#as usual the title may change lol

[hawkeykirsah]

The house was dark when Ice pulled into the driveway. Not that he’d expected differently—Mav wouldn't be back for another three days unless they got into port early, which was highly unlikely, so he knew the place would be musty and the fridge empty. He let his gaze roam over the front of the house. Everything looked in order—the small front yard, the porch, the drawn curtains—and grabbed his bag and a few groceries he'd picked up on the way out of the trunk, mentally running a tally of things to do before Mav got in. The grass needed cutting for sure. And the gutter had to be cleaned; they hadn't gotten around to that last time.

Or, the one where Iceman comes home to a surprise.

a pleasant surprise

A spicy Icemav fanfic (established relationship, explicit sexual content, blow jobs, anal sex, banter, canon divergence)

@adiduck, this one's for you! Thank you for cheering me on!

[mysteryanimator]

Breaking down Castlevania Nocturne Season 01 - Episode 04 "Bedroom scene" (almost) shot by shot!

Breaking down episode 06 / Breaking down episode 08

(Word count 6.3k I am so sorry HAHAHA)

I was heavily considering not going through episode 04 mostly due to being in the public eye but I like talking about shows I enjoy, regardless if my writing is shitty or not. By the way, the title says almost go through this shot by shot only because there's a 30-image limit. This scene is LONG so I can't catch everything but I can catch most.

By the way, before we start, a massive huge thank you to the Nocturne people, i don't think they'd read this, but if they do, all the scenes are really well crafted and interweave soooo nicely to their next point of interaction. I would love to know everyone who worked on this section, but if not I do hope they hear my utmost thanks and applause from all the way from Australia.

(Actually, just everyone who worked on Nocturne take a standing ovation from me lol, the show actually changed my life lmao, but I digress)

To introduce people who may be reading my analyses for the first time:

I implore you to rewatch Nocturne after reading this and make your own thoughts because while this is an analysis, it also comes through my own lens. These are just my thoughts and by no means end-all-be-all!

These are just observations based on my special interest and study in the field of in media production and analysis (i haven't been in that field for a while but I'm trying to get back into the swing of things HAHAHA)! Despite all of that, this is for fun, which is why I will be writing a lot more casually, so please don't take this too seriously! This not only helps me out as a student to become aware of how stories are put together and, in turn, how to apply them and make my own, but it also allows me to impart that excitement to you! Shot choices matter, especially when you have only 8 episodes, a deadline, a budget, asset restrictions, and so on. It all has to count. Everything matters.

Passionate creatives care and there is more than "the curtain is blue just because." The times when things slip under the radar and are put there just because are mostly due to executive meddling, budget restrictions, and deadlines.

With that said, this is actually a lot more thicker than previous breakdowns, WHOOPS. So please feel free to read this in chunks, and I will warn you that my grammar is not the best so you might have to bear with me here! As a warning, I will be using the words like sex, genitalia, etc. I only mention the actual acts of sex when presented as a joke.

--

Why am I putting in this last close shot of Tera? It is important because the whole scene beforehand has us mentally prepared for a fight or something a lot more action-like. The walls behind Tera and Olrox's room are REALLY similar, therefore once we see this inn room, we make a split-second assumption we're jumping forward in time with the protagonist. A picture says a thousand words.

Right up until the Olrox and Mizrak scene, our protagonist and antagonists both have very distinct places of associations and visuals, which often give the audience clues about their roles. They're established immediately from episode 01 and don't divert that line, that is until inn room. You can argue the line waivers in the courtyard, but the distinction is made REALLY clear in this episode.

The main cast, aka our protagonists, their places of association are usually amongst nature and people. If they're inside buildings, it is small cramped space, very much lived in and not completely upkept BUT it is what makes them very human. Our antagonists are associated with grand buildings and detailed windows that almost touch the ceiling. Gold trimmings. Vibrant rich colours that could only be afforded by the rich. If not the massive chateau, we have larger-than-life catholic churches, with stone walls higher than the eye can see. Our antagonists are congregations and establishments. Our protagonists are individuals.

I'd love to put some examples but I've used up my image slots, which means I'm making you rewatch (jokingly you don't have to) Nocturne from ep1-ep4 making you really conscious of the backgrounds

We as an audience have already slotted Olrox with with high-class, even though we as an audience know there's more to him. Olrox is designed with visual cues of the antagonists. His clothes literally could be wallpaper for the chateau. Not only that, the way he stands and holds himself very much leans into some of the stereotypes and tropes of the upper class that are often shoved into the media we consume. Then Mizrak, we do not see Mizrak anywhere besides the church, just strictly following the commands of the Abbott. We as an audience already have preconceived notions about religion, especially catholicism in the real world. Also, we have an established view of how Castlevania goes about religious characters from the previous series. Mizrak appears to have no other purpose but to be one of the main antagonist's guards.

This is a subversion.

Subtly this is going to tell us there is so much more with Mizrak and Olrox, and how their values align more with the protagonists rather than the villains and antagonists of the show. However, since they already began as oppositions to Richter and co, they need to earn the trust of the audience first so then they become more likable whenever they do have to earn the trust of Richter and co. This is our first building block. A step towards trust towards us and a step towards trust between Mizrak and Olrox.

(The location of their private conversations is REALLY important because they also tell us a lot about the characters, but I'll save it for the ep 3 breakdown when I get to it)

The sequencing and length of these shots are really important for the first half of the bedroom scene because we have exposition to get through. The scene has to be set out very strong from the start BUT, it also has to ease us in because this is a drastic shift, not only visually with naked characters but also a shift on the audience's expectation of already established characters. This is why we need this window first. We need to ease into this bedroom scene, or else we're going to be way too distracted by what is about to be shown.

Going forward SOME of these will be gifs to help illustrate my point. After all this is an animation! This is really important to show you in motion.

This pan down, oh my god this pan down. Camera pans help to reveal new information off-camera or to showcase a shift in tone/perspective. Suffice it to say THAT IS A LOT OF INFORMATION and a new shift in tone. This long shot is here to help establish our setting more clearly, what characters we're following, and what is happening. What are we establishing here? Mizrak and Olrox had sex in an inn room, that's all this shot is. It doesn't have to be anything fancy, other than the fact Olrox is censoring his own and Mizrak's crotch but that's it. As simple as it is, it is extremely effective. Yet it's so pulled back and obscured by the flower we can't be completely certain which is why we need the midshot of them that follows after, which helps to continually ease us into the scene. It tells us so much with so little. Show, don't tell is not only a powerful tool in visual arts. It leaves the audience to their imagination and I'm pretty sure a lot of us can fill in the gaps (I see you writers, I've seen everything on AO3).

This a midshot of Mizrak blankly staring up at the ceiling. Then they both turn to each other before Mizrak leaves and Olrox watches. In silence.

It's simple.

It's straightforward.

It makes you throw your arms up and go "what the fuck is happening???" It works. We're easing into this scene which is what we need. We're distracted by our own shock. So we've gone from our establishing the bed to establishing in our faces that, yes, it is indeed Olrox and Mizrak and they are both naked. That yes, they had sex and that Mizrak decided to stay for the night. Reasons? No clue and it's not important plot-wise, we just need to wrap our heads around that it is THESE TWO. It needs to be simple.

The lack of dialogue gives us room to breathe and to think. This is why this shot feels and holds on for what feels like a long time, in silence.

It might've changed but last I recall on average, shots will hold for 2-3 seconds. This is due to preventing the audience loose interest because the unchanging visual stimuli (and let's be frank attention spans are shortening, therefore media will change to reflect that). HOWEVER, a shot length heavily depends on the context of the scene and what you're trying to specifically say with a single shot, therefore making it super short OR super long. This one shot is six seconds. It allows for the dramatics to be amped up and it allows us to get through our shock for a bit longer since we're only TWO SHOTS into this scene, and right after this we're jumping straight into exposition and their deeply intricate dynamic. This is out six seconds to scream our heads off in shock and laugh in disbelief before we get hit with Mizrak's existential crisis.

The silence and the simplicity of it all also strengthen their mysterious characterization that has been established in episodes 01-03. We never see how they got here OR the act itself. However, what is really telling of these characters is their lack of body language and facial expressions. From episodes 01-03, Mizrak and Olrox have been seen to be very reserved characters until their fight in the courtyard. Their last scene together was fighting, in a courtyard. Now we're seeing them, post-sex, with neutral expressions and body language? The lack of any answers, the lack of anything dynamic happening from this shot and the last shot makes the audience absolutely learn for an answer. We're now invested in this side plot. What got these two men to be in this vulnerable state? How do we get the answer? We sit, we wait, we watch that vulnerability get earned. Mutual vulnerability that is.

This gets into personal opinion here so feel free to skip, but I really really enjoy how we get absolutely no answer or visuals, which might be a strange take for someone who does of fan-anims and fanart of them coughcough. We as an audience can get through literally two images and understand they had sex. We don't need to be spoon-fed. Media is in my personal opinion is more fun to engage in where we get just enough to know what going on, but we can fill in the blanks ourselves. We can read between the lines. This is adult animation. This is not to say I'm opposed to an explicit scene with them later down the line, I just think this is a very good way to establish the dynamic they are going to have. It has me way more emotionally invested in these characters which I believe is far more important because it tells me we're in it for the long haul and we're going to see a relationship actually develop in real time, both their high points and pitfalls. Also, I personally feel this whole scene is building towards something we have yet to see. I do not believe this is the last time we will see them put in a situation like this due to the whole emotional weight of them being naked, but that's theory territory LOL. I'm so happy to be proven wrong though.

This long shot is slightly tilted up to help to censor genitalia but it is again a REALLY SHOCKING SHOT. I personally don't know any recent Western animated media that has done this, especially of a male couple. Even if there are some animated examples, this is not a very common thing, especially to this extreme.

Now we're actually getting into the meat of their actual discussions, knowledge, if you will.

By the way, the question Olrox is presenting, is already information everyone knows. Actually, a better word is presumed. We saw the abbot in episode 02. Olrox explicitly states it in episode 03, asking "Why is your abbot forging Night Creatures for the Vampire Messiah?" There's technically no reason to say this BUT for this scene, it works because we're still distracted visually. We still need to ease into this, much like how Olrox needs to ease himself into this conversation before getting what he wants truly. Mizrak's opinion.

This midshot of Mizrak's back is so much important then you think.

I can be wrong, but I feel like you're supposed to be half-distracted or get whiplash by Mizrak's back. Frankly, we're supposed to get major whiplash from these two characters naked for a moment. These characters are usually completely covered from the neck down. This also makes the conversation they're having to be put under a way different lens. If they were clothed for this entire scene, the emotional weight would almost be non-existent.

Nakedness/lack of clothes is vulnerability, especially for a knight. Especially for a guarded vampire. I will be talking A LOT about vulnerability, so I hope I don't wear out the word too much.

You can perceive this shot in two ways and I think both work in this scenario. It can showcase even when naked and vulnerable, his unwillingness to open up, unable to fully face his own truths, the truths Olrox lays out for him. Yet, you're also having your back to a vampire, a perceived threat, which is a very vulnerable position to be in. You can't see your opponent.

It shows Mizrak trusts Olrox physically, but not emotionally. Not yet. We're going to watch Olrox earn it and for Mizrak to reciprocate it back throughout the series. Also just in general, sex requires vulnerability, choice AND trust, therefore even the implication of sex, those meanings get slapped down onto these characters. It means that they have the means to trust, be vulnerable, and have a choice with each other physically, but emotionally, they're building up to that.

This medium shot will be the ONLY SHOT we get of Mizrak in his boxers. This is plainly in part of the fact he's hurriedly getting dressed BUT we need to see his hesitation, him slightly lowering his clothes, him actually listening to Olrox.

Olrox is right.

Though Olrox isn't here to converse about other people to Mizrak. He wants his opinion.

Close-up shot of Olrox!

Close-ups are used to make the facial expression of a character the main focus. It gives us clarity on the character's thoughts and feelings on a particular subject, even when lying it can already tell us a lot about a character in the moment. The character themselves are the sole focus of the shot, nothing else. The same goes for objects. This also means when you do the opposite and obscure the face...

(drum roll to the next shot)

This is a great close-up shot to cut to because this has Mizrak fully turn AWAY from Olrox, put on his armor, and paired with the line "I don't know what you're talking about." We're getting visual and audio confirmation that Mizrak does not want to acknowledge his own thoughts, in turn, he will not face Olrox and the audience.

He is actively putting his guard back up as soon as Olrox prods for his opinions. From episodes 01-04, all we have seen him do is be at the church and stand alongside Emmanuel, that's it. He is not a leader, a pillar of the community like the Abbot, he is a follower. A guard dog ( like Drolta Tzentes, though she has way more personal agency than Mizrak). He never voices his own opinion, his own thoughts. To do that would need you have the strength to be

VULNERABLE!

By this point in time, he's not fleshed to the same degree as most of the other characters. Richter gets the episode 01 prologue with Olrox being his main point of trauma. Tera gets her speaker backstory fleshed out along with establishing Drolta and Ezerbet's longstanding history. Annette and Edouard get a really well-established (btw beautifully done too oh my god) flashback as Annette recounts the past. While Maria has no flashbacks, her character gets to have her individual values and attitudes fleshed out due to her screen time and her connections to Richter and Tera.

Mizrak though?

Not much is known about him besides the church. We put this label on him simply due to what the show has given us, but through Olrox we're getting information out of him because clearly Olrox has seen there's more than meets the eye. Especially when Mizrak drops the line "when the world abandons you." Olrox's investment is also now our investment in discovering who Mizrak is.

Mizrak however, does not want to get personal feelings in the way of duty, a common trope in media for knights, soldiers, and religious people. So he shuts him out.

Multiple.

Times.

This shot pans up, moving Olrox from lying down, which is more casual to more structured sitting pose. Specific movement is IMPORTANT to capture, so instead of just cutting to another shot, you move the camera with it. There's a tone shift. We need to see him go from lounging to making a very direct statement. Mizrak is ignoring his question so Olrox has to be more blunt with his statement because he needs him to listen- so the camera and the his body language have to clearly state "I'm not joking or fucking around anymore, just listen."

What he says is absolute truth though, this is exactly what happens in episode 08. "They're revolutionaries, Father. We're here to crush them."

The stark difference here is crazy in this medium shot.

Mizrak. His head is purposely cut off, he's practically clothed, with his chain mail on. He's standing up and his posing is quite stiff with his hands almost balled into fists. You also might be thinking, why is his chest and boxers the only things we see???? It makes him appear so much more clothed up and, therefore a lot more guarded. Cutting off the face means we don't get to see his emotions, he's trying to ignore personal feelings on whether it's right or not.

Olrox on the other hand, is full body, we see his face, naked, and despite his very direct statement in the last shot, he still somewhat casually sitting. Olrox is STILL trying to get Mizrak to be vulnerable and trying to get HIS opinion.

Funnily enough, I've talked about this close up shot before in BOTH episode 06 and episode 08's breakdowns. However, I've never actually discussed this initial way Olrox approaches him.

Olrox again, prods at Mizrak and this time Mizrak does have to sit with that thought. "Do you think he's right?" "Are you sure this path is right?" He's asking if what Mizrak is doing is good. If the horrors committed are justifiable. Both the way their expressions tell us that Mizrak does not think it is, and Olrox KNOWS. This close-up is INTIMATE. We're getting deep into personal matters (well try)

Side profiles not only give an air of drama to a scene, but it usually means there's more to the bigger picture since we're not seeing a person's full face. We're deliberately only seeing one side of the picture.

This is a split-second shot and I've discussed it briefly in another breakdown, but now I can get to discuss it more in-depth now as it's own shot!

This is a top-down shot, putting these characters in a place of vulnerability and weakness. Olrox is put even lower than Mizrak in this shot, he's far smaller and takes up less space in this shot, therefore giving him less presence and less power. Episode 03 had established Olrox was the man (or should I say vampire) in control of the situation, hell, the shot just before this one had Olrox wrapping around Mizrak, again trying to get under his skin. Yet now he's suddenly placed the lowest in the power dynamic.

Not only this, the camera is packed in so tightly and close, it's practically suffocating. We have no visual room to breathe, almost like we're suffocated with the evil that prevails in the world and suffocated with the weight of the question "Are you sure this path is right?". Olrox's eyes are the only aspect we see of his face and Mizrak's eyes are the main focus of this shot.

And they both look horrifically sad. An emotion we have not seen either of these characters make.

This shot does not last long but it shifts the rest of the section completely, even when the moment of concern is gone. It lingers with us when dismissed because it does not match any other scene we've had thus far or what we have known of the characters.

This one specific close-up is very important because it comes back to us in episode 08 and episode 06.

It's the holding from behind and the very concerned look from behind. Mizrak only ends up mirroring ONE of the behaviors. It's the concerned look from behind in episode 06 (timestamp is 19:25). They're put at the same heights, both talking about the evils of the world. Tin foil hat here, Mizrak may end up doing the other behavior, holding from behind, in another season.

