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imaeraser · 3 years ago

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Playing With Foxfire Kin’emon x Reader (Modern AU) Ch 1

TW: power imbalance, cheating, and age gap

(2.1k words)

Kin’emon x reader x slight Sanji

Summary: You have a summer internship at the Kozuki company, and have to stay at Kin’emon’s home. You try to limit your attraction to the married man, but the flame of passion burns bright. And playing with fire can only lead to one thing— getting burnt.

AN: I originally did this for myself and my sister as a joke— since there is little to no fan fiction for Kin’emon— but decided to post it. Hopefully you enjoy and cringe at some parts.

I fumbled my way through the airport. The musk of others smudged onto my shoulders while I bumped down the path as if I were in a pinball machine. The sound of the wheels of my suitcase grounding me on Earth before all of my thoughts flew away.

I raised my hand to shade my eyes as I stepped out into the open, while my foot jutted back from the force of the wind. I squinted down the road, but there was not an awaiting person in sight.

I sighed, and sat down on a sun-warmed bench near a smoking man. As I grabbed the side rest, the tacky feeling of day-old gum made my arm jump in revulsion.

“Ew, that’s so nasty,” I shook my arm as if the action would make the gum magically disappear, and then reluctantly started to pull it off with two fingers.

“Here let me help you,” another set of arms entered my vision. The stranger pulled out a handkerchief and scraped any residue off of my arm jacket.

“Thank you so much, you’re a lifesaver,” I turned to him, and stopped mid-thought.

His eye was staring at me intently, but I could only appear to focus on his swirly eyebrow— his singular swirly eyebrow.

“I think being a life saver is a bit of an over-statement, but I’ll take it.” He paused and tilted his head, yet the hair that covered one of his eyes did not budge. “Is there something wrong?”

I paused, “No, it’s nothing. I’m just a bit air-headed sometimes.” I flushed as I rubbed the back on my neck.

“Well, I think air-heads are cute,” he held out his hand, “Sanji.”

“Y/N,” I said as I replied with a handshake.

Once we retracted our arms he leaned over to his side, and proceeded to fill the atmosphere with the rottenly-sweet scent of tobacco. After a large puff, he released a light cloud into the air. The smoke got thinner and lighter as it floated up and died in the sky.

“What brings you here Y/N?” Sanji held out an unused cigarette and raised an eyebrow.

“I have an internship this summer,” I said as I shook my head and pushed the offering away.

“Let me guess...” he paused, “ Kozuki?”

“Yep,” I nodded. I threw another glance at the street, and the emptiness made my foot begin to tap the floor. “I think there was a guy that was supposed to pick me up.” I looked down at my phone- 4:57- a few more hours and I would no longer feel safe walking the streets alone.

“If you want, I can drive you. Just give me the address and we’ll be on our way,” Sanji offered a handsome smile.

My eyes quickly darted to his figure. He was tall and slender, but most of his form was hidden under a finely made suit. He shifted in his seat awaiting my answer, and the movement drew my attention to his abnormally built leg muscles. His demeanor was goofy, but I had only known him for a span of a few minutes.

As much as I wanted to say yes, there were far too many episodes of true-crime documentaries watched for me to allow this stranger to drive me home.

“No, I should be okay. I think I’ll wait a bit longer, and if he doesn’t show up I’ll call an Uber or something,” I said as I watched him lean back onto his seat.

“Well, I’ll wait until you’re out of here safely. I can’t leave a lovely lady like yourself all alone,” Sanji smirked as he crossed his ankles.

“Are you implying that I am incapable of handling myself?” I raised an eyebrow in playful contention. He raised his hands as if to calm my rage.

“Of course not, but it’s better to be safe than sorry,” he said, as I leaned back into the bench.

Time quickly passed, and before either of us knew it we were watching the sky’s rolling clouds pull back and reveal an assortment of summer-time colors. The falling sun lit up Sanji’s flaxseed hair—spinning each strand into a gold thread. Perhaps it was a mistake to decline his proposal.

“Don’t you have somewhere to be?” I said, glancing back at my phone.

“I’m meant to be wherever you are, mademoiselle,” he placed a hand on his chest.

I picked at my nails, and rolled a strand of my hair between my fingers, “Stop joking, you could do way better than me.” He gently clasped my hands.

“You’re selling yourself short. From the time I have spent with you I can tell that you really are gorgeous,” he looked me dead in the eye. The intensity and suddenness of his icy-blue gaze made me look away.

“I’ll take the compliment,” I said, before turning my eyes to the side. To my surprise I saw a man holding a sign with my name on it. “It’s about time,” I shook my head as I looked back over to Sanji. “Thanks for keeping me company, but the dude finally showed up. I have to get going.” I stood up, my knees clicking from being immobile for too long.

After waving goodbye, I dragged my suitcase across the concrete to greet the man. The closer I walked to him, the taller his looming figure became. As we both stopped our pace, my eyes widened in distaste as I looked at him.

His top-knot bobbed as he tilted his head, which provided a stark contrast to his worn out graphic tee that was half-way tucked into a pair of cargo shorts. He took a step towards me as he outstretched his hand, and I heard a resounding wooden thunk. My eyes trailed down to reveal a set of wooden clogs and knee-high socks.

“I am deeply sorry for being late, I was just a bit busy.” He rubbed his neck with his other hand, which revealed a raspberry colored hickey. I bit the inside of my cheek, as I looked to the side in disbelief— trying not to stare at anything in particular. “Oh, you must be looking at my car. It is an antique—”

“Y/N,” I hurriedly shook his hand. “I believe I am to stay at your house during the entirety of my internship at Kozuki?”

His heavily lined eyes blinked a few times before he opened his mouth, “You are correct. I am Kin’emon. My wife and I will be hosting you for the few months you are to be staying.” There was a glint of light that flashed as he moved his hand—which was seen with a golden band around his ring finger.

“Thank you very much for generously allowing me to stay in your home,” we began to walk to his car. “Oh I forgot, the email asked the interns to check the id of the person who is picking us up.” I paused before placing my hand on the sleek metal of the door handle.

“Yes, thank you for reminding me,” he slipped his black leather wallet out of his pocket and fished for his id. Once he retrieved the card, he placed his driver’s license into my hand.

I pulled out my phone, to look at the email telling us about our host. After comparing the information, I handed Kin’emon his drivers license back. “Okay, let’s go.” I said as I slid onto the creme colored leather of the backseat.

My fist supported my head as I watched the scenery meld together through the window. The sky quickly turned darker. My breath formed a little patch of condensation— due to the late hour and dropping temperatures.

The car ride was quiet, with the exception of some traditional Japanese instrumentals. But before either of us would try and fill the silence with awkward questioning, we arrived at his house.

I stepped out of the car, and heard the sound of the trunk opening as well as plastic wheels hitting the ground. While handing me my suitcase handle, his calloused hands brushed against mine. I whispered a quiet, thank you, before following him up to his home.

He opened the frosted glass door, which revealed a quaint home who’s floor was covered in what I perceived as bamboo mats. We both entered the house, and the scent of fried bread crumbs as well as curry swirled around us. I caught myself nearly drooling down my chin.

The sound of pots, pans, and utensils cluttering stopped as a woman in an apron stepped out of the kitchen. “Welcome home dear,” she said before turning to me. “You must be the intern. My name is O-tsuru, it is a pleasure to meet your acquaintance.” She dusted her flour covered hands on her jeans before offering me a handshake.

I gave a soft smile as I shook her hand, “I’m Y/N, it’s lovely to meet you as well.” O-tsuru gently grabbed Kin’emon’s hand and led him to the kitchen.

“Food is almost finished, we would be delighted if you decided to eat with us,” her voice echoed from the kitchen.

I looked down at my half eaten sandwich from the airport Subway. The bread was chewy like a warm kneaded eraser, and the vegetables had an almost plastic sheen to them. “I would love to eat whatever smells that delicious,” I peeled off my shoes and set them near the door.

O-tsuru’s head popped out from the kitchen, “Just sit for a bit, and we’ll be out with food in a second.” Following her instructions, I pushed the floor sitting chair out so I could sit on my knees.

There were no legs to the chair, but seeing as the table was so close to the ground it did not present a problem. My eyes scanned the area of the house that was visible. There were sliding doors and paintings with Japanese characters drawn in sumi ink. Out of the corner of my eye, I could see something reflect the light of the overhead fan.

I turned to my side and saw two katana’s on display, both identical in looks. Black lacquered wood, with the image of fire painted down the middle. It looked too gaudy for it to be used as a weapon. As I glanced over the other decorations in the house, I decided to place the swords in the same category.

“Today we are going to be eating Tonkatsu Curry,” O-tusru said, as she clattered plates about to organize the table. I reached out to help her, but she swatted my hands away playfully. “You’re our guest, I can’t put you to work so soon,” she chuckled. I placed my hands back onto my lap, and waited.

Soon enough Kin’emon brought out the food, and the scent of curry wafted over from the pot. There was a plate set down that was full of pork chops covered in fried bread crumbs. O-tsuru set down a glass bowl full of lettuce— you could see droplets of water on the leaves.

“So we have some Tonkatsu here, but if you can’t eat that we also have nato,” O-tsuru sat across from me.

“What’s nato?” I looked at my bowl of rice, and sniffed it.

“It’s fermented beans,” Kin’emon took his seat next to his wife. “And if you’re allergic to anything here just let us know, I’m sure we can find something in the kitchen that suits your needs.”

As we dug in, the flavors exploded in my mouth creating a lovely blend. The dinner was mostly quiet, with the exception of some basic questions to fill up the time.

“I’ll let Kin’emon show you to your room. I have to wash some dishes,” O-tsuru grabbed a few plates as she stood up.

While the sound of water and the clanging of dishes ensued, Kin’emon stood up, and walked over to my luggage. The slight crispy nosies of the mats under my feet amused me.

“So...are the floor mats made out of bamboo?” I said.

“They are made out of rice straw, they’re called Tatami mats,” he walked down the hallway, and placed his hand on the door, and cracked it open slightly. “This is where your room is, you can call either of us if you need anything.”

I watched his silhouette as he turned around to meet back with his wife. Although he dressed like a patchwork dad and samurai, it looked as if he could still be a model for Calvin Klein. As he walked away, his muscles rippled under his skin. His arms were also well defined, but as my eye caught his ring I stopped

#one piece #one piece wano #one piece imagine #sanji x reader #kin’emon #kin’emon x reader #one piece self insert #one piece senario #sanji #sanji one piece #vismoke sanji #foxfire #foxfire kin’emon #one piece x reader #one piece x Y/N

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solatude · 4 years ago

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ATLA Unpopular Opinions

I’ve had some thoughts about various aspects in Avatar: The Last Airbender. So, in order of least to most controversial, here we go:

Sokka looks better with his hair up. Sokka’s wolf tail is one of the more unique hairstyles in the show, at least for the guys. He looks so basic with his hair down. The wolf tail adds to his personality, his dramaticness, and humor. How can a water tribe warrior fight with hair in his face? Please also refer to his topknot in Book Three.

Sokka didn’t have as much pull as fans think he does. Pull, in this context, means to attract someone romantically/sexually. First of all, Toph is a child, so I’m not counting her because a 12 year-old crushing on a 15 year-old should be nothing more than that---a crush. Yue and Suki pulled him first, as he fell for them before they fell for him. Suki could care less for the sexist guy who insulted her on her own island; but teaching him the ways of the Kyoshi warriors, plus a kiss on the cheek had him blushing---HARD! He thankfully changed his mindset after that. Yue, while she barely had a choice, had accepted her role as princess and was prepared to dedicate her life to the values of her tribe in an arranged marriage. The amount of times she ran away from Sokka was both tragic and hilarious. But that only made Sokka want her more, she never chased him. To be honest though, he was probably the first guy who treated her normally, despite her status. I think she mainly wanted a friend, but was surprised to find a potential lover in Sokka. Plus he made her laugh. Ty Lee thought he was cute, but Ty Lee thinks everything is cute. That is all. If you wanna talk about pull, Aang had Zuko risking his life chasing him for three seasons (I’m joking, don’t think too deeply about that).

Azula and Katara are almost equal in power. I get that Azula is a firebending prodigy, but sometimes her skills are overestimated by fans and she’s made to seem as though she can overpower everyone. It makes perfect sense that she lost to Katara in almost every fight. Before meeting her, she’s only ever fought nonbenders, firebenders, and earthbenders. She never had experience fighting a trained waterbender, so her losing to Katara shows that even she has her limitations. Whenever she did win a fight against her, it was because she got help from her friends, brother, or subjects. Katara never hesitated to fight her, and being 14 years-old herself, allowed for an even exchange of combat. Let’s be honest, what bender would go up against Azula fearlessly except the one who’s element puts out fires?

Ursa was not a bad mother. Ursa was a victim of an abusive, arranged marriage. For context, Fire Lord Azulon wanted Ozai to marry Ursa because she was the granddaughter of Avatar Roku, and he felt that they would produce powerful heirs to the royal family. Ursa was forced to leave her village, family, and fiance behind for this marriage; because who would dare turn down the request of a Fire Lord? Ursa never really loved Ozai, but he never cared. He just wanted to increase his status and power. Ursa is often criticized for giving Zuko attention over Azula, while scolding Azula and not showing her any love. However, Azula was praised by Ozai, and as a result showed more of an obedience towards him. Ozai showed a great disdain for Zuko. Ursa was simply doing her best to show Zuko how much he mattered. He was living in his sister’s shadow, while being neglected by his father. I also really feel for Azula, because she was only valued for her firebending skills, and she probably had no emotional outlet that she trusted to help guide her. However, I do think Azula was too far along for her mother to really help her. Ursa encouraged Zuko to play with Azula; she genuinely wanted her children to get along like any other parent. I just don’t think there was anything she could say or do to encourage Azula to be less destructive and show remorse for her actions. She should have never called Azula a monster, but she was a woman filled with fear. She feared her abusive husband and the repercussions of speaking out against him, she feared the destructive tendencies of her daughter and the ways she hurt other people without caring for how they felt, and she feared for Zuko’s life for not living up to the impossible ideals of the royal family. Ursa was not a perfect mother, but she tried given the little power she had. Also, to be fair, we only see Ursa’s life from Zuko’s perspective in the show. Azula probably had many memories with Ursa but she most likely blocked them out to hold space for firebending forms and her father’s approval; one of which she never really secured.

Bloodbending is overrated and unnecessary. Some fans claim that Katara should have had a more positive reaction to becoming a bloodbender. However, it was never in her character to be so controlling, especially against another person’s will. Bloodbending is also not as useful as it’s made to seem. Since one can only bloodbend on a full moon, you would have to wait an entire month to even utilize the skill. That’s extremely inconvenient and because you have to wait until nighttime, it’s even less practical. How often does Team Avatar fight during the night compared to the day? They would be sleeping if anything. Also, when your team consists of an agile airbender, a master waterbender, a powerful earthbender, and a weapons strategist, plus Appa and Momo; why would anyone need to bloodbend? Most of the Gaang’s enemies never required that level of power in order to be defeated. Bloodbending is also VERY niche. If this is allowed, should bonebending be allowed since there are minerals in bones? Should soundbending be allowed since sound is produced from vibrations? I admit it’s a really cool ability, but it’s not that important in the grand scheme of things. Also, speaking of Katara...

Katara gets too much hate. I’m not sure if it’s the surge of new fans since the Netflix debut or the repressed thoughts of old fans but lately Katara’s character has been mercilessly criticized. It’s been said that she brings up her mother too often, and that she’s overly emotional and selfish. First of all, Katara was eight years-old (and Sokka nine) when her mother was murdered. During the run of the show, only six years have passed since then, as she’s 14 when she finds Aang. She lives with survivor’s guilt due to her mother lying about who the last waterbender was so that Katara wouldn’t be taken prisoner. Unfortunately, the firebender soldier Yon Rah wasn’t taking prisoners that day, implying that he was going to murder her. Katara mentions her mother only a handful of times, usually to relate to another character who lost someone close to them in an effort to empathize (Aang, Haru, Jet, Zuko). People forget that she saw her mother’s dead body after running to get help. It was definitely wrong for Katara to tell Sokka that he didn’t love their mother the way she did in the Southern Raiders episode, and she definitely should have apologized. But, she was right. Sokka was shown to be closer to his father. She was in extreme emotional pain and instead of being comforted, she was criticized by Aang and Sokka for wanting revenge. How many times has Katara sacrificed something for the sake of others? She barely had a childhood considering she took on a maternal role in her tribe after her mother’s death. She had to deal with Sokka’s sexist comments, she had to suppress her talent for waterbending, and she felt isolated and alone because the one parent that was alive left to fight in the war. When someone needed encouragement, Katara was always there to encourage them. When someone needed help, she never hesitated to assist them. She often put herself in harm’s way if it meant someone else didn’t get hurt. For a 14 year-old girl in a war torn world, she is immensely brave. How many times has Zuko gone on and on about his honor, or lashed out at his Uncle for a seemingly small reason? How many times has Sokka talked about meat? Or Azula and her speeches about controlling and manipulating people? Toph and her rebelliousness? Even Aang’s laid back attitude turned into carelessness every now and then. Every character has a crutch that they attach themselves to, but Katara isn’t given the grace that other characters have been given. Yes, Aang lost his entire nation, and Katara would never know what that felt like. However, Aang wouldn’t know how Katara felt either. Aang was in the presence of children his age and was able to travel around the world to make friends (i.e. Bumi from the Earth Kingdom and Kuzon from the Fire Nation). He was taught to be less detached, so his idea of family is very different from Katara’s. He never witnessed the dead bodies of his people firsthand, though he did see Gyatso’s skeleton later on. Katara grew up in a world ruined by war. She had little to no friends, and the one person she was closest to left her life very early. Her tribe was VERY small and I doubt she had a lot of people to talk to. She had never left the Southern Water Tribe before, so it’s very likely that she was going to stay there her entire life had she not met Aang. She’s been accused of not allowing Sokka to feel sad about their mother, but why should she? It’s not Katara’s job to burden the weight of Sokka’s emotions, especially about their mother. She cannot force Sokka to open up about his feelings, that is something he must do at his own free will. Sokka hides his pain behind his masculinity. He’s protective because he feels guilty about not being able to do anything to help his mother. He doesn’t even remember what she looks like, he could only picture Katara’s face in her place. He felt even worse when his father left and he, understandably, couldn’t go with him. Sokka is not upfront about how he feels, but Katara should not be blamed for that. Overall it may be said that Katara was a flawed character that has recently been more scrutinized for her flaws than acknowledged for her strengths. We can do both, but there’s been an imbalance. She successfully revolted to free Haru’s father as well as other prisoners of the Fire Nation. She guided her friends out of the Si Wong desert despite the obstacles that stood in their way. She healed Aang and Zuko when shot by lightning, ultimately saving their lives and the lives of many other people who have been physically hurt by someone. She even washed Sokka’s underwear and sewed his pants. We can cut the girl some slack if she wants to talk about her mother, can’t we? She’s the glue that holds everyone together. Katara’s emotions make her a stronger fighter. Her trauma has shaped her into someone determined to master waterbending and has allowed her to be more empathetic to those around her. But she shouldn’t have had to go through all of that. She was forced to mature faster in order to survive. Katara can sometimes be arrogant, misguided, oblivious, and doubtful, yes. But she is also resilient, brave, selfless, and generous. That is the duality of her character. She is NOT to be disrespected. After all, as she said to Sokka in The Painted Lady, “I will never, ever turn my back on people who need me!”. And she hasn’t.

