#but just letting it be was mainly out of laziness i think. i also haven't been that active ig

[hellohoihey]

alright guess we're starting over

[slackerlifewhere]

In defense of Deruth

Fair warning, there will be some SPOILERS so if you haven't finished the first novel or you care about spoilers, I suggest you don't continue reading. Thanks!

I'm a reader of fanfics, manga, manhwa, manhua, and novels. I basically consume different stories whenever I'm bored (which I usually am).

But the things I've read most often involve parents, which I'm not really looking for but it's there so whatever.

I had to read stories with basically the same plot but different...ingredients but the thing I notice is that most stories involve abusive or neglectful parents. And it's weird to me. Like can't heroes or villains have good parents and they turn out the way they are because of other circumstances? Obviously, it's because authors want us to root for the character but for me, it's just lazy writing.

So imagine my annoyance when, after reading the first volume of TCF, I see several fics hating and trashing Deruth Henituse and saying he's the worst father in existence.

I get it. He's not the best father. His wife, who he loves very much, died and left him as a single father. He has responsibilities as a count and soon marries Violan who has Basen by then. They have another kid soon after, which is Lily. He seems to entrust the responsibilities of the heir to Basen after OG Cale's reputation took a nosedive. In a sense, he appears as if he doesn't care about OG Cale's feelings and reputation and looks like he's focusing on his other children.

BUT he's not the worst father either. Listen, you may hate him for whatever reason, whether you've consumed too many stories with bad parents or you see yourself in OG Cale, BUT he's an okay parent.

Let me list the top three fathers that are absolutely disgusting compared to him before I explain why I think he doesn't deserve all the hate he's getting:

1. Marquis Stan

We all know what happened to Taylor Stan and while we can blame it on Venion, it's also because of their father. Their father is basically an asshole who wants to see his children fight for the heir's position. And he doesn't care if they end up killing each other for it. It's basically like watching sports for him at this point. He's mainly the reason why Venion grew up into a twisted bastard. While yes, Venion is not innocent in any shape or form after what he did to his brother and Raon, it's obvious he became that way because of his father.

In fact, Taylor is also a victim of Marquis Stan's abhorrent parenting. He's not evil like his family but he learned to be independent and to fight back because he doesn't want to become like them. He died in the original story.

So yeah. Marquis Stan is absolutely disgusting and no one can change my mind that he's the worst existence among all the fathers in the story.

2. White Star

The only reason why he's not number 1 is because he's not a literal father but he does pose as one for DHB. If you know what he did to dragons, then I don't need to summarize it for you. For those who don't, you need to read the novel because it's going to be a long explanation. All I can say is that he's also the reason why DHB became so crazy. And honestly, I'm glad that even if Cale is very guarded at DHB, he still gave him the freedom to choose and repent later on.

3. Zed Crossman

He's the lesser evil of the two but he's kind of like Marquis Stan but tamer.

He basically has his three kids fight for the throne while ignoring or favoring one over the other. And he doesn't even try to hide that he doesn't care too much unless it involves his plans.

He basically wants to see who is more fit for the throne but he doesn't stop them from sabotaging one another.

Honestly, I put all the effort on Tasha and Obante's part that Alberu became a better person. Zed is completely useless.

---

So...is Deruth a bad father?

Before I answer that, here's the thing about OG Cale. He's a complex character who is grieving most of his life and wants to protect his siblings in his own twisted way. In order to do that, he needs to act like he's trash and push everyone away. But is that Deruth's fault? Eeeeh kinda but not really???

They both lack communication as father and son. In fact, the moment KRS, now Cale Henituse, was forcefully transmigrated into OG Cale's world, it's shown that Deruth is trying to communicate with his son.

The first few chapters show that he cares for his son in his own way when Cale sits down to join them in breakfast. He attempts to talk to Cale even though he was hesitant. He seems surprised but happy when Cale answered. Yeah, it's shitty that OG Cale's family and Ron didn't notice he got switched but in all honesty, it'll be hard for a normal person to come to the conclusion that a God was involved. If I were in their shoes, I would find it suspicious (probably thinking that something happened that changed that person's actions and personality) but I wouldn't think of transmigration or God of Death. Conspiracy theories aren't the first thing I'll think of. That's just dumb to use as an excuse for hating the Henituse family.

People, fans, want family drama but in all honesty, they're just ruining OG Cale's character in the way they do it. It's actually disrespectful to his sacrifice for his family. He made that deal with God of Death not only because he wants to see his mom but also because he wants his family to live after they all died in the war against the White Star. He lived through that war with him as the sole survivor of the whole family. That sucks. He could've stayed but he didn't want to and also because he already died in the future anyways. If he wants to help them as himself, I doubt he'll shut up about it to the God of Death, regardless if it's a literal god he's gonna argue with. Let me remind you that this guy is so stubborn, he made a trashy reputation to help his brother.

Instead of doing it himself, he chose to let KRS (who didn't know he's going to be involved in a war in another world btw) save his world and family in exchange for seeing his mother. He chose to leave not because of Deruth (not completely, at least) but because he simply wants to. And he's content with his decision, regardless of his regrets.

By the way, his mom, Jour, is also not pretty great if you think about her decision before she died (my unpopular opinion but whatever). I do think her final conversation with him and her following death traumatized him in a way that I can't help but feel angry for him. It's mainly the reason why he hates the Harris Village that Choi Han ended up in. It doesn't excuse his reaction to the village later on but it does explain why he hates the place, even if it's not their fault his mother died. So yeah, I don't like his mother (I'm not talking about her reincarnation btw. She's a kid). That's not the way to care for your son, ma'am.

Deruth is obviously trying but a relationship needs to work between two people and not just one. That's what you call a one-sided relationship, guys. It's why OG Cale and Violan are not close. Both of these characters don't try to be close, maybe not because they dislike each other but maybe because of a misunderstanding or whatever (who knows).

Cale only got close to her because he actually treats her with respect (also because...you know...he's an orphan and was abused as a kid so deep inside, he thinks Deruth and Violan are good but not the best parents). And whenever Cale gets hurt or is in a bad situation, we sometimes get their reaction. They're worried and angry for him. They want him to stay away from danger. In fact, the last few chapters are basically Deruth getting angry at Cale for endangering himself (completely understandable).

You can also argue that Deruth didn't try hard enough. Well, let me just tell you as someone who's been depressed since I was a kid that whenever my parents try to ask me what's wrong, I usually reply with "nothing" or "I'm fine." So for parents to try harder doesn't usually end up with a heart-to-heart talk unless the other wants to talk.

So yeah, I think KR novels and manhwa are basically the reason why some readers immediately jump in defense for the character they like because of possible abuse and neglect from parents. Without thinking about it properly. Like please, if you hate a character, at least try to understand them first and list down the other worst characters before you actually say that they're the worst.

Side note: The worst thing that I also notice is fans also target Basen and Lily. They include the whole Henituse family and write a fanfic about how abusive or neglectful all of them are. BASEN AND LILY ARE LITERAL KIDS. WTF ARE YOU GUYS THINKING. They didn't do anything to OG Cale??? They're just there?

Did I just create an account to rant about how stupid some fans are? Yeah, pretty much. You can hate on Deruth but don't include the kids. They're kids??? Without any involvement with OG Cale and Deruth's drama?

Reminder: I haven't read the second volume because I'm planning to read it when it's completely translated. That way, I won't have to wait too long for the next chapter.

[kokomyass]

Megumi Fushiguro ☆ Overwork

Megumi x Fem!Reader

Genre: 🥀/☁️

Word Count: 2673

Trigger warnings ⚠️: a bit of swearing, themes of overworking to the point it is damaging. depression, some gore and violence.

synopsis: in which, you begin to overwork, hope to repay megumi for all the times he's saved you, but things don't turn out good...

hey ya'll!! this is a request from the sweetest person alive who dm me just to say my Megumi content was good so love you lots @bqvs !! 💜💜🎵🎵

anyways I hope you enjoy!! mwah!

also I haven't edited cause im a lazy bum :P

Second Person POV

All your life, you had felt lesser than everyone else. No matter what you did you would feel like you weren't good enough for anyone.

However, instead of being the type of person to sit around and wait for something to magically happen, you would work towards what you wanted, even if it meant losing sleep and your health being at an all time low.

Obviously things did not change when you joined Jujutsu Tech…yes, there were way less students which helped, but the students were also exceptionally strong, you felt like a puny little shrimp compared to them. Especially Megumi.

When you first joined you were really laid back, you really got along with Megumi, Yuji and Nobara but of course you had to mess up on your first mission together.

Which resulted in you being saved by Megumi and it seems being saved by Megumi was a common occurrence (by common occurrence you mean every mission)

Of course, you ended up falling hard for Megumi after all the times he acted as your Knight in shining armour along with his redeeming qualities. You also envied him and wanted to be as strong as he was and make him acknowledge you and maybe even love you…

As much as you liked Megumi, you were getting more depressed each day. You were completely and utterly useless compared to him. It seemed that Gojo also noticed you struggling a bit more than the others…so he began pairing you with stronger sorcerers to protect you and even then you would be pretty useless there too.

So in the end, not only are you spending less time with Megumi, but also being basically useless on all your missions.

No matter how hard you worked, you wouldn't improve. No one even notice the amount of effort you were putting in.

Usually you would hang out with all the students, especially Megumi, you were used to putting a facade on. Pretending that you weren't depressed and low…but even masking that was becoming difficult.

You had lost weight from not eating properly, you were always tired, you had lost your usual energy and you were extremely slow and sluggish, which further impacted your performance in missions.

You had been sent on a mission by Gojo to defeat a curse with Nanami. Yet another mission with an adult…

"Y/N, you think you will be alright on this one?" Gojo asked seemingly noticing something was wrong too.

You sighed, but immediately tried to put up a fake smile. In all honesty last night you were training so much that you didn't get any sleep and had to drink about 5 cups of coffee to keep you awake.

"Yep! When will I be able to go on a mission with Megumi again…"

You missed spending time with Megumi incredibly.

"Soon! Anyways off you guys go!" Gojo waved you off as you and Nanami began your trip.

You had been on many missions with Nanami (mainly due to protection reasons) so he knew you well, which also meant he knew something was wrong.

"Y/N, are you well and able to do this mission?" you were walking behind Nanami dragging your feet from tiredness as his question made you perk up slightly.

"I'm fine! I'm actually feeling much better I think I'll be more useful today!" you laughed.

That was all a lie. You felt like shit. But, knowing Nanami, if he knew that he wouldn't let you try at all.

When you found the curse and began fighting it, your tiredness made you weak and slow. You were barely dodging the attacks. At some points, you would shut your eyes and they wouldn't open again.

"Y/N! Fall back! Stop fighting! You will get hurt!"

Nanami's warnings went over your head as you went in for another attack. You felt a sharp pain in your side. You looked down to see your side stabbed and blood spreading through your clothes. Your breathing hitched as you fell to the ground with a thud, everything going black around you.

All in all, Nanami defeated the curse and you were just another failure.

When you both made it back to Jujutsu Tech. You had been treated by Ieiri (who had grown accustomed to seeing you) and you were resting in the infirmary.

Megumi POV

I know something is wrong with Y/N.

The day she joined I felt an unusual attraction to her. The way she smiles regardless of the situation and the kindness she shows to everyone around her…

Y/N is the closest anyone has gotten to me and I do have feelings for her as much as I want to deny it.

However, I've seen her health plummeting, she sleeps in class sometimes, constant injuries after missions…something wasn't right and I knew it even if no one else did.

