#apparently I lie XD

[zhalfirin-binds]

Edge colouring with acrylic paint

I was asked to go over my process for painting edges and I wanted to do a new one so I could take good pictures of the process. Alas, I don't have the time to do that at the moment so a quick write up with already existing pictures it is

These pictures only show the colouring of the top edge. Traditionally it's either the top edge or all edges that get coloured/decorated. Colouring the front edge of a rounded book comes with another set of challenges that I will not address here. (On the upside, colouring a straight front edge is just the same.)

The basic procedure is always the same though.

First up the book is set in a press. Trimming helps to get a more even surface and will help reducing the time one spends on sanding.

Prepping the bookblock I prep the bookblock and use some sturdy and not voluminous paper to cushion the bookblock between boards. A bonus on this is, the cushioning can adapt to the shape of the bookblock. As visible the pictures, these are from colouring the edge of book with shoulders (which means it has not only been rounded but also backed). By cushioning the bookblock I can protect the shoulders from being squashed by the boards when I apply pressure. The cushioning paper should also be larger than the book itself. Otherwise the pressure from clamping the edge tight can cause a smaller cushioning to leave marks on the bookblock. (btw paper from high gloss magazines is perfect, because it's very dense and will not be compressed/ reduce pressure on the bookblock)

Putting the book in the press For this you need a press that allows to have one side of the book (the one you're working on) point upwards. The paper is level with the edge, but the boards are a bit recessed (no more than 5mm). This is done to keep pressure on the bookblock without having to sand the boards at the same time. Also thinner bookblocks can quickly get sanded at an angle which is a) an aesthetic issue and b) causes trouble when taking the measurements for the case.

When the book sits tightly in the press (here the go to is, give it as much as you have! you want those pages so tight no water is seeping in and causes bleed! Sometimes paper quality is lacking though and it can't be avoided.)

Sanding the edge Sanding is, in my experience, the one of the crucial parts of edge colouring. A smooth edge will lead to an even result and removes one possible cause for flaking (there are more though). Even my trimmed books usually have a mark from the blade when trimming and to get an even looking result those need to go. I sand in different grits, starting with a 120 sandpaper wrapped around a block of cork or another tool for holding the paper. I go no lower than than to avoid getting even deeper groves than there still are. Then I follow up with 180, 240 and 320 paper. Usually that's enough to get a glossy sheen on the edge. (different book but you can see that gloss and the part I still had to go over in the pictures below)

Once they have that sheen...

DO NOT TOUCH THE EDGE!

I know it's hard. The temptation to just run the fingers over them great. They look so smooth and shiny. Almost silken to the touch... and they are... but I repeat YOU MUST NOT TOUCH!

The oils on your skin can interfere with a good result. Especially water based colours may not stick as well to the areas touched as others, glues and foils do not adhere as well, stuff like that. Applying colour When the book is in the press it's not removed or pressure reduced before the edge decoration is done. For the colour shift acrylic paints it's essential to get a dark foundation. Otherwise the colour will not show! I've done this with ink.

(This was really rushed and not neat at all, don't aim for a look like that! All the darker parts show where I did not have a smooth surface yet. Even the cutting marks from trimming are till visible.)

In my experience working with acrylic paints is more forgiving to laziness when sanding than inks. At least when it comes to even coverage in the end, possible flaking is a different matter.

The colourshift acrylic paint was way more liquid than the ones I'm familiar with, still they needed diluting (a first go with undiluted colour resulted in severe flaking). For the ratio on how to dilute I can't give measurements. I think I ended up with a rather thin colour and did several passes until I was satisfied with the colourshift effect.

No matter what coat is applied I use a soft brush that is wider than the bookblock to cover all at once and avoid to obvious streaks. The direction of brushing is from spine area to the front. I try to get the whole edge covered in 1 motion. To avoid colour seeping down the front edge I lift the brush towards the end so there's less pressure pushing a bit of colour ahead of the brush and spilling down the front edge. (I'm still working on that part, different paints behave differently, but that's the ideal to aim for.)

Now all to do is wait until the colour is completely dry. Which is rather fast with acrylics but takes a bit longer with ink. That step can be speed up a bit with a hairdryer on low heat and from a distance to allow the colour to dry evenly and then the book can be taken out of the press.

I've seen different approaches to separate the edges. Mine is a gentle wave motion. Holding on to the books spine and front and just twisting it and pushing the pages so they move against each other.

If all went well there's a rewarding crackle and no colour flakes off. If colour flakes off, it's back to square one, sanding until all is clean and smooth, colouring, drying and separating (and hoping this time all goes well).

As a reference for the colourshift paints I used, I did a test sheet for the chameleon colours. So here's a dot of the same colour on white paper as the stripes under or next to it on the black and also slightly different angles to show the colourshift (sadly it photographs really bad on flat surfaces)

[moonstruckdraws]

Robin & Jak

Jeez- this is so long overdue but hey- I digitalized something!-

A friend for @hellishgayliath's oc, Elend the pumpkin witch! I saw this guy and wanted him to have a friend :] (or someone that thinks so lmao)

This is Robin! Elend's (self-proclaimed) best friend! He's an enthusiastic and adventurous witch that is also terrible at magic & spells (he's my loser boy). He is studying under a master (that I also have drafted but I refuse to draw more today so-) in the hopes of becoming a strong witch on his own. Though the only skill he seems to have is that he's good with animals.

Robin's familiar is a red fox named Jak, as in jack-o'-lantern, that transforms into his witch's hat! I wanted this little fella to be a darker color than the normal orange of foxes drawn, and to have a different colored pumpkin head. (This took so long to color- oh my stars, I was struggling with both of their color palettes). Jak's head can also just pop off! This leads to it rolling away in its sleep a lot.

Elend & Robin: I envisioned Robin as this naturally affectionate person that is basically an open book. He tries his best to be helpful and kind, but his lack of skills and excitement can lead to accidents to those around him. Robin views Elend as his best friend (and whether Elend does as well is yet to be said), but it's very self-proclaimed on his end. He follows Elend around when not training and probably shows up by popping his head up through Elend's windows to say hello. At the end of the day, he's just a goofy, loving dude that values Elend

[sentofight]

ooc. my amazing contribution ¯_(ツ)_/¯

[catkin-morgs-kookaburralover]

drank like two cups of the Depression Juice with coffee in it at nearly 10pm tonight gonna be fantastic (sarcasm)

[sadrockandwaltzes]

Musical Musings

Sometimes I feel like the only thing that can save my heavy dirty soul is Queen

[theydoctor]

fren shaped except we talk a lot and also bones <3

HIIII and thank youuuu <333333 you are also very very fren shaped 😌

[storiedhistories]

@boyofwar liked for a smol starter!

