#but it's also true because it happened we lost we sacrificed everything

[curioussubjects]

Ok so I have some spnwin-spn connection spec I wanna share with y'all from back when @alwaysanoriginal were spiraling over some interview about The Winchesters (as we do). The second to last question is about John's journal being created, which of course made me think of plot hole vampmimes. Of course.

Or maybe not so plothole-y?

That was mostly a joke, though I did hope tonight was going to maybe for the lolz address that. Well, little did I know because that old convo continued with this:

DOES THIS REMIND YOU OF ANYTHING YOU WATCHED TONIGHT

DOES IT

Char, then, decided to come for me in the night and point out that the Running on Empty montage in 19 has some pretty choice scenes featuring Changing Channels, Wayward Sisters and the AU rift, Dean time traveling, and The Heroes' Journey (which I always argued was essentially the intended finale metaphorically).

Side note: sorry to expose y'all to my private ravings lol

A lot of this actually comes back to a point Billie made in s15 about Chuck building reality with himself at the center to keep it ticking. So how can you possibly beat him? By letting him think he won. I can't help but remember that delightful line from Dean in s12: "‘Cause we’re not trapped out here with you. You’re trapped out here with us." You know, that one time Dean and Sam pulled a death gambit to escape a black ops site.

But back to The Winchesters: last week we had Carlos refusing to play Loki's game (a god who can affect reality, or one's perception thereof) and winning. But to do so, he had to put his life on the line. He had to be willing to lose everything. By the way, I am once again feeling very emotional about Carlos saying he sacrificed everything for hunting, but he gained so much more because that's it! That's the thing! So yeah...cue Carlos singing Hard Times Come Again No More to his family.

This week John is the one with the seemingly inescapable fate of death (courtesy of vampires because of course), and while he doesn't tap out of the game, he realizes he knows nothing about the context of what he saw. He only got half the story, and the rest was up to him. It's appropriate, too, that this week we get another Supernatural classic with Mary reassuring John that they will find another way. And yeah, John does and wins.

And, I mean, if we're talking fate and god and gambles, why not remember a nifty piece of advice Sam and Dean received from Fortuna in The Gamblers: “Don’t play his game. Make him play yours.”

My point is if we look at 19 and 20 much like we would a vision from an amulet, none of the plot of Supernatural needs to change. It's fated. But as Millie says, and John says, and Dean say: fate is what you make it. And if The Winchesters is about how Sam and Dean became the Winchesters, then what else is this show but the context we've been missing all along.

(send this man to stan jail tbh)

[also what is more Winchester stupid than the cosmic consequences of saving your family...like...say...releasing the Darkness or...causing an Akrida infestation...though who knows that could've been on purpose for reasons. I'm putting nothing past spnwin.]

Don't ask me how Dean goes from pulling a death gambit to get into heaven to time travelling to tweak with his parents' past. We're through the looking glass here people and we'll simply have to wait and see -- but the puzzle is for sure getting less mysterious. Something free will, knowledge, family, and Growth, something. Therapy. You know, The Winchesters.

Or I'm totally off the mark and I'll have egg for face who's to say, but for now, as a treat, I'm feeling very

[longagoitwastuesday]

ngl it sort of pisses me off the way adults regard Gojo in Jujutsu Kaisen at times. Which could be a very interesting and poignant point in a good way if well written, but as it is it becomes mainly just frustrating and sad in a negative way.

Nanami saying Gojo never cared about anything or anyone other than himself crashes interestingly with Kusakabe saying the whole situation was just all his fault because he refused to kill Itadori. The students are very aware of those aspects of Gojo's personality, but overall they seem to regard him with way more kindness and fondness even when at their rudest, not truly coinciding with either Nanami's or Kusakabe's views.

[karniss-bg3]

The Tragedy of Faith

So between tumblr and twitter I've read various takes on Kar'niss and what draws people to him. For some it's the monster fucking appeal, for others it's the desire to fix a clearly broken individual. There are in-betweens and of course this is subjective and depends on the person. Act 2 spoilers ahead. Where my personal interest comes from is how good Larian communicated the tragedy of faith and what a cult can do to a person. Kar'niss is a creature that has been broken by not one God, but two. Lolth broke him physically, the Absolute broke him mentally. His entire identity has been lost to a deity to the point he raises her in his speech. Referring to her as "Majesty" and "Queen", two terms you don't really hear anyone else address her as, he has elevated her to his final savior and leader. He also often refers to himself as "we" and "us", cementing him as part of the hive mind rather than holding any individuality of his own. When he does refer to himself as "I", it's mostly to show further loyalty to the Absolute, to maintain a position of importance in his fractured mind. Cults are notorious for targeting the most vulnerable in society as they are the easiest to mold and manipulate to their doctrine. The fact that goblins are one of the main races that fall to the Absolute's influence is telling in that regard, as they are often dismissed by the other races. Kar'niss was ripe for the picking, an easy target to lure into her arms. No doubt he was found shortly after Lolth twisted him into a drider and banished him, he didn't stand a chance.

Not even taking those elements into account, Kar'niss came from a society that is infamous for cruelty and violence, especially toward males of their species. Drow greatest hits include, but are not limited to: -Killing their young if they are not aesthetically pleasing enough. In other words, ugly. -Sacrificing every third born son to Lolth.

-If a male finds the favor of two competing females, it often doesn't end well for the male. The rival woman will kill the male and chuck his dead body into his opponents bedchambers, just for the sake of being petty.

-Love and emotions of any sort are in short supply, if not outright unseen as a general rule. The nature of drow to backstab and seek to rise in the ranks makes it near impossible to be anything other than fierce and domineering.

With these things in mind, it's easy to assume that Kar'niss had a turbulent upbringing and likely suffered untold abuse from many around him. It's not to say that good or reasonable drow don't exist, it's just not commonplace in a Lolthite society. Unfortunately, the game doesn't give us a great deal to go on as far as his past. What little he reveals only happens after he's dead, and even then its really a cliffs notes version. What we do know is that his devotion is intense and unwavering. He's willing to die for the Absolute because in his mind the Absolute are the only ones who care about him. We even see fellow followers talk down to him, dismiss him, and verbally eye-roll the guy. To them, his fanaticism is over the top and they follow the same God he does.

All told, this leads me to the conclusion that Kar'niss has never, or rarely, known true compassion in his entire life. He's been used as a puppet for one deity or another, and likely mocked or cast aside even when he did everything right. It doesn't surprise me that there are folks who desire a romance option, or barring that a side venture to break him free of the Absolute's hold. We don't know if Kar'niss did terrible things in his past, or where his moral compass sits as his entire personality revolves around God. But I'd love to know, and I crave more background on him in one form or another.

I've spent too much time thinking about different paths that could happen in-game. I also understand it's incredibly unlikely he'll ever become a companion. The sheer amount of time and resources needed to give a character a satisfying arc is likely more than Larian can do with other constraints, but maybe we'll be pleasantly surprised. So Kar'niss lovers, platonic, romantic, or everything in-between...I gotchu fam. We stan the spooder bby. Someone get that man a blanket and a nice mug of hot cocoa. And a cult de-programming kit, one of those would be good.

[mythalism]

Wait.. so when anon said we traded a few thousand deaths for millions in southern Thedas, are they suggesting that lifting the veil would only cause a few thousand deaths ?

IIRC from what Solas says In trespasser and later shown in the DAV artbook (showing what would happen if rook fails to stop Solas and Solas successfully removes the veil), then taking down the veil was supposed to lead to widespread death across all thedas at minimum OR just straight up kill everyone except the ancient elves.

If it comes down to numbers then losing southern Thedas is still less than what they would've lost if Solas lifted the veil.

However, I still think we should've seen the veil getting removed. If not as the true ending then at least as a game over / fail state in the game. It's been years building up to this moment so at least show us what would happen!

the games have been dodgy and inconsistent about exactly the level of casualty the falling of the veil would cause. based on what solas says in trespasser, i always interpreted "the death of your world" or whatever to be more metaphorical as in the death of the world as we know it, a complete change in reality, a permanent change in peoples way of life, a dissolution of current beliefs and systems, etc. maybe that was me giving both solas and bioware too much credit LMAO. i never really thought of it as "literally everyone is going to die because demons".

but veilguard really did lean into this interpretation (snore.... boring!) with what we see in the prologue. rook also does confront solas in one conversation and estimates the deaths at "hundreds? thousands?" and im pretty sure solas affirms that it would be in the thousands, but that the deaths would be on his conscience. i think they went this route to justify why it was going to stay up in the end, but imo its bad, lazy, and completely contradicts everything we learn in trespasser. literally the point of trespasser is to show us the horrible catastrophe that the veils existence caused in the first place.

solas's decision to bring down the veil and kill "thousands" as collateral damage from demons is not just being weighed against the collateral damage cause by the blight in the south and the evanuris's interference across thedas, he is weighing it against the mortality of every single elf that has ever lived and ever will live, the life of every spirit corrupted into a demon both in the past and forever (something we know he considers to be a fate worse than death, according to his memory of his battle where he sacrificed spirits) and the life of every single mage lost to demonic position, both now and forever. he is also not weighing it in terms of literal deaths, but general suffering. the veil is also responsible for the enslavement and poverty of all elves, on top of their mortality. its responsible for the existence of the mage circles, every single abuse that occurs within them, and every single mage tranquilized. its actually ridiculously unequal. solas literally invented death. of course a few thousand more lives are meaningless to him? what is a few thousand against the literal millions already on his head? trespasser makes this clear as we walk through the vir'dirthara and witness the final memories of the elves that were crushed under falling buildings throughout the empire. veilguard..... hopes we forget that part.

