#and that's just a painful reminder that he legit has to lead/face this alone.... thank the maker he still has VARRIC huh

[stop-breaking-my-heart-dragonage]

would you, Varric?

would you really?

Because let's be honest, "getting into it" was just:

Solas: Perhaps I am mistaken. You may be here to correct me, to tell me that my concerns were unfounded. Carver: Ugh, you're a bit of a tit, aren't you? See, THAT'S why no one likes you! Solas: Speaking from experience, I see. Carver: YES ACTUALLY Solas: Carver: ...wait

Carver never forgot, but let's just bury those feelings real deep, shall we?

He's fine. Everything's fine. Shut up, Solas.

[nad-zeta]

Matchup <3

Hi! Can I please request a matchup? I’m a 5’1 pan female with long hair that fades from red to blonde. I am very curvy/busty and I am very insecure about it, which leads to me shutting myself out from others. I am very soft-spoken, intelligent, patient, and I get flustered extremely easily. I love to play the ukulele, and sing! Learning is something I really enjoy doing, mostly because I am a very curious person. I have been bullied for most of my life because I am really shy. Most of my past bullying has come from people I called my friends, which left me with some deep trust issues. Loud people, noises, and places tend to make me kind of anxious. I don’t have many friends, but I treasure the ones I have. I’m also an INTJ, Aquarius and Hufflepuff! Thank you so much!

Hi, there love! Thanx so much for the request! I hope you enjoy and have a good day!  (◡‿◡✿) Hope you didn't wait too long for this love!  

So I match you with……………………. Kenshin

Everything was so loud and overbearing. You had just saved a man twice your size from being burnt to a crisp in a fire. He whisked you off with him to the enemy camp and all the screaming and shouting between Mitsuhide and Hideyoshi was starting to make you anxious. You were feeling on edge the entire time. You finally cracked when Nobunaga pulled you close and asked you to rule the world by his side. You looked up into his red eyes and made up your mind. You broke loose and ran. You ran and ran and ran until you almost ran yourself off a cliff. Thank goodness for Yukimura. He was clumsy and gruff, but he definitely wasn’t the scariest man you had met that night. You stepped back from Yukimura and looked around at the new group of men before you. They had a  calmer aura than the oda forces, and a particular man caught your eye. 

A tall, pale man, who shone in the moonlight, he looked otherworldly, and you found that you couldn’t tare your eyes away from him. His eyes were captivating, and you found something in them that you very much related to….loneliness. You could see in his eyes he also had trust issues like you, he also was lonely like you, and someone dear to him had also caused him pain like you.

Sasuke broke your focus on the ice prince when he pulled you aside to explain what had happened to you tonight. You were shook. Never in a million years did you think you would be sent back into the past. You were on the verge of tear, you felt so alone and scared. Kenshin saw the look on your face, and something urged him to comfort you and offer you a place to stay. He stalked up to you and Sasuke and declared that you were coming to stay with them. After he made the announcement, he mounted his horse and offered you a hand up. You had no time to think as before you knew it you were on a horse with Kenshin and on your way to Kasugayama Castle.

They had given you the most beautiful princess room. It wasn’t even 10 minute since your arrival and Shingen had already paid you a visit and started flirting with you mercilessly. Thank goodness Kenshin came to check on you at that exact moment to save you from the flirt. You had lock yourself in the room for a few days now. You were feeling anxious and shy. You were used to shutting yourself off from the rest of the world, and being in the past was no exception. Whenever one of the warlords would pop into your room for a visit, you would just sit in silence and listen to them talk. You hadn’t seen Kenshin since the night he saved you from Shingen’s flirting, and TBH you hadn’t left your room since the day you arrived.

Kenshin was starting to get worried about you. There was just something about you that he couldn’t ignore. He wanted to get to know you, but he was scared of his curse. It wasn’t until the maids had told him that you weren’t eating or leaving your room that he sprung into action.

He was a clumsy man when it came to women, as he had isolated himself from women for most of his life, due to his curse. He looked out the window, contemplating how he would go about making you feel more comfortable during your stay, when his gaze fell on the mountain of sleeping fluff. He got up from his writing desk and made his way to the kitchen to make the two of you some lunch, he then summoned his bunnies to follow him. 

He knocked on your door, and slowly opened it peeking inside your room. He saw you sitting in the corner of the room, relaxing and reading in the sun. He gave you a gentle smile “I heard you haven’t been eating.” You looked up and gave him a shy smile. He made his way across your room to make the two of you some tea and then came to sit across from you. He looked up at you expectantly pushing the plate of pickled plumbs closer to you. You gently took one and took a bite. Kenshin smile triumphantly the second he saw the delight in your eyes and the small smile on your lips. You looked up at Kenshin’s smile and your breath caught in your throat, he had a bright smile, capable of melting even the coldest of winters. 

The two of you sat and ate pickled plumbs in a comfortable silence, when all of a sudden, a bunny came hopping into your room. The little snow-white bunny curiously made his way to jump straight onto Kenshin’s lap. You looked at the bunny curiously, which didn’t escape Kenshin’s eyes. “Would you like to pet her,” your eyes lit up in joy as you gave a small nod. “Umi call your brothers and sisters to come and play.” The bunny then hopped out of the room and returned a few moments later with an avalanche of bunnies. You gave Kenshin the biggest brightest smile and reached out to pet one of the buns. Soon you found yourself slowly opening up to the god of war. You started telling him about the different books you had read about rabbits. The two of you chatted the afternoon away, sipping on tea and playing with the bunnies. When it came time for Kenshin to get back to work, you felt slightly deflated, Kenshin saw the sadness in your eyes. “I will come by for a visit tomorrow,” he then gave you a small smile and left.

It had now become a daily occurrence for Kenshin to visit you and bring you some lunch so the two of you could eat together. As time went by, you, found yourself more and more drawn to the god of war. You confided in each other and told each other all the past traumas that hunted you. When Kenshin heard that your previous friends had betrayed your trust and bullied you, he was furious. He wanted to go to the future and kill them for hurting someone as sweet and kind as you. He loved your soft-spoken personality, you were so cute and sweet it low key reminded him  of his beloved bunnies. 

As the two of you started to get closer, you started leaving your room more often. Kenshin took you on a tour of his castle and of the Kasugayama’s market. Your tea dates would often now be in one of Kenshin’s favourite tea houses. He knew you hated loud people and places so he would be sure to always take the quiet route. He would hold your hand tightly the whole time, glaring at anyone who dare come too close to you. Even the bunnies would come along on your market trips as back up. 

They would happily hop alongside you and Kenshin glaring at anyone who would dare come near the two of you. You especially loved it when Kenshin would take you and the bunnies to a nearby flower field. It had become your new favourite spot. He would set up a picnic blanket under a big sakura tree, and the two of you would sit in the shade, sipping on tea and watching the bunnies play. You knew Kenshin worked hard and was often tired so you would let him rest his head on your lap. The two of you weren’t in a relationship yet, but both of you loved each other. You loved to sit and read while gently pulling your fingers through Kenshin’s golden locks as he rested.

Gosh, Kenshin just love everything about you. One day, as he was working on some important document, heard music coming from the castle music room. He followed the beautiful music, and as he got closer and closer, he couldn’t help but smile. He had never heard you sing before and the second you started to sing along to the song you were playing his heart had been won. He stood and watched you play and sing from the doorway, entirely enchanted by your beautiful melodious voice. When your song ended, you were startled by the sound of clapping. Kenshin gave you the softest most gentle smile “Absolutely beautiful.” You were feeling a bit bashful, so you gave Kenshin a small, shy smile. Gosh, all Kenshin wanted to do was kiss those beautiful lips. He smiled and made his way to the piano in the middle of the room he held out his hand for you to come closer and join him at the piano. Once you sat beside him, he started to play. 

