#but i might post my fam sometimes when i feel like it

[machinegrl]

crying rn cause i finally made it past gen 2 of my legacy 😭 guyss u dont get it i started bazillion legacies and never made it past gen 2 it's my curse >< my gen 3 heir is a teen now and im just so hyped about it 🥹

[itsahotminuteinbetween]

.

[roosterforme]

I just saw the post about Darlin joking about him using a walker if they had a third baby.

I feel like Jake would have a real big doubt and guilt in himself one night about being too old for her. Maybe one day they're playing with their boys when the two are maybe like 6 and 3 and Darlin says she misses them being really small and now they kick and squeall when they get kisses because it's like icky.

That night maybe Jake is sitting on the side of the bed as Darlin gets in and she senses something is wrong and he asks her if she was with a younger guy would she have more kids as he feels he's holding her back. He definitely has a bit of self doubt as the daggers always tease him about being the old man of the house.

Btw love I adore your little blurbs for this fam. Today is probably the day I might catch up on a bunch but they are amazing 😍

Oh, ouch. Yes. It would hit him sometimes that maybe certain things would be easier or better for you if you had a partner closer to your own age. (angsty below)

Your husband was one week away from turning forty-seven, and he just absolutely rocked your world in bed. "I like it when you do that thing with your tongue," you whispered, staring up at the ceiling as he sat on the edge of the bed, naked.

His back was to you now, but you heard him chuckle. "And I like it when you do that thing with your tongue."

You rolled toward him and groaned. You were going to be sore tomorrow. "I'll go check on the boys before we go to sleep," you said, kissing him when you stood.

After your robe was securely tied, you walked quietly in to check on both Liam and Asher who were sound asleep. Then you went back to your bedroom where Jake had barely moved an inch.

"They looked extra cute when they're asleep and not fighting over Legos or eating all of the food in the kitchen," you mused, dropping your robe again. "I kind of miss when they were tiny and didn't know how to argue."

Jake cleared his throat. "Would you want to have another baby? If you could?"

You stared at him, unable to read the expression on his handsome face. It was closed off. And you were confused.

"I don't understand," you told him, placing your hands nervously on your hips, suddenly very aware of how naked you were.

"Just answer me. Would you have wanted more than two? Would you have wanted to try for a girl?"

You swallowed hard and shook your head slowly. "You got a vasectomy. I wouldn't even be able to get pregnant again."

Jake ducked his head and looked at the floor. "I wanted the vasectomy, because I'm already the oldest parent in Asher's school pick up line."

You took a step closer. "Who cares about that? You're also the hottest dad in Asher's school pick up line."

He looked up at you and whispered, "Will you just answer the question?"

"I already did!" you snapped. "We decided about the vasectomy together. Last year. You didn't make the decision alone, Jake." His eyes were fixed on your face as you said, "I have never once looked at you and thought you were too old to do anything. I didn't want more kids. Some days I can barely handle the two we have."

You burst into tears, crossing your arms over your chest as you turned to get your robe from the floor again. Jake's arms were around you, pulling you toward the bed, and you let him take you there. "I didn't mean to make you cry, Darlin'," he whispered. "I just hate the idea that I could be holding you back."

"You're not," you sobbed, face buried against his neck as he pulled the covers over both of you. "All you do is make everything better. The boys and I woudn't want it any other way."

Jake held you until you felt calmer, his fingers trailing up and down your arm. "I won't doubt my wife again," he whispered, turning off the lamp.

"Don't you dare."

You fell asleep to the sound of the ocean and the feel of Jake's big hand on your back.

[ancientgoddessofegypt]

ASTRO TALKS: Moons & Venus PT.1

Alright just wanted to have a cool discourse about certain astro placements, we're going to start this off with some moon and venus placements. could be cancer or libra, could be conjunctions to square. doesn't really matter, it all resonates with this post. Lets go!

Cancer moons - Are you the star of your family? Don't overlook this question. I know the leos may got it as the golden star of the fam, but you guys have an interesting spark that inspires people. You may feel overlooked at times but we do notice it, your drive, your flow, your energy. We see you, shadows just don't show themselves in the light, is all.

Libra suns - Do you speak to a lot of people or is your social battery just always on overdrive? People tend to think you're this super extroverted person but sometimes.. you're just not. You know how to put on a show for people, but often times you like to be alone or with someone you normally trust.

Venus in Virgo - Hows your love life? Tired of picking the wrong ones? Stop playing small. That's my only advice here.

Do you trickle down to the nitty gritty details of your lovers? So much so that it could either make you want them a little bit more or truly be disgusted of them? One wrong itch and its downhill from here.

Moon Conjunct Venus - Do people devote most of their energy to you? If not, are you exerting to much force in your life? You might have your energy on overdrive, its time for you to relax. Get some air, enjoy the blissful life you know is yours. Your devotees come when you show up for yourself and desire for your emotional needs to be met.

Moon in the 1st - Are you really sweet n innocent, or is that the role you play? I see u ;) Lol nah jk... But seriously, do you know how calming your aura is? How special it is to be around you? Its not up for grabs lovely plz dont forget it. You have any interested you truly want to follow, your sacral energy (moon/venus ruled) needs more time to express itself in order to be healed and thrive w/ emotional sanity. Very emotional beings and your super power is in your raw ability to express your youth through your presence and vulnerability.

Moon in the 10th - Do you feel in control of your power? How nice are you too others? Would you say its too much?

You're over exerting yourself to allow others to see who you truly are.. Most never do. They see how sweet you are but they don't see the real deal thats underneath. Thats for the 4th house peeps and who touches that arena. Your joy is in your emotional sector, do right by it.

Venus in the 10th - A dream come true. Express your youth and beauty in the way you see fit. YOU are the social standard, remember that!

Do people like you for you? Are others jealous of your ability to be heard, seen, be loved etc. without you having to do or be anything for it? Do you know how special you are? How crazily beautiful you are? My question for you guys.

[just-null]

I just discorvered your blog and whilst I am primarily a choso enjoyer I do think noritoshi is also a really cool character, and I really hope he and choso get a chance for a proper interaction at some point! I'd love to know what your opinion is of choso and how you think he would interact with noritoshi :) also your art is really pretty

[UPDATE] this post was made before Gege revealed that Choso was a shit teacher and before the Kamos ever interacted. This was just my assumptions at the time.

I also want to see them interact... strap in fam, bc I never shut the fuck up

I may describe Choso as a bit OOC since I don't know much of the manga, but I do know bits and pieces!! also what the wiki told me, heh.

[Choso thoughts]

Choso feels like that big brother who's stricter when training/teaching, but lenient when doing literally anything else involving his younger sibs. Although he's wearing a bored expression the entire time, he's actually super happy when around them.

I really like big brother characters so he might climb up my favorites when I see him in action. from that one popular screenshot of him giving Jogo a goofy smirk, I can tell he's got this tiny side of playfulness to him. He can be annoying if he wants to, and he sometimes does that with his brothers. 10/10 guy!

I've seen fanart and some headcanons of Choso, and I can firmly say that he's a green flag. He's the guy who would fix you without trying. HE'S NOT DOING ANYTHING, YOU JUST FEEL LIKE YOU HAVE TO CHANGE FOR THE BETTER FOR HIM.. OR SO I HEAR

[more details under the cut!]

[Choso + Noritoshi interaction thoughts/headcanons?]

Choso and Noritoshi are like super distant cousins/uncle/nephew right?? They came from the same jujutsu hitler, so Noritoshi is like Choso’s many greats cousin/nephew. Be fr though, if there's someone younger than Choso and is related to him in some way, that's an instant lil sibling of his. WHICH IS WHY, their relationship has two sides to it. (imo)

First up is the teacher/student aspect. 

It's no secret that Noritoshi is weaker compared to Choso, therefore, he'd want to train under him. Choso is a strict teacher, he wants his lil bros to be able to protect themselves if he's unable to be there for them, which is perfect since that's Noritoshi's comfort zone. He wants to hone his abilities to reach or even surpass Choso, so he needs someone who'd nitpick him. 

I can see them sparring, and Noritoshi having an awe struck face every time he gets taken down with a new move Choso has yet to teach him. "How did you do that? You must teach me that next, sensei!"