its truly the most cranked to the max, fantasy version of the trolley problem. i think the question pre-veilguard was intended to be analogous to anders decision to blow up the chantry to incite the mage rebellion. its not necessarily should you pull the lever and direct the trolley, or even if the ends justify the means. i think it was intended to be about whether or not he himself had the right to make that decision for the rest of the world, especially considering he is Pride manifested. its less about the cost-benefit analysis of mass casualties to create major societal change and more about an exploration of the things that drive people to the point of such radical action. why did anders feel he had no choice but to blow up the chantry? why did solas feel he had no choice but put up the veil? why does he feel he has no choice to tear it back down? what has driven him to be able to make such impossibly awful moral decisions with such callous ease? and the answer to both is that they were pushed to the limit by the evils their societies were committing. were they right to respond with further, indiscriminate violence? no, of course not. but its a story. we can sympathize with the way they were pushed to the edge and lost themselves in the process.

it comes back to the dehumanization of leadership theme that is all over inquisition and has foundations in veilguard that are never actually realized. solas literally tells rook they never had what it takes to make the sacrifices that leadership requires. and its kind of presented as a villain monologue but HES RIGHT? rook barely makes any difficult decisions in comparison to the inquisitor or solas, even the sacrifice of a single city is a drop in the bucket compared to what solas has done, and rook does it without question and with little remorse. a decision had to be made, and they made it. just like he did.

inquisition was all about how leadership or participation within a corrupt institution makes monsters of us all. leliana struggles with the callous killer she's become at divine justinia's behest (actually a wonderful parallel for solas x mythal now that i think about it), bull has to struggle to unlearn the teachings of the qun by choosing his friends over his duty to his people, cassandra grapples with the horrible truth of the seekers and vows to reform them, thom rainier confronts his literal war crime and accepts responsibility for not just killing a family, but for ordering others to carry it out and bloodying their hands in the process. the INQUISITOR is forced to SIT IN JUDGEMENT and possibly SENTENCE PEOPLE TO DEATH OR TORTURE FOR THEIR CRIMES. what gives them the right?????? divine approval from andraste???? what about when you find out thats all a lie and continue to proliferate the rumor anyway because its politically helpful???? what about in hushed whispers? when the inquisitor destroys an entire world to return to their own without a second thought? its wrong, bad, it should never have existed. you erase it from existence without a single thought towards all the lives that will cease to exist and not one of your companions bats an eyelash. what gave you the right to erase that world? what if the people living in it really liked it? you wouldn't know, you didnt ask anyone other than leliana. i truly am starting to believe that veilguard was designed to deliver on this and then had to pivot for whatever reason (EA perhaps, according to those tweets). the natural conclusion to this story would have been the veil coming down, but not by solas's decision alone, or by him at all. even if you are right, you cannot change the world alone, or the process will break you. you cannot make decisions that weigh the lives of millions without losing your humanity in the process. we saw it happen to anders. ghost-varric even has a line about this in veilguard where he says something about solas seeing his attachments as a weakness, when really they are a strength. the lesson solas needed to learn was not that the veil should actually stay up and he should move on, but that only gods made decisions like the fate of the world, and as he always says, he is not a god. there could have been a better way, if he trusted those around him. the regret demon in the callback actually says this nearly verbatim, which is part of the reason i think this was the original intention. i genuinely think the plan was that the veil would come down but by rook's hand and that the good endings would have involved using your faction connections to figure out how to take the veil down safely and build a new thedas, without the veil but also without the elvhen empire of old bc that shit sucked. it would have taken the entire world coming together to figure out the best way forward, and would have freed solas from the burden of leadership that was actively polluting his spirit into pride, while teaching him the value of teamwork, as cheesy as that sounds. this also is the fufillment of his role as a trickster god - he needs to catalyze ragnarok. i genuinely think this was the original intention because it is so obvious in his writing its insane LMFAO. but him not being the one to usher in that change would be another way to release him from the mantle of trickster god that he didnt want in the first place. the bad ending could have been that without faction and community support, you aren't able to find a peaceful way to bring it down and rook, in a moment of desperation, ends up sowing the same violence and destruction that solas did, the perfect mirror. the lesson should have been that such foundational change and dissolving our current structures is terrifying, but we can build a better world - together, not alone.

its crazy to me to think that legend of korra book 4 pulled this off with opening the spirit portals and dragon age failed to LMFAOOOO.

[brujitaadinbo]

I'm posting again after a while; I was watching The Mandalorian, all seasons, again (sorry, I can't help it)

And I think I can answer some of the questions that "haters" of season 3 or the series have tried to bring up about "why if Bo Katan regrets her behavior before, she doesn't cry or they don't talk about Satine ??

For a start; I feel that in this season 3 the time of the series format passed very quickly, too quickly, to the other past seasons. This absolutely did not help the plot much, which was somewhat lost. BUT….

First, Bo has definitely been shown in very sensitive ways this season 3, it is not necessary for her to cry too much to realize that she appears sad, disappointed in herself and tired.

IT IS OBVIOUS that the pain of her past, her sister and her entire career are shown through symbolism, the Kryze castle, the throne, when they destroy said castle, all that, everything bad that she did or that she step, he leaves with the fire, with the destruction of those icons and symbols of his past.

The destruction of the saber that separates the Mandalorians and causes Bo Katan to lose herself in her power, Guideon himself talks about those talismans, all those symbols of power and empowerment that they show us must be destroyed because Bo Katan is a brave, confident woman. , formidable, just as Din Djarin tells her, she doesn't need any of that to stand out and she's going to prove it.

Although we are strong women, we also have our weaknesses, but true power, the empowerment that enriches us, is what makes us strong through our loved ones, our people, acting correctly and that makes us feel satisfied.

When he decides to walk with Din and Grogu it is because although they have not done things correctly, they are also looking for a way to fix the disasters and do it as best as possible. Din started this job and knows that Bo Katan is the one for Mandalore. she resurfaces, she is the daughter born of this place, she has sacrificed everything, she is the one who most deserves this opportunity. It bothers me a lot when they only pigeonhole their relationship as “somewhat forced”, “meaningless” or not “romantic” at all, sorry but… it doesn't have to be romantic, on the contrary, it is appreciated that it is. because their connection is emotional, their connection goes beyond something physical or superficial and they have worked on it to create a pure bond, a bond that takes them to something beyond if they want to give themselves the opportunity, they are partners. , they go hand in hand together, not at the wrong time, not as a competition, but as a journey for both of them, so in Plazir 15 that is the message they want to give us from these two Mandalorians.

Love in SW doesn't have to be shown with flowers or silly romantic quotes or stuffed animals. Love is demonstrated in subtle acts such as caring, saving, protecting, guiding, advising, consoling, something very human but that can also happen in any other galaxy and is real.

And I'm sure that the path of these Mandalorians will unite again, without the need for bombastic scenes, weddings or silly things. Love blossoms in them and we will know how to see it.

The fact that this green child has crossed their paths as a new hope, it is obvious that love seeks to stay in this new nucleus.

It also bothers me when they talk about Bo being pigeonholed as a mother or wife and that is misogynistic. Let's see the panorama clearly, at no time is there talk of "maternal instinct" because that would be pigeonholing us women and here in The Mandalorian 3 it never happened. That since season 2, both Din and Bo can be seen and notice that parental sense, the impulse or parental instinct to protect the child, is logical and normal because we all have developed that instinct, adult humans, taking care of the little ones, for love, affection, affection, responsibility, etc. Between brothers, cousins, family, father, mother or children, even with our pets, because we are sensitive, empathetic and sociable beings and it is scientifically proven.

That Bo becomes attached or has affection for the child is because Grogu is nice, he has earned his place in Bo's heart and because the two have a connection, it does not affect anything in the story or characters, on the contrary it contributes. And that's not why she is pigeonholed as a mother, there is nothing wrong with motherhood because it exists because it is okay if you want to live it or not and Bo Katan can do it if she wants to or not, it is her decision. But she can be a mother figure, she can be a figure of respect for Grogu, affection and appreciation, a guide and an important part of his life. She can serve something else and not just war and combat. He can do so many things and his knowledge of war should not limit him.

I really appreciate that they gave this interaction to the main characters. No matter what happens, I take away the best messages from the series and this season.

I hope the rumors about "it's the last of The Mandalorian" "Bo Katan will no longer appear in the movie or he will die" "There will be no more Din and Grogu material"

be that, just false rumors I await you with much love to Din, Bo and Grogu.

this is the way.

