#currently trying to figure out if it could work to make them be built in the center of an impact crater

[fishluring]

making an astronomy/meteoritics iterator oc when i know fuckall or at least just very basic things about those things was maybe a mistake. Looking up stuff for reference/inspo like haha i like your funny words magic man

[itsalwaysdark]

ome day i will be so normal

[lale-txt]

APHRODITE ; Osamu x f!reader

He looks down at you, his gaze betraying his words–greedy, lovesick–and you want to live in this moment forever.

contains: f!reader, dilf!Osamu, co-workers, age gap (reader is in her twenties, Osamu in his forties), mutual pining, pet names (all of them. he uses all of them), oral (reader giving), dirty talk, three lines of spit kink bc it wouldn't be a lale-txt work without it, praise kink, whipped Osamu (as in: down bad, adoring)

word count: 2.6k

You shouldn't have these kinds of thoughts. He’s your boss, you remind yourself. 

But admittedly, it’s hard when he’s currently lying under your kitchen sink, his shirt rucked up a little, revealing a sliver of soft skin and a happy trail while he aches and groans. You sit next to his figure on the kitchen floor, never been happier over a leaking pipe in your apartment.

“Hand me the ring wrench, sweetheart,” Osamu mumbles without looking at you, only holding out a calloused hand for you. You love these hands. They’re the hands you watch for hours while working, shaping the perfect onigiri and wondering what they’d feel wrapped around your neck. Sometimes he’d place them against the small of your back when passing by you behind the counter, always lingering a little longer than he had to. Last time he drove you home (he insisted because it was pouring outside), he rested one on your thigh while steering the car with the other.

You’re pretty sure Osamu Miya wants to fuck you badly. You hope he will.

“Doll,” he says again, his voice soft. He knows how often you tend to zone out. You snap out of it and rummage around the toolbox before you, handing him the thing he asked for. 

Look–you haven’t begged him to do this for you. This may be your first apartment you rented by yourself after moving to Osaka for your master program, but you were an independent one. Always have been. You built your own furniture and drilled every hole in the walls yourself. You knew for a fact how to fix a leaking pipe, you just didn’t get around to it yet because you picked up a few extra shifts at your part-time job at Onigiri Miya so you could save up for a new laptop.

But Osamu wants to help–he’s practically begging you to let him. Which is how he ended up on your kitchen floor. 

You’ve been alone with him before. When you were closing the shop together and you imagined how he’d bent you over the counter to violate every food safety regulation to ever exist. When you were the last ones at the bar during last year’s anniversary party, and you thought about stuffing your panties in the pockets of his coat for him to find later. When you spent one night at his place so you could finish a deadline before midnight on his laptop because yours gave out, and you wondered what his stubble would feel against the insides of your thighs if he ate you out. 

Nothing happened and you’ve been growing more frustrated lately. He’s sweet, he’s caring, he’s respectful and you get it. He’s trying to maintain a somewhat professional relationship between you two, especially given your age gap, but some days you wished he’d just let the animal in him run rampage and fuck you stupid against the nearest wall. 

You know he could. You know he’s thinking about it, too.

Ten minutes later he fixed your leaking pipe, but the ache between your thighs persists. He sits up again, so close that your knees are touching in your cramped little kitchen, and gives you a smile that makes your chest tighten with barely contained lust. There’s something boyish about his smile, making it easy to imagine what kind of heartthrob he must have been in his twenties. You gotta ask him about some photos from that time.

He’s still handsome, though. More than that. With his salt-and-pepper hair and the small wrinkles around his eyes, and his big calloused hands, adorned with a few scars from handling knives in the kitchen for over three decades and counting. He’s built differently than his twin, the retired pro-athlete. You’ve met him a few times at the shop. Osamu works out but he also likes to eat, granting him the strength to throw these heavy rice bags over his shoulders as if they weighed nothing. How many times have you imagined him manhandling you like that? You can’t remember. Far too often. 

Osamu wipes the sweat off his forehead and looks at you, lazy half-lidded eyes lingering on your face. He has no idea what kind of effect he has on you. Or maybe he does, but he’s not acting on it which is even more frustrating. 

“Yer hungry? I could fix us a plate,” he offers. Always looking out for you. Always caring. 

“Be my guest,” you reply, nodding over to your fridge. It’s currently stocked with two slices of toast, a cucumber that has seen better days, some leftovers from last week that you haven’t thrown out yet and a half-empty box of orange juice. You usually eat at uni or at work, and lately you’ve been so busy that you haven’t really gotten around to stocking up on things at home. 

Osamu lets out a long sigh when he peaks inside your fridge, one hand on his hip and the other rubbing over his face.

“Sweetheart,” he mutters, his tone a touch condescending, and you laugh quietly. You know this sight pained him more than anything. He looks over his shoulder back at you, his thick brows furrowed. “What is this?”

You rise to your feet as well and take a few steps towards him, firmly shutting the fridge door again.

“None of your business,” you say with a teasing smile to which Osamu huffs. He pats down the pockets of his pants for his phone and then taps the screen a few times. 

“Takeout it is then,” he sighs. This man is determined to feed you at all costs, already adding a few things to the cart. “What d’you want, doll?”

“You.”

Osamu doesn’t lift his head, but his eyes dart up to your face. Pondering if you’re serious or you’re joking. His expression doesn’t betray anything, but the small twitch of his hand and the sight of his pants tightening a little does.

“I want you, Osamu,” you say again, closing the remaining distance between you both. He’s now effectively trapped between you and the counter, and while you know he could easily shove you away–he doesn’t. You lean a little closer to him, your body pressing against his. He swallows and puts his phone aside, taking your face in both of his hands and tilting it up a little to make sure you look at him. You can tell that he’s scratching at the last bits of his self-restraint right now.

“I’m old enough to be your father and—sweetie, you have to stop smiling like that when I say this, goddamn,” he groans and looks away. You’re gonna give him a few more gray hairs, he’s sure of it. His thumbs trace absentmindedly along your jaw, fingers calloused but his touch gentle.

You tilt your head to the side, nuzzling closer into his big palm. His eyes linger on you, as if they’re silently telling you ‘behave’, but no. Of course you have to be a brat about it.

Osamu is a goner when you wrap your lips around his thumb, sucking on it while holding his gaze. 

His chest is heaving with every breath, a muttered ‘fuck’ falling out of his mouth as he pushes his thumb in deeper, pressing down on your tongue and making you open up wide for him. For a moment he thinks about spitting in your mouth, but he’ll save this for later. His cock is throbbing in his jeans, begging for release. 

Osamu has never been a patient man. For you, he tried. But right now you’re tearing him apart with your gaze alone and he lets you. He wants you to.

And now you’re lowering yourself to your knees before him, your nimble hands unbuckling his belt as if they waited a lifetime to do so, and glance up at him with these eyes of yours that make him insane if he looks back at them for too long.

“We shouldn’t,” he mutters. His voice is a little husky and his big hands wrap around yours, forcing them to pause what they were doing. He looks down at you, his gaze betraying his words–greedy, lovesick–and you want to live in this moment forever.

“Doesn’t matter,” you say, nuzzling your face against his clothed bulge and keeping your eyes pinned on him. There’s already a damp spot forming in his pants. “Do you want this?”

Osamu curses under his breath again, but he lets go of your hands and leans back against the counter, watching the smirk on your face widen now that you’re given permission to wreck him. You won’t hold back.

Hot, you think when you unzip his pants, learning that his pubic hair is also salt-and-pepper colored. Your mouth feels a little dry once you pull his pants and boxers down to his ankles, his cock springing free, pulsing and leaking, aching to be touched. It does nothing to ease the throbbing between your thighs, only worsening it, but you know he’ll take care of this for you soon, too. 

You press a few open mouthed kisses to the inside of his thighs, one hand wrapping around his cock and giving it a few slow strokes. Your hand can’t even wrap around his girth fully. He twitches underneath your touch. Osamu cups one side of your face with his hand, as if he can’t go a second without some form of contact, now that you both crossed that line. His breath is labored and his hips buck a little with every little caress of yours. 

“Yer killin’ me,” he sighs, his Kansai dialect becoming more prominent the more aroused he gets. His thumb traces the shape of your lips, coaxing them to open for him, now two fingers pressing in the cave of your mouth till you’re drooling. Your lipstick leaves faint marks on his skin when you trail your kisses up his abdomen. “Fuck, baby…” 

You spit on his cock and Osamu gives himself a few quick strokes. He looks like he’s barely keeping it together, still trying to act well-mannered, as if you weren’t silently pleading with your eyes only for him to wreck you.

He curses again under his breath and bends over till he’s hovering over you, two fingers tipping your chin up. Your first kiss is as messy and hungry as you imagined it to be, licking, biting, sucking till you’re moaning into his mouth and clawing against his thick thighs. There’s a thin string of salvia connecting you when he pulls away again. You briefly wonder if he mentally filed this under ‘proper manners’ too–always kiss your girl adoringly before making her choke on your cock. 

“C’mon now, sweet girl,” he coaxes you, gently guiding you towards his crotch with a hand tangled in your hair. “Be good for me, will ya? So fucking good for me.” His voice is low and hoarse, his cock leaking precum. Both of you know he won’t last long; he’s already on the edge of coming undone just from the sight of you on your knees in front of him.

When you take him down your throat, his head tips back and he lets out the most guttural moan. You show no mercy on him, your tongue swirling slowly around his tip before you swallow him whole. Your nose is nestled in his pubes as you glance up at him to make sure he’s watching, small tears welling up in the corners of your eyes. He collects them with his thumb and smears them mixed with some mascara across your face.

“Attagirl,” he praises you, his cock twitching in your mouth. By now he hasn’t cum yet out of sheer willpower and the desire to see you a little longer like this, as if you’re a fever dream that’s about to vanish the second he spills himself down your throat. 

You run your tongue over a prominent vein and Osamu growls, his knuckles white from how tight he is gripping the counter. Maybe it’s you who is dreaming. Sucking your boss off in your tiny kitchen wasn’t on your schedule when you got up this morning, but you wouldn’t want it any other way. You wonder if he’ll fuck you against the wall next or if he’s gonna have the decency to carry you over to the bed first. Either way you don’t see yourself walking anytime soon after this night. 

As you go on, Osamu’s breath is coming out in small huffs now, his nose scrunched up while he watches his cock disappear between your swollen lips. He never fully allowed himself to think about this, but now that he had you like that–fuck, he’ll never let you go. Yeah, he’s gonna keep you on your knees forever till your body remembers the shape of him. Fuck. 

“Baby… ‘m so close,” Osamu growls, a low warning. He taps your jaw with his fingers again, a sign for you to let go of him. It didn’t strike him as good manners to make an entire mess out of you the first time you blow him, and he wants you to remember him as a decent man (as decent as pining after your half-your-age employee can be). However he underestimated your determination to stubbornly refuse his request, making yourself gag a bit harder on his cock. Osamu’s hips jerk forwards involuntarily and he groans, barely keeping his composure. 

“Fuck,” he cusses under his breath, your hands now on his sides, steading yourself as you take him down your throat, your eyes fluttering up at him. The last bit of his carefully maintained self-restraint snaps. Osamu’s hands now find the back of your head, keeping it steady so you won’t have a chance of pulling back, then he slams his cock hard between your parted lips until you’re whimpering and coughing around his length. “Cumming, baby, ‘m cumming, so fucking tight for me, fuck–” 

He spills himself inside your mouth, the most primal moan leaving his lips. He’s trembling, his hips stuttering, thick cum spurting seemingly with no end, emptying himself into you. It’s dizzying. His breath is labored once he slides his softening cock out of your mouth.

“Shit, ‘m sorry,” he mutters, reaching behind him for a paper towel and dropping to his knees, holding it out for you. He brushes a few strands of hair out of face, trying hard not to think about how much he likes this fucked out expression on you. “Just spit it out, sweetheart. ’s okay. I was a little too rough, hm?”

What Osamu doesn’t expect is you opening up wide, sticking out your tongue. Spotless. 

You swallowed it all. Swallowed everything he gave you. His cock twitches back to life. 

“Little minx,” he growls, cupping your chin and towering over you. He spits in your mouth and watches you swallow it, again. It’s making him feel lightheaded. He should’ve done this sooner, he thinks. Making you take everything he has to offer and more. 

One of his hands wander underneath that flimsy skirt you’re wearing. He finds you dripping. A corner of his mouth twitches up in a lopsided smirk, a hint of something more sinister. His eyes darken a little. You mewl when he pushes your soaked panties aside to run a finger between your slit before bringing it to his lips, tasting you. You’re even sweeter than he imagined.

Oh, he’s gonna devour you. 

“Sweetheart. Be a good girl and spread your legs.”

a/n: osamu loving demon possessed me idk. i usually don't write part twos for my oneshots but for this one i could be sweet talked into it

[formerplumi]

USED A SUA IMG IN ONE OF YOUR BATFAM POST imagine a luka reader. the family desperate to reach you and due to lack of memories of what You were like since they all neglected you, started just making shit up about you. yes, of course youre angelic, kind and so darling to them! youd never hurt a fly and your soul is such a forgiving one... until they look you up online properly and see you gay baiting someone to get them shot

- prologue

PAUSE anon you cooked, omg. (for those who don't know who luka is i've put a very small summary of his character right at the end.)

honestly i've just been using sua as a poster girl, but a reader with luka's characteristics is so interesting... after being relocated from your "father's" underground business dealings to gotham to live with your real family, it'd be natural to stay reclusive because of the change in atmosphere.

i imagine a luka-ish reader would try to socialise more with the family than the current insert, but their attempts would be unmeaningly unsettling. an innate feeling would rise in the batfam that didn't make them dislike you, per say, just unintentionally avoid you.

you can't be much bothered with it, since even in your previous living conditions, there'd be people who liked you, and people who didn't. you knew how to work around it

so you redirect your focus. you'd been treated like an adult as you were being raised, so you had your goals and motivations figured out at this age already. for a handful of years in the manor, you'd work to keep up the fame you'd built up with your old "father", fame that slightly dissolved after your sudden disappearance from the screens; your escape from the industry.

eventually, when you decide to move out to perhaps further your prospects and influence, there's a buzz in the media at the sudden reappearance of the angle-voiced child star who was taken off the big screens after their "father" got involved with court dealings.

this is probably what eventually alerts the family to your absence in the manor, and in the shame that they couldn't notice it without the help of a third party, they scrounge around in their memory for good exchanges with you. just to have some semblance of the kid who wandered around aimlessly in the house. the kid they shooed away without ever actually shooing them away.

when they find nothing; they try to make stuff up. "angle-voiced child star", so you must've been soft-spoken, sympathetic, angelic person too, right? yeah, yeah you must've been a darling... how could they be so ignorant of you?

their shame somewhat morphs their unease at your old attempts to talk to them, into a shy child's timid want to talk to a new family in a new area, without any help whatsoever.

oh you poor, poor little kid.

i imagine it wouldn't be too difficult for them to find content of you, since your net-presence sky-rocketed after returning to the music industry. but ohh just imagine their surprise when they get access to an underground website streaming some sick stage-show human trafficking project, and see you there?? whatever are you there for? doesn't your fame generate a fortune? what in the world would you need to be on this... show for?

idk how the "getting them shot" thing could play into any other place other than a dark-web game show tbh. maybe they don't initially recognise that the videos up there are for such a thing, only after seeing you walk away from an applauding audience, get surprised by the sound of a shot and the image of your opponent lying dead on the stage ground, do they bother to investigate the ordeal. but this time, as vigilantes, and not failed family.

they'll just... save you along the way, yeah? 'save' you.

luka is a character from a series called alien stage, and you can find the episodes uploaded on youtube by vivinos. luka's established as a well known, famous character within the alien stage 'tournament', who's participated in the whole thing before, and has a significant amount of aliens/audience rooting for him.

his character on it's own looks beautiful, and is dubbed "prince" by his fans, but on his first appearance in round 5, he is portrayed as somewhat unfeeling and manipulative.

better characterisation is provided on alien stage's official accounts, with comics and patreon uploads. the "father" i refer to in the above imagine is referring to luka's alien owner.