It was a light romantic melody filled with love and untold emotions. He then began to sing, it was a song he had heard you quietly hum to yourself as you read. He legit looked you dead in the eyes as he sang “Wise men say only fools rush in, But I can’t help falling in love with you” Although he sang softly, it was laced full of love and adoration for you, and you couldn’t help sing along. As the last note was played, Kenshin couldn’t help but gently pull you in for a sweet kiss. And that my friend is how your relationship started

The two of you spent every possible moment together, you loved to sit in his room and read while he worked. He loved how curious and cute you were. You truly did remind him of a curious bunny. He loved the way your doe eyes would light up with curiosity whenever the two of you went out. He especially loved it when you were too bored to read, and you would watch him work “What are you writing Kenshin” HE would give you a sly smile and say that it was a secret. He loved the little pout that you would make and the way your eyebrows would raise, indicating that you were now even more curious. After a few moments, he would hand you a letter “There done!” You would slowly open it, and you couldn’t help but smile. It was a small little love letter with the cutest doodle of a bunny at the bottom. He loved how easily you get flushed, and he can’t help but tease you sometimes, just to see your beautiful blush spread across your face

This boy is absolutely smitten with you, and he can’t help but, want to be always near to you. He loves to hold your hand, wherever the two of you are, whether it is walking in the markets or during banquets, he loves the way you small hand fits so perfectly in his. He will play with your fingers and rub small circles on the back of your hands. 

You are the only one who can calm him down, who can keep the demons that haunt him in check, and the only one who can stop him from spontaneously fighting Sasuke and Yukimura during banquets. Just as he would start to pick a fight, you squeeze his hand and look at him with the sweetest smile “But Kenshin If you fight them, who is going to keep me company” that is enough to make him melt into a puddle. He also loves to pull you in his lap during the banquets and just hold you. When things start getting too rowdy and loud he will gently lead you by the hand outside to your favourite spot in the garden, where you will continue having a private banquet just for two, under the quiet of the moonlight

Kenshins all-time favourite though is just to hold you in his arms while he gently traces every curve of your body. He loves everything about you and, he thanks his lucky stars everyday for having met you. He treasures you in his heart, his love, his bunny, his sweet goddess of war

Other potential matches............ Hideyosi

I hope you enjoyed it dear! ❤🔥@shslpotato

[karihighman]

Chicago PD recap

Here are my thoughts on the Chicago PD midseason finale “Absolution” :

Upstead

Chicago PD surprisingly kicked off their episode with some subtle Upstead flirting. Hailey has followed Jay to see where he had been sneaking off to (turns out it was to help out Marcus West’s family).

She warned him about his mission, but he reassured her that he’d be okay. Yeah, if only he knew what was to come.

Because not soon after, Jay had to bail on a crime scene to go see Angela (Marcus’ wife) again. Hailey, being the nice partner that she is, covered for him, so he could leave. When Voight asked her what was up, she told him Halstead was simply working some things out.

Later in the day when Jay doesn’t show up for court, Platt comes up to the district to ask where he is. Voight immediately checks with Hailey first, as being the one Jay is closest to, she may know his whereabouts. She had no idea where he was, as she had just gotten done leaving not one or two, but three voicemails on his phone.

I personally enjoyed her line of at two “I’m annoyed”; but 3 “I’m worried.” She’s such a work wife I love that for her.

But anyhow. So they find Halstead’s car, and after Upton tells Rojas to check it (because obviously she knows Jay’s truck hehehe), they find he went under without telling anyone. They go inside the house to find lots of blood, but no Jay. And no Angela. Yikesarama, as Jesse Lee Soffer would say...

Well, Hailey knows she needs to come clean, so she tells Voight about who Angela really is. Armed with this new info, they go to work to track down people involved with Angel, & that are connected to the drug dealer who was tortured in their earlier call (the one Jay left from in a hurry).

They start putting pieces together, which unsurprisingly lead to Darius Walker. Voight makes a deal and Darius agrees to infiltrate Kevin with Pedro, the guy they know helped run the drugs. Pedro lets Kevin (undercover name, Keyshawn) talk to Jay (known as “Jimmy” to Angela) so we know he’s okay for now.

All the while, wherever the heck Jay and Angela are, he’s trying to keep her spirits up. Things get pretty painful fast though, not only physically (Angela’s stabbed in the abdomen; Jay is bleeding profusely from his head & his face has been beaten), but emotionally too in terms of conversation.

Jay finally came clean and told Angela how he really met Marcus. In prison. Because he’s the cop who arrested him. Cue the dramatic music...

An important scene

Despite this slightly good prospect, the team still has to do the exchange of Angela and Jimmy (Jay) for the drugs. Kevin meets with Pedro, who — big shock (note the sarcasm please) — doesn’t have Angela or Jay to trade off.

A shootout ensues, which led Voight to taking down one guy with a shot to the leg (which I always find entertaining when he shoots someone up. He just never ever hesitates. He gives zero fucks).

Hailey Upton tackles him down, demanding to know where her partner is. “You better hope to God he’s alright,” she scowls at the suspect. Yeah, remind me never to mess with Hailey Ann Upton. She is a freaking badass. Love it!

They play another move in their little chess game by bringing Pedro’s son in. But a significant scene happens right before then that really solidified what Rick Eid said about Hailey’s feelings surrounding Jay’s kidnapping.

Hailey is seen on the phone, wondering where the heck the boy is. You can hear her voice breaking on the end of the call with the lockup people; and you can feel her desperation when she chucks her coffee mug in the sink in frustration.

Adam heats the commotion and comes to lend a shoulder — cough cough, how it should have been in 602, but I digress - and reminds Hailey that they are gonna find Jay.

“Gotta do something,” she says sadly. You see her wipe some tears away and run a hand over her eyes, signaling just how much this is weighing on her.

When the boy shows up; they use him as leverage against the dad and they get what they need. An address. Jay, they’re coming for ya buddy!

The shocking end

What truly made Chicago PD stand out amongst the rest of the finales was their twist ending.

Jay had managed to wrangle himself free of his piped restraints & gave Angela a weapon to protect herself while he took down the offender upstairs.

Remember when Jay confessed his real identity? Fans waited on pins & needles, but thankfully Angela did not sell him out. But hold on, we’re not done yet.

Outside, Intwlligence is trying to find a way inside the stash house. The only one who can get in? A teeny tiny Tracy Spiridakos (no seriously, she squeezed through a hole in the window like, yay big...dang). So up goes Hailey — alone, mind you. She’s offline, she’s gone dark. I’m over here worried something’s gonna happen to her. (But it doesn’t).

The good news? SHE FINDS JAY! Hailey runs to her partner, her voice pleading with him to be okay as she asks. Her eyes don’t really wanna know the answer though as she looks him over. Jay looks at her, and you see a literal sigh of relief on his face that she’s here. Because she means safety. She means he’s getting out of there alive.

“Hey.”

“Hey, are you okay?”

He nods, but remembers Angela. He tells her to stay here (such a good work husband he is!), but that he has to go get Angela from downstairs. Hailey remains upstairs while the camera follows Jay down.

What ensues is something I didn’t see coming. Like seriously not in a million years.

Angela, armed with a gun somehow now, shoots Jay. It’s unclear if it’s in the shoulder or more on his chest, but either way, he goes down for the count.

And that — yes THAT — is how the episode ends. A “to be continued” flashes across a black screen & I am a bucket of emotions. Don’t even get me started on that promo.

And that concludes my semi professional recap of Chicago PD. Now allow me to express my fangirl emotions below:

OH MY FUCKING GOD I CANT BELIEVE ANGELA SHOT JAY AND THAT HE WAS RIPPED AWAY FROM HAILEY YET AGAIN AND SHE DOESNT EVEN KNOW HES BEEN SHOT YET MY UPSTEAD HEART CANT TAKE THIS!!!!

Seriously though, can someone give Jesse Lee Soffer an Emmy? Also nominate Tracy Spiridakos for one too please. Thank you. They deserve it.

I just — Hailey’s look she gave Jay before he left. It was the purest most genuine form of love there is. Like it’s not really so much about what kind of love it is; but more so that it happened at all. In all my years of watching this show, I can’t remember a time when Erin gave him that kind of look. Sure, she was relieved when he was alive in 301; but this, this was different.

Hailey was pouring all her emotions into that look. Just like she always has with Jay. And he was doing the same with her. Because that’s what works between them. And this episode showed everyone (like legit, everyone in Intelligence) how much Hailey cares for Jay. Not just in a partner way. But a “I’m gonna do whatever it takes to get him back because I need him in my life as more than that” way. Because it’s true. She needs him. She loves him. And he needs and loves her too. So that’s why Jay has to be okay — because he needs to get back to Hailey so all can be right in the world again. That’s all I can say.

[adrienaline-rushed-art]

(For the character ask) Adrien Agreste!!