[eurydicees]

actually i'm not done talking about this panel. the way isagi sorts geniuses vs learners is SO INTERESTING.

in my last post about this, i talked about how "the geniuses he names (reo, nagi, barou) are the ones who have lost and sacrificed and suffered the most. the ones he categorizes as learners are the people who have been able to compete, and change." which is fr driving me up the fucking walls. look under the cut to see me trying to work through my thoughts on this lol

first we have barou, who truly has insane physical abilities. he has an innate physicality that just happens makes him good at soccer. so sure, he can put in the category of genius. and so looking at his journey through blue lock, he's one of the ones who really has been least capable of keeping up with the others' change. sure, he's good at soccer. but he is TERRIBLE at the start of the 2nd selection in the team w isagi and nagi. he is forced into changing when playing with them, but he's also like. broken down and rebuilt in order to get there. he has to stop relying on that physicality.

so isagi looks at him as a genius in his truly very unreliable narration. he has physical ability he was born with--but he hasn't previously been able to keep up with change. honestly in addition to all that, i think isagi puts him in this category because he looks at barou as someone that HE himself discovered as the "learner", due to everything in the 2nd selection.

and we have nagi. which. yeah. nagi has crazy physical ability despite his very little dedicated training prior to this. but as we move into the 2nd selection and then then NEL, nagi needs to stop relying on that gifted ability, and the long balls and passes that cater to it. his arc in stopping relying on reo is VITAL to that.

nagi is someone who sacrifices everything he cares deeply about (reo) and loses sight of everything he had wanted (reo's dream) in order to become something new. by the time reo goes "let me be a part of YOUR dream to become the best" nagi has lost everything. he's kinda learned a passion for soccer, but, oh the cost of that.

his regaining his on AND off field relationship w reo is, imo, an indicator that he is beginning to understand that he needs to stop relying on being a "genius." we see this a little in brief snippets the manshine games. also, his "let's try something new" with reo makes me crazy and i'm so excited to see that.

anyways. isagi putting him in this category is kind of a rude dismissal of all that development imo. but it makes sense, too, since isagi only sees nagi as accomplished rather than understanding his sacrifices to move forward. isagi has been growing so much throughout these selections, but his biggest loss was bachira in the 2nd selection. and he never faltered in his belief that he would soon get him back. nagi didn't really have that after reo rejected him.

so nagi is a genius: he's given up everything to keep that. his need to become something more is, like. his entire arc. but isagi doesn't see that last part, he only sees the talent that nagi's been gifted with. so his categorization here is...true, but a little superficial. which i hope isagi begins to see in the future, as his understanding of this dynamic evolves.

then we have reo "i've only been playing soccer six months but im crazy skilled and also certifiably crazy in general" mikage. but reo is also in the last team to pass the 2nd selection. reo loses EVERYTHING (nagi, his confidence, his trust) in the process of getting to this point.

reo is also put in the genius category possibly because he's not actually that great at responding to loss (ex his reaction to losing in the 2nd selection; "be the one that chooses not the one that gets chosen").

but that all being said, more on reo: it's really interesting to me that isagi looks at reo as a genius, bc tbh i wouldn't put him there. personally i would classify him as a "learner", because he's the one who discovered nagi--the "learner" partnering to nagi's "genius"--and also because, yk. his skill is literally copying other people.

but this coming from isagi's POV, ig it does kind of make sense? isagi doesn't understand reo's journey here. he only sees that reo has skill after six months (though reo's training in those six months was kinda deranged); he doesn't see what reo is giving up in order to get it. idk but reo's place here is super interesting and i'm not quite sure what to make of it.

the next part of the panel, with bachira-chigiri-kunigami is also truly making me crawl up the walls and over the ceiling. in contrast to the geniuses, these guys are the ones who "admire and challenge."

these are the people isagi started with, the people the isagi trusts because of that experience in the 1st selection. they've challenged him from the start, and were the original ones forcing him to grow and bring his own skill to realization.

isagi admires them, finds that they challenge him individually and as teammates in team z, but he also doesn't see their skill as impossible to obtain. i think he kinda sees them as people he can hold his own with based on his abilities, as opposed to people like nagi or barou, who he has to counter using teamwork and/or very reactionary methods. he has to fight geniuses by finding innovative strategies versus the people who are his teammates, who he can compete with and grow with rather than against and contrary to.

it's like. the competition between bachira-chigiri-kunigami is built out of an admiration for their skills and a challenge to himself to improve his own skills in their areas of expertise. his rivalries with those guys are stepping stones to his development, sure but they're also rivalries that isagi believes he can compete with without destroying himself.

his rivalries with the guys he classifies as geniuses are more like...rivalries he has to unmake and remake himself in order to even begin to compete. they aren't challenges or competition that isagi is on par with.

but that also feels like an extreme disservice to the people he sees geniuses. he looks at their innate physical weapons and thus believes they've already been discovered and thus have reached the peak of their talent. the learners are still challenginng themselves.

personally, i don't think that's really true. i think all three of those genius characters have a long ways to go still. the "learners"'s egos are honed in the challenges of the fights they seek out, isagi says. but i think he doesn't recognize that the "geniuses"'s egos are honed in the sacrifices they make in those challenges/fights. the "learners" will learn from what they gain in a challenge; "geniuses" will have to learn to grow from what they give up in those challenges. which is just as significant, if not more motivating.

and i don't think isagi is going to be able to defeat any of them until he realizes that aspect of the genius versus learners debate. and tbh. i think ego needs to realize that too.

idk. this is super undeveloped, it's just me working through my thoughts on this specific panel. oh im so late for work jesus christ.

[ellabssucker]

now that i stopped crying... arcane season 2 act II spoilers.

uhm, first off, what. the. fuck.

not even 30 minutes into rhe first episode, BOOM maddie and cait hooking up?? maddie is actually such a sweet, caring girl and i feel so bad for her. she probably spent an unreasonable amount of breath and time trying to change cait's mind when vi was able to in a second. that whole ordeal aside, we are FINALLY (actually it was pretty quick) cait's 'redemption'. or at least she's less blinded by rage now. i mean, she stood in a room with jinx and let her and vi have a family moment with vander instead of trying to blow her brains out. which i think it's progress. i liked cait so much better in this act and THE TENSION WITH VI?!? i just know we are getting sesbian lex on the third act on that one agreement scene.

then seeing jinx actually healthy and relatively sane actually HEALED my heart. i relate to jinx in a way I can't put into words, and she's really important to me, so seeing the positive impact isha had on her was really main focus this act.

which leads to my least favorite part. isha's death. i have a lot to say about it, but i genuinely can't without crying and my head already hurts. she was so important to jinx and I'm scared for how she's gonna deal with isha being gone (which I'm still holding hope for that to not be true). but aside how important isha was for jinx and how she became a part of the family, isha was just a kid. I'm not sure how old she was, and we don't see much of how her lofe was before jinx, but i can confidently say the probably few times in her life she felt safe were around jinx. it hurts to know that little girl probably went through so much, and in such a short time, she was able to build such a strong bond with jinx which lead to her sacrificing herself for her. the look on her face as she tan towards vander almost looked relieved that she could do this for jinx, after jinx did so much to protect her. we saw from early one isha would do anything to protect jinx as well, because she was all the family isha had. the kid deserved better. I really hope she makes a comeback, like we've seen multiple characters in this show do. i really hope she's okay. i won't get over the fact they found a family in each other and i think this is gonna affect jinx greatly. as for how, i think it's gonna be positive. as in, she's gonna use her destructiveness for good rather than bad, cause i genuinely think isha made jinx a better person. i think she brought powder back, but with all the good qualities jinx has.

moving on (lie) to vander, that man just can't catch a break. he deserves better. the writers are inflicting unnecessary pain fr. he finally got his daughters back (plus one) and was on his way to healing and returning to his human self. if only it wasn't for JAYCE.

this bitch ass motherfucker is clearly going through some kind of psychosis but WHAT THE FUCK JAYCE. jayce when i catch you jayce. honestly i don't know what happened to him during that time he was gone on the hex, but i can't get through my head that he would just kill viktor like that, especially knowing what would happen to all the people he healed. but for isha and vander, I really can't sympathize right now. i always found jayce to be self-absorbed and changed his mind every two seconds. he fucked up. he ruined a family. we waited 3 years for this only for this bitch to come and we lost not only viktor, but isha and vander under 10 minutes.

also, where the fuck is ekko?!

i also can't get over the fact that ambessa won't change. even after everything that's happened, she's still manipulating, hurting and killing, risking other people's lives and bribbing people to get her ways and cause even more damage. and talk about 'sacrife'. all she does is sacrifice other people, including her own daughter and son, for her own thirst of blood and selfish reasons. we've been shown time and time again, she is not a good mother, or a good person, or a good leader, and she does not think about anyone but herself.

also stop fucking with mel's head, like messing with her brother? that's fucked up.

i really liked the visual, colors, and music of this act. i think I've never cried harder but also tried to appreciate the cinematography at the same time (which is really hard by the way). i feel like is jinx all over the place, but also still has that touch of the arcane, i feel nostalgic when something reminds me of how the aesthetic was on the first season. it's different for sure, but the feelings are still there. maybe it's just cause it feels like home but i can still see what it used to be on what it is now.

it's a masterpiece. i loved it. it fucking ruined me.

[high-voltage-rat]

Actually I'm still thinking about it. Another interesting way in which RvB is anti-war is the way that the Director fills the role of a villain and antagonist (especially in the Recollections trilogy, where he's a faceless villain we never see but is responsible for everything that happens).

In his memos to the Chairman, the Director emphasizes his sense of duty and obligation to the military- he becomes irate for the first time when he feels that it's being implied that he was derelict in his duty... or that the work he did out of that duty is being criticized for being against the military's interests. He also talks about Allison's death in a way I find... interesting.

"You see; I never had the chance to serve in battle. Nor did fate provide me the opportunity to sacrifice myself for humanity as it did for so many others in the Great War. Someone extremely dear to me was lost very early in my life. My mind has always plagued me with the question: If the choice had been placed in my hands, could I have saved her? [...] But, given the events of these past few weeks, I feel confident that had I been given the chance, I would have made those sacrifices myself... Had I only the chance."

The idea of sacrifice is central to the way he talks about his wife's loss, to the way he talks about the war in general. He talks of sacrifice with a sense of veneration- that it's something he aspires to do, that he longs for. There's a few ways we can interpret "I would have made those sacrifices myself"...

-That in Allison's place, he thinks he would have laid down his life too.

-That if given the chance, he would have given his life to save hers.

But most interestingly...

-That he would have sacrificed Allison's life for the continued survival of humanity, if that was what duty called for.

...And personally, I think all 3 are true.

