#i know i'm looking and judging the children of the watch through real life experiences when it comes to what community is

[cienie-isengardu]

After watching Chapter 20: The Foundling (s03e04), I think I finally figured out why Children of the Watch bugs me so much. Ironically this is not just about the helmet rule even though at this point in the story I find it hysterically hilarious how the show doesn’t follow its own worldbuilding. Like Din got kicked out from the Tribe because he took off his helmet and Armorer - who usually is fair and act as the voice of reason - didn’t even bother to ask for the reason behind it (and at least one time was about Din getting medical help and the other, if I remember correctly, was done to save Grogu) with moment before Paz Vizsla claiming he has never took off his helmet because this is the way but now Children of the Watch take off the helmets to eat like no big deal, when we already saw Din eating while not revealing fully his face? Like, sorry, either you are not allowed to take that blasted thing (about what we have two seasons and a bit Book of Boba Fett) or you are allowed to do so in certain situations but if the letter is true, then not asking Din for reason behind his action and just kicking him out on spot is so… jerk move. Double so, when Armorer claims that saving a Foundling is the “highest honor of the Creed '' and isn’t it what all Din’s actions are about through the last two seasons? 

I sidetracked. 

Anyway, the mentioned scene of Mandalorians scattering around to eat alone so other people don't see their faces (the act of removing the helmet) is what frustrated me so much about this group. Children of the Watch are recognized as a Mandalorian community but they don’t feel much to be one?

On one hand, the show established that members of the Children of the Watch:

 support each other in various ways. Like coming to aid a fellow Mandalorian in fight whatever said members are on good terms or not (Paz and Din in the first season) or providing material goods, as we are both shown (with Din) and told (by Armorer) that “It is a tradition [...] for each to donate a small portion of what they earn to the foundlings”. So those who earn money or get their hands on anything special like beskar, support the most vulnerable ones (orphans) of their Tribe. Which is definitely a positive aspect of their community (even if so far we see only(?) Din to wander through the galaxy and actually earn money and share them with his people). 

celebrate (witness) together an important moments of individual members like the ceremonial accepting Creed by Ragnar or Din’s official return after Armorer confirmed his proof about Living Waters 

train together and the older (more experienced) members act as mentors

organize a searching (war) party for a child abducted by predator animal

So it can’t be denied that Children of the Watch is a community in which all members take part in the social life of the Tribe, and all play some specific roles. The adults mentor the less experienced people and act as protectors in times of danger, Armorer is providing knowledge and guidance but also (alongside Paz Vizsla?) guards tradition and “punishes” for breaking the rules - and it is important to note she is usually presented as fair judge, as it was seen with Din and Paz’s rocky relationship through the all seasons.  

On another hand we don’t see Children of the Watch (beside Armorer and Paz) interact with Din or Bo in any meaningful way that builds the feeling of truly belonging to this little society or even between each other in background? And here comes my realization with the rescue group sitting around the fireplace. The food was distributed, Bo’s position as leader acknowledged by Paz and then… everyone went on their own to eat in solitude. Which is so anticlimactic in regard to building any personal connection between Tribe and newcomer. They were a rescue group, on “enemy” territory (with some dangerous local fauna, there could be more hungry predators lurking in the night) and instead of sharing the warmth of firework, the sitting (eating) by the fire is treated as privilege.

Eating together and sharing food with your community is a universal bonding experience and it is no wonder that Bo-Katan is out of her depth so much in that scene, when one remembers she was for years part of Death Watch. And we know thanks to The Clone Wars (a tie-in material from the same New Canon) that Death Watch feasted together (A Friend in Need)

or even during Pre and Maul talk about alliance - a pretty important moment for both involved parties - there was one warrior who apparently chose to eat/drink between his folks rather than sitting (alone) somewhere else.

Hell, even when Din and Boba Fett seek her in the previous season, she and Koska also ate a meal together.

Of course, those little scenes are just glimpses at life of other mandalorian groups, but there is drastic contrast between Children of the Watch (eat alone so no one see you removing helmet/showing face) and what Bo-Katan experienced within two separate communities (Death Watch and her clan/followers). And I think this is the reason why Children of the Watch doesn’t feel like a true community to me. Sure, they train together and take part in ceremonies and aid each other in fight, but there is little of actual personal relationship? Little of normal things the community do together like exactly eating and sharing a place by the fire?

And there is something really bothering how the morally dubious Death Watch act as a community, not only with the training, but also eating a meal together or talking with each other - what could be observed in various scenes between the unnamed members.

In general I think TCW provided a better feeling of Death Watch’s daily life outside of combat than The Mandalorian show did for the Children of the Watch. It is doubly weird that Pre Vizsla of all people bothered to offer Maul a tea when they were making alliance as a gesture of goodwill and/or playing the good host role

while Bo-Katan (a newcomer) is left to eat alone because no one is allowed to remove the helmet in company thus can’t eat together. Come to think about it, Bo-Katan too offered to share her food with Grogu and Din in the “Mines of Mandalore” which adds to the feeling how food - as bonding / belonging to community - means a lot to her or Mandalorian in general.

Additional feeling of the not-so-good community sense comes from the same episode and is about how Ragnar could walk away from the group unnoticed when apparently Children of the Watch are perfectly aware of dangerous predators lurking around. And the kid walked to the edge of the water from which Tribe was already attacked by a beast and for some reason no one noticed it? Like Din was there when Ragnar just walked away but he was too busy praising Grogu even though, as the adult and part of the community he was responsible for other (especially less experienced) members. He however could have zero knowledge of the flying predator that may snatch the kid but the Tribe living there knew but did not bother to guard their children better? As was shown, they didn’t put anyone on guard duty to make sure those training together were safe or to keep an eye on kids wandering away from the group? You know, to not repeat the tragedy that already befall on their community in the recent past? It is especially weird to me, because the whole episode put so much pressure on how saving a foundling (or child in general) is the most honorable part of the Creed yet the Children of the Watch, as a collective, did not provide the safety to the most vulnerable members as they could despite the knowledge about danger and already experienced tragedy.

And sure, we could argue hey this kid is a sworn Mandalorian and maybe the Mando doesn’t fret about children safety as we, the no-warrior people, do. But the thing is, none of the monsters the Tribe faced was something a single adulr warrior could beat alone. It was always a community effort to beat them - and mind you, the “water beast” ultimately was killed by fire from Din’s spaceship so it is not something that a lonely kid could achieve on his own. The flying monster also was defeated because of cooperation of several warriors (though they maybe could kill it faster if the animal didn’t hold the kid). Which is why I find the execution of the plot weak from the in-universe perspective, as this tragedy was easy to avoid if only the Tribe bothered a bit more with common sense and security (something they were much more focused on in the first season?)

Of course, the show is an ongoing project so maybe the future episodes will change my mind about Children of the Watch, but for now I have very mixed feelings about them as the Mandalorian community. They are built as one for sure but they don’t really feel like a real community so far to me. Especially not compared to Death Watch, as was presented by the same New Canon.

[bones4thecats]

Dorm leaders x Reader who has little siblings

A/N: I personally do not have any little siblings, but I'm writing this on the experiences told by my friends. Also, like in all of my other pieces, the reader is not MC!!

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❤️ As an only sibling, Riddle has no idea how close the bond is of an older sibling towards younger. But he did grow up with Trey, so he has seen sibling-bonds in person.

❤️ When you two became a couple, he started understanding love and real care for someone else, but he was nothing short of surprised when your siblings came bellowing into Heartslabyul on Family Day with smiles on their faces.

❤️ When the housewarden learned you had younger siblings, he was shocked yet he couldn't help but find it quite amusing how blunt the children could be. Like when they looked at his mother and said she was pretty for a weed.

❤️ He tried to bond with your siblings in his own ways, like helping them study a certain subject they may be struggling in, or helping them learn their magic (if they have any).

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🦁 Leona has a sibling, and he's the younger, so he understands if one of yours was struggling getting out of another's shadow. Been there, done that.

🦁 He never really enjoyed being around his brother, but he would enjoy watching you mess around with your younger siblings, it brings him back to the days when he and his brother weren't pinned against one another and constantly judged.

🦁 Watching your siblings play with Cheka does kinda annoy him though, having really young kids (like 8 and younger) bothers him because their voices are so high-pitched.

🦁 But this second-born can put his problems aside to help you with your family problems, after all, he has experience with his nephew.

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🐙 Another student who has no siblings. But unlike Riddle, Azul can actually see the bond of siblings through his right and left-hand men Floyd and Jade Leech.

🐙 Azul doesn't quite trust easily, but when he saw how you truly cared for your siblings and treated him and his eel duo like your own family, it sent him in a frenzy.

🐙 He never really bonded with many when he was younger, but watching your siblings bond with Jade, Floyd, and even him, it was remarkable how soft and caring the trio could be when it came to the younglings.

🐙 This guy does mess up at some points, which is normal, but he doesn't exactly understand that. So if he accidentally let your sibling touch something and get a small cut, he'd go nuts over how you'd be mad at him.

🐙 But when you just looked at him and told him this was normal for children, it calmed him down. Our little paranoid octomer.

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☀️ This boy has now somehow reached another level of being a ball of sunshine.

☀️ This dormhead has so many younger siblings that he lost track! And when an older sibling loses track, then you know theirs a fucking ton.

☀️ He loves watching your siblings play with his, it makes him feel more close to you, as his family means pretty much everything to him, alongside his friends and you, of course!

☀️ You having younger siblings is very fun for him, and you're probably ashamed to admit it, but the attention he gives them all does make you a hint jealous, which makes Jamil come to rest a hand on your shoulder, saying it's normal.

☀️ Total softie for children, unlike a certain lion.

