#edit: please keep the notes SPOILER FREE

[pyrotechnicdarts]

wait. tlovm vax can see the souls of those who recently died and is meant to shepherd them. and glintshore is coming up

[milksnake-tea]

━━ under the lotus leaves.

You've known Dan Feng long before he became the High Elder of the Vidyadhara, before he donned the title of Imbibitor Lunae and became the legend he is known as now. Long ago, back when the two of you were mere children, playing in the waters of the Xianzhou Luofu.

imbibitor lunae (dan feng) x gn!reader

contains: childhood friends au, set before dan feng is a criminal, slow burn, long fic, ooc!character for the first half bc he's growing up and is an annoying teen, mentions of blade's real name, death, spoilers for 1.2

genres: mostly fluff, hurt/comfort, some angst bittersweet ending

word count: 8.6k

a/n: please do note that this is dan feng, not dan heng. and therefore i take a lot more liberties with how he is because i firmly believe that dan feng was more of a bitch than dan heng BYE ALSO THIS IS UNEDITED !! ILL EDIT IT TMRW WHEN I WAKE UP I JUST HAD TO GET THIS OUT BYE

img credits

Your best friend was an extraordinary being.

There was no doubt about it. Regarded as both the strongest and wisest of your people, he was chosen as the High Elder, Imbibitor Lunae. And he has served you well.

His feats are plenty, with his joining the esteemed High-Cloud Quintet, and you couldn't count the amount of time he'd saved the Xianzhou on one hand. He was smart, intelligent, and witty, quick to understand situations and formulate the best solutions. His enemies feared his presence on the battlefield, and his friends trusted him with their lives.

As did you.

You, a mere civilian. A single face among thousands of Vidyadhara, another footstep among the crowd. You, who have lived through his past and present. You, who knew him better than he knew himself.

You, who has been by his side since the very beginning.

━

It was a stormy day when you first met Dan Feng.

You were just a child back then, a Vidyadhara only eight years of age. Normally, at this stage in your life, you'd be guided by the current high elder, but it seems that you had undergone your cycle at the same time as the past high elder.

So as life would have it, you would instead be raised by your seniors, while the Preceptors tended to the newly reborn high elder. A skilled weaver in your past incarnation, you were taken in by your then coworkers, and raised within your craft of making lotus silk.

As such, your childhood was filled with looms, lotus flowers, and spinning threads. You spent your free time in the gardens of lotus flowers, hiding from your caretakers amongst the tall stems and diving into the waters to swim amongst them. You may not have had the draconic features of the High Elder, but you still adored the water like any other Vidyadhara.

And as it would seem, so did the High Elder.

It had been a hot and sunny day at the Luofu. The rays were smoldering on your back as you waded through the lotus fields, thankful for the cold water splashing against your legs. You squinted against the sun, adjusting your leaf hat on your head. Tucked against your arm was a woven basket filled with lotus stems, all of which would have fiber extracted from them.

The tall leaves and flowers of the lotuses dwarfed your child self in comparison, although you weren’t complaining. Although the water sloshed around your thighs, requiring you to roll up your pants more than your older coworkers, the leaves served as temporary relief from the sun’s rays.

You pushed stems aside, the field looking more akin to a jungle to you. You only needed one more before you could return home to the comfort of an air conditioner in order to extract the fibers for the threads. Thankfully, that wouldn’t have to wait long.

Once you found a suitable stem to harvest, you snapped it from its roots and began to wash it in the water. Your basket floated next to you, you keeping an eye on it to make sure it wouldn’t float away.

But then, you heard the stems rustle, and the waters splashing as something entered your field. Immediately, you stood up straight, holding the lotus stem more like a weapon than a crop.

“Who’s there?” you called out, your voice ringing through the silent and tranquil fields.

No response.

You huffed, carefully setting down your stem in the basket. Whoever it was probably thought you weren’t a threat merely because of your age. You’d prove them wrong.

You heard the stems rustle one more time, snapping your head towards the source. Picking up your basket, you marched over to a large clump of lotuses, a perfect hiding spot (you would know, you’ve used it many times before). A shadow around your size moved within them, submerging itself into the water.

You rolled your eyes. Another kid, then. 

Pushing the stems aside, you saw the flicker of a draconic tail splashing the water, almost wagging as its owner lay face-first in the murky water. Without a second thought, you set aside your basket, grabbed the tail with your grubby little hands, and pulled hard.

“OW!”

The tail’s owner toppled out of the water, crashing into you in the process and knocking your foreheads together. You yelped, falling into the water with a splash as you held your aching forehead.

“What was that for?!” A child-like voice, much like your own berated you, a whine in his tone.

Glaring through your tears, you shouted back at him. “That was for bumming around on my farm!”

Your victim/intruder, a young boy with long hair, met your glare with equal fire. “I wasn’t ‘bumming around’, I was just… Cooling off! It’s hot today.”

You squinted, clearly not impressed. “I don’t care what you were doing! You’re not doing it on my farm.”

He lashed his tail angrily, splashing you in the process. “I’m the High Elder. I do what I want.”

You stared at him for a good second, taking in his appearance. He was a Vidyadhara around your age, only he had draconic-like horns protruding from his head. His long black hair flowed around him, and his fancy white robes were drenched in lotus water. It would’ve been obvious to anyone that he was a noble, someone of higher standing.

“No you’re not,” you said, deadpanning. “You’re too small.”

The self-proclaimed High Elder flushed red with embarrassment, jumping to his feet.

“I’m still growing!” he insisted, stamping his feet and splashing water everywhere.

“The High Elder’s supposed to be big and powerful!” you said, throwing your arms in the air to emphasize your point. “You’re… a kid!”

“You’re a kid too-!” The High Elder froze in the middle of his sentence, his tail stiffening at the sound voices - adult voices. Quickly, he grabbed you by the collar of your robe and pulled you into the shadows of the clump.

“Hey-!” He slapped his hand over your mouth to shut you up. In retaliation, you licked at his hand, the young boy recoiling in disgust.

“Did you just lick me?!” he hissed, looking at his hand in horror. 

“You’re the one who just grabbed me-”

“Shh!!” He put a finger to his mouth, shushing you. “Be quiet! Can’t you see I’m hiding?”

“From what, the Cloud Knights?” you gasped, backing up. “Are you a criminal?!”

He gave you a look. “No! I told you, I’m the High-”

“High Elder? Are you there?”

This time, you both slapped a hand over each other’s mouths. An unfamiliar adult voice shouted over the fields, calling for the boy beside you. You both waited with bated breath as the man searched on the other side of the field, only letting go when he was far enough away.

“You weren’t lying?” you whispered excitedly, looking up at the boy with newfound respect. He crossed his arms, looking all high and mighty now.

“Why would I be lying?” he said matter-of-factly. “You were the one who didn’t believe me.”

You really wanted to make a witty comment, but then you remembered your stems, floating out in the sun. Panic seized you. You couldn’t let those stems dry. If they did, they’d be useless to you.

You jumped to your feet, hurriedly running to your stems. Thankfully, they were still where you left them, and in the shade. You sighed in relief, knowing that you would live to see another day.

You peeked your head over the lotus heads, spotting the man who was calling for the High Elder. He was wearing some pretty fancy robes himself, the robes you recognized as belonging to a Preceptor.

Cradling your basket once again, you walked back to where the High Elder was hiding. He looked up at you in surprise as you reached towards what used to be a preening lotus flower, now a pod filled with green seeds. 

You snapped it off the stem and popped out one of the seeds. After peeling the green skin to reveal the white center, you handed it to the High Elder.

“Want one?”

The High Elder was wary at first, but eventually took the seed. He chewed it in his mouth for a little bit, his eyes brightening at the taste.

“It’s sweet,” he said in surprise. You nodded, taking one for yourself before giving him the pod.

“You have the rest on this one,” you said. You pointed in the direction of the Preceptor. “The big guy looking for you is over there, by the way.”

“Oh.” He took the pod in his hands, still a bit freaked out by how it looked. “Thank you.”

“Master always said I have to make it up when I do something bad,” you said, picking up your stems. With a start, the High Elder seemed to realize that you were apologizing. “Anyway, I have to go now. The fibers will dry up if I stay out here too long.”

“Wait!” The High Elder called out, reaching for you. You turned around, raising a brow. His tail waved nervously behind him as his hand faltered. “What’s your name?”

As you answered him, in the back of your head, you could’ve sworn you’d read this scene before. 

You tilted your head curiously. “What’s yours?”

His expression was strange. It was a smile of relief and happiness, just from you not knowing his name. The waters responded to his joy, swirling gently around him.

“Dan Feng,” he said, his tail wagging slightly. “My name is Dan Feng.”

━

You remember seeing him dragged out of the fields a few hours later. You had been extracting fibers from the stems you’d collected when you’d heard the commotion. 

Dan Feng was having his ear talked off by the Preceptor, but he was being awfully obedient. The two of you had met gazes, and he had sheepishly waved at you. Your hands were busy with your work, so all you could do was giggle at his predicament.

Of course, that wouldn’t be the last time you saw the High Elder - far from it. 

Dan Feng would visit your farm often, whether it was for eating more lotus seeds, dragging you to go swim with him, or just to watch you work. Your mentors and coworkers grew accustomed to seeing the young Vidyadhara waiting for you outside the workshop.

All of his visits would end in the same way - a Preceptor would come and take him away for his studies, droning on about his duty as the High Elder while Dan Feng rolled his eyes behind their back.

It wasn’t like he hated his duty. You knew better than anyone that Dan Feng took pride in his role, he was just… stubborn.

“What are you doing?”

You flinched at the boy in question’s voice. Dan Feng was practically talking in your ears, his face right next to yours. You leaned away, batting away at him.

“None of your business,” you said, turning your back towards him as to hide your hands. Dan Feng pouted but didn’t push.

“If you say so.” He turned his gaze back to the open fields. His legs kicked as he dangled on the stone wall alongside you.

You sat in comfortable silence, feeling as the spring breeze blew gently around you. It was tranquil and quiet, as the lotus fields always were.

Dan Feng found he preferred it that way. It was nice to get away from the droning words of the Preceptors, and this little farm served as his favorite sanctuary. He could spend his days here forever, just being by your side.

His eyes shifted towards you again. You were oddly concentrated today, he noted, working on whatever was in your hands right now. It was unlike you to be so quiet. Usually, you’d be talking about the latest gossip you’d heard from your mentors, or complaining about the weather again.

He strained his neck, trying to see just what was taking your attention away from him. But alas, you saw him and snatched it away from him again. Frustrated, he blew at his hair, lashing his tail in impatience.

Oh, well. If you weren’t going to show him, you weren’t going to show it. It wasn’t like he wanted to see it anyways.

Dan Feng went back to spacing out, closing his eyes, crossing his legs, and focusing on the world around him. If he wasn’t going to do anything, he might as well meditate.

He reached his senses into the fields, losing himself in the environment. His ears were filled with the rustle of each individual leaf, the soft splashing of water, the croak of the frogs, and the buzzing of insects that inhabited the fields.

He could feel how the wind felt on every plant, the warmth of the sun not just on his skin, but on the skin of the other aquatic animals. At that moment, Dan Feng became one with the world. Nothing could break his concentration.

Nothing, except perhaps for you, who was trying to grab his hand as stealthily as possible.

Dan Feng snapped his eyes open when you took his left hand in yours. Apparently, you were too engrossed in your task to notice his eyes on you.

You slid something onto his ring finger. Dan Feng tilted his head, raising his hand to stare at whatever it was you put on him.

A band of woven grasses encircled his finger, the braid intricate and tight. Dan Feng looked at it in confusion, rotating his hand to get a better view of it.

“Do you like it?” you said proudly.

“What is it?” he asked, bringing it to his face to observe.

“It’s a ring,” you said obviously. You showed him your dominant hand, which had a matching ring on it. “I saw a couple of girls the other day with those friendship bracelets. I figured since we’ve known each other for a few years now, we should have something like that too.”

“Oh.” Dan Feng blushed at your words, a giddy feeling bubbling within his chest. Suddenly, the ring on his finger felt heavier, but also much, much warmer.

“It’s nice, right?” you hummed, holding your hand to the sky. “I mean, it’s not like one of those beads you can just buy, but I think it’s pretty special.”

“I love it.” Dan Feng beamed softly, holding his hand close to his chest. “I’ll treasure it forever.”

It melted your heart to see him so ecstatic over something as simple as a grass ring. He was quite literally glowing from happiness, his draconic parts illuminating with a soft sea green.

“I’m glad,” you said, hugging your knees to your chest. 

Dan Feng looked at you, gratitude brimming in his eyes. He didn’t reach out to hug you (although he certainly wanted to), but rather, only wrapped his tail around your waist, tugging you closer to him.

━

You loved Dan Feng, you really did. But sometimes, you really wanted to tie him up and throw him in a ditch.

You sigh loudly in frustration, jabbing at Dan Feng’s wound with an alcohol-infused pad. The boy in question hissed in pain at your actions.

“Would it kill you to be gentler?” he attempted to jolt away, but your hold on his arm was firm.

It had been many years since you two had first met. The two of you were adolescents now, nearing adulthood.

Dan Feng had appeared at your doorstep after training once again to escape his mentors, only this time with a bloodied gash on his shoulder. He’d tried to hide it from you, but to little success.

“Why didn’t you tell anyone about this?” you shot back, angrily wrapping his wound with bandages. Dan Feng averted his gaze.

“It wasn’t anything they needed to know,” he said quietly. You paused in your wrapping to stare at him incredulously.

“Are you kidding me?!” You pulled on the bandages, tightening them. Dan Feng winced at your loud voice, waving his hand for you to quiet down. Granted, you did, but you still decided on berating him.

“Feng'er, this is serious,” you said through gritted teeth. “It’s not one of those scratches you can just lick away. What if it had gotten infected?”

Dan Feng sighed, opting to stay silent and instead watch you work. Despite your harsh tone, he knew that you were just worried about him. He didn’t blame you, the wound was pretty serious.

His eyes softened as he saw your hands trembling as they worked. Your face was a mask of angry calm, but he could see the shake in your eyes.

“...sorry.”

You blinked. “What was that?”

Dan Feng dropped his gaze guiltily. “I’m sorry. I made you worry.”

“When do you not make me worry?” you joke, tying the bandage into a bow. Dan Feng smiled sheepishly.

“I’m sorry,” he repeated, touching your hand with his tail. “How should I make it up to you this time?”

“Hm…” You pondered the question, tapping at your chin before brightening with an idea. “I got it. How about showing me that little trick you were bragging to me about earlier, with the cloudhymm?”

Dan Feng laughed airily. “You always ask for that.”

“Well, no one around here knows cloudhymm except for you,” you said, crossing your legs on the floor. Your eyes practically glowed in anticipation - Dan Feng wanted to compare you to a puppy awaiting a treat. 

The thought made his lips twitch as he held back his laugh. You rolled your eyes playfully, nudging him eagerly.

“So pushy,” he said dramatically, but you knew he was just teasing. He sat up straight, smoothed out his robes, and without further ado, he began his personal spectacle for you.

With just a flick of his finger, water materialized around him, taking the form of white lotus flowers in the air. Droplets stilled, as though someone had stopped time in the middle of a rainstorm.

You’ve seen this view many times before, but you were still amazed each and every time. A lotus flower hovered in front of you, bursting into a cloud of mist as you touched it.

You giggled, leaning back onto your hands, watching the lotuses drift off into the air. Unbeknownst to you, Dan Feng was preparing a whole nother surprise for you.

As your attention was captured by the lotuses, Dan Feng swirled his finger in the air. His signature teal water erupted in a spiral, taking the form of a roaring dragon. You jumped in surprise as it circled around you, flying toward the ceiling.

Dan Feng made the dragon dance around the lotuses, even bumping against your cheek. You squeaked as it did, light-heartedly glaring at Dan Feng. He only smirked back at you, before he enraptured your gaze with the dragon once again.

It glided towards the ceiling again, curling into a glowing orb of water. Dan Feng made a fist, and the dragon and the lotuses burst into a fine mist, making rainbows in the late evening light.

You were glimmering with awe, a permanent smile fixed onto your lips as you reached towards the ceiling to catch the mist. It was cool against your skin, like a little kiss from the rain.

“Am I forgiven now?” Dan Feng asked, amused.

You rolled your eyes. “Only if you promise to tell someone the next time you get injured.”

Dan Feng laughed. “Yes, yes, of course.”

You turned to look at him, only to find that he had been watching you this entire time, a fond smile on his lips.

━

“Are you sure about this?”

Dan Feng whispered anxiously as you skillfully maneuvered through dark alleyways and streetlights, your hand clasped tightly in his. 

He kept looking back behind him, just to make sure that you weren’t being followed. He’d changed his appearance somewhat, making sure to hide his horns and tail, but he was still paranoid.

“Obviously!” you chirped back. You didn’t bother looking back at him, currently fixated on your destination - a crowd of bright lights, the smell of food, and the chatter of people. In other words, the night market.

Dan Feng let himself be dragged off by you, trusting that you knew these streets better than he did. He looked urgently back at you.

“When we get caught-”

“If we get caught,” you corrected, stopping momentarily to pull Dan Feng towards you. You let go of his hand to hold his face, pulling him to meet yours. “You trust me, right?”

Dan Feng sighed. “Yes, but-”

You squished his cheeks, effectively shutting him up. “No ‘buts’. What happened to the kid who would sneak off to swim in my farm?”

Dan Feng gave you a look, but with his face all squished up like that, you couldn’t take him seriously. Fighting down a giggle, you squeezed him one last time before letting go.

“Trust me on this,” you insisted, the lights of the market illuminating your back. “You couldn’t have lived for this long and not have been to the night market. You’ll love it, I promise.”

“And if I don’t?” Dan Feng hummed. You snorted, interlacing your fingers with his once again.

“Then I’ll do whatever you want later, alright?”

“I’ll hold you to that.”

Dan Feng squinted as you pulled him into the depths of the market, the bright lights blinding him momentarily. The savory aroma of grilled meat and fried vegetables wafted into his nose, the chatter of friends, families, and lovers filling the air. The two of you were practically consumed by the crowd, the only thing keeping him from being swept away was your hand in his.

It was overwhelming, but not in a bad way. Dan Feng’s eyes widened with wonder as he took in the atmosphere around him. He wasn’t used to so many people being in one place, at the same time. In the lotus fields and in his palace, things were always quiet, still.

He could see children playing silly games with one another, jewelers selling their handcrafted trinkets, and so many street chefs, cooking right on the spot over open flames.

A tug on his hand broke him out of his stupor. You had been watching him all this time, a knowing smile on your face. You tugged him over to a stand that was selling what looked to be skewered balls of meat, dripping with a sweet glaze.

“They’re berrypheasant skewers,” you explained. You noticed Dan Feng’s disgruntled look and nudged him. “Don’t worry, it’s just the fruit that comes off their tails. They didn’t actually kill anything.”

“Oh… I see.” Dan Feng relaxed a bit after hearing that. You gave him a smile before talking to the vendor. Once you had acquired your skewers, you grabbed his hand once more, moving to a secluded corner of the market to enjoy them.

You wasted no time in biting off one of the fruit balls, closing your eyes in delight as you let it slowly melt in your mouth.

“That’s amazing,” you sighed in contentment, leaning back on a wall. You opened your eyes to see Dan Feng silently chewing on his. “How is it?”

“Sweet,” he said, swallowing it. “It’s not bad. Although, I prefer lotus seeds.”

“Really?” you asked, finishing off your skewer. “I like these better. Or maybe that’s because I’ve spent my whole life eating lotus seeds.”