Iroh should be banned from the Earth Kingdom. It’s not an unpopular opinion that Uncle Iroh is a war criminal, but I just don’t think he should be allowed anywhere near the Earth Kingdom; either temporarily or permanently. Yes he played an instrumental role in Zuko’s redemption, with tea in his left hand and wisdom in his right. However, that does not excuse his invasion of Ba Sing Se. He laid siege to the impenetrable city for 600 days. Surely hundreds, maybe thousands of innocent people died under his commands. He broke the lower ring, home of the poorest members of the Earth Kingdom. The only reason he stopped was because his son, Lu Ten, died in battle; not aware that many citizens also died as a result of his actions. How many children’s lives has his army taken away? How many sons and daughters, fathers and mothers, aunts, uncles, and grandparents have died under his siege? Not only does he get to establish a business and earn money, he is elevated to the upper ring of the city; meanwhile an entire population can barely afford food and stable jobs. I understand that is was for plot purposes, but It’s a slap in the face to allow him to thrive in the city after Aang defeated Ozai. His wanted poster should be everywhere, not just for supposedly betraying the Fire Nation, but also for crimes against the Earth Kingdom. The very least he could do was shut down his tea shop and hand the building over to a family who may need it, and establish a tea shop in the Fire Nation. I’m not saying Iroh couldn’t be redeemed for his war crimes, but it definitely would take more than what was seen in the show for him to be forgiven for them.

Anyways, let me know what you think. This took an ungodly amount of time to write.

#atla #avatar the last airbender #sokka #aang #katara #toph #zuko #iroh #ozai #ursa #azula #ba sing se #fire nation #water tribe #bloodbending

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jamie-leah · 4 years ago

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War of Wolves (14)

Season 1

Episode 14 - Behind Enemy Lines

Bucky x Reader

Summary: You have been on the streets for the past two years, ever since your accident that left you with the ability to tell if someone is lying. You work as an informant for the white wolf and his mob but you had never met him…until you overhear a phone call that leads you to saving his life. Now he wants you to work for him. Its an offer you couldn’t refuse…right?

Word Count: 1805

Warnings: Swearing, aggression, violence

A/N: Another part for you, feeling rough going into the holiday season so this is for anyone not feeling quite like themselves. I hope you do soon. I also welcome nagging for the next parts because I will forget. Enjoy Lovelies.

<---Previous Episode Next Episode--->

WoW Masterlist. Series Masterlist Oneshot Masterlist

Steve and Peggy come home a few hours later, just as the movie you and Bucky were watching was over. You can hear them giggling about something and you look at Bucky with a smile.

They walk into the living room, Peggy rubbing her stomach and Steve’s arm around her waist. You give them a bright smile, “did you guys have fun?”.

Peggy nods, “yes, thank you so much for offering to babysit while we went on a date”.

You wave her off, “it’s no problem, the kids were great. Just let us know when you want to do it again”. You all say your farewells as you and Bucky leave and get into the car.

On the drive back you play with Bucky’s fingers as you say, “can I go shopping tomorrow? In the city?”.

Bucky looks over at you before looking back at the road, “of course Doll, you don’t have to ask me for permission, just tell me you’re going so I know where you are and safe”.

You nod, “I know. Its just, I don’t know how to get there because I can’t-well I don’t want to drive”.

Bucky is lost in thought before asking, “you wanna go tomorrow?”, you nod as he carries on, “okay, I’ll sort something out for you baby-doll”. He smiles at you and you kiss his hand in thanks.

You wake up the next day to another note on the pillow next to you: Morning Doll, come to the office when you’re awake and ready to go shopping. I love you, B.

You smile at the last words as butterflies flutter in your stomach and chest. You get dressed and skip down the stairs and make your way to his office.

You don’t knock as you walk in to see Sam and Steve at the desk with Bucky and another man you can’t see who it is from behind.

They stop talking as you get closer and the guy turns around. It takes you a minute but when you realise who it is you smile and hug him. You pull back to him giving you a smile too, “Ray! I can’t believe its you!”.

Ray used to be your handler when you were a homeless informant. You both got on quite well and you wondered now and then if you would ever see him again. He chuckles, “hi Y/N”.

You look at Bucky and then back at Ray, “what are you doing here?”.

Bucky answers for Ray, “I thought that he could drive you into the city and keep an eye on you for me, since I have to stay here and sort out this problem”.

You smile at him and then at Ray, “thank you Ray. Is it okay if you bring the car around and I’ll join you in a sec?”.

He nods and heads out of the office. You turn to Bucky, “thank you”. You lean over the desk and give him a kiss.

He smiles which turns into a smirk as you say, “can I have some money for shopping?”.

He reaches a hand inside his suit jacket and pulls out a card holding it out for you. You just stare at it for a while before he waves it, “its yours. Keep it, there’s plenty of money in there”.

You take it slowly, “do I even want to know how much is in there?”.

He laughs, “just don’t go buying a mansion and I think you’ll be fine”.

You kiss him again and whisper, “I love you”.

You see a blush creep into his cheeks slightly as he fights a smile. Before you pull away completely he whispers, “I love you too”.

You catch up with Ray on the drive to the city which distracts you from the anxiety of being in the car. It goes by quickly and before you know it Ray is parking up and you’re getting out of the car.

You both grab some food first after the long drive and catch up further and then Ray follows you as you pick which shops to go in. You were shopping in the men’s section of a shop which prompted Ray’s next question, “so, you and Bucky huh?”.

You smile at him, “trust me, I did not plan on it happening”.

You were searching for his size on the rack for a red Henley shirt when Ray says, “I think you guys suit each other”.

You laugh, “yeah, a homeless girl and a mob boss”.

He goes serious for a second, “he was homeless too at some point in his life”.

You look over to Ray surprised, “I didn’t know that”.

Ray nods like he understands why he wouldn’t tell you, “he doesn’t like talking about it. I only know because some of the boys who worked under the old boss knew about it and told me”.

You think about it for a while as you pick up a range of Henley shirts and jeans for him. It does make sense that he makes use of homeless informants. He would know how useful they were for spying and you understand why he didn’t tell you, since you weren’t thrilled telling people you were homeless either.

You and Ray talk as you pick up a few more things. You go into a kid shop thinking about Sarah and Joseph as you ask Ray, “are you married Ray?”.

He chuckles, “no, I’m not. I have a girlfriend though…we haven’t told anyone yet, but we found out last week that she’s pregnant”.

You look at him with shock and happiness, “oh wow! Congratulations Ray! That’s wonderful. Well, if you see anything here you want to get-“.

He waves you off, “oh no, I couldn’t”.

You shake your head, “honestly Ray, its nothing. If you see something, tell me and I’m getting it”. He gives you a grateful smile as you look at new born clothes with him.

You were laughing with him about what one t-shirt said until shadows fall across the two of you. You glance behind you and stiffen. It was Isaac Williams being trailed by two rather big looking guys.

He smiles at you, not even acknowledging Ray, “expecting, are you?”.

You put the baby shirt back, “no”.

He keeps his creepy smile, “then why were you looking at baby clothes?”.

“It’s not really any of your business”, you keep your words clipped. You’re finding it harder to be civil with him after finding out what he did to those men.

You can feel Ray get slightly closer to you as Isaac loses the fake kindness in his smile, “that was rude Y/N. I was only asking you a question”.

You narrow your eyes at him, “and what exactly are you doing here?”.

“I had business to attend to”, he keeps it vague on purpose.

You don’t let up, “in a kid store?”.

He chuckles, “elsewhere. But I saw you coming in and couldn’t help myself”.

You grab Ray’s arm and look at Isaac, “well, as fun as this was, we need to get going”.

Isaac slides smoothly, blocking your escape, “I would like to invite you to carry on this conversation back at one of my estates”.

Alarm bells start ringing loudly in your head and you have to fight the urge to reach for your phone and speed dial Bucky, “like I said, me and my friend have somewhere else to be”.

Isaac laughs, “oh silly me, its my fault. I guess invitation implies that I’m giving you a choice”.

Your heart races as you stare at him. You feel Ray move and so do Isaac’s guys. They reach behind them like they’re about to pull a weapon, so Ray stops.

Isaac tuts, “now now, let’s not make this difficult. I just want to get to know you better Y/N, without Bucky around”.

Anger spikes in you, “well I don’t want to get to know you better. So, I’ll pass”.

You stare at each other for a few minutes and you barely register the flick of his fingers before one of his guys punches Ray in the face. Ray ends up on the floor from the surprise attack as the same guy kicks him.

You start to go to Ray when Isaac yanks you back. Another kick lands into Ray and you look around the shop to find it pretty much empty and no one looking. You can’t risk calling for help and others getting hurt.

You turn to him, venom in your eyes, “stop it. Leave Ray and I’ll come with you”. When he lets you go, his guy backs away from Ray. You go over to Ray and check him over. You see he’s bleeding from his lip as he coughs from the kicks.

He whispers, “don’t go with him for me”.

You take a tissue out of your pocket and dab at his lip, “its fine Ray, we don’t really have many other choices, do we? Just ring Bucky and tell him it was Isaac Williams”.

That’s all you get to say to each other as Isaac clears his throat, “let’s go before we make a scene. Nice meeting you Ray”.

You lay a hand on Ray’s shoulder before getting up and walking with Isaac out the store. You’re silent when you get into the car. Isaac gets in the back with you.

It wasn’t long into the ride when Isaac turns to you, “give me your phone”.

You don’t even look at him when you ask, “why?”.

He sighs, “because I’ve told you to”.

You laugh before saying, “what’s the point in giving you my phone when you and I both know that Ray is calling Bucky right now”.

You hear annoyance seeping into his voice, “yes, I’m well aware of that. I just don’t want you getting any ideas of recording our conversations or letting Bucky listen to it”.

You feel your stomach knot as you carry on defying him. You know you should just do what he asks, but you’re stubborn and it makes you even more sick complying with him. So, you stare straight ahead and ignore him.

His hand whips out and grabs your arm hard. You feel his fingers dig in as you turn to look at him. His expression is dark as he yanks on your arm pulling your body closer in the car. His voice is low when he speaks again, “give me your phone”.

You give him a disgusted look as you use your other hand to reach in your pocket and pull out your phone. He snatches it off you and pushes you away from him, “see? That wasn’t so hard was it?”.

You just scoot into the corner of the car and look out the window, fighting the urge to be sick.

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goldenkamuyhunting · 4 years ago

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Ramblings and crazy theory time about GK chap 267 “Severed”

So we have a new chapter that deals with a painful topic...

...which is nothing else but Wilk’s betrayal of Kiro and of their cause.

We resume the story with… well a flashback showing Kiro writing a letter to Sofia while they were in Karafuto.

We see a glimpse of Ogata behind him, teasing us readers who’re wondering WHERE IN THE WORLD HE IS CURRENTLY AND WHAT THE HELL HE’S DOING as it’s from chap 261 we’ve no info on him and this silence is worrisome.

I love how Noda divided the page in three panels, the top one showing Kiro, while the lower one showing Sofia (Svetlana behind her mirroring how Ogata was behind Kiro) with Akou prison parting them, mirroring how it was the prison who was keeping them parted back then.

Above the images we’ve the content of the letter Kiro is writing.

He’s basically telling her that it might be too early to talk about what happened between him and Wilk in those years with Asirpa, which is why he’s writing it to her.

So, once in Hokkaido he and Wilk parted ways, searching for info about the gold. Their plan was to mix witht he local Ainu and integrate among them so as to get info more easily.

Poor Inkarmat likely got involved with Wilk during this period.

In the end, to better do this, Wilk married and had a daughter.

The following page shows the cover of the chapter, that carefully mirror the cover of chap 256. In chap 256 we had Tsurumi/Hasegawa with his family, while in this chapter we’ve Wilk with his family, each of them in the same exact position as they were in the Hasegawa picture.

In a way it’s kind of painful to place one image next to the other.

Two men, two fathers with their beloved daughters and wives.

Tsurumi lost his family and blamed Wilk for it, Wilk, who made his own family, who had a daughter like Tsurumi, who was among the Hokkaido Ainu trying to discover where they hid their gold, like a spy in short, like Tsurumi.

There’s a huge parallel between these two men and, in a way, I think for Tsurumi the real enemy has never been Hijikata or Sugimoto or Ogata.

He’s still fighting Wilk’s ghost, Wilk who still lives in his own daughter where Tsurumi’s daughter is long dead.

It’s a tragedy, in a way.

But there’s another parallel between them.

They both married to better integrate with the local... but the marriage that was meant to be merely a toll, ultimately caused them to love the daughter who was born out of it and their wife.

They thought to use it to further their goals and, instead, were changed by it. They, who prized themselves so much for their control over the situation and their emotions, lost control.

Anyway let’s go on.

Wilk’s expression as he holds Asirpa impresses Kiro, it was an expression of gentleness he never saw before on Wilk’s face.

This page too is cleverly constructed.

On the top panel we’ve Kiro, with a not pleased expression. As he blamed Wilk’s change to Asirpa’s birth, it’s easy to speculate that seeing such expression on Wilk’s face worried him, it made him think Wilk might not remain loyal to their cause.

On the lower panel there’s Tsurumi.

He also doesn’t look pleased, but likely for different reasons from Kiro. He knows what Wilk might have felt holding his daughter, he know he might have felt the same he had felt when he had held Olga... but the thing probably burned him. The man whom he viewed as the cause of his loss had the chance to hold his own daughter, a daughter Tsurumi can’t hold anymore.

In the middle, parting Kiro from Tsurumi there are three panels, one is the one of the church, that divides the flashback from the present time, and the two below it shows, one the inside of the church with Tsurumi, Sofia and Asirpa, Tsurumi though completely a dark shadow and the other Asirpa’s face as she heard her father, holding her, made an expression Kiro had never seen on his face.

Asirpa seems happy of hearing this, of hearing his father looked at her with a gentle expression he never had before, her eyes shining and her checks slightly redded.

In a way she’s in the middle of those two men, for Kiro she’s the cause of Wilk’s change, for Tsurumi she represents Wilk’s gain at the expenses of his own loss, as well as the embodiment on Wilk’s will.

The story continues.

The flashback moves forward of some more years.

We’re told that a strange rumor starts being spread, the rumour of the discovery of an old Ainu man who was supposed to have died of smallpox (remember? There was a smallpox epidemic in which Cikapasi’s whole family died), and who was instead living alone in the mountains.

Tsurumi suggests the guy could have been Kimuspu, one of the Ainu who were involved in the attempt to buy weapons from Russia with the gold 50 years before and who, therefore, knows where the gold is.

Tsurumi explains that they too got the same info (though he doesn’t tell them HOW they got it), the image showing him, Kikuta, Usami, Tsukishima and Ogata (hinting how they were all involved in Tsurumi’s Ainu plan) and that they were in the 1902.

Now… a little break here.

The summer of 1902 is the summer in which Tsurumi staged Koito’s kidnapping.

If Asirpa’s dream is reliable Wilk told her his name when it was snowing. Asirpa said that after telling her his name her father went away, implying this was the last time she saw him.

We’ll see Wilk later on in the flashback and his beard is shorter than in Asirpa’s memory.

This might mean that between the discovery of Kimuspu’s body and Wilk’s death time went by. The Ainu aren’t dressed so heavily it suggests we are in winter, but neither so lightly it suggests we’re in summer (Kiro has his undershirt, which he didn’t wear in summer). This means this either happened in spring or in autumn.

We’ll see if the next chapter will tell us more and why when this happened might be relevant… for now let’s just say this seems to hint that Wilk’s death happened in the last months of that year and not in the first.

This, of course, if Asirpa’s dream/memory is reliable.

Anyway, let’s go on.

Kiro continues his narration, telling how this discovery changed the situation radically.

We move then to Noboribetsu where Wilk is having a reunion with 6 more Ainu

Yeah, Noboribetsu is the place where there was the hot spring in which Toni Anji was investigating and Kikuta and Ariko recovering. It’s also the place near which there was Ariko’s village, and it might even be they’re having their reunion in Ariko’s house.

This might also explain what Toni Anji was doing there, that place could have been the place in which Hijikata suspected the gold was hidden, hence he sent Toni to check it. The gold could very well be hidden in the same old mine in which Toni escaped or in a similar one as Ariko said there were others and he went to explore them when he was younger.

It’s entirely possible Hijikata had Boutarou’s same idea but Hijikata found sooner about Noboribetsu and went there to investigate. Maybe he talked to Ariko’s mom and, from her, discovered about Ariko being the son of one of the men involved.

If that’s the case, I’m pleased.

I’ve always wondered WHY Toni Anji was in Noboribetsu as it seemed weird he was there just to investigate on Tsurumi’s men.

But let’s go back to the story and to the conversation Wilk has with the others.

Wilk asks to Siromakur, who’s clearly Ariko’s father if his skin tone, eyes and eyebrows are meant to be taken as a reference, if he couldn’t ask Kimuspu the location of the gold.

So Ariko’s dad is the one who met met Kimuspu.

Now, remember how I said Tsurumi didn’t say how he got info about Kimuspu?

In hindsight this makes me wonder if Tsurumi has a man among the Ainu because if a rumour about this Ainu man being found spread, it should have spread among Ainu, not Wajin. They should have known him, known he was involved with the gold and known he was assumed to have died of smallpox.

Those aren’t info they would have shared with the Wajins.

Whatever, let’s go on.

Siromakur says the man didn’t want to talk with him so another Ainu, Mesira, suggests they should track him down and 'convince’ him to talk.

This worries me because it implies they might end up being forceful with him.

Sure, partisans in all the countries, despite claiming to stand with the local population, hardly had qualms in forcing the population to cooperate should they decide they didn’t want to align with the partisans’ wishes... and partisans are fighting a war, a war with different means but always a war and wars are dirty things but... but it always rubbed me the wrong way because while soldiers go at war merely because they obey orders, partisans claim they chose to go at war for ideals that include protecting people...

...and then sacrifice the people they wanted to protect.

It kind of reminds me of a dark joke popular in my country about this kind of people.

“Against violence, bullying, suffering we must all be united... and if someone doesn’t agree, we'll kill him.”

...because yeah, when they said they’re against violence they were talking of violence perpetrated by OTHER PEOPLE, they’re completely in favour of violence perpetrated by them...