Choso would probably chortle and lightly nudge Noritoshi with his foot, but internally, he's screaming. Imagine your little brother saw you do something cool, and he's shouting at you to show him how to do it. That's the same feeling Choso would get. Of course, he'd show him eventually, but Noritoshi needs to get the hang of the moves he's tasked with right now before adding more to his plate.

They're both beaming with joy when Noritoshi shows progress. Well- as much as two guys who barely emote can beam. Noritoshi is proud of himself for constantly improving and Choso proud of his lil bro for getting stronger!!!!!!

I imagine they bicker often but when they're in teacher/student mode, they rarely cross each other. Noritoshi knows he's training under a teacher and Choso is teaching his lil bro how to beat ass.

The second half of their relationship is the.. older brother/older(?) brother aspect.

whereas Noritoshi is getting little brother treatment from Choso but doesn't want it and Choso annoys/coddles Noritoshi like the best big brother he is... also my favorite aspect, as shown

Noritoshi is independent. He likes his space and prefers to do things on his own. Because of this he involuntarily became the big brother of Kyoto Tech. People go to him for advice, criticism, help with assignments, and when needing to make a responsible decision, they think, "What would Noritoshi do?" You can say he got comfortable with the role of "big brother." 

So when this new guy comes along who's revealed to be family, Noritoshi deems him as a higher authority. Noritoshi's quick to go back to his old ways of respecting his superiors and it's not that difficult. Choso is older, stronger, experienced, and generally a lot more capable than Noritoshi. However, the downside is that Noritoshi would never grow a close bond with Choso if he kept this up. You can't tell your boss your worries, that's not proper! Choso, knowing this, told Noritoshi to knock off the formalities pretty early on.

I imagine this is the first time they'd ever bicker. Choso tries to get Noritoshi to loosen up a little because they're family, but Noritoshi protests that it's because they're family that he should show extra respect!

Choso probably told Noritoshi to call him brother/uncle or something so they can grow comfortable around each other. Let's be honest, Noritoshi calls his mom "mother," you won't catch him dead calling someone who he currently sees as a superior "brother." They compromise by just using each other’s name without honorifics.

Now that the introductions were out of the way, Noritoshi was now stuck with Choso coddling him. Sure it was nice at first, someone in his family who doesn't yell at him for every mistake he makes and genuinely cares for him, but.. Noritoshi feels… annoyed. Choso reminds Noritoshi of a more tolerable Todo, but he feels like Choso still treats him like Noritoshi needs him. He doesn't need Choso around, but he keeps seeing him everywhere! 

It'd be entertaining to see their dynamic. Noritoshi, the younger brother who doesn't wanna be the younger one and Choso, using that to his advantage to grow close to Noritoshi, by being the annoying older brother. He never takes it too far. just far enough that Noritoshi is saying stuff like “Preposterous!” or “This is slanderous!!” I imagine Noritoshi takes it as a personal defeat when Choso brings him food or treats him to an outing. He allowed himself to get little bro’ed..

Noritoshi would try to take the leadership role again and "big brother" Choso back in a respectful way. Maybe suggesting things he should do. Choso probably lets out breathy laughs and pats Noritoshi's head when he tries this. Then promptly goes back to doing whatever he was doing. Choso sees this as "my little brother scolding me for something." Another defeat for Noritoshi..

I can see these two bickering about the smallest things. And by bickering, I mean Choso annoying Noritoshi because he wants to take care of his little bro!!! and Noritoshi getting upset because he's not!!! little!!! he can do it himself!!!

I feel like Choso and Noritoshi would get comfortable with this though...

Choso would get a side of Noritoshi he doesn't often give to most people. They have a special bond that unites them both. Whether it be their cursed techniques or their similar childhoods or some other third option, they stick by each other. The same is true for Noritoshi, he finally has someone that cares about him and not his status. While yes, Choso can be annoying at times, Noritoshi is growing used to having him around. It would seem too quiet if Choso wasn't making him annoyed in some way.. 

of course, they'd have their calm moments. Having siblings is both a hurricane and shallow waters.

These two are stoic fucks, so I can see them communicating wordlessly. The full fucking package like nodding, shoulder shrugs, huffs, BLINKS, you fucking name it and they just had an entire conversation. They say they make it obvious on their faces, but literally, no one can tell. Some people (Arata) think they speak telepathically..........

I hinted at it in the little doodle above, but Choso would probably help Noritoshi with calligraphy. Choso is OLD so he's got to have seen some old old Japanese cursive... He'd use his knowledge to help Noritoshi improve!!!

The whole thing with Choso cooking for Noritoshi.. Its what older siblings do to coax their younger sibs out of their shell. Who doesn't like free food? Choso learns pretty quick from what i've seen and with coffee being Noritoshi’s favorite drink, he's using that.

Choso: there’s a coffee shop downtown.

Noritoshi: what

Choso: we’re going together

Noritoshi: I never agreed to this

Choso: don’t forget your jacket, it could get cold.

And then they go.

Noritoshi enjoys company if it doesn't bother him. So if Choso walked into his room and sat down to do something quietly, Noritoshi wouldn't bat an eye. and That's how they hang out sometimes, just in the same room and they both have a blast.

this one is just me fucking around but I can see Choso asking for advice on how to approach Noritoshi like a father asking how to approach his teen kid. Noritoshi is similar, but he's asking why this guy is doting on him and being annoying. They ask around because I doubt either of them know how to use a phone. Noritoshi is old-fashioned while Choso is just old.

hmm... I can't decide whether Choso would use Noritoshi's name more often to attach the name to a better person or give Noritoshi a nickname to avoid using it....... I want to lean into the former but hmm......

that's all I got! This could be so ooc but fuck it! I like it. Sorry if this was all over the place, i was throwing spaghetti at the wall!!!!

[my ranting, its not important skip this. theres also slight spoilers]

im sitting here analyzing your wording. youre implying they HAVENT met properly?????? ITS BEEN A FUCKING WHILE. LET THEM MEET AGAIN WHAT THE FUCK IM PUNCHING THE WALL. WASNT THERE AN ENTIRE REVEAL THAT YUJI WAS HIS SUPER DISTANT LIL BRO implying that he also has some relation so to noritoshi too which is super cute now that i think about it.. stoic bitch with a sunshine guy who wont shut the fuck up... wait i love that sm..... but regardless WHAT THE FUCK??? LITTLE BROTHER MY ASS.GEGE YOU HAD NORITOSHI RIGHT THERE. FYM NEW LITTLE BRO YUJI. NORITOSHI IS GOING THROUGH IT LIKE EVERYONE ELSE BUT THIS GUY IS ALONE... I JUST WANT HIM TO HAVE SOME FAMILY BRO. GEGE WHAT THE FUCK. AND CHOSO HAVING THOSE DREAMS AND FANTASIES OF HIS BROTHERS TOGETHER. PUT NORITOSHI IN THERE. BRING NORITOSHI BACK YOU ONE EYED CAT FUCK..... I WONT FORGET THIS GEGE, WHEN I CATCH YOU GEGE WHEN I CATCH YOU GEGE WHEN I CATCH YOU GEGE.....