[sirfrogsworth]

The Anger Returned

This is probably the most hurtful and infuriating paragraph I've ever read...

"As for taking care of dad. We offered many times to find a place for you and dad to live closer to us so that we could take dad to his appointments and have some skilled care available. He didn't want to leave you at the house alone, so my wife searched high and low for a place that could take both of you. Dad was open to moving closer to us and had said he would have done so on several occasions but you were unwilling to give up the house and ultimately dad said no based on your opposition to moving and that you both would remain at the house. You make it sound like you were taking on this burden to relieve the pressure off me, but in reality this was the only way to retain the house for you after dad's passing. Because if you were unable to care for Dad the current situation would be very different."

That is one of the last things my brother said to me way back in August of 2023.

I don't understand how two people can be so oblivious to what is involved in taking care of a dying person.

Taking him to his appointments was probably the easiest part. And that is what they were willing to personally contribute.

And "skilled care"? What does that mean? A nurse? House cleaning?

Within my dad's budget, we could have maybe afforded someone to come a few times per week. That would have been almost no help to me at all. Plus, they could have sent "skilled care" to this house. Why was that dependent on moving closer?

It feels like they think appointments and having someone come over for a few hours here and there is all it took to care for my father.

But accusing me of wanting to stay put so I could "retain the house."

I still don't know how to process that anger.

It repeats in my head in a loop. Sometimes I will forget about it for a few weeks. Maybe a month. And then tonight it just started looping in my head again.

First, my dad lied. He kinda screwed me. He probably didn't know he was screwing me. But he did not want to leave this house. He was surrounded by my mom's things. He thought her spirit was still here. He talked to her at night when he was trying to fall asleep. I don't think he knew I could hear him.

Oh, and he threatened to kill himself if we tried to move him out of this house. So there was that, too.

But he lied and blamed it on me so my brother would stop pressuring him to move. I get it. But it gave my brother an excuse to blame me. A way to justify away his guilt. Sure, he was only 45 minutes away. But if he were only 5 minutes away, that would have somehow solved everything.

My dad couldn't go to a nursing home because he was neglected so badly in rehab (which is a nursing home) that he had to call the police on them. He said "I'll die before I go back to one of those places."

And the fact they were even considering that just shows you how out of touch they were with the situation.

And, yes, I didn't want to move. That is true. But it had nothing to do with "retaining the house." I thought the stressful process of moving would kill my dad. And I asked the doctor what moving could do to my dad's health and he said, without hesitation, "Oh yeah, that would have killed him."

Beyond that, they had no plan. They didn't say how we were going to get our belongings out of the house. How were we supposed to handle the realtor or open houses? It took me months to configure this place to my dad's needs. Were they going to help me do that in a tiny apartment? Were they going to find my dad new doctors and a new pharmacy?

I built an entire infrastructure around this house to take care of my dad. They talk about all this work they did googling apartments but they did no research or planning on how to actually move us. Was that up to me? Was I supposed to figure all that out while giving him 24/7 care?

I was watching a new show called The Pitt and it had a woman taking care of her elderly mom. And she was so overwhelmed she abandoned her at the ER. And I started crying because that is so real. Taking care of a dying person is nonstop stress.

I had to watch my dad go to the bathroom every single time to make sure he didn't fall. Which meant I never slept through the night.

Not once.

I slept on a mattress on the floor next to the hallway so every time he got up, I would wake up. And if he fell, I would pick him up. In the final few months he could not tuck himself back into bed. So 4 times per night I had to get up, watch him pee, arrange his pillows so they supported his back, pull up the covers, and then tuck them under the pillows so they wouldn't move. He was so uncomfortable all the time and that was the only way he could fall asleep.

And those were the *easy* days.

The hard days involved cleaning up pee and poop. Sometimes blood. Sometimes mystery fluids. Before I got the special lifting device, if he fell, I had to literally drag him to his electronic reclining chair so we could use the footrest to help get him up again. I once had to drag him through two rooms and hurt my back for a week. I probably should have called EMS, but I didn't know my back would go out until it was too late.

And then there were the delirium days where he talked and didn't make any sense. How do you take care of someone you can't communicate with? He had a dead toe that needed lotion applied. Nearly made me puke every time. And then there was the time the urologist had to open up his urethra. With a metal spike. My dad screamed so loud I nearly had a panic attack. Every person in that office heard him scream.

But I think his depression was probably the hardest to deal with. He had a son that never spoke to him. Never visited. And a granddaughter he only met a few times. He cried himself to sleep so many nights. Sometimes it was so bad I had to lie with him in bed and just rub his back until he fell asleep. He was so lonely without my mom. And I tried to be good company, but I was often too tired to give him any attention beyond his care.

When things were hardest he would get suicidal. And considering his quality of life, I didn't blame him. Sometimes I regret keeping him alive as long as I did. He was ready to go as soon as he lost his wife. But we both held out hope my brother would wake the fuck up and realize there was not much time to make amends. To say goodbye. To install core memories of my dad in his daughter's mind. So she'd at least have one grandparent to remember.

It never happened and I feel guilty for letting him live so long in misery when deep down I knew that hope was foolish.

That's the kind of shit no one knows or thinks about when it comes to caregiving. The easy days are hard and the hard days are impossible and you feel awful for feeling overwhelmed because you aren't the one miserable and dying. Dialysis is nearly barbaric.

For over a year, I barely slept at night. And the only time I could get uninterrupted sleep was when he was at dialysis. So the only time I ever had to myself, I had to use sleeping so I wouldn't burn out.

Hiring a "skilled worker" does nothing to help me with that. And no nursing home is going to give him that kind of care.

Only love can give someone that kind of care.

My brother doesn't think I saved him from any burden by taking care of my dad. I just wish I could figure out a way to show him just how incorrect that is.

If I refused to take care of my dad and left it all in my brother's hands, he would have put him in a nursing home and burned through all of my dad's money in a few months. Then he'd either have to pay for his care or take him in.

Was he going to watch my dad pee 4 times a night and tuck him in?

Those who have never taken care of someone like this... have you ever thought deeply about what is involved? Does your common sense tell you it is a little more than driving to appointments and hiring a "skilled worker"?

Why does my brother (and my uncles) think so little of my efforts?

I honestly thought it was common knowledge that taking care of a dying person was super duper hard.

It was the hardest thing I will ever do. And the thing I am most proud of accomplishing. And for some reason I still want my brother to say thank you. I don't know how to find closure without that gratitude. And I'm pretty sure it will never happen.

[teshadraws]

Pokemon Mystery Dungeon: Seekers of Soul

[Chapter 64]

<< First | < Previous | Next >

AO3 Link

-

Tobias and Nia introduce Junie and Samir to the guild.

-

Samir stands strong in the wake of Nia’s enthusiasm. Her tail is a blur as she bombards the poor skiddo with questions that they struggle to answer with a simple yes or no.

“So that’s the mystery visitor?” Junie whispers, fluttering onto Tobias’ shoulder.

“Yeah. A Seeker we worked with in Fort Asra,” Tobias whispers back.

“You don’t seem as thrilled as Nia about them showing up here.”

Tobias’ mouth flattens as he tries to figure out his feelings on Samir’s sudden appearance.

On one hand, Tobias actually liked working with Samir. They’re competent at their job, and their personality isn’t insufferable like Andyn or some other Seekers he’s met over the years.

On the other hand, Tobias hasn’t forgotten that Nia offered Samir a place in the guild, and potentially on their team. Logically, Tobias shouldn’t be against the idea of more team members, but he still feels a little…territorial, maybe? Of his current team with Nia. He doesn’t want anything or anyone to intrude on the partnership they’ve built.

Then again, they’ve already got Junie and Fidel tagging along to the mountains, so what difference would one more Pokemon really make?

Tobias shakes his head. He’s getting ahead of himself.

“No, I like them,” Tobias admits. “Just…surprised to see them here so suddenly.”

Junie hums, but doesn’t push further.

Samir interrupts Nia’s chatter by holding up a hoof. Then they use their teeth to carefully pull a rolled-up tube of papers out of the side of their pack, holding the makeshift scroll out to her.

Nia blinks, then takes the offered papers and unrolls them to read. Tobias walks closer to read over her shoulder, giving Samir a cordial nod of greeting first.

He’s unsurprised to see that the first page is an official guild form. A transfer form, for Samir to join or create their own team here at the Lexym Guild.

Tobias’ stomach sinks. Looks like he was right. And he doesn’t really hate the idea—or at least he shouldn’t. Samir is just about the best option they could ask for when looking for a third teammate, but…

It’s just weird to think about having another official member on their team. It would change everything about their dynamic and how they run missions. No more Tobias and Nia. Instead, it would be Tobias, Nia, and Samir.

Tobias forces himself to continue reading with a neutral expression. The letter stipulates that Samir can officially leave the jurisdiction of their old guild and join the Lexym Guild as long as they get August’s approval. Which, judging by the leafy stamp at the bottom of the page beside August’s sloppy signature, they already did.

There’s a second sheet below the first, and Nia flips to it, only to find an additional request form to join Team Scarlet specifically. Samir’s signature sits at the bottom of the page, in even messier handwriting. There’s an empty space above it for Nia and Tobias’ signatures, if they approve.

As one, they all look up at Samir.

The skiddo is clearly nervous, as much as they try to hide it. They gesture again at the papers. Nia flips to the final page, which is covered in blunt, shaky Ordirune, likely penned by the tip of Samir’s hoof. It’s so messy it’s almost childlike, but it’s legible.

I WOULD LIKE TO REQUEST TO JOIN TEAM SCARLET OFFICIALLY. I BELIEVE WE WORK WELL TOGETHER AFTER OUR PARTNERSHIP IN FORT ASRA.

NO OBLIGATION IF YOU DO NOT AGREE. I CAN FIND ANOTHER TEAM.

THANK YOU.

SAMIR

The blunt yet formal language actually gets a snort from Tobias, despite his mixed feelings about the whole situation. He really does like Samir. He just…needs some time to think this over first.

“You really want to join our team?” Nia asks, dumbfounded. Then a frown creases her face. “You’re sure you’re all right leaving your old guild?”

Samir grimaces, then nods. Tobias remembers the words they scratched into the dirt during their stakeout in the desert, about the partner who’d abandoned them after their injury made them mute.

DIDN’T WANT ME

Their partner and the guild as a whole were probably happy to be rid of Samir, if the skiddo’s judgement is accurate.

Tobias swallows down a growl. Samir’s old partner and guild are idiots for shunning the skiddo so blatantly. Especially considering how capable they are as a Seeker, mute or not.

Samir must’ve come straight here after finishing their duties in Fort Asra and putting the transfer paperwork through. It feels…not quite desperate, but close enough for sympathy to well up in Tobias’ gut. He knows what it’s like to be disliked or—at best—pitied by those around you. He can imagine it’s even worse for something you can’t help, like losing your voice from an injury.

Still, Tobias is grateful that Nia looks at him before blurting out an answer, a question clear on her face. Tobias’ expression must look as uncertain as he feels, because she doesn’t even hesitate before turning back to Samir to say, “Could we talk it over on our own before giving you an answer, Samir?”

The skiddo nods, looking relieved that Tobias and Nia are going to consider the proposition at all. Then they turn to leave.

“Wait!” Nia says, reaching for them. “We need to talk before giving you an official answer, but you’re still our friend. You don’t need to leave. I-If you want to stay, that is.”

Tobias can agree with that, at least, and shrugs casually when Samir looks at him.

“Yeah! Come help us piece this monster of a bed together,” Junie says. “It’s craft time in here and boy are these two bad at it.”

“You could help if we’re so terrible,” Tobias grumbles, brushing the rookidee off his shoulder and moving back to the half-assembled bed frame.

“That peg is heavier than I am, Toby! What am I gonna do? Get squished? Not helpful. For your information, I am doing an excellent job at supervising.”

“You’re doing an excellent job at being even more annoying than usual.”

As they bicker, Nia leads a hesitant Samir over to their operation, pointing out what they’re doing: fitting wooden pieces together and building up the bed’s frame piece by piece. Once Samir has the gist, they jump in to help with a serious expression. They’re painfully earnest about it, too, as if this is a mission to prove their worth to the team as a whole.

Yeesh. It’s a bit intense, even for Tobias.

“Jeez, you’re a serious one, aintcha?” Junie asks, peering down at Samir from her “supervising position” atop one post of the bed frame. “It’s all right to lighten up a bit, y’know?”

Samir ignores the suggestion, shrugging uncomfortably

“Toby said your name’s Samir, right? I’m Junie!”

Samir offers a distracted nod in greeting.

Junie is quiet for a moment, tilting her head one way and then the other. “So…is the no-talking thing by choice, or..?”

Samir drops the wooden dowel they’d been delicately holding in their teeth. Nia stammers something unintelligible.

“They’re mute,” Tobias cuts in, pointedly casual. “Injury.”

“Ohh.” Junie nods. “’Kay! Just curious. Guess that means you don’t have vines to talk with, either.”

Tobias pauses in his own work, curious despite himself. Can skiddo learn vine whip?

Samir winces, then lifts their chin to tap at their throat. It takes Tobias a moment to understand what they’re saying.

“Your injury?” Tobias guesses.

Most grass types do have the base of their vines somewhere around their throat. If Samir’s injury was bad enough to damage their vocal cords, it’s possible that it messed with other parts of their body as well.

How did they even survive that kind of injury?

Samir nods, confirming Tobias’ guess. Then they focus back on their work with a steeliness that screams for Junie to stop talking about this.

So Junie, of course, keeps talking about it.