One night, I heard constant banging noises and when getting up to find out what it was I saw Y/N, punching her punching bag like there was no tomorrow.

Her knuckles were bleeding, each hit she gave her legs quivered from tiredness, her heavy breathing sounded as if she was having a heart attack. My heart clenched to see her in this state.

Why is she working herself to this extent? Why is she doing harm to herself? That was when I truly knew something was wrong.

After the mission she went on with Nanami I decided to go and speak to Nanami myself to find out what he thinks, but to my suprise he approached me first.

"Megumi, I have been looking for you. Have you seen Y/N yet?"

"No? Why?"

Nanami sighed as if he was struggling to say something.

"She sustained an injury when we went on our mission, she got stabbed in the side. But her condition is stable and Shoko has treated her."

My eyes widened as a lump formed in my throat. How could she be so reckless? Before I could run off, Nanami stopped me.

"Megumi, please find out what us wrong with Y/N because I fear next time the injury she sustains might not be so treatable…"

I nodded, I agreed with Nanami. I ran as fast as I could to the infirmary. Whatever she was doing was putting her life in jeopardy….

Second Person POV

"Megumi is never going to like me…" you mumbled looking down as suddenly the same person runs in.

"Y/N! Are you okay?! What happened!" Megumi came in shouting. He look horrified as if you had died.

Even though it shouldn't have, your heart fluttered at the thought of Megumi worried about you.

He placed his hands on the sides of your arms making sure not to be to aggressive. You smiled softly at him as much as you could despite the sharp pain in your side.

"I'm okay, I just got caught in an attack but Ieiri said I'll be fine!" you giggled and placed a hand on Megumi's head, ruffling his hair as he sat down on the chair next to the bed sighing.

"Well, next time be more careful because if your not something bad will happen, okay?" Megumi placed his hand on yours making you blush slightly.

"I'll be fine, don't worry, I'll be stronger soon too!" you lifted up your arm and flexed as a joke as Megumi smiled slightly, still looking perturbed.

"Y/N, we need to ta-"

Before Megumi could finish his sentence Nobara and Yuji burst in dramatically.

"Y/N!!!!! What happened!!" Yuji said as Nobara was checking every inch of your face to make sure you were okay.

"I'm fine, just a bit tired…" you all talked about random stuff as Megumi stayed silent and distant.

Truth was, you were very very tired and you hadn't fully recovered but you needed to start working again if you wanted to catch up to Megumi and be the girl he wants, and just like that the evening arrived and you were sneaking out to go and train.

You practiced with your jaw clenched the whole time to reduce the pain you felt in your side everytime you moved, but it was worth it. All for Megumi, and to be able to protect him like he has done to you.

Time Skip

It was morning and you were walking at snails pace to find Gojo to ask if you could go on a mission with Megumi.

You made the best poker face you could to hide the pain lingering in every step.

"Gojo! Please can I go on a mission with Megumi." you said smiling as much as you could, griping your bruised and wounded knuckles together to beg him.

"I'm sorry Y/N, but you got injured and until you feel okay I can't send you out…" Gojo said as you immediately came up with a response.

"Gojo sensei, please believe me I feel much better it wasnt a bad injury I've had worse, I promise!" you we practically on the floor but eventually he sighed and said you could go on a mission to fight a 1st grade curse with Megumi.

Despite the pain, you smile a real genuine smile for the first time in a while at the thought of being alone with Megumi and spending time together.

Time Skip!

"Y/N, why are you here? You got injured. Stop over working yourself."

This isn't the way you thought spending time together would go.

Megumi had been telling you off the whole time you walked to your destination as you tried your best to explain that you were fine (which you were not)

"Megumi, I'm fine, I'm just tired."

"You always say that. Do you not sleep?"

Your worst fear was happening. Megumi was becoming suspicious and instead of being honest all you could do is get mad.

"I do…why do you keep asking questions?"

"Because whatever your doing needs to stop….MOVE!"

Before Megumi could finish his sentence the sharp arm of the curse you were meant to fight came between you two nearly stabbing you before Megumi pushed you out of the way.

You tried getting up but your previous injury hindered you from doing that.

"Stay back Y/N! You'll only distract me…" your heart shattered at his words as tears pricked your eyes and you scowled.

"I'm not a distraction, just watch!"

"Y/N! No watch out!"

Before you could even realise what was happening, a large tree branch pierced your stomach as you stared at Megumi with your eyes wide before looking at the branch stuck in you.

Oh how much you regretted everything. You wish you had listened to Megumi. You wish you listen to Nanami. You wish you weren't even born.

You stared into the sky as you looked down at the large tree branch that had gotten stuck in you.

Blood started pooling from your mouth as you recounted all the times you wished you had lived your life more.

You wish you could confess your love to Megumi and get married and have 3 beautiful kids…a smile graced your lips at the thought.

"Well, I think this may be it…"

Everytime you blinked, it felt as if 10 minutes when by.

You heard Megumi shout at you begging you to stay awake as he defeated the curse. You felt him cradle you in his shaking and bloody arms.

"Y/N, just wait someone is coming to get us. Hang in there." You smiled and reached for Megumi's cheek. Even though your vision was blurred you could feel the tear drop from his eyes.

"Please don't cry…" you smiled as you hand started to go limp and you couldn't stay awake any longer.

Time Skip!

You groaned in pain as you awoke to a bright light. You body ached at any slight movement and as your eyes adjusted to the light you realised what had happened and you sat up looking down at your stomach.

You sighed, thankful to still be alive.

Unbeknownst to you, Megumi was sat down next to you, asleep with his arms crossed, under his eyes had a tint of red, most likely from crying.

You put your hands through his hair combing your fingers through it, smiling at the sight of him asleep.

He stirred awake and you removed your hands from his hair. When he awoke he looked shocked to see you awake. He immediately hugged you.

"I thought I lost you…" you could tell he was being careful making sure not to hurt you as your rubbed his back before pulling away.

"I'm not gone quite yet!" you laughed as Megumi gripped his trousers, clenching his fists.

"Y/N, this isn't funny. You nearly died." Megumi looked down mumbling as your smile dropped yet again to see Megumi scolding you.

You placed a hand on his to comfort him, "Megs, look I'm fine and it wasnt even that ba-" Before you could finish he flung his hand away.

"Wasn't that bad?! Don't be stupid…you nearly died! You think I don't see you every night training until your whe body gives out? Or the amount of weight you lost or even the stumbling in your walk from lack of sleep?"

You gasped and squinted at him.

"Were you spying on me, Megumi? So what if I want to train? I'm only trying to better myself, why won't you support me?!"

"I'm not supporting you? Y/N I have always supported you through thick and thin but what could possibly be making you want to work so hard that you get yourself killed?! Tell me, please enlighten me!"

Megumi was stood up at this point and you could see people through the door window but you didn't care. You were hurt.

"You, Megs, it's you! I feel like a useless person who can't do anything right. Every mission we have ever been on you have had to save me and I want to be as strong as you. So forgive me for putting in some effort!" you shouted at him with tears streaming down your face and your voice cracking.

"I love you the way you are Y/N! I have never once looked at you as if you are useless. I think you are funny, smart, cute and the kindest soul alive! Why would I want you to change? You are working youself to death, that's the least I want! I love you!"

Everything was silent as Megumi dropped to his seat cheeks flushed from his angry confession as you stared at him teary eyed.

"You…you love me?" you asked genuinely shocked he could love someone as weak as you.

"Yes Y/N…I have ever since I met you. I never hated you just please stop hurting yourself like this-"

Before Megumi could finish his sentence, you pressed your lips on his. You pressed your palm onto his cheek as his thumb whined away your tears.

You pulled apart, out of breath as you both had a faint blush on your cheeks.

"I love you too Megs." you pressed your body into his chest as he wrapped his arms around you softly.

"Y/N…I will never ever hesitate to save you and I would do it over and over for you."

You smiled and inhaled his scent. A sense of relief washing over you. Something told you that from now on life would be much easier to live…

A lil bonus:

You had recovered and you were at a dessert shop with Megumi for a cute little date.

"Would you save me if I was like…a worm?" you giggled taking a bite of ice cream.

"Well I suppose, I would try to turn you into a human…so yes?"

"You don't sound to sure Megs…I'm feeling quite unconvinced…"

Megumi sighed putting his spoon down.

"I would save you and give your worm body a massive kiss. Happy?"

"Perfect answer!!" you laughed kissing him on the cheek as he just smiled lightly.

i hope you all enjoyed that especially my girly that I wrote it for, I hope you loved it 💜💜🩷🩷

[kassandrasdisciple]

Thoughts on:

The New Avatar Rumor

If you haven't heard Knight edge media has claimed to have seen the first 2 finalised storyboards for the Avatar tv show that'll follow the avatar after Korra.

Here's the link to their og article

There's also an article detailing a scene

Just in case any of this is actually true here's your chance to back out now, if your still here let's get into it.

The Kyoshi Parallel -

This post will mainly be me covering what jumped out to me from their two articles. The first thing that jumped out to me was how eerily similar the outline was to the Rise of Kyoshi novel. In RoK Kyoshi is a close candidate for being the Avatar, she's overlooked however, with Yun being chosen as he's a bending prodigy. Kyoshi struggles to survive as a maid/street rat, eventually being discovered as the avatar and thrust into the plot.

Our new avatar (possibly called Pavi) was also thought to be the avatar, passed over for her more adept sister, who's raised as a false avatar, and, whilst the imposter lives in luxury, Pavi struggles on the streets.

Obviously as more information comes out this correlation could strengthen or weaken. I don't mind it, and it could be a good "the Cycle repeats itself" otherwise it might be lazy recycling, time will tell.

Seven nations -

I..... hate this I think.

I love the fith nation and it's implications in RoK, and how it's spiritually lives on in Republic city, however 3 new nations?

I think it'll dilute the potents of what made the original great. The 4 elements are literally iconic, not just in Avatar but in, like, everything. History, alchemy, medicine, ect.

Avatar's cousin, The Dragon Prince, also tried using an expanded elemental system and I think it was weaker for it. Also what will set these 3 new nations apart? Will we have 3 new elements?

Now what could happen instead is that this is a post-apocalypse, and instead this is 7 new city states. THAT I don't hate. Infact it could be really interesting to see 7 last remnants of the Avatar world, after a massive disaster.

In that sense I think our survivors would be:

The Northen Water Tribe

The Southern Water Tribe

Republic City

Caldera City

Omashu

Ba Sing Se

The Southern Air Temple

I could also see any of the other temples, not just Aangs. Kyoshi island could also be a contender.

If this new world is just these last remnants that could be incredible.

Korra's feat -

Let it be said I hate power scaling fights. So the article saying this makes Korra the strongest seems weird. Secondly, this seems out of the scope of the Avatar world. I don't think Korra will actually rip apart the tectonic plates, more likely, a meteorite or such will threaten the world, and as she mitigates the damage it'll cause these new divides.

Twins -

Watch the DearFutureMe video on twin avatars for why it better not happen. Also if it turns out one is the Dark avatar I will chew my way through the floor until I land in the depths of hell.

If its neither of those I think it'll be a fun dynamic, similar to Zuko and Azula.

Hoverboards -

O H N O.

So, I've bitched about this to my friends constantly. I have always thought a third avatar show might be impossible. Aang's era is pre-industrial/industrial revolution and then Korra is the 1940~ plus a mech.

From this you get two meh options.