In most war media, the Director's perspective on sacrifice is very common. Sacrifice is glorious and heroic- to die in battle is an honour- and it's the only way to ensure the group you serve survives. This is a tool of propaganda- nobody wants to go to war just for the sake of it, you have to give them a reason that the risk of dying or being permanently disabled isn't just acceptable, but desirable. Beyond that, most people don't want to do things they think are immoral- you have to convince them it's important, a necessary lesser evil. You teach them to sacrifice their morals, too.

The way they train soldiers to follow orders and to kill, is to convince them that they, and the people around them, and the people they care about, will all die if they don't. It's drilled into your head from day one. It's the way they ensure their commanding officers won't shy away from sending their men off to die. The message is constant- sacrifice is your duty, and duty ensures your people's survival.

In the Director's eyes, the damage Project Freelancer caused was his sacrifice. He never got the opportunity to sacrifice himself during the war- so he sacrificed others, as military brass do. The Freelancers- including his daughter. The countless sim troopers. Any people he considered "collateral damage" on missions. And when the opportunity to do so presented itself, he sacrificed a copy of himself- Alpha- and he sacrificed a copy of Allison- Tex.

The very thing that derailed his life- the loss of his wife- he made it happen again. He put her copy in dangerous situations, let her exist in the position of constant repeated failure, created the circumstances that would eventually lead to her death. He put their daughter in deadly situations that nearly killed her repeatedly, provided her with impossible expectations leading to self-destructive behaviours in the name of duty, implanted her with two AI knowing they could cause her permanent harm. He was confident he "would have made those sacrifices himself" because he did.

The Director is the embodiment of the military war machine. As an antagonist, he is a warning against buying into the glorification of sacrifice. He's a condemnation of the idea that one should be willing to do anything to win a war- that duty to the military is the thing that ensures survival... All the messages that are pushed to ensure recruitment and obedience of soldiers.

He's a reminder that swallowing the propaganda leads to you doing terrible things... and in the end, you're a broken man left mourning the losses that you suffered even as you repeated them, convinced that it was all necessary.

[brain-rot-central]

In Sonnet AA is just a more powerful Astarion or the ascension changed him drastically in some way?What do you make of Mephistophele's deal (or any deal with a devil in general)?

So... My interpretation of Astarion is that UA and AA both exist within him from the start.

Throughout the game we see the two sides of him warring for dominance. And tbh, he's kind of an asshole from the get. Like, he isn't a nice person. He's a jerk, but he learns compassion as the game goes on because someone (Tav/Durge) finally extended a hand to him. Someone finally sees him. It's the theory of "love breeds kindness" being displayed.

The ascension route his him choosing himself despite this, strictly out of fear of another being having control over him again and it exacerbates all of his worst qualities since he's delving deeper into his paranoia. He's walling himself off, basically. Regressing, which happens a lot with abuse victims.

And as much as he tries telling himself that the ascension "killed the weaker version of himself," all it really did is shove that part of him down beneath six feet of dirt. He never made peace with it so much as he views it as an embarrassment and a source of shame. But when it comes to Tav, that part of him screams the loudest. And he hates it, because it reminds him of how weak and vulnerable he felt.

Basically reminds him that the concept of love makes him uncomfortable because to love someone is to be vulnerable. You'll do and withstand things you normally wouldn't with other people. Love is an opportunity for you to be softer and to have someone hold you. That scares the shit out of him, because he's no longer totally in control. You essentially become a willing participant for the other person, and you hope that they'll continue to extend the same courtesy to you.

I also don't agree with the notion that just because he's ascended, he now suddenly knows everything. Nothing about the ascension changes what has already happened to him, or his experiences. He may put on an air as if it has, and the whole point of it is to distract you from the realization that he still doesn't know shit about being an ascended/true vampire (his first humanoid blood was the PC and that was literally like... one/two months ago).

The man has zero idea how to turn someone and it's probably a nerve-racking experience for him, which is why he becomes so personally offended if you refuse his offer to become his consort. Because in a way, it's him being vulnerable with you. He has no idea what he's doing but he's willing to try if it means you both get to spend eternity together. He's essentially proposing to you in the only way he knows how. He also doesn't know SHIT about any of his powers/abilities yet.

He's a little fledging vampire who's been given the keys to the Lamborghini, essentially. But heaven forbid anyone else see that.

I don't think he lost his soul in the deal. I think moreso he's riding an insane high of 1) finally being free of Cazador's influence and 2) no longer having the insatiable hunger that plagued him for 200 years. For the first time in two centuries his mind is completely clear and his own again.

But I do believe there are some trade-offs to the ascension. Like for instance, uncovering a werebat form if he's too emotionally charged/cannot control himself. I also hc that he eventually starts hearing the voices of those sacrificed during the ritual, especially if he delves too deeply into a dark path.

TL;DR: the UA/AA versions of Astarion exist from the beginning and I still think they exist post-ascension. Just with the ascension, he's letting the worst qualities of himself win. I don't see that as a permanent thing.

The deal with Mepho changes nothing about him on a personal level; he doesn't lose his soul in the deal but there are some consequences of the deal -- becoming grotesque and/or hearing voices of those sacrificed in the ritual. He feels good and it just reinforces the arrogant behavior he displayed early on, as it's a point of regression for his overall development.

[a-goumang-ripoff]

Confusion, Uncertainty, and Bafflement: A Rant About Goumang

So I've decided to move on to my next rant and thought that I might as well get my namesake out of the way. Funny enough, Goumang is only my favorite sol because she is such a weird character to think about, none of the sols can get my voice nearly as loud in a rant as Goumang does. She confuses me to no end, and I think that confusion is the most interesting part of the entire game for me to think about. Also, her design is so fucking cool, I love Nine Sols' character designs so much but to literally make this cat person into a harpy via genetic modification and prosthetics is such a badass idea, I wish I thought of it myself tbh.

So, to start off this rant: Goumang's position within Nine Sols. She is intended to be the second boss you face in the game, though can be the third (which I heavily recommend, I hate that fight without air dash) and I believe can be the first boss, but I am unsure about that. She is an early-game threat which we learn quite a lot about in her area, and the game holds back nothing by this point giving her what I would argue to be the most disturbing and gruesome end in the entire game, which almost none of the other sols can compare to. I do believe her status as Eigong's other student was stated in her area, but it was something that was lost on me as I wasn't sure what the game meant, I assumed she was one of several and they just happened to be at odds. However there are little features around the game which really paints her to be Yi's rival.

Beyond being Eigong's other student, she also has a passionate hatred for Yi which is far more intense than any hatred the other sols have with one another, and Yi clearly shares this hatred with how he decides to end her, though he keeps himself level-headed in her presence otherwise it seems. She talks to us about the plan she had if she was chosen over Yi, the way she acts in the holograms at the end of the game is painfully antagonistic, and even that picture Eigong has by her eternal sanctum of the two of them together. It weirdly feels like the game is trying to build her up as Yi's rival, but we know Eigong is the true rival fight in the game, not to mention Goumang is dispatched within the first half of the game. I have to ask why the game pushes this so hard. I understand she is realistically physically weak and lacks combat prowess; as Jiequan says, she's just a farmer. But I think I would have preferred her place in the game to get moved up and to treat her more like Yi's rival. It doesn't feel unrealistic for her to learn the same martial arts Yi did at Eigong's recommendation; if anything, it makes more sense for Goumang to take up the idea granted her past.

Another thing which confuses me about Goumang is the mismatch between her backstory and her behavior in-game. Her backstory consists of her growing up seemingly poor in a place that is already in constant famine, then being implied to pull herself up by her bootstraps and become one of the most skilled biologists in Penglai. Her motivations are shown clear to us: she wants to end world hunger on Penglai and had the means to do it with New Kunlun's aid. The servants she has she shows to have actual compassion for (though the way she views them is very much as lesser beings which is not great) and, in the Nine Sols prequel comic, she is shown to be quite a kind person, giving a little girl food and a ride for a mistake that is hardly even hers. And yet everything we see beyond her memories shows her to not only be a jealous bitch who thinks herself better than everyone and seems to pamper herself at any opportunity, but also hold fascist/fascism-adjacent ideologies.

"Optoberries, apemen, even our fellow solarians... they all need greenhouses and incubators. Sacrificing a little freedom and yielding to your superiors is the path to a perfect society[...] The truth is, the weak fear the truth and cannot make choices for themselves."

I know that having a shitty past doesn't automatically make you not become a shitty person, but to hammer in the idea that she had an awful childhood filled with suffering and holds a variety of selfless aspects of her character only to make her act childish and needlessly bitchy just doesn't feel right, it feels like there's really something that we aren't being told. I would be happy to shrug it off as potentially seeing Yi as someone who doesn't deserve the position he got because he had much kinder beginnings than her, but between her childish behavior before the game's confrontation and the fact that she doesn't bring that up in her monologue (instead simply mentioning that she wanted to be chosen over Yi, making it jealousy rather than simple hatred) makes it just feel weird.

On a lighter point, it feels quite a bit odd that she is The Sex Character in the game, especially with how heavy they lean into that. Everything about her just feels sexual. I mean, firstly, she is the only solarian I've seen to wear literally no pants, and her legs tend to be blocking her crotch in a weirdly intentional way. Like, it'd be one thing to do that but have her not have anything between her legs, but it makes it way weirder that her crotch is being constantly blocked, it feels like it's trying to imply her pussy is just out there at all times (and no one cares, which makes it funnier). The two times you can actually see her crotch, there is shading which makes it way too harder to discern anything (yes, I looked, this was a traumatizing realization and I needed to confirm it fully). She also is clearly dominant in both an almost hierarchical sense and a sexual sense, you can literally make Yi call her out saying "you just dominate people for pleasure," and she won't even deny the pleasure part, just corrects Yi on the fact that she's "protecting" instead of dominating. How much more on the nose can you get?