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👑 He never really had anyone in his life to see sibling relationships and how healthy they could be. Sure his vice housewarden may have both older and younger siblings, but as Rook lived in Sunset Savanna and Vil was from the Shaftlands, he never saw it in real time.

👑 But when his father mentioned how you spoke on the phone to your younger siblings, Vil was shocked. You had never mentioned them, but no one, that he knew of, had ever asked.

👑 Seeing how your siblings sat down on either the ground with class or in a chair of some sort really made him surprised. He was told by many of his old co-stars and celebrities that having siblings was hard as you're either in their shadow or are the shadow-caster without knowledge, no in between.

👑 But seeing how your siblings weren't directly in your shadow or were casting a shadow over one another surprised him. And at the same time he was quite happy, he didn't want to see you upset about your siblings arguing about something as trivial as that.

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🎮 He is the one who knows exactly what you're going through at some points.

🎮 Idia loves his younger brother to life and death and life again. So seeing how much you cared for your younger family members made his heart skip a beat, it reminded him of simpler times when he and Ortho were younger and both okay.

🎮 This fire-head doesn't enjoy many people's presences, so if he's not in the mood, Ortho takes your siblings out of Ignihyde and around the campus.

🎮 On the other hand, if any of them enjoyed video games or really anything on the internet, then Idia would be happy to teach them the basics of defeating bosses on games they're playing, as he's most likely played every game in existence.

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🐉 This prince of fae has never really had a family, as he never knew his parents growing up, but he did have Silver later on in life, and he did see him like a younger brother, as Lilia raised them.

🐉 Malleus isn't the easiest to approach, but if one of your siblings does it, the rest do too. Nobody wants to be the chicken of the group after all!

🐉 After they get used to his presence, this only makes Malleus want to be together with you even more. Imagine doing this every day but with your own children and not your parents'!

🐉 But this is a dragon-fae we're talking about, do his possessiveness has no limits, but with your siblings, he tries holding himself back. They had you first, in blood, not through love alone. So he tries not to be rude and get all your attention, knowing your siblings also need it.

[denishamichelle]

Mercury Retrograde Reflections

I want to be the fun mom again.

This is the shit Mercury Retrograde has me reflecting on. Some where in between having 3 children life got real freaking serious, as expected. But I don't think I could ever anticipate just how real things could or would get.

I had a vision for my life. I had a vision for my life with my kids fathers. Yea, all three of em' got different daddies. Judge me, please lol. Point is, things changed, therefore the vision changed. And when the vision changed, the plan changed. And when the plan changed, the steps to achieve the plan changed.

All of sudden everything that I had given to one child for 9 years became me figuring out how to give it to two and three children, plus the children of my lovers, very quickly. I think it goes without saying I have been stretched. Not just me though, me and every mother or father who has multiple children and/or blended families. Especially, those close in age.

I look back and I'm thankful that it was just my oldest and I for 9 years, before she had to share me. Angel was a very happy and secure child during early childhood (conception/birth to age 8.) I believe her having somewhat (I say somewhat because I've always worked a lot) of my undivided attention had a major impact on her childhood. Angel also had a lot more support from my friends and family and was always showered with love.

She is now 13, but is what I consider a young adult. Our circumstance has caused me to rely on her for help with her siblings. As I watched my two youngest play yesterday, I was convicted in my spirit from taking that away from her. Her life got real serious, real quick too.

Angel is a certified babysitter through the American RedCross. I pay her as a contractor under my business to babysit her siblings. I am adamant about preparing my kids for life in a very practical way. I'm also building generational wealth and plan to teach my children and employ. Angel will have a nice resume by the time she wants to go out and pursue her passions. I am my children's first teacher, and I stand on that. But I don't want Angel to resent me for me needing her.

The effects of having more children has had a major impact on Angel as well. Her father, who she is now building a relationship with, was more absent that present for the first 13 years of her life. This has also had a major impact on her. Angel has experienced family violence as well. Research says she is more likely to experience family violence, because I did, and this is how the cycle continues if we let it.

I say all that to say that for the past five years my life has been a revolving door of survival. Surviving labor and delivery as a black woman feels like an accomplishment by itself, let alone motherhood. Surviving poverty. Surviving domestic and sexual violence. Surviving substance abuse. Surviving death of loved ones. Surviving being a woman. Surviving the system. Surviving failed relationships. Surviving abandonment. Surviving and more fucking surviving.

Yea... looking back, I got a little cold. I got a little harsh. I got a little traumatized lmao. I know it not funny, but I really have to laugh because its the truth and I survived it. It sounds like an episode of Law and Order: SVU. But why is it so many of our lives?

The truth is, "the system" is not set up for people like me to survive AND thrive. It is set up for us to perpetuate a cycle of being abused and being the abuser. It is set up for oppression. Oppression of the mind, body and spirit. Only when one seeks knowledge on their own accord do they really break free from this "system".

That's why I laugh. Because people like me, do the unexpected. We survive all the shit society throws at us, expecting us not to overcome. Yea, we come out with some scars, but we also become masters of transmutation. Transmutation, simply put, is taking one energy and transforming it to another by way of a medium.

The abused is now being used... by the Most High, God, Source, Allah, Universal life force, or whatever you subscribe to. We are speaking, writing, performing, educating, inventing and creating in a number of areas. We are passionate, because we have lived it.

We are busy and we are focused.

Not a bad place to be, but I want to be the fun mom again. And so, doing all of this transmuting and what not requires a lot of energy. It is especially hard for single-parent households.

I am at a place where, the more I pursue higher education, the more I learn about what the research says about OUR people. Exactly what I described is the face of MANY black and brown families, except many of them are not fortunate enough to pursue higher education. There is a deficit in our learning because of the traumatic experiences we have endured as a people. These experiences have shaped our view of the world. We have survived so long, its hard for some of us to imagine what life looks like when your thriving.

For me, thriving means I can have fun with my children again. It means laughing more than crying. It means asking for help from their fathers. It means being forgiving, but not being naive to wrong doings. I have been in protection mode, because one thing I'm not about to play with anybody about, is my kids. They didn't ask to be here. I willingly brought all three of them into the world and wouldn't change a thing. Outside of God, they are my life line. All I felt I had worth living for at many times. So yea, shit got serious. But as we all grow into different versions of ourselves, This version of me is releasing the part of me that says I have to have my kids with me 24/8 in order to be a good mom or for them to have the best outcomes. In fact, research says otherwise. Children who come from two parent households or single-father households have better outcomes.

This is why we need fathers to take back their rightful place as fathers, as protectors, as educators, as caretakers, etc. Black and brown fathers are needed. Not by the women, by the children! Women continue to break barriers and prove that we can survive these experiences, but our children experience the greatest effects of the stress single-motherhood brings.

With love, I am challenging mothers who are survivors to release control, trust the creator and allow the father of your children and/or who ever wants to support you to do so. If the father is active, stable and can provide a safe environment for your child (heavy on the safety), then don't be afraid to ask for shared responsibility despite what society has taught us. Men are just as capable or child-rearing as women. And if its the opposite, apply it as it fits.

Children benefit from being raised by people with varying views of the world. It is a village concept. Fathers, I challenge you to be more active and consistent in your children's lives, if you are not already. Notice, I didn't say financially stable. Although necessary, finances can be built over time. However, you can not get time back with your children. They will only be small once. And you are needed.

I believe now more than ever, black and brown families need to understand that our children are the future. They are also our first assignment. Take time to slow down and be present in raising your kids. Consider their needs, and what is in the best interest of all parties involved.

with love,

Denisha

[its-not-a-phase-mom-i-d8-demons]

pairings: Lucifer x Fem!Reader, Mammon x Fem!Reader, Leviathan x Fem!Reader

warnings: tw abandonment (but it turns out okay, I promise), mentions of the act of birthing,

A/N: you came to the right place! as the second oldest of six children, I have some experience when it comes to pregnancy:) I hope you don't mind, nonny, but I'm gonna split this up into a few parts so I can do the dateables as well!

Lucifer

The moment you had shyly produced the positive pregnancy test from the pocket of your hoodie, it felt like Lucifer had entered into a fever dream filled with nursery designs, baby names, the expenses that pile up before the baby even arrives, researching human pregnancy, keeping you out of harm's way and healthy and happy...

So when you first stagger out of bed and rush to his bathroom, hand clamped over your mouth and one shaky hand on your slightly swollen tummy, Lucifer isn't surprised

He is very concerned, however. You had been so nervous to tell him of your pregnancy, you waited until the last moment before your bump was noticeable to tell him

That meant you had been suffering from all of these pregnancy side effects before he'd permanently moved you to sleep in his room

Lucifer hoists himself out of bed and pads into the bathroom, gathering up your hair, if any, into his fist and pulling your hunched form between his legs for support

You hate this feeling with a passion; throbbing stomach and a lump in your throat with little to no vertigo and tears rolling down your face as you try and catch your breath

You tell him it hurts, you ask him if he can take the pain away as your head rests on his chest, lashes fluttering with wooziness

Lightheadedness was unbearably common; you would suddenly grip his sleeve and he could watch the color drain from your face and your knees get shaky, body beginning to sway

He always catches you though, finding a place for you to sit or lie down and gather yourself

Tummy rubs become more common; the feeling of his hands against your bare tummy, spreading their warmth and nullifying the ache, allowing you to relax

He's extremely attentive as well and can tell whenever you need something

Water? Here's a cup sweetheart, remember, you're hydrating and eating for two people!

Craving something? Chocolate? Fried pickles? Chips of some kind? sweets? He's stockpiled anything you could want and locked it away just for you.

I feel like Lucifer would want your baby to be a little girl. A little princess he can carry on his shoulders and spoil with his love and gifts.