[a-small-writer-in-a-big-world]

Hey what do think the 141’s reaction would be to seeing their s/o experience every emotion while playing a video game, for example rdr2 or gow ragnarok? (Post game ragnarok had me crying at the animation of a dog)

GOW Ragnorak and RDR2 endings made me bawl my eyes out

Ghost

Personally I don’t think ghost is a huge video game fan considering he’s pretty busy. He gives me the vibes of someone who would prefer to read a book instead

But when he’s home he absolutely adores watching you play video games, it’s like his own personal lets play

Lowkey probably backseat games

Anyway, since you’re his favorite person to watch he enjoys seeing your reactions to what happens in the games

He finds it funny that you get that involved in the story (he does too but he’s a lot more quiet about it)

If you cry he’ll understand but don’t expect him to be the same

Will definitely let you talk his ear off about what you think of the game. Will just sit there, nod, maybe add a few things, but just enjoys knowing that he gets to go through all of it again when you find a new game to play

Soap

Literally just as invested as you

I like to think that he enjoys watching you play and will maybe give it a few tries too if you let him

Will give bigger reactions than you because when I say he’s invested it feels like he’s actually experiencing what’s going on

He will cry, laugh, and rage with you

Will definitely want to talk to you about it after you finish and even suggests other games to watch you play because even though he doesn’t get the time to play video games often, he enjoys them

Gaz

Both of you play the video game together if you’re patient enough to wait for him when he’s on his mission

You take turns which means that you both can get really invested in it

He also doesn’t mind to just watch you play a game when he’s got nothing else to do

Won’t be as emotional as you but you can tell it affects him just as much. Sometimes you noticed that he gets super quiet when you do as you’re both watching an intense cutscene

Will probably laugh at you for crying but he has a few tears of his own

Both of you end up sharing lots of fanart and fam theories about the game

Price

He’s not a gamer at all. Don’t give him the controller

He does the dad thing where he says he’s not interested in watching you but then stands awkwardly there watching you play and gets lowkey invested in the story

Reminds you that it’s just a game if you get super emotional but you know he’s fighting against the affects of the story

He finds it endearing though that you get so invested you cry

Probably won’t cry with you

The only times you saw him get close were the moments in GOW Ragnorak when Kratos and Atreus are being the father son duo we all love

You can try to talk to him about it but he might not really understand even if he watched you play

[bisexualnerd]

Writer tag game

I wasn’t tagged, but I saw the game randomly posted by another user so I want to play anyway! (red for fic links and blue for series links)

1. how many works do you have on AO3?

35 (and only one draft because I don't really like working on multiple projects at the same time)

2. what's your total AO3 word count?

395,306

3. what fandoms do you write for?

I write the most for Batfam, mostly Tim and Jason but usually, the whole fam (more or less) is also there.

I write a bit more for some other fandoms but there are only one or two fics for each (2021 Produce 101 - Chuang Zao Ying, Hollywood Undead (but these fics are not finished), Julie and The Phantoms (1 fic - finished), Arsenal Military Academy + The Legends (they are kinda connected in 1 fic) and I have like, one translation project too.

I'm hoping to write Star Wars fics one day too. Really like the whole time travel thing and Obi-Wan is my beloved.

4. what are your top 5 fics by kudos?

The Monster Under My Bed (The Monster Down The Hall)

"Back Away From Him."

if i lose everything in the fire, i'm sending all my love to you

Cold

A Pile of Sleeping Birds

5. do you respond to comments?

All of the comments, definitely. I really enjoy reading and replying to them and sometimes, I even come back to re-read the comments to feel validated 🤣

6. what is the fic you wrote with the angstiest ending?

I write angst a lot but I have a thing for happy endings. But if I look at the fics individually and not like, as a part of a bigger series, it might be i have so much to say but you're so far away. But if not just the ending but the whole plot in general, it can be any fic really (I would recommend Restless Heart Syndrome, And Now You're Home, The Monster Under My Bed (The Monster Down The Hall), and What The Heart Remembers).

7. what's the fic you wrote with the happiest ending?

They all have some sort of happy endings (though some fics that are a part of a series might not but the series will have happy endings). But since all I have talked about is Batfam, I would recommend this from Julie and the Phantoms. I don't write romance often, but this is just a short soft, cute love story of two ghosts (Reggie and an OC based on his real-life wife) plus some humour in the band - ‘Cause I’m Not Too Far And You’re My Favorite Place. I was very satisfied with how it turned out and I still come back to re-read for my own enjoyment a few times so I hope you guys will give it a chance.

8. do you get hate on fics?

My most controversial fic would be Hold Me Close, Don't Let Go (Watch Me Burn) but it's not like people showed hate to me. They just didn't like the story and how I wrote it so there were some unpleasant comments. The newest one, I think I did well with my response. It's a rather heavy fic because I went through a really rough time when I was writing it (along with many others) so if you want to read it, be careful.

9. do you write smut? If so, what kind?

I don't. My fics are all rated G or T (mostly because of swearing and violence, and also some with suicidal theme or idealisation because I did have a really bad time).

10. do you write crossovers?

Just for two fandoms, Arsenal Military Academy & The Legends, because they share the same lead actor and actress so I thought it would be fun to write something about reincarnation. It's Then and Now, Forever and Always.

11. have you ever had a fic stolen?

I don't think I'm famous enough for that.

12. Have you ever had a fic translated?

Yes, into Chinese, actually. It's The Monster Under My Bed (The Monster Down The Hall). The link to the translated fic is in the fic.

13. Have you ever cowritten a fic before?

Not really. I planned my current series How To Steal A Brother with my friend Den and she is also my beta-reader for this series but I still write all of the stuff, which she reads and corrects the mistakes for me later.

14. What's your all-time favorite ship?

That's hard to choose. I really like Robin (Dick Grayson) and Starfire. It was like my first ship ever because I watched Teen Titans as a child. I also like Marinette/Adrien, very cute but the secondhand embarrassment is not very healthy for me (at least she has gotten better at interacting with him). The Doctor (10th) and Rose was one heartbreak that got me crying like a baby in 8th grade.

So honestly, I don't think I can pick because those were the three that came to my mind first, but I still have like a few dozen left.

15. What's a WIP you want to finish but doubt you will?

The Hollywood Undead fic - When Gravity Pulls You In. It was a really fun idea but then I ran into a big writer's block and I haven't recovered for this fic. I have been writing for Batfam again but I doubt I can go back and finish this one (at least anytime soon).

16. What are your writing strengths?

I don't think I'm too good with dialogue but I do have a strength in describing and like some sort of metaphor (English is not my first language so this is a difficult question to answer). I don't know if this is also considered a strength but like I said, I don't really write many fics at the same time so I can manage them pretty well. Most of my fics are completed before I move on to another one.

17. What are your writing weaknesses?

Dialogue. And I forget a lot of stuff so I have to go back to the earlier part so the plot won't be inconsistent. And of course, I write in English, which is not my mother tongue, so sometimes, I lack vocabulary or my grammar can feel weird.

18. Thoughts on writing dialogue in another language in fic?

I mean, I would add translation or explanation very subtly in there. But I saw a Star Wars fic where the writer had like, floating texts or something for the conversations in Mando'a so like, I will research on that if I need to write in another language.

19. First fandom you wrote for?

Batfam. Tim-centric.

20. Favourite fic you've written?

Damn, that's like asking a parent for their fav child on national television.

In terms of like, wording and metaphors and descriptions and all the technical stuff - And Now You're Home - because some of my fav paragraphs are in here. In terms of logic, time can never change for the flying bird under the summer sun because I went crazy with all the planning for the whole time-travel-but-nothing-changes-the-future thing. In terms of plot, i'm so out of touch with everyone, and everything's a blur to me. This was one of my earlier ones but when I came back to this earlier this year, I found it so enjoyable and fascinated. I couldn't even believe I wrote this one. But it is a part of a series so you might want to check out I've Got You Brother.

This has been fun and I have been shamelessly PR-ing my fics. I don't really know who to tag so anyone else who wants to play, go ahead and have fun!

[gilbirda]

gil gil gilgilgil gil gil.

i had

omg

i had the best

the best

Okay so.

Soulmate Identifying Marks AU

ANGER MANAGEMENT STYLE

i am

i need it.

(don't feel pressured i might write it myself but also might not but i had to throw the idea to you)

Fam.

You got it.

[Read on AO3]

------

Jason never actually cared about his soulmark. Really. Why bother? He was poor, his parents' relationship was shitty (he later learned they weren't soulmates and Catherine sold him a pretty lie), and his life was complicated enough to add romance.

Once he became a vigilante at the tender age of thirteen, he understood that love was a luxury, and that having a soulmate at this point was a liability more than a blessing. A curse, even. He envied Dick, who didn't have a soulmate mark, and who loved freely and without hesitation; he envied Bruce, who loved intensely and burned just as bright.

He just. He couldn't do it.

So he chose to ignore it. Sometimes he hated it, sometimes it felt like a shackle to a complete stranger, someone he was supposed to tie himself to-

(Someone that didn't belong in his world. Crimefighters and civilians were not a good idea.) - so he just scrubbed at the damn ink on his skin when he got pissed at it, and covered with long sleeved clothes when he wanted to ignore it.

And then he died.

He was surprised to discover his mark was still there after coming back to himself post-bathing in the Lazarus Pits. He lowkey had hoped his soulmate was free from the connection the moment his heart stopped beating. But it was still there.