Sukuta wonders if someone else, apart the 7 of them, knows about Kimuspu. As Irenka, another Ainu who so far hadn’t spoken, looks at Siromakur, the latter admits he talked about it with several people but didn't tell them where Kimuspu was.

Great move, Ariko’s dad, now we know who might have spread the rumour until it reached Tsurumi’s (and Kiro’s) ears. -_-

Do you want the news to be reported on newspapers too?

Just to make sure everyone knows....

Ratci, who seems to be the older among them and therefore the only one who has a chance to be the older brother of the old Ainu Boutarou met since the guy was supposedly one of those who died in the incident, comments Kimuspu was living deep in the mountains without anyone knowing, so he couldn't be found easily.

Oskeporo, who somehow reminds me of Kirawus, although his eyebrows looks more like Cikapasi’s, comments they too could have problems tracking Kimuspu.

Siromakur tells them he knows where he sets his arrow traps so they can wait him there. At this they decide to go find Kimuspu before others will track him down.

It’s clear they’re searching the old guy because they’re interested in the gold.

However, as they’re about to leave, Kiro shows up and demands explanations from Wilk. He’s clearly angry if his expression, his tone of voice and his clenched fists can be taken as a hint, and wants to know why Wilk hadn’t called him.

Did Ariko’s dad tattled out the discovery of Kimuspu to Kiro as well?

Great move, Ariko’s dad, really. -_-

What about informing Russia about it as well now?

They might want to know too...

Wilk tell the other Ainu to go ahead. As he does so, in his same panel we can see Ariko’s father and Mesira, who was the guy who wanted them to ‘convince’ Kimuspu to talk. They seem to accept it.

In another panel we see Sukuta and Osikepor. Sukuta seems just worried, Osikepor is clearly not pleased, a frown on his face but all he says is a line of dots.

Once they’re alone Kiro again, loudly demands some explanation and Wilk informs him he has decided they need to change plans, that his Far East Federation would be too wide to protect from Russia if they were to count on minorities alone, but if they were to make only Hokkaido, which is encircled by the sea, independent, they could manage it.

Now, please, let me facepalm.

Yeah, an island is a bit easier to protect than the huge land Wilk originally planned to involve, part of which was attached to Russia, but not that much it makes it an inexpugnable fortress.

The Far East Federation was a pure utopia but this is really no that much better.

They would then need to find another Russian captain willing to sell them weapons and warships, get some Ainu who know how to handle them all, chase away the 7th division who, by then is residing in Hokkaido along with all those military settlers who has stopped serving the army, beat the Ominato fleet and then whatever fleet Japan would send against them.

In case Japan were to give up on re-conquering Hokkaido they would have then hope that Russia wouldn’t try to do it or wouldn’t join forces with Japan in exchange for some compensations. Or that China wouldn’t lend a hand in place of Russia in exchange for compensations.

In short, yeah, you’ve less land to defend and it’s a little harder to get there but not by much considering how Kiro’s group could even cross the La Pérouse Strait on a small boat and Asirpa did it by walking on drift ice.

We’ve no info on how the Tsugaru strait was crossed back then but it’s half than the La Pérouse Strait, so Hokkaido can be attacked easily by two points and with a little more work as it would require a longer boat trip, from other points as Hokkaido’s coast is approximately 4,183 kilometres which is quite a bit to guard.

Islands had been conqueered through all the centuries, it’s not like the thing is unprecendented so really, Hokkaido might be slightly more difficult to attack but it’s not such a stronghold Wilk can hope to defend it with his meagre forces.

Of course things would be slightly different if Wilk were to plan to join hands with Tsurumi who, in that same year, managed to have Koito Heiji indebted to him and who has professional soldiers under him.

If Wilk’s state and Tsurumi’s state were to overlap this would provide them more tactical advantages. This, assuming Tsurumi wouldn’t, once he got control of the gold, kick the Ainu out of the deal.

But we don’t know if Wilk and Tsurumi know each other is in Hokkaido and, at this point, I’m not sure these two chessmasters would shake hands in an allegiance.

Anyway Kiro’s furious at the new plan.

We jump back into the present where Tsurumi explains to Asirpa the benefits of Wilk’s plan… or better how his plan diverged from the one of Sofia and Kiro’s which is something that would end up promoting discord between Wilk and his own allies.

(It’s also worth to remember that Sofia in truth wasn’t a partisan, she was a revolutionary who cared about the Russian population. Hokkaido Ainu are considered Japanese so it’s unlikely she would be interested in them. Wilk’s plan basically meant he will let her to her own devices... great way to handle your allies Wilk.)

Tsurumi claims he understands Wilk’s plan, and of course he does as he plans to do the same but Tsurumi is much better organized, with better men, connections, inside knowledge, trusted allies and back up plans to support his country so Tsurumi’s chances of success are WAY HIGHER than Wilk, despite his plan remaining very hard to pursue successfully.

Meanwhile we go back to the flashback.

Predictably Kiro sees Wilk’s idea as a betrayal. Wilk came up with such plan without discussing it with him or Sofia and it’s a plan that is not beneficial to the other minorities, the minorities to whom Kiro belongs or has grown to care about who live in Karafuto or in Russia, just to the Hokkaido Ainu.

Wilk says according to him they should migrate in Hokkaido and he would be willing to welcome them there, which again, is naïve.

For start he’s not the ruler of Hokkaido. The migrants might end up being seen by the Hokkaido population as no better than the Wajin, never mentioning he’s just asking to all those people to leave their lands and move there.

It’s similar to Hijikata’s plan but Hijikata at least didn’t have to really care for the migrants he wanted to welcome, nor for their living style. For him they were just an usable commodity. Wilk should care about them instead and yet he’s not.

Still, I love how cleverly this page is constructed.

We’ve three panels.

The two above show Kiro and Wilk and their contrasting positions.

The visual pins them as contrasting in every possible way, Kiro is angry, Wilk is calm, Kiro is seen frontally, Wilk from behind. With their images Noda is setting up the premise for the fight between them that will follow.

The line that divides the two panels might as well be the fracture between them.

On the bottom we see Kiro’s reaction to Wilk’s world. Wilk’s words only upset Kiro further.

It’s meaningful how we see only the top of his head, his hands holding it, everything shaded by a swirling shade, hinting at the many thoughts that should infest Kiro’s mind in that moment.

It gives me the feeling Kiro feels his world too is wirling and he’s desperately trying to keep it together, to make sense of it and can’t.

Wilk is the person he loved, trusted and admired the most and now Wilk comes out with... this? How is that even possible?

Kiro reminds Wilk of how his birth village disappeared and his people died due to them being forced to leave the land.

Wilk is unaffected by this, he’s sure since they know why the first time things went wrong, they wouldn’t make mistakes this time.

Sure, failed immigration attempts plague us in moder times as well but Wilk would have managed to magically solve them all, Wilk could do everything better, Wilk knows.

WILK CAN YOU PLEASE COME BACK DOWN ON PLANET EARTH FOR A CHANGE? YOU AREN’T THE GOD OF A BRAVE NEW WORLD, YOU DON’T KNOW HOW TO SOLVE IT! YOU DON’T EVEN KNOW HOW TO MANAGE YOUR LITTLE REBELLION OR HOLD CLOSE YOUR ALLIES OR PERSUADE THEM YOU’RE RIGHT! EITHER YOU’VE A SECRET BACK UP PLAN OR HOW YOU’LL SAY TO KIRO YOU’LL ACCOMPLISH IS BEYOND DUMB AND NAIVE! PLEASE, STOP!

Ahem... okay, back with the story.

Kiro then points out how the Uilta wouldn’t be able to continue their lifestyle as Hokkaido is too warm to keep reindeers so they can’t protect their culture in Hokkaido.

Wilk waves the problem off, saying they would accept only who wants to move there.

In short if the Uilta don’t want to move because this would mean to change their lifestyle… well, their problem.

So yes, it’s a betrayal of their cause, their cause that was about protecting all those minorities and their lifestiles.

Wilk belonged to a group, a group who wanted to take care of all those minorities. He can’t just arbitrarily decide that some of them don’t matter and it’s their problem.

It would be different if he had said ‘let’s fix the Hokkaido Ainu, let’s start from here and then spread, we can’t help the Uilta RIGHT NOW, but once we’ve consolidate our forces we will, we’re postponing, not giving up.’

Instead he’s giving up.

He should have talked with the others, he should have proposed Hokkaido as a starting point, not as the solution. Let’s free Hokkaido, strengthen our defences there and then move to free the rest... as Tsurumi is planning to do.

For Tsurumi is first Hokkaido then Vladivostok.

For Wilk it could have been first Hokkaido then Karafuto, then the rest. A step at time.

It was still an utopia but it wouldn’t be betrayal of his teammates and they could have accepted it. It would have made sense.

Instead Wilk didn’t discuss things, he just decided them behind his companions’ back without talking with them because he’s Wilk and knows what’s better to do.

Really, I see a lot of parallels with Sugimoto because I’m sure Wilk too is persuaded he meant well... but he’s actually deciding things arbitrarily for others, looking more at his own advantage than at theirs.

Kiro accuses him of not caring about the Russian minorities because Wilk’s goal is now merely to protect his daughter’s future as she’s an Hokkaido Ainu.

Wilk insists his method is just the most realistic.

This part is again well constructed as it again represent the split between them.

Below the image of Wilk saying that only who wants to immigrate should do it we’ve on one side a panel with Kiro, accusing Wilk of selfishly caring only about Asirpa.

On the other we’ve two panels, one of Asirpa and one of Wilk, Asirpa’s panel taking most of the space.

Although Wilk insists he’s taking the most realistic path, it’s clear Asirpa weightens a lot on his decision... and in the future Asirpa is there to listen how she ultimately caused the division between those two friends just by... existing.

At this point though, the discussion takes a really ugly turn.

Kiro, who back then likely wasn’t married yet, remarks that it’s Hokkaido who actually has nothing to do with them, and that Wilk is caring about it merely because he now has a lovely family there.

The page is split in two. On one panel there’s Kiro and Wilk, this time together, on the other there’s Asirpa who’s ‘listening’ to the discussion they’re having, who’s called to hear of their actions and judge them.

And we make a break because we’ve a problem here and I wonder if Asirpa has caught up with it as well.

I stand by Kiro when he says Wilk’s plan is a betrayal of the other minorities and of his companions and therefore a pretty dirty move.

But they were planning to buy their freedom by using the Hokkaido Ainu gold. Now, unless they planned to steal from them, the Hokkaido Ainu should have mattered as well, they have something to do with them, they’re a minority too who deserves to be protected and of whom they wanted to use the resources and the support.

Hokkaido has everything to do with them if they want to involve it in their war and not just profit from it... which probably was exactly what they, deep down, meant to do since both Kiro and Wilk didn’t come to Hokkaido with the most honest intentions but disguised themselves among its people to try and find info about the gold.

So the discussion reveals that below those men’s oh so pure ideals, there’s something else, something else that’s not pure and selfless at all.

Self interest.

And Trurumi translates this in words for Asirpa.

Right from the start both Kiro and Wilk had two goals.

One was the noble one they presented to the world, protect the minorities.

The other was the more human one, protect whose they loved.

More often than not, expecially when interacting with a story, people tend to think other people/characters are moved solely by ONE SINGLE GOAL.

That’s not really true, people is usually moved by multiple goals.

both goals existed in both Kiro and Wilk but they presented to the world only one, the noble one, and kept the other hidden in their heart.

That’s because the world could understand and support the noble goal but would scoff at the other goal... yet the other goal is probably much more important to them than the other one.

In fact things are breaking among them EXACTLY due to that other goal being denied.

Their priority is that other goal, the noble goal exists... but comes second best and will never come first.

Tsurumi’s words reflect his own situation as well.

He too has a noble goal, to conqueer Hokkaido for the men of the 7th... a goal that to him is real and that he wants to reach... but he also has a much more private goal, which is tied to the loss of his family.

The existance of this goal doesn’t deny the existance of the previous goal. They both exists, it’s just he presents only one because only one would be considered acceptable and give him support... and also because the other is personal, private.

Something that holds in his heart but doesn’t dare to voice.

Tsukishima, outside of the room, hear all this and is impressed (we can see that on his face there aren’t anymore signs of anger) as he likely understood this can be applied to Tsurumi as well.

Tsukishima has naively believed Tsurumi has to have only one single goal, either he was fighting for the men of the 7th or he was fighting due to his own family but that’s not the case.

Tsurumi can as well fight both for creating a military state in Hokkaido for the men of the 7th but also for the people he loved and while the people he loved would be his main motive this wouldn’t make his second reason untrue.

Kiro, in an agry and distraught face reminds Wilk of how Sofia is still waiting for them in Russia, before attacking Wilk, who fight him back.

While back then it was all about what moved Wilk, now this page is all about what moves Kiro. He loved Sofia, not just the minorities.

He can’t bear the idea to sacrifice her, he’ll fight for her.

For her he’ll fight Wilk whom he admired and loved so much.

Asirpa understands all this.

While his father wanted to protect the minorities but, ultimately, prioritized her, Kiro too loved and wanted to protect the minorities, he was angry on their behalf but, more than everything, he loved and wanted to protect Sofia, Sofia, who was the last word he said before dying.

She explains Kiro’s feelings to Sofia and it’s so terribly sad to think back at how Kiro killed Wilk for her, because Wilk would just dump her and yet Sofia was still so in love with him when she met Kiro again she slapped him because he killed Wilk.

The pain Kiro should have felt in that moment... he just took the slap and didn’t counter, didn’t say anything. He killed Wilk FOR HER, it hurts him to kill Wilk and yet he couldn’t tell any of this...

... and, at the same time, he didn’t regret any of this. For her he would kill Wilk all over again.

Meanwhile, in the flashback we can see that the winner of the fight is Wilk... which was predictable enough, not because we knew Wilk was the better fighter (we didn’t) but because Kiro attacked him in blind rage, while Wilk managed to stay calm and, apparently, catch him in a strangle hold, suffucating him and causing him to lose consciousness.

That’s why Wilk walks away all bruised while Kiro, despite ending up on the ground, seems in better conditions.

Asirpa suggests her father might not have said the truth to Kiro because he knew Kiro loved Sofia.

It makes sense but it’s not a great justification because it’s the admission Wilk knew he was betraing them.

Kiro was allied with Wilk for a reason, Wilk knew that reason and so he tried to do things behind Kiro’s back because he wasn’t going to respect the deal he had with Kiro and Sofia, knowing Kiro wouldn’t agree to it.

Now... okay, as I said before it’s possible that Wilk is actually in an alliance with Tsurumi as well, or that he suspects Tsurumi has spies in his group so he’s serving Kiro a fake story but let’s assume he’s being sincere.

Wilk might claim and claim this is more rational, and maybe he even believes he’s doing all this because it’s more rational and not for his daughter, maybe he’s in denial about his own true reason so really, he thinks he’s choosing the best option... but the fact he knew Kiro wouldn’t accept it, hints at how deep down Wilk should have known it was betrayal.

Yet, it’s still possible Wilk wasn’t consciously aware of it, that he was lying even to himself.

We’ve seen this kind of betrayals through the story, with the character doing the deed not realizing he was betraying the other party but thinking he was picking up the best option for everyone.

Sugimoto sold Asirpa to Tsurumi, demanding money solely for himself and not caring about Shiraishi’s fate. By doing so HE BELIEVED he was protecting Asirpa (he wasn’t) and that Shiraishi should have just spontaneously given up to his own share of gold. Sugimoto could have realized this, but he preferred to think he was doing the right thing for everyone.

Asirpa decided to join forces with Hijikata because she believed it would be a better option for them. By doing so SHE BELIEVED she was chosing the better option for everyone as an alliance would give them more chances of success and Hijikata has a better future in mind, but in truth she basically demanded from Boutarou to give up on his goal as Hijikata’s goal and Boutarou’s are mutually exclusive. Asirpa could have realized this (though I tend to give her a pass because she’s young but really, Boutarou pointed out he wanted to fulfill his goal too many times to miss it, and even if she still were due to her young age, Sugimoto and Shiraishi should have realized and give her a head up), but he preferred to think he was doing the right thing for everyone.

Tsukishima, for most of the story, is not fighting Tsurumi’s orders but just agreeing with Tsurumi’s methods of deception of the other characters, because HE BELIEVED they will lead everyone to be saved. Practically he’s lying to Koito and denying Tanigaki the chance to opt out, attempting to force everyone in the 7th to betray Central. Tsukishima could have realized this, but he preferred to think he was doing the right thing for everyone.

Long story short those people didn’t see their behaviour as betrayal but as pursuing the better option for themselves and the others, expecting the others to just agree with them.

Wilk’s behaviour, the fact he insists he’s picking up the better option as if he’s trying to persuade himself more than Kiro, reminds me of them, of people who were stubbornly thinking they were doing the right thing, they were picking the best option, when they actually were walking all over their friends, neglecting them and their goals in favour of a goal they prioritized.

But, back to the story, as soon as Asirpa tells Sofia that Kiro’s problem was that he loved Sofia so he couldn’t just leave her behind, Sofia lowers her head, her eyes wet.

She loved Wilk... but, in her own way she loved Kiro also, whom she saw as a little brother. It should pain her greatly to know in the end she was the reason that pushed Kiro to kill Wilk, that caused the split between them... even if this isn’t all true. As said, the goal to protect the minorities still existed in Kiro... but Sofia was the drop that broke the camel's back.

Also I get Asirpa meant well, she wants to deliver Kiro’s feelings and, at the same time, defend her father’s actions but that wasn’t probably the best moment to deliver Kiro’s feelings since Sofia was already shaken by how she was facing Tsurumi/Hasegawa... as for defending Wilk’s actions... honestly she only end up as painting him as calculative.

Because Wilk knew Kiro wouldn’t have agreed with his plan, he worked behind his back. I’m not sure Asirpa realizes though, she likely is buying the narrative in which Wilk’s choice was mainly for the greater good as well as her, while the order of the things was completely reverse and the plan was so dumb I can’t believe Wilk came up with it.

Anyway as a battered Wilk walks away we can see a Kiro tied to a tree coming to his sense with a murderous expression on his face.

Kiro sees even the fact Wilk has left him alive as a betrayal, not as of regret that he has actually betrayed his friend and can’t just bear to kill him.

Kiro tells himself the Wilk of the past would have killed Kiro, since Kiro was an obstacle to his purpose. Yet Wilk has left him alive which, to Kiro, proves Wilk has changed and isn’t anymore the Wilk he loved.

This makes me wonder if Kiro actually would have preferred to be killed, if this could have made him swallow the bitter pill Wilk betrayed them, if, in his furious mind, this would have been a proof that Wilk really believed they couldn’t do any better than conquer Hokkaido and then relocate everyone there.

Kiro has said he blindly trusted the old Wilk.

