#i just think it's interesting how the show is giving us some very solid ground to stand on

[unnecessarilygrandiose]

the thing that's making me insane is the fact that buck sleeping on the couch was the most explicitly romantic thing the show has done, including the will scene.

every single Moment we've gotten between those two had an element of plausible deniability. yes, it's all very romantic coded, but if someone interpreted it platonically, they would be right too. even the will reveal (which was done in Such a romantic movie cliche manner) could be interpreted platonically, because making your best friend your child's godparent isn't such a far fetched idea, right?

but the couch. the show explicitly had buck connect the couch to having girlfriends, it made a point to show us that scene in 6x01 where him putting the single seater in the middle of the living room was meant to represent that he's ready to find himself outside of romantic relationships, it showed us buck squirming uncomfortably on the couch margaret bought for him. and then he shows up at eddie's, because that's his safe space, and he passes out on the couch in three seconds flat, and later he himself is surprised at how quickly he fell asleep there. because eddie's couch (the thing that represents romance) is the place where he finds comfort and warmth after everything.

there's not very much plausible deniability in this one. there's no getting past the fact that he quite obviously had a more relaxing sleep on that couch than he had in his loft all week. there's just the fact of him waking up and for once not going through his checklist, him having an honest and heartfelt conversation with his best friend, him feeling safe, understood, and loved.

[wings-of-ink]

Hi Lunan, I was wondering about the player stats if you have time. I keep getting reckless as a go to response for things despite trying to play a more shy and timid MC and it made me curious. How do you determine what choices actions constitute which stat? I understand that the game is still in development and it may not be set in stone or other aspects of the game might be more of a priority, but I was mostly interested in picking your brain, in a general sense, if that's OK. I'm sure you're very busy so there's no rush to answer this ask, or answer it at all.

Hello, Anon!

Let's see, player stats are definitely something that will get fine-tuned as we go. And, funny that you ask, I have literally been dwelling specifically on the reckless stat this weekend.

I'll just explain how I have worked this out below. I apologize that I went a little long...I genuinely enjoy chatting about this stuff, and I gotta bit...lost in the sauce here, lol. ^_^

For the MC's personality and actions/reactions and some of their speech patterns, I have 4 main stats. These are on a scale with their opposing characteristics, so 8 total. There's a 5th stat that tracks how your MC flirts.

Reserved vs Outgoing

Gentle vs Assertive

Serious vs Playful

Reckless vs Cautious

Bold Flirting vs Shy Flirting

The MC starts with scores directly in the middle for all of these (50 on a scale of 100); however, I decided not to code for much in the way of "middle ground" behavior. This saves me tons of coding and tons of agonizing about what a middle-of-the-road response would be. So, if your MC's score is above "49" they default to the characteristic listed first, but lower than that, they default to the one listed second.

The only score that is treated differently is the one for flirting. To default to bold, the score needs to be below 40, so the character must show a fairly direct preference for boldness in this area. I did this since shyness is a fairly "safe" bet for this type of characteristic.

Number 4 does not come into play very often - yet. As things heat up, some actions that the player does not get to choose will be determined by their score in this stat. Currently, there are only a few options to choose what influences this score. It is possible to barely have any score for this stat one way or another. I'm going to be increasing the influence of this and probably adding some new ways to get points for this as I do some editing.

As for how I determine if something raises or lowers a stat in general, I try to use my best judgment to determine motivation when I design the choices that influence stats. To me, being reckless or cautious could be either intentional or not. I think the first time this stat comes into play is in Chapter 1 when MC decides if they are going to try to steal the honeycakes at the beginning. Trying to snatch one gives an increase to recklessness since it could be a naughty or impulsive decision.

I also wanted 1, 4, and 5 to be independent of one another since someone could be more outgoing but very timid when they flirt and cautious when they act. Outgoing/Reserved is another that needs some adjusting as well and will be tweaked in the future.

The others are more straightforward. If an action or speech choice is more kind/soft/mild/considerate, I label it "gentle." If it is more direct or even a bit aggressive, I label it "assertive." I kinda just have to use my own interpretation as best I can, and I know that to other people some of my options will feel flipped (occupational hazard, lol).

I have liked this system for the most part. It took a lot of working out when I got started. I was just learning so it was easily a solid week of me just hammering out what I understood and what worked. I have learned so much since then. I knew I wanted to keep things paired down to ease my own burden. Lots of stats can be so much fun in a game, but I just do not want to get too lost in it, so I keep my focus narrow.

Hope that helps, Nony! If you have follow-up questions, please feel free to let me know! ^_^

A side note, while we are on the subject...

For my next IF, I may play with a different way to set the MC personality. I may just have players pick at the beginning from either specific stats or like 4 or 5 MC archetypes. The wheels are still turning on this though, nothing is set!

[sirfrogsworth]

Review of Blue Eye Samurai on Netflix

There are some spoiler-ish things below, but I think most of it is in the trailer, so I don't think I will ruin anything. I'll warn you during the most spoilery section, though the show makes the "twist" pretty obvious from the beginning.

Premise

Blue Eye Samurai is a Kill Bill-style revenge tale that takes place in 17th century Japan. The samurai is half white/half Japanese. The show states that no white folks were allowed in the country back then, so the samurai tries to conceal blue eyes with some sweet BluBlocker™ orange glasses. The Samurai is displeased to have white heritage and decides to try and kill all the "white devils" hiding in Japan.

Will some reactionaries complain there is a show all about someone trying to murder white people? I have no idea. But they're all bad white people, so I'm hoping it won't become a thing.

My Hot Takes

A few episodes meandered a bit, but I enjoyed the series as a whole quite a bit. If nothing else, the sword fights were epic and bloody. I would have watched it for that alone. And there is some gorgeous art direction where they really take advantage of the 2D styled, 3D animation. Plus, Japan is just really pretty. There is also a puppet show that was brilliantly mixed in with the story and the way they animated it was next level awesome.

They fell into cliche a few times. I think they were trying to do homages and tributes but ended up in Derivative Land and some of them felt a bit cringe.

They used "Battle Without Honor Or Humanity" which is that rousing instrumental song from Kill Bill and it was way too on the nose. Like, yes, this show is obviously a 1600s version of Kill Bill, but you're not supposed to make it that obvious.

Also, there was a Metallica song that equally made me roll my eyes and think, "That is badass" so I give them a pass on that one.

And there were a few sections where it felt like you were watching someone else play a video game. I don't know how else to describe it. As if the narrative melted away and suddenly a bunch of Prince of Persia obstacles appeared.

That said, the story was enjoyable, the actors were great, the characters were interesting, the animation was solid, and the fight choreography was top notch.

The nice thing about animation is you don't have to do any jump cuts during the action, so you get to really *see* the fights develop. Thankfully they didn't make use of a lot of impossible-in-real-life camera moves, so it all felt very grounded. As if these fights could actually be filmed in live-action. I suspect they may have even used motion capture or closely adhered to reference footage. Most of the non-fantastical choreography felt like something a stunt performer could actually do. They even had some legit Japanese samurai-style sword fighting moves before it got to the "John Wick with a katana" part of the show.

Back in the day, samurai duels were more akin to jousting than fencing and usually only lasted one or two moves. It can be pretty exciting as long as you build tension and anticipation. But if every sword fight in the show was like that, it would probably get boring. But it was still nice to see it toward the beginning.

So the quality was a bit roller coaster-y at times, but I think it was a solid first season. And I am really hopeful they get a chance to smooth things out in a second. But it is Netflix, soooooo...

As far as content warnings, there is a lot of blood and sex and nudity. Women are very subjegated and some of those depictions are rough. There are some brutal torture scenes. And I think there is implied rape, but it isn't made super clear.

The nudity was surprisingly balanced which felt refreshing. So get ready for boobies and floppy cartoon peens. All the genitals get screen time.

Quick aside about erotic scenes...

There has been recent discourse about nudity and sexy time in media. My biggest issue has always been that men's bodies are rarely shown aside from the patoot. It is never balanced and I always felt uncomfortable with that arrangement. I know movies are a bit stuck because the MPAA has decided dicks in a sexual context are an automatic NC-17. But even in newer HBO-type content where they do show penises, they are usually prosthetics. Hyper real fake dicks on top of real dicks that probably cost tens of thousands of dollars to develop and apply.

Like, the folks with boobs don't get expensive prosthetics. Only the most famous actresses can opt for a body double. For years, if an actress wasn't willing to get naked they would just say, "Well, I guess we'll just have to find another actress."

And now if a guy doesn't want to get naked, apparently the response is, "Don't worry, we'll raise Stan Winston from the dead so he can make you a perfect megadick."

Women are usually asked to do the brunt of the nudity and I have long felt that wasn't fair and it was exploitative whether intentional or not.

I just think if you are going to ask actors to be vulnerable, everyone should do it or no one should do it.

I also think we need to see more normal non-porn genitals. Like, you can't brag about your progressive all-inclusive nudity if you slap a giant fake wang on every time.

/end tangent

And now, the spoilery part...

The big twist, which is really only a big twist for a character in the show and not the audience, is that the Blue Eye Samurai was born a girl. To avoid capture and death they essentially hid in a different gender identity. And I'm trying to decide if this is a trans story or not.

Sometimes it felt like the show was bluntly saying, "She's a girl. See, she has boobs and no penis. And we make a big deal about her getting caught naked. It's like Mulan!"

But then the show kinda/sorta implies that while identifying as a man was a tactic at first, the Blue Eye Samurai came to feel much more comfortable as a man most of the time and only revealed their feminine attributes to a select few. They also had a binding scene which felt like intentional trans imagery.

Since there wasn't the same concept of trans-ness in 1600s Japan as we understand it in modern times, I'm having trouble determining if this is just an homage to Mulan that wasn't thought very deeply about, or if this is allegory exploring a trans identity.

It is unclear if the identity was chosen purely out of necessity or if there was more to it.

Was it like... they tried on a coat because it was cold, but then they really liked how it fit and made it an essential part of their wardrobe?

Or was it just pure pragmatism? If they don't wear the coat they will die from exposure.

