#i wish they would tease a time that the trailer drops too because i'm very jobless yes but i don't wanna be sitting by my computer

[sage-lights]

a trailer dropping tomorrow...erin, tommy, angela, amanda, courtney all at the wrap dinner together...directed by courtney...hm....

[dr-spectre]

Talking about Side Order and... Marina. (SPOILERS AHEAD!!!!)

You know, i really enjoyed Side Order, like it wasn't perfect or anything but i had such a blast with it and if they continue to expand on it we could have something REALLY amazing. My reaction to the GOD DAMN TUTORIAL BOSS GOT ME HYPERVENTILATING! IM NOT JOKING! IT WAS SO EXCITING AND SHOCKING!!! THE FINAL BOSS WAS INCREDIBLE TOO! I was singing along to Spectrum Obligato and WHEN THEY BROUGHT IN THE STUFF FROM THE LIVE CONCERT VERSION OF EBB AND FLOW MY JAW DROPPED!!!

However i gotta admit, the story could have been better, what was the deal with the Octoling engineers Marina was talking about? That goes completely nowhere and i thought it was gonna build to something with the repeat playthroughs of the final boss.

And of course, the biggest missed opportunity in my opinion, Marina Agitando.

Now look, i wanna say right off the bat, the design is excellent, it was so smart to bring back her Order outfit and make her into a giant abomination that moves in such a weird way that makes you feel uncomfortable. When i saw her for the very first time when you enter the room, i stood there for at least a solid minute in complete disbelief and shock seeing a giant Marina in some octopus tentacle heart thingy that beats and pumps with the music. The song that plays too "Unconscience" is such a BANGER and honestly it rivals Octo Callie's Bomb Rush Blush remix in my opinion.

The build up for this was pretty good too, seeing Marina say "help me" before she was knocked unconscious and then possessed by Overlorder BROKE ME! I was like "OH NO! ITS HAPPENING AGAIN! NOT MARINA!!" The build up to the 10th floor was so anxiety inducing because you know in the back of your mind that Marina is gonna fight you but you don't know what it's gonna look like, if you were there since Splatoon 2 and have watched Pearl and Marina since the beginning then this build up is even more anxiety inducing and its pretty damn good. And once you free Marina she feels so sorry about what happened and helps you out to put things right, heck she goes through a small character arc of embracing chaos.... but... i have to say...

It is unfortunately not executed that well or with any depth in my opinion because they repeated the whole thing of "oh no a character we know is evil because of (quote on quote) mind control!!!! oh noooo!!" Which is a tired trope in this series that needs to stop or else I'm gonna get REALLYYYYYY pissed off.

I've done enough ranting about Callie's villain arc and how that has been misinterpreted and stuff, but for Marina, i really wish they didn't do the whole "oh no a character is evil because of an evil character oh nooo!! we gotta save them!!" thing again and i wish Marina was more of a villain with a sad motivation for her actions. As much as its cute to see Pearl and Marina act all flirty with each other in Side Order, it kinda ruins the mysterious and dark tone of the story that was teased from the trailers and the tutorial in my opinion. Everything is also explained so quickly early on which really sucks. I really wish Marina was actually conscious throughout her time as Marina Agitando and most of it should have been her fault. She does blame herself for creating Overlorder but it's kinda brushed aside quickly and Marina ends up being totally fine and free of guilt. There isn't enough depth to it which is so lame and a missed opportunity.

Marina is flawed, she makes mistakes and acts emotional and angry sometimes. We have seen a side of Marina where she snaps at Pearl when she loses Splatfests and has shown signs that she still hasn't recovered from her time before she met Pearl.

She picked team Order because she was genuinely scared that her new life would fall apart and she doesn't wanna lose the people (especially Pearl) that she's met and grown to love. Marina is also heavily theorized to be on the autism spectrum and as someone who is autistic, i can see myself in Marina, they could have really explored Marina's psyche and mental health in Side Order but they just... didn't. Instead she's put to sleep and controlled by her ai child and all of the focus is put on stopping it like a traditional "oh no we gotta stop an evil ai!! oh noo!!" story... ugh... I mean Smollusk is cute i guess but there's not a ton to them and they come off as yet another "evil ai that wants order and control!! roarrr!!!"

