#its the i can fix them gene unfortunately

[madame-mongoose]

Realizing my type is not morons but morons who are a bit of an asshole

[beesmygod]

JJBA PART 5, VENTO AUREO IS THE UNDERBAKED MESS I CAN'T STOP THINKING ABOUT FIXING...PART 2

FIX 2: WHAT DO YOU DO WITH A PROBLEM LIKE GIORNO?

thats the homo photo of my dad

answer: i dont know.

the unfortunate and honest to god truth of the matter is that the protagonist of JJBA part 5, giorno giovanna, fucking sucks.

what if that little shithead from the twilight zone episode "it's a good life" was gay and watched "goodfellas". you might think "wow that sounds great" but, well, somehow it's not.

it is months later and i have been struggling with writing this for a bazillion reasons: i got sick, real life events occurred, i had to work on comic, i died, etc. but the most strenuous reason of all in the end was facing the impenetrable, tangled, and deeply complicated gordian knot that is the little ladybug loving bitch named giorno and not knowing where the fuck to even begin.

i had to think long and hard about how to approach the problem of "giorno giovanna". he is like a diamond of sucking ass: multi-faceted and beautiful in his perfection but is, ultimately, just a stupid fucking rock from the dirt. he completely lacks the innate charisma and personality inherent in previous jojo protagonists AND antagonists; despite having both the joestar AND brando gene pools to pull from, he manages to snag a net total of 0 personality traits. this problem is multiplied 100 fold once he starts actually doing things to move the plot along and the universe repeatedly bends itself like a pretzel in order to gift him undeserved and unrewarding (to us, the audience) win after win after win.

his theme goes hard as hell tho

if you were to ask me what is wrong with giorno, i would have no problem making a long and detailed list of why i want to slap the little cinnamon rolls of his head. i have no idea how to organize that list into a more coherent form of criticism that points at the overarching structural weakness of part 5. part 5 really, really wants you to like and root for giorno. it hinges on it. his victories are explicitly supposed to be emotionally and morally gratifying. they are instead trite and annoying.

for years, YEARS, my only experience with the entirety of part 5 outside of infamous panels and the most basic information about the story, was this incredible, evergreen and laser targeted tweet:

i thought this was a funny shit post. all i knew giorno had some kind of "life creation" power. what i didnt know was:

giorno says this exact line and then turns cars into frogs so that they (the bad guys) cant catch them (they do catch them)

giorno's power IS fucking stupid

i fucking hate him

he should stop using it

abbacchio was right. he was right about everything

how DO you talk about giorno? giorno's blandness permeates any situation he has the misfortune of attending and the parts of the narrative where he's missing for one reason or another are significantly improved by his absence. in comparison with the deuteragonists (bruno bucciarati) and tritagonists (the members of bruno's squad in the mafia family passione), he has all the flavor of a communion wafer. his character arc is non-existent. emotionally, he might as well have just gone to the store and back by the end of the story.

and, look, araki likes to play fast and loose with how powerful a stand is or what its abilities are. im not here to measure power levels or fucking whatever stupid shit people get up to. the more wild and insane he gets with his incredibly "unique" ""understanding"" of science and geometry, i'm 99% on board for. but giorno's stand, gold experience, is whatever the narrative needs it to be at any given time with no consistency. it's OP as hell long before he gets the 11th hour power boost; his stand has the extra trans-dimensional ability to remove any tension from a fight scene. through this, gold requiem can destroy the psyche of the audience, truly making it the most powerful stand of all time.

people used to love to bitch about not understanding how the villain's stand works in this part, but if anyone tells you they understand what the fuck THIS means they're lying to you.

anyway, there is only one solution i can think of when it comes to how to approach this: assess the major story beats in order. i think jumping around in the progression of events to highlight individual flaws in the character will not adequately impart the suffering one feels as an audience member while the narrative yo-yos between being rollicking good fun and being at the mercy of the little 15 year old twink with god mode on.

and so, having made it past koichi's tiny ass role (and his tiny ass) in the story and addressing how we can proceed, we can cover bruno (a genuinely wonderful character), polpo, and the wasted character building opportunity of the piss drinking scene, which vexes and infuriates me to this day. [thinking about the piss scene and getting mad again] ooooh!!!!

[moodmother]

Queen

Rumors spread in the sleepy neighboring town about a strange, deep droning sound in the woods. By the time the weakness in the ventilation system has been identified and fixed, the bees have been located: the hive has taken up in a small abandoned house set well into the forest at the edge of a state park.

