#for some reason i always think this ep is called is my very nature that of the devil

[transldpdl]

Is My Very Nature That of a Devil - LDPDL

[abbeym28]

Clarisse x Reader - Once More to See You

Clarisse x gn! reader, any cabin

An- sorry this took so long to get out! Anyways, thank you guys so much for liking my other Clarisse fics! This is my fourth one, so I hope that they get better with the more I write, but pls let me know if this is bad! Idk where my mind was when I wrote this lol. 3.3k words! Let me know if I messed anything up, and tell me what you guys thought of the last pjo ep! Dior looked as beautiful as always!!!!

Warnings!- nightmares, kissing, affection, mentions of training and weapons, pet names, pls let me know if something was missed!

The sun was almost to much to bear.

Beating down on Clarisse, it was almost melting. But she continued to swing her spear at the training dummy, hitting as hard as she could while making sure to be acutely aware of where she was landing the hits.

She was also very aware of the eyes that followed her every move. 

She knew that it was you, the only person at camp she allowed to get close to her. For some reason.

“Do you want to train with me?” She paused to yell and to look over at you.

“I’ll pass.” You were standing on the sidelines holding Clarisse's water bottle and her towel. She looked back at the dummy once before relaxing a bit and walking over to you. She grabbed the water and jugged it.

“How's day goin’ for you, angel?” You rolled your eyes just a bit and smiled at her nickname for you. She has called you that ever since you two really became friends, and almost gone is the flustered feeling it used to give you.

Almost.

“Really good actually, pretty girl.” Clarisse then took that chance to roll her eyes back at you, but the sun was definitely getting hotter because there was definitely no other reason why Clarisse’s face was feeling so warm all of the sudden, even after her intake of cool water.

“Oh yeah? What have you been doing?” She took the towel that you had extended to her and sat down on the closest bench. She nodded along as you recounted your day and how you spent the most of it doing crafts and training with the younger campers. She sat and listened until it was time for dinner, where the two of you sat side by side at the Ares table, even though it wasn’t technically allowed.

A few of her siblings teased the two of you, but it was a common occurrence, so they all knew that this was normal and would continue to be so. But they also couldn't just let it slide.

Clarisse made sure you were close by the rest of the night, completing both of your nightly routines that have over time molded together to make sure that they could fit like a puzzle piece.

She walked you to your cabin, and just like on any other night, there was a slight itch in her hand and the thought in her brain that she should be holding on to you in some way.

Linked hands, her arm around your shoulder, her hand guiding you whilst being placed on the small of your back. All feel like they could be the most natural thing in the world, if only your relationship could be just a little different.

“I’ll see you tomorrow, ‘kay?” Your question broke her from her thoughts and she just nodded.

“Yeah. Sleep tight, got it?” You smiled and hesitated before pulling her in for a quick hug. She tried to get over her surprise fastly, but you were quicker to end the hug then she was able to melt into you.

“So, um… goodnight.” You turned and walked into your cabin, Clarisse and one of your siblings who had witnessed the event watching with wide eyes. She made eye contact with them, and her shock dropped from her face. “Scram.” Your sibling nodded and wordlessly walked past her, going to some place she could care less about.

She stood there for another minute or so, her hand covering the bottom off her face as she sighed. The sun was gone now, but for some reason, her face felt all too hot right now.

She was beginning to think that the reason and cause had to do something with you.

Clarisse woke with a start the minute the creak of a floor board was heard across the cabin. She had practically trained herself to be awake at any moment, though she could mostly thank her fathers genes for that convenient trait.

None of her siblings seemed to have got it though, since none of them had even stirred.

She squinted her eyes to try to see through the darkness. “Hello?” she whispered out. The outline of a person stuck standing near the doorway visibly let some tension out of their shoulders as they began to move towards her, seemingly uncaring of the other little creaks that the old wood would let out.

“Clarisse?” Clarisse also then let out a breath, as well as a lot of the tension she was also holding.

“Angel? What are you doing here?” She sat up a bit more properly and scooted more to the side of her bed that was touching the wall, patting the now empty wedge, the sheets still wrinkled from the few hours of tossing and turning and sleep she had got.

You moved into that space next to her, bringing your knees up to your chin and  your arms wrapped around your legs.

Uh oh. Clarisse thought. The fetal position was never a good sign.

She hesitated before reaching her own arm around your shoulders, pulling you a bit closer to her, hoping that you could soak in some of the warmth Ares kids were notorious to have.

But she was still an Ares kid.

Comfort was not something she was really familiar with.

“What happened?” Her mind began to wander a bit, thinking that you must have gotten hurt. But who would hurt you knowing they would have to face her wrath? Her hands shook a little as she went through a list in her mind of potential people. It must have been one of your siblings, probably the one who-

“I had a nightmare.” Your voice was barely audible, but just the sound almost instantly calmed Clarisse down.

“Yeah? Do you want to talk about it? Or….” you shook your head no. “Do you want to stay the night here?”

You shifted a bit to look at her, and she noticed your eyes were a bit red and puffy. She wondered a bit about what could have happened in your dream if it made you have this strong of a reaction. All demigods got nightmares, you and Clarisse being no exception.

But this was the first time you had ever sought the other out like this.

“Can I?” You whispered.

“Any time.” She gently coaxed you out of your position so that way the two of you could lay flat on your backs, her arm still protectively holding you. “You know that I’m super strong, right? Whatever was scary in your dream was definitely no match against me.” You giggled, and Clarisse smiled.

She then spent some time talking about how she could protect you against anything, right until you fell asleep. She watched you for a moment, the peaceful look and the rise and fall of your chest bringing her comfort. She gently pushed a bit of hair away from your face and refused the urge in which was telling to place a kiss on your forehead.

She settled beside you, and sleep came easier for her then it had ever been since she had found out she was the daughter of war.

Sunlight streamed a bit too harshly through the windows making Clarisse try to close her eyes tighter. She groaned when she realized it was useless.

Someone cuddled in closer to her, their arms getting stronger around her waist. She tensed up a bit before remembering last night. The both of you were laying on your sides facing each other, all of your limbs seemed to be entangled with hers. She leaned into you more and began to close her eyes again.

That was before she heard the giggles of her siblings.

Her eyes shot open, and there were some of her brothers and sisters, standing above her bed, two of them with cameras. “What the fu- get away! Get!” She whisper- yelled, trying her best to not be close to your ear while making sure you didn't move much. Her siblings just laughed, took a picture, and then ran out of the cabin, their heavy steps making her flinch.

“What time is it?” Your voice distracted her from glaring at the still left open door. Her eyes flickered to her alarm clock. “It’s almost nine.” You hummed and burrowed your face into her neck.

She tried to ignore that.

Clarisse was always an early riser. Sleeping in any time after seven made her moody, and naps were completely out of the question and annoying to her.

So how was she able to sleep till nine, breaking her 5:30 wake up and missing both of her alarms? And why did she feel so… rejuvenated? Were you numbing her senses?

“We should get up.” You looked up at her, your eyes all sleepy and a small frown on your face.

“You don’t want to stay with me?”

Oh.

The room felt a bit hotter all of the sudden.

“Don’t you have classes to teach? The kids can't learn how to craft all by themselves.” She smirked as you blinked at her. You groaned and sat up, cutting off the skin contact and effectively making Clarisse feel colder and as if she was missing something.

“You’re lucky that I like what I do. I’ll see you at lunch, ‘kay?” You smiled at her and got up, stretching as you left her cabin to walk to yours.

All Clarisse could think about was; "is she actually lucky?"

The rest of the day seemed to go like normal, with you and Clarisse doing your separate duty’s while still finding times and places where the two of you could meet.

She was able to track and threaten her siblings, the ones who had taken the pictures of you two sleeping. She confiscated the camera, but when no one else was looking she pocketed one of the photos.

For safekeeping. She justified to herself.

To make sure that no one else would see it.

That night when you said your good nights, you hugged her again. This time it was a hug she was able to lean into, one that she was able to savor.

She was about to offer you to stay with her again, just another night. But the words got stuck in her throat as you pulled away.

“Stay safe, promise?'' Your words made her curious, but she wasn’t going to question you. It clicked that this was probably because of your dream.

“Have you even met me?” She laughed a bit, and you smiled at her softly.

It made her falter a bit. If any enemies were just a smidge like her, then that smile alone would stop an army.

“I’ll see you tomorrow. I promised the kids that we would teach the sword class together.” She sounded a bit breathless, and she hoped that it was only in her mind. You hesitated, but nodded.

“See you tomorrow.”

Clarisse has been on edge ever since the clock turned to twelve. It was around this time that you had come to her yesterday, and even though it was a one time event, (or so she figured it would be), it felt like there was a pit in her stomach, and she couldn't help but feel like you were in some sort of danger.

She was almost ready to jump off her bed and speed walk to your cabin.

“Clarisse, can you stop?” One of her siblings whispered from some other bunk and she sighed. She realized that she was tossing and turning louder than she thought.

“I’m taking a walk.” She flipped the sheets off of her and walked out the door, making her way silently to your cabin. There were only a handful of times that she has been in here, but she knew where your bed was.

You were tossing and turning worse then how she was, sweat dripping down your chin to your neck. She gently touched your shoulder, something she knew she probably shouldn't have done, but it was enough to wake you from your sleep.

You sat up fast, your chest moving rapidly as you tried to catch your breath. You gulped.

“Clarisse? What… why are you here?” Your eyebrows furrowed as you looked at her, still breathing hard.

“I felt that you weren't okay. Another nightmare?” You nodded as she continued to stand above you.

“Well, if you're okay, I'm gonna- I’ll… leave.” She turned around, but your hand caught her wrist with a tight grip before she was able to get far.

“Can you… can you stay?'' You were looking at her with those eyes again, and her breath was gone as well.

“Yeah. I can.” Her voice was too soft, a soft that would make her father distaste her even more. But she climbed into your bed, and for another night she slept with you in her arms.

The two of you occupied each other's beds for the next month, but neither of you spoke of the tension that riddled the space between you.

Nightmares didn't plague you any more, and Clarisse was getting better sleep then she had ever gotten before. That was until Chiron called her to his office.

“A quest?” Chiron nodded.

“Yes, one that was provided by one of the gods themselves, Hera. She asked for an Ares kid to complete this for her. You’ll think about it, won’t you?”

Clarisse nodded slowly.

“Perfect. Now, get back to your activities.”

Clarisse left his office like that. Her mind was clouded, and she didn't really know what to do.

Of course she had to take it, this was another great opportunity to show how great she was to her dad, and how far her training has come.

But she couldn't help thinking: what about you? How would you be if she had left? Quests could take up any amount of time, and what if something happened to her? Or you while she was away?

“What was that about?” Luke appeared next to her, catching her by surprise. She swallowed the lump in her throat.

“A quest. They specifically want me.” Luke nodded, and he had that weird thoughtful look on his face that made Clarisse’s nose wrinkle.

The two of them hardly got along well, but as cabin counselors they had to be civil. She looked around at the trees as they walked together towards the training ground, that is until Luke spoke your name.

“Do they know?” He asked. She shook her head.

“No other campers but you knows.” He just nodded his head again. He smirked and looked at her.

“Can't wait to see how that goes.” And then he turned and walked the other way, leaving Clarisse standing there in slight shock. What was that about? Did he know something she didn’t?