Either you kill Korra very young and aim for the 60s tech wise. That'll retroactively spoil LoK however. Otherwise you let Korra live and have it set roughly in the 2000's which just feels ... wrong.

This looks like we'll get the worst of both world, with 2000's era tech + future tech alla Kuvira's mech. Along with Korra dying tragically when the 7 nations disaster occurs.

I am hopeful that the disaster might create my pet theory. Where to avoid a Y2K avatar they create an apocalypse to reset the world.

Misc -

She's a girl and an amputee, that's cool, Avatar usually handles disabled and women characters well, I know they'll be discourse™ because diversity but that's only a problem if your a bigot sooooo.

Cat companion LETS GOOOOOOOOO can't wait to get plush of it.

Possible angsty teen airbender? Cool.

All in all I'm pessimistically excited, I want to hope it'll be great but I think that type of worship will just set you up to be disappointed. Either way, time will tell.

[tearsonmarz]

Scarian Flirting and Fishing pt. 2

(I know I said I wasn’t going to be adding onto the one-shot-- but that was before Grian’s latest episode came out, so here we are. Don’t hold your breath for another part. Also, I decided that it wasn’t going to be a modern setting, but I’m also too lazy to make either of these historically accurate. I wrote these for fun, they weren’t meant to be anything too thought out. Here's part one if you haven't read it yet. I was also too tired to edit it, but I need it out of my docs because it'll consume my thought otherwise.)

“So, why do you want this book so badly?” Scar was curious since he hadn’t seen Grian before. He had never imagined what would stem from a simple encounter with the sandy haired man.

He’d been following Grian for about a month now. They’d go to nearby streams, scrounge around for the book, spend hours getting excited only to be disappointed once again.

After the first two days, Scar bought a fishing rod to help out. But Grian had insisted that he wanted to be the one to find it, nevertheless Scar fished because it bothered Grian.

“I need it for something important that I’m working on. You know you can leave whenever you want.”

“Still trying to get rid of me, don’t you get tired of it?”

“Don’t you get tired of following me?” He shot Scar a look that only caused him to burst out laughing.

“You just aren’t going to give up.”

“I should be the one saying that.”

Why was he staying this long? There was no reason for him to continue bothering Grian. It’s simply something that had integrated into his daily routine. Every day without fail they would link up, take a walk down to the river and start fishing. They’d eat together, talk together, and enjoy each other’s company. It mainly consisted of Scar ranting to his hearts content, while Grian pretended not to listen. Every now again Grian would forget and chime into the conversation to Scar’s surprise.

Through it all they continued to hang around each other. The other’s presence because comforting and routine. Though Grian would never admit it, he was happy that Scar stuck around. Even if he wasn’t ecstatic about Scar in the beginning, each fishing trip felt a little more fulfilling even without a mending book. He hadn’t wanted to spend this month any other way.

“I don’t think this is the spot.” He dejectedly spoke as he reeled in another fish.

“Are you sure? It’s barely been an hour.”

“No, I’m not sure, but I’m just so sick of getting nothing every single day. It’s so infuriating.” A sigh left his lips as he tossed it onto the pile and put down his fishing rod.

“Why don’t we just take a break. Let’s head into town to eat for a change.”

“Yeah, maybe you’re right. Finish up while I start packing up our stuff.”

‘Our.’ Just that simple word stuck in Scar’s head, enough to distract him from the pulling on his line. Snapping out of it, he reeled in is line. Much to his dismay it was a book. He walked over to his pile, but before he could inspect it, Grian called out to him.

“Ready to get going yet?”

He hid the book in the pile of items he had acquired pretending to sift through it. “Yeah, just let me finish putting everything away and I’ll be good to go.”

“Oh… Alright, I’ll just wait for you then.” Without another word Grian started towards the fishery.

Scar brought the book back out. It had a royal purple coloured cover decorated with golden trim, and an ominous aura to it. Besides, he already knew it was what Grian was looking for. Just in case, he was going to allow it to dry. Once he had gathered himself, he made his way to where Grian was.

“What are you in the mood for?”

“Anything as long as it’s delicious and filling.” Grian sulked as they strolled.

Scar just smiled, leading the way to the nearby tavern. They grabbed something quick to eat, not paying much mind to the time. Scar’s priority was to cheer Grian up after all. Well, that was before he had found what they had been searching for. It felt like it was looming over his head. He knew he had to tell Grian eventually.

“So, G. What are you going to do when you do find that book?” That question earned a coughing fit from Grian. “Oh, sorry I didn’t mean to startle you. Here-” He passed Grian his handkerchief, urging him to drink water as he tried to calm down.

“Why… Why do you ask?” Grian replied in between coughs. He cleared his throat, quietly thanking Scar and beckoning him to continue.

“Well, I just got to thinking. We’ve been fishing for a month, and it has to come to an end. I was just wondering what would happen to us when it does… End I mean.”

“Oh. I hadn’t really thought about what we would do. I guess, we’d probably go our separate ways.”

They sat there in silence for a moment. Wondering what the other was thinking. The thought of this coming to end was bittersweet and heartbreaking. Scar didn’t want it to end, but he’d be lying if the thought didn’t cross his mind. What was he to do after this? What was his life lie before hanging around Grian? That thought has only caused him more grief.

Scar never stayed in one place for very long. There was never anything keeping him tied to a single area. He was free to do as he pleased without a care in the world. For the first time, he had something to look forward to. Casual conversation, playful pranks, and a type of warmth he hadn’t experienced before. He liked the sense of security he began to associate with Grian. His home.

The thought of something changing, or Grian leaving him was devastating. And the fear began to set in. If he were to show Grian what he had found there was a large possibility that he’d leave him. He couldn’t take that chance. Maybe, if he held onto it for a little longer, he could find another reason for Grian to stay. Just maybe.

[hawkinasock]

TELL US ABOUT YOUR OTHER AUS (IF ABLE AND WILLING AND YOU WANT TO) ‼️‼️‼️

Tread carefully, Anon... Once I start yapping, I can't stop (jokes on you tho, I love yapping. Let's go)

I assume you mean aus for HSR specifically? I've got a lot more for genshin, but to stop myself from going on massive tangents, I'll just stick to HSR. I'll keep them all as summaries and go into more depth if there's any interest. Ok here we go:

Chimera Yanqing has kinda become my whole thing now, but I've never actually mentioned the other characters that I've also made chimera forms for. Namely Jing Yuan.

He doesn't really have any lore...? Unlike Yanqing, I was too focused on making him look pretty, which is easy because it's Jing Yuan. I'll make an update if I add anything more to his lore, cause I'd hate to just leave him unfinished forever. I do have a chimera Yunli au too, which I'll also save for another time. (Also keep in mind that he has wayyyy more fur than what I've shown. It just would've made his actual form unclear. He is very, very fluffy, canonically)

Mara-struck Yanqing (aka How the general ate the cabbage). Made a whole fic for this one, the plot is in the pudding, and by pudding I mean my ao3 lol. Instead of deflecting Jingliu's ult, Yanqing is instead killed and mara-stricken, and everything falls apart from there. Keeping it vague since it's still in progress. As of writing this, I'm three chapters in, so check it out if you're interested <3

Band au. I actually forgot about this one until I went through my list. Basically, It's a modern au where the high cloud quintet were a huge band back in ye olden days of the mid 1980s until their downfall, where the lead singer (Baiheng) is killed in an accident, triggering a series of unfortunate fates for 3 of the 4 remaining members. Jing Yuan is the only member still working in the industry and adopted Yanqing roughly 20 years after the the HCQ's fallout. One day, though, after years of no contact, Blade comes back into Jing Yuan's life, seeking refuge from law enforcement, and it all tumbles out of control from there after Jing Yuan accepts. The rest of the story would follow a very suspicious Yanqing wondering what the deal is with his dad's weird new boyfriend, and eventually reuniting the 4 remaining members (getting the band back together, as Phineas would say). There is SO much lore for this one, but it would take up this entire post to explain, so I'll probably just make it into its own post (with designs ofc). Tbh I haven't done as much work on this one as the others simply because I just don't know that much about music? Zel does though, so if I ever come back to it, I can go to him as a consultant.

Kind of an odd one, but I'm including it since it sorta counts, and I've become pretty fond of it over time. Mom Lumine au(s) Xiaother being Yanqing's dads is one of my favorite little crack aus. This au is the brainchild of imagining Yanqing as Lumine's child instead, but me as the author not enjoying xiaolumi as much. Thus, this was born. There's not really a story? Just a bunch of loosely put together concepts with multiple potential narratives that I find fun. Most of the time I default Childe as Yanqing's bio dad. In a weird way, it makes sense in my head? Yanqing resembles Lumine and uses a sword, and has that same go-getting, battle-hungry attitude as Childe, with all the knock-outs to boot. I mainly imagine chilumi as this interstellar crime duo; the Bonnie and Clyde of space, if you will. Because, honestly, if Yanqing's parents are ever to be revealed, would it not be the funniest thing for them to turn out to be criminals? I think it's hilarious, because Yanqing himself would be mortified.

Guardian Blade/Stellaron Hunter Yanqing au. These names are kinda lazy cause I usually don't make official titles for them unless their a fic, which this one happens to be. Here, Yanqing is an abomination of abundance, and as my interpretation usually goes, the only person who knows about this is Jing Yuan. Him and one other - blade, who was confided in the secret shortly after Jing Yuan had taken baby Yanqing in. Jing Yuan made Blade promise that, should the truth ever be uncovered and Jing Yuan punished, Blade is to take Yanqing and protect him. And years down the line, when the truth does finally reveal itself, Blade fulfills his promise. Theoretically, Yanqing would then join the stellaron hunters, albeit unenthusiastically. I haven't actually made any plans for that concept outside of a single one-shot. I still need to finish the actual fic first lmao.

Mara-struck Jing Yuan au. Probably the least original one I have to offer, because there's nothing particularly unique about it aside from one little twist I added that I think differentiates it, and that's that Yanqing doesn't actually kill Jing Yuan, or vice versa. Instead, Jing Yuan, in his current state, attacks everyone and everything except for Yanqing, and actually goes out of his way to keep Yanqing away from danger. The way I rationalize this (and this is me stretching the mara lore a LOT) is that Yanqing is so important to Jing Yuan that he creates a sort of blind spot to the mara when present; he is both innately precious and harbors only positive memories in Jing Yuan's mind, so in a way, he retroactively contradicts the way mara-struck!Jing Yuan would normally perceive him, seeing Yanqing as something to protect rather than attack (i hope that made any sense </3). This would probably never actually happen in canon. I just really like the idea of Jing Yuan's love for his son being so strong that it stays with him even after he's gone mad and can no longer remember what Yanqing means to him.

Progenitor au. Saved this one for last because it's been occupying my entire brain for the past few days. It's based on Dillongoo's Progenitor Albedo series, and by based, I mean it's just the same au, same universe and everything, but HSR. I won't go into the details because I'm planning to make it its own dedicated post as well, but I think its safe to say its becoming my favorite au out of all of these. I already have some designs and original lore cooked up, so hopefully I can post about it soon.

I think that's all of them? Debatable if some of these even count as aus, but who cares. I hope you enjoyed my rambles and found my ideas interesting enough to read through. I'm hoping to eventually give them some more life and make actual content with them.