The weight of this shot is so heavy that it is treated so differently amongst all of the other shots in this entire interaction. It also holds on for much longer. It holds for 5 seconds. This is important. There are little character moments from Olrox, like how Olrox looks up at him and he holds onto Mizrak as long as he can before has has to let go and watch him walk away. Duty, before desire.

A moment that Olrox has to go through once again for episode 08.

In response to a line. "So we use our heads." Olrox jokingly goes "Or lose them."

This long shot is not only tilted up but it's on the slightest of angles as if to showcase how we're shifting the mood and tone of the scene. We are losing the gentleness and sincerity of the moment, back to the very conveniently placed knee to censor Olrox. We have Mizrak pulling up his pants. Whatever vulnerability they had, it's gone.

I don't think either of them wants to sit in the thought of their existential crisis because not only Mizrak is clearly going through one but Olrox is too. While I'm sure they were sitting with their own thoughts for a long while before meeting each other, it's only forced to be on the forefront and confronted after meeting each other.

So the "lose our heads" line ends up coming back around to where someone actually ends up losing their head in the same episode.

While first, it is very comical because I've seen so many people make the joke of "Olrox gave Mizrak head" (which doesn't help because Olrox smirks at him after passing him the head), it also solidifies Olrox's truths to Mizrak. People will lose their heads under Ezerbet, and there is evidence not even hours after their discussion. Despite the humor, Olrox is deeply concerned.

Olrox is always right. Whenever he makes a statement, he has always been right and has always been proven right. The only thing he hasn't been right about is episode 08 when he says "If you go back, she'll kill you." However, in terms of technicality, Mizrak hasn't gone back to Ezerbet/Sekmet. This will be addressed in season 02 most likely and even then I think Olrox will be proven wrong. Maybe? We shall see LOL.

Which while we're at it:

He eyes Mizrak the ENTIRE time during this very small interaction, and while he eyes him, we get a close-up of the book somewhat revealed before hiding it under his coat- silently communicating to him. This will eventually lead to episode 06. All interactions lead to effecting the next time they meet. I just really like this detail, though that might be a corn plate moment I'm not sure HAHAHA

Ok lets jump back to the bed scene!

So this follows up the "So we use our heads." "Or lose them."

This is said insincerely, so Mizrak jabs back at him with the same insincereity and less seriousness of this scene. Coupled with the fact we have a panning shot of Mizrak pulling his pants up, aka, pulling up his guard. Important note again- his back is STILL FACING HIM. Even with the chainmail fully covering him.

Also, I just really enjoy the animation here, like the way his arm goes from in front of him and straight, and then goes to being pulled back and bent, but that's a side tangent.

Low-angle tilted down shot. It ends up placing Olrox in a lower position of power than Mizrak in this current interaction, coupled with the fact that Mizrak towers over Olrox when he's standing up.

Despite us not seeing much of Mizrak besides his chest- he's fully clothed with his tunic FACING Olrox. While Olrox is STILL naked. Mizrak is shielding himself behind the cross. His faith. Olrox still is trying to delve into Mizrak's vulnerabilities and Mizrak won't give in.

Props to everyone who worked on this shot he just looked really pretty here.

This shot is tilted up and a close-up, an opposite shot to the previous one. It feels daunting, coupled with that line especially. Unlike a tilted-down shots, which make a character appear more vulnerable and weak, a tilted-up shot can make a character feel more in control of the scene. It makes him appear unwavering and solid in his stance Also, this is so specific but we haven't had any solely focused Mizrak shots for a hot moment now. The last time we had it was when he had his back turned to Olrox- now he has all his clothes on and is fully turned towards Olrox. Say it with me !! Mizrak's guard is up !! He's shielding his vulnerability !!

He feels way more emotionally safer to face him guarded up and a lot of his language has very very subtly shifted from when he had clothes on versus off.

Also thank you to everyone who worked on this shot, Olrox is very pretty here too.

Instead of having a tilted-down shot to do a verse version of Mizrak, it's pretty much straight forward close-up shot, which means the equal power dynamic in this conversation has returned. Simply because Olrox begins to prod at Mizrak again with the line "Who pays for it? Will you?"

Oop naked Olrox. However, despite Olrox's ass being very clearly on display, he's not the main focus since his face isn't shown. He's only here to showcase the visual contrast of him being naked to a fully clothed Mizrak. Even his dagger is strapped to his thigh, which only means there's even more layers to his protective bubble he surrounds himself in.

This close-up is important because it's a declaration of how much Mizrak doesn't care in the slightest. His facial performance, aka what we're focused on, doesn't look like he's lying or secretly worried either, he's genuinely disinterested. He just wants to get dressed and leave because Olrox keeps prodding at HIM for his opinions. As disinterested as he is for whatever Olrox has to say, he's disinterested in shedding his opinion.

This midshot is so casual. He is very non-nonchalantly leaning back with a smile and jokes about demons. The camera moves with Olrox. Camera pans normally mean revealing new information visually, as if something is off camera, similar to the bed reveal at the beginning of this whole scene. What Olrox is doing is revealing new information. Also, he is on the very right of the screen then slowly gets pushed a little more towards the center, but still on the right. Having a character placed on the very cusp of a stage makes the visual balance feel really off, therefore as an audience, we feel really off-balance. So couple that with Olrox's humourous attitude with an information dump...

This so interesting because it sprinkles in that Olrox knows a lot about the forge master ability, hell itself, and a lot more we don't get privy to. He knows way more then he lets on.

This ONE LINE gets three different shots. The very casual, humorous sentiment gets interrupted visually with extreme close-ups of Mizrak who is clearly peeved and tense about this. The quick succession of jumping to different images makes us tense up. This is due to the timing suddenly speeding up AND where the camera is placed is so drastically different.

He's reacting to the conversation unlike how he has before.

Now Mizrak's hands are fully covered, the last part of his skin, the last part that Olrox used in an attempt for vulnerability. Mizrak's guard is now unwavering, covered head to toe. He's gone from reserved and quiet to angrily guarding again.

Lol you thought I was done talking about divides and boxes, you are WRONG.

Mizrak is boxing himself into all his preconceived notions of religion. This is the only time he's been aligned inside of the door frame. Mizrak is done with this conversation and he doesn't want to hear anything else.

Also, funnily enough- Olrox takes up the amount of space in this shot as to Mizrak and the door. Compositional it does make it feel more filled up rather than empty, showcasing Olrox is listening, peeved, but he is listening. It also might hark onto the Olrox God connections that are being subtly slid to us, though this feels like a slight stretch. There's a stronger Olrox God parallel I talk about later, so pocket that thought!

I have to skip some of the shots because of the image limitation, but thought this one needed to be addressed!

Not only does this wide shot make us feel really pulled away and disconnected from whatever private conversation they were having. It also makes us feel like after this interaction, whatever same understanding they had, is gone (well not completely gone, it has to be rebuilt again). Mizrak's unrelenting faith in one God is causing a rift, a divide if you will between the both of them. They feel so separated, so distant from each other because Mizrak is still really stubborn.

Then after all is said and done. After Mizrak has the final say. He leaves and Olrox watches. Like episode 08. Again.

Olrox is pushed into a box, which funnyily enough, Olrox tends to be seen in a lot of boxed-up framing to the right of the screen. You can see a visual collection of it here. Whenever he's from the left of the screen boxed up, it's usually turned towards himself like an inner reflection.

Ok, I have to skip some more shots to get to here.

"One God. And you think he can protect you?"

This is major foreshadowing but the one God, that Olrox scoffs about is himself. This close-up solely focuses on how he looks down and watches Mizrak from above. Much like how God is described in scripture.

Psalm 53:2 NIV: God looks down from heaven on all mankind to see if there are any who understand, any who seek God.

Psalm 102:19 NIV: The Lord looked down from his sanctuary on high, from heaven he viewed the earth,

Olrox looking at Mizrak from above as a protector happens numerous times in episode 08.

There are also a ton of bible verses about living under the shadow of God, it's considered a positive thing because God's shadow covers the entire body, therefore a person is fully protected.

Psalms 91:1-2 NIV: Whoever dwells in the shelter of the Most High will rest in the shadow of the Almighty. 2 I will say of the Lord, “He is my refuge and my fortress, my God, in whom I trust.”

Psalm 36:7 ESV: How precious is your steadfast love, O God! The children of mankind take refuge in the shadow of your wings.

(i do realize now all my examples are psalms i hope that's ok to prove a point LOLOL)

Olrox is the sole protector of Mizrak to the point where he even drags him away for his own safety. The shot choice when he says it is a close-up shot of his face and his eye is slightly glowing, making him appear way more supernatural, almost god-like in a way.

It hasn't been confirmed (or denied for that matter) if Olrox's creature form is the Quetzalcoatl (an Aztec deity), but the god parallels are very apparent from the get-go, and a lot of the fandom (aka the audience) who are invested in Castlevania have placed this label onto him not only for the reasons mentioned above BUT also due to his association to Mizrak, who is a man who fights for God. However, this aspect doesn't get fleshed out like their vulnerability because Olrox only goes into this protector role at the very end of the season. After all, that is when he has a change of heart, much like Mizrak. This means this will not be the last time we will see Olrox in this role even after the break-up.

To wrap this up, vulnerability as showcased in episode 04 does appear in episodes 03, 06, and 08! I personally believe though that episode 04 however really hammers you on the head with it because you're able to play around with someone's literal nakedness as a visual metaphor. This episode is supposed to make you really conscious of them and the decisions they decide to make going forward. It is the bridging point between episode 03 and episode 06. It's a stab in the heart when you watch episode 08.

Vulnerability and the ability to open up is a massive thing between these characters and it's only going to get more raw and more human as the series goes on. We see it happen when Olrox is the one to open up first. One thing I noticed from both Castlevania and Castlevania: Nocturne is that love can be the most damning thing or it can save you. The choice, however, is up to you. However, to love is choosing to be vulnerable. By the way, love isn't just romantic it can be very much platonic and familial as seen with practically all the characters, both current and past... Olrox and Mizrak though are just really complicated and messy. Aren't all characters though? Isn't that what makes them human, even if they've lost it centuries ago? HAHAHASBDHADSB

(ok so the paragraphs below is my personal opinion but i think they're a good ending note/side tangent)

If we ever actually get an explicit scene it's going to make a specific commentary on how these characters have developed from season 1 to whatever season they have sex in, especially how they go about sequencing, pacing, and shot choices, especially with Netflix censoring and rating requirements. Limited things you can show, and limited things you're allowed to even imply, so everything has to make sense to what they want to portray AND say. Even simplicity requires a lot of thought. They can do some really cool stuff with it in which vulnerability, both physical and emotional, gets explored between Olrox and Mizrak. Sex is actually a very interesting way to explore a dynamic, I feel it's really underutilized, though it's mostly in part to a societal downpour view on it. With Mizrak and Olrox, two very withdrawn characters, you could say something really interesting about them as individuals and as a pair that you might not be able to do when clothed. The commentary may be as simple or as profound as the creatives behind this want it to be.

A counterpoint though is that you can very easily make a non-explicit scene feel really explicit and sensual without sex or kissing. While yes, we want confirmation through that means, don't get me wrong I love when queer love is straight-up told to us, there's something about telling a story of intimacy between characters that will often engage us first into a story. Phrases like "This is gayer than gay sex" are coined due to the emotional connection a character has, leaving a far more profound impact on an audience. Things like non-explicitly romantic touches like hands, the way the character looks at a person, communication, etc etc, are ways countless media have explored intimacy. Which Mizrak and Olrox already have. Why not build upon a solid foundation?

Whatever the pathway is, it will fit inside the themes of Nocturne and its aspects of revolution, freedom, and choice which is crazy to think "Olrox and Mizrak intimate scene??? meaning-" YES, it can (like sexual freedom, though I don't think it would be explored, it's just cool to think about). All of their scenes serve to strengthen those show's themes since they're a side plot. But I digress! I'm excited to see how they further Mizrak and Olrox's dynamic in a visual manner!

Okay, with that all said, I'm done with episode 04! One more episode to go! This was all for fun and to be silly about a show I really enjoy, but I hope this gets you to rewatch Nocturne! Apply this to other scenes! Enjoy the craft of animation!!

[resident-idiot-simp]

I would like to point out a few ester eggs with my writing that some people may pick up on.

Laura refers to Logan as Papá one because Spanish and two because OG Logan was Daddy. So obviously when she got older it would probably become dad. (That's what happened with me and I'm already projecting my relationship onto her so...) So that means no one but OG Logan gets that title.

Wade gets pop because it's really the only other one I can picture for him (bonus points it what my dad calls his father)

Laura is referred to as kit because that is the title for a baby Wolverine. Also Wade calls her mini simply because that is the only other nickname I can imagine him using.

Also it'd be super considering how much he loves Logan. He's just calling her mini version of the man he loves. It's also just true

What I call a character does matter. Logan and Wade are used when showing them more relaxed usually and not 'in character'

Other titles like hero names are used when in action while if I'm picturing the scene from a pov that would use more relaxed name you get that.

This isn't always the case but it is 90% of the time

My explaind backstory may change depending on what I'm picturing, but for the most part I like putting the events of Logan in a completely different universe.

My reasoning is simple it makes more sense that way and it has been said before Dp&W it is a different universe. Less plot holes for me and also it was all meta in the first place. Hugh gave up Logan and then Fox died because of it ¯⁠\⁠_⁠(⁠ツ⁠)⁠_⁠/⁠¯ I don't have to explain that lol.

Anyways I imagine Logan in Deadpool's universe just got killed saving Laura simple as that.

That's all I can think of for right now

[ljaylmaoo]

🎃Kinktober day 4- Hate Sex🎃

ExBf!Hook x ExGf!Fem!reader 18+

UNEDITED!!

warnings: SMUT!!, ANGST!!, this is EXTREMELY TOXIC!!!, mentions of safe word, mentions of cheating(?), and mentions of underage drinking (drink responsibly), reader is a hoe/slut/whatever term you wanna use for it lol, unprotected sex (PLEASE USE CONDOMS), squirting, creampie, etc!!!

an: tbh I didn’t think it would get this angsty or this long lol, idk if I like the way this one turned out, but yea, enjoy..? Lol also, there is a change of pov so sorry ab that lol

word count: 3.4k

︵‿︵‿୨♡୧‿︵‿︵

“Where the hell is she?!” Uliana barked at the four teens who were scattered about the Cauldron in the centre of the table, a dangerous maniacal expression visible across her face as she glanced around frantically at the others. The VKs were about to pull off possibly their biggest prank yet, maybe bigger than the prank they successfully pulled on the previously known sweet, pink, and ‘adorable’ princess two years ago. “Successful” meaning after the school year, she never came back to school and has since disappeared back down the rabbit hole to Wonderland, never to be heard from again. Was it harsh? Yeah. But did the VKs care? Not one bit. The prank had finally made them get the “respect” they deserved, or… believed they deserved from the students at Merlin Academy, and that’s all that mattered most to Uliana. This sent them on an extreme power trip and only craving more fear from their peers, so Uliana wanted to do something bigger, a prank on the entire school. Y/n was the one who came up with the idea of the prank and Uliana loved it. But of course, on the day of the prank that Y/n came up with, she was late once again. It wasn’t new for her to be running late no matter how important the day may be, and that wasn’t what initially pissed Uliana off, but it was now for the same reason: an extremely late night booty call that would result in her sleeping in and usually missing first period at the very least.

This “phase” of hers started ever since she and Hook had broken up about 4 months ago. It was a messy break up to say the least, and it was her way of coping. Hook absolutely hated it, and it hurt him more to know that the only way she could cope was to have a different guy in her bed every night just to boost her own confidence and self esteem that he wrecked which had earned her the title MA school slut. Every time he saw her now, there would be a new hickey or a bruise that was visible from how rough the guy treated her and used her body in any way he wanted. She knew they were visible, she made sure of it, because she knew it would piss him off and also because she didn’t care. It was like a physical symbol of how damaged she was emotionally and mentally. But as much as he wanted to say something about it, it wasn’t his place, not anymore. So his true feelings for her deep down that made him concerned and pity her turned to hatred and anger, bubbling within every time he saw her at the fact that he had to bite his tongue about it and act as if he didn’t care. Their friends however couldn’t care less about what she did with her life, or body, and most of them didn’t. But when it was all they heard Uliana complain and bitch about on a daily basis is when they began to grow tired of it as well.

Because they shared the same friend group, they had no choice but to keep hanging around each other and it was awkward for the group the first few weeks with the two ignoring and trying their best to stay out of each others way, but eventually Hook came to terms with the fact that they had to stay in each others lives wether they liked it or not. He knew what he did to her was wrong and he did feel bad, but no matter what he said or did to try and make up with her (for their friends sake), it never worked. Y/n was having an extremely difficult time with coming to terms with it, she would have an attitude towards him and would never give him any time of day. She made it known that she didn’t like him and wanted nothing to do with him anymore, especially after what he did to her. The rare times they actually did talk (which was almost never), they bickered and threw small insults at each other.