I'm worried they wanted to stay close to that line where they could say it wasn't a trans story if that ended up being more convenient. I don't know. I'm fine with allegory and I really enjoyed how they did it with Nimona, but this felt more deliberately ambiguous and it frustrated me a bit. It would be nice if we could just have blatant trans stories that didn't need to hide in ambiguity to avoid controversy. But maybe there were more obvious things I missed and my confusion is unwarranted.

I also think an argument could be made for ol' Blue Eye being genderfluid. Actually genderfluid would make a lot of sense. Their masculine side is the stoic warrior and their feminine side is their vulnerability, love, and humanity—reserved only for those most trusted. And when the two blend and they are a warrior woman they get super horny. So the entire spectrum is there.

I'm sure there will be a long complicated video essay analyzing this gender dynamic.

/end of spoilery section

In any case, I think if you liked Kill Bill, this might be a show that interests you. It has much less cultural appropriation and blatant stereotyping. No Pussy Wagon, but there is a cool horse. And they did use an all East Asian voice cast, so that representation was cool. And the co-showrunner was Japanese, and I think that influence definitely made a difference.

I give Blue Eye Samurai 7.5 Froggies out of 10.

[cinnibunbear]

The New Update

First of all, I want to say I think the quantity of stuff they're adding is fine, especially since the updates are coming smaller and more frequently. HOWEVER, the stuff in the update, specifically the pale forest one, is boring.

First of all, looking at the content by itself that I like: the wood is good, the vines are fine, and the carpet is ok. I've always liked the concept of white wood, so it's great that we're getting that, and I imagine other people will really like the wall thing that the pale garden carpet does. I like the creaking; it's a really interesting concept and some very cool design. I've heard it said that the spawning functions with the heart and everything is useless in single player, but I think the fact that you can spawn-proof an area of the creaking is great for if someone wanted to build a house there! Plus, outside of single player, the pranks are kinda nice, if not really top-Notch. I also like that there'll be ambient noises during the night. That's cool.

Now for the content that I don't like (that we've heard of so far): the leaves, the grass and the ambience. The fact that the leaves and grass are so similar in colour, and that that colour is GREY honestly sucks, especially since the wood is already grey. I think the biome would look interesting and actually kind of spooky if they made either of these white, or added some much darker tones to any of the new blocks/textures, but as of right now they haven't, and it's boring. The grass especially. It's like a worse version of the mountain grass, which in fact has its own sort of charm (tho imo it is (was) the most boring). The ambience overall I kind of already adressed. This is going a little into what has been said by the presenters, but the pale gardens being 'eerily quiet' will likely go unnoticed, since there's no sound everywhere else half the time. I think the only time the player would notice is if music is playing and it fades out as the enter the pale gardens. That would be cool, especially if it picked up again when they left. But otherwise, it's just kind of this boring greyscale biome with no contrast.

Now going onto how the update contradicts the words of the presenters: the presenters say that it will be 'eerily quiet' (adressed earlier), and that it will be 'spooky', as well as using other words to the same effect. They also showed some reference pictures that they used as inspiration for this biome.

The weeping willows, very pretty, very mystical.

Spanish moss, look how cool!

Now look at the result:

Now, I do want to point out that they evidently didn't want the trees to actually be willow trees for some reason "this gives this drapy feeling without being willow trees", but I feel like the biome could have really benefitted from them just using the shape of willow trees. Instead of looking spooky but pretty, ominous but mystical, the tree shape they've opted for is the dark oak, which is robust and towering. They've given the biome a feeling of being a little packed in, a little claustrophobia, with hardly any frills. Of course, there are some. Let's talk about those. The new vines and moss blocks are far more grey against the already grey grass, which gives the biome an extra element of complete dullness as the new elements look the least visually appealling, which they evidently are meant to be (the presenter describes them as 'pretty' in the day time). What I'm looking right now is a shy, bland biome. There is hardly any personality other than that it doesn't want to be looked at. There is no whimsy, because everything is in solid, clumped together shapes. There is no eeriness because everything blends together with their colours so easily. This biome needs colour, and it needs more shape. For example, the dark oak forest has peonies that help to bring in both colour and shape variation from the ground level, and the giant spruce forests have boulders that complement the rich colours of the rest of the ground. The pale garden has flat grey carpet on the flat grey floor. This is boring! And I'm mad about it!

I'm aware that this biome will likely undergo some development before its official release, so I really, really hope that the Mojang team also sees these issues and does something about them, because a biome called The Pale Gardens deserves more than a monotone FOREST with the most boring greenish-grey vines you will ever see. I want to be excited about this biome, but as of right now I think that if I were to see this biome in game I would only ever go in to get wood and saplings on the outskirts before scurrying away from this greyscale horror of a biome as quickly as I can.

[dicenote]

DN Fic Recs!!

Aight, I think the Death Note fandom could use some positivity. And I wanna be positive :D! So here is a list of fics with reviews, aka a thinly-veiled excuse to wildly ramble about brilliant fics made by incredibly talented people. A lot of these works inspire me, so I want to share them with others! If these fics sound interesting to you, I highly recommend that you check them out and give the authors lots of love :D

Anyway, here we go!

Fallout by Zaney HacknSlash Rating: M (FFN) Ships: (Not the main focus) eventual Matsu x Sayu, eventual Ide x OC, background Aizawa x Eriko, (kinda) Mogi x Misa

Dude. Duuuuude. If you want to see an action-packed, angst-filled joyride of a fic featuring the Task Force after Kira, this is it. This is a 10 year old rewrite of the original version of the fic, but it has a lot of the old fandom charm left over from the 2008 original. The plot is centered on the guilt Matsuda feels after shooting Light, and what he has to do when a mysterious enemy forces him to confront that guilt.

I like how the author gives us insight into every major character in the story. The flipping perspectives keep the story grounded in some places, but make it chaotic when it needs to be. Most importantly, I like how we see, inside and out, how tight-knit the Task Force has become after everything they've gone through. I also enjoy how each of the Task Force members have their own dilemmas and struggles that pay off by the end, all to do with loyalty. Overall, Fallout is an epic story with action, suspense, and plenty of original characters that don't overstay their welcome.

True Successor by @mapsareforbraindeads Rating: M (AO3) Ships: Beyond x Light, BeyondTsuda

I think this was the first fic that really helped me get the appeal of Beyond Birthday, and that's a feat all on its own. Here, Vari takes the original story of Death Note and flips it on its head with an idea that sounds like "crack treated seriously" on paper: What if L was dead before the events of the story? What if, instead, he were replaced by someone looking to, "realize what [L] could not"?

The portrayal of Beyond's mental state throughout is simply breathtaking. One standout (not-too-spoilery) example happens when Ukita dies as in canon. Vari does an incredible job of showing Beyond's frantic thoughts to the point where this part is actually stressful to read. I really wish I could go into more detail about how Beyond is portrayed, but it's really worth reading for yourself. Like I said, this fic helped me understand why people like B's story so much.

Even if you've never read the LABB book (I haven't yet), True Successor is an utterly fantastic work that you should check out.

Weakness by Airmid Rating: M (AO3) Ship: LawTsuda

I think I've talked about this one before, but it's worth talking about again. I think of this as "the" LawTsuda fanfic for a couple reasons, most notably in that it really makes the pairing work in a setting that's close to canon. I really adore the way Airmid characterizes L and Matsuda in this fic and immediately contrasts them from each other. The events of Weakness take place before L's death in canon, and the story asks some simple questions: What would have happened if L let himself confide in someone before he died? And what if that person was Matsuda?

I've read some of Airmid's other, longer, works, and while I enjoyed Happiness and Until the End, Weakness stands out to me because it feels a lot "tighter", if that makes sense. Using the bells from the anime, we get this very solid through-line of L secretly worrying and preparing for the inevitable... And then Matsuda comes in. This fic in particular continues to be a huge inspiration for a fic I'm writing, especially for the portrayal of Matsuda as equally earnest and impulsive.

Pretty much anything by Tallulah

Okay, I wish I could pick just one to talk about here. From the short and devastating Axioms to the very long and devastating Broken Hallelujahs, all of Tallulah's works—the smutty and the soul-crushing—have intriguing worlds and deep, dark characters. Just make sure you mind the tags before diving in, these ones get dark. As a MatsuIde fan, I've got to give a shout-out to Saviour. It took a while for me to "get" the style of the fic, but in the end I really loved the tone. The way Tallulah depicts the dissociation and trauma of these characters feels incredibly real, and when the fic drops its unique formatting to symbolize the characters "snapping out of it", you feel it. Broken Hallelujahs has a similar vibe, but its story has more fast-paced action. Ooh, and The End of Days is an incredibly solid, more "canon-compliant", work featuring Aizawa x Ide x Matsuda, a guilty pleasure ship for me.

Twisted Fate by TwilightMaster15 Rating: M (AO3) Ships: None tagged so far, background LawLight

If you've been in the DN fanfic scene, I'm sure you've seen (or maybe read) a "What if L was Kira?" fic. Well, here's a new one. What if Aizawa was Kira?

This is another fic that takes what could be a "crack" scenario and executes it super super well. Rather than getting a childish Kira who calls himself "God of the New World", we have Aizawa, who has become disillusioned by the justice system he works in. The fic does a really good job in setting up Aizawa's relationships, good and bad, with the other characters, as well as showing the very different choices Aizawa!Kira makes versus Canon!Light. Speaking of Light, his motivations and role in the story are very well-done. His inclusion feels incredibly natural, and I can't wait to see what he and L do next.

Kira's Guide to the Munchies by @palant1r Rating: T (AO3) Ship: MatsuLight

I've gotta end this list with a funny one, alright? This fic is an absolutely delightful treat. It's like digging into a nice, warm brownie... Oh, wait.

See, Palant1r doesn't just characterize Matsuda and Light, more like dissects these characters' essences, their weaknesses and fears and flaws, and lays them bare for the reader to see. And yes, this is also true for when Matsuda and Light are tripping fucking balls. This fic is so very silly, but we also get to see the way these characters think, even if their faculties are hindered by quite a bit of weed. A character study wrapped in a goofy concept, Kira's Guide to the Munchies is a ride that you just have to read to believe. Seriously. I was thinking about quoting lines here, but it works better when you don't know what's coming next.

