#cannot relate to him less if i tried he's so funny to me

[vitospaghetta]

In honor of Green Day's new album coming out recently and today being Dookie's 30th anniversary, I figure this is as good a time as any to share with y'all my most self-indulgent Leon headcanon:

Leon likes/listens to Green Day.

And yes, it may be self-indulgent given the fact that GD was my all-time favorite band growing up, HOWEVER!! I have some solid logic backing this up.

Let me preface this by saying that I am, by no means, saying that Leon's a Green Day fan in any way that is more than strictly casual. Consider this a sub-headcanon, but Leon's a pretty casual guy. I don't think he's a diehard fan of anything. He's a gen-x'er, and he's a normal gen-x'er at that. He grew up during a time where if you liked anything a little bit too much (openly, anyway), you were considered a weirdo. I can take one look at his windbreaker + Definitely Not Adidas sneaker combo Capcom had him wearing at the start of RE2 Remake and tell you that this guy was a little trend-chaser. Probably wanted to be well-liked and to fit in. He was the kinda guy who dropkicked his childhood interests into the ocean the second his ass hit high school, lest he make himself even the slightest bit cringe. He's also just a very casual guy in general. Laid back. Not the type to obsess much over anything.

But his high school years are exactly why I have this headcanon. The entire foundation of it is that Leon was in high school when Dookie was released in 1994. I can say, with absolute confidence, that there is no way this man could have escaped the Green Day craze. I always say that Dookie is an amazing coming of age record, and its impact on America's youth at the time is a testament to that. Dookie brought punk rock to the mainstream in a way that was still new and exciting. It was relatable and really resonated with younger people, which made the band insanely popular. To put it into perspective, Green Day was playing gigs in basements, back yards, and small clubs prior to Dookie's release on February 1, 1994, and by December of the same year they were playing Madison Square Garden. The post-Dookie Green Day craze was real.

There's no way Leon didn't hear one of the album's singles on the radio, or at a friend's house, or in someone's car. He'd fall in love with Basket Case, buy the CD to hear the entire album, and the rest is history. A Green Day enjoyer is born.

It's also worth noting that I headcanon that Leon primarily listens to rock music -- always has -- but in-step with him being very casual about stuff, I think he's a very 'I vibe with anything that gets radio play' kinda guy. He liked songs that were popular. Ones that were brought to his attention. That's, in great part, how you discovered new music.

So, all that being said, the best way to summarize his relationship with Green Day and this whole headcanon is this:

Has he ever been a diehard fan who's seen them in concert, worn band tees, or even loves most of their discography? No.

But you know Nimrod absolutely existed in the glove compartment of his car leading up to Raccoon City just because it's the album that had "Good Riddance (Time Of Your Life)" on it.

[apotelesmaa]

> looking for a tenma siblings relationship study

> ask the op if the study is actually about the tenmas or just treating saki like an accessory to tsukasa

> they don’t understand

> pull out an illustrated diagram explaining the difference

> they laugh and say “it’s a good relationship study sir”

> click the post

> it’s treating saki like an accessory to tsukasa

[jedi-starbird]

A happier galaxy where the disaster lineage is somewhat less on fire constantly and senior padawan Obi-wan has developed a fixation on Mandalorians:

Sometimes Feemor regretted just how much he had given away when he had spent 5 expensive months bribing a traumatised Obi-wan to call him brother when he was 14. His dignity, for one, his access codes and shadow cloaking techniques, another. So he had a very dignified reaction when he was awoken to the shine of his younger brother's eyes in the dark at the foot of his bed. "I wou-stop screaming it's just me-I would like a Mandalorian. How do I procure one?"

"How the fuck should I know?"

Obi-wan scowled as if Feemor was being difficult, he wasn't, he wasn't quite awake enough for that yet. "You're a shadow, you're supposed to know things."

Ah, if being a shadow granted you the secrets of the universe instead of just a great many planetary governments, Feemor wouldn't spend so much time wondering what dark rituals Dooku had committed to result in Qui-gon Jinn. (He already knew what regular rituals Qui-gon had committed to result in Obi-wan)

"I know that I'm about to punt you out of my room right now."

"...My birthday is coming up, I believe I deserve compensation for all the traumas."

Obi-wan's eyes were very big now. Feemor sighed. He flopped back down into bed. He resisted the urge to pull his blankets back up and roll over. 'Oh sure when it's time to see mind healers everything's fine but now-'

"Shouldn't you be asking Master then?"

"Master would not approve of how I plan to use the Mandalorian."

He squinted at Obi-wan for a long moment. Obi-wan stared back. He did some quick mental maths and tried not to feel old. Eh. Fine. Feemor swung his legs out of bed. "You had me at 'Master wouldn't approve'."

"Do you think I could get one by walking into little Keldabe and asking very nicely?"

As it turns out, yes he could. A few too many in fact, apparently Jedi, their ancestral enemy, in the Mando district attracted attention, who knew? Feemor knew, Feemor would have known if only he had been properly awake when this semblence of a plan was proposed. He stalked through the cantina towards Obi-wan who was leaning slightly forwards against a pillar, ah...speaking, to a Mandalorian with painted orange armour while surrounded by a larger crowd of Mandos. At least they seem mostly amused. He ignored the youngers squawk as he yanked the back of his robes so that he moved away from the Mandalorian and spun him around.

"You cannot solve centuries of animosity by batting your eyelashes."

"I'm not batting my eyelashes " Obi-wan sniffed," I'm shaking my ass, there's decidedly more effort involved."

"I miss when I was an only child." Feemor sighed deeply. He used the force to scruff the neck of Obi-wan's robes and dangle him slightly in the air. He ignored the shouting from beside him and bowed politely to the staring Mandos. "My apologies for the disturbance, this will not happ-" He considered his brother who was now yelling out his personal comm code with a wink. " Please excuse us, this very probably will happen again, we shall workshop it. May the force be with you all."

I don't have a fully planned AU but it is Codywan!!! cause I love those bitches but have some more dialogue I came up with for this AU. I'm imagining them both as like 20-23, Obi's close to knighthood. He's still a padawan for this because I think him causing Qui-gon headaches is funny. Feemor fully thinks this complicated courtship dance Obi's created is funny, he likes studying his little brother like a bug, he just wasn't prepared for him to just waltz into little kelbade and start hitting on people, though he really should have been.

Hand wavy timeline with Jaster alive but the clones are still clones, Jango was kidnapped and held in stasis or something, Jaster claimed them as Mandos. This is really just about Obi's first and biggest diplomatic achivement being friendly Jedi-Mando relations purely cause he was in his thot era. This also somehow saves the galaxy from the sith.

I like to imagine that Cody's brothers recorded that little exchange between Fee and Obi on their helmets and uploaded it online where it went viral on MandoNet before going viral galaxywide because wait holy shit is that a Jedi saying that????. Qui-gon gets called in for a very weird meeting where the council's like ok so the entire holonet has seen your padawan being horny on main but also this is like the biggest jump in our diplomatic relationship with the Mandos in centuries so like can we keep this up somehow? This results in Obi-wan being holonet famous, first through vode recordings but then he starts a space tumblr and twitter account and he's famous now. Then his friends and other jedi start accounts because wait we're allowed to do that? and those become big as well and this is literally the best PR the jedi have had in hundreds of years. the holonet loves them. the sith are fuming.

Obi-wan, scoffing: What were they gonna do? Shoot me? Feemor: Yes. Obi-wan: I don't believe in blasters. Bly: ...like as a concept...? Obi-wan: No, spiritually.

Obi-wan: I'm sure there's a nice Mandalorian we can find for you Feemor: I'm not sure those 2 words belong together Obi-wan: No of course not, we can't find a nice one, then they'd be all alone, we need to find an absolute bastard of one so that you two match :)

Obi-wan: Oh so Master gets to take in pathetic life forms but I don't? This one's already domesticated! Wolffe: Debatable. Feemor: Cody's a person! Not a stray tooka! Obi-wan: Master takes in stray people all the time! That's how he got me!

Qui-gon: How do you explain this behaviour Padawan ? Obi-wan: The force pushed me towards the Mandalorians Master, it was quite insistent on me developing better relations with them given our difficult history. Feemor: Fascinating, please do elaborate, I'd love to hear the theological implications of a force-assigned kink.

[pyschedtrickster]

TADC Ep 2 - Depression and the Meaning of Life

Well, I may or may not be a day late to release of the episode, but I've watched it three times so far and I have some thoughts. Let's get the gritty stuff outta the way.

First of all, The Amazing Digital Circus belongs to @gooseworx and therefore everything I say here is just my personal take on the episode. I could be wrong, talking out my ass, etc. But this episode really spoke to me, so good job Goose.

Secondly, spoilers <3

Third, I think I've written enough that people won't get jumpscared with spoilers. This is gonna be a long read, so bear with me. This post will contain ALL my thoughts on the episode, both meaningful and just silly things I liked.

BUBBLE

So anyone who knows me from Bunnydoll Burrow knows I love Bubble. They're my favorite so far and this episode only cemented that further. They're wonderful comedic relief and even if they don't have any character development (which I don't think they will), I will always love them.

Caine Cares Too Much

While watching this, I was immediately off-put by Caine's reactions, even beginning with him calling Zooble back. He sounds so... dire? I don't know if that was intended to mean something or if it was just to put emphasis on how much Caine cares about his creations. Caine is AI, so world-building is likely his ONLY goal, or his prompt if you will. It wouldn't surprise me if that was why he was so upset by everyone's reactions.

But I can't help but wonder if this will play into his character arc. We understand that Caine is ambiguous right now and there's no real explanation of what his intentions are in the Circus. Something about this just really set me off. It made me feel unsafe in a way as if staying behind would result in danger of some kind. Obviously, it couldn't be that bad, as Zooble did stay behind and turned out fine. Still, I can't shake the feeling that this is foreshadowing.

Zoobie

Hilarious. What a solid nickname, I've seen so many headcanons that Zooble would be a stoner in the real world. This only makes it better. They are now Zoobie in my mind.

Pomni's Child Comment

While I'm sure this was just a silly comment to be made, I kinda liked it. Just a little in-show reminder that through all of this, Pomni is a real, grown-ass woman stuck inside some digital Hell. The whole first episode, we see her wallowing and panicking, justifiably so. Finally, we get to see her grow more serious and stable.

Through the episode, we see more of her being a good character and becoming more at terms with her situation. I'll touch on this more soon.

Gangle

My girl CANNOT catch a break. Gangle is such a funny character and so, so sweet. She's level-headed in my opinion, even through her emotions. She seems to have a good grip on the shit happening around her but has a hard time communicating properly because she has a lot of feelings going on. Me too, honey, me too.

Even in the face of violence, danger, and overall shitfuckery, she doesn't shut down. Sure, she cries. But I've cried plenty of times while still holding the fort down. I think I just relate to her.

Lastly, I NEED to know what this means like I need oxygen.

Government Mandated Shipping

I dunno man, I just really liked this. I'm a shipper at heart. I've been writing fanfic since middle school. I saw pure fanfic material when I watched this scene.