Hades and Maleficent only shrugged, frowning as they did so, uninterested. Uliana groaned and mumbled something under her breath about how useless they were before turning to the boy on her right who was currently stood with his arms crossed like he would rather be anywhere else but there. He slowly looked over at her and gave her a dirty look, “What?” He questioned, a hint of attitude lingering in his voice. She shook her head in disbelief, scoffing, “uh hello? Go get her!” She snapped at him while pointing towards the entrance of the lair. “Wha- no? Why me?” He asked bewildered. “Because all you’re doing is standing there looking pretty, make yourself useful, Hook!” She hissed while coming closer towards him in a threatening manner. He leaned back as she came closer to him completely invading his personal space, “no, I’m okay actually. She’s not my responsibility.”

“Yeah, but you’re the reason why she’s been acting like this.” Maleficent smirked as she took Uli’s side. Hook gave her a look and back to Uli who raised her eyebrows in agreement.

︵‿︵‿୨♡୧‿︵‿︵

Hook stood on the outside of her dorm waiting impatiently for her to answer the door, knocking for what seemed to be the millionth time (really, it was more like 5). “Leave me alone!” He heard your voice yell from the other side. He doesn’t know why he constantly let Uliana boss him around, but alas here he was again, this time letting her force him into being his ex girlfriend’s personal alarm clock. He found it embarrassing, glaring at the few students who passed by. Part of him wanted to say fuck it and leave, but he knew Uliana would throw a hissy fit if she saw that he didn’t come back with Y/n. So, contemplating on what to do, he decided to barge in her dorm as any fucks he gave before drained out of him, he was sick of it.

It was dark and the smell of sex lingered in the air, clothes trailed on the ground that led to the bed where she was buried under the large, soft sheets with a mountain of pillows scattered around her head. He instantly went over to the window and ripped open the curtains, sunlight instantly flooding in and lighting up the room. Y/n groaned and pulled the duvet over her head, “get out!” “I would love to, trust me. But-“ “James?” Y/n peeked over the blankets in confusion and made eye contact with the pirate who was stood by the window. “Yeah..hi.” Y/n furrowed her eyebrows and slowly sat up, rubbing her eyes. Before she could say anything, another head from beside her shot up in alarm and looked at him, “shit. Uh, I’m just gonna..” he quickly threw the covers off and frantically put his shirt back on, James watching him with a judgmental look as the guy grabbed the rest of his clothes and shoes off the ground and ran out in only his shirt and underwear, slamming the door shut behind him, leaving the two alone in an uncomfortable silence.

James cleared his throat, “…um, sorry for scaring away your, friend…” he said awkwardly but also uninterested. Y/n shook her head, “It’s fine. I didn’t like him anyways. He was kind of an asshole. But, what the fuck are you doing here in my dorm?” She questioned, the drowsiness slowly clearing up around her head. “Uliana threatened me to come get you. I didn’t mean to intrude but I am not leaving here without you.” The girl raised an eyebrow and scoffed, “yeah… no. I’m not leaving here with you. I’d rather chug a gallon of poison.” Hook shrugged, “I wish that was an option, but really, Y/n. I’m protecting us both from Uli. So I suggest you get your ass up now and get ready before I drag you out of here myself.” He said in a stern and threatening tone. She crossed her arms and stayed in place in an attempt to protest against him, “now.” He repeated, when she saw the look on his face she knew he wasn’t joking. She groaned and threw the covers off and finally got up, beginning to walk over to her closet. Hooks eyes widened when he saw that she was completely naked, with only a small thong that covered little to nothing. It also just happened to be his favourite she’d wear to tease him with when they were together. His eyes traced her figure, the small bruises and marks on her chest and ass making him fill with rage. He didn’t know if it was because they were from someone who didn’t actually care about her and was just another scumbag who was simply using her for her body, or because they weren’t from him. Both perhaps..?

“I can feel you staring.” She said annoyed while she finished putting her top on, glancing over to him that sat across the room leaned up against her desk. He made eye contact with her and she saw the angered and unimpressed look on his face, “what?” He rolled his eyes and looked away, “nothing. I just don’t know why you let guys who don’t give a shit about you treat you like that.” She threw the pants she picked out over her arm and turned to him, biting her cheek before scoffing, “treat me like what?” He turned to her and mirrored her body language, crossing his arms, “I’m sorry I didn’t mean to offend you, darling.” he laughed bitterly tilting his head slightly, blinking innocently, “I just don’t know why you’re acting like this and allowing yourself to get treated and used up like some fucking slutty ass cum dump.” Y/n’s mouth dropped at his sudden cruel bluntness. She knew he was right, and she was well aware of how she was acting. But no one has ever “cared” enough to be that straight up and call her out on it to her face. But it was his fault.

She looked away and shook her head in disbelief, tongue poking the inside of her cheek with a dangerous breathy laugh, “okay you really wanna start this now?” She started, walking up to him slowly and throwing her pants on the ground, “you’re really asking me why I’m acting like this? Why do you care what I’m doing with my life all of a sudden after we broke up?” Hook sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose, “Y/n. I’m not trying to argue. I’m just saying it’s really unhealthy and you shouldn’t be-“ “oh! So it was completely fine for you to be doing the same thing while we were together?” Y/n questioned while throwing her hands to the side, “it was one time! I was drunk and I hardly even remember it!” “Oh fuck off! It doesn’t matter whether you were drunk or not! Being intoxicated doesn’t excuse you for acting like a man whore all night at the only party I wasn’t able to make!” She took a deep breath, “and with the one girl you told me not to worry about? Really?” Tears pricked in her eyes as her voice cracked at the end of her speech while she yelled in his face.

“You don’t think I feel bad about it?! You should be glad I even told you the truth about the kiss in the first place!” The two went back and forth, screaming at each other as unexpected tears streamed down their faces. Hook backed her into the wall as he angrily expressed his frustration and feelings, “-and gods sake for the millionth time Y/n I said I’m fucking sorry!” He cried out their faces were now inches away from each other, out of breath and eye brows furrowed as they stared into each other’s eyes mixed with hatred and rage. In the heat of the moment, they suddenly clashed their lips together hungrily into a heated make out session. Their tongues dancing around in their mouths fighting for dominance as he pushed her up against the wall and his arms pulled her hips closer to him, her hands pulling at his hair. It surprised them at first, but neither of them pulled away as they missed each other’s touch all too much. Y/n quickly jumped up, wrapping her legs around his waist as the kiss continued to get even more heated and sloppy. Their bodies moved perfectly in sync with one another, y/n whined at the contact against her heat at his growing erection.

2nd person pov

Hook pulled away and tugged at your shirt, you let him pull it off effortlessly and he kissed down you jaw to your neck, biting and sucking harshly in the same spots as the previous guy had left his mark causing you to let out small moans. He made sure his were more prominent and dark before latching onto your sweet spot on your neck that never failed to drive you insane. “you know- every time I see- your neck marked up- I don’t think- I ever saw one- here.” His voice mixed with cockiness that was muffled with his mouth pressed up against your skin. You moaned as he bit harder before soothing it with his tongue. “Oh my god-“ you breathed out, grinding against him more. “It drives me crazy- knowing that- every guy- you’ve slept with- doesn’t know how to- make you feel good.” You were gasping in pleasure, missing the feeling of someone actually knowing, or even caring, to make you feel this good. It was true, every guy didn’t ever take the time to at least try and learn how to make you feel good. They either assumed what felt good, or just simply didn’t care, only using you for their own pleasure.

He carried you over to the bed and threw you down, unbuckling his belt and pulling his pants and underwear down enough for his cock to spring out before leaning down to your face, “can I ask how many times total you’ve actually came while sleeping with them, darling?” He asked while caressing the side of your face, “total..?” You asked cautiously. He nodded and you thought about it, “ten…” you lied, trying to look away, “not including the fake ones.” You sighed “…um..maybe three..?” You shyly admitted, face turning a light shade of pink. He smirked and pulled your hips closer to his, “that’s what I thought” he pulled your thong to the side and lined himself up, “I can easily make you come more times than that.” He stated. Your eyes widened at his words but before you could say anything, he pushed himself into you causing you to let out a moan. The feeling of him stretching you out perfectly made you throw your head back, gripping the sheets beneath you. “Oh fuck-“ you whimpered as he bottomed out, “that’s it, just feel it.” He cooed. He pulled back out and eased back into you. You gasped at the feeling of his cock moving in and out of you at a steady pace. You knew (especially from experience) that it was extremely rare to find someone who could make you feel good without trying. It made you more upset that James was that person for you. Like your pussy was made to fit around his cock. Like it was made just for him and him only.

He picked up his pace and ducked his head down to your chest, taking one of your nipples in his mouth and sucking it while he rubbed circles on your sensitive clit. Your hands found their way back into his hair and you let out desperate moans, feeling the knot in your stomach tightening. You ground yourself onto him, meeting his hips as your back arched off the bed, “fuck- James-“ you cursed, tugging at his hair more as you felt your release approaching fast. Your walls tightened and you felt your first orgasm wash over you letting out a groan. He lifted his head and looked down at you while still fucking into you, “not even a few minutes in and I’ve already made you come?” He smiled. Your legs shook at the overstimulation while furrowing your eyebrows and flipped him off but quickly grabbed his wrist beside your stomach as he skillfully positioned his hips to hit your g spot causing you to moan louder and he let out a chuckle finding it amusing how well he made you feel.

Your grip on his wrist tightened and your eyes rolled back feeling your second orgasm approaching quicker than the last as you let out a whimpered scream. “Yeah, you can do it, come for me again baby.” He praised, “shit!” You screamed out as you came again on his cock. The sound of your juices squelching out from your hole as he still continued to fuck into you filling the air. You dug your nails into his skin as your whole body began to tremble beneath him. You shook your head, “I- can’t- take it- anymore-“ you cried. He brought his hand up to your face, “yes you can-fuck-“ he cut himself off with a moan, “two more for me, come on.” He stopped for a moment to throw your legs over his shoulders and began picking up his pace, this time faster than before causing your toes to curl as he hit a spot deeper inside you. He grabbed your hand as he ploughed his hips into yours. Your mouth fell open and your eyes clenched shut, raspy weak moans escaping your mouth. You hated that he was the only guy who knew how to make you feel this good. But at the moment you didn’t care, mind too caught up in the way his cock filled you up in all the right places. The continuous feeling of his tip abusing your cervix and sounds that fell from his lips (that you missed terribly) made your whole body tense up as it ripped another orgasm out of you.

He grabbed your hips to hold them still, feeling you try to pull away from the extremely overwhelming and intense feeling of pleasure soon turning to pain. The walls of your pussy clenching as tightly as possible, not knowing if they were trying to suck him in or push him out. “Too much! Too much!” You screamed, “just one more, I know you can do it sweetheart. You remember our safe word- don’t you darling? If you want me to stop- shit- just let me know.” Of course you remembered. Though you’ve never had to use it, and you knew he knew how much you could handle. Your stubbornness wanted to prove to him that you could take what he gave you. Soon after, your thoughts were clouded by the feeling of your last orgasm that hit you harder than the rest, your whole body spasming and trembling as you screamed his name louder than ever, eyes rolling all the way back in your head as juices squirted out of you like a fountain while you felt him finish inside of you, moaning out loud with you before pulling out.

Your body continued to shake uncontrollably and you let out pathetic whines with tears streaming out of your eyes again as the feeling didn’t stop even after he had pulled out, your hole clenching on nothing but air. He soothingly rubbed circles on your thigh trying to calm you down from your high, talking you through it. Eventually you came down, body and legs still shaking. When you both caught your breaths, there was an uncomfortable silence that filled the air once again. Neither of you knew how to feel or what to say. Hook silently got up and grabbed a towel from your bathroom, cleaning you off first then trying his best to clean up the mess you’d made on him and his clothes without much luck. He sighed and turned to you,

“Um… do you still have my spare change of clothe-“

“Bottom drawer.”

“Okay.”

[emmg]

WIP whenever

because @heylittleriotact uno reverse'd me lmfao

bc grading essays is overrated, so here’s a lil’ something from the ridiculous fic I’m forcing my keyboard to suffer through. Plot? Absolutely none. Just Emmrook going on “dates” (and like also… smutty dates) suggested by the other clowns haunting the Lighthouse. This one’s SUPPOSED to end in a coffee date—because Lucanis—but I haven't written that yet lol

Honestly, it’s like… smut-crackfic with necromancy puns that should be punishable by law. I keep saying I’ll write a serious Emmrich one day, but let’s be real, that day isn’t today

Anyway, title? Don’t have one. I'm just throwing a bunch of dashes and slapping a read-more right before it gets too long so it doesn't invade anyone's dash

--------------

It’s the most absurd scene. Like, truly bonkers. 

She hovers in the doorway, conveniently camouflaged by shadows, because though the cringe levels are searing her soul, she simply cannot look away. It’s like watching a runaway cart barreling downhill, if said cart was cobbled together with blissful ignorance and top-tier ineptitude. 

There, crammed onto Harding and Neve’s favorite tiny sofa, are Lucanis and Emmrich. And they’re... talking? Sort of? It’s the most agonizing conversation she’s ever been subjected to, and that’s saying something. Lucanis is flailing his hands around, using them more than words, trying to drive home whatever point he’s failing spectacularly to make. Meanwhile, Emmrich, ever the dignified one, has one leg crossed so neatly over the other that it creates this little triangle of space that she suddenly wants to crawl into and hide from the embarrassment radiating off both of them. 

"You see," Lucanis laments, his fingers forming that universal gesture of the confused and the desperate, “we went for coffee. But she, well, threw it back. Like a shot of spirits. It was not just any brew. This was from the frost-bitten slopes of the Vimmark Mountains. A dark roast with notes of juniper and just a hint of wild honey. You don’t just drink something like that—you experience it.” He shakes his head. “Her focus was all on that new case file, instead. And fish. Fried fish."

Emmrich nods along thoughtfully. “I understand. However, if I may be so bold, Lucanis, have you perhaps thought of discussing something besides coffee? A change of topic might open new avenues.” 

"I did offer to sharpen her knives."

“Knives,” Emmrich repeats, as though weighing the term’s philosophical import. “And… Neve is known to possess a significant collection of blades?” 

“No,” says Lucanis, flat as a pancake. 

“Ah,” Emmrich replies, offering a sage nod. A wise and knowing “ah,” as if that somehow clarified things. "An unusual approach, then." 

Desperate to claw himself out of this conversational pit, Lucanis asks, “Well, what is it you and Rook… do?” He stumbles over the words, as though simply asking has exhausted his entire social skill set for the year. 

And now, it’s Emmrich’s turn to squirm. She can almost see his moustache twitching, wishing it could detach itself from his face and make a run for the hills. He looks away, frowning slightly, as though consulting some vast internal library.  

They don’t go on dates. Please. Not even the hilariously doomed sort that Lucanis somehow subjected Neve to. For one, neither of them has the time for candlelit strolls with the world about to be ripped apart by blighted elven gods strutting around like they own the place.

Usually, she just pops into his room and fucks him while he pontificates about the finer points of romance. Oh, she always lets him go on for a hot minute, but once her lips are on his throat and her hands start wandering further south, he finally gets the hint, and that highbrow nonsense about “dignified courtship” goes straight out the window.

Emmrich, after clearing his throat, finally answers, "We discuss books."

From her shadow, she snorts. He's not wrong, technically. Just the other night, she had perched in his lap while he was reading some dry treatise on Fade energy attunement and the properties of dawnstone. He’d even launched into a detailed explanation while she kissed her way down his jaw and neck, hardly deterred by the lecture. Finally, when her hand wandered beneath his shirt, Emmrich, after a brief struggle to finish his monologue, allowed the tome to tumble from his grip.

So yes, “discussing books” might be accurate, but it’s hardly the whole story. And yet here sits Emmrich, steadfast in his scholarly pride, while Lucanis looks ready to take a long walk off a very short pier. She’s not sure which of them is more tragic. 

“Hm,” says Lucanis, apparently having reached the absolute zenith of his conversational abilities. 

“Ah,” Emmrich replies, with all the enthusiasm of someone describing mildew yet also, somehow, managing to sound very polite about it. 

She saunters over to break this pathetic monotony of wall-staring both are currently engaged in.

“My dear,” Emmrich perks up, relief flooding his face as though she’s just rescued him from the depths of some social hell. His voice is full of that charming lilt he uses when he’s desperate to salvage his dignity. 

He makes a half-hearted attempt to stand, all dignified and well-bred, but she waves him off with a lazy hand, signalling him to stay seated. And stay he does. Without missing a beat, she slides into his lap, practically draping herself sideways over him, arms winding around his neck. He tenses for a moment, exhales in resignation, but eventually gives in, one hand resting at the small of her back, fingers just barely grazing the line between respectable and… well, decidedly not. 

