#bro DOES NOT give a hell if you were ‘the leader’ he’ll talk to you however he wants

[stanleyvampire14]

I am indulging in my silly made up world again based on Undertale magic

ReverseGlitch

Redesigned Shae ONCE AGAIN…I think I put him on here?? Well anyways here he is we love him.

Rambling under the cut 🧡💛

Out of the seven souls found in Undertale, he is a combined (otherwise known as dual-traited) bravery and justice soul, which gives him more magical abilities to work with, but he chooses to use “thrown”/long ranged attacks like fire and tiny bullets (think of Flowey’s friendliness pellets)

If he were to lose his traits momentarily (or go “grey”) his orange eyes would become a brownish color (I haven’t decided but maybe like, deep brown) his hair wouldn’t really change minus the orange and yellow fading away into the main grayish brown color of the hair.

With the 3 layers of clothing this mf wears I’m surprised he hasn’t died of a heatstroke 😭 (Collared shirt, dress, poncho thing, in that order’

I will not be revealing why he has his mother’s necklace yet, let’s just say he snatched it—

I am 100% projecting onto him with the painting and lavender candles, love that ^_^

Alright that’s all I think, thanks for listening to my Ted talk /ref

[hi-i-love-u-bitch]

TMNT Headcannons from across the universe!

These are just headcannons I have for characters that NO MATTER which universe they’re in, I truly believe these hc are real in my heart.

• Raph curses like a sailor (Yes even your precious rottmnt!Raph). He is usually 101% done with whatever bullshit they’ve gotten themselves into and has no need or want to put a filter up because of it. Though he tries not to curse too much if Master Splinter or small children are around, he’ll slip up once or twice if he gets too frustrated.

• On the flip side: Leo NEVER curses. But it’s not because he’s the older brother/leader and wants to be an example for his brothers (especially not rottmnt!Leo). But because he’s a little shit and likes watching his brothers cringe at whatever nonsense he uses to replace swear words.

• Leo: Aw shucks! This really ruffles my freathers! Looks like we really go ourselves in a pickle this time fellas!

• Raph, Donnie, and Mikey, sobbing: Please for the love of god just say FUCK!!!

• All of the bros can skateboard but Mikey is the best at it.

• Donnie’s always got to be a little messeed up in the head, mainly because his morality is a fucking rulet wheel. Like he can be the sweetest person you know but if the situation does not benefit his friends or family he does NOT care for it.

• It has been stated before many times that Mikey has the most raw talent amongst his brothers and I truly believe that if Leo hadn’t stepped up as leader Splinter would have assigned it to Mikey. But like also Mikey absolutely DOES NOT want to be leader.

• I firmly believe that Raph is good with kids; like if it were possible for him to live a normal life I wholeheartedly believe he would be a kindergarten teacher.

• Donnie does NOT like kids but kids seem to like him for some reason.

• Leo is okay with kids, he’s just really awkward around them and doesn’t know how he should act.

• Mikey absolutely adores kids and they adore him right back! He doesn’t speak to them in that condisending way that most adults do as if children are stupid and don’t understand anything happening around them. He talks to them like any other person and respects their opinions and ideas. If possible he’d probably have the biggest family out of all his brothers.

• Hates pineapple on pizza: Raph, Donnie, Casey

• Likes pineapple on pizza: Mikey, Leo, Splinter, April

• Casey Jones would NEVER in a million years EVER be a cop! (I don’t fucking care what the Bayverse movies say CASEY JONES WOULD NEVER BE A FUCKING COP!!!)

• Casey is trans and bisexual, always! Look me in the eyes and tell me I’m wrong!

• Even if she isn’t a reporter/journalist in every universe, April O’Neil is always gunna be a bit nosey by nature and know ALL the gossip.

• April is either gunna be Bisexual or AroAce, no inbetween!

• With that being said, if April and Casey aren’t “romantically” involved with each other they are QPP because they’re soulmates and I love their dynamic together.

• Raph and Casey are also QPP! They are ALWAYS going to be best friends in EVERY universe!

• Leo is bisexual, always! Look me in the eyes and tell me I’m wrong!

• Mikey is pansexual and genderfluid/agender/genderqueer/idk they got something going on with their gender cuz it sure as hell ain’t cis!

• Donnie is nonbinary because he has no time for silly things like gender, only science! His sexuality is a squiggly line hand wave that’s somewhere on the ace spectrum and your guess is as good as mine.

• Raph goes by he/they pronouns. That’s all anybody has ever gotten out of him and if they ask he always replies with: my gender is who fucking cares and my sexuality is who gives a shit!

• Much like April, Splinter fall under the line of either being bisexual or Aroace, no inbetween!

• Splinter may be pretty bad with technology sometimes but he absorbes languages like a fucking sponge. At minimum he knows at least 6 different languages.

• If given the choice to either save the world or his sons Splinter will always ALWAYS choose his boys. No hesitation what-so-ever! This rat man would rather fist fight god themselves then ever even CONSIDER losing his babies! He’s not the most perfect parent and he can be a bit strict at times but he loves his children so, so much! To him they ARE his entire world!

• Cat person: Mikey, Raph, April

• Dog person: Leo, Donnie, Casey

• Bird/Fish person: Splinter

• Epic Rap Battles of History!!! Autism (Donnie and Raph) vs ADHD (Mikey and Leo)!!!

• Raph listens to emo rock and grunge music

• Donnie listens to either classical music or heavy metal depending on his mood.

• Leo is actually just as good at playing video games as Mikey. He excels best at super fast paced rhythm games and complex puzzle games.

• Mikey actually kinda enjoys meditating but he HAS to have music playing in the background or else he gets bored and distracted.

• April, Raph, and Donnie have formed a gossip circle where they shit talk about people they hate.

• With proper motivation Baxter Stockman is the most terrifying villain in the TMNT universe because the man is fucking insane and doesn’t care if he has to hurt himself or others to meet his goal. We do not thank our lucky stars enough that he is a coward prone to being bullied by other overzealous villains to do their grunt work. The world would have been destroyed ten times over if it were not for that.

• I feel like all the turtles’ troubles could have been avoided if the Shredder would have just taken some anger management classes, yoga, weed, something and like vibed for at least 5 minutes. Like if he took the time to think over his plans more than once he’d kind of be like: Yeah okay, no, this is fucking stupid!

• Bebop and Rocksteady are gay and married.

[hopespeak-hs-hostclub]

Wanna Make A Bet?: A Mondo Owada smut request.

18+ ONLY. DO NOT READ IF UNDER 18!!!!!

NSFW: request and story under cut

TW:// exhibitionism, public pleasure, chastity belts, orgasm deprivation, cursing

Word Count:// 1,976

“a one-shot featuring mondo oowada practicing exhibitionism please? In the story, he'd go to town to do errands wearing a face mask. In truth, he'd have a vibrator on him with his cock in chastity and his mouth tape gagged under the mask. His objective is to finish his errands without anyone exposing him or him cumming in public. And I kinda imagine that he's doing this out of a dare between his gang members. To show he's a real man whose in control of himself. He would mainly be alone but his gang leaders would look from a distance to see if he hasn't lost yet.”

“Wait bro, you’re what?” One of the guys piped up quickly. Mondo just sighed heavily and look his friend / gang member in the eyes and repeated himself. “I’m an exhibitionist, man.”

“What the fuck is that??” Another gang member asked almost instantly.

“Jesus Christ- fuck all of you,” Mondo said getting pissed off at his friends. “I told you that sitting around like a bunch of little bitch ‘drinking and talking about our feelings‘ or whatever the fuck was fucking stupid.”

“No come on bro, none of us have literally ever even heard of that before”

“Fuck, it just means I like the idea of people seeing me get off, I guess?” Mondo said sharply looking at all his friends sitting around him. “like I get off on it I fucking guess.”

“So like, you want to jack off in public?” One of them asked.

“I’ll kick your fucking ass bro- that’s nasty dude. I’d never want anybody unsuspecting to fully see it dude, christ” Mondo stood up out of his chair and looked at them all. “You’re so fuckin dumb- all of ya! I don’t wanna be put on a damn sex offender list for touching myself in the goddamn park or something! I just… want to get off in front of people. It seems fucking hot,” he admitted while shrugging.

A few of the guys exchanged glances, and started to mumble to each other, just soft enough that Mondo couldn’t make out what was being said until they all looked back at him. “Wanna make a bet?” One of the guys asked as he stood up to be eye level with their gang’s leader.

“How much? And what kinda bet we talkin?” Mondo asked, admittedly intrigued.

“20,000¥. Meet us back here tomorrow at noon. Got it?”

Mondo just rolled his eyes. “Whatever, but I got some fuckin errands to run so you better make it quick, got it assholes?” He made eye contact with everyone else in the room, as they just snickered at him.

And that’s how he got here. In the bathroom of the garage the gang always meets at. Mondo sighs and looks in the duffel bag his friends tossed into his arms when he walked in, with no instructions further than “put it all on and get back out here.” ‘How did they even get all this stuff so last minute? Did they already have it?” Mondo thought to himself. So he did. He started by putting on, and locking, the chastity belt, which made him just a little too excited. Mondo hasn’t ever actually used a chastity before, he just knows they’re supposed to make him last way longer since he can’t touch himself, and he knows it’ll keep him nice and hard. Then he decided to use the duct tape, and gag himself with it, keeping his mouth shut. The next logical move for him was to put on the black face mask, so nobody could see the tape gag situation he had going on. All this for ¥20,000? ‘Fuck me’ was all he could think right now. Then the last step. Mondo held the little remote controlled vibrating butt plug in his hand and just stared at it for a few minutes before inserting it. He didn’t turn on it yet, and he was nervous as shit to do it too.

Mondo slowly and carefully walked out of the bathroom to the main room where everyone was waiting for him. He was already getting hard, and knew that whatever the fuck this was, was going to be a fucking nightmare. “Bro, everything… in place?” One of his gang members asked cautiously. The gagged Mondo just shook his head up and down quickly. “Perfect! So, you wanna get off in front of people without being put on a list?” His friend taunted. Mondo blushed, but luckily you couldn’t tell through the mask. “Well, I know you said you had some errands to run today, so why don’t we see if you can get through all those- but maybe without cumming,” he teazed. Mondo got wide eyed. So now, not only is he going to be horny as hell in public, but he’s not allowed to finish until the fucking errands are done? His face turned red and he tried to scream at his gang, forgetting about the gags, which just left him muffled and even more pissed off. Quickly Mondo got out a piece of paper and wrote:

“You’re fucking ON assholes.”

That’s exactly what they wanted to hear. “Perfect. Let’s get you on the back of a bike, because face it man, you can not drive with all that shit on ya,” the gang member chuckled. “I will be close behind watching though- so you better not cheat or try to lie, because trust me, I’ll fucking know. Oh and you’re giving me the key to that belt. It’s not coming off,”

With that, Mondo handed his gang member the key, then pulled himself onto the back of his bike, and the two of them rode off to the market place. As they pulled up to the big parking lot, the gang member cracked a small smirk, and got off the bike with Mondo. “All right, go do your shopping or whatever the fuck you gotta do man. I’ll keep my distance, but I’m watching you.” He said as he headed off into the crowd of people, leaving Mondo there alone. With a deep breathe in, and reaching into his coat pocket, he pressed the button to the remote control that little plug he had shoved up his ass. He set it to a low setting for now, and walked up to the first shop he had to go to. He took a deep breath and walked through the supermarket doors.

Mondo was walking through the fruits and vegetables section of the store, with his cock as hard as ever. Another man needed to grab something on the shelf right in front of Mondo, so he moved over to allow the man some space- and when he did his vibrator shifted just a little and he accidentally slipped. “Mmmh” he hummed lightly, quickly trying to turn it into a cough so the man next to him didn’t suspect anything. But Mondo loved the way he just felt. He reached his hand into his pocket and put the vibrator on a medium pulsating setting, that made him even hornier than before, if that’s even possible.

“Hnnnnnnngh” Mondo moaned lowly. He wanted to scream, his body felt amazing. He caught a woman shoot a side eye at him but she turned away and went about her business. Mondo tried his absolute best to compose himself, straightened up the best he could, and walked into the aisle he had come to the store for.

‘I just need 3- oh my fucking god” Mondo thought to himself. He quickly hunched over and grabbed onto the nearest shelf to catch his breath and control himself. He wanted to touch himself so badly, but with the belt that wasn’t even possible. “Hmm..” Mondo moaned out a few times. “hmmmf…” He already wants to turn the vibrator up to max speed, but he knows he’ll be a cryong mess if he does that. He only has one more thing to do once he’s done with the store, he can last till then, he thinks. He slowly makes his way through the aisle, grabs the three items he needed for his apartment, and tries to go pay. But god the line is long today. He has no choice but stand there and wait. Every time the line moved a little and he was forced to take a small step forward, his vibrator hit him in just the right spot to make him a god damn mess. ”nmmm… fuh..” he started to moan out in the still long line. He knew nobody could hear him, or cared but he was so embarrassed. The line moved once again, and this time his vibrator hit his prostrate in the exact right spot. A few tears formed at the corner of Mondo’s eye as he actively restrained himself from moaning out in pleasure.

Finally it’s his turn to check out and pay. He reaches into his jackets pocket to grab his wallet, but when he does, he bumps the button on the remote. “Haaaaahh…”Mondo hisses loudly as he arches his back a little. He took a few deep breaths, then pretended to finish a pretty unbelievable sneeze and proceeded to pay. The moment the cashier gave Mondo his change, he grabbed his stuff and ran to the nearest public restroom. He swiftly locked the door behind him and gripped onto the side of the sink and looked at himself in the mirror. He tried to palm himself through his pants, but the metal belt covering his fully erect dick gave him absolutely no direct contact with his throbbing cock. He starts whimpering loudly- but it’s not too loud thanks to his gag and mask. “Mmmmmh,” “hmmm hoh my god ffff-“ he barely muttered out. Mondo wanted to scream, or cry, or just touch himself once, so desperately. He felt like he was close to cumming from the vibrator alone. “Hnnnng” he cried out.

Mondo decides to try and stand up so he could leave the bathroom as quickly as he can, and find his way back to the bike. His gang member wasn’t too far behind him, so when they were both at the bike a few moments later, and Mondo hopped on without so much as saying a word, the gang member knew what was going on. He got in the front and took Mondo straight to the garage and tossed the key to him. “Ffnk you” Mondo muttered quickly as he ran to the bathroom he immediately ripped the mask and duct tape off of his mouth and moaned out loudly. “Holy fuccccckkkkk mmmmhhh…” He didn’t care that some of his friends were just a few rooms away and might be able to hear him. He just knew he felt so good and couldn’t help himself. Next was obviously the belt restricting him from touching himself. With a shaky hand, he unlocked it as fast as he was able too- which admittedly took about 3 minutes because of the constant pleasure he was feeling. Once the belt was off, Mondo immediately wrapped his hand around his now swollen, throbbing cock. “FUCK!” He shouted out in pure ecstasy and bliss. He was nothing but a mess of whimpers, cries, and moans in that moment. He knew he wasn’t going to last very long, so he quickly removed the vibrator, and fell to the floor. Mondo pumped his length a couple of times before he felt his orgasm quickly approaching. With one more stroke, he screamed out in pleasure “FUCK ME” and threw his head back as the white liquid oozed out of him, coating his hands, stomach, and thighs. He kept pumping himself slowly as more cum came out of him. “Mm…” he whimpered softly as the last of it came out. With shaky legs, Mondo pulled himself up off the floor, cleaned himself to the best of his ability, put all his clothes back on, and walked (even though it was more like a limp) back into the main area of the garage.

Without saying a word, or making eye contact with anybody, Mondo grabbed ¥20,000 and placed it in his buddy’s hand. He immediately walked out of the garage, barely got on his bike, and went home, thinking about not only just how fucked up his gang is, but how goddamn fun today was for him.

‘Maybe if I ever meet a chick we can do this shit together…’ Mondo thought to himself with a smirk.

[tossawary]

Chapter 25: “Home Sweet Home” of “pride is not the word I’m looking for” quotes and commentary. Not a full list of favorite quotes or full commentary. 

-

 Anyway, Shang Qinghua makes himself  so fucking sincerely annoying that the Huan Hua Palace Sect cultivators can’t figure out how to politely tell him to fuck off fast enough. Shang Qinghua makes outlandish assumptions about how many thieves there are (at least a dozen, he’s sure, probably twice that) and what methods they might be using (special invisibility talismans, he suspects); Shang Qinghua repeatedly apologizes for being too busy with important things for Cultivator O.B.B. at the last Immortal Alliance Conference, then tries to commiserate with the man about having to get important things done without getting any respect for it; Shang Qinghua also anxiously wonders if they should all go to Zhao Hua Temple Sect to report what happened here, since there’s a troublesome demon and also some sneaky rogue cultivator thieves on the loose out here! He gets turned down immediately, but assures everyone that he’ll at least let Yue Qingyuan know everything that happened here right away! 

 Liu Qingge pretty much just stands there scowling silently the entire time - he’s no Shen Qingqiu for sheer menacing  "I can and I will ruin your entire life"  glares, but he’s still pretty intimidating. He does a great job! No notes! 

 Shang Qinghua nearly pats himself on the back as he and Liu Qingge leave less than an hour after he arrives.  “Holy shit, I’m good,”  he thinks, a little giddy with the successful extraction.  “That’s a skill that good ol’ Liu-Shidi will never have!” 

 -

AN: Of course this has a high chance of backfiring. Is Shang Qinghua going to weave webs of lies anyway? Of course. 

Love the fact that Shang Qinghua can shamelessly act like a total pushover, while actually manipulating someone so that he gets the results he wanted. Some snobby sect leader walks into a negotiation room, prepared to use SQH as a doormat, and Shang Qinghua is probably internally like, “Bro, me and my jelly spine welcome you to hell.” 

- 

 He gives them the rundown on what happened, but, to his complete lack of surprise, that doesn’t seem to satisfy interrogators like his little sister-in-law and his fellow transmigrator. They have so many questions! And Shang Qinghua doesn’t have enough answers for them! 

 No, he doesn’t know what Huan Hua Palace Sect knows or thinks they know. No, he doesn’t know how they knew about that place. No, he doesn’t know whether the monster was just a local opportunist preying on distracted cultivators or something more sinister. No, he’s not experimenting with the creepy special item or discussing it at length here. No, Luo Fanli and Peerless Cucumber are not allowed to poke at the creepy special item! 

 Why the fuck would he ever let them do that?! 

 All Shang Qinghua knows is that Luo Fanli and Peerless Cucumber should eat their vegetables and then go to bed! Because they all have a long journey back to the sect in the morning! And also that words cannot describe how painfully old he feels as soon as he says this. 

-

AN: I’ve been thinking about a Demon Trio fanfic in which Mobei-Jun finds himself in a similar position with Luo Binghe and Sha Hualing. 

Mobei-Jun and Shang Qinghua are, like, bare minimum twice the age of Luo Binghe and Shen Yuan. Like, yes, neither Mobei-Jun nor Shang Qinghua are old old by the standard of the PIDW world. Yes, MBJ and SQH are stunted as all get out. But the fact that they have bare minimum 2x the life experience as Bingqiu is, in my opinion, funny as hell and severely underused in fanfiction. 

Like, imagine Mobei-Jun unintentionally dadding new demon LBH in SVSSS. Mobei-Jun being like, “Don’t eat the meat from this monster. It makes you hallucinate.” Or being like, “These people aren’t politically important enough to be shown this kind of respect. Look down on them properly and go sleep, or no one will ever respect you again in demon politics.” 

MBJ looking at SVSSS LBH and SHL like, “Damn, who raised you?” 

Because, like, I love to joke about Mobei-Jun being an oblivious fool, but that’s in regards to human culture. Mobei-Jun operating on demonic culture + his level of arrogance in regards to how he’s handling SQH suggests that MBJ can be politically savvy among demons when he wants to be. Also, the mental picture of MBJ being like, “Eat your weird demon vegetables, there’s nothing wrong with them, you picky half-breed brat,” is extremely funny. 

I’ll probably turn this into a separate post. 

- 

Shang Qinghua does  not  miss the man’s unconcealed  “oh, great, some of my favorite problem people are back, probably with bad news”  expression when they arrive. The man is not at all impressed to hear about the drugged-up Shadow Cave Wolf Spiders or the evil, murderous, madness-inducing plant they fought on their mission, but the Qian Cao Peak Lord is reluctantly, partially placated by the jar of three-eyed skeleton tears Shang Qinghua super thoughtfully brought back for his inspection. Mu Qingfang really likes his research projects! 

