#characters in order of appearance (left to right top to bottom):

[wcbweblog]

valentines day wips! since I’m probably not gonna finish them before the day is up 🫠

[makeitmingi]

When Flowers Bloom In The Dark [Chapter 8]

Genre: Romance, Mafia!AU, Violence, Angst, Slow burn

Pairing: Hongjoong x Reader (y/n)

Characters: Florist!Reader, Mafioso!Hongjoong, Mafioso!Seonghwa, Mafioso!Yunho, Mafioso!Yeosang, Mafioso!San, Mafioso!Mingi, Mafioso!Wooyoung, Mafioso!Jongho

Summary: When you appeared and wept at his mother's funeral, Hongjoong found himself wanting to find out more about you. A regular girl, who owns a flower shop in his territory and has a relationship with the mother that he hasn't spoken to in years, why hasn't he ever noticed you before?

[Warning(s): 18+ for violence, use of weapons, smoking, alcohol consumption, slight gore, gang affiliation, tattoos and character deaths. Minors DNI. This is a work of fiction and does not represent the Ateez members in real life.]

Word count: 3.2K

"You can add a layer of natural compost to provide the plant with the nutrients its missing. Then add a layer of this mulch right at the top, it'll help keep the moisture in. Your plant should be fine right after." You smiled, handing the bag of mulch and natural compost to the customer after she paid.

"Okay, I'll go home and repot it properly. Do I stick to my regular watering schedule?" She asked.

"Water it every alternate day instead. Since we're retaining moisture, there's no need to water it every day now. Or it might drown the plant." You informed.

"Ah, I don't want that to happen." She giggled and you nodded with a laugh.

"Come back if you need any other help." You told her, walking her to the door. She bowed her head and left your store.

Once she left, you went back to working on online order pick ups. You recently received a big order for a huge event so you were trying to clear orders and you were not able to take in anymore new orders.

"Excuse me. Are you open?" The door opened.

"Yes, I am. How can I help you?" You wiped your hands and went out to greet the customer.

"I need a bouquet for a friend in the hospital. Do you do that? Maybe a small teddy bear, I don't know..." She smiled in embarrassment. But you knew what she meant and what she wanted so you waved her further into the store.

"Do you know the person's favourite flower? If not, there are sunflower bouquets, those are popular because of how bright they are." You chuckled.

"She doesn't have a favourite flower... Let's just go with the sunflowers. I know she likes blue, can that be added?" She asked.

"Of course. I'll wrap the flowers in baby blue tissue, there'll make it really pretty." You smiled.

"Thanks." She sighed and sat down to wait. You hummed softly to yourself as you picked out the sunflowers and began to trim the stems, remove the excess leaves and arrange them.

"I'll add some extra flowers on the side if that's okay, just to bulk up the bouquet." You checked with the customer.

"Sure." You nodded.

She watched as you laid everything out in a bouquet arrangement and tied the stems together with a rubber band first. Then you wrapped the bottoms with wet tissues and began to wrap the whole thing in decorative tissues. The girl watched you as you worked, securing the bouquet together with a ribbon.

"These are the designs of small animal plushes we have. You can pick one and I'll add it to the bouquet. Also, you can write the card." You placed the box on the counter for her to pick.

"This one. She likes cats." The girl explained. You placed a holder and positioned the flowers while she wrote the card.

"All done. Is there anything else I can do for you?" You asked as you walked her to the counter.

"No, that's all. Thanks for all your help, the bouquet is beautiful. I don't know anything about flowers. I just know you get it for people when they're sick." She shrugged.

"Of course, happy to help." You showed her the bill and processed the payment on her card.

"Thanks again." She bowed and walked out of your store.

"Now, where were we?" You continued to work on your online orders. Suddenly, someone tapped you on the shoulder, making you flinch and jump, letting out a small yelp in surprise.

"Sorry! I didn't mean to scare you, I forgot to ask for a name card." The girl from earlier asked.

"Sure, sorry about that. I overreacted." You tried your best to maintain composure as you went to retrieve a name card for her before she left again. Your heart was racing, you didn't know why you reacted so badly to someone touching your shoulder.

Who were you kidding? Of course you knew. Because it was like the guy that was at the club. You shivered as a flash of what happened passed in your head.

And at the same time, you wondered if the guy would come back and sought revenge against you. Or was he even alive?

"Don't think about that." You scolded yourself with a frown. You didn't know the state Hongjoong left the guy in, he could be dead or alive.

"Focus on work." You let out a long, shaky exhale and proceeded to throw yourself back into your work. Hopefully, that will be the last that you encounter Hongjoong.

You didn't know what he did and what he was but at this point, you'd rather not find out.

"Hi. I'm here to pick up order #2140?" A male came in.

"Yes, sure. Let me help you get that. Can I see the order confirmation? Just to be sure." You wiped your hands against your apron. He nodded and showed you in email.

"That's great. Here it is, order #2140. You can check that everything is to your liking. Then you can pay." You told the customer. He scanned the bouquet and nodded in approval, going to settle the payment. It was a standard bouquet that you had on the website, an anniversary bouquet that was quite popular.

"Have a nice day." You wished as he left. Since there was a little bit of lull time, you stopped working on orders and worked on your botany.

"Tincture." You opened your botany book. Tinctures were made of dried and/or fresh plants and herbs, steeped in either vinegar or alcohol to extract their properties.

"This, this and this." You sought through your collection to find what you needed.

Following the recipe, you picked out the herbs that you needed and placed them into a glass jar then added concentrated alcohol.

"Ready in 4 weeks? Wow." You wrote the date and type of tincture on a piece of tape and taped it to the jar. Then you placed the jar on the shelf to let it mature.

"Hi (y/n). Here for today's pick ups." The delivery man came through the back door like always.

"Hey, Mr Kim. Let me see which orders are for delivery." You went to the area where all the prepared flower orders were.

"Looks like it's all these here." You gestured. He nodded and began to bring the flower boxes out to where his truck was parked in the alley. You helped him carry the bouquets while he picked up more of the wreaths and flower boxes.

"You've got the addresses already right?" You confirmed. He hummed and scanned all the barcodes on the order invoices against his checklist to make sure everything was there.

"There's a bouquet missing it seems. Order #418?" He showed you the screen.

"Hmm. Let me check, it could be mixed up with the pick up orders." You went back into the store and looked for it.

"Roses bouquet with black and grey tissue." You checked the description on your order list. Maybe you had missed out on the order while wrapping the flowers.

"Sorry, Mr Kim. Let me quickly put that bouquet together." You bowed and apologised.

"No worries. It happens." He waved you off.

"Feel free to have some tea while you wait." You gestured to the pot of tea that you always brewed in the shop, it's usually for yourself or familiar visitors like delivery men. You quickly picked out the flowers that you needed and made the bouquet. It was a standard rose bouquet with baby's breath surrounding the red roses.

"There, sorry again for delaying you." You handed him the bouquet once it was done, all wrapped in the layered tissue and secured with a thick, silver ribbon.

"No need to apologise, (y/n). Thanks for the tea. Have a nice day." He patted your shoulder and left to make the deliveries.

"You too!" You waved as the truck drove off. After that, you went back to getting orders sorted.

Finally when you sat down, you winced as you lifted your leg. It was a sprained ankle, nothing too major but you've been hiding the bandage under pants and the pain with a smile.

"Hello~" Jihoon entered through the back door and you quickly put your leg down, making sure your pant leg covered the bandage.

"Jihoon, what are you doing here?" You blinked in surprise.

"Well, hello to you too, neighbour. I'm here to deliver you a warm lunch! You're welcome." He held up the paper bag and the iced drink that he was holding.

"Thanks, Jihoon. Let me know how much everything is and I'll wire it over." You smiled gratefully as you stood up. At your words, Jihoon shot you a flat look. He knew you would insist on paying but he didn't want you too.

"Hush, just eat. Don't worry about paying." He sat you back down and cleared your table so he could put the sandwich and drink down.

"Hmm..." You shot him a look but sighed in defeat and patted the seat beside you. Before sitting down, Jihoon poured himself a cup of tea from your warmed tea pot.

"This is nice. What is this?" He pointed, taking a sip.

"Mixed dried berries with raspberry leaf." You replied, taking a bite of the warm sandwich.

"Isn't that what pregnant women drink?" He raised an eyebrow. You shot him a surprised look but nodded in confirmation.

"Yeah, my mom gave a lot to my cousin when she was pregnant with my nephew. Supposed to make birth easy or something. I swear she even bathed in it once." Jihoon scoffed.

"It'll help with muscle cramps too, it's an anti inflammatory and anti oxidant." You explained.

"Hopefully it'll get rid of my calf muscle pain then." Jihoon chuckled and took another sip. You laughed and continued to eat your sandwich, enjoying your chat with Jihoon. Mrs Kim was always your lunch time companion, Jihoon must know that you would feel the absence of her presence and come.

"Do you miss her?" Jihoon asked. Your hands stopped and you paused your chewing before nodding your head with a hum, knowing he was referring to Mrs Kim.

"You know that she was the closest thing to a mother figure that I have ever had." You replied.

"Mhmm. I also know you didn't even give yourself a break." Jihoon stated.

"I don't need a break, Jihoon. Continuing and distracting myself with work is what helps me, not sitting at home and crying." You shrugged, standing up and going to toss the trash.

"Don't you have a cafe that needs running?" You chuckled, changing the subject so you wouldn't harp on that topic for too long.

"They'll survive without me." Jihoon waved you off. You laughed and shook your head.

You and Jihoon continued to chat until your lunch break was over and you chased him out. No doubt his workers were good but you didn't want to be the reason why their boss slacks. So after giving him a bouquet of flowers to decorate his shop with, he left.

"Welc- Hongjoong sshi." You blinked, stopping in your tracks. Having heard the bell, you thought that there was a new customer. You didn't expect Hongjoong to come in.

"Good afternoon." Hongjoong bowed his head as he entered your shop.

"W-What can I help you with?" You blinked.

"I... wanted to make sure you got your ankle looked at." Hongjoong cleared his throat awkwardly.

"Oh! I'm fine, it's just a sprain. Nothing big. Please, have a seat and make yourself comfortable." You forced a small smile and gestured to the seats by your work table.

"I'm glad. Thanks." He unbuttoned his jacket and sat down on the stool. You poured him a cup of tea and offered it to him.

"Please, don't let me stop you from your work." He gestured to the materials that were scattered around.

"So, how have you been Hongjoong sshi?" You asked to try and prevent an awkward silence from falling down on the both of you. You kept your head down, focusing on the bouquets you were preparing to put in the display and fridges for walk in customers. Hongjoong watched you, sipping his tea.

"Same as always. What about you?" He asked back. You had stated clearly the last time you met that you didn't want the incident to be brought up again but Hongjoong couldn't help it.

