#but MAN. i was really hoping this wouldn't be the thing they chose to double down on yet again

[vigilskept]

Saw your tags on the last few posts and hard agree! Between the ever present Fen'harel foreshadowing AND Sandal's prophecy AND Mythal's reckoning? It always seemed like the Veil coming down was that proper big bang finish that would rewrite all the rules in a satisfying and interesting way. One of my issues with Veilgaurd is I feel like it took the series' opportunity for a destinct ending away. Personally, I believe good stories end. I don't want 30 DA games in a MCU verse. And now, to have the series end they have to come up with a stopping point that makes more sense than the Veil. Or revisit the Veil. And what would be the point in that when they wasted all the foreshadowing?

yes, exactly!! i felt like i was going insane on my soapbox there, thank you!! it really feels like they ran up against the natural end point for the franchise and just decided to do a little shimmy around it. i just don't see what exactly that achieves except to set up a new, bigger bad which we have no real stake in.

was i curious about the executors prior to veilguard? yes! but i expected them to appear in this game since they clearly had an interest in solas' plans!! not for them to have 3 completely missable interactions followed by the worst idea of a post credit scene i've ever seen. whatever curiosity i had about what they were up to & how the kossith relate to what's across the sea is pretty much gone at this point.

a "shadowy cabal" who's secretly responsible for all of the evil enacted in this world by people in power is not a plot i care to see play out in bioware's hands. it's a stupid, elders of zion ass direction to take things and was not worth trashing over a decade of build up.

there is nowhere they could take that plot thread (already relying on the worst possible trope...) that would give dragon age a more satisfying conclusion than dropping the veil.

it would've resolved or set up a potential resolution for all of the major conflicts that have been established up to now!! (mages under the chantry, tevene class structure/slavery, oppression of elves, the blights, the waking titans, etc. etc. i could go on!)

and with the way veilguard ends... it looks to me like they wanted to somehow get the implied resolutions that would come out of dropping the veil without committing to it. that's why no matter what you do, dorian or mae will become archon and singlehandedly restructure tevinter society. the load bearing piece of "mageocracy can't function if everyone's a mage now" is gone, so we have to have a poorly executed sideplot to resolve this plot thread for us instead...

i'm sure people will feel differently, but i personally would've found it more satisfying if the veil fell and the franchise wrapped up there. for good or ill, it changes everything and we can all have the time of our lives speculating about the Implications thereafter.

if they really wanted to(/needed to promise EA they could) make more games in this setting — they could've gone backwards! there's lots of stories you could tell throughout thedas in the gap between the fifth blight and solas' ritual! there's lots of stories you could tell about the centuries between andraste's rebellion and the fifth blight! there's so much happening in the background here that they've hinted at through codices that if they really wanted more content in this setting, there is so much room to expand on those.

could they set up world shattering events like "tearing down the veil" again? no. but i think that was a very obvious one and done situation, and i don't think anyone came into this franchise expecting their dragon age games to have stakes that apocalyptic until trespasser! i think there absolutely would've absolutely been an audience for a game about the assassination of queen madrigal or the fog warriors' resistance on seheron if they hadn't fumbled this....

[herejusttosufferalong]

Pancake anon here.

Whew, where to even start! It has been a week.

At this point, I think I'm just as confused as the rest of you. However, I do have some theories. Take all of this with a massive grain of salt.

I do personally believe N's song posts are about L. I can only see a few reasons she would post these so publicly.

She genuinely just likes the songs and wanted to share

They are a message to someone who she can't communicate with readily

They are a message to the fandom

N has admitted she is chronically online. She is also incredibly smart and calculated about her decisions and what she allows the public to see. Finding songs that are so clearly about love and sex and sharing them "just because she likes them" makes no sense for N. Especially right now after all the speculation from the press tour and backlash L got after the pap walk and beyond. She knows what everyone will read into them and there has already been so much chatter around her love life for her to post songs like this willy-nilly.

If she wanted to share them to communicate with someone it would have to be with someone she can't easily call or text. Yes, she is a millennial and using songs to express your feelings is a core part of this generation. However, see my previous point. She wouldn't do this publicly unless she had a very good reason. And I personally think not having an open line of communication is one of the reasons. But I don't think that person is L. I actually think it's a message to A. More on this in a moment. 

Which brings me to the last point, that the songs could be meant for the fandom. I believe this is also one of the reasons. They were meant to share with the fandom that she is in love. Who is the fandom going to automatically think/hope they are about? Of course L. And these songs are incredibly L/N coded. So if she wanted to let us know she was in love and it wasn't about L, I truly believe she would be more deliberate in how she shared this information so it wasn't misinterpreted. She's also protective over L, and she wouldn't want to send that attention to him if it wasn't meant about him. 

Which brings us to the topic of A and the friend group. It has been eerily quiet from everyone (except T & C) since their return from Italy. T & C seem to be business as usual but everyone else disappeared. It feels a lot like pre Italy when we all thought something was going down. I still think it was. My gut feeling is things were tense with L&A between GQ & Italy but somehow got settled enough for the Italy trip. Upon returning, my guess is things soured again. Not 100% sure I can pinpoint what exactly the issue is, maybe it have to do with DM, but I don't think it really matters. The silence is deafening amidst all the very loud break up rumors and N's social presence this last week. 

Okay, so here is my delulu gut feeling for what is going on. Again, HUGE grain of salt here. I 100% recognize I could be reading everything wrong. 

The Italy trip and pictures being published was a bit of a breaking point for N. Not in a "sad girl moping over not being with L" kind of way. But in a "Fuck this, I'm not waiting. I'm going after my man" kind of way. I think something snapped and she decided she decided she was going all in to let him know she wanted to be with him and also let A (and L's other friends) know that she isn't holding back. Cue the shade of the CW birthday post, the scrabble board, possibly the shirt photo (though I'm unsure my thoughts on that at the moment), and most importantly the songs. 

The first song was such a deliberate choice. A song about a conversation on the telephone from someone you haven't heard from in a while is definitely going to trigger fans to speculate about L. And even if that wasn't her intention, we know she saw it is what everyone's reaction was. But she chose to leave the song up for the full 24 hours. Then 48 hours later, she decided to double down and post another song that has all kinds of messages about knowing someone very well and there not being any pretense. Almost as if she was confirming our suspicions, because what could be more L coded than that? 

The silence from A after all of this was shocking and very telling. N was poking the bear, and the bear was not responding. Even if N did not intend all this about L, the fandom was going crazy, and to remain silent for so long during these situations is not her norm. 

Which brings us to current events and rumors about Cyprus. Is/was L there with A? I honestly don't know and I go back and forth on it. On one hand, the rumors are based on two tweets from accounts that went private. One account is speculated to be from a Balkin country. But I do think A is either there right now or was there recently so it's very possible he was too. In truth, I honestly don't think it matters if he was because, again in my delulu gut feeling, sometime recently N has decided to make it very clear to L that she is in love with him. She decided to stop waiting for him to be passive in his relationship with A and just go for it. And I believe she's letting us and A know that this is happening. I don't think she would so confidently do that if it wasn't moving in the direction she hoped. 

I honestly wonder if, and lean towards the idea, A is in Cyprus without L because things are ending and she's getting some family support and maybe doesn't really have a place to live right now. I know some people also speculate she is there for a job and this could be needed if things are ending, but I haven't seen clear evidence of that yet. However, her post yesterday is showing me that she isn't going to go quietly and she is going to continue playing games and try to rile people up. I think we might be in for a rough few weeks if any of this delulu is correct. 

So that's my 2 cents for what it's worth. I will say, I have also had a roller coaster of emotions this week as many of you have. I go back and forth on a lot of things. But I keep bringing myself back to the last few stops on tour and how obviously in love with each other they were. The way things went in Galway with N's family and the "I will wait for you" song following that stop. And I can't get past the certainty that N is very intentional with what she shares and knowing how fans will interpret it. 

Cheers WH patrons as we approach rough waters ahead. 

💜🥃

[onyx-archer]

So... Let's Talk About THAT

I want to start this by saying that I haven't purchased Double Exposure, and I have no plans on doing so because of what this post is about. I know very little about the game, but I do know about the Chloe stuff. That was the one thing I wanted to know about going into the game before I committed to a purchase. Not specifically because of a ship or whatever (though that's certainly a factor), but how they go about justifying Chloe not being in the Double Exposure.

I say that because I knew, based on the marketing for the game being as cagey as it is in regards to Chloe. I knew there'd be some kind of justification to not have her around, because how else are they going to make the game's story work with both endings being "respected." And that's the key word here: respect.

Normally, I'd at least abide by my spoiler policy, where I would mark spoilers for stuff that's super new for like, a month. However, because of what this entails, I really can't be nice enough to do that, as everything I've seen has genuinely made me go "how is this 'respecting' the player's choice from LiS1?!"

Under the cut, there will be spoilers for Life Is Strange as a series. As I write this sentence, I don't know how much I'll go into it, so be warned. I know Double Exposure isn't even fully out, but man, I have a lot to say about this ONE THING in it that has me annoyed to no end.

So... in Double Exposure, the one thing a lot of fans of the first game were wondering was "why is Chloe not in the game?" Some were hopeful that she would be, but realistically, there was no way that was possible without the game's budget being higher. At best, we'd get some new voice lines, but that's about it. Why? Because Deck Nine wanted to "respect" the ending of LiS1 for the players who chose the "Bay" ending. Chloe, in case y'all forgot, fucking DIES in that ending, so she'd, at best, get a cameo appearance in the game where Max returns unless it was decided that the game was set in a timeline where Chloe survived.

It is very clear to me from the jump that unless they made that choice, they'd not have Chloe be around. It was likely that they'd make it so the pair broke up in some capacity (be it as friends or lovers, it didn't really matter), and as much as I didn't want that aspect to be true, it ended up actually being the case. As a fan of Pricefield, this sucks, but as a person who understood from the start that the game would have to find a way to dodge the issue of Chloe in some capacity to tell the story Deck Nine wanted to tell, I could accept it. So long as the way they did so was respectful to the original vision of the characters in some capacity.

And because I'm writing this post at all, it's pretty obvious that isn't what happened.

I want to be perfectly clear when I say that the break up, conceptually, makes sense as a mechanism for a story about Max. In my mind, it would make sense that Max and Chloe's relationship would have some bumps caused by the sheer amount of trauma Max endured during the tail end of LiS1. Finding out that a person you looked up to (Jefferson) was a total psycho who was obsessed with you and likely would have tried something worse than just taking gross pictures of you would leave a person pretty fucking messed up for years. Add onto that the fact that she basically had to do the trolly problem in real life, with the choices being her hometown and it's entire population... or a person she loves so much she couldn't imagine living without them (be it as a friend, or as more than that)... and you'd probably have a therapy bill the size of the Olympus Mons before you started feeling "relatively normal" again.

In a world where the people who were writing the game were better at their jobs, at least in this capacity, they'd look at that, and see how it'd affect a relationship. Max being unable to properly move on, with the only person she can reliably talk to about it being someone she very much wouldn't want to trauma dump on (since you can't exactly tell a shrink that you had time travelled so much that you caused a titanic sized waterspout to level an entire costal town without getting institutionalized), given that said person is likely grappling with a lot of shit themselves (survivor's guilt, for one)... yeah a break up of some kind, even if only a temporary one, is kind of inevitable. Time apart might be something you both need to properly heal.

This would also allow the story to at least try to deal with Max's trauma in a way that is comparable in scope based on both decisions, and it would make sense. If Max were the one to break off the relationship, citing a need to have some time apart to get her head on straight (metaphorically speaking, we all know she ain't straight), it'd make sense that said choice could blow up in her face and leave her a bit emotionally frazzled. Chloe is a person who very obvious abandonment issues, so a decision like that from Max, even if it was only for a while, would likely lead to a much more stressful situation, regardless of how close they are.

This, in turn, would allow the "Bay" ending to be about Max not being able to get over her choice to functionally kill her own best friend, and all of the things she never got to say. The grief being something she struggles with for a decade (or however long it is between LiS1 and DE) would make sense. It'd be in character. Max is a character who is indecisive, and is prone to fussing over mistakes she feels she makes, especially with Chloe. She buries those kinds of feelings in a box until she's forced to confront them. Then she tries to over compensate for her shortcomings. We know she does this because she immediately jumps to help Chloe look for Rachel at the first real chance she gets as a way for her to at least sort of make up for the 5 years of basically no contact. Yeah, there are other reasons she does this, but it can be pretty easily inferred that Max, since Max's whole power allows her to go back in time, which is, in theory, the ultimate way to fix your past mistakes.

I'd be fine if the breakup was purely Max running from a problem she doesn't want to properly deal with. With her being reminded of her choice that killed hundreds of people for one person, even if that person means everything to her. Some people crumple under less, and Max is very much an insecure person, so she'd crumple like a wet napkin eventually.

They could have very easily made a core part of the game Max learning to let go of that part of her past, to finally make peace with her choice. You could even have it be a case where her powers leave her for good, with some kind of, I dunno, storm of butterflies (which I feel could very easily serve as a symbol of Max connection to Chloe, and not as just a symbol for Chloe exclusively). Regardless of the Bae or Bay choice, having her powers literally fly away would also be a way of saying that she's finally "grown up," and that her burdens have been eased, with them flying away with her powers. The guilt? Yeah, there'd always be a little, that shit never goes away, but she'd no longer wallow in it. The trauma? She'd be able to accept it as a thing that happened, and move on in a more healthy way.

If Chloe and her were a couple, maybe she'd end the game with a phone call, reaching out to Chloe in an effort to repair their relationship, to say that she's "done living in the past." She could literally say something like "I'm done rewinding, I'm just going to look to the future, and leave the past where it is." We'd probably all cheer at that kind of sappy bullshit. It'd be sapphic as hell, and it'd be awesome.

But no. That's too nice a thought. Deck Nine had other plans.

In the game, as it is now, there is a distinct problem with the breakup working, and that's the way it happens. In Double Exposure (at least up to Episode 2, as that's all that's currently available), the game is quick to brush aside the idea that Max and Chloe were ever really a thing, and wants the player to go right into being interested in having Max romance the New characters that Deck Nine made for the game! Why'd they break up? Because Chloe is afraid that Max is using her rewind powers (which she supposedly hasn't since Blackwell), and that, because of those powers, she's always going to be living in the past. That she, Chloe fucking Price, just wants to be a free spirit and live for the future, and that, "as much as it hurts," that might be a future without Max in it.

