#and. um. lets just say everything that reminds me of one specific anime character puts me like a deer in headlights

[johnmalevolent]

recently discovered lee arknights is voiced by miki shin-ichiro (gintama tatsuma) and for a while that was it until i listen to more of his voice lines. the pengangguran banyak acara energy... getting to me. got him from the store, got the sanrio collab outfit, and made him my assistant. normal thursday

[imaginesmai]

Sebastian Stan - We’re a team

Mixing two requests, @squishybebe​ about an interviewer being rude to the reader (I know you said flirtry, but this is what came out, I’m sorry!) and an anon about his son interrupting a meeting. I hope you all like it!

Plot: no interview is boring since having your adorable four year old son, who needs his father as much as he needs him.

To say that Sebastian was bored was an understatement. It had reached a point where he had just resigned himself with looking at the guy in front of him and nodding a little when required.

The questions were too predictable; how did it feel to be playing one of the characters in something as big as the MCU, how was it to work with great actors like Evans or Downey, and how had it been his work out routine that had gotten him fit for the films. The interview wasn’t anymore about his new film, Endings Begging, but more about gossip. Even if he didn’t talk much, the guy was answering himself as he did the question.

“And did you have to cut on any type of specific food, like burgers and other stuff?” he asked and didn’t stop to let him answer. “Because I’ve seen your TV spot about ‘cheat day’ and you seemed pretty eager – you actually ate it after it cut off?”

Sebastian gave him a tight smile, as the guy started talking again about the obesity in the united states. He had caught the camera guy dozing off a few times, and his manager was no where to be seen anymore. From all the interviews he had done, that was without any doubt the most boring.

And the worst thing wasn’t that he was stuck there with his tight jeans, it was that he had brough you and Luca to the plato in hopes of finishing soon and giving you a tour around. Your little boy had just turned four and everything with lights and colours was amazing to him; as long as he didn’t have to stay in the same place for more than a few minutes. He got angsty and started crying, and he already felt bad enough when the clock reached the hour in there.

“Would you say you’re a role model for little kids?” the interviewer attacked again. “With your violent characters and –”

He was cut off by a thud, and everyone’s attention went to the clear glass door, including Sebastian’s, his heart quite literally rocketing out of his chest when he saw who was outside the door. Before he could even react, Luca was jumping up and grabbing the handle, the door effectively swinging open so fast that it could have broken if he wasn’t a little kid.

“Daddy!” Luca screeched, his face red and tear-streaked.  “Daddy!”

You appeared behind him the next second, looking around wildly until you found your kid. He was way too fast for you to catch, and Sebastian watched as his four-year-old kid rounded all the tech equipment and ran into a woman’s legs. She stumbled and glared at him with such fire that Sebastian felt felt anxious, but Luca didn’t seem fazed, as he rushed over his dad with his arms raised.

It was then when he noticed the what the problem was, sympathy forming in his chest as Luca slammed into his legs. You were apologising softly to the people he had ran over as you jogged towards the pair.

“I – I had an accident!” Luca sobbed with such a despair that Sebastian felt his heart ache.

The whole team were all looking at him with their eyebrows raised, the interviewer going as far as scoffing and trying to look around for someone to fix it. You landed on your knees beside them and, even if Luca had ran from where you were playing with him, the little boy reached a hand for you to take.

It had been a month since the last incident, and Luca felt really proud of it. No more wetting the bed at night when he had to sleep alone and no more staining his favourite trousers when you took to long to go home. He reminded you every day that he was already a big boy, and that soon he would be wearing a cool suit like daddy when he goes to the ‘flashy place’.

Luca sobbed even harder when Sebastian rubbed a comforting hand against his back.

“Um, can someone – take care of this?” the interviewer chuckled, looking directly at you. “We were working here, and you’re kind in the middle of something.”

“Yeah, sorry. I’m sorry” you blushed in embarrassment, trying to pry Luca from Sebastian. The boy had an iron grip on his father. “It’s just – he ran out of the room, I’m sorry. I couldn’t hold him.”

“Yeah, well, you should. You can’t let him run off like that, he’s going to become a brat” the interviewer talked, missing how Sebastian was sending him glares with his eyes. “What kind of mother can’t hold his son?”

“Why don’t you keep your opinions to yourself?” Sebastian scoffed. “Come one, we’ll get you cleaned up, yes?”

His voice was softer when he talked with Luca. He placed his hands under Luca’s armpits and hoisted him into his lap, not caring about the expensive sweater he had chosen for the interview. Wiping the tears away from his son’s face, he pressed his lips against your cheek and assured you that it was fine. He watched Luca’s index and middle finger disappear into his mouth. Usually, he would tell him off, but even he felt anxious with so many people looking at them.

The guy got up too when Sebastian neared the door, wide eyes and gripping his notebook. He gestured to the camera to stop recording for a second and ran towards you.

“Why are you leaving? We aren’t over” he said as Sebastian looked back to him. The interviewer took a few steps back when he noticed the angry scowl on the actor’s face. He looked between you and him, hesitant. “She can – she can take care of… him. You know, let the man of the house work. You can’t… leave.”

He attempted to joke with Sebastian, chuckling, but he wasn’t having any of it. Instead of laughing and handing you Luca, he secured his grip on him and gestured you to open the door.

“I can and I will, actually” he answered as he bounced Luca up and down. “What you can do is never talk about my wife like that again, she’s as much as a parent as me, and she doesn’t need to take care of anything so that I can work. If you ever do it again, you can have a chat with my layer next, who will be very happy to hear from you”

Leaving the man open-mouthed, you left the recording room behind Sebastian closing the door behind you. You hadn’t looked up from the ground, only to check periodically on Luca, who was calming down now that he had his daddy with him. Still, there was a small proud smile on your face.

“Daddy?”

“Yes bubba?” Sebastian replied, looking back to check that the door was closed.

“Mad?”

Sebastian smiled softly as he stepped into the hallway, reaching with the hand that wasn’t holding Luca to yours. He gave it a soft squeezed, answering to your unsaid question and Luca’s one at the same time.

“Nah, it was being too boring without you. I’m always up for any of you if you need me”

Luca hid his face on Sebastian’s neck as you made your way to the spare room where you had been playing with Luca. The floor was covered in books, stuffed animals, and a few dolls that he had been playing with, mixing them in some childish fantasy about a castle and a lost prince. You didn’t say anything as you entered the room and let Luca on the floor. Bringing your travel bag, with spare clothes, you cleaned Luca in the small bathroom and changed his clothes between the two of you, putting the stained ones in a plastic bag.

You didn’t say anything as Luca talked the silence away with his ramblings about what his daddy had missed in the hour he had been away. He showed him the drawing he had done and Sebastian told him that he could go and play for a while.

Luca skipped away as you leaned against the sink.

“I’m sorry for letting him run away” you started, quite embarrassed that your four-year-old had crashed Sebastian’s interview. “When I realized what had happened it was too late, and he was already calling out for you.

“No, that’s – I don’t want you to apologize draga mea” Sebastian frowned. “I’m the one who has to apologize, I should have cut the interview sooner”

“You don’t have to cut any interview for us” you smiled at him. “I should have had a better hold on him. Your work is important, Seb, and we can’t go crashing –“

“No, my work isn’t important” he interrupted you, and with a long stride he was in front of you. “You’re important, cause you’re my family. And it’s fine if you interrupt an interview because Luca or you missed me, I can handle a few angry words from the team. But what I can’t handle is you thinking that it’s your duty taking care of everything, alright? We’re a team”

“Quite a team” you chuckled, looking down at the bag with the stained clothes.

“Yeah, but you’re my team, so that’s fine”

You didn’t say anything else and Sebastian leaned in for a kiss, in that small and shitty bathroom. Indeed, you made a good team.

Want to read more? Check out my side blog @imaginesmaimasterlists​, where I keep all the masterlists! Feedback is always appreciated

[pearlsephoni]

Barre None

Can also be read on AO3!

Rating: T

Fandom: Avatar: The Last Airbender

Pairing: Zutara (Zuko/Katara)

Characters: Katara, Zuko, Suki, Piandao (v. briefly)

Summary: Katara hated the idea of being a cliche. The last thing she wanted to do was fall for her co-star. But with a partner like Zuko, perhaps she was doomed from the start. 

A/N: Written for Day 3 of Zutara Fanwork Appreciation Week: Fanart. Inspired by @ourgraciousqueen‘s beautiful Ballet Zutara sketches and @unidentifiedspoon‘s stunning Katara and Zuko dancebending animations.  I also borrowed heavily from the Royal Oprah House’s production of Romeo and Juliet, specifically the choreography of the Balcony Pas de Deux, which pops up a bunch in this lol don’t cancel me More Author’s Notes can be seen on AO3!

@zkfanworkweek

Katara wasn’t afraid of being in a starring role. She was nervous, yes, but she was mostly thrilled. She had spent her three years of college with the student ballet troupe, and she’d expected to have to wait until her senior year to get a solo, much less a lead role. Funnily enough, the senior who would have had the lead, Suki, was the lead choreographer, and has actually been the one to suggest Katara for the role. 

She wasn’t even nervous for the pas de deux, even though it would be her first time being a part of one. 

No, there were only two things that scared her about this year’s show: the show was Romeo and Juliet, and the Romeo to her Juliet would be...Zuko. 

To be fair to the first-year grad student, he seemed just as startled by the news as she felt. Katara got to the first rehearsal early, just in time to overhear a conversation between her co-star and their director. “Uh...are you sure you want me as Romeo?” 

“If we weren’t sure,” Director Piandao said with a wry smile, “we wouldn’t have cast you.” 

“I...right. I mean, thank you, I’m...I’m honored.” 

Katara couldn’t be sure if the raspiness in his voice was from nerves or Zuko just...being Zuko. Awkward, quiet, intimidating Zuko. 

This would be fine. Just fine. 

———————— ———————— ————————

She wasn’t fine. 

Zuko was a brilliant dancer. Piandao wouldn’t have cast him as Romeo if he wasn’t. And while he was reserved and awkward in daily life, all that seemed to fall away when he performed. When his back straightened, the omnipresent weight on his shoulders disappeared, and his eyes brightened into stars. Offstage, his smiles were rare, but onstage, they came easily. Happiness, pleading, grief, anger, it all looked unnervingly natural and real on him, as though all the emotions he held back burst forth through his characters. 

Katara had known all this. She had seen him perform. But she hadn’t ever seen him perform at her. She’d prided herself on her own performance and dance and acting abilities, but when she performed with Zuko, she found herself reacting naturally to him and the achingly real love and longing that lit up his gold eyes. Her heart seemed to skip a beat every time the choreography and direction called for them to gaze into each other’s eyes. 

And then the dancing...she’d heard how easy a pas de deux could be with the right partner, but that still didn’t prepare her for how natural it would feel. Any worries she had about being able to trust in Zuko to catch her and lift her and support her were gone by the end of the first rehearsal. Even Piandao looked surprised at how quickly they were able to learn together. They were able to put the first several counts of the Balcony Pas de Deux to music by the end of their first rehearsal with just the two of them. The lifts were complicated, but Zuko seemed to know just the right place to hold her, and Katara knew just how to drape herself over him, just how much to leap to him and make the lifts easier for him. 

The last counts that they had learned that day ended with Zuko kneeling, hands holding onto Katara’s waist as she rose into an arabesque. When the music turned off, Katara stepped down from en pointe, but she stepped further into Zuko’s hands, inadvertently bringing their faces closer to each other. Her breath caught in her throat, and she saw Zuko’s eyes widen, a rosy hue rising to his cheeks. 

The sound of a throat clearing jerked their attention back to Piandao, who watched them with a mix of amusement and...something else. “Well, and here you were both so worried. It’s been a while since I’ve directed a pair of dancers who work together so well.” 

Katara looked back at Zuko to share a smile, but that just reminded them of their close proximity. “Oh!” she gasped, stepping back and out of his hands. “Sorry, I didn’t mean to...sorry.” 

“It’s...it’s ok.” He was still kneeling, and he didn’t get to his feet until after he stared at her for an extra moment, as though trying to puzzle something out about her. “Director Piandao’s right...I, um...I really enjoy dancing with you.” 

“...Me, too.” His compliment settled warm like an ember in her chest, at odds with the feeling of sparkling giddiness she could feel bubbling through her. Oh no...that can’t be good. 

———————— ———————— ————————

Weeks of rehearsal passed. The show was quickly coming together, the set builders and stage crew had begun pulling together plans for the set and lighting and sound design, and everything was chugging along right on schedule. 

But Katara felt wretched. The weeks of rehearsal meant weeks of dancing with Zuko, and spending time with Zuko, and getting to know Zuko. One day, after a weekend afternoon rehearsal, he mentioned his uncle owning a bubble tea shop, a fact that piqued Katara’s curiosity. He invited her along, and that was how she ended up getting to know Zuko’s Uncle Iroh, tea connoisseur and loving father figure. After that, they somehow fell into a routine of working on homework at the tea shop before or after rehearsal, and lingering for a bit longer to just...chat, after their work was done. 

The more Katara got to know Zuko, the more she learned what a kind, hardworking, and earnest man he was...and the more she began to like him. Really like him. To the point where she wished she could dance Juliet’s choreography without being Juliet, just let her growing affections for her dance partner shine through. 

Matters got worse when Suki let them know it was time to choreograph the kissing. It wasn’t much, just one in a couple of scenes. A small part of Katara almost wished there were more kisses, if only so that she stood a chance to maybe get used to kissing Zuko (and maybe, just a little bit, so she could have an extra excuse to kiss him). 

The sprinkling of choreographed kisses meant she had plenty of time to anticipate each one, her heart leaping into her throat the moment Zuko began taking Romeo’s steps towards her. The first time they kissed, she nearly forgot the rest of the choreography, only remembering to move because of the guiding hands at her waist. 

Suki and Piandao blessedly didn’t notice the cause of her distraction, but they were both too sharp to not realize something was going on. 

“Is everything ok?” 

Katara jumped from where she was crouched by her bag. “Suki! Hi! I’m doing alright, why?” 

“It’s just...you seem like you’ve been having a hard time with some of the choreography, and you were doing so well...I wasn’t sure if there was something you wanted to change, or if there was something else I could do to help?” 

“Oh, Suki, I’m so sorry.” Guilt tasted sour in Katara’s mouth - here she was, an underclassman given the chance to star in such an iconic role, and she was messing it all up because of a guy. “I’m ok, I just...I just need to get more practice, I think?” 

“Do you want us to reserve the studio for you and Zuko sometime this week?” 

“That’d be great, thank you! Oh! But Suki?” 

“Yeah?” 

“Please don’t tell Zuko. I’m the one messing up, I’ll be the one to figure this out.” 

“...Sure, Katara.” 

It was her own fault, really, for thinking it would be that easy. 

She didn’t even have it in her to be surprised when she ran into Zuko at the studio. “...Did Suki snitch on me?” 

Zuko’s eyes were lined with concern, but he couldn’t help letting out a small cough of laughter at Katara’s dull words. “Don’t get upset with her. She mentioned she would be reserving a studio for you, but I was the one who asked for the time and day.” When Katara didn’t show any sign of being swayed by his explanation, he tried again. “We don’t have to practice together for the whole time, I can stay out of your way and get some solo practice in, but...y’know, if you wanted to go over the pas de deux altogether...I could be there for you.” 

Either her crush was making her soft or those gold eyes were more than effective in their entreaty, but either way, she couldn’t bring herself to say no. Zuko stayed true to his word - he stayed out of her way, quietly warming up by himself before stretching on the floor by the mirror, keeping himself limber for whenever Katara asked him to join. 

It didn’t take very long. There was only so much she could do by herself to work on a pas de deux. At some point, she just felt ridiculous, holding onto an invisible hand or compensating for the lack of support with a half-heart arabesque and pirouette, when her perfectly-willing partner was right there. He brightened up visibly when she sheepishly beckoned him, and wasted no time in getting to her side. “From the top, then?” 

Katara felt herself re-entering the performance sweet spot she always loved, where she could let herself get carried by the music and choreography while still feeling grounded and remembering to actually act and perform. And for the first time in a while, she felt good in Zuko’s hands, her nerves at least temporarily leaving her to enjoy and trust in her partner. 

But nerves are a funny thing. For most of the pas de deux, Katara didn’t let herself get distracted by Zuko’s proximity, nor the intimacy of the way their fingers tangled together and his cheek pressed against her body and his lips brushed against her knuckles. Then, the moment he began taking those final steps towards her, all of her anxiety flooded back to her.

He’s not going to kiss me. Piandao and Suki aren’t here and he has no reason to kiss me without an audience-

Her internal reality check was interrupted by the very external feeling of Zuko’s lips against hers. She gasped against him, but when he began to move away, misunderstanding her gasp, she pressed forward, the rest of the choreography forgotten. She stayed en pointe, but only because it made it easier for her to drape her arms around his shoulders and press in close. His hands, which were supposed to hold onto her waist to support her, began to move up her back as he stepped forward, until he was supporting her with his body. 

This was not the stage kiss that Katara had gotten used to. He wasn’t forceful at all - his lips were careful and gentle - but they were also achingly tender, as though he were truly cherishing every touch of his lips to hers. They parted, but he never made a move to deepen the kiss, until Katara boldly swiped her tongue along his lower lip. It was his turn to gasp in surprise, but he was more than happy to keep up with her pace. 

When they separated, it was only because Katara’s legs couldn’t hold her up anymore, forcing her feet to flatten to the ground again. “Shoot,” she muttered, earning a soft laugh from Zuko. She couldn’t help looking up at him with a shy smile, not expecting his smile to fade into a guilty grimace. “Zuko-?”

“I’m sorry, I didn’t- I shouldn’t have-“

“Why are you apologizing?”

“Because I kissed you...like...like that.”

“Zuko...I kissed you back. If I didn’t like it, I would’ve let you know.” 

That made him smile again, though his grin was wry. “...That’s true.” 

Katara felt like she was glowing with giddy bliss, but that faded when the complications of their positions caught up with her. “What...what now?” 

“What do you mean?” 

“The show is still a month away. I like you, Zuko...I like you a lot, honestly”-the surprised glee on his face nearly made her stop speaking, but she muscled through-“but I don’t want to risk...complicating...things.” She didn’t want to become the underclassman who was incapable of performing a romance without it becoming a real-life romance, and she certainly didn’t want to risk causing any drama with a backstage romance. 

Zuko’s face fell, but before she could try to clarify what she meant, he was nodding. “I understand...but I don’t want us to stop spending time together. I really, really like you, Katara. So much that I’d rather keep spending time with you as a friend than make things complicated for you.” 

“Really?” 

“Yeah, of course. The fact that you feel the same way about me is more than I’d ever hoped for. Knowing that will make any waiting easy.” 

Somehow, his reassurance and respect for her wishes suddenly made Katara want to push the boundaries a little more. “You don’t want to try and date in secret?” 

She wasn’t expecting his snort of response. “Director Piandao would sniff us out in no time. I’m pretty sure he already suspects something.” 

Well...he wasn’t wrong. 

———————— ———————— ————————

The month leading up to the show was the smoothest the ballet troupe had ever experienced. Somehow, the stars aligned and allowed all the sets to be built, all the lighting and sound effects to be set, and all the costumes to be adjusted to the performers with nary a technical difficulty in sight. As for the performers themselves, the choreography was smoothed into a perfect shine. The ensembles were synchronised, the lifts and leaps looked effortless, and everyone gushed over the chemistry between Katara and Zuko. 

And Katara was miserable. She had thought that getting all their feelings in the open would make the rest of the rehearsal process easier. But now that she’d gotten a taste of Zuko’s true kisses, his shy smiles and the way he brushed her curls behind her ear, she couldn’t seem to feel satisfied with their onstage romance. The sweet kisses that had made her blood sing in her veins now left her longing for something more, and his lovestruck visage as Romeo didn’t make her heart skip the way his blushes and embarrassed grimaces as Zuko did.

Not that anyone else noticed a difference. Zuko was as brilliant as ever, and Katara could only hope she was pushing herself enough to be a worthy partner to him. Judging by Piandao and Suki’s pleased smiles, and the words of encouragement from their castmates, it felt fair to guess that she was doing a pretty good job. 

And so the final month passed in a blur of rehearsals and “dates” to the Jasmine Dragon and her feelings for Zuko growing and growing until she thought she might burst with how much she cared for him. 

The weekend of performances that she was so excited for at the beginning of the semester had somehow become a part of that blissful, miserable blur, the final obstacle she had to clear. Among the cheering audiences, the glowing reviews from her loved ones, and busy rush of the performances, one moment in particular stood out to Katara: finding a single, snow white lily tucked into the side of her bag after their first performance. She had immediately tucked it into her braid, and was rewarded by a furiously blushing Zuko as the cast and crew left the building for their opening night dinner. 

Everyone was exhausted, but proud, when the weekend of performances was finally over. At their cast party, Suki passed a message from Piandao: there would be an informal class the following week to review how the performances went, and what they’d like to keep and fix in the process for their next show. There would be some simple warmups at the start and cool-downs at the end, for the sake of routine, but otherwise the optional meeting would be for the sake of review. 

Katara already knew she'd go. And when she caught Zuko’s eye and saw his smile, she knew he’d be there as well. After all, they had their own important conversation to have. 

When the day of the meeting came, she managed to get there a bit early, and was relieved to see Zuko already there, tugging his slippers on.

“Hey, Zuko?” 

“Yeah?” 

Oh, she hated this. Hated this feeling of being on uneven ground, the nerves and weird shyness and uncertainty bubbling through her. He likes you, you know he likes you. 

And yet. When those golden eyes landed on hers, and those lips curved into a genuine smile at the sight of her, she felt delirious with the disbelief of her own luck. Surely this was a fluke. Surely this handsome, talented, respected (though a bit awkward) guy had made a mistake in liking her. 

She shoved those thoughts away, and let a shy smile curve her lips. “I, um...I was wondering if you’d like to...if you’d like to dance with me?” 

“Really?” He sounded genuinely surprised, even a little shy. “I thought you’d be tired of dancing with me by now.” 

“Oh...are you tired of dancing with me?” 

“No!” His answer was immediate, making Katara blink in surprise. Zuko flushed, but he still shook his head resolutely. “No, I could never get tired of dancing with you. I just thought...with the show being over and all…” 

“With the show being over, I thought it’d be nice if we could just...dance as ourselves. No characters or story or anything, just...us.” 

Zuko’s blush deepened, and his smile widened. “I’d love to.” 

They stayed behind after their class. Theirs was the last class of the day, and they didn’t need to warm up before their “date” could properly begin. Katara did her best to ignore the knowing smiles of Piandao and their classmates when she lingered behind and took her time packing away her things. Piandao even made a point to leave the door unlocked behind him, something he’d never done before. By the time it was just the two of them in the studio, Zuko’s cheeks were red again, and Katara couldn’t hold back a giggle at the sight. 

“So...do you have anything in mind?” she asked him, her laugh still decorating her words. 

“Yeah, actually...you might hate me for this, but...I was wondering if you’d want to do the Balcony pas de deux?” 

“You have me in a studio all to yourself, and you want to do the same thing we’ve been doing for months already?” Katara teased, letting herself drift closer to him while grinning at how flustered she was making him. 