Kinger and Raggs

This scene made me smile. It's a cute nod towards how Kinger is the longest-standing character and, according to some lost post of Goose's, Ragatha is the second. Plus, all of episodes one and two, we see her trying so hard to be a rock for Pomni. She tries to include everyone, keep everyone cheerful, and be a stable constant in a realm of chaos; Seeing Kinger recognize how far she's come and using that to bring her back to reason was just so refreshing. Ragatha deserves more appreciation like that: less about what she does for others, and more about what she's done for herself.

Jax's Disappointment

So we don't know much about Jax besides how Goose loves him and says he's an asshole who may or may not be irredeemable. When he started talking about violence and getting excited at the thought, I chalked it up to him being an ass. But it struck me just how much this mattered to Jax in this scene. I have questions, man. But I'm about to go on a wild tangent, so hear me out.

Jax is happy when being destructive. He gets immediately upset when things go well. And in the circus, we can assume that there have been a lot of traumatic, wild things that have occurred. I wonder if the chaos, the violence, is a comfort for Jax because of those traumatic experiences. As a person with trauma, I've learned that there's a funny cycle that I and other traumatized people experience.

We don't like the situations we're in, but when faced with normalcy, it's so much scarier than the damaging situation we come from. So, we run from 'normal' back into the suffocating arms of our traumatizing situations for comfort. Going back to the situation means more trauma, more trauma means a harder time finding peace in a safe, normal environment, which means more trauma... you get the picture.

So am I saying a fictional purple bunny is using violence in a digital realm to cope with the very real topic of trauma? Maybe. Yes. Yes, I am. This is how I cope.

Depression, Finding Your Place, and the Bigger Picture

Now you may be saying, "hey! You skipped over some major scenes to talk about silly stuff! What gives?"

Well, as the title of this post suggests, I had some heavier stuff to address in this episode and wanted to compile it all in one section. So that meant skipping over a scene to bunch it in with other ones. I'll break it down.

Depression

Let me begin with the fact that I have been diagnosed with depression for years now. I've been hospitalized for it and I've had family members struggle with it around me. This heavily influenced how I viewed this episode and specifically this scene.

Gummigoo had a perfectly reasonable reaction to seeing the perfect replica of him that is his model. Seeing something like that would shatter your world, and we see that happen to him immediately.

But when Gummigoo talked to Pomni and asked why anything matters, it gave me this really familiar feeling. Thoughts of being nothing, of feeling meaningless, the mere idea of being an obstacle--I've experienced all of these. I'm sure others have. Pomni was right when she said it's normal. Everyone has felt down from time to time.

But what Gummigoo is talking about really hit home with my depression. Thoughts like these, especially when they linger for long, change how you view the world. Everything is tinted blue and desaturated. You feel empty and eventually, so does the world around you. You feel like when the party is over and everyone leaves, you disappear--or you think you should, at least.

"Why are you trying to cheer me up? How does this benefit you at all?"

And it's so, so hard to accept help when feeling like this. Depression is a bitch in the way that it wants you to stay depressed. It feels like everyone around you wants you to feel better because it is a convenience for them. It almost feels transactional if you smile.

But Pomni says it so beautifully; "I guess I just don't want you to feel like you're nothing. I don't want anybody to feel like that."

The way she says it makes me feel like she knows the feeling too, and in reality, she says she does understand in a way how Gummigoo feels. But that? That made it real for me. I don't know why. This whole scene, the entrapment and loneliness despite not actually being alone, just embodied how I've felt for years. What amazing writing.

Finding Your Place

This scene was really the cherry on top of everything I just spoke about. We see that these two understand each other, at least as much as they can. They recognize all of this, it's ridiculous. They're hurtling through space into the unknown, hoping everything works out. They may feel empty, but they're not alone. They've got each other, for better or worse. Maybe they don't know where they belong in this liminal space, but they know where they stand in each other's minds.

And then we get this ending scene. God. Fuck.

I knew that there was obviously something to that dream Pomni had in the beginning, but somehow I didn't expect this to be the conclusion to it. I guess I was too distracted by everything else. So when I got to this shot, I got all warm and teary-eyed.

Pomni finally feels like she's got a pack, a place in this digital circus. When you don't feel mentally alone anymore, there seems to be a weight that's lifted off your shoulders. It doesn't cure the sadness, but at least you know that if you need to be picked up, someone will be there. Depression wants you to be alone, but it just lost that battle. The internet has said it best: A win is a win.

The Bigger Picture

We all know where the end of the road is. How we get there is the mystery. This thought can really make a person feel small, especially when depression comes in to tell you that you in fact are small, according to the chemicals in your brain. But the power of numbers and knowing your place in the world makes facing the unknown a little easier.

I'll be honest, the words are kinda lost on me at this point. Our demise is a really hard topic to broach. I've lost a lot of people, especially some major players in my life (shoutout to the Dead Dads club), and still, I don't understand it all. But the best way I can explain it is through my own experience and how I applied it to this episode.

I had for a long time gone through life trying to prepare and prepare. I played the role of the strong, unaffected individual after being hardened by trauma in childhood. I didn't want to be outwardly emotional, because if I was I would have to admit defeat.

It made me feel weak, especially when my depression would whisper nasty things to me about my self-worth. The bigger picture at that time didn't even exist in my mind. I lived to serve and die. It was no way to live.

Only recently, with time, a couple grippy sock vacays and therapy have I started to form my own, new big picture. At the center of this is my interactions with others. Family, friends, and strangers, all of them are affected by my actions. Even during the days when I feel worthless or alone, I remind myself that even the little things I do have a spiderweb effect. I have worth, more so than serving others or being some obstacle. I can simply walk down the street and perhaps I'll be the person who some kid looks at and hopes to look like when they're older. My existence is so much more than just a give-and-take situation with everyone around me.

It felt like Pomni found her purpose in the circus, and it was more than just playing along until the end. Rather, it was to befriend the people around her who have proved in one way or another way that they care. Abstraction wasn't in vain to them. Lives mattered, and therefore so did Pomni.

In a vast, digital world where chaos looms like a grey cloud, Pomni always mattered. She just had to realize how, and it was much more than being an obstacle or a pawn. And so do we, I think.

[bloopitynoot]

Reading SVSSS: Chapter 10

For those who don't know, I am reading SVSSS for the first time and sharing my thoughts!

If you have not read it, there will be spoilers! Consider this a warning.

Also- if you want to follow along, I am aiming to post updates daily. You can find all the posts in the tag bloopitynoot reads SVSSS. You can also check out the intro post for context on my read.

I am so stoked for this chapter! I've been really getting into the story to the point that I want to read multiple chapters per day (I COULD but I also want to be able to take notes- so I cannot realistically with the amount of hours in a day I have) BUT I will continue with one a day.

Normally I have hot drinks while reading, but I am dehydrated as fuck, so take this as your (mostly mine, but also your) reminder to drink some water.

Let's get into it!

Wait! Like three seconds in and we are starting off strong! How can Sha Hualing control Shen Qingqiu??? p213

Holy shit, even in his new body he's being poisoned. I suppose, theoretically, if there is a person who never gets poisoned, there must be a person, statistically, who always get's poisoned. p214

Shen Qingqiu (probably): if I had a dime for every time I had demonic blood poisoning me I would have two, and that's not a lot, but fucked up it happened twice. LOL

also Shen Qingqiu (probably at this point): "and this is how I was abducted and then became a qi sex slave for a half demon cultivator" p214

Omg also, the fact that Sha Hualing tried to plant a fake SQQ to try and appease Luo Binghe. RIP to her this time for almost (accidentally) doing it again. no wonder Luo Binghe is so pissed! pp216-217

Oh god. SQQ probably doesn't die here but it would be equally terrible and funny if after all of this, second body and all, like less than 2 days in, Luo Binghe just accidentally destroys SQQ. immediate end of story p217

Well- the system is now fixed! p220

and now shen qingqiu is wearing basically a veil, oh my. p222

(Okay unrelated but related to the veil, I desperately need some arranged marriage au's. I am so ready to read the heck out of this pairing when I'm done the books).

I have a sneaking suspicion that this man (SQQ) does a terrible job of hiding his identity. "he just had to be especially careful so Luo Binghe didn't discover that he'd pull off a great escape using the Son-Moon Dew Mushrooms". p222

He really needs a better name than peerless cucumber. LOL I can't every time he introduces himself. p223

oh no, baby Luo Binghe has been mourning this entire time. p224

You know what, I'm not even mad that Little Palace Mistress is in this awful state, she is a vile character that has not grown on me at all. p226

Yeah Shen Qingqiu he definitely did not end up with any of the women because he has been super mourning for you my guy. (not that he knows this because he is oblivious af) pp228-229

Oh. My. God. This man really thinks that Luo BInghe is asexual. I can't wait till he finds out. LOL p230

Oooo! Another dream realm sequence p231

oh and we have two SQQ's (again I need this fanfiction)

aaaaaah luo binghe has clocked the real SQQ p236

Okay okay, he thinks this SQQ is part of the dream and does not know he is indeed the real deal. thank fuck for SQQ's sake I guess p236-237

Oop. now this guys is "yes and"ing Luo Binghe in the dream. Oh gosh I hope this ends alright. p237

The head pats! p238

OH MY GOD p239

DREAM REALM KISS??????!!!!!!!!!!!!! p239

(AHAHAAA his face in the art tho)

LOL the system p239

Bro just found out why Luo Binghe had no wives and is GOOPED. He really found out in the worst of ways for him ahahahahahahahah I am CACKLING p241

I truly don't know how these two end up together with SQQ not vibing at all. is it Stockholm syndrome? like I genuinely do not know how SQQ ends up realizing his emotions for this man.

SQQ is literally saved by the bell in this one. p242

Liu Qingge is here?!?!? has he been trying to avenge SQQ this entire time? p243

Ah, Fuck!

SO MANY THINGS HAPPENED.

We have a kiss, we have a SQQ now trying to be sneaky, I honestly don't know how this man is going to stay hidden- if at all.

And next chapter we have a showdown ?!?!?!?

[fetish4juggalos]

Please I desperately need jerome and jeremiah with s/o's who are juggalos (preferably post scary jeremiah he just so scrumptious) I think about this so often it's not even funny...lol<3

Jerome and Jeremiah Valeska with a juggalo/juggalette s/o

omggg yes yes yes this idea has me foaming at the mouth bro it’s so perfect :3 thank u thank u thank u also by post Jeremiah i didn’t know whether you met post laughing gas or post acid so i did post laughing gas but i can do a separate post for both pre laughing gas and post acid :>

I apologize in advance for spelling and grammatical errors

Jerome Valeska

This idea is so perfect for both pre-death and post-death jerome it’s not even funny

He’s in love with you especially since his entire following is made up of mostly people in the scene (people who are into alternative fashion and music) so you fit the bill perfectly

Jerome isn’t an active music listener but introducing him to icp will open up an entire new world for him

Icp’s music consists of a lot of carnival-esque and violent themes which he can resonate with a lot

It also helps if you’re in the business of crime seeing as juggalo makeup cannot be accurately read by a lot of face recognition technologies so it makes things convenient for the both of you

A lot of the time he’ll stay just to watch you apply your makeup as it interests him a lot

He’s not much of a makeup or face paint wearer on the regular but i could see him asking you to do his just to see what it would look like and to spend time with you

Favorite flavor of faygo is definitely cotton candy or cream soda :)

If you have any tattoos relating to icp i can see him sitting with you for hours asking about them and asking how you chose your makeup and the colors if you don’t rock the classic black and white

Dresses you up in clown clothes and carnival attire with him whenever he does his public acts of chaos. I can also imagine him dawning the makeup once or twice to match you

Honestly i can see him becoming a juggalo himself even if he has less of a moral standing

Jeremiah Valeska

Though i feel like jerome would be more into his s/o being a juggalo/juggalette i really like this idea for jeremiah bc hear me out….juggalo/jugglette harley!!