ARE YOU FUCKING KIDDING ME???

Chloe Price, the bony sack of trauma, cigarette smoke, and well documented abandonment issues, is the one breaking off a relationship? Are you serious? You gotta be fucking with me Deck Nine! You wrote a whole ass game about this character, and my opinion of that game aside (I think Before the Storm is dogshit btw), you still miss one of the core aspects of Chloe's whole character? How do you miss the point by this much?

And then... a self-proclaimed former staff member at Deck Nine spoke up on Reddit... said some stuff, and it all started to make sense.

See, Deck Nine has, at least somewhat recently, come under fire for their dogshit working conditions. There were several articles showcasing how toxic that place was to work for a number of reasons by several publications. The writing was on the wall, but a lot of people, myself included, tried to not see it, and just be hopeful for a new LiS game. While I really don't like BtS, I very much enjoyed True Colors, so I was at least a little optimistic.

However, if that supposed former employee is to be believed in any capacity (we can at least say they likely are a former employee, as another former employee basically called them out on Twitter for trying to start a hate brigade... even though they didn't), then Double Exposure was doomed from the start. The creative leads on the project, allegedly, HATE Chloe, and would shoot down ideas that would be more respectful of her in All Hands On Deck (Nine) meetings, even though they asked for ideas due to how they wrote themselves into a bloody corner whilst working on the game the way they did.

Then there's the fact that supposedly some people at the publisher dislike Chloe because they feel that Ashly Burch shit on Before the Storm post-launch (which she didn't, btw), despite her working on a game that replaced her voice with another actress due to a strike. They hired a "scab" to voice the characters, and that might have upset Ashly, a union member. Fair enough. But apparently some people didn't like Rhianna DeVries, which the publisher heard, and said "don't bring her back for any big appearances" or something? So they aren't going to recast again, they aren't going to bring back Ashly for petty reasons, and they aren't going to even bring Rhianna back again (she had a small voice role in True Color's Wavelengths DLC), even though most people are fine with her? Hell, I think she's a damn highlight in the cast for BtS, and I hate that game.

Then I got to thinking: is there evidence that Deck Nine hates Chloe, despite working on Before the Storm? Short answer: I think so, yeah. Long answer? Well...

One thing that is notable about Before the Storm, at least from my perspective, is that said game did a pretty middling job with characters that were introduced in the original game, despite being a prequel. Nathan is nothing like how he is in LiS1, nor is David. Rachel doesn't even remotely come off as the kind of character that people would talk about the way they do in LiS1 after she goes missing (what with her being a big Laura Palmer parallel and all). Fuck, they made Victoria willing to roofie someone to get ahead, which a lot of people called out as tone deaf as hell given what happens to her in LiS1.

But in that same breath, the game introduces a handful of new, Deck Nine original characters, and that's clearly where the effort was. Some were better than others, of course, Samantha was largely pointless and amounted to nothing, Rachel's Parents are just not well written, and Damon is such a bland attempt at a villain... Don't even get me started on the Elliot Rogers looking ass character that shares a first name with that whackjob.

But you wanna know who Deck Nine really likes? Steph Gingrich. And you know what, so do I. I like Steph a lot. She's like, the best thing to come out of that game. But when you pull back and analyze who Steph is, something notable stands out: she's basically Deck Nine's take on "what if Chloe wasn't a bitchy bitch?"

Think about it: Steph is a queer girl wearing a beanie (Chloe's basic aesthetic), enjoys nerdy stuff and Blade Runner (Chloe, even before joining their D&D sessions, was a closet weeb back before she lost her dad), is into punk rock (so much so that she forms a punk band, Drugstore Makeup, with a former girlfriend), likes to smoke weed (to be fair, a lot of characters in LiS do), and even gets a healthy dose of trauma from the storm killing her own mom, or losing two very close friends, one of which is the same person Chloe lost (this is more a Max parallel, but you get it). She even has a pretty distinct "voice" in how she talks that most people can pick out of a crowd pretty easily (which, to be fair, isn't hard, since True Colors has a very muted cast in this respect). Hell, she can even romantically end up with a bisexual with super powers! She's literally just "what if Chloe was more of a nerd and less of an asshole."

This isn't to shit on Steph at all, again, I love Steph, she's great. I'm not even mad about the obvious parallels between her and Chloe. They were friends, of course aspects of them are going to be similar. But when you take those things into consideration when reading that Deck Nine supposedly hates Chloe... and you see how hard the series has pushed Steph (Steph has her own DLC story, a full ass novel about stuff she did between her two appearances, and a comic where she and Alex act as the cool lesbian surrogate parents to a runaway girl with powers), you can sort of pick up on some subliminal parallels. It's hard not to when Deck Nine has a clear bias for a character they made, and how they dislike a character they didn't, despite the overlap.

I could just be reaching, but when I put the pieces in front of me in the context of "Deck Nine hates Chloe" it just adds up. It's kind of hard not to think Deck Nine does hate Chloe, given that before we even find out the specifics of the break up, they have Safi ask Max if she's interested in the new female love interest the devs cooked up immediately after Max tries to basically shut down the conversation about why she and Chloe broke up. Even in the context of Chloe dying, it's clear what they're doing here, and it's not even remotely subtle.

Even if a lot of this is just bullshit, it's clear that Deck Nine had no real intention of "respecting" anything. Why? Because Double Exposure very clearly wants to operate under the pretense that you chose to Sacrifice Chloe. It's the only way the game really works in anyway that's even remotely "respectful" to any fans. The fact that they rejected the premise of DE being set in a timeline where Chloe was definitively DEAD, even though members of the team suggested that should be how they approached this game's story, says that they had no real intention of respecting the integrity of the choice LiS1 players made. Regardless of the reasons why they did this, respect is NOT one of those reasons. They had a story they wanted to tell, but forced themselves to try and fit the square peg into the round hole.

This game already decided to not respect the original creators at Don't Nod by having it be about Max, when they said Max and Chloe's stories were "done." I get it, that's a decision they likely didn't make themselves... but they could have at least tried harder to respect the characters they were given to make a story about a little more.

For all I know, the remaining 3 Episodes of Double Exposure may allow the player to have Max and Chloe reconcile at the end if you don't romance any of the new characters. Maybe that's an ending, and I'm mad for basically just bad writing... but I nevertheless won't be supporting this game with my money as things currently stand.

[atarathegreat]

They Come Home Late Tokyo Revengers

ft: Shinichiro Sano, Kazushi Yamagishi, Takuya Yamamoto,

No one likes to work late, unless you're Shinichiro, but canonically he don't get bitches soooo

Call it a nuisance all you want, Shinichiro would argue that it was just another day at the shop. That man would spend hours upon hours in his shop, or rather, the garage attached to it. You never really understood why it was all important to Shin, you just knew it was. He loved fixing what was broken and what was better for a biker mechanic to fix than a bike? Nothing, if you asked the eldest Sano boy. He was bound and determined to make any and everything work the right way the first time. Yet, like a curse, any Sano could never have something they loved without a catch, a cruel take from the universe for the give Shinichiro received. Sometimes he spent so much time in his shop, or garage, or on his own bike that he rarely got to see you conscious. He always arrived home well after you'd gone to bed, and that's the thought that plagued him as he ate his cold dinner. It had no doubt been warm when you'd placed it in the oven, but now it was cold, and Shinichiro couldn't bring himself to risk the beeping microwave waking you. You worked just as hard as he did, if not more, and he didn't want to be a factor to your fatigue. He stayed against the counter for only a moment longer, finishing his cigarette butt before tossing it in a cup of water. You'd scold him for the mess and he'd clean it with a smile, as was routine. Shinichiro tried to manage staying at your place and at his grandfather's with his siblings, but he hated it when he didn't get to see you. Something about the decor in your home made him feel better after a long day, the muted, yet somehow bright, colors hanging over your windows and the old, shaggy, puke green carpet in your living room was always something soft for him to nap on. As tempting as the living room floor was, Shinichiro made a b-line for your bedroom. He cursed quietly as the door creaked open, letting his eyes adjust to the pitch black that swallowed everything past the doorway. He stumbled forward, hands outstretched to touch your dresser or the hope chest at the foot of your bed that he always managed to find with his abused pinky toe. A low bang echoed through your room, Shin doubling over into the stupid wooden box as his toes once again made sure he wouldn't slam his knees into it. "Hello?" Groggy was the best sound on you, if only he wasn't sucking in deep, pain filled breaths. "Jus' me, hon. Fuck, I kicked the damn oversized shoebox again." Thumps followed his words as he crawled over the chest and into your bed. Your tired giggles almost made him question why he chose to spend so much time with the bikes. Almost. You rolled onto your back as Shinichiro crawled over you, twisting the blanket around and forcing you to shuffle until you were comfortable underneath him. "How's the shop doin'?" A heavy yawn pried your jaw apart. The last thing he wanted to talk about with you was the shop, the last thing he cared about at the moment was the shop. So he didn't answer you, and kept you from asking anything else by kissing you. Muscles shivered as your fingertips grazed Shinichiro's skin, coming to rest behind his ears and over the hinge of his jaw. "M'sorry I been absent." Shinichiro panted softly as he pushed himself up again, flopping on the bed next to you, "I've got a day off comin' up, if ya' wanna spend it with me, Mikey, and Emma."

🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟

It never seemed to be enough. No matter how much work he did, how dirty his hands got, Yamagishi wasn't ever given the break he deserved. Takemichi was even being a prick, more often than not screaming about how Yamagishi and the others couldn't do their jobs right in any capacity. He'd taken more than enough abuse from his best friend turned boss, even Takuya was getting tired of the act. There wasn't anything the group could do right anymore, and they knew it. Yamagishi growled and slammed the radio volume to zero, more pissed than anything that his childhood friends were suffering and there wasn't a damn thing he could do about it. It made him even more angry to think harder on it: he didn't get his ass handed to him time after time, right next to Takemichi, for Michi to be the one hurting them all now. A part of Yamagishi always knew that gangs were never fun and games, but now that he was a higher ranking thug, he truly understood it. There always seemed to be a scowl transfixed on the man's face, but it became a deep, deep grimace as he pulled into the driveway of his too big house that he'd bought when he was drunk and now couldn't get rid of. You enjoyed it, it seemed. When you first moved in you had been more than excited to explore every damn room. Yamagishi's lip quirked upward, not quite a smile, at the memory as he failed to notice you watching him from the window. As he opened the door he couldn't help but think that you looked like a dog. Sitting on the couch with such hopeful eyes, waiting for him to give the signal that you could bombard him with affections as your hands did giddy little dances in your lap. Yeah, a dog. "Sorry, babe, not right now." Yamagishi sighed, walking past you and toward the kitchen. It was routine, after a few aggravated nights of him storming out because you failed to notice that he couldn't take much more emotion in the day. Of course, the second he was calmed from his day, Yamagishi would leave a lingering kiss on your hand, almost as an unspoken incantation that hauled you into his form with smiles, kisses, hugs, and multiple questions of his day. So instead you nodded and followed behind him into the kitchen. You weren't a golden retriever, that much was evident. Yamagishi pushed his glasses up so he could see you from the corner of his eye, "Are you in just one of my shirts?" He watched as your little hands grabbed the hem and pulled it down with a faint "yeah." A sigh tumbled from his lips and to the floor, thick enough you could probably kick it back up to his face, "C'mere." He liked your slow steps, unsure of if he was giving you permission to touch him, or if it was just a him moment. "Up ya' go." Yamagishi grunted, plopping you onto the counter, "Thought I told you not to wait up for me?" You complied easily as he pulled his shirt off you, revealing your naked body and underwear, "You did..." He sighed again, a more agitated sound, "Then why are you down here and not upstairs in bed?" No words so much as dared enter your throat, and Yamagishi didn't break eye contact as he dropped his coat next to you on the counter, his shirt following but looping over your head. It smelled of sweat, his cologne, and the coffee from the café he visited every morning with Makato and Takuya, it was hard to resist the deep breath you took. "Answer me." He helped your arms through the fabric, his fingers staying at your elbows. "Couldn't sleep. It felt wrong to pass out without seeing you first." And it was the truth. You had a routine down pat, and smothering Yamagishi with all the love he could emotionally handle was part of it. Yamagishi would say you were a smaller breed of dog, something clingy, like a Chihuahua and Dotson mix. His hair fell over his shoulder as he nodded and leaned forward to grab the whiskey from the shelf behind you, "Sorry 'bout it. But I can't change it." Whiskey poured swiftly into a glass, the amber liquid swishing as Yamagishi raised it to his lips, "M'really, really sorry. I wish I could change it." He placed a a chaste kiss to your cheek.

✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨

Takuya was tired and sore from weeks of sleeping in safehouses, empty warehouses, and Makato's couch. He took a moment to examine the new look, making triple sure that this was the apartment he shared with you. The curtains were new, not sunbleached like the old ones you loved so much, and the rug under the coffee table was a completely different texture, the only indication that it was still his home was the pictures you'd hung up of him and you, and the couple of you and your friends. Takuya silently set his duffel bag down, an order you'd given him so that you could make sure his dirty clothes were clean and he had fresh clothes to take with him, and pulled his jacket off to drop on top of it. Waking you at such a late hour would kill him, he thought you needed your beauty rest, even if he missed you like crazy. For the last month he'd been at either Makato's penthouse (such a vain man with money), or at Yamagishi's (who opted to have a simple home with room for him and him alone). As much as Takuya loved his buddies, one didn't have enough room, and the other had small throw blankets with a questionable substance dried onto it that Takuya shuddered just thinking about. He'd be thrilled once he got under the comforter with you, the two of you sharing body heat and curling closely together. Shit. He needed to hurry and get back to you. Clunking echoed down the hall, Takuya cementing that he'd just make it up to you if he woke you up. Though it wasn't something he had to worry about once he saw you sleeping peacefully, laying on your tummy with one leg pulled up, your knee poking free from the blanket. He ghosted his fingers over your exposed skin, not wanting to scare you awake if he just climbed into bed. "My darling, open your eyes for me." His voice was soft, a smile tugging at the corners of his mouth as your eyelids fluttered open and you had to squint to see, "There you are. Sleeping well without me?" If you hadn't known better, you'd think he was truly upset that you could sleep without his presence. But that's just your Yuya, chuckling as he crawls over you to his side of the new mattress. It's nice, he likes it as he doesn't sink into the plush fabric, "You got a new bed." For a second you falsely think it's a question, but he's only observing. "Mhm, the old one was dirty." No it wasn't, you lying brat, you just didn't want to tell him that you bought it so he'd sleep comfortably. He can sense your lie, but doesn't care too much to debunk it, and he rolls you into him, "Missed you something awful, m'glad to be home." He's got rough hands, a callous built on his thumb from his weapon and a strong grip as he kneads your flesh in his palm. Takuya can't help but notice that you no longer shiver when he glides his finger across your sternum, your body no longer relaxing into his. "What's the problem?" Yuya asks, "Do you still love me?" Such a stupid question, in your mind it should be obvious that you love him. Yeah, the both of you never saw each other in the day time, you always get his bag packed before he wakes up, and save a quick peck on your cheek, you don't even get to tell him goodbye. "Why wouldn't I love you?" You ask, the question sitting wrong in your soul. "You aren't reacting to me..." He mumbled as his fingers dragged up your side again. It felt nice to feel him touch you after so long apart, to look into his eyes and smile as you held his face. It was peaceful. "Not physically." The way you chuckled sent his heart to work, and having you scoot closer was just as thrilling.