Atreus had asked many questions about his father's homeland, once he had discovered that Kratos was not exactly from these lands. For a time, he had simply brushed the questions aside in favour of training, or Mimir had swooped in to talk about something unrelated, therefore distracting Atreus from what he'd been asking for that moment.

But he wasn't the same little boy he had been when he'd started asking. He was growing up. And if Kratos did not tell him, then he would find ways to get answers of his own, answers that might not be in his best interest.

"What?" he said, realizing that he had been so lost in his own thoughts that he had missed his son's question, something that very rarely happened.

[asinglemagpie]

I might have just mapped out an Andriel wedding fic.

[mrcavill88]

Inner demons

Pairing: Bucky Barnes x Male Reader

Summary: There’s something so dark and attractive about a man who could kill you in a heartbeat. Even though Bucky’s twisted mind is healed, remnants of the winter soldier are still there. You and him have been through hell and back together, but his recents outbursts of anger are really starting to fumble your relationship

Word count: 2.9k+

Warnings: 18+, age gap (reader is 18, Bucky is 102 XD) abusive Bucky, alcohol addiction, face slapping, yelling, begging, bondage, whipping, daddy kink, skin sucking/kissing/licking, nipple play, genital licking, fingering, crying, vibrator usage, unprotected sex, breeding, fluff

A/N: Hey everyone! I’m back with another fic: my very first Bucky fic. This is one is definitely, interesting, to say the least. Thank you all again for all the support you have shown me, hope you enjoy;)

Bucky Barnes

The man of the hour, the one true love of your life, someone who made you feel stable - did I mention an ex-assassin with over two dozen credited murders?

You never were 100% sure about being safe around him. Sure, he was... insanely attractive. His soft and short brown hair, the dark blue sapphires he had for eyes, pearly white teeth, chiseled and muscular body, and his deep voice; his mere presence was enough for butterflies to flutter around your tummy. But Bucky's dark history was always a thinking point for you.

"What if he goes crazy and tries to kill me?"

"What if he goes on another rampage and starts murdering everyone?"

"What if he doesn't love me?"

Your intrusive thoughts never got the best of you, but a single thought of Bucky's past made you quiver in fear.

But your relationship with him wasn't exactly, perfect. He might be free of his control from Hydra, but, he isn't exactly free from his new demons

Alcohol

His loneliness after Steve's death was apparent as he turned to heavy drinking to aid his sorrows. That's when you came in, you were initially there to help Bucky through his journey of rehab, were you successful? Fuck. no.

Every time you encountered him, instead of discussing his progress, you and he did the most lewd things together. He was completely taken aback by your beautiful and slim figure, he didn't need rehab, he needed you.

As of now, you lived with Bucky. You were both pretty set on spending your lives together, and you were both happy. Currently, he was out with Sam, you knew that Sam was the only other person Bucky was close with, he trusted him, and so did you. You laid in bed, waiting for Bucky to come home, hoping you guys could have some dinner together, maybe have some fun.

You heard a car pull into the driveway; you ran to the door, waiting to greet the love of your life. The door burst open, and there he was, running towards you.

"Y/N! I missed you so much baby, give me a kiss!" he said, hugging you, connecting his lips onto yours. The things you felt when you were in an intimate setting with him, they were surreal. You really loved him, but something wasn't right, you could tell something was off.

And then it hit you

The strong and unpleasant scent of alcohol. You pushed the man off of you, an acerbic look painted on your face as you looked him dead in the eye.

"Baby? W-why are you l-looking at me like that? W-what's wrong?"

You could tell that he was a little tipsy, if the smell wasn't enough, the slurring of his words definitely was. "Bucky, please be honest with me. Were you drinking?" you asked, squeezing his hands.

"Y/N! You know I'm sober! How could y-you doubt me?" his hands cupping your cheeks, his face getting redder and redder. "Baby, please believe me! I know I have a bad history with drinking but, please, I'm being honest."

"James! Don't lie to me! I love you too much for you to lie to me like this! How could you! I thought you were a new man!" you yelled, slapping his face. "Ok. You caught me, I'm so sorry Y/N. Sam just said it was one beer, but it ended up being several. Please forgive me! I promise, this won't happen again! Please, Y/N?" he pleaded, holding your waist.

The single tear that formulated on your cheek dried as you contemplated what you were going to do with Bucky. Was he really going to stop? Or was this another white lie that he told? You decided to give it one last chance, hoping the decision was right.

"Fine. I'm putting my trust in you Buck, please, just think about what this could do to you! It's going to kill you! Please just promise me that you'll stop, ok?" holding your pinky out. "I promise, baby. Thank you so much for believing in me" he said, latching his pinky onto yours, giving you a small kiss on the cheek. "Now, let's enjoy ourselves! The night is still young Y/N! I brought some takeout from that Mediterranean restaurant across town, I know you it's your favorite" he said, bringing you over to the polished dining table, adorned with the most appetizing food you've ever seen.

But one little nuisance on the table was there, a needle in a haystack, if you will. A tall bottle of whiskey. "Bucky, are you serious?"

"Baby. I know I promised I'd stop, but please! Just this once, I swear, this is the last one. C'mon, I know you like this brand. Don't try to deny it"

You hesitantly sat down, opening the bottle of whiskey. You knew Bucky would have some trick of his sleeve, so what did he do? He fished in one last drink, and it just so happened to be your favorite kind.

You two enjoyed your supper. You guys' just had a special bond, every time you were in each other's presence, you just felt, complete. Any thought of Bucky's past actions were completely eradicated as the expensive whiskey started hindering your brain.

Next thing you know, it was already 9 pm. Bucky was completely OUT, his pants undone and his eyes rolling to the back of his head as he tried to stand up.

"Y-Y-Y/N, w-we haven't h-had some f-fun in a w-while. L-lets m-make the most of o-our night," he slurred out, bringing you to the couch as he gripped your right thigh. "G-get off o-of me, I k-knew you c-couldn't k-keep from d-drinking" you said, barely being able to connect your words together.

The cold air thickened as tension started to build between you two, both completely drunk. "H-how dare y-you speak to m-me like that! You l-little brat!" he yelled, slapping your face hard. The tension in the room completely skyrocketed as the man you loved, the man you trusted, struck your face.

"B-Bucky? W-what's gotten into you?" you sniffled, holding your face. "W-w-what's gotten into me? What a-a-about you! You spoiled l-l-little ingrate! You n-need to be taught a lesson! You need thicker s-skin, Y/N" he slurred out, dragging you to the basement.