“It’s not- I mean- I just thought-” He caught the grin on her lips and frowned slightly when he realized she was teasing him, though his eyes glittered with amusement. When he spoke again, his words came a lot steadier. “It’s like what you said. I wanted to dance it with you one last time...not as Romeo and Juliet, but just...ourselves.” 

That made Katara go quiet. It was her turn to watch Zuko approach her, warmth traveling up her arm when he carefully took her hand and began tracing his thumb along her skin. She ducked her head to look at their hands, hoping she could hide the flush that had spread across her cheeks, before she quietly admitted, “I...I think, at some point, I was already dancing with you as...as myself.” 

“Oh…then...then show me.” 

Katara met his eyes again, and another wave of warmth washed over her at the small, understanding grin on his face. “Okay.” 

The music of the pas de deux felt like home, the familiar notes carrying her to her starting position like it was an instinct. Zuko’s smile as he joined her from the speakers told her he felt the same. But this time, his hands on her felt different somehow. They were still secure, but she felt a flex to them, as though Zuko wanted to press her closer than they already were. 

Small changes like that abounded throughout the number. Katara felt like she was floating through it, her practiced limbs carrying her through the choreography, but every so often, there was something just a little different - she didn’t run as far from Zuko, she let herself press against him, let herself hold his hands a moment longer. And he let himself do the same, pressing a kiss to her sternum when the choreography called for him to let his cheek rest against her chest, letting his lips ghost against her cheek when they came face-to-face, his fingers lingering on her body when it’s time for her to leave his hold. 

But most changed of all were his eyes. Where before, he had conveyed all the gleeful wonder of a boy falling instantly in love, he now looked like he couldn’t believe his impossible luck, like he couldn’t believe he was here, holding her, dancing with her. 

He...he was looking at her with adoration. Open, raw adoration that she’d never before seen directed at her. If she’d thought it was surreal to have his performance skill directed at her, his emotions now were making her breathless. 

When it came time for the kiss, Katara didn’t bother pressing up to be en pointe. Zuko took his choreographed steps towards her, but when his hands came to her waist again, she didn’t give him the chance to lift her onto her toes. Her arms were already around his neck, tugging him down to her, his surprised grunt smothered between their colliding lips. He thankfully, blessedly, wasn’t as shy about kissing her this time, his lips quickly parting on hers, inviting her to taste and feel and memorize every part of his kiss. Her hands set out to do the same to his body, his leotard making it easy for her to map his muscles and relish the way she could feel them jump under her fingertips. 

But it was a poor substitute for feeling his skin, and she didn’t realize she had started plucking at his leotard until he pulled away with a breathless laugh. “Maybe you should take me to dinner before you go that far?” 

Katara’s eyes widened, mortification coloring her cheeks a deep red. “Oh my god, I’m so sorry, I didn’t realize-” 

Zuko cut her off with a sweet kiss, immediately melting her panic away. “It’s ok, I wanted to do the same. But...would you? Like to go to dinner with me, sometime?” 

“As a date? An actual, more-than-friends date?” 

“Of course! I mean, only if...If that’s what you want.” 

She swore he was the only person who could get kissed within an inch of his life and still be so sweet and concerned about crossing boundaries. “Zuko, what I want is an excuse to keep seeing you and kissing you as much as possible. I like you so much, it’s almost embarrassing. Of course I’ll go to dinner with you.” 

Zuko’s smile was so sunny, so bright, so warm, that Katara was ready to promise him the world just to see that smile again. Thankfully, he was far more interested in getting more kisses than anything else, and she was more than happy to oblige.

[clive-owen-and-the-knick]

Rock n Roll Thack

Spoilers ahead for the season-one finale of The Knick.

As The Knick kicked off this past summer, Dr. John Thackery (Clive Owen) reminded those around him that “We live in a time of endless possibility.” Unfortunately for this brilliantly unhinged surgeon, that potential boundlessness got him sentenced to a hospital bed on this weekend’s season finale. Turns out shooting liquid cocaine into your veins before surgery is bad for both you and the health of your patient! Thankfully, Thack will get himself cured with a new drug called, uh … heroin, which was considered safe at the time. “It’s from the Bayer Aspirin Company,” says the prescribing doctor.

My Week In New YorkA week-in-review newsletter from the people who make New York Magazine.

A fitting way to end the poetically harrowing first season of Steven Soderbergh’s 1900s medical drama — with its antihero hitting rock-bottom. What will Soderbergh and the rest of The Knick team have in store for us in season two? Vulture spoke with Owen to discuss those possibilities, the finale, and the unlimited energy it takes to play a cocaine addict.

So let’s start right at the end. Thackery is finally able to get the help he needs … [Laughs.]

… only to find out he’s getting weaned off of cocaine and onto heroin. Exactly! I always thought that was a pretty brilliant ending. And apparently it was true. There were a lot of people getting addicted to cocaine at that time, because it was a new wonder drug and they didn’t realize its addictiveness. So they prescribed heroin as a kind of antidote. Out of the frying pan, into the fire …

It feels like you need a tremendous amount of energy to play a cocaine addict. It’s true. It was very exhausting, simply for that reason. It was exhausting anyway because it was a very intense shoot and Steven [Soderbergh] worked so fast and we were doing a lot, but you do realize that every single scene takes a lot of energy. Especially those episodes towards the end because there’s the [cocaine] shortage, and then when it comes back, he’s taking more than ever. [Laughs.]

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And you guys shot the scenes out of order, almost like a movie. Yeah, [Soderbergh] boarded it like a ten-hour movie, so when we were in [Thackery’s home], we shot everything, from the first episode to the last episode, in just two days. So that was quite a challenge. I made a visual white board on my wall, which just plotted through all the episodes and all the scenes in the episodes, and part of that was to graph my drug intake. That this was a period where you need more drugs, or this is where you were on too many. In some ways, that needed to be charted throughout the whole ten hours.

So you were filming those scenes where Thackery is self-destructing early in the shoot? Exactly. It was all location-based. At first I thought, That’s fine. You always shoot anything out of sequence. But it wasn’t until we started that I realized what a challenge that was. It’s a big undertaking, especially with a part like that.

One of my favorite — though certainly horrifying — aspects of the show is to see all the medical procedures and techniques that are shunned now. Obviously there’s the cocaine, but then there’s the fact that doctors aren’t wearing gloves or that people need to stand in front of an X-ray machine for like 45 minutes. The great thing is, not only were the operations really well-researched — when we did them, they were incredibly faithful to how they were being done at the time — we go into discoveries that were made. But also there were a number of crazy ideas and crazy notions that they were exploring. I am sure in 20 or 40 years from now, we’ll look back and think, Did we really believe that?

I understand you went through a brief medical-school crash course with the show’s medical adviser, Dr. Stanley Burns, before you began production. Yeah, he was an unbelievable source of research and information. It’s almost like this show was his fantasy come to life, because his place, he has hundreds of thousands of photographs from this period, he had medical instruments from the period, he had booklets that were handed to doctors at the turn of the century. He was just an unbelievable resource to have.

What was the hardest procedure for you to do onscreen? Really, the first one was in some ways the most shocking, because we did everything we could, but we had never seen it with all the blood and everything. We had rehearsed it thoroughly, we shot everything up until the point where we make the first incision, and then the blood was pumped through and we just did everything in real time, and Steven kept his shot going. The blood just kept coming, and by the end, when he shouted “Cut!,” we were all covered. It was all over the place. It was a real moment of “Welcome to 1900!” [Laughs.] That was quite shocking. So we knew from then on that this was the direction we were going in.

I read Steven was looking for that “David Fincher” level of blood. Yeah, and again, Dr. Burns was there for every single procedure … He would be like, “More blood,” “Less blood” — that was what he asked for.

I assume you’re not too squeamish in general, right? It would probably be pretty difficult to play the role to begin with. Um, no, and also the scenes were so technically challenging. They work on such a number of levels. You’ve got the technical side of the operation, you’ve got to know what you’re doing, you’ve got the dialogue with the other doctors, and the whole element of performing it in front of an audience. So they were just very challenging scenes generally, and there was no real time to get squeamish. You just wanted to look like you knew what you were doing.

There’s a pretty brutal scene in the finale where you’re doing a blood transfusion and cutting your wrist open. Could you walk me through that? Well, first I thought, throughout the whole show, but specifically that one, the prosthetics guy did such an incredible job. Even to the naked eye, just as an actor standing there, some of the stuff that we were looking down and working on, it was so convincing. And that’s without doing any CGI. But I do remember that one, with the little girl lying on the bed, and wondering if the veins are connecting, and looking at Steven and saying, “How are we ever going to come back for the second season? How are we ever going to bring this guy back? He’s irredeemable!” [Laughs.] So that felt like a scene where we pushed him as far as it was possible to push him.

We don’t know much of Thackery’s background. He made a brief speech about his father slaughtering Indians, but that was about it. Had you and Steven come up with a backstory? There was actually, in earlier drafts, there was an element of him going back to see his father. So there was some stuff there that in the end Steven took out, which I think was a wise thing to do. So there was kind of a rough outline there, but we may find out more about that in the second season.

You’ve mentioned before that there’s something that strikes you as very rock and roll about Thackery. That came out of a conversation with the costume designer, who did such an excellent job. I went to a fitting and she pitched me the idea of these white boots. It was such a strange arrogance about it. And as we were looking at clothes — I have done period things before, and very often, a costume designer will say, “Oh, no, you can’t wear that because they never did that.” But Ellen would say to me, “Well, you can do what you like. You’re Thackery.” He’s the 1900 version of rock and roll. He can wear anything. There’s something about the way he carries himself, and his attitude, and the fact that he’s brilliant also helps him get away with it. There’s something so edgy and visceral about him.

I think one of the most interesting aspects of him is that he’s able to transition seamlessly from an uptown lifestyle to a more downtown decadence, where he goes to these opium dens. Yeah. And it’s also a lovely flavor of what New York must have been at that time. You get the broad spectrum. You get the real rough areas, where disease has taken a grip; you get the wealthy areas, where people are funding the hospital. It gives you such an opportunity to experience a broad palate of life at that time.

Did filming the first season feel more like a movie than a TV show, since Steven directed every episode? For sure. It didn’t feel any different. It felt longer, obviously — though I say longer, we shot the thing in 73 days. It was like the length of a really big movie. Apart from the amount we were getting through each day, which was an awful lot. We moved so quickly. I think our record was 13 pages of dialogue in one day. Apart from that, the pace of it felt absolutely no different from doing a movie. At the end of the day, Steven Soderbergh is a movie animal. And also the fact that we didn’t shoot it episodically. He did board it like a movie. It didn’t feel like television.

Is 13 pages a day a lot? That seems like a lot. It’s a hell of a lot. You try learning that and knowing you need to get up the next day and do another one. [Laughs.]

That’s what’s so great about the show and how insane it must have been to shoot. You’re not only playing an interesting character, but you have to learn all these medical terms that you’re not that familiar with. They are hard to learn, those scenes. And we did occasionally shoot one operation after another, but you have to really put time into them. You’ve got to look and sound completely convincing. I really thought so highly of the writers — the rhythms were often good. Oftentimes when the writing is good, even if it’s technical stuff around the operation, the rhythm is easier to learn. And it’s really difficult to learn if it’s stilted.

How much rehearsal was involved in shooting the actual scenes? There are some really long takes during those surgery sequences. He’s very, very quick, Steven. Those operation days, I’d say yes, the first hour or two of that day were crucial, because that’s where you’d dictate how everything plays — the technical side of it, the rhythm of the dialogue. But genuinely, we’d go and rehearse the scene a number of times, and Steven would have a look at it from a number of perspectives and make a very clear decision and take a very strong perspective on where he wants to shoot the scene from, and then shoot it fairly quickly.

Have you and Steven talked about what’s in store for season two? Yeah, I’ve got five scripts in front of me here. It’s just very exciting because it was such a bold take on a period genre in a way. I thought it was so visceral and edgy. It’s brilliant to be able to come this far. The exciting thing is we can hit the ground running. We’ve already done so much work in taking it to very interesting, unusual and dangerous places. It’s really exciting.

Are you worried about being able to top the first season? No, we’ve got such a wealth of opportunity. It just goes to really interesting and crazy places, and there is still so much there. We are lucky [the writers] literally immersed themselves in the time. There was stuff they were trying to cram in the first season that they can go to. It’s just really great stuff. There’s an awful lot still.

[lazingonsunday]

Tag Game!!

I was tagged by @gretavanfic and @bigthighsandstupidguys , thank you, lovelies!! 💛

1. What is your middle name?

Starts with G lol

2. How old are you?

20

3. When is your birthday?

Dec 2

4. What is your zodiac sign?

Everyone is putting like moon and sun and rising and I have no idea what that mean lmao, sorry! I think I’m a Sagittarius though

5. What is your favourite colour?

Orange or Yellow 🧡💛

6. What’s your lucky number?

Don’t really have one, but I always tried to be #10 on my volleyball jersey

7. Do you have any pets?

An old border collie named Riley

8. Where are you from?

Canada! 🇨🇦

9. How tall are you?

Like 5’7 ish

10. What shoe size are you?

Usually 9.5 or 10. I got big ass feet :(

11. How many pairs of shoes do you own?

Way more than one human being needs

12. What was your last dream about?

I went to IT chapter 2 last night so safe to say I was having some freaky clown dreams all night lol

13. What talents do you have?

Um, I can say the alphabet backwards, which is super random lol. I can also kinda play guitar, bass, ukulele, and harmonica, but I’m not very good at any of them yet lol

14. Are you psychic in any way?

I used to think so when I was little, but not so much anymore

15. Favourite song?

Ooh, this is hard. Right now I really love When The Curtain Falls by GVF, but I would say an all time fave might be Forever in Blue Jeans by Neil Diamond because it reminds me of my mom

16. Favourite movie?

Oh, also a tough one! I think either Rocky IV or The Sandlot

17. Who would be your ideal partner?

Jake Kiszka, obviously. But in all seriousness, anyone who is genuinely kind that I feel comfortable and happy around.

18. Do you want children?

I never thought so, but now a bunch of my older cousins are having kids and they’re pretty cool, so maybe one day if I found the right person to raise them with

19. Do you want a church wedding?

No, even though my mom will kill me if I don’t lol

20. Are you religious?

I was raised Catholic, but I don’t consider myself religious anymore.

21. Have you ever been to the hospital?

Yes, I’m asthmatic af lol, and prone to breaking my fingers playing rugby

22. Have you ever got in trouble with the law?

No, I am a well-behaved child

23. Have you ever met any celebrities?

I met the magicians Penn & Teller if that counts haha

24. Baths or showers?

For practical purposes of actually getting clean, showers, but I l o v e baths

25. What colour socks are you wearing?

Black

26. Have you ever been famous?

No

27. Would you like to be a big celebrity?

While I daydream about it frequently, realistically I know I would hate it

28. What type of music do you like?

Literally the most random taste in music, it changes all the time. I don’t even have certain genres that I like, just certain artists or albums from a variety of genres

29. Have you ever been skinny dipping?

Yes. I was very drunk lmao

30. How many pillows do you sleep with?

Three normal ones and a body pillow

31. What position do you usually sleep in?

On my side cuddled up with the pillows

32. How big is your house?

Typical white suburban neighbourhood house

33. What do you typically have for breakfast?

I typically pout in the kitchen for 10 minutes before I give up and make something completely inappropriate for breakfast lmao. Usually grilled cheese. This morning alphagetti. I hate breakfast so much lol

34. Have you ever fired a gun?

Nope. No desire to.

35. Have you ever tried archery?

Yes, we did it in school a few times

36. Favourite clean word?

Love

37. Favourite swear word?

Idk if it’s a swear word, but I say ‘goddammit’ a lot

38. What’s the longest you’ve ever gone without sleep?

Not long, I’m a sleepy bitch. Probably 24 hours

39. Do you have any scars?

Yes

40. Have you ever had a secret admirer?

In 9th grade I found out this guy had a crush on my and told literally everyone but me lol

41. Are you a good liar?

I don’t lie very often, but mostly because I am a terrible liar

42. Are you a good judge of character?

Yes. I frequently get such strong vibes off of people and I can tell right away if they’re the kind of person that’s gonna stress me out

43. Can you do any other accents other than your own?

Not well

44. Do you have a strong accent?

I guess I probably have a Canadian accent, but not super strong. The region I’m from has a pretty neutral North American accent

45. What is your favourite accent?

Certain regions of Irish accent are so beautiful. Like Hozier’s accent

46. What is your personality type?

Quite shy, but generally very kind

47. What is your most expensive piece of clothing?

I have a shirt that I got for work that was like a hundred bucks and I never wear it cause I sprayed foundation on it once and now I’m scared I’m gonna ruin it lol

48. Can you curl your tongue?

Yes

49. Are you an innie or outie?

Innie

50. Left or right handed?

Right

51. Are you scared or spiders?

Not really scared of them, but I don’t like them to be close to me if that makes sense

52. Favourite food?

Probably burritos

53. Favourite foreign food?

Mexican

54. Are you a clean or messy person?

Fairly clean

55. Most used phrase?

I really don’t think I have one?

56. Most used word?

Completely. I say it like to agree with someone or acknowledge what they’re saying

57. How long does it take for you to get ready?

Depends what I’m getting ready. For school or something I don’t really care about, maybe half an hour. For work or going out, probably over an hour.

58. Do you have much of an ego?

I don’t think so

59. Do you suck or bite lollipops?

Suck until I get bored and crunch it lol

60. Do you talk to yourself?

Yes, a concerning amount. Like full conversations with myself at full volume, constantly when I’m alone.

61. Do you sing to yourself?

Occasionally

62. Are you a good singer?

Not really

63. Biggest fear?

Never learning how to make meaningful connections , pushing all my friends away, and dying alone.

64. Are you a gossip?

No, I hate it! My friends try to tell me about people we went to high school with, and I just genuinely don’t care and don’t want to know lmao

65. Best dramatic movie you’ve seen?

Idk what classifies as a ‘dramatic’ movie, but I guess the Rocky movies again

66. Do you like long or short hair?

I love long hair, I’m so jealous of people with really long hair. Mine grows so slow :(

67. Can you name all 50 states of America?

Maybe, if I thought really hard about it? I can barely remember Canadian provinces lmao

68. Favourite school subject?

I always really loved some topics in science, but then hated others. I was probably best at English.

69. Introvert or extrovert?

Introvert af

70. Have you ever been scuba diving?

No, even snorkeling freaks me out. The ocean is some scary soup

71. What makes you nervous?

Pretty much everything lol. But mostly any social situation where there’s people I don’t know, or I don’t know exactly what to expect.

72. Are you scared of the dark?

Really depends where I am. Usually no, but if I’m outside then usually yes, and after watching It last night, yes lol

73. Do you correct people when they make mistakes?

Depends who it is and what the mistake is

74. Are you ticklish?

Honestly, not really

75. Have you ever started a rumour?

Not intentionally

76. Have you ever been in a position of authority?

Kind of? At work they have like hourly leaders who are in charge of the sales floor, and I did that a lot, but it’s not really a lot of power or responsibility. Also babysitting I guess

77. Have you ever drank underage?

Yes

78. Have you ever done drugs?

Honestly, this is gonna sound so stupid, but I’ve never done anything other than alcohol and cigarettes. I actually high key wanna try weed, but again the whole ‘not knowing what to expect makes me anxious thing.’ Not even so much that I’m nervous to try the drug but that I’m nervous to try to buy it or get it, even though it’s fully legal in Canada and there’s a dispensary on every corner lmao

79. Who was your first real crush?

The first one I remember was a boy named Evan in first grade

80. How many piercings do you have?

Just my ears, and I rarely wear earrings so I always have to stab through them again when I do

81. Can you roll your R’s?

No, and I can’t whistle either! Which is deeply infuriating!

82. How fast can you type?

Fast enough to not look foolish

83. How fast can you run?

Not fast at all. I’m asthmatic and out of shape lmao

84. What colour is your hair?

An ugly medium mousy brown. I always wanna dye it a little lighter, but I go to the hairdresser like once every two years so it would look stupid when it grew out lol

85. What colour are your eyes?

Hazel-y greenish

86. What are you allergic to?

All sorts of environmental allergies; dust, pollen, animal hair, etc. I’m always sneezing and watery eyes lol

87. Do you keep a journal?

I carry a notebook, but it’s more like an agenda than a diary

88. What do your parents do?

My dad owns a drywall company and my mom is a stay-at-home mom, but she volunteers a lot now that we’re older

89. Do you like your age?

No. I think that being in your late teens and twenties can be really stressful because you feel like there’s certain things that you should have accomplished or experienced and it can be very overwhelming, feeling like you’re competing with all your peers to get your life together

90. What makes you angry?

Rude and disrespectful people

91. Do you like your own name?

Not really

92. Have you thought of baby names, and if so what are they?

I’ve definitely thought about it but I don’t really have specific favourites

93. Do you want a boy or girl for a child?

I don’t have a preference. I’d probably like to have one of each

94. What are your strengths?

I think I’ve become a lot more kind and open-hearted in the last few years.

95. What are your weaknesses?

I feel like I have let fear dictate my entire life, and there’s so many things I haven’t done because I’ve been afraid. I need to step outside my comfort zone more often.

96. How did you get your name?

There was a character on a TV show called my name that my parents liked

97. Were your ancestors royalty?

Not that I am aware of

98. Do you have any tattoos?

I changed the question because scars was an earlier one. I have two tattoos on my right arm

99. Colour of your bedspread?

Because it’s summer, I have a lighter blanket that’s light blue. My winter duvet is navy

100. Colour of your room?

Light blue

That was LONG lmao but really fun! I’m too lazy to bold the questions so sorry if it’s hard to read!

Tagging: @frcmthefires @sweetkiszkadreams @okietrish @sammyscherub @gretavanbobatea @jake-thomas-kiszka @mr-stank-i-dont-feel-so-dank and anyone else who wants to do it!!

[keithxhappiness]

Voltron S8 Review (SPOILERS)

SPOILERS AHEAD FOR VOLTRON SEASON 8 PEOPLE!

OK, so I just finished Voltron Season 8. I had to watch it a day late because I went to see Into the Spiderverse (which was REVOLUTIONARY btw, I highly recommend seeing and supporting it!)

One of my biggest fears about watching it late was that something would be spoiled for me by twitter/tumblr/youtube, and although I got through it without any spoilers, I did see some general negativity surrounding the finale, without really knowing why though.

But after finishing it, I took a look at some of the comments to try to decipher what it was that made people think it was so terrible! So, here are my thoughts on the finale itself, and on peoples’ thoughts about the finale:

First, I would just like to say thank you to Voltron.

I have never been one for shipping battles, and I was never concerned with all of the controversy surrounding the political statements that could be made through the show.

My main focus was the story, and my connection to the characters, particularly Keith. No, not just because I think he’s insanely attractive.

Because, he reminds me of myself…I also struggle with trusting other people, and I often think I can do everything myself or that it would be easier if I took control of the situation. I’m not patient enough to give others a chance, which is something I recognize and am working to change.

So, Keith’s development embodies my own objectives. Which is part of the reason why I love him (the other being how HOT he is).

Keith aside, everything in this season was meant to display the core idea of this story: strength through unity. It is something I hope to truly experience one day, and I think it has been demonstrated beautifully throughout the show.

It is obvious to me that a lot of effort, thought, and work has been put into animating and producing this series, something that I am angered to see not appreciated enough.