Also, I'm not sure if this is just me or not but doesn't her 'death' scene have a really odd vibe about it? The fact that it's a mind control collar is bad enough, but the way Yi tilts her head up and the gasp from her that plays all makes it even weirder.

The echoes of "mama" from her servants make it only worse. Normally I'd think it's a funny coincidence that ignores sexual contexts around the word, but that quote about dominating people for pleasure makes it feel intentional. The whole thing just feels like a Guro scene and it really twisted my stomach when that got combined with my own issues over leg injuries (I can't believe there's TWO leg injury scenes in the game, not a fun time for me).

Though the weirdest part for me is that I feel like there's a much more prominent candidate for being The Sex Character, that being Nuwa. The drug club she runs genuinely feels a step away from being a sex palace, especially with all the pink imagery (and those dancers). The instrument she plays looks genuinely phallic and the way it's played, with her mouth against the tip, doesn't help. Yet I feel like they leaned away from it quite a bit compared to Goumang. Though, I suppose the incest stuff that surrounds Nuwa and Fuxi may have pushed them away from doing that. Lady Ethereal even seems to have a bit of that stuff going for her... okay I'm starting to realize most of the prominent women in this game have sexual stuff related to them.

Moving on from that startling realization, the last thing I want to talk about is some of the reasoning I've gathered on why a lot of these choices may have been made and how I think Goumang could be improved as a character. One of the major reasons why I think there's such a mismatch in backstory and personality is that I believe they started to write her character and backstory, but then determined how they wanted to use her afterwards. Her fascist ideas and the literal slaves she owns makes her especially gruesome death feel like a jab towards fascist governments and more than likely directed towards the Chinese government (see my previous rant for more context on this). Another reason that mismatch might be present, potentially in combination with the previous one, is that RedCandleGames may have realized that she was being made too good of a person to be one of the sols that are killed, so a sudden shift occurred to make her seem just as crazy and evil as the rest of the sols are.

As for her odd implications of being Yi's rival? My main theory is that it was unintentional, obviously Yi's mentor should be his actual rival, Goumang may have just been placed as her other student to give more reason for her gruesome death or as another way to put her in a more evil position, and then an unintentional rival dynamic was built from that. It also possible she may have just be intended to be a rival fight or have more presence than she does (though, the sols seem to all have a pretty equivalent presence overall). But this is just speculation pretty much.

I think there's quite a few ways to improve her character. For one, I think she could be leaned over towards a less evil standing. I feel as though Yi could have started the game off a lot more evil than he did, it feels like a major portion of his character growth occurs with his time in peach blossom village before the game starts, we don't really get to see him go from hating humans to wanting to protect them, it's an implied shift. I'll likely touch more in depth on this when I rant about Yi, but if he were to be placed in a more evil position, he would have better reason for deciding Goumang is worth killing if she is put in a better standing. Alternatively, go a little more in depth on her backstory, it feels like it's only one step away from being fully believable, if they showed us something which actively made her change ideologies or gain new ones that orient her where she is in the game, I wouldn't feel that mismatch would be as strong as it is.

Overall, I find Goumang's writing to be quite shallow, her personality in-game doesn't feel like anything unique, it feels like a character I've seen several times in the media I've consumed (ignoring the whole fascist thing). If her backstory and personality weren't so mismatched, I believe her writing would have a lot more depth to it and I would feel much less confused about her. I also feel as though she could have been utilized very well as a rival to Yi, though that is a much farther-reaching concept than the changes I've suggested for her writing.

I'll be honest I didn't think I'd talk for 3 paragraphs purely about sex, I was intending to leave it at one but it's just so weird to me that she's used that way. Not that I'm complaining, check my blog's title. More than likely I'll post a follow-up rant on this one which is more about a lot of my less serious thoughts on her, ideas I have of remaking her character and such, just fanon/headcanon bullshit.

[under-lore]

Yoshi is Gaster

For years the fandom has been theorising about the past of WD Gaster, today this mystery has finally been solved once and for all.

Gaster is non other than Yoshi from Super Mario.

Still skeptical ? Let me present you the undeniable evidence.

First of all, in Deltarune a man in a tree that is obviously Gaster gives us eggs. But why eggs of all things rather than anything else ?

Its because eggs are always associated with Gaster's true identity.

As we all know, Gaster is trapped in the void, now lets look at the most famous trope related to Yoshi in the super Mario series : The Yoshi sacrifice.

It consists of using Yoshi to jump further by sacrificing it and letting it fall into the void below.

Now you might still think this is a coincidence and that Super Mario isn’t canon to Undertale and Deltarune. But you would be wrong.

In Undertale, we can clearly see a video game console in the garbage dump.

The console which we see is a SNES.

And guess on which console did super Mario world come from ? The game where Yoshi is first dropped into the void ? That’s right ! The SNES !

But Deltarune is where it gets even more troubling.

Asriel plays super smashing fighters, and in this game, his favorite character is non other than :

YOSHI.

We therefore have proof that Yoshi really is canon in the world of Undertale/Deltarune.

Lets dive deeper into the connection between Asriel, Yoshi and Gaster.

Gaster doesn’t exist in Deltarune under this name, he only exists as Yoshi. In Undertale however he was always Gaster.

Asriel, naive child that he was, threw Yoshi into the void in the world of Deltarune when he played Super Mario world.

But remember that Undertale and Deltarune are parallel worlds, if in Deltarune Yoshi falls into the void sacrificing himself for Asriel then the same must be true in Undertale as well.

In Undertale, Asriel almost fell into the core but Gaster saved him at the last second, falling into the core himself instead.

In both worlds, Gaster falls in the void to save Asriel.

Gaster when he fell was shattered across time and space so when Asriel in Deltarune sacrificed Yoshi, a gap opened in the space-time continuum and he saw the Undertale timeline and what he had done to the Gaster in Undertale by throwing Yoshi into the void in Deltarune.

Because of this, Asriel in Deltarune became depressed and ever since that day he never loved Yoshi and eggs again because it reminded him of what he had done.

For more proof that the universes did interact with each other. We have this secret line in the code of Undertale in which we can see Yoshi/Gaster from the world of Deltarune talking to Asriel just before sacrificing himself for him.

We also see proof that Asriel knew Who Gaster was since Flowey can imitate Gaster’s face.

More evidence that Yoshi is connected to all of them :

Papyrus, who is connected to both Gaster and to Flowey (so Asriel) also happens to have an egg in his room !

Flowey has won every game and lost every game, which means he must have also played Mario World on the SNES from the garbage dump that we saw earlier and killed a Yoshi, everything comes full circle.

But there is still one more big revelation to make.

Yoshi and Gaster are both always linked to Asriel and to eggs in both Undertale and Deltarune. But what other secret does the egg hold ?

Its because the word “egg” when translated in wingdings which is Gaster’s font translates to the coordinates of the movement pattern of a knight when playing chess.

That’s right, Asriel is non other than the knight.

Everything lines up : the egg, the connection to Gaster in both Undertale and Deltarune…

The “game” that made Jevil insane was super Mario world when he saw Yoshi die and saw all the timelines just like Asriel when the universes interacted.

Spamton is a scammer to reference how when Super Mario world first came out, video game piracy in Japan was at an all time high.

To finish this off i’ll predict the secret second ending of Deltarune.

In chapter 7 if you collected all of the 7 eggs, you can merge them together into a big egg and a Yoshi will get born from it, then it will turn into Gaster, revealing the truth about Gaster’s identity. After the final battle, Yoshi will use his tongue to eat the titans before sacrificing himself one last time by jumping into a dark fountain. The roaring will have finally been stopped and Gaster will have succeeded in stopping it, being remembered as a hero.

Any naysayer to this theory is objectively wrong.

[i-write-things]

Hello, hope you're doing well. I read through your Chrollo works and really enjoyed the way you portrait him! I wanted to ask: how do you think Chrollo would react if he was confronted about how his past changed him from the kid he used to be and his lack of understanding himself as well as the lack of a proper identity without the Troupe. Sorry if it's worded wrong or weirdly, English isn't my first language. Thankyou!

(Omg, omg, omg, omg, my first ask! Keep it cool, Pen. Keep it cool...) I'm also not sure if you wanted Yandere Chrollo or regular Chrollo, so I'm gonna start with the more popular Yan!Chrollo, then do regular Chrollo.

(Yan!:) Ok, well, this is a really interesting one! You see, his reaction will depend on how you do this. Are you asking him this angrily as a way to get him upset or at the very least, shut him up and get him to think for a moment? Because if so, he'd definitely think for a moment before replying. But it's not too much, though. Maybe a solid 45 seconds before he responds with him speaking in riddles as he walks off to think some more. He'll be really quite for a while, then when your trying to sleep at night, he'll provide you with a genuine answer. (Yan! Chrollo + Regular Chrollo:) If you're more nice about it, like you're genuinely curious, and you tell him you need to talk seriously and sit him down, he'd react differently. To answer his past changing him, he'd say something along the lines of, "hm...yes. My upbringing certainly did change me, but...who cannot say the same. While I used to be more innocent with a child-like wonder, we all have to mature at some point. So no mater what would have happened, I would have grown up, anyway. Fate has....a rather interesting way of doing things." He'd think a for a little, but not too long. As long as he has fate as part of an answer to a reply, he thinks deeply, but never long. "As for the lack of understanding...well, you're not wrong there. There's just...no other way of putting it, is there? Yes...I'm not sure of who, or even, what I am. The key to understanding myself was...lost many years ago. And yet, I still remember it perfectly to this day...." He stays silent for a moment before responding to the next statement. "And....true. I am nothing without the Spider. I am only the head. And no one can identify only the head of a species as small and powerful as a spider. I put everything into the Troupe. I made many sacrifices. I, perhaps even, put myself so far into the Spider that... even I cannot take some of it back. Including myself..." He speaks in riddles as usual, and doesn't really answer your concerns unless you ask him a specific question such as the why's and the how's and stuff. But later on you understand what the last part meant: He sacrificed so much that he even gave up who he was just so he could create a group whose legacy would live far beyond he would when he meets his inevitable death. Maybe that's why he's not afraid of death? Because he's already all set with the everything he's ever wanted. Or maybe it's a fate thing. Who really knows what's going on in Chrollo's brain?