It was a bird. Ironic.

A freaking bluejay.

It was still colorful, it has all the details, no matter what he did about the mark. His soulmate was still there on the other side, waiting, biding their time. He wondered if their mark became a black silhouette like it did when partners died. He wondered if that stranger was holding hope or gave up on him already.

(He hoped they did. Giving up on him was the best option.)

When years passed and he didn't find anybody with a matching tattoo, blacked out or not, he tried to forget about it again. Holding hope was useless, and he had more important things to do. Dick eventually stopped asking about it, when they were back on speaking terms. Bruce still gave it pained looks when he visited the Cave.

That's why when a woman sat down on his table and hid her face behind a binder, he didn't notice the picture on it at first glance.

"Hello?" He put down the cup of coffee and sat straighter. It was never a bad idea to be wary.

"Um." The woman lowered the binder enough to look around the quaint café. She turned and checked the window, but if there was someone there she wouldn't be seen. That's why Jason liked this table, it was the best strategic point. "Sorry, I..."

"Hiding from an ex?"

The woman rolled her eyes, setting the binder back on the table. "Try a creepy coworker."

She tried to downplay it, but by her body language she was more affected than what she let on. He was interested in her story immediately. No woman was going to be stalked on his watch.

"Did you try the police?"

She looked at him like he was crazy. "Police doesn't do shit in Gotham."

Her sharp tone and eyes made him smile immediately. "Have you tried kicking him in the nuts?"

The unknown woman arched an eyebrow and untied her tight bun, massaging her scalp for a second, revealing long natural red hair. Jason noticed her white shirt, so she may be coming back from work. An office? He wondered where she worked. He could try and find out and then identify this creepy coworker-

"Hard to do that when she doesn't have a pair of those." The woman snorted. "My stalker is a woman."

"My mistake. Have you tried kicking her anyway?"

She made a face as if she didn't know what to do with him, but laughed at his comment. He smiled back, glad to see her relax after the scare.

"Thanks. I really needed the laugh, stranger." She made a move to stand up. "I'll leave you alone now."

He nodded, making a note to follow her and find as much information as he could about this stalker.

His eyes wandered to the picture taped to the front of her binder.

A bluejay.

"Wait." He extended a hand, catching her-

It was like an electric current coursed through him, from the palm of the hand that touched her forearms to the tip of his toes. He knew she felt it too, because she froze where she stood, her eyes glued to his hand on her person.

He had to let her go, he knew, but he couldn't. He really couldn't. He knew what this meant, and yet he didn't want to believe.

"Where did you get that?"

It took a moment to come back to reality and process her words. She was looking at his arm, her free hand hovering over the hem of the jacket her had rolled up to be comfortable. The shape of the tail of the bird was in plain sight.

He could lie and say it was a tattoo. That he thought bluejays were cool. He could say so many things.

He didn't need to say any of those lies.

The woman put the binder back on the table and rolled up the sleeve of her sensible white shirt, on the same arm he had his mark. He knew what he would see, what he could see, but it didn't prepare him to the sight of the same bluejay shape blacked out.

"I cried for you. I felt you die."

Her eyes were haunted with memories. What could he say? What could he explain?

"I should have looked harder for you." She narrowed her eyes. "I knew I could still sense you, but I didn't want to hope..." She trailed off, biting her lip.

"It's okay. People shouldn't be running around chasing ghosts." He understood her. Really. Holding hope for the impossible could be dangerous.

The woman smiled at his words, truly smiled, amusement morphing her expression like the turning of a page. She sat back down and extended her hand.

"Jasmine Fenton. Professional ghost hunter. Or was." She rolled her eyes. "I was taking a break now, actually."

Jason tried to gauge if she was joking. But she was completely serious.

Huh.

"Jason Todd." He shook her hand anyway, barely stopping when the electric current made an appearance again.

"Like the dead socialite?"

She did her homework.

"Yeah." It was his time to be amused. "Just like him."

He smiled back at her, and it felt right. Like coming back for air after being underwater for too long. Like feeling the sun warming your skin for the first time after a long winter.

He always found the soulmate talk boring, and in his darkest hours, pathetic. He would never experience that, and romance was for those that could afford it, so why care?

But now, touching her, seeing her smile and her teal eyes that hid many secrets, Jason decided that those people were very off about their descriptions - and very right at the same time.

So he just ignored everything he thought he knew about soulmates and tried to remember if he had the rest of his day free, since he apparently had a soulmate to get to know.

---

Hate the ending, might rewrite it.

Bone apple teeth.

Also I hc Jason as aspec if it wasn't obvious here.

Do you like my stuff? Buy me a Ko-fi!

[bluedalahorse]

Blue’s Contrary Young Royals Opinions Poll (make your own if you want to!)

Just for funsies, I created a poll about my Contrary Young Royals Opinions. I’m calling them Contrary rather than Unpopular because different things are popular in different parts of fandom, and things cycle in and out of popularity, so who knows what’s popular even? Rather, these are just things that I am stubborn and ornery about. Some of them might be mainstream opinions, but I am stubborn and ornery about them all the same.

You all know that I am an August Enjoyer who obstinately ships sargust, so I did not put that on the poll. I also feel that my sargust shipping and August enjoying sometimes obscures my other contrary opinions because it’s like, my signature trait. So this is a chance to talk about other things!

Please vote and reblog for the sake of fun and interesting data. Add commentary in the tags if you feel like it. Also feel free to create your own Contrary Opinion poll, because I wanna see what other people’s contrary opinions are.

Explanations below the cut. Click if you want to know more about what each poll button means to me in more depth.

Wille is demi and bi and should explore his gender more post-canon. Now, in canon, Wille is unlabeled, and I wanna respect that. So this is more headcanon than anything else. I know some folks read Wille as exclusively same-sex attracted. I do not (although I support people doing such) but I also read him as much more on the demisexual and/or demiromantic end of the spectrum than anything else. Of course I am aspec, so I’m seeing it through this lens. On the gender side of things, well, I just think it would be neat? Wille trying on nail polish and then furiously scrubbing it off breaks my heart. It feels like the royal fam has controlled Wille’s gender expression most of his life and made him present in this more conservative masculine way, and he hasn’t had many options. I also do think Wille’s explosive anger is something he’ll have to grapple with in the future, and I see his anger as tied to a lot of the masculine socializing he was raised in. So having outlets for his feelings that are a little less conventionally masculine could be good. Let Wille wear nail polish. Let him wear skirts. Let him experiment with his hair! I’m of the opinion that even cis people should explore their gender, so even if he played with his gender expression for six months and then decided he’d continue to present conventionally masculine again, that would be good for him. (But in my heart I’m a bit of a he/they Wille truther, not gonna lie.)

Simon does some things wrong and that’s wonderful actually. Let me explain what I mean by this. There is a popular view of Simon where he’s very selfless and makes sacrifices for his loved ones and stands up for what he believes in, while also having to suffer and do a lot of things out of desperation. This is true. There is also a co-existing side of Simon that’s a little less selfless, a little more ambitious, and a little bit more likely to make assumptions about what other people want or need without consulting them. There’s the Simon who feels he has to protect Sara when she clearly doesn’t want him to, and the Simon who hides things from Linda when he shouldn’t. There’s the Simon who calls Bjärstad shitty in a way that upsets Rosh and Ayub at the beginning of season 1, who enlists Rosh and Ayub to help intimidate August in 1.3 without fully thinking about how they might feel about it. Yes, Simon does a lot of things out of selfless care for others and out of desperation, but to assume he only ever does things for selfless, desperate reasons without any selfish impulses or ambition mixed in is… well, it misses some of the most fascinating contradictions in his character. Let Simon be a selfish teenager sometimes! It’s developmentally appropriate and it might one day save his life.

Dirtbag Erik > Perfect Brother Erik. I never really gravitated toward the perfectly supportive headcanon for Erik that was popular in some corners of fandom. I know this is not a radical thing to claim after season 3 and a lot of people are coming out of the woodwork and saying it. I think the point I want to make here is less that Ambiguously A Dirtbag Erik is canon and more that he’s inherently more interesting to me to read about than Saint Erik, Patron of Lost Little Brothers. I’m sort of fascinated by the way that interactions with family members always have layers, and that you look back on past events and uncover more of the layers as you grow up. That’s the shit I live for in fiction. I also don’t love discussions about “what would Erik do if he were alive” because I enjoy sitting in the horrific tension of characters not knowing but having to build a better world in his absence.

