#i feel a bit sad honestly cause writing has been so much fun to me and now i'm either too depressed or too tired to do it

[ficsforeren]

popping in to say hello but also to say,,, people need to be patient jxjxjsjx. you’ll finish your fics whenever you can. I feel like that nuance is lost a lot on here😭🫶🏼

hiiii ezra how are you?? I'm so sorry for the late reply, I've been trying to get away from tumblr to focus on my life for a bit. and also thank you so muchhhhh for the message 😭🫶🏼❤️

It's okay tho I feel happy when I see that there are people out there who are still excited about my fics. I just wish I have the time and the energy to write them all 😭

[morriganofcrowsandwar]

Hey I’m baaaaackkk! I’m on season five of The Magnus Archives now whoops! Uhm yeah it’s been quite a lot but here are my thoughts because Jesus Christ there are many. First of all Season four Recap:

#1)Peter Lukas is fucking dead and honestly I’m a bit sad. I think it’s hilarious that the entire thing with Martin literally boiled down to a bet between him and Elias. Also they were so gay like is anyone in this show straight???? lol I loved their little lover’s quarrel it’s so cute these old men(eldritch horrors) are so funny.

#2) SIMON FUCKING FAIRCHILD IS MY FAVORITE PERSON EVER! He basically slipped and fell into being an avatar(quite fitting I suppose) and he’s just a rad old man. Like all the stories about him made him seem so silly and then we met him and he was lol. ALSO MICHAEL CREW IS DEAD AND I WANT TO KILL DAISY FOR IT! AGH I LIKED THE GUY! This is why we can’t have nice things, fucking Daisy always ruins them.

#3) Continuing the topic of Daisy I do actually like her(except for her bullshit with abusing her position as a police officer). She’s one of the only people in the series that genuinely seemed to be trying to get better. Although it was all in vain she did end up being a pretty cool wolf dog thingy so that’s neat I guess. Meanwhile Basira doesn’t want to put up with this shit anymore. She hated it the second she got stuck. I think she’s simultaneously my favorite and least favorite character, but then again I feel that way about basically everybody in this story. Moral ambiguity is basically the entire podcast’s premise at this point. The point is Daisy has been a lost cause from the start and Basira is badass and deserves so much better than all of this.

#4) I love Martin so so much actually he’s grown so much and I adore him. I want to put him in a jar and shake him. Boi stood up for himself and just said “No” . Bro did not care he just knew he wasn’t letting Peter win. What a legend gotta love him.

#5)Small blurb about Melanie because I love her. She’s blind now but that’s alright because SHES DATING GEORGIE HEHE YAAAAYYY!!! I think it’s awesome and it’s just fitting that she gets her happy ending yk cause she spent her whole life fighting and now she has peace. I adore her and Georgie. BRO GEORGIE?? She’s AMAZING like she is genuinely such a great person and is just looking out for people and also keeping herself intact like what a queen. Slay.

#6) Okay fine I guess I’ll talk about Jon lol, he’s still definitely my favorite(although Martin is not far behind) and I adore the writing of his descent into an actual avatar of the eye. Also hehehehe he killed Peter Lukas and ventured right into the lonely just get Martin! Ah! I love love! That’s so sweet I’m actually still giddy about them. Martin is so soft with Jon and now Jon is really trying to make up for the past and the time lost. And I guess yeah he got tricked into starting the apocalypse but like does it matter? Everyone else he knows is dead or dying bro it’s really not that upsetting at this point. Except for fucking MELANIE AND GEORGIE AGH I genuinely NEED them to be okay. Like gosh just stay inside babies you’ll be fine. Anyways the apocalypse is so fun and I’m drawing it

P.s. I’m sorry I’ve been away. My partner got me into Arcane and it turned into a full blown hyper-fixation so hehe. I will be posting the art of that too at some point but I also hope I’ll update more often as I listen to season five. Also this podcast has consumed my life so much that my partner just changed their name to Martyn because they were yk in the market for a new one and I suggested it soooo ha I feel slightly crazy lol

[eww-y-tho]

The hypothetical debates surrounding the whole "Lady and Lord Whistledown" vs "Colin and Penelope Bridgerton" make me wither because

Lady and Lord Whistledown.

I'm telling you, this shit would be so fucking funny. I can picture it in my mind's eye: Bridgerton season 4, we get a quick shot of Colin and Penelope talking shit and giggling like crazy in the background, maybe with some PDA to match because Colin can't keep his hands off her, only to hear a male voice actor of a similar calibre to our angel Julie Andrews join in sometimes while Charlotte picks up the paper and cackles. Obviously, the reveal would happen, but I want to believe that our Queen would be down for Whistledown to continue as long as it doesn't get too personal. It would be kind of unfair and a bit indicative of the period, monarchy and all, but Charlotte being in on it would amp up the comedy points. Plus some ~historical cultural commentary~ would just be that final flavouring of spice.

It would kind of feel like Colin's turning to the dark side because we've already seen quite a few scenes where he seems possessed by Lady Whistdown's attitude and I love the idea of him coming from hating Lady Whistledown's guts to protecting her and joining in because it's fun and it activated his little shit reflex. Plus the subtextual implications of just how much Colin and Penelope actually are best friends and are connected beyond normalcy would just be *chef's kiss*

I would also love it because it feels very partner-in-crime vibes, giving another aspect to their relationship that would be fun to see. Combined with the power Lady Whistledown has on the story, we'd be guaranteed to see our beans quite a lot. Also a "Hello, my Lady," followed by a "Hello, my Lord" after a particularly steamy scene would literally have me shaking crying giggling dancing kicking my feet.

As for Penelope, it honestly depends on how you view her character and her relationship with Lady Whistledown. If the person in question thinks that Lady Whistledown is a vital part of her personality, an aspect of who she is, limiting her by making her quit would just feel really, really sad, man. Lady Whistledown has caused Pen a lot of grief, however, and we see it a lot throughout the story, so I think Colin being there, sharing the secret and partaking would make her feel much more comfortable in her own skin.

Anyway. Love the idea, and would perish if it happened, but probably won't.

Colin and Penelope Bridgerton.

This one's more cute than anything else. Two writers as a couple release solo and joint works sometimes while establishing their reputation as respectable authors and leaving Lady Whistledown behind them. I can see another scene in my mind's eye, Colin and Pen are sitting across from each other on their respective writing desks, writing and then handing each other their work to review and give opinions, paired with a kiss after they start teasing each other about their writing. Considering that the designated Sexy Desk Scene has already been taken, this would have to be in a secluded area or in their bedroom. And then shots of people buying their books and enjoying them would ensue.

With the amount of journals and letters and things Colin's done, he's practically primed for an author's role. Maybe they can be more exposed to Colin's love for travel in this version. Having Penelope with him on his trips while writing their little hearts out would be adorable. Sadly, though, this would mean that they would probably have less screen time.

If you see Lady Whistledown as an outlet for the suffering Penelope was going through throughout the story, she wouldn't need Lady Whistledown anymore and abandon the alias because she's served her purpose as Penelope's coping mechanism, and Colin and Penelope would find their fix through other means. Maybe continuing to gossip but only between the two of them, going back to the beginning of the series and the final link to their relationship.

It's been established over and over again that they both love reading, writing, gossiping, and discussing all things philosophical. And each other for enjoying those qualities. So, I think this dynamic would be particularly interesting because it would be yet another way to connect. They could probably also make each other all hot and bothered by leaving random sexy letters sporadically, which would just be so fitting, tbh. However, that would also work for the Lady and Lord Whistledown dynamic so it's kind of a null point. It would be hot, though.

And, yeah, that's how I see those hypothetical dynamics playing out and how that would affect the characters. But now for the negatives. While I love the Lord Whistledown idea, I do think that Colin is a bit too nice and cute for that, and it would probably be a bit OOC, especially because of his personal experiences with Whistledown, it would be a bit weird if his tune suddenly changed to "yeah, I know gossip can ruin someone's life, but I like it now, so I don't care." But I also just can't fathom Bridgerton without Lady Whistledown, and this idea hinges on literally removing the narrator and source of all the tea, as well as making us lose our angel Julie Andrews. At least the Lady and Lord Whistledown idea fulfills almost all fronts of their relationship dynamic.

Again, as the GIF demonstrates, both are good, and I love both of them for the different ways they would take the characters, but let's be real, a combo would be really fun as well. Like Pen keeps up with Lady Whistledown while Colin writes his own books or smth.

Anyway, enough of my rambling. Bye.

[dittaturamonegasca]

I think there should bé a fic where anyone from the grid would be third wheeling Landoscar, like, have you seen how these two interact.

So, I lack the ability and the time of f1writingbyme and LestappenForever to make this idea into a proper work like they did for "How (Not) To Third Wheel Lestappen" (check it out on Ao3 if you haven't already, definitely worth it) BUT BUT BUT, I can tell you how I think most of the grid would react in third wheeling Landoscar!

1) I feel like we should spare Checo, cause honestly this man has had enough as third wheel of Maxiel and Lestappen, I don't wanna give him extra traumas, SO –

2) Logan Sargeant: this one I really feel guilty about. Cause I like the narrative of him and Oscah being besties and still I cry over the sad edits of Logan just left behind. I think Landoscar with Logan has the most space for improvement?? I forgive Oscar even tho he definitely ghosted the poor Logan for the whole honeymoon phase with Lando (it's been almost two years, Osc, get a grip). I have a feeling Logan will speak up at some point and this would shake Oscar a little, so maybe he would be the more aware and more involved third wheel, possibly? They'll end up doing triple video-games championships with Lando and Logan mocking Oscar's gaming skills, mark my words.

