#i focused too much on the background coup

[teecupangel]

I’m desperately need your thoughts on a possible idea but I’m not sure if I wanna commit. Desmond somehow finds his way to Altairs time, specifically right before Abbas begins his takeover and Des manages to save Sef and Malik. Fast forward to everyone’s return, Maria and Darim are like oh my god you’re alive and Altair is like oh my god *blushing*

Obviously Maria is cool with a third (inspired by Maria/Giovanni/Des). Altair is still in love with her but a different love than what’s going on with Des, and Sef and Darim don’t know how to cope that their father is in love and actively having sex with a man significantly younger than they are.

Bonus idea* this is the same universe as your The Relentless Pleasurable Suffering of Desmond Miles on AO3 and Darim is just ranting about everything and Sef is just sweating in the background while Des stares at him from across the yard.

Let’s set up the AC setting first, since you wish to set this after Darim assassinated Genghis Khan, we’ll have to deal with the following:

Desmond’s place in Masyaf while Altaïr and the others are away

How Abbas’ coup affects the Levantine Brotherhood as a whole

Now, we can just chuck Desmond right as Abbas finalizes the details of his coup. However, in this scenario, Abbas’ influence had been festering for a very long time now.

For his coup to be successful, he must ensure that Altaïr and his allies would be discredited to some degree beforehand.

And he has a good idea on how to do it: Altaïr’s Apple and history.

The Apple is self-explanatory at this point and I do enjoy making use of it in some of my fics, like in The Second where Abbas pretty much outright states that Altaïr is hoarding the Apple’s secret for himself.

So let’s focus on how Abbas could push others to his side by using Altaïr’s history. His main points would be:

He went rogue before and assassinated people without the permission of a Rafiq or Al Mualim (an oversimplification of what happened in Altaïr’s Chronicles)

He had failed a very important mission that led to the death of a brother and it’s only by Al Mualim’s mercy that he wasn’t killed for his failure (AC1)

He killed Al Mualim without real proof of his treachery (AC1 - this would gain him the support of those who still believed Al Mualim did nothing wrong)

He spent years away from Masyaf when he should be there, being the mentor they needed during a time of change (End of Bloodlines when he joined Maria in her travels)

Abbas would also whisper poisoned words to the Assassins who feel that their work isn’t being valued enough as the Levantine Brotherhood is structured more on the side of meritocracy. Also, at this point, there are many Assassins who are too young to remember Malik as one of the more promising Assassins in the field before Jerusalem happened. These ones would be those weak in spirit that Abbas could whisper about how Malik became the acting mentor because of his close friendship with Altaïr. Why else would they choose such a man as Malik instead of other Assassins to act as the mentor, considering what he ‘lacks’? It doesn’t matter that Malik has done more for the Brotherhood than most of them. It doesn’t matter that he has lost so much for the Brotherhood.

What mattered was that Malik is stuck taking care of what should have been Altaïr’s job high up the office while Abbas was the one on the grounds, having enough time to observe which Assassin could be turned to his side.

What about Sef then? Sef has a very deliberating factor against him. He’s Altaïr’s son. Considering his age and his current position in the Brotherhood by the time his family left for Genghis Khan, we would be around 19~20 years old when he took the role of Malik’s second-in-command. Whether this is an official position or does not matter. Sef’s high standing in the Brotherhood could be taken as another evidence of why Altaïr doesn’t deserve to be the mentor: nepotism and favoritism. If we include the idea that Malik and Sef were having an affair like in The Relentless Pleasurable Suffering of Desmond Miles, you bet there are going to be rumors about their secret affair as well which will make some of the more conservative Assassins balk.

Abbas might even stoke the flames himself.

The main reason why I spent time dealing with all that setup is that I promise that Desmond managed to save Sef and Malik (and their allies including Rauf because it’s implied his ‘sickness’ had been orchestrated by Abbas) because he immediately went to Masyaf the moment he got kicked into this time period. Desmond easily got into Malik’s office thanks to the ‘borrowed’ Assassin robes he got from the nearest bureau he found before making the trip to Masyaf and he tries to play it off like he had been made aware of a coup.

Malik isn’t stupid. He knows Desmond is not saying everything he knows but he cannot dismiss his claims as well. But, if what Desmond is saying is true, then he needs to see what can be done first.

In this case, nothing could be done.

Abbas’ claws had dug too deep into the very foundation of Masyaf itself at this point. Desmond was simply too late and the tides of change are already on their way.

What they are left with is to either hold their ground or go with the tides.

Malik chooses the later. Because he believed that Altaïr will be able to turn the tides once he returned.

Also, he cannot… he will not risk the lives of their remaining allies and their families just on the chance that they can survive the tides.

Especially his new born son and…

Sef…

(Sidenote: in this scenario, let’s make Malik’s wife his beard who knows about the affair. Hell, let’s make them each other’s beard. Malik and Sef are having an affair and they married two women who loved one another. They planned for their children to all grow up as siblings.)

So Malik gets their allies out of Masyaf. Send some of them faraway missions. Get their families to leave Masyaf to ‘visit’ relatives. Rauf’s declining health got him to send him and his family somewhere else with an explanation of ‘there’s a doctor there who might be able to help’.

Of course, Abbas isn’t stupid. He sees this happening and knows something’s up. He’s not sure just how much Malik knows but he is sure Malik knows something.

So he accelerates the timetable.

This makes it easier for Malik to see his moves though. It comes to a head where both of them tipped their hands: Abbas arranged a late meeting at night. The following dawn, Malik and Sef’s family leaves Masyaf (together with Sef).

So Abbas makes his move. No fancy false charges. No assassination attempts.

He and his coconspirators take Masyaf.

Of course, with such a blatant takeover, there are more Assassins who would not like this. Not enough to push them back as Malik had made sure the ones they are sure are allied with them were far away in Masyaf already.

(It would be later on that Altaïr would ask him why he did not simply do the opposite. Why not have Abbas’ allies be the ones sent away from Masyaf. To that, Malik would answer, “To contain a festering wound, you cut off the limb before it infests the rest of the body. Masyaf’s wound has festered far too long to be saved. Not by me.”)

And Malik was the only person truly loyal to Altaïr left in Masyaf. Everybody else was either on Abbas’ side or those who didn’t care either way.

Just as Malik planned.

Because this way, Abbas would have a prize. Abbas’ anger and thirst for vengeance would be quenched even for just a bit.

And…

Malik was betting that his death would be enough for Altaïr’s eyes to finally be opened. For Altaïr to finally do what he should have done all those years ago when Abbas used the Apple during the burning of Al Mualim’s body.

For Altaïr to finally let go of his childhood hope that Abbas would finally see the truth and they could reconcile their shattered friendship.

Even if it wasn’t…

Malik was betting that Sef would avenge his death.

And that’s when Desmond comes in and saves him. Malik is unsure how Desmond was there when he specifically ordered Desmond to ride to Alamut to tell the Assassins there about Abbas’ plans and to ask for sanctuary for their allies.

Desmond did that… by sending a pigeon then keeping an eye on things in Masyaf all in an effort to find a good time to assassinate Abbas (didn’t work. Abbas had become too paranoid because of all the moves Malik had made).

Malik is the one who stops Desmond from killing anyone, tells him that doing so would further fracture the Brotherhood.

So they run.

They meet up with their allies in Alamut and that’s where they stay, sending pigeons to all the bureaus and other Brotherhoods about what has happened in Masyaf.

(And on this part a scene between Malik and Sef concerning Malik’s plan and Sef chewing him out for it)

And it’s in Alamut that Altaïr and the others go to after their mission was done.

Just enough time has passed that Desmond was able to store the important memories in the memory seals in Alamut for Altaïr to watch.

No matter what questions they ask Desmond, he refuses to answer any of their questions.

Because he wants to tell Altaïr first.

He wants Altaïr to be the one to know who he truly is.

More than anything, he wants Altaïr to be the one to decide his fate in this world he finds himself in.

Unorganized Notes:

We can go either way with how this pairing would work. Either we make this full on Altaïr/Desmond/Maria where Desmond becomes both of their lovers or this is more of a case of Desmond being Altaïr’s lover and having a close friendship with Maria.

If you prefer for Desmond to be Altaïr’s lover alone, it could be that Altaïr and Maria’s relationship had changed. They still love one another but they feel no urge for anything physical anymore. But Altaïr felt it once more for Desmond.

In this scenario, Altaïr and Desmond would start their relationship only when Maria gives her blessing. Before that, there’s gonna be pining on both sides that everyone could see.

Once they start their relationship, it’s gonna be tricky because Altaïr wouldn’t want to hide Desmond at all while Desmond would want to hide their relationship because he knows Abbas could use their relationship to further smear Altaïr’s reputation.

And that is when Altaïr decides to do what he had always been planning to do: retire.

There will be the 12th-century version of “Oh god, he’s finally having his midlife crisis” outrage, and the fact that Altaïr is doing this AFTER Abbas’ coup will be fanning the flames even more.

So they make a compromise that Altaïr will retire once they get Masyaf back but he also makes preparations for his final contribution: to push the Brotherhood back to the shadows.

At that point, the plot can either: focus on the plans to get Masyaf back or on Altaïr and Desmond’s developing relationship. (Pick one and the other one will become the background setup, kinda like plot B)

Darim and Sef would have an awkward relationship with Desmond. Darim more awkward than Sef as Sef would play off the awkwardness by joking “should we call you ‘father’ as well?”

Sef is honestly ‘oh okay’ son in this scenario because he is in a similar situation with Malik.

Oh yeah, Altaïr and Maria knew about their relationship BEFORE they went to assassinate Genghis Khan. They were just waiting for Sef and Malik to fess up.

They still gave them hell and Altaïr enjoyed giving the shovel talk to Malik just for the hell of it.

Malik turned the table on him later on by saying that, since Desmond is technically an orphan (“He’s an adult, Malik.” “Who needs someone to keep an eye on him and it’s certainly not going to be you. How much have you spent on the gifts you’ve given him this past month, hm?”), he gave Altaïr the shovel talk as well since he is the ‘adult’ (“Again, he’s an adult as well”) who had worked closely with Desmond the most.

I do have the habit of making Darim have a crush on Desmond so if you want Darim to be super awkward, make him have a crush on his father’s lover. XD

Darim ranting about Altaïr and Desmond’s relationship to Sef is funnier when you remember Darim knows Sef and Malik are secretly lovers. Darim had assisted Sef more than once in making sure Altaïr didn’t know about it so he’s ranting to Sef knowing Sef can relate to Desmond more than anyone in Alamut. He’s doing it on purpose to make his little brother squirm.

Maria would definitely have tea parties with Malik and Desmond. Desmond dubbed it the “Altaïr Support Club” and the name stuck.

If Maria is part of the pairings, pegging will be involved. Desmond would definitely be the most bottom of the three of them and there will definitely be scenes where Maria or Altaïr watches Desmond getting the life fucked out of him.

Also…………… kinky sex making use of the Apple’s hallucinations and mind control capabilities.

[lunarsights]

Hello! I was wondering if you can do a reading of would any members of Seventeen would date and /or marry a foreigner who is a POC especially if they were not Korean or East Asian? Thank you if you do!- 🌺

𝙎𝙚𝙫𝙚𝙣𝙩𝙚𝙚𝙣 𝙤𝙣 𝘽𝙚𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙍𝙤𝙢𝙖𝙣𝙩𝙞𝙘𝙖𝙡𝙡𝙮 𝙄𝙣𝙫𝙤𝙡𝙫𝙚𝙙 𝙬𝙞𝙩𝙝 𝙁𝙤𝙧𝙚𝙞𝙜𝙣𝙚𝙧𝙨

i asked this in terms of nationality and ethnicity based on members' backgrounds (ie. not counting chinese people for jun and minghao; not counting white people or americans for vernon, etc.)

S. Coups

𝐒𝐡𝐮𝐟𝐟𝐥𝐞𝐦𝐚𝐧𝐜𝐲:

“My Girlfriends Are My Boyfriends” by Demi Lovato (feat. Saweetie)

𝐂𝐚𝐫𝐝𝐬:

Eight of Cups, The Tower, The Hermit, Nine of Wands

Final Answer: The Devil (Rx)

𝐑𝐞𝐚𝐝𝐢𝐧𝐠:

s.coups could be interested in dating foreigners, but could’ve been hesitant about it in past times. he could’ve had a somewhat recent change in mind? he might’ve been interested or thought of being romantic with foreigners in the past but “not seriously/long-term”. he might’ve had beliefs that a romantic relationship with a foreigner wouldn’t last or would be too complicated, but he’s changing his mind on this front (actively still because of the tower and the hermit - showing introspection). he does recognize that being with a foreigner would be sort of an uphill battle though - in that he’d have to be head-strong and confident enough to “stick to his beliefs” even if others say something about it.

TLDR; interested, soon to be likely yes

Jeonghan

𝐒𝐡𝐮𝐟𝐟𝐥𝐞𝐦𝐚𝐧𝐜𝐲:

“Muse” by E’Last

𝐂𝐚𝐫𝐝𝐬:

Knight of Cups, The Star (Rx), Two of Wands, The Hanged Man

Final Answer: King of Cups (Rx), Page of Pentacles

𝐑𝐞𝐚𝐝𝐢𝐧𝐠:

jeonghan is open to being romantic with foreigners “if time/the universe allows/wants”, but he wouldn’t seek them out so to speak. he could think the possible backlash and trials aren’t worth the relationship; he could think it’s “unrealistic” for him to be with a foreigner, so it’s like the thought doesn’t even come into his mind. with two of wands and the hanged man though, he is open to being with a foreigner if he felt like they were really worth it; he’d have to have very strong, “unignorable” feelings for them. he’d be overwhelmed, but he’d make it work because he doesn’t like the idea of “not feeling his true self”; he’s the type of person who whose personality would totally change if he couldn’t be with the person he loved, so if it happened organically he’d make it work.