From reading the most recent interview on Side Order and seeing the concept art, they said that they wanted to tell a story about Marina losing herself to a machine that she created. Could you imagine how tragic it would have been to learn more about Marina and how she's so wrapped up in anxiety that she decides to make this replica of Inkopolis Square and make the Memverse? Maybe at first she makes it to help Sanitized Octolings just like in the dlc, but then maybe due to overwork and burnout (which Pearl mentions in the tutorial by the way), her emotions and anxiety become so strong that she becomes consumed by it, this obsession of order and trying to achieve happiness takes over her and then she gets the idea to spread this order to the real world, where her friends can be "happy" and "safe." Maybe Overlorder is still there but they just whisper to Marina, manipulate and point her in the right direction to continue to her mission of order instead of just fucking knocking her out and using her as a meat puppet for 5 minutes.

Could you imagine how much better the build up would have been to not see Marina until you get to the 30th floor for the first time and you got to unlock her diary entries beforehand? Seeing her thought process and her slow descent into becoming an antagonist. I'm not sure how they would have changed the permanent upgrades but they could have thought of something man. I get that they wanted to subvert expectations but, i think they should have gone WAY further with Marina Agitando.

I was waiting for Pearl and Marina to have their "Tidal Rush" moment where it's this emotional battle between the two, could you imagine how DEVISTATING a remix of Ebb and Flow would have been if it had gotten that "Tidal Rush" type of remix? Pearl singing her parts in this chaotic and emotional way, on the brink of tears trying to get Marina back and calm her down, and Marina trying to fight back against her words, not wanting to believe her because she's so wrapped up trying to make them both happy in her way. She's so caught up in order that she has forgotten what Pearl wants, that Pearl wants to be with her and go against any obstacle that stands in their way together. God i would have cried seeing that I'm not gonna lie. Maybe once Marina starts to think rationally, she breaks free from the machine and then leaps into Pearl's arms, and then we have to go back up the 30 floors to fight Overlorder and we slowly see Marina learn to embrace chaos throughout the floors instead of it just being at the final boss.

I really do feel like Splatoon has this issue of trying to appeal way too hard to kids and being really scared to dive into the flaws of these characters. They are so avoidant of being more serious and they hide it away in optional collectables and obscure posts on social media that creates misinformation and stories that feel way too undeveloped. They just say "oh this character has been brainwashed!!" which is such a lazy and bullshit trope they slap on these characters to avoid getting into their flaws for some stupid reason. (Hell that word has lost all meaning to me now to be honest. Like no, Callie wasn't "brainwashed" per say, hypnosis is not brainwashing or mind control I've said that a trillion times in other blog posts but whatever. Agent 3 was knocked out and had no clue on what was happening. They weren't "brainwashed" they were used as a puppet from a fucking goopy telephone for five minutes while they were asleep. Maybe its poor translation i don't know.)

I know that Splatoon is made for all ages and primarily for children but, i find that to be a stupid excuse for bad storytelling, a good story with depth that's explored and set up properly can be applied to all kinds of age groups not just adults. And the adults that say that shit too, why do you think like that? Why do you wish to dismiss that sort of thing in media? So what if it's made for kids? Adults write these stories and plant themes and arcs into them. Why do you think people cried over the Rosalina storybook in Mario Galaxy and think its the best part of that game? You don't want that kind of stuff in games because "they are made for kids"? Why do you think there are so many adults in the Splatoon community hmm?

I am so worried for Deep Cut in the next game because i really don't want this to happen again, i want an actual proper villain arc for either Frye or Shiver. No hypnosis, no brainwashing, no mind control. Just a pure fucking villain arc caused by the flaws of the characters and without the involvement of a third party. Please, i wanna see growth in these characters that is explored way more clearly and better. Or maybe don't do a villain arc again and just have Deep Cut be fully happy with each other and develop their relationship more with lore and backstory. PLEASE!

Anyways ramble over, thank you for reading!