[nualaofthefaerie]

Hello!! I come with questions for Madame Nuala President 🎤✨??

So I can see how Sandflower could be established since it has a solid foundation on canon BUT what about Immortalflower? Or Immortal Sandflower? ( hope I’m not mixing ships names! I mean Hob x Nuala x Dream)

Do you have any Headcanons as to how those ships come to be? I would be interested in knowing more about them!

Thank you 🖤

You are so not mixing them, dear. It is ImmortalSandFlower, ISF for short.

We have come to it! The idiots at the end of the road. My creme de la creme of polycules.

Okay, so before Miss Madam President gets too excited, this post will be structured in the following way *puts my big girl glasses on*:

Why do I think ISF works so much more for me than any other trio?

My personal headcanons for them

Note to the people: I too have some Dreamling inclinations, I just love WOMEN damn it. Also, she is not my self-insert (that too has been in my inbox). I too want to be a man who is not an idiot and WILL LOVE miss Nuala like she has never been loved before. She is my wife, my girlfriend, my muse. I have no interest in those men. I am in love with her. Thank you for coming to my Ted Talk.

ALRIGHT! It's all under the flower line so I don't do the thing where I clog the tag.

Why ISF works so much more for me than any other trio?

In the short of it - they have such compatible personalities. It's insane. I have a picture I send to my friends every time I try to explain Morpheus - Hob - Nuala.

This is how they exist in my head. When they are in couples, their dynamics LARGELY differ, but together, they share the emotional burden of each other - Moon/Star/Sun dynamic. Morpheus is the tired moon, Hob is the bright star, and Nuala is the warm sun, and together they make the whole sky.

It's a very warm triangle, and to me, they are a real love triangle because each loves the other and they stand alone as couples. When they are a polycule, their power dynamics also equal out if that makes sense. Morpheus does not necessarily hold more power over them anymore, so I like that about it as well.

To illustrate their couple dynamics better, I will give examples. I love to give these examples so people see how versatile they are. (happy screaming).

Dreamling

I will not go into details, but my quintessential Dreamling is 1789 Dreamling.

I think this is the era that really summarizes their dynamic quite well - Morpheus doesn't really force himself on Robert but still holds a considerable amount of power that could equate to him having influence over Robert's life decisions. Robert on the other hand is also very independent, he respects Morpheus, but is not afraid of him anymore. So I enjoy 1789 Dreamling a lot.

2. Sandflower

I won't use the comics to explain what is THE Sandflower dynamic because the real summarized Sandflower dynamic is them:

I can swear this on my soul, when Nuala and Morpheus begin to act like Elizabeth and Darcy in the show, remember, you heard it here first. Their opposite views on the world, their stubborness, the way he treats her in canon as if she is no more but a mere inconvinience but in reality he constantly does things to protect her, is very Darcy and Elizabeth of them. And as I have always said, Nuala has always stood her ground and protected who she is and where she came from.

3. Immortalflower

There is one perfect media that encapsulates Hob x Nuala's relationship SO good that there is no reason to explain further to people because they usually get it from the get go.

THEM. Hob and Nuala have THEE Eugene and Rapunzel dynamic. Consider the fact Nuala has never been to the Waking world, she knows nothing about it and Hob is this Immortal man that has been to every corner of the planet already. Her enthusiasm about everything she doesn't know about sparks back his love of everything he does know. So they are very gentle, loving, fluffy, a bit silly, goofy.

Separated, each couple can stand on its own and be entertaining and complex, while being something completely new and interesting when together, which is VERY rare to me. So they compel me TERRIBLY.

ONTO HEADCANNONS

I have DOMESTIC headcannons the most. If anyone wants spicy HC, you'll have to ask separately. But just so we know, we do offer the Spicy version of the menu.

SO! This is based on the concept of Retired!Morpheus:

The three of them live together in the inn

Morpheus is either a children's book author or a librarian

Hob owns the Inn and does his little Professor gig to the side

Nuala transforms a part of the Inn into a beautiful patissiere, full of pink mugs and live plants and fresh bread, pasteries and wonderful unique blends of teas she learned from her fairy home

They play a board game together once a week

Read together on the couch every night

Saturdays are for movies (Nuala adores animation and Morpheus doesn't understand the appeal of cinema entirely)

When they do go on dates, they usually let Nuala pick where she wants to go because it's her enthusiasm about seeing something new that is more precious to the good old Dreamling who has seen all there is to see from Earth than being on a date per se

Hob cooks, always

Morpheus is a wine mom

Nuala runs around the kitchen to entertain more than to help at any capacity, but she has a talent for vegeterian dishes, but Hob is not a big fan, but they compromise, they compromise

Each of them kind of has their own room, but also they always end up sleeping together in someone else's room.

My hc are all primarily domestic, or maybe my mood is like that right now.

I will now do something very shameless and admit I have already written an ISF one-shot. It's called "Set Me Free" and it's a Sea AU - Dreamling Pirates and Mermaid Nuala. It's one of my favourite things I have written and it's quite fun short story!

I hope my answer was interesting! If there is any other questions, inquires or suggestions or thoughts, my Asks and DMs are always open!

Love,

Li 🪷

[the--highlanders]

thoughts on the star beast!! under a cut bc spoilers

first of all just. as someone who really did not vibe with the chibnall era at all. dear god it feels good to be excited about doctor who again

it was FUN. it was great bouncy silly charming fun and that is exactly what the show needed at this point I think. I can really imagine kids tomorrow running around pretending to be the meep

also the meep was great and I'm SO glad it was practical effects, it looked so good

setting aside the doctor-donna plotline, the callbacks to the rtd era were fairly low-key (resonating concrete!) and fitted in with the episode but they were fun if they meant something to you

on the other hand the glass divider between the doctor and donna and him raging at having to kill her really felt like a kind of. reverse of ten and wilf and the radiation chamber. which HURT. ten raging over having to save wilf vs not-ten raging over not being able to save donna.

rose was lovely!! I really hope we get some more substantial stuff with her, I think she'd be a great companion

seeing unit again was fun, and I really liked shirley actually!! I hope she's a recurring character, I thought she worked well with the doctor and her gadget-y wheelchair was fun

also kate sorting out a place for wilf to live 😭😭😭😭😭😭

I did think the solution to donna being able to keep her memories was pretty creative, and the acknowledgement of the doctor being outside the gender binary made me yell

that being said I really didn't like the line about a 'male-presenting time lord never thinking of [letting go of power]. I feel like that was rtd trying to be too hip-with-the-kids progressive, which like. obviously I want the show to be progressive!!! but it's the sort of thing I hate

like, first of all, we've just established that the doctor is more or less nonbinary - and the show has been very obviously referencing time lord society as genderless since like, twelve's era. time lords feel that they are /genetically/ superior - it's a species thing, not a gender thing. a 'male' /or/ 'female' time lord is going to have a tough time giving up power. and this felt especially incongruous when we've just had thirteen, a doctor who used her white privilege to hand the master over to the nazis. doesn't seem like she was very interested in giving up her power there.

imo one of the doctor's whole character tensions across the whole show is them trying to break away from time lord superiority, and again that's species-based, not gender based. and it was literally established in journey's end that the doctordonna could think of things the doctor couldn't because of her human part! there was already a solid logical grounding for donna and rose to give up their time lord powers /because they were still part human/

there were a few thematic things I would have liked the episode to dwell on a bit more, like the whole cute-appearing vs frightening-appearing thing with the meep and the wrarth warriors, and how appearances are sometimes deceiving; or the stuff with the doctor and gender; or even just rose's character as a whole

that being said, this was an episode with an awful lot to do, and also an episode which was there to be a fun romp. it HAD to be a romp. so from a sort of metatextual point of view I can understand and forgive

overall I really liked it!! it really recaptured the magic of doctor who for me after so long not feeling it and I think it's going to do a good job of its most important task, which is getting the show afloat again in terms of casual viewers.

also SO glad they've gone back to a confidential-style program, unleashed was so fun

[reflections-in-a-critical-eye]

Hello! Any thoughts about the info we got about Jungkook’s album? The name? Album art? Concept pics? Seven and 3D being included?

Hello! To be honest, I haven't said anything each time something new was announced because it didn't really pick my interest in a way that made me rush here to share my thoughts.

I think it's because it doesn't intrigue me and that might just be because of personal taste. It's not because the concept would lack substance or something meaningful. Perhaps it's not really something I might be interested in so far.

The color scheme is interesting for an album, I'll give him that. I did think the schedule program looked like a supposed fancy menu which I don't know if it was the intended desire. The font design and the colors do make me think of Kingsman and this sort of manufactured elegance.

As to the concept photos, I see a coherent vision that connects multiple facets of Jungkook. It's an idea that I like, in theory. SHINE shows his public persona, the one in front of the cameras, the BTS singer/solo artist; SOLID is hinting at things in his life that might keep him grounded, something that balances the shine; and lastly SUBSTANCE, an inner self, values, what is Jungkook underneath all and what is important for him. Having it all laid out like that, it sounds like the premise of something that might turn out really good. Jungkook played around with a similar hybrid concept for My Time, paired with a very good performance and stage production. At that time, it made me excited for what else he is capable of doing if only he gets the chance. I'm still waiting for that.

His first two releases as a soloist, both collabs, have been a letdown for me in terms of musical production, repetitiveness of themes, and a lack of actual commitment. PPTM wrote a bit about 3D and how the song turns sex into something almost clinical and how there's an attempt at trying to look like a player and ultimately failing. That made me think about how Jungkook started his solo career by using songs written by white men in their 30s or 40s who are also trying to emulate players, but they're not and it's somehow obvious. You either have it or you look ridiculous and people clock you. Not only that, there's a stark difference between the sexual tone of the songs which are both explicit (with or without using the word fuck) and the way in which Jungkook talks about them in promotional content. He tends to use words like romantic, the person you love, with whom you want to be close to, instead of actually telling it like it is. He sings the lyrics, but he won't use the accurate language when discussing the song. He is sanitizing them. His brief explanation about how the explicit version is not dirty was a good step in the right direction, but not enough. If he wants to sing about sex, perfect. But he should fully embrace it, otherwise it is just a way in which he merely plays a role. Is that the intention? For two songs?

