#and anyone who wants to try and be more organized!!

[da-janela-lateral]

Mezato is a very intriguing person despite her position as a side character restricting the audience's knowledge on her, but there are some implications I have become very interested on.

During her conversation with Ritsu post-LOL Cult arc, she mentions something akin to "people really aren't born as equals", referring to how Mob is so disadvantaged compared to Ritsu even thought they're siblings. However, that also says a lot about her motivations. Mezato has two main reasons for organizing the Psycho Helmet Cult and trying to make it influent (with Mob's help as their messiah): 1) it sounded fun; and 2) she wanted to take part in such a massive event. Although the "fun" part can be attributed to the fact that well, she is a fourteen year old with a weird perspective, both motivations are directly associated to not only Mezato's passion, but her opinion on herself.

First of all, she becomes fixated on anything that appears worthy of her attention. It kickstarts her adventures as the school journalist, hunting for any kind of news that she believes to be interesting, and by that she doesn't mean "math class is cancelled": Mezato goes far beyond, from catching shoplifters red-handed to infiltrating a cult that supposedly brainwashes its members. It's clear that the mundane is not enough to her. Mezato wants the current biggest thing. This is one of the reasons she gets so interested in Mob, and being so obsessed with the worldchanging, Mezato cannot bring herself to care as much about the common, the mundane. This way, she can only see entertainment, or better put, value, in what stands out.

Equally, Mezato wants to participate in something she sees as 'big'. Being someone who is so attracted to the flashiest parts of reality, she wants to have an active, direct role regarding them. It makes her feel entertained. It makes her feel fulfilled. It makes her feel special, most of all, because even being in the Biggest Thing's shadow removes her from the condition of banality she disdains so much. That's what makes the Psycho Helmet Cult sound like such an excelent idea, as hollow and uncritical it could be.

But what does these beliefs say about Mezato? Simple. Mezato doesn't think she can be interesting or valuable by herself. She is not shown as pretty, or academically gifted, or athletic. She doesn't appear to have friends. She doesn't even have an ability with the occult like Mob does. Mezato is a normal, lonely girl who has no other excuse to be noticed besides her imprudent detective work, but worse than that, she thinks she can't change. Mezato will never be attention-worthy as herself, so she appeals to inserting herself in whatever interesting thing she finds in the hope that it'll make her Someone by association. She could be a loser, a nobody, but at least she helped build something that is wonderful, and that is the closest she can get to being important.

Her interests and achievements, in this sense, are more like an extension of herself than a result of her passion. A passion that isn't understood by anyone else. A passion that others ignore and are annoyed at, which only reinforces her loneliness and her obsession with chasing after Big Things. If she succeeds, she will finally have a part of herself she can be proud of. After all, there are a hundred wonders in the world with the potential to change everything; there is only one Ichi Mezato and she can never be like them.

[waywardstation]

Take a Break

It's a rainy day today, and everyone is stuck inside the Galaxy Hall. Good thing Akari has brought in a fun board game for everyone to play! Commander Kamado is not exempt, even if he is buried in paperwork.

Here is my piece for the Hisui Chronicles Zine! It was so much fun getting to write this for the project, and such a huge honor to be invited to do so by the mods! Mods, thank you again so much for having me in the zine, and for all the work you did putting it all together!! It came out fantastic!

If you have the zine, you can find this work within and see its accompanying spot art! They're really fantastic pieces, all drawn by Sensushimi!

You can check out the zine at @hisuizine here on tumblr and on twitter; leftover sales are currently open! :)

OR read it here on AO3!

Enjoy!

–––––

Another flash of lightning glared through the rain-streaked windows to illuminate Kamado’s office. The commander gave no thought to look up from his paperwork as the deep rumble of thunder followed close behind, rolling somewhere above — the storm’s impressive display had been a common occurance all day, and he had grown used to it.

So used to it, in fact, that it felt like it was beginning to overstay its welcome. Having rolled in on dark clouds the night before, the rainfall had long since sufficiently watered the fieldlands. Now, it wasn’t doing much more than swelling the rivers, oversaturating the ground, and unnecessarily pelting Jubilife and its residents.

It certainly halted work for the Galaxy Team’s members today. No surveying, no construction, no farming… Kamado couldn’t send anyone out in these conditions under good conscience, and had dismissed everyone who had reported for work that morning. Efficiency was the pride of any respectable organization, but it meant nothing if safety was not considered. Practically every worker who reported in that morning had been quick to agree to this, but Kamado felt it was more in the interest of wanting to go back to bed and catch a few more hours of sleep.

It wasn’t all bad, though; vicious weather hopefully meant no meetings. No need to settle disagreements between disgruntled villagers, bargain with advantageous Ginkgo members, or play middleman between clashing clan leaders. Kamado did appreciate that it gave him a much-needed chance to finally look over a few backed up work orders, as well as notices for final approval and acknowledgement. 

Writing off the current one before him — a notice from the Ginkgo Guild that two supply ships would need the docks next month upon their arrival — and setting it aside, Kamado plucked the next one from off the top of the pile.

Let’s see… A request from Captains Sanqua and Colza, petitioning permission for the construction and agriculture departments to collaborate on new facilities and expansions in the crop fields. That seemed reasonable, what with the recent arrival of four new families to Jubilife—

“ NO! Akari!” A sudden shout downstairs from Rei ripped Kamado’s attention away from the words on the page. “Please don’t, you know it’s the last one I need!”

