#at least we got the dock scene though

[theyaremycrocsyoudonut]

I liked the finale of season 7 for Gallavich. But like. ONLY because I knew Mickey was coming back. I read a spoiler somewhere about it, so I watched the ending of season 7 KNOWING that it was temporary. But I cannot, for the life of me, imagine how bad of an ending this must have been if Noel Fisher actually left the show after this, like it was supposed to happen in the first place. It had a lot of references to earlier seasons Gallavich, for instance "The fuck are you looking at?" or the fact that they met up under high school bleachers, but the whole concept was stupid to begin with. They really thought that the best goodbye to Mickey Milkovich who, by the way, carried the show in season 4 and was already a fan favourite when this was being filmed, was to break his heart into a million tiny little pieces at the Mexico border? That the best way for this love story to end and for us to get closure was to have Ian drop LITERALLY everything in his life, including his supposedly happy relationship, for a 3 day fuckfest with Mickey? You can't tell me with a straight face that if this WAS the actual end of Gallavich it would have been satisfying. It was a good TEMPORARY ending. It felt like a really good "We can't be together right now but we will someday". And I loved it for that. But as an ACTUAL ending? Holy fuck it was horrible.

[prettycottonmouthlamia]

I harp a lot on how I don't think the current episodic release structure for Arknights does it many favors in how it wants to tell its stories, and how it's story manifests for us, but there are some benefits to this type of long form structure, and it's moments that get better with hindsight. It's not impossible to do this in a more contained medium, as this is often a staple of the mystery genre of literature and film, but it is uncommonly employed in video games to great effect, with their contained stories often being played much more straight.

One of the benefits of releasing longer-form content is the ability to both make callbacks and to give additional details that change the meaning in earlier scenes. The most famous in Arknights, at least for me, is the scene in Wei's office in Chapter 2.

In it's original context, this is Wei Yenwu being aloof to the threat of Reunion, not even bothering to properly remember their leader's name. Once you learn though that Talulah is not just Reunion's leader but Wei Yenwu's niece, and suddenly the scene has new context. This is the scene I point to when I want to talk about how much of a slimeball Wei Yenwu is at this point in the story. This isn't him being aloof, this is Wei deliberately holding back information in order to manipulate for himself a better position. By not revealing his stakes, he wants to hold more power at the negotiation tables with Rhodes Island for Lungmen.

Of course he knows the name of the leader of Reunion, how could he not? How could he not remember letting Kaschey go and take her away, prioritizing Lungmen over the safety of his dead brother's daughter? But he's not going to show that to Rhodes Island, a bunch of strangers he intends to use in poor faith.

Now let's talk about a conversation in Chapter 10 you likely haven't thought about in quite some time!

That's right! We're here to talk about Nezzsalem's confrontation with Kal'tsit when she docks with Londinium. This is a really interesting scene that primarily serves initially to offer even more mystique to Kal'tsit and Theresa's assassination. After all, Kal'tsit and Nezzsalem knew each other, they even fought together at least once. The King of the Nachzehrer! He was there when Theresa was assassinated, and here he is now, inquiring about the death of the last pure Wendigo. None of this seems out of the question, but with some more time, it's possible to find this scene strange.

How did he know? Sure, the Nachzehrer thrives off of life and death, but they're more focused on war. The passing of lives to the Myriad Souls is the concern of the Banshees, not the Nachzehrer. Patriot is also not a Sarkaz hero, at least not directly, since he was a Patriot for Ursus, not Kazdel, and he was a supporter of Theresa at that. Given everything we know now, it's pretty unlikely that Patriot would have followed Theresis to Londinium. But it's still not completely out of the question. Babel reveals that the Military Council in its fledgling state knew about where he was.

This is a pretty small aside after Nezzsalem defeats Logos, but it managed to hit me like a brick, because the first thing I remembered was Nezzsalem confronting Kal'tsit about the death of Patriot. Patriot was not just a Wendigo to Nezzsalem, he was something of a son to him. Sure, he might not have been Nezzsalem's only student, but the Nachzehrer are not shown to be a particularly sentimental bunch pretty much ever, so the Sudaram going "Yeah. Your kid" is impactful here. Nezzsalem stands, having beaten Laqueramaline's son in combat, after Aefanyl had proven himself worthy of respect, as an old man thinking about his own son.

This reframes the conversation in Chapter 10. Nezzsalem knows Kal'tsit, it's implied he's known her for a very long time, and it's likely he's seen the different lives of Kal'tsit and likely knew of her involvement in the invasion of Kazdel a couple hundred years ago. So it's now also got that added element of the King of the Nachzehrer coming up to the landship and shaking Kal'tsit by the shoulders going "WHAT DID YOU DO". It provides new context for his anger. Kal'tsit was directly involved in the death of his foster son, just as she was directly involved previously in the destruction of Kazdel and one of the figures behind Babel.

It also adds some depth to Nezzsalem's acceptance. He died a warrior, maybe against one of the most fitting opponents upon all of Terra, and knowing that Patriot chose Kal'tsit quells that anger.

It's all neat. There's more that can be extrapolated from this, such as this providing something of an explanation for Patriot's military ability and potentially even his witchcraft, but those aren't as important or interesting to me. Chapter 14 is a story in a number of ways about the burden and threads of individuals who have lived an immensely long period of time, individuals who have found immortality in one way or another, and the ways that these lives ultimately intersect and weave with one another, and Patriot is another one of those patterns weaved through time.

[cozage]

A Journey of Two Cooks

Chapter 4: Reunited

Previous Chapter | Masterlist | Read on AO3

A/n: This sweet little fic is all finished! I hope you enjoyed it :) Word Count: 2k CW: some family trauma/manipulation done to the reader Characters: female reader x Sanji ---

You didn’t leave your room until the next morning. Luckily, you had stored snacks in your room for days when you felt on the outskirts of your family and alienated from everyone on the ship. They could all make their own food for one day. 

You rose early and began breakfast, working quickly to avoid confrontation with anyone. Even though you didn’t want to speak to anyone, you still had duties you had to do on the ship. You may have been a lot of things, but a freeloader wasn’t one of them. You could hear the crew starting to rise as you finished up the biscuits, and left everything on the stove top to keep warm until the others showed up for breakfast. You could cook and still avoid everyone. 

Berk knocked on your door almost an hour later. “Time to eat.”

“Eat without me,” you called back, not bothering to be pleasant. 

“We eat as a family. Hurry up, we’re docking today.” There was no room in his tone for argument. You sighed and rose from your desk, treading after him down the hallway and to the dining hall. 

You were the last to arrive for breakfast, and it was clear the group had been waiting for you. As you sat down at the table, Berk cleared his throat. Your stomach lurched, knowing a fight was about to come. 

“We’re landing on an island today,” he said. “Should be there in ten minutes. Once we restock, I have a pretty good idea about a target we can hit.”

You clenched your teeth, but didn’t say anything. You wouldn’t make a scene two meals in a row. 

He went through the details vaguely, but everyone knew the way it worked. You would be the distraction, they would be the thiefs. Even in these high-level missions, you were always the one who was alone. 

When he was finished, you stood up and cleared away your plates without a word.

“I’ll get the groceries,” you said. There was no point in reigniting an old argument. You had said your piece. You wouldn't be a part of this mission. They were welcome to proceed without you, but you refused to be involved with any more honey traps. 

“Be back in an hour!” Berk called. You ignored him. You would take as long as you needed. You had nothing else on the schedule for today. 

You got ready quickly and departed the ship, finally breathing a breath of fresh air for the first time in days. Island air just felt so much cleaner than sea air these days. The air held possibility. 

You intentionally spent a long time at the market. You searched the crowd for golden hair and refused to give up. You browsed over every fruit and vegetable, every fish and spice you could see, meticulously picking apart every specimen. Anything to delay your return to that dreadful ship. 

“Y/N.” A sharp, husky voice came from behind you. For a moment you hoped it was Sanji, but that voice was familiar. It was your captain. 

“You’re late,” he said. 

“I told you I’m not doing it,” you hummed, trying to keep a pleasant tone in your voice as you browsed the bread selection. 

“You will. That’s an order from your captain.”

You finally turned to him, glaring. He was at least a foot taller than you, but you refused to let that intimidate you. “Did you call the Navy to attack Sanji’s crew?”

He raised an eyebrow. You could see him trying to figure out how you had discovered his plan.

“So what if I did? I was doing it to protect you.”

You frowned at him, your entire body tensing at his practical confession. “You weren’t protecting me. You were trying to control me.”

“Because I know what's best for you!”

“You can’t keep controlling me like this! I said I’m not doing it, Berk!”

He grabbed your wrist, putting it into a vice grip. “And I said you will.”

“No.”

He scoffed, almost amused by your defiance. “Are you disobeying a direct order? Do you know what type of punishment that gets you?”

You could see the sinister look in your eye, and you suddenly realized you had crossed a line. You tried to pull your hand away, but he squeezed harder and twisted, causing you to cry out in pain. 

“Berk stop,” you pleaded, still trying to get away from his hold. “You’re hurting me.”

“Oh-” he gave you a demented smile. “A sprained wrist will be the least of your worries when we’re finished.”

“Stop, please,” you begged. “I’m sorry-”

Out of nowhere, the pain disappeared, and Berk seemed to vanish before your eyes.

And then, sunshine gold. Crystal blue orbs, staring back at you. 

“Sanji,” you whimpered. You were frozen in place, unable to move even though every muscle in your body was screaming for you to run to him. 

Thankfully, he approached you. He had a look of pure concern and worry, and his eyes darted back and forth between your face and your wrist. 

“My dear, are you alright?” he cooed, gingerly touching your wrist. “It looks like it hurts quite badly. Let me take you to a doctor.”

Your hand felt like it was on fire, the heat intensifying every time you tried to move it, but you did your best to hide it. “Sanji, I’m fine.”

He frowned, examining your hand closely. “I think you need to see a doctor. We have a good one back-”

“Who the hell do you think you are?!” Berk’s harsh voice made you flinch, but he wasn’t directing his anger at you this time. 

Sanji gently ushered you behind him to keep you out of danger, making sure you were properly supporting your wrist. 

“You shouldn’t harm a lady,” Sanji growled. “The likes of you shouldn’t even be allowed near one.”

Berk went in for a swing, which Sanji gracefully dodged. He had a playful smile on his face, as if this were a game. 

If he actually was a member of the Strawhats, it probably was. 

Sanji’s dodging only pissed Berk off even more. “Stay the hell out of our affairs!” your captain screamed. “This is a crew matter, you bastard!”

Sanji delivered a strong kick directly to Berk’s chest, sending him flying backwards. 