It's difficult not to consider them as setting the tone for his album. It is music he has put out and which will be on the actual album. It's not a blip on a radar or something like Savage Love that gets done and then no one will think about it in 2 weeks.

Seven and 3D do say some things about him, but not enough to consider him interesting enough as a solo artist. If he brances out and puts out a more thematically diverse album or something conceptual or one that is cohesive because it centers around themes about him or he's gonna choose a storytelling path, then it would make me truly want to give it a chance.

[lasi-nariyoyoreads]

Could you do reading on Kai and Kyungsoo relationship please. Thank you <3

Kai and Kyungsoo's relationship according to tarots

Hi anon! It was on my to-do list, so here it is! It was a fun reading, they must've been pretty young when they met, especially Kai :')

Disclaimer:

My readings are made for fun and you should read them for fun too. So don't take them seriously.

Their relationship

7 of wands, rev 4 of cups, rev 5 of swords

It's a relationship that didn't begin on a good note.

I think there was some sort of evolution, getting to know the other better, sharing experiences etc.

It was a process to build trust in each other, so I assume that at first they might've been a bit wary of each other.

One of them felt like they were left out or ignored.

At one point they solved their problems although I don't think there was a real issue like them arguing about something, but it was more like having a prejudice or a preconception that was later proved wrong naturally just by spending time together.

I have the impression Kai was a bit immature when they met and he couldn’t understand Kyungsoo at all.

But at some point they found a common ground and started to work on their relationship.

I think there’s appreciation and respect in both parties and a willingness to preserve their union.

If you’re willing to protect a relationship, it means there’s a lot of affection and interest for each other.

It's possible one of them became protective, like a support whenever the other feels lost.

I truly feel that they really developed a nice and comfy union.

What Kai thinks

rev the fool, rev the temperance, king of pentacles

He thinks Kyungsoo is mysterious and hard to understand.

It’s possible at first he wasn’t even that interested in knowing him more and it’s possible he had a bad impression of him

He probably was unable to read him and got contradicting signals, like idk Kyungsoo might've seem very cold, but then he was willing to give him a hand or to lend him stuff, so he might’ve wondered for a good chunk of time if Kyungsoo hated him or not.

It’s kinda similar to what I found for Chanyeol, but he tried to approach Kyungsoo and his introverted aura was interesting for him, while Kai was extremely intimidated, so it might’ve taken him longer to get used to him.

Chanyeol got King of Wands in his reading while Kai gets king of Pentacles. Kyungsoo is indeed a king lmao

Jokes aside, king of pentacles shows that at some point Kai got to know Kyungsoo better and that he realized that behind his cold aura there is a very kind and reliable person, mature, successful, loyal, encouraging.

Pretty much like Chanyeol, he also recognizes Kyungsoo’s solidity, his hardworking persona and his sweet heart.

From this it seems like Kyungsoo is a pretty coherent person and always himself, no matter who he’s dealing with. It would be fun to do a reading with another member and see if I get again similar vibes lmao

What Kyungsoo thinks

rev 3 of swords, rev the wheel, rev 5 of wands

I feel Kyungsoo might’ve felt Kai’s “fear” of him and probably got a bit hurt because of that.

Probably he wanted to be friends from the first moment they met, but Kai was like “omg does he hate me?”, so he might’ve felt extremely frustrated.

He might’ve wondered why he was so intimidated by him even though he never did anything wrong.

At some point they managed to solve their issues, as I said. Kai finally understood Kyungsoo better.

Or simply Jongin became more mature.

I’m not sure if Kyungsoo fully got over the initial stage of their relationship, he might have those 3am moments when you wake up and remember what you did when you were 15yo and he probably remembers how awkward they were.

Probably there were pretty embarrassing moments for him, who knows if any of the other trainees teased them or something like that.

But now they definitely reached an equilibrium, they have a peaceful relationship.

[ellieellieoxenfree]

4, 17, 36

i have been sitting on this one! finally getting around to it.

4. Do you have any OCs? Do you have a story for them?

yes! across a few different fandoms. the most notable/fleshed out i would say are:

beth (the flash tv): ah, beth. earth-2's harry wells' executive assistant, modeled after every lovely middle-aged administrative employee i have worked with. i loved beth. she, like all real executive or administrative assistants, is the real brains of the operation and the one who keeps the wheels on the bus; she knows all, remembers all, and does not give a hot fuck about senior leadership being petty, bickering, useless assholes because she knows that if she so much as hinted at leaving, the walls would start shaking and the foundation would collapse. she was kind of a mom figure to my homie hartley during his acclimation to earth-2 -- very grounding, sweet, and non-judgmental. she is widowed, but has two adult kids, one of whom she has drafted into white-collar crime via identity fraud (for a good cause). she bakes, she tours vineyards on weekends, and she has an unerring ear for gossip and when to spill which salacious details. (there are certain secrets beth will take to her grave, of course; she knows the value of being discreet and there is no torture on earth that will get her to share certain things.) her favorite revenge when her boss is being a twit is to make him the world's worst coffee and feign complete ignorance about it. this is the only way she will express her displeasure.

oat and non (That Fucking Show): minor family bodyguards assigned to protect MVP; oat specifically is a second-generation bodyguard and his father worked closely with gun. he's the older of the two, more solid and practical, a born leader. non is younger, more religious, and less settled -- he looks up to oat more for guidance. they both have seen Some Shit, and their loyalty is to the REAL minor family and not the usurper korn installed, although they both have enough self-preservation skills to know that maintaining outward loyalties to the institution is going to serve them well in the long run.

(name redacted because he hasn't been officially introduced yet but hopefully soon) (kiseki: dear to me): i have a gestating kiseki wip that i want to use to introduce a major figure from chen yi's past. i can't say a lot about him yet, though some people know a bit more about him, but he's been really fun to play with in terms of how he affected chen yi's life and how his arc continues to have ramifications in the present day. also, he's not a love interest, just to be clear. none of that. i want to formally introduce him soon :(

17. Past or present tense? Why?

i switch depending on my mood and depending on the vibe of the fic. present tense can create more of an immediacy/urgency, whereas past tense is generally easier to wrangle grammatically. it's not always true, but present tense can be more of a smoothly rolling rhythm for me, whereas past tense i think is easier to use for rapid-fire/staccato pacing.

36. How do you come up with fic titles? What's the one you're most proud of?

ima be real chief like 95% of those puppies are ripped from the split enz lyrics handbook. i cannot claim to be above the time-honored, time-tested tradition of song lyrics as titles. we all did it in the dark ages; we all do it now. i embrace my cringe life.

the one i like the best, despite the fact that i never fucking use its full name when referencing it, is 'by your response to danger it is easy to tell how you have lived and what has been done to you,' from my girl j holz. the full quote:

punches me right in the goddamn throat every time. i fucking love j holz more than anybody on the planet except ars. this is the quote that most sums up how i pick fictional faves.

[tutuandscoot]

I have a query about lifts that would benefit from your experience as a dancer. I’m interested in the mechanics - Scott doesn’t seem very big to me and yet lifts Tessa with ease and grace. So if sheer muscle power is not the secret to lifting another human while travelling at speed on a thin blade on ice, what is?! I’m interested in things like the role of the partner for eg, Queen T is so strong she holds up much of her own weight, plus also how their bodies work together to make it happen?. And which body parts do all the work? S has a solid neck and shoulders, a core to die for and a (well loved) sturdy behind, all of which would help, but his arms aren’t that big. Same with many other male skaters. When I think of big arms in an athlete I guess I picture AFL/ NRL blokes whose arms are massive. Next to them, S would look like a ballerina (which, sigh. He is). So how do these relatively small skaters do it?

⭐️LONG POST AHEAD⭐️

Ohh what an interesting question!

I won’t go too much in-depth on this ask bc I have a post I’ve been working on forever about lifts that I’m finally ready to release soon.

So I’ll cover a few things.

The no. one thing with lifts is form. Correct technique. My very first pas de deux (duet) class, our teacher (who was not a small man) lay on the floor and had about 10 of us- boys and girls, try to lift him. The first time he made himself really heavy, no control in his limbs, relaxed core- he didn’t hold himself. The second time, he held himself, core, limbs, made himself lighter just through form. The first time it was impossible to lift him, the next time probably 3 of us could of. So the first thing we learned is as the girl you have to hold yourself- make yourself light, and that makes it much easier for the man to lift you.

So form is the first thing. That goes for both of them. Scott is always so well balanced on his skates- whether that’s a parallel base or turned out base. He lifts from his legs:

-not by bending at his back. That makes it easier on his upper body, using the power muscles like his quads and beautiful tushie glutes for that explosive action is guiding her upwards, along with T clearly being very aerodynamic, he is not holding the weight of her purely with his arms. I haven’t really heard him talk about it but I know he had some back issues kinda around 2014. (For a couple or years before/after this time). Since I don’t know anything else I don’t want assume false facts, it may be from lift form or something else (lord knows I could give you a thousand stories about back issues), but it does go to show how much goes into correct technique and proper strength training (I believe this all came from their trainer in the comeback). Tessa meanwhile has to make herself light, and that comes through strength- especially core strength, all that Pilaties training to keep her core so strong while having exquisite lines though her limbs. It also helps if she is good at launching herself off the ground- aka jumping, which I assume she is. I don’t mean figure skating jumping, but just jumping off the ground. This helps Scott massively when he goes to lift her is that she is able to launch herself off the ice. She suspends herself in the air so he can then easily manipulate her. This is the case for some lifts but not all depending on the mechanics of it.