TLDR; not really into it; would make it work if he organically fell in love but doesn’t seek it out

Joshua

𝐒𝐡𝐮𝐟𝐟𝐥𝐞𝐦𝐚𝐧𝐜𝐲:

“Charmer” by Stray Kids

𝐂𝐚𝐫𝐝𝐬:

Five of Wands (Rx), Judgment, Two of Cups, Seven of Wands

Final Answer: Four of Pentacles, Temperance (Rx)

𝐑𝐞𝐚𝐝𝐢𝐧𝐠:

joshua could’ve struggled with this question a lot throughout his life (maybe going back and forth on how he feels) but feels more secure about how he feels now, and it’s giving “it is what it is”. joshua could know he’s attractive to a wide range of people and seems to operate on the wave of “if i vibe with you; i vibe with you” or “if we have a connection, then we have a connection”, but seven of swords shows a little more calculation. he could be open to a relationship with a foreigner but on the low? he could want to guard them from the public and wait until the last minute to reveal they’re a foreigner. even though that’s the case he would be “all in” when it comes to being in a relationship with them, but he’d try to reduce the backlash as much as possible. i’d say he seems more worried about the effects of dating a foreigner as opposed to only being focused on the connection as compared to say jeonghan.  TLDR; yes but would be very worried about his career

Jun

𝐒𝐡𝐮𝐟𝐟𝐥𝐞𝐦𝐚𝐧𝐜𝐲:

“Stay Alive (Interlude)” from the Hamilton Mixtape

“sweetener (live)” by Ariana Grande

𝐂𝐚𝐫𝐝𝐬:

The Emperor, Knight of Wands, Nine of Coins (Rx), Six of Swords (Rx)

Final Answer: The Sun (Rx)

𝐑𝐞𝐚𝐝𝐢𝐧𝐠:

jun is all about stability and practicality when it comes to the idea of dating or marrying a foreigner. the emperor in this situation also gives an air of being focused on tradition, so that could be something that’s on his mind also. he could find it fun or interesting to flirt with and maybe enter the talking stages with foreigners out of curiosity, but it seems he doesn’t see himself settling down with one for the long-run. it seems he mainly feels it could impact all his “hard” work and create an unstable financial/work situation. he could be highly focused on the public’s reaction and may not want to rock the boat. ultimately, he’ll flirt with foreigners and have flings with them, but it seems he wouldn’t settle down with one.  TLDR; no – he worked this hard for his career, and he won’t jeopardize it

Hoshi

𝐒𝐡𝐮𝐟𝐟𝐥𝐞𝐦𝐚𝐧𝐜𝐲:

“Drop That (JP Version)” by EXO

𝐂𝐚𝐫𝐝𝐬:

Seven of Cups, Ten of Swords, Five of Coins (Rx), Page of Cups

Final Answer: Nine of Coins (Rx), Three of Swords, The World

𝐑𝐞𝐚𝐝𝐢𝐧𝐠:

hoshi might’ve already entertained the idea of dating a foreigner, but he could be worried about the “logistics”. He may think it’s a nice thought like “in a perfect world, i’d be able to do this”, but he knows the real life experience will be very different from a fantasy or ideal perception. he previously might’ve thought being romantic with a foreigner would never work out, or it would end bitterly, but he might’ve changed his mind recently. the second shufflemancy song is “Jason’s Song (Gave It Away)” by Ariana Grande where she talks of doing her own thing despite others wanting different from her, so this could be his thought process. with this new idea in tow, hoshi seems optimistic and excited about new romantic prospects and interactions.  TLDR; still a little hesitant because he became newly open to the idea, but yes

Wonwoo

𝐒𝐡𝐮𝐟𝐟𝐥𝐞𝐦𝐚𝐧𝐜𝐲:

“pete davidson” by Ariana Grande

𝐂𝐚𝐫𝐝𝐬:

King of Wands, Five of Swords (Rx), Knight of Wands (Rx), Two of Wands (Rx), The Devil, Page of Wands, The Star

Final Answer: The Lovers, Strength

𝐑𝐞𝐚𝐝𝐢𝐧𝐠:

wonwoo could be someone who’s very flexible when it comes to his love life; he’s more focused on the big picture of life as opposed to career only. before, he might’ve been reluctant to engage in romantic relationships with foreigners, but it’s like he’s come to a new conclusion (not recently though; this idea has been around for a while). he might’ve felt he was arrogant and maybe even ignorant to not be open to foreigners before and realized this came from a place of fear – almost like societal pressures and expectations were outweighing his genuine curiosity and willingness to explore. curiosity really guides his opinion on this subject, and he’s definitely open to being romantic with foreigners as a result.  TLDR; societal expectations made him think differently at first, but strong yes

Woozi

𝐒𝐡𝐮𝐟𝐟𝐥𝐞𝐦𝐚𝐧𝐜𝐲:

“Leave Me Lonely” by Ariana Grande (feat. Macy Gray)

𝐂𝐚𝐫𝐝𝐬:

Nine of Coins (Rx), Queen of Cups (Rx), Page of Cups, Two of Cups

Final Answer: King of Coins (Rx), Nine of Cups, Three of Swords (Rx), The Sun

𝐑𝐞𝐚𝐝𝐢𝐧𝐠:

woozi could be feeling like love is overrated or fake right now. relating to being romantic with foreigners he may think “all the ones [he] interacts with are superficial”. he could feel he needs to be with someone who is mature and “willing to take on all [the] commitments” that come with dating interracially, internationally, and more. he seems to be connected to the idea of a fated love? His focus is more on personal connections, so his feelings seem to be focused on “if they love me and i love them, and [we both] want to commit” then he’s open to being romantic with a foreigner.  TLDR; his focus is on the emotional connection and merging together. if a foreigner (or some of the same race/nationality for that matter) is ready to commit and is not overly focused on material things, then yes

DK

𝐒𝐡𝐮𝐟𝐟𝐥𝐞𝐦𝐚𝐧𝐜𝐲:

“Down Bad” by Dreamville’s JID, Bas, J. Cole, EARTHGANG, and Young Nudy

𝐂𝐚𝐫𝐝𝐬:

Four of Wands, The Star (Rx), Strength, Nine of Wands (Rx), Two of Wands, Wheel of Fortune (Rx)

Final Answer: Eight of Cups, Queen of Swords, The World, The Moon

𝐑𝐞𝐚𝐝𝐢𝐧𝐠:

dk feels like the opposite of wonwoo with their cards being similar but in reverse. dk could find joy in being around foreigners romantically; he might enjoy flirting with them and might’ve been slightly interested in being serious with them romantically, but he doesn’t believe things can work out. it might be a situation where every time he tries to do this “the good outweighs the bad”. he could try to push through or make things work, but it’s almost like it’s “not destined [for him]”, so he could be evaluating whether or not he even wants to pursue foreigners romantically in general. it’s looking like he originally was open, but is becoming closed off because of prior bad experiences.  TLDR; previously a strong yes, but now likely no

Mingyu

𝐒𝐡𝐮𝐟𝐟𝐥𝐞𝐦𝐚𝐧𝐜𝐲:

“Can’t Let Go (Acoustic)” by Calvin Richardson

𝐂𝐚𝐫𝐝𝐬:

Queen of Wands, Ace of Wands, Three of Wands (Rx), Justice, Page of Coins

Final Answer: Ace of Swords, Ten of Coins, Two of Cups, King of Wands, The High Priestess

𝐑𝐞𝐚𝐝𝐢𝐧𝐠:

mingyu could find the idea of being romantically involved with a foreigner exciting. he could see it as a new experience or a way to gain new insight about the world. with queen of wands he could feel foreigners are more outspoken or passionate compared to the people he often interacts with in his home country. he might be interested in exploring relationships with foreigners, but two things could be holding him back: one is lack of ability to actually pursue relationships with them (ie. the foreigners he’s interested in don’t seem interested in him or this could be because of his job), and the second is he is very proud of his home country, so he does feel significant ties to it and could worry about “obligations”. worries about his country’s response don’t seem to be prominent though or at least they don’t hold him back from pursuing – it’s more so the first thing about foreigners not always being interested. he’s another person who’s focused on the way the relationship operates in general as opposed to being overly worried about backlash.  TLDR; he’s interested, but may not have the opportunities to engage

The8

𝐒𝐡𝐮𝐟𝐟𝐥𝐞𝐦𝐚𝐧𝐜𝐲:

“That’s What You Get” by Paramore

𝐂𝐚𝐫𝐝𝐬:

The Hanged Man, Four of Cups, Five of Wands (Rx), Seven of Cups (Rx)

Final Answer: Seven of Coins, Two of Swords, Nine of Coins, The Empress

𝐑𝐞𝐚𝐝𝐢𝐧𝐠:

minghao could have no true feelings either way when it comes to being romantic with foreigners. It may not even be on his mind, truthfully, and if it is it could be on a surface level scale. he could have a general idea of how people will feel about it, but he doesn’t put stock in those opinions. he could be open to “compromise” in relationships, or he could think a relationship with a foreigner could require a lot of that. he could have thoughts of “what do [they] bring to the table”, but this isn’t specific to foreigners; it could be his general disposition.  TLDR; doesn’t really think about it, but “i guess”

Seungkwan

𝐒𝐡𝐮𝐟𝐟𝐥𝐞𝐦𝐚𝐧𝐜𝐲:

“Adorn” by Miguel

𝐂𝐚𝐫𝐝𝐬:

Judgment (Rx), Four of Wands, The Hierophant, King of Coins (Rx), The Emperor 

Final Answer: The Emperor, The Lovers

𝐑𝐞𝐚𝐝𝐢𝐧𝐠:

“that’s not a good idea” came to mind looking at judgment in reverse. seungkwan seems focused on the idea of tradition and following in the steps of those before him, so he could be very proud of his home country. it seems he has a tendency to like those who aren’t foreign, and it could be a situation where he’s dreamed of being in a relationship with people from his country for so long that being with a foreigner seems unlikely. he seems to really prioritize and admire a traditional racial/ethnic/national relationship in his country.  TLDR; likely no; he admires following traditions

Vernon

𝐒𝐡𝐮𝐟𝐟𝐥𝐞𝐦𝐚𝐧𝐜𝐲:

“Look Alive” by BlocBoy JB (feat. Drake)

𝐂𝐚𝐫𝐝𝐬:

Nine of Cups, Knight of Coins, Knight of Wands, Two of Swords, Eight of Swords

Final Answer: Eight of Coins (Rx), Ten of Swords, Wheel of Fortune

𝐑𝐞𝐚𝐝𝐢𝐧𝐠:

overall vernon may be open to the idea of being romantic with foreigners. he may not like the idea of “closing off [his] options”, and he may even have experience pursuing people who are foreign. he could enjoy flirting with them and exploring things, but he gets a little more hesitant when it comes to settling down. intuitively, this could be related to his own experiences facing discrimination. he could feel worried about continuing to deal with “stares” and other uncomfortable situations; he might feel as if he’s already dealt with that before, so he doesn’t really want to “deal with it again”. this could also be a situation where he’s developed a way to cope by himself, but having to console another person could also feel stressful for him.  TLDR; he’s interested, but hesitant about settling down due to his own experiences

Dino

𝐒𝐡𝐮𝐟𝐟𝐥𝐞𝐦𝐚𝐧𝐜𝐲:

“Icy Grl [Bae Mix]” by Saweetie (feat. Kehlani)

𝐂𝐚𝐫𝐝𝐬:

Temperance, Seven of Wands, Nine of Wands, The Fool (Rx)

Final Answer: The Hierophant, Six of Cups

𝐑𝐞𝐚𝐝𝐢𝐧𝐠:

“everything is good in moderation”. dino could be in a state of waiting to see who and what comes to him in love; he could be hyper-focused on work and other areas of life, so this isn’t his focus right now, but with that in mind he’s not looking for anyone or anything specific. he could be a little hesitant due to prior issues (maybe hearing about friends’ experiences has made him weary?). instinctually he could be drawn to just following through with tradition, so he could feel he’s likely to not be romantically involved with a foreigner. TLDR; maybe, but likely no

[gotta-winwin]

Hi! I was the previous anon asking about the update and had a request regarding the maknae line.

Thank you so much for responding & updating! I’m from Asia and ticketing for the concert has been ongoing and it’s been really stressful trying to secure a ticket so I really enjoyed the update with you do too much! I especially loved Cyana & Seungcheol’s dynamic too. In line with this, if you’re still accepting requests (you really dont have to since you already accepted my maknae line request buuuut just in case, I still want to ask), I would love to see more moments of members generally growing into caring for Cyana. Maybe this would come naturally in your updates though as you build Cyana’s story but I’m just really looking forward to seeing her being cared for & I’m interested to see more of her background as to why she’s so skeptical of people caring / loving her. But also THE CYNANA & DINO MOMENT WAS PRECIOUS 🥹😭

Also, just in case, I’m now gonna be signing my comments here with this (just to mark that its me)

- 🥹 anon

AHH girl i’m from canada im so jealous you guys got a concert😭 the boys promised they’d be back during fts tour but never came back😔

thank you so much for the support! i’m so glad my updates are helping haha.

you’re right, the members will slowly grow close to cyana throughout the series and vice versa! i’m trying to post a couple member focused fics out, just like how ‘you do too much’ was mainly focused on coups & jeonghan. you’ll see much more of their personal dynamic with cyana there!

as for her background, some of it’s hinted in her personal background post, but i will be elaborating as time goes on~

[honest-moth-of-silver-grove]

If at all possible I was wondering if I could get a matchup for both genders for my tav, Cobalt. Monogamous not poly if that’s alright.

Some details about her:

She’s a tiefling druid, specifically a circle of the land druid, focused on arctic spells, so mostly ice. While her focus is on spells she does still sometimes wildshift, and her preferred form is that of a dire wolf.

Backstory wise her druidic circle was killed when she was young and she was taken as an oddity due to her ability to shapeshift. She ended up in Baldur’s Gate after being sold to a noble with a penchant for collecting people she viewed as unique. While there, she was pretty much treated as a circus animal/guard dog, and it’s one of the main reasons she chooses to focus on spells as opposed to wildshaping. She managed to escape after the noble was killed in a family coup, and before her abduction by mindflayers she’d been selling herbs and tonics from an apothecary she opened at the edge of the city.

Personality: Since she really didn’t get a normal childhood and wasn’t really allowed to have friends she’s used to taking care of herself out of habit. She never goes out of her way to prioritize herself but it just happens, it has to be pointed out that she’s doing it. On the other hand she does have a temper, but instead of choosing to lash out if angered or annoyed, she really just tries to make that person as uncomfortable as possible.(Unnerving smiles, macabre comments/facts, etc.) She’s extremely truthful, not out of a lack of social understanding, she just really doesn’t care how the truth might effect someone and can’t be bothered to tiptoe around other people’s feelings. She’s extremely loyal, and once you’ve gained her trust she’ll go to the ends of the earth for you. She loves sharing knowledge with others, even if they aren’t close, especially because she likes to feel like she’s listened to. She has a deep need for connection but has a hard time actually connecting with people for fear of them being taken away from her.

Hobbies: She loves alchemy and brewing potions, as it makes her feel much closer to her druidic background, even if she was separated from it at a young age. She also has a creative streak, and uses it to sketch and take notes on the various plants and animals she encounters on her journeys. To add to this, she also enjoys writing, and unusually enough if it’s not notes on nature it’s usually romantic dramas. They don’t always end happily, but sometimes they do.

Best Attribute: Her best attribute is easily her sheer strength of mind. Yes, she’s jaded and not as friendly as other people, but it takes a lot for her to give up. Not in the stubborn way, she realizes when things need to change, but if so she’ll just find a different way to keep going.