“I hate when you do that,” Lucanis snarls from across the sofa, jabbing a finger at her. 

“Yes, it’s not very proper,” Emmrich says with solemnity, though he’s showing absolutely zero signs of protest about her whole backside pressing against him. 

With a serene, mischievous grin, she stretches her legs, casually extending them until they’re firmly invading Lucanis’ personal space. 

“Mierda,” he grumbles, swatting at her ankle with all the fervor of a cat being swiped at by an annoying feather. “Rook.” 

She just grins that beautifully infuriating grin. “Go back to your pantry, Lucanis,” she says sweetly, her tone one of pure, serene malice. “The gouda is getting lonely.” 

Lucanis stalks off, glowering as if he’d chuck a knife at her head if he had one in hand. And she’s fairly sure he would. 

She blows him a kiss. He shows her the middle finger. They’ll have coffee in the morning.

Meanwhile, Emmrich, ever the portrait of indulgent patience, looks up at her from his cozy place beneath her with a satisfied hum. “How was your day, darling?” 

“Good,” she sighs, stretching further until her legs are practically colonizing whatever’s left of Lucanis’ side of the sofa. “Yours?” 

Emmrich raises an eyebrow. Makes a contemplative sound deep in his throat. “Enlightening. Lucanis and I were just having… an intriguing discussion.” 

“Oh?” she purrs, eyes glinting. “About what, pray tell?” 

“Courtship,” he says, savoring the word as though it were some priceless artifact he’s just dusted off from an ancient shelf. 

She smirks. “I’m sure you gave him absolutely riveting advice.” 

“I certainly tried.” He heaves a great sigh, even rolls a shoulder in a semblance of a shrug. “Though, I fear our preferred methods diverge.” 

“‘Preferred methods’?” she echoes, giving his thigh a playful squeeze. “Do enlighten me.” 

Emmrich gives her a look that’s half-scholar, half-sufferer. “Well, I fancy a touch of romance, some… sentimentality, if you will. And Lucanis…” 

“And Lucanis?” she goads. 

“His idea of a grand romantic gesture involves… knives,” he finishes with a sigh of pure exasperation. 

She can’t hold back the snort that escapes. “I mean, yeah, it’s Lucanis. Did you expect anything different?” She presses a little closer, trouble dancing in her eyes. “But for what it’s worth, I do love talking about books with you… so very much.” 

Emmrich doesn’t miss a beat, a hint of sarcasm curling his lips. “So I’ve gathered.” 

“Tell me more about your books, Emmrich,” she coos, batting her eyelashes with all the enthusiasm of a third-rate actress in a chintzy Orlesian play. 

“If you’re genuinely interested, I would gladly oblige.” 

“Oh, I’m interested,” she purrs, lowering her voice to a husky whisper. “In you talking… while you bend me over your desk.”

Emmrich rolls his eyes, his facade of feigned innocence dissolving in an instant. “There it is,” he says, shaking his head, fully resigned, and yet absolutely, unflinchingly unbothered. “Right on schedule.”

She giggles, pressing a kiss to the corner of his lips, laughing against his skin as his mouth curves into a smile. His hand moves down her back, rubbing a little more insistently, as if he’s grounding himself—or maybe just unable to resist the urge to keep her right there. 

And she doesn’t make it easy for him. She drags her legs back, swings one over his lap, and settles herself down, straddling him. For a moment, she just studies him, tracing her fingers through his hair, brushing little gray strands back, pressing featherlight kisses along his cheekbones. She moves to his jaw, his forehead, then teases at the edge of that absurdly high collar he insists on wearing like he’s hiding some grand secret rather than just a very biteable throat. 

He is fine, she muses, is he not? So impossibly precise, so painfully detailed. He’s all sharp angles and sleek lines, with those maddeningly long fingers that look like they could carve through a mountain if they set their mind to it, and legs that seem to go on for days. Tall, lean, graceful, and—she smirks—a touch too verbose for his own good.

There’s a tragic elegance to him, too, a sort of quiet, melancholic dignity wrapped up in age and maturity, like a bottle of rare, finely aged wine that’s only gotten more complex with the years. A shame, really, that he’s about to be thoroughly enjoyed by someone who wouldn’t know a fine vintage from a spoiled ale. 

She’ll savor him all the same, every last bit. 

When she takes his hands, winding her fingers through his, she feels him smile—a real, soft thing, so she leans down and steals it right off his mouth. She licks along the seam of his lips, teasing, before he finally gives in and parts them, letting her kiss him in earnest. 

“I like your rings,” she murmurs as she pulls back, letting their mouths part with a wet pop, a little string of saliva snapping between them. “They make you look expensive.” 

“Not too expensive, I hope,” Emmrich teases. “Otherwise, I fear I’ll meet the same fate as every artifact your merry Lords of Fortune collect. Pilfered in the night, sold to the highest bidder. One moment here, the next—poof. Gone.” 

She makes a show of sighing, voice deadly serious. “Oh, don’t worry about that. I’d rig the auction, slip in a pretty penny or two, then plant an inside man to bid on you. Coin in one hand, you smuggled back to me in the other. All in one night.” 

He laughs, that rich, throaty sound she loves, and she can feel it rumbling up through his chest. “All that trouble just for me?” 

She leans in, lips brushing his ear. “Consider it my own little courtship ritual,” she whispers, nipping at his earlobe. “Better than dinner and a walk, don’t you think?” 

He chuckles, his hands slipping to her hips, holding her close as if he’s half-tempted to test just how well she could pull off that heist. “Dangerously persuasive, as usual.” 

For a while, she stays just as she is, savoring the closeness, every slow inhale filled with the scent of him, the warmth of his body against hers. She steals little kisses, grazing his jaw, breathing her laughter against his skin each time he starts to smile. She loves the quiet, the intimacy of it all, though she loves his voice just as much. Sometimes, she asks him to read aloud, not for the content, but for that smooth, careful cadence that rolls through her and makes her feel so, so good. She’ll rest her head in his lap, fingers idly tracing patterns on his hands, kissing his knuckles, his fingertips, watching his face as he reads. 

Now, there’s nothing for him to read, but she leans into him all the same, letting his quiet words fill the space. He murmurs, babbles, whispers soft nonsense as he unlaces her hair, fingers brushing through the waves, watching as they fall in gentle cascades over his lap. She exhales, content, her eyes half-closed, perfectly happy just to listen as his voice drifts around her, soothing and familiar. 

She simply listens, resting her head on his thigh, gazing up at the ceiling, fingers trailing over his hands, kissing his fingers one by one, lingering on each touch. Her teeth gently scrape along his skin, letting her tongue follow in a slow, winding path. She feels his breath hitch, hears him stumble over his words as she nibbles down each finger, tracing her tongue along the edge before she takes it into her mouth, sucking just enough to leave him squirming. She lets each finger slip from her lips with a wet pop, savoring the way his composure falters, how he tries—and fails—to keep his voice steady as she drags her mouth over the center of his palm, kissing, licking, leaving nothing untouched. 

He’s given up on this one-sided dialogue entirely, his gaze drifting from her to the room around them—the door, the table, the empty corners where nothing but dust bunnies, or perhaps a few stray Fade bunnies, lurk in silence. 

“Dear,” he murmurs, glancing down at her. “We ought to move.” He gives her a gentle nudge, even tries to rise himself, but she’s not having it. 

“Oh, but you look so good here,” she protests, her voice dripping with mock innocence. “They’re all asleep, Emmrich. Even Lucanis, that kitchen rat, is probably curled up in his pantry right now, snuggling his precious wheel of parmesan.” 

Emmrich lets out a long, put-upon sigh, like he’s reaching deep into his reserve of patience, maybe for some scolding remark, but he finds none. His shoulders drop as he finally relents, letting her kisses chip away at his restraint. She leans in, her voice dropping to a sultry whisper, detailing exactly what she wants him to do with those hands of his—where she wants those fingers, how she wants them stroking, filling, plunging, curling… 

“Well then,” he manages, and she laughs, a short, wicked little sound, straight into his mouth. 

She slips down his body, her hands already at his waist, working his trousers loose with a grin that says she knows exactly how flushed he’s become. She murmurs something obscene, barely a whisper and almost incoherent, her smirk widening as she leans in closer, taunting, “Come on, Emmrich, don’t tell me no bone was ever… poked… in that crypt of yours, right out in the open for all to see.” 

“It’s the Grand Necropolis,” he corrects, like that’ll somehow keep his dignity intact, “and we most certainly do not… poke.”

She undoes the last of the many - too many - buttons on his trousers before freeing him just enough to take him in hand. And oh, would you look at that, for all of his posturing he's already hard. All that wriggling on top of him certainly led to something, she thinks.

“Oh?” she hums, tracing her fingertips over his bare skin, savoring the way he stiffens under her touch. She leans forward, her lips brushing against his length as she murmurs, “Not even a quick tumble between the tombs? Not a single bone used for inspiration?” 

His restraint crumbles as she flicks her tongue over him, taking her time, drawing out each little shiver, each catch in his breath, making sure he’s utterly undone before she finally lets her mouth close around him, her gaze locked on his as she starts to take him deeper, her mouth warm, wet, greedy. And as she feels him sink back, his hands clenching in her hair, she knows she’s finally broken that perfect composure, and she couldn’t be more pleased. 

Then she pulls back just enough to speak. “So, tell me, is this what you meant by reanimation techniques?”

Emmrich sighs, dragging his free hand over his face as if he could somehow block out the utter cringe tumbling out of her mouth, his fingers twitching, though she doesn’t give him a moment’s peace. She lowers her head again, sucking him in, hollowing her cheeks, before releasing him yet again, his cock slipping past her lips with an obscene, wet pop. “You know," she muses, "I’d say you’re looking rather stiff.”

A sharp exhale escapes him, a half-laugh, half-moan that only encourages her further. She picks up her pace, taking him deeper, her hands braced against his hips as she moves with a steady rhythm, doing that little thing with her tongue she knows he likes, she knows that everyone likes, a talent truly, swirling all the way around, pressing it flat on the underside of his cock, only to suck her way up, breathe hot air against him, before swallowing him again. 

Between every few breaths, she pulls back just enough to taunt him, her voice syrupy with mock innocence. She can barely hold back the laughter as she watches him react, his hips bucking ever so slightly with each tease, like clockwork, so deliciously predictable. “Come on, love. I thought resurrection was your specialty?”

“Blasphemy,” he mutters above her, though there’s no real heat in his voice. 

“No, no.” She rests her cheek against his thigh, stroking him instead with a slow, deliberate touch, her palm warm and slick, her grip firm. “Think of it as… a rather intensive course in raising the dead.”

The absurdity of it hits her right as she says it—her last attempt at an erotic pun officially surpassed—and she breaks, a snort escaping as she buries her face against his leg, her shoulders shaking with laughter. 

But then she feels his hands shift, pulling her up by her arms, and she yelps, startled, before giggling as he hauls her up, settling her right back on top of him. 

“That’s quite enough of that,” Emmrich whispers. 

As he catches his breath, she wipes her mouth, grinning at him with all the smug satisfaction of someone who’s just completely dismantled a man who prides himself on his restraint. She feels his fingers on her chin as he angles her face back towards his so he can kiss her and she's not shy, she tangles her tongue with his immediately, tasting as much of him as she can reach, even tracing the edge of one canine before retreating for breath. 

“Think you could, I don’t know…” She waves a hand around aimlessly. “Necromance my pants away?” 

He smiles, curling her hair around his fingers where it frames her face. “No, dear. I’m afraid that is not in my skill set.”

[tackykachowch]

Can I ask more on your thoughts about how Silco isn't a dictator?

Alright. But I'll put a disclaimer: I am not that knowledgeable on the topic and I'll just write my opinion based on the facts I do know. If someone will have more convincing arguments I'm happy to change my view on this.

So. Silco may qualify as a dictator based on the fact that he has absolute power over the Undercity and from what we're shown there are no other people with some kind of political power besides chembarons, who are his associates. However, the way he operates (because rules doesn't really describe what he's doing imo) lacks key parts of a dictatorship.

- cult of a persona. I don't need to tell you that every dictator irl made a cult out of themselves. Stalin, Hitler, Mussolini you name it. However we do not see this at all with Silco. There are only two "Eye of Zaun" symbols that we see and considering their placements they don't really serve as something that establishes his....I guess influence? Or power? They just. Hang out there. One is on The Last Drop because his office is there, and other is near the water tower and tbh I think it's only there for symbolic and plot reasons lol. So he's not preoccupied with establishing some kind of persona that people can worship at all.

- propaganda. There's just. Nothing of that sort in Zaun ever, I think. Piltover has titles like "City of progress!" and something like posters in s2 but Zaun is just. There. There aren't any posters or something else that encourage people to take shimmer orrr. Well. That's exactly why I said that Silco doesn't really "rule" the Undercity because all that he's doing is managing shimmer business. Like that's'- that's all. He doesn't do anything else. And while he did "fill the streets the Undercity with shimmer" it doesn't necessarily mean that he encouraged its use. He just made it available for everyone. We see a lot of characters who don't use it at all (his henchmen) or use it in moderate amounts. So yeah.

- military power. Silco is straight-up not interested in growing an army or again using propaganda on people to make them want to go to war with Piltover. Sure he has a certain amount of fighters in chemtec suits, but it doesn't at all reach the levels of military culture countries under dictatorship have.

- while Silco does stop any attempts of uprising against him, in general he doesn't seem to be that involved with the people. He just lets them to do whatever they want. He didn't even do anything about statue dedicated to Vander although it represents everything that goes against the way he runs things. Dictators usually encourage some kind of discrimination against certain groups of people, like disabled people for example, but in Zaun it's the opposite. A lot of people use chemtec prosthetics and tbh the Undercity's accessibility is times better than in Piltover.

So that's my opinion on why Silco doesn't really qualify as a dictator. Of course he doesn't need to check all the boxes to be one, but he doesn't even check a couple.

Civil discussions are welcomed!

[in-amor-veritas]

7 for the Spotify drabble challenge? 💚

Elloooo Phnelt :)

You got

Dust: Elliphant

I listened to this song so much after s3

This might be a little specific but in my current fic I mentioned Wilhelm had once punched a reporter that was harassing Simon so…. have a little divorce fic/ hate me like you love me drabble (unedited lol I’m too lazy)

Wilhelm has had plenty of experiences with the press, with journalists and even with the occasional paparazzo that time he and Simon had taken a vacation to the Amalfi coast.

However, it’s not so common in Sweden to be accosted in this manner especially when attention has turned to Crown Prince August. Now that he is no longer a working royal, Wilhelm’s presence is not required for events or press conferences and without a juicy scandal to obsess over the public interest has more or less waned.

It’s given them more freedom than they were extended in the beginning of their relationship. They can move through the city unbothered for the most part, even though he remains hyper-vigilant, always a tense edge in public. That kind of constant alertness is something Wilhelm doesn’t think he will ever shake.

And it’s not as though they don’t get recognized, but it’s mostly tourists or young people that approach and usually they remain fairly respectful and compliant when Wilhelm tells them they would appreciate privacy.

He’s not a public figure anymore, at least not officially, so he doesn’t indulge people with their requests for selfies and doesn’t answer questions or give any information to people he doesn’t know. One would think that this would be common sense, but it doesn’t stop people from trying.

It’s rare that it happens though these days. There’s plenty more scandal and intrigue to keep the public’s eyes off of them, there’s far more interesting gossip.

When the court announces Crown Prince August’s decision to renounce his title however, things change and quickly.

He and Simon had been briefed on this of course, had had a meeting with the court and been told to lay low as they expected the announcement would cause a spike of public scrutiny and opinion.

Yet they still have lives to carry on with. At the meeting Simon was very adamant that he wasn’t going to hide away, he has classes and rehearsals and a part time job to go to after-all. Wilhelm understands, but he worries especially when he reads the more extreme things being said by certain anonymous groups online. They may be a small minority, but it makes him uneasy.

Still they go about their lives in the best way they can, trying to pretend they aren’t on edge, hoping that eventually people will lose interest.

It hasn’t blown over yet though and that’s how he and Simon find themselves dealing with the current situation on hand.

The journalist had surprised them, having been lurking around their apartment. Wilhelm had noticed him first, squeezing Simons hand and adjusting the plastic bag of their food shopping in the other.

He’s asking all the things they all ask. Wilhelm’s opinion on the announcement, if Wilhelm will become Crown Prince again, what the Queens opinion is, whether or not Wilhelm thinks August was good in the role.

He and Simon steadfastly ignore him, remain silent and tightlipped as they try to get around him.

The man must be frustrated that he’s getting nothing from them because then calls out.

“Simon! A source confirmed your sister and the Crown Prince used to date, is this true?”