She shook it off the best that she could before walking to where you were.

There was a smile on your face as you helped an eight year old boy from the Hermes cabin hold his sword properly. She watched as you stepped back and let him swing it at the target, clapping your hands and laughing a bit once he finally got it right. He ran to give you a hug, and you hugged him back, and she could tell from where she was that you were praising his abilities. Clarisses heart felt so full, and all though she thought it was impossible, she could swear she was falling for you even more.

Maybe Silena was right, and she is a stickler for domesticy. Maybe a quest wasn't what would make her truly happy. Maybe it was a life with you.

“Clarisse!” You were running towards her and she caught you in a hug.

“Hey. I was actually hoping that we could talk for a bit.” The smile stayed on your face while confusion clouded your eyes and your eyebrows furrowed.

“Sure, okay.”

The two of you walked into the forest together, stopping in a clearing which happened to be Clarisse’s favorite place at camp. Other than wherever you were. You took her hand in yours in a way that she assumed you thought would bring her comfort, but it just made her heart beat faster.

“The gods want me to go on a quest.” She blurted out. Your face and mood fell and you took your hand out of her grip gently.

“And what did you say?”

“Well, I'm technically still thinking about it, but I think that this could be good for me. Hera wants this thing done for her, and you know that I have trained for this, and it would be nice if my father would recognize me at least once. But I also- Angel? Are you okay?”

You looked as if you were about to cry, one hand hovering over where your heart is and the other almost covering your mouth. You were shaking like a leaf in the wind, and Clarisse didn’t like it one bit.

She moved towards you, placing her hands on either side of your shoulders and helping you sit on the ground. She put your face in between her collarbone and neck, stroking your hair softly as you sniffled.

“What’s wrong?” She was unsure that you would answer, but you shifted your head a bit back.

“This is just like my nightmare.”

It all kind of made sense now.

“I had them, for like, a week before I first went to your cabin. It’s always the same some how, with you accepting a quest from Hera and never returning, or you go missing and I have to be the one to find your body, or I go with you and I can’t do anything about that stupid monster you fight, and I just-” You were crying, Clarisse could practically feel them burn into her skin.

“I don’t want to lose you Clarisse. Not on a dumb quest or ever. I don’t know what to do without you.” Clarisse nodded a bit and fiddled with a piece of your hair.

“I chased away the dreams though, right?” She had no clue if you would appreciate any type of small joke she made, and she figured she was dead when you pulled away from her a little and looked into her eyes, your lips slightly parted in what she could only guess was surprise.

Then you leaned in and kissed her on the mouth.

She was surprised, just like how she was when you had first hugged her. You pulled away quicker this time, fear evading finding your eyes for the split second before Clarisse pulled you back in, returning the kiss you first started with as much passion as she could possibly convey. You were both breathless the next moment once you realized that you had to get air.

“I don’t know what to do about the quest.” Clarisse whispered. She didn’t know why she did, but she felt like something could break if she didn’t.

“I don’t know either.” You responded, your voice as low as hers.

“I-... I think I like you.” Clarisse confessed.

Although they weren't exactly the words she wanted to say, (She knew for a fact that she was in love with you), but it still felt as if a slight weight was lifted off of her. You leaned back into her, so close that she could practically feel the smile that grew on your face on her lips.

“I think I like you too, pretty girl.” And she smiled too.

“Why do you call me that?” She tilted her head as you leaned back and laughed.

“Because you're pretty.”

The way you said it with so much certainty, as if you knew she could rival Aphrodite herself, made Clarisse feel bubbly, and she wasn’t someone who would ever really feel like that.

She didn't know what she would do about the quest.

She didn’t know what you would do if you found out if she ever accepted, or what punishment she would face if she were to turn it down.

But Clarisse La Rue was in love with you, and she would protect you from those nightmares for as long as you let her.

[howlsofbloodhounds]

What do you think happened during/after the fight Delta had with his Gaster(in the Final Ep. 1). What are your headcanons for it?

Apologies for the delay in response, I needed to both gain energy/motivation to reply and also to go rewatch Ultra/Vitaltale to refresh my memories.

And also the way the videos were sorted on creator’s YT channel was confusing my brain for some reason, so I just scrolled through their entire channel in order to find every piece on the AUs & put it into separate chronological order in a playlist of my own. Then I tried to rewatch all of it.

Which was hard, because I kept getting distracted and my attention kept drifting away. I will probably try to rewatch again soon, when I am capable of actually retaining the information in my mind accurately.

(Random side note because the thought just occurred to me; I find it very interesting how both Doggo and Papyrus demonstrate bravery when facing up against the unknown threat in Vitaltale Episode 1.4.

Whereas Sans, who will eventually absorb the SOUL of Bravery to become the Delta we know, is all for evacuating. Love how this Sans is not naturally brave in the typical way, even should he eventually come around to gaining the bravery soul in Vitaltale as he did in Ultra.)

Anyway. On to the actual question. My mind is a little wonky today so if I get anything wrong or confused about the question feel free to correct me.

So it’s to my understanding that Echo (Ultratale’s Gaster) calls Sans/Delta to the Ruins for a “chat” after Delta’s fight with Cross. Echo has information for Delta—a way to “fix” their mistakes, but he will not tell Delta unless he fights for it.

Delta calls the information “old,” and says he’s going to beat Echo into the ground anyhow. Gives me the impression that he’s possibly more fixated on his current task—protecting AUs—then trying to go back and fix the past.

Because Ultratale was ultimately rebooted into Vitaltale we obviously don’t know for sure how this battle ends and likely never will, but I personally HC that it has multiple endings.

1. Delta loses, Echo doesn’t give him the information. The two go on their separate ways and live their own lives.

2. Delta wins. Echo attempts to tell the information, but Delta stops him. Says he doesn’t want to know and just wants to move on with life. That it’s what Papyrus, Frisk, and the others would want them to do.

3. Delta wins, Echo tells him the information of how to go back and fix it all. Delta refuses.

4. Delta wins, gets the information, and he accepts. Perhaps this information leads into the formation of a variant AU—a reboot, that creates Vitaltale. Chara doesn’t absorb Frisk’s soul and therefore can’t prevent them from Resetting.

(Side note: perhaps, for a character defining moment, in every ending where Delta refuses to hear or accept this information, Echo always furiously protests against this. Maybe Echo is the voice encouraging Delta to go back, to fix it all and “fight for us,” whereas Beta is the voice encouraging Delta to keep moving forward.

Echo cannot let go of the past because he was shattered and wasn’t ready to leave it, but he is was always aware.

Beta never got to truly live either because they were murdered and kept in a jar, but they were not as aware of the world outside the jar and thus is able to move on easier. Because Beta’s life was over before they truly got to live it, whereas Echo/Gaster’s was cut off at its peak.

Delta is in the middle of this. Experienced with life, but still young. His life is just starting—he’s halfway out of that cage—whereas Beta realizes they are free and is just trying to convince Delta to join them, and Echo..the cage is open, he can step out now.

But he spends his time trying to coax Delta and Beta back inside instead, and to help him bring everyone else back in the cage where it’s safe and familiar.)

Delta, now just Sans and perhaps without any memory of the events of Ultratale, manages to convince Frisk to Reset near the end of a Genocide route and be better. However, the Determined Omega!Chara must still Erase this world—the culmination ending exactly as Ultratale did.

Omega!Chara absorbs Frisk’s Soul, prevents them from Resetting and goes on a Genocide to Erase this world once and for all. Sans attempts to prevent it, even by giving characters such as Doggo hints and tips to help them in combat against the unknown threat.

None of it matters. Sans’ attempts do nothing, it ends in Genocide and Sans absorbs the Bravery soul—going on to protect the rest of the Multiverse.

He always fights Cross, he always fights Echo. He’s always given the choice—go back and try again and again, or accept what happened. Be brave, and move on. Do what Doggo and Papyrus did—brave in the face of impossible odds.

Anyway I guess my little HC is basically that Ultratale and Vitaltale are connected in-universe. Vitaltale is the story of how we got to Ultratale, and Delta must choose between the mortifying ordeal of the unknown and living with his mistakes & losses, or the comfort of a past that’ll end horribly in Ultratale; but at least he never lost anyone yet and no mistakes were ever made.

If he chooses to move on, he goes to the Omega Timeline where he meets Color, Epic, Core Frisk, Killer. Grows closer with Beta, Cross, XChara. Adopts a service/therapy dog he names Zorox (which is someone else’s HC, I don’t know if it’s okay or not with being tagged). Lives life, saving and protecting people.

Sans manages to escape the loop of Undertale only to find himself in another due to the rebooting nature of Ultra and Vitaltale. Only this time he has the ability to choose to escape it, he just has to be brave enough to attempt it—even though it seems impossible.

(Also how, despite the way his experiences could understandably lead him to Nihilism, helplessness and the belief that nothing he ever does or says will ever matter or change anything, he learns to be brave enough to keep trying anyway.)

Anyway. Sorry for the long rant that got horribly off topic at points. I had a lot more ideas about this by the time I was done than when I first read the question. Have Delta & Echo being silly and zesty respectively to make up for it:

[shunin-gumis]

Designs of Happiness - Track B01

L4mps Main Story Translation

Title: ep[1] flowers for?

Characters: Toi, Ryui

Summary: Toi and Ryui are making a bouquet for some reason.

Thank you myun @/myuntachis, Niri @/Niri_riri and Dimi @/taatsums for helping me with proofing!

Location: Flower Laundry

Toi: Hmm…

Ryui: …Picked your flowers yet? If you can’t decide, I’ll choose them for you, so don’t hesitate to ask.

Toi: Thank you, Ani-sama. But I’m sure it’s best if I pick something by myself, right…? 

Ryui: …Right. I’m sure that’s what he’d prefer too.

Toi: Did you already decide what you’re going with?

Ryui: Yeah. We’ll practice making the bouquet when you’re ready.

Toi: Got it, I should hurry and make up my mind.

Ryui: Don’t worry, take your time. 

Toi: Okay… 

Toi: Ani-sama, don’t leave me behind, okay?

Ryui: Don’t be silly. Of course I’ll never leave you behind. 

Toi: …Okay. 

Ryui: …… 

Toi: …… 

Ryui: Toi.

Toi: Yes?

*Ryui hugs Toi*

Toi: Wah… What’s wrong, Ani-sama…?

Ryui: You looked like you wanted a hug… Am I wrong?

Toi: …Hehe.

Toi: No, you’re right. You always know exactly what I want. 

Ryui: Of course I do. We’re two halves of the same whole, after all. 

Toi: Ah…! 

Ryui: Mm? 

Toi: I think… I’ll pick this flower. It caught my eye just now. 

Ryui: It’s very you. I’m sure he’d be happy with it. 

Toi: Yes… It’d be great if it cheers him up, even just a little. 

Ryui: Aight. Let’s try our hand at making a bouquet for when the time comes.

Toi: Ani-sama, do you have scissors?

Ryui: How about I cut it for you? I’m worried you’ll hurt yourself.

Toi: I can do that much! …See!

*snipping sounds*

Ryui: Yep, a natural at handling scissors too.

Toi: Ehehe.