The countless kicks and screams you let out were completely useless as the 6 foot man effortlessly powered through your resistance. He slammed you onto a stool and tied your arms above your head, leaving you helpless.

"T-that's better baby! You s-see, I'm much older than you. I had it w-way harder than you when I was your age! I'm only doing this because I love you, trust me, Y/N" he said, pulling out a long, matte black whip.

The sound of screams, cries, and begs filled the room as the absolute terror you felt completely consumed your body.

"P-please Bucky! I'm begging you! Please don't hurt me! I love you! Don't you love me?"

"Oh Y/N, you're so adorable, I-I'm doing this for your own good, I'm sorry little one"

The final words he said before he maliciously whipped your torso, the loud crack breaking the seemingly forever silence that formulated between the two of you.

The screams coming out of your mouth intensified as the everlasting sting coursed through your veins, tears falling from your eyes as the man you trusted, just whipped you.

"Oh baby! That's what I like to hear! But, I think we could have more fun! Don't ya think?" he said before he grabbed a pair of red scissors and started cutting up your clothes.

You winced as your body was slowly being exposed in front of the man, as if it hadn't happened before. But this was a new side of Bucky you've never seen before, much more, possessive

He rubbed your baby soft skin, the sight of your delicate and skinny posture truly astonished him. The only thing you had on was a tight little spandex, your cock hard from Bucky's presence alone.

"Y-you're mine now, understand?" he said, practically inches away from your face. You jerked a nod before the whip cracked against your body again, a gush of blood spewing from your body. You screamed mercilessly as the immense pain you felt was practically permanent.

"Bucky! Please stop! I-I can't take it anymore!" you begged, a raspy breath leaving your mouth as you felt the air suddenly get hot.

Turns out, it wasn't the temperature, it was Bucky

He took his jacket off, revealing his rippling muscles and toned body, laced by his tight black tank top.

"Oh baby, I almost forgot. Don't ever call me Bucky, again. I'm your daddy now, your master, are we clear?" grabbing your face tightly.

"Y-yes, daddy" you whimpered out, absolutely terrified yet turned on by Bucky's sudden dominance.

"Good boy! Oh Y/N. I'm so p-proud of you. You see? It's not so hard to behave, right? Now, here's your reward for being so good"

Mere milliseconds after his words, his lips latched onto your neck. Sucking the absolute life out of it; moans and whines escaped your mouth, your libido level skyrocketing as the sound of skin against skin filled the room.

"Oh baby! I love tasting you! You're gonna feel so good when you're with daddy tonight, just wait and see"

His mouth continued attacking your neck, his lips traveling down your body onto your shoulders, biting and sucking on your skin, marking what was his. The angelic moans that left your mouth were like music to his ears, something that caused him to go even harder than he intended on.

His fingers caressed your nipples, goosebumps forming around them as Bucky relentlessly stimulated them.

"Daddy! Ugh! That f-feels so g-good!" you moaned as Bucky continued pinching and rubbing your nipples.

With no hesitation, he latched his lips onto your nipple, sucking on it with much determination and lust. The pleasure you felt was unreal; the tingles reaching the tips of your toes, making your cock twitch and harden as he continued sucking your nipples.

When he let out, your nipples were puffy and decorated with saliva, your breaths heavy and constant from all the pleasure you were feeling.

"Oh my sweet baby, Y/N. I love seeing you all horny and vulnerable like this. You make me want to do horrific things to you. But the night is young, I'm not finished with you" he said, viciously licking your neck.

His head was now face to face with your hole, your butt perfectly propped up so he was practically in breathing range of it. He kissed your inner thigh, prepping you for what was about to come next. The moans that left your mouth fueling the lewd activities he was about to commit.

His tongue started flailing in and out of your hole, swirling at a rapid pace. Your toes started to curl as you quickly became a sex doll for Bucky. "Daddy! Oh Fuck! Daddy I-I'm gonna c-cum!" you whined as he continued licking and playing at your sensitive hole.

"Baby! C'mon now, don't disappoint daddy like that! I know you're stronger than that, come on now, let me make you feel good"

You whimpered in response as your hole became drenched in Bucky's saliva, acting as a lubricant as he slowly inserted his thick fingers into your hole.

You screamed at the immense discomfort you felt, you've never been this intimate with Bucky ever in your life. "Does that feel good baby? You like when daddy shoves his fingers in your tiny little hole?"

All this dirty talk was making you queasy, your head practically spinning in circles as Bucky continued using your hole as a domain for his sexual pleasures. "I-I-I'm g-gonna cum!" you yelled at the top of your lungs, cock ready to burst at any moment.

"Oh no you don't" he whispered, gripping your tiny little pre-cum covered cock tightly.

"I know you're a good boy baby. Show daddy how good of a boy you can be! C'mon baby I know you can be a good boy. My good boy"

You snapped

Your cock jerked uncontrollably, drooling with ropes of white, thick cum. Your face turned red as you met Bucky's slightly disappointed face.

"Baby, I really hoped you could pull through for daddy. But it's ok! Daddy has a few tricks left for you"

"No daddy please! I can't take it anymore! I'm gonna... explode!" you pleaded, struggling to break out of your bonds.

"That's not how it works. I am your master, your daddy, you are my boy. You listen to me, absolutely no questions asked baby. Now, daddy has a new little toy here that he would love to try on you" he cackled, pulling out a pink vibrator.

Tears stained your cheeks as you knew what was about to come, you knew that you had no other choice but to comply, so why not enjoy it?

He attached the vibrator on your cute little cock and turned it on. You screamed as the vibrator tickled and pushed against your prostate, cum leaking from the tip of your cock.

"Daddy! Please take this o-off! I-I'm s-so horny!!!" you moaned as your bottom half twitched and shook from the absolute pleasure you felt.

Bucky noticed the state of mind you were in, somewhat amused by how fragile you were. And with the little bits of remorse still in him, he yanked the vibrator off your body, your cock worn out and drenched in pre-cum. You were a moaning, panting mess, cum disseminated over the floor.

"Oh baby~ You turn me on so much you don't even know. Such a sweet boy like you acting like this, this'll just be our little secret. Now, daddy has one last present for you, I promise, it's worth it" he said, slyly, before unzipping his pants. The big dick print in his boxers was making you so hard, oh you were so in love with him.

And then, oh!

A large piece of man meat sprang from his underwear as he pulled it down. The sheer size of it amazed you as he walked toward you.

"I want this to be a night for the books baby, let's make this special"

"Fuck me daddy!" you moaned before he slammed his monstrous dick into your tight hole. His thrusts: strong and firm.

