#cuz a) its incredibly difficult to lose

[knifeslidez]

i need to get one of those bigass good quality metal waterbottles. i think it would let me yk. not be dehydrated

[voltronisanobsession]

Reader learning the hard way about Canon Events

Teen!spider reader idea!! A random, passing thought I had a few days ago I wanted to to write about😍

I also wanna say that I’ve been trying to write the pt. 2 for ‘Miguel codes Lyla a friend’ but my brain has just been EMPTY TRYING TO COME UP WITH IDEAS FOR IT💔💔 I have some stuff down but it just doesn’t feel right? I swear it’s a work in progress guys, it’ll come soon🙏💔💔💔

Ok so I was just thinking about if reader was apart of the spider society, making their incredible debut amongst the other spiders. Of course they had yet to go through their canon event of losing the captain they’re close to, and they don’t even know it’s a canon event yet!

Like I think knowing about canon events is the first thing new spider people are told by Miguel when first joint the society, but reader fully believes that they’ve already gone through with it after losing their uncle all that time ago. And Miguel can’t tell them that it’s not it or else you know, reader is gonna try and disrupt their canon event from happening if they know

So imagine reader is just chilling in their universe when boom, villain attack! It’s like super catastrophic, it gets to the point where they’re calling for back up from the spider society and Miguel already knows what going to happen.

He warns every spider that leaves for the mission to not. Disrupt. The canon. It may be hard to watch reader go through this, but he makes it extremely known that it needs to happen. And so that’s exactly what happens.

The other spiders, like Gwen and Peter b. (my favs😍), help reader save civilians from crashing buildings and crumbling roads. Finally at last does readers canon event happens.

With the other spiders occupied with their own stuff, readers forced to chose between saving a large group of civilians or the captain they love with all their heart. Just as they’re about dive into the situation, Miguel would yell to them as he’s kicking debris away from the spiders.

“You have to chose one y/n!”

And you being the young, ambitious teen, the only words the come out of your mouth are, “I can do both!”

To make a long story short, you indeed could not do both😭😭 Who knew webbing up and trying to hold a crumbling building with people inside would be a much tougher task while trying to stop debris from falling on the captain, who lay injured on the ground.

Everyone is too busy with the catastrophe to help you, and it finally comes to the point. Arms in pain from holding up a literal building while at the same time trying to stop debris from falling on your captain began taking its toll. Tears well up in your eyes, muscles straining with every passing second. Looking to the civilians trapped in the destroyed building and looking down to where the cop lay in pain as more rocks came crashing down on them.

“I can do both…” voice cracking, tears fall as you feel your arms slowly losing strength, the building slipping from your grasp. A soft sob comes out as you look down to the cop, a sympathetic look on their face as they watch you struggle between saving them or saving the people right in front of you.

“Let go! Save them! Please!”

You look down again in pain at the captains words, a sharp cry coming out as you see them mouth ‘it’s ok’, finally making the difficult decision to save the people from the building.

It happened so fast, from webbing into the building and gathering everyone, to the crashing of the building to the ground. As you put down the last woman you immediately would run to the rubble and begin digging frantically, cries and sobs escaping your mouth.

“No, no, no, NO! PLEASE NO!”

It’s only when you feel a hand on your shoulder tugging you away from pile of rubble that you snap out of it. Heaving, you throw yourself on the body and just. Cry. You bawl your eyes out on whoever was near you cuz bro. Reader at this time needs someone to comfort them. Big time.

Miguel (y’all already saw this coming) could only stand in surprise as you latch onto his body and let everything out. He would slowly caress readers head in a soothing matter, muttering that there’s was nothing they could’ve done.

Yup, a terrible way to lose a person so dear to you as a teen💔 after that, reader wouldn’t be the same. Having to make such a decision would definitely dampen their fighting spirit.

Which is why I think they would be super sympathetic towards Miles when he finally arrives. And I also think they would see a piece of themselves in him when he says that he can do both, that he can save everyone around him, even those he loves, his father.

UGH I CAN IMAGINE MILES BEING THE REASON WHY READER FINDS A NEW ENERGY AND SPIRIT TO FIGHT!!!! Like he’s so confident in himself and doesn’t just ACCEPT the fate he’s told he’ll have to face and that just ignites something in them.

They couldn’t save the person they loved, so they’ll help miles save his father from his ill fate. With this decision, you would ultimately leave the safety of the Spider society and join the gang when it comes to saving and helping Miles.

[ai-megurine]

Lady dreamfyre 1: What inspired you to write the fic this way? 2: Which scene did you put on first? 3: What is your favorite plot? 4: What's your favorite line of dialogue? 5: Which part was hardest to write? 6: What is your fic special or different from all your other fics? 7: Where did the title come from? 8: Did any real person or event inspire any part of this? 9: Was there an alternate version of this fic? 10: Why did you choose this pairing for this particular story? 11: What do you like most about this fic? 12: What do you like least about this fic? 13: What song did you hear that made you want to write this story? Or if you haven't heard anything yet, what do you think readers should hear to keep us reading? 14: Is there anything you would like readers to learn from reading this fic? 15: What did you learn from writing this fic?

Hello!!!! I'm so sorry for being late 😥

1: What inspired you to write the fic this way?

I was thinking about how the characters of Hotd are bad at the game. Like, any character from GOT would have obliterated EVERYONE. Can you imagine if Cersei had been in Alicent's place? And Tywin in Otto's? The Dance wouldn't have happened cuz Viserys, Daemon and Rhaenyra would have died Red Wedding style. We're talking about Tywin "Reynes/Rains of Castamere" Lannister.

And then it occured to me that Sansa would have 100% gotten along with Alicent and/or Helaena.

At first, I considered teleporting Sansa in that era, then I found the idea silly so I went for reincarnation. I just need to pick in whom!

2: Which scene did you put on first?

Helaena riding Lady Dreamfyre and Bran talking to Sansalaena

3: What is your favorite plot?

From the ones who have been published, I have two. Aegon deciding he wants to be King and working for it, and Helaena plotting to help him

4: What's your favorite line of dialogue?

From the published one it's : « You could lose a leg and I would still love you the same. It isn't the state of your body that determines your value. It's your heart. And I love your heart. I love you. » by Helaena in Chapter 27.

I also love this exchange: « "And one more thing. Have the watchtower repaired before the lords arrive, and light a beacon in it." "A beacon, my lord?" 'Lord Larys, why does Her Grace always wear green? It isn't the colours of House Hightower.' 'The beacon on the Hightower, do you know what colour it glows when Oldtown calls its banners to war?' "Aye. And make it green." » by Cregan in Chapter 24

I have other planned that I like more than this one, but I won't spoil you 😉

5: Which part was hardest to write?

Rhaenyra in general. She's incredibly difficult to write in my opinion because I don't want her to be cartoonish but at the same time she's genuinely entitled and dumb

6: What is your fic special or different from all your other fics?

I planned the ending before posting anything

7: Where did the title come from?

My love for magical bonds between dragon/direwolf and their human. Also I love Dreamfyre and Lady

8: Did any real person or event inspire any part of this?

Reading isekai manwha definitely helped 😆

9: Was there an alternate version of this fic?

Yup! Sansa was almost reincarnated into Alicent

10: Why did you choose this pairing for this particular story?

Helaegon brainrot got to me. At first Helaegon was mostly due to the arranged marriage being logical for the time, but it got to me!!

11: What do you like most about this fic?

The blending of Sansa and Helaena!!

12: What do you like least about this fic?

Maybe rushing Sansalaena acceptance of her fate? I don't know. I'm pretty happy with my work 😊

13: What song did you hear that made you want to write this story? Or if you haven't heard anything yet, what do you think readers should hear to keep us reading?

No song made me write the story per say but I have several songs that remind of the characters.

• God of War by Peyton Parrish → Lyarra Umber

• Warrior Song by TheFatRat → Daeron

• Raise your banners by Within Temptation → The Greens

• Worthless by Bullet for my Valentine → Aemond

• Sound of War by Timothee Profitt → Aegon

• Close to the Sun by TheFatRat → Helaena

And many others!!

14: Is there anything you would like readers to learn from reading this fic?

Magic isn't good or bad. It just exists. Same with dragons, direwolves, etc.

15: What did you learn from writing this fic?

That I love writing court intrigue!!!! I'm already planning other Dance AU.

[tj99er]

Teej I know you're a Doris Downer by trade but I don't think you're appreciating that this is a really pretty and also really unusual and rare phenomenon.

The moon is precisely big enough and far away enough to allow this to happen, no other planet I've ever heard of has this setup where the moon so perfectly intersects with the sun. If you can't appreciate the beauty you can at least marvel at the sheer unlikeliness of this, this is so cartoonishly astronomically unlikely that it almost feels designed. I wouldn't be shocked if a religious person used this as evidence of a creator god, setting the world up just right so only its special little guys get to see this event.

I originally became aware of this "perfection" through OSP's video on eclipses here: https://youtu.be/_yzdLvV24VA

It is, incidentally, really difficult to get your eyes on an eclipse for so many reasons (and if you say you can just look at photos I will personally find you and hunt you down to tell you the unfunniest A press jokes on heaven and earth until you die of cringe and shame). If you can ever spend the time when one happens, seriously, try and show up there. This is pilgrimage-worthy!

Is this a reputation I have? Am I known for being a downer?

Cuz, if that's how I came across, I think it's awesome that people are so enthusiastic about something like a solar eclipse. (and if anything, am both endeared by and envious of that passion). It's just not the kind of thing that grabs my interest, personally

There's undeniably a lot of incredible science behind what makes a solar eclipse even possible and nothing about my lack of interest in it should discourage anyone else from losing their shit about it.

Just because something is rare, doesn't mean it always warrants a massive reaction. If that were the case I could go on all day about how crazy it is that I was born exactly the way I was, or the insane impossibility of the fact that I went viral, or even just the chances of meeting one of my closest friends.

An infinite number of statistically impossible things happen every single day so I just think it's silly (endearing) to see someone so passionate about one specific phenomenon (and one that we've been aware of for decades)

I hope not too many read my post as being a downer, otherwise I have some self reflection to do regarding the tone of my posts.

I just thought there was a comedic contrast between Yoko completely losing their shit and me just going "ah yes. Rock go in front of sun"

[lovezbrownies]

whoever sent that pop idol yandere is actually smart for that and I just had to say it

Alsoooo I’m mainly here to info dump on Lorelai’s brother!! ^^ We’ll call Lorelai’s brother James or Jamie since that’s the only actual name I can think of matching him. But keep in mind I’m horrible at naming so ehh idk. Anyways I envision him look wise to have blue hair like his dad Tom and also being rather tall. But in strength wise he’s pretty solid even if he’s on the skinny skeleton size. But if we’re going to be comparing him to jocks like Lauren and or military/police people like Gen & Grim then yeah no he will lose on a fight. Look wise he’s a tall average malnourished male like one you would see around in college campus bonus points if they’re studying something medicine/medical wise.

he’s also a huge mamas boy and also asks his mom on her opinion when it comes to gift and date ideas. NEVER Lorelai since he’s seen first hand how his sister is and how bad she is with dating. Especially considering how he once saw his sister come home all upset with a huge red slap mark on her cheek one day 😭 So he definitely knows not to ask his sister anything when it comes to romance.

There’s also a couple of reasons which explains why he isn’t a yandere or acts out on his jealousy or possessiveness. 1) he saw how unhinged his sister is when it came down to how Lorelai acts to the person of her affection. 2) he finds the whole thing to be very icky especially if the person he likes happens to be of the opposite gender. So he likely thinks he’s preying on his crush gender wise and incredibly so if they’re shorter than him. 3) he was once stalked by a person in his early years of highschool by a person he rejected and always and still does sometimes feel paranoid and goes to therapy cuz of that. 4) his awesome dad Tom told him and brought him up to be a very respectful person too bad Lorelai didn’t learn from Tom 😒

-🌪️

HELLO! IM SO SO SORRY THIS IS LIKE MEGA LATE BAS I WILL GET TO IT RN.

what if Jamie becomes the first non-yandere in the blog... MY BRAIN... its working overtime...

ANYWAYS LETS GET INTO IT. tall and malnourished... my favorite type of man... god i miss my wife sonic... (my wife is Viktor from Arcane.)

i feel like it could be a hit or miss with being a mamas boy, either a man can be such an annoying mamas boy where he will prefer his mother over anything and disagree with the entire world if she said so OR the best most respectful individual you'd ever meet. No inbetween.

Jamie would definitely be on the respectful side of the spectrum, citing our previous and current conversations regarding his behavior and personality! I like to think he consults his mom's opinion on general life stuff over his dad, but about his degree or jobs? straight to his dad! He would never abuse his family's reputation to gain a job, not like he has to. But if it ever gets too difficult to find a good job after uni? He's asking his dad to help him out.

And oh yeah, definitely after seeing all the shit Lorelai does to her darling while they constantly reject her makes him almost puke. He would never put his loved one through something so horrible like that, and would try his absolute best to be understanding and willing to listen to any issues his darling has with him.

But at the same time, I feel like a character cannot be a complete character without at least a flaw or two. Which leads me to conclude with, what would his flaws be? And if they were pointed out to him by his willing (ofc) darling would he be willing to change it?

[angie-da-spoof]

Me to myself: You could be Autistic tbh

Me: Yah but I don't really have a special interests like most autistic people, I kinda pick things up and then drop them only to have a couple days (or weeks if I'm just incredibly tired) before I pick something up again, like this one time I was really into trying to DIY alt fashion but as soon as I started to do it I felt it was kinda difficult so then I watched compilations of it and made a whole wish list but that's also when I realized I like the shape of stars which after that I was really fixated on being Asexual because it's really cool to figure out a part of yourself but that ended like a week later after the novelty wore off but then after that I got really into Mob Phsyco 100 and made so many pins for my backpack as well as just some drawings and could not shut up about it but now it's also My favorite Anime™ so that's really healthy oh and I also really focused on JJK for a very long time and I just really fixated on Choso more than any character until like a a month later when I just focused on it as a whole but then I dropped the interest right before school ended but I still really like it, but after that I got back into Haikyuu mainly because Oh I also totally forgot about all the anime that I dropped in between those like Chainsaw man, Hunter x Hunter, Deathnote, mainly cuz I was so invested in JJK I was afraid to lose that momentum but noooww I guess its ok to start them again so I did so back to Hiakyuu which I am currently re-getting back into bcuz I took a break from watching/reading it to focus on my YouTube channel which is part of the current fixation rn but non of that was a special interest so I don't think I have Autism. BUT There is always one twitch streamer that I always watch and rewatch which is Ranboo as well as various shows like Saiki K 5 times and I even watched all of Naruto 3 times because why not it was good, and on top of that I also keep coming back to Little Nightmares, but Art is always for me unless burnout.