Worst Attribute: Overly blunt. She never minces her words and it can make her seem cold or callous. She’s really just too tired to work on her flowery language outside of writing.

Sorry if I wrote a lot I wanted to cover all my bases 😅

A/N: Not a lot at all! And even if it was, it’s perfectly fine! The more details the more I can get a feel for the character. I have to admit, I did need to google ‘circle of the land druid’, because I hadn’t heard of them before, but I think I got the gist of it below. And oh my goodness! Poor Cobalt! She’s been through so much. Hopefully, some romance will help her heart heal. 

For you, @cobaltspace , I think Cobalt’s best matches are Halsin (Male) and Shadowheart (Female)!

Halsin is a wonderful match for Cobalt! He’s kind, patient, and a wild-shifting druid as well, so they have a fair share of things in common. It’s unclear how old Halsin was at the time, but he lost his lineage a long time ago and has since endured his share of trauma. He was enslaved in the Underdark for years and lost many friends and much of his home to the shadow curse. He’s no stranger to loss and the grief it produces. However, he’s also two-hundred-plus years old, so he’s had a good amount of time to process and compartmentalize everything. He’s able to distance himself from his past hurts, and thanks to this and an overall calm demeanor, he’s quite a soothing presence to have nearby. That vibe would suit Cobalt well- Halsin makes her feel safe and understood, whereas other people may make her feel like she needs to keep her guard up and to keep wearing masks to stay safe. 

They’d also be able to bond over Cobalt’s knowledge and usage of nature and herbs. Halsin appreciates all things of Mother Earth, and he especially admires the people who show respect to her by exercising the appropriate wisdom and knowledge when dealing with her. I think she’d fit in quite well with Halsin’s new community post-game, outside of the city. She could still work as an apothecary, but this way, she wouldn't be so alone. 

I also think Halsin would be very eager to help her regain confidence in her ability to wild-shape. He’d understand why she would rather focus on spells because shifting is associated with a time in her life when she had no other choice. But Halsin would want her to know that now, she does have a choice, and he’d be honored to help her work through her pain, should Cobalt let him. 

He may be a bit put off by her usage of ice spells and deadpan expressions. Ice, while a formidable form of nature, can be quite detrimental to other living things- plant life, people, etc- if used in a large area. Of course with how long Cobalt’s been a druid, and due to whatever level she’s at, probably has good control over her ice spells, so that’s not too much of a concern on Halsin’s part. Her being extremely truthful is something he greatly admires, as he himself does not shy away from the truth. However, he does occasionally wish she had more social tact as he’s a natural empath and the feelings of others matter greatly to him. 

Of course, he understands why she is the way she is, and he doesn’t hold her abrasiveness against her. It’s just every so often he might shoot her a look, or give her a little nudge, politely requesting she rephrase a sentence or two. 

He loves how much Cobalt lights up whenever she shares all she knows about the fauna and flora of an area. And he especially loves reading through her notes and sketches. It touches his heart to see someone look at nature with such care and detail in mind. He feels so much closer to her when they talk about plants or druidic spells. 

(And he secretly loves reading her romantic dramas! Just don’t tell anyone. He has a reputation to uphold lol.)

Halsin thinks Cobalt’s wonderful. He admires her tenacity and strong mind, and he’s very grateful that she’s in his life. If she wanted the same, he would enjoy spending his future with her in it. 

Shadowheart shares a history similar to Cobalt. She herself was taken as a child, thinking her family was dead, and was forced to serve Shar for years. Shadowheart was targeted because she was a child of Selune, and she showed a fair amount of promise. Because of this, her abilities were exploited, and much of her childhood was robbed of her. Cobalt knows what it feels like to have to live with the fact that your gifts, your abilities, make you a target to those who seek to exploit power over others. She’s been used before and vows to never be used again. Cobalt’s ability to escape that life of servitude and begin a new chapter for herself at the edge of Baldur’s Gate makes Shadowheart hopeful that she too, will one day be able to put the whole Shar thing behind her. 

She’s secretly fond of the fact that Cobalt is a tiefling, mainly because it reminds Shadowheart of her long-lost friend. It’s a familiar element that Shadowheart appreciates. That being said, Shadowheart recognizes Cobalt is her person, with her own identity, and respects that fact. 

Shadowheart works well with Cobalt when it comes to healing: they’re both healers in their own right- Shadowheart being a cleric, and Cobalt being a druid and an apothecary. 

Both Cobalt and Shadowheart are neutrally aligned. They don’t go out of their way to help others, but they also don’t hurt them either. This means they agree on a plan of action more often than not. That said, Shadowheart can be a bit of a hypocrite, calling out Cobalt when she thinks she’s been selfish, not realizing she’d probably do the same herself. This is actually a good thing for Cobalt though, as it makes her look beyond the intention of her actions. Plus it gives her reason to call out Shadowheart for doing the same. 

Cobalt and Shadowheart excel at making others feel uncomfortable. Cobalt with her morbid facts and unnerving smile, and Shadowheart with her unreadable, stoic expression. And they both prefer to tell the truth as opposed to a comfortable lie. Loyalty is important to Shadowheart, (whether she stays loyal to Shar or if she becomes loyal to Selune), and Cobalt is no different. However, as opposed to a singular deity, Cobalt is loyal to herself and to those of her, whom she holds dear. Shadowheart, of course, is among those people. 

They’re both incredibly strong mentally, which makes it easier for them to take turns being strong when the other one is feeling down. 

They both desperately crave connection while simultaneously fearing abandonment. Together, the two of them can lean on each other when those fears arise, and remind the other that they’re not going anywhere- they’re in this for the long haul.

...

Please Like & Reblog!!!

[raven-of-domain-kwaad]

OC Tag Game

Got tagged by @starknstarwars thanks very much!

Will give out some no pressure tags to @swtorpadawan, @a-master-procrastinator, @dream-of-tanalorr, @imperial-topaz2003, @voidendron and anyone else that sees this and wants to give it a go!

favorite oc - Amarra Kine

I have fallen so hard for my girl Amarra. She is a force for political change yet has no vision for the future. She is one of the most powerful individuals in the empire yet has no ambition for personal power. She loves her family more than anything and yet she is completely alone in the empire. She is the deadliest warrior in the galaxy yet she wants peace for herself and her people. She is a mess of contradictions and I love her for it.

newest oc - Lana Kine

Lana is my OC Kelsa Kine's youngest child. Lana was named after Kelsa's mother Lana Beniko.

(Lana is in the background and Kelsa is in the foreground)

oldest oc - Ryscha Kine

When I made the decision to give SWTOR another chance at the start of the pandemic, I made Ryscha. She began as a semi-self insert before I just started making my Kine Family of OCs and she became her own person. (I did have two previous SWTOR characters that I made in like 2012 but I never really developed them into actual characters)

meanest oc - Avaraxi Dagan

My mad scientist OC that will happily vivisect anyone if it gets them more usable data points. They did vivisect and ran numerous experiments on Kelsa Kine, even harvesting some of her eggs for later which is how Lana Kine and her siblings came to be.

Also diversity win! The mad scientist that's running unethical experiments on you is non-binary!

softest oc - Bryala Kine

All Bryala wants in life is to be a good person and not disappoint those closest to her. And if she can help others along the way then she'll happily do so.

most aloof/standoffish oc - Keras'eren'naru

She is a Chiss that believes in Chiss supremacy. Everyone else is beneath her and her people.

dumbest (affectionate) oc - Inara Almari

She spent her early young adult life raiding dangerous tombs and ruins on the off chance that there might be ancient knowledge she can study. She will also forget about lab safety procedures if she gets too carried away while running experiments. Because she focuses so much on her work she was captured by Zakuulan forces on three separate occasions and all three times resulted in her being rescued by Ryscha Kine who eventually took her on as an apprentice. Inara might have also accidentally infected Ryscha with the rakghoul plague while developing a vaccine. Whoops sorry Master!

smartest oc - Serra Kine

I mean she helped develop the refined Children of the Emperor procedures for Vitiate. Was trusted to develop a Children of the Emperor 2.0 generation using children actually sired by the Voice of the Emperor. While doing all this successful force experimentation, she also planed out a coup against Vitiate (which while unsuccessful in her life was more or less carried out by her daughters Amarra and Ryscha). She also discovered Nathema on her own and managed to negotiate an alliance with the spirits of Marka Ragnos, Naga Sadow, Tulak Hord and Exar Kun on Yavin IV to help her take down Vitiate.

horniest oc - Élise Kine and Braken Rist

This married couple enjoy dominating the other nobles of Alderaan in their spare time and will also happily engage in the whole sleep with a target before killing them assassination special. They usually go at it again with each other after said assassinations too.

oc you'd bang - Damar Nakash

Damar is kinky, caring and enjoys making his partners quiver. Also those sith ridges are always mmmm

oc you'd be best friends with irl - Inara Almari

I love folks that have special interests and hyper-fixations. Listening to them info dump passionately is always great and I enjoy learning new things that way. Inara fits that bill. She is also the right type of dumb ass that I would probably laugh a lot with her

[cebwrites]

gender/sexuality HCs (Heart Pirates pt 2)

a/n: for point of reference, i’ll be deferring this intro since not all the hearts are named yet and we still don’t know much about them ; 3 ;

as a reminder you’re free to agree or disagree with these hcs, these are just how i write them and my personal opinions o(￣▽￣)ｄ

onto the HCs! word count: 0.7k

Clione

he/him (cis man)

a raging dumpster fire disaster bi if i’ve seen one

clione shoots his shot a lot with airs of confidence to cheer himself on, the only downside is that people often see right through him and turn down the inflated persona he wears just so his knees don’t buckle

there’s a certain appeal to his awkwardness and fumbling, maybe clione wants someone to match all that energy he puts out, or maybe he needs someone tall, dark, and handsome to help slow him down

Ani

bi, they/she (gnc transfem)

their gender journey has always been something that Ani’s kept close to heart and at the same time, just a cog in the background that no one’s drawn too much attention to outside of her initial mentions of it to clear up any confusion

the realization happened gradually over time along their journey with the Hearts - she’s grateful for such an understanding crew but supposes with a captain like Law and a partner like Fang, any response that wasn’t acceptance wouldn’t be tolerated

Fang

bi, he/him (transmasc)

in direct contrast to his girlfriend, Fang is out and loud about just how trans he is - captain worked hard on his top surgery and Fang’ll be damned if he doesn’t show off the scars any time he can (the opportunities are slim in the sub and their boiler suits so that makes him even more keen to go topless outside)

he’s not the “yodel from the heavens about how much i love my partner” type unlike some other people on the crew, but Fang shows his affection a lot through small gestures throughout the day - they have different stations in the sub but even then he manages to swing by Ani’s for a quick kiss on the cheek with his snack drop-off and vice versa, it’s the little things that they manage together

(yes I know his canon name is Hakugan but I got attached to Fang long before Oda revealed that bit about him fairly recently so ¯\_(ツ)_/¯)

Dorie

he/they/she lesbian (cis woman)

every crew needs a stone butch to keep things on the straight and narrow, right? right

despite how private he can be about his personal/romantic life, dorie still manages to be quite the open flirt - hitting mainly on other butch women but hey if you’re a gal interested in other gals that’s free real estate in their mind

everything is kept pretty casual, they don’t expect to form lifelong bonds in a coupe nights when the crew typically don’t dock at an island for more than a week at a time, give or take how much trouble they get (dragged) into - she takes what she can get and for the moment, it’s enough

although, some part of him does wonder when they’ll meet up with the Kidd Pirates again, for no particular reason...

Hake

they/them (enby)

demiromantic but what kind of pirate doesn’t kiss their crewmate goodnight? or on the forehead sneakily before breakfast, or on the cheek- just.. cause...

point is! they’re very affectionate and like to sling at least an arm around whoever they’re talking to if it’s someone close

they’re chatty and amicable too with a friendly disposition to boot, something you’d breathe a breath of relief for to find in your tattoo artist, no? well--

Hoki

they/he (genderqueer)

unlabeled yet down horrendous for their best friend

this dumb gay bitch has gotten a bunch of small tattoos all over their body just as an excuse to spend more time with and/or be physically closer to Hake rather than just talk to them like a normal person

because the feeling of their arm around his shoulder sends Hoki’s heartrate skyrocketing normally but for some reason, seeing Hake in their element, at their most focused, calms them just enough to stay still for another hour or so

yeah he’s down so awful someone send HELP

And because I don’t have enough to say on the rest of them to make another post but wanted to mention these goobs anyway-

Jean Bart, Marl, Gul, Bas, and Laeno are the older gays of the crew - the queer elders (peepaws even) if you will Marl and Bas are trans men, Laeno is unlabeled but certainly not cis, while Jean and Gul are cis (all he/him, all mlm) Jean Bart didn’t have much of an opportunity to explore himself a la pillaging and terrorizing as a fearsome pirate captain before he was caught and sold to the Celestial Bastard that owned him - but now that he’s free and has a lot more time to his own thoughts, he’s able to examine himself properly and even reconsider experiences in the past as maybe not so straight after all

[cruisingheightswithdragons]

TELL US ABOUT YOUR WARRIOR CATS OCS!!!!

Oh god there’s just too much to unpack in a single ask because my twin @never-went-to-comic-con and I have been cultivating these clans since like 2010 but here goes!

There are three clans (later four. We’ll get to that), SunClan, MoonClan, and FogClan(named PhantomClan for a while). They all live around a small lake in a remote part of the Black Hills. SunClan lives in a forested area on a large hill, with their share of territory having the fewest trees compared to the rest of the clans. MoonClan is further down the hills, their part of the forest is densely wooded, making them prime nocturnal hunters. FogClan lives in a valley, the lake water shrouding their part of the forest into a perpetual fog.

Like the canon series, ours has several arcs with different protagonists. We’ll start with the first.

In SunClan, there are three sisters: Skyheart(this one is my twin’s main oc), Silverheart, and Dawnheart(this one is my main oc), daughters of the leader Coldstar, and his mate Sparrowleaf. Their story centers on the three of them discovering a plot in which one of their fellow warriors has allied with rogues and the PhantomClan leader to try and take over the forest. There’s plenty of smaller plots in their stories, such as Silverheart defecting to MoonClan to be with the father of her kits, Dawnheart longing to be a medicine cat despite the path StarClan has put her on, and Skyheart(who later becomes Skystar) juggling motherhood and leadership.

Between arcs 1 and 2, Skystar realizes she was never meant to lead SunClan, and instead was destined to create a fourth clan. She, along with some warriors from SunClan and the other two clans, create SkyClan(no relation to the canon SkyClan). Dawnheart becomes leader of SunClan after Skystar leaves. The making of a new clan forever changes the relationships between the others, some cats thinking that SkyClan should never have existed. This sets the stage for a lot of tension later on.