“Perhaps,” Dan Feng agreed. He looked off in the direction of the market. “This place, it’s…”

“Loud?” you jested. Dan Feng chuckled.

“That too,” he admitted, “but the word I had in mind was ‘comfortable’.”

You hummed in agreement. “Well,” you said, pushing yourself off the wall. “We’ve only just scratched the surface. Are you ready?”

Dan Feng nodded. “Let’s go.”

Whatever happened next was a blur. What had started as you dragging Dan Feng around to try different food turned into Dan Feng pulling you to whichever jewelry store caught his attention. Sometimes, you’d lose him in the crowd, and run around panicked only to find him in the middle of getting scammed (to which you’d drag him off, giving death glares to whoever decided to prey on him).

You soon learned that this was a lot more tiring task than you’d originally anticipated. It was like babysitting a toddler - one minute he’d be standing at your side, watching you as you bargained with the vendor, and the next minute, he’d be across the street, trying on some new earrings.

And to make matters worse, every time you wanted to wring Dan Feng’s throat the second you caught up to him, he’d turn to you with that stupidly pretty smile of his, showing off whatever trinkets he managed to pick up this time.

And of course, like the weak soul you were, you couldn’t stay angry at a face like that for long.

But safe to say, you were relieved when you reached the end of the market and instead came to the edges of Central Starskiff Haven, right in front of the Jade Gate. 

Here, the crowds had parted, allowing you to take a breather from your exhausting task. Of course, you were the only one who was tired - Dan Feng was vibrating with excitement, the brightest grin you’ve ever seen on his face.

“I take it you had fun?” you said good-naturedly, coming up beside your friend to watch the flow of starskiffs in and out of the Luofu. Dan Feng nodded, crossing his arms behind him.

“Most definitely,” he said happily. “The outworlder merchants have so many interesting things, I can’t help but be intrigued by them.”

“I could tell,” you chuckled. “I could barely catch up to you with the way you were running around. Imagine what the Preceptors would say.”

“We did agree that they would never find out, no?” Dan Feng pointed out. You shrugged.

“Fair enough,” you acknowledged. You gazed out into the glowing light of the Jade Gate before suddenly jolting in realization. “Lan above, I almost forgot!”

Dan Feng looked at you questioningly as you riffled through your pockets. His confusion only increased as you pulled out a small box, barely the size of your palm.

You opened it to reveal two jade rings, each with the image of a  lotus carved into its band. Dan Feng feels his breath hitch at the sight, and something in his chest tightened.

“What…” he couldn’t even finish his sentence.

“It’s your birthday, isn’t it?” you said. “I figured that now would be a good time to replace the ones I made when we were kids.”

That’s right. You didn’t just choose today of all days randomly. Today was Dan Feng’s birthday, and the day he officially became of age. Today was the last day of his childhood before he would fully take on the title of Imbibitor Lunae and the responsibilities that came with being the High Elder.

You couldn’t help but feel proud as you watched him take the rings with shaking hands. He’s still that stubborn child who listens to no one but himself, but he’s become so much more. He’s grown taller, more mature, more dignified.

And yet, he still looked like he might cry from your gift. He mumbled something under his breath, something you couldn’t catch.

“What was that?” you asked, only to be pulled tightly into his chest. Dan Feng squeezed you into his embrace as he tried to steady his breathing.

Slowly, you wrapped your arms around his waist, melting into his hold. Such moments like these were rare, after all. The furthest Dan Feng had ever gone with you was holding hands. Hugs weren’t part of his vocabulary.

“You know…” he murmured. “In human cultures, rings symbolize marriage.”

“Well,” you laughed into his skin. “We’re not human, are we?”

“Yes, but…”

“Are you trying to propose to me, gege?” You looked up at him, raising your brow playfully. Dan Feng blushed at the nickname, averting his gaze.

“That wasn’t my intention,” he mumbled, flustered. He quickly let go of you, hiding his face behind his hand as he tried to calm his rapidly increasing heartbeat.

You snickered at him. “I know, I’m only teasing. Here, give me those; I’ll put them on for you.”

But despite your words, Dan Feng couldn’t help the burning heat that enveloped him as you took his hand delicately in yours, sliding on the ring. He couldn’t stop his heart from pounding, couldn’t stop his thoughts of newly engaged couples doing exactly what you were doing.

And most of all, he couldn’t stop thinking of how badly he wanted to kiss you in that moment.

━

Ever since that day, neither you nor Dan Feng have taken off your respective rings. Dan Feng always kept it hidden beneath his gloves, while you showed it off even while you worked. You’ve been asked many times who the other ring belonged to, but you’ve never given them an answer.

One of these questionees was Yingxing, a passionate young outworlder who had come to the Luofu hearing of the feats made by Vidyadhara craftsmen. You’d met through a common friend of Jingliu, one of Dan Feng’s friends in the renowned High Cloud Quintet.

While Yingxing was a blacksmith and you a weaver, the two of you hit it off immediately. The two of you bonded over creating for the members of the Quintet, with you being responsible for the threads that made up their clothes, and Yingxing their armor and weapons. Many times, when one of you had a day off, one could find you in the other’s workshop.

You coughed as smoke arose from the furnace, fanning yourself. Yingxing glanced over momentarily.

“Are you alright?” he asked, a bubbling laugh in his voice. You nodded.

“Yes, just not used to so much smoke,” you sighed. Yingxing wiped at his brow as he took out the pot from the furnace, pouring the molten metal into the mold beneath him.

“If it bothers you too much,” he advised, “you should step outside.”

You shook your head, jumping down from your spot by the window. “I’m fine, don’t worry. But enough about me, what’s this you’re making?”

“It’s a spear for the High Elder.” Yingxing moved aside as you came up next to him. “See the way the metal glows from a certain angle? That’s the remnants of the Reignbow Arbiter’s arrow.”

“Fascinating.” So this was the weapon Dan Feng would wield.

You waved away embers from your face, and for a moment, their light caught on the ring on your finger.

“You’re married?” said Yingxing in surprise. You stared at him inquisitively.

“No? What made you think that?”

“Your ring,” he said, nodding at your finger. You looked down before spurting a laugh.

“Oh, this?” You toyed with it, fidgeting it on your hand. “It’s nothing like that.”

“You don’t sound so sure,” Yingxing commented. You huff.

“I am,” you retorted, nudging him. Yingxing whined at the jab, complaining.

“Don’t you know not to provoke a man with a hammer?” he threatened good-naturedly. You, being the very mature person you are, stuck your tongue out at him.

“Yingxing?”

The sound of your best friend’s voice interrupted your play argument as the both of you perked your heads. Dan Feng bent down as he entered the forgery so as to not hit his horns on the door frame.

“Dan Feng!” Yingxing greeted, waving. “What brings you here?”

“Don’t let me disturb you,” the Vidyadhara said, his nose wrinkling at the smoke filling the forge. “I’m merely here to check on the progress of the spear.”

“It’s still in the process of being smelted, as you can see.” Yingxing pounded away at the spear, shaping it into his desired form.

“Ah, is that so?” Dan Feng nodded. “I’ll come back tomorrow, then. Keep up the good work.”

“You’re going to leave without saying hi?” you interjected, fake hurt lacing your voice. “I’m hurt, Feng’er.”

Dan Feng flinched, as though he hadn’t noticed you at all.

“[Name]?” He straightens, blinking rapidly in surprise. Yingxing swore he’d never seen the High Elder brighten so quickly - he almost didn't believe his eyes when he saw his tail wag with joy. “I apologize, I didn’t see you.”

“It’s alright,” you laugh, walking over to him. “I haven’t seen you in a while. How have you been?”

“You two know each other?” Yingxing asked. Dan Feng narrowed his eyes, fixing the younger man with a glare.

“I should be the one asking you that, Yingxing,” he said lowly, wrapping an arm around you and pulling you close. “When did you and them get so close?”

“We’ve been friends for a while,” you answered for Yingxing, lightly hitting Dan Feng’s chest. “Be nice to him.”

Dan Feng pouted, reluctantly letting you go. “But-”

“No ‘buts’,” you scolded, crossing your arms. “If you’re not going to be nice, you can step outside.”

Dan Feng looked akin to a kicked puppy, but he relented. Although, when he saw Yingxing, trying his absolute best not to laugh, Dan Feng felt murderous intent for the first time.

His tail lashed angrily behind him as he watched you converse with the blacksmith, Yingxing sweating from the pure pressure of Dan Feng’s stare. He’d never been so relieved to see you go.

“I have to go now, but I’ll come back later, alright?” you said, waving at Yingxing. You squeezed Dan Feng’s shoulder on your way to the door, leaning in to whisper in his ear. “Don’t give him a hard time, okay?”

Dan Feng only nodded, briefly touching his hand to yours before you finally left, leaving the two men alone.

“So,” Yingxing coughed, looking anywhere but Dan Feng’s eyes. “Feng’er, was it?”

“You will not speak of this,” Dan Feng warned. Yingxing raised his hands in surrender.

“My lips are sealed, High Elder.” Yingxing smiled. “Although, if I were you, I wouldn’t wait.”

Dan Feng narrowed his eyes. “What do you mean?”

“How should I say this…” Yingxing pondered. “If you stall for too long, someone will sweep them away.”

Horror shot through Dan Feng like a bullet as he gaped at Yingxing. The thought of you leaving him for someone else, replacing him, hadn’t even crossed his mind.

“I don’t know what you mean,” he gritted out, taking a deep breath to calm down. “They would never replace me.”

Yingxing blinked. “Don’t tell me you haven’t realized.” He shook his head in disbelief. “Dan Feng, you’re-”

“Dan Feng, Yingxing, there you are.”

Jingliu crossed her arms in the doorway, her apprentice, Jing Yuan by her side. 

“Was that [Name] I just saw run out?” she asked, raising a brow. She shook her head. “Nevermind that. I needed to talk to you two anyways. We’re heading out in a week’s time.”

“What for?” Dan Feng questioned, furrowing his brows.

“The Denizens of Abundance have invaded our ally Thalassa,” Jingliu disclosed, her voice tight at the mere mention of the Xianzhou’s sworn enemies. “We’ve been ordered to drive them out.”

“Very well,” said Dan Feng. “We’ll see you then, Jingliu.”

She nodded. “Until then.”

━

It was the first time Dan Feng had seen death.

War was never pretty for anyone, soldier or civilian. It was dirty, dark, and grimy. In war, you had two objects: one, defeat the enemy. Two, survive.

Dan Feng cursed as he ran his spear through another borison, the ocean of Thalassa responding to his anger. Dragons made from water, the same ones he showed to you all those years ago, drove back the enemy, blasting them away and incapacitating them in the process.

He kept his eyes ahead of him, deliberately avoiding the ground. There, laid corpses of allies and enemies alike.

Death was uncommon on the Xianzhou, especially for a Vidyadhara. There were no soulless eyes on the Luofu, no limp bodies littering the ground. There were no pleas for mercy, no screams of pain and fear.

But here, in the midst of a foreign battlefield, all of those horrors revealed themselves, and bared their teeth.

Dan Feng made the mistake of looking down. His eyes met with that of a deceased borison, its own lifeless eyes glazed over. Instantly, Dan Feng faltered.

The borison looked nothing but a Vidyadhara, but their eyes were the same. It might’ve been a different species, following a different Aeon, but the intelligence and sentience were the same. They were a person, just like anyone else. Just like you.

Only this one wouldn’t rebirth into a new life. No, this one was spoken for, done in by his spear. They would never live again.

The battle blurred around him as he spiraled deeper into his thoughts. He knew that realistically, it would never happen, but he couldn’t stop the thought from resurfacing in his mind.

What if one day, you ended up just like that borison?

Dan Feng shook his head, raising his spear just in time to block an attack from an enemy. No. It would never happen. He’d be there to protect you. The Cloud Knights would protect you. Xianzhou would protect you.

But what if they couldn’t?

“Dan Feng!” Jingliu’s shout snapped him out of his daze. Dan Feng clicked his tongue, irritated at his own absentmindedness. The battlefield was no place for distraction; he of all people should know this.

With a thrust of his hands, his dragons came to Jingliu’s aid, healing her wounds and fending off the borison attacking her.

He was being ridiculous, Dan Feng berated himself. The enemy was vastly overpowered. Their victory would come soon. And when it did, he would be able to come home, home to you.

And he did.

It was nighttime when he returned to the Luofu. You were just finishing up before bed, setting aside the fabrics you’d woven that day. Your former mentor had just checked in on you, making sure that you were doing alright before they went to sleep.

You heaved a heavy sigh to yourself, folding the final sheet before setting it on a shelf. Dan Feng and the others had been at war for months now.

“I wonder how they’re doing,” you muttered to yourself, closing your eyes. You knew they would be fine. Jingliu, Dan Feng, and every other member of the High Cloud Quintet were blessed with powers that you couldn’t even begin to imagine. The invading Denizens would be no match for them.

But still… You couldn’t help but worry.

What didn’t help was how obvious Dan Feng’s absence was. You often looked over your shoulder as you wove, as though expecting the young man to be standing there, watching. The night market didn’t feel the same without him being dragged around to every stall.

The lotus fields, with all their flowers and pads, seemed empty.

It was as though a hole had been ripped out of your heart, leaving only a dull ache.

The sound of your door opening startled you. You swiveled around, utterly confused. Just who would be here at this hour? Very few people had access to the key to your home. 

Perhaps one of the other weavers? Or perhaps your mentor again, worried that you weren’t getting enough sleep?

The answer was neither. A strangled whisper of your name, in such a familiar voice, cut through the night air like a knife. Tears welled in your eyes as you took in the sight of your best friend, finally home after so long.

“Feng’er?” you whispered. He nodded wordlessly, taking a few hesitant steps into your home.

You met him halfway, reaching up to hold his face delicately. Dan Feng closed his eyes for a moment, letting out a little sigh. His arm came to the small of your back, pulling you in as he buried his face into the crook of your neck, breathing in your scent.

“You’re late,” you murmured, brushing your hand through his hair. Dan Feng tightened his arms around you.

“I’m sorry.”

“You should be,” you laughed, sniffling. “Do you know how worried you made me?”

Dan Feng pulled away from your neck, gazing into your eyes. His tail swayed, eventually circling around your waist. He gingerly held your chin between his thumb and index finger as though you’d break if he was any rougher with you.

“I’m sorry,” he repeated, brows crinkling. Quickly, he wiped away your tears. Of all else, Dan Feng hated seeing you cry, and hated it even more if it was because of him. “I’m here now.”

You nodded tearfully. “And you’re not leaving, right?”

“Not for a while,” he promised. “Even the Abundance will need time to recover from the damage we did to them.”

“Good.” You held his face in your hands. “Because right now, you’re mine.”

“Is that so?” Dan Feng said softly. His eyes lingered on your lips, his lips slightly parted. “I’m yours, is that right?”

“Mhm.” You smiled as you felt him press your bodies impossibly closer together, one arm around your waist and the other behind your head. Your lips brushed against each other, your voice a whisper as you two danced on the edge. “Mine.”

A push from Dan Feng’s hand, and he sealed his lips with yours.

Immediately, you closed your eyes, savoring the taste of his kiss. His lips were soft, yet cool, like the touch of a river on a summer afternoon. He kissed you with a hidden desperation, years of pining and longing unleashing themselves in this torrent of affection. You almost couldn’t keep up with him, letting out a whimper as he tilted your face gently, deepening the kiss.

Even when you parted for air, it wasn’t long before Dan Feng greedily pulled you back in, addicted to the feeling of your lips on his. His hands wouldn’t stop wandering in a languid motion, slowly roaming all over you, from your waist to your back to your neck, and back to your waist again, squeezing every bit he could find.

By the time Dan Feng’s relentless assault ended, the two of you were breathless. Words failed to form on your tongue as you simply stared into Dan Feng’s eyes, trying to catch your breath.

Dan Feng pressed his forehead against yours, his horns bumping against you.

"You don't know how long I waited for that,” he whispered huskily. You let out a breathless chuckle, wrapping your arms around his neck and nuzzling his nose with yours.

“I think I did.”

The corners of Dan Feng’s eyes crinkled. You’ve never seen them so up close before. The colors reminded you of a stone in a river, with cool grey giving way to gorgeous teal.

And the way he looked at you made your heart melt - it’s so tender, so soft, so filled with love that you can practically feel how much he cares about you.

And you can only hope that he saw the same in your eyes.

“I love you,” he confessed, like it was a secret. But even still, him being able to say those three words made it worth more than anything in the world. “I’ve always loved you, ever since we were children.”

Joy bubbled up in your chest, and you couldn’t stop yourself from giggling. Your hand came to his scalp, bunching up his hair in your fingers.

“I love you too, you dork.” You pecked him on his nose, and then his forehead, laughing as he wrinkled his nose in response.

Reluctantly, you released him from your grasp, instead tugging his hand into your abode.

“It’s late already,” you explained. “The Preceptors won’t mind if you come home late, right?”

“They no longer control me,” Dan Feng affirmed. You grinned.

“That’s good.” You lead him into your bedroom, glancing over to make sure he was fine with it. “I don’t have a guest room, so are you alright with sharing a bed?”

Dan Feng flustered, but he nodded. “Th- That’s fine with me.”

You would learn that Dan Feng was incredibly clingy in bed. He practically enveloped you in his arms, tangling your legs together as he hugged your shoulders. His tail was conflicted - either thumping happily against the bed or wrapping around you like a possessive snake.

But it was worth all of it. You felt safe in Dan Feng’s embrace, loved. In his arms, you slept the most soundly you’ve ever slept. It was as though you had found your other half.

You truly felt blessed when you woke up to Dan Feng’s sleeping face, so serene and tranquil. And fortunately for the both of you, that wouldn’t be the last time you woke up next to the other.

━

But those happy days were not made to last.

There would be many more feats Dan Feng would accomplish as the High Elder. He would become one of the most prolific Vidyadhara ever, forever documenting his name in history books.

You two would eventually marry, sealing your love not just with those rings. It was a marriage in the palaces of Scalegorge Waterscape, only the best for the High Elder. All of your friends attended, Yingxing and Baiheng especially praising Dan Feng (and lamenting about how he of all people got married before they did). 

Jing Yuan had grown into a fine young man, his intellect and skill with the Lightning Lord being parallel to none. Yingxing was beginning to age, being a short-lived species. Jingliu had retired, aiming to end her days peacefully.

But as said before, that wasn’t what fate had planned for the quintet.

Jingliu would be driven mad with mara, her only solace being the blade of her former mentor. Baiheng would be missing in action. Yingxing would be killed long before his time, leaving Dan Feng in despair over losing three beloved friends so soon. 

Perhaps that is what drove him to do what he did.

“How could you?”

Dan Feng winced at the crack in your voice as you screamed at him. You were crying, angry tears streaming down your face.

“My love, please-”

“Do not call me that!” you snapped, making him flinch. “You don’t get to call me ‘my love’ after that. What were you thinking?!”

“It was the only way!” Dan Feng insisted.

“It was cruel,” you hissed. “You know that more than anyone here.”

“They stole them from me,” Dan Feng growled, his eyes flashing. “It wasn’t their time.”

“I know,” you whispered, your voice hoarse from crying and screaming. “I know it wasn’t. But you know what immortality will do to them, Feng’er. You know what the curse of Abundance does.”

Dan Feng averted his eyes guiltily. You wipe at your eyes hurriedly, taking big, gulping breaths to calm down.

“What did the Preceptors say?” you finally asked. Dan Feng’s gaze lowered, a shadow cast over his face. A pit dropped in your stomach.