Me: ...ADHD?

Me: nah.

[rayroseu-reblogs]

hmmm im a ride or die for diasomnia so i'll really take the hottest torch here that i believe they never shouldve done the dream hopping arc, ( just stop at iginihyde like kallisto mentioned), cuz atleast the STYX ppl are actually relevant with malleus overblot like theyre the ones dealing with it irl, while the other students are just victims and the writers just input them in this book to have 10chaps of their mc moment (aka they realize their dreams arent desirable to live) (this is what the recent dreams felt like to me ngl)

it felt that it just sidetracked the momentum lilia and silvers dream created and the plot quality diminished from there for me bcs as a reader, im going to be assured that theyre going to survive and wake up, unlike in previous dreams where i anticipated alot bcs there was actual danger involved, just like the other battle with the other overblots, but it was just gone the moment other dorms stepped in iwudiwie this arc wouldve been better at book 8 where it def would make sense since we completed all books now

but also i can argue that its not really the characters fault. i dont think its mentioned that much, but i felt like there was also a strange increase in our power against malleus somehow??? as a reader back on early book 7, it was established that countering malleus magic is incredibly difficult, that his magic is too complicated, it made me hyped to anticipate that theyre going to have an unique solution right??? that theyre going to explain the technicality of magic and MORE OVERBLOT LORE since the only info we got about magic rn is that its from imagination like.... and yet the solution the story provided for us is just too lukewarm imo and theres no background explanation as to why it works so well either (like how did STYX suddenly cracked the code that they can control Silver's UM (whom they had no prior contact with) so that he falls into specific person's dreamworld? why is Silver not overwhelmed yet by his heavy use of magic? how can they be assured that other dreamers who woke up from their dream wont collapse back to the darkness? how is lilia fighting malleus suddenly makes malleus prone to weakness like he cant pay attention to his dream world anymore) i just felt like there was an awkward increase in the good side's power against malleus that its making me believe that the info we got earlier about malleus' magic was just stretching his capabilities lol

but yeah a occasional checkup with mal and lilia would be good too !! honestly would save the dissonance with how lighthearted the scenes the moment idia and ortho took silver's place as the dream guide, i really love the dramatic serious and tragedy tones of the earlier games but uts just kinda not here anymore with the recent updates, just my preference though, i love serious stories and would never settle with anything lukewarm lol

i also def agree with kallisto here, they really should go back ALOT of the lore mentioned at briarland, ESP PRINCESS GLOW LEVAN AND THE SILVER OWLS WHY IS NRC COLISUEM AT THE SILVER OWLS LIKE 💀 WHY IS DIAOSMNIA DORM AT WILD ROSE CASTLE TOO LIKE 😭💀(also pls i wanna know so bad why night faes were so villainized in the first place, what did they even do lol and why did briarland had to lose like 80% of their territory after war why didnt they restore it like theres still faes living outside briar valley at that time like😭😭😭) AND!!! THEY SHOULDVE GIVENT MORE TIKE TO LILIA TO GRIEVE ABOUT LOSING MELEANOR AND LEVAN!! I felt like bcs they just skipped that part it felt like their death was just character motivation for Lilia to be a better person, which makes me feel squicked at the thought, bcs it obvious that Meleanor and Levan was fleshed out characters with unique traits, I do feel like theyre going to do smth with them later on, but yh I do feel like Lilia's moving on arc shouldve been longer too to provide more lore about how a fae understands a human and also the Senates,,, I wish they couldve provided us more info why Lilia is a weak mage for just being a bat fae?? It felt like the Senates was just used to make Lilia's story more tragic even though we never had built up info about this so it was pretty out of nowhere that the Senates just hates Lilia that much??? Its like Henric and Meleanor's character dynamic yk, it felt like Henric/the Senates were just disposable villains that can alleviates Meleanor/Lilia's morals and story, I wouldve like the motivations of their feelings more nuanced yk or atleast make it make sense in their situation (like make the Senates hate that Lilia failed to protect the Princess instead since that kinda makes sense considering their job is "to keep the Draconias intact" (atleast thats what i get about their concept lol theyre kinda like Baul/Sebek but without their empathy and kindness), rather than Lilia as a person/mage)

and QUEEN MALEFICIA AS WELL !!! I do know LIKE HOPING REALLY HARD shes going to pop up later on, bcs it would leave a huge plothole for me that the writers just wrote her being inactive during Meleanors besiege and now on Malleus overblot??? I def could withstand hearing the Senates for 10hrs just to get a glimpse about her situation rather than going through 126 chapters of the dream hopping arc

tldr maybe this paragraph just can be summarized with "the book shouldve stayed with diasomnia only" AND im gonna die on that hill fr

i do get theyre trying to gatekeep info to use later on and this is just me complaining to know more🤣

I’ve been seeing a lot of talk and critique on how Book 7 is structured- and I’m curious: How would you adjust the way Book 7 is approached? 😊 This post can be a space for you to leave your thoughts and ideas here 💕💕💕🐦‍⬛

I’ve been thinking about it a lot, and for me personally, I feel like the problem isn’t necessarily the dream hopping. After a year in irl time, it did feel a little tedious at times, but the stories themselves within the dreams, many of which only possible through these dream worlds, are intriguing and fun. Some dreams are a hit or miss, but it’s definitely a new format in the main story that Malleus’ Unique Magic has allowed.

However, I find that in my personal gripe with Book 7 is the pacing and balance.

Currently in JP, we are at Chapter 226. Lilia’s dream officially ended at chapter 100, so a 126 chapter difference from the last Diasomnia dream. 126 chapters fits the Prologue, Book 1, Book 2, Book 3, and a small chunk of Book 4

I do recognize it’s an odd complaint, considering the structure of Book 6, with all the towers containing mass amounts of chapters each. However-

I feel like there was phenomenal balance kept in this book. Book 6 introduced an entirely new and solidified environment outside of NRC while still keeping balance with very intriguing and “alien” lore, building up revelations for the late game regarding Grim and OBs, character interactions between the kidnapped Overblotters, having all of Pomefiore play an important role, and giving Ortho and Idia lots of time to shine. Idia’s Overblot form was kept secret for such a long time, BUT we got to check back with him frequently! We heard his voice and interactions with Ortho, and he had lots of time to shine in the Overblot battle, and a really heart wrenching moments of backstory. Plus, yes this book was long, but it kept focus on the story of Shroud family and blot. All of this, was for building up the future of Overblot and letting the Shrouds shine in the environment they know best. Something that the entire Diasomnia crew isn’t exactly getting in Book 7. Additionally, even though the towers had a lot of parts, each tower level was released at the same time, you know? •v• It wasn’t “Pomefiore group chapter, another few months for Leona and Jamil, etc etc.” We got generous amounts of story at one time.

But in Book 7, it’s been several updates since even hearing Malleus’ voice. His battle against Ortho was the last we’ve heard of him, and it was definitely more focused on Ortho rather than Malleus’ current state. It was a great scene, of course! But there are some additions I would’ve loved to have.

To me, I feel like there are two major things I would’ve liked for Book 7

1. Polish the dreams. @/raven-at-the-writing-desk has put my thoughts about the sort of…meandering and tons of stuff done blatantly for convenience. Such as, making every single person use their Unique Magics, and having to leave people behind for arbitrary-ish reasons just because a huge cast rn is impossible. Idia’s explanation that taking too many people would draw Malleus’ attention makes sense, but I also would’ve liked if Silver’s UM had its limits on the amount of people he could take with him? 🧐 im not sure. A lot of these just aren’t working without heavy amount of explanations that drag down any tension that dream may have been building up. I feel like everyone using their UM is more suitable for a Book 8, a battle against the Chimera-Grim from the prologue? It doesn’t feel particularly outstanding in the dreamworld, and it feels forced at times.

2. Check in on Malleus periodically. I would like to see how Malleus is faring in the irl world. What is he thinking right now when monitoring the dreams? How is he currently feeling now that Sage’s Island has essentially become a ghost town? Has he moved the sleeping bodies to make them more comfortable, or is he afraid to touch? What is he feeling just seeing everyone like this, compared to the brightness of earlier days in NRC? Or, you know, how is his fight with Lilia faring?? Even just brief check ups on him, perhaps after each OB victim confronts themselves, would ease a lot of the understandable tension in the fan base right now- there are so many of his thoughts we don’t know right now, and him currently being in complete solitary is the perfect time to peek in on him, to emphasize his loneliness, and contradict at how everyone is currently seeing him as purely a villain. This is the biggest thing I want from Book 7- the dreams are super fun and cool, I love all the new sprites and backstories and the tying up loose ends, but checking in on Malleus every update or so would’ve been incredible.

Additionally, I’m also a little worried about the Briar Valley lore. Again, Lilia’s dream ended at Chapter 100, and we still have many more chapters left to tie up Book 7. I think to a more casual fan base, aka the ones that aren’t constantly obsessively theorizing (cough me 🤣), items with likely high importance like the Princess Glow, identical locations like the Silver Owl eastern fortress to the NRC coliseum, or characters like Raverne are kind of…in the air. We are very far away from these past moments of lore in the current main story. Im sure the dreamers (Silver, Sebek, Yuu, and Grim) can bring them back up through flashbacks in the future, but considering many of these received very little lore, and stuff like the Princess Glow was only mentioned once or twice…

I have a slight concern at how interest in these things will be organically brought into Book 8 (if they are indeed of importance). I have faith though!!! Im just worried that most of these things have long since been forgotten by fans due to the lack of focus. Book 6 lore regarding curses and OBs put heavy significance and time on these things, making it memorable since it’s all connected back to Grim, and Overblot is a huge point of intrigue in the game overall. The Princess Glow and Raverne admittedly don’t have that same appeal YET to the wider fan base, so I’m eager to see how they may be brought back in a Book 8, or at least tie up loose ends.

These are my thoughts! I have faith that Book 8 will cover A LOT of lore perhaps regarding Night Raven College, Ramshackle Dorm, and Briar Valley lore. But I think Book 7 could have much more balance regarding Malleus- I love all the concepts presented here, but balance feels needed. I’m curious to hear what you all think- whether you like the story the way it is, or would completely change it up, etc! ^_^

[sunatoru]

bottom of the deep blue. (3)

⇒ mermaid!suna x siren!reader

summary : sirens, creatures of unmatched beauty and cunning charm, they lure men in with their voices and grace, taking advantage of all the gullible fishermen and pirates. mermaids, the peacekeepers of the deep blue sea, naive and kind to a fault at times. a fated encounter between the two underwater dwellers leads to a difficult situation and a love that shouldn’t be.

warnings : incredibly mean!suna, naive reader, mentions of death, mentions of blood , mentions of being captured, short chapter !!

genre : mermaid au, pirate au, angst, fluff, hurt/comfort, betrayal

a/n : LAST CHAPTER FLOPPED SO HARD CUZ I DIDNT REALISE I WAS SHADOW BANNED, k think we’re okay now tho?? anyways this is a shorter chapter but i promise the next chapter will make up for it 🤭

w/c : 2.2k

it wasn’t fair. you felt like you were kept on a leash for the past month, your sisters continue to give you useless tasks and you’re more than certain it’s because of your one outing with rintarou.

this had been the longest time you’d spent away from the cave and from rin, you felt like you were forgetting his voice from the lack of time together. the increase in hunts also began taking its toll on you, your hands shook at the thought of killing another sailor and your stomach churned at the idea of eating their flesh. your breath would hitch and you’d stutter when forced to go with your sisters.

they even forced you to— “contribute more” placing you on the front lines to lure the men in. claiming your innocence would confuse them into thinking you were a mermaid. taking advantage of you. your sisters were taking advantage of you, and your lack of backbone. there’s only so much a person can take before they lose it all.

you were so tired, this was the most you’ve ever had to work, the most you’d ever killed, and the longest you had gone without support. you wanted to see rintarou again. needed to see him again.

so you did, your sisters be damned.

—

it’s late, you can feel the fatigue cracking in your bones but this was the only chance you had. you snuck out of the den where your sisters slept peacefully, praying you didn’t have to come back anytime soon, you knew the repercussions for running away, you weren’t a child, but to you the risk was worth the reward. you’d see your rin and the cave you two shared.

swimming through the dark depths of the ocean was much easier as a siren than any other underwater creature, you were feared, even with your pacifist attitude you were still feared. the fish would part for you, the underwater insects would scramble for a place to hide. you suppose it’s a privilege for your getaway plan, to not be stopped or distracted on your journey to the pretty mermaid man who gave you everything you wanted.

the journey wasn’t as short as you remember it being, but you soon stumbled upon the opening of your small cave and with a burst of adrenaline you sped towards the entrance. pushing yourself out of the water you saw the inside was bare, save for the jewels growing out of every corner of the enclosed space. obviously rin wouldn’t be here so late at night…

yet you couldn’t hold back the pang that reverberated in your chest, it was sharp with disappointment and sadness.

when did a mermaid become so important to you?

you pulled yourself onto the ledge and let your tail sway idly in the pool below you, a frown etched onto your face, so much had happened in such little time. it was overwhelming, you couldn’t begin to reminisce on what you had gone through, every new thing rintarou made you experience was overshadowed by the hundreds of men you had to kill. their blood could never be washed away no matter how strong the underwater current is, you could still see the red cloud burst from them surrounding you in a blanket of blood. they’d look you right in the eyes, begging for you to let them go, they had families, lovers, friends they wanted to see again. you robbed them of that, you robbed them and the people in their lives.

you were a monster…

you are a monster, you’re sick and twisted and cruel, you're no better than your sisters or the other sirens who rule over the other parts of the ocean. you weren’t a pacifist, you were a cold blooded killer. how many men died at your hands? men you couldn’t ever bring back, because the mortality of a silly little human was so fragile. you began shaking, you killed so many people.

so many humans. the silly little people from the world above the seas, humans who gasped and gaped at the prettiest jewels or the softest dresses, humans who created the most delicious foods from anything edible they could find, the humans who were so resourceful to create cities out of the materials left for them. the same humans who risked their lives travelling treacherous oceans just to discover the world. even the most selfish humans were pitiful and almost endearing, was a map marked with an ‘x’ and the promise of treasure worth risking yourself and your men?

you couldn’t choke down the sob that clawed viciously at your throat, your hand covering your mouth as you wailed and mourned for the loss of so many innocent, and maybe not so innocent, people. their fated ends should not have been by your hands. you couldn’t take that guilt anymore. it wasn’t fair.

you wiped at the tears steadily coming down, dropping your hands to grip the rocky ledge you sat upon. when your palm meets the ledges surface it knocks into a small trinket of sorts, the clinking sound of metal hitting rocks brings your attention down to the surface of your resting spot.

there, next to a withered flower, was another pretty little clip. a starfish this time, with little pink diamonds in the suction cups of the stars' little arms.

it was from rintarou, he had come, he had waited and he’d left you a gift.

you couldn’t keep wallowing in your self pity, you needed to see him again. and with a newly found motivator, you tightly gripped the clip and threw yourself out of the cave. pushing through the oceans strong pulls, you force yourself to go faster than you ever had. to go to the border of a territory that had orders to kill any and all sirens on sight.

it was a risk you were willing to take to see your favourite little mermaid.