I don’t want this to be confused with simply T jumping into a lift and Scott catching. That would not result in the flow they have. This is where another really important factor comes in which is coordination. In their book they talk about creating more difficult lifts and getting them to ‘pop’. What this refers to is them having the right momentum, coordination, skating action- all those physics actions coming together to make the lift happen- this is what makes all their lifts so smooth and effortless. It’s not quite the same action but think a plane lifting off. It requires the right speed, angle of attack, weight balance, connection to gravity otherwise it over speeds or stalls.

Not all lifts require the same dynamics which makes their repertoire of lifts so versatile and memorable.

Let’s look at some examples

Latch straight:

They get into that tight position, she has her right leg bent up, he holds it as well as around her waist, then T jumps/pushes off the ice in coordination with Scott rolling her over, she shoots her left leg into the air (which also makes that beautiful circular motion as they ends in the arabesque). This kind of reminds me of learning back flips (back handsprings) you dive backwards over a big round (cylindrical) squishy mat so you can get used to the motion before having no support. This is almost like that but sideways and instead of the mat, she is rolling over him. But you can also see how they use their momentum, the backwards stroking, spinning around each other, setting the rhythm so when they go into the lift the motion is there in their bodies to carry forward. But they also cleverly disguised it so you don’t see the lift or what kind of lift coming. I was coaching this girl on a ballet solo the other day and there’s this movement that repeats I think 7 times where you jump off two feet, landing on one then rising (relevé) into a held pose.. on pointe. I was explaining to her if she pauses at the end of the jump for too long, she loses the momentum to rise up. If she’s uses the rebound from the landing of the jump to rise up, it will be easier, rather than fighting the energy your body has out of the jump- same with not holding yourself in a way where momentum will work in your favour for lifts. (The same way runners use the transfer of energy out of the ground to propel each proceeding stride- the energy expenditure/return ratio).

Latch rotational:

As he grabs her leg she jumps (pushes off) into that twist, he doesn’t have to bend low down or use his back because she is getting herself almost up to his shoulder height before he manipulates her around his neck.

A different example would be the prince/MR curve lift.

This doesn’t require so much of a jumping or popping action because there isn’t really any upward lifting motion. Tessa has to be so strong to step up onto his leg (so lots of box jumps and weighted step ups in gym training) she has to be so stable and so well balanced- assisted by him holding her so steady as she kicks her left leg over his head. This all coordinated together, in place and balanced as he begins to lean back to the outside edge to create the curve. And of course they lean soo far back, T is bending nearly 90*, she would be able to see the back side of the rink, and he as well gets such a steep lean in his beautiful grandé plié position... the damn trust to do that! Also on the matter of leg strength, I don’t think people realise how hard it is to hold a flat turned out grandé plié in second on your own for a solid 8 seconds let alone HAVING A FULL ADULT HUMAN STANDING ON YOUR THIGHS IN KNIFE SHOES LEANING BACK AND YOUr WHOLE STRENGTH RESPONSIBLE FOR IF SHE FALLS BACK AND CRACKS HER HEAD OPEN….. at the end of 3:1/2 minutes of skating also..

Something I love that about them as well that they never just had go to lifts in their competitive programs. They always had such good variety and lifts you’ll remember like ‘oh that’s the latch lift or that’s from Carmen.. not just a similar version of each type of lift for every program.

Another thing is the also the way they start and end lifts. You never see them prepare for a lift or having to re organise themselves after a lift. You see a lot of other teams that brief pause before lifts, and more noticeable the exit, a lot of teams slow down to exit their lifts and have to regain speed, breaking the flow of the program. That’s shows the strength of TS transitions and dance and skating skill.

These two things- form and coordination then allow them to dance their lifts. I’ve always felt like their lifts have stood out.. for many reasons: creativity, difficulty appropriate for the dance style and character, not being hijinksy for the sake of it. But also how they just become part of the dance. Even now when I know their routines so well and can easily recognise the skating elements, I never feel ‘oh there’s a lift’, they come out of nowhere. They’ll just be dancing along and suddenly bam! She’s in the air.

On the body/physicality bit.. yes they are both very small and close in height (they aren’t ‘short’, they are just small/ petite. There’s an interview with the actor John Hamm after he met them on Ellen and he exclaimed ‘they are so much smaller irl, I guess you have to be to do what they do’- he saw them live in YVR and had remained a big fan of them through pyc). It’s so cute watching them as juniors when they were basically the exact same height, lifts especially just staring out learning and performing them. I think their closeness in height lead to a very unique lift technique, type of lifts, and in fact I think became a massive advantage to them in how their lifts are so seamless. In most situations S would need a smaller partner because he isn’t that tall himself, but they made it work it and didn’t it work out brilliantly?!! Taking nothing away from Scott but this is how I think we got such spectacular on the part of Tessa lifts bc she so freaking strong and fearless. ie the Carmen/MR rotational lift, also the goose since it doesn’t require any lifting motion, just skill and balance and T being a rockstar. Her strength also made it so they didn’t have to resort to a lot of lifts where it’s just the boy swinging the girl (I hate those lifts) the more contorted lifts (the one above) T’s so equally strong and flexible she’s not like a rag doll being thrown around.

When I say lift technique I don’t know what technique specifically- like there’s no offical name for it- it’s just what worked for them. The ‘pop’ they describe is a good way to explain it because a lot of the time with their lifts you don’t necessarily see a definitive upwards lifting motion, as I said it just becomes a highlight moment in the dance, not ‘there’s a lift’, they used their respective similar physicalities, physics, chemistry between them- trust, to lift, not just muscle strength. Lifts would definitely be tiring for Scott especially training them repetitively, but I don’t get the sense he would be getting over exhausted/fatigued/injured through drilling or performing lots of lifts because they play such equal roles, and have excellent technique. People don’t realise lifts are incredibly hard on the girls as well. Your ribs get very bruised and sore, you can get winded, sometimes you end up in or for the mechanics of the lift you’re in uncomfortable positions, you don’t have a lot of extra padding- both clothing and costumes but also.. you know.. fat to protect you, so that’s why strength and form is so important to keep yourself safe and in one piece.

Basically everything I’ve mentioned above can be trained and worked on and talented enough dancers will make it look great, but TS advantage is they had been doing it for sooo long they only know how to partner each other, so the unique technique they developed for their physicality as dancers extends deeper to them personally. (Their excellent form and understanding of their respective roles in lifts allows them to occasionally partner others to a high standard as well- but you can see the imbalance when you split ts up and put them with other people..)

Another thing that kind of has nothing to do with it but also everything to do with it, is in slowing down lifts and watching transitions you can see the trust and care they have in each other. They never hesitate. He puts her down soooo gently, like a pin drop would be louder than T’s blade hitting the ice- she’s in skates so where as dance on the floor you would using the strength of your foot to roll through the metatarsals to make your landing soft and quiet. I’m constantly amazed at the way he manhandles her in both beautiful and deliberately ugly/confronting positions, but it’s also so gentle-or appears gentle, like he stops his grip just before it would hurt her. I love seeing her back after a program when you can see the marks, sometimes scars/scratches left because their dancing is so beautifully physical and they love to feel that physical connection with each other through movement but it also makes you realise what they do is really fucking hard and as gentle as it is they sometimes do go home feeling a little beaten up- but in the best way possible because it’s their best friend beating them up and they know the end product is worth it. Sometimes I think about that and how they hug before every skate even it seems practices on/off ice at competitions and they are making each other feel so safe and comfortable being held before they have to do it choreographically. Like they are just re-reminding each other what their touch feels like so they can re-connect with that familiar sensation every time (brb, Sobbing break 😭😭).

I would also like to speculate that their breathing aids in their lifts, just as physically they coordinate, their breath coordinates as well, so in preparing for a lift that requires that ‘pop’ action (most of them in some respect) they would breathe in together on the preparation, then out releasing that energy as they go into the lift.. idk if this is the case but I like to believe it is.

Lastly on the matter of trust, and this is clearly the case with everything they do, T just has full faith in him. I love this little clip here of them practicing the stat. lift from latch at SCI:

They get a little bit stuck, just a brief loss of momentum. While initially, only for a split second T seems to motion to help her situation- not bc she’s afraid of falling but just to help the lift get moving again, but she quickly stops and just lets him sort it out. She holds her position so strongly, so he can clearly feel where each of her limbs are and body weight is and makes the the most economical choices to continue the lift and she is fine with whatever he chooses to do to get it back on track. Look how calm they both remain. And as he puts her down they are still so in it with their expressions and focus on each other. It’s also incredibly sweet that as he’s put her down, he puts his hand on the small of her back- this happens in the program as well but it’s easier to see here bc she’s in tights, the way he has to put her down means his hand kinda gets wrapped high between her legs. There is nothing ‘suggestive/sleezy/slutty/secret coded msg through movement’ about it, it’s just the mechanics of the lift, but nevertheless its not like he needs to put his hand on her back afterwards, it just seems like a gentle little moment to centre themselves after the element, like ‘here I am, I’ve got you’ as they continue on (totally made that up I have know fkn clue if there’s any thing to that but I like the thought of it). So this all going back to everything I’ve said of their form and coordination, ease of movement they developed only for each other, their beautiful individual movement as dancers, and the trust and gentle care they have for each other in every moment of life.

So I don’t really know if all/any of that answers the question about how he’s so small but is so strong.. muscle doesn’t necessary equate to strength I guess I would say.. it’s skill, form, coordination. T plays a huggeeee role in their lifts and I think Scott would back me up on that. I love when he says things like (on the MR rotational lift) ‘that’s so cool right, she just goes for it.. she’s fearless’. He is so stable (never looks like he has a problem) he hardly ever missteps, so for T knowing she’s on such a secure base she has no reason to hesitate. Obviously the lifts aren’t perfect straight away, they would have to work for them. Practice off ice for ages then slowly move to the ice. I don’t know how they do any of this in fucking skates on ice that’s insane I don’t understand it they’re crazy daredevils and I love them for that!