3) Carlos Sainz: my man how does it feel to know you've wasted your chance (multiple chances, lets be real) for good? I have mixed ideas about this one, cause I think it would probably being more like Lando struggling to keep them both as close as possible resulting in Oscar being rightfully jealous 👀👀 so the third wheeling situation would be like Lando trying to involve a very annoyed and confused Carlos in their things (safe for work, ofc). I don't really see a way out of it.

4) Daniel Ricciardo: I mention him but I can't really explain cause honestly my idea of Daniel third-wheeling Landoscar is either him babysit them around Australia and bonding with Oscar over weird aussie habits OR OR OR something very NOT SAFE WORK so ( ... )

5) Max Verstappen: I love to think he'll remain an unbothered king, you know? Like he's well aware and a bit upset that his crepes companion invited someone else (beside from Daniel) to their dessert dates and that the two of them acts like lovebirds even without an actual physical contact. He'll probably send SOS texts to Charles and Daniel until a topic of (his) interest comes out and honestly at that point the power of maxplaining will win over pretty much everything and everyone. At the end of the day Landoscar turn out to be the real victims.

6) George Russell: poor thing was originally invited for a golf morning from Carlos (Landoscar were already supposed to attend), but Chili called off last minute so Georgie ended up with just the others two. LET ME TELL YOU he jumped off the golf cart cause he saw Lando placing a hand on Oscar's thigh and feared for his life. It took several minutes for them to notice he was aggressively walking behind. He was also hit by a golf ball because Oscar distracted Lando for a second too long, I guess you can figure out the rest.

7) Special mention to the PR and the McLaren team in general who's main job rn is having them to SIMPLY F O C U S outside the pit for like interviews and debriefings. I can picture Lando losing it after hearing a single compliment like "SO YOU THINK I'M PRETTY", cause ✨babygirl✨ energy hitting here and there, even tho he has tried to be somehow a model for Oscar, at least for what concerns work. Indeed I pity trainers and strategists bc ofc Oscar listens at them, but image them trying to explain a concept to him just for Lando to get there and rephrase it in the dumbest way possible and Oscar going like OHHHHH NOW I GOT IT, COULDN'T YOU EXPLAIN IT THAT WAY?

8) This is mostly a guilty pleasure but do we all agree they torture the entire f1 group chat with their subtle flirting?

IDK if this was what you had in mind but I really REALLY had fun writing it.

So let me know what you think in the comments down below, if you agree or if you want me to make it longer and/or more detailed or just to focus on a specific one in particular?

Again, my dms and box section are open to discussions, requests and any sort of (respectful) thing!

PEACE OUT 🤌🏻❤️

[mbirnsings-71]

*looks at how many new different fandoms I've gotten into/old fandoms I've been revisiting this past week* Ah fuck okay so I should probably make an actual bio post-

Hi! I'm Madi/Angel, pronouns are They/she, and This is my tumblr blog where I tend to be a little bit of a menace- not really but like I tend to get very silly on here! Now with that out of the way, I should probably tell you guys my fandoms and certain tags I use! the fandoms I'll put under the keep reading but here's the quick stuff about tags I use!

Tags that frequently get used here:

#Madi's art :> - What I tag all my art with! This is where you will find all of it that I post on tumblr!

#Madi's writing :> - Literally exactly what my art tag is for except for my writing if I ever do write-

#WAADW AU :> - That is for my Wedding planner!Grian and Florist!Scar au that I've been brain rotting about for a solid two months?? it's been a long one and I have plenty of stuff planned for it!

#ESRMT AU :> - This one is for my newest snowbugs au because something about Necromancer Scott got a hold on me and now I'm world building for it it's awful the doc is long and I promise you guys will get more content for it eventually-

#madi's 9-1-1 DC au tag - What it says on the Tin, for my DC x 9-1-1 au because good god those firefighters got a grip on me and back when I was super into DC I had to mush those two hyperfixations together-

Fandoms that I might reblog/make content for on here, in no particular order:

- 9-1-1 (Both The main series and Lone star but Lone star never ends up on my dash so I forget to reblog stuff from it-)

- Minecraft content (Parkciv and Life SMP are spinning in my head constantly)

- Whitepine (PLEASE GO WATCH IT IT IS ONLY AN HOUR OF YOUR TIME PLEASE-)

- Critical Role (I WAS ON TOP OF IT BUT THEN I FELL BEHIND ON CR3 AND I NEED TO PLAY CATCH UP SO BADLY AAAAA)

- DC comics (Stares at my gigantic reading pile that's threatening to squash me-)

- D20 (Love Dropout and the chaos those campaigns bring very silly and love being able to watch them in my own time-)

- Pokémon (Love Pokémon sm man-)

- Sonic the Hedgehog (Big childhood special interest you can try to pry it away from me-)

- Welcome to night vale (I NEED TO CATCH UP MAN I NEED TO-)

- The Magnus Archives (again need to finish it cause Raaah-)

- Supernatural (I miss you Castiel you did not deserve superhell-)

- Ace Attorney (I miss my gay lawyers occasionally-)

- Danganronpa (I'm not as big of a fan of it as I was back during covid but some of the characters come back to whack me with a stick and remind me they exist it's wild-)

- Gravity Falls (God this show is part of the reason why I have such a love of supernatural/horror concepts amen-)

- The Owl House (Magic? Found Family? A silly cast of characters? Sign me up honestly-)

- Miraculous ladybug (these teenagers are traumatized and I feel the need to immensely give them therapy because hey! No 14 year old should have to hold that much responsibility on god!)

- Ouran Highschool Host club (the Nostalgia and also reading the Manga now has been wild and I still stand by Haruhi being my favorite character ever-)

- Blue Exorcist (I MISS MY GUY RIN OKAMURA I MISS HIM A LOT-)

- Vocaloid / Kagerou Daze / Evillious chronicles (Putting this all in one category cause the stories are primarily told through Vocaloid BUT GOD I love Kagerou daze and Evillious Chronicles so much it's insane-)

- Madoka Magica (the Magical girls are so sad man they make me SAD)

Now if you made it this far, congrats! You made it through my long list of fandoms! If you think my blog is kinda fun and end up following it, well that's just great for both of us! I can't promise regular content but I can at least be silly and fill your notifications with reblogs occassionally-

[beardedjoel]

I LOVE SMOTHER! I'm so sad the end is nigh, but I really appreciate you sharing this story with us. Others have said it but the characters are so well-developed which I think is frankly incredible for a story as complex as this one, where you're writing on taboo topics and balancing creating a compelling, interesting narrative that is also hot and makes us all wanna scream :) This is what I'm talking about when I'm like... fan fic is literature. I've been reading a second time and gotta say you write the internal turmoil Joel and Blossom grapple with sooooo so so well, like especially as they navigate their dynamic in the first part of the series so far. You build it up so well that this second bit of the series has unfolded so effortlessly, although I know you put a lot of work into this and it is very much appreciated! In the beginning bits where Blossom is going back and forth in her mind about her desire and sense of comfort versus fear and hatred and anger (especially in the times where Joel loses it on her, especially in penitence). And Joel just clearly feeling like a piece of shit about a lot of stuff but also wanting so badly to protect and nourish what is possible for them. I could go on forever! It is all just so well done and now with the plot ramped up I am so excited for whatever happens next. I almost want him to be willing to let her go (very begrudgingly of course) but I'm also like... would he really ever let that happen? In my mind, they are HEA and he teaches her archery and even though she becomes more experienced in the ways of the world as time passes, she is still always his little innocent little princess 🥺P.S. I also truly do not mean this is an annoying disrespectful GIVE US MORE CONTENT way because I know it is terrible when people do that to authors and you truly have given us so much, but wanted to echo that what the one anon suggested about a one shot where Joel takes care of Blossom while she is sick fucked up my whole brain because we all know you writing Joel taking care of his girl makes our hearts stop in general, so him doing it when she is sick... like Joel gently cooling her down with a towel if she has a fever (but inevitably heating her up again 😏) , making sure she has the comfiest pair of PJs, playing with her hair or rubbing her back and not caring if he gets sick too... I CANNOT. I'm just glad someone put it in my head because it will be in my day dreams lmao😱 Thank you again for everything!

oh my god HI

literally how the heck am i supposed to respond when i'm literally still speechless at you taking the time to send me this! honestly, just thank you so much for loving joel and blossom and their story that i'm telling 😭 i think upon reflection you saying how the beginning was so tumultuous and kind of unsure that them finally finding their stride together really came at the right time. like you said, in a way it came about naturally and effortlessly to me as the storyteller cause it just made sense for things to progress like that in my mind!

and i do love the idea of joel being willing to let her go, it's kind of so tragically sad it eats at me in that angsty writer way haha. he may grapple with that some in the wake of what's happening right now, but like you said in the end that man would not be down to do that like AT ALL.

the one shot idea honestly is so cute. i've rolled it around in my mind, and if enough ever sticks so that i'm like yeah i could write a whole one shot around enough ideas for it to be fun to read for you all, i'll do it! i do plan to write one shots for them in the future as i'm inspired to so it's definitely not out of the realm of possibility! 🤍

anyways!!! thank you again so much. i'm always down to yap about smother anytime.

[soaps-mohawk]

me sliding into your asks as soon as i see they're open: HECKIN. YES.

(also i wrote this before the latest update if the vibes seem off)

I know you've been having A Time of it so no pressure to answer this (or if it bothers you! I hope you don't mind but if you do I apologize) 

But I was reading through the CRCB FAQs and you were talking about how a second omega would fit in the pack, with Simon as their "primary" alpha. I was thinking about what kind of omega would be interesting and able to keep up with them....and landed on: well, there have to be SOME omega rights activists, right? It seems like omega suffrage would be a fairly new thing (last 100 years or so), and that generally speaking omegas have the limited rights that American women had prior to women's lib/the advent of no fault divorce (and if you've already talked about this ahhhh don't mind me!)