"Fine. Same as always, too. Just here, running the shop, fixing orders, you know..." You shrugged.

"Hongjoong sshi, I don't mean this in any way at all but what's the real reason you came here?" You finally asked him.

"(y/n) sshi, I feel like I owe you yet another apology." He confessed with an honest look on his face. The way he looked at you, it just reminded you of Mrs Kim.

"If it's about what happened last week-"

"No, I mean, yes. Partly. I... I know we're practically strangers but I've been treating you unfairly." Hongjoong sighed

"Okay, now you've lost me." You chuckled. Hongjoong was relieved that you laughed, making this conversation a whole more lighthearted than he thought it would be.

"Like I said when we first met here... Whatever my relationship with my mother was shouldn't have clouded my view or attitude towards you. It's just... I don't know... It seems like we knew her as a different person entirely." He rubbed his temples.

"I get it..." You nodded your head with a hum.

"But that shouldn't excuse how I've been towards you. I have to deal with my demons myself." He confessed.

"It's okay, Hongjoong sshi. I know it can't be easy with everything that's been happening. And honestly, it's conflicting to me too." You empathised with him.

"So I'm not crazy." He cracked a smile.

"Far from." You giggled, fixing up the bouquet. You momentarily left the conversation to put the bouquets in the fridge.

"But still, I apologise." He insisted.

"There's no need to but if you insist, apology accepted. And I think at this point, we can drop the formalities." You turned your head to say to him as you arranged the bouquets.

"I'd like that." He smiled kindly as you returned to the work bench. You noticed his ears turning a light shade of pink. Dropping formalities didn't immediately mean a friendship but at least you two were no longer just strangers. Whether you liked it or not, the universe keeps making your paths cross.

"(y/n), I have another request, if it's okay with you." Hongjoon gulped as he mentioned. You nodded.

"I'm not ready to talk about my mother. My relationship with her, your relationship with her. I'm not ready... But when I am, I hope you'll help me." He looked at you with desperate eyes.

"Of course, Hongjoong. Any time. Whenever you're ready." You smiled softly.

RINGGGG

"Ah, hang on." Hongjoong clicked his tongue, annoyed that his phone broke that moment you were having. He looked at his phone to see Yunho calling.

"What?" He hissed, turning away slightly. You weren't gonna eavesdrop so you just continued your work.

"Look, Yunho. Just... hire another gardener, you don't need to tell me this! You make decisions too, all 8 of us do. If you need some sort of approval, ask Hwa." Hongjoong threw his head back with a groan.

"Fine, fine... Yeah, sure. I'm not sure why you want to add to my workload with this but I'll look when I get home later... Yeah, whatever. Goodbye." Hongjoong hung up with a grumble, glaring at his phone as he did.

"Everything okay?" You stifled a laugh.

"Oh, yeah. It's nothing. One of my brothers can't seem to hire a gardener himself all of a sudden." Hongjoong clicked his tongue and rolled his eyes.

"Well, if it's not too much. If you're too busy to find a gardener now, I could help you in the mean time." You offered.

"What? Really? I don't want to make you busier, I'm sure you have a lot to do with the shop." Hongjoong shook his head.

"I wouldn't have offered if I couldn't. My shop is closed Sundays and Thursdays anyway, I could go once a week on those days to tend to the plants." You shrugged.

"Just until I have the time to find a gardener." Hongjoong said.

"Sure, whatever you're comfortable with. Do you have a picture of your backyard?" You asked.

"Oh, let me see. Although, I don't know what plants we have." Hongjoong took his phone out and scrolled through his pictures, trying to find the last time he took a picture of the backyard garden. When he finally found one, he showed it to you. Your eyes widened at the huge backyard. The fenced garden only took a portion of it.

"Wow... That's a big garden..." You couldn't help but be in awe.

"It is. But you'll just need to tend to the fenced area. The rest of the field behind it is not necessary." Hongjoong informed. That was where they killed or practiced weapons sometimes.

"Sure, I'll be there on Monday." You smiled, excited to be working in such a big garden space.

"Here's the address." Hongjoong took the small piece of paper from the table and scribbled it down for you.

"Thank you." You took the paper and tucked it into your pocket.

"When I came in here, I didn't think I would leave after having offered you a job." Hongjoong admitted, rubbing the back of his neck. You nodded in agreement.

"You never know what the universe has in store for you." You chuckled and cleared your work table.

"Thank you, (y/n). I have to return to work now but I'll see you soon." Hongjoong slid off the stool.

"You're welcome, Hongjoong. Thank you for stopping by. I'll see you Monday." You walked him to the door. He nodded and bowed politely before exiting the shop. You watched as a chauffeur opened the door for him to enter a luxury car before returning to drive off.

"What just happened?" You asked yourself in disbelief as you walked back to your shop counter. You told yourself you should steer clear but here you were, offering to work for him.

But it was too late to regret now, what's done is done. You knew you couldn't go back on your word.

You'll just go, tend to plants and leave. Simple.

"I'm not ready to talk about my mother. My relationship with her, your relationship with her. I'm not ready... But when I am, I hope you'll help me."

Hongjoong's words from earlier replayed in your head. It was so different, he looked and sounded so involuntarily vulnerable.

To be frank, you were not ready too. You were fond of Mrs Kim, she took care of you, cared for you.

But were you ready to hear how sour Hongjoong's relationship with her was? No, you were not ready to hear any of that. Especially since that wound still felt so fresh.

"I hope I don't regret this." You muttered to yourself.

~

Series masterlist

[copepods]

some face practice :3

[id: a drawing of several dream smp characters’ faces, lined up in rows of three. in order from top left to bottom right, is niki, phil, ranboo, skeppy, puffy, eret, tommy, wilbur, tubbo, quackity, foolish, charlie, tina, karl, sapnap, ponk, hannah, and purpled. the background is off-white. most characters appear human aside from a few features, such as tubbo and puffy’s sheep ears and horns. ponk also has deer ears and horns, and sapnap has pointed demon’s ears and horns. tina also has horns, but her ears are furred like a cat’s. ranboo is covered in black feathers with a white patch over his left eye. skeppy has blue diamond patterns all over his skin and matching blue horns. foolish is made of metallic gold, and charlie is shiny green. purpled has purple skin and white hair, as well as four ears and antennae. end id]

[lucrezianoin]

So one of my mutual on twitter was saying that it seems like in Western animated shows (a part from a general lack of queer romances) FF romances have higher numbers than MM. Because I wanted to check, I made a list so I thought it would be nice to share both FF and MM romances in Western animation, so people know where to find them!! FF ships are here.

Most of these are canon and main ships, but sadly there is truly a lack of number compared to FF ships, and I hate when the pictures number is unbalanced, which is why I added the last four, you can see I added a question mark on some of them so I will explain in the description.

There will be SPOILERS (especially for: Did they kiss? Did they end up together?)

In order (top to bottom, left to right):

Lacklon and Roland (Dragon Age Absolution): Lacklon and Roland are both main characters in this one season show, unsure yet if we will have a second season. They have a flirting/teasing relationship through the whole show which ends up with them kissing (so yes, they do kiss!). They are implied to stay together as they also discuss what they will do after the mission!

Ballister and Ambrosius (Nimona): This is an animated movie, and Ballister is a protagonist and Ambrosius a main character. They are ex-boyfriends turned enemies and then reconcociling with an enemies-to-lovers once more! Do they kiss? Yes! They also have a happy ending and they are together.

Runaan and Ethari (The Dragon Prince): Runaan and Ethari are both secondary characters. They are already in a relationship when they appear (together and raising a child), mostly shown in the comics and through flashbacks (where yes, they do kiss!). They are separated from most of the show as Runaan is trapped in a sort of prison since S1. In S6 Runaan is finally freed, and S7 will be the last season of the show so I fully expect them to be reunited. The protagonist of the show (Rayla) is their adopted daughter.

Blitz and Stolas (Helluva Boss): Blitz is the protagonist of Helluva Boss and Stolas is a main character. They have an ongoing sexual casual relationship turned into real feelings, with a lot of misunderstandings about how real the feelings are/how they see each other's. Their relationship is very graphic, so yes, they do kiss, and there is sexual content. The show is still ongoing, with them finally dealing with their feelings (maybe!) after a quick break up. They are the main romance of Helluva Boss and the creator of the show confirmed they will be endgame.

Fizzarolli and Asmodeus (Helluva Boss): They both are secondary characters in Helluva Boss, with Fizzarolli probably having a bit more screentime than Asmodeus. They are already in a loving relationship when introduced, and have two full episodes also dedicated to them and their romance.

Gary Prince and Marshall Lee (Fionna and Cake): Fionna and Cake is an AU of Adventure time, so this is the genderbend version of Bubbline set in a modern Fionna and Cake setting. Only one season of Fionna and Cake is out, and I have yet to watch it, but I know they date through the whole season and become boyfriends. Do they kiss? Yes! A new season is set to start in the future.

Korvo and Terry (Solar Opposites): This is another ongoing show with a sixth season coming out. Terry and Korvo are the two protagonists, and they start as colleagues/mission partners and progress into a romance. As I have not watched the show, I am unsure how the pace is, but I know that yes, they do kiss and then they marry and become husbands in S5!

Barney and Logan (Dead End paranormal park): Another show I did not watch but I did watch their scenes on youtube! Barney is the protagonist and he is a trans man (and gay) and Logan (also called Logs) is one of the main characters. The show has only two seasons before being cancelled. Barney and Logan meet in the show, and Barney is immediately attracked to him. Do they kiss? Yes!

Benson and Troy (Kipo and the Age of Wonderbeasts): The show has three seasons and is complete. Benson is part of the main cast and Troy a secondary character and appears in all three seasons. They start to date in season 3. Do they kiss? Yes!

Kaldur'ahm and Wyynde (Young Justice): This is a complete four season DC show. Kaldur'ahm is Aqualad and one of the protagonists. If you checked my FF romances post you know I am not familiar with DC, and it was pretty hard to find information. From what I can tell, Wyynde appears in S3 and S4 and they are already in an established relationship.

Steve and Benji (Q Force): The show was one season and then it was cancelled. Steve is the protagonist and Benji is a secondary character. They meet in the show itself, start dating and seems to have a happy ending even if the show was cancelled. Do they kiss? Yes!

NOT CANON

Angel Dust and Husk (Hazbin Hotel): The show only has one season out, so I think this might fall into the category of "Will they? Maybe? Looks promising!". They are both main characters, and Angel Dust often flirts with Husk. At least from Angel Dust's side there seems to be both attraction and affection. We will have to see!

Soren and Corvus (The Dragon Prince): The last season will release soon, and I think this ship is a "Who knows, maybe... we'll see" category. The Dragon Prince already has a M/M ship, so if this is meant to be they would not shy away from it. The two characters meet pretty early in the show, with Soren being one of the main cast while Corvus a secondary character. There are some interviews from the creators that seem to confirm this will be the direction. I guess we will see!