“Oh. Have you ever tried talking with like…morse code or something? Oh! Or whistles? Sometimes mail ‘mon use different chirps and stuff to communicate codes instead of talking. It’s super neat!”

Morse code? Tobias thinks Nia mentioned something similar during their stakeout in Asra. And the whistle idea isn’t actually a bad suggestion, either.

Samir’s stiff posture eases as they blink at Junie, surprised. Whether by her easy acceptance or her surprisingly thoughtful ideas, Tobias isn’t sure.

“Oh, I hadn’t thought of whistling!” Nia says, pausing in her own work. “Can you whistle, Samir? Or, like, click your tongue?”

Samir hesitates, looking between the three of them. Then, quietly, they click their tongue against the roof of their mouth. Once, twice.

Nia beams. “You can!”

“Try to whistle,” Junie prompts.

Samir’s muzzle clearly isn’t made for it, but after a few tries, they do manage to get a weak whistle out between forceful gusts of air.

“Now we’re in business!” Junie cheers. “There’s gotta be some kind of Pokemon language set up for situations like this, right? I mean, some Pokemon don’t even have mouths and I can say from personal experience that sign language isn’t always an option.”

“I bet Avery or their dad would know!” Nia says, perking up at the chance to go to the archives and learn something new. “Would you be interested in that, Samir? Learning something like Morse code or whistle phrases so we could communicate a little easier?”

Samir, once again, looks blown away by the easy acceptance that Nia and Junie are offering. They swallow hard with suspiciously bright eyes, and nod.

“Great! How about we stop by the archives right away once we get this built?”

“If you get it built,” Junie corrects. “I’m down, though. I want the whole grand tour of this place!”

“Oh, right! Did anyone give you a tour of the guild yet, Samir?”

Samir makes a so-so motion with their hoof. So likely a surface-level tour that covered the necessities, but nothing in-depth. August probably just assigned a random low-level Seeker to do the honors.

“We’ll show you around,” Tobias decides, grunting as he finally gets two wooden posts wedged together properly. He steps back to give it a look, nodding in satisfaction.

It thankfully doesn’t take much longer to fit the bed frame together, and then Tobias, Nia, and Samir haul the surprisingly heavy mattress atop it. When that’s done, Nia grabs the blankets they’d pulled from storage during their previous trip to the guild, and throws them on top. The whole setup creates a strange but cozy-looking nest elevated a foot off the ground. Just high enough for Tobias to comfortably sit on. It’s surprisingly large, too, easily big enough for both Nia and Tobias to curl up together. Samir could probably even squeeze in if they wanted to, and Junie could definitely find a spot.

While Tobias isn’t sure how to feel about that mental picture, he can’t deny the bed itself looks incredibly cozy. He’s willing to give it a shot, after how soft it felt earlier.

“I am pumped to go to sleep tonight,” Junie says. “Good job, crew.”

“Same!” Nia says, sitting on the bed and looking pleased about its bounce. “Tobias, Samir, are you two going to try it too?”

“I’ll give it a shot,” Tobias says.

Samir looks surprised to be included, giving a noncommittal shrug and a shuffle of their hooves in an almost shy gesture.

With that task complete, they finally get to show Junie and Samir around the guild properly, starting on the bottom floor where the mission boards are stationed. They briefly explain the network of tunnels surrounding them, taking a few steps inside one so the newcomers can get the full effect. Junie is expectedly awed by the glowing crystals growing from the walls and floor and ceiling, but even Samir seems impressed by their quiet beauty.

Their group stops by the nursery floor, too, both to show it to Junie and Samir and so Tobias can check in on the shinx cubs. He isn’t at all surprised to find that Asher has captivated the entire group of children, the zorua shifting between each child’s species with ease and delighting in their excited reactions. It feels strangely dreamlike when Asher turns into a fourth shinx cub at the others’ behest, and Tobias leans over to bet Nia that they’ll use that ability to torment their older brother at least once. Nia laughs and doesn’t take that bet.

Fidel is there too, the zoroark watching his son entertain the other children with a relieved smile as he sits next to Arlo. The drampa is keeping a watchful eye on the kids as usual, but he’s taking the opportunity to rest while Asher keeps them busy. The two older ‘mon wave at Tobias, Nia, Junie and Samir when they notice them lingering in the doorway, but otherwise don’t move to approach.

Next, Tobias and Nia show off the cafeteria, Nia giggling as she regales them with their last mission on kitchen duty. After that, they show them the item dispensary floor and the training floor, too, which clearly catches Samir’s interest. Nia waves enthusiastically to Val when she spots the medicham across the room, supervising a mock battle between a treecko and a venonat. Val gives a slight upturn of her lips and a nod in return.

They do end up stopping by the archives as well, and Nia introduces the two newcomers to the archivists, Alistair the gardevoir and Tawny the ribombee. Tawny and Junie hit it off right away, tiny chatterboxes that they are, and Alistair is clearly intrigued by their quest for a non-verbal language that Samir could use to communicate easier.

The gardevoir disappears into the shelves with Nia and Samir in tow, and Tobias—despite his better judgement—stays behind to listen to Junie and Tawny ramble about…nesting on top of the library shelves?

Maybe he should’ve went with the others.

Luckily, it doesn’t take long for Alistair to return with Samir and Nia. The gardevoir has a book in his hands that’s dusty from disuse, and while he sounds apologetic that he can’t help much personally, he does comment that Avery actually knows a few rudimentary phrases of the whistle-based language contained within.

Samir still looks shocked by the easy, enthusiastic help that Nia and the others are offering, and Tobias feels a jab of anger towards the skiddo’s old guild. Seekers are supposed to help, regardless of the problem, and that includes their own members. Tobias should tell August to look into Samir’s old guild when this whole “world-saving” business is done. Something isn’t right over there, and he knows August would take his concerns seriously.

Once they’re done checking out the book, Tobias smothers his ire and leads their group farther up the tree, past the administrative floor and the Seeker quarters until they finally reach the medical wing. Fen is busy looking over a pair of Pokemon when they pass by, but Maggie immediately abandons what she’s mixing up at the counter as soon as she notices their arrival.

“Welcome home!” The meganium says, happily returning the hugs Tobias and Nia press into her flowery mane. Then she looks over their heads and smiles. “And with two new faces! Would this happen to be…Junie? And Samir?”

“Are you a psychic type or did Toby just complain about me that much?” Junie asks, fluttering forward to land on Nia’s shoulder. Samir just looks surprised to be recognized at all.

Maggie stifles a laugh, a vine coming up over her mouth. “I assure you he only complained his usual amount, and Nia had all good things to say. It’s lovely to meet you, dear.”

“You too!” Junie chirps. “You have excellent vibes, ma’am. No idea how you’ve dealt with Toby’s nonsense for so many years.”

Maggie does laugh aloud this time, and Tobias rolls his eyes.

Nia waves Samir forward, and they hesitantly step closer.

“And you must be Samir,” Maggie says with a gentler smile. “It’s lovely to meet you as well, dear. Thank you for taking such good care of these two in Fort Asra.”

Samir ducks their head into a shy nod.

“Dude, stop being so adorable,” Junie teases. “I wanna be the new favorite child.”

Samir hunches even more into themself. Tobias has to admit it’s kind of hilarious, after how stoic and sure of themself they were in Fort Asra. Clearly the new location and overwhelming friendliness is an environment they’re much less confident in.

Tobias and Nia quickly catch Maggie up on their trip to Will’s settlement, and it’s only when Samir can’t seem to hide a look of shock that Tobias realizes something: Samir wasn’t aware of the whole world-saving business they’d been assigned by Giratina. Samir didn’t even know that Nia was human.

All things considered, Tobias thinks the skiddo is taking it rather well. Their brow is furrowed and their gaze is distant as they try to process everything, but they aren’t sprinting from the room or visibly upset. Still, Nia and Maggie both seem concerned.

“Samir..?” Nia prompts.

Samir opens their mouth to speak before closing it again with a frustrated grunt. They shake their head and wave Nia off, as if to assure her that they’re fine.

“Gotta say,” Junie laughs, clearly enjoying the whole situation. “You’re handling this whole, ‘The world is ending and an eldritch god assigned us to save it’ thing better than I probably would’ve all at once. Oh! And Nia being human. I’m human too, if it matters.”

Samir once again loses their composure for a moment, eyes bulging as they look at Junie. Then they whip their head back to Nia and Tobias as if to ask if there’s anything else earth-shattering they should know about.

Nia holds up her paws. “That’s it! I promise!”

“For now, at least,” Tobias adds.

Samir’s gaze goes distant again, as if already beholding the horrors that lie ahead.

“Sure you still want to join this team?” Junie jokes.

“Yeahhh…we probably should’ve warned you about, uh, all of that first,” Nia says, cringing. “Um. You’re welcome to back out if it’s too much? We’d understand.”

Maggie looks more surprised by the idea of Samir joining their team than by anything else in this conversation. She gives Tobias a probing, concerned look.

He shrugs, mouthing, Still deciding.

Maggie’s expression softens, and she mouths back, Tell me if you need to talk.

Tobias nods, relieved that she knows him so well. He doesn’t know if he’ll take her up on the offer, but it’s always good to be reminded that it’s an option.

Samir, on the other hand, is clearly still riding the waves of all the information just dumped on them. But after a minute of silent thought, they finally shake their head, tap the ground twice, and nod. Their expression is determined.

“You want to help?” Tobias guesses.

Samir nods again.

Nia brightens. “Then we’re happy to have you along! Though it is unfortunate that we’re heading somewhere so cold right off the bat, since you’re a grass type. Will you be okay up in the mountains?”

“You can pick up a cloak from Vera’s winter storage before we go,” Tobias says. “But Nia’s right. It’ll still be rough on you and Junie in particular thanks to your typings.”

Samir doesn’t seem overly concerned by the terrain they’ll be facing. If anything, they simply look deep in thought, as if strategizing what they’ll need to combat the harsh environment. Tobias can’t help admiring that, even if it’s what he expected of the skiddo after Fort Asra. Samir doesn’t balk from a challenge, even if that challenge may decide the fate of the world.

Their group spends a bit more time with Maggie before heading back downstairs to the Seeker quarters. Nia wants to see if Xander’s team has returned yet since it’s nearing late afternoon.

Instead of Xander, it’s Andyn who Tobias runs right into while rounding a corner of the hallway.

Oh, perfect. The gods are laughing at Tobias in their sleep.

Andyn backsteps. “Oh, sorry, I—"

She cuts herself off as she realizes who she bumped into, and her expression darkens. The deerling stalks past Tobias and the others without a word.

“Wait, Andyn—” Nia says.

“We’re busy, Nia.”

Nia falls silent, wilting. Tobias is tempted to snarl something after Andyn, but he’s distracted by Ezra and Jaz, who are hurrying after their team leader from the direction of their room. The two ‘mon pause once they see Tobias, Nia and their tagalongs.

“Oh, hey!” Ezra says, grinning with his sharp sneasel teeth. “Didn’t know you were back already!”

“Is she still in a mood?” Tobias asks, crossing his arms. “It’s been like a week.”

Jaz sighs. “No, she’s been okay. Probably just wasn’t happy to see you again so soon, Tobias.”

“She can really hold a grudge,” Ezra adds cheerfully. Then his eyes land on Samir and Junie. “Ooh, new faces! You two friends with Nia and Tobias?”

“We are!” Junie chirps, puffing out her chest with pride. “Name’s Junie. That’s Samir. I’m guessing that ray of sunshine was your teammate?”

Jaz gives her a regretful smile. “I promise she‘s not normally like that. She’s just trying to untangle some…unpleasant emotions that Tobias brought out last week.”

“Doesn’t mean she has to ignore Nia to do that,” Tobias grumbles.

“Nah, but she probably finds it easier to push you both away rather than trying to sidestep one half of a team,” Ezra says. “After all, you’re pretty much joined at the hip nowadays. She’ll figure it out eventually, Nia. Try not to take it personally.”

“That’s stupid,” Junie scoffs. “Why shouldn’t Nia take it personally? We shouldn’t just have to deal with miss priss acting like a brat because Toby made her think about something she didn’t want to hear.”

Jaz winces. The stufful’s usual composure falters with guilt. Nia looks like she’s about to protest, but Jaz cuts her off. “No no, she’s right. We…probably enable Andyn more than we should.”

“She’s never gonna stop being a brat if you don’t put your foot down,” Tobias agrees.

Ezra and Jaz exchange a look.

“You’re right,” Ezra says, chuckling. “But it’s just easier to ride it out sometimes, y’know? Andyn can be a lot, but she’s still our best friend. It can be hard standing up to her when she’s upset.”

Samir nods immediately in understanding, and once again Tobias wants to meet the skiddo’s former partner. Just to talk. And maybe punch a little.

“Ez! Jaz! C’mon!”

Andyn’s voice rings out from the hall behind them, and Tobias huffs. Not even doubling back to grab her teammates? Coward.

“Sorry, gotta go,” Ezra says. “But we need to catch up when this all blows over!”

“Stay safe,” Jaz adds.

And then the two Pokemon are gone, hurrying after Andyn. There’s a moment of quiet.

“Well, that doesn’t seem like a very healthy team dynamic,” Junie chirps from Nia’s shoulder.

Nia makes a sound in her throat like she wants to agree, but doesn’t want to badmouth her friend. “Andyn’s dealing with a lot of pressure from her parents. I’m sure she’ll figure it out soon!”

Tobias doesn’t argue, knowing a futile battle when he sees one. Instead, he pushes past the encounter to lead their group to Team Shellshock’s quarters. Much as Tobias didn’t get along with Xander in the past, at least he can count on the luxio to actually act like an adult.

When they get there, the team’s door is halfway open, and inside Tobias spots Xander removing items from Team Shellshock’s satchel, Avery logging something onto their team badges, and Felix flopping down into a nest with a relieved sigh. Looks like they just got back from a long day.

Xander’s ears twitch before Tobias can knock, and he looks up with a warm smile. “Hey. Almost didn’t recognize you two with an extra set of hooves along for the ride. Come on in.”

They do so, Nia going straight for a hug that Xander returns with a loud purr.

Kry, munching on a yache berry against the far wall, locks onto the new faces of the group immediately. “Who are you two?”

Junie perks up, fluttering forward to perch on a windowsill by the fraxure. “I’m Junie! Mail ‘mon in training.”

Kry loses interest immediately. She looks at Samir instead.

Samir straightens up, glancing at Nia in an almost panicked fashion.

“Oh!” Nia pulls out of the hug to gesture towards the skiddo. “And this is Samir. They just transferred here from another guild.”

“You battle?” Kry asks.

Samir blinks, but nods.

Kry bares her teeth in a grin. “Consider me your next opponent, then. I wanna see your battle technique after being trained by a different set of mentors.”

“That’s her way of making new friends,” Felix whisper-yells to Samir.