Toi: …… 

Ryui: …… 

Ryui: Hey, Toi… Remember the scissors we got back when we started elementary school? The yellow-green ones. 

Toi: I do! That takes me back… Even though we’d bought them separately, we ended up getting the exact same ones. 

Ryui: Right, right. 

Toi: The teacher put stickers with our names on them so we wouldn’t get confused over which one belonged to whom… 

Ryui: And then you ripped it off, saying we didn’t need it. 

Toi: You did too! At the same time, even.

Ryui: That I did… 

Toi: We’ve always been together, picking the same things, living through the same time… 

Toi: Whenever I got hurt, you’d also have an injury in the same place. When I thought about calling you, you’d call me right then instead. We’ve always matched. 

Ryui: And when we got in the bath, not even our old man could tell us apart. 

Toi: They always relied on the color of our clothes to figure out who’s who. So we’d prank them by swapping places often. 

Ryui: …Right. 

Toi: (We’ve always matched, ever since the moment we were born. Before I met Aa-chama, even the color of our hair was the same.) 

Toi: I’m so glad we’re twins. 

Ryui: Same. Can’t even imagine what being born alone must be like. 

Toi: …… 

Ryui: Here, you want me to hold this down so you can tie the ribbon, right? 

Toi: Yes, thank you. 

Toi: Hmm, I can’t get it right… It keeps coming apart… 

Ryui: Try tying it a little tighter? 

Toi: Okay, I’ll try that now… 

Ryui: …… 

Toi: …… 

Toi: (Ani-sama… If I could live a long life, unlike Dad, do you think we’d match even when we’re old grandpas?) 

Toi: (I wonder if that’s something you’d also wish for.) 

Toi: (I want to keep matching with you forever.) 

Ryui: Hm? Did you say something? 

Toi: Nope! It’s nothing. 

Ryui: Now I’m curious. Tell me. 

Toi: It’s okay, I’m not thinking about it anymore. 

Ryui: …… 

Ryui: (It’s been a couple weeks since we came back from Hakodate.) 

Ryui: (We were working on prep for the First Tour and whatnot when that guy just up and vanished… A lot of stuff has happened since then.)

Ryui: (Toi must’ve been feeling uneasy, wondering if I’ll leave him all alone back with the Shiramitsu family.)

Ryui: (There’s no way I’d let that happen. We’ll always be together, as long as he wishes for it.)

Toi: Oh, I think I’m getting better at tying the ribbon…!

Ryui: I’ll hold down the knot, so tie it one more time.

Toi: Mm… Like this… 

Ryui: …I think that’s the wrong kinda knot. 

Toi: Oh no, you’re right! Gotta redo it… wait, huh…? 

Toi: I keep getting it wrong… 

Ryui: It’s all the ribbon’s fault. Let me at it, I’ll wrangle it into submission. 

Ryui: …There, that’ll do it. 

Toi: As expected of Ani-sama… What a pretty butterfly knot! 

Ryui: I‘m pretty good, right? I think I do a better job than a certain florist. 

Toi: Ehehe, yay! 

Ryui: Guess I’ll tie this one off too. 

Toi: Using dry flowers in your bouquet really shows off your great taste, I think it looks wonderful.

Ryui: This one’s just for practice, but when I get better at it, I’ll give you one too. A much better one. 

Toi: Really? I’d love that! Should I keep it in my room, or use it to decorate the shop… 

Ryui: …Looks like you’re feeling a little better. I’m glad. 

Toi: Yep! Thank you as always, Ani-sama… Let’s make the best bouquet ever for the real deal.

Toi: So that we can express how truly sorry we are to him… 

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[bengiyo]

Cherry Magic TH Ep 11 Stray Thoughts

Last week, Achi and Karan tried to prepare for their upcoming separation by not living together for some reason. It didn't go well! They missed each other. Achi also ended up frustrating Karan by trying to read his mind to confirm he was just putting on a brave front. Thankfully, the squad came together and helped Achi do a grand gesture for Karan since they are going to miss Songkran. Meanwhile, Jinta struggled at being away from Min for a week and was also jealous because shippers ship Min with his bandmate. I'm looking forward to Achi working the new position.

Hey, look at Achi starting to understand Karan without his power.

Poor Achi. This is not a great starting line with his team.

Welcome back, Guy! You've been with us for so long.

I really like this thing where they film phone calls like both people are present. It lands every time.

Achi asking for advice is a good sign that he thinks of Karan more like a person.

They did now use candy PPL to have Achi befriend kids. My goodness.

The Jinta and Min moments continue to tie in well with Achi and Karan.

Was the daughter watching OffGun vids??

Curious to see how much structural homophobia we'll deal with here.

Call Pai! She'll get you to the audition on time.

I love Jinta so much.

My boy suited up and broke his nose for the squad!

Suddenly, Karan. I knew he wouldn't stay away the whole time.

My man Karan is like my other Big Dawg Patts. They both leave notes to explain their absences.

Overwork! My boy is down!

Excellent use of Achi's power, Karan.

I really love Achi having a positive experience when he came out to his team. I love that their motives in asking about his partner were well-intentioned. That was very sweet.

They were smart to use Sing Harit. I'm always susceptible to his charm.

Thank you, Thai BL Beach Trip, for not letting me down. Tay and Newwie are very pretty kissers.

Oh, the conversation about Karan voice and Achi nodding yes was solid.

Pillow talk, my beloved.

Wow, meet the families next week.

That was excellent. I love that distance didn't hurt them, and I loved them still succeeding at their tasks. I am so glad Achi was able to connect to more people without relying on his power, and instead relying on the advice and support of his partner in conjunction with his own natural good nature. I'm so happy that the team responded to that and accepted him. I am also relieved that TayNew got to play these characters because their chemistry delivered what I've been needing from Cherry for years. We won today.

[nalyra-dreaming]

I apologize in advance because this is about the unreliable narrative topic, but I did have a question/thought and I hadn't really seen it quite discussed in this way, but it is very possible that I missed it.

At this point, we have multiple confirmations that Louis is unreliable, that S1 will be viewed differently after S2, and that at its core Louis' memory is the way it is right now to try and protect him in some way. These are just facts. The only real speculation left is what he is unreliable about. So, if it isn't about whether Lestat deserved the events of ep 7, what could his unreliable memories actually be about? Even trying to play devil's advocate to be fully prepared for S2, I can't really think of anything that would logically fit.

There is a big difference between Louis being a little biased in his own favor or not having Lestat's perspective (and there are many examples of this sort of "unreliableness" from Louis in S1) and Louis' memories being wrong to the point that he knows they are wrong and he is seeking help to discover the truth. That being a major plot point has to be something big in the narrative. It can't just be if it was raining.

The biggest issue to me really does come down to if Lestat deserved what happened to him. If the S1 narrative remains exactly the same then I do think he deserved it and whatever other suffering he has to go through on his way to the redemption arc they would have planned for him. However, if that core remains the same, what horrible truth does Louis need to be protected from then? We know ep 5 and 7 have specifically been named for the revisits. I guess Louis might need to be protected from the truth that he didn't kill Lestat himself, but then why the need to revisit ep 5 at all? I have seen the idea that Louis is actually in denial about just how abusive Lestat was, but that doesn't make logical sense to me for a variety of reasons both already in the text (like the changes from the first interview) and the way they are currently promoting the show. Would Louis just need to be protected from the truth of not doing everything he could to stop Lestat and protect Claudia, as in he didn't really help directly in ep 7 and he feels guilty about it? Again, that doesn't change how viewers see S1 overall; it would just change the ending, and it doesn't make sense with a lot of other elements. It also doesn't really fit Jacob Anderson's recent discussion of the books and show either.

This all comes with the disclaimer that I don't believe Lestat will be retconned into the perfect husband or theirs a perfect marriage or that the actual mutual fight in ep 5 didn't happen at all. It is really the difference between what events deserve or even require Lestat's murder and what events mean that Louis and Lestat really needed vampire marriage counseling for lack of a better way to put it.

To return to my main question, what could Louis be unreliable about to the extent he needs protection from the truth if it isn't about why Lestat "died" and by extension Claudia and her true nature. I want to be prepared, but I can't really think of anything else that fits all of the evidence and fits with the books and what has been said about the books by those making the show.

I hope my thoughts make sense. I just really wanted to discuss this, and your analysis is always so thoughtful to me.

Hey! (sorry this took a moment)

Okay, so first off - Louis being unreliable is a mixture of a few things.

First, there's memory. It's a "monster", and that is what the raining falls under, imho. Little details. Dates, too. All the dates are off on the show, the speech on the radio given twice, etc. Details. Even vampires do not have perfect memories.

Secondly, there's the things Louis is (maybe still) bitter about. Jacob called that Louis being a "bitter ex who presents their former partner as a monster", so that is still a factor as well. (This is the only part where actual "lying" may come into play, but all in all it's not that huge of a factor in this second interview, imho).

Thirdly there are parts Louis is (still) doing intentionally - like protecting Claudia's image. Painting her in a more favorable light, because he loves her. (Rather understandable!)

And lastly - there is the fact that his memory has been "tinkered" with (I'm not going to pull up all the quotes here, I think you know them by now^^, let me know if you need them.) THAT is the part Jacob referred to at the panel, with Louis trying to regain his true memories.

Now, given what we know already will be in s2, and given the further seasons and their content I also doubt that whatever retcon they'll do in ep5 will be to make Lestat worse.

Like, how could it be worse. Seriously. And where and how would you go to what's to come from there.

It would also contradict Rolin Jones' various statements, which I am also not going to pull up again here^^.

But no, Lestat will not be retconned into a perfect husband and father, lol. He made mistakes, and probably lots of them. There are reasons why Louis is a bitter ex.

So.

To (try to) answer your question:

I have talked about ep5, at length, let me know if you need the various posts and source, but in real quick, I think that part will be revisited to show that while the fight happened (and it did show this utter power discrepancy) it stopped upstairs. When Claudia looks into the mirror. That is a deliberate shot, with meaning. The drop will likely be something Armand planted, because it is eerily close to something he does to Lestat - and Lestat later does to him. The dragging outside... IF it happened then a hint in ep6 will play into it. Though if they reveal that already?! I'm not sure. But the discussion there with Claudia, and Lestat's words can easily also have been part of the actual fight. Or when it stopped.

Episode 5 and the aftermath serve to "prove" that Louis and Claudia needed to kill Lestat. And that is the crux of the matter, right there. Because while Lestat says in his own novel that he never blamed Claudia, and might have done something like that himself... (and I am aware that a lot of people see this as proof for what the show showed there) - in the book context he refers to damning her to darkness in such a small body, and making her so utterly reliant on them. Because he is aware of what he did to her through that fact alone.

Which brings us to episode 7 and the "kill". I think it will be Claudia who wielded the knife, and Louis standing by, as in the book. There were some bts photos of that shoot, with the twins, and Sam and Claudia, and somewhere there is a statement that Jacob had already left. It makes sense that they would have filmed that already.

Louis... is trying to protect Claudia (as he should). And Armand... is trying to protect Louis (by now), and influencing as he sees fit. Not everything, no, but of course his own experiences with Lestat (and we will get to see some of those in s2) have left their own marks.

Armand literally thought Louis would snap out of his grief over Claudia’s death. He says he protects Louis from himself.