The second arc focuses on the sisters’ kits, mainly Skystar’s son Blazefur. He and a few of his cousins go on a journey to the mountain of faces(it’s mount rushmore lol) to receive a prophecy. When they return, one of the journeying cats from FogClan(PhantomClan has been renamed at this point), Deadshadow, throws a coup and becomes leader. Taking inspiration from the PhantomClan days, he tries to take over the lake, only to be defeated. He is humbled, and becomes FogClan’s medicine cat instead.

An idea for another arc revolves around SkyClan warrior Frostbite, as he really looks up to his mentor Ravensight and soon after he becomes a warrior, tensions rise between SkyClan and MoonClan over territory and hunting rights, and then battle happens, MoonClan leader Duskstar kills Ravensight because he feels betrayed by her bc Raven was MoonClan before joining SkyClan, and Frost takes that so personally and continues to build hatred towards MoonClan which leads to a war once he becomes SkyClan’s leader to drive them out, but the other clans put a stop to it because everyone has come to the realization that there should be four clans not three.

Meanwhile, Coalpelt the SkyClan medicine cat is a paranoid kitty scared of everything and when his mentor Spottedface dies, he spirals. But he’s also the most knowledgeable about herbs so he does his job phenomenally.

There’s so much to this that there’s no way to cover it all, but so many characters have their own arcs, highs and lows, even background characters getting their times to shine! I hope you’ve enjoyed the sample of these clans and a few of its cats!

[galadhir]

I will say that I think fandom perceptions of the "faithfulness" of adaptations such as these are strongly impacted by our own personal fannish priorities.

This is absolutely true, and I freely admit that. I'm very much an elf-focused reader, and my favourite elf is Celeborn - which is probably 95% of why I am disappointed in ROP.

I had some very specific expectations of a series that was set in a time when Celeborn and Galadriel were the rulers of Eriador during the forging of the rings. When Celebrimbor, under Annatar's persuasion, staged a coup against them, leading to Galadriel, and their daughter Celebrian, leaving to settle in Lorien while Celeborn remained behind in Eriador and was therefore on hand to get at least some of the people out when it all went pair shaped.

(There are so many interesting, canon adjacent, things that could be explored with this set up. Galadriel's friendship with the dwarves of Eriador, for example. And Nimrodel in Lothlorien, who was something of a Silvan rights activist. How did she take the arrival of Noldor-related, Sindarin speaking Galadriel in a kingdom which had previously been mainly Silvan?) Argh, I would have written this all so differently!

Which is entirely my fault for writing a bunch of stories about an elf that nobody else likes (and his family and his cultural context)! I do get that. This is what I get for caring about an aspect of the background lore that I don't think the ROP folks even have rights to, but which I find interesting because it's got my fave in.

OTOH, I 100% agree with you about many of the things that annoy you about the movies. The way the ancient friendship between the elves and the Numenorians is reduced to 'Men are weak!' is part of that tone deafness I meant.

And yes, Aragorn was done dirty - he wants to be king! Of course he does. He's been trained to be king all his life, he's got the right and the duty and the skills and he's been proving himself over and over for decades. Him becoming king is a project he's been working toward all his life.

I too was annoyed with the treatment of the Dunedain of Gondor. I actually prefer the Byzantine kind of inspired look they have in ROP. I did love Queen Miriel's outfits very much, and I would have liked to see a more Byzantine or Ancient Egyptian look to them in the movies. (I mean how fascinating and amazing would that have been? It could have been so good!)

At that point I was too annoyed with the Army of the Dead being manifested as cascades of bones and green glowing ghosts, however. The Paths of the Dead part of the book was one of my favourites, and I freely admit that the way the book did it, with nothing at all happening except for everyone getting very very very scared over a long period of time, was probably unfilmable. But still.

Oh and I was also busy being annoyed by the caricature they had made of Denethor! I can't say I ever really liked Denethor, but he was supposed to at least be impressive and powerful and intelligent and you're supposed to mourn his descent into madness, as an example of how a great man was corrupted by the power of Sauron and his own fear and despair.

(I was annoyed with what they'd done to Theoden too. PJ does not know the meaning of subtlety.)

So yeah, if only Celeborn had been in ROP in something close to his canon existence, I would feel better about the whole thing.

I sadly can't deny that ROP brought a whole load of racists out of the woodwork too. That was an eyeopener for me. I hadn't seen it before, because I was a clueless white person when I watched the movies. I hope I have learned a bit since then.

ROP definitely is an improvement on the movies in that respect. Although imo, ROP should have had more characters of colour than it does - more of the named canon characters for example, instead of relegating actors of colour to OCs.

Maybe all the Noldor elves, or all the Sindar could have been elves of colour. In canon, Celeborn/Galadriel is a dark elf/light elf marriage. It would have been great if they had cast it that way.

And also (still banging on about elves, sorry) Tolkien said that the only thing that wasn't gender neutral in elvish society was making lembas. So there should have been so many extra female elves in army and council scenes, both in the movies *and* in ROP. Just there in the background. That could have been done so easily, and it would have made such a difference.

Next time, I guess!

thatinsufferableb-st-rd said:

@anghraine so i have read the books multiple times and am an avid fan of the movies. I enjoy both for what they are. I think the main difference is that Peter Jackson was very open about what they chose to cut and why from anything I've ever seen. They even have Sam give a nod to the book readers by saying "by rights we shouldn't even be here". No I'm not happy about what they did with Faramir and Glorfindel got jipped, and I would have lover to have seen Elronds sons but at the end of the day there were acknowledgments of what and why. Rings of Power to me has always come off as hiding from any criticism by using the shield of "well if you don't like it it's because you don't like POCs in it". To which I genuinely could not give a fuck less, like there are so many branches of elves that went different ways so that could make sense within what Tolkein established. But don't hide behind that when your writing is just "Sauron is evil. We know. And we know she knows. But we have to make it seem like she's the only one who Has A Clue so we must all try to shoo her off to make a plotline"

@lesbiansforboromir has already correctly and politely pointed out that you are doing the very thing we were criticizing in that post—intruding on ROP fan discussion to unfavorably contrast the show to the Peter Jackson films, while also applying a degree of scrutiny to ROP that the Jackson films are rarely subject to in a remotely comparable way and could not bear. Frankly, @lesbiansforboromir is nicer and more restrained than I am about this, but you chose to tag me as well, so I'll also respond.

We (lesbiansforboromir and I) were talking about being excited about costuming in S2 of ROP and disliking the fandom meltdowns over ROP's costuming looking (somewhat) different from the films' aesthetic. Since it had already come up in their discussion, I added that I'm not convinced by the anti-ROP contingent framing their seething hatred of the costuming and design as just caring so much about fidelity to Tolkien's vision. I pointed out that Tolkien fandom broadly cares far more about their preferred, film-influenced aesthetics than Tolkien's actual descriptions and gave some specific examples of this.

There's been a lot of talk, for instance, about how the universally long, flowing hair for Elves preferred by the fandom and used in the films is actually totally canon according to Tolkien even if it's rarely mentioned in LOTR proper. This is inaccurate. Galadriel's brother Aegnor is typically depicted in the fandom/film-preferred style rather than per Tolkien's description of his hair as "strong and stiff, rising upon his head like flames" (indeed, in general neither Aegnor nor anyone else is ever depicted this way, and this description rarely shows up in the lists of "no it's about ethics in adaptation" Tolkien hair quotes).

Tolkien repeatedly describes Elvish, peredhel, and Dúnadan women as wearing their hair bound up in braided coiffures with jeweled hair pieces/nets rather than loose and flowing à la the films and the fandom. Nobody cares, any more than they care about Tolkien's description of Arwen's clothing as soft, grey, and noticeably devoid of ornamentation apart from a belt and netted cap (i.e. the opposite of her highly elaborate film costuming and typically loose, unbound, uncovered hair in the films and most illustrations).

Meanwhile, my fave Faramir's hair is nowhere near long enough in the films or most art to mingle with Éowyn's as Tolkien describes. It's usually also depicted as blond, reddish, or brown rather than black as in the book; in Tolkien's LOTR, all described Gondorians have dark or black hair, with the only difference in coloring being that some Gondorians are dark-skinned and some are pale. Again, almost nobody in the fandom cares about this when they're going on about costume design and casting to reflect Tolkien's vision, and male Gondorians are overwhelmingly depicted with short or shoulder-length hair in the films and in Tolkien illustrations.

Popular depictions of Gondor, including the Gondor of the films, very rarely reflect Tolkien's description of Gondor's aesthetic as similar to ancient Egypt, the Byzantine Empire, and the Roman Empire. Film Gondor has, at most, extremely vague allusions to Byzantine architecture amidst the general and deliberate westernization of Gondor's design—as just one example among many, Tolkien's explicitly Egyptian-based design for the royal crown of Gondor is converted to a generically western European-style crown in the films and overwhelmingly in the fandom.

I then pointed out that it's been very noticeable that ROP haters tend to have a powerful double standard wrt fidelity when it comes to the Jackson films. For over 20 years, most film fans have been constitutionally incapable of tolerating even slight criticism of the films without jumping in to defend their greatness and condescendingly explain the most basic elements of adaptation. (Yes, we know film is not the same as text, we know changes are part of adaptation, we all know that, we all know that a word-for-word adaptation would suck and never be made, this is not new information and does not make the PJ films' every choice a good one.) Yet most film LOTR fans who vocally despise ROP display none of the charity towards ROP that they demand for the films (demand even from someone like Christopher Tolkien, a dead man the entire fandom is deeply indebted to, whose dislike of the films still leads to regular attacks on his character from Jackson film stans).

This hypercritical yet hyperdefensive tendency in the fandom is neatly illustrated by the fact that you responded to a conversation about the double standards in evaluations of ROP's costuming vs the films' to go on about how ROP is objectively bad for reasons entirely unrelated to costuming, how you're totally not racist (something nobody was talking about), and to quote you directly, "Like the show was just Bad." Truly, an incisive critique. Meanwhile, your concessions with regard to the Jackson films are mainly about extremely minor and defensible omissions like removing Glorfindel and the sons of Elrond rather than the serious and fundamental problems that lesbiansforboromir and I have with them, or even the ways they do pretty much the exact same things you're lambasting ROP for.

I mean, if we're going to talk about action hero Elves in ROP vs the Jackson films, what about the action hero-ification of Legolas in the films? He was described by Tolkien himself as the Fellowship member who accomplished the least, so super badass battle-skateboarding Legolas hardly represents fidelity to Tolkien's vision. Why should that get a pass while film-stanning ROP haters seethe about ROP!Galadriel being too special, even though Tolkien described her as one of the most special Elves to ever live and specifically as remarkably athletic and insightful?

Meanwhile, film Gimli is reduced to comic relief, the only dwarves taken seriously are conventionally hot ones in The Hobbit films, and Frodo's expressions of strength and fortitude are consistently removed to glorify other characters. Film Gondorians were deliberately designed to seem like useless tin soldiers (which they are in the films, as well as whiter and blonder than Tolkien wrote them) rather than the physically imposing and highly effective fighting force of the book. ROP imagining Elvish rituals upon approaching Valinor that aren't based in Tolkien canon but don't directly conflict with it is absolutely trivial compared to the films' handling of Denethor and Faramir.

The point is not that you, personally, are not allowed to like the films or dislike ROP despite all this. Many people do love the films, including most of my followers. They do have their strengths, though they are extremely racist and few film fans will acknowledge this without soft-pedaling it in some way (esp, since you brought it up, given the context of the truly unhinged degree of racism that has accompanied much of the broader discourse around ROP).

The point is that film fans who hate ROP are constantly showing up in our conversations to be "well actually ROP is just objectively bad, unlike the films, because the show has failings that are also in the films but it's totally different there because of the contents of Peter Jackson's soul" or whatever. The point is the absolutely glaring and obnoxiously hypocritical double standard of defensiveness about the films and obsessive nitpicking of ROP that leads to ROP haters continually going on rants to ROP fans that are unwelcome, uninvited, and usually (as in this case) irrelevant to what was even being discussed.

[bardic-tales]

hello and how are you?

Happy Storyteller Saturday NL! c:

Can you tell us a story of a character who shifted status? Did you ever have a MC who decided to not and bled into the background until someone else came and did their job? Did you have a character who wasn't ever supposed to be a part of the story, and yet jumped in and made themselves their own MC?

If this questions doesn't apply, can you tell us one random things about your story that you focused on, developed, or thought about this week?

@365runesofwriting

Hello Rune! Happy belated STS. Thank you so much for the questions, and I hope you are having a wonderful day or evening.

I'm fine. My family adopted a new kitten about a month ago, so it's crazy here. Cookie is about 2 months now. Our other two cats, ginger boy (Loki) and Russian Blue (Fenrir) have only gotten used to the baby. How are you?

These are very interesting questions. I'm going to break them down one by one, as that is easier for me.

cw: arson. murder attempt.

Can you tell us a story of a character who shifted status?

Kritos is a main character of Flight of the Dragon. He is also the first person that Alystin has loved. They grew up together in a quaint village called Siollán.

As no village child wanted to play with Kritos, Alystin would go out of her way and spend time with him. At this time, her foster parents would keep the fact that a cult who worshipped the Old Gods was actively hunting her. Their reasoning is that it was safer for her not to know the fate the Gods handed her.

Even at a young age, Kritos was a member of this cult. He would later burn down her parents' inn. Kritos would prove to be a throne in another main character's side, as Kritos became an assassin of this cult. His sole purpose was to assassinate one of the silver dragons guarding Alystin and ferret her away to the cult.

Kritos would eventually have a change of heart. Without spoiling to much of the second book in the Dragon Chronicles, he will be redeemed. I've read recently that a redeemed character's sacrifice has to be equal to their sins. So, the future for Kritos is grim.

Did you ever have a MC who decided to not and bled into the background until someone else came and did their job?

cw: assassination

In Cold as Ice, Albus Raspanti does this. His inaction costs him his life. This ignites a chain of events and starts a civil war in the Olessan Empire.

Albus was the Duke of Norven, and this is where the main military members for the Olessan Army comes from. Both the Shade and Niccolo Napoli take advantage of the chaos and try to stage a coup.

The only ones who can stop them are Cyras Covelli, Silas Silvius, the Wraith, and the Wraith's allies.

Did you have a character who wasn't ever supposed to be a part of the story, and yet jumped in and made themselves their own MC?

cw: main character death

When I first outlined Cold as Ice, there were to be 8 allies to the Crown. These were the Crown Prince, the Stewardess, the Black Tigress (who would later be renamed to the Wraith), and the Tigress' allies.

In redoing the outline this time around, I created a character named Silas Silvius, a cousin to the Crown Prince. Silas has a wyvern companion, too.

I was originally going to have him die during the coupe at the end of Cold as Ice, but he is such a wonderful character that I have written that death for someone else and moved it to the first chapter of the second book.