Samir looks uncomfortable being the center of attention, but they hesitantly nod.

“So what’s your deal?” Junie asks. “You’re only friends with people you can fight?”

Kry shrugs. “You don’t impress me much if you don’t.”

Oh. Oh, that was the wrong thing to say to Junie.

The rookidee narrows her eyes. Then, quick as a flash, she lunges, grabs the last of Kry’s berry—almost half her size—and flies out the open door.

Kry blinks, hand still curled around an invisible berry.

Felix barks a laugh, and Nia’s giggles follow shortly after. Xander and Avery look just as stunned as Kry.

Tobias grins. Okay, he can see the humor in Junie’s antics when they aren’t being directed at him.

“Hey!” Kry yells, bolting out of the room. “I am going to murder you, you ball of feathers!"

Samir looks genuinely concerned by the threat, but Felix waves them off. “She won’t actually hurt her. She knows she’d get a scolding for that.”

Tobias snorts. “You should be more worried about Kry, honestly. Junie’s a menace.”

Felix’s fluffy ears perk, the wartortle clearly delighted by that tidbit of information. “Really. Well, that’s a fun development. I’m guessing this is the same Junie you all met back in Ghatha?”

“Yeah!” Nia says. “And Samir is the skiddo we met in Fort Asra.”

“Sounds like you’ve been as busy as ever,” Avery says. The kirlia folds into a sit with unnatural grace, patting the ground for Nia and the others to join them. “Feel like sharing?”

“Ooh, yeah! You two always get into the craziest binds,” Felix says, scooting closer. “What’ve you been up to this time?”

Tobias and Nia exchange a look, then start on the (abridged) version of their trip to the human settlement. While they don’t go into detail on why exactly they visited Kaleido Bay, Nia does make sure to thank Team Shellshock for their gift of an all power-up orb.

Who knows if they would’ve been able to defeat Dismas without it.

Xander just sighs at that, giving them a tired smile. “Sometimes I don’t know who’s pushing me towards gray fur faster—you two or the cubs. I’m glad we could help, though.”

“Now I feel like we need to supply you more often to ensure your safety,” Avery says, only half-teasing. “A weekly care package, perhaps?”

“That won’t be necessary!” Nia laughs, waving the kirlia off. “Um. Probably not, at least.”

Tobias snorts. “With our track record? Wouldn’t be the worst idea.”

Even Samir has a long-suffering expression of agreement on their face, and they’ve only been with Tobias and Nia for one life-threatening scenario.

“I guess it makes sense you’d run into trouble so often when you travel as much as you two do,” Felix says. “Actually, do you mind me asking why you travel so much? I’ve been wondering. Most teams stay closer to home, especially this early in your career.”

Nia opens her mouth to answer, then hesitates. She glances at Samir, recently roped into the whole “world-saving” business, then gives Tobias an unsure, questioning look. He shrugs in response. Nia is the one with the personal quest from Giratina, and these are Nia’s friends before his. She gets to decide who she clues into the reality of their situation. He’s honestly kind of surprised she hasn’t done so already.

After an awkward moment of silence, Nia says, “It’s…actually kind of complicated. I didn’t want to tell you guys if I didn’t have to worry you, but it might be good for you to know.”

The quiet flap of wings interrupts before Nia can go any further. Junie glides causally into the room, perching on Nia’s shoulder with berry juice staining the feathers around her beak. Smugness radiates from her like a visible thing.

“Hey.”

Felix raises his brows, clearly impressed. “Hey. I see you survived Kry’s rampage?”

Junie laughs. “She’s so clumsy! I thought she’d give me a better chase, honestly. She’s even easier to rile up than Toby.”

Right on cue, Kry comes crashing into the room, breathing hard with rage in her eyes. She locks onto Junie. “You.”

“No murdering, Kry,” Felix drawls.

Kry glares at the wartortle, but then looks at Xander as if to verify.

The luxio sighs. “No murder, Kry.”

The fraxure growls. “Meet me in the arena, you little puff of air.”

Junie puts on a show of considering the idea, then smirks. “Nah.”

For a moment, Kry looks like she’s actually going to lunge. Junie snuggles closer to Nia’s neck, apparently safe in the knowledge that somebody will stop any actual assault.

“Sit down and breathe, Kry,” Avery says, somehow managing to sound sympathetic rather than patronizing.

Kry stares at the kirlia for a moment, then huffs and stalks over to the alcove in the wall that Tobias has seen her use before. She flops into it, tail tip flicking with irritation.

“Now, what were you saying, Nia?” Avery prompts.

Nia glances at Samir again, as if asking whether they’re glad Nia told them the truth about everything. Samir seems surprised to be part of this decision, but gives a nod of encouragement.

Nia takes a deep breath. “Well…it’s about the world, actually. Everything that’s been going wrong with it. Mystery dungeons, natural disasters, the legendaries, evolution. How everything is breaking down. We’re sort of…looking into how to stop it?”

Team Shellshock clearly isn’t expecting this to be the reason for Tobias and Nia’s constant traveling and danger-prone adventures. Their expressions shift from surprise to solemn interest. Even Kry turns over with a frown on her face.

So once again, Tobias and Nia explain everything. About Giratina, about the weakening dimensional border, and about their mission to find Xerneas so she can stop everything from falling apart. Tobias’ throat is dry by time they’re finished.

“Samir just learned about all of this, too,” Nia adds, glancing at the skiddo. “They’re going to come with us to the mountains to help look for Yveltal.”

Samir nods.

At that, Avery surfaces from their pool of deep thought. Surprisingly, their first question isn’t directed at Nia or Tobias, but Samir. “Apologies for being so blunt, Samir, but are you mute?”

Samir’s jaw tightens, but they nod.

“Oh! Yeah! We stopped by the archives earlier and talked to your dad!” Nia says, perking up. “We were hoping to figure out an easier way for Samir to communicate with us, so he gave us a book about whistle-based language and told us that you already know some phrases. Would you mind helping us get started on the basics while we’re still here at the guild?”

Avery mirrors Nia’s excitement. “Oh, of course not! I’m afraid I don’t know a lot, but I was curious a few years ago and dove into researching the language for a week or two. Xander figured it might be helpful to know a few non-spoken codes for missions, so we actually all know some short commands.”

Avery gives Xander a soft look, as if thankful for his support. In response, the luxio looks away with pinned ears and an embarrassed little smile. Ugh. They’re so gross together.

“We’ll only be here for a couple of days, though,” Nia says. “So we won’t have a lot of time to practice before then.”

“Oh!” Felix straightens up. “You could come with us tomorrow morning for a joint mission! If you don’t have plans already.”

“That would give us a bit of time to practice before you leave,” Avery murmurs.

Tobias blinks at them. “A joint mission?”

Even Nia looks surprised by the proposal after Andyn’s reluctance to team up last week. Xander’s team is even B-rank, a full two ranks above Team Scarlet.

“As long as you don’t slow us down, I don’t care,” Kry grumbles from her little cave.

“It’d be fun to see you two in action,” Felix says. “Especially since Nia apparently takes down steelixes in her spare time.”

Nia smiles bashfully, and Tobias rolls his eyes. He knows the wartortle flirts with everything that moves (and probably things that don’t, if a particularly shiny cascoon caught his eye), but somehow it’s even more irritating when directed at Nia.

“We were planning to go after an outlaw who was spotted nearby,” Avery says. “But he is at a high C-rank level.”

“Oh,” Nia says, the jump in difficulty clearly intimidating her. She glances at Tobias.

“Feel free to say no,” Xander stresses. “We can always pick a lower-level mission. It’s difficult enough just working with a new team member.”

Tobias fights down the urge to bristle at that comment. He has to tell himself that Xander is just being considerate of their lower rank, and maybe a bit overprotective of Nia. It’s a reasonable concern, after all, not an insult to their skills.

However, what Tobias thinks but doesn’t say is that a high C-rank mission would only be two ranks above the tasks they’re supposed to be taking at this point. Tobias is pretty sure they’ve gotten so strong so quickly in part because they keep running into (and barely surviving) situations far above their pay grade.

Tobias looks at Nia. She still seems unsure, but with her anything that isn’t an outright no usually just means she’s nervous.

Tobias’ own knee-jerk reaction is to say no to joining the other team at all, but…well, the mission with Team Evergreen was fine, other than Andyn being insufferable. And Tobias actually learned a lot while sparring with Team Shellshock last week. It would be a good opportunity for Samir to get a crash-course in whistle communication with Avery, too.

Finally, Tobias looks to Samir. The skiddo looks back, seemingly fine with whatever they decide.

“We can handle it,” Tobias decides. “What kind of outlaw are we talking about here?”

“A victreebel,” Avery answers. “He was seen yesterday near the mystery dungeon that opened up last week after the earthquake.”

“And since he’s a grass type, it’d be extra nice to have a fire ‘mon on this mission,” Felix teases, leaning over to nudge Tobias with a friendly elbow.

Oh. That sentiment makes Tobias feel…weird. Lexym Pokemon never want a fire type around.

Tobias isn’t really sure how to respond, so he just shrugs and looks down to fiddle with his scarf.

“Well, I’ll leave the whole ‘fighting bad guys’ thing to you, then,” Junie says, unbothered. “This girl ain’t built for battle. I think I’ll explore the guild some more while you’re gone. See if Asher’s rallied the kids into an army yet.”

“Coward,” Kry growls.

“Meathead,” Junie retorts.

Kry snarls. Junie bats her eyes.

“Anyways,” Nia says, clapping to get everyone’s attention. “Do you know anything about the dungeon, since he’s probably hiding in there?”

Team Shellshock goes into debriefing mode, explaining that the dungeon has taken on a rocky jungle atmosphere, with lots of grass, bug and ground types. The two teams solidify their plan to meet up in the psychic wing at dawn for an easy teleportation to the edge of the dungeon.

Afterwards, Tobias, Nia, Junie and Samir head out, seeing as evening is setting in and fatigue is visibly weighing on Team Shellshock’s shoulders. Nia suggests they grab food from the cafeteria to take back to Team Scarlet’s room for supper, then relax for the rest of the night.

They do so, settling down in their room with steaming bowls balanced atop wooden trays. Supper tonight is a hearty stew to combat the cooling fall weather, and they gobble down their bowls with a side of fresh bread and cheese.

During the meal, Nia wonders whether Samir needs their own scarf or badge before tomorrow’s mission, which makes Tobias pause. The skiddo is still wearing the same scarf they had in Fort Asra: a dark green bandana that blends into the leafy mane around their neck and covers up the scar hidden underneath.

Huh. Another similarity between them.

“Can you even get those if you aren’t officially part of a team yet?” Junie asks with a tilt of her head. “I mean, since you’re still deciding and all…”

Speaking of which—they need to talk that over, too. Which is decidedly harder to do when Samir and Junie are right there. Despite the easy atmosphere of the meal, Tobias feels a fresh ache of longing for the simplicity of when it was just him and Nia.

“They should be able to give you a scarf at least,” Tobias hedges. “It’d be nice to be able to match when we’re outside the Haven, in case we get separated.”

Samir nods, something like relief in their expression. Although Tobias has a feeling it’s more that they’re ready to leave their old scarf—and the memories attached to it—behind, rather than them being afraid of getting separated from the team.

Junie looks between Samir and Tobias. “Would we get that on the item floor? If that’s where we can grab cloaks and snowshoes and stuff, too, then me and Samir can go get those together!”

Tobias blinks, surprised by her initiative. “That…could work, yeah.”

Samir seems reluctant to be partnered off alone with someone they aren’t familiar with, but the skiddo nods before Nia can act on their discomfort. Good. If Samir and Junie take care of grabbing those items, then Tobias and Nia will have a few minutes alone to talk about Samir’s potential placement on the team.

Tobias nods his approval. “You remember which floor it is? Rainer will probably be there on his evening shift. He’s a politoed. Talk to him and he can get you a scarf and directions to Vera to pick up some snow gear.”

Junie salutes with a wing. “Aye-aye, cap’n! C’mon, Samir!”

Junie doesn’t wait for a response, flapping into the air and flying out of the room. Samir scrambles to their feet, nearly knocking over their empty bowl. They look wide-eyed between the door and Nia and Tobias.

Tobias raises a brow, tilting his head as if to say, “Go on.”

Samir hesitates for a moment longer before hurrying after Junie.

Nia giggles. “They’re quite the pair.”

Tobias snorts. “Junie certainly talks enough for the both of them.”

Then, he turns to Nia, expression falling serious. For a moment, Nia seems confused by the sudden shift in atmosphere. But then she glances at the door, and realization dawns. She sets her own empty bowl aside and turns to face him as well.

“You want to talk about Samir, I’m guessing.”

Tobias nods. “Junie gave us the chance. Might as well take it.”

“All right. Well…what do you think about them joining our team? You can tell me if you don’t want them to. This feels like a big decision, so I think it should be unanimous.”

Tobias releases a breath he hadn’t realized he’d been holding. He’s relieved that Nia’s aware of the significance of this decision and seemingly willing to take a No without complaint. “Samir…wouldn’t be the worst choice for a partner. Not by a long shot.”

“But?”

“But…” Tobias hesitates, feeling a flush come to his face. How does he phrase this without it sounding pathetic? “It would be really…different. From how it’s been so far.”

Nia makes an encouraging sound in her throat.

“I know we end up with other ‘mon more often than not,” Tobias says, slowly picking his words. “And I’ve gotten used to Junie being around so much, but…”

“But it’d still be different,” Nia summarizes. “Between us. Junie will go home eventually. Samir wouldn’t.”

Tobias nods. “It’s just…a different dynamic. You and I are partners. I lead a lot of the time, but you know how to lead if you need to. And I don’t have to think about you just following an order without thought because I’m your ‘leader.’ Samir, though…”

Nia tilts her head thoughtfully. “They have kind of been defaulting to whatever we want them to do ever since they showed up here.”

“I think they’re just desperate to make a good impression, after their last guild experience,” Tobias mutters.

“I…don’t think you’re wrong. But I think they’d put their foot down if they really thought it was important to do so. They did that in Asra, right? They tried to stop you from going down into the mines.”

“True,” Tobias admits. “And we did work well together. They do a good job balancing out some of our impulsiveness.”

Nia’s mouth twitches with a smile. “We do have a tendency to run headfirst into dangerous situations. They could help us slow down and think things through.”

A beat of silence. Tobias stares at Nia’s open expression.

“You want Samir to join. Don’t you?”

Nia shrugs. “I do. I think it’d be good for all of us, and I like them. But I don’t want them to join if you don’t want them to. We’re partners, and this is a big decision. It’s either two yeses or it’s a no.”

Tobias feels some of the tension bleed from his shoulders. Nia said the same thing not five minutes ago, but it reassures him to hear her say it again, and to hear it said so easily.

His opinion matters here.