“Berk!” you screamed, starting to run to him. But you could feel his rage exuding from him and you hesitated. When Berk got this angry, he usually attacked whoever was closest. And you had caused this whole mess. You stood between Berk and Sanji, unable to move forward but too headstrong to retreat. 

Berk stood to his feet, breathing heavily. If looks could kill, you were fairly certain they would already be planning your funeral. 

“Choose,” he snarled. “Your crew or him.”

“Choose?” you glanced back at Sanji, unsure how to proceed. 

The chef was calm and relatively unbothered, opting to smoke a cigarette instead of acknowledging your captain’s words. The only hint of concern was in his eyes, which were stuck to you, watching you carefully. 

Your family, or a man you barely knew? No, that wasn’t an accurate depiction of the choice you had to make. Your crew had taken you in and been kind enough to you, but despite your captain’s overuse of the word, they weren’t your family. They barely knew anything about you. You were just the person who helped them out around the ship and who made robbing other pirates easier. 

Sanji, on the other hand…you weren’t sure. He knew more about you than anyone else on this planet, but you weren’t sure if he wanted you to come along with him. What if you chose him and then he left you? You would be left with nobody, forced to fend for yourself on an unfamiliar island. 

“I-”

Berk spat at you. “The fact that you're hesitating proves you aren’t loyal.” He turned and began walking away. “Your belongings are now property of the Buckaneers, since it’s on our ship. Have a good-”

Sanji was next to him in a second, kicking Berk down to the ground. Sanji put his foot on your ex-captain’s chest to hold him down. 

“We’ll be getting her stuff. If you have a problem with that, then we can fight like men instead.”

For a long time, Berk said nothing. He kept his eyes locked with Sanji, and you could feel a battle of wills occurring between the two. 

“She has thirty minutes,” Berk finally said, cutting his eyes away. 

“She has as long as she needs.” Sanji spat back, and then lifted his foot from Berk’s chest. 

When Sanji looked back at you, he was a different man than the one who was staring at your ex-captain. His features instantly softened under your gaze, his warm smile returning. He held a hand out to beckon you toward him, and your body moved on its own. You walked to him and took his hand, and the two of you walked to the ship together. 

When you could see your ship again, you couldn’t help but grip Sanji’s hand a little tighter. You didn’t want to have to face all of these people alone. 

Sanji squeezed your hand and you were reminded that you weren’t alone. He was there to protect you and fend off anyone who gave you problems. 

“I never even asked if you wanted me around,” you whispered, letting out a light laugh to ease the tension of your words. 

“My darling, I always want you around.”

You gave a half-hearted smile at his words, and then lowered your voice to a whisper. “Are you really a part of the Strawhat crew?”

“How did you…” he trailed off, and then gave a bold smile. “I am. And you can be too, if you’d like. You’ll never have to cook again. You’ll never have to do anything.”

You doubted that. Surely you’d have to pull your weight, but you understood what Sanji was saying. You’d never have to do something you didn’t want to do. You gave a small nod, and the two of you started toward the ship. 

It was empty. You didn’t see anybody onboard. They must’ve all gone to rob their target, whoever it was. You wondered how that was working out for them, since you hadn’t distracted the captain. 

You quickly went to your room and packed up the essentials: your clothes, important memories, other small things that were easy to pack away. Your wrist still ached, so Sanji packed as you instructed him around the room, all without a single complaint. 

Lastly, you popped into Berk’s captains quarters and grabbed 50,000 berries. Your payment for the free labor you had given him against your will. He probably wouldn’t miss it too much. You didn’t care if he did. 

Sanji carried all of your bags and still managed to hold your hand as the two of you departed your old ship and headed for his ship. It was his home, and hopefully it could be yours too.

“This is the Sunny. Nice ship, isn’t it?”

Their ship was similar to the size of your old ship, but you could tell it was crafted by an expert. The wood alone was a hundred times better than the quality of the Buckaneers’ ship. Whoever had created this ship truly had a vision. 

Sanji squeezed your hand. “A new journey awaits you, my dear.”

You smiled at him, and then looked up at the Sunny. “A better one, now that I’m with you.”

[guardian-rocket]

What GOTG Vol 3 reveals about MCU Rocket that we didn't already know

He is depressed and he knows he has 'emotionalistic issues' that prevents him from being able to help Star-Lord

Regardless he is worried about Peter.

After 7 years of friendship, Star-Lord keeps calling him a raccoon even though he knows Rocket hates it. (12 years total, -5 of the blip)

He did modifications for Nebula including creating her new versatile cybernetic prosthetic arm, and likely work on her facial implants

His wasn't built for anything other than to be learned from for science never being intended for any greater purpose

Rocket had a kill switch installed in him during his creation to protect his creators research

He can drink from a straw?

He eats grilled orloni meat

His first word was 'Hurts!' said while trembling

He was fed a false narrative he'd have a life worth his torture and obedience and that his docile nature was desirable and he was full of hope for it

He loved the other experiments he was caged with wholeheartedly and without a shred of callousness

He writes with his right hand (and in a language that goes right to left?)

He wanted to fly, this is something that is pure to him and him alone. The sky called him on a personal level.

He never intended to become violent. This happened after he got to his breaking point in losing his friend Lylla which immediate pushed him into his violent nature resulting in his first assaults and murders

Rocket's creation was physically painful and he was operated on while conscious and likely without anesthesia. Nebula says it was worse than what Thanos did to him and while we don't see the 'footage' it appears to be hard to watch from the characters who view it

Rocket's nature to steal was something he started doing out of impulse

Rocket is incredibly smart beyond what most people assumed, while some of his knowledge was rote memorization he also has a unique capability of inventiveness that was accidental, making him one of the most advanced intelligent characters in the MCU

Rocket use to not speak very well, he's add s's to the ends of words or just pair one or two words together 'What sounds?', 'We like it?'

Rocket escaped because if he didn't they were going to remove his brain (for science!)

The raccoons that Rocket was among came from North America, Earth which makes him Terran

Rocket wasn't introduced to music from Peter. He liked it since he was little (which was likely why he use to hum to himself whenever he worked at putting things together in vol 1 and listened to music while he worked in vol 2)

Rocket does sing and know words to songs (we saw a glimpse of it in the Southern Nights scene in vol 2 but we see more of it solidifying he does it often)

Rocket has his own apartment, he steals Peter's zune so frequently he even has his own dock for it (and also seems to take care of it when it's in his possession)

Rockets apartment is literally right next to Peter's

Rocket's bed is just a damaged door and a thin blanket, confirmed by Gunn that it is because sleeping on metal is what he was accustomed to

Rocket has a plant in his apartment; not important but he's a plant dad to more than just Groot

Rocket is a dancer (at least at the end of the movie)

He immediately appears to panic hearing the voice of his creator showing he has some ptsd from it (very valid)

He didn't deny being a Raccoon out of self denial or wanting to be seen for 'what' he is now, it was just a misunderstanding that he thought it was akin to a slur or something because of how he was introduced to the word (as an insult) and he embraces the name after realizing it for himself now no longer wondering if he's a rabbit or a Build-a-Bear.

Rocket was able to escape when he was basically, mentally a teenager

Rockets body was covered in braces while his body covered from the operations he underwent on his hands, legs and chest and didn't get clothes until after he escaped

Rocket has his subject number tattooed on his chest

Rocket is multi-lingual in at least English and whatever language the Star Children speak Orbose and this may likely not be just due to a translator implant like most cosmic marvel characters

Rocket has been carrying a physical reminder of his failure to his friends his entire life (the key to the cages of the lab he created from scraps he stole over his time there)

He never elaborates on his past to his friends about his origins. 'He won't talk about it'.

End of movie we see that Rocket likes discussing music (and confirms thinking Brittany Spears and Korn are good favorites)

[spiritsglade]

An incomplete list of all the people that Jason Todd/Red Hood killed who (probably) didn't deserve it (in Under the Hood)

DISCLAIMER: I am a Jason Todd fan. I literally only got into Batman comics because of him. My presence in this fandom is entirely, 100%, entirely, conclusively his fault and he could kill 82 people in Blackgate by poisoning the mess and it wouldn't be enough to make me hate him.

There is not really a wider point I am trying to make here, though I have a lot of nebulous thoughts that I'll maybe turn into something coherent someday. I just noticed that Jason kills, like, a lot of people in Under the Hood! As in. So many on-panel and then Winick implies that he kills even more off-panel. So I made a list about it.

Whether someone "deserves" to die or not is really not something I feel like arguing, so just know that this is just me compiling a list of low level henchmen, drug dealers, drivers, etc. People who are not in Charge.

The List

(Issue #2) These guys were hired to move Black Mask's shipment. The shipment contained a wide variety things, including various rogue weapons, Amazo, and 100 pounds of kryptonite. All these guys were unconscious by Batman and Nightwing, and many were in the boat when Red Hood blew it up. Based on previous panels there should also be some knocked out on the dock, though they aren't visible in the second panel.

(Issue #4) Red Hood shoots the four guys who accompany Mr. Freeze with machine gun turrets disguised as nondescript warehouse crates, which is fun! I'm pretty sure he was also trying to kill Freeze here - stuck a little bomb on him - but Freeze's armor was ludicrously strong here.

It looks like he's shooting them with toothpicks but I'm like 90% sure this was meant to be lethal.

(Issue #5) These two delivery drivers. They also mention the other five deliveries "hit" which. Probably means they also got blown up to death.

"I'm telling you I sent two of your better men to take a simple look at a crime scene and now they're missing."

(Issue #5) Potential murder of Jacob and Ryan. Inconclusive.

(Issue #5) General discussion of the sheer unspecified number of people Jason's killing. The people decapitated here were "five runners who worked [...] over by the high school." Jason explains to Onyx that these runners were selling drugs to twelve-year-olds.

(Issue #6) This entire warehouse full of people. He does name three of the people in the room (Marlin Stone - runs "what's left of the east side traffic", Jay Karino - "street muscle" "soldier", Teddy Reese - "pimp", "kiddie porn ring", "narcotics") and calls them all "piece[s] of garbage" and "dirtbags."

Everyone else seems to have been the backup guarding the meet. He killed them all to prove a point to Onyx, at least in part.

"...now he seems to just be dispatching them."

"Oh, so now we've got another Batman? One who doesn't mind the blood?"

"No, sir. The Red Hood is still taking huge cuts from all avenues of business. Drugs, racketeering, prostitution… now…. it looks like he's eliminating the competition."

(Issue #9) Panels speak for themselves. We don't get a clear body count but it is high!

(Issue #9) The blast mentioned here is referencing the rocket launcher Red Hood sent into Black Mask's office window.