“Buy it! Buy it! He’s trying to start setting down those housing pieces!” A resounding objection followed, unmistakably from Zisu.

…Ah, yes. The small group of Galaxy Team members who did not run home the moment they had been dismissed.

Even through the barrier of closed office doors and an entire floor between them, the group’s excited shouts still slipped through to reach him. For most of the afternoon, it seemed their commotion and the thunderstorm had been competing to be the loudest disruption in the hall. 

And currently, the thunder was not winning.

They were playing that game. The one Akari had saved from a space-time distortion the day before. The one that she had nagged him to play with her and everyone else who had decided to stay at the hall this morning.

She had gushed about how fun it was and how she’d properly teach everyone how to play. And perhaps it really was as enjoyable as she had advertised, what with how spirited everyone was downstairs, still fully engaged in it hours later. But the temptation of partaking in a game was weak in the face of untouched paperwork that had already been neglected.

Kamado huffed to himself at the recollection. That sky-faller was a different breed, braving the unstable pockets to bring back such toys and playthings so regularly. Sometimes, it was cards. Other times, it was a colorful board game with most of its pieces. And occasionally it was something different all together, consisting of game pieces that looked as novel and bizarre as the rules sounded. 

Regardless though, it always extracted a very… disruptive energy from anyone who got involved.

Sighing through his nose and reclining back in his chair, Kamado tentatively attempted to redirect his attention back to his paperwork — he had a goal to finish it all by this afternoon, and planned to follow through with that goal. Straightening the paper in his hands, he tentatively leaned back into reading.

Sanqua was requesting approval on preparing land for additional farming plots and another storage shed. There was an attached list of required materials and a projected estimate for—

“Wait! I’ll buy it from you!” Rei’s pleas severed Kamado’s weak thread of concentration before it could even fully recover. “How much do you want for it?”

A quick, coveted second of silent thought before Akari threw her voice into the fray. “Six-hundred!”

“What? No! It says it’s only two-hundred!”

“You asked how much I wanted for it, not how much it costs! Besides, you have like three times the money I do, this is nothing for you!”

“I’ve been saving them for all the houses!”

The sky once again illuminated the office with a flash as the bickering went back and forth. It only seemed to have reached a resolution after it was drowned out by a disruptive roll of thunder. The animated negotiation had reduced back to a level that made it audible yet indecipherable as the rumbling faded, but Kamado didn’t even bother attempting to return his focus to the papers.  

“Ooh, Community Chest!” Akari’s voice rose up after a moment of jumbled conversation. “Here, read it!”

A moment of heavy silence, presumably as someone was handed a card to decipher their fate. Kamado’s eyes glanced back down at his paperwork, but he was too busy anticipating the impending shouts to read any of the words.

“I’m being thrown into jail!? ” Laventon’s voice lamented with an anguish that evoked a wave of collective exclamations so loud, Kamado reflexively looked up at his office doors; at this point, it was like they had taken the game up the staircase to continue playing right on the other side!

He could not get any work done like this. Especially if they had somehow even roped the professor of all people into the game — he was one of the few people Kamado had expected to do the same as him, using the day off as an opportunity to barricade himself in his office and tuck into his work uninterrupted. And unfortunately, once Laventon became invested in something, he became almost as enthusiastic as the Pearl Clan warden who had been shouting downstairs quite loudly over the last half an hour.

Heaving himself out of his desk chair and crossing the room with a certain unwillingness, Kamado cracked open one of the heavy office doors and slipped through, heading for the stairs to begin his descent down to the madness below.

––––––––––

“...Forty-eight, forty-nine, fifty.” Akari quickly skimmed through the thin paper money before setting it aside, her Cyndaquil observing from her lap all the while. “Paid your bail! Your crimes are forgiven, you’re free to go next turn.”

“Ah yes, the criminal offense of simply picking the wrong card…” Laventon gave his unlucky card one last look before handing it to Akari so she could tuck it away. 

“Well look, I’m in there visiting you at least,” Rei pulled his hand out of a bag of snacks to point Laventon towards his metal piece on the board; while the professor’s figure was confined within the barred section of the square, Rei’s was sitting on the safe outer strip labeled ‘just visiting’ . “I’ll be here for you when you’re a free man again.”

“Thank you, my boy, though I sorely needed that two-hundred I was about to collect!”

Rei lit up at this, giving Laventon a look that Akari had learned to be wary of.

“…If I give you three-hundred right now, can you help me bankrupt Akari and get Festival Plaza from her?”

“Hey!” Akari intervened before Laventon could even give his answer. “You can’t do that!”

“Yes I can! Come on, Professor,” Rei flashed him a set of three yellow paper bills, “your new hardened life of crime should make this an easy choice!” 

“I’ll take that offer if he doesn’t!” Bagin saw his chance to jump on the offer when Laventon, clearly torn, stalled on his words.

“ No! No one’s getting bribed! Just pass the dice, Professor!” Akari reached across the board to firmly guide Laventon’s hands towards Ingo, who was sitting right next to him. Appearing a little victimized yet relieved at the chance to escape the situation, the professor hastily dropped the dice into Ingo’s waiting hands. 