Till next time <3

[atopearth]

Diabolik Lovers: Haunted Dark Bridal Part 4 - Sakamaki Shu Route 

Lmao when you pick Shu for the LI and Ayato says Yui has bad taste. LMAO at Yui trying her best to talk to Shu because he's so uninterested in anything and she asks him if he can turn into a vampire and fly😂😂😂 Yui kissing Shu on the cheek to get him to go to class was so cute. Shu is like lazy to a new level, who goes into the bath with their clothes on and sleeps there while sinking lmao. Like obviously he's not going to die but is it really comfortable?! HAHAHA, Shu was smiling at listening to women moaning on his earphones?! I am dead, legit died when he gave an earphone to Yui to let her listen, what a guy😂😂😂 I find it cute how much he teases Yui haha. It's like genuine cute teasing for once in this game😂 I didn't expect Shu to start kissing Yui on the sofa just to annoy Reiji lol, no complaints from me though! I love how random Shu is, dude is just sleeping on the floor in the church and Yui steps on him when she's cleaning?! HAHAHA, love the CG where you can see her shoe stepping on him😂 Out of all the guys, I have to admit that I definitely didn't expect Shu to be the one who would say to Yui what colour her underwear is😂 I also did not expect the scene where Shu is too lazy to go to school and says if Yui wants him to go then she has to put on his uniform for him, and she had to put on his pants for him?! Honestly, no matter how much I cared, I wouldn't do that hahaha. Shu really is a crazy guy in his own way. I wonder what Reiji's problem with Shu is though considering he always thinks of Shu as trash. Anyway, it's pretty hilarious to see Shu win in darts when everyone looks down on him for being lazy. Everyone watching him as he bites down and sucks Yui's blood was amusing.. I have to admit though, for once I'm not really into the binaural audio for Shu lol. I feel like it's missing something? It's not sensual I guess?

It seems like the reason Shu is so "lazy" is actually because his butler and maid never let him do anything. His mother, Beatrix didn't want him exposed to the outside world so he was basically living like he was in gaol I assume, but even more restricted because he's not allowed out. I wonder if that's why he has a habit of sleeping all the time, it's because he literally can't do anything besides sleep and sleeping is the easiest way for time to pass. It's actually pretty cute how Shu insists on staying in the same room as Yui even if he's just sleeping there and his room is next door lmao. He's so fond of her and loves teasing her haha. Something I've always found amusing is that they all go to school and are third years lol, like haven't they been living for a while since they're vampires? He's really lazy to a new level to not bother taking baths and when he does, he doesn't take off his clothes lmao. Honestly, I'm lazy too but when it affects how comfortable you are, then it's definitely a problem! I guess the issue here is that according to him, nothing is really of issue so he just does nothing. Lmao when Yui said she's using to taking off men's clothes because of him but still struggling😆 Shu can be terrifying too.. I was worried for Yui when he tried to push her to sit on the chair with spikes and then forced her into the iron maiden, like omg that's scary! I know he mainly just wants to see her reaction but if she didn't push back, she could well and easily die.

LOL when he said she can touch his butt or something🤣 It's amazing how lazy he is that he's making Yui wash him, although I guess it's not "just" because he's lazy. I wonder if Shu is the only vampire to have actually made friends with a human and cherished them enough that he still remembers them to this day. I still wonder what is Reiji's problem with Shu because he's so insufferable lol. As for Yui, it seems like she's basically truly and freely choosing to be with Shu, at least it feels to be the least manipulative relationship, but it's not like I'm here for any self-respect so Shu is actually too tame sometimes🤣 Seeing how scared Shu was of the fire was pretty shocking. Like, we knew he had trauma but to this extent? I wonder how many years Shu has repeated school with the way he attends lol. Anyway, I didn't realise Yui and Shu were in different years so it's cute to see them sitting together and taking class together haha. Shu is such a perv to say so brazenly to Yui during class that he had a dream of them together in bed lol! Even more crazy that he wanted to strip her in front of everyone, what a guy lmao.

It's actually pretty crazy how jealous Reiji is of Shu, he's so obsessed. I feel bad for Yui getting stabbed just because he can't hack that Shu has "everything" so he'll destroy it all instead. Considering how much of a villain Reiji is, it's crazy to think he's an LI. He burnt the village/forest leading to childhood Shu's best friend's death and kills Yui now, like omg, how am I supposed to feel for this guy in his route lol! I'm so glad Shu got his revenge on Reiji because he's been way too tolerant all this time, but I do feel bad that Yui had to die for something like this to occur. It was really sweet to see Shuu not even hesitate to cut himself and give his blood to Yui the moment he heard her heart thump. You can tell how desperate he is and how much he loves her. It's sad that even though she was revived as a vampire, the effects of the stabbing caused her to be in a state of frailty and be basically blind now but she lives because she wants to stay with Shu. OMG, Shu is the oldest brother??? I didn't realise lol! Very unexpected haha! I really didn't like the third ending though because Reiji and Shuu literally just killed each other and then it ended! I probably feel the worse for Yui though because it means she becomes the play toy for the rest of the brothers. It was such a random ending lmao.

Okay, Shu in the first ending saying he's okay with throwing everything else away except her just made me so happy haha! Yui looking pretty seductive and suggestive haha, it's nice to see her assert some dominance🤣 But I think the nicest thing is seeing Shu leave that house with the only thing he needs in his life, Yui. It was so sweet when he said his life has no meaning without her, but I think the sweetest thing he did was apologising to her and asking her not to cry, you could really feel his genuine concern and desire for her to smile and not cry when she's with him and I think that was the most sincere display of his love for her. I also genuinely love how Shu is okay with Yui killing him and can easily tell when it's not her. There's gotta be some fetish with having your enemy (Reiji) sucking Yui's blood and then having Shu disinfect it and drink her blood lol because I thought it was such a weird scenario haha. I honestly hate Reiji and his jealousy. Well, dang, Yui sure has become a wild girl to skip class, climb on top of Shuu and do lewd stuff with him in school! Not that I'm complaining since it was pretty hot. Having Laito spice up their bedroom game is kinda funny, especially when he couldn't get Yui as turned on as Shu could🤣 I mean, to be fair, she only likes Shu so that affects everything.

Overall, Shu is most likely the most "normal" guy in this game. I mean I haven't played Reiji and Subaru's routes yet but only Subaru has the chance to be more normal haha. Anyway, it seems like Shu is actually pretty popular so I'm actually disappointed that I didn't like his route as much as I thought! I actually wanted to know more about his mother and stuff which was barely explored, instead it focused on the death of his friend leading him into becoming the person he is that doesn't care for anyone which is understandable but why did they have to make Reiji such an ass? How do I do his route after this lol. I also wasn't really a fan of the extent his laziness went because omg, half the time I'm not sure if he's qualified as a body or a person in the first half of the route with the way Yui had to take care of him. However, I do admit that after he fell in love, I probably enjoyed their romantic gestures and interactions the most out of all the guys, mainly because Shu is very expressive with his words, actions and emotions so you can really see how much he loves Yui and cherishes her in a very sweet way. It was really sweet and heartwarming to see that Yui could be treated in such a humane way LOL, I was happy for her. The downside is that this route lacks depravity lmao, and also I feel like Shu's binaural audio lines were much more lacklustre compared to the others but I guess that's also because he doesn't say much sexy stuff lolll. But yeah, definitely a more bland, tame, sweet lazy cinnamon roll route, which isn't too bad haha but not what you sign up for when you play a game like this lmao, still good though.

[leftoverbriocheloaf]

Lmaooo you’re so real for just starting more ideas/wips instead of finishing

How about #19 for the birthday date? <3

This one is definitely on the crack-ier side of my fics lmaooo

It's a high school au where Ranpo and Poe are both helping their younger siblings (Atsushi and Lucy respectively) fundraise for their respective clubs. Like selling chocolate and stuff door-to-door?

But it turns out that Atsushi and Lucy are selling in the same neighborhood (mainly bc Ranpo was lazy and didn't want to go to a different neighborhood and Poe and Lucy actually went to their assigned area) and it basically becomes a competition to see who can sell the most (after Ranpo tells Poe and Lucy to just sell somewhere else and Poe is like this bitch did NOT just say that)

Lucy has a great time, Atsushi does not

Here's the snippet! It's shorter because I haven't had as much inspo for this even though I love the idea (T-T)

_____________

“Lucy,” Edgar asks nervously, “Is– um, is everything alright?”

He feels terribly awkward, standing on a street corner and holding a half-empty box of off-brand chocolates for his sister's girl scout troupe fundraiser. He can't believe she actually convinced him to help her sell door-to-door in the first place.

Karl tugs at his hair and Edgar frowns. He would leave if he could, Karl. Unfortunately, there are two boys in between him and the street, and one pissed off Lucy.

“No, Edgar,” Lucy responds, narrowing her eyes, “Everything is not alright. Because they–”

She gestures dramatically at the pair in front of them.

“–are not supposed to be here!”

One of the boys, who Edgar notes has fairly distinctive white hair, and also a really cool pair of heterochromatic eyes, takes a nervous step back. He tries to tug on the other boy’s sleeve, and in a hushed voice, urges, “Ranpo, I told you we should have just gone to–”

“But it’s so far!” the older boy whines. Edgar can feel a migraine coming on.

Lucy puts her hands on her hips, annoyed and angry in equal measure. “We all have assigned areas. Deal with it!”

There's silence, and Edgar isn't entirely sure whether or not he should speak up. Lucy looks about a moment from handling the issue herself, and if there's anything he's learned over the past few years, it's that she should not do that. Not unless someone wants to end up in the hospital.

“Lucy…” Edgar tries, “Maybe we could just–”

“Assigned areas my ass. It's not our fault if we sell more than you,” the older boy, who Edgar remembers is Ranpo, cuts him off as he rolls his eyes. “If you're that worried, just go somewhere else."

Edgar blinks. What a jerk. Maybe he should let Lucy handle the situation.

Before he can think, he responds, “Actually, we’ll be staying.”

"Hm?" Ranpo raises an eyebrow, looking as if he realized only then that Edgar was there at all.

"I said," he repeats, ignoring the fact that Lucy looks delighted about his competitive streak rearing its head, "We'll be staying. Best of luck."

He offers a polite smile, "I'm sure you'll need it."

[phantarein]

#phantawrites: see no devil

It's one of my OC projects, so I'm going to start putting progress in the form of little bits :)

It's mainly about a romance between a famous singer who has many secrets and a bartender who has a big heart! Maybe even a polycule as time goes on hehe

Here is what I got so far! It's 4k words ↓

For Dante, the night was his solace, where all inhibitions were thrown away and people's true selves came out.

The bar he works in became his sanctuary, where he can observe the intricate dance of human emotion unfold. Being a bartender was entertaining, where no one would pay him any mind and maybe have a small chat over drinks, besides, nobody questioned why he was wearing a mask.

It was perfect.

Tonight was a normal night, he was just making small talk and serving drinks, nothing special.

"Hm~ This place is lively, don't you think?"

Dante glanced up from pouring a drink, his eyes meeting with those of a white-haired man. He recognized him immediately, Luz Morningstar, the famous singer... he stood there with an enigmatic smile, the dim lights making him look almost ethereal.

"Uh, yeah. It's always buzzing around here." Dante replied with a calm and collected voice, despite being an anxious wreck on the inside, being masked did wonders.

Seeing him so close, he could feel Luz's presence was magnetic as if he was being drawn in.

Luz leaned against the bar, his gaze fixed on Dante. "I've seen you here before, haven't I? You're the one who always wears the mask. It's an interesting choice for a bartender."

Dante chuckled, which betrayed his usual shyness. "Yeah, I guess it's just my thing. Adds a bit of mystery to the atmosphere, you know?"