"Oh fuck baby! I love how your little hole hugs my cock! You belong to me! No one else!" he yelled, a mixture of moans and whines filling the room as you both became infatuated with pleasure.

He starts to develop a fast and consistent rhythm with his thrusts, your moans getting louder and more high-pitched, making him even more turned on.

"Oh yeah! You love when daddy's big cock fucks your hole don't you! You naughty boy! You bussy is so greedy for daddy's cock isn't it" he growled, getting a broken and long moan in response.

Your body temperature started to climb higher and higher as the man you loved dearly continued fucking the daylight out of you. What you didn't realize? The fact that the ropes that put you in this very position broke in the midst of all the sexual pleasure you were feeling.

You didn't know how much longer you could handle this. Your bussy was practically broken after enduring all of Bucky's abuse, but the pleasure you felt continued to escalate by the second.

That's when, it happened again

Bucky's cock penetrated the most sacred and sensitive part of your entire body, your cock exploding with cum as your body twitched and quivered at the pleasure that basically consumed your entire body at this point.

"That's my boy! Oh y-you're daddy is close you're doing so well. Fuck!" he groaned as you could feel his thrusts growing sloppier.

You took notice of this and decided to give Bucky a taste of his own medicine: you pinched and twisted your nipples, causing your hole to tighten around Bucky's cock, making the man grow weak as his cock was being stimulated like no other before him.

"Oh shit! You naughty little bitch! Oh baby! I-I'm g-gonna cum!" he slurred out before unleashing his load inside your hole, strings of his white sticky cum polishing your insides an ivory color. You collapsed from the chair, your legs were practically immobile after all the pleasure and abuse you endured tonight.

Bucky crawled toward your destroyed figure, hugging you tightly and nuzzling your nose against his.

He carried you, bridal style, up from the basement into the bedroom you shared together.

"Now baby, let's get washed up, alright? We need to be perfectly clean before we sleep" he uttered, walking you over to the shower.

Despite the immense sexual activities that occurred that night, the shower you two had was one that was completely ingenuous.

You two shared a few loving, intimate moments, but nothing that was extreme. You were glad to have Bucky back. The old Bucky back. Sure, you loved the sex god that just fucked the shit out of you a couple minutes ago, but the little moments you have with him: you cherished forever.

You both got dried up and cuddled up on the bed together. "I'm so proud of you baby, we pulled off wonders tonight. I love you, Y/N" he said, kissing your forehead.

"I love you too, daddy" nuzzling your head against his chest.

You went to sleep madly in love with the man, and James Buchanan Barnes definitely loves you too~

[hello-vampire-kitty]

Servamp chapter 136 spoilers

I only read the chapter once so I haven't understood some parts because I haven't looked up the meaning of some words, that's what I'll do when I get to properly translate the chapter, but in the meantime, I'm just going over a few pages so you can get an idea of what's going on.

Oh my God, this chapter reveled so much!

I haven't talked about this, because I still have a few chapters to work on, but the previous one ended with Lily saying that everything was done in order to make the revived Count become the 9th Servamp with Mikuni as his Eve.

If that's the plan, could it mean that Mikuni will break his contract with Jeje or will it be possible to also keep him too?

Lily reveals to Misono that initially he wanted to put Kuro in Mikuni's path, but that would have been a great risk if Tsubaki went after Kuro, so instead he chose Mahiru.

"As someone from a family of magicians that could be easily monitored and who didn't posses the combat skills of a magician...And most of all, he was the son of a certain man"

Lily tells Misono about Touma being Mahiru's father, who was a hindrance because Touma was close to the realization of the Count's reincarnation. Lily thought that if Tsubaki would target Mahiru, Touma would be dealt with if he tried protecting Mahiru.

Lily didn't think that Touma would try shooting his son, but he was wrong.

"Love is the most difficult to read."

Lily tells Misono about his mother and what we knew about her was a lie. To start off her name was Tatsunami Hokaze which is so weird and perhaps it was a mistake because it happened before that some character's name were misspelled, like it happened with Pisca (it was even brought up by Tanaka on Twitter) and I recall one time where Tsurugi's name was written Rurugi xD

So, I looked up Hokaze (歩風) and it seems to be a boy's name and I have found the readings Ayuka or Honoka for girl names, so maybe one of those is actually her name?

Well, if it won't be mentioned by Tanaka if it was a misspelling, for now she will be called Hokaze.

Moving on, I noticed that in the first panel on the left, if you look closely at the book she's holding, it most likely "Jane Eyre" written on the cover, so we have a literary work that's associated with her.

Alright, so she was one of the orphans Lily brought to the Alicein house, like Dodo and Mitsuki.

Lily described her as ambitious woman and he encouraged her to get into Mikado's good graces. If she became his mistress, she could control him from the shadows.

The letters from his mother that Misono read were censored by Mikuni and crafted a beautiful story. In Japanese it specifically says検閲 which means censorship, so that seems to imply that he didn't fabricate the letters entirely, some things that were written in them might have been left unchanged.

Poor Misono :((

Man, the drama of this family...

So, we get to see Lily's past and I'm assuming (because it doesn't say) that he was selling his body? That's the impression I get from that image with the old guy who's giving him money...

Alright, moving on to Kuro's fight against Tsubaki!

It's awesome how Kuro made the candlestick into a sword! It looks cool!

Tsubaki says that demon Kuro was apparently sensei's "something", that he called things such as friend or brother and the demon was sort of like a familiar.

Kuro wants to hear from Tsubaki why is he obsessed with the Count, but Tsubaki isn't reluctant to tell him.

Kuro uses "Elpsis" to try looking into his memories and it's so cool that he can use Mahiru's ability, like he even changed the sword into a staff like Mahiru's!

Tsubaki had a little sister :(

So, apparently the reason he wanted to revive sensei isn't because he cared about him. He wants the ritual to be fulfilled because he awaits what comes after. Tsubaki made a promise with sensei, the latter telling him that he would make his little sister happy.

What could that mean? If she's dead, could it mean that he will bring her to life? It doesn't mention what happened to her...

Oh boy, so, I feel sorry for Misono because of how much he was deceived and we also find out that Tsubaki wasn't actually looking forward to be reunited with sensei because they had a deep bond or something, he even admits in this chapter that he's probably just a means to sensei's objective to be united with Kuro, because sensei was only interested in him.

So yeah, that's about it. I want to end the post by saying that I thank you for the patience with the scanlations, I still have three more chapters to finish until I start working on this one.

[egg-emperor]

The way I see it is that the man on the right in the photo is Ivo's father as he has the distinctive grin and shaded glasses like Ivo's glasses are shaded. I also believe personally that he's the roboticist and that is what induced Ivo's interest in that subject. But the proof that Eggman's father is also a genius (Because he was well on his way to a doctorate.) shows that an inclination to brilliance seems inherent in the Robotnik bloodline.