And I just thought. That would be so delicious. An older omega rights activist (30s? older than reader!omega "Too old" by societal norms) , not super well known but pretty independent for an omega. and the US government can't just KILL them as much as they want to, (the FBI is like wym y not???:( so ooc for us ) so the CIA is like hey UK!!! heard about some omega shit you were doing. Need another one??? But don't look at that file too closely. Actually, you know what, just give the file back to us, you don't need it

Basically the exact opposite reason reader was chosen (military background, textbook good omega , genuinely trying their best to be a good omega vs civilian actively trying to cause a ruckus  who needs to be black bagged) and they know Ghost's reputation and his upbringing, on paper they see a man who will NOT take kindly to this mouthy omega, who will undoubtedly fight him on EVERYTHING, who will certainly hate the good omega the pack already has, so no one will be too concerned if Riley roughs them up a bit. if the omega dies during claiming wah wahhh so sad. but these things happen and now the Brits owe us a favor for killing a US citizen

Of course they don't take into account how much reader!omega has impacted the pack, who is already working on ways to make the new omega feel welcome and cared for, that Ghost would sooner kill himself than put himself in a position where he felt he was unsafe for (his) omega OR that Ghost would probably be really chuffed to have an omega that will stand toe to toe with him and who will be SO EXCITED at learning how to fight alphas. 

idk idk i just had fun thinking about it. reader!omega being very protective of New Packmate, doing things she wish had been done when she was first introduced to the pack (fluffy blanket shopping spree!!) lowkey being a wingman, baking brownies together, HAVING THEIR OWN GROUP CHAT ABOUT THE BOYS!! well i guess it's just a chat if there's only two in it but you get it

anyway thank you for sharing this wonderful world with us :)

(also: i was so scared about the new chapter bcos anxiety! i was worried the boys would just be harsh and angry for the dramatic tension but their reactions were believable and informed by what they've been learning about the realities of being an omega. and it was so well done, it made my heart hurt but the good way.)

Haha yeah, I was getting a ton and didn't want to overwhelm myself so I turned them off for a bit before Saturday since I knew I'd be getting many after I posted the chapter.

Ah yeah, that was an idea I had early on writing this fic. Something similar except Simon doesn't accept the first omega so Laswell sends in a second (the details and world are very different with a few similarities) for Simon and Johnny.

But this would be a good idea too!! Definitely would be some butting heads there and there would be a lot of struggles between them. Angst though. The angst would be chef's kiss

(Yeah, I tried to tone it down more from what it was originally going to be and honestly I made them nicer than they should have been, while also keeping it realistic still. John definitely was the most understanding because he understands why 'mega kept it a secret in the first place. I broke everyone's hearts this week. I can't promise I'm not gonna do it again next week)

[phantomdialogue]

˗ˏˋ. ݁₊ ✶ ˖ 𝐭𝐚𝐦𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝟕 𝐛𝐲 𝐜𝐡𝐥𝐨𝐞 𝐰𝐚𝐥𝐬𝐡 - 𝟒/𝟓 ☆ . ݁ ˖ˎˊ˗

boys of tommen book five

premise: claire biggs and gerard gibson have loved each other for their whole lives. as times have changed and they've grown up, they've only gotten closer. as lines start to cross and tensions get higher with their friends, will their friendship survive, will everything fall apart, or will they finally confess just how strongly they feel about each other?

couple: gerard gibson and claire biggs

tropes: friends to lovers, slight sports romance, neighbor romance, childhood best friends/sweethearts, brother's best friend

CHECK TRIGGER WARNINGS BEFORE READING!!

content warnings: sexual assault, grief, self-harm, child abuse, and more.

available on kindle unlimited

review below!

review:

it's gonna take a lot for chloe walsh to write one of these books that i don't like honestly. i adore all of these characters no matter how much they make the wrong decisions and upset me at times. that being said, i still think this is easily the weakest book in the series for me personally. i love gibsie and claire and i was so so excited to read their romance and their stories but for being a book about gibsie and claire... it felt like there was a lot of set up for the next couple instead. there is still a whole lot of emphasis on our two main characters but there is a lot more going on in the background of this book compared to the others that distracts a little bit from our main characters.

i do think that this book really handles the idea of gibsie being the "funny character who secretly has a really dark past" really well. we've grown to know him as this humourous character to fall back on for relief in tense moments but getting to learn about the demons in his head and past really makes him such a well-rounded character and i think that he really stands high with both johnny and joey as great mmc's. claire as well is a really fun fmc but i do think that there was a lot of leaning into the emotionally immature parts of her characters that left me wishing that she had been able to be a bit more mature like she had been in some of the previous books.

lizzie is a hot topic in this book for many reasons and i'm honestly conflicted as of now for how i feel about her post-reading this and i think that i'm not going to be able to form a solid opinion on her again until after her book(s). since so much of what she's going through is deeply personal, while you can judge her actions in this book for sure and i did do that, i personally can't judge her as a whole until we get to read that personal aspect of it from her side of the story.

even though it's not my favorite in the series, i still had a great (and sad) time reading this book. the boys of tommen is such a comfort (and uncomfort) series to me and these characters all hold such a special place in my heart that i can't wait to read more in the next books.

my ratings:

characters - 4.5 ☆ - change and grow, relatable, strong relationships

plot - 3.5 ☆ - steady pacing, repetitive

this plot didn't drive me as much as the previous books and because of that, i think it's just a bit weaker. i felt like there wasn't a ton going on externally to keep pushing the characters while at the same time, a lot going on internally for our main characters (and even side characters). i just wish there was a bit more going on in order to keep pushing forward with the story and the timeline rather than doing more of a "day-to-day" plot.

setting - 4.5 ☆ - fits the story, realistic

writing style - 4 ☆ - easy to read, repetitive, witty

favorite quotes (some spoilers here, of course, but minimal):

“I don’t see anyone.” His lips tipped up in the smallest of smiles before he added, “Except for you.”

If I could sew this girl to my skin without causing her an ounce of harm, then I would do it in a heartbeat. That’s how vital she was to my life. How essential she was to my existence. If drugs were to Joey Lynch what Claire Biggs was to me, then there was no amount of rehab that could sway me to kick the habit. Because she was the habit of my lifetime.

“It’s all about priorities, babe.” “And I’m yours?” I teased. “Always,”

Gibsie belonged to the rest of the world. Gerard belonged just to me.

“Gibs, I’d let my ma adopt the whole bleeding school if it meant that I got to keep that girl.”

“What’s that saying for the word ‘fine,’ babe?” “Fucked up, insecure, neurotic and emotional.”

“Hi, Gibs.” “Little Shannon.” I smiled. “How’s my second favorite girl in the world?”

I wanted to save him from his past. I wanted to love him through it all. I just wanted him.

“You’re the only person who can hold my attention. It shifts and wanders off on just about everyone else. But not you. Never you.”

“I’d be delighted with sons, too, of course, but I’d love to raise a little girl with Shan.” Shrugging, he added, “You know, show her how different it should’ve been for her.”

“You know you love me.” Yeah, and I had a feeling the whole world knew it.

“And you think I have problems,” Tadhg drawled sarcastically. “Tell you what, Joe. I’d rather be a Lynch than a bitch any day.”

“We don’t all bulldoze, Jonathan! And we don’t all mark our turf with a baby, Joseph.”

“I’m a bleeding criminal.” “I used to think Podge was highly strung,” Joey mused, quite literally leaning against the scene of the crime, finishing his cigarette. “But Kav takes the cake.”

“Since when have I ever given you the impression that I’m the little spoon in this relationship?” “And I am?” “Well, it isn’t bleeding me!”

Gerard’s love for me wasn’t something I ever needed to question. It was his unwillingness to offer me more that plagued my every waking hour.

“It’s like everything you used to care about switches into something deeper. Like your needs go on the back burner because your focus has switched to her.”

“I’ll give you my weekends, Claire. I’ll give you my weekdays, too. Whatever you want. Cinemas. Restaurants. Date nights. It’s yours. Just promise me you won’t go out with him again.”

“What’s wrong?” I bit out. “Jealous much?” “On the contrary,” he tossed back, jaw ticking. “I’ve developed a hernia from the weight it’s taking me to give a fuck!”

“You missed the clown.” “No, she didn’t,” Tadhg chimed in from his perch on the island. “She brought him with her.” “She brought him with her,” Gerard mimicked with a glare. “Less of the lip.”

“You’re good with words,” I offered. “When you use them.” “I use them,” he replied. “Not everyone listens.”

“But I feel safe around Gibs,” she told me. “Aside from Johnny, he’s the only other boy whose hands I would willingly put my life in.”

“You’re the best friend I’ve ever had, and I love the fucking bones of you, ya mad eejit.” He choked out a pained laugh. “And if you think this is going to chase me off, then you’ve another thing coming, fucker, because I’m never leaving you. Do ya hear me? Because you’re my Gibs.” “And you’re my Kav.”

I might not know who I was or where I fit in the world, but I knew without a shadow of a doubt that I didn’t want any of it without Claire Biggs. Or Cap.

[gaast]

As I did this time last year, I wanna take some time to go through all the games I played this year, do little write-ups about them, and move on.

For context, if you're not following the link, a couple years ago I decided to play only one game at a time, and play it to completion before starting a new one. I have been pretty bad at keeping that promise, but it has definitely helped me work through more games.

With that, let's get into late 2023-late 2024:

But first! An update.

I quit Assassin's Creed: Valhalla. I got literally everything you can get on the map and just didn't care enough to play anymore.

FlipWitch - Forbidden Sex Hex, December 6-December 8

A fun pixel-platformer with lewd elements. It hasn't stuck in my head because it didn't really do anything new or memorable, I guess. I remember thinking it was cute, though, and if a lewdgame can leave that kind of impression on me then that means the art was good.

