#glad i saved him for last cause wow

[solomons-poison]

Oh so we goin full yandere huh?

[coolshadowtwins]

PIDW!YQY goes back in time to his disciple days after he dies. He’s alone and upset, and determined to do things right this time. He won’t take a sword too early, but he will still rush to go save SJ because that has to fix something, right?

At least this time he already knows how to read and write, and the basics of cultivating. Everyone is heralding him as a prodigy, and as soon as his child body is ready, he’s taking a sword to go save SJ.

Except there is one other thing he needs to do. He can leave most of his future sect siblings alone to do their thing, and catch up with them later. There’s no point in interfering with something that doesn’t need his help. But! That slimy traitor Shang Qinghua!

He caused so many problems for them. YQY did not want him as a head disciple of An Ding, or as the peak lord, so he goes to do something about it.

Only… Did SQH always act like that? Was he always so nervous? YQY watched him almost cry as an older disciple shoved work onto him, instead of glaring and backstabbing them later. What had happened to him over the years?

What is actually happening is that YQY had known OG!SQH and this is Airplane. Completely different people! But YQY doesn’t know that, and can only assume that SQH betrayed the sect after years and years of hardship! And YQY is selfish, and very SJ focused, but even he isn’t so much of a hypocrite as to condemn SQH for something he wouldn’t condemn SJ for.

So he goes and befriends him. Mostly to keep an eye on him, and to stop him from being a traitor, but still. Meanwhile, SQH is shocked and confused why the future sect leader is even talking to him?? And what to be his friend?? He didn’t really have much of those, and maybe he liked the company, but he knew what was to happen! What was the point in getting close to YQY only to watch him suffer?

Wow, screw that. SQH pulls some strings and goes up to YQY one day and says, “Wow! Look! A mission, for us, two young disciples without swords, days away! Won’t this be fun?!”

YQY stared at the mission sheet, which looks entirely authentic, blankly. It takes them right to the town that he had left SJ in. “Where did you get this?”

“My Shizun.”

“….”

“….your Shizun?”

“…”

“Uhg, find. I might have forged it. For a vacation? It’ll be fun.”

It was not fun. But they got SJ back and ran for it and made it back to the sect in good time. Their shizun’s were upset, but they couldn’t find a way that the mission could have been forged because it was that good. YQY was suddenly glad to have SQH on his side, and is now completely convinced that he had seer powers.

Maybe that was why he joined the demons last time? Years of abuse at the sect, and knowledge that demons would win? YQY hates it, but is only more determined to keep SQH as a friend. He starts laying hints that if SQH ever meets a demon, that YQY would like to know about it! He’ll be less made if he was told, as opposed to finding out later, promise!

SJ, for his part, can tell what YQY is doing to a point. He’s just glad that YQY has actually started manipulating people to his advantage. His Qi-Ge is really growning up.

Don’t ask me what happens what SQH does come up to YQY to tell him about MBJ. I haven’t thought that far lol

[itsscromp]

Could I ask for Jason with a kid reader who sort of just follows him around when he's on patrol? And the reason why is because he saved their sister once and so they're grateful and are building up the courage to give him a gift! Something like a drawing

Jason Todd/Red Hood x reader

OOOOOH an interesting idea anon, Honestly I've been itching to write some more Jason again so I thank you for helping me :D. Word count:746

You've had it in your pocket for almost two weeks now, You needed to find him. He had to be around here somewhere. The story is, Red Hood saved your sister who worked in the diner when it was getting raided by some of the freaks gang. He took them all out so fast, Your sister seeing the whole thing and told you.

You had to do something to thank him, so you decided to make him a drawing of the whole fight, Including a few of your own twists with it like adding "Just another day of kicking butt in Gotham" as a comic bubble for red hood.

But now was the bigger issue of finding him, You didn't know where he was. He was always on the move trying to find the next bit of trouble. So every night for the next two weeks. You got out on your bike and tried to find him.

"He's gotta be here I know it" You said to yourself as you stared at your drawing one last time, you then got on your bike and rode through Gotham City.

Reaching the Financial district, you saw more freaks as they were causing destruction and mayhem. You tried to ride away but one then saw you as you tried to get away.

"Stop the kid !!!!" They shouted as you tried to pedal faster, but their brute then stopped you dead in your tracks, knocking you off your bike.

"Please don't hurt me !!" You pleaded them.

"This ain't gonna cut it, kid. Hand over everything you got !!!" They picked you up by your collar and stared at you menacingly.

"Let the kid go !!!" A voice said in the distance.

"Oh crap it's red hood !!"

You saw him as he approached the brute, he was here to save you.

"Don't worry kid your safe now" He reassured you as he then looked at the brute.

"I ain't gonna repeat it muscle head, let the kid go !!"

He smirked as he then dropped you and turned to red hood.

"Oh yeah ??, what are you gonna do about it dumb hood ??" He then charged at him while he quickly dodged him and shot him with his non-lethal bullet.

It turned into a huge brawl as you ran for safety, Watching on as you saw Red Hood kicking the freak's asses, Wow he was amazing at fighting. He fought them all off like it was nothing, Probably not even breaking a sweat.

When it was all over, All of them defeated, He looked around, Hoping you were safe. "Kid ?? Where are you ??" He looked for you worriedly.

You then slowly emerged as you went up to him. "I'm ok... Thank you"

"What were you doing here on your own ??, It's too dangerous to be out here"

"I... I was looking for you for the past two weeks" you looked at the ground sheepishly.

He tilted his head slightly in confusion. "Why were you looking for me ??"

"You saved my sister at the Gotham Diner two weeks ago, She told me how you saved her and fought off the freaks, I... I wanted to give you something to thank you."

He walked up to you and kneeled to your height as you pulled out of your pocket the drawing. He unfolded and saw your amazing creation, The eyes on his mask creasing, Indicating he was smiling under it.

"Looks like we got ourselves a little Gotham Picasso, What's your name kid ??"

"Y/n, My sister's name was S/n"

"Yeah, I remember S/n, Tell your sister that I was glad to be able to help ok y/n ??"

"I promise red hood"

He smiled again and ruffled your hair.

"Thank you for this, I really like it"

You smiled brightly and quickly gave him a big hug before you then rode back home.

"Stay safe Red Hood!!!" You shouted before you peddled quickly back home.

It was times like these when Jason remembers why he does what he does, He gives people in this city hope, a light to look up too. No matter how dark it got.

He held onto the drawing for the remainder of his patrol and when he got back to the belfry at the crack of dawn. He then hanged it on his wall. Always going to it whenever he feels down. It made him smile every damn time.

Taglist: @callofdudes @fun-k-board

[wayfayrr]

It’s been a while but hello! ✨ I have been so busy working two jobs but I have been doing well, just tired, hope you’ve been doing well Moss <3 I absolutely loved what you wrote for reader playing Stardew valley with Sky <333 absolutely worth the wait, I need me a Sky irl so badly it’s not even funny 😭 throwing hands with Nintendo for making a fictional man so fine and lovable </3

But also, YOU PLAY ELDEN RING????? I’VE BEEN PLAYING IT SO MUCH RECENTLY WHEN I HAVE FREE TIME, ITS SO PRETTY <33 restarted cause I couldn’t remember how to play and I wanted to do a new build, rip my level 90+ and 50+ hours Samurai Tarnished </3

But on that same note, TARNISHED MY ABSOLUTE BELOVED, I MUST GIVE YOUR BOY SMOOCHES <333333 !!! I beg for a crumb of more lore for him please 🙏 He deserves kissies, and cuddles, and being spoiled and treated with so much love and affection <33 IS HE TAKING MAIDENS CAUSE I VOLUNTEER <3333

~ 🍀anon

I'm glad that you've been doing well clover!!! Working two jobs is draining as all hell so I hope you've been able to find time for yourself outside of it <3 That sky fic was really nice to write too, even if it was a bit shorter than I planned for it to be. He's just such a sweetheart and Nintendo really be hurting us all for having him only be fictional ;-;

ALSO YOU'RE RIGHT ELDEN RING IS SO PRETTY???? whenever I talk about tarnished I'm probably going to be posting some screenshots too cause just??? I don't blame you for restarting though, when you haven't played for a while it's nicer to restart than try to figure out where the hell you left off last time

(The siofra river is so pretty stg AND THE AREA IS COMPLETELY OPTIONAL????)

As for lore - I've been fleshing out his background a bit but I'm still uncertain on a few things For certain I think It would be interesting for him to be a member of the church of dragon communion, since dragons are more worshipped by the rest of the chain and then you just have this fucker/aff who eats their hearts to gain abilities a friend of mine also suggested that he could have a second nickname of elden, in tune with the boys tending to have two nicknames or more (like wars/captain or wind/sailor) it would also match how the nicknames seem to be given!! one is what they quested for and the other is something they 'are'

as for him taking maidens? :3 I've been wanting to write a bit for him I won't lie, cause I've had the idea of him possibly being self aware too

It's been a while since I've even touched my playstation, but with my switch all but turning into a brick the last time I tried to play anything but a zelda game. Well there's no reason not to try play on something else. "Shame... booking a repair slot is a headache that I'd rather not have to deal with." That can wait though, till I have the energy to do it that is. In the meantime I've got other games that I've been neglecting. When is the last time that I played elden ring actually? It's gotta have been at least a year, I remember setting up a link look alike character before totk came out but... Oh wow that would have been the last time I played wouldn't it? I don't think I even got far, so maybe picking that save back up won't be to much of an issue. ... I could have sworn it wasn't possible to have your character so close to the screen. "You - You came back?"