Luz's lips curled into a sly grin. "Mystery can be intriguing." His voice was like music to his ears, making his heart skip a beat.

As the night progressed Luz kept him company. The mysterious aura surrounding Dante seemed to be a magnet for Luz, who was weirdly drawn to the other man.

Dante had no problem enticing the singer even more, he was usually reserved and introverted, however thanks to his mask he was able to get an unspoken connection with Luz. 

"So... when does your shift end?" Luz's melodic voice echoed through his head, knowing where this could lead.

"In around 15 minutes, why?" He fiddled with some glasses, unsure about the sudden question.

"Hm~ Maybe we could... talk more somewhere else?" Dante gulps, well, maybe this once...

-

Dante feels warm and happy, he had a great dream. He brings his body pillow even closer.

"Hehe, are you usually that much of a cuddler?" He hears someone talk, but, he lives alone... Suddenly he remembers everything that happened last night. Had they really-?

"Um, uh, good morning." He detaches himself from Luz and tries his best not to look awkward, however, he notices he doesn't have his mask on.

"You are so cute, you know that? Despite looking so cute you're a complete beast in bed... I must admit it was one of my best nights." Luz gets up, only wearing one of his oversized shirts. "Hm~ What do you want for breakfast?

"Um, breakfast?" Dante nervously looks at his surroundings, searching for a way to conceal his face. He finds his trusty face mask on the floor, along with all his clothes.

"Mhm, I've been told my pancakes are amazing. I have quite the sweet tooth you see." Luz just stared at him while he dressed, a lazy smile on his face. "So... I can cook for you if you'd let me."

Now with his mask (and clothes) on he regains the little confidence he had. And without thinking he just replied. "Yeah! Sure, I haven't eaten pancakes in so long." 

"Ha ha, then don't mind me." And Luz walks out of the room and into the kitchen with an oversized blouse.

Dante, realizing his situation, just sits in silence.

Not only had he fucked a big celebrity, but he had also made that celebrity cook for him like they were... something.

Still, it didn't appear to be a bad thing. Luz himself looked quite content. But you know what they say about popularity, it gets over your head. So for him, this probably was just a fling and nothing more. Right?

-

It's been a month.

Luz has yet to go back to his apartment.

And the worst thing is that he didn't mind. Dante wasn't sure what to call their relationship. 

Luz cooked for him. They slept together and even watched movies in their free time. 

Just what was going on between them?

"Hey, Dante~" Luz entered his room (their room?) and threw himself into the bed, hugging Dante from behind. "What do you want to eat tonight?"

"Um... pizza sounds good." Now used to Luz's touch, Dante relaxed and hugged his pillow.

"Anything else you want?" Luz snuggled closer, wrapping his legs around Dante's waist.

"No, I'm fine." Dante tried his best to concentrate on his book.

"Then... What about some dessert?" He felt Luz's hands snake his way toward his waistband.

Dante quickly closed his book and turned to face the white-haired man, a blush creeping on his face.

"W-wait, are you asking for"

"Yeah, sex. Is that okay with you? Of course, if you don't want to we can just-"

"N-no! It's okay!" Dante stuttered, a bit surprised at his sudden boldness. "But, could you give me some time to prepare?"

"Ha ha, sure, baby. Take your time." Luz got up and went into the kitchen.

-

As Dante showered, he continued to ponder on his relationship with Luz. He... liked him, liked him a lot. He could even call it "love".

He didn't know him for long, but some part of him yearned to be close to him, it was as if he was bewitched. It felt like a dream to have Luz in his home, he made it a home.

He already got so used to him in his house, that he brought life into his boring world.

But good things don't last.

-

Once he got out of the shower he was pleasantly surprised with a heavenly scent. Luz had somehow finished cooking, just how long did his shower take...?

He sneaks behind the singer and hugs him. "Hi"

Luz giggles. "Hi there~ Are you using the watermelon shampoo? It smells so good." He detaches himself from Luz and starts helping with the table.

-

Luz grabbed Dante's shirt, taking it off in a hurry.

Dante kissed Luz deeper, slowly making his way to his neck. Luz gasped when Dante bit down.

"Babe~ You're so needy today." He moaned as he felt Dante's tongue lick his skin.

"Can't help it, I can't have my fill of you-" He suddenly was interrupted by a loud noise in the living room. They both looked at each other with shock, just what could it be...?

Dante quickly got up. It probably was the wind, or maybe even a ghost—nothing to worry about.

He didn't expect to see a man in his living room... with a bat.

His heart sunk, adrenaline filling his veins. However, Luz got in front of him with an uncharacteristic cold expression.

"Cass." He sighs. "Explain."

The man (Cass?) drops the bat. "Morningstar, It's a pleasure to see you. It's not like you completely disappeared after going to a bar alone. Do you know just how worried I was?"

"I don't have the patience to deal with your bullshit right now. Why are you here?" He glared at the man, a cold feeling creeping on his body.

"Boss sent me, he was worried about your little escapade and wanted me to bring you back."

“Worried? Ha ha, I just can’t deal with this.” He sighs. “Alright, I’ll go. Give me a minute.” Luz said while he went to the bedroom.

Cass looked at Dante with a blank expression.

"Um, sorry, do you know each other?" Dante asked.

"Unfortunately." He deadpanned. "Who are you anyway?"

"Oh! My name's Dante, and..."

"I'm Castiel."

"Nice to meet you, I guess?" He fidgeted with his shirt, still unsure of the situation.

"Sorry to ruin your day, Dante. You two had a lovely evening, huh? I don't get why that snake is so charmed by you..."

Castiel gets closer to him. It felt like he was looking straight at his soul. "Hm, well, I should get going. It was nice meeting you."

He walks away and meets up with Luz. He whispers something, which Dante is unable to hear.

-

Dante was at work in the bar again.

He was alone and didn’t want to be bothered.

He thought he was in love.

It could be one-sided.

He should've known.

People like him didn't deserve love or happiness.

Suddenly, a man approaches. It was Nico.

"Hey, man! I couldn't contact you for so long, what happened? You left me on read for like, a month or so, why didn't you text back?" Nico was a friend he made in college, they were very close. 

"Oh... Nico, sorry, I've been busy." He wasn't in the mood to talk to the ball of sunshine that Nico was.

"Too busy? That's it? C'mon dude, I'm your friend and friends should help each other out!" He took a sip from his drink. "Hey, I can't keep pestering you here. I can tell you're not in a good mood. Want to talk about it over drinks?"

"Sure. Just give me a second." Dante served him another drink and then started pouring himself some whiskey. He shouldn't drink on the job but... it's fine.

He takes a long sip and looks at Nico.

-

"So... you've been fucking Morningstar, huh?"

"Uh, yeah..."

"I can't believe this... You're dating Luz Morningstar. Like, the Luz Morningstar! The singer!" Nico's excitement was palpable, it felt like his eyes would pop out.

"I wouldn't call it 'dating'" Dante looks at his whiskey like it was the most interesting thing in the world.

"You don't call living with someone for a month 'dating'?! Spending as much time together as possible? You're insane, man!" He then took a shot. "Man... I can't believe this! You have to tell me everything! From the moment you met, the things he does, how is his dick-"

"Hey! Not so loud!" Dante exclaims.  "No, I mean, yeah, we were fucking, but..." He sighed. "We aren't a couple."

"Really? Hmm, that's a surprise. From the looks of it, you're head over heels for him."

"Yeah, but, he has his own life and-"

"Are you dumb?!" Nico's sudden outburst took him by surprise.

"Um, what...?"

"You have the chance to be with the world's most celebrity and yet you're not sure if you're a couple. You're a fucking idiot!"

"W-wait, no. Don't call me that. Besides, you're wrong." He tried to explain himself but, maybe he was a bit of an idiot.

"Nope! I'm not letting this pass! Now, let's plan!"

-

It was 3 AM and Dante was drunk.

They had spent the whole night talking about him, about his relationship, and how Nico would help him.

Dante's phone started ringing.

"Who would call you at this hour?" Nico asked.

"Hm, I don't know, maybe it's Luz."

"Oooh, then answer!"

He quickly answers with the hope that it may be him.

"Hello? Dante?" He could hear the sing-song tone of Luz, which made his heart skip a beat. "Are you at work?"

"Uh- yeah, yeah" He tried his best not to slur his words, however, he was quite tipsy. "Where are you?"

"Hm, are you... drunk? At work?" 

"Noooo, no. I'm fine." Dante was lying through his teeth, he had no idea what was happening.

"Right. Where are you?"

"Uh, The Black Dahlia"

"Hm, stay there. I'll pick you up."

"Oh, sure. See you, I love y-"

"Yeah, I love you too. See you there, babe."

He hangs up.

"Was that him?!"

“Mm, yeah.”

"You two are so sweet! I can't wait to meet him, you gotta introduce us!"

They spent the next few minutes chatting, Nico telling stories about his childhood, and Dante trying to pay attention.

He was too dizzy to think properly.

Suddenly, the doors open and Luz walks in.

"Dante!" He approaches them and from the corner of his eye, he can see Nico visibly sweat "Oh dear- Are you ok? I'll go ask your boss to let you leave for tonight..."

"Mhm, sure. Hey, Luz."

"Yes, Dante?"

"You look gorgeous."

"I know. Thanks, babe."

Luz went to the office probably to talk to his boss, meanwhile, Nico was staring at him.

"Oh my god, he's even hotter in real life!"

"Hah, I know, right?"

"I'm so jealous of you."

“Well… we don’t know each other too well. I’m not even sure what our relationship is… I only know superficial stuff, like how he loves sweets and is a cuddle monster.”

Dante didn't notice, but Luz was already next to him.

"Hm, a cuddle monster? Interesting."

"Uh-" He was flustered, the alcohol wasn't helping either.

"Anyways~ Let's go home. Your boss said it was A-OK!" He said before noticing Nico. "Oh? Didn't see you there, who might you be?"

"I'm Nico! Nice to meet you!" Nico shook his hand enthusiastically. "It's an honor to meet you."

"Well, it's always a pleasure to meet a fan. I'll give you a little something..."

Luz gave Nico his autograph and a few tickets before they started walking to the exit.

"Dante, I'll drive us home, you can sleep."

-

Dante woke up with a horrible headache, he felt like this was happening too much lately. He should cut off from drinking for a bit.

"Good morning, sleepyhead. I've made breakfast."

Dante groans, still half asleep. "What time is it?"

"9 AM, you should eat. Here."

"Thanks."

Dante notices Luz’s phone lights up with a notification, it is from someone called Cass… wait, Cass? Wasn't he…

“By the way, who was the man that came here the other day?” Dante asks, expecting the worst.

“Oh him? He's Castiel, he's technically my guard, but we have a much deeper relationship” Luz said nonchalantly, then he realized something. “OH! We aren't dating or anything, but we do things couples do sometimes. It's an unlabeled game of cat and mouse, I’m pretty sure he hates my guts.” He then sighs. “I'm sorry, I should have told you earlier.”

Dante looked at him in silence. He was not expecting this.

"I'm sorry, I know it was selfish of me. I just-"

"Don't worry, it's fine. I understand." Dante smiled and grabbed Luz's hands. "I like you, Luz. You don't have to explain yourself, I'm just happy to be with you."

"R-really? You don't know how happy this makes me." He pauses "I want you to meet him, properly, I mean. Not like the other day."

"...Why was he carrying a bat?"

"Huh… why was he carrying a bat?"

-

"Hello, Dante, nice to see you again."

"Same here."

Castiel stares at him, a stoic look on his face. "Morningstar, I'm assuming everything went well."