He sees this more as an adorable act of how loyal and committed you are to a following

Jeremiah is an active make up wearer so watching you dawn your makeup while he does his is a show of affection in his eyes

He’s more of a classical music listener so he’s not a big fan of the scene or the music that comes with it but this is just another adorable quirk about you that he admires

In a way you remind him of jerome in the sense that the music you listen to and the way you carry yourself mirror him but in a good way

His following also consists of a lot of people in the scene even though he himself is not involved in it but i can see him showing up to some of these gatherings so you can enjoy the music

He may ask the off question here and there about your interest in the group and makeup, interested to learn more about their standing and what being a juggalo/juggalette entails

He finds your independence and individuality a huge refreshment since his following and his team are only slaves or pawns to a bigger picture and you don’t fall into that mindset

When he’s gone for long periods of time i can see him buying you records and cds to listen to as a form of apology and as a gift

Not a big fan of soda and the first time he tried faygo it gave him a migraine :b

[feraltvman]

Headcannons I use for BS!Puzzles

Ramble✨✨✨✨✨

•His Shows and Movies

In the SMG4 universe media thrives and holds grand power for those who are directly connected to it

Example: SMG4 has very strong Meme powers and Mario also benefits from this popularity being the Avatar of the planet/being connected to Four and Three.

Memes seem to be the main source of EVERYTHING media related in the SMG4 universe....

Mr.Puzzles shows and movies- Are actually good in this AU. Like REALLY GOOD. He actually deserves to be in the box office 24/7 with his masterpieces.

He doesn't understand memes or why they're funny, thus most of the time when he does a Meme- it's by sheer luck. It flowed naturally into his script and it adds in humor how he would want it, without forcing it in like Four does.... Unfortunately for him this means that nobody in this universe will watch his content, because there are not enough Memes.

His "movie parodies" are his way of trying his best to embrace the wacky nature of this universe. Insert himself into their media and draw people to his works, so he can still write something good but it'll have more Natural Meme Flow. While he doesn't understand the meme flow.... He acknowledges that it is there because of the audience giving him Stars. If he doesn't get a star, he doesn't understand what he did wrong and tries again.

•His Ratings

Using MORE OR LESS the same headcannon as @icedbeverageenjoyer , Mr.Puzzles has an audience who isn't from the SMG4 universe and they have the same taste HE does. Where they do not like the mass amount of memes, enjoy the quality and set being as pristine as possible....

However, they cannot SEE his movies and shows without the people of the SMG4 universe giving their own ratings.

Let me try my best to explain.... SO 👏

Mr.Puzzles makes these shows and movies pouring his heart and soul into them, but his Shadow Audience is hard to reach.... They are constantly indulged in media and go after the things with the Highest Ratings- their attention needs to be grabbed in order for Puzzles to gain more stars

So he needs the SMG4 universe to Rate his Films in order to grab their attention again, the more stars he has. The bigger the Butterfly Effect will be.

•Simulations

5 stars is the equivalent of his audience going to old movies he made and rewatching them to rate them again because they're so invested in his content. His fanbase being so absorbed in him, watching over and over and over. When he releases something new they wouldn't have to pull their attention from something else because he already has them between his fingers. Its constant Media Consuming thus giving TREMENDOUS power for the TV man

•Adware

BS! Puzzles has an AWARENESS about him that works in a really funky way...

No matter where you are in comparison to him, no matter how secretive you are- if you point a camera in his direction and start Filming or Taking Pictures. He WILL know.

It's an odd sensation of Being Watched- he knows when eyes are on him and he can tell the difference between his Shadow Audience or some rando on the street recording him because if his ratings Dont Move- then its clearly not anything he is profiting off of.

To combat this- Mr.Puzzles has an Automatic AD built into his system that will infiltrate any device capturing his likeness and inquire them to participate in rating him 5 Stars. Mr.Puzzles DOES NOT- know who is recording him or where they are however the longer someone records him and don't interact with his AD, he will slowly gain awareness of where they are and track them down.

Obviously if they interact with the ADware he will gain awareness of their location immediately but he'll only do something with that information if you give him bad ratings ^u^

Mr.Puzzles is 100% robotic in this AU. It started off with just his head but quickly spiraled into transforming himself into his own Mascot Character

It wasn't long before he began to miss certain aspects of being a human however, tasting his favorite snacks... Relaxing his nerves with tobacco though he didn't miss the coughing or slowly dying, the texture of different foods, his favorite smells..... He couldn't feel it anymore and went to work on fixing it.

It took a very long time for him to pull it off, but he eventually got what he wanted. Putting something like a Cake into his pocket dimension through the screen, he can Analyze it with a scanner to identify the ingredients then make rational simulations of how the thing would taste. Giving him the full ability to enjoy the flavour of the cake again, though he does not eat nor NEED too... Any food he stores in his Pocket Dimension either gets saved for prisoners of his mind, or himself for the sensation of taste later.

Same thing for tobacco, he analyzes it and its ingredients. How it would scientifically affect the body and Simulates it in himself while deleting any UNWANTED feelings- like coughing a bunch or killing his throat. He can just get the effect he wants

He doesn't actually have a working mouth. Its all a simulation of feelings that he programmed into himself

-When he 'bites' someone, all he needs to do is put the limb he is 'biting' into his screen and then simulating a bunch of sharp objects going into their body. Even though its a simulation- the objects are physically there and very much cause real life pain just like how he hurts the SMG4 crew while they're trapped in his shows.

The pain is 100% genuine. But he can Harm or Heal anyone he wants in his head, all he has to do is reverse the effects after all. or simulate their wound being healed. His Head his Rules after all.

The only downside of this is that after fixing himself to be able to simulate taste, other feelings naturally programmed themselves in due to his natural thinking... Such as his OWN pain. He feels it when Mario cracks his screen, when he gets bitten, and extra. All because of his natural thinking and the upgrades he gave himself just- inserting them.

Hes annoyed by it but at the end of the day it helps him be able to tell what needs repaired on his body

•Recording his films

In his pocket dimension of TVs and shows there is always something in the works.... Be it an episodic show or a movie Mr.Puzzles obsession with creating never ends, and a lot of the time he uses these projects to practice scenes he wants in the future. He'll use mannequins and fake props tossing them around and getting the Script he wants out of it, what actions he wants to happen when and why, the setting... Each of his shows are Pre-Planned and built for hours on end within his headspace, so when he finally gets some actors to fill the roles. He can get to work immediately on molding them into their act and not have to worry about anything else.

He rarely improvises his shows on the spot, but if he really wants to torment somebody he'll build a scenario in 5 seconds and build on it later.

He's not the best at multi-tasking making films and actively moving around so it's pretty easy to tell when he is making something, cus he'll be in his headspace.

He will record in the real world but he wont enjoy it as much as his head where he can have full control over everything.

•Where does Mr.Puzzles come from

Mr.Puzzles was born and raised in the SMG4 universe as a completely regular human boy that went to college for engineering to fulfill his dream of building his Mascot and Film Making for the obvious. When approaching 20 years old he was almost finished with the mascot Mr.Puzzles and was holding the Television sitting on the table with a deep longing.... 'what I wouldn't do to be my own mascot' he thought to himself...... The fame, power, and abilities of this robot he was crafting.... He wanted them..... He didn't want the robot to take HIS spotlight, he didn't want to just be known as the creator of Mr.Puzzles and worked to BECOME Mr.Puzzles instead.....

Through various means of rituals and study.... He found the perfect source to connect himself too and got to work.

He doesn't regret it at all. But.... He doesn't remember.....

What he offered this source in return for his new body or who the source was

(inspired off @astro-vision-au 's own take on Mr.Puzzles having made a deal with a demon in order to survive swapping his head for a TV)

[bidamonalbarn]

fitfwt: brisbane thoughts & experiences

I did Not camp out in the slightest - I arrived when the gates opened sooo

tried to give some girls my left over pride flags & they told me they weren't gay and then talked about harry styles the whole time they were in line 😭😭😭

did not get to see safety hazard at all - we were still IN LINE OUTSIDE when they were on!!! we were in line for literal hours (and we came right before the gates opened) and there was HUNDREDS (if not more) of people behind us ?!?!?!?

I honestly do not think river stage was even a little prepared for this capacity and it wasn't even sold out ? but it was Packed. I cannot imagine how terrible it'd be at a sold out gig

seagirls was AMAZING although someone next to me was a seagirls fan so it made me less cool for knowing the words

they sung violet (their best song) 🥰🥰🥰

my mate left for literally 2 minutes to get food and I said to someone that camping out for concerts was classist and stupid 😭 sorry to that person

someone complimented my jersey 🥰

genuinely almost pissed myself when he came on stage 😭😭

he was in a SINGLET

there's video evidence of me freaking out about this

I would've cried if I had the energy

he looked sooo Pretty and Golden and Glowing ooohhh myy goddddddd

the greatest was sooo good I was fully hyped 100% lived up to the expectation

kmm was also spectacular (fully expected)

holding onto heartache sounded AMAZING!!!! the backing sounded heavenly and louis sounded so good i was losing my mind

drag me down was so funny 😭 he kept making us sing parts I KNOW he didn't know those words 😭 crowd did tho

the crowd LOVED high in cali, which honestly tracks for brisbane..

I kept laughing bc I kept seeing joshua running around stage for the shots 😭😭 I love him soooo much but it was so funny to see

lost my voice singing copy

the crowd went fucking CRAZY for waoyf. do not blame them.