—

back pressed tightly against a boulder, you placed a hand over your racing heart, the sounds of the royal guards patrolling the areas growing louder every so often as they passed by you. you risked a peek back at the gate, eyes gliding over each guard's face. you knew rin would have to be there somewhere, he told you he’d been training to be a guard all those nights ago.

so you waited, very impatiently, peeking out the side of the boulder every so often in hopes of finding rintarou for even a second. yet you never managed to. it almost felt like a sign, your sisters would be up by now, probably looking for you and you knew if they caught you, you’d never experience the life you fantasised about every night after ripping that life away from another man.

it felt like hours before you felt a hand harshly yank you away from the boulder, their other coming up to clasp around your mouth to hide the shocked gasp that involuntarily escaped your parted lips. the attacker twisted you around, bruising grip getting tighter as they stared down at you with such anger and rage. harsh glare burning your body inside out. such a foreign look for such soft creatures.

“are you an idiot!? why would you come here, if it had been someone else you’d be dead right now.” there was a quiver in their voice, a light shake in their body that caused their grip to falter.

it was rintarou, your rintarou.

“‘m sorry, rin— i couldn’t find you at the cave, i missed you.” mumbling guiltily, you try and pull his hand off of your arm, not wanting to be scolded by yet another person you cared about. you wanted it all to stop, you wanted to be free of the harsh words and tones of anger and disappointment.

“yeah well, you’re not the only one who’s been busy. i have real responsibilities to focus on, i can’t just keep babysitting you when you can’t handle your own responsibilities.”

you gaped at him, eyes wide and mouth parted. your heart sunk at his words, stomach twisting with the horribly uncomfortable feeling of guilt and anger, were you really just a chore for him? did the day spent above ground mean nothing?

“if i was such a nuisance, why'd you agree to take me to see the market? or buy me the starfish clip?” you pushed past him in frustration, wanting to get back to your safe haven away from rintarou and your sisters. maybe you could go back to helen, explain your predicament and pray she doesn’t hate sirens enough to throw you back out to sea.

rin scoffs at your actions, a condescending chuckle following after. “of course you’re running off again,” he swims closer to you, hand gripping your arm again. “hey, how many men did you kill in the month we didn’t see each other?” he had a grin on his face, but his eyes darkened and the rage behind his gaze was piercing through you.

“leave me alone, rintarou.” and with a final pull, he let you go. eyes glued to your retreating figure. he bites back a scoff.

“nothing good ever comes out of naivety, yn.”

—

suna places the trident on the rack, lined with many more, undressing himself of the gear given to the royal guards in training, all his mind could focus on was the pitiful look of desperation on your face. you were a disgrace to the strength and threat of sirens, how could someone so weak be from such a strong group? and how did you have the power to make him feel like he was infinitely weaker in your presence?

shaking his head free of those thoughts he leaves the training room. he didn’t need you, he didn’t want you either. he’s a mermaid training to be in the royal guard, if it got out that he was infatuated with a monster he’d be stripped of his title immediately.

he couldn’t risk his power for a woman he met a mere few weeks ago.

with a sigh he swam away from the royal military outpost, towards the gates of their kingdom and up towards the surface, ascending slowly to his own safe haven away from you. away from his responsibilities. away from anything that made him think about his pathetic future. when he made it to the rocks he immediately began dressing, already used to the feeling of the human legs he’d been bestowed with above the sea. he was quick, careless, he needed to be away from the water as fast as possible.

with a final tug on his boots, rintarou sprints along the rocks, the water crashing against the bridge lights up like crystals under the blazing summer sun, the breeze from the ocean pushed against his face, his hair, his loose clothes. he felt so free, so unchained without anything or anyone to worry about. he would let nothing stop him from experiencing this feeling, this freedom, for the rest of his life.

except for a fish net, thrown over his tall body, forcing him to the ground. his face bashing into the edges of the sharp gravel, leaving cuts and scratches on his normally unmarked skin. rintarou struggled against the nets, his desperation to be let out raising the longer he stayed trapped. he couldn’t breathe, he couldn’t see anything, his focus stuck on the heavy pounds of rope laying on him.

“well well well, we caught ourselves a big one boys.” a sinister voice called form above rintarou’s heaving body. “think the captain would wan’ a word with ‘im.”

—

“i always knew there was something— fishy, about you.” the captains loud boisterous laugh resonates throughout the wooden cabin, rintarou grimaces at the attempt of a joke, not in the mood for humour when he’s forced to kneel on the harsh wooden flooring of the ship with his hands tied tightly behind his back.

captain yuuji presses the tip of his blade under rin’s chin, dragging the blade down to his adam’s apple, letting the sharp point rest there as he crouched down in front of the trapped merman. “i’ve heard some things about you underwater monsters. i’ve seen things too… siren scales, incredibly rare and even more dangerous to find them, the reward far greater than any man could ever dream.”

yuuji stands back up, slowly walking behind rintarou, blade tapping against the ground tauntingly, suna gulps in anticipation as yuuji presses a firm hand into rintarou’s freshly dried strands, gripping his hair tightly before yanking it back, forcing a pained hiss out of suna. “tell me how to get a siren scale, and i won’t kill you.”

through shuddering gasps rintarou let’s his gaze slide up past yuuji’s hands to his sharp eyes, shooting icy glares at the vulnerable man on the floor. rin smirks, a laugh mixed with a scoff escaping him before he could stop himself.

“how ‘bout i bring you a siren— and you give me a spot on your crew.” with a quirked brow rintarou let his half lidded gaze fall back to the floor, grimacing at the pang of guilt that pierced through his chest.

nothing could stop him from achieving freedom.

taglist : @lomlsuna @akaashiwife @plixy @on-crows-wings @1-800-s1ya @sabztov @keiji-in-a-can @tamak00 @erintaro

[xenomorphicdna]

Op I love you

I was planning on making a post but you done it for me so I'm simply gonna add :]

Look, I love this game and the community here has all sorts of cool things going on, but dear god could I not disagree more from a lot of very common fanon interpretations. Iterators on the string is my main thing and I've made several posts about that so I won't be mentioning it.

There is a lot of ancient depictions as cruel assholes. Which I personally really hate because what do you mean they were all evil and horrible towards their iterators ??? They literally say how they have parental obligations for them, they literally stand up for Five Pebbles when some guys send in hate. And all the depiction of ascension being bad, oh the ancients all wanted to die and take everything with them.

Why is everything always assumed that is is done with the worst intentions??

Maybe there was IS love behind their reasoning. Ascend all the creatures? Yeah because life is hard, yes there are joys but there is also pain, survival is difficult. Creatures will die, they sleep hungry, they will lose their young, they will get hurt. There are joys in sitting in the sun, in eating the odd bugs, in playing with fellow packmates. Maybe ascension isn't bad if they can have all the good without the bad. Did the ancients see that? Did they see that and decide they were all deserving of transcendence?

Maybe all they tried to do was done with love in mind.

Ok I got super off topic cuz this post is about Five Pebbles. But yes, Pebbles ain't a kid. And I really despise how common the portrayal of him being incapable of anything is. Same with fanon arti.

And actually I will just copy n paste this from discord cuz I mentioned it there:

Arti spends a while living life in hatered. We dont start the campaign as fresh to the whole deal. Arti has been killing scavs for a while she is LOCKED at the -100 (or whatever it is) scav rep. By now, shes so far gone in this hatred of hers. When she meets Pebbles he literally says how he finds her actions appalling,, and i think after watching an animal go and dedicate herself to genocide,, yeah he has a point.

Pebbles isnt a piece of shit asshole, arti is unreasonable in her slaughter. But pebbles is willing to tolerate her, its just an animal afterall, whatever, he has more important things to do, and right now, he has a scav problem. Let the animal clear out the pests.

He reads pearls to her, but thats sorta about it. He cant hurt her, so he might as well ignore her if shes bouncing around his chamber.

And arti has no reason to be sticking around and bothering a puppet in a box with pretty lights. Arti is so full of anger, she's so willing to kill and to me, shes so deep in the rabbit hole she just isnt crawling back out. She's damaged permanently.

And while i love my happy endings, arti doesnt get redemption

and i dont think arti's ascnesion ending is about her overcoming that urge to kill, but its accepting that all this slaughter she caused,, its not about her pups anymore and that they are dead. At some point she started killing for the sake of it, she convinced herself that scavs are evil or something. It roots in getting justice for her pups but its gone so far beyond that by the time the campaign starts

the nightmares she has arent spending happy time with pups, its not her remembering them, they were at the start but they're not anymore. Its her killing a scav over and over again

Artificer is a vicious murder, and Pebbles has made mistakes looking for fairness in the world. Arti would not get along with hunter either, hunter is here trying to help moon, there is so much love in their heart and hunter stands for the exact opposite of what arti does.

i think pebbles is portrayed as a kid who is incapable of doing anything by himself. Bestie,,, that is an incredibly intelligent supercomputer not a child who cant do anything right

he makes mistakes, yes, but they arent "omg hes so stupid baby"

Pebbles got a good heart, he's also perfectly capable of doing things on his own and doing things right. But like, theres so much about pebbles just being some pathetic loser and i actually hate that representation so much. As if this isnt the same guy who saw sliver's death, saw her life cut early just to solve a riddle that if unsolved will leave them to a horrible fate and went, "its not fair"

This guy actually cares so much about everybody. He's trying so hard to fix things, to help everyone everyone find the solution so that when the time comes they have a way out, he's doing so much and all of it under a horrible disease

And its not until rivulet to where he finally gives up, and he gives his heart to moon because at this point he has no use for it, not anymore.

There boom done

(Why I Think) Five Pebbles Is Not A Child

hello, all. it is 2am and i have An Opinion. you know what that means! essay

...okay, i might have lied; this will likely not be a proper essay because (upon looking through his dialogue on the wiki) this is very fucking hard to collect evidence for. not because it is unsupported in the text, but rather because it is attempting to refute a position that, in itself, i have seen little of others' specific reasoning for. It is a response, so to speak, to an argument that does not exist.

still, I will try, even though it's difficult, because this specific interpretation irks me and one thing about me is that when someone gets my blorbos slightly wrong I will attempt to write an essay about it regardless of whether i need to, want to, or should.

of course, mandatory disclaimer that you shouldn't, necessarily, trust me on this. I'm just some creature on the internet, what do I know? I'm not necessarily right about any of this, and you shouldn't feel pressured to change your personal interpretation because i, hollow gunpowder-arti, made a late-night post about it.

THAT BEING SAID,

I, personally, believe that Five Pebbles is not a child. I, personally, am somewhat uncomfortable with depictions of him as such.

the only proper 'evidence' I have heard for this stance is that he 'acts immaturely' (i believe generally referring to his behavior before and during spearmaster's campaign? i.e. the moon incident)--which I will concede, he does. but there is a difference between acting immature and being a child.

I will point out, also, that many times these narratives push either Moon, the Artificer, or both into a maternal role towards him--you all know my grievances with Fanon Motherly Arti, but even beyond that, it feels very.... iffy, to me.

I find that many times this idea attempts (either overtly or likely unintentionally) to absolve him of blame for his actions. which... five pebbles is not an unsympathetic or villainous character by any means. I mean that wholly and fully, in fact, I do relate to him in several ways (or... did, moreso when the hyperfixation was in full swing :P).

the situation is very complex, and Five Pebbles is not a bad person. That being said, he made terrible mistakes with terrible consequences. he acted rashly, impulsively, and, yes, at times cruelly. interpreting him as a child (and therefore not to be blamed for acting childishly), however, takes away a lot of this complexity--i would say almost as much, if not as much as interpreting him wholly villainously. because he was partially to blame. congratulations, you have made a perfectly good complex character and made him into a sweet innocent mockery of himself, who cannot be held accountable for his errors because he was a child and it was in his nature and he could not help it.

...if you cannot tell, this interpretation is very, very frustrating to me.

I... would like to go on, but I feel like I would just end up restating what I've already said. So. That's it, I guess.

One last reminder (which i do not think will be necessary, but you never know) to please not harass people on my behalf of course. This is not to say those who follow this interpretation are Problematic, simply to explain my reasoning for disagreeing with and even disliking it.

...how do I end this post. Bye, I guess?

[betterdaysareatoenailaway]

RANDOM REVIEW #2: ANY GIVEN SUNDAY (1999)

“This game has got to be about more than winning. You’re part of something.”  Any Given Sunday (1999), directed by Oliver Stone and featuring Jamie Foxx, Dennis Quaid, Cameron Diaz, Al Pacino, LL Cool J, James Woods, and Matthew Modine, is my favourite sports movie of all time. Of all time.

I’m not betraying my favourite sport by saying this. The Mighty Ducks is a kid’s movie. It’s okay, but it’s not a timeless classic. I don’t like the Slap Shot series, Sudden Death is fun but silly, and the Goon movies were a missed opportunity. The only truly good scene in Goon is the diner scene where Liev Schreiber tells Seann William Scott: “Don’t go trying to be a hockey player. You’ll get your heart ripped out.”

  Such is the sad circumstance of the hockey enforcer. They all want to play, not just fight. Here’s a link to a video in which the most feared fighter in the history of the NHL, Bob Probert, explains that he wanted to be “an offensive threat...like Bobby Orr,” not a fighter: https://youtu.be/4sbxejbMH4g?t=118 Heartbreaking. But not unusual.

Donald Brashear, Marty McSorley, Tie Domi, Stu “The Grim Reaper” Grimson, Frazer McLaren: they all had hockey skills. But they were told they had to fight to remain on the roster, so they fought. As Schreiber says in the film: “You know they just want you to bleed, right?”  If the players don’t bleed, they don’t get to stay on the team. So they fight, and they pay dearly for it later. Many former fighters have CTE or other head injuries that make day-to-day life difficult. The makers of Goon should have taken that scene and run with it. I was so disappointed they didn’t, especially given what happened right around the time the film came out, with the tragic suicides of Wade Belak, Derek Boogaard, and Rick Rypien, all enforcers, all dead in a single summer. So Hollywood hasn’t even made a good hockey movie, let alone a great one. Baseball has a shitload of good films, probably because the slower pace of play makes it easier to film. Moneyball has a terrific home run scene, Rookie of the Year does too. Angels in the Outfield was a big favourite of mine when I was a kid, plus all the Major League films, and Bull Durham. 