His husband stops, the composure slips from his face. It’s just a small mistake, but it’s enough for the journalist to double down, a predator on the trail for prey.

“So it’s true—Is that why the Crown Prince is stepping down? What do you think of this? Has your sister told you—“

“You need to leave.” Wilhelm says finally, stepping in front of Simon and leveling the man with an unimpressed expression, “Leave or I will call the police.”

The man ignores him, “The Erikssons certainly have a history with the Royal Family, are you glad the Crown Prince is stepping down? This leaves it open for Wilhelm to reclaim his title and for you to become—“

“I’m not talking to you.” Simon says, with much more heat and anger laced in his words than Wilhelm. “Get out of here or—“

The man is not deterred, Simon’s reaction seems to only encourage him if anything, “What does your mother think about you becoming Prince Consort Simon, certainly it comes with perks that your family could use considering your economic status.”

The way he says it, with an underlying ribbon of mockery, the smug, knowing smile. Wilhelm sees his husband’s eyes widen, the indignant furrow of his brow, the angry curl of his lip.

“Hey asshole,” Wilhelm steps in until he’s face to face with the man, eyes narrowed, “I said to leave.”

“Or are you not going to allow Wilhelm to reclaim his rightful title considering your deeply anti-monarchist views? A source claims you are a member of the communist party which wants to see the monarchy abolished in the country—was this your plan—“

“Hey! Wilhelm is allowed to do whatever he wants to do—“ Simon growls, “What kind of shitty sources are you getting your information from because you need to reevaluate them.”

“Simon” Wilhelm starts, slipping around him to grab him by his jacket and pull him toward the doorway, “Let’s just go inside—“

Burning anger is bubbling up under his skin, but he tries his best to ignore the man’s words and focus on getting the two of them away from this situation. It’s better this way, to give them nothing and ignore them. People like these feed off of any response, any small reaction. They are only waiting for it.

The man seems to have realized the best way to get information out of him is through heckling so he doubles down, “There are people who blame you for the current predicament that the monarchy faces. Do you realize if August steps down and Wilhelm does not take over the position we could be facing a complete overhaul of the country’s system of government.”

Simon scoffs, gritting his teeth and turning away as Wilhelm tugs him into the doorway to the buildings entrance.

“Have you heard that some blame you for seducing Wilhelm and believe that you were in fact the mastermind behind the video of the two of you, which was released as blackmail against him—“

Wilhelm’s stomach does a funny thing, a kind of swell of anger as the implication falls hard around them.

“Did you sleep with Wilhelm with an ulterior motive to tarnish his reputation—“

That’s all he can take.

Wilhelm whips around, barely hearing the noise Simon makes as he jerks out of his grip, curling his hand into a fist and throwing it with all the strength he can push forward right into the man’s face.

There’s a sickening crack and the journalist falls back onto the ground, clutching his jaw and staring up at him in surprise, “What the hell—“

“How fucking dare you talk about him like that!” The punch doesn’t make him feel better, it just makes the anger build, his knuckles and his wrist aching from the force of impact, “We were sixteen you sick fuck, we were children. You don’t know shit about anything, how dare you imply that he was at fault at all when it was always—“

“Wille!” Simon calls quickly grabbing onto his arm, there’s an edge of panic in his voice.

“You better get the fuck out of here or I swear—find someone else to harass you rotten bottom feeding scum.”

The man scrambles to his feet, eyes narrowed falling back with a tight expression. There’s going to be consequences for this, he knows it, but right now he doesn’t care. Right now he can’t quell the anger over how unjust it is that this continues to follow them, to damage their lives. How fucking wrong it is that it always will and August won’t ever experience this particular brand of horror. How fucked is it that the one who caused all of this doesn’t have to be reminded of it.

His vision is blurred but he feels his husband pulling him into their apartment, closing the door behind them, talking to him even.

But it’s the feeling of his hands cupping Wilhelm’s cheeks that startles him into the present. When he finds Simon’s face he sees the mess of unspoken emotions that sit heavily on his features and the anger slips away.

Fuck.

“Are you okay?” He asks quickly, “Sorry I just couldn’t listen to him say all that shit—“

“I know.” The other man says, voice strained. His husband’s hands fall to his sides. “It’s always going to be like this isn’t it.”

It breaks a part of him. Seeing the weight of this realization as it pulls down Simon’s shoulders and turns his expression into something overwhelmed and defeated.

And he doesn’t have the answer, he doesn’t know.

“I’m sorry.”

“I know you are.”

Silence rings through the apartment and neither of them speak until finally he can’t bear it any longer, can’t bear seeing the man he loves look like this, can’t bear knowing the role he’s had in the why of it.

Wilhelm opens his arms and slowly Simon steps into them. They embrace there in the hallway, holding each other tightly, Wilhelm placing a kiss to his temple in silent apology.

After a long moment Simon pulls back and takes both of his hands with his. Wilhelm watches as he rubs a thumb over the heart tattooed with dark lines on his skin.

“We’ll get through this.” His husband’s murmurs as though he’s trying to convince himself rather than Wilhelm.

“Yeah. We will.”

[icejinlov3r]

Headcanons of my DB Boys

(Frieza, Frost, Cell, and Zamasu)

So, imma make this into one large post, since that's just gonna be easier for me. I'm also gonna split up the headcanons from SFW and NSFW in case people don't feel like reading anything dirty. In any case, here are my silly headcanons.

Frieza Headcanons

SFW:

Frieza is a wine lover (borderline alcoholic) tends to be his cope when dealing with just about any negative emotion.

Has trouble expressing his emotions with words. His actions speak louder.

Has a pretty short temper. Quite a few things annoy him, but things such as stupidity and arrogance infuriate him the most.

When not being an emperor, he often enjoys reading and studying, but can also enjoy playing advanced games, such as chess.

Thinks highly of his appearance - especially appreciates and admires his tail.

Has a high standard when it comes to food. When done right, he favorites tend to be any sort of seafood; crab, lobster, fish, things along those lines.

His only real insecurity is his height (most who make fun of his shortness end up dead lol)

Hates when his father - or anyone - refers to him as "princess"

Bears great shame for his initial defeat against Goku on Namek, though attempts to keep it hidden (and often fails). Also gained immense PTSD from the incident. Yay.

Has a naturally intimidating presence, but just about everyone knows that.

Always enjoys having his ego stroked, no matter what the situation

While not necessarily a light sleeper, his senses are so keen he often can notice even the slightest changes around him.

If there is a person who he actually cares about (which is very few) even he can't resist sparing his occassional moments of softness.

Closeness and intimacy frighten him on an emotional level - afraid to allow himself become "weak" and risk someone hurting him. Or worse, afraid of hurting them in turn. (He's an emperor, but he has feelings dammit!)

NSFW:

Frieza (and his entire race) are intersex/are hermaphrodites. Meaning they are single sexed, and also have both male and female genitalia, hidden within their cloaca.

He is bisexual, enjoying the company of both men and women, though he slight preference towards men.

Isn't necessarily picky about a person's appearance, so long as it's appealing.

Personality wise, it depends on the person - he can enjoy dominating over someone shy and nervous, but can also enjoy *being* dominated by someone strong and confident. Though any and all disrespect is a turn off.

He has no preference for roles; he's fine being top or bottom. Again, mostly depends on the person he's with.

While he may be a sadist outside the bedroom, he can be quite different in bed. He can be however rough or gentle his partner wants. He gets more satisfaction in getting reactions from whomever he's with.

Frieza is surprisingly affectionate. Enjoys kissing, sweet talk, gentle caresses, and etc.

Has a praise kink. Can't help murmuring words of praise and compliments to his partner and seeing their reaction.

Being addressed by his proper title is a huge turn on for him.

Never likes to skip to the main event. Thoroughly enjoys foreplay, giving and receiving.

Doesn't necessarily have the largest dick, but is average size for his race.

Frost Headcanons:

SFW:

Similar to Frieza, is a wine lover. Though doesn’t have nearly as big a problem as Frieza.

Often wants to avoid direct fights as often as possible, especially if he has no chance of winning

Can often be annoyed, but unlike Frieza, doesn’t lash out unless necessary.

Is and has always been a lonely person, especially after his cover as a hero was blown.

If he did have more free time, he’d rather enjoy lazy activities, such as watching TV, playing video games, and listening to music.

Is actually pretty skilled with electronics. Can usually hack many basic technology.

Is rather insecure about both his abilities and his looks, especially compared to Frieza.

Frost has a sweet tooth, and enjoys several desserts, parfaits being his favorite. Though he also likes pastas and some crab dishes, like Frieza.

Despite what people might think, he’s actually a very sensitive person. It’s easy for him to feel guilt or shame or sadness.

Has *serious* trust issues. Is extremely paranoid and fearful that everyone is out to hurt him somehow, especially after he becomes a fugitive. The world is a scary place to him.

His erasure at T.O.P was a traumatic experience for him.

Has lots of trouble sleeping, as he’s very prone to nightmares.

Keeps several hidden poison needles on his person; including wrists, heels, tail, and even the tip of his tongue.

Honest to Kami, this poor baby just needs a hug and a shoulder to cry on!!! 🥺🥺 (wow, I have really sad headcanons of Frosty boy)

NSFW:

Like Frieza, he is intersex/hermaphrodite.

He is bisexual, though with a heavy preference towards males (I use to headcanon him as gay, but that has changed)

Is almost certainly a virgin, though mainly out of fear of intimacy and vulnerability. Has immense trouble trusting anyone with his body (and his heart)

Has an extremely sensitive body, especially on his neck, his tail, and between the legs.

Is usually attracted to men with bigger builds and strong personalities - anyone who makes him feel weak. Or rather, feels safe enough to allow himself to be weak.

Has an extremely sensitive body, especially on neck, tail, and between the legs

Does NOT enjoy pain of any sort. Is quite terrified of it actually.

Frost is a submissive bottom. His biggest preference, but also because he’s often too shy to ever take charge.

Always prefers a slow, gentle build up towards the main event. A chance to relax and adapt. Though when sucked into the main event, will finally demand for something a bit more rough.

Is certainly not a quiet lover. Has rather loud vocal chords.

Also has a smaller than average dick, but it’s not his main concern.

Has a praise kink, but prefers being the receiver.

Enjoys being “dominated” over, but only with someone he truly trusts.

Perfect Cell Headcanons:

SFW:

Can and is an arrogant ass. No one is more perfect than himself.

Obviously thinks highly of his own looks and abilities. Truly loves himself.

Often enjoys teasing and mocking others whenever he feels like it (especially people like Vegeta or Frieza)

Similar to Frost, enjoys watching TV and playing video games. But he also enjoys more athletic activities.

Also has a short temper, and isn’t afraid to express it through his fists

Is the smart ass king. Full of snarky comments and sarcasm.

In spite of what people might think, he’s actually very observant. Very good at reading people for who they really are or what they’re really feeling.

Has amazing healing abilities due to Piccolo’s DNA

Is not picky with food. Like just about everything - except anything with bugs. He *refuses* to eat bugs of any sort!

Despite his high self esteem, he does feel a certain shame when being referred to as a “monster” or “freak”. Often turn out to be trigger words for his rage.

Claims he’s a lone wolf, but in truth can be quite lonely at times, even if he ends up pushing others away.

Is a heavy sleeper and a loud snorer. An explosion could happen outside his bedroom and he’d hardly be phased.

Never lies. Always tells the truth, sometimes even bluntly. This is cause he *despises* lies.

NSFW:

Only has male genitalia but keeps it concealed under the black sheath on his groin.

Cell is pansexual - is attracted to all races and genders alike. He’s into everyone and everything.

Tends to have a dirty mind, though never to the point of disgusting or depraved.

You know this guy has a porno collection and is proud of it

There is little Cell isn’t into; has a wide variety of kinks. Though one of his favorites tends to be biting.

While normally fine with either role, Cell prefers to top (and almost always does).

Isn’t afraid to flirt or talk dirty. It’s practically his first language at times.

Usually adapts to whatever preferences his lover wants, since he enjoys sex either way.

Similar to Frieza, isn’t necessarily picky about appearances, so long as it’s appealing.

Usually likes people who are “hard to get”, or aren’t easy - tsunderes really.

Theres no soft way of putting this - he has a big dick. That’s all I’m saying. Moving on.

Enjoys most attention on his face and dick, since the rest of his body is covered in bio-armor, and thus has no real nerves to feel pleasure.

Straight up, is an *amazing* kisser.

Zamasu Headcanons:

SFW:

Has little patience for people in general, though especially regarding mortals.

While he’s a skilled fighter, doesn’t really like fighting. Finds it to be primitive and barbaric.

Puts himself on a higher pedestal than all mortals, and even some immortals.

During his free time, he’ll often enjoy the peace and quiet with his reading, practicing calligraphy, cooking, and meditation. Anything to ease his thoughts.

Claims he hates mortals, but really he’s just frustrated he doesn’t understand them and their illogical decisions.

Absolutely hates loud noises. Something about them just brings him immense anxiety. He attempts to keep hidden earplugs on his person.

Often asks the big questions in life, searching for his true purpose in the universe.

Enjoys foods that don’t necessarily have a strong flavor. Simplicity is appealing to his taste buds. Like a nice cup of tea.

Is very good at holding his composure - but only for so long.

Is a light sleeper. Tends to make him rather grumpy.

NSFW:

Possesses “typical” male genitalia (I heard somewhere that apparently Kai don’t have anything down there - my headcanon doesn’t agree)

One would assume he’s possible ace, both in means of attraction and romance. But Zamasu is actually gay - he’s just very very closeted. (Not about being gay, but about being attracted to anyone in general)

His standards for a partner are high. In fact he firmly believes there’s no one who could both appeal to him and understand him. BUT! Should they happen to do so, he tends to enjoy bigger builds on men. As for personality….all he really wants is someone he can understand, and in turn understand him.

While he does feel arousal and love, he can’t help feeling ashamed at doing so, thinking he should above such primitive feelings.

Is incredibly shy in bed, both with exposing his body and committing to the act.

When eventually relaxed enough to have sex, he does enjoy and appreciate foreplay, but only certain kinds.

Has the most sensitive ears. Enjoys having them touched, kissed, and bitten.

Is almost always a bottom role, often as a preference and because he lacks experience.

Just like Frost, is probably a virgin - in fact even more likely to be one.

Keeps quiet for most of the time, at least unless he’s close or is during the main event.

Like Frost, doesn’t enjoy pain in the slightest.

Okay, I think that’s everything (literally took me a few hours to complete this, but it was worth it). Now keep in mind, these are just MY headcanons. They are not fact, and you do not have to agree with them. I just wanted to write my interpretation of my favorite DB boys.

What do guys think? Tell me yours thoughts if you’d like! In any case, hope you enjoy!