“Ah, my turn has arrived now, I suppose.” Holding the dice close, the warden gently shook them. The uncertainty in his wording gave away his hesitance… which was understandable, given his present situation.

His poor piece, a metal figure representing what Akari had reminded him was a modern-day aether, was stationed right before the only three property squares that Zisu had bought. 

With every single property choked with green and red buildings, it was a short but fatal stretch of unforgiving financial hell. A ‘Community Chest’ square separating the second and third tiles was the only safe space between them, but Ingo wasn’t counting on being lucky enough to land on it.

“Get ready to pay up, Ingo.” Zisu leaned forward in anticipation, like a Purugly crouching in the tall grass and waiting for a Starly to turn its back.

“Please allow me to traverse these tracks safely,” Ingo begged the dice before releasing them onto the board. “Five or greater, that’s all I need—”

Every pair of eyes around the board was glued to the two plastic pieces as they rolled, their quiet anticipation being held just long enough to hear the muffled pattering of rain against the hall’s roof. The tumbling pair of dice slowed to a stop, and Ingo’s unfortunate fate was declared as matching pairs of black dots stared back up at him — a double roll amounting to the grand total of four.

“AUGH!” Ingo lamented above the collective shouts that rose up.

“Oooh, so close!” Zisu leaned over towards him, pinching his metal game piece and sliding it right into the hotel-infested deathtrap that was her third property square. Then, the same empty hand extended towards him expectantly. “Alright, Join Avenue’s rent is due. Cough it up!”

“Please, Miss Zisu.” Ingo attempted to appeal to his coworker’s empathy as he began to thumb through the few paper bills he still had; mostly consisting of fifties, it clearly wouldn’t be enough to cover what he owed, judging by the amount of hotels surrounding his piece. “I am unsure if I can even afford such an exorbitant amount!”

“Well, that’s what happens when you blow all your money buying those railways off everyone!” Zisu took a teasing jab at him, but eventually relented to an element of mercy. “Ok, ok, just, hmm… give me everything you have except for one of your tens. You can keep that.”

Normally one might have been devastated at being reduced to only standing ten dollars away from bankruptcy, But Ingo seemed grateful enough given the circumstances.

“Thank you; the leniency is much appreciated.” He deposited the money into Zisu’s waiting hand, and she counted over it briefly. Sitting back, he handed the dice over to Bagin, who seemed a little impatient to roll — though, seeing as how he was only seven squares away from passing ‘Go’ , the impatience was understandable.

“Let’s hope I have better luck than you, warden!” He eagerly clasped his hands around the dice and shook them thoroughly. “Come on, seven!”

Bagin more-so threw the plastic pair of pieces as opposed to simply dropping them. The dice tumbled haphazardly across the board, caring not for the stack of chest cards they bumped into, or Akari’s metal piece that they knocked aside.

Laventon blocked their path at the edge of the game board with a quick hand. A five, and a two — the sum of seven faced up towards the hall’s ceiling.

“No way!” Rei seemed almost accusatory as Bagin slid his coin-shaped game piece over to the ‘Go’ space.

“Show me your sleeves!” Having long grown used to Bagin’s exploitative tendencies, Akari felt similarly; she would not put it past the guy to use weighted dice. And his recent streak of extremely fortunate rolls was not helping his case. “That’s the third time you’ve gotten the exact number you’ve needed!”

“No tricks, I promise; I just got lucky!” Bagin tugged at the sleeves of his corps’ red hanten to prove Akari’s accusation wrong. “And two-hundred Pokédollars richer!”

Plucking two yellow slips of paper money from the bank stash, Akari reached across the board to hand them to Bagin, but not without a tiny, well-hidden hint of skepticism. He tucked them away with the rest of his colorful currency, only adding to the comparatively impressive amount he possessed.

“ And , this means that I now have the most savings!” Bagin turned his attention to Cyllene, who was at his right side. “So it’s my turn to wear the crown—!”

“—Ahem!” A stern voice from above killed whatever insistence was about to ensue.

Every head turned towards the top of the floor’s left staircase. With her back to it, Akari glanced over her shoulder to find herself looking up at someone she thought had long since left the Galaxy Hall and gone home on account of the rain.

A muffled rumble of thunder decided to roll somewhere above them at that moment. It might have been seen as an amusing announcement of his arrival, if it didn’t assume his appearance to be one of admonishment.

Akari bristled into surprised silence, but Zisu had no such qualms, flashing a welcoming smile up at him. “Commander Kamado! Did you hear how much fun we were having, and finally decide to come down and join us?”

“Oh, I did hear,” Kamado’s gaze shifted to the Security Corps’ captain, but then moved to scrutinize the large game board on the floor. “I can hear like I’m down here playing this game myself! I came down only to request you all be conscious of your volume; I am trying to finish up a few more work orders and reports.”

“You’re still working on all that paperwork?” Akari lamented, slumping back to better look at him. “You’ve been up there for hours. Have you taken any breaks yet?”

“Coming down here and requesting less shouting is my break.” Kamado descended the rest of the way down the stairs, looking back over the board again as he stepped closer. Apparent curiosity slowed his inspection the second time around in order to take in the finer details.

