#ideas!!! They're so fun and feel so right in canon! and you're so talented!!! I'm so happy that you share with all of us your thoughts and

[dootznbootz]

Yoooo ok can we get a full visual description of both your Helen and Menelaus? Like, maybe if I wanted to doodle them? 🥹🙏

That's so goshdarn sweet!!! I would actually combust if you did that!!!! 😭 Honestly it's...Not too different from what you already have (as I honestly see your Helen/Menelaus as canon as...I just really love them🥺 You're so talented and you're so sweet.) Only thing different is Helen is tall and chubby and very minor things with Menelaus

Especially Menelaus, He's just a little taller than Helen and has kind of a more longer hair as "Long haired Achaeans" means so much to me. And As we get more descriptors for him in the Epics which already fit your Menelaus design to a T for me! :D But ALSO in the Epics, Helen is NEVER described in detail. And with your Helen you already have what's in my brain. As it's VERY important that she has STRIKING teal/blue eyes and Thick curly black hair and that's something you already have! (Both Penelope and her have: Blue eyes and black hair. It's just that Penelope's is straight hair and her eyes are more silvery blue (gray-eyed Athena also favors her). Everything else about them is different physically though and that's a big deal in my fics. >:)

As I said I imagine Helen being like Rose Quartz in Body as she towers over most and is quite intimidating in a way because of it. She's chubbier because of Leda mostly though. While she's definitely strong, she does not have a "perfect flat tummy".😤 It's perfect but not flat.

She looks like this to me because...she's adorable. and also that, although I later learned that (most likely) Mycenaean/Minoan beauty standards were thin waists (based on the statues and murals on the Palace of Knossos walls), I already saw stuff on rounder faces and chubbier gals being beauty standard during later periods and while both are beautiful, Chubby Helen was in my head and she lives there now. (You can very clearly tell who are Zeus' children and who are Tyndarius'... As both Pollux and Helen tower over everyone. But Tyndarius loves all his kids regardless.🥹 No favoritism! If one sister steals her sisters hairbrush without asking it doesn't matter if they are Zeus' or His bio children, "You Go apologize to your sister right now!")

also there was this old cartoon art I saw and it just SCREAMED "HELEN!" to me. It's this old comic with a woman called Hilda and she's just SO cute and sassy and full of life!! (The post if you want more!)

Somewhat of a mixture of these as well

Helen is tall (nearly 6'2-6'3) but Menelaus IS taller 6'6 His back is in PAIN later on in life

I hope I described things well!!! I've never really done this before!!! Let me know if I need to give more info!

[ayyyez]

Headcannon asks (2 of ??):

Domestic vibes w/ Sakura, Shisui, and Neji. What kinds of homey activities would each of them do w/ a partner? Any sort of ways they like to unwind at the end of a day? Like cuddles in bed, making tea and relaxing, *cough* sexy stuffs *cough*. Either canon, modern au, or etc.

Love your works as always, I read them and am like 'wow my friend is so talented wow look at what she did'. K byyeee

a/n: ohhhh is that a Mr Shisui I see? Some good choices I see here. Of course I can do these for youuuuu <3

Tags: domestic vibes, fluff, kissing, suggestive content at end of each nothing to detailed

Characters: Sakura Haruno, Shisui Uchiha, Neji Hyuga

Sakura Haruno

Definitely someone who needs to be convinced to relax sometimes as she has a tendency to overwork herself but also bring her work home. She honestly just doesn't stop! You need to pull her into the zen environment for both your sakes.

That being said she definitely is someone who finds comfort in the simple things with you. A nice cup of tea and a cuddle after a long day are exactly what she needs to unwind. Also can she bitch about people please? She needs to have a good vent. The two of you can vent if you need too as long as you listen to her she'll listen to you 100% you're a team.

It's a bonus if tea has some sort of treats with it. It's partner downtime AND treat time. And if you made them? Her heart MELTS. Even if you just bought them she thinks 'My partner did this for me?' Absolutely touched.

So that was the part you indulged her and she has recharged no it's reversal time. Wants to pay you back and help you unwind. She wants to cook you dinner (doesn't mind cooking it together) but loves to spoil you. Likes company when cooking. The talking continues, helps her to unwind honestly.

Is a taster through the process of cooking and loves to ask for you opinion too. 'Hmm I'm not sure, do you think this needs to be more spicy?' Holds the spoon out to you. Still gets warm over the idea of being domestic like this. Cheeks blushy as you taste her cooking. Appreciates your opinion no matter what it is.

Asking for seconds is the way into her heart honestly. The fact you like her food is just ahhhh. Tell her things you like about her food? Will jump you right there and then. Smooches and hugs. All over you. 'I appreciate you so much.' Just being seen makes her feel loved.

Big on bathing with you to unwind. Loves the intimacy of it and just holding and being held by the one she loves. Washing each other and carting her hands through her lovers hair is the dream. Ultimate relaxation until it's not and leads to other things.

Sometimes the path to unwinding with Sakura leads to the ultimated unwind in the bedroom. Towels forgotten on the floor, robes open, hands exploring and kissing so hard that you feel so hot. Maybe the bath should have waited until later.

Shisui Uchiha

Mr active, can't sit still for too long, go go go needs to be coaxed and sometimes bribed into relaxing, honestly. He's just so used always doing something that his mind is like always racing and going so he's following it for the ride. It takes you for a fun ride too.

That being said he does have his exhausted days and mornings where he likes to just cuddle. Cuddley mornings with Shisui aren't all docile and sweet though. Sometimes they're pinches and tickles and giggles.

It's biting your shoulder affectionately and nibbling your ear to get a chuckle out of you and watch you flail about while he holds you tight. It's laughing until your stomach hurts, the blanket long forgotten and kicked to the end of the bed while the sheet twists around each of your limbs.

It's rolling around the bed until one of you (or both if you cling to each other tight enough) falls out of bed. That's when it's time to call it quits. 'Mmm maybe time to get out of bed.' 'I think we just did.' 'Touché.' He kisses (then nips) your nose.

Unwinding in the evening for Shisui I can see being something like watching you prepare dinner. Watching the repetative motions of chopping and mixing just really helps him relax and unwind. But he can't watch for long he has to join in and help.

Not just help out but make it fun too and be an absolute nusance in the process. Flicking the bits of cooked rice that stick to his hands at you when he is put in charge of moulding the rice balls. Attempts to smear the rice vinegar goo on your cheek but you flinch in time with a gasp just as the tip hits your skin.

'Oh this is war!' You declare and he's gone, running around the kitchen in a circle giggling like a child as you chase him with the mayo based sauce. He relents of course and grabs you by the waist. It stops you but not enough as you smear a good goop over his face.

Instead of wiping it off he just smooshes his face against yours and shakes his head gently. The two of you scrunch your noses and laugh. It's a mess but it's fun. And you can taste the sauce on his lips when he kiss you. It's good.

Dinner is almost forgotten as the two of you kiss and kiss. Making out on the kitchen floor. You push him back onto the conveniently placed rug a few feet away and latch yourself onto his neck. He moans, hands coming to pull your waist down against him. Onto him. Mmm this is good.

He laps the remainder of the sauce from your face, his hands exploring up your shirt, fingers splayed over the skin of your back. You push his own shirt up. Kissing down his chest. Down, down further until mm and there's a delicious moan pulled from him as his hands find your hair.

That's when the pot boils over and your remember dinner. Shit. Gotta get up and turn the stove off before you finish.

Neji Hyuga

Mans has spent his whole life chasing that zen but there's always something in the way. There's always something giving him the BIG STRESS lmao. He needs to unwind and you really gotta be the one to help him out before he snaps.

Big on the tea and definitely has his own routine of coming home and drinking a cup just to detox the day. Likes to just have a bit of quiet at first. Has gotten into the habit of making one for you if you're home too, a sweet invitation for you to join him in his bubble. He wants you in his world.

After that he doesn't mind talking. Wants to know about your day, doesn't mind sharing his. Little bits of small talk that lead to the deep intimate talk. Just existing together in a way he never thought he would with another person is intimate for him and it makes him feel so sappy.

Kind of leads him to the physical side of things. Wants the touches and the cuddles. Kind of just falls against you in his PleaseHoldMeSoIKnowThisIsReal Neji way. And you do. It's cuddle time. Sometimes that's all it is. Just cuddles and gentle affirmations.

Other times it's a little more. It leads to kissing. Soft at first. Just gentle reminders that the two of you love each other and aren't going anywhere. But when they deepen. There's a fierceness in them a spark ignites and suddenly he's back against the couch and you're on top of him.

It's almost like your down right ready to devour him. You're kissing his jaw, his neck and he is moaning your name. His hands are in your hair. You both want more. Need more. Crave more.

It leads to more sometimes. Other times it's just a quick burst of passion and nothing more.

Afterwards the two of you continue the night together. A little closer than before. Cooking dinner with extra touches than necessary. Stealing extra kisses between prep steps. Grazing touches as you pass the utensils at the table.

There's no way you can shower alone after that. Everything in an evening like this remains close and together. Right up until the moment the two of you fall asleep in bed, limbs wrapped around each other. Completely content and taken by each others presence.

[sapphire-weapon]

I'm not on Twitter and have no idea what happened today (mainly thanks to insanely toxic fandom shit, I do not have the headspace for that anymore) but as per your last ask, I'm sorry people were shitty to you today. I don't know what happened, but being dogpiled over ships is so stupid. Regardless, you're a talented writer and I absolutely adore your blog. I enjoy everything you put out and I'm saying this as somebody who's painfully neutral about Leshley/Eagleone lmao. The way you break down Leon, Ashley, Ada and others is so, so well fucking written and it's so lovely to see someone who can agree with my own opinions (even if I'm a relatively new and poorly articulate fan!).

My point: I hope hate never gets to you. You don't deserve it. Keep talking and writing, you're wonderful!

It doesn't get to me, and I think it was frustrating for a lot of the people who tried to jump on me to realize that I was treating them like a joke. I'm done playing with them now, though. I got bored, and now I'm just blocking anyone who decides to be a clown.

Basically what happened was, I went to Twitter and I yelled at EagleOne fandom to stop trying to appease the rest of RE fandom by wringing their hands and insisting that the ship is purely 100% innocent and there's no basis in canon.

And then Aeon fandom found the Tweet and they went full

and they took the whole "no, actually, Leon and Ashley's shared arc in RE4make is, in fact, canonically romantic in nature" thing very personally.

What I learned today is:

EagleOne will never be treated as a valid ship in fandom because the rest of the fandom has beaten down the majority of EagleOne people into believing (or at least saying they believe) that the ship isn't valid. We are our own worst enemies, and we are the ones holding the ship back -- not Aeon fandom or anyone else. As long as EagleOne people continue to care about what the rest of the fandom thinks of us, we will never be able to enjoy the ship on our own terms.

There's a really weird and uncomfortable sex-averse thing happening in fandom that I kind of vaguely knew in the back of my mind was there, but I had NO IDEA just how prevalent and insidious it was. Half the people were going "no no no there's no there there in canon" and the other half were legit saying "why do you have to sexualize it?" (as though two people being attracted to each other isn't inherently sexual in nature to begin with?) or even going so far as to say that my brain has been ruined by porn, as though I'm not like. A full grown adult who has had several different dicks in my own mouth, ass, and vagina at varying points in my life.