If I were to create a standalone novel about any of the other main characters of Cold as Ice, SIlas is the character I'd chose. He is inspired by the ranger fantasy archetype.

[random-imagines-blog]

Shine {Tom Cruise x Reader One Shot}

Requested by: @beatlebabe1996​ Wordcount: 2236 Summary: Great food, great dancing, and a bit of jealousy - what more could a date need?

As early 2000s as this was about the sound - the club was popping. It wasn’t the usual sort of club filled with twenty years grinding on one another with barely distinguishable beats playing in the background. It was a Latin club, with food and dancing and drink. The spice of the food was rivaled by the spice of the band that was playing tonight. This was where you felt the most in your element, this was your place. And that was why you had brought your date here tonight. It was also relatively low-key, where most of the people were focused on the band and the chef rather than the patrons. Something that your date for the night, a Mr. Tom Cruise, appreciated. You recommended a dish for him and that was what he had ordered - a definitely win in your books. You liked a man who was adventurous and yet trusting. He knew that you knew what you were doing.

“So you come here often then?” Tom asked, leaning back in his chair. He had shed his leather jacket to show the red button up shirt that he was wearing. It was tight on the arms, showing off the muscles that his constant work-out routine had produced. The color was great too, it added a little Latin flair to him. Your own outfit matched almost perfectly.

“I’m a regular,” You admitted, leaning in, playing with the straw of your drink. “The staff all know me by name here. It’s how I knew that we would be safe. They don’t care about celebrities so they won’t be posting anything on social media about your visit.”

“Our visit,” Tom laughed, taking a drink of his beer. “You seem more like the celebrity here. Even the band has been looking at you.”

“It’s rare that I  sit down this long,” You admitted. Your eyes caught that of the waitress coming around, your food on her platter. You straightened up and licked your lips, more than ready for the meal.

“What do you mean?” Tom asked, straightening himself up as well. There was a smile, and then thank yous to the waitress, and forks were picked up.

“Oh, I hit the dance floor,” You grinned, a sparkle in your eye. “That’s one of the best reasons to come here. The music, the dancing, the atmosphere. You get a good coupe of people on that floor, the whole place will be moving. Are you up for the challenge after we eat?”

“I don’t know if I’m going to be able to stand after all of this,” Tom laughed, digging into the food on his plate. You chuckled along with him, but remained hopeful. Dancing was one of your absolute favorite things to do, and not to toot your own horn, but you were good at it. No matter how handsome or famous this man was, he wasn’t going to be able to get into your heart without taking a few steps.

“Is that so?” He asked. You nodded, and watched as he took his first bite. You were waiting with bated breath to find out if he enjoyed it as much as you hoped that he would. He chewed thoughtfully, swallowed, then took a sip of water. “Spicy,” He explained. You nodded again, and continued to look, waiting for an opinion and not a fact. “It’s really good.”

“I knew you would think so!” You stabbed your fork into your own food, cutting off a piece for your consumption. “The food here is the best too. It’s the most underrated restaurant in the city, but it’s kind of great that way. No lines to get in. Plenty of room for dancing. And the food never takes too long to get to the table.”

“My kinda place,” Tom said with a grin. You two ate in relative silence, but it wasn’t uncomfortable. It was just two people enjoying a meal, and each others company. Every time that his foot bumped against yours under the table, though, you felt like you were going to start blushing. You thought about saying something about it but decided to just let the moment be that - a moment, without you ruining it. “Should we get dessert?” He asked after you two finished eating, picking up the small dessert menu that was on the table. You were about to recommend one of the items when you were interrupted.

“Y/N!” One of the waiters, Antonio said, coming up to your table. “I just noticed you were here. I got assigned to the left section tonight. How are you doing? You look amazing tonight.”

“Oh hey, thank you. I tried my best. Date and all,” You said with a grin, looking over at Tom. He chuckled, and looked back at the dessert menu. “How are you doing, Antonio?”

“Same old, same old. Just got on my break.” He said, looking between you and Tom with a grin. He raised his eyebrow at you as if to say, ‘Really? You bagged Tom Cruise?’ To which you just replied with a confident nod and a smirk in return. “I was going to ask if you wanted to dance, but since you’re busy, I’ll go and find Gabriella-”

“And get your toes trod on?” You asked in horror. You loved the bartender, she was a complete sweetheart and always full of laughs, but she was a horrible dancer. “Do you mind, Tom? At the very least, let me help save this guys feet.”

“Not at all,” Tom said, still perusing the menu, though it was rather short. He must be reading through the ingredients or something. “I’m excited to see your moves.”

“Better watch then,” You winked daringly at him, before allowing yourself to be lead to the dance floor. Normally you wouldn’t let even wild horses drag you from a date, especially from someone as good looking, kind and charming as Tom. But this was also a chance to show off for him.

Dancing had been an outlet for you all of your life. It gave you a sense of control over your body that you could feel good about, especially when you had been a teenager and it felt like you didn’t have control over anything. It brought on a confidence that you needed to get to where you were in life. And that confidence landed you a date with one of the best men that the city, perhaps even the world, had to offer. The fame wasn’t a bonus to you, the attention wasn’t something that you craved. It was just him as a person, and you felt so completely lucky that he even looked at you twice. You didn’t even know that he felt the same way about you.

The band started up a beat with a strong rhythm and a quick tempo. It was perfect for Salsa dancing, which was exactly what you wanted. You and Antonio both knew the moves like the back of your hand, which meant you didn’t have to waste time worrying about getting everything right. You could just relax and have some fun.

Your heels clicked against the hardwood floors of the restaurant as you danced with Antonio. You started apart, and then slowly came together, a familiarity between the two of you because you had been friends for so long. You had been dancing together since you started coming here as a teenager, when he had just been a bus boy. You shimmied your hips as you two spun around one another, under each other’s arms, him dipping you, back and forth. It was a very sexy way of dancing. A very sensual and fiery dance. But you kept things under control, making sure not to get too close. You did have your date watching after all.

Your eyes kept flickering over to him to see that he was watching very intently. In fact, there was a look on his face that was almost jealousy. He couldn’t stop looking at you. Even as you and Antonio separated for a small part of the song, he was following you, and not Antoni, who was probably a better dancer than even you. You shot him a smile, then got right back into it, ending it with a couple more twirls and then the song came to a finish. You were a little breathless but also exhilarated, a high that only exercise could bring.

“Always a pleasure,” Antonio said with a little bow. “And my toes thank you.”

“You’ve really got to get yourself a girlfriend,” You chuckled. You turned to go back to your table, only to find that it was empty because Tom was approaching you on the dance floor.

“Mind if I cut in?” He asked to Antonio, though his voice wasn’t nearly as pleasant as it was when you had been taking earlier. “Considering we’re on a date and all, I would think not.”

Ouch.

“All yours,” Antonio said, bowing his head towards Tom as well. He raised his eyebrows at you as he walked away backwards, holding his hands up in surrender. You just shook your head subtly then looked at Tom. He had his hand out to you, and you took it, feeling the warmth of his body heat against yours. You haven’t been this close to him before. You had to admit, it was pretty nice. He looked even more handsome up close than he did from across the table.

“Were you a little jealous?” You asked, as the next song started. “If you were, that’s actually kind of cute.”

“Maybe a little,” Tom admitted. The song was a slower one, so you tended to stay close. He spun you beneath his arm and you twirled expertly, then ended right back against his chest. “Was it that obvious?”

“Perhaps you’re not the amazing actor that you think you are,” You challenged.

“I don’t think that matters much to you, does it?” He asked. He had a point there, and you lightly shook your head. His arm dropped a little lower below your waist, going towards dangerous territory. He had a bit of a smug face, which was pretty adorable.

You did a quick spin out of his arms on that one, to make his face change. He had to know now that you had the upper hand - and that you had a sense of humor. And that you could throw in a little bit of spice into everything. When you went back into him, his arm was a little higher this time.

“A little handsy for a first date, Mr Cruise,” You said, amused.

“What can I say,” He grinned. “I perform my own stunts.”

You laughed at that, and swayed along with him to the music - up until the band started to heat it up, bringing back in the fun. You stayed on the dance floor, waiting to see what Tom was going to do. He went along with it, rather than drag you off. Slow dancing was easy, but many men were intimidated by the faster steps. Tom wasn’t the same way. He actually managed to keep up with you, his steps quick, his eyes on you, his smile on his face nonstop. Those hips didn’t lie.

“What a daredevil,” You teased. “What other stunts do you intend to do tonight?”

“Well, it all depends,” Tom said, looking into your eyes as you spun side by side.

“On?”

“Where this night is leading. I might dare to kiss you on your doorstep...”

“How bold,” You smirked, dancing around him, looking over your shoulder to keep up the eye contact.

“Or I can show you a couple of moves if you’re feeling this as much as I am.”

“Ballsy,” You laughed. The song came to a close and you and Tom clapped for the band. You leaned against him, back to his chest, and his arms went around you, holding you close. You liked that feeling. You liked him a lot. And you usually weren’t this sort of person but ... but you were interested in what sort of moves that Tom had off of the dance floor. “I like it. I suppose I could let you take me home - if you really think that your moves are that good.”

He seemed a little off-guard that you had agreed with the idea so quickly. But he covered it up by bringing you back to the table and quickly throwing down some money and putting his jacket back on. The dancing, the food - all of this was an amazing aphrodisiac, and you were feeling the mood with Tom right now. You hurried with your own jacket, and finished off your drink which you had left behind when you had gotten up to dance. You left together hand in hand, and he showed off his gentlemanly he could be by opening the passenger door for you, and waiting until you were settled in with your seatbelt on to close it.

If  he kept up this perfect combination of sweet and spicy, you were very excited to see what moves he was going to show you in the bedroom tonight.

[glimmerglanger]

For a possible Make Your Bed snippet - reunion with Rex and/or Ahsoka, perhaps??? I also find myself super curious about how things ended up between Mav and Mirrti. Anyway, gorgeous finale, I was having heart palpitations throughout the last two chapters and I thank you dearly for them. ♥

remyblue said:

If you're still taking prompts for Make Your Bed, background Mav/Mirrti? Finding Rex and Ashoka? Also your writing is lovely and every update of Make Your Bed was a highlight/a wonderful gift these past weeks so thank you! >_<