 Shang Qinghua lets himself feel kind of good about this gift - he’s the man who gets things and gets things done - and ignores the Weeper’s Eye whispering in his head,  “He has resigned himself to the untimely deaths of everyone he knows.” 

 (Wow. Oh, Shang Qinghua knows that feeling!) 

-

AN: Mu Qingfang doesn’t think that everyone around him is inevitably going to die, he’s just extremely aware of how dangerous the world is and how reckless cultivators can be. Also, for many years, he was fairly certain that Liu Qingge and Shen Qingqiu were headed for bad ends. 

This felt like a good place to insert some optimism back into the sect in general. Luo Fanli has been cured and is willingly going to visit her sister, Liu Qingge has got a hold on his self-destructive tendencies, Mu Qingfang thinks things are getting better, Shen Qingqiu’s health problems have been essentially fixed, Qijiu might actually work their shit out, Shen Yuan shares his real name with Shang Qinghua, and so on and so forth. 

It felt like a good contrast with and buildup towards Luo Binghe’s Skinner mistake (not everything is rosy yet, there are still growing problems), the secret basement, and the encounter with Bing-Ge. 

Only to flip that around and then bring some surprise Moshang into things! 

- 

“I have now been informed that, after learning that you had returned and, at the very least, completing the duties that were intended to have him reflect on his actions, he has disappeared yet again,” Shen Qingqiu continues. “This second disappearance has set some of the other junior disciples into a renewed panic, which has concerned some of the senior disciples, which was, apparently, cause to alert me.”   

 “Ah,” Shang Qinghua says. 

-

AN: Shen Jiu should not be in charge of a bunch of children, but it is funny to imagine him going through the same “be a less shit person” adoption process as Shang Qinghua. Like, oh, it would be so easy for him to be cruel about this situation, but fuck you if he’s going to be outdone in the recovery and redemption process by Shang Qinghua of all people. 

Shang Qinghua: *grows into a kind of decent person* 

Shen Jiu: “Fuck you. That’s not allowed.” 

Shen Jiu: “...” 

Shen Jiu: “Well, if THAT FUCKER of all people can do it...” 

- 

 Shang Qinghua doesn’t have to look long or far to find his nephew. He finds the young protagonist sitting despondently on the doorstep of his own Leisure House, sniffling into his sleeve. Peerless Cucumber of all people is sitting beside him and keeping him company. 

  “Focusing on other people’s lives is easier than looking at his own.” 

 “-think a drowning man first has to save himself… or else he’s only going to bring down the people he’s trying to save,” Peerless Cucumber is saying. 

 Binghe nods. 

- 

AN: Going by, like, the everything of SVSSS, Shen Yuan really is the asshole going, “I’ll die before I look inwards to recognize and deal with my own emotions.” Also, going, “Yes, I’m a hypocrite who won’t take my own advice. And what about it?” What a repressed nerd. 

- 

 Shang Qinghua clears his throat to get their attention. Both kids (well, teenager and young adult, but still...  kids)  look up and then stand up quickly. Luo Binghe takes a forgetful step forward, before he wobbles into an appropriate respectful bow instead. 

 “Shang-Shishu!” 

  “How dearly this boy is loved!”  the Weeper’s Eye declares, in its soft way inside Shang Qinghua’s head.  “More than life itself! More than death itself!” 

 “Ah, never mind all that,” Shang Qinghua says, and steps forward to wrap his nephew in a quick hug instead, keeping the creepy talking eye oriented away from his nephew. “You’re a little too late to talk to me about your mission before your shizun did.” 

 Binghe, who was just relaxing into the unexpected hug, freezes. 

 Shang Qinghua knowingly pats the poor young protagonist on the back.

  “Oh, shit” is right! 

- 

AN: Uncle Shang really is adorable. Still kind of knocks me for a loop writing it, though, given that the SVSSS SQH and LBH relationship is... nothing like this whatsoever. Look upon the field of SQH and LBH content and see that it is relatively barren except for the stubborn motherfuckers with excellent taste in character exploration. 

-

  “Ahhh, well, I’ll be there too for this potential family reunion, bro,” Shang Qinghua assures him. “Maybe we can finally get to the bottom of where this ‘Shen Yuan’ name came from.” 

 Peerless Cucumber makes a strange expression. 

 “What?” 

 “...It’s my name.” 

 “What?” Shang Qinghua repeats. 

 “It’s my name,” Peerless Cucumber says again, quietly. “It’s my real name.” 

 “Oh.” 

  “Huh,” Shang Qinghua thinks, having been operating on the assumption that the System made the name up for its mysterious backstory. Well, that gives new dimensions to Peerless Cucumber’s criticism of the scum villain! 

 “You can use it,” Peerless Cucumber says, with an air of determined nonchalance. “Everyone else is doing it.” 

 “Ah, alright. Thanks.” 

- 

AN: This is probably the part where I would have made Shang Qinghua reveal his original name in turn... IF HE HAD ONE. It drives me... kind of wild that we get the Airplane Extras and we STILL don’t get 1) Airplane Shooting Towards The Sky’s original name, and 2) MOBEI-JUN’s name. 

Which actually makes things a little more interesting here, in my opinion, even though not having those names gets a little frustrating in terms of fanfiction writing. With Mobei-Jun, you get to explore the fucked up possibilities of him not having a name outside of his identity as the future Northern King. With Shang Qinghua, you get to explore him being a squirrelly little fuck who refuses to let anyone into his life. 

So, because we don’t have Airplane’s name, we actually get this mildly interesting dynamic in which Shang Qinghua doesn’t even really think to reveal it to Shen Yuan. We don’t see this part, but Shen Yuan is actually a little miffed by this degree of secrecy, which is going to come up later. (Shen Yuan doesn’t like the fact that Shang Qinghua has as much power over him as he does.) 

I personally do not hold the headcanon that Airplane’s name was “Shang Qinghua”. It’s a little too on the nose for me. At that point, the only reaction to transmigrating into SQH kind of has to be, “Ah, well, I was asking for that!” Maybe Airplane projected his worst qualities onto Shang Qinghua, but I don’t think he went so far as to give the character his own name. 

Airplane’s main identity when he died appears to have been Airplane Shooting Towards The Sky, and we know that he wasn’t particularly close to his divorced parents and any step- or half-siblings. So, the only names that are really relevant post-transmigration are “Airplane Shooting Towards The Sky” and “Shang Qinghua”. By the time that SY gets here, he’s firmly entrenched in those identities, and his original name is completely irrelevant. I could honestly believe that Airplane just doesn’t think it matters anymore. 

- 

 Shang Qinghua’s nephew, in the way of a true young protagonist or  fucking cannon fodder, got the bright fucking idea to slip away to speak with the concubine called Butterfly privately. 

 “I thought: what if she didn’t want to speak in front of that lecherous old man? What if she wanted to get away from him?” Binghe confesses. 

 “She was the demon,” Shang Qinghua guesses. 

 Binghe nods, voice breaking. “It was…  I was  really,  really stupid, Uncle.” 

 “Well, at least you know that,” Shang Qinghua sighs, and pats his sniffly nephew on the back again. 

 Oh, he can see why Shen Qingqiu was  pissed the fuck off now. Shang Qinghua kind of wants to start yelling! Or maybe just screaming, coherently or otherwise! 

 Except yelling isn’t going to help much right now. 

 Shang Qinghua listens as Luo Binghe recounts being captured by the demon and then waking up bound by Immortal Binding Cables - of being so terrified that he could barely breathe with it. His only hope was Ning Yingying and Ming Fan tattling on his disappearance and a senior disciple tracking him down on time. The skinner demon apparently nearly killed Binghe, crooning over his young and beautiful skin, except a flash of warm light intervened and dropped an unstable part of the ceiling in on them before they could hurt the captured protagonist. 

 “Fu-Shijie and Shizun arrived after that and k-killed it,” Binghe says. “Uncle, it was all  stupid luck!  Shizun said I should have been dead and that, between my efforts and the demon’s, he had no idea how I wasn't! And he was right! It was  so close! If the ceiling hadn’t fallen in like that-! Fu-Shijie suggested the ropes might be faulty and it could have been an unconscious use of spiritual energy, but I didn’t do anything! It wasn’t me!” 

 It  sounds like the System to Shang Qinghua, intervening again at a crucial moment to prevent the premature death of the protagonist. Just thinking about how close his nephew came to dying without him knowing is nearly enough to inspire a cold sweat! Shang Qinghua can’t speak about the System, so all he can really do is keep hugging! Keep holding on for dear life and saying soothing nothings to his crying nephew! 

- 

AN: I wanted to include the Skinner mission, but I didn’t want to redo it onscreen because that’s been done in many fanfictions before and I felt that there was really no good reason for Shang Qinghua to be a part of it. The reason I wanted to include it is to show how the plot is off the track of the SVSSS (and PIDW) stories, with the changed LBH and the changed Original SQQ. 

LBH wants to be a hero, but he’s not there yet. 

- 

 “...Don’t put yourself above him… or below him. Tell him what you want and listen to what he wants, and don’t be surprised if things don’t change all at once,” Shang Qinghua advises and, at Yue Qingyuan’s look, quickly raises his hands. “Ahhh, not my business, I know! Not my business! I just… I hope it works out! I hope you two get something better out of this mess! Aha, make the sect meetings a little less awkward and… things.” 

  “He has never known what better looks like. He will always be Yue Qi, the slave boy. No matter what he does.” 

 “...Thank you,” Yue Qingyuan says finally, thoughtfully. “I appreciate your… restraint in this matter… in recent months.” 

 Aha, yikes. 

-

AN: I know that some people wanted more stomping on Yue Qingyuan, but... like... this man is as or nearly as traumatized as Shen Qingqiu. His childhood fucking sucked. He broke his own soul trying to save Shen Jiu and failed. He made some shit decisions where Shen Qingqiu was concerned, but the logic and trauma he’s operating on are pretty obvious. He was trying. 

Part of the theme around the Qijiu and Moshang arcs has also been “an eye for an eye”. Like, are you guys really going to keep on not communicating with each other and then fucking up and then taking chunks out of each other? How many misunderstandings and upset over misunderstandings are you going to throw at each other? Where do you put your foot down and say, “I don’t want to live like this forever. We can be better than this. I want better than this.” 

Like, it can’t just be hurting each other back and forth (this applies to Qijiu more than Moshang, in which MBJ definitely carries the weight of this fuck-up). It can’t just be privately nursing hurt feelings forever. The options here are “fix it” or “live like this forever”. Fixing it won’t happen immediately, but the other option fucking sucks, so every little step helps. 

So Shang Qinghua here is just like, “Bro, I’m tired. My anger has cooled a lot. I just want all our lives to suck less. I hope things work out for you.” 

[hopefulstarfire]

Watta Plays: Dragon Quest Starter Sentences

So. One of my best friends has his own YouTube channel. And to show my support and to get his channel out there because if anyone deserves a spotlight, it's him, I figured why not bring in some highlights as sentence starters for people? Useable for writing prompts and rp purposes! Please feel free to reblog, change pronouns as needed and please go check out my buddy Watta Plays!

This may/will contain spoilers from Dragon Quest XI S. This post also covers quotes from episodes 1-12 of the playthrough.

"Oh, that's not odd."

"Oh, okay! Okay! Just a couple of Headless Horsemen! Nothing to be afraid of, nothing to worry about, just....oh boy."

"Hey, isn't that the guy from Smash Bros?"

"You're not nearly as important as that doggo, I am so sorry."

"That doggo requires my attention."

"I'm gonna love it here. I'm home."

"You made me talk to you for irrelevant information. You're first on The List."

"Aw, come on! They're not monsters! They're just...little blobs of joy and happiness!"

"Ah, medicinal -- medicinal herbs -- right, yeah. Yes, yes, medicinal. Strictly medicinal purposes, those herbs. Yes. Understood. Understandable. Have a nice day."

"You're uh...you're not the strongest fighter...are you."

"Is this town just a cult?"

"This music tells me Boss Fight."

"Oh this is some Sly Cooper shit right here."

"This music is giving me some anxiety."

"No, no, no we're going to worry about that now! What the hell was that? No, no, we're not going to wait until later. You tell me what that is, you tell me what that is right now!"

"(Name)? (Name)! You can't leave me like that!"

"There was no Christopher Columbus. He was a lie. A big fat phony."

"Excuse the what now?"

"I know I've been making a lot of Zelda references, but..."

"This isn't gonna be like Kingdom Hearts, where I take a ride to the island and I never see or hear from you again, right?"

"This is triggering a lot of my danger alarms."

"You know my memory is as foggy as those wind spirits up there."

"Let me get this straight. You tell me not to spend it all in one place, and direct me to the exact place in which I can spend it all in one place?"

"So I have to confess my sins to save the game."

"Can we go back to the part where you found me in a river??"

"Aw, sweetie. I've already forgotten you."

"I certainly hope I don't end up regretting that."

"What's so great about the pendant?"

"They've got four chandeliers and a balcony. If that's not fancy, I don't know what is."

"Oh, I already don't like you, friend."

"Why do I have a feeling he's going to slaughter everyone there?"

"Making a racket WILL help me!"

"You're gonna free me, right? You're not gonna kill me, yeah??"

"How long were you in there to dig that big of a hole?"

"Guess I should have accepted those quests before I became public enemy number one."

"Where the hell is that organ music coming from?"

"The rule of three doesn't matter here, don't give me a rule of three!"

"I don't wanna be Kentucky Fried Hero!"

"I would rather not be impaled today, thank you."

"I can't go back to the slammer! I did my time! ...Except that I didn't do my time."

"I think your brain map is kind of out of date."

"Can you just carry me? I need you to carry me."

"Damn, those archers scare the shit out of me."

"Famous last words; I'm gonna be fine."

"I thought it was gonna be a little secret chest alcove, I didn't think he was gonna be there!"

"You said you got jailed a year ago, do you think it's still there?"

"I bet you there's some regret in there."

"So guard boy likes money...oh, and hot singles in your area."

"I still don't trust him. Never trust a merchant. Then again, never trust big money."

"Why are appearing everywhere I go?? And in the most random places?"

"His eyes follow me. Oh, I don't like that. I don't like that at all. I'm getting out of here, I'm not dealing with that."

"Welp, I guess we're heading out at night. That's a spooky thought."

"Now I'm really gonna wish I had that sword."

"It's fine! Kid's not dead! All is good!"

"It's the hot single in our area!"

"Alright, you and me, (name), against the world! Or, rather...against...the government?"

"Oh God, what the hell are you!?"

"I hope that's not gonna come back to bite me in the ass."

"Screw it! Screw it! We'll just fight everything not super dangerous along the way!"

"I don't wanna risk him living to see another day."

"Discount goods??? Discount goods!!!"

"Oh, get a little pep in your step, buddy!"

"The pep is real!!"

"Don't antagonize them! You, like -- you almost died!!"

"What are these little goblinoid things??"

"It's hideous! But...yet...I'm intrigued."

"That's definitely not a good thing, but goddamn if it isn't funny."

"Everything went perfectly, according to plan! Everything!"

"Poor lumberjack doggo."

"Oh, WE'RE the cheeky devils??"

"OKAY, so he's got multi target attacks and he uses fire! Good to know, good to know."

"He'll die by my hand!! MY HAND!!"

"Is that a cow?? What's a cow doing here???"

"TALKING COW! TALKING COW! WHAT THE HELL!? TALKING COW!?"

"Also money. Don't forget money. I would like some money."

"Yeah, I know, my hair is marvelous and magnificent."

"I mean, I'm fine with it if you wanna stay here and praise me for the ends of all eternity. I'm perfectly fine with that."

"O, great angel of the church, I murdered a man today."

"I murdered a demon in cold blood. That's probably a good thing. That's probably what God would want me to do but, you know."

"I'm about to make pulled pork outta these guys."

"Everything's fine. Nobody's dead today."

"Holy shit, did I travel back in time!?"

"I was joking when I said I'd forget about you guys!"

"I don't think I need to confess my sins this time."

"Yeah, I joked about it a lot, so maybe that why it hurts, but..."

"Third rule of RPGs: always check behind the waterfalls."

"You'd think that living this close to a river, or to a lake or something, they would have taught you how to swim."

"Sorry (name), we're gonna leave you in my dust."

"I don't wanna have to look up a guide for something this stupid."

"Holy shit, I'M the heir to the throne!?"

"But, (name), grudges are the best things to bear! It's so fun to bear a grudge!"

"I need revenge, man."

"When you say rightfully yours...you mean that you rightfully stole it."

"Let's teach those assholes a lesson!"

"What a perfect time to raid a government facility for an item that was once stolen, that we're now stealing again."

"You're gonna carry me through this dungeon, right?"

"Oh, it's just a corpse."

"Oh, you're not tricky devils. You're just little devils."

"I don't know what that is, but I gotta fight it."

"How deep does this thing go?? It's like a fucking pyramid in here."

"Hell yeah! We're not dying today, boyos!!"

"He's actually rabid, oh no."

"Kinda unfortunate, but, I mean, I'll take it."

"That wad quite a teleport, young man."

"I have stolen his secret stash!!"

"I don't know if my heart can handle another chase scene!"

"Why are they hiding a dragon under the capital? Like, seriously?"

"Hello, snail!"

"This party is an equal opportunity provider."

"Come down here so I can smack ya ass."

"You're not Minotaur Man! You're an imposter!"

"This is a bar. I don't think this is where I'm supposed to be."

"That's why they sound so weird! They're speaking in haiku!"

"This dude has seen some shit."

"I'm ready for my indoctrination, Mr. Cult Leader."

[dumbdotcomm]

a little luck and some frogs

(a/n) the iconic @pricklydapper​ drew this amazing piece for me of Mikey and Raph and I just had to write a angst/fluff one-shot for it!!!

//

There’s a still and a quiet that comes with rain, gentle and slow and lulling. They haven’t had quiet in so long, it seems; it feels like days blend into one another, new paths unlocked in their destinies or whatever.

Sometimes Raph would just like to stop. Go back to being that 15 year old kid living below Queens, having nothing but his tight knit family and a lair game tournament to worry about.

They’ve been firing on all cylinders for days, and god he’s just tired, overstimulated and definitely in need of, like, a detox or something- Leo and April go on about those kinds of things. Maybe he’ll give that a try.

But even as the days pass, long long after they’ve settled back into home and dealing with low-level crime, Raph still can’t really relax. Not in the way that lasts. He’s always looking, anticipating the moment their relative peace will elude them, and the next thing he’ll know is they’ll be miles high, falling from a building, pushing and pushing to catch one another- or at the docks watching his brother get torn apart.

Raph feels like he’s gonna hurl and he does, nothing but last night’s dinner and severe anxiety spilling out from him.

It’s gross and embarrassing and Raph knows it’s nothing he can control; the little helpful part of his brain is reassuring that way. But it was easier to feel so panicky when everyone else was still reeling from the fight.

Leo’s got his detoxing with April, Mikey’s gone off and found Draxum to rehabilitate for god knows what reason, and Donnie’s regulated his sleeping cycle again and he’s gone back to shittalking and watching gophers on Youtube so- he’s okay.

Everyone’s okay…. except for Raph.

But maybe what Raph doesn’t know is that the somewhat okay thing about it, the silver-ish lining in all of it is- even if he’s feeling alone… he’s not. He never is. And Raph has always hated his panic-stink but maybe it’s doing him some good, because he brothers are attentive, and Mikey’s especially perceptive.

It’s why, on this languid, rainy ass day, Mikey barges into Raph’s room with a shopping bag from Old Navy. How he got to, and inside, and outside of Old Navy, Raph doesn’t really have to wonder (humans were so funny in ignoring obvious things, it made raph wonder why mutants stayed hidden anyway).

But Mikey’s got a grin that stretches a mile wide and is pretty contagious, as he struts into the room after having stood in the entrance in that weird ‘younger sibling is now here to bother you’ stance.

“Whaaat are we doing…?” Raph asks cautiously, but can’t hide his own growing smile the longer Mikey beams.

He says ‘we’ because there’s always a ‘we’ in these types of situations, and he’d rather just include himself now off the bat.

“Glad’ja asked,” Mikey says, and dumps the Old Navy bag out of Raph’s bed, “Behold….the best freakin’ things ever.”

And woah- they kinda are the best freaking things ever. Practically see-through jackets with-

“No way! Mikey!” Raph clutches his- he already knows it’s his by the size, extra huge and all, “Bro this-? Is pretty sick. How’d you even get it this big?!”

The thing about them and clothes is: Leo, Donnie and Mikey are all, at least, human people sizes. It’s easy for them to snag just about anything, even some of April’s old stuff fits them. Hell, Leo could fit into Dad’s old suit. And that luxury was kinda foreign to Raph.