ForumWarz, sometime in December-January 1

This game was made in the late Bush era and it shows. It takes as its entire genetic template the cesspit that was that decade's Internet culture, and amplifies it all to absurd degrees. The game is racist, ableist, homophobic, transphobic--you name it, it's got it.

At its height it had hundreds of concurrent users. I remember sitting in INCIT lobbies just making the most rancid jokes because it was awesome. It grabbed random images from Flickr or something, and tasked players with making a demotivational poster out of them. People would then vote on the funniest one. Meanwhile, you're all in a chat together. Despite how offensive the game tried to be, I remember the users actually being pretty tolerable. It was like if the /b/ of the time were way smaller and moderated.

INCIT doesn't work anymore. The last ForumBuildr forum was created in April 2023. Evil Trout keeps the ForumWarz servers running because it was something he made with his friends, regardless of whether he stands by it--and hosting it is so cheap.

I got so many scoops just because I was the only one playing.

This is a dead game that also serves as a time capsule of an Internet that is no more. It's funny, you can see so many prescient anxieties about Web 2.0 technologies, the ubiquity of search engines, conspiracy theories, and so much stuff that would end up being so deleterious to the Internet's overall health.

And it's still fun.

I blew through it in a couple of days (notwithstanding the above dates; I returned to it after a delay) thanks to buying the forum visits cheat. I don't regret it. It made me feel sad. I was nostalgic for an era of Web gaming that just doesn't exist anymore. I was nostalgic for the anxieties we used to have about what is now our reality.

I'd honestly still recommend that you try this game out. It's indefensible. But it has something to say that I don't think it did back in 2008. If nothing else, it's the most engaging way I've yet to see a game take place on the Internet.

Buckshot Roulette, January 12

Well worth it. Fantastic atmosphere and gameplay and graphics. Deserves the hype.

The Other Side, January 12

Really cool, well-executed short horror experience.

Cuphead, January 15

This was my second foray into Cuphead; my first had come many years earlier.

The date is a bit misleading. I started late in the night of January 11 (so it was the morning of the 15th) and I finished it later that day.

It's good! It's really fun! It's very snappy, and it always feels like it's your decisions or execution that caused you to lose.

But, like... I thought it was supposed to be difficult? Everyone always said that it's difficult. It's pretty easy.

Ah well. Still worth it.

Myst III: Exile, January 14-January 16

The "one game" policy apparently failed me a little more than a month after my first roundup post, I see.

For me, this was revisiting a classic. Exile isn't my favorite of the original trilogy, but it's still an awesome game, and it has an emotional payoff, even if you're not a fan of Saavedro.

It's the peak of the original trilogy, imo, in gameplay and visuals (though some of the puzzles are... not the best). If it had a better, more engaging story like a certain one of its predecessors, it'd be so much better...

The Coffin of Andy and Leyley, Chapters 1 and 2, January 20

This game is shaping up to be fantastic. Honestly. It has all the makings of a modern horror classic. I'm super excited to see where the remainder of the game goes. If it can ride the momentum it built in the first chapters, it'll be a fantastic success.

Neotrogla, January

This one stuck with me. It's a short Twine about swarms and being trans and working class. And dead bodies.

Play it if you're okay with the thought of becoming a hive. Otherwise, stay away.

Drain Mansion, January 27-January 28

Another lewd platformer! In the style of lewd platformers I enjoy!

Sadly this one didn't stick with me. It was more fun to play, I think, than others of its ilk, but a bit less enjoyable overall. The constrained setting doesn't actually do it any favors.

Cover Me In Leaves, January 28

...I'm so sorry, I don't remember this one at all.

Darkest Dungeon, December-February 1

I wanted something that played like Dohna Dohna and this sure counted. More of a -core game than the porn one, though.

It's fun, it's really fun, and I liked it a lot, but I personally wasn't compelled by it. I'd get the sequel just to play more of its gameplay, but not because I'm invested.

Sonic Forces, December 27-February 2

This game sucks.

What a fresh take on a bad game, I know, but its crime isn't just that it's bad. It's that it's boring. It is a boring game. Liam O'Brien's voice work is maybe the only thing in it that excites.

But it's real crime is that it isn't awful in a spectacular way. It's just mid. Mid, with horrible controls.

Warhammer 40,000: Mechanicus, February 2-February 17

I'd been wanting to "get into" Warhammer for a little while. I saw this game was on sale for cheap on Steam so I got it. Around the same time, I was like, "I wanna play an XCOMlike. This was the first game that came up in a search for that.

Gotta say, this game rules. Maybe it's a bit repetitive, but the combat always feels engaging, the music is fantastic, the visuals are great, and the writing (despite grammatical issues that I just cannot let slide) is very, very fun.

Looking forward to the sequel.

In Stars and Time, February 18-February 25

Sometimes a game just gets it. Gets you. Nails your internal monologue. Replicates your fears.

Scenes from this game still haunt me.

Better yet, it's a mostly-lighthearted adventure RPG. It's heavily dialogue-focused, which is great because the five main characters are such a joy to spend time with. It's even better watching it all break down thanks to the desperate, painful, terrified actions of but one of them.

It sucks, you know.

I'm so glad this game came to my attention. I'm so glad it's getting so much recognition. It deserves it, it really does.

I can't recommend it enough. Also, the instruction manual comes with a recipe for cookies, which I baked and were pretty good!

Armored Core VI: Fires of Rubicon, February 25-March 5

I wanted to play a robot game and I had never played any of From's offerings outside of its Soulslikes. So I gave it a shot.

The game's good. The graphics are great. The characters are fun.

That's about it, though. I found it to be frustrating, and it hasn't really stuck with me. It was just another game I've played. Which is a shame.

Boyfriend Dungeon, March 8-March 15

I enjoyed it enough to get all of the achievements, but I wouldn't call it a standout game or anything. It's good--it works, it's fun, it keeps you engaged--but it didn't have nearly the depth I wanted from it.

It's an indie offering so I can't really knock it too much for lacking depth, but I think it promised more than it should have. A smaller roster to start with that expanded through updates might have been a better call. I don't know.

Not to say I'm down on Boyfriend Dungeon. I like it a lot and definitely recommend it. Just go in with tamer expectations than I did.

Death of a Wish, March 15-March 17

Ah, the sequel to one of my favorite games ever, Lucah: Born of a Dream. It lives up to its promise. The action is just as intense, if not more so thanks to the awesome parry system, and the visuals remain stark, unique, and bleak.

The world itself is much less abstract, viewed through Christian's eyes, but it's still just as fucked. If anything, it's even more fucked, with little to oppose the forces that be, apart from some children who can't get their acts together because one of them just can't get along correctly.

And that's what I like about this game so much. Christian's failing is that he takes too much onto his shoulders at once and in the process tramples over his friends without meaning to. By figuring out how to work together with them, that's when the world starts changing.

Something we should all remember, I think.

Cassette Beasts, March 18-March 30

This game knows what it is, and it makes sure you know that it's its own thing. It's fun, with great designs, awesome setpiece fights, fun music, and great twists on the gameplay. It also looks really pretty.

You should play this game.

In Other Waters, April 4-April 8

This is a very interesting game that is just too railroaded to rise above itself. Also, the grammar is kind of unforgivable.

Still worth playing, but...

Dangan Ronpa: Ultra Despair Girls, April 9-April 13

A continuation of my goal to engage with the whole series. Ultra Despair Girls is really easy but it's also really fun. I enjoyed it a lot.

The Legend of Zelda: Link's Awakening DX HD, April 27-May 5

I've never played the original, and when I remembered that I had downloaded this before Nintendo could nuke it.

It's fantastic! The team behind this remake did an amazing job making everything look good, feel good, and work good. It really does feel just like playing a GBC game that... keeps going.

And Link's Awakening itself is a classic for a reason. It's really good.

The Legend of Zelda: Oracle of Seasons and The Legend of Zelda: Oracle of Ages, May-May 26

I'd played both these games when I was a kid, and going through Link's Awakening made me wanna replay them. I'm not upset that I did. They're still as great as I remembered they were.

I know that people who've played these titles kind of evangelize about them but they really are the underappreciated gems of this series.

Loop Hero, May 26-June 9

I finally managed to finish this game. I'd been playing on and off for years but never managed to get too far because I didn't quite understand how resource-gathering worked and also I didn't take big enough risks.

So, Loop Hero is fantastic. It's dismal, bleak, and grimy. It's got great art, even better music, and stressful, engaging gameplay. Don't pass it up.

Tales of Hearts R, April 16-June 23

The last Tales game I played was Zestiria around when it came out, and it was so bad that I stopped playing any Tales games at all. And I had had a dream of playing all of them!

But I wanted to use my Vita and I had already bought Hearts R. So I figured I'd give it a shot.

I fell in love. It's a Tales game so it's never astounding, but man, it's really fun, with actually multifaceted characters, great music, and fun battles. It's everything you'd want from a Tales game.

The dream is back.

Riven (2024), June 26-June 28

Riven: The Sequel to Myst is one of my favorite games, so learning that they'd released a faithful yet updated version of it meant I had to try it immediately.

This is probably the version of Riven I'd tell new players to start with. It's got a lot of features that make it easier to get into, and some of the more egregious puzzles have been changed to be less, you know, bullshit. But in the transition from still-based point-and-click to real-time (which works very well) was lost some of the charming parts of the original, especially the FMV portions that really, really sold the original trilogy.

Weirdly, this version adds some tedium, with a bit of extra backtracking, and more of the village on Jungle Island to "explore," except it's a lot of ladders to climb very slowly and get lost in while trying to figure out some of the more intricate large-scale puzzles, including the new ones. I managed to lose track of the submersible for a while even though that really shouldn't happen?

But at its core, it's still Riven, and this update was made with clear, intense love for the original. If the original was exactly the same but they replaced the sound-number elements with what they did in 2024 (for accessibility), plus adding in the free exploration, it'd be the perfect Riven.