In a way the fact that Wilk, whom he loved and admired so blindly, betrayed their cause and tried to work behind his back should have hurt him terribly. That betrayal is the fall of a hero and, in a sense, Kiro tries to compensate by ‘denying that new Wilk’.

The ‘new’ Wilk is no more the Wilk he loved, therefore he’s no more Wilk, his friend. It makes sense he decided to kill that Wilk, who has turned into a stranger to him, no, worse, into an enemy, an enemy of their cause and an enemy who would sacrifice the people Kiro loved for his own goals.

So, clearly Wilk had to die because he betrayed their cause... but, since we’re talking of people doing things for more than one motive, I wonder if it’s also possible Kiro wanted him destroyed because Wilk wasn’t Wilk anymore, as if the new Wilk killed the old Wilk he loved.

This kind of remind me “The Return of the Jedy”

Luke Skywalker: Ben! Why didn't you tell me? You told me that Darth Vader betrayed and murdered my father.

Obi-Wan: Your father... was seduced by the Dark Side of the Force. He ceased to be the Jedi Anakin Skywalker and "became" the Sith Darth Vader. When that happened, the good man who was your father was destroyed. So, what I told you was true... from a certain point of view.

Luke Skywalker: A certain point of view?

Obi-Wan: Luke, you're going to find that many of the truths we cling to depend greatly on our own point of view. Anakin was a good friend. When I first met him, your father was already a great pilot. But I was amazed how strongly the Force was with him. I took it upon myself to train him as a Jedi. I thought that I could instruct him just as well as Yoda. I was wrong.

Luke Skywalker: There is still good in him.

Obi-Wan: He's more machine now than man. Twisted and evil.

Luke Skywalker: I can't do it, Ben.

Obi-Wan: You cannot escape your destiny. You must face Darth Vader again.

Luke Skywalker: I can't kill my own father.

Obi-Wan: Then the Emperor has already won. You were our only hope.

Kiro is Obi-Wan, who believes Wilk ceased to be ‘the Wilk he loved’ and became ‘that Wilk’ and when that happened, the good man who was Wilk was destroyed so, like Obi-Wan, he thinks ‘that Wilk’ has to be killed (by Luke/Ogata).

Contrary to him, Sofia is more like Luke Skywalker. She didn’t agree with Kiro’s idea they had to kill Wilk and slapped Kiro for what he did.

In all this though, it’s interesting Wilk left Kiro alive.

I’ve mentioned that other situations, similar to this one, happened in the story but this is the first in which the two parties confront each other BEFORE the deed his done. It would be interesting to know if his conversation with Kiro affected him, it made him realize his best option wasn’t so good and so right after all.

Wilk was still in time to change his mind, to go back on being the Wilk Kiro loved... or at least fix his plan so that it would include Kiro’s goals as well hence he might not have wanted to ruin everything by killing Kiro.

Wilk was still in time to try and patch things between them so maybe, albeith he had to leave right then, he left Kiro alive because he wanted to make up, to fix things between them, because he realized he wronged Kiro and didn’t want that.

But well, this is something we’ll discover in the next chapter.

On a sidenote is interesting how Kiro ties the fact that Wilk has changed to Wilk being irrational. The old Wilk was rational, the old Wilk would sacrifice companions because it was rationally the best choice and Kiro believed him.

This new Wilk leave him alive, which is not the best choice, therefore he’s being irrational, he’s being motivated by emotions, therefore even his choice to care only about Hokkaido is motivated merely by emotions, is not rational and shouldn’t be trusted.

It’s surely a convolute mental gimmik but it’s interesting because it’s totally a reasoning a person can do, especially when burning with blind rage... but well, Kiro is being emotional himself and, probably, not even realizing it.

Noda made great characters with them... but their situation is so sad it hurts and even mroe so because we know is hopeless.

Kiro will kill Wilk and will never get to understand his side and neither of them will ever manage to make peace with the other. Such a long friendship ended up in ashes and all for something that should be supposedly positive, the fact they loved someone.

It’s sad.

It’s sad that their friendship ended, it’s sad they didn’t manage to respect each otehr feelings and come up with a solution that would make them both satisfied.

It’s so very sad...

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zontiky · 4 years ago

Note

Hey for bullet point AUs ideas (you were asking for them right..?) 2010s-type sitcom (like Community or B99) AU! What Silly Sitcom Tropes would the siblings get into?

i actually havent seen either of those shows 😳 nor do i watch sitcoms, but to my knowledge u SIT and u are ENTERTAINED so everybody SIT DOWN and i will ENTERTAIN ✨✨

(wait are disney shows sitcoms? because when i think abt older tv humor i get slapped in the face with bits of disney tv i managed to catch as a kid. my entire sense of humor thru elementary school was based on that. ok i can be funny i promise here we go)

diego: wait... so she’s... our sister?

*laugh track plays*

grace has a laugh track function because i think thats extremely cursed and also hilarious.

reginald building himself a robot wife: what do kids these days like? humor? is humor still popular? yeah im adding it

there’s a christmas episode but it’s very obvious that none of them have ever fucking celebrated and half of them don’t fucking want to skjhfs

is wacky ringtones a thing? patch calls diego to help her out in the hotel and the dial tone is britney’s toxic

britney obviously exists in the tua universe and i will accept nothing less. a world without britney is a really sad one and like i know tuaverse is kinda shit what with the apocalypse happening thrice and the music cult and all but like come on... its not THAT bad. it cant be

luther’s coat gets torn off and there’s a slightly smaller, other coat underneath

that gets ripped off too and he’s wearing a tshirt

YOU KNOW THE GAG WHERE A CHARACTER JUST KEEPS PULLING WEAPONS OUT OF THEIR CLOTHES, WHERE THERE SHOULD NOT PHYSICALLY BE ROOM FOR WEAPONS? FIVE

or lila

i think that would be really funny with either of them tbh

five whipping a knife out of his bowling shoe: a-HA

lila unsheathing a broadsword out of nowhere: o-HO

five pulling a rifle from his waistband: a-ha-HA

lila swinging a mace from behind her back: o-ho-HO!

and so on

every time klaus makes a joke there’s applause coming out of nowhere but also distantly, faintly, the ghostbusters theme

specifically “who you gonna call? GHOST-” on loop

ben is the only one aware of it. not even klaus hears it

ben constantly makes stupid mocking faces behind klaus + over klaus’ shoulder

klaus: guys please take me seriously

ben giving him bunny ears: yEah GUyS LiSten tO hIM

nobody else can see it. i know thats obvious but i have to specify. only the audience can see ben doing it. klaus knows ben does it but hes never caught him in the act and has absolutely no proof. ben does it purely for his own amusement and to fuck with klaus big-time

there is no young!hargreeves cast. it’s just the adult hargreeves but in umbrella uniform crouching down to 12yearold level

before slaughtering the commission board five uses one of those toy BANG guns on carmichael and then immediately whips out his impossible axe

vanya plays a tiny violin and it’s only her, every other violinist in the orchestra has a normal violin and her tiny little violin is never brought up

by tiny i mean realistically tiny. like maybe 1/32? thats a small fucking violin yall

helen with her full size violin: you’ll never amount to anything

vanya:

who else have i not made fun of yet

allisons hair is purple but not bc im laughing at her bc i genuinely think she would have peaked with it. purple hair allie ftw

leonard runs a toy store not a woodwork shop and he hands vanya a weird cartoonified wood action figure of her and she’s like thaaaanks as the laugh track plays

vanya storms out of the family meeting and her back faces the camera and we see that there’s a piece of paper taped to her shirt that says NOBODY KNOWS I’M A LESBIAN

*laugh track but gay this time*

klaus makes a joke about ben being his only straight friend and it cuts to ben passionately making out with a ghost dude in the back of a club or smth kjhwkfd

WOULD THIS BE A GOOD TIME TO SLIP IN OUR LIGHTHEARTED CRACK “BEN IS THE ONLY ALLOROMO” AU? IHFHKLHFKFD

five is wearing bowling shoes the entire first season as well. when they go to the bowling alley he switches them out for a different pair of bowling shoes, which he wears through the entire second season. again this is never brought attention to or mentioned in any way

diego drives an impala /j

little girl god popping wheelies on a motorbike in greyscale heaven

allison has a fight scene where she stabs someone with heels and then breaks the heel and goes aw :( my stilettos and this isnt even funny its just extremely badass i love her a lot

we get more screentime with dave but he says groovy every other sentence

klaus’ ‘68 club shirt is garishly flamingo patterned

a scene where five is sitting at the breakfast table, half asleep, sipping a cup of coffee, and allison sits down next to him with a mug of hot cocoa (we can tell by the overabundance of whipped cream and marshmallows) and quietly swaps out his mug for the cocoa and he doesn’t even show any sign he noticed he just keeps sipping and allison either quietly finishes off his coffee or takes the initial mug and walks offscreen. cut scene

there’s a scene of klaus and ben in the 60s on october first and ben is wearing a little ghost party hat and holding a single balloon

whenever sissy and vanya are in a room together careless whisper starts playing

remember that snl lesbian totinos sketch. yeah

the handler only addressed aj by his full name. ATLAS JERICHO CARMICAHEL.

dot is twice as tall as herb. i mean shes already taller than him but like, dot is Really tall. it’s implied dot and herb are married (it would be cute i think dont judge me)

when diego fucks with the infinity switchboard the thing like in cartoons happens where the screen fritzes out and everything goes black and then after a second or so his eyes appear

reginald dresses exclusively in green. im not saying he dresses like the onceler. but im not NOT saying that. *sigh* does this joke require a onceler tw tag on this post

i dont know if this post is what you had in mind but i hope you liked it anyway! <3

#asks #tua #the umbrella academy #aus #sitcom au #misc #team zero

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9worldstales · 3 years ago

Text

In reply to this post @woodelf68 said:

The jr. novel having Thor say that Loki stole the throne twice is ridiculous. He was lawfully given the throne when Odin was Sleeping and Thor banished, as he was next in line of the succession. And he offered the throne to Thor in TDW and Thor refused it! What was he going to do, abandon Asgard? Loki was the one who stepped up and took on the burden of rule, and yet got none of the credit. And Thor was the ‘savage, chaotic, lawless’ one when he stormed Jotunheim, breaking the peace treaty and gleefully slaughtering Frost Giants. The only time that description fit Loki was after he’d been tortured and was under the influence of the Mind Stone.

My apologies if I reply to you in a separate post but this got too long for the comments...

I’ll try to keep this as impartial and objective as I can, please, everyone, forgive me if I fail.

For start, oh yes, you’re absolutely right, as I said the whole bit of the junior novel contains canon mistakes in regard to both Thor and Loki.

Going in order:

Thor never demanded the throne, the throne was ALWAYS meant to be given to him by Odin, nor he refused it when Asgard needed him the most. He refused it when Asgard just won the war against the Dark Elves and, after Thor refused it, Asgard went through 4 years of peace. Things got worse only because Hela came back after 4 years, something no one had an idea would happen except Odin.

As for Loki yeah, the first time in “Thor” he ABSOLUTELY didn’t steal the throne. He was also a heir to it and with Thor banished for something Thor did (I’ve a long meta digging into how it was Thor who caused his own banishment if someone is in doubt about it) he was the next in line and rightful heir to it. There was ABSOLUTELY no stealing of the throne in a cut scene we see Frigga herself telling so to a surprised Loki.

Loki: What hope is there for Thor? Frigga: There's always a purpose to everything your father does. Thor may yet find a way home. Loki looks troubled by the revelation. He rises, heads for the exit, when they hear the clatter of ARMORED FOOTSTEPS hurriedly approaching. THE EINHERJAR GUARD Enter the room, block his way out. Loki tenses, prepared for the worst, but the guards just stand before them. Loki is baffled. Frigga: (cont’d) Thor is banished. The line of succession falls to you. Until he awakens, Asgard is yours.

And it’s worth to mention Thor accepted Loki as the one inheriting the throne. When Loki tells him the burden of the throne has fallen on him, Thor doesn’t say ‘no, nope, the throne is mine’. He just asks if, since his brother is now in charge HE CAN COME HOME. He doesn’t ask for the throne he just wants to come home. And when Loki tells him nope, Thor doesn’t accuse him of stealing the throne either, he accepts it.

It’s also worth to remember Loki had no idea they would pass the throne to him when Odin fell into Odinsleep. As it apparently happened before, likely Frigga took regency in those moments and Loki had no idea Odin would fall into Odinsleep back then anyway. There was no plotting whatsoever for Loki to take the throne. The movie and the side-material make clear Loki never expected the throne to pass to him, when he let the Frost Giants in Asgard, he merely aimed to stall the coronation for a bit longer.

“Thor: The Dark World” is actually a bit more controversial. Loki has been sentenced by Odin to lifelong imprisonment. This implies he has lost the rights to the throne so he’s no more a legitimate heir to it (in the comic “Thor: The Dark World Prelude” n° 2 written by Yost (scriptwriter for “Thor: The Dark World Prelude” and Kyle) which was likely written prior to Joss Whedon writing the scene for the meeting between Loki and Odin in “Thor: The Dark World” whcih was later added into the movie, Odin even rejects him as a son, telling him the boy he knew is dead and what remains is a creature he doesn’t recognize and calls him ‘Loki Laufeyson’).

The moment Loki takes Odin’s place, he technically steals the throne.

Yes, he offers it to Thor, which implies he didn’t plan to keep it, but it wasn’t his to offer in the first place and although Odin always meant to make Thor the next king (and in the first ending of the movie it’s implied that’s what he would do as soon as Thor was back in good shape) he had no idea if he meant to make him the next king right then.

What’s more he doesn’t return it to Odin when Thor refuses it. So, since Loki wasn’t anymore a legitimate heir and the throne wasn’t his to take yes, in this case he stole it from Odin, not from Thor because Thor refused it.

Now yeah, I know Feige left open the possibility that Thor refused due to what Loki said to him in the guise of Odin…

Feige: That last scene needed to work for people watching the movie for the first time, who believed that it’s Odin talking to Thor, and then the surprise, but it also needs to work a second and third time. Why is Odin saying those things? Why is Loki saying those things to Thor? They’re very nice things, they’re very caring things, that he says to him. Is it partly because he loves his brother? I like to think so. Is it also because that’s what his brother needs… to leave? Perhaps. [“Kevin Feige: It was always the plan to have Loki have a redemptive death. It was always planned that he wouldn’t really be gone.”]

But this is the first exchange Thor and ‘Odin’ had in the movie after Thor returns:

Odin: You once said there would never be a wiser king than me. You were wrong. The Alignment has brought all the realms together. Every one of them saw you offer your life to save them. What can Asgard offer its new king in return? Thor: My life. Father, I cannot be king of Asgard. I will protect Asgard and all the realms with my last and every breath, but I cannot do so from that chair. Loki, for all his grave imbalance, understood rule as I know I never will. The brutality, the sacrifice... It changes you. I'd rather be a good man than a great king. Odin: Is this my son I hear, or the woman he loves? Thor: When you speak, do I never hear Mother's voice'? This is not for Jane, Father. She does not know what I came here to say. Now, forbid me to see her, or say she can rule at my side. It changes nothing.

Thor went there specifically to tell his father he didn’t want to be king and that he wouldn’t change his mind not even if Odin were to forbid him to see Jane or allow him to marry her.

So no, Loki’s words weren’t what Thor needed to leave, Thor didn’t need to be persuaded to leave. So maybe Feige should re-read the script before talking.

So yeah, Thor refused it on his own. Loki didn’t manipulate him into doing it.

(The script of this part is messed up though, because it starts with a reference to what Thor said to Odin at the end of “Thor”… and Loki back then wasn’t around to hear it so really, Feige isn’t the only one who should re-read their script but whatever, this was a bit they rushed to put together when they decided to toss away the original ending of the movie for this new one.)

But there’s more that’s wrong with that bit.

Thor says: “My point is that our self-centered conflict over Asgard has ruined our kingdom. We have been so focused on fighting for the top we’ve forgotten there’s a middle and a bottom.”

There was no self-centered conflict over Asgard that has ruined the kingdom. The kingdom wasn’t ruined, it was perfectly fine until Hela attacked and Hela’s attack is due to Odin and how he raised her and handled her when he couldn’t control her any longer, not due to Loki and Thor.

Also the real problem wasn’t a ‘self-centered conflict for the top’… more like Odin’s screwed up parenting.

So yeah, if the Junior novel is based on the old script there’s a lot of questionable material and not just in this scene. But let’s talk a bit about Eric Pearson, the guy who wrote the script.

As I said in another post about how people came to think Loki is a serial betrayal this guy never worked on a script with Thor and Loki previously and the most he did was to be involved in the “Marvel’s The Avengers Prelude: Fury’s Big Week” in which Thor and Loki have some cameo appearances.

To continue that’s what he says about working on the script:

Fun sells, especially in the Marvel Comic Universe. Did you have a hard time balancing how hilarious the film had to be with the high stakes it has going on? Pearson: I did, yeah. It was tricky. First of all, it took a couple of interactions with Taika before we got on the same page. He’s such a different guy with a different sense of humor [he says fondly]. After I pitched the scene that happens first in the movie I got a sense of his sense of humor and going forward that was really helpful. The first draft was really about nailing the structure and the character arcs, and having our skeleton. That was when I started working more closely with Taika to get his little comedic flourishes in there. Plus, on the day during shooting, he’s bound to do anything. Suddenly there will be a weird prop in the scene and you have to be like “Ok, there it is! We’re gonna move right along!” He knew what he was doing from the beginning. He was going to rob the bank and get away with a ton of comedy, so I was just trying to keep the story together for the most part. And keep the characters honest and true to the world and their respective journeys. [“A Talk With THOR: RAGNAROK’s Eric Pearson”]

The Junior novel has basically no humour. I would say the script used is, if not the very first one, something like the second… which is also hinted by how there’s no mention of Hela being Odin’s daughter.

