. Jaune gets a taste on how low in the pyramid he is, reinforcing his drive to get better. Perhaps get more gear or something. Leads to an introduction to Dr Pelodina? As much as I’d like to see Jaune with Kings Haki, I don’t see that happening.

Picturing him finding some form of Dust to slot into his sword to make a Flaming Emperor’s Sword is fun. Dust, is it still an energy source? Or has that gone by the public wayside too? After learning the girls are on humanity’s side he won’t have a problem learning to work with them. Although they can do without those ridiculous outfits in his opinion. That cape and all those frills are going to get caught on something. Calling out your attacks is just stupid too. The girls can make a running Mandalorian/Warlord Shaxx joke about the Knight and “The helmet stays on. Stays. On.”

Since Grimm are a myth to the public, is Aura just as much of one as well? Or perhaps some kinda elite secret, regarded as some archaic practice, some long lost technique? With the Grimm gone I can see most governments minimizing their Aura users to prevent uprisings, local warlords, and such. Aura people tend to be difficult to kill. If it is considered a fairy tale then Jaune has a natural awakening at some point. I was inspired by Luffy’s Gear 5 awakening without the Toon Force powers and Matrix’s Neo Awakening without the green line eyes.

Tyrian is sent out to gauge the girls/aid Cinder in her acquisition of their powers, and decides to pluck a weed -Jaune- before the main event. Jaune fights heroically, but between psycho killer Tyrian and Grimm Jaune is mortally injured. He’s alone, knows he’s dying, but his soul refuses to accept it. That’s when his Aura Awakens. “I didn’t hear no bell!” Jaune knows that he lost and supposed to be dead, so ‘what’s up with this light? Why did the poison stop hurting? How am I standing up, shouldn’t it be impossible with all the blood he’s lost? Whoa, how did I catch that shot spike without looking? When did this Grimm start biting me, I didn’t feel a thing? Ah details.’ The Grimm immediately try to finish him, but are destroyed with minimal effort. Tyrian too gets his ass handed to him when he tries his hand. It’s the first time Tyrian is afraid. He decides he hates this feeling. Between the blood loss, sudden influx of power, and extra Grimm, Jaune is lacking the processing power to kill Tyrian. It finally makes Salem mark him as a problem, where before he was just a nuisance. Not as big as a problem as PRWBY, but a problem nonetheless.

Unlocking vs Awakening are two different things. Unlocking is what we see in canon, easier and safer to do. Awakening is the original way to get your Aura. High risk, uncertain reward, different for each person, but those who Awaked are considered far stronger than those who were Unlocked. They become the Hercules, Achilles, 40K Dante, nigh unstoppable warriors. Scientists have tried to discern what makes the Aura of an Awakened so much more potent than an Unlocked with limited results. Doesn’t help that Awakened types are much more rare.

Some thoughts for some side characters:

Without Grimm there’s no reason for walled cities. Humanity is much more spread out instead of mostly holed up in four cities. The Four Kingdoms are still there, but the walls are relics of a time long passed.

Velvet is the quiet girl that’s Coco’s longtime best friend. Velvet is an aspiring photographer but also an interest of journalism and mystery novels. It starts as a hobby, but becomes an obsession when the Knight enters the scene. She goes full crazy Lois Lane reporter/conspiracy mode when the Knight is brought up. Coco is sorta ok with it, as it gives the normally quiet Velvet a chance to break outta her shell. Surely the Knight is just a rumor and this fad will pass right? An enigmatic hero fighting monsters in the dead of night, what is this some anime? This fascination with the Knight somehow brings her into contact with the Malachites who were saved by him, so some kinda alliance/fan club there?

I can imagine the unintentional insults Velvet slings PRWBYs way if she brings them into her evidence room. “So what’s so special about the magic girls killing these monsters? They have magic, what’s so inspiring there? The Knight is a normal human, risking everything to do the impossible. He’s so much cooler than the magic squad.” Jaune doesn’t notice their bruised egos nor how much incriminating evidence Velvet acquired because he’s passed out in the corner. He’s gotta catch up on his sleep whenever he can, so if he has to do that standing up then by jingo he’s gonna sleep standing up!

CRDL are the jerky yet somewhat popular campus jocks. Their popularity comes from their money and sports but not much else.

Sun and Neptune arrive for a festival and wanna see if the local legends about the Knight are true, Junior Detective style.

Coco is the Queen Bee, but also a bit of a bitch. She doesn’t like Jaune because he’s a bit surly obviously and his attire is atrocious, but also she’s almost always gotten her way, the smarts and drive to match her looks, and surrounded by yes men for so long it feels weird to have some genuine pushback when he’s awake enough to sass back at her. She’s fair bit arrogant, but not as entitled as V1 Weiss was.