[cheesycatz]

(Spider CW)

Too Many Legs - a Wormton AU comic based on a scene from the fic I'm currently writing

Original text version of this scene below

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H-hi, Spamton!” Blue said, a bit louder than usual. They hoped that he wouldn't notice the nervousness in their voice. Then again, he never really reacted when they anxiously stuttered or minced sentences. Maybe his vocal glitch desensitized him to it.

“HEY Y[Bluebird]!” Spamton responded, just as loudly, though the volume was normal for him. He stopped a short distance away from the store's front door, tilting his head and looking up at Blue.

Before Blue could get a word in, he stumbled back a bit, tail quickly curling back up from the lax position it had taken.

“WH WHAT? R YOU [[aFr41D…]] 0f?!??” The lights of his glasses flickered.

“Am I that obvious?” Blue chuckled nervously. “I found a huge spider on one of the back shelves,” they explained, stepping back into their shop and beckoning Spamton in. “I should get rid of it—it's bad for business, y'know?”

“Oh,” Spamton mumbled. “[Where's my] IS IT??” He leaned forward, presumably to see if he could find the spider from his position just outside the store's doorway.

“Right over there,” Blue said, dramatically pointing towards where the middle shelf met the wall. They hoped it hadn't moved anywhere in the last five minutes; spiders were much scarier when you didn't know where they were.

Spamton surged forward with confidence, tail brushing back and forth across the carpet. He peered into the darkness between the shelves with not even a millisecond of hesitation. Man, Blue would pay good money for a fraction of that bravery towards all things creepy-crawly.

“SER1USLY?” he scoffed. Blue jumped as his hand lunged into the gap. They saw something move in the darkness as he dragged his arm back out.

“YOUR AFRIAD OF [[This]]!!?” Blue yelped as his hand came into view; he was holding the spider in his bare hand—mitten—whatever! A gross layer of cobwebs and fuzzy dust coated his sleeve. “I'vE S33N 1’S [2wice] AS BIG!” he gloated, eyeing the spider that was already bigger than his palm. Its legs curled uselessly towards its underside, twitching disgustingly as Spamton poked at its large abdomen.

“EAHAHA!! ITS IS’nT EVEN TRYING TO [Get a Bite to Eat at]!!” he added. Spamton held the spider uncomfortably close to his face, its two fangs flexing angrily as it failed to defend itself.

“I know they don't usually bite people,” Blue admitted, “but they're just so creepy! Where do I even start? The giant fangs—teeth shouldn't be able to move like that! They have no pupils, but it's like you can feel them staring at you with those glowing eyes. And, I hate how… uncomfortably hairy they are. Something with an outer shell like that should not be growing hair.” Describing it might make it worse, actually.

“The way they crawl all over the walls, the way they hide until it's too dark to see anything,” Blue rambled. “How they lure and trap live prey just to suck the life-force out of them—and, most obviously, the legs. Nothing in this world needs that many legs!” Let alone such freakishly long, skinny segmented legs… Okay, they absolutely made their point by now.

“8'$ N0T E^0U6H!1!” Spamton claimed, voice sounding more glitchy than usual. He picked at the spider's legs as though he was fidgeting with them, almost curling in on himself.

“Y0UV3 G0T

Y0u'VE gOT

You'v3 G0T F0RE 4ND YOUR ONLY US1NG 2!! [Who you gonna call] IF 1 GETS [Injured? Call now]???”

“So do you,” Blue pointed out, not sure if his smug tone was actually intentional. Spamton briefly looked down at his own body as though he somehow needed to double-check how many limbs he had.

“EAHAHAH AHA SUR3 DO!” he said, head violently jolting back upwards. His tail tip twitched back and forth rapidly. “BUT I;M NOT [[DENIED]] The [supereority complex] OF [Baker's dozen] LEGS!!”

“You always chose the weirdest hills to die on,” Blue simply replied, fondly. Normally, they would've humored his strange opinion, but the still alive spider caged between his fingers was just a little distracting. And, so was Spamton's concerning amount of shaking.

“SPEAKING OF [DYEING]!” he stated abruptly. Blue waited for the second half of his comment, but it never came. Instead, Spamton suddenly skittered back out the front door, still tightly gripping the spider. Blue trailed after him at a much slower pace, and stopped in the doorway. All they saw was the last half of his tail as it disappeared into the alley that he came from.

Was he… getting rid of the spider for them? That would be nice of him. Usually, Blue called Orange and made them deal with any computer bugs invading their space. They suddenly regretted shaking his hand that first day more than they already did.

“Um, thanks?” Blue said as Spamton reappeared without the spider a couple minutes later, looking much calmer. As he got closer, it seemed like he was… chewing something? The jaw of his mask occasionally clacked open and closed, accompanied by a quieter wet sound and… some sort of scraping?

“Uh…” Blue started.

“[Deep Cleaning] MY T33TH.” he said, unprompted.

“Aaaaalright then,” Blue responded. They knew they weren't getting any other context, and they weren't going to ask.

-------

This was one of my favorite scenes for the Wormton fic that I've come up with, and one I really wanted to share. We've got foreshadowing, dramatic irony, implied angst, and a surprise tool that will help us later

This is my first time turning part of rough draft into a fully written piece, and I think it turned out okay. Somehow Spamton'a dialogue was easier for me to write than Blue's; the bracket text and whatnot wasn't too hard to write with the guide (by Zarla) that I was referencing. As someone who will edit 8 month old posts just to fix one grammar mistake, it was so freeing to intentionally make spelling and grammatical errors for Spamton's dialogue. Hopefully I actually caught all the unintentional grammar mistakes for once...

Otherwise, I hope this scene was as enjoyable for everyone else as it was for me. I'm sure this will have no discernable impact on Wormton's life long self-loathing issues lol lmao haha lol

[xoxo-ren-xoxo]

fic writer interview!

totally stealing this from @definitelynotshouting because it looks really fun and I haven't had a chance to yap about my own work in a while!

---<0>---

How many works do you have on AO3?

32! used to be more but I totally deleted some of my old Umbrella Academy fics, sadly - could be around 35 or 36 if I hadn't.

What's your total AO3 word count?

334,360... uh, most of that is from two specific fics haha.

What are your top 5 fics by kudos?

You Say You Feel Hollow (and you know it's 'cause you are) (HC/Life Series | 775)

INCOMING MESSAGE - COMM RECORDS (HC | 725)

“Man is condemned to be free” (DreamSMP | 547)

I Still Feel Alive (when it's hopeless, I start to notice) (Lunch Club | 488)

Let's Call It An Arrangement (HC | 460)

if you remember my lunch club fics no you don't. also kinda surprised to see the range of fics here - some of my older stuff and then some of my newest too!

Do you respond to comments? Why or why not?

yes! the only time I maybe won't is when it's a second or third comment in a thread and I have nothing else to say. even a '<3' comment will get a response. I don't get many comments, so I take the time to respond to them all. also, I share details about the writing process and lore of fics if people ask. so 🔫😐 comment to get secret knowledge. (in the same vein, I always respond to asks here about my fics!)

What's the fic you've written with the angstiest ending?

oh, man... I don't tend to leave fics on completely horrific endings in any case, but I would say probably my boatem pirate fic, It's All Part of Being a Pirate (HC). definitely the fic with the least ambiguously horrible fate for just everyone involved.

What's the fic you've written with the happiest ending?

uh... it depends on your idea of 'happy', honestly. Trembling Jaws Can't Stop Stuttering (HC) is a gore/cannibalism convexian fic that doubles as polyamory negotiations. a lot of people say they feel quite comforted by it despite the violence, especially because of the hopeful ending, so I suppose that qualifies as happy. on the other hand, my alternate canon fic, “Man is condemned to be free” (DreamSMP) is ultimately hurt/comfort with a happy(ish) ending, but you have to get through a lot of literal torture and pain first. so... not exactly 'happy'.

Do you write crossovers?

no, but I do come up with ideas for them quite frequently. I'm just not really compelled to actually write them. my favourite universe to put my blorbos into at any given time is the hunger games. I also do get inspired by other media when coming up with my original ideas - there are definitely hints of shows and films I've watched in some of my fics.

Have you ever received hate on a fic?

not traditionally, but since I write a lot of gore and cannibalism that is quite graphic (and I do properly tag it of course) sometimes I get people commenting that they weren't expecting such graphic violence, or that it disturbed them. which... idk man, read the tags? it doesn't really bother me to get those comments, I usually just remind them that I did tag it all and they chose to click, but I hope they enjoyed regardless.

Do you write smut? If so, what kind?

my insane AU *ideas* definitely have way more smut in them than my regular fics (which have none). alas, most of those ideas are sealed away in the DMs of my most trusted confidant (you know who you are) and I am way too asexual to actually write it seriously. those ideas also feature more noncon, dubcon, and general abuse trauma than I would be comfortable sharing on my actual account. they are mostly very cathartic ideas that wouldn't get developed into full fics. I do, however, have a post detailing my headcanons for convexian as a trio on the asexual-autistic-cannibalism spectrum. and yes, those three things are inherently linked. that post and the fics that go with it are as explicit as my works get, really. sometimes I will hint at sex / make innuendos in one-off lines, though.

Have you ever had a fic stolen?

nope. I've had a few tumblr posts reposted on instagram, but to my knowledge nothing of mine has been outright stolen... sometimes I see people using very similar plots or styles to mine (particularly in the homoerotic cannibalism genre) and go 'haha it would be funny if they were inspired by my fic' but I'm not popular or egotistical enough to be mad about that.

Have you ever had a fic translated?

nope. that would be cool, but I'm in pretty english-centric fandoms right now. my aunt had one of her fics translated into five different languages, so I have a lot to live up to!

Have you ever co-written a fic before?

nope, but sometimes I will get ideas from other people or they will get ideas from me. @angeart and I have co-written our Ari AU (HC), but that is more of a detailed summary than a fic. also go read it.

What's your all-time favorite ship?

I mean come on. did you think it wasn't going to be scarian? (but grumbo, convex, and all combinations of those four freaks, are also up there)

What's a WIP that you want to finish but don't think you ever will?

basically all of them. Kingdoms AU (HC) will haunt me forever though.

What are your writing strengths?

like others before me I'm just basing this on the comments I get - I am apparently very good at getting character voices right (which is something I do try particularly hard to do, but I honestly think sometimes I get it all wrong). one of my other strong points is writing both abstractly and very literally, especially with gore. I like weaving together metaphors and similes with more blunt descriptions of the physical senses. it seems to work.

What are your writing weaknesses?

oh baby I am terrible with action scenes. pure action really stumps me, and it's what I struggle with most in my professional writing too. that and consistent characterisation (I think in fic maybe it's a bit less of an issue, people don't *really* care if a character is slightly inconsistent, but I bug myself with it... 'he would NOT say that' is my internal motto) also sometimes I dive way too deep into the internal world and forget about the external - especially when a character has to do something simple like walk down the stairs or some other quite mundane action. then everything becomes quite confusing and loaded in too much metaphor and weirdness, something I noticed the most when re-reading the first chapter of Kingdoms AU.

What are your thoughts on writing dialogue in other languages in a fic?

I did it once. badly. I'm monolingual and stupid and my opinion on this is just sort of 'do whatever makes the story flow the best'.

What was the first fandom you wrote for?

hamilton. i think. but I had ideas for my little pony and team crafted beforehand that I never wrote because i was, like, 10.

What's a fandom/ship you haven't written for yet but want to?

honestly just wanna write more solo grub (grian x cub). hashtag grub violence.

What's your favorite fic you've written?

one of my least popular fics, and second most recent. Who can really tell? (Life Series) is one of the works that feels the most polished and creatively challenging. perhaps I love it so much because it's unpopular, but I genuinely think my characterisation of listener!bigb was some of my best. it remains amusing to me that its sister fic is my most popular fic by kudos. if you're reading this, perhaps go give it a chance ? 🥺 I also have a huge soft spot for COMMS AU (HC), of course. but it feels unfair to judge an unfinished fic against finished ones.