Let’s talk about Hela. There’s been a certain spoiler going around about her lineage, and we’d love to hear how that came about. Pearson: The decision to make Hela Odin's banished daughter came really late into writing my first draft. We had discussed her backstory as someone from Asgard's past, the Goddess of Death being a weapon of war that Odin used to conquer the Nine Realms and build his empire, but as I was writing and getting closer to the end, knowing that a Thor-Hela face-off was imminent, I felt like we needed more. More connection between the two, more depth to their ideological conflict. And it was one of those late nights, probably 11 pm working at Marvel, and I expressed this concern to Brad Winderbaum (producer). I basically told him that I'd been thinking about it, and I thought that making Hela Thor's sister made the most sense for the story and had the most impact to a shared history. He agreed and told me, "Don't pitch it to anyone because it'll be more likely to get shot down. Just write it into the script and let everyone discover the connection the same way that Thor will." Ultimately it was the right move because, after I wrote the ending and retconned the earlier scenes to reflect the family relation, everybody who read it was surprised, and pleasantly so. [“A Talk With THOR: RAGNAROK’s Eric Pearson”]

And this guy clearly has no idea what the relationship between Thor and Loki was previously and not only because he needed Chris Hemsworth to point out he wasn’t handing them correctly (how Hemsworth’s input helped or worsened the matter is up to debate)…

Pearson: For introductions, working on Thor’s voice was really great just because Hemsworth is great with the script. He actually pulled me aside one morning to talk to me about the Thor and Loki scenes. He pointed out, correctly so, that what I had was retreading a bit of what had already happened in Thor, Thor: The Dark World and The Avengers. We needed to have their relationship exhibit the amount of awareness that it should have after the audience spent so much time with them on screen. So, the Thor and Loki stuff is also some of my favorite. [“A Talk With THOR: RAGNAROK’s Eric Pearson”]

But that’s how, after Hemsworth’s tips, he describes Loki and Thor’s situation:

As the villains in the cinematic universe go, Loki is far and away considered the best by fans. Now you’ve got to bring forward his humor a little more with Hela acting as the main antagonist. What was it like reconciling all the history that Thor and Loki have while there’s another big bad threatening their world? Pearson: We find Loki in a different headspace at the beginning of the movie. Since Thor: The Dark World he’s been ruling Asgard as Odin as he’s always wanted. He’s on sort of a villainous vacation while in a role that plays to his narcissism. So, he’s mostly off his world conquering villain agenda already at the beginning of the film. Plus, Thor and Loki have had so many interactions, and alliances, and betrayals. They’ve been each others’ nemeses for so long that even they’re a little exhausted by themselves. It’s almost like the fatigue of dealing with each other allows this terminator like force of Hela to just walk in. They’re divided so she conquers. [“A Talk With THOR: RAGNAROK’s Eric Pearson”]

Thor and Loki has been each others’ nemeses for so long?

They started having an argument in “Thor” that’s placed in 2011 and that lasted basically 1 day before Loki fell into the void. They saw each other again the following year in “The Avengers” and argued for what? 2 days? Then Loki gets jailed for a year and in “Thor: The Dark World” they’re on the same page, allied against Malekith! Thor believes Loki dead and discover he’s not in 2017, when “Thor: Ragnarok” takes place!

(Now, whoever is about to say they actually have a story of Loki trying to kill Thor and tries to mention this scene to me:

Valkyrie: He did try to kill me. Thor: Yes, me too. On many, many occasions. There was one time when we were children, he transformed himself into a snake, and he knows that I love snakes. So, I went to pick up the snake to admire it and he transformed back into himself and he was like, "Yeah, it's me!" And he stabbed me. We were eight at the time.

...can either accept the short explanation that this scene is a retcon of Thor and Loki's relation or read the long explanation with all the official sources that explains how this is a retcon as prior to “Thor: Ragnarok” the canon was that Thor and Loki were loving brothers until “Thor” happened. That movie is meant to be the start of their fighting, for crying out loud.)

They have a total of 3 days of actively being on each others’ throats. This exhausted them? Even if we consider the full year in which Thor was aware Loki was alive and jailed, we’re talking of people that lives for centuries and a jailed Loki can’t really be considered at Thor’s throat.

So no, if “Thor: Ragnarok” had followed the original script, it wouldn’t have been canon compliant all the same… but Marvel wasn’t interested in protecting canon from the get-go and let Waititi free to create ‘his own thing’…

Waititi: I was lucky enough they didn’t force me to acknowledge things- there were certain things in the film, like the play, which makes fun of the scene in The Dark World where Loki dies, but there’s a point to that play, sort of to recap what happened, but also to tell the audience, “This is not what you think it’s going to be, this film is not going to be a continuation of that. It’s its own thing, and what you think you expect from this film ends at this play. [“Empire Podcast Spoiler Special: Thor: Ragnarok with Taika Waititi”]

…so really, I doubt the pressured Pearson into keeping the old scripts into consideration when writing his own.

As for Thor… the guy in the first part of “Thor” was presented as someone who absolutely loved fighting for the sake of fighting, which, I think, would have made him thrilled to fight in Sakaar, hadn’t it been for the fact they wouldn’t have paid him proper respect.

However, credits when it’s due, the second part of “Thor” is all about him abandoning this mindset. There were cut scenes in Thor which even showed how Thor refused to start a fight over being called ‘princess’ by an earthling just to show he had grown up and wasn’t anymore someone who would jump at the first chance to have a fight. “Thor: The Dark World” is also about him trying to avoid involving Asgard in a fight. So in theory Thor has stopped being someone chaotic and savage by… 6 years.

(I’m trying to preted “Thor: Ragnarok - A New Story” which is a tale included in the Junior Novel at the hands of Steve Behling and that, among other things, depicted Thor as a warmongrel again, is not part of the canon.)

On the opposite side Loki has never been savage or chaotic, he’s elegant, well organized, plans forward and, unless he’s in a deep emotional storm, remains calm and controlled.

I would argue also he’s not lawless either as, although he has broken some laws, he doesn’t wish for a world with no rules. Even when in charge of Asgard he didn’t let it turn into nobody’s land but still organized and ruled it. So really, that improvisation was mostly out of nowhere.

“Thor: Ragnarok” merely decided to retcon Loki and Marvel allowed it because they wanted to kill him in “Avengers: Infinity war” without fans to make the same fuss they did in “Thor: The Dark World” that forced them to change the ending.

Not that they succeeded as fans rejected the “Avengers: Infinity war” death too, but whatever, that’s Marvel for you.

#loki #thor #thor odinson #loki odinson #ask #9 worlds study #taika waititi #mcu thor ragnarok #mcu thor #mcu thor the dark world #christopher yost #eric pearson #mcu avengers infinity war

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gotmilk5101520 · 4 years ago

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Trollhunters: Tales of Arcadia Watch Episode 7 To Catch a Changeling

How to catch a changeling for idiots.

“All right”

“Do your worst”

The Sword of Daylight. A weapon to kill trolls and cutting watermelon.

“What is this mockery?” Me seeing stupid shit.

“You want to take it for a spin?”

*Cries in Troll*

Yeah, no one will notice.

“Ridiculous garment” Agree.

“Sorry. Draal was training Jim”

“Draal?” “Training?”

“Yeah, he sorta made a home in my basement to look out for the place”

“Of course. When a troll is defeated in combat, it’s completely natural for them to take refuge in the victor’s domicile” So, this happened before?

And it’s gone.

“It was, eh... It was out of focus, and i did forget to turn on the flash” Once again, i went back.

And the flash was on.

Have some Jim is done with this bushigal face.

“I’ve not left the Heartstone in a century” This is what it’s like to be force to go somewhere, cause they say it’ll be worth it. But it’s really not. Wow Vendel is becoming the most relatable character in this series.

“I hate conspiracies”

“That is why i am dedicated to rooting them out” If Trump hired Blinky to root out all the conspiracies of him Blinky will end up making them worse for Trump. #LetTrumphireBlinky

“If it’s everyone, it must be a conspiracy!” I would say Donald Trump, but that would be insult to Blinky.

“Later”

“Oh, no. Claire”

“Claire? A changeling?” Changeling Claire au.

“No. When i thought i was gonna die, i wrote Claire a letter, too, and told her everything”

“Everything?’

“Everything” And what is this “Everything” you speak of? What did you write?

“There you are!” Mission: Avoid Claire. Mission Fail.

“You didn’t run into Miss. Janeth yet, did you?”

“Is she mad i couldn’t make rehearsal yesterday?

“Something kinda came up”

“Heh heh” Good of the episode to put flashbacks in for me, so i don’t have to do it myself. Also Jim implies that last episode happened yesterday (Out of universe, yeah it did) But i thought about it and today would be Monday, and yesterday was Sunday. Jim and Draal’s fight happened on a school day meaning that it was Friday. Jim and Toby getting arrested and Jim making the letters were on a Thursday, and Jim and Toby finding out about Nomura was a Wednesday. And then the school trip to the museum was a Tuesday.

“Steve filled in. That’s what understudies are for, right?”

“Uh, you haven’t heard?

“Steve isn’t the understudy anymore. You are”

“She’s tired of you never showing up”

“So she made Steve Romeo. And trust me, Steve isn’t happy about it either”

“As i was saying, every algebraic equation requires balance”

“Not unlike, say, actors in an ensemble!”

“For instance”

“Every piece of this equation plays an important role”

“That is, unless variable X”

“is a zero”

“X has no role”

“X doesn’t show up”

“X lets the equation down”

“Then, the entire play-”

“I mean, equation- falls part!”

“It becomes impossible!”

“Mr. Lake”

“How would you solve this mathematical problem”

Yeah i’m at a lost.

“Promoting Steve to Romeo wasn’t your idea. Plus, he’s been trying to leave” “Tell me about it. After class he told me off. Steve told me off. Steve. Of all people”

“And, honestly, i’d rather be on stage with you”

I’ve seen that face before. Marinette made that face, too, when Adrien touched her shoulder at the end of The Evillustrator.

New meme template.

“So, we find another changeling”

“Stop saying that so loudly”

“Do you mind?”

“Whatever” Like i said, his name is Changeling.

“Ailment or curse?”

“Oi, numbskull! I;m supposed to answer it!”

“But i already did answer it” Wait are Rot and Gut like one troll sharing a body or no?

“You’re gonna need a gaggletack”

“Unfortunately, you see, we’re a bit short on those. Very hard to get”

“But i got a bag of them right here”

“What in the world? If you’ll excuse us for one moment”

“Ey, what are you doing? I’m trying to drive up the price over here”

“I thought we were trying to help these nice lads” Rot doesn’t understand Capitalism. Good boy.

“Gaggletack?”

“Rare artifact”

“Exceedingly rare. An object of great mystery”

“It’s a horseshoe”

“Made of pure iron”

“Why would you put such a precious thing on a horse’s foot?” Great, what other things are “Rare artifacts” to trolls?

“Beware. Changelings are swapped with their human counterparts at birth. So, it is likely these troll-pretenders have dwelt amongst you for decades”

“They could be anyone”

“Used car salesmen”

“Tax collectors”

“Television executives”

“Donald Trump”

“Yes, especially Donald Trump”

Nope.

“Shall i hear more, or shall i speak-”

“Steve!”

“Hey! Who did that? And can i leave the play now?” “No”

Another new meme template.

Nope, nope, and nope.

“You, uh, try this out on Mr. Strickler?”

“Come on. You really think he is one?”

Yes.

So close.

“Here you go, Mr. Strickler. Here’s your horseshoe back”

“Thank you, Miss. Nunez, but that belongs to Mr. Lake”

“Oh. Well that would explain the flying horseshoes” Wait “Flying horseshoes”? You mean Claire noticed the horseshoe that hit Steve earlier?

“So not going to ask” Jim should look on the bright side of this. Claire touched the gaggletack, that means she’s not a changeling, and that the real reason she invited him to her house was not to secretly kill him. Oh wait. That’s not till later.

“Claire” “Still here” When people forget you’re here too. Trust me, i know that feeling.

“You’re still coming home with me, right?”

“Oh, right!”

“Claire and i are gonna go too her house... for math stuff”

Toby is surprised by how that escalated quickly. And it’s not even the second half of season 1 yet.

Series creator, director of The Shape of Water, and the man that said “Monster Fucker Rights” Guillermo Del Toro. Voicing a dentist.

“For the glory of Merlin”

“Daylight is mine to make babies ogle”

“He really likes you” Jim would be a great dad. Wink wink Claire. Wink wink.

“Wonder what he’s thinking about right now” “No idea what’s going through my brothers mind right now” “I’m going to get kidnapped next episode and you will never see me again for a long time. Goo goo”

‘Wow, this novocaine you numbed my mouth with is really strong”

“I can’t even feel my hands”

“That’s because i didn’t inject you with novocaine, dear”

“I hit you up with a potent paralyzer”

“Why would you do that?”

“Well, it’s not everyday someone comes in with a gaggletack” The moment i saw this.

“Why don’t i take that, sweetie? It’s not very hygienic” I knew she was a changeling.

“See, the equation only contains powers of X that are non-negative integers”

“Does that makes sense”

“Is it supposed to?”

“Nah. That’s why it’s called algebra” Algebra never makes sense. It makes Kingdom Hearts make sense. #ReplacealgebrawithKingdomHearts

“I realized you’ve got a lot more going on than people think”

“I do”

“I do?” You may now kiss the bride. Okay guys, Jim and Claire are married.

“You can’t just write a letter like this and not expect a conversation. If you had written something like “I’ve most likely been slaughtered by a troll” I would’ve said: Understandable, have a nice day” “Wait, really?” “No! You are lucky, you’re cute and everything” “I... Uh... It’s... Wait what?” “Nothing”

“You have to battle monsters?”

“Saving the world in which we know? What monsters are you battling? Are they fuckable?” “Well- Wait what?” “Uh... What monsters are you battling?”

Have some Claire being done with her (Not yet, almost, but not really, not for another season) boyfriend’s bushigal.

“I mean, we all have stuff we’ve got to go through”

“But are you in some kind of trouble?”

“I... Yeah! Metaphoric”

“I was...”

“In an exploring stage”

“Not successful” Let it be known that Claire thinks Jim has depression, if not suicidal tendencies. And i did not get this from the wiki or TvTropes.

“There’s some sentimental stuff at the end which i thought was... kinda sweet” Umm. Can we read the full letter? I want to know what he said.

“Really?”

“If you ever need someone to talk to about “the monsters” you can talk to me”

“It can be our secret” Yeah. There are going to be a lot of secrets you two will be sharing. Also, you two could’ve kissed here as well. But whatever you tried i guess.

“Halt, changeling!”

“Or else my giant friend will tear you limb from limb!”

“Maybe later” These things always happens.

“Oh, it burns!”

“Oh, it’s just a painting” Paintings don’t kill trolls confirm.

Huh. After an entire episode of using it on everyone, and making me think it didn’t work, it actually does work.

“What’s that?” “Laughing gas”

*Laughs in Troll*

“Laughs in Troll*

“Hello? Wait how did you get my number?”

“Hey! What’s up, Nunez?”

“Hey Colby”

“Someone named Woby?” Claire can’t remember Toby’s name.

“Fighting monsters again?”

“Who are you, Jim Lake” Claire is getting sus.

Imagine walking into this.

“Perish, you worm!” “Wait, before you kill me, i have something to ask. You know Nomura, right?” “Yes” “Well she has a history with a troll named Draal. Do you know what their history is?” “No, this is the first time i’m hearing about it” “Oh, okay. Thank you. You can die now” “You’re welcome. Wait what?”

“Do you have some magic artifact that can clean this mess?”

“Yes. I believe it’s called a Tobias” Translation: “Clean it yourself”

“It appears Nomura has gotten her way”

“Another changeling has been chosen”

“And look who it is” “Enrich? Enquran? Enquin?” “Oh, for the love of. It says Enrique!” “Oh. Who’s that?” “Claire Nunez’s little brother!” “Which one is Claire again?” “The one you haven’t met!” “Well no wonder i don’t know who that is. I never met them”

Anyone is a changeling. Maybe i’m a changeling.

So who’s the worst babysitter? Jim or Marinette?

#trollhunters #milk watches trollhunters #tales of arcadia

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cravingmarvel · 5 years ago

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Roman Nightmare - mente di pietra [2]

Pairing: Mob!Bucky x Fem!Reader

Warnings: Implied smut, alcohol consumption, charming bucky (if I forgot anything please let me know!) Btw, this series includes a lot of OCs!

Summary: It all started with a hook up, then another one and then Bucky was done for. He fell in love headfirst, no warning and no end to it anytime soon. But Y/n has a boyfriend and a secret and a wedding to attend in Rome. Despite giving him enough reasons to stay away, the two of them are like magnets, always finding their way to each other, wanted or not.

Have fun reading and please like, comment and reblog! Tell me what you think.

Chapter Two - mente di pietra

Bucky Barnes sat in his home office, listening to a report from Chase who was stationed in Brooklyn, going on about a weapon delivery caught by one of his men. He was listening briefly, but his mind was otherwise occupied. It’s been nearly a month since the one night stand with y/n and Bucky just couldn’t wrap his mind around the fact that she hasn’t tried to reach out to him, something that seemingly happens with all the women he shares a bed with for a night.

He glanced over to his phone, checking for new messages, but only the unimportant ones appeared. He momentarily forgot not only Chase, but also the fact that she had no way of knowing the mob bosses’ number. This became a routine over the three and a half weeks, checking his phone, e-mails and even asking Sam, his main correspondent, if she tried to find him.

Sam, understandably, rolled his eyes every time Bucky asked. Sam is his friend first and so his behaviour was excused, but still Bucky got mad at him for not having the answer he wants. Sooner or later Y/n would want to reach out, he reassured himself. He can’t go after her, that’s just not who he is. But somehow his brain kept flashing images of her eyes, her soft skin underneath his palms. He tried to shake the visuals out, locking them away, but there was no use. If he could just see her one more time, graze his fingers through her hair one more time, he would be satisfied.

The women he has around him tend to be a little clingy, lingering around him whenever he’s out with his friends. The ones he takes home have a habit of staying the night until the morning arrives, hoping for breakfast in bed with the attractive bachelor. Bucky doesn’t worry about that really, he’s out of bed before they realize.

Every morning after, Clint, one of Bucky’s most loyal men, escorts the beauties out, bringing them home. Over the years Clint has memorized this routine, already holding his hand out for the girls to put a piece of paper in it with their number on it hoping Bucky will call.

He never does.

As Chase ended the skype call, Bucky leaned back in is leather chair, turning it side to side, before deciding that he had enough. If she’s not reaching out to him, he will reach out to her.

Meanwhile, y/n sat in the newly opened café with her friends going over a presentation that was due for the next meeting on Monday. Though they were hard at work, none of them could help the conversation to drift off to non-work-related topics.

As the late evening approached, Chelsea asked for the other girls to get ready for their Friday night outing at her place, but Nina declined. “My parents have set up a date for me.” She lowered her head and y/n placed a hand on her back in pity.

Nina was truly the child of the family, being the younger one of five siblings, all married. She couldn’t help but struggle to find a partner. Not that she wasn’t desirable, she was plagued by shyness. Any man that approached her was met with stuttering words, head hanging low and few words. So, her parents took it upon themselves to lead her into the arms of a suitable companion, though none of the men ever suck around.

“Who is it now, a guy they met at church?” Franzi asked, not with poison, but concern. “Again.” She added, rolling her eyes.

Nina nodded her head not taking her eyes off her thighs, which were covered by the pastel pink skirt she wore ever so often. She never despised her parents for it, looking at it as her parents looking out for her. “Look, it’s not a shame that you’re not married, Franzi is the only one here tied down.” Chelsea spoke, looking over to Franzi who nodded her head. “And besides, you have a job you pour your heart and soul into. The time will come.”

Nina smiled shyly, cheeks turning pink.