[kadextra]

I’ve read quite a lot of orv over the past few weeks when I could, adding onto this long post as I went on so….. here we go!!

(warning major super ultra mega spoilers)

previously

-

Starting with the fight between dokja & joonghyuk during “a story that can’t be shared” episode.

At first after reading that battle I was really confused of what yjh’s intentions were, I’m gonna be honest. 😭 did he really want to kill dokja or not, or was it a plan he and sooyoung cooked up? that’s what it sounded like when they talked about it so??? why did he start smacking the fourth wall?? I had to read this part multiple times, and even look up interpretations on the internet that night to understand it. but I finally did! :3

dokja was just an incredibly unreliable narrator there, that’s why it was challenging to figure out yjh’s true motivations. dokja normally is unreliable so that’s normal, he thinks he understands people better than he actually does. and his mind was also in an even worse state after consuming that Eden good and evil fruit & practically losing it when he thought sooyoung died

joonghyuk never wanted to actually kill him- he had read the record of 1863rd turn, and the fight was all because he wanted to know the truth if dokja had given up on them & the 3rd round. if dokja did, then joonghyuk was prepared to give it up too (meaning: die. kdj didn’t even realize that was happening)

thankfully joonghyuk got the answer to the question he wanted, he didn’t die, he will live and reaffirmed himself as a “former regressor”. ough <3 he knocked dokja out and was attacking the fourth wall in hopes he could break through it and learn more of dokja’s thoughts.

very cool and emotional fight overall!!!!! reread it like 8 times I enjoyed figuring it out

-

And then I cried.

That whole goodbye conversation between dokja and sangah was beautiful…. so wistful about what things could have like been for all of them in another world…. and how even if things don’t go the way you expect, you have to live. at the end of the day everything is all about love… T_T I love her

then it came in with the double whammy of tears with THIS

HE WAS CRYING!!!!!!!! 😭😭😭 AND IT WAS HIS BIRTHDAY 😭😭😭😭😭

-

The kaizenix scenario starting had me giggling and incredibly entertained because PRINCE RICARDO is here!!!! literally sat there laughing in total disbelief at the sudden reincarnation fantasy story that came out of left field 😭 help my orv changed genres

laughter abruptly stops

wtf

the party members have already spent several years in this place before dokja got here and they all lost their egos after being weathered away by the march of time, hopelessly waiting for him? 🙂 heewon and hyunsung forgot each other??? that scene absolutely tore my heart out. pls do not separate them. SOOYOUNG WAS THERE FOR 50 YEARS! CRAZY! she wrote a novel too. ended it the same as twsa🥲

“It’d been better if I sacrificed myself instead” kim dokja you better shut up

but at least everything turned out well in the end for this arc so I am happy :,)

-

And the good and evil war started!! I watched the resident problem son go home and visit his parents- the literal gods of the underworld! (I love that this whole thing between these three has happened)

ofc dokja had his parents gossip about his love life there too

💀💀AKDJFKFLGLRNWKFKGKAJEDM I CANR BREATHE

but the reveal that it was Hades who discovered dokja from the very beginning and watched him together with Persephone. they really loved and wanted to adopt him all along didn’t they, best mom and dad for our prince 🥹 and even though dokja has hated the constellations, he cares about them and doesn’t want those two to disappear aughfhghghgh.

-

HEEWON UNLOCKING HER CHAOS JUDGE FORM AND MURDERING TONS OF DEMON KINGS AFTER LEE HYUNGSUNG’S SACRIFICE. “Sympathy? Utterly disgusting.” SHAKING. EDGE OF MY SEAT. I love you jung heewon 💖 she is so cool and my eyes are leaking 😭

after that whole mess finally the entire Kim Dokja’s Company has assembled together again including an unconscious lee hyunsung but at least he’s not dead like I fully believed for a hot minute <3

naturally though they can’t have good things and the apocalypse dragon revived anyways against their best efforts, because the seekers of the end are all a bunch of insane people. that thing is powerful enough to kill constellations with a flick of its tail 💀

mom and dad came to help <3 but I got really anxious reading because everybody by this point was exhausted or hurt too badly or to block the third wave.

I had no clue how they’d resolve this chaotic situation it was not looking good

it was looking so bad in fact,

KIM DOKJA. PULLING THIS AGAIN

WHY IN THE HELL ARE YOU LIKE THIS SIR

it’s always in situations where I know he has to do it or literally everybody horribly dies but that doesn’t mean I’m happy about it!!!!!! (that’s a lie I was super hyped) still. grabs him with my fists.

Going to ramble a bit here, but the way orv introduces new concepts is so natural and interesting. from the walls, to how stories can talk to you, now to the existence of “chaos” as the void/between of good & evil. it’s the first time I have been hearing this term explained in the story, yet it feels like it’s always been a fact, because it connects so well to what I already know. like of course the outer gods are beings originated from chaos, what else would they be? chaos in mythology was the origin state it makes total sense

being the demon king of salvation means to save people no matter what…… screams cries throws up

“That man is the world I wish to save” BLEW ME AWAY. such a hard line oh my goodness. I love you jung heewon 💖

and all the monologues from dokja in the void space between the indescribable distance and apocalypse dragon, slowly withering away but holding onto life because he wants to live 😭 he sacrificed himself, but it’s different this time because he asked to be saved. he took that action while putting full faith in his companions to do their best to save him. he wants to live. “will to live” even became a stigma 🥲 I can’t do this

-

Son Wukong my guy finally descended into the scenario and its as epic as I always hoped, hayoung was so smart for that. the monkey king himself helped fight off the fog clones and made a way for the trio go save dokja, so awesome. heewon boosting the other two forward, and sooyoung finally boosting joonghyuk.

joonghyuk following the fragments of dokja’s broken star in the pitch black darkness was an incredibly beautiful imagery for a scene, I saw it vividly it makes me want to draw it so bad. and the stuff yjh was desperately thinking during that got me teary eyed, of course. all I do while reading this story is get emotional damaged

but before yoo joonghyuk could reach dokja, someone else reached him first.

honestly felt my heart freeze over while reading that part.

but LETS GOOOOOOOOO FINALLY secretive plotter reveal!! I’ve been waiting for this for so long!!! It’s not future dokja, it’s future joonghyuk!!! :D I’d kinda suspected it to be him ever since the 1863rd round happened tbh so this feels great

I really enjoyed their fight, secretive plotter is insanely strong even with a time limit and was toying with joonghyuk, but joonghyuk never gave up and pulled out all his power to try and save dokja. in the end he was defeated but that was an amazing fight to see

sadly the group is without their beloved dokja again, not because he died this time but because he’s kidnapped 😔 man if it’s not one thing it’s something else, I feel so bad for them

-

and that is currently where I am! the most recent stuff I had read last night, just in time for me to see the webtoon adapt dkos death this morning. haha happy dkos death day 🎉🫡💥🎊🥲

I’m pondering a lot on the reveals in these chapters, some things still don’t feel fully answered to me so I’ll have more to say soon when I continue reading. VERY excited can’t wait to know more :D

[completeoveranalysis]

Nick have you seen the parallel between Sakura's farewell words to Lava Lamp and Real!Fai's last words to Yuui/our Fai as uncovered in his final memory in Celes? Could you talk about it?

I didn't notice this at all in the moment, but OOF. The PAIN of this parallel.

WHAT A MOMENT TO ECHO.

It draws quite an emotional parallel between (our) Fai and Lava Lamp Guy. Both of them ended up trapped in long, lonely, torturous situations where their fate was tied to someone else - someone they loved dearly, someone who is kind of dead, but because of their unique situation they ended up tying their entire existence around these ultra painful complex scenarios for the other person's eventual survival. Lava Lamp outright told Watanuki in the dream world that no matter how much he has to endure he will do what needs to be done to fix it. And Fai kind of had the situation happen twice - first, when both twins were alive, where they both stuck in the eternal torture pit for eternity because they refused to let each other die, and then later in life where Fai was trapped into servitude to Evil Wolverine's plan in order to try and revive his brother at the end of it all. Both Lava Lamp and Fai have good goals - they are devoted to someone they love, and will endure anything they think they need to in order to save them. But so much so that it twists their lives into constant suffering, to the point that the person they want to save actually cannot bear it anymore and wants to set them free instead.

So in both these final moments we have Sakura and (the original) Fai sacrificing themselves to save the other from endless suffering - Sakura saving Lava Lamp to free him from his plotline death and everything he is chained to, and (og) Fai making the deal with Wolverine that thematically frees Fai from the pit AND frees his future self from his commitment once he knows the truth of the situation.

It's a very beautiful, dark, and tragic act of love in both cases. They are scenarios born of desperation, where there is no safe winning outcome, and the alternative will either bring endless suffering or death for both of them. It shows that both parties are, at the end of the day, willing to sacrifice literally their entire existence to save each other - but also exploring what that means and how much suffering can come of this blind devotion. IS it truly better to live your life in constant torture in the hope that you might one day free someone you love from their predetermined death? Or is this only forcing yourself to suffer needlessly?