Satan ruined him for having another baby boy, but if that's how the cards fall, he certainly wouldn't mind. Unfortunately, he'd be constantly walking on eggshells, afraid he'll make your little boy into another rebellious child

That's the last thing he wants

Lucifer does his best to keep his kid away from Satan and Belphie and out of the 'Formerly Anti-Lucifer League', but sometimes you're taking a nap or out shopping with Asmodeus, and Satan and his brothers manage to coerce the little one into their shenanigans

One thing is for sure though, even if Lucifer didn't want any kids and the creation of one was unplanned, he would never ever turn you away

He's very responsible and does anything in his power to make the pregnancy as easy and happy as possible

On the day you are to give birth, he's a mess

He has already sweat through 3 shirts by the time the IV has been secured to your hand

Everything he says doesn't come without a stutter

He's squeezing your hand and kissing your hair during labor, trying to distract you from the burn between your legs as much as he can

You probably need extra stitches from baby's horns ngl

Definitely cries before the baby is even put in your arms

Refuses to let his brothers come and see you, "They can wait until we go home."

Lucifer is Smitten™

He smooches the tiredness under your eyes and tells you to get some rest

Surprisingly, he enjoys a lot of the names from the human world you discuss and will most likely pick one of those

But if it's a girl, her name is Lilith. I'm sorry MC, your input is invalid at this time

You don't regret 'final day in the devildom sex' at all when you get to witness the Avatar of Pride reduced to tears when the nurse puts the child in his arms

P-P-Pregnant? MC, ya better be jokin'...

Mammon

You weren't, judging by the pregnancy test(s) clutched in your fist

He's not mad at you, he's not upset, (in fact, he's the happiest he's ever been), he just scared

Broken Condom Victim™

He loved you just a bit too hard last week...

but let's be real here, HIS MC, carrying HIS baby?

That's like the highest level of ownership on his lovely human you could get! Levi, Asmo, Beel, Lucifer, everyone would be SOOOO JEALOUS!!!

AND

He gets to have a little one running around again!

You saw how sweet he was to babified Satan in the obey me anime premier! He LOVES little kids and nothing would make him happier than someone to play with (besides MC of course) that wouldn't make fun of him for messing up and being silly!

AND

You're so pretty!!

I mean, ya were always pretty, but somethin' about ya is different and yer even more beautiful than before somehow!

Mammon said, his entire face the shade of a pomegranate

Pregnancy glow is REAL

Asmo agrees, after stealing you away from an extremely overprotective mammon and hiding in the attic to chat without disturbance (mammon)

But as much as YOU know he would be the BEST father, comments from his brothers continue to drag him down and the evenings he cried into your shoulder became more and more frequent as your pregnancy progresses

Mammon, as we all know, is, in fact, a tiddy man

He likes to touch and squeeze them, and just gently hold them while cuddling or even browsing in a store, he'd just come up behind you and touch your boobs

(also, mammon likes all sizes, so if you have next to no tiddy like me, you'll be at his mercy as well. those with the large honkers, however, watch yourself)

Now that there's a miracle growing in your tummy, other parts of your body are preparing for its arrival, including your chest

Swelling, swelling, soreness, growing and darkening of the nipples, and swelling make it so Mammon can no longer touch your pretty tiddies :(((

(grammarly didn't like that word)

On the day mammon snack size was to be born, mammon is silent but extremely fidgety

It was early in the morning when you'd shaken him awake like, "mammoney, I'm going into labor" and he was out of bed and out the door with your luggage before you finished blinking

After grabbing your DDD's and you, he carries you down to the car (what dysfunctional family doesn't have a car? a nice one (Mercedes, Audi, you get the idea) for lucifer and a Volkswagon bus or something for his siblings to share) and drives quickly, but very carefully drives to the hospital, holding your hand the whole way.

He covers your eyes when they put the IV in, just in case you're squeamish, and rubs your arms as the drugs begin to take effect and there's a little fear in your eyes at the thought of pushing an entire human/demon being out of your coochie

He assures you and never lets go of your hand no matter how long you're in labor

When it's all over with and you are resting in your hospital bed waiting for the doctors to finish the Apgar tests and give you your baby

Mammon is speechless as the nurse places the baby in your arms

That's HIS KID!!

Immediately starts crying

The little horns poking out of the blanket? Those look just like his!!

Judging by the bit of hair on it's head, it looks like the baby will have hair like yours

If it's a baby boy, he thinks it should be named "Mammon II" but you just giggle and remind him of the deal he made with lucifer long ago, that his first born child, no matter the gender, had to have 'Lucifer' somewhere in their name

Human names are dumb, except for yours of course, so he searches for suitable demon names

The last thing he wants is a kid named Lucifer, so that will be the kid's middle name

He really regrets his past decisions now

Leviathan

"Levi?"

"Yeah, babe?"

"I'm pregnant."

*leviathan has been KO'd*

No joke, this man is literally floored and didn't wake up for a while and you were afraid you had just slain the fucking Lord of Shadows

Some Henry you were

You had to call Lucifer in to wake him up because he was still flat on the floor a half and hour later

Mammon is more that happy to tip a bucket of ice water on the face of the son of a bitch that impregnated HIS MC

Levi wakes up and pounces on you, gripping you tightly by the arms

"You're k-kidding r-right?"

Him? A father?

Uhhhhhhh

Unfortunately, Leviathan.exe has stopped working, try again in two thousand years

I hate to say this, but he definitely detaches himself for a while until his brothers, especially Asmodeus, literally beat him into shape

He comes back to you, a little bruised and sobbing, but not from the beating he just received

He's so sorry he neglected you! He's such a horrible demon, undeserving of your welcoming nature

He's gonna be the worst dad, and he's not good enough for you, and his kid will hate him just like everyone else does, he doesn't deserve you, he's so sorry for making you suffer the side effects and feel all alone,

Sir, I-

FALSE

It's your turn to shake some sense into him, reminding him that he would be the. best. dad!!

Not to mention the fact that you were just happy he realized his mistakes and came back to you

He begs you to sleep in his bed tub with him for security, and you have to admit his tail is very comforting

Levi does extensive research on human pregnancy and now at the dinner table, instead of talking about the latest slice of life anime he'd been watching, he's just spouting random pregnancy facts and you're laughing so hard it brings you to tears

When the weird dreams and vivid nightmares happen, Levi is right behind you, rubbing your swollen tummy, and letting you talk about them

A lot of them were about him and about your future child

Most of them were about how they got hurt in some way, either that or YOU got hurt and the baby died

These, more often than not, brought you to tears and stress you out, but Levi is right there, okay? Nothing can hurt you, nor would he let anything happen to you on his watch

Learns how to massage you (safely) to reduce stress

Definitely talks to the baby a lot

Levi begged you to be induced so the birth was safe and not a sudden occasion and you agree

On the day the doctor recommended, you arrived at the hospital and got down to business

Levi didn't really want to be in the room with you, but he knew he had to for your sake and he'd played a few birth simulators from both perspectives and you really needed him

Kinda sits there awkwardly comforting you and encouraging you, holding your hand and caressing your cheeks, a bit flushed from exertion and tears

Listen

If the baby is a boy, his name will be Henry and that's final

If it's a girl, he doesn't really care, as long as you don't name her 'mammonia' or something dumb like that

definitely crashes your hospital bed to snuggle until the baby is ready

cries when the baby wraps its extremely small digits around one of his own

also at the little horns protruding from its head

and the tuft of purple in its head

Also Smitten™

He's so excited to get home and show off his beautiful baby to his brothers and then formulate a plan to raise the kid to live and breathe TSL just like his daddy <3

--

July 9th: VIP MEMBERS, GET YALLS JUICE!!

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[your-brilliant-lady-m]

Part 4 - Basic Concepts of Miraculous Ladybug: Glamour

You can call it however you want: kid's show logic, superhero disguise logic, magical girl show logic, cartoon laws, suspension of disbelief, etc. But the fact that nobody recognises Marinette, Adrien and others when they are suited up IS NOT BAD WRITING. It's one of the main laws of this genre. That's not because characters are stupid, okay? So, being frustrated that everyone in the show acts stupid about this "wearing a mask that covers only eyes" trope is strange. This criticism is not valid or fair.

But, this trope has to make sense in-universe as a worldbuilding and narrative element.

Miraculous doesn't give us much direct information on how glamour works. And in this case, I think we need both SHOW and TELL. Because if you don't establish the glamour rules clearly, you are going to run into problems and create unfortunate implications with your storytelling choices.

Appearance

Miraculous obviously gives our heroes magical glamour. In "Lady WiFi" we find out that masks can't be taken off. It's magic. No other explanation is needed.

Miraculous can slightly change the appearance of users (eyes, face shape, height and hairstyles). People can identify and notice the hairstyles of heroes (numerous Ladybug wigs, statue in Copycat). Jagged Stone points out the change of hair when he mistakes Chloe for Ladybug ("Antibug"). But it's just a costume. There is no magic that prevents Jagged from understanding that Chloe isn't Ladybug. So, how does it work? But it's forgivable because it's cartoon logic. Suspension of disbelief works here, I suppose. I won't judge this too harshly.

Glamour also obviously prevents people from making a connection that Marinette and Ladybug have identical hairstyles. So people know that Ladybug wears her hair in pigtails, but magic does not allow them to notice similarities.

Another important question. Does glamour work on Kwamis? Can they see who is behind the mask?

New York Special makes it clear that magic does not affect robots and they can see through glamour. Does that mean that Markov, AI built by Max, knows the identities of Ladybug and Chat Noir? And it's never addressed.

Plagg in "Frightningale" says that holders can subconsciously choose their superhero appearance. This is actually pretty interesting and I like this idea a lot. Except the show is not consistent with this. The transformation of Master Fu looks identical to Nathalie's. And we have seen how different from each other Ladybug and Black Cat holders looked in the past. At the same time, Master Fu and Nino have different takes on Turtle superhero suit.