[bloody-wonder]

2024 reading wrap up

january is almost over and yet the ghost of reading year past shall not rest untill i rank all the books👻📚

*the tiers are once again named after different things from the books featured on this list - see explanation below🙃 **the following series i read in full are represented only by one book respectively: doctrine of labyrinths, her instruments, the riverside trilogy, the memoirs of lady trent, the cemeteries of amalo, the stolen heir, the summer hikaru died, evander mills, page & sommers ***usually i don't rank rereads but since this year i had only two - the three musketeers and swordspoint - and they both ended up on the top tier i decided to add them for completeness' sake

so in 2024 i broke all my previous records in regards to the amount of books/pages read. my secret? being unemployed lol. but now that i have started my phd and got a full time job my reading is bound to decrease dramatically which is probably a good thing bc i feel like, while reading so much definitely helps you find more good books and authors faster, the downside is that stories stand out less, regardless of their quality. altho i do love every book i put on the top tier dearly, compared to the previous year's (smaller) selection this one seems quite homogeneous and sff focused. and 3 out of top 5 books/series are straight! who is responsible for this?!🤨

i did well on almost all my nerd ass challenges: finishing and continuing series, starting new ones, not neglecting standalone sff, reading widely in terms of genre and language, not putting off big intimidating books etc etc. i even completed my oldest challenge for the first time by finally managing to read five chunky classics in the span of one year - this won't be happening again any time soon😅 in the future i want to shift my focus to difficult historical novels instead bc i sure don't have enough brain space for both. where i "failed" on the other hand was reading nonfiction: i realized that no matter how much interest i have in the topic the only way i'm able to process factual information is if a trans youtuber dressed as a dominatrix or a cat or some sort of jester is telling it to me in an asmr voice. i'm not very good at encouraging myself to reread the things i want to reread either - hopefully that will change in 2025 so that i can finally reread aftg🪄

last year i tried blogging more about my current reads and it was fun while it lasted - now i sadly don't have time to do that anymore :( so my 2024 reading updates must remain unfinished. in any case, just by looking at this tier list i can come to the same conclusions i would've come to if i had reviewed each and every one of these books: niche sff is where it's at for me, older books are better written, and simply queer is not enough for me anymore - i need intricate mind games and rituals that transcend sexuality lol.

so if you know such books please rec them to me! and tell me about your reading year - by making a tier list, or writing a post or just sharing your fave 2024 reads like @oliviermiraarmstrongs tagged me to do. thank you btw😌💜

@figuringthengsout @fugitoidkry @pinkasrenzo @fandomreferencepending @counterwiddershins @magpiefngrl @sugarbabywenkexing @weirdsociology @theodoradove @doh-rae-me @venndaai @sixappleseeds

p.s. it just came to my knowledge that my year in books is still active. tagging everyone who wants to do this! :D

goodreads │ old yearly wrap ups 2020 2021 2022 2023 │ my book tag

✨explanation of the tier titles under the cut✨

obligation d'âme is a spell a wizard can cast on a person in sarah monette's doctrine of labyrinths that binds them "closer than lovers". it's very bdsm-coded and a tiny bit problematic bc the enchanted then has to do everything the wizard commands and they may or may not be referred to as slave🫢🙈 on the bright side tho it's very hot and gay🤷‍♀️ just like obligation d'âme these books have put me under their problematic spell🪄

peltedverse is the unofficial name of mca hogarth's sci fi universe populated by humans, human-animal hybrids, space elves and aliens, which has been steadily growing on me ever since i discovered the dreamhealers. in 2024 her instruments completely charmed me by its cast of loveable characters, wacky adventures and fairy-tale romance. it's not the best thought-out world but it has this home-cooked quality to it which i prefer to carefully calculated lore that makes 100% of sense all the time. and these books, while not as good as the ones in the upper tier, have still captured my heart😌

racallio ryndoon is an episodic character in george r.r. martin's fire & blood. he's a chaotic crossdressing bisexual pirate captain with purple hair who likes to be spanked by his wives, gives severed heads as a courting gift and will sell the right of safe passage through his waters for a kiss. all in all, a perfect character who is sadly present only for one short episode. i remember him fondly but i wish he had more to give - just like these books☠️🦜⛵

calliagnosia is a procedure ted chiang invented in his short story liking what you see: a documentary which enables people to turn off their perception of physical beauty - leading to less lookism-based discrimination at the cost of finding nobody hot lol (at least in their looks). the story follows the controversy around making calliagnosia obligatory in certain environments and just like the characters who can't seem to decide whether finding people hot or stopping discrimination is more important, i am of two minds on whether these books are actually good or not😅

gong bath is the preferred method of patient treatment of the sex therapist the main character of jen beagin's big swiss is working for. meaning: the patient rests on the couch while the therapist chants and strikes the gong he has in his office. just like gong bath, these books didn't harm me - but they didn't cure me either😐

the philosophers' colloquium is the crusty dusty male centered science academy that kept refusing to admit lady trent despite her outstanding contributions to the natural history of dragons😠 disappointing, overrated, ill-shampooed - just like these books🧐

life-sickness is something the inhabitants of hope mirrlees' lud-in-the-mist didn't realize they suffered from until they tried forbidden fairy fruit. these books were so disappointing, boring, annoying or offensive that they made me brain-sick, depressed and upset about the state of Literature😩

[stereopticons]

Fic Writing Review 2024

Thanks for the tag, @kiwiana-writes

Rules: Feel free to show whatever stats you have. Only want to show Ao3 stats? Rock on. Want to include some quantitative info instead of stats? Please do this. Want to change how yours is presented? Absolutely do that. Would rather eat glass than do this? Please don’t eat glass but don’t feel like you have to do this either.

Words and Fics (fics written in 2024 only)

24,701 words published to ao3, which is a little less than half of last year’s total, but there was a lot of life happening this year that made writing difficult.

My writing tracker only lasted until April so I don’t honestly know how many words I’ve written, but I did work on several things that are still WIPs.

I’ve published in two fandoms: Schitt’s Creek and RWRB.

Most recent drop: you can call me, call me, any time, aka kinktober day 10, published in November lol.

Longest published fic: stronger than iron, stronger than steel at a whopping…3714 words lol.

Longest WIP remains indie band Patrick which is just over 29k

Top Fics by Kudos (fics written in 2024 only)

you can call me, call me, anytime [firstprince, E, 500 words]

head in the clouds but my gravity’s centered [firstprince, E, 1.1k]

bells will ring, the sun will shine [firstprince, E, 861 words]

love just leaves you bruised [david/patrick, T, 1.4k]

I don’t wanna play if I’m gonna lose (but I don’t wanna lose ‘cause I didn’t play) [firstprince, M, 1.4k]

Miscellaneous Data From My Unhinged Spreadsheet about 2024 fics

The fic with the highest percentage of private bookmarks is you can call me, call me, anytime which is a little surprising.

Out of 14 published fics, 11 were E, 1 was M and 2 were T, which is a very different distribution than usual, but that’s because 10 of the 14 fics were kinktober lol.

I wrote David/Patrick, Alex/Henry, and June/Nora. Also started a Stevie/Alexis kinktober fic that I have yet to finish.

1 title came from canon, 1 didn’t have a source, and the other twelve were from the following artists (1 each): The Bens, Mariah Carey, Billy Joel, Regina Spektor, the Neighbourhood, MUNA, Chapterhouse, The Dixie Cups, West Side Story, Noah Reid, Matt Nathanson, and Blondie.

Highest kudos to hits ratio is a long winter of indifference

I published 8 fics in October, 2 in November, and one each in January, February and March. Not publishing anything in April broke a 2.5 year streak of publishing at least one fic per month (October 2021-April 2024) and I had a lot of feelings about it.

My average fic length this year was 1,645 words.

Stats specifically about Kinktober

Ten total fics and 13,792 words published so far - hoping this updates before the end of the year.

Five were David/Patrick, 4 were Alex/Henry and 1 was June/Nora

3 were David POV, 2 were Patrick POV, 3 were Alex POV, and 1 each were Henry and June POV.

Longest was I feel dizzy, I feel sunny, I feel fizzy and funny and fine, because apparently I have a lot to say about Patrick in lingerie, which is very valid of me tbh.

Shortest was you can call me, call me, anytime, which was epistolary.

Most popular by hits was head in the clouds but my gravity’s centered. Least popular by both hits and kudos was I know it gets hard just to breathe sometimes (I’m never gonna forget your name) which was breathplay so that’s fair.

The Rest of 2024

I have an exchange fic to finish and also am really hoping to finally get the exes to lovers fic finished. Potentially other kinktober fics, and maybe if I’m really on a roll, either the black swan au or the pretty princess fic. We’ll see!

Tagging people who either may want to participate or maybe are just interested? Idk.

@hippolotamus @blackandwhiteandrose @rosedavid @ninzied @indestructibleheart

@mostlyinthemorning @filet-o-feelings @carolrain @tyfinn @jamilas-pen

@rmd-writes @welcometololaland @lizzie-bennetdarcy @jettestar @thesleepyskipper

@ships-to-sail @beaiola @likerealpeopledo-on-ao3 @chelle-68 @missgeevious

@dinnfameron

[kafus]

how to transfer your old pokemon to pokemon home before it's too late!!!

the wi-fi services for the nintendo 3DS and WiiU are shutting down in early april 2024, and while it specifically lists pokemon bank and poke transporter as being available post-shutdown, there is no guarantee of how long that may be for. there will likely come a time when these services shut down, and it could be in the relatively near future.

it is also pretty much impossible now to transfer pokemon to the switch's Home service with alternative methods such as PKHeX (popular pokemon save editor for the uninformed) due to the implementation of server-side Home IDs tracking pokemon at all times - the details of that aren't super important for this post, but point is, whenever bank shuts down, unless nintendo makes an offline way to transfer to home, it will be impossible to move pokemon from the old gens to the new, even with alternative/hack-y methods.

i write this guide with the intention of making this process easier for people since transferring pokemon has changed so much over the past two decades that it's a bit of a mess, and in a timely manner to give people time to finish the process. i'll be organizing by generation so feel free to skip to any part of the guide you need. (keep in mind that transferring is permanent, your pokemon cannot go back afterwards!!)

(by the way it would mean a lot to me if you weren't overwhelmingly negative of pokemon in the tags/reblogs. i get that pokemon transferring being an online service sucks but reading that stuff in my notifications constantly is really tiring </3 make ur own post to talk about that)

to walk you through, i'll be transferring this random shiny spinda i hatched in emerald version all the way up to pokemon home. her name is Moss :]

below the cut since this is long as fuck sorry LOL

GEN 1/2 -> 3 (aka RBY/GSC -> RSE/FRLG)

this is impossible! as for the Virtual Console releases of the gen 1/2 games on 3DS, more on that later in the gen 5 -> 6/7 section.

GEN 3 -> 4 (aka RSE/FRLG -> DPPT/HGSS)

what you need:

a copy of RSE or FRLG

a copy of DPPT or HGSS in the same language as the RSE/FRLG copy that has beaten the champion and has access to post-game areas, preferably HGSS because it lets you transfer unlimited times as opposed to DPPT's once-per-24-hours limit (unless you happen to have korean DPPT/HGSS, which is not language locked in terms of transferring)

either an original DS or a DS lite, the old ones with the GBA slot at the bottom

the steps:

#1. you can only transfer 6 pokemon at a time, so get whatever 6 pokemon you want to transfer up together in gen 3. if you're intending to transfer less than 6 pokemon, you'll need to catch some extras since you have to transfer the full 6 every time (i usually just catch a bunch of extra mons on the first route, which is what i've done here with the poochyenas/wurmples)

#2. put the gen 3 game into the GBA slot of the DS, and the gen 4 game into the DS slot. both games should appear on the home menu after turning on the DS.

#3. load the DS game and spam A past the title screen. before loading your save, scroll down. you should see a "MIGRATE FROM (GAME NAME HERE)" option. if you don't, either the GBA game isn't reading properly, or you have not visited Pal Park in your gen 4 game of choice. in HGSS, the Pal Park is located in Fuchsia City, and in DPPT, the Pal Park is located at the end of Route 221 below Sandgem Town.

#4. select the aforementioned migration option and pick the pokemon you want to transfer.

#5. navigate to the Pal Park and complete the Catching Show, where you re-catch your transferred pokemon in the wild. this does not overwrite what pokeballs they were originally caught in! you will need to bring a pokemon with Surf if you have any Pokemon that spawn in the water areas. you can check what location the pokemon you transferred will be in on bulbapedia.

#6. say yes to storing the caught pokemon in your PC boxes and they'll be there!

important things to note:

pokemon with HM moves will be blocked from transfer, so make sure to use the Move Deleter to remove HM moves from any pokemon you're transferring in gen 3 before trying to transfer. in RSE, the Move Deleter is in Lilycove City, and in FRLG they are in Fuchsia City.

gen 3 -> 4 is the only step in the transfer process where held items transfer up as well, meaning that if you attach a valuable item such as a rare candy, master ball, or TM to a transferred pokemon, you can take it off that pokemon and put it in your bag in the gen 4 game.

an aside about colosseum/XD gale of darkness on gamecube:

you can transfer pokemon from colo/XD as well! unfortunately you'll need to have beaten colo/XD, and then you will also need to beat the gen 3 game... in FRLG, you even have to complete the postgame ruby/sapphire quest on the sevii islands to unlock trading with the gamecube games. once you do all that though, you can navigate to the pokemon center basement in Phenac City to trade with your gen 3 GBA title. to do this, you'll need a gamecube or wii with gamecube compatibility, a GBA (or GBA SP), and a GCN -> GBA link cable to connect the two consoles.

GEN 4 -> 5 (aka DPPT/HGSS -> BW/BW2)

what you need:

a copy of DPPT/HGSS

a copy of BW or BW2 in the same language as DPPT/HGSS copy that has beaten the champion (or N in the original BW) and has access to post-game areas.

two DS consoles of any kind (3DS is also fine!)

the steps:

#1. get the pokemon you want to transfer together in your gen 4 game's PC boxes. you can only transfer 6 pokemon at a time. if you have less than 6, catch some extra pokemon, since you need to transfer the full 6 every time. save it and turn off the DS with the gen 4 game.

#2. turn on your gen 5 game and navigate to the Poke Transfer Lab. personally i just fly to Black City/White Forest and head west.

#3. talk to the NPC in the lab to start the transfer process. you will be prompted to turn on your other DS again and open DS Download Play with your gen 4 game inserted. do that and download the Poke Transfer app that comes up.

#4. select the 6 Pokemon you want to transfer when prompted.

#5. play the transfer minigame! just drag the... bow? (lol) on the bottom screen to aim your pokeballs. there's technically a time limit, but it's very generous, and your final score doesn't matter.

#6. say yes to transferring the pokemon once you're done and they'll be placed in your PC boxes!

important things to note:

pokemon with HM moves will be blocked from transfer, so make sure to use the Move Deleter to remove HM moves from any pokemon you're transferring in gen 4 before trying to transfer. in DPPT they're in Canalave City, and in HGSS they're in Blackthorn City.

the level the pokemon was obtained at and the date it was obtained is changed upon transfer to gen 5 - it will have the met date of your DS clock and the met level of the level it was at the time of transfer. if you'd like to preserve a pokemon's met date, make sure to change the DS clock to the proper date.

GEN 5 -> 6/7 (aka BW/BW2 -> 3DS TITLES/BANK)

what you need:

a copy of BW/BW2

a copy of any 3DS pokemon game (XY/ORAS/SUMO/USUM)

a 3DS (or 2DS, i'll just be referring to them all as 3DSes here) with the poke transporter and pokemon bank apps installed. these were free apps that were once downloadable from the 3DS eShop, but the 3DS eShop is no longer available, so if you don't already have them installed you will need to explore alternate methods, AKA hacking your 3DS and injecting them in. that's outside the scope of this guide but you can find more information here on 3ds.hacks.guide. (do not attempt to follow any 3DS hacking guide not on this website, they could be outdated and harm your 3DS!)

a nintendo network ID that your 3DS is logged into (also outside the scope of this guide but if you don't already have one, it will prompt you during the process to make one)

internet connection

the steps:

#1. poke transporter defaults to trying to transfer every pokemon located in Box 1 of your PC, so go into your gen 5 game and put every pokemon you want to transfer into Box 1, and take anything you don't want to transfer out. if you want to transfer more pokemon than you can fit in one box, you'll have to transfer multiple times.

#2. open poke transporter with your gen 5 game inserted into the 3DS' cartridge slot. after pressing A through some menus and selecting the gen 5 game when prompted, it should ask if you want to transfer the pokemon in Box 1, with a preview of the pokemon inside. confirm and let it do its thing. after poke transporter is finished, the pokemon you transferred will be in the special Transport Box in bank.

#3. make sure you either have a 3DS pokemon title downloaded onto your 3DS, or swap out your gen 5 cart for one, it doesn't matter which.

#4. close out of poke transporter and navigate to pokemon bank. at the time of writing this guide, bank is still online and is free for everyone without a subscription - the main menu has an infinite "free trial" period number.

#5. select "use pokemon bank" and pick a 3DS game to connect with when prompted. it doesn't matter which one, but if you're looking to see your pokemon in a gen 6/7 game right now, pick the one you want to move it into. viewing a pokemon in a gen 6/7 game isn't required to move to home later, though!

#6. the Transport Box is located one box to the left of Box 1 - navigate to it and drag your pokemon out into a normal bank box. now you can move them to any gen 6/7 pokemon game you want, or home later!

important things to note:

even though bank connects with both gen 6 and gen 7 games, once you place a pokemon into a gen 7 game (SUMO/USUM), you cannot transfer that pokemon back to a gen 6 game (XY/ORAS), so be careful!

an aside about the VC releases of RBY/GSC:

poke transporter can also be used to transfer pokemon out of the VC releases of RBY/GSC. these pokemon are changed pretty heavily, converting all their old gen data into pokemon's modern data structure. you can find more information about all the changes/conversions made on bulbapedia. these pokemon are considered gen 7 pokemon afterwards, and cannot be moved into XY/ORAS. pokemon with held items also cannot be transferred from VC titles and will fail to transfer.

if you want to transfer pokemon from cartridge RBY/GSC and have a save dumping device, it is possible to inject the cartridge's save file into the VC versions with Checkpoint on a hacked 3DS and then transfer that way. for GSC specifically, you'll need to edit your save slightly to make it compatible with VC GSC's save format. i personally made a converter for that here that you're free to use in-browser.