While Bucky was focused on y/n, she was focused on her friends, but that didn’t mean that he didn’t cross her mind though. Her friends ever so often reminding her of him and that was enough for her. They asked questions which y/n felt like she couldn’t answer without consent.

After hugging Nina goodbye and wishing her good luck on her date, they walked over to Chelsea’s apartment.

Walking into the stylish place, Chelsea, Franzi and y/n took off their jackets and shoes ready to tackle their outfits, hair and make-up. They each sprinted up the stairs to Chelsea’s bedroom, giddy with excitement for the following hours.

Chelsea was in charge of picking out the dresses for each one, while y/n took over the make-up and hair department. Franzi on the other hand sat on the bed too engulfed by checking her cycle. “Y’know, maybe you should stop drinking if you and Ryan are really serious about this whole baby thing.” Y/n said, looking over her shoulder while letting the curl in her hand fall gently on Chelsea’s back.

Franzi made no effort tearing her eyes away from her phone screen, squinting her eyes. “You really are the least fun one of the group, aren’t you?”

Chelsea started laughing loudly throwing her head back, making y/n nearly burn her scalp with the curling rod. “I think you forgot who had a one-night stand.”

“Yeah like what, a month ago?” Franzi looked y/n in the eyes through the mirror without lifting her head.

Y/n scoffed focusing on the task at hand, finishing up the last pieces of hair and then running her fingers through the curls breaking them apart. Chelsea sprayed a little hairspray while y/n unplugged the curling rod.

Bucky stood not so far away from the bar, his eyes flicking to the door every so often. Sam, Steve and Clint stood opposite him, forming a circle, none of them were sure what this was about, but they just ran with it, hoping that she would show up any minute now.

A few women tried to push their way through to him, hoping for a drink spend on his name and maybe a lot more as the night lingers. Bucky spared them no glance though, mind focused on finding her in the crowd. He wasn’t sure about what he would do once she did show up, never in his life has he pursued a woman more than two days and most if not all girls practically slept on his doorstep waiting for him to open the door.

His hand shook around the glass he was holding, earning a few confused glances from his friends. They’ve seen him nervous before, but only when trouble starts to arise. Seeing their boss, the one who shot people straight in the head so shaken by a woman was indeed a strange sight to see.

As the three girls walked into the place, the bar was already packed with people, more than usual Franzi said to them. They worked their way through the crowd, the music overpowered by chatter, as they reached the copper bar. They all ordered their usual shot and raised their glasses to the weekend.

“Why the hell is it so full?” Franzi asked annoyed as a group of rather young girls pushed their way past her, each one bumping into her back without an apology.

“Because once a month they have happy hour and today is that day, Franzi.” Chelsea answered her question, knitting her eyebrows together, wondering just how young the girls are.

“Good, I thought the bartender was flirting with me. I swear to god, when Ryan and I have a kid, we will make sure they don’t go near a club until they’re twenty-one.”

While Chelsea and Franzi talked, y/n turned her focus to the crowd, not that she found their chatting boring, but she didn’t find it very interesting either. Her eyes roamed around the room lazily not focussing on anything specific, until her eyes found a pair of very familiar blue ones. She saw Bucky smiling at her, a tumbler glass in one of his hands.

Y/n turned her head away quickly earning the attention from her friends. “Bucky is here.” She whispered as if he could hear her over the noises, interrupting Franzi.

Franzi and Chelsea turned their heads trying to fid him in the crowd, which turned out to not be so difficult. “Yeah, we can tell.” Franzi smiled as Bucky reached the trio.

“Hey.” He spoke, addressing everyone, but his eyes were focused on y/n as she turned around to face him.

“Hey, Bucky. This is Franzi and Chelsea.” Y/n introduced him, and he politely shook their hands. He initiated a conversation, but y/n couldn’t wrap her head around the fact that he was here, talking to her friends.

“Can I steal you away for a moment?” Bucky caught her attention, placing his free hand in the small of her back, gently pulling her away. Y/n nodded and let him lead her through the crowd.

They reached his friends and Bucky introduced them, still keeping his hand steady on her back. Y/n smiled at the three her nerves overflowing asking herself why he was introducing her to his friend group.

“So, what do you do?” Sam asked as he took a long sip from his Bellini con Fragola. “Job wise.” He added.

“Ah, well I work for Stark. Not much to say about that though.” Y/n laughed uncomfortably, looking over to her two friends, who were watching cautiously. The four friends started chatting about Tony Stark, knowing him very personally, but y/n couldn’t really find any way into the conversation.

Franzi and Chelsea noticed the loneliness of their friend beckoning for her to come back. Y/n excused herself from the group, earning a rather confused look from Bucky. She squeezed herself back into the mass of people reaching her two friends with confusion.

Bucky watched after her as she sat back down at the bar and as there were more people swarming in, he decided it would be better to sit down than to stand within the crowd. He beckoned for Sam, Steve and Clint to follow him towards the table at the wall, putting on his rather mean face, ready to scare away the teens sitting on the red velvet benches.

They approached the table and immediately the five people sitting at it turned their heads to Bucky. Four of them looked terrified, but one kept a stern face. He was definitely drunk, Bucky thought, and he almost let the smirk give away his amusement. “Go.” Bucky said without breaking eye contact with the young man.

Everyone but him got up immediately and he was pulled by the girl who sat next to him, her hand firmly on his arm. “C’mon, Brad!” She hissed through her teeth clearly knowing better than to disobey the Bucky Barnes.

Brad got up slowly as Sam and Steve slit onto the bench opposite him, giving up the fight. Bucky and Clint sat down, and Bucky’s eyes roamed around looking for y/n.

Bucky’s jaw clenched watching a man talk to her, laughing as he finished talking. Bucky wasn’t jealous, he convinced himself, that’s just not who he is. He never got jealous, but then again her would never seek out to find a woman let alone introduce her to his friends.

To him it looked as if she was having a lot of fun, but what slipped through his hardened gaze is the fact that she was laughing out of pity.

He watched as y/n slit off the bar stool, rummaging through her purse as she disappeared through the crowd and re-emerged outside the bar. Bucky quickly stood up walking out after her, ignoring Sam as he yelled after him.

Bucky felt his confidence rise as the fresh air hit his face, breathing in deeply. “I can drop you off at home if you’d like.”

Y/n turned; cigarette positioned in between her lips with her lighter in hand. She was clearly more intoxicated, judging by the unsteady posture. “No, thank you.” She smiled back at him.

Bucky chuckled darkly. He could tell she knew what he meant, but he wasn’t quite sure what stopped her form accepting his offer.

Truth was, y/n had no clue what to say to him, she was drunk but not as much as the last time they saw each other. Bucky moved closer to her slowly, holding on to her waist as he took the cigarette away from her lips throwing it into the trash next to them. He leaned into the side of her face and she sensed his cologne better this time around, although she wasn’t sure he even wore some a month ago. “How about we go to my place then?”

Bucky lowered his head, trailing kisses down her neck to her collarbone. A quiet moan escaped her lips, fuelling Bucky’s ego. He held onto her waist tighter as she subconsciously nodded her head. She could feel his fingers digging into her side.

Bucky lead y/n to the familiar black car and opened the door for her. Y/n texted Chelsea what was going on and wished them a fun time.

The car came to a stop and Bucky climbed out of the car opening the door for y/n. She took his outstretched hand and as soon as she straightened her back, her eyes fell on the mansion. It was small compared to other mansions she’d seen online, a cosy in between of extravagance and family home. Bucky lead her closer to the white double doors, the mesmerised look on her face brought a smile to his.

As soon as the doors were opened, Bucky lifted her up into his arms and carried her up the stairs to his bedroom.

Around midnight, Bucky had no intention to sleep just yet. He tightened his grip around her waist, burying his face into her hair inhaling the soft tones of strawberry. He relaxed next to her, his eyes following the curve of her lips, to her cheekbones, the delicate rising and falling of her back. He gently ran his thumb over her cheek, placing a kiss to the crown of her head. Bucky exhaled deeply knowing that she would go home in the morning, but an evil part of his heart wanted her to stay, no just tomorrow, but every tomorrow after that.

Only problem was that he had no idea how to admit it to himself nor to the one laying securely in his arms, right where he needed her to be.

Y/n lifted the covers off her body, looking over to Bucky sound asleep still. She put her dress back on and went to grab her purse, but the darkness made it impossible to find. Y/n quietly shuffled around the room trying to decipher where her purse could be, but knew it was impossible to find anything in this room with no light.

The door squeaked as she opened and closed it with a click. She walked down the stairs into the small foyer spotting the security guard next to the door, the same one that drove them here. As she walked towards him, he held out the purse she was missing, saying that she left it in the car.

“Would it be possible if you could call a cab for me?” Y/n spoke quietly, but the bodyguard shook his head, telling her that she will be driven home. Y/n nodded her head and immediately heard footsteps approaching.

“Leaving so soon?” Clint spoke as he walked out of the house, Y/n following him.

“You’re Ben, right?”

“Clint.”

Y/n nodded her head, red tinting her cheeks as she climbed into the backseat. Her phone buzzed in her purse and as she read the message her heart picked up beating faster.

Harry:

Hey Babe!!! I just landed. How ab lunch tomorrow?

***

Masterlist || Next

#bucky #Bucky Barnes #mob!bucky #mob!bucky x reader #mob!bucky x you #mob!bucky barnes x reader #bucky x you #bucky x reader #bucky barnes x reader #bucky barnes x you #bucky barnes x y/n #bucky fluff #bucky barnes fluff #bucky fic #bucky fanfic #bucky barnes fanfiction #bucky barnes fic #roman nightmare

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kingofdirtandnothing · 4 years ago

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@polyfacetious because of course I reblog a meme and then do something else entirely

“You know.” Tony slides into the booth across from him, vinyl seat squeaking at the weight of him. Thankfully, John already asked the waitress to leave the coffee pot behind, and a second cup. That means Tony can go ahead and pour himself a cup without having to make nice. No one should have to be polite at three in the morning. It’s unnatural.

“You’ve really got to talk to your lady friend about boundaries.” Tony sees that wince, but John’s a smart guy. Tony wouldn’t be offering this to him over coffee if things were bad.

Or maybe Tony’s bad meter is so out of whack that he can’t even tell anymore. “Because if she breaks in while Peter is there, he’s going to freak out. And nobody wants that.” Especially Tony. They’ve worked hard to get where they are. Together, with no one in between them.

Last thing he needs is DCI Luther’s batshit girlfriend implying that Tony is fucking around on his number one guy.

(Tony wouldn’t. They made a promise. No one else in between.)

“And really? Us?” Tony makes a face before he breaks into snickers, sipping his coffee. Phone on the table, he absently flicks through apps until the signal jammer is running. Tabloid photos wouldn’t do either one of them any good, regardless of their good intentions.

“You’re not my type, pal.” Because if ever there was a walking, talking (taller, prettier) mirror image of Tony Stark, it was John Luther. Too smart for his own good, too married to his work to make marriage work, too little care for his own health.

Too many people who wanted to blame them for their problems.

The day Tony met him, there was a woman in the street brandishing a missing poster like a weapon, and blaming John for it. (Later, Tony finds out that John arrested her pimp of a father. Good to know crazy was the same on both sides of the pond.)

#ch: tony #polyfacetious | luther #polyfacetious #v: love is like #whoops my hand slipped

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fanficsrusz · 5 years ago

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Better late than never - john wick oneshot

A/n: so this was requested by @queen-of-snowflakes and im not sure how i feel about it. Ive had to re-upload it again because the order was messed up so yhh sorry for any confusion

_________________________________________

Holding two handguns to her chest, y/n hid behind a cement wall. She tried to calm her heavy breathing in order to listen out for any movement beyond the wall. Hearing a noise come from her left, she moved to the right "bang" a deep voice said pointing a gun to her head. Y/n looked up annoyed and dropped her guns to her side. " you fail that every time" the man continued. The man in front of her was John wick aka baba yaga, a notorious assassin who had taken it upon himself to train y/n as his apprentice. Y/n wasn't just anyone though, she was the niece of Winston, the owner of the Continental. John had promised Winston to train her as well as he could so she could look after herself since no one was safe in the assassin world. Sure y/n and john had gone on various missions together and they worked pretty well alongside each other, but y/n always wanted to improve so every week they would train in the training room winston had built for her underneath the hotel.

"ok…. Lets go again" she said beginning to walk away before john grabbed her arm. "hold on y/n. I think we've done enough for one day" she looked back at john and into his eyes. She hated to admit it but she had feelings for this man. Well, if anyone spent the last few years with a hot guy then they were bound to end up falling in love. Y/n only stopped staring when john started to walk towards his gun bag "beside, your uncle has called a meeting for us which starts in……" he looked at his watch "45 minutes" he turned to y/n before walking out of the training room. "always with the meetings" y/n groaned to herself. She always hated the meetings because it meant he wanted to send john and herself on some elaborate mission and always ended up giving her a talk about keeping herself safe. It was as if she didn't kill people for a living and was about to go on a date with some random guy.

Y/n made her way to her room where she got changed into jeans and a shirt before making her way to the meeting room. Pushing open the doors her uncle came up to her and hugged her. "y/n. Beautiful as always" she smiled before kissing his cheek and sitting next to John, who was already there.

"ok so apparently Joon, a prince in korea, has broken continental rules and conducted business on safe grounds" he paushed as he walked around the room and y/n looked at john confused. "so? Just kill him. Why are you telling us? " she asked and winston just laughed. "well he's gone into hiding and we think we know where he might be…." he stopped again walking around the table and sat down in front of the two. "..... We think he might be attending a ball in russia. Its just some stupid annual thing that one of the politicians throw and Since joon has had no contact with either of you before, you can get close enough to take care of him" y/n laughed as she leant forward "Julie Andrews style or al pacino?" her smile soon dropped as the men just looked at her confused but she could see the small smirk on johns face "my humour is wasted on you people" she sulked and sat back again. "right. Well you will leave in a few days for russia and attend the ball under the identity of a newly married couple. You will be mrs Lisa Martins" he looked at y/n and then turned to john "and you mr Dean martins" he paused before standing up and y/n knew what was going to happen next. "you two have to be careful and not get yourself killed……" before he could continue, y/n interrupted him with a groan "yeah yeah we know. Right i dont know about you john but im going to get a drink" and with that y/n left the room. "she turns more and more into her mother with each day" winston laughed and john just watched as the girl walked away before standing "i should really go keep an eye on her" john said and winston waved him off.

Walking into the bar john saw y/n sitting at the bar with a few empty shot glasses around her. He laughed to himself before walking over to her. "how can you already be drunk" he asked and waved the bartender over ordering his own drink "shut it wick". A few hours later and y/n was no longer functioning properly, laughing at random jokes she told a still sober john. She suddenly stopped and stared at john intently for a few second let her mouth speak her thoughts. "I love you john" she said suddenly and john just laughed, "I love you too" he replied taking a sip of his drink and y/n stood up and walked over to him and straddled his lap "y/n what are you doing?" shock evident in his voice as he held his hands up to avoid any physical contact. "you don't understand john. I want you." she growled looking at him through hooded eyes and john pushed her off and onto the seat next to them. "y/n you're a child compared to me. I'm old enough to be your father. I don't see you like that im sorry" the words lingered in the air as she took them in and she suddenly felt sick. 'oh no. What have i done' she thought as she leaned over and puked before the alcohol consumed her completely causing her to pass out, john barely stopped her from hitting her head on the table. He picked her up and began to carry her to her room. Once in her room he placed her in bed and looked at her "what am i going to do with you" he said before walking away to his own room.

The morning sun lit up the room and y/n's head spun as she sat up in bed. She tried to remember the events of last night but could only remember a few things but it was all kind of blurry. But then it hit her like a wall. 'oh no no no no no' she buried her head into her hands and laid back down again as the memories of her confession came flooding back. And that's where she spent the next couple of days avoiding john at all costs, she couldn't face him. How on earth was she going to play a couple with him after what she had told him?.

The departure day soon arrived and y/n tried to make little to no eye contact with john as she could keeping silent all the way to russia and soon they were checking into their hotel room. As john opened the door to their shared room, a letter was on their bed explaining the details of the ball they would attend that night. 'arrive separately and dress to improve'. Y/n didn't even pay attention to the note and made her way to the bathroom to start getting ready and john left. He had spent enough time with her to know when she was in a bad mood, he would just ask for a separate room.

Y/n sat in a limo that winston arranged for her and she double checked she had all her weapons. Gun? Check. Knife? Check. Spare gun? Double check. She felt uncomfortable in the dress that winston also provided. It was a typical princess dress. It was a royal blue floor length ball gown that hugged her waist perfectly and her hair was in a simple updo. No one would ever suspect that someone so beautiful would be a killer.

She pulled up outside the venue and various women walked into the building. She sighed before getting out the car with the help of an employee who led her inside and told her to wait in a line with other women. She had no idea why she was there. "hey" she called to the women in front of her "why are we stood here?" the women turned and gave her a look of confusion "we always do this? You know one by one we walk down the staircase? It's kinda like a show for the men" she said it so calmly and turned away. 'great' she thought 'I'm being placed out on display for some chauvinistic pricks'. She closed her eyes and watched as the line got shorter and shorter and the closer she got, the more anxious she got. This would be the first time she would see john in almost a week and after the confession. Y/n shook her head and concentrated 'im here for a mission. Relax' and as soon as she relaxed her fake name was called. "Mrs Lisa Martin" she stepped out onto the long staircase and she instantly saw john at the bottom.

John looked up when he heard y/n's name called and practically choked on his own breath. She looked stunning. After what she said to him the other day he couldn't stop thinking about her, the time he had spent with her and how he had been in love with her from the second they met all those years ago, but he had learnt from experience that it was never a good idea for him to love someone. "hey man your wife is hot" a young man next to him pointed out and john ignored him walking forward to meet y/n at the bottom of the staircase.

"you look stunning" he whispered "yhh well you clean up nicely yourself" she faked a laugh. The normally relaxed air between the two felt awkward and y/n wished the earth would just swallow her whole at this point but she did have to admit that john looked extra good with his suit on and hair slicked back. "have you seen joon yet?" she asked trying to quickly change the conversation and he looped her arm with his in an attempt to look like they were in fact together as he began to walk around the hall. He nodded to a man in the corner. He was short and had hair that was covered in a hundred layers of gel. He also had two huge bodyguards standing next to him. As she looked up to him, he was already staring at her darkly. "seems like you've already captured his heart. Go and talk to him from what i heard he sleeps with any old harlot" john said and y/n looked shocked and wanted to hit him. The way he said it implied that she was worthless and it crushed her heart even more. Is that how he thought of her ?. Of course he didn't. He just wanted to get the mission over with and had chosen his words stupidly. " I'll meet you in the bedroom on the 3rd floor lure him up there" and john left. Before she could even think of a reply, his spot next to her was occupied by joon. "good evening mrs martin. You look beautiful" he growled looking at her up and down and she had to stop herself gagging at his action. "thank you. You also look….. Handsome" she struggled on the last bit but he smirked.