Even if you've played the original Riven, play this one, too, because it's really fascinating to see what changes they made for 2024 and how they stayed faithful to its source material.

But if it's your first time playing a Myst game, start here. And then play the original Riven.

Another Crab's Treasure, August 3-August 10

I love this game. It is what it is and it knows what it is. You'll either like that or you won't.

Fear & Hunger, May 7-August 15

I could write essays about this game.

I'll just say that I love it and it's fantastic.

Mother 3, finished August 30

Another game to write essays about. I fucking love this game. It's not new to say it's incredible. But it really is one of the best RPGs I've ever played. Please play it.

Warhammer 40,000: Boltgun, August 10-September 15

Super fun and incredibly well-executed FPS. Love it.

milk inside a bag of milk inside a bag of milk, September 15

Oof (positive).

Persona 5 Tactica and Repaint Your Heart, September 20-October 19

I wanted a strategy game and I got a strategy game.

I actually really love this game. It's good. Really good. Because it takes place after Persona 5, the Phantom Thieves already know each other and get to be cute and together for the whole time.

The new main characters added for Tactica are adorable and I love them. The DLC also adds even more great character designs. And the music overall is great.

It's hard to recommend if you don't know Persona 5 and you're not already predisposed to liking the battle system. But man. It's really good. And nowhere near the amount of people will play it as it deserves.

Daemonologie, October 27

Oof (positive).

The visuals are astounding.

Mouthwashing, October 27

Not gonna talk about this one. I love it, though.

Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine 2, October 13-October 28

It's fantastic. It's everything you want. It looks so fucking good.

That's all.

Fuga: Melodies of Steel, October 28-November 14

I love it!! It's so much fun!!! The designs are so good!!!!! Play it!!!!!!!

Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine, November 9-November 17

A bit crusty, but it's still good.

Fire Emblem: Engage, November 15-December 1

It's okay. It's very okay! And that's fine.

It's fine. The art is fine. The maps are fine. The combat is fine. The music is fine. It's all fine. Nothing too good, nothing too bad.

It's a shame, because Fire Emblem as a series promises so much. But it has severe limitations that I'll talk about some other time.

Anyway, I like Engage.

Celeste, December 2-December 4

It's pretty good! I don't think it's as great as people made it sound to be, but it's fun and snappy and works. If you want to play a game like Celeste then play Celeste.

[aita-blorbos]

AITA for breaking up with my friend at a party he was hosting?

Basically, I've (F40s) been friends with this guy, F (M40s) for about twenty years. We met when we were in college (different schools but lived in the same apartment building) and he has been my absolute best friend pretty much ever since. For a very long time, until a couple of years ago, we were a group of three with my other best friend, C (M40s), but C and F had a large, public, and extremely dramatic falling out. Since then, I've managed to stay friends with both of them, but C and F haven't spoken since their fight.

One of the reasons C and F stopped being friends was the life choices that F made. F started out as an artist, an extremely talented and pretty successful and accomplished composer. C was his partner in writing (a genius playwright and lyricist), but got frustrated over years of watching F choose to chase success over creative satisfaction, leading to F often forgetting about the projects he was supposed to be working on with C. I understood where both of them were coming from; F wanted success and fame regardless of where it came from, while C wanted to make art for art's sake, and their different outlooks on why they were doing what they did led to their eventual split.

I never agreed with F's choices to chase fame and fortune, but ultimately, it was his choice to make. I never thought he was actually happy, but for the last years of our friendship, I was just hoping he'd realize that on his own. Over time, being friends with him became more stressful than it was fulfilling. I'll admit, I've always been a little bit in love with F, so it was even more painful for me to see him marry somebody else and be happy with her, which I was obviously sad about but happy for him, only to throw that relationship away by cheating with a woman who is terrible for him. After his divorce, he practically abandoned his son, which I also hated. His ex moved across the country, and even though F became extremely rich and successful, I still saw his son more than him. F didn't even go to his son's high school graduation, and I did. That was the breaking point for me.

I've stood by F for years despite the disastrous choices he's made. He abandoned his oldest and closest friend over different opinions, which is his choice but still seemed unnecessary to me, threw away all creative integrity he once had for the sake of making terrible movies that sold well but said nothing, abandoned his son, and even after marrying the woman that caused his divorce, cheated on her with a woman half his age and didn't even bother to keep it a secret. I was fed up.

F invited me to a huge party with his new Hollywood friends to celebrate the release of one of his movies. He paid for my flight out. I knew when I accepted that I was ready to end this friendship, which is where I think I might be the asshole. I was drunk before the party even started, a habit that began as a coping mechanism for the stress that F added to my life a while ago, because I knew I wouldn't be brave enough to go through with it without the alcohol. During the party, F brazenly flirted with and even kissed the young woman he's currently cheating on his wife with, and his other "friends" in the room either didn't care or treated it like fun gossip. I drank more. His wife, who has always hated me and known my feelings for F (unsure of if those two facts are connected, honestly), was cruel to me. His "friends" treated me like trash. Eventually, I spoke my mind. Yes, I was drunk, but I meant every word. Everybody in the room was fake and terrible, and F had turned into the kind of person who had earned their treatment of him. He isn't the man I met when I was 20 and fell in love with, not anymore. I never meant to break up the friendship as publically as I did, and I know doing it at the party and insulting his friends made it a much bigger deal than it had to be, but I couldn't wait to do it anymore. I needed it to be done.

So, AITA?

[stuffyflowers]

Started playing PS Outertale a few hours ago and I have, thoughts.

For the most part, geno has been a chill time. There are some tweaks I really appreciate, like the grinding being so quick and skipping dialog by holding C. Asriel was a little jarring at first, really did not like the way he talked down to Papyrus (and that bit where he's pretending Sans is still there? eugh), but once we were past not-Snowdin I really started to appreciate him. His relationship with Frisk/Chara/The Player/Whatever is really intriguing, especially how Frisk or whoever genuinely seems to reciprocate his feelings. Love the Best Friends Setting The World On Fire vibe we got going on.

I did kind of feel like the game was just, really easy? I beat Undyne the Undying without dying, and that's without knowing what the new spear attacks did. But a lot of her normal attack were just like, easier versions of her original attacks? I did like the extra attacking mechanic and how it was still loosely DDR esc like green soul mode.

Beat Mettaton on my second try. Orange soul mode was neat. A little weird to get used to but it didn't offend. Defiantly a little harder that Undyne but not a huge step up.

Alphys... I REALLY do not like this fight. As of writing this I have not beaten it and I don't thing I will. There are a just, lot of little things that just drag the whole thing down for me. For one, Screen Shake. Lasers shake the screen, the expanding rings shake the screen, hell, even the damn MUSIC shakes the screen! I can't see where I am or what I'm supposed to be dodging! Second, the obnoxious spinning background. It's distracting and bugs the hell out of me. Third, the music. It's very meh imo, gets grating after a bit and just sounds like noise now. So far my biggest issue is that her attacks are 1000 years long. Each one feels like three for four attacks in one. Sometimes I'd get most of the way through an attack and just, get fatigued and take my hands off the keyboard cause I'm so overwhelmed.

I've never felt like this before. I don't usually mind a challenge, I actually like throwing myself at a problem until I break through. I loved beating UTY geno without using any equipment (Only Rubber Bullets, the Patch and the Toy Gun. Honestly if you're looking to play UTY geno again but harder I highly recommend), and that was a grind that took weeks. But this? I have absolutely no desire to return to this. I can't honestly say the fight is even good or bad cause I just can't get into it. This is the worst time I've ever had fighting an UT boss, and I don't think that was the intention.

I don't know where I was going with this. I just had a lot of thoughts and felt the need to share them.

Fun fact u can hold alt+press left twice to open the debug menu and get temmie armour infinite hp etc etc would highly recommend using whenever a fight annoys u lol im not grinding for this game. I agree w ur alphys boss complaint so much, I almost got my ass beat WHILE using th temmie armour, the patience soul mode is just not made for a boss fight of that scale I don’t think, especially not one where it piles on what feels like 20 attacks in one turn. It’s so sad bc I was genuinely pretty hyped to see final boss alphys, seeing herself as the one to blame for everyone’s deaths in this route coulda made up for the nothingburger she was given in pacifist but it was just. Eh.

Also asriel is just very funny to me. This au really only cares abt asriel and twinkly seems to exist just to fill floweys slot which is smth I don’t care for, but I at least appreciate they let him be an edgy little shit rather than playing into the idea that having a soul would magically fix flowey/twinkly and make him a normal kid again. I like that frisk is kind of just fucking around ig, it makes a funny contrast against asriel. I wish the route used the frisk/asriel/mk trio more also. Idontknow I still haven’t fully figured out how I feel about this route it’s so weird. I did enjoy it more on average than lv0 pacifist tho so that’s. Something?

[flydotnet]

Bad Things Happen Bingo! The event where I give myself stupidly niche requests according to this marvelous card... or something. It's been three years dawg. (Red cross is the completed prompt, character headshots are prompts I’ve already filled).

You dislike me, Princess Ivy? We each have our tastes, I suppose, but…this makes me sad.

It's a bit of an unorthodox take on "Take Me Instead" that's tailored to my tastes, but what is fanfiction if not an expression of a thing you like? Yeah, exactly.

I may have lost myself during the making of this fanfic. Got lost in the sauce, you could say. It's very verbose and static, and I lost sight of what this fic was originally going to be about. Or was it ever about anything that wasn't writing an interaction vaguely based on a bond conversation that amused me? I'm not sure of either.

This is probably super OOC because I already don't write Camilla in a canon-compliant way, so… watch out for that! It was fun to write anyway. God I love Kagetsu so much, he truly is babygirl-coded.