"Yeah, yeah, all good. Anyways, Cass, I wanted to introduce you to him. Properly."

"You're saying it like you want my blessings for your marriage."

"Ha ha, don't be silly” Luz then says in a cheery voice.

"Yeah, you better not. Because I want to be your first." Castiel then grabs Luz's hand in his. "I want to be the first ring in your hand." 

Luz starts maniacally laughing, and between coughs he mumbles, "There's no way you just said that, you're so gross." He then looks at him with loving eyes. "I'll remember that, you just made a deal with the Devil."

Dante was feeling like the awkward third wheel, but still quite embarrassed at the PDA.

"Anywho, you two, please take a seat, I'll get something to eat." He went to the kitchen, leaving them both alone.

There was complete silence in the apartment.

Should he break the ice?

"Um-"

"So-”

They stare at each other, and Castiel makes him a sign to go first.

"Sorry." Dante fidgets a bit. "So, how did you and Luz meet?"

"I wanted to ask you the same." Castiel then looks at the wall, as if it was the most interesting thing in the world. "He's a complete disaster, without me he wouldn't be able to even get out of bed, did you know he still sleeps with the lights on? It's either that or he just sleeps with someone to keep him company." He sighs and looks at him sternly. "You don't know him, at all, so don't even think you are in my level. You're just another fun toy for him to fool around with, he'll always come back to me. Just to me."

Dante could feel that this was a threat, but... "I don't care, I don't care that this could be just a temporary thing, you do not get to act like he's your property, he's a person." He feels the anger dissipating from himself, but now he realizes his mistake in saying that out loud.

Dante closes his eyes in the fear that he'll get physically harmed, but, shockingly he didn't get his face punched, not even a slap. Instead, he could hear Castiel laughing.

"Hah, good one. Like I haven't heard that before." Then, Luz appears from the corner with some plates full of food. "Hey, Morningstar. For how long will you keep this lie?" Said Castiel smugly.

Luz freezes in place at the question. "Whatever do you mean?" Then sighs. "Don't tell me you're trying to make him run away, too." He sits beside Dante and starts eating, completely ignoring the mood.

"You know, about how you are-"

Luz casts him a deadly glance, clearly pissed. Castiel suddenly shuts up and looks to the side. "I don't see how that is relevant, it sure doesn't matter to you."

Dante was sweating, the awkward tension made him just want to crawl out of his body. "As long as it doesn't hurt anyone I don't mind... Any kind of secret he may have..." He muttered.

"See? You scared him already. If you keep being this overprotective jealous man then I won't let you sleep with me." Luz was already the same as always, and the tension finally lightened. Even Castiel seemed to be in a better mood, although less talkative.

And so, they eat in peace.

-

After he left Luz's house he couldn't help but feel a little off. What kind of secret could Luz be hiding? He was about to text him, but before he did he saw that someone was calling him.

"Hello?" 

"Dante! Dante! Listen to me, I just got an interview for a backup dancer position!" Nico rambled excitedly. "And you won't believe for who!"

"Oh wow, that's super good, Nico, you'll do great!" He was happy for his friend, being a dancer was a hard job, as it wasn't viewed as something you could go into expecting lots of payment. "Who are you dancing with?"

"Luz Morningstar! I can't fucking believe it!" 

"Wait what? Luz?" They hadn't talked that much since the visit with Castiel, since Luz had to go on some sort of trip to visit his parents. But why did he choose Nico? He hoped it was for his skill and not any kind of connection or favor the singer wanted to repay.

"Yes! We met once when you weren't home, and he liked my dancing so much that he got me a spot on the audition, and guess what! He chose me!" Nico was over the moon, and despite being in a rough patch with Luz, he felt happy for Nico too.

He sighs. “That’s great, Dante. I hope he doesn’t overwork you.”

“Of course not, dude! If anything, it would be an honor!” 

“You’re weird.” He laughs, “Don’t let others step over you, you deserve everything nice.”

“Aww, same to you! Anyway- I gotta go practice my butt off! I gotta be in the best shape for work! See you.”

“See you.”

He looks at his phone as the call ends, debating what to do now. If he texted Luz would he look too obsessive? He shouldn’t get his hopes up, it seemed that the end of this beautiful relationship was soon after all.

With a sour expression, he went to the nearest grocery shop.

-

Even going to work felt like a complete disaster, a bunch of drunk people wasn’t a good combination for a broken heart. He tries to keep his mind off of things, but he has to confront the situation eventually. Castiel was his main issue, it was clear they didn’t like each other and were dating the same man. However, neither of them even had confirmation that they were dating Luz, he simply didn’t like labels like that.

It was fine, it wasn’t fine. He wasn’t sure what to think.

It was around 3 AM when he saw his phone light up, he expected it to be just one of his rhythm games telling him his energy was full, but instead, he saw a message from Luz.

‘Home rn, plz come asap’ the text said. It was a weird text, as Luz didn’t tend to use acronyms or not send a full paragraph for each text.

Then that must mean things had come to an end.

His stomach ties itself up to a knot, the feeling of bile rising upon his throat didn’t make things better. Despite not being the most emotional man, he still felt a little apprehensive to the notion of responding. He was afraid.

Mustering up his courage, he texts back, ‘Sure, see you.”

Dante just hoped things would end peacefully.

-

What he didn’t expect was coming to a complete wreck of his home.

The shelves were thrown off, trinkets and books adorning the floor. But what disturbed him the most was the blood-like substance making a trail in his living room.

“Hello?!” He calls out, being afraid of whatever may still be in his apartment. Looking around, he notices that the bat Castiel had brought a long time ago was still near the entrance, he takes it, praying that he won’t have to use it.

Dante follows the trail of blood, the droplets ending at his closed bedroom door. 

Full of adrenaline, he opens the door. The sight was something he wished he had never seen.

Luz was on the bed, surrounded by the bedsheets. But what was the most noticeable was the blood staining the white sheets. Whimpering, Luz twitches in his place but doesn’t get out of his cocoon.

“Luz?! Luz, what happened?!” Dante drops the bat and immediately goes up to the other man. He takes the covers off of his face and notices a blank stare on him, he doesn’t seem in pain, he doesn’t seem like anything. But after recognizing that it was Dante his mouth twitches to a smile.

“Dante~ Dante~ It’s you. Have I told you you look like an angel? Yes, you are my guardian angel.”

“What are you talking about?! What happened, who did this to you?! Are you hur-”

“Shh, hug me.” He grabbed Dante and pushed him on top of himself. Squeezing tightly at the other man. “It’s all fine.”

“Luz…” Dante tries to get out of the other’s hold, he needs to check the source of the blood. He couldn’t handle the thought that Luz had been hurt, or even worse, about to die. “Let me at least check your wounds… Please.”

“Hmm-? Why do you want to see my body? Oh well, my body is yours, so go ahead~” He lets his arms go limp and just lets Dante do his thing.

Dante took this sign as being allowed to check, so he lifted Luz’s shirt, encountering…

Marks, scars, wounds, wounds that weren’t there before. He had seen Luz without a shirt before, he had a few tattoos but aside from that he had never seen these kinds of scars. Not all of them looked fresh, but he could see that there were some burns, even rope burns, and lots of cuts from a sharp object… This wasn’t just a normal assault, it was torture.

“Luz…” Dante was about to cry, he couldn’t handle seeing the man who made him so happy during this short time so hurt. “Let me see your back, and then we’ll start covering these wounds.” He did his best to even his breathing, Luz didn’t seem in pain, but the scars looked so awful, there was no way they didn’t hurt. 

The back was even worse, he could see that the majority of the scars were healed, but god… They were made from a whip. Dante couldn’t help but let the tears stream down.

Just what kind of suffering had Luz gone through? Since when? These kinds of questions just made him want to protect Luz, to never let him be in pain again. He sobs and sobs. Luz notices the change in mood and immediately goes to hug him.

[irregularsleepingfish]

I think it's really fucking funny that of all the songs on Will Wood's In Case I Make It (yeah I know. 20-something trans man that listens to will wood. how typical) - an album that has a song about euthanizing a pet, and another one from the perspective of a truly innocent (in action and in mindset) doormouse that gets poisoned by the humans that own the house it lives in, the one that makes me actually cry somewhat consistently is the one about getting married.

breaking this because it's gonna be long as fuck. content warning for trauma dump I fucking guess. I'm not offended if you skip this one trust <3

the reason why is so simple. I've spent my entire life not understanding why those around me think I'm such a freak and why I can't keep up with what the hell my parents want from me. turns out I'm neurodivergent (possibly and/or probably autistic, definitely adhd. maybe some other cocktail that I'm not even aware of) and when you grow up with conservative parents and a neurodivergent brother who was given attention and care and assistance that he needs, and your neurodivergence is "less obvious" than his, sorry kid you have to be the perfect child. I couldn't possibly have adhd or whatever. I was just lazy, you see - I was a spoiled, entitled brat and not doing my homework and failing my classes wasn't indicative of any real struggle. it was indicative of the fact that I hadn't been punished or disciplined enough, don't you see? my father once called me a bitch during a period where my friends at that time (hs girls so what can you do) abandoned me and I was having doors slammed in my face and being harassed at every opportunity. and whenever I'd bring this up as reasons that just MAYBE I'm a bit traumatized I'm told "man you still haven't gotten over that?"

i was never given the graces of the people who were supposed to take care of me and that led me into a relationship that I clung to for dear life as a fucked up teenager because it was all I knew and I felt like I needed that to survive. then as years went on that relationship turned sour for me and it took me far too long to escape it because I once again felt trapped in an obligation to someone who, from my perspective, wanted me to be someone I am not - much like my parents. they wanted me to do things I did not want and made me viscerally uncomfortable, putting more trauma on me to where after I finally broke it off (messy and unfun btw) I felt like I could never find love. like there was too much wrong with me. the way I think is very pragmatic and I don't feel empathy the way other people do. I had to learn that myself.

it took me so long to finally become someone worth being. a HUGE part of that came with transitioning (shocker!)

so anyways the song. about finding someone to be happily married to. constantly echoing "just like my parents" and because MY parents are egregious and annoying and my father is a piece of shit and my mom both tries and doesn't care enough somehow, it stings like a poisonous irony.

then at the end he goes "Just like my parents... yeah right." and it's like a knife to the gut type of reminder that I'll never be just like them. but I also don't fucking want to be. I mean ok mainly because I'm never having kids fuck that, but in terms of a healthy marriage - IF I ever even got there. which, when I first heard that song, I fully believed I never would.

why would I be able to love anyone, anyhow. who would ever be ok with someone as traumatized as I am. navigating an awful relationship with my parents. an ex that made me think I hated physical touch. so on and so forth.

every crush I confess to will turn me down. so let's get this over with so this one can turn me down as well, we can go back to being friends, and the status quo doesn't have to change.

and then he said yes.

"ive made more mistakes than simple empty moments. each one as out of character as you know I tend to be."

and with every out of character thing I do I realize they all come together to create this character I've made that is myself. every mistake I've made is why I'm me. stored within the chemicals of my brain.

this is not a mistake. this might just be the most important thing I've ever done. even if this doesn't last long the past month or whatever has shown me, concretely, that I am capable of loving and being loved in a way that I just didn't think I was able to do anymore. even if this doesn't last - which, you know, I hope it does, who in my position wouldn't? - the experience I've had here has changed me for the better. I don't feel trapped. I don't feel tethered, or obligated, or anything. I just feel happy. I just feel loved. it's possible to be in a relationship that's so untethered and free and genuine and I had no idea. maybe there is a future in which I can grow old with someone.

but of course it's all an if and a maybe and a who knows because you know it's been four weeks. roughly. still there's a lot you can learn from having deep conversations with someone for those weeks.