“If we’re going to have another teammate, Samir is about the best I could ask for,” Tobias admits. “It’s just…hard, knowing things will be different without knowing exactly how they’ll be different.”

“Different is scary,” Nia agrees. She holds out a paw.

Hardly hesitating, Tobias takes it. She squeezes his hand.

“My vote is yes, but I don’t want to rush you,” Nia says. “Take your time. Samir is patient. They know this is a big decision.”

“But it’s not fair to string them along, either,” Tobias mumbles. Especially not after their last terrible partner.

“You’re not stringing them along. You just aren’t sure. It’s okay to take your time making a decision.”

Tobias takes a breath and nods. Nia waits with him in silence, her thumb stroking the back of his hand in a soothing gesture.

Tobias is no closer to a decision when Nia speaks again. “How about a trial period?”

“A trial period?”

“Yeah! We have Samir join us for now, but kind of like…on probation? They can help us while we save the world, and then if everything’s still good afterwards and we both agree on it, they can join officially!”

That…doesn’t sound too terrible. Tobias knows that it’s just another way of pushing the decision off until later, but he’s too relieved by the suggestion to care. Somehow, knowing that it isn’t quite permanent helps. “Okay. Yeah, let’s do that. Let’s run it by them and if they’re okay with that, then I am too.”

Nia beams. “Great! Thanks, Tobias.”

“For what?”

“For giving this a shot,” Nia clarifies. “I know it’s hard for you to open up to people.”

The casual familiarity of that remark makes something like embarrassment balloon in Tobias’ chest. He gives Nia’s paw one last squeeze before pulling away.

Then his eyes land on their satchel, where he’d gently set it against the wall earlier today.

Oh. This might be the last time they’re alone for a while. And Tobias does not want Junie here for an exchange that’s already likely to be mortifying.

“Close your eyes,” Tobias says, getting up and moving to rummage through their bag.

“What?”

“Trust me. I’ve got a surprise.”

And there it is, wrapped up and carefully stashed away at the bottom of the bag. Tobias pulls the paper-wrapped object out and holds it behind his back, careful with the heft of it. He feels a flutter of nervous excitement in his gut.

Nia’s head is turned his way, a confused smile on her face, but her eyes are closed. “A surprise?”

Tobias makes a quiet noise of agreement, sitting down in front of her again. “Hold out your paws.”

Nia does so. “What’s the occasion?”

Tobias pauses, something like “Thanks for being my partner” running through his head before he shoves away the mushy thought.

“No reason,” he grunts. “Just wanted to. Don’t make a big deal out of it.”

Tobias sets the gift in her paws.

Nia is clearly surprised by the weight of it. Her eyes open, and she blinks down at the package before tentatively starting to unwrap it.

Tobias holds his breath, heart pounding.

As soon as the first sheen of blue shows through, Nia gasps. She speeds up as she unwraps the rest of it, until she can cradle the glass in her paws like it’s the greatest treasure in the universe.

“The sculpture from Kaleido Bay?” Nia murmurs. She looks up to stare at Tobias.

“Uh. Yeah. You seemed like you really liked it? And it’s not like I’m doing anything important with my personal funds, so—"

Nia’s lip wobbles as tears fill her eyes.

For a heartbeat, Tobias panics. She said she liked it, right? Did he misunderstand? He’s already calculating how quickly he can rip it from her paws and chuck it out the window.

But then Nia’s gently setting the statue aside and yanking him into a hug.

Oh.

Slowly, Tobias returns the gesture, flushing. He always forgets how soft Nia’s fur is, cool against his warmer skin. “Does that mean you like it?”

“I love it! You didn’t have to do that.”

Tobias huffs a laugh. There are obvious tears in her voice. “I mean, I can always send it back?”

“Don’t you dare,” Nia mumbles, sniffling into his shoulder. “This is the first decoration we even have for this place.”

Tobias laughs, and Nia pulls away, keeping her paws on his arms as she smiles at him, soft and sweet. “Thank you, Tobias. Really. You’re the best.”

Tobias can’t handle her looking at him like that, so he coughs and reaches to pick up the statue, pretending to check it for cracks. Luckily, it looks like it survived the journey perfectly intact, delicate flame-likes wisps arcing up without flaw.

Nia’s smile turns confused as she takes it back from him. “Wait, but you didn’t buy it while we were at the stand. When did you—" Nia cuts herself off. “When you went back to get Rico’s name?!”

Tobias laughs. “Yeah, his name’s not Rico.”

Nia looks somewhere between scandalized and delighted, and settles on breaking into laughter. It’s unfortunate that she has to stifle it a moment later to spare her ribs, but even through the pain the giant smile never leaves her face. Her ruby eyes linger on the statue in her paws, soft and admiring.

“Thank you,” she whispers again.

Tobias feels the heat return to his face. He shrugs.

He basks in a quiet wash of pride for the next few minutes, as Nia babbles on about where to display the glass piece. Eventually, she settles on the bookcase set against the wall, still woefully empty. The statue is placed in the center of the top shelf, an eye-catching blue against the warm wood. It glistens in the dying sunset.

Shortly after, Junie and Samir make their return. Junie flutters into the room unhindered, but Samir follows with a bulging sack slung over their shoulders.

“We’re back!”

“Took you a while,” Tobias notes.

Junie laughs as she settles onto the bed frame. “Samir took forever finding the perfect cloak for themself and snowshoes for you guys. The measurements couldn’t be off by even a centimeter.”

Samir gives Junie a dry look as they sling the sack to the ground, tugging it open so Tobias and Nia can see the wooden snowshoes and snowcloak stuffed inside. Tobias knows that expression well, though. Junie is growing on Samir, much as they might not want to admit it.

The skiddo also has a scarlet red scarf tied around their neck, replacing their old green one. Something about seeing their team’s color on a new ‘mon does make Tobias feel proud, like Samir joining permanently might not be so scary. This could be their third team member one day. They are their third team member, at least for now.

Tobias tears his gaze away to examine Samir’s haul. Nia is already oohing and ahhing over the construction of the little snowshoes brought back for them. They are impressive, the outer ring made with some kind of hardwood, and the inner “webbing” a crisscross of reinforced string shot. A similar string shot strap, thicker and wider, is attached to the side of the shoes to secure them onto their feet. They’re well-made, as far as Tobias can tell, but that’s not a surprise with Vera in charge of accessories at the guild. The leavanny is a professional.

While they’re busy examining their new gear, Junie spots Nia’s gift. She flies closer to get a better look at it.

“Whoa, where’d this come from?”

Nia eagerly bounds over to show it off. “Tobias got it for me in Kaleido Bay! He surprised me with it while you guys were gone. There was this little glassblowing shop there and—"

Tobias is expecting the smug, irritating look Junie sends him as Nia rambles on. As the riolu picks up the statue to show to Samir, Junie flutters on top of the bed post closest to Tobias, and leans over to whisper, “Nice work, Romeo. That was actually pretty sweet.”

Tobias doesn’t know what a ‘Romeo’ is, but he catches the implication and bats her off the post so she bounces off the nest—the bed—with a shriek of laughter.

Thankfully, Nia can’t gush about the gift forever, though Tobias keeps catching her giving it happy glances even after putting it back. Each time, something warm blossoms in his chest all over again, pleased with his impulsive decision even if his personal funds are nearly empty.

Worth it.

As they all settle in for the night, Nia is the first to approach the lingering question in the air.

“Oh! Samir, we talked while you two were out. About you joining the team.”

Samir stops in the middle of unpacking their own bag, and despite the way they clearly try to appear casual, Tobias can’t help thinking they look like they’re bracing themself for a blow.

“If you’re all right with it, we’d like to do a sort of, um…trial run?” Nia says. “We loved working with you in Fort Asra! But we just want to make sure we’re a good fit before deciding for sure. We were thinking we’d see how the trip to Silenfroar and the whole world-saving business shakes out, then talk. Are you all right with that?”

Samir, thankfully, just looks relieved by her answer, as if they were expecting an outright no. They give her a nod, then glance at Tobias.

“It’s a big decision, adding a new team member,” Tobias says. “But you’re definitely not the worst choice. You’re very bearable compared to some ‘mon.”

Tobias gives Junie a pointed look, and she sticks her tongue out at him in return.

“Yeah!” Nia says. “Welcome to the team, Samir. Patent pending, I guess. The scarf looks good on you!”

Samir straightens up, giving her a determined nod. As if to say they won’t regret giving Samir a chance.

From there, the rest of the evening is peaceful. Tobias digs out his guitar and rests against the side of their new bed as he picks idly at chords, trying not to feel self-conscious when both Junie and Samir watch with open curiosity.

Junie doesn’t comment, though, instead following Nia’s lead and sprawling across their plush scarlet rug with the book they’d picked up earlier in the archive. Together, the three of them flip through the pages of clicks and whistles, and start practicing basic phrases.

Yes and No are easy when you can see Samir nod or shake their head, but it’s good to have verbal cues ready, too, in case they’re in a situation where they can’t actually see the skiddo. The book’s translation for No is a simple high note whistle that dips into a low note, and Yes is the same but with the two notes reversed. Junie picks it up immediately, while Nia and Samir struggle with molding their mouths into the right shapes.

Samir seems a little frustrated and embarrassed after their first few attempts, but Nia and Junie laugh it off, the little rookidee making fun of Nia for spitting everywhere until even Samir is fighting off a smile.

Tobias listens as he plucks at his guitar, committing the whistles to memory and silently practicing the mouth shapes alongside them.

That’s how they pass the evening until the first yawn floats across the room. Junie takes that as her cue to call it a night and dives into their new nest, using her beak to burrow underneath the blankets and pop out on the other side with her little face peeking out.

Nia follows shortly after, pulling Tobias with her. It takes a bit of convincing, but even Samir is dragged into the bed, and altogether it’s just large enough to fit the four of them. Nia and Tobias curl up close side-by-side, with Junie nesting in the crook of Nia’s neck. Samir shyly scoots to the edge of the bed, leaving a bit of space between them and the rest of the team, but they seem comfortable enough, if not a bit awkward.

As soon as Tobias lies down, he gets it. This is the comfiest thing he’s ever laid on in his life.

He’s never going to be able to go back to a regular nest after this, is he?

“Oh my God, this is the best thing ever,” Junie mumbles, sounding half-asleep already. “I’m gonna marry Hazel.”

Nia barks a laugh. “She’s, like, a grandma, Junie! And already married!”

“Then grandpa better watch his back or I’m gonna steal his woman.”

Nia snickers as Tobias snorts. Samir seems unsure how to respond, but Tobias can see them slowly relaxing in their little corner of the bed.

Junie asks Nia to tell her more about Hazel and her family, so Nia whispers about the raichu living in Afon’s Cap. Tobias listens with half-lidded eyes and takes in the darkness of the room, lit only by his tail flame and the moonlight filtering through the window’s leaf curtain. All around him, he’s surrounded by softness and warmth.

Tobias drifts off quicker than he has in a long, long time.

[valyrfia]

The Sainz Effect on Media: What the Hell is Going On?

Last weekend, Carlos Sainz Jr. won the 2024 Australian GP, and subsequently, almost every single F1 media outlet has seemingly lost their minds. From the aramco power rankings giving him a perfect score (despite Max not getting one for a grand slam last weekend), to motorsport.com acting like a fan account, everyone is tripping over themselves to sing his praises.

F1 is a complex sport, it requires several different aspects to even get a car moving, even more to make it competitive, and even more to enable a championship fight. From driver line-up, to aero, from international politics, to tyre deg. There's no other sport like it. To truly be an expert in Formula 1, you have to have knowledge of how a track works, an understanding of combustion engines and aerodynamics, a grasp of interpersonal and sports psychologies, and a sense of international relations. This is why, even more so than any other sport, good journalism is vital to the sport's ecosystem. No one person can be expected to be an expert in all these areas, you need a team of people who are willing to pool their knowledge and resources before coming up with conclusions to disseminate to their audience.

But media also likes narrative, and media likes an underdog, that is undeniable. And you can create an excellent underdog narrative with Carlos. From losing his seat despite his teammate keeping his, to him having to get his appendix out in Jeddah, the circumstances are there to set up an underdog narrative. But the crux of the issue is this: anyone with any sort of F1 wheel knowledge understands why Charles was kept over Carlos (a better driver even in a car built away from his driving style, who is revered almost as a messiah figure amongst the traditional fans of the team), why Sir Lewis Hamilton is a much more desirable asset to a top team than Carlos (7x world champion, who brings in a massive draw for talent that will far outlast his stint with Ferrari). So what do you do with these characters who don't match the narrative that you want to push?

Simple. You discredit them.

Make no mistake, this is what we're seeing across every major F1 news outlet in the past week. A plain journalistic choice to choose narrative over integrity. There's all sorts of rumours whizzing around as to why that could be: from possible covert payouts from Sainz Sr, to possible misogyny towards Leclerc fans to pundits simply not being bothered to do their research. But the why of it, although important, doesn't matter nearly as much as the fact that however you look at it, these journalists are failing the sport they claim to love. What's even worse, is that it takes a simple glance at numbers to tell us that these media outlets are digging themselves a hole, and are going to have to backtrack or try and excuse their belief in this narrative in the coming months.

Let's take a common line that Sky Sports like to use as an example, "Carlos Sainz is driving for himself. How incredible would it be if Carlos could compete for the championship this year." Max Verstappen will likely win the championship this year, there are no ifs and buts about it. Red Bull are still developmentally leaps ahead of their rivals, and even if Ferrari were to catch them, Max is still at the wheel. And if Ferrari were to catch them, why would Ferrari prioritise Carlos over Charles? The only driver who has been proven to be able to beat Max in his current form at Red Bull on pure pace is Charles Leclerc, which he achieved in Las Vegas last year, and would've gone on to take the win at that same race if not for the safety car. The most likely championship fight this year is Max Verstappen vs. Charles Leclerc, and that's hinging on Ferrari matching Red Bull development. This outcome is blindingly obvious to anyone who knows how this sport works, and yet the current media angle seems to not be to explain how the sport works to the general public, but rather to double down on narratives that are certainly going to be proven incorrect in a manner of months, if not weeks.

Let's look at another common angle the media seem to like to take, "You have to ask, did Ferrari make a mistake swapping out Carlos Sainz for Lewis Hamilton?". Now, if you've been even near a TV showing F1 in the past ten years, it's pretty obvious this answer is of course not. Lewis Hamilton is likely the greatest driver of all time, his name in a lot of cases outshines the sport itself. No other driver on this grid even comes close to his level of acclaim. This reason alone is enough for Ferrari to sign him. Ferrari has not won a championship in close to two decades, the best and brightest engineers want to be working where they know the results are going to come from, and right now, as a stellar engineer, Red Bull or Mercedes or even McLaren would be a choice over Ferrari, which has the added hurdle of moving to Maranello (considering nearly all the other teams are located in the Midlands in the United Kingdom). Acclaim aside, Lewis Hamilton is still a very impressive driver. P3 in the championship last year to a Red Bull 1-2 is not something to be taken lightly, considering his teammate finished in P8 in the same car with only one more retirement. It does make pure racing sense to sign him over Carlos, who finished in P7, especially since Ferrari have an up and coming talent in Ollie Bearman, and what they need is someone with experience to fill that gap until Ollie can make it to Ferrari, and will likely happily step aside when that time comes at some point in the next five years.