The title is a bit random. I honestly didn't have better that wasn't a title I saw used elsewhere, so… oops.

-----------

Rice Vinegar

Summary: Camilla has a discussion with Kagetsu after a very rough battle against the Corrupted - out of concern and misunderstanding. Self-sacrifice is a truly ugly thing.

Fandom: Fire Emblem Engage

Word Count: 2.8K words

AO3 version available here.

Event hosted by @badthingshappenbingo.

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

Camilla has never been a stranger to death and bodily harm – quite the opposite, really. When she was alive, she often was the one inflicting this harm onto others, either in self-defence or in a genuine attempt to take down her enemies. It was her father’s overly ambitious mistresses, it was a mindless shell of a soldier threatening harm on her brother, it was – they all died, or died again, to her hand, her axe, her wyvern. And she had no regret about it whatsoever.

Nothing and nobody was ever sacred, when she was alive. Even alliances could fickle and she’d draw blood again. She had grown up in an environment where it made it all too easy to justify violence for all sorts of reasons, selfish or selfless, with or without consequences. It never came to pass, thanks to her dear Corrin, but the fear was here until the end of her days.

Camilla has, however, never been a stranger to self-sacrifices – mostly from other people.

She gets it, in essence. She, too, felt unconditional love for her siblings and her children, knew when to risk in a hit to save a friend, heard all of the speeches – a brother sacrificing his health for his country, a sister always ready to help anyone out of the kindness of her heart, a neighbour country’s values of honour and solidarity at times trampling a need for self-preservation. Duties and passion, abnegation, causes worth losing a life for.

It’s a noble feeling, even if noble isn’t exactly… what she’s been known for. But she gets it, she truly does – the urge to sacrifice something, that is. Her own life, though? That’s another thing. How could she protect her siblings and fight for her kingdom if she was dead? Sacrificing someone else was fine, as long as it wasn’t someone she had to protect, including herself.

Evidently, the person to who she’s been assigned doesn’t see it the way she does.

She came to learn that when in the heat of battle. They were all surrounded by flows of the Corrupted, unrelenting, the distant cackle of Griss coming to her hears. Kagetsu himself was flanked by Prince Diamant and Princess Ivy, his own liege, sword drawn and ready to strike, while flames burned in the distance and smoke stung his eyes. Despite the fact he had just exhausted his power to engage with her, she could still feel the way his legs cramped, the twitch in his sword arm after using it for so long and, most of all, the pain of the one injury he had sustained.

She couldn’t communicate with him much in this context, so she could only worry about him and the way he wouldn’t ask Princess Ivy for a quick heal with the staff she carried on her back – while she was busy blasting away with Bolganone in hands, Diamant could keep the Corrupted away for long enough so Ivy could patch her retainer.

He then froze. An archer had his eyes set on Ivy. She had her eyes somewhere else. A bleeding wound adorned her right thigh.

She couldn’t quite see Kagetsu’s face with the smoke and the way she had to hover without obscuring his vision, but what she felt spoke more than enough for him. Adrenaline pulsed in his body, so did an urge to protect his friends, and no thought was spared to his own safety. Like a good retainer, he’d throw it all away for the sake of his liege, exchanging his life for hers.

No, don’t take Princess Ivy! She heard his heart cry. Take me instead!

He rushed ahead, what was left of his ponytail dangling in the wind, blood already flowing from his left leg yet leaving no limp behind.

Diamant’s voice acted before his body ever did.

“Kagetsu, wait—”

But it was too late. His blade had already struck the archer, and an arrow had already lodged itself in his abdomen.

It’s since then all crashed down on poor, poor Kagetsu, who got sternly recommended to keep the bed by a child maybe half his size. Unable to protest in his state, he was no match for the youthful resilience of Jean, doctor in becoming, with assistance from stubborn Steward Framme. It’d have been cute, if she didn’t feel concern and so much of Kagetsu’s shame through the bracelet he was still holding on to.

Even now, watching over him in bed, she feels the shame, watches him try to toss and turn, only for his teeth to grit together. It’s an upsetting thing, even with her experience; they’re friends, and friends don’t ever like seeing their friend suffer in any way.

“I don’t understand it,” he tells her, even if it comes off as thinking out loud.

“What don’t you understand?”

Through their bond, she can tell he is upset – anxious, even, which comes off as a foreign concept to someone like Kagetsu. Moral pain like this is something that clashes with his usual personality. Perhaps there are more layers to him than she’d have thought?

“I don’t understand why Princess Ivy and Prince Diamant were so… upset. It’s like I did something wrong and it’s hurt them!”

Ah, figures.

Camilla did easily read the anguish on Ivy’s face, yes. She could tell with one insisting gaze that she was going through a lot of emotions, and while she isn’t able to tell with perfect accuracy due to not being linked to her at the moment, she can hazard a very solid guess as to what she was thinking – if just because their experiences haven’t been so different and because Kagetsu, ever the social butterfly, sees his liege a lot of the time and chats her up into unveiling some information about herself.

Although, there may be very little guessing on her part required to begin with, when she had the aftermath of the seemingly senseless sacrifice play out before her very eyes.

As soon as Ivy had finished defeating the Corrupted obscuring her view and flanking her, she had glanced back at her retainer, who now had an arrow in his side – a feat rare enough to be cited, both for the very fact it wasn’t in an easier area to reach, and for it to have lodged itself between two ribs.

She was about to scream his name, from what Camilla could see near the bracelet; but her voice was caught in her throat before she could, right as Kagetsu folded like paper onto himself.

The staff she was clutching in her hands was on the verge of rupturing, Diamant was bleeding from what Camilla could guess to be a deep gash in his side, but he insisted on her using it on Kagetsu, by virtue of him still standing and the swordman not, spotting the arrival of Framme.

So Ivy used the remaining energy left in the staff on her retainer, the tool breaking into dust as his eyes fluttered back open, an extraordinary weight to his eyelids preventing them from opening fully. His leg wound was now doing better, but the arrow remained in his chest. Right as she asked him, almost without a breath, how he was doing, his sole answer was smiling.

“I’m glad you are fine, Princess Ivy,” he said before falling back asleep.

Ivy wasn’t handling it as well as one whose father and concubines led a life of debauchery and deadly power games should’ve, in Camilla’s eyes, but she understood it. Beruka and Selena were far more important to her than political games, at the end of the day. Associate a name, a voice and a personality to a body, and then you’re suddenly much more affected by their blood flowing from their wounds. Figures.

Still, she carried on nonetheless: she brought Kagetsu on top of her wyvern to safety, watched the battle end by Diamant’s side, asked about the way he limped, scrutinized his denial, asked Framme to look at it. Kept an eye on Kagetsu. Almost refused treatment to be bedside vigil. Discussed his stillness with Zelkov, who didn’t even bother hiding all sorts of concerns. Let Jean take a look at her wound, in silence. Remained there once it was bandaged. Still watched over Kagetsu, stoic anguish never vanishing.

“Why did he do such a thing?” She asked, thinking out loud, at long last. “Putting himself in harm’s way on purpose… How reckless of him.”

There was no surprise in her voice.

“I suppose he did so to protect you,”

There was also no surprise in Zelkov’s as he replied.

“I can defend myself just fine.”

Diamant stared at the scene in silence from where he sat, nearby, face distorted.

“As any retainer would do,” he commented, eyes squinted, nailed into the form of his colleague.

“Then may he never do that again,” she immediately retorted, clutching her arms even closer to the rest of her body. “I’d have survived that without issue. He didn’t need to kill himself over me.”

The protest wasn’t a matter of pride, or else, Zelkov might’ve commented on it.

“I’m afraid it might happen again in any upcoming battle,” he told her instead. “Kagetsu and I have the mission to serve and protect you.”

“Even at the cost of your life?”

“Yes, even if it might cost us our lives.”

“Absolutely repulsive.” She was on the verge of crying. “Is he going to be fine…?”

“He should be,” Framme chimed in, now that she was done with Diamant’s leg.

“Should be?”

Framme’s shoulders shot up, stiff.

“It’s, uh… never certain. But he really should be okay! Jean’s just gonna check him over once he can and he’ll be able to go on his merry way! After some rest, of course.”

“He better be fine after this is all said and done. I won’t let him throw his life away for… such pointless reasons! I can’t… lose anyone again. Not after Hortensia and I had to…”

She didn’t finish her sentence, but judging by Zelkov and Diamant’s reactions, she didn’t need to.

Grief may’ve been the one thing linking the three of them together.

Once more, this doesn’t seem to be how Kagetsu views it – or perhaps he lacks knowledge of it. Losing blood and going through intense pain does tend to tinge someone’s memory or even bleach them away. Let her see how he conceives it, then.

“You didn’t do something wrong per say,” she starts explaining, for a second picturing a sister’s confusion at their brother’s upset. “But you did something that would bring pain to those who’re closest to you, dear.”

“In what way?” He sounds so genuinely confused, and in that moment, Camilla can only understand Ivy’s pain even further. “All I did was defend my friends. Princess Ivy could have been severely hurt.”

“What about Prince Diamant? I recall you being injured as well even before the arrow struck, Kagetsu.”

“He could have gotten hurt too.”

He ignores the second part entirely, then.

“But he was just as qualified as you were to take the enemy down before they could struck Princess Ivy.”

“I’m Princess Ivy’s retainer,” he chews back, even if it lacks strength (very much because his body has all sorts of protests against the exertion). “It’s my mission to keep her safe. It is not Prince Diamant’s mission.”

Camilla wants to ask if this could apply to Zelkov as well, only to bite back on it because asking seems to be a bit of pointless endeavour.”

“Then I suppose I can only hope to make you understand why they both were so upset, Kagetsu.”

His face lightens up.

“Oh, pray and tell! It sounds like very useful information to know.”