What if it’s Jaune’s grandpa instead of his dad who realizes that Jaune isn’t a criminal but a warrior. He sees that look in Jaunes eyes, the way he places his steps, the hardened muscles that aren’t from a gym alone, he’s seen that look in his fellow soldiers back in his youth and not the crooks on the streets. The fight may be different, but that spirit is there.

stupid rwby au idea

set in a world where the Grimm are hidden from the general public five heroes stand to defend them the maidens Pyrrha the fall maiden blake the spring maiden Weiss the winter maiden yang the summer maiden and ruby the silver-eyed warrior together these heroines fight to drive the forces of darkness out as magical girls the story would be focused on the character interactions of the girls and would generally have a happy tone to it. ya know your typical magical girl anime while at the same time jaune arc is a teen in the city of vale. his sullen jaded attitude tends to drive others away but his friends ren and Nora still stick by him. a delinquent through and through he spends most of his day sleeping and recovering from the wounds that he no doubt got from fighting at night. the truth is however that jaune isn’t fighting humans, no he fights monsters. armed with only a sword and his wits the boy faces off against creatures of darkness far beyond human capabilities, always just a swing of a sword and a misplaced step away from death. but still, he fights to save others as a knight of house arc jaune’s story is an urban fantasy mixed with horror. he’s a completely average human just trying to survive and protect people. unlike the maidens, he has no powers to heal him so he’s perpetually tired and wounded when he shows up to school giving him something of a reputation. only ren and Nora are willing to actually talk with him. that is until one day he meets a girl by the name of ruby rose. a snap decision from him leads to her befriending him (by force) along with her little gang. now as an even greater threat looms over the city jaune has to juggle his duty as a protector with the expectations of his new friends all while hiding what’s really going on behind the scenes the core of this story is the dramatic shift from the cute girls doing cute things of rwby and Pyrrha’s magical girls story, and the dark terrifying world jaune arc finds himself struggling to survive in as an urban fantasy/horror. with each side hiding the truth of what they are and what they’re doing from the other trying to protect them. some things to note, jaune’s a really great fighter. and if he was fighting anything other than Grimm he’d win hands down. but against superhumans, he’s barely holding his own with his ancestral sword. ruby and the maidens are all superhumans who slaughter Grimm by the hundreds but they’re not very tactical fighters and tend to rely heavily on their powers for everything. outside of the fantasy, elements jaune has to deal with the negative reputation he has as a delinquent and how that affects his friends. while his friends have to deal with the fact they can tell jaune is not happy with how things are but won’t let them help out of what they assume is stubborn pride and maybe even suicidal depression. the dynamic is jaune tries to pull away to keep his friends safe, his friends forcibly befriend him because they know he’s a good guy who goes out of his way to help them some things i would wanna see is. a story about the girls following jaune around and coming up with all sorts of wild theories about him jaune being weirdly intense about certain things and making references to Grimm the girls have only ever heard about jaune finding out about blake being a catgirl and just shrugging like “it doesn’t matter, not like you guys would let me stop being your friend anyway, you’re still blake” rumors about jaune building a harem because he’s only ever around pretty girls or ren (who’s a very pretty man) the girls coming up with crazy excuses for why they’re always missing and jaune totally believing them because he’s still jaune and kinda dense feel free to add your own shenanigans to this if you like

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aspoonofsugar · 4 years ago

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Ironwood and Cinder: The Final Word

Cinder: And that’s… checkmate.

The Final Word of the volume is Cinder’s and it is meaningful she says it to Ironwood.

As a matter of fact Ironwood and Cinder are two sides of the same coin on many levels. This is conveyed also structurally.

Volume 7 is mostly about Ironwood’s tragic spiral. We are shown him struggle with his flaw throughout the whole volume, but in the end he loses to it and becomes just as dangerous as Salem:

Oscar: Then you're as dangerous as she is, James.

Not only does volume 8 close with Cinder instead, but it also opens with her:

And it even gives us her backstory:

Why does it happen? And why is Cinder’s final line so important when it comes to her foiling with Ironwood?

GRAVITY

It is not by chance that Watts calls both Ironwood and Cinder out before the climax of respectively volume 7 (Ironwood) and volume 8 (Cinder). This is because, as stated above, volume 7 is Ironwood’s volume, while volume 8 is Cinder’s. So they both are confronted with a truth about themselves and their reaction to it influences their stories in the Atlas arc.

In a sense, even if Watts is the one dangerously hanging over an abyss... it is actually Ironwood and Cinder who are on the brink. They are deciding Watts’s survival, but they are also deciding their own destiny.