However, has there been a single major F1 news outlet calmly and rationally explaining this thought process for those who may enjoy the sport but are not experts? No. Instead, what we get is Sainz sensationalism, and bias so explicit it tips right over into unprofessional. From The Race saying that a Sainz/Leclerc civil war is Leclerc fan hysteria, despite their own outlet running an article just months ago about tensions in Ferrari, to motorsport.com creating a CV for Carlos, and then proceeding to harass fans who ask why they are so keen to ignore facts. Every single F1 outlet seems to have lost their minds.

The sad thing is this will only backfire massively on Carlos himself. Charles will outperform Carlos, every metric from the past year indicates so. Ferrari may be in the running for the WCC by the midpoint of the season, but Carlos's win will fade into distant memory long before we reach Spa, and the average enjoyer will look back on all this crazy media hype and go "hm, well he didn't live up to expectations did he? He was massively overrated." And this too, will be the fault of F1 media.

In conclusion, F1 media sensationalism has failed Charles, Lewis, and Max, it will fail Carlos in the coming months, but most of all, it has failed the fans of the sport, by choosing to focus on far-fetched narratives, rather than deliver proper journalism and build equally compelling narratives out of the data on the table. It highlights a lack of skill and awareness, which threatens the entire ecosystem of the sport that we all know and love.

[greenflowerceo]

hii im suuper late to my own week ik (i'll post the rest of the days from time to time, college applications were a pain </3 but i've got most of it down

This piece is a redraw of my very first post ! This has been a wip since the start of the year so my art style unsurprisingly changed a bunch as i tweaked the lines and colors. it's not the best but it's looking as good as it can be!

as for the zine, people are free to draw up pieces for the week up until the end of september and we can compile it all together! it's not really the usual zine format but who knows.. we can maybe try to figure out a way to formally start a more structured zine project for these two

Anyway! I've decided to dedicate my greenflower week posts to my headcanons I've made up for them from the past 4 years.. I figured you guys could take a peek into my brain since I haven't really been good at that unless you catch me in a vc :") there's a buncha hcs and old ass art i never posted finally unearthing under the cut if you wanna take a peek

So, first thing: Body headcanons..

i took super long getting what i want with this waay back when I started posting cause I was still figuring out a lot with my art. i couldn't get in good details/features that would properly differentiate them or make them fun to draw. I wasn't striving to be really innovative with the designs or anything, I just wanted them to feel like characters I like looking at and thinking about

finally, i'm somewhat able to settle on these as of right now! It will most likely update as the time passes and my art changes, but this is what I got!

basically the main idea is that i wanted Lloyd to be bulkier but sharper. grew up fast and has all these edges, but then you get to know him and he's just a big ol dork. Mostly wears loose-fitting clothes that hides his figure, but he's quite built underneath

Brad's a lil taller and pretty lanky. my art style may not be able to show that properly but lloyd can snap him in half <3 he also seems hella chill but that's probably cause he got balls of steel after living through a million ninjago invasions

This thing below is an old outfit concept I have for a project that I've been working on. does not reflect my current headcanons with his physical appearance but i do like his clothes

I think he loves his role as the green ninja, saving the world and such. it came with lots of baggage and reflection but i do promise that he enjoys it for the most part. I think him wearing green is kind of like wearing work clothes so he tends to avoid it on days when he's free to keep from being too ready to jump into ninja mode

i do tend to keep him in green though cause the fandom sure does love their color-coded ninja

anyway .. that's about most of what i've got for this that looks good enough to post, so here's a bunch of other doodles/sketches, both old and new ToT

oh and a quick comic too cause why not

one more: bonus greenflower yuri

thanks for coming to read this far :) there'll be more soon

[morganwrites12672]

How many?

Dean Winchester x Reader

Summary: Dean asks how many tattoos you have (request).

Rating: PG-14

A/N: Thank you so much for the request!

▣▣▣▣▣▣▣▣▣▣▣▣▣▣▣▣▣▣▣▣▣▣▣▣▣▣▣▣▣▣▣

It was late at night. Y/n and Dean had just wandered back to her motel room. The bar had grown boring after a few beers. With nothing better to do (working cases in small towns really did suck sometimes), they had decided on her motel room. Dean knew that Sam was probably fast asleep in the motel that the two brothers were sharing.

Dean's eyes grazed along your exposed arms, taking notice of the tattoos littering your body. He had always found them beautiful. Especially because they were often hidden for cases. Not many federal agents had that many tats. That's what made it so hard for Dean to stop staring at the intricate lines of ink along your body. Each tattoo told a story, some just for fun though. He admired them all the same.

Y/n raised an eyebrow as she noticed Dean staring. There had ways been a little bit of underlying tension between the two. They had shared heated looks before, nothing more despite the obvious chemistry between the two. It would never work out. Or, that's what Dean and Y/n thought. That's the reason nothing had ever happened. However, they had both had too many beers to be thinking reasonably.

"See something you like?" She asked, her voice holding a teasing tone.

Deans eyes quickly snapped up to her face. She had interrupted his focus. He sighed, his cheeks growing slightly warm. He hadn't expected for her to notice. The alcohol had clouded both of their brains. Just enough for something more.

In only a few quick seconds Dean had stood, and crossed the room. Y/n quickly stood in front of him. Deans eyes traced over the art covering her body, trying to figure out how many she had.

There was a certain type of electricity in the air. Neither Dean nor Y/n were sober enough to make the smart decision. Neither one of them were sober enough to say goodnight. No, they were both far from it. Years of suppressed feelings and lingering stares had come bubbling up.

"How many do you have?" He asked, his gaze hastily taking in an estimate. There were many varied sizes of the tattoos littering her body. And that was just for the ones currently visible.

A sly smirk crossed her face as she replied, "Why don't you find out?" She said, her face only inches from his. She wanted him to. She wanted him to slowly undress her, and figure out just how many tattoos she had hiding beneath her clothes. The thought made her cheeks flush even more.

Dean quickly parted his lips to reply, but whatever snarky reply he had been about to say died on his tongue as he took in her flushed cheeks and desperate eyes. His hand went to her cheek. Their eyes met once again.

"You'd like that, wouldn't you?" He asked, his voice husky. He slowly leaned down and their lips met. It was like every single second of built up tension between the two exploded.

Y/n closed her eyes as she sighed into the kiss. Her arms wrapped around Dean's neck, her fingers threaded through his hair as the kiss deepened. His tongue traced her bottom lip, begging for entrance.

Before she knew it, Dean had laid her against the bed and began unbuttoning her shirt. She could see the raw desire in his eyes. He wanted a hell of a lot more than figuring out how many tattoos she had. He had other intentions. They both did.

▣▣▣▣▣▣▣▣▣▣▣▣▣▣▣▣▣▣▣▣▣▣▣▣▣▣▣▣▣▣▣

A/N: I had so much fun writing this request! Don't forget to comment and reblog! And, as always, my requests are open!

[6okuto]

GOOD WITH KIDS

ushijima, suna, hinata, akaashi, sakusa, kita, atsumu with their kids ^__< reader is never mentioned so u can imagine them as single dads if u'd like 🫶

USHIJIMA’s tall, to say the least. his daughter finds this incredibly beneficial to her every few days. all she has to do is walk up to his spot on the couch and look a little fidgety, biting her bottom lip, for wakatoshi to smile. “is something high up again?” “yeah…the cereal’s on the top shelf again! i didn’t put it there last time though, i swear.” she furrows her brows as her dad stands up to his full height. “well, let’s get it down from there together, then.” he easily pulls her into his arms and she giggles, maneuvering her way to sit on his shoulders with practiced ease. “make sure not to bump your head,” he reminds her, slowly walking to the kitchen. “i won’t!” she carefully holds onto him, and wakatoshi’s glad she hasn’t figured out he’s the one who’s been putting things high up whenever she’s finished with them.

SUNA holds his daughter's hand, his phone with two tickets to the barbie movie open in the hand that's free. they had gotten ready together—rintarou had let her put her cutest pink clips into his hair, and made sure to get a shirt that matched the shade of her dress. he took her to buy a whole outfit for the occasion, from the dress to her bag to her shoes. the pair had taken photos and videos, one currently posted on his story that had her face out of view, but bow in her hair shown off. “can i get the barbie popcorn combo, too?” she asks in line. “yeah, you wanna get a photo with the barbie cut-out after?” “yeah, yeah! she looks so pretty.” rintarou hums and lets her swing their arms back and forth, careful not to hit the people around them. “i think you’re even prettier, though.”

HINATA has always supported his son in decorating and expressing himself, which is why when he wanted to decorate his room, he couldn’t say no, even with his lack of artistic skills. instead, they worked together to fill online shopping carts with different merchandise and furniture and got temporary wallpaper that would fit the bill. a couple of weeks later, and now shoyo finds himself sitting on the ground setting up a new desk, surrounded by boxes and different figures that will hopefully fill the bookshelf they built a few hours earlier. “dad?” “yeah?” “do you think i could get some of your team’s stuff, too?” “my—” shoyo fumbles with the screw in his hand in shock. “like, like your shirt? or something signed by uncle bokuto?” the question could make shoyo cry, he thinks, and he makes a noise of excited agreement. “of course you can! do you want to check my old high school stuff, too?”

AKAASHI’s a fan of thunderstorms. his daughter on the other hand, is not. so he’s made it a little game. they’re sitting together in a blanket fort, legs touching and hands on their lap.she fidgets slightly at the sight of the lightning, but starts to count out loud for the thunder. “one, two, three, four…” keiji joins and they watch each other carefully. at eight, the thunder rumbles the house and his daughter reaches over—not for a hug or comfort, but to try tickling her dad who does the same. she squeals as he reaches for her sides, and keiji laughs as she, maybe a little aggressively, tickles him back. when he picks her up to sit her on his lap, she yells, “no fair! that’s cheating!” between giggles and yelps. in mock indignation, keiji replies, “cheating? i would never do that.” yet stops anyway. his daughter jokingly huffs. “i’m gonna get you next time.”

SAKUSA’s eyes widen as his daughter runs up to him, only to hide behind his legs. instinctively, his hand moves to hold and comfort her as he scans the park for what could have scared her. it’s when two large dogs bark that he spots them playing with each other and the dots click. he turns to squat in front of his daughter, who looks at him with wide eyes and a pout that make his heart clench. “dad,” she says softly. “hm?” “do you think i could play with the dogs? they’re…big.” she sends a pointed look to other kids walking up to the owner and their pets. kiyoomi hums again and gently rubs her shoulder. “ it looks like they’re being nice with the other kids, right? why don’t we go together and ask?” his daughter nods and grabs his hand, and kiyoomi’s eyes crinkle as he smiles before walking over with her.

KITA’s son is adamant that his bed is the comfiest in the house. shinsuke’s happy to hear this, of course, even if he’d have to personally disagree. he’s about to rest in your own bedroom, when his son catches up to him in the hall. “do you wanna try my bed?” shinsuke blinks, processing the question. he laughs a little. “i don’t think i’d fit properly.” “we can both fit!” and before he can object, his son is pulling him into his bedroom and onto the bed that was definitely not made for the two of them to fit. but something tells him that he won’t get out of this easily, so he lets out a breathy laugh before crawling in, leaving space for his son to curl in with him. his back will probably hurt a little when he wakes up, but he pulls the blanket over the both of them anyway with a soft smile on his face.

ATSUMU rolls up his sleeves and pretends to crack his knuckles. “y’ready?” “yeah!” his son says with determination. the carnival game worker counts down, and they both get ready with their basketballs. the grand prize, the largest teddy bear, was locked behind a rigged basketball hoop, but the two of them refused to give up. and apparently atsumu’s mind is on another level right now, honed in as he succeeds with most of his tosses, and gets the last needed shot for that damned bear. “dad! you did it!” his son cheers and excitedly pulls on his arm. “ha! and who said i couldn’t play a sport other than volleyball?” “...no one?” “aw, come on,” atsumu whines, “work with me here!” the both of them are play-fighting when the worker manages to get the bear down and hand it to them. there’s huge grins on both of their faces as they shout a thanks. “can i put it in my room?” “and hide this success? it’s goin’ in the living room.” “you can do that?” “majority of the family says yes, we can do anythin’.”

@devilgirlcrybabiey @lordbugs @smiithys @xfangirl-trashx @passionateuchiha @scaramouchesfootstool @fifteenshadesofpinkk @lotus-sukimono @chloee0x0 @kenmaslov3r @bakugosgrenade @semifilms @sakusasdirtyragdoll @dai-tsukki-desu @Thathoneybee3 @momoewn @aintgeluh @dazaisfavgf @simpforerenn @crystal-lilac @vhenis @omiigad @kur0-kawa @semispilledcoffee @ksyhmm @idontlikeyourjob @sparrowb3nscloset @awkwardaardvarkforever @rory-cakes @prblmtic @dimslover @kuroaka @vampyrkookie @sunaslay @the-midnightskies @h0n3ysgh0st @lackey-laufeyson @bontensbabygirl @dira333 @Kamukayakmonyet @danyisapingu @isentsworld @lilithlunas @anime-ships-gay @todorokiskitten @kellesvt @scill-a @curiouslilbeast @fiona782 @cvhenia @mitskiologist

[lv9su]

K. Bakugo x reader

Reader has a quirk called chaos control. Your quirk and storyline is based off the character shadow from the sonic universe but ofc not the exact same.

PART 3, THE LEAGUE KIDNAPS BAKUGO, THE BATTLE FOR YOU.

Weeks had passed since you’d joined the league, you grew close with all the members - specifically toga, dabi and twice. Shigiraki admired you from afar and was hostile in the beginning, most likely because he was jealous AFO found someone stronger than him.. but soon enough he realised you were just as vengeful at this world as him.

He saw himself in you, and took pity.

This was more people than you’d ever been close to, it was hard opening up but they got to you. You did however begin to get suspicious of the cause of the group, would sonic or yoishi be happy of the crowd you surrounded yourself with.. AFO told you they would, and he told you that you’d get your revenge but everyday it felt more and more like you were being used for his dirty work. He’d disappear for periods of time and come back when he needed you.

It made you begin to grow distant. Debate wether or not you should just do your own thing.

Now these were the kind of thoughts you were trying to get rid of training in the secluded gym AFO made for dabi and twice, shigaraki comes in,

“Quit running around Shadow. We got a mission.” He stares at you, wondering how you weren’t out of breath after the five minutes he spent watching before speaking.