[jamminlocks]

Special Pudding {Osamu M. x Reader}

Tags: F/M, Food, Fluff, Tooth-Rotting Fluff, Soft Miya Osamu, confession, one shot, not beta read, pretty much idiots in love word count: 2,987 Summary: In summer days, you decided to make chocolate pudding for yourself. Not really trying to hide it. By chance, Osamu spots you eating some. The moment he had that first spoonful in his mouth, Osamu has liked your chocolate pudding since and from then on wants more. A/N: idk i just wrote this for fun edit: fixed some stuff [ao3]

•~°~•~°~•~°~•~°~•~°~•~°~•~°~•~°~•~°~•~°~•~°

"Is that pudding?" Osamu asks, pointing at the moist container in your hands. It is, indeed, pudding. Not just any pudding, not pudding that's bought in the store, or something your parents made, It is your pudding, chocolate pudding. In the past weeks, you have been obsessively trying your hand in making some for yourself, mostly to stave off the summer heat. After many attempts, this was the best one. For a split second, you hesitated answering him, not wanting to share your hard earned work. Then, the thought of wow-ing Osamu with your new found specialty dessert pops up. 

"Yeah, I made it. You want some?" You offer it to him. He stares at it, undecided and unimpressed.

"I dunno... it looks kinda bad."

"Oh c'mon! Since when did you pass the offering of free food?" you argue, scooping a spoon of the pudding and holding it up for Osamu. He suspiciously looks at you, more to just get an annoyed reaction. The spoon is taken from your hand and he slides it in his mouth. Once the spoon is gone, his jaw moves in a steady motion. Eyes close, focusing on the tastes. A small smile creeps on each corner of his mouth.

“See? I made good pudding.” 

"Free food? More like a free sample if you're just gonna let me have one spoon." he digs the spoon into the pudding. Now, you are annoyed, "just a second ago you basically called it weird looking."

"And I'm coming back for another bite. Take it as a compliment."

You roll your eyes. "Fine, you can have more, here."

He also holds of the container of pudding, not tugging it away from you, taking one spoon after another. It's the first time you let Osamu eat anything you made and you are very, very glad that he likes it. Happy as you are, the pudding is already half empty and you've barely dug in yourself. Osamu is using your spoon after all.

"Hurry up! I wanna eat"

A muffled sound of reluctant agreement slips out of hus mouth, but he takes another spoonful before he returns it to you.

“Got anymore?”

“Last one. Sorry”

Osamu frowns as he watches you eat, like a child denied a cone of ice cream. It's clear that he'll be waiting for you to get enough then get some more again. You couldn't laugh properly, only chuckling with your mouth stuffed and closed. “Next time, when I make one I’ll save some for you.”

"Yeah?"

"Sure, why not?"

-◇-◆-◇-◆-◇-◆-◇-◆-◇-◆-◇-

As you spend more time experimenting and trying new recipes of desserts, you keep coming back to the chocolate pudding, youre practically perfecting it. Osamu always wants some when you tell him. A tupperware of pudding would be saved for him and you'd give it to him. He'd return it by the end of the week. The fastest was the day after you gave it to him. You often wondered if he even shares it with Atsumu and you hoped he did. Nothing wrong with someone else enjoying your food. That was until the blond twin ran up to you out of nowhere with furious determination.

 "WHY DIDN'T CHA TELL ME THAT YER GIVING 'SAMU PUDDING??" he asked accusingly. Somewhat offended.

You squint, "wait, doesn't he share with you?"

"NO! He's been hiding it behind other stuff in the–"

"THAT'S 'CAUSE YA ALWAYS STEAL THE STUFF I BUY AND EAT THE FIRST THING YA SEE IN THE REFRIGERATOR!!" Osamu comes running up behind his brother. Roping him into light wrestling.

"THAT'S NOT TRUE," Atsumu claims but his voice falters with each movement.

"LIER!!! STOP BOTHERING HER ‘BOUT THIS!” The fight goes on. It's relatively tame compared to their other fights. You aren’t too worried about anything getting serious. Backing up a little to avoid any elbows and fist coming your way, you patiently wait for the brothers to cool down on their own. 

“YOUR A GREEDY LITTLE SHIT THAT EATS FOOD THAT AIN’T YERS!”

"SAYS THE BASTARD WHO’S BEEN HOGGING AN ENTIRE CONTAINER OF PUDDING ALL TO YERSELF!"

But it seems the two are nowhere stopping from this. There is too much destructive energy emanating from them. You made a gable on your safety by placing a hand on each brother’s shoulder then pushing them apart.

"OKAY! OKAY! THE BOTH OF YOU SHUT UP!" they hesitantly stop, still scowling and sneering at each other with their eyes.

“Would you both quit it if I just made you two then? One for each of you.”

They are silent, more to give the other a cold shoulder than not having an answer. Atsumu pouts, crossing his arms, “sure. But I still can’t believe you were only giving him this entire time.”

“Well, sorry about that.” you said, actually feeling bad about leaving him out of it.

“Don’t. He’s a big pig”

“WHY YA LIL-”

You give them a harsh slap on their shoulders.

-◇-◆-◇-◆-◇-◆-◇-◆-◇-◆-◇-

On the occasions that the twins know you were making your chocolate pudding, you save two tupperwares for them. It was extra work but if it’ll keep them from complaining, that's extra peace of mind in your life. You are quite delighted that Atsumu enjoys it too. But, if you aren't assuming too much, Osamu seems to like it more. You aren’t surprised. Twins still have their own separate set of preferences. It's just that Osamu liking it more always makes your chest flutter. It’s embarrassing, you’d rather he not notice when you try to hold back a big smile.

Eventually, you began to grow tired of the sweet dessert and decided to stop for a while. You still loved it, but having too much too often wears off its specialness. It wasn’t really a big deal, that was until Osamu out of nowhere leaned his chin over your shoulder, arms around your waist, and asked, "Hey, when are ya gonna make chocolate pudding again?"

It confuses you, not really considering that he would notice that you’ve stopped. You put some thought into it. Will you make it? Not really in a mood for pudding, although you don’t mind if Osamu is asking. “It's almost winter and you still want some?”

“I mean, can I?” he said, uncharacteristically shy of him. It's kinda cute. But, you're not letting yourself be fooled if this is his way of persuading you. "You're gonna pay for half of the ingredients if you want me to make some.”

In an instant, he straightens up. Swirling you to face him and he looks at you with at most seriousness. “How much?”

You laugh, ruffling up hus gray hair for fun. "Come with me later to buy them. We can sort it out then”

His eyes practically glowed at your answers. And he does go with you to the market the day after, carrying the basket of ingredients as you pick and choose.

“Do ya really need this much when ya make yer pudding?” 

“Yeah, I’m making it for Atsumu too.” The smile on his face disappears at the mention of his brother. He must really not like sharing his food with Atsumu. But its not like he needs to. After all, they get their own.  He said, much like suggesting a bad idea he knows you'll deny, “Can you, like, not?”

“Don’t be like that. You two will fight again.”

Osamu knows you had a point. Still, he isn’t on board with it, glaring at the floor. The part of your heart that has a soft spot for the mellower twin weavers. “How about this, you get more cream on top than him. Sounds good?”

“Yeah?” 

“Yeah, I can do that. It will cost you more though”

His arm wraps around your shoulder as you two walk through the milk aisle together, holding the basket on the other hand. “Fine by me.”

-◇-◆-◇-◆-◇-◆-◇-◆-◇-◆-◇-

For the next few years, your chocolate pudding has been in his top 20 in the desserts category, which means a lot since the guy can't seem to choose a single favorite food if anyone were to ask him. When the opportunity opens itself, he asks you to make some. Despite your differing schedules, very often, if not all the time, you do follow through. When you can't, he gets sad, which is adorable of him.

So, it's practically a given whenever you visit, there's a chance you have some with you. However, not once has he ever questioned why you do it without asking anything in exchange. The answer is always that it's not like it's an official service of yours. It was enough that he paid more than half the price. Plus, he is your friend, nothing wrong with doing favors for a friend. Though all of that is true, you just like how happy and satisfied he is with your pudding every time he takes a bite. And, well, you just really like Osamu and spending time with him.

This time around, the occasion is MSBY Jackals having a match in Hyogo. In celebration that Atsumu is in town, the team will have dinner in Onigiri Miya. At Atsumu’s request, you bring your chocolate pudding and he’s paying for it. Lucky for him, you are free that week. Osamu, on the other hand, took the chance to ask for more.g

"Could you make me extra pudding too?" He asks while you are on a call with him and it makes you laugh. "You missed my chocolate pudding that much?" 

"It's hard not to miss good food" he states. 

Out right implying that your dessert is one of his many likes is a sentiment you'll hold on to. You endearingly sigh to him through your phone. "Alright. That does mean you'll pay for your portion."

"Alright," he said, satisfied. Static sounds of clanking blurs his voice. "Don't tell 'Tsumu, by the way."

"Sure. But, don't get mad at me if he finds out, though."

"Never had been, have I?"

"That's true."

-◇-◆-◇-◆-◇-◆-◇-◆-◇-◆-◇-

The celebration comes and by the end of the night the chocolate pudding was as good as gone. A hit among the players. Their captain took three servings, so does Bokuto. When you offer one to their aloof member, Sakusa, it takes a bit of convincing. In the end, he eats some, giving you a mere 'its good', which is a big deal according to Atsumu. Hinata was lucky to get the last serving. You didn't even get a bite of your efforts, so it was a good thing that Osamu requested more. As promised, you didn't tell Atsumu of the extra stash of pudding you and Osamu hid. Once the restaurant closes and Atsumu is long gone with the rest of his team, you and Osamu head back to his place to eat the hidden treasure to end the night..

Fresh from the cool fridge, you both take your own servings of the chocolatey treat. Osamu is as happy as ever with each spoon of pudding he places in his mouth.

"didn't you eat a lot of this already? I'm surprised you could stuff yourself more with that," you point your spoon to him.

"Nothing wrong with extra dessert"

"You sure you won't get your stomach hurting?"

He laughs, a low rumble on his chest. "What am I, a kid?" Osamu doesn't give you the chance to answer, shifting his attention to the dessert at his hands, reveling at its taste. 

