#and that's the end (as long as the bonus truck doesn't get one too~~)!!! thank you for your kind attention!!!

[deus-ex-mona]

mona's self liner notes for her second album: a ♡collection♡

[you-can-reclaim-your-crown]

i understand you completely! it's the same for me except i'm a native english speaker lmao. but the fact that you're willing to write a story in english despite it being your 3rd language is already an impressive feat, you should be proud! here's a protip in case you need it, consider searching these terms if you find yourself unable to properly convey your thoughts into your writing: (insert word or phrase here) synonym, (insert word or phrase here) definition, (insert word or phrase here) antonym. don't worry about it though really, i do think that art is challenging and difficult to create - be it drawing, writing or videos - it does require a lot of practice and studying to be able to reach a certain level of skill but it doesn't matter as long as you keep trying and giving your best! at the end of the day, more than anything else i think effort is of the utmost importance and it'll definitely reflect in one's works. i'm wishing you the best and i look forward to what you have in store <3 will you be posting it on ao3? the mods will add it to the sukugoweek collection if you tag your work with sukugoweek2023. i found out that they'll be accepting submissions until january 3rd so there's still plenty of time left! if you wish to post more than 1 fic, please feel free to do so too. they also just added a special prompt for gojo's birthday, you might want to use it if the opportunity arises haha. aw it's no problem, i'm happy to know that i was able to help you in some way <3 yes i feel you, these bitches had me in a chokehold since 2021 when i first got into jjk! it's going to be my 3rd year of brainrot soon in a couple of months, time flies so fast...

You really do say the sweetest things🫶🏻 i get a little message like this and i feel so happy it's almost embarrassing.

Languages are so weird.

How are "English can be weird. It can be understood through tough thorough thought, though."

And

"Gore gore gore gore"(croatian) even real?? Whoever decided this: buddy, you blew it. Super hard. Complete buffoonery.

Special prompt you say..🤔 it does give me some ideas...

i might have underestimated how long this is going to be. My plan was a one shot and a little bonus chapter/epilogue-ish thing. But we will see. Maybe i have to split the main chapter.

I think i started to ship them around October 27th, so I'm a sukugo baby. It's the first gojo ship I'm really invested in. I'm fond of nanago but it's just that.

(Shout-out to 0bstinate for this one sukugo on 'it is not enough to love you' post. That really got my gears turning... you're a hero)

And then it his my lika a truck. They have everything I'm into: enemies-to-lovers, honoured/fallen one, red+blue, canabilism as love language (bc i like them a little fucked up), monsterfuckery, i hate everyone but you, unhinged x unhinged, corruption/redemption etc. let's be honest their fight was basically foreplay. Archenemies? Kinda gay if you ask me.

Aaaand I'm rambling again😅sorry

But to answer your question: yes I'm going to post in on ao3. Because fuck anxiety, we are so back bitches. And I'm a people pleaser and you encouraged me, so you are my people to please. Sorry buddy but you are not getting out of it now.

Anyway my reply is probably a bit all ower the place. I didn't sleep well, I'm tired and i accidentally deleted my reply before so i had to typ it again.

I really really appreciate that you took your time and wrote me❤️ thank you from the bottom of my heart

[epiemy]

can u do some conner kent (dc comics) fluff alphabet??

Yaa! Thank u for your request <33

------------ zz ------------

Fluff Alphabet [B, K, M, P, V]

Warnings: None Pairing: Conner Kent (DC Comics) x You Word count: 745 Caption: 💜

MASTERLIST // REQUESTS ARE CURRENTLY OPEN!

B = Body (what is their favorite part of your body?)

I don't know why the hell, but I imagine Kon as a guy who likes thighs and boobs. He doesn't really care if they're big or small, for the boy they'll always be perfect, whether it's for laying his head down on a bad day, seeking comfort, or simply being great for him to hold on to.

Why the hell would he use stress toys when he has you and your nice thighs/boobs around for when he needs it?

A bonus is that I think of Conner as someone who would love to see him smile, as if just the fact that you smile at something he said made your day better at exactly the same time.

K = Kisses (how do they like to kiss you?)

As we all know, this boy's strength is thunderous and he has to make violent efforts with his body daily in the fight against crime, for this reason he would choose to hold her with the greatest gentleness in the world, giving her long but soft kisses.