TS are obviously an extremely positive example of partners supporting one another- him never giving her any reason to think to starve or diet unhealthily to become lighter for him to lift. (T had said in an interview I think this one that he only wanted the best for her and make her feel +look amazing, never giving her the crap that others did, and T herself being so strong willed and determined for both herself to be healthy and knowing she was setting an example for young girls/athletes in general QUEEN T HAS MY HEART). A not so positive example I’ve experienced is the staff in the company I use to dance in, one of them publicly saying how they tell their woman dancers they are fat and over weight (which none of them are) because they have to ‘protect their boys’.. the staff had an unhealthy obsession with their male dancers and one girl in particular who they set as the gold standard for being about as thin as my pinky finger. Weight and body fat distribution has nothing to do with how easy it is for a boy to lift you, everyone’s body is different, we are all fit because we are high level athletes, your weight can fluctuate several hundred grams whether you are on your period or you’ve taken a shit that day.. form and communication with partners is far more important. If you are both applying the correct technique and working together to make the lift/partnering happen it shouldn’t matter the physicality of the partners (when it comes to specific chore it may be necessary for there to be more significant height differences). So there you have a prime example of what not to do- damaging artists based on BS ‘science’, controlling and sick obsessions with both men and women, and in contrast TS, a team who physically shouldn’t work for the type of movement they do, yet creating stunning, ground breaking skating because they did everything right and proved these bullshit mind games are just that, bs. Compared to other ID teams where the girl is relatively smaller/thinner/ lighter, their lifts appear to be much more in-equal in the roles each parter plays- it appears much harder on the guy because she thinks because she is light it will be easy to lift her.. no. When she is light but not strong/not holding herself correctly the lift is sloppy, they don’t make nice positions, and then I do start fearing for one of/both their safety.

I know I said I would just say a few things… that IS me saying a few things…

Hope this did answer but if there’s something I didn’t cover you want me to, anyone let me know..

Also ‘sturdy behind’ had me giggling for about 5 mins..

Also like the AFL guys would probs be ok with lifting a girl kinda gracefully but those NRL boys oh man.. 😬🫣

I love Scott’s physicality so so much and it changed a fair bit in the comeback but I loved how he learned to work with it. I can’t imagine having to totally retrain your body back to not only competitive but OLY gold medal shape at an “””older””” age, but didn’t he do a stunning job at it!! I can’t believe how beautifully he was moving by the last few competitions. Grace and ease but incredible strength as you put it is exactly right!

Lastly apologies this probs doesn’t flow very well and the paragraph topics are a bit miss matched.. hopefully the info makes sense even if it’s not the easiest read..

[samlgc]

what's up party people!

or at least that's what sam wants to say when he makes his "grand entrance" into lgc 🙄 anyway, i'm blue (any pronouns)! i was a member of lgc a while ago but never really got off the ground and had to quietly drop for personal reasons. i'm back now with a new muse and hopefully here to stay around a bit longer!

i remember that people used twitter a lot last time was here, so i created an account this time. it's not fully set up yet, but if you'd like to connect please give me a follow! i'll probably lock the account in a couple of days or so but please still feel free to follow req.

without any further ado, let me introduce a little more about sam under the cut!

sam's full story can be found here, but for a quick, summarized version, keep reading:

sam was orphaned at a young age due to some tragic circumstances but was adopted by his aunt, his father's sister, who was never able to have children and loved sam as if he were her own. she was always up front with him about his "real" parents, but as far as sam's concerned, she is his real mom. he grew up a bit spoiled and his aunt is very doting.

basically, sam's aunt was relocated to pleasanton, california for work and sam had no choice but to go with her. turns out he actually thrived there. he's a really outgoing guy, lacks humility or shame so he had no fear in speaking a language he wasn't very good at, and therefore got good at it quicker. it was in california that he really began to fall in love with music and his friends encouraged him to start dabbling in composition. his early stuff was atrocious and he's buried it all on an old hard drive somewhere.

around the time he was getting close to high school graduation, he started to gain an interest in kpop. unfortunately, the western music industry doesn't really have a place for asian men and sam sorta figured out he'd have a better chance of being a popular singer or something if he got himself in the kpop industry. turned out he was wise to think that, since he joined legacy in january 2020!

sam likes to think that he's the best thing since sliced bread. he's a bit full of himself, a bit cocky, but it's not totally without merit. he's a bit of a triple threat; he can sing well, he's a solid dancer, and he's pretty skilled at rap too. and he has a loud, boisterous personality that's just perfect for variety shows someday.

"but sam, if you're so good at everything, why haven't you debuted yet?" he would say that it's because he's so good that legacy can't simply add him to the existing boy groups and they're building him his own. he may be a bit delusional. gotta love his confidence, though.

despite being rather arrogant, he's a pretty nice guy! super friendly, super willing to help out a newer trainee or a peer who needs help in something he's good at. he recognizes that debut is a team effort so he's also trying to be the most liked trainee too... though he's a bit stupid so i can't promise he'll never offend anyone.

so now that we all know sam, how about some plots? :) i actually don't have very many ideas, but i'll add stuff on as i think of it!

i would LOVE a more antagonistic rivalry in sam's life. honestly, he could probably be the aggressor in the right situation. someone that just has a conflicting personality, who could fill the same role(s) in a future debut group, and sam finds to be a threat... but having a rival makes you stronger, so he's in no hurry to make amends.

not sure what his romantic history looks like exactly, but i do sorta imagine him as the type who always needs someone who dotes on him. i believe he's historically had a preference for women so he probably wouldn't have had a boyfriend, but he also really likes attention so i can see him leading someone on a bit just because they're into him. exes and flings are tentatively reserved for girls only, though. he might've been a nice bf at first but i think he's a bit emotionally selfish and even now isn't really mature enough to be in a serious relationship.

best friend, partner in crime sort of relationship? someone who lets him get away with anything and calls him out on his shit at the same time, sorta like a sibling-like best friend if that makes any sense at all. yes, it's contradictory. but they're the first to do some dumb shit with him and then tell him he was an idiot for it later.

a muse. sam likes to write music and compose, so someone he's inspired by. actually, this could be multiple people and go in a hundred different directions. someone he writes about because they're beautiful and he writes love songs with them in mind, someone who's another composer who he wants to learn from and may or may not steal ideas from, a close friend he writes songs for so they can impress the guy or girl with an original song for their confession, someone he hates so much he just has to write about it... the more the merrier!

i would also love someone to kick his ass. no i'm not joking. someone who gets so annoyed with his smart mouth and attention-seeking ways that they just deck him right in his stupid pretty face. it's honestly what he deserves.

i also just love love. romance plots are my bread and butter. i think sam's historically only dated women, but i don't know if he's totally straight. self-discovery might be nice, but he's a bit stupid so it'd have to be some damn good chemistry if it's with another boy. girls would probably have an easier time catching his attention!

again, i'm kinda short on ideas, but i'll add more to this post when i think of them! in the meantime, please drop me a like or send me a message either on tumblr or twitter and i'm looking forward to getting involved!!

[turnupswritessometimes]

💞💌💥🕯️Of course, you don't have to do all of them, just whichever you're interested in answering ^_^

Oh, of course I'll do all of them - I love talking about my own writing lmao!

💞what's the most important part of a story for you?

The relationship between characters. I feel like fanfiction really gives you a space to get into all the nooks and crannies of a character's relationships, in a way that the source material rarely has time to do. But then, even when I'm writing AUs (so starting these characters from point A, instead of somewhere in the middle), I like for characters to have a solid foundation with each other, and definitely somewhere to go.

(Dialogue was a close contender here - but I think that's what I enjoy writing the most. And it's one of the main tools in showing a relationship; what's said, but also what's unsaid.)

💌share something with us about an up-and-coming work (WIP) that has you excited!

Something I'm tinkering with for Fullmetal Alchemist is Roy Mustang and Ed Elric using a certain rumour about Ed being Mustang's illegitimate child for a mission. (And really getting into their relationship. It's set just after the 520 cens promise so lots to talk about!)

💥find your least kudos'd fic - say something wonderful about it.

My actual least kudos'd fic is my latest SidLink one - 'Just for This Moment,' but as that only went up a week or so ago, I don't think that's fair to choose for this. So my second least kudos'd fic is 'Hidden Depths,' about the boys from Tokyo Mew Mew. I'm assuming it got a low kudos score because it's a smaller fandom, and an extremely rare pair within that fandom.

It's a fic I really like! I love using the aquarium and the creatures in it as a tool to bring two characters into finding middle ground/talking in metaphors about themselves. I love Ryou's conflicting emotions and his denial to admit to himself how he really feels.

This bookmark is my favourite: "'he hates him because they're love rivals' actually he hates him bc he's bi and crushing hard and a tsundere."

🕯️was there a fic that was really hard on you to write, or took you to a place you didn't think it would take you?

Currently, I'm finding 'The One With the Mermaid' extremely hard to write. I didn't approach it any differently than I usually would, but something's just not got me hooked like usual. I think it's that second part of the question - the story's evolved differently than I thought, and I'm not sure how to get it back.

Otherwise, my SoRiku fic 'Worth Running To' took me to some exciting places. I vaguely knew I was adapting the plot of the first Kingdom Hearts (vaguely!!), but I didn't account for how many other characters - Kingdom Hearts and Disney - would get caught up in the plot. The finale felt very big and dramatic for what I usually write, but I remember really enjoying that. The biggest surprise about that one was sparking off a side story about the Seasalt trio, in a Georgian boarding school. (Very fun, but very niche, lol)

I think that's it! Thanks so so much for the ask!! <3 <3

[geminiamethyst]

Skyline Gang: Trial of Darkness. Chapter 24

Chapter 1: click HERE

Chapter 23: click HERE

Chapter 25: click HERE

How long has it been now? Five minutes?

With the Darkness blocking everything outside, there was no way to tell what time of day it was. At least it wasn’t a vacuum situation like it was with the Skyline. Dude could easily tell since one of the windows of the temple didn’t have glass until a couple of minutes ago. Dawn’s Darkness had decorated it according to her tastes. Black marble pillars and walls instead of the dark beige that the stone once had. The floor was stark black. However, it was hard to distinguish any other colours due to the black mist that gracefully danced over it. All the windows had gothic stained glass painted various shades of grey. Any plant life that had previously grown here had been stripped away. At least she had some torches to light the place up a little; but even the flames were very dim as if they were threatening to go out from the smallest of breezes. It was like Dawn had made this place her brand new home. In a sad way, it was. Dawn was practically born here from the woman she once was. Dude briefly wondered that if he and his friends never came to the Skyline, would Dawn turn the place to look just like this.