Humans barely even made enough fashionable clothes for all of their people- and Raph was kind of outside of that caliber.

He’s kinda getting teary eyed, but, like, who wouldn’t, and Mikey’s already slipping into his own coat, see-through and speckled with little oranges.

“Eh, it’s no biggie,” he sniffs, shrugging the jacket on the rest of the way (it’s totally a biggie), “I kinda...customized ‘em. They were havin’ this special, and I thought ‘screw it baby, we need raincoats’!”

And, careful of his strength, Raph goes for a hug that he knows Mikey was anticipating anyway, with the force that he hugs back and all. Raph doesn’t really need to say anything, but his warbly thank you to Mikey is just a fraction of the depth of emotion he feels now.

It’s funny, silly maybe, because this doesn’t erase the threat of a bigger fight, a worse enemy lurking in the shadows to trip them up- it’s just a custom made see-through raincoat with Raph’s favorite fruit, adorable little strawberries, on it.

And yet he feels indescribably lighter than he’s felt in weeks.

“I figured we could do some adventuring, and I gotta cooks tonight so…”

Mikey wriggles his brow ridge, and Raph can’t help but, like, wanna combust from this surge of excitement and normalcy that he hasn’t felt in too long.

“Trip to Katagiri, hell yes!”

/////

The nice thing about rain in the city is, even though traffic is all the same, and people are still moving around, the sky gets dark enough from the clouds that the lights kinda shine prematurely. The streetlamps come on with a dim, orangey light, and with the autumn leaves mixed with green ones still clinging on, it was just so peaceful.

No one, again, seems to care that two turtles are walking down Lexington, and one couple briskly compliments their jackets and so that’s a plus.

Mikey compliments the one girl’s hair, shaved with hearts dyed into her scalp, and Raph can only appreciate that his brother is so well-spoken- that he just is so natural and confident out here.

That he doesn’t worry.

Raph remembers his first time topside, and how his fear led him into the state of consciousness that he hates to be in- where he’s on all instinct and fear and nothing else.

It’s gotten better since then, but the unease still lingers all these years. Raph wonders if he’ll get rid of it all the way.

Donnie realistically told him he might not, but that all he has to do is count to ten and back again, look around, find something to focus on- something ordinary or something great, and cling to it till he can convince his body and mind that he’s safe- that things will return to normal in a sec.

And right now, Raph keeps his eyes locked on his brother’s feet, as they pound the sidewalk, making little splashes in rain water.

As he’s watching, a frog of all things, just hops along the sidewalk, right at Raph’s feet. It makes him halt, because....maybe it’s coincidental or maybe Raph’s reading too into it, but Mikey turns around too, sees the frog that Raph stoops beside, and smiles in soft understanding.

It’s an omen of some sorts, Dad always said so. Of good luck, and of things returning.

Raph breathes out a laugh, shaking his head.

Just as quickly as the frog comes, it hops away, and Raph stands, still a bit speechless, still kinda processing the meaning behind what just happened, desperately wanting to cling to it meaning good fortune.

He doesn’t wanna worry his brother though, and so he thinks of something to joke or talk about as they start to walk again, only for Mikey to beat him to it.

“I never told you thanks,” he says, gently, like he’s been reading Raph’s aura. Maybe he has.

And somehow Raph already knows what he’s thanking him for, but decides within himself that Mikey really, really shouldn’t. He was just doing his job. He tells Mikey this breezily, with a soft smile.

“Bullshit,” Mikey snaps back, but only because he knows Raphael so well, “We’re kids- we don’t got jobs- except for Donnie occasionally….suspiciously-” he shakes off the trailing thought, “Anyway- it’s not ‘your job’. It was just a shitty...long fight and ya really held us down, Raph.”

They cross the street, momentarily separating with the influx of people but find their way back in a second, the neon ‘Gonbei’ sign now visible to them.

And it’s not that Raph is all that surprised by Mikey. He knows his brother’s always had a knack for speaking in a way that just...made so much sense and was so profound without any complexity. But maybe it’s his brother being 14 now, that makes him even wiser.

“I know we don’t got jobs,” Raph concedes, as they pass the Lexington Flowers shop, “But, you know, I’m big...bigger than you guys, an’ I might not be as smart but when it comes to protecting, an’ planning….it’s what a leader’s s’posed ta do, y’know?”

They don’t often talk about the leadership thing- not that it’s touchy, it’s just not really relevant with how they function. But Mikey knows Raph’s internalized the role a bit more recently. And that Leo getting dropped from a building may have been the catalyst.

He knows his brother’s technically got a job to do. Mikey resents that, and their Dad a little bit, for not making Raph ready for all of what happened weeks ago.

Though he knows that’s not all fair. His father was only protecting them.

Still….it sucks.

“Well, if it means anything, I think you’re smart. And ‘m not sure if I can promise this, but I’m gonna do it anyway...” Mikey says, stopping in his tracks and turning to Raph, who also stops walking and gets called a ‘fuckin asshat’ for blocking a chunk of the sidewalk but- hey.

Mikey politely tells the guy to go fuck himself and when the guy turns to get a good enough look- not at Raph’s size, but at his little gremlin brother with a chain that’s starting to flame up- he decides this whole situation is not something he wants any parts of.

Mikey rolls his eyes and turns back to Raph, face all sincere and kind for someone who just...did that, “I promise we’re okay, and we’re always gonna be stuck together, Raph. I know that won’t magically make you feel better but...just thought I’d say it.”

And Raph tries to say something, but has to clear his throat, and it’s definitely the rain on his cheeks and beak.

“No,” he croaks, and laughs at his voice, happy that Mikey laughs too, “Nah, it- it really helps a lot Mikey….thank you- thanks, man.”

Satisfied, Mikey turns to keep on walking, patting Raph’s shell, “Anytime bud.”

////

Katagiri’s never disappoints. Mikey leaves with milk tea, shrimp tempura and shiso, more milk tea and a couple boxes of mochi ice. It’s one of those days.

He swings his groceries as they walk.

Raph doesn’t wonder about the frog and its meaning, and doesn’t doubt its luck and why it appeared to him.

He’s kinda figured it out. Because he still has moments like this, watching his brother merrily skip a few steps ahead of him, chatting breezily about pineapple upside down pancakes- and Mikey made a promise, after all, that they’re gonna be together, no matter what.

If that’s not lucky, being with his family, leaning on them when it counts, then Raph’s got no clue what is.

[wu-sisyphus-gang]

Motion Sickness Chapter 64

pq pq pq pq pq pq pq pq pq pq pq pq pq pq pq pq pq pq

"You owe me big," I said to Bisque. We were watching Wenge and Jasper sprint back and forth across a small courtyard behind the bar.

"I hear you, I hear you," Bisque said. "We were sort of roped into more than we could chew."

"Between the strikes and whatever those leaders want?" I asked.

"People started looking at us like we were supposed to have answers. That's how the old White Fang got started around here. Just as union leaders and such. Now that they've been discredited and with our network people were looking at us to pick up the slack."

"So you got dragged into this, you're being strong armed into doing this operation before y'all are ready."

"By those old miner leaders. Dyne and Barret. Dyne's been around for a long ass time. Barret's newer but they're both close. Barret is backing Dyne. Which means we need to play ball too."

"Which is why you owe me. Big time. I want information. As soon as you have it. I have a list of names I'll want you to keep an ear to the ground about and if you want me to kill Taurus it'll cost you extra," I informed him. Never let it be said I was purely altruistic. I saw my edge over him and I was taking it.

He slapped a hand over his face. "No, no. Don't kill him. At least not yet if you can help it. And I'll take your list of names."

"That's just the start. I don't want Lien. I'll want any other information that you can give me when and if I ask for it. A blank check." I leaned against the wall of the bar beside Neo with my arms crossed.

"Fine. Fair enough." He rubbed his forehead hard. "We do owe you. Thanks Cloud."

"And you'll want to upgrade the fucking squirt gun you've got."

"What's wrong with my pistol?" He asked.

"It's a fucking .22."

"Hey now. It's a .30."

"Still. Those sometimes don't stop regular people. You'll want something with more kick to it. I can pick up something better from Aurum. Lasers, higher caliber, or even something magnetic accelerated so it still has as much kinetic energy as a .44 or .45. Hell, you should probably talk .50 cal if you want to stop anybody with aura and training."

"So I should go big or go home?" He asked.

"More like go big or die, bro," I said. "I knew this fifteen year old who used a .50 caliber sniper rifle. If you're really attached to something small I could get you a submachine gun."

"I'll think about it," he said.

"Think fast," I shot back.

We watched Jasper and Wenge pant and sprint in their suicides for a hard moment.

"You going to -" I was interrupted by the jingle of bells as the bar's door opened.

I was going to ask if he was going to join Jasper and Wenge who were working hard. Avalanche all had aura but having aura didn't make you good, I'd been living proof of that. Even having a semblance didn't make you good. Only training or else real combat could help with that.

I peaked around the corner and through a screen door. It was Robyn Hill in the bar. I recognized her face from the posters of her all over both towns. She had pale hair (not as snow white as Weiss's) and purple eyes, not quite as vibrant as Yangs, but she was still beautiful. Aura-hunter-beautiful.

"Bar's closed," Bisque told her. I heard through the back door entrance and window.

"Oh don't be like that. I just want to talk about the General's project."

"Not this time. You shot us down, remember. Or your agent did, Fiona was it," Bisque returned. He didn't look amused.

"I have some Lien I could offer you." Robyn said and she leaned against the counter. Her face on one palm. "Sorry we weren't about the destruction of Schnee property. But look where that got you."

"The value of money is plummeting for me recently," Bisque said dryly.

I snorted. Money only talked so loudly to hunters like Neo and I. I was willing to bet she had more millions stashed away than the ones we took from Don Corneo. But that wasn't how you kept Neo entertained. Well, drugs and alcohol helped but what she really wanted was somebody to fuck with. Even if that somebody was only me and it had to do with a night I'd gotten black-out drunk on. She was milking that for all it was worth.

"How much will that information cost me?" Hill asked. "What can I do to make you call off these strikes? Come on, work with me here. I'm listening now."

"A few hundred thousand. And we're not in charge of the strikes."

She winced at the price but sighed in a way that didn't make it seem undoable. "I'll see about getting you your money. And that's not the way I hear it. These are your strikes now."

"They're not. You're looking for Dyne or Barret."

"Dyne is unreconcilable. He's on the warpath. He wants the strikes to never end just so long as Schnee suffers. He's unreachable. And Barret is angry. He'll stay that way for the foreseeable future. You're not, work with me here," she said again. "What will it cost? I'm willing to make all kinds of campaign promises. I'll keep them too. I'm a woman of my word. You want dust lung laws? I want them too. Why don't we start negotiating there? The strikes have to end somewhere."

"We want increased safety standards. And we want an increase in minimum wage. Wages haven't kept up with inflation so the current wage is unlivable."

"Done. Please. I can't get elected under this kind of unrest. Just join my voting block, getting your people to join my block will solve both of our problems."

"I'm not sure I can do that. There's more on the way."

"What else is on the way?"

"I can't talk to you about it but we have another operation."

"Another? Like the one that kicked off these protests? Put it off." She sounded desperate. "Cancel it."

"Can't do that. Some old guard in the White Fang are insisting upon it and in the miners guild, too. They're putting pressure on me and Avalanche." Bisque crossed his arms and replied coldly.

"Who?" She demanded. "I'll convince them otherwise."

"You can't. It's Dyne and Adam Taurus."

"Taurus? And Dyne, both? You have to do this?"

"Or else I'm afraid that Avalanche will lose control over the strikes completely."

"So? Let it happen. You can't tell me you meant for things to go this far. Fiona said it was mostly symbolic."

"We'd never be a player in the unions ever again if we stood by the wayside now. We have to be willing to act as much or more than anyone and everyone else."

"Damn it. When's the operation? Will you tell me that at least?" She pleaded.

"Tomorrow night. The others want to put a fire under Jacques Schnee and prevent him from getting comfortable. They want to force him to act and capitulate to the strikes. We had this operation in mind before and one thing led to another once the others found out about it."

"I'll get your money wired to you. Tell me about the General's project with Amity." She leaned forward towards him. She was anxious to hear about it.

I watched her stick out a hand. Bisque took it. A dull lilac hue took over both their hands all the way up to the elbow. I could feel the low hum of aura from where I watched through the screen window. She was doing something .

"The General is turning the colosseum into a satellite. Getting communication back up and running between the kingdoms. It's his current number one priority."

She withdrew. "That's it? That's why he's diverting supplies from Mantle? At least as far as you know, I suppose."

"The intel is good. We had people who worked on the project come to us," Bisque said. "Cetra who were or are involved in the construction joined our union network. They reported it to us."

"That's… that's good news I suppose. But the rest you have got to find a way to settle down the protests and get them to vote for me. I'm willing to grant all your concessions once I become a council member. None of them are unreasonable or outside of my policies," Hill negotiated. She really wanted a bunch of politically active people on her side come election day. I could get that. Voter efficacy was low all too often, even back in Vale.

"I'll talk to people and spread the word. I only promise to try."

"And another thing, Fiona mentioned two other people. She mentioned Cloud Strife. What's his angle in all this? I know he's been involved in the drug game and a prison break," Hill wondered.

"He was after the same information you were. Fiona should have been able to tell you that," Bisque answered. "Now, if that's actually everything, you can wire the money over and get out of my bar. We're closed. No service at the moment. We've got a happy hour at seven. You could come back then."

"Well thank you anyways. And don't worry about your money. I'll leave, then."

He came out to me again through the screen door in the back of the bar.

"You shook her hand," I introduced. "Why?"

"She's got a lie detection semblance. It's touch based, Striker ranged," he informed me.

I raised an eyebrow. A politician that valued truth in their very soul. Not her heart or mind but in the core of her very being. You didn't find that on every street corner.

Well she had my vote. Not that I could vote. None of my identities were Atlas or Mantle citizens so I was pretty much in the same class as a felon. Not that I wasn't also a felon.

"You sure you should have told her so much about the operation. She could interfere," I told him. "If she does that's on you."

"I didn't tell her that much. And if she does interfere it might be for the best. I don't really want this op to happen. Maybe she'll be able to stop the operation, Avalanche won't have to back down, and nobody will get hurt."

"Yeah well I don't want to go to prison. Something to keep in mind. The law isn't exactly on our side," I muttered. "For all that we're standing here plotting this in broad daylight."

"Oh I wasn't aware. I'll try to keep that in mind." His tone was as dry as ice.

pq pq pq pq pq pq pq pq pq pq pq pq pq pq pq pq pq pq

I scoped out the ship I would be sinking with Neo. Or 'Mint' as she was in her disguise. She snuck aboard easily enough and took a photo of a map of the ship with her scroll. She sent it to me and I examined it closely.

I needed to figure out where we would set the charges so that the explosion would just sink the vessel and not destroy the harbor in a dust driven detonation.

The place had cameras for security and a handful of human and faunus guards. But for the most part the ship was ruled and watched over by robots. Robots I'd have no problem taking apart. It was the people I needed to lure out somehow so that they didn't die when the ship went down or similar.

There were lifeboats onboard but I didn't need any more blood on my hands. I was powerful enough that I suppose I could take steps to avoid death now. I didn't need to go all out against a group of aura-lacking sentries anymore.

I could bop them without killing them now. And I knew Neo was in a similar ballpark. She just usually didn't care.

I studied the map in detail. Neo turned visible again as she paced away from the large grey vessel. It had soft blue mooring lights and a big Schnee Dust Company logo on the side.

I could see men and women and machines up on the deck at their posts. They all had smooth looking assault rifles and shotguns. The kind of heavy weaponry the SDC needed to keep their high valued assets safe. I was sure they were on decent high alert now, too. I'd scraped with some of them at the mine so they knew that wasn't just an accident.

She came up behind me on my bike and wrapped her arms around me. I turned around to spot her small smirk. She was still teasing me. At least she was still doing what I told her to do in a general sense.

She pulled herself snuggly against me and pressed her face into my back. I could feel it against my skin after a layer of clothes over armor. Maybe it was just her aura I was feeling against me like the flare of a cold burning candle.

I could feel her mischievous mood. She had no one to target but me at the moment.

"Don't be a brat, Neo." She shuffled softly against me in what I realized was mute laughter.

I revved my engine and pulled away from the ship.

"I'm thinking about setting off an explosion as a distraction. To lure the people off the ship. The last thing we want is to have to kill people and stain our unblemished records."

The wind whistled through my face as I pulled the bike into traffic.

"Maybe I'll set you loose on the guards. Harass them with illusions that get them off the ship. Would that make you happy or would you rather blow something up."

She shrugged against me unhelpfully.

"Well then we will probably do a little of column A and a little of column B. How many people can you teleport at once with you, Neo."

She tapped my chest three times. That meant I could get four of us on board. More if I flew. Just five of us to cause enough of a ruckus that we drew the living guards' attention but not so much noise that we brought the entire facility down on our heads. There was a balance to play. A particular key to strike.

I needed to draw only so much attention and it had to be the kind of attention that grabbed living beings and left the machines to mostly do their work.

I recalled the robots. They were humanoid things for the most part. They were built fast and could be destroyed just as easily by hunters like us. Their weapons would only cause a problem if I gave their targeting computers time to really line up a shot and if I gave them a chance to shoot as a group.

Not allowing them to use their strength of numbers was a good call. Don't sit still enough that they got a good solution for me. It was a good start but I needed more.

There could be more menacing machines on board. Giant spider or scorpion bots or larger humanoid mechs like the Atlesian Paladins we had fought back at Beacon's fall.

I wasn't sure how much trouble those kinds of machines were going to give me given how much stronger I had become. Plus I was loaded with dust crystals and I knew how to use them.

I needed to start a fire. Something like that would draw the human crew to the lifeboats and off the ship but would leave the machines behind.

I could also use Neo's power to get a few of us on board and get the party started.

I pulled up on a gondola for vehicles and pulled out my scroll and started looking over the ships schematics. I say schematics but there was a small 'you are here' sign on it indicating it was really a map set up somewhere inside.

I wanted to set the charges near the front of the ship away from the cargo hold where all the dust was sitting around and waiting to explode.

That should stop a chain reaction of explosions depending on how big the explosives we used were. I had better make those myself.

I was already thinking through the designs I knew to cause a hole just large enough to rupture the exterior hull of the boat. Just enough to rock the ship and not blow up the entire harbor.

I swung by Aurum's club on a gondola for vehicles and picked up a .50 caliber pistol for Bisque who still hadn't made up his mind. So I made it up for him. I put the heavy boxes of ammunition behind me on the bike with the spare magazines for the weapon.

It was a good thing he and the others had yet to be in a real huntsman-class fight or they would have lost pretty badly.

The only thing to do from here was build the bombs and I could do that easily enough at my apartment. So that was my next stop.

I wired together several dust crystals, enough that I thought it would be able to blow a hole in the ship's exterior if it was set against it but not so much that it would spread through the rest of the boat's interior. I made two because I thought one was probably enough to do it so I might as well go all in.

Then I set them up to be able to blow from a remote source. In this case just my scroll. It was actually pretty easy. Not as easy as throwing them really hard but just about using two small arduinos, one a piece.

The only thing left to do was share the plan with Avalanche, the miners, and Taurus and hope that went off without a hitch before the plan even started.

pq pq pq pq pq pq pq pq pq pq pq pq pq pq pq pq pq pq

-WG

[trensu]

Episode 43: The One where WWX is Soft for Children and Bunnies

we're still in the forbidden chamber

wwx has his detective cap on and is being clever

the lan bros are listening attentively as they should be

wwx: jgy is a sneaky conniving bastard blah blah he vandalizes evil music books blah blah

lots of boring plot talk basically

i'm sitting here like, *sigh* so pretty wwx so pretty

which is what i imagine lwj does all the time...

lol wwx goes to lxc and is like, no offense bro but jgy was a skilled spy during the war who was able to infiltrate and memorize wen ruohan's stuff in their secret chamber. invading this one would've been a piece of cake for him

and lxc is like well damn, guess i better test out all this evil music and see if it actually works

lxc: i'll just test the evil magic music on myself. yep. that way no one gets hurt and that couldn't possibly backfire on me at all

lwj: bro

lxc: bro. i gotta do this bro to clear my bae’s i mean friend's name

LOL lxc is like you all see jgy this way but i see him in a totally different way

YEAH WE KNOW, THAT'S THE PROBLEM

LOLOLOL OMG

lxc turns to gaze off into the middle distance and is like, the jgy in my heart is kind and benevolent blah blah

and behind him wwx crosses his arms and all but rolls his eyes LIKE DUDE YOU'RE COMING TO THE WRONG PERSON FOR SYMPATHY. I'M THE ONE THAT GOT KILLED FOR THINGS YOUR BF DID

oh this moment's interesting

lxc is like, can't you allow me to be cautious about making this decision? 

and lwj takes a step towards him, ready to speak but wwx grabs his upper arm and stops him with a shake of his head

the look lwj gives him just before that was like why are you stopping me?

but wwx knows this isn't something you can push

lwj trusts wwx's judgment and holds back whatever he was going to say

i'm curious as to what he WAS going to tell his brother tho

now lwj is leaving to talk to their uncle and lxc is like, sure i'll take your soulmate back to your room for you

WE'RE GONNA GET SOME BABY!LWJ FLASHBACKS SOON OMG

IT'S GONNA HURT

wwx: since lan zhan isn't here, i wanna ask you about something

lxc: tell me

wwx: what are the whipping scars on lan zhan?

lxc: you don't know?