[yostresswritinggirl]

Request: hello!! i rlly like your works, and as someone poly myself i was really happy to see your venti x reader x zhongli one!! your writing is so interesting and immersive, too!! i'd really like to see a xiao x reader x venti, if possible! anything, hc, fic, i don't mind :D i especially cherish the idea of xiaoven being together beforehand and trying to figure out how to proceed together. -🌌 (just in case i decide to drop by ur asks again in the future, haha)

And then that poly fic turned into five requests ahahaha, I'm glad you found and enjoyed that, as my first poly fic uhu. I didn't expect to actually find these kinds of fics interesting, life is wack pfft. With the new trailer up too, this just made it more appropriate! I hope you like it!

Drifting Blooms

Poly Xiao and Venti falling in love with the Reader, and trying to establish a relationship with you. (masterlist)

Beforehand

The first person you met was Venti when you crossed paths during one of his escapades to Wangshu Inn. After visiting his lover, he then wanted to visit his old friend and passed you in the middle of the bridge.

You smelled of a thousand flowers mixed into a single perfume, and despite the many scents, it wasn't pungent or intrusive. It was... comforting, intoxicating. He stopped in his steps while you continued your path to the Inn.

Before that chance encounter, you were commissioned by Verr to gather multiple scented flowers for a mass floral change around the Inn. While your messenger bag carefully carried and concealed your baggage, the many times you'd sink into the floras had marked your clothing with its many scents.

Venti, intrigued and ecstatic about the discovery would fly back to the architecture to express his findings to Xiao, who was surprised to see him back so quickly. Upon hearing of your person, the yaksha would simply inform him that he's not exactly aware of who you are, but only knows you by scent as well.

He dubbed you the florist, because everytime you appear, the vases would be filled with healthy and blooming ones. Never had he actually put a face to your title.

So like little children, the both of them peered over the railings to watch you down below, conversing with Verr as you present the freshly picked flowers bundled in your arms. From this distance, the smell still winds up to find their nostrils, making them inhale as the calming effect takes place once more.

You looked disheveled yet still composed, a glaze lily you particularly liked tucked behind both your ears. And Xiao notices the huge claymore clinging to your back, a full head taller than yours.

Verr asks you to bring it to the balcony where it would be arranged as all the vases had been vacated there for drying, and when you looked up upon the mention of the higher floor, your eyes widen upon meeting two pairs of bright tantalizing orbs.

While the beholder of the amber ones pointedly avoided your gaze right after, the teal ones smiled through his eyes, waving at you enthusiastically. You returned the smile softly before you started making your way over where they are.

The stronger the scent comes, the more overwhelming it pierces through them both. It was distracting in the best way, minds cleared as they relished under the atmosphere the concoction of sweetness it produced. To the yaksha, he was a bit dizzy, tipsy even as his mind floats. And to Venti, it reminded him of home and the breeze the thousand winds carried with him when he was but a sprite.

When you placed down the flowers by the stone rock, you realized that they were standing idly by you in a respectable yet still close distance. They both realized how it clings to you, and you were forced to stay a little longer as Venti chatted you up to make you linger while the other male chose to hang back where he can overlook the Marsh.

They were both charming despite the other's cold exterior, carrying with them their own sense of elegance and beauty. Is it so wrong to like them despite their already existing relationship? You kept to yourself with a blush at the scandalous thought, congratulating them before bidding your farewell.

When you left, the comfort and warmth took off with you. They were both frenzied and are addicted to it, as if you had marked them so violently. No other flower, not even hundreds, can make their hearts both calm and flutter like you do.

Cultivation

Since then, Venti had been visiting frequently and lingering much longer than usual. Xiao would question it at first until he realized the way the Archon seemed very curious of your presence, drifting over to you or dividing his attention when you came into vicinity.

It wasn't hard to miss with the flowery scented aura you carry, your continuous commission with floras had the smell permanently stuck to your adventuring attire. That or you seem to be using a floral detergent for your laundry too.

Once, you've accidentally left an article of clothing by the balcony in your hurry, whether it be a scarf or handkerchief it was easy to miss. And the bard had noticed the discarded garment a bit too late. Is that why your scent lingered despite the fact that you had withdrawn for the night? Xiao keeps it with him to return the next time you came along.

That night, he realized the following night after you received your missing item, was a rare moment of peace with the voices for once quieted down without the help of Venti's songs.

Upon this discovery it would then be him doing the investigation, the curiousity, he'd be more approachable and less guarded. Somehow he had forgotten how normal mortals were affected by their energy but it would seem it isn't that harmful now than it used to before.