When given actual evidence for the claims I was making, the people who received it shut the fuck up and never came back into my mentions ever again. It is possible to get people to second-guess the narrative that's been fed to them by fandom, but if there's a way to effectively do that en masse, I don't know what it is.

Slash fans are based as fuck, because their responses to my Tweets were "ok but in my head Leon is still getting railed by dudes" and that is, objectively and unironically, the best attitude I've seen held by any shippers in any fandom ever. They're right, and they should feel good about saying it.

I'm not trying to pull an "it was just a social experiment" because it wasn't, and I genuinely was trying to call out EagleOne people for being a bunch of spineless cowards who are dedicated to destroying their own fun, but a very interesting bit of social commentary did shake out of the whole situation unintentionally.

But like I said to the last anon, I'm glad you're here, bro. I'm glad to be able to provide a place in this fandom where people can actually have intellectual conversations about scripting, game design, and cinematography/film direction/symbolism without the fear of the mob jumping on them for daring to think a little bit (as opposed to not at all).

[ghost-proofbaby]

Hailey!!! Bestie! Most glorious of writers of the fics!

First off! Wow congratulations! Look at what you have accomplished. How do you feel?

Shire is over and what an ending/epilogue/whatever. Oh my gourd. It was great. I am so excited to see what Mordor brings because just from that ending, it looks like you're taking it in a new direction and I *chefs kiss* CANNOT WAIT for this rollercoaster ride. (Even if it is not, I don't care. Because I know it's gonna be the drama.)

Some of my favorite things, which (since I was a late finding your fit itself) I have never mentioned before: - Dennys. Oh my god, the inclusion of Denny's. It isn't a local diner, it isn't Bennys, it is the cursed restaurant that most of us in the states love and rely on in the most beautiful or desperate of times. I love it. I love you. - Robin and Willow just being BFFLs. Because it felt so real. All of it. Like I could transpose myself and my irl best friend and yeah, it all checked out. And just...the further development of Robin's character as a best friend, because in the show we really sort of get crumbs too. I loved it. - Willow's familial relationships/trauma/guilt and then healing, specifically within herself but also in relation with her mom. I don't think I need to elaborate, but it gets my butt clenching in the most emotional way ok? (I am like a puppy who gets the wiggles) -And then of course the Eddie of it all. Not once did he feel out of character, he was perfect, I fell in love with his character even more while reading how you wrote him. I think we all have "our Eddie" who we are writing, but yours is so fleshed out and gorgeous. UGH.

Anyway, sorry for the long ask, I'm just so happy and excited. Congrats again boo! <3<3<3

jo!! bestie!! fellow glorious fic writer!! hello!!! <3

my emotions are definitely all over the place right now. i'm feeling a lil nervous, a lot of excitement, and, dare i say... a lil proud? like, hey, look at me. i did it!! i said i was gonna do it and i did it!!

it'll definitely be a rollercoaster ride for sure! i've got a lot of fun stuff planned, and i can't wait to see how this story gets to evolve similarly to how shire did!! right now i'm just hoping it lives up to everyone's expectations and my own <3 time will tell

those are definitely some of my favorite things too oh my gosh (if i was on my phone you'd be getting the simpy emoji i overuse). i started writing/brainstorming this fic in denny's, and once i realized that benny's was one letter off? c'moooon. i couldn't help myself. gotta pay homage to our roots some how (i will forever miss the crew who used to let me and audrey sit around until 2 am and allowed us to claim a booth as our own as we consumed more coffee than any human beings ever should. i hope they're doing well </3). and speaking of audrey, i based a lot of robin and willow's friendship on ours, so i'm giving her so much credit. for those of you who don't know who i'm referencing, i'm talking about my irl best friend. she listened to me rant about this fic like a maniac until i put pen to paper technically fingers to keyboard, and was my og reader for this story. she saw every version, every deleted chapter and every stupid idea i randomly had at 3 am. she's my own personal robin, and i love her so damn much. even more than i love our canon robin buckley, which is a fuck ton. she was the og comfort character before eddie. gotta put some respect on her name.

i love, love, love the fact that there is so many versions of eddie out there, and every time people tell me how i wrote him is in fact very in character, my heart swells three sizes bigger. i know i've fallen in love with that boy 200 times over with the incredibly talented writers on here, with versions of him as a mechanic, as a single dad, as a record store worker, as a swinger, as a rockstar - you get the point. the fact that y'all still find room to love 'my' eddie leaves me in awe and just. gosh. thank you. cheers to our eddies and the way we all love every version of this boy, in every universe! the story and background may shift, but the core boy who stole our hearts in season 4 remains, and i think there's something poetic to be said about that (not by me, but i know it's there.)

as always, don't ever apologize for long asks. i'm forever honored that you guys like my story enough to share your thoughts, with me and with each other. could make a grown man cry. or a 23 year old woman, in this case. i love you <3 <3 <3 <3 <3

[olderthannetfic]

i'm an artist and a writer and the rivalry writers feel toward artists is very strange. but tbh i think it's tied into the idea that art is some kind of god-given talent present from birth rather than a skill you have to put countless hours into like anything else. "you're so lucky to be able to sell your art" sounds a lot like "you're so lucky to be able to draw" to me

like, even if an artist is making bank on commissions (they're not), they had to put in time and effort not only into their skills, but into growing their following, marketing themselves, developing reliability and good communication skills, etc. not to mention the fact that many fan artists make fanart bc social media at large generally does not give a fuck about oc art. it's just a lot more complicated than this person is making it out to be

Yeah, for real.

I write original novels and publish them on Amazon. I’ve done little marketing so far, so nobody’s heard of me, and I haven’t sold a lot. Right now, I’m focusing on getting a good start on book 3, but at some point, I really do need to go hang out in more M/M Romance spaces or queer sff spaces and let people know I exist.

A lot of the writers who cry about other people being “lucky” are simply uninterested in doing all of the work to build their brand as a writer. They’re unwilling to develop the skills to make readers fall in love with a character or to write novel or at least novella-length works, preferring to jump straight into little snippets about an already-beloved character where the canon is doing a lot of the heavy lifting.

If you can make money on short-form writing (kinky porn commissions, perhaps?), great! In general, writing does sell, but it does so in certain formats like novel series on Kindle Unlimited. Nobody should be trying to make art they fundamentally hate or find boring, but just like artists who draw fan art or other people’s OCs on commission instead of their own, writers need to pick the thing out of the whole array they can do that is of interest to a paying audience. Or they need to cultivate and create a niche for the thing they most want to do that doesn’t currently have an audience.

None of this “just happens”.

Some of the writers who are the maddest give off this vibe like “My work took effort, and thus it should be monetarily valuable to others”. But that’s not how effort and value work. Nor is “I need money and can only do this one thing, therefore, I should be paid money for this one ting” how it works.

I’m all for UBI, but I hate the idea that other people are responsible for wanting one’s creative output automatically just because one made a thing.

It feels very entitled. I find it hard to believe that people who feel this way as creators act the same when it’s their turn to kick back with a fun book. Very likely, they have sky high and very specific standards for other people’s art. Personally, as a writer, I want the people who would already like my books if they’d heard of them to hear of them. I don’t have any interest in convincing other sorts of people to buy, and if I thought nobody out there would like this kind of material, I’d write one of my ten billion other plotbunnies. Every creative person has far more ideas than they’ll ever have time to make.

i've met someone online in a discord server who's often commenting on how lucky fanart is to be sellable and how they wish their fanfics can do the same. this person had to be warned not to put a commissions open announcement in their fics in ao3 (and i suggested they just link their tumblr and put their commissions post there) and they complained again that artists in social media never have that issue. this topic is pulled up *a lot*

it was always uncomfortable whenever they salted about it, but i didn't say anything because i felt i might be seen as an asshole because:

1) i'm more of a fanartist than writer (and crafter in general), so someone this person lowkey envies

2) i have done a few commissions, like 4 in my lifetime, that was some nice extra money. even more reason to dislike me

3) the person was in a tight financial situation and was always trying to find ways to make ends meet, so i can't blame them for trying to make money in everything they do

i also can't articulate on *why* i felt uncomfortable about it? i still don't. but it's like if my hobby was baking and someone else was origami, and they compliment me by saying at least i can make easy money by selling cupcakes? it feels very offputting

--

[ordinaryschmuck]

What I Thought About "Eda's Requiem" from The Owl House

Salutations, random people on the internet who certainly won’t read this! I am an Ordinary Schmuck. I write stories and reviews and draw comics and cartoons.

...

...

...HOW IS SEASON TWO SO GOOD?! WE'VE HAD SEVEN EPISODES SO FAR, AND EACH ONE OF THEM WAS A HIT!

Take "Eda's Requiem," for example. It's yet another episode where I have NOTHING bad to say about it! That's two weeks in a row where that happened! HOW DOES THIS HAPPEN?!

HOW!

HOW!

...But anyways, "Eda's Requiem." It's another fantastic episode, and I'm about to dive into explaining how and why. Just keep in mind, it's gonna require spoilers to do so, so be wary of that as you keep reading.

Now, let's review, shall we?

WHAT I LIKED

Eda’s Checklist and Grom Photo: Within the first second, "Eda's Requiem" perfectly sets up Eda's central conflict in the episode. Despite spending years being on her own and looking after herself, she now has two kids that she's constantly caring over. Eda can try all she wants to say that she doesn't care, and I bet she has in the past. But given the hard work she's putting into getting King and Luz what they need and having a grom photo of the three of them together pinned in her mirror, it's pretty clear that those two knuckleheads wormed their way into her heart and are never getting out.

Eda’s Worried About King and Luz Leaving: And thus, that's precisely why something like this bothers her so much. Eda inadvertently adopted two rambunctious rapscallions (Yeah, I know. I'll get to it), so the idea of them not being around her anymore is going to be terrifying. That is a situation most parents, especially mothers, can identify with. It’s called empty nest syndrome and it proves just how much Eda loves Luz and King that she can't stand the thought of her babies leaving the nest. It's yet another well-made, wholesome, found-family moment that this series continues to excel at each week, making me extra excited for more like it to come...while also readying myself for heartbreak when one of them eventually does leave Eda.

Eda and Raine’s Music: Ok, I don't know the exact instruments that were played during this episode, but I also don't care because it was all (for lack of a better term) music to my ears. Every time Eda and Raine played resulted in melodies that are so beautiful and filled with so much emotion and feeling that I'm honestly tempted to listen to them again, multiple times, on repeat. Shows rarely do that for me, as background music doesn't always draw me in as much as lyrical songs do. Usually, it takes something so extraordinarily composed to give me the desire to listen again, and that's the case here. So huge congrats to Brad Breek for doing so. Seriously, the man's been killing it this season.

Eda’s Bard Magic Causing Things to Turn to Ash: This was assuredly a surprise side-effect of the curse. The fact that Eda can sort of do magic at all was its own shock. To then reveal that a specific type can do dangerous things to people and environments is...Well, it definitely brings up its own fair share of questions. Like, how can she do this? Will she do it again, one day? And are there other types of spells that can be negatively affected by Eda's curse? We don't get answers for any of these questions, and odds are, we never will. But that's alright with me. Because if a show makes me consider these many possibilities after a brief amount of time, it is a show that has to be doing something right. Even if I don't get the answers I want, the fact that it caused such a reaction makes me less willing to care.