---<0>---

I don't usually tag people in these sorts of things, but if you wanna give it a go then definitely do! I totally stole the entire formatting and idea from shouting. I will tag @angeart a second time, but no pressure my partner in crime ;D

[aszles]

csm chapter 120 but in toki pona (first 10 pages)

alright hellooo!!!! this is my first published translation in 2024 i guess!

of course i'm marketing this towards english speakers since i'm not sure if there actually is a part of the csm fandom that speaks toki pona... i hope you'll stick around to see something a little fun and different!

so if you don't know what toki pona is, allow me to explain! ☝️🤓 toki pona is a conlang created by Sonja Lang where the main draw of it is that it has less than 200 words! it sounds like it may be tricky to speak with so few words, but it's surprisingly easy and very fun! i always recommend it to anyone who has a bit of time on their hands and wants to try something new.

here i was mostly trying out gimp for comic translations, and so i translated the first 10 pages of chapter 120! i chose this because... it's silly! also fun fact, the start of this chapter was one of the things that pushed me to read chainsaw man!

ok that's enough preface rambling, let's get on with it!

i think typically the first page should be full sized if it has to, but nayuta peace sign is just so cute..!

alright, if you wanna feel like you're on a date with asa then keep reading to find an english translation and translator's notes! if not... feel free to leave, i hope you eat something nice today! (omekapo!)

semi-literal translation:

yoru: woof! woof! woof!!

nayuta: HAHAHAHAHAHA!! yoru: woof woof! wooof!! denji: Nayuta! what did you do?! nayuta: i turned her into an animal. denji: why?!?! nayuta: because she [kissed] my thing! (here she basically says that yoru interacted with nayuta's thing using her mouth. it's a very vague statement)

denji: i'm not your thing! turn her into a human now!! nayuta: want food! can't! (technically she says "food desire! no ability!") nuh uh! denji: ah?! i'll make food. when you eat turn her into a human!! nayuta: 'kay!

denji: eat and turn her into a human. i'm not joking. nayuta: hey! this is my food! bad! bad!! nayuta: hey... do you really want her humanity? (sounds very weird in english but i'm not sure a better way to put it) denji: what?

nayuta: Denji. every woman tries to kill you, right? why is this animal different? denji: why...? i have a feeling. nayuta: hmmmm.... good. (this is being used as an affirmation similar to "alright" or "very well then") you won't die. okay. i'll turn her into a human.

nayuta: but, two things. if they're not good to you, then she'll be an animal forever. denji: what are they?! nayuta: number one. i can eat ice cream (cold sweet) all the time. denji: i want (it) too. nayuta: number two.

nayuta: don't be nice to her. denji: are you joking?! nayuta: uh, i'm (being) real. this is the best. she's bad to my nose. denji: your nose?

denji: is she like a wet animal? nayuta: weirdo, wet animals are good! anyways, don't be nice to her! i'll change her knowledge... so that to her you didn't come (today)! denji: you'll what?! then she'll hate me!

nayuta: not important. you won't talk to her. denji: ahhh...

denji: you're number one, nayuta...

tadaaaa! there we have it! now time for some translator notes, of which there are actually not a ton.

toki pona is surprisingly difficult to adapt for different kinds of characters. due to having no register, it's hard to make characters seem more punky or polite than normal, and to distinguish between adult and child characters. here particularly we have the issue that, while Nayuta is a child, she's also super smart! so making grammatical mistakes doesn't really seem in line for her character. the main action i took was doubling up "la" with her. this isn't incorrect, but there are more optimal ways to say things to avoid ambiguity. i thought that perhaps a kid wouldn't think ahead with their words as much as an adult would, and may end up with this quirk in their speech.

related to the last note, one possible way of making a character seem younger or less proper is having them use nimisin ("unofficial" community made words). it's a fun idea, but it's kinda inaccessible and also... i don't really know nimisin! guess i'm not hip enough >_<

the name Nayuta luckily fits with toki pona phonetics (with the y changed to a j)! Denji doesn't quite, so i opted for Tensi. this is the most direct tokiponisation of his name. it sounds a bit like tenshi! (angel in japanese)

just a little something. i went with humans being "jan" and devils "monsuta" (hybrids and fiends may be jan monsuta and monsuta jan respectively, or they could have nimisin) so.. why are these two using jan? well for Denji that's an easier question, as he is basically human-first and also had the name before he became a hybrid. (also there's no need to be so descriptive with a headnoun) as for Nayuta, she uses jan because she's sort of undercover. depending on the circumstances, or when referring to her with her real name (like saying Control Devil in english) she would be monsuta. some devils who gave themself a name use jan, while others such as Power use monsuta (because why would she call herself a human when devils are clearly superior?!)

suwi lete or lete suwi? that is the question. here i decided to go with suwi lete because i think the most appealing aspect to Nayuta is likely the sweetness!

i hope this was at least somewhat enjoyable! i wonder what i'll find to translate next >w> thank you so much for reading if you did! sina lukin la mi pilin pona a!

[nazuna-tunnel-vision]

Kohaku analysis

Hi anon, sorry for taking more than 5 months to reply. Kohaku just has so many things going on that I really didn't have a firm understanding of his character and don't know where to start. Still don't actually, but I'll give it my best shot.

Kohaku's main appeal imo is his numerous gaps. There’s a ridiculous amount of them, but the main ones are that he's pink, he's 160cm, he's the youngest character at 15, and yet he has no qualms about killing a man.

He could kill a man and yet was locked in his house until just this year. He could kill a man and yet he's terrified of zombies and wouldn't be able to kill them.

He talks like he has his things together (and he sort of really does), and yet he is still the youngest in the cast and so many people around him nurture him and watch his growth with warm and loving eyes.

Everyone who lays their eyes on him immediately treats him like their cute little bro, and yet he seems to be the more emotionally stable and mature one in Double Face - where his partner is literally the self-proclaimed Mama in the series.

I think the most confusing part about Kohaku is his maturity and simulataneous lack thereof. How he manages to be emotionally mature in DF, and yet is still the baby in Crazy:B. So for this post I'm going to delve into how and why Kohaku manages to do this.

---

(Please bear in mind that I haven't read the !! main stories and the stories for No Name Yet and Ariadne, so i might be missing important characterisation.

Also be warned that I will be referencing events in Dark Night's Passing, Secret Service and Sudden Death. Spoiler warning!)

I feel like most people get really blown away by the shock factor of Kohaku being trained as an assassin. And together with the way Kohaku carries himself, a lot of fans forget that there is a lot he doesn't know about the world.

He grew up in isolation and could only physically step foot into the rest of civilisation at the end of the ! era. And then he promptly got lost. (He asks Anzu for directions to ES in his first character story.) He doesn't know how to choose his own modern clothes either. The clothes we see him wearing were picked out by the salesperson, and for his Feature Outfit he chose traditional wear similar to what he wore growing up.  

Kohaku is honestly very similar to Hiiro in this respect. I think it's just not as obvious to non-KohakuPs because:

Kohaku has less questions. This can be explained by how he grew up on the internet, so he had the advantage of familiarity with technology.

Screentime differences:

Hiiro’s ignorance was emphasised throughout the novel that was !! Main Story 1

Kohaku had one (1) introductory chapter that highlighted his ignorance. The rest was sprinkled in mini-talks and event stories.

Differences in other characters' responses to their questions:

Hiiro gets Aira loudly yelling, without fail, that he's stupid and ignorant. And then Hiiro yells his apologies in response. The whole exchange is very noisy and impossible to ignore. (It also happens multiple times.)

Kohaku’s interactions, however, tend to go very smoothly. They’re always along the line of, "Oh, what is this? Ohh so that's it. Thanks for teaching me!". Clean and simple, no jabs and just question > answer > thanks. Or he'll say, "I've only known about this through the internet! I'm looking forward to experiencing this myself this year." And no one comments on it, except for maybe a “Fufu I hope you have a good experience.” It’s all very short and pleasant. Nothing you would take note of unless you’re a KohakuP and realised you’ve seen them lots of times

So anyway, in contrast to Kohaku’s general cool and judgemental "Madara/Rinne-han you’re so stupid” vibe, he really is not that wise in the ways of the world. To be frank, I think his cool-as-a-cucumber behaviour is very boyish of him. You know, when you're a teen and pretend to be more grown-up than you actually are.

And Kohaku is acutely aware of how little he knows. Kohaku has low confidence in making his way through the world, even though he generally acts very capable. This low confidence is the focus of the Honey Bee scout story. It's a very, very cute story where Crazy:B finds ways to push him out of his comfort zone while still respecting his 15 year-old pride. Basically Kohaku was going to shy away from something and Rinne goes "Ha bet you can't do this!" Kohaku reacts very much like a kid by immediately biting the bait. So cute! Another point for the KohakuPs who love the cute and child-like Kohaku. I wouldn’t call Kohaku immature, but he sure isn’t a mature adult either. He has a lot of growing left to do!

Kohaku just generally exudes this little brother energy as easily as breathing.

I think part of it is his size and pink hair colour and baby fat.

Another is probably how open he is about how little he knows. Like Hiiro, he’s not shy about asking for clarification. If you hang around him for long enough, you probably come to expect and accommodate the gaps in his experience.

He’s also super forthcoming and genuine with his praise, admiration and gratitude. The instant he thinks of something nice, like "wow this person sure is skilled!" he'll just let the person in question know. (Unless you're Rinne - you tease him too much for him to want to praise you genuinely to the face orz.) I think people just like being around him and being nice to him because of this habit, and they become nicer and better people in his presence. ((I am looking at HiMERU in particular.))

And despite what I said about his teenage pride, Kohaku's also very gracious and accepting of being consistently assigned the little bro. His attitude to realising that people adopted him is just "huh? well okay I guess. Thank you for your help." He doesn't see it as being patronising; he recognises that people just want to be nice to him and lets them + is grateful for it. (Again, Rinne is an exception because his modus operandi is to bully Kohaku and Kohaku Knows This.)

I think these factors form the basis of his relationships with everyone (minus Madara and his family) where he’s the little baby Kohaku-chan that everyone loves to dote on. And he lets them, and also lets them know that he is grateful for their care! It's super wholesome and cute. Ra*bits-esque, even.

---

But despite all these child-like parts of him (especially him not knowing a lot of common knowledge), he also has a lot of. I don’t know what to call it, I guess emotional maturity in his interactions with others. He's always very genuine and sincere and respectful, and this doesn't ever change unless you're deliberately fucking with him (Rinne).

It's most obvious when you look at Double Face and his interactions with Cagiest Bastard in the Whole Series, Mikejima Madara.

This part requires a good deal of understanding about Mama's issues and Oh Boy Is It A Lot! But what you need to know is that Madara's family is involved with the police and the Shinkai Cult and Madara was been elbows deep in that world from birth. He beats people up off screen and sends the mafia after them and doesn't blink. And his emotional walls reach stratospheric heights. He calls himself Mama and is extremely friendly, but he never really lets anyone close. Headcanon that it's bc he wants to be as close to others as a Mama, but is purposely assigning himself a role that most ppl reject bc he is afraid of actually being that close to people. He's been in a solo unit for the whole of the ! era and was acting alone even before then. Talking about his issues and true feelings are simply not something he does. He buries it under layers of Wasshoi Wasshoi Festival Man Mama. Sometimes he alludes to how estranged he feels but before anyone can meaningfully respond, he jets off to another part of Japan/the world and is uncontactable for a few months.

There's no time to really go into what Madara's issues actually are, but basically Anzu (and the enstars writer Akira) created DF because she wanted Madara to have a friend. Kohaku as an assassin and Madara as the kid of a mafialord just Get Each Other the way others don't. Just look at Dark Night's Passing. It's about feeling too dirty with sin to truly assimilate with the bright sparkling world of Ryuseitai/Tsukasa. It's about not being able to talk about their feelings about their involvement with the underworld because they don't want to sully their friends. Madara sort of talks about it with Kuro, but Kuro is an ex-delinquent and beating other misguised youths up is nothing compared to what Madara is still involved in. Kohaku is probably more comfortable with Crazy:B than any other unit because of their themes of being rejects and rulebreakers, but that's still not the same as assassination. I don't think Kohaku ever came clean to them about his family. Kohaku & Madara just truly do understand each other in a way no one else can.

And despite all that, Madara still tries to distance himself from Kohaku. 😡👎👎. Kohaku has to chase this mf ""unit leader"" down to get updates of their shared unit's work. Kohaku has to call Madara and gets sent to voicemail every time. He has to call up everyone he can think of who could be in contact with Madara and then fly his ass across Japan to beat up Madara up. (He doesn't actually beat Madara up because he's a good kid. He just joins Madara in whatever he was working on and helps him and reminds him that he is no longer alone.)

Anyone in Kohaku's place would be completely justified in thinking that Madara's more effort than he's worth and give up or lash out at him. Just the way Madara likes it! With people so far away from him that he can't hurt them or vice versa (Madara ignores the fact that the act of pushing others away is in itself hurtful.)

But Kohaku doesn't abandon Madara. He takes things pretty damn well imo.

---

Kohaku re: dirty jobs & the Underworld is just so. He's so hopeful even while being born in and knowing the shit side of the world. It breaks my heart and fills me with awe with how disillusioned and yet hopeful he is with the world.

Kohaku in the early stories constantly talks about how the world & people's hearts are dirty. And yet, whenever he receives help (...often, bc of his politeness and little bro energy) he also always comments that kindness still exists in this world. Kohaku, especially in Dark Night's Passing, is a very jaded child. He thinks that his family's line of work is pretty dirty and hates being born into it, but still says he is okay with sacrificing himself for the Suou's. He thinks the world is rotten, that injustice will always exist, and that sacrificing himself is okay, but does whatever he can to ensure that the good people in his life don't suffer.

Kohaku doesn't roll over and give up. He finally has freedom after 15 years and he is so excited to experience all the good things the world has to offer. He knows it comes with bad things too, and accepts it like a champ! Takes it as a foregone conclusion.

It contrasts so sharply with Madara that I just gnnh. Madara is tired. He has given up. He's just floating along trying to help his loved ones while fighting a war in his head and heart against the instinct to also push them far away.

Madara and Kohaku initially connected over their shared understanding of the rotten world and their roles in it, but their attitudes towards living in such a world and with such a role couldn't be more different. Madara believes that he never belongs in the sparkling world everyone else inhabits, and he tries not to "sully" it by never entering it. Kohaku accepts the world, both its rotten and good parts, with an almost zen-like countenance that you really wouldn't expect from a 15 year-old freshly entering the world. Kohaku is excited and accepting and open-minded of all the world has to offer (as long as he doesn't look stupid, because he is 15 and freshly interacting with people irl, he cares about appearances.) Kohaku uses his assassin role to protect himself and those he cares about; it's not something that he even conceives as holding him back.

This really uniquely positions him to set Madara back on the path to heal, because he shares a similar background and yet offers perspective that Madara would not have accepted from any other person. Yes this turned into a DF dynamic analysis but Kohaku was literally created to be a Madara foil, so. That probably just means I'm doing my Kohaku analysis right.