YOU CHOSE MY SON! you’d better prepare your noodles because I’ve got a lot to gush about my favorite boy

Why I like them: From the beginning, he was my very favorite character because he was a weird combination of someone I was close to as well as myself. Although, over time it’s been more and more about relating to him as opposed to seeing someone else in him. At the time that he first became a reminder of someone special, he got me out of a depressive state, and continues to do so!

I love what a genuinely good listener he is. He’s very considerate and respectful, he puts others before himself— though, Ladybug can tell you why that is also a flaw. 

I like to think about the scenes in Horrificator when his classmates kept fighting, but he— one of the leads —didn’t make any input to take sides. Not even for Nino, his best friend! But he did look really upset to see his friends arguing

He’s also very forgiving and patient, I mean… as annoying as Lila can be, he actually tries to understand and help her. And what he said in onichan is implied to be correct based on the beginning of the episode.

He got it on the head, and not only for the sake of excusing bad behavior, he can relate. He knows he’s gone out of line because of his loneliness and abandonment issues. He excused Lila for the same reason in season 1

Defending Lila for lying about her relationship with Ladybug (See ‘Copycat’) 

He definitely understands what’s bad behavior (as opposed to Lila and Chloe, he does remain selfless and kind) and when he doesn’t he gets to use this sympathy as an opportunity for learning. But he also knows a cry for help when he sees one, he doesn’t want anyone to feel the way he does. 

The only real downside is it makes him a doormat for Lila, Chloe, and most importantly his father. But he’s learning and I’m so happy for him. 

he’ll accept a rough relationship for the sake of helping you be better through kindness until it hurts his loved-ones, where he absolutely has to cut you off. That’s one thing he doesn’t relate to or believe in. When he knows he messed up and hurt someone, he didn’t mean it, so he apologizes. 

But you can see in his face that he doesn’t feel good doing it, because although it doesn’t excuse toxicity, he knows that the person’s pain is why they act that way. 

It’s still for his friends more than himself, but I’ll take it for now. The biggest flaw he has is also one of his sweetest traits, believing in the best out of everyone. He’s at least learning that you can’t always assume someone doesn’t mean any harm.

Also:

fcKing suPERB adrien

I also like his sensitivity. He isn’t trying to be the cool and mysterious type, he’s emotional, passionate, and caring. This vulnerability can also be his downfall at times, but he carries his weight and makes himself responsible for his mistakes, so he’s an excellent example to kids. He’s a good boy in a world of romanticized “bad boys”.

Favorite episode (scene if movie): I can’t really say, I’m bad at choosing favorites. Really any scene he’s in— especially as Chat Noir —immediately makes me happy. Scenes of his that are sad or frustrating don’t make me happy in the sense that I like what’s happening, but the rush of emotions I get when I get to watch him interact with other characters and just be.. him… brings a certain type of joy? The fact that when he’s sad, I’m really sad… I don’t know, it’s a nice feeling. Don’t @ me but 2 years ago in my baby project, I named the baby Adrien, because I’ve adopted him and he is my son.

I guess I really like him in riposte? He was very soft in that episode, he was all giggly and blushy. Also, Gigantitan, Chris Master, and Sapotis? He’s so good with kids! Chat Noir got a lot of lines in Silencer (hA) and I thoroughly enjoyed that, he was such a dork. Weredad was just a masterpiece, we got to explore his thoughts toward Marinette too so that was cool. So it really comes down to any episode that he shines the brightest, the more screen time and dialogue the better. I WANT to learn MORE about him.

None of these are favorite episodes of all time I don’t think? It’s just my favorite moments for him I guess. Gigantitan might be a good example for an episode that fits on both lists, though. We saw a lot of different sides to him. We got to see Marinette comfort Chat Noir when he finally admitted his heartache, he finally admitted his frustrations with Gabriel to Nathalie (although she would have known without him saying), and I actually liked seeing Chat Noir’s petty side directed to Ladybug. No, I didn’t like that he was being unfair, but everyone has this type of moment in their life because we’re human, which is why it was SO great to see him like this.

He’s messing up? Fantastic! And it was so intriguing to see how he behaved when he finally snaps, particularly toward Ladybug. We hadn’t seen him lash out toward a friend— let alone a romantic interest —at this point. He really needed to unleash those emotions, and I’m glad he didn’t keep them bottled up any longer. He was having a garbage day to begin with, I wouldn’t be able to stand watching him brush it off.

It wasn’t fair to Ladybug, but it was perfectly fair to himself. Ladybug said she couldn’t hang out because she was with friends, sure! From his perspective, what does that look like? Well, we got to understand it thanks to this episode. Think to what happens to him later in the episode, he’s unable to spend time with his friends. There might be a tinge of jealousy toward that. Or maybe it’s that the phrasing made it sound like Chat Noir wasn’t a friend, which adds up to his relief at the end of the episode when Ladybug calls him a best friend. But also, the excuse wasn’t satisfying to him because clearly, he had intended to put both friends and Ladybug in his schedule, why couldn’t she do the same? I’m not saying this is logical thinking, but it’s interesting to step back and realize that it’s entirely likely he thought this way. And it all makes sense that he cherishes being with her more than any romantic future with her, because the fact he didn’t get angry when he heard about her “boy”, but he did when it came to her friends.

And, a little Ladybug appreciation, she didn’t invalidate those feelings. He’s not allowed to act up and ruin an akuma fight, but he is allowed to feel that way. I mean, it was a little mean to suggest fake dating right after brushing off a real one. But he realized how inappropriate the timing was, and apologized for it. And taking his humility a step further, he went with Ladybug’s original (arguably tortuous) plan, and disciplined himself during it. He didn’t try to take advantage and get all smoochie and cuddly on her. He offered his hand, but she’s the one who came to him and kissed him on the cheek. He let her create the boundaries. Later, he kissed her on the cheek for the first time.

Anyway sorry for that entire essay, but as you can tell I really loved that episode front and back.

Favorite season/movie: I think since we only have two and a half seasons, I can only say season 2 for now. I say season 2 because it’s where we first uncover more of Adrichat, not only to ourselves but to Marinette. He’s been really cute in S3 so far though, so my opinion could always change.

Favorite line: Any of his laughs. Ok fine, an actual line… uhh.. you know what, he’s said a lot of very profound and sweet things… so how about something stupid and random 

“Wanna hear a secret? I love chouquettes.” You sure do, you little dork. 

Favorite outfit: That purple/maroonish and green one on one of his magazine covers. 

OTP: Marichat, always. Ladynoir close second. If we’re talking outside of canon, probs Alyadrien. 

Brotp: Nino, obviously, they’re phenomenal. 

Head Canon: Maybe this is less of a headcanon, and more of an excuse for the writing.. but I don’t think Adrien is that oblivious. But as someone who’s forgiving, it would make sense that he also doesn’t assume things that could hurt them. For one, he denies Marinette likes him simply because she seems to have implied she doesn’t. He takes her word for it. 

Notice that almost every time it comes up, it’s not denying his own feelings, and he’s not even denying the “signs”. He just doesn’t want to put words in her mouth or ruin their friendship by jumping to conclusions that could put distance between them. It makes sense that he would want to protect their friendship because of how they met. 

Unpopular opinion Adrien is not a mary sue. First, I’ve already mentioned plenty of flaws in this post. Having no flaws is one side of a mary sue, the other side is being overpowered. So what if he’s in a bunch of clubs and has essentially mastered all of them. Stress on essentially, so far we know he can play one(1) classical piece on the piano and he messed up on it (it was a small mistake because of skipping practice, but a True™ mary sue wouldn’t have). Also… I’m sure he’s fluent in Chinese and Japanese, but he could be pronouncing better. Actually, that’s unfair, the French dub did pretty well for Japanese pronunciation and everyone knows French is more canon. I don’t know enough about Chinese to judge his pronunciation of it. We don’t know much about his sports except that he’s good at them, but we know Kagami kicks his ass at fencing apparently, so still not overpowered. Anyhow, these are just talents and skills. Not only can anyone learn them with effort (because he isn’t a prodigy at any of them), but it’s realistic that the famous model son of the strict CEO and founder to the prestigious fashion company Gabriel would be forced to have a full tool belt. Not to mention he’s a model in the acting business (Animaestro) actors legit have to know how to do EVERYTHing to even compete with others. None of the above has to do with power though.