Football has two good movies: The Program (1993) and Rudy (1993).    

And football has one masterpiece. The one I am writing about today.

A young Oliver Stone trying not to die in Vietnam. ^ Now, I know Stone is laughed at these days, given his nutty conspiracy theories and shitty behaviour and the marked decline in the quality of his films (although 2012’s Savages was underrated). I know Stone is about as subtle as a sledgehammer, but do you want a football movie to be subtle? Baseball, sure. It’s a game of fine distinctions, but football? Football is war. And war is about steamrolling the enemy, distinctions be damned, which is why Any Given Sunday is such an amazing sports film. I love the way it shows the dark side of football. In fact, the film is so dark that the NFL withdrew their support and cooperation, forcing Stone to create a fictitious league and team to portray what he wanted to portray.

This is not to say the movie is fresh or original. Quite the opposite. Any Given Sunday has every single sports film cliché you can think of. But precisely because it tries to stuff every single cliché into its runtime, the finished product is not a cliched mess so much as a rich tapestry, a dense cinema verite depiction of the dizzying highs and depressing lows of a professional sports team as it wins, loses, parties, and staggers its way through a difficult season.  Cliché #1: The aging quarterback playing his final year, trying to win one last championship. (Dennis Quaid) 

Sample dialog: Dennis Quaid (lying in a hospital bed severely injured): Don’t give up on me coach. Al Pacino: You’re like a son to me. I’ll never give up on you. ^ I know this sounds awful. But it’s actually fuckin’ great. Cliché #2: The arrogant upstart new player who likes hip hop and won’t respect the old regime. (Jamie Foxx) 

Cliché #3: The walking wounded veteran who could die if he gets hit one more time. Coincidentally, he needs just one more tackle to make his million-dollar bonus for the season. (Lawrence Taylor) 

Cliché #4: The female executive in a man’s world who must assert herself aggressively in order to win the grudging respect of her knuckle-dragging male colleagues (Cameron Diaz). Diaz is fantastic in the role, though she should have had more screen time, given that the main conflict in the film is very much about the new generation, as represented by her and Jamie Foxx, trying to replace the old generation, represented by Al Pacino, Dennis Quaid, Jim Brown, and Lawrence Taylor. Some people think Diaz’s character is too calculating, but here’s the thing: she’s right. Too many sports GMs shell out millions for the player an individual used to be, not the player he presently is. “I am not resigning a 39-year old QB, no matter how good he was,” she tells Pacino’s coach character, and you know what? She’s right. The Leafs’ David Clarkson signing is proof positive of the perils of signing a player based on past performance, not current capability. Diaz’s character is the living embodiment of the question: do you want to win, or do you want to be loyal? Cuz sometimes you can’t do both.

Cliché #5: The team doctor who won’t sacrifice his ethics for the good of the team (Matthew Modine).

Cliché #6: The team doctor who will sacrifice his ethics for the good of the team (James Woods) 

Cliché #7: The grizzled, thrice-divorced coach who has sacrificed everything for his football team, to the detriment of his social and familial life, who must give a stirring speech at some point in the film (Al Pacino…who goes out there and gives the all-time greatest sports movie “we must win this game” speech) 

Cliché #8: The assistant or associate coach who takes a parental interest in his players, playing the good cop to the head coach’s bad cop (former NFL star Jim Brown). 

Best quote: “Who wants to be thinking about blitzes and crossblocks when you’re holding your grandkids in your arms? That’s why I wanna coach high school. Kids don’t know nothing. They just wanna play.” 

Cliché #9: The player who can’t stop doing drugs (L.L. Cool J).

Okay, so the first thing that needs to be talked about is Al Pacino’s legendary locker room speech.  Now, it’s the coach’s job to rile up and inspire the players. But eloquence alone won’t do it. If you use certain big words, you lose them (remember Brian Burke being endlessly mocked by the Toronto media for using the word “truculent?”). The coach must deliver the message in a language the players understand, while still making victory sound lofty and aspirational. This is not an easy thing to accomplish. One of my favourite inspirational lines was spoken by “Iron” Mike Keenan to the New York Rangers before Game 7 against the Vancouver Canucks in 1994. “Win tonight, and we’ll walk together forever.” Oooh that’s gorgeous. But Pacino’s speech is right up there with it. 

“You know, when you get old in life…things get taken from you. That’s parta life. But you only learn that when you start losin’ stuff. You find out…life’s this game of inches. So’s football. In either game – life or football – the margin for error is so small. I mean…one half a step too late or too early and you don’t quite make it…one half second too slow, too fast, you don’t quite catch it. The inches we need are everywhere around us. They’re in every break of the game, every minute, every second. On this team, we fight for that inch. We claw with our fingernails for that inch. Because we know when we add up all those inches that’s gonna make the fuckin difference between winnin’ and losin’! Between livin’ and dyin’!” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m_iKg7nutNY  Somehow, against all odds, Any Given Sunday succeeds. It is the Cinderella run of sports movies. You root for the film as you watch it. The dressing room scenes are incredible…the Black players listen to the newest hip hop while a trio of lunkhead white dudes headbang and scream “Hetfield is God.” There is a shower scene where a linebacker, tired of being teased about the size of his penis, tosses his pet alligator into the showers where it terrorizes his tormentors. There is a scene where a halfback has horrible diarrhea, but he’s hooked up to an IV so the doctor (Matthew Modine) has to follow him into the toilet cubicle, crinkling his nose as the player evacuates his bowels. There is a scene where someone loses an eye (the only scene in the film where Stone’s over-the-top approach misses the mark). There are scenes that discuss concussions (which is why the NFL refused to cooperate for the film), where Lawrence Taylor has to sign a waiver absolving the team of responsibility if he is hurt or paralyzed or killed. I wonder how purists and old school football fans reacted to the news that Oliver Stone was making a football film. If they even knew who he was (not totally unlikely…Stone made a string of jingoistic war movies in the 1980s) they probably thought the heavy hands of Oliver would ruin the film, take the poetry out of every play. But the actual football is filmed perfectly. The camera gets nice and low for the tackles. It flies the arcs of perfect spiral passes. It shows the chaos of a defensive line barreling down the field. When Al Pacino asked quarterback Dan Marino (fresh off his own Hollywood experience acting in Ace Ventura: Pet Detective) what it was like to be an NFL QB, Marino said: “Imagine standing on a highway with traffic roaring at you while trying to read Hamlet.” A great explanation. Shoulda made the movie. So the football itself is fabulously done. Much better than what Cameron Crowe did in the few football scenes in Jerry Maguire. The Program had some great football, as did Rudy, but neither come close to the heights of Any Given Sunday. In one of the film’s best scenes, Jamie Foxx insists that his white coaches have routinely placed him in situations where he was doomed to fail or prone to injury, and we believe him because white coaches have been doing that to Black players for decades. Quarterback Doug Williams, who led his Washington Redskins team to a Superbowl victory in 1987, was frequently referred to by even liberal media outlets as a “Black quarterback,” instead of just “quarterback,” as if his skin colour necessitated a qualification. Even now, in 2021, the majority of quarterbacks are white, although the gap is gradually closing. The 2020 season saw the highest number of starting Black quarterbacks, with 10 out of a possible 32.  Quarterback is the most cerebral position on the field, and for a long time there was a racist belief that Black men couldn’t do the job. Foxx’s character is a composite of many of the different Black quarterbacks who came of age in the 1990s, fighting for playing time against white QBs beloved by their fan base, fawned over in hagiographic Sports Illustrated profiles, and protected by the good ol’ boys club of team executives and coaching staff. Foxx’s character isn’t demoted because he can’t play the game. He wins several crucial games for his team en route to the playoffs. He’s demoted because he listens to hip hop in the dressing room, because he recorded a rap song and shot a video for it, and because he’s cocky. Yes, the scene where he asks out Cameron Diaz is sexist, as if her power only comes from her sexuality, not her intelligence and business acumen, but it’s meant to show how overly confident Foxx is, not that he’s a sexist prick. Any Given Sunday isn’t a single issue film. It’s basically an omni-protest piece. It gleefully shows football’s dark side, and there is no director better than Oliver Stone for muck-raking. He’s in full-on investigative journalist mode in Any Given Sunday, showing how and why players play through serious brain injuries. How because they are given opiates, often leading to debilitating addictions (this happens in all contact sports...Colorado Avalanche player Marek Svatos overdosed on heroin a few years after retiring from injuries). As to why, Stone gives two reasons. One, team doctors are paid by the team, not the players, therefore their decisions will benefit the team, not the players. And two, the players themselves are encouraged to underreport injuries and play through them because stats are incentivized. James Woods unethical doctor argues with Modine’s idealistic one because an MRI the latter called for a player to have costs the team $20k. But the player in question, Lawrence Taylor, plays anyway because his contract is stat incentivized and if he makes on more tackle he gets a million dollars. Incentivizing stats leads to players playing hurt. And although I loathe this term, a lazy go-to for film critics, Stone really does give an unflinching account of how this shit happens and why. When Williams is inevitably hurt and lying prone on the field, he woozily warns the paramedics who are placing him on a stretcher to “be careful…I’m worth a million dollars.” It’s tragic, yet you’re happy for him. The film really makes you care about these guys.  Thanks to the smartly written script, the viewer knows that Williams has four kids, and you’re pleased he made his bonus because, in all likelihood, after he retires, his injuries will prevent him from any kind of gainful employment (naturally, they give the TV analyst jobs to retired white players, unless Williams can somehow land the coveted token Black guy gig). Stone is not above fan service, a populist at heart, and he stuffs the film with former and then-current NFL players, a miraculous stunt given the fact that the NFL revoked their cooperation. Personally, I think this was a good thing because it meant Stone didn’t have to compromise (the league wanted editorial say on all issues pertaining to the league…meaning they would have cut the best storyline, which is the playing hurt one). It also meant that they had to rename the team and the league. While I’m sure this took away from the realism for some fans, I’m cool with it. It also allowed the moviemakers to name the team the Sharks, a perfect name for this roving band of predatory capitalist sports executives. In another example of fan service, the call-girl Pacino’s quintessential lonely workaholic character rents a girlfriend experience from is none other than Elizabeth Berkley of Showgirls, who had been unfairly blacklisted after the titular Verhoven/Esterhaz venture, a movie my wife showed me one day while I was dopesick, which I became so transfixed and mesmerized by that I forgot I was. As mentioned above, the only misstep in the film is one of the offshoots of the Playing Hurt arc, where a player loses an eye on the field. Not because he gets poked, but because he gets hit so hard his eye simply falls out. A medic runs onto the field and puts the white globe on ice. Stone cast a player with a glass eye in order to achieve this effect. No CGI! Still, the scene is unconvincing, a tad too over-the-top. But this is Oliver Stone. At least Any Given Sunday’s sole over-the-top moment is a throwaway scene lasting all of thirty seconds. It easily could have been a secondary plot-line in which government officials try to sneak a Cuban football prodigy out of Castro’s communist stronghold but the player is brutally murdered the morning the officials arrive at his apartment to escort him to the private plane. Or else the team GM is revealed to be a massive international cocaine dealer. Or the tight end is one half of a serial killer couple. The film follows its own advice, focusing more on the players growth, particularly Beamon’s (Foxx). The anonymity of the title, Any Given Sunday, elevates the game, not the players. Thank God, the movie doesn’t force Beamon to assimilate into Pacino’s mold. He buys into the team-first philosophy without renouncing his idiosyncratic POV or his fierce individuality. This is a triumph. One of my biggest problems with sports is the flattening effect it can have on creative individuals. Players take media training in order to sound as alike as possible during media interviews, a long row of stoic giants spouting cliches. It’s boring. Which is why media latch onto a loudmouth, even while they scold him for it. All sports are dying for an intelligent mouthpiece who can explain his motivations in a succinct, sound-bite-friendly, manner. Sports are entertainment. As much as I love Sidney Crosby, in my heart I have to go with Alexander Ovechkin because Ovechkin is far more thrilling, both on and off the ice. Unlike almost every other NHL star before him, all of whom were forced to kneel and kiss Don Cherry’s Rock Em Sock Em ring, Ovechkin defiantly told the media he simply did not care about Cherry or Cherry’s disgusting parental reaction to one of Ovie’s more creative goal celebrations (called a “celly” in the biz). On the play in question, Ovechkin scored the goal, then dropped his stick and mimed warming his hands over it, as if his stick were on fire. As cheesy as the celebration appeared to the naked eye, it’s both a funny and accurate notion. Ovechkin was the hottest scorer in the league for many years and his stick was on fire, metaphorically speaking. The only celly I can think of that matches up in terms of creativity and entertainment value came from Teemu Selanne in 1993, who scored a beauty of a goal, threw one of his gloves straight up into the air, then pumped his stick like a shotgun while “shooting” his glove. Of course, Cherry took exception to it. Cherry’s favourite goal celebration features Bobby Orr putting his head down and refraining from raising his hands over his head. Cherry’s idea of an appropriate goal celly is no celly at all. This from a man who claims “we’ve got to sell our game.” But when an arrogant player shows up and he’s not white, he’s in for a shitload of bad press. Foxx’s Beamon illustrates this beautifully when he yells at Pacino after Pacino cuts him for an older QB who has lost four games this season. “Don’t play that racism card with me,” Pacino warns. “Okay…okay…” Foxx nods, “Maybe it’s not racism. Maybe it’s ‘placism’…as in…a brother got to know his place.”

Here is the original theatrical trailer, featuring Garbage’s classic “Push It.”

Above Lawrence Taylor begs Matthew Modine for Cortazone.  There’s also a great scene where Pacino is trying to figure out where he has gone wrong and Diaz just looks at him. “You got old,” she says simply. No enterprise is more cruel to an aging human being than sports. And this movie makes football a big giant corporate machine that chews players up and spits them out, injured and drug addicted, after four or five years. Those who play for a decade are lucky. This is still how the NFL works. And the NHL is increasingly becoming a young man’s game. Experience matters less and less.

When I started watching hockey in the 90s, players regularly competed into their late 30s. Not so anymore. Players peak at 23-24 now, and are often out of the league by age 35. Thornton and Chelois are exceptions, not the rule. After more than two hours, Any Given Sunday finally lurches across the finish line, bravely refusing to give its viewers a traditional happy ending, in the great tradition of underdog sports films like Rocky and Rudy. The bombshell dropped by Pacino’s character at the end feels less surprising than inevitable, but by now the movie has explored so much of professional sports' seedy underbelly that you're glad it's over. The film is great but exhausting. Stone seems to be advancing the notion that the sport itself is pure, but the people in it are corrupt. If money weren’t involved, the game would be played for its own sake.