His gaze wandered over the tiny metal figures and colored building pieces scattered across the red carpeting. Then to the cups of tea and plates of snack cakes around the board, and the colorful paper money, either haphazardly clumped or neatly stacked in piles by peoples’ sides. 

While his expression wasn’t one of disappointment, it wasn’t quite one of approval either. “Perhaps I should ask you all to keep the floor a little neater as well?”

“Can do, if you take a real break and join us!” Akari reached over towards Cyndaquil, Oshawott, and Rowlet to pluck an additional metal piece up for him, as at some point the Pokémon had begun playing with the extra ones. “We could squeeze you in real quick—”

“That won’t be necessary.” 

“Come on, ” Akari drew out the last word, giving him a look as she held the metal figure up to him. “It’s supposed to be a day off!”

“You have been working up there for a while, Commander.” Sitting between Bagin and Zisu, Cyllene had been partially obscured by the Security Corps’ captain until she leaned forward to speak up. “I would suggest taking a break if you haven’t yet. The work will still be up there when you return. And I am open to assist you tomorrow with what is left, if you would like.”

“Cyllene,” Kamado turned his head to her. He would have otherwise been even more surprised to discover her playing than Laventon, but his subdued tone suggested confusion more than anything. “What is that on your head?”

“It’s a paper crown.” She obliged to his abrupt change of topic, a hand moving up to ensure the shiny red papercraft was not leaning crooked. “Akari’s rules. The player with the largest sum of money wears the crown.”

“...Which is actually mine now,” Bagin insisted so quietly, that it barely reached above a whisper. He at least had enough decency not to extend an expectant hand out for it at that moment.

“But!” Akari interrupted, “If you join now, you’ll get to wear it! Come on, join us!”

“Join us! Join us! Join us!” The emboldening chanting grew more confident as more voices rose up, with Kamado only shaking his head as even the Pokémon began to squeal, squawk, and bark, the commotion riling them up. The surrounding ambience of the rainfall disappeared entirely under their chanting.

Kamado inwardly groaned. Even if he did go back up to his office now, there was no way he’d be able to concentrate on that pile of papers sitting on his desk; he’d entirely lost the streak he had going. And now that he’d fallen out of it, the growing ache in his hands might make it difficult to return to the repetitive motions of signing his name for who-know-how-many more times...

“Alright,” Kamado huffed, stroking his chin as he surveyed the board one last time. Perhaps he should tentatively feel out a compromise. “I will join in for one game. But only one game. How long does a round usually last? Around ten, twenty minutes?” “Well, we’ve been playing the same round since this morning,” Rei mused around a mouthful of snack cake. “So like, four hours? Maybe? But Akari said that’s normal for this game!”

“...I see.” Of course Akari would grab up a game that took a decade to play. “How about this; you all move this to one of the rooms downstairs, keep this mess contained to a table, and control your shouting; once I finish up this last workform I’m in the middle of, then… maybe I’ll come down and join you all.”

“Yes!” The group collectively cheered. Kamado turned to head back up the stairs as excited shouting mixed together with the rustling of paper bills and tumbling game pieces, all in a big effort to collect the game and move it down to the sub-level. 

Kamado shook his head as he reentered his office, but there was a certain smile hidden under his mustache. Such an enthusiastic bunch. He dearly appreciated the Galaxy Team and what it had developed into over these past two years, even if it was hard to keep up with sometimes.

[nebuliias]

SYNOPSIS. . . Mindless with a high fever, delirium overtakes you as you struggle to fall asleep in the hollow darkness, until your significant other comes in to tranquil your worries.

CHARACTER FEATURED. . . Blade

CW: gender-neutral reader, not proofread, hurt/comfort, mentions of hallucinations and derealization in case that bugs anyone, idk what else to add so lemme know if smth bothers you

A/N's note: GUESS WHO IS BACK BABYYY. at least for now until i vanish for another year lmao. so fucking sorry for the extreme lack of updates; here's a blade fic for you to feed on.

January 3rd, the year 8000-something.

It was only the third day of the new year, and you had already fallen with a high fever without being able to care for yourself—especially with your lover out of town.

Everyone else had gone along with the new 'script' Elio had assigned them. All except. That damned Destiny's Slave had left you out of it, whether on purpose or not. Anyway, you were left to your own devices with only the black cat as company, though you suppose he did try his best to treat you.

The situation was kind of funny. You rarely ever got sick, thanks to your well-built constitution, but when you did, it was always came in bad. You couldn't help but giggle to yourself as you drenched yourself in the cold shower, the fresh water soothing against your burning skin.

Blade. You wanted to see Blade. Bladie, Yingxing, your Blade. But you probably had to wait another few days or so until he came back.

But you really, really, really, did wanted to see him again. To be in his arms and trace the scars decorating his body and kiss them all the while. To play and braid his ombre hair. To sit in silence alongside him while stargazing on the terrace.

Ugh. Destiny's Slave truly was cruel.

You turned off the water, got out of the shower and clumsily dried yourself off, unknowingly leaving droplets of aqua in your hair to drip onto the marble tiled floor. Putting on your nightclothes, you staggered to your bedroom just wanting to be put to rest. You'd be lucky if it was for eternity.

For some reason, you started to feel sad. Maybe it was the absence of Blade's presence or the overall silence—which you hated—of the opulent shared penthouse, but your eyes began to turn teary.