  If anything, he’s underpowered. He’s not treated very well for a teammate who isn’t a sidekick. Often his intellect, wisdom, rationale, skills, and agility have been compromised for the sake of making ✦Ladybug✦ look good. Which, is sort of counter-intuitive if you think about it. We know this from the inconsistencies between episodes. One episode he’s decoding morse, giving Ladybug advice, making detailed plans, or showing off his expert-level martial arts… the next he’s… accidentally grabbing an ice cream cone while Cataclysm is activated? hmmm. ALso, as stated before, Adrien’s intelligence is suppressed for the advancement of the plot.

A wish: I want more Ladynoir discussions outside of akuma battles. Regarding things like the Dark Cupid kiss.. there are a lot of things I want them to straighten out and grow on. 

And, I think this is going to happen anyhow… but like,,, he needs to find out about the scarf, I’m sorry. I know it’ll be bittersweet but,,ghhhgk

An oh-god-please-dont-ever-happen: *INHALES* pleASe, Emilie, be a good person!! ALSo, NO FIGHTS WITH NINO. EVER. 

5 words to best describe them: Patient, dorky, loving, childlike (not childish), brave

My nickname for them: heeheh, it’s my blog name title, Paw Prince.

I wrote you a whole book, my bad. I don’t regret it though. Now you know why it took me so long to answer.

[quietlysatan]

An Invincible Summer - ShanaStoryteller, AO3

Link: Here!!

Rating: T for read the warnings, but don’t worry too much because of them

Favorite Quote(s): I legit wanna tattoo this next quote on me somewhere

"Oh, the things that can be accomplished through ignorance of their impossibility," 

And this Straight Up Fact

“There’s no such thing as cheating as long as you win,” Natsu says, and the brat’s not wrong.

This one’s just funny

“Chouza,” Inoichi forces himself to say evenly, “Your teachings produced Ebisu and goddamned Gai.”

“Genma’s pretty normal though,” Chouza sighs, “I never could get through to that boy.”

Gently Gai casually caring about Kakashi’s well-being is my entire reason for living, speaking of which if someone wants to come be my Gai that’d be really fucking nice because us Kakashi’s don’t do too well on our own

He hesitates, but says, "Not that I do not find your newfound mentorship to be a most youthful endeavor, but -"

"I don't know," Kakashi interrupts his friend, "I met her while she was taking her genin exam and she, I don't know, adopted me or something. She just keeps showing up."

Gai nods thoughtfully, "Stubbornness is a useful skill to have when trying to cultivate a friendship with you." Kakashi elbows the other man, but doesn't protest besides that. "She's a good cook."

And this one because I love it when people Get It, ya’know?

That's really why he won't say anything, why he won't reveal that the Kyuubi's container and the fourth Hokage's child is still alive: they already killed him once. Naruto and Shikamaru are the same age, they would have been in the same class, and the idea that anyone could want to harm his innocent, precious son makes his blood boil 

And this one, for accuracy

"This sounds like a most youthful endeavor. I will bring Anko! She will fan the flames of youth in our young Konoha blossom!"

Both Itachi and Kakashi look at Gai, horrified. "Please don't," Itachi says weakly, like he knows it'll fall on deaf ears but he has to try anyway.

"Don't worry," Gai attempts to assure them, going into his Good Guy pose, "They will produce youthful flames of feminine excellence!"

"They're going to burn down Konoha," Kakashi says flatly.

Gai's hair and teeth sparkle in the sunlight, and he doesn't attempt to deny it.

Another important one

"The world is a terrible place," she says, and she has to swallow before she speaks again, "and it's full of terrible people. But I don't have to be one of them." 

I love that Natsu-chan has great balance, this is my number one favorite character trope, and I wish more people would write it

She bends down to look at him upside down, and Itachi can feel that she's not using chakra to stick onto him, and sometimes her balance just isn't logical. 

I just love the idea of tiny genius Naruto, and I love that Natsu-chan is a seal master at like, fucking seven and a half lol

Itachi knows it's actually far more complicated than that, but just as he does not tell her minutia of the past shinobi wars in their history lessons, she does not overcomplicate her explanations of sealing. Usually he's grateful for that, but when she appears to break every known law to sealing and chakra, he's not.

"That's," he blinks and he's not going to tell her it's impossible because it clearly isn't, "new," he settles on.

A mood honestly

Inoichi now feels the urge to bang his head against the table top, because 'a huge pain' to Natsu is 'literally impossible' to everyone else.

Another mood honestly

Inoichi watches his former genin dig in with resignation. “When are you guys going to start picking up the tab? Feeding you all isn’t cheap you know.”

Hana swallows her mouthful, “Sensei, I am but a lone healer’s apprentice –“

“I have been a chunin less than a month,” Kabuto pouts, wounded, “and already you seek to profit-“

“Do you have any idea how much sealing paper and ink costs?” Natsu demands.

“Okay, okay,” Inoichi grumbles, but it’s not very effective considering he’s smiling, “I take it back, jeez.”

Okay so, since this is a 100k+ word fic, I’ve been doing this thing lately literally just now on this fic review where I only feature quotes from the first chapter (Depending on length.) but, I’m making an exception because I’ve never seen these three characters and my thoughts on them summed up so well by someone I don’t know which is to say anyone, no one I know cares about my interests really lol

"Maybe a little," he admits grudgingly, "Sakura's really smart, but she acts dumb for some reason. And her endurance is really bad. She probably would have been failed on that alone if she didn't have such good aim with shuriken. And Sasuke's good at like, everything, I still don't get why he didn't graduate earlier. He's just so-" Kiba rubs his hand over his face.

"So what?" Hana prompts, even though she's heard this particular complaint before.

"Sad," the genin sighs, "He's miserable all the time, and he works hard and if you yell at him for long enough he'll work with you, but - crap, I don't know. He's got this really great poker face so you think he's just a big jerk, but I can smell his emotions, the big idiot, and he's just this sad lonely kid who won't listen to anyone."

Hana hums, because if she opens her mouth she'll probably start cursing the Hokage and his dumb rules and his dumb ideas, and that is not the type of thing that leads to a long life.

Just one last quote because dudes, guys, pals, friends of mine it’s important and you should all stop and read it.

 “Thanks for being cool with – everything. I’m really happy you’re not mad at me for not being honest with you.”

“You are my friend,” Gaara says warmly, “and you have always been honest about that.”

Words & Chapter(s): 136,306 words of greatness, and 6 full chapters of nicely done completion

Summary: When Naruto is five, he's gutted by a drunken civilian and presumed dead.

Six months later a girl with ash pale hair and dark blue eyes enters the Academy. 

(Guys I swear on my cool as fuck username, and all around internet personality as practically satan and probably Lucifer and whatnot that nobody we like stays dead or severely injured)

Score: 13, this is one of my favorites for a reason, this is actually my second technically third time rereading this in as many weeks

Pairing(s): Uchiha Sasuke/Uzumaki Naruto Hatake Kakashi/Umino Iruka, background Haku/Zabuza, but don’t worry anything you’re thinking of is addressed quite nicely in the fic ultra background but still there’s a lot of relationships and I’m not going to tag them all

Warning(s): Naruto technically dies more than once because this is Naruto we’re talking about but they also technically don’t??? You gotta read it, but basically temporary character death, only the bad guys stay dead in this one.

Nobody knows that Naru-chan lived so there’s that angst for you, however, to be fair it’s not like this whole story is just characters mourning and crying and whatnot, at this point it’s mostly just passing thoughts and memories which, again, to be fair, does almost feel worse at times... Huh, regardless it’s not overly angsty

Kakashi is adopted whether he likes it or not by Natsu-chan, we love both of our emotionally fucked over fair-haired ninja in this house so you won’t have to worry about that sorta fic coming outta nowhere from me BTW... but anyways, Kakashi freaks out a bit, much like the abused dog he always reminds me of, but Natsu is the sweetest and most gentle, yet forceful person he could’ve possibly caught the attention of. (This is canon)

The Akatsuki are still bad, BUT ITACHI ISN’T technically SO WHO FUCKING CARES!!!! (The Massacre still happens tho...)