Jayce and Viktor (Arcane): This is more in a "Interpret it your own way" category I guess. It heavily relies on tropes used in other popular queer-interpreted shows (copying the whole of Magic Madoka's very popular cosmic scene). Creators of the show seems to be on different sides of it, with some saying they have a brotherly bond and the ship cannot happen because Viktor is asexual (misunderstanding asexuality and spreading acephobia at the same time), other saying that the bond was never written as romantic but they can see it as a possibility after seeing how the animation studio decided to write them. The ship heavily leans on "only you can save me"/"only you in all timelines and possibilities", and it ends with both characters dying/disappearing and cosmically linked. So I guess we will see if they will be left "in the brace of the arcane" or if they will be revisited.

MEH

Shiro and Curtis (Voltron): I am sorry, I said I would only post main ships, and this is not it. But it felt wrong to exclude given I posted a few "fanon maybe will be canon" ships, and Shito is one of the protagonists. Still, this is a lazy case of "let's give him a random character so he can marry and kiss him at the last minute". I would hardly consider Curtis a character at all.

FF SHIPS HERE

[v1ktim]

OBSCURA: Trailer Analysis

SPOILERS AHEAD!!

In the trailer/video that goes with Chapter One of OBSCURA (Here. Watch it on your own, sub to Rotten Raccons) is PACKED with details and all sorts of information. Let's start with the first thing we see when the video starts.

Cirrus:

This is a snippet of Cirrus' CG in game with some things added. The text in the top left is what we're interested in. "18. presbyter//ecclesia lunaris" What does the number mean? Well if we take it in terms of Major Arcana for Tarot cards. the moon in number 18.(XVIII) Fitting for the lunar priest, but the deeper meaning also fits. Usually meaning hidden danger or enemies, deception to darker forces at play. Then we have the Latin. If we take the dashes and an indication of a break, then the translation is roughly "Preist// height of the moon" But if we take it as one sentence it translates to "Priest of the Lunar Church" Keir:

Again, staring with the number. 20 (XX) is Judgement. I find this fascinating. With obvious associations to justice, scales, balance etc it;s an interesting connection that I wouldn't have originally thought of to Keir but it fits well. The card itself means reflection, reckoning and awakening. Usually taking a look at oneself to see where an imbalance lies so you can fix it and move forwards while reversed can mean a lack of self-awareness, doubt and self-loathing. (yikes) The latin here is interesting too. Instead of having the dashes like everyone else, he had the latin next to the number and then a separate, less visible one at the bottom center of the screen. "Cavilator Fur" translates to "Scornful thief" and the dimmer, less noticeable word is "Cultelluss" or "knife" and it's pointing to where his dagger in on his belt.

Oleander:

The Number 11 (XI) is Justice. Meaning cause and effect, clarity and truth and the reverse meaning opposite. Oleander is a character who knows the effects of his actions. They are measures and precise. He is aware of the cause and effect. And in his neutral and good endings we see him bring his own form of 'justice' or balance. When Lord Valentine tried to have him killed, he simply returned the favor personally, and succeded. "Nerii//periculosum scurra" when translated as a sentence means "A dangerous clown". This obviously references the way Vesper calls him a clown when they first meet and telling us directly that he is dangerous. Francesco:

The Wheel of Fortune is what is assigned to Francesco, meaning change, cycles and inevitable fate, greater forces as play that are pushing towards and ultimate and unavoidable end. This theme goes along with theming that he is running out of time. THere is a reason for him coming to the underground, for rushing Vesper and the tailor so he can experience as much as he can. There is something pushing him forwards.

"Francisium//innocentes nobiles" At a first glance it looks like a latin version of his name, and "innocent nobiles." The second part is correct but the whole phrase means "The innocent nobles of France" which is FACINATING to say the least. The connection to France is interesting to me and brings my mind to the French revolution. Another detail I think is interesting is that his secondary outfit we see him in, the jewelry that is around his neck is right where a beheading would happen and once I saw it I couldn't unsee it.

Thats the first portion. Later in the video we get some images that flash across the screen with more latin and numbers. The numbers correspond with the numbers we were given previously. Again, in the order of how they appear in the video: Cirrus: Snake Skeleton

Latin first. "Obsequium// ducit as caelum" means "compliance leads to heaven" This connects to his entire theme. To get the best end with Cirrus, you don't question him. You don't question his motives or hesitate, you just comply. The imagery of a snake skeleton is interesting too. The obvious imagery and symbolism with snakes, deceit, lies, danger. But also connections to the story of Adam and Eve. The snake that tempts Eve, causing her fall from grace.

Keir: Scales

The Latin here is obscured a bit but it says "Fatum// vestrum vel extaneus" meaning "Your fate is at stake". This one leaves me wondering quite a bit. It says 'your' as if it's talking to the player, to us. To Vesper. This could tie into how Vesper is roped into Mouse Hole, how they are forced to get a noose around their neck like the rest of those living in Mouse Hole. They have to perform well in the heist that happens otherwise they risk death that comes a lot sooner than would be caused by fractum anima. They also risk the lives of Keir and those in Mouse Hole.

The imagery here is super interesting too. Scales are usually associated with justice which happens to be Oleander's tarot card. Scales, are obviously associated with balance, with equilibrium, and fair deals. While we mostly see one side of the scale it seems to be balanced. And in combination with the Latin, I think it's referring to the delicate balance that is Keir's life. A balance of his line of work being risky but lucrative, but if it's too much of a risk, he not only risks his life but all the others in Mouse Hole.

Oleander: Human Skull

"Pantiantur// sicut habes" roughly translates to "Let them suffer as you have" which, WOW. OKAY. Again, Oleander delivers his own form of justice to Lord Valentine by delivering the same thing Valentine tried to do to Oleander, but more personal. Let them suffer as you have. It brings to mind the "eye for an eye" metaphor. An eye for an eye and the world goes blind. But Justice is blind is she not? The skull imagery is interesting as well. This is all painting Oleander as a very dangerous man. Charming and witty, with a flair for the dramatic, yes, but dangerous all the same. A man who can kill. In the neutral ending he says, "For now you are safe with me. If you want to stay like that, you need to follow my lead." If he doesn't have the same attachment to you as he does in the good ending, you are an asset to him and he doesn't spare you the same kindness.

Francesco: Hour Glass

"Tempus//decurrit" means "time is running out". His is the shortest and simplest of the secondary ones. He is running out of time. He rushes you at the tailor to get an outfit made because he can't afford to wait. He wants to get as much as he can, done in the time he has left. No time to waste. The hourglass is the same message. Time is running out. It makes me wonder what is causing his time to run out. Here's the thing, Vesper's time is also running out with Fractum Anima, and interesting connection and it would be interesting if he also had it or something similar but I don't think that's the case with the other things we have seen. With the other things, the "innocent nobles of France" bit and the Wheel of Fortune, It feels like it's alluding to an execution to something similar. But that's purely speculation. That's it! That's what I have! (Thanks to Atlas on discord for great resources and helping me connect the dots with the numbers and tarot!!)

[mirai-e-jump]

Ohsama Sentai King-Ohger Photo Book: ~King of Kings~

Gira Husty Profile: King of Shugoddam, the most powerful country where the guardian god resides. Learning of king Racules Husty's goal of "prioritizing the unity of Chikyu, even at the expense of the people," he rebels against the world by playing the role of an "evil king" in order to protect everyone. His partner is God Kuwagata, and he arms himself with the KuwagataOhger armor.

Yanma Gast Profile: King of N'kosopa, country of technology. Born in a slum, he rose to the position of king with just his computer. He's a skilled engineer, and all of the equipment for the Royal Sentai was developed by Yanma. He's an ambitious man with a desire to improve, with many people looking up to and calling him "President" due to his yankii spirit.

Hymeno Ran Profile: Queen of Ishabana, country of fine art and medicine. While beautiful in appearance, she has an extremely selfish personality, and values "beauty" above all else. On the other hand, she has no hesitation in saving someone's life, and has the face of a doctor who brilliantly saves lives. She maintains a "selfish style" in battle, not caring about her surroundings, and fights using the King's Weapon: Scythe Mode.

Rita Kaniska Profile: King of Gokkan, country of ice and snow, they're the Chief International Judge who believes that neutrality is justice. They're always reserved and cautious, and don't show emotion, so they're often seen as a stubborn person……but, they actually have a compassionate side……? At the climax of the battle, they face the enemy with a cool style of "remaining immovable," unaffected by anything.

Kaguragi Dybowski Profile: Lord of Toufu, an agricultural country. He's always smiling and has a gentle and friendly personality. However, the truth is he's willing to use dirty tricks to protect his country, and has exceptional negotiating techniques to get things done to work to his advantage. He's concerned about his younger sister Suzume, who married Shugoddam's Racules.

Jeramie Brasieri Profile: Born to a father who was the sixth hero that saved mankind 2,000 years ago and a mother who was a Bugnarak, he has passed down the history of Chikyu for a long time as the "storyteller." His right arm is that of a Bugnarak, and he has a special ability to create strong webs from inside his body. His existence stirs up both the kings and Bugnarak, using words and actions that are difficult to read.

Racules Husty Profile: As king of Shugoddam, he united the five kingdoms with his unparalleled and overwhelming charisma, but was defeated in trial by combat with his brother Gira, and was dethroned as king. While Gira and the others were away from Chikyu, he became the king of Shugoddam and ruled the country as Shugo Mask……

Ohsama Sentai King-Ohger: Costume Guide The gorgeous costumes of the kings, which are reminiscent of the characteristics of each country. A guide to the current costumes and accessories worn by the characters since the beginning of the story.

Gira Husty (Top) Costume of Gira, who replaced Racules as king of Shugoddam. The cape remains the same, but the costume and boots underneath have changed!

(Middle) His recognizable oversized shirt and the bright red harness that highlight it. Red and black straps cross over the wide collar.

(Bottom) The brown boots were worn by Gira as he escaped during the beginning of the story. The necklace is designed with five pieces of red glass.

Yanma Gast (Top Right) Costume from the start of the new chapter two years later. The jacket has a design with a black belt hanging down. The cuffs have a zipper that can be opened and closed.

(Top Left) The wide pants are designed to be divided into upper and lower parts above the knee. The inner one has two lines on the front part. The color blue is used strikingly throughout.

(Middle) The cuff earring has ridges that grow alongside the ear, two chains, and N'kosopa's "King's Proof." The headphones have a cord connected to a switch.

(Bottom) Items that Yanma wears on his arms. The design of the shoes are silver with blue accents. They also have decorations that resemble headphones.

Kaguragi Dybowski (Top) A luxurious and gorgeous costume that just screams, "I'm the lord of Toufu!" The sleeves of the haori have a distinct pattern on both the front and back. The beehive like patterns are also a key point.