After an hour or so of none stop flirting, y/n was ready to pull the gun out there and then and end it all. "what do you say we head upstairs?" he whispered into her ear and y/n sighed knowing that she could get the mission over with soon. She faked a smile and nodded. Joon leaned over to his bodyguards and whispered something before dragging her off. "wait….. Let's go to the 3rd floor bedroom" she said quickly and he looked confused "no one will be able to hear us there" she thought of the excuse quickly and he must have bought it because he began to pull her to the third floor.

Pushing open the door to the room, joon practically jumped on the girl and began to tug at her dress. 'wow this guy has no idea' she thought and played along with his game. Her eyes caught sight on john in the dark bathroom as he began to make his way out and towards joon.

Pushing the gun to the back of his head, joon stopped and looked down at y/n. "sorry. You shouldn't have broke Continental rules" she smirked "you bitc…." john pulled the trigger and blood went everywhere as joons dead body fell to the ground.

"yep thanks john" y/n said sarcastically wiping blood of her face and john helped her up. "come on we need to leave now". Y/n practically ripped the dress off before pulling on jeans and a shirt which she had john hide earlier. The gown was nice but impractical to do anything in.

The two made their way down to the street below as they heard shouts coming from the room they were just in but began to make their way back to the hotel, trying not to draw any unwanted attention to them. The mission was done and they could go home.

Once inside y/n began to pack and john stopped her. "are you mad at me?" he asked and y/n ignored him feeling tears in her eyes. "y/n" he pleaded and she turned to him "no john im not mad. You practically called me a slut knowing full well how I felt about you but im completely fine" the tears poured down her face as the sarcastic words left her mouth "what on earth are you talking about?" he asked and y/n laughed "oh sure 'i heard he sleeps with any old harlot' ring any bells'" she mocked him and john realised his mistake. "y/n i didnt mean it like….." john stopped when y/n slapped him. " i hate you john wick" she whispered before walking away. John grabbed her wrist, pulling her back. He stared at her in silence for a minute before pulling her into a deep kiss. At first she tried to push him off but soon relaxed into it. He pulled away from her before speaking again "ok i admit i used the wrong words but you know i didnt mean it like that. And after you told me how you felt the other day i realised something" he paused and y/n laughed again "what? That i'm a child?" this time john laughed "no. You are more of a women than someone twice your age. Yhh you moan about stupid things but when the time comes for it you know exactly what to do. You always know the right thing to say and i'm sorry i never noticed it before. I'm sorry I called you a child. I'm sorry I didn't realise I loved you sooner" y/n continued to cry but the tears turned into happy tears. "john" she whispered "do you mean that?" he pulled her closer "every word of it. You're the most beautiful, kindest badass ive ever met". Y/n leaned up to kiss him again and john smiled. "come on let's go home before they figure out who we were" john laughed and y/n buried her head into his chest as her heart fluttered at the thought of being with john.

#keanu reeves #john wick #keanu reeves x reader #keanu reeves x you #john wick oc #john wick x you #john wick x reader #john wick imagine #young keanu #keanucharlesreeves #keanuedit

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ellaintrigue · 5 years ago

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Imagine: it's been a long day for you, you drive home, kick off your shoes, eat some leftovers or maybe you picked up some hot food on your way home. Then you feel like some me-time so you hit up your favorite site of varying levels of nudity and fucking. You really like this one model who enticingly looks over her shoulders on all fours, leaving nothing to the imagination.

You've felt worked up for hours with job frustrations so you cum easily, pat your stomach and cock off with some tissues and then toss them at the trash can but one hits the floor anyway. Sigh.

THEN... this random woman bursts in your door hysterically! Holy fuck! You jolt upright and quickly yank your trousers up. Who is she?! She picks up your jizz soaked tissues and cradles them in her hands protectively, then starts to scream at you.

"THERE ARE HUNDREDS OF VIABLE LIVES RIGHT HERE! YOU ARE A WHORE! A MURDERER! A BABY KILLER! YOU HAVE NO RIGHTS TO THESE SPERM, THIS IS THE PROPERTY OF GOD! YOU WILL BURN IN HELL ON JUDGMENT DAY! SLUT!"

Congrats, you've met a pro-lifer... only it never happens this way, no one cares if a guy jerks off except for a few of the really nutty religious folks. And you can't compare ejaculation to abortion, of course. But this point is: to be so radical over what someone does with their body is fucking insane.

Abortion should not be a political issue in this day and age. It is someone's personal choice as to what they do with their body. Feminists will scream this until the day they die, me included. And I barely even touch politics anymore. I have enough stress in my life, and honestly, why the fuck does it matter what anyone thinks?

I'm pro second amendment. You hate guns? Fine, your choice. Immigration? Whatever, opinions are like assholes. LGBT? All for it but there can't be 70 different genders... come on y'all.

But the topic of abortion pops up in my face on a regular basis when talking to people. Because I go for people with the same kind of rural background as me I run into a lot of conservatives. Several years ago I labeled myself as conservative but then realized they had a lot of stereotypes on gender roles and were pro-life which I have never been. So I changed my label to conservative-libertarian.

I had always been kind of hateful to my liberal cousins and posted memes about folks with Trump derangement syndrome, blah blah. But in 2018 I was hit with a harsh reality check when my mom's FaceBook friends ripped me to shreds different times on the topics of rape and abortion. One guy wished physical harm on me for my pro-choice view and another made it clear that if women didn't want to get raped they should be responsible and not tempt men with short dresses, etc.

I thought the left was nutty... still do. But then it hit me, these angry people arguing with me are conservatives. And they are batshit, Bible-thumping crazy. I opened up my brain, stopped being rude to my cousins, and simplified my views to LIBERTARIAN, not that any label does me justice.

Like, why can't people just think outside the box and think for themselves? Generally it seems like liberals believe everything on CNN, and conservatives stick to decades-old biases on black people, gays, and women's rights.

As a result I can't find anyone with half a fucking brain. I either encounter staunch liberals that want to lynch Trump or dumbass redneck types with pro-life bumper stickers and too many guns. And it's not even the amount of guns, it's how they brag about them like they need a pile of weapons to make themselves men. My ex had around 16 guns but he didn't need to harp on about them or get political. They were his hobby and he loved hunting. Enough with the extremist activism.

Multiple times last year I would hit it off with rural Virginians since I was spending time there and then things would take an almost identical nose-dive every time. They would find out that I was a career woman that was never married and never had kids. They would find out I was a tomboy and liked old cars and trucks. Then it would get on the topic of children, they found out I didn't want kids and they either found out by my blog or something else that I was pro-choice, OR some would literally just ask "since you don't want children, what would you do if you got pregnant?" And my response was, and always will be: "I have been consistent with various forms of birth control since I became sexually active at age 18 but in the event something went wrong, I would get an abortion to ensure my mental and physical health and to keep the future that I want." Actually I give a more watered down, but polite version, but ALWAYS get the same response, IF they chose to respond instead of instantly blocking me:

Varying responses:

"You are a whore and a baby killer." "The Bible clearly states this is wrong." "You aren't a woman." "You deserve rape and anything bad that has ever happened to you." "You will burn in hell." "Your time will come on judgment day." "Pregnancy should be expected every time someone has sex... it is nature's way and should not be undone."

Now I know I may not be the most stable human on the planet but to me... THESE PEOPLE SOUND FUCKING NUTS. Sexist. And intolerant.

And looking back, I've really never had anything in common with conservatives except a love of the outdoors. I had a camo-wearing cliche as hell boss once and every time I felt sick to my stomach, every time I had a date with my then-boyfriend, every time I twitched. "OH YOU'RE PREGNANT."

"WHEN ARE Y'ALL GONNA HAVE A BABY?"

"WHY DON'T YOU WANT KIDS?"

"TRUST ME, YOU'LL GET PREGNANT ONE DAY."

I've never desired kids nor felt jealous of parents but the stigma of being a rural woman with no kids makes me straight up uncomfortable. As one of my cousins said to me, it's called a U-terus because U can do what you want with it. Well said.

I feel the safest when talking to them, honestly. They have husbands and children but I don't feel like a freak or the odd person out like conservatives like to imply. These are strong women who are good mothers and they're too confident in their own life choices to judge me on mine.

Overall, respect is key but obsolete...

#Rights #Feminist #Feminism #Pro choice #Womanhood

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feelingfredly · 5 years ago

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Keep Your Friends Close (And Your Family as Far Away as Possible)

(My contribution to Kitsunegeddon 2019)

Summary:

“Relatives are the worst friends, said the fox as the dogs took after him.” – Danish Proverb

Long lost relatives, yokai politics, magical turf wars… or just another day in Ichigo’s messed up life. He should never have taken up playing the shamisen.

Chapter 2: Strange Things Are Afoot at the Circle K(urosaki)

“Tadaima!” Ichigo called out as he dropped his wet gear in the genkan.

“Okaeri!” Yuzu stuck her head around the corner to the living room with a smile. “Ichi-nii! I was about to sit down to watch the newest episode of Princess Jellyfish. You want to watch it with me? I made popcorn.”

“Maybe next time. Where’s Karin?”

Yuzu made a face. “She’s still at soccer practice. Her coach wasn’t happy with their ‘work ethic’ during the last game, so they’re doing extra drills.”

“I thought they won?” Ichigo frowned and Yuzu shrugged.

“Apparently winning isn’t everything. Who knew?”

Ichigo shrugged back. “The world is full of mysteries.”

They stood like that for a second and then broke up laughing. Kurosakis would take winning over mysteries any day.

“So, you want to tell me why you’re all wet, or should I chalk it up to another one of the world’s mysteries?

Ichigo snorted. “Nothing that exciting. I was practicing my shamisen in the park and got caught in a sun shower. It wasn’t too bad, though. I managed keep the strings dry, and the breeze on the walk home helped.”

Yuzu smiled. “Oooh! I love kitsune no yomeiri. There’s something magical about that edge where two worlds mix. Much prettier than the gate to Hell, although I can’t remember that as well as I’d like. Still, it’s probably better this way. Fewer nightmares.”

Ichigo stared at her for a moment, surprised by her matter-of-fact attitude about being kidnapped and taken to Hell, but then this was Yuzu. Anyway, he’d prefer she never have nightmares at all. A faulty memory seemed a small price to pay.

“It’s strange that you mention weddings,” he pulled his thoughts back to the present. “I met someone while I was at the park. Nice older guy, but it was so weird. He said he was there for his granddaughter’s wedding, but when I came out of the little clearing where I’d been playing there wasn’t anyone there. Plus, to top it off, he said he recognized me, sort of. Said we were distant relatives through Mom’s side of the family. I didn’t even know Mom had relatives outside of Ishida’s family.”

Yuzu opened her mouth and Ichigo raised a hand to cut her off. “I did! I invited them to the house as soon as he told me. He said they couldn’t come because of the wedding.”

Disappointment painted his sister’s face as he’d expected. “He did say he’d see me again soon, so I promise, if I do see him around, I’ll make sure to bring him to meet you and Karin, okay?”

Yuzu nodded gratefully and gave a half-smile. “How cool is that, though, that he knew Mom?” She looked over to where the poster hung on the wall, their mom’s happy face looking over them larger than life. “It would be nice to talk to someone who knew her so we can get to hear something other than Dad’s crazy stories. I mean, I have so many questions, you know?”

Ichigo knew.

“He said that it was a big family, so who knows! Maybe there will be cousins in the area that you can make friends with.” Ichigo stuck his hands in his pockets, fighting off the urge to give his little sister a hug, and bumped against the little stone that Hakuzosu had given him. “Oh and look at this!” He pulled it out and held it out, a shiny distraction from too many feelings. “He gave me this, too!”

Yuzu looked at the ball rolling in his palm. “Uh, Ichigo?” She stepped forward and picked the almost-pearl up gingerly. “You say he gave you this?”

Ichigo shrugged a little awkwardly. “Well, he showed up talking about the wedding and how I’d basically crashed the party with my shamisen playing.”

Yuzu gave him a sympathetic cringe and he nodded. “Yeah, I know, but he was cool about it. He said that I’d given his granddaughter a gift. It was really nice, actually, and then we were just standing there talking, and he pointed at that on the ground by my feet.” He indicated the ball. “Hakuzosu-san thought I’d dropped it. But I’ve never seen it before, and I told him so. It was pretty, though. When I picked it up it just felt…? Nice, you know?”

The surface shimmered under Yuzu’s fingers, and Ichigo couldn’t help feeling like he wanted to take it back.

Something in her face told him he was missing something important.

“Ichigo,” she spoke, her voice hesitant, “you know that Dad gave me and Karin Mom’s jewelry box, right?”

The jewelry box was one of their most prized possessions, filled with hairpins and little bits of jewelry that Isshin had thought safe enough for the twins to keep, and when Ichigo nodded Yuzu let out a little sigh.

“Come with me,” she said, heading towards the room she and Karin shared, “I need to show you something.”

***

“And then she pulled out this one!” Ichigo held up a second shiny sphere. “She says it was in the jewelry box after Mom died.”

The green-striped hat covered even more of Kisuke’s face than usual and the band of shadow it cast was heavy enough that his eyes were simply a suggestion of movement in the darkness. Ichigo hated that hat.

He’d been hesitant to come in the first place, and now he wished he hadn’t. Trying to explain the weird maybe-relative that looked like Ichimaru Gin was bad enough, but Hey, look at this marble, isn’t it cool? Apparently, Mom had one just like it and the weird guy told me you’d want to see it made him sound crazy. Or desperate. Or both.

Kisuke reached out and touched the glowing orb on the table between them and Ichigo imagined he could almost feel the contact.

“I wondered about this, once upon a time,” he said, gently rolling the ball back and forth with only the tip of his finger, “but your mother was very good at keeping her secrets.” Kisuke peered out at him from the shadows and Ichigo realized there was a wariness there that he’d never seen aimed at him before. “Very good.”

Ichigo couldn’t argue with that; his Quincy heritage was still a mystery to him in many ways. He could only think that Masaki would have explained things to him if she’d had time. That reminded him…

“Hakuzosu wasn’t a Quincy.” Ichigo picked up his tea and tried to remember exactly what the old man had said. “I was wearing a thumb guard Ishida made for me, and as you can imagine, it’s blue and covered in little white crosses. So, when Hakuzosu started talking about Mom and how she’d upset the elders when she married Isshin, I kind of indicated the crosses and he said No, boy, not those elders.”

Kisuke nodded, apparently unsurprised. Ichigo wondered if he practiced that look in the mirror so that no one ever thought he was out of his depth, or if he’d simply seen so much that nothing fazed him anymore.

Or maybe he already knew about Hakuzosu and had been expecting the meeting. That would explain why Hakuzosu knew about Urahara and the shōten.

“Ever since Ichimaru’s look-alike showed up this morning, I’ve felt like I’ve been missing something. Is this another weird Soul Society thing. You’re acting like it all means something significant, so why don’t you just come out and tell me? Who was the guy, and why am I being set-up this time? Is Mom’s marble some weird Quincy weapon that Kyouraku has decided has to come back under lock and key or something?”

Gray eyes snapped up to his. Well, that was clearly a vote for Kisuke’s practicing in the mirror because that look was proof that something fazed him.

“For once, Kurosaki-kun, any machinations occurring have nothing to do with Soul Society. Not that I blame you for jumping to that conclusion.”

The hint of frost in his tone implied the opposite. The blond didn’t like the fact that Ichigo assumed he was being manipulated again. The question was: did he dislike the assumption because it meant Ichigo was becoming harder to use, or because he didn’t like the idea of people using him at all?

It was probably a combination of the two. Why be simple when you can be Kisuke?

“Let me see if I can translate the Urahara-ese. You believe that there are machinations in the works, but you’ve eliminated Soul Society involvement, either because you’re already involved and you know they aren’t because you haven’t included them, or the little line between your eyebrows means that you’re miffed that someone else is running a scam on me without inviting you. Since the Ichimur-alike pointed me in your direction, you clearly know something useful either way, and that means you’re my most likely source of information.” Ichigo leaned back and crossed his arms over his chest. “So, spill.”

“Don’t forget the third option, Kurosaki-kun.” Kisuke’s voice dropped, heavy with suggestion and just a hint of threat, as he lowered his chin and hid in the darker shadows his hat cast.

He was such a drama queen.

“You mean the possibility that you’re lying to me about Soul Society being involved?” Ichigo rolled his eyes. “No. You may make me work for the truth, but you don’t lie to me anymore.” He shook his head in dismissal. “You said they weren’t involved, so they’re not involved.”

The certainty in his tone triggered an almost imperceptible response in Urahara and Ichigo couldn’t keep the satisfaction from his face. Honestly, he didn’t try very hard and the faint smile he got in response was worth it.

“I see I’m going to have to work harder on my inscrutability.” Kisuke shifted slightly, the dark and dangerous persona falling away from him like scales as it was no longer necessary, his focus shifting back on the twin spheres. “But, for what it’s worth, your summary is correct, and, again for what it’s worth, this mystery isn’t a creation of mine.”

They sat like that for a few moments until Ichigo got tired of waiting.

“Well, then, whose is it?”

Kisuke lifted Masaki’s sphere and held it up in the light. It seemed to glow from within.

“Have you ever heard of hoshi no tama?” he asked, sounding almost sing-song as he turned the little ball this way and that.

“Star balls? Like belong to kitsune?” Ichigo stopped as soon as the words were out of his mouth. Surely Kisuke couldn’t mean….

“You’ve got to be kidding me.” He looked down at the second, egg-sized stone. Was it bigger than it was before? “Wait. Did mine grow?”

Kisuke placed Masaki’s sphere back on the table gently. They were definitely not the same size anymore, and the larger one, Ichigo’s, now pulsed with a faint light.

Hoshi no tama. It couldn’t be.

“Yoruichi always said there was something a little different about you, Kurosaki-kun.”

Ichigo snorted. “You mean other than being a human-Shinigami-Quincy-hollow hybrid?”

Kisuke didn’t appreciate his humor. “Precisely. Perhaps she could tell because of her ties to bakeneko.”

Amber eyes shot wide and the blond laughed. “You didn’t think the cat-shape-shifting thing was something any Shinigami could do, did you? No. Our Shihōin Princess has yokai blood, and you, it seems, may as well.”

Yokai blood didn’t sound good. It didn’t sound good at all, but Ichigo couldn’t help but remember the stories that Masaki used to tell about wolf-like ōkami that protected little boys who kept adzuki beans and salt in their pockets as treats, and dangerous kappas who could only be defeated by clever boys who remembered to bow as deeply as possible so the monsters would spill the spirit water from the lilypad bowls they carried on their head and lose their powers. She told him about crow-like tengu who would punish the vain but could be called upon to help lost children find their way home, and tanuki who looked so jolly but would trick unwary people into parting with their food and wine with piles of money that turned out to be leaves come morning.