Mentions of The Flower District and what that implies, and also things a Kunoichi might definitely do

Oh my fucking god the Hyuga... Who would willingly do something so horrible as that? Of all the things... Warning for... The Hyuga branch family situation, it’s dealt with nearly as soon as we are informed but, gods, my blood ran cold, and my face whited out, my sister thought someone had died when she saw my face haha,,, who the fuck does this? And do they die? In canon I mean? I think I only watched up to the chunin exams or Pein’s attack, I can’t remember which tho...

Natsu cries because people are nice to her sometimes. And honestly that’s fair, I burst into to tears once because I imagined someone kissing my forehead softly so, Natsu is completely valid... Sidenote, I’m touch-starved and have no cure for this beyond younger siblings and my cat because I don’t have the ability to ask my mom for a hug without literally gross sobbing and I have A Thing about embarrassment sooooo... yeah if anyone has some therapy justu for me that’d be nice

Mentions of Gross Men that apparently want to have Natsu’s increasingly growing collection of the absolute most dangerous people she can befriend pay them a visit. And by that, I mean an old fuckwit has the gall to leer at a TEN-YEAR-OLD and a FUCKING THIRTEEN-YEAR-OLD!!!!!! Ugh, I hate those kinds of pathetic worms.

On that note, there is technically underaged things going on, but they are also Ninja soooo???? They’ve killed people and are technically in their version of an army, and by the laws of their lands they’re all adults, actually I’m pretty sure by shinobi life expectancy Kakashi is middle-aged, Inoichi is a senior citizen, and Hiruzen is a walking corpse tbh

Alcoholism??? I don’t really think it is but I’m not sure, but some characters do drink often, and usually when stressed courtesy of Natsu and co. but still... I don’t actually know if it is because it doesn’t actually happen much, more like every few weeks/months

Mentions of past sexual assault, and attempted past sexual assault, neither happen in fic or to any of our main characters, the experiences are not graphic though they do talk about it in chapter five, it’s not to graphically described.

Also, a bunch of off-screen lemon

A Thing (That I copy-pasted from the author so that all of you will see it and not say a single word against it.): If you thought Natsu was too mature for her age - she has seen and been through some really horrible shit. But also: my cousin has, since he was like 4, hung out with kids that were about 4 years older than him because those were the kids that were in his neighborhood or whatever. Point being, even after he started school, his main group of friends was consistently older than him. He very quickly adapted to that, and to this day (he's 12) hangs out with that same group, and considers children his own age 'kids' because he adapted to the behavior of the group he was surrounded with. I hardly believe Natsu would be any different.

And also

4. Quick little note because some people mentioned liking my portrayal of the Sandaime. I base his decisions/motivations (and Itachi and Danzo's to a certain extent) around this quote by Clementine von Radics: "It is so hard to live half monster, to hurt everything you love by trying to protect it wrong."

Pros: Watching Natsu just casually disregard the idea of gender with little to no thought is the greatest thing anyone will ever experience beyond, I dunno, the party we’re all gonna collectively throw when soggy Cheeto dies (I still haven’t decided which song we should make chart number one when that happens)

Given that I’ve technically read this three times you should already know the writing is fucking amazing, like, whoa, mind blown type of amazing, like, wow, so good, I usually hate rereading something I’ve read before, and especially so soon after the fact but geez Louis is this fic amazing

Natsu is just as easy to fall in love with as Naruto, and they are still the same people with slightly different personalities as is to be realistically expected with a situation like Naru’s was.

Also, GENDERFLUID REPRESENTATION DONE FUCKING AMAZINGLY IS ALWAYS A PLUS!!!!!!! 

The author manages to convey a very realistic genderfluid character in an incredibly believable manner, while also still keeping Natsu/Naruto themself. They’re still the Naruto that we knew and loved, but they’re different too, as is to be expected. when Natsu is a girl no-one stumbles, she is a girl without a doubt, even the author doesn’t trip up on societal expectations, and when Naruto is a boy there is next to immediate acceptance of this fact with absolutely zero (0) Zero bullshit from transphobes, which, as a genderfluid person myself, is always fucking nice to see. You’ll have to read it to know more though.

Natsu running around creating seals is honestly the greatest thing ever, and the end scene with the village made me cry a lil bit, and dammit this fic is so fucking good!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

So, there’s a scene, where Natsu heals Kakashi, and the way the author handled explaining the intimate not sexual relationship between two of my favorite characters ever is just, so subtly beautiful, the sibling-bond these two have is beautiful, and a part of me wants to cry sometimes when I read it, and usually do cry a little when I get to this scene, and only partially because of what happened directly before it.

I love the way everybody just gets up and moves past their trauma and just decides to politely ignore it, oh they still have it, they still deal with it, but they care, and they are careful about it, and even though it hurts them like a knife-wound to the kidney in slow-motion they still get back up and keep fucking going. That’s hella admirable and I can respect that, I can respect even more that they slowly but surely let themselves heal as time moves on. This fic is beautiful on so many different levels but it is this one perhaps, that is the most magnificent. Perhaps.

Sasuke is adorable and depressing and adorable and I love it. And Ino is still a bad bitch but she’s a kid so we only see it like a handful of times in the first two chapters. The Akimichi/Yamanaka/Nara are all great, and I occasionally pity Inionchicause like, he’s putting up with a well-informed seal genius that’s still hyper, a slightly frightening medic-kunoichi with giant dogs, another slightly more frightening medic-nin who isn’t the greatest fighter but damn can he be intimidating and also really good at pointing out “Certain Things” while judging you about them which, honestly, is my greatest pastime. Itachi is so sweet and then so tragic oh my gods, and Natsu never even considers giving up on him. Kakashi is so sweet, and he slowly becomes less of a beaten dog as time goes on and I just love all of these characters.

Except for Hiruzen. Well, no, I still love this particular incarnation of Hiruzen, for all that he’s got one hell of a pathetically small backbone, I get why he does shit. But that doesn’t make me happy. Still, he’s better than dumbledouchebag. Granted that’s not difficult, and you might have to actively put an effort in to be as bad as that guy, but still. Plus, his hearts in the right place, and he’s less about the greater good then... certain disgraces to teaching and being in charge of a large group of people... Hiruzen is actually kinda sweet and admits he has issues and actually has an excuse that’s understandable for the shit that he pulls which is great, if sadly uncommon.

Anyways, Sakura is terrifying, and I remembered why I had a crush on her. She’s so badass, also, she ends up Princess Mononoke basically which, honestly, is fucking great, and the best thing we could’ve asked for, I love all of these characters so much!!!

Aesthetic: It reminds me off beefy stew (We don’t eat beef, so we used vegan soy beef stuff instead, and it was just as good.) it reminds me of the warmth, and friendship, and home that I felt after my mom and I make dinner together with nothing but a little music on and jokes passing back and forth between us. It reminds me of scraping my knee and having my friends help me to their mom, it reminds me of loyalty and compassion. It reminds me of dancing outside at night, alone in the forest with nothing but the moon for company and wind for music. It reminds me of the first time I realized that I could love someone despite their gender and that I should despite mine. It reminds me of finely spun handmade lace, and all it’s delicate while also reminding me of the sturdiest of steels, it reminds me of so much. It reminds me of acceptance, and understanding, and so much more. If I were to say what food and drink it reminds me of, I’d say chicken noodle soup, and sweet lavender-lemon tea.

Music Aesthetic: So, I made a playlist while I was reading this the first time around, and instead of a gif or twenty like I would usually prefer to do I’m going to add that playlist. https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLbhXmTSBbAyjk0m1b4BZUp3t0RHL83LDK

But if I were to add a gif or two it’d be these

Because something about this fic reminds me of rainy days with tea and baggy clothes.

Every time Natsu/Naruto decided to fight ever, to be honest.

[ironbloodaika]

If there was a show you really wanted to reboot so you could go back and fix all the problems you had with it, which show would it be and what changes would you make?

Sorry for the delay in answering this Charlie. My memory’s been wonky lately. XD First off thanks for asking this, I love these sorta asks. I used to get these all the time from Jenn, but the less said about that the better.

I’ve thought about this and the one I REALLY think could use a reboot/fresh coat of paint is definitely Danny Phantom. It had a lot of strong points, but was also lacking quite a bit. Some I saw when it first aired and others only after re-watching and the gift of hindsight. So here’s a list of things I’d change/improve to the series if I could in no particular order.