"I might just kiss you for how good these puddings always are."

"Haha, sure," you say. Not fully registering what he just said, what you just said. Once it settles in, your skin spikes up into a panic, doing your best to not look at him and shoving a spoon in your mouth. Why did you say that? Why did he say that? That was definitely a joke.

"For real? I can?" He asks, clear and genuine.

The sirens are wailing at you to 'play it cool'. It's just a teeny-tiny kiss. You've had friends kiss your cheeks before. Osamu won't be any different. You may like him but he is still your friend too.

"Yeeeeeeahhh. Suuuuuuure," voice slightly stilted, waving a hand to downplay the situation. Just you merely entertaining the notion. In the grand tapestry that is your friendship, it's just a small thing that won't cause an unraveling. You close your eyes. No way you are looking at him. Placing a finger over your cheek, you say, "right over he-"

Osamu pecks you right on the lips. Your body stiffen up. The stickiness of the small bit of cream lingers. Without much of a big reaction from him, he says "Thank you for the pudding" and returns to focus on staring down on the pudding to scoop another spoonful.

"wah- why'd you do that" you ask, breathless from a single peck that barely lasted a second.

"Ya said I can, didn't ya?"

"ye. YEAH. BUT-" you're at a loss for words. everything is mixing up at a blender's speed. Confusion. Giddiness. Flabbergasted. Embarrassment. And you're quaking like a blender too. The only thing that's keeping you from losing sanity is Osamu's slowly blushing cheeks, proof that he is affected by it too. How is he so nonchalant about this, though? You place the serving of pudding over the kitchen table to save it from your slipping grip.

Taking another spoon of pudding in his mouth. He hums the way he always does when he likes the food he is eating. You could only stare, still confused. "This is so good," his words slightly garbled. Osamu turns to you, assessing your expression. Then, he dives back to kiss again before you can do anything. Just as quick as the first, like he is testing your lips. The softness of his gesture somewhat tickles you. “Really good.”

“Hey!” you try to catch his attention. “Why’d you– how are you–” words come out as blubbering and disjointed. Face heating up with each tumble your tongue takes. You don’t understand how unfazed he is right now, having just kissed you twice. Is it not a big deal to him? Is he toying with you? The initial startling fades as your mind ponders the sad possibility. Osamu is quick to notice your silence, setting his pudding down beside yours.

 “Oh, are ya mad?” He said with sincere concern, bumping his arms to you as a means to comfort. What exactly do you say to him? Should you get mad? You sigh, 

“I’m– It’s because– Are you just messing with me, Osamu?”

“A lil bit.” he admits, though not seeing it as big of a crime as you do.  

“It's just ‘cause ya said I can, so I…” He strays, placing his rough hand at the swell of your cheek, bringing you to face him. You can see that he’s searching for his words too. Thumb brushing you with a new warmth he has never done before. “And I’ve really wanted to do that for a while now.”

Not able to wrap your head around his confession, doubt lumped up in your voice, you ask “you have?”

Osamu removes his hand away from your cheek. Straightening himself up to face you. He takes your hand, cupping it between both of his own, as if giving you a secret you can’t see just yet. Gentleness in his eyes with a tender smile. He shares his truth. "I like ya for a long while now.”

It's a sweet and honest truth. It all bubbles up into you breathily laughing, leaning your head on his shoulder as he keeps you balanced. The scent of rice still clings to his black uniform. He hums along with you.

You say, "couldn't you have said that first?"

"uh," he laughs softly. "Sorry. Guess I got too excited." The tension in the kitchen dissipates with each laugh. Osamu takes your pudding from the table, scooping in it with his spoon. You are still at the height of his confession to point out that it's your pudding he is about to eat from. He raised the spoon to your mouth.

"Eat up. to calm ya nerves a bit."

You can only oblige. The sweetness is soothing, cleansing away any remaining nervousness you had. Osamu is careful to slide it off your lips before digging it in your pudding again.

“Atta girl,” he purrs, brushing your hair behind your ear as you slowly chew. It's new, this kind of affection coming from him, but you welcome it nonetheless.

You have something to say before he leans in again. "WAI-" is all you could muster as his lips are on yours for the third time, a little longer, a lot firmer. Fingers on your chin. He eases you into a slow kiss. Three kisses and an indirect one. He really is taking his shots.

When you pull away, you lightly burst out “seriously??” 

Osamu chuckles, pulling away to take both puddings on each hand and handing yours to you. “Sorry, you taste good too,” he said. This time placing a peck on your cheek. 

"C'mon, finish it up before it melts."

The two of you eat together in comfortable silence. A new feeling lingers in the air. A sense of rose tranquility. You could get used to this.

“So,” you start, taking another bite. “What do we do now?” Osamu inches closer to your side, enjoying this new kind of company from you.

“Am I yours?”

You pretend to ponder, just to draw out your answer.

“I guess so.”

“Is that a yes?”

You take your chance to place a kiss on his cheek. This time, He’s the one caught off guard, smiling at you as he wipes the small bit of stickiness off. 

“Yeah,” you said. 

Wrapping an arm around your waist, Osamu places a hand on your hip to pull you closer to him. 

“Stay over for tonight, why don’t ya?”

•~°~•~°~•~°~•~°~•~°~•~°~•~°~•~°~•~°~•~°~•~°

A/N: i'll edit this in a little bit

[crusty-chronicles]

Airheaded S/O Head cannons #1 Kurama

He finds you incredibly endearing

You had piqued his interest from the very beginning

You were carrying a knocked-out Yusuke towards the meeting area for the dark tournament

Demons were staring you down and for some reason you were unfazed

You were human right????

But then you noticed Kuwabara and the blank look on your face was replaced with uncontainable joy

You'd dropped Yusuke and ran over rambling on about how excited you were to be the fifth fighter

Then it dawned on you that the weight you were carrying was gone

The panic on your face was adorable as you backtracked towards a sleeping Yusuke

Kurama kept an eye on you from then on.

He had his suspicions on why Yusuke picked you for the tournament

Perhaps you were there to just fill up the missing space, however it seemed unlikely their trouble making friend would invite an unsuspecting human

He was proven correct during the preliminaries of the tournament

"Kuwabara, this is the worst trip I've ever been on," you whined.

"I know what you mean, they could have at least had a dinner service or something."

"Quit complaining you fools. We're here to fight, not to indulge in your human whims," Hiei snapped.

"Wow, so much attitude for such a little man."

Kurama was about to hold Hiei back from killing you when the captain of the ship announced the preliminaries were beginning

"Why don't you prove your use and go up there." And from Hiei's tone, it wasn't a suggestion. It was an order.

So there you went, tripping every third step up the platform and constantly bumping into other demons

"That fool won't last a second up there."

"Patience Hiei. We'll see soon enough."

Kurama was almost convinced you would surrender the second the round started, but as he looked over to Kuwabara he couldn't help but notice his relaxed expression.

"You know something?"

Kuwabara only smiled

"I wouldn't worry about it. When it comes to Y/n, these demons won't stand a chance."

And as soon as the round began, an extremely powerful aura washed over the entire ship.

It was almost suffocating

And it was coming from the idiot how couldn't tell their right from their left.

The demons up there with you fell to their knees and the ones on the ground trembled in fear.

From that point on you had Kurama's respect (and his attention)

You got lost finding your way back to the hotel room?

Kurama finds your spirit energy and leads you back, guiding you by your hand so you don't wander off

Constantly tripping over yourself?

Kurama has vines pulling you up and steadying you.

You don't realize a demon's threatening you?

Kurama is behind you glaring at them, silently daring them to test their luck.

He knows you can protect yourself perfectly fine, but would prefer if you stay out of trouble

He also knows you won't because you and Yusuke are attached to the hip. And where that boy goes, trouble follows.

Realizes he likes you after a run in with Karasu.

Karasu had just threatened Kurama with his ability.

And you, seeing Kurama (the most put together member) actually scared, were beyond pissed.

"HEY! FREAK WITH THE MASK! THE HELL DID YOU DO TO MY FRIEND!!!"

And for what felt like an eternity, Kurama willed you to run away. To leave before Karasu touched you.

"My, my. You're a tough one aren't you."

But you only seethed further, unaware that he could kill you with just one touch

"I'LL SHOW YOU TOUGH WHEN MY FOOT'S HALFWAY UP YOUR ASS!" And then your spirit energy spiked.

"Careful, wouldn't want to cause a scene. Why don't we save it for tomorrow?"

It was a split second

A moment of strict impulse

A moment that was forever precious to the demon fox

You had punched Karasu with everything you had and then moved towards Kurama's side.

You were a fool for angering the other demon, but a big part of Kurama was glad you didn't back down

You hadn't given into intimidation like he did

You weren't fazed or concerned about what came next

You were just focused on him.

And as you hauled him up, he found a new strength.

From that point on you were his

He wouldn't try courting you using the usual methods knowing they would be useless on you

But he'd been around you long enough to know the gestures you'd appreciate

He'd occasionally spar with you in his demon form as a treat.

Only if you were on your best behavior

He'd make you promises to get stronger so that you wouldn't be forced to fight

He'd take you out on arcade dates and watch your excitement from the side as you played

He knows being forward with you is the best way to get his feelings across, so he invites you over to meet his mother and specifically tells you it's a date.

And because you're you, you go "Oh, a date," 😏

But you don't realize it's an actual date.

Shiori loves you

You two get along so well and he's glad

Surprisingly, you offer to help her with dinner and don't break anything????

He's shocked

But impressed

You do almost blow his demon cover though.

"I'm so glad Shuichi finally found somebody. I was worried I'd never have any grandchildren."

But the last part went unheard as you visibly bluescreened

"Shuichi???? But his name is-"

"Y/n why don't you help me set the table?"