AND THEIR SONG STARTS PLAYING

wwx: i asked him but he didn't wanna say, so i'm asking you

lxc: yeah, if he doesn't think it's necessary he'll probably never talk about it so i'll tell you instead of respecting my little brother's decisions about his personal life

AND OKAY I'M GLAD HE DID BC IT GIVES US WANGXIAN MOMENTS BUT STILL!! 

lxc: do you remember that one time when wn shot and killed your sister's husband?

on the one hand, HOW COULD HE FORGET but on the other hand, he forgets quite a lot of things actually...

lxc: after wq and the others turned themselves in...*cue flashback*

we're at the burial mounds, lwj is standing by himself before wwx's cave facing down a whole freaking squadron of cultivators

su she: *runs his mouth as if we actually care what he has to say*

lwj: *completely unfazed and expressionless* you are not qualified to speak to me

HELL FUCKING YEAH

WORDS CANNOT DESCRIBE HOW EPIC THIS MOMENT IS

LOOK AT LWJ OWN THAT ICE PRINCE PERSONA TO STRIKE DOWN AN IMPUDENT ANT OF A PERSON

su she goes to draw his sword AS IF HE HAS ANY REAL CHANCE OF DEFEATING HANGUANG JUN IN A SWORD FIGHT

but jgy shows up with even MORE cultivators and then does that thing where he compliments the person inconveniencing him and takes control of the situation

jgy: oh hanguang jun is so honorable let's not search wwx's secret cave lab right now

BUT THE GREAT THING IS THAT LWJ DOESN'T EVEN ACKNOWLEDGE HIS PRESENCE

HE DOESN'T LOOK AT HIM OR SU SHE AT ALL

bc lwj is forever Better Than You.

fuck jgy

jgy: even if wwx is alive, the burial mounds is surrounded so there's no way he could come here without us noticing

he says this to lwj all mildly BUT YOU KNOW IT'S A THREAT

He bows (lwj STILL doesn't acknowledge him and it's GREAT) and walks away

then pauses (bc Drama) and is like oh, almost forgot, your uncle is waiting for you at the cloud recesses. And then he just leaves with all his cultivators

this is when lwj finally looks at jgy (or his back, at least since jgy is leaving)

We cut to the next scene that has lwj slamming the point of bichen in the the stone ground, arm bleeding

HE IS VISIBLY SWEATING AND TREMBLING

lxc: lwj made a mess and fought against everyone there

AND WE SEE LWJ FALL TO HIS KNEE, ONE ARM USING BICHEN AS SUPPORT WHILE THE OTHER RESTS ON THE GROUND

but the fall was gradual and jerky, like he was fighting it the whole way down. 

As if the only reason he fell is bc he's used up every ounce his strength and energy he had in his body

lxc: uncle burst into anger and took him back home, punishing him with 300 lashes and repenting in the cold pond cave for 3 years

we cut to the cloud recesses, camera shot from above making lwj, who is kneeling before his uncle and surrounded by disciples, look small AS ~THEIR SONG~ STARTS PLAYING ON THE CELLO 

his uncle orders them to start beating lwj

AND LWJ TAKES IT LIKE A CHAMP

he barely moves with each strike and MAN THAT DISCIPLE IS NOT HOLDING BACK

oooh, we see him do that fist clench thing which looks even more painful without bichen to grip tbh

dude lwj is clenching his jaw so hard. 

like, he refuses to cry out in pain and it's gotta hurt bc he's bleeding already

lqr: what is rule 52 of the lan clan?

lwj: do not befriend evil

NO HESITATION. SAID IN A STRONG FIRM VOICE

AS IF HE WASN'T CURRENTLY GETTING BEATEN WITH A NIGHTMARE STICK

and lqr is all you have forgotten the fundamental laws of our clan, how can you have the nerve to face your ancestors like this!!

BUT LWJ IS NOT HAVING THAT

HE'LL TAKE THE BEATING BUT HE'S GOING TO MAKE HIS POINT

lwj: i dare ask you, grandmaster, who is right? who is wrong? what is black? what is white?

Bc our boy has learned! He’s learned NUANCE and CRITICAL THINKING and the existence of GRAY AREAS

BC WTF IS THE POINT OF ALL OF THESE STUPID RULES IF THEY DON'T PROTECT THE INNOCENT AND DEFENSELESS?

Bc his soulmate was right all along and he didn’t stand by him when he needed him most and now his soulmate is gone. His soulmate is gone. He’s GONE.

I'M GONNA MAKE MYSELF CRY

lqr: perfect! that's my good student

he does not say this happily. he is in fact SHOUTING this VERY ANGRILY

and here i wanna say, hey lqr, what's that rule about excessive noise...?

cue lwj's fist clench again, which sounds just as painful as the beating tbh

lqr: wangji, you have disappointed me

NOT AS MUCH AS YOU AND YOUR DAMN RULE-BOOK HAVE DISAPPOINTED HIM, YOU JERK

and here we see an ACTUAL VISIBLE SCOWL on our beautiful hanguang jun's face as he continues to be beaten

HOW ANGRY AND TORN UP MUST HE BE TO ACTUALLY SCOWL LIKE THAT??

cut to lwj kneeling at the ice table thing in the cold pond cave, robed in white and face blank but somehow still projecting an aura of cold fury

probably bc the rulebook open in front of him says "eradicate evil, establish laws, and goodness will be everlasting" and he knows that’s bullshit now

but actually this scene is visually very beautiful. 

It’s all in misty shades of pale cold blue and white and everything’s spaced out in a way to emphasize how very very alone lwj is

cut back to the present with wwx and lxc

wwx grips his flute with both hands and looks down like he can't believe what he's hearing

lxc: when lwj was imprisoned i tried to persuade him...but he told me he considered you his confidant soulmate and believed in your integrity

wwx: why would he bother…?

his brow is furrowed and his voice is soft like he truly doesn't seem to understand why lwj would bother to do all that

and on the one hand i wanna scream IT'S BECAUSE HE LOVES YOU, YOU MORON

but on the other hand, everybody else in wwx's life, everyone else he loved, turned on him or died 

and he probably truly believes he deserved all that, and that he is undeserving of lwj's unwavering faith

and then i cry

lxc: do you know what this place is?

shot of the entrance to the silence room aka the jingshi aka lwj's room

wwx: i don't

lxc: it's where our mother lived

wwx is hanging off his every word

lxc: you might find it strange that the wife of the clan leader didn't live with her husband in the frigid chamber

with a name like that i wouldn't want to live there either...

lxc: you might know that our father used to isolate himself for years, not caring about anything...

Not even his sons, apparently!

wwx: i do

and he explains that his father isolated himself bc of his mother or whatever

lxc: this place was more of a prison than a home

It was his mother’s prison. When did he figure that out? Was it when HE WAS STILL A KID??

DID HE FEEL GUILTY FOR SPENDING TIME WITH HIS  MOTHER KNOWING SHE WAS LOCKED UP AGAINST HER WILL??

THE LAN FAM IS SO FUCKED UP OMG

now he's telling us the whole tragic love story

it was love at first sight, he says and wwx is like ah yes, a typical romance

and lxc is like, uh no, she didn't love him back and she murdered his teacher, idk why tho

lxc: but i guess it's all about right and wrong, love and hate

Which is a major theme of the whole show, tbh

OH DAMN

now he's telling wwx about how his dad took his mom to cloud recesses and married her against the clan's approval and that he told them that this was the person he would love for a lifetime, that “whoever tried to drive her out would have to go through him first"

DOES ANY OF THIS SOUND FAMILIAR TO YOU, WWX?

RINGING ANY (WEDDING) BELLS?

DOES THIS REMIND YOU OF ANYTHING AT ALL, WWX?

"after the wedding my father built this house, and locked my mother up"

lxc says this all so calmly and gently, as if he were reading from a story book rather than reciting his immediate family's history

Which is probably a coping mechanism, tbh

this fam is so fucked up, have i mentioned?

lxc: do you understand why my father did all this?

wwx: *nod*

lxc: and do you think he did the right thing?

wwx: i don't know

well, i mean, he married her and locked her up against her will

granted she did murder someone but i get the feeling she probably had good reason to

and now he's telling wwx that they basically had no parents bc they were given off to others to raise them until they were old enough to attend their uncle's lessons

FLASHBACK TO BABY!LWJ READING TO HIS MAMA FROM A LAN CLAN BOOK

HE'S SO CUTE AND TINY AND HIS MAMA IS SO SOFT AND PRETTY. 

SHE LOOKS AT HIM WITH SUCH LOVE, AND RUNS HER HAND THROUGH HIS HAIR SO GENTLY

lxc makes a point here to say that their mother never complained about her imprisonment or how painful it must've been to be trapped like that

BC THEIR MAMA LOVED THEM

lxc: lwj never said anything, but i knew he looked forward to the day we visited mother every month

HOW AWFUL IS THAT, TO BE RESTRICTED TO ONE DAY A MONTH TO SPEND WITH SOMEONE YOU LOVE???

Lxc: he did (look forward to seeing mom). and so did i.

cut to baby lwj kneeling in the snow, all little and by himself IN FRONT OF THE JINGSHI, AKA HIS MOM’S PRISON AKA PROBABLY HIS FAVORITE PLACE IN ALL THE CLOUD RECESSES

lxc: one day, uncle told us that we didn't need to go there anymore. mother had gone.

I'M GONNA CRY

HE'S SO LITTLE AND SAD AND HE'S KNEELING SO STILL WITH HIS TINY HANDS IN HIS LAP

like even lqr is moved bc he goes and puts a hand on his shoulder

lxc: we were too young to understand what that meant.

lxc: no matter how others consoled us or how uncle scolded him, lwj still came here every month. he would sit on that porch and wait for someone to open the door.

I'M SOBBING

LWJ HAS SPENT HIS WHOLE LIFE WAITING FOR THE PEOPLE HE LOVES

He’s kept himself still and stalwart ever since he was a kid so that if his loved one chose to come back, he’d still be there for them 

I'M HURTING SO MUCH

HE JUST WANTED THEM TO COME BACK AND THINK HE WAS WORTH STAYING FOR. 

GOD I HATE CRYING. I'M A SNOTTY MESS RN

Lxc: when we got older we realized that she would never come back. that no one would ever open the door for him. but he still came.

FUCK

GOD DAMN IT

STOP HURTING ME SO MUCH, WHAT THE HELL

lxc: lwj has always been stubborn since he was very young

lxc: back then, he watched you learn crafty tricks. he didn't say anything, but i knew...that the pain and confusion in his heart was the same as what he felt for our mother

MY GOD, JUST BEAT ME WITH THOSE NIGHTMARE STICKS INSTEAD. THAT WOULD HURT LESS THAN THIS.

wwx's eyes are all red-rimmed and his brow is all pinches and HE JUST SWALLOWED BACK THE LUMP IN HIS THROAT

THE SAME ONE I HAVE RIGHT NOW AS I CRY AND CRY AND CRY

and lxc is like, well, that's enough intense conversation for now, imma do a flute solo

~flute sounds~

and now he's like i tried to persuade lwj before but now that i'm in his shoes it turns out making a decision isn't actually easy to do?? who'd have thought?

oh here comes lwj, all straight-backed and regal as always but no jewelry in his hair! no topknot! he looks so different this way

AND HE HAS TWO JARS OF EMPEROR'S SMILE WITH HIM

AND ~THEIR SONG~ IS PLAYING AGAIN

oh, the way he holds it out to wwx, like an offering at an altar...

cut to inside the jingshi, we get to see him uncap one of the jars and pour a drink out for his soulmate. 

like, the camera is specifically focused on his hands

which, hey, i’ve seen the tags ppl, i know some of you are Into That so take the time to enjoy this

then we get a shot of all of him and he looks so so soft and exposed and vulnerable  here?? with his hair down in his own room, pouring a drink for his wei ying

it's beautiful

wwx walks in and watches as lwj starts to pour himself a cup of tea

THIS IS A LOT. 

~Their Song~ playing sweetly, no other sounds except the quiet clinks of the cups and teapot. And all of lwj’s actions are just...light

wwx: lan zhan…

GOD I JUST WANT TO SCREENCAP THIS WHOLE SCENE

the shot of lwj here, while he’s focused on pouring his tea. 

the way his head is angled and the wisps of his hair frame his face. 

he takes up a good portion of the screen without seeming domineering or forceful, just...peacefully existing in the space

and then we cut back to wwx's face, his mouth open as he takes a breath 

He wants to say something, anything, but you can see on his face that he can't make the words come

Like he doesn’t want to disturb the moment with whatever he was going to say, bc it’s a fragile moment

and then this brief literally-2-seconds shot of lwj to the right, sitting at the table 

the table is set up so beautifully with the jars of emperor's smile and their cups. and he's looking up and the lighting AND AHHHHHH

IT'S JUST A VERY BEAUTIFUL TWO SECONDS AND I'VE STARED AT IT FOR MUCH TOO LONG ALREADY

lwj: what?

and wwx can't even really return his gaze. he looks just as vulnerable here but, unlike lwj, he also looks awkward, like he’s nervous in his vulnerability same ,wwx, same

wwx tries to say thank you but it comes out stuttered and soft while lwj watches him patiently

wwx mumbles to himself "it's awkward to say it out loud" and his eyes flicker back and forth for a second as his mouth pinches, agitated 

BC IT IS MEGA AWKWARD

FEELINGS ARE AWKWARD

AND AS LOUD AND OBNOXIOUS WWX CAN BE, IT'S NEVER ABOUT HIS FEELINGS.

wwx: *clears throat* i mean...the burden on your brother's shoulders is tremendous

smooth transition, wwx, very smooth

but at least it allowed him the chance to sit at the table with lwj

wwx: after all, jgy is his sworn brother. if i were him...

he trails off awkwardly and it feels even MORE awkward bc the background music just ends suddenly and it's silent for us, the audience

lwj doesn't say anything and instead gently moves the cup of wine towards wwx.

once that's done he says "if there's evidence, my brother won't tolerate it."

but he doesn't look at wwx and his face is somber

wwx: that's true. he's got his principles

finally lwj looks at him

lwj: you didn't tell him.

wwx: tell him what?

lwj: about the flute on qiongqi way

wwx: you know about that?

lwj: i asked wen ning. he said he heard a second flute

wwx: i thought i was hearing things until nightless city *insert flashback here*

cut to next scene. wwx is standing just outside the jingshi doors with a jar in his hand as it snows

lwj steps up next to him and ~THEIR SONG~ STARTS PLAYING

they're still talking about the flute and how wwx is confident now that there was a second one used to frame him basically. he's quietly angry here.

lwj immediately says it was jgy but wwx responds with "maybe, maybe not"

lwj looks at him, "you don't want to know the answer?"

bc lwj does. he wants to know who framed his soulmate, causing the suffering that lead to his death

wwx: at first i really wanted to but now i just want to say, 'whatever. screw it!'

he says with a laugh and then takes a swig from his wine jar

wwx put down that wine jar, you've obviously had too much already.

wwx: lan zhan, i actually think whether i know the answer or not won't be of much importance for me. after all, in ppl's minds, the yiling patriarch did bad things. even if i expressed my grievances, people still won't trust me

and he smiles

MY POOR SUNSHINE BOY

He says, "Sometimes the world only needs an excuse or target that everyone can hate"

PAINFULLY TRUE

and then he says something along the lines that it doesn't matter, if he wasn't made the target, someone else would have been

BASICALLY HE'S JUST VERY DISILLUSIONED HERE 

THE WORLD SHOULD FEEL ASHAMED FOR DISAPPOINTING HIM

now we hear the sound of a guqin playing ~Their Song~

lwj at his guqin playing their song to soothe his soulmate

wwx: *voiceover* i was lonely back then. the few who believed in me were dead, wen ning, jyl. Luckily…

and here we get the crescendo of the opening theme as we cut to lwj. 

the voiceover changes from wwx to lwj

lwj: in this world, there is still someone who trust you

I'M HAVING A LOT OF FEELINGS RIGHT NOW

voiceover switches back to wwx and we get a shot of wwx watching lwj play

wwx: lan zhan, i toast to you. i'm glad to have one true friend

SO MANY FEELINGS

and then i get distracted as wwx does that thing where he pours wine into his mouth and spills half of it down his VERY INDECENTLY EXPOSED THROAT

shot of lwj thinking: for nothing else but a clean conscience

shot of wwx thinking: no matter how they slander me, i know i have a clean conscience

EVEN THEIR THOUGHTS ARE IN SYNC OMG

AND ~THEIR SONG~ IS STILL PLAYING BUT NOW IT'S THE GUQIN AND THE FLUTE COMING TOGETHER

wwx gazes tenderly at lwj and whispers: lan zhan. i'm sorry...and thank you

AND WE GET THE ACTORS’ VOCALS ADDED IN TO ~THEIR SONG~ AS LWJ LOOKS UP AND SEES WWX WATCHING HIM

AND I'M HAVING SO MANY FEELINGS

I WOULD LIKE TO GET DISTRACTED BY WWX'S INDECENTLY EXPOSED THROAT AGIAN PLZ

cut to the next day with lxc meditating and our boys hiding behind a privacy screen

lwj is in perfect posture, eyes closed and meditating calmly while wwx keeps listing to the side and jolting awake bc meditating IS FOR NERDS

lol except this time he lists to the opposite side and falls into lwj's shoulder with a cute little gasp

lwj gives him a look and wwx quickly arranges himself into a sloppy lotus pose

jgy walks in and our boys are immediately on alert peeking through the privacy screen 

(which actually isn't all that private. you can see through half of it??)

now we get a moment for lxc and jgy in which jgy returns the jade token and it’s, like, a Thing

BUT WE DON'T CARE ABOUT THEM

LET'S SEE OUR BOYS' REACTION TO WHAT JGY HAS TO SAY

wwx is watching lwj as jgy says something about how they don't have info on lwj and wwx yet and lwj closes his eyes against the news

i think he's upset he's placed his brother in this position...

now we're informed that there are active puppets in the burial mounds

lxc is like, well it can't be wwx bc he was stabbed

and jgy is like he's been stabbed before and controlled puppets alright then!

meanwhile wwx behind the screen scoffs and thinks "they think too highly of me"

also, like, jgy was trying to get lxc to give them up by saying how lwj would be safe bc of his great reputation

Honestly, it really just goes to show that these people don't actually care about your actions. they've made their assumptions and they'll stick to them no matter what and IT'S SUPER FRUSTRATING

plot talk plot talk sworn trio moment plot talk

now lxc is off to carp tower while our boys prepare for a field trip to the burial mounds

LIL APPLE AND THE BUNNIES!!

our boys are by a stream and there's bunnies all over the place and wwx is telling lil apple they're leaving

~THEIR SONG~ STARTS UP AGAIN

AHHHHHHHHH, LOOOK!!! THERE’S TEENY TINY SMILE ON LWJ'S FACE AS HE PUTS DOWN BICHEN TO PICK UP ONE OF THE BUNNIES

EVERYTHING IS ADORABLE

WWX GETS THAT LITTLE MISCHIEVOUS SMILE ON HIS FACE AS HE GOES TO POKE THE BUNNY

AND HE MAKES SILLY NOISES AT IT AND IS ALL INSULTED THAT THE BUNNY DOESN'T REACT

SO CUTE!!

wwx: see? they only like you *pout* they're only loyal to their owner

so lwj wordlessly hands over the bunny BC IF HIS SOULMATE WANTS BUNNIES, HIS SOULMATE IS GETTING BUNNIES

the bunny wriggles and wwx is like "don't try to run. you can never run away from me. stay here bunny!"