I think the tinkering is an attempt to try and free Louis of that grief. And his longing. Parts selfishly to keep Louis ro himself, parts in a desperate attempt to help Louis.

Armand cut the pages of the diary, imho. The ripped out ones may yet come into play for the trial. And, given the Merrick revelations of those pages… those pages might very well be what will bring in the retcons. Because Claudia’s diary in Merrick brought huge revelations.

I concur with you there that the things Louis needs protection from are likely things that pertain to Lestat and Claudia.

The shifts will reveal imho that Louis did not want to kill Lestat (we already know that, imho), and that not everything was as dire as told. And that Claudia was not as pure as Louis wants to remember her as. Which is in line with the books.

Anything else will be details.

Armand in Dubai is trying to keep Louis from suicide. Because Louis knows that things are not adding up, he’s not stupid. And Armand (rightfully) fears the (repeated) impact of the truth. A truth he is not exactly uninvolved in either.

So to close this - actually it boils down to what you already said^^. There will be details maybe. But the main parts will be the already mentioned parts. The rest… will click into place in further seasons.

[agnesmontague]

buddy daddies theory: rei's mission

gonna drop this into the main tag before any canon can nerf me but i had the theory in the group chat earlier that rei has been on an undercover mission this entire time to keep tabs on kazuki, and miri has been an unforeseen factor in his plan

we don't know how or why kazuki came to live with rei; presumably this happened after his wife died, but who set him up to live with rei, and why? were they partners before the wife's death, or did they only come to know each other afterwards? until we get more solid answers to these questions i had the idea that someone sent kazuki to live with rei--the rich boy, the son of the boss--because rei was tasked with keeping an eye on kazuki for whatever reason.

there are small indications throughout the show that rei really doesn't know much about kazuki at all; this goes both ways, as shown in the "i won't ask." "i wouldn't tell." conversation, but rei always is shown to react whenever kazuki reveals info about himself:

[ep 4]

[ep 6]

i think it's very likely that rei is collecting some kind of intel on kazuki as he goes, possibly to report back to headquarters, which would be ironic considering getting intimate with his marks to get info is exactly what we see kazuki doing in ep 1.

this is also why i don't think these two had known each other or even met until after kazuki's wife passed away. they don't give the impression of having worked together for a long time, or at least, they have known each other just long enough to work up a rapport but not enough to actually talk about themselves. which is fascinating considering how much of a married couple they seem to be already, but that's another topic for another day...

another thing i've seen pointed out is that rei doesn't seem too happy at the end of ep6 despite witnessing miri and kazuki being all sweet and lovey-dovey together:

this could just be a humorous moment--kazuki's overreacting again, or rei also wants to be miri's favorite dad and is jealous--but it's been speculated that rei could also be going through some complex emotions here: it was never supposed to become this complicated. starting a family was never really in the cards for him, but rei is an inveterate collector of strays and got attached to miri just as quickly as kazuki did. and now here we are.

finally, this would serve to rather neatly explain why rei's father's organization seems to be "calling rei back" in the 3rd trailer:

my running theory is that kazuki and rei were both part of the same organization, but kazuki did something to "betray" or otherwise run counter to the org's principles, thus getting his wife killed. this killing was his "warning", after which he would have come to meet rei:

now, if rei isn't careful with his newfound family, the organization would target them as well. it would be rei this time who would be getting the "warning", if he got too attached to miri and/or kazuki, who was meant to be his mark all along.

truth be told i'm still not 100% on the pulse of where PA Works seems to be going with these two; we really have no idea how much they want to focus on kazuki and rei as a duo (not even necessarily as a romantic ship, but as a team) as opposed to them naturally just becoming parents to miri. but here's hoping that they've got something juicy in store.

[midnighthybrid2]

(Ok random thing that you’ll leave up to interpretation!)

The welcome home characters as professors at hogwarts basic headcanons? Like what kind of class would each of them be teaching? (Frank would be the next Snape there you cannot say that wouldn’t happen.)

(Maybe if you would like to what kind of house would each of them be in, again leaving that for you to make the user’s interpretation).

Helllloooo! This was an incredibly fun prompt to think about, thank you for sending it in! I’d love to do some more Welcome Home-Harry Potter crossover stuff in the future, actually, if you have any more ideas!

There’s no particular order to these, but I tried to make them make as much sense as I could.

Enjoy! This is gonna be real long, so strap yourself in!

Welcome Home Characters as Professors/Staff at Hogwarts

Julie Joyful - 100% Herbology (Hufflepuff). Julie would 100% be the Herbology professor- she’s described as having a garden of her own and able to talk to plants, after all. I imagine this would translate to her having a very close connection to the plants- students are unsure if she’s actually talking to them, or if she’s just really good at telling when a plant needs more water or new soil. I imagine she’d be a little bit of an airhead at times, probably misplacing any physical homework assignments (like essays) or even sometimes forgetting to lock up the greenhouses at night! She’s probably found a magical creature inside, eating some of her plants, on several occasions. Definitely has had to call Professor Frankly over to help her get them out! She’s better with hands-on assignments, and I imagine she'd be a very encouraging and kind professor.

Frank Frankly - Care of Magical Creatures (Ravenclaw). Oh I agree 100%, he’d be the Snape of this cast. This reminded me of the Potter Puppet Pals Snape puppet- he even has the unibrow and nose- and now I can’t get that voice out of my head when I picture Frank. Frank would be the harshest of the teachers and would be incredibly strict during all of his lessons. His class would be a mixture of hands-on learning and note-taking (so.. much… note taking…). It’s clear to anyone with eyes just how passionate Professor Frankly is about his subject, especially with how he tends to go into passionate, verbose speeches about the biology of the Bowtruckle (for example). This, unfortunately, tends to make him the target of the more rambunctious students who find his overreactions to disrespect quite funny. He’s the professor that sends most students to detention. Despite his grouchy demeanor, Professor Frankly is known to be good friends with Professor Joyful, much to every student’s surprise. They gossip in the teacher’s lounge.

Eddie Dear - Groundskeeper (Hufflepuff). Okay okay hear me out. Despite having a whole arts and crafts teaching segment, Eddie doesn’t entirely strike me as a teacher type. He’s the type that’s used to running around, delivering Mail and such to his neighbors. I can picture him being a very nice if a little clumsy, groundskeeper of Hogwarts. His favorite duty would be to care for the owls in the Owlery- putting him on good terms with the care of magical creatures professor- because he’s always had a bit of a passion for the Mail service. He could often be seen running around the school, taking care of incidents, and trying to reason with the ghosts (if Peeves still exists, Peeves would 100% take advantage of Eddie’s clumsy nature for his own amusement). Eddie would also probably be a lot easier to manipulate than Filch would, and would probably more often than not let students off with a warning rather than a very harsh punishment.

Wally Darling - Defense Against the Dark Arts (Ravenclaw). Before I get into his teaching style, hear me out with his house- Ravenclaw is described as being highly creative and curious individuals. Wally, despite not being the smartest, is quite the creative individual, and he’s described as being the one to learn with the viewer during episodes of Welcome Home. He gives me… Luna Lovegood vibes, in a way, where the way he thinks and looks at the world may be a little different from how others do, but in the end that doesn’t make him stupid. In terms of how he’d behave as a teacher, I picked Defense Against the Dark Arts because of his fandom-agreed tie to very dark themes and such. I imagine in a Harry Potter AU he’d have had many run-ins with dark creatures in the past, and now he uses his experiences to help others in the present. Like Lupin, most of his classes would be very hands-on and he’d be a very professional, maybe a little eccentric sort of teacher who’s very patient with all of his students. Outside of the class, however, he’s still quite patient but also gives off a much different sort of energy. It’s not unusual, for instance, to find the professor lying on the stairs for several minutes at a time after having- yet again- missed stepping over the disappearing step. He’s quite the oddball, but many students do enjoy him as a teacher overall.

Poppy Partridge - Not a professor, would work in the Hospital Wing in Madame Pomfry’s place. (Hufflepuff). There’s no way that Poppy would be a professor- all of those spells and potion ingredients make her much too nervous, no no no. Poppy would instead work in the hospital wing as Madame Partridge and would help cure students and staff of their ailments. Don’t get me wrong- the sight of a boneless arm or a bloody werewolf wound would certainly make her faint from fright at first. Once that initial shock has passed, however, I imagine her practically squawking with worry as she works to patch her patients right up! She might overdo it at times, such as bandaging up sprains so thickly that the limb resembles more of a bowling ball than a limb, but she means well. I imagine she’s not that great at magic, but very knowledgeable on different healing potions and herbs.

Howdy Pillar - Either a Hogsmeade Salesman or Transfiguration (Slytherin). So… Howdy, to be honest, I don’t picture being a teacher in the Harry Potter Universe. Rather, I can see him being the owner of a General Store/Bodega down in Hogsmeade. His store would include general foods and stuff, but he’d also sell plenty of magical touristy items, such as ‘Limited Time - Spellchecking - Quick Quotes Quill - 50% Off Today!’ Or postcards featuring moving images of a snowy day at Hogsmeade or the Hogwarts grounds. However! For the sake of this post, I shall choose a job at Hogwarts for him- and that job would be the Transfiguration Professor. The main- and really, only- reason for this would be that… he’s a caterpillar… and… and caterpillars turn into (‘transfigure’) butterflies… I didn’t say I was clever when I was making these aight? Maybe he’d even be an animagus and could turn into a Butterfly, that’d be a fun nod to that. Anywho! As a teacher, Howdy would be the type to do pop quizzes- not in the traditional sense, however! He’d be like an auctioneer- saying stuff like “Name the Incantation for Fiend Fyre- am I hearing Pestis? Pestis what?- Did I hear it over here- aaaand correct, Miss Granger, Pestis Incendium! Ten Points to Gryffindor!” As for his House, I chose Slytherin because of the natural ambition that comes with being a Slytherin- Howdy’s a business and salesman, he’s quite the ambitious fellow. Not all Slytherins are evil, after all.

Sally Starlet - Astronomy (Either Gryffindor or Ravenclaw, I’m 50/50). Sally was difficult to choose- I wanted to pick something theater-related, but there aren’t any very important classes related to that. There are a few elective classes, but those felt rather boring. When I remembered the astronomy class, however, I was immediately like “HAHA! YOU!” Sally’s incredibly passionate about her subject- some may say even a little too passionate. Somewhat like Trelawney and her passion/beliefs in Divination, Sally cares a whole lot about the planets and both what they can teach you and just what they are in general. The way she talks about them at times makes it sound less like she’s talking about planets and more so talking about old friends. It’s quite strange, especially to those who aren’t a fan of her subject and/or her very flamboyant ways. Like Frank, some students purposely mess with Sally to get a dramatic reaction out of her, more so because her ego tends to get irritating than because she’s unfair in class. Sally’s generally a pretty decent professor, being split pretty evenly between hands-on work and homework, she’s just very boisterous about herself often enough that it gets on some students’ nerves.