Raine Whispers: Hey, would you look at that. Another fun, interesting, and compelling character added to the list of this shows' other fun, interesting, and compelling characters...how is this series so good at this!?

Joking aside, Raine's pretty good. I like Raine. They could have been this super serious leader who lost all their fun after years apart from Eda, but I'm glad that they're not. There are moments when Raine takes their job as leader of the BATs seriously, as one would, but I still prefer the fact that they kept a jovial nature despite how grim their situation is. It's an admirable trait to have, and it avoids the trope of making leader characters boring just because they're the ones who have to take things seriously.

Oh, and also, Raine's Disney's first non-binary character who has a stake in the plot. This is a tremendous deal, as you don't usually see that many non-binary characters in children's animation, let alone ones that hold importance to the story. So it's pretty cool for the writers to feature Raine, as it helps several kids feel as though they're finally seen and respected. And the fact that Disney of all companies gave the thumbs up is even more impressive. I hear people say that Dana Terrace should have pitched The Owl House to more progressive networks to avoid pushback, and while I absolutely see your point, I'll have to respectfully disagree. Disney is the largest entertainment industry of all time, so if you want to make LGBTQA+ representation normalized, you gotta stop making splashes and start making waves. Because if the same company that made three racist cats in the span of a few years manages to say that being gay is a-ok, then you know there's something wrong with you. Yes, Disney ended up screwing over the show anyway. But for that one moment, when kids felt pride after seeing a character like Raine, then, in the end, it's kind of worth it.

Also, if you're still having issues with more representation like this popping up in kids' shows, then allow me to redirect you to the complaint department.

...I made that post earlier today for this bit. YOU HAVE BETTER APPRECIATED IT!

Day of Unity is meant to be a Secret: At least, that's what I got when Raine stumbled over their own words. So if it's true, then I wonder why? Why does Belos want to keep the most critical change in the Boiling Isles a secret? Does he want to make it a surprise for his grateful subjects, or does he not want to spread worry and fear amongst the wild witches? It has to be something big if he doesn't want his followers to even say the words "Day of Unity." Whatever reason he has, we most likely won't know until the future. A future that I grow more and more afraid of each week.

Hooty Eating Echo Mouse: My heart sank in that brief moment when I thought that Hooty intensely screwed Luz over in getting back home. But looking back...it is pretty funny.

Just the suddenness of Hooty eating the poor creature that Luz desperately tried to earn its trust is priceless in how shocking it was. And also, Luz's expression.

That was the look of a young girl who immediately shoved her hand down an owl demon's throat the second the scene cut away. The Owl House may not always be a hit in the comedy department, but scenes like this prove that when it's funny, it is hilarious.

Luz and King Entering the Grand Prix: Not much to discuss here. It's just a cute subplot that adds frivolity to the intensity of what's going on through Eda and Raine's story. But I will say that I love how both stories occasionally interconnect with each other through the many moments of Eda being worried about King wanting to leave to find his father and avoiding any conversation about it. It helps both plotlines feel like they belong together, without being something like "Through the Looking Glass Ruins," whereas both stories could have been in their own episode. Which is neat.

How Bard Magic Works: I really love how this season is diving into how the other magic types work. More specifically, the ones that seem a little vague. I mean, stuff like healing, potions, and plants are easy to figure out, but what does it mean when a witch's talents are construction, beast keeping, and bard magic? We've been getting a lot of clearing up lately, with bard magic looking like a witch can control their environments and enemies through the power of music. Which is fair. Music is pretty powerful in the metaphorical sense, and I actually love that it's powerful in the literal sense when in the Boiling Isles.

The BATs: Not much to comment on these three either. The BATs have the potential to have an entertaining dynamic, but they do very little in this episode that I can't say much other than I hope they make a return in the future. But I will make this claim: Amber is my favorite. I'm sorry, but her screaming "You're not our mom!" to then go, "Bye, mommy Eda" is just too precious for me not to love.

I'm a simple man who falls for cute s**t. Leave me alone.

Raeda (RainexEda): Well, EdaxCamila, you were a fun crack ship while it lasted, but I'm afraid that this is now goodbye. The current canon has provided an incredibly adorable and believable relationship that I would be a monster not to support with my whole bi-heart. It's been real.

Ok, back in serious mode: I love these two together. Eda and Raine are grown-ups, and they still act all flustered near each other as if they were still Luz and Amity's age. It's definitive proof that you're never too old to get flustered near a crush, and seeing them interact adds a sense of wholesomeness when seeing them together as well as heartbreak when they're forced apart. Plus, we get confirmation that Eda's LGBTQA+! Whether she's bi, pan, or whatever, now that we know Eda can catch feelings for someone like Raine, it's yet another case that The Owl House is the most important series to the community. Because having the main character be queer is fantastic in its own right. But having the same apply to the motherly mentor figure? That's is an extra bit of normalization that anybody would be willing to appreciate.

Unique Guard Designs: Not many fans are going to appreciate this, primarily compared to everything else this episode does perfectly. For me, I actually like that you see a few Coven Guards looking differently from the others, as it helps make them less like clones and makes it seem like anybody of any body type could be a part of the coven.

Gus Looking Uninterested when Presenting Grand Prix with his Dad: I am positive that you didn't notice this (I didn't even notice it until someone else pointed it out), but there's something to dissect here. It hints that perhaps Gus isn't as interested in his father's field of work as one might think. If he did, he would look a lot less bored and much more excited to be helping Perry Porter present the race. It could just be the race itself, but judging from Gus' expression, it really seems like the kid would prefer to be anywhere but there. And why would he have that reaction to a race that his best friend is competing in? To me, this seems like an inkling of what Gus' relationship with Perry could be, which may not actually get time to shine, what with how little wiggle room the series has now (Thanks Disney). Regardless, it is interesting to notice, and it will certainly have fans thinking for a while.

Bump Being Smug of Luz Being in the Lead: That's it. Principal Bump looking smug as his human student is beating the students of his rivals is yet another moment that proves why Bump is easily the best cartoon principal.

Darius: First of all, this guy is f**king fabulous, and I love him. *Snaps*

Second, he is definitive proof that you do NOT want to f**k around with Coven Leaders. Lilith may have had her intimidating moments, but none of them compare to the guy who can turn himself into an abomination monster where only magic that hasn't existed before can take him down. It's genuinely scary to see Darius lose control, and I fear for the day when Luz inevitably ends up in his crosshairs.

With that said, Darius' still a ton of fun! He may be threatening, but he's just a flamboyant guy that hates the idea of getting his outfit the tiniest bit dirty. And I love that. I love that these Coven Heads have actual personalities instead of being generically evil. I consider it preferable to make villains entertaining rather than blatantly scary as I'll remember the personalities first and the villainous acts last.

Eberwolf: But this one's my favorite. I told you: I'm a simple man who gets easily swayed by cute s**t. And Eber? I mean, just look at her:

She's just a cute widdle rascal! I just want to pinch her cheeks, give her a belly rub, and--

...Eberwolf is not a cute widdle rascal. She is a strong, independent woman, and I will respect her as such from this moment forward...lest I feel her wrath.

That is all. Let's move on.

Eda and Raine Attempting a Final Performance: This was the best scene of the episode. It looked gorgeous, it shows the dedication Eda and Raine have for stopping Belos, and it says so much through so little. Go back and look at how Eda and Raine regard one another when performing Eda's requiem. Through their expressions and a few short words, you know they understand that if they complete the song/spell, they probably won't make it in the end. And yet, they don't care. They both know bad stuff will happen if Belos wins, so Eda and Raine put everything to the side, both their feelings for one another and the people they leave behind if it means putting an end to a tyrant. That level of dedication...Words can't fully describe how powerful that is.

Raine Sacrificing Themselves Instead: But in the end, Raine can't do it. Not when they know the life that Eda has and the people she'll be leaving behind. It's an extra bit of nobleness to the character seeing that Raine refuses to take away a woman from two kids who need her the most. A tad bit selfish, sure, knowing what Belos has planned. But when it comes to love, the romantic, familial, or platonic, the best decisions aren't always the logical ones.

Eda Crying: Luz crying tears me up, but seeing Eda cry is a whole different level of heartbreak. Like Lilith, Eda has her emotions locked up tight, with the closest she came to weeping were those two tears in "Young Blood, Old Souls." In "Eda's Requiem," she cries but almost quickly stops herself. As if she knows that doing so isn't going to save Raine. That is...even worse than seeing Luz break down after losing Eda. The fact that Eda refuses to give herself time to mourn losing someone she loved is tragic because crying is the most natural way of showing grief. Turning that off isn't healthy, and seeing her do it with little resistance is sad to me. It's sad to see a character I love can easily shut off all emotions despite how badly she may want to embrace them. It's one of those moments that, again, by doing so little, it shows so much.

“No one watches Crystal Balls anymore. It’s all about streaming.”: Oof. Even I felt that burn towards cable.

King’s Message: King's message was the pick-me-up I needed after the heart-wrenching sadness this episode put me through a few minutes ago. Seeing King say who he is and listing all the things he loves is nothing short of adorable. On top of that, I adore that Eda willingly recorded the whole thing. She may not want King to leave, but that doesn't mean she'll sabotage the one thing he wants. Especially not after Raine gave up everything so Eda could be with her kids. The opening scene may prove how much Eda cares about a rascal like King, but this heartwarmingly sweet moment reveals just how far she'll go to make him happy.

King’s Dad Reveal: ...ok, I'll be honest, I did not think we'd get that reveal this soon. Dumb of me to say, considering the number of times I've said that these writers don't waste time getting to the s**t, I know. But still, it's pretty cool knowing that King's dad is alive and well, added with the fact that we've got a fair idea of what he looks like. At this point, it's only a matter of time before we see him figure out where the Clawthorne residence is and witness the tear-jerking moments that will follow.

King Changing his Name to King Clawthorne: Not the official adoption I was expecting Eda to make...but DANG IT, is it still diabetes-inducing levels of sweetness!

Personally, I feel like the main reason why Eda breaks down this time is not only because she shouldn't be worried about King leaving her life, but also because Raine's sacrifice wasn't in vain. Her kids really do need Eda because no matter how far apart they'll be, she will always be a part of their life...dang it, I'm going to cry too!

What those Coven patches really do: Well...that was horrifying to see.

...Writers, if you kill off the best non-binary character in animation (it's a short list, I know), we are going to have PROBLEMS!

IN CONCLUSION

"Eda's Requiem" is--surprise surprise--another A+. The emotions hit hard, the representation hits harder, Raine is a fantastic addition to the cast, and it was all surprisingly cute at times. Season Two is currently on a hot streak, constantly winning with every episode that's come out so far. When a bad episode does eventually show up (IT'S GONNA HAPPEN!), I'll be sure to sing my requiem then. For now, I'm just gonna enjoy the ride.

[ticklygiggles]

And they were roomates | Haikyuu Captains

Sawamura Daichi, Kuroo Tetsurou, Bokuto Kotarou, Oikawa Tooru & Ushijima Wakatoshi

A/N: I didn’t know exactly which captains you wanted, but I did the basics because I love them *ugly crying* They're all grown ups living together, but this is probably a bit canon divergent, huhu. Thank you very much for the prompt, @cupcakedog2023​ I hope you enjoy this!