---

Explaining Kohaku's emotional maturity

From a meta perspective, Kohaku's emotional maturity can be attributed to the fact that he was explictly written to be Madara's friend and confidant. He had to be a character that could make Madara feel comfortable enough to let his walls down. He also had to be a character that didn't have the same trauma response and who could handle Madara's.

Lorewise, I think Kohaku's emotional maturity when it comes to relationships (being so open, honest and respectful) can also be explained by his upbringing.

The fact that Kohaku is so open and honest and respectful can be a bit surprising, considering how he was, y'know, locked up for 15 years and all. You expect him to have some very tragic backstory, where he was abused and went through grueling and traumatic assasin training like Killua from Hunter x Hunter or something. You expect him to be cagey and defensive, like Madara or worse. Then you read Sudden Death and it becomes apparent that the chances of Kohaku having been abused are abysmally low. Kohaku is very, very loved by his family. There are still things that don't add up, like Kohaku still having been locked up in a dimly-lit room for 15 years and speaking of his growing up years so negatively. But I'm inclined to think that against all odds, his family treated him very respectfully as a little man and he was raised well. Maybe his distaste for his upbringing was because his family never really tried to justify it or gaslight him into thinking that it was normal and okay. The Oukawas are pretty cool!

---

TLDR for this whole post; Kohaku is very accepting, genuine and forthcoming. He can put even the most guarded people around him at ease and inspires them to be better people just by being himself around them. He was written perfectly to bounce off Madara (and Rinne).

He is also very small and cute. People can't help but dote on him. He is also so excited to finally participate in the world, but feels the tiniest bit of trepidation. He is growing bit by bit every day! Basically he would belong at Ra*bits is what I'm saying. If you ignore the whole assassin thing.

[xxmyhomexx]