Yeah it does seem like he has the most more intricate details of similarities to Ivo between the two, as if they specifically thought it out for him to be genetically - and aesthetically with the glasses - similar to him. I don't wanna say for sure which one when we still know so little and all the males in the family look very alike with those beautiful unique Robotnik family genetics XD but I wouldn't be surprised if it's the right

I also don't wanna make too confident assumptions yet in whether his father was the archeologist or roboticist but it's likely they'd go with the latter for stronger story ties to Ivo. But I think his father being either and the ways it could play any amount of influence in Eggman's skills and interests, considering he dabbles in both for his evil and his plans, so it's just as interesting to me either way

Eggman saying "scientific genius runs in the family" in TailsTube wasn't a lie and his grandpa isn't the only proof- it's just he goes about acknowledging it in the most narcissistic self praising way to emphasize selfish credit lol. The way he held his grandpa with such high regard compared to how he never directly speaks of and names the rest of his family's skills for bragging rights suggests he wasn't impressed with his father's level in comparison, now we know he had quite a bit too. I always had that hc hehe

I also love how despite this apparent inclination and all these smarties in the family, Eggman is so narcissistic and egotistical that he considers himself the greatest scientific genius in the world and believes in marking himself a place as the ultimate genius of all time to the point and believes he's so brilliant that he demands all the attention and praise in the world and feels entitlement to ruling it all. The most fucking extreme example of letting it go to your head ever and I love the crazy arrogant bastard for it XD 💜

[igotanidea]

Logical choice: Dick x reader part 1

summary: apparently he was in love with two girls and had to chose. Too bad his way of making a decision was worse than bad.

massive thanks to Laura @gone-batty-fics for proofreading this <3 <3 I'm terrible with punctuation xD

***

Being in love with a taken guy is like….

No, wait, scratch that.

There are no words to describe that.

How can you possibly find anything to use while saying how you feel when your brain goes short-circuits when you think about the guy you like with another girl and your heart is aching every time you see those two together?

How can you possibly explain the constant urge to cry and scream and lie down and die and throw up and sleep the pain away, all at the same time?

How many synonyms are there for the word hopeless?

Bet you were broken-hearted at least once in your life.

Y/N Y/L/N cursed the moment she met Dick Grayson, with his pretty smile, all his charm and his the golden retriever energy. All that niceness, chattiness, and everything he was and everything he wasn’t, got her mind spinning and falling faster then she could have imagined.

And she had no idea what to do about it.

Especially given the fact he quickly became one of her closest friends, which was shocking even to herself.

Y/N was usually the person to keep her walls up (hurt one too many times), act rather cold and distant, not getting involved with feelings (she was not very good with that and her poor boy experience made her cautious). But hey, the heart wants what it wants and Dick Grayson had a way of getting her to open up, laugh, and just be her unfiltered self. He didn't seem to mind her innate sarcasm and twisted sense of humor. Maybe, since he didn't hate her genuine self, she could make it work?

here was some undeniable connection between them.  Maybe even something more than friendship, but for some reason none of them were able to speak their minds, instead circling around the subject, unable to meet in the middle.

Truly tragic how two souls yearning for one another could not connect just because the owners of those bodies were too shy and stubborn to say three words: I like you.

Even more tragic given the fact that Dick’s family were quick to notice something simmering under the surface, but decided to stay back since apparently it was none of their business.

Until.

***

“You do realize he’s in love with you?”

“What are you talking about?” Y/N frowned at Jason’s words. “Who are you talking about?”

This took her by surprise. Jason Todd wasn’t usually the person to go around gossiping and well, to be honest talking at all. He was the brooding type sitting in the corner, watching everyone with a murderous gaze trying to cover up for the fact how much he needed love and attention, instead using sarcasm to hide his vulnerability and sensitivity. Maybe, throwing a cutting, teasing comment from time to time, but this? This was completely not his style. And it made Y/N a bit uncomfortable.

“Cause I can’t watch you pining like this.” Jason scoffed, “It’s pathetic, you know” he almost rolled his eyes at the girl.

“You are pathetic, Todd.”She retorted, but couldn’t help the blush creeping on her cheeks and the sudden rise in her heartbeat. “What’s your business with gossiping? We’re not friends.”

“I know we’re not,.” Jason shrugged, “but apparently I’m the only one with the balls big enough to - ”

“Don’t flatter yourself,.” She cut him off with a smirk raising a gaze from her book,

“Is that what I get for helping you make your crazy little fantasy come true?”

“What fantasy,” she cried out in desperate confusion “Stop speaking in riddles!”

“You want to be with Dick. Whenever he's around, your eyes and body language practically scream it," he said, as if it was the most obvious thing in the world.

“You’re reading way too much Jane Austen,.” she muttered, “And what’s with the silent creeping on me!?”

“I’m trying to help you out here!”

“No, you’re mocking me!”

“Y/N!” Jason cried out in frustration, not sure how to put his point forward without Y/N accusing him of being mean. He was not good with words, despite all his literature knowledge.

"What?!"

Y/N was fully aware that she was acting erratically, but the realization that being 'more than friends' with Dick was even a possibility? All of her logical thinking was suddenly on a very long foreign holiday.

“He fucking loves you!”

“And how the fuck do you know that?!”

“You’re unbelievable!”

“I’m just being cautious! I don’t need a broken heart!”

Jason exhaled deeply. Apparently he had to be the reasonable one here. He had known a lot about being insecure.

“Come on, Y/N… I’m not lying. Really. Why would I?”

“Do you really want me to answer that question,?” she asked, her eyebrows raised sceptically..

“Look…..”

“No you look, Jason…..” she raised her gaze at him, exposing all her vulnerability “I’m scared, ok?”

“I know. Trust me, I’ve been there. Still am…..”

“Why does it sound like you’re trying to use me as a guinea pig?”

“Huh?” her words got him confused

“You want to test whether it’s worth taking a risk, don’t you? Whether confessing is something that can actually end up in a good way?”

“Maybe a little.” Jason smirked

“Now that’s more like you.”

“Does it convince you though?”

She took a second to consider. Did it? Were Jason’s words enough to make her act on her feelings? To go to Dick and tell him how she feels? To create an opportunity to have a relationship? To be … happy in love, without all this worry.

“Yes…..” she whispered. 

“Yes?” Jason mocked clearly egging her on. 

“Fucking yes," she cried out, feeling a sudden surge of power and omnipotence.

“He’s in the batcave.”