Dude tried not to think too much about it. He can’t give up. He needs to either work a way to get out or stall for time. He didn’t know where the others were but they had to be close by now. They’re probably thinking of a plan. Do they even know if it was Dawn residing here? Unless Dawn made herself known to them, it was impossible to say. Either way, they’re putting themselves in danger if they’re not careful. He needs to try to break out. Dawn was nowhere to be seen; she left him all alone not long after she tormented him. At least his feet were on solid ground instead of being suspended like a marionette. He thought that it would give him a better chance to try to escape. However, he couldn’t. The shadows that Dawn circled around him continued to hold him still. His body from the neck down might as well be stone at this point; he couldn’t even twitch a finger or toe, let alone his entire body. He didn’t understand something that was glaringly obvious. Dawn was so happy to nearly kill him during their last encounter. So why was he still alive? Bait? A trophy? Possibly both? It didn’t make any sense.

As Dude mulled over that puzzle, he was interrupted by something. A figure that was all grey suddenly appeared in front of him. At first, Dude briefly panicked, thinking it was one of Dawn’s shadow creatures to torture him or something. However, that didn’t feel like it was the case. Within seconds, the grey faded away, revealing who was standing in front of him.

“Misty?” The name automatically flew out of Dude’s mouth. Misty had vanished when Dawn showed herself. He thought that she was just wandering around somewhere. Why did she come back to see him?

“Save your speech.” Misty hissed bitterly. Dude held his tongue. He was just ready for whatever snide remark that Misty had up her sleeve. However, her next words were something that not even a crystal ball could tell him it felt like. “Just answer me this: what do you know of the old Skyline Gang?”

“Not much. I’ve only just learned a little more about them and Dawn’s connection to them now.” Dude explained, overcoming his brief moment of shock. Why was Misty suddenly asking something like that? She never seemed that bothered to learn about the past Gang. She’d always pretend to not listen whenever the subject was brought up. She only piped up with interest if Dawn came into the topic on rare occasions. Now that everything up to this point has happened, it made a bit more sense.

“And?” Misty urged on impatiently.

“She used to be one of them, but something happened. I think it was an accident.” Dude explained, recalling all those moments during that vision. Was it really an accident? Or was something much darker behind Dawn’s origins? Either way, the Sceptre of Shadows played a part of it, that he was certain of. “It changed her, made her something that she wasn’t before. I don’t even think that Dawn is her real name.”

“So that woman…” Misty suddenly muttered.

“What woman?” Dude asked. Misty’s eyes went wide for a brief moment. She probably didn’t mean to say that out loud.

“Doesn’t matter!” Misty snapped, turning her back on Dude. She took a couple of steps forward, intending to teleport away again. Stop her! Try again to speak to her!

“Misty, listen to me. Please.” Dude begged. Misty froze to the spot. She’ll humour him. It’s not like she’ll take anything from him seriously. “Dawn killed the previous Gang. I don’t know if she was manipulated or not, but she did it anyway. They were her friends.”

“So?” Misty sighted with an eye roll. She heard that story before. Over exaggerated in all honesty.

“She’s going to kill my friends-our friends!” Dude pressed, trying his best. Surely there had to be a part of Misty that cared? Right? Dude’s eyes suddenly caught sight of Misty’s hand, the white bandages standing out from the dark of the room. A small memory flashed in his mind: Misty getting her hand cut out of nowhere. Then he remembered another thing. It made him think of something. He might be wrong with this, but he hoped that something good will come out of it either way. “And you and Candi are linked!”

Misty flinched at those words. She remained silent, mulling over Dude’s words. It’s working. Keep pressing the issue. Even if he’s wrong, Dude hoped that his next words would change Misty’s mind; if Misty didn’t care about the others, maybe she’ll be vain enough to save herself (and hopefully Candi) by helping the others.

“What do you mean?” Misty asked, turning around to face Dude. She looked shocked and confused at the same time. Keep talking. Don’t let her have any doubt. Even it ends up being nothing but a bluff, this had to work somehow.

“You know that cut you got on your hand, and you can’t remember how you got it?” Dude asked, gesturing to Misty’s injury with his eyes. Misty cradled it gently, as if she were holding a fragile creature; her eyes were clouded with confusion and a split second of realisation. “After we were reunited with the others, I noticed that Candi had the same exact cut. She told me that she cut it on a rock while climbing. Same injury, same place, same time, different locations.”

“What’s your point?” Misty asked, a flash of doubt in her eyes. Don’t let that doubt fester. Keep trying! Keep pushing!

“What do you think will happen if Dawn kills Candi?” Dude drive the point home. Misty had a flash of different emotions cross her face: confusion, anger, fear. Don’t give up! “You might die too! And even if you somehow survive, Dawn won’t let you go! You’re her puppet! And one day, she is going to cut your strings!”

Dude’s voice echoed through the temple. His declaration hung over Misty like a cloud. Her eyes shifted all over the place, as if she would find evidence to argue against Dude. She processed every word. Each word that she heard didn’t leave her alone. Normally she’d shake off so many words with reckless abandon. This time, however, she actually felt a chill run through her spine. Was that true? It would explain her injury. No. It’s a coincidence. It had to be. Dude was just talking nonsense. She can tell that he just thought of this on the spot. However, that major part of her had this dreadful feeling that Dude was right.

“I…” Misty hesitantly spoke. She’s changing her mind? Or is she in some state of limbo?

“Misty, I told you not to talk to him.” Dawn’s voice ripped through the air. Misty spun on her heels, meeting face to face with the tall woman before her. The feeling of ice trailing down her back persisted as she looked up at the ice cold eyes. The two were so wrapped up in their conversation that Misty didn’t feel Dawn manifesting behind her at all.

“I was just-” she shivered slightly.

“Just what?” Dawn pressed. Misty couldn’t say anything. Was she scared of Dawn? “He is playing with your mind, you stupid girl!”

“I just wanted to mock him!” Misty shouted, desperate to avoid the punishment.

“Don’t lie to me!” Dawn shouted back, glaring right down at Misty. She raised the Sceptre at the girl in front of her. Dude didn’t understand what was happening for a moment. Then he heard Misty inhale sharply. Her hands flew to her neck, as if she was trying to grab something. Finally he heard the gasping.

“Misty!” He exclaimed automatically. He had been in this position before. His neck twinged at the awful memory. It intensified as Misty’s body slow levitated, her feet kicking the air a little. Dude’s eyes narrowed at Dawn. If he was right about the link between Misty and Candi, then Candi could be getting hurt too. He can’t allow this to happen! Two lives were on the line. “Leave her alone!”

“Silence!” Dawn growled, glaring at Dude for a moment. Dude was ready to shout again, however, there was this chill on the lower half of his face. He couldn’t get his mouth to move. His jaw literally felt like it was wired shut. Dawn refocused her attention to Misty. The grey girl had stopped kicking the air, her legs hanging limply. She clawed at the invisible force holding her; she grasped at something cold but it was futile. The pressure got tighter, she can’t even get a word out. Her eyes started to roll to the back of her head as she started to lose all feeling in her body. Dude let out as loud of a shout as he could manage. He tried to pull himself free but it was all futile in the end.

Maybe it was an act of mercy, or just some kind of satisfaction, but after a few more seconds, Dawn relented. The pressure on Misty’s neck disappeared. She let out a gasp as her body fell to the floor; the force of her fall was so powerful that her body bounced like a ball upon impact. She gasped and breathed heavily, desperately grasping at whatever oxygen her lungs would allow. Dude watched intensely as she slowly propped herself a up little with her elbows. She looked up at Dawn, unsure of how she should process this. She could’ve been killed. Dawn could’ve killed her that easily.

“Now, get out of my sight!” Dawn ordered, unmoved by her actions. She had taught Misty a lesson. Maybe now this little brat will just follow her orders like she had done all this time. “And let me know if his “friends” show up!”

Misty didn’t hesitate in disappearing. She didn’t want to stay anywhere near this witch until she has calmed down. As she faded from sight, Dude couldn’t help but feel relieved. As he let out a sigh, his mind raced a little. That was way too close. If he was right about the link, and if Dawn kept going until Misty was killed, Candi would’ve been lost too. He could’ve lost two people; one that he cares about, and one that he hoped would change before it’s too late.

“As for you.” Dawn continued, her focus now entirely on Dude. Before he knew it, his body was once again in the air. He was brought close to Dawn. Did she look a little more solid now? No, it’s the dark playing tricks on his mind. Dawn glared right at her prisoner. He almost ruined everything. Now he’s going to pay for it. “You had a lot of nerve doing that, pipsqueak. I ought to snap your neck. Unfortunately for me, I need you alive. Don’t think that you’re off the hook completely. That doesn’t stop me from torturing you.”

She needs him alive?

What is she talking about?

Before Dude could think about it any further, he felt this intense pain in his body. He let out a muffled scream as he felt like his soul was being ripped right out of him. As he writhed in pain, Dawn smiled sadistically. She’s going to enjoy all of this. The only thing that would make it better was if her audience were here.

Oh well. She’ll be patient. She’ll win in the end. That she is certain of.

[ask-the-ryans]

I'm not an expert on character design and this "layout" is something I use amidst all my inconsistency, but here are some things I try to keep in mind. Apologies if this throws you off since I got pretty selective interests, but I still hope this answers your questions!

First I figure out who my characters are, and in this wildly specific case, they're boxers. Everyone knows boxers are muscular, but they have a special kind of muscle.

One thing you might notice is that boxers' bodies are pretty diverse, even in the same weightclass (take Andy García and Luis Ortiz together, for example), but the things that tie them together are their solid cores -another word to say that their abdomens are strong and shaped like squares- and that their pecs or legs aren't usually very muscular given the kind of sport they're in. Exceptions can happen, but it's generally for stocky/short athletes like Tyson who hold tremendous amounts of power.