THE DESERT ROSE: My Rose

Ok, since I am going to romance Zain because he's hella interesting, I started thinking of a love scene that might happen, but it also has no connection to the game, and that's just how my imagination runs because I'm a sucker for intriguing LIs. 🤷‍♀️ WARNING: NSFW

~~~

What if they are in Brazil and they're on a date, and Zain takes a genuine interest in her but she's a bit afraid because if their age range? He's about 10 years older at minimum, but Yasmin can't help but feel a connection to him.

In the lobby of the villa they are staying, she decides to chance it and accepts Zain's attraction. They go on a date, exploring small outdoor markets in Brazil as well as eating at a restaurant that makes the best food amongst the Portuguese culture. Around four hours later, they end up in a bar, sitting at an indoor lounge area enjoying each other's company. Zain takes alcohol very well, whereas Yasmin decides to just drink water.

"Come on, try it," Zain suggests. "You never know."

"Ok, but if I end dying of alcohol poisoning, I'm contacting my father's men." Yasmin side-eyes him as she sips a beer from a bottle offered, but the touch of its taste to her lips is enough for her to fling it back in his hands. "Gross!"

Zain chuckles. "I guess Mr. Kadir's daughter isn't fond of beer."

"Not that kind," Yasmin sneers. "It tastes like vomit."

"Like I said, I admire a woman of traditional value." Zain sets his bottle aside.

"Does this traditional value include a foot up your ass?" Yasmin raises a brow.

Zain smirks. "Only if you're the one doing it."

Both of them laugh as Yasmin sighs, staring into the fireplace and listening to the patrons in the bar. So much had changed in a long span of time, and she rested her head along the arm of the chair. While pondering, Zain took the time to admire her. The dress she wore was one he designed for her, shaping the curves of her figure comfortably without it tightly restricting her. Her elegant brown hair was loose around her shoulders in waves, her eyes winged.

He set his beer to the side and leaned in close, catching her attention.

"You're pensive," he noticed.

"I just...it's amazing how much my life has changed. I was just Yasmin Al-Aziz, daughter of Kadir, Sefer's most famous politician. But now...I'm out here, with his colleague. And I wouldn't even change a damn thing."

Zain takes in her words as he notices she wears the bracelet he gifted to her. He offers her a hand, helping her from her chair. They walk through the bar and a set of double doors, up a staircase taking them to a second level. The bar he chose was also a hotel, discretely making a reservation for the evening.

"I hope you don't mind," Zain flicks a key card between two fingers. "It's quite late, and I'm awfully tired."

Yasmin blushes. "I didn't bring pajamas, Zain."

"You won't need them tonight."

Yasmin crimsons as he takes her hand and escorts her into the room. It's about the size of a standard living room, with a chaise lounge right next to a lit fireplace, and a queen-sized bed with a purple canopy. In the middle of the room was a small table with a vase of roses.

"Oh wow," Yasmin was in awe. "You really planned everything out. Let me guess, you knew I'd say yes to this date, and thought you'd get lucky?"

Zain shrugged. "No, I never take advantage of a woman like that, especially one I've...grown too fond of."

Yasmin smug look faded, and now she was genuinely confused. Zain plucked one of the roses from the vase, causing his date to warn him of the thorns. However, they'd been cut, and he twirled it in his fingers thoughtfully.

"I'm not asking on behalf of your father, but as a genuine man. Yasmin...will you give me your heart? Fully and honestly, only committed to me?"

Yasmin didn't move, couldn't even answer. She eyed the man closing in on her, eyes following the rose in his hand. He inhaled its scent before holding it out to her. He let it trail across her cheek, down the hollow of her throat, to the region between her breasts. Her chest heaved when she felt the softness of its petals tickling her skin.

"Are you trying to seduce me with a rose?" She raised a brow.

"What?" Zain's lips thinned. "Of course not!"

Yasmin smiled sincerely. "I'm kidding."

She closed her hands around the one that held the rose. "Zain, I've already known who my heart belonged to a long time ago. This attraction between us...it scares me, but years are just numbers, and they don't add up to what I want now. I want you, heart and soul, no one else."

And with this, he slammed his lips against hers. His tongue invaded her mouth, tasting every inch and corner that he could lap up. Yasmin's also did, as if was a war of who wanted dominance over the other first. After several minutes, they broke a part, gasping for air. Yasmin knew where the next part lead them, but she was nervous...and a virgin.

"Zain," she gulped. "I-I've never done...it before."

He nodded. He walked behind her and she turned to face the fireplace, the orange flames dancing in her eyes. Two palms rested on her shoulders, and she closed her eyes when she felt them start to massage her, across her collarbone, blades, and down to her back. She heard the zipper to the back come down, slowly. Soon, the golden fabric pulled at her feet, leaving her in a set of red lingerie. He kissed the base of her neck down the crook of her shoulder, letting her head lull to the side.

"Beautiful..." Zain voice rasped as he started to rid her of the rest of her underwear. Soon, she stood bare in front of him, still with her back against his taught chest. A part of her should have been embarrassed, but the fire in her belly bubbled and crackled with determination. That was, until she felt one hand slide downward.

"Zain...ugh!" She buckled her knees together, locking his wrist in a semi-firm grip.

He smirked. "Already ready."

"Zain, I-I'm..."

"Sssshh," he purred. "It's to help you. Trust me, Yasmin."

She moaned as her legs finally buckled beneath her, causing her to hold on to the arm of the chaise for balance. With aide, she crawled onto the cushions as his fingers continued their magic.

"Z-Zain, please," she gasped. "I-I n-n-need you."

He kissed his way up her spine and toward the base behind her ear. "I'm right here."

In a haze, Yasmin couldn't hear him ridding himself of his clothes and ripping open plastic, slipping on protection. She grunted when he flipped her over on her back and dragged her toward him.

"Oh my god." She gasped. Zain's body was built like a Morroccan warrior, a six-packed lined with definition but not overly done. His biceps were bigger than she thought, but he was the kind of fit she liked in a man: natural, hard, the kind that made her blush. He kissed her once more, molding her body against his. The chaise ricked from underneath their weight, but it held to full support as he crawled on top of her.

He started to lick, graze his teeth, and suck at her collarbone, neck, anywhere he could find. He then trailed his mouth tortorously down her body, earning him a pleasant tune of moans and groans. She was so lost in it, she almost didn't feel a sharp cut into her body.

"AAAUGH!" It was sudden, swift, and full. She clapped a hand over her mouth to muffle the labor breathing. It burned and stung, causing tears to prick at the corners of her eyes.

Zain didn't move, didn't budge. He just ran his fingers through her hair, assuring her it'd be better in seconds. He ran his thumbs across her wet eyes and lifted her slightly.

"It's better," she was no longer in pain. "I can take it."

Slowly, she felt him start to move. He never peeled his gaze away as she interlaced her fingers in his, urging him to go faster.

"Yes, yes, like that," she pulled him in for another kiss. "It feels like Heaven!"

Suddenly, she flipped him over, now atop of him. Zain kept his hands on her hips as she balanced one hand on the arm of the chaise with the other on his shoulder.

"More, more. Zain!"

"Such a greedy, rebellious princess." Zain smirked. With a final jerk of his hips, Yasmin collapsed on top of him, exhausted but satisfied. She lay there in his arms for a few minutes, gathering her thoughts before he slowly lifted her and carried her to the shower.

In the bathroom, Zain shampooed and soaped the length of her body, running his fingers through her soaked main. She soaped the entire area of his back, across his chest before finishing off with his hair. Yasmin pulled his head down and kissed him, molding herself against him.

"I'll never get tired of this."

"I'll never get tired of you, Yasmin. Never."

This was all she needed. He was all she needed.

[osmiumamygdala]

Negative comic rant ahead.

Article that gives you instant heartburn (I've supplied the link in case anyone wants to see it firsthand, but I've summarized it as well):

And usually I wouldn't post anything about articles like this because it has its fair share of typos and is lacking sorely in context BUT it is posted on the official Marvel website which is Worrisome

Like

Colossus was forced to kill in self-defense. And he was ANGRY while he did it! Oh no! Gasp! I'm scandalized! He should have made the Good Boy choice of dying and letting everyone die, obviously! /s. Also... you skipped Proteus. He also did this to Proteus, remember?

Ah, right. Colossus joining Magneto. Which was super shocking, but... he didn't... actually do much of anything during this time other than stand around, talk beliefs, and take care of Magneto. I mean yeah his inaction in the face of crime IS grey. Also, his sister just died and he didn't get to be beside her. His brother just "committed suicide" again, and his mom and dad just died. I... kinda don't care that he chose to join Magneto at this time. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ Good for him, in fact.

WHY ARE WE ACTING LIKE AN ALTERNATE UNIVERSE/DYSTOPIAN FUTURE MEANS ANYTHING CONCRETE FOR CURRENT MAINLINE COLOSSUS, ARE YOU KIDDING ME?

Yeah, no excuse for this one. This decision wasn't even "morally grey" it was straight fucked up. Though Warren Ellis is on record saying that he did this specifically to character assassinate Colossus because he hated him, he regrets it deeply and wouldn't do it again given the chance.

He was manipulated and being controlled. Next.

Manipulated and being controlled. There was a whole follow-up comic where Storm goes after the Pheonix 5, and she states that he's a victim in the whole thing and apologizes to him. You might as well throw the Proletarian scene in while we're at it! Next.

Manipulated and controlled! 3rd in a row! Wow!

So, to recap; we have 2 responses to extreme grief, one case of actual character bastardization, an ALTERNATE TIMELINE, and 3 cases where he is NOT IN CONTROL OF HIMSELF. By DEFINITION, MORE THAN HALF OF THOSE ARE NOT "CHOICES" THAT COLOSSUS HAS MADE. I don't care if people hate the character or want to talk about him being morally grey, I just wish it could be accurate, consistent, and fair.

Why am I posting about this? Because Colossus is not a hugely popular character, and here's Marvel outlining his "crimes" out of the blue. And I am CONCERNED

BECAUSE

The senior X-Men editor, JDW, hates Colossus with a passion and holds a grudge against the character. Multiple Marvel creatives have talked about pitching a Colossus story and being shot down. Look, I don't want to accuse JDW of anything or implicate that he would let a silly grudge against a fictional character get in the way of Story but... this is Marvel, and I have seen worse.

I also don't want to believe that Percy is going to nosedive into strictly villainizing Colossus. He promised at the beginning of all of this that Colossus fans would like this story and that it would he his Biggest Story yet. So far, Percy has done nothing to back up those claims. I still want to have faith, even though it appears there might only be 6 issues remaining in the series (not really a whole ton of time for a satisfying conclusion, wouldn't you say?) And being as we are still seeing Wolverine grappling with the whole Being Beast's Man-Slave/Attack Dog thing, and Wolverine isn't being villainized for it... it would be a double standard to not follow a similar structure for Colossus, don't you think? Wolverine gets controlled and does horrible things, and we can agree he's not at fault, but the same thing happens to Colossus, and it's different somehow...? Yeah, I don't buy it.

The trend this article sets is concerning to me. I hope this isn't a thing where Marvel is preparing us for Villain Colossus, primarily because the way it's set up reeks of victim blame. We SEE that Colossus is struggling, fighting, and screaming in his mind because he doesn't want to be doing what he's doing. His body, autonomy, and freedom have been stripped from him. He is a PAWN. This is not a conscious decision he is making! So unless they can develop a good reason for that character direction, I don't want it! Really hoping this all turns out to be a rug-pull!

Like... as it stands now, Colossus has ample reason in my book to go full villain. The lack of care he has received in and out of universe is frankly disgusting. Nobody in his life has paid any attention to him for literal years! There were so many red flags that got sped past. He is living in a nightmare where his "friends" either aren't there for him or shrug off his concerning behavior. The friends he left his family for. The family that got torn apart and slaughtered in his absence. And this is a PATTERN for him, which we can actually SEE illustrated in the examples the article gave!

I love Heroic Colossus. That's what drew me to him in the first place! I would love it if he could come out of all of this swinging with his head held high! I want him to prove everybody wrong, to work through his trauma, be genuinely himself, and to finally make some PEACE about his place in the world. But if Colossus is gonna go full villain, I do NOT want it to be half-assed. It needs to be BIG. I want to see his justified RAGE. I want to see all the pain and grief he's bottled up just EXPLODE out. I want him to stop holding back and pulling his punches. No more "morally grey," no toeing the line, FULL SEND IT. To pitch it-- He joined the X-Men for family. The X-Men then BECAME the only family he had. Now, even THAT'S gone!

[icgaminglogs]

Nightwing's Log, Night 24

We know about three Man-Bats. Tim and the others are trying to trace the signal controlling them. If I can take care of the monsters that's one less thing for them to worry about; once the signal's gone we shouldn't have to worry quite so much. I hope, anyway.

One down. I'm a little annoyed this one chose WayneTech as its roost, but it won't be making any more trouble. Two to go.

Two down. These things like high places, clearly. Makes it a little easier to find them, at least. But high also means less interference for the control signal, so who knows if it's their preference or something built in by Talia?

And that's three. The hospital this time. But that should be all of the ones running loose right now, I hope. We've tracked their point of origin to the cemetery, as if I needed another nod to Bram Stoker. Though these things aren't as charming as Dracula was. Should I stop off somewhere and grab a stake and mallet, just in case

The Wayne family crypt? Really? You really can't just let him be, can you? There is nothing sacred to you, is there, Talia? I bet you think this is nicely symbolic, don't you, you absolute bitch. Leave the dead in peace!

Great. Another secret cave system. At least this one has a convenient trail of lanterns to follow. I guess the League hasn't mastered echolocation yet. Lucky me.

...Lanterns that double as booby traps. Really should have seen that coming.

A dino-....oh...oh no...why here...?

This is...something's off. Why did that cave lead here? It wasn't a part of the Batcave system, I'd have recognized it. I don't like this...

What was that?

Welp. Found the League. I don't like that they're here, mostly because I don't like what that implies, but so long as this means I'm on the right track I'll take it.

How far do these caves go? How did Bruce not know about them? Hell, maybe he didn't know how far they went; they weren't naturally connected to the Batcave, the League did that tunneling themselves. Where even am I at this point?

...Looks like I found it. How long has this place been down here...?

Oh god. No. No no no no....no, please don't let me be right, please, I lost him once, I can't...

Fuck.

You would want me to stop you. I know you would. So I will.

Come on, come back to me, I know you're in there. Jason was. So are you. Come back to me, Bruce. I'm not gonna let her do this to you, not without a fight, come on!

Oh thank god.

No!

I'm not losing him again, I can't lose him again, we can't...! Bruce, stand down, I got this. You passed the job onto us, remember? Let us finish it. Let me finish it.

Kinda figured taking Kane out wouldn't end the Court. Didn't expect them down here, though. But they're outmatched; especially here next to a damn Lazarus Pit, Talia's got power they can't even imagine. At least I don't have to fight on two fronts, though.

Time to end this? Gladly.

Shit.

Wait.

Bruce, what are you doing...?

Oh god...

...it's over. I'm going home.

[mayasdeluca]

https://twitter.com/ColettW/status/1736176035501334848?t=9oHNOMs-5d7aROf_keMcBw&s=19

A friend was there and also told me this before (the M&G people act like a cult lol even my friend would gatekeep stuff)

My point is: they know. The sad thing is that a minority being disrespectful gave the writers the excuse to say they were being attacked (Like the fatfobic dms Z***** got back then) So both of them being cautious about this is probably just to "protect" the writers and avoid more heated discusions.

Maybe unpopular opinion: I was really mad, hurt and offended by that shitty storyline buy I don't get the point to keep bringing and asking actors about it (especially when they still work with those writers/producers)

I remember seeing stuff like that and that thread specifically and was happy to hear that they did seem to understand and people were able to voice our frustrations and displeasure with the storyline in a respectful way and that they seemed to agree but I don't know...I understand being cautious because of the writers and not wanting to disagree with anything they chose to do but I just felt like the way Danielle chose to word things at this recent con was a little strange. Like yeah, the fans didn't have to go there and bring up Jack and mention it again because I agree, I'm kinda over it being discussed at pretty much every con now when we know how awful it was, there's nothing we can do about it now and they thankfully dropped it so it's time to move on but the fact that she kind of implied that she wouldn't have changed how that all happened and that they should have doubled down? That kind of tells me that she still doesn't get it to an extent and for her own personal reasons she still thought it was a good idea and I don't know how she could think that a year later after hearing all the fans talk about it in ways that they did.

Doubling down would mean that Jack would forever be connected to them and their baby and I get the frustration of just wanting Marina to have a baby because obviously fans feel that way too but not at the expense of having Jack being involved in all of it. The whole point is that it was disrespectful that they continued to make a man the center of a wlw couple growing their family and that would have continued to happen if they doubled down so I just really hope Danielle understands that and the harm it would have caused and that it's not the same thing as her real life situation and that Maya and Carina deserve to start their family and have a baby without having a man involved.

[quokkahans]

Double Catfished! [FINALE]

You all chose: HELL NAH.

So what will happen when Changbin declines the shot, and eventually picks up on this suspicious trail left by Jisung?

Or a chapter where revenge is sweeter when you throw a curveball.

WARNING: This fic contains feederism, and intentional weight gain which are all SAFE FOR WORK / SFW and in this chapter, obsessive behavior which can be triggering. If you are uncomfy with this type of story and/or its elements, please look away and scroll before the cut.

AO3 VERSION

PART 2 -- PART 1

Should he drink it? 

That's the question replaying over and over the black-haired's head before he came to a firm decision. He wouldn't do something without being assured that it's safe anyways.

"Actually..", Changbin spoke up and signed the waiter to come back towards the table. "Can you bring this back? I just have a bad feeling about it, even if it's a free drink. I'll just help myself with the soju, sir.", he explained before the shot glass was taken from the news writer's hand and sighed in relief.

He might have dodged a bullet, that wouldn't be a good ending to his date with Jisung, right?

But there was a part of him that thought it was the quokka's idea all along, so he thought to be one step ahead just to test the waters.

Several shots later (not really, it was water but looks like the same thing.) and Jisung comes back out of nowhere, making the older man perk his head up before clinging to his lover drunkenly with some sloppy kisses towards the brunette's cheeks.

"Where were youuu? I was waiting for you about 30 minutesss!!", Changbin acted drunk with a whine coming out of his chest before Jisung just chuckled in response, raking a hand towards his boyfriend's messy hair. "Had a painful stomach from eating a lot, so I was in the bathroom for a while.", the baker said, hoping his alibi was convincing even if it wasn't true.