She moved towards the door, ready to go and finish it all once and for all, to clear the messed up situation she found herself in. But before she rushed to the love of her life there was one more thing she had to do.

“Thanks, Todd. You’re not as bad as you try to look.”

“Keep that detail to yourself, will ya Y/N?” Jason said as he winked at her, being content she actually decided to listen to his advice and not see him as a villain.

***

“Dick…..?”

Poor Y/N had to fight the urge to burst into the cave reaching the speed limit of Flash. It was like all those years of holding back her true feeling finally made her crumble and the façade broke down and she needed to tell him now, now, NOW!!

“Y/N?” he sent her his signature smile, turning up from behind the computer and taking a few steps towards her. It was truly touching how he always stood up whenever she was in the room, like a scene from a freaking regency era London. “everything good?” the man added seeing her reddened cheeks and shining eyes. “you look sick……” he involuntarily put his palm to the woman’s forehead checking her temperature.

Sick in love….. she thought to herself, but obviously couldn’t use that particular wording.

“I’m good….I’m good….” She shook her head “I just have to tell you something …… something important and ……”

“Hey Y/N…..” another voice chimed into the talk, causing Y/N to crash with reality.

“Babs…..?”

It didn’t have to mean anything, right? The fact that Dick and Babs were all alone in the batcave? Surely they just talked about some Batman stuff Y/N was not let into?

She was not let in.

And that was emphatic enough, almost as if she wasn’t a part of the team.

Y/N blinked a couple times realizing she was so focused on Dick’s face, eyes and just generally on him, that ironically she didn’t notice his slightly messed up hair and blushing cheeks alongside with his disheveled shirt.

Oh…..

Her gaze involuntarily traveled to the other woman, eyes widening at the way her shirt were open, her bra revealed and the love bite on her neck visible.

Oh, shit…..

Fucking Todd…..

“What is it Y/N?” Dick asked fixing his hair, his blue piercing, concerned eyes focused on her. “Hey? Y/N? come back to earth…..” he put a hand on her shoulder gently trying to bring her back.

“What….?” Her mind was racing, her hands were trembling, her legs was close to giving up on her. She could barely register what was happening when Dick grabbed her hand and forced her to sit on the chair scared she might faint.

“Y/n……?”

His voice reached her as if through a fog.

“She looks so pale…..”Babs was equally concerned now, and her tone finally made Y/N snap back to reality.

“And she’s back….” Grayson crouched next to her chair, smiling at her softly “you got us worried, it was like your soul left your body for a moment.”

Well, not so far from the truth, was it……?

“Sorry….”she muttered, averting her gaze from Dick’s, but he was not going to take the bullshit, grabbing her chin gently and forcing her eyes on him.

“You wanted to tell me something?”

“Yes…. No…. I mean……”

“Y/N……?”

“So you two are a couple now?” she blurted the first thing that came to her mind, even though saying those words out loud made her sick to the stomach.

“Yeah…..” Dick blushed a little looking at Barbara, who had a similar expression on her face. “Life’s funny, right? Old friend who’s been around all the time, never really seen like a love interest and yet……” he smiled even more, interlacing his fingers with Bab’s.

It was supposed to be me!! Her inner voice cried out desperately bringing not only the sickness to the stomach but also a terrible headache.

“I’m so happy for you two…..” Y/N forced a smile. Fucking hypocrite.

“Thanks…..” the other woman beamed “I know how important you are to Dick so I was worried about your reaction of us getting together”

“Worried?” Y/N laughed only to cover for the scowl forming in the back of her throat “oh, you silly one…. You two match each other perfectly! I mean, Nightwing and Batgirl, it couldn’t get any better than this, right? Besides you …..we… know each other for so long…..it was bound to happen.”

I have to get out… I have to get out of here now!

“It really means a lot Y/N….. I’ve been wondering whether…..” Dick added and for a single second there was something inexplicable in his eyes, but he blinked and it was gone immediately. “nevermind…..”

Yeah, right, nevermind…..

***

It’s been two weeks of torture

Two weeks of bitterness.

Complete disaster.

Y/N was depressed, Dick was torn, Babs was confused and the atmosphere was far from friendly, since everyone could feel the tension and members of batfamily were trying their best to not takes sides, which was probably the greatest challenge.

But as the situation progressed, the one with the least experience in human relationships just had to break the peace. Forced, but peace nonetheless.

It was typical Friday afternoon and they were just hanging around, released from patrol, ready to have a movie night in the manor. Dick, Babs, Jason, Tim, Damian, Steph, Cass and Y/N, who were currently fighting with her own head and mind producing every excuse possible for a rain check on the marathon.

“why don’t you just tell him?”

“Hello to you too, Damian.”

“don’t change the subject Y/L/N.”

“Tell what to who?” she mocked almost rolling her eyes

“Don’t play dumb. It doesn’t work well for you.” Damian said with his usual flat tone.

“That does sound awfully like an indirect compliment…..”

“Just tell Grayson you like him.”

“You what?” oh, shit, the person in question was now standing in the door of the room, his eyes wide in shock, his whole posture screaming the feeling of betrayal.

“Dick….I…..”

“Shit, Y/n!”

“Stop yelling at me!”

“You’re the one yelling!”

“Do you want me to record your voice right now!?”

“You’re in love with me?!”

“How is that bad?!”

“Cause I’m with Barbara now!”

“Yeah, no shit!”

They were getting nowhere with this discussion and to tell the truth, neither of them probably wanted to. It was just dumping everything that’s been eating away at their livers. Suddenly Dick and Y/N found themselves in an unknown territory, their feelings completely exposed, unsure how to proceed without getting hurt and/or damaging one another.

Well there was not a good way out and at the moment screaming was something that at least helped them getting all that pain, fear and hurt out in the open.

“You can’t do that Y/N!”

“Maybe if you had the guts to tell me how you felt first it wouldn’t come to this!” she spat at him

“How I felt….?” Dick stuttered, clearly taken aback “what do you mean?”

“nothing….” She muttered, calming down in an instant. He was not supposed to know that she knew.

“Y/N!”

“fuck you!”

Whoops. Shit. Too much.

She was acting crazy, yes, but come on, cut her some slack, she was broken-hearted and a person with a damaged heart never acts sane.

“If that’s what you truly want then ok, fuck me….. you’re just making it so easy to make a choice here, Y/N!”

“You said it yourself, you are with Babs now!”

“It doesn’t change how I feel about you!”

“You what….?”

“You think I can just turn it off or something!?”

“Dick….”

“No….. no you’re right… I’m with Babs…..”