I agree with this. People playing pond hockey are engaging in wholesome fun, not necessarily practicing to make a professional league. Commerce corrupts the purity of the game, and the extent to which it corrupts is directly proportional to how badly the individual in question needs the commerce. Of course, the sport is highly racialized, with people in positions of authority white, and those being told what to do with their bodies Black.

Any Given Sunday is an important film, but it never sacrifices entertainment for the sake of moralizing. That it pulls off such a strong moralistic stance is a testament to the actors, who are all incredible, and the material, which is among the strongest of Stone’s career.

He never really made a great movie after this one. So check it out sometime.

[tk-writer]

Hello, I am back, again, for a part 2 to my rant cuz I read it again and while I gushed a lot before, I feel like I wasn’t specific enough with any of the things I wanted to compliment. I was too enthralled in just how much I loved (and still love) it.

Okay, first, Tsukki’s characterization. I love Yamaguchi, he’s my favorite character and you characterized him beautifully (so so so fricken well), but I feel like Tsukishima’s always been a bit more difficult. He’s more complex and nuanced, bless his annoying lil heart. And in a tickle fic, which is generally pretty fluffy and often a derivative of the actual characterization (to fit our Special Interest™), it’s pretty easy to make him immediately a lil OOC.

But you wrote him?? So perfectly?? (I’m using that word too much, I know, but I cannot think of a better one honestly) like the balance of this smothered affection and his external cool/aloof image is 👌🏼👌🏼 incredible. The way you describe his train of thought as he slowly loses the battle to his want to just go full Ler Mode sounds so well-characterized. And his TEASING. Taunting and teasing are such actual in-character components to Tsukishima as a character and the voice you wrote them in for him— I could hear it. Like, I know we’d never get a scene like this irl (😔) but the way his words taunt and pick at Yamaguchi with a specific accuracy to make him a little embarrassed and more sensitive, it sounds just like something he’d say. It didn’t once stray from a Tsukishima I could see in canon and I am just—floored honestly. Your Ler Tsukki is my prototype for him now. He is astounding.

The characterization in general too. This is a Tsukishima Yamaguchi story but down to Noya introducing the concept and Suga being a teeny bit chaotic and a tad mothering in his affection toward Yamaguchi. It just fits~

Also the concept. Lord knows a ‘coming to terms with liking it’ kinda tickle fic isn’t uncommon, but I just love the way this one progressed. Like, first of all, we get a dual lee/ler perspective, boo yah. Then, I dunno how to explain, but it’s like so natural? It flows. We live this experience personally so it’s very relatable and it doesn’t always turn out all butterflies and rainbows, but seeing shy lee Yamaguchi get acceptance and affection from his friends and emotionally constipated ler Tsukishima come to terms with wanting this type of affection and being comfortable enough in his relationship with Yamaguchi to pursue it? Then the mutual understanding that doesn’t come as a deep, adult conversation—because it wouldn’t be, not for these kids at this time in their life—but as Tsukki and Yama chilling together, observing, talking, and interacting like their long-lived friendship would have them do. Tsukki teases. Yama stammers. It’s the natural course of things and it goes on step by step until Tsukki is actually taking him apart and somehow I find myself wondering how this HASN’T happened yet in canon when it just flows so perfectly.

Not to mention the actual tickling which, as a member of the community and someone who’s written a fic or two occasionally, can get pretty repetitive and hard to describe after a while 😅 yet the way you described it was was so visceral. I wasn’t ever taken out of the scene due to an awkward description of body position or over repetitive description of the actual ticking. (Side note: the way you write the laughter-interspersed speech is adorable 10/10) Writing tickling is surprisingly difficult after awhile but I’d say from this that you’ve honed the craft quite nicely~

Okay, okay. That’s what I’ve got off the top of my head without having the fic beside me to analyze paragraph by paragraph so— In conclusion: talented, brilliant, incredible, amazing, show-stopping, spectacular— all that jazz and more. I absolutely adore your writing on these two, and if you ever decide to do another I will be your personal cheerleader through it all. Thank you so much~

i'm

i just

asfjdhs ok let me start over

honestly, i wasn't planning on coming back to this blog anytime soon, if ever. i was ready to leave fandom behind and quit fanfiction writing forever, for reason i'll elaborate on later. but today i got an email about this ask (along with your first one, which i accidentally deleted like a dumbass and i'm so sorry), and after reading it at least eighteen times while tearing up i had to log back in to answer it.

i have never received such detailed and utterly specific feedback for anything i've written. ever. not even for my non fandom related works. lately, i've been feeling really self conscious about what i've written as well, to the point where i can't reread anything cuz i hate it so much, so reading this restored a lot of that lost confidence i had.

the fact that you took the time to type all of this out and tell me about all the little details you noticed and loved... it means the world to me. i worry about all the things you mentioned: making sure the pacing is just right and not too slow or fast, maintaining the relationship dynamics, the laughter and speech patterns, creating a scene that could happen in canon, keeping characters in-character, etc. so to hear that i did all of that right is so reassuring.

i know i'm taking this more seriously than i probably should, cuz after all "ItS jUsT a TiCkLe FiC", but this is important to me! it's my one talent in life and blessed feedback like this is what makes me want to continue with it!

this fic in particular was extra challenging to write too. the two-role perspective is difficult to get right, so i wasn't sure i was gonna be able to do it. i was especially concerned that Tsukkiyama was believable. i'm SO happy that you enjoyed my take on him! i was really inspired after reading another fic with ler!suga and lee!yama so i wanted to include them too.

anyway, before this gets super long too: thank you, genuinely, from the bottom of my heart, for sharing your kind comments. it makes me want to keep writing and to give up on giving up. people like you remind me why i love creating content.

[imaginedcreaderinsert]

She's got a boyfriend anyway — Jason Todd x Reader

WARNINGS: some cussing words here and there, implied fighting and blood, allusions to depression? or at least anxiety, and sexual implications.

WORD COUNT: 2575.

10. “Friends don’t do this kind of shit!

He is frustrated, and has yelled so out of emotion – and yes, you know it, you know how impulsive and unstable he can get to be when he spirals down in strong human emotions. And well, you were the one correcting him the first time he said so about himself (like he wasn’t human, like they were foreign, which made you sad), but right now you strongly emphasize them because out of the two, you feel like a monster, and he is pure and raw emotion.

—No, I-I refuse!—. He stammers with his own words out of rage as he bolts up from the sofa you’ve been previously kissing on—. I can’t believe you-I won’t, (Y/N)! Fuck no, you don’t say or do that shit with friends! And don’t fuckin’ bring Chad into it.

Chad. He pronounces it like it burns, like it disgusts him, and he is in his own right to do so, but it makes you sigh. Briefly, you wonder, what would have happened if you had invited him over instead of accepting when Jason just called you with the tempting offer of just pizza, Netflix and Chill and some cuddles. Maybe you’d be sexting instead of shouting (and maybe you wouldn’t feel as guilty as you do now).

—Todd, I told you-

—Lose the Todd, sweetheart, we’ve been fucking for months now, is a bit late now, isn’t it?!

He won’t understand. He doesn’t want to understand. Nothing that comes out of his mouth will help, and it will only dig a grave deeper than it really needs to. And, even if right now it’s not the best example in your favor, you really care for him. And fuck yes, you only wanted to spend a sweet and careless night of making out in the sofa, moving it to bed and having some pancakes in the morning. But as of right now it seems out of the question, and there seems to be no possible scenario in the future where you get him to tone it down a notch and it all ends up with both of you okay. And you don’t want to cry, you don’t want to make him more upset, which is probably the only outcome you visualize at this point. So you stop him.

—Just go.

—No, fuck no, we are going to talk about it now, cuz’ I know-

—Jason, I’m not going to repeat myself. You came here for the fuck and stayed for the feelings, Christ, deal with it. I didn’t ask for it and I was perfectly clear the first time it had happened and you agreed to every single thing. So just… Go. We’ll talk in the morning.

You had nursured him. You had seen him broken (with eyes just like the ones he’s giving you now, but younger), beaten up – which is why you two failed as youngsters your first year in uni; why it was the worst because of that. Restless nights of wondering if he ever got home, if he would appear with new marks, bandages, in the hospital! No, you couldn’t deal with it, it was too distressing. And you didn’t actually mind much the fact that he stood you up a couple of times. Gotham was quite big, after all – and even with his resources, the Wayne resources he had been slowly accepting, it was still impossible to get that fast to places that were that far away. No, you didn’t care much about the tabloids and the gossip magazines that “caught him” in the company of one or two pretty girls, you weren’t actually the jealous type and really trusted him, but you couldn’t rest. Ever. He took your heart with him at every single mission, patrol, stakeout… And all you ever wondered was if he would come back okay. And you shouldn’t have deal with that alone for almost an entire year; not with your projects, your anxiety and the pressure of succeding in uni like every other familiar you have. You couldn’t fall back or rely on a comfortable trust fund, unlimited resources like he could, if he wanted to. And by no means you are saying, implying, that he is entitled, that he has it easy… You are with him every night he stays in, when he wakes up in cold sweat, heart in his neck beating like its going to explode and sometimes (they were becoming fortunately more and more rare) shouting. He once choked you – almost did so. He cried after, and you comforted him all night with sweet nothings and reassuring kisses.

But you did have enough. And the question had been quite easy, quite simple: “Would you be able to resist that dangerous lifestyle in the future? Would you able to drop it all?”, to which he had, obviously, hesitated. Jason had feel cornered, and you knew you were not fair, since you both knew all your vulnerabilities, your weak points, but he had pushed you to that limit the night he almost did not make it, the time that Dick had to come inform you after it had gone wrong. You couldn’t stop crying at his side, in his bed – it was truly a cumule of everything academically and emotionally speaking – as he rested in the Wayne Manor. You had skipped exams, you had given everything up, which is why you didn’t hesitate to ask the same thing perfectly knowing your own answer when he threw it back at you:

—In a heartbeat.

So you two had been at different places in the stages of love, but it didn’t mean he loved you any less, he didn’t care when he heard you got a new boyfriend on campus at the ending of the second year. He was brilliant: part of the Student Committe, came from an excellent family, had both the grades and the looks… It was like the only thing that he didn’t have he achieved without making much effort. He didn’t actually see you fall in love with him, but you shared friends, even when you two broke up they tried to keep it “normal” if there was ever a defintion like that applied to him. But he too had eyes, with which caught on the smallest things: the small presents; the occasional blush on your cheeks and faint smile when you received a certain text; the rush with which you picked up your phone when “someone” called you; the hangouts you passed on not because of him, but because of “Him”.

Year three had come, and Chad and her had been dating for some months, but something felt on, and Jason interceded. He reappered in your life with a blank slate, apparently – no resentment, no blaming, no love. Maybe that’s why it had been so easy to fall back into his arms that night Chad had presented you to his parents. They hated you, and you had a breakdown in a freaking Wayne gala in which the only thing he said was “Don’t worry about them; just go to a bathroom and get yourself pretty again. I like it when you smile” which you assume should have made you smiled, but it only made you cry harder as soon as you were out of sight.

Jason knew about the difficult relationship you had with your own family: having another one hating your guts wasn’t the best outcome, no. But Chad hadn’t asked; you didn’t bring the topic to the table, but you assumed he should have asked at some point, because he cared… Right? Full of doubts, feeling broken and pathetic, Jason Todd had come to the rescue. He had noticed you, had seen everything: he wasn’t the jealous type, but he knew that one wasn’t the right for you. And no, he wasn’t stating that he was but… He would treat you better. He would try, at least.

You both that night attacked the secret shelf which Batman, not Bruce Wayne, used to attack whenever his bad went kind of wrong (never fully, he was always proud like that) to get back up. The alcohol was strong and it made your nose burn, but it also made you giggle to the stupid shit Jason said, and you had comfortably (just numb enough) accepted his kiss. You were both in front of the fire, and he had been trying to take the bottle from your drunk ass who was stumbling in high-heels, complaining about dresses and galas and parents… And he had simply growled something (you can’t remember, didn’t care much) which made you almost drop your panties. Jason had a fucking sexy mouth and-

That was the only clear thing you remember from that night. Memories can’t be relied on, but on that one you can count on. He kissed you, and he backed you up to the wall, grinded into you: you had moan in his mouth, had sticked out your tongue for him to take, and just like that, it was spring again when he had kissed you for a second “first” time (the first had actually been on a game) and your fingers were laced on the grass, sun bathing his form, his beautiful white lock, his incredibly attractive jaw, his beautiful and gorgeous eyes-

You didn’t make it to bed. It sounds cliché, but he didn’t let you, as much as you almost crawled into your room; the sofa had been nice enough the first time. Not much better for the second. But at the third, you explained the situation, the rules: “no love, no drama, no strings or uncomfortable questions. Just lust”.

So for everyone’s surprise you were instantly friends again. First they thought you were just fucking, but soon after you had finally introduced Chad to them and all rumors died, which was the main purpose. Jason was just a comfortable fuck where no questions were asked and where you just felt… Good again. Your boyfriend was good to you, yes, but too perfect sometimes, too unberable for someone with anxiety and a constant pressure of being just like him. But the truth is, there’s no point of comparison: for him is just as easy as breathing to be that kind, that good – but it takes the life out of you to be like that, so docile, so good and so excellent all the time. And Jason knows, understands. He murmurs into your hair that you are perfect and you believe him.

He makes you feel pretty, enough; and you need when all Chad cares is his own family, his grandes, his status, his position. It’s him him him all the way. And this time you mind being stood up, you mind him being late, you can’t stand him flirting with other girls, even when you have no right to complain (having fucked Jason for three months kind of takess off the right).

Were you his charity case? The broken girl from the bad neighborhood who made it into uni who he had comforted “and saved”?

It’s been eight months, and even through your second anniversary, you are more and more sure of it. And you actually start cancelling more dates, being more passive with him and start fucking Jason more. It’s just that, it’s nothing more – and while you run from your “perfect” future by his side (you try to, knowing perfectly Chad is everything that would make your family happy, would keep you content and safe), Jason falls more and more in love with you.

The way you need him: your nails digging in his skin, your hands pulling his hair like you need something desperately to hold onto – him and only him being able to do so, bring you to your peak everytime before he can even come close… Your perfect legs that open with a kiss on your thigh, how you trust him to make you feel good without questioning. You love the way he makes you feel about yourself, which is probably selfish, but you couldn’t care less. He accepted, he was fine with the rules: and thus you exploit his love, he gets way into it, into you, even when alarms go all around his head telling him “no”, trying to stop.