Age Glamour

Does age glamour exist? Do people see Ladybug, Chat Noir and other heroes as adults even when they look like teenagers to the audience (their height and build are smaller even when they are transformed)? Is that why no one ever questions the fact that children nearly die on a daily basis?

I mentioned unfortunate implications earlier. Well, this is where they come into play. Let's talk about "Copycat". A lot of people discussed it before me, so I won't bore you with details.

When I watched "Copycat" for the first time Theo's crush on Ladybug didn't bother me, because I thought that he sees Ladybug as his peer, a girl who is about 20-23 years old. Theo is an artist, his character design is that of an adult. He has his own studio, its appearance indicates that he did serious commissions in the past. The guy has no idea that Ladybug is like 13.

But then we get "Heroes' Day" and "Ladybug". And Hawkmoth calls them "kids", which means that there is no age glamour. Others see Ladybug and Chat Noir as teenagers. Perhaps, other Miraculous users aren't affected by age glamour. Therefore regular people see all heroes as adults but other heroes are able to guess their age more or less correctly. But you must spell this thing out because the audience can interpret "Copycat" differently. If there is no age glamour, then Theo is crushing on a teenage girl and he is fully aware of this fact. And this doesn't look good for your show.

The "No Age Glamour" theory is further confirmed in "Sapotis" where Alya just straight up analyses voice recordings and says that Ladybug is a girl their age. If glamour exists then it should also cover technology. Kwami can't be photographed. Face and voice recognition software shouldn't be able to analyse transformed superheroes and detect their identities in any way.

Besides, after "Sapotis" Alya should definitely be sure that Ladybug is not 5000 years old (also not an adult), especially after she wore Miraculous herself and was one door away from detransformed Ladybug.

SEASON 4 UPDATE! There's no age glamour after all.

In "Furious Fu" Su Han calls Chat Noir a child without knowing his identity. It means that everyone knows their superheroes are teenagers. "Copycat" can't be saved from that, uh, subtext anymore. No one questions the danger of their job or the balance of their lives outside of the mask. No one doubts their competence after "Origins" ever again. No one becomes annoyed after being bossed around by two teenagers in spandex. You had many opportunities to drop these details into the narrative. Someone could have been akumatized over this (I will not be ordered around by some magical kids!).

I don't know why writers decided not to use at least this idea and slightly adjust "Copycat" if they got rid of the age glamour completely. It can be explained as kid's show logic, but unfortunately, I'm reluctant to do it. If many characters sympathise with akuma victims on-screen, why not with the teenage superheroes who must fight them?

New York Special had this weird focus on collateral damage out of nowhere (the damage done by sentimonster Robostus) and yet it has 0 effect on the main story. No one in Paris is pissed that their 2 teenage protectors weren't there.

Ironically, "Furious Fu" and that one remark made by Su Han also created unfortunate implications for other moments in the show. Just hear me out. Apparently, Jagged Stone wrote a "thank you" song for Ladybug knowing that she is 13-15 year old child back in "Pixelator". Fandom is more than happy to roast Lila for lying about saving Jagged Stone's cat and him writing her a "thank you" song. Fandom claims that Lila's tale could harm Jagged's reputation, when he wrote a song for teenage Ladybug several weeks prior. Meanwhile, in-universe this lie is 100% believable.

If we put on "realism glasses", then both this whole song situation and Theo's crush in "Copycat" have uncomfortable implications. However, the show's canon can't be viewed and criticised through "realism glasses". I admit that bits and pieces of my criticisms are affected by these "glasses", but, ultimately, I'm trying to be fair and concentrate only on things that can't be justified by "cartoon logic and worldbuilding".

Could the existence of age glamour solve this problem of unfortunate implications and other concerns mentioned above? YES. Is it better for the narrative? YES. Is essential for the story? NOT QUITE. Could the absence of age glamour be called an irredeemable storytelling flaw? NO.

Disclaimer: On a side note, only older audience can notice these implications. Children, the target audience, most likely won't understand this subtext simply because they don't have enough experience. So, perhaps, this criticism is unfair, because these moments only look weird to me as an adult. It's like an adult joke in a cartoon that you don't get until you reach a certain age.

There's nothing technically wrong with adult writing a "thank you" song for a teenager. It's just an expression of gratitude. However, unfortunately, we live in a world, where adults normally wouldn't write songs for teens to express gratitude only. In real life similar actions would imply pedophilia and would be actively scorned by the public. No one would risk their reputation like that even if their intentions were genuinely pure and sincere. But this show can't be viewed through "realism glasses", because it's a cartoon and in certain cases we as the audience must use suspension of disbelief and pretend that certain things are possible for plot to happen.

Su Han also wants to give Ladybug and Black Cat to adults. Why didn't Master Fu do this then? Writers don't give us any explanation. Throughout the show we never question this up until the moment it's revealed that adults don't have time-limited powers. Then comes "Furious Fu". Story suddenly becomes self-aware here. Because apparently nothing prevented Fu from giving the most powerful Miraculous to adults who won't have time limit and will be more effective against Hawkmoth (see part 3 for more details).

I have a very good example of Age Glamour done right. It works in the story. There is no confusion or unfortunate implications. There is like one plothole connected to the glamour (it's been years and I still can't forgive them for Cornelia and Caleb) but otherwise, it's a pretty solid example of both show and tell. Clearly, writers wanted to avoid uncomfortable implications which are present in "Copycat". I am talking about W.I.T.C.H. comic books and animated series.

If you are not familiar with it, I'll give you a brief explanation. The story follows 5 girls, the Guardians of Kandrakar who are chosen to protect their world and parallel ones from evil. They receive magical powers from the amulet known as the Heart of Kandrakar. Their powers are based on elements: fire, water, earth, air and energy. Our main characters are about 13-15 years old. In the animated series they are younger and they attend middle school, making them 12-14 years old. But the transformation makes them look 18-20. They look like young women to each other and to other people. At the same time, people can recognise them, their looks and voice don't change. Most people don't know that they are really teenagers when they are not transformed and these people don't know that magic can make them look older. That's why everyone treats Guardians like adults when they are transformed. Comics establish this fact in the very beginning. In first issues characters state that they look older, we are also shown this multiple times.

In fact, one of the first side plots revolves around the fact that Irma uses her powers to sneak into the disco club to meet up with her crush. Irma is 13 at the beginning of the series, she is a high school freshman. Her crush, Andrew Hornby is a senior guy 17-18 years old. Irma has liked him for a long time and wants to impress him, so she decides to be clever about this. She transforms into her Guardian form of the 18-year-old girl, hides her wings, sneaks out to the club after her parents are asleep without any problem, and meets Andrew, who obviously doesn't recognise Irma in this girl who looks about his age. Smitten Andrew offers her a ride and 13-year-old Irma doesn't understand the implication of that offer, so she accepts. And, obviously, he decides that she is interested in more than just a ride home, since she agreed, and the comic implies that he fully intended for them to have sex in the backseat of his car. But Irma understands the implication only when Andrew tries to kiss her. She panics and turns him into a frog. And she actually pulls this "I need to look mature" trick more than once over the course of the series.

It's not the only situation where this age difference is handled well and makes sense. People who know the main characters in everyday life remark on their older appearance during transformation. Sometimes people flirt with Guardians when they are transformed. In one of the side-novels centred around Cornelia, she is worried that the prince of the realm they helped to save from famine would try to marry her. That never happens, but Cornelia actually brainstorms with her friends about how to tell the prince that she is really 15.

There are many other plot points where this happens, but I think that you got the idea. I really like how "Age Glamour" was handled in W.I.T.C.H.

How do we fix this? Create the situations where people offhandedly mention "Age Glamour" in the presence of Marinette or Adrien, use Kwami for this.

"Don't worry, dear. Chat Noir and Ladybug are adults, who know what they are doing. I am sure that they will handle this. "

Theo could say: "Oh, I wonder which university Ladybug goes to?"

"So, does that mean that other people see us as grown-ups, Tikki?"

A few words and boom, problem solved. Then allow the "show don't tell" rule do the rest.

[ilovel0ki]

Burning Light

loki x oc

warnings: blood, war, almost deaths

Writing this has been super enjoyable for me. It's based off of Safe & Sound by Taylor Swift and The Central Wars. I really like the song and it gave me a jolt of inspiration.

Some angst and fluff, with a happy ending

Word count: 3.5k

I'm looking forward to have some of you read it. I know it may not reach lots of people but I do hope it brightens up someone's day :)

Unmistakeable clashing and clanging of swords echoed through the once-peaceful city - which lay in eerie unrest. Warriors strapped in bloodstained armour, which was once a lustrous luminescent gold, rushed around with panic-stricken faces, bringing their injured colleages with them. Their faces unrecognisable - smeared with tainted, crimson blood. Eyes once filled with joy and life had become dull with exhaustion. Even the children could tell something had gone quite wrong as they were being scrambled to safety. How couldn’t they, when only hours before they had been blithely engaging in play. Now they were being dragged into the promised safety of their homes. Still, on this side of town, the situation was slightly better.

Nevertheless, the fact was painfully clear; Asgard was at war.

A war that had only just begun. A war that would wreak just as much havoc as any other, unless handled conscientiously. Currently, that wasn’t going so well. The opposing kingdom hadn’t spoken of a reason to wage this sanguinary battle. They just barged in guns-a-blazing. One could only hope it would be over soon.

In the opposite side of town, the infamous Asgardian army, known for its expertise and experience, was busy and bustling. Healers were tending to those caught in the crossfire while others were getting ready to join it. The warriors were determined; they were trained meticulously for situations like these.

One such warrior was buckling up her hefty armor on her body, following that by trying to tie back her flowing vermillion-red hair. Unsuccessful, she stood straight. Tall, dignified and regal; she was a sophisticated beauty. And she knew it.