Even when you don’t enjoy certain aspects of the story, there is NO DOUBT that the creators deserve respect. Respect needs to accompany criticism of the series, or else how can you possibly expect the creators to respect your criticisms?

So, to everyone who worked on Voltron, from the seeds of its creation to its conclusion, thank you, from the bottom of my heart, and I wish you the best in all your future endeavours.

I can’t wait to see what you come up with next :)

I guess I shall split this next part of the review into things I didn’t particularly like, and things that I liked.

Starting with the things I personally didn’t enjoy (and some other commentary):

a) Allura and Lance:

Ah yes, the dreaded Allurance. Although I said that I wasn’t heavily involved in shipping in this show, I was unfortunately all too aware of the war waged within the fandom, which frankly, was more chaotic than the war in the show itself :’)

Other than Lotura, I didn’t ship anyone with anyone else, personally. And I understood the resistance to Allura and Lance becoming a couple. I didn’t feel any chemistry between the two of them, and particularly for Allura, I only felt that she saw Lance as her family, just as she saw all the others.

Like, when he confessed to loving her in Episode 1, I felt that her reaction was something akin to “UM, cool, cool. Same here." However, there is no denying that the seeds for this union were planted from the start of the show. It would be foolish to think that this wasn’t their plan all along, really.

But somehow, it just didn’t click. I can’t wrap my head around why, though! For me, I think that I prefer the idea of two characters coming together as friends, and then romantically, if they’ve been helping one another overcome some emotional trauma. You could argue that Lance was doing that for Allura, but it didn’t really happen until this specific season, and so, it didn’t quite establish the strength of their bond in time for their romance to feel like anything but just something that happened.

ALL THAT SAID, their scenes together were still very cute…and the Altean markings she left behind on his face BROKE ME. If only the strength of their union, and their mutual love for eachother, was established a little earlier - season 6, maybe - it may have felt more right.

And when she left him behind, I expected MORE from him, resistance-wise. I didn’t like that he just…let her go, after a few tears and a kiss. I wanted him to pull her back, to offer himself instead, or to see him destroyed when they were returned to their reality.

But, I’ve never experienced this type of loss before. And, maybe, deep-down, he knew that he could do nothing to stop her. I just…wanted to see more from him.

Even when she had absorbed the entity. His role was too, too passive. A few times, he’d go “Allura, um, I don’t think this is safe…maybe we should think about this…” and Allura would respond with “No, shut up I know what im doing”, and Lance would just shut up. I wanted him to pull her and shake her and force her to come to her senses!

b) Allura’s death:

I am really sad to say that I knew this was coming.

I can’t believe the leaks were real. I guess they didn’t technically spoil anything because there was also doubt surrounding their authenticity.

And even knowing that it would happen, I AM NOT OKAY WITH IT.

I am happy that they established very early in this season the lengths to which Allura would go to stop Honerva. It was always clear that she was ready to sacrifice herself. Even when she was saying her goodbyes, she seemed to already have come to terms with the fact that her path was ending.

But, that doesn’t mean I’m happy with it.

You know, it’s interesting, I always say that I hate “happy” endings. I prefer my endings to be bitter sweet - like green tea lemonade. So, for everyone to get what they want — that to me is just too good to be true, and bothers me, because real life does not have a neat little ending like that.

So, I knew the ending had to be enveloped in some amount of loss. But for Allura to lose her life, after all that she’s lost, I had hoped she would get to keep her future.

Even without her past, that she could move forward and forge a new world for her people, and get to see that world with her own eyes. IF ANYONE deserved this, it would be Allura.

And like other people, I was really mad that she never had an opportunity to say goodbye to Coran, who was essentially her father figure, or to her own father’s soul.

So, in short, I didn’t want the “death” of the show to be Allura’s….but we don’t always get what we want…

c) Honerva:

I hated her, and not just because she was the antagonist.

The hilarious thing was that Season 8 had the exact same plot as Into the Spider-verse :’) And I still don’t understand why anyONE, crazy, evil, or otherwise, thinks that it’ll be a good idea to travel between REALITIES to find another version of your lost family.

I guess IT’S TRUE that people would do anything for their family, but it seems ridiculous to me that they wouldn’t consider the possible consequences for themselves as well their own world. It’s like time-travel. You just don’t mess with that shit.

But I also hated her as the antagonist. Her objective to me was just not compelling enough…I didn’t really feel her love for Lotor or for Zarkon. I just felt that she was cray cray.

For example, consider Castlevania: a show that excellently protrays the antagonist (Dracula’s) loss. You see why Dracula loved his family, the kind of (immortal) life he could have had.

But other than a few scenes when they were in her consciousness, I just didn’t really believe in her love.

I didn’t want to see her reunited with anyone. I just wanted her to chill out and leave my babies alone.

I also didn’t like how easy it was for Allura to sway her at the end. She seemed so weak-minded and stupid, despite having all the power that she did.

WHY DID ORIANDE EVEN CONSIDER HER WORTHY?!?!?!?!

d) Some other things:

I wasn’t a huge fan of the amount of action comprising this season. I mean, not that it’s the show’s fault - this is a space opera about giant mechs, so obviously, there are going to be space and mech battles.

But I guess I prefer ground/hand-to-hand combat. It’s hard for me to follow mech fights, and I just like sword fights. This is a matter of personal preference, though.

BUT, I will say that because there were SO MANY Robeast/mech fights, there wasn’t as much time for character-character interaction.

So, that made me sad.

So many opportunities gone - opportunities for James/Acxa and Keith to interact (esp after the Ezor/Zethrid conflict), etc.

This season was really flashy, and while I like flashy, as I said before, I also value the emotional connections between the characters a lot and wish that a greater emphasis could have been placed on them.

Things I liked:

Keith being a fearless leader

Krolia NOT dying - thank goodness for that, that was really worrying me

When Keith made his speech in EP1, and Krolia and Kolivan were smiling proudly :))

Matt (sad to see his ponytail go, but he still cayuuuute)

Lotor, all of the little Lotor scenes (AH, I JUST WANT TO ADOPT HIM AND RAISE HIM WITH LOVE) - saddened not to have seen him returned :((

The pictures at the end - happy to see everyone happy and thriving!

AND EVERYTHING ELSE NOT MENTIONED!  

All in all, I think it is absolutely absurd (in the Snape voice) not to watch the season just because you heard some negative things. Don’t be as easily swayed as the Alteans were. Watch it yourself, think for yourself, and form your own opinion. Regardless of what you didn’t like, you can’t deny that this show has been a wild, beautiful ride. PEACE.

[shiguresxhma-a]

I remember someone asked you about your ships awhile back, and I was wondering why specifically you liked those ships or found them interesting. I love everything you write, so I'd be happy to hear anything you feel like saying about them.

Aw! Thank you! You guys are seriously so supportive of my rambling and I appreciate it a lot! 

Uhhhhh let’s take a look. 

( this got long lets put it under a read more ooopsie ) 

 Let’s start with the canon ones? 

Akigure

This right here will be a love letter to my waifu, Lyd because Lyd’s gotten me to appreciate this pairing more than I ever thought I could. If you’ve followed this blog for a while you know Akigure is an area of in depth discussion. I have such a love/hate relationship with this pairing because it’s foundation is questionable at best, it’s in story chemistry is virtually nonexistent, and the pairing’s ‘happy ending’ is disappointing and confusing. This pairing requires a lot of digging for the little nuggets and reading thoroughly between the lines if you want to make something worthwhile out of it. Because at face value, it’s such a problematic and unappealing pairing. Not to mention, from my experience the ship is either loathed or grossly romanticized but I’ve always tried to keep an open mind for the sake of writing this character who is undeniably attached to this other character. It’s unavoidable. 

But there are concepts with Akigure that are appealing. Which is why Lyd is such a lovely writing partner to ship with, because we essentially see eye to eye when it comes to the best and worst parts of this pairing. 

For starters, the toxicity is fun to play with. It just is. You can’t ignore that this pairing is canonically toxic. So it’s better to run with it than ignore it completely. However, it’s also canon that this pairing gets their room to grow and live a domesticated life together with a child. The softer stuff is also super enriching. 

Basically, the pairing is a rocky concept I’ve learned to enjoy more in practice than how it was served to me. 

Arisa/Kureno

This all boils down to the drama, I’ll be real. There wasn’t so much chemistry between these two as much as the ‘star crossed’ situation drove me absolutely nuts (in a good way). I loved the little b plot throughout the chapters these two met and their stories entangled. It was my favorite romantic side plot in the series. Just a big, suspenseful mess of “If only he’d just tell her” or “they just need to talk to each other” To where Arisa didn’t know it Kureno was a Sohma, and how Tohru didn’t either because she and Arisa met Kureno under completely different circumstances and his demeanor under each kept them guessing. Lack of communication / miscommunications are one of my biggest pet peeves in storytelling especially with romantic drama. But I could forgive it here. It made for surprisingly solid story and character development. In the end I thought these two were just so wholesome and deserved to be happy with one another. (Especially Kureno, my heart forever breaks for Kureno who just deserves to be happy). Not to mention, the idea of Arisa falling for a man who reminds her of her best friend is pretty  gay adorable. 

Okay non canon ships. 

It’s sad that the non canon ships are the more chemistry based of the pairings that I like which is why I like them more than the canon ships. 

Hatori/Shigure

Look guys I been sleeping on this one for years and then I met Sydney and I was so woke. I’ve found that the more popular/common is to pair either of these two with Ayame rather than each other ( WHICH IS STILL LIKE. FINE. AYA IS SO IN LOVE WITH HATORI IT’S BASICALLY CANON. THE ANIME SAID LOVE THEY SAID IT OK ). Or you know, there’s also the trio triad—–the three of them have such undeniable chemistry no matter which way you play it so chemistry isn’t exclusive to this particular matchup. But I still think there’s something so special with these two. Canonically, there’s a banter there which I love.  And Shigure confides in Hatori in ways he doesn’t with anyone else——even Ayame. Hatori knows a side of Shigure that hardly anyone else gets to see. That’s so significant. Not to mention the tropes ? FWB, unrequited, jealousy, hurt/comfort, tea that im slurpin up every damn day like don’t even get me started on taking these two and tossing Akito into the mix. 

Yuki/Haru

Again, I been sleepin and my girl Iz woke me up. These two are just so sweet. Hatsuharu Sohma is a leather pants wearing, ear pierced bicon and you will never take that away from me. He loves Yuki, okay. It’s canon. IDC what you say, it’s canon. Hatsuharu has done so much for Yuki, and in turn, Haru is one of the few people Yuki can be himself around. And Haru ??? Helps Yuki ???? So thanklessly ????? He loves that pretty boy with his whole heart and Yuki don’t even know the half of it and when he does he bursts from love lemme tell you. And look it might seem like nothing, but Yuki went to the main house for Haru. THAT’S BIG.  The chemistry here is adorable and wholesome and I love this pairing a lot. 

Yuki/Kakeru

Similar to YukiHaru but what’s important as fuck here is how Kakeru breaks Yuki out of his shell. Yuki finds a confidence in himself when getting to know Kakeru and becomes the truest, most unforgiving version of himself that he’s ever been and it’s so important. Their friendship is everything, but I mean wouldn’t it be cute if they were boyfriends 👀 ? 

And, um, the guilty pleasure

Tohru/Hatori 

Can we stop pretending that this pairing doesn’t write itself ???? Look, I appreciate their canon relationship a whole fuck ton but let me be a self-indulgent shit. She softened him up, and she’s too similar to Kana it’s like 2+2. 

Honourable mention ? 

TohRin

Kind of similar to Yuki/Kakeru in the fact that their friendship is wonderful and I love it in canon just fine but like what if they were girlfriends. 

[mediknight]

Another Munday Prompt

Remember to repost, not reblog!

Name: sydney B)

Preferred pronouns: she/her or they/them, i’m pretty;;; indifferent

Selectivity:  relatively selective

Favorite animal: i was reminded of my love of birds today bc i got to watch some silly ones through a window but in general i’m a big fan of jellyfish, foxes, and deer

Favorite muse you’ve had so far ever: i have had a total of three and one i haven’t begun to rp with (hehe) so... it’d have to be paku or leorio xP

Muse you kinda wanna pick up: mm none atm. 

Most identifiable fictional character: tsunayoshi sawada (of katekyo hitman reborn!) lmfao. fun fact: we have the same birthday

What color your aura is/think it is: hmm i’d say blue, usually on the lighter end of the spectrum

Personality stuff you agree with (astrology, mbti, Hogwarts house, etc be as specific as you want!): i think they’re fun but mostly because i’m obsessed with personality quizzes/assessments oh my god. honestly, i think most of these assessments are flawed because putting humans into categories is a futile endeavor; we like to think we can categorize everything but in reality, trying to organize things (especially ourselves) in that way limits our understanding. but on the other hand: IT’S FUN AND I LOVE LEARNING ABOUT MYSELF

Do you think you’re a good driver: yes actually. i don’t tailgate, i pay attention to other drivers, i brake at a reasonable distance, and i rarely speed. i also really know my car well so i know her capabilities and her habits. 

Favorite minor discourse: i know nothing of discourse tbh

Favorite vine and/or meme: first one that came to mind was the vine of the windy beach with umbrellas rolling down it and there’s a musical beat and then just “run” i lose my shit

Why did you choose this muse: i started writing leopika fic earlier this year bc my eyes were opened and i kind of... got really attached to leorio. he doesnt get that much love (at least, not as much as the other main 4, not usually) but he’s a really interesting character and i hated seeing him get written off as like, the “normal” one just because the others had Big Backstories (which are totally valid btw and i love them all). I also just... found myself kind of projecting onto leorio a lot because when you boil him down to his basics, he’s extremely relatable. in short: i love leorio.

Favorite rp memory: honestly this community has been a blessing. even when i first came into it, everyone was welcoming and engaging and totally willing to rp with me even though i was a total fucking n00b. 

Favorite thing you’ve written, in rp or not: Not rp but i have two things. One is a... a non-hxh fic. It’s an ambitious crossover of Fullmetal Alchemist and... and The Adventures of Food Boy. Fuck me. THE OTHER is a legit piece, this time a leopika sick fic. other than fic, i have some stories i’ve been letting sit for a while; one was about two kids who find a skull on the beach and another was about a girl and her ghost mother  ^-^

A line/lyrics/quote/etc you like or that means a lot to you:

"Do I Dare/ Disturb the universe?” - “The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock” by T.S. Eliot

Give a shout-out to someone: um um limiting myself to 3.

@mute-seer for being a sweetheart and having such an exceptional muse!! what a wonderful, dynamic, creative, and fun character!

also @kurapiia for being a doll and sending me CAT PICTURES and also just being a genuinely lovely human being and writer

AND @scarleteyeskurta for being an actual angel on this earth and always being so positive and lovely whether it be in response to threads/replies or just in general!!

Tagged by: @lightpulsed

Tagging: anyone who has yet to partake!

[rom-e-o]

Stressor Weather [AU][Kamui/Felicia][Corrin/Jakob]

A modern AU where Kamui and Felicia live with their daughter Kanna in an apartment next to his twin sister Corrin, her husband Jakob and their two sons. Sitcom shenanigans ensue.

Thanks for the AU idea, @my-name-is-gypsy

Also, thanks for getting me back into Fire Emblem after Radiant Dawn made me rage quit. A lot. Especially when it came to keeping Laura alive.

“Oh…my…” Felicia sputtered as she glanced around the apartment she shared with her husband. The pink haired woman dropped her suitcase and turned in circles in the doorway attempting to fathom of weirdness around her.

The strangeness of the situation prevailed.

“Woah, woah, woah!” she cried as she ran into the apartment and stared at the sight before her. “What the heck happened?”

Each room of the corner apartment, located on the fifth floor of a historic building smack-dab in the middle of the city, was decorated with silver and turquoise holiday decorations. Their main foyer featured a glittering white tree topped with lavish bows with flourish the cascaded down the sides. The decoration twinkled like mica with shimmering lights, which also made all the other glittery decorations in the apartment even more noticeable. Each nook or cranny was filled with an embossed knickknack or floral piece that featured faux snow and more pinecones than Felicia had ever seen in the city before.

Ribbons framed doorways, jingle bells were tied to every handle, and there was even a mistletoe pinned over the doorway to the bedroom.

Finally, there were trees. So many trees.

In additional to the ivory-colored tree in their center room, another one in her daughter’s bedroom was holographic and sported ornaments from her favorite animated movie about an animated lion trying to save his home.

Whoever had decorated the room knew the girl’s interests and preferences quite well, since they had added extra decorations relating to her favorite characters, specifically the main lion.

“I don’t remember buying those,” Felicia murmured to herself before moving on to investigate another room.

The tree in their bedroom was a shade of deep evergreen and decorated with crystal and prismatic ornaments to make the foliage look as if it was naturally frosted with ice and snow. Felicia liked it since it reminded her of her semi-arctic hometown, but that was beside the point.

There were even tiny trees in each bathroom, which didn’t do much to quell Felicia’s anxiety about the entire situation.

The apartment hadn’t been decorated when she’d left for work in the morning. She supposed Kamui could have theoretically done it, but found the idea incredibly unlikely because he left for his job only an hour after her. There was no possible way he could have decorated everything in such a short amount of time, let alone hid the decorations from Felicia long enough in their pleasant but cozy apartment to keep the scheme a secret.

Her daughter Kanna hadn’t mentioned the decorations wither when she’d picked her up from school or dropped her off at fencing practice.

It addition to the odd appearance of the decorations, something else confused the young woman as she roamed her home. Despite the amount of decorating that had occurred, everything was spotless. There were no loose zip ties from packages, no pine needles and no stray specs of glitter to be found. Even with every flourish practically gilded with sparkle, there wasn’t a trace of shiny residue on the floors or walls. Meanwhile, Felicia couldn’t open a glittery eye shadow container without pounds of sparkly fallout.

It was perfect. Too perfect.

Everything was decorated with absolute precision, down to the stringing of the lights and the dusting of every surface. Kamui was negligent with dusting and Felicia always forgot to do it, so the fact that even their darkest surfaces were polished was odd.

“This is…”

All of a sudden, she heard an excited sound from behind her near the doorway. She turned and saw her husband standing in the entry doorway with their daughter in one of his arms. He held her with one hand and carried his patent leather laptop case in the other. He’d clearly just gotten back from work.

The little girl had let out a squeal of delight upon seeing the decorations.

“Woah, woah, woah, Mama!” the Kanna cried gleefully. Her eyes were sparkling and the bun atop her head bobbed like a balloon. “It’s so pretty! Wow, everything is all shiny!”

Kamui put his daughter on the ground, where she immediately dropped her sports bag and fencing helmet, so she could begin running around the apartment to examine everything. Upon darting to her room and seeing the tree within, she let out a squeal so loud that she was sure it could have even woken up Dwyer from one of his naps all the way in the neighboring apartment.

As Kanna continued to run circles around the couple, Kamui approached his wife with an apprehensive smile. He knew Felicia well, and could see just from the look on her face when he’d walked in that something was amiss.

“Um, hey, did you really do all this?” Kamui asked, pointing to some of the various decorations scattered about the foyer. “Don’t get me wrong, it looks great! Really great. I just thought you’d left before I did. How did you do this in secret?”

“I didn’t,” Felicia stuttered, holding her hands up and waving them. “I thought you did it!”

“No,” Kamui said, one of his pale brows lofting in both shock and amusement. “Wait. Neither of us did it?”

“So a stranger broke into our apartment and decorated everything?” Felicia cried, visibly bristling as she thought of some creep rifling through their personal space. “Who would do that? That’s so weird, Kamui!”

“Well, whoever it was did a great job,” Kamui said, flashing a grin.

“Kamui!” Felicia warbled, hands scrubbing her eyes with frustration.

“Well, who else has a key to our place?” Kamui asked in a lofty voice. It petrified Felicia how casual her husband sounded about the whole mystery. He continued easily, “Kanna does, but I don’t think she did it.”

He gestured to his pink haired daughter, who was still running and around and cheering before running to tackle her parent’s legs. Kamui would have toppled over if Felicia hadn’t caught him in her arms and provided the leverage that helped keep him upright.

“Thank you, Mama! Thank you, Papa!” the girl said, still bouncing on her heels. “It looks so pretty!”

“Sweetie, we didn’t decorate anything,” Felicia said, smoothing her daughter’s hair back into its original bun shape. “I mean, we were planning to this weekend, but…”

Kanna pulled her head back from her mother’s legs, looking up with eyes as wide as fallen leaves. “Huh? Then…who did it?”

The girl interrupted her own thoughts with a loud gasp and continued in a shrill whisper, “Was it Santa Claus?”

“I…don’t know…” Felicia said, suddenly questioning everything she knew. It was certainly a weird enough scenario that Santa Claus didn’t seem to be outside the realm of feasibility, which was saying a lot. Finally, she regained her composure and shook her head. “No, no, it wasn’t. I…don’t think so. I mean…that would be silly.”

“Could it have been Flora?” Kamui posed lightly. “She has a spare key, right? Wasn’t she going to fly out here for a couple days to see Kanna?”

“She’s still with my dad back home,” Felicia said with a shake of the head. “There’s a bad snow storm there too. There’s no way she could have flown out here on such short notice.”

“So no Aunt Flora either?” the small girl asked dimly, the excitement flickering in her voice.

“I’m afraid not, sweetie,” Felicia replied softly.

Both Kamui and Kanna sighed in disappointment. While her husband and daughter moped around to explore the rest of the decorations, Felicia continued to glance around and take additional notes on little nuances she’d failed to notice before. For example, whoever had come into their apartment clearly had a key, since she’d been the first to arrive home and the door had been locked. In addition, the mysterious intruder had also vacuumed the floor, meaning they had either brought their own or knew where to find one in the apartment.

The most obvious clue was when she sauntered into the kitchen to make a snack and found a used sippy cup in the sink. She figured it was one her daughter had used, until she saw the pink and purple dinosaur pattern around the sides. It was a cup she knew they didn’t own, but that someone else in the building did.

Felicia took one last look around the apartment before letting out a sigh. After giving it a little thought, the answer was too obvious.

“I know who did it,” she announced, brow furrowed with dismay that she hadn’t pegged the culprit sooner.

Her husband and daughter curiously poked their heads out from around the corner.

“Who?” Kamui asked curiously as he led Kanna out from the hallway.

All Felicia had to do was show him the small cup in the sink for all the pieces of the puzzle to click into place. Kanna also recognized the cup immediately, and her eyes lit up almost as much as the holiday lights.

“Oh, that’s Kana’s favorite cup! He must have brought it over and left it by mistake.”

XOXOXOXO

It only took a few knocks on their neighbor’s door before someone answered.

Kamui’s slightly older twin sister and their coincidental neighbor, Corrin, swung the door open in her typical friendly fashion. Her long hair was pulled into a high but casual ponytail, perfectly matching the sweatpants and a large T-shirt that was a little too baggy for her. Felicia theorized that it must have belonged to her husband. The casual ensemble made it look as if she had been home from work for a while, which was unusual for her.

“Oh! What a surprise,” she said with a cheery grin. “Hey guys! What’s up?”

“Hey, sis!” Kamui said with a nonchalant wave.

“Hello Corrin,” Felicia said kindly, bowing slightly to her dear friend. “Um…I didn’t expect to see you home. Don’t you usually have meetings on Tuesday nights?”