One day, they most likely ended up talking about you to each other in passing conversation, and when Venti teased about the idea of them being infatuated to you... they held a pregnant pause at the sudden realization, of the weird intoxication and the similar yearning.

At first they'd be ashamed of the thought that they came to fancy another person when they were already in an existing and steady relationship. But the thought seemed to just be more enticing knowing that the other feels the same way, why be shy over something that you both feel anyways? And besides, humans also partake in far intense concepts of romances.

But it doesn't really start there, it takes them a little more before they finally realized that another one (especially the likes of you) can easily fit in their daily lives. Now the question is, would you wish to be in between two immortals?

Would THEY be willing to invest in a mortal that would one day be engraved as nothing but a painful memory? That they can never revert back to?

Until they realized the capabilities of adeptal energy.

The Grand Plan

The duo does their best to fall into steps over your humane life, understanding you beyond your simple presence, as they continue to soak up the ecstacy. Like two moths drawn to the flame, the citizens around you can see the dynamic. Even before you three's relationship starts, the rumors had spread into established truth. One you were perfectly unaware of.

It was a painful game of tug of war. They would strive for progress before getting pulled back again, still unsure of their decisions and trying to figure it out as they go.

What made them finally pull you into their world of love? Well, cliché as it is, it was their own greed and jealousy upon the sight of other beings of the mortal realm seemingly gravitating to your form everytime. The essence of flowers had imprinted itself to many people that linger around you, pulling them in the same way the two of them had been.

Before the potential suitors could come within your personal space, Venti's arm wraps itself around your waist as he pulls you back into the balcony with surprising strength. And the entrance would be shut as Xiao kicks out the person trying to take your hand.

Next thing you know, you're squeezed in between two twink- cute guys that desperately clings to what they can get hold of you. Your presence may be overwhelming, but you're already so dizzy from the bouts of emotions racing through your mind at the predicament you find yourself in.

It's time to decide if you want in or not.

NSFW bonus: When on a three way, Venti is in front while Xiao is behind, both of them however occupy the same hole.

@kookieyachi @ellitx @struggljng @moaa @dandelion-dreams @witchsungie @zelos-simp @legionqueensav @snackgod @rxsalinee @cala-ran @wind-wheel

[atths--twice]

Could you write the first time Mulder and Scully ever drank during movie night? I'm just so curious about how that started since we know it's canon XD I'd love to see your take!

Okay!! This is my FIRST ever prompt, I hope I do it right! I am not exactly Tumblr savvy, more of a Twitter and AO3 gal, but I was given a prompt by @gaycrouton who is quite possibly one of the sweetest people ever and so I am answering the call. I hope you enjoy this story, I had fun writing it. ❤️

Something They Drank

“Beer is okay, right?” Mulder asked Scully as he stood in front of his near empty fridge. “I don’t actually have anything else, well tap water, but …” He looked at her and shrugged. “Sorry.”

“No. Beer is fine. I mean, we’re off duty, on our own time, and God knows this case was enough to drive someone to drink. All those circus folk and the ‘Fiji Mermaid’ hanging about. I’m sure I’ll have nightmares about it for weeks,” Scully sighed, leaning against the door jamb into his kitchen. “As if Tooms wasn’t bad enough. Now I’ll be thinking of that twin somehow possibly either ripping from inside The Conundrum’s body or being slowly digested in his stomach. Either scenario is horrifying.”

Mulder stared at her and shook his head. “Jesus Christ, Scully. Thank you for that disturbing visual,” he shuddered, taking two beers from the fridge, opening them, and handing one to her. “Now I’ll be thinking about that and how I was almost impaled on a bed of actual nails. Skewered is not the way I want to go.” He tipped his beer to her, and they clinked their bottles together.

“So you mentioned a movie on the phone. Which one did you have in mind?” she asked, turning and setting her beer on the table as she shrugged off her coat. Picking up the bottle again, she looked up at him. “Please, no circus, carnival, or overly graphic movies.”

“Oh, overly graphic, Scully? What kind of movie night did you think this was?” he teased her as he stepped closer to her, raising his eyebrows. She rolled her eyes and walked into the living room, his eyes following her, allowing him to look her up and down while she was not aware of it so he was able to avoid the possibility of a slap.