"Close enough to forever, I guess, to prove what I hope. I mean, otherwise, how am I to believe?"

I love you.

[octoxicash]

I has a question about the man built like a possum (Narrator). I get he is already sorta creature, but he is still kinda humanoid. So, my question is, can he go like full blown creature-creature, if that makes any sense.

literally packing for christmas travelling tomorrow morning rn but i had to stop and open my laptop bc oh my god i love talking abt my narrator thank u so much anon. get infodumped on. sorry

.↓

In my own tsp headcanon he literally has no physical form and just kinda loads a model in whenever he wants to actually interact w something? but its very much like the perspective of paying a video game to him.

At some point i just decided he kinda made his own custom "human" body out of convenience but its editable / customizable still however he wants it. I mainly just draw the same one out of habit/comfort but also I think he'd choose a similar form for Stanley's sake. In my head its also the first form he saw of Narr's so that's just kinda. him. so he looks like how i draw him for most of the time.

The reason he gave his form non-human traits (tail(s), extra set of arms, claws, weird eyes, yellow tones in claws / mouth / blush, bioluminescence, etc.) is that he felt being human didn't encompass him fully / felt too important to let himself look like one. Also he's just more fun to draw like that

an actually! most of the time he doesn't even have his full body loaded up! the only parts that r actually there are head/hands/tail bc he's lazy and sensory inputs a bitch! the clothes kinda just go around where his body WOULD be n act like its there but there's. nothing in there. like if u rolled up his sleeve boom he's hollow in there (doodles on right unrelated I'm too lazy to crop)

I do have a post-parable au as well that i haven't rlly done much with in which he's no longer able to change his form and is just fuckin stuck w how i usually draw him because that's just what he looked like when they escaped so that's silly. imagine ur just chilling irl and randomly some guy who lookes weirdly jaundice-d up and has a fucking. TAIL. comes asking you questions yet acts perfectly healthy.

in the parable tho he can look like anyone he wants or any Narrator design (or other character designs) out there I just have a few "preset" ones that i draw just cause that's how i view him :3

he can go full Thing™️ and one of the designs for him that i DEFINITELY need to draw more of is kinda angel-like (its literally based on how i draw the wtnv angels) an its one of my fav designs of him to doodle. same colors i use for my main design for him but shifted around some. ill draw / color him a shitty ref one of these days i prolly

tl:dr yes. and also im ill.

[deflatedrock]

Lemon Eyes Part 1

I haven't written an x reader in so long, so I'm rusty. Gender Neutral reader btw. Also this 100% has some self indulgence aspects in it, this is a self insert blog after all. Pretty much follows the main game, it ended up taking a mind of its own because of the amount of times I had to pause writing to focus on school lmao. It doesn't matter for this fic series but Imma put it here anyways: I believe Arven to be around late 18 or early 19 range. Now that that's over with, let's get to the fic ! Words: 2,077 ----

Arven was never really a character of interest to you. Well, he was. Fighting titan Pokemon for their Herba Mystica–a name straight out of Minecraft Botania in your opinion–to make new recipes for food? Okay, you were mainly zoning out when he was talking to you, and again when he explained it when he, Nemona, and Cassotepia were fighting over your attention. A strawman fallacy out of your mind. Your plan for this treasure hunt was to capture all the other Pokemon in Paldea’s dex, being too lazy to do so in your home region. Paldea is a smaller piece of land anyways (A/N: in my opinion), so completing the 400 dex shouldn’t be too hard. 

Well, it wouldn’t be if you didn’t actually have to listen to those three; Using Operation Star to give your Pokemon more battle experience and using the gym challenge to capture more experienced Pokemon. Such a hassle. And before you knew it, La Primera was scouting you for the champion league. You might as well have done a favor for Arven, it's been about a week since the treasure hunt and he’s asked for your help. 

Which leads you to where you are now. Having fought off the Stony Cliff Titan, Kawlf, with Buizel and Arven’s Shellder as the first titan before now facing off against Dondozo, the false titan dragon, and final titan. Your goal of pursuing the full Pokedex on the back burner once Arven revealed his motive for gathering the Herba Mystica. You felt bad for ignoring his favor the first week of the treasure hunt, thinking about Mabosstiff in pain this entire time.

It doesn’t matter now, as your Toxtricity lands the finishing blow on the mini titan and Arven pats you on the back. You brush off the feelings of butterflies that rush to your stomach, chasing off the childish feeling as you follow him inside the cavern. Staring at the ground, you can’t exactly recall how it happened: falling for him. Maybe it was when you were in your dorm, exhausted from speedrunning all your classes to get back to your goals–scrolling through your Rotom phone for pictures to delete. Landing on the photos you had with Arven and you making sandwiches out of the herbs, noticing how much fun he was having even if the sandwich wasn’t as good as the two of you weren’t expecting. It made your chest feel fuzzy. You favorited a few and put them in an album, just in case you want to look back on memories. 

You found yourself often tracing around his face whenever you took a stroll down memory lane.

Maybe it was when you both had Home Economics together. Seeing him turn around and give you a smile with a thumbs up whenever you answered Professor Saguaro’s questions. Causing you to give a slight smile back before busying yourself with your doodles so you could avoid the heat rushing to your ears. Until finals, you couldn’t help but spare a few glances at him. At least it never affected your studies.

Well, the teachers noticed to say the least. You’ve always underestimated how obvious student crushes are to teachers, but not to peers. Visiting during their free time, only for the conversation to only subtly turn to Arven as your glances appeared to older adults as puppy gazes. You really have to keep that in check. Luckily, you always got what you needed out of the conversation class wise. Law of equivalent exchange because it's something for them to take back to their colleagues.

The interaction with History Professor Raifort was especially embarrassing, however. It revealed more than you would have liked when you approached her after class about the Scarlet Book, wanting to know more about the King’s tale. You remembered as her eyebrow went up, relaying the information that it has been checked out for quite a while and you must have known who has it because you spend your treasure hunt time with him. You felt your ears reach the point where the heat of them is visible to others, Ms. Raifort attempted to hide a chuckle beneath her hand. You thanked her for the information and quickly left.

You didn’t expect the teachers to learn how you dismissed Arven when you first met him, and it was through some shared experience that you have fallen this hard down the stairs of a crush. And the millions of ways the teachers’ minds could think of what that experience was keeps you up at night (of course, nothing too out there, mainly getting stuck somewhere for a long time. Nothing that crossed the boundaries of a teacher being pulled into the lives of their students). All because you fell for the boy who wants to heal his partner Pokemon.

“Hey bud? You haven’t taken a bite out of the sandwich, did I mess it up somehow?”

You blinked back into reality. Looking up from your sandwich that you don’t remember making with Arven, you felt pinned by his eyes as you tried to come up with an explanation that’s not ‘I think I love you’. You shook your head in response. Telling him that you just noticed how Koraidon hasn’t come out to eat your food yet, which speak of the devil, gets said Pokemon to come out of its ball.

Arven, of course, brings out the extra sandwich he begrudgingly made in this event, tossing it to Koraidon who ate it without a second thought. Both of your faces contort a bit, seeming to share the same question of  ‘did it even chew?’. After that animalistic scene, Arven brought out Mabosstiff, who looked much better than he had the first time you saw him. You felt awkward, mainly because it was such an intimate moment and you were nervous that the build up of anticipation would get to the poor canine, so you looked away as he ate. 

You looked back once he finished, watching in hope that he’d get up, do something other than lay down. Though, you understood it was a selfish desire soon after the thought came to mind. Arven’s face dropped as did yours as you both understood that even the Herba Mysticas couldn’t heal Mabosstiff. Scrambling for words to say, scouring your brain for comfort words, you held your tongue. It was best to let Arven silently express his disappointment to the wall. The pokeball fell, and you took a second before you sighed, getting up to go hand it over to Arven. But, your eyes widened as Mabosstiff lifted his head, beginning to put one leg up at a time. Your eyes meeting Arven’s as he had turned around to go to pick up the pokeball up as well, hope holding out for the two of you. You covered your mouth as Mabosstiff went over to pick up the ball, lifting it up towards Arven as his tail wagged. Arceus, you were tearing up. You couldn’t help but wrap an arm around Koraidon as Arven was overjoyed with the recovery of his partner Pokemon. After a good five minutes of joy, your Rotom phone began to ring. Rotom flew up to your face, answering the call and you were greeted by Professor Sada and her analysis on Koraidon’s abilities. You glanced at Arven, whose face was a mixture of surprise and anger, even more so when she implied it was she who lent you Koraidon. You shifted awkwardly in place, knowing that it was Arven who battled you to see if you were worthy in the first place. The mystery of the relationship of the two grew more as Professor Sada was surprised to hear his voice and recalled her efforts to contact him to which Arven rolled his eyes and showed little interest. It would have been a moment of brief empathy from you to Sada if she didn’t completely trash it by saying she needed him to get into her lab. But get into her lab…? The only one? Surely she would’ve had others to also have access to her lab. And why Arven? Well– that question felt more explanatory. They both resembled each other in many visual aspects, so you had assumed he was related to her in a way.

Your thoughts were interrupted by the sound of the call ending, blinking at the black screen. You weren’t paying attention again. Great. It didn’t matter as you looked up at Arven, confirming that yes, Professor Sada is his mother. “She was never at home with me, I haven’t seen her in years! And the first thing she wants out of me is to go to her lab?!” You gave him an empathetic look as he decompressed, thinking to himself. He sighed, and before you could console him about the matter, about to tell him that the two of you didn’t have to go to her lab and could just ignore her, he started talking again. “I might as well get you into that lab, the one off of Poco Path. That’s where we met, remember?” You smiled slightly at the last part, nodding, giving him a small, “Of course I do.”

That got him to smile a bit as well, announcing that the two of you should get going before he changes his mind. You started to walk off, Arven pausing, but you assumed it was to decompress further. Oh Professor Sada, where are you?

—

It’s safe to say that the moment you see the Professor, instead of greeting her in a friendly way, you might just throw a right hook at her instead. 

Listening to Arven and seeing her reaction of seeing her son after so many years only to call him to the deepest part of the most dangerous place in all of Paldea? Arceus, Arven was right (although you never doubted him), she was the worst parent. She definitely rivals the one lady in the Alolan region you had heard about. You weren’t sure you even wanted to go. But you could tell that even if he didn’t know it yet, Arven wanted closure about his mom’s disappearance and neglect. So when he asked if you were going to Area Zero, you said yes. What caught you off guard was the glare he had given you, even if you understood he was in an emotionally vulnerable state. Ouch. But he did agree to go, and he was 100% pumped up to start a fist fight with his mom, even if he only spoke daggers instead of throwing them. With that, he challenged you to a Pokemon battle, admitting it was to see if he was ready or not, causing a slight blow of air to come out of your nose. Your best friend was a dork.

You lagged behind to look over the lab while he headed outside, both to appeal to your curiosity and to push your feelings back down further. His glare wasn’t personal, but it felt that way. He probably felt a bit betrayed by your response no doubt, originally wanting nothing to do with his mother, and yet here his best friend was, seemingly compliant with being an errand boy. You leaned against the dusty couch, watching the dust particles rush to fill the air. Immediately getting back up and dusting yourself, you don’t know why you expected the couch to be worth leaning against. 