They are choosing if to fall because of gravity or if to fly in the sky victorious.

At the same time, the two scenes with Watts show how Cinder and Ironwood are both similar and opposites.

AS ABOVE, SO BELOW

Ironwood and Cinder are nothing, but two products of Atlas’s society.

Ironwood was born at the very top:

Watts: You just stood atop it and called yourself a giant!

Cinder existed at the very bottom:

Watts: You think you're entitled to everything just because you've suffered, but suffering isn't enough! You can't just be strong, you have to be smart! You can't just be deserving, you have to be worthy! But all you have ever been, is a BLOODY MIGRAINE!

Watts is in the middle and he represents the worst traits of both.

He wants everything, just like Cinder:

Ironwood: I gave you everything you could have wanted!

But differently from Cinder it was no true he had nothing. He was successful, had food, clothes and respect. Still, he was never satisfied and ended up disgracing himself in the search of something more.

He also disregards feelings in favor of rationality, just like Ironwood:

Watts: Our tin soldier’s heart has cost him his mind.

And he sees people under him as inherently inferior:

Watts: Yes, yes, please keep your posse in check.

This is why his death is fitting:

Cinder: I merely added more flames to the fires of Atlas.

He burns with Atlas aka the city he wants to destroy, but also a symbol of who he is deep down.

What is more, his death happens specifically because he blindly follows his wishes:

Watts: Oh, believe me, this is everything I've ever wanted.

And because he is outsmarted and manipulated by Cinder:

Cinder: You deserve this, Arthur. We'll be back.

He is proud of his genius and rationality, but in the end he dies because of his feelings of pettiness.

In short, Watts, Cinder and Ironwood represent three social classes of Atlas and how the system corrupts people at every level. In general, all three want to be at the very top, but disreguard and mistreat the ones below.

-This is why Ironwood seeks control even in situations where he is not in charge, like the Vytal Festival. He also challenges Ozpin’s authority and leadership because he is not used not to be the one deciding. At the same time, he is shown ready to discard Mantle in multiple occasions.

-This is why Watts can call out Ironwood’s arrogance without seeing he is exactly the same as him.

-Finally, this is why Cinder lashes out at people she sees as Atlas elites (the Schnees, Ironwood, Watts), but treats those below her just like she was treated:

Emerald: We don't need him! Everything was going fine! (a slap is heard, and she cries out in pain)

Cinder: Do not mistake your place.

Mercury: Oh yeah? Tell that to--

Cinder: Quiet.

THE ENEMIES OF TRUST

Both Ironwood and Cinder’s left arms are artificial. Ironwood’s is mechanical, while Cinder’s is Grimm.

Their respective arms convey opposite approaches to things.

On a more general level, they are respectively linked to Creation (Ironwood’s mechanical arm) and to Destruction (Cinder’s Grimm arm). As a matter of fact a robotic arm is a human creation, while Grimms are nothing, but the symbol of destruction.

On a personal level, their arms hint at the two characters’ opposite personalities.

Ironwood’s arm can’t feel pain.

Cinder’s is instead linked to pain and feelings in different ways:

Raven: Aura can't protect your arm, it's Grimm.

Salem: You chose to disobey my specific instructions just to fail again.

Cinder: She’s back…

Cinder feels great pain whenever her Shadow Hand is cut because she can’t protect it with aura. At the same time, it is used by Salem to torture her. Finally, it links her to Salem to the point that she knows when her Master is back.

In other words, Cinder’s arm lets her feel more, while Ironwood’s lets him feel less.

This difference is mirrored by both the ways Ironwood and Cinder respectively attack Watts and by their semblances:

Ironwood’s Mettle lets Ironwood suppress his own feelings, so that he can pursue any objective, no matter how cruel or immoral it is. It makes him “superhuman”, but in a very negative sense.

Cinder’s Scorching Caress represents Cinder’s explosive emotions. It is a form of self-expression, which is both destructive and self-destructive.

Ironwood’s semblance is about repression, while Cinder’s is about lashing out.

Similarly, Ironwood goes after Watts at the cost of his arm and he ignores the pain he feels:

Watts: I wouldn't do that if I were you. I mean, unless you're hoping to add more metal to that body of yours.

Cinder instead goes after Watts to vent her anger:

Cinder: What do you mean, she'll destroy herself? How am I supposed to take her power if she's dead?!

Both are extremes and both are wrong, as Winter explains:

Winter: But yes Penny, we must still acknowledge our personal feelings, wrestle with them. It ensures us that we’re on the right path. It’s what makes us human.