Polyrelationship if you squint, but not really. I want to thank my dear friend @ragewerthers​ because we've been talking about Daichi (and Iwa) lately so I felt very inspired to (destroy) write about him. I enjoy writing hc’s with you, my sweet friend *sobs* And I love Daichi.

Summary: Daichi has the best luck, (ahem, strategy), but it’s all gone when his roommates team up against him.

Words: 3,862 (hoho)

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Three loud groans and a soft displeased huff filled the entire apartment when Daichi threw his last card.

"You must be kidding me," Kuroo sighed, also throwing his (many) cards into the pile in the middle of the table and bringing his hands up to rub his face vigorously. Daichi was wearing a wide grin. "How many times already? Ten?"

"Eleven," Ushijima said and Daichi could only puff his chest proudly… it had been twelve times, but who counts? He does. "Look how proud he is."

"Are we going to have another round?" Bokuto asked, his smile bright, having way more fun than Kuroo, Oikawa and Ushijima all together.

"Hell yeah," Oikawa said, already gathering the cards in his hands and shuffling them with the experience of a croupier.  How he had that talent, no one knew, but it definitely made everyone look at his hands in awe. Even Daichi, who could only think about his twelve victories.

"I refuse to admit that Sawamura is the only one who can win this game!" He cried, throwing the cards to each one of them. "Even if Ushiwaka wins, I'll be happy." He pointed at Ushijima, who was sitting right beside him. 

Ushijima simply rolled his eyes and Daichi laughed softly as he took the new cards, spreading them between his hands. 

He didn't feel bad about winning. He had always been extremely good at board games and he was pretty sure that all of these former captains knew about it. At the end of their game nights, (usually on Fridays because they all had a day off on Saturday, thank god), Daichi would have mercilessly crushed each one off them - that's why they didn't gamble, the last time they did, Oikawa had to borrow money from all of them until his next payday. 

No one wanted to live up to that humiliation and it was the only time Daichi actually felt bad, so gambling was forbidden, but even with or without it, Daichi was invencible in every single game: Kuroo winning every now and then, Ushijima probably won one or two times before, as well as Oikawa, and Bokuto… well, Bokuto didn't care at all who won or lost, he enjoyed spending time with his roommates the most and his big smile was enough for everyone to keep playing until they gave up to beat Daichi. 

"Don't!" Oikawa yelled dramatically. It was his turn to throw a card and Daichi couldn't help but laugh. They had played for five minutes. Five minutes and Daichi had already screamed that word out, making the rest of the men cringe. "It's impossible!"

Uno! 

"Just throw it, Tooru!"

Kuroo had drawn almost all of the cards, he even had some on the table, Ushijima had three, Bokuro had around five of six and Oikawa, (Daichi really, really wanted to laugh), he only had two - Daichi didn't know what cards they were, but all of them knew he was going to win regardless, after all, he only had one card between his fingers. 

Oikawa sighed in resignation, throwing his card: a yellow two.

Daichi threw his own: a Draw Four Wild. 

"Ah, I was hoping for someone else to win," Kuroo sighed, almost pouting and crossing his arms above his chest. 

Daichi only smirked, seeing how Oikawa dramatically fell against Ushijima, a hand resting against his forehead as he faked fainting. "I am a disgrace," Oikawa said, sobbing quietly as Ushijima patted his shoulder. 

"I'm sorry I won," Daichi mumbled, gathering the cards again. 

"Don't say you're sorry if you are not!" Kuroo said with narrowed eyes and reaching up to pinch Daichi's nose. 

Daichi squeaked. "It's all about strategy!" He claimed, rubbing at his nose. "And knowing what cards to throw at the right time!"

"Yeah, yeah," Oikawa mocked from where he was still laying against Ushijima. "Do you want to show off your strategy skills, captain? Maybe you should give us all some tutoring?"

Daichi laughed. "If that is what you want…"

Oikawa gasped and he opened his mouth to say something else, but Bokuto's gentle voice interrupted him. "Maybe we should get some tutoring," he said and this time Kuroo was the one to open his mouth to speak out against that idea, but Bokuto continued talking. "After all, Karasuno did kick all of our asses back then, didn't they?" Bokuto said quite nonchalantly, a sudden silence filled the room and Daichi felt his heart dropping a little.

That was okay, right? That happened in highschool, right? All of them were working men already so it was in the past... Right? 

"Uh...," Daichi started but was cut off by a hum coming from Oikawa. 

"Kou-chan is right," he said, a dangerous smirk pulling at the corners of his mouth. Daichi blushed. "Karasuno did kick our asses back then, huh?"

Bokuto, perhaps not catching on what was happening, (perhaps actually knowing what was happening), nodded enthusiastically, his arm wrapping around Kuroo's shoulders, because he always felt the need to touch someone.  

"Ho?" Daichi's eyes quickly turned to look at Kuroo, who was also smirking, his sleepy eyes a bit dark and a perfect eyebrow raised up. "So we really are living with our biggest rival, eh?" 

Daichi gulped nervously, eyeing the four men around him. "Now, now," he said, trying to sound calm. "That was in highschool, guys. It's not like we're still playing for our teams, right?"

Right?

"Listen to this captain trying to calm down the team," Oikawa said and Daichi positively blushed to the tip of his ears. "Don't think that you can just brush it off, Sawamura. We hold a grudge."

Bokuto laughed at that, but Oikawa punched him in the arm, a playful smile on his lips, nothing compared to that savage smirk he sent back to Daichi. 

Daichi sensed danger, so his eyes slowly moved to look at Ushijima, expecting him to help him out of this situation, but he flinched when he found his serious brown eyes staring back at him. 

"Since Daichi is Karasuno's former captain," Ushijima started, his voice emotionless, but his eyes piercing holes through Daichi's face. "He should take responsibility and be punished on his teammates' behalf."

Daichi widened his eyes, his mouth dropping open. "Wa-Wakatoshi..."

Kuroo, Bokuto and Oikawa laughed and, as if Ushijima's words were the only thing they needed to do something about their former enemy, Kuroo launched at Daichi, not giving him the chance to try and escape. 

"No! Wait, aah!" Daichi squeaked when he was suddenly picked up and thrown over Kuroo's shoulder as if he was not more than a sack of rice. "T-Tetsu! You guys, hold- hold on!" Daichi protested, but Kuroo ultimately ignored him as the rest of them quickly followed behind him (and Daichi), to the living room. 

"Toshi already said that you should be punished, Dai-chan," Oikawa said with that lethal smirk. "So we are not backing up now."

Daichi sent another glance to Ushijima and he could only whine softly when he saw him nodding his head solemnly, Bokuto now wrapping his arm around his shoulders. He let out another squeak when Kuroo suddenly threw him against the sofa, they hovered over him for a few seconds before Oikawa and Kuroo were both pinning his arms up above his head. 

"W-Wait... I'm- I'm sorry, okay? I didn't mean... to win?" Daichi tried to explain himself, his back arching up as he pulled at his arms. 

"What should we do?" Oikawa asked, ignoring Daichi's pleas. 

"Shall we punch him?" Kuroo said and Daichi gasped, widening his eyes.

"What?! Do you guys really hate me that much?!" Oikawa and Kuroo snickered and Daichi looked over Ushijima just one more time, but he only blushed furiously when he found the man looking at him intently. 

He was screwed. 

"So not punching?" Kuroo asked playfully.

"Not punching," Bokuto suddenly popped in. "This!" He said before diving in, his hands latching onto Daichi's sides, squeezing them up and down. 

Daichi flinched when Bokuto grabbed him, his body tensing, actually fearing to be beaten up, but he was extremely surprised when, instead of pain, he felt those sparks waking up his nerve endings.

"Aaah! Wahahahait!" Daichi started to giggle right away; to be attacked by something so low as tickling, the humiliation! "Puhuhuhunch me!"

The rest laughed, even Ushijima let out soft chuckles as Daichi giggled and began to squirm, pulling at his arms. 

"What?! That's so stupid, I love it!" Oikawa chirped as he got a better hold of Daichi's wrists, making him squeak when he pushed his arm a little higher, Kuroo following suit, causing Daichi to let out nervous giggles. 

"B-Bohohoho!" Daichi squeaked out, trying to twist his hips so he could turn on his side, but to his surprise, Bokuto planted himself on top of his thighs. "N-Nohoho! I'm sorry! I'm sohohorry!" 

Daichi was usually okay with tickle fights. He had had some with these four men before, but never the four of them at once! He was not sure he'd survive this, after all, he was aware that at least one of them knew about his most ticklish spot and, knowing them, they'd make sure to weak him up before finally going straight for that spot. 

Daichi shuddered as he tried to bite his lower lip to stop those giggles bubbling out, but he squeaked when Bokuto started to squeeze his waist and the giggles that had gathered in his throat came flowing loud and clear and the blush on his face spread toward his ears.

"Ah, so I remembered correctly!" Bokuto said excitedly. "Daichi has a ticklish waist!"

Oikawa hummed. "I didn't know he was ticklish there… nice!" He said, talking as if Daichi wasn't there giggling like a schoolgirl.

He knew he was in trouble - Oikawa, Kuroo and Bokuto were already fired up, but Ushijima was still there (embarrassingly staring at him), without doing anything, so Daichi managed to put the best puppy eyes he could and looked at him.

"W-Wahahahakatoshi!" He giggled, flinching when Bokuto found the right spot on his waist. "H-Hehehehelp!" No, more specific. "H-Help m-mehehehe, please!"

He should had known better, after all, Ushijima was the one who suggested the punishment in the first place, regardless, Daichi was still surprised when Ushijima mumbled with his low, deep voice::

"Try his stomach."

Daichi widened his eyes and he immediately sucked on his belly, as if that action would help him at all - of course it didn't: he let out a whimpery plea, but Bokuto easily raised his shirt up to his ribs and his fingers dug into the flesh of his stomach. 

"GAHAHaha! Wahahait! Wait!" He squeaked, the giggles morphing into loud laughs as Bokuto mercilessly vibrated his fingertips right in the center of his tummy. "Uhuhuhushihihihi!" Daichi didn't notice, but Ushijima's ears turned a little red. "Trahahahahitor!" 

"Ho?" Kuroo purred. "So Sawamura has a ticklish tummy?" 

"Try scribbling your fingers on the sides," Ushijima explained, his fingers wiggling slightly to show Bokuto how to do it. 

"Nohoho!"

"Why don't you do it, Wakatoshi?" Bokuto asked with a big smile, stopping momentarily to invite Ushijima to join, Daichi shook his head like a mad man.

"Oh! That's a splendid idea!" Oikawa beamed and Daichi fought against all instinct to look up at him, he didn't want to see Oikawa's big grin. "While Toshi wrecks Daichi's belly, Bo can move to his ribs!"

Daichi squeaked. "Pl-Plehehease! D-Don't be such s-sohohore losers!" 

It was too late when Daichi realized what he just said; Ushijima was already kneeling close to the sofa and his hands were poised against the sides of Daichi's belly, his fingers scribbling against the warm and tight skin. 

Daichi's reaction was priceless and everyone laughed about it: he arched his back and let out a slightly girly shriek before bubbly laughter bloomed out of his mouth. His heels digging into the sofa's surface.

"Ahahaha! Wakatohohoshi, wait! N-Nahahaha!" 