Misc other more arguably-deserving kills and tangential thoughts

The infamous duffel bag, containing the head of eight lieutenants.

Li, Black Mask's right hand man, thrown through the window of Black Mask's hideout with a cell phone stuffed in his mouth.

Captain Nazi. (good for him!)

Jason didn't directly kill these guys but he did convince Black Mask to kill all his "second in commands" and "'go to' guys" (6 people total) which was fun.

He blows a lot of things up. Could be a whole separate list.

What was the point of all this? He was doing a lot of killing. A truly astounding amount of killing. So many people died.

I'm tired and I don't trust myself to successfully make a coherent point, but here's a fun little quote that's been bouncing around in my head while I worked on this. In Issue #7, Jason tells Bruce that "Death will come to those who deserve death. And death may come to those who stand in my way of doing what's right."

[malicedafirenze]

I unintentionally skipped a lot of the romance content in Baldur's Gate 3 and I want others to learn from my mistakes:

So: I managed to lock myself out of romance entirely and ended up alone, which was a huge bummer and a serious crack in my motivation to play the game. I finished my playthrough (because I was already close to the end of Act 3 when I realized it), and plan to do another one eventually. I'm making this post in hopes of a) keeping others from making the same mistakes and b) to possibly get some additional insight re. what to watch out for in my next playthrough.

PSA: Pick a Partner before Act 3

The key learning here for me was this explanation from the poly mod

In BG3, romance is divided into 2 steps: dating and relationship(also called partner). Dating is basically where you are at after the 1st romance scene. Relationship is where you are at after the 2nd romance scene (relationship also unlocks the kissing menu). BTW, If you enter A3, all dates will break up with you (partners won't, ofc).

I hadn't realized this until well into Act 3, at a point where going back to a save to properly fix it would have meant replaying large parts of Act 2 as well - I decided to finish my run instead and then start a completely new one later.

Note: lots of spoilers below. (click here to read this post on reddit instead)

My Romance Woes

I read in advance that you couldn't romance multiple people (except for the specific Halsin combos with Shadowheart and Astarion) and therefore turned down Gale and Lae'Zel early in the game (not realizing you could just date/bonk them without fully committing or getting anyone upset)

I didn't take approval all that seriously, thought I'd have more opportunity to fix things later. I was playing pretty good guy, and ended up with high approval for Karlach and Shadowheart, but low for Astarion. Weirdly, I don't recall an option to romance Shadowheart (no clue what I missed?) and the only option I had for Karlach was at the Tiefling party, where I went with Astarion instead. I had a scene or two with him, but then didn't progress further in the relationship, without really realizing what I was missing.

I wanted to romance everyone, sat on the fence for too long, and ended up not romancing anyone at all, by missing a thing or two in act 1 and 2 and being too late to fix it in act 3. Don't be like me, it feels bad man.

Early Act 3, I got Astarion's breakup dialogue ("we haven't spent a night together in some time" --> him explaining it was just transactional and he doesn't see the value in it anymore) and got super worried, but when trying to look up if I'd messed up, I didn't find a clear answer for without more spoilers, so I just continued playing Act 3, including all of the companion quests.

I later learned that I missed out on at least one important Astarion romance interaction by not going to Moonrise Towers until after freeing Nightsong. (when the Towers are already on high alert, i.e. I could only fight and not have a lot of conversations)

After realizing I had messed up companions romance, I instead fucked everyone it was unwise to fuck (Emperor, Mizora, Harleep...) for fun and to see what would happen... but chickened out and reloaded after Emperor and Mizora. Still, got to enjoy some fun content that way!

The ending I got (going to Avernus with Karlach) was really cool and made me cry a lot. I then did try to reload my last save though, to see if I'd get any other epilogue content if I didn't go to the Hells, but... apparently that scene on the docks (Astarion goofily running off, everyone kinda agreeing to go party after this, no other conversations with anyone again.... is just... it?

Idk how much of this is the lack of romance, but I really felt like something was missing there. I at least wanted to talk to everyone again one last time.

This is a post about my romance failures and regrets so I'm not gonna talk about everything else that I loved about the game, but just in case this is getting a bit too negative: I had an absolute blast with the whole game regardless, I'm stoked to give it another go the "proper" way (i.e. with romance). I also generally think it's really fucking cool that this game's romance options depend on how you behave, and that you can't just e.g. give someone the right kind of gift 20 times in a row to make them love you, like it works in games like Stardew Valley.

Next Playthrough Plans

I'll probably wait for another patch or two - considering how much got fixed and tweaked with the first three patches, I suppose it's worth to wait a bit and see what's coming

I'll play with the Poly mod next time and try to romance all of the Origin characters.

I plan to play with the camp notifications mod, as well as the approval ratings in dialogue mod. Both in hopes of being able to game the romance a bit better and get much of the romance in one playthrough

I'll play Dark Urge (haven't seen any of that so far!), but probably still go for a "good" playthrough mostly

I plan on equipping & levelling all Origin companions and switch them out more freely, in order to get approval from everyone and edit my party as makes sense depending on story events (e.g. take Lae'Zel to the Creche, take Gale to the Ketheric fight...)

I want to romance everyone. I already saw some tips for early game Astarion approval and assume the aforementioned mods will help in optimizing this

Am probably not gonna do anything all that differently otherwise because my heart can't take an actually evil playthrough

Aand that's about it. As mentioned, I'm mostly posting in case this helps anyone else.

I was really damn sad when I realized I had locked myself out of all romance, because the romance was a significant part of my motivation to start playing this in the first place. At the same time, I loved so much about the game that I still got a lot out of it in 110+ hours even with minimal romance content.

If you see any red flags about my plans for the next playthrough (or if you have experience with the mentioned mods!), I'd appreciate comments and insights. Other than that, here's hoping others can learn from my mistakes. Thank you for reading <3

[backjustforberena]

In this episode, Rhaenys displayed remarkable grace and nobility of character.

The contrasting attitudes between her and Corlys regarding Alyn are striking: we're unsure how long Rhaenys has been aware, whether the wound reopened recently when Alyn saved Corlys, or if she found out only after knowing who was the man who had rescued her husband.

Nevertheless, she manages to recognize Alyn's merits, personally thanking him and reproaching Corlys for his mistreatment of his son. It's evident she's deeply hurting and feels once again 'not good enough' (her comment about Alyn's mother being beautiful suggests she may have justified it with 'he found someone who had something more than me') and she's feeling like she's lost the last piece of her family.

And in spite of all of this, it's not Rhaenys who ends up feeling 'humiliated', 'diminished', or 'embarrassed', but it's Corlys. His reaction (lowering his gaze and answering with verbal aggression 'is this why you came? to subject me to an inquisition?' -it's the only time he does it with rhaenys) is driven by shame and a bit of cowardice. It's as if the image he had of the mighty Sea Snake is false, and in the end, he's just a man with weaknesses. I believe Rhaenys understands that and pities him.

"this episode" refers to Episode 04, because I'm slow as heck with these replies.

It's such an interesting scene, there are so many layers and little shifts in it, and I just think Eve and Steve do a marvellous job with it. Even though we know they aren't working with any factual certainty around the situation (like, as you say, how long Rhaenys has known), they're bringing an emotional truth to it and an emotional "fact" to it - they have an understanding of how their characters are in the moment and how they are reacting to the situation, even if the rest is all murky.

The contrasts are striking and I find questioning how the audience is positioned to be cool as well. Because there's an argument, at least, to somehow understand Corlys more than Rhaenys. This storyline is about Corlys - he's been the one interacting with it and with Alyn. Like him, we've been wondering when the shoe is going to drop and imagining how Rhaenys would react to this new information.

But this scene is told from Rhaenys's perspective. We start with her and Corlys doesn't come in until halfway through. Not only that, we find out that Rhaenys already knows! But on the flip side, we don't leave with Rhaenys. We stick with Corlys, and we stick with his reaction to her walking away, rather than watching her walk away from him and staying with her.

I've got my own headcanons, based on what we get from the scene - so, for example, I don't think Rhaenys goes there with the intent of talking about it. I think she's confronted with it just as much as Corlys is: it's information she wasn't seeking, and she's come to the docks not to see Alyn but just to say goodbye to Corlys. Alyn is just there and he's undeniable. I also think she's forced into talking about it with Corlys just as much as he is because he busts her touching Alyn's face. If he hadn't seen that, would she have said a thing? If Alyn hadn't been there, would she have pursued it? I don't know. I don't think so, actually.

Funnily enough, I read some of this differently to you. Especially in referring to Alyn's merits. She doesn't actually ever thank Alyn. She just confirms who he is. Then, with Corlys and speaking about what they should do, it's one of the only times, actually, that she's not looking at Corlys when they're on the topic of Alyn. And her words and her tone are very level and formal and remarkably detached. I think it's self-protection. Just as it was to insist on "Princess" with Alyn. Just as it has been in various other situations - burying the emotional reaction to keep strong.

Alyn’s past is no fault of his. He saved his lord’s life. He should be raised up and honored, not hidden beneath the tides.

I think how she says it... she's forcing herself to be rational and pragmatic and not give away how much it hurts. She goes back on formality and treats Alyn as if he were anyone: He did this thing, it was a good thing, if he wasn't your son then he'd be treated in a certain way for doing this so that is what we should do because that's the right thing to do. Even if it breaks her heart.

I'm always hesitant to double-down on anything like "feels once again 'not good enough'" - mainly because of the proximity to the betrayal. She's not finding all this out now. She's not having an immediate reaction. It has been years, she has other things within that scene to react to and deal with other than the base information of her husband cheating on her and I also think she's emotionally mature enough and aware enough to not go down any hyperbolic road within the space of this encounter - if that makes sense? And I don't concur with "lost the last piece of her family". I don't think that's applicable at all, actually, but I'd be interested to hear your reasoning for that exact expression.

And the line about his mother, which is really the only line we get that even remotely touches on how Rhaenys has felt/is feeling about it all, can be read multiple different ways. I don't think she sees Alyn's mother in Alyn at all. I think it's all Corlys. There's still a level of unknown about it. She's not looking at Alyn and seeing what he looks like and going: your mum was beautiful. It's "must've", suggesting she really still doesn't know or can't picture what this woman looked like, even as she looks at this woman's son.

I think it means a lot of things. But that's another post.

But yeah, Corlys is the one who is shamed. He's not dealt with his own actions, and I suppose - and I hadn't really made this connection before so stay with me... it's a bit like her reaction to Daemon lashing out at her. It says far more about HIM than it does about HER.