505 was SPECTACULAR AMAZING SHOWSTOPPING !! sososo good live he did an amazing cover

bty was an absolute crowd pleaser (also fully expected tbf)

I thought I was genuinely gonna die during the ooms intro. it's my favourite louis song and the beat was LOUD and the lights were BRIGHT !!! I thought I was gonna see heaven by the end of it 😭😭

definitely name dropped some mutuals (theirs definitely video evidence of this)

lucia's replacement was so fucking funny bc I was not wearing my glasses and it completely blocked my view of louis it was So Bright. it was literally just a blob of light

did Not relate to a Certain silver tongues line despite absolutely screaming it (I did very much want to go home)

left right after silver tongues and felt So Bad bc I wasn't going to meet him but I fully think I would've fainted from the pain if I didn't go home and pop pain killers 😭😭

he said nothing abt walls' birthday (he definitely did not know that it was the next day)

was Showered & in bed by 10:40pm 😭

[fromkenari]

Waterloo Letters #4 (4/4): Hometown stuff

Re: Hometown stuff A agcd@eclare45.com                9/4/20 8:31 PM to Henry H, Fuck. I’m so sorry. I don’t know what else to say. I’m so sorry. June and Nora send their love. Not as much love as me. Obviously. Please don’t worry about me. We’ll figure it out. It just might take time. I’ve been working on patience. I’ve picked up all kinds of things from you. God, what can I possibly write to make this better? Here: I can’t decide if your emails make me miss you more or less. Sometimes I feel like a funny-looking rock in the middle of the most beautiful clear ocean when I read the kinds of things you write to me. You love so much bigger than yourself, bigger than everything. I can’t believe how lucky I am to even witness it—to be the one who gets to have it, and so much of it, is beyond luck and feels like fate. Catholic God made me to be the person you write those things about. I’ll say five Hail Marys. Muchas gracias, Santa Maria. I can’t match you for prose, but what I can do is write you a list. AN INCOMPLETE LIST: THINGS I LOVE ABOUT HRH PRINCE HENRY OF WALES 1. The sound of your laugh when I piss you off. 2. The way you smell underneath your fancy cologne, like clean linens but somehow also fresh grass (what kind of magic is this?). 3. That thing you do where you stick out your chin to try to look tough. 4. How your hands look when you play piano. 5. All the things I understand about myself now because of you. 6. How you think Return of the Jedi is the best Star Wars (wrong) because deep down you’re a gigantic, sappy, embarrassing romantic who just wants the happily ever after. 7. Your ability to recite Keats. 8. Your ability to recite Bernadette’s “Don’t let it drag you down” monologue from Priscilla, Queen of the Desert. 9. How hard you try. 10. How hard you’ve always tried. 11. How determined you are to keep trying. 12. That when your shoulders cover mine, nothing else in the entire stupid world matters. 13. The goddamn issue of Le Monde you brought back to London with you and kept and have on your nightstand (yes, I saw it). 14. The way you look when you first wake up. 15. Your shoulder-to-waist ratio. 16. Your huge, generous, ridiculous, indestructible heart. 17. Your equally huge dick. 18. The face you just made when you read that last one. 19. The way you look when you first wake up (I know I already said this, but I really, really love it). 20. The fact that you loved me all along. I keep thinking about that last one ever since you told me, and what an idiot I was. It’s so hard for me to get out of my own head sometimes, but now I’m coming back to what I said to you the night in my room when it all started, and how I brushed you off when you offered to let me go after the DNC, how I used to try to act like it was nothing sometimes. I didn’t even know what you were offering to do to yourself. God, I want to fight everyone who’s ever hurt you, but it was me too, wasn’t it? All that time. I’m so sorry. Please stay gorgeous and strong and unbelievable. I miss you I miss you I miss you I love you. I’m calling you as soon as I send this, but I know you like to have these things written down. A P.S. Richard Wagner to Eliza Wille, re: Ludwig II–1864 (Remember when you played Wagner for me? He’s an asshole, but this is something.) It is true that I have my young king who genuinely adores me. You cannot form an idea of our relations. I recall one of the dreams of my youth. I once dreamed that Shakespeare was alive: that I really saw and spoke to him: I can never forget the impression that dream made on me. Then I would have wished to see Beethoven, though he was already dead. Something of the same kind must pass in the mind of this lovable man when with me. He says he can hardly believe that he really possesses me. None can read without astonishment, without enchantment, the letters he writes to me.

McQuiston, Casey. Red, White & Royal Blue: A Novel (pp. 301-304). St. Martin's Publishing Group. Kindle Edition.

1 | 2 | 3

[strqyr]

In relation to the whole what on earth is Tai doing rn situation, am I the only one who thinks it could be related to Summer? Don't get me wrong, I think there's a good chance he has some involvement in guarding the vault/relic somehow but. My first thought when Yang said what could be more important than being there in Vacuo (with them, his daughters) was just. Summer.

Hear me out, his two daughters whom he loves and he probably assumed were dead are alive and well in Vacuo, Qrow is doing better than he has been in a long while and is in Vacuo, even Raven has rejoined the fray for good and is in Vacuo. Even if he's on a super important mission guarding the relic or something else, there's a personal edge being asked by Yang "what could be more important to Tai than his family?" And a mission guarding/securing the relic, while important for the big picture, feels like it somewhat lacks that personal edge for Tai as a character (but in fairness, like Ruby says, we might not have the full picture). Everyone Tai cares about and would consider family is in Vacuo. Except for Summer. Who he believed would one day come back when she left on her last mission. In v4 we hear Qrow, in a lucid state, saying to Tai "she's not coming back" and since Ruby is the one present when this scene occurs, and judging from her reaction, it's safe to say this concerned Summer's last mission and her not coming back, and Tai's belief she would, and not being able to move on.

If the theory of it being a Grimm!Summer that Salem contacted in V4 about finding the relic in Beacon via the Seer Grimm (as she only uses the Seer Grimm to communicate with other people), and with Vale now being destroyed by Salem and her implied to be looking for the relic there more actively with less and less pretense for secrecy, I wouldn't be surprised if Tai got wind of information that Summer might be in Vale and is now on a mission to find her. Ruby also states in V3 to her mother's grave that Tai misses going out on missions with Summer. And now he's out on a mission. Possibly to find Summer. Especially if Raven had some kind of talk with Tai in between the end of v5 and the v9 epilogue and confided in him what really happened on Summer's last mission.

I also kind of think it'd be really funny if Tai, knowing all his family, Ruby, Yang, Qrow and Raven, are in Vacuo, somehow finds out that Summer is in Vale and is like. Well. If we're going to do a family reunion in Vacuo, then we're going to have EVERYONE for a godamn proper family reunion. In summary he cannot leave for Vacuo to be with his family unless he's done everything he can to find and bring Summer along too, so all of their family, STRQYR, can be together again.

I think this also could be more interesting from a character perspective too. Tai not being able to let go of Summer and his grief for her in the past is why he wasn't as emotionally present in Ruby and Yang's childhood (though he definitely tried his best given the circumstances). It would fit as a parallel that he is now not physically present with Ruby and Yang because he's pursuing Summer and can't let her go.

But also, it could be both! Tai is out there trying to, idk, secure the relic and make sure it's safe, and Summer is actively trying to find it for Salem. So Tai has to guard the relic from Summer. Which would be so deliciously angsty. Especially if Summer has not been able to find the relic, and all she needed to do to find it was go back home. (whether that's Patch or Tai or both, take your pick). After all, there's no place like home.

you're not the only one in a sense that for a while now i've been thinking that at least part of the reason why tai hasn't left anywhere from patch is because he's still waiting for summer to return. it took me embarrassingly long time to realize how well "summer is looking for the relic" and "tai is guarding the relic" click together, especially if summer's memorial is somehow involved, bc then it's not just that summer needs to come home to find what she's been looking for, she also needs to come back to the books of living.

but the idea that it's why tai isn't currently in vacuo is new to me, and now i'm OBSESSED with it.

the only point of hesitation for me is that, like. writing-wise, would they make that 'reveal' off-screen, now that ruby has information that others might not have? would it 'undermine' it in a way if ruby asked raven about it, only for her to have already told tai (and possibly even qrow)? of course if tai didn't believe her that changes things a bit, but. . .

if tai caught wind of it on his own, that would 'fix' that issues—and there's a non-zero chance of that happening; like you said, vale has been destroyed, and if summer has been looking for the relic at beacon for salem, having her be present in vale isn't out of the question. and i'm not even talking about her taking part of the destruction, quite the opposite in fact (tho much of this depends on what state summer is in; i'm personally leaving towards any option where she still has free will to do what she wants):

she could have been doing her job as a huntress, thinking that destroying the whole kingdom crossed the line for her, trying her best to minimize the damage and save as many people as she can. and at that point, all it takes is one person summer saved to evacuate to patch first and to start talking about this figure in a white cloak wielding an axe, saving people from the grimm but never staying long enough for them to see her face, for others to join in sharing their own experiences, and the word keeps spreading and spreading and spreading—

until it reaches tai. and at that point, he knows. or at least, there's a renewed hope that he might have lost a while ago, and before he can even think of leaving, he must be absolutely certain that it's not summer people saw.

anyway, thank you for the delicious food!! i'll be thinking about this for the rest of the month at least, if not for longer :D

[delopsia]

del 💓 you said “rhett wants to jump straight to putting up the christmas tree and related decor, and bobby has to fight for his life to keep it at bay” and it got me wondering if this is how things go in the floytt household? 😂 do robby and reader kind of bend to rhett’s will and desires a lot of the time? does he pout for things and butter them up with kisses and hugs and soft-drawled pleas, or has he just taken to independent freedom and happiness so hard that he just starts doing things and neither reader nor robby have the heart to stop him—except where winter holiday decorations are concerned? 

omg and not to encourage rhett 😂 but what does the floytt family christmas tree look like? 

first of all, real or fake? i have a feeling that someone is allergic and thankfully knows it so decorating and subsequent celebrating goes off without a hitch...

is it rhett-sized or much shorter? the thought of any of them being taller than their tree is a little hilarious to me...

is it pine green or white / vintage colorful? can christmas-loving rhett appreciate wacking aesthetics from the 60s or is he a red and green traditionalist?

colorful lights or white lights? random collection of ornaments or matching cohesive store bought? i know what i think, but i wanna hear what you think 😌 

are they tinsel garland people? or popcorn string people?

do they make it a whole affair, putting it up and decorating? are they playing music while they eat seasonal snacks and sweets from the grocery store? omg do they bake cookies? i think christmas is the only time of year that rhett will eat non-fruit sweets and desserts, but robby says it hardly counts because everything still has a tendency to be fruity or vanilla, not to mention most of it is candy cane flavored! 

rhett ends up eating all those (i don’t know if you know what i’m talking about because they might be regional or generational [omg] but i hope you do) vanilla snowmen stick-less ice cream bars on him in retaliation *cue tackling in 3, 2, 1* 

and please don’t stress too hard about the void au 🥺☁️💕💐

aaaa! omg hello 💐💕

It...it is...

A majority of the time, Robby is just fighting for his life in this household. He has his set dates for when every holiday celebration should begin, how early is too early, and what the best day is to take down the decor...and Rhett is simply fueled by the sheer power of vibes. It drives Bob mad. There's no order! If Rhett could have his way, Halloween decor would be out in August, Christmas would be up November 1st, and it would stay up past Valentine's Day.

But his excitement is so damn contagious. How is anyone supposed to say no when Rhett's got a Santa hat held between his teeth as he digs through a box in search of their matching candy cane keychains? Bob tries for all of half a second, but then Rhett's looking up at him with those big, confused puppy eyes, and the effort flies out the window.

Usually, it ends in a compromise of baking Christmas cookies the day after Halloween and getting out the small things. But the tree stays put away until the day after Thanksgiving. It is not coming out any earlier than that. But there was that one year when he was away on deployment, and Rhett convinced the Reader to get it out in early November.

Bob's still (jokingly) annoyed about that, by the way.

I could have sworn that somewhere around here, I mentioned Bob having a pine allergy...but I cannot find it to save my life. A part of me likes to think that Rhett grew up having a real tree every year, and now he's just perpetually confused about the whole fake tree thing. Why does it feel like that?

dfkjgh the concept of using Rhett as a unit of measurement is so funny to me 😭 there are two trees. The first one came about the first year in the house. With the chaos of getting settled in and work getting in the way, Christmas took a weird place on the back burner, where it was high on the list of things to do but kept getting pushed off. Rhett's knee was hurting him, Bob and Reader went off and got sick twice, and all of a sudden, it was December 3rd and they had no damn tree. So Bob, mid-sickness, bought one online.