*Have some solid continuity/character growth for the characters. A sad trend I’ve noticed with a lot of Butch shows is that they don’t tend to really have the characters under go arcs that span longer than an episode or even make reference or learn from past events. Occasionally they DO pop up, but they’re very rare and fleeting. It helps when you’re airing episodes without any regard to order, but it really hamstrings your ability to tell engaging stories or have the characters grow when there’s no guarantee that anything that happened is gonna carry over into future episodes.

*Give Danny a spine. Danny’s kinda stuck with one of the most annoying problems I see in a lot of cartoons, especially Butch shows I’ve noticed. The hero, despite having all these amazing gifts and powers, still doesn’t stick up for himself in even the most basic of circumstances. Look, I understand Danny can’t just go using his powers to push back against bullies or anyone who makes him mad. It’d be taking advantage of his powers and run the risk of abuse. But for the love of God, Danny, grow an f’ing spine! Despite facing Eldrich Abominations on a semi-daily basis, this guy still has to kowtow to the likes of Dash and the jocks for no real reason. For fuck’s sake kid, Peter Parker got bit by a radioactive spider and gained enough strength to bench-press a Buick. Yeah, he didn’t advertise he had powers and still acted meek around others, but he actually started standing up for himself. He didn’t fucking sitdown and take it. Instead the show seems to pain ANY attempts of him using his abilities for any sort of personal gain is wrong. And if we wanna play by that logic, fine, but have Danny at LEAST stand up to Dash. I’ve learned through my own experience that ignoring or running from a bully solves NOTHING. If Danny isn’t gonna tell a teacher or something of the blonde sociopath making his life hell, then fucking stand up for yourself. Teach kids to not take that shit.

*Okay that last one went on a bit. Sorry, that just really bothered me. Second thing I’d do is give Tucker some development. Of the main 3, he’s one who really never went through and arc and often times felt like a 3rd Wheel at best and an annoyance at worse. They keep playing up how his love of tech makes him unpopular, but it really comes off more he’s unpopular for just how grating he is. I’m not sure what school Butch went to, but in my days EVERYONE knew SOMETHING about technology. They weren’t fucking Luddites. Give Tucker SOMETHING to add to the story besides just being there and cracking wise.

*SAM. Sam needs a real overhaul. At first I didn’t mind her, but she’s really grated on me with the passage of time. I’ve shared my thoughts and feelings on her a LOT on this account, so I invite anyone who wants to check those pieces out to checked the Sam Manson tags for more on that. But to keep it short, give her SOME kind of depth. Sam really comes off as more shallow than the people she derides, constantly complaining about stuff by the mere fact it’s popular, propping herself and her interests up on a pedestal because they’re not “mainstream”, forces her friends and others to alter their life-styles to fit HER choices, and comes off as more of a contrarian lashing out at Mommy and Daddy than someone who legit BELIEVES any of the crap she’s spouting.

*Give the secondary characters some love. With how much we have episodes that focus on characters like Jazz, Valerie, Paulina, or Dash, they don’t really change all that much or have much going for them to begin with. Valerie has the strongest arc of the bunch, but it’s sadly dropped near the end of the series and doesn’t really get the resolution it deserved. Jazz played a roll as a secret keeper to Danny, but didn’t really do much before or after those episodes. It would have been cool to see the sort of relationship she had with her brother before knowing he had super powers and how their dynamic worked before then. Even get a glimpse to how she is at school. Maybe like how despite all the things Danny thinks about her being smart and perfect, it’s because of those things that’s she’s really not all that popular at school. We never DO see her really hang with anyone outside of Danny and his friends. And Dash and Paulina just serve to as foil to Danny or Sam respectively. Dash only serves to remind me how much the Casper High is dropping the ball on preventing very clear and public bullying and Paulina and Sam get into arguments that, let’s face it, are instigated 9/10 times by Sam for no other reason than she can. Have these characters GROW. There are a lot of parallels made between the cast of Danny Phantom and Spider-Man and here’s a bit some people tend to forget, the kids who bullied Peter Parker before he got his powers? They grew up. They stopped being bullies, made up for their short comings, and became actual adults. But everyone seems to wanna keep them as these static bullies who only serve to cause tension and nothing else. I’m not saying upgrade them to Sixth Ranger status, but if you’re gonna have them be in so many episodes and in such a chaotic series, have them add SOMETHING.

*Dig deeper into the Ghost Mythos. One thing they REALLY need to take advantage of is the fact that ghosts EXIST in this universe. There IS an afterlife or at the very least an alternate dimension we SUDDENLY have access too. I feel that this should be a much bigger deal to their world than it is, but everyone seems to just accept it and move on. Unless Danny really DOES live in the Marvel universe, I don’t think the fact his parents literally created a portal to the afterlife should be treated as an after thought. You have so many chances to explore with this concept, especially with the ghosts Danny fights themselves. So many different types of spirits and apparitions in folklore to take inspiration from. Hell, the series flat out tells us that a lot of these ghosts WERE people at some point. They had lives. Families. But they never really touch upon this fact and just treat them like a Monster of the Week. You’d think Danny would get tired of fighting and try to do something a bit more long-term with some of the ghosts who’d like to just be left alone. Instead we get a really weak ‘retcon’ that ghosts are just extra-dimensional creatures who THINK they’re the spirits of the dead. That seems like stupidly complicating the matter. Why even call them ghosts if they’re not? 

*Speaking of ghosts, how about they finally explain why the fuck they can’t shut that damn portal down. Seriously. It’s the SOLE means the ghosts have of getting out as often as they do. Danny KNOWS this. But the fact he never ones tries to shut-down or disable the thing is astounding. If they just gave us a reason like it was too big to shut and the machine was there to keep it from getting BIGGER, that I’d buy. It’d at LEAST be an explanation. To me this is one of those elements that if you just removed, the series would literally end at that point.

*This is sorta looping back, but Danny seems to be very split in personality depending on the episode. He’s either cocky and brimming with confidence to the point of arrogance or a moppy sad-sack who is all to willing to quit and ditch his powers despite the levels of stupid such an act would bring. Look, I’m not saying a hero shouldn’t be confident or have low-points, but they feel very random and often time serve no other purpose than to force a scenario where he’s either humbled or turned into such a Butt Monkey by the narrative it starts getting sad. Even Spider-Man in the 90′s cartoon didn’t have it that bad. And he felt about quitting every other story arc.

*Give Sam and Danny better chemistry. IF you’re gonna have these two together, give us SOMETHING to work with. These two don’t have a lot of chemistry, all they do is blush and avert eyes. It’s really not that impressive. It’d be cute if they’re grade-schoolers and this was a story of young love, but they don’t really click in any kind of romantic sense with what we’re given. I know Valerie was given as a Romantic False Lead, but you wanna know something? They actually WORKED. There was some goddamed communication there. Some really adorable flirting, compliments, and sweet moments. They didn’t bicker every five minutes and made each other happy. Hell, if they had pulled an American Dragon and had Valerie find out about Danny and ultimately be okay with it after finding out she’d been played, I’d have completely been okay with it. Instead we have to accept him getting with a girl who can’t even bare the sight of him showing interest in another girl while STILL denying she has feelings for him. Look, I grew tired of that bullshit in Total Drama, Sam, don’t push me.

Well that’s all I’ve got to say on this end. Most of it springs down to character and story elements since I feel that’s where the show really frays out. Hopefully this answers your question, Charlie, and it was a good read. Thanks again for the question! :D

[sparda3g]

Kingdom Chapter 616 Review

Truth be told, going into this chapter, I was expecting more hype inducing. That’s not a bad thing; just have my expectations set for that standard. There’s some truth to that. However, I wasn’t expecting epicness from a character I least expected or rather, the timing I least anticipated. It’s the Kingdom greatness that I know and love since I began reading, and it’s only getting started.

The chapter opens up with a reminder of Ousen in a very tight situation. Bananji is going banana on his killing spree. Futei is hell-bent to take on Ousen and honestly believe he can win. This is some crazy multiverse we landed on. In all seriousness, Ousen is clearly on disadvantage. I doubted he would be taken down here, but the intensity is enticing. It could go two ways. One is he fights the great Futei, which I would be very interested, believe it or not. Two is the payoff to the last chapter’s cliffhanger. The answer is number two, and I am not complaining.