He would definitely withdraw a few minutes before he left anywhere or when he got home, just pulling you into his lap and kissing you with total devotion. He would have some silly hands too, but you know what Conner is like, don't you?

Anyway, he would use kisses as a sweet way to show his love since words are not so easy for the boy. Blame CADMUS for not teaching the poor bean to express himself correctly when it comes to feelings.

M = Memory (favorite memory together?)

If I asked them both, they would surely both answer: The day we met.

It was a severe winter in Metropolis, you just moved to the place on account of the university and were soon greeted by a terrible snowfall, it seemed that some crazy villain was willing to transform all the residents into new flavors of ice cream.

Well, for your unhappiness or happiness? IDK. His car ended up sliding around a dangerous curve in the direction of the opposite traffic road, and as it always got worse, it was night and the only thing he could see was a truck honking because it was speeding towards him. Obviously you thought you were going to die, but a boy in a T-shirt with the House of El logo and a leather jacket lifted his car just in time for everything to go wrong.

That night, in addition to getting a ride with Superboy, you met the love of your life. It's funny to think that this is both the worst and the best memory of the two of you together.

P = Pet Names (what do they like to call you?)

I can't see him using pet names, if not to tease her. Something like when Tim came to visit them and Kon made a point of calling her a different nickname every minute:

"Sweetie, could you get us some water if you're not busy?"

"You know Timmy...my princess also understands about this matter."

"I really think you are the most beautiful doll I've ever seen in this world."

"We already understand that you love to embarrass her, Conner."

"Shut up Timothy, let me pamper my little angel."

Oh shit...yeah, but I also think he would eventually grow fond of the nickname "Princess", using it whenever he can just out of habit. You don't really care.

V = Vaunt (what are they proud of? Do they like to show you off?)

He is certainly a born flirt, after all the boy knew how to take advantage of the beauty he was given. But instead of talking about himself in conversation (which everyone always thinks will happen), he doesn't shut the fuck up for a goddam second about his girlfriend.

"Oh, Y/N is just the best thing in my life."

"Yeah, I date the most badass girl ever."

If you were studying, certainly any time you get good grades, he will be extremely happy and will not stop babbling about how smart your loved one is. Lowkey Tim and Dick think it's cute but can't stand to hear his name in conversation anymore.

He'll really love it if you talk about him too, but he'll be smug as hell when that happens.

Do not light the flame of Conner's self-centeredness, for the sanity of those who live with the boy.

[ejzah]

I love your latest ficlet with the temp agent flirting with Deeks! Could you do one similar one but where she doesn't know Kensi is his wife or pregnant, just knows the agent she's replacing is on medical leave and that Deeks' wife is pregnant? Maybe this time she's more persistent? Bonus if Talia is involved and is the one to tell the other agent to back off and tells her all about Kensi 😊

A/N: I’m reusing the name from the other fic here because I’m terrible at creating and naming characters.

***

Indecent Proposal

“Alright Agent Bertram, you can go with Talia to check out the warehouse,” Callen said, gesturing to Agent Helena Bertram. She was halfway through a 2 months stint with the team as part of a new pilot program to increase interagency cooperation.

Talia was also convering Kensi’s maternity leave. Usually she ended up partnering with Deeks, which was actually not that bad. Though he would never admit it to Talia. They generally got along well despite her frequent inappropriate comments and jokes and she was extremely efficient.

“Deeks, you go talk to the victim’s wife.”

“Actually, would you mind if I go with Agent Deeks this time?” Agent Bertram asked. “I haven’t had much practice with interviews and I think it would be a useful learning opportunity.”

If Callen seemed bothered that she’d objected to his directions, he didn’t show it.

“Sure, that’s fine,” he agreed. “You ok with going to the warehouse, Talia?”

“Oh, I can definitely handle it,” she said, an undertone in her voice. Helena joined Deeks as they filed out of OPS, staying in step with him the entire way down the stairs.

“So, I heard you studied law before you became an agent,” she said, her arm brushing against his slightly. He moved to the side, giving her a little more room and nodded.

“I did. I was a public defender for a couple years before I became a cop and eventually ended up with NCIS,” he told her, heading to his desk to grab his badge and weapon. She leaned against his desk, making herself comfortable while he got ready.

“That’s pretty amazing. Maybe you can-”

“Have you heard from Kensi today?” Talia interrupted, somehow finding room on the desk next to Helena.