Changbin just hummed in response, the response seemed unconvincing but he didn't want to be pushy so he reluctantly accepted Jisung's excuse. "Hmm, okay. But don't leave me like thattt. Without me knowing where you aree..", he said, keeping his act as he tried to be stern but his "tipsyness" betrayed that which made the younger snort at how cute it was trying to be threatening.

The other shook his head and pinched the older's cheeks, "Fine, since you're so cute. And it seems that you had a couple shots to yourself, didn't seem to wait for me.", he teased before hearing a huff from the older. 

"You took toooo longg.", Changbin "slurred" in a realistic manner before telling Jisung to take some shots but he turned it down, saying that someone has to help but ended up drinking some, but not enough to render him tipsy.

After a while, the two decided to finish their date there but the older brought up something. "Wanna come over to my placeee? We can cuddle 'till we sleep.", he smiled cheekily before Jisung readily agreed with that before asking Changbin's address, then he called a taxi from an app.

"Binnie, let's go now~ The taxi's here now.", the quokka boy said before helping his drunk lover up who was practically stuck to the chair he was sitting on, and after a few minutes the two finally hopped inside the taxi.

The trip was calm, save for the numerous drunk kisses that was recieved by Jisung which thought that his Binnie was such a clingy drunk but it wasn't unusual anyways. "Yah, baby! It tickles~", Jisung laughed quietly in order not to disturb the taxi driver in front of them as they were getting closer to Changbin's home.

Once they arrived, the baker paid their fare before gripping the older's arm as the two walked slowly to Changbin's house and went upstairs to his room. Speaking of Changbin, he seems to be in the brink of passing out which made it a bit harder for Jisung but it wasn't that the younger hated it, he found it really cute.

And as soon as they arrived at said room, Changbin seems to have fallen asleep much to Jisung's soft coos as the quokka rakes a hand over the older's hair. But he contains himself and tucks his lover in the bed before laying down beside him with a creepy grin painted over the baker's face.

"Isn't it amazing? I've been talking to you for over a year now and when we finally met, you fell for my cute trap. Plus I'm clearly obsessed with you and finally, finally... You're mine. And mine only.", Jisung whispered in his boyfriend's ear, not knowing that he wasn't really asleep and was just a good actor watching his quokka being such a fool.

But that can wait for now. After all, he needed lots of rest from a night out and some shots of soju, right?

【   ♡ (˘▽˘>ԅ( ˘⌣˘)   】

Fast forward to the next day and Changbin woke up to his boyfriend sleeping peacefully beside him. This proved to be the perfect moment in order for Jisung's obsessive behavior come right back at him since it seemed like he didn't think much of the consequences.

So the news writer pinned the quokka deeper against the bed which made the younger stir in his sleep and flinch. "Mng.. W-What is happenin- B-Binnie?! What are you d-doing?", he chuckled sheepishly before a low growl came from Changbin as a response.

"Aww, you're acting so oblivious now, huh? I heard every single word, I'm not that dumb, Sungie.", the black-haired smirked before bringing out his phone and showing the pictures of gifts that he recieved since last year.

And the evidence just kept piling on. "And to mention that J.One was your signoff? Your handwriting was so obvious and wasn't that the name you used in high school?"

Boom. It hit Jisung like a wall of bricks as he spluttered on what to say. "W-What do you mean? I don't know what are you talking about."

"You're the one who kept sending me gifts, so I can blame you for..", Changbin squished his fat belly against Jisung's before pulling the collar of his shirt. "Making me fat."

Jisung almost gagged at the response but he wasn't wrong, it was one of his plans to make his Binnie all plump and fat, and the gifts were enough to say it all.  "T-That's not true!", he tried to protest but it fell on deaf ears.

"I can't believe that you could be so obsessive.. But two could play at that game."

"W-What?"

"I learned a few tricks up on my sleeve. Just don't underestimate the nerd you saw in high school, ok?"

"If you want to be obsessive, fine, I can be obsessive and put you under my spell.", Changbin smirked once more before kissing Jisung deeply for a while and pulling away. 

"Can't wait for you to see how big you can go, Sungie."

== THE END !! ==

A/N: And that is it! Thank you all for staying tuned and reading each chapter as I write them.

Anyways, y'all can follow me on Tumblr: quokkahans, and drop some suggestions or we can have a story RP! <3

Again, thank you for reading! But wait, there's more.. An alternate ending? :00 hehe~

[afirewiel]

Let me beginning my response to this by saying that I don't hate or love Snape. To quote Lupin, "I neither like nor dislike Snape." I know he wasn't the best person, who did some awful things, but I also know that he did some good things. I'm also not that a big of a fan of the marauders either. Peter was a traitor and James was not developed enough outside of the bullying incident for me to really care about him. Sirius is alright. Lupin is probably the only one I really like.

That being said, I do like Regulus. Why? Firstly, since he died at the age of eighteen (he was so young), we actually have no idea what he would have been like had he lived. Would he have continued to believe in pureblood supremacy? Or would have he turned out more like this brother? We just don't know. We can make guesses and assumptions and headcanons all we want, but they are just those, guesses.

Secondly, everything we know about Regulus, we know second hand from other characters. We don't get to judge him for himself, unlike Snape or the marauders. We don't get to hear him speak for himself. Others speak for him. Others who are all clearly biased in one way or another when it comes to him.

There is so much mystery and so much that is open to interpretation about him.

I've heard the "he only wanted to stop Voldemort when Voldemort hurt Kreacher" argument before and I have to ask, how is that any different than Snape only wanting to help Dumbledore when he found out Lily would be targeted? We all know he wouldn't have done anything if Voldemort had thought Neville was the chosen one and was going after the Longbottoms. Snape only switched sides because of Lily (and was willing to let her husband and son die, I might add), so what if Regulus only changed because of Kreacher? Sounds like a double-standard to me.

Not only that, but I don't even think that statement is true. The first time we ever heard about Regulus is in The Order of the Phoenix when Sirius tells Harry about him. He said that Regulus started to panic about what he was being asked to do (think for a moment about what Voldemort was doing) and wanted out that so Voldemort had him killed. We know that last part is not true, but what about the rest of it? Rumors have to come from somewhere and a lot of them have a grain of truth. I believe seeing what Voldemort did to Kreacher was only the beginning for Regulus, that it opened his eyes and he started to pay better attention and soon realized what kind of man he was working for and realized he had to be stopped.

And Regulus didn't just happen to die trying to get a Horcrux. He willingly sacrificed his life to do it. He knew full well from what Kreacher had told him about the cave that he wouldn't be coming back from it. And it wasn't a quick or painless death either. He drank a potion that decades later had Dumbledore begging for death and then dragged to the bottom of a lake by inferi. He drowned. I don't know about you, but I almost drowned once and it is not a pleasant experience. It is frightening and painful. It's in my top 5 ways I would not want to die. It's horrifying. And Regulus knew he would die this way. It's one thing to willingly face death, it's another when you know it's not going to be quick or painful. And as I said earlier, he was only eighteen. Barely an adult. He should have had his entire life ahead of him, but instead chose to sacrifice it in the hopes of stopping a man who was the wizarding equivalent of Hitler. And it my books that makes him a hero.

So there you have it. That's why I like Regulus Black.

So Marauders stans tend to like Regulus Black ? Can I know why ? Because he essentially has the same background as Severus, but less developed and less extreme. We're about a wealthy guy, who grew up with disgusting values ​​that he always supported, unlike Sirius, and who only rebelled when his beloved house elf was used as a lab rat by Voldemort and died by taking on an orcrux... So why do they hate Severus exactly ? A poor guy who was mistreated by his father, in addition to being harassed throughout his schooling, then who because of his bad company at school (or rather the few only ones he had since Severus was an outcast, implying that this must have been the only group that truly accepted him, explaining the influence it must have had on him. Because I still remember that Severus is a half blood... Which is what Voldemort's followers are also supposed to hate) became a Death Eater, then recognized his mistake and spent the rest of his life redeeming himself by serving as a double agent before dying for the cause... So, I would like to understand how Severus deserves to be hated and Regulus adored by these people ?

Also, I'm tired of seeing people say that Severus is the worst teacher ever, mistreating his students...

Yes, he was not kind at all to them, but the fact is that he never put them in danger and on the contrary often protected them. He doesn't seem to give unfair grades or impossible assignments. Yes, he shows favoritism towards Slytherin, but Dumbledor, the headmaster of the school himself shows favoritism towards Gryffindor. Let's not talk about Slogorn who actually had his favorite student club ! No teacher is perfect at this shitty school. And sorry, but the case of Neville's fear materializing in the form of Severus doesn't count, because he himself said it could have been his grandmother instead. And Hermione was treated to Minerva telling her that she was essentially failing. So stop with all this bullshit. Severus is not the best teacher in the world, or even not a good teacher at all in terms of relationships with his students, but he is certainly not the worst of the lot in our fetish wizard school.

[sporadicthingcollection]

I do humbly ask for perhaps a little smutty fic about an older Bane having some drinks at a cantina fave spot of his and marveling that some lovely human woman who obviously has a liking to him (and perhaps a liking to Duros in general as she is ignoring all other obviously interested men) is making eyes and smiling at him the whole time. Finally he thinks “what de heck” and gets up and gives her a slight look before walking out. She gets the hint...they walk out...and perhaps some fun happens in the alleyway. Or somewhere else. But damn age didn’t stop this Duros from gettin’ some. (Perhaps this was even shortly before his fight with Boba in BoBF)

ooooooh what a good prompt. thanks!

Just a Gigolo (TBOBF!Cad Bane x F!Reader)

Summary: Cad Bane is never as aware of his age as when he sits at a cantina bar, invisible to everyone around him.

Pairing: Cad Bane x F!Reader

Rating: 🌶 Explicit 🌶

Word Count: 3.3k

Warnings: Mention of prostitution, cunnilingus, PiV sex

There will come a day When youth will pass away And what will they say about me?

---

Cad Bane is never as aware of his age as when he sits at a cantina bar, invisible to everyone around him.

It stings a bit. Thirty years ago, women would be buying him the drinks, and he'd easily charm his way into their beds. Twenty years ago, he needed to work a bit harder, do some wining and dining, but it would always end with some fun. Ten years ago, when he was aching for company, he could always find a pretty lady of the evening willing to make a business transaction.

But his looks have faded, his charms are dated, and not even the streetwalkers give him a passing glance.

He doesn't lose too much sleep over it. It's the bed he made for himself, the bed he chose when he picked credits over a pretty face time and time again.

He wouldn't change a thing if he had to do it over again. That's what he tells himself, anyways.

And so he sits and nurses his whiskey and water. He can't drink it neat anymore. Anything more than a few mouthfuls knocks him on his ass, and he prefers a slow descent into inebriation. Easier on his head in the morning.

A presence materializes beside him. He gives a quick, appraising glance...

...but it turns into a stare.

Stars above, you're pretty.

"I'll have a Sex in the Cockpit," you tell the bartender. "Could I get a double shot of jogan schnapps in that?"

You're a Human, one of the ones with the warm, dark skin the same color of freshly-tilled soil. Long, thick braids frame your face like the mane of a regal beast, held back by a sunny yellow scarf. A brightly-colored floral-patterned dress flatters your... well, everything.

He doesn't mean to stare. He really doesn't. But he can't drag his eyes away from you.

You notice him and give him a shy, slightly uncomfortable smile. "Evening," you say.

He remembers himself and forces himself to look at his drink. "Evenin'," he says coolly.

You look him up and down. "Nice hat."

He cracks a genuine smile at that. So you have good taste. "So it is," he says. "Double schnapps, eh? Dangerous game."

You turn fully to him and wow you're even prettier from the front. And then you smile genuinely at him and the corners of your eyes get cute little crinkles and you get little dimples in your cheeks and sweet stars, he's gone.

"I'm celebrating tonight," you say. "And I don't have work tomorrow, so I can afford to get a little loose."

He nods and raises his glass. "'Grats to ya," he says.

You straighten up a bit. "Thank you." You push one of your braids over your sun-kissed shoulder. He recognizes a flirty tic when he sees one. "First time I've been out without the kids in a while. Kind of exciting, y'know?"

He doesn't know, actually. Yet another thing he gave up in the eternal pursuit of credits.

The little flicker of hope smoldering in his chest sputters out. But he remains cordial. "Yer ol' man on kid-wranglin' duty tonight?"

Your face falls, then twists up into a grimace. "They're with my sister, actually," you say. "My idiot ex-husband is somewhere on Corellia by now..."

That little spark comes roaring back to life, and he doesn't hide his smile. The bartender returns with your drink. You go to slip her your credits, but he stops you.

"Put it on my tab," he says to the bartender. He looks back to you. "Go have fun, li'l lady. Sounds like you deserve it."

You blink at him. It's hard to see, but your cheeks flush just a bit. "Thank you, Mister...?"

He takes a sip of his drink. "Just Cad'll do."

---

He stays at the bar far, far longer than he intends. But he gets to stay in the same room as you, so it's a win for him.

You're sitting with your girlfriends in a booth, chatting away like a flock of nuna. But he occasionally sees you glancing at him. Little sneaking looks that turn into sheepish smiles when he winks at you.

He sees a number of men approach your group. Your friends seem content to bask in the male attention, but you brush them off, over and over again.

Eventually, you saunter up to the bar with a few empty glasses and set them down. You order something non-alcoholic and perch next to him.

You offer him a smile. "Surprised you're still here."

He shrugs. "Got nowhere else to be."

You nod. "Respect the honesty." You drum your fingers on the table and quickly glance to the side.

He's distracted for a moment by your lovely dark eyes, but he ends up following your gaze. All of your girlfriends are looking at you eagerly, and the moon-faced Togruta gives you a double thumbs up and an encouraging grin.

His stomach does a flip as he realizes what's happening. You're coming on to him, and your friends think it's a great idea.

Not that his ego was particularly deflated to begin with, but it puffs right up as you return your gaze to him, twisting a braid around your finger.

You swallow thickly. "You know, the place I'm staying isn't far from here," you say. "You maybe wanna...?"

You let the question hang in the air.

He stares at you just long enough to make you squirm a bit. He finishes his drink with a flourish, and gives you a toothy smile.

"Lead de way."

---

Cad Bane used to fuck. Long, hard romps, with lots of twisting and contorting. He sometimes can't believe he was ever able to do the things he used to.

He's a bit too old for that now. His stamina isn't what it used to be, and most of the acrobatics would end with him throwing out his back. But experience trumps everything, and this old akk dog knows a hell of a lot of tricks.

Like how his breathing tubes allow for him to go down and stay down as long as he requires.

You're even prettier naked, hair splayed out in a halo on the pillow, back arched as he buries his face in your pussy. Your purrs and moans are sweet music to his ears as he languidly licks and sucks you.

You grind your soft hips into his face as he grips them tight, digging his fingers into the smooth, pliant flesh. You were sheepish about your size, but he quickly shushed you.

"I ain't trim anymore neither," he'd said. "So quit fretting and relax."

You reach your peak in due time, moaning and twitching as your pussy pulses. Sweet music to his ears.

He pulls away, wiping his mouth with the back of his hand. You peer up at him with dark, hazy eyes, lips curled into a smile.

"That was... wow," you breathe.

He offers a grin. "Glad ya had fun."

You put a hand to your cheek as you smile, nibbling your lower lip. He wishes he had a holocam to immortalize your coy beauty, but memory will have to do.

He sits back on his haunches, licking his lips. He could just pull his cock out and dive into you, but he doesn't want to seem too eager. So instead he disconnects his breathing apparatus and, after placing it carefully on the nightstand, peels his bodysuit off.

Your eyes widen as you look at him, and he can't help but feel a bit self-conscious. He's by no means fat, but age has thickened his middle a bit, and his skin is scarred and ragged.

"Ain't much to look at," he admits.

You sit up. Carefully, you slide your gentle hands along his torso, tracing all the crags and gullies he's accumulated. His trophy case and resumé, always carried with him.

Your hand travels up his neck to linger on the discolored splotch of scar tissue on his skull. "What happened here?" you breathe.

He'd committed the cardinal sin of bounty hunting: underestimating his opponent. In his defense, said opponent was a teenaged whelp too angry to function in polite society. He should have won that shootout. The pain and bitterness have long faded, but the disappointment in himself still creeps up on him sometimes.

You press it. A zap of pain lances through his forehead, and he hisses. You jerk away, your dark eyes wide. "I'm so sorry," you say, hands flying to your mouth. "Did I hurt you? Are you okay? Do you need bacta? There's some in the 'fresher--"

Yeah, you're definitely a mother. He waves you off. "Tender spot. I'll be fine so long as ya don't touch it again."

He takes your chin in his fingers and leans in to press his lips to yours. You let him.

Kissing doesn't come naturally to Duros, but the first time he tasted the warm, wet mouth of a pretty Pantoran, he was hooked.

And dear Maker, you're like a shot of pure spice. Your lips are so soft and smooth against his, your tongue so sweet and confident in its movement. So much so that he's getting light-headed...

...no, wait. No tubes. He just needs air.

Bane pulls away gently, one hand on your chest to keep you from following. He breathes deeply, appreciating the coolness after your warm mouth.

You give him a lusty, smoky-eyed smile. You trail your fingers down to his belt and start to tug, deftly undoing the buckle.

You don't seem too perturbed by his blasters, though the second one makes your brows rise. If you have thoughts, you keep them to yourself as you place the gunbelt on the nightstand next to his tubes.

He starts to undo his fly, but you put your hand on his and give him a reproachful look. Carefully, you take the zipper yourself and shimmy them down around his hips.

His half-hard cock pops out, bobbing gently. You stare at it in fascination, reaching out to draw your finger along his ridges. A jolt of pressure goes to his belly and a purr escapes him before he can stop it.

You giggle in response. "Sensitive?" you ask. He nods. You feather your fingertips along the ridges, eliciting all sorts of noises from him.

Before long, a few fat drops of precum drip from his slit. You stare at it a moment, then swipe your finger along his glans and examine it closely.

"Thinner than I expected," you say. "Less sticky."

"Ain't fertile."

You nod and, after a moment's hesitation, give it a taste. Your brows furrow. "...Tastes like sour candy."

That gets a quick laugh out of him. A few more drops leak out, replacing what you'd swiped up.

He peels off his trousers and tosses them to the floor. You flop backwards, spreading your legs for him. He takes a moment to admire you before arcing over you, kissing your neck as he gently palms your breasts. They fit nicely in his hands.

As he fondles you, you pump your hand along his cock. Oh, it feels good. Fantastic. Wonderful. He needed a woman's touch more than he cared to admit. It's been too long since he's been stroked, too long since he's burst all over a--