“They’re waiting outside,” he revealed. “I’m to be taken to the Shackling Prison, and forced into rebirth. They only let me be here to say goodbye.”

It was as though an anvil had been dropped on you, crushing you.

“No.”

It was the only thing you could muster out. You shook your head in disbelief.

“No. No, no, no!” you croaked out. “They can’t do that. Not to you.”

Ironic, how only a few minutes prior you were berating Dan Feng as though your life depended on it. Now, you were pleading for him to be forgiven, for a lighter sentence to be dealt out. Because for a Vidyadhara, a forced rebirth was practically the same as a death sentence.

“Isn’t there another way?”

Dan Feng shook his head, taking your arms in his hands.

“I’m afraid not. This is the only way the public will forgive my sins.”

He took a deep breath.

“Please, my love,” he begged quietly. “Look at me.”

You did.

“You have to be strong,” said Dan Feng, cradling your face one last time. “Promise me that you’ll be alright, even after I am reborn.”

You shook your head. “Feng’er, please.”

“Promise me,” he urged.

“I…” You faltered. “I promise.”

Dan Feng smiled sadly - the last smile you’d ever see from your husband.

“Thank you.” He pressed a sweet kiss to your lips, a kiss to last you the lifetimes he wouldn’t be at your side. “I love you, [Name]. And I’m sorry for being such a selfish husband.”

You closed your eyes, savoring him for the last time. Silently, you told him your forgiveness.

“I love you too, Dan Feng.”

That was the day the love of your life died.

━

Centuries have passed since then.

You’re still weaving, now taking care of your rebirthed mentors as they had cared for you. There are children under your wing now, hoping to learn your craft and one day start a business of their own.

You still keep in touch with Jing Yuan, the general visiting your farm every so often. Each time, you offer him a taste of the lotus seeds Dan Feng loved, but each time, he refuses.

Yingxing has become the Stellaron Hunter Blade, cursed with immortality and the mara that comes with it. If he remembered you, he never showed it.

The Ambrosial Arbor, reawakened by the Denizens of Abundance, runs rampant, threatening the existence of the Luofu itself. You hear from friends that Jing Yuan had enlisted a group of outworlders - the Astral Express - to help him with the crisis.

And now, those very outworlders were standing outside your door.

“Par-” Jing Yuan coughed, cutting himself off. “Pardon the intrusion, [Name].”

He was currently being held by a young Vidyadhara, one that… Your breath hitched.

One that looked almost identical to Dan Feng.

Your lover’s lookalike noticed your gaze at him. The second you met eyes, he seemed to know exactly what was going through your mind.

“...I’m not him.” He repeated this sentence for the nth time today.

You smiled sadly.

“I know.”

You turned to Jing Yuan, taking in the general’s sorry state. The outworlders, a young girl with pink hair, an older brunette man, and a grey-haired teenager all seemed to be in similar shape, although definitely better than the general.

You stepped aside. “Why don’t you all come in? It’s been a while since I’ve had company.”

“Thank you.” The brunette, who you would later come to know as Welt, thanked.

As you turned away, Dan Feng’s reincarnation noticed a jade ring on your finger, recognizing it as the one he had woken up in.

“That’s…”

You hummed, raising your hand. You’ve never taken it off, not even when Dan Feng was reborn.

“You recognize it,” you mused. “I suppose that means he still has it?”

The reincarnation hesitated, but nodded. You smiled.

“That’s good. Say, what’s your name, little one?”

“Dan Heng,” he answered.

 “It’s a good name.” You stepped away for a moment to the kitchen. “I apologize; the tea may take a while. I wasn’t expecting guests.”

“It’s no matter,” Jing Yuan assured.

And as you served tea to the Astral Express, you couldn’t help but notice: five people, seated around a table, enjoying tea. Just like a scene hundreds of years ago.

You chuckle to yourself, a carved lotus glimmering in the light on your ring.

reblogs w comments are appreciated !!

[antiadvil]

Important stuff first: here's the Google doc listing most of the flash effects in tit. This document contains spoilers! It's also a very rough draft but I wanted to post it before the Helsinki show. (Reference to my original post if you don't know what I'm talking about)

Most of the work that's left is integrating information from Misty's document with mine, and I've linked theirs at the bottom of mine so you can look at both. Unless something awful happens to me, everything will be finished by the American leg of the tour, and I'll also edit this post to indicate once I'm done.

Please keep the notes of this post spoiler free!! If you notice a spoiler related issue with the doc you can leave a comment on the google doc (be aware that this will reveal your gmail display name to anyone viewing the doc) or private message me/send an ask.

All that being said please share this post to help a photosensitive phriend out and thank you very much to @bewareofthenewphannie @thinking-emoji @lavender-phannie and @runituptheflagpole for their help with this.

[felassan]

New BioWare blog post: - "Journal #13 - Dragon Age Day 2024"

"Thank you for joining us for DA Day 2024"

Rest of post under cut due to length & DA:TV spoilers.

"Hey everyone, Today, on Dragon Age Day 2024, we want to thank you, our community. You inspire all of us with your passion and care. If you’re new to our community, welcome, and if you’re a long time fan, we’re so glad to have you along with us on this journey! We observe DA Day on December 4th each year, and we have several activities today to celebrate you and our recent release of Dragon Age: The Veilguard. Check out today’s activities below. Along with Patch 4 later today, we’re pleased to release a stand alone, free version of the Character Creator on all platforms! For the folks who have yet to jump into Dragon Age: The Veilguard, you can now create a Rook before buying the full game and transfer your character over, as long as you’re on the same platform*. There’s no time limit on the Character Creator; we know crafting the perfect protagonist can take hours. Special shout out to breebunn, who spent 21 whole hours making her Rook and Inquisitor! She’ll be doing a special stream at 9:30am PT to celebrate Dragon Age Day with us.  We’ve been so excited to see the many different Rooks you’ve created since the game launched over a month ago. In celebration of you, our community, we’ve assembled a special collection of some of our favorite Rooks that you’ve shared with us along the way. Check out the montage at the top of the blog and see if your Rook is included! We can’t thank you enough for being a part of our community."

"Also part of today’s celebration, we asked our artists to create a new piece of art that commemorates the incredible journeys you’ve taken as Rook into the newest, darkest corners of Thedas, persevering against the Blight and the Elven Gods. We hope you enjoy this special Dragon Age Day edition that honors the legacy of the past games, showing your status as the hero and leader of the Veilguard. Additionally, we made a fun infographic to explore your choices in-game! The full infographic will be available on our social media later today, but here’s a sneak peek."

"Now that the game has been out for a bit, we’re happy to be doing another AMA with our developers! Join us today on the r/dragonage subreddit starting at 12pm PST. Our previous AMAs were on our BioWare Discord, if you want to check out the past questions and answers before hopping into today’s session. Please note, there may be spoilers in this AMA, so read at your own risk!"

"Last but definitely not least, we have a gift for everyone who owns Dragon Age: The Veilguard. Starting today, you will be able to get the iconic armor, body paint, and nose blood smear of Dragon Age II’s protagonist, Hawke, for your Rook. These cosmetics will be permanently available and can be found in the Lighthouse after downloading Patch 4 and completing the mission “The Singing Blade.” We still have a few more things planned in the days to come and before the holiday season, so keep your eyes on our social media! Once again, thank you for being part of our community and always showing your passion for this series. Happy Dragon Age Day 2024!             — The Dragon Age Community Team *Conditions & restrictions apply. See ea.com/legal for details."

[source]

[dee-writes-anime]

Lalalalalalaala I'm back, I don't know if I already have another one pending in your requests but eh

yesterday I finished SS2 and it ruined me completely, I'll never be the same i think, now im reading the manga and honestly i saw a few spoilers and im terrified for megumi man, i don't want him to die!!😭🫠

Sigh, anyways, how about like megumi x reader, but it's like after everything settles and the world goes back to normal,and reader is a feeling a bit better (assuming they fought too) and when they wake up and see megumi in Jujutsu high,they just start sobbing and hugging him telling him how precious he is and how scared they were for him,

This is so cringe man I'm cringe but I'm free!! I need megumi to know he's loved he deserves absolutely everything

You're Everything to Me with Megumi Fushiguro

FEATURING Megumi Fushiguro x Reader

SUMMARY In the aftermath of devastation, he is your light

CONTENT WARNINGS angst, dark subjects like suicidal thoughts (please know your boundaries, your mental health is more important), fluff, two cuties in love, only edited ever so slightly T-T

AUTHORS NOTE You go anon! Live in your cringe! Own the cringe! And keep giving me more content ideas! Hope you enjoy <333

The silence was a suffocating thing.

As you stirred, the weight of the world seemed to press down harder, the thin mattress beneath you offering no relief from the crushing heaviness in your chest. For a moment, you wondered if you had even woken up at all—if this was some dream, another layer of the nightmare you’d been living for what felt like years. Your body ached in ways that had nothing to do with the physical, and when your eyes blinked open, the dim, sterile light of the room greeted you like a cold slap.

It was over.

That thought should have brought you comfort, but instead, it twisted like a knife in your gut.

The world had been saved—or at least, what was left of it. The battles had been fought, the enemies had fallen, and you had survived. You were here, alive. But the silence felt wrong, unnatural, as if the air itself was too still, too empty. There was no joy in this victory. There was no peace. Only the lingering sense of loss, of something irreplaceable that had been shattered.

You forced yourself to sit up, but every movement felt sluggish, like wading through thick mud. The room spun briefly, and for a moment, you wished you hadn’t woken at all. It was easier to stay in the dark, easier to float in the void where you didn’t have to think, didn’t have to remember.

But now, in the unforgiving light of the aftermath, the memories came flooding back, sharp and relentless.

How many lives had been lost for this so-called peace? How many faces—friends, comrades, strangers—had fallen, their blood staining the ground? And for what? What had really changed? The world might have been saved, but it was broken, fractured beyond recognition. There was no returning to what once was. The faces you had fought alongside, the ones who had smiled and laughed, were now ghosts that haunted the corners of your mind.

The weight of that realization settled over you, heavy and suffocating, pulling you down into a sea of doubt. Was any of it worth it? All the fighting, all the sacrifice—what had you really gained?

The faces of the fallen swam before your eyes, one after another. Some you had known intimately, others were mere fleeting acquaintances, but each one carried the same hollow finality. You had fought so hard, given so much, and yet, as you sat there in the cold stillness, it felt like none of it mattered. The world you had bled for had become a graveyard of lost dreams, and the future felt as distant as the stars.

The despair clawed at your throat, threatening to choke you.

Why had you fought so hard? Why had you pushed yourself beyond the breaking point? The names of the dead weighed heavily on your heart, and with each one, you wondered if there had been something more you could have done, some way to save them. But deep down, you knew the answer. You knew you had given everything, and still, it wasn’t enough. It was never enough.

Your mind spiraled, the emptiness inside you expanding, swallowing up every thought, every hope. Maybe it had all been for nothing. Maybe, in the end, the fight had taken more from you than you could ever give back. The victory felt hollow, a brittle shell masking the loss beneath.

And then there was him.

Your heart clenched painfully at the thought of Megumi. You had fought not just for yourself, not just for the world, but for him—for the people you loved, for the ones who gave you reason to keep going. But now, in this empty room, with only the echoes of your failures and fears, you weren’t sure if even that had been enough.

Was he okay? Did he make it out? The thought twisted in your mind, dark and relentless. The last you had seen of him was chaos—the blur of battle, the surge of cursed energy, his figure moving like a shadow through the carnage. You had called out his name, over and over, your voice hoarse, but he had vanished into the storm. And after that, everything had gone black.

What if…?

Your chest tightened, the panic rising like bile in your throat. What if he was gone? What if he had been one of the lives lost to the war? You couldn’t bear the thought. You didn’t know if you could survive that. You couldn’t even think about it.

But the doubt, the fear, gnawed at you like a festering wound. The room around you blurred as your vision swam with unshed tears. It felt like you were trapped beneath the weight of it all—the guilt, the grief, the unbearable thought that maybe, despite all your efforts, you had lost him too.

Your hands clenched into fists, nails biting into the soft flesh of your palms, but the physical pain was nothing compared to the storm inside you. What was the point of surviving if you had lost everything worth fighting for? What was the point of living in a world that felt so empty?

A sob built in your throat, thick and heavy, but you swallowed it down, pressing your palms against your eyes as if that could somehow stop the flood of emotion threatening to break you. You couldn’t cry. You couldn’t fall apart, not now. But the dam was crumbling, the weight of your sorrow too great to bear.

And then, through the haze of your grief, something shifted.

It was subtle at first, just a flicker in your periphery. You blinked through the tears, your breath catching as your blurred vision cleared.

And that’s when you saw him.

Megumi.

He was standing at the foot of your bed, quiet and still, his presence a solid anchor in the storm of your emotions. For a moment, you couldn’t believe it. You stared at him, wide-eyed, as if he might vanish if you looked away. His dark hair was disheveled, his face marred with cuts and bruises, but he was alive.

Alive.

Megumi was there, solid and real, as if he had emerged from the very shadows of your despair. He didn’t speak, didn’t move, but his presence alone was a lifeline—a single thread of light cutting through the oppressive darkness that had swallowed you whole.

Your breath hitched, the sobs lodged in your throat like jagged glass, tearing at you as the tears flowed freely now. You couldn’t stop them, couldn’t hold back the flood of everything you had buried deep inside. Because he was here—he was alive. After everything, after all the loss and devastation, Megumi was still standing.

A small, fragile sob escaped your lips, and with it, the last of your strength crumbled. You reached out for him, your hand trembling, desperate to close the distance between you. Megumi stood there, watching you, his dark eyes softening, though his expression remained guarded. It was as if he, too, had been waiting—waiting for the moment when your pain would overwhelm you, when you would need him more than anything.

You didn’t even realize you were moving until you were in his arms.

Your body collided with his, and the force of your relief shattered whatever fragile walls you had left. Your hands fisted in his shirt, clinging to him as if he were the only thing keeping you from drowning. In a way, he was. Megumi had become the beacon of light in a world that had gone dark. He was your anchor, the one steady point in a storm of chaos and loss, and you held onto him as if letting go would mean losing yourself entirely.

“Megumi,” you gasped, his name spilling from your lips like a confession, like a prayer. Your voice was broken, thick with tears. “I was so scared… I thought—I thought I’d lost you.”

He stiffened for a moment, caught off guard by the intensity of your desperation, but then he relaxed. His arms came around you, hesitant at first, but then more secure, wrapping you in a warmth that seemed to seep into your very soul. The hand he placed at the small of your back pressed you closer, grounding you, keeping you tethered to the present. His other hand cradled the back of your head, his touch gentle, careful, as though he were afraid you might shatter.

“I’m here,” he murmured quietly, his voice low and soothing, but beneath the calm, you could hear the echo of his own exhaustion. “I’m here.”

You shook your head against his chest, the sobs wracking your body with a force you couldn’t control. “I couldn’t… I couldn’t do it without you. I couldn’t survive this if you were gone.”

Each word was torn from you, raw and trembling, as though they had been waiting to be spoken for too long. The fear that had haunted you, the pain of almost losing him, was finally pouring out in a flood of emotion that you could no longer hold back. And Megumi—he was your constant. Your light. The only thing keeping the world from crumbling entirely around you.

His presence, solid and unmoving, was a balm to the wounds you didn’t know how to heal. The warmth of his body against yours, the steady rise and fall of his chest, the soft hum of his heartbeat—all of it was proof that he was real, that he was here, that you hadn’t lost him to the nightmare that had claimed so many others.

You buried your face in his chest, inhaling the familiar scent of him—earth and rain, something grounding, something that had always made you feel safe. His fingers curled in your hair, not with the intent to soothe you, but to remind you that he was here, that he wasn’t going anywhere. His grip was firm, as though he, too, was holding on—not just to you, but to this moment, this fragile sense of peace you had both been denied for so long.

“I thought I lost you,” you whispered again, your voice barely audible, cracking under the weight of your tears. “I thought you were gone, and I—”

“Shh,” he interrupted gently, his voice steady, though you could feel the faint tremble in his breath. He wasn’t immune to the weight of everything you had endured together, and that vulnerability made him feel all the more real. “I’m here. I’m not going anywhere.”

You clung to him, your sobs quieting as the weight of his words settled over you. You didn’t need a grand declaration of love or an elaborate promise. This was Megumi—solid, quiet, unwavering—and that was enough. His presence was enough.

As the minutes passed, your tears began to subside, though the ache in your chest remained. But it wasn’t the same all-consuming despair that had threatened to swallow you whole. With Megumi’s arms around you, you felt grounded, tethered to something real, something you could hold onto. He was the light in the dark, and even in the midst of all your pain, that light gave you hope.

After a long moment, he gently pulled back, just enough to look at you. His fingers brushed your hair from your face, his gaze searching yours, filled with a tenderness that he rarely allowed anyone to see.

“You don’t have to carry this alone,” he said softly, his voice like a whisper in the stillness. “I’m with you.”

Your chest tightened, the tears still clinging to your lashes as you looked up at him. His face was marred by exhaustion, the remnants of battle still etched into his skin, but in that moment, he was everything. He was the proof that you hadn’t lost everything, that there was still something left to fight for, someone to hold onto.

“I was so afraid,” you whispered, your voice raw, breaking under the weight of the words. “Afraid I’d lose you... that you’d be just another name I’d have to carry.”

Your grip on his shirt tightened, your hands trembling. “You don’t know what it did to me... thinking you were gone, thinking I’d never see you again.”

Megumi’s brow furrowed, his expression flickering with something you couldn’t quite name—pain, maybe, or understanding. He stayed silent, but his arms remained firm around you, holding you close, as if he, too, needed this connection.

“I can’t lose you, Megumi,” you murmured, your voice trembling like a fragile thing. “Not you. Not after everything.”

Your words were heavy, laden with the truth you had kept buried for too long. He wasn’t just someone you fought alongside—he was the reason you fought, the light that had kept you going when everything else felt lost. And here he was, standing in front of you, pulling you from the depths when you couldn’t do it alone.

For a long moment, he just looked at you, his eyes dark and unreadable. But then, quietly, he spoke, his voice soft, almost tentative.

“I’m still here.”

The simplicity of it was almost too much to bear. Three words, and yet they held everything. He wasn’t offering you promises or reassurances he couldn’t keep, but in that moment, it was enough. It had to be.

You pressed your forehead to his chest, the tears still slipping down your cheeks, but softer now. “You’re everything,” you whispered, your voice thick with emotion. “I fought for this... for you. I don’t care if the world is broken, as long as I still have you.”

For a moment, there was only silence, your words hanging in the air, heavy with everything you had kept buried inside. Megumi’s chest rose and fell beneath your touch, his breath steady, but there was a tension there, something you hadn’t noticed before. Slowly, he pulled back, just enough to look at you, his gaze dark and conflicted.

His fingers brushed against your cheek, his touch soft, but there was something in his eyes—something raw, vulnerable, like he was standing on the edge of a precipice. He opened his mouth, hesitated, then spoke, his voice low and rough, filled with a weight you hadn’t expected.

“I almost gave up.”

The words hit you like a punch to the gut. You blinked, your breath catching as you looked at him, disbelief flooding your chest. Megumi? The thought alone felt wrong, impossible, and yet here he was, standing before you, saying the words you never thought you’d hear from him.

“I was... ready to let go,” he continued, his voice barely above a whisper, his gaze flickering to the side, as if he couldn’t bear to meet your eyes. “Sukuna was there, pulling at me, wearing me down until I thought... maybe it would be easier. Easier to give in, to just let it all end.”