Gooood morning! Since I’ve done Rex and Ahsoka, this one focuses on Mav and Mirrti. Set during Chapter Five. Angst and a lot of feelings. Discussion of mind control.

~~~~~~~

It had only been a handful of days since Mav stepped through the door to Mirrti’s quarters.

It felt like a lot longer.

He looked over the space while Mirrti made her way in, moving over to the small bench that served as a couch and just sinking down. The quarters were tiny, but they were private. He had...a lot of pleasant memories about the bunk along one wall; all the blankets were in order. Usually most of them were on the floor.

Last time he’d been in this room, Mirrti had helped him put his armor on, because they’d indulged, and he was running behind to get down to Utapau. She’d kissed his forehead before he pulled his bucket on.

He reached up, rubbing at his brow, chest and gut tight, and she said, “I’m sorry.”

Mav winced, looking over towards her. She’d bent over her legs, pale hair loose and falling down around her face. Parts of it were stained dark with blood. Not hers. He’d checked. She was still wearing a jumpsuit from the brig. And, when he’d first come around the corner, after she’d commed him, he’d thought--

“I know you must be furious,” she said, voice muffled by her hands, over her face.

Mav considered that. His emotions were all a tangled mess. They felt sharp-edged, in a way he wasn’t used to. Like they’d been sharpened into blades and turned against both him and everyone around him.

He said, “I think I am angry, yes.” He watched her nod, watched her shoulders shake, something simmering up his spine, thinking about the feeling of being trapped in his own head, screaming where no one could hear. Thinking about the nat-borns. Jocobi and Tullop had gloated, and - and gone further, but--

He flexed his fingers in and out, looking down at his own hands, surprised by the itch in his knuckles and the hot boil of emotion in his gut. His voice was sharp when he said, “You just left -- us.”

He heard her make a sound. Her voice cracked when she said, “I didn’t know--what was going on. Admi--Jocobi got a message. Over Utapau. It said - it said the Jedi had attempted a coup. That they were traitors. And that you - you all had received new orders. That you’d--listen better. Follow your orders. I… and then you were. Blank. Empty.”

He stared at the far wall, his jaw aching. He was grinding his teeth together. He tried to make himself stop, with limited success. She said, quietly, “You wouldn’t talk to me.”

Mav swore, and it was easy enough to slam the side of his hand into the closet wall. The wash of pain down his arm felt… grounding. Mirrti made a ragged, startled sound, and-- He’d wanted to talk to her. To beg her for help, at first.

And then to beg her to stop.

The thing in his head hadn’t appreciated her continued attempts to speak with him. It had taken him back to his bunk multiple times and grabbed a pad, opening a form to report behavior that indicated sedition and--

Mav had fought it, as best he could. He’d tried to focus on the fact that she was a junior officer - she had no real power, he’d tried to convince the thing in his head. And - and he’d focused on his memories of their time together. The way they tangled close. 

It wasn’t sedition. Just - just a lonely officer, who wanted physical release from his body. 

The thing in his head must have believed it. It hadn’t filed any of the reports, anyway. 

“I couldn’t talk to you,” he said, finally, his voice in shreds. 

She looked up, her hair stuck to her cheeks. “You could have, I would have helped, don’t you know that I--”

“I couldn’t, Mirrti. Physically. There was.” He blew out a breath, gut sour and burning. Cody hadn’t given him orders not to talk about the thing in their heads. But, likely, that was because Cody was barely managing to keep things running. He looked terrible and was furious with the nat-borns. All of them.

Mav had never seen Cody really angry, before. It made him uncomfortable. The way he’d looked at Mirrti, like he wanted to shake her or - or worse, had made something burn in Mav’s throat. He shook those thoughts aside and swallowed. He said, “There was something in my head. In all of our heads.”

Mirrti turned to look at him, finally. Her face was streaked wet, darkened to purple under her eyes. “What?”

Mav grimaced, waving a hand out to the side. It ached, where he’d slammed it into the wall. “Some kind of kriffing chip. I don’t know. The Kaminoans put it there and when they turned it on…” He snorted, an ugly sound. “We got blank. Empty. I couldn’t do anything except watch what was happening. And you - you just stood there. You watched Tullop--”

He trailed off, throat closing around the words, strangling them. Strangling him. Jocobi had been smug and awful, but mostly kept to his own quarters. Tullop had taken inordinate joy from wandering among them, in ordering them to do degrading little tasks, just because he could, and--

“So, yes,” he said, clearing his throat. “I’m angry, Mirrti.”

It felt good, naming the emotion. She nodded, head dropping, shackles still around her wrists because Cody had been lenient enough to let her come back here, but there’d been limits to how far he was willing to stretch any magnanimity.

She hadn’t asked to have them removed, anyway.

Mav swallowed, his own eyes burning. He was angry, and didn’t know, really, how to process the swell of it. There was so much. And it hadn’t crept into his chest alone. He panted out, voice cracking all at once, “And scared. I was so - the chip wanted to report you, Mirrti. As a traitor, and you wouldn’t stop coming around. And…”

She looked up at him again, expression frozen into place, fresh tears on her cheeks. And he’d thought Cody was going to throttle her, earlier, after the breakout. After she commed him, told him in stuttering breathes that the other nat-borns had gotten away, and--

She could have run with them. They’d have been able to reach a comm station. The Empire would know. Know what they were doing on the Vigilance. Even if they’d caught the nat-borns after that, it wouldn’t have mattered. A single message could undo all of them.

His heart had lurched when she commed him, going so fast it had hurt. It was still racing. He was angry and he’d been worried and currently he did not know what he was feeling, only that there was too much of it, all crowding together inside his head, tangled with memories of - of being in this room, of Mirrti leaning her arm on his chest, her skin so blue as he trailed fingers through her hair and they discussed taking leave together, her body soft and warm against his, the way she laughed when he got tired of talking--

He blew out a breath, running a hand back over his head, wondering what the kriff they were supposed to do next.

[toujoursmiraculous]

Thoughts and Reaction to Mr. Pigeon 72!

I knew this was going to be a really good episode, just because the synopsis we got and the trailer seemed pretty bland. Whenever ML does that, a lot of big things happen in that episode. I screamed and choked on my water in the opening scene where Ladybug's with Alya in Marinette's room. I've been looking forward to Alya and Marinette scenes sooo much since Gang of Secrets! Wayzz & Alya: Hey Marinette, you should take a break and rest. Marinette: Nah, I'm good I gotta keep working Alya: YOU'RE LOSING IT, GIRL! Marinette: Don't care, must work Alya: Okay... you know Adrien and Kagami broke up, right? Marinette: Wait what?! Oh no, Kagami needs me! Alya: Not the reaction I was expecting but okay "Let's not wait for the storm to pass, but let's dance in the rain." I really like this quote! Even during bad times, you need to find the good and enjoy it. And Marinette reaaaally needs to do that. But in a literal sense, please don't dance outside during a dangerous storm.

ALYA AND TRIXX ALDJFSLJDS oh I love them, I'm so happy we'll get to see more of them. The way they both reacted to Marinette saying she has to go console Kagami, they weren't expecting that. xD But I was! I find it very amusing how in episodes like Frightningale she was more upset with Chloe being Ladybug than Chloe being in a video with Adrien that Alya's shocked by her decision, and in Frozer where Marinette was putting Adrien's wants before hers. I really don't understand why people think just because she likes Adrien, she'd not want to help make those around her happy even if it wasn't what she wanted for herself. I'm not surprised at all that Marinette would do this for Kagami, but I'm very happy that she is. "Alya, in Paris, Kagami has no other friend except me. Only I can console her." This makes me so happy. The only times in this show I like Kagami, is when she's with Marinette. After watching this episode, I'm more and more thankful she finally told Alya about being Ladybug I don't even want to know the state she'd be in had she not. O.O She almost ran out of her room as Ladybug (whoops), then almost ran out in her pjs (again, oops). Thanks to Alya, she didn't do either. xD That little detail where Marinette runs out and the sun's really intense, letting us know she's been inside a really long time, so everything outside is really bright. I really appreciate the little things like that. Or at least, that's what I take it as. Unless they're hinting at summer coming up soon... Dang Marinette, just jumps on Kagami's back LOL Kind of reminds me how Chat Noir likes to come up on Ladybug. xD "Your so original friend." Marinette is pretty original! I know the tone implies that's not a good thing, but eh. She's letting her go with Marinette and spend time away, so who cares! Marinette trying really hard to convince Kagami to get back with Adrien and how she's going to help her. I think it's really sweet of her, but Kagami of course clearly doesn't want to. Plagg: What's wrong with you, jumping into ice water! YOU'RE LOSING IT! Adrien: *exposes duffle bag full of Camembert* Plagg: I take back everything I said about you Also huh, Alya just told Marinette she's losing it, now Plagg tells Adrien he's losing it...hmmm. Bob Roth is a horrible person and each time we see him, he does something else to show it. Poor Adrien's allergic to pigeons specifically. I guess he's okay with some birds but not others? Idk? But he told Gabriel it'd be doves, so he approved. But it turned out to be pigeons instead. To be fair, at least in the US, Mourning Doves are often mistaken as pigeons, at least where I live, so they'd make a decent substitute... if it wasn't for Adrien's allergy. Adrien in Gorizilla to Wayhem: If you stop following me around screaming, I think we could be good friends! Wayhem with Cardboard Cut-out Adrien in Mr. Pigeon 72: ADRIENNNNNNN! :/ Marinette has a bag full of everything she may need in all kinds of situations. Comes in handy but good grief girl! How do you lug that all around??? What kind of scenarios do you think up to think of

some of that stuff!? Marinette's so adorable in her bathing suit awwww! Dude. Bob Roth. He said he's allergic to pigeons! And you blame Mr. Ramier because Adrien sneezed and it scared the pigeon away? How is this man successful again? He doesn't listen to anything or anybody. Marinette's like hey Kagami, look at Adrien. You'll start liking him again. Do you feel your heart beating fast now? And she's like "I feel especially bad for the trainer (Mr. Ramier)". I mean same though. He's being treated horribly! x.x Next take, Adrien dives and he sees Marinette with Kagami. But I think he only saw Marinette. Because he says he thought he saw a friend from school (Kagami doesn't attend their school, just the fencing class, as far as we're aware) and also he makes no mention of Kagami at all in this episode. Which means...

Why's your jaw dropping at the sight of your "just a friend" in a bathing suit, Adrien? And, you know, Kagami's literally right there in a bathing suit, too. Just saying. But it's like she's not even there to him. Hmmmmm. Poor Kagami's like, this entire thing is embarrassing, I feel embarrassed for me, Adrien, and this situation. Kagami: Marinette, stop! It's getting crazy! Marinette: Love is crazy! Don't think about it! I love how the more Marinette tries to help Kagami, the more things are working out in Marinette's favor. Interesting, isn't it? The more she tries to tell Adrien her feelings and make opportunities for them, the more they fail. The more she tries to help Kagami, or someone else, the more opportunities for her land in her lap. Hahahahaha the way they both fall LOL "Marinette? 😮" *guilty smile* AND THEN THEY TAKE DOWN POOR EDGAR! :( Mr. Ramier's in the background giving the poor bird CPR as he's drowned and Marinette and Adrien are just casually talking not paying attention lolol "What are you doing here?" "I came to surprise you." Kind of, she was hoping to help Kagami get back with Adrien. So that's a kind of surprise! "Uh, well to relax!" True too, actually. Alya did send her off because she needed to get out of the house and relax from her Ladybug and Guardian duties. Marinette, everyone needs to be careful when at a pool. Clumsy people like you especially need to be careful! lol Good thing Adrien's already seen her fall so many times, it's nothing new lol Gabriel: It's a failure Bob Roth: It's not my fault, it's his! Mr. Ramier: You are under arrest! Edgar is my best friend. He's the most intelligent of the pigeons! Gabriel: It's a pigeon Bob Roth: WHAAAT? IT'S A PIGEON? RAMIER, YOU LIED TO ME. Sorry Gabriel, I'll replace this man! I know a shark trainer First off... LOL that whole scene XDD I actually knew Bob Roth was going to say that entire thing before I heard it lolol Second... awww Edgar's okay! c: and third... I'M SORRY, YOU WANT OUR PRECIOUS BOY TO BE AROUND SHARKS?!?!? Who keeps this man employed?!?! Idk why but this whole time I thought that everyone would turn into giant talking pigeons lol ah well "I realized my mistake! We'll recreate the moment where you fell in love!" ohhh? Like I mentioned earlier, whenever she tries to do something to help Kagami (or someone else) that's when her intentions work out best for her. 😉 One of my favorite things from Style Queen was Plagg and Ladybug working together. Now they're working together again and just... ahhhh I gushed so much at that scene! x3 YESSSSSSS what I've been waiting for! Ladybug can just call Alya now and be like hey, I need your help! And Alya can just be like okay cool, and either goes to her room to get the Miraculous herself, or finds her and gets the Miraculous. So cool! Of course, I'll be most excited if she ever gets to just keep it on her, but... baby steps. Rena did a phenomenal job speaking as both Ladybug and Chat Noir lol. She's such a fan of them both, she knows just how they are around each other. Oh, oh no. We're trapped against a wall by a few pigeons. Looks like our only option is to give up and remove our Miraculous and reveal our identities. Are you seriously buying that, Gabriel? Plagg's like HELLO I'll be taking this! Alya did everything from inside Marinette's room. Ladybug was trapped in that room at the pool the entire time. All it took for this akuma to be defeated was Illusion that can be done from anywhere and Plagg getting the object off Mr. Pigeon. That's amazing! Also, this is the first time Ladybug didn't have to actually see things around her to know what to do. She just focused and thought about it. o.o Okay so hold up. Thanks to Alya, Marinette now knows she can create charms to protect past akuma victims and keep them from getting reakumatized, which is wonderful. I love how much of an impact Alya knowing is having! BUT How exactly does Monsier Rat come about then if he has a charm to protect him??? 🤔🤔🤔 I really like how her drive to want to figure things out was

especially because Mr. Ramier's been akumatized so many times, and she wanted to help him from having to continue to go through that. "This girl is truly Miraculous" awww cute how he got to just watch that this time.

I screamed at this moment because I knew. Since Origins, we have not seen this exact sky. Even during rainy scenes like in Chat Blanc or New York, they didn't look like this. YES, Kagami knows that the way Marinette feels about Adrien shows how much she loves him, but she knows she doesn't feel that way about Adrien too. And "You're right, Adrien is perfect... perfect for you." With a smile and everything! Awwwwww! This acceptance, and the Marinette and Kagami friendship in this episode is really, really good! 😭 "Wow, have you kept it [the umbrella] all this time?" She sure wasn't expecting that!! But wow Adrien, you noticed? Then Coup de Foudre happens again. Yeah, this girl is never getting out of her feelings for him.

Of course she's having trouble with her words still, but that's okay. But she's like oh, I'll give it back, and he just pushes it to her and says she'll need it to get home... unless she'd like a ride with him. AND SHE ACTUALLY ACCEPTED AND WRAPPED HER ARM AROUND HIS OMG.

To then only have the umbrella close on BOTH of them!

AND THEN ASKS IF HE WANTS TO WALK INSTEAD BECAUSE THEY HAVE THE UMBRELLA! She's come so far! And the sheer disappointment when he remembers he can't because of his Chinese lesson :/ And then, because he can't not be looking at Marinette, he hits the back of his head on the car, making himself look silly, just like in Origins she made herself look silly. This time she laughs, and he laughs with her. And it's literally Umbrella Scene 2.0 and it's absolutely everything.

DORKS ❤️❤️❤️ "They are made for each other." awwwww instead of Master Fu, this time it's Kagami. And she sounds very okay with that, that's so nice. "Let's not wait for the storm to pass, but let's dance in the rain." Then proceeds to dance in the rain!

Ahhh what a refreshing, good episode after how much she's been struggling and crying! So lovely! Her friendships with Alya and Kagami were really strong in this episode, her doing her best to help her friend with the guy she herself has always liked, and then Kagami was the one that wasn't really into it, and it made both girls realize that Marinette loves Adrien and is the one best for him, not Kagami. And I'm pretty sure this episode helped Adrien to open his eyes to Marinette more too. At least, this is the beginning of that, anyway! Alya's such a tremendous help to Ladybug now, which is everything. I do wonder if more friends will very slowly start to find out her identity and they end up contributing more to bringing down Hawk Moth, so she really, really isn't alone like she once thought. I don't really have any complaints about this episode at all! Just a bit sad we had no actual Chat Noir, but we got Ladybug and Plagg from it, so it's fine with me! x3 I know some may see it as "Chat Noir isn't necessary, how dare they do this to him!" but no, he's very necessary, sometimes he just can't be there and she can't do it alone. You have to remember how much Chat Noir means to Ladybug, and that she wouldn't even BE Ladybug if it weren't for Chat Noir! I'm really curious now about what episode 5 is, since now we've gotten Episodes 1-4, 6, we're getting 7,8, and 13 later, and we've already gotten 11. Filling in the gaps for the first half of the season! This entire week is going to be crazy with the new episodes, and for each one I'll be writing one of these posts for, so be on the look out for them!