(Bottom) The footwear seen under his kimono are boots. Furthermore, the soles are shaped to be like geta.

Hymeno Ran (Top) From the new chapter, the shape of the sleeves and skirt have changed, and the large ribbon on the back is also one of its main features. The asymmetrical skirt produces cuteness and elegance. The tiara contains the "King's Proof."

(Middle Top) The previous costume was made up of a top, skirt, and corset. The skirt has volume, with the front being short and the back being long. The corset is laced up at the back.

(Middle Bottom) The sequin encrusted tights are the same design throughout the entire story. Also, the glittering shoes made entirely of gold are one of Hymeno's signature items.

(Bottom) Hymeno's Favorite Accessories: Hymeno has a large number of accessories, including earrings, necklaces, and bracelets, which among them she'll use at random. This is the commitment to beauty!

Rita Kaniska (Top Right) From the new chapter, Rita's clothes changed to a shorter length jacket. The metallic purple collar accentuates the black base color of the outfit.

(Top Left) The previous costume was a tailcoat type of long jacket. The black cloth is decorated with snowflake like patterns. The design of the purple collar and cuffs are the same as the costume for the new chapter.

(Bottom Left) The black gloves are one of the most distinctive features of Rita's costume. The bracelet decorated in the center has Gokkan's "King's Proof." There's a similar emblem on the cuff earring.

(Bottom Right) Rita is characterized by their all black outfit. Their knee length long boots are of course, also all black.

Jeramie Brasieri From the new chapter, an elegant cape has been added to Jeramie's costume. In the previous costume, his right arm had a longer sleeve. The top is asymmetrical with the left side being longer.

Handwritten Messages Check out the handwritten comments from the cast!

Sakai Taisei (Gira Husty)

"What do you respect about Gira, the character you play?" The fact that he tries to understand people's feelings!!

"If you were a king, what kind of country would you want to build?" A country where children can eat until they're full!!

"What do you think is the best part of Gira's costume?" The cape he got from his big brother!!

"Please give a message to Gira!" I want you to be happy!

"Please give a message to the king cast members!" I'm going to rule the world!!

"Finally, a message to the fans of King-Ohger!" You guys are the gears~ ^_^

Watanabe Aoto (Yanma Gast)

"What do you respect about Yanma, the character you play?" His sense of distance and respect for people.

"If you were a king, what kind of country would you want to build?" A country where the youth are the driving force.

"What do you think is the best part of Yanma's costume?" The sandals that I literally ran in for a whole year.

"Please give a message to Yanma!" I'm on top!!

"Please give a message to the king cast members!" Thank you for the past year!!

"Finally, a message to the fans of King-Ohger!" Thank you so much for your support. Now, you can also be a Royal Sentai.

Murakami Erica (Hymeno Ran)

"What do you respect about Hymeno, the character you play?" Her inner strength 💛

"If you were a king, what kind of country would you want to build?" A country without war.

"What do you think is the best part of Hymeno's costume?" The asymmetrical design!

"Please give a message to Hymeno!" I'm encouraged by your nobility!

"Please give a message to the king cast members!" Thank you all for making this past year so enjoyable. Really, thank you so much 💛

"Finally, a message to the fans of King-Ohger!" Filming for King-Ohger has finished, but we'll live on in everyone's hearts! Thank you so much for your support!!

Hirakawa Yuzuki (Rita Kaniska)

"What do you respect about Rita, the character you play?" The part where they never waver.

"If you were a king, what kind of country would you want to build?" A country where many different languages are spoken.

"What do you think is the best part of Rita's costume?" The chain attached to the jacket.

"Please give a message to Rita!" You've got humanity and are cute :)

"Please give a message to the king cast members!" We're family! Thank you so much for the past year!

"Finally, a message to the fans of King-Ohger!" Thank you so much for loving King-Ohger so much!

Kaku So (Kaguragi Dybowski)

"What do you respect about Kaguragi, the character you play?" That he'll dirty himself for the sake of others.

"If you were a king, what kind of country would you want to build?" Protein supplied.

"What do you think is the best part of Kaguragi's costume?" The emotions (design) on the sleeves.

"Please give a message to Kaguragi!" Be selfish every once in awhile.

"Please give a message to the king cast members!" Thank you all so much, we're family forever.

"Finally, a message to the fans of King-Ohger!" Thank you so much for your support. Let's meet again soon!!

Ikeda Masashi (Jeramie Brasieri)

"What do you respect about Jeramie, the character you play?" His vocabulary.

"If you were a king, what kind of country would you want to build?" Peaceful World.

"What do you think is the best part of Jeramie's costume?" It gives off the feeling of a prince.

"Please give a message to Jeramie!" Thanks ^_^

"Please give a message to the king cast members!" I was really happy with the six of us!

"Finally, a message to the fans of King-Ohger!" Thank you for all the love and good dreams.

[kpopsexstories]

Master List: Gay K-pop Smut

There's gay smut on this blog! 😄

This blog has primarily been about straight sex: male k-pop idols with either fictional female characters, or with you as the (female) reader. For a year that's all I wrote!

But due to popular demand I've expanded my horizon and opened up to writing gay smut too. In this post you will find an overview of my gay series and links to individual stories.

My Gay Series

I now run several gay series on the blog. The links lead to their respective pages on Story Finder, my external website where you can browse the archives.

Gay K-pop One-shots – Plot-driven smut stories with fluff. Member-on-member or idol x male reader.

Quick Fix Gay – Very short stories that focus more on the sex. Member-on-member or idol x male reader.

Dating Ban Series – The boys of a given group can't date girls. As their gay friend you help them out with their sexual frustrations. All stories are idol x male reader.

➕ Stories are published continuously without a schedule.

➕ Requests are open!

Identifiers

To make it easier for you to find stories you like I include identifiers at the start of each post/story:

🧑🏻‍🤝‍🧑🏻 MEMBERS: The k-pop idol(s) the story is about. I'll also specify if it's member-on-member, member-on-reader, and who is the top/vers/bottom in the scenario.

📦 CONTENT: Key words describing the sex, like Missionary (position), Riding (position), Cumshot, Jerking off, Blowjob, Outdoors, etc.

🍆 TYPE: Refers to the sex and can be:

VANILLA: Sweet, innocent or inexperienced sex

MEDIUM: Regular good sex

WILD: Usually rougher and more explicit

STEAMY: Sensual and passionate involving all senses

UNCONVENTIONAL: Any of the above but with a twist, for example an unusual kink

Posting Schedule

My gay stories generally don't have a fixed schedule. They can appear at any time, though I limit myself to max once per week to mix with my straight content.

I may sometimes announce schedules in advance. For example, I tend to release Quick Fix stories in "seasons" with a story per week for several weeks. I've also done "Gay Thursdays" where every Thursday for several weeks I publish a pre-announced gay story.

You can check the Up-coming Stories page on Story Finder (external website) to see if there are any new gay stories coming soon!

Stories

Below is my master list of individual gay stories. The stories are listed per series and alphabetically per group and member.

* Listed more than once because more than one idol is the main character.

** Listed more than once because is not the main character – part of another member's story.

*R* Requested

Gay K-pop One-shots

NCT LUCAS takes you on a ride on his motorcycle *R*

MX WONHO & HYUNGWON picks you up at a bar *R*

Quick Fix Gay

NCT DOYOUNG* compares dick sizes with Jisung

NCT JAEMIN muscle kink *R*

NCT JENO fucks you missionary style *R*

NCT JISUNG* compares dick sizes with Doyoung

Dating Ban Series

Not alphabetical because the stories in this series are meant to be read in order.

Jisung Pt. 1 – Your best friend Jisung reveals his sexual needs when you come for a visit.

Jisung Pt. 2 – You satisfy Jisung's needs.

Haechan – Haechan wants in on the action and takes advantage of you when the others are out.

Mark – Mark sneaks into the bathroom when you're about to take a shower, which leads to hot sex while the others are right outside.

Renjun Pt. 1 – Renjun comes out to you and gives you a blow job in the swimming pool of the NCT Dream apartment complex.

Renjun Pt. 2 – Renjun bottoms for you in the swimming pool locker room.

Jeno Pt. 1 – There seems to be no boundaries left when Jeno comes to Jisung's room to fuck you. He doesn't even close the door!

Jeno Pt. 2 – Chenle and Jaemin listen in while Jeno fucks you hard.

Chenle – Needy Chenle bluntly wakes you from a nap. He's horny and frustrated that you've had sex with seemingly everyone but him.

Jaemin Pt. 1 – Your week-long visit is coming to an end. You embark on a traditional bike ride to Jaemin's favorite spot outside the city.

Jaemin Pt. 2 – A nostalgic moment by a secluded lake leads to unexpected outdoor sex.

All 7 Members Pt. 1 – The stigma is completely gone and the members of NCT Dream are sad to see you leave. You're having sexy with Jisung when Renjun and Jeno come to join.

All 7 Members Pt. 2 – The stigma is completely gone and the members of NCT Dream are sad to see you leave. You embark on an insane orgie with all of them.

All 7 Members Pt. 3 – Rushed for time, the members gather around to all shoot their loads onto your naked body.

Straight Master List & Story Finder

Check out the Master List post for my straight k-pop smut stories. I'm always open to requests, gay or straight.

Or, visit my external website Story Finder where you can browse all stories by content, idol, word count, popularity, requests, and more!

Support My Writing

Click here to buy me a coffee ❤️

[funkyspacealien]

Art Fight 2024 Collection! I aimed to hit a full month's worth of pieces throughout the event. While I didn't make the goal of 31, I did 29 pieces! (Hope that's correct anyway. I have trouble counting lol) All the characters above are other artist's characters. Below the break are @/Links to the artist's blog/pages. They're ordered in the character's appearance from the top to bottom and from left to right.

epic.juice (Instagram Link) VORBITAL (Twitter Link) @tonytamales Curlicious (Twitter Link) @fizzlecosmos @killerk0re Edgar (Twitter Link) @tartintart @vadapega @lunasmoonpalace @wafaaaahhh (For both characters in the row and the very last image) Crazilily (Sheezy Art Link) @cherubim-grimm Gaem0n (Twitter Link) Char (Twitter Link) McKraken (Twitter Link) @sadlyjustal @night-maerish KaporiKnight (Twitter Link) MrKermodeBear (Twitter Link) Tyford (Twitter Link) Binch97 (Twitter Link) @pinguinus Foblicous (Twitter Link) @pearlineproductions @cinna64 @yolkerson

[syncrovoid-presents]

DISCOVERIES OF THE NEW WELCOME HOME UPDATE (SPOILERS?)

NOTE: this is a first cursory glance without getting into things! Also, every video mentioned has a transcript below the video (ctrl+a) to highlight it.

First off the first page! If you zoom out on the left and right there are two eyes watching you @:)

WELCOME

The red drawn house is clickable and leads you to a welcoming audio (clownillustrations.com/i)

There is an out of place letter Y in the Serendipitous Salutations.