But it’s too late, and you feel just a little bit cruel:

—You are great.

—Really now? Does it have anything to do with the pizza, or the fact that I eat you out like a champ?

—Why can I only choose one? God, Jason, it’s like you’ve never read Tolstoi. Things are not all black or white. Dumbass—. You giggle, getting closer to him in the sofa where your hair is spread, almost naked; Jason has put his boxers on, and he’s tracing lazy patterns in your skin.

—First you quote Tolstoi, paraphrase him rather, and then you say “dumbass”. Yer’ an idiot.

It makes you both laugh, and when it kind of dies down, you press your forehead against his and you search for his lips. He concedes, biting the inferior one, marking it.

—Oh, come on, you know you can’t leave marks on. He will see.

—Yeah, and we wouldn’t like that, would we? End this rendez-vous or affaire, however fancy way you want to call it because you love him soooo much—. You roll your eyes, and he smirks. You hate it when he feels he is right (he never is).

—Two things: one, I do like him, however i decided to manage our relationship it’s between him and me; and two, I don’t like to be marked because I’m not “a thing”, Jason. Definitively not yours.

His smile falters. You know you are on dangerous ground. Pizzas are about to get there, why couldn’t you just shut down your mouth?

—So you’re his?—. He gets all possesive. You know when he slightly puffs out his chest. It makes you get up, search for the cushions you both had dumped to the floor. It makes you not look at him directly, distract you—. Then who-no, what are we? Fuck buddies?

—Try friends?—You sarcastically try and throw, but it ends in the most of the miserable ways.

—Let me back up a bit, but I’m pretty sure Roy and I don’t do this at least once a week. Do you have any other special “friend” you do this with this ritually?

—I didn’t mean it like that…

—Well now I do, so answer, (Y/N). Do you?

You massage your nape, bite your lip.

—No, Jason, I don’t. And you know I don’t—. You answer and it kind of feels like he sighs in relief, which annoys you—. It wouldn’t matter anyways, because we would just be friends!

—Friends like what, you and I?

—Yes, Todd, just like you and I!

—Well newsflash (Y/N)! Friends don’t do this kind of shit!

The anger, his voice, had scared you, and it brings you to the present. His eyes beg at you to say something; any sense of regret and he will stay, he will make it work somehow, but you are too tired. So you just give him your back and turn around to face Gotham and its darkness: one that has taken you over the years, that has fucked you up and that will probably break two hearts in one night.

[surveys-at-your-service]

Survey #306

i’m v talkative today so pardon my jabbering below.

What is the strangest type of candy you have eaten? I think I've had one of those lollipops with a bug in it before as a kid? I don't remember. What would be your most ideal profession? A freelance photographer. But I'm honestly starting to lose hope. Have you tried those coloring books for adults? Yeah; it's funny you mention 'em, 'cuz a family friend got me one for my birthday earlier this month. What is a topic you definitely don't want to talk about with anyone? I don't like talking about my sexual history, doesn't matter who you are. It's just uncomfortable. What was your first gaming console? An Atari. Is there something you're eagerly waiting for? What is it? *SLAMS FISTS ON TABLE* MAY NEEDS TO FUCKIN' HURRY. My tattoo appointment is set then. :''') Do you/have you ever belonged to an organization? If so, which one? I was a Girl Scout when I was young. What is something you're very passionate about? Nature conservation, gay rights (equal rights in general, really), the pro-choice movement, and then there are less "important" things like certain hobbies interests and such. I'm sure there are more big ones that are just slipping my mind right now, considering I feel passionately for a shitload of stuff. What are you studying or what was the last thing you studied? I majored in Art & Design with a focus on Photography in college. But guess who dropped out. What was the last present you gave someone? I don't know... I mention enough that I don't have a source of income where I can really buy anything. I think the last thing I did was a Christmas gift for Mom a year or two back of a drawing I did of our late dog Cali, whom she absolutely adored. Do you enjoy plays? If so, what was the latest one you saw? Not really, no. What was the last thing you achieved? PHP has helped me focus on little victories, so prepare for an underwhelming answer haha, but it's something. I Facebook messaged an old friend I really wanted to catch up with, and everyone in group cheered for me. :') It was really heartwarming. What a shocker that this program is really helping me once again. What is something you would like to achieve at some point in your life? I would love love love to take at least one "famous" or award-winning photograph. It'd be such amazing validation that I'm talented at something I love so much. What is one philosophy you have regarding life/living/purpose? That's... difficult to answer seeing as I'm trying desperately to find my purpose. I do try to live by this old quote a therapist said once: "Deal with life, or life deals with you." I think it holds an incredible amount of depth and meaning in such a short phrase. How would you design the inside of your own home? I don't know the details of it, really, besides that shit is gonna look like a Halloween house year-round. I can imagine wanting black furniture, too, and having loooots of decor expressive of what I love and find comfort in. Gotta make a house feel like a home just for me. What is a band you remember liking from your childhood? Backstreet Boys, duh. Do you ever get mad at people for not having the same opinion as you (i.e. abortion being wrong/right, meat-eating being wrong/right)? Two things: it depends on the topic, and "get mad" is the wrong term for what I feel. It's more disgust; ex., I'm repulsed by anti-gay rights people and want absolutely nothing to do with 'em, but I'm not like, mad at them. Do you edit any of your pictures? In what ways? Oh yeah, and it definitely depends on the raw photograph. I edit depending on the mood it emanates; like if you've seen my roadkill photography versus nature shots, there is an extremely distinct difference in editing style and vibe. I'd say in general though, I tend to like to brighten my photographs and add more vibrance. If you like to take pictures, what is your motivation? God, I could write an essay on this. I just love and am so thankful for the fact we can literally freeze time forever with the click of a button and look back on fantastic sights, beautiful moments, memories... It's just magical to me, and I adore contributing to that art. Would you ever consider living anywhere cold? Well yeah, that's my preference, actually. What is your absolute favorite food? The spicy shrimp fritas from Olive Garden, jfc. Would you ever wear snake-skin pants, or other animal clothing? Fuck to the absolute hell no. What foreign country would you like to go to for a shopping spree? Idk, considering I'm not well-versed in the artistic creations of other countries. Perhaps India? Japan? I dunno. If you met your favorite musician, what would you ask him/her? I'm asking for his fucking autograph and a hug while I smile my face in two AND cry lmao. What do you spend most of your day thinking about? I ain't gonna bullshit nobody, my PTSD. In some way or another, he's lurking in that head of mine through memories, flashbacks, wonders of what could have gone differently... but thank God it's no longer in the forefront of my mind after my first PHP. I've come very, very far, but especially when trying to blank out my mind to fall asleep, parts of PTSD strangle my brain until I'm just finally out. I really hope that changes someday. Where is a busy place you would like to go to? Yikes, nowhere, really. I like to avoid busy locations. Do you think video games cause people to become violent? Absolutely not. You are responsible for the decisions you make; music, games, movies, etc. have no deciding voice in stupid shit you do, and it's bullshit that people blame art and entertainment for such things. Vocabulary: What was the last word you learned? I'm unsure. Have you or could you build your own site? Absolutely not from scratch. The closest I've gotten to that is my photography website, but it was through the assistance of Wix. What's the best thing you can cook yourself? Scrambled eggs, haha. I do make some bomb eggs at least. Are there a lot of graffiti around your neighborhood? No. Do you have a hobby that forces you out of the house? If so, what is it? Nature photography. Would you stop eating meat, if you had to raise and slaughter it yourself? Absolutely. God, I want to go vegetarian again... Besides English, what other languages can you speak? I can speak a very little bit of German. Took four semesters of it in high school and became very good at it, but lack of practice has pretty much ruined that. Besides English, what other languages can you read? I can read German well; as in, I can pronounce most words I see, but that doesn't mean I understand what is written. Do you think you could make it as a chef? Gordon Ramsey would deadass kick me off his show on day one, lmao. What's your favorite kind of tea? It marvels me JUST how many tea and coffee questions are in surveys. Anyway, I don't like tea. I am an embarrassment to NC culture. What thing/person/happening has made you the happiest you've been? lask;dfjal;wekrjwe What's the most freeing thing you've ever done? Stealing my happiness back from someone who had no right to hold it all in its entirety. That shit's mine. Do you think today's kids are really impatient? Most, probably, but in some ways I can understand it - at least, in the sense that with the assistance of modern technology and advancements in satiating our wants so quickly, kids just expect it. I definitely believe that patience is something to try to be deeply instilled in everyone, though. I don't have an ounce of it (in most situations) and wish I did. Have you ever tasted birch sap? No. How about the young buds/shoots of spruce trees? No. Which edible flowers have you tasted? One of my favorite Southern experiences is finding a bunch of honeysuckles and tasting the honey (is it technically even honey??). Tastes amazing. My family's hairdresser lives down a beautiful path that sprouts a massive amount of them, and as kids, my sisters and her two boys would go tasting them while our parents talked for so long, or if we were waiting our turn. Good memories. What has been your worst restaurant experience? I'm not sure, really. What's the most immature, adolescent thing that still makes you laugh? "Inappropriate humor type jokes." <<<< They can get me sometimes, too. Have you ever had a life-threatening condition? If so, what was it? No, thankfully. Have you ever had a custom print done on a shirt? If so, what was it? I don't believe so, no. Besides making a tye-dye one in HS with our school colors. Wasn't my idea and never wore it, haha. Do you ever read other people's survey answers? It depends on the person. If it's a friend, absolutely, because I love learning usually obscure things about them I wouldn't have known otherwise. If it's a user I don't know from wherever I got the survey, sometimes, depending on how short the answer is and my eyes kinda just scroll over it. Do you like daytime or night time better? Why? Daytime, especially mornings. I'm generally happier when there's light around. What's your highest level of education so far? Some college. Describe your ordinary day: My average day is embarrassingly uneventful. It's sitting on the laptop doing shit on various sites, none of which are actually important, and playing WoW, which is also without true substance, save for social interactions with my friends on there. I spray Venus' terrarium everyday multiple times as well to keep the humidity up, and obviously eat and handle that kinda bodily needs stuff. Would you ever have a UV tattoo? Ugh, that'd be so dope. I've seen some awesome ones, but idk if I'd get one, considering when am I actually going to be under UV light?? Like I wanna be able to see my tat. What is the brand and color name of your favorite lipstick? I have one black lipstick, but it comes right off so I don't even like it. I only ever put it on to take pictures. What do you like on your tortilla? Just ham and cheese. How about inside your pita bread? I've never had pita bread, actually. What do you like in your burger? It depends on where I'm getting the burger. My basic is cheese, ketchup, mustard, a bit of mayo, pickles, and a light sprinkle of diced onion, but sometimes I add bacon and take away the onions. How about on your pizza? I have three I tend to pick from: pepperoni, jalapeno, or meat lovers. Do you work better alone or in a group? Alone, definitely. Which body part would you not mind losing? I'ma be extremely honest, with just how horribly weak my legs are, I could live without them, I guess. Not saying I want to by any means, it's just exhausting using them. Ideally, I'd take away something minor, like a finger or something. What common saying people use is absolute BS to you? “'Everything happens for a reason.'” <<<< Fuckin' colossal "same." I won't rag on people who believe it, especially if it gives you courage to keep moving forward, but I don't believe it in the slightest. If it were so, I'd like to talk to whoever is in control of those "reasons," please. What is the most interesting thing you’ve read or seen this week? I had no idea elephants were pregnant for two years, like holy shit, can you imagine. It was in an article I saw on Facebook about a mother and daughter elephant who are both expecting and doing well. Wonderful to hear. What’s the most useless talent you have? Ha, I'm a master in the arts of catastrophizing and jumping to conclusions involving people hating me in one way or another. What’s something everyone looks stupid doing? I'm one of those people who hate dabbing done by anybody, like you look like you're just smelling your armpit. Which kids’ movie scarred you for life? I wouldn't say "scarred me for life" by any means, but when I was little, I was terrified of the Wicked Witch from The Wizard of Oz and even had nightmares about her. It sucked because my little sister was obsessed with that movie, haha. In one sentence, how would you sum up the Internet? A source of incredible knowledge but also hate and misinformation. What would be the most ridiculous thing for the government to make illegal? I literally dread the idea of Roe vs. Wade being reversed. Banning abortion would kill so many people with operational uteruses and cause absolute pandemonium. How many friends do you have on social media and how many of them do you know for real? On Facebook, I have 124 friends, and I'd say I know most of them "in real life." However, having been on the Internet since I was so young and befriending loads of incredible people, a good chunk are "online friends." Hell, I'm more interested in their lives than most "real" ones. Long-distance friendships are so valid. What fact amazes you every time you think of it? Lots of things, generally regarding the stupidity of humanity. What’s the most spontaneous thing you’ve ever done? Probably going to the beach w/ my old friend Colleen. We had zero plans of doing it, but she just called me one morning and asked if I wanted to go, and off we went. It was a fun day. What has taken up too much of your life? I'ma be real, WoW. I don't think I'm addicted to it like I once was seeing as I go through spans where I barely want to play it at all and don't, so I truly am capable of not playing it, but rather it's just the most entertaining way to kill time in my life. I just don't like how much time I've invested into a game over six or seven years regardless. Where do you not mind waiting? Uh, nowhere lmao. Is there an app you hate to use, but still use every day? No; why would I use it if that was the case? Who is the funniest person you know? My friend Girt is fucking hysterical. What three words describe you best? Complex, passionate, and creative. What makes you think you’re smart? Lol who says I think I'm smart? Who inspires you? Korean Jesus. Okay on a serious note, not just him, of course, but he's #1 in an entire universe of ways. Do you aspire to be like somebody else? If so, who? No; I want to be my own authentic self. How did you meet your best friend? YouTube, back when it had more social aspects. Which one of your accomplishments are you the most proud of? I want to say my recovery, but like... I wonder a lot if it's "enough" to be proud of with how scarred I still am? I still struggle with a lot and feel like I could be so much better by now if I tried harder. If I'm completely honest with myself, I think it's finishing high school in the top percentile of my graduating class. There was a ceremony for the handful of us and all, and I cherish my plaque probably too much. Reminds me of a time when I knew what the fuck I was doing. What's the strangest thing you ever did as a child? Thinking I had "animal powers" where I could invoke the traits of certain animals at will, like what the actual fuck, Brittany. What did your mother teach you? Christ, a lot. Dad didn't do a lot of the raising, honestly, so much of my core values and whatnot were instilled by my mother. She taught me to care for and be nice to others, respect myself, try my best in everything, and most importantly that she is always there for me and my sisters no matter what and can tell her absolutely anything. She was very serious about us going to college and saving sex for marriage when we were younger, but she diverged from those ideas as absolutely necessary with experience. I'm extremely lucky with who I call my mom, overall. What did your father teach you? Eek... Read above. Not a lot as a kid (save for riding a bike and playing softball); most he's taught me has come following reuniting with him after my parents' divorce. I remember we went to lunch once and talked about my breakup, and he talked to me about sometimes, you just have to let people go in order to be happy, like with him and Mom. He's very serious now about ensuring us girls know that he is always there for us and will help us in any way he's capable. What makes you feel powerful? "Powerful" isn't something I really feel, if I'm being real. What are you ready to let go? It would be inexplicably fantastic if I could let every speck of Jason go in both my head and heart. What is your most bizarre deal-breaker? I don't really find any of my expectations and limits as "bizarre?" They're all valid to me. Well wait, idk if you'd find it strange that I absofuckinglutely would not date someone who hunts, but it's not to me. That's a difference in a very serious value to me. Would you rather be hated or forgotten? Hated. God, I don't want to leave this earth having given just nothing. I can live with some people hating me for whatever reason. What’s the biggest personal change you’ve made? Accepting my bisexuality, probably. That's something that I consider pretty big for two reasons: 1.) I could end up with a woman forever, and especially 2.) I was originally homophobic. I still have difficulty in fathoming how I ever was. What are some of your short-term goals? PHP is finally starting to make me build these again. I want to get better at selfcare, draw, write, and read more, I want to drink a lot more water, exercise way more... Lots of things, really. What is the weirdest thing about you? Uh. I dunno. Probably that I RP meerkats, which is a very obscure RP niche for sure.