And Rhaenys always has compassion for Corlys. I will always say that. She's NEVER without compassion for him. She can think he's wrong and a dumbass and all of that. She can think badly of him. But she never, ever wants him to hurt when he doesn't need to be. The look that she gives him after he accuses her of an inquisition - of plotting, or otherwise trying to catch him out... is heartbreaking.

I think there's a lot in it. I think that that is breaking her heart as much as the other stuff: knowing not only what he's expecting from her, but what he's projecting onto himself, how he feels, and what he's been dealing with. Yeah, lots of compassion. Maybe not quite pity because it's his own mess. But lots of compassion.

[aislingsurrow]

FFXIV Write

Day 2

Horizon

1390 words

A fata morgana is a complex optical phenomena that can appear along the horizon line.

Aisling set down a heavy box, wiped her sweat-covered forehead with a cool, wet cloth from her belt, and glanced towards the horizon line. It was a hard and hot day- uncommonly so for La Noscea. Everyone toiling on the docks in Aleport knew why- in the days and weeks after the Calamity, the weather was in shambles.

Aether ran wild, cataclysmic levels of it, and it was all caught in the sky and sea. The tradewinds were out of sync- gales of hot and cold air forming and unmaking themselves in too intense moments, leaving ruin in their brief appearances. The tides rose and fell at wild levels- coming in too hard and too high, shearing shingles off of houses, stone from the cliffs, battering ports.

And the night before had been bitter cold. The western half of Vylbrand froze solid over the past week. Ships used to more tropical waters suddenly found themselves cutting through sheets of ice atop the ocean, and schools of dead fish washed ashore, shocked by the sudden and intense change in temperature. But now, Aisling could swear she smelled sand and smoke on the wind, as if Thanalan had traded its clime with Western La Noscea.

She bent to pick up another box at her father's direction. Edvard, as he watched over the crew loading up the ship's hold, spoke with Baderon. They were both bent over a ledger, and as she passed by them, Aisling's ears twitched. She felt Someone carry their quiet mutterings to her.

"We lost word from Matthis's schooner, The Turtle," Edvard said. "He was deliverin' medicine up an' down the coast to cut off settlements, an' didn't make his last two stops."

"The Turtle ain't made to cut through ice sheets- you afeard she's punctured her hull, sunk below the waters?"

"Or capsized with the tides. I know the Guild's stretched thin as a fly's wing, but if y'could send some'n t'look for him, Cecelia an' I will come due next week-"

Baderon shook his head, face solemn with responsibility. It was an expression that had gown all too comfortable on him recently. "All you're sharin' now- we can't ask fer payment. You've got half the Guild stayin' in the Burrow."

"Ain't proper rooms."

"Ain't proper anything now, Edvard. We're Lominsan, we make do."

Aisling took a break after that, heart heavy and eyes locked on the horizon. That Other in her skull kept bidding her look to it- teased her with gasps and cries so loud and numerous- a crowd swelling like the tides, waves of relief crashing in her eardrums. The other times she'd glanced aside, there had been nothing there.

And once again--

Nothing on the horizon, but now she saw clawed fingertips in the corner of her vision. Other hands, pointing, gestures. The shadow of bodies over her, the tallmen towering and the crescendo of sound and rapturous cries-

CRASH! CLATTER! BANG!

"Z'silka!"

Aisling turned her head to a scene she had already Seen- a blue-haired Miqo'te woman on the ground, her face flushed and burning up. The crate she dropped spilled out next to her; stuffed with jars of preserves, the packing straw caught at least some of them. A scent of salty brine and sour rose from some cracked, broken, and leaking jars- though it all got swept up in the harbor smell.

Baderon was quick to fall at Z'silka's side. His hand around her arm made Someone titter in her ear- she'd come to him in desperation after the Calamity; her livelihood gone, her family gone, no possessions left to sell except-

"Come on, come on..." Baderon helped her up.

Aisling lifted her arm from her place farther down the docks- "Bring 'er here! Water's plenty cool, she can put 'er feet in!"

He carried her to the very edge of the docks and Aisling helped the overheated woman settle down and remove her ratty boots and old, badly darned socks. The touch of the salty, frigid foam spray made Z’silka jump- rousing her from her heat sleep.

"Ah-- Ah-- Baderon, m'sorry, I ain't- should be better'n this--"

"Hush now, enjoy the water," Baderon urged her. "Aisling'll take care've ya. Woncha?"

A pleasant, placid smile spread across Aisling's face- crinkling her eyes and casting their soft glow on her sun kissed, bronzing cheeks. "Like me own.”

“Good girl.” Baderon patted Aisling’s head- something he could still do, as he’d known her since she was a baby. “I’ll get back to it.” He made sure Z’silka was fine enough and then left- returned to Edvard and the work.

Aisling and Z’silka sat in silence at first. The older woman still recovering from the heat, Aisling offered her one of the cool towels on her belt.

Z’silka accepted it and leaned forward so it could rest comfortably on the back of her neck for a few moments. “… Yer Edvard and Cecelia’s girl?” she asked finally, her soft voice raising from the bent frame.

“Aye.”

“You… how old are ya?”

“Sixteen. Just turned it.”

“Sixteen…” There was pain in her voice, in how she repeated the words. Aisling didn’t need for Someone to purr the past in her ear- She lost twins just your age- but that Someone did anyway.

Z’silka was still and silent after her question, and Aisling could feel she didn’t want to talk. So she obeyed the Someone in her mind and looked, once more, to the horizon.

This time something was there.

She recognized the bright, green hull of the ship that hovered upside down and a few feet above the horizon line. It was Matthis’s schooner- the Turtle.

But upside down like that? Floating above the sea line and shimmering? Fading in and out of sight- a Vision. Papa must be right to be scared. It must be capsized…

“Wha' in the seven 'ells…?”

Next to her, Z’silka roused. She lifted her arm and pointed a clawed finger at the horizon- right at the upside down Turtle.

“Wha— what’s that?!” she demanded, and glanced at Aisling, then stared bug-eyed at the sight on the horizon. “D’you see it too?! That ship- it looks like it’s—“

“Upside down,” Aisling finished, eyes wide too- but looking at Z’silka, uncomprehending. Another seer...?

“Hey! Hey! Baderon! Edvard!” Z’silka lept to her feet and caught their attention- caught everyone. “Look! Look, ain’t it that ship? Look!!”

Aisling felt the shadows grow behind her. The tall folk surrounding her from behind- the shouts and cries- gasps of joy- hands extended to point and stare-

“It’s… upside down? No— the sail just disappeared— it’s back?” Baderon gasped.

“Right-side up now…” Edvard said.

The crowd watched as the ship seemed to shift where it was- parts of it shimmering in and out of view- its orientation blinking back and forth. But it got bigger- closer- and as it did, it was more solid and more real until they could make out the tattered sail and the hastily patched gashes along its green-painted hull.

And on the bow, there- Matthis. White hair and sun-weathered skin. Waving in joy and relief; skinnier than he usually was. Skinnier than he should be.

The crowd followed him with their eyes and then moved as one to meet him where he docked. A team helped grab the mooring lines- tie them down. Aisling joined them- hardly able to believe the ship was really there until she held the ropes in her own hands. Lashed it to the ground herself.

Others gathered the weary, shaking Matthis off the deck of the Turtle and on to dry land. His legs shook so badly he needed to be held up, and when they set him down to rest he kissed the ground. His tears stained the flagstone streets, even as he laughed and laughed.

Cecelia, hearing the good news, found an old cask of Bacchus in the store room and cracked it open. The celebration was deafening- the whole of Aleport drank and sang into the night. As if this one miracle meant the world had turned right again.

And Aisling sat in the midst of the party she’d already Seen and glanced to the horizon again and again. The Someone was quiet, but she kept looking- as if by watching all those they lost would come back over that line as well.

[neoninky]

TWST Shenanigans: League of Antagonists (and some actual Villains)

I'm back with another long winded, stupid thought that I may draw some day but in the mean time, here's this lol (also spoilers for my Sacred Crown fics if you haven't read them?? Just FYI)

Scene: Antagonists from canon TWST side events all hang out in a bar and talk about how they fucked with the main characters for reasons unknown

Ashton Vargas: *reminiscing about the Camp Vargas event(s)* HA HA Man you should have seen their faces! We gave those punks a good ol' fashion trauma haunt in the woods. Classic. Divus Crewel: And we looked damn good doing it too. *Camp Vargas Part 1 and 2 Crewel definitely made those costumes* Vargas: Sigh...of course we got a temporary dock in pay to help provide the whimpier ones with therapy sessions but eh totally worth it. Random group of fairies all sharing a bar stool: *makes a bunch of tinkly noises talking about the Fairy Gala* Translation: That's cool but we almost ruined the entire school's ecosystem because we gave into our baser instincts and stole the mage stone cuz it was shiny... damn those kids for crashing our party with their incredibly well made outfits and near flawless sashays (Crewel: I would be more upset if not for the fact I finally got Kingscholar to have proper posture for at least 14 hours.)

Ghost Princess Eliza: *still boohooing over the Ghost Marriage event though technically she is happily married in the end* I just wanted to marry my perfect prince after years and years and YEARS of waiting!! What's a little first-degree murder in the name of true love?! (Fairies: damn gurl / Crewel: that's a mood.) And those horrible boys just kept coming to ruin my wedding! Accosting me with their unprincely behavior! What kind of man doesn't have a legendary sword or a faithful dog that comes at his beck and call?! (Vargas: she does make a good point...) Oh well, in the end, I did find my real prince so it all worked out. We'll be returning for the baby shower they promised to host! (Crewel: the school and every person on campus has at least three restraining orders against you...) - jaunty music suddenly starts playing out of nowhere and the entire room groans - Fellow Honest: *cane twirls his way on screen, ready to spill the deets on the Playful Land event* Trauma, theft, delusionally murderous courtship? That's cute. I suckered a whole group of those dumbasses into a human trafficking con disguised as a theme park! And I did it so well that I basically hijacked 90% of all social media for MONTHS while doing it! Everyone: *disgruntedly* we KNOW Fellow Honest: *much smug* Did I mention how I also cursed the whole place to turn them into wooden puppets if they broke the backward ass rule system I put in place as well? (Vargas: dude what the actual hell?) Sigh...and it would have all gone off without a hitch if it weren't for those damn kids fucking up the entire park (Crewel: our students are pretty much all assholes, yes.) ...I mean sure, in the end, I did tell my shitty boss to suck it and encourage those brats to do exactly that. But then they dared to extend a hand of friendship and understanding to ME?! Entitled, fancy boys with their fancy schmancy education *grumble grumble* Vargas + Crewel: *side-eye glance at each other at the mention of a shitty boss* ..... *both take long sips of their drinks*

Rollo: *appears with sudden intense mood change in the atmosphere* Hmph. I understand your contempt for those frivolous magic users completely... (Fellow: THANK you!) ...I invited a select few of them onto my campus under the pretense of uniting our schools in harmony and camaraderie. In actuality...I wanted to destroy them by taking away their magic and then wiping magic off the very face of the planet. Fellow Honest: ...ok well damn that's a bit harsh- *the group of fairies moves as far away from Rollo as possible*

Rollo: and I would have gotten away with it too. Had it not been for that Malleus Draconia *name said with such distain Rollo might as well be a friggin Batman villain* ...on the other hand, I did completely get away with it. Cuz they tried to guilt trip me by letting everyone believe I was this upstanding person who isn't capable of heinous acts. (Fellow: HA stupid) ...that is until karma bit me in the ass and then my childhood magical dragon friend that I don't absolutely abhor ended up bonding with the magical dragon that I hate with every fiber of my being... *talking about my OC in Her Devoted Throne hitting it off with Malleus lol* Crewel: To be fair, if watching your BFF get with your sworn enemy after you tried to commit mass genocide of magic is the worst thing to happen, you are one lucky bastard.