You can imagine his and Reader's surprise when they came home to find Rhett in the living room, staring down at the frailest tree they'd ever seen. Fully set up, fluffed, and leaning over because the tree topper was too damn big. It didn't even have lights!

The joys of no-return policies and not reading the fine print.

Twas a true Charlie Brown Christmas. That poor tree had to sit in the corner because it would just...fall over. Reader looked at it funny one afternoon, and the damn thing dropped dead.

But the second tree is a completely different story. The high ceilings in the living room allow them to get away with virtually any sized tree, and one way or another, they wound up with a ten-foot-tall tree (Which is the only thing stopping Rhett from getting it out by himself). They had their choice between a regular green and a flocked tree; the Reader was the deciding factor on which they got. It's got the fancy color-changing mode because nobody could decide on colorful or light.

Bob usually sets it on white, and then Rhett passes by and sets it to the blinking rainbow setting. It's a quiet war every year.

The ornaments start out cohesive, but the next year, the Reader finds their decor that went missing during the move, and things slowly start to randomize. Some fall and break. The trio finds adorable new sets of ornaments that weren't out the year prior, and the aesthetic falls into adorable disarray.

The only consistent decor is the topper. An adorable animated biplane that Nat gifted them. Always happily spinning at the top of the tree and will only ever be replaced if they inexplicably discover a version with an F/A-18...

I don't know if this counts as a Christmas tree, but there's a two-foot-tall rainbow tree in the kitchen that Rhett inexplicably came home with one day. A gift from a well-meaning boss who doesn't quite get the whole "just because I'm married to two people doesn't mean I'll only accept Pride-themed gifts" thing. It serves as home to all the weird ornaments that get collected over the year.

A chicken wing ornament simply does not belong on the main tree...

With three people, the tree gets busy a little...fast...so the tinsel garland makes an adorable appearance on the staircase banister. Usually matching the wreath on the front door.

It's an entire weekend venture! Saturdays are reserved for the tree-related fussings (getting a ten-foot tree out of the attic is a hell of a venture), and Sundays are for the general decor. Wreaths, knick-knacks, stockings over the fireplace, various figurines, and the stuff in the front yard. The three deer are the first to go out there, because, one way or another, each member of the household is represented by one of the deer. One might or might not have an old pair of glasses hot-glued to its face...

Festive music is a must! Rhett's still got some CDs that he used to play in his truck, and once those have been played out, it switches to whatever playlist someone has made. Sometimes, they'll take a break and head to the grocery store for some seasonal snacks out of the bakery section, but a lot of the time, someone has already brought some home. There's an adorable bakery on the route home, and it's so hard to not stop at.

Baking cookies, omg. Bobby's momma gifted them a 12 Days of Christmas Cookies recipe book, and every year they go through it. They try to bake one set every few days, but every once in a while, something happens, and like four types get baked in a day. Rhett's partial to Kołaczki (Polish filled cookies), and Cowboy Cookies. Who could have guessed. Bob is a simple man who would commit a crime for Danish Butter Cookies. Please don't ask how many blue tins he owns. He's lost count.

But nothing can come between these two and their mints. Buttermints, candy canes, those soft peppermint puffs that are sold by more brands than I can count but always seem to taste the same. They're insufferably minty until they run out of mints after the New Year. If it's mint, they're eating it.

I swear I have seen these vanilla snowman bars somewhere! I know I've never had them, but they looked so damn familiar when I looked them up. They absolutely get rationed out because otherwise, Rhett will eat them all in the span of two days.

But then there was also that year when Bob brought home a couple boxes of them, and Rhett moved them out to the garage freezer because they kept falling every time he opened the door. Except, he didn't tell Bob, so that coming Friday, Bob came home with more.

Rinse and repeat until he cracks and asks how Rhett and Reader have eaten so damn many so fast, and Rhett realizes what happened. That may have been the longest wrestling match they've ever had.

In better news, they had enough snowmen to last till Spring.

[randomnameless]

More artbook stuff!

Rounding up the remaining Drakengard characters : desert related people + Jeremy and Hilda!

Wild or not wild, the unpromoted design is... well, thighs for everyone I guess - usual j!fantasy settings often has women riding horses/ponies/griffins in skirts without wearing any pants, and pre-promoted!Doom Knight follow the same trend, but they thankfully gain pants and armor when they promote to better fit the "doom/skull" knight design than... whatever the pre-promoted unit was supposed to be.

I reckon it's a double standard, and I'd love for more female units to gain pants on promotion, especially when they're mounted units, but fwiw, save for the griffin riders, everyone wears pants once they're promoted.

Doom Knights are gimmick unit as in they wreck foes that have been hit with various debuffs, and hit even harder the less HP they get, but damn if they're slow as fuck and as accurate as, well, y'know. But when they get rolling, they're pains to deal with - buff units who hit like a truck is, imo, basically Drakengard's signature units (save for the swordsmasters!) and the Doom Knights are a good illustration.

As for Gloucester, I liked his backstory of actually having been Ludwig's knight and still swearing loyalty to him - when Alain'n'co cure him from the magic brainwash Zenoira inflicted him - and, as an added bonus, we have the "very serious knight who feels ashamed for having failed his lord cannot understand that his lord basically wants them to be friends and not "lord and knight" anymore" FE traditional relationship, with a small bonus over his "I might have been brainwashed but I still made people suffer I'm trash" feels. Desert stuff isn't that well developed in this story arc - but through Gilbert's convo, we learn that Gloucester wants to help this part of Drakengard and its people.

Good for him then, that in his ending, he is remembered as a good lord who managed to rebuild/rekindle relationships between the desert people and the rest of the contry : he and his horse are immortalised in a statue, and I fucking love it because their horses is basically why the Doom Knights are so awesome.

Magellan!

Of course, the medieval european dark fantasy manga is totes not something with some dude who did nothing wrong lol

The male!Merc's outfit is basically Guts' outfit during the Golden Age arc, and let's say it really rocks, but what I love the most with UO's version is the addition of the shield - honestly this game made me love shields.

Much like Gloucester, Magellan was brainwashed by Zenoirans who had him terrorise his desert friends - unlike Gloucester though, Magellan was someone from the desert who lived there and tried to create a community, while being a bandit - and it's imo heavily suggested brainwashed!Magellan killed his mother figure... Yeah. He wants revenge against Zenoira, but also joins to apologise for the nonsense he did, and apologise to his sister.

I don't have a lot to say about Magellan save that his unit is one of my favourites lol, his rapport convo with Rosalinde was sort of surprising (it's a popular pixiv ship?) and his relationship with his sister Liza is nice too - he's basically the "bandit with a heart of gold" trope.

Truth to be told, I wasn't thinking much about Liza in my initial run, because Rolf and Mandrin were, at least I thought so, enough "archers" - Liza being an arbalist was also another kind of "archer", right?

And then I tried to use her more lol.

Sure, the "shield on her back" thing is weird as fuck, but it's funny! And unlike the other two, she actually can be on the front line, or at least, try to cover her allies - and damn she also hits like a truck (quick reload is busted lol).

The notes are about her hairstyle and the plot scene you can see if you recruited or didn't recruit her - personally I liked it, it helped her sell her character more than the tried'n'tiring "spunky lil' sis going to clobber her bro for doing nonsense", save that, this time, her big bro was brainwashed..

Her Melisandre rapport convo, even if it's only one convo, really helped sell the "desert people are actually commoners/seen as the lowest in Drakengard", but unlike some game which supposedly tackles classicism, Liza isn't chewing Melisandre for existing because she was born as the scion of a good famil. Her ending has her travel as a merchant and take over her associate's business, a nice nod to that "when she and Scarlett meet Amalia" scene where it's revealed she's also a merchant.

Both utility and character wise, she's an alright unit.

Jerry!

Jeremy has, like the devs highlight, a lot of details to his face, like his earrings, his scars and, I note, his facial hair - he is introduced as someone who acts as a scumbag without morals, which is played with in several convos, but in the others, he's basically a butt-monkey, becoming Gilbert's unwilling drinking buddy, or getting his secret stash of booze raided by Mordon ^^

Utility wise, much like Magellan and Berenice, the promoted merc class is completely stupid, slap some glasses on them and they can finally hit and slaughter things.

Kuddos to him for being the moron who tells Alain that he wonders how much the Mc Guffin - that symbolises trust and partnership he swore a holy convenant on - can be sold for, before being all "haha I was joking seriously it can kill me???" when he is reminded that the gods will give him a fate worse than death if he shits on that holy convenant.

The only Hilda on a wyvern I can be fond of!

Much like Gloucester, Hilda gains pants on promotion - I wonder if this was just a design choice to highlight how buffer the wyvern units are compared to the ladies riding on griffins. I love the details on the armored skirt thining being scale mail though and, yeah, as much as I love Gilbert the rally bot, Hilda the dragonride being the princess of "dragon kingdom" would have made some sense!

I wouldn't say Hilda's overbearing and "strong woman" feeling is due to lipstick and slanted eyes, but it's more about her role and introduction as, basically, someone who has to make sure a sanitary lockdown is enforced, even if it means striking down the patients - who caught Baltro's magical plague - who try to return home, her reasoning being all about "order" and doing what is necessary to preserve it, until her sister, Primm, finally manages to defeat her (i mean alain's army lol) and make her realise that Baltro was playing her for a fool.

Hell, I wonder if she can be recruited if we don't recruit Tatiana beforehand? Tatiana basically found a cure for the same plague that hit Cornia, so now the people of Drakengard can be healed without Hilda having to, uh, strike them down.

Kuddos to Hilda for being one of the few female characters not to have a romantic ending with Alain!

[writtingsomestuff]

something related to marriage with Leon Goretzka?

I hope you like it! &lt;3 (Not me watching his videos on YouTube to become familiar with his voice.) As always, any comment about my writing is welcome!

Please take into account that English is not my first language.

warnings: none, I think Leon Goretzka x fem!reader There's a small suprise at the end

Happy Birthday, Love!

You let out a relieved sigh once you walked into your new home. After a long day at work, where you were surprised by your co-workers and a celebration night planned by your husband, you felt like you could sleep in the middle of the hall.

You took off your heels and left your purse in the floor. Leon hated disorder, but taking into account how asleep you were, you couldn't care less. He came right behind you and took the purse to put it into the table.

You carried your dead legs to the sofa and planned on sleeping there. Your husband came from the kitchen with a big glass of water for you.

"It seems that you enjoyed the night" He gave you one of his beautiful smiles

"Dear, I enjoyed it but I'm dead" You let out a huff while he looked at you lovingly

"As long as you enjoyed, that's enough for me" He said "Now please, sit down so you can drink your water and we can go to bed" He helped you to sit down properly. You looked at him with an honest smile on your face as you loved how much he loved you and cared about you, sometimes it felt like you did not deserve him

"Now you tell me," you began to talk slowly "how could you plan all of this? I mean, how long did it take you and how hard it was. There was everyone, literally, from my close friends to my family from back home, some of my past university mates and even your football friends"

"Let's say that... when I love someone," He began to speak while gave you your glass "I try the impossible to make them as much happy as I can" You drank your glass slowly and nodded to his words. You really did not deserve him. "Did you like your gift?"