In need of help, the girl surveyed her surroundings. Brilliant blue eyes darted to and fro to gauge someone who could possibly help. Then, gleefully, she spotted a familiar face walk by. A very familiar face indeed.

With a hastily thought out plan-of-attack, Ilaire sauntered towards the aformentioned person. Wrapping her arms around him, she sultrily whispered in his ear, “Hey, Loki. Could you help me with my tiresome hair”.

Though Ilaire couldn’t see it, a slow smirk settled upon the trickster’s face. Loki turned on his heel and susurrated, “Darling, you need not put on that act. I would help you if you simply asked, after all have we not been friends since adolescence?”.

Ilaire flippantly nodded in answer as a chesire cat grin took over her face at having succeeded in her task. She flipped around to give Loki better access to her hair. Without complaint, Loki took charge of her fiery silken hair and began to masterfully twist her hair into an elegant yet practical fashion, as if he had done it all his life. In a sort of way, he had. With a raised hand, Ilaire tried - in vain - to pass a ribbon to Loki to tie her hair back.

“Don’t bother, I have already used my seidr to place a ribbon in your hair”, Loki acknowledged, amused. “It’s emerald green, isn’t it?”,exasperated, the warrior questioned with her hand on the bridge of her nose.

Loki chuckled in response.

“Well, thank you anyway”, she said as she stood on her tiptoes and kissed him on the cheek.

For a second, Loki’s mask of cold indifference slipped and gave way to something softer, akin to endearment. But it came back up just as Thor’s voice boomed across the army quarters.

“WARRIORS! The next waves must get ready to leave. Wave 32 and 33 get into position in 10 minutes, with Leaders Prince Loki and Lady Ilaire on the frontlines!”.

Centuries ago, Loki and Ilaire had trained together diligently and achieved higher ranks in the army hierarchy together. Both had now been promoted to a Leader position, the second highest position, preceded only by the Chief.

Thor’s information brought a surge of sobriety to the bantering friends as they realised what they were about to go into. They looked to each other, their eyes met and both nodded at the same time with locked jaws and unyielding glares. Synchronised, they turned to their corresponding waves and bellowed, “GET INTO POSITION WARRIORS!”.

A clangour resonated as the warriors began to put the remaining pieces of armour on. Ilaire’s usually welcoming eyes grew dark. Loki’s gaze grew steely. With a grave expression, Thor strode to their area. Without missing a beat, he trapped both Ilaire and Loki in an unwavering hug. It portrayed all of his emotions: distress; fear and concern. As he continued to not let them go, Loki’s choked voice broke out, “Brother, you must let us go”. Reluctantly, Thor pulled back and Ilaire could’ve sworn that his eyes were wetter than before. “Brother. Sister. Be careful. And most of all come back alive,” Thor spoke in a brittle voice.

Somewhere along the line, Ilaire had become an honorary Odinson family member. To Thor she was a sister and to Loki, she hoped she was something more. Still, a new wave of emotion passed over Ilaire as she heard Thor call her his sister. She fought valiantly to not be overcome with tearful sobs.

“Do not worry, Chief,” she called him in unbridled affection “We will try our best”, she replied in a hoarse manner. “Don’t miss us too much,” Loki too replied, with a rare smile and a suave salute.

The red-haired warrior clashed her sword on her shield to catch the attention of her assigned wave. “Alright, team! We’ve trained together for 150 years. We will continue to train far longer than that! We must! So go out and show those brutely creatures WHO’S BOSS!”, Ilaire’s battlecry washed over her warriors.

As the gates opened and perfectly formed formations walked out, merciless stony gazes could be seen all around. Loki and Ilaire stood at the frontlines, the wind amplifying their battle-hardened gazes. They both walked on the bloodsoaked ground, unfaltering, with a mission. As they got closer to the first of the aliens, Ilaire slashed at one, sending it accross the battleground. Beneath her feet, alien remains squelched and the air zinged with bloodshed.

The aliens were a sickly yellow with a strange slimy goo coating them. They were of a medium stature. Not too big but not too small. Ilaire had never seen such creatures.

Loki snarkily thought ‘They’re about Thor’s size. Doesn’t seem like this will be too hard’.

All around the two leaders, fights were breaking out and more yellow creatures were going down with them. Soldiers were slashing and punching with unmatched gusto. A pile of miserable dead opponents was starting to build up. Then something strange happened.

Something no one would’ve expected.

Something that shocked everyone.

Something that made perfect sense considering the earlier bloodshed.

The creatures that had been piled on top of each other started to melt and then meld together. It was a ghastly view. Bones shifting and rotting skin stretching. The creatures had melded together to become one mega-creature. A mega-creature larger than the small aliens before. Larger than Thor.

This truth dawned on the fighting forces and panic started brimming. Nothing like this had ever been faced before. It was entirely unprecedented. The Asgardian army certainly wasn’t trained for this. And judging by the drained, feeble warriors taken back to the healers, the other waves hadn’t realised this either. Alarm bells started ringing in Loki and Ilaire’s minds.

Loki’s mind started racing while simultaneously fighting off more of the alien soldiers.

Ilaire was frantically trying to think of a solution.

All thoughts seemed to evade them. The realm’s greatest minds had gone suddenly blank.

Panic was bubbling and almost tangible in the air.

One of the warriors, thankfully, came to the rescue, saving the situation like it was a damsel in distress. “SEPARATE THEM ONCE YOU KILL THEM, THAT WAY THEY CAN’T MOLD TOGETHER!”.

Ilaire let out a much-needed sigh of relief, yet she knew the real battle still remained. With a new plan, the waves started fighting with renewed vigour. After each kill, the creature was picked up and thrown on an empty space. Swords pierced and clanged, blood spattered and the beginnings of victory were starting to be seen. It was so close yet so far. Right within a hand’s reach, yet victory had not yet been snatched.

As Ilaire swerved to fight off another mega-creature, one approached from behind. WIth her eyes on the creature she was fighting, Ilaire did not notice the second creature. Loki’s mouth started to open in warning as he watched in fright. Unfortunately, his warning was a few seconds too slow. The creature grabbed a fallen sword and gashed at the sliver of skin between Ilaire’s chest and back armour with a mighty roar. Then a few things happened in succession.

A breathy gasp left Ilaire’s mouth as her hands grasped at her side, trying to gauge the situation. Her sword had unceremoniously dropped to the floor and lay lackadaisical. Her hands came away covered in her own blood, as more started to seep out. Crimson. Her breaths became raspy as she fell to her knees, head bowed. Several screams could be heard. Two of those were Loki and Thor.

Loki elbowed and slashed his way with an unmatched rage to reach his best friend. His mind was racing with denial, 'It could not end like this. It would not end like this.’

“Get out of the WAY!” he barked with barely held back anger.

Near the army quarters, Thor was making his way out to the battlefield. He would not sit by idly as his family was attacked. It was his turn.

As Thor reached his brother, he saw him kneeling beside Ilaire, undoing her armor and ripping a shred of his tunic to wrap it around her bleeding torso. “Take her to the healers, I will take care of this now,” Thor uttered quietly, yet if one looked closely, the simmering anger under his words was visible.

Then he yelled and charged towards his sorry opponents.

This left Loki. He looped his arms under her knees and shoulders and picked up Ilaire, and began to carry her towards the army quarters. “Love, look at me,” he spoke softly with a tender gaze.

It was getting harder for Ilaire to see by the minute as more blood was lost and her vision was spotting. “I can’t… I can’t,” Ilaire answered. A weak whimper escaped her lips.

“Yes, you can! Just focus on me”

Loki was starting to jog now, in desperation.

Commandingly, a shrill sound reverberated throughout the air. “LOKI ODINSON. WE ARE HERE TO COLLECT YOU. COME WITH US OR HAVE YOUR REALM FACE THE DISASTROUS CONSEQUENCES”.

Everything was going wrong. How could it have gone so wrong? Too much blood spilt and too many lives being lost by the minute.

Ilaire didn’t know what to do with this new command. Loki continued walking with an unreadable look on his face.

Ilaire struggled to keep her eyes open, but she got through until they had reached the healers.

A healer began to assess her; poking and prodding at the wound. Loki’s deperate voice rose, “Do something! Help her!”.

“The salve may take too long to brew. It could be too late for her,” the healer replied with an apologetic gaze.

“WHAT DO YOU MEAN! HELP HER! I AM THE PRINCE OF ASGARD AND SHE, A LADY OF THE COURT! THERE MUST BE SOMETHING YOU CAN DO!” Loki hissed.

“Prince Loki, we will try our best but there’s no guarantee”.

Loki growled and ran his hand through his hair in frustration. He was mad. He had injured himself too much to be able to use his magic. If only he fought more efficiently, if only he did more - maybe he could have healed her. If only.

After a grueling half hour, the healer gave the confirmation.

A half hour of desperate waiting for the news.

A half hour that seemed miles longer than it was.

Ilaire would make it.

'She's gonna make it'

Loki let out the breath he had been holding and slumped in a chair with relief. He had refused to let her out of his sight. A weary smile took shape on his face and he let out a breathless laugh of joy.

“Prince Loki, take her to the royal chambers and allow her to sleep. Until now she has had to stay awake until her healing was confirmed, in case of her becoming comatose,” the healer instructed Loki.

He walked to the stretcher Ilaire was laid upon and picked her up in the same style again. Ilaire wrapped her arms around Loki’s neck in a hug. “You’re alright,” Loki spoke through deep breaths with a reciprocated hug, rubbing her back to soothe her. Ilaire hugged him tightly. She almost died. She hugged him like it was her last time, because it very well could be. She didn’t want to waste this precious time.

God, Loki was grateful. Grateful she made it. He didn’t know what he would’ve done if something happened to her.