She shifts, crossing her arms and float-sitting on the empty chair next to the bed. Framme left a little while ago, but not without a promise to come back soon. It was something about a potion and reinforcement, if she recalls correctly, but this isn’t the focus of her thoughts.

“I too had retainers in my lifetime. They were both very dear to me, to a point where it pained me when they’d get hurt, especially on my behalf.” She sighs. “Of course, protecting one’s liege is the most important mission of a retainer, and both Princess Ivy and I understand that. Still, it didn’t mean I didn’t feel guilt for letting them get hurt on my behalf – or getting hurt at all, come to think of it.”

“You would feel… guilt?”

“Among all sorts of negative emotions, yes.”

“But then, why feel upset?”

“Because they were people who I cared deeply about, and like you, I didn’t like seeing my loved ones hurt in any way. I’ve killed for them, and I’d do it again even today.” He looks slightly horrified, which prompts her to let go a little of the bloodied details of a life long past gone. “Princess Ivy cares about you in a similar way, so even if you think you did good protecting her, she’s been upset to see you hurt – just like you’d have been would your positions have been inverted.”

“So, I caused Princess Ivy pain because she cares for me?”

“Indeed.”

He remains silent for a moment, leaning back into the pillow. He looks defeated.

“Then, if I had avoided that arrow… She would not have been hurt.”

This really isn’t what Camilla wanted him to conclude. What a stubborn soul.

Unfortunately, before she can disprove his flimsy theory, he continues.

“I wish my strange powers would not be so useless. If they were not, then perhaps… perhaps I could have seen it coming, and I could have protected Princess Ivy without upsetting her by getting hurt.”

“This isn’t what I wanted you to understand,” she replies. “Your powers may’ve stopped it from happening this time, but it wouldn’t fix the issue.”

His eyes, which are still slightly glazed over, grow wider, before his face hardens again.

“What would fix the problem, then, Camilla?”

He asks that with a flame in his eyes and no chill going down his spine – a far cry from a moment ago. The bright smile has always hidden a sharp blade underneath, and now, it’s pointed towards her, light lining its edge.

“Sometimes, you can’t avoid getting hurt, especially in combat. Ivy understands that as much as you do. However, what hurt wasn’t that you were in pain.” She marks a pause. “What hurt her was that you got hurt in her stead, when you were already hurt and actively hiding it from her. She blames herself for what happened, and combined with the concern it caused her, it was painful to go through. I’d even go as far as to say she’s wondering if you trust her.”

“Oh…”

The lack of bite tells her this is finally dawning on him.

“I know you tried to do good, and deep down, I know Ivy understands that as well. She only got concerned, but that’s why you can’t always jump in front of danger and take hits for other people. What if you had been more grievously injured than you thought? Or worse, what if the blow had been fatal?”

“I see… how that would cause a lot of bad things.”

“Ivy cares about you as a person, and by doing that, you hurt her by accident, just like she would if she got injured in front of you. It’s a fine line to walk, because while you had good intentions, most of the consequences were the complete opposite of what you wanted. You also need to think of your self-preservation, when you think of taking a hit for someone else.”

“I am starting to see…”

“I don’t expect you to learn all of this in one go. If your culture is anything like Hoshido’s, it promotes sacrifice for the sake of the greater good. At least, this is what I got from fighting alongside Hoshidians.”

“Oh, please tell me more! I am curious to know about-”

A knock on the door.

“It’ll have to wait until next time, I’m afraid. It seems like you’ve got a visitor.”

“Oh!” He lightens up. “Come on in, friend!”

The door opens to unveil a slightly less anxious Ivy: her shoulders are hanging lower, her eyebrows are unknitted, and her hands aren’t fiddling as much as they did when Framme was looking over her retainer.

“It’s good to see you’re awake, Kagetsu,” she says with a timid smile. “How are you feeling?”

“A little sore, but I am alive, and soon enough, I will be full of vigour again!”

“I’m certain you will,” she chuckles, but the laugh disappears quickly. “There are things I want to discuss with you.”

She sits down, gaze unfaltering, at which point Camilla decides they deserve some privacy.

[sinbinfamiliar]

Hi! In light of the Gressil-is-alive theory that i saw you post a while back, i was wondering if you had any theories or hcs on his return, backstory, or just his personality in general?

OH BOY! Do I got ideas for this dude…! Why thank you lovely anon for asking me such a fun question. I don’t get to ramble about this topic very much due to the fandom being so small hahahah

Big ass wall of text warning, and warning of spoilers of late fast pass chapters, you’ve been warned!

Honestly there’s a lotta options based on the knowledge we have right now as a fandom. And it also depends solely on if Ms freaky wants to prolong his stay in the series or not, and if she wants to mildly redeem(I use the word lightly lol) him or not as well.

On one side I could see a return being along the lines of he is acting how he has before, and has a hatred for Rayne and wants revenge. Though I feel like at this point that’s so bland it would be sad to see a story arc used like that.

Another possibility could be he comes back and has almost a bit of a worshipping mentality to Rayne. After all she did basically let him live(without her knowing of course) and gave him the ability to heal wounds completely over time. For a sadomasochist like him that is a wish come true surely lol

You have a middle ground where he is angry at her, but reluctant to want to kill her or hunt her down but utterly hates Raynes guts as well. The most likely of the options I feel based on Ms Freaky’s writing style. It lets him be dropped off as a character when not needed, without a need to flesh his character out anymore.

The more fun idea that I myself personally love is that he has amnesia. Though perhaps not the same as Rayne herself. But he DID get shot in the head, point blank nearly at that. Even if he does heal slowly, they could cause severe memory loss without the ability to even get it back. It could be a semi clean slate to begin actually writing about Gressil. And it would force Rayne to once again face the facts that not everyone stays how they were. She’s facing that with Raven slowly, and seeing Gressil be wiped clean nearly could force her to face the facts again and re-evaluate things. Even people she did know(mystery woman in her past!)if she gets memories back to realize some people also won’t ever change.

Ms freaky has a insane reluctance to want to even admit Gressil existed as a character 90% of the time. Only when she wants him for a joke does she typically talk about to bring him back in any way. Though the reluctance could easily be her avoidance to talk about Gressil due to spoilers she doesn’t want to say. But even then she did talk about Rayne, Raven, Kenny and others openly before they had story beats dropped on us and she managed to avoid spoilers. I can’t quite say if ms freaky just begrudgingly realizes the fact fans like Gressil or she’s simply avoiding talking about him due to spoilers.

Let’s see… back story wise, it could go anywhere for Gressil. He has so very little for backstory that it’s insane. Everyone in that arc BUT Gressil has at least hints of back story and are now being fleshed out much more. Or died and were given backstories with a decent amount of depth(Navin and Mateo), and here is Gressil with like. Nothing. I think personally at the time he was made, he was made to be an antagonist to Rayne and easy to hate and not much else. He was just a hurdle to jump over writing wise.

At this point if he does come back it’s likely his backstory is being added in to forward some other sort of plot. Whether that be making Rayne question her beliefs, adding a new member to the party(unlikely), having him join a group she is up against, or anything of the like. Whatever can push his character towards a direction that’s favoring to the overall story. Nothing to relevant much to my dismay surely.

Though if you want to delve into things, ms Freaky has described Gressil in ways that could add to how he acted before the apocalypse. She has described him as easily bored and rash(in relevance to her being asked about relatable traits in her OCs) he could easily have been a person during normal times that kept doing things outta boredom and enjoyed the idea of the world ending basically cause of the lack of rules.

A rule breaker at his core could mean he was a bully perhaps. Or at least picked on people in school. That is if he even went to school. He could have a shitty household life that made him take out his emotions in others as well. Or have a twisted view on things even. Mimicking behavior is likely, and Mateo could have been filling in a gap of whomever he mimicked from back in the day so it felt ‘normal’ to him. The thrill excites him so he could have done a lot in his normal times to try and get that adrenaline kick. Seemingly he lives off of it. But again it goes back to me thinking he had a shitty household life. Usually people who want those sort of high adrenaline kicks and risky things in life are ones who are always on high alert so you have to top it to feel anything and feel control. He’s a control junky as well, and utterly HATES being told he is wrong or being scolded. Especially by people he deems below him. Again it leads into the idea that he definitely has some sort of attachment to Mateo that is far from healthy. Mateo is the only one who seemingly can tell Gressil off and he is compliant and fine with it, and obviously enjoys it as well. Many kinks can also be gained from taking control of things around you that are less then favorable. Taking control of verbal and physical abuse both to one self and to others as a kink is… super big signs that he could have lived with and spring really cruddy people.

And a lot of this plays into his personality as well. Before the apocalypse he could have been much more inwardly aggressive. He doesn’t have the ability to take control of things around him so he could self compartmentalize much of this. Leading to him going all out when there aren’t any rules in line for him to keep on the narrow path he had to be on.

And if he comes back, especially in the case of amnesia, it could change his whole personality. Think of someone like him losing all of the mental struggles in one click of the fingers? It could easily change his whole personality. Even if he lost only chunks of his memories, it’s enough to lessen the damage he received from his past. He would still be Gressil, sadomasochist and power imbalance lover with a interest in blood. But it wouldn’t be to the extremes it is now. It’s a intriguing idea.

Overall there’s so many routes Ms freaky could take with him. And I’ll be damned if she doesn’t actually use this plot relevant snippet of him licking Raynes blood to bring him back and use him for interesting reasons. If she doesn’t, you best bet I will. It’s a waste of a story beat to me that was never dealt with properly at this point and leaves a string hanging out there in the wind.

Though, I think you’ve perhaps read enough ramblings of a madman at this point, right?

If you(or anyone who reads this, thanks if you do as well!)have anymore Gressil related questions or art ideas or anything, pleaaaaase send them in. I love to dissect or draw or do anything with this crunchy little man and his ways. It’s always fun to me, even if I’m always reluctant to admit it, I love this character and any chance to talk about, draw, or even include my insert in these things makes me veeeeeery happy.