"Ugh, Leon!" You said annoyed of how much love he could show you "you know I do, everything you do for me is just - you're just perfect, the perfect husband, alright? And sometimes I hate you for that because I cannot be as good as you are" You put the glass on the table while you looked at his eyes.

"Listen," Leon began "you're incredibly amazing, and I need you to know that. You are there for me, you try your best to take care of me, especially when I'm ill and you laugh at my bad jokes. I love how sweet you are to everyone and funny, how you try to cheer for me while being a Dortmund fan, how you make me watch your series and how happy you sound when you read out loud some of your books before going to sleep. Hell! I even love your disorder sometimes" He was on his knees, before you, with his hands on yours, "I love every single little thing about you, do you understand me?" He kissed your knuckles "and you deserve the world for that" He hugged tight as you tried to contain your tears.

You hugged him as well, in silent, both of you in the middle of the dining room, alone, on the floor. There was too much feelings there, no need to be said - it was enough to feel it.

You separated for him as you kept your hands on his super-defined arms. You gave him a small, shy kiss on his cheek.

"Leon" you took a deep breath, as you ended up letting your tears fall "I have to tell you something" he nodded for you to continue as he wiped your tears with his thumbs "Today is not your birthday" you left a small giggle, "but I have a surprise for you"

"Oh really?" He asked laughing "I wonder what it is"

You leaned into his ear, and whispered "I'm pregnant"

He looked at you amazed, as if he was dreaming, as if his biggest dream just came true. "Really?" He exclaimed without believing yet, and you just let out a small yes. He took you in his arms and lift you up and you squealed. "Oh my God!" He let out the biggest and most sincere laugh ever.

"We're going to be parents" you told him once he finally put you down. You caressed his right cheek with your hand, which he quickly took and kissed.

"You need to rest more, and eat healthier, much healthier" He said now, more serious "actually, I thing you could ask for your maternity leave now and -"

"I'm literally on my third week" you smiled at how he was freaking out more than you when you found out at your work place's bathroom

"No, no, no I think you should I mean..., like - this baby is... and his health-" he was literally starting to talk nonsense as you laughed at him "you know what, I'm calling Toni, he's been a father" He started to look for his jacket to get his phone

"Now?" You asked incredulously, as the clock indicated 02:07 A.M.

"Why not?" He asked as he looked for Toni's phone number. You just stood there, imagining how long that night was going to be.

"Leon, love, we will talk about this tomorrow, alright?" You took the phone from his hands and left it on the table "Now let's go to sleep and rest, please. We will figure out everything and you can ask Toni at a more reasonable hour, yeah?" You couldn't believe that you were the one calming him down "Come on, let's go to sleep"

He took your hand and together went upstairs.

"Don't prepare anything for my birthday, you already gave me the best gift" He told you as he got into the bed, next to you.

"The best one from you is still when you asked me to marry you" You told him sincerely

"Good night, sweetheart" He said, "and goodnight to you too" he whispered to the baby , as he put his hand on your belly.

The End

I hope you like it, I don't know how I wrote this and ended up with a pregnancy but I really hope you enjoyed it!

Love you all!!! <3

(Small Toni Kroos appearance because my man is a king)

[thecasualfkfan]

As the Red,White and Royal Blue movie is released,here's an email from the book which I really really love-

-------------------------------------------------------

A <agcd@eclare45.com>

9/4/20 8:31 PM

to Henry

H,

Fuck.

I’m so sorry. I don’t know what else to say. I’m so sorry. June and Nora send their love. Not as much love as me. Obviously.

Please don’t worry about me. We’ll figure it out. It just might take time. I’ve been working on patience. I’ve picked up all kinds of things from you.

God, what can I possibly write to make this better?

Here: I can’t decide if your emails make me miss you more or less. Sometimes I feel like a funny-looking rock in the middle of the most beautiful clear ocean when I read the kinds of things you write to me. You love so much bigger than yourself, bigger than everything. I can’t believe how lucky I am to even witness it—to be the one who gets to have it, and so much of it, is beyond luck and feels like fate. Catholic God made me to be the person you write those things about. I’ll say five Hail Marys. Muchas gracias, Santa Maria.

I can’t match you for prose, but what I can do is write you a list.

AN INCOMPLETE LIST: THINGS I LOVE ABOUT HRH PRINCE HENRY OF WALES

1. The sound of your laugh when I piss you off.

2. The way you smell underneath your fancy cologne, like clean linens but somehow also fresh grass (what kind of magic is this?).

3. That thing you do where you stick out your chin to try to look tough.

4. How your hands look when you play piano.

5. All the things I understand about myself now because of you.

6. How you think Return of the Jedi is the best Star Wars (wrong) because deep down you’re a gigantic, sappy, embarrassing romantic who just wants the happily ever after.

7. Your ability to recite Keats.

8. Your ability to recite Bernadette’s “Don’t let it drag you down” monologue from Priscilla, Queen of the Desert.

9. How hard you try.

10. How hard you’ve always tried.

11. How determined you are to keep trying.

12. That when your shoulders cover mine, nothing else in the entire stupid world matters.

13. The goddamn issue of Le Monde you brought back to London with you and kept and have on your nightstand (yes, I saw it).

14. The way you look when you first wake up.

15. Your shoulder-to-waist ratio.

16. Your huge, generous, ridiculous, indestructible heart.

17. Your equally huge dick.

18. The face you just made when you read that last one.

19. The way you look when you first wake up (I know I already said this, but I really, really love it).

20. The fact that you loved me all along.

I keep thinking about that last one ever since you told me, and what an idiot I was. It’s so hard for me to get out of my own head sometimes, but now I’m coming back to what I said to you the night in my room when it all started, and how I brushed you off when you offered to let me go after the DNC, how I used to try to act like it was nothing sometimes. I didn’t even know what you were offering to do to yourself. God, I want to fight everyone who’s ever hurt you, but it was me too, wasn’t it? All that time. I’m so sorry.

Please stay gorgeous and strong and unbelievable. I miss you I miss you I miss you I love you. I’m calling you as soon as I send this, but I know you like to have these things written down.

A

P.S. Richard Wagner to Eliza Wille, re:

Ludwig II–1864 (Remember when you played Wagner for me? He’s an asshole, but this is something.)

It is true that I have my young king who genuinely adores me. You cannot form an idea of our relations. I recall one of the dreams of my youth. I once dreamed that Shakespeare was alive: that I really saw and spoke to him: I can never forget the impression that dream made on me. Then I would have wished to see Beethoven, though he was already dead. Something of the same kind must pass in the mind of this lovable man when with me. He says he can hardly believe that he really possesses me. None can read without astonishment, without enchantment, the letters he writes to me.

-------------------------------------------------------

- Ch 11, Red white and Royal Blue, Casey McQuiston

[ask-the-totally-real-peppino]

Hello, i'm cheese anon's evil (not really) alter ego, theorist anon and i've come here to tell you my theory or uhh... actually personal hc of what happend to bruno (headcanons are like theorys but less fancy shut >:[), (i tweaked it a bit to fit your context just a tad better as i have some ideas with how you portrayed bruno (or well part of him))

SO. First of all i have to say i liked the uniform you gave bruno, very cute tbh, but more than pizzeria it's giving ice cream or candy shop thb, not that is a bad thing just saying so uhh fuck it pizzeria no more he runs an ice cream shop now in me mind

OK WITH THAT OUT THE WAY NOW WE FR THIS TIME.

Ok so. Once upon a time this italian guy called Bruno runed an ice cream shop with his wife, pizzahead saw how succesful they were on their own and said "shiiid imma need that" so he made a deal with the happy couple. BUT then he tried to bribe and trick them into giving up pretty much all rights to uhh.. i don't have a name for the ice cream shop actually lmao, just think of amything. anyways, they said no bc the ice cream shop was something they hold very dear to them, they have been saving for this for literal years and risked it all to get it running so who would want to give it all out like that really? But pisshead can't accept a no for an answer so what did he did? He just killed them in the spot. If they aren't gonna sing these papers might as well just kill the guys so they stop growing you know? He cannot afford ANY sort of competition (even tho he sells horrible pizzas and they are a fucking ice cream shop). But then he realizes "shit i fucked up imma get sued" so he just tried to recreate bruno using his brain as a base, couldn't replicate the wife tho, he accidentally shot her in the brain without thinking he would have to clone her too oops.

Anyways they go thru the cloning process but uh oh the clone isn't perfect, guy doesn't even remember who he was. The solution? Lie that they sold their shop and flew out the country with the money without telling anyone, aslo they changed their numbers you cannot find them ^-^. Btw the shop closed down literal months after he "acquired" the shop, the ice cream was bad it tasted like pizza :(.

That gets us to today, pizzahead now found some new guy to torment and since he had the clone laying around he just kind of managed to make it change looks so it can look like peppino and then used them as a boss on his tower.

Ok i'm done talking :] hope you like this mess of a theory imma go, cheese bitch wants to take control again mkay bye was a plessure to speak to ya'll <3

(Ohohoho, Theorist Anon! What a delight to read!

I cannot confirm nor deny your theory, but I will say that part of it is pretty spot-on! And it's generally an interesting story regardless!

Just some silly and goofy pizza man absolutely snapping and killing a couple bc he's a jealous bitch, and then he goes 'whoopsie daisy' and remakes one of them, and uses them to torment another guy??? Incredible

If dear Cheese Anon allows you to return, I'd love to read any more theories you have! (And I will continue to smugly grin as I do not confirm nor deny them)

ALSO, I totally get the ice cream shop vibes from the outfit, not intentional, but it is very funny to imagine Pizzahead taking over a non-pizza related place and making bad pizzas or pizza-flavoured ice cream!

Who knows! Maybe the tower warped Bruno's Ice Cream to Bruno's Pizza, bc it is Pizza tower and not Ice Cream tower hehe

Also, Pep does love ice cream, but that's maybe unrelated!)

[trashlie]

ILY FP 237

Wanna know something that feels insane? I went to go reread 151 for yknow, reasons, lmao and I noticed it came out September 30, 2021.

/2021/!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

IT'S BEEN 2 YEARS SINCE THAT EPISODE DROPPED?! NO WONDER WE CAN'T BE NORMAL ABOUT ANYTHING!!!!! NO WONDER WE'RE ALL AS FERAL AS SHINAE AND CLIMBING WALLS AND CHEWING THROUGH OUR KEYBOARDS. I can't get my head around this lmao TWO WHOLE YEARS?! What the HECK?! This has been WILD!!!!!!!

Anyway, I kind of wish you guys could have seen me immediately after reading this episode because I swear it felt like I went through the five stages of like, grief or something, for reasons I'll get to lmao like, my friends and i live blog at each other as we read and it was just a wall of screaming cat emotes sent over and over and DREAD and STRESS and some kind of dramatic chaos and calamity before we got it out of our systems and were like "okay i can be normal* about this now

*as normal as possible all things considered lmao

Anyway. AN EPISODE AIN'T IT? Let's go

I had fantasized a lot about how I waned Dieter and Nol's conversation to go, and as always, I was not entirely on the mark. That's why I'm not the one writing ILY XD But regardless, I love what we got, and we got things that I did NOT expect at all!