In Wally's character description if you click on his canvas itll bring you to a page with another audio file. This one is more direct, and silly! (Clownillustrations.com/will)

NEIGHBOURHOOD

The so-below has a spiral that when clicked brings you to a glitching audio file. The record acts weird and the audio is a series of squeaks and clicks. Most likely Morse code (from Home )!! (Clownillustrations.com/neighbor)

The so-below graphic has been updated to a black void with a white eye and spiral (image below)

If you click the beetle on the bottom right you get another hidden page. This one is a video and a message (looks to be a transcript). It is from Poppy with Frank talking about her recipe. It's pretty sweet haha. Glitches out at the end with Wally @:) (I think there is a freeze frame? The video cannot be replayed nor paused) (Clownillustration.com/9-14-fp)

There is another bug with Eddie that brings you to a video between Eddie and Frank. Glitches out when Wally is mentioned. (Clownillustration.com/8-14-ef)

There is an out of place X letter.

Fun thing! If you select all on the page home doesnt get blued-out.

The O is out of place

ABOUT US

The blue drawn heart is clickable. It brings you to another audio file. Wally is being so silly @:) (clownillustration.com/a)

Overlapped text: "When I unwrapped the first letter, I felt it. I heard it. Open. Open. Open. I want it out. I'm going to get it out."

The wally darling is my favourite line js new I think? Wally is being mentioned more overall.

In the bottom right another bug will appear that leads you to another hidden page. This is a video where Sally and Julie are talking, and "Williford" Wally is mentioned at the end (clownillustration.com/10-14-js)

The yellow drawn star is another link to audio. This one is very helpful @:) (clownillustration.com/i-2)

STICKERS

Top right there is a spider that brings you to a video where Julie and Barnaby are chatting. Glitches out again at the end when Wally is mentioned. (There is an mention during the conversation that he's there, I think that's different than the rest?) (clownillustration.com/11-14-jb)

Theres a few letters that look odd in the first part (in order of appearance): K P I (first one could be C, second could be S, third could be T. Might be in pairs of CK, SP, TI)

I managed to get a small blue orb thing in the top left but clicking did nothing. It is gone and couldn't be selected so that might have been just a my-laptop glitch. Weird though!

None of the stickers or banners are clickable (havent checked names)

There is a Caterpillar on the top right with another video. This one is between Howdy and Barnaby. Also glitches when Wally is mentioned. (Clownillustration.com/12-14-hb)

NEWS

E is out of place

The guestbook has officially been closed! Unless you submitted something a while back you cannot submit anything anymore. Understandable but unfortunate. There is a message to the guest book writers after the most recent update. Please respect boundaries @:)

There is a beetle on the top right that leads to another video between Edie and Howdy. Howdy calls Edie Ed and Julie Jewels @:P. Also glitches when Wally is mentioned (clownillustration.com/13-14-he)

GUESTBOOK

The drawn hello is clickable and leads to another audio. Theres some connectivity issues @:P (clownillustration.com/find)

I am too eepy to go through the rest of the guestbook but there is lots of new messages and images!

There is a little bug hiding in the top right that has another video link. This is a talk between Poppy and Sally. Wally is about @:) (clownillustration.com/2-14-sp)

EXHIBITION

Specifies that Welcome Home started airing on October 11th 1969 until sometime in 1974 (4 to 5 years).

I didnt go through to test the brightness and read the text for all of the images of the gallery. There are multiples with text!

The house drawing on the bottom left is clickable and leads to more audio. It's very friendly @:) (clownillustration.com/understand)

There is a bug on the left halfway down with another video. This is a talk between Howdy and Poppy. Wally is about @:) Glitches when Wally is mentioned (clownillustration.com/1-14-ph)

MEDIA

Theres a lot more on this page that I will go through later!

MERCHANDISE

You need to wait for the butterfly to appear at the Currently Unknown Records subtitle. Leads to another video where Frank and Julie were talking back and forth. It's very Silly @:P. Glitches when Wally is mentioned. (Clownillustration.com/6-14-jf)

OTHER

When trying different possible codes I managed to get a drawn stars on the error page that leads to another audio! This one I did not expect. It shows up after waiting a few moments, either appearing or being drawn in a 2 star or 5 star formation. (Clownillustration.com/soon)

The hidden Wally audios lead to a possible hidden message: "I WILL (HELP?)(FIND?) YOU NEIGHBOR (A?) (I?) (WILL?) UNDERSTAND (YOU) SOON". My guess is "I will help find you neighbour. I will understand soon". But that doesnt explain where "A" and "WAY" would go. It could also read "I will find a way to help you neighbor" (although "to" is not one of our words).

There is another hidden audio you get from clicking the drawn heart of YOU (clownillustration.com/you-1)

YXWVOE still works. Transcript has been added.

WOXYVE now had a cockroach that leads to another video where Barnaby and Home have a conversation. This takes place after his conversation with Julie and Howdy as he mentions both. It glitches out once Wally is mentioned. (Clownillustration.com/14-14-bh)

YWXOEV has a drawing of a phone after a few moments. Another audio with the transcript. Wally is being so Silly @:p (clownillustration.com/way)

VOYWEX works the same. I waited for a while and there were no added text or drawings.

EOVWXY works the same. Fhe webpage is also called answer, just like Wally's hidden audio files. Sounds like Wally is trying to communicate through the static at times?

That's all I found tonight without going through all the new images! It is 2am here, but it's so fun being able to dive into the new update!

By typing in different words you can get audio from HELP and PHONE (seems different than old phone call audio. More has been added, voice has been updated).

THOUGHTS

Also I have a guess that with all the videos the first numbers might put them into a chronological order? If true there may be up to 14 hidden audios as the last one (Barnaby and House) is 14-14 (14 our of 14). Might not work or mean anything if there are duplicate numbers (or they are happening at the same time).

If they can be placed in order, perhaps a new message or secrets can be found with the two letters they all end with! This I will test tomorrow.

Also the eyes appear on all pages out on the left and eight, most likely belonging to Wally as he makes multiple inferences towards eyeballs and him being related (I can see you, I see out of the eyes on my you've drawn, here is how you drawn eyes, etc.)

There has also been a lot of stuff relating to bugs, which Frank directly mentions is his expertise. Frank also is in multiple videos, which seems like there may or may not be a connection. I forget now, but it should be checked if Frank ever asks Wally's opinion since that is when videos glitch and end. If he does not, then that may be a sign that Frank knows more than they're letting on.

Good Bye for now!

[felassan]

On this Gamestop listing for an Xbox copy of the game, the text contains some more information on the Deluxe edition etc items.

this post became really long so I put it under a cut. :)

Text reads:

"Dragon Age: The Veilguard Rook's Coffer Edition - Xbox Series X Unite the Veilguard and defy the gods in Dragon Age™: The Veilguard, an immersive single player RPG where you become the leader others believe in. Pre-order* to receive the Blood Dragon armor cosmetic for all three classes: Warrior, Mage, and Rogue. A throwback to previous Dragon Age games, the crimson stains on this armor will never fade Obtain a variety of weapons and armor, including curiosities from a forgotten era with the Deluxe Edition. You’ll receive cosmetic weapon and armor sets for the Warrior, Mage, and Rogue classes as well as cosmetic armor sets and weapons for each of your 7 companions. That’s 3 armor sets for Rook, 6 weapons for Rook, 7 companion armor sets, and 7 companion weapons – saving Thedas never looked so good. 6 Weapon Appearances For Rook. Cosmetic Only. - Stave of the Fallen Kingdom - Bow of the Fallen Kingdom - Spellblade of the Fallen Kingdom - Blades of the Fallen Kingdom - Aegis of the Fallen Kingdom & Sword of the Fallen Kingdom - Maul of the Fallen Kingdom 1 Warrior Armor Set Appearance For Rook. Cosmetic Only. - Armor of Bellanaris - Ghellara Helm 1 Mage Armor Set Appearance For Rook. Cosmetic Only. - Revas Robes - Circlet of Awe 1 Rogue Armor Set Appearance For Rook. Cosmetic Only. - Harellan's Bolts - Katriel's False Face 7 Weapon & 7 Armor Set Appearances For Companions. Cosmetic Only. - Bellara's Nerve - Ringlet of Sorrow - Davrin's Resolve - Plate of the High Constable & Beacon Edge - Emmrich's Mystique - Staff of Incessant Gaze - Harding's Focus - Sunderbow - Lucanis's Gall - Heartpiercer - Neve's Fervor - Cat's Eye - Taash's Might - Grief Features Rooks Edition Includes: Light-Up Lyrium Dagger, Rook's Card Deck, Enchanted Die, Glass Potion Flask, Cloth Map and Quiver, Dragon Age™: The Veilguard Companion Litho Print, Thank-You Letter Unite a Battered World - Thedas is home to storied factions like the heroic Grey Wardens and Tevinter's rebellious Shadow Dragons. Rally the Veilguard - Unite a team of seven companions each with rich lives, deep backstories, and their own expertise and unique abilities. Become the Leader Others Believe in - Select from different races and combat classes, customize your appearance, and choose your character's backstory"

[source]

first, I like the Fade pun in "the crimson stains will never fade" hh. :>

second, we talked [here] about how the deluxe armors look ancient elfy, and the description here calls them "curiosities from a forgotten era". the weapons blurb tells us that the weapons are "of the Fallen Kingdom" - given the appearance of the items, presumably this Kingdom and the era is Elvhenan, before it fell. this is confirmed in the names of the armors for Rook - Bellanaris, Revas and Harellan are of course elven words.

from this info, we can see that the bottom right weapon is a staff. the top left is a shield (here's another shield from DA:I with "Aegis" in the name for reference. the word means protection or backing, and also a shield or breastplate type thing associated with mythological features like Athena), and in sword-and-board style it comes with a sword. we know that each of the 3 classes in the game will have "two distinct weapon types". it seems like the names of these 6 weapons might note what these are: [dual] blades and bow for rogue, sword&shield and 2-handed (e.g. a maul) for warrior, and staff and "spellblade" for mages. the latter is 👁️ for me as I've been wondering what the second weapon for mages is for ages now. it was like "wands? floating spellbooks like some mage NPC enemies in DA:I?" but maybe it's these "spellblades"? ^^ which is also the name of one of the 3 mage specs. :D

Bellanaris: 'eternity' (see: Var Bellanaris in DA:I, the elven burial site. Keeper Gisharel: "Var Bellanaris. "Our Eternity."")

Revas: 'freedom' (one place it crops up is the secret greeting to enter Fen'Harel's sanctuary in Trespasser. Ar-melana dirthaveren. Revas vir-anaris.)

Harellan: in Dalish use, 'traitor to one's kin' (see: Codex Entry: The Rebel God). its root-word is related to harillen, 'opposition', and hellathen, 'noble struggle', so the ancient elven use of this word is maybe more along the lines of rebellion than deception.