And there you go, turning around and face planting on the floor, much to his mother's shock

But then a spark of brilliance shines through and you realize Kurama's distracted you.

"Ohhh. Oops."

By the end of the night you still think you're just hanging out.

It's not until he actually kisses you that you everything clicks.

"This was a date-date?????" Like a romantic date? Like an I like you date???"

And his heart just melts

You're so stupid it's adorable

Does confuse you on purpose because he likes seeing your face go blank.

Can you blame him?

He is still a demon after all

"Kurama, leave the poor human alone," Hiei chastised.

"I don't know what you're talking about," the fox said while you were currently trying to figure out why the number 6 was scared of 7.

Calls you dearest and love.

Slips in fool if he's healing you from a fight (affectionately of course)

Kurama does have his moments of jealously, but it's just his demon side rearing it's head.

He's mostly jealous about how much time you spend with Yusuke, and how his scent ligers on you when you get back

But he knows at the end of the day that it's him you chose.

And as you left with him to the demon world he knew it was him who you'd stay with.

An: First in the Airheaded Stronk S/O series. They're all probably gonna be this long ngl, and hopefully I'll actually finish it this time. I'm also working on a HxH series too. Y'all are gonna eat good this april 😎😎😎

NEXT UP: Ging Freecs

MASTERLIST

[hestzhyen]

Chapter 43 Glazing

Just. Wow. Where to begin, dear void? It's hard not to post full pages from this absolute gut punch of a chapter... what a perfect way to hit the climax of this arc. I guess it's appropriate to talk about Hakuri and Mr. Proceeder himself before anything else. A bit of irony first... Hakuri gets his dad, but Kyoura didn't get him until it was too late.

I know this is most likely trauma speaking for Shiba and the other war vet, but they're right. Kyoura's in his death throes right now, everything's gone to shit, but...

... they're underestimating him and his fanaticism to the clan's tradition. Everyone is, and I don't blame them- Magatsumi's freaky as fuck even sheathed. Except there's one person who knows just how strong Kyoura's will is...

... and is going to use it to make sure every last person is saved.

Hakuri really is his father's son. And I'm just in fucking awe that Chihiro's insanity is on their level. It takes one crazy person to perfectly harmonize with another after only knowing each other for a week, I guess. I wonder if we'll see that part of their dynamic explored at all... deprogramming Hakuri so he's not just replacing fanatic devotion to the Rakuzaichi/Sazanami Clan with Chihiro's cause or something? I'll keep the Hakuri agendaposting to a minimum (for me) but c'mon, wouldn't it be awesome to hear Chihiro echo his dad's words from Ch. 14 to encourage Hakuri to grow and find his own identity? 'Cause, y'know:

Ch. 1 vs 43

"Your best would have been believing in Hakuri" is recalled for the fourth time for a reason. If you haven't caught on by now, it's not too late: Kyoura was a shitty dad and Chihiro took that personally. And it was the one fatal flaw that doomed a man with a will of adamant. 'Cause holy shit man, even though I'm glad this dude is dead, I respect the fuck out of him. He overcame the influence of the scariest of all the WMDs Kunishige made and died as himself, regrets and ego fully intact. I applaud Hokazono-sensei for making me feel for this guy without redeeming him.

I cannot say this strongly enough: Kyoura was a victim who perpetuated his own abuse. He couldn't break the cycle even though his wife's bitter dying words left him yearning for the family he could have had. It's not clear if it's a true flashback or a vision of what could have been, but the dinner table scene being shattered by the memory of Kyoura's father telling him to lead the clan is art. Another mangaka might have reversed the order so we see him being indoctrinated first and wistful second. Just for those pity points and to twist the knife a little. But no, Kyoura is completely unrepentant to the last. The only thing he yields on is throwing Hakuri away. Not his conviction to put the Rakuzaichi above his family, nor ignoring his wife's final words. His dying regret wasn't even purely being the world's worst dad. It was mixed with the fact that he failed to secure the success of the goddamn auction by misjudging his "worthless" son. To the very end, Kyoura lived as the Sazanami patriarch.

His parting words to Chihiro have me going absolutely insane too. They're an indication that yeah, finally, he gets it. He was a bad father and he reaped the consequences. His other two sons are dead because of him, and the one he mistreated finally surpassed him after all.

Chapter 39 vs. 43

[screaming softly] aaaaaaaaahhhhh

The whole world disappears as Hakuri is finally the only worthy person in his view. His greatest shame looks down on him taking his last breaths and only now does he feel the magnitude of his mistakes. Because Hakuri never did anything wrong to begin with; Kyoura himself failed the family and the clan. He lays down the sword, choosing to die as himself rather than keep fighting the Magatsumi's wielder to the bitter end. It's time to admit he was wrong.

And thus the cycle is broken at last.

Smaller Observations

More food imagery yay!

We never see Mrs. Sazanami's face. I wonder if there's going to be a Lost Mother arc for Hakuri in addition to Chihiro's. We know she's dead, but I saw a theory floating around that maybe she was more affectionate to Hakuri than his siblings to compensate for the abuse he was enduring. Soya's obsession with him "staying lovable" would have started from this. I think Soya was just irredeemably broken and cruel, but it's interesting to think about!

She's not even close to eating at the table, looks like she might have just sat down after putting out all the dishes or something. A caretaker who didn't participate in the family's joy is my guess (based on her monologue in the hospital flashback).

Soya can't let Hakuri have nice things even in this happy vision of the family

Braidbro and Sazasis aren't here, so I think there's a "core" family that Hakuri et. al. were part of and branch families that still carried the Sazanami genes but weren't in contention for running the show. The nameless kids that greeted Kyoura upon his return to the estate in chapter 22 also called him "father" so is it a title thing, or maybe Kyoura just had a bunch of concubines and one main wife? Inquiring minds want to know.

Speaking of Chapter 22, actually...

The auction house is in Tokyo but the actual Sazanami estate is somewhere remote and secluded. The backgrounds in the table scene are more reminiscent of an apartment in an urban setting:

So I'm gonna lean on this particular scene being a "what if" rather than a true flashback. But it's still vague enough to be open to interpretation. Now I'm super curious about how Hakuri ended up in the city to meet his fated samurai though... another thing to headcanon a scenario for I suppose.

Arraigned marriage... to ensure that Isou was passed on? A business relations agreement with another family? A deal to let her avoid being sold as merchandise? Why are there so many dead/missing moms in Kagurabachi anyway?

I think I have a slightly different interpretation of events here than most will, but I'll try to explain. The subspace collapsed into nothingness as Chihiro reached for the last person, so no one could be yeeted out any more. They managed to pull everyone out in time yay! Chihiro's safe too, yay! But while Hakuri put all the other people outside of the auction house, Chihiro ended up on the stage. I believe this is by Hakuri's design rather than Chihiro being placed at random. This is a huge moment for all three characters involved and it's absolutely enhanced by the understatement of the art. Kyoura finally admitting Chihiro was right is immensely powerful catharsis for us and our samurai, and that's definitely the perspective we're meant to see it from first But my boy Hakuri put him there to hear it. He violated the sanctity of the auction instead of bringing Chihiro out closer to himself and Shiba for the getaway. Fuck this family and it's tradition. It's DONE. The Rakuzaichi and Sazanami legacy are tarnished for good; Hakuri made sure of it. Maximum feels for our boy finally eradicating this loathsome event at every level!

And finally, last but certainly not least:

Hiyuki continues to be best girl, as expected. She's put off by the insanity on display from Chihiro, Kyoura, and Hakuri but it it also grounds her a bit. She can't let innocents die, so she chooses to protect Hakuri. I love her so much and I hope she can give him shit about threatening to leave her in the storehouse forever one day.

As an aside, after learning that Hokazono-sensei is a fan of Arcane I can't help but think of Hiyuki as a Vi expy. If she is, I hope she's pan, bi, or a lesbian. I love strong, badass hot-headed women who love women. I don't mind her being endgame with Chihiro either but the idea of seeing her get flustered over Hinao in a swimsuit lives rent free in my head, y'know? Her personality archetype begs to be lightly teased by seeing a hot girl and instantly losing 70 IQ.

...Anyway.

What happens from here on out is anyone's guess. We knew about the Rakuzaichi auction as early as chapter 7 but there's nothing set up for the future as of now. Whether or not Team Goldfish manage to recover the Shinuchi (betting they won't), I think we will take a bit of a break after the next chapter. We definitely need a lull to let the characters heal and breathe before building up the next arc.

My best guess is that we'll have downtime for a chapter or so before a lead for another sword is found to set up the next mission. So far we've explored Death of the Author and Generational Trauma... what's going to be next? I can't wait! I never expected themes like this to be explored so thoughtfully and thoroughly in a WSJ series...! For the first time in a long time I'm not just reading an action manga with some mature themes. I'm reading some really insightful commentary on the nature of legacy, trauma, and family dynamics that happens to have the best fight choreography I've ever seen. Truly tenoi.

[cairavende]

Worm Arc 9 thoughts:

Not enough of my daughter. Where is my baby girl? Though I do enjoy getting different PoVs. It'll work for a little bit.

Weld is neat. Didn't feel great about him at first but he grew on me. His scene with Vista made me love him. He's a good kid. (He should probably have learned Aegis, Gallant, and Browbeat's names before talking to the team the first time though)

On the note of that scene - THEY HAD A THERAPIST THIS ENTIRE TIME? The Wards had a therapist available to them and no one was having them see said therapist after 3 of their teammates died? Piggot is so bad at this.

Me reading Flechette's chapter with the aim of making her gay as I have done with everyone else: "Oh wow this is a really easy one!"

I wanted to see more of Parian sooo badly after I first saw her and I'm so fucking glad this is how I see her! Flechette and Parian are wonderful and I hope they get gay married and retire together.

Me saying that probably highly increases the chance that one of them dies in the future.