There's something about how it starts off with that sort of.... "we're pretending everything is normal and that you didn't totally oversee me making moves on the girl you like while i thought you were sleeping and you don't even know why I came back after blocking all of you let's definitely make visitation plans" that is so funny to me, even though that's absolutely how I expected it to go. Dieter is the master of playing it cool, much to his own detriment, but it works in this case, because Nol is so very like a feral cat, isn't he?

I'm actually really glad that we touched on the topic of visitation because I was SO CERTAIN Nol wouldn't want them to visit him, wouldn't want to be seen like that, wouldn't want to be reminded of their lives going on while he's stuck behind bars for a crime he didn't commit. And Dieter is not that subtle with the way he goes down the list of the potential visitors Nol can have - not that there's, yknow.... many..... lol but we all know what he's getting at, carefully hedging the important matters at hand. "It would make you happy if she visited you, too... right?"

Something so funny about my agitation at the end of this episode was that I so badly wanted to comment on how Nol's reaction to Dieter winning the game reminded me SO MUCH of the expressions Shinae makes lol I don't know if that's just a result of quimchee's artstyle or just one of those many things they have in common, but it makes me laugh a lot.

Dieter possesses a rather straight forward nature that I'm so envious of. I'm the kind of person who struggles to bring up things that I need to talk to friends about, too burned by past experiences that didn't go well that I still get worried that addressing important topics with my friends will go south even though I know better, so I beat around the bush, I hem and haw. But Dieter is SO direct with Nol, even as Nol tries to deflect, even as he attempts to bush it off. It's so admirable! Especially while Nol is being.... well. Nol lmao

I CANNOT believe that he really went nine-year-old on the playground being accused of liking a girl like. He LITERALLY went BLEH why would I even HURL alkfjkafjafjkafkjafjk MY GUY?! ALKFKAFJAKFKAJFKJ?1 He is akjffakfj a MENACE truly related to Nana!!!!!!!!!

I think this must be the most open and honest Nol has ever been with Dieter. When you think about it, Dieter really is the one friend who has been the most "on the outside" of Nol's life, he has only known Yeonggi, and it wasn't for malicious reasons. That's all the stuff Nol dislikes about his life, that he tries to neatly compartmentalize. Up until recently, he was able to do so. Kousuke was off his back, he was more or less free. Everything changed when Rand went out of country and Kousuke had Nol helping out at the office. Dieter had no reason to really know much more about Kousuke and Nol's relationship because Soushi joining their group meant Kousuke wasn't around as often, and we saw that they both were able to thrive (as well as possible) outside of the way of each other.

So for Nol to open up enough to tell him that he doesn't really make friends, despite how it looks. That most people don't really seem to like him, that he doesn't like his peers or his family, that they are really the only people he has let into his life is big. There's so much Dieter still doesn't know about him, but baby steps. You can't just dump all of that, even if he was ready to.

And in him saying this, to some degree I understand. After all, all this while Nol wasn't even aware of those feelings, of what she meant. I think there were moments - like at the formal when he made her laugh - but it wasn't anything like when he had his head rest upon her shoulder, feeling at peace despite his injuries, feeling calm despite the location, feeling like he could fall asleep and learned that it had nothing to do with medication that made him realize it. So on the one hand I DO get his logic, because what if he IS misplacing this feeling, what if he IS wrong, what if he's making something out of nothing?

But I'm sure on another level he knows better, because he knows what Dieter saw, because he was acting on what he felt.

I think Nol has never had feelings for anyone, because he has nothing to compare this to. He said he "tried to make it work" with Alyssa, but there's a sense that he was never actually into her, that there weren't actually any feelings there and they never grew as time went on. And now that he feels these unfamiliar things for Shinae, how is he to know?

What's really funny is that this is the same tactic as Shinae, but in reverse. When she told him we're all friends and he adamantly told her no, because he knows better, because it wasn't platonic, because their kind of friend is so different from how she's friends with Dieter. And even though he's the one who knows his feeling and suspects hers, he still tries the same logic she used: that anyone else could be in her position and maybe he'd still feel the same, that maybe it's just because he's so starved for kindness that he's responding to that.

Again, we know better, but it's so funny to me that she literally tried to use the logic that all friendships are different but also she could put anyone else in his place and it would be the same.

Please. I need them to stop kidding themselves lmaoooooo

For Nol's sake, though, he needs it to be a thing that will pass, because in his mind not only does he endanger Shinae by caring about her, but he also betrays his friend, only further hurts him, and given that Nol's whole deal is that he tries to rebalance the bad he brings into the world by making up for it with good, he's really doing a terrible job.

Unfortunately for Nol, feelings don't work like that and logic can't control them. He can tell himself it might be a thing that can pass, that it might be something that he'd get over, but that doesn't change Shinae's feelings, and the fact that she clearly likes him, not Dieter. It would be so much easier for Nol if Dieter actually treated it like a betrayal, if he was mad at him, if he felt like Nol had wronged him. He wants him to be angry, because he can at least use Dieter's anger and pain as a reason to step back, because god knows Nol himself does not have the will power to do it on his own. If he can say "Acting on my feelings is hurting my friendship with Dieter" he could have a concrete reason to ignore them, because it's not worth losing his friendship.

But that's not who Dieter is. He isn't giving him that kind of excuse.

We can see, too, just how important those friendships are to Nol, that hurting Dieter would be reason enough to drop his feelings! Because these are the only friends he has. The only people who have made him feel like he has value. Made him feel not like nothing but something. A somebody. Special. That's not something worth throwing away, which is ironically what gets him into this problem. These people made him feel special, and he came to care about them as they care about him, and in his mind this has endangered them all, and it's more than enough reason to hold them at arms' length, to smother his feelings and hope they'll die out like cold embers, hope that if he doesn't fans the flames or add new wood, it will go cold.

I really feel for Dieter having this conversation because honestly, it can't be easy. Even though he's holding himself together, we know that it still hurts. His expression with his eyes closed when he mentions how he's seen the way Shinae cries for him... agonizing! He's seen it multiple times now! He's always the one who picks up her pieces and gives her comfort, even though it hurts him to do, even though he knows why she's crying. It wasn't just what he saw that morning when they thought he was asleep - he's been watching this all along, from the beginning, always consciously comparing himself to the people in her life and how she interacts with them. Even as a friend, he doesn't have what she has with Minhyuk or Nol. Dieter knew all along what he was getting into, knew all along the way they interact, the way they gravitate towards each other, and he couldn't help but hope he might have that, too. That with enough time they could be like that. All this morning did was show him that he was never going to have that with her, that he never really stood a chance. ;~; But he tried! It's more than Nol can say right now....

Nol's agitation is such a BIG deal! Again, Dieter has never really known Nol. Yeonggi wasn't like this! Yeonggi didn't have this energy, that feral cat energy, that edge! His shock in response to how Nol responds shows that much - because to him this isn't a big deal, if he likes her then he likes her and he just wanted Nol to know that he won't hold it against him. But there is just so much Dieter doesn't know! He can't understand at this point why Nol is so emotional about it, why he seems so agitated and upset, why he's insisting it will never happen. Seeing those emotions on his face!!! The way Dieter goes from startled to defensive to concerned.

"If you don't like seeing her hurt, it's in your best interest to keep her away from me."

That sounds so threatening! He's the only one who is hurting Shinae, what Nol is saying can't possibly make any sense to Dieter.

He doesn't know about the formal.

He doesn't know about Shinae getting tricked by Yui, how she was coerced to attend that harrowing formal in order to protect someone who it turned out didn't need protecting.

He doesn't know about the fall from the pool and how she hit her head and was in the hospital when she should have been at home getting a good night's sleep the night before her college entrance exams.

He doesn't know about the contract she's locked into.

About the roofies, about Sangchul.

About how Shinae could have been assaulted, or how she could have died.

This is the most honest Nol has probably ever been with Dieter, with anyone but Shinae at this point, frankly, and unfortunately Dieter doesn't know anything, can't understand, but what he can see is that Nol means it. The fear on his face! He looks so childlike in how distressed and afraid he is!

When we really think about it, in Nol's eyes, it is about him. That he is a blight, a mistake who was never supposed to exist. That what happened to his mom was because of him, because he exists. Because he didn't treat her well. What happened to Shinae is because he took interest in her, because she meant something to him, and that wasn't acceptable. He believes harm comes to those he cares about, but in his view that's the extent of it. It's not that Yui is a monster, it's that she's a monster to him.

He doesn't have our objective knowledge. He doesn't know that Kousuke has been drugged and manipulated his whole life, that she drove that wedge between him and his father. He doesn't know that Yui invited Shinae to Kousuke's apartment and treated her inappropriately, tried to undress her, put her in Kousuke's clothes. Does he even really understand how Shinae wound up at the formal? That it wasn't about him at all - that Shinae was convinced Kousuke did something wrong by giving her a job she didn't deserve, that she had to attend the formal to "protect his job".

So to him, it's just because it's him. Because he cares. Because he is a mistake and doesn't deserve any of this, and that they are punished for him not knowing his place. His worries extend to Dieter and Soushi as well, because they are also people he cares about, and maybe the universe will harm them, too, to remind him of his place.

He doesn't know what he has to protect them from, just that he must.

One of these days, we are going to get flashbacks of what happened when Nol was taken away to Hirahara Memorial, and I'm not ready. The way he looks so small and childlike sitting there in his bed with all of his fear and distress, all of these feelings so knotted up inside. What did they do to him when he was in there? What did they say to him, that made him so deeply internalize this belief? Almost two years of being broken down, being convinced that the things that happen to those you care about are the direct result of you caring of your existence. And that's the most frustrating part about it - it's so deeply ingrained, so intricately woven into his psyche that he can't just change his way of thinking. It's going to be so difficult to undo that thinking!

Not that this is really new to us but, just getting to really mull over this is so heartbreaking. Nol is so terrified of losing her, that he's willing to lose her to protect her. He'd rather not have her at all if it will keep her safe, if it will protect her from harm, even though it's so clear that he wants the opposite. He cares so much and it makes him so very afraid. How does he live like that?! That constant battle of wanting vs what he fears, how he let them into his life and broke his rules and in his mind this has put them in danger.

"If you don't like seeing her hurt, it's in your best interest to keep her away from me!"

He really would rather be the one that hurts her to protect her than to take any chances and it just makes me feel SO EMOTIONAL. ;A; OKAY. Because what can you even do to help him? He is so..... I don't like it when people say the word broken, because it often feels low-key like they mean someone is too traumatized to ever be "repaired" but when I say Nol is so broken, I mean that he has been put in situations that have damaged his self-view, that have damaged his psyche, that have altered the way he thinks and feels to such a degree that he is sitting here willing to hurt people in order to protect them, because he lives in this constant fear of unknown that he cannot predict. They took this vulnerable kid and put him through absolute HELL, they broke him and then they refused to put the pieces back together.