It has a great entrance to boot for the one to save Ousen. Right before he has to force himself to defend, a lance spear right through the enemy’s faces, and you know instantly who can that be. Ouhon arrives to save his father, blood or not. I got to respect him for seriously run over there in his absolute worst condition. Knowing his character is treated like a Shounen protagonist, what better way to arrive than saving someone in the nick of time. It’s worth it for Futei looking dumbfounded at a new challenger. There goes my hype for the fated battle. As great it was for Ouhon to save his father, the reaction is quite damning.

I would have settled a humorous reaction of Ousen like, “Good work, Kanjou. As expected as always.” Sadly, the reaction is cold, ruthless, and actually painful. Yes, they’re not related by blood if the rumor is true, but hearing those words can really sting. No compliment; purely belittling. Even what Ouhon did was honorable, Ousen calls his action useless and pointless. Nothing has changed; only bring more deaths upon them. “What a fool” is how I paraphrased his words. It’s a good thing Hara did well to make me sympathized with Ouhon, but I felt sorry for him; completely demoralized his great save.

Futei even chimes in to agree with Ousen. That’s the last thing you want to hear; an enemy agreeing with your relative on the insults toward you, by Futei no less. I would have thought this chapter is all about laughing at Ouhon for his stupidity. I do find Futei’s attitude a bit funny albeit cringing for he talks like an immature brat, language and all. The stalling lead to Bananji coming close to Ousen; now the hype has switched.

Bananji versus Ousen sounds incredibly hype; maybe not as Futei’s but it will do. Joking aside, it has gotten more intense. I thought two-on-two would happen, but Ouhon is barely a one, so I didn’t know how this is going to work. Speaking of him, after being belittled, he still wants to protect Ousen. I can’t say blood is thicker than water, but family stick together is good enough. The hype was already up high, but Hara wasn’t done bringing in the challengers. From the corner, Zhao’s men felt certain that they got this win thanks to them. Bad timing, because a new challenger arrives and another great entrance occurs.

The double-page spread is warranted for the arrival of Gaku Ka Unit. I had goosebumps when Mouten shows up. It was close to warrant an Avengers-esque theme song. We have Ouhon and Mouten reunited; all it is left is Shin to complete the generation. I mentioned about it in the last chapter’s review; I wasn’t expecting this to happen so soon, but it felt so great when it did. The chapter could have ended there and I would have been fine with it. But it continues and praise the sun, it did.

With the table slowly turning to Qin’s favor, Futei goes for Ousen, who remains unfazed by the way. I doubt he fears Futei at all, so it’s kind of funny. However, it is Ouhon, who shouldn’t have any stamina to move, that blocks him from approaching. That is stunning; that’s what Futei gets for his arrogance. That alone is rewarding. The biggest surprise however wasn’t that moment, but the follow-up. Mouten doesn’t go for a smaller target or even size. He goes for the devil, Bananji.

I was honestly shocked; never would I thought him versus Bananji. If you’re unfamiliar with me, Mouten has been one of my favorite characters of the series. Trust me, I would love for him to score a major kill, but against Bananji sounds like a wishful thinking. His own men thought it’s suicidal. His only advantage is knowledge. With Bananji not knowing how Mouten operates, there’s only one shot to land a strike. Mouten’s pray to “gramps” has me unnerving. The set of four-page action is what defines Kingdom greatness.

The sequence is captivating as hell; it’s the David and the Goliath storytelling. Bananji goes for a massive swing that had me breathless. Mouten calculated extremely carefully to evade; convinced everyone that he has lost his head. The epic page has him looking upward at Bananji with a death stare; a picture perfect of an underdog about to strike the monster. That page, I can look at it all day; it’s simply glorious. What’s also glorious is the chapter ends with the slash across Bananji’s right eye. That’s how you satisfy the fans, let alone Mouten fans. If I was a kid, I would be jumping with joy.

This was a great chapter; as a Mouten fan, this was amazing. You have two back-to-back great entrances, though Ousen downplayed badly for one. Regardless, my respect for Ouhon grows even more for standing up and still blocked an attack to a guy who supposed to be a legit threat to Ousen. That’s incredible and hilarious. Mouten stole the show, though that could be me being biased, but rest assured, the last pages were glorious. The artwork, the sequence and the narrative were top notch for that clash alone. I have seen many fans colored them already and bless their souls for it. Kingdom is about get greater.

[ssteezyy]

Ask the Cat Behaviorist with Mikel Delgado: A Lost Cat, a Cat With Pica, a Screaming Tortie and More

Welcome to our regular “Ask the Cat Behaviorist with Mikel Delgado” segment. Once, or every other month, we’ll post a reminder for you to post your questions for Mikel. She’ll answer as many of them as she can each time, and I’ll publish her answers in a subsequent post.

Mikel is a Certified Cat Behavior Consultant at Feline Minds, offering on-site consultations for cat guardians, shelters, and pet-related businesses in the San Francisco Bay Area, and remote consultations around the world. She obtained her PhD in Psychology at UC Berkeley, where she studied animal behavior and human-pet relationships. Mikel is co-author of Jackson Galaxy’s forthcoming book,��Total Cat Mojo: The Ultimate Guide to Life with Your Cat, due out October 31and available for pre-order now (this is an affiliate link*).

A follow up to questions about what to do when a cat goes missing

Before I get to the new questions, I thought I should follow up on my post on what to do if you lose your cat. I did get a few emails from folks who have some AMAZING websites with advice on finding lost cats – including some using technology such as wildlife cams and bionic hearing devices! These sites include http://ift.tt/1jFvALM and http://ift.tt/1fG5KZC ,run respectively by Kim and Bonnie who both left comments in my last column. I agree 100% with both of them that there are many things above and beyond what I mentioned that folks can do to help their cats return (just look at their websites for a plethora of ideas). The hottest issue of contention seems to be whether one should leave used kitty litter outside as a lure for the lost cat. Here was the thread of responses (I tried to put them in the order they were left).

I would suggest that Dr. Delgado have a look at our web site when counseling people about lost cats! There is much one can do to find their cat, but the one thing they should NOT do is put out a litter box! It will draw other cats (who will claim it and your property as “theirs” and will fight your cat off it (s)he tries to come home), dogs and predators. – Bonnie Wagner-Westbrook

I just read Dr Delgado’s response. She suggested putting some used litter into a TNR trap – not putting out a litter box. Tehila

(At this point, I should probably also note that I NEVER recommend leaving traps unsupervised!!! So much to say in one column, so little time! – Mikel)

Tehila, it would have the same consequence. I’ve had cases where cat guardians put out the whole box, sprinkle it around the yard, or inside traps and it attracts local strays who will fight off a cat attempting to come home on his/her own. If these cats are unaltered (and sometimes even after they have been altered), they will spray the area to mark “their” new turf. I’ve heard of (legit) cases of coyotes and other predators being attracted to an area where litter is left out. Just not a good idea. – Bonnie Wagner-Westbrook

I am happy to defer to the experts in this regard – but the logic behind the argument still leaves me with some questions! As I scientist, my main gripe is that we have so little understanding of how cats navigate in the first place. But if the main argument against placing used litter in the trap is that it will attract other animals (including predators), I would like to know why placing delicious food in the trap wouldn’t do the same thing? And lacking lures, how do you get a cat to go in a trap?

In regards to “turf marking” by cats, a lot of research (see Karen Overall and John Bradshaw’s books) shows that cats don’t use urine as a “keep out” message, so much as an “I was here” message. It’s also considered a passive signal to deter aggression, and cats don’t avoid areas that other cats have marked in. In fact, they spend MORE time investigating those areas, and a lot of cats will “overmark” the urine spray of other cats. Of course, this doesn’t mean a terrified, lost cat is going to be out and about pee-sniffing, but it’s important to understand how and what urine-marking communicates between cats. A recent study showed that although cats prefer a clump-less litterbox, previous urine odor of another cat was not a deterrent.

I agree with Bonnie. I do lost cat recovery full-time and advise against using kitty litter in any way (other than inside the house, of course). In my experience, people who swear by it are being superstitious as cats who return when litter is involved would have come back just as well to a sack of potatoes on the porch. – Kim Freeman

Now this argument makes more sense to me! I think it gets back to the question of not knowing WHY cats come back. We tend to throw every possible solution at the problem and hope that at least one thing helps the cat return or go into the trap! I have had several friends, neighbors and clients use the litter without problems, but of course they also did other things to help get their cat back! That said, I’ve also seen several cases where the human ended up going to the cat (by setting traps where the cat has been spotted) rather than the cat coming home – which brings us back to your awesome methods using wildlife cams and other technology!