You stared at him, your heart clenching painfully as the weight of his confession settled over you. He had been so close—closer than you’d ever realized—to losing himself, to disappearing into that darkness. And the thought of it, of him giving in to Sukuna, was almost too much to bear.

“But then... I thought about you.”

Your breath hitched, your eyes widening as his words sank in. Megumi’s gaze flickered back to yours, and this time, it was steady, intense, filled with an emotion so deep it threatened to unravel you.

“You kept me going,” he said, his voice stronger now, more certain. “Even when everything felt impossible, when I thought I was too far gone... I held on because of you. I couldn’t let go, not when you were still here. Not when I knew you’d be waiting.”

The air between you felt heavy, thick with the weight of his words, the truth of everything he had been carrying. And in that moment, you realized just how close you had come to losing him—not just to the war, but to the battle inside his own heart.

Tears welled in your eyes again, but this time they weren’t born of fear or pain. They were tears of relief, of understanding, of love so deep it ached. You had fought for him, but he had fought for you, too—for the chance to stay with you, to not let the darkness claim him completely.

“I couldn’t lose you,” you whispered, your voice breaking, but you didn’t care. “I couldn’t bear it.”

Megumi’s hand cupped your face, his thumb brushing away the tears as they fell, and for a moment, he simply held you there, his eyes searching yours. Then, quietly, with a tenderness that made your heartache, he said, “You’re the reason I’m still standing. You’re everything to me, too.”

[urhouseisnthauntedurjustlonely]

I DECIPHERED SOME OF THE BLACK BOOK & FOUND MISS HOLLOWAY LORE.

ART CREDIT: @thirdchildart

Part Two. Part Three.

TW: RELIGION

SPOILERS: the Black Book, Miss Holloway lore

It’s pretty solid foundation for lore, but please keep in mind that I couldn’t make out everything, and there might be some mistakes. If it’s not, then I’m a fool, and my eyes still hurting from an intense squinting session means nothing.

THIS IS WHAT I’VE GLEANED:

“[They] warned me I was a fool to seek out the lords and I [?] [?] but I hope searching for [a/s_?] will [?] [wor_?]. [p_?] of Holoy Blane/Blame(?) found a way [?] in Hatchetfield. And I [lo_?] [?] me [?] [?] [?] pages in the [b_?] what [?] [ago/I go?] myself [?] [?] world.”

“And now [?] with my mind and per. [D_?] of a mind. Into the Black and White.”

I know it’s not a lot, but…

Here’s why I think this is pretty bitchin’ lore wise.

If my assumptions are correct, Willabella was warned that she was “a fool to seek out the lords”, and I think the people who warned her were the Hatchetmen. It’s also worth noting the the very first page of the Black Book says, “You are a fool to seek the Black and White.”

She also mentions someone named Holoy Blane/Blame “finding a way” in Hatchetfield. I believe Holoy Blane/Blame (probably pronounced Holly) is Miss Holloway, and that Miss Holloway may have been the first to find a way to directly access the Black and White. In Killer Track, Miss Holloway changes her name to Miss Holiday— an absurdly similar name.

The Hatchetverse is notorious for having characters’ identities blatantly lining up with their names.

For example:

Man in a Hurry = Barry Swift

Greenpeace Girl = Harmony Jones

Lex and Hannah Foster have shit parents.

Grace Chasity is pretty obvious— chastity.

The Hatchetverse is full of religious themes.

Mainly Christianity based, and the name “Holoy Blane/Blame” could be a reference to “being holy and blameless” from the Bible, said by Paul the Apostle.

“He has now reconciled by the death of his body, so that he may present you holy and blameless, and above reproach in his sight.” Colossians 1:22.

Basically, Jesus died in a human body to windshield wipe away our sins, leaving us holy, blameless, and innocent.

There are three reasons for why Jesus’ violent death was the sacrifice needed to save people from their sins. He says the three reasons for Jesus’ painful death in a human body was to, one: present us as holy, for we cannot be holy without his sacrifice on our behalf, two: as we still sin in this life, his sacrifices provides forgiveness for our sins, so we are blameless, and three: something about innocence. I can’t remember, but you get the gist.

So, basically, Miss Holloway’s deal with the Lords mirrors Jesus’ sacrifice.

She sacrificed everything to keep evil at bay. She goes around, helping those who cannot find answers themselves. I’d say she also mirrors what Jesus is supposed to embody, especially considering she can literally resurrect. I would also say the Foster sisters embody the myth as well, especially when you know that Lex and Hannah are both in shop class, and Jesus was a carpenter.

The Black Book page line by line:

Feel free to reblog and add to this post!! I actively encourage it!!!

Edit (11/29/24): I now believe the letter after ‘my mind and per.’, is an ‘I’ rather than a ‘D’. So, it would be, ‘mind and per. I [?] of a mind.’

[inevitably-johnlocked]

A Breakdown of My Thoughts On Good Omens S2

(That may or may not also be a meta about my predictions for the future interwoven in)

Hey All!

All right, I’ve officially watched Good Omens Season 2 twice, and am almost done my third time through, and I want to put out some thoughts before I start reading other people’s meta about S2 so that my initial thoughts aren’t influenced by those. I was GOING to post it to my GO blog @inevitably-ineffable-husbands first, but decided instead to make the initial post here since this is my largest audience (my GO blog is mostly a reblog blog, but it’s been pretty active the past week with people sending me asks there!).

During my second watch-through, I took some notes about stuff I wanted to expand upon. This got a bit messy, long, and disorganized so I tried to just clean up those notes so they’re more legible. I think I inevitably want to write separate meta about each section, especially after my next few rewatches (AND especially since I want to talk more about 3 or four Big Thoughts that I have about S3). 

This meta turned out to be a lengthy essay-style meta with a few bits of point form and free thoughts, broken into sections for easier consumption, so I hope you will give it a read through. It’s longer than I intended (it’s about 5,000 words), so if you need to pause anywhere, I’ve conveniently broken it up into sections below the cut, which you can see the breakdown of here:

Before The Beginning

Crowley is A-Major-Angel Theory (or The Angel That Crowley Might Actually Have Been)

Maggie and Nina (Mirrors. It’s about mirrors)

The Ineffable Bureaucracy (MORE MIRRORS YAY I LOVE DYING!)

Crowley and Aziraphale (& Their Relationship Arc) (which includes my thoughts on THAT moment and why it was wrong)

The Metatron and Aziraphale’s Decision (I actually covered a large chunk of this on THIS POST so you can read just that if you want instead)

Other Things (That I Didn’t Know Where Else to Put) 

Final Thoughts

Also, so it’s not hidden under the cut, here are the things I’m interested in expanding upon in the future, if you guys would like to read more. The first one is the only “for sure” one on my plate right now:

A Thought on AziraCrow from an A-Spec Perspective [REDUX]: An expansion on the above-linked meta I put out a week ago about their relationship arc and how I feel it’s being portrayed and what it means foor the future.

THAT Scene Small Thoughts: And its importance RIGHT NOW and why the confession will be so much more powerful in S3. Actually I think I MIGHT cover this in the AziraCrow meta, but I DO want to expand upon the scene anyway regardless.

And I don’t have many things to say as of finishing this meta, but I would like to put out my thoughts on why Aziraphale made That Choice. (EDIT: It would be an expansion on THIS POST which would include some points I made under the cut in the various sections, compiled together. I know I’ll have more thoughts as the weeks move on and as I understand the scene more and more).

Anyway, I hope you enjoy what I’ve written! The next meta I’d like to tackle is the Relationship Redux meta, provided that the asks I got in my inbox aren’t going to take up too much of my time.

Feel free to add your thoughts in the reblogs and replies as usual! I welcome other opinions and thoughts, and I will try my best to keep all the threads together. This blog is and will always remain a community project! :) 

PLEASE be advised, in that case, that Spoilers WILL BE in the notes, and OBVIOUSLY there are spoilers below the cut for the entire season! Cheers, and thank you! Enjoy!

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BEFORE THE BEGINNING

I have running theory that’s kind of on strings right now, but I feel like Aziraphale feels responsible for Crowley’s Fall, that he feels he didn’t do enough to help prevent it, which may explain his actions in Episode 6. 

Now, I’m not saying that the entire reason he spends so much time with Crowley is because of some underlying guilt, NOT AT ALL (just a small part of it), but more that he feels like he could have done more to dissuade Crowley from asking questions – It’s why he spends their entire lives trying to convince Crowley he is good! Aziraphale loved seeing an angel so happy with what they were doing, and his warnings were making Crowley unhappy. Instead, Aziraphale decided to compliment Crowley on his work to make him smile again. I think it’s absolutely something to note since this scene and the finale of E6 suspiciously bookend each other, meant to be compared and contrasted with each other. 

When Azzie is presented with the opportunity to give Crowley back something he loved doing – being happy making galaxies – Aziraphale took it, because he knows how much Crowley struggles with his own sense of self.

Unfortunately, Azzie thinks Crowley’s inner turmoil is because of who he is and his status as a demon, not because Aziraphale is literally his whole raison d’être and why Crowley keeps coming back to him – he’s only ever truly happy being around Aziraphale.

Crowley, in turn, has become Azzie’s own reason for being, he just sadly hasn’t come to that conclusion yet at this point in the story. Aziraphale thinks that by being the Supreme Archangel, he will have the authority to make things RIGHT, not knowing the info that we as an audience have through Crowley that that is FAR from the truth. I’ll go more into it in my Metatron section below.

Basically I’m saying that this sequence at the beginning exists to show who Aziraphale is as a person, an angel who struggles with his OWN sense of self and his desire to do good and make people happy. Aziraphale is so consumed with believing that he can change things if only he has some control over a situation, then it can all be better; he fails to see that he already has everything he wants right in front of him. He doesn’t think he can TRULY be with Crowley safely unless something changes the status quo, and he naïvely thinks that taking the job is the best way to do so. I think next season we will see Aziraphale finally understand that he CAN’T be “free” until he accepts that he and Crowley ARE better as one. 

Another note I wanted to make about this is just an aside commentary: Aziraphale ABSOLUTELY was smitten by Crowley. I suspect until he met Crowley, Aziraphale had never seen another angel be so joyous in his work. It intrigued Azzie and blossomed into something-unknown in him.

Azzie was smitten since before the beginning, and that he indeed pines for Crowley. He’s just terrified about what happens After if he were to do anything about it.

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CROWLEY-IS-RAPHAEL THEORY (or another Top-Ranking Angel)

This is one of my favourite theories that circulates in the fandom, and I went into a bit of detail about this on this post here, but I want to expand more upon it briefly (hah).

I think this season further proved Crowley was A Big Angel™ before he Fell (not necessarily Raphael, but it IS the prominent theory about his identity). It’s a Big Point that I think they’ve been planting the seeds for in both seasons so that we as the audience can figure it out; maybe not exactly WHO Crowley was (the general audience wouldn’t know about the theory), more that Crowley was indeed a higher ranking angel than all of them. This could be a big reveal in S3 for the general audience, and will be the reward for the “easter eggs” that the fans picked up on. 

Here are the clues that I have so far, both from the fandom theories for S1, and my own observations of S2... I have not read any meta yet as of writing this, so I probably missed some if people are talking about it:

Raphael is notably missing from the main Archangels. It’s very odd, because he was a prominent figure in a story about Abraham

When we first see Crowley in S2, we see him as the primary creator of the universe. That kind of task isn’t given to just any angel. We knew in S1 that Crowley created stars, just not the full story of it.

The only Top Angel who recognizes Crowley is Saraqael and we don’t find that out until Episode 6. They mention that the two worked together during the creation of a nebula. Saraqael is just as old as Crowley and was there Before the Beginning as well. Michael, Uriel, and Gabriel don’t recognize Crowley when they come down during Job’s trials, meaning that Crowley probably Fell before they came to be Top Level Angels. 

“A throne, a dominion or ABOVE” is who Muriel said were the only angel classes that could open the file on Gabriel, and Crowley literally just opens it without issue. Crowley faffs it off as an old password (but even then, why would he HAVE an old password for a confidential file?) but I think it’s more true that he actually had and hasn’t lost the clearance he had as a higher order of angel. Muriel NEVER stated that an Archangel can open the file at ALL. BUT I think Gaiman’s Archangels are technically top of the chain so they possibly are able to open the files as well.   For shits and giggles, I actually looked into the orders of angels: Muriel’s listed angels are part of the top 4 levels of Angel rankings. Now, I know that the authors took creative liberty with Capital A-Archangels for story purposes, but it’s a very interesting thought, isn’t it? I wonder if Crowley was actually one of the first Supreme Archangels? Just something to nibble on until S3.

The INSANE power level of HALF of a bit of a small miracle from TWO people that can raise 25 dead people is very interesting thing to literally flash red in your face as if to say “THIS IS A REALLY IMPORTANT THING TO REMEMBER, DON’T FORGET IT”. Why? Why make this the catalyst of events in the series if it’s not important and won’t be brought up again? Was Crowley’s power the one that set off alarms in Heaven since his part was to hide Gabe from Heaven?

The writers have deliberately avoided giving us Crowley’s name in Before the Beginning. Crowley has a penchant for changing his name when he wants to distance himself from the past, and there’s a good chance he purposely threw away his Heavenly (dead) name to cast aside any memories of that former life. It’s not who he is anymore, nor who he wants to be ever again.

Crowley constantly references the problems with Heaven, stuff that Aziraphale seems to have no knowledge of. 

Crowley has an uncanny sense of where Aziraphale is and what he’s up to at all times. Actually, he’s able to sense trouble from everyone regardless. NOW, this might be down to him just... being so smitten with Aziraphale that perhaps he’s purposely attuned his senses to him, but none of the other angels nor demons seem to be able to do this unless it’s with their own kind. Crowley seems to have it for everyone. This is an odd power for one “measly demon” to have.

I’m certain I’m missing a few other easter eggs here that were mentioned, but in the interim, I think these definitely the ones that are worth noting.

“One Character Split Into Two”

I’ve seen a theory that ties into the Angel Theory where Crowley and Aziraphale are actually two parts of the SAME angel, Raphael, and I only remembered it after I saw this quote from David and Michael’s interview:

“Well, now we’re playing one character that’s sort of split into two”

Interesting choice of words... Did one of them slip up here? I don’t think that this is the case, that it’s just me over-reading into an interview quote, but it is something I did came across in my readings of the Raphael Theory that I thought I should mention.

While trying to find a couple posts to link to for this theory, I came across this super interesting post regarding Aziraphale’s name meaning in Hebrew, and it does list ONE of the “unlikely” possibilities being that it means “Raphael is my strength”. While the author links this to be part of Crowley!Raphael theory, I kind of like it for the Duality Theory, where Crowley IS Azzie’s strength in the sense that he’s the Emotional Support Demon. Crowley IS kind and gentle and protective of Aziraphale. And Azzie, who gets his strength from Raphael Crowley, is the brains (or main single braincell carrier) of the operation.

Kind of like an overly-romantic version of soulmates, literally One Soul split into two people who are meant to find each other again and become whole.

Also, I go back to my point about their power being ASININE at less than half each. WHY IS THIS POSSIBLE? A theory: They are stronger than an Archangel’s miracle together, so it’s not absurd to speculate that it was stronger because it was finally at its full power with the SINGLE soul concocting the miracle.

Anyway, this Duality Theory is probably definitely not the case since we see them both Before the Beginning, BUT we can argue that the scene we saw was their first introduction after being split... Aziraphale just HAPPENS to zoom by, the only single angel in the area? Hmm.

I ALSO just want to say that perhaps when they body-swapped, that may have also activated dormant “together” powers within themselves? Just a little thought I had while writing this section.

Aziraphale is Raphael and Doesn’t Remember

And finally, there’s the theory that they will pull a Shyamalan and reveal that it’s Azzie that’s actually Raphael. I honestly think this is the least likely scenario, given that all the clues they’re putting in the show don’t at all point to this, other than the possible entomology of his name (I read somewhere that Gaiman initially was going to spell it Aziraphael to coincide with the naming conventions of the other Angels) could be a play on the Raphael name and it’s Aziraphale who’s actually the missing Raphael.

I don’t think it’s this at all, for the record. I just wanted to point it out since it is a theory that I’ve seen thrown around linked to the Raphael Theory.

Regardless of which theory it is, I just CANNOT get it out of my head at how often they kept bringing up elements of Crowley’s past, and I just.... mmmm. I know he’s more Important than he lets on. There’s just too many eggs dropped in this season for me to let it go without a bit of grumbling.

Or maybe I’m just looking too much into it. *shrugs* I can’t help it, reading between the lines is a hobby of mine I do so enjoy.

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MAGGIE AND NINA

UGH, I absolutely love character mirrors... I love seeing the parallels of characters and how they’re supposed to represent the protagonists in situations. 

Regarding Maggie and Nina, upon rewatching the series, I see now that Nina is primarily Aziraphale’s mirror and Maggie is Crowley’s. 

For Maggie, as an expansion on a drunken post during my liveblogging:

She’s smitten (”pathetically in love”) with someone just out of reach, hopelessly pining and watching from afar.

She’s STUPIDLY protective of and adores Mr. Fell and Nina.

She, like Crowley with Aziraphale, attempts to make Nina happy: She gives a record as a gift without thinking about the “after” (Crowley tends to do the same)

She’s stands up to the demons and for herself.

She’s “unloved and unloveable”, which Crowley believes himself to be

She’s the one who thought up the plans to get them out of trouble

For Nina:

Fussy and stuck in her ways

Doesn’t want to disappoint but can’t seem to do right by anyone

“we’re just friends, well, we hardly know each other” (which I believe is a line similar to one Aziraphale said in S1)

Afraid to start a new relationship for fear of not being good enough

Makes their love interest wait and hopes they’ll be there when the time is right (She will be)

Her relationship with Lindsay appears to me to be a parallel for Azzie’s relationship with Heaven, with them being "done” with Aziraphale for one too many indiscretions. Lindsay also accuses Nina of “cheating” which Aziraphale technically does with choosing Crowley over Heaven 

Their inevitable NOT match-made is a gentle parallel to the painful NOT match-made by our heroes. There’s a bump in the road, and when they’re both ready, they’ll eventually get together. 

Also, another thing I wanted to note here, is that Nina’s VERY heartfelt conversation with Crowley is super, SUPER important to AziraCrow’s arc, and I believe it is the catalyst to why Crowley made the decision to try to confess in Episode 6. Like, he genuinely looks like he’s re-evaluated a few things after Nina walks away. And because it was the Aziraphale mirror stating this, Crowley perhaps starts to get ideas in his head that maybe Azzie is ready to move forward, since “it certainly looks like [you’re a couple from the outside]”. Why not make it official then? Maybe Aziraphale IS just waiting for Crowley to make the move.

Food for thought.

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THE INEFFABLE BUREAUCRACY

I don’t have much to honestly say about this one, other than I am SHOCKED that it only took them 4 years to figure their shit out but our idiots still are at first base after 6000 years. Get your asses moving, idiots!

Seriously though, they’re the biggest pair of mirrors in the season, but funnily enough, I think Gabriel is Crowley’s, and Beez is Azzie’s.  

Gabriel, like Crowley to Azzie, introduces human things to Beez. 

Gabe questions Heaven and convinces Beez to question their side... essentially he “Falls” when the trial happens, abandoning Heaven. 

Gabe throws everything away to be with Beez. 

Beez is the one who learns from Gabe, just like Azzie learns from Crowley.

Beez compares themself to Aziraphale: “I imagine he took better care of you than I would have”.

Beez calling Gabe “you silly, silly angel”... Aziraphale called Crowley silly in the first half of the season.