“Yeah, she’s doing great. The baby is moving like crazy and today she’s putting a cube shelf together. I told her I’d do it when we get home, but you know how she gets.”

“Oh, I know,” Talia agreed with a little laugh.

“It sounds like she’s a little bit controlling,” Helena commented, drawing a frown from Talia. Deeks was kind of surprised Helena had come to that conclusion, especially since she’d never even met Kensi, but figure he’d probably given the wrong impression somehow.

“Only in the best way,” he said, winking at Talia, who leaned towards Helena in a way that was both flirtatious and intimidating.

“She’s pretty fantastic.” Rather than looking uncomfortable as Deeks expected, Helena just smiled and said,

“Well, she must be if she found a guy like Deeks.”

***

“So when we question Mrs. Cisewski, you want to make sure you don’t sound accusatory. Unless you have a good reason to suspect that she’s being dishonest or holding something back. You never want to alienate a witness when you don’t have to,” Deeks explained to Helena as he drove.

“I know, Deeks,” Helena said, her voice sounding almost playful. He glanced at her for a second and saw that she was smirking at him. “I’ve participated in many interviews and interrogations. Maybe not quite as many as you, with your silver tongue, but enough to know my way around.”

“Then why did you ask to come with me?”

“Because I wanted to have you to myself for a little bit. You’re always rushing off with Agent Del Campo or the guys and I feel like I never see you.”

“Well, all you have to do is look across the bullpen,” Deeks joked, trying to ease the uncomfortable tension he suddenly felt. The truck felt too small and Agent Bertram way too close. Especially when she leaned across the console.

“I think you know what I mean,” Helena told him, actually sliding her hand down his arm. He pulled away, avoiding her finger as she attempted to link them together. “I have an empty apartment and a bottle of margarita mix that are all yours. You just have to make the move.”

“I, uh, appreciate the offer, but you know I’m married. With a baby on the way.

“Oh please, Marty, I see how you flirt with Talia. You guys clearly have something going.” She laughed, the sound dismissive and derisive. “And based on the way you talk about your wife, she’s kind of a nightmare. I’d think you’d want any opportunity to escape that.”

“First of all, I happen to love my wife very much. Secondly, Talia’s just a friend,” Deeks said. “That’s how she acts with everyone.

“You keep telling yourself that.” She squeezed his arm, ignoring his attempt to shift out of the way and added, “Just remember that the offer stands for as long as I’m here. And since it sounds like your former partner is going be out for a while on medical leave, I might be around even longer.”

***

A/N: Yes, there will be a part 2. Thanks for the prompt!

[asphyxiatedredherring]

Life is constantly putting up new obstacles for you to tackle, so how can you honor our Earth every day?

I'm here to help with that by sharing a list of 15 ways to honor Earth and be closer to nature whether you be in quarantine, an urban area, winter, or whatever situation you may find yourself in.

❁ Summer Jar ❁

I'm going to start off this list with a personal tradition, a summer jar or flower jar. What I do is I collect flowers (mostly just petals) and dry them right before summer starts transitioning out into autumn. I put all of these now dried petals and flowers into a small jar (with a lid). Now you are left with a jar full of color and life to get you through the winter. When spring comes around and flowers are blooming once again I spread them in my yard and leave the jar open until the end of summer.

❁ Your Alter ❁

An alter is a great way to honor the Earth. You can have something to symbolize each element, flowers you've collected, crystals, and so much more. I like to keep something that symbolizes the area I'm from, for me it's a fossil my dad found at his work. So much of witchcraft and paganism is nature based so adding in extra Earth elements isn't hard, Google for more Earthy alter ideas!

❁ Nature Walks ❁

Not everyone lives in an area around the woods or forest but that doesn't mean you can't take nature walks. If you live in an urban area go to a park, it's still nature even if it is outlined in tall office buildings. Even walking down the street notice dandelions in cracks of the sidewalk or birds hopping by, make sure the thank the Earth for making room for you to live. While in a social distancing situation that has sprung up these past few months you can still take a nature walk as long as you are not too close to people. Don't forget that just because you are socially distancing doesn't mean you can't be friendly, wave to neighbors as you pass just don't get too close. If you have access to a car go on a drive down the back rounds, it's a family favorite at my house.

❁ Meditation ❁

Meditating is something everyone can do! Grounding exercises are great, you can envision roots extending from your body into the Earth below you. I personally like to envision myself walking through the woods or in a creek when I need to clear my mind.