[glowonu]

nerdy love by ph-1

here is a cute little songfic i wrote, please enjoy! 

https://youtu.be/FFkLoUwQ9a4

I wake up to the sound of the alarm It rained yesterday but the sun is out now Dress up in the outfit I picked out last night I like to look neat Don’t really care about brand names I’m in a rush to pick you up

Wonwoo rushes around his college dorm, dressed in the outfit he picked last night. The pale sweater contrasts against his black pants. He grabs his keys, wallet, phone, and glasses in a frazzled rush, he wants to see you as soon as possible. The environment looks a little brighter, a little cleaner from last night’s rain. It’s only just cleared up, the clouds quickly disappearing yet raindrops coat the leaves on the trees and the bitumen is soaked dark. 

You light up as you see him across the campus hub. Your heart squeezes as he jogs over to you. He looks incredibly soft, and a little nerdy, but you don’t mind, you wouldn’t have him any other way. You smile up at him and he swears you outshine the sun. Taking his hand, you giggle and head to the river near campus. 

I heard you like yellow sunsets I want to be a cool lover for you But I can’t stop being so damn nerdy Like the male lead in last week’s drama that we watched together I wanna show you a passionate and fiery love But I don’t really have much I’m not that manly And I’m sure sometimes You want a cool, real man

The sun is shining, and the breeze is a little chilly but it’s alright where you’re sitting, on top of your weatherproof jacket, spread across a spot on the bank of the river. You’re chatting about your favourite drama, particularly about the main character who has stolen your infatuation and Wonwoo can’t help but feel a little, well, different from what seems to be your ideal type. He’s mellow, subtle, quiet, nothing like the loud, exuberant and extravagant Ahn Minhyuk, who shows his affections passionately without a care. As you talk about him animatedly, how well he protects the main lead and how he acted on the couple’s last date, he starts to think that maybe you want someone, well, cooler than he is. 

That’s not what love is, stupid  If you can’t stop being you I’ll just be a nerd for you too You know I’m happy seeing you be yourself If you can’t stop being you I’ll just be a nerd for you too It’s not nerdy boy It’s you just sweet babe I’m happy that you’re you

The conversation quietens yet, you’re content. You look over at Wonwoo, he has a faraway look in his eye. You know this look, the one where he gets caught up in all his thoughts. You sit there for a little, just taking him in. His sharp visuals and dark hair, the elegant way his glasses sit on his face, the pink colour of his lips. You smile at him, scooching closer to take his hand. He jumps a little and you giggle at him. Kissing his cheek softly, you try to do what he does so effortlessly; expressing your adoration, so whole and so full, into simple gestures that make your heart burst. His cheeks tinge red, as his eyes widen before he smiles a small, yet very, very cute smile down at you. 

I know you’ll be compared too Your friend’s boyfriend He has a good build, he can piggyback his girl I saw you like that picture Making me feel so small When we’re in a crowded subway car I’ve never pulled you close And I don’t know how to kiss you till your head grows blank I don’t really know baby

After your block of classes, you’re sitting in the library, back with Wonwoo. You have your legs hooked over one of his legs and you’re scrolling through your phone. Wonwoo is reading quietly and unlike you, Wonwoo isn’t as chatty, but it’s okay, you’re content just spending time in his presence. 

You let out a strange half sigh, half surprised exclamation and Wonwoo peers over at you. You’ve tapped on your friend’s instagram page, and the feed is filled with her and Cheol in cute situations. You like the one where your friend is hiked up on Cheol’s back as they pose at the beach, and another one, that was an obvious candid of them held close to each other on the busy tram. Wonwoo really doesn’t like how his brain instantly compares himself to the self-confident Seungcheol. Wonwoo knows he’s shy, he can’t do all those things, and he has to admit that this isn't the first time he’s thought that you might want more from him. He blushes and tries to go back to his book, finding it difficult to focus on the words on the page. 

I’ve been feeling like a huge nerd lately But even though I’m such a loser Why are you looking at me With such a bright smile? I wish I really could change for the better Maybe your every day is a sacrifice for my pathetic self

Maybe if he wasn’t so shy, if he was a little more extraverted, maybe even stronger, maybe he’d feel like a better boyfriend. But there’s this thing about you, that whenever he gets too far into his own head, you bring him back to air, even if you are completely oblivious to his thoughts. This time, your small taps to his cheek grab his attention, and your bright smile is a breath of fresh air for his mind that is drowning in his thoughts. You look at him like a sunflower looks at the sun, but Wonwoo doesn’t understand why, when you’re the brightest entity around. 

I don’t really have much I’m not that manly And I’m sure sometimes You want a cool, real man

Wonwoo wants to give you the world, but for now he squeezes your hand back as you lead him to a surprise date location. You picked him up from his dorm at noon, knowing that he would sleep in. Greeted with a sleepy bed head at the door, you giggled as his eyes widened and rushed to finish getting ready. You’re leading Wonwoo to a surprise that you know he’ll love, and it’s probably not something you’re dying to get involved in, but it’ll make his day, and you really miss his cute little nose scrunch.

That’s not what love is, stupid If you can’t stop being you I’ll just be a nerd for you too You know I’m happy seeing you be yourself If you can’t stop being you I’ll just be a nerd for you too It’s not nerdy boy It’s you just sweet babe I’m happy that you’re you

Your heart swells at the sight of one of Wonwoo’s cutest expressions, his shocked, yet very happy face. His eyes are wide and his mouth has formed a small ‘o’ shape. You giggle, and lead him into the Internet cafe with a small exclamation of ‘Surprise!’. 

Wonwoo looks at you with a bright grin on his face, his eyes sparkling. “You really want to spend our date here?” He asks amazed. 

“Baby, you love this kinda stuff… I may not understand a lot of it but, you love it, and that just, it makes me happy,” You reply shyly, grinning up at him. 

He flusters around a little before, whispering a soft “Thank you,” as he presses a kiss to the top of your head. 

You really don’t understand a lot of what is going on, but it was one of the best dates that you’ve spent with the man that holds all of your affections. 

I don’t understand What’s wrong with me? I can’t sleep Every night I’ve been losing sleep for you My feelings are free for you

It’s late, and Wonwoo’s phone reads 2:01am but he can’t sleep. Thoughts of you keep him up, and nothing can stop you from overwhelming his mind. Suddenly your name pops up on his notification panel, distracting him from the void of whichever SNS feed he was scrolling through aimlessly. 

[2:03] sunflower: hey babe?

You’re never usually up this late, and Wonwoo anticipates your next message as he watches the three dots appear and disappear multiple times before he receives another message from you.

[2:04] sunflower: i cant sleep, do you wanna, idk, go to the convenience store?  [2:04] sunflower: i’ll meet you there? 

Wonwoo inhales sharply, and types out an impulsive message, sending it quickly. Your phone flashes with the alert of a new message, you release the breath you didn’t know you were holding as you reply. 

[2:04] nerdy loml: dont worry about it, ill come pick you up. [2:05] you: ok [2:05] you: thanks babe ❤️

I just don’t want to regret anything Cuz we’re special, you and I Can’t stop being so damn nerdy Tell me why am I so damn nerdy

The night air is crisp and fresh, its nippy and cold yet it refreshes your drowsy heads. Your fingers are intertwined with Wonwoo’s as you walk along the bank of the river, licking at the ice cream you bought at the convenience store a mere five minutes ago. The both of you are silent, and there are a lot of unsaid words floating between the both of you. Wonwoo has so much to say yet, he doesn’t want to pierce the silence, he can’t bring himself to express everything he wants to. Yet, he finds he doesn’t have to.

Once again Wonwoo finds himself floating to the surface again, yet this time, it’s almost like a bucket of cold water has been crashed over his head, waking himself up from the drowsy clouds of his mind as you start talking. “I don’t think there is any other person that was meant to be with me like this, as you are Wonwoo,” You whisper into the night, your breath condensing as it meets the cool air. The both of you are facing the river, standing against the fence under the bridge. “You, you’re nerdy, and you’re dorky, but I don’t think I could ever consider asking for someone different.” You continue, “I think I'm the happiest when you are yourself, when you’re comfortable in a hoodie and a beanie at 3 O’clock in the morning, or dressed up for a date that ends up at the PC Bang,” You take a breath and look at him, his eyes locked on you. “Jeon Wonwoo, I love you so much, I hope you know that,”

In all of a sudden, you’re pulled close to him, and he presses his lips softly to yours, kissing you slowly yet with a fervor that he has never kissed you with before. He pulls a fraction away from you, and whispers to you softly as his forehead is pressed against yours, “Thank you,” He starts, “For loving me as much as I love you, Sunflower,” He punctuates his confession with another sweet kiss. You giggle, full of love, the both of you smiling awkwardly into this kiss. 

After all, the both of you wouldn’t have it any other way. 

[masterbeta29]

My review of Pokemon SwSh!!!! (or just Shield, cuz it was the version I play, LOL)

Finally, after finishing the game (including the Post game) and fully exploring the region, I think it’s time for me to say what I think of this 8 gen…

I know it’s obvious, but I mention it just in case: This is MY OPINION!!!, if someone disagrees with me its totally valid, I just ask for respect.

ALSO, English is not my first language so I might have certain lack/erros of spelling out there, or I repeat many words, hehe.

It is important to clarify that this review is based on SwSh base, everything that refers to DLC will NOT be included here, my opinion of the game is already done, the rest is extra content.

I wanted to give this review a more ‘’silly’’ tone, since giving negative opinions on the internet can be quite delicate and I wanted to relax the mood. Do not take this seriously, I still have my CONS with the game, but it is still genuinely enjoyable, which for me is the most important thing in a game.  I will talk about everything in general, so I will try to summarize certain points.

LET’S GO!!!

NEW FEATURES

Poke Camp, Curry Dex, Boxes and more

It’s like a dream come true for me, visiting other camps, seeing my whole party next to each other in the screen playing, discussing, running, is something really magical helps, me connect with them and know their personalities better, although I admit that I miss petting them lol and the minigames like in Gen 6. I also really liked the concept of curry as an alternative way to cure your Pokémon maybe I just wish there was a simpler way to know how to create new recipes (ALSO TMs).

Access to boxes anywhere is wonderful especially when you are breeding, just like, changing the name of trade Pokémon and the move reminder.

Rotomphone

It is not used as much as a phone, more than in the post Game (I can be wrong tho) but it serves as Dex and that’s what’s important really, the new feature is that now it includes the bicycle, that can ride both on land and water and in my opinion it is a degradation of what the concept of  “Poke Ride” was, but as I said before, it fulfill the function it should.

Trainer Cards

The concept of being able to share and customize them with other players is super entertaining, although it is a bit annoying that you always have to make a new code for each small modification. As for the cards of the main characters of the game, I will talk with a little more detail later. 

Dynamax

At the beginning it was fun and exciting, but in the end it just became a gimmick that sometimes I had to use by obligation in raids. It is not as epic as the Megas and does not have the weight of the lore and cultural/regional connection like the Z-moves.

The Giga forms, although some are great, and I am happy that they gave Pokémon like Garbodor love, I also think that there were many missed opportunities, starting with the starters of the region or in giving forms to Pokémon that in previous generations already had like Gengar and Charizard.

Raids

They are incredibly fun, it is an activity that you can spend hours and hours enjoying, especially with friends but if we talk about NPCs… OOF, I understand that the purpose of Pokemon is that we all make friends and work as a team, but DAMN, if it is stressful when you lose a raid with 3 friends and an NPC, because the Pokémon only killed the NPC, it is almost impossible to defeat a 5 star raid with only NPCs, and as I said before I understand why they do them weaker, but there are some that are completely useless, I see you Martin Solrock lol.

Poke Jobs and Rotom Rally

I  will be honest, I have not used these features enough to have a solid judgment on these lol.

CHARACTERS

Magnolia

OK, I need to get this off my chest: I am incredibly disappointed and sad with this character, especially since she is/was our first old female professor, to be simply pulled into forgettable land.

It started pretty well, but then it just disappeared until almost the end of the game to give the role of professor to Sonia … REALLY ?! I hate to say this, but she felt more like a device to give character development to Sonia, when she could have been used in scenes with Rose or repeatedly going into further detail about Dynamax for the MC (you know because she’s an expert about that topic…), before give the paper to Sonia. At least I am grateful that I had a little more screen time in the post game, although not even as a professor.

Sonia

Thank you Sonia, for allowing us to discover and know the story with you, honestly she was the one who saved mostly my interest in the story. 

But speaking of the character, I like her, I like her dedication to get out of the shadow of Leon’s achievement and to show her grandmother that she is capable, which she finally manages to fulfill, she still has certain insecurities, but that makes her more human, she’s the real professor (I’m still salty for Magnolia tho)

Leon

Everyone knows from the posts on my PT on Twitter that I constantly bullying the character, but I really like him a lot, he is an excellent guide/brother through the game, charismatic, EXTRA, but very involved in his role as champion, in the sense that he is always aware of what is going on and helping in the process, in addition to being strong (one of the most difficult battles in the game). Definitely among my fav champions with Cynthia, Steven and Kukui (I count him as champion, SU!)