And as an aside, just... the casual “I love you” from Gabe is like an unfiltered Crowley. Because I am certain Crowley will be the first to say it.

That’s just a super simplified version of it all, but just wanted to point it out so y’all can see where I’m coming from on why I think that.

And I REALLY BELIEVE that Aziraphale will repeat this or a similar line to Beez’s in S3: 

“I just found something that mattered more to me than choosing sides.”

I think it will be the line before the climax of S3 that Aziraphale says when he finally rejects Heaven. Because that was a POWERFUL line, and it will solidify the mirrors and parallels that are all over this season. I feel like Heaven won’t suffer the same incident happening twice, so we might even finally get to see a ridiculously protective, vengeful angel Aziraphale, to rival all of Protective Crowley moments! WHAT a payoff that would be after two seasons of him just kind of sitting idly by not standing up for himself, eh?? GOD I want it.

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CROWLEY AND AZIRAPHALE (& THEIR RELATIONSHIP ARC)

I have just a few notes to immediately take away from S2, but I do plan on expanding more upon these thoughts in my Revision of my A Thought on AziraCrow from an A-Spec Perspective meta I wrote prior to S2. 

In that meta I state very clearly how important their relationship and its portrayal is to me. I do concede that, because of this fact, I may be biased in my opinions about literally the entirety of S2′s relationship arc. I ADORE Aziraphale and I really see a lot of myself in him, and I can understand why he did what he did at the end, and why the “rejection” happened. But again, I will touch upon that with the revision meta.

Instead, I took some additional notes while I watched and rewatched S2 that I don’t think I can fit well into that meta without ham-fisting it in. I’ll try my best to break it into yummier sections so it’s not so messy.

Protective / Jealous Crowley (and his possible PTSD)

This point deserved its own little section, because it’s one of my favourite things this season. I love just how BLATANTLY PROTECTIVE and JEALOUS Crowley was, to the point of being near-murderous. I LOVE the confrontation scene with Gabriel so much, because it’s SO revealing to just how terrified Crowley is of Aziraphale being hurt and not being in Crowley’s life again. 

I imagine he constantly replays the fire in his head: what if Crowley WASN’T there to save Aziraphale that time??? To step into fire for him??? He’s seen how bad No-Azzie would be with the Bookshop Fire, and I think he STILL believes that it was Hellfire that discorporated Azzie (not the accidental summoning circle). So imagine the psyche of a demon who is hopelessly in love with an angel, having to be face to face with the fire that he believes killed Azzie the first time and THEN have Azzie’s boss basically tell Crowley how little he thinks of Aziraphale? Ooof.

And I also will standby the fanon theory that it was Crowley who left all the fire extinguishers in the bookshop, and not Aziraphale. Bless Azzie, he knows that this is a “New Fear Unlocked” in Crowley and lets him do it to ease the anxiety.

And isn’t it funny that Crowley (aside from the 2 year lockdown) seems to have spent every waking moment keeping a steady eye on Aziraphale? He’s scared, which is why I think he might have some PTSD related to everything he’s seen that Aziraphale is blissfully unaware of.

Their Arc and The Kiss

It’s so clear to me now more than before that Aziraphale IS Crowley’s whole life, to the point of obsession. I think the final arc that Crowley has to go through before he can truly be with Aziraphale proper is learning to let Aziraphale also protect him, to loosen the stranglehold that his fear of loss has on him. That Crowley doesn’t have to shoulder everything by himself and be Aziraphale’s shadow. Because that’s what he is in S2 – a lot of scenes of them together in the modern day is Crowley trailing just slightly behind Azzie, always watching and waiting for trouble and being there for him.

I think Crowley has a genuine fear of loss of control similar to Aziraphale’s. Where Azzie’s is related to “well if I can do this thing then everything will be alright”, Crowley’s is “well if I can just keep Aziraphale safe, then everything will be alright” and that’s... not a good foundation for a relationship. Their Big Breakup had to happen for them to both realize this. 

Aziraphale has NOT gone through his “lost my partner” arc like Crowley has with the bookshop fire. I go more into it in the Metatron section, but I think that Azzie’s arc will look more like Crowley being used as a leverage tool against Azzie by Heaven, and those seeds were planted in the final moments of E6. Perhaps something DOES happen when Crowley inevitably comes to his rescue, and he also “loses Crowley for good” (but we know that the totally-made-up-just-now law of parallels will bring him back, we hope).

They’re currently at the Miscommunication and Separation stage of their relationship. They’re both so scared of hurting each other that they DON’T communicate... they DON’T expose each other to “bad things” that they know and instead just focus on the good. The breakup had to happen the way it did for Aziraphale to finally Get A Clue – because I honestly don’t think he realized Crowley loved him until the kiss – and that Azzie himself wasn’t the only one with a crush on his best friend. It had to happen that way for Crowley to understand that his overprotectiveness and lying by omission only harms Aziraphale in the long run.

Listen, I think it’s possible that Azzie thinks that Crowley only did the kiss because he didn’t want Aziraphale to leave at that moment, just another “Crowley thing” that he would do. It was piss-poor timing that was at the tail end of too many emotions and anger, and it’s easy to see how Azzie could have interpreted the kiss wrong. 

They both expressed wanting to be together, but misunderstandings will ensue because neither of them are good at communicating WHAT exactly "being together” entails. Crowley thinks Azzie means “working together side by side for a shitty company”. Aziraphale thinks Crowley means “just doing what we always do and having fun doing it”, both without shifting the status quo, when in fact they both mean “I can’t see myself with anyone but you and I want you forever in any way we can be, let’s please shift the status quo”. 

Then Crowley made the situation worse (though I do think he was VERY brave in doing it because WE the audience know his intentions are true and honest) by adding a kiss into the mix when they’re both upset and angry at each other. Both are left crying (Aziraphale turns around when the Metatron arrives, and there’s NO reason he should unless it’s to wipe his eyes. And Crowley deliberately put his glasses back on, so I think it was to cover up the tears) and no one gets what they truly want.

I think we’ll get a payoff for this next season, when they’re finally BOTH on the same page and NOT misunderstanding each other. I think there will be a “did you mean it?” from Aziraphale, and then a verbalized “I love you (or a variation of those words)” from Crowley, and then the paralleled line of “our side” I mentioned in the Gabe & Beez section. I think there will be a better, more satisfying kiss next season. I really do have faith about that.

Other AziraCrow Things

I saw a meme that put it best: “Aziraphale fell first, but Crowley fell HARDER”. I think Crowley is more comfortable in his pining because he’s not constrained by the same hangups and “obligations” that Aziraphale has. Aziraphale is worried that it’s “sinful” to love a demon.

I mentioned this before in the Raphael section, but I want to reiterate the point about The Miracle, because it’s SUPER important that this was a big plot point. The fact that it was so strong for something apparently so minuscule according to them proves that they are better together, and now that Heaven is aware that their powers combined to create that miracle, they absolutely want to keep the two of them apart. They suddenly became very aware that Aziraphale and Crowley are RIDICULOUSLY stronger together, because if a tiny miracle can set off alarms in Heaven, what can two full miracles combined create? I feel like this is a BIG Chekov’s gun for S3. 

I think a large part about why Crowley is offended by Aziraphale’s acceptance of the job offer is because Crowley is upset that he’s not enough for Aziraphale, especially when he rejected Beez’s offer for Aziraphale. His voice shakes when he asked what Aziraphale did. He’s hurt.

THE TOUCHING in this season is insane. It’s so casual and it’s EVERYWHERE. Their relationship, when it’s finally actualized, is going to be heart wrenching in a good way, the “good sort of hurt”. I truly do believe AziraCrow is endgame.

It amuses me to no end that the fact that these two idiots and their one braincell think that they can make a human relationship work when they’ve been mutually pining over each other for 6,000+ years with very little progress. And good lord, they both take their advice from fiction. It’s hilarious.

Aziraphale’s unending faith in Crowley’s “goodness” also kills me. I love that Crowley actually never wants to kill anything, he’s literally just trying to get by without getting caught, and he always gently encourages Aziraphale to do the same. He cares so much about being gentle with Aziraphale. The scene on the rock where Crowley is SO SOFT with Aziraphale melted my heart. It’s so sweet.

I LOVE that it was CROWLEY who got Aziraphale into food and drinks. It explains a LOT about why Crowley likes watching Aziraphale eat. HE did that. It was his first “gift” to Aziraphale (to his knowledge at this stage, when really it was Crowley’s smile at making the universe that really did it).

Crowley’s devotion to making Aziraphale happy while Azzie is just oblivious to how Crowley feels hurts a LOT, but I want to expand more upon this in my followup reblog to my relationship meta. I see myself SO MUCH in Azzie it’s goddamned scary.

Actually, I don’t think Aziraphale is oblivious to be mean, since he makes a point that “rescuing me makes him so happy”, BUT I think Aziraphale might misinterpret Crowley’s devotion as “Crowley wanting to do good” and not “omg he’s in love with me and wants me safe always”. Which I think is why Azzie is naïve enough to believe that Crowley actually WANTS to do good and not get in trouble for it, so thinks that Crowley will jump at the chance to go back to Heaven with him. Aziraphale always saw the rescues and the saving of children and animals on the same level –  as a demon fighting against his nature – when in reality it’s a demon who just does what he wants because he cares about everything and Aziraphale happens to be at the top of that list.

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THE METATRON and AZIRAPHALE’S DECISION

This section will be short since I actually covered a large chunk of it in my Manipulation of the Metatron Meta Reply a couple days ago, so please go read that if you’re interested. The shortened, summarized version of that is this:

The Metatron is playing Aziraphale, and he’s only using Aziraphale to bring about Armageddon 2.0, using Aziraphale’s desire to be needed and useful against him. Azzie DIDN’T see what Crowley saw in Heaven when he accessed the files and I don’t think he knows about the Book of Life Threat that was the punishment for harbouring Gabriel, either. Only Crowley knew about that, but didn’t tell Azzie (again, a huge problem in their communication that needs to be worked out).

Heaven and the Metatron KNOW that Crowley is a liability and I suspect they also know how powerful they are together. They needed to drive a wedge between them, and knew Aziraphale was pure-hearted enough to believe that he could make a difference, AND that Crowley would never take up the offer that was presented given his vocal disdain for both Heaven and Hell. 

And they chose Aziraphale as opposed to the other angels because the angels actually lust for the power, and that can be unpredictable. But because Azzie has ALWAYS only wanted to do Good with no ulterior motives other than to Make Everything Better, he is easier to manipulate. Crowley is the bargaining chip that will be used against Azzie if he attempts to go rogue like Gabe, that I am pretty certain about. I think that Azzie will find out about the Book of Life because they’ll place blame on Crowley for harbouring Gabriel. Aziraphale has no idea that Gabriel really didn’t have any power. The minute Gabe turned against them, a trial and ousting happened. Aziraphale got himself into a no-win situation, and upon discovering this, he’ll believe that, because he rejected Crowley, Crowley won’t come to save him this time, so to save Crowley, Azzie will go along with the plan. Crowley’s life will literally be in Aziraphale’s hands.

I’ve no idea how Crowley will find out about it (from Muriel maybe?), but Crowley’s POV will be the primary focus next season (since this season was Azzie’s) and we’re gonna see a vengeful demon and I’m here for it. Will there be a dramatic rescue or sacrifice? I think so. Not sure who the whump candle will go to, but my bet is on Crowley this time since we got Aziraphale in S1. Who knows. I’m all for “Aziraphale is hurt, so now Crowley goes feral”, but that’s a personal preference that I can get from fanfics, LOL.

Anyway, the long-short is that this job will be the wake-up call Azzie needs to finally see what Crowley saw, without the manipulation of words to confuse him. That Azzie can’t just “make things better” because he will never be allowed to make things better. As a Supreme Archangel, he will have the clearance and ability to find out everything Crowley did. Unfortunately, it will be too late... or will it? ...

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OTHER THINGS ON MY MIND (that I didn’t know where else to put)

Aziraphale NEVER FELL because they didn’t want it to look like an Institutional Problem. I even hazard a guess that NO angel has ever Fell since the Initial and Only Fall that sent Satan, Crowley and the other demons down. But Aziraphale doesn’t know that and I suspect that it’s this constant fear of Falling that keeps him complacent to Heaven. He’ll find out how they’ve really been dealing with problems when he’s in his new position.

And I think Azzie also never fell because Crowley made a point to never ever snitch. He knows they would eat him alive in Hell, so he protects Azzie from that as well.

I love that the Bentley clearly has a favourite and it isn’t Crowley!!! The car literally tries to follow Aziraphale. It’s so cute.

And on the subject of the Bentley... Crowley can feel everything going on with his car?? So like... is that a metaphor for Aziraphale being inside Crowley or.....? hee hee heeeeeee.

I loved that David got to use his natural accent in the Edinburgh scenes. IT’S SO PRECIOUS OMG.

And and and while Crowley was high off his rocker, he clearly says “Where are you??? 😢” and Aziraphale had to reassure him that he was there. So sweet.

Aziraphale and his inability to do literally anything humans do “the normal way” (mobile phone use, be a “newspaper man”, properly drive, learn French properly) while turning around and lowkey mocking Muriel is... something else. What a hypocritical dork.

The realization that they have a WHOLE-ASSED apology dance hit me like a tonne of bricks, and we KNOW it’s coming back in S3. There needs to be an entire cabaret from Azzie this time ‘round, LOL.

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

FINAL THOUGHTS

I adored season two, more than season one for sure, and I loved that it built up upon the AziraCrow relationship. It was an interlude that lets us know that they’re sort of in a rut, stuck in a status quo that both are afraid of changing, and that they both need a catalyst event to happen to truly be together.

I remain more hopeful and certain for a satisfying conclusion to their arc than I ever have before. Which is saying a lot because privately, after Sherlock S4, I kind of was ready to not put my faith in another show to canonize a ship I love ever again. 

But there’s a huge difference between this finale and Sherlock S4′s finale: GO S2 DOESN’T feel complete, and Neil wants to finish the story.  I went into more detail about it on this post here, but essentially it boils down to S4 left me feeling hollow and empty because its 4th season felt so detached from what we already saw. It felt like the closing of a book with the wrong pages in it, with no confirmation in sight of concluding the series proper with the S5 they’ve been promising for years. GOS2, on the other hand, left us feeling like everything’s WRONG but in the right way, you know what I mean? Like there is a part two to this saga to be completed. And that Neil himself seems determined to finish the story regardless of what happens.

I like to think that both Michael and David know what Gaiman plans for the endgame of their characters, given that Gaiman HAS said he does “have the final fifteen pages of Episode 6 [...] written. Given what we got in S2 with The Kiss, and Michael and David’s adoration for this story and its characters, I am hopeful that Neil entrusted them with what he wants for AziraCrow. They in turn play those characters better for it. 

So yeah, maybe I’m just putting clown shoes back on with this one, but I will remain... optimistically skeptical. Like, I REALLY want and believe that AziraCrow is endgame, that the Husbands will be actual husbands, but I also will remain skeptical that it can happen and not be upset if it doesn’t. I got a kiss (a terrible one, but a kiss nonetheless). I got a tonne of touching. I got them dancing together. I think that’s more than we ever could have hoped for, and it’s already leagues above what I am used to.

To conclude, here are some more questions, thoughts, and hopes for S3:

There are SO many “Chekov gun” moments in play in S2 currently, little things that really seem so pointless to have introduced (like the apology dance) and I am TRULY hoping that it’s true that Gaiman didn’t put things in this series unless it’s important later. I feel it will all come back around. Where S1 had open and closed plot points, S2 did NOT. 

Why was Crowley able to get into Heaven without any issue? Is THIS part of the Ineffable Plan? Why does Crowley not want anyone to know who he was before the Fall? It’s clear Crowley POSSIBLY knows more than he lets on about Everything. I think he was at one time the Supreme Archangel... Gabriel’s banishment could foreshadow this, given that Gabe is deliberately used as a Crowley mirror in this season.

I hope for a stupidly emotional, makes-me-sob-fat-tears, reunion, confession and acceptance of each other. Oh, and of course, the infamous cottage in Sussex we all hope for. I am a SUCKER for emotional beats and I CRAVE it.

Oh, and a HUGE apology dance from Aziraphale. You introduced that shit, I want to see Azzie go all out in return.

I think Crowley will be the first one to confess verbally. The Gabriel mirror kind of sealed that for me.

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FINALLY, that’s that! Thank you for reading all the way through, if you did. Again, as I alluded to in my introduction, I may expand upon a few sections of this meta on other posts in the upcoming weeks as I catch more and more things, and start integrating other people’s meta into my own theories.

Apologies for any errors in this, it took me nearly 2 days to write and a very tired couple proofreads through it to clean up hanging text.

I hope you enjoyed my foray back into meta-writing, and please, do not hesitate to send me an ask to either of my blogs if you wish for me to expand more on a topic.

Cheers, and good day 💙🖤

[dailydracart]

What's this blog for?

My goal is to follow the "Dracula Daily" tag for the year 2024 and reblog story-relevant art. This means I want it to turn out almost like a picture book -- where there's one tag for every Dracula Daily date, and you can look through the fanart for each date.

I will also gradually be reblogging art from the previous years (but keeping it spoiler-free!) You'll find the art for each year under the tags "2024", "2023" and "2022", as well as in their respective date tags.

Click here to go directly to a date:

Pre-story | May 3 | May 4 | May 5 | May 7 | May 8 | May 9 | May 11 | May 12 | May 15 | May 16 | May 18 | May 19 | May 24 | May 25 | May 26 | May 28 | May 31

June 5 | June 17 | June 18 | June 24 | June 25 | June 29 | June 30

July 1 | July 8 | July 18 | July 19 | July 20 | July 22 | July 24 | July 26 | July 27 | July 28 | July 29 | July 30

Aug 1 | Aug 2 | Aug 3 | Aug 4 | Aug 6 | Aug 8 | Aug 9 | Aug 10 | Aug 11 | Aug 12 | Aug 13 | Aug 14 | Aug 15 | Aug 17 | Aug 18 | Aug 19 | Aug 20 | Aug 21 | Aug 23 | Aug 24 | Aug 25 | Aug 30 | Aug 31

Sep 1 | Sep 2 | Sep 3 | Sep 4 | Sep 5 | Sep 6 | Sep 7 | Sep 8 | Sep 9 | Sep 10 | Sep 11 | Sep 12 | Sep 13 | Sep 17 | Sep 18 | Sep19 | Sep 20 | Sep 21* | Sep 22 | Sep 23 | Sep 24 | Sep 25 | Sep 26 | Sep 27 | Sep 28 | Sep 29 | Sep 30

Oct 1 | Oct 2 | Oct 3 | Oct 4 | Oct 5 | Oct 6 | Oct 11 | Oct 15 | Oct 16 | The remaining date tags are IN THE REBLOGS of this post! I seem to have hit a link limit...

More Notes & FAQ unter the cut:

*Note: If you're listening to Re: Dracula, or reading the original book instead of the Dracula Daily e-mails, the events of September 21 are covered in the same entry as September 20! This is because Bram Stoker apparently overlooked that everything after Lucy's immediate death happens on the following day. The e-mails split events up as it should be, with two seperate days.

Reblog guidelines:

I try to keep it as story-relevant as possible.* This means that I won't reblog AU art, most character portraits with no further context, and similar things. Some of it may be a bit of a gray zone. For example: character portraits that feature a specific character who only appears in one or two entries, I will probably reblog for that entry. Character portraits of, let's say, Jonathan I won't reblog bc that's too unspecific, UNLESS there is something linking it - again - to a specific part of the book that's easy to pinpoint, like the very first days of his journey. *Note: "story-relevant" doesn't mean "100% text-accurate". Joke posts and art related more to the general impression of an entry that are not direct illustrations of a scene absolutely count!