He sucks in a sharp breath and she pushes your hand away, willing himself to calm. Wouldn't do to pop the cork early.

"Are you alright?" you ask.

He purrs loudly, gazing down at you. "Easy, li'l lady," he says. He licks his lips. "Ya ready?"

You grab one of the pillows and push it under your rump. "Uh-huh," you breathe.

He hooks his hands under your knees and slowly pushes into you, giving you time to adjust to his size. You're not vice-tight, a fact for which he's grateful -- thrusting is so much easier when the woman doesn't have a death grip on his cock.

You let out low, heady hisses as you take him. Your pussy clenches around him, forcing a hoarse gasp from him.

He reaches his hilt, and you exhale. You open your eyes to peer at him, then at where your body joins with his. You suck in a breath, and he feels you pulse.

"Ya take it good," he rumbles. "Ya done dis before?"

You shake your head. His cock twitches, and you let out a squeak. "You're my first -- ooh! -- alien," you admit.

Oh, he just loves being someone's first time. They have nothing to compare it to, so it's impossible to disappoint.

Slowly, he starts to thrust. Long, languid strokes back and forth. His ridges push against your clit, making you squirm.

"That feels good...!" you whisper.

He doesn't respond, just chuckles and keeps thrusting.

He's not sure if you just feel that good or if it's just been awhile. But he doesn't care. Pleasure is pleasure and he'll take what he can get.

You seem to be enjoying yourself as well. Huffing and puffing and letting out little moans that make his cock twitch.

He reaches his peak much quicker than he likes. You're nowhere near ready, and he'd never leave a lady unsatisfied.

He bites his cheek to try and hold it in, but all that accomplishes is making him taste blood. He tries to think unsexy thoughts, but you look so gorgeous beneath him. He tries squeezing his eyes shut, but that only emphasizes your moans...!

"Hey," you say. He cracks open an eye to peer at you. Your brow is knit, but you're smiling gently. "You alright?"

He swallows dryly. "Ain't exactly a spring nuna," he rasps.

You nod. Taking one of his hands, you place it on your clit and gently swirl his fingers around it. You moan and purr and thrust your hips up.

Maker damn it all, he can't do it.

He sees stars as he climaxes. No, star clusters -- no, galaxies. He may have seen the Maker, even, but as he comes crashing back down, he can only see black.

He throws his arms out to prevent him from bashing his forehead against yours. You don't seem to notice, lost in your own little world as you finger yourself.

He watches your face, feels your body as you come. Your chest warms up, you squeeze your eyes shut, and your pussy pulses around his softening cock as you let out a few little mewls.

It's the most beautiful thing he's ever seen, heard, and felt.

His arms start to quiver, and he flops atop you, his face in your pillowy breasts.

You let out a little yip of surprise, but he's too dazed to react. He's in a pleasant haze, his limbs nice and limp as his heart pounds. He pants for breath, trying to ease the burn of his lungs.

After a minute or two, he finds his voice. "Sorry 'bout that," he mumbles.

"Don't be," you say. You place a warm hand on his head and gently stroke, careful to avoid his tender spot. "That was fantastic."

He sighs in relief. He pushes himself off of you, his cock sliding out with a sticky shlick. He groans as his back hits the mattress.

You giggle, then carefully get up. You open the door to the fresher and toss a towel to him before closing the door again.

Bane hauls himself to a sitting position. It hurts. He's exhausted. Every bone in his body is telling him to sleep, but he ignores them. He should mop himself up and be on his way.

He's pulling his trousers up when you exit the 'fresher, all cleaned up and clad in a big faded tee. You cock your head at him. "Where're you going?" you ask.

"Don't wanna overstay my welcome," he says simply.

You stare at him for a moment. "Stay. I can tell Aharli to get a cot with Mel and Irrys." You smile. "Revenge for all the times she sexiled me when we were roomies."

Your friends, he assumes. He blinks at you. "Ya sure?"

You nod. "I insist."

He'd be lying if he said he wasn't a little touched and a lot relieved.

He slides his trousers back off as you pull back the covers, and he slips into bed beside you. You tuck your head right under his arm to rest your head on his chest. The highest of your braids tickles his lips, and he tries to blow it away. It doesn't budge.

Your giggle sounds like wind chimes, clear and musical. You reach up and gently move it before draping your arm across his chest and tucking your fingers beneath him.

This is more intimate than he'd expected. He's used to one-and-dones out behind the cantina or having to bail so the lady can take her next customer. This is something he hasn't had in a long, long time.

He's not going to question a good thing. You smell like fresh-cut pinewood, tangy and smoky, and you're so, so warm. Like sipping a cup of fresh caf on a cold night, it seeps into his bones right down to the marrow and relaxes his every muscle.

Cad Bane sleeps better than he has in a long, long while.

---

Morning comes all too quickly. Checkout is at noon, and you have to pack your things.

He watches you carefully, twiddling a toothpick as you shove your belongings into a too-small suitcase.

"Ain't much of a light packer, are ya?" he says.

"Look, you never know if there's gonna be an emergency," you say. "Always have extra underwear, an extra pair of pants, more socks than you'll need, sunscreen, lotion..." You pause and flop over the suitcase. "Maker, I am such a mom," you mutter.

He chuckles. "Worse problems to have," he says.

You smile, and that seems to give you the strength you need to get the zipper around the last corner. You let out a triumphant laugh and heave it onto the ground.

His smile fades. Time for him to go, then.

He stands up and plucks his hat from the bedpost. "Been a pleasure, li'l lady," he says, placing it on his head.

He tries to push past you, but you stop him. You untie the scarf you'd meticulously wound around your braids and place it in his hand. You close his fingers around it and give him an earnest smile.

"Thank you," you say.

He's actually baffled by that. "For what?"

"For a good night," you say. "I had fun."

He considers returning the scarf, but it's bad luck to turn down a lady's favor. "Thanks for the proposition," he says. "Safe travels."

Your hands linger on his just a moment, but you eventually withdraw them to open the door. He leaves you with a wink and a tip of his hat.

He strokes the scarf between his fingers as he descends the stairs. He can't help but feel a twinge of... something. Sadness? Disappointment? Longing?

He'll never see you again. He knows he won't. You'll go back to your home and your career and your kids, and he'll go back to his running and gunning all by himself.

The lonely part of him wants to turn back around. Fill the hole in your heart. Kiss you. Hold you. Steal your warmth at night. Finally let himself rest his weary bones.

But he won't. He's just a hired gun. That's all he is, that's all he ever will be, and that's fine by him.

Besides, he has no time for woolgathering. He has an appointment to keep in Mos Espa with an uppity clone with delusions of respectability.

And so he pockets the scarf and makes his way out into the noontime sun, pulling his hat down low to shade his eyes.

--- When the end comes I know They'll say "just a gigolo" Life goes on without me

---

To the Mastahpost | Tip Jar

[hwrryscherry]

The one where Harry & Model Y/N do a interview together.

NOT MY GIF

blurb: Harry and Model Y/N do their first ever interview together on the Late Late Show with James Corden and they play "Spill Your Guts or Fill Your Guts".

word count: 2.12K

I loved this concept SO much!!! And I really hope you guys like it too. Thank you anon for requesting this😍😍😍

The Late Late Show with James Corden producers called you and Harry trying to book you both to be on the show and to an interview together. You have to admit it that you got nervous; of course you had been through tons of interviews before but to do a double interview with Harry is a whole new level. You both are really private about your relationship and it's kinda rare to actually see one of you talking details of it, and it also had something to do about the larries fans. You were really concerned about them, you never want to disrespect them or even upset them in some way, even though some of them made fun of your relationship, they're still Harry's fans and you respect all of his fans without exception. But anyway, after a lot of talking between your management and between both of you too, you agreed to go and also felt a lot more comfortable because it was going to be with James, that was already friends of you guys.

It was set up that you both will be playing a game in the show called ''Spill your guts or fill your guts'', which actually worried you a little because of the hard questions but besides that, you were really calm, Harry made you calm. He was so great at calming you, I think it's the fact that those past 2 years you both had been through ups and downs and you got quite great at calming each other. And by the way, your man looked SO nice! You were kinda matching actually, as you both were wearing grey. You were in a grey suit and Harry had a grey sweater on looking stunning.

James called both of you on stage and you entered smiling and waving to the crowd as yoi walked towards James's direction. Harry gave him a big hug and you followed by hugging James as well. You both sat in the couch besides James's desk as the crowd got more silenced.

— It's so great to have you here! — James said to you both as he sat down on his chair — Honestly, I really thought you wouldn't accept!

— Oh, Y/N didn't want to! — Harry said quickly making you give him a slightly slap on his arm — Sorry, we had to discuss it! — Harry corrected himself making the crowd and James laugh.

— I never said I didn't want to! I said WE HAD to discuss it! — You corrected him making an emphasis on the ''we had''.

— Alright that's acceptable! Anyway — James looked at the papers on his hand and then back at you — How are you guys doing? I feel like I haven't seen you both in months because you always disappear!

— We've been good! — Harry said while playing with his rings in his hand. You crossed your legs as James stared at you. You couldn't help but start laughing a little because he was fixedly looking at you at that made you a little nervous!

— Yeah, we're pretty good! It's been a nice year! — You answered honestly — And we don't disappear! We just... I mean, I feel like there are times when we actually kinda get away from the world a bit. I truly don't know why. We just focus on spending some quality time together as a couple because we both work so much and we spend a lot of time traveling so it's something really important to keep the relationship stable. And we do it specially in the begging of the year, because that's when we celebrate our anniversary, so I guess it's just a habit that we have to disconnect and enjoy our time together so we can just focus on us and what we expect from the relationship on the following year. And it's the best time to do it because the holidays just happened and he have a little no work time to really be just us.

— Oh right! And how long have you been together by the way? — James asked, he actually knew the answer of that because you're all pretty great friends and you and Harry actually hangs out a lot with James and his wife.

— It's been two years now! — You answered.

— Yeah, it's been a bit now! — Harry completed.

— Oh so, you both weren't dating on the VS Show 2017? Because there were a lot of rumors by the end of the show! — James asked.

— We were not! We actually met at the VS, we took a long time to actually start dating, we started dating in early january 2018, I guess — Harry answered as he slided his hand on his perfectly styled hair.

— Oh, I see... And do you guys plan the future? — James asked making you and Harry exchange looks while smiling at each other — Oh, I like that look... Marriage? Kids? We ALL want to know!

— I mean... yeah! It's almost impossible to be this long in a relationship and not plan it! — Harry said — And I feel like we enjoy a lot of the time we spent together, it's been quite a journey and it's nice to have someone that you really care about and you want to have a future with by your side at some of the most important moments of your life, but I think we both agree that we still have a lot of things to experience before taking this step, you know, the marriage step. But yeah, I can't wait for a time when this is going to be a thing for us! I'd marry her in a heart beat and she knows it! — Harry said. He looked focused while talking but as soon as he felt your gaze towards him, he blushed and started smiling like a little boy who just got his favorite candy.

— So, you won't pop the question anytime soon? — James asked teasing Harry about his reaction over your gaze. As James were close friends with you guys, he knew how much you loved each other and actually everyone could see how Harry kisses the floor you walk by. He is head over heels for you and he melted anytime your hand touched him and anytime you smiled or even looked at him. Everyone who was close to you guys would know that you're the one for him and he's the one for him.

— I mean... — Harry had a cheeky smile on his lips — Who knows.. The year is just starting, 2020 it's a new year!

— And what's your thoughts on that, Y/N? — James asked looking at your blushed and smiley face.

— I agree with whatever he said! I was actually too distracted admiring his beauty to hear what he said. — You joked making Harry blush even more. You were head over heels about his man and this man only, totally in love with him.

— Alright so, on the next block we'll "Spill your guts or fill your guts'' where you'll see Harry Styles and Y/N Y/L/N answering the most crazy questions! We'll be right back! — James said to the camera that stopped filming immediately. You both stand up and walked with James to the other spot in the stage where the game was set up. It was a big rounded table with some of the most disgusting things you've ever saw and smelled. Apparently James wasn't going to play with both of you, but you could also see there was bull penis, cod sperm, chocolate cockroaches, hot sauce, 1.000 year old eggnod and banana smoothie in the table. But anyway, you just chatted with Harry and James until it was time to start shooting again.

— So, we're back, and we're about to start playing ''Spill your guts or fill your guts''. — Harry said as the camera started filming again — And apparently, I'm going to host this part, unless you want to? — Harry asked looking at you across the table.

— No, you can do it! — You answered as you sat straight in the chair looking at the things in the table — I'm nervous I've never done this before.

— Oh yeah, you've never done it! Well that's exciting! — Harry said before letting a small evil laugh leave his lips making you laugh as well and roll your eyes — Ladies first! — Harry said and you took a deep breath before taking a paper card in your hands. — So what am I eating? — Harry said as you both looked to the table.

— I guess...hum.. you can stay with the hot sauce! — You said cheeky smiling at him spinning the table to put the hot sauce in front of him.

— You know how much I hate hot sauce! — Harry said frustated while looking at the sauce.

— I know! — You said right before you whispered a low ''oh god'' before reading the paper — I love this! — You said laughing a little — Alright, Harry explain to the world the meaning of ''Watermelon Sugar'' — You said laughing as you watched Harry's face goes red when he listens to what you asked.

— Well... — He took a deep breath before laughing a little. He's face went completly red as he thought of explaining it — I guess it's about, hum.. Giving pleasure...to your significant other...hm.. by eating a watermelon! — He said pausing a little containing his laugh. Of course everyone knew the real meaning of Watermelon Sugar but neither of you had ever actually defined it with the exact words about the meaning.

— Alright! That was good!...Very convincing! — You looked at him with a slightly mocking expression as you saw Harry trying to decide on what he's gonna make you try.

— Let's go with the banana smoothie! — Harry said with a huge malicious smile on his lips.

— No fucking way! — You said immediately. Harry knew how much you hated banana, actually you'd rather die than eating a banana, so he just laughs — Harry...

— It's a game! You gave me the hot sauce, I'll give you the banana smoothie! — He said and you tried your best to do your pity face, even with the doggy eyes basically begging for him to chose everything else except the banana smoothie. — Alright, alright — Harry sighed making you smile as he now changed the banana smoothie to the bull penis. It was bad, but way better than banana. Harry got a paper card and laughed a little when he read what was written — You're one of the most notable supermodels on your generation and also are friends with some of the greatest models from your time. Rate Kendall, Gigi and Bella to best to the worst catwalks.

— Oh god! — You covered your face with your hands making Harry laughs out loud. You looked at the bull penis quietly and then at Harry again — I feel like I could answer, right?

— I feel like I could answer! — Harry completed putting an emphasis on the ''I could'' making you laugh and then slide your right hand through your hair.

— We've talked about this before, I know, but it was a healthy gossip between a couple... — You said staring at Harry's face thinking — I'd say... — You started but then stopped as the crowd cheered a bit.

— Just eat the penis! — Harry says quickly after letting out a long breath and making you laugh a little by the controversing of the words of your easily jealous boyfriend.

— If I might say, I'm very surprised you're asking me to eat another penis! — You answered quickly seeing Harry's eyes widen at you as he had a big smile on his face.

— I mean, it's just bull penis! — He said and you just agreed looking at the penis again — I mean, I could help you answer this.. Blink twice if the worst one is...

— I'M EATING THE PENIS! — You shouted getting one of them in your hand and just throwing it in your mouth chewing it slowing with a very ugly face because you knew Harry would actually say it, he can be the next gossip girl. — This is disgusting! This is probably the worst thing I've ever putted on my mouth.

— That's funny I thought you liked a penis in your mouth! — Harry said lowly making you literally choke and spit the bull penis in the small bucket you had in your hand and then drinking water as you tried to contain your laugh — But I mean, how much horrible things have you ever put on your mouth, right?

— That's not the point! Focus on the game! — You said as you looked through the rest of the things in the table — As I ate the penis, I'll give you the cod sperm so we can match later. — You said positioning the cod sperm in front of him — Actually, how did they got the sperm out of the cod? — You asked and Harry laugh looking at it as he said he had no idea. You picked another paper card and let out a loud laugh — I LOVE this game! Between Niall, Louis, Liam and Zayn, rank their solo careers to best to... — You laugh at the exact moment Harry covered his forehead with his head. He got the napkin beside him and wrapped it around his neck, then he got the fork with the cod sperm and stared at it quietly.

— Just put it in your mouth and swallow. Don't look at it! — You said innocently making the crowd laugh and Harry to look at you with a mocking expression while trying to contain his smile.

— Right, because ''don't look at it, just swallow'' fixes everything. What are you gonna tell me now? Should I spit or should I swallow? — Harry joked making you laugh realizing what you actually said.

— I mean, I'd swallow it! — You said joking back while holding back your laugh. Even though you were actually shy, you and Harry were used to always making sexual jokes so it was normal to you, and very funny too as you'd do it all the time. But Harry did as you said and threw it in his mouth, but he spit on the bucket beside him. It was your time again and he chose the chocolate Cockroaches and read the last question.

— Who is the most surprising celeb to ever slide into your DMs? — Harry asked making you smile thinking if you should tell it or not even though you knew exactly who it was and so did Harry. You'd always tell each other when someone flirted with you because this helped a lot to deal with all the being extremaly jealous story — WHO IS HE? — Harry joked making you let out a laugh.

— I mean.. I'd say you, for sure! I was really surprised! — You said making him smile because even though he knew you were very excited when he answered your DM, he was definetly not the most surprising celeb to slide into your DMS but he accepted the answer either way.

— Alright, this was fun! — Harry said finishing the game and then the camera came back to James and the new guest of the show.

You and Harry left the studio of The Late Late Show in NYC and grabbed dinner at a french restaurant in the city exactly like you both said you'd do in the end of the night. In the restaurant, you basically talked about the game and how fun it was to do this together and how much you loved going through new experiences together and how much you wanted to see what the future will bring to both of you, because even though the future was uncertain, you both had 100% of certain you wanted to spend it together.