In an attempt to distract yourself, you dried your hair more aggressively this time and wiped away your incoming tears, raking your fingers through your tangled locks of hair, but a knot blocked your trail, forcing you to get a hairbrush to rip it out. With your vision being all swirly, you groped around your vanity in hopes of finding the necklace your lover gifted you when he returned from the Xianzhou to put on, but it was a futile search.

Now on the verge of breaking down into hysterics, you attempted to turn on the glass-stained lamp on your nightstand, but due to the barely visible moonlight seeping through the window, you failed to do so. In an abrupt fit of frustration, you slapped the lamp, causing to tremble slightly.

Then, you collapsed into your bed, weeping into your silk pillowcase.

Everything suddenly appeared terrifying. It frightened you how you weren't able to differentiate between illusions and reality, causing you to repeatedly check your surroundings to make sure you weren't in some cluttered cellar being held hostage for whatever reason.

Blade. You wanted to be with Blade.

Your heart hurt. It felt as if some unknown being's hands were beginning to squeeze the blood out of the organ, vermilion liquid flowing through your sweaty body. It felt as if a metal wrecking ball had slammed into your skull, for a throbbing migraine had spread throughout your head.

You ended up bursting into sobs, your shivering frame curling up against the soft quilt on your bed. You swore there were shadowy figures standing in the corners of your room, watching you agonize in your suffering while they did nothing, but the fever had gotten a strong grip on you before you could discover it was just a hallucination.

You missed Blade. You wanted to tell him "I love you," but unfortunately, telepathy didn't exist just yet. And who knew where your phone was...

Helpless, unknowing of what to do, you muttered, "I'm sorry, Blade... I'm really sorry," over and over again your pneuma was slowly being drained out of you.

Your throat felt too dry, but your legs felt like jelly when you tried to get on the move. You would get painkillers for the migraine, but you didn't know where they were, let alone if there were any in the infirmary. Perhaps a bit of classical music would do you some good. After all, the saying went like this: "Music has charms to soothe a savage breast, to soften rocks, or bend a knotted oak."

So exhausted. You just wanted to—

Out of nowhere, you heard your bedroom door click open, the ominous creak only deepening your anxiety—and then a deep yet quiet sigh was heard.

Your sobs cut off instantaneuosly, and your eyes burned as you squinted in the dark to make out the versimilatude tall figure amongst the fading shadowy figures. His tailcoat swayed slightly, and his arms were crossed as he stopped right at your bedside.

You grinned, still in the clutches of your delirium, believing he was another trick from your mind, even though you wanted to see him.

He wasn't an illusion though.

"Bladie," you called out, almost relieved at the sight of him.

The man said nothing in response to the nickname. Instead, his hand moved to turn on the glass-stained lamp you had somehow struggled to turn on, the ambience now softly illuminated by the warm golden glow of the artificial light.

He faced you once more, flame-colored eyes looking down at your flushed face. He reached out to push out the stray strands of hair sticking to the sweat, his touch as light as a butterfly's. It was as if he was afraid of accidentally hurting you. Heh, how considerate.

"Rest. Go to sleep."

Aeons, the migraine pounded so terribly it felt like your head was going to break apart into smithereens; however, his words managed to still your crazed state, even if merely for a short time. Your hands were gripping onto the quilt, eyes hazy as you silently gazed back at him like he was an undiscovered species.

Seeing that you weren't able to rest properly, Blade left your room, returning quickly with a white cloth and a bottle of medicine. He went to sit on the edge of your bed, lifting your head up slightly so you could take a few sips of the bittersweet medicine. Seemingly satisfied now, he lowered your head and set the wet cloth on your forehead, hoping that it would help lower your fever down a bit.

"Don't go," your voice managed to rasp out, a trembling hand reaching out to touch his cheek.

He grabbed ahold of your hand and planted a kiss on your knuckles. He patted the limb, setting it on his chest where his heart was located so you could be reassured that he was real; that he was here, alive and well.

"I won't go," he replied.

Your crying had resumed. You didn't even know why you were genuinely sad. Maybe the woes of bygone memories had come to enact vengeance while you were in this fragile state, or perchance the wintry weather outside had taken a toll on your emotional well-being, considering how much it bothered you that it snowed too much, knowing how you couldn't curse Mother Nature for it. Or was it how careful Blade was being with you? No one in your early life has ever been so...sweet with you.

"Blade," you called out again, your grip tightening on his hand. No more words needed to be said to express your emotions.

The swordsman shushed you, his free hand stroking your hair, the action giving off a tingly sensation throughout your scalp. "I'm here," he reassured you. "I'm not going anywhere. Not here, not now."

"Everything will be alright."

He wiped away your tears, both the recent and dried ones. Letting go of you, he lifted the quilt and tucked you in, making sure the warmth wasn't too overwhelming. Once he made sure of it, he leaned down to kiss you on the cheek, his thumb stroking the skin.

"Don't worry about me leaving," Blade comforted. "Sleep in peace. I will remain here until you wake up."

[yandere-sins]

Hi there long time lurker here for you blog and all your works! I'm not kidding its been a long time and I love your writings. May I request a Jiaoqiu x vidyadhara reader who is a sassy noble person with a sweet and kind heart but she somehow got severely injured?

Thanks for requesting, I'm so glad that you enjoy my blog enough to ascend from the lurking stage! :D Hope to hear more from you in the future!!