To Daichi's horror, little hiccups started to filter through his laughter and the cooing from above him only made him want to sink deeper into the mattress, but he arched up again when Ushijima started to vibrate his fingers against the muscles at the sides of his tummy, stealing more hiccups from Daichi. 

"Oh goodness," Oikawa whispered. "Try his ribs! His ribs!" Oikawa urged Bokuto who, thankfully, had stopped to just look over at Daichi with a bright smile of his own. "It's a very nice spot."

"Nohohoho!"

"Up here?" Bokuto teased, his fingers crawling like little spider's legs toward Daichi's ribs. 

"P-Plehehehease!" Daichi shook his head and scrunched up his nose at the little pokes, his tummy sucking in when Bokuto grazed his lower ribs, but it seemed like Bokuto didn't notice as he suddenly made two claws with his hands and started to vibrate them against his bones and in the spaces in-between.

Daichi let out a shriek before cackles poured out of his mouth, he was positively kicking his feet now, or at least trying to with Bokuto sitting on his thighs. His ribs were horribly ticklish, he only needed a poke there to feel his whole rib cage tingling.

Bokuto was now squeezing Daichi's ribs, making him jump and squeak, but he was not hitting those special spots that never failed to almost throw Daichi into hysterical laughter, but Oikawa knew and Daichi knew it was only a matter of time before he instructed Bokuto again. 

"Nice, Bo, but try right at the lower ribs." There he was.

"No! Nohohoho, Kou! Plehehehease!"

"Oh?" Kuroo and Ushijima mumbled curiously and Daichi could only beg between cackles. 

"Here?"

"Yes, those ribs are really sensitive. Just use your thumbs- yeah, like that."

"AHAHAHA!" Daichi wished that he couldn't feel the tickling against his tummy, too, but that, added to the new electrifying sensation of having his lower ribs massaged with gentle deep circles, he felt like he wanted to crawl out of his skin. 

His squirming got wilder and Bokuto, Kuroo and Oikawa laughed as they pinned him a little harder without hurting him - Ushijima just chuckled, his fingers moving with experience, (didn't they have a tickle fight like once?!); his thumbs digging into the soft flesh under Daichi's belly button, forcing a snort out, or perhaps it was the way Bokuto was vibrating his fingers against those horribly ticklish ribs. 

He didn't know, he just knew it tickled, but it was not over yet. He felt it in his belly, his insides doing little flips just at the thought of that certain spot being tickled and Kuroo hadn't done anything yet. 

"That's not all! That's not all!" Oikawa said excitedly over Daichi's loud laughter 

"Look at this!" He quickly pinned Daichi's arm with his knees, Daichi was so overwhelmed by sensations that he didn't even put up a fight when he felt a little bit of freedom on his arm. 

"No! D-dohohon't l-lehehet hihihim- AH! Ahahahaha, Tooru! T-To-ahahaha!" 

Bokuto let out a whistle at such reaction, but Daichi couldn't care less at the moment: Tooru was rubbing deep circles into his highest ribs and Daichi just couldn't stand the maddening sensation - the skin, the muscles, even the bones felt extremely tender and weak against the ticklish attention. 

Not only that, having Tooru's hands so close to his actual most ticklish spot had him in frantic hysterical cackles; his body slowly growing weak, his hips wiggling slightly and his torso trying to turn away, but it was not possible, not with all of that laughter pouring non stop out of his mouth.

"Hehe, I told you guys it was a nice spot!" 

"Stahahahap!"

"I'm not sure," Oikawa said, looking down at Daichi's laughing face, he was red by now, a thin layer of sweat covering his forehead and tears falling from the sides of his face. "Do you feel any bad?" 

"I d-d-ahahaha! I do!" He squeaked out in a hurry before another cackle could cut his words. 

"Are you learning your lesson?" Kuroo asked next, but Daichi didn't have the head to learn any lesson, he was laughing hysterically, snorts burning his nose and hiccups bubbling out of his throat. If there was a lesson to learn, he was not learning it at all, but he nodded, not wanting to cause any more havoc to himself. 

Kuroo chuckled. "Poor Daichi, too ticklish for his own good. Maybe you can have it in mind next time you decide to be a little shit, huh?" 

Daichi shook his head. "I'm sohohohaharry!"

"I think you are lying," Kuroo purred and Daichi feared for his life. "That's why I should teach the rest, where's your weakest spot, hm?"

Daichi shrieked, his tired body regaining some force. "NAHAHAHAT thahahat!"

"Heee?" Bokuto and Oikawa said, Ushijima only looked up at Kuroo with a raised eyebrow. "So Daichi is not the most ticklish on his ribs?"

"AHAGAHAHAD, plehehehease Tehehehetsu, dohohon't!" 

"Of course not," Kuroo said, pinning Daichi's arm with his legs, as well. "Daichi's weakest spot is right here," he said, suddenly digging one finger right in the middle of Daichi's clothed armpits. 

Daichi went so wild with such gentle touch, he almost threw Bokuto off, but Ushijima held him by the shoulder, stabilizing him so Bokuto could properly sit on Daichi's thighs again. Oikawa was laughing at him. 

"Uh-uh," Bokuto said, his fingers back to Daichi's lower ribs. "This is going to be good."

"Brace yourself, Dai. Here I go!"

"No! Nononono- NAHAHAHA!" Oikawa gasped when Daichi suddenly threw his head back, howling with laughter. 

Kuroo wasted no time, he sneaked his hands under Daichi's sleeves, touching the smooth skin with his fingertips before digging, wiggling and vibrating against the exposed armpits, into the hollows and right in the center where Kuroo knew Daichi was the most sensitive. 

Meanwhile, Daichi was going crazy. He was howling desperately, all of his weak spots being tickled at once was something he hadn't experience before and his mind was going blank, he could only focus in the sensations and how it tickled so fucking much. 

The vibrations against his armpits, the massages against his highest and lower ribs and he was almost sure that he felt a shy raspberry being pressed against the side of his tummy before fingertips were clawing at his muscles. Oh goodness, Ushijima was actually blowing raspberries against his stomach! 

Daichi thought he was going to die. 

"STAHAHA-" it was the only thing Daichi could manage out before his laughter turned silent, his body shaking heavily with each laugh. 

"Daichi, does it tickle too much?" Oikawa asked, not slowing down at all. Daichi nodded weakly, jumping when Kuroo found a particular sensitive spot. 

"Do you want us to stop?" Kuroo mumbled and Daichi nodded again, throwing his head back with a salient cackle when he definitely felt and heard another raspberry, this time right against his navel. 

"Poor Dai," Bokuto sang. "Too ticklish for his own good." Daichi nodded one more time, not caring anymore about saving some face to these mean boys.

"Okay, that's enough," Ushijima said, lifting his hands away from Daichi's pink stomach. The other three followed him, bright smiles on their lips as they watched Daichi still laughing until he regained his voice and was giggling tiredly, his body trembling slightly. 

"I'll bring some water," Kuroo said, lifting himself from Daichi's arm, Daichi was too weak, so he just kept his arm up above his head. 

"Are you okay, Dai?" Bokuto asked, perhaps a little worried as he placed Daichi's shirt back in place, not without making him flinch and bark out a nervous laugh when he moved his hands too quickly. 

Oikawa chuckled. "Calm down, we have finished. Do you feel okay?" Daichi took a few breaths before nodding softly, a little smile curling his lips.

"I'm g-gohohood," he said, his voice hoarse after laughing so much. "N-Nohoho more," he pleaded with bright eyes and a funny smile. 

"Yes, no more." Oikawa nodded, pulling Daichi's arm out from under his knees and gently helping him to lower both of them. Daichi let out a giggle when Ushijima grabbed both his hands and helped him sit up, Bokuto placing him against the backrest of the sofa.

He felt boneless and a bit heated up, but he didn't mind when Bokuto sat too close to him at his right, Oikawa collapsing right beside Bokuto. Ushijima sat by his left, also a bit too close and Daichi didn't notice when he had gotten that magazine, but he thanked him shyly when Ushijima started to fan him with it. 

When Kuroo came back with the glass of water, Daichi took it gratefully and drank it in one sip, Oikawa was nice enough to take the glass out of his hands and place it on the little table in front of them. 

Daichi let his head fall back. Damn, he was tired and he still felt some phantom tickles all over his torso, making him twitch softly and smile lightly. That was intense, but, even so, he couldn't really say he totally hated it.

He sent discreet glances at the men resting by his sides and his heart fluttered a little when he noticed their little pleased smiles. They seemed happy - ah, could it be because they actually got their revenge on him? 

Daichi felt his cheeks heating up. They didn't really hate him for that, right? They've been living together for a while now and everything was going perfectly fine, so it wasn't like that… was it? 

He softly cleared his throat and flushed even more when the four of them turned their head to look at him, Oikawa and Kuroo moving forward a little. 

"Are- are you guys really upset at me?" He tried to look at each of their faces as he sunk a little deeper into the backrest. 

Ushijima, Oikawa, Bokuto and Kuroo exchanged a look and Daichi let out a shriek when he felt fingers suddenly digging into his ribs, tickling him again.

"Gahahaha! N-Nohoho!" He was surprised to find out that Bokuto and Ushijima were the ones doing it. 

"Dai-chan is so silly!" Oikawa laughed softly. 

"Of course we are not upset at you, Daichi!" Bokuto chirped, going for Daichi's waist again. 

"We just wanted to tease you! We don't actually hold a grudge against you, silly Daichi!" Kuroo laughed too, reaching up to ruffle Daichi's hair. 

"Mn," Ushijima mumbled, also moving down to tickle the other side of Daichi's waist. 

"Plehehehease! S-Stahahap! You sahahahaid no mohohore!"

"You should be punished for actually thinking we were upset at you," Kuroo threatened and Daichi squeaked, shaking his head a little. 

He would never admit that he felt his heart flutter at that, his face turning bright red as he felt a wave of relief rushing through him. 

"O-Okahahay! I'm sohohorry!"

"Shall we hold him down?" Oikawa asked, already getting up. 

"No!" Daichi shrieked, wrapping his arms around his torso and trying to push those hands away. "Not nahahahaw!"

"Hoo?" Kuroo hummed. "So later?"

Daichi was stuck with four tickle maniacs and they already had found their victim. If he was happy about it, he kept it deep within his heart. 

[grimoire-of-geekery]

Detect Magic: the Sixth World Tarot by Echo Chernik

(pictured here- the deluxe edition [left] and the Arcanist edition of the Sixth World Tarot by Echo Chernik)

Y'know, it's been a long time since I did one of these, but here goes. It's time for another Detect Magic review. I haven't put the Dork Magician hat on for a while, so let's give this a whirl!

Today we're taking a look at the Sixth World Tarot, by Echo and Lazarus Chernik. She has this available on her website (click the above link), which come signed by the artist and the author. I'm a bit bummed, I bought a copy of this deck juuuuust before she started signing them. Not her fault, but still. XD

For those of you unfamiliar with Shadowrun, it's a cyberpunk dystopian magic-and-mech RPG setting and fantasy novel universe which originated in the late 80's. The premise is that magic is growing stronger, the world experienced a big Awakening in the early 2000's, right around the same time that corporations managed to gain extraterritoriality. So, you have dragons running huge megacorps, which basically enslave people to be lifelong wageslaves from birth (or as soon as they can get their hands on a desired talent), immersive VR Matrix hackers, cyberware enhanced fighters and magic practitioners acting as "deniable assets" to said corps for all sorts of shady business.