I'm very glad Flechette gave up on Shadow Stalker. I like Flechette and she shouldn't have to deal with that asshole.

I feel so bad for Clockblocker. He's just a kid and his dad is dying and that sucks. I wanna bake him some cookies or something.

The professor of that class was so clearly identifiable as "one of those professors". All "up until now you haven't had to think, but in Parahumans 103 you'll need to think and I'm not gonna baby you yada yada". It's still just a 100 level course dude, geeze. Get off your high horse.

Clockblocker and Vista are siblings and I love their dynamic.

Despite me feeling for these kids some, the second the Travelers started clowning on them I was enjoying the shit out of myself.

Fucking Trickster is just so much damn fun. His powers are cool and he really lives up to his name. I love him.

Glory Girl getting rocketed off into the sky by Ballistic had me in tears from laughter.

Kid Win has ADHD. I was sure Kid Win had ADHD before I even started on the Kid Win chapter where he says he has ADHD. Someone get this kid some Adderall. And some therapy for all that self doubt and imposter syndrome.

Kid Win also didn't even hesitate to illegally spy on Chariots personal computer by hacking into the wi-fi, so that doesn't give me great confidence in the Wards following rules. Or any heroes. I'm sure that won't ever come up again though.

These Slaughter House Nine guys I'm sure won't be a big deal. They won't do horrible things to hundreds of people. Gonna be taken care of by heroes off screen during the next arc. No worries at all!

Vista joined the team when she was 10? The superhero team that has to deal with death on a semi-regular basis and terrifying violence all the time. That team. She joined it when she was TEN?! Shitty system you guys have here!

Saved the best for last - SHADOW STALKER GETTING FUCKING MEMED ON BY MY WONDERFUL DAUGHTER! (And my daughters friends)

God I wasn't sure about her chapter at first. She is so mean and I didn't necessarily want to spend a long time in her head watching her be mean. But then my daughter showed up in a swarm of bugs and fucked up a bunch of Nazis and I knew everything was going to be ok.

The instant Shadow Stalker started to follow Skitter I knew she was gonna get fucking wrecked. I don't know why I knew, maybe I just know my daughter well enough. But no matter the reason I was so happy to watch it happen. Wasn't worried for Skitter at any moment cause I knew she was gonna bitch slap this asshole.

Just. Damn I fucking LOVE watching my daughter just be a goddess of bugs and go to town.

I could keep going about Shadow Stalker getting absolutely destroyed for who knows how long, so I'll just have to stop myself.

And we see a new person with the Undersiders, did Aisha get her powers? I'm so happy for her! I can't wait to see what they are.

Imp is a great name and it's kinda fucking bonkers it wasn't taken by somebody else already.

Did I mention Shadow Stalker getting clowned?

Cause she did.

Just completely baited and then my wonderful baby girl even got to tase her. I'm so happy for her. Sometimes a little violence is the answer.

[imawkwardlysoc]

it's not all about you

Song- It's Not About You by Lawrence

Pairing- Nick Bradshaw x gn!reader

Warning(s)- It's all platonic and Goose lives.

Summary- Goose saves the reader from a horrible date.

Wordcount- 797

“Yeah, it’s crazy that I managed to do that,” my date’s voice became muffled as I lost interest in his workout routine.

“Wow, that’s so crazy. How is that possible? My voice showed no interest in him and in the conversation.

“I know right,” he chuckled.

I played around with the paper wrapper that the plastic straw came in. Looking around the restaurant, I saw people enjoying their dates as I wasn’t enjoying mine. All he did was talk about himself and what he did for a living. Everytime I try to talk about myself, he just interrupts me and continues to talk about himself. I’ve already listened to his workout routine, the d-list celebrities that he’s met, the bars he’s been to, and other things that I don’t care about.

Please, let this night end.

I saw him open his mouth again but I heard a familiar voice coming up to our table.

“C/S,” I looked over to see Nick in a dress shirt and slacks walking up to our table in a frantic mood. “There you are.”

“Goose, what’s up?” I asked him with a concerned look.

“We need to go back to base,” he told me.

“Wait, why?” I started to grab my stuff.

“Last minute mission details you need to look at,” he explained. “You need to look at them now so we don’t screw this up.”

“Yeah, I understand,” I got up from my seat.

Putting on my jacket, Goose and I headed out of the restaurant. We walked down the sidewalk to see Ice and Mav all dressed up leaning against Goose’s Bronco.

“You two also need to go to base?” I asked them.

“Nope, the four of us don’t need to,” Mav said with a smirk.

“What’s with the smirk?” I looked at the pilot.

“We just watched the most horrible date ever and we saved you from it,” Ice explained as he wrapped his arm around my shoulders.

“Thank you,” I thanked all of them. “So, what’s on the agenda?”

“Well, the night is still young. Wanna go bowling or something?” Mav suggested.

“I’m fine with bowling,” I agreed and looked at Ice and Goose for their input.

“Sure,” they both agreed.

With all of us agreeing which bowling alley to go to, all of us got into the Bronco and Goose drove us to the bowling alley. Parking his car, we got out and into the bowling alley where the clattering of bowling pins being knocked down echoed throughout the building. Paying for the games and shoe rentals, we put them on and grabbed our balls.

“So, are we playing just for fun or are we betting on anything?” I asked them.

“Whoever loses buys everyone a round the next time we’re at the O-Bar?” Ice suggested.

“Sounds good,” the three of us agreed.

Putting our names in the system, Ice started off with rolling a strike. Mav was second with hitting six pins the first time and two the second time. I went after Mav knocking down seven pins and a spare the next time. Goose went and was in last by knocking down five pins after rolling a gutter ball the first time. After a couple of rounds, Goose and I laughed at our friends who were bickering like an old married couple.

“Oh my god just throw the ball,” I laughed at them.

“Come on, don’t you think a curveball is better than just throwing it straight down?” Mav asked.

“It doesn’t matter which way you throw the ball, Mav. It’s still going straight into the gutter,” the RIO quipped which caused me to snort.

“He does have a point,” Ice laughed.

Mav shook his head and he threw his ball down the lane hitting a split leaving four pins behind. We finished off the round with Ice beating all of us and returned our shoes before heading back to the Bronco. Seeing that it’s close to midnight, Goose dropped Ice and Mav first since it’s on the way to our houses.

“Well, this was a good night,” I said to Goose. “Better than the date I was on.” “Glad you did,” he smiled as he pulled up to my house.

“Well, I’ll see you three on Monday,” I unbuckled my seat. “Drive safe.”

“See you on Monday,” he replied back.

I placed a kiss on Goose’s cheek and headed out of the Bronco. I walked up the stairs of my small house and opened the front door. Looking over my shoulder, I saw Goose giving me a wave and I waved back before shutting my door. Looking through the window, I saw him start his car and drive away. Closing the blind, I headed into my room to get a full night's rest.

[rickydoodahgrimez]

friends? || rick grimes x gn!reader

summary: you save rick from almost getting bitten and he doesn't seem to like that

tw: swearing, rick being a little bitch and denying his feelings xx

It was supposed to be a normal run

Unfortunately, not everything goes to plan. Glenn and Carol begged you to go on a run with Rick since Daryl had to back out last minute. You tried to beg Glenn if he could take your place because who knows what would happen if you were alone with Rick Grimes.

It really all started when Rick first joined the group. You two just constantly butted heads. You just never agreed on anything. So who knew what might happen if the guy you can't spend 5 minutes around without smashing his head in, you have to endure 2 hours with.

Sadly, your pleading didn't work and you had to get into his car, not sparing the sheriff a glance and watching Carol and Glenn wave with matching smirks on their faces as the car drove away.

It was painfully awkward and everlasting silence during the drive and every single time you tried to talk to him, he would stay silent which would make it more frustrating. In the end, you decided to give up because it was simply not worth it.

It was around thirty minutes when the car stopped next to a orphanage in a random town. Rick got out first and slammed the door behind him, making you roll your eyes at him.

You walked into the pharmacy a minute after Rick did and headed straight towards the kitchen. You looked in the cupboards for baby food and put it in the bag you carried. You were about to look in the fridge when you heard a loud shout

"Shit!"

There was no answer on how fast you run towards the sound, all you know is that you dropped the bag that was in your hand and took flight. You didn't know how you knew on which room it came from but you're glad you did, when you saw around 10 walkers and one Rick Grimes on the floor.

Quickly, you stabbed all the walkers in the head that were close to you to get towards Rick and then you noticed that he stabbed the one that was on top of him and shoved it out the way but unfortunately, another walker was on top and it's mouth landed right next to his neck.

Instinctively, you reached for your gun and shot the walker in the head causing it to fall limp against Rick's chest. Rick breathed heavily and he looked at your now stretched arm in front of him and to your annoyingly pretty face, then he decided to ignore your out stretched arm and walked away from you

"Where are you going?" You asked, keeping up with his pace

"We're leavin'" His southern accent drawled out

"But we're not even done yet!" You protested, grabbing his shoulder

Rick suddenly turned and blue eyes pierced your soul and locked his hand around your wrist to tug you along "I said we're leavin"

Before Rick could tug you further, you twisted his wrist and propped him against the wall, with your knife at his neck and a murderous look in your eye.

Your voice was low and void of any emotion "If you touch you me again, I will drive this neck through your neck and I enjoy every single fucking second of it"

You backed away from him, your knife back in your pocket and jogged towards the kitchen, not sparing him a glance. When you came back to the spot where you left Rick, he was still standing there and this time your bag was in your hand.

"Now we can go" You broke the silence and walked back to the car

You and Rick were in the car, driving on the main road and it's been more awkward than the first drive, when he walked in. You watched the window and as the trees passed by, you knew you weren't gonna take it anymore

So being the stupid person you are, you turned to Rick "Why do you hate me?"