»»———————— ♡ ————————««

♡ It's unlikely that Jiaoqiu is the first person to hear about your injury; however, he's the first one you see by your side once you open your eyes again. He sits there, stern-faced, ears twitching. His hand is holding yours almost a bit too tight, with some of his fingers resting on top of your pulse as if he's afraid you'll slip from his grasp. But you don't get the time to ask him why he looks so sullen because he jumps up and calls out to you the second he notices you waking up. Although he hovers over you when it becomes clear that you have regained your conscience, there is a certain distance between you two, and you can't really understand why. Even if you ask if something is the matter, he won't tell you, brushing you off and leaving if you insist on speaking about it. Not for long, just to cool off. After all, he still has to make sure you're fed and taken care of. Jiaoqiu won't allow anyone else to make your food, and he has to be in the room to review any medicine you receive.

♡ The reason why it feels that he's distant is because he is so angry. Angry at you, angry at the circumstances that put you in danger, and the most angry at anyone who hurt or allowed you to get hurt. Jiaoqiu is trying to keep his feelings in check in front of you, but he always knew things would play out like this. Countless times, he told you how reckless you were. That, no matter how good your heart was, you never thought twice before putting your life on the line. You find him flexing his fingers at the murderous thoughts in his mind or have him touch you just a tad too harshly when the feelings interfere with your treatment. He wants to throw all these accusations and emotions at you but refrains. You are a patient, and your recovery is more important to him than anything else.

♡ Especially when your recovery forms you into an adorable little mess for him to figure out. Vidyadhara are tricky organisms, and Jiaoqiu does everything he has to learn from Bailu how to treat you properly and then use the knowledge to the best of his abilities. He spends almost more time on research than actually treating you, but he won't allow a single mistake. Nobody is allowed to treat you except him, so you are also counting on him, only adding more pressure. It's all worth it, though, when he can observe you slowly regain your strength and liveliness, the bruises turning back into your skin color and your wounds closing up. No matter how much sleep he loses over it, he wouldn't miss the nights he spends with you for anything; protecting your sleep, slipping into your bed and cuddling with you when the nightmares act up, and getting to be with you when you wake up in the morning, feeling a little better every day.

♡ For a while, your conditions are a blessing as he gets to take care of you properly. Even just the mundane things, like brushing your hair or helping you wash up and dress yourself, thrill Jiaoqiu. It's almost a little sad that it has to end. He wants you to be healthy again, he really does! But won't you get yourself in trouble again once you don't need to be on bed rest? Won't you fight again, argue again? Are you going to keep coming back more beat-up than the last time for him to fix? Of course, someone as observant as he is notices your growing restlessness and desire to be up and of help. But this is not just about your self-preservation anymore, it is also about him. What will Jiaoqiu do if, one day, you just don't return at all?

♡ He can push these thoughts aside for a while since it takes time for you to be up and running again. But you begin slipping out of his grasp too quickly for his liking. And when you refuse to even be fed any more, telling him you are ready to go back to "normal" food, Jiaoqiu has to make a decision. "One last meal together," he tells you. One more, and he won't complain about you taking control of your own life again. He insists you take another spoon and another—enough so that the sleeping pill can really take effect.

♡ A patient who's still barely able to wake up can't be released from his care, right? You'll probably not feel so great the next few days, and he can't have you collapse in the street. Jiaoqiu has to at least find out the cause! He tells himself it's only for a few more days. Just one more week. He is merely prolonging the bedrest until you are fully healed—many would beg for a chance to get some good rest, and surely you will appreciate it, too. It's all in your best interest, but he certainly doesn't mind spending some extra cuddle time with you, doting on his favorite person.

♡ And while you are asleep, and he knows you are in a stable condition, he can finally take care of the actual problems that caused you so much harm. Because he still can't and refuses to forgive anyone who put their marks on you and made you suffer. They don't deserve his mercy, and he has feelings that he still needs to flush out of his system so he can give you the love and affection you deserve. Jiaoqiu will make things right, so they won't come to bite you in the butt once you are keeping yourself busy again. Even if it'll take a while longer for you to be back on your feet—that gives him enough time to prolong these wretched people's torture as long as they deserve.

[sweatinghoneybee]

Just found this Ninjago Lloyd x reader fic made by @samseaaa and I am so in love with it!!! I finished reading all 65 chapters (before it got updated to 66) in like under a week and like the person I am when I became in love with a fanfic for an x reader I made an oc based of the reader in the story (disclaimer this is just my interpretation on reader in the story not how reader looks like in the story cause reader is based off of ourselves or in this case an oc made up being part of the story)