Rollo: Oh I'm barely as horrible as they are... *scene pans over to another group seated in the Really Fucked Up OC Villain section*

Queen Alva from Her Ivory Crown: I not only gaslighted and emotionally abused my own daughter into working herself to the bone to prove herself as the heir to my throne, I then threatened her and tried to take everything she fought for away from her the minute she had a meltdown and wouldn't marry the boy I picked out for her. Not to mention potentially damning my own Queendom by trying to deprive them of a far better queen than I in the future....now I'm divorced, shunned from society, and living alone in the countryside, forced to do my own housework *has to fetch her own fainting couch so she can dramatically swoon* Zehn Cavaliar, the 'boy' in question: ...yeah I wouldn't take no for an answer so hard that I harassed the crown princess into an Overblot state which could have killed her. I also attacked and injured her while she was in that condition. Her new boyfriend got all his friends to kick my ass before and after I lost everything.... *has the expression of someone going through a Vietname flashback* Don Muraeni from Her Lost Voice: *sitting in a large fish bowl on the counter as a shriveled up sea polyp* I literally paid and sometimes forced several women to bear my children - who I let abuse and murder each other all in hopes of earning my approval btw. I even killed a guy who owed me money and then took his wife and child, made said wife have another one of my kids - who I also abused and forced to do underhanded tasks through the majority of her childhood. I also tried to use my son to get at my sworn enemy after not shedding a single fucking tear after his brother was brutally murdered by said enemy...*stops to think* More child abuse. Collecting siren mermaids and forcing them to be sex workers. Trapping my wife for several years while letting her children believe she was dead....so yeah all that backfired horribly and now I'm trapped as this weird lil slug thing until I die. Or something. Ghost of Don Muraeni's right-hand guy, Proteus: I was a total creep who abused his power and was brutally murdered for it in the end. Also I stole magic from a defenseless, traumatized child. Everyone else: *staring at all of them in horror* .....JESUS CHRIST

Dark Fire is hot but Hell is hotter *sips tea*

Also tagging people for reasons @iscarlettappel @foxwitchaine @wysteriadelights @nuitthegoddess @victoria1676 @1ndigowitch

[roach-works]

hey so I've read After The Storm (... repeatedly) and the Midnight Chicken one, but the next two seemed kinda like PWP one-shots and the porny bits are the ones I was least interested in in AtS so I skipped them (and completely missed the third which seems a bit more plot-like?). Only now I really want to know how Rich got to New York and what he's doing there etc. (I guess that is on me for buying from the erotica section, but it was SUCH good hurt/comfort heavy on the comfort and post-traumatic development and juicy future setting...)

So I guess my real question here is: what's the porn:plot (in the loosest sense which includes fluff and parties and character development and world building stuff) ratio in all of these? Should I get them for the plot or would I end up skimming most of them...?

my co-writers should probably chime in on this one but in my opinion:

-learning the ropes: rich learns more about boundaries and limitations. almost entirely sex scenes with a few pauses for negotiations. like 90% sex.

-the art of boytoy maintenance: a look at rich's near-future recovery and a cozy domestic fic during storm docking. almost entirely sex scenes with breaks for recovery and cuddling, 80% sex.

-cross my heart: mitch gets in on the action. mostly sex scenes with breaks for negotiations and heartfelt confessions and so on. 80% sex.

-a taste of new york: a meetcute fic with very frequent sex scenes, interspersed with tourism, meal breaks, some entertainment and misadventures. 60-70% sex.

the sex in this series isn't ever pwp: we do our best to make it a central, crucial part of the story. it's pretty vital for the development of everyone's feelings and characters, though in the first novel you can skim it and you definitely don't HAVE to read the novellas. but still, this is a romance/erotica series, and the novellas (minus the kiddie adventure one) are extremely steamy by design, and employ sex as the main driver of action and progress.

if you don't care for the sex scenes in after the storm that's perfectly fine and im glad the story stands just fine without them! but most of the novellas aren't likely to be to your tastes. the new york fic is the most likely one to have any story left after you skim all the smut, but i genuinely can't guarantee it would be worth it.

the upcoming mega-sized novels we're working on will have much more non-sex story per story, tho! but you're going to have to be patient because they're like more than 200k each and that takes so much editing.

we also have a few more novellas in the works and in planning, one of which is a road trip with katrina and selkies! that one's likely to be gen. ditto the one with a pair of detroit cult escapees, and there might be another young thena story too. all of these are a long way from publishing tho, and we get stuff done in a pretty random order, so. look forward to those! but very, very far forwards. orz

[rising-volteccers]

Would you consider doing a kidnapping fic? Where Friede gets caught by Spinel and has to wait for the others to rescue him?

Well after working on this on and off for the past week, it's finally done! I had fun writing it so I hope it'll be an enjoyable read! I envision this to be a what if scene between HZ016 and HZ017.

Series: Pokemon Horizons

Characters: Friede, Spinel, Mollie, Murdock

--

Distantly, Friede wondered what crimes he committed in a past life to earn himself this Arceus damned awful day. 

His working memory might be poor but he did recall how the day started. After they docked the Brave Asagi on the outskirts of Mesagoza, each of them split up to cover more grounds with their resupply efforts. They were heading off to the Galar region, and while it was a considerably shorter trip from Kanto to Paldea, any trip that involved them crossing the ocean required their supplies to be topped up. The last thing they wanted was, in the event of an emergency, for them to run out of essentials far away from civilization. 

With the recent excitement of Liko’s disappearance still fresh on their mind, it was decided that the kids were to remain on board for today. Murdock, Orla and himself would do the resupply run. Friede trusted in Orla and Murdock’s ability to fend for themselves if something were to happen, though he hoped it won’t come down to it.

Really, what were the chances of trouble brewing so soon after the last crisis? 

(He would come to regret thinking that).

Friede’s task was to pick up the potions and other similar medication Mollie required from the Pokemon Centre. She already called and placed the order in advance so it was a simple matter of picking it up. He soon left the red-roofed building with a medium sized box filled with various bottles. Friede knew to be careful when carrying such fragile items lest Mollie would be very displeased with him. 

He planned on at least heading towards the city gates before releasing his trusty Charizard. Having more space to spread his wings led to a smoother take-off, thus reducing his chances of spilling any of the potions. Just as he spotted the large archway exiting the city, he paused in his steps from the sudden light tug of his jacket.

Looking down, Friede found a young girl looking up at him with large, brown doe eyes. He easily fixed a kind smile even as he tried to subtly search for her guardians. 

“Hello there lil miss. Are your parents around?” he asked, adopting a gentle tone.

“Mister mister, can you help?” she responded instead in that high pitched voice kids her age were capable of reaching. Before Friede could question further, she pointed at an alleyway off to the side. “My Meowth got spooked and ran in there. I think he’s hiding behind some stuff but I can’t reach him.”

While his smile never faltered, inwardly he was mildly surprised at the request. The whole setting seemed… odd. Friede didn’t see anyone who looked like they were missing a kid, not to mention no one seemed bothered that a girl this young went up to a complete stranger asking for help. He supposed that Meowth could be a family pet and was accompany this girl. Still, it didn’t sit right with him.

“Mister pretty please help with a cherry on top?” The girl tugged at his jacket a bit more urgently, her eyes welling up with her bottom lip wobbling. Briefly, an instinctive panic filled him at the thought that a kid was about to cry on him.

“I’ll help, don’t worry! We’ll get your Meowth back in no time,” he agreed, swallowing down the mild panic and the rest of this strange feeling. It never really faded as he followed her towards the alleyway in question. 

The alley stretched far back till it got blocked off by a wall. Several boxes littered one side while a large bin was laid out by the wall. Friede supposed that between the two, it was likely that the Meowth got stuck within the bin, out of sight from the girl who barely reached his stomach. 

“Meowth? Meowth come out please. We gotta head back before mommy gets worried!” she called out while Friede placed down the box of potions. He passed the boxes and made a beeline towards the large bin, unaware of the eyes that trekked his every move. 

Seeing that the lid was partially closed, Friede pushed it open so he could peer in. 

He didn’t find a Meowth. What he found instead were multi colored lights that swirled in an odd, rhythmic pattern. 

That was the last thing he properly recalled before his world faded into darkness. Well, he still remained within it when consciousness trickled back in. The fog in his head lifted quickly upon realizing his current predicament.

Namely, the fact that he was seated with his arms and legs restrained. His hands were tied uncomfortably behind his back with bindings keeping his legs in place to the chair. A blindfold covered his open eyes, and he could only grunt and breathe harshly through the duck tape over his mouth. 

Initially he struggled, trying to wiggle himself out of the rope but soon surrendered to the evidence that it was too tight. Then his mind went into overdrive. Everything pointed to the undeniable fact that he was tricked into getting kidnapped. 

At first he went through a whole slew of questions. Who kidnapped him? What was the reason behind it? Where was he taken to? How long has it been since then? Did his crew knew of his disappearance? 

Once Friede managed to wrestle his thoughts together, his mind quickly whirled to those multi colored lights he saw before he (presumably) fell unconscious. Oh, it couldn’t be–

“I see you’re awake now, Professor.” Friede tensed up the moment an affable voice spoke up somewhere in front of him. “I hope you don’t mind the way I brought you here. It was far too easy to appeal to your helpful nature that it’s a little boring, I must say. Very predictable.”

Appeal to his–? Oh, the chilling realization hit him like he dunked his head in ice water.

“Don’t worry, she has no memory of the instructed task,” they replied, casually admitting to having hypnotized a young child into luring him towards a trap. Then again, Friede had no doubts now on the identity of his kidnapper. 