Gym Leaders

I love them, their designs, personalities, the animations, they are all incredibly memorable, my favorites are Opal, Kabu and Piers. 

But even so, I wish I had more to go on besides the lore on the back of their cards and their battle animations, I would have liked to see them more integrated in the story, and I feel that it lack a little more interaction with some of them, especially Allister and Melony in my case, but at least the trainer cards were a good addition to know them a little more, outside of being a Gym Leader.

RIVALS

OK, I’m prepared for everyone to hate me, *sigh*:

I… I DONT LIKE BEDE AND MARNIE THAT MUCH?… I mean, I don’t hate them, and they are both far from being the worst rivals, but I did expect a little more from both…

Bede

I am one of the few of the fandom that does not like rivals flat jerks, because for me, that is not a character but rather  a trait.

But I wanted to give it a try, and when I was just beginning to gain interest in him, they force his backstory in my face… And as I said, I like trainer cards…but more in characters, like G.leaders because these are characters that we don’t see much around the trip, but in the case of rivals, that appear several times and develop in the story, I personally like to get to know them little by little, discover their story and understand them in the course, here I felt it more as an excuse for me, to feel bad for him, especially at the moment he gives you his card.

His relationship with Rose is not explored enough imo. 

And a complete turn-around that happens offscreen, like no joke, the MC literally didn’t see any of it, he just disappears after the Opal scene (but to give him credit, that scene is one of my favorites in the game).

But you know, I understood that he was just a lost boy, and I’m happy that he found a better place, and I admire his effort to want to change, so in the end I ended up liking him a little more.

Marnie

Marnie is interesting, because although I agree with many people that she would have benefited from having more screen time, I consider that a good character does not need all the screen time in the world, is about what but what they do with it, and the problem I have with her is that her time was not well spent.

I like her dream and I really like her relationship with her brother, however there was no moment when I really connected with her. I feel partly, that I don’t know her character, like her various personality facets. 

Untapped opportunities: fight with her more times or with her…would have helped the character a lot imo.

Hop

Hop is the best rival of the three hands down, his trainer card contains the right and necessary information to make us have an interest in the character, but also the story lets us know him more: a competitive boy, but who has insecurities, fears of failure, that is reflected not only by the dialogue but also in his Pokemon team (no really, it broke my heart when I realized that he didn’t have his Wooloo in his team), that he is frustrated and suffers, but he gets up, discovers other tastes and with these finds a new path, ugh perfect, I adore him.

Forcing the player to defeat him is torture, it is like defeating Hau in USUM and Wally in ORAS breaks my heart.

Rose

In short: ok character, decent /meh antagonist, and a horrible villain. 

Like the climax of the story, Rose is forced in the end to be the villain, when he worked best as an antagonist, his plan makes no sense, his battle is disappointing, although his battle theme is awesome, but it just does not fit the character, the plan, nor the situation at all.

But the character has a certain charisma, especially in his ‘’suit especially in his incognito suit.”

Oleana

Interesting character, with a potential backstory, with motives and characterization, who is underused in the story * sigh *… I LIKE HER THO

Overall, I would have liked to see much more of the relationship between Rose, Oleana and Bede, I think it would have benefited the 3 characters…

Team Yell

They are … ok, it is cool to have a team that is not villain, that bother the player from time to time even for good reasons, I admire his dedication and loyalty.

THE REGION

The region is aesthetically beautiful, the details, the structure, the contrast for example between Hammerlocke and Ballonlea, and despite not living in the UK or having had the opportunity to travel to the destination, according to my friends the region in which the games are based is very well related, which I think is excellent. However, despite the visual beauty, when it comes to routes and exploration it feels a bit limited, there are really some towns, where the most interesting thing to do is complete the Gym, there are almost no reasons to return to the previous town after having passed them…

But, what I missed the most was the lack of exploration, discovery, the charm of the NPCs…

Many have told me: what about the Wild Area? Because of the ability to explore in an open area, it is probably the best in the franchise! and yes, the Wild Area is a very attractive part of these games (I will talk a little bit about this, later), but as I said, everything that is considered part of the capacity of the new console, I will not take it into account, it is unfair, because a portable console can NOT stand a concept such as the Wild Area although the developers had the idea before, not at least at SwSh scale.

And as I said before and again, the T.Cards are an incredible idea, but for me NOTHING compares to getting to know the characters through the world, dialogue, interaction… I’m going to use pokemon Moon as an example to make me understand better: (because it was the last main pokemon game I played before SwSh and that’s why I have it more fresh lol) Where you can enter Olivia’s shop, buy jewelry and visit her room and discover that she is a desperate single woman, or enter Gladion’s room and talk to the receptionist and that she tells you part of his story, that kind of things…

Let’s see for example Melony, we know she has more children besides Gordie, but only for concept art, and yes, probably do unique models would take a while, but I honestly wouldn’t have be bothered  if they use generic NPCS, they did it with Lana’s sisters, then the anime can dedicated to giving them unique designs.

Speaking of NPCs (mainly of those inside the houses), many lost the charm and authenticity they had… I mean, where is the lady who told us the story of her husband’s accident or the men of the coffee shop, who every time he prepares us a drink told us the story of where such a drink came from, ect… the NPCS on that side are boring…

EXCEPT BALL GUY, he / she is awesome!

I know this look like extra or unimportant things, but these little details really give life to the region, personality to characters that are secondary, it makes everything feel more united and also makes the main characters feel more inside the world, and honestly that is why on this hand, some cities felt empty for me…

But the other hand, I really liked what they did with the NPCs fans, see how the number increasing every time the MC wins a gym battle, makes the trip to become a champion feel more rewarding, It really helps you feel like a true champion when you got it. 

Other examples like the girl NPC who is going to support  you in the Gyms while their pokemon is evolving, or how the NPCS react and change their dialogue corresponding to what is happening… beautiful, for this part the worldbulding is 10/10.

The wild Area

Probably the closest we have for now of an open space area in a Pokemon game, I have to admit that I get lost at least 1 half an hour trying to find the next destination (I understand you Leon), it was hilarious lol, at the beginning of the game it turns out to be a fairly limited area, and you really can enjoy it in its entirety when you finish the main story, but I don’t see so much trouble with that, since it’s partly the point, for balance. In general, it is a fantastic idea although I feel that it is necessary to polish it in certain parts, and NO, I don’t mean THE TREE, but I don’t want to be so hard on GF at this moment, because is the first time they experiment with such concept…

Pokemon and Music

I put these two together because they both share a very curious characteristic: EXPERIMENTAL. 

The pokedex is super solid, I love how these last generations, GF is doing its homework and is striving to make the pokemon belong to the region, as for animals, myths, culture…muah I LOVE IT, BRAVO.

For me a good OST movie or video game not only has to be for the piece n yes, but how it is composed to accompany the events that occur on the screen, how it adapts and fits a certain scene of the story or character, and although I admit that in general it is not my favorite compared to other gens, there are tracks that have become part of my favorites:

The crowd, the screams, the build up as you gradually approach the last pokemon, ugh. Dynamax is cool and everything, but THIS is the basis for me, of why these battles feel so energetic and exciting.

That mystical atmosphere that catches you, is beautiful but at the same time mysterious, and perhaps many disagree with me, but the addition of the howls of the legendaries… I love it.

STORY

I think the game started extremely well, the introduction to the characters, the exploration, the introduction to the starters, the mystery of the legendary, everything is on track to me to enjoy this adventure to the fullest, but later I felt like it began to fall.

I understand that this is Pokémon and sometimes Pokémon does not need a complex story to make it enjoyable, as long as it makes sense and is entertaining, the problem I have mainly with the story is how they constantly get you out of it. I understand the concept they wanted to do: to take a more realistic point of view, in which adults take responsibility or in this case the champion and that later when you become champion you now can do what the champion did, and I like this concept, but the phrase of “you focus on the gym, we take care of the problems ” they say and they repeat it several times in the game like, I understood the first time!!! 

Indirectly I felt like they were trying to took me out, and in consequence I lost interest in the story of the game, if it hadn’t been because Sonia bothered to explain to me the lore and a little of what was happening. 

It’s more like “tell us” and not “show us”

and that’s the risk of this concept: you play as a main character, because you want to be a main character or share the role.

The climax feels incredibly forced and confusing, I felt that there was no build out, almost no foreshadowing for what was happening at the moment, everything comes out of nowhere, and thats why, I started making Okami jokes with Eternatus, because I don’t felt that emotion of the ‘’Climax’’.

Definitely in the part where the game shine was in the gym Challenge, as I said before, the gyms, the leaders, the atmosphere within them, the scale, the music that changing every time, until reaching the final pokémon, the challenges that we have to do before, the fans, becoming the champion, all this really is the identity of the game. 

Pokémon returned to its roots, where this story is the story of us again, and becoming the champion here is everything, it is one of the most exciting and most satisfying Gym challenge in all generations with gyms.

ADDITIONAL

Here I want to give opinions according to the experiences I had with certain things within the game, which I think are quite PERSONAL, because each person plays different Pokémon, by the team of Pokémon, because he decided to level up more or stay at a lower level or how you decided to follow the story of the game.

Difficulty

Decent, by the standards of Pokemon of course, I try not to leveling to much, and if I do, there are maximum 3 levels and only one pokemon… So, gyms were easy in general, perhaps a pair that were difficult (Allister and Melony), but I never did black screen as in other games, but definitely the most difficult battle in the game is Leon, which I think is appropriate.

Online

Its horrible lol, There were not only once but several times in which I lasted like 1 hour trying to connect with a person, it is ridiculous.The signal falling every so often. But in general the biggest problem I have is connecting with very specific people, not even with the infamous Festival Plaza had so many problems.

Gameplay / Pacing

It is normal the same as always which is fine, some drop of frames out there in certain scenes but nothing serious, some cuts and lack of scenarios / designs that if you should in when they took me a little at the time, but absolutely nothing compared as the haters make it look, the game is still incredibly enjoyable, and it can be played perfectly.

The pacing started pretty well/decently, but from the fourth gym onwards, everything became very very fast, and not to mention the climax and the Pokemon League, honestly all this last arc felt super stuck….

So my opinion in general is: I enjoy the game like any other Pokémon game, it has its entity, it has new and interesting things that I would like it to expand more in future generations and it has personality. Is it my favorite game or my favorite generation? No, I definitely enjoyed other generations more, there were many missed opportunities that they could take more advantage, and I feel bad for GF for making them release this game for this year and these dates, because unfortunately some cuts are very noticeable. But the generation just starting ,so we will have to wait and see what we have for the future. For now, Thanks Pokémon SwSh, for another adventure…

[spookyboywhump]

For the OC questions (part 1): Silas 6 and 39, Alistair 3 and 26, Wren 24 and 32, Zander 12 and 29, Cain 1 and 31. I hope it's not too much, there's just too many good questions, and I wanna know more about these awesome characters! -faewhump

Thank you for these @faewhump, and don’t worry it’s not too much, I’ve been so excited to answer these all day! It’s kind of long so sticking it under a read more, and I hope I answered the right ones.

Silas:

6:  What was your oc’s relationship with their parents like? If they didn’t have any parents/didn’t know them, who in their life was the closest to a parent to them?

 *rubs hands together* Okay I actually love talking about Silas’ parents 

 Silas has only vague memories of his birth mother and no idea who his birth father was, but him and Dahlia were basically adopted by a vampire hunter who saved them and his husband. Silas loves them both a lot, however he still tends to keep them at arms length, less because he distrusts them and more because he’s scared of losing them if he gets too close. He has a lot of respect for them though, particularly because they’ve always been respectful of his boundaries and any weird habits he had, and he genuinely looks up to them. His dads are very loving towards him and Dahlia, and have always been incredibly understanding and patient with him, even when he was kind of hard to handle when he was younger. Overall it’s a very good relationship, I probably could’ve summed it up that way but ever since I came up with their characters I’ve been wanting to talk about all this haha.

 39:  Is it difficult for your oc to focus, or do they have no trouble being in the moment? Do they daydream or zone out?

 Generally, Silas has pretty good focus, he actually has a hard time zoning out because he’s almost too alert. It still happens sometimes, but really only when he knows for absolute certain he doesn’t need to be on edge.

 Alastair:

 3:  If you were to choose another name for your oc, what do you think it would be? Did you choose it for how it sounds or for its meaning?

  Alastair had been the first name that popped into mind when I pictured him, but I had originally wanted to try to go for Sylvain or Nicholas. Ultimately though, Alastair fit the vampire image much better so I decided to go with it cuz of how it sounds.

 26:  How stylistically fancy is your oc? Or would they rather go for comfort and plainness instead?

 Oh Alastair is absolutely fancy. For him “plain” just isn’t good enough, especially on himself. His hair must always be fixed nicely, he must always be dressed in the finest clothes, in general he aims to leave the impression on anyone that he is better than them and they should just accept it.

 Wren: 

24: How dramatic is your oc? Do they make a big deal over every little thing, or do they fail to react to even the most crazy of events?

 Wren isn’t a particularly dramatic person, he has good control over his reactions to things, due to his job this mostly means that he tries not to react visibly at all though. It’s often less of a lack of reaction and more just him being able to stay calm though.

 32: Is your oc a pacifist, or someone who picks fights? Why? In what situations would they be the opposite?

 Definitely a pacifist, if possible he tries to find the safest way to settle things in order to avoid a fight. If it was his life on the line or someone close to him though, he wouldn’t hesitate to start a fight in order to defend himself or someone else. 

 Zander:

 12: Does your oc have any best friends? Who was/is their closest friend? What about their worst enemy?

 Before coming into Cain’s possession, Zander did have several close friends. His closest friend was a girl he’d known since he was a child, however he hasn’t seen or spoken with her in six years now due to the circumstances. 

 Worst enemy though would be Cain, but that needs little explanation seeing as he’s ruined his life.

 29: How empathetic is your oc? Or are they closer to being a sociopath? Any reason why?

  Zander is probably an average level of empathetic, he’s not the best at showing it anymore but he does care about other people, especially those in the same situation as him. He feels bad for them and does what he can to help, though that usually isn’t much.

 Cain: 

 1: If your oc was to host a TV show, what would it be about? Would your oc be good at it? What sorts of guests would appear?

 Hm

 You ever hear of those “red rooms” or whatever on the dark web? Where people broadcast torture and what not?

 That’s the kind of thing I can see Cain doing, and boy oh boy would he be good at it, he likes attention and particularly likes being seen in a position of power.

 31: What is your oc’s sense of humour like? What do they find funny? Do they try to be funny? Are they actually?

 Cain isn’t really the type to try and be funny, but he has a dark sense of humor that makes it hard to tell if he’s joking about something awful or genuinely intends to do it. He likes to use this to scare Zander and Wren.