Armor of Bellanaris and Ghellara Helm? Harellan's Bolts and Katriel's False Face? Revas Robes? for the Circlet of Awe, maybe on qunari Rooks it shows as vitaar as here, or it doesn't show due to their horns.

I wonder if more specific than ancient elven, these 3 bonus armors are related to Fen'Harel and his followers specifically. The Rebel God codex is about Solas ('harel). a heroic rebel against tyranny and slavery is someone associated with freedom. Fen'Harel's friend Mythal in the form of Flemeth is is Asha'bellanar, the woman of many years, and -anaris crops up in his secret greeting. if you wanted to, you can read into the three armor names a Fen'Harel connection. I could see a scenario where you might like, find these armors in the Lighthouse or something. maybe a codex or item description which associates them with followers of Fen'Harel or Mythal. (here I am just speculating for fun ^^)

Ghellara is a new name or word. it could be elven, as we have "Gh" in e.g. "Ghilan'nain" and "ara" as a sound crops up in the language a lot.

Katriel (🥺...) was an Orlesian elven bard and lover of King Maric, from The Stolen Throne. she hid her true identity from him, like a "False Face". her name and lore has cropped up in other item names before, like Katriel's Grasp. ahh, this is making me so excited to find and read all the other item names and descriptions in the game :D these flavor texts are fun and often super interesting 👁️

the 7 weapon and armors for the companions also have interesting names. they have 1 bonus weapon and 1 bonus armor each, and I wonder if the names of these items were chosen as they relate to their personalities, storyarcs, backstories, abilities etc. ((I'm overanalyzing and reading waaay too much into the names of these items just for fun, don't take this post too seriously, wild speculating is just fun to do. ^^))

Davrin: Grey Wardens need to have resolve to do what they do, and for a warrior 'resolve' has tanky connotations. we know Davrin is bold, and you get the impression that Davrin stands firmly and determined from lines such as "Nobody dies on my watch! For the Wardens!". As for High Constable - this is the rank of the Grey Warden who is second-in-command to the First Warden. historically during the time of the griffons, they were also the order's aerial commander. in recent times, they have also become the public face of the Order, acting as the ambassador to the High King and leading local recruitment. Maybe this is Davrin's specific Warden rank? if so, this is our highest-ranking Grey Warden companion yet, and I'm sooo curious to see the relationship and interactions between him and the First Warden. Davrin is also described as charming - perfect to be a public face and ambassador right? :D I also wonder if the historical role of aerial commander for that rank is part of why Davrin is the guardian of Assan. (also, there are some neat thoughts on the design of Davrin’s 'defaut' armor here. that post talks about the in-world griffon rider and irl aerial elements of his outfit design. :>) Or maybe he isn't yet, but can become this rank during the game? as for beacon, it has the connotations of light, hope, and towers and high places. when all seems lost during a Blight, the Grey Wardens come and save Thedas. I guess Beacon Edge is a sword. ^^

Emmrich: we have seen Emmrich holding a staff which does have an incessant gaze. a skull cannot close its eyes, and will 'look' for eternity. Mystique suits a gentleman necromancer who is a member of a mysterious order.

Neve: fervor is intense and passionate feeling, almost like zeal. Jessica alluded to this part of Neve's character during the Companion Q&A panel at SDCC. she described Neve's loyalty, dedication and great love for Docktown and its people. Neve is "really really fighting for those people", and Jessica loves how she has "that kind of a passion" and how she has "dedicated her life" to that and the other vision for Tevinter that she really sees. John mentioned that Neve is pushing back and fighting back against the Tevinter mageocracy and slavery. I guess fervor refers to these traits and beliefs of Neve's. Cat's Eye reminds me of horn-rimmed glasses (tell me that wouldn't be Neve's style in a modern AU hh?) and the imagery of a cat on the streets of Minrathous, ever-watchful from the shadows. it suits a detective from a big city with a dark underbelly. ^^ Feline senses are strong and sensitive - an investigator would never miss a clue at a crime scene or be caught unawares, yknow?

Harding: a Scout needs to be focused so that they do not miss anything when scouting. there is the imagery of a scout focusing on their surrounds, or looking at a far-off horizon. a marksman needs focus for their arrows to hit their targets. Harding has been focused on chasing down Solas for many years at this point in the timeline. focus is also a game mechanic in DA:I. we accumulate focus by killing enemies and when the bar is fully charged, the Inquisitor can use their Focus ability. maybe this refers to Harding's new magical powers? maybe mechanically in gameplay she can use them kind of like how focus in DA:I? as for Sunderbow, of course Harding is an archer. Sundermount is a mountain, and you can talk about "sundering armor". but what "sunder" really makes me think of is 1). the Altar of Sundering that was found in the Deep Roads in Ortan Thaig. it summons a Fade creature and is a source of magical power. why did the dwarves, who don't use magic, of that place have such an altar? 2). Sundering, the sacred mace wielded by Luthias Dwarfson, a famous Ash Warrior.

Legend says the mace was not crafted by hand, but instead hatched from an egg high in the mountains and then carried by birds to Luthias as a wedding gift from the Lady of the Skies. When Luthias dies, dwarves arrived to carry him to Orzammar to be buried as one of their own with the Stone. Sundering was to lie at his side, but the mace could not be found. Stories say the birds reclaimed it and will deliver it to another hero in time.

3.) various dialogue Solas has with Varric in DA:I.

"Dwarves are the severed arm of a once mighty hero, lying in a pool of blood. Undirected. Whatever skill of arms it had, gone forever. Although it might twitch to give the appearance of life, it will never dream." / "You truly are content to sit in the sun, never wondering what you could've been, never fighting back."

Solas: "Do you ever miss life beneath the earth? The call of the Stone?" Varric: "Nah. Whatever the Stone - capital S - is, it was gone by the time my parents had me." Solas: "But... do you miss it?" Varric: "How could I miss what I never had?"

Dwarves as they are in modern Thedas are a sundered arm, unconnected. They are apart from themselves, and from their parents, the Titans. their connection to the Titans broke when the Titans fell; without the Titans, they can't be "taller". if Harding's new magical powers has something to do with the Titans (see: Valta), I wonder if the "sunder" in "Sunderbow" refers to this.

Taash: there isn't much to go on here, but "might" makes sense for a mighty dragon-hunter, and a dual-wielding warrior has more damage-dealing warrior connotations (raw strength) than a more tanky-type, shield-bearing one. "Grief" makes me so worried 🥺 is Taash okay? what is she sad about? is there a bereavement in her backstory? who or what did she lose? what is Taash grieving? please, my heart hurts.

Bellara: you have to have nerve to be a Veil Jumper, a group that only accepts those brave enough to face the dangers in Arlathan Forest including its reality-warping magic. she's brave, optimistic, energetic, an adventurer; daring in her knowledge-seeking quest and desire to find out what's true and what isn't. she just sees a problem and wants to solve it. :) Sorrow.. we already know that Bellara has seen a lot of tragedy in her backstory, and that her optimistic outlook is sometimes a mask to hide the fact that she's hurting and in pain. like with Taash my heart hurts and I wonder what happened in her past 🥺

Lucanis: "heartpiercer" is a great name for the knives of an assassin that always find their mark and kill them. he always gets the contract done, and strikes fatally and with precision. he also pierced all our hearts 💘💘 (heartbreaker.. 🥺?) "Gall" is really interesting.. it has multiple different meanings and connotations. brazenness, temerity, bold behavior, audacity (I'd guess these are the meaning here). bile. great misery, suffering and bitterness. an open wound. to harass or harry.

[kris278m]

My prediction for the Chapter 1 Victim

So I haven’t really been able to look through the tag, so I’m not sure if anyone else has mentioned this, but I thought I would get my thoughts out anyway

I predict that the first victim is gonna be Mark.

I know, I know, but hear me out.

I know that everyone, including me, likely noticed that Toshiko was missing the whole trailer, and that is a huge red flag. However, the Eden’s Garden team has to be smarter than just leaving this extremely damning clue in there. I think it’s a red herring, and that they altered trial footage to trick us. Mark is also one of the people who doesn’t have any voicelines in the trial. I think it’s safe to say that the ones with voicelines in the trial are safe, victim-wise.

But then, while going through the trailer once again, frame-by-frame, with my friend, there was something that stuck out to me a bit. This moment right here.

And no, I’m not talking about Wolfgang or what he's saying. What stuck out to me was the tiny little detail in the corner, which only appears in a second.

This right here, on the podium beside Cassidy. It sort of looked like a hand to me, on my first watch, but then I looked into who was supposed to be standing there. So I went back and found footage of the prologue trial, and-

It was Mark? But that “hand” didn’t look anything like Mark. Moreover, when looking at where on the podium the silhouette starts, it’s way too thin to be Mark. He would have to lean extremely far to the side for this to even be considered as one of his sprites. Speaking of sprites, I looked through all of the released ones. None of them matched.

And then it hit me.

Could it be a Death Portrait? If you look close, you can even see something that looks to be the side of a frame, sticking up from the top of the “hand”.

Now, this didn’t completely convince me either, but I also found one more piece of rather incriminating evidence.

After finding this, I noticed all the names at the bottom of the official poster, crediting all the voice actors.

And since I was with my friend, I asked them to help me figure out who voices each character. At first I wanted to do this, to see if the order of the names would give us a hint regarding who would be more “important” in this chapter (like the blackened perhaps). Sadly, I quickly found that all the credited names are in the same order as in the official VA-cast reveal.

However, that doesn’t mean it was completely fruitless. Another much more important detail, that I honestly didn’t think would be left in there, was found by my friend.

Mark is missing.

And he’s the only one. Every other character, even Tozu, is credited. The only other non-credited characters are Cara, who’s not alive, and Mara, who doesn’t speak and doesn’t have a voice actor (to our knowledge).

Mark’s voice actor isn’t credited, even though everyone else is. If Mark is the victim, that would make sense. All the voiced lines he has would be during the Daily Life segment of the game (those small exclamations or grunts), all of which are recorded and have been presented to us during the prologue. The only other times characters speak actual unique lines are during special events where we are shown CGs (which doesn’t need to include Mark), or during trials, where he would be absent.

This isn’t perfect proof, but I do think there are some things to consider here. Would love to hear you guy's thoughts.

[psink]

Saiki Kusuo and Kuriko's guidebook full pages translation:

(left side) Disaster element: If he got serious, he could wipe out humanity in 3 days.

Unfortunate psychic who wishes for normal life The protagonist of this story, a psychic, who wants to live a quiet, unobtrusive life without being bothered, but strange people keep gathering around him. ←Only his parents, grandparents, older brother and a pervert know that he's a psychic. ? To avoid encountering･･････ Stay away from sweets!! He avoids troublesome things, but when it comes to sweets, his character suddenly changes. In order to obtain them, he's willing to take on some risks, so the chance of encountering him is high.