IT'S SO CUTE I'M GONNA DIE

HE'S JUST PETTING THE BUNNY ALL OVER AND USING A PLAYFUL VOICE WHILE TALKING TO IT AND EVERYTHING IS WONDERFUL

Don’t be jealous of a bunny don’t be jealous of a bunny don’t be jealous of a bunny

wwx looks over to lwj: lan zhan, it's so strange. i know we're going on a dangerous mission but i don't feel scared at all

then he goes back to the bunny and wiggles it around SO CUTELY: do you think it's strange too? what do you think?

AND HE'S GOT THE BIGGEST SMILE

lwj: it's getting late. let's go

wwx: okay *pets bunny* little bunny, we're leaving~

THIS SHOW SHOULD ONLY EVER BE ABOUT BUNNIES, I'VE DECIDED

BUNNIES DON'T HURT ME 

now we cut to them at the entrance of the cloud recesses

lil apple is being stubborn and the bunnies are on the steps

wwx: they hate to see you go.

and wwx looks at lwj all playfully

wwx: i never thought that hanguang jun would be so popular among the little animals

and then he finishes with AN ADORABLE LITTLE POUT: bc i'm not

lwj: why not?

wwx: all little animals regardless of their habitat run when they see me. isn't that right lil apple? *proceeds to bully the donkey*

lwj: *walks off bc he does not condone animal abuse or smth*

wwx: wait for me hanguang jun!!

NOW WE'RE ON A DIRT PATH

LWJ IS HOLDING THE LIL APPLE'S LEAD WHILE WWX RIDES LIL APPLE

HE’S PLAYING HIS FLUTE AND THEN STARTS PLAYING ~THEIR SONG~!!!!

AND LWJ LOOKS TOWARDS HIM HIS EYES ALL TENDER AND FULL OF LOVE

WWX IS SMILING WHILE HE PLAYS

EVERYTHING IS STILL WONDERFUL

LWJ HAS ONE OF HIS ALMOST-SMILES ON HIS FACE

wwx: lan zhan, i wanna know, back in the murder turtle cave, what was the name of the song you sang to me?

lwj: why do you ask?

wwx: just tell me the name. i think i've figured out how you recognized me

wwx: tell me what song it is. who's the composer?

lwj: me

wwx: so you composed it?!

lwj: hm

wwx: what's the name then?

THIS IS SUCH A CAREFREE PLEASANT CONVERSATION AND I LOVE IT

lwj: what do you think?

wwx: you're asking my opinion?

he gets this huge smile on his face and giggles

wwx: i think i'll call it...

lwj: i'm thirsty, let's look for water

IT'S RUDE TO INTERRUPT LWJ

they find a random house and wwx proceeds to steal a melon

but they're interrupted so they hide like the CRIMINALS THEY ARE lol

and we see mr & mrs mianmian with little mianmian!!

mr mianmian is all if you run off again the yiling patriarch will eat you!

little mianmian is like I'M NOT SCARED, mama says the yiling patriarch doesn’t bully good people

and that's how mianmian and her husband and daughter get guaranteed invites to their future wedding

we cut to wwx and lwj 

wwx is nodding enthusiastically like THAT'S RIGHT, I DON'T HURT INNOCENT PEOPLE, IT'S ABOUT TIME THAT'S ACKNOWLEDGED

ohhhhh really liking how mianmian draws her sword and demands the criminals to show themselves

Lol, she's like WHO'S THERE? and wwx literally answers, UM, NO ONE??

lwj purses his lips like, really?? and comes out of hiding

Mianmian is shocked to find hanguang jun hiding on her property obvs, but is also excited to recognize wwx

wwx: *internally* why does this lady know me?? did she have a problem with me or did i provoke her??

then wwx recognizes her!! he's very excited about it!

and we end the episode on a high note there!!

We get to see the only functional, happy (and alive) marriage in the entire cultivation world!!

And yeah, we got our hearts torn out by kid!lwj but we were rewarded with soft domesticity AND bunnies right after!!!

Overall good quality wangxiantics

Return to Masterpost

[gastlyash]

Pokemon Sw/Sh Hug Headcanons

my first time actually posting headcanons, just thought of this and it made me happy

(under the cut b/c it’s pretty much all important/recurring characters minus Swordward and Shieldbert b/c,,,i don’t like them)

Hop: Quick, tight hugs. He’s hyper, and doesn’t have time to have a long hug with one person, he wants to hug everyone right NOW! Only exception to this is if he’s comforting someone, or he’s being comforted himself. In times like that, he’ll just let the hug last a bit.

Leon: TIGHT HUGS, AND BEST HUGGER IN GALAR!! Who do you think Hop gets his tight hugs from? Lee will squeeze you, pick you up in the hug, and just hold on for a moment (i just really need a hug from lee, i think we all do). Will keep an arm around you after the hug, just to keep you close.

Sonia: Gentle hugs, usually a brief side hug. Unless you’re Nessa close to her, then it’s a full on hug, tight and with a kiss on the cheek. Pulls away so she can look at you and talk, but keeps her arms around you.

Professor Magnolia: She’s a grandma! Of course she gives good hugs! Very gentle since she’s old and kinda frail, if you squeeze her she’ll probably laugh, or demand you let go. Could go either way.

Bede: Oh, this bastard. He’d act like he hates hugs, like he’s too good for them, above some stupid show of affection...But as soon as someone he can tolerate hugs him, he doesn’t want them to let go. Loose hugs, just puts his arms around the other person gently. However, if the other person squeezes him, he’ll squeeze back tighter. He’s not losing to them in this “who can hug tighter” game.

Marnie: Very gentle hugs. She’s gotten confident since she started the Gym Challenge, but is still pretty timid. Basically just a shy kid/teen that feels kinda awkward with hugs, but also kinda likes them and wishes there were more chances to hug people (totally not speaking from experience here). 

Chairman Rose: Gladly gives fans hugs, and accepts hugs if he has time...Usually he’s too busy though, having Oleana pull him away from anyone that wants a hug. His hugs are quick but firm, usually patting the other person on the back. 

Oleana: Not a hugger. But if she does let someone hug her, she’s very light with her hugs. Just a quick embrace, probably just uses one arm, not even a full-on hug. If she’s hugged unannounced, she just calls for security. Do not hug her if she doesn’t explicitly tell you she’s okay with it (i mean, same goes for anyone tbh). 

Milo: YOU ALREADY KNOW THIS BOY GIVES 10/10 HUGS. Do you see his arms? Those arms probably feel like pure comfort and affection. He HUGS his pokeball when he Dynamaxes, so I imagine he will hug you on sight. How dare you enter his line of vision and not prepare for a bone-crushing hug. Definitely pats the other person’s back, kisses their head, and lets the hug last a while, squeezing real tight before letting go (Piers and Rai may be my big faves, but Milo gives off Amazing Hug Energy). 

Nessa: Kinda like Sonia, she gives gentle hugs. A bit firmer than Sonia, though. She’ll rest her head on the other person’s if they’re shorter, or rest her head on their chest if they’re taller. Gentle as heck. 

Kabu: Grandpa time. Gives quick hugs, patting the other person’s back/shoulder before letting go. If you’re close to him, he probably hugs a bit longer and tighter (guess you could call it a warm hug??).

Allister: TIMID. Do NOT try hugging this boy, he’ll get uncomfortable. If he initiates a hug, he’s very gentle, and still extremely unsure. Hug back, but GENTLY. Don’t squeeze! He WILL get upset, and Gengar WILL come out to defend his trainer! Really comfortable with the other gym leaders, though. Will occasionally run to Melony, Bea, or Raihan for a hug.

Bea: Also not the biggest fan of hugs, but if you ask her for one, prepare for a tight hug. Will make you regret hugging her, squeezes until your back cracks. 

Opal: Another grandma, but different hugger. Picky with who she hugs, and when she does hug someone it’s usually light. She’s frail, but don’t underestimate her. Will trick you with a hug sometimes, gentle at first...But will squeeze the HELL out of you...Just because she can. Worst part: You never know which hug you’ll be getting. Loves keeping people guessing.

Melony: For an ice type user, she give the warmest hugs. Very snug grip, pretty much cradles the other person in the hug. Will reassure the person she’s hugging if they need it, or just ask how they’re doing. If someone needs a hug, she’ll be there right after Lee. Her battle style is brutal, but her hugs are so, so gentle. 

Gordie: Oh, you want a hug? Sure, he doesn’t mind hugging a fan! Gives pretty tight hugs, pretty quick ones too, definition of “bro hug”. Pats the other person’s back, will ruffle their hair when they pull away (he has like 4 siblings, he’s pretty skilled at hugging).

Piers: Big fave time. He has a lot of fans, and a little sister, so he’s become pretty comfortable with hugs over time. Quick hugs for fans, tighter and longer hugs for Marnie. If you’re close to him, he gets pretty flustered with hugging. If someone else initiates the hug, he gets pretty shy and flustered, but hugs back gently. If HE initiates it, expect a tighter hug (nothing bone-crushing, but just very firm), a hug that’ll last a bit before he decides that it’s been long enough. He doesn’t seem like the kind to be into hugs and touching, but actually probably craves it.

Raihan: SECOND BEST HUGGER IN GALAR (since he’s Lee’s rival). Will hug you tightly, pick you up in the hug, spin you around, and not let go for a while. Also expect videos and selfies, he’ll let Rotom fly around to capture the hug. Has probably recorded himself hugging every gym leader + Lee by surprise, just hug-tackling all of them out of the blue to get a reaction. This resulted in Gengar chasing him, Opal lightly hitting his head with her cane/umbrella, a very flustered Piers, and Leon totally expecting it, and hugging even tighter.

Avery: Ew, a hug?? Fine, but only because he feels bad that you’ll never be as great as him. Another case like Bede, except he’s genuinely somewhat uncomfortable with hugs. Only seems truly comfortable with hugging Mustard and Honey. His hugs are pretty light, nothing extreme. 

Klara: I know next to nothing about Klara except that she’s similar to Avery. But judging from that, I assume she’ll hug reluctantly, very light, and shove the other person away when she thinks it’s been too long. If someone asks for a hug, she’s smug about it. Why, of course you want a hug from her, she’s the best!

Mustard: For an old man, he gives stupidly tight hugs. Hugs like a Bewear, blames that on being the Dojo Master.

Honey: Quick and tight hugs, will gush over the other person like a proud mom if they’re close. Actually, even if she’s not close to someone/has just met someone she’ll hug them as a greeting. 

Hyde: He’s probably more of a high-five person. Only hugs his parents, and high-fives/fist bumps everyone else. Super chill inventor kid.

[tory-ben-hi-shelton]

my favourite quotes from virals

The back-ass of Charleston. It's not so bad, if you aren't prone to loneliness. Which I am, but whatever. I've come to appreciate the legroom.

Kit's still not over the shock. I see it on his face every now and then. He'll wake up from a nap, or come up for air after a long stretch of work and literally jump when he notices me. That's my daughter. I have a daughter who is fourteen and lives with me. I am her father. Same shock for me, Pops. I'm working through it, too.

Kit and I attended service once. Took me ten seconds to see he'd never been there before. We made no second appearance. I hear the Big Guy's pretty understanding. I hope so.

I saw through his macho act. He was afraid I'd hurt him, but couldn't let on. Good. Be nervous, wuss.

"Well done, genius squad," I said. "I'm impressed."

Parallel tough guy nods. Man fix boat! Man be strong!

"What now?" I asked, hoping to divert the two from actually beating their chests.

"Monkeys are always funny. You pretty much can't go wrong with a monkey, right? Well, unless that monkey wants you dead or does needle drugs or something. Then it's a wrong, and a bad monkey."

"You did break that ATV." Ben, deadpanned.

"Right." Shelton's eyes rolled. "Shelton broke it. Not Ben and Shelton, because Ben is better at hiding in the woods. So only Shelton." He cuffed Ben's shoulder. "By the way, you're welcome, Blue." "I said I owe you one."

Head ass, if you ask me. That's where he kept his, most of the time.

Hi was busy explaining to Ben how many punches he'd absorbed before body-slamming the primate gang leader. His audience looked dubious.

"Good idea, finding a proper gown." Typical Hi sarcasm. "The Prom Queen has to look sharp. Vera Wang, perhaps? Or maybe something in Lauren Conrad?"

"Thanks," I responded dryly. "You'll still be my date right? Or will you have a playoff game that night? I'll understand; we need our star quarterback on the field."

"I'll let you know." Hi replied breezily. "I may be dining with Kristin Stewart. Or Bill Compton. Some vampire, I'm not sure which."

Then Ben and Shelton said they'd think about it. Following an impressive string of profanities, Hi consented to sleep on it.

"You're beginning to attract some real whack-jobs," Hi said when the two were out of earshot...

"Bro?" I teased.

"He caught me off guard." A touch defensive.

"Then we do it old school." Shelton flexed one twig arm. "Manpower!"

Hi raised a hand.

"Yes?"

"This sucks."

"Got it. Dig."

Shelton's response was less manly. Spotting the gruesome discovery, he yelled, "Grave, grave!" and scrambled from the pit. Hiram took one look and promptly upchucked.

"Don't be babies," I said. "Sometimes you have to touch the bones."

Ben sat beside me. Kit has remained on Loggerhead and Tom was driving the boat, so we were alone. For now. A bit of luck on the a day having none.

Embarrassed, I smoothed down corkscrew curls gone wild.

"Stop primping, Miss America." "Maybe you should start," joked Shelton.

Hi was top left, wearing Chuck Norris PJ's buttoned to his chin.

Simple. To the point. Ben Blue in a nutshell.

No bells, alarms, or whistles. Big break for the felon squad.

"Oh man, we're the worst burglars ever!" Shelton laid on the floor, defeated by the roller coaster ride of the last few days. "Forget it. I give up!" Ben popped Shelton on the head, conveying his opinion of surrender.

We pumped on. A shame no one recorded our record sprint times. Personal bests were undoubtedly set.

"Hiram, wake up man!" Shelton slapped Hi's cheeks, then rubbed his arms. Not exactly Web MD stuff. I gently eased Shelton back.

"That's Ben," Jason said. "He's the best. Bit of a talker, though." Ben glowered. I jumped in to diffuse. "This is my good friend Ben Blue."

I told Ben about my fainting spell and Hi's discomfort. He stepped back and covered his mouth with one hand. "I'll keep my distance. I've got enough problems."

"Thanks. Your sympathy is underwhelming."

"She's (Whitney) not that bad, right?"

"She's not trying to train you like a dancing bear."

"Ha!" Kit snorted. "Shows how much you know."

"Did you guys like the chicken?" I asked. "Mine was a bit dry." Dead silence. Then nervous laughter rose around me. It was music to my bruised ears.

"No biggie. Just breaking into Karsten's office and searching his files."

"Pfff." Ben pooched air through his lips. "I thought you meant something dangerous."

"If the old goat's still here, we're toast." Ben, always the optimist.

"Holy buckets," Shelton whispered. "Haul ass!"

"Meaning?" Ben asked.

"Neuro-anatomy is very complicated." Dismissive.

"So am I."

Recognizing the menace in Ben's voice, Karsten paused to organize his thoughts.

I was about to speak when I heard movement, a bark, then, "Oof."

"Coop votes to go right, too," Hi said. "At least, I think that's why he knocked me over."

And spotted Hi, jacket inside out, sneaking back up the steps. Frick.

"Hold it!"

Hi straightened, slowly turned, and trudged down to my bench.

"Oh, hey." Feigned nonchalance. "Didn't see you there."

"We're going to hell for this," I hissed. "What if Great-Auntie Syl blows our cover?"

"She's got dementia," Hi whispered. "She won't know the difference."

"That's horrible."

"People in these places love to have visitors. Even from fake relatives."

"Like I said. To hell"

"When did they build this monster?"

"1876." Shelton had a book on Carolina lighthouses. Of course.

Ben glanced at my scum covered arms. "Does it have a sink? A hose?"

Ha ha

"Perfect," I said. "Lead the way."

"Not a chance," said Shelton.

"Clean up," said Hi.

"Now," said Ben. "We'll wait." I stuck out my tongue but hurried home to scrub up.

My dirt-free attire got a round of applause. Ben whistled.

"Much better," Shelton proclaimed.

"I don't know." Hi pooched out just lips. "The avian excrement added a certain je ne sais quoi."

"Very funny," I said.

"Why would I not like that?" I asked.

"I wasn't finished." Shelton said. "I paused for dramatic effect."

"Let me think this through."

The boys rolled their eyes, but clammed up. They'd seen my concentration trick before...

"Ben may be right."

He raised the roof. I ignored him.

"If Chance catches you act love struck." Hi winked. "That'll work."

"Love struck?" Ben's brow furrowed. "What's he talking about?"

"Nothing. Wish me luck." Stupid Hi.

"What are you doing here?" I babbled.

"What am I doing here? I live here."

"She's going to say 'tonight', isn't she?" Shelton's chin dropped to his chest. "Every time I think I'm done for the night, Tory says we have to raid some fortress."

"Hiram!" Shelton ran to Hi's side. "Aren't you bleeding? I thought she shot you!"

"Tory can order me around inside my head." Ben said. "If that doesn't make us close, I don't know what does."

[hihoneyimdead]

a dissection of anime nathaniel hawthorne in relation to the scarlet letter

In Which I’m Bored and Want to Talk About Anime Nathaniel Hawthorne and Why He’s More Interesting Than the Fandom Wants to Admit, and Also About Arthur Dimmesdale And Shit

This is going to be long. Fuck. 

(spoilers through the manga, which i have not read all the way through, so take everything i say with a grain of salt. same goes for the scarlet letter, which i haven’t read in nearly four years. ripperoni bro)

Above is the topic of today’s procrastination, Anime Nathaniel Hawthorne from Bungo Stray Dogs. He is a member of an American organization called the Guild, he’s a preacher, and he has a superpower/ability called The Scarlet Letter that allows him to manipulate his own blood into scripture that can either harm or defend via spears and shit and then shields and shit. 

He’s also a simp for Anime Margaret Mitchell, but I’ll be getting into that in a moment. 

Anyway, here’s a better picture of our lovely reverend, this time with his ability:

Funny, right? But that’s what I’m gonna talk about today simply because I’m bored and I should be writing but I’m currently not and I really have a soft spot for this bitch of a preacher. Hawthorne here has a lot more to his character than a lot of people give him credit for, which makes sense because he is a relatively-minor character and all he’s been doing recently is getting cucked by Anime Fyodor Dostoevsky, and while he may currently be Comrade Assassin, he’s still a complex character if you look past what our favorite Russian pimp has been up to. 

So a bit more about Hawthorne before I crack open my copy of his most famous book:

He is a preacher, not a priest, as shown by his choice in clothing. Priests don’t wear that, take it from a former Catholic. His clothes resemble the robes worn by classic Puritan preachers (such as the Reverend Arthur Dimmesdale, but we’ll get to him in a minute.) Whether that was on purpose or not I don’t know, but I’m aiming for a yes because Margaret Mitchell, his partner, wears a Southern belle-style outfit that Scarlett O’Hara (the main character of Mitchell’s most famous work, Gone With the Wind) wears, and John Steinbeck wears clothes reminiscent of Tom Joad (the main character of Steinbeck’s most famous work, The Grapes of Wrath.) It’s kind of a thing with the Guild. Edgar Allan Poe wears clothes that a goth around the time of Poe’s life would’ve worn. Same goes for Louisa May Alcott, Mark Twain, and H. P. Lovecraft. Meanwhile characters such as Lucy Maud Montgomery, F. Scott Fitzgerald, and Herman Melville wear clothes that their characters (Anne from Anne of Green Gables, Jay Gatsby from The Great Gatsby, and whoever the fuck was in Moby Dick, respectively.) Hawthorne fits in with that last set of characters, which is funny considering the real life Hawthorne’s works.

In reality, Nathaniel Hawthorne was an American author in the early-to-mid-1800s who wrote many short stories, novels, and poems and shit, usually Romantic in nature. He started off, though, as a big member of the Transcendentalist movement. Transcendentalism, if you don’t know, is kind of like the 1800s equivalent of hippies. They were pretty anti-government and anti-religion, usually specifically anti-Christianity. These institutions corrupted the basis of mankind. Hawthorne himself helped form a utopian commune up in New England (it didn’t last long, don’t worry.) As he grew older, he grew out of that kind of writing and lifestyle and into the works we know him for today, such as his most famous novel, The Scarlet Letter. It, like many of his other works, contains allusions to religion and exists as a sort of criticism on it. 