GEN 6/7 -> GEN 8+ (aka BANK -> HOME)

what you need:

a 3DS (or 2DS, i'll just be referring to them all as 3DSes here) with the pokemon bank app installed. this was a free app that was once downloadable from the 3DS eShop, but the 3DS eShop is no longer available, so if you don't already have it installed you will need to explore alternate methods, AKA hacking your 3DS and injecting it in. that's outside the scope of this guide but you can find more information here on 3ds.hacks.guide. (do not attempt to follow any 3DS hacking guide not on this website, they could be outdated and harm your 3DS!)

a nintendo network ID that your 3DS is logged into (also outside the scope of this guide but if you don't already have one, it will prompt you during the process to make one)

a switch with Pokemon Home installed, which can be downloaded for free from the switch's eShop. a nintendo switch online subscription is not required.

unfortunately, you WILL need a subscription to home's premium plan to do bank -> home transfers.

internet connection

the steps:

#1. open pokemon bank and make sure all the pokemon you want to transfer are in their own boxes, and any you don't want to transfer are not in the same boxes as the to-be-transferred pokemon.

#2. go back to the bank home menu and select the "move pokemon to pokemon home" option. when you get the notice about the transfer being one-way, you'll need to scroll down to hit "Begin".

#3. you will be prompted to select what boxes of pokemon you'd like to transfer, so pick all the applicable ones.

#4. you will then be prompted to put in the moving key from home, so turn on your switch, open pokemon home, and select the icon that looks like a 3DS on the main menu. when prompted, choose "Ready!" to get the moving key.

#5. input the moving key on the 3DS, submit it, and wait for both apps to do their thing. once bank goes back to its title screen, you can turn off the 3DS.

#6. home will go back to its title screen as well, and depending on how many pokemon you moved, you may have to wait a few minutes to get back into the app. once it's done, the next time you open home, it'll prompt you to choose how to organize your transferred pokemon into home. pick whatever you see fit.

#7. congratulations, your pokemon are safe in home!!

important things to note:

unlike all pokemon games before the switch, pokemon can actually go backwards in generation on switch, so don't worry about transferring a pokemon into scarlet/violet locking you out of moving it to sword/shield, for example. (the exception to this is LGPE - nothing can be moved into LGPE and once a pokemon is moved out of LGPE, it can't go back.)

pokemon home actually has decent hack checks, so be careful when transferring hacked/glitched/otherwise illegitimate pokemon around.

pokemon from a gen 3/4 game will have their met location set to "Poke Shifter" - this is an alternative translation of the japanese name for the Poke Transporter.

pokemon on switch can only transfer into games that contain that pokemon in its dex, so not everything transferred can go into scarlet/violet, for example.

and that's it!!

there's a lot of other quirks to the pokemon transferring process at pretty much all steps, so if you run into an unusual issue or have specific questions about how pokemon data is changed in minute ways across the franchise, i would encourage you to do your own research, all of this stuff is pretty heavily documented by the fanbase. this is just meant to be a guide for casual users, and a quick reference.

this guide of course does not cover options for transferring in alternative ways, but it's worth mentioning that if you have a hacked 3DS and the ability to back up save files at any point from gens 3 -> 5, you can use PKHeX to transfer pokemon into the 3DS titles, then move them to bank and transfer to home normally from there. that's outside the scope of this guide and i'd also encourage you to do your own research for that.

happy transferring!

[jazeswhbhaven]

With the whole Leviathan thing. I think is just his archetype is really popular with Japan.

Seeing another game that has a similar to what Leviathan is, and seeing the popularity of that characters type. It seems like, hard wall that has been build up and it takes time to get their walls to broke.

Plus, there's this unknown factor where you think that they are being an Asshole, but they actually have a reason behind their action.

One example I know is with the Character from Ikemen Prince, Chevalier is describe as (this is from the wiki)

True to his title, Chevalier is as ruthless and merciless as a cruel beast and is quick to cut down his enemies no matter who they are. He is indifferent to to almost everyone and doesn't spend much time interacting with people, and usually prefers to be alone. However, in his route after meeting the MC he somehow changes and began to get use to feeling certain emotions such as love, which he views as something unnecessary in the past.

Reading his route, you would imagine that people would not like him, however

2nd voting

Most of the voting, Chevalier always take 1st place.

Often times it just culture differences and people/majority have a preferences. We really can't do anything about it.

For me, often I like least popular characters or the most popular character cause I'm drawn to what I like, and with Chevalier and Leviathan they scratched a certain type I love.

And with MC, its a porn game. MC will be written as a blank slate with the motivation of being horny cause no reasonable person would act like this if you were surrounded with horny and feral devils that speak their mind with no filter or no restrained of their urges.

Like, if we put real life logic with some of the behavior, some of them will be questionable. But this is fictional game with their own logic. The game will do some kinky stuff that people like in their fiction.

Anyway, I wanted to share my 2 cent on Leviathan. I've have my problem with his character. And that fine, if he was just all nice with MC after the contract, that would have been too ooc for him.

Honestly, I like how his dynamic with MC in the main story now (ie. Chapter 6)

I'm glad you put this into words/visuals, because a lot of things I tend to say are usually said better by others. I recognize the character you mentioned because I did play a little bit of Ikemen Prince myself! When it comes to types, I can for sure agree that for myself, anyone with his or Levi's type is not my first pick. I also agree this could very well be cultural differences that come into play as well.

Though I do understand the why for Levi. Childhood robbed from him, experiments, other screwy things. I'd have walls too. In the comics though I see the other side of him that isn't so combative and that's why it's that love/hate thing I've got going on for him as a whole.

I'm unsure if anything I said may indicate that I'm taking his personality to heart, I'd like to clarify that I do not take it deeply that he's this way, it's more of empty rants lol he's nothing more than pixels with a smart mouth.

The way they have MC/Levi's dynamic for Chapter 6 has me satisfied too, I will not be bothered if they keep that up for the future chapters we get.

[thisnameisnotspokenfor]

The Breaking point Analysis

Warning: do not read this post if you have not read chapter 36! You have been WARNED

Also I wrote this when I was sleepy at 2 am so sorry if it doesn’t make any sense.

Now I usually try to avoid making posts where I openly discuss stuff in my story- but after all the issues this chapter gave me- I wanted to do this.

The breaking point is a weird chapter for me it’s both one of my favorite and least favorite chapters- but it’s a contradictory chapter within itself. It’s one that is both a payoff and build up in a sort of way…

Think about it in Chapter 33 Tomas writes this in his journal:

‘To die and leave behind so many unfinished things was my worst fear. A fear that may very well become a reality given my current situation. “You expect me to still be alive by then?”

What was Tomas’s worst fear became Asha’s breaking point, and it’s all so tragic when you realize the similarities between the two. Both were fairly young when they got to meet the stars and ended up running into trouble with the crimson court or a seperate entity armed with similiar powers. Both being novices had to rely on a yellow/blue star to keep them safe while said star worked with an ulterior motive.

It’s strange right?

We don’t know how Tomas’s adventure or experience with Sirius ended. All we know for now is that he did not want his daughter to get involved in his past/legacy. Which ofc in and of itself can and does bring up a lot of questions but the worst part is that Tomas is gone and now he’ll never get a chance to fairly explain himself to his daughter. Their relationship and perhaps even her perception of him will change because of this which is something I think we could all say wouldn’t have been something Tomas would have ever wanted.

For all the work Tomas put in to build and help others he couldn’t stop his worst fear from coming true- and that’s what makes it all even worse.

But the tragedy or rather my favorite part of the breaking point isn’t just there- it’s in everything Asha doesn’t say, or rather what she inadvertently confronts herself with.

When Asha’s justification for the past 5 years of her life unravels who do we see appear before her? Everyone higher on the social ladder, with even the apprentices making sneer remarks on how Asha was never one of them, how she’s unwanted or mocking her for Cepheus. It’s a sharp contrast to how she dismisses their mistreatment of her, but deep down she does care and it really does bother her

So many things she’s told Ceph that she’s seemingly gotten over comes back to haunt her in this conversation- not having powers, not having a noble title or not being able to win Ignacio’s heart, not being able to believe in wishes after the power failed to save her father and grandmother but it’s not just her realizing it, but it’s her hating herself for it.

She hates herself so much that she believes all the mistreatment she receives is justified because of it. She hates herself for purposelessly existing in a world with so many fantastical beings and people. But most of all she blames herself for not being able to save her father and grandmother.

Remember this line from Chapter 33? It’s the question Sabino confronts her with:

“Do you think your father would’ve valued this kingdom over the wellbeing of his only daughter?”

And Asha cannot answer. She in fact just changes the subject!

But it’s worth mentioning the things she thinks in that moment:

The answer seemed so obvious, but their unfinished star maps and broken dreams had made her wonder.

Shes doubting the love her father had for her (which has aged like cheese lol) because remember she could plan to make star maps in advance with him but all magnifico had to do was show up one night and her father would promptly cancel with her. We see this in one of her dreams:

Chapter 12: the dream

“Papa?” she whispered.

“Tomorrow,” he said softly, in a tone that made her heart sink.

That was what he’d always tell her on nights when he was too busy to take her stargazing. When his friend would come to whisk him away for weeks, maybe even months at a time.

Her heart began to ache as she cast the beautifully clear sky a glance, knowing that tonight would not be the night she’d spend perfecting her star map with her father.

It’s an arguably selfish realization to reach, but I suppose in the mind of someone with deep insecurity and terrible self loathing it’s just a hint of the cracks about to form in their relationship. given what we know now it’s one that I think has aged with a terrible vengeance as Asha’s mind seems to think that the reason why her father wouldn’t let her know about his legacy is because she’s a disappointment.

You can even see it here in how she contemplates the question.

Why wouldn’t he? Between her and the kingdom, at least the kingdom had offered a sense of refuge and hope for its people. What had she done? Other than crying, failing, and running around aimlessly, not much. Everything she’d achieved and promised had only been because of the star, not herself.

What is said in chapter 36:

“Are you?” the king asked, watching as she hesitated . “Because the last time I checked, you and your lack of powers weren’t the reason that it got fixed.

“Or the reason that the market got decorated,” Lady Allard sobbed, as she gingerly held her bandaged arm.

Chapter 33:

There’s a reason why her father’s projects and dreams had never gotten off the ground. How could they when he had an unspectacular daughter like her at the helm of each project? Her poor father, if only he’d known just how doomed his projects had been when he’d promised her that they could build them together.

What Velius tells her in Chapter 36:

“You accomplish nothing yet you still manage to cause more trouble than you are worth. Then you wonder why people struggle to believe in the projects and ideas you helm.”

What Asha thinks in chapter 33:

Maybe he should’ve wished for a better daughter…

Whats said in chapter 36 by the king:

Maybe your grandmother and father still would’ve been here as they’d not only have the child they deserved but one that could have ultimately saved them…”

((I don’t think it’s a coincidence))

But it’s very funny to see it when you realize that last chapter (chapter 35) she tells Ceph this:

“But that resilience wasn’t enough to save her from a broken heart…our wishes weren’t enough…nothing we did was enough!..” she nearly yelled as her eyes narrowed. Disgust and anger filled her as she spat, “After that…I just couldn’t bring myself to believe in them again…how could I? All I’d ever wanted was for my Dad to be healthy again, and for my family to be whole once more…Was that so wrong to wish for?

But now we see that it’s Not just the wishes that isn’t enough, but herself. And maybe that’s why she can’t wish for anything because deep down she feels like it just won’t come true because she isn’t deserving of it.

That’s why she doesn’t bother challenging magnifico about his wish granting despite knowing that he’ll definitely pass over some urgent wishes. It’s not because she inherently agrees with it but it’s because she doesn’t think she has the place to say otherwise especially to someone like magnifico who is the opposite of her.

Then there’s the part about her feelings for Ceph. Hearing that he was entertained and pursued by princesses has to be absolutely crushing when you realize Asha’s financial situation and the girls she notices he happily entertains.

But that’s not even the worst part- notice how she calls out her grandfather for this:

“Mean?!” her grandfather stammered. “He’s the one leading you on and making your life harder, yet you call me the mean one?!”

She responds with this:

“Cepheus isn’t leading me on! Saba why can’t you just understand that he’s only trying to help me because he’s my friend?!”

And later confessed that Cepheus is one of the few bright spots in her life:

“He’s the only reason you got out of that forest unharmed!” Asha cried as she pointed at her grandfather. “The only reason why I got to stay home…and the only reason why the tree got healed! If he hadn’t been there then…then…” her voice trailed off as she took in the shocked expression on her grandfather’s face. But it had been the disappointment in both the eyes of her mother and grandfather that had hurt her far more than the assassins had as she lowered her head, whispering, “I…I can’t take it anymore! Everything has been so terrible for me lately, everything except for this, for him!

But ironically we see later on that her argument is used against her.

The guilt over the Clariveaus, the queen, Julian and lady Allard also eat away at her as well, reminding her that no matter just how much she comes to care and Cepheus, that deep down she’s just as responsible as he is for the suffering he’s caused.

She even hears the figures say that Cepheus is incapable of ever loving her back or is only using her for what he wants. She likens it to her experience with Ignacio, which if you think about it does sorta share some similarities.

Then there’s the helplessness she feels despite giving him credit. Even before Asha spirals you can see it usually eating away at her as she starts to think that maybe Magnifico’s advisors had a point. And it’s not just a point she hates conceding too but rather one that haunts her so badly that she fears that if she moves elsewhere her experience will repeat itself.

“I don’t think you can. You could move away, but the results would still be the same. I don’t need you, nor does the world for that matter. Our power far exceeds anything your little science could compensate you with…

On a side note I honestly feel as if jealousy is an unspoken facet of Asha’s character because it’s so deeply hidden behind the insecurities that it’s hard to tell. But I think the jealousy is born not so much out of a yearning to have but moreso a yearning to belong. She wants so badly to be trusted, to be understood and maybe even loved, but after so many failures I think she’s come to realize that it’s not worth the risk. She’s terrified of failure and the burn that comes with it.

She compared herself to Icarus at one point- reaching for stars that would consistently burn her. But isn’t there something ironic about someone who is so deeply insecure, so self-loathing who doesn’t even think she deserves the most simplest of things to compare themselves to a cautionary tale of overconfidence, and ambition?

But there’s one more thing I would like to bring up:

Why would Asha want to burn her storybook? It’s full of fairy tales isn’t it? Something similiar to the world she lives in and wants to be apart of. But the reasoning that the ‘king’ gives to her is that ‘she doesn’t deserve it.’

I personally believe that this sorta extends beyond the physical sense- so it’s not the king saying she doesn’t deserve to physically have the book but moreso she doesn’t deserve to entertain herself with fairy tale like dreams when none of hers ever came true. It’s her self loathing in full display because that book used to be everything she ever represented, and she was going to burn the symbol of who she once was, who she once dreamed to be in a perfect world along with the book of her dreams for how she turned out in the real world. Completely and utterly destroying her future and aspirations because she no longer knows who she is.

It’s not until she sees herself in a mirror looking completely worn down and broken just like how the rest of the world sees her, and maybe like how the audience sees her, does she stop. Because now she realizes that she no longer knows what she’s doing.

And for someone like Asha who never usually confronted a problem without some semblance of a plan, who always bore things with a smile because she believed in an ultimate purpose, perphaps that’s the saddest part of it all.

[the-unknown-void]

Drone Reproduction Headcanons PART 2!! (NOT NSFW)

Please read this post first if you haven't, it's important for context:

This post is gonna be mainly about Disassembly drones- while I originally said they wouldn't have reproductive functions and they would have to be modified to have a port for the specialized cord to copy data into a pill baby. I've decided to go back on this in favor of a much COOLER idea.

CUCKOO DRONES!!!!!

A cuckoo is a species of bird popularly associated with "brood parasitism". A behavior in the wild where they will lay their eggs in the nests of other birds to raise their young for them. (just birds as an example, this does happen in other species)

Disassembly drones still don't have their own infant forms.. so they have to steal babies from worker drones, whether already activated or not doesn't matter. They inject a code into the UNN(Untrained Neural Network) that replaces the template for what they're supposed to grow up into with a disassembly drone template.

The new parent disassembly drone can choose to keep the child and raise it themselves or.. leave the child with the worker drone colony to raise it for them. (this'll be what the rest of this is about)

To prevent the child from being kicked out by the colony too early, they will look practically identical to a worker drone(minor differences) in their early stages. It won't be until their late teens that they begin to present disassembly drone features, and start to intensely crave oil.

This will lead to them killing the worker drones and they won't leave until the entire colony is dead.

- - - - - - - - - - -

At least that is the premise, of course at times the child may develop morality and resist murdering what they've come to know as their family.. but unfortunately this effort will usually lead to their death from core overheat(unless they can find a compromise). Sometimes the parent disassembly drone may return in search of the child after they become a certain age. Revealing their parentage and attempting to persuade them into killing the workers and coming with them.

Cuckoo drones do have some differences from normal disassembly drones. For one they wouldn't have a name like "Serial Designation (letter)", no yellow armband either, and they wouldn't have any programmed-in role because they don't have a squad.

By the way, cuckoo drones who were altered *after* activation are still very much related to their worker drone parents and still inherit their traits! The parent disassembly drone only changed them so they grow up into a DD instead of a worker. This means the cuckoo can have any colored lights derived from their parents.