! If you happen to encounter･･････ Prepare either N or G!! He can read the minds of most creatures with telepathy with the exception for Nendou and bugs....... If you summon his natural enemies, he'll likely teleport away instantly.

(right side) Ecological information: 【Name】 Saiki Kusuo 【Height】 167cm 【Weight】 52kg 【Birthday】 August 16th 【Blood type】 Unknown 【Favorite food】 Sweets

Disaster Status: Intelligence S, Physical Strength S, Motivation G Psychic powers ◎ Protagonist Pink hair Coffee jelly Versus Nendou × Friendship ×

Overall disaster difficulty: 10% (E) Be careful, because your inner thoughts will be revealed with telepathy!

[Kusuo:] Don't make my page without permission.

Main appearance spots He can move instantly using transportation but chooses to walk normally.

(top left) Emergency evacuation place! When someone approaches his house, he makes an emergency evacuation to the neighbouring house. However, there are also characters who exceed his expectations. (bottom left) My school route Saiki often uses the embankment on his way to school. There are fewer people there, which helps him suppress his telepathy. (top right) Unexpected regular customer His favourite coffee shop is "Café Mami". This place's coffee jelly is said to be excellent, but they're still uncertain whether to renovate it or not. (bottom right) Spoilers are prohibited Saiki likes watching movies, so he frequently goes to rental shops. His target is the B-grade section that no one is interested in! Asou-sensei's idea memo: What would happen if I had psychic powers? After thoroughly considering it, I ended up creating an unfortunate psychic boy. The antennas on his head were said to have been attached when he was modified by aliens at the time of the one-shot.

(up and middle left) Disaster element: Even if you put just one finger on her, she'll gouge out your heart. A mysterious girl who appeared thanks to the transformation ability. Saiki's female form. She became a very mysterious female student. Almost all the male students that have seen here so far have fallen in love with her. ↑Quite high-spec girl. Takashi and his group feel uneasy....... ! If you happen to encounter･･････ Eh? Saiki...kun? Saying words that remind her original form, Saiki, makes her suddenly panic. Avoiding words relating to "Saiki" is the key to preventing that.

(middle right) Ecological information: 【Name】 Saiki Kurki (Saiki Kusuo) 【Height】 167cm 【Weight】 52kg 【Birthday】 August 16th 【Blood type】 Unknown

Disaster Status: Intelligence S, Physical Strength S, Charm G Sweets Mysterious high school girl

Overall disaster difficulty: 10% (E) [Kusuo:] Don't fall in love. (bottom right) Main appearance spots Rare female transformation. While her range of activities is narrow, her appearance rate in woman-only shops is higher.

Woman-only sweets shop Kuriko is a rare character, but she often appears in places that Saiki normally cannot enter, such as a woman-only sweets shop. (bottom left) Surveillance and punishment She has also punished Toritsuka for misusing spiritual powers. Panty shots are not allowed. Asou-sensei's idea memo: Despite being Saiki, it seems as though there are no antennas on her head. When transforming into a woman, she deliberately makes just that part transparent to hide it. Being a girl is difficult.

[ammonitetheartist]

MOAR SCUG. I have. many of these critters tbh dcnjdijcsknfi

The Dissonance was one of the scugs created by Notice, but they were taken and experimented on by Glint and sent back to Notice, in order to… send a message (iterator lore will come as well pinky promise skdmskmdakjdmi)

Shortly after they carried out Glint’s task, though, they fled into the wild to get as far away from anything iterator as they could.

[Image ID: A drawing depicting the Dissonance, a fan character for Rain World. They’re a scug with a mishmashed appearance, their right side mostly pale yellow and their left side mostly white, with a black head. A wide scar spans most of the width of the top/left side of their head, and their tail is curled like that of a chameleon.

Their name is in the very top-left - ‘The Dissonance (Rainbow of Fluctuations)’, to the right of which is Infinite Notice’s mark, crossed out and pointing to Spotting a Fearsome Glint’s mark. On the right side of the drawing is a sketch showing Dissonance curled up w/ faded lineart, next to a sketch showing their head and a paw as they climb a wall. It’s labeled ‘Can camouflage (yellow patches can’t be completely changed tho) and wall-climb thanks to white lizard genes’.

Below it is a sketch of them curled up and clutching their head, trembling violently, with a variety of colors showing on them. This is labeled ‘Colors flash erratically when they’re stressed/in great pain’. At the bottom of the drawing is a sample palette of the colors used in the design. End ID]

[ysines]

springfest just got announced, and im pretty sure i know the theme.

so before i say my theory i want to tell what i think the theme is so that none of you have to read the whole thing to get it. i think that springfest's theme will be flowers vs candy vs eggs. i think shiver will be team flower, frye will be team candy, and big man will be team eggs.

lets analyse this image.

evidence for flowers:

top left corner, a sticker of a character is wearing a flower in its hair

to the right of that sticker there's a sticker of a face. the face has flowers for eyes.

to the right of THAT sticker there's a strange symbol covered in small flower markings.

flowers have an obvious connection to spring.

evidence for candy:

under the top left sticker there's a trio of symbols that look like gummy worms to me

in the top right, there's a squid licking a lollipop

alongside the edges of the image there's tons of small jellybean symbols and sprinkles

candy has a connection to easter, which occurs in spring

evidence for eggs:

at the bottom, there's a sticker of a fish with legs. this fish has an egg strapped to its back.

to the right of the fish sticker is a face sticker, with an egg shell on its head.

to the right of the face sticker is an egg.

eggs have a connection to easter, which occurs in spring.

next image!

evidence for flowers:

giant obvious statue just slightly left of the middle of the image. huge plant, huge pink flowers

on the screen to the left to the statue is shiver, with green tentacles. the color green is often associated with plants. flowers are a type of plant

evidence for eggs:

this image pretty much proves that egg is one of the splatfest options. the cephaloling in the forefront has a tye-dye style splatfest tee with an egg symbol on it

we know that this is a splatfest tee becayse every cephaloling in every image is wearing a tye-dye style tee, and the tye-dye shirts didnt appear in the gear announcement

egg is guaranteed a splatfest option and its color is pink

next image:

evidence for flowers:

to the left of the frontmost statue are some pretty big tulips

on the bottom of the statue's bonnet is a strange pink symbol and a fish symbol. both have small flower markings.

the kitsune and tanuki statues have flower crowns

evidence for eggs:

on top of the frontmost statue is a large object that can be assumed to be an egg

the statue's base seems to be a giant eggshell

hanging off the bottom of that eggshell are smaller eggs in the splatfest colors

final image:

this image has a lot of the same evidence as the first image, with the addition of the pink pinhole shades having jellybeans and sprinkles in the lenses.

in the back are three ink splashes. in order for left to right, its green, blue, pink. assuming the ink splashes are in accurate order (as in when we get the actual theme announcement the order of colors will be the same), that means shiver is on the green team, frye is on the blue team, and big man is on the pink team.

shiver has already been seen with green tentacles, and ive already said how i think green is team flowers because of green's association with plants. we already know for sure that team eggs is guaranteed and its ink color is pink, so big man is on team eggs.

that means frye is on team candy, the blue team. this makes extra sense because frye was on team sweet. if anybody in deep cut was team candy, it would be her.

as such, i believe the splatfest theme is flowers vs candy vs eggs. i think team flowers has green ink and is repped by shiver. i think team candy has blue ink and is repped by frye. and i think team eggs has pink ink and is repped by big man.

thank you for coming to my S.Q.U.E.D. (splatoon questions understanding entertainment design) Talk

[generic-whumperz]

“The Aid” (Character Sheet)

How it began /vs/ where we are now (Picrew)

Playlist | Vibes | Ability Breakdown | Masterlist | Character Info |

Overview: The morning after his 18th birthday, a Mystic telepathic empath sells himself into high-class slavery at a Chattel Services Inc. facility in order to help his family flee from a war-ravaged and disease-ridden post-apocalyptic world. Stripped of his name, he is addressed only by his newly appointed ID number and later his trained designation title—The Aid. He is quickly bought by Madame Eleanor Sullivan, a So-Cal socialite, and the prestigious Sullivan family matriarch, to serve her as her live-in caregiver and confidant. After her death five years later, The Aid is bequeathed to Eleanor’s troubled and sadistic son, Wyatt. Surviving a year and a half of Wyatt’s draconian rein as his new Master, The Aid’s once plentiful optimism runs out when Wyatt’s relentless torture has no end in sight. That is, until one fateful day, a bloody and badly wounded stranger is brought to him, reigniting his hope for escape.  

Full name: [REDACTED]

Role: Main lead protagonist (Caretaker turned Whumpee)

Date of Birth & sign: February 10, 2007 (25), Aquarius (story takes place in the year 2032)

Gender: cis-male

Sexuality: *perpetually confused*

Height: 5’5”

Weight/body type/build: (when not being starved) slender with lean muscle, more on the petite side with compact features; ideally he likes being 135-ish lbs (currently 125lbs soaking wet)

Hometown: Cincinnati, Ohio

Family Members: [REDACTED]

Left/right handed: ambidextrous

Fav genre of music & anthem: alternative/indie, Devil's Advocate by The Neighbourhood

Occupation: slave; designation: Grand Servant, Mystic Domestic Home Aid (professional bitch)

Ethnicity (+ American): white boi (European origin— mostly British, Scottish, Polish, Norwegian, Swedish, and German)

Hair color & length: chocolate brown; (ideally) cropped short, longer on top, brushed to the side. Straight, but slightly wavy when grown out. Facial hair: ideally clean shaven and well-groomed elsewhere, doesn’t have much body hair, will shave it off regardless.

Hygiene: very clean and hygienic, hates being dirty and smelly, takes immense pride in his physical appearance. The kind of guy that has a 10-step skin routine and loves nothing more than new skin care products.

Eye color: chestnut brown. Large almond-shaped hooded eyes, wears glasses

Skin tone: very fair with blue/cool undertones

Facial features: combo of squared & rounded head, square jaw with strong & pointed chin, pointy lips with prominent Cupid’s bow & heavy lower lip, droopy & downturned nose (now with a jagged bend on the bridge from a few badly healed breaks), manicured straight brows with slight soft rounded arch, squared ears that stick out slightly

Mannerisms: internal dialogue/thoughts do not always match spoken words and actions. Confines most facial expression to his eyes which are constantly shifting around and observing surroundings. Small half-smiles that don't reach his eyes. Silent sighs a lot. Generally very still and goes unnoticed. Quiet, soft steps. Mild-mannered. Feels too much all of the time. On high alert. Small nods and head tilts. Lip/side of mouth twitches when thinking hard, confused, or on edge. Shifts jaw a lot.