August/Nils should have a lot more fics on AO3 than it does. As far as I can tell it has one. One! I ship August with Sara first and foremost but August and Nils have some unexpectedly tender moments in season 3 that made me go “wait, that’s interesting…” about their relationship. Yes, August keeps calling Nils nouveau riche. Yes, Nils finds August’s perfectionism annoying. These are all just tensions to play on to make the eventual bittersweet, conflicted makeout scene more bittersweet and conflicted and hot. If August/Vincent can suddenly gain more fics post season 3, it surprises me that August/Nils hasn’t surpassed them.

Linda deserves to have a life and hobbies beyond her kids, and especially beyond being perfect for her kids. Don’t get me wrong, she does care about Simon and Sara a lot and does what she can for them. And because we’re watching a show centered around teenage characters, we’re mostly gonna imagine her in her capacity as a mom. But I also love seeing the moments in canon where Linda is less than perfect—when she embarrasses her kids, or when she comes down hard on them in ways that are less than helpful—because that shows the human vulnerabilities beneath. That she’s trying to figure things out in the moment, and she isn’t always right. That makes me love her more. And I’d desperately love to see Linda have a hobby like, I dunno, writing a crime novel every NaNoWriMo or something. (I have put this into a fanfic, actually.)

Frida and Malte and Nikita are the hottest of the Main Five actors. I get the appeal of Omar in abstract way, but he looks exactly like the crush of one of my chief OCs in a YA novel I was writing, so I think of him as OC Rose’s crush and feel no draw to him myself. Edvin is a great actor but does nothing for me aesthetically. Oh, aesthetic attraction. So individualized to all of us!

Salice is more meaningful to me as a platonic ship than a romantic one. I am so glad they bring people joy as a romantic ship, and I’m happy to gift the fic ideas I do get for them to the people who love them, but for me they matter more as best friends. When I write them, I draw on real platonic friendships I have had in my real life, ones that matter a lot. Sara breaking up with August to prioritize friendship feels more radical to me. Also sometimes I think I’m a Bad Sapphic for having these thoughts about Salice, but then I remember that Heart and Homeland has so much sapphic content involving Felice and other women, as well as just sapphic content beyond that, and I sleep easier.

Rosh should be shipped with all the other girls, and frequently and creatively. Yes, Madirosh is an overnight fanon sensation we should celebrate that. Yes, Stella/Rosh took us by surprise and by storm for a hot minute, and we should do more of it. But have we considered… Fredrika trying to angrily and messily seduce Rosh because Stella seemed to be crushing on her? How about Rosh and Felice as a glorious butch/femme power couple? How about if Sara is gonna date a tall athletic brunette she dates one who plays a real sport (football) and not a fake sport (rowing)? I hope we all see the vision.

Oops Vincent is sympathetic sometimes. Look, I am not going to deny that Vincent is a bully who sucks. I also think his first year letter was telling. In the letter, Vincent, at sixteen, has just received his ADHD diagnosis. That’s a long time for a rich white boy to go without getting one! That means he’s probably had sixteen years to struggle to pay attention in class—he’s probably acting out and moving around a lot, and internalizing the idea that he Can’t Do School. His parents probably make some “boys will be boys” excuse at conferences. Then he finally gets the diagnosis and gets put on meds. My sense is that Hillerska only cares that his meds don’t make him disruptive in class. They probably don’t care about teaching him alternative study methods that actually work for him, or creating an environment where he feels empowered to use accommodations. And as folks who are knowledgeable with ADHD know, if you get behind in school like that, it takes more than meds to catch you up and help you feel empowered in class. When we see Vincent after his national exams, he’s drawing dicks in the dirt, because he can only envision himself as the class clown who fails academically. He says the academics don’t matter as a self-soothing technique. He’s become mean—mean in a “funny” way—as a way of feeling like he has a “thing” at school. And yes, Vincent will probably be “fine,” he will remain rich and go big game hunting and marry a trophy wife into adulthood or whatever. Again, he sucks! That does not change the fact that Hillerska failed him and his neurodivergences, and that he could actually have a sense of real efficacy and self-compassion for himself as a disabled person instead of just being “fine.” Daddy I don’t love him. But Daddy I would like him to feel empowered to use his extended time on tests. Daddy I would like someone to teach Vincent the pomodoro method as a study skill.

Secondary characters shouldn’t have to be wilmon shippers to be likable to fandom. It throws me out of a fic or a headcanon when secondary characters only are there to support Wilmon being the cutest soulmates ever. I don’t mean when someone like Felice offers a supportive comment to them as a couple, or occasionally thinks they’ve done something cute. I mean when characters sound exactly like shippers in fandom, with similar talking points, and when we as readers of the fic are supposed to sympathize with them because they sound exactly like us. People… don’t talk about friends and family and classmates the same way they talk about fictional blorbos.

YR does not share a universe with RWRB. This idea was more widespread in the old days of fandom, so this Contrary Opinion feels more vintage. As far as what I do think it could share a universe with, I vote for Tana French’s Dublin Murder Squad novels, for the class conflict and the incredibly complex characterization. I would also say Ashley Herring Blake’s Girl Made of Stars has a lot in common with YR in terms of how it approaches trauma and family relationships.

The intimacy scenes in season 3 (especially the big one) made me feel kind of uncomfortable, actually. Something about the changes to directing style and how they were filmed. I don’t really want to explain this one right now but maybe I will someday. So this one is also there for folks who viscerally felt that too.

[whatiwillsay]

how have y'all already forgotten her huge endorsement of biden in 2020? // i dont think ppl have forgotten at all. its taylors actions since then that are making ppl question once again where she actually stands. her bf seems chummy w trumpers, her friends and those she chooses to platform most as of late are leaning into if anything socially (so they dont get backlash) dem. but girlies a billionaire, trump would benefit her and her fam most. dont forget that. her cont. silence speaks vol.

i mean it doesn't speak volumes at least not to me.

we know how taylor feels on the major issues. on issues of the right to choose and white supremacy and gun violence and lgbt rights she has spoken out and said what she believes. THAT speaks volumes. her actual speaking is the thing that speaks volumes.

taylor has been on tour dodging terrorist threats and stalkers. she just made it clear that sometimes she cannot say what she wants to say due to safety concerns.

i cannot promise you that she will officially endorse kamala but there's no reason to be certain she won't at this point.

she endorsed biden in october of 2020. it's only august right now. taylor's endorsement will be a major news event and if it is gonna happen it will have to be timed just right to bring the maximum positive effect. it might be used to encourage one last wave of voter registrations or to "win" or own a news cycle. it's a long couple months left in the campaign and taylor's endorsement is a huge wind in their sails so they very well may be saving it for when there is a lull in the campaign.

but let's look at the facts. taylor has only ever publicly endorsed democratic politicians and democratic stances on policy issues. she has also approved for the use of her music on kamala's campaign and at the dnc. there is no reason to think she has changed her stance. like what she's a republican now but is letting kamala use Style on the campaign trial cause she's a girl's girl? have you heard any taylor music at a trump rally?

furthermore, trump took down taylor's fake ai endorsement a matter of hours after he posted it. there hasn't been any press on the matter but I guarantee you like... I would bet my house that her legal team slapped him with a cease and desist so fast that it made a noise when it broke the sound barrier. now they didn't go to rolling stone to report that like Beyonce did but taylor was still out on tour when it happened.

it is 100% ok for her to prioritize safety and timing when it comes to these matters. and if she doesn't endorse at all I will be very disappointed but it won't be because she randomly became a conservative it'll be because they are worried about far-right terrorist threats on her tour.