_______

Ilaire was carried to the Royal Palace adjoining to the army quarters. As she was gently dropped on her bed, she spoke for the first time since her attack. She knew Loki would go to the opposing kingdom. He would not wage a war on his own kingdom. “Don’t go Loki,” she pleaded, “I’ll never let you go”.

“Ilaire, I have to go. You know I do,” a tear ran down his face as he spoke the words that would seal his fate. A fate without her.

“Don’t leave me here alone,” Ilaire choked out as hot tears brimed in her eyes. “You’ll always have my spirit. Just think of me,” Loki smiled through the gut-wrenching pain. He really, really didn’t want to leave. But, for once, he wanted to do the right thing. For once, he wanted to earn her friendship.

“Go to sleep, Ilaire. You need it to heal,” Loki cleared his throat before speaking. A protest fought to release itself from Ilaire’s mouth but Loki raised a hand to cut it off. “You know I must do this. There is no use in arguing. I just want you to be safe”, his voice grew hoarse at his last words.

Loki spoke again, “Just close your eyes, the sun is going down. You’ll be alright, no one can hurt you now. Come morning light, you’ll be safe and sound”.

As much as she tried to fight it, Ilaire could not hold off sleep any longer. She wished she could stay awake so that she could convince the love of her life to stay. She wished he didn’t have to sacrifice himself. She wished he didn’t have to go at all. She wished to say and hear so many things that had been left unsaid. But sleep was consuming her. And time was running out. The sand in the hypothetical hourglass was falling at an ever-faster rate.

As her eyelides fluttered, she started to speak, “I lo…,” before sleep consumed her and she trailed off.

She had failed to say those three small words. Three small words. The ones that could’ve changed her life. The ones she will never get to say to him again.

Loki stood and wiped the tears off her face and kissed her cheek, before bringing up a blanket to cover her.

“I love you, Ilaire. I wish we had more time. But we do not. Maybe, one day, we’ll find each other in a another life and live peacefully. Who knows, we could have had a beautiful castle with the most magnificent grounds. Overlooking a view almost as beautiful as you. Or maybe we could’ve had a cottage. On the edge of the woods, next to a crystal clear lake", Loki spoke. He knew as he uttered those words that they will never get to do that now.

Neither heard the words of the other.

With that, he left, making his way back on to the battlefield.

__________

"IT IS I, LOKI ODINSON,” he presented himself. The alien leader made his way to the front. “Goodness, you’re a puny one. Whatever. Chain him, minions”, the yellow leader commanded. Thor watched in shocked silence. But even he knew that this had to be done. The brothers nodded to each other in farewell.

Loki was dragged, in chains, to the ostentatious spaceship of the aliens.

“You have stolen from me, Odinson,” a voice reached him. Loki struggled to remember what he had stolen. There were so many things he had recently pilfered. Then it hit him. He had stolen Maricusan. The most versatile and strong material in the nine realms. This material was used to make the Odinson family armors. And it came from Maricus. The planet known for being deceitful. This meant that their word was false. Unsurprisingly, they were also known for making false deals.

They would not only kill Loki but pillage Asgard too. At this moment, Loki realised he was in deep shit.

A minute ago, he had gone willingly. Now he would fight back. He would fight back to see his brother. He would fight back to see his beloved. With one swift motion, he pulled his hands apart, resulting in the chains snapping with an audible snap. As creatures advanced on him, he kicked and punched while using his clones to distract. Then, through the corner of his eye, he saw an opening in the door, which he managed to slip through.

As he re-entered the battlefield once again, he signaled to Thor. Thor’s eyes widened in shock at the sight of his brother. By now, he too had discovered the yellow Maricusians’ melding properties. The two brother came up with the quickest battle strategy they had ever made and got to work.

____________

In the Royal Palace, Ilaire had woken up. Her sleep was restless and a headache plagued her along with her rampant thoughts. Her beloved was going to sacrifice himself. Or maybe he had done so already. Pain stabbed her heart and tears started to collect in her eyes again. She did not want to be a whiny mess, but what else was she supposed to do? She was helpless against fate.

Sobs warcked her body. Then she saw a glint through her window. She curiously peeked towards it. Then she noticed the ongoing battle. The war was raging on. Now she was confused. Brows furrowed, she looked harder. Then. Then she saw the trademark emerald green and gold. Her heart soared in hope she dared not have.

'Was that Loki?'

She impatiently waited for the man to turn around, biting her nails in nervousness. Sand fell tantalizingly slow in the hypothetical hourglass. Time trickled by leisurely. Never had a moment seemed so long.

It was Loki.

The man was Loki.

A beaming smile broke out on her face as her tears turned to those of joy. She could hear a joyful tune playing in her head. It was a victory song. She felt victorious. She felt victorious for the first time on that horrendous day.

Their eyes met, and their smiles matched. Loki's eyes glinted with affection.

Too weak to join her warriors, Ilaire looked out at the battlefield. Nervously, waiting and hoping. And when the last blow happened, she was lost in felicity. They had done it. They had won. They got through unscathed. Sort of.

Hurriedly, Ilaire raced as fast as she could with her striking injury to get out to the battlefield. She saw Loki and he saw her. He held his arms out and she jumped into them, hugging him ferociously.

“Darling, you should be resting. That is a rather large wound,” he spoke in relief. He was glad to see her.

“You were supposed to die!” she replied.

“Good to know you like me alive,” Loki grumbled.

Like that, the two continued to banter, as Loki walked her back to her chambers, a hand around her shoulders too keep her steady.

When Ilaire entered her room, she started to speak, “Loki, there are many things I wish to say to you. One thing in particular. As I was thinking about possibly losing you, I thought of the things I never got to say”. She paused to gather her breath and to collect strength. She oh-so-very desperately hoped her words didn't come out as verbal diarrhoea.

“I love you. I love you, Loki. I have ever since you picked out that flower bouquet for me. Or when you spar with me. Or when we argue.” She chuckled, “I still keep those flowers preserved because its such a lovely memory.”

She stood with bated breath and nervousness running through her veins.

Loki's face had become softer somehow. His eyes were warm. And when Ilaire realised that this warmth was directed towards her, butterflies collected in her stomach.

“Ilaire, I adore you. I love you with the heat of a thousand suns. Yes, I know that’s cliche. But those are my feelings. You are my beacon when everything else fails. So, I wish to ask you something."

A pause.

Be mine?” he asked with a tender smile and soft blue eyes.

“Say that again,” Ilaire commanded hoarsely.

“Be mine” he smirked.

“Yes,” Ilaire whispered breathily.

Loki rushed forward and gathered Ilaire in his arms, glad to have found his love; his best friend.

“Come morning light, you and I’ll be… safe and sound”

This is what I imagine my OC to look like. Feel free to change as you please :)

Let me know your thoughts and if you'd like me to write something else <3

[oswednesday]

could we possibly get an update on your tmasona :3c i feel like maybe some things have changed, or i'm just getting confused...

omg yeah i need to update their art ref! ill get to it, i have to finish up some other stuff first! omg yeah ive been adjusting things as i go, making themes clearer i guess! or w/e fits the setting better a i listen again, omggg thank you for asking, also im so rendered playdough soft that youre keeping track enough to feel confused like,o mg ;x ;, okay so updates!:

-theyre born in america to a beholding cultist group, their parents are like Teachers With Doctorates, they have six other siblings (who also all go different ways) the upbringing is like zero privacy 100% authoritative, they live on the compound which doubles as like a high end Alternative Schooling, i imagine they would have called their parents ma'am and sir more than mom and dad, its competitive family dynamic and theyre being Trained to take the archivist position on the off chance that gertrude dies of old age (i think given that a branch in china had a guy lined up thats a reasonable thing to assume the cult does as a whole?), they attend like a compound boarding school with other cultist children (like, america has A LOT of cult compounds,, so i think it would be def a thing for dread god followers, and since tmi has like Some kind of academic standing, with american culture there’d be some kind of accredited legitimacy to the school)

-they go to whatever fancy university for a weighted accelerated library sciences program that their family has a connection to, with like the smallest bit of experienced freedom they also take art classes at a Less Nice For Profit liberal school thats just a block or so away from the other as it tends to be in small american cities that are designated college towns, theyre like so paranoid about being caught and watched and judged that they go through the whole trouble of fabricating a whole entire different person to be for the other school which does not check anything ‘cause theyre getting paid, which like the money dries up a bit enough for them to start up some Fraud, i think the very start of like the identity theft is the End, but before that they would keep track of everything like taking notes about different places different selves needed to be, keeping track of lies the best they could, theyre the only one of the siblings left who havnt made it Super clear theyre with a different patron, so they feel the obligation to keep it up, i also think there’d be a lot of, wow no one can ever know anything about my terrible fucked up monster life so no one can get close, i cant even get close to me, vibe going on with all that

-this is the lead up to the psychotic break they have, and it Looses them up enough to experience the spiral, during the break down they find a book that Feels Familiar and its like, transcribed recordings of children in therapy conversations accompanied with art from the patient , it probs has a Misleading title like “my wonderful changing body and me!” like one of those youre going through puberty and instead of helping you emotionally im going to toss a book at you and leave the room kind of thing

-so they get lost a while, read a book in peace, break a mirror in a way thats v symbolic, like a representation of their sense of self becoming fractured, they use their blood to mark where theyve been, its all very trans formative and dramatic, (like they def arnt using they/them before this, they embrace the multiplicity of it all)

-their Purpose is to lead victims through, they create and maintain narrative mazes for people to get lost in and lead them to madness (so, like the metanarrative function of pyramid head, or like the bartender+delbert grady in the shining, or like the night clerk in the first downfall game? i guess the second one too but the first one has that vibe im going for and is less symbolic over all), this also means they like vacuum up after a messy meal