I gave the OC for this fic the name Connie Nagant when I search up first names that has the meaning curious and also for her last name I wanted to give her a name of a gun for her last name because of her relationship with guns in the fic. And mostly I gave her like a peach pink color scheme for her to relate to her powers in the story but also to have that specific color coded thing that the ninjas have going on and honestly I just gave her like a not so harsh color palettes cause I wanted her to have that contrast with Lloyd of him being in a world of dangers, actions and adventures and such while when she starts out she's living a normal life thrusted into a magical world, to put it simply I gave her the aesthetic of a magical shojo girl meeting her soulmate that's from a shounen. And since she's a bookworm and a traight A student I have this idea of her wearing something that sort of resemble uniforms eluding to her academic ambitions but I also try to sort of made her have that hint of detective look to point at her interests in history and her knowledge hungry personality. And i gave her bandages since in the story atleast in the first few chapters she’s really clumbsy but mellows out in future chapters but i thought it’ll be a fun charcter thing if she’s competant in serious scenario but is clumbsy in everyday life like she can survive falling from a 20 floors high building but she’ll be tripping on stones when in her average day (and also please don't point out about the dragon necklace and also the yin yang medallion for not being detailed cause I seriously have no skills to make such a detail piece and I'm already beating myself up cause I can't do the pendant and medallion justice with how it's described in the fic (⁠ ⁠；⁠∀⁠；⁠)) (also if anyone can read and write kanji, just a question, did I wrote Connie Nagant right cause I wanted to write her name in kanji as a homage to what happened in the fic even tho I don't actually know how to do it so I just sorta eyeballing it ╮⁠(⁠.⁠ ⁠❛⁠ ⁠ᴗ⁠ ⁠❛⁠.⁠)⁠╭)

All and all I just want to just gush about this fic cause like it's so good and still have some more drawings that I want to do for this fic! Still trying to finish up my Lloyd darwings for this fic and also an reader's best friend in the fic!

And so to those who want to read this fic here's the link!

Give them some love Kay! This work their made is amazing so give them those encouragements!

[emo-and-confused]

make lists, dude. any time you know you have to do something later, make a to-do list of getting ready. it makes things so much easier and you don’t have to freak out about what you need to get done. you know what you need to do, in the order you should do it.

when making the list, add a “anything else that needs to be done immediately” at the end, just in case you couldn’t think of anything.

add a nice note for yourself like, “don’t stress!” “you’re doing good!” “it’ll be okay!” “it’s not the end of the world if you forget something!” to keep your future self calm.

make a separate list for anything not a necessity and that’s okay if you don’t get done; keep your main list simple and just the things you have to do.

put anything on the list, even if you think it’s self explanatory like, “eat something before you leave” “take medication” “brush your teeth” “get dressed” “charge your phone” “put shoes on”.

if you don’t set out your clothes, be specific about what you want to wear, “blue button down that’s hanging in the closet” “black jeans that you forgot to fold after the wash”.

if you have to tell someone something but want to wait till the next day to, write down what you want to say to who you want to say it to.

this list is for you, so don’t beat yourself up for what you write.

write anything on that list that you know will help you! write it the night before you know you have things to do the next day! add to it every time you think of something new that you’ll have to do when getting ready!

[camelspit]

Keeper Sexymen 2025: Artist Portrait Signups

The Sexyman Contest is back for its 3rd year! Each year, artists sign up to make portraits of all of the men for the Keeper Sexymen Contest. This form will be open from Nov 21 - Nov 29, and I'll release the portrait assignments on the 30th. You will have until Feb 9 to complete the portraits and turn them in!

(alphabetized) List of men + Info about portrait submissions and rules below the cut! If you have any questions, feel free to message me :).

Alden Vacker

Alvar Vacker

Barth the Reaper

Behnam Aria

Blur

Boobrie Dude

Coach Bora

Bo

Brant [REDACTED]

Councillor Bronte

Bullhorn

Cadfael

Cassius Sencen

Councillor Darek

King Dimitar

Durand Redek

Elwin Heslege

Councillor Emery

King Enki

Ethan Benedict Wright II

Fallon Vacker

Fintan Pyren

Gethen Ondsinn

Grady Ruewen

Greyfell

Iggy

Jurek

Councillor Kenric

Kesler Dizznee

Marty

Mr Forkle

Mr Snuggles

Mr Sweeney

Councillor Noland

Prentice Endal

Quan Song

Quinlin Sonden

Ruy Ignis

Sandor

Councillor Terik

Tiergan Alenefar

Timkin Heks

Trix

Watson

William Foster

Woltzer

Wraith

Yuri

When you finish your portraits, you can post them and tag me in them and/or message them directly to me! The choice is yours <3 as long as I get them sometime before or on Feb 9. If you think your submission might be late or you need to drop out, please message me as soon as possible!

RULES:

I dont care how big it is but please use a SQUARE canvas. This makes the posts a lot easier to format <3

Portrait is a broad term- you can draw however much of the man you want in whatever post you want, whether it be full body or just the head

It does not have to be entirely canon accurate! You can add your own hcs (ex. poc vackers), it just has to be identifiable as the character

Have fun!!!

[puppppppppy]

learning abt friendship decay and "not reaching out to your friends for months at a time unprompted is not neurotypical behaviour" has me feeling a certain way

[melkor-did-nothing-wrong]

You know what? Sure, why not.

Welcome to my bad and cringe noncanon little coffee shop AU for stupid idiots who ship Angbang wrong and have no idea what they're talking about! Everything you'll see here is the most classic, tried and tested coffeeshop AU staples, for example, Mairon adoring Melkor(1), Mairon having a part in all of Melkor's endeavors(2) and Mairon feeling bereft of Melkor when Melkor is gone!(3)

Of course, this is just an AU, because such silly ideas can certainly never be considered based on canon, ever, and if anyone thinks they are, they must be cringe and wrong and stupid and idiotic and out of touch with canon, because JRRT and Christopher themselves would NEVER come up with such nonsensical frivolities! Except... well... it's all canon already. I've plagiarized it all from Tolkien's family. They wrote it first. Whoops.