You started walking around the lab. Examining everything of interest to get your mind off your internal battle. If abandoning her child wasn’t proof enough to show how dedicated her research was, then surely the mess of papers and a hundred or so books definitely was. You thought about taking down the boxes on top of the shelf, but decided against it. You’d get lost in her research, trying to figure out what was so important that Arven had to be collateral damage.

All this made you feel worse for neglecting him at the start of the treasure hunt, but there’s nothing you could do about the past. Besides, you’re making up for it now by being there for him, aren’t you?

Cracking your neck, you headed for the door, taking a breath–cough because of the dust after–you stepped out. Looking at Arven as he redirects his attention from Mabosstiff to you, smiling at him and nodding, Arven returns your actions. All because of a boy and his partner Pokemon. 

[ninjastormhawkkat]

The Fall of Fair City - Chapter 15

Dr. Two Brains did a double take at seeing the reflection of his old self staring at him back in the mirror. He rubbed his eyes with his hands and shook his head a bit, trying to regain his composure. "So Professor Goody-goody is back again huh. I haven't talked with you in a long time." Two Brains calmed himself down. He felt silly being startled at seeing his good side pop up again through a reflective surface. He hadn't seen that side much in a couple of years ever since his accident. Despite what people thought. The accident that caused him to fuse with Squeaky didn't create another person inhabiting the body of Steven Boxleitner. It had actually split his mind and soul into two sides of the same coin, with the good one being represented by Steven and the evil side being represented by Dr. Two Brains and far more dominant than his good one. "Well I am back." Steven responded with a shrug. Two Brains almost expected a but after that last word, but Steven did not respond further, just stared at him. He ignored the shadowed look Steven was having, quickly assuming it to be a trick of the light. "What brings you back now, trying again to make a futile plea for me to give up my life of crime and go back to my old boring life." Dr. Two Brains remarked sarcastically with a roll of his eyes. This is what would usually happen when his good side appeared. He would beg and plead with Two Brains to stop ruining his good name, to give him back control and to be free of the cheese obsessions. Two Brains of course would taunt and ignore him, he liked the villain life he has, with some minor issues of course. They really argued back and forth about their body's moral compass. The only thing those two sides ever agreed on was Becky. Besides rest and relaxation periods, Becky's well being and happiness were the only times the good and evil sides of Two Brains merged in order for her emotional and physical meeds being met. They would also never have their arguments in front of her. Neither side would ever get over that haunting and scared look she gave them when both sides first fought for control. Two Brains never wanted this daughter too look at him with such fear ever again. "Actually the reason I'm here is to mainly criticize your work skills as a villain." Steven responded with a sassy tone. Dr. Two Brains scoffed. "MY skills! I'll have you know buster I'm still the top villain around here. I'm still at the top of my game." Two Brains was really offended at Steven's remarks. How dare this goody goody side of his dare and try to critique HIS villainy. Steven snorted as if he heard a funny joke, further irritating the mad scientist. "Not from where I standing Dr. Two Brains. You have become more lazy and predictable ever since the day of the accident. You claim to be proud of your "reputation" as a top villain, but you haven't dealt with that slander the news broadcasted this morning for the whole city to see." Steven spoke in a scolding, lecture tone. "Why should I care what this city thinks of me? These people are gullible and moronic. They will forget about it soon." Two Brains responded with a roll of his eyes. Steven frowned, very unhappy with the mouse man's response. A sharp, but brief pain shot through Two Brains head as he immediately clutched the side where the impromptu headache came from. "This is why you should exactly care Two Brains!" Steven spoke with an dark and angry tone. His expression appearing more menacing than what would be normal for the good and kind hearted professor. "You let those morons at your old work use you like a guinea pig, allowing those ignoramus neanderthal police force to entrap you in a cage of tension, being afraid to even go out and commit a useless cheese because of some dimwitted law enforcement breathing down your neck." Two Brains clutched his ears. He didn't know what was worse, the return od his headache on full blast or Steven's yelling. He could no longer feel Squeaky's presence, only Steven's, but this time he couldn't tell the difference. @melodythebunny @dualnaturedscientist

[seaweedbraens]

Alright so I've just gotten through this behomenth in a couple days (my grades are disappointed) and I am absolutely in love. I do have a few things I am curious about - no need to answer if you dont wish to. Firstly, do the other pantheons exist in this world? Since it's an au it is pretty reasonable that they are just no longed there. (Mainly curious because the other gods have headcourters in NYC as well). Also what happened to titans that sided with the Olympians? And where's Koios?

you're a LEGEND for getting through that so quick! i think you left a comment on ao3, too, asking a similar question, and i do have to apologize for getting back to you so late. i was trying to find a smart answer about why they're not in this, but the truth is i haven't really read/finished many of rick's other series about the other gods, and so i haven't really considered them at all in the fic. think of this fic as pjo+hoo only!

any allies of olympus were silenced/exiled/faded out of existence just like the gods. also my ass forgot about koios im a bad worldbuilder ✌️✌️✌️✌️✌️✌️✌️let's assume he never really made out of tartarus lol

SDXFGDHJFk im SORRY these are probably not the answers you expected, but the truth is im just LAZY, very sorry :(((

[caffeinatedknives]

Sunday Currently // Vol. 10

Before anything else, Happy Easter!

Found some energy today--mainly because of me being a happy exo-l celebrating EXO's 11th debut anniversary., which gave me enough push to make this entry for this week.  I feel like today's a good day to skip so here I am now sharing my Sunday Currently Vol. 10 here.

Anyway, let's begin…

==CURRENTLY==

Reading  -- Other than reading tweets and facebook posts, I haven't read anything else. Maybe next week, I'll try again.

Writing  -- My main focus for this weekend is just chill and relax (or just my excuse for being lazy, lol) hence I purposely didn’t even attempt to think of writing anything at all other than my journal entries. 

Listening  -- Baekhyun's whole solo discography. I may have been all out celebrating EXO's anniversary, but I still find myself listening to Baekhyun's solo songs especially after watching their  fanmeet online livestream. I guess I'm just also partly trying to calm my nerves. It's Baekhyun's Overpass ticket selling this coming Wednesday (April 12) I'm already too anxious if I'm going to secure a ticket. T.T

Watching  -- Spent my afternoon watching EXO's fanmeeting livestream. I didn’t purchase the ticket but I was able to watch because kind exo-l (bless her kind heart, pls) hosted a streaming via zoom. The broke fan in me is beyond happy to have watched Exo's beyondlive, for free… lol

Thinking  -- I'm trying not to think about it much  but my mind can't help but keep coming back to thinking about my worries in getting the ticket. This may sound insane, but I really can't help it though. It's my first time and all I want is to see Baekhyun live in concert. I hope it will happen. 

Smelling  -- The faint scent of my room spray (inspired by Jo Malone's wood sage and sea salt) is still in my room <3

Wishing  -- After watching EXO online today, I don't think I can wish for anything else right now but to see them live too myself. I guess it would be nice to finally see the group that I love perform on stage while I'm among the audience screaming out with all my heart (and lungs). Yeah, that would be very nice to happen.

Hoping  -- Let's manifest (not just hoping) to have a great week. I'll manifest that I will be seeing Byun Baekhyun too on June..

Loving   -- Like I said, today's a good day. Capping off the weekend with this day with EXO celebrating their anniversary made it special. I just love it. Sana ganito lagi ang Sunday, chill lang.

Wanting   -- I don't think there's anything else I could ever want at this very moment. I mean, I'm just in a good mood right now that I can't think of anything to whine and want right now.

Needing  -- I really need to calm down. As I type this  part, I'm just reminded again about the ticketselling. Damn, I don't think I will be really at peace until I secured that effin ticket >.<

Feeling  -- I think I feel hungry now. It's dinner time here anyway. I guess time for me to just end it here.

=============

Time for me to wrap this Sunday up now.

Let me end this post with EXO's Just as Usual. Someday my loves, someday I will be singing along with this too (and I'll do it louder too). <3 ---KNIVES

[ecryen-blue]

Day 13

I'm almost at the end of my first week of classes. I've only introduced myself as Blue in all of them. A part of me wishes I had all new teachers, so I didn't feel like it was so different, but all of my professors(that I've told) have been really chill about it. Perks of being an Arts major, I suppose.

There is one who I haven't told yet, mainly because he's taught this specific class of people 4 times now, so (as far as he knows) he knows all of our names. No point in introducing yourself to people you already know, right?

I know I have to let that class know, too, at some point. I wouldn't be surprised if some of them have already heard, since we're such a small campus. A few people I haven't directly told and who aren't in any of my classes already know. It's sort of nice not having to tell everyone, I think

I say "I think" because I wasn't prepared for this to be sort of exhausting. There's this weird sense of unease about it all. I've described it to my best friend as sort of a middle ground. ████████ is obviously uncomfortable, and I can't go back to it. It's not my name anymore. But, at the same time, I'm not fully used to Blue yet. It's not quiet my name. It's getting there, but I can tell it'll take a while.

There's still a part of my brain that says I've made a mistake. I've mostly beaten it with facts and logic, but it still worms its way into my thoughts occasionally. You're lying to them all, you're making this up. You don't really want this to be you. Just go back, hit undo and go back to ████████. It'll be easier. You've been used to it for 21 years, why force something that's uncomfortable on the off chance it might get better instead of just sticking with the tried and true? But, like, if any of that were true, I would be longing to go back. I would be certain it doesn't feel right, and there are too many moments of joy sprinkled throughout for me to believe it was all a mistake.

Like, for example, I feel so much cooler all of the time. My name doesn't stick out, it sort of melds into my personality. It no longer feels like a bright blue on a deep maroon. I feel confident when introducing myself, even if it still feels a little weird.

It's sort of like my car's rear passenger side door . From far away, at a glance, it is clearly a different shade of blue. However, once you et closer, you cannot tell that it's different at all.

And for the record, no, I didn't name myself after my car. I chose Blue because blue jays are my favorite bird. Did you know they're corvids? I didn't. That just makes them more cool though, imo.

It has had a few strange side effects that I really wasn't anticipating. For example, it does finally feel weird using the women's bathroom. As (I think) I mentioned earlier, changing my name from ████████ was really shedding the last bit of femininity that was clinging to me. I don't think I'll every really feel comfortable using the men's restroom, but I suppose I could start using gender neutral restrooms and see how that feels.

I also find that I have some sort of more dysphoria than I did before. My tired brain couldn't really place it, but my skin feels like it's crawling now. As I've found across this whole gender journey (has it really been 6 years??), I tend not to notice dysphoria(or dysmorphia, whichever it is I can't diagnose myself lmao) until something changes and then I can't go back. So, where the little worm trying to tell me I'm wrong uses this as ammo, if I sit back and think about it logically, this lines up with every other change I made.

It took me a while to get used to using they/them, as well, and I didn't realize how much I relied on my binder until I had one. Now I can't go out of the house without one unless I am A) having a particularly bad day or B) have the baggiest sweatshirt known to man. Usually it's a combo of the two, but I've been known to be lazy and not feel like throwing on a binder to pick up bread from the grocery store.

As a closing thought: To any enbies/trans folk who find this and are worried about changing your name, stick with it. It will feel weird at first, but I hope I'm showcasing how quickly that changes and how good it feels once you get used to it. I still have a long way to go, but it gets easier every day. That's why I'm doing this. I know that my experience will be different from your experience, but I hope having my process out here will make someone out there feel less alone.

You're so valid, and no matter what you do you are still you and you deserve to feel good as you. <3