“Hm? What’s the mission?” You hover for a moment before stepping to the ground. The redness in your eyes fading back to your normal eye colour.

“We’re ..getting new recruits.” He smirked a glimpse of his eye showing through his overgrown hair, the glint in his eyes being deceiving. But what would you do, say no?

He left after that, and after making some of your own little adjustments you joined.

What did he mean by new recruits? Regardless you went through kurogiri’s warp with the rest of them and found yourself at ..a camp?

—

While figuring out the ‘new recruit’ situation you were separated from the league, you heard fights breaking out everywhere around you, but this wasn’t what you wanted.

Teleporting to somewhere on the ground you saw him again ‘bakugo’.

“You.” He sneered, making you roll your eyes.

You began fighting, neither of you backing down or slowing down. He was beat by you once, and he wouldn’t be again. Or so he told himself.

Currently you were in the air and he was blasting upward, once he caught up he wouldn’t stay for long because he can’t fly like you, so he pulled your move. He grabbed you by the neck slamming you down to the ground,

“Look at you. Making the same choice as me, revenge? For making you look weak?” You glare, riling him up with every word you spoke.

“IM NOTHING LIKE YOU.” He glared right back, tightening the grip he had on you. You flipped round still in the air, he once more collided with throwing, breaking it again from the force.

He got back up as soon as he could, “QUIT HIDING AND FACE ME COWARD.”

You teleported in front of him, quite literally ready to face him as your arm swings to punch the minute you blip in front of him. Using your built up energy you fought with your chaos power and he fought with his quirk. Neither of you were going to give up.

After continuing round for round as always you had the upper hand, you floated before him as he struggled to get off the ground.

“Why are you alone? Where are your friends? What kind of hero abandons their friends to pursue revenge?” You spoke, voice laced with venom and chaos swirling all around you. He charged up, not being able to hear anything else you had to say.

“YOU DONT KNOW SHIT.” He grabbed you by your clothing and held sparks above you, in that moment you were ready, you felt like he could kill you, the anger in his eyes. Though he saw this, the way your face softened almost like you wanted to be hurt. To die? And what if you did, what was there to live for anyway right?

He kissed his teeth and let go of you, “what are you doing? You won. Take your revenge.” You asked, watching him take a step back and look away.

“There are no winners with revenge …whatever your name is.” He rolled his eyes, and then sat on the edge of the cliff.

Once you realised he was being genuine, you thought about what he said, and he was right. Neither of them would want you doing this.

“Y/n. And your ..bakugo?” You said solemnly as you sat by him. At a perfect distance.

“Why are you with them assholes? It doesn’t make sense you just show up out of nowhere and decide that you’ll just waste your quirk with those low lives? Hm? Doesn’t make any god damned sense.” He asked clearly agitated. Not denying it confirming his name, so you assume you got it right.

“THERE HE IS!!” A group of people asked. But they were clearly followed by the league. Within seconds everything turned white and you wouldn’t wake up till hours later.

—

You woke up in your room to find the door locked. Seriously I mean, you can teleport, there was no point in locking the door.

But soon enough it was opened ..or blown, when you felt the walls of the hideout collapse. You’d only been to two of the other hideouts and all of them seemed a lot bigger than you’d imagine. Everyone had a room, most had a bar for the front to make it seem like an old abandoned bar, and one had a gym - toga told you twice begged and did double missions to get it but only used it once.

But then you could atleast train in it alone, in your spare time. With all the energy that you had you found just training, running/gliding and practicing combat was another way to learn control.

Back to the point.

“SSSSMASHHHH!” An exaggerated scream came through.

“Young bakugo.. your safe now.” The voice said again,

“All might?! I didn’t need your help anyway.” He scoffed and began looking around. As soon as you entered the area now covered in rubble and debri, his eyes landed on you.

“Shadow. Come with us, give UA a chance. This is no life for-” the man you learned to be ‘all might’ spoke in a rushed manner as bakugo began to fight off members of the league around you.

“Why won’t you just. leave. me. alone.” You said, staying put. You didn’t know how to react, with everyone putting different ideas and views in your head it was beginning to make you think you should be alone - then that way you wouldn’t have to worry about dissapointing either side or atleast having to pick one.

“STOP BEING A HARDASS Y/N.” Bakugo shouted, grabbing your wrist.

“Y/n.” All might whispered to himself, him and the pros couldn’t find out who you were for the few weeks you were, well alive - but bakugo found out in one night?

He began to run from what became the battlefield,

“Your coming with me.” He begins pulling you as he runs, spotting his ..friends in the air. They came to rescue him. It left you speechless, you couldn’t even save your own friends, how would they expect you to join them.

“I can’t.” You said, clearly unsure and avoiding eye contact.

“DONT YOU DARE. SHADOW KILL HIM.” Shigaraki shouted reaching a hand out as he ran toward the both of you.

“Your clearly not a villain your just confused. You don’t belong with them. If you come with us you won’t be used as a tool anymore.” He shouted, somehow convincingly.

“You don’t even know me, why do you care?” You shouted back, tilting your head, trying to make sense of this it was all still so new to you. He was a stranger to you, you knew nothing about him. As you were to him, except you intrigued him, the moment he laid eyes on you he felt it. You were different.

“We’re goin’ up on three.” He rolled his eyes, still holding you, pulling you close as he blasted you both into the air.

He counted down, you threw one arm around him, and both of you when you got to the “three.” You both blasted into the air, your chaos blast causing a bigger explosion than his.

He looked down at you as you continued going up and smirked, locking his red eyes with your glowing red ones.

“Show off.”

—

We’re going good in part 4😜

Taglist :

@thesimpybitch

@sweetlike-sugarplum

@postsarenerverdaily

@pikachuzhc

@mazzbarnes

[remidiy]

We Don't Gatekeep Art Resources | A Comprehensive List

Here's a list of some of the tools/sites I currently use or have used previously for works/studies. I'll separate it into Software/Utility, Reference, and 'Other' which will be just general things that could help you map out things for your experience with art. **[Free highlighted in pink, paid highlighted in green. Blue is variable/both. Prices Listed in USD]**

Software/Utility:

2D

Krita Painting app (PC) (my main digital art software on PC for 5+ yrs)

Clip Studio Paint [PC] [CSP 2.0+ allows for 3d modelling within the painting app and a lot of other cool features] [apparently allows up to 6 months free trial]

Procreate (12.99) [iPad/iPad Pro] (the GOAT)

Artstudio Pro [iPad/iPad Pro] (An alternative to Procreate if you enjoy the more traditional art app layout) -- I find this app handy when Procreate is lacking a feature I need, or vice versa. (you can easily transfer files between the two, but keep in mind Procreate's layer limit)

2D "Collaborative Painting/Drawing apps"

Magma Studio

Drawpile

Discord Whiteboard

Gartic Phone (Pretty decent for 2d animation practice, but has a hard limit on frames)

3D

Blender [3D Modelling, Sculpting + Layout] (PC)

Sculptris [PC] (it's an old unsupported version of Zbrush, but can help to get ideas out, and functions better than browser sculpting apps

Nomad Sculpt [iPad/iPad Pro] ($20) Works pretty well if you prefer a mobile setup, but it is a bit intense on the battery life and takes some getting used to

References + Study

Magic Poser [ PC and Mobile ] Has both free and paid versions, I've made do with just the lite version before

Artpose ($9.99) [Iphone + Steam]

Head Model Studio [IPhone] A 3D head, with both a basic blockout version for angles, and a paid version with more detail

Cubebrush [simply search "[keyword] pose reference pack"], they usually have good results + they frequently have sales!

Line of Action [Good for Gesture practice + daily sketching], also has other resources built in.

Quickposes Similar to Line of action, more geared toward anatomy

Drawabox | Perspective Fundamentals Improvement modules (Suggested by @taffingspy )

Sketchfab, this skull in particular is useful, but there is other models that can help you study anatomy as well.

Pinterest can be good, you just have to be careful, usually you're better off just finding reference pack if you have the money, sometimes certain creators have freebies as well

Artstation Marketplace can be decent [make sure to turn on the Aye-Eye filter so it doesn't feed you trash], a colleague of mine recommended this head model for practicing facial blocking, there is also this free version without lighting.

Local Art Museums [Unironically good for studying old "master work" if you're into that, or even just getting some inspiration]

Brushes + Other Useful software:

I personally have used both of these brush packs before making my own

(I actually don't know how to share my daily brush set because I frequently switch between Krita, Procreate, and ASP, but once I figure that out I'll be sure to do that lol)

Marc Brunet's Starter brush pack [Technically free but supporting him for this if you like it is ideal, there's some good brushes]

Dave Greco Brush Pack [$3]

Gumroad in general is a good place to find brushes and art resources. *Note; for Krita specifically, brush packs are a bit weird, so it may require you to find different packs, or import them in a particular way

PureRef [PC] - Reference Compiler/Moodboarding

VizRef ($3.99) [iPad] - Moodboarding/Reference Compiler

Artist Youtubers/Creators that helped me improve/guide me along as a self-taught artist from when I first started digital art to where I am today:

Proko

Marco Bucci

Sinix Design

Sycra

Hardy Fowler

Lighting Mentor

Winged Canvas

Moderndayjames

Swatches

Chommang_drawing

Marc Brunet (YTartschool)

+ Observing a lot of speedpaint art by people whose work I enjoy on social media/youtube, trying to dissect their processes

If you've gotten this far, first of all, congrats, you can read a lot, and second of all, thank you for reading and I hope this helps! I'll continue to come back and update this if I find any new resources in the future, or if my processes change :)

Much Love,

-Remidiy

[yanderepuck]

Okay. Theory time. Again @lulu-the-smol-floof and I never shut up about this shit. Spoilers for jp will probably happen below fyi

So lulu and I are always trying to figure out the timeline.

So here is what we are working with

Current time period: 1897(give or take a year)

Leonardo born: 1452

Galileo born: 1564; 'died' 1642

Comte born: ???

Vlad born: ???

What we know with Vlad and Comte is that they knew each other as little kids, meaning they are roughly the same age. And that Comte knew Vlad when his parents were still alive. Judging by his child sprite I want to say Vlad was no older than 8 when his parents died.

I like to think that Comte and Vlad really aren't that old bc it sounds funny. However. I'm reading Comte's route and get to this

Vlad thinks it's possibly been a few millennia. Comte says a few centuries.

Now you're probably wondering what Galileo has to do with this. Well that's bc Vlad stole the door blueprints from him.

So yes. Vlad and Comte could have known each other for centuries, but they haven't been separated for centuries because they only separated after the door.

It's possible that Galileo didn't destroy all the blue prints to the door so Vlad somehow found them, that already puts us at about 1590ish if we say Galileo was in his 30s when he made them.

Then I HIGHLY doubt they were able to make this door super easily. They probably had to hand make parts for it, they couldn't just go to a shop or ask a carpenter/blacksmith to make all these random ass parts. Comte has the VERY FIRST door, which is why it's so faulty. Plus Comte has the mansion built so let's just say a rough 10 years because they are getting this door working, and I feel like that is generous.

We are now at 1600

Now at some point in this time period Comte even meets Leonardo in Italy bc it's implied that Comte meets Leonardo while he's famous among humans. But Leonardo goes MIA after painting The Last Supper which is 1599

Anyway. 1600. They have the door about made. They are still friends and seem to be using it here and there for shits and giggles.

Now Will is the first one brought back in roughly 1840s. Will has been around for a few decades before anyone else. But Vlad and Comte already went their separate ways, and have been for a while.

So at some point between 1600 and 1800 they went their separate ways.

Yes we can call this a few hundred years bc it's almost 1900 and that puts the door at three centuries old. But there's no way you can mistake that for a few thousand

These gays have really only been separated for 2 centuries MAX

HOWEVER. PLOT TWIST. It is implied that Vlad and Comte used the door so much that they are no longer in their original timeline. Yeah this is where it gets confusing with time travel so I'll keep it simple.

Galileo (and Drake) are also not from this time line. Just like the lessers they used the door to go forward in time. In this theory that means that Leonardo is the only one who has organically gone through life. He's never used the door. He's lived every year. Comte and Vlad have skipped some OR have gone back in time and stayed there for so long that they have lived more years than they should

Confusing? Say Comte was born in 1400. But then 1600 comes along, uses the door and goes back in time to 1300. He was still born in 1400(which hasn't happened yet) but he is 200 years old, and if he stays there (doesn't go back to 1600) he will be 300 when he is born.

So Comte COULD tell us the year he was born, but that really means nothing if he spent multiple years in other time lines.

The other confusing thing is that this means he's lived in Paris for like 3 centuries but no one has caught on to him not aging.

Well that was long. I hope that all made sense. Good luck with all that info

[david-talks-sw]

"Bring in the flamethrowers!"

The above moment from The Clone Wars gets brought up a lot to illustrate Ki-Adi Mundi or the Jedi's moral decadence, a fall from grace caused by the war.

Figured I'd point out a couple of things in support of Ki-Adi!

1) Simple answer: the situation called for it.

The Geonosians attacking Ki-Adi were:

enemy fighters

with the element of surprise

who could fly and were thus harder to hit with the clones' blasters, hence why more wide-ranging weapons like flamethrowers were called for, as the clones were getting picked off one-by-one.

Time was of the essence, men were dying, Ki-Adi made a choice.

Wanna know what Jedi choose when a Geonosian isn't actively trying to kill them? They save its life (and get praised for it by their peers).

2) In-universe, the Geonosians are assholes.

From Attack of the Clones - The Illustrated Companion, 2002:

"Geonosians are a physically intimidating race conditioned to live and work in caste-segregated hives. The vast majority of Geonosians are subservient to the ruling caste, and throughout Geonosian society, there is evidence of a biologically engineered class system. Some Geonosians have wings, while drones do not. [...] The blind obedience of menial Geonosians makes them an easily exploitable workforce for the upper classes, who have built a highly profitable business manufacturing Battle Droids, Super Battle Droids, and Droideka Droids for the Trade Federation and its allies."

"For unusually intelligent Geonosians unlucky enough to be born into the lower castes, participating in the games provides the only chance they will ever get to escape the misery of their downtrodden lifestyles and the rigid social expectations of the upper classes. Triumph in the arena is often a hollow victory, however; while lower- and middle-class Geonosians may win the right to talk to their superiors, they can never earn their respect."

Okay, so the winged upper class are obviously elitist bastards, but how is that even remotely relevant--

-- oh. But hey, two of them don't have wings! Those are members of the drone caste, and they're all begotten underdogs, so--

"If there is one thing that unites Geonosians of all classes, it is their xenophobia. A traditionally isolationist species, they fear espionage attempts by rivals eager to learn the secrets behind their latest droids."

-- oh. Huh.