The Scarlet Letter is set in the middle of the 1600s in Puritan New England. The Puritans were known for being Super Christian. They did not pass the vibe check. The main character is Hester Prynne, a young woman convicted of adultery with an unknown father. After being “released” from prison after the birth of her daughter, Pearl, Hester is allowed to move around outside of prison. But to signify her “evilness”, she must have a red letter ‘A’ on the front of her dress at all times (the eponymous and extremely metaphoric scarlet letter.) Besides Hester and Peal, main characters include Roger Chillingsworth, a doctor and Hester’s ex-husband from England who has vowed to track down the father and have him punished as well, and the Reverend Arthur Dimmesdale, who is sick All of the Time For No Apparent reason. By the end of the novel it’s revealed that Dimmesdale’s illness is actually a manifestation of his guilt because he was Pearl’s father despite him being a reverend and all and Hester being an unmarried woman. He ends up dying in the end after professing his guilt and showing the town the red letter ‘A’ that God supposedly engraved upon the skin on his chest. 

So let’s start here with a brief summary of Dimmesdale’s actions in the book as recalled by someone who hasn’t read it in four years but who is looking at the Wikipedia article right now. 

We first meet him when he and another minister, John Wilson, question Hester as to who the father of her child was. She doesn’t answer. The next time we see him in person is when Hester goes to the governor to ask if she can keep Pearl. She pleads with Dimmesdale and Wilson (who is there too for some reason), and he manages to persuade the governor to let her keep her child. At some point soon after, his health really begins to decline, and Chillingsworth moves in as a physician. Chillingsworth discovers a weird symbol of guilt on Dimmesdale’s chest while the poor guy sleeps after suspecting that the preacher’s illness is a manifestation of an unknown guilt. Dimmesdale, filled with guilt, goes to the town square in the middle of the night one day and screams his guilt to the heavens, but he can’t make himself do it during the day. Hester, shocked by the poor guy’s whole deal, decides to break her vow of silence. She calls Dimmesdale outside of town and tells him that they’re going to move to Europe together and start a new life with Pearl. He agrees and seems reinvigorated. They go back to town, and all’s fine until he gives a really good sermon on Election Day. After that, he professes his guilt and dies in Hester’s arms. People there claim to see a “stigma” in the shape of a letter ‘A’ on his chest, though others say there’s nothing there. 

Dimmesdale is a man consumed by his guilt. He physically and mentally declines because of his guilt and his unwillingness to expose himself for the sinner he really is, though, through it all, he supports Hester and Pearl as best he can considering his station as the town minister. He’s supposed to be the beacon of mortality, the person everyone should look up to and respect and learn from. And here he is, an adulterer, and a liar. And when he finally grows past his guilt and decides to let it out in favor of leaving and starting life anew, he dies, consumed, supposedly, by the wrath of God. He “falls” as a sinner, struck down by the very flames of Hell themselves. Or, more likely, a regular heart attack. He died of shock, poor guy. 

Compare that to Anime Nathaniel Hawthorne. He starts out as a member of a secret association who, according to its leader, Fitzgerald, doesn’t do good, but does what needs to be done. That’s probably why Hawthorne joined it in the first place. While his main goal has always been eradicating sinners from the face of the Earth, he probably started out as a regular old minister. Eradicating doesn’t always mean killing, and this is shown as he only attacks those who threaten his work, his partner (wink), and himself. This changes after the woman he loves throws herself in the way of an attack and nearly gets herself killed saving him. In canon, she’s still in a coma. In canon, he gave himself completely into sin because of his guilt and love for her. And that’s where the similarities between Hawthorne and Dimmesdale really start.

Let’s start with the obvious guilt complex. This goes along with what I believe Dostoevsky’s ability, Crime and Punishment, does. I believe it feeds off of an individual’s guilt, manipulating it and their mind in the process. We see this with Karma, a young man Dostoevsky kills. Karma, in his last moments, goes through all he went wrong with in his life (you know, or as much as a manga page or two can have) and dies knowing that he’ll never achieve his dream. That’s a more extreme example, I think, and not one I should really be using as evidence for anything considering it’s the only example of this really happening. Every other person that Dostoevsky kills with his ability just drops dead without the audience seeing into their thoughts. He’s got an insta-kill ability, but my theory builds off the idea that he can control living or dying. Hawthorne came to Dostoevsky to work for Dostoevsky’s organization, the Rats in the House of the Dead, in exchange for Mitchell getting “revived”. He might look cool on the outside, but he left the Guild, his friends, because Mitchell got hurt. He loves her, and he says as much in the manga (the anime didn’t say so, but left it unsaid and obvious to those looking.) The next time we see Hawthorne, he’s a mindless assassin who really only remembers Mitchell from his past, and the assassin who nearly killed her. His guilt twisted him into someone completely different from how he was before, even looking physically leaner and as different a brief appearance in a manga and anime can make someone look. He’s even lost his glasses, and any normal look in his eye. It’s kinda like the main character of Crime and Punishment from what I can tell, but I also haven’t read that book so take what I say on that with a gain of salt.) He’s consumed by his guilt (thanks, Fyodor.) Guilt is a big part of his character (as much of a character as he has currently, anyway.) The same can be said for Dimmesdale, who, as I’ve said before was consumed by his own guilt and sin until his death. 

I hope that Hawthorne doesn’t end up as dead as Dimmesdale did when he reunites with his supposed love interest (love interests aren’t really a thing in this series, which makes Hawthorne and Mitchell even more interesting to me.) I hope he gets a happy ending, but... that probably won’t happen unless Dostoevsky dies, which seems like an end-game thing to me. He’s a bad dude with slight plot armor. 

Anyway, past the guilt, their relationship with the respective women in their lives is another important and interesting parallel. Dimmesdale, even through Hester’s punishment, more or less treats her as he would’ve before Pearl. I believe that he did truly love her in his own pitiful way, though not as much as he loved his relationship with God, as seen by his continued guilt and shit. But it’s important to note that he seemed to admit his own love for Hester by agreeing to run away to Europe with her, and he did so in little ways throughout the story by helping her keep Pearl and by really just giving her a lighter sentence than a lot of women would’ve gotten. Puritan ministers were up there with government officials in the law (look at the witch trials, for example), so he would’ve definitely had input on her punishment. Most women would’ve been stoned or banished from the town or colony. Hester, notably, was let off relatively easy with just the emblem and the vague banishment to living in a house outside of town alone with her daughter. Hawthorne’s partner was Margaret Mitchell, and from the very beginning until the assassin skewered them, the two of them argued. Honestly, they bickered a lot like an old married couple. It was kinda cute in a weird way. Neither of them would obviously admit their feelings for each other. Both are proud people, Mitchell coming from a disgraced rich family and Hawthorne being a man of God. But his concern for her becomes evident the moment she gets stabbed clean through and impaled a dozen feet above the ground. That’s when he really gets on the offensive, and when she’s destroyed (image below), he calls her by her first name for the first, and only, time, looking completely destroyed (image also below.) He nearly manages to kill the assassin. And when he wakes up and sees that she isn’t going to wake up, he leaves those he cares about to fix his mistake of letting her get this hurt.

When we see Hawthorne next, he is willing to do anything to redeem himself for his mistake. When we meet him as an assassin for the first time, in the manga he says something along the lines of “I, for the revival of the one I love, will fulfill the contract of death”. Which is... not normal, I’ll admit. Poor guy. In the anime, he says something different that I don’t remember, but that was similar if not slightly different (again, the anime isn’t as explicit with their relationship as the manga.) Meanwhile she’s in a coma and is likely not to be revived by those Hawthorne pledged his allegiance to, but those he left behind. 

The two ministers here follow generally the same path of sin. They start out as the badass ministers they really are, men of God. Then, one way or another, they fall deeper and deeper into sin as they go. For Dimmesdale, that was boning Hester Prynne and hiding it from the town and corrupting himself with his guilt. For Hawthorne, that was ‘allowing’ his partner to ‘die’ and surrendering himself to a higher power to try and get her back, losing himself in the process. In the end, both men are shells of their former selves. Dimmesdale dies sick. Hawthorne is a brainwashed assassin. Dimmesdale’s higher power, God, is ultimately what killed him, and his devotion is what really did him in. Hawthorne is probably gonna die or get otherwise written out, I have a feeling (several villains in this show have, just look at Pushkin and Mark Twain and even Mitchell herself.) If he is, it’ll be Dostoevsky or one of his weird Russian friends doing him in or taking him out of the picture. He’ll likely never see Mitchell again and he will die due to his newfound devotion to a “god” who is willing to punish him for going to far. 

And guys, Hawthorne’s ability is literally the titular scarlet letter. What else can I say?

Honestly, I’m not sure what this post was, only that I killed a good three hours writing it and that it gave me yet again a newfound appreciation for something I used to hate. It was Anime Hawthorne, but before that it was IRL Hawthorne and The Scarlet Letter. Thank you American public school system. 

[hyphypmic]

The Dirty Dawg: Build-A-Bear

Dedicated to @straynoel ! Thank you for the lovely suggestion. Sorry it came so late! School is always gonna be a bitch you know? 

Samatoki

Regrets ever agreeing to going on this date, but then when he sees your face light up at the aspect of going to a Build-a-Bear workshop, he suddenly has no regrets, though he has to look like he doesn’t want to be there because he’s a toughie like that

Picking the stuffed animal: believe it or not, he get’s kind of involved. The kind of really annoying involved

“Idiot. Don’t get that one, the seam looks loose.”

“Those eyes are too creepy.”

“Why would you choose a bunny at a build-a-bear workshop.”

“Don’t get white, it’s going to get dirty.”

You don’t get annoyed though, even if some people are wondering why a Yakuza boss is in such a place, you find it cute that he’s trying to act all tough when in reality he’s kind of invested

Ultimately, you end up choosing the classic teddy bear, just because Samatoki said that it’s cute and that its the entire point of going to build a bear is to make a bear

For choosing clothes: this part takes even longer than the bear choosing part because Samatoki looks like he’s actually shopping and doesn’t let you get the pink sparkly ones because… I mean… he won’t be caught dead buying that for you

You decide though that he gets no say in it and you choose a white polo and black pants and rubber shoes

And a leather jacket

He realises it’s his clothes after like, fifteen minutes

You say that it’s because you want to be with Samatoki AKA Mr Ha Ko on The Microphone even if he’s not there with you

Samatoki really tries hard not to blush and is just calling you dumb repeatedly

For Accessories

You get a microphone. Enough said. You almost get the sunglasses but Mr Ha Ko said no even if he looked like he was thinking about it. Maybe next time.

For choosing the Sounds:

Nope. -Samatoki

Though you get the burping sound so it’s funny, much to his chagrin

It kind of reminds you of whenever Riou (unfortunately cooks)

For choosing the scent

Samatoki doesn’t like any of the smells to be associated with Samatoki Jr., but he offers his cologne instead

For the Heart Ceremony

Oh my, its free, the heart I mean and you’re all for it. Samatoki however, is not.

You make him do it and Samatoki refuses so hard, but then he does it anyway

The person in charge makes it as unhumiliating as possible because he is THE yakuza boss and he is THE scariest person ever so it’s just a quick: rub it on your chest so that he feels the best! Rub it on your head please don’t make me dead- I mean, so that it will be wise! Rub it on your arms (oh damn that bicep) so that he’ll be strong yay! Please don’t kill me

It’s funny though to see him grumbling like that

For stuffing

He’s actually willing to help you and is like actually careful so that you don’t over stuff it

For naming

“WE’RE NOT NAMING IT SAMATOKI JR.”

“What no… not Mr. Ha Ko, he’s too… soft”

You: But it has to remind me of you!

Him: eh… Toki?

You actually name it Toki and make him sign the birth certificate  (he signs with reluctance as ever and tries to look tough but really how can you look tough at a place like this)

He pays for it. No hesitation whatsoever and practically drags you out of the workshop, complaining about how embarrassing it is, but you know he enjoyed it

You find out later that he did the same thing for Nemu, except he did it alone.

Ichiro

Is all in for it

No regrets whatsoever

Yes let’s go there.

Ichiro actually has gone there for Saburo (and Jiro… and himself) so he says your bear can join the Buster Bros Bear Family

Picking the Stuffed Animal:

Something nerdy and yes he is so into choosing

“Don’t you want a dragon?”

“Oh wait but those clothes won’t fit…”

“Oh maybe a regular bear? Nah that’s boring.”

“Oh but if it’s blue it would be weird if we dressed him or her up in that outfit bc the character doesn’t have blue skin

Though, you end up picking a generic bear and decide to go all out on the clothes and the accessories so you have more freedom to personalise

Ichiro wants to buy the Pokemon build a bear online though, maybe some day

Choosing Clothes and Accessories

Here we go, you’re both cosplayers and you both know your way with clothes so this part

You immediately talk over the pros and cons of what cosplay to buy for the bear

Or at least, something that resembles the anime of your choice

You both agree to dress up the bear (and give it the accessories) of your favourite anime character from your favourite anime

Ichiro makes sure it is accurate as possible

Down to the top, the number of buttons, color of bottoms, color of the accessories and the overall vibe of the bear

No like, he really took it so seriously

And so did you

Choosing the Sounds

Well, none are accurate enough, but since you can record sounds, Ichiro plays one of the iconic lines from the anime and records it on the sound

Yes you both look like weebs but you both are cute weeds because nothing is cuter than making a toy look nerdier or as nerdy as the two of you combined

Choosing the Scent

Match personality to scent…. Well you tried but in the end you picked lavender

Ichiro said that it smelled good so you just went with it and trusted in his judgement because you love and believe in your boyfriend yehey

For the Heart Ceremony

Oh well, you make Ichiro do this one with you and he wholeheartedly agrees with it.

Thankfully, the employee knows you’re both weeds so he/she makes the entire thing super anime related!

Rub it on your head so he’s as smart as ___! Rub it on your arms so he’s strong as Goku! Jump up and down for it to have the power of _____! Etc. Etc. It actually lasts a longer time than usual because the employee is also a weeb

For Stuffing

He places a kiss on your nose before he helps you stuff it carefully until it is full enough so that you can hug it tight and it will give you comfort yay

For naming

Well obviously, you name it after the character you dressed it up as

Then you realise you can buy other clothes and ichiro realises this also

So you both have to decide on the name

Akira, for the sake of having the nickname of Aki which is pretty cute if you ask me

Also, at this point you both realise you could have cosplaying bears with your disgustingly cute couple cosplays

Both of you sign the birth certificate and he boops you on the nose with the bear and plays with it as if it is the character

Ichiro pays for it, and even buys and extra outfit for his bear to be matching with yours.

Jakurai

Kind of reluctant, but goes with it anyway if that’s what makes you happy

However when you both get to the mall, he seems to be slightly into it

He actually thinks this would be a good idea for Doppo and Hifumi and for his clinic… mostly whenever Doppo visits he’s a nervous wreak.

Picking the Stuffed Animal:

Is kind of serene about it

Picks each one up gently and strokes it like really peacefully like he’s actually contemplating each one

He does suggest some, but mostly just helps you choose between the options you picked

You get a Sabertooth and Jakurai gets a Wolf

Reasoning behind the Sabertooth is because it’s cute

Wolf… because… Matenrou… I mean… duh

You actually tease him about it but he blushes and clutches it tighter

He genuinely wants one

Choosing Clothes and Accessories

Jakurai obviously wants a doctor’s outfit for his!

Complete with the head light and the stethoscope

And the clipboard

And a chew toy

Yes it costs money but how much do you think Jakurai, the leader of Matenrou, winner of the most recent division battle, talented doctor, etc etc, earns?

You pick whatever the hell you want, but you get a black turtleneck for your sabertooth because why not

Choosing the Sounds

Jakurai picks a heartbeat sound because whenever he visits the children’s ward, he wants the kids to hear the heartbeat of their new friend (no I’m not crying you’re crying bitch)

You pick a meow because it’s kinda cute to hear such a “fearsome” beast meow

Because it’s cute, I mean… hello why not

Jakurai doesn’t even fight you at all, he’s like content to see you happy with what you’re doing, plus he’s also having fun making his wolf

Choosing the Scent

Jakurai chooses strawberry because it’s kid-friendly and he remembers both Doppo and hifumi like that scent, as artificial as it might be

You pick lavender, well there’s no exact reason, but it might be Jakurai’s shampoo, though you never actually know because with hair as great as his, he probably uses a shit ton of great shampoo

For the Heart Ceremony

Now, Jakurai being 30 something and you being of the same age-ish, there is no way the two of you were going to do it

However, there are some small kids there that know Jakurai (and you by default) and look really really hopeful that you’re going to do it

So your mom and dad instincts come out and you both enlist the help of your kids

The employee does the usual heart ceremony, and you and Jakurai really enthusiastically do it with the kids because you’re motivated to make them laugh as the ceremony gets sillier and sillier

You see the genuine joy in Jakurai’s face when he’s helping people and you get a little emotional because wow he’s such a great guy

For Stuffing

You’re both careful with your toys and you know, you’re still gushing over Jakurai being a wonderful doctor and he’s good with kids (I mean he has two big kids, so how different would actual kids be)

He just says that you’re incredible as well

You know, you’re both at that age where you just want a fluffy domestic life so you’re both kind of just glowing in happiness

For naming

You sign each other’s birth certificates (DOMESTICITY IS LIFE BRO) and you name yours Airi (meaning beloved Jasmine) and he names his Tsuyoshi (which means strong) because he wants his patients to always feel like they’re strong and that they’re brave

Jakurai of course pays for both bears and you both have like a coffee after and have a very cute and fluffy date

You also take pictures with the kids you played with a while ago because they’re his fans and they want you and he wants you to be in the picture because really they had so much fun

Ramuda

Is the one that suggested this date happen

Yes we all know he’s a manipulative, multi-layered personality, but he actually enjoys doing build-a-bear

Loves it. Practically skips his way to build a bear.

Has gone there for himself… and for himself… he has at least three

Picking the stuffed animal:

Nope not the bear

Why would you get the bunny

Get the unicorn!!! Ooo or the dragon *drags you* oh what about this one it’s so soffftttttt

Ok so you both end up getting a pastel pink cat (him) and a pastel pink dog (you)

Because

I mean

Your boyfriend’s hair is pink… and he has a lollipop that’s pink… and his speakers are candy… I mean if anything you like that kind of thing

Choosing Clothes and Accessories

Oh god this takes longer than Samatoki and Ichiro

Ramuda is the fashion designer

No that clashes with the pink!”

“Why would you choose that pants with that shoes”

“Are you kidding me with the skirt? You should get a patterned one if you want a plain shirt.”

Your outfit:

Pastel Rainbow tutu

Rainbow unicorn hoodie

White sneakers

Star Necklace

His outfit:

He also likes the rainbow unicorn hoodie so you’re matching

He also wants to get it in real life

Pink shorts

White sneakers

Star Necklace

Outfits are so cute and Ramuda is thinking about actually getting that outfit

Choosing Sounds

Meow and Woof

I mean, it’s pretty cute

And nothing is more kiddie than picking the actual sounds of the animal and giggling

Oh no actually after you pick up the meow and woof, you both decide to pick I love you sounds so you both can squeeze it at each other

Ramuda may be a sketchy fuck who probably has a network and he knows what he’s doing, but he’s a child and he just wants fun

Choosing the Scent

Oh this one is fast

Ramuda immediately goes for the bubblegum and you for the vanilla cupcake

No debate whatsoever

And also you’re both craving for sweets

For The Heart ceremony

Let’s go

You’re both so game for it like, the employee is a huge ramuda fan so she goes for it with the heart ceremony

Give it a twirl!

Ramuda: wheee~

Clap your hands together rub it on your heart

Blow a kiss!

 Dance to “insert J-Pop and K-Pop song here” so that your friend will have rhythm

Jump around!

So on and so forth! 

For Stuffing

Overstuffed the first time

Understuffed when you take it out

The employee ends up helping you because you both keep fucking up

Ramuda gives you a big hug after and holds your hand

For Naming

You sign each other’s birth certificates

Ramuda has a really nice signature with the hearts and the stars

Yours: Mao (Dance Cherry Blossom)

His: Hoshiko (Star child) because he likes it and it’s great

Obviously, Ramuda is secretly loaded, but you somehow space out and pay for it… though Ramuda sneaks the money back in your bag like the kid he is

[icharchivist]

Still in whole of hypmic there is something incredible about the fact Gentaro is always specifically finding a comfort zone with Dice and works as a binome with him to even higher extends that some characters.

Gentaro rarely really interreact without having Dice as a safety net with him. The only time he actively does so is when he faces Ramuda about his dark time: the first time, Dice eases the tension, the second time, Gentaro sends Dice away before bringing it up again.

Hell the rare times we see Gentaro alone after Fling Posse was formed always specifically had him bound back with Dice in some way or another: meeting him on the way to Ramuda’s and calling it fate, being called by Dice when Dice was in trouble, being the first one Dice runs to when Dice ends up in this stupid deal being the major scenes that starts with Gentaro alone and this loneliness is always broken by Dice.