Nervous ticks: flushes/blushes, rubs fingertips, picks at cuticles/skin picking, chews/sucks in bottom lip, avoids eyes contact & keeps head down, eyes dart, stiff body language, balls hands into fists, lip & cheek twitches, occasional nose rubbing

Posture: straight and proper (currently doing the best he can)

Style: Whatever Madame Eleanor dressed him in! Usually wearing his custom designer Aid uniform complete with a metal o-ring collar. When at home, usually just in lounge wear.

Health: Originally very healthy before all the torture started and was very active. Former high school track star. Now has chronic pain and is addicted to painkillers. Currently in physical therapy and can’t walk for extended periods of time. Vegetarian. Known allergies: shellfish, penicillin, pineapple, pollen, chamomile, nickel metal, dust. Mental health is in the gutter (on anti-psychotic, mood stabilizer, and neuron blocker to nullify his telepathic abilities), anxious, depressed, suffering from psychosis. Having a bad time. Now missing some teeth and has a chipped tooth from Wyatt beating him up.

Piercings/tattoos: ears pierced and has 24k gold ear cuff. One tattoo on upper left shoulder of his CSI given ID number: 070210

Birthmarks/scars: too many scars to count at this point. But noticeable ones on face: long, u-shaped cut spanning under right cheek, a vertical nic on the tip of chin, and a long faint slice across his left temple. 1.5” scar on right palm and top of hand that he usually keeps covered up/hidden from himself. Born with a bilateral cleft lip and now has two C-shaped scars running between the points of his lip and nostrils.

Language(s): English, some Spanish

Personality: before Wyatt—happy, warm and approachable, charming, compassionate, helpful, confident, obedient, subservient, well-mannered, thoughtful, self-sacrificing people-pleaser. With Wyatt—combative, snappy & short, paranoid, jumpy, nervous, closed off and cold, angsty, vengeful, hopeless, depressive.

Vices: weed, panic cleans

Voice: measured, even tone, modulated and silvery. Typical North American accent.

Smells like: clean, zesty and sweet, like aloe, cactus flower, with a hint of citrus.

Face claim(s): I have been going back and forth with this forever. No one will quite look exactly like him, but I’ve finally concluded, after much deliberation, that he looks a combination of Iwan Rheon (left and top middle) and this random Russian guy I found on Pinterest, Arseniy Popov (bottom middle & right). However, both of them are a bit older than he is, so just 🌈imagine🌈 them aged down a little bit. Also, yes, it’s more than ironic that the guy who plays one of Wyatt’s character inspirations, Ramsy fucking Bolton, is also an Aid face claim. Full circle moment or cosmic horror? You decide.

This pic is slay and serving cunt (judging plebs with Eleanor)

Character inspiration: personality and ability-wise only—Deanna Troi (Star Trek TNG), June Osborne (Handmaid’s Tale), Peta Mellark (Hunger Games), Will Graham (NBC Hannibal)

Other: has two trackers, one embedded in his back between shoulder blades, the other in the back of his neck.

Character sheet filled out from his POV, post-Wyatt

[laugtherhyena]

So, what's up with Udon comics Karin?

Recently i got a hold of physical copies of the Sakura ganbaru manga and after reading through the whole thing i decided to organize this character analysis of sorts where I'll be comparing this awful iteration of the character to her versions from the game's canon and the manga where she originated from in order to highlight where the Udon comics completely missed the mark when it came to portraying her.

First off, who is Karin?

She's the sole heir to the Kanzuki Zaibatsu which is one of the biggest and wealthiest business organizations in the Street fighter world. She has an incredibly strict father and has been trained pretty much since birth to become what he considers a worthy heir, being set to live by their motto that's something along the lines of “In all things be victorious”.

Karin is very obviously SF’s version of the ojou girl character trope, she's filthy rich, snobbish, mean and has a condescending attitude from her mannerisms to her laughs. These are traits present in all of her iterations, however, there's one key element about Karin that completely flew over the heads of the udon comic writers;

Karin is not spoiled, she is proud.

At age 15 this girl was on her way to becoming the leader of one of the biggest business conglomerates of the world while also being proficient in several different fighting styles, remaining undefeated for god knows how long. Karin is good at what she does and she knows it, she's proud of her accomplishments and that's exactly why she acts the way she does.

Her attitude was never solely out of her fortune and status, it always came off as being mostly out of her own merit.

Meanwhile, in the Udon comics Karin is portrayed as a huge spoiled brat. They essentially removed every aspect that made her a rounded likable character and amplified all of her worst traits, a complete disservice to a character that in her proper characterization feels almost like a spin on the standard ojou girl archetype.

As research for this post I tried to find the first time she appeared in the story and as far as I'm aware that was on Street fighter issue 8 in a small backup/extra comic. In it, her initial fight with Sakura has already happened and Karin is after her for a rematch, Sakura is running late for school but Karin corners her so they can have their match, she beats her up fairly quickly and then runs off.

While appearing at the most inconvenient times is not out of character for her (Example: in Sakura ganbaru she breaks into Sakura's house at night by smashing her window solely so she could invite her to this fighting event she'll be hosting) one thing that stood out to me is how Karin talks about their previous fight.

She says that she only lost because of a fluke in their previous fight, implying that she would have won otherwise. And this is something that gets shown again and again in her later, major, appearances in the series; Street fighter legends Sakura (top left) and Street fighter Sakura vs Karin (Bottom left + right)

Karin seems to genuinely believe that there's no way she could lose to Sakura, and if she did, then there must have been some kind of casualty during the match that prevented her from whining, foul play involved on Sakura's part or she straight up says that the fight in which she was bested by her doesn't count for whatever reason.

This inability to accept defeat not only paints her as a whiny sore loser, but shows a clear misunderstanding on the writer’s part on the reason why Karin goes after Sakura.

She's not after this rematch because she refuses to accept that Sakura could win or even because she hates this girl, she just wants to prove herself as the better fighter to uphold her family's motto of being the winner at everything. In both the game's canon and in Sakura ganbaru she accepted that she was bested and worked towards growing stronger so that she could defeat Sakura in a rematch.

That's literally it, but for some reason the Udon comic writers seem to think that Karin has some sort of obsessive vendetta against Sakura and just can't stand her. In Street fighter legends Sakura she breaks a tv just because she saw Sakura being praised on it and in the prologue of this short series she's seen destroying several punching bags with Sakura's picture on it and makes one of her employees dress as her for them to fight.

(I'm sure there's a version of these with more dialogue but i couldn't find it in english :[)

This is downright atrocious because Karin NEVER hated Sakura. Her infatuation for her (because you really can't call it an obsession) came from a place of genuine admiration for her skills.

In Sakura ganbaru she orders her butler to give her a full resume about Sakura's life just because she saw her fighting from afar and was impressed by her skills, even calling her a “special commoner” when the butler asks her why she's so set on wanting to fight a girl like her. And in Alpha 3, Karin straight up tells Sakura that she admires her.

Hell, even after winning against Sakura in a match, Karin proclaims her as the better fighter. A level of humility that's almost nonexistent in her Udon comics counterpart.

Because yes, Karin can be nice. We see this first-hand in Alpha 3 where after losing to R.Mika in a fight she tells her hasn't studied enough about pro-wrestling (admitting that she had underestimated her fighting style) and even offers to sponsor Mika's wrestling career.

Later on in Street fighter V she pays Birdie to be her bodyguard and pretty much lets him lay around her mansion doing nothing all day after finding out Shadaloo was after him.

Something similar to these acts of kindness on her part happens in Legends Sakura, where she lets her employee keep the trophy of the hot dog eating competition they were in. But the thing is; they have made Karin such a bitch in these comics that this act, which would be in character for her game counterpart, feels out of character in this because she's just so mean and victory focused all the time.

And speaking of victories, another thing this characterization of her gets wrong is her approach to them. Udon comics Karin will go above and beyond in order to achieve a victory, it doesn't matter if it's unfair for her opponent, all that she cares about is if she scores that win.

In Legends Sakura she challenges Karin to a hot dog eating competition since she wasn't feeling like fighting her physically, Karin cheats in it by shoving the food down her employee’s throat under the table, when Sakura and her friends out her as a cheater she quickly changed the challenge into a fighting match even tho Sakura has eaten like 30 hot dogs by now and is in no condition to fight her.

And in Sakura vs Karin, where the two are competing in a game tournament, Karin buys the company that made the game and adds herself as a character on it. Something Sakura was previously not aware of and as such had no chance of knowing how to play well against the new character.

This is wild to me because it's quite literally the exact opposite of how Karin acts in her other iterations. She strives for a fair fight because otherwise her subsequent victory on it will be meaningless, after all, there's no merit in winning against someone when you've got an unfair advantage over them.

Even when she had the perfect opportunity to give herself an advantage, manga Karin still strived to keep things fair. After her initial loss against Sakura, she organizes a tournament around the district that's essentially a battle royale with several fighters of the region. She made this whole event with the sole purpose of challenging Sakura by the end of it since she expected her to defeat all the other opponents.

As the organizer, she could absolutely have abstained from joining the tournament herself and stand there high and mighty as the final challenge for the whole thing, but not only did she actively participate on the tournament, Karin strived to defeat more people than Sakura because she saw that as a way to redeem herself after losing to her a few days back.

She is so set in winning this tournament that she refused to even stop for a moment and get her injuries treated.

Cheating legitimately feels like something Karin would frown upon so to see her doing it more than once in the Udon comics feels like the pinnacle of character assassination.

Another thing that stood out to me is that even after being outed as a cheater during that hot dog eating competition, that not only had an immense live audience but was also being televised, Karin faces absolutely no repressions for it. Meanwhile in the manga Karin's father makes her undergo a series of trials in which she fights an eagle while balancing on a tightrope over a ravine, a bear in a waterfall, and a lion otherwise he would basically disown her.

All of this because she lost twice, first to Sakura and later to Ken during the tournament.

And speaking of Sakura, they messed up her and Karin's relationship so badly in the Udon comics that it's only when the two of them are adults that they become friends. Meanwhile, in both Alpha 3 and Sakura ganbaru volume 1 they're left on a good note with each other right after their stories wrap up and implied to have become friends in the following entries of the series.

In Street fighter IV this is done via Sakura's win quotes and in volume 2 by Sakura sending Karin a souvenir from her travels.

By the time we see them as adults in Street fighter V we are shown that yes, they are friends! And seemingly have been for quite a while now.

This is honestly kinda sad to me because we learn first hand that Udon comics Karin had no friends growing up and it seems like this lack of positive figures in her life, Sakura specially, stunted her growth as a person since it's also only when she's an adult that she comes to the realization that fighting it's not about winning or losing, but the moment of the battle, and that some defeats are more valuable than victories since it's from our failures that we can learn to grown stronger.

Something that both the manga and game  versions of Karin discovered much sooner, truly showcasing how Udon’s version of her is always 5 steps behind the others.