[yukihime242]

The mobile game, Lord of Heroes, can be a competition in terms of its quality of graphics against Genshin Impact. I mean, look at this!

Of course, having played a lot of Genshin Impact, all I can think of was that the mountains in the background was Dragonspine. And are birch trees very popular among the gaming genre? I keep seeing them everywhere.

I am not really sure what is the purpose of the game since I didn’t play it very much (with a good reason). All I know is that you, the player and main character of the story, had to track down a traitor who attempted a coup d’etat but failed miserably.

I’m not sure whether the traitor was caught because the game system and mechanics are SUPER CONFUSING!

Allow me to start from the beginning.

First, you get to choose the gender of your character. I decided to go for the male character because the female was making me wonder if the game developers were trying to do a remake of Mulan in the game.

Cues the first confusion.

The game also allows us to choose the character’s hairstyle and hair colour. That’s all. Whoever the artist is, they all looked really good. I had a hard time choosing between a flaming red hair or a silverish-white hair (for the uniqueness). 

And once confirming the hairstyle and colour, and our character names, we were pushed straight into the story where this silly knight tried a coup d’etat.

Since when royal seats are comfortable?

We just had our first battle with Oswald and honestly, I have no idea what I was doing. The only thing I can tell you is that the battle mechanics is like Pokemon, you each take turns to attack.

Obviously the game won’t tell you whether your attack was effective or not, but basically you get to choose which opponent to attack.

Cues confusion no. 2.

After the big battle in the open field, we had to go back to the castle for some tutorial. That’s where confusion 1 and 2 started getting lost in all of the confusions.

As much as I’d like to enjoy the game, there were too many things that I’m unclear of to give a proper review. Also, I’m too focused on Genshin Impact to actually pay attention to what is going on in this game, so just like Arknights, it had to go back onto the shelf.

[avoutput]

Mario Mario & Luigi Mario || Super Mario Bros.

The beginning of any quest has its starting pains. In the early 90’s, Hollywood set out to begin getting a cut of that sweet video game money. At the time, video games were mostly considered toys, and they were advertised as such. As the medium grew more adult, so did its films. Still, they had to begin somewhere, and why not with the biggest gaming property on the planet past and present: Super Mario Bros. This provided an unknowingly impossible challenge for creatives, one that is still a topic of intense discussion to this day. How does one balance the adaptation of a property from a completely different format into film? At the time, other films that looked similar to what Super Mario Bros would become had succeeded despite the challenges of adapting comics for film. Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles and the first re-imagination of Batman since the 60’s went on to invigorate their respective properties. Today, comic book movie adaptations are the tent pole of every major movie studio. In the case of Super Mario Bros, despite its critical failure at the time, I honestly feel like the creatives succeeded. The ire this film would glean over time from both fans and the people behind the camera fuel its bad reception to this day. In my opinion, it is actually a success story in the world of video game adaptations, and a great place to start if you plan on watching every Hollywood attempt. I promise you this: it could be so much worse. And for later attempts, it was! But, does Super Mario Bros thwomp?

In my initial argument, I raised that these films should be broken down into categories including: Originality, Preservation, Construction, Delivery, and Fanservice. Originality and Preservation can be at complete odds with one another. In the case of Super Mario Bros, it turns out to be a good combination of both. They offset each other just enough to find a balance between the reality of our world and the fantasy of the mushroom kingdom. Sit back in your chair and imagine the real world of 1993, what films looked like back then, the landscape of video game culture. I think the creators had this very much in mind when they penned this movie. The very first thing that happens in the Super Mario Bros movie is the NES theme song with all the depth a stereo sound system can provide. It really sets your little gamer heart aflutter. It conjures up images of the brightly colored games. Using narration, they make promises of dinosaurs, meteors, and other dimensions. If you don’t think too hard, it kind of sounds like a version of Super Mario Bros that was advertised via the game manuals and cartoon show. If you are familiar with either, a pair of New York plumbers essentially get sucked down a drain pipe. This process is a little more drawn out in the film, but It turns out more or less exactly as good as could have been expected in 1993. In fact, the film really isn’t above sucking them down a drain pipe, they do crazier things, but I suspect that they wanted the plumbers to have a more direct conflict that would lead them to try and save princess Daisy.

The plot of the film is par for the course in a children's film and a direct consequence of the game itself, especially if you consider the 3rd entry. A good king and an evil military general, betrayals and coups, princesses sent to live in another realm only to return home with a pair of knights to dethrone the evil king. A tale as old as time, one that continues to be retold because it resonates with us. The filmmakers were really focused on this being a performance of realism meets fantasy This would come to be the major struggle that other video game movies would continue to have problems balancing. They took concepts from the game and gave them an original spin and most within the framework of the original work. Their creative license is often challenged for these choices, but in the context of making a live action Super Mario Bros movie in 1993, those challengers should check themselves. The real question you should ask yourself is, in this context, what would you have done differently? And would it really have been better? I struggled to find a way to truly make the concepts of this movie any MORE appealing, but it was surprisingly easy to make it worse. In one way, this film was a by the numbers kids adventure story, but it's being held to task mostly for failing to be a good adaptation of the game, a bar which didn’t exist when they made it, but one they set and cleared simply by attempting to do so much. All the Mario concepts are easily recognizable, which should be applauded, even in the face of them being a little wacky.

Despite its failings in authenticity, it actually packs quite a lot of fanservice into almost every frame. If you pay attention once they enter Bowser’s domain, the walls are littered with little ads and jokes all based on Mario properties. This is all in an effort to please fans, but the film does tend to leave these little things in the background, the camera more focused on the characters and plot, so blink and you miss them. If anything, this duty to fanservice seems somewhat creatively arresting. Had this film not been an adaptation of another work, they may have opted to skip a few things, like how Mario and Luigi employ the use of mushrooms. In the game, these would make the bros bigger, but this would have been a bit at odds with the backdrop of the grimmy New York City analogy they chose, not to mention technically difficult. People have been squashing miniatures for years, but I just don’t see this being a good use of the film’s time given every other decision. The film's overwhelming attempt to create entirely new flesh on the skeleton of an animated game is really only hampered by the audience's willingness to enjoy it for what it is, by questioning every creative decision. A lot of effort was taken to make the world feel cohesive, especially in its attempt to be parallel to existing New York City. They even take time on some more clever jokes that go somewhat unspoken. Everything in Bowser City runs on electricity, including the cars. The idea here is that fossil fuels do not exist because the dinosaurs of this world haven’t ever fossilized. Or maybe the dinosaurs knew it was bad for their planet? The film is constructed and delivered in such a way as to not take itself too seriously, but to appear parallel to something familiar to our own world in conjunction with the Super Mario world.

After having sat through the film with an earnest critical eye, I am not going to tell you the film is greater than the sum of its parts or that it's fantastic because it set out on an uncharted path. Instead, what I will attest to is that it was truly competent. It made every attempt to give you what you wanted and also took a few of their own twists on the formula. Bullet Bills turned into fuel for jumping, Bomb-oms wear Reeboks, shoes facilitate their ability to jump but also satisfy the boot you wear in Super Mario Bros 3. They even use the lightgun from the NES to navigate screens much like a mouse and the SNES super gun as a weapon! All this and still they found a way to make it all fit within the italian brothers from Brooklyn framing. Unfortunately, it would seem no one really learned anything from the success or the failures of this film. If the 90’s game films are any indication, the only thing they learned is that the box office is fickle and to double down on fan service even when it doesn't make sense, and in some cases, abandon everything about the game entirely and simply slap the name on a completely original film. And yet, despite all the bad press and internal struggles the Super Mario Bros production had, they came out the other end with an inoffensive, enjoyable film that both kids and adults can enjoy. Especially if they forgive the film any perceived sins, a gift that all film adaptations deserve, and just try to recognize what they really accomplished. Bringing to life a world that only existed in your Nintendo. It may not have been pretty, but damn if it wasn’t entertaining.

[yandere-daydreams]

phat concept,,,, but hear me out,,, imagine katsuki being the god of war and chasing after their darling (who happens to be the god of death respectively) who’s just Tired of dealing with bakugou starting wars and shit to find an excuse to talk to them

I love personification so much… y’all shouldn’t give me this kind of privilege, really. It gives me too many rights.

TW: Mentions of Violence, Mentions of Death, and Implied Genocide.

~

Death accompanies War. One has to be present, if the other is to be expected.

You’d been with Katsuki since his rebirth, constantly lingering, constantly there, even if it was only your name being whispered in the background of his court. You would attend to him on the battlefield, never bowing to the demands he screamed but never traveling far, either, your servants often out-numbering his own. Sometimes, he would attempt to speak to you, and often, you would refrain from answering. You didn’t seem to talk much, if he had to guess.

But, often was not always. You two had spent centuries in each others’ company, and while he had only heard you speak a handful of words, there was more than enough time to waste while on the battlefield. He could talk for hours, and you would listen attentively, only leaving when another tragedy called for you. Katsuki wondered what it must be like, to exist as a concept so… depressing. War was honored, War was sacred. Death was only dreaded, distanced, kept away regardless of the cost. Katsuki couldn’t die, not truly. The fear of it was foreign to him.

It didn’t take many more years for pity to replace whatever annoyance he’d felt towards your distance.

The first time he’d expressed was the first time he’d warmed your bed, after waiting far too long to do so. Emotions were rare among deities, even those who seemed focused on the subject rather limited in the range they could exhibit, and if you felt anything beyond numb acceptance at his confession, you hadn’t been eager to display it. There’d been no response, no words of reciprocation, but you’d held him close, only leaving his side when the sun rose the next morning.

Death attends War, as it always will. But, one must always call for the other.

Blood and gore and carnage seemed less important with each night he spent in your company. He didn’t leave his duties to his inferiors, nor was Katsuki any less enthusiastic about carrying them out than he’d ever been, but he was yours with the sunset. Katsuki liked it that way, even if he only ever dreamed of admitting it. He liked how you gave yourself to him, how he was able to give himself to you. He’d had mortal lovers before, young warriors and matured generals, but he’d like to think his immortality would be saved for you.

It was a pleasant thought, something to occupy himself with while the bloodshed was at its most dull. Nothing more, nothing less…

Until he’d come to know your psychopomps by name, at least.

He would ask you, but one-word replies were frustratingly common. A new plague in the cities, a season of starvation in the villages, all demanding Death’s attention over another ancient grudge or honor-driven combat. War was organized, War was strategic, but War was jealous, demanding, selfish, too. Would your followers flee if you stayed by his side, rather than traversing the halls of a family’s secluded cottage? Would your dwindling sacrifices dry completely if you lowered your hood? You offered no answers, and Katsuki was the only respectable deity who’d bothered to ask. 

Death was silent for most, apparently.

Annoyingly, tortuously silent.

Katsuki’s battles grew larger, with that in mind. Blessings were given less frivolously, his servants slashing and cutting down any man who dared to survive his offerings to you. He’d have trapped and captured your guides, if he could, but the damn monsters were as untouchable as their master. He left you presents littered across fields and in valleys, bows of red and silver decorating every proclamation of his devotion. His emblem, his initials, he was written across each, calls for your attention you couldn’t ignore, days without you only fueling the gifts you’d receive the next.

War pursues Death. As one evolved, it would only grow to look more like a monument to the other.

Daggers were discarded in favor of swords, swords strapped to great, powerful machines before they too deemed themselves useless. It was all destruction, to Katsuki, all meaningless violence with the occasional bloodless coup or time of peace. But, he threw himself into his work, nonetheless, not knowing what else to do. He tried to live a mortal life (more than once, in fact), falling in love and growing old and finding purpose, but he would end up in the same place, regardless of how hard he tried to change. His daylight hours were spent in prayer, his nights wasted begging for your approval. He was more of a groveling devotee than a lover, within a few millennia.

He wanted your love, he wanted you.

He wanted all of those distractions gone.

Again, he waited to confess this. He waited until your servants were no longer audible outside your quarters, until the night was dark and the air chilled, despite the many lamps and lanterns that surrounded your bed, he waited until Katsuki wasn’t sure he was capable of waiting any longer. You must’ve suspected something, because for the first time in ages, you pulled him close, letting him hold you as he spoke.

“I’d like to make you happy,” He said, a monotone drawl masking the imperfections in his voice. It was easier to feel nothing than to feel something unpleasant, a notion Death must already be accustomed to. “I’d like to see you smile, and I’d like to be the reason you do so.” He paused, letting his head come to rest on your chest, your heartbeat as slow as those of the souls you dealt with. “I’ll get rid of them all, if that’ll please you. Mortals, immortals, everyone… I don’t care. I won’t stop until it’s just the two of us.”

“I would like that, too.”

At this, he dared to look towards you, the small, faint grin ghosting over your features spreading to his own without another word. In that moment, Katsuki decided his musing would become a reality, that he would turn the world to rubble, if only he got to witness a sight so beautiful for a second time.

War adores Death, after all. War worships Death.

But, one had only ever been a means to an end, for the other.

[purplehairedwonder]

Hearts With(out) Chains Chapter 8

Fandom: One Piece Rating: PG-13 Pairings: Gen (eventual Lawlu) Words: 3629 Characters: Trafalgar Law, Monkey D. Luffy, Nico Robin, Usopp, Sanji, Vergo Note: I’m taking my turn at the Corazon!Law AU because my brain won’t leave me alone until this is written down. Tags will be updated as the chapters come out.

The story title is based on the Ellie Goulding song “Hearts Without Chains.”

Summary: Law is reclaimed by the Family when he's 17 and, with Doflamingo holding the lives of his crew as collateral for his good behavior, eventually becomes the third Corazon. Years later, trapped by his impossible situation, Law finds a strange connection to Monkey D. Luffy, which offers a glimpse of something he's repeatedly had ripped away from him: hope.

Previous chapters: Prologue | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7

Read also at AO3 / FF.N

Robin watched as Luffy came out of the infirmary, a smile on his face as he shut the door behind him. She’d left an ear on the desk, disguised by her book, and she had to admit she was surprised by the conversation—especially that Luffy had gotten their guest (prisoner, despite what Luffy wanted) to volunteer his name. During her time with the Revolutionary Army, she’d known of many attempts by the Revolutionaries and others to learn Corazon’s real name. She filed the name Trafalgar Law away to look into later while once more marveling at her captain’s ability to read—and reach—people.

She rose from her seat and walked over to Luffy, who’d been intercepted by Usopp just outside the door.

“So, what happened?” Usopp was asking, glancing between Luffy and the closed door.

“We talked,” Luffy said, entwining his fingers behind his head. “Torao’s a good guy!”

Usopp frowned. “Torao?”

“Shishishi,” Luffy chuckled. “His name!”

Bemused, Usopp glanced at Robin, who smiled. “I believe our captain convinced Corazon to reveal his real name.”

“Why would he do that?”