From a plotline perspective, both of these characters are technically already dead by the time we get these lines. Sakura kind of died in Infinity. Her fate, by her own choice, has already been tied to this outcome. It would have been impossible for Lava Lamp to stop it. (Og) Fai, too, is dead by the time Our Fai sees this scene in it's true context. He died hundreds of years ago, and even though Fai bent his entire life around trying to switch places with him, in truth that was always impossible. With that in mind, both scenarios are less about "who sacrificed themselves first to save the other" and more about the concept of trying to change a death that has already taken place - and that's an idea at the very core of Tsubasa all the way through.

What is the true nature of grief? To be in pain forever, or to accept that the person you've lost loved you, wanted the best for you, and wouldn't want you to suffer like this anymore?

Do you, like Evil Wolverine, break anything you need to break in order to bring that person back - or do you allow yourself to heal, like they would have wanted?

It's technically an open question, but in both Fai's death and Sakura's death, we have the person in question actually answer the question for us.

[jedimasterbailey]

Hello, friend. 🖤🤍📖💀 for the ask game, please. 🙏

Hello there friend 💙💚 Thank you for the ask and thank you for choosing some questions that really make me think 🤔 let’s do this!

Link to the original ask questions below if y’all wanna play along which please do because I love to snoop 👀

🖤- Which character is not as morally good as everyone seems to think?

Dooku and yes I know he’s a Sith Lord and not considered a hero by any means but since the Tales of the Jedi episodes (which I love btw don’t @ me there) but I feel that fandom kinda looks at him like they do with Anakin. That even though Dooku and Anakin have done HORRIBLE INEXCUSABLE crimes that killed so many people and betrayed their loved ones that just because they “had their reasons” then that makes them worthy of sympathy when in reality that shouldn’t be the case. Dooku didn’t do what he did for the greater good or to serve others; he did what he did to serve himself and what he wanted. Dooku knew what the Empire was going to be (I.e. an all human regime that oppress alien races) and yet still went along with it thinking he could rule that regime himself one day. I don’t care that he was hurt by losing Qui-Gon or Obi-Wan; he still hurt and betrayed them regardless. If you ever read the Master and Apprentice book by Claudia Gray, you would come to find out Qui-Gon was 1.) terrified of Dooku because of his very dark actions 2.) Overlooked him for his first Padawan (Aveross I think his name was?) and 3.) Fixated on his own interests over being a proper teacher for Qui-Gon. In short, Dooku is a pretentious self serving privileged man of status and power and that’s that. The moral compass he has is whatever benefits him.

🤍-Which character is not as morally bad as everyone else seems to think?

Mace. Windu. For fucks sake y’all he is NOT a bad man! Had it not been for Anakin’s choices, he would have ended the Clone Wars once and for all and brought peace to the galaxy avenging every single soul who have lost their lives or sacrificed so much in the war that never needed to happen. Anyone who has read the Legends Shatterpoint novel or pay attention to Mace’s actions/words in the Clone Wars show and in the movies can see that Mace is a very admirable Jedi that anyone should look up to. His fighting style is all about using the Dark Side against those who use it which means this man has had to master his own demons for sake of doing good. That is a very rare quality even amongst the Jedi. He stays true to himself and Jedi philosophy within reason despite others trying to sway him. He also raised Depa who we all know is a wonderful woman who went on to teach Kanan who was a great Jedi. So yes, Mace was more than deserving of his rank and if he was such a bad man who come no one in his lineage ever turned to the Dark Side or left the Order? Clearly he was doing something right. And don’t even go down the tone deaf “he was mean to Anakin” route because Mace was always understanding, trusting, and respectful of Anakin, he was just trying to save Anakin from himself. We love and respect Mace Windu in this house 💜

📖-If you had to remove one book from the series, which would you choose?

The Ahsoka book for sure, sorry to those who like it but it’s not for me and that’s okay since not all books are gonna be everyone’s taste. As a Barrissoka stan I can’t stand whatshernuts constantly being up Ahsoka’s ass and causing her problems. Ahsoka was doing just fine on her own trying to survive after very traumatic events, losing everything she knew, and learning to survive in a galaxy that wants you dead for who you are until of course the stupid ass village needed saving. The book could have had a much better plot. The only parts of the book I liked where when Ahsoka was alone in her thoughts processing and trying to decide her next move. We could have had a very healing story much like Obi-Wan did in his show but nope. Furthermore, I’ve got beef with E.K Johnson for many reasons, the major one being that she’s a very ignorant person that tries to be the “white savior” so… yeah not fond of her work, her views of these characters we love so much, or the story she made for Ahsoka.

💀-If you had to choose one major character to die, who would you choose?

Palpatine of course because without out him the entire galaxy would be spared from mass genocide, destruction, pain, suffering, and pure evil. All of our favorite characters would have a much happier ending 😭 we also wouldn’t have dickheads like Tarkin rising to any position of power.

Link to original unpopular opinion asks

[greatideas-badwriter]

SasuSaku: Sacrificed To The Banished Prince Ch. 19

Sakura didn’t remember how she lost consciousness, but she did recall what caused it when she woke the next day. Her entire body felt heavy, as though her blood had been replaced with lead. Nausea churned her stomach to the point that it was impossible to ignore, but not enough that she could actually be sick and rid of the awful sensation. 

As her memories returned, her breath hitched. The pulse in her ears became as loud as claps of thunder. A gut-wrenching sob passed her lips as she curled in on herself, her hands on either side of her head as though squeezing hard enough would make the disgusting images disappear forever. 

“Lady Sakura! You’re safe! No one will hurt you!” A familiar voice spoke reassuringly, though slightly panicked. 

Her eyes crept open to see long, dark hair through blurred and watery vision. She shook her head, pleading through her sobs, “I-I-! Make it stop!” 

Large hands tried to pry hers away and succeeded, only for her to clench hers into fists and attempt to pull away. “Where is he?” The voice asked someone, not her. 

Another voice, this one also somehow familiar, responded, “No one knows.” There was a pause, but Sakura was too busy trying not to lose her mind to care. 

“What do we do?” 

The sound of someone else crying met the pinkette’s comprehension, and she heard Ino’s voice from somewhere in the room, “Isn’t there a spell you can do to help her? She’s suffering!” 

The door to the room suddenly burst open, and then the only sound was the traumatized woman’s sobbing. 

Whoever had been holding her wrists released them, and she went back to clutching her head, nails digging into her scalp. 

“Leave.” 

Her eyes shot open when she heard Sasuke’s voice, but it didn’t make everything better. Moments later, she felt a weight on the bed beside her. Then, strong arms were holding her tightly enough that she couldn’t move. The smell of the forest and fresh snow distracted from the salt of her tears. Sobs slowly became softer until she was crying quietly. 

Only then did Sasuke say something. He whispered into her hair hoarsely, “It’s not your fault.” 

‘He’s lying. He just wants me to calm down so he can figure out how to be rid of me.’ 

“You did nothing wrong. He’s the monster.” 

Sakura’s voice cracked as she tried to speak coherently, “I’m a whore.” 

“You are not,” he said in his full voice, no longer whispering. 

She opened her eyes to look down where his arms were holding her so tightly, her chin quivering as she felt his pulse quicken against her back. 

“You’re not disgusting or used up. Nothing he said was true.” 

She sobbed again because she realized Sasuke, too, had witnessed her attack, not just Akuma, “I-I didn’t want this!” 

Sasuke pressed his lips to the back of her head, his breathing uneven, “I know, and I’m sorry, but now I can make sure it never happens again.” 

She sniffled, mumbling in disgust, “How can you possibly stand being close to me?” 

There was a long pause before he kissed the back of her head, “When I look at you, all I see is my fiance.” 

That was when the pinkette became quiet enough to listen clearly because his words were unexpected. Sasuke spoke uncharacteristically warmly. Maybe it was because she wasn’t looking at his face that he had the courage to do so. “I only see you, Sakura. That’s how it’s been since we agreed to marry, and that’s how it will continue to be.” 

For a while, the pair simply lay there and mutually attempted to calm down. Eventually, they fell asleep. Sakura was the first to wake. She realized she’d turned in her sleep because her face was in the prince’s chest. Her face warmed when she lifted her head to verify he was still asleep. The good, long cry had done wonders to calm her nerves. 

‘This is the first time I’ve seen his sleeping face.’ 

The man had dark bags under his eyes, though that was nothing new. The peaceful expression was, though. She had a hard time entirely convincing herself that he meant what he’d said, that his view of her hadn’t been affected by this tragedy, but as she studied his handsome features, she desperately tried. 

Unlike how she usually does when she would wake in Akuma’s arms, she didn’t bashfully turn away or become tense. No, she shyly snaked an arm across his midsection and snuggled into his side as he rolled onto his back in his sleep, a soft groan vibrating his chest. 

‘I don’t feel afraid,’ she realized, basking in his warmth, ‘There isn’t a single part of me that fears this man.’ 

She wanted to feel his skin, to allow his body heat to further comfort her, as odd as the notion seemed. Her eyes trailed down to where his shirt had untucked from his pants, and the tiniest sliver of pale skin showed. Cautiously, she reached for the area, only to freeze and change her mind because it felt wrong to take advantage of him while he slept. 

“It’s alright,” Sasuke’s voice suddenly met her ears, full of sleep and rasp. 

Sakura didn’t dare look up at his face, or she’d lose courage. Instead, she slowly ran her hand under his shirt so her palm rested against the middle of his stomach. Tears welled in her eyes as she basked in the firmness and warmth, but this time, they were of relief. She mumbled quietly, “Thank you.” 