“Mom used to tell me stories.” He weighed his words, almost afraid to voice them but knowing that he must. “But they were just bedtime stories, Kisuke. Fairy tales. Nothing more.”

Kisuke looked at him, gray eyes bright and focused, and Ichigo could feel a flush creeping along his skin. Of course, now he was interesting enough to pay attention to, but for all the wrong reasons. Again.

“Don’t give me that look,” he snapped, and the blond blinked, slowly.

“What look is that, Kurosaki-kun?”

Ichigo counted to ten. Twice. He didn’t believe that Kisuke was nearly as oblivious as he pretended, but if he insisted, the redhead would play along.

“The ‘oh look, a new experiment’ look. It reminds me of Kurotsuchi-taicho, and trust me, you wouldn’t look nearly as good in that make-up.”

Thin pink lips quirked into a sly smile, and Kisuke chuckled. “I might surprise you, Kurosaki-kun. Who do you think brought Mayuri-san his supplies when he was still in the Maggot’s Nest? Plus, I ran more than my fair share of honey-pot missions for the Onmitsukido. A steady hand with an eyeliner pencil and a good lipstick go a long way.”

The flirtatious tone fell flat, and Ichigo sighed, more frustrated than flustered for once. How did they always end up like this—snarking at each other but never actually saying anything? It was exhausting, and he didn’t have the patience for it today.

“You keep telling yourself that, Hat-and-clogs.” Ichigo picked up the two spheres and held them, one in each hand, between them. “Right now, I’m more concerned about these.”

Kisuke’s teasing smile faded. “Yoruichi might be able to give us some insight, and there’s a tanuki that visits the shōten occasionally that I could…”

“A tanuki?” Ichigo practically exploded. “You can’t actually mean a real tanuki? With the huge…?” he spread his fingers, unable to finish the thought.

“Testicles?” Kisuke finished the question for him, smirk back in full force. “I haven’t asked to see them, but yes I would assume so. I’ve done more than a few favors for him over the past hundred years, so he owes me, but tanuki and kitsune don’t get along very well from what I can tell.”

Ichigo frowned.

“It shouldn’t be a problem as long as Hakuzosu isn’t here, though, right?” There wasn’t another kitsune in the equation.

Kisuke took the larger sphere from his fingers and moved it slowly, watching the glimmer brighten the closer it got to Ichigo’s hand, “Well, that depends.”

Ichigo allowed the blond to drop the now glowing ball into his palm and was surprised by the rush of pleasure he got from holding it. There was something so right about it, and that was definitely not right. “Depends on what?”

The older man watched him for a long moment, a hint of fascination and curiosity and maybe even a little fear in his eyes, and Ichigo couldn’t look away, wanting nothing more than to have Kisuke look at him forever, the feelings of frustration washed away by a tide of something much more potent. His breath caught in his throat and his heart beat faster as he silently cursed his stupid attraction. This was so not the time.

“It depends on how much kitsune blood you’ve got flowing through your veins, Kurosaki-kun, and how the appearance of your long-lost relative has affected it.”

Ichigo groaned and dropped his hands to the tabletop with a thud. “I knew that was what you were going to say.”

The star ball glowed brighter and Ichigo tightened his fist around it.

“Just when I thought my life couldn’t get any more complicated, I have to deal with a freaking yokai. I swear, if Hakuzosu shows up and tries anything I’m going to kick his ass, kitsune or not.”

“Be careful, Kurosaki-kun,” Kisuke was still watching him so closely it made his skin prickle. “You don’t want to get on the wrong side of a yokai. They are far from harmless.”

“Kisuke,” Ichigo said, sitting back up in his chair and looking across at the blond in disbelief, “nothing in my life has ever been harmless, and none of us would have survived if I’d played by the rules. Why should this be any different?”

The blond looked at him with an air of something approaching satisfaction. “Why indeed?”

Once again, he had the full weight of Kisuke’s attention on him, and instead of the butterflies that usually took up residence in his stomach when that happened, he felt a lead weight. He wasn’t a side-show attraction, dammit. Not even for him.

He held out his empty hand and Kisuke dropped the second ball in it.

“So,” Ichigo pulled in a deep breath, “you said you knew someone who might be able to help?”

Kisuke cocked his head to one side, like he was listening to a voice that was only speaking to him, and then nodded in agreement. “Yes. Shibaemon is easy enough to find. I’ll contact Yoruichi and we will track him down and see if we can’t come to an arrangement.” The blond sighed. “Last time the two of them were together they drank all the sake in three bars. Hopefully this time will not break that record.”

Knowing Kisuke he wasn’t nearly as innocent in that story as he pretended. Ichigo wished he’d been there. A tipsy Kisuke was a sight to see.

“Let me know if you need me there. I don’t want to just tag along and have your tanuki friend—fuck, I can’t believe we’re talking about real tanuki.” He forced himself to calm down. “I don’t want to show up and have him upset over some possibly real connection to kitsune.”

Kisuke agreed. “Like I said, he’s nice enough most of the time, but he is a yokai, and they’re… unpredictable.”

Ichigo snorted. “The fact that you think he is unpredictable is the best warning you could give me.”

Suddenly a yawn cracked the redhead’s jaws. He was exhausted.

“I need to head home. Yuzu was already upset enough with me for not managing to drag Hakuzosu back to the house to visit. She’ll kill me if I’m late for dinner.”

Kisuke reached across the table and rested one long, thin finger on Ichigo’s arm. “If I may,” he started, speaking in that casual manner that means listen carefully because something significant is NOT being said, “Kurosaki-kun, it might be best if you kept your new trinket in a… safe place. I’d be happy to provide such a place—Tessai could even put a kidō trap on it to be extra cautious.”

Any other time Ichigo would have taken him up on the offer. Any other time the warmth of that finger would have burned his skin and given him fodder for weeks’ worth of daydreams. Why, then, did the idea of turning his trinket over for someone else’s safe keeping make him feel like he couldn’t catch his breath and like snakes were squirming in his belly?

Ichigo’s fingers tightened inexorably around the supposed star balls and he shoved them deep into his pockets and leaned back in his chair. He’d think about those feelings later. Much, much later.

“Nah, that’s okay. Yuzu will want Mom’s back ASAP, and I’ll just keep the other one with me. No need to put Tessai out over something like this. It’s just a shiny stone.” He gave a careless shrug that fooled neither of them.

Kisuke retreated into the shadow of his hat’s brim. “And if it is more, Kurosaki-kun?”

Ichigo’s fingers were still tightly wrapped around the now egg sized sphere and he gave an almost Gin-like smile.

“Hakuzosu said he’d be around, and if he is a kitsune like you suspect, and this is a hoshi no tama—mine or his—well, it’s probably better if I don’t have to break through a kidō lock to get it if I need it. You know how Tessai hates it when I make a mess of the shop.”

#kitsunegeddon 2019 #Bleach #UraIchi #Kurosaki Ichigo #Urahara Kisuke #kitsune #also on ao3

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fantroll-purgatory · 5 years ago

Photo

Hey, as someone who’s still going through the slow process of conceptualizing a bunch of Pride trolls, I can vibe with this guy! I’m going to put a big ol’ trigger warning up top here since I openly discuss issues of homophobia and transphobia in the review below. Please stay safe!

(tw: mentions of homophobia and transphobia)

Universe:Beforus

Hmmmm. If he’s Beforan, I might even say that his outfit is too conservative! While a sample size of 12 isn’t that big, what we’ve seen of Beforus is that trolls will take the aesthetic of a subculture and hit it HARD.

Name:Gaeiiy Ryggtz

Hah. Okay so this is obviously a fun name. If you wanna go a little bit more subtle, I would suggest Getran (gay/trans) Ynemak (backward surname of Frank Kameny, who was one of the first folks to file a claim against orientational discrimination in a U.S. court)

Age: 6.5 Sweeps

Theme: Colors and everything related to it,like rainbows or prisms

Got it! As I said before, Beforan trolls tend to have a specific subculture around which they’re based rather than a more nebulous theme, and based on the original name you gave him it’s pretty clear what that would be. That said, since the rainbow is for the entire LGBT community, I would consider possibly making your troll trans/nonbinary!

Goal and story: He is a mutant who likes being a mutant and would fight against the hemospectrum hierarchy and make every caste to be equal in power,for this, he must spread the love to make Beforus a beautiful place.

Quick note: the goal is for what you want us to do in our review! Since you haven’t specified, I am assuming that this is a general review of everything you’ve submitted.

Before I dig into the meat of the rest of your bio, I want to address this part, because based on what we’ve seen of Beforus, it does not broadcast its oppression as clearly as Alternia does. Where Alternia is an out-and-out fascist dictatorship, Beforus’s Condesce (if she is indeed called that) is an adult Feferi Peixes, whose views on the hemospectrum have more to do with coddling those who sit below you on the hemospectrum. How might your troll fight against that system?

If we want an example of how such a society might look in regards to gay and trans rights, let’s look at common criticisms of liberal politics with regards to the LGBT community, which includes support for trans people if(f) they “pass” completely as the “opposite” gender to their assigned one (a standard which is much stricter than for cis people), and support for same-gender attraction so long as it’s tucked away and isolated from straight society (a standard which can be further evidenced in biphobia towards multi-gender attracted people for “muddying” what should be clear-cut waters). All of this tied up with a biiiiig heaping of disdain for gender non-conforming people.

So how might we translate these norms to Beforus? Perhaps trans people are, once again, only accepted if they “pass” completely as the “opposite” gender to their assigned one, such that nonbinary people and trans people with a more complex understanding of their presentation are pushes either to stop identifying as trans/nb or to allow a better-versed highblood to “help” them fit into such gender norms.

Sexuality tends to be trickier since it’s stated (though not implied 🙄) that trolls are largely bisexual and preference for only one gender (though lbr it’s mostly for one’s own gender) is considered odd. I will get to that a little bit later in this review!

Strife Specibus: Flag Specibus,he uses a flag to fight.

Love it. 🏳️‍🌈

Fetch modus: Help, I have no ideas.

If he’s rainbow themed, how about a Colorblock Modus that captchalogues based on predominant color? Only problem is that whenever he wants to retrieve something the modus ejects *everything* of that color. I can also see it being weaponized in a fun way!

Blood Color: Rainbow =D

I still don’t really know how to *do* rainbow, since I feel like it would show up as sludge in his veins? What would it mean in terms of psychic abilities or resistances or strength or even his place in society? We assume that he wouldn’t be killed for being a mutant, but being a rainbowblood stretches the bounds of Beforan rules that if find difficult to incorporate into this review.

Based on the sign you gave him below, it looks like you wanted him to be a mutant limeblood, basically. Which works, but I also feel that that is a common choice when people want to justify their mutantbloods to us, if only because Karkat and Kankri are our obvious examples.

So here’s where I wanted to get back to the same-gender attraction thing, because I think it plays well into how to make this choice.

You say you want a mutant, you say you want someone who works toward justice, and you say you want a gay man.

We can do all of that if you’d allow me to make him a jade/teal cuspblood.

Teals are very strongly about justice, and it fits well for his theme as someone who is working to make Beforus a more inclusive place across the spectrum.

Jades are also a good pick since they’re associated with rainbowdrinkers, which gets you a stone’s throw from this blood color. THey are also heavily heavily coded as gay-equivalent, especially when we consider the Friendsim info that jadebloods are forbidden from pailing by tradition on Alternia, which is pretty obviously a direct parallel to gay marriage. Given that we’re on Beforus, it’s likely that such pailing is accepted, but even in today’s society we can see that the right to marry is often brandished as a sign that we’ve “won” and no longer need to fight for our rights.

As a cuspblood, where does that leave your troll? Where does he fit within the codified hierarchy of Beforus?

Symbol and meaning: Canpio, sign of the effervescent.

…This is a first, but I’m not sure I agree with any of the three things you combined to get your sign! Firstly, I did change his blood color, so that’s on me. Secondly, as someone who’s trying to change the hemospectral hierarchy, he’d be a Dersite for sure. Finally, I don’t know that he’s a Light player? I think I see where you’re coming from since his theme was rainbows and prisms, but you haven’t built a character particularly hellbent on collecting information.

That said, I don’t particularly want him to be a Blood player, lest he become dangerously Karkaty. So how about we invert the difference and see how he fits as a Breath player? Someone who pursues his own individual freedom, but incidentally gives others the strength to move forward as a consequence?

If we go with that, he’d fall somewhere between Libun, Sign of the Escapist, and Virun, Sign of the Eager. Vlibrun, Sign of the Eagcapier no wait that doesn’t sound great.

Trolltag: chromaticJusticer

Tips the hand a little too readily, in my personal onion. May I suggest prismBreak [PB], like prison break, both in terms of destroying the hemospectrum and it terms of freedom from the unjust?

Quirk: wr1te2 1n ^ll 12 c^2te2 ^nd u2e2 pr12m2, ^l2o nub2 (=B.

That is a lot! But then again TEREZ1 PYROPE SUR3 4S H3LL EXISTS so who am I to judge. That said I’m finding the quirk a little bit hard to read, so if I may suggest it be A Lot in a different way:

WR1TE2 1N △LL C△P2 △ND U2E2 PR12M2 TO CONVEY HI2 MULT1CHROM△TIC 2PLENDOR

The introduction of caps and the change of the carat to a triangle makes it harder for the eye to skip over the quirk when it appears.

Special Abilities: I was thinking of him having the abilities of all castes while still looking like a canon mutant (Karkat or Kankri) but I don’t know if this would be a lot.

I think it would indeed be a lot, and you would have to figure out how such a being would change things in Beforus! Beforus is still based on a fairly rigid caste system, and they wouldn’t see a rainbowblood and think “oh shit let’s just let this dude be in charge of everything!” He would be coddled by his “superiors!” How do you think your supposedly peaceful troll would get out from under that thumb while maintaining his pacifist leanings?

Lusus: I don’t know what kind of Lusus would fit him,but it’s also rare for mutants to get chosen by one,so I can stick with him being Lususless.

Sure! I will say that if he’s a jadeblood cusp he could possibly just like. Grow up in the caverns with some lusii that haven’t picked grubs.

Interests: Gaeiiy likes to experiment with lights while he isn’t fighting highbloods,he collects prisms and has a big collection of LEDs,lasers, flashlights and other things that emit lights.

Personality: He is the center of the universe and others find him interesting and kind,he is full of joy and cheerfulness,he is also peaceful and it’s hard to make him cry or make him mad.

So why, then, is he fighting for anything? His soul is not at unrest. Perhaps this speaks to a personal failing, but I find it deeply difficult to fight for things that don’t upset me on some level. I also don’t quite understand the “center of the universe” thing – are other trolls content to let him do as he please? Again, why is he fighting if he faces no opposition?

If you wanted to swing this in one direction, it could be that he’s so unplugged from the real-world oppressions thrust upon other jadebloods (thanks in part to his tealblood status) that he is complacent. This would definitely make him likable! He’s like, a jade, but not one of those jade jades. He’s actually cool about it and stuff. And while such an attitude may cost him the friendship of fellow jadebloods, who needs ‘em? Look at all the friends he has! He’s colorblind, he doesn’t see blood, he doesn’t understand why people want to rock the boat. (Note: if you take this tack then you may need to change a whole lot more about the character because this is no longer someone who is interested in fighting the status quo! That version of your troll would be a Prospitan for sure.)

On the other hand, how can we take someone joyful and likable and give them reason to fight highbloods? Well, they could be someone who joyfully fights highbloods when they try to stomp them down! There are some revolutionaries who might like that very, very much! And while it’s true that he’d need to feel very strongly about the cause to fight someone, it doesn’t have to be the driving force behind his actions! He can fight highbloods because he loves having his own independence, away from coddling bluebloods who think they know what’s best for him! And this makes him likable because people are inspired by his gumption and his brazenness in flaunting the rules!

Lunar Sway: Prospit.

Like I said above, I have reasons to believe he’s Derse unless you think he’s okay with the current system.

Title: ??????? Of Light?,but I also get some heart vibes from him.

And as above, I think he’s actually a Breath player! If I had to guess, he might be a Knight of Breath, fi you want to write an arc for him where he initially *doesn’t* want to rock the boat to take his freedom, but eventually grows into it.

Land: Land of LEDs and Storms.

A land full of Christmas like decorations and full of clouds that are telling you to give up on your quest,but Gaeiiy knows that even being stroke by a ray won’t stop him from ascending.

This one doesn’t need to change the name even if your Aspect does, since Storms can absolutely be a Breath thing. I do wonder what his quest would be, though…maybe he needs to part the clouds just enough that Skaia can reflect a rainbow against the torrent? It doesn’t necessarily mean your troll needs to *do* the quest; it just needs to be there.

Let’s get to this young man’s redesign. As always, we’re going top to bottom!

The most important design note I went into this redesign with was “LGBT solidarity,” which meant trying to hit that very fun “plausible deniability” look where strangers can ascertain that you’re *some* type of LGBT but have no real way of telling exactly which of those letters apply?

Horns - I edited these from Equius’s robot horns because there are some headcanons that these represent the “ideal” troll horns. I added a hook at the end of the rear horn for that signature jadeblood flavor! Also I added a piercing to the right horn similar to how gay men in the 90s/00s had one in the right ear to signify their gayness. (Which was fun because I was googling “which ear is the gay ear” like I was in 7th grade again lol).

Baseball cap - This one is adapted from @emspritesblog, which is unfortunately kind of dead now. I liked the fact that you had a rainbow on his shirt and I wanted to pay tribute to it somehow, so I added it to the back of the baseball cap using the blood colors closest to those of the original Pride flag!

Hair - I used a template from @fantrollartroom and made it curlier, because the asymmetrical undercut is like *the* look as far as I know.

Eyes - I wanted to nod back to the fact that you wanted a Karkat-adjacent design, so I edited his eyes for your troll.

Mouth - …and the mouth. But I added some fangs for that jadebloodyness

Binder/tank and symbol - I took the jade and teal symbols I suggested and tried to smoosh ‘em together a little bit!

Flannel - ahhhh the flannel of plausible deniability. I made is a jade/teal gradient to emphasize the cuspiness. It’s Vriska’s jacket but with all the colors swapped out.

Overall outfit - I use @fan-troll sprites quite liberally to make coherent outfits, and cannot recommend the sprite sheet enough! Since the clothing doesn’t *quite* fit a standard sprite it kind of forces you to learn some spriting as you go, which is a pretty good way to get incrementally better over time.

That concludes my review of young Gay Rights [sic]! I hope my suggestions were helpful, and thank you very much for sharing him!

-TR

#t3o-ya1r-th4-noble #gaiiey ryggtz #gaaiey #ryggtz #mutantblood #review #redesign #tr review #submission #getran ynemak #getran #ynemak #cuspblood #tealblood #jadeblood

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