She was wearing jeans. Dana Scully was wearing dark blue jeans, and a soft, periwinkle, purpley colored sweater that he wanted to rub between his fingers. He imagined that it was just as soft against her flesh as the blanket his grandmother used to have. The one that he loved pressing his face against. He figured Scully would not appreciate his face buried in her soft sweater, but a guy could dream. She slipped off her shoes, and he saw a flash of purple on her toenails before she sat cross-legged on the couch.

Oh, God …

Seeing her comfortable like that in his place made him feel a little bolder, and he walked into the room with a bit more swagger than normal. He knew she would not notice a difference, but he felt it and that was what mattered.

The last few days had actually done it too. In her trailer discussing the case, the way she had been sitting at the table felt very … casual and at ease with how they were with one another. Yes, they were discussing Jim-Jim the Dog-Faced Boy, and it had seemed hooky and silly, but the ease at which they just were, was nice.

“So,” he said, setting his beer down on the desk. “Nothing overly graphic … let me just check what’s in the VCR. Oh … no that’s … I’ll just save that for later.” He put the Hot Space Babes video over to the side, his cheeks flushed as he knew this particular one featured a red headed scientist who resembled Scully. Resembled her a lot.

“Just adding it to the other ones that aren’t yours?” she teased as she cleared her throat. He looked back at her and she smiled. God, she was so beautiful.

“Something like that yeah,” he answered and went back to searching for an acceptable movie to watch with his partner that did not feature big breasted women moaning.

“Ah! Got it!” he said triumphantly and put the movie in the VCR. He picked up his beer and sat down next to her as he reached for the remote, fast forwarding to the movie.

“The Princess Bride? Really?” she asked incredulously.

“Do you not like this movie?” he asked, looking from her to the screen and back again.

“No, no, I do. In fact it’s … one of my favorites,” she said quietly, her cheeks slightly flushed.

“Ahh. Cary Elwes takes another heart I see,” he pouted, and she laughed. He watched her and smiled, enjoying the sound of her happiness. It was few and far between that he got to hear it.

“Not Cary Elwes, exactly,” she said, taking a drink of her beer and looking at him. “I suppose, it’s more the character and just the general romance of it all.” At his raised eyebrows, she laughed nervously and glanced down at her lap. “Westley was in love with Buttercup for years. He never said it outright, but he showed her, every day. He … he took care of her, took her bossing him about, and always with his ‘as you wish.’” She lifted her head and smiled as that part of the movie started. Taking another drink, she remained quiet as she watched.

He watched her watch the movie, smiling and laughing as she drank her beer until it was down to the last few drops. She seemed surprised to find it empty so quickly, and he stood up, intent on getting her another one, wanting to keep the conversation going.

“Mulder, I’m fine, I don’t need another one,” she called, her tone holding a hint of embarrassment.

“Nonsense, I need another myself,” he said, grabbing two, knowing full well his was more than half full. Can’t let her drink alone, he thought as he popped them open.

Walking back in the room he saw Westley leaving, and he heard Scully sigh as he handed her her beer. He sat down beside her, put his new drink on the desk, and picked up his old one.

“Thank you,” she said quietly, holding the bottle in her hands and sighing again. “See, it’s not that he loves her so deeply, which he does and we can obviously and plainly see it, it’s … it’s that he feels he needs to be worthy of her. He leaves her to prove his worth, to … secure a future for her, for them, and that alone is so romantic.” She took a drink and sighed again. “She didn’t … it wasn’t necessary, at least I don’t think it was, for him to leave to have money for marriage. She lived on the farm there, she wasn’t a noble or fancy woman. What did he need money for?” Mulder shrugged and put his chin on his hand as he looked at her as she explained her thoughts on the movie. She took a long drink and then sighed once more.

“She loved him so much, Mulder,”she said quietly. “You could hear it in her goodbye, see it in the fact that she mourned his believed death for five years. She was lost without him, but that didn’t mean she was less of who she was, her heart was just missing it’s other half.” She scoffingly laughed, and he raised his eyebrows again. Glancing at him, she shook her head. “Ah, I’ll be quiet now, and we can watch the movie.”

“Scully, I know this movie by heart, I don’t need to watch it,” he said, catching her eye, she nodded and took another drink of her beer. “I am interested in what you think of it, though. So please, continue.” He smiled and she uncrossed her legs and put her feet on the coffee table.

Her bare, purple toenails painted, feet.

They were so small. It always astounded him that someone with such a large presence could be so tiny. Suddenly, some very unpartnerlike thoughts began to swirl around in his brain and he drug his eyes from her feet to avoid them.

“Can … can you rewind it?” she asked timidly and he grinned. Picking up the remote, he rewound it until she told him to stop, in a spot he would have stopped at anyway even if she had not requested it. He knew, because of course he did, the exact spot she wanted to see again. Westley was leaving and Buttercup was crying as she held him …

“I’m afraid I'll never see you again …”

“Of course you will.”

“But what if something happens to you?”

“Hear this now, I will always come for you.”

“But how can you be sure?”

“This is true love. You think this happens every day?”

“That, Mulder. That’s what I love about this movie. People can scoff or roll their eyes, saying it’s sappy romance, but …” she sighed and smiled. “He leaves and then she believes that he dies, but of course he doesn’t. But, when he returns … it’s been five years, and he hears she’s marrying the horrible prince. He can’t believe she would, but does she still love him, Westley? He needs to know if it’s as real a true love as he believed it to be, so he keeps his identity known from her, holds himself back until he knows for absolute certainty.”

“When she shoves him down the hill, and he’s forced to tell her as he’s basically falling to his death? Her poor sweet Westley …” Mulder said, shaking his head. She laughed and then looked at him seriously.

“But, Mulder, he needed to be sure,” holding his gaze, she swallowed. “She believed him dead, had mourned and ached for him. Though her heart was broken, she carried on. She had to. If he had returned, walked up to that farm, she would have been overjoyed. But so much time had passed, he wasn’t sure she could still possibly love him the same way. They were … things were different and he … But when he did know, when he was completely sure … that was it. Nothing could tear them apart again, not even the fire swamp.” She smiled softly at him, and he felt like she was someone he had just met. How had he not seen this romantic side to her before? How had he not recognized it in her?

“He had been mostly dead, Mulder, and still he came for her,” she whispered, staring at him. He held her gaze and judging by the fact that his first drink was still more than half full, he knew it was not the alcohol making him flush. “True love doesn’t come along every day.” She shrugged with a small smile, and he exhaled a breath he was not aware he had been holding.

“Wow, these must be some new kind of beers that contain truth serum or something,” she laughed nervously, peering into her bottle, and recrossing her feet. He took a long pull from his bottle, needing time to think of what to say. Nothing smartass-y, it needed to be genuine. He wiped his mouth and looked at her.

“I’ve watched this movie many times, Scully, and never viewed it as eloquently as you just explained. I always thought he should have told her right away and let her know it was him, not lead her on or tease her, but I do understand what you’re saying,” he said quietly. “He was scared and uncertain, her love hadn’t dulled or changed, nor had his … but a shift had taken place. He just needed to …”

“Be pushed down a hill?” she asked with a smirk.

“Sometimes, we men need that,” he laughed, and she nodded. “We need that push to tell us we’re being idiots.” He glanced at the movie again, finding he had lost track of where they were, something that had never happened to him before when he turned on this movie.

“I think it’s a lot more than sometimes,” she said, and he looked back at her. She took a drink and smiled sideways at him. He smiled back and nodded.

“Should we start over? Or is from here okay?” She shrugged, and he leaned back, finishing off his first beer and reaching for the other one. Scully got up, and he heard the fridge door opening and closing, then two bottle caps falling on the counter. She walked back in and handed him his next one as she settled down with her last one.

Her bare feet were on the coffee table again and he found them just as intriguing and enjoyable as the rest of the movie, which took them over three hours to finish. It was paused and rewound, laughed over and then certain parts were watched again.

After Scully left and he cleaned up the bottles and caps, he made a vow to always have some type of alcohol on hand for future movie nights. He liked hearing from her, and if it took a little liquid courage to loosen her tongue, he wanted it there for her.

He turned out the lights, laid down on the couch, and thought of her purple painted toenails. Smiling, he turned onto his side, determined to discover what the next color choice would be. Hopefully, he would at the next movie night.

Maybe next time he should bring some whiskey. Just in case …