❁ Gardening ❁

A garden one of the best ways to connect with nature. There is so much symbolism you can put in your garden too, like specific flowers or color schemes for deities. You can grow herbs for your craft and cooking, fruits, veggies, or even just flowers. Gardens don't have to be very big, you could even go to a community garden. Gardening can also bring you closer to family if you fo it together or it can be a way to get some alone time. Gardening can also be a way to give back to Earth and the people around you, I'm sure your neighbors would love to be gifted from fresh produce!

❁ House Plants ❁

If you can't have a garden house plants are a great alternative. Plus, they won't be affected by weather outside. Some plants like spider plants are really good air purifiers, other plants like aloe have magick and medical uses. If you are worried about pets like your super cute cat you can try and find places the animal doesn't go like a bathroom. Don't forget to make sure a plant isn't toxic to pets before you buy it, just in case. House plants are a wonderful way to bring a little bit of Earth inside with you. Bonus points if you name your plants or talk to them.

❁ Crafts ❁

Making crafts with natural materials is so much fun! Going out to collect the supplies is half the fun. Crafting can be done so many different ways and in so many different mediums. Whether you like photography, drawing, painting, pottery, wood carving, metal working, or what ever else may float your goat the element of Earth can easily be added in. The internet if filled with countless crafts you can try to honor Earth if you want guidance or have artist block!

❁ Decor ❁

Decorating your room (or other space) with the earth element even works if you are broom closeted! You can spruce up your life and be more spiritual. You can decorate your place with earthy crafts, environmentally friendly products, crystals, a plant, a wooden sign, framed pictures, etc. Anything with those #EarthVibes!

❁ Clothes and Beauty ❁

What better way to honor Earth than use cruelty free products. You can check labels to see if your beauty and other self care products are not tested on animals, vegan, organic, contain micro plastics, and other things harmful to the environment. As for clothing I find it great to go to thrift stores for "new clothes" as well as donating my old clothes that either don't fit or I don't wear anymore. It can be great to support local stores rather than big name brands like American Eagle and it is way less expensive. Your clothes, jewelry, and makeup can even have an Earth theme to them. Brown and green tones are super earthy along with some rusty oranges. It doesn't need to be floral to be earthy!

❁ Food ❁

I am personally not a vegetarian or vegan but I am conscious of what I eat. I grow some of my own vegetables and I have a strawberry patch (witch is great for making jam). I try to eat organic or locally sources foods. If you live in a rural area try to get to know your local farmers. When you take food from the Earth you should always give back.

❁ Feathered Friends ❁

A family fun activity to get to know your Earth better is to go out and try to find some bird nests. Never get too close or disturb the nests or birds in any way, keep a respectful distance. It can be fun to keep an eye out and watch as the little babies grow. You could even go the extra mile and build (or buy if you aren't crafty) a bird box.

❁ Open the Windows ❁

Opening the windows is always wonderful. Houses and apartments can get stuffy so why not let Mother Nature give you fresh air. Opening windows gives opportunity to look and listen to the sounds of the Earth. Nothing is better than a breeze blowing through an open window.

❁ Cleanse Thyself ❁

I don't mean to break out the sage, I'm talking about a good old bath. Cleansing baths are great, you can add herbs, oils, scents, have candles, meditate, the whole shebang. But, if you are like me you only have a stand up shower then you can still have a good cleansing. Just envision all of the negative energies flowing down the drain. You can also save water (and money for new witchy supplies) by turning the water off while washing your hair, etc.

❁ Get Educated ❁

Learning about the natural history and features of your area can be really important. I love to study the geology of the mountains I'm from. You can learn about native flora and fauna and even what to do about invasive species. Education is a powerful weapon and and a tool of creation. The best way to get an understanding of the earth element is to learn about it. You can watch documentaries, read books, (credible) online articles, you can even talk to local people about the world around you. Part of learning about the earth could even be researching relevant deities.

❁ The 3 R's❁

Reduce, reuse, recycle: words we hear all the time but probably don't put enough thought into. Part of taking care of the earth is to keep it clean and not use to many of it's resources. This is such a broad category, you can reuse old containers to keep your witchy supplies in, cut back on the use of plastic and one use items, and recycle your trash so it can be made into new items. You can check out your local recycling place it there isn't a truck that picks it up on your street. There are so many ways to reduce your carbon footprint and reuse old products that seem usless. Check out upcycling, there are tons of trendy things you can do!