-the title that old fashioned people use is the minotaur, but stuff about their role within the cult as a concept is like jaws of madness, the teeth, the porter, doorman, caretaker, maid, whatever nondescript jobs victims see them having

-happening simultaneously to that metaphysical stuff, their physical self drops out of everything and a distant aunt offers to take them in which their family is Fine with cause their a disappointment and all, but it turns out their aunt is a house that like uk buzzfeed and travel blogs calls the mouth of madness, its like a winchester house, m takes it over and converts it to a bed and breakfast tourist spot for the income and it just, becomes a legit hotel business (but i think thats after the great twisting fell through)

-so timeline wise its, breakdown, impulsively marrying the physical embodiment of the lonely,the great twisting, hotel

-like cause they had no place of their own there was no place for them to go after the twisting fell through so they went no where, it was real upsetting tho

-things that not every minotaur had but some could do so this is like personal quirks! is they can move the understanding of physical things to create obstructions as long as its repetitive,so making mazes and labyrinths! and sometimes their fabricated spaces are like noticeably fake, they also cant balance a lot of victim plots and make new space like the first purpose comes first even when the second function would benefit

- they look however you expect them to look whatever that means for you but they also have a static like base self that they can like, replace with other selves

-like seeing the pure concept like how the distortion is that weird long fuckhands thing, their True shape is like a vitruvian man in constant motion like a photographic blur, you could probs see how a leg could be a tail and how shifting heads and shoulders could be horns and how weapons held by many hands are hooves of a beast

-there’s not always time for any of that so sometimes they have to just lock someone up, let their mind fill in the blanks and do them an insanity, box cutters have a nice sound but power drills are more appropriate for quick jobs

-they can fully Check Out of their physical body and just leave it there, they eventually have to go back and get it tho, it can do its own thing but its primarily customer service auto pilot

-their dreams are like realistically mundane, with the occasional interruption of something that catches up with them (like if they cut their hand off irl itll be fine but theyll eventually have a normal dream where their hand gets severed) (they also do a lot of work in dreams but they like differentiate between like im consciously doing stuff in the dreamscape and im a victim here dreams but theres no real, difference, thats not really their thing to be in control of)

-i think the sum of their personality would be like someone who exclusively talks in customer service voice and when theyre not working theyre a nervous wreck, they hide behind stuff when ever they can and feel more comfortable with something between them and other person like a wall or a magazine or a counter desk, that sort of thing

[katkatkatina]

Are YOU also faking it?

Entry number two.

Still trying to make sense out of this. What am I writing about? Who wants to read this? Who is my audience? Should I even worry about audience? Nevermind this, I'll figure it out as I go.

I write for a living. . And I am working on becoming a better copywriter. This is not what I was trained for, but I like to consider myself a writer. Or at least eager to learn how to write. In my opinion, if something gives your brain an itch and a scratch and you have the courage to put it on paper, without insulting anyone or being a total douchebag, you qualify as a writer. A good one? Well, that is debatable. Leave it to your audience to decide.

I found a copywriting guru. His writing is honest, raw. He doesn't give a fudge (insert swear word here). Or he does but he's such a good writer that you cannot detect the fudge giving from his words. I'm subscribed to his newsletter. It's not free. I want to write newsletters for which I will have the confidence to charge actual money. I want to be that sure of my writing skills. Or I want to be the best faker in the business. Either way, cash would come in.

Do we all fake it?

Remember when you were a kid and you watched adults get dressed in the morning in their grownup clothes and having their grownup coffees and talking about 'this meeting' or 'that meeting', being so important and so very grownup? Remember playing in your room, pretending to be a grownup and pretending to go to meetings, pretending to be a cashier, secretary, businessperson, whatever rocked your boat and made you feel important. You wanted to be an adult. It was a world you couldn't be a part of because you have to 'grow up', whatever that meant.

Fast forward to today. Are you the grownup now? Do you talk about meetings? Do you drink your grownup coffee and adultly comment on current events? And if you do, are you aware that you are faking it? Do you let yourself admit that it's all bullsh*t and that you are still that kid pretending to be an adult? Even when you are raising your own children, even when they are the ones now looking at you and thinking 'this is a grownup'.

I am very much aware of how much I fake being an actual adult. The age is there. The body is aware. My life's experience gives me the arrogance to think that today's kids know nothing and my generation was better, more hardworking, smarter.

Behold, I am here to judge your existence because I AM AN ADULT. My years on this Earth are proof. I am forty two years old. I've been through stuff. I've been on my share of meetings. I've had my coffee.

But, somehow, I'm still faking it.

I'm a child. I am still that little person, impressionable, scared, ignorant, fearless, happy, angry, genuine. And faking it big time. But I fake it for real. My fake is raw, honest, I own it. I'm aware of my ignorance. And it makes me more adult than I could ever imagine.

Are you?

[dukereviewsxtra]

Duke Reviews Xtra: 102 Dalmatians

Hello, I'm Andrew Leduc And Welcome To Duke Reviews Xtra Where We Continue Our Look At Disney...

Where Yesterday We Talked About The Remake Of 101 Dalmatians So, Today We're Looking At The Sequel, 102 Dalmatians...

This Film Sees Cruella Undergoes Hypno Therapy Which In Turn Cures Her Of Her Dognapping Ways And Gets Her Parole But When The Doctors Discover That The Sound Of Big Ben Turns Their Patients Back To The Way They Were, Cruella Is Soon Back To Her Old Plans Of Creating A Dalmatian Puppy Coat...

Will Cruella Be Stopped?

Let's Find Out As We Watch 102 Dalmatians, We Start With A Pretty Good Opening...

Before Cutting To A Behavior Therapy Lab, Where After 3 Years In Prison, Cruella De Vil From Her Lust For Fur Coats, Her Doctor Proceeded This Through An Experiment That Turns Predator And Prey Into Best Friends...

Taking This To A Judge, He Decides To Release Cruella On Parole, However, If She Goes Back To Her Dognapping Ways, All Of Her Money Will To The Dogs Homes Of Westminster, In Other Words Her Money Will Go To The Dogs...

Mending Her Working Relationship With Her Valet, Alonso, She Has Him Lock Away All Her Fur Coats But Her Parole Officer, Chloe Simon Suspects She's Up To Something (Mainly Because She Is The Owner Of One Of Pongo And Perdita's Puppies, Dipstick Who Is Now Grown Up)

No Offense But What Made Them Think We'd Care To See One Of The 15 Puppies Grown Up With A Family Of Their Own In Someone Else's Home...

I Mean, If It Was Roger And Anita's Daughter, That Could Have Worked But With This...

Anyway, Dipstick's Mate, Dottie Has Recently Given Birth To 3 Puppies: Domino, Little Dipper And Oddball (Who Has No Spots But Will Basically Do Anything To Get Them To The Point Of Causing Trouble)...

In An Effort To Mend Her Reputation, Cruella Buys The Second Chance, Owned By Kevin Shepherd (Played By Mr. Fantastic) To Solve It's Financial Issues. Chloe Pays Kevin A Visit To Convince Him That Cruella Hasn't Changed But He Shows Her Otherwise As We Get An Interesting Version Of Cruella De Vil In The Background...

But As Cruella Is Succeeding In Fixing Her Reputation, Dr. Pavlov Discovers That When His Patients Are Exposed Loud Noises Namely The Sound Of Big Ben, They Revert To Their Original States..

So, When Big Ben Strikes In Chloe's Office When Cruella Is There.,,Well...

(End At 2:33)

Getting All Her Furs Out Of Storage And The Dalmatian Puppy Coat Design That Anita Made...

Which I Have No Idea How She Got, I'd Have Thought Anita Would Burn That After What They Went Through...

Cruella Decides To Get Revenge On Dipstick For Taking Away 3 Years Of Her Life By Going After His Children, So, Enlisting A Furrier Named Jean-Pierre LePelt, She Plans To Steal 102 Dalmatians For The Dalmatian Puppy Coat...

Which Has Now Been Modified From It's Original Design To Include A Hood...

Taking The Dogs To The Park One Day Chloe Runs Into Kevin And His Animal Family (Including Waddlesworth (Voiced By Eric Idle) Who Is A Parrot Who Believes That He's A Dog) To See A Puppet Show In The Park...

But When One Of The Puppets Is A Dog With Spots, Oddball Causes Hijinks To Happen...

With Kevin Saving Oddball, He Asks Chloe Out To Dinner And She Says Yes...

Just Whatever You Do, Don't Go Dancing...

(Start At 0:25, End At 1:14)

But Stopping By A Karaoke Bar Won't Hurt...

Making A Deal With The Puppeteer Kevin Was Able To Obtain The Spotted Jacket That Oddball Was After As Kevin Takes Her To An Italian Resturant Called Tony's While The Animals Watch Lady And The Tramp...

No, But It Is Kind Of Interesting As I Read On Disney Wiki That Actor Ioan Gruffudd Dated Chloe's Actress Alice Evans And Married Her In 2007...

They're Still Married To This Day...

So, I Guess Even Though This Movie Bombed Some Good Did Come Out Of It...

Saying Goodbye To Chloe, Kevin Gets His Dogs And Waddlesworth (Who Is Singing Bella Notte)...

Though Since It's Eric Idle, I'm Surprised He's Not Singing This...

Having Alonso Dognap Puppies In The City For LePelt, Cruella Decides To Let Kevin Take The Fall For For Cruella's Crimes Revealing That He Has A Prior Record Of Dognapping Himself, Leaving Chloe Betrayed...

Attempting To Make Her Feel Better, Cruella Invites Chloe And Dipstick To A Dinner Party She's Throwing At Her Mansion, Chloe Says Yes Not Knowing That The Party Is A Distraction So LePelt Can Get Dottie And The 3 Puppies...

But Dipstick Soon Leaves The Table When Cruella's Dog Shows Him And Chloe The Room Where Her Furs And The Dalmatian Puppy Coat Design Is

But When LePelt Attempts To Steal Dottie And The Puppies, Oddball Distracts LePelt And Uses The Twilight Bark To Get The Other Animals To Contact Her Father, Which He Does Racing Home And Hopping In LePelt's Truck As It Takes Off With His Family ...

However, Chloe Is Soon Caught By Cruella Who Admits She Framed Kevin And Is Going To Steal Her Puppies Before Locking Her In The Secret Room...

But Not For Long As Cruella's Dog Frees Chloe, Having Enough Of Her Evil Master. After Waddlesworth Translates The Message Of The Twilight Bark, Kevin Is Intent On Getting Out Of Jail To Save Chloe's Dogs So He Uses Waddlesworth To Get The Keys From The Guard...

Eventually Getting The Keys, Kevin Busts Out Of Jail With His Dogs And Waddlesworth But He Arrives Too Late, Chloe's Dogs Are Gone As Kevin Explains The Reason He Has A Dognapping Record, Is Because He Broke Into A Lab To Free Dogs That Were Being Experimented On...

With Chloe Happy About That, They're About To Get Even More Happier As One Of Kevin's Dogs Finds A Ticket For The Orient Express To Paris As Oddball Escape VanPelt And Cruella When It's Discovered She Doesn't Have Real Spots...

Alonzo Attempts To Kill Her But Fails As Do Chloe And Kevin When They Attempt To Stop Cruella But When Oddball Tries Boarding The Train To Save Her Family, Waddlesworth Goes To Save Oddball By Flying To Her Rescue And Getting Her On Board The Train...

Getting Tickets For Another Train To Paris, Kevin And Chloe Find Cruella At LePelt's Fur Factory, Kevin And Chloe Save The Captive Puppies But Are Soon Caught By Cruella Who Locks Them In The Cellar...

With Cruella Going After The Puppies Herself, Alonso Has Had Enough Of Cruella's Abuse And Deals With LePelt Before Freeing Chloe And Kevin...

Going Into A Bakery, Oddball And The Puppies Trap Cruella In A Gigantic Cake Before Chloe And Kevin Find Them...

So, With Cruella And LePelt Arrested, Cruella's Fortune Goes To Kevin And The Second Chance Shelter And Oddball Gets Her Spots As Our Movie Ends.,,

And That Was 102 Dalmatians And Even Though I Will Admit The Film Is A Mess, I Kind Of Liked It...

While The Story Is A Good Idea, It's Badly Executed As The Film Is Barely Connected With The First One With No Characters From The Original Except Cruella, Alonso And Dipstick...

It's Obvious That Rushed To Release A Sequel After The Success Of The First One But Had No Idea What To Do Story Wise...

But At Times I Will Say The Comedy In The Film Works As Good As The First And I Did Enjoy Glen Close As Cruella Again, But That Still Doesn't Change The Fact That The Film Needed More Characters From The Original To Make The Story Work

And Because Of That I Say Skip It...

Till Next Time, This Is Duke, Signing Off...

[iamacolor]

yousana secret santa again! wow, that light exhibition sounds lovely!! I'm sure you had a great time. so a little q/a, I'm good with fanvideos or fanfics, is there any preference for one or the other for you? also do you like soft songs or something a bit high tempo? and lastly, totally unrelated but I see you watch kdramas from your blog, so many of my friends have been wanting me to watch them, which one would you recommend?

hello dear secret santa, hope you’re doing well!!!

oh I very very rarely watch fanvideos (i don’t really know why tbh? I have friends who’ve made some and I’ve loved them, I think it’s just that I’ve never really searched for it) but I do read fanfiction and I think I prefer reading about scenes/moments/dialogue that can’t be found in canon

that song question is very tricky because although I listen to a lot of soft songs, I’ve recently come to enjoy different styles so I think it depends why I’m listening to music for (in the street, while working on writing or on designing, while reading, just listening..) - not a very clear answer I’m sorry!

oooh nice question!!! i’ve started watching kdramas less than a year ago now so I’ve mainly watched shows that came out a few years ago and few that came out this year, I only followed one in real time but that means all the ones I recommend are easily found online with english subtitles!

recommendations are quite tricky because I’ve watched some very different genres so I guess it also kind of depends on what you like? but still here are some of the ones I’ve enjoyed the most/that touched me the most (oh there’s always a love story more or less important to the plot):

- just between lovers (quite sad because it deals with a lot of trauma and survivor’s guilt but in a way I found very respectful and not too “drama and tragedy for the sake of it” and the dynamic between the two leads was really good! despite the pain the characters go through you finish it feeling soft)

- catch the ghost (not the best plot and pacing for a crime show let’s be honest but the characters and their dynamics were so great and made up for it!! I loooved the two leads so much each individually as well as their pairing - my blog’s been full of them lately lol there’s so much care and understanding between them and aslo the show can be really really funny)

- her private life (a very, very, very nice rom-com, just enough tropes and new twists on fake dating and hidden identities, well crafted-well written-complex main characters!! I coul’ve done without a few stuffs but overall it was a really great and sweet show -without being too sweet!)

- 100 days my prince (the only historical drama I’ve watched so far and I like the balance between the romance and the political/court plot, one of the lead has amnesia for a long part of the show which can be a tricky subject but I thought the show dealt with it well and the use of tropes (romantic or dramatic) didn’t bother me as I liked the characters)

- Weightlifting fairy kim bok-joo (the first one I watch so it’s special to me, it’s a very nice and soft one even if it’s not always super happy, but it has a great “ennemy-quickly friends-to-lovers” relationship and great representation of friendship and what it’s like to go through college)

- fight for my way ( this one has a great childhood-friends-to-lovers relationship without it being the center of development for the characters as I felt it mostly dealt with young adults trying to figure out how to live out their dreams and to make choices for their lives and career in today’s world)

- miss hammurabi (didn’t really think I would like this one at first as it’s set in court, it’s set in a group of judges dealing with civil cases when a new young female judge full of empathy and desire to change things start working there, the issues that they dealt with in their cases and the debate over the ethics of their work were super interesting and touching and felt very contemporary, the intrigue of the court behind-the-scenes and the power of the hierarchy were sometimes shocking but very well discussed and if I remember well it was written by an ex-judge, the romance is quite low-key in this one but the relationship between the different judges and the court personnel is very rich and I was touched by a lot of cases they dealt with. The only thing I’m uncomfortable with in this drama, is that in the 1st episode when trying to prove a point about how women should not be criticized for what they wear the lead female character wears a burqa and one of the judges get overly scared of her but it’s never dealt with)

- healer (from what I understand it’s a classic even if it’s not really old but it’s got everything!!! great heros, some good, some more morally grays but all well written and touching and going through a learning/self-discovery curve, great balance of the plot between action-journalistic investigation-romance-team building, there are a lot of flashbacks as it often deals with the outcome of the actions of a group of people in the 80′s and there are great relationships developped over the generations and between characters that can seem too different but work well together, i really liked the main pairing!! and the main team was really great)

- my id is gangnam beauty (the synopsis intrigued me as it tells the story of a young girl starting university after having a full facial surgery, she still has issues with her self-esteem and how she views herself and when she enters college thinking no one will recognize her, a boy does. It deals with some serious themes over the expectations put on women to look a certain way and the behaviour they adopt because of it while also dealing with a first love experience (really like the pairing and the way the relationship developed) and getting into college)

- one spring night (it’s one that felt very “grown-up” to me without being too heavy, the story can seem quite simple - a woman who already has a boyfriend that she doesn’t really get along with anymore and whom she doesn’t plan on marrying meets ayoung pharmacist who is a single father. From there the relationship is explored in a very delicate way even if they face many obstacles from the “ex”-boyfriend and the family - just wanted to slap them sometimes- and I loved the production and the directing, the characters aren’t tropes)

- age of youth (i’ve only watched the first season -it’s evry rare that kdramas have more than 1- and I loved it but the second season changed the casting for one of the main character and it put me off since she’s the one who starts the story- it’s about 5 girls living in a shared house in seoul -most of them are college students and they all have very different lives and issues to deal with but a certain camaradery and care is built between them as they live together and support each other, it’s got a bit of everything and none of the girls felt like tropes of clichés to me and all were very interesting)

- coffee prince (this one is a real classic from the 2000′s and it deals with the story of a young woman who pretends to be a man for her job, problem is her boss and her develop a very special connection and she doesn’t want to reveal she’s a woman while he questions himself, it’s also about how they work togetehr and with a team to create a new coffee place and the bond between the team members and how their relationship affects that - it’s very well acted and despite the touchy subject it never feels like it’s too much, it’s always very touching and it’s very angsty!)

- father is strange (this one is a loooong one, most kdramas last 16 episodes, this ones has 52 I think? I definitely didn’t bing that one but I highly recommend it. It’s a great story about family - both blood family, living with your relatives and growing up to see your parents as people and not just your heroes and found family, what makes a family? a young actor goes looking for his father and the man he finds has a family and 4 grown children - one of his daughter being the actor’s assistant- he starts living in with them only he doesn’t know the man isn’t actually his father. You follow the story of each daughter and the actor as well as the parents dilemmas over revealing their identity or taking care of the actor. Each relationship is well crafted and goes through highs-and-lows - there’s one very annoying couple, the in-laws of one of the daughter- and despite the lenght I never felt bored because each character was well taken care of and well written)

I can’t make short lists and short presentations I’m sorry, I tried in the beginning but kind of gave up by the end! I hope you’ve found something to watch in these recommendations, if you want more infos on some of these shows or want to know about the others I’ve watched (I might’ve forgotten a good one that I liked and that would fit you more) don’t hesitate to ask! and if you start watching one of these, please let me know what you think!!