Corrin worked at Valla’s City Hall as the City Administrator. Usually she had to stay at the office later into the night to attend aldermanic meetings or read commission reports, especially on the first and third Tuesday evenings of the month when the Board of Aldermen meetings were held. Tuesday were specifically very long days for Corrin, and her hours could be borderline sporadic. It helped drastically that her husband mainly worked weekends, taking most weekdays off to serve as a homemaker and father to their two children.

For her to be home, let alone dressed so comfily, was immediately strange. Corrin had popped over to Felicia and Kamui’s apartment on Tuesday evenings before, and she was always dressed in a silk blouse, pencil skirt and hose for work. Sometimes she was even still wearing her heels and camel-colored overcoat.

“Did you even go to work?” Kamui asked tactlessly, head tilting to the side like a confused puppy. “I didn’t think the city hall closed for a few days.”

Corrin seemed to bristle at the direct question. “Oh…um…”

Before the woman had a chance to answer, she was interrupted by a gentle tug on the end of her shirt by her small, bubblegum-haired niece.

“Auntie Corrin!” Kanna said, beaming up at the woman radiantly while waving her arms. Corrin knew by now that it was Kana’s not-so-silent way of requesting that someone pick her up and twirl her in the air. Lucky for Kanna, her aunt was always happy to oblige.

The girl was instantly scooped into Corrin’s arms and lifted high into the air. The duo turned in a few clumsy circles and, before either one could get sick, she sat Kanna back on the ground and let her run past her and into the apartment.

“Kanna, get back here!” Kamui called after his hyper daughter as he saw her bob and weave her way into the apartment, kicking off her sneakers along the way. “Sis, I’m so sorry. She’s always so energetic after practice.”

“It’s perfectly fine,” Corrin said with a nonchalant wave of the hand. “No trouble at all. Dwyer and Jakob are just cooking some dinner. Kana just got back from ballet practice too. They can play for a while. You guys can come in too, if you’d like! No need to stand in the hall.”

The couple slowly walked into the apartment, feeling bad for intruding but not willing to shoot down the woman’s generous offer.

Corrin’s apartment was a mirror image of their own domicile next-door, with all the rooms and spaces flipped to the opposite walls. It would have been more disorienting had the two apartments not been decorated so differently. Kamui’s apartment was modern and sleek while Corrin’s was adorned with heavy furniture and gilded antiques.

It was also immaculately decorated for the winter season, only this time, the decorations dominated by black, crushed velvet with delicate touches of gold.

“Did you guys decorate today?” Felicia asked Corrin, her voice practically dripping with suspicion.

“Uh, yes,” Corrin stammered, her forced obliviousness not the least convincing to Felicia or Kamui. Both stood and looked at her as she uneasily led them further into their apartment and closer to the kitchen, where both could smell the aroma of something spicy cooking on the stove.

“Uh, well…I used one of my vacation days to call in sick,” Corrin explained. “I think I might be coming down with something, so I guess I didn’t technically go into work today, but…I mean, we got to decorate our apartment….”

“And our apartment?” Kamui asked, tossing his sister the cup they’d found in their sink.

Corrin caught the plastic evidence effortlessly and sighed in defeat.

“Okay,” she started innocently, pulling her hands to her hips to reveal silhouette of her waist beneath the baggy shirt. “It wasn’t my idea, I promise. I wanted to tell you guys before you got home, but…”

“It wasn’t your idea?”  Kamui asked with a tilt of the head.

“No, it was my idea,” another voice said, interrupting their conversation. Less than a moment later, Corrin’s husband Jakob emerged from around the corner with a smug yet indifferent expression on his face. The look would have struck intimidation into Felicia’s heart if he hadn’t also been wearing a lavender apron with small, filled accents.

Like his wife, he was also dressed in casual clothes that were ever-so-lightly speckled with glitter. It seemed that even Jakob’s neat-freak tendencies couldn’t hide all the evidence from their decorative rendezvous.

“Oh, it was your idea, Jakob?” Kamui asked, more relieved than confused. “That’s good news. The decorations look great! Thank you so much for putting them up.”

“Aw, you’re totally welcome,” Corrin replied with a grin, the tension in her voice evaporating.

“No need to thank us,” Jakob said, flashing a handsome grin. “Anything for you, Kamui.”

“Wait a second,” Felicia interrupted, severing her husband’s words by covering his mouth with one of her manicured hands. She then turned to Jakob and Corrin and asked frantically, “Why? I mean, why? You broke into our apartment and decorated it! Why would you do that?”

Jakob looked annoyed at her questions and lack of appreciation.

“Why indeed…” he said with a sigh, scratching the back of his neck, where his long hair lung loosely and was only partially tied back.

“That’s not an answer!” Felicia shot back, arching her whole body forward like a cobra. Seeing Felicia frazzled wasn’t a rare occurrence, but hearing her raise her voice above a quivering mumble certainly was.

Jakob huffed and exchanged a look with his wife Felicia couldn’t pin down. The pale-haired man almost looked exasperated, but in Felicia’s opinion, he had no reason to be. After all, she was the one who most deserved to be in distress after the stunt they’d pulled on her. Before she could ask, Corrin reached out and gently lifted Felicia’s hand off Kamui’s mouth to take it into her own grasp.

She gave the pink-haired woman’s hand a firm squeeze and said in a loving tone, “We used your key to go in and decorate your apartment. Kana and Dwyer helped. We…thought it would be a nice surprise.”

“So, what? You both took off work?” Felicia asked incredulously.

“Corrin did, but not just to help decorate,” Jakob said flatly. “She wasn’t feeling great this morning, so she took a sick day off just in case. She has plenty to spare. I already had the day off, so there’s no need to scold us.”

The woman was utterly baffled by their decision. She stood, eyes wide and mouth agape like a shrink-wrapped fish at the market.

“I don’t understand….” Felicia groaned. The entire situation just didn’t make sense to her. The leaps in logic that were being thrown at her didn’t sit right in her gut, for some reason. Although Kamui and Corrin could be airheaded from time to time and Jakob was notorious for his tunnel-vision and incredible stubbornness towards completing a task once something entered his mind, things still didn’t add up correctly. She scrubbed the middle of her forehead with her fist.

“Oh, I understand perfectly,” Jakob posed smugly. “I’ve seen how you both decorate. It’s abysmal. Beyond abysmal. We couldn’t let such tragic history repeat itself.”

“Plus, we know how crazy things have been at work for you lately,” Corrin jumped in, eyes turned up in a semi-hopeful and somewhat pleading stare. “We thought you’d like it. Don’t be too mad. Please? We’re sorry.”

“We are?” Jakob snorted, only to receive a partial elbow to the ribcage. One muffled expletive later, he added in a heavily accented voice, “Well, fine then. I suppose we are.”

Felicia heaved a sigh, but it did nothing to relieve the weight of suspicion she felt. “Well, okay…”

“Hey now, don’t think about it too much,” Kamui insisted simply, laughing a bit as he reached over to wrap an arm around Felicia, his palm cradling her small shoulder. “All’s well that end’s well, right? Shakespeare said that.”

“Yes, he did,” Jakob said with a smile. “Masterfully put, Kamui.”

Felicia kept silent, still thinking about what could possibly be irking her. She mumbled a half-hearted, “Right.”

As she mused, she saw her daughter emerge from the hall that opened parallel to the kitchen nook. She was running around with his cousin, each one waving around what appeared to be magic wands in the process. While Kanna’s fencing skills clearly shone through as she jabbed the air gracefully during a mock battle scene, Kana’s ballet abilities where equally on par as he twirled and pirouetted across the room. The young bow was still wearing his white satin shoes from practice, which she imagined helped greatly. He even wore a large, white bow for an additional effect.

“And WAPOW!” Kana yelled, pointing the wand at Kanna playfully. The young girl clutched her chest as if hit by the fictional blast of magic and fell over in an overly dramatic fashion. He added on a heroic tone, “Evil Queen, I will not surrender!”

“Hey now, be nice,” Dwyer spoke up from the kitchen. The teen seemed to have taken over his father’s position at the stove, stirring a large pot of curry and folding the ingredients carefully into the spicy concoction. He drawled on lazily, “Kanna, fight him back. It’s no fun if the hero wins too easily.”

The girl wasted no time springing to her feet again, raising the wand and aiming it back at Kana while cackling as menacingly as she could. “Haha, you fell for my trap! Now I’ll destroy your Silver Crystal, Sailor Guardian!”

Kana let out a fake cry of despair he pretended to fall back and get hit by another ambiguous magical attack.

“Looks like a lot of fun around here,” Kamui said, his eyes shifting to Corrin.

The slightly older sibling gave her brother a look as she punched his shoulder. She said with a coy wink, “Whatever. You owe us, so be nice.”

Felicia blinked and looked to Kamui with a tilt of the head. “Huh? You owe them?”

The twins stilled and Corrin quickly tried to backpedal on her statement. She stuttered her words without her usual poise or grace, and Felicia was smart enough to know that such behavior usually met Corrin was keeping a secret.

“Oh, well, what I mean is…he owes us for decorating,” she stammered. Felicia only caught Jakob’s face for a second, but it looked as if Corrin’s awkwardly delivered words were enough to make even him cringe. That was quite a rarity.

“So, um…we’re making dinner!” Corrin finally managed to say. “You guys should stay and eat with us.”

The pink haired woman looked at them cluelessly, tousling her own hair and letting her gaze wonder to the pointed tips of her shoes. “Um…I’m not trying to be rude, but how you guys letting us stay for dinner pay you guys back the favor of decorating our apartment for us?”

This time, Kamui was the one to answer her completely rational question.

“Um…because they decorated without our permission!” he exclaimed. Perhaps Felicia was simply mentally exhausted from the whole fiasco, but the pitched tone of his voice made it seem as if he was excited that he’d been able to fabricate an answer. He continued, “Yeah. They’re paying us back for decorating without our permission.”

Corrin and Kamui were truly miserable liars.

All of a sudden, Kamui’s cell phone buzzed and the young man immediately took the opportunity to answer it. He gave the group an apologetic half-bow and ducked out of the apartment and into the hallway to take the call. Felicia assumed it must have been from work.

“Well, Mama?” Kanna asked, walking up to her mother with her best puppy-dog eyes fully equipped. “Can we please stay for dinner?”

“Well….”

“It’s alright with us if that’s your concern,” Jakob replied with kindness in his voice. He crooked his finger at Kana, a gesture for him to get up from the floor and join them in the doorway so he could straighten the bow that was tied in his hair. As he fluffed his son’s hair, he said playfully, “Besides, I believe our children still need to finish their magical duel, correct? The Evil Queen can’t really win in the end.”

“Yeah!” Kana said, throwing a fist into the air. “Papa is right!”

Felicia couldn’t hold back a chuckle at the sight and relented easily. “Well, as long as you’re certain that we’re not imposing…I guess that’s okay!”

As both cousins cheered, Dwyer hollered that he needed taste testers to make sure the curry was ready to eat. Needless to say, both children nearly flew across the room while Felicia stepped into the hallway to check for her husband.

To her surprise and disappointment, he wasn’t in the corridor. She even peeked down the hall towards the center elevator and didn’t see any lights or other trace of anyone recently boarding. It seemed the call had been from work and he’d had to go back into the office. Before she could feel too down, Corrin tapped her shoulder and invited her back inside.

“Don’t worry,” she said, flashing her best smile. Although Felicia knew she was only his twin, her smile looked exactly like Kamui’s. Upon seeing it, she almost instantly felt relieved. Corrin continued sweetly, “I’m sure he’ll be home soon.”

Even though the whole evening had been beyond bizarre for far, something about the sincerity of Corrin’s words and her smile compelled Felicia to believe her completely.

XOXOXOXO

After dinner and a little more magical dueling, Felicia and Kanna were both worn out and decided it was time to venture back home.

Felicia was still so disoriented about the day’s prior events that she didn’t have the stomach to each much. To remedy her lack of appetite, she was sent home with multiple reusable containers filled with curry to eat later in case she got hungry. Jakob also insisted they take extra, so Kamui would have something to eat when he came home from work.

It seemed they wouldn’t have to worry about preparing dinner for the next few weeks, at least.

“Were you not hungry, Mama?” Kana asked, glancing up at Felicia as she fished into her pocket to grab the key. Her mother’s hands were full, after all.

“It’s not that,” Felicia insisted, guilt creeping into her voice. “I just…I don’t know, I guess I just felt irked the whole time.”

“Oh,” Kanna said with a sigh. The girl then pivoted to their door and gently turned the key in the lock until all the tumblers clicked softly. “Well, I had fun! I’m just sad Papa had to go.”

“Well, at least he’ll have plenty to eat once he gets home,” Felicia joked, trying to remain as optimistic as possible. “Hm…hey, Kanna. If you’re up for it, do you want to get changed and walk around a bit? I think the other streets have their decorations up. We could people-watch for a bit.”

The little girl whirled toward her mother in response to the question, her eyes glowing like stars. “Yeah! That sounds amazing, Mama!”

The door clicked open softly.

“Alright, then let me put these away while you go get changed, and we’ll…”

As soon as the door to the apartment opened, the two girls were greeted with the sight of a large table of immaculately crafted desserts on their main dining room table. The whole apartment glowed with candlelight, and all the curtains of ever window were drawn to reveal the glittering cityscape just beyond the semi-frosted glass. The spectacle of lights only made the delectable ensemble of sugary sweets shine brighter.

One ivory plate featured cookies decorated with a lemon curd spread while another dish spotlighted neatly cut squares of shiny baklava. There were multiple dishes of petit crème brûlée and even stacks of truffles dusted with dried raspberries and green matcha powder. There were even some more savory dishes intermingled with the more sugary concoctions, like baked brie topped with creamed honey and a small bowl of fiery orange caviar and flax crackers.

Amongst the sugared berries and candied walnuts also sat a large frosted cake, decorated expertly with thin designs of piped icing and confectioner’s sugar to look like cascading icicles and snow.

After staring at the full table of food, Felicia’s eyes then began to search for the person who had created all the dishes. She found the source of the food lurking shyly behind the kitchen counter.

Kamui stood right in front of the stove, panting from exhaustion while spotted heat-to-toe in splotches of flour and pigmented icing. He laughed awkwardly upon being spotted and lifted a hand to ruffle his unruly locks nervously. “Um…surprise?”

They’d apparently come home a little sooner than he’d anticipated.

“Oh gods, I’m sorry,” he stammered, turning to the stove and shoving oven mitts over his hands. “Um, everything isn’t done yet! I fell behind a bit, and so I’m still cooking…”

The scene took a moment for Felicia to register. She stood motionless in the doorway as Kanna ran to her father and leapt into his arms, not caring if her white fencer’s uniform got dirty in the process.

The girl turned her attention back to her speechless mother and grinned widely at her stupefied expression. “Look, Papa, she’s totally shocked! You did it!”

Even a bucket of cold water to the face couldn’t have sobered Felicia’s confusion.

“I’m sorry, what?”

Kamui sat his daughter on the ground and crossed the room to gently take the curry containers from Felicia’s numbing hands. He placed them on the counter, then stole her hands back into his flour-encrusted grasp.

“I wanted to surprise you,” he said meekly, drawing closer with each breath. The aroma of his minty cologne and dark chocolate followed him with every step.

“Surprise me?” she asked, her voice failing and thus reducing her words to a breathy wheeze. “Whatever for? My birthday isn’t until Feburary, and Kanna’s is…”

“You’ve been so busy with work lately, and now that Kanna is getting older, I feel like you get run ragged sometimes,” Kamui said. “You go to work, you pick up Kanna from school and even take her to practice. When I come home late from work, you always have food in the fridge for me and find time to clean the apartment even when I forget.”

His voice wavered a bit, and he had to pause for a moment to clear his throat.

“Last year, we couldn’t do much to celebrate,” he explained. “I’ve felt guilty ever since.”

Her husband’s words triggered a memory from earlier in the evening of something Jakob and Corrin had said.

“I’ve seen how you both decorate,” Jakob said dryly. “It’s abysmal. Beyond abysmal. We couldn’t let such tragic history repeat itself.”

“Plus, we know how crazy things have been at work for you lately,” Corrin jumped in, eyes turned up in a semi-hopeful and somewhat pleading stare. “We thought you’d like it. Don’t be too mad. Please? We’re sorry.”

“You deserve the world, Felicia,” he said. “Hell, you deserve as…island, or something. Something bigger than this, at least. I want to give everything, and all this still isn’t close to enough…but I hope you like it.”

The man was blushing and tripping over his words, which was rare for Kamui. What he lacked in tact he made up for threefold in charisma, romanticism and charm. For him to be at a loss of words was remarkable, and Felicia couldn’t have felt more humbled that his love and appreciation for her seemed to be the cause of it.

“Do you…um…like it?” he asked, shifting his gaze to the ground as he awaited a reply.

Her response came in the form of a powerful and sweet-smelling embrace.

“Woah!” he cried, almost falling back and barely able to catch himself at the last second. He steadied his wife by flattening the palms of his hands against her side and lower back, a light peach blush staining his cheeks. “F-Felicia?”

Now it all made sense. It was clear now why the whole evening had been so weird and why nothing had made a lick of sense to her.

“You planned all of this, huh?” she asked weakly, sniffling against the linen of his shirt as he fingers clutched the material.

“Y-Yeah…” he said, dipping his head bashfully. “It’s true that I didn’t decorate though. I asked Corrin and Jakob to do that, and then when we went over to confront them…they would distract you while I came over here to start cooking everything.”

So that was why Kamui had been so insistent that Felicia not question the decorations too much upon visiting his sister’s apartment. At least her husband seemed to be aware he was an absolutely terrible liar.

“I know it was a really roundabout way of doing things,” he groaned, lifting a hand so he could knife his fingers through his bangs, “But when I told them I wanted to surprise you, they said it was impossible for me to get everything done and volunteered to help. Plus, you have to admit, the decorations are top-notch.”

“Why didn’t you ask Jakob or Dwyer to help you cook?” she asked out of mere curiosity.

“Well, I wanted to do that part myself,” he said with a shrug. “They probably won’t taste as good as what they could make, but…”

“No, no, no, that’s not what I meant!” she insisted, shaking her head desperately. “I mean, you went though all this trouble, just for me?”

He seemed confused by her question. “Of course. Only…it wasn’t any trouble.”

The woman was at a loss for words. Even her usual wails of confusion or her mumbles or exhaustion weren’t enough to convey the precise mixture of emotions she felt at that point in time. She’d never felt more cherished, more revered or more loved than in that moment.

“I’ll have to apologize to Corrin and Jakob,” Felicia said, blushing furiously as she gripped the material of her husband’s shirt and kept her face buried against his chest. She cringed internally as she remembered how cold she’d been to them the entire evening, thinking they’d gone behind her back and acted completely out of line. “That was mean, Kamui.”

“Sorry, sorry,” the man said with a laugh. He ran a hand up her back, feeling the bumps of her spine as he reached up cover her shoulder with his arm and pull her flush against his body.

Felicia went willingly, swaying to him without a single physical or verbal objection. Her voice was muffled against his shoulder while she spoke, but he could distinctly hear her call him a ‘jerk.’ He could only laugh.

“Hey, I’m sure they’ll forgive you,” he said lovingly, laying his other hand on her waist as she gently peeled her face from his shoulder. He reached up to gently cup her cheek, the form of his hand molding perfectly against her. “I’ll probably be the one to get chewed out for making them take the blame.”

“I hope you do,” she said, a coughball of laughter rising in her throat as she blotted tears of happiness from her eyes. “You made even Corrin take the blame when she was sick.”

“I didn’t know that part!” he loudly countered, looking so adorably flustered the Felicia couldn’t resist breaking out into laughter again. Her fingers coasted along his cheekbones and across the nape of his neck until her arms had fully encircled him. She cradled him close, nose lightly pressed beside his as she pressed her lips to his. Kamui emitted a surprised sound, but didn’t pull away.

The woman titled her head slightly for a better angle, allowing her to place extra kisses along Kamui’s jawline and in the corners of his mouth. Not surprisingly, he tasted of sugar and vanilla. She could definitely get used to the idea of Kamui baking more often if such delicious kisses were always the result.

“I love it,” she replied, finally answering his question. “I love everything. I mean it. Thank you, Kamui.”

He laughed joyfully, voice wracked with respite. “You’re welcome. I’m so glad you like it…I’m just so, sooo glad I didn’t mess this up.”

“That’s my line,” she teased, tapping the tip of his nose and smothering any objection with another kiss that sent Kamui into a semi-permanent swoon. Even after marriage and raising a child together, Felicia’s kisses never failed to turn him to jelly.

“I love you, Felicia,” he said, breaking the lip-lock only briefly.

“I love you too, Kamui,” she replied softly, tucking his head against her heart. “More than anyone. You’re my prince.”

They would have probably kept kissing late into the night if their daughter hadn’t emerged from her bedroom, now dressed in her comfiest clothes and best outer wear. The couple took one look at their adorably dressed daughter and exchanged warm glances.

“Well, everything does still need to cool,” he said, gesturing to the delicious treats that were creating a steamy haze in the kitchen. He tugged at his shirt lightly and a cloud of powdered sugar puffed up. “Tell you what. I’m going to change, and how about we walk around the city a bit and check out those lights, huh?”

“Yay!” Kanna cheered, throwing both arms up into the air.

Felicia smiled fondly and followed her husband to their bedroom. He’d already worked so hard that evening. There was no reason she couldn’t spare a second to help him get changed.

Besides, if she called correctly, there was another mistletoe above their bedroom door.

XOXOXOXO

After cleaning he kitchen and making sure Kana got to bed, a process that was routinely aided by either her husband or Dwyer, Corrin took a seat in her favorite spot at a coffee table in their apartment. The seat was right next to one of the windows that overlooked the city. Sitting in cozy silence, she watched as a slow and gentle snowfall began to coat the angular scenery in a blanket of ivory haze.

It had been a long day, and it didn’t help that she hadn’t rested her body like she should have. Hours of wrapping garlands and stringing lights hadn’t been the best cure for her brooding cold.

“Are you feeling any better?”

The woman directed her attention to the source of her voice coming from over her shoulder. Before she could reply, a mug of hot chocolate was placed before her and a gentle but calloused hand ruffled her bangs. She looked up to see Jakob looking down at her, his face serious with a tinge of worry.

“Hm…you have a fever,” he said, sighing with dismay. “And I thought curry might help. Damn.”

Still a worrier, even after such a successful day.

“It’s okay,” she replied with a smile. She still coughed a bit, which made Jakob’s face pinch with worry.

“You should have just rested today,” the man said as he pulled out the chair across from her and took a seat. “I’m sorry. If I would have known you were getting such a bad cold, I would have insisted you stay in bed.”

“You couldn’t have done everything yourself,” Corrin pitched rationally. “Even with Kana and Dwyer’s help, it would have been too tough. It’s not your fault.”

She cleared her throat and took a long sip of the hot chocolate. As expected from Jakob, it was the definition of decadence. Had she not been so used to such luxurious cooking from Jakob spoiling her, the taste would have robbed her of her senses temporarily.

“I’m glad I helped,” Corrin finally said, smiling against the rim of the coffee mug. “Didn’t you hear them next-door? Kamui surprised her as soon as they left.”