This is a repost of a post I made on the Pagan & Witch Amino a while ago

[stillness-in-green]

i realized mika's the only one of the tekkadan boys to have a specific thing he wants to do outside of fighting- farming- which is kinda ironic considering he's been called aimless. so do you have any ideas of what the other boys could/would like to do as a profession/career outside of fighting (not counting what they actually ended up doing in the epilogue)? doesn't have to be for everybody, just for whoever you can think of. thank you :)

I got this ask ages ago and have been periodically rolling it around in and around other things, but I put it in front of myself again today and finally typed out a response. Below the cut, some thoughts on what these boys would be doing if they had, not only all survived the series, but done so in a way that left them free to pursue whatever ambitions or talents they might desire or discover.  

Most of them.  

Lets start with the inner circle and work our way out.  

I think Biscuit (whose survival is probably the reason everyone else is alive in this hypothetical AU of ours, because he would have an aneurysm before he let Orga join hands with McGillis Fareed) could be good at practically anything he puts his mind to, and therefore, what I think he should probably do is go to school.  He obviously values education–he spent lord knows how much time endangering life and limb to earn the money to put Cookie and Cracker through school, and clearly admires how far Savarin’s schooling took him in life.  As to what he might study, there are a number of ways that could go–agricultural sciences to help his Granny Sakura with the farm, business to pick up where Savarin left off, possibly a social science so he can find a job in all the inevitable restructuring that Mars’ new government will be doing.  

Eugene, more than anyone else, strikes me as wanting to find someone to settle down with. Unlike Shino, who talks about women solely in the context of his sex drive, Eugene is interested in romance. And while he doesn’t seem to have had much luck with that in IBO’s canon epilogue, in a more peaceful time, it’s easy to imagine him devoting more energy to dating.  Without Tekkadan eating up his attention, whatever career he finds a way into–possibly bodyguard work still, or maybe an office job like Zack’s–would, I think, be just a way to help support a family.   

Akihiro, unlike most all of the boys, already has a girl who’s interested in him, and if he survived this show for this AU, I see no reason to not imagine the Turbines did also. Lafter plainly was never going to leave the Turbines to be with him, of course, but if there was no Tekkadan to protect…  I don’t think Naze would be very keen to break his girls-only rule, but every chick must leave the nest eventually–perhaps Lafter and Akihiro might be entrusted with protecting/leading another branch of the business?  Given the size of the organization*, there must be other battleships doing the transport business/transport protection thing.  Or they could just accompany whichever shipment Naze directed them towards.

   That is, though, probably kind of a longshot. Tekkadan Inc. or no, Akihiro has strong feelings about protecting his family, and where I think that’s most likely to leave him is actually in Dante’s place in the epilogue, helping run the orphanage and taking care of children.  While I don’t know that gentleness and empathy will ever come easily to him, he would be able to relate with the stories of the many ex-Debris children that orphanage is implied to be seeing post-outlawing-of-legal-child-trafficking, and it would be a way to both honor and grapple with the memory of Masahiro.

Derma would probably end up in about the same place he does in the show–assuming Akihiro doesn’t get adopted by the Turbines, I think Derma would follow him to the orphanage.  He had been more directly under Dante’s wing in the series, of course, but for a lot of reasons, I don’t think that the same things that would appeal to Dante in civilian life would hold much interest for Derma.  He doesn’t have Dante’s knack with computers; he doesn’t share Dante’s itch for fame.  But he does have a load of self-confidence issues that make him exactly as likely to relate to orphan ex-Debris kids as Akihiro’s losses make him.  (It’s also the case that Derma is the Tekkadan kid who’s the least explored outside of being a child soldier, so I’m inclined to err on the side of what the show points him to rather than make things up wildly, which is essentially what I’d be doing otherwise.)

Returning to the main group, Shino is easy; in a scenario in which he isn’t a paid civilian soldier, that guy has got “stunt show pilot” written all over him.  I doubt Mars’ entertainment industry is so well developed that they need or can afford to hire mobile suit pilots for TV/film work, but I bet the planet can support something more like the Post-Disaster equivalent of monster truck derbies.  They’d probably involve old/restored mobile workers, rather than the expensive military hardware that is a proper mobile suit, but I certainly don’t put it past Shino to showboat around in a decommissioned Flauros from time to time.