Barnaby Beagle - Charms (Hufflepuff). Charms for some reason always struck me as a more ‘chill’ sort of magic- at least compared to a lot of the others. I imagine that as the Charms professor, Barnaby is most definitely an incredibly laid-back sort of teacher. He’s the type that doesn’t stress much about deadlines and homework- quite frankly, he could care less about homework and dislikes having to grade it. He generally would only give students the bare minimum required homework, and then the rest would all be taught in class. Though his class would teach the students more or less streamlined charms and such, if you meet him after class he’d 100% teach you what he refers to as the ‘funner’ charms and their many uses. This includes more prank-like charms, such as how to bewitch snowballs so they focus on a target and continuously throw themselves at them. Basically, he’d be the Weasley Twins of the staff.

Hope you enjoy my drabbles, I somewhat wanna mess around with these ideas more in the future but I’m unsure what I’d do lol

If you liked these and have any ideas, please feel free to send in some asks! I’d love to hear y’all’s thoughts on the matter

[kolbisneat]

MONTHLY MEDIA: June 2023

Summer months here we go! Just wrapped up my time with Zelda so I foresee more reading and tv in my future again. In the meantime, here’s how I spent June!

……….FILM……….

Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse (2023) Saw it twice and the first time was very nearly too much to take in. The second viewing was far less overwhelming and still a joy. While it didn’t feel like a complete story following Miles, at least there’s some satisfying conclusion with Gwen. I’m glad part 2 comes out in less than a year. 

Ali Wong: Baby Cobra (2016) Maybe I wasn’t in the right mood or maybe going with one of her older specials wasn’t the right call but I wasn’t really feeling it. I can see hints of overlapping themes that pop up in BEEF (which I loved and why I wanted to watch one of her specials) but that was more interesting than it was funny. Still gonna check out her other specials.

Goldeneye (1995) I have more memories playing the game than watching the movie but still a big fan of this flick. Really great characters and locales and I forgot just how comedic it is. So many one-liners! Always feels a little long at the end but worth it to see Boris’ death scene.

Encanto (2021) Late to seeing this and really great! Beautiful and personal and peak musical songs where characters basically ONLY share their personality through song.

……….TELEVISION……….

Ted Lasso (Episode 3.11 to 3.12) I was really dragging my feet about finishing the series as I found season 3 wasn’t as consistently enjoyable to watch. But those last two eps really stuck the landing. Some beats were expected, some were welcome surprises, and there were so many callbacks that were naturally woven in that I was really impressed. Some of the best from the season (and on par with the rest of the series) and I’m really glad I finished it.

……….YOUTUBE……….

Do "gun buybacks" work? by Vox A really succinct breakdown of how the US can do better, and an honest look at why this needs to be a part of a more complex plan. VIDEO

Agnostic TTRPG Prep Method by Map Crow Really fun way to use all the books that you’re not currently using! Watch the vid and then if you like the process you can pick up the bundle HERE (not affiliated, just a fan). VIDEO

The Station Toronto Needs by RMTransit Hey I’m a big fan of trains and I just found this channel. This was my first introduction to them but I’m keen to watch more. More trains! VIDEO

How Editing Creates Comedies That Make You Cry... by The Editing Podcast Another channel I recently came across and I’m keen to watch more. I know very little about editing but am keen to learn more.  VIDEO

……….READING……….

Bullshit Jobs by David Graeber (Page 7 of 285) Clearly I’ve only just started this (thanks to me dragging my feet on The Righteous Mind) but really excited to dig deeper. The prologue is the original essay that inspired the book and that alone already has so much in it! A really great primer and I wasn’t expecting it to lay a lot of the blame at capitalism’s feet so I think it’s gonna be a great read. 

The Righteous Mind: Why Good People are Divided by Politics and Religion by Jonathan Haidt (Complete) The first time I read this (at a time when the COVID-19 vaccine was just coming out and folks were choosing not to get it) the book really helped me understand the reasoning behind other people’s choices. For that it was really helpful. This time around, with more time and more political moves behind us, I find it glaringly obvious just how out of touch (or conservative-leaning) this book is. There’s a whole section about how the free market and capitalism is good for healthcare. Wild stuff. If you want more in-depth reviews explaining why this didn’t sit right with me this time around, I found Storygraph had a lot of great write-ups (also Storygraph is great if you want an alternative to the amazon-owned Goodreads).

Delicious in Dungeon Vol. 12 by Ryoko Kui (Complete) Listen I sing this series’ praises every time I read a volume and this is no different. Somehow the story, setting, and characters grow while still remaining connected to the main theme of “what if we ate the monsters we fought in an RPG?” It’s truly top-tier and I can’t stress enough that if you like charming, funny, expertly-illustrated comics, you should try out this series.

The Fade Out by Ed Brubaker, Sean Phillips, and Elizabeth Dismang (Complete) Really fun read. Old Hollywood murder mystery with a lot of really nuanced characters. The resolution felt a little abrupt and unsatisfying, but without giving anything away I think it was appropriate. I’m also not sure if it was a stylistic choice but all of the women have different shadows than the men. It feels like they’re living in two different worlds but maybe that’s intentional? Still really great.

……….AUDIO……….

PetroDragonic Apocalypse; or, Dawn of Eternal Night: An Annihilation of Planet Earth and the Beginning of Merciless Damnation by King Gizzard (2023) Loved King Giz’s first foray into metal and this continues that trend. I may not love everything that they do, but I love that they do everything that they do.

……….GAMING……….

Oz: A Fantasy Role-Playing Setting (Andrews McMeel Publishing) The Tuesday Crew is currently up against a young dragon (Dragonette) plaguing a mine (recap HERE) while the Mof1 Crew is divided across Munchkin District and each dealing with their own small crisis. They say never split the party but I think the trouble gets way more interesting when you do.

The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom (Nintendo) Finally moving on from this after countless hours spent in this world and it’s all bittersweet. Loved the familiar stuff, loved the new stuff, and loved the overall arc of the game. Hopefully the next game in the series goes back to something smaller and focused.

And that’s it. See you in July!

[married-2-the-music]

K-pop Discography Deep Dives: NCT Dream

A Disclaimer: I was planning, when I first started Tumblr, to be a lurker, but then I began an office job and needed something to listen to to keep myself occupied. And then, I started going through entire K-pop groups’ repertoires, album by album, and jotting down my thoughts. And then, I stumbled into K-pop tumblr and decided, you know what, there’s at least four people on this hell site who would read in depth rants about these discographies and at least five who wouldn’t read it and then get mad because it’s kind of our job as K-pop fans. My lukewarm takes should be taken with an entire silo of salt and the knowledge that this is completely for fun and occupying my very bored, very neurodivergent brain. With that being said, enjoy!

So, we’re talking about NCT Dream today; here are my credentials. I haven’t been interested in them for very long, to be honest. It’s only been since around the beginning / middle of June, when I was recommended their videos. Since then, though, I’ve listened to a decent amount of their songs (mostly title tracks but a few b-sides too), and while I wouldn’t call myself an NCTzen, I would definitely call myself a fan.

They debuted in 2016, at around ages 14-16 (and now, no longer being those ages, I wince internally), with the song Chewing Gum, which I did like. It has a nice mix of hip-hop and singing, but it’s definitely not as much my style as their later work. For obvious reasons, it feels childish, and I’ve never been a fan of sing talk.

The other two songs in their first single “The First”, are My First And Last and Dunk Shot. My First & Last starts out with a surprisingly hard-hitting beat, reminiscent of SHINee, and I liked it a lot more than I expected. Dunk Shot is actually my favorite, continuing the SHINee vibe, which of course I loved, hence the blog name.

What stuck out to me the most in these early songs is how distinctive and honestly great their voices are, even as young as they were. (I know I keep emphasizing age here, but being a celebrity at 14…just let that sink in.) I can almost always tell who’s singing, even not knowing their voices very well.

The voices who stood out the most, though, are probably Mark and Haechan. Haechan’s voice has a great balance of nasality and chest voice, and as a singer myself, I think he has great control. Mark’s is very different from that, but unlike many rappers, I almost always enjoy his parts in the songs; his breaks are good, he has flow, and a good singing voice too. Renjun, Chenle, Jisung, Jeno, and Jaemin have good voices too (especially Renjun’s lower tones, which offer a good contrast)

The next comeback is We Young, which, despite its somewhat silly intro, manages to balance the youthful feeling and their talents well. It feels like a day at the beach or a road trip, and also a bit like Seventeen. Walk You Home is my favorite b-side from the EP, because I’m a sucker for acoustic guitar, but I also love the anthemic nature of Trigger The Fever.

I know I’ve heaped praise on them so far, but as a first year of material, these songs are really good. Unfortunately though, we then get to NCT Empathy 2018, and their song Go, which feels far more like an NCT 127 song than anything to do with Dream…which unfortunately isn’t a good thing. After all the beautiful harmonizing and the floating melodies, the hip hop beat and pop-trap mix feels especially harsh.

We Go Up follows the hip-hop sound that Go established, although the chorus, though less melodic than the other ones before, is alright. The b-sides are also less melodic but better than the title; Dear Dream especially is very sweet and makes me smile, especially the “I’ll be your home”.

Some of their best songs are the nostalgic, feel good, and somewhat understated ones, with a stripped back production that allows the Dreamies’ voices to carry the weight and harmonize together, turning something average into something quite good, like Candle Light, written when Mark left the group due to becoming an adult. (He did return, although not for two years, and his absence is clearly felt; the songs feel a bit less full.)

Fireflies is also sweet; the full chorus is a welcome return to form and it becomes an anthem in its later moments. Boom, meanwhile, returns to the hip-hop sound, and although the choruses are alright, it’s also not close to their best. We Boom (Boom’s album)’s b-sides are also (mostly) not it. They embrace the NCT 127 idea of uncomfortable sing talk and waste their great voices, Stronger especially. Dream Run is pretty good, though.

Ridin’ is not their best, and again I’m reminded that they have so much potential that isn’t being used. The chorus is almost great and usually I can articulate better, but something stops me from liking it more.

Hot Sauce marks….well the return of Mark (sorry), and as happy as I am to hear him bring more balance, I wish he could’ve gotten a better song for that. The sing talking is back in spades and its genuinely grating on the ears, which I never thought I’d say about an NCT Dream song. The b-sides are alright, with All Night Long, Be There For You, and especially Irreplaceable (which feels a lot like old Dream with its bright energy) as some nice hidden gems.

Hello Future is, at last, a title track that reflects the best of NCT Dream: upbeat, hopeful, and optimistic, It’s delightfully odd and a bit off-kilter, and manages to blend hip-hop, straight pop, and even a little bit of the dreaded sing-talk in to make an honestly delightful song, which isn’t an easy talk. Bungee is a great b-side from this album too.

But, of course, this can’t last, and we’re back to the sing-talk with Glitch Mode, which I’ll admit is marginally better than Hot Sauce but still gets on my nerves because it has a pretty good build-up in the pre-chorus, but just no pay off, which is one of my pet peeves, I’ll admit.

The b-sides are all pretty good (barring Fire Alarm), and I especially liked the sleepy warmth of Teddy Bear, the upbeat drive of Better Than Gold, the chill road trip vibes of Drive, and the electro / R & B influences of On The Way. In fact, their b-sides after Hot Sauce are almost all good, and even the ones that don’t end up on my playlist, I don’t usually find myself skipping much.

Candy is a cover of H.O.T., but I really like it. It’s very much a holiday feeling song, which surprisingly I, a certified Christmas cynic, don’t mind. It’s fun and doesn’t take itself too seriously, which is a must with this kind of subject matter.