About finding your cat… Not too long ago some neighbors the next street over lost their cat and put flyers on the front doors of every house in the neighborhood. It turned out that the cat had gotten into our attic… Don’t know how but we heard it when it was meowing, and made the connection between it and the flyer that was left at our door. It turned out to be the cat and the people got it back. If they had only put flyers on telephone poles, etc. we would’ve never known who’s cat it was. Mason

Mason, This is an excellent point. The more contact you can make with people (online neighborhood message boards, face to face, flyers under every door) the better!!!

Re: sister cats and redirected aggression; I had the same problem when I moved the my current apartment. I arranged for two feral cats to be trapped, neutered, and returned (TNR). Eventually my cats settled down. They still go slightly bonkers, but the aggression against each other gradually ended. Last week, one showed up and my older cat just sat and stared back at him. – Tehila

Tehila, thank you for sharing your experience. I wish all kitties would have this reaction! For tips on keeping cats out of your yard, see my last column, or this recent one posted on Conscious Cat.

Cat with a serious case of pica

Hi Mikel, I work at a shelter and was approached by a cat owner who has a cat with a serious case of Pica. She owns two older cats, a 12 yo male and a 7 1/2 yo female -both are declawed. She then adopted a stray female kitten that was very playful and got along ok with her other two cats. After she was spayed and unfortunately also declawed, she began to notice her chewing behavior began.

It started with the curtain cords- she tucked those away then she moved on to shoes/couches/dressers, toys and just about any other item that she could. Her vet felt there were no medical issues and it was just a lack of stimulation and suggested that she adopt another kitten. So she adopted another 8 month old kitten. They did and still do play together but the chewing behavior continued.

After discovering her chewing on the windowsills she confined both kittens to a room to reduce the damage to her apartment. She has tried all kinds of allowable chew toys, sprayed areas that were off limits with anti-chew spray (which did not work)- physically blocked off areas, increased her interactive play time with her, tried Feliway plug-ins, different types of food puzzles, kitty grass, outdoor bird feeders etc – you name it she has tried it.

She currently has her cat on Prozac at 5 mg and is working on clicker training – The Prozac has helped a little but the chewing continues. She is not particular when it comes to her chewing and her owner is worried she is going to swallow something that is going to harm her eventually. This concern alone makes it all the more difficult to enrich her environment and she’s fallen into a catch 22 situation.

Any thoughts on where she could go from here to change or stop this endless need to chew? – Karen

Karen, Depending on how long the cat has been on Prozac, she may not have been benefiting from the therapeutic effects yet (Prozac typically takes several weeks to “kick in”) – so she can check in with her vet about how much improvement she should be seeing by now.

Pica can be tricky, because in many cases, life-long management is necessary. There’s still a lot we don’t know about why some cats are prone to it (there is a genetic component in many cases), but the assumption is that increased stimulation and enrichment is helpful. The Indoor Pet Initiative, led by Dr. Tony Buffington, has good resources for making sure that cats have everything they need to be happy indoors. In cases of persistent pica like this one, I would recommend that she work with an experienced consultant or veterinary behaviorist who can do a home visit and assess the environment, looking for stressors that might not be so obvious (perhaps sounds or smells?).

I would also want more information on whether the kitten chews on food items in the owner’s presence, the owner’s absence, or both. That can tell us a little about her motivation – is it anxiety, is the chewing being reinforced by attention, etc. The clicker training is certainly a good approach to rewarding behaviors we like, not the ones we don’t like!

Recent research found a relationship between digestive upset and chewing on non-food items, so it’s possible that there is still an undiagnosed medical issue. We also know from a new study, that sadly, declawing is every bit as terrible as many of us feared, in regards to leading to long-term pain and behavior issues.

Screaming tortie

I have a screaming Tortie and Dr. Kris told me to ask you. We have had her for 4 years. She was a rescue that my brother adopted for my mom and we adopted her from Mom. She is a talker sometimes and can be really sweet but I am afraid we will be kicked out of our apartment. We live in a 1st floor 2 bedroom 2 bathroom and she has her run of the place. She is only not allowed in our 2 closets. She refuses to drink from her water bowl unless someone comes with her in hopes that we will turn the faucet on. She does not like me watching her drink but I tell her mommy is not leaving until you start drinking. She won’t play with her toys. We got her a pink scratching post where you need to find the ball and it has cute hanging bells and she would rather watch us play with it. She does love looking out the patio window watching the people walk by and the kids playing soccer on the tennis courts. But she is so needy and won’t play with her toys, only eats cat food, and wants to be with us 24-7. I won’t even apply for a helper dog for my MS because she will be so jealous if her mommy has another baby. We won’t even adopt another cat because we cannot afford 2 kitties. Her screaming is horrible. I don’t know whether that is a Tortie thing or not. She does love having both a mommy and a daddy. What do I do? I am about to pull out my hair. – Debbie Ramsey

Debbie, In situations like yours, I always wonder how much WE are contributing to the cat’s behavior. I had a case where one of my cats was having difficulty using a food puzzle on her own. Guess who stepped in to help? ME. Guess who could use the food puzzle just fine when mommy went out of town? My cat who was having difficulty! Turns out I was just “enabling” her and she was perfectly willing to have me do all the work for her when I was around.

Reading your email, it seems like you are concerned about a few things: 1. excessive meowing 2. it sounds like she likes drinking out of the faucet 3. she won’t play with her toys 4. you would like to get another dog but think she would be jealous I’ll do my best to address each of these things!

1. Cats who meow usually meow for one of a few reasons: something is wrong (I’m going to assume this is not the case) they are bored (possible, some cats get bored very easily!), or she has learned that meowing gets her attention from humans. See my previous column for advice on “screaming cats.” If you talk back when she talks to you, she may have learned that meowing is great fun!

2. For cats who like drinking out of faucets, a pet fountain can be great. You can also try a DIY project or a motion sensitive faucet that will turn any sink into a cat fountain.

3. If you are having difficulty getting your cat to play, it may be because of the toys, or because of how you are playing! The scratching posts with the hanging toys may be attractive to kittens, but that type of toy loses appeal for adult cats.I don’t know what other kinds of toys you have for your girl, but I recommend having a variety of interactive toys that resemble prey. Some of my favorites include the Cat Dancer, Da Bird, the Cat Catcher, and Neko Flies. These are all designed to mimic the movements of prey and I have found that most cats respond very well to these toys. Be sure to put them away when you aren’t supervising, as toys with string and wire are not safe to leave out with cats!

As to HOW to play, I recommend moving in ways that mimic the prey animals and that use what we know about cat hunting behavior. Cats are attracted to movement away from them (like a mouse trying to get away) and rustling sounds. Alter your movements, so that sometimes you move verrrrrrry slowly, then add in some quick bursts to see what she responds to best and when. Remember that cats are stalk and rush hunters, so sometimes they like the slow movements best (the ones that humans usually find boring!), and the actual pouncing part might be a very small part of your play sequence, depending on your cat’s activity level.

Don’t make the play too hard (let her touch the toy from time to time so she gets the tactile stimulation), or too easy (don’t poke, pet or otherwise put the toy right in your cat’s face – no mouse or bird would do that!). And be sure to rotate toys – a previous study showed that cats got bored of the same toy before they got bored of playing!

4. I would not assume your cat will be jealous of a new family member – for many “busy” kitties, more members of the family = more things to keep them stimulated! If you choose your new dog wisely, make sure he or she is well -trained, and do a slow introduction, there’s no reason you can’t expand your family! I’ve seen many households where cats and dogs get along fantastically.

I hope this helps!

I love this column, it is especially informative and very interesting. I like the lengthy ones, even more (hint, hint!) Thank you so much! – VagabondMoon,

Thank you so much for the kind words! I’ll do my best to keep my answers in-depth when I can!

No questions (for now!), but I just wanted to say how much I enjoy this advice. I volunteer with rescue cats and have learned tons! – Robert Wagers

Thanks Robert! Rescue cat volunteers are quality people

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The post Ask the Cat Behaviorist with Mikel Delgado: A Lost Cat, a Cat With Pica, a Screaming Tortie and More appeared first on The Conscious Cat.