[odinsblog]

Tankies be tripping like a mf

Sometimes I see tankies posting their usual bullshit and I’m just endlessly smh hard enough to cause myself brain damage

I could, if I wanted, make a dozen social media accounts across various platforms and proceed to talk as much shit about Joe Biden or Donald Trump as I want. I could do that 24/7/365, all day, every day and every night, and do nothing else but that. I mean, I could talk straight up bullshit about either of them or both of them, and their spouses and their families, and as long as I don’t make any threats against their lives, guess what would happen to me?? NOTHING. Not a goddamn thing

I know this for a fact because I’ve done it (talk shit about them, not make troll accounts), and I see people do it every fucking day

Meanwhile, in “glorious” communist countries™ like Russia or China or North Korea, if anyone dares to publicly say anything even slightly unflattering about those country’s leaders, they will be punished, arrested, jailed, disappeared or murdered. And God forbid if you’re an actual journalist or dissident or a political activist trying to speak out against Putin, or Kim Jong Un, or Xi Jinping — your corpse will never be found (except maybe for Russia, where you would either “accidentally” fall out of a window, or “accidentally” ingest a rare but deadly radioactive material) ☢️ 🙃

Look, this isn’t me going, “America is soooo great and everywhere else sucks,” because as a Black man living in America, I’m well aware of how thoroughly anti Blackness is weaved into our society, and as someone who has LGBTQ loved ones, I am also aware of how homophobia and transphobia are also woven into American culture. So no, America was never great. But anti Blackness, homophobia, and transphobia exist everyfuckingwhere. And yes, that most definitely includes the tankie fantasyland utopias of Russia, China and North Korea

Anyway, I’m just blowing off some online steam because every time I see a tankie profess how communism™ will make everything equal and just sO much better, and how Russia, China and North fucking Korea! are heavens for love peace + equality, every fucking time I see that BULLSHIT on tumblrdotcom I wanna pull my teeth out with a rusty pair of pliers 🤬

I just do not get it

Only tankies could look at murderous dictatorial authoritarian regimes and go, yeah that seems much better

LOL, I could almost overlook Russia and China, but when I see tankies defending N. Korea?? I’m like, that mf is farther gone than the Voyager space probes

SN: I know that despite their political party names, Russia and China aren’t really “communist” countries, but I often wonder if tankies understand that fact

And please don’t get me started on the allegedly “pro-Black” tankies who stayed on mute about Brittney Griner, because I guess saying anything would have made Putin look bad 😒

I mean don’t get me wrong, I dO understand that capitalism has utterly failed people so thoroughly and so fucking completely that literally anything else might seem preferable by comparison, but ☭ ain’t it, fam

To be crystal clear: I hate capitalism as much as the next compassionate human being and I know capitalism ain’t it, but neither is communism, sorry

I genuinely do believe that a better world is possible, but seeing people (surprise - disproportionately white dudes) constantly blathering on and on about how good Russia is, makes me feel like 🤮

[poisonedspider]

Okay okay, for real - how does Angel Dust (my version specifically of course) handle romantic relationships?

Trust is incredibly difficult for him, especially since Valentino. As I will mention until I'm blue in the face, Angel was and still is in love with Val. He truly thought the other had his best interests in mind and wanted to see them succeed as a couple, thriving in Hell together (two huge crime lords? Hell yes). We obviously know that shit hit the fan, so Angel is pretty hesitant to actually hand over his heart.

Not 'romance' related, but Angel Dust actually only hates his job because of the shit Val makes him do, not because it's in sex work. He loves sex. It's honestly one of his love languages. He gets offended when his partner doesn't want to sleep with him. I can't stand when people pull the 'he fell in love with Anthony, not Angel Dust.' Nah fam, he is very much Angel. Loser Baby flat out has him more or less saying "I'm a whore and an addict, and while it might make me flawed, that's me." He loves sex, and is naturally a very touchy person. This doesn't change just because he's 'dropping the facade.'

The irony in this being - Angel Dust is an incredibly jealous boyfriend. Definitely hypocritical, he is aware, especially as he would hope/expect his partner to be fine with (and even supportive) of his sex work. The difference being that is work, and I can assure that his boyfriend would know the difference in an intimate setting. He's used to being flirted with and can handle himself, but if someone hits on his boyfriend? It's guns out. Literally.

He is absolutely a romantic. He doesn't like to admit it, but it's one of the few things that will make him cry. He has sex with everyone, so that (while he still needs and craves it) doesn't stand out as much to him. He stupidly wants to make love because he has never had gentle sex in that way. Sure, he loves it rough and has more kinks than he can count on his six hands (literally, I've made the post), but being gentle with him? Telling him he's beautiful and worth it? He's going to cry. And he hates to cry.

Anthony never had a partner in his life. He would sneak off and have sex where he could find it, but considering the time frame - and how much his father especially wouldn't accept him - it wasn't like he could just get into a relationship. That didn't start until he was in Hell, and even then, that's pretty rare itself. Especially in present, where he is worried that by being broken, he is going to hurt whoever he dates. Better to keep it shallow and keep it safe.

Despite his obnoxious attitude sometimes, Angel Dust is honest to goodness a fabulous boyfriend. He gives what he always wishes he had gotten. He's attentive. He's a total sap. He worships and adores them and makes them feel like they're the only person in the world, despite his occupation. He makes them realize that they are special to him, because quite frankly, Angel could have anyone in Hell but this person is who he chose. And he's going to go out of his way to demonstrate that.

Cooking is one of his love languages.

So is speaking Italian.

Much like with his friendships, he is often willing to sacrifice his own needs for his partner. I firmly believe this is why Angel (while he is clearly hurt by it, just watch Poison) is accepting of Vox x Valentino's whatever the fuck they have going on. He wants Valentino happy at that time (because yes, he still loves him, and in this essay I will - ) and if being with other people like that makes him happy, no matter how much it hurts him, he will accept that. His own needs don't matter to him nearly as much as his partners (which is toxic af and he's aware of that but, on the last note...)

He does try too hard to be perfect. He gives and gives and gives out of fear of what happened between him and Valentino. If he sacrifices himself, if he puts the other on a pedastal, surely they won't hurt him. They won't leave him. They'll think he's worthy of keeping around. He doesn't want to be pushed aside again.

Prepare for a lot of shopping trips where you'll be holding all the bags. Prepare for lots of personal modeling shows to see how things look on him. He wants to show off to his partner and have all eyes on him (which is always but it'll double...sorry about that).

If you're dating Angel, you'll probably be one of the only people to see him in comfortable clothes. (He posts photos on Voxtagram, but it isn't the same). He would be seen if he was caught off guard (showing up to his room in the middle of the night for example), but his sexuality is his armor. He doesn't like to be seen as vulnerable, and so he needs to flaunt himself. But if he's okay with being vulnerable with you, expect a lot of baggy sweaters and pants and crop tops.

If Fat Nuggets doesn't approve of you, you have no chance. He trusts that pig more than anything else in his life. Nuggies is the single individual who has been there through everything. Animals are good at judging character (even though they're all shitty people in Hell for a reason lol) and if Nuggets has concerns about you, Angel will as well. It takes a lot of trust for Angel to leave you with Fat Nuggets, too, so once he can, you're basically in for life.

He does want to get married, believe it or not. A lot of his fellow sinners were married in their living days, and Angel didn't have that. He knows eternity is a long fucking time (and it isn't like marriage is probably fully respected in Hell) but he wants to do it. He wants to wear a damn wedding dress and feel like someone is willing to dedicate their life/afterlife to him while surrounded by their friends. (If I want to make this heartbreaking, I could say that's partially why he signed the contract, too. Valentino was worth signing over his life and his soul so he could be with him for the rest of forever. Val obviously did not feel the same).

[angerybabydino]

Did a 15+ hour road trip with my fam twice a little ago and I drove a good chunk of it. Used AA/DGS music to keep me awake bc music psych is a blessing sometimes. Anyway, just a roundabout way to say, I have discovered some fun things in the music that made me 👀👀👀 Idk if anyone else has noticed any of it (and I will say I have minimal music theory knowledge but I'm an English major with the tendency to read into symbolism way too much), but feel to keep reading if you're interested! Spoilers for DGS2 are in here, fair warning!

I'll try and include links to the songs when I can! It'll probably be a mix of Spotify and YouTube hyperlinks so bear with me. Fair warning, this is super long because I decided to cram everything in one post oops lmao

The Funky Time Signature

The first thing I really ever noticed was that Sholmes' "Dance of Deduction"s were weird in terms of keeping beat. It's not in common time aka 4/4 aka 8-count; I think it's in 7/8 time (so you count 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 etc. etc.) which is a struggle to maintain counting since people are so used to 3, 4, and 8-counts.