Spoiler policy:

This blog will be spoiler-free for the 2024 season! Any art from the previous years that concerns a later date will only be posted when that date comes around. Please note: Sometimes a piece of art will allude to or foreshadow things that happen further on in the story, while definitely belonging to a date that has already happened! For these cases I will use the tag "spoilery content" - please blacklist that tag if you want to avoid possible spoilers completely! [Here's an example of what sort of things I'd consider to belong under that tag. Spoilery for Lucy's storyline so view under your own risk.]

What about things like collages, edits and moodboards?

I'm not opposed to reblogging them, too! They only need to be made specific enough so they can be attached to a specific entry. But since they're not my first priority when scanning the tags for pictures (my brain skips anything that's not a drawing almost on autopilot), I've likely missed them all. You're welcome to send something in that you think fits here!

[bg3-ficrecs]

BG3 Fic Review Guidelines - let us know what you think!

Hi everyone, We've finally settled on some fic review guidelines we'd like to implement here, but we would like to share them with the community and get your feedback. It's important to us that we support our fellow writers in a collaborative space. The best way to do that is to hear your thoughts and incorporate them into our plans and strategies. Once we have finalised our review guidelines, we plan to open up our doors to bring more reviewers on board and really get going properly. We may do this either by creating a Discord server for the team or simply allowing reviewers to submit their work to the blog directly. Regardless, our fanfic community is important to us and we want to do our best to help build a supportive, inspiring and creative environment. But! without further ado, here are the BG3 Fic Review Guidelines as they currently are, listed below the fold. Please feel free to reply on this post, send us an ask, or email me (Aivu) directly should you have any comments or questions. My email address is aivuthedragon[at]gmail[dot]com.

Happy writing!

Aivu 🐉💜 BG3 Fic Reviews, Editor

The BG3FicReviews review guidelines (WIP)

Please note these guidelines are a work in progress, and we may update them as we go depending on questions that arise in the community and among our team members. That said, the goals behind the BG3FicReviews blog will remain largely unchanged, and represent our underlying philosophy as a team. We’ll start there.

What are the goals of the BG3FicReviews blog and its team?

At the moment, we have four main overarching goals: 

Help foster a kind and supportive community for fanfic writers in the BG3 fandom that helps to uplift them/us and their/our work; 

Provide a useful resource for fanfic writers (in the BG3 fandom and more generally);  

Provide a helpful guide for fanfic readers on some of the best, most interesting and most innovative BG3 fanfic currently being published; and

Create a safe space for writers to explore topics of various kinds while also supporting proactive and inclusive tagging.

With these four goals in mind, our objective is not and will never be to unduly criticise an author or write negative reviews. Fanfic authors write for free and because they love to write and share their words with the world. We don’t believe in stifling that passion with negativity. We want to uplift writers and support them to continue doing what they love. 

Review submission guidelines

Here we have some broad questions to help guide a reviewer when reading a given work, as well as what could be included in a review. These are the kinds of questions I (Aivu) ask myself when I write my reviews. 

What are some of the dominant themes of this work?

What is unique about this work? Has a trope been approached in a fresh, innovative way? Or perhaps it’s a very good example of a well-used trope?

Feel free to be creative in your review - just as authors develop their own voice in their writing, you are free to build and develop yours. (Just please keep in mind the four goals of the BG3FicReviews blog when you do.)

Did you have any ‘aha!’ or ‘wow!’ moments when reading this fic? (Note: please be mindful of spoilers, and try to explain such moments in a way that doesn’t spoil the work for potential readers.)

How did you feel while and after reading this work? Did it evoke any particular feelings for you?

Please include a brief list of the most important tags when submitting your review - it will help our readers skip over a review of a fic that might not be to their particular tastes (which is absolutely fine).

Please be aware that we do reserve the right to edit reviews to be in line with our standards and the formatting we use for the blog, but we will provide feedback as much as we can and discuss any revisions with the author of a given review.

What are our future plans for the BG3FicReview blog?

In order to provide more hands-on support to writers, we are currently considering starting a strictly opt-in beta reading programme for fanfic authors. We don’t have a big enough team for this at the moment, but the idea would be that authors submit their work to be beta-read and can ask for help in particular areas of their writing (or their writing generally) to help them feel more confident in their work and with sharing it. Our team is too small at the moment to manage something like this, but as a long-term goal it’s something really important to us.

We are also considering opening a writing and fic review focused Discord, but that really depends on how much interest there is in such a space as there are many excellent BG3-focused writing Discords out there already. We are always open to suggestions from the fanfiction writer (and reader) community about what kind of support and tools could be helpful and useful. If you have any suggestions, please feel free to send us an ask or an email and let us know!

[messy-crisantemo]

Since we’ve entered a Gentan renaissance, I figured I should make a

🍉 GenTan fic recommendation list 🎴

(Edit: Now we have a Part 2!)

Note that this is a list of personal favorites based on my likes and the many (yet not all existent) fics I’ve read. They’re not put in any particular order and they’re all completed fics. I’m adding some of the tags, but not all of them since I don’t want to make this post extra long, so please read them again once you go to the Ao3 link. And finally, if anyone is anime-only, even if a fic is spoiler free, it’s likely that it’ll have some reference to Genya’s abilities or family relationships, so be careful.

That being said, we proceed!

Don’t Talk to Me by 125389, 9k

(Red Light District Arc, Canon-Typical Violence, Meet-Cute, Strangers to friends to enemies to ???, Humor, Crushes)

A second impression, a star-crossed meeting, a misunderstanding. Each was there to do his job, to keep matters strictly business, but when have things ever been that simple?

Beautifully written, fantastic humor, and just GenTan inevitably falling for each other (both romantically and literally).

To Be The Piece You Need by Gilberrts, 11k

(Alternate Universe - High School, Dialogue Heavy, Friends to Lovers)

Shinazugawa Genya's life is in a downward spiral. He has no friends, his grades are on thin ice, and he can't seem to stop outgrowing his clothes. Then, when his relationship with his brother finally hits rock bottom, Genya has a strange encounter with the sole member of the school's cooking club.

Hurt-Comfort scenario where, of course, Tanjirou is the comfort.

Rest + Recovery by aizetsus, 2k

(genya is stressed, post Swordsmith Village Arc)

Genya gets overwhelmed pretty easily. Especially when faced with a cute boy.

It wouldn’t be a GenTan rec list without our traditional, fluffy scenario of Genya pining for Tanjirou.

Cardinals by bluejelly245, 8k

(Modern AU, Wakes & Funerals, Hurt/Comfort, Conversations, Friendship/Love, Past Abuse)

Genya and his family attend the funeral wake for Tanjiro’s father, much to the younger Shinazugawa boy’s dismay. The last thing he wanted to do was spend his evening surrounded by tears and grief, but what he least expected, was to end up on Tanijro’s bedroom floor, comforting the strange boy after his loss.

Genya discovers he is a good person, so sweet despite the gloomy scenario.

loveholic by mimimimi (reiiiiii), 81k

(Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, CEO Genya, Slow Burn, Fake/Pretend Relationship, Aged-Up Character(s), Strangers to Lovers, No Spoilers, Relationship Study)

Tanjirou lives a normal life as a university student on his last year, struggling financially to maintain a life that's not affordable anymore. On the other side, Genya is back to Japan after 17 years living overseas, ready to ruin his father's attempts to save face after several mistakes.

Both are on the edge, about to fall apart.

What will happen once their different worlds collide?

One of those fics that make you squirm under the blankets at 2am because you just can’t stop reading.

A tale of young love and starry nights by kenmagoesblep, 3k

(Canon Divergence, Post-Canon, Fix-it, Fluff and Humor, Getting together, Love Confessions, Festivals, Minor Spoilers)

The sun is already down by the time they arrive and the colorful paper lanterns bathe the streets with a faint whimsical warm glow, highlighting the easy smiles of the festival attendees and the natural glisten of the fresh food in the stalls. Their eyes immediately go to the makeshift gate made with bent bamboo, all adorned with people’s written wishes, to be sent to the heavens by the end of the night.

Genya’s handwriting is shaky but hopefully the crooked words will carry his wish just fine.

Sweet, sweet, sweet.

diet soda society by beecalm, 6k

(Alternate Universe - High School, Fluff and Humor, Genya makes bad life choices, Brunch, No Spoilers)

Genya knows he should just tell the truth. He got frustrated, and thought that strong words of persuasion would revive his bike from the dead. Non-judgemental as he is, Tanjiro would probably just laugh it off and walk home with a smile on his face.

“I got into a fight,” Genya lies, instead.

(or; Genya yells at his bike, lies about his ability to kick ass, and gets indoctrinated into Kamado Tanjiro’s Saturday morning brunch club.)

GenTan + friends in a super silly and funny scenario.

July by 125389, 45k

(Slow Burn, Friends to Lovers, Canon Compliant, Modern Setting, Reincarnation, Manga Finale Spoilers)

It could've been just another weekend, just another month, just another season passing by, but instead they made that summer theirs.

Two teens discovering love naturally and intensely. Tears were shed and hearts were healed. It might or might not be a Fix-it.

Tonight’s sky by Wild_Quetzal, 6k

(Canon Compliant, Missing Scene, Hashira Training Arc, Introspection, Pining, Arguing, Light Angst, Fluff, First Dates, First Kiss, Hopeful Ending)

Tanjirou didn’t recall having watched so many people gathered before, not even when his sister and him went to Asakusa. Everything was so appealing and, at the same time, disorienting for him.

He would’ve been feeling lost if it wasn’t because Genya was beside him.

(Or, sharing a night at a festival with Genya should’ve been easy, if it wasn’t for an unexpected event and Tanjirou himself getting in the way)

Yes, we got to the self-promotion part. I’m especially proud of this one <3

And last but not least!

Todo empezó con (un beso) una despedida by Dogchasingcars, 20k

(Manga Spoilers, Post-Canon, First Kiss, Love Letters, Long-Distance Relationship, Reunited and it feels so good, Family Bonding, Angst with a Happy Ending)

Lo que inicia como una breve despedida y la promesa de reunirse pronto (sellada con un beso), termina volviéndose una larga espera para volver a verse.

Because we’re not gonna leave the Spanish-speaking side of the fandom empty handed and it’s one of my favorite GenTan fics of all time. Melancólico y dulce, todo el dolor vale la pena.

[doyouknowthisbook-poll]

Do you know which book this is from?

Please reblog the polls, but KEEP IT SPOILER-FREE to make people read the excerpt with an open mind 💖📚 Title and author will be revealed after the poll's conclusion.

Note: Since the excerpt is too long for Tumblr’s alt-text limit, the full alt text is below the cut.

Edit: The results are up here!

"I thought about this. And then I ventured, 'They die by violence?'

"'No, almost never. It isn't necessary. How many vampires do you think have the stamina for immortality? They have the cost dismal notions of immortality to begin with. For in becoming immortal they want all the forms of their life to be fined as they are and incorruptible: carriages made in the same dependable fashion, clothing of the cut which suited their prime, men attired and speaking in the manner they have always understood and valued. When, in fact, all things change except the vampire himself; everything except the vampire is subject to constant corruption and distortion. Soon, with an inflexible mind, and often even with the most flexible mind, this immortality becomes a penitential sentence in a madhouse of figures and forms that are hopelessly unintelligible and without value. One evening a vampire rises and realizes what he has feared perhaps for decades, that he simply wants no more of life at any cost. That whatever style or fashion or shape of existence made immortality attractive to him has been swept off the face of the earth. And nothing remains to offer freedom from despair except the act of killing. And that vampire goes out to die. No one will find his remains. No one will know where he has gone. And often no one around him-should he still seek the company of other vampires--no one will know that he is in despair. He will have ceased long ago to speak- of himself or of anything. He will vanish.'

"I sat back impressed by the obvious truth of it, and yet at the same time, everything in me revolted against that prospect. I became aware of the depth of my hope and my terror; how very different those feelings were from the alienation that he described, how very different from that awful wasting despair. There was something outrageous and repulsive in that despair suddenly. I couldn't accept it.

"'But you wouldn't allow such a state of mind in yourself. Look at you,' I found myself answering. 'If there weren't one single work of art left in this world… and there are thousands… if there weren't a single natural beauty… if the world were reduced to one empty cell and one fragile candle, I can't help but see you studying that candle, absorbed in the flicker of its light, the change of its colors… how long could that sustain you… what possibilities would it create? Am I wrong? Am I such a crazed idealist?'

"'No,' he said. There was a brief smile on his lips, an evanescent flush of pleasure. But then he went on simply. 'But you feel an obligation to a world you love because that world for you is still intact. It is conceivable your own sensitivity might become the instrument of madness. You speak of works of art and natural beauty. I wish I had the artist's power to bring alive for you the Venice of the fifteenth century, my master's palace there, the love I felt for him when I was a mortal boy, and the love he felt for me when he made me a vampire. Oh, if I could make those times come alive for either you or me… for only an instant! What would that be worth? And what a sadness it is to me that time doesn't dim the memory of that period, that it becomes all the richer and more magical in light of the world I see today.'

"'Love?' I asked. 'There was love between you and the vampire who made you?' I leaned forward.

"'Yes,' he said. 'A love so strong he couldn't allow me to grow old and die. A love that waited patiently until I was strong enough to be born to darkness. Do you mean to tell me there was no bond of love between you and the vampire who made you?'

"'None,' I said quickly. I couldn't repress a bitter smile.

"He studied me. 'Why then did he give you these powers?' he asked.

"I sat back. 'You see these powers as a gift!' I said. 'Of course you do. Forgive me, but it amazes me, how in your complexity you are so profoundly simple.' I laughed.

"'Should I be insulted? " he smiled. And his whole manner only confirmed me in what I’d just said. He seemed so innocent. I was only beginning to understand him.

"'No, not by me,' I said, my pulse quickening as I looked at him. 'You're everything I dreamed of when I became a vampire. You see these powers as a gift!' I repeated it. 'But tell me. . . do you now feel love for this vampire who gave you eternal life? Do you feel this now?'

[tenpintsof-sundrop]

FNAF Movie Requests - CLOSED

Requests CLOSED as of November 16th, 2023.

(Requests are now closed, and I am keeping this request form up in case I have need for this again.)

So, I highly resisted the urge to fall into the fanfiction hole with the Five Nights At Freddy's Movie characters, but here I am lmao. Josh Hutcherson is so wonderfully sat, wet, and pathetic and I can't help myself.

I have tweaked my prompt list for this fandom, and you don't have to use these prompts when requesting fics, but please keep in mind that I am more likely to write and complete a request if it is simplistic and can be written in a shorter fic. I aim to keep request fics under two thousand words (around three thousand words at most).

Characters I write for: Mike Schmidt, Vanessa Monroe (Afton), and William Afton (Steve Raglan). (I may also write platonic fics with animatronic characters if people want to see that?)

Note: I will be writing for the movie version of the characters, but because I am a fan of the games, I am not against making references to the games and playing around with the canonicity. I care much more about the themes of the games than any solid sense of canon.

Requests can be sent to my ask box here or to my ask box over on my writing blog @sundrop-writes - I am probably not going to get to requests right away because unfortunately I am feeling sick right now, but I wanted to post this request form to help me get inspired. Please read all the rules/guidelines below before sending in a request.

(More information below the cut - please read it before requesting.) 

(Also - warning, this prompt list technically does have some mild spoilers for the movie.)

I will accept requests for poly ships. (Character x reader x character.) I love requests like this - I think for this fandom, the only one that really works is Vanessa x Reader x Mike (which is one that I would really love to do), but under certain circumstances, with the right request, I might write Mike x Reader x William.

In your request, please specify if the reader character is female, male, or gender neutral. When I write gender neutral fics, I do not describe what kind of genitals they have in any way, so I don’t write ‘GN AFAB’ reader fics. If you want the reader character to have a vagina, that would be a fem reader in my fics. 

EDIT: Typically, I don't write for reader characters that have specific traits - like a specific race, height, described as having specific looks, etc. but my one exception to this rule is that I love writing plus sized/fat reader fics. I love spreading love for fat bodies, especially through fics, and I love making people feel good about their fatness through the gaze of a fictional character. So feel free to send in requests for a plus sized reader character, it's one of my favourite things to write!

I will write smut, angst, or fluff, but I mostly prefer writing smut or angst. When requesting smut, please specify if you want the characters to be dominant or submissive. In your request, write ‘sub!reader’ or ‘dom!reader’ or something like this to let me know. I am a big fan of writing submissive men, so know I don’t shy away from that, but I will write any dynamic as long as it’s properly communicated to me. 

I will for a lot of dark topics and different kinks. In general, the list of things that I won’t write is a lot shorter than the list of that I will. So if you’re wondering if a request is okay with me or not, just ask!

Just for reference, my big no-nos are: virgin!reader, sexually inexperienced!reader, or innocent!reader - I am okay with doing a ‘faux’ innocent reader or writing about the canon character being a virgin and having their first sexual experience with the reader. I am okay with writing about sexual cocercion, sexual blackmail, or dubcon.

Also, I don’t write fics about miscarriages, safeword use, or extreme choking kink. While I don’t write about miscarriage, I am okay with writing about pregnancy (and it’s something I enjoy writing about). 

Smut Prompts/Ideas: 

The canon character is a virgin (ex: virgin!Mike) 

“Just the tip.” 

Stuck and Fucked/Situational Bondage 

Hate Fucking 

There Was Only One Bed

Caught Masturbating 

“Can you teach me how to do (blank)?” (ex: “Can you teach me how to give someone an orgasm?” “Can you teach me how to perform oral?”) 

Late Night Semi-Public Sex (bathroom sex, kitchen counter sex, etc.) where they shove a hand over your mouth to keep you quiet (or purposefully try to make you scream) 

Overstimulation 

Breeding Kink (or Faux Breeding Kink with a Strap-On) 

Extreme Dirty Talk

Phone Sex

Underwear Stealing

Them taking dirty pictures of you

Unknown surveillance/Perv!Canon Character/Them getting off to you doing something mundane

Dumbification Kink/Objectification 

Daddy Kink or Mommy Kink (their reaction to being called Daddy or Mommy for their first time) 

Them masturbating to the thought of you 

(There is more kinks that I enjoy writing, but this is just all that I thought to add to this list) 

Angst Prompts/Ideas: 

(You should definitely send in some of these, I love writing angst but people don’t request it as often. I will even write hurt/comfort just to write the angst part, so you can send in a hurt/comfort request if you prefer.) 

They break up with you to keep you away from danger (this one would work really well with Vanessa)

Attending to their injuries after a fight (or, them attending to your injuries after a fight) 

You are attacked (verbally or physically) and they step in to save you 

Their reaction to you being killed/your death (bonus angst: you died before they got to confess their feelings to you) 

One of you has been brainwashed and completely forgets the other 

(Directly inspired by the movie) - you are in a coma and they confess their feelings for you thinking that you can't hear them

They save you from a near-death experience (or you save them) 

They find out you are alive after thinking you had died 

Being reunited after years, but you didn’t part on good terms 

“Who did this to you?” 

Unrequited Love (they see you with someone else, they think that you’ll never love them back, etc.) 

(For hurt/comfort, I can do any of these with a sappy ending!) 

Fluff Ideas/Prompts:

They confess their love for you

Your first kiss together  

They surprise you with a cute date 

(I am really stalled for ideas for this list, I suck at writing pure fluff lmao)

(Again, you don’t have to use these prompts, I just think that these are good examples of things that will fit the 1k-2k mark.)