Graduation isn’t technically a single, but since it has an MV (and because I’m biased but let’s pretend I have a legit reason), I’m treating it as such. In my opinion, it’s one of Dream’s best songs. What could so easily become just another easy listening b-side turns into an honestly lovely ballad with their voices adding sweeps of genuine emotion. Overall, I think that it’s one of their most honest songs, which makes sense if you know the backstory, and it reminds me of my own (quite imminent) graduation, which means I never fail to sing along.

Broken Melodies starts like an understated ballad, but soon spirals into an anthemic song with an earworm of a chorus, a great chorus, and excellent use of their voices, which sound imbued with warmth and better than ever. It’s no wonder that I became a fan after listening to this song.

ISTJ, the actual single from the album, isn’t as good as Broken Melodies, but it’s miles ahead of Hot Sauce and Glitch Mode; the chorus is sprawling and definitely has me tapping my head. I’m not a fan of the intro though. As for the b-sides, Blue Wave has a nice beachside beat, but my favorite is Like We Just Met, which was written by the band members themselves, and feels like a warm hug or a walk by the water.

Overall, again I’m super glad I did this. I’ve added a lot of b-sides and early songs of theirs to my playlists and gained a whole new respect for the members’ voices. I think after my deep dive, I can consider myself an NCTzen, at least of NCT Dream, although that doesn’t extend to the other subunits yet.

So my top five songs by NCT Dream are Graduation, Broken Melodies, Fireflies, Hello Future, and Trigger The Fever / Dunk Shot (because I couldn’t choose). Overall, NCT Dream gets an 8.5/10 from me, because they are pretty good most of the time but when they lean into the sing talk…well, I don’t need to repeat myself. I do really enjoy the greater part of their discography though, and when they stick to their strengths, they’re hard to beat.

See you next time for a girl group!

[treeba-rk]

Yh i agree about people s obsession with new duos. And don t get me wrong, sometimes new and unexpected duos are great, i m talking to the treebark burner account! Ranchers were also great, and totally out of nowhere. But i think people are a bit too obsessed with 1 creating new duos and names in order to portray new narratives and theories and 2 making every close relationship romantic or familiar, as if close friendships, qprs or just good ol' rivalries did not exist 3 ignoring female ccs, even more so when it gets in the middle of a ship (this happens with women in every single piece of media btw).

Male-female friendships (or ships) are often ignored bc i feel a lot of fans feel as if these fanon relationships are somehow more "real" and not roleplay bc they are a "straight couple" (c'mon people, most of us are queer what are you doing with this mentality?), and are more likely to assume you ship the creators and not the characters, or worst, to actually assume the ccs are together irl (which was the reason some female ccs were against shipping in the 1st place). Re: this point, I will give an special mention to bee duo though, the fans really assumed they liked each other irl, which was very creepy considering they were underage at the time.

F/F ships are also often snubbed, although lately i ve seen them become a lot more popular, such as nature wives and more recently Gem & Pearl (ik the ship has a name, but i ve decided to ignore it bc we are better than that), which has been satisfactory to see. Still a long way to go though.

Hope i have explained myself correctly 👉👈 english s not my 1st language so i m kind of nervous about dping such a long post about such a complex issue. Feel free to correct me

no you're all good! thanks for the ask 🫶

also sorry to anyone who's here for tree bark only bc this acc is basically my alt now lmaoo (due to me keeping anon off on main)

you're right that ppl want to create new duos and narratives but sometimes... those ppl aren't that close. or had three interactions in a series. that isn't to say they're not friends or friends can't become close in a short amount of time. but the fandomisation and trying to come up with an incomprehensible name instead of saying their names is kinda ?? to me personally. not that's bad, it's just... i don't really get why you won't use their names. especially when it's not a long established group that frequently collabs.

you're so right about male-female friendships and especially in this fandom. i feel like m/f shipping in this sphere (outside of the obvious lizzie/joel) is seen as taboo bc it could leak into m/f irl shipping. at least that's why i was squicked out for like two years. esp bc m/f irl shipping was / is a problem (for example, i still see ppl asking in their public yt comments if stress and iskall are together. during hc2 people thought mumbo and false were dating when he was like 17 and she was in her early twenties and it's just fucking weird to truth in people's comments).

(unrelated to this discussion but i will always be salty that the antihcshippers never bring up the point of REAL AND ANNOYING M/F IRL SHIPPING IN COMMENTS and instead bully scar/grian shippers on twitter or whatever. really shows that they never cared about cc's "boundaries" or feelings and just want that fandom moral superiority. quick have you been to comment sections of eps posted by the women in like 2017. have you seen the random twitch chatters.)

the fanon side of m-f friendships/ships in hc is interesting bc pre gem and pearl, the three women had their "designated guy bestie that they always collab with" and it's quite obvious who: stress-iskall, cleo-joe, false-ren (to a lesser extent cub). former two are basically the only prominent m/f ships (iskall in particular plays into it). i had talked to ppl in dms about why false/ren isn't prominent and my main theory is what i call the yaoi shield bc ren is shipped with a lot of men LMFAO (also something something about ren/iskall and false/stress being complements to avoid the "boring" m/f shipping).

but i still wish m-f friendships get more recognition 😔 like if you're not shipping them in the character sense, there's no risk of being seen as irl shipping, so technically it's no different from same gender friendships, right? 🤡 and i do not like the instant "siblingification" to create a fanon familiar bond to avoid shipping. like sometimes it works. a lot of the time it doesn't. people can just be friends. and they all are actually friends.

ok, more of a tangent here, but dug up an old ass convo from 2021 in which there was a point like "sometimes romantic relationships can happen between ccs and it is definitely more feasible than ccs becoming family via marriage/adoption" and i said "so technically 'shipping hcs' are less weird than 'same family hcs'. hm". soooo 🤡🤡🤡 it's totally fine if you don't wanna ship, but it is also TOTALLY fine to keep them as friends instead of siblings / family hcs. i think this fandom has enough awareness now to know you mean friends when you portray them as friends.

i'm happy to see more yuri bc yuri is almost always the least popular in fandoms. but i think m/m and f/f also has the vibes of "less likely to be perceived as irl shipping so we can go wild" while m/f character shipping is still treated with caution? and people really don't want ccs to misinterpret it as irl shipping? tbh i feel like the modern day fandom has gone into "god forbid a man and a woman are friends" that m/f is seen as the "boring" "cop-out" and it goes all the way around. like yeah sometimes it's boring. but not the point of it being nonexistent lmfao like m/f could be funnnnn!!!!!! and they can be queer too!! bi4bi, t4t!!!! or they can just be hetero idk!!

anyways. as a m&f / m/f main i have Thoughts. but yeah 👍

[wings-of-flying]

finished lockwood & co! thoughts time!!

the more comprehensible ones first. the visual direction on this show is fucking genius!! some highlights include: lockwood's outfit (i want that coat), actually being able to see shit during the nighttime scenes, the design of the house, the choice to make lucy wear blue all the time, the stupid little uniforms that kipps and his guys wear, the design of the ghosts, the dream sequence in like episode 2 (?), the red room, etc.

also i called joplin being bad from the second she opened her mouth, i think it was the music that clued me in. hate her. the show did a great job making me extremely uncomfortable when she was around.

i love lockwood. asshole in a suit, and he's got trauma that causes him to be cold and arrogant and distant? sign me the fuck up! he looks good with his own blood running down his face (and i can say that bc his actor is 20)

i knew norrie was gonna die (or something similar) the moment they started talking about future plans in ep 1. still broke me when it happened. the 3 years earlier sequence was probably the most intense introduction to what i thought was gonna be a somewhat typical ya tv show i've ever seen

love that the show doesn't pretend to be self aware, and in fact leans into a lot of tropes and clichés bc it works! if they were too afraid to be seen as too cheesy it would've ruined the whole show, so i'm really glad they weren't

flo <3

i really like the writing. it felt very natural to go from one arc to another, the characters felt tangible, their actions completely within reason for who they are and what they've been through. could've fleshed out winkman (?) a little. he felt a little flat, though maybe he'll make a comeback in another season

they're fucking children. this whole world is fucked. they make children fight fucking ghosts. fucked up world. hope that if they make more seasons this will be addressed in depth. they hinted at it here and there, but i need them to have a full a-plot conflict about it. i haven't read the books but i'm assuming this is a thing that happens in them (and if not they really fumbled the bag)

sorry thinking about flo again.....

thinking about lockwood again. he needs to be bashed in the skull with a 2x4. maybe that'll make him normal. i love him <3

god george reminds me of michael from be more chill. no clue if you've seen it, or listened to the soundtrack, but they're the same person

since we're on the topic of george, that guy is so fucking autistic holy shit! so is flo. autistic in two different directions

i'll probably have more thoughts in a few days, once i've allowed myself to process the show in it's entirety. meanwhile enjoy... whatever this is :3

yessss!!!! so glad you enjoyed it, i'm literally so insane about it at the moment!

all the stuff about the costumes and set design and lighting is just like!!! hell yeah!! we can actually see at night, which is great because that's when the majority of it's set

the characters are all so so great and i love them and they have so much depth and interesting things about them!!! have you picked up on lockwood's socks yet? they start off pink and then as the series progresses they go to blue to match with lucy!!!

and the world building!!!!! you've probably gathered by now that i'm a sucker for good world building and this show!!!!!! has it!!!!! i really fuckin hope we get another season so we can see more of it (but also i'm gonna read the books soon so i'll know if the shit's all addressed)

george is so so autistic. and i get what you mean about flo, very true tbh

how did you feel about the slow burn romance? because i'm obsessed with it! how their hands always touch for a little too long etc

also i can fix kipps. yep. i can make him better. he grew on me towards the end and now i love him. pathetic man. falls exactly in my type

AND YES!! the intro shit was so!!!!! it was just!!! ahhh!!! norrie and lucy 100% had some gay shit going on. and it was so tragic and ajaavqghshshshs

the skull!!! i love/hate it! it's just so funny and silly and evil and manipulative!

and yeah with joplin i had a feeling from when she started talking with george. i was literally calling out 'grooming! grooming moment!' whenever she was with george. and the ending with the bone glass!!!! omg i went insane!

the winkman shit was terrifying, especially the auction. literally gave me goosebumps. but it was all worth it for the locklyle scene with lucy calming him down when he had a panic attack!

anyway as you can tell i'm not normal about this show

[anukulee]

Choices

A/N: As you can see I got inspired by pov: you are hiding among humans using a modern name(y/n)but Loki recognized you and Kingdoms at war || EP:01 || POV Loki x y/n. I choose to take some of the best things about them and change them up. So with that in mind, get ready for the young and cunning goddess OC, whose name may be based on Athena's daughter in Percy Jackson. 