Now compare one to a wrestler or a bodybuilder.

What do we see here? For one, wrestlers got very thick legs and great amounts of their strength go to their upper bodies, so it's easy to see them more as meaty triangles. Then we got the bodybuilders, whose muscles are well-defined, but not very "useful". I'm not saying that they're not strong, but these guys practically dehydrate themselves to show off, so I'd recommend not modelling athletes after them.

But I'm getting ahead of myself. I personally like to take in consideration all the little nuances of the human body, so I go over this small process of research. That's just me who'd rather have a more grounded approach, but I encourage you to take creative liberties if reality is stopping you from drawing the next Baki. :)

(Side note, please check out Howard's Schatz's athlete photography. It can give you a beautiful array of examples.)

Once I figured out what kind of body I want my character to have, I do exploration sketches. It's very fun to hop straight into making an illustration, but I've found said sketches to be very useful because they make me feel familiar with whom I'm dealing with. You might also get a funny face that sticks with your design the rest of it's life (happened to me with Aran's "unibrow" and Joe's droopy face even though they already got a canon design), but beyond that, it's a way to give everyone you draw an identity.

Expressions are another thing. This is more an intuitive act in my part, but you might see that in real life, despite people sharing happiness/ sadness/anger/etc, our expressions are not going to be the same. How do you think an energetic lunatic might laugh vs a mild-mannered scaredy guy?

Exactly.

When all of that is done, for consistency's sake, I tend to have a ref sheet right next to me when I draw (this involves pulling out pinterest, old art, comics, etc. whatever I got at hand). I've done turnarounds before, but I'm honestly a bit lazy when it comes to that-- so to Joe and Don anon, don't escape from your responsabilities like some people.

⚆ _ ⚆

I think it boils down to treat each character as an individual, taking in consideration things like their profession, nationality, age, etc. You don't gotta have a super expansive biography, but what has generally worked for me is going for a gut feeling of what feels natural and what doesn't, and said feeling has developed over time the more I meet people in real life and study other artists.

(And thank you for the kind words, anon!)

[bakuhoes-dumbass]

Aberration - Chapter 2

MHA!Various x Fem!Reader

Thriller/Horror/Drama

Criminal!AU

Words: 1.5k

A/N: Yay, here’s the second chapter of my new AU! It’s a little shorter but I promise chapters will get longer as we go.

Warnings: Yandere Themes, Mentions of murder, blood, felonies, bullying, swearing.

Disclaimer: I do not own the characters of MHA, just this story. In no way does this reflect the characters, writers or VAs of the show/manga. MINORS DNI.

~~~

Aberration Masterlist

~~~

"Now, on to your next subject. Inmate 04, Eijiro Kirishima." You flip the page of your inmate profiles to see a picture of a red-haired man. "He is of a higher danger level, so make sure to keep your guard up. And for the love of God, under any circumstances…

Do not touch him."

Only slightly acknowledging his warning, you look down at your notes, eyebrows shooting up in surprise at the words on the page. "He suffers from Erotomania? Interesting…"

Aizawa nods. "Ah, yes. A very rare condition indeed, especially in males. The affected person strongly believes that another individual is in love with them. This delusion develops and persists despite clear evidence to the contrary."

"That's a very exciting find. I can't wait to meet him." Your eyes light up, quite intrigued.

Aizawa sighs and gestures with his head. "Follow me."

Kirishima's room was only a few doors down from Tokoyami's. Once again, Aizawa presses his hand to a key code and you hear the door unlock, following a buzzer. You slowly make your way into the room. It mirrors Tokoyami's down to the last detail, the only difference being a redhead was currently doing pushups.

He barely acknowledges a person stepping into his room, eyes flitting to your form and back to the ground. It takes him a moment to realize it was someone new. As soon as he does, his eyes widen and he springs onto his feet, slightly startling you.

"Oh! Hello there! You're new!"

You nod your head and smile at the red-head. "That I am. My name is Y/N and I'm the newest scientist at this facility. My role here is to get to know and observe you all to help further our findings for a cure." You choose to leave out the 'friends' part, as something about him makes you weary. You don't need anything being misinterpreted.

"Hello there, Y/N! My name is Kirishima!" He takes a step towards you but is suddenly stopped by a lower force. You look down to see his ankles chained to the heavy-duty bed frame, connected to him by quirk-canceling cuffs. You look back up to see him looking at you intensely, with a shark-toothed smile. "Man, you're really pretty!"

You swallow thickly, but keep your smile. "That's very kind of you to say, Kirishima. Now, if I may." You take a seat at the desk like you did with Tokoyami. Kirishima follows suit and sits across from you on the bed. His smile never wavers, making you slightly uneasy. You ignore it and turn to a blank page in your notebook. "Now, if you could please state your full name, age and date of birth?"

He gives you a chuckle and points to himself proudly with his thumb. "I'M Eijiro Kirishima! I'm 22 years old and my Birthday is October 16th!"

You giggle softly at his extroverted personality. "Ahh, same birth month as Tokoyami." You mumble to yourself. His ears perked up and his smile faltered slightly.

"You met Tokoyami already?"

"Hm?" You look up and smile fondly. "Ah yes, I have. He was the first one. A very nice young man."

You look back down at your notes, failing to see Kirishima's eye twitch slightly. He returns to his signature smile as you look up at him again. "And what is your quirk?"

"Oh, it's so cool! I can harden my entire body to an extreme. I can make myself a shield or a weapon! Pretty manly, am I right?" Kirishima wiggles his eyebrows at you, causing you to chuckle.

"That is definitely a unique one, Kiri." You, once again, fail to notice the way his eyes light up at the nickname, too busy looking down at your notes. "Now I see here that you've been charged with Stalking and 2 counts of second degree murder. Is that correct?"

"Yup! Although I don't understand how it would be considered 'Stalking', when she always knew I was around. She was okay with it, too! I mean, we WERE in love, you know." He furrows his brows.

You raise a brow and write down everything he says. "Care to continue explaining what happened? Why were you brought into this facility?"

Kirishima sighs and rests his chin on his hand, a dazed look on his face. "Well, you see. There was this girl. We were totally, completely head over heels for each other. You've probably heard of her, Kim Hyuna?"

Your eyebrows shoot up. Yeah, you heard of her. She is one of the biggest idols around right now, extremely pretty and extremely talented. She has millions of fans from around the world. You already can see where the direction of this story is headed.

He continues with a wide smile. "We used to go out on dates everywhere. To the mall, the salon, even to her dorms. We were so in love." His dazed expression turns sour. "Then that stupid boy shows up outta nowhere. He took her from me. He dared to take something so precious from me. So, I couldn't take it anymore and, uh, kinda killed them."

You watched him rub the back of his neck sheepishly, like the situation was no more than a mere broken dish he dropped on accident. You nod your head carefully, writing the last bit of information down. Clicking your pen, you look up and give the young man a fake smile.

"Well, that's it for today, Kirishima. I must take my leave, but I'll be back to run some tests soon."

Kirishima frowns and quickly stands up. "W-Wait, already?"

You gather up your notes and clipboard. "Yes, unfortunately. I do have some other patients I need to get to before-" as you go to stand up, your foot gets caught under the chair leg and you trip. You accidentally fall forward and into something hard. Looking up, you realized you fell against Kirishima himself, your hands splayed out against his chest.

His eyes widen, staring down at your hands against his chest, something shifting in his eyes. Before you're able to pull your hands away, his own reach up and snatch your wrists, holding them in place. A blush appears on the apples of his cheeks.

"Y-Y/N. I-I had no idea you felt the same."

Your eyes widen in fear. You attempt to tug your hands away, but his iron grip tightens into a bruising force. "Kirishima, I would advise you to kindly let go of me. Please, don't misunderstand the situation."

His grin widens, showcasing his sharp teeth. Red eyes bore into yours with a wild look. You hear the door buzz behind you and a flood of voices coming in. You feel a pair of arms reach around you and hands grip your elbows. Two pairs of hands each grab Kirishima by the arms and force him to release his grip on you. You watched two of Aizawa's assistants hold down a struggling Kirishima as you were forcibly dragged out of his room.

Once safely outside, you were spun around to meet the eyes of a fuming and worried doctor. "Are you alright, Y/N?" Aizawa's eyes travel along your body, doing a quick examination to make sure nothing was injured.

You nod your head and rotate your slightly bruised wrists. "Y-Yeah, I'm fine. Just a little shaken up."

Aizawa sighs. "Didn't I say NOT to touch him? His obsession tends to solidify with physical contact."

You wince. "I know. This time it was an accident. I tripped and he just happened to, uh, be the 'wall' I fell against." You think back to the moment you fell against Kirishima. His chest felt almost rock solid, not like a normal human body would be. Now you're thinking that his quirk leaked through the cuffs and that thought scares you.

"Nobody said you were clumsy when you were hired," he sighs and runs a hand down his tired face. "There are still 9 other inmates you need to check with. And 6 out of the 9 are above Kirishima's danger level. Are you still up for it today?"

You shake out your hands and nod your head. "Yes! I am. A little scare never bothered me. This is my job."

Aizawa hummed in reply and flipped through his clipboard, stopping on a page. "Inmate 09, Keigo Takami. Mafia leader. He's a level 7 as well, but doesn't have delusions like Inmate 04 does. While he's very dangerous, he's a little more tolerable." Aizawa hesitates before continuing. "Er, minus the excessive flirting."

You sigh and flip through Keigo's information. "Oh goodie. Well, let's get this over with." You follow Aizawa to Keigo's door and once it buzzes, you enter the pristine, white room.

"Good afternoon Mr. Keigo, my name is Y/N and I'll-" You look up from your notes to see a half naked man with blonde hair and bright red bird wings lounging on his bed. Your jaw drops and you hold your clipboard up in front of your suddenly heated face.

Keigo looks over to you with his brows raised. "Well well, looks like we've got ourselves a new baby bird. How…" The handsome man's lips turn up into a cocky smirk.

"...interesting."

~~~

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