“Because I asked,” Luffy replied as if it was the most obvious answer in the world. Perhaps it was to him. Usopp sputtered, and Robin patted his shoulder.

“Usopp’s right, though.” They looked up to see Sanji emerge from the kitchen. He was still moving carefully, but he looked much better than when they’d first arrived outside the lab. “Names have power, and that guy’s been going by an alias for years. Why share something so dangerous with his enemies?”

There were a number of potential answers to that question, but Robin had a feeling it was the Luffy Effect in action.

“We’re not enemies,” Luffy said, crossing his arms and frowning.

“He tried to kill us!” Usopp protested.

“He electrocuted me,” Sanji added, lighting a cigarette.

“And we have him locked up in Seastone,” Robin felt obliged to point out.

But Luffy shook his head. “Jimbei made it sound like he took a big risk helping us at Marineford. He said that Mingo guy would be angry, but he did it anyway.”

Robin knew the rumors about Doflamingo’s abilities, his crew, and his underground operations. His cruelty and brutality. Doflamingo saw his crew as a family, with his executives being his most trusted. And he did not stand for disloyalty in his Family. She could only imagine how he might have reacted to his second-in-command helping rival pirates.

“Luffy,” she said gently, waiting for her captain’s eyes to find her, “Corazon was already infamous when we met him on Sabaody. But over the last two years, his reputation has only gotten darker. They call him the Surgeon of Death.”

She had a feeling this wouldn’t dissuade him—little tended to once Luffy had made his mind up about something or someone—but she wanted to make sure he knew anyway.

As expected, Luffy shook his head again while Usopp spluttered in the background. “He saved me.”

There had been endless speculation over the last two years about why Corazon had saved Luffy and Jimbei, ranging from an attempted coup within the Family to a secret love affair (Robin had laughed aloud when this had been floated).

As she’d sat in the infirmary waiting for Corazon to regain consciousness, she found herself watching him. From what she could work out about him, he was a few years younger than her yet had risen to the rank of second in command of the Donquixote Pirates more than half a decade earlier; how young had he been when he had joined such an infamous pirate group to rise so high at such a young age? She knew a thing or two about joining criminal organizations and the way they took advantage of children.

Corazon’s defensiveness upon waking up had been unsurprising, and she again found herself wondering why he had saved Luffy—but then she’d seen the way he’d frozen when Luffy had entered the room, the breath catching in his throat and something in his expression. And he’d given Luffy his real name.

“Luffy,” Usopp said, pulling Robin from her thoughts, “the guy he works for owns this lab where they are experimenting on kids. He’s trying to protect that.”

Luffy huffed. “I don’t know how to explain it. I can just feel it,” he said, a hand going to his chest where the scar—from Corazon’s life-saving operation—was hidden under his winter coat. “I can feel that he’s a good person. He helped me, and I think maybe I’m supposed to help him.”

Robin exchanged glances with Sanji and Usopp. They all knew Luffy’s senses when it came to people were beyond rational explanation but somehow right. Robin in particular knew the power of Luffy’s intuition, having been saved from her own darkness because he wouldn’t let her go. If that intuition was telling him that Corazon—Trafalgar Law—was similarly important and worth helping, then there wasn’t much more to argue.

That was the Luffy Effect.

“Okay,” Robin said.

Sanji and Usopp took a moment longer but also nodded grudgingly. They might not understand it, but they’d trust their captain. (But, if need be, they’d protect him, too.)

-----

Once the door shut behind Straw Hat, Law dropped his head back against the wall and shut his eyes, suddenly exhausted. His head throbbed from the hit from Zoro’s blade, and he considered getting up to look for some painkillers in the infirmary supplies but decided it wasn’t worth the trouble. Outside the door, he could hear the Straw Hats talking, though he couldn’t make out what they were saying.

As he sat there, he couldn’t stop Straw Hat’s words from playing over and over in his mind.

“Jimbei said that you’d be in trouble with that Mingo guy for helping us, and I was worried. Were you? In trouble?”

“I fail to see how that matters.”

“But you helped me anyway. And I’m grateful! So, you’re a good guy. No matter what anyone says.”

“No, I’m really not. You should listen to Nico-ya.”

“Nope, I can feel it. Right here.”

Law had no illusions about what kind of person he was. He’d joined the Donquixote Pirates as a terminally ill ten-year-old, determined to do as much damage as he could before he died, and in many ways, he’d never outgrown that broken boy with bombs on his chest. He was the second in command to one of the biggest names in the slave trade, among other morally reprehensible operations. And though he was a doctor, he’d killed more than he’d saved, the letters tattooed on his fingers a promise as much as a warning.

Perhaps worst of all, though, he’d stopped feeling anything when he killed.

He shuddered to think what Cora-san would think of the man he’d become.

And yet, Straw Hat looked at him and—impossibly—saw something worthwhile. Felt that Law was something worthwhile. Felt it in the same place Law had felt the tug that pulled him to Marineford two years earlier.

What did it mean?

What did Law do with that?

The Seastone cuffs weighed heavily on his wrists, clanking as he opened his eyes and rubbed his face through his hands. He stared up at the ceiling, the words of his nakama from before his departure ringing through his head in the wake of Straw Hat’s declaration:

“I know you spooked when I lost my arm. But it’s not your fault.”

“You’re not this person you’ve let yourself become. They might think of you as Corazon, but to us, you’re Captain.”

Two years of pushing his crew away to protect them, of doing nothing to earn their trust or affection, yet they refused to give up on him. Like Straw Hat, they looked at him and saw something worthwhile. But how could Law accept that from them after what he’d cost them?

Despite what Violet said, Law knew he was, inside and out, Doflamingo’s creature. He knew what he saw when he looked in the mirror, the marks of claiming left on his skin and the emptiness in his eyes. After what he’d lost, Law was too tired to fight it any longer.

So why did people keep looking at him like he was anything but Doflamingo’s broken doll?

Law was startled from his reverie by a loud thud from the deck of the ship. He straightened as he heard the tone of the Straw Hats’ voices change in response to whatever had happened. Punk Hazard was unfriendly territory for them and full of more hazards than they could have known about when they anchored on the island. And most things unfriendly to the Straw Hats should be friendly to Law as Joker’s second.

Law rose and made his way to the door in an attempt to hear more clearly. He was wondering at the odds of using this distraction to search for the key to his cuffs when a familiar voice responded to the Straw Hats’ demands of who he was. Law’s stomach dropped.

“—ase commander of G-5,” Vergo was saying as Law pulled open the infirmary door.

The Straw Hats looked back at him, surprised, but Law ignored them, his eyes focused on Vergo. Vergo inclined his head when Law appeared, which was not a good sign.

“Torao, you should—”

“What are you doing here, Vergo?” Law demanded over Straw Hat.

“You two know each other?” Long Nose asked, glancing between them nervously.

“Your ally?” Black Leg asked, stance turning defensive. “But he’s a Marine.”

There was no way Vergo was here to help Law. But why had he come? Doffy hadn’t wanted him to blow his cover; that the entire reason for sending Law to Punk Hazard in the first place.

“It seems Joker was right to send me to check on your allegiance, Corazon,” Vergo said, lips twisting mockingly around the title he’d once worn himself. “I’ve been warning him for years that you were disloyal, and now I find you defecting.”

Law’s eyes narrowed, and he raised his shackled wrists. “Does this look like defecting, Vergo?” he hissed. Not that it would make a difference; Law was certain Vergo didn’t actually think he had defected. “I’m a prisoner.”

Vergo smirked. “No matter. All Joker needs to know is that I found his favorite plaything standing with the very crew whose captain he betrayed Joker to save two years ago.” His expression darkened. “And don’t forget the -san, boy.”

Law flinched at being called a plaything.

“What’s going on?” Straw Hat asked, frowning between the two. Law ignored him.

“What do you think Joker will do to your crew when he hears you betrayed him again?” Vergo went on.

Law felt the color drain from his face. “You son of a bitch.”

Straw Hat turned to look directly at Law, his expression turning concerned when he saw that Law had gone pale. “Torao—”

Turning his back on Vergo was a mistake. Law’s eyes widened as Vergo drew his bamboo stick, and, as he surged forward, coated it with haki. He swung at Straw Hat’s exposed back. Straw Hat sensed him coming, but Vergo’s speed took him off-guard; Vergo swung his bamboo, and Straw Hat tried to dodge but took enough of a blow to his side that it knocked him off-balance. He yelped in surprise as Vergo swung again, sending him over the ship’s railing into the water below.

Law inhaled sharply as Long Nose and Black Leg both cursed. Long Nose turned to Black Leg.

“Stay with Robin,” he said before taking a running leap and jumping overboard after his sinking captain.

Without missing a beat, Black Leg and Nico Robin took defensive postures in front of Law. Law looked at their backs in disbelief. Why? Why would they help him?

“I have no quarrel with you,” Vergo said to them. “Step aside. This is Family business.”

Black Leg snorted in disbelief, and Nico Robin smiled in that knowing way of hers. “Donquixote Doflamingo wouldn’t want it known he has a spy so high up in the Marines. You won’t let us go.”

Vergo straightened his glasses. “You caught me. But if you step aside, I’ll make your deaths quick.”

“I don’t think so,” Black Leg replied.

Vergo frowned, clearly as confused as Law himself. “Why would you protect him? He tried to kill you.”

So Vergo saw the fight. He must have followed Law from Dressrosa, leaving right behind him. That bastard was just looking for an excuse to cut Law down and finish what he’d started on Minion Island. Had Doffy told him to come, or was Vergo acting on his own?

“Our idiot captain seems to like him,” Black Leg replied with a shrug.

Law started as Nico Robin gave him a small smile before turning back to Vergo. “And Luffy is a very good judge of character. Even if we don’t understand his reasons at first.”

Law’s breath caught in his throat.

Vergo hefted his bamboo. “So be it.”

He charged once more, swinging his bamboo at Nico Robin. Black Leg intercepted the blow with his leg. Vergo fell back and Black Leg charged in a flurry of kicks. Vergo met him blow for blow until the two stopped in the middle of the deck, legs locked. Law winced at the sound of cracking bone. Black Leg slumped, and Law momentarily regretted hitting him with Counter Shock earlier.

“Sanji-kun!” Nico Robin called, worried.

“Where’s the key to these cuffs?” Law demanded urgently as Vergo turned back toward them. He did not want to be defenseless again with Vergo bearing down on him. And he was not going to let Vergo kill Nico Robin for protecting him. Too many people had been hurt or killed protecting Law, and he didn’t deserve any of it.

“Usopp has it,” she said, glancing toward the railing.

“Great,” Law muttered.

As Vergo approached, Nico Robin summoned giant hands, creating a wall between them and Vergo. Law knew it wouldn’t hold against Vergo’s Demon Bamboo. She winced as Vergo slammed against it, the structure shaking under his strength.

“Take Black Leg-ya and get out of here,” Law told her. Hopefully, Long Nose had rescued Straw Hat by now, and they could recover on shore. Vergo would let her go, at least temporarily; he was here because of Law, after all.

She looked at him, startled. “And leave you? You’re powerless.”

“You have no reason to protect me, Nico-ya. I tried to kill your friends. I wouldn’t have stopped, either.” She winced again as the wall trembled against Vergo’s onslaught. “We may both work for Doflamingo, but Vergo wouldn’t hesitate to kill me if given the chance. And now he has the chance.” He shook his head. “Get out of here and regroup with your crew. This is Family business.”

Nico Robin opened her mouth to reply but was interrupted by bamboo tearing through her wall. She cried out as the wall collapsed. Vergo met Law’s eye and smirked. Law gasped in pain and surprise as, in a flash, bamboo met his side and sent him flying into the ship’s railing. Slowly, he pushed himself upright and blinked against his spinning vision in time to see Vergo grab Nico Robin by the neck.

“Demon Child Nico Robin,” he said. “I should kill you, but I have a feeling Joker could make good use of you.”

“No thanks,” she choked out between gasps. “I have a crew.”

Vergo simply laughed—a sound that made Law’s skin crawl—and flung her across the deck. She slammed into Black Leg, who was struggling to balance with a fractured leg, and the pair were knocked into the far wall.

Law pushed himself to his feet. Vergo turned to look at him, the malice radiating from him palpable on the winter air. If Law had access to his powers, he would have no problem taking Vergo on. But with the Seastone shackles blocking him from his Fruit and draining his strength, he was as helpless in the face of Vergo’s rage now as he had been as a sick child—and they both knew it.

Vergo moved and suddenly Law’s back slammed into the wall, a haki-clad hand around his throat. Law’s feet dangled off the ground as he struggled to breathe. He grasped at Vergo’s wrist, struggling vainly to loosen the grip stealing his air.

“I’ve been waiting for this for a long time, Law.”

“Beating a terminally-ill child nearly to death wasn’t enough for you?” Law wheezed. It somehow seemed fitting that Vergo would finish the job he’d started on a winter island on the winter side of Punk Hazard. There was a feeling of things coming full circle as the snow fell around them.

“Once a traitor, always a traitor,” Vergo growled. “You’ve never been good enough for Doffy. Yet he brings you back and elevates you to his right hand.”

As darkness encroached on the edges of Law’s vision, it hit him that Vergo wasn’t simply holding a grudge about Cora-san’s betrayal. Since Law’s return to the Family nearly a decade earlier, Doffy had kept Law close, giving him no opportunities for betrayal. Holding Law’s crew hostage, he’d groomed Law—teaching him, training him, even fucking him. He did everything to make sure his ownership of Law was complete. Law had hated every moment of it—the only freedom he’d found was leaving Dressrosa on the Polar Tang with his crew on missions—but Vergo was jealous.

Law croaked out a disbelieving laugh at the realization.

Vergo frowned. “What’s so funny?”

“I didn’t take you for the jealous type, Vergo.”

Vergo snarled wordlessly and tightened his grip. Law gasped, feeling what little strength he had leaving him. His lungs screamed, he was light-headed, and his eyes started to close.

Would it really be so bad if Vergo killed him now? It would end nearly a decade of hell, the daily physical and emotional torture that had beaten him down to the point of pushing his nakama away…

Law’s eyes flew open at the thought of his nakama. He couldn’t die and leave them alone to face Doffy’s retribution. He couldn’t die without them knowing how much they meant to him, that even if he’d been a poor excuse for a captain, there was no greater honor than leading them.

A sudden fire burning in his chest, Law’s gaze sharpened, and he dropped his hands from Vergo’s wrist. Vergo looked at him in confusion—clearly, he’d thought Law had been about to succumb—and Law took his moment of distraction to loop the Seastone shackles over Vergo’s neck and cross his arms to tighten them with his waning strength. Vergo didn’t have a Devil Fruit so the Seastone wouldn’t affect him, but he would feel the bite of metal into his skin.

In his current position, Law didn’t have enough strength to truly strangle Vergo, but the move was enough to startle Vergo and cause pain. Reflexively, he loosened his grip, and Law gulped in the delicious, frigid air. Letting go of Law’s neck, Vergo grabbed Law’s arms.

“Let go,” he growled.

“You can’t kill me, Vergo,” Law rasped.

Vergo regarded him through those sunglasses. “Why not?” He only had to strain a bit to speak against Law’s attempted strangulation.

“Doffy has plans for my death, and we both know it.”

The surprise was evident on Vergo’s features. “How did you know—”

Law scoffed. “You don’t think I know why they call the Ope Ope no Mi the ultimate Devil Fruit? Kill me now and Doffy will have to look for the Fruit all over again if he wants that operation.”

Law never intended to go through with the operation, but it was leverage Vergo couldn’t ignore.

“Doffy always says you’re too clever for your own good,” Vergo said, lips curling in distaste. But Law knew he had the other man; Vergo was completely devoted to Doffy, and he wouldn’t do anything to risk his master’s chance of receiving immortality.

In one sudden motion, Vergo let go of Law’s arms and grabbed the chain wrapped around his neck. He pulled it free and held the chain above his head, leaving Law dangling in midair by the wrists. Law hissed in surprise.

“Now what, Vergo-san?” Law asked, sneering the oft-demanded honorific.

“I take you back to Dressrosa, a fallen traitor,” Vergo taunted. “Doffy will finally see you for what you are—nothing better than his miserable excuse for a brother. You can watch Doffy slowly destroy your crew one by one. Maybe he’ll even make you kill some of them.” He sounded amused at the prospect. “And then he’ll make you beg to perform the Perennial Youth operation—and only then will you die, doing one useful thing in your miserable life.”

Chest clenching, Law thought of his crew. Of kind Bepo. Of goofy Shachi. Of brave Penguin. Penguin’s words came back then, sharp and pointed.

“You want to pull that, maybe you should start acting like a captain again.”

No. I won’t let that happen. He was done failing them as their captain.

His eyes flew open as Vergo’s haki-coated fist connected with his stomach. The breath left his lungs—again—and he would have curled in on himself if he wasn’t hanging in midair. Vergo let go of the chain and Law dropped to the grass of the Thousand Sunny’s deck. He looked up in time to see Vergo’s bamboo coming right for his head.

“Torao!” he heard in the distance.

Then nothing.

Next chapter