God damn it! It was like walking in circles. Two adults behaving in a worse way than kids in the kindergarten and no one could possibly stop the incoming storm.

***

And now she was in love with a taken guy.

A taken guy who could have been hers if only she was slightly faster to confess.

Apparently timing is everything and instead of being happy in love she was now forced to grit her teeth whenever dick and Babs were around together.

Which was pretty much all the time.

Well, they were pretty much together all the time before, but not like together together.

Maybe Y/N should have known…..

It was highly unlikely that a vigilante would keep his relationship with a civilian and much more probable that he would end up with another self-appointed crime fighter.

And Dick seemed happy so what was she supposed to do apart from dwelling in poorly hidden misery and listening to sad love songs while facing the ceiling with one single question in her mind.

What if…..?

***

The second dick saw Y/N in the cave a week ago, noticed her sad, confused and a bit lost expression he knew. Y/N loved him the same way he loved her.

But he was with Babs now. He felt for the Batgirl and was not going to leave. That would be a shitty thing to do, right? To leave a girl just because he what? Got bored? Changed his mind or went through a change of heart?

On the other hand, however, how shitty it was to do this to Y/N? He’s been in love with her for so long, always keeping his mouth shut about it, hoping she would somehow figure it out. And now, that she was finally ready to make it a reality, he was with another girl.

Get yourself together, Dick. You can’t just back out on Barbara. You’re with her now. You love her.

But Y/N…..

His first true love.. from a very young age, even before he knew what love was. All those years of waiting only to give up on the final stretch.

And the vulnerability he saw in her whole posture every time she was around. Those pretty doe eyes that never looked at him ever since the scene at the batcave.

They were still friends, sort of, at least, because to tell the whole truth, the situation between them was more than awkward.

And he was very well aware he would have to choose between two girls, because being stuck in a situation like this, with all the knowledge he had, was way too much for him.

Too bad he chose a very devious way to make a decision.

***

"What is it?" Y/N asked upon seeing a single piece of paper in Tim's hands.

"Nothing!"

"Oh, come on, let me see...."

"Trust me on this, you don't want to." Tim shook his head passing the object to Dick, who quickly tossed it to Jason, who was standing the furthest from Y/n.

"All right, fine" Y/N shrugged "I won’t be playing your silly games here...." before any of the boys realized what was happening she snuck past Jason and ripped the paper from him, her eyes immediately focusing on the printed text.

"What.....?" she stuttered, running her eyes on the words yet unable to make any sense of them "Dick?" her hurt expression killed him at the spot.

"It was Jason's idea!" the man cried out as if that could serve as an excuse.

"Yeah, here's the part I was hoping would not come out." Jason muttered

"Y/N." the girl started reading out loud "cons. Tend to live in her own world. Keep her walls up. Stubborn as hell..... Wow.....Just.... just wow." A single gasp was enough of an indication of her emotional state.

“there are also plus points……..?” he almost cringed once those words left his mouth.

“How could you Dick….?”

"Y/n...." Dick took a step forward, realizing that Jason and Tim have already fled the room leaving him to deal with Y/N and her obvious pain alone. Cowards.

"On the other side " she instantly moved back, out of his reach "Barbara. Pluses and weaknesses..... You were comparing us like this? THAT was your way to decide......? By using what? Fucking logic? By trying to decide which one of us is more useful or something……? " her voice broke and she was unable to finish the sentence, while tears started brimming in her eyes.  

That was like a whole new level of betrayal. Like her heart was ripped out and tossed into the gutter.

"Y/n... please, it's not what it looks like...."

"It's exactly what it is. To put it simply, you just treated me like a goat for sale……”

"Please, let me explain.... Please, I'm begging you...."

“Just leave me alone!” she cried out running out to hide in the manor library, possibly the only place that could have given her some sort of comfort and shelter.

"Good luck with making it right, Dickhead...." Jason reappeared just in time to see Y/N rush past the hallway.

"Shut up!" Dick ran his hands through his hair in utter desperation, barely restraining from tearing them all out. It would be so much easier to blame it all on his brother and his stupid idea but deep inside Dick knew it was on him. He never should have listened to the bad advice in the first place.

Of course he was going to choose Y/N.

And there was never any reason to make some stupid list. How could there be when there has always been just one option to begin with?

And now, as much as he wanted Y/N, not Barbara, she was not going to forgive him for not letting his heart decide, but focusing on what seemed more comfortable.

How fucking selfish was that?

[pentapoda]

Well, i am writing fic again. Because i can apparently spend years lurking in mxtx proximal fandoms (shen yuan i love u), then a full year watching vox machina and then critical role campaign 1 and campaign 2, devouring all the caleb fic i can find and still not feel the energy to participate in the fandom. then be like no, no, this silly blue man and very serious tiny man with his violence ballet, this is where i have something to contribute (read, "someone did the au where the coinflip went the other way, right, right? huh i guess not, haha wouldn't it be funny if--")

???

Anyway it has been one month, i have written 25k, probably 15k to go, there is a Google slides doc with a diagram of the silken squall (its a giant kite, btw) and a map of the continent of marquet with to-scale color-coded annotations of each group's location and distance traveled by day, i have rolled stats for dorians parents (sorry dadvernwind, please have some extra guards, you need them), i made a ppt chart comparing parentvernwinds to the party's stats (y axis: win hearts [wis+cha], x axis: win fights [str + dex + con], bubble size: hit points) , i have a spreadsheet with the silken squall's land use and wealth distribution, ashton wants to know why he's so stressed when he's not even in the main pairing (jokes on him though he got to talk to dorian's mom twice and she threw out my arranged marriage subplot, look she says to me there's a marriageable young genasi right here who knows how to protect his own, they bonded over protective violence guys, ashton didn't notice), bell's hells sucked so bad at Orym's resurrection ritual i thought he might actually just stay dead, i had to go back and just let fearne lie,i gave the squall griffins to solve a travel-speed issue and now dorian's bitchy neglected griffin is the star of the last third of this fic, Imogen has emerged from the wings to live the horse girl movie she always wanted, and orym and dorian have not yet shared a scene together but i swear its happening soon

haven't written complete fic (not just a story set up) or anything longer than 10k since jan 2016 so.... this is good... tentatively optimistic here...

in conclusion:

(fcg isn't on there because the fic has bigger parts for orym, dorian, ashton, & fearne, but then i added laudna & imogen to make dorian's dad look better. ...it didn't work. XD)

[alelathedragon]

Mr.Puzzles Ramble part 4009488383839393848

I added links to my other rambles if yo interested but all in all.....