Rick turned to look at you and chuckled "Why do I hate you?" He asked slowly

"Well it's either you're deaf and you need hearing aids sweetheart, because I'm pretty sure you heard me" You retort back, sarcastically

Rick let out a short laugh at your comment, which made you look at him in disbelief "Wow, who knew Rick Grimes could laugh"

Rick stopped laughing but still had a small smile on his face "I don't hate you"

"Really" You ask "Because I have this passionate, burning hate for you that goes deep inside my veins and every time I see you, I want to pour hot, flaming coffee on you so you can burn in the sun"

Rick turned to look at you and you continued "Do I really need to be any more sarcastic for you Rick? Because I'm pretty sure everyone knows you hate me"

"Nah" Rick replied "You just piss me off to an extent"

"Huh, and how exactly did I ‘piss you off to an extent’ when the first time we met, you made it seem like you hated me" You explained

"I don't know" Rick stated "You took care of anyone, you cared for people even though you didn't know them, you took care of Carl and you took care of Lori even when I wasn't"

"So basically, I pissed you off because I took care of your family members?"

"And also, you're sarcastic remarks" He admitted and you smiled

"Knew it" You both chuckled and Rick looked from the road to you

"So, friends?" He suggested

You looked at him with a small smirk "Maybe"

yeah, so basically, my first post. y'know, i couldn't think about the ending for almost a day cause my head was being a little bitch 😀

[silver-studios]

Okay I keep writing comments for gravity of tempered grace in my head and then getting distracted before I can actually post them so I'm just. going to comment here instead because it's in front of me now

First: WOW you write so fast. This isn't actually like, important, but still. I am in awe

I love Izuna's cousin. "Suffer with me" he is exactly the kind of cousin Izuna (and really all of these characters) deserves. Also can't WAIT to see if Tobirama ends up finding that copy of his paper and assuming that if Izuna has it, that must mean he understands it and Tobirama can talk theoretical physics with him. I'm sure Izuna would have the FUNNIEST things to say to his cousin for causing that.

I also enjoy the chapter titles and how they tie in to each chapter. And the explanations for each of them, because I would NOT know what most of them are on my own at all.

I also like the butterfly effect/plot in general, how Tobirama got surprised by things changing in response to his changes, and now he doesn't really know what's coming even though the extra knowledge is still really useful. Can't wait to see what happens with that Nara he saved, and whether there's more fallout from the Uchiha invading.

I don't have a lot specific to say about the Hatake scenes, but I enjoyed them a lot! All the worldbuilding is fun, and very interesting.

Tobirama's characteization is also great and I love... all of it, honestly, but in particular deciding to just get a few graduate degrees on the side while he's with the Uzumaki, and his solution to people possibly not being loyal to Hashirama (even if I would also like to shake sense, or maybe just an iota of self preservation, into him for that last one).

Also while I am not the anon that asked about inspiration originally it was that ask that reminded me that oh yeah I had stuff to say, and actually I HAD heard Non-Stop... a few months ago probably? and went "this is Tobirama and Izuna exactly." So you are not alone!

Yeah I try to maintain a personal deadline so I never hit that point of losing interest because it's happened in the past. It really helps to develop a detailed outline beforehand for the whole story. Recently I've been trying to outline chapters before I write them too to see how that works for me.

I love the vision of reticent and usually quiet Tobirama just rambling about his interests. I think it'd catch Izuna off guard a little but he'd probably find it cute once he can admit that to himself. I also headcanon the Uchiha as being attracted to competency so I'm sure that'll kick in sooner or later.

I'm glad you like the chapter titles and explanations! I thought it'd be a fun way to tie everything together especially with a scientist protagonist. It's been really fun but as the story gets longer than anticipated I'm nervous about running out of relevant topics to reference lol.

The Nara will definitely be back once his clan stops mourning the death of his father. It's great that people still remember him.

It's been such a blast to dive into the worldbuilding with this fic a little bit because Naruto has such fascinating lore that wasn't explored. My biggest struggle is making sense of just how modern the time period is because it seems like the Edo period but then 60 years later Naruto has a fridge and television so who knows really. I'm making it up as I go.

Sorry for rambling a little bit but I get really excited whenever I receive a long message and it's always a delight for me to respond. Thank you so much for the ask and for reading my story!

[risingsoleil]

Thank goodness for the Linzin mid-yeat revival. It's keeping me sane.

My nerd side loves the idea of future generations looking back into historical couples. Think on the literal compilation of Napoleon's love letters but make it Tenzin's, or the study of Queen Victoria's complete devotion to her husband but make Lin.

Idk, there's something about true love stories in historical power couples that seems so in tune with them.

This gives me reincarnation AU vibes!

A hundred years later, when a new Avatar helps bring balance to the world, a nonbending woman visits the museum with her nonbending boyfriend.

They've only started dating about a month, but the moment they first met, their hearts and souls were reunited. Even with one glance, all they felt was love, safety, peace, and home with each other. As if they had known each other their entire lives and had finally found the other.

An exhibit at the museum dedicated to all the Avatars and the important figures/mentors has opened to the public. The man has suggested they check it out and his girlfriend sighs and goes along with it.

They walk through the maze of chambers and rooms, recording videos of the holographs. One section boasts AI and the man scoffs at the idea of a respectable museum giving in to a dangerous technology. It's educational, but he has conflicting views on it.

Avatar Korra is the last room and somehow, the energy and vibes in this room are heavier compared to the others. The woman walks with her hands behind her back, viewing the photographs and reading the paragraphs about them. Then she sees the statue of Chief Lin Beifong standing beside Master Tenzin.

Her heart flutters as she stares at them in awe and fascination. She can't move, blink, or speak. There's something about the hardened and fierce expression on Chief Beifong's face that resonates for her. Beifong has the same green eyes as her and she can't tear her gaze away from the two scars. What could have caused that? Was it from her job? Was there an accident? What is it like to bend metal and earth?

Warm arms slide around her waist from behind. "You kinda look like her, Poppy."

She raises a brow and turns in his arms. "Is that a good thing?"

He smiles and kisses her cheek. "Yes. She's beautiful."

"Hmph."

"Not as beautiful as you, but she looks like you except with years of wisdom."

"Who's an earthbender, metalbender, and can kick ass."

Her boyfriend shrugged.

Poppy shook her head and shifted her attention to the airbending master. "You look like him."

"I wouldn't look good bald. And I don't like red."

"But you have the same eyes and light blue tattoos."

"Wow babe. Such a convincing comparison."

Poppy walked out of his arms, but grasped his hand gently pulled him to inspect the first airbending child of Avatar Aang. She studied the red, yellow, and orange robes. "Red is nice. It's the color for war, passion, fire."

He hummed unimpressed.

She wriggled her hand against his. "Come on, Lao. Entertain me."

Lao read the text detailing Master Tenzin's work and life. "They're exes...that's so sad." He pulled Poppy closer, wrapping his arm around her shoulder protectively. "I wonder why they didn't work out. They knew each other their whole lives and grew up together."

Poppy rested her head against his shoulder. "Sometimes things just happen," she muttered sadly. "Maybe they wanted different things. She didn't have any kids and he had kids right after they broke up."

Her boyfriend clicked his tongue, his hold on her tightening. "Probably to save the airbenders..." Lao inhaled deeply, wiping his eyes and shaking his head. "They came back anyway."

She hugged his waist, rubbing his side soothingly until the strange and sudden emotions passed. Lao gave her a soft smile. "You okay?"

"Mhm. Yeah, I'm fine because you're in my life."

She mirrored his smile and pressed a soft kiss to his lips. "I'm glad we're not famous and we can live the way we want."

[itsnothingofinterest]

So, theories and thoughts on the upcoming chapter.

On the one hand, I'm so glad we seem to be finally getting back to the Todoroki plot line, especially since every other major villain’s gotten a good amount of page time since Dabi & Toga got to Gunga. Sure last chapter left us with just Shoto; but I'm sure we'll get to Dabi fire blasting his dad for being a jackass, followed by Endeavor finally trying to start being a father to Touya instead of a jackass, soon enough. Maybe even in the same chapter if we're lucky. Please, it's been so long since we saw Dabi for any extended period. We've been sustaining on single panel crumbs for evilness sake!

On the other hand, given all the (unearned, I feel) praise and admiration the heroes have been getting lately; I'm weary of the chapter because of the chance that Stain, one of hero society's most famous non-League-affiliated critics, is gonna jump on that bandwagon and be all "oh wow, everyone has become such great true heroes now". Which I don’t think he logically should when like 99% of the heroes are fighting for nothing more or less than to reinstate the status quo Stain hated outside All Might; but that may not matter when the tone of this arc’s been that every remotely good guy should be supporting hero society 100%.

I could be jumping the gun complaining though. Maybe he'll actually lay into Shoto (& maybe Iida too, idk) and tell them where they went wrong in talking to Dabi, to whom Stain shares a similar cause and so for whom Stain can sympathize with and get inside his head. He could prompt some growth and progress in Shoto's character arc towards a proper resolution with Touya. Dare I hope we could actually get the slightest sense of him knowing to save other future victims of hero abuse; something I've long complained about us getting none of for most any villain-generating issue thus far.

And since I do feel I need to be more optimistic with this series than I've been lately, perhaps I should start talking more about that possibility instead.

C’mon Stain, don’t let your biggest fan down! Lecture his brother, he’d love that for a lot of reasons!

Oh man, if we get Shoto getting lectured on where his arc’s falling behind, and then reunite with Touya fighting his dad; that’d just be the best chapter I think I could ask for.