Ironwood and Cinder should aknowledge their own feelings not to be consumed by them. It is also the only way for them to truly be humans, not machines or monsters, but simply people.

Both characters almost succeed just before the climax of their respective volumes.

Ironwood tries to open up to others:

And Cinder shows vulnerability:

However, none of them is able to capitalize on this chance for development. This is ironically because of each other:

Cinder messes with Ironwood’s insecurities, while Ironwood’s ultimatum gives Cinder the perfect chance to ignore hers.

The result is that Ironwood goes back to control, while Cinder goes back to manipulation. Both do so because they are unable to trust.

Interestingly, they take after their respective mentors in this.

Ironwood takes after Ozpin:

Ironwood: Did you really think you were the only one who got to work on a new plan after Beacon? WIth Ozpin gone, I needed my own team of people I could trust.

Oscar: General? Earlier, you asked for my advice.

Ironwood: I wanted Ozpin's advice.

Oscar: And his advice probably would've been to keep your secrets.

Cinder takes after Salem:

Salem: When I chose you as my vessel for the Maidens, I put my trust in you. So, I trust that you wouldn’t possibly return to me empty-handed.

Ironwood’s whole struggle in volume 7 is his search for a “new approach”. He wants to be like Ozpin, but better. This is why he founds his own group, but wants to trust the world with the truth about Salem. However, he confuses trust with control.

Cinder instead wants to become just like Salem and suffers when she sees she is not. This is why she collects assets, just like her master. This is also why she does not trust anyone, but manipulates others.

That said, what is the difference between Ironwood’s control and Cinder’s manipulation? It has once again to do with feelings.

Ironwood’s attempt to manipulate others is about suppressing feelings. He uses Atlas’s military hierarchy and social structures to ask for his subordinates’ blind loyalty.

Cinder’s method to control people lies instead in making use of others’ feelings. She uses both wishes and fears to her advantage.

In short, control and manipulation are nothing, but the same inability to trust declined in opposite ways. They are both “enemies of trust”.

This is why both Ironwood and Cinder find a strong enemy and a foil in the character, who embodies friendship in these volumes:

Deep down, Ironwood and Cinder not trusting others is because they fear betrayal:

Cinder: I won’t have to run now.

Rhodes: That’s all you’ll ever do.

Ironwood: I've chased a lot of shadows over the years, always expecting betrayal. But never once did I think it would ever come from you.

However, Penny too is betrayed and mistreated by others:

Penny: I do not like it when friends fight.

Ruby: I know. Yang and I may not agree on how best to save Mantle but-

Penny: No. I mean Winter. The general. They were our friends. But then the Ace Ops attacked you. And the general, he said people were going to die, because of me.

However, she does not give up on the ideal of a genuine bond:

Attached but not By strings

Still, if Penny is a positive foil to both Ironwood and Cinder, why does she die?

RISK

Weiss: Trust is a risk.

Yang: Ruby, they’re not called sure things, they’re called risks.

These two lines taken together are why at the end of volume 8 Penny dies, our heroes fall and the manipulative Cinder wins.

It happens to show the main theme of the two Atlas volumes. Trust is not a “sure thing”. It is a risk and it does not always work. Still, it is necessary to trust as it is necessary to take risks:

Yang: You were being optimistic. Look, blind optimism isn’t great, but no optimism means we already lost. We need hope. We need to take risks.

Giving up on trust and risks means giving up on hope. It means to give in to fear.

Still, this does not mean your trust will always be paid back. And it does not mean that the risks you take will always work, even if you come up with a wonderful plan:

Cinder: I knew your plan would be bold, but I never could have predicted all of this...

Sometimes people will betray you:

Sometimes your risk will end up in a fall:

However, it is still worth to trust, even when you have no guarantee it will work:

And sometimes It is even worth to risk the fall because it may lead to people being saved:

This same idea is conveyed also through Penny’s final choice:

Penny: Trust me.

Winter: Thank you for trusting me with this.

Penny dies tragically, but she still manages to pass the Maiden’s power to a person she trusts.

This is especially meaningful because the Winter Maiden power, just like Penny herself, has been subjected to both control and manipulation.

Ironwood does all he can to make sure the power ends up to Winter. At the same time, he is the one most responsible for Penny feeling as nothing, but a robot:

Ironwood: As the official report stated, that footage was doctored. Penny is completely under my control.

Cinder tries to steal the power three times. She also manipulates Penny’s feelings towards her friends:

Cinder: I was hoping your friends would be here. But it looks like they left you to do all the work. You’re just a tool to be used!

In the end, Ironwood treating Penny as a machine (control) and Cinder using Penny’s love for her friends against her (manipulation) are among the psychological factors that lead Penny to be mortally wounded by Cinder.