Works cited (for the specific printed versions of the books I used):

(1) "Myths Transformed", p. 420, Tolkien, Christopher. The History of Middle-Earth | Volume 10 Morgoth’s Ring. Harper Collins, 2015.

(2)“Valaquenta”, p. 26, Tolkien, John Ronald Reuel. The Silmarillion. Edited by Christopher Tolkien, Ballantine Books, 1989.

(3)"Myths Transformed", p. 420, Tolkien, Christopher. The History of Middle-Earth | Volume 10 Morgoth’s Ring. Harper Collins, 2015.

[wormchaser]

you are complaining about complaining too much while complaining about the fact that maybe people dont like you because you complain too much while complaining about being alone. just stop complaining and do something about it. talk to people. reach out. dont just wait for someone to come to you first.

i have tried reaching out to different people in the past year or so but it never works. i understand its my own fault for letting relationships decay because of my own insecurities and issues but that doesn't mean i can just will myself to think or believe different things about myself. it's a self fulfilling prophecy ; i think people don't like me so i don't reach out so people don't like me etc . i am sure you do not want to hear me list all the things i want to say in response so i will put them in the tags.

[musical-chick-13]

I hate when something looks like it would be RIGHT up your alley and the cast is pretty stacked, but there's one person in said cast who is just. Genuinely a horrible human being.

[daincrediblegg]

Nothing wrong with me

[sundial-bee-scribbles]

making a sorta wip/unfinished compilation video thing for all the vsynth projects ive sorta lost interest in/abandoned sounds like it'd be fun to do and help me clear up some space on this got damn computer but im always like uouguhhh but what if it fucking sucks :( when it comes to like actual cover stuff 😔✌️ like mannn

[bipherpol]

Nice songs! I like the way you think! I wish Kaku can rejoin Galley-La in the future, provided he apologizes, and Galley-La forgives him, of course. Who realizes that Franky and Lucci are going to be in-laws first? I just realized that I sent the Alice in Chains songs twice, so you get six songs this time! "Pictures of You" by The Cure, "One Thing" by Finger Eleven, "Skinny Love" by Bon Iver, "Whirring" by The Joy Formidable, "Tongue Tied" by Grouplove, and "Little Talks" by Of Monsters and Men.

oh kaku is absolutely joining galley-la. they try to make him stay after enies lobby and he's like "no let's go be proper government traitors and give everything we know to the revs and then i'll consider it" this argument ends with the other six deciding that they'll do that and then promptly dump kaku on the next ship to water 7 regardless of whether or not he agrees. if necessary, they are not above tying him up to get him there. if that doesn't work, they could always ask kuma.

(kaku absolutely wants to go back but he also, y'know, doesn't want to just ditch the rest of them. meanwhile, the rest of them are like "oh my god please just ditch us and go. live ur childhood dream. pls. at least one of us gets to.")

honestly, the first one to realize the in-laws is probably one of cp9. or nami. actually no wait it's probably nami. she catches onto the whole franky/robin thing quick and then just kind of has a moment where she just mentally points between them and starts laughing her ass off because oh god. it's funny on so many levels, at least partially because the former government assassin is going to be in-laws with the head of water seven's big gang.

songs!! a: i love "pictures of you" it's so good. (the emo kid loves the cure, who's surprised) also oh god "tongue tied" i haven't heard that song since glee. (it is a good song though)

"toxic" by britney spears (who saw that one coming), "don't hold your breath" by nicole scherzinger aaand "unkind" by sloan

[unproduciblesmackdown]

also quite the illustration in wags being like "'not asking permission' - wags" and plowing through someone expressing a physical boundary but he was already intending to use physical violence & violation & assumed corresponding distress as a tool to get his way....amidst the typicality, "correctness," permissibility of all that around here like five times an hour

[roccinan]

@blorbosexterminator @the--sound--of--rain (Not sure if you've come across this yet, but you might be interested in boosting!)

in light of israel's looming invasion on rafah, south africa implored the icj to call for the protection of palestinians with new preliminary orders. the icj denied this request, insisting that its january orders would be sufficient in ensuring the safety of people residing in rafah.

we have all seen how israel responded to the icj verdict earlier this month. they have all but intensified their attacks on palestinians, their favorite of whom seem to be children. this will end in a bloodbath. palestinians, already malnourished and living in literal tents, will be bombarded, they will be shot, they will be slaughtered. and when i say palestinians, a lot of them are actual toddlers. the videos coming out of this are proof enough.

at this point, it has been made amply clear that palestinians will never experience safety in their own homeland. a lot of the families in gaza are trying to raise funds to get out of it, because there's nowhere left to go.

there is nowhere left to go. if these people don't get the funds necessary to escape, they will die.

it's vital that you go to operation olive branch's spreadsheet, choose a family that resonates with you, and donate as much as you can to their gofundme. every last dollar counts. one dollar could be the difference between life and death for a family. please don't fall victim to the bystander effect. your contribution matters, however little it may be. and whether you're able to donate or not, spread this to as many people as you can. each second we stay silent is a second an entire family is brutally massacred.