[queers-gambit]

The Five Senses of You

prompt: ( requested ) first she saw him, then she smelt him, after, his voice never leaves her head and when in Wyoming, she discovers what he feels and tastes like. or a very shitty Soulmate AU

pairing: Joel Miller x female!reader

fandom masterlist: HBO's The Last of Us

word count: 4.7k+

note: i don't think i got this 'soulmate' thing right, so, i'm very sorry - please be gentle with me.

warnings: cursing, some spoilers, bad bad bad soulmate AU. half edited, author is disappointed in this but that's fine - this is fine. also, please note, author does not have ability to diagnose others with any condition; some listed details are from author's own experiences. ❗️season one spoilers

The first time you saw him, he was hauling euthanized Infected corpses into a bonfire with about 20 other people. In a sea of muted colors, it was his arms in his dingy button-up that first caught your eyes but it was everything about him that made you linger.

He was mesmerizing to watch, so, you paused when you caught sight of him, keeping to the shadows, and watching him for the better part of an hour.

He was an intriguing man that you wanted to know more about, yet nerves always directed you off your wanted-path. Why you felt so magnetic to this man, you were unsure, and yet, so calm about your blossoming attraction. By any means, he wasn't a nice man, but for the life of you, you were desperately curious about the smuggler.

Can you say Daddy Issues?

So, you waited and watched from the shadows; remaining out of sight and mind, always up-wind, and usually from behind a structure. Timid, some might call you. Cautious, others defended. Curious, your friends knew you to be.

Feeling as if he was being watched, Joel would occasionally look up and around when he felt himself being watched - but chalked his nerves up to being the FEDRA officers on duty. You remained invisible to him, but you understood you were done for and he was all you wanted. With a single glimpse, your world had changed, and time would forever slow to an agonizing grind until he was yours.

The first time you smelled him, you were following him on the street - being ignored by him, but allowing for a nose-full.

He was moving stiffly through the crowds, those who were in his way just seeming to sense him - stepping out of the way. It was fascinating to watch, wondering what he'd done to command such respect but after lingering around the dining hall, you understood he was also a dealer.

So, you tailed him for a few blocks and it was then the wind blew, and you were smacked in the face by his scent. He smelt of body odor, yes, but also of fire and burnt flesh. However, because you understood this man to be something vastly different to you than anyone else, there was also a hint of... Lemon, sandalwood, and after another long inhale, leather.

You smirked as his sweat seemingly secreted his natural scent so that only you could truly smell it, wondering what your scent was to him. After three blocks, there was more wind, and you started to feel calmed from the smell, but then, you had to step off into an alley when Joel perked his head up and felt someone watching him again. He paused, looked around with suspicion, but then continued towards his destination.

You formed a plan in your head.

The first time you heard his voice, he was dealing you Xanax and you'd never be the same. Your life wouldn't be the same once you heard his voice, and now that it was in your head, it would live rent free. Once upon a time, when you had a family, the woman who birthed you had explained your sire was her "soulmate" and that you'd find one only after you turned 30.

Why age 30?

Who fucking knew - but it was better than when you turned 18! I know, technically, that's when you're a legal adult but for fuck's sake, being 18 doesn't mean you're grown up. So, for whatever reason, your soulmate wouldn't be revealed until after you were 30, and it took years to finally find him.

His voice was gruff, asking, "What're you lookin' at?"

"Heard if something's needed, you're the man to ask."

Joel eyed you, "Get outta here, kid. Don't got shit for you."

"Oh, how flattering," you quipped, "but I'm not a kid, and just need some help. You're the guy I'm told to talk to."

"I don't sell to - "

"Call me a kid, again," you narrowed your eyes.

Joel Miller scoffed, then sighed, arms tight across his chest, "What do you want, then?"

"Xanax."

Joel paused, "I got some of those."

"So...? Meet where?"

"You know the old Maccy's?"

"Yeah."

"Behind there," he nodded, the two of you parting ways for only an hour. He had stopped to up his stash, showing you the offerings of his slim pickings; surprised when you wanted the whole bag. "It'll cost you - "

"Here," you nodded, shoving the wad of ration cards and plastic baggie back at him.

"Shit, doll, if I knew you were a heavy tipper..." Joel mused, fingering through his haul.

"I don't need them anymore," You shrugged off, lacing your backpack up securely.

"Why's that?"

"'Cause I'm leavin' this place," nodding slowly, you eyed him. "I figured with all that's out there, I'd do well to control my anxiety."

"Smart," Joel shrugged. "Good luck out there."

You nodded, "Good luck to you, too... In whatever the fuck it is you do." With a chuckle, you waved back at him before disappearing - but neither of you would ever be the same.

Now that you knew his voice, he would float in and out of your head. Apparently, now that he knew your voice, too, he could hear it during times of distress, turmoil, and stress. Usually, Joel was asleep when your voice was ringing in his ears, preventing distraction from everyday work, but that didn't mean it was down to an exact science. He learned through your thoughts of panic when Infected attacked that Tommy was with your group - but couldn't communicate to him.

He could only offer you advice and guidance.

And in turn, you could only do the same for him when smuggling missions went sour. It wasn't as frequent during your escape West, but sometimes, you'd dream of Joel and Tess in a high-stress situation, offering words of wisdom and comfort to help direct him.

It was funny the way Joel would snap at you in his head to get out, never wanting to be the dependent on. He never needed help because he was a big strong man.

By that, you mean Joel was stubborn and didn't always listen to your advice, but he stayed alive because you were there, like some kind of angel on his shoulder. Joel's own conscious was the devil, constantly trying to beat your words out of his brain but to no such avail. If he was romantic, he might even say you had the voice of an angel but in this world, Joel didn't have time for romance.

You were like a bumblebee on a summer day: content to be there, content to observe, always dodging [Joel's] swatting hands. Like the bumblebee, however, you didn't give up; still buzzing in his ears.

After that, his voice comes-and-goes in your head by the time you and his brother, Tommy, find the Wyoming commune in Jackson. You're both welcomed after a vigorous interview where you were both granted entrance after being assigned jobs. Tommy would work in carpentry and you would put your old, dusty doctorate degree to use.

Now that you were somewhere safe, Joel's voice stopped visiting you as frequently, but yours remained in his leading up to his mission out West after Tommy. He was faced with endless foes, new and old, and you were constantly dreaming of him at night.

Not that you really minded, but you grew nervous for his safety on several occasions. Being a smuggler had it's ups and downs, and while you wanted to scream at Joel to leave Tess behind and get himself to safety, you always - and I mean always find a way out for them both.

Maria, being Tommy's soulmate and your friend, was there to answer your questions and give you a shoulder to lean on when you grew exhausted. You often wondered if you'd ever get the chance to see your mate again, but tried not to convince yourself it was impossible.

So, when Joel was "assigned" to the immune child, Ellie, you were constantly sleeping-in those days - constantly listening to Joel and offering your advice. This time, he didn't argue, he didn't fight it, he actually listened to you because Tess was dead and he had this child to look after. It wasn't easy, but, you eventually caught a break when they escaped Boston city.

However, that doesn't mean you were off the hook. Joel and this girl he traveled with, Ellie, encountered many enemies in their time outside the QZ, and while you wanted to help, seeing the ground split open and spew mutated Infected outside of Kansas City scared you shitless. You knew you weren't there, they couldn't see you, touch you, let alone hurt you, but you still grew terrified of these... Adaptations.

These weren't regular Clickers.

And then, after that, the two had limited encounters with people or Infected... That was, after Henry and Sam, of course. It's when you'd visit Joel the most; where he wasn't in physical jeopardy, he was in emotional turmoil and needed comfort.

So, you'd sleep longer in an effort to visit him when he was resting; simply being a presence in his mind to try and offer solace where you could. This was where he stonewalled you; refusing to let you in on his secretive past and trying to force you from his mind.

You stopped prying and just spoke to him calmly, letting your voice echo through his dreams as you tried to help his subconscious conjure peaceful images and soothing thoughts. He grew to rely on your words to bring comfort, liking the idea of someone caring enough that they're content to simply just "be".

He's never had that in a partner before, because even though Tess didn't always need to talk, she liked to keep busy and that always filled any silence. Joel didn't always like that.

So, through their journey on foot, you were the single constant Joel had to hold onto after losing everyone in his life. He liked your docile tones and the way your accent was different than his - where his was faded and yours more prominent. Ellie had no idea about the woman in Joel's head, she'd probably think him crazy, but in reality, she'd be excited for the man to finally have something to make him smile.

Or at least calm him down a little bit.

The first time you learned what he felt like was when you were tending to the horses as Maria gave her tour. She made introductions but you knew Tommy and Joel, just not the spitfire 14-year-old traveling with your soulmate. It was pleasant enough, making your introductions, but to say Joel was shocked to see you was an understatement.

However, when he went to had a private conversation with his brother, something in your chest stirred to life. You quickly wrapped up your chores before shouldering your pack and venturing towards town. You were just in time to see Joel lean on a lamppost, feeling his mind twist in confusion enough to make you approach.

"Hey, hey," you whispered, getting under his arm to support him, "don't fight the feeling, Joel, just let it ride."

"What - "

"It's anxiety, my friend," you sighed, nodding at him. "How your heart feels like it's going to break? Or beat right out of your chest? How the muscle walls feel like their coiling and constricting you? 'S hard to breathe?"

He nodded.

"Anxiety ain't no joke, Joel, here, come with me," you nodded, and to your honest surprise, he let you drag him off.

"You're her."

"Hmm?"

"You're who I hear. I-I thought I recognized the voice, but you left the QZ right after our deal."

"Keepin' tabs on me?" You teased with a small smirk. "Here, this way," you turned him, walking onward. He was quiet, looking distraught and his free hand still clutched his chest. You wondered, "What was it?"

"What was what?"

"Your trigger?" Joel sighed, shaking his head. So, you asked, "Your kid?"

His eyes snapped down to glare at you, making you look up at him with little patience. "Don't," he snapped.

"Think you're the only one 'round here who lost someone? Tragically?" You grunted, reaching your house's door. He paused with you and only then did you become acutely aware of your hold around his waist. You tried not to focus on the feel of his arm around your shoulders for balance, his coat blocking most of your feeling, but when you two stepped inside your home, Joel actually shed his jacket. "Make yourself comfortable," you offered, pointing towards the living room.

"That a fireplace? Looks new?"

"Oh, yeah, your brother helped me build it because he knows I prefer a fireplace over central," you shrugged, hanging both your coats up and toeing out of your work boots. "Sometimes the smell soothes me... Reminds me of summer nights before the world went to shit."

"Yeah," Joel sighed.

You nodded and moved to the master bathroom, grabbing the bottle you kept. "Here," you tossed the orange bottle at him, pills rattling like a decaying maraca. "I haven't used 'em all, and you could use one. Maybe two..."

"You still have these?" He asked in shock, shaking the container with a white, child-lock lid.

"I used most on the trip out here," you admitted, getting started on making a kettle of tea. "Wasn't easy... We lost 3/4ths of our group before we even got here."

Joel nodded, "I've seen some things."

"You and me, both, partner," you sighed, handing him some water. "Take one pill now, it'll help your chest."

"Why... Why does it feel like that?"

You paused, nodding at him, "Trauma has a way of keeping its grip on us, squeezing at inconvenient times. 'S not like there's psychiatrists out here, so, that's what I've got to help the pain..."

"It's not enough," Joel whispered, taking the single Xanax pill.

"Nothing ever will be," you eased. "Loss is exactly that, something we've lost. Something missed because loss means no more, to no longer have. Something we mourn because pain demands to be felt. And if we ignore it for long enough, sometimes, it'll build and build and build until it plugs our hearts up with grief."

"Hm."

You dressed the mugs of tea, telling him, "Not talkin' about it doesn't do what you think. We're all human, and one of the things that makes us human is our ability to empathize. Our ability to share stories and emotions and then to understand each other's pain. Look," you set the tea before him, moving for the loveseat in the next room before the fire, "you can put yourself in an early grave from stress or you can take a chance and try to heal yourself. Guilt will only weigh you down, and right now, it's sink or swim, darlin'."

Joel took the seat beside you, sighing, "Who did you lose?"

"Who didn't I lose?" You whispered back. "More than half my family didn't survive Outbreak Day and those who did, didn't last past 3 years. They're all gone, and some of them are gone by my negligence." You sighed and reached between the cushions for a flask, pouring just a hint of whiskey in your mug before doing the same to Joel's.

"What do you mean?"

"My baby sister was under my care and... And she got..." You sighed, shrugging, "Perhaps it's easier giving advice than taking it."

Joel's hand slowly reached out to brush against yours, hearing him whisper, "You don't have to tell me."

You sighed, taking his hand and leaning back into the cushion. "Moral of the story, Joel? It's a cruel world we live in, but you're not alone. You don't have to be ever again... And maybe, you can start working on how to process and let go of your guilt."

It was quiet for three long minutes, only the crackling of logs in the fire and slurping of tea was heard.

"Have you filtered yours?"

"A bit."

"Is that why you have nightmares, too?"

Your head snapped to look at Joel, who sighed, "I can hear your thoughts, kid, when you dream. When you're upset..."

"Just like you do, only... You now dream of both your daughters, don't you?"

"Ellie's not mine - "

"No, but you're responsible for her," you eased. "And now you fear failing her, as you feel you did Sarah, right?" Joel stared at you, but you squeezed his warm hand. "We both have lost much, Joel, and this world really fucked us over... But there's a choice that only we can make about working through our fears, doing better by those who we've lost in the past."

Joel sighed, "Can't believe it."

"Hmm?"

"Sittin' here," he mused, "before a fire, fuckin' tea in hand - with my other hand in yours... No, didn't think this was going to be a thing ever again."

"Hmm?"

"Feelin'... Safe."

You nodded, "Feeling's mutual."

"Hey, uh... How'd you know? That I was having that little episode - "

"It's called an anxiety attack and yes, they're different than a panic attack," you shrugged. "And, well... Do I have to explain it to you, or do you understand why we can hear each other's thoughts?"

"No, I, uh, I get what it means..."

"Then you know, when you feel in-trouble, I can hear you. So, something felt off, and luckily, I trusted my intuition."

Joel nodded, "Yeah... Lucky me."

"Do you make it a conscious effort to always sound like an asshole or is that just... How you are?"

The first time learning what he tastes like was after he came to you for comfort when he was heavily grieving his daughter after yelling at Ellie earlier. You frowned when you saw him, waving him into your house, and again, offering him a single anti-anxiety pill with a mug of room-temp tea.

You asked what happened, and he couldn't find the words. So, he let his guard down and allowed you to freely roam his thoughts as his anxiety still pumped him with adrenaline. You frowned at what he showed you glimpses of, frowning when you heard Joel telling Ellie that she was right, she wasn't his daughter...

"Joel?"

"Hmm?"

"Think you've got a decision to make."

"What're my choices?"

"Live and let live, letting go of the past, or... Let it kill you."

His eyes cut over to yours, "How'd you do it?"

"Hmm?"

"Live and let live, or whatever the fuck."

"If it were easy, everyone would do it," you admitted. "It took time. There's only so much a person can endure before they break, but instead of shattering, I simply leaked. I let my trauma leak by depending on others - not for anything other than human companionship. Your brother? He helped me a lot... He's a good man."

"He is."

"Doesn't mean you aren't. There's little use in comparing your life to others... It's not fair. It's never fair. But you have a choice on accepting the past and trying to heal or letting guilt consume you. That pain in your chest? Feelin' like you can't breathe? Feelin' like your heart is breaking all over again in your chest? That's you bein' consumed, but if you don't like it, you can make a decision about it."

He paused, the effects of the Xanax slowly taking affect as he didn't have much on his stomach and the pill seeped into his blood stream much faster. Then, Joel told you, "It's been hard."

"Doing what?"

"Takin' care of the girl - "

"She's got a name."

Joel nodded, "All right, yeah, Ellie. Taking care of Ellie just feels... Wrong."

"Because Sarah was the same age?"

He stiffened, "Don't - "

"You might wanna get used to the idea that I know about you," you sighed. "It's not his fault, but Tommy told me what happened... He needed a friend as much as I did, and he told me what happened. I can understand how much anxiety this generates for you, taking charge of a child the same age as your daughter when she died. I can understand why this would hurt you, but let me remind you, this ain't on the kids. They didn't do nothing. You think Ellie wanted to be born to help save the world?"

"Tommy tell you - "

"No, you forget, we live in each other's heads," you sighed. "I could hear you guys when your friend got bit..."

"Right."

"This isn't on anyone, Joel. You've reason to be apprehensive but I'm sorry to say, this can't be about you right now. This needs to be about Ellie... And from what it sounds like, she only trusts you and is used to everyone she loves leaving her. Don't give her more reason to hate this world and other people," you frowned. "She's been through enough, don't you think? Trust isn't given, it's earned, and we know if she was with Tommy, either could get hurt because neither trusts the other. You, on the other hand? She won't hesitate to listen and work in tandem with you. You might think letting her go with Tommy is saving her, it's the best and safest option, but she'll be scared shitless without you."

Joel sighed, "Guess since you know my mind so well, I should listen to you, huh?"

"Knowing you, you're still gonna do what'cha want," you eased with a shrug. "Just, one last thing?" He nodded. "Children shouldn't bear the sins of their fathers."

Joel stared at you for a long moment, then nodded sadly. "Think you might be right."

"There's no shame in fear, Joel," you reminded softly. "Whether you're 60 or 16, fear is a universal language we all speak. Especially now."

Joel slowly stood to his feet, "I should go. You probably had plans."

"Oh, yeah, for sure, big plans of sleeping," you teased, standing to face him. "You're welcome to stay."

"I should get back... Got a lot of thinkin' to do."

"All right, well, find me later. I work the morning and afternoon shift at the stable tomorrow."

He nodded slowly, looking between your eyes for a moment. "So... We can hear each other's thoughts?"

"Bit annoyin' when you're tryna work or eat or something and there's just a voice in your head. I learned to control it so that you come in my sleep. I like the ability to focus on you."

He breathed a long sigh, "I gotta admit, it's a comfort to me now. So, it's when we're stressed?"

"Sorta. Big, negative emotions can trigger our connection. It's only because soulmates want to protect each other, so, when apart, they hear emotions of stress, turmoil, anxiety... Adrenaline."

"So, if we're together, we won't hear each other's thoughts?"

"No," you smiled softly, "according to my mother, even if standing beside each other, mates will still hear each other. The goal is, however, to simply be at peace together and avoid stressful situations."

Joel frowned, "Why'd it take so long? To hear you?"

"The Connection between our thoughts aren't solidified until we're both 30. We would've had to meet in order for our thoughts to clash, and, uh, we did right before I left the Boston QZ. We were always destined to come back together, we just had to help each other get to where we needed."

Joel simply stared down at you, then, he nodded slowly, "So, soulmates, huh?"

"If you believe in such a thing."

"Can I try something?"

"That sounds suspicious..."

"It won't hurt."

"You don't sound reassuring at all."

"Just," he paused, sighing, "hold still."

"Oh," you understood, letting your eyes slid shut as his dominant calloused hand rose to hold your cheek. A moment later, his lips were pressed to yours - feeling chapped and raw from the blistering elements. However, when he stumbled through the motions, you took the lead to help him gain his pacing. Joel, by every means, wasn't a very good kisser but that was due to years of inactivity.

He sighed when your tongues swept over one another, deepening the kiss and forcing you two closer together. He tasted a little stale, maybe even with a fleeting taste of that evening's stew. But like his scent, Joel also had a taste that was all his meant only for you to identify. So far, it was a unique taste.