He made an affirming sound before becoming silent again or falling asleep. She couldn’t tell and didn’t mind, regardless. 

Though both wished things would proceed smoothly since the truth had been revealed, that wasn’t the case because Hihara was in the wind. Even Baron Haruno claimed not to have knowledge of his son’s whereabouts. Sasuke had their estate searched anyway, just to be sure. 

The first days after discovering his criminal activities were tense, to put it lightly. Sakura needed near-constant reassurance that no one blamed or hated her. She didn’t ask for it, but those around her, mainly her fiance and Ino, were beginning to pick up on non-verbal cues. The prince flipped between not wanting to make the woman uncomfortable by constantly being nearby and being too concerned with her recovery to let her leave his sight for long periods. 

Itachi and Kisame left to report their findings to the king, who then announced a kingdom-wide manhunt for Hihara Haruno. He also sent carriage loads of gifts to the pinkette as an apology for not realizing something so awful had happened within his own castle. The king planned to go as far as visiting to make amends personally, but his nephews and soon-to-be niece assured him it was unnecessary. 

Weeks passed. 

It took a lot of work, mainly overcoming the discomfort of thorough communication. Telling one another their thoughts and emotions was difficult for Sasuke and Sakura. Somehow, they managed to get back to how things were before the assault, relationship-wise. 

Akuma slept in Sakura’s room each night, bombarding her with questions and speaking for hours to keep her mind occupied until she fell asleep. The pinkette would wake up to an empty bed most mornings. She didn’t take it personally. From the beginning, she knew the prince wasn’t used to being physically near others, regardless of their relationship or status. The fact that he threw his preferences to the wind to help her when she was suffering meant more than she’d ever be able to verbalize. 

Eventually, the day of the wedding neared. 

Rather than stay at the Uchiha castle for a few days, they’d stay just one night. After the ceremony, the newlyweds would embark on a honeymoon, of which only Sasuke knew the details. Sakura uncharacteristically made a personal request while their luggage was being loaded into the carriage, which was for Ino to accompany her this time, at least to the castle. 

The trek to the capital was relatively uneventful. They arrived at midday instead of nighttime like before, though. 

Ino, the lowest-ranked person in the carriage, exited first, followed by the prince. As her fiancee stepped out, Sakura closed her eyes for a moment of self-encouragement. The last time she was in this castle, multiple terrible things occurred. She didn’t want to allow those memories to ruin their wedding. 

“Lady Sakura?” Sasuke’s voice broke through her wishful thinking. 

She bashfully smiled, accepting his offered hand and allowing him to aid her in stepping out of the carriage. Dark eyes strayed on hers for an extra moment before averting. It made her heart flutter. It’d become easier for her to notice the small changes in the prince’s expressions and voice. The warmth in her stomach and chest around him had begun to flare at higher temperatures, too. 

As soon as her heeled shoes met the ground, her wrist was grabbed, and she was pulled behind Sasuke. He intercepted his overzealous uncle, “Thank you for welcoming us, Your Majesty.” The prince’s voice lowered at the title, a polite warning not to approach Sakura as casually as he had during their first visit. 

The pinkette peered around her fiancee’s shoulder so Madara could see her offered smile and bow, “It’s wonderful to see you again, Uncle,” she bashfully bowed to a silent Itachi who stood at his side, “and you, Lord Uchiha.” 

“Ah, Sakura. You’re even more beautiful than I remember. You have the glow of a blushing bride,” the king mused while leading everyone inside. 

In an effort to keep up appearances for any curious courtesans around the castle, the pinkette’s hand was in the crease of Sasuke’s elbow. Skinship between them was rare when Akuma wasn’t in control. It was a fact none of them mentioned, but all understood. Although incredibly nervous, Sakura couldn’t help but remember how comforting and supportive Sasuke had been during their engagement party. Being treated so formally by him served as a reminder unable to be ignored. 

“The chapel and ballroom have already been decorated, and your dress should arrive in the morning.” They were stopped at a door, and Madara gestured, “For you, Niece.” 

‘...I have my own room this time. Is it because of what happened?’ She bowed, moving to release Sasuke’s arm, only for his hand to land gently atop hers. 

“We’ll share a room, Uncle.” Itachi and his uncle shared a look, so the prince added, “I must insist, respectfully.” 

‘What is he doing? He still gets uncomfortable sleeping in the same bed.’ 

His elder brother slowly nodded, obviously understanding something that Sakura herself couldn’t, ‘They shared a room during their last visit, Uncle. There’s no harm,” he smiled almost teasingly when his eyes met his soon-to-be sister-in-law’s, “It seems the honeymoon phase has begun prior to their nuptials.” 

“I see! My apologies,” Madara’s smile was meant to tease the shy couple, who tried to appear unbothered in their own ways, “We’ll let you two settle in, then. Someone will fetch you for dinner later.” 

Ino and a few of the castle’s maids followed the duo into the room and hung up their clothing before excusing themselves and leaving them alone. Sakura sat at the tea table with one of the books she’d brought along in her lap. Sasuke was reading some letters that’d been waiting for him while absently sipping his tea. 

She couldn’t help but admire his appearance. ‘This man with the face of an angel has known such terrible suffering,’ tears stung the corners of her eyes, but she blinked them back and averted her gaze to her own teacup, ‘He’ll soon be rid of Akuma.’ 

With the wedding tomorrow evening, Sakura was unsure how long it’d take before Sasuke would deem it the correct time to sacrifice her. A large part of the woman worried the prince wouldn’t be able to truly care for her, but she remained hopeful that her pitiful existence would have some meaning. She prayed for his health and happiness more than anything. He’d been the sole person to treat her so well. 

When she was first informed of her engagement to him, she expected to be starved, beaten, and taken advantage of like she had her entire life. Instead, she was given the freedom to pursue personal interests, spoken to with respect, and cared for like a princess rather than an illegitimate mutt. 

“What are you reading today?” 

Sakura’s spine straightened. She blinked, realizing her fiance had noticed her dazedness. He was still looking over the letters but occasionally gave her a glance while waiting for her response. 

Warmth met her face as she sat the large book from her lap onto the table and ran her fingers over the worn cover, bashfully avoiding meeting his gaze straight on, “The Tale of Umbrielle.” Sasuke made a sound indicating for her to keep talking, so she did, “It’s about a young woman who lived her entire life as a specter but suddenly became visible one day.” 

Though he didn’t sound particularly intrigued, the Uchiha man made an obvious effort to keep the conversation going, if only to ensure Sakura wasn’t uncomfortable, “You enjoy the thriller genre?” 

‘He’s always such a gentleman to me.’ 

“Actually, this particular title is from the romance genre,” she replied, her voice softening toward the end of the statement. Dark eyes lifted to lock onto hers at the word “romance”. The duo stared at one another in silence, tension filling the air, before both looked away. 

“I don’t believe I’ve ever read such novels. They’ve seemed too….” 

“Feminine?” Sakura couldn’t help but smile at Sasuke. He may be awkward and not often one for long conversations, but he was consistently honest, sometimes to a fault. 

His jaw flexed, and he nodded once, “Do you particularly enjoy them?” 

“I do. Perhaps I’ll read one to you at some point. Would you like that?” 

The room went quiet. That’s when the woman realized what she’d asked. They’d likely never have the opportunity to do such a thing because her time was limited. Even so, Sasuke eventually said, “Yes.” 

She hummed softly, sipping her tea to mask her pleasant surprise, “Please tell me when you’d like me to do so, Lord Sasuke.” 

“Don’t-” The couple’s eyes met when the prince cut himself off. He glared at the letter in his hands rather than keep looking her way. When he spoke, he seemed mildly annoyed, “Should we be rid of the formalities? Tomorrow we’ll be family.” 

“....” Sakura may have been mistaken, but it seemed like the tiniest hint of color was beginning to tinge Sasuke’s ears red. Her cheeks became rosy as she asked, “You wish me to call you only by your first name?” 

“And I’ll do the same for you, with your permission.” Their eyes met again. The pinkette couldn’t bring herself to look away this time. 

Her heart was pounding nervously in her chest. So much so that she brought a hand to it while breathing out his name, “...Sasuke.” 

The corner of the prince’s lips twitched before he nodded, “Sakura.” 

The sound of her name so informal in his voice sent an excited and giddy feeling up her spine. She shivered, rubbing her arm anxiously while finally looking away from his perfect face. She hoped he misunderstood the act as her being cold and not physically affected solely by his voice. 

Rather unexpectedly, Sasuke changed the subject to something more serious, “You may be uncomfortable with it, but I need you to disregard those feelings for the moment. Stay by my side at all times while we’re at the capitol.” 

Sakura did feel cold, then, as she recalled the awful things that’d happened the last time they were parted. She tilted her head with a frown, “I don’t wish to be a burden-” “You aren’t a burden to me. I’ll hear nothing more of that.” 

The stern expression on the prince’s face was intimidating to the point that she couldn’t bring herself to argue. So, she nodded. 

He sighed moments later, voice softer, “I ask for your understanding if I act uncharacteristically tomorrow. Understand that I’m only doing what’s necessary to ensure your safety.” 

Sakura lowered her head, suddenly much more worried about the wedding, “Of course. I’m your fiance, so I’ll support all of your endeavors.” 

As the room fell into a comfortable silence, she couldn’t help but feel grateful that Sasuke was the one she’d been sacrificed to. It was almost a comfort that her death would result in his healing. It was at that thought that the woman’s face fell in realization. Then, it paled, and she stared at his once-again-focused expression. 

‘Is this…Is this what it feels like to be in love?’