Loki Odinson was a god with many plans, for whenever things looked like they wouldn't work out for him, he would switch tactics. To him, switching tactics ensured that he was never caught, and he could continue doing as he pleased. He would be lying if he said stabbing Thor in unique, yet obvious ways didn't amuse him greatly. Considering it a playful part of their brotherly nature, as Loki never hit anywhere he knew Thor wouldn't quickly recover from. Yet what Loki was about to do would be far different than his usual tactics, and more traitorous than anything even he could imagine. But it had to be done, through Loki loved Thor dearly, he knew if Thor was on the throne things wouldn't end well. For while his Thor had always been gifted in the field of combat, and knew a decent amount of strategy. Thor preferred to go in and figure things out as he went. Something he knew wouldn't work as well if Thor ever became king. None of it helped by the fact that their father Odin was no different, he preferred to conquer, and only peace talk as a last result. Loki knew if things continued this way the nine realms might be in pieces before Thor could even gain the throne. He had heard the word of conflict stirring on all sides even amongst the allies and not just in Jotunheim. Through Jotunheim was as of now the most pressing issue, for frost giants weren't one to wait once stirred something Odin did almost every time despite Loki's protests. It was for this very reason that Loki set to change everything, for soon Odin will fail whether it be through peaceful matters or not. Loki didn't particularly care, for as long as he got the throne and the nine realms would remain in one piece that is what mattered to Loki as Loki waited for her to arrive.

Her being Annabeth Chaser goddess of trickery and wisdom. Though she was at least 50 years younger than Loki. Yet despite her younger age, she was still said to have been wise even though she was young. As it was even rumored she was the daughter of the greek god Athena, though if so Loki wondered why Athena would've been so far rather than reside in Midgard. Something he didn't particularly voice, not wanting to anger the gods, as tensions were already high not helped by Odin. Yet from what he had heard Annabeth didn't seem particularly favor Odin something that Loki was very much into and the very reason Loki had gone much searching to narrow down her location. Not to mention why Loki was standing near a deserted beach somewhere in Midgard, where Heimdall couldn't see him, and was wearing full Asgardian armor. As he awaited his soon-to-be visitor, he figured she wouldn't wait long to come to him as long as he played his cards right.

The first thing he felt was a change in the wind and a sense that someone was watching him. Upon feeling this Loki let a small smile begin to tug on his lips. Looks like she's here, let the games begin he thought. "There is no need for you to hide, for I already know you are watching me." There was no reply to this declaration so Loki choose to say something else. "You think you can hide from me? When I can already see you."

 "Oh can you," a voice called out.

 Perfect Loki thought as he opened his mouth to say his next words. "I can my dear, for someone such as yourself you should work on your sneaking tactics."

 "Really how can you see through my spell?"

"I never said spell, you were the one who said that."

 "Oh?"

 "Yes, because all I knew was you were here somewhere, you could've been hiding in the trees for all I could've known."

 "I see well then I suppose there is no use in hiding if you can already see me."

 "I suppose so."

 At this Loki soon found himself faced with a goddess with hair as golden as a halo that the Midgardians claim adores angels, eyes as cloudy as the grayest of days, and she wore her own set of formal attire. "You are quite clever aren't you?"

 "Well, you did fall for my bluff."

 "I did, didn't I?"

 "Indeed you did ha ha," Loki said with a grin directed toward Annabeth.

 "Now would you enlighten me on who you are?”

 “Me,” Loki asked pointing a finger at himself as if he was confused.

 “Yes, who else?”

 “I see through may I ask why you might want to know my name?”

 “Well, I would like to be enlightened on the name of the man who managed to lie to me."

 "Perhaps, but first I would like something."

 "Oh, and what might that be?"

 "Your name."

 "Nice try, but I am afraid I won't be playing that game."

 "What game," Loki asked facing innocence.

 "The game where we pretend we don't already know each other names."

 "Who says we do know each other names? Considering you have yet to tell me your name."

 "I could say the same to you."

 "No need to be modest. I know you aren't mortal."

 "You do?"

 "A mere mortal wouldn't be able to sneak up on someone like me."

 "Mere mortal?"

 "Yes."

 "So are you saying that you aren't a mortal?"

 "I am afraid not my lady and this means the likes of them wouldn't be able to sneak up on one such as me."

 "Is that so."

 "Yes and with that in mind that can only make you a goddess or Asgardian."

 "If you know so much then feel free to enlighten me."

 "Gladly I know you aren't Asgardian for Heimdell would never allow one to sneak by without Odin knowing."

 "And you can?"

 "I have my ways. My lady or should I call you Annabeth goddess of trickery and wisdom? Rumored daughter of Athena. Said to be almost unmatched in both mind and wit, badass in the arena, princess of the best strategies we've seen, and most of all not a fan of Odin."

 "I see. So you know who I am."

 At this Loki let out a smile as he had something else to voice. "Just as I am guessing you know who I am."

 "Do I, mysterious man or should I say Loki Odinson?"

 "So you know."

 "But of course, it only took me mere moments to figure it out. I have only heard rumors of you."

 "I see."

 "Through it makes me wonder why you the god of mischief, lies, and second son of Odin would be here to see me."

 "I believe we have a mutual goal."

 "Oh, will you care to enlighten me on such a matter?"

”Here I thought you were clever my dear perhaps I have overestimated you.”

 “Or maybe I would rather hear it from you.”

 “If you wish it then I suppose I shall reveal my reasons for coming.”

 “Good.”

 “Now you have a distaste for my father do you not?"

 "I will not speak ill of Odin, especially in front of his son, but I will say I am not his biggest fan. Though I don't see what that has to do with me."

 "Simply my lady, I require your assistance on a matter."

 "Oh, and what would that be?"

 "To ensure the nine realms hold up despite my father's ruling and instance that my older brother be protector and king."

 "And you don't want that do you young Odinson?"

 "You speak as if you are older than me."

 "Aren’t I," Annabeth asked her brow going up as if she was trying to see what Loki would say.

 "No, though you aren't much younger than me."

 "Correct. So you are the son of Odin."

 "Not by choice."

 "Seeing as you are here I hope you intend to try and show me why I should take your offer?"

 "Simple you wish for Odin not to be ruler, and I wish the same."

 "And if he isn't who shall take the throne?"

 "Me of course."

 "You think you can do it?"

 "Not alone of course."

 "Is that so? Then who would you choose," Annabeth asked getting more curious about what he meant. Not knowing she was playing into Loki's hands.

 "You of course."

 "Me?"

 "Not one of those royals?"

"No, you would be far better as a queen."

 "Would I?"

 "You would."

 "So none of those young maidens or perhaps young men interest you?"

 "I'm afraid they prefer my brother over the likes of me. I am the trickster god after all," Loki said with a hand gesture before walking around Annabeth.

 "I see, but how will I know you are loyal to me? You are after all like me a trickster."

 "I will do whatever you wish for me to prove my loyalty."

At this, a small smile began to grace Annabeth's lips. "Say I believe you. If you are so loyal then you should have no problem kneeling for me."

She is interesting, how fun this shall be he thought. "As you wish my darling," Loki said as he got down and kneeled before her.

 "Well then I suppose we might have an alliance, but..."

 "But what?"

 "I want you to swear loyalty to me and only me."

 "Is that all you wish?"

 "Yes and ensure that you won't betray me."

 "If that is what you want then you shall have it," Loki said before taking another knee and taking Annabeth's hands into his. "Annabeth, soon to be the queen of the nine realms and Asgard, I swear to you on this day my undying fidelity to you and only you." As he stood up slowly, but not without leaving a kiss on her hand. "Is that all you wish my darling?"

 "Pet names already?"

 "You are to be my wife if things work out are you not?"

 "Yes."

 "Then I see no problem with this. As it is a way to prepare for our future."

 "Oh, you think I would fall for you?"

 "Who says you haven't already?"

 "Confidence aren't you?"

 "I am nothing, but confident especially around you my dear." 

"I see."

 "So what do you say my darling, partners in both love and loyalty," he said offering his hand in a shake.

 "I suppose so. Though don't get confident on the lover's part," Annabeth said taking the shake despite her thoughts telling her not to. Though she did pull him close as her mouth hovered near his ear. "If you betray me, son of Odinson trust that you will pay."

 "I have no doubt darling, so shall we?"

 "Fine, tell me your plan Odinson."

 "Loki please consider what we are about to go through. Not to mention what we might be one day."

 "Fine, but betray me and I will..."

 "Kill me, trust me you wouldn't be the first one to say that."

 "I wouldn't expect any less from you."

 "Nor you my darling, now as for my plan this is only the beginning though I think," Loki said before he started to explain. Something that Annabeth listened to closely. Little did both of them know at the time that this would only be the start of their partnership both in love and loyalty. Through those are stories for another universe, through know that despite everything that happens and Loki's tendency for betrayal, he never betrayed her, for as long as he was together with her everything else would fall in their wake, and that was all that mattered to him and her as time would soon reveal. But as mentioned before those are tales for another universe, through together Annabeth and Loki were forces to be feared as king and queen of the nine realms, and that is all that matters at least right now.

A/N: I was trying to think of a name for a goddess of wisdom and I thought why not use Annabeth and play into Athena? I didn't want to use Athena because as far as I know, she doesn't particular show much romantic interest in men. So I thought I shouldn't force her to. Thus why I made Annabeth her perhaps daughter though she is younger than Loki she is just as wise. Can you blame her considering her mother? I will say that the greek and Norse gods are present. Seeing as in Thor's Love and Thunder Zesus made his appearance. In my idea, they reside different areas, Norse takes the US and some other countries, while Zesus mostly take Europe countries. Asia I think would be neutral and both sides can be there so yeah that was just my thought process seeing as I used two edits to write this.  Through a peak into Loki's and Annabeth's future, she will eventually fall for him, though it will take much time and planning. Loki will succeed in overthrowing Odin especially when it is found out Odin stole a child and a whole lot of other things. The people not caring as long as it's not Odin or Hela. So yeah that isn't to say it wasn't long and fought. I think the avengers will still assemble perhaps with Loki visiting Earth for a little break thinking he and Annabeth won't be seen. But Odin being the man he is like Loki is trying to invade, and all of that. But let us just say it might not play out like it did in the movies. Especially when Odin might take Odin to sleep after Loki finds out he is adopted and talks things out. Thor will either back down or has no interest in the throne more forced on him than anything. Though I will say Hela will come but it won't be as bad as Ragnork. So yeah that is what happens and with that in mind, I hope you all enjoyed this little one-shot. I bid you all farewell until my next shot. 

[kuwupikaa]

Tagged by @applescabs thankyouu <3

Are you named after anyone?

No, I'm told my parents thought really long about my name until my mom woke up in the middle of the night and suddenly just knew.

When was the last time you cried?

Yesterday lmao, after finishing gankutsuou. (And saturday after watching an ep of gankutsuou, and last wednesday when I went to see the Aida musical...)

Do you have kids?

Nope, maybe someday maybe not.

Do you use sarcasm a lot?

Not really, when I'm in a certain mood with friends then yes but otherwise I just say what I mean.

What sports do you play?

I have a horse so horseriding, aside from that I don't really do sports. I used to do sailing until I was 16, and now I do it ocassionally with a friend or with my dad, and I used to do streetdance when I was little. I do love to hike though! Always loved the adventurous vacations my parents used to take me n my siblings on and we'd go for hikes through forests and mountains, I'd love to do that again sometime.

What's the first thing you notice about people?

I'm not sure actually, the way people talk maybe? I often pay attention to eye color as well for some reason.

What's your eye color?

Brown, a little darker than my dad and a little lighter than my brother :)

Scary movies or happy endings?