Jakob lifted a brow at her sudden confession and leaned over the table slightly to meet her gaze. “You eavesdropped on them?”

“No, their door is a few feet from ours,” she replied defensively, which made her husband smirk. “I wasn’t trying to! I just…happened to linger near the front door while they talked to each other.”

“So, I suspect we’ll be receiving an apology in the upcoming days, huh?” the pale-haired man said, turning his head to gaze out the window at the snowfall. The man reached out and placed a warm fingertip against the glass, doodling a heart on the crystal surface. “Not that we need one. I would have been angry is someone did what she thought we did.”

“Ah well,” she replied, also turning her head to continue staring at the scenery around them. The woman sat up and reached over to Jakob’s drawing on the glass. Beside the heart he’d drawn, she doodled a tinier heart and then drew a single arrow piercing both of them. “You know how they can be.”

He reached out to take her overly warm hand in his, entertaining their fingers as he pressed her skin to the cool glass. He chuckled dryly and said, “Oh, hell. All’s well that ends well, right?”

Corrin’s stubborn cough was forgotten as she turned her head to chuckle against the hemline of her shirt. “I suppose.”

Their shared silence was interrupted by a knock at the door. Jakob vacated his seat before Corrin even thought of getting up and went to the door. The man peeled through the peephole to determine if he needed to throw on a jacket or other attire before answering, but saw nobody on the other side.

Confused, he clicked the lock open and creaked the door a few inches forward.

When he saw nobody standing in front of the door, he shifted his gaze down and onto the welcome mat. There, sitting atop a clean dish, was a stack of sugar cookies and a fresh fruit tarte sealed with a sheet of blush-colored plastic wrap. Jakob picked up the tray, feeling a note tucked beneath the plate in the process.

He yanked it free and flapped it open with a brisk flick of his wrist.

“Thank you so much! I made each of your favorites as a thank you. Have Kana and Dwyer come by tomorrow after school and they can pick whatever they want.”

-Kamui (P.S., I owe you one!)

He blinked at the note, then looked down the hall after hearing the familiar ping of the elevator. H saw the familiar faces of Kamui and Felicia rush into the vestibule while Kanna stood in front of the hall. It seemed she’d been the tiny delivery girl.

The girl mouthed out the words, ‘Thanks again!’ and ran inside the elevator to join her parents before they could leave.

The doors closed, and silence followed. Despite his better judgement, he laughed at their clumsily executed evening and sighed. With the plate balanced expertly in one hand, he turned back to the door back to the door of their own complex.

“Oh, Corrin?” he called warmly. “Are you too sick for extra dessert?”

She answered his question by flashing the inside her empty mug, every drop of hot chocolate virtually drained. He didn’t even have enough time to be impressed before Corrin had risen from her seat and tugged him back inside.

Suspiciously, Jakob got sick only a few days later.

-END

Extra Notes/Reference Glossary

What holiday(s) are they celebrating? – I was nonspecific on purpose. There are a lot of winter holidays, and a lot of stereotypical holiday decorations. Kamui’s are white and blue, Corrin’s are black and gold and other random spaces decorated with red and green (even mistletoe.) Maybe they’re celebrating something, or maybe they’re decorating for fun and celebrating all the time off from work. Ditto.

Corrin vs. Kamui - I always associate M!Corrin (Kamui) with Hoshido and F!Corrin (Corrin) with Nohr. As a result, Corrin’s family uses the English name translations while Kamui’s family retains the literal Japanese translations. Kamui probably works for Hoshi Co., am I right? (sorry)

Lion Fanatic - Cam Clarke does the voice of M!Corrin, and is also the singing/speaking voices for Simba is a lot of the Lion King spin-offs. So…Felicia married a Disney prince. The original draft had her fancying TMNT, specifically Leonardo, whom Cam Clarke also voiced.

Skill Inheritance - Kanna is a fencer and Kana does ballet. The reason? I wanted one child to inherit the MU’s sword skills and the other to inherit the more acrobatic butler/maid move set. Also, screw gender stereotypes in sports. You know Kana is the lead in The Nutcracker, and his family will show up with dorky signs.

“In the name of the moon, I won’t surrender!” – I thought Kana would be a big Sailor Moon fan. Usagi would remind him a lot of his mom, especially as a female leader and as a young mother to a small child. Then I remembered Jakob’s VA (Ben Diskin) is also the voice of Fiore from the redub of Sailor Moon: Promise of a Rose. So…Corrin married a Sailor Moon villain.

Curry surplus – A reference to the series “Erased.” I just rewatched the dub again. Oops!

“I’m so glad I didn’t mess this up!” – A reference to one of Felicia’s dubbed quotes.

Thanks for waiting! I hope you guys enjoyed this incredibly long, super silly AU.

[courage-a-word-of-justice]

Dr Stone 13 - 15 | Honzuki 1 | Iruma-kun 1 - 2 | Africa Salaryman 1 | Tokunana 1 - 2 | Actors 1 | Abilities Average 1 | Shinchou Yuusha 2 | Assassin’s Pride 1 | No Guns Life 1 - 2 | Kabukicho Sherlock 1 | Ahiru no Sora 2 | BnHA 64 | Shin Chuuka Ichiban 1 | Stand My Heroes 1 - 2

Tags should be rolled out soon.

Dr Stone 13

Did Senku just Salt Bae??? Now I’ve seen everything!

I remember this puckered face from the manga! It’s hilarious!

Poor Kinro…he’s shocked at Ginro’s words…

Those were foxtails.

Who knew Suika’s mask could look so badass, amirite???

Honzuki 1

I like books…so this was a natural pick for me, y’know?

OKAY, why is the girl drinking wine she accepted from an older man??????

O…kay, so this has nice backgrounds and a pretty nice aesthetic with all the flowers, but otherwise it’s kinda dull, to be honest. It moves at the pace of a slice of life show…and I’m not sure it’s intentional or not.

“Only grownups are allowed to tie up their hair.” – So then, and correct me if I’m wrong about this…why is Turi’s hair in a braid? Or, when they mean “up”, they mean in a full bun like Myne (Main???) did earlier?

I’m thinking either a marketplace might have books…or at least signs to read.

I’m thinking of Maou-sama Retry from last season…because I’d rather a boring slow walk like the one I just saw, rather than a terrible run cycle like the one in the first episode of that show.

What…? Was Urano a vegan or vegetarian…? Or just too much of a city slicker to deal with seeing a dead chicken?

Iruma-kun 1

I picked this one based on the good ratings it had on ANN.

How does anyone remember these lyrics??? How many “ba” and “bi”s do you need???

…Hayate the Combat Butler, basically speaking.

Levy = Leviathan, I’d assume.

Aye, what a poor lad…to be sold off at 14…

Well, that was a fast way to set up an episode. If more shows were like this, I’d be a happy camper.

I-Is Opera…a DUDE?! Hallelujah! I hit Bishonen Jackpot #2! (No. 1 is Seiya, of course.)

You comedies wanna play hardball with me? Huh?! Do you, punks?! Let’s see how many times you can make me (wholeheartedly) laugh, then! (Current laugh count: 1)

Gender-coded uniforms, much…?

Is Catgirl related to Opera somehow???

Well, you do know that Asmodeus represents lust, right? That’s why he’s pink, isn’t he?...Isn’t he??? Update: Oh, yeah, right. Sullivan should probably be “Solomon”, but the name is deliberately different for comedy’s sake.

Uh, lemme guess: Daisuke Namikawa for Asmodeus? Update: Ryohei Kimura. I knw he sounded familiar…he’s Kane-san, in other words.

Kamehame-fireball!

(Iruma-kun is a master of dodging)…I thought it was because of that spell from before, really.

Da Vinci homage for the win!

Oh hey! 2nd German suplex of the season (I didn’t watch the first one).

By the power of dodging, Iruma wins…one servant! (Just in case Fate/ wasn’t enough for you…so to speak.)

There’s a single heart on Babylys in the ED, it seems…plus a giant bow.

Africa Salaryman 1

If Beastars is anime Zootopia, then this is absurdist Zootopia.

This is some Attenborough s***...until it isn't.

The OP scenes with the characters dancing...that's gonna be in my nightmares.

Oh, it's the pa in pachinko (“chinko” meaning p***s) that’s missing, so they went with glasses/asses instead.

We got Punpun animated (i.e. frightened Toucan)...score.

Giraffe Donuts, LOL.

I’m really pissed now…there’s no adblocker for my phone, so I had to sit through a good 8 ads or so just to get proper subs…I almost lashed out at someone because of it, too.

FireLion, LOL. I like these old computer-style transitions, but I don’t like how many ads I have to live through for it.

Tokunana 1

Is it just me, or did the police guy say "futures" (plural)...?

Hmm...by brandishing a gun at that point, is this man implying he's a saviour, or that guns are cool? I sure hope it's not the latter, considering gun violence rates worldwide. Then again, I might be reading into this one detail too much.

This reminds me of Midnight Occult Sevants…which doesn’t bode well for this show.

I can see this being my next Cop Craft…which I don’t need this season.

…oh, boy…rule no. 1 of detective shows: don’t be a hostage or get kidnapped. Ever. (Inevitably, if the show is about police in some capacity, someone will break this rule at least once. It’s made to be broken.)

Between this and Kimetsu no Yaiba, we’ve had enough “intelligence” (“using your head”, i.e. headbutting) to last us a while…

This CGI looks kinda bad…Africa Salaryman does better with disguising its CGI.

I like how the skull had a bow on it.

Wait, a dog, bird (pheasant) and gorilla (monkey)…this is some demented Momotaro going on right here…

Lookit that lady go!!! Woot!

To be honest, I keep feeling like Seiji’s gonna develop superpowers…or is this not the show for that…? (I mean, there’s dragons in the synopsis! Dragons!)

This show looks kinda off model, which is a bad sign in the first episode…hearing gunshots after the ED kinda startled me, though, and made a killer move for another episode out of goodwill…come to think of it, I’ve been giving out a lot of “can’t peg down this show with one episode, will watch more” this season already…

Dr Stone 14

(no notes, sorry!)

Actors 1

I’m a fan of Masuda, who voices a character in Actors’s 3rd iteration…IIRC. It’s gonna be a while until we get to him, though.

Uh, how does this guy play keyboard with those floppy sleeves of his???

Specifically, according to Hinata, Haruna told him he was being too noisy before she went back to sleep…although I’ve never seen a little girl be woken up by her big brother in these “I’m late! *puts toast in mouth as they run ou the door*” intros, so it’s refreshing.

His name is Otonomiya (“sound temple”, with “sound” being the thing you hear), of course he’s going to be part of a musical franchise…

“Akizuki Kai” sounds familiar…I dunno why though.

UGGGGGGH! If you’re doing a singing anime, let us hear the damn song!!! Don’t make us wait for the Otonomiya version!!!

Kagura…Sousuke??? Classicaloid??? I am so not going to match that boy with this one. (Well, one of the kanji is different, but everything else is the name, right down to the wordplay. A kagura is a type of dance, y’see, and one of the characters matches one in the Japanese word for “music”, ongaku. The other can be found in Otonomiya’s name, in fact.)

What’s up with this white wall business, anyway??? This ain’t Tokyo Ghoul, this is a singing anime!

Archery boy is good boi. Me likey.

I have a bad feeling about Nozomi, yo.

I LOLled so hard…I mean, this pink dude’s name is Uta Outa…it’s so redundant. You expect me to love him???? LOL, as if!

Con brio = with spirit, with vigour. Adagio = slow, by the way.

Stand My Heroes 1

I’m here for Ume, as I always am. Ume’s role is Go Miyase of the Kujo family.

That was a pretty epic opening, actually.

Who scouts a civilian for a narcotics unit???

I am so not going to be able to match names to faces at this rate…

Hey, don’t you go patronising girls!!!

I feel like it would’ve been better (and flashier) to demonstrate the drug immunity by showing, not talking about it.

Takaomi looks like Tenn from Idolish7, man…

Hmm…I saw Ume’s character, but it’s hard to evaluate his voice for Go just by a “Here you go.” (And no, that’s not a pun…not an intentional one, anyway.)

I just realised Aoyama has this tiny plait on the side of his head. It’s rather cutesy for a narcotics show.

(Aoyama informs Rei about Arakida)…yeah, but why are you here, Aoyama? Are you just here to warn Rei???

The stain really is gone, you really can’t tell that it is there…I assume that means she was drinking water in that tall glass of hers (Rei).

This ending song is a bit weird…I never expected it to be English. I expected it to be by the VAs, to be honest.

Abilities Average 1

It’s better if I call this “Abilities Average” rather than the long-winded “Didn’t I Say to Make My Abilities Average in the Next Life?!”.

The scenery in this show is nice, at least…(?) But is that a CGI carriage I see?

Comic Earth Star…that doesn’t bode particularly well for me. The only series I’ve watched that has a series that hails from that magazine is SekaTsuyo (Wanna Be the Strongest in the World!) and I didn’t like it much in the end.

Ohhhhhhhhh…kay. Is it just me, or did I read “Hotel Little Gust” as “Hotel Little Girl”…?

Mile and Myne (spelling pending). In female-led isekai. This season only!!!...this is gonna suck, isn’t it?

Lenny is a boy’s name, though…?

Why is the show’s English tagline “God bless me?”…? I’ve half a mind to drop this show already…and I read the premiere report on ANN, so I knew it was going to end like this. Come to think of it, I don’t think I’ve had a season where I just catch up on older series, even though I keep thinking I will have one on my hands during weak seasons. (This has been a worry since the especially weak summer 2018 season, really.)

The Spain Square…? Really?

Really? You’re gonna complain about Japan’s declining birth rate here???

Whoa, I wouldn’t be surprised if this show were taken for granted by yuri shippers…

The extreme buffering means I managed to spot a redhead who I’ve seen on this show’s promo material…yup, that’s her.

Oh…great. This redhead is tsundere…(If I give one more complaint, I’m getting out of here!)

Oh…so Mile even pointed it out…(probably because this buffering is going so slowly, I can guess what’s happening before it actually happens.)

Okay, so I never figured out why she started calling herself a country girl and I went back and looked (despite all the buffering I was fighting) and no one ever does call her a country girl, it’s just a random misconception she has. Because it was so unclear that this was the case, I’m going to drop this show. (Well, for all the middling shows I have this season, losing one is actually a relief…!)

Shinchou Yuusha 2

Here we are again…and I’ve been thinking about Seiya a lot since last time, which probably seals the deal in that this is going to be part of the final lineup. (Today’s Seiya probably helps a lot with that.)

Ohmigosh, Rista’s panicked face when they almost get caught by Chaos Machina…LOL.

…just as I thought, I go “nnnnergh” under my breath when someone mentions the name “Aria”.

Assassin’s Pride 1

I picked this show because the protag looked kinda hot…but only now I realise he looks like a knock-off Kirito and I really start to regret my choice…

Is it just me, or is this show really dark??? (Not just because of the bloody scene at the start, mind you.)

The side of the train says “Cardinals 26110”, in case you were wondering…(then again, you probably weren’t wondering that…)

Wait-his name is Kufa WHAT?!

This is giving me Lance N Masques vibes now, because it did almost the same plot beats except for the fact I still can’t reconcile the fact Kufa Whatsit lives in a lantern (which is actually a pretty interesting idea…if it didn’t seem rather unviable upon retrospect)…that means it’s halfway to drop city.

Melida is so flat, she doesn’t even fill out her dress…(LOL, that gives a new meaning to “flat as a board”.)

But why is the tutor a dude? Plus an older dude to a younger girl, at that???

Hey, Melida is essentially my kinda catnip…at least in my head...because she’s someone without powers in a family with powers (basically, she’s like Daichi from Crimson/Future is Crimson in that regard). Then again, Charlotte tried playing the same hand by having superpowers and absolutely sunk itself ‘cos I couldn’t stand Yu.

Elise runs reallllllly derpily.

Those CGI alleyways look baaaaaaaaad, man. Like, “looking at grainy footage through a UV camera” bad.

Okay, Kufa. You are not Naruto. You will not see them aliens. Give up already.

The actual frig is an anima???

I like this black/bright blue/purple combo…it’s nice.

Umm…but what is the way to awaken the mana???

I’m currently going, “So why should I give a s*** about Melida???? Ripoff Kirito just chooses to swear his life upon her and awakening her mana because she’s been beaten down a grand total of once…You should’ve killed her already, Kufa. Isn’t that what being an assassin is about???”…and then I realise there’s more to the episode…

Waiiiiiiiiiiiit…one of the maids’ names is Nietzsche??? Like the Ubermensch guy??? That’s weiiiiiiiird, man…

Kufa is a chuuni, calling it now.

The text under the series logo doesn’t quite make sense…

Hmm, this one’s a tough call, but I think I’ll give it a 45 and a hard drop. I don’t think I’ve ever asked myself “So why should I give a s*** about the main character?” before…I think the closset to that would be when I’ve asked myself why I wanted to be subjected to this (for anime that get dropped).  

No Guns Life 1

Now that I look at the title again…why is it called No Guns Life when Juzo’s life will always have a gun in it for as long as he’s like that (i.e. he has a gun for his head)…?

*Juzo smokes* - Oh, now that’s a striking opening scene if I ever knew one!

Ohmigoshit’sKnuckledusterfromBnHAVigilanteswithagunforhisheadand…I…*huff huff* can’t breathe anymore…LOL.

Seriously, I thought I thought up some weird s*** for my old stories, like the girl whose face was missing and Akoya turning into a manequin to preserve his beauty.

“The only ones who can touch my trigger are those who I’ve chosen to accept.” – Is that…a sexual metaphor??? Or an intimacy one in general???

Wowwwwwwwww, chibi gunhead (which was hinted in the OP) was not something I expected from such a hardboiled show.

“…shot right in the head.” – LOL, says you when the guy with the gun head is behind you.

I thought there was seriously a pun there by having the gun head’s name be “Juzo”, but it turns out his name has the kanji for 13. Maybe that hints at how unlucky he is instead. (Same with Inui and it containing the character for “dog” – turns out it’s a different kanji.)

I think this is reminding me of Mahoutsukai no Yome – strong in its core genre at first, but then shows some weakness when it comes to comedy.

I worry about how this show will look during the midseason slump period…it both has traces of CGI and the still camera pretending it’s “properly animating” a scene.

That ED really is something…and hey, I got an explanation for why the show has traces of CGI in it from the credits! Unreal Engine was credited there and that’s normally used for games.

Kabukicho Sherlock 1

Dammmmmmmmn, that’s one sweet soundtrack!

Man, I know I said for Stars Align that there’s no slap to the face like a slap to the face, but…this was a slap to the face in that I did not expect Mrs Hudson to do an entire Coraline-style musical routine in the first half of the episode. I could tell from her (?) appearance that she was a drag queen/trans caricature, but they didn’t need to make her a singer in a bar…and the “sexy” shots of Mrs Hudson’s butt are kinda disturbing…and especially the part where Watson (I think it is?) gets a butt grab for his trouble…

The woman in the blue dress is Diana Oldoini (spelling needs confirmation). The woman with the blue hair…seems to be called Tenkill…(yeah, under the subs, I can’t really make it out.) All the women at Pipe Cat seem to be trans stereotypes, which vaguely annoys and unsettles me.

Kyogoku = Natsuhiko Kyogoku and Sherlock is Holmes, but I dunno about “Michel” or “Kobayashi”.

The Watson from the Holmes books was a doctor in the Afghanistan war…I know that much.

Natsu -> Fuyu (summer -> winter), hiko (“brilliance/brightness”, a common component to Japanese boys’ names) -> to (“person”, also a common component of Japanese boy’s names).

Oh, Michel is this guy (Belmont)! No wonder. Update: So the cats are like placecards, announcing that you’re in the building.

White Rose! I saw it when Watson showed up in his car, so I figured it was going to be important…I just didn’t think it was necessary so soon…

Chili oil…no wonder the woman was disgusted by Sherlock’s burp. Not to mention, Holmes was good at identifying chemicals too. This show is shaping up to be a modern Holmes more than Detective Conan is!

Wowwwwwwww…this show really doesn’t like gay people either (understatement).  It’s like I’m watching a show from the 90s in regards to the LGBTIQ+ people in this…

Moriarty is a thief for thieves, huh? A regular (modern) Robin Hood, so to speak. I wonder if the poor kids are the Baker Street Irregulars…?

This soundtrack is sooooo good! Plus it’s clearly leading up to a rakugo scene, based on the fact “Shibahama” briefly appeared on the screen during that really cool rainbow/text scene!

“What sort of girl takes her clothes off for a man she’s never met?” – A sex worker.

I-Is Moriarty drinking Dr Pepper…? Or Coke?

This is really shaping up to be a modern Sherlock Holmes – with his rakugo, this Sherlock is leading his Watson to the answer!

Ohhhhhhhhh man, these CGI cars look terrible!

H-HUHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH?! W-What? Sherlock gets hit by a car in the first episode (I think they wanted it to happen for humour)? This really is a show where it’s neither mystery nor comedy…it’s just kinda weird and kinda there.  

So that’s Mary Morstan and…who? (If you never figured it out, I learnt these characters’ names through ANN cast announcements.)

I…don’t get why Sherlock is screaming because I don’t know what Watson’s bottle-thingy is for, but I’ll assume it has to do with pain for Sherlock’s genitals or something of the sort…and go “ouch” for him.

Okay, so the next-ep preview’s “Why not join the staring at eye moles squad?” is a joke. You see, the word nakibokuro refers to a mole (or beauty spot) under the eye (where hokuro = mole and naki = cry, so it’s as if the person cried the mole into existence). Then it’s mitsumetai, meaning “want to stare”, but then the tai for “want” is substituted for the tai meaning “squad”. So that nonsense English line is just a very literal translation that isn’t funny…just confusing. I don’t get the “Cobra?/ Farewell” exchange though…

This very last scene before the end of the episode seems to be a page of info about the setting of Shinjuku in this series. East and west were split by a wall and train tracks, it seems, and you ned to pass through the gate to go between them…I spotted this omake because of the cat in one corner.

I don’t quite get why the case had to be treated like a gameshow at one part, but that would be a cool plot if someone ever wrote a story about it…(actually, wait. I think I do know a similar plotline from Detective Conan – the one with Natsuki in it – plus the Running Man by Steven King is somewhat similar to it too.)

Ahiru no Sora 2

Essentially, Sora is a reverse Kuroko…amirite…?

Ugh! This slang is so outdated!!! “[T]otes craycray”…the translator’s trying too hard to be a hip teenager…

How does anyone keep food in their afro anyway…?

I…miss shonen protags like Ahiru. The type that are earnest, but not shouty.

I was thinking I might drop the show here, but then I looked at the posts and strangely they didn’t talk about Chiaki (who I expected to be the deuteragonist of this show). Instead, they talk about Momoharu, so I was wondering what kind of twist they were pulling.

Beet red, my butt…

…then again, more Chiaki shenanigans showed up, so I really am gonna drop this. Geesh, Chiaki, you really suck.

BnHA 64

Eyyyyyyyyy, my local sublicensor is back to simulcasting BnHA! That didn’t happen for the stuff affected by the CR x Funi partnership, so I’m happy it’s happening right now.

I heard this was a recap ep but it was handled well…oh well, the new OP is well worth the price of admission.

I like how Amajiki (my boyyyyyyyy!) is like “Don’t touch me!!!”, even in the OP.