Hence the name "Shadowrun."

This setting, one of my absolute favorite settings out there, has had the misfortune of developing a sort of eerie prophetic element akin to the Simpsons and its bizarre track record of prediction of ludicrous world events. Shadowrun was intended to be a cautionary tale, not an oracular one. That being said, that does make a tarot based on Shadowrun more than a little on-the-nose for predictive purposes. After all, they're telling the future without even trying. Wait until they actually put some effort into it...

All right, time to Detect Magic!

Accessory- Crit (4 out of 4) Stunning artwork, evocative imagery... this deck is gorgeous. It's so beautiful, and so intricate and well made, that people who don't even read tarot (or even particularly like tarot) buy several copies for their geeky collections, and even people who don't particularly care about Shadowrun have dropped their jaw when I showed the deck to them.

A bit busier than I'm used to working with (not the art, but the extras which I'll explain later), I was pleasantly surprised at how much I loved the cards when I first got them. The box for both editions I own are a nice durable gloss with a magnetic foldover closure, there's a ribbon inside each to help pull the cards and book out of the box, and the decorative artwork is gorgeous and fitting with the setting. Definitely aesthetically pleasing enough to take places, and durable enough to resist scuffing or tearing for on-the-go divination and gaming use.

Tome- Crit (4 out of 4) So, the Tome section of this review is supposed to be about how well the cards help one in the pursuit of learning magic and practicing geekomancy. And... really, I don't think I've found a deck (or any artifact of fandom) quite as good as this.

Let me explain.

Tarot, in the sorcery practice I teach, are already basically a pictorial grimoire, describing life in a way that allows us to learn the hidden movements, mysteries, and forces at play in our world. Art is good for things like that in general. It helps you see the world through a special lens, one which allows you to see things you might have missed.

The thing is, the lens of this deck is the Shadowrun continuity, which as I said earlier, has proven to be more than a little prophetic, and alarmingly so.

The magic system of Shadowrun is pretty adjacent to our own. Life force lines, spiritual power sites, astral projection and spirits and magical "energy" forms, initiatory mysteries... it's all pretty much the same as our own reality, just juiced up a bit, with some extra game elements added (don't even ask me about insect spirits).

This makes the deck particularly helpful if one wishes to learn magic in any of the myriad ways described in Shadowrun (and they're particularly respectful and diverse and true-to-life in their tradition descriptions).

BUT, it also has an entire lore-book called the Book of the Lost associated with it, which explains all these little secret sigils and images and easter eggs stored throughout the deck, which can be used for gamebuilding and storytelling, but are designed to be arcane indicators and omens, among other things. And the kinds of symbols they use range from sentences or mottos in dead languages, all the way to waveform patterns and dot-matrix maps. I swear, if you're one of those people who like puzzles and cryptography, this deck is even more fun than the Hermetic Tarot.

In summary, while you'll have to get some Shadowrun sourcebooks to really get deep into the canon lore, there's so much of it that the cards really show you on their own that I don't consider this a setback at all. Feel free to deep-dive with this deck, you'll learn a TON about magic if you let it guide you.

Relic- Success (3 out of 4) If you read the Book of the Lost, or Unearthed Arcana, or any of the 5th edition Shadowrun magic sourcebooks, you'll see that "tarot magic" is an up and coming thing in their canon. Each text helps you see how practitioners use the cards in-game for spellcasting, ritual magic, initiation practices and spirit summoning. The Tarot are already really valuable as central objects of importance to certain kinds of magical practice. This particular deck is designed to be so handy a central object that there's an entire book dedicated to it.

Weapon- Success (3 out of 4) The only reason I'm rating this a success instead of a crit is because they don't provide enough spreads in the various associated books for one to immediately begin casting spells with them, which means you'll have to do some designing. They do have a couple solid unique spreads for basic divination though.

The deck's canon in-game suggests ritual practices like gathering and doing a ritual with sets of related cards, and one such ritual was easily adapted in my own practice, into the Lucky Kimono spread I designed (which people can read about on my Patreon at the higher tiers). So, even without outright including spell-spreads, they sort of gave us clues anyway.

Again, you're going to need the sourcebooks, but it's only a few of them, and they're well worth a read even if you're not planning on playing the game (and I don't play in the actual Shadowrun mechanical system, though I do like the sourcebooks for campaign setting ideas).

Overall Rating: Critical Success (14 out of 16)

Achievement Unlocked: Novahot Echo's artwork is already legendary in the dork realms of geekomancy. She's done work for Dungeons and Dragons, Mage: the Ascension, House of Night... she's even working on a Fate: the Winx Saga playing card deck right now. Her art-nouveau delicacy combined with the powerful non-pandering way she draws women means that her paintings pack a punch!

That being said, it's rare that we see professional artists create a tarot deck of this magnitude as a gaming accessory. Most tarot decks of this caliber are found in professional occult catalogues or as independent projects by artists just wanting to flex their skills for their own reasons. To have a deck like this, clearly a labor of love by all involved, as a major element of gameplay within a franchise is really very special. And something this diverse, deep, and absolutely saturated with layers of ciphers and riddles... it's a geekomancer's dream come true.

Level Up: 2 Levels I think the only way anyone's going to be able to top this deck is if they manage to design a tarot deck that's also a fully immersive VR video game AND an AR game and divination tool useable with one's iPhone or Android. Legit, Echo and Lazarus left everyone in the dust. I haven't been this excited about Shadowrun since Shadowrun Returns first came out, and I got a set of dogtags that had a USB drive with the game on it.

It's just... crazy cool.

Full disclosure, I've had the deluxe edition of these cards for a while now, so I've basically been low-key squeeing about this deck since I first heard about it in 2018, even before I got it. I've been utterly astonished that people weren't more excited about them, and I wasn't hearing about them everywhere.

Before this, I created my own Shadowrun tarot method using the Universal Transparent Tarot (cuz, y'know, plastic and see-through and weird little mosaic readings all in one place, seemed fitting to me), and when I got the Sixth World Tarot? I don't think I've opened the UTT since!

Anyway, this is my review of this deck! Go follow the link up at the top of this post, and buy yourself one! And hey, let me know if you figure out the cool little map trick. My jaw literally dropped when I was shown that!

[marshmallowprotection]

Hey! Hey! I just read your answer to the writing reader x character fics ask and wanted to bonk you with a LOT OF APPRECIATION FOR CALLUNA!!

I'm so amazed by it still, it's so heartwarming that you've written something so beautiful inspired by one of my pieces and from where I'm currently at, the story, the plot, SAERAN, the MC/reader, every other character, they're all so on point. I just love it so much, your use of words is wonderful and the whole fic is incredible, I still cannot comprehend how good it is?? I can with no doubt say that you're currently my favourite MM writer out there, everything you come up with is just so incredibly well written and thought of. I've had to hold on giving any feedback till now because I wanted to finish reading it first before throwing all the love I have for it at you, since I'm currently just on chapter 11 because I was following it as it was getting published at first but then school got the better of me (since I always read fics at night and lately school has forced me to go to sleep way to early to do that, and I'm so deprived of fics oh my god), and as I'm only on chapter 11 I know that there's still a big storm coming because sadly someone happened to spoil something about the fic for me, but you bet I'm gonna throw even more love at you when school gives me time for that and you BET I'll be drawing some art for it too 😌💞 It's what you deserve

Also, the post itself really resonated with me, like the things you said about writing what makes you happy. It wasn't only relatable with me drawing things I enjoy, there's also the fact that I've been writing fics for myself lately. That writing has also kinda replaced my activity of reading them as much, but I really enjoy it! Idk why I never did it before honestly, but writing them just for myself is really...therapeutic in a way? There's no pressure of anyone judging you and you can do anything you've ever wanted, it's so comforting. I'm just not showing them to anyone because 1. I feel ashamed of them, I'm not the best writer but I find doing it fun 2. my headcanons are sometimes really different to others' and I sometimes feel bad for that or afraid of getting backlash/into arguments for my headcanons. But writing them is fun, and the same goes for you, I hope you continue to do what makes you happy! Though I do enjoy some good old reader x character fics, reading about Lila is also interesting and sometimes she sounds a lot like what Sunset would do so that's just a huge plus lolol

(also me 🤝 you

giving Saeran CMCs who like lolita fashion)

Pat yourself on the back! That Prince Ray art just lit a fire in me with an idea that was already in the back of my head for a while and it smacked me in the head the second that I saw that handsome boy. It was only the moment I saw a pretty boy in a crown. I am nothing but a simp.

That's the good thing about being in fandom. There are people in these places that make art inspired by writing or writing inspired by art. I love seeing that because it's a testament to the harmony in fandom and it is so easy to look to each other when we feel as if we're making an impact on everyone.

It just feels so good to create something from nothing, even if it's art or writing. The process is cathartic and we cannot deny making something makes us just feel accomplished! Your passion to your art is something that we all see and recognize! I'm glad to have been able to watch you progress with your art because you are very talented and you will only continue to better the more you have fun and practice.

Goodness Gracious, I don't know I'm prepared to see anything from the fic drawn out! I have all of these outfit references for Sparrow and for all of the other cast members in the story but I've not been able to flash them out myself. There's just something really sweet about the aesthetic that exists within fairytale AUs that I can't ignore. I am sorry to hear that someone spoiled you on one of the events in the story.

At least you don't know how it builds up or leads to that point in the story where the incident occurs. I've been spoiled in a few stories before and how I reason with myself is that: I don't know how we get to [Spoiler] and that means the full experience isn't robbed from me. I'm glad that you've enjoyed it! I put a lot of care into the story because it was such a great piece of art to work with.

I'm not ready, Seeme. Don't kill me. I don't think we can handle it. Prince Ray already kills me on sight.

Shfksnrowneoehe! Sunset is really cute. I always love seeing her on my Instagram or over here on DailySaeran. Her hair is really bouncy and sweet and it just makes me feel some kind of way. I just love frilly clothes and we need more cute MCs in big skirts. I'm very OC positive and I try to make sure that all kinds of people in this fandom know that they should shamelessly write what makes them happy.

I am glad to hear that you're exploring writing for the first time. I hope you know that you don't have to share with other people of you don't want to do that. You put your heart and soul into your writing even if there's spelling errors, translation errors, or what have you within the story, you put a piece of your heart into what you're writing. I say this with the utmost sincerity write for you and nobody else. Write what makes you happy no matter what anyone says.

I don't care if that means you're writing Self Insert Fics where you have cat ears, rainbow hair, or everyone loves you without question. Or If you're writing about an OC who loves without reason or can do "impossible" things without trouble. It's your story.

You create the canon. You create the universe. You put yourself into it. It is unashamedly you.

If it makes you happy, you write it. Put your heart into it. We put ourselves into the characters, not just our OCs. But, we put our soul into the cast of canon characters. So, just know that even if you do not share your writing, you should never feel like you have to share it for it to be proof of skill or talent. If anyone hits you with discourse if you do share it one day, let me know. I will mess them up with a Hello Kitty bat all the while wearing the cutest dress.