Meanwhile the few times Gentaro and Dice are together with others people, Gentaro does as much as possible to grab Dice’s attention: he extends his comfort zone to Dice and Dice only. At any given opportunity, Gentaro would rather get close to Dice than to try to even connect with anyone else, avoiding every conversations possible if he cannot deviate it on focusing on Dice, almost as if the world scares him enough for him to prefer to be near someone he trusts.

I don’t really count the second FP drama track bc the whole track was Dice trying to get the attention of the Posse and specifically taunting Gentaro by teasing him, but it remains Gentaro barely pays attention to Ramuda and just keeps messing with Dice in particular.

In the Know Your Enemy tracks, He drags on the Star Crossed Lovers’s story in front of Ramuda when Ramuda asks them why they came in together. He keeps playing with the story as long as Dice reacts. He doesn’t just drops it with “that was a lie”, he has to add more to it for Dice to keep reacting to him, even to the point of telling him “in a lie” (”or was it a lie?”) that Gentaro would legit be attracted to him. (fucking canon is fantastic).

But it doesn’t stop at the Posse: when Gentaro presents himself to the rest of the cast, he presents himself with Dice’s name specifically to make Dice’s react. Unlike when he lied about his identity to Ramuda when he first meets him, Gentaro specifically does it to start a banter with Dice and ignoring everyone else who ends up confused about why the famous author is lying about his name. And that banter goes on for ages with Dice saying he’ll be mad at him if he calls him a weirdo and Gentaro going on about “oh no i was planning to share a meal with you but if you’re mad at me...” “huh, who said anything about being mad, we’re best friends” “well that was a lie” “GENTARO.”, all while the people they are supposed to fight later stares at them.

Upon meeting more members they will have to fight later, Gentaro talks mostly to Dice, i don’t recall him talking to anyone else: while the scene does have a lot of characters interreacting (Dice and Riou, Doppo and Juuto, Doppo/Hifumi and the Yamada bros, the tdd members obviously ect...), Gentaro almost only focus on commenting the situation at hand with Dice. (”we should learn from them to create a tactic against them” “eh no that’s boring i’ll figure out when i’ll meet them in the arena” “......... seriously Dice.”)

In Just a Friend as soon as Dice asks for Gentaro’s help, Gentaro drags on the teasing before helping Dice by even buying back the stuff he lost while gambling. When they end up wrapped into this mess with Hifumi and Doppo in Just a Friend, Gentaro demands an apology for both him and Dice. Not just for himself, he extends his world to Dice.

When Hifumi makes him lose control of his sense of self, Dice notices something is wrong, meaning he knows enough Gentaro to have identified the one time Gentaro was serious, despite the fact he runs into all of Gentaro’s lies as if they were serious. Yet this time it was different and Dice picked that up. Gentaro ends up opening up to Dice, being honest for a change, and Dice immediatly ends up protecting Gentaro and getting upset on his behalf, threatening the people who had made Gentaro feel distressed, all for Gentaro’s sake, so much he only calms down when Gentaro stops him, and even there he gets upset at how unsincere the apologizes are toward Gentaro and is looking for a fight.

(by the by, considering Gentaro establish that he started lying to make people happy by lessening the importance of what he would desire himself (first lie / happy in general third time) abd to protect himself (second lie), the fact Gentaro allowed himself to be vulnerable when being hurt shows how much trust he was willing to show Dice. the lies are a self protection. But he let that protection down around Dice when he was at his most vulnerable because he trusted him that much, and Dice proved him right away that this trust was earned.) 

And  after that Gentaro and Dice can team up together in a duet specifically to fight at each other’s side, and they are completely on each other’s flows. Two guys who barely met, who manage to be just as much in synch as two guys who are childhood friends.

But specifically about Gentaro’s focus, the whole confrontation with Hifumi and Doppo after Hifumi triggered Gentaro was mostly Gentaro trying to talk to Dice, ignoring completely the others two. The fight started because Gentaro asked apologizes for him AND Dice, and after that Gentaro refused to interreact with Hifumi and Doppo directly, focused entierely on Dice, and only addressed to the duo once he was in synch with Dice, at his side. He refused to go out of the comfort zone he had found himself into with Dice standing up for him the moment Dice offered it. He only came out of it for Dice’s sake. Gentaro kept focusing on Dice and later invited him for dinner because of how grateful he was.

(which makes me think that therefore him saying that “he planned a feast with Dice - oh no that was a lie” ended up being a lie bc he did end up planning a feast with Dice. Meanwhile too, for “Dice was my knight bodyguard in a previous life - well that was just a lie”, Dice ended up doing specifically that: shielding and protecting Gentaro when Gentaro was in distress.).

Then obligatory Battlex3 forces him to face Hifumi but Battlex3 has also a different formula that Warx3 where they work far more as a team together. Warx3 has each members fight individually until the very end, but Battlex3 starts with the two duos fighting before the chorus separating them from their leader (which is opposed to Warx3 where the chorus even separated the duos). Meanwhile there is a duet specifically between the two of them after Ramuda’s verse before Ramuda joins in. Battlex3 works more by team and more by duos that Warx3 did before it. (also even if not canon, the seiyuu play this song by having Dice shielding Gentaro when Hifumi attacks him and i’m so. sad.)

Which also makes me think that SMT is set in a way that Dice is the one to give Gentaro the go for his own verse, and when they talk about playing later, Gentaro only joins in AFTER Dice said he’ll play along with Ramuda. He waits for Dice’s go.

Me Against the World also has Gentaro focus on Dice in the begining and even specifically has him asking why Dice isn’t angry at him after he messed with him. Once more Dice brushed off a part of Gentaro that Gentaro finds despicable (”how quick he puts shame into my heart”), creating a reassuring space for Gentaro.

And then it’s probably the first time we actually see him talk with the others contender on his own self as Hifumi apologizes to him. Which Gentaro says is weird. Which has Dice immediatly reply “you’re not well placed to call anyone weird.” the one time Gentaro didn’t engage a banter with Dice to avoid other people had Dice engage with him instead. Still though, Gentaro only participates to this conversation with Dice by his side, Dice being closeby. 

The scene also follows with Dice insulting Doppo specifically saying that if they get reincarnated he still couldn’t stand him - while so far the only person who brought up reincarnation was Gentaro, specifically in the context of his relationship with Dice. Dice ends up using Gentaro’s worldview as his own as he moves on. They quickly leave as well, staying far more together.

Then we have Hoodstar where everyone in the song sings individually: none of the other 10 characters are bantering, they are all focusing on flexing about their division, they all have individual verses where they do not interreact. Except Gentaro who takes the opportunity to tease Dice midsong, and Dice who cannot resist but reply to Gentaro, leading Gentaro to also playfully answer to him, which is the only time of the whole song something like that happens. The only exchange in the full song is them bantering specifically because Gentaro is the one to try to get Dice’s attention, managing, and having to joke with him again once it’s done.

Stella, a song written by Gentaro, is guilty of the very same thing with Gentaro giving individual verses to Dice and Ramuda but uses half of his verse to talk about Dice and Dice’s impact on him.

Even in the fiction Gentaro creates he sees himself as a duo with Dice, which is only strengthened later when Dice and Gentaro team up to bring Ramuda’s salvation, completing each other’s sentences and point of view, again with both of them offering the “Wanna bet on it?” together - using a sentence that is much more alligning with Dice’s thematic, meaning Gentaro follows suit onto Dice, inspired by him.

The next verse also implies the two of them saying fragment off the same sentence to inspire Ramuda. Gentaro wrote a song in which he wasn’t complete until Dice showed up and spent the rest of the song writting himself in complement of Dice. And that’s not even touching how the song sees Dice as a kind king being Gentaro’s messiah, saving him away from his boring life, while Gentaro would talk of himself as a lowlife and doesn’t ignore Ramuda’s flaws either. And it’s not even mentioning that the reincarnation motif is there the whole song.

In We Just Want To Party With You, something similar seems to happen according to the translations i’ve found: first Dice reaches out for Gentaro first when he ends up in his shady deal, and Gentaro focuses almost entierely on Dice the whole Drama Track: On Dice and his bad decision.

The reincarnation motif comes back as well as Dice begs for their help as in he would be “endebted to them for all his past and future lives” and Gentaro musing specifically about putting up with Dice in their future lives. Dice is the one to bring it up, Gentaro just pushes a bit the subject on over how many lifelines Dice is ready to bet on. Both of them ended up completely rolling with the idea of reincarnation and accepting the idea they’d stuck together lifeline after the next.

Besides Gentaro seems to mostly focus on Dice the whole drama track: even when they walk into Ramuda being shady and nakey with a lady, Gentaro’s focus isn’t on Ramuda and what the fuck he’s doing, but on how Dice should have knocked the goddamn door. Meanwhile Dice ended up in this whole mess to start with because the money would serve him to pay the debt he has on Gentaro and Ramuda, but especially Gentaro, who had brought it up more often.

and FINALLY in Don’t Play No Game That I Can’t Win, again according to the translations i have, Gentaro focuses mostly on messing with Dice originally. The Meowing was started by him even if Ramuda followed suit. Gentaro is the one to bring the focus on Dice. He talks to Dice, not Ramuda in that part.

Meanwhile when MTC arrives, Gentaro only addresses directly Juuto and starts to threaten him right after Juuto started to specifically ask for Dice’s suitcase, something Gentaro knows will bring Dice into trouble. And even if Gentaro had lectured Dice over the trouble he had put himself into, he immediatly steps in between of him and Juuto and face Juuto for Dice’s sake. The one time Gentaro actually addresses another member outside of the Posse (and hell even inside because he barely interreact with Ramuda without Dice backing him up and the one time it happened it turned sour), and does it without bringing Dice in any shape or form, it is STILL to protect Dice directly. It is still in his comfort zone.

In comparaison, when the Yamada bros face Hifumi and Doppo, who remains childhood friends after all, each pair remains focused on the person who is attacking them, not on the person who is attacking their binome.

it is also noteworthy that while MTC and FP are fighting, Dice actually focus on how it pains him to fight against Riou, a friend, while Riou doesn’t want Dice to hold back. Gentaro however sets himself up in a way to protect Dice.

____________________________

Gentaro remains a very lonely man who convinced himself growing up he didn’t need any friends and who’s only friend had been bedridden at the hospital for years and seemingly had lost more and more of his ability to reply to the world around him (”Do you know how to bring a smile on the face of someone who forgot how to do it? If so, please tell me.”). Even Ramuda brings up that Gentaro is always so lonely.

By all account Gentaro having been bullied to the point of not trusting anyone to get close to him and to see himself as unworthy of being friend with anyone seem to be mostly a truth as it shines through his behavior with absolutly everyone: he doesn’t allow people in, at all. He rarely instigate situations for his own sake.

When he is forced to behave along with others people, he only does so as long as Dice is there, as long as Dice is standing by his side, and most of the time, he does so in a way he can cling and focus on Dice instead of focusing on others people.

Dice became part of Gentaro’s comfortzone and staying close to him seems necessary for Gentaro. He doesn’t want to be facing people alone anymore and he feels safe doing so with Dice.

and by Dice’s reaction standing up to him against Hifumi, Dice proved Gentaro that this comfortzone was welcoming of him, and that Dice was willing to act as such for Gentaro’s sake, even more so as Dice keeps and keeps running specifically in every single things Gentaro prompt to start this intimacy.

It’s as if Gentaro has specifically this idea that “everyone has the possibility to hurt you”. But Dice proved him “but not me.”

Not only Gentaro is always taking a step toward Dice at any given opportunity but Dice always, always, ALWAYS reply to Gentaro’s attempt to do so, and also gets carried away with those attempts.

Dice is Gentaro’s comfort zone. And Dice is welcoming of it, even if he doesnt realize it is what Gentaro is doing, and actually words it as such when the situation becomes obvious, shielding Gentaro when needed, standing up for him.

And Gentaro specifically works onto this relationship this specific way. He specifically acts as part of a duo with Dice more than his own person. And more than any of the other duets in the story, which again implies childhood friends who are totally married by the by. (and it’s not against them i feel like they’re more used to each other to know when they can stand things alone - Hifumi and Doppo has their fair share of protecting each other but they both open up far more to others people than Gentaro does (because it remains mostly Gentaro, not Dice), like Dice is ready to be in good term with Riou and Hifumi develops alone time with Jakurai, and even if they are willing to defend each other, they know sometimes not to do so (again BB vs MTR))

And i’m so goddamn emotional over the two of them

Love them.

[shinneth]

What Myers-Briggs types do you think the main Trifecta characters would be?

Hmm. Well, I had a hard time settling one a single type for most of them, so I tried to find at least two for the six Trifecta “mains” - Paul, Reggie, Brandon, Conway, Barry, and Maylene.

(REALLY stretching it calling Maylene a “main”, especially since Chapter 13 is where she peaked; once Arc II happens, she’ll be in Out Of Focus territory for sure… buuuut she’s made her mark and a lot of readers take notice to her, so I threw her in)

Interestingly, I had no one pegged as INFP (Mediator/Idealist), which is where I fall in. Some characters fit half of it but I couldn’t justify the other half not befitting them (Paul and Conway were the partial contenders - and Brandon to a lesser degree… but Conway’s too charismatic and sociable, while Paul and Brandon aren’t deep thinkers to the point where they’re completely delusional like I am :P).

Paul - INTJ (The Mastermind) or ISTJ (The Inspector)

Safe to say if I had to pick one only, it would be INTJ. Definitely would sooner work alone than a group any day (and if Conway hadn’t been there for him like he’d been so much in Trifecta, this would likely still be the case for him - and Barry is more a result of Trifecta Paul’s character development). Much more comfortable doing things his own way and proving to the world he can handle himself. Even with Trifecta development, Paul still finds social activity a huge chore. Trifecta 21 has Paul go out of his way to be receptive to Conway’s friendliness, and it does take a toll on him physically and mentally. Also a master strategist, as per canon, and questions everything. And god help him if Paul is unsure of anything. It’s why he hates being indecisive in Trifecta; he believes even a wrong choice or a bad idea is better than none at all. And knowing his legendary levels of “patience”, he’s definitely not going to wait all day to find the right path.

With ISTJ… well, this was a Brandon contender, surprise surprise. Intimidating? Comes off that way. Serious? All the damn time. Formal, proper…? Well, he DOES respect his elders, for the most part. If he thinks you’re shit, he’ll treat you like shit, but Paul’s not nearly as eager to start shit as he was in his Trifecta youth. You can definitely say, either in canon or Trifecta, Paul’s a strong worker who follows his own moral code. For all his controversial shit, Paul has never once cheated or tried to take the easy way out. Now, he sure as hell isn’t PATIENT, and he doesn’t really put much stock in going out of his way to upholding social or cultural responsibility (especially the former). But Paul is typically quiet and reserved; while he’s prone to anger, he’s fully capable of keeping calm when he needs to. Even Trifecta Paul can pull this off unless he’s just physically about to break down. Often misunderstood? Ohhhhhh, yeah.

Reggie - ESFJ (The Provider) or ESTJ (The Supervisor)

ESFJ might actually be the lesser of the two here. Mostly because Reggie isn’t really an attention-seeker outside of his own family members. He doesn’t desire the spotlight; he just wants his daddy and lil bro to love and accept him! But Reggie IS an active young man, very social, way more thoughtful than he makes himself out to be, and totally IS the organizer for any family event that happens in the present-day and has been since his mother’s death. He’s the guy that everybody loves. It’s been a common theme in some AUs of his Trifecta persona where he ends up being one of the most popular kids in school with legions of girls who’d drop everything to date him and he just never notices. 

ESTJ covers him more uniformly. Reggie doesn’t want to be the star of the show, but he does want to help and offer advice to absolutely anyone who needs it. And he checks out on the listed traits: honest, dedicated, dignified, and traditional. You could definitely see him as a role model (even if Paul doesn’t) and he’s a good fit for a leader role. 

Brandon - ENFP (The Champion) or ENTJ (The Commander)

One of Brandon’s defining traits (that might’ve not been showcased in Trifecta yet since we’re not yet at the point where it’s mega-relevant) is that he will decide his own destiny and what path to take, damn what anyone else says. So there’s what wins him the ENFP brand. His intuition is pretty top-notch; terminal disease aside, Brandon can totally read Paul like a book even though he’s spent the better part of Paul’s life operating from a great distance and not really being around for his kid. He’s way more perceptive than most give him credit for, and though he’ll never admit it, Brandon does act on his feelings a lot. Even taking an overseas job shortly after his wife died while leaving his kids behind - he can say that’s solely because it was the best way to make up for the income difference, but really, it doubled as his desire to just remove himself from everything of Andrea’s influence. He had a harder time coping with her death than he’ll ever care to admit. Plus, Brandon’s unprofessional abandoning of his post that resulted in his return to Sinnoh? Totally impulsive. He also wasted no time making a detour to Reggie when Brandon learned he was in the hospital, so there you go. 

With ENTJ, this correlates with Brandon’s leadership skills as head of the Kanto Battle Frontier, as well as being the head of his own travelling trifecta with Byron and Palmer. Ambitious is putting it mildly for Brandon, honestly. And while he can be a slave to his feelings at times, Brandon is more known for acting with cold, hard logic. He’s likened to Paul in Trifecta for a reason. Brandon’s all for challenging himself, not afraid to make the hard calls(as his sacrifice for Regigas proves), and hell no he cannot sit still. 

Conway - INTP (The Thinker) or ENTP (The Visionary)

Well, Conway’s pretty damn easy to peg even if you didn’t take his Trifecta traits into account. INTP is Conway’s most well-known traits in a nutshell: absorbs info like a sponge, heavy on the logical, objective side of perspective… he plans, he hypothesizes, he observes, he analyzes, he theorizes, and he can pick up on details most others will overlook. Like, literally everything INTP applies to Conway. He’s the consummate INTP. 

ENTP has many of these traits, as well. Only major point of contention is not enjoying small-talk, as Trifecta Conway especially is very much all for that… at least for the people he deems worthy of it. Barry, he might not be much up for the small-talk as he would Paul or Dawn. I wanted to make sure to at least add one E-type here since I think it should be emphasized that despite his many typical nerd qualities, Conway is very much extroverted even in canon. He’s one of the most extroverted intellectual characters I’ve ever seen, honestly. Canon and Trifecta Conway love going in-depth with their thought processes, and he is a lover of learning. Loyal and energetic are also listed traits here, which are definitely more prominent Trifecta Conway traits, but notable ones nonetheless.

Barry - ENFJ (The Giver) or ESFP (The Performer)

While I think we can agree Barry is more of a “live in the now” type than any other character listed here, contrary to the ENFJ type, the other traits fit Barry like a glove. Especially the “living in their imagination opposed to the real world” aspect. Holy shit that is very Barry. But he is idealistic, highly charismatic, outspoken… and in Trifecta, he’s proved to grow like a weed on characters who’d otherwise never associate with him, such as Conway and eventually Paul. Barry’s also much more of an optimistic individual compared to his future travel-mates and much less prone to letting bad shit get him down for any length of time. 

ESFP speaks for itself. Barry’s the biggest spotlight whore of the Trifecta cast. Fun and livelihood are Barry’s core essences, and while he’s not the most considerate character to ever be around and thinking is secondary to everything, Barry isn’t a complete dick and will feel bad if he realizes he’s inadvertently hurt someone’s feelings. It may take him a while to understand that, but once he does, he’ll go out of his way to make you feel better. Barry doesn’t want to travel around with a couple of sad-sacks, after all. And while Barry’s an acquired taste who can and will rub people the wrong way… you know, compared to Paul and Conway, he’ll come off as the one most “normal” when it comes to people-persons. Barry’s aggressively extroverted, so even if it yields mixed results more often than he’d like, Barry will always go out of his way to connect with people.

Maylene - ISFJ (The Nurturer) or ESTP (The Doer)

Despite being one of the most developed characters among the gym leader category in the Pokemon anime, she is harder to peg down than the others. But IFSJ feels pretty accurate for her. Sensitive to the feelings of others could link to her identity as an aura-user… plus she was insecure enough to let Paul’s worlds wreck her shit. But she is extremely considerate of others, warm and kind-hearted, and bringing out the best in others is what she aims to do as gym leader. Considerate, loyal, unselfish? All fit Maylene perfectly. For a Fighting-type specialist and martial artist, she’s definitely a modest and gentle soul.