I hope that Dieter will talk to someone about it. Is it something he can talk about with Shinae? Can he pull together any clues? He's our most observant character, but does he know enough to start to grasp this very real fear that has gripped Nol? He was there at the arcade when Kousuke and Yui came to pick up Nol, when he reacted strangely to her being there, when he slapped away Kousuke's hand. Is that something that he'd remember, think is worth pursuing? And even if so, what can come of it? He looks genuinely worried and concerned, though, and I hope that something will be able to come of it, because I think even if he can't understand what Nol fears, he at least knows that to him it's very real.

Soushi's timing with the jello just.... KILLED me. KILLED ME what a time to interrupt ;______; How do you get back to that conversation?! And especially with Kousuke there now, it's effectively over. It just!!! LKFAFKJAJFKAKJFAJKFKJAF KLJAFKJAF AKJFKAJFKAFJKAF IT KILLS ME OKAY AAAAAUUUUUGGGGGGH

And while I know very well that Kousuke is there with good intentions, that he looks so haunted standing in the hallway waiting for Nol, I can't help but feel a heavy curtain of foreboding coming down, because Kousuke comes in like an omen. Because things go bad when he shows up, even when he's not the one trying to stir things up. And frankly, I don't look forward to this, because I know whatever is going to go down is going to hurt! There's something so..... I guess bitter about Kousuke's very too little too late moment, how he has struggled all these years with how badly he wants Rand's love, how much he fears not being good enough, how terrified he was that Nol could have it and replace him, the guilt for destroying a young child who was never a real threat to him (even though Yui absolutely made him out as a real threat in Kousuke's mind). It's like... knowing that Kousuke is starting to unlock this, is starting to see the insidious underbelly, while knowing it's too late. Nol has wiped his hands of him. He literally nearly died as a result of what happened the night before and even if Kousuke is coming to reach out to him, or to confirm something, Nol has no reason to entertain him, to hep him.

I feel like we are very much seeing that table turn, the role reversal. We're going to watch Kousuke fall apart, trying his best to hold himself together, with no one to turn to, no one he can actually trust, his paranoia eating him alive. It's not that I think anything heavy is going to go down as much as.... maybe we're going to watch Kousuke reach out to him, whether for help or to acknowledge something - that Nol, too, was drugged, that this must be why he hates tea so much, that so many times he ignored Nol's pleas for help - and Nol is probably going to reiterate how very done with him he is, that he wants nothing to do with him or this family any more, that he is done with them and what they've done to him. And just. AUGH ALKJAFKJJKFJKAF IT KILLS ME I'M SO EMOTIONAL I'M SO DISTRESSED BECAUSE WE KNOW WHY KOUSUKE WAS LIKE THAT WE KNOW HOW HE WAS MANIPULATED, HOW THE DRUGGING WAS USED TO ALTER HIS MEMORIES AND HOW HE RECALLED EVENTS HOW HE BELIEVES IN THIS FICTITIOUS VERSION OF NOL WHO WAS FORMED BY YUI'S WORDS AND IT KILLS ME BECAUSE NOL IS SO WELL WITHIN HIS RIGHT AND I JUST. TRAAAAAAGIIIIIIIIIIIIC SIIIIIIIIIBLLLLLLLLIIIIIIIIINNNNGSSSSSSSSS ;A;

And things just always go south when Kousuke comes around. He puts Nol in a worse mood, he starts to act out more. We literally watched this kid jump off a fucking balcony into a pool below and revisit the last time he was at the bottom of a pool, contemplating never returning to the surface! THINGS NEVER GO WELL WHEN KOUSUKE IS INVOLVED AND I'M NERVOUS AND SCARED AND I HAVE SO MANY FEELINGS ;A;

At this point, I feel like everything really is up to Shinae at this point, because Nol is back to trying to rebuild his walls and put them up as high as he can, so ready to try to ignore these feelings, to play them off, to tell her that it probably means nothing, that he must just be acting this way because she's been nice when no one else has and if it was anyone else he'd probably feel the same way and GOD I am ready for her to go off on him. He all but told her to leave and come back when you know why you're fighting so hard for me, but I don't think he's actually PREPARED for her going back knowing her feelings, knowing what she wants.

Until now, there's always been a disadvantage between Shinae and Nol in their relationship, where he is always the one with the leg up, the one who knows more, the one who is making moves, the one who is in control of things. But I think we're going to see that change, based on her very feral way of fighting her feelings, how she was about to try to break down his door in order to continue their conversation, how agitated she is by the thought of him throwing her away.

It really does come down to her pure determination, and I'm fully expecting her to go in there and get into an argument with him lmao and frankly, I welcome it. I think that's the only way they're going to get anywhere. There's so many things they need to talk about, they need a heart to heart DESPERATELY but I don't think we're going to lead with it. I go back and forth on how I expect her to go, because she was SO READY to go back in and demand her things back "if I can't have you" (SCREAMING STILL) but now that she knows her feelings... will she? I hope she will, still. Because now it's almost worse, right? That he's taken all these things from her AND he still has a girlfriend AND he now has her heart? HOW IS THAT FAIR, GIVE IT BACK, GIVE BACK EVERYTHING!

I want them to argue because I think they're both a little more honest when they aren't thinking about what they're saying, when they let the hotheaded energy take over and words come out. Nol is probably going to play the "this probably doesn't even mean anything" game, the "this will probably pass and we'll both move on" game, the "maybe i'm just a selfish asshole friend and none of this means anything" game and Shinae is too hardheaded to let that slide.

I want her jealousy and insecurity to come out when Nol tries to shield himself with “I have a girlfriend” and I want her to remind him he said it was fake and he resents her. I want her to look him in the eye and ask if he can really throw it all away, if he wouldn’t have any regrets if he gave up and left her. I want him to fail to answer and instead tell her that maybe he can, who knows, maybe none of this is really real. And I want her to kiss him and prove to him how very real it is, how very much they both want it, and how very much they need each other.

And when she pulls away he can lean in, following her, pulling her back in, his brain off because god knows the moment her mouth touches his it's all over, he's melting, his resolve is crumbling and he's going all in, pulling her against him fingers in her hair mouth crashing back on hers so hungry so touch-starved so full of want.

They can talk about everything else once she's convinced him this isn't so fleeting. She can remind him what she already said, that she deserves a choice in this matter, that leaving doesn't change anything because she still works for the company she's still under contract and now there's more she can tell him - how Yui made her an offer that would essentially tether her to them, how Rand told her to take it that he says Yui will never let her go. That it was not about him that Yui is a witch, tell him about Kousuke's birthday, tell him about the way she got tricked, tell him about the things she tried to do to her.

I've already acknowledged that nothing can undo the years of damage that was done to Nol in the hospital and through years of abuse, but I think Shinae can, at the very least, make him see that she very much is just as trapped, that she's worse off if he leaves, that together they are so much stronger, that they don't have to endure this alone. He can tell her how scared he is and she can stroke his hair and reassure him the best she can that he's allowed to be scared in front of her that she feels scared, too, but maybe she's more afraid of losing someone who means so much to her, who is literally the reason she's gotten through everything she did. That maybe he thinks he's a monster but she's something else in him, that he is the sole reason she could endure that harrowing night.

I WANT THEM TO HAVE AN HONEST HEART TO HEART SO BADLY. I feel like we MUST be going that direction. There's been too much build up not to. As Lil Anon put it, ILY has never been quick to reward, and we must go through the ups and downs to get there. We've had this moment dangled in front of us for so long but we're not getting it easy. But we can see it in the narrative - the emphasis on their mutually realized feelings, that Nol was given that 3 day extension that leads so close to Christmas, the emphasis on her mouth, that these feelings happened before he went to jail. If there wasn't going to be a resolution, NONE of this would have needed to happen, especially not the 3 day extension. Quimchee is absolutely drawing this out - and not even in the "putting up pointless obstacles just to draw it out" kind of way but in the "you are going to be so satisfied when we get there" kind of way lol. It's just so easy to get spooked because that's what the writing is doing! That's tension, baby.

Hopeful optimism is always my downfall lmao but I just feel like we ARE going to have that resolution, that even if there's no relationship at this time, they will know where they stand, that she can convince him not to push her away, that they are too important to give each other up. Whatever he's afraid of, they can brave it together! I WANT IT AND I FEEL LIKE IT'S SO CLOSE OKAY AND I'MA FLKJAFLKJAF AFLKJAFLKJAFKLA FLKJAFLAKJFLKAFJLAFKAFKLAFJAFKJFKAA

We were given two small asides about Nol's phone and the Bible, and I wonder if we'll be seeing those play out the 22nd. The phone is obviously coming in Kousuke's visit next week, but I wonder: does it even work anymore after everything that happened? It was still working after the pool fall, which feels like a miracle, but after falling from the second floor, after getting slammed around in the snow, now covered in blood, will it still be able to turn back on?! lmao I'm not sure what to make yet of Alyssa's messages left hanging like that, especially after walking "into the light" with Gun. There's the fact that she's off to some schedule, so could there be a chance for those dating rumors to come up that she has to strike down? On the one hand, they feel like they could be left hanging, which kind of feels so symbolic of their whole relationship lmao but. IDK!!!! At the very least it probably needs a charge LMAO but idk idk this is the area I get murky because I think it can go so many ways. I don't think Nol has any intention of breaking up with her at this time, especially because he'll probably try to use it as a shield against Shinae, but.... I've always felt the break up would come from her due to dating rumors. Especially because of how bad his reputation is at this point (violence, roofies which makes it sound like he sexually assaults people) it would be EASY for Alyssa's agency to spin it and make it sound like indeed, she does not have a relationship with him and in fact he has frightened her or something. They were even in public at the Christmas party arguing even on the dance floor, before what happened later so. Idk SOMETHING will come of that, I'm sure.

But I'm also hoping referencing the Bible means that maybe he will find it when everyone else has left and he's bored - especially if his phone won't turn on - and take a look at the letters Shinae mentioned, since he only thought there was the one.

This is really important to me, because I need Nol so badly to see how he stands in the same place his father did. I want him to be able to better understand his parents - how his mom stayed clinging to a married man who she could not really be with, how she uprooted her child and herself to move closer to him. How she tried over and over to be there for him, to try to support him, and Rand didn't allow it. How unlike Rand, Nol has less to lose. He isn't married, he doesn't have a child, a family. He doesn't NEED to stay in a relationship that will only suffocate him, that will turn him into a hollow husk of a man like Rand did. I NEED him to realize that he is on a fast track of following in his father's footsteps, in becoming this empty meaningless man.

I want him to see how Rand's feelings for Nessa never went away. Even after she died, he still carried her around in that Bible. In her letters, in the photograph of Nol. He carried her around because he never got over her. And is Nol prepared to live that way?

This is also why I'm perfectly fine with Nol and Shinae kissing before he and Alyssa break up, because I think it would help him better understand his parents - how Rand had a duty to his marriage, but he fell in love with someone who actually meant something, and how she was the love of his life that he never got over. To understand how his mom could be with someone who was married. For him to understand that feelings are NOT logical, that you can't really control them. He never meant to develop feelings for the girl his friend likes - but it still happened.

Maybe if Nol can understand them, it will help him forgive them a little, give him a tiny bit of peace. And hopefully help him to make the right decision, to accept the love people give him, and to face his fears together with them.

AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH