#i know this is a bit uninspired but i wanted to post something while i work on other stuff

[cherrygirlfriend]

⋆. 𐙚 ˚ cuffing season

pairing: reader x bsf!rafe synopsis: reader isn't getting enough attention from rafe, so she has the bright idea to cuff herself to him. warnings: smut, piv, unprotected sex, MDNI! - wc: 1.7k a/n; i’ve lowkey been depressed and uninspired lately so i might just post my old content for a bit. anyway; originally posted 12/14/2024

bsf!masterlist ♡ rafe masterlist ♡

every man smarter than a fifth grader knows one thing for a fact; women thrive on attention. when you ignore a flower, leaving it in the shade, unwatered for days, it wilts up and dies. and you may have well been a gardenia in your past life with how much attention you required. and you? you were definitely wilting up.

it had been two weeks since you last saw rafe; you'd texted him, trying to make plans, but he kept saying how 'busy' he was, or telling you to buy something nice, and it'd be "his treat". what use were cute clothes and sexy lingerie when there was no one to show them off to?

to be fair, he really was busy. you preferred to keep yourself in the dark when it came to rafe's business, simply humming a song inside your head when he talked business with someone while you were sitting in his lap, but you knew he spent most of his time cooped up in his father's old office, but now, he was barely answering your texts, and you decided enough was enough.

so, one night you decided to surprise him. to help him... destress.

you put on one of the new lingerie sets you'd gotten on rafe's dime, wearing nothing over it but the classic/cliché beige trenchcoat, a surprise in your pocket.

you got out of the uber in front of the cameron household, your heels clicking against the cobblestone as you walked up to the door. normally, you'd ring the doorbell, but not wanting to ruin the surprise, you took the key rafe had given to you for 'emergencies', in this case it really was an emergency. you felt like you might die if he didn't touch you.

kicking the heels off your feet when you got inside, you looked around; the house you'd spent time in ever since you were both kids was always so strange in the dark. and now that rafe was the only one living there, the house felt... lifeless.

as you tiptoed up the stairs, you were starting to hear rafe's heated voice, sending shivers down your spine, a small heat in the pit of your stomach starting to spread as you got closer to the door, slightly ajar.

"i don't fucking care what you need to do, just get it done!" he shouted, and you could hear the springs of the office chair, before a breathy sigh left his lips.

"rafe?" you said softly, the man you were looking for startling straight in his chair, looking at you with wide eyes as you stood in the crack of the door.

"oh..." he let out a breath, relaxing again, "it's just you."

"wow!" you scoffed playfully, "what a nice way to greet me." you said as you made your way into the room, walking closer to him, a small grin starting to spread on his lips.

"what are you doing here?" he asked, looking up at you, bringing one of your hands to his lips, pressing small kisses to the back of it, "did i miss a text telling you were coming? if i did, i'm sorry, i've been on the phone for the-"

"shh." you moved your hand to cover his mouth, rafe's brows raising in amusement. "i didn't text you."

he took your hand away from his mouth, "ah, so a surprise visit. well, i hate to disappoint you, but-"

the moment your coat hit the floor, his jaw seemed to be doing the same, the smile on your lips only widening further as you spun around for him, pretending to show off the lingerie instead of tempting him.

"what do you think?" you smiled innocently, "you told me to get something nice, your treat, so i did. i thought you'd wanna see it. oh, by the way, the coat was also on you."

"shit..." his hands found your hips, and you could hear him swallow as he watched the way your ass curved around the thong. you turned your head to look at him, noticing the growing bulge in his pants, "if i didn't have to finish this right now... the things i'd do..."

you turned your body around fully to face him, a small frown on your face as you brought your arms in front of your chest, his hands still resting on your hips. "rafe cameron, you have a half-naked woman standing in front of you, and all you're worried about is work! i need attention too!"

rafe let out a breath he felt like he had been holding in for the past two weeks, "baby, just give me thirty minutes to finish-"

but you didn't even give him three seconds. before he'd even noticed anything, you'd grabbed the pair of pink fuzzy handcuffs out of your coat's pocket, cuffing one around rafe's wrist, and one around yours, the man looking at you with wide eyes.

"what the hell?!" he exclaimed as he stood up, now cuffed to you.

"no 'thirty minutes', no 'fifteen minutes', no more minutes!" you exclaimed, now looking up at him, "i've been missing you for two weeks, and if you make me wait one more second to have your lips on mine, i'm never letting you touch me aga-!"

before you could finish your sentence, rafe had pulled you to his chest, his lips crashing against yours, his lips conveying the yearning he'd been feeling for the past two weeks, mixing in with the yearning you'd felt, pure electricity transferring between the two of you, his body melding into yours, his erection pressing against your.

when you finally pulled apart, the harsh breaths you were letting out mixing in with his, your bodies, and a string of saliva still connecting you.

"you have no idea how much i've wanted you..." he breathed out, causing you to let out a small chuckle.

"me? you have no idea how much i've been craving you."

you pushed him until he was sitting in the chair, the springs of the office chair squeaking, rafe's brows lifted in surprise. you bent slightly to pull down the sweatpants he'd been wearing with your free hand, before you settled yourself onto his lap, feeling his erection through his calvin kleins.

"oh? are you taking control?" he asked in a playful tone as you ground yourself against his bulge, causing him to let out a groan, his a small wet patch already forming on his boxers as you continued grinding yourself against him.

you'd spent the past two weeks needily humping yourself against a plushie rafe had given you, watching videos you two had taken together, and even though you were only grinding your clothed cunt against his clothed cock, you knew that your moments spent alone had nothing on the moments you got to spend with him.

"i need you..." you whispered into his ear, tugging down his boxers, rafe letting out a small hiss as his erection was freed, your lips sucking on the sensitive spot on his ear, a beautiful whimper leaving his lips.

"i need you even more." he said, in turn tugging down the panties you were wearing before his free hand went to your tits, cupping and squeezing them through your bra.

"wanna bet?"

you brought your cuffed hand to his, rafe's free hand on his cock, gathering some of the wetness at your entrance with his tip, and you could picture it mixing in with his precum as he brought the tip of his cock to your entrance, and he was so close, but somehow it felt like you were both in whole different universes.

"i'm sorry..." rafe mumbled, intertwining your fingers, "i promise i'll pay more attention to you... i've just been so busy..."

"i don't ca-"

your sentence was interrupted when you felt his tip enter you, both of you letting out similar groans.

"fuck... has your pussy somehow gotten even tighter, huh? it feels so nice n snug around me, baby..."

"maybe she's just missed daddy..." you sink even further down his cock, rafe letting out groans that were so similar to the first time you two ever had sex, his eyes fixed on you as you sunk lower and lower on his cock until you felt him right there, causing you to let out a gasp.

"looks like she has..." rafe chuckled, bringing his free hand to your hips, as well as the hand intertwined with yours, "you wanna help daddy, hm?" he chuckled, but you were too drunk on the feeling of him in you, under you, around you, to even react to his teasings, so rafe started to move you on his cock, helping you with his hips and his hands.

soon, you were bouncing on his cock without even really realizing what was happening. his cuffed hand was still intertwined with yours, both of them pressed against your hips, as his free hand held onto you, rafe basically guiding you on him, at least until his free hand moved closer to your tummy, his thumb pressed against your clit, slowly circling it, but even without his guidance, your hips knew the rhythm, knew exactly what to do.

your head was thrown back, completely lost in the ecstasy, rafe's touch the only thing you could feel, every time the head of his cock hit your cervix, every circle he drew on your clit with his thumb, and before you even realized it, you were moaning and practically panting his name uncontrollably, the squeeze of your wall around his cock causing rafe to let out grunts as you felt the knot in your stomach finally coming undone.

but as rafe continued fucking up into you, you knew he was nowhere near done with you.

"how does three orgasms sound?" rafe chuckled, lifting his hips with slightly more vigor, the man hitting your cervix right in the middle of your orgasm, squeezing your cuffed hand. "that enough attention for you?"

[monstersandgenderqueers]

Little Gifts (Part Five)

You find Loki, and you decide that perhaps the best gift would be honesty. But really, he should appreciate your gifts more.

Pairing: Loki x neurodivergent!reader

Word count: 2950

A/N: The fluff returns. Maybe. It's somewhere in the middle, really. There's a bit of an awkward jump between the two segments in this part, but the last portion wasn't enough to post on its own, I feel. I'm also now over 12.6 k deep into this. I may have to get myself a little treat or something.

Divider credit @/saradika

Previous | Masterlist | Next

You sit in your usual seat at the far end of the dining table, the horse plushie held tightly to your chest with one hand as you pick at your food with the other. It's just Nat and Steve eating tonight, and their whispers seem far too loud for your ears right now.

You've come to expect his presence at the table, even though you definitely hated it in the beginning. You've even started to become comfortable eating with someone directly across from you. For a while, it was nice to listen to someone talk and actually know what they were saying instead of just nodding and pretending.

You sigh, wondering where Thor is. Is he really still looking for Loki? 

You hope not. You hope Thor already found him hours ago, shortly after you holed yourself up in your room. You hope the reason Thor is not here eating three full plates is because he's with Loki right now, trying to convince him to come and eat dinner. You hope Loki agrees, and sits across from you, and taps your foot with his to get your attention. You hope that when you finish the part of the meal you enjoyed the most, you'll look down and see more of it on your plate, and an almost shy smile on Loki's Face.

Devastatingly, nothing you hope for comes true.

You force yourself to keep eating, knowing that Nat has been keeping an eye on you today. Worse, by the way Steve glances your way, he's probably aware of what happened. Or, at least, what Nat thinks happened. After finishing your meal, you whisper goodnight to the two, not knowing whether they heard you or not. Since you don't want to repeat it, you simply stand and clean up after yourself.

On your way back to your room, you notice that Loki's door is ajar.

Is he back?

Shuffling toward it, you knock on the door lightly. When there's no response, you whisper-shout, "Hello? Loki?"

You hear nothing, just your own breathing. Holding the horse plushie up higher on your chest, you decide to walk in and do a little investigating.

The first thing you notice is how empty it is. With the exception of the bed, topped with boring white bedding, and the equally uninspiring white cube nightstand, there's nothing.

You know what would liven this place up? A fern! You think, feeling a bit snarky.

Your frustration is short-lived, however, and you feel a wave of fatigue. It seems as though you're way past your emotional limit, and already the ache behind your eyes and the sting in your nostrils is making a reappearance.

Not wanting to cry in Loki's room, you turn around, only to find yourself inches from Thor's chest. You back up, your cheeks warming from getting caught.

"S-sorry, I just saw the door open…"

He waves it off, obviously not bothered by your snooping. Not that there's much to snoop around, anyway.

"Did you have any luck in the training room?" He asks, his stiff stance telling you that maybe he hasn't made any progress finding his brother.

"No… Nat took me to my room, remember?"

He frowns and puts his hands on his hips. "Lady Natasha? Did she say anything?"

"Huh? No, I mean, she escorted me to my room because she thought I was having a, uhm, a meltdown, but I wasn't. And no, I didn't tell her. Did you find anything?" Your hands get clammy as you continue, "I know you couldn't say anything in front of her when we passed by, but…"

He scrunches his brows and opens his mouth a bit, confused. "I don't recall that happening."

Oh.

Ohhhhhh.

You both seem to come to the conclusion at the same time.

A few minutes later, Thor is busy charming the security guards in the surveillance room, taking advantage of the fact that they seem to be big fans.

"Forgive me, but I believe my brother is masquerading as me. As a prank, you know." He laughs a bit, playing it off as a silly joke rather than the more serious truth. "May we see the recordings from earlier this afternoon?"

It seems to work, and you make a mental note to yourself to bring up that these agents are really bad at their jobs the next time you speak with Tony or Nick. You might even tell them that having people watch screens that an AI designed by Tony is already keeping track of is a bit of a waste, really.

But since their lack of awareness works in your favor, you let it slide and stand next to Thor as they pull up the recordings from around the time you and Nat walked down the residential hallway together.

You watch as 'Thor' rounds the corner and speaks with the past you, with great concern on his face. For the next thirty minutes, you trace Loki's steps as he wanders the compound under the guise of Thor. The odd thing is, he doesn't seem to be doing anything particularly strange. It appears as though what Thor had speculated is right—Loki was just looking for a place to be completely alone, and using Thor's identity to search the compound with little interruption.

"Uhm, can we go back to when Loki passed me and Nat in the hall?" The screen resets, back to where the three of you are standing in the hallway. "Can we go back further? See where he came from?" The footage plays backwards, keeping 'Thor' centered on the screen as he comes from down the hall near your room. Further back it plays, until it shows him leaving your bedroom.

A horrid mix of feelings boils in you, and as much as you'd like to sit down and dissect each one, you dash out of the security room and bolt all the way back to your quarters. You slow down a few yards in front of your door, keeping your steps light as you quietly unlock the door.

You don't know what you're thinking, your thoughts colliding head on at full speed and essentially cancelling each other out.

There's no way he'd be in here. I mean, I saw him leave as Thor. Still, I need to know what else he did in my room. Did he leave a note? Was he trying to talk to me, but I wasn't there? Why didn't he come to me sooner? 

What did I do?

He's not there, of course, and neither are any stray papers or strange items that he could have left behind. Still holding on to the horse in a choking grip, you pace the length of your quarters, feeling absolutely foolish.

"What a jerk. Sending me and his brother on a… on a wild goose chase!" Your voice raises in volume as you rant to yourself, and the words keep coming out like there's a leak. "Like Thor and I have all the time in the world to just play hide and seek, like we have nothing better to do!" You feel it boiling hotter in your veins. "Ah! What an attention-seeking asshole! Making me scared and worried and he's just out there lollygagging about, probably enjoying the fact that I've been crying over him!"

You're furious. It's a feeling that hardly ever fills you up. You're used to the constant nagging and gnawing of disappointment or annoyance, but hardly anything makes you this mad.

You have half a mind to just tear up the stupid horse in your hands, but you think better of it, remembering the last time you let yourself give in to anger and destroy things that didn't deserve your rage. Instead, you toss it at your book stacks, the plushie bouncing off in a very unsatisfying way.

I hate this. I hate him. I want to go back to before he moved in and everything sucked in a completely different way but at least I knew how to navigate everything that sucked!

Crossing your arms tight over your chest to hold yourself together, you keep pacing and turning, needing to work off all the energy that's fighting to free itself in an explosion.

You grab the plushie that normally rests on your bed. It's heavy and solid, so you hug it tight and then tighter, filling in that hole in your chest that the anger burned through as it coursed through your body in a tidal wave.

The little black horse plushie moves on the floor just barely at the corner of your vision, drawing your pacing to a halt. Rather, it is moved by Loki, who sits with his back against the wall amongst your towering stacks of books. He holds it on his lap almost tenderly, petting its back.

"You know, that sort of language is very unbecoming. I didn't think you had it in you, little one." He smiles, and it's neither soft nor a smirk. It just is, and you're struggling to place it.

Nervous. He's nervous.

"But it's true."

He laughs, "I agree. It wasn't very kind of me to do that to you."

"Or to Thor."

He snorts, "I can and will do worse to Thor, little one." His eyes meet yours and you know he can just see the questions tumbling around in your head. "As you've likely guessed, I needed a moment alone. Thor's been pestering me endlessly, and as you're aware, there aren't any places in this trash heap that one can be truly alone in."

You sigh and sit cross-legged on the floor in front of Loki while still hugging the other plushie, mirroring his position. He smiles again and this time it seems warm and it makes you feel warmer. 

Desperate to know what he's thinking, and even more desperate to know what he's feeling, you wonder if you have to be the first to share something like that. He might be more willing to share if you give something, first.

You look down at your lap, finding it difficult to hold his gaze, "I used to hide a lot. Whenever I was scared, or confused, or made a mistake. I'd hide in the smallest place that I could possibly fit in."

You know you're being a bit of a hypocrite. You complain all the time about how people imply things without stopping to check whether you understood or not, and then get upset when you don't.

But some things are too hard to say outright. You look up, not sure what to expect. He just looks at you, his head back against the wall and his eyes just a little watery.

"Why did you stop hiding?"

"I don't know. I think I just got too big to hide." You rub the plushie on your lap, crunching the beads inside. "Why did you want to be alone?"

It takes him a minute to speak, like he's unsure if he should say anything or not. His voice is soft and velvety as he answers, "Like you, I have… difficulty with my feelings. Not in the same way as you do, but I…" he fidgets with his hands, rubbing his cuticles. "I'm well aware of what I feel, but I loathe having to feel at all. The… emotions that have been running amuck in my heart feel like they aren't mine to keep." He laughs dryly, "I'd sooner destroy the world than succumb to what I feel right now."

You scoot closer until your knees touch his. "What kinds of feelings?" Your heart flutters with nerves as you wait.

"Things I haven't felt in a very long time, darling." He twists the plushie in his hands, talking to it rather than you. "Fondness. Worry. Endearment. I… I don't remember how to deal with these things any longer. They're more foreign to me than the ever-evolving Midgardian 'smart' phones."

You stare at him blankly. There's no way he's talking about me… right?

As if sensing your self doubt and wanting to redirect your thoughts, he tilts his head and smirks, "It was amusing to see you and that buffoon run around. I believe I saw Thor berate a chair before he sat down. A bit paranoid, if you ask me. Turning into a piece of furniture is beneath me."

This makes you giggle, the sound surprising you as it bubbles out of your throat. Loki smiles again, and you have no choice but to look away, because it almost makes you dizzy.

He sets the plushie aside and stands, adjusting his clothing before reaching down to help you up. You feel warm and tingly when his hand engulfs yours and tugs, bringing you to your feet effortlessly. He takes in your expression, his own ears tinged pink.

When he lets go, you almost cry out, but you hold it in and tuck your hand against your chest.

He opens the door and asks before he leaves, "Do you think there's any chance there's still a portion of dinner left, or do you think Thor's already gotten to it?" You follow him out, wanting to see for yourself, floating on your feet with a lightness you haven't felt in forever.

A few days later, Tony sits you down in one of the labs. He holds a device to your ear, lasers mapping out the contours of your ear canal.

You cringe when he turns it on, "Why are we doing this?"

He tuts, "You'll see. Now hold still, or we'll have to start over again."

You huff and cross your arms, "But it tickles."

"It's just lasers," he sighs, "you shouldn't be able to feel it."

"Well, I do, so hurry up," you whine, definitely not in the mood to feel something tickling your inner ears.

"What's the big rush? You don't have an assignment."

"I'm not in a rush. This is just icky."

"You certainly are fidgety." He's right. You're kicking your feet a little like dogs do when you hold them above water. He moves on to the other ear, poking your shoulder when you keep moving away.

"Ugh. Just get it over with." You squeeze your eyes shut, hoping that'll distract you from the sensation.

Soon, Tony's gathered all the data he needs and within seconds the 3D printer whirs to life, creating something that looks like a pair of hearing aids. You look at them, confused, "Uhm… I don't really need those, so…"

"They're not for your hearing."

"Uhm.. then what are they for?"

He plucks the finished devices and hands them to you. "Just put them in."

You sigh, fitting them over your ears. "Are they earbuds, or something? Why aren't they, like, smaller?" you ask, referring to the tiny little ones that are often used on missions.

"Your comfort." He does something on his tablet.

A little voice chimes in your ears. "Conversation Extractor is online."

Conversation Extractor? "Uhhhh what is this?"

"Something for your audio processing issues."

"Amplifying sound won't help…"

"It doesn't amplify sound, unless you want it to. It uses the direction you're facing to pick up voices coming from that direction, then muffles the rest. At least, it should."

You start shaking a bit. You need to try this out now.

"It's a busy day today, so there's plenty of people in the lounge. See if you have an easier time following a conversation even with other people talking all around you."

You're excited, and you have to keep thinking walk, walk, walk to keep yourself from sprinting all the way there.

Even so, you make it there faster than you thought, the doors sliding open to reveal nearly two dozen people inside, Avengers and agents conversing and making so much noise you'd probably cry if you hadn't gotten so good at keeping them in. Hopefully, you won't feel the need to cry this time.

Since everyone seems like they're really engaged with… well, whatever it is that they're talking about, you sit in a corner, facing the center of the room, and decide to wait for a good opening to join in. You look around and see Loki sitting in an armchair with his arms crossed, and Bucky leaning on the opposite chair. They're definitely too far away to hear, but you find it hard to look away from Loki's clear annoyance and amusingly complete lack of interest.

"...never felt that?" Bucky's voice fills your ears and you almost squawk in surprise. It's working! A little too well, but…

"No. I have no clue what you're rambling about," Loki says, staring at his nails.

"Seriously? You've never once felt the urge to just squeeze something really tight because of how adorable it is? Like puppies?" Bucky sounds offended. You snort a little, wondering how on Earth the conversation they were having led to this.

Both of them must be awfully bored, and equally awful at small talk.

Loki looks at you, then, making eye contact, as if he heard you across the room and through half a dozen animated conversations. You freeze, trying to act casual.

Count to two and then look away. Then look back after two. Look away, look back….

You take out the devices. That's enough eavesdropping for today…

It takes half a dozen heartbeats for him to respond. "No," he repeats, his voice less tense now. He's still looking at you. "I have not ever once in my life wished to 'squeeze' a living creature for that reason." He looks away when Bucky notices that he's staring at you. You look away, too, hoping that the heat that prickles your cheeks isn't as visible as you know it probably is.

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[yumeka-sxf]

2-year anniversary post

My blog is now 2-years old~!

After my last anniversary post, I had quite a list of projects planned; in addition to making posts for all the upcoming SxF content, like the movie, season 2, and the video game, I had other personal projects in mind as well. I wanted to start on my Japanese Linguistic Observations in Spy x Family series, which I was able to write five posts for as of now! (I've currently exhausted all the topics I wanted to discuss for that, but I may come up with more ideas later on). There was also the Spy x Family Character Tracker, which took me a while to get motivated to do, but once I did, I'm proud of how it turned out 😃 I also made a lot of scan posts this year too, like the workbooks and my series of miscellaneous collab scans.

But compared to my last anniversary, which was at a time when there was a lot of new SxF content on the horizon, we've been in a bit of a dry spell the past several months. Hype for the aforementioned movie, game, and anime season have died down, and merch and collabs have slowed as well, since there hasn't been new anime content to promote. But I consider it the calm before the storm, lol.

This is also why my posts have gotten a little less frequent lately - there hasn't been as much new SxF content in general besides the manga chapters, and as mentioned previously, I was able to check off the projects I had wanted to do. So as of now, I don't have much new content planned in the coming year besides continuing my Chronological Analysis on Twilight and Yor series when season 3 airs (still no release date yet, but I'm betting on spring of 2025). I'll also make posts for each anime episode like I did with season 2. And of course, I'll continue my manga chapter reviews, and make merch and scan posts when I can.

I've always tried to maintain a "quality over quantity," "only write when I have something to say," mentality for the blog. I don't want to force myself to write when I'm not motivated (this is also why I don't take part in community writing projects and the like). I also have other hobbies besides SxF, so I like to focus my limited free time on those when there isn't much going on in the SxF fandom. Occasionally I think to myself, "Hm, I haven't posted on Tumblr in a while," but if there isn't anything I feel like writing about at the time, it's better if I hold off rather than force myself to churn out something uninspiring.

But as I said, I feel like we're in a calm before the storm. Season 3 will already be exciting enough, but there's a good chance more content will follow. The next Jump Festa is scheduled for late December, and as usual, SxF will have a dedicated panel with the four Forger voice actors in attendance!

The movie and season 2 were announced at this event in 2022, so there's a good chance we'll get more juicy announcements this year! Even if not another movie, I'd be happy with more artbooks, collabs, and other things down the line! There's also a good chance an idea for another SxF project will inspire me and I'll start working on that. Who knows. But I do know SxF is still a popular series with many more years of content to produce! And I look forward to seeing, and blogging about, it all 😁

[tomurasghoul]

HAWKS (KEIGO TAKAMI) X (G/N) READER

summary: going on a date with hawks <3

A/N: sorry for not posting much, ive been a mix of busy, unmotivated and uninspired, but im back now :3

includes: fluff, mild swearing, innuendos.

When Keigo asked you out, you were over the moon. You've had a crush on him for a while now, and for him to want to take you out on a date, was like a dream come true.

I mean, how could you not have a crush on him? He's absolutely gorgeous, suave, funny and a true gentleman. You and him had been friends for a while, and now you were finally taking it to the next step.

He wanted to meet you at the park, so you put on something casual. Although, you still wanted to impress him, so you accessorized with some jewelry.

Then, it was finally time.

When you arrived at the park at exactly 23:00 like he asked, of course, nobody was there at that time of night, Keigo had specifically planned it that way, so the two of you could get some privacy without him being mobbed by fans.

You sat down on a nearby bench, waiting for your date to arrive.

A few minutes later, you spotted a pair of crimson wings flying towards you.

'Hey there, hope I didn't keep you waiting for too long.' He landed in front of you.

Luckily, he wasn't dressed up either. Just wearing an oversized white sweater and baggy jeans. For some reason, he also had a big backpack with him.

'Now, let's get to walking. I've got a nice spot for us to go to.'

While you were walking through the foresty part of the park, there was a comfortable silence. Both of you guys just looking around, taking in the beautiful view of the red and yellow fall leaves on the trees. The bright moonlight lit up the park, so it wasn't too dark to see.

At some point, you two were walking so close together, you noticed the backs of your hands touching. You were wondering if Keigo noticed it too, when he suddenly reached around and grabbed your hand. There was your answer.

'I'm sure you don't mind, right?'

'No, I don't.' You blushed and looked away.

He must've noticed your blushing, cause he had a cheeky grin on his face the rest of the way there.

You eventually arrived at the spot Keigo had meant to take you to. It was a gorgeous lookout with a view of the lake beneath you.

To your displeasure, he let go of your hand.

He opened the mysterious backpack he had with him and took out a red and white-checkered picnic blanket and snacks and laid them out under a willow tree.

'Did you think I'd let you sit on the ground?' He winked at you goofily.

'You didn't have to bring all this for me.' You said as you sat down next to him on the blanket.

'Only the best for you, birdie.'

You chuckled at the petname.

'Don't laugh at me!' He said, pretending to be offended. 'Now, eat up.' He fed you a strawberry to shut you up.

'Damn, you didn't have to force-feed me.' You punched his shoulder playfully.

'Shut your mouth before I force-feed you something else.' He punched you back a little bit harder.

'Why don't you make me shut up?' You provoked him.

'Don't try me. I'll kick your ass.'

The two of you started play-fighting. While you fought with all your strength, he was actually holding back, cause as a hero, he was much stronger than you. He wasn't letting you win, though.

'Wow. you really aren't gonna let your date win?' You feigned anger.

'You're such a brat.'

That's when he pinned you to the ground and kissed you. It was a short moment, but the feeling of his lips on yours took your breath away.

'That ought to shut you up.' He smirked as he released you wrists from his grip and sat back up.

And he was right, it did shut you up. You were silent for a while as you stared off into the distance.

'Hey, I didn't actually mean the thing about shutting you up.' Keigo spoke up after a little while. He was afraid he'd overstepped a boundary.

'I know, I'm just looking at the view. It's really beautiful.' You tried to distract him from the fact that the kiss flustered you.

'Yeah, it really is.' He said, looking at you instead of the view.

[bitethedevil]

UPDATE: New blog and the future of my Raph fics for those who care.

I’ve made a new blog. It’ll mostly be dedicated to Lucanis from Dragon Age: The Veilguard and Dragon Age in general. If that interests you, the name is @bitethedemon. I’ll still be running this blog. You’re not getting rid of me that easily, unfortunately.

What does this mean then?

I made a whole new blog because this one is so entrenched in Raphael, that it would feel wrong for me to start posting other stuff on here too. Instead, I made a new one to keep things separated.

Like I said, I’ll still be running this blog. I can just feel that these last couple of months I have felt a bit uninspired. It’s become more of a task to write fics, and I’m not a fan of that. I’d rather not then, instead of producing some soulless product without any heart in it. I’m not completely quitting on my Raphael fics but they are all at a slight pause for now. The hyperfixation has been fizzling out a little bit.

I still love writing analysis posts! I love the discussions and talks we have on here too. But when it comes to creative writing, I’m struggling a bit with what more to write. I’ve finally started writing creatively again in the way that I prefer it after starting to write about something else. So, I’m going to do that for a while.

I might still do prompts and I do have some half finished chapters that might come out sporadically, but I'm not trying to stress myself out about it. Who knows? Maybe it'll come naturally when I get properly into the groove again.

In conclusion:

I’m not breaking up with the Raphael fandom. I��m just taking a little pause with fic writing on here to do something else too. This sucks if you really like one of the fics I’ve just stopped in the middle of, and I’m sorry, but I can spoil tf out of it through DM’s if you want. Other than that, not much is different. The shitshow that is this blog must, and will, go on.

[hinamie]

wanted 2 make a bit of an update post to get a few things off my chest bc i feel like i've been a bit quiet on here compared 2 normal and for that i apologize gsdhjgfdsj I promise I will do better at being chronically online

in all seriousness though, ever since the jjk manga ended, I've started experiencing th dilemma where I am feeling less inspired but also twice as pressured to continue living up to the standard I set for myself by being so active while the manga was ongoing. i'm finding it's taking longer than it should to finish pieces that are not challenging enough to warrant the extra hours, it's harder to come up with what I think are original concepts, and overall i'm just anxious that the high i've been riding since april has finally begun its descent.

I know logically tht these expectations i'm worried about being unable to meet are entirely self-imposed. I /know/ that not every piece needs to be a profound character tribute packed with symbolism and hidden meanings, but tht doesn't change the fact that it still feels really disappointing when I try to dig for that emotional component that I was really loving in the art that was inspired by later manga chapters, only to come up short. I'm feeling myself defaulting back to drawing My Ship Posed Cutely, or Character Lineup In Cute Outfits, whereas before I was really feeling like my art was touching something beyond just surface-level aesthetic. This isn't to say that I don't think I can ever get back to creating those harder-hitting pieces, or that I /dislike/ my more lighthearted aesthetically-driven work, I'm just frustrated at myself for feeling like I have to now dig for what used to be so readily available.

there's no conclusion to this story gfhjsgd this is rly just a vent post. i've been doing this long enough to know that this is just part of what happens with any creative hobby. periods of feeling uninspired unfortunately come with the territory, n it makes sense that those feelings wld be exacerbated now that the series i take my main inspiration from has come to a standstill for the time being. but I don't feel burnt out on jjk yet, which is reassuring in that it means I know I still Want to draw the characters, no matter how boring or overdone all of my current ideas feel. i'm in no rush to move on from jjk as my main fandom either, although I do see myself sprinkling in more art for other series to pass the time n keep me Inspired while I wait for s3. so for those of you who found me through my art (probably most of u), i guess also pls take this as both warning and reassurance that you most likely Will see me start drawing for other fandoms in the coming months, but don't take it as meaning I've abandoned drawing for jjk

and as always, thank u all for sticking with me and for all the support and lovely words on my art, it rly does make my days brighter <3

[rainedragon]

what are your thoughts on the AP showcased pieces? im so grateful you're posting them, by the way! I feel like the headpieces as always are stellar, but the dresses feel a bit uninspired; I wish they were making more complex compositions with their prints, like how Meta does.

I have feelings about the collection, and also about the show / photos. I want to preface this with saying that I like Maki's art style and her print designs more than any other brand's. So, I'm personally biased towards the AP collections a lot of the time. I also have some personal preferences when it comes to styling, trim, etc, and there are plenty of things that are perfectly decent that I just personally don't like / don't work with my personal aesteic. That said...

I like this violet print, though, honestly, I like meta violet's bouquet print better in some regards. The composition on the Meta print is better, but I like the art on the AP print. The bodice designs of the AP pieces are simple, but I personally don't have an issue with that because more detailed bodices from AP are frequently unflattering on me and I don't personally love some of the design choices Meta makes, so I'm happy when things have simple designs TBH. The meta piece has a decent bodice, I don't dislike it, except, I don't really like lace overlays, they tend to wash out the colors of the piece in a way that makes it harder to coordinate. I have this in lavender, and the overlay is less noticeable than it is on darker colors, but it does make the lavender a bit greyish. That said, the Meta dress doesn't fit me right now so I'm leaning towards trying to pick up the AP JSK if it's a better size for me.

I like the happy cake print as well. I think the OTT princess cut is a weird choice for it, but the regular JSK and the shirring JSK are both nice.

But it is... I've noticed in the past few years that it feels like Maki is burnt out or something. She's been putting out prints with no background. And I don't know if they have someone else working with her who is following her style, but falling short or if she's rushed or burnt out or what, but there are more and more of these prints where she's drawn a few key images and then the layout is... lacking. From a graphic design / art standpoint, I'd compare to Shirley Temple. Here are two recent Shirley Temple prints. The first one is a very similar concept. The artist drew a collection of related sweets (in ST's case gingerbread cookies), but instead of slapping them flat on a solid background and repeating the same cookies up the dress, they have a contrasting panel around the hem, and a collection of stripes and other background filler, with a whole collection of simple cookies for the higher up toss print. While the second ST print shown here is very intentionally designed. Even though it's simple (it's really just cherries and icing), each element is placed specifically.

What is interesting to me is that a lot of older prints from AP look a lot more like the ST prints. Where as this AP cake print looks like Maki drew a few cakes and cupcakes seperately and then ran out of time and put them together as fast as possible. I'd expect to see, say, the cherries and strawberries, from the cakes mixed with cupcakes at the top more like these past prints, than just the whole border print scaled down, repeated.

The polly pocket print is worse. While it has some shapes and ribbons at the top, the whole thing looks flat in a way that looks cheap. While I like the idea, it's not quite working for me, and the acccent buttons get lost in the toss print.

This cookie print looks like the typical all over AP print. I don't care for these, but as far as an AP-does-ETC print goes, it's fine? It's stronger than some of the recent few all over prints IMHO. The apron frill straps on the JSK feel a little over the top for a simple piece, as do the hem bows, but it's not bad.

I like the strawberry print, I think the black colorway is rough, but I generally don't like black colorways of AP pastels. The JSK and the basic OP have a good design, the OTT OP is way too much for my tastes. I also don't care for the tights, they look like they have dye bleeding issues instead of ribbons from a distance. It's not the best strawberry print they have ever made, but it's also not the worst.

The cherry print JSK is on my list. I actually really like this in white, which I usually avoid. The pink and yellow are also pretty good. The black is not bad, but there are some high contrast details on the OP that I think I'd rather see in red than black. I love the little apron, and the removable bodice insert (I think?) in the JSK. The cherry collar on the blouse is also adorable. The top of the dress is quite well done, and it shows a lot more thought (IMHO) than a lot of the other prints in the collection.

Ohanami Bunny is well done, but I don't like it. The rabbits are cute, and the toss print is good, it's just not my style. My partner who likes rabbits a ton also doesn't care for it, so there is that. I can't quite put my finger on it, but the rabbits don't look like vintage story book rabbits, or like kawaii plush rabbits. I do think the designs are nice for them, it just... isn't quite right for me. The bunny bonnet is fun.

Dolly cat is of course dolly cat. and a solid choice for a re-release (though I still want SNT, Miracle Candy or Fruits Parlor). I'm being told I can't add anymore images, so I'll have to post the solids seperate. That said I also want to add that I'm confused about some of the hair/makeup choices for this show. I don't mean this in a mean way and I don't mean this as a critism of the person or persons who did the hair / makeup, and I'm not looking at people on the street judging them like this, to be clear. It's hard to manage the hair / makeup for a show and I personally can't do it. I also think all of the models are gorgeous, but there are some models who had wigs and/or makeup that just weren't a great match for them. I can't quite explain, but a lot of the wigs are very ashy toned and then the eye make up was very... minimal? light? with heavy high blush and they gave a lot of them bold coral hot pink lips. Unless it's a trick of the light/photos, basically no one has eyeliner unless it's like... pastel or something. The effect is that the boldest things on many of them is their eyebrows, their pupils, their nostrils and their lips, but they all have pale wigs so they have tried to make their eyebrows pale as well, and this make up style just doesn't read as well as it could on some of the models. I feel like this is a really hard makeup look to pull off in general? I personally prefer when the hair/makeup is picked to match the model, versus a "show look" put on all the models. But that is a personal preference and I do understand why some designers try to make all the models match. I guess... when the hair and makeup doesn't fit the model, it feels dehumanizing to me, like the model is being used as a walking hanger. I prefer when the whole look is styled to suit the model or the model is picked for the styling, and this just didn't feel that way to me.

[eremorte]

thronecoming heritage hall gifts (rewritten)

The Thronecoming heritage hall gifts bug me. Most of them don’t feel like a parent has gifted them. They are so uninspired for the biggest moment in their child’s life.

I’ve listed my replacements below. I’m hoping for the gifts to have a, if had-to-do-it-again-here’s-what-I’d-want vibe.

blondie lockes

OG gift: running shoes

rewritten gift: a new piece of tech that helps her with her mirror cast. A shiny new microphone or even just a cute news reporter accessory that acknowledges her unintended break from destiny (or rather extremely developed hobby/career because her story can be over in like 30 minutes) it also gives off the initial impression that blondie’s story is “just right” the way it is until.. boom! There’s a note.

That mentions that as Goldilocks has reflected on her role and how she regrets hurting the bears the ways she has* and with an extra perceptive daughter like blondie she is sure to find a worthy story (within bounds) that won’t cause baby bear to develop a complex. *insert long list of things here that blondie could comment on in her stead because the story book of legends didn’t write every worthwhile critique of the bear house and the bears despite “forgiving” her won’t let her talk to them about this* and a small comment of how she is super proud about blondie that hopefully eases some of her attention seeking behavior so she’s less of a brat later on.

cerise hood:

OG Gift: picnic basket with an electronic mirror lock.

revised gift: honestly I have no comment. This is a great gift. My only question is how recently the presents are placed in the hall seeing as how that basket spit up a whole bird leg. Maybe it has a special note of the picnic menu they have in celebration once the whole shebang is done.

o hair twins:

OG gift floating hair brushes

rewritten gift given how Rapunzel’s story is that she was locked away her whole life because her bio mom ate a magical plant while pregnant that the witch wasn’t sure of the side effects of and had to lock her away because damn sure bio parents couldn’t do anything if the witch was second guessing herself. What I think should be there are odd bits an bobs function like an Easter egg hunt of a map and post fairytale notes one what they are that Rapunzel is certain her girls can figure out because they have her plant powers (though probably diluted hence the helpful notes incase they have to solve things like their adoptive grandma ).

briar beauty

NOW FOR THE GIRL WHO INSPIRED THIS POST. Her gift makes me so angry. It is the most nothing gift of the whole bunch. You mean to tell me that a hundred year sleep doesn’t come with any regrets at all? Not one thing?

OG gift A neck pillow.

revised gift: A SCRAPBOOK. The first few pages could be filled with pictures of her family. Bonus points if they’re are people Briar wouldn’t have gotten the chance to meet but knows who they are by virtue of her mom. It hits home exactly how big her sacrifice is. Also all the storybook imagery? The intro? Imagine if there was a dark time line where we were being told everything that happen through briar who missed all of it and is trying to piece back something familiar?

either way, mental breakdown and existential crisis guaranteed.

also bonus. It’s totally merchandisable. Half the book mercy was essentially scrapbooks/concept art anyhow.

Cedar wood: revealer rays

it’s a good gift but something she wouldn’t be able to use in her story at all. They are not subtle and most everyone who knows about Cedar knows that Pinocchio didn’t mess up her eyes to the point she’d feasibly need glasses. Revised gift: letters from the blue fairy (well wishes, maybe an helpful hint or two) Gepetto and Pinocchio (things to to try (and not repeat) once she’s no longer wooden and how to lie effectively) I can’t think of a physical possession for Cedar to have. But I feel she’d appreciate these. Maybe a special cricket/donkey whistle?

duchess swan:

no gift shown but what I have in mind is a mix of briar and blondie’s gift.

a collection of letters (written on leaves and paper or something) from both her mom and her bio dad detailing the bitter sweet love in the tragedy to reassure duchess it’s not all bad. And a special pair of dancing shoes for her last night as a human. I imagine this gift would only make duchess mad.

Madeline hatter:

no gift shown and honestly idk what the mad hatter gives his daughter it’s probably perfect. An old hat that looks very normal actually? A crazy new teapot? Who knows?

raven queen:

og gift wand wishing well coin

honestly I want to know the logic behind the wand. Is it a back up battery in case apple thwarts raven through zapping away her powers somehow?

I have multiple suggestions

Something that contains directions to the true SBOL

recipe for the poison apple

something that originally belonged to someone in the Snow White family that she is proud enough to share with her daughter (raven would probably give it back).

*blondie branches out mentions how Goldilocks promised to be a better person.

[malt-rants-and-stuff]

Having some Tashiro (and prev pres) Thoughts

mostly just re-hashing things my fellow tashiro fans have said but I just felt like making my own post about it. be warned i wrote this while on a 4 hour drive on paper so im not sure how the length translates into a post, this will be a long one haha. also beware of inconsistent caps lock usage.

OBLIGATORY WARNING FOR SASAMIYA FIRST AND SECOND YEAR NOVEL SPOILERS

This whole thing was mainly brought on by two things, one is my non-ssmyverse friend dming me a twt screenshot with the most bland and uninspired description of tashiro's character ive ever read, signaling to me that tumblr has really spoiled me with the good tashiro takes. the other thing was that i got inspired to bring the first and second years novels with me on my previously mentioned long drive, which means that i got the pleasure of rereading both and, most importantly, rereading Tashiro Love & Passion. safe to say i had a lot to think about afterwards.

The whole thing really reminded me of the aspect of tashiro that i've always found interesting: his observant nature. And i dont just mean how he views others, but also how he views himself. How this perspective breaks the most of what we'd expect from a character like him, something Harusono loves to do with their characters.

From the first couple of pages in L&P alone, we get a lot of insight on how tashiro sees himself and how he bases much of that on how others view him.

He mentions a lot of clubs that he was a part of in the past or helped out with, describing his tendency not to stick around one club.

"The all-rounder." A "pinch player" anyone could call on.

I feel like this is an important place to start because just from this we see a bit of how Tashiro breaks from the mold of what an unassuming reader may expect him to be.

In the Sasamiya manga/anime, we dont really have too many chances to really view tashiro for who he is as an individual. with our limited perspective of him, we get to know miyano's friend tashiro, a bright, fun, and earnest character who says whats on his mind and is apparently on the ping pong team with hanzawa which is neat.

and if you werent a bit unhinged like myself and some others, this would be a fair assessment of his character. but ohhh boy once Love & Passion hit the towers there was no turning back.

there have been some posts getting into the themes of this chapter that i feel analyze it better than i ever could, so i wont do that, but i do want to talk about how tashiro's character is portrayed throughout the chapter.

And by far the main part that i want to focus on is how hardworking he is, and his and other's perspectives of him are effected by this.

Because tashiro is someone who wants very very badly to win, as he says numerous times throughout the chapter. Even under the guise of someday getting to quit the ping pong club, he pushes himself to get better; even going as far as practicing against the grannies and grandpas at the bath house that totally didnt adopt him.

For all his complaints, it would be easy to push off his actions as comedic. maybe, and im just making stuff up as i go, saying that he is only behaving as a stereotypical fun-loving slacker would. that his only motive truly is just to leave the club and drift through the rest of his high school days.

But then, that just isnt true is it? what kind of slacker would put so much time and effort into a club that he never even wanted to stick with in the first place?

This my dear friends, is how the Tashiro brainworms Fucking Get You.

Because why indeed, why is tashiro, who drifts through life wondering if he'll ever find his purpose, his Passion if you would, so impressive to the Previous Ping Pong Club President (prev pres) that he finds himself in line for future president?

While tashiro never really seems to figure this mystery out himself, we can take a few guesses.

While we will probably never see prev pres' thought process here (unless we get those 10k words of hanzawa lore that he'd probably be a part of) his actions speak for themselves in a way.

Afterall, this is the same president that got him stuck in this club to begin with, the same one who watched him complain, the same one who'd help drag him back whenever he would try to skip.

He's also the same president who watched him keep to their deal instead of just trying to find a way around it and quitting anyways. the same one who played against him at every practice, watching him learn and grow as a player. who saw him work hard, determined to not bring the team down, even if he wasnt as into it as the others. who saw him stick around.

in his perspective, tashiro takes multiple chances to not how he feels different from the people around him, that he has never known their "love" and never felt their "passion".

He finds himself surrounded by the Passion of others each day. His teammates, his friends, his bath house grandparents, just about everyone in the whole world. but what about him?

i mean, its not as if he's not interested in anything, he has things he likes. hobbies he enjoys. he just... never got that burning Passion, that unabashed Love for something like everyone else seems to have.

I think prev pres understood this part of him. that he saw what tashiro, for all his insightfulness, couldnt see for himself.

because for all tashiro believes that he doesnt have Passion, he sure does love to watch others indulge in theirs.

he takes note of what little he can catch while kuresawa and miyano talk BL, just so he can ask questions later. he gets to know the people at the bath house, listening as they talk about their lives and interests. and while he may not be "super into" in the ping pong club in general, he still wants to see his teammates succeed. he may never have stuck with a club for very long, but he still made himself reliable enough that he's seen as someone they can call to step in when needed.

in my mind i think that is what prev pres saw in him, how tashiro's dedication to see the Passions of others flourish assured him that the club would be safe in his hands.

and, while i cant say tashiro's passion is one specific thing right now, i can say that it encompasses every dream he wants to see grow. every love he curiously watches bloom. every ping pong match he fights to win.

[tweakerist]

Have you ever/would you ever discuss your writing process (if you have one?) I'm always really curious as to how people who write very large fanfics go about doing it. Plus, you're doing a really nice job :)

Of course! Id love to discuss my process no one’s asked me before lol! So I can only talk about my singular long fic experience with nervous young inhumans and if you think i’d offer advice on what you should do, then maybe reframe that thought because i dont think im doing a good job at it lol.

i started writing nervous young inhumans on a whim, i wrote the single scene where creek kisses and then went from there. i dont think this is a bad idea, i actually think its one of the only good things i did in this regard, if ur inspired, then write whatever u want for to happen no matter the order it will be in the story, but when i impulsively posted the first chapter with nothing else to guide me i definitely jumped the gun. i got stuck almost immediately, lost with absolutely not direction, so then i had to sit down and draw an outline for the story. i recommend doing this first, or at least doing it before you actually post whatever you have of your fic, it will help you avoid the pressure of having to update in a consistent manner while not knowing where youre taking the story towards. i dont think it should be necessarily as detailed or tight of an outline, i actually think you should leave a little bit of wiggle room for yourself in case u come up with something different that u wanna change, just you know, the major plot points, or the essence of the story, characters you wanna include, personality traits you'd like to show them exposing, themes you wanna explore etc etc. i know there's people who do outlines of chapter per chapter, and honestly it sounds like a dream to me, to be this organized, but i could never do that because i change a lot of things on the go (one time i got rid of full 5k words because i changed my mind on what i wanted to happen in the chapter). i like taking my time with characters, even if its secondary ones, so i have full character sheets of them with their canonical personalities and also a list of hcs i just came up with, even if i dont really show them in the story, it helps me understand the characters and how they'd react to situations. uh, i dont really know what else to say, i dont force myself to write when im uninspired, even if i feel the pressure of wanting to update, i refuse to put out something im not proud of, so it also shows how inconsistent i am, but when im inspired i can easily sit down and write 8k words in one sitting and then just have the new chapter out a couple of hours later after a round of editing. i get these bouts of almost manic inspiration and i let myself just write. i think about this point particularly, if you're like me, and you care about being consistent, then i'd recommend to not post your story until you have completed it or at least have a good 80 percent of it done, so you won't suffer nightmares like i do lol. i hope this is answer enough, and that im being coherent, and if you have any further questions or anything, i'm here! :)

[0aurelion-sol0]

Stranger Things 5 Episode Titles - Reactions & First thoughts about them.

So here are the episode titles for Stranger Things 5, they don't give much away in and of themselves unless you've probably been like completely into set pictures & possible leaks which I have not, so don't bring that over here!

Some of them sound a bit corny like "The Rightside Up", it's so Reddit-ish and uninspired, ugh... 🙄 Whatever that may mean, new place, real world, The Upside Down changing into something, whatever else... For the time being, I have no idea.

And using "The Vanishing Of..." again feels a bit... tacky but given they are going to explain and go back to what Will experienced in 1983 more clearly, they might explain the weird elements of his dissapearance compared to what other characters experienced after that with whoever or whatever may dissapear. Though it won't be a vanishing to me, a missing is more accurate to what any character or multiple characters may be facing this season since compared to Season 1, they have more of an idea of what's actually going on. Which is why it feels a bit tacky to me.

"The Crawl" has already been explained by everyone already in the fandom, which is probably referring to a dungeon crawl in Dungeon & Dragons, whatever that may lead them into. Possibly metaphorical implications too but I'll leave that for another time.

Some other titles are interesting though like "Sorcerer" which almost sounds vindictive to me for some reason. It's episode 4 so trust that we are going to get the launching main plot points for the rest of the season in that episode, just like with all the other seasons, after the dramatic ending point of episode 3: "The Turnbow Trap", no idea what that is, sorry. "Shock Jock" episode 5, same thing, no idea.

And "The Bridge" as well, but for the moment I have no idea what that may be about. It could mean so many things like a bridge to the Upside Down, maybe how the bigger portal in the middle of Hawkins is called by the characters, it could be something related to a platform, who knows... I would like a tragic bridge moment under the rain but that's just me projecting my drama bias & wants on this episode which is probably not going to be about anything like that. It could be both but I think it's likely going to be the former.

However, this episode becomes interesting in the context of the one that comes right before it: "Escape From Camazotz" which is Episode 6, I will elaborate on this further down the line when I actually get to post my posts I've written but Episode 6 in ST1 & ST3, given that ST5 is likely going to parallel those before parralleling ST2 & ST4, is likely going to be the "big revelations episode" of that season which usually reveals what's been going on this whole time during the season and Episode 7 gives us more context and explanation to understand it fully while setting up the final episode with those explanations. It's usually also the episode where all the characters reunite and makes sense of what they've learned or discovered throughout the season.

In ST2 & ST4, it's not the same obviously and is a bit more loose and complicated around that part of the season. They parallel with themselves but not exactly but overall, that structure is present in Episode 7&8, with Episode 7 largely being a revelation episode for those 2 seasons just not done the same way as ST1 & ST3 and also not exactly similar with how ST2 & ST4 parallel each other. ST2's episode 7 being largely a side story centered around El which answers questions only for her characters, ST4's episode 7 is largely tied to the bigger plot points of that season with the important element of the Numbers being the main element of those episodes. However it's in ST2's Episode 8 that we learn more about elements of the main plot of that season while ST4's Episode 8 is more similar to ST1 & ST3 in it's purpose but the characters don't all group up or are aware of what's exactly going on during the story.

Anyway just to say that Episode 6 is likely going to be an important episode with Episode 7 being the conclusion of that while setting up the final episode. However, given it's the final season, I could see the Duffers saving some revelations for the last episode just like Episode 9 of ST4.

As for the "Camazotz" part of it all, well, it depends on which inspiration they're going to use since Camazotz, which is basically a bat god, has been used in so many stories now that it could be referencing so many things. It could be an entity, it could be someone, it could be a creature, it could be a place, it could even be a program or a weapon... Just know that given the elements that are linked to that name, it's probably something bad.

I kinda wished for more episodes because I just don't see how they could pull off a satisfying ending for everyone and everything with only 8 episodes but I'll have to settle for that at the moment.

Remember that the titles can change though, like with ST2 & ST3, probably not all of them but some of them.

Well, here it is, day by day we are coming closer to the last season. Hoping it turns out well for the most part but we'll see. 😉

[hardworkandguts]

Weekly Catch-up #1

So, let's see how this works. It's the start of a new season and I have put maybe too many shows on the list to check if they're interesting or not. I'll be experimenting with the format to see how can I make this work. Pretty sure next time I won't be so wordy because I can skip explaining the premise. Or even writing at all, there's weeks where there isn't much to say and once again, I'm not going to do recaps.

(next week)

What was on?

Kowloon Generic Romance

(ep 1,2) One of the shows that caught my eye early on, a (checks title) romance anime set in the Kowloon Walled City that was never demolished between two co-workers at a real estate company. Reiko Kujirai loves new experiences, while Hajime Kudou prefers things as they are. One day she finds herself falling for him, and later finds a photo of them... in celebration of their engagement. It looks quite good, and for so much talk about nostalgia, it does have a certain retro touch to it, almost like a 90s OVA that was lost to time. Judging from the initial two episodes, between the visuals, the intriguing world and the plot mysteries, it's the frontrunner for best show of this spring.

Witch Watch

(ep1, 2) Maybe it's becayse how much I like Kiki's Delivery Service (and maybe I should do a post on it), but the concept of "new witch graduated and must now deal with the outside world" kind of draws me in, that's how I ended up watching Flying Witch, a show I still think of occasionally. Witch Watch however is very much a romcom about Nico Wakatsuki, a witch who ended her training in the witches holy land and is now back in regular society, and picked her childhood friend Morihito Otogi as her familiar, as he's from a long line of Oni. It's looking great if you want something quite silly, her general clumsiness and not knowing the details of spells doing a lot for it. Best joke, the spell to make things lighter she later discovers when used on people turns them into airheads. Then later, they discover things get heavier to compensate, and I'm not going to spoil the joke the episode ends on. Second episode has them going to school, and Morihito's attempt at keeping her identity under wraps doesn't get past her introduction in the first day. I think this is going to be fun, even more knowing it will stay with us until Fall.

Your Forma

(ep1, 2) Right, who's been playing too much Deus Ex before doing their designs for in-brain HUDs? Am I complaining? No, I kinda want to play that game. From the first two episodes, it starts as a murder mystery where Harold, the android partner of Echika Hieda, an investigator capable of diving into said brain implants and also doesn't like robots, is found to be a suspect as he's one of the three models that look like the suspect. It's a bit hard to tell where it's going by now beyond the resolution leading to some tension between the leads, but it's also a bit of a tired scenario by now: brain implants, androids breaking Asimov's laws (no sorry, the Laws of Respect), and I'm sure we're getting into if they have rights in no time. While it has good ideas visually, I've found character design and backgrounds a bit uninspiring, and the story... Yeah, I feel I've been here before. It's distributed by Remow, so check if it's available in your area on YouTube.

Summer Pockets

(ep1) Had this as a "maybe" because the story of a boy who uses his Summer break to help sort his departed grandmother travel memorabilia at her place in a small rural island and clear his head after some swimming related incident and meets four different girls reminds me of a trend many years ago of shows that were technically very pretty, very slow paced and mostly focused on the low drama of the mundane and human emotion, where the main character and the rest of the cast help each other out with their own problems and limitations, as the gentle music plays over the cicadas, maybe with some supernatural element, and then finished on some sort of bittersweet nothing of an ending because the important was the growth along the way or something like that, and... I'm not sure if I'm in for that ride. First episode really didn't do much to quiet that feeling, and since Spring 2025 seems loaded, I'm giving it three episodes to do it. At least it has two things going for it - it looks pretty and unlike Tasokare Hotel I can at least go to the Play Store and see the game it is based on.

Gundam Paper Jam In Tray

(ep 1) So, this comes just days after (finally) watching both Gundam 0079 and Zeta Gundam, and decided to watch it based on my fresh knowledge of maybe 5% of the whole franchise. It's set on a different timeline from the original show where Char Aznable steals the Gundam and leads Zeon to victory, then disappears. It's hard to say that much about it, as the first episode was a bit messy and tried to push too many ideas at once without really giving enough attention to any, but it looks pretty good and should be at least mildly entertaining should it work out a pace at which to tell a story.

Uchuujin MuuMuu

(ep 1) the description - a socially anxious college freshman has to share her apartment with a space cat who's trying to rediscover technology lost to his people - was enough to get a "yeah, maybe" out of me, and while I didn't expect the edutainment parts of it, it may elevate how bizarre everything is. So, the race MuuMuu belongs to blew up their own planet in the middle of a war, but not before killing all scientists and smart cats, so by exclusion, MuuMuu is an idiot, and is now disassembling home appliances trying to figure out how they work, and let's be honest, if cats could do that, I'm sure they would. Unfortunately for him, while Sakurako can search things on her phone, she can't exactly explain how they work, either, which also serves as a comment on how very little we know of things we use every day. I think I'll stick to it, it has the potential to get really weird.

Apothecary Diaries

(ep 2.14) So, after making everyone think about "frogs", it was time for the fan service episode, which opened the way for a new mystery in the imperial palace Maomao has the opportunity to solve. It's not a particularly difficult one for her, but still provided another insight on how Jinshi protects the order in the rear palace, so it was dealt in half an episode. For the second half, it keeps moving towards the finale as Jinshi and Gaoshun discuss when to bring her inside his other (possibly even bigger IYKWIM) secret that she kind of figured out already, but tries not to think about too much.

Food For The Soul

The first show I added to this season "must check" list, it's another cute girls doing cute things, based on the greatest Japanese tradition of showing food, in the same week I watched Wakakozake, so what could go wrong. Well, it *could* be boring, but within the first minutes there's a character trying to pass a bribe to a university clerk to let her start a club with less than 4 members. Gremlin. Yes. At the end we know the main purpose Shinon had to create the club was to have a place to hang out, shattering the dreams Mako had of cooking and going to restaurants together. If it turns out to be group Wakakozake, it's a winner.

Mono Weekend Animation

Right, from one club to another, now the stories of two girls who joined the photo club in their first year of high school, and now are running it. Or, trying to, as Satsuki misses her senpai who graduated and is now in fetal position under the table and An mostly followed her into the club for reasons. Then they meet a mangaka who was burned out after finishing her last work and forgot to send them a camera, and needs inspiration for a new work, and finds the adventures of the two girls just the thing. This is both another cute girls doing cute things anime, with a hint of hobby anime, as you can guess, photography and video. Sure, why not (extends the spring posting window to three weeks).

'Tis Time For "Torture", Princess

(#266) Ah, one of the things this series does best, introducing new characters and making a mockery of expectations immediately, this time the Hell Lord's older brother, who obviously looks as menacing, but is also as considerate as him. Do I want to see this animated in the second season? Yes.

In other news:

Makeine was confirmed for a second season. Kind of surprised but happy with it.

The movie version of Rose of Versailles gets an April 30th release date and English dub, on Netflix (via).

City The Animation by Arawi Keiichi gets a trailer, should be one of my favourites for the Summer season, already hinting it will have some of the "didn't need to go this hard" animation of Nichijou.

Also getting a new trailer, the new Ghost In The Shell adaptation by Science SARU scheduled for next year. It's apparently not following the tone set by the 1995 movie adaptation, but closer to the occasionally goofier source material, which will certainly be a big point of contention for those who see the Oshii version as the standard Major.

Questions?

Anonymous didn't ask, but sent re: Guild Receptionist:

Its funny because the Guild Receptionist anime completely botched the novel because the novel actually has really good pacing and the anime basically deleted half the novel cast off just so they could give Jade more screen time. The first volume goes into depth about why there are bosses and the ancients, also they cut off so many key elements that it feels weird and empty

Ooooh, that really explains a lot why it feels off and a bit all over the place. Really a missed opportunity on what's a cool concept but at least now I know it's an adaptation problem.

[xxpariahprincexx]

As you all know, I absolutely despise Monster High G3, so I decided to list down the things I like and dislike about it:

(disclaimer: this post is not me trying to discourage anyone from liking G3, like whatever you want. This is just me explaining my opinions, I do not hate you if you like G3 so please do not come after me if you have a different opinion to mine)

Dislikes:

My worst problem is the extremely uninspired and generic character designs. I always found the original Monster High's designs to be one of my favourite parts of the franchise, they were so creative and unique and you could tell so much about a character based on how they looked. In G3, they all feel so uninspired and lazy with no real good thought but into them (at least the main outfits anyways). Heath is the worst offender when it comes to the basic and boring character designs

The very bright and saturated colours. Did G1 have some bright colours? Yes it most DEFINITELY did. However, in G1 the colours weren't very saturated and were often balanced out by darker colours (a great example is Twyla's design). But in G3 most of the designs are so bright and candy coloured and I really hate it, not just because it's different from G1 but because really really bright colours DO NOT give off monster vibes to me. There's a reason why Frankie's refresh doll is my favourite from G3, the colours aren't too saturated and are balanced out by blacks and dark blues. I hope in the future G3 will start doing more designs like refresh Frankie

Just general problems I had with the characters that didn't really have to do with laziness/uninspired designs. Such as Lagoona being pink, Draculaura not having the same sort of hair pattern, Torelai having a british accent (it doesn't fit her in my opinion), Frankie having a shaved part of their hair (it works better with Venus and her style) and some of the colours being more pastel-like on characters I don't feel fit it. Overall design wise the only character I really like the looks of are Cleo and Spectra, maybe a few I can't recall right now

The changes in personality. Another thing that made me fall in love with OG Monster High was the personalities the characters had. But some of the characters have had really dramatic personality switches that I really dislike. For example, OG Clawdeen was so bold and confident, and while as the generation has went on G3 Clawdeen has become a bit more like that, she just feels too different from the OG. Same goes with a lot of other characters

The decision to make Clawdeen the main character. As much as I love Clawdeen, I would've really preferred if Frankie had just stayed the main character. I also didn't like it when they made Draculaura the main character in G2 for this same reason. Afterall even in G3 Frankie had only just been made a few weeks prior to the events of the story, so getting to see things from their point of view makes more sense

The animation style of the cartoon show. There was something I found really charming about the original CGI Monster High films, both as a little boy and now. I can't really put my finger on it, but the way the characters looked and moved in the original CGI movies looked really unique and cool to me. But the CGI G3 cartoon show looks just like any other modern day cartoon, not to mention I'm not really a fan of the way the characters move or express facial emotions.

The songs. I love a lot of songs from G1! We are Monster High, The Fright Song, Empire, Steal The Show, Boo York, Search Inside, they were great, especially the songs in Boo York Boo York. But I cannot remember a single song from G3, even though I have listened to them multiple times. The songs in the live action movies in particular just sound like they were trying so hard to imitate Disney channel songs that they forgot to make them memorable. You know the soundtrack in G3 is bad when I can actually remember the Electrified song from G2 better than any of them! And I stay as far away from anything G2 related as I can (edit from a month later: I actually like the song "Lagoona Na" from G3)

The absence of multiple G1 characters. I'm not expecting every single character to have ever existed in Monster High to be in G3, I understand it'd take a lot of time and money (on top of the fact I'm sure there are a few new characters). But beloved characters like Operetta for example, who had only ever been referenced on a poster in the background, have not made an appearance. My friends favourite character Scarah Scream has also not made an appearance, as well as Robecca Steam, Jackson Jekyll/Holt Hyde, Rochelle Goyle and Elissabat (or Veronica Von Vamp). Also Clawdeen's sisters Clawdia and Howleen have not appeared, Howleen has appeared in the cartoon but not as a doll, and Clawdia doesn't seem to exist. These characters may or may not appear in the future. But considering how butchered some of the other characters have been... Maybe the fact that these characters aren't in G3 is a blessing in disguise.

The decision to make Deuce and Cleo break up. Why??? They were such an iconic couple for many kids (including myself). When Boo York Boo York came out when I was like 7 and I saw the part where Deuce and Cleo broke up I was devastated! But at the very least in that movie they got back together in the end. In G3 they're broken up permanently! And then Cleo and Frankie are getting together? I found that really weird, I don't really think they have much chemistry, Frankie is better with Clawdeen in my opinion, and even the original creator of Monster High said he liked the idea of Clawdeen being lgbt, so not only does it make sense in that way, but they both just genuinely have a better relationship (wether that be romantic or platonic) than Cleo and Frankie. Thinking back, it's actually kind of odd how in G3 there are so many lgbt characters (which is great) but Clawdeen isn't one of them despite nearly everyone agreeing she's gay long before G3 even came out, she was paired together with Deuce in the live action film (which even if Clawdeen wasn't gay it's still a REALLY RANDOM pairing). It's just very strange

Overall it just doesn't feel like Monster High, if that makes sense? Like when I watch anything G3 related, it just doesn't give off the same vibes of G1. And I get it, it's a reboot and it's not supposed to be the exact same as the original. A lot of you are probably saying right now "Monster High is for kids and you're an older teen so of course it's not really gonna appeal to you!" And I'd understand that, but G1 was also made for kids and I find all of the movies and webisodes appealing! There are loads of things that are aimed towards kids that adults also enjoy. But Monster High G3 in my opinion is just another generic kids show based off a generic kids toy line. It just doesn't have the same boldness and edge that everyone loved about G1 I think is what I am trying to say. As I said before I understand it's a reboot, but it's so different to the point where I don't get why they chose to reboot Monster High instead of making an entirely new franchise... To bank on peoples nostalgia I guess (but it didn't work on me obviously)

Likes:

The different body types. In G1 most of the female characters were skinny and had long legs, and the male characters were tall and muscular. I do like how there are different bodies shown in G3. In particular I like how Frankie seems to be taller, the Frankenstein's monster they were based on is usually depicted as tall and menacing so it makes sense they are also tall. I also like how Abbey is chubbier, while I definitely prefer G1 Abbey's design, her being chubbier makes sense as the Abominable Snowman/Yeti she is based off is often depicted as big and poofy, so her having a chubbier body reflects that.

I actually like SOME of the designs. Dare I say I actually think some of the designs are just as good/even better than the original counterparts. Cleo, Spectra and Skelita are good examples of this. I also really like the new design for Venus even though I do prefer the original. There are also some character designs I have a love hate relationship with such as Abbey (as I said before I like how she's chubbier and has more yeti-like features, but the colours on her outfit aren't that great), Lagoona (she's very cute in her own right, but she's just not Lagoona to me if you get what I mean) and Jinafire (she looks more like a dragon to me and I like her shoes but the colours don't go well together). And as I mentioned before my favourite doll in the whole reboot is refresh Frankie, who has similar colours to G1 designs but has a touch of what I consider to be the best of G3 as well. I really hope G3 gets better because I WANT to like it and I've tried to get into it many times, but just couldn't

.... And that is pretty much it

But hey, at least it wasn't G2 ¯⁠\⁠_⁠(⁠ツ⁠)⁠_⁠/⁠¯

[annoying--moth]

No matter how many times it is explained to me or I talk about it with someone, I can't fully grasp what exactly is going on with art in the arc of a scythe universe. Because like,

It's stated multiple times that post-mortal art is "bland" and "uninspired" and "redone to death," and while I can certainly understand SOME art being like that, surely not all art is like that?? And I understand this in the sense that like, everyone's constantly remaking/repainting/making their own versions of famous paintings and such, but also there still has to be people who don't do that, right??? Like maybe I just have zero reading comprehension and somehow missed the bigger picture, but I feel like all this talk about art being redone to death implies that no one is making original art anymore? Which just. doesn't seem feasible to me?? Because as an artist myself, I can't see immortality taking away my ability to draw or come up with cool ideas. I don't draw because I'm going to die one day, I draw because I like it, and it's a form of creative expression. You can always come up with something new to draw- whether it's a cool oc, or someone you know, or just something random and abstract. The possibilities never end!

Of course, I suppose there is the argument then that people just aren't creative anymore, but I also find that hard to believe. I couldn't imagine ever truly running out of ideas. Like I mentioned above, OCs people??? I highly doubt there's no one in the post-mortal era still making weird, whacky, badass, or just cute OCs. Heck, I'd expect scythe ocs to be really popular! I wonder if it's like a thing for every kid to have a scythe oc phase..? Or at least kids in certain communities/fandoms (like scythe card trading- maybe they make their own cards for their scythe ocs!)

And also, it's confirmed that fiction is still very much a thing in the post-mortal era (I know zombies are referenced in one Gleanings story) so it's not like people can only connect to non-fiction. That's another thing that's discussed more in terms of theatre and writing- people not being able to connect to the themes because they're so far removed from it in reality. But my thing is, I've never experienced war or death (until very recently at least) and I still don't find myself unable to sympathize with people losing their loved ones to death or war or disease, although I suppose this could also have to do with the nanites. Plus the fact that death and war still exist in society as an actual thing that happens, but idk.

Also by the way- I feel like that one Gleanings story The Mortal Canvas has a subtle diss on digital art? And I have nothing against traditional art- heck I probably draw traditionally more often since I'm always doodling/sketching, but I feel like just because art is digital doesn't mean it's "uninspired" or whatever people were saying in the books. In fact, I've found myself moved emotionally by more digital pieces than traditional ones (although I don't see a lot of traditional paintings compared to digital ones tbf)

Also also I want to say- I don't exactly know how well this relates to my point but that one dude in The Mortal Canvas who made the others' artstyles into filters was a huge douchebag. AI art type shit, I was ready to strangle him reading that.

I remember the bit in The Toll about Ezra the artist, and how he said he was just "decent" or "moderately good" or something along those lines when we first met him, and I was going to make an argument about that part too but to be honest it's been a little while since I've read The Toll so I'll have to come back to that one once I reread it. But I think it also had to do with the emotional/creative aspect of art, which again, I refuse to believe immortality has such an influence on creativity that no art is original or interesting anymore. Sure it might make certain things harder, or make motivation worse, but I feel like if someone is truly creative it doesn't matter? Though then again, I'm not immortal so what do I know.

I briefly mentioned nanites earlier, and that is one thing that I do think probably has an impact, and I specifically mean emo-nanites. Since post-mortals can't feel as strong emotions as us mortal humans, perhaps that's also why their art seems more uninspired or whatever, because they can't put as much emotion into it. However, an excess amount of emotion isn't exactly needed to make art either. Like as I was writing this I was looking through my own art and realised that for some pieces I wasn't putting any emotional thought whatsoever into the pieces, yet there's still a clear emotion there when you look at them. Joy, wonder, whatever.

Anyway in conclusion, I think that it's unrealistic to say that all post-mortal art would be dull, uninspired, and meaningless, because I believe there will always be creative people who will make art not because they're gonna die one day, but because they want to and enjoy it, simple as that. Thanks to whoever stuck around long enough to read this far, I really hope it made sense. It's kinda late while I'm writing this and tbh I'm half-expecting there to be some huge detail/plot point that I missed that makes my whole argument totally invalid, whether that's me misinterpreting all the bits about post-mortal art or just being a complete dumbass with zero media literacy. Either way hope this was a fun read, I don't write long-form posts like these super often (note the lack of confidence in my media literacy skills) and if I made a really bad argument/missed something huge please be nice in the notes, I have a fragile ego :(

Uh yeah anyway I think I got everything as usual don't take my rambling *too* seriously, I just always found it confusing how post-mortal art is said to be so "uninspired" (I keep using that word cause I reread chapter 3 of Scythe today and Faraday uses it there) when I personally can't imagine not being able to be creative, though perhaps I'm just self-projecting. So uh, yeah.

[andthekitchensinkao3]

WiP Wednesday!!

Iiii'm tagging @kcscribbler @thosegayoldmen @loki-is-my-kink-awakening @lokimobius @sweeteatercat @ anyone else whose username I can't remember. No pressure tags, either to read or post anything 😘😎

For context, this story’ll take place some time after my first coochieverse fic, Sledgehammer. Transmasc Mobius/transmasc Don, sex tape shenanigans, angst and smut galore.

For the purposes of this fic, Loki’s snuck off to the Sacred Timeline to find something for his and Mobius’ anniversary -- no, it isn’t an actual anniversary, but he’s never had one, and he wants an excuse to do something nice for him and Mobius. Mostly for Mobius, but you know. Dorks and feels.

He visits an adult toy store, and is helped by a very knowledgeable young man with shoulder length blond hair and a bit of a familiar dialect - but Loki’s too fascinated by everything on display to properly look at the guy, or register his face. He’s in a sex shop for the very first time of his life. Priorities, people.

And yes, this snippet is very very NSFW. Read on below the cut. 

“Ooh. A man after my own heart. Just a tic!” The helpful young clerk disappeared behind the corner to grab something off the shelves a little bit further in, and came back with no less than two different boxes. The brand was ‘Lelo,’ which told him nothing, and while the little doodads on display behind the clear front were…uninspiring at best, just holding the boxes gave him a visceral thrill.

“Here ya go,” said his new best friend. “Start off with this little guy, get those juices going, and when you really wanna rev his engine?”

Loki stared at the little packages. Exclusive looking, for what they were. Sonic, vibrating clitoral stimulators… “Fascinating.” He turned his head to properly look at the clerk, to thank him for his obvious expertise, but ended up staring at the poor man instead. It was a mistake to muster up the courage to talk about sex like a pair of adults engaging in a transactional Midgard custom. To look him in the eye, rather than let contextual embarrassment guide his eyes elsewhere.

It was the Don of his collected dreams and nightmares. Don from the home made sex tape that ended up changing everything for himself and Mobius. Long floofy, sunkissed blond hair. Peachy lip balm. Criminally tight, low cut jeans. And-- Why was he suddenly taller? Were those high heeled boots?

“Er.”

“Uncle Jethro’s gonna kill me for saying this, but all you need is your hand. Have your man use that on his clit until he’s gaggin’ for it, and then you use two fingers on his g-spot. But not like--”

He deftly demonstrated the fluttery, rubbing, wave motions Loki usually did, and Loki could feel his face heat up like a forest fire.

“--but you lock your fingers at a ninety degree angle to your palm and pull up. Like, aim for the ceiling, up, up, up, up. Go fast. Hold his pelvis down, and don’t worry about being too rough, he can take it. You’ll know you’re golden by the wet noises.”

“I, what?”

“I got two words for you, handsome. ‘Fountain.’ ‘Orgasm.’ He’ll love you forever.” Don leans against the shelf. “...now, what’s your pleasure?” Overt, come hither, how do ya like dem apples, pouty lips, shock full of confidence and swagger

“I. Uh,” Loki squeaked. “I beg your pardon?”

“What kinda toy do ya want him to use on you? Gimme something to work with.”

“Oh.”

“Aw. You’re precious.” Don patted his hand, which was still clutching one of the clitoral stimulator packages he brought over in a white-knuckled grip. “I like you.”

[presidenthades]

I saw the earlier post about beauty and how the girls are a bit like and Im wondering what are their favorite hobbies or likes and dislikes. If you have the time can you also expand on the Targbros (I really like that name more than Targtowers or Green Princelings by the way)

Jace does a lot of typical court lady activities, like embroidery and socializing at garden parties, but it isn’t something she’s especially passionate about. What she really enjoys is reading, and she has a diverse taste from old historical texts to smutty romance novels. She also enjoys correspondence, i.e. being pen pals, and part of her genuinely finds fulfillment in participating in government. She likes going for walks and flying on Vermax, but otherwise she isn’t interested in physically exerting activities or anything deemed unladylike.

Luce’s big hobby is knitting, which she learned from the nursemaid Nelly. It’s a good activity for multitasking since she can chat with other people while doing it, and she thinks it has more utility than embroidery. (If her future husband wants to read aloud to her while she’s knitting, that’d be nice too 👀.) She also likes sums/math, because numbers are straightforward. Unlike Jace, she loves running around, climbing trees, exploring nature, etc. Luce dislikes activities that require her to sit in place and be quiet/focus on one thing.

Joff is a precious weirdo 🖤. I’m going to mention in Chapter 5 of Compromise that she has a Myrish near-eye (AKA microscope), and she likes to study things under it. That’s why she’s constantly collecting samples like moldy bread. And of course she’s very interested in sorcery, witchcraft, and the like, so she spends a good bit of time reading and experimenting with that. The magic experiments are unsuccessful more often than not. She also has an amateur interest in herbalism, medicine, and anatomy. She tends to shun activities that she thinks aren’t “useful,” so she knows how to sew but hates embroidery, for example.

Aegon, as we’ve seen in The Golds, is artsy when he’s allowed to be. Singing, playing the lute, drawing (with Jace as his muse obviously). If he’s discouraged or uninspired (like in the beginning of Lavender), he falls back on frat habits, like drinking and partying. Like Luce, he enjoys running around and exploring, but he tends to do it in a more urban setting. I guess detective work counts as a hobby? He’d probably be a decent actor if he wanted to try it out. And again, like Luce (I feel like these two have some hyperactivity going on), he dislikes being forced to quietly sit in one place.

Aemond! ‘Tis he who studies history and philosophy, ‘tis he who studies the blade, etc. Studying, training, and dragon riding are his canon activities, and he does them here too. He’s basically the medieval equivalent of someone who goes to work, goes to the gym, and goes to sleep. But he also picks up on the activities of people around him, e.g. exploring caves on the beach with Luce, following Aegon around the city. He disapproves of “wastrel” activities like drinking and whoring.

Daeron does typical prince and squire activities, like studying and training, but he’s more social than Aemond. When he’s older, he’ll probably be invited by lots of lords to go hunting, hawking, riding, etc. But of course his FAVORITE thing to do is whatever Joff tells him 😂. Because he spends so much time with Joff, he knows a lot more about witchy subjects than he would have picked up on his own. But so far I’ve made him a bit squeamish, like when he gets sick watching Daemon torture the Tyroshi, so he’s not especially fond of everything Joff does.