ESTP… I think Trifecta 13 proves how incompatible Maylene is with elaborate planning and handling shitloads of detailed instructions. If left to her own devices, Maylene definitely would have handled the issue in chapter 13 by directly confronting Saturn rather than trying her hardest to feign ignorance of his identity. She’s not hot-headed, but Maylene does far better winging it than adhering to something set out for her. Maylene does always strive to better herself, so she’s open to trying new things. While a little on the shy side, she enjoys being around people and she IS the head of her own damn dojo, so… there you go. While it’s a stretch to say she’s pragmatic or logical, she definitely comes off that way when you line her up with other characters of her type specialty and line of work. She is level-headed and down-to-earth, at least; I’ll say that much.

When you break it down, there are common carry-over traits between the two for everyone: 

Paul solidly has Introverted, Thinking, and Judging in his set. Checks out.

Reggie always carries Extroverted, Sensing, and Judging. 

Brandon is a sure bet for Extroverted and Intuitive. 

Conway is a consummate Intuitive, Thinking and Perceiving man. 

Barry is a lock for Extroverted and Feeling. Unsurprising.

Maylene only has Sensing as a consistent trait.

Well, that was more fun than I thought. Hope everyone else enjoys that!

[destiny-islanders]

You (Comrades Protag) + The Chocobros | Part II - Prompto

Part I - Gladio |

STRAP IN, FOLKS! I GOT CARRIED AWAY WITH THIS ONE. YOU AND PROMPTO ARE ABOUT TO GO ON AN ADVENTURE.

So after you eat Gladio’s I’m-Sorry-I-Gave-You-A-Concussion Cup Noodles, he gives you his phone number, just in case you figure out how to unlock your phone.

He knows that you’re a pretty big deal in Lestallum; people recognize you and know that you’re busting your ass to help keep the city safe. He asks you to keep him posted on Lestallum’s progress via Iris.

You and Iris become pretty good friends. And you take pictures of everything.

Pictures capturing the progress of construction projects around Lestallum

Pictures of your handwritten notes from your meetings with the elected leader of Lestallum, Holly, Cor, Libertus, Dave, and a handful of other key players in the power restoration efforts.

You even send him a photo of you and Iris posing in sweaters you knitted for each other by hand

Yes, you know how to knit now. When night falls, and the people of Lestallum are forced to hide within the safety of the city’s walls, they’re left restless, anxious, and with way too much time on their hands-- time to learn how to actually play a game of chess, time to learn how to play every single card game known to man, and time to hear just about everyone’s stories of loss and faint, fragile hope for a brighter future.

One day, Gladio texts Iris to let you know that a friend of his will be swinging through Lestallum soon, and that he might track you down for some combat practice.

Iris seems excited to see this friend of her brother’s. She says his name is Prompto and that you’re going to love him.

The name doesn’t ring a bell, and you have no idea what he looks like. You guess you’ll recognize him when he taps you on the shoulder and asks if it would be okay to beat you up behind the power plant.

Prompto shows up while Cid is tinkering with your favorite weapon, imbuing it with the power of that griffon feather you and your friends found yesterday. You take it from Cid and give it a few practice swings, testing out its weight, admiring its shine in the light.

Prompto: “Yikes. Hope you don’t end up hitting me with that thing lmao”

Turns out that, just like Gladio, you’ve seen this guy before. He’s another one of the prince’s royal retainers. He was a last-minute addition, with next to no formal training. But you guess he must at least have some kind of raw talent, to have survived this long as a hunter.

The extent of your former interactions with Prompto: You were collecting herbal ingredients in Duscae for a medicinal remedy that a sickly friend of yours desperately needed. You’d just about gathered everything you needed when you heard screaming from across the lake. You glanced in the direction of the noise and saw a cotoblepas charging towards two tiny figures standing way too damned close to the water.

You: “SHIT SHIT SHIT”

It’s a good thing you didn’t spare a second to think this through, because you would have realized how stupid you were being if you had. Instead of trying to warp around the lake, you decided to warp straight across it. Your intentions were noble; you wanted to help these people as quickly as you could.

But yes you fell into the water and approximately twenty-seven (27) gallons of it shot up your nose. But you chucked your weapon into the air and kept going 

You barreled into one of the people fleeing the cotoblepas and warped, putting as much distance as you could between yourselves and the beast. You put a hand on the person’s shoulder, shouted, “Stay!” and got ready to warp back for the other.

Turned out you didn’t have to bother; the other idiot could warp, too.

You: “...Prince Noctis?”

YEP! Prompto knew that you were a Glaive and was waaaaaay too intimidated by you to lie. He explained that they essentially Did It For The Vine. 

Did the key to the salvation of Eos almost get himself trampled by a cotoblepas for a photo?????

Prompto showed you the photo.

You: “Okay that’s actually pretty sick, bro”

Noctis: “Hell yeah”

You: “Oh shit my fucking weeds”

Prompto: “Your what now”

Prompto and Noctis understandably felt guilty when they realized that the herbs you had worked so hard to collect for your friend were soaked, dirtied, and ruined because you fell into the lake. They helped you collect more before you parted ways.

Prompto: “So... Gladio said you might be down for some sparring?”

You lead him to the Lestallum equivalent of the bicycle rack: the same quiet corner where Gladio had brooded in a constant state of exhaustion.

No one cleaned up the crates you broke with your body in the back of the alleyway...

Prompto: “Go easy on me, ‘kay?”

This guy is smaller and more noodly than Gladio. You hope that means you actually stand a chance this time.

Nope. Wrong. Bitch you thought. You don’t. One second you’re standing there, getting ready to fight, the next, you’re frozen in place and unable to do anything but watch as Prompto takes a selfie with your petrified body

No sooner have you regained yourself than he’s casting Starshell and inflicting you with confusion.

Where are you? What are you doing here? What day is it? Who’s President?

Why are you asking that? Lucis has a monarchy?

You literally end up putting your weapon down and sitting by a dumpster, your head spinning and your thoughts a muddled, confusing mess in your head

Prompto sits down next to you and listens to you rant and rave, riding out the status effect until it’s run its course

You, Confused: “Why do they call it instant ramen when it takes three minutes to cook”

You, Confused: “That’s not instant”

You, Confused:  “Does it hurt grass when we step on it?”

You, Confused:  “Why are bees”

Prompto: “Why are bees what?”

You, Confused: “Just. Why. Why are bees”

You, Somehow Even More Confused Than Before:  “Tissue fabric running tire folder clean”

Prompto: *Is trying so hard not to fucking laugh right now. Literally he has never seen someone react this way to the confusion status ailment* “That’s right. Let it all out.”

You finally come back to yourself and look at Prompto for what feels like the first time.

You: “Did... did I win?”

Prompto: “I’d call it a tie.”

You don’t spar again that day. You just hang out.

You will fight again a few more times! Turns out he’s not so tough once you manage to dodge his attacks and get in close.

Punch him! He bleeds!

Please don’t punch him. He bleeds. :(((((((

The score ends up being 4-3 in Prompto’s favor. You try to argue that the first fight shouldn’t count because of the Status Ailment Hell he banished you to, but Prompto won’t hear a word of it

You’ll get him next time

You think Prompto’s great! You can’t remember the last time you laughed this much. It feels good to laugh. There’s not much to laugh at in this dark day and age.

Prompto gives you his number before he leaves Lestallum. You promise you’ll text him when you remember your passcode.

That leaves Iris to once again be an intermediary between you and another Chocobro, though this one is more for fun than it is with Gladio-- since most of your communications are related to relief efforts around Lucis.

IRIS’S PHONE BECOMES A HUB FOR POST-APOCALYPTIC MEMES

It’s like a “laugh in one eye, cry in the other” situation

You guys end up texting so much that Iris can’t take it anymore. A friend of hers in Old Lestallum has an unlocked smart phone and gives it to you until you can unlock your own.

The meme-ing gloves are off now. Uh-oh.

Group chat with Gladio and Iris. Prompto names the group “Annoying the Amicitias”

Where has Prompto been all your life? You’re memesters in crime

Fast-forward seven months. Iris bursts into your tent in the middle of the night in tears.

Iris: “I just got a call from Gladio. Prompto went with some hunters on a supply run. They haven’t come back. They’re all missing.”

You’re getting out of bed and reaching for your jacket in an instant

You: “I’m going.”

Iris: “I’m coming with you.”

Gladio promises he’ll meet you in Hammerhead, and that Iggy’s coming, too.

You have no idea who Iggy is, but Iris looks happy about that news, so you will be, too

You don’t tell Gladio that Iris is coming with you.

He’s going to be PISSED.

AT YOU.

WHY DO YOU GO OUT OF YOUR WAY TO MAKE THIS GUY ANGRY 

HAVE YOU NO FEAR

Continued under the cut!

You and Iris meet Cindy in her garage, and she explains what had happened. She and Prompto had been talking about those special headlights that can be used to keep daemons away. If the possibility even existed that there were more in Insomnia, it had to be looked into. With the nights growing longer, it would soon become suicide to drive between safe havens without them.

A search party had been sent to Insomnia a week after the original group had left. They’d made it to the city, but they couldn’t find Prompto or the hunters anywhere-- alive, or dead.

You: “What if they never made it to Insomnia?”

Gladio: “Or they made it to Insomnia, but were on their way back when they were attacked?”

Cindy: “Will be a right mess if either one o’ them is the case. They could be anywhere between here ‘n there.”

Gladio: “And splitting up to cover more ground is out of the question.”

Iris: “So what do we do, Gladdy?"

Ignis: “We travel in pairs.”

You witness the True Power of the Amicitia Family when Iris and Gladio get into a spectacular argument about whether or not Iris should join the rescue mission.

You and Cindy kind of watch them bicker in awe. The way that I imagine one of the humans in Jurassic Park watched in awe as the dinosaurs fucking killed each other.

Gladio finally relents. BUT. Iris has to travel with him. Ignis, still trying to adjust to life as a blind man, will travel with them, as well.

Gladio hadn’t even tried to tell Ignis to stay behind for this one.

Ignis devises a plan for the rescue mission.

You all create five search parties and plan out the routes each of you will take with a map. At this point, there are only a few hours of light each day, so the plan is to drive out together in two trucks, fan out and search the area, and then return to the car and drive back as it starts to get dark.

The keys are left in the glove compartment of the unlocked car. Six forbid that the person with the keys gets killed or goes missing, leaving the survivors stranded without an escape vehicle

You get paired up with a hunter named Kravyn. You’d worked with him on a few hunts before. He’s as capable a hunter as anyone.

You both get out of the truck and head northeast. It already seems like the sky is growing darker. Are the days even shorter now? Will the time come when the sun doesn’t rise at all?

Iris and Prompto seem convinced that Prince Noctis will return before that happens. 

You do your best to not lose hope that he’ll return at all.

The clock is ticking. The timer you’d set on your phone shows that you only have fifteen minutes before you need to head back.

That’s when you see blood in the grass.

You follow it.

The trail leads you through the grass and into the woods. It’s so dense... you can barely fit between the trees. It’s so dark beneath the canopy of leaves overhead that you have to take out your flashlight so that you can see the blood splattered around.

The blood leads you to a corpse. It’s not Prompto’s.

You take the dog tags. They belonged to a woman named Janda.

Kravyn: “Fuck. Fuck. We gotta head back. This is way too dangerous.”

You: “I’m not leaving. We still have... seven minutes. The rest of them could still be alive somewhere.”

To Kravyn’s credit, he doesn’t abandon you. You can tell he’s terrified, but he stays by your side and helps you search.

The alarm on your phone starts to beep right when you see a boot jutting out from behind the trunk of a tree.

It’s Prompto. You’ve found him.

He’s covered in blood. His eyes are closed. He’s not moving.

You: “SHIT SHIT SHIT”

You snatch a hi-elixir from your back and break it over his head, since he’s covered in so much blood that you can’t even tell where he’s injured and you don’t want to waste time poking around trying to find out where.

He lets out a soft moan when you give him the curative. He’s still alive! Thank the Six!

Why didn’t you check for a pulse first? You could have wasted a precious curative on a corpse!!!

You: “You’re hurt, Prompto. Tell me where.”

Prompto: “Everywhere.”

You: “YOU ARE BEING VERY UNHELPFUL RIGHT NOW.”

You end up giving him two more elixirs. He’s still in a pretty bad way, but his breathing is significantly less labored, and his pulse feels strong enough to repair some of your confidence about his chances of survival.

Kravyn: “This is great that we found Prompto and everything, but we really should be heading back.”

You, Reaching to Pick Him Up: “Right. Up we go, Prompto.”

Prompto: “I can walk.”

He moves his right leg a little bit and stops immediately.

Prompto: “I lied.”

You: “As I was fucking saying. Up we go, Prompto.

Prompto: “Omg I’m so heavy you’ll never make it.”

Is Prompto heavy, or are you just really strong? Both? Neither? Who cares? What matters is that you’re able to pick him up and carry him without too much trouble.

You can pinpoint the exact moment he passes out because he stops apologizing for how heavy he is and for making everyone worry and for the fact that you risked your life to find him

You and Kravyn make it back to the truck. Everyone else has already returned, but the plan had been to wait an hour before heading back to Hammerhead, so they had all been waiting for you.

Iris starts crying again when she sees Prompto. Even Gladio gets really quiet and dewey-eyed. Ignis rests his hand on Prompto’s chest, as if to feel his heartbeat.

Ignis: “Bloody idiot. Thank the Six...”

Prompto is the only missing hunter the rescue team was able to find.

Iris found a dog tag. Including the dog tag you’d found, that leaves two of the missing hunters still unaccounted for.

You all agree that you’ll head back out again tomorrow to search further north.

You take Prompto back to Hammerhead to get proper medical treatment. He’s going to be okay.

[wholetmewrite]

high school tech crew!monsta x: spotlight technician!hyunwoo

the one who’s been doing theatre tech since freshmen year

is also the one who convinced everyone else to join too

has been offered more leader-like positions just bc of his commanding presence and stature but like

poor dude gets shy

so he leaves it to stage manager!minhyuk and assistant stage manager!kihyun

technically hyunwoo could be a good stage hand too like hoseok

but like just imagine this:

sweaty hyunwoo in just a tank top bc it gets hot as hell on the catwalk

moving the heavy ass spotlight around like it’s no biggie

...nut

doesn’t really talk much

kinda just grunts into his headset whenever minhyuk or kihyun check in with him

was originally supposed to be a stage hand w/ hoseok but he heard you were joining tech as a spotlight technician

you two have homeroom together, and actually have had homeroom together every year

in your first year you were sat across the room from him and he thought you were the cutest thing he’s ever laid his eyes upon

you thought he was hot as fuck tbh but also kinda thought he was out of your league so you just paid more attention to your friends

but like every day you guys would make eye contact and maybe share a small smile or roll your eyes together at some point during announcements

in your second year of having homeroom together you got sat next to him and you started calling him homeroom buddy in your head

sometimes you would chat a little about school or the weather but the conversation never really went anywhere bc your friends always somehow managed to steal your attention away

and oh wow would you look at that suddenly hyunwoo is ALSO a spot what a coincidence !!!

bless this poor man tho he has absolutely no idea how to like,,, actually talk to you

you sometimes think he doesn’t really like you bc he doesn’t talk to you that much

tbh sometimes it seems like he doesn’t like anyone really

but then you see him do the smallest favors for his friends

like helping sound technician!hyungwon move the soundboard from the booth onto his lil table in the back of the house because that shit’s too heavy for only one person to move it

getting minhyuk’s favorite snack from the vending machine for him because he’s getting frustrated

helping stage hand!hoseok move some set pieces into their designated spikes for the first scene before he has to go up to the catwalk

it’s actually the least he could do for hoseok after ditching him for you but you dont need to know that

turning the projector on for projections technician!changkyun because he’s taller and changkyun's too lazy to leave the booth

letting assistant stage manager!kihyun and mic crew/stage hand!jooheon rest their heads on his shoulders during rehearsal notes even though he doesn’t really like skinship because these poor babies are tired and lowkey on the verge of stress tears

and OUCH that’s your heart!!!

who knew he’d be such a gentle giant bc maaaan you really didn’t

you really got to know a different side of hyunwoo which just made your crush on him so much harder to ignore

you’d start talking to him about tech and the production during homeroom and you guys would get so invested in it that your friends started noticing you talking to your cute seatmate and leave you two be

they did interrogate you about it during lunch and you would flush but didnt wanna say anything in case he or his friends were nearby

granted you weren’t extremely shy or anything but you were definitely afraid of rejection so you never talked about your feelings in public

you’d always brush off your friends and it didn’t seem like a big deal to you but yo

hyunwoo’s friends are all up on it tryna figure out if his crush likes him back or not!!!

but you’re so! fucking! secretive!!!!

they literally report back to him all frustrated n shit and he’s just sitting there like ???? bc he didn’t even ask them to find anything out they’re literally just like doing this on their own

but how can they not when hyunwoo has literally never had a crush on anyone??

he won’t even admit that it’s a crush tbh bc feelings are confusing and a lil scary he just knows he cares about you in a different way than he does his friends

and he’s also a lil,,,, protective over you?

like minhyuk or hoseok will jokingly ask if you’re single or what are the odds that they you’ll say yes if they ask you out and he just gets this dark aura and his knuckles turn white and he sends them a glare so icy that minhyuk almost cries on the spot and hoseok literally sees his life flash before his eyes and they literally have to tell him they’re joking

and he’s just like

oh

my b

and hyungwon’s just watching all this in silence but before he leaves for class he’s like bro,,, u better step tf up before someone else snatches them away

and hyunwoo kinda sits there expressionless but inside he knows that hyungwon wouldn’t say anything unless it’s true

so he starts doing random acts of kindness for u bc actions speak louder than words and he’s shit at words

like when tech week comes around he starts bringing you trolli eggs for you to snack on at the catwalk bc he saw you eating them in homeroom a few times

and you’re like :o ! thank u!

and he’s like no problem and gives u a smol smile

u just kinda stand there like :o my heart. it’s. going to. bu r s t.

and he’ll save you a seat at dinner but is too shy to actually let you know about that but it’s cool! his bois got him! they call you over for him!

and you’re like :D thanks guys! & even tho there are a few other empty seats around the other boys u kinda automatically go next to hyunwoo and his heart starts accelerating

and then u accidentally call him homeroom buddy out loud instead of keeping it in your head and all his friends start screaming and cooing and you two are just sitting there blushing

and sometimes you get so stressed between scenes that u kinda just tear up a lil but then u hear a lil crinkling and hyunwoo’s got a travel pack of tissues and furrowed brows and ur like omg??

and hyunwoo kinda flushes and is like jooheon cries a lot i just carry these so he doesnt get snot on his or anyone else’s clothes

u honestly might actually combust at this point but that would be embarrassing and a bit inappropriate in this very moment

so u just say thanks and take the tissues but ur hands brush and hyunwoo almost drops the tissues and ur hand is on FIRE

and you’re thinking about all these small things that he’s doing for you and u kinda gush to ur friends in ur lil group chat and they’re just like

KISS HIM

KEEP HIM

CHERISH HIM

but you can’t tell if he actually does like you bc he goes out of his way for his other friends as well 

which you express to your friends

the same friends who are secretly in cahoots with hyunwoo’s friends bc honestly everyone except you two can tell you're in love

and his friends pull him aside in the theater lobby during a rehearsal break and they’re like dude you needa confess you’re too kind to everyone and they can’t tell that you like them

and the color kinda just drains from his face bc

hyunwoo??? has to use his words???

and he’s like ,,,noah fence but i would rather be stage manager for the rest of my life than tell y/n i have an embarrassingly unrequited crush on them

and he hears a lil gasp behind him

GUESS WHO’S THERE

YOU

all of his friends are s h O o K and hyunwoo whips around like o FUCK

and you’re just like ,,,can i talk to hyunwoo alone for a sec and his friends literally RUN off (but not too far bc they wanna hear)

and hyunwoo’s just like sweating and avoiding your eyes and he’s like

“i’m sorry. i’m really not good with words and i- um- well clearly i just said kind of a harsh thing that i didn’t mean but you’re just- ugh- you’re really cute and-”

and your heart is swelling and without thinking one hand takes his and the other gently grasps his chin to make him look at you

and he stops talking and finally looks at you and you just have this smile on your face and you’re like

“that’s funny, bc i’ve had this huge crush on my incredibly hot and kind homeroom and spot buddy and i thought he would never like me back bc he’s way out of my league”

and he just gives you this look that’s like are you fucking kidding me bc if anyone’s out of anyone’s league, it’s you who’s out of his 

and you’re like i’m serious!! and start going off about all the things you’ve noticed and he’s blushing like crazy bc his crush!! notices him!!! and you notice he’s blushing and you realize you needa shut up but you can’t stop so you kinda give him a look like pls help me stop talking

and he does

with his lips

bc we all know he can’t use his words