Hmm…I see one of the male journalists being scolded uses Windows 10.

Tokuda’s name is literally a pun on “It’s a special (episode)”…good job, Bones and BnHA staff (sarcastic). Update: Maybe the “tane” (seed) means he’s seedy…?Nah, that pun doesn’t work in Japanese.

Good job on recapping Vault Boy (as he’s known). I found his POWERRRRRR! thing amusing when s3 was airing, remember?

I get the feeling (based on the chapters Viz made free for the sake of hyping s4 up) Nighteye is a parody of the Jump series Seiji Tanaka. Update: No, now that I google Seiji Tanaka up and remember Horikoshi was going for a stereotypical Japanese salaryman look, it’s just a giant coincidence…

Tokuda has that “nice older man” vibe going on…hmm…

Whoaaaaaaaaaaa, that quirk is creepyyyyyy…

“…false encouragement to those…”

Selfie for the photobomb photographer!...(or something like that…)

Oh nooooooooo, I know exactly what’s in store for these guys, now that Viz made chs. 122 – 162 available for free for a limited time!!! That ED though…it’s basically torture for someone who knows what’s going on!!!

Shin Chuuka Ichiban 1

This is a sequel to a series I watched ages ago in Cantonese, so…heck if I’ll understand what’s going on, but I’ll try. Even though my memory of these characters should be better than everyone else’s, it might even be worse, considering all the anime I watched in the years between…

All these faces are familiar…but I’ve forgotten most of their names…If I remember right, the blonde is Sanche, the only one I really remember because he gave his all to cutting radish by moonlight so that it was proven it was so thin you could see the moonlight through it…yeah, I think that’s the only character aside from Mao I can really say anything about. (I don’t think he was blonde last time I saw an anime about him, though.)

These chickens are adorable...in this day and age, we know these chickens aren't carriers of misfortune...but just roll with it for now.

The subs don't note it (the visuals do eventually though), but her (Tiya’s) bro is a big one.

I never realised how long Mao's hair was until this series...

Even these men look like chickens...LOL.

The essence of SCI is, like any other shonen, Mao gets underestimated and kicks their asses.

The men even sound like chickens, LOL.

See? Silkies. I've never taken care of one myself, but they are adorable lil' birds with a distinctive look. Anyways, I think what sets this apart from SnS is the earnestness from years gone by (rather than extreme exaggerating). Also, this ep. made me hungry...LOL, that's the sign of a good cooking show.

Yeah...I forgot the reason why Mao wears that blue thing over his arm is because he can dramatically reveal himself as Super Chef. That happened a lot in s1.

...who's Fei again...?

Tokunana 2

I think this is going to be the decider as to where I push the threshold of my rankings, since this how is very middling…also, it’s pretty obvious to note the ep. titles go 1, 2, 3…(and so on).

I’ve watched my fair share of mysteries (Detective Conan gives you a lot of ‘em), so I can tell the covering of the mouth is a tell…the dwarvish man is lying.

The news headline says “Rainbow Bridge Reconstruction”…(It has a particle on the end though…I dunno whether I wanna translate that or not.)

Based on the “dragons” idea, I wouldn’t be surprised if the main antagonist’s surname was Kuzuryuu (“9 headed dragon”).  

Codenames? They even did that in Double Decker and in some senses, that was a parody of the entire cop procedural! (What with “Perm” as a codename and all that…speaking of which, I think Travis was the type who liked “fun” codenames too…he called himself “Boss” as well…and called his rookie “Rookie”.)

The saying goes a painted dragon should have the eyes painted last or else it’ll come alive and fly away. It must be something of the sort for daruma too. By the way, I could guess the politician was trying to be re-elected before Ichinose said due to the hissho (“sure win”) written on the daruma.

I don’t think I’ve seen anyone in anime sit backwards on a chair like that (Ichinose’s pose)…

How does Suga know about the blog…?

I keep swearing Seiji is gonna awaken some type of powers, but…I dunno why…?

“Here it is! My fist of justice!” *whomp*…that’s how I imagined the final punch to be for Seiji.

I swear…I’ve been seeing this Angolmois-style filter over Tokunana…(grr…)

Stand My Heroes 2

Wait, there’s Hattori…and Hatori…? Update: Oh…kay, so there’s Otani Hatori (of Revel) and then Hattori You (of the police). They have the same colour hair…and the same hairstyle…there goes my dreams of even comprehending this show…

Wait, so the English-language song is the OP????

Why does a guy called Maki always have green hair…?

Seriously though…Yui is a cliched scientist. By that, I mean he doesn’t really act like one at all – he obsesses over potential samples and whatnot (emphasis on “potential”).

Where the heck did you acquire a drug like that, then, Kagura???

Only Rei, who knows what happened at the dinner, can say “you’re nice based on what you did at dinner”. The viewer wasn’t privy to such things…

Aki’s tsundere…!

That fight scene was barely animated…geesh.

Maki’s got such anger issues that it’s hard to get behind him…

By the by, I don’t find Jekyll and Hyde cases hot, so Maki is basically a no-go.

Iruma-kun 2

This could be the show that decides it all. Iruma-kun is the 2nd-last show on my prospective shows for the season, so I’m cutting the fat fast by watching a few shows that indicate the quality of everything underneath as well as itself.

LOL, I never noticed there was an “Oh my gah” in the OP, haha.

Okay, so the pun in the title is Mairimashita! Iruma-kun (“I’ve Arrived! Iruma-kun”in formal Japanese because he’s the demon king’s grandson), but it’s “demon entry” rather than the standard kanji…so there’s absolutely no way to make that joke work in English, hence “Welcome to Demon School! Iruma-kun”. The pun in Iruma is that it’s an anagram of the formal iku/kuru (come/go), mairu. Yes, that’s the mairu I was talking about earlier.

I love how the narrator is just like “akuma deeeeeee~su” with all the enthusiasm of a postman; that is, he’s not very good at covering up his sarcasm.

Oh, so it’s maccha, but macha (demon tea)…geddit?

…oh! I actually noticed Sullivan’s hands were bandaged, but I didn’t think anything of it! So it was plot-relevant…

Hellraiser clock…for mezamashidokei (where ma = demon again)…that is a good pun! I love you, subber!

I assume the series of 5 symbols I keep seeing is actually “Iruma”, meaning the demon language is based on English, or at the very least individual romaji.

Oh wait! Babibabi(etc.)ru…does that mean the OP is referring to the school??? *mindblown*

…don’t tell me it’s Sullivan…? Update: Nope, I forgot about “Severus Snape”. He’s Aizawa from BnHA, but a demon.

Asmodeus stands out far too much in a crowd, LOL.

Whether useful or useless, trash is trash.

That’s…a very death metal snake…to put it one way.

This reminds me of Future is Crimson…how nostalgic…I really expect a cute monster though.

*laughing behind hand* Oh noooooooo…does that mean Iruma summoned the teacher??? (Hahahah!!!! Hahahaha!!!)

So…I was right, but I wasn’t right??? The teacher is a cute demon, I guess. Very fluffy. His Snape form isn’t bad either, but I’d prefer someone younger than him, to be honest. (Gimme plushies of the small fluffy sensei!)

Okay, so sukima appears to be a word meaning “gap, crevice (etc.)”. There’s the character for demon in it, so it’s kinda like calling this section the demonic gap-closer…the malevolent mini-episode…the fiendish filler! Yeah, I like the sound of “fiendish filler” (even though I don’t even like filler!).

Dr Stone 15

…now Senku’s done it. (i.e. married Ruri)

I like how Suika went splat while running. It adds more consistency to her nearsightedness.

Now there’s a cliffhanger!

No Guns Life 2

I always love it when people say they’re unarmed…but truth be told, people (normally) have two arms…not to mention, Juzo has a gun for a head and a fist that can rapidly punch. You can’t really call that “unarmed”.

I just realised Juzo’s jaw doesn’t really move when he talks…

Wait a second, ARAHABAKI????? You mean, Chuuya Arahabaki???? (Talking about that to those not in the know would be spoilers, so I won’t explain what I mean here, just in case there are non-BSD fans reading this.)

So…uh, where are Juzo’s eyes in that head of his…?

Ooh, authentication keys. Sounds like cybersecurity. That…was my jam before I jumped ship – apparently I’m too dumb to deal with modulos (which are important to cybersecurity).

Hmm…gun slave unit? Whatever does that mean, hmm??? (somewhat inquisitive, somewhat sarcastic)

Can a guy with a gun for his head get lung cancer? These are the big questions, folks.

Hmm? His hobby is house-cleaning, but he doesn’t have any kids…? That sounds sort of weird (although my ideas of a house cleaner are probably a bit…motherly, I guess? “Conforming to traditional stereotypes”…how about that description instead…?).

I never realised how short the muzzle of Juzo’s head is until I got this side shot.

“Guess that means I won’t be able to hold back against you!” – Whoa! That’s some effective horror…and this isn’t even a show that has “horror” as one of its genres…

[eloarei]

Okay, so my friend Lila (perhaps foolishly) expressed an interest in hearing about the fandoms I've been into in the past-since-we've-really-talked, and I'm now an old woman of 28 whole years so time kinda flies by like a supersonic jet now, so I'm gonna start back about 2 years ago, because that still feels 'recent' to me. Under a cut for your convenience (given that 99.5% of you probably don’t want to read it). Also, I bolded the important things so you can just skim through it haha ^^; And I added pictures because... pictures!  also, I tagged a few people, but not so much because I wanted them to see it, but because they were relevant to my story. So don’t feel obligated to read this, if that’s you. I wasn’t trying to get your attention, I just wanted to credit you properly. 

September 2015 -- SO! This time two years ago, I was (I think) making a valiant effort to try to finish my darling long-fic, Rogue, so I guess you could say I was in the HINABN fandom. (It's one of my on-and-off fandoms; I don't think I'll ever fall out of it completely. You know, in fact, I'd call it on-and-on. I'm always into it, just in different intensities.) (I didn't come remotely close to finishing Rogue then. It took me until March of THIS year to finish it. ^^; )

October 2015 -- Around that time, One Punch Man came out, so I was deinitely into that. I've always loved Madhouse, so chances are I'm gonna be nuts for anything they make. OPM was a really fun series, though my involvement was mostly watching the show and reblogging shitloads of fanart. I read a few fics, but never got involved in making any myself. I had a vague idea about like some evil-Saitama x hacked-Genos fic which would have been called Genocide, as a play on their fantastic ship name, Genosai. I'm still waiting for season 2. Just... waiting patiently over here.

November 2015/ May 2016 -- Then, Fallout 4 came out. I didn't play it, but boy did I ever fall in love with the beautiful robot man everyone was posting about, Nick Valentine. I like to play games in order though (even though everyone said you didn't have to with this series), so I got Fallout 3 (the oldest one easily available on any system I own) for Christmas and was CRAZY hooked. I spent the first month of 2016 pretty much exclusively playing FO3 (and reading @chocochipbiscuit 's fantastic rarepair longfic, Jinxed. lol I felt so blessed that someone else had thought to ship the main character with the big frightening loyal intelligent monster companion. <3 (Fawkes is still the best.) Then I played the sequel, Fallout: New Vegas, but unfortunately it's the glitchiest damn game in existence, so even though I loved it, I couldn't put as much time into it as I wanted. BUT then Jason bought me Fallout 4 and I was just head over heels, wow. I put over 250 hours in the game, and still didn't beat it, because wandering around post-apocalyptic ruins was way more entertaining than finishing the story. XD; So basically the first half of 2016 was entirely consumed by Fallout, and my love for Nick Valentine. I conceptualized a fic, but didn't let myself write it because I was still in the process of trying to finish Rogue. (I also spent THE REST OF MY LIFE being pissed that you couldn't romance Nick Valentine in the game, even though there were so many other options and he was the one that just, ugh, just MADE SENSE! and you couldn't do it! *rages*)

June 2016 -- Around June, Pokemon GO came out, so I actually spent large portions of the summer walking around (can you believe it?!) and catching the 'mons. September 2016 -- When it started to cool down, around September, I somehow got into Back To The Future, and I'm not really sure how it happened. I just realized one day that I'd never fully seen the movies, so I sat down and watched them, fell in love, and then sat down and played the Telltale game, and fell in love more. (Young Emmett is so precious.) I spent probably the majority of October reading @irisbleufic​ Mammett stories, which are fantastic, and then started writing my own. (See recent WIPS list post for the depressing number of BttF fics I started and never finished. I did finish one, at least.) (Fanart below is by Fightbeast, who is a pretty great artist =D) 

November 2016 -- November was NaNoWriMo, so I don't remember anything except wildly attempting to write my heart out. Oh, and starting to watch Yuri on Ice. Hoo, wow, that was a fun ride. My friend @tempuslunam​ came over to watch it with me every week. It was fantastic. I didn't get involved in any fic or anything though; I guess it was just good enough how it was haha. December 2016 -- In December, I was riding the end of the BttF wave and crashing head-on into the Overwatch fandom. I'd been kind of into it for months, but it just grew in Nov and Dec, and I spent the whole two weeks surrounding Christmas reading a massive and fantastic McCree/Hanzo fic called Hang the Fool. I still REALLY love the fandom, even though I'm not currently involved in reading or writing for it. McHanzo, Reaper76, and Roadrat are my main ships. God I'm so glad it's a big fandom. Most of my fandoms are usually way too small. (The picture below is Tracer; not part of my ships, but a good character, and the face of the series. She’s a cutie. =3) 

Oh, I also started reading this webcomic called Long Exposure. It’s about a gross bully with a longstanding crush on a nerd, and also they get superpowers?

Janurary 2017 -- January, I was flip-flopping between the various games I'd gotten for Christmas, and then in February I got Final Fantasy Fifteen and went totally nuts over it for the next month or two. Met @nomadsky​ through her wonderful fics, and started WAY TOO MANY of my own fics. As with BttF, I only finished one.

March 2017 - In March, I finished my longfic, Rogue, spent several days just overwhelmed about it and feeling so proud of myself and happy and empty all at the same time. Then I jumped into Mass Effect Andromeda. This was fun because a) I love the Mass Effect series, and b) I went into it without knowing anything about it. Fell in love with the beautiful alien Jaal, then was pissed because you couldn't romance him (having Nick Valentine flashbacks) even though he kept flirting with you, and then was flooded with relief because oh okay actual you can. Also fell in love with the sad story of Avitus Rix and Macen Barro, and I started writing a story about them but never finished it.

 April / June 2017 -- In April my friend came to visit, so I kind of forgot everything I was doing, and when she left I decided to hardcore get back to my writing, so I picked up that Fallout 4 Nick Valentine fic I conceptualized the previous year and did basically just that for the next few months. July 2017 -- In July, I a) accidentally remembered that I love Jak and Daxter, and minorly got back into that and started writing a fic I'd meant to write for years, and b) accidentally stumbled upon a One Piece mobile game (Treasure Cruise, which, btw, is the best OP game available for the simple reason that all the dumb side characters I love are playable) that reminded me that I love the series, and made me start rewatching that and writing more Cobymeppo fic. (Oh my LORD! I’d never seen this precious Coby until I googled it! He must have been a rare/seasonal character! I have the more common forms of them.) 

AAAAND that's pretty much where I'm at now, still kind of balancing those fandoms and quite a few older ones. Other things I watched but didn't necessarily get involved in the fandom for: -- Noragami. Stumbled upon this one without ever hearing about it on tumblr. I love it. (lol I can't believe how straight all my ships are though! And they're still so good!) I'm hoping season 3 happens eventually. -- Ore Monogatari. Saw like two clips on tumblr and instantly went, "oop, well gotta go watch that immediately." It's now one of my favorite anime, super precious. Jason even watched it with me and agrees that it's top notch.

-- Mob Psycho 100. Everyone was watching this last November-ish, and I just didn't for some reason? It's by the same author as One Punch Man, but for some reason I didn't think I was gonna like it as much? Um. But I did. Well, differently, but it's still good.

-- Wander over Yonder. It was around this time that I sat down and just tore through the first season. Cute show, but I haven't managed to watch season 2 yet, somehow.  -- The Phantom of the Opera. Like literally all I wanted to do for 2 weeks was listen to the soundtrack. BAD ASS main theme, I love it. 

Now the only thing I'm really specifically looking forward to (besides the continuation of any current series) is the movie The Shape of Water, because yes please I can always use more human/monster love, good gosh.

And there's my fandom breakdown from the past two years!!! =D =D =D Of course, I'm more than happy to go into more detail about any of them, of course. =3 (Just TRY to get me to stop talking about my interests; you can't! XD;;; )

[liaragaming]

OC Interview Meme

I was tagged by @tel-abelas-mofo. I really liked how they put the questions in the form of an interview and decided to do the same. Much more fun that way. I’ve never written Sera before. Not sure I captured her right.

1. Pick an original character! 2. Fill in the questions/statements as if you were being interviewed for an article and you were the character/muse 3. Tag people to do the same: @accidental-apostate @imaridraws @rosenrotxiii @cherryblossomaxire @thecopperkidd @just-dread-wolfing @apostatehobolife @dammit--solas @inquisitor-julia (Don’t feel obligated. I just tagged people I thought might have fun with it. Do let me know if you’ve already done it!)

“A chronicler from the Chantry would like to interview you,” Josephine explains.

“Interview me?” asks Inan. “Why?”

“With everything that was lost from Inquisitor Ameridan, the hope is having an official record by the Chantry would prevent such an occurrence happening again.”

The way the Chantry views elves, it seems very likely to her it may one day conveniently lose such a record. After disbanding the Inquisition, she thought she might finally be free of the gesturing and posturing of politics. She gives a bitter laugh at her naivete.

“Josephine, can't I–?” She's tired. It's been a long week. On top of the Exalted Counsel and the Qunari threat, she lost half an arm, and Solas is… well…

“I would not ask if I did not believe it important.” Her eyes simmer with the unspoken apology.

She gives a heavy sigh. “Fine. But I want you to be there.”

“Of course.”

“And… and Cassandra.”

“I will make her aware.”

“And Sera.”

Josephine blanches. “S-Sera?”

Inan stares at her. She doesn't have the energy to explain that if she's going to make it through this, she'll need some damned humor.

“I… as you wish, My Lady.”

They sit in corner a row of bunches outside the Winter Palace. The open air relaxes Inan. She thought she'd be locked in some stuffy room with no means of escape. She feels safer here, like she could run if wanted, though she wouldn't. She wonders if the chronicler chose this location or if Josephine talked him into it.

1. What is your name?

“Inan Lavellan.”

2. No seriously, what is your name?

“I...” Inan pauses, confused. To her left, Sera gives a laugh. “Oh, sure. She has other names. Inky, for one. Tadwinks, for another. She has all kinds of pet names.”

Josephine's eyes widen in horror from where she sits next to the chronicler as she watches him scratch a few notes on Sera's words. But she notices Inan's smile, and bites her tongue.

3. Do you know why you were called that? 

“Well, inan is the elven words for 'eyes,' or more aptly translated as 'windows to the soul.' My eye color is unusual, so… that was the name I was given.”

4. Are you single or taken?

Inan's chest constricts at the question. She has no simple answer to this.

Sera lays a finger on her chin, turning her face. “Or she's taken, aren't you, Tadwinks?” Sera stares into her face like a lover, scooting closer, running her finger down her neck to trace her collar bone.

Inan smiles, fighting hard against the laughter that rolls up inside her.

Josephine stamps her foot. “Strike it out!” she tells the chronicler, who is scribbling.

“But this is important!” he protests. “Ameridan's lady mage was all but forgotten–”

“There will be no record of and no further questions involving the Inquisitor's romantic life.”

“But–”

“Strike it out or this interview is over.”

The chronicler sighs and does what she asks.

5. Do you have any abilities or powers?

“Well, I'm a mage. I… had a Mark on my hand that…” She trails off, her mind goes once again to Solas, to his confession, how he'd kissed her and taken the Anchor away…

Cassandra nudges her shoulder, breaking her from her thoughts.

“Uh…” She rubs her stump of an elbow. “I trained as a Knight Enchanter.” She has no desire to address the topic further.

6. Stop being a Mary Sue.

Josephine glares at the chronicler, who raises his hands in defense. “It's on their list of questions!”

“Strike it out.”

7. What is your eye color? 

Inan stares at the chronicler. “I'm sitting right in front of you.”

“The Chantry requests that I record your direct answers to avoid any misinformation.”

Inan sighs. “They're blue. But they deepen to purple around the iris. That's what makes them unusual.”

8. How about your hair color?

Another sigh. “Blonde.”

9. Have you any family members?

“My clan is my family.” Who she hasn't seen in three damn years because of this job.

The realization crushes her, and she's grateful that the chronicler doesn't seem to notice and moves on to the next question.

10. I see… what about pets?

“I… uh…” She finds it odd she never thought about having a pet before.

“Me!” says Sera, laying her head in Inan's lap and smiling up at her.

Inan bites her tongue to keep from laughing and strokes Sera's hair.

There is no sound of scratching from the chronicler. Either he's taken Josephine's advice not to record such things, or he's decided to ignore Sera all together.

11. Tell me about something you don’t like.

“Punchy noble piss,” Sera mutters.

“Interviews,” Inan says.

12. Do you have any hobbies/activities you like doing?

She has to think. “Reading… and practicing. Magic or combat.”

“Combat?” asks the chronicler.

Inan holds out her hand, pulling energy from the Fade to form a magical sword within it.

“Ah,” he says.

13. Ever hurt someone before?

Josephine stares at him. “We are – were the Inquisition. What is that question meant to imply?”

The chronicler shakes his head and scratches the question out.

14. Ever… killed anyone before?

Josephine glares.

“Right,” says the chronicler, scratching with his pen. “Right.”

15. What kind of animal are you? 

The chronicler gives a nervous laugh. “I'm sure that got mistranslated somewhere.”

“I'm an elf,” she says. “A Dalish elf. Maybe I should state that officially.”

16. Name one of your worst habits.

Inan hesitates and looks to her friends.

“She can care so much about others,” says Cassandra. “Her friends and the strangers we meet, that she forgets to take care of herself.”

“She can get so serious,” says Sera. “She needs reminding how to relax and have fun.”

“In high stress situations, she can be… rash.” Josephine brings her hand to mouth, uttering a soft “oh” and glancing to the Inquisitor.

Inan smiles back. “All of those sound accurate.”

17. Do you look up to anyone at all?

Inan thinks for a moment. “Everyone. My traveling companions and my advisors. They all have their own strengths, and I wouldn't be sitting here let alone having lea the Inquisition or defeated Coryephus without them. I'm sorry that's not more specific.”

18. Sexual orientation? 

Sera breaks into a fit of high pitched giggles.

“Men,” Inan says simply. “I prefer men.”

19. Do you go to school?

“I was taught by my clan in the ways of magic and Dalish history. When I came to the Inquisition, there was an extensive library to learn more about politics, the arcane, history, and other areas. Josephine could live you a more detailed list if you require it.”

20. Do you ever want to marry and have kids someday? 

“… Maybe?”

21. What are you most afraid of?

The question hits her like a punch to the chest. Inan gasps for air.

She thinks of Solas, of what he's doing, of where his path might lead him, dark roads it terrifies her think about. She takes a shaking breath, a single tear rolling down her face.

“Spiders,” says Sera. “She's afraid of spiders.”

Cassandra grips Inan's shoulder. “Next question.”