[ithinkthiswasabadidea]

WOW

What a game, holy shit 😭❤️

After all that, I was still so convinced there was going to be a way to save Constantin at the end.... he didn't deserve going through all of that. I truly don't believe that Constantin began the story with malice in his heart, or the goal to become the kind of ruler that he ended up being

Poisoned with the disease he escaped from by the people he was told to trust, a coup against him arranged and carried out, again, by people he thought he could trust, and his corruption stemmed from someone just wanting to help him be healed

And finally, De Sardet, the one last person who was meant to be there for him and help him when all other hope was lost..... was the one to end him 💔

Ugh. What a gorgeous story, I'm so so happy I got the 'best' ending possible 🥺 and I'm going to be replaying that last goodbye scene with Vasco for the next 3-5 business days, it made me so emotional 😭

De Sardet was a wonderfully done protagonist, the way he interacted with friends and enemies alike, almost always keeping a level head, with the goal to do whatever he could to foster good relations and repair damages as they were caused. I LOVED his personal journey, finding out about his own heritage and more about his people

Vasco obviously was a fast favourite companion and Kurt and Siora were also both done equally well. I feel like I enjoyed Kurt's personal missions best, honestly, they felt extremely important. Aphra and Petrus were underutilised, in my opinion, as it was clear that their differing opinions and methods were more at odds with De Sardet than the other companions

I also felt that certain side quests would have been more impactful as main missions, especially if they were also mandatory to explore in more depth. My own need to do everything I possibly can in a game, meant I didn't even think twice about doing all of the side quests, not even considering leaving them behind in gameplay

Otherwise, playing on easy mode made my experience much more enjoyable as I didn't have to worry about dying or consequences as much. While it was a bit of a speed bump to get used to controls and movement, I only initially found them a tad janky compared to larger studio games. The map system was a tiiiiny bit annoying, but nothing I didn't just get over

I chose a magic build to begin with, later utilising melee and firearms a bit more liberally. I definitely dont think I was very efficient in how I played, but the main thing was that I really enjoyed it and had fun. The combat felt really nicely done, and the Nádaig boss fights were a really awesome and impactful spectacle to engage in every now and then when the story called for it

I went into GreedFall with minimal expectations, not knowing a single thing about the story, and came out of it with so much love. I'm so fucking glad I gave this game a chance ❤️❤️❤️

[eternitywrites]

fantasy AU scenario (not an actual ending) (this series im made a mini scenario on is by YUZUYA on youtube and twitter!)

after a horrid experience in the Straihorn Mountains we finally made it to the top, it was kind of peaceful but none of us let our guard down. just as we were walking to the alter it was silent.

.

.

.

.

kirishima: bakugou what’s wrong? you seem.. off.

bakugou: eh? im fine shitty scales don’t worry about it.

kirishima: my prince, don’t lie to me please. i can tell something’s wrong, your facial expression is off too.

traveler: we can tell what’s wrong, please tell us bakugou! we’re your friends.

bakugou: (he lets out a deep sigh) i swear it’s nothing bad.. just feelings that’s all. forget about that i can see the alter ahead of us come on. (he picks up his pace)

kirishima: traveler theres definitely something wrong with him. i get your gonna.. well be gone soon (he takes a deep breath) but this feels like something else

traveler: yeah i agree (they fidget with their hands)

as i pick up my pace i can hear the two of you behind me, i wanted to get this thing over with. i’m not one to deal with this mushy goodbye shit. i will admit, it is kind of.. hard saying goodbye, after everything we’ve been through i can’t help but to feel a bit sad

bakugou: look we’re here, traveler get that gem out and be prepared to put it in

traveler: got it (sounds of shuffling as they take the gem out)

kirishima: ohh traveler i’m gonna miss you (he hugs them) i really don’t want you to go.. (sniffing noises) but you’ll be at home and that’s what matters

traveler: kirishima don’t cry (they hug him back)

kirishima: (sniffs as he lets go) katsuki i can see that look on your face. you don’t need to hide your feelings. after all this is the last we’ll see our traveler.

bakugou: (deep sigh as he walks over) i.. i’m not good with words. i don’t like being mushy either. you idiots better listen closely cause i’m not repeating anything.

kirishima: mhm

traveler: got it (they make eye contact with him)

bakugou: i.. well you know why i started calling you traveler, instead of outsider?

traveler: well actually not really, i’m just glad you don’t see me as one anymore (they smile lightly)

bakugou: (clears throat) the reason why i started calling you that is.. well because you’ve done a lot for me and eijiro. back in the Hadera Forest you saved kirishima, you’d given up sentimental items just to get me a new sword back in Milosen. hell you still even trusted me even after i attempted to sell that gem of yours. this opened up a bunch of.. feelings. dunce face came into the picture when he said i should get my head out of my ass and admit my feelings.

kirishima: bakugou.. (he says in shock)

bakugou: once i did take feelings into consideration it felt like a curse, it kept on growing and growing, my emotions felt like explosions and i didn’t like it. what i’m trying to tell you, is that i love you and eijiro, i know i suck at communicating but i can’t hold these thoughts in anymore, eijiro ever since i saved you from that.. camp, we traveled together. all the days we spent together to the time we played apart in each others lives, i fell in love with you. i just couldn’t realize it until sparky said something about feelings.

kirishima: (shocked noises) b-bakugou you HUH?

traveler: i-i’m speechless.. really.

kirishima: well.. uh if i’m being totally honest, i also.. love you katsuki. you too traveler! i fell inlove with katsuki after i got to travel with him more, and got to know him i could tell something changed how i looked at him, and Traveler… i’ve always been fond of you, ever since the beginning. but.. it wasn’t until the hadera forest that I realized…. that i loved you. i mean.. how could i not? You saved my life. i guess what I’m trying to say is ……. i love you both. so much.”

traveler: (shocked expression) you guys..

bakugou: eijiro.. you love us?

kirishima: (he nods his head staying silent)

traveler: wow.. i.. don’t know how to react.

bakugou: tch don’t let this stop you from going back home. the reason why we went through all of this was to get you here.

traveler: i.. i just need to say something.

kirishima: we’re listening, go ahead.

bakugou: (hums in agreement)

traveler: if i’m being perfectly honest.. i love you both too. i fell in love with both of you when we were under that cherry blossom tree, when we just well.. relaxed. when we were all play fighting, when we hugged. that just set of a bunch of emotions in me and i didn’t want to leave that moment behind. i don’t want to leave any of you behind.. (they start tearing up)

bakugou: (shocked expression) eh? you.. love us back?

traveler: y-yeah (they start crying)

kirishima: hey.. hey it’s okay traveler (he embraces them)

bakugou: (walks over to the both and joins in on the hug) don’t cry.. damn it

traveler: i wish i could give both of you my love, but time has its limits. (they end the hug) i should be ready to put the gem in the alter when the stars align

bakugou: y-yeah (he rubs his eyes for a second)

kirishima: of course

the three of us stood in silence, waiting for the right moment to put the gem into the alter. it had to be the longest silence of my life. i took a peek up at the sky and rushed you over to the alter

bakugou: traveler it’s almost time, you should go closer and get ready

as you look up the stars were aligned. it was beautiful, but a representation that this was our last time seeing each others. there was a shuffle as you put the gem in. it started glowing and a portal opened up. kirishima stared in wonder.

traveler: this is.. goodbye. goodbye eijiro and katsuki, please don’t forgive about me (noises as they hug them one last time)

kirishima: trust me (he sniffs) we can’t forget about you

bakugou: what the dragon said

traveler: good. i won’t forget about you guys either.

the last thing we saw was you smiling at us before you walked in, and the portal closed.

[ammonitetheseaserpent]

Final chapter? FINAL CHAPTER- IT’S HAPPENIN-

Sooo yeah, we’ve reached the final chapter of Tide of Tied Minds, and… wow. I remember when I first started jotting down ideas for the first chapter in my journal, and the idea of writing the final one seemed like a world away. And now we’re finally here? Weird.

Anyhoo, I wanna thank everyone who joined me on this little ambitious undertaking, and those who’ll come to read it still. It means a lot to me that you all like like my random lil jottins. >w<

I’m glad I took this small step beyond my writing norm, too. My usual fare of writing one-shots is something I find very freeing - I can just take an idea and write a quick little thing for it, and bam. Writing this, though, felt that much more rewarding. They’re both satisfying in different ways, y’know?

I think this chapter is the one that’s changed the most throughout this. I originally had a whooole different plan on how I wanted to end this fic, but after WAD, I got a new, small idea and it grew into what you see here. I did keep the idea of having a flashback at the start, though. Also, the original title was Time Well Spent, as kind of a placeholder that looked like it would become the final title, and I was not planning to make another title a song reference after 3 and 4 - buuut as you can probably see, my inner music geek won out in the end. XD

Done with the 6 chapters of TOTM, eh? Well, I am, anyhow - for those of you clicking on this post for the first time, there’s still one more ride left…

Tide of Tied Minds

Chapter 6: The Stars Are Projectors

Summary: The Collector reflects as they prepare for their favorite human’s celebration.

Chapter Word Count: 2,578

Trigger Warnings: Discussion of death; discussion of trauma

-

Their powers were fading - thanks to Belos’s green goop spreading up their wrists - but they were not about to let anything happen to all the people still in the Archives.

Puppet strings snagged each jutting spike on top of the building, and the Collector put all his strength and willpower and adrenaline into keeping it upright. Some of the people in there walk into his line of sight, looking shocked, a few pointing up. He smiled down at them to tell them everything would be fine; they’d all be safe because he’d make sure of it.

Finally, the house stopped falling - just in time, too. The Collector’s strings all snapped, and all the tension sagged out of their body at once.

It had taken pretty much everything they had, but they’d done it; they’d saved the Archive House and all the people in it from collapsing into the Boiling Sea.

Cool; just gonna… rest now, for a few billion years. Maybe more, he thought as he flopped down onto a travel star.

The star floated down until it gently put the Collector down onto the front of the Archive House’s balcony, where he flopped down sprawled on his stomach, breathing heavily.

A group of Luz’s friends/classmates approached him, led by a purple-haired witch girl - Amity, their mind supplied.

He shrank away from them, expecting them to scold or punish him, to hate him for all he’d put them through.