Both? I like all kinds of movies. Though I never watch scary movies alone lmao no fun in getting scared if you can't laugh about it with someone else. Happy endings always make me very emotional, especially if it's done well. Tho endings in general are pretty emotional to me, no matter if it's happy or not.

Any special talents?

Remembering song lyrics! If there's a song that I, anywhere in my life, knew completely, there's a big chance I still do. I learn pretty quick too, considering I memorized a song from the aida musical last week in like. 3 days. (I do have to mention those were a few days of non stop listening to it)

Where were you born?

Netherlands! Specifically a very small town in north Holland, all the way at the top of the province. It's located above sea level on what used to be an island up until about 200 years ago, and now that I've moved out I live in a different small town on that same island (like 3 km from my parents house).

What are your hobbies?

Drawing, reading, listening to music and picking out background instruments, playing piano (tho I don't do it so often anymore), watching anime, playing games (esp totk and genshin atm) and I really enjoy being outside with my dog or my horse or just being in nature in general.

Do you have any pets?

My sweet puppy hannah (she's 5 and huge but still forever a puppy), my cats samson and gert (named after a belgium tv show for kids) and me and my sister have two horses named mira and april. Mira is almost 24 and deep deep inside really sweet but can be kinda mean on the outside and april is almost 13 and loves cuddling :). I'm almost everyday at my parents house so I think those pets count too, so there's billie and borre (two dogs), kebab and bobbie (sheep), scooby (cat who is 10? Older? Idk) and the 5 chickens who don't really have names so we just call them "the chickies". Also Teddie's cat tijger is staying with me atm and he's a cutie :).

How tall are you?

1 meter 68, which I'm totally fine with. Tho it is a little weird that my little brother who's 7 years younger is taller than me now.

Favorite subject in school?

I didn't really have one tbh, but if I had to choose probably english? That one was the easiest for me so I didn't mind it.

Dream job?

My dream is to live on a small farm consisting of a little house with some property around it for my animals, and to spend my days doing my silly hobbies and spending a lot of time outside walking my dog or riding my horse. So whatever job I can do that makes enough money and enough free time :) I'd pass away before working a fulltime job tbh. I'm studying rn so maybe I can set smth up for myself once I have my diploma, but idk yet.

Whoever wants to do this too consider yourself tagged!!

[sarah-yyy]

Hi, jiejie! What is this Cherry Magic show and where can I watch it with subs?

alright alright it’s been awhile since the last proper rec post, and i think if any show calls for it, it would be cherry magic, so. idec that i’m late to the party, and everyone’s probably already seen this, just. if you haven’t, please watch it.

links first so i don’t forget after screaming about why y’all should watch this: modern jdrama // eng subs (all 12 eps + 1 special; approx. 25 mins each)

long story short so you can immediately get your serotonin shot instead of having to read this post: cute virgin who thinks himself unloveable gets mind-reading powers on his 30th birthday, and lands himself a cute coworker boyfriend (who! has! been! pining! after! him! for! years!) after some Panic. that’s it! that’s the story!! 

(OH and before i forget, i feel y’all’ve got to be prepared for this, because i definitely wasn’t and i SCREECHED when it happened: THERE IS A FOREHEAD!! KISS!!! SCENE!!!!! i lost like 5 years of my life from that tbh. also: 摸头杀 + 公主抱 + 英雄救美 scenes involved in this show. i can’t believe this show just gave me every single thing i wanted in life just like that)

this sweet boy is adachi! has some serious self-esteem/anxiety issues, but is so nice and so sweet!! he works hard!! and does his best!!! 

this babe has never dated/slept with anyone in his life, and wakes up on his 30th birthday with the ability to read the minds of people he touches!! he has a whole freakout about it (valid), but eventually decides the way to deal with it is to avoid touching people (babe), so he starts going to work early to avoid crowds.

he accidentally finds out through his mind-reading powers that his colleague kurosawa has a crush on him one day!! the whole scene in the elevator was so fucking cute omg kurosawa was going !!!!!! in his head about being so lucky to see his crush so early in the morning, and adachi was going lmao he has a crush on one of our coworkers, i wonder who-

you, babe. it’s you.

this also very sweet boy is kurosawa, the ace of the sales department, well-liked by everyone in the office because he’s So Nice. friendly heads up that his smiles are Lethal and will inflict Serious Damage. i recommend y’all have emergency services on speed dial while you’re watching, just in case.

ANYWAY kurosawa has secretly liked adachi for a few years! he observes adachi silently, notices the things he does and the things he likes, but has never made a move on him because he doesn’t think adachi likes guys. HE’S JUST. my god. the nicest person in the world. also the cutest. like adachi slept over at his place for ~reasons one night, and he was literally losing it at how cute adachi looked and couldn’t calm himself down enough to go to bed. 

he has very cute daydreams about being domestic with adachi and it’s just all so wholesome i almost went feral at so many points. when they get to crash at each other’s place, kurosawa cooks for adachi and he always looks so blissed out whenever adachi enjoys it, like: I DID A THING FOR ADACHI AND HE LIKES IT!!!!!!

the progression of their relationship is so good and so natural!! every episode made me yell because of how cute the both of them were being, and GOD!!!! kurosawa’s pining will Get You at so many points, he’s so heartfelt and earnest about his feelings for adachi, even if it’s just inside his head sometimes, and he wants so much to make adachi happy and give him everything he wants, even if he thinks he might not be what adachi wants. and adachi slowly getting over the mortifying ordeal of being known, and making friends! and falling in love!! and trying new things!!! was so, so sweet ahhhh. his character growth was so well done my god, i want to cry just thinking about it

ANYWAY just please watch cherry magic!! it’s a relatively short series, compared to what i usually watch, and very, very easy to start and finish. there will be some parts *cough ep 11 cough* that will make you :((( but overall? MAXIMUM SEROTONIN GUARANTEED. 

[feltpool]

“Five Are All That Remain”

Nala Se to Tarkin. TBB Ep 1

This is a line with so much potential, but it’s small and throwaway and very easily glossed past.

But when we saw Nala Se’s secret lab there were a whole bunch of tubes in there, not just 4 (because Omega was created before the others). That implies a larger scale of production, and we didn't see the whole room to be able to gauge just how many enhanced clones could have been worked on at any given time.

Look at the scale of operations the Kaminoans are working with. Millions of clones are being churned out of a bright and shiny production line on a constant basis.

There could have been hundreds or thousands of 'defective' clones put through the enhancement process. And we only have the Kaminoans word for it that they were defective in the first place, rather than them just sidelining random candidates for their next big experiment because they needed test subjects.

What even counts as a defect to be exploited? Red hair? Green eyes? the suggestion of the development of slightly different than standard hearing? What?

Telling the clones that their naturally occurring defects were enhanced is a very convincing sounding line.  It isn't like they'd have a reason not to believe anything the Kams tell them, so why wouldn’t they accept that they were filtered out because they were defective to start with?

And we have no clue of what the enhancement process actually involved.

Let alone how many survived it.

.

When Azi-3 approaches them in the med bay and apologetically informs them that they’re defective clones that’s a statement of what they currently register as, not what they were before the enhancement process was inflicted upon them.

.

Okay... what else?

Wrecker: I don't get it. What's so special about this lab? Omega: It's where I was created. Tech: Here? Omega: You all were here too. Tech: What do you mean? Omega: Your mutations were enhanced in this room. Experimental Unit 99 began right here. I was there.

.

Omega: It was only for a short time, before you were sent to be with the other clones.

Omega says they were once there, in the secret lab where she was created.

But she doesn’t say that they were created in that lab, only that their mutations were enhanced there. (Is that the same thing or not?)

She doesn't say the boys were all there at the same time, or that they all come from the same production batch. She gives them as little information as possible, just like she always does.

She tells them that they were taken away and put with the other clones

She doesn't say they were mixed in with the 'regs', just ‘the other clones’

So... the other enhanced clones?

Because being taken away and trained solely with a group of other ‘special’ clones could explain a lot of the Batch's attitude towards the ‘regs’. Could explain why they seem so sure that they’re superior to them, even though they appear to have spent very little time around them.

They didn’t just wake up one day thinking they were better than everybody else, they had to be taught that.

.

In Ep 16 Omega says:

“I spent most of my life in this lab I was alone down here, until you four were created. That’s why I was determined to find you all again.”

But this doesn’t clear anything up either. It doesn’t say if they were all enhanced at the same time, or if they were four among 20,000+ test subjects.

She’s trying to persuade Crosshair to come with them at this point so she’s hardly about to say ‘since you’re all that’s left from the enhanced clone project I’ll make do with what I can still get my hands on’, is she?

Together forever?

We assume that the Bad Batch boys have always been together, but we have no basis for thinking that, and they’re certainly not out there calling each other brother, or acting like they care about each other.

No one has ever said that they've always been together as a team - we (the fandom) just assume that for some reason. Even though that's not how the military generally works.

If “five are all that remain” just how many members did Experimental Unit 99 start out with?  How many different sub teams and squads might there have been in the beginning?

Look at Tech for a moment. How long has he been with the Batch? Has he always been a part of that squad, or has he only been with them for slightly longer than Echo?

He doesn't always seem to be comfortable within the team, but shows no hesitation when in combat or flight. There are times when he looks to the others before participating, he lingers in the back of the group, and buries himself in his datapad.

He and Echo don't fit in with the others visually They both have significant armour differences to everyone else. We gloss past Echo's differences because we know he's new-ish to the team, and that some of his armour is held over from the set he had at the end of TCW. But overall, he’s made his look a lot more like the other three team member’s than Tech has.

So why is Tech’s so different to everyone else’s?

Other clones paint their armour to reflect the team they’re a part of, and yes, Tech has added the CF99 logo to his armour, and has some red paint in matching places, but it’s still a very different colour and style to anyone else’s. Not to mention the leather details no one else has, or that he has a totally different skull logo on the helmet/headphones.

But why is his so different if he’s always been a member of that team?

Especially since Hunter, Wrecker and Crosshair all have very similar armour, both in style and in colour.

And, since we’re already looking at this anyway, just how long have Hunter, Crosshair and Wrecker been in the same squad?

So where’s Tech’s (theoretical) old team now?

Well, in addition to the fact that there’s a war on and not everyone comes home at the end of the mission, Wrecker complains that they always get shot down when they work with ‘regs’, and Cody is the only person we directly know of who’s worked with CF99 and come back for more.

Which makes me wonder how many 'regs' they’ve worked with previously who actually lived long enough to be able to tell tales about it afterwards.

Compare Jesse and Kix talking about the Batch:

Jesse: I've heard mixed things about these guys. Kix: They have a 100% success rate. Jesse: It's not that they win, it's how they win that worries me."

With Fives and Rex discussing Krell on Umbara:

Rex: Krell may do things differently, but he is effective in getting them done. He's a recognized war hero. Fives: He may have had some victories, but have you seen his casualty numbers?  More troopers have been killed under his command than anyone else! Rex: That's the price of war, Fives.

You can't tell me that that those conversations don't sound disturbingly similar.

And as for the way the team tend to rush in and worry about the consequences later?

Tarkin: These are rather unusual tactics. Lama Su: The clones of experimental Unit 99 have a tendency to veer from standard combat protocol.

Well, is ‘five are all that remain’ really any kind of surprise?