Dance of Deduction - Type A

I found sheet music for easier counting! It says it's in 7/4: https://youtu.be/51vTmoQzwI8

Originally, I thought it was just because he's Weird and Silly™, but I ended up listening to "Partners - The game is afoot" which plays when Sholmes and Yuujin are on the S.S. Grouse trying to deduce where Jigoku is.

Partners - The game is afoot!

This one is surprisingly in 4/4 aka common time (you count 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 etc. etc. [though I have seen sheets put it in 12/8, which is close-ish, but it still has an even counting pattern WHICH IS WHAT MATTERS]). So in actuality, Shomles' Dance of Deductions aren't in a weird time signature because he's our favorite eccentric boy (okay, it might be part that too); it's because he's missing his partner after he left and investigating never felt quite right without him. Once he and Yuujin get to investigate together again, he's whole and happy. And it's just so fucking gay I can't.

Harpsichord

The big thing I noticed while I was driving (because there was nothing else interesting on the road) was the use of harpsichords in certain Londoner themes, specifically Stronghart, van Zieks, Iris, and Kazuma's prosecutor theme, as well as some of the final songs during 2-4&5.

If you don't know, this is what a harpsichord sounds like! Yes, I know I'm a nerd for being able to pick it out and name it while driving lmao

You can hear it a lot in Stronghart's theme, specifically around 0:38-0:49 (it's pretty in the background so you kinda have to strain your ears but it's there), but it's also pretty present throughout his theme.

Lord Chief Justice Stronghart - Time-Keeper of the Law

There's also a lot of it in van Zieks' theme as well; it's right off the bat and it's one of the prominent instruments throughout the piece.

Barok van Zieks - The Reaper of the Bailey

You have to really be listening for it, but it pops up occasionally in Iris' theme as well! You kinda have to strain your ears during 0:16-0:30 to hear it, but it's definitely there. It's more hidden compared to van Zieks'.

Iris Wilson - Young Biographer

I know Kazuma is Japanese, however, since he became a prosecutor in Britain, it still counts and it makes more sense once I tell you why it's all related (if you haven't guessed yet). ANYWAY, his theme also has a lot of harpsichord in it, even in the parts that were from his original theme.

A Prosecutor, Reborn

This could all just be a stylistic choice too, but do you see it yet? All the people who correspond with these themes are directly related to the Professor killings. van Zieks and Kazuma have the most prominent because we know by 2-4 the obvious connections they both hold. Iris and Stronghart's are more in the background since both of their involvements are big reveal-type deals by the end of the game.

Bonus points: the actual theme that plays when anything related to the Professor is mentioned also has some background harpsichord to connect it all.

The Professor - A Spectre Revived

I will note that I didn't notice anything in Gregson's theme, even though he played a big part in the false conviction. Courtney Sythe's theme also has some harpsichord, but I can't remember how she's related to it other than the fact that she helped with the autopsy (which probably means I should replay the games again lol).

Other game music that proves the connection:

Enoch Drebber - Rondo of Science and Magic

The Great Gateway to the Truth

The Prison Warders

The Great Closed Trial - Court is Now in Session

Reminiscences - The Fruits of Ambition

Others I probably completely missed

A Prosecutor, Reborn

Speaking of Kazuma's prosecutor theme, one of the really cool things about its composition is the warring back and forth between itself. It starts with the completely new theme, blending his usual string accompaniment with drums/cymbals, singular bell tolls, and harpsichord. When it gets to around 0:47, you hear the bells and then it switches back to his original theme from Adventures, though it's a lot grander now and lacking a lot of the traditional Japanese elements it once had.

A Prosecutor, Reborn

Kazuma Asougi - Samurai on a Mission

And it bounces back and forth like that until the end of the song, the bells signifying the shifting. It goes to show this internal struggle Kazuma is having between finding the truth even if it's something he won't like (his original theme) and following his emotions to falsely convict van Zieks as revenge (the beginning chunk of his prosecutor theme).

I also think it's interesting how dominating the harpsichord is, again especially over the chunks of his original theme from Adventures. In connection to it being related to the Professor, aside from the obvious connection to his father, it also shows how much influence and manipulation Stronghart had over him, with him being the BBEG.

Siblings

One of my favorite things I noticed was Susato and Kazuma's connections through themes, though not the one you're thinking. Kazuma's official theme I'm sure has a few connections to Susato's (but I haven't listened closely enough to hear them), however I really noticed how intertwined the two were when I listened to Kazuma's unused theme they provided in Chronicles.

Susato Mikotoba - A New Bloom in the New World

Kazuma Asougi (Unused)

Many of the same instruments are used, as well as note and chord progressions. They have the same peaceful/serene vibes too, which is understandable in why Kazuma's was scrapped (even if I do like it a lot). But if this ended up being Kazuma's actual theme, I would've noticed the familial relationship they share instead of my initial thoughts of it purely just being professional.

That's all I've really noticed for now, but I'm sure I'll come across more things as I listen to the soundtrack to study. I will, however, shut up now and let you get back with you day/night/whatever time of day it is for you because this is getting l o n g. If you did read this far, thank you for indulging me and listening to me be a complete nerd ^w^ And definitely feel free to share your thoughts too; I love talking about this stuff if you couldn't tell!

[starlightstare]

Hiiiiii I love your posts about the cheonliang fam (mostly Vin and Mary uwu) do you have any more headcanons about them?

Thank you! Most of the time, I'm just shitposting. I didn't think anyone would enjoy the things I post. Anyways, here are the headcanons I have:

Mary and Jewoo's parents are friends and therefore they also became friends by default.

Back when they were younger, Jewoo was the one who introduced Mary to Hyungjae, Taebong and Wooseok. He originally did it to scare them, too. They were teasing him relentlessly and you know how kids sometimes go, "keep talking and I'll call my bro to beat you"? Yeah, that's basically what happened. He got so annoyed that he said he'll be calling the Mary Kim to teach them a lesson. Thus the start of a beautiful friendship.

Word of Seongji living in the mountains got out and parents used his name to scare children. Mary, sick and tired of being called an elephant, retaliated by mocking them for being weak and said that if they're brave and strong, they should go up the mountain and steal something from the 'monster'. She teased them for days and them being the stupid, little preteens that they were, took the bait. Mary didn't think they would (she's also scared of the 'monster') and decided to follow them, saying that she only wanted proof that they stole something from the monster when in fact she's worried something might happen to them. They went back and forth for days; them stalking Seongji but none of them made a move to 'steal' from him. They want to prove that they're badass. But everyday, when they climb the mountain and see Seongji, they just freeze up. It got to the point that they all started pointing fingers on who should steal.

“ You do it.”

“No, you do it.”

“Why do I have to?! I have heavy footsteps, he'd hear me from miles away.”

“You're right, Wooseok should go.”

“Huh?! Mary should go! It was her idea. And she's the thief here.”

“I'm the one who challenged you, you dumbass cowards.”

“Jewoo, you go—”

They shove Jewoo forward and Seongji got so fucking tired of hearing their not-so-hushed whispers everyday that he just confronted them.

Seongji was the one who gave Mary a bandana. I like to think he has a soft spot for her not because she's a girl but because he knows how it feels to be ostracized for his physique. During one of the moments where Mary admits to feeling insecure, he grabber a bandana and puts it on her hair, saying that she looks pretty. She tried to pass the bandana wearing style to Sujin but... Y'know. Even after years, Mary kept wearing bandanas in Seonji's memory.

Sometimes, Jewoo thinks of what would have happened if they didn't meet Vin. He imagines that Seongji would be alive and they would all be eating in the mountains, hunched around the fire. He thinks of what future they could've had if Vin Jin didn't appear. But the happy memories with Vin Jin and Sujin overpowers those thoughts. He can't help but wonder, though.

I'd like to believe that Mary only joined judo because that's the only thing she thinks she'd be useful for. Her peers bullies her for being chubby, her parents are die-hard believers of the infant god she has doubts about, no one tries to approach or befriend her. She's alone and she doesn't fit in. She doesn't fit in cheonliang's beauty standard either so what does she do? Put all her weight and strength into learning how to fight. At least in judo, she's the best. She's appreciated.