I've got a lot of Saeran x Reader story ideas, I'm gonna make a poll with my general ideas and let people vote on that later once I get home. It'll be a Google Form. I'll probably link it on my IG too. I hope you guys are interested in that! I hope that you're able to slow down and enjoy yourself soon here! I know that school must be really rough with everything right now. I gotta wish you luck with that.

Meanwhile, I gotta go smack myself or something, I admire you and here you are hitting me with the same thing. Djwkdhekdnodbeie

[shelllessturtle]

Behind the scenes of this livetext: Mycroft gets a new phone and identifies Iago via haiku; Iago sees Hamilton; "Pride and Prejudice but in Starfleet" becomes a thing; Iago quits their job; SO MANY PUNS; and it turns out that Mycroft has never finished Avatar: the Last Airbender. A year in the making (I'm not even fucking kidding), I present you with: Iago Reads Wizards At War (lightly edited for ease of reading)

Mycroft: Better start bracing yourself for book 8 now

Iago: Oh sweet Jesus

Mycroft: There, no you can't say I didn't warn you

Iago: But you /know/ it's funnier when I get to threaten you with gruesome death!

Iago: Are you ready for this?

Iago: ...one of the chapter titles is "Acceptable Losses". /I/ am not ready for this.

Iago: Nita needs a vacation from her vacation. Nita sweetie...

Iago: "Neets, is it true he destroyed a whole alien culture in just ten days?" Carmela Rodriguez is my Patronus

Mycroft: Right?

Mycroft: She just keeps getting better

Iago: Roll call at the Callahan home: "three humans, one humanoid, one tree, and one giant bug" and I'm quietly cackling in public

Iago: "The centipede pointed a couple spare eyes at the Christmas tree." Taken out of context, I think that may be the most bizarre sentence I've ever read. In context, it makes perfect sense. I don't know which amuses me more.

Mycroft: Yesssss

Iago: "But her mom had loved those lilacs, and wouldn't be seeing them again." OKAY OW

Iago: Oh sweet minty Jesus

Iago: You weren't wrong.

Iago: And I wasn't prepared.

Mycroft: So not prepared

Mycroft: What's that in response to specifically?

Iago: Basically the entire series of events leading to Kit and Nita becoming Seniors

Mycroft: BASICALLY

Mycroft: IT'S ALL GONE TO SHIT

Iago: Descriptions of wizardries in action never fail to be beautiful

Iago: "The changes in the structure of space then start affecting the thought processes and reactions of all living beings in the area. Their behavior will start to become less and less rational...less committed to Life."

SHE WROTE THIS BOOK OVER A DECADE AGO HOW IS IT SO RELEVANT RIGHT NOW

Mycroft: Oh you have no idea

Iago: God help my soul

Mycroft: So yes, welcome to Tom's Wizardly PowerPoint of universal doom

Iago: I should just go see Moana again. It's far less depressing

Iago: "Uh-oh". Now Nita's getting in on it

Mycroft: Indeed

Iago: Looks like Nita's playing "fake it 'til you make it"

Iago: I don't know if that's good or bad, to be honest

Mycroft: Fairly characteristic tho

Iago: True

Iago: "...yet another lollipop sticking out of his face." That is the greatest description of someone with a sucker in their mouth that I've ever witnessed

Mycroft: Roshaun and his lollipop addiction

Mycroft: The real OTP

Iago: *chokes* oh my gOD

Iago: Sker'ret just called Nita "Senior". I think both Nita and I had a quick internal freak-out

Iago: THEY STILL HAVE BETTY CALLAHAN'S NUMBER IN THEIR HOME PHONE I'M GOING TO GO CRY IN A CORNER

Mycroft: ;__;

Iago: "The universe has started expanding too fast, and we have to stop it before it tears itself apart."

"Um. Okay, I see why you might need a few extra days off for that."

*slightly hysterical laughter*

Mycroft: Same

Iago: "Two weeks to save the universe". Sounds like an album title

Mycroft: I'd listen to it

Iago: "What /is/ grenfelzing, exactly?"

"It's kind of like emmfozing, but with chocolate."

Have I ever mentioned that I both hate and love your ability to quote these goddamn books at me when I ask questions?

Mycroft: I can't recall, but I'm glad to hear it

Mycroft: Also I mean that's the only canon explanation so really, what else could I say

Iago: But you quoted it /word for word/

Mycroft: Admittedly, that was at least partially For The Meme

Iago: I'll allow it

Iago: "...a brief, profound case of amnesia. They'd instantly forgotten why they were there" sounds like my life

Iago: Oh my god what is Spot doing with the TV

Iago: *whispers* How bad is it that my mind is currently in the gutter

Mycroft: Dataaaaaa

Iago: AM I JUST A PERVERT OR DOES THAT SOUND INCREDIBLY DIRTY

Mycroft: It's certainly something

Iago: "But most of the aliens are here for the cocoa plants." Well, I can't exactly blame them...

Iago: Carmela Rodriguez remains a gift

Iago: Oh god Ronan's back

Mycroft: Yessssss Carmela and Ronan

Mycroft: A dangerous combination

Iago: Ronan keeps the Spear in a pen

Iago: *checks date published*

Iago: Feels a bit Percy Jackson to me

Iago: Carmela has the insta-hots for Ronan. This is gonna be fun

Iago: "The fucking heir of an almighty something or other" is still a really good description for Roshaun. In case you were wondering if I had warmed up to him any more

Iago: WHALE

Iago: WHALE ON THE MOON

Iago: Whale On The Moon is the name of my new techno jazz band

Mycroft: Can I join?

Mycroft: I'll learn any new instrument you need

Iago: ...having thought about it, I'm legitimately not certain what instruments would be /played/ in a techno jazz band. So, I mean, if you want to learn the synthesizer...

Iago: Young Wizards book 8 alternate title: Wizards' Reunion

Iago: Lots of air quotes going on right now

Iago: ....I want Darryl's manual

Iago: "Where's your adjunct talent?"

"Playing with rocks, as usual."

Okay now I really want a puppy

Iago: "Twychild". Have I mentioned lately that the worldbuilding in these books gives me a case of the warm fuzzies?

Mycroft: Yesssss Tuyet and Nguyet

Iago: *whispers* Why is there a thought-voice talking in second-person in Kit's head

Iago: The description of Roshaun's living space send help

Iago: "A three-way collision between an antique furniture warehouse, a jewelry story, and a Gothic cathedral carved and decorated by the artistically insane."

Iago: So my brain has given Roshaun's father the voice of Mark Hamill.

Iago: There's a decent chance I'm going to just call him the Phoenix King

Iago: "Speaking truth to power is never 'out'." DAIRINE REMAINS GOD

Iago: (Also if I ever go to a protest I'm putting that on my sign.)

Mycroft: Yessss do it

Mycroft: And which kind of Mark Hamill are we talking here: Skywalker, Firelord or Joker?

Iago: Firelord. Thus the Phoenix King comment

Iago: Oh my god Dairine in the face of implications that she and Roshaun are ~involved~

Mycroft: Blessss

Iago: "You tell those people that they are completely nuts!"

Iago: Did...did Roshaun just /whine/ at his mother?

Mycroft: Yes

Mycroft: Not so dignified now

Iago: *falls off the table in laughter*

Iago: Oh god is Roshaun developing a Thing for Dairine

Mycroft: WELCOME TO THE MADDENING AMBIGUITY

Iago: MADDENING AMBIGUITY IS THE NAME OF MY NEW POLITICAL PUNK BAND

Mycroft: Bless

Iago: This is my favorite game

Mycroft: I know a fair few YW fans who have a particular talent for it

Iago: I have a list. I use them in my stories for bands my characters like

Mycroft: Most excellent

Iago: Ponch wants blue food

Mycroft: As do we all

Iago: I /could/ go for some blue Jolly Ranchers

Iago: Ponch, to Ronan: "You two just talk among yourselves."

Dog sass is best sass

Iago: "It's math, Kit, but not as we know it."

SHE. SHE JUST. SHE FUCKING DID THAT ON PURPOSE

Iago: I'm going to go curl up in a corner and cry with laughter now

Mycroft: Yup

Mycroft: What a nerd, right

Iago: Pot, kettle

Iago: Oh shit Sker'ret is having a fight with his parent

Iago: ...I currently have a desire to cuddle what amounts to a giant centipede. What have you done to me

Mycroft: The magic of Young Wizards

Iago: That was terrible

Iago: But, then again, I love terrible

Iago: Okay so the description of dark matter

Mycroft: Yes?

Iago: I feel like I have something crawling around under my skin

Mycroft: It's unsettling, isn't it

Mycroft: That gets worse

Iago: Oh god

Iago: "Nita for the first time actually saw someone else look out of Ronan's eyes. The expression was one of recognition coupled with a very controlled anger. The one who looked out had seen something like this before."

Oh. Shit. Oh /shit/.

Mycroft: Yessssss

Mycroft: Shit just got real

Iago: I am not prepared for this

Mycroft: Correct

Iago: GIGO

Mycroft: :D

Iago: "For transits like this, we temporarily rewrite the kernel that manages local gravity and mass in our solar system. It's no big deal."

oh my gOD

Iago: They are actually Dairine's children

Mycroft: They've been busy since we last saw them

Mycroft: And it's awesome

Iago: "A world of true computer wizards" get the fuck out

Iago: They're actually calling her Mother s e n d h e l p

Mycroft: RIGHT

Iago: I'm not crying you're crying

Mycroft: I'm not crying I'm eating a quaesadilla

Mycroft: The crying one must be you

Iago: Well I can't see to tell you so who knows

Iago: "Guys," [Dairine] said after a moment, "you make me proud."

"That is our other purpose," Beanpole said. "Our first one."

Iago: I A M D E A D

Mycroft: I knowwww

Iago: "Life's all the time sending /me/ messages I can't read." [Dairine] flicked just a second's glance at Roshaun, who she was starting to think was yet another of those messages.

Iago: Oh lordy

Iago: Oh god above send help

Iago: Spot's becoming less of a machine, more alive. I don't know if I'm in support of this change

Mycroft: Everyone needs upgrades now and then :P

Iago: I don't like change

Iago: I kind of adore the mobiles all bowing to Dairine

Iago: Roshaun raised his eyebrows and produced another lollipop, which he held out to her.

"How many of those things do you have?" Dairine said.

"Not nearly enough," Roshaun said.

Iago: Please excuse me while I go laugh myself sick

Mycroft: Roshaun has his priorities in order

Mycroft: There was always a jar of lollipops on hand at CrossingsCon in his honor

Iago: Perfect

Iago: "I'll give you a dysfunction where you'll have trouble finding it again."

Totally stealing that don't even care

Mycroft: Excellent

Iago: "I may be a mother, but you are /mine/."

Maybe I didn't take enough time to recover after finishing The Slow Regard of Silent Things I'm going to go collapse in an emotional heap

Mycroft: So many Dairine feels, I knowww

Iago: "Enthusiasmic incorporation of the Hesper--"

What? What?! What does it say? What does it mean? I NEED TO KNOW

Mycroft: [rubs hands together; evil laughter] I'M SAYING NOTHING

Iago: Oh god is time moving faster on Metemne

Mycroft: MAYBE

Iago: Oh fuck it's relativity isn't it. Because they're near the source of the dark matter, they're moving faster than the rest of the Universe

Mycroft: Very possible

Iago: Oh no. Introduction of Della Cantrell and MY EMOTIONS CAN'T TAKE THIS HALP

Mycroft: Oh boy

Iago: Nita's phone call to her dad. Direct hit to the feels.