Bottom line: yes, they're sentient... but they're xenophobic, have an elitist caste system, and earn their living by forging weapons that melt your insides or blow up planets.

Now sure, this notion has been explored and deconstructed in Star Wars: Rebels...

... and I'm not entirely sure if the quoted info still holds true in current Disney canon (the lore is from 2002, after all), but if you ask me?

On a normal day, ol' Klik-Klak would be actively trying to murder the entirety of the Ghost crew for daring to even step their dirty non-Geonosian feet on his pure red planet.

3) Out-of-universe, the Geonosians are just "bug aliens". Nothing more.

The production team of Attack of the Clones referred to them as the "termite people". The script describes them as "winged creatures" who are heard "chuckling" once Anakin and Padmé are sentenced to a gruesome death. At some point, the storyboard artists considered introducing the Geonosian workers like you would a horror monster.

Hell, the whole Lucas decided to base them on termites is because his house was besieged by them.

They're not people, which is why they're not designed to look like people. They're purposefully dehumanized so that when one of them gets killed by our heroes, it's ethically "okay" and the audience doesn't need to stop and think "oh my God, that's murder!" or "hey! that's racist" whenever a clone calls one of them a "bug."

A similar logic is applied to the stormtroopers, who have face-covering helmets that dehumanizes them.

Functionally, a stormtrooper is a fascist goon, nothing more.

Same goes for the Geonosian. It's a bug alien, that's about it.

4) The flamethrowers were probably just added because they're cool.

Dave Filoni described how the decision to add flamethrowers came up, and it doesn't sound like George had deeper storytelling motives:

"You know, we're going through the tunnel with the Geonosians and George is like: “Yeah, well, here, we'll have the-- the tunnel and the flamethrowers. Yeah. How about that? ‘Bring in the flamethrowers!’ have Ki-Adi Mundi say ‘bring in the flame throwers!’” And it's like “flame—- What? Flamethrowers?!”" - Dave Filoni, “Return to Geonosis” Featurette, 2010

It sounds like he came up with it on the spot.

The flamethrowers aren't indicative of "the moral degradation of Ki-Adi and the Jedi Order." They're likely just in there 'cause they're cool (and if you've played Team Fortress 2, you know that's true)!

At the end of the day, when it comes to the Geonosians, I think that there's a certain irony to how their story ends.

They gleefully created the battle droids that tore the galaxy asunder and the Death Star, a weapon that enables the Empire to commit genocide... but fell victim to genocide themselves, at the hands of an even bigger monster.

They reaped what they sowed. They're not meant to be mourned.

And it's nice to see this aspect of the narrative doesn't get ignored as much as I would've expected.

I came across this video that basically rips into Ki-Adi for using flamethrowers, and I was ready to roll my eyes when I scrolled down to the comments section...

... but then, a happy surprise!

Most of the comments disagree with the video's stance! For once, logic prevails over anti-Jedi bias.

So yeah, that put a smile on my face.

[anghraine]

I saw a popular author post about how, while of course Elizabeth has some obligatory flaws, Darcy's are exponentially more severe, and it was like stepping into a view so far removed from mine that it was almost disorienting.

The thing is, I periodically see people wondering why Elizabeth/Darcy is such a behemoth in Austen fandom when either/both of them have substantial flaws that the narrative doesn't shy away from. Their flaws aren't identical, but they do obviously mirror each other and are thematically intertwined, with reflecting character arcs and specific beats. As I see it, the novel maintains a tense and careful balance between them—not in terms of centrality (Elizabeth's mistakes and growth are more central to the narrative than Darcy's IMO) but in terms of the weight given their flaws and virtues.

And for me that's essential to their appeal!

I love plenty of other Austen characters and relationships, but for me, personally, none of the other canon pairings are balanced in such a fun and satisfying way. The closest (and the other most conventionally romantic pairing in Austen IMO) is probably Anne/Wentworth, where at least the choices of both of them are heavy contributors to their current problems. But a) the novel is ambivalent as to whether Anne actually erred morally in the first place and b) that is long in the past by the time of the novel; the Anne of the main story of Persuasion is a fairly idealized figure by contrast to Wentworth.

I sometimes see arguments that, say, Anne or Mr Knightley or Elinor Dashwood or whomever are actually as flawed and prone to error as their romantic counterparts, but I just ... don't buy it, honestly. As far as canon Austen goes, I only really see that balance in the course of the main story with Elizabeth/Darcy. P&P loves them and holds them up as admirable (and they are!), but it also loves undercutting them in clearly paralleling ways and does it over and over throughout the novel.

So the idea of an Elizabeth and Darcy where one of them has obligatory storytelling flaws that can't seriously be compared to the other's is just ... blah. It cuts out the fundamental interconnection and resonance between them that I think is built into the structure of the novel down to its bones and is what makes their relationship special. A lot of stories pay lip-service to that kind of dynamic, sure, but despite the many (many) imitators, I don't often see it done successfully. But P&P is the real deal.

So yeah, when people are like "why do people like Elizabeth with Darcy so much when she could have a different man who doesn't make serious mistakes" I'm just thinking ... why on earth would I want Elizabeth "there was truth in his looks" Bennet with someone who would never make mistakes on that level? Or when people are like, Darcy's just misunderstood, wouldn't he be better off with Jane [or another relatively idealized female character] it's like ... hell no, I love him, but I do not want to inflict him on that poor woman.

It's not that there's something wrong with multishipping them (I've written alternate pairings for both!) or shipping them with other people, but just in terms of the novel as it exists, I do think the balance and echoes between them are part of what makes the novel work and one of the sources of their long-standing popularity. And I feel that trying to pin the "real" blame on one or the other up-ends that balance and diminishes a lot of what I, at least, find appealing about the dynamic between them.

[yuseirra]

(Vague..hints about what 165 would be, I heard about it, I'm...scared to see that chapter. It sounds really horrifying, I can't phrase it otherwise.)

I think I'm going to jot down my feelings. I honestly feel so, so sorry for people who like this manga..; on the bright side it's been a work that's...imbued things in me to write and draw this much about myself but I wish that'd only have happened on a positive note.

I think the author is really being too much..;; They're being so cruel. For what? Can this story get across a proper message? That's what's most important to me and I can take it if I'm convinced it is but... This current route is so far from what most audience would believe as fulfilling or.. Feel happy about seeing. Unless this is fake and the last chapter has some sort of happy closure to it all.

I started reading onk after the anime came out last year and kept up with it, ordering the volumes and reading them. After Chapter 154 and listening to the opening for Season 2, I just thought, “Ah, this is what it is… This is it.” (If you read my oldest? theory posts about this work, this July, you’d know what I mean. I think I’ve figured it all out, and so far, nothing I’ve said back then has been disproven; on the contrary, it STILL makes the most sense.)

I have myself an idea of what this could be, but unless Ruby uses Amaterasu’s power to save everyone and bring them into a happy timeline in the final chapter, this is just...;;

Haha, seriously, this is... phew...

It’s true that Ai and the person she really loved had mutual feelings, but that person went completely insane and caused some incredibly serious issues, forcing Aqua to go after him with everything he had.

From how things are unfolding, I think these points have been confirmed.

We also learned that person was originally good enough to be called noble<I feed off this info like cow eats grass... That's the thing that keeps me going lol Kamiki is nuts...oh please...I really care for him

We know Aqua had a mission assigned from the gods.

For Ruby’s future, he had to capture their father, and this task required him to put everything he built in the story so far on the line.

I kind of understood this? Even if accepting it is a different matter.

No matter how important revenge is in Aqua’s narrative... it’s like, what should I even say? Kamiki ended up devouring Aqua’s story to such an extent that the latter part of the story feels overshadowed by him, and yet Kamiki hasn’t been explored in enough depth for that.

For those following Aqua, this progression feels incredibly harsh. Even if you were rooting for Aqua, the villain he’s up against should be properly fleshed out. Kamiki is full of gaps everywhere. Maybe some parts are intentionally hidden, but what they’ve done feels too much like a Deus ex Machina.

The things he’s been said to have done aren’t even within the realm of what an ordinary human could achieve, it's beyond logic. So unless he’s literally a god, it doesn’t make sense. That’s why I kept insisting he’s divine. When you look at the clues related to his character, there’s actual foreshadowing that supports this theory. If he isn’t, then nothing makes sense. I even wrote a post as soon as Fatal dropped. I just knew THAT had to be it.

There are so many actions he took that can’t be explained unless he’s something beyond human, things that even gods would need to intervene in, assigning missions to Aqua and Ruby. That’s the development that makes the most sense.

Even so, this plot is too much for fans who have loved and followed this series.

I kind of get it, but for fans who have been deeply attached and following this work(this includes me too), the final chapter… Even if there’s something to look forward to, it doesn’t seem like it’ll be worth getting your hopes up. And I'm usually a very hopeful person. It feels like the author wanted to try writing an ending like this, but even then, this... The last 10 chapters or so feel like they consumed all the preceding content.

If Kamiki had been more prominently featured and well-developed, that might have been different (I probably analyzed him more than anyone else out there, because there wasn’t much to go on, and I tried to understand what kind of person he was, filling in the gaps to infer his behavior and motives since his perspective was never shown). But Kamiki, who isn’t as well-developed as Aqua, now holds a weight in the story that makes Aqua sacrifice everything he’s built. I really wish they did both characters justice. I really liked them both.

In that case, he needs to be an unimaginably terrible villain. From what spoilers suggest, what he’s done is indeed severe. But if Ai truly loved such a person, and that’s flipped with the limited remaining chapters, the story becomes trash... Haha. Then what’s the point? I don’t know. That, I really don't wish nor see being contradicted.

Kamiki was kind but lost his mind. (Him being kind is something I never want to give up till the end. I just see it REALLY well too.) So he did a lot of things, I get that. But can something of this scale really happen in modern society, to the point where the protagonist must sacrifice their life?

If so, shouldn’t there be some justification brought in from outside the story to make it convincing? Hence, Kamiki is essentially a god, as suggested by his very name. He was a noble god who fell. There’s enough context, hints, and foreshadowing to support that. He was exposed to malevolence from a young age and became tainted by it. He probably did love Ai, which is why he wielded his power so recklessly, driven by madness to reunite with her.

But even with this, there’s hardly any explanation. Why he went mad, what he did with his life—it’s all glossed over in a few panels. If he’s the villain that the protagonist *must* defeat, there should have been more depth and depiction to fuel that narrative, but it’s incredibly ambiguous. The story just throws a few lines at us and expects us to believe, “He could do all this, so the protagonist had to die,” and that’s it. (That's why... I'm not really sure if they make it want to seem like he's THE bad guy either. Since it's rarely explored in detail so we can't sympathize with the victims if they exist and...hate this guy even more for it. That approach I agree with, because it shouldn't be that way if this story wants a message. But who knows. Scary stuff; it just makes you baffled and dumbfounded and go, "what is this?";; Again, it'd make me question, 'What kind of guy did Ai even love?' I do have my own answers for that. He's her previous divine husband who became hopelessly flawed upon losing her, THAT'S what, so it's not on HIM that he's turned out that way. But who knows.)

Do you think that’s convincing...?💦 I’m filling in the blanks myself, but this feels too much. Whether the final chapter is 50 pages or 100 pages, it can’t wrap this up properly unless Ruby turns back time to save everyone and bring them happiness. I’ve heard there are about 50 pages for 166, but isn’t that just two chapters’ worth? It’s basically the same as a double issue, and given how little content there’s been in recent chapters, even if they combine two, I don’t think it’ll be impactful.

I genuinely feel sorry for the fans of this series. Does this development make sense to you? I’m so baffled that I can’t help but laugh when I think about the plot. It’s not even funny; it’s just painful to watch. How many people would have wanted this kind of ending? I once wrote that over 70% of fans might end up hating the conclusion, that I have a bad feeling about the writer having some kind of personal ambition to create a "twist" and experiment on it out of their artistic desires - and if it ends like this, they probably will. It's not like I didn't see it coming. I did tell all the others who came to read this work upon reading my fanworks to wait until it's complete, there are some things I really appreciate about it, but I wasn't sure it'd progress on your usual, happy and safe route. It could have been that way. The answers were all there. There were many opportunities where there were chances of this story getting an ending many would be satisfied with,

And if I’m wrong about everything I’ve said here, I’ll be just as lost. I really won’t understand any of it. But I’m confident I’m right.

The traits of Kamiki match those of the husband of Ame-no-Uzume in at least ten ways. That god even had a story that said he drowned.(but if he really died, that's ambiguous and he is worshipped pretty well along with his beloved Amenouzume)That's just too much to be brushed off as coincidence, he's at least INSPIRED from that god.

I believe he was originally very kind. I can’t let go of that idea, because it’s been evident to me, and it sticks in my mind. But if that’s true, then this is the story of someone who was kind but went mad, and a son who became a vengeful spirit after his mother’s death. The mother, worrying about the father, left what was almost like a final wish: “If your father is still straying, won’t you help him with me?” But the son kills his father, thinking there’s no hope for him, and ends up dying himself in the process. If that’s really the story, then how... how can there be any positive message to take away from this?

I think I understand what’s going on. I think I do... but the story has been so unfriendly and, as a result, feels disrespectful to fans who have loved the series.

I'm actually thinking: if Kamiki IS Sarutahiko the god of guidance who's been TWISTED due to making EVERY possibilities of a future turn horribly wrong, are we WITNESSING his powers in real time?? Is THIS an extension of what he's capable of? because, I feel like.. He's been bringing sufferings to everyone including himself. Oh in that case I'd totally understand his pain. He really would be suffering. And he's THAT dangerous. What if this comic is being really meta, huh?? I think he doesn't want this either. Losing Ai just.. Totally shattered him I bet. But seeing how things are, I think it could really have been his powers that caused her to die in the first place, unintentionally though. I won't forgive the author if HE'S the one who's killed Ai AND he's been doing all these things in order to get her back afterwards, that is just...so rude. It has no point...

There’s still one chapter left, and I know it’s not right to make a judgment prematurely, but if things go on like this, it’s truly too much...; I genuinely feel bad for those who have loved this work wholeheartedly. And for myself... if it doesn’t end as I’ve thought, then I’ve been completely mistaken, haha. But I came into this with confidence, not about Aqua’s side of things(I thought HIM out of all should get a happy ending. I still wish for that to happen), but about what the story wanted to convey through Aqua’s parents. I believed there could be a meaningful message despite how difficult it seemed, so I took the initiative and interpreted it, drew a lot. If I’m wrong, I can only blame my insight... The story itself never changed; it just stayed there. But I was confident. I’ve never been wrong when it comes to instincts or analyses related to psychology. I thought I knew what this was...

I hope this work gets resolved in a way that is respectful towards its fans whom really cared for the series...they-we-deserve that as much as the authors deserve respect. We're in this together as a fan and the writers. We should care about each other.