But when that didn’t happen, they caaarefully peeked an eye open - and saw Amity offering them a hand, a small smile on her face.

Happy and relieved all over (which caused more of that weird wet stuff to well up in their eyes), they took it, and she helped them to their feet. A woman who looked like Luz walked up to the front, approaching the Collector. Her face carried a kind of warmth they’d never recognized before. “Thank you for the help, pequeño amigo.”

-

During their last visit to the Owl House for a short while, the Collector had spent some time getting to know the others.

Amity, the sorta sassy abomination-focused witch and Luz’s girlfriend, who treated them with an almost expert patience.

Willow, the super-strong plant witch who looked out for all her friends, whether that be through gentle caring or kicking someone’s butt with vines.

Gus, the fun-loving illusionist who could rival the Collector’s chaotic energy, and who excitedly told them all his favorite things about the human realm.

Hunter, the Grimwalker that he’d finally gotten to know as his own person, not just another one of Belos’s toys and attempts to bring back his brother.

It was a breath of fresh air; getting to kick back, make some new friends and just… be a kid for a while.

After a while, though, unwelcome thoughts and memories started to settle back in, the closer he got to the group. They initially tried to shove these to the back of their mind, wanting desperately to have as much fun as he could, and not fall back into being slammed with things he didn’t want to think about. But the more time he spent among mortals, the more reminders he’d get, until they were all-encompassed by the now-unavoidable notion.

The notion that finally made their decision for them.

They were going back to the stars.

Not permanently, of course - but there were some things he felt he could only sort out away from the Boiling Isles, and some things he was sure the people of the Isles could sort out most effectively with some space from him. There were a lot of… complicated feelings the Collector had that were tied to the place; it was where they’d been imprisoned, where they’d met and been pulled into a false friendship by Belos. He wouldn’t blame the people of the Isles if they held complicated feelings toward him in turn as, sure, being kept in the Archives had kept them from being swept up in Belos’s takeover of the Titan, buuut being turned into puppets and used as playthings was evidently not an easy thing to be put through - if the way a lot of people had regarded him with fear and still seemed wary was anything to go by. That was part of it, too; guilt over what they’d done.

But bigger than each of those things, perhaps, was the notion they’d been trying so hard to avoid this whole time - he had terrifyingly up-close knowledge that mortals could break for good, but a lot less knowledge on what it could take to break them. That scared them more than they’d probably admit, especially considering how powerful their own magic was; he could hurt someone before he even knew it. It was better, safer, he thought, to keep a distance from these new friends until he’d learned more about how to control his powers. Maybe King could also teach them more about mortals, too - after all, they could (and most definitely would) be in touch with him whenever they wanted.

Besides all that, they haven’t been to space since they were trapped, and, well… they really wanted to see it again, wanted to explore far and wide just like they used to, now that he could. Space was familiar, home-ish and comfortable in a way the Isles wasn’t quite yet. He didn’t know how long it would be until it did become that, or until he could be among his witch and human friends without feeling all jumpy that any of them could get hurt at any moment - but they did feel that those things were very much within reach.

When the Collector first told everyone he was leaving for a bit, and explained why, some people seemed worried. Luz and Eda asked him if he’d be all right on their own, and it was stressed to him that he could always come back, that they had a place here, should they need it.

Everyone said their goodbyes, and he gave Francois back to King. Just as the Collector was about to step outside, though, they were stopped by King. His Titan buddy pressed the rabbit plush into their hands; a gesture of trust, a reminder that the Owl House would always be open to them, and a way of ensuring they’d never really be alone again.

Then King pulled the Collector into a hug, whispering “I hope I see you again soon,” into their ear.

At that, they almost broke down right there, out of pure sentimental joy.

He didn’t, of course. But he came close.

-

During that time since they’d overrun - and then helped save - the Boiling Isles, the Collector kept in touch with their friends and family, and visited them often. They’d left the door wide open, after all, and he was more than happy to make use of that as often as he pleased inbetween their little space escapades.

This particular visit was a little bit different than usual.

Luz had told them about the upcoming celebration of her birthday - or quinceañera - during his most recent visit. According to the people they’d asked, a birthday was meant to commemorate the passing of a year in someone’s life. It never failed to fascinate the Collector how, in the face of their relatively short lives, mortals came up with all sorts of ways to celebrate and make the most value possible out of their time.

At the notion of celebrating such a meaningful event for his pal Luz, well… when he went back to exploring space that day, he miiight’ve dream-visited King and told him about something special they wanted to do for this day.

Their first trip back in space was a blast. Everything they’d missed about the place was there for him to get into all over again! He counted stars, slept in the nooks and crannies of slow-moving asteroids, and saw loads of different planets. King kept them updated whenever the mood struck him, and gladly answered any questions they had. The little exploration had lasted about a month or so before they’d decided to see the Boiling Isles in person again. He felt like he was ready to see everyone again, safely this time.

When he came back, he wasn’t sure what to expect, or how much he’d be welcomed. That almost didn’t matter when they entered the Owl House and were greeted by Eda and King like an old friend. Luz was further back in the house with her mother Camila, and gave him the same welcome when he saw her - this was also when he met her basilisk sister Vee, who was (coincidentally enough) also having her first visit to the Isles in a while.

They stayed on the Isles a long while, almost twice as long as their space trip, getting to know everyone all over again and learning what they’d been up to. He was surprised at how natural it seemed, talking to all their friends and listening to them talk with zest and zeal. He got closer to everyone; closer than he’d ever been.

The place they spent the most time, though, was at the Owl House, which pretty much became his home on the Isles. Luz, King, Eda and Raine (Ray-Ray) all helped him figure stuff out about himself and the things and people around him, and showed them things they’d never known before - like family. A long time ago, family hadn’t meant much to him. From the Archivists and their constant, annoying dismissals of their little sibling, to Belos and all the Grimwalkers he only pretended to love, but who all had no worth of their own to him as long as he could make more. This, though, was different. This felt… right, as weird as it felt to call anything in his life that. It was a strange feeling, having people who understood him. They remember how Gus told them he knew what it was like to think someone was your friend, only to find out they were just pretending in order to use your abilities for their own gain.

A few times, during their visits, he approached some residents of the Isles and offered to help with the rebuilding, partly to test how they felt around him - and while some were still kinda wary, they never protested the idea of the Collector willingly helping take back some of the damage he’d done to their home. It gave him hope, and made him realize that he’d begun to find not just friends and family, but a community. For all the differences and knotted-up feelings between them, there was one thing that inspired some solidarity among them all in general - the same guy had once had them dancing to tunes of his choice. This was something they all understood, even when it came to the Collector. He got a taste of this when Hunter told him about the things he was forced to do under Belos, and how he coped with it.

The rebuilding took a long time and was not easy, as the former ruler’s final act had dealt a looot of damage to the Isles. There was definitely a lot of deeper damage the guy had done, that wasn’t as simple as being repaired. All the same, the Collector got the sense that, given enough time, things would (eventually) be okay, especially as people were now able to put energy into doing things they enjoyed without fear or restriction. Once, at his prompting, Willow had told him about flier derby, and how it gave her a sense of freedom and fun she hadn’t had a long time before. He sensed that all over - how, even if things would never really be the same as they’d once been, people could come together and find ways around that, to be able to flourish and be free again.

One time, Luz gathered a bunch of kids around herself and Amity, and together they regaled the group of a tale they’d told the Collector briefly before - how Belos was finally defeated. The kids watched, wide-eyed, as the two recounted the moment he was ripped from the Titan’s heart and melted by boiling rain, before being stomped on and finished off for good. For all his palisman-prolonged life, death had finally caught up to him.

Death…

It’s something the Collector tries not to think about, as much as that doesn’t do to actually stop his mind from going there. It’s something they’ve seen only a few times and still don’t completely get, but they hope beyond hope to never see it again. Sometimes, on bad days, just a glimpse of the decaying bones the adult Titans were reduced to brings on memories of their hands shaking and stained with red, or grasping desperately onto an orb of light.

Just like the Isles and the people on it, there are things in his life he’ll never fully be able to heal, but they’re learning to be able to live with that.

Four years. A pretty insignificant chunk of time by his standards, and yet so much has changed.

The Collector peers down at the Archive House, resting on top of the Titan’s skull like a crown. The huge left hand that reaches up, fingers poking just above the planet’s atmosphere - almost as if in greeting to the cosmic deity, or wanting to reach out and cradle them on its palm.

Come to think of it, there was one other thing Luz had told the Collector.

At first, he didn’t get how she’d been able to fix herself, when even he couldn’t fix her. Well, not until she told them that it was the Titan - the Boiling Isles - King’s Dad - who had given her his last bit of life to bring her back from wherever she’d been (which also explained why the big guy’s glyphs weren’t working anymore).

She’d also told them that the Titan had confessed they’d made a mistake by trapping the Collector.

The Collector goes into a dive toward the outstretched hand, then spreads out his arms at the last second to slow their fall and land gently onto its clawed thumb. He reaches out one of his hands and gives their perch a little pat. “Farewell, big guy.”

Just then, small, bustling sounds catch the Collector’s attention. Leaning forward and zooming their vision in, he browses around Bonesborough until his eyes reach the Owl House - where they see a crowd milling outside, coming to greet Luz and her mother Camila with lights and a huge banner. Whoop! The Collector quickly jumps up, hovering a few paces above the thumb. The celebration’s starting, and they will not let the fun end without doing his bit.

Time to put on a show. Grinning gleefully, the Collector conjures a ball of cosmic magic and raises their arms to light up the night sky.

Once they start wrapping up their display and turn to leave, he hears a faint sound - a massive chorus of “byyyeee!” from a gathered crowd in front of the Owl House, all waving excitedly to him.

The Collector laughs, the sound tingling through their whole body and making it feel lighter, a sound of pure, hearty jubilation. He waves down to his people as he flies off. “Kthanksbyyyeee!”