Dante, always grouped with Shino in combat, would probably follow him here.  In a peaceful epilogue, Dante easily could have an entirely lucrative (and possibly illicit) career with his computer skills, but I think he’d finding sitting at a computer all day to be unfathomably boring the more like an actual desk job it became.  Compared to the measure of fame Shino would be making for himself, it’s obvious which Dante would go for.  Also, with two people with mobile suits, they could possibly get some kind of MS boxing circuit going.  I think that would be a very longterm project, more suitable for when things calm back down and there are all these mobile suits around collecting dust.  

Yamagi is a mechanic–he’s one of the few characters with job experience other than “soldier,” and there’s no reason to expect him to change streams from the canon to this AU.  However, I think Yukinojo and Merribit would have encouraged him to go work with Shino’s pit crew/show team before too long, if he ever held a job down at Kassapa Factory to begin with.  He and Shino are, almost certainly, dating on the side.  Just, like, fill in Shino and Yamagi for the Special Feeling umbrella meme.

Ride is another gimme.  He has an obvious artistic streak, the evidence of which is painted all over the Isaribi, the Tekkadan complex, and the orphanage building.  If he didn’t need to fight (and while he was pretty gung-ho about it originally, I have to think the trauma from Hashmal and the agriculture plant is going to be long-lived), it’s very simple to imagine Ride getting nudged into pursuing art in a more professional way.  Especially if Kudelia’s new government is subsidizing such things.

Chad is another one that I’d like to see in school.  There are several instances in the series that impy he’s doing serious amounts of research/study on the side–he’s constantly shown asking pertinent questions or showcasing some skillset or bit of knowledge that he has no business having access to based simply on what we’re explicitly told about him.  Given that, it’d be interesting for the others to convince him to set aside the helper ant mentality and go learn something he thinks is interesting.  While Biscuit has family needs to guide his academic choices, Chad could really get into anything.  I would slot him into a field that involves research but also quantifiable knowledge–history, for example, or psychology, rather than e.g. theoretical physics.  I kind of love the idea of Chad getting access to a bunch of banned books via Kudelia or their Teiwaz connections. 

Takaki seems on-track to wind up in politics, if not as a politician himself, then as the sort of lobbyist or aide that any notionally democratic government runs on. Given that he bailed out of fighting by choice, this seems to be his chosen path in any case.  He’s also likely to make a hell of a diplomat when he gets older and picks up more confidence in himself.

Aston is so rooted in his self-image of “soldier” that it’s difficult to imagine what he might want to do outside of that field.  We do know a few things about him that could give us a direction, though: he’s observant (noticing more about Fuka’s schoolwork than her own brother), he’s relatively prudent and cautious (his teamwork with Vito, and his reluctance to wildly charge McGillis), and he’s a mediator (between his quartet back with the Brewers, and again between Takaki and the other Earth Branch boys).  So what kind of career could combine those traits with his gravitation towards military settings?  Personally, I think he’d do really well as a crisis negotiator–a specialist brought in by police to help with hostage situations and other threats of e.g. domestic violence, terrorism, suicide, and so on.  Of course, the trick there is less getting certified for that job than it is finding a group to work alongside–while I can see him joining an Arbrau/Edmonton police force, it’s much harder to imagine him being able to get a job with Gjallarhorn.  In any case, assuming he can manage to find an avenue for said work, he’d be great at it. 

This brings us to our Season 2 newbies.  

Hush I would mostly see following Mikazuki into farming.  Not just to be following Mika, mind, but because Hush’s motivation, beyond a big ol’ chip on his shoulder about the Alaya Vijnana system, is much the same as so many others–to protect and provide for his social circle.  If he’s provided an avenue for that that isn’t constant endangerment of life and limb, I think it’s what he’d go for. And farming is helping to provide for a great many people, some very directly–the fact that he can still be around to help Mikazuki is just a bonus.  

Zack joined Tekkadan because of their fame, rather than out of real necessity–so what exactly did he think was so cool about Tekkadan to begin with?  Given his reticence about actual combat when he comes face to face with it, perhaps it’s more the “spitting in Gjallarhorn’s eye” aspect than the feats of badassity?  Given that, what could he do that would scratch that itch? Well, he’s a hell of a programmer, and has Dante available to teach him anything about hacking he doesn’t already know. I think he’d be very happy being one of those whistle-blower internet Ariadne activist types, finding secret information, info on cover-ups, or details on corruption, and providing proof of such things to the world at large, particularly given how government-controlled the media is in the setting.  