Was it... Pine?

Was it charcoal?

No, no... Could it be chocolate?

Hmm, now that you focused, you could distinguish the bolts of cocoa off his tongue. However, Joel thought the opposite and tasted a hint of raspberry on yours. The kiss was slow, a bit awkward, almost like two teens trying to figure out how to convey their excitement; but then, it turned even-tempoed.

It turned pleasant.

It turned almost exhilarating.

Perhaps it was because you were finally kissing someone or maybe it was because you were kissing your soulmate, Joel Miller. Whatever the reason, the kiss that started weak and turned pleasant soon became passionate and swelteringly hot.

His hands were in your hair, around your cheeks, down to hold your hips and waist, before circling around your waist to pull you in flush - but never disconnected the kiss. You, on the other hand, liked to keep hold of his neck and shoulders, just running your hands around his flesh before tugging on the short strands of hair at the base of his skull. Joel moaned into your mouth, so, you did it again.

"All right," he grit, pulling back, "you keep playin' with fire, girl, and you're gonna get burned."

"Look where we are... Think some heat would do us good."

He sighed, "I can't... Not tonight, not when... Not when she's leaving in the morning."

"Don't you mean, 'we'?"

"Hmm?"

You chuckled, "You meant to say, 'Not when we are leaving in the morning,' right?"

Joel sighed, "I gotta think - "

"I'm in your head, Joel," you whispered, "and I know you already made up your mind. You wouldn't ever actually leave her on her own."

He frowned, eyes darting back and forth between yours. Then, he whispered, "Think I could come back and see you? After all this?"

You nodded, "I'll be here."

Joel sighed, hands squeezing yours before turning and swiftly vacating your house. Like a girl in a '90s sitcom, your fingers toyed with your bottom lip as a grin stretched - and you giggled to yourself. Yeah, you fucking giggled - like you had some kind of crush! You knew you did, but this wasn't just a crush. Joel was your soulmate, and you had finally found him; not willing to let him go, but knowing there was a greater purpose than finding someone to live your life with. Case in point? Ellie - who needed Joel more than you right now.

You calmed your fluttering heart and got to bed, giddy for the morrow. When you got to the stables, nobody was there, so, you started on your chores. Not 20 minutes later, Joel showed up with a pack, and you chuckled before pointing out the horse he could use.

But before, Joel stepped up to you to offer a searing kiss to your lips before getting started on grooming the bay mount he would use. Only, this time? Your smile was impossible to hide, especially when Tommy and Ellie arrived to find their own horses for their journey. Tommy tossed his arm around your shoulders, the two of you chuckling as you thought how, despite her DNA, this feral little fucker was most definitely a copy of Joel.

Everyone seemed to see it but those two.

"Think they'll come back?"

Tommy sighed, watching the two ride off through the commune to approach the front gate. "They better," he muttered, giving to O-K to let the single horse carrying two passenger out of the fort and into the wilderness. "They better fuckin' come back," Tommy whispered with a frown.

"He'll look after her."

"Like you'll look after him," he nodded down at you, and together, you both turned back into the small town of Jackson in order to get morning chores done - after taste of mocha still left in your mouth.

requesting rules and masterlist

TLOU masterlist

[welcometoteyvat]

fake ga-ming voicelines (prerelease, some more delusional, some less. please give more hcs about him)

edit: apparently voiceline leaks just dropped so PLEASE no spoilers <3 if these are wrong that's too bad they're canon in my heart!!!

About Yun Jin: Besides being a great opera performer, Sir Yun's taste in tea is impeccable! Although she keeps asking me to join her at Heyu Tea House... their tea just doesn't have the same flavor as the tieguanyin from Xinyue Kiosk. Speaking of her, one of our clients has just developed a new strain—I promised to bring some for her when I come back to Liyue Harbor!

About Xiao: You mean Senior Xiao! Hehe, so you know him too! Next time, can you bring him along with you to one of my performances in the harbor? I've been trying to get him to come for a long time, but he always refuses... oh, good idea! Next time I'll hold it at Wangshu Inn, just for him!

About Xiangling: That girl always by Guoba's side, right? Man Chai seems to like her a lot, especially the cornbread buns she makes! To be honest, some of the things she cooks are a little too spicy for me, but otherwise she’s an excellent chef with unmistakable talent. No wonder her companion is a minor deity… wait, what? A major deity?

About Keqing: Thanks to her invitation and sponsorship, our Mighty Mythical Beast performances have been getting more and more attention in the harbor! She's very straightforward and speaks her mind about everything, and always has novel ideas! Although we haven’t talked much, I really admire her mindset and determination. It’s not easy to forge your own path forward, especially for someone of her standing.

About Chongyun: I've run into him once or twice on the road to Liyue Harbor. He didn’t seem to like talking that much when we met, but I’ve heard he’s actually quite outgoing! He wields a greatsword too—maybe he can train with me as the suanni’s tail? Of course, I wouldn’t force him to do anything he doesn’t want; I'm sure he's already busy! It would just be nice to have a wushou partner for once.

About Xinyan: I managed to catch one of Xinyan's performances when I had some free time after work. There weren’t many people in the audience, but her music was so energetic it completely made up for the quieter atmosphere. Originally, I was thinking about asking her to join our lion dance troupe as a drummer, but I’m glad to hear she's made a name for herself since then! I should properly introduce myself sometime!

About Zhongli: He once asked me whether I've heard about the legend of the solitary suanni after one of Iron Tongue Tian's stories. When I said yes, he launched into a really detailed discussion of Chenyu Vale's local belief system, and even told me some stories I haven't heard about a carp adeptus. It's amazing that he has so much knowledge on all sorts of folklore, as a funeral consultant no less!

About Xianyun: ... Who? im sorry i was going to put something about the adepti here but gave up trying to think of something and now it's just a joke line. suggestions welcome tho ��

About Yelan: Ah, that lady—sometimes I see her lingering around Yanshang Teahouse. They place regular orders of tea leaves from Yilong Wharf. She's very polite and even petted Man Chai once or twice, although I feel like there's more to her than meets the eye... well, business is business, and they've never caused any trouble for Sword and Strongbox, so whatever she does isn't much of a concern to me.

very long notes:

generally i feel like what's mentioned in chara voicelines tend to have a lot less substance than the actual relationship, so in my head some of them are closer w gaming than i wrote.

always welcoming suggestions!!!!! PLEASE share the brainrot with me i'm dying here OTL please please.

i'd like to write an "about xingqiu" but i bully my richboy son and he's already had like 12 other people comment on him in canon it's fine if ga-ming doesn't know him

everything's just for fun etc etc. don't take it too seriously

watch all of these be completely wrong!!!

similarly if any of these end up being right, i will SCREAM

the only ones i really really want to happen are with yun jin and xiao if they don't have voicelines i'll die

senior xiao comes from my headcanon (copium) that they'll keep the mentor disciple relationship (?) from that one concept art if you know you know. it also comes from this absolutely delicious fic

[theoneprecioustome]

Aikoto Moments Masterlist: P3R Edition

Notes:

As usual, while I'll try to cover everything, the list will focus on the non-optional moments that are there regardless of player input.

Dates are read day/month. I organized everything chronologically.

I bolded the most important ones.

The post is image heavy & contains spoilers for the entire game.

Opening

The Journey

✤ 20/07: Unknown to the player, Aigis, who was considered "inoperable", suddenly awakens when Makoto arrives to Yakushima.

✤ 21/07 - Operation Babe Hunt: The SEES Boys run into Aigis at the Yakushima dock, and a cutscene is dedicated to showing how cute she is. (Note: In P3 & P3FES, all three of them get a heart over their heads when they see her, including Makoto; this is the only time he reacts like that to a girl in the game).

✤ 21/07 - Chasing Aigis: After Makoto finally catches up to her, Aigis throws her arms around him and declares that being at his side is her highest priority. They stay like that during pretty much the entire scene.

✤ 21/07: The group is formally introduced to Aigis, who reiterates that it’s very important for her to be by Makoto’s side.

✤ 22/07: As the team fools around thanks in no small part to Aigis' prodding, Makoto thinks "With Aigis joining, things are likely to get livelier..."

✤ 24/07: Aigis wakes Makoto up 5 minutes earlier than his alarm clock and suggests she is put on standby in his room instead of the Command Room. Yukari complains about this, and the way she settles for finding a compromise by offering to get Aigis a room suggests that “[Aigis] can stay” & “I don’t care” are more likely to be chosen than "[Aigis] can't stay here."

✤ 25/07: If you go to the fortune teller, she will tell you an Aikoto-related fortune: "I see a girl... She stands between light and dark, life and simulacrum... She falters... as if not knowing on which side she belongs... Hm? She is trying to tell you something... Can you hear her words...?"

✤ 02/09: Aigis starts going to school and the person who usually sits by Makoto’s side just so happens to be missing, so Aigis gets their seat (thanks, devs!). She then proceeds to announce to the entire class that “This spot is perfect. My highest priority is to be with him at all times.”

✤ 20/09: Aigis watches over a sick, asleep Makoto only to notice his condition has improved. Despite this, she decides to keep watching over him until sunrise, showing that she was already developing emotions by then (this is further explored in a Drama CD). This scene is accessible only through the Security Camera recordings available in the Command Room.

✤ 04/11: When Aigis is controlled by Ikutsuki, Aigis manages to remember herself and her care for SEES as she and Makoto stare at each other. Once she frees them, Makoto runs to her and wraps a comforting arm around her shoulders.

✤ 17/11 - Kyoto school trip: Instead of following the girls' to their rooms, Aigis wishes to be appointed to Makoto's lol

✤ 30/11: After everyone else leaves to go study, Aigis and Makoto remain behind on their own. Aigis explains that she now understands the concept of loss, "The thought of something happening to you... It makes me..." (Note: In Japanese, Aigis says: "If something were to happen to you, if I could no longer be by your side, I…"). She also confesses that “You are very special to me… I can't explain why, but I never want to leave you side. I want to protect you at all costs, to be there for you always.” (It's important to note that Death was no longer sealed inside Makoto by this point, so Aigis' desire to remain by his side is born out of her own feelings.)

✤02/12: When Aigis greets him at school that morning and tells him she intends to protect everyone, Makoto has the option to ask what is up. If he does, Aigis asks him to please not worry. At night, we get the Moonlight Bridge Anime Cutscene and Aigis gets her memories back. She apologizes to Makoto for what she had to do. (Note: In P3 & FES, Makoto holds Aigis' hand when SEES arrive to the Moonlight Bridge - this animation was actually found within the P3R files, you can see it restored HERE.).

✤ 28/12: When you talk to Mitsuru, she says “Don't worry about Aigis. She is currently being treated with the utmost care.” So, it’s safe to assume Makoto asked about her.

✤ 30/12: Aigis is finally back. She asks Makoto how he has been holding up (one of his dialogue options is “I was worried about you.”) and apologizes for sealing Death inside him. All 3 of his Dialogue Options are supportive of Aigis: “You did what you had to”, “You had no choice” and “You did the right thing”.

✤ 25/01: Makoto has his Career Counseling meeting with Ms. Toriumi. Conveniently, Aigis' just so happens to be after his, so Ms. Toriumi asks him to go get her. Makoto finds Aigis at the rooftop, and the two share a scene where Aigis basically ends up confessing her (not-yet understood) feelings for him: “Even though Death is gone now, I… I still want to be by your side.” Aigis feels that if she's with Makoto, she can learn what it means to live. She then asks Makoto to please take her with him, because she will fight with everything she has. One of Makoto’s possible answers is: “I need you with me.”

Apparently he got pretty engrossed in their little moment, because we get a: "Oh, right. I just remembered Ms. Toriumi wanted to see Aigis." as the scene fades to black lol

✤ 31/01 - The Battle for Everyone’s souls:

As Makoto succumbs under Nyx's gravity and starts losing consciousness, we can see Aigis looking over at him and calling out his name.

Aigis is too shocked by the unexpected turn of events to react as Makoto starts levitating towards Nyx. All she can manage is a desperate plea: "No, don't go!"

Aigis’ is the last (alive) voice Makoto hears before he uses the seal (Shinji's soul being the very last voice). She begs Makoto to come back: "You promised... Didn't you? Please, you have to make it back!"

After all is said and done, Aigis laments her lack of strength. "Why am I so powerless...? Am I really unable to protect the ones important to me?! This is what I was trying to prevent!" (Note: While the line was translated in plural as "the ones", it would've been more accurate to translate it as "the one", because Aigis was talking about Makoto, who may or may not have been lost to Nyx. Case in point:)

It’s only after Aigis calls out to him and begs him to say something that we get a "I can hear everyone desperately calling out to me." and the option to reply. Her reaction is also the first we see.

Aigis is the one to notice that Makoto is coming back to them, and she takes off running to reunite with him. As SEES happily and tearfully welcomes him back, Aigis finds herself crying for the very first time. (Note: Since the animated cutscene from P3 & FES is missing in P3R, please do watch it here to see Aigis crying and Makoto getting emotional over it. It's worth it!)

✤ 04/03: Makoto and Junpei spot Aigis observing them from behind a tree. Junpei wonders if she may be interested in one of them.

✤ 05/03: Aigis comes to find Makoto before the graduation ceremony. Once she got her memories back, she feared he would disappear again. Makoto can either confirm that he remembers as well or tell her “Don’t cry”.

✤ 05/03 - Rooftop Scene: We see a few flashbacks to Aikoto scenes that were not shown before this point, including Makoto turning to look at Aigis during the Nyx fight and Aigis holding his Evoker.

Aigis thanks Makoto, because she found her reason to live thanks to him. She promises that she will always be there by his side, protecting him. Makoto wipes her tears away without player input, and her smiling face is the last thing he sees before he closes his eyes for the last time with a smile of his own.

Ending

✤ The credits begin with Makoto and end with Aigis.

✤ The ending song, Memories of You, is very clearly Aigis' POV about Makoto. She even quotes the song during her Social Link: "I will never leave you."

✤ The music playing during the New Game Screen is I'll Protect You (the sont that plays during Aikoto's rooftop scene), and the image shown is an empty classroom with Makoto's Evoker and SEES armband.

Optional Events

✤ 15/08 - If the player chooses to walk Koromaru that night, Aigis can go with Makoto. There, the player will once again be told that Aigis wants to go to the summer Festival lol

✤ 16/08 - Summer Festival: The player can choose to go to the Summer Festival with Mitsuru and Aigis. If Makoto goes with them, he can suggest that he and Aigis should hold hands, but Aigis thinks he wants to restrain her and rejects his proposal. If the player chooses to go alone, Makoto will still run into Mitsuru and Aigis, but the girls won't notice him. (Note: The game makes sure to let the player know that Aigis is planning to attend the Summer Festival.)

✤ 28/08 - Film Festival: Makoto can go to the Film Festival with Aigis. After discovering that being a ninja is the "ultimate status that a man can achieve", Aigis jokes that she will start calling Makoto like that. (Note: Once again, the game makes sure the player will know when to ask Aigis to the film festival. If the player talks to her on 27/28, it will tell you that she can go tomorrow.)

✤ 05/10 - If the player chooses to walk Koromaru that night, Aigis can go with Makoto again.

✤ 07/01 - If the player chooses to walk Koromaru that night, Aigis can go with Makoto one last time. She will ask Makoto if he wants to walk home with her tomorrow because she wants to experience the town with him, thus letting the player know that Aigis' S-Link is about to begin.

✤ 29/01 - Last Walk with Koromaru: All of SEES go together for this special occasion, and we see everyone hanging out in pairs. Makoto and Aigis are together, playing with Koromaru. We're told that "Everyone is having fun, as if trying to make the most of this moment..."

✤ 31/01: If Aigis is in the player's party during the fight against Nyx, she will tell Makoto that she's with him until the very end.

Social Activities

✤ Gardening: Starting on July 17, there are three different gardening events with Aigis. At the end, Aigis will decide that she wants to do her best to make her way in the world, like Makoto and everyone else.

✤ Reading: This activity unlocks in September and also features three different events, during which Aigis learns that staying true to her beliefs and having a strong heart are the best ways to look dependable. Aikoto-wise, the highlights are the first and second events. During the first, Aigis and Makoto read together from the same book and Aigis essentially asks him to show her his butt. During the second, Makoto has the option to reply "a cute girl" when Aigis asks what she looks like to everyone else.

✤ Studying: On 10/11, Aigis will ask Makoto to study with her so they can learn more about each other. Ken and Koromaru will join them, and the event will end with Aikoto carrying a sleeping Ken to his room.

✤ 08/01 - Social Link: Aigis' Social Link, The Aeon, can be started on January 8. It features a platonic and a romantic route. In the platonic route, Aigis and Makoto agree to be best friends and they take a selfie together. In the romantic route, Makoto touches Aigis' Papillon heart. Both routes can be watched HERE.

Misc

✤ If Makoto dates Aigis and goes to Tartarus with her, she will have special dialogues (like in P3P).

✤ Compilation of all the Text Messages Aigis can send Makoto.

✤ Jundori & Aikoto Parallels, P3R Style

[thegracefulknight]

˚ ೀ Introduction ೀ ˚

Welcome to my little world~ I'm writing this welcome message as an afterthought, as I've actually had this little blog for years, before leaving and now coming back again recently. And I realized I never made a proper intro post! (⁠｡⁠ﾉ⁠ω⁠＼⁠｡⁠)

This blog of mine is dedicated mostly to Elizabeth Midford—the light and human heart of the anime/manga series Kuroshitsuji (Black Butler). However, I do share posts from different anime from time to time—mainly, but not limited to Pandora Hearts and Vanitas no Carte (The Case Study of Vanitas). This blog is not spoiler-free, so please take note!

Aside from anime and manga, I reblog posts on aesthetics that I feel suits Lizzy or the Victorian Era best, as well as quotes or passages from various media that hit me close to the heart. My main ship is O!Cielizzy, but as a multishipper, I also enjoy other ships and may share about them too (except ships that involve a minor and an adult). For that, please note that I do not ship Sebaciel or Claude x Alois. I prefer respecting people's perspectives on these, so please note that I will simply refrain from engaging with such content as much as possible. In turn, you may also choose to do the same regarding my content.

I aim to keep this blog as bright and positive as the girl it's dedicated for, so please if you hate Elizabeth or any of her ships, please DNI. I prefer not seeing my posts about her littered with unnecessary hate. You are free to block me rather than engage in my posts negatively. Let's reserve the energy for focusing on the things we actually love instead, on our own safe spaces! (⁠◍⁠•⁠ᴗ⁠•⁠◍⁠)

*Blog currently running on queue cause work takes me awei all the time

Tags:

ೀ ˚ lizzy aesthetic - for moodboards, photos or other media that specifically fits Lizzy perfectly

ೀ ˚ sugar spice and everything nice - any content related to girlblogging, aesthetics, self-affirmation, and self love in general.

ೀ ˚ message in a bottle - quotes, passages and poetry that resonate with the heart. May or may not be related to O!Cielizzy.

ೀ ˚ of ribbons and swords ; dance of the graceful knight - for theories, commentaries, analyses and character essays on, or related to Lizzy.

ೀ ˚ a love written in the stardust — cielizzy - for O!Cielizzy-related posts (aka almost half of this blog, i prolly won't re-tag all the old ones lmao)

Bonus : Listen to my O!Cielizzy Playlist here!

ೀ ˚ mine - for my edits, manga colorings etc. Mostly old posts that I haven't properly tagged before lol. Some have watermarks from my old pages, @wifeofthequeenswatchdog (from FB) or @isabella-phantomhive (from DeviantArt). I might repost content from those pages too!