Cuckoos who were altered before activation simply inherit traits exclusively from their parent DD (basically a clone cuz they don't require 2 DDs).

- - - - - - - - - - -

Well, I think that's all I have to say. I really need to just make a list of Disassembly Drone headcanons because I just LOVE coming up with the workings of a fictional species- I know they're robots but, let's be honest.. they're animals in a robot shell lol.

I wanted to share this immediately because I think it would make an AWESOME OC concept. So ABSOLUTELY feel free to use this for your OCs, I haven't seen anyone else make something like this.

Please tag me on you cuckoo drone OCs, I would LOVE to see them!! :333 (you don't have to of course)

[writingonleaves]

things you never said (things you'll never say to me) - nico hischier

pairing: nico hischier x original female character

warnings: swearing, sadness, angst, not my traditional fluff folks, very little dialogue, kinda a ramble disguised into a piece lol, google translated german, projection?? is that a valid warning

inspired by + title: "things i wish you said" by sabrina carpenter

word count: 2.8k

author's note: got into my feels randomly for this (incredible) song and decided to write something with it. also a part of @wyattjohnston 's lowkey loverfest 2k24!! hope you all enjoy this melancholy ride and please let me know what you think <3

*****

Nico Hischier has always been a leader. 

You ask anyone in Naters or Bern who knew him growing up and they would say the same thing — he’s a polite, young boy with so much talent and a sensible mind. He may be the youngest of three, but everyone’s always turned to Nico for guidance. With a calming voice paired with a warm smile, it’s rare for Nico to steer anyone wrong. 

And he sees it in himself too. Even when he was a rookie, when the C stitched into his jersey was only a blurred dream, he still felt like he had to lead by example. No one was expecting that of him, he knows that now, but he was a first overall pick, the weight of a losing team’s hopes on his shoulders. If he crumbled, those supporters’ hopes fell with him. His own hope would fall with him. 

It took a few years, a pandemic, another first overall pick, a shit ton of roster changes, a new coach and other things to walk into a locker room that wasn’t used to losing. And Nico prides himself as being a leader in that transition. C on his jersey or not, he would’ve done it. Because he doesn’t know how not to.

Leanna always said he didn’t know how to turn it off. 

When Nico had first met Leanna Spritz, it honestly was one of the worst first impressions he’s ever given. It was the morning after a brutal 6-1 loss against the fucking Flyers. The final score itself was bad, but the fact that it was against the Flyers rubbed more salt into the wound. He knew Lindy was gonna bag skate them all to hell and back the morning after and he just really wanted his cappuccino before to take away some of the bitterness. 

All up in his head, he had crashed literally into Leanna. Before they both could comprehend, her cold brew had spilled. Somehow, Nico got away with an unnoticeable splash on his hoodie and no spillage from his own drink. But Leanna wasn’t so lucky. Her brown sweater wasn’t dark enough to hide the fact that half of her cold brew was on it while the other spilled to the ground. 

“Fuck,” Nico had exclaimed, eyes widening and darting between her now coffee stained sweater, the empty cup on the ground and her red hair that only glistened with the sun rays. “Shit! I am so sorry. That’s totally my fault.”

Leanna had waved him away with a small chuckle as she dug into her purse for stray napkins. Far too nice for someone who now had coffee all over them because of him. “It’s okay. Mistakes happen.”

Nico looked at his watch and grimaced. Shit. He was going to be late to practice. And that would be even worse than usual with their horrible performance the night before. “Listen. I really want to buy you a coffee to make up for my clumsiness, but I’m gonna be late to work and-”

Leanna had nodded in understanding, lips quirked up. “Don’t worry about it. Promise. Go. Don’t be late for work.”

He had been so frazzled that all he remembered doing was blurting out another apology before practically running away, partially from embarrassment but also because he really did have to go. 

A week later, Nico went back to the coffee shop. In the back of his mind was the redhead who he still owed a coffee to. But Nico’s also realistic and he knew he’d probably never see her again. 

While he was patiently waiting in the long line, he felt a tap on his shoulder. He braced himself to interact with a fan, but turned around and was pleasantly surprised by who he did see. 

“I thought that was you,” she had said, pink beanie over her hair and a twinkle in her eye. “Not going to spill coffee again on me, are you? I’m wearing white today.”

Nico swallowed before his brain turned back on and he grinned. “Good eye. And no. I promise I’ll be less clumsy today. And I’m less in a rush.” They were next in line to order and he ordered first before turning to her. She had tried to deny him but he just raised an eyebrow until she gave the barista her order. 

“I’m really sorry again,” Nico said as they had shuffled out of line to wait for their drinks. “I hope the sweater didn’t stain.”

Leanna waved him off with her bright smile. “That sweater has been through too much for some coffee to ruin it. You don’t need to worry, Captain.”

Nico had been shocked that she knew who he was, which, in hindsight, is dumb. He’s not Jack, but he gets recognized a good amount around New Jersey still.

He cleared his throat. “Nico is fine.”

She smiled. “Okay, Nico. Well, I’m Leanna. Thank you for paying for my coffee. You didn’t have to, by the way, especially to clear your conscience.”

“That’s not why-well, it is. But I also, uh, are you in a rush?”

Nico remembers that day so well still, his English failing him despite living in North America for over five years as he basically asked Leanna on their first date right there and then. He remembers being thankful that she took some pity on him with her sweet smile and led them to a table. He probably would’ve stood there stuttering like a fool if she didn’t cut in.

“Nico?”

Nico blinks himself out of his memories as Jack walks into his living room. Sometimes he questions if he should’ve given Jack a key. 

“Hey. What’s up?”

“We have skate,” Jack gives him a look. “Dude, take a shower. Quickly. Or we’ll be late.”

“Right,” Nico says, stumbling over to the shower. As the water’s warming up, his eyes stop at a purple bottle tucked in the corner of the sink. Hair oil. Leanna always joked that she couldn’t live without it. His hands twitch to reach for the bottle just so he can smell the grapefruit scent, but he forces himself into the shower instead. 

He can hear Nina’s voice so clearly. Throw it away, she’d say in their mother-tongue that realistically Nico will never not be fluent in but sometimes is scared will slip away. Nina liked Leanna a lot, actually, the one time they met when she came to Jersey to visit last year. But Nina is also Nico’s sister, and cursed her name many times when Nico called her crying, waking her up in the middle of the night. She had stayed on the phone with him for three hours, letting him cry.

He forces himself to take a shower. To wake up a bit and shift his focus to the upcoming skate and game tonight. They’re playing the Rangers, which is just always a grind. He needs to be all in.

Nico keeps to himself while getting ready for practice, putting on his gear quietly while his teammates chatter about something or another around him. He speaks quickly to the equipment team about his skates and smiles in thanks. He catches a whiff of the perfume of their head of PR as she walks past in the hallway, and Nico swallows. 

Realistically, he knows it’s not the same one. But it’s floral and smells like jasmine, so it might as well be. 

As he’s driving home, he has the radio down low. He was never the one to fuss about putting his music on in the car. Because the world just works like that, a song that he doesn’t know the title to comes on. He hums along, because Leanna always played this song.

Instinctively, his fingers twitch to reach out to someone who won’t ever be in his passenger seat ever again. He can hear her voice, her thigh under his palm. It’s not safe to drive with one hand, she’d say with an amused laugh interlaced in her voice. He would always roll his eyes before giving her thigh a squeeze and keeping his hand there for the majority of their journey. 

He remembers that sentence bringing him comfort when they were driving to her sister’s house in upstate New York. He was scared shitless to meet her whole family for the first time to celebrate her cousin’s birthday. It was below freezing point outside, but his hands were so clammy that one would’ve thought it was summer. 

Leanna had put her hand in his hair at the nape of his neck. He had immediately calmed down. 

He swears if he focuses hard enough he can still smell the green tea shampoo Leanna used. It was always interesting to him, because the first thing he would think of when he saw her flaming red hair wasn’t green tea. It deserved something more bold attached to it. Like orange. Or vanilla. Or coconut.

Because Leanna was exactly that. Bold. Bright. Crashing into the lives of everyone in her path with her bright smile, loud laughter and a personality that sucked you in. 

Nico stops at a red light and absentmindedly looks to the right. His breath catches at the sight of a woman walking a beagle. Leanna always said that once she was more settled down, a beagle was the kind of dog she wanted to get, just like the dog she had by her side throughout her whole childhood. 

At one point, Nico had thought she meant settling down in Jersey. Never did she give the indication while they were together that she had meant London. 

He couldn’t force himself to unfollow Leanna on Instagram after the break-up. He catches himself way too often seeing if she still follows him. She does. And she even likes his posts most of the time. He checks.

Nico shouldn’t be surprised. Even though she cried so much when they broke up and he couldn’t handle it, through tears, she wished him nothing but the best. Even as she was actively breaking his heart.

As he pulls into the parking garage for his apartment complex, he kills the engine and just sits there. He should be focusing on the game tonight. Focusing on how they need to stop taking stupid penalties. Focusing on their positioning in the offensive zone. 

You think too much, honey. Leanna would say, kissing his forehead twice, something she started doing to calm him down. You just need to play hockey. Least that’s what you always tell me. Everything else will follow. 

And he would never admit it out loud — especially to Jonas — but he still repeats those words in his head. He’s not sure if it works, but it’s like a mantra. A routine. And hockey players know more than anyone how important routines are and how difficult they are to change. 

It’s been two months and three days. It’s annoying that Nico can still hear her voice in his head, clear as day. He hopes one day he’lll never be able to remember. But he also dreads the day that he’ll forget what she sounds like. 

He walks up into his apartment and pours out a glass of water, downing it in one go. The sun’s out for the first time in two weeks, and a small smile spills on his lips as he admires the sunlight through his glass windows. His eyes shift to a spot on one of the tables by the window on the right, where it seems like something is shining. His curiosity takes over and he walks over, a reminder popping into his brain that he needs to dust his apartment. Why does dust accumulate so quickly anyways? 

His stomach drops. One of her combs placed nonchalantly behind one of his plants. The shine is coming from the light hitting the red hair caught between the bristles. 

What the fuck?

Nico closes his eyes and takes a deep breath before hastily grabbing the comb and tossing it into the trash. She never officially moved in with him, but she was around the apartment enough to leave some things lying around here and there. He thought he had thrown everything out. Or more accurately, he trusted Jesper, Timo and Jack to do it for him during a particularly bad Saturday afternoon two weeks after everything fell to shit. 

He checks the time and sighs. He needs to nap or else everything will be thrown off. Checking his phone to make sure no one needs him, he plugs it in to charge by his bedside, ignoring a text from Nina he’ll answer when he wakes up.

It’s a text she sends a few times a week when she senses that her younger brother��s having a harder day. From almost 4,000 miles, she still knows. Nico’s always loved his sister, but he’s never felt more grateful to have her as he has in these last few months. 

eins zu zehn?? ❤️

One to ten, it translates to. On a scale of one to ten, how shitty or good are you feeling about it today? 

Nico sighs, responds back with a 6, and wills his mind to rest. 

Somehow, he wakes up decently well rested to his alarm. He stays in bed a few extra minutes, getting his mindset ready for gametime. He chooses to wear the gray three piece suit tonight. One of his more fancier fits. It is the Rangers, after all. 

It was Leanna’s favorite suit of his. She always joked he “ruined the look” when he slapped on his beloved white beanie. I love your hair. I wish you’d show it off more, she’d say.

He digs out the beanie from his clean laundry. 

He always leaves an hour or so to himself before he has to go to the rink. He usually spends it tidying up or doing things around his place to clear his head so he can come back after the game and just crash. 

Today, he replays the breakup in his mind. Or what he remembers of it, since he blocked a lot of it out. 

When you picture your future, do you see me in it at all? He had choked out, holding Leanna’s hands in his for what was the last time. 

It hadn’t helped that she had also been crying as she said her next words. Neeks, baby. It’s not you, it’s me. And I hate that I’m pulling that out, but it’s true. Maybe this isn’t the right time for us. 

Why can’t it be? Nico had said. Why can’t we make it work?

Maybe in the future, if things are different. She had said, biting her trembling lip. But even then, Nico knew they were empty promises. She’s too stubborn of a person to not bend the world her way. She just doesn’t want Nico to be a part of that world.

It’s not fair, he knows that realistically, but oftentimes he wonders if she ever loved him at all. That thought especially rode his mind after he saw her post a story on Instagram earlier last week. It was clearly a soft launch, with her hand in the hand of some faceless guy over dinner. Nico ended up scoring two goals that night out of sheer adrenaline and anger. 

Because all he’s ever wanted was for Leanna Spritz to be happy. Even now. Even after all of this. Even if it’s not with him. 

But fuck, she’s clearly moving on. Why can’t he?

He blinks, collapsing on his couch in the living room and staring at the wall. The last time he heard from her was a month ago, when he had gone down after a rough hit during a game against Minnesota. He ended up only being out for the next two games, but the hit hadn’t been pretty. His chest had taken the brunt of the damage. Everyone, including him, had been relieved that it wasn't more serious.

While he was getting checked out by the trainers the next morning, his phone had buzzed and he almost threw up. 

Leanna Spritz✨

I saw the hit last night. Hope you’re okay. Listen to the trainers. 

Nico was angry. What right did she have to text him that? 

But then, he just felt sad. That bottomless pit in his stomach opened up. He felt nothing but emptiness. 

His phone buzzes, this time with a text from Timo, and Nico takes a deep breath. It’s game time. No more crying over his ex-girlfriend. 

As he’s sliding on his beanie in the bathroom, he catches sight of the hair oil again. He picks it up, smells it, before throwing it in the trash. It lands on the bottom of the can with a final thud. He clicks all the lights off, makes sure he has everything he needs, grabs his key off the hook and shuts the door. 

Two hours later, everyone’s getting hyped up. He gives a mini impromptu speech, Jack slaps his back way too hard and Nico smiles, dimples and all.

He takes a deep breath before his blades touch the ice.

[peachmercury6]

Electric (Din Djarin x Reader) Pt.1

Pairing: Din Djarin x F!Reader

Summary: You, Grogu’s teacher, meet his father, Din, for the first time.

Words: 558

A|N: If you can guess the story ‘you’ are reading to the children, I will love you forever. HEHEHE... Also having issues with title, and it's is all I could come up with, lmao. I don't have luck with fanfics. If you have a better title, I am open to suggestions lol.

“There are many kinds of joy, but they all lead to one: the joy to be loved.” - from some children's book.

The school day is over, and you decide to read a book to the children before they leave. You usually read to them at this time, and so far, they've enjoyed the book in the past week or two. “Bastian made many other wishes and had many other amazing adventures before he finally returned to the ordinary world,” you say, watching the attentive children who are excited for more. You close the book. “But that’s… another story.” The young students beg for another story from the same book.

“I’m sorry, that’s the end.”

“But Miss, it sounds like there might be more,” a child says.

You shake your head incredulously. There may be another book in the series, but you haven’t seen or heard of it yet. “Perhaps one day, I will read it again but for now, the day has ended and I’m sure your parents are anxious for your return.” The children scatter, gathering their books, and saying goodbye to their teacher.

The school on Nevarro used to have a droid teaching the children, but it unexpectedly combusted. Greef Karga chose you for the replacement – at least for now. Many parents are concerned with the sudden replacement with a human, but Karga assured them it might be a nice change for the children.

You spot a small green alien named Grogu, glancing at you with its beady black eyes like he is a bit confused. All you know about him is that he has a father, and so far no mother to speak of. Grogu is a baby yet you can tell he is a lot smarter than he looks, always remaining quiet in class when it is in session, and staying attentive. “I’m sure he will be here soon,” you reassure him. Grogu coos, as you set him down on your desk.

Not a moment sooner does the door slide open and a man in silver, beskar armor appears before you. Grogu immediately reacts, jumping into the man’s arms. You recognize the armor as Mandalorian. You thought you heard rumors of a Mandalorian living in Nevarro but you were not quite sure how true those rumors were. “Hey, little guy, sorry I was late,” the Mandalorian says, holding the infant close. He looks from Grogu to you.

You nod at him, smiling. “You must be Grogu’s father.”

“I am,” he says. “You are the new teacher, I take it?”

“Yeah, Greef Karga hired me not too long ago,” you say, holding out your hand to shake his. The Mandalorian looks at your hand for a moment, as though he were contemplating what to do with it. Eventually, his gloved hand meets yours in a handshake. Through this, you cannot help but feel the electricity in his touch. “Nice to meet you.”

“Likewise,” he says, tilting his head in a nod.

As he turns to leave, you watch him hold Grogu tightly. You never thought you’d see a Mandalorian care for a child the way he does.

A few moments later of you catching your breath after meeting him, you realize Grogu forgot the handout you gave to every student before they left. It’s for a parent-teacher meeting, an idea you came up with before starting the job.

Will you travel to his or wait to give the handout tomorrow?

To be continued.....

Part 2

Feel free to send me asks. :)