22. What do you usually wear?

“Not this,” she tugs at the stuffy Inquisition uniform. “Something simple, casual, low maintenance, with pockets.”

23. Do you love someone?

“Next question,” says Josephine hurriedly.

24. What class are you?

“Um… common? I guess?”

25. How many friends do you have?

“You need a specific number? I had nine regular travel companions and three advisors if you need that for your records. I can give you their names.”

26. Thoughts on pie?

“Pies are delicious… although I prefer cake, chocolate.”

27. Favorite drink?

Dorian Pavus always has excellent recommendations. He left me a Tevinter ale that I have to admit is quite good.

28. What’s your favorite place?

“Skyhold. I'm… going to miss it.”

29. Would you rather swim in a lake or the ocean?

“A lake. Saltwater burns my face.”

30. Are you interested in anyone?

“No romantic questions!” Josephine reprimands.

31. What’s your bra size?

Josephine gasps. Cassandra's eyes widen. Sera giggles.

Inan tries to keep a straight face. “I don't wear one.”

Sera laughs so hard she falls off the bench.

32. Well, what’s your type?

“No,” says Josephine.

33. And what attracts you?

“I'll just…” says the Chronicler. “Forget that one.”

34. Any fetishes?

Sera gasps with delight.

“No,” says Inan.

“Oh, come on!” Sera pleads. “You'll laugh! You will!”

35. Seme or uke? Top or bottom? Dominant or submissive?

“No,” Inan says again to Sera's insistence.

“Is this really necessary?” Josephine asks.

The chronicler consults their list of questions, skipping to the end.

36. Camping indoor or outdoors?

Inan laughs. “I'm Dalish.”

37. Are you wanting the quiz to end?

“Thank goodness.” She stands from the bench, heading for the stairs and hoping Josephine will forgive her for leaving her to take care of the pleasantries.

[purple-possibilities]

Character meme! Maito Gai! Casue I mean... look at my icon. This should be no surprise.

You have chosen the very greatest picture of Gai as your icon.  I am honoured to write this tribute to a lovely man.

First impression

Wuh… turtle… a man… on a turtle… a man on a turtle… in a green… a green… one piece… jumpsuit? with… orange… yellow… orange… puce… sienna… goldenrod—fuck it idk what colour that is it’s orange now—leg… legwarmers? are..eyebrows? what? but the other one? matching? what? i don’t… who thought this was a good idea?  Why… is that a sunset?  Why is he talking like this?  Is this funny? Is this dumb?  a turtle?  How is the turtle talking, and is it a tortoise or a turtle… idon’tlikehim—nowait—he’s the greatest

Impression now

Gai is amazing.  Hilarious.  I have mad respect for him.  He may have started off as a joke character but he is actually amazing, as a person, as a teacher, as a character, and I love him.

Favorite moment

After the Chuunin Prelims, the scene where Gai is talking to Lee about the probability of Lee surviving the procedure, and promises that if Lee dies, then Gai will die too.  It’s the first moment you see Gai being serious, and you learn the true measure of his devotion.  Gai might be loud and obnoxious and sunset genjutsus, but he’s also love and warmth and he would do anything for someone he cared about.  This was the first time we saw Gai—and Lee—as people and not gags.  And it was touching and sad and it really made me care about both of them.

Idea for a story

Fuck if I know.  Let met think…I hate to do this, but since Ume is known as the Queen of Angst I’m going to say I was inspired.  When Kakashi is in the midst of his ANBU depression and Gai petitions to be able to join, instead of saying ‘no,’ Sandaime says ‘yes.’  Now we’ve got ANBU Gai, being forced into completing these brutal missions or being charged with insubordination of the highest degree (the punishment of which, is death).  Not wanting to see Gai punished, Kakashi does the dirty work while Gai basically panics.  Seeing how much further into his shell this is pushing Kakashi, Gai bites the bullet and starts pulling his own weight.  The two spiral deeper into ANBU and the darkness that follows them, desperately grasping onto each other.  Gai finally begs Kakashi to leave one day, but Kakashi cannot, even seeing how affected Gai is.  So Gai sticks by his side, slowly killing off all the brightest parts of himself.  Until one day, Gai see’s a young boy with thick eyebrows trying his damnedest to be a ninja without chakra, and begs Sandaime to let him be the boy’s sensei.  Hiruzen finally smartens up, and ejects both Gai and Kakashi from ANBU.  They get their students, and they learn how to heal with their new purpose (Gai is better off at first, but he drags Kakashi behind him).  And then everything eventually works out because I was making myself sad.  As a payoff to having Gai in ANBU, let’s pretend that Kakashi and Gai were such a great team, they ended up finding Obito, they caught him, brought him to the village for rehabilitation.  No Uchiha Massacre, Madara is dead already and now has no one to bring him back to life, Zetsu walked into a patch of experimental weed killer and died (yes, all the Zetsu, it was a huge patch and they just kept walking into it for no reason. maybe there were some parasitic ants that took over their brains or something convenient like that), and everyone lives, everyone’s happy, hugs and kisses for everyone.  Boom.  Horrible ending.

Unpopular opinion

I honestly think Gai would be the greatest boyfriend.  As in: The. Greatest. Ever.  He would win awards for being an amazing boyfriend, and an amazing husband, and an amazing father.  Why?  Because he would give you his everything.  And not in a ‘Oh, I want to take advantage of the man,’ kind of way, but in the sense that, once Gai has decided you’re the one for him (even if you’re just the one for him right now) he is going to put soooo much effort into making sure you’d be happy.  He’d be bringing you little gifts every day, just because they reminded him of you.  They would probably all be different, things that he saw while doing his crazy training throughout the village, but they would all have some sort of deep personal meaning and you would probably love them.  Ok, there might be some trial and error in the beginning, but the man learns fast and never gives up.  If you didn’t like receiving physical gifts, he would gift you every day with something non-physical.  Maybe you like horrible poetry?  Gai will write you daily poems.  Maybe you like massages?  Gai will give you daily back massages, foot massages, wrist massages, full body massages (and i do mean full body massages) etc.  Maybe you just want someone to sit quietly with and cuddle for like an hour—Gai will stfu and cuddle with you.  Sure, he’ll be bursting with thoughts after, and he might get a little fidgety, but he will 100% do it, if it makes you happy.  So you better fucking treat him good or I’ll cut you.  Okay, Kakashi will cut you but still.  Don’t do that to Gai.  If you’re an introvert and you feel sometimes that his personality gets to be a little much, he will try to tone it down or give you space, but he’ll be back to 11 in a heartbeat if you change your mind.  He would remember every single important date.  If you wanted to go somewhere or do something, Gai would make it happen.  Whether that’s going skydiving off the mountains in Lightening, or looking for a mythical fish off the coast of Water, or going to the Land of Hotsprings for some R&R, or just going to the corner store to pick up your favourite take-out and that movie you were talking about.  Did you run out of sugar while baking?  Gai will bring you sooo much sugar in like two seconds flat.  Is he out of the village?  Doesn’t matter.  His summons are at your service (even if they’re a bit slower).  He would back you up no matter what (and even if you broke up, Gai would still have your back.  Gai is Ride or Die ok, he will be there for you as long as you’re not horrible and cheat on him or something.  Don’t be mean to Gai; he’s precious). If you’re having problems in your relationship, Gai will do his best to work them out with you.  Gai will go to therapy and work his ass off to make both of you happy. Gai obviously has his quirks and his own issues, and wheelchair bound Gai will probably take some time to bounce back into his normal vigour.  But honestly, out of his generation, he’d probably be the best boyfriend.  People don’t want to date Gai because LOUD and EYEBROWS and THAT HORRIBLE OUTFIT but a) he can be quiet if you need him to be, b) the eyebrows aren’t that bad get over it, and c) you bet your ass Gai looks amazing naked in civvies.  Don’t ask Gai to change for you (honestly, if you caught his attention, then I probably don’t have to tell you that) because that’s just mean.  But Gai will treat you right.  Date Gai.  You won’t find a better boyfriend.  And if you’re lucky and he proposes, marry Gai.  You might want to elope, though.  He will go a little overboard with the ceremony otherwise.  But hey, you’re dating Gai, you probably like overboard.  So go for the ceremony.  It will be the greatest wedding anyone has every attended.

Favorite relationship

If you’ve been on my blog for more than five minutes you know I love Kakashi.  But that is not my favourite relationship of Gai’s.  I love Gai’s relationship with his students, but specifically with Tenten.  Now I know what you’re thinking; sibi, why choose Tenten when there is Lee, Gai’s protege.  Well, it’s simple.  It’s easy to get along with someone who is like you.  Lee has always been a mini-Gai, and so it was not hard for them to bond.  Both have a relationship based on common interests and common goals, and it is a beautiful relationship.  Gai and Neji’s relationship falls in a similar vein; hard working student, eager to improve himself through hard work.  The problem here is that Gai isn’t much of a mentor—not by any fault of his own, but by virtue of Neji focusing on the Gentle Fist Style.  There were certainly exercises to build endurance and stamina and team bonds that Gai taught Neji, but Neji had a path already, and it was easy to guide him on it.  I love Gai’s relationship with Tenten because he had none of that.  All Gai had in common with Tenten was that they both work hard.  She had no real direction, she had no clan to teach her a specific style or put her on a path she could follow.  He could not identify with her as a girl, he didn’t really know how to treat her (because while Gai is a ball of sunshine he is awkward in his own way) but despite this, he didn’t give up.  He wanted to help her fulfil her goals.  Tenten’s dream was to be like Tsunade?  Gai was going to make that happen.  He tried to set her up with a medical ninja, since that’s what Tsunade was most famous for.  uh oh, Tenten didn’t have the chakra control.  Gai was not deterred.  Tsunade was known for her super strength…but that also required chakra control that Tenten didn’t have.  Gai was not deterred.  He tried to give her his summoning contract, but Tenten ended up insulting the tortoise and ruining that chance, as well as a chance for any animal summon (as the tortoises would surely gossip about the disrespect).  Gai was not deterred.  He taught her how to summon weapons.  He just kept trying.  Gai tried his best to equip Tenten with the skills she would need to fulfil her dream.  She did not end up proficient in the same way that Tsunade was.  But she found her own star.  She found something she loved, developed a fighting style all on her own, and became the greatest at what she did.  And Gai, who didn’t have the talents to teach her to be like Tsunade, didn’t go ‘oh well, I can’t help her,’ he said, ‘if this doesn’t work, then we’ll try that, and if that doesn’t work, we’ll try…’ until Tenten found herself.  He was an amazing mentor to all of his students, but this is most evident, in my opinion, with Tenten.

Favorite headcanon

I don’t remember where it started, but I like the idea that Gai is actually a genjutsu type, and whenever you see the sunset behind him, it’s actually him casting a low level genjutsu for theatrics. 

Here is the ask.  Send me a character (canon or oc) or even a pairing.  Up next is Genma, and then Hidan, Adult!Obito, Rock Lee, and Ino. (which I think I’m going to have to do later, it’s time for me to sleep).

Already completed: Madara, Kakashi, Shino, Tenzou

[sincelight]

I'm A Little Awkward, But Most People Like Me

Pairing: Yixing/Baekhyun Rating: pg-13 Genre: online friendship? 

Summary: Baekhyun's a little awkward, spends too much time reading smutty gay fanfiction, and doesn't think twice before flying across the country to meet his favorite author.

He’s staring at the screen, the little line blinking, taunting him. He wants to say something. Anything. But what? Is it weird if he just gushes? Can he do that? Hi you don’t know me but I love ur fics and ur a great writer and i think i love you please be my friend. He quickly backspaces. “Definitely can’t send that.”

He lets his head fall onto his desk and pouts. “Come on Baekhyun, you’re a people person, you’re great at making friends. Just say hi.” He takes the bit of courage his little pep talk gives him and hurries to type something, not going back to reread it because he knows he’ll just backspace it all again. He lets out his held breath after hitting send and then hurries to exit out of the site, shutting his laptop and pushing it away from himself. It’s late and he should get to bed anyway, he has work in the morning.

He hates the sound of his alarm. It’s too loud. Each time it goes off, every five minutes for a half-hour straight, he silences it and forces himself not to cry into his pillow. He briefly wonders why his life can’t be like Kai’s in xingie’s latest fic. Why wasn’t he born into a rich family, with the luxury of never having to work a day in his life? He sighs, swings his legs over the edge of the bed and stands.

After getting ready it’s a short walk to work, too short. He looks up at the building, the glass window with the stupid purple coffee mug smiling down at him, and is disappointed that, once again, it hasn’t burned down overnight. The sound of the bell chiming when he opens the door annoys him, but one annoyance is quickly replaced with another when his manager, Junmyeon, marches up to him with that overly happy smile on his face.

“You’re late. Again.”

Baekhyun continues walking, thinking that if he ignores him he’ll go away. But Junmyeon only follows behind him, much too close.

“Third time this week, Baek. You need to be—“

“I know, Junmyeon,” he sighs as he ties his apron around his waist. “I know.” Junmyeon gives him a look, the one he uses when customers are being unreasonable, but doesn’t say anything more. “I’ll be on time tomorrow.”

He’s left alone after that to work. This part of his job he can handle, making coffee is something he’s always enjoyed. Plus, the sounds of the machines drown out potential conversations his coworkers might be tempted to have with him. On more than one occasion he’s turned the blender on specifically to drown out whatever nonsense Sehun was spewing, that kid seems to never stop talking. He’s cute, but god damn.

His first order of the day is a mocha latte and he smiles to himself. It reminds him of a fic by xingie he’d read not too long ago; the main character worked in a coffee shop and his super cute, much too flirty regular always ordered a mocha latte everyday. He’s torn from his daydream when he realizes he’s spilling milk all over the counter and it’s pouring onto the front of his apron. He curses under his breath, quickly grabbing a rag to wipe up his mess. Maybe if xingie actually replies to him he can tell him how he made a mess at work daydreaming about one of his steamy sex scenes from his coffee shop fic. He smiles.

“Why are you smiling like that?” Sehun’s voice calls suddenly, much too close to him. “You’re happy you just spilled milk all over yourself?” Baekhyun shoots Sehun a quick glare and then turns on the empty blender.

By the time he gets to sit down for his lunch break he’s ready to go home. His feet hurt and he looks like he pissed himself and he really just wants to finish the chaptered fic he’d started the night before. He sips from his coffee mug and looks to the clock on the wall above him. Fifteen minutes, thats enough time to at least get in half a chapter. So he pulls his phone out and quickly loads up the site, tapping on his subscriptions and smiling to himself.

It’s been a long read. He’s spent most of his free time for the better part of a week reading this fic. It’s by xingie, so of course it’s amazing, but this one. This one is it. This one is everything Baekhyun’s been looking for in a fic. He’s cried twice, gotten so angry at the main character he’s slammed his laptop shut, and had to stop reading to masturbate once. Okay, twice. Okay, it was three times, but xingie just knows how to write some good sex. Baekhyun pouts, he wishes he was having good sex. He sighs, rolls his eyes and refocuses. Ten minutes, start reading, he tells himself.

He’s just about to get to the part where Kai finally, finally, confesses to the short, big-eyed boy of his dreams when someone kicks his foot. He holds his breath to keep a shout in, because he’d rather not get in trouble. So he settles for an annoyed, “What?” Junmyeon doesn’t speak, just holds his wrist up to tap at the face of his watch. Oh, Baekhyun thinks, my break ended twenty minutes ago. He throws a charming smile Junmyeon’s way as he scrambles to his feet and rushes back to work.

He groans the entire walk home. Junmyeon had sat him down after work to explain to him the importance of punctuality. Sure, he drowned most of it out, but still annoying nonetheless. He unlocks his door and steps inside, “I’m not a child,” he pouts.

His apartment is small, but he has a cat so it’s okay. And, just like everyday, Socks the cat is sleeping in a little furry ball, curled up on the tattered old couch his friend Taehyung gave him as a move in gift. He curls up in a similar ball around Socks and pulls his phone out to finally finish what he’d started at work. “Alright Kai, lets see you finally admit your feelings.”

The message notification is a little unexpected, no one ever messages him. And then he remembers his half-asleep, 3am message to xingie.

From xingie: Hey, thanks for the message! I’m glad you’re enjoying my fics… it’s kinda cool to get like, fan mail. I’ve actually noticed you’ve left me a few comments before so thanks for that! Hope to hear back from you!

Baekhyun stares at his phone, rereads the message a few times, and then screeches into the couch cushion. Socks gets up and gives him a dirty look before rearranging himself at the opposite end of the couch. “Sorry,” he says, then hops up to sit cross-legged. “What do I say back?” he speaks aloud, looking at his reflection in his dark tv screen. “How do I reply without sounding creepy?”

From dontcallmebacon: Wow, okay. I kinda didn’t expect you to reply to me. I figured you must get a lot of messages because your fics are so good. Um, I don’t really know what to say now. I almost sent you a message yesterday telling you I think I love you, but I didn’t. I really love your last fic, Coffee House. I’m almost finished reading it right now. I got in trouble at work today trying to read instead of working. So thats your fault lol. Anyway, thanks for replying!

He hits send without thinking and immediately regrets. “Oh my god, I’m such a fucking creeper.”

From dontcallmebacon: Also I’m sorry for how creepy that message probably came out I literally just rambled on accident. I promise I’m not usually this awkward.

After this, they end up chatting regularly. Xingie, Baekhyun learns, is actually really cool. They eventually exchange Tumblr information and begin following each other. Messaging there is just much easier, and a lot faster. Baekhyun may or may not stalk through Xingie’s blog, trying to find pictures to put a face to the name. He’s cute, he’s really cute. Like, holy hell what a time to be alive and gay, please Jesus let him be gay, kinda cute. He spends only a very reasonable hour digging deeper to find more pictures, learning his name is Yixing and that he’s not only cute but he’s sexy as hell when he wants to be. Baekhyun may or may not totally save a black and white picture of him biting his lip to his computer.

dontcallmebacon: you're a guy

xingie: i am, yes xingie: is that bad?

dontcallemebacon: no i just… i guess i was expecting like a girl. since you know… its usually girls that write fics.

xingie: i can assure you there are plenty of guys that write fics. xingie: why do you think i have such extensive knowledge of anal? lol

Baekhyun has to sit back from his computer, hands still resting on the keys as he thinks. Is that Yixing’s way of telling him he’s gay? Because well, Baekhyun’s gay. Baekhyun is very gay and Yixing is very cute. And, “No, quit that. Quit that right now.”

dontcallmebacon: youre really cute

Baekhyun mentally kicks himself, physically slams his head onto his desk. That is totally not what he was wanting to say. He hurries to try and save the situation.

dontcallmebacon: i mean like i saw a picture of yu and youre cuet not that i was like stalkinh you or antyhing dontcallmebacon: wow that makes it sound liek i WAS stalking you which i wasnt i swear!

Baekhyun waits, watching the chat box, hoping he didn’t just freak Yixing out. It feels like hours, days, years that he waits for a reply.

xingie: so basically what ur saying is you stalked my blog?

dontcallmebacon: NO! dontcallmebacon: ok yes i did but i just wanted to see what you looked like

xingie: ….you think im cuuuuuuuuute ^.^ xingie: send me a picture of you now, its only fair

Baekhyun almost spits up his drink. Yixing wants a picture of him? He quickly goes through his facebook, trying to find the cutest picture of himself he can. He chooses one and sends it and waits for a reply, playing some dumb game on Facebook to distract himself.

xingie: cute

A few months go by like this, Baekhyun regularly chatting with Yixing nearly all day and all night. Well, until he has to go to sleep before Yixing, timezones be damned. They learn a lot about each other in a short amount of time. They have a shared love for photography, food, animals and more importantly, BTS. They discover they have the same bias and ultimately decide, jokingly of course, that they must be soulmates.

Baekhyun gets in trouble more often at work now. Showing up late more days than not because he decided to stay up much too late to chat with Yixing. Spending too much time looking at his phone instead of paying attention to his work. He makes Yixing laugh when he tells him that he’s solely responsible for the new no phones policy at work.

xingie: i cant wait to meet you

Baekhyun leans back and just stares. They’ve been talking for three months now and sure, the thought of actually meeting Yixing has crossed his mind, but he never thought Yixing was thinking the same thing. He smiles to himself and runs his fingers over the keys.

dontcallmebacon: really?

xingie: uh yea duh youre fuckin awesome why wouldnt i wanna meet you?? xingie: unless ur a serial killer….. are u a serial killer???

dontcallmebacon: i feel like thats what a serial killer would say to make someone think theyre not a serial killer… dontcallmebacon: are YOU a serial killer??

xingie: i would never kill you xingie: might kiss you tho

Baekhyun feels his heart skip. His mouth falls open into a small smile as he types his response.

dontcallmebacon: you want to kiss me?

xingie: have you seen you? like youve seen how cute you are, right? xingie: id totally kiss you

dontcallmebacon: well.. i never said id let you so..

xingie: would you let me?

Baekhyun’s smile widens and he bites into his bottom lip.

dontcallmebacon: totally

Baekhyun is wheezing as he throws himself into his computer chair; it rolls sideways and he catches himself with a hand on the edge of his desk. He opens his laptop with one hand, the other holding onto the cramp in his side, and quickly signs into Tumblr. As he’s waiting for his shitty internet to do its job he tries to catch his breath. “I need to start working out, jesus christ, it was only three blocks”.

He was at work when he got the notification. BTS was announced as one of the artists in the lineup for Kcon in LA this year. He likes BTS. Yixing likes BTS. Yixing lives in LA. It was so exciting and overwhelming all he could think to do was sprint the three blocks from his work to his apartment. He needed to talk to Yixing immediately.

The site finally loads and he has seven messages. Yixing already knows, he thinks to himself. And, sure enough, he opens the chat box to see a barrage of all caps, frantic messages.

xingie: KCON xingie: BTS KCON EMRGENCY REPLY TO MEEEEEE xingie: BAEK FUKCING REPLY TO ME YOU DICKBAG xingie: BAKHYUNNNNNMNN HURRY IM DYNING xingie: BTSSSS BAEK PAY ATTENTION TO ME xingie: GOD DAMN IT BTS AT KCON IM SCREECHING AND UR IGNORING ME xingie: IF YUO DONT REPLY TO ME THIS FRIENDSAHIP IS OVERR

dontcallmebacon: I WAS AT WORK IM SRORRY!!!!!! dontcallmebacon: are you gonna go? to kcon?? BTS????

xingie: thank fuck i thought u were dead xingie: uhmmm obviously im gonna go! bts in my city omgg

dontcallmebacon: im so jealous tell hobi i love him for me

xingie: dude just fly out here xingie: FLY OUT HERE AND MEET ME AND SEE BTS OMG YESS xingie: baek u gotta

Baekhyun reads the message over and over, thinking about it. He has extra money. He has time he can take off work. Why shouldn’t he fly out to LA? He’s always wanted to go. He’d get to see BTS and kiss a cute boy. He quickly checks his bank account, looks at a calendar, and then switches back to Tumblr.

dontcallmebacon: fuck it.. im in

I’m not gonna cry. I’m not gonna cry. Baekhyun repeats this in his head as he watches his mother walk away from him. She drove him to the airport so he wouldn't have to leave his car, and now she’s leaving. He’s never flown before and he’s moderately terrified. Where does he go? What does he do with his luggage? How does he get to his plane? A large group of people wearing matching shirts passes him, chatting animatedly in a foreign language and he’s jealous. He wishes he had thirty other people around him to tell him what to do. He looks at his phone to check the time. What if he misses his plane? He begins walking faster.