He jerked in his chair, briefly tugging at his restraints before settling again. Friede released a harsh breath through his nose, throat strained from the sounds he made behind the tape. He was showing his anger one way or another.

“Right, I suppose speaking is difficult for you right now.” 

With the rest of his senses restricted, his hearing became far more sensitive to the sound of approaching footsteps, the soft squeak of leather making him tense with each step. A finger started to scratch at the top left corner of the tape. He felt the fingertips that grabbed hold of said corner, and without any warning the tape was yanked off his mouth. 

Friede winced, both from the sharp pain and the loud sound of tape being ripped from flesh seemingly echoed around him. 

“There, that should–”

“You’re sick. How could you tamper with a child’s memories like that? She was younger than her," Friede hissed out, anger swiftly burning within him. Fury was better than fear at the moment, so he held onto it even as the cadence of his heart elevated from the sudden grasp of his chin.

"Mouthy aren't you? Haven't you heard about utilizing the tools around you? She did her part and she's now safely returned with her parents. I can't fathom where this undue anger is coming from." No shred of remorse was in their tone. The even, clinical way they compared a child to a tool sickened him.

To actually hear the voice of a person who had zero hesitation in having his Pokemon attack defenseless children added layers to the muted horror he felt when he listened to Liko's tale the first time. How simply they threatened to wipe the memories of the kids present on that ship. 

Friede could have gone off about that. The anger writhing inside him demanded that he do something to wipe the smile he could hear in their voice. Unfortunately for him, the rational bit left within him yanked back the impulse to throw his body forward, chair and all, in the hopes of at least pinning them down with the combined weight. 

He didn't know whether this person was alone or had their Pokemon with them. At least a Magneton and Beheeyem judging from their last encounter. That person with the Bisharp had acted as bait to lure him away, likely ordered by his kidnapper or had been an unfortunate victim of mind tampering too. 

This person was dangerous, that Friede could not deny. Being trapped and restrained left him utterly powerless. Who knew what this person was capable of had Friede chosen to be uncooperative. 

So he held his tongue from the hot spew of vitriol, swallowing down his anger to at least ground out a "What do you want from me?" in a somewhat neutral tone.

"Me? I just wanted a proper chat with the illustrious leader of the Rising Volt Tacklers," they replied. From the faint scraping noise, he presumed that the other took a seat in front of him.

"Really? Last time you were awfully shy by ordering your mons remotely. Wasn't too keen on that guy you sent too." Was it smart to be sarcastic at a time like this? Perhaps not but the words slipped out of his mouth before his brain comprehended it.

"Oh that? It was simple data collection. It was rather disappointing until you terastalized your Charizard. Even I couldn't predict it to have a Dark Tera Type." 

"Oh I'm sorry for not putting up more of a fight in a two versus one. I'd be more than happy to make it to you if you could free me from these restraints, hm?"

Friede's breath got caught in his throat when slender fingers once again gripped at his chin. He felt the slight dig of nails, resisting the urge to swallow.

"Perhaps it'd be better to have gagged you instead." It took a considerable level of impulse control to not blurt out an inappropriate comment right there and then. "But time is limited as is, and I really did mean what I said. I simply wanted to chat with you."

"Then what's so important to talk about that you had to kidnap me for?" Friede asked through gritted teeth.

“It’s that girl, isn’t it? She’s the key.” Ice swiftly filled his veins. He had an inkling on where they were going with this. “That pendant of hers… it has similar properties to terastalization. It didn’t react at all when I analyzed its properties until she was within the vicinity and in danger. That pendant protects her.”

Damn it, only Amethio knew of that connection before this. The guy was straightforward but treated people and Pokemon well enough. This kind of information in the hands of an enemy that had no qualms about harming kids directly was downright dangerous. 

“Even if it was, what did you think I’d say? Congratulations, here’s a gold star.” Friede’s snark kept trepidation from creeping into his form. “You’d think we’re going to let you waltz in and grab her again?”

“Really, I just want a civil talk. I don’t know where all this vitriol is coming from.” Oh, the mocking undercurrent to his pleasant tone really had Friede consider his earlier impulse. They should be in front of him, right? Just a sudden surge forward to knock them somewhere that hurts would be enough. “But, I suppose I should thank you for confirming it. I’ll have to consider my approach next time.”

“How about you just never do and leave her alone? Or is that too much to ask?”

“Such a silly question to ask Professor Friede. I have my orders and I will see them through. Still, I suppose there’s no harm in reevaluating the data I’ve collected.”

So they’re following someone’s others. The higher ups of the Explorers? Their boss? Friede thought, storing that bit of information at the back of his mind. Before he could run his mouth any further, he heard a series of beeps.

“Ah, it seems that our time is nearly up. I must say, perhaps there is more to this motley crew of yours, especially that girl.”

Did they mean Liko? Or Dot? Friede felt his hackles raised at the thought of his kidnapper going after the kids again. For the third time, his chin was grasped with slender fingers. 

“It’s a shame that our lovely chat has to come to an end. A little saddening too that I’ll be the only one to remember it.”

The blindfold was suddenly yanked off, and the abrupt flash of light initially blinded Friede that he had to squeeze his eyes shut. He instinctively blinked to clear the whitish haze–then found himself face to face with multi colored dots that flashed in an odd, rhythmic pattern. Friede could not pull away, not with the hand keeping his head still. 

Oh Arceus not again–

“I’ll be looking forward to our next meeting,” was the last thing he heard prior to his world darkening once more.

–

“.... wake up…”

“...not… pulse…”

Light shakes slowly but surely jostled the cobwebs from his foggy brain as Friede regained consciousness. His brow furrowed slightly, and he must have made some kind of noise as the muted voices around him grew more animated.

“...ede. Friede, come on wake up if you hear me.” Those words were punctuated with another gentle shake on his shoulder. 

A soft groan slipped out but he did listen to the familiar voice. Yellow eyes slowly flicker open, the bleariness sharpening with each subsequent blink. Eventually, he could make out Murdock and Mollie’s worried faces.

“Friede, are you with us?” Mollie asked, her hand pulling away from checking his pulse on his neck.

“Mrgh,” came his eloquent response. A large, firm arm slid behind his shoulders to properly help him sit up. His head pounded something fierce while his wrists felt rather tender. “Yeah. I’m. I’m up.”

Mollie muttered something he couldn’t quite catch aside from alert and no other signs. Still pretty out of it, Friede instinctively jerked back when something cold was pressed against his lips.

“Sorry, I should’ve warned you. It’s a water bottle. Come on, try and take sips. You’ll feel better.” Murdock soothed him in the same vein that he does for the kids. Friede might have felt a little chuffed from the treatment but he eagerly took sips to ease his dry throat. Once done, he laid back against a warm surface that his mind informed him to be Murdock’s chest. 

“What happened?” Friede managed to ask.

“You were kidnapped. Dot received an encrypted message that had an image of you tied up. Thanks to her, she was able to narrow down your location before Rockruff sniffed you out.” He appreciated Mollie’s swift, straight to the point responses. Made it easier to take in the fact that he had a large gap in his memory.

“Ugh, can’t remember anything. Feels like my brain’s in a blender,” Friede uttered, briefly pressing the heel of his palm against his right eye. He heard a soft snort from Mollie.

“The forgetting bit’s nothing unusual but it’s safe to assume that you got your memories tempered with by that Beheeyem from before.”

It sucked because now Friede can’t help but wonder what went on during that long gap in his memory. “Man, I got kidnapped and can’t remember anything for my troubles. Not even a t-shirt.”

“If you’re aware enough to crack jokes like that, I suppose we don’t have to worry too much,” Murdock said, sounding mildly amused. 

“Still, I want to properly check you up. You’ve got some mild rope burns on your wrists, and knowing you, I’m guessing that you tried to struggle your way out,” Mollie piped up, storing away items into a small pack. 

“Wish I remembered I did that,” Friede muttered. With Murdock’s aid, he got to his feet. Surprised by the weakness in his legs, it was due to the arms supporting him that prevented Friede from taking a tumble.

“Just take it easy. You’ve been gone for hours and been tied to a chair all the while.”

“I can carry you if you want,” Murdock kindly offered. Friede briefly considered it but his pride couldn’t take it after apparently getting himself kidnapped and not remembering anything from it.

“It’s fine. Just be my support,” he grumbled. Murdock’s soft chuckle and the arm wrapped around his waist did ease his twitchy nerves. 

“Ready to head back?”

At Friede’s nod, the trio slowly made their way out of what looked to be a small abandoned building at the outskirts of Mesagoza. They head back towards the Brave Asagi, unaware of the Beheeyem watching them from the rooftops. 

Back on board, Friede would find himself hounded by worried kids, having to spend a good amount of time calming them down while Mollie treated the mild injuries he sustained. He too made sure to thank Dot personally later for her aid in finding him, and apologize that she had to see an image of him tied up. No doubt it was a scary sight.

Whoever that person was that kept messing with them… they better hoped that Friede never regained his memories because oh boy, the things he’d do for putting the kids through this… 

Still, he shelved that thought away for a later time. Right now, he had to assure Liko, Roy and Dot once more of his well being.

[kariachi]

Okay, part of the problem with the cutscenes in USUM is that so many of them just, aren't necessary.

For instance, most recent part I've played, let's look at how the Aether Foundation and Malie City go.

Aether Foundation is introduced in a cutscene

You get a max 30 second break to run around a small area with nothing to do

Then you get another cutscene where you meet Lusamine

Then a quick battle with Nihilego

Then another long cutscene comprising of leaving Aether and the ferry ride to Ula'Ula

Theh another to introduce Malie City and remind you to go to Malie Garden

Hit up the pokemon center, it and the docks being the only thing before Mali Garden

Walk four steps and get waylaid by Hau for a battle and reminder to hit up Malie Garden

Don't bother trying to walk passed it- Lillie will stop you and remind you to go to Malie Garden

Get a cutscene as you enter Malie Garden

Get to run around a little bit, do some exploring, until you come across Kukui

Another cutscene that's functionally just 'we saw an Ultra Beast!' 'Cool! Go down Route 10 and do your next trial!'