[so-very-small]

ask game !!,,,

🥺 (is there a certain type of moment or common interaction between your characters that never fails to put you in your feels?)

✍ (do you have a beta reader?)

🎶 (do you listen to music while you write? what song have you been playing on loop lately?)

🍦 (what's the sweetest fic you've created so far?)

🎃 (do you write fics for certain holidays? which is your favorite holiday inspired fic?)

🤩 (who is your favorite character to write?)

🤯 (what's a genre you struggle with as a writer (ex. romance, action, etc.)?)

— brick

HIIII BRICK!

🥺- i’ve answered this one but round two: i love Angry Scenes. like absolute breaking point of a character who unleashes it on someone else who deserves it. cathartic and overdue arguments my beloved

✍- i don’t! i usually write, then edit, let it sit for a few days, edit again, edit again in a different word processor, THEN post. i’ve always been too shy to ask people to full on beta my works, so i’ve just gotten super meticulous with editing skfjdjfjfj

🎶- i do! rn my On Loop song is Almost (Sweet Music) by Hozier, but I’m also listening to How to Be a Human Being, the Glass Animals album, a lot because it fits my two current fave OCs perfectly

🍦- i’m. not sure actually. i’m more an angst guy, there are fluffy sweet bits but they’re usually in between OC Trauma bits HCDHSJDJ. Wall Oracle fic is kinda sweet tho, and I do have a few super old Stucky fics written as a teen that are pretty sappy. for original stuff, The Car Story is probably the fluffiest, which is. saying something abt my original work because that story is also so sad

🎃- i used to! in my early fandom days i ADORED holiday fic exchanges, i’d write holiday fics for those and i had a few cause i wanted to. mistletoe is a cute trope :) lately i haven’t been huge on holidays tho, and most of my fandoms rn don’t canonically have earth holidays

🤩- ough. for fanfic, Otto Octavius is so much fun to write, he’s so nuanced and it’s so fun to get into his head. lately i’ve also really enjoyed writing Boromir too. for original characters, Pama and Nan have to be the favss. Pama is a rambunctious woman trying to be a hero while slowly being corrupted by a possessed axe, and Nan is a preacher who’s god vanishes and she decides to find him and drag him back. other honorable OC mentions are: Sighn, Ny, Mariko, Brenn, and Callisto

🤯- suspense/ horror 😔 honestly, most things outside of fantasy don’t come super naturally to me, hence why even my sci-fi or historical stuff usually has fantasy elements throughout. i try to branch out into other genres often, but horror is so hard to nail for me. it’s kind of why a lot of my stuff has steered into suspenseful things (fearplay fics, TBMP, Sighn and Eon’s story), it’s all me trying to practice!

[ohyoru]

Hey im not good with words or english, but its ok to feel burnt out or tired. Youre not obligated to provide anything to us. You are an author who writes for free. Maybe to have fun maybe to express yourself. You have your own life and thats a good thing. I havent been playing genshin in a while because theres so much work i need to do there like building characters. I havent watched link click s2 because i cant bring myself to sit down for that long. Im sure everyone has something like this happening to them and i just remind myself that it doesnt matter that much. Post unfinished things, make your character builds crap, dont finish a book youve started it doesntmatter. Its about having fun. Its about forgetting your problems(at least for me) or its about spending time with your online friends. Taking a break is necessary. Spending time for yourself is necessary. Taking care of yourself is necessary. I hope i could get my message across. I cant even take my own advice seriously as im too scared to post this without anon but i hope i was able to make you feel better somehow. I also want to say i really love your works even if i dont know who the person you’re writing about is. Ive been following your works for a while and i dont regret it one bit. I would be pretty sad if you were to stop writing for certain people but if it makes you feel happy then i dont mind and im sure others wouldn’t mind it as well. Youre free to do whatever you want ( as long as youre not intruding on other peoples freedom obviously) thank you for reading my wordvomit written in an attempt to comfort you.

dearie anon,

to have you in my inbox is already a blessing enough for me. thank you so much for taking the time of your day to cheer me up, you have no idea how much this means to me (brb crying i dont deserve you sob)

first of all, your message got across. i'm not sure about your english being not good part, but really, your message resonates with me on a level deeper than language can ever explain, truly.

i appreciate your kind reminder that i shouldn't feel obliged to write for anyone. i honestly feel like it's eating me out because i put myself in the equation as well. i had been a writer before, back when tokyo revengers (anime) was still in its first season since i'm more of a manga reader. if you were in that era, you might came across my work. alas, things happened. what used to be good memories (including writing) turned into very hurtful ones and i stopped doing what i love because they're causing me so much pain. nonetheless, i still slowly died inside. it took me a while to be at peace with my past and understand that writing is what makes me the person i am. so i'm determined to start again and keep it up. but when life gets in the way and hold me back from writing (again), it depresses me. (including not playing genshin). honestly, i'm feeling lonely. what and who i used to know and love seemed to only exist in the past. people moved on, topics became irrelevant, relationship broke. which i don't blame, but it still makes me cry once in a while.

sorry for the traumadump uh- i feel like i should explain myself a little. i hope that didn't scare you too much. but anyway, you're right! i should do whatever i want. maybe i need to reframe my perspective. i love that you mention about reading book thingy because i have the same issue and yes, i'm a reader through and through. but it's been so long since i read.. the irony. maybe all i need to do is start. and love myself a bit more to stop torturing myself with unnecessary thoughts..

you know what anon? i love the past me. i dont remember exactly what i love about her, but she used to be so at peace. i'm trying to find my way back to her, and i think you're helping me set my way there, so thank you. i dont know about your problems, but if you're willing to share, i'm more than happy to listen. don't forget to take care of yourself too okay? i hope your days ahead are the loveliest yet!

also, thank you for appreciating my works! when i started writing again, i told myself and whoever that's willing to take the time of their day to consume my content that i don't need anyone's attention or approval (shadowban be damned. if it happens, it happens). i did it solely for myself. but god knows how much your kind words and others' fill up the spaces in my heart.

i'm not going to ask anything from my works. your support is something i could never repay, but i'll always appreciate it from the bottom of my heart.

(btw yes, you did send this on anon hehe i got a hunch on who you might be but if you prefer to keep it a secret, then rest assured, your secret is safe with me!)

[kob131]

I think I should write out a spread of what I think of each character in Umineko just to make things clear.

George- Nice guy, respect his determination and will to be with Shannon, would like it if the games could stop fucking him over. But...I feel like he’s gonna take a dark turn.

Jessica- Really cute but also very tragic, a lot of respect for her conviction and staunchness of character.

Maria- Tragic and abused child likely scarred for life by her mother’s inepititude and abuse. Her belief in witches has done nothing to help her as it’s encouraged a violent and hateful mindset.

Krauss- Bit of a dumbass, definitely has an inferiority complex about Kinzo and it has lead him to finnicial ruin. Though I suspect his redemption is coming.

Natushi- A wondefully strong woman that has earned my respect. Though Episode 5 does not look good for her so far.

Eva- A tragic case of ‘you either die as a hero or live long enough to become a villain’. There seems to be good reason why she dies early in most Epsiodes- the sexism and toxicity of the family has eroded her mind, making it very easy for her to fall into hatred, pride and envy.

Hideyoshi- A great husband and father whose done nothing but work with what he’s been dealt.

Rudolf- ... Honestly not much I can say. He’s shown a playboy-like side and yet a faithful husband-like side. But I feel like the game has barely touched him. Same with Kyrie- I know she hates Asumu, loves Rudolf and Battler and hates how her former love rival still got through her. But she still feels unexplored.

Rosa- A very odd case. A terrible mother through and through, having abused Maria to the point of ripping apart a beloved gift she made for her daughter, something she called her best friend, and clearly tramuatizing her daughter all because of her own pride and fragile ego. Yet she stared down a small platoon of demon goat butlers, dying to protect that same daughter and even throwing away her pride to try and save her. 

Kinzo- Fucking asshole. I don’t really feel much for him other than hatred for causing the events and some small respect for his ability to turn the tables.

Genji- He did good giving Shannon and Kanon peaceful deaths and Kinzo doesn’t deserve him.

Kanon- Honestly wasn’t a fan of his pairing with Jessica in the first Episode but they did a really good job making him anguished and desperate while stilling honorable in the second Episodes onward.

Shannon- Honestly. I like her for dissing Beatrice and for finding peace in her deaths.

Kurawasa- Funny but I’m eying her ass.

Gohda- A fairly okay guy whose a bit bland but also I can see why he sticks by the family.

Virgillia- I’m still holding a small grudge for her betrayal from Episode 3 and laughed as her little goat butler died in Episode 4.

Ronove- Honestly don’t know what to make of him. He’s polite and respectful and honorable. But something about his ettiqute makes me think it could be an act to bide time to get an upper hand on people.

Gaap- Nice tits.

Ange- A sad but true future that will happen if Battler fails. She deserved better than she got.

The Seven Sisters- Eh. Their bond with Ange is really sweet.

Lambdadelta- Really scared. I do not want to face her down.

Berkanstel- Fuckyoufuckyoufuckyoufuckyoufuckyoufuckyoufuckyoufuckyoufuckyou-

Beatrice- I have no fucking clue. She’s delighted in torturing seemingly innocent people for fun but so easily shows a hurt, remorseful or even honorable side. I kind of just want to put her out of her misery at this point.

Battler- A man who is simutaineously dumb and smart, weak and strong, stubborn and wavering- I have to assume these conflicting elements are intentional.

As of Episode 5, Chapter 2- these are my thoughts. Not being very analytical here because an actual analysis would take more energy than I got right now. Also my thoughts on Battler and Beatrice are very likely to shift and change given their central character status.