It takes a little time, getting into the wrong line two separate times, but he finally figures out what he has to do. He checks his bag, gets his ticket and then, sighs. “Another line,” he whines, looking over at security. This line moves faster. Each step he takes closer he begins to panic just a little more. He wishes Yixing was awake so he could message him, but it’s like 2am in LA right now, so he’s stuck with nothing but his own thoughts. He takes another step forward, heart beating fast. He begins running through everything in his head, everything he’d packed in his carryon. What if they find something I shouldn't have and I go to airport jail, he thinks.

He makes it through security, only slightly scarred for life, and from there it’s smooth sailing.

By the time he lands in Vegas for his connecting flight he’s starving and so ready to just be in California. He sits down to eat and excitedly messages Yixing, knowing he’ll finally be up.

dontcallmebacon: im in vegas now, coolest airport ever

xingie: ahhhhhhh so close!!! xingie: im so excited ur almost heeeeere

dontcallmebacon: i knowww i just wanna get there already dontcallmebacon: also i’ll have u know i only cried a little at the airport before i left dontcallmebacon: i had a brief hour of panic but im good now

xingie: lol nice xingie: well only a couple more hours left and then you'll be here

Baekhyun notices the time across the top of his phone and his eyes widen. He shoves the rest of his food in his mouth and quickly chugs the rest of his drink.

dontcallmebacon: gotta go, plane leaves in twenty and im at the opposite end of the airport eating. dontcallmebacon: ill message you when i land in la!

When Baekhyun lands he messages Yixing like he said he would and sets off to find his bag. He realizes, pretty quickly, that he has no idea how to find his bag. He wanders aimlessly, he thinks he’s following the signs correctly; he turns around because he was going the wrong way, but finally, he finds baggage claim.

He drags his bag behind him to wait outside. And then, he gets nervous. What if he’s awkward? What if Yixing doesn’t like him? What if Yixing isn't really coming and this was just a big elaborate joke and now he’s stranded all alone in California? He shakes his head, knowing he’s just being dramatic. A black car slows and stops in front of him, he gulps. Yixing steps out, tall, handsome, exactly how Baekhyun pictured him. He lets out a weird breathy chuckle as Yixing steps up to him, a little dimple in his cheek as he smiles.

“Hi.”

Baekhyun licks his lips, his mouth is dry. “Hi.”

Yixing smiles again, looks from Baekhyun’s face to his bag. “You want me to take your—“

“Kiss!”

Yixing’s eyebrows raise, his mouth forms a little ‘o’. “What?”

“Kiss,” Baekhyun repeats, physically unable to stop the word vomit. “Kiss me.”

Yixing’s lips twitch, trying to keep the smile from forming. He grabs Baekhyun’s bag and tosses it into the trunk of his car, turning back to Baekhyun after. He laughs and ruffles Baekhyun’s hair playfully. Baekhyun’s heart stops when Yixing leans forward, lips pursed, and presses their lips together quickly.

“Welcome to California,” Yixing says with a laugh as he walks to the driver’s side and opens the door. “And, nice to finally meet you.”

Baekhyun stares with his mouth open as Yixing gets into the car. He licks his lips and lets out an awkward laugh. The window rolls down and Yixing leans over, hand pulling the handle to push open the door. “You coming?”

Baekhyun smiles and nods, pulls the door open and gets in. He looks at Yixing with a bright smile as he buckles, “Lets do this.”

@seonweon-sonyeondan for you. looooooove you 

[paler-than-thou]

a’ight so

you just want

everything

welp

here we go (under a read more to save dashes)

1. Do you ever doubt the existence of others than you? In the real sense or in the alien/gods/etc sense? XD Nah, I’m aware there’s things other than humans to this world. I don’t doubt, because hell, I know.

2. On a scale of 1-5, how afraid of the dark are you? I’d say about a 2, headed into 4-5 depending on mood, people I’m with and if I’m in an unfamiliar place.

3. The person you would never want to meet? I don’t really know? Can’t think of any one person, tbh. There’s plenty I’d hate (like Trump etc) but yeah...

4. What is your favorite word? Oh fuck, I don’t know. It’s more of a phrase but ‘Damn straight’ I guess? There’s a few I like the sound/feel of saying, and a lot of Polish I like (’przyjaciel’ being no 1 for sound and meaning) but yeah.

5. If you were a type of tree, what would you be? Uh. Prehistoric and smelly.

6. When you looked in the mirror this morning what was the first thing you thought? Good god why.

7. What shirt are you wearing? Nada, clothes are for heretics.

8. What do you label yourself as? Different and weird. But I think this might mean more sexuality-wise? I’m an quoiromantic asexual transman with a beard and I’m not afraid to use it.

9. Bright room or dark room? Dark room, every time. Prefer low lights.

10. What were you doing at midnight last night? Playing Doom and cackling.

11. Favorite age you’ve been so far? This age, until I’m the next one.

12. Who told you they loved you last? @koto056 by a narrow margin ^^

13. Your worst enemy? Myself, honestly.

14. What is your current desktop picture? Hah, I go to take a screenshot and welp, story time. I have a two-screen setup, one smaller than the other, and the one on the left is uh...when I first came on the internet as a wee artist I didn’t really know/care about tracing/editing other people’s work. I found one I liked of @anndr‘s pieces and edited it without permission, and I have never put it up for people to see because it was a shit thing to do. I keep it as a reminder of not to be a shitheel and because it was done so I could better visualise a character, and I never will either, so yeah. No desktop pic here.

15. Do you like someone? Well, I got two partners, so I assume so.

16. The last song you listened to? Twenty One Pilots - Heathens

17. You can press a button that will make any one person explode. Who would you blow up? There are too many people for this one to be answered. ¬¬

18. Who would you really like to just punch in the face? Again, too many people. 

19. If anyone could be your slave for a day, who would it be and what would they have to do? Nooooot comfortable with this question (though @koto056 will probably know the first thing that came to mind)

20. What is your best physical attribute? (showing said attribute is optional) I’d say my eyes. I mean

look at this cute motherfucker

21. If you were the opposite sex for one day, what would you look like and what would you do? Loaded question. Honestly, I’d cry and then hide until the day was over.

22. Do you have a secret talent? If yes, what is it? I dunno, possibly to be as annoying as humanely possible? Heh, that’s the shitty inner voice talking. I guess the fact I can make people smile no matter what and feel genuinely cared for?

23. What is one unique thing you’re afraid of? I’m not sure I have unique fears. Heights, claustrophobia, arachnophobia, eye stuff, dentists...

24. You can only have one kind of sandwich. Every sandwich ingredient known to humankind is at your disposal. I’ll make it in a minute.

25. You just found $100! How are you going to spend it? Art supplies or straight to bank for MCM monies.

26. You just got a free plane ticket to anywhere in the world, but you have to leave immediately. Where are you going to go? Ireland, maybe Poland, not sure.

27. An angel appears out of Heaven and offers you a lifetime supply of the alcoholic beverage of your choice. “Be brand-specific” it says. Man! What are you gonna say about that? Even if you don’t drink booze there’s something you can figure out… so what’s it gonna be? Well, I can’t drink thanks to my pills, so I’d probably just ask for tea as it’s brewed. :3

28. You discover a beautiful island upon which you may build your own society. You make the rules. What is the first rule you put into place? Don’t Be A Dick.

29. What is your favorite expletive? Fuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuck.

30. Your house is on fire, holy shit! You have just enough time to run in there and grab ONE inanimate object. Don’t worry, your loved ones and pets have already made it out safely. So what’s the one thing you’re going to save from that blazing inferno? My computer. That shit cost nearly £2k, I am not letting it burn.

31. You can erase any horrible experience from your past. What will it be? Loaded question there. Honestly, I wouldn’t erase the years of abuse and bullshit because it’d be erasing a fundamental part of my development into this wonderful human being I can stand to be now. But if I could do so without it affecting me? Yeah, that’s a no-brainer.

32. You got kicked out of the country for being a time-traveling heathen who sleeps with celebrities and has super-powers. But check out this cool shit… you can move to anywhere else in the world! Ireland 8D

33. The Celestial Gates Of Beyond have opened, much to your surprise because you didn’t think such a thing existed. Death appears. As it turns out, Death is actually a pretty cool entity, and happens to be in a fantastic mood. Death offers to return the friend/family-member/person/etc. of your choice to the living world. Who will you bring back? Yeah, no. I wouldn’t. I mean there’s plenty about the whole ‘gone too soon’ but...no, I wouldn’t.

34. What was your last dream about? Nothing good 8D woo for nightmares and flashbacks huh.

35. Are you a good….[insert anything you’d like here]? I dunno, am I?

36. Have you ever been admitted to the hospital? Yuuuup. More times than I’d like. Latest was this January after having an internal stitch go necrotic and cause me to lose 2 pints+ of blood.

37. Have you ever built a snowman? Once ^^

38. What is the color of your socks? Bare Naked Beans

39. What type of music do you like? Anything that isn’t obnoxious to my ears, mostly things with good bass/beats as I can hear them a bit better.

40. Do you prefer sunrises or sunsets? Both are just as beautiful.

41. What is your favorite milkshake flavor? Banananananananananana.

42. What football team do you support? (I will answer in terms of American football as well as soccer) Hand Egg and Leg Ball bores me to tears so...none.

43. Do you have any scars? Too many.

44. What do you want to be when you graduate? Well, I ain’t in college/uni so...

45. If you could change one thing about yourself, what would it be? The chronic pain.

46. Are you reliable? Depends on how. In communication/getting shit done? Probably not. In being there when needed? Absolutely.

47. If you could ask your future self one question, what would it be? Lottery numbers.

48. Do you hold grudges? Nah. Too much energy. I get angry, it burns out, I let it go.

49. If you could breed two animals together to defy the laws of nature, what new animal would you create? Snekbirb!

50. What is the most unusual conversation you’ve ever had? Holy shit, what sort of question is this? So many holy fuck

51. Are you a good liar? Yup. Incredibly so. At one point I was almost pathological - lying even when I didn’t need to - though now it comes out rarely as embellishing. Means I’m a great storyteller, but I used to be very manipulative/unknowingly gaslighty with it. Thankfully I grew out of it and got better.

52. How long could you go without talking? Hours, really. I sit with the fiancee for a long time without really saying anything other than the odd request for tea. Other than that? Yeah, I talk for days.

53. What has been you worst haircut/style? Buzzcut. I don’t suit it.

54. Have you ever baked your own cake? Yup, with varying degrees of success XD

55. Can you do any accents other than your own? Plenty.

56. What do you like on your toast? Honey, jam, peanut butter, fish...

57. What is the last thing you drew a picture of? A wolf! With wings! On fire!

58. What would be you dream car? Chauffeur-driven.

59. Do you sing in the shower? Or do anything unusual in the shower? Explain. Sing, talk to myself, act out rps/conversations...

60. Do you believe in aliens? It’s a statistical impossibility that we’re alone, but also very very fucking unlikely we’ll ever be contacted simply through sheer numbers.

61. Do you often read your horoscope? If only to laugh at it/swear at the fact I’m a fucking typical Scorpio yeah...

62. What is your favorite letter of the alphabet? ...Whut. Um. Well. I don’t know? X maybe?

63. Which is cooler: dinosaurs or dragons? Oh come on, dragons.

64. What do you think about babies? Nice. Soft. Good smell, unless not. Squidge.

65. Freebie! Ask anything interesting you can think of.  No one put in a q for this so...w/e 8D

[mousedetective]

Forgot to ask last night and didn't get a chance to go on tumblr until now, but could you answer all the questions on the fanfic ask? There's too many good questions, I love asking people these :)

Dude, you seriously should have seen the veeeeeeery wide grin on my face when I got this ask. I squealed and nearly woke my mom up. So here are all the answers my lovely anon didn’t ask (most are behind a cut because it’s long):

1. things that inspire you Oh, wow. A lot of what inspires me are actual prompts. Some of them are very detailed (specific characters/pairings, specific events) and some of them are very vague (a color, a sentence, and maybe a ship). Sometimes I’ll see something like an aesthetic list for a fandom (like I did with Star Trek AOS) and all it will be is a character and a thing associated with them and I’ll write a fic out of that. Sometimes it’s a picture that someone will say “Hey, that makes me think of so-and-so character/ship.” And it doesn’t always come from other people; I collect prompts for myself. Quotes, sentence starter lists, AU lists, pictures…you name it, I’ve got tons of them stashed on my hard drive. That’s what’s going to make my New Year’s resolution so much fun, clearing out my prompts list. I’m hoping to at LEAST get the fandom ones done…2. things that motivate you Music. Feedback. Kudos. Reblogs. People needing to be cheered up. Fandom wank. A bad case of mania. 3. name three favorite writers Professionally, I would say David Eddings, Neil Gaiman and Jayne Ann Krentz. For fanfic, @moonstone1520, @majesticlolipop and @doctor-molly-hooper-holmes4. name three authors that were influential to your work and tell why David Eddings was one of the biggest. I had been writing for a long time before I started to read his work (off and on for about eleven years), but when I read The Elenium and The Tamuli I was all “That’s it. That’s how I want to write. I want my work to sound like THAT.” I also wanted to be able to tell stories that are as vivid and poetic and beautiful as Amy Tan. I’ve been in love with her work ever since I read “The Joy Luck Club,” and I admire the way she paints beautiful images with words and I try my best to do that. I also love being able to move between genres and styles and things like Neil Gaiman does (though he’s much better than I am), and I love the sense of…wonder, I think is how I would phrase it, that he seems to infuse in everything. He’s been a favorite of mine for a long time in a lot of mediums and genres and he’s someone I aspire to be like.5. since how long do you write? I started writing when I was four years old, so…since 1985, give or take? But I’ve been writing fanfiction since June 15th, 1998.

6. how did writing change you? I think because I started so long it never changed me so much as it made me. But writing fanfic changed me, in that it gave me a sense of voice? I mean, I had written stuff for years, but mostly for my own pleasure, aside from school projects. Once I started writing fanfiction, I started sharing my writing, and I also gained confidence. I gained a sense of worth, that I was GOOD at something. I’d been missing that for most of my childhood so that was nice. It wavers sometimes, but for the most part, it’s still there.7. early influences on your writing My mother was my biggest one. She wrote when she could and she was so good at it and she always made sure we had books around and we were read to. I also had teachers who made sure if I wanted to write, I could write. They didn’t try and kill my love of both reading and writing.9. do you set yourself deadlines? Sometimes? Mostly I have deadlines imposed on my when I join big bangs on LiveJournal, and I’m usually reeeeeally bad at those.10. how do you do your researches? Mostly online, though on certain subjects I have a ton of books (mythology, astrology, magic & fairy tales are the big ones)11. do you listen to music when writing? Most of the time. However, it’s more to tune out other stuff; I usually regard it as white noise.12. favorite place to write On my bed.13. hardest character to write For different reasons, Elementary!Sherlock, BBC!Moriarty and Montgomery Scott. Sherlock and Moriarty because I just marvel at how complex they are and I think I can’t POSSIBLY match the writer’s brilliance, and Scotty because of his damn accent.14. easiest character to write Molly Hooper. Also AOS!Leonard McCoy and James Kirk.15. hardest verse to write Elementary, to be honest. Even though I love and adore that show, it’s so well written and the characters are so multi-faceted I’m terrified I will screw each and every one of them up.16. easiest verse to write Sherlock. I mean, I have almost 800 fics with those characters, so…18. favorite pairing to write Hmm…toss-up between McCoy/Molly, Sherlock/Molly and Irene/Molly. 19. favorite fandom to write Sherlock, though the rare times I get asked to I adore getting to write my girls from St. Trinian’s. Especially when playing with the Sherlock peeps in my “Where The Wild Ones Are” series because I love that series to itty bitty teeny tiny pieces. Star Trek AOS is also a blast.20. favorite character to write Molly Hooper. She is my Little Black Dress character, not just for ships but just to write. I like to put her in everything.21. least favorite character to write I really don’t like writing BBC!Moriarty. I love Andrew Scott, but he’s a complex character I don’t like very much. It’s probably why I kill him most of the time. I also stopped liking writing John Watson long before this season. I probably will write him very little from here on out.22. favorite story you’ve ever written “The Art Of Love Is Largely The Art Of Persistence.” I am super super proud of that story, and the fact I actually finished it, and that it doesn’t veer off course too often and isn’t horribly OOC, and that it’s still read and people still like it.23. least favorite story you’ve ever written Either of the ones I’ve orphaned at AO3 (the genderswap Johnlock story and The Angsty Fic O'Doom in which I brutalized Sherlock and Molly and killed Molly and nope nope we don’t talk about that one)24. favorite scene you’ve ever written Oh wow. I mean, I’ve written at least three thousand stories over the years, so this is hard. Um…in the CSI: NY fic “Five People Who Never Died (And One Who Did)” the whole part about Flack’s funeral. I think that’s probably one of the best things I wrote and probably the one thing I’ve written that I’ve gotten the most “I HATE YOU I’M CRYING HOW DARE YOU!!!” comments about.25. favorite line you’ve ever written It’s a few lines in a Bleach fic I wrote called “The One I’m Most Proud Of,” based on a headcanon that Hitsugaya was one of the children that Ukitake and Kyoraku had rescued in the Districts outside the Seireiti:

“Why do you shower me with gifts and candy even though I don’t need them?” he asked, narrowing his eyes slightly.

“Because of all the children I’ve helped rescue, you’re the one I’m most proud of,” he said gently. “You’re a Captain at such a young age, and…perhaps I felt guilty that we did not spend time with you as a child, Kyoraku and Unohana and myself. It is my wa of feeling less guilty.”

“There is no need,” he said gruffly, trying to cover up the other emotions he felt at the moment.

“Well, then I will cease to do so,” he said. “You’ve probably outgrown it all now, at any rate.”

Hitsugaya was quiet. “Perhaps not so much candy. I hate sweets, unless they are watermelon flavored.And…I would like books, if you feel the need to shower me with gifts,” he said slowly. “Books and other things more suitable for adults.”

“With the occasional toy to remind you to have your childlike moments?” Ukitake asked, smiling a little more.

“Fine, fine,” he said. Just…no stuffed animals. I’ve been giving them to children in the Rukongai because I can’t stand them.“

"Then no more stuffed animals,” he said with a nod. He held out his hand, and Hitsugaya shook it once before letting go.

26. story you’re most proud of “The Art Of Love Is Largely The Art Of Persistence,” because it’s literally the length of three novels and I didn’t think I could do it.28. worst review you ever got When I posted the story “love is a battle, love is a war” there was a long gap before I finished it, and I almost didn’t. For those curious why, you can check out this review, because I’m pretty sure I left it up, but someone basically read me the riot act over the story that Molly tells Sherlock about the stupid decision the younger sister makes that curses the village. The whole point of the story was to show it was a foolish, selfish decision, but literally I had been walking home from my job at Legoland to the bus stop to get me away from the park and I almost threw my cell phone onto the freeway because I was so pissed (though keep in mind, earlier in the day this person had shat on “The Art Of Love Is Largely The Art Of Persistence,” too, so I shouldn’t have given them any mind because they skipped ahead and didn’t bother to read 2/3rds of the story at the time).29. favorite story/poem of another author It’s not finished yet, but I LOVE LOVE LOVE “Penny Drop” by @moonstone1520. I have been bad and not commented in forever but it’s an amazing Sherlolly story and everyone should read it. As for professional work, I will always love “Good Omens” by Terry Pratchett and Neil Gaiman. It’s seriously one of the best books in existence.30. hardest part of writing Coming up with titles and getting motivated.31. easiest part of writing Once I get into a groove? Getting the words to come out.32. alternate title for “The Art Of Love Is Largely The Art Of Persistence” There never was one. I saw the quote and fell in love with it.33. alternate ending for “The Art Of Love Is Largely The Art Of Persistence” There actually was one! I was actually going to go all the way through to the end of him getting his Master’s (yes, I was going to make it longer) and end with just the engagement. But then I was all “Eff it, this is already long, let’s wrap it up.”34. alternate pairing for “The Art Of Love Is Largely The Art Of Persistence” I never had one. This was always planned to be a Sherlolly fic.35. single story or multi-part story? Both. I love writing one-shots and series, though I will admit I have a slight bias for series.36. one-shot or multi-chaptered story? I love the IDEA of multi-chaptered stories more than I love writing them, as my WIP folder shows…but I’ll continue to write both.37. canon or AU? AU. Oh, AUs are fun. But my real true love is UAs.38. do you reread your own stories? Quite often, actually, usually because they’re part of a WIP or a series and I’m updating after forever and I forgot what the hell happened. ::sheepish grin:: The rest of the time, though, it’s usually because someone left it a kudos and I’m scratching my head because I’m all “I wrote this?” It happens when you have 1.2K stories on AO3 and the titles all start blending together…39. do you want to be published some day? I do but I don’t? I’m not sure I have a thick enough skin to be a published author.41. one song that captures “The Art Of Love Is Largely The Art Of Persistence” “Paper Heart (종이 심장)” by f(x). If you read the English translation it fits the two of them pretty well.42. do you plan or do you write whatever comes to your mind? Depends on what I’m writing for. If it’s a Big Bang, I do some planning but not much. If I have something I’m trying to do for a milestone, I may plan a specific order of fics to write. But generally I just write whatever I want or whatever my Tumblr users would like to see most that I feel like writing.43. would you ever write a sequel for “The Art Of Love Is Largely The Art Of Persistence” I actually just turned it into a series last month because I’ve been asked to write filler fic within the story itself as well as a sequel set around the time Molly’s going to have the baby, so yes.44. do you write linear or do you write future scenes if you feel like it? For multi-chaptered fic, I mostly write linear. For most of my series it’s the same but some I’ve had to write out of order for various reasons.45. share the synopsis of a story you work on that you haven’t published yet Without too many details, Character A knows he shouldn’t sit on the throne of the Almighty Allfather, but he can’t resist. What he sees is a beautiful maiden who captures his heart. He’ll do anything to woo her, despite their differences, and sends Character B to speak for him. But things don’t turn out quite as planned…46. share a scene of a story that you haven’t published yet I actually don’t have any yet! Sorry.47. how many unfinished ideas/stories are you working on at the same time? Shit…I have the ones claimed by my fellow Sherlollians that I’m thinking about (I think that’s about fifteen to eighteen there? Maybe twenty or so), and I have a crapton of WIPs that are both commissioned and not commissioned that are around…thirty? And then I have a folder of big bang ideas that I tool with from time to time and there’s ten of those, plus my series, and I’m actively writing a lot of those, and that’s not counting that posterofamyth andgreenskyoverme  constantly give me prompts because I owe them so much fic, so…let’s just say 100+ and leave it at that. 48. three spoilers for “The Art Of Love Is Largely The Art Of Persistence” I’m going to do it for the sequel since that story is finished. ( 1 ) It will be a Sherlock POV story this time. ( 2 ) It’s going to start when Molly is about five months pregnant, right about the time they can find out the sex of the baby (and there will be only one, I promise). ( 3 ) Molly’s going to have the baby at an inconvenient time.49. writing advice Always write shit down. Always.