Chat

GET EM

[1]

[2]

[3]

I wanna talk about 2 episodes in particular for this ramble:

Mario loses his moustache & Mr.Puzzles lowest point

It is my humble opinion that this dude still does NOT know what the fuck a MEME is- cus look at his actions in each episode. In the first one he studies Mario intensely because this is the one who has been ruining his plans the most with his bullshit and FUNNY.

Mr.Puzzles is after the power of being funny but still finds memes disgusting/horrible, when he makes Pedro his intensions are to film the creature hoping to steal SMG4's fame in a SMG3 LIKE manor, instead of stealing the videos hes just stealing assets of an actor. Yes; he does say MEME OFF but im convinced this man has no fucking clue what he's talking about and thats made more apparent in the next episode where he's going through content creator depression.

When the children turn on their Brainrot Skibbity Toilet he rightfully finds it to be the most insulting thing to ever grace his face and wants it gone, but then he realizes; hey wait a minute ... If I do this, I can traffic people to follow me, make money, make the content I love and BAM!! I'll be popular!!!

However.... He gets in his own way, when the "fame" of a billion children liking his youtube channel hits, it gets to his head immediately and he gets distracted from what he really wanted to do! He doesn't wanna make this shit, he wants to make his art!!! He doesn't understand WTF he's made other than an abomination

Like this man is genuinely confused as to why people have not gone from his shitty youtube channel over to his REAL content on the TV bc he forgot the part where he's supposed to stop the youtube and make stuff he likes again. Too 1 track minded

Even to the SMG4 crew its not funny bc it is NOT a meme! Mr.Puzzles doesn't know how to do that.

He came into the convention wanting to talk about his interests, inspirations, how he wrote his screen plays... Alas the crowd was children who didn't give a flying fuck about his craft and this pissed him off. Like: WHAT DO U MEAN U DIDNT LOOK AT MY TV SHOWS AND ONLY WATCH THIS STUFF IM NOT PROUD OF!?!?

& funnily enough

That leads into another point where this guy gives up so fast on things. Like in the cannon he SAYS he's given up on TV but that's a lie, he's going to keep doing entertainment.

What I mean by him giving up easily is:

He is a pathetic little meow meow folks. Hes one of those villains that THRIVES off a evil plan but when he's caught. He puts up his hands and runs, or throws things at his enemies.

Like in WOTF, in the song all boyo does: is throw shit because he DOES NOT know how to defend himself bro lololol. He has the power of his imagination but this isnt his head or his rules so he cant just- imagine a kung fu master as himself and fight back: his natural defences are to

Run/ Hide/ Throw things/ Bat things away/ Retract/ Panic

So when a plan fails. That plan is practically gone until he can think of a new way to use it

Like i doubt we're going to see Mario losing his moustache for a long time, i think we're going to see it again!!! But not soon. Mr.Puzzles needs time to cook that thought in the back of his mind of if it's even worth trying again or not.

He coulda given up on that thought all together but we wont know til we see!!

And he gave up on the youtube too! Because he was disappointed in himself and bro really just; could not bear to use that money anymore. He looked at that cash and could only relate it to his cringe youtube channel that he didnt want to associate with anymore. The original plan to use the money to make the content he wants: ⚰️

"I can't just use the money to make the content i want now! Im ruined! They just see me as a kids play toy now and this cash is NOTHING!!"

He forgot the plan, thus it got ruined by his own hand, and sense it was no longer completable in the way he originally intended it to go- it was impossible to complete.

He's so silly. I love him so much

[monstersandmaw]

First time romancing Astarion, and I'm all aboard the ace-spec interpretation of Astarion that I've seen floating around. As someone who's ace, I definitely resonated with him in this scene anyway. That hug reaction from Astarion. Oof.

And the fact that if you also romance Halsin, one of the dialogue options Astarion can give you is to say something like: 'it's not because... we haven't... in a while... is it?'... My heart cracked painfully at that, I'm not going to lie. I have spoken almost exactly that sentence before, worrying that just kissing and physical affection is not enough for someone who's not ace. To have that validated by Astarion was really special for me.

(aka, I really didn't get to know Astarion very well in my first playthrough because he didn't approve of my absolute doormat of a Tav (Kaerlyn the drow) and I didn't spend much time with him, but now with my sassy monk...? I get it. I totally get why you all love Astarion so much).

EDIT: additional dialogue from Raphael talking about Cazador indicates that it might be linked to vampirism (my own headcanon for vampires anyway is they can't get aroused without having fed recently, not just BG3 vamps, but in general)

[some poly-ace-astarion thoughts under the cut too]

I'm not 100% convinced that Astarion is really ok with the consensual poly situation in-game, because he famously doesn't say what he actually wants and is the king of manipulating others, especially in sexual situations (e.g. what Cazador sent him out to do, and how). I'm not sure if I'll reload a save and just have Halsin as a friend...

The dialogue when you check in with Astarion before the Halsin scene is... strained? Odd??? Maybe it's just me over-analysing it. He sounded strained though - his tone high pitched and more grandiose than he'd been in previous cut-scenes, where he was more softly-spoken. It sounded more like early-game Astarion to me...

Also, my dialogue options may have been totally randomised the next time I approached Astarion after a steamy night with Halsin, but they sounded kind of strained there too, and I got the 'I can never say no to you' one, which set my ace people-pleaser alarm bells ringing...

As someone who's poly-romantic but asexual, I can project/imagine here that Astarion has come to care for Tav a lot (more than he ever expected, for sure), and he genuinely wants Tav to be happy. He trusts Tav enough to know that Tav respects his autonomy and right to decide things for himself, and values Astarion for who he is, so Astarion is intellectually/conceptually happy for Tav to get something from Halsin that Astarion is not providing (sex), but perhaps emotionally that additional fact and dynamic is harder to deal with.

That could totally be me projecting though, because that's how I'd react if my husband (not ace) and I (ace) were in that situation (we've discussed it between us, actually XD). Feelings of guilt and inadequacy around sex itself are apparently very common with us ace folks, even in very healthy and happy relationships.

Anyway, that turned into a ramble I didn't intend on a rainy Sunday afternoon. I'm not looking to start any discourse about this though. If you don't see Astarion that way, or had a different experience and interpretation, that's all totally valid and I'm not trying to invalidate it in anyway.

[captainsparklefingers]

The question is: for M9's assault on the Mind Weave, are we going to get Kingsley or Caduceus? Or will Taliesin throw us a curve ball and try to juggle both?

(this question obviously also applies to Tary, I just personally want to see more Kingsley even though I adore Caduceus)

Edit: apparently Robbie could be Kingsley, which would be FANTASTIC, not gonna lie. XD can you tell I couldn't watch live last night and am just picking stuff up as I go?