Still, while dying Penny negates both Ironwood and Cinder and frees the power and herself from both control and manipulation.

The fact she chooses Winter works well to illustrate this.

Winter is the person Ironwood wants as the next Maiden. However, Winter becomes a Maiden not because of Ironwood’s control, but because of Penny’s trust:

Ironwood: So… the destiny I chose for you has arrived.

Winter: You chose nothing. This...was a gift.

Winter is a Schnee, so she represents both what Cinder hates and what she herself wants to be:

Cinder to Winter: You Atlas elites are all the same! You think hoarding power means you’ll have it forever, but it just makes the rest of us hungrier.

Winter is a symbol of Atlas and so she is a reminder to Cinder that Atlas is not really destroyed:

Robyn: What do you think a kingdom is? The people, or just the chunk of land they live on?

Just like Cinder’s past isn’t.

WORTHY

Cinder wants to be worthy. Ironwood wants to be a hero.

Deep down, Ironwood and Cinder want the same thing. They want to be above others. They want to be more than humans.

However, they go at it in opposite ways:

Ironwood: I have sacrificed everything!

Cinder: I want it all...

Ironwood thinks that victory lies in sacrificing everything, while Cinder sees it as taking it all.

These opposite viewpoints mirror their respective social stances.

Ironwood can say he wants to sacrifice everything because he has everything.

Cinder thinks happiness lies in everything because she has nothing:

Cinder: You’re right. Without you I am nothing. But because of you, I am everything.

In the end, Ironwood and Cinder are each other’s true enemies, but they fail to see it and lash out against the wrong people:

Ironwood and Cinder’s respective fight against Winter and Weiss is exactly this.

Ironwood fights a Maiden he sees as an enemy of Atlas, while another Maiden is attacking the people he swore to protect.

Cinder lashes out at Weiss because of her origins, while Weiss has decided to leave her status and money behind to make the right thing.

Still, Ironwood and Cinder are too hypocritical to see the truth. This is why they attack people, who could have helped them, if they were given the chance.

This is also why they receive a warning:

Winter: No, you have sacrificed everyone else!

Winter: You… are going to pay… for everything you’ve done!

Ironwood claims he is ready to sacrifice everything. However, he never sacrifices himself:

In the end, he is unable to sacrifice his life to fight Salem.

Let’s highlight he has nothing to lose by this point. He is falling with Atlas anyway. In his final moments, he is given the chance to prove true to his words:

I would die Without regret, I’d offer up my life With zero reservations I would fly Into the sun If that would keep our dream alive

Instead, he gives up. He has been shooting his allies until the very end, but freezes in front of his enemy.

Cinder thinks she is closer to her final victory, but in the end she has accomplished nothing of what she truly wants.

She wants to kill RWBY, but they are alive. She wants the Maiden powers, but she fails.

At the same time, Cinder is still far away from what she truly needs:

Cinder: You have everything you need?

Watts: Oh, believe me, this is everything I've ever wanted.

She is given a perfect mirror of herself in Watts. Still, instead of seeing it, Cinder uses his flaw, which is her same flaw, to kill him. Watts’ wants lead to his death and the same thing might happen to Cinder if she does not stop herself in time.

Finally, there is this:

Salem: This game is not yours to win, Cinder, it’s mine. Just because you’re more valuable to me than a pawn, does not make you a player. Everything is already in motion. All you need concern yourself with is your ability to act when I tell you to.

Ironwood and Cinder share a chess motif.

Ironwood thinks of himself as a player and specifically as Salem’s opponent.

Cinder is instead told she is no player.

However, in the end, Ironwood becomes a mere pawn to the point that all Watts has to do is to open his cell to be sure he is going to unwillingly aid in Cinder’s plan.

What is more, he is so fixated on Salem that he fails to aknowledge the people below him. This is why his true opponent is a slave that Atlas exploited.

Cinder frames herself as a player instead. She is the one who truly makes the first move against Ironwood and ultimately she is the one who defeats both him and our protagonists. Finally, she is the one who calls checkmate.

Still, is she really playing her own game?

In the end, the one who gets what she wants is not Cinder, but Salem:

And all she has to do to obtain it is one small move:

Salem: And I’ve realized, it’s all my fault. You’ve fought your whole life unwaveringly for what you want and here I am holding you back instead of lifting you up.

While Cinder is once again letting her talent be exploited by those above her. She is choosing to be Salem’s Queen instead than a player of her own life.

She is the Black Queen defeating the White King, but nothing more.

#rwby #rwby meta #rwby vol8 #rwby vol7 #cinder fall #james ironwood #my meta

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