Leave Malie Garden and run directly into a scene with Lillie who says she's going to the library

Freedom! You can explore the city as long as you don't get too close to the library entrance, and maybe even go onto Route 11 I didn't try it

Still though, Route 12 is closed off until you finish your next trial and 11 is short so the only other way to go is Route 10

Try and you will be stopped until you finish the Lillie stuff

Go to the library and you immediately get a cutscene that exists only to go 'btw Hapu is here too and might help Lillie, some other time'

In the library, a cutscene and then a brief moment of getting to walk around

Another cutscene

Finally get actual freedom to leave the town and do whatever- at least until you get to the end of Route 10 where Kukui arrives to go 'pokemon league *winkwink*' and escort you onto the damn bus to the next trial

It's ridiculous. And entirely unnecessary. You could literally cut out the entire thing with Malie Garden and it would change nothing except having less railroading and cutscenes. It doesn't do anything for you, the game's not about to let you miss the next trial, you literally can't go anywhere else without backtracking. And having multiple little cuts there for the Lillie stuff is just- Again, you don't need it.

Just, have your team heal at the end of the Aether cutscenes. Hau challenges you when you arrive in Malie City. Cut the whole Malie Garden deal. That frees up a bit of breathing space. Put Lillie a little farther up the road, so players can notice and go to investigate the Garden themselves if they'd like without being drawn into her stuff damn near off the bat.

When you trigger her scene she asks about her mom, then notes that she hit a clothes shop up the road and got a new outfit, though she can't see herself wearing it (a statement that especially so soon after meeting Lusamine and with so little between them would put a pin in player's heads). She tells you she's planning to hit up the library, and hopes she'll be able to find it on her own before heading off.

Look at that! With just that we've cut out a good three cutscenes! And a roadblock! Then you can have Lillie's library stuff trigger when you enter the library, with her noting that she got lost on her way there but a nice lady with a Mudsdale showed her where to go. This cuts out another cutscene. If you really want to open shit up, you could allow the player to just rush right up Route 10, since the path back from the trial drops you back in Malie City right next to the library anyway.

Without the Malie Garden stuff, you can cut that bit of Kukui faff at the end of Route 10, instead giving him just the whole League monologue at the top of the mountain. Instead, if you have to get him informed of the Wormhole stuff you see, you can add that to the stuff that comes after the trial, which I fucking hope is not as much a slog as all this shit- it has been a while. It would still be annoying but less so.

And bam! You open up and lift the weight off a whole portion of the game that feels bogged down! It would be less work even, aside from possibly putting in some code to trigger the Rotomdex to go 'oh hey isn't that the library Lillie wanted to visit the first time you enter Malie City from that direction if you haven't already met up with her. But for some reason I doubt that's that much more effort than putting together four extra cutscenes and two roadblocks.

[leohtttbriar]

the people have expressed my own deep desires (and by people i mean @cmayw and @holodax on this post, so thanks y'all) and i felt compelled to at least try to offer something in answer. so. i give you. the final scene of the unwritten kiradax bringing-up-baby au. baby (not present) is a giant tardigrade. bareil (present) is boring.

you drop an olive i sit on my hat. it all fits perfectly.

With their Bajoran space-faring ship finally docked at the station (a certain Starfleet Commander Sisko was thrilled to witness its mooring), the Bajoran and Cardassian law enforcement officials having retreated and released Jadzia and Kira, and Baby the tardigrade long gone into the ether or some other obscurity known only to Starfleet freaks, Kira donned her blue robes and walked along the promenade with Bareil, trying and failing to communicate even a fraction of messiness of the previous three days.

His quiet presence was jarring. And then, worse, he started asking her questions like: “when the wormhole would officially transfer to the authority of Bajor” and “what exactly is a tardigrade” and “why are you talking so much about a worm-person” and “honestly, Nerys, stop talking about this Dax creature” and “Are you paying attention to me?”

If Kira had taken a hammer to her skull she’d have less of headache and, if her luck prevailed, she would also be dead.

“Are you paying attention to me?”

“Yes, love,” she said, patting Bareil’s hand gently.

“Well then,” he grabbed her shoulders and hauled her in front of him. “Mind telling me why you look like someone’s just spit in your tea?”

Kira shrugged. “I don’t look like that,” she said, mildly.

“You definitely don’t look like you’ve just robbed the Cardassians of a chance to stake a claim on a strategic point of travel in our star-system…”

“I’m not the one who did that, Bareil,” grumbled Kira.

“Nerys.”

“What?” she snapped, stepping out of his grasp and turning her gaze back out the observation window. She couldn’t help but think of how ridiculous the wormhole looked, all squiggly lines and heaving waves and so on. She said as much: “It’s a silly thing, isn’t it?”

“I wouldn’t call it silly.”

“It is, though,” she insisted. She twisted the length of her blue sleeve around her wrist anxiously. “It’s the silliest thing I’ve ever encountered.”

Bareil stepped next to her and tried to dislodge her busy fingers from her robe. She stubbornly kept twisting away at the fabric—Don’t tell me what to do, I’ll ruin my clothes if I want, she wanted to snap, as if that would at all indicate an appropriate level of mental stability.

“What’s going on, Nerys?” he whispered to her, in his careful tone. Kira wanted to un-stick his vowels with a pick-axe.

“Nothing is going on,” she said. “We got what we needed—the wormhole is free for exploration and free from the Cardassians—the provisional government has stopped whining at me like children—the tardigrade is back where she—”

She cut herself off with a sob.

Bareil tried to pull her into him but she just shrugged him off again and began vigorously flapping her hands around her face, as if to fan away her own stupid sadness.

“Nerys…” he said, reaching. “Tell me, please? What’s wrong?”

“Just,” she sucked in a breath that sounded more like a honk. “Do you think she’s happy?”

“Do I think who’s happy?”

“Baby.”

“…Baby?”

“The space-bear!” cried Kira. “The tardigrade! That—that—crazy Starfleet woman—she didn’t tell me where she put Baby—after chasing around the star-system, trying to find a place for a thing like that! That space-bear is as much mine as it is hers now. She can’t just keep that information from me!”

“Nerys—”

“And, what, just because I’m not Starfleet I don’t deserve to explore the wormhole, too? That’s I’m just supposed to stay here on Bajor and be a Vedek’s wife?”

“What—”

“After she trapped me on that planet and made me listen to the ‘songs of the proto-universe’ or whatever horse-shit,” she threw her hands out, now getting truly angry, “after she ruined my ship and delayed this whole project for a dumb animal! After she tried to trick the Prophets and then almost made the wormhole collapse and then dared the Cardassians to invade again! After she lost my earring and nearly wrecked everything! She doesn’t even want to share the space-bear? Are you kidding me?”

She slammed her hand on the observation glass.

“Not on my watch,” she snarled. “I’m getting Baby back. And my earring.”

Bareil looked at her for a long moment. Then he drew a hand down his face and said, “You don’t want to be a Vedek’s wife?”

Kira blinked.

“Bareil,” she said. “You know that’s not what I meant.”

He sighed. “I’m not sure I know you anymore. Let alone anything you mean.”

“Bareil.”

“Are you more upset about losing your old earring?” he asked, crossing his arms. “Or are you more upset about losing the one I gave you? For our engagement?”

Kira opened her mouth to respond, more sure than anything what her answer was and what the right answer should be, but her voice stuttered and squeaked and nothing emerged. She tried again.

A grunt.

She swallowed and tried harder, the words of assurance so real and close and exactly everything she thought would be easiest to say.

Silence.

She patted her throat to make sure there wasn’t an unexpected knife lodged there, cutting off her voice before it could start. She frowned.

Bareil, with the deepest of sad eyes, truly too sad for Kira to fully meet, uncrossed his arms and sighed again.

“You’re not who I thought you were,” he finally said. “Or your…priorities have changed.”

“Hold on—”

“Goodbye, Nerys.”

He walked out.

Kira could think of no rational reason to go after him. Which was probably his point.

She turned and punched the bulkhead and then hissed out a string of curses she hadn’t used since her resistance days.

“He didn’t sound too happy.”

Of course. Of course she'd found her.

Kira had either the urge to launch her phaser at her—Jadzia—like a heavy projectile and screech the screech of the desert lizards on Bajor, or to melt into an amorphous vapor so she didn’t have to listen to Jadzia’s nonsense for a single second more.

Instead she dropped her chin and closed her eyes and groaned.

“How long were you listening, Dax?”

“Oh, not very long,” was the breezy reply.

Kira pinched the skin at her temples, which was now bruised from the amount of abuse she’d put it through the past few days in Jadzia’s presence.

“Dax.” She was going to punch another wall. “My engagement has just ended. My future is up in the air. What do you want.”

“Don’t fret,” she replied, walking lightly up to her side. “I have a gift for you.”

“If it’s all the same to you, I’d rather you not.”

“It’s a present, Nerys! Come on, relax. Take it.”

Kira opened her eyes—if only so her brain would stop focusing on the particular rhythm with which Jadzia said her name. She looked up (and up and up, why was she so damned tall?) and narrowed her eyes at the wide-eyed expression of innocence on Jadzia's face.

“What is it.”

“Open it,” said Jadzia, un-phased and smiling as wryly as ever. She shoved the package at Kira who refused to lift a hand to hold it.

“What. Is. It.”

Jadzia pouted but obligingly unwrapped the package herself. She opened a box and then held it out for Kira to see. There, atop a black fabric, an earring shimmered.

The earring was the same burnished silver of her old beritium one—only this was darker in color, with a purple tint. The puncture point was still a half-circle, but within the rounded center was a starburst pattern, its tendrils expanding out amongst the rings.

On the upper chain was the ear-cuff, made of a reddish-gold with a thin flare like a glass wing, or glass sail.

The bottom chain had a single amethyst stone and, within its crystal, the tiniest carve-out of a planet—Bajor.

Kira, with a shaking hand, touched the stone and gasped at is warmth.

“So you can always have Bajor close, of course,” said Jadzia, in her casual—her weird—way. “I know—I know I made things hard for you. And I’m sorry. For not…understanding…why you have to do what you do. I know it’s my fault that the others were lost. But there!” she thrust the earring. “Made of beritium and an alloy from Trill—I didn’t have enough beritium. The stone is also from Trill, but I can take it off if you want. The cuff is made from a granite from Bajor, though, look!”

She was speaking far too fast. Kira briefly considered fainting.

“How cool is that?” continued Jadzia, unconcerned (habitually) with Kira’s sanity. “It’s just metallic enough to be manipulated, and in direct star-light, it’ll light up like a gold moon!--Isn’t that neat?--See there was this bacteria that used to eat up the earth and then poop out this granite-like waste—which is sort of how all granite is made--all tumbling and breaking apart--and then being smooshed together again under intense pressure--and this Bajoran bacteria used to have guts strong enough to remake rock! Delightful, right? And--and they--the ancient Bajorans--used this granite thousands of years ago to build their space-ships, too! Like yours! Anyway--that’s what the sail on the cuff is for. To be like your ship and you--you like the the ancient Bajorans--they used the granite for the ship's bolts and mast, to hold everything together--and help capture sunlight.”