During their youth, Taebong challenges Mary on a daily basis and always gets his ass beat. The boys thinks it's entertaining how everyday starts with, “MARY KIIMMMMMMMM, FIGHT ME." They even made bets on how long his shouts would be. Wooseok won often because he seems to miraculously know how many seconds Taebong ought to drag Mary's name. The longest one was 37 seconds when Taebong bellowed a long 'Maryyyyyyy—’ for 30 seconds straight. He got detention for the disturbance.

They liked to play pretend when they were little. Mary wanted to play as the princess but they always made her the dragon and them the knight. In return, before the 'knights' could even fight the 'dragon', she ends up chasing them around. They did play pretend as a family though. Jewoo's the dad, Wooseok's strangely the mom (Mary wanted to play mom but thought it was hilarious that Wooseok's the mom) and the rest are the children. Wooseok's first course of action was to ground them all.

[timetravelerpyrite]

Uh, hi.

My name is Pyrite, I go by he/him mainly… don't mind she/her though. Newly found out I like Pup/Pupself pronouns too.

I'm 30. (B-day is November 16th, if that matters to anyone.)

//Current Arc: None rn!

//Finished Arcs: Fool's Faller, ABSOLute Panic!

Anyway, not too important, I just kinda found this site and realized 'Oh, there's some people like me here!' so here I am I guess?

Don't expect me to be friendly.

I don't bite! I'm trying to make more friends, but don't shove too much at me at once please.

I don't like staying in one place, it makes me anxious, no I won't tell you why. I was running a lot because of my Ex, she and my bio fam wants me to come back, but I won't, I'm actually tying to get use to staying in one place now.

Most important thing, I'm a Time Traveler and Dimension hopper, how the hell am I both?

I caught a Celebi (He/She/They) by COMPLETE ACCIDENT so now I'm kinda stuck with them, and I kinda got adopted by a Dimension hopping Iron called Iron Eclipse (It/Its)… no, I do not expect you to know what that is.

Call me a fake if you want, I don't care, just try not to hold me down in one spot, got it? Wow I don't like this part the most, why was I such a jerk in my intro??

Anyway, I might visit ya if I feel like, I have two adopted (not legally but who gives a shit) sisters @queen-of-the-phantoms and @pokedexcamp! I'm dating @silveredfeathers and living with him and his wife (and now my Girlfriend-??) @trainerlynda.

Adding an addendum: Sometimes we, his Irons, connect to his phone to be able to post. We are;

🐉: Iron Rage. (She/Her)

🕊️: Iron Serenity! (He/They/Fae)

🌋: Iron Eruption. (He/Him)

🌑🌈: Iron Eclipse.

⌛: And sometimes I steal the phone, I'm Chronos his Celebi.

🍞: Thanatos types sometimes too, she has rather broken English so it will likely be autocorrected to hell and back, please tell her if it gets a word wrong, from what I can tell she wants to understand (She/It)

//Open ask games!

Pelipper mail and malice.

Ask an invasive question.

//Magnifying glass ask game!

See his dreams and nightmares.

//A post for you to give me permission for him to hop to your character's dimension! (Either on purpose or by accident.)

//Ooc info under the cut!

//Ooc. This is a sideblog! Unreality. Mod is an adult and goes by she/her he/him pronouns All art I use is my own (Or made for me)! I follow from @theshadowqueenofthedistortion, more info about me on my main! This blog is not settled in one dimension at the moment, so expect conflicting area info. Here's some of my other accounts as well!

//Semi-Serious blog, I will participate in active silliness and also write serious stuff. Will sometimes touch on death, abuse and a few other things, I will tag the serious stuff with their appropriate tw/cw tags.

//I will not ship with anyone who isn't my BF (and myself, but that's a note for later), just for my comfort. This boi does n o t stay in one place, if he goes to visit someone he will get there himself/he fell into that universe by accident.

//Magic anons are allowed! But I am picky.

//I am very open to crossover stuff!

//This guy is very much centered around Future Paradox pokemon! He's not gonna know all the Pokemon's names and will call them 'Irons'. The Iron names are VERY much headcannons unless talking about a cannon Iron.

//When he's on the move things he says aloud will be under

[Voice to text active!] where as when he's actully writing it will be under [Pyrite is typing...]

//What the tags mean.

//Shadow Mod Speaks: Mod speaking.

//Mod Reference: Me and/or Zorana making references for this account

//Shadow Art: Art by me that isn't a ref/finished.

//Pyrite info: Self-Explanatory. For both IC and OOC.

Little Hops: His post/response tag.

Warping Reality: Closed and/or serious RP. I will also use this tag when responding seriously to something.

Where am I today?: When Pyrite is mainly talking to himself.

The Pokemon tags: They are for each respective Pokemon/Iron

Magic Anon Things.: Stuff with magic anons.

Triangle Terror: Pyrite dealing with the truth triangles. He can't turn them off, so hehehe.

[cicada-circuitry]

Hello I am curious about “we’re not friends.” (because: who is not friends? [I have some guesses]) and “there are only victims of virtue here” because that is a banger title

oh man okay a VERY COOL KID in my inbox LETS GO

11. we're not friends i blame entirely on @moocowmoocow writing this molly/karen femslash february fic that i happened to read right as I was getting to the karen/danny arc in s2 like honestly it might have been literally the first FAM fic i ever read just blindly opening the tag and it gave me some kind of brainworm i could not get rid of. {there really are so many people this title could apply to sooo curious about the guesses}

Tiny snippet:

"Oh! I can come back another time. It's nothing urgent." "Nonsense. He'll be home..." Molly waved a vague hand. "Sometime. Eventually. You can come in. Have a drink. Smoke. Both." Nervously, Karen stepped into the Wayne-free Cobb residence after Molly. "Well, if you're sure he'll be by soon." "Didn't say that." Molly lit a cigarette. Offered the pack. Karen used two fingers to press it away. "No thank you." Seconds ticket by as Molly smoked, leaning idly against the frame of the kitchen doorway, watching her. Karen swallowed and wrung her hands. "If it's going to be a while I can really—" "It really bothers you, being here with just me." Karen's mouth fell open. "No, I— Well, there's no reason for you and I to— You're Ed's friend," she said a little sharply. "Wayne and I are friends. It's... a little odd, but it makes sense, given your— Given his—" "Given Wayne's the astronaut wife." Something about that made Karen flush.

4. there are only victims of virtue here is... margo x irina. i am pretty sure i am never going to post this fic so the fact that there are more than 20,000 words of it is completely inexplicable the margo in russia arc really just hit me like a truck.

its a mix of expanding on a bunch of season 4 itself and an exploration of what might happen if irina gets to decide star city isn't through with Margo after the season ends after all.

here's one early bit of it tacked onto the night after the coup

Her flat is unwelcoming when she stumbles in at quarter to ten. It should be relief, taking off her coat, unwrapping her scarf, fumbling her way into the shower to finish washing the blood out of her hair. She should feel safe now. 

She doesn’t. She sees the dark spots in the corners of her shower she’s never been able to scrub away. The flecks on the vinyl curtain she should have replaced months ago. The crack in the cheap mirror whose dingy glass manages to make her look paler than she is. Levering herself down into her bed, it’s not her old life she’s comparing it to. She’s lived in worse. This place has multiple rooms, a functional television, even an out-of-tune piano. It’s not like she’s regressed to her bare bones fresh-out-of-college apartment she never even furnished for preference of furnishing her closet-sized office. 

Her broken glasses make a concerning clicking noise when she sets them down on the bedside table. She turns out the light without looking and groans her way into a position that only aggravates every single muscle that’s been tugged the wrong way in the last twenty-four hours, but doesn’t seem like it’ll prevent her from falling asleep. It’s not even that she can’t feel safe in this part of the city anymore, after being forcibly dragged away. 

It’s the itching, straining feeling that she shouldn’t be here. 

That she was exactly where she was supposed to be three hours ago. Before two of Director Morozova’s silent, scowling men drove her home. 

In an empty Roscosmos building scattered with the remnants of its last guard—half-finished cups of coffee, papers strewn across desks and floors, a single broken briefcase leaning up against the knee of the cosmonaut in the mural in the main lobby. Where Irina had said, “I expect you back here tomorrow, Ms. Madison.” 

Margo—rattled and bruised and bloody and exhausted as she was—had said, “Are you sure you wouldn’t like me to… stay?”