Mycroft: Harry Callahan is such a good dad

Iago: That is part of why it hurts so much

Iago: "Nita, could you please get off me before we accidentally become more than just good friends?"

*cackles maniacally*

Mycroft: BEST

Iago: Holy fucking sHIT ALMOND SPIDERS WHAT THE ACTUAL FUCK

Mycroft: Wait what

Mycroft: Remind me of the context for that

Iago: On Rashah. The creatures destroying the trees are almond-shaped and have eight legs. Almond spiders

Mycroft: Oh ok that's what I figured

Mycroft: HELLO TO OUR TERRIFYING NEW ALIEN FRIENDS

Iago: ALMOND SPIDERS. WHY.

Mycroft: WHY NOT

Iago: "They've been fighting each other, on and off, for /millions/ of years?"

"They must be really enjoying it, to keep the war going so long."

Sker'ret is so great

Mycroft: Rashah is not exactly a great vacation destination, that's for sure

Iago: Oh sweet minty Jesus the almond spiders are a remnant after an atomic holocaust I need a drink

Iago: And...they're all avatars...of the Lone Wanker. Better make that two drinks.

Mycroft: WELCOME TO RADIOACTIVE POSSESSED WAR-MONGERING GIANT SPIDER CULT WORLD

Mycroft: ENJOY YOUR STAY

Iago: Where is Nita's dad

Iago: I am Concerned

Iago: Also

Iago: I will never get tired of the "check your spelling" joke

Mycroft: Same

Iago: "Words had just failed Dairine." Gods above have mercy on us all

Mycroft: I appreciate that the narration pauses to note how unthinkable that is

Iago: Also, a "bright" version of the Lone Power

Iago: What does that mean

Iago: Why is bright in quotes

Mycroft: To indicate it's kind of a rough description of a more complex subject, mostly

Iago: But does it mean that we're getting a version of the Lone Power that's more on the good side or a version that's worse than usual

Mycroft: There's more explanation later, but basically picture the LP's non-evil twin

Mycroft: Like its opposite, basically

Iago: I thought /you/ were refusing to give spoilers

Mycroft: Meh, I saw that as more clarification on what you already read, ymmv

Mycroft: But stay tuned

Iago: Well obviously

Iago: Nita doesn't like shooting people who are shooting at her

Mycroft: Krakens don't count but I don't think they were as sentient

Iago: "I'm a wizard, not an engineer" goddammit /again/?!

Mycroft: Yesss

Iago: I shall take myself off to the laughing corner

Iago: Oh god self-destruct at the Crossings

Mycroft: Kind of a terrifying prospect

Iago: Nita just blew up a giant gun

Mycroft: Yesss

Iago: "High-fiving a giant centipede can take a while."

Up next on Winning Understatements....

Mycroft: That is so fun to picture

Iago: I know!

Iago: "I don't wear socks."

"Just as well. You'd bankrupt yourself."

That is /also/ fun to picture

Mycroft: As an antidote to the tense battle scene, have a bunch of centipede leg jokes

Iago: Pretty much

Iago: Wait

Iago: /Carmela/?!

Mycroft: Hahahaha yesss

Mycroft: THE GLORIOUS RETURN

Iago: What

Iago: WHAT

Iago: Okay, Sker'ret just /swallowed/ the self-destruct panel

Mycroft: He's got a talent for that kind of thing

Iago: Which, I mean, okay, great way to not lose it

Iago: But

Iago: Can't he digest, like, /everything/?

Iago: And the self-destruct sequence is still going?

Iago: What happens if he takes too long to get the panel back out?

Mycroft: Rirhait stomach work in mysterious ways

Iago: ...is that the canon explanation or your way of saying "don't think about it too hard"

Mycroft: Yes

Iago: Why did I let you talk me into this

Mycroft: Because it's awesome, come on

Iago: Ugh

Iago: *quiet noises of agreement*

Iago: "So I took steps." CARMELA

Iago: (Carmela is the reason I let you talk me into this.)

Mycroft: That's the best answer

Mycroft: This book is Peak Carmela honestly

Iago: *whispers emphatically* Juanita Louise

Mycroft: Yessssss

Iago: Carmela just referred to Filif as "my favorite Christmas tree" and Carmela is all of us in that moment

Mycroft: So true

Mycroft: Filif is tree-mendous

Iago: I fucking hate you so much right now. :b

Mycroft: :D

Iago: "We are on errantry, and we greet you."

"Not that you particularly /merit/ greeting." Nita pls

Mycroft: She's earned the right to some snark, I'd say

Iago: Clearly

Iago: "You get more honey with flies. Wait a minute, that's not how it goes." CARMELA PLS

Mycroft: Oh my god

Mycroft: Get ready for another legendary Carmela moment

Iago: IS SHE BRIBING THE TAWALF WITH CHOCOLATE

Iago: FUCKING SHIT YES SHE IS

Mycroft: YEAH

Mycroft: And now you know why this book made Carmela everyone's favorite

Iago: I'M SO PLEASED WITH THIS

Iago: I mean Dairine is always going to be my eternal favorite but yeah Carmela's a close second

Mycroft: Relatable

Iago: Oh my god now she's threatening to /eat/ the chocolate right in front of them I'm crying

Mycroft: I KNOW RIGHT

Iago: Ponch the almond spider is trying to catch his non-existent tail

Mycroft: Omfg I forgot about that

Iago: It's a hilarious picture

Iago: I think I just witnessed a cult gathering

Iago: "You let me worry about this planet, and I'll let you worry about all the others." HARRY CALLAHAN IS BEST DAD

Mycroft: THE VERY BEST

Iago: NO

Iago: NONONONONO

Iago: TOM AND CARL HAVE FORGOTTEN THEIR WIZARDRY

Mycroft: AH YOU'VE GOTTEN TO THAT PART

Mycroft: WELCOME TO HEARTBREAK CITY, POPULATION YOU

Mycroft: And also Nita

Iago: S E N D H E L P

Iago: Wait are Rirhait mostly purple

Iago: Because if yes than they are my new favorites

Mycroft: They also come in blue, green, and pink, but yeah

Mycroft: I'm pretty sure Sker'ret in particular is purple

Iago: Well I saw that but the book makes a point to say that there are a /lot/ of shades of purple and I fucking love purple

Mycroft: You're in luck, then

Iago: "I would never lose my balance. I am a paragon of grace and stability."

"Oh, yeah. Who said /that/?"

"Roshaun."

Someone help me

Iago: I cannot

Mycroft: Pffft

Mycroft: Classic Roshaun

Iago: Kit is hiding his eyes from "sex stuff" and I'm laughing

Iago: "My dog brings home strays." Kit your dog is a fucking gift

Iago: A ducking gift who knows how to work a situation to get dog treats

Iago: And...and then he gave the treat to the Yaldiv that he brought home.

Iago: Ponch is a good dog.

Mycroft: Ponch is a good dog

Iago: "What is it with these Callahan women that they're always after yelling at you and giving you grief?"

"Not always. Just when it's going to get most on your nerves."

Kit just be glad Nita isn't here because she'd sock you

Iago: Oh

Iago: Oh shit

Iago: Just head the story of the dogs' Choice

Iago: And

Iago: everything is fine

Iago: EVERYTHING IS FINE MYCROFT

Mycroft: E V E R Y T H I N G I S F I N E

Iago: "Even when people mean to do good things, bad things happen in the world."

"They're happening already. Pretending they're not won't help."

Memeki the almond spider is speaking to my soul I'm gonna go start a revolution now

Mycroft: Yes please do

Iago: ALMOND SPIDER ATTACK OH GOD

Mycroft: I'm greatly enjoying your dedication to calling the Yaldiv almond spiders

Iago: NITA AND CARMELA TO THE RESCUE FUCK YEAH

Iago: WAIT WAS THE "THING" NITA WAS SUPPOSED TO GO BACK AND GET ACTUALLY /CARMELA/?!

Iago: BECAUSE THAT WOULD BE THE FUCKING GREATEST

Iago: Also

Iago: What does it mean that Memeki was honored by the Great One

Iago: Is she pregnant

Iago: Is she being nommed from the inside

Iago: Oh. Oh shit. What does Memeki mean by "my time"

Iago: CALLED IT ASSFACES

Iago: I mean

Iago: She's not currently getting et

Iago: But

Iago: Eggses

Iago: EGGSES, PRECIOUS

Iago: ACK NO WHY WITH THE MEMORIES OF BETTY I AM NEVER PREPARED FOR THOSE

Iago: Okay apparently the thing Nita was supposed to bring was /not/ in fact Carmela but rather hEART-WRENCHING MEMORIES OF HER MOTHER'S DEATH

Iago: Oh god Carmela is yanking Kit's chain about having found a manual and I'm experiencing emotional whiplash halp

Mycroft: Carmela is dedicated to yanking as many chains as possible, the audience's included

Iago: THEY'RE ALL LOST THEIR WIZARDRY SEND HELP

Iago: ROSHAUN IS ON HIS DIGNITY SEND A DIFFERENT KIND OF HELP

Iago: *inhuman screeching*

Iago: ACK NO YOU ABSOLUTE WANKHOLE GET YOUR DIRTY POWERS OFF CARMELA

Iago: "Oops," said Carmela...and, very slowly, smiled.

Mycroft: OOPS

Mycroft: The holy grail of Carmela badass

Iago: *screams a lot*

Iago: *so much screaming*

Iago: Oh, now This Bitch is rising from the ashes, because obviously

Iago: *snarls a lot*

Iago: *basically continuous snarling*

Iago: RONAN

Iago: R O N A N

Iago: *screams forever*

Iago: *interrupts eternal screaming for a breath* oh yes Sker'ret is in fact purple *continues screaming*

Iago: ROSHAUN WHAT ARE YOU DOING

Iago: ROSHAUN

Mycroft: ROSHAAAAUN

Iago: *still screaming*

Iago: WHAT THE HAP IS FUCKENING

Iago: WHY IS THE TRANSCENDENT PIG HERE

Iago: WHY IS PONCH A SHADOW DOG

Iago: P O N C H

Iago: PONCH IS SUCH A GOOD DOG

Mycroft: PONCH IS THE BEST DOG

Iago: *cries forever*

Iago: *is also still screaming*

Iago: TOM AND CARL ARE BACK

Iago: BUT ON THE OTHER HAND PONCH

Iago: PONCH

Iago: PONCH IS BACK

Iago: HE'S A SHEEPDOG NOW BUT HE'S PONCH

Iago: TOTALLY CRYING RIGHT NOW BECAUSE IT'S ALWAYS THE ANIMALS THAT GET TO ME

Iago: IT'S THE END OF THE BOOK AND THE DOG TECHNICALLY DIDN'T DIE

Mycroft: The dog did the opposite of dying, ultimately

Iago: PLEASE EXCUSE ME WHILE I COLLAPSE ON THIS BED AND SOB WITH JOY

Iago: Okay I'm going to go collapse in an emotionally exhausted heap and probably read all of A Wizard of Mars tomorrow. So. Be ready for that.

Mycroft: CONGRATS you made it to the last stop on the emotional roller coaster that is Wizards at War

Mycroft: You win a free trip to Mars

Mycroft: Where definitely nothing will go wrong