She took a breath and withdrew her fingers, which had drifted around Kira’s wrist so she could hold the earring steady as she lectured about ancient bugs and space sail-boats—both things that were present on the earring procured and gifted to a now brain-dead Kira.

“So…” said Jadzia, dropping her gaze, looking awkward for the first time since Kira had met her. “If you don’t want it, that’s okay. I only thought I should try to replace the other one. All that happened happened because I just wanted to keep you near me. And I just did anything that came into my mind.” She shook her head at herself. “And well—I want you to know that”—she raised her gaze to Kira’s again—“I am sorry, Nerys. Truly.”

Then, business done, she nodded and stepped away.

Rapidly, Kira’s brain came back online. The facts of the situation hit her in the lungs and had her coughing out a phlegmy and embarrassing, “Wait.”

Jadzia paused at the stairs, turned around, and raised a single eyebrow.

“Don’t apologize,” said Kira, sounding a bit like a strangled bird. “Don’t apologize. I ought to thank you!”

Jadzia frowned. “Thank…me?”

Maybe it’d taken her a little too long to understand. But, to be entirely fair to her, she’d been a soldier since she was a child and, since then, she’d been far more on the lookout for threats than treasure.

“You see,” blurted out Kira, eyes watering, joy racing through her like a scream. “I’ve just discovered that the past few days were the the best few days of my whole life.”

Now there was no escaping it. The truth. She didn’t want her old earring made of the scraps of Cardassian vessel she’d shot down as a kid. She didn’t want Bareil’s earring, precious to her planet, the sign of a leader and a leader’s faith. No she wanted this one—this chaotic one, this privilege of wondrous love and duty—made out of the actual shit of prehistoric bacteria.

“Nerys,” said Jadzia, her eyes filling.

“Jadzia,” said Kira, reaching out a hand.

Jadzia didn’t take it, choosing instead to rush forward, pin her against the wall, and scoop her into a kiss. Kira threw her arms around Jadzia’s impressive shoulders, feeling weightless for the first time in her life, feeling pink and full and happy.

Jadzia pulled back but Kira was wasn’t in the mood for her contrariness. She yanked Jadzia’s lips back to hers and wrapped her legs around Jadzia’s waist. Below, her new earring dropped to the floor with a sweet thud.

“Darling,” gasped Kira, breathing in Jadzia’s smile and kissing it again. “This is going to be terrible, just terrible—but will you marry me?”

Then she kissed her before Jadzia could begin to start talking once more.

[cyphyree]

Giorno 2, 3, 9,and 15

Hell yeah, the lil guy himself!

2. Favorite canon thing about this character?

I love how the narrator states that Giorno's heart became a righteous one, but whatever that means is incredibly subjective. Sure, I like to think that he tries his best to do good, but we hardly get to really see what his goals really are. Can we trust that he actually wants to ban the drug trade aimed at vulnerable people, or did he say so because he's deduced that he could manipulate Bucciaratti that way? That's something I've seen being debated a lot, especially since the manga didn't have that anime scene where The Gangster is specifically against drug trading with children (therefore implying that Giorno adopted the same belief). He also just has no qualms about killing an enemy before he's met them properly (like Sale), because hey this is the mafia, they're going to kill you if you don't kill them first. Even in the enemy rush that's Stardust Crusaders, most enemies just have to get bonked hard enough to take a nap.

But listen, maybe it's because I'm biased or whatever, but even from a more objective lens, Giorno seems to care deeply even if he can't show it. I keep thinking specifically about the part where he talks to Bucciaratti in the car to Rome, and how distraught he seems. You can argue that his pride was hurt because GE failed and he was about to lose a strong ally, and I mean maybe that's part of it. But it's during the solitary and quiet moments that we see Giorno as himself a little bit more, and coincidentally those are my favourite canon moments of him.

He also just let cats walk all over him at the docks and doesn't bother to do anything about it. So there's that.

3. Least favorite canon thing about this character?

We could've gotten a cool 1 v 1 battle between pre-GER Giorno and Daivolo, BUT WE DIDN'T and I'm so sad about it. His dad got to destroy half of Cairo with Jotaro, this just isn't fair. I want to see what a life-bringer vs time-skip fight looks like. Maybe Giorno's doing that to distract Diavolo while everyone else was chasing after Chariot Requiem, you know?

What if Diavolo thinks he can stand-rush Giorno's vine shield during the time skip, but when time resumed he gets pummeled via attack reflection.

What if Giorno distracted Diavolo with a giant tree growing, which Diavolo dodges via time skip, only to get skunk-sprayed in the face.

What if he slips on a banana that turns into a gun.

We were robbed of self-proclaimed time lord mafia boss getting decked by a 15-year-old flower boy in the most looney tune ways possible.

9. Could you be roommates with this character?

Eh......... I feel like that's more up to him. I'd probably be nervous because I don't like to bother people in general, but I think we'd mostly likely keep to ourselves most of the time anyway. Maybe share infodumps sometimes, I don't know.

It might just be a security concern if I keep bumping into enemy stand users and gang members though.

15. What's your favorite ship for this character? (Doesn't matter if it's canon or not.)

I don't have one, to be honest. I like the symbolic duality that he and Fugo has, but I've never felt super strongly about Giorno being attracted to anyone romantically.

I do think he has very deep bonds with his friends though. I just like the idea of him trying to maintain relationships with what's left of the team. It would be hard because of power imbalances, the journey's aftermath, and the consequences of Giorno's actions. Maybe he grows up never being close to anyone, platonically or otherwise. But there's still the possibility that, after years of ostracization and neglect, maybe he'll finally have a family.

[tobiasdrake]

Off to discover the secret behind the pattern breaker.

So. Crime scene #3. To summarize: Victim was killed by a blow to the back of the head. Only one doll found, with paintings nailed up to kinda-sorta imitate the style. There existed two copies of the key when there's always only one. Nothing is right and everything is wrong. In other words,

There's honestly no reason to assume that anyone we've questioned is the killer for a copycat crime. Because Amaterasu's covering these crimes up for the sake of concealing... something... that means that any number of corporate assassins or higher-ups we've never even heard of could have done this.

We're in the realm of assassination and espionage from the highest echelons of power. There is zero reason to assume that this is still as simple as "Oh, that guy who looked suspicious, he did it."

But since we have to choose from the established suspect list?

He did a shit job of trying to replicate a Nail Man crime scene, but he did remember to create a rope burn on the victim's neck. That detail was never released to the public, which means the only way to know about it would be to have visited the crime scenes.

Worshipper was first on the scene at every crime scene. So if we're assuming out-of-hand that Amaterasu has nothing to do with this, they have no involvement in these crimes whatsoever, it can only be one of the church crew for no apparent reason? Then he's the only known suspect that would have that knowledge.

His pattern of behavior was also different. He would typically contact the Peacekeepers on his way to the crime scene and have them accompany him, but at the art gallery, he grabbed some museum staff instead.

Though it still doesn't explain why Amaterasu would be invested in covering up these crimes, if Worshipper was trying to hide them from the Peacekeepers. That would suggest he's not working for them. So. Why the cover-up?

Well. I guess this is the solution. Mystery Labyrinth says all truths have been answered.

I'm glad it's not Halara; I do not want the enby to die first. Still don't understand how they managed to make a complete sketch of a room they'd never visited but I guess the explanation is "They're just that super-duper smart." We cool, Halara?

We cool.

But this still feels like there's so many things unanswered. Why is Amaterasu shielding the Nail Man? Why was the watchmaker out in the woods instead of the working on the clocktower like he was supposed to be? Who even is the fourth victim?

I also don't see how this is going to get us out of trouble with the Peacekeepers either. Or exonerate the watchmaker. Seems like this will make things worse, if anything.

O_O Okay apparently that's a thing Shinigami can do. She can puppet dead bodies around and make them confess to their crimes once she's killed them. That's horrifying. I'm horrified. Never do that again!

Shinigami! Immediately do that again!

Honestly, I don't even know what we're afraid of at this point. Halara hospitalized all of these jackasses before we went into the Mystery Labyrinth. They even kicked one of them off the dock and that guy hasn't resurfaced so I think he drowned? Halara has definitely killed at least one of these cops and the others sure don't seem to be waking up.

Seth's barking orders but he's got no fangs left to bite with. Halara can hang Seth off the scaffolding by his underwear while he kicks his legs and impotently cries that he will be respected goddammit and then we can hop in the sub and leave. Because it has vehicular capabilities and need not remain in one vulnerable spot forever.

[three--rings]

OFMD ep 7 holy shit let's go

HE's THROWING OUT THE BLACKBEARD OUTFIT AND HE'S WEARING VELVET. MY FIC MY FIC It's...no fine fine, he was gonna through out the leather I promise I just didn't write it yet, but I talked about his thing for velvet...at length tho.

Oh come on fine clothes ED. My babygirl.

So...do we all need to make new robes now? I could get into this emerald number. I don't have a velvet one afterall, just the bird cotton.

They're so cute.

OH OH OH Izzy. Izzy. Izzy. Well and truly docked. Okay. Whew here comes the sweating again.

He's jealous, and smug Stede, omg, what is this fucking energy my dudes.

There are bombs in the clocks. Or something.

God this is fascinating. Am I nervous, yes. But only mildly so? I mean, I fully do NOT doubt D.Jenk's ability and willingness to emotionally destroy us at the end of a season.

But...IDK.

Setting that guy on fire concerns me, though.

Yikes okay that was a scene. So, yeah, I'm...Stede is right, basically, Ed is panicking. He's not good at being vulnerable and he's suddenly not the one in control, not in the place he's been comfortable and stifling.

Steak Knife. Okay. .

Why do I get the feeling there's going to be a few Steak Knife/Izzy Hands fics on Ao3 soon?

And um, what was THAT look Stede and Izzy, huh?

Fucking Rhys Darby taking me OUT with Fight It Steaky.

I'm trying to come up with what to say at this point. I was right about the clocks, and that does take out Zheng Yi Sao's leverage.

So, big action finale. Happy ending? Maybe? I do feel like even though I wasn't ever sure how this season was ending that it's possible David might give us a non-tragic ending in case he doesn't get S3, all things being what they are. And I feel like, him being so much more in tune with the fans now.

Yeah, yeah I feel good about all of this. And damn, but like the Steddyhands folks be winning, I swear. Cause like, it's hard not to 👀 at all of that.

Though it does feel like Izzy got at least an episode of emotional maturity growth without the actual episode.

Now I have to fucking stop sweating and try to calm down. I don't even have any alcohol. Gonna need to get some for next week.

Hmm, ice cream.