Dane is already living a life free of fighting, so it’s possible that, absent Tekkadan being a bunch of criminals, he might end up working at Kassapa Factory anyway, or perhaps going with Yamagi to Shino and Dante’s venture.  He’s another big mystery as to things he might enjoy outside of work; for example, he evinces little patience with Hush until Hush starts showing some basic empathy/humility, which leads me to think that close work with people would probably not be his thing.  So sticking to work with his hands, I wonder if he, like Ride, would get any mileage out of art?  He could snap paintbrushes like twigs, of course, but I can see him being good at something like pottery, and if his pre-show history is as violent as we’re lead to believe, I can see it being relaxing–probably as a hobby, rather than a career, just something he can do on his own time and terms.  

So, that’s every–mm? A significant exclusion?  A deuteragonist undiscussed? 

Oh, right.  

So, Orga. What would Orga do in peacetime? Well, that’s difficult to even try to conceive.  Orga, like McGillis, is massively defined by both his ambition and his dissatisfaction with the status quo.  He’s never satisfied, never content; he interprets Mikazuki’s intense gaze as a challenge, and it never stops pushing him forward, no matter who else tries to tell him he’s going too fast.  What could Orga ever do in peacetime?  It’s tempting to say that every one of the hypothetical outcomes above was paid for in Orga’s blood, because less than a handful of these people would ever desert Orga if he lived, and while he lived and had people looking to him, he would never stop.  In that way, Tekkadan is in a feedback loop that they can’t get out of without a system-redefining change.  Looking at his skill set, we again find a bunch of things that suggest that Orga works best as a leader–he’s canny, highly charismatic, a quick thinker, and he has killer instincts, albeit with some Mikazuki-sized blind spots.  This is a kid practically fated to be a gang leader–and he’s also oathsworn to the mob, making getting out of that life safely a dicey prospect.

   So what is there for him, if not fighting?  Purely as an imaginary exercise, he’d be a scary effective community leader.  I mean, just imagine being a city representative showing up to a town hall meeting and this is waiting in the front row:

   But that’s still pretty mundane.  Lets try something really different on for size.  

   During the season break, Orga is attending some official function at Saisei, lurking around afterward and waiting for a chance to talk to Naze.  Out of nowhere, he gets jumped by the fashion equivalent of Saisei’s eccentric mechanic, who insists that Orga’s je ne sais quoi levels are off the charts, and he absolutely must grant her at least one modeling session.  Naze, walking in on this conversation, has a huge laugh about it and goads Orga into accepting.  And then the whole of the second season gets derailed because suddenly Orga is faced with the argument that sufficiently famous people are also rich and powerful, rich and powerful enough that he could relocate his entire gang to some private satellite around Jupiter if he were so inclined.  And maybe it feels immaterial, and maybe it wasn’t the method what he expected, but that doesn’t make the paycheck any less real.  The designer tells him in no uncertain terms that if he wants to continue, she will personally talk McMurdo Barriston’s ear off about how he is completely wasting this surly teenager’s God-given personal magnetism.

  Orga immediately has a huge crisis over it, because it feels terrifyingly unmasculine and he has no concept of the term “soft power.” Atra loves it, though, and Biscuit thinks it’s strange but effective.  Things almost fall through anyway when it comes out that Orga has a whisker implant, but the designer is insistent, so they end up just photo-editing it out and limiting his public appearances, which is just as well, because he finds crowds and fans alike to be extremely uncomfortable.  

  Tekkadan still do odd jobs for Teiwaz now and again, like protecting Kudelia from Dawn Horizon, but are mostly out of the line of fire when McGillis starts looking around for allies.   McGillis, deprived of a Tekkadan he can talk around on joining him, is left profoundly annoyed.  How things go from there is a whole new question.

*Allow me to quote from this post: 

In the interest of context for the number I’m about to lay on you, the Dawn Horizon group–a band of pirates who have ten ships and are considered sizeable enough that they fill a niche that’s important to Gjallarhorn, and would also be too much a pain to try to oust entirely, have around 2,500 members.  Wow!  That’s a lot!  

The Turbines have 50,000 members.

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