"The bees are engineered with a built-in kill switch," Josh tells Jun as they pull up in front of the house. They can already hear the hive: a low, constant rumble in the air. "A specific protein that their bodies don't naturally produce. They need to get it from the feed they give them at the lab. Without it, they might last a few months, tops."

The bees are also stingless. Which is fortunate, because they are also enormous: about the size and shape of paw paw fruit. They are covered in a pale pinky-orange fur, with deep brown stripes and white rumps.

The men need to lure the hive into the back of the truck, then neutralize and bag up any stragglers. A clean-up crew will follow to remove any comb. If they cannot identify and grab the queen to draw the others, they can use a pheromone solution that Josh carries in a dispenser on his belt.

The buzzing grows louder as they walk up to the door, and is almost oppressive as they step inside. Here and there a single bee flies in and out of the broken windows.

"It sounds like they're d--" Josh is cut off as he steps forward and disappears. With a great crash, faster than he or Jun can even cry out, he falls straight down through the rotten floorboards.

"Josh! Are you okay?"

Josh only groans in pain.

"Josh?"

"Unh...my fucking...I think I broke something...."

"Just hold on!! I'll get some help!"

+++

The higher-ups at the lab forbid Jun or his superiors from contacting any emergency services. It is bad enough that the bees escaped in the first place. Their existence is a precious secret. They have been spliced with certain human genes, specifically engineered to produce vast quantities of a special royal jelly. Initial tests of the substance are extremely promising: administered as a supplement, it structurally rejuvenates aging skin and joints, and measurably invigorates the mind. If further refined for medical applications, its potential is endless. They have a genuine cure-all on their hands. No one is to know about the bees until GenCyc and its shareholders can safely profit from them.

+++

Josh has fallen onto the vial of pheromone and coated himself in it. As he rolls on the dirt floor, buffeted by angry bees, he feels something crunch and burst beneath his hip.

After the pain has subsided somewhat, he finds his flashlight. Here is the hive: hundreds of enormous bees swarming in the dark basement, warming the air and deafening him with their great wings.

He grimaces when he sees that the bee he has crushed is pale pink and longer than his palm. The queen.

Amid the insect bodies bouncing against him like tennis balls, he tries to lift himself up and yelps with pain. His wrist is broken. One of his legs is sprained badly enough that it will not support his weight.

Holding the light in his mouth, Josh drags himself to the wall and wriggles up into a sitting position against it. He will wait here for help. Thank goodness the bees do not sting.

Stingless or not, the hive grows more and more agitated. Then, suddenly, they stop flying into him. Instead, all at once, they swam over him in a single wave. He screams but the sound is muffled by their furry bodies. He struggles, tries to flail, but finds that the weight of many hundreds of giant insects is enough to hold his body in place. +++

The proposed course of action is simple: send a handful of employees to quietly extricate Josh. But an unfortunate wrinkle derails even that. The house and the lot are not quite abandoned: the owner is still alive, and has heard tell of trespassers. The police have been advised and have posted a patrol to monitor the turn-off onto the dirt road that leads to the property. GenCyc staff cannot approach without proffering an explanation and attracting an unwanted escort, or without risking discovery if they make an attempt surreptitiously.

Joshua fell, what, maybe six feet? "He's fine," they say. "He'll make his way out on his own. He signed his contract, he knew the risks."

In the meantime, they will regroup and develop a plan for the much more important project of retrieving the bees.

+++

Josh cannot move. The bees have fixed him to the wall with strong wax. They are no longer agitated, but they are busy, building their comb around him...and filling his mouth and throat with honey and royal jelly. At first he gags and tries to spit out the cloying goop, but they are relentless. He has to swallow to avoid choking.

Trapped there in the dark, endlessly fed by the bees, Josh is completely helpless as he feels his body begin to change.

+++

The cover story is that there is a special fungus on the land where the house sits. A rare specimen of significant medical interest. GenCyc is happy to buy the property as-is, sight-unseen. The owner need only name her price.

+++

Josh is so, so heavy. He has swelled like a monstrous fungal bloom against the wall. Billowed in every direction, burst out of his clothes. He can feel the hard-packed dirt of the floor against the underside of his belly.

He is vaguely aware that his body is not only growing but changing shape. His limbs are still slender and have atrophied to uselessness, while the rest of him burgeons into a huge overstuffed sausage, stretching his skin into a slick white membrane.

His hair falls away. His teeth come loose and fall out and he swallows them, and his mouth becomes a drooling pulpy maw, constantly agape. His attendants feed him constantly, keeping him full to bursting with the sweet agent of his transformation.

The matrix of wax is no longer holding his body to the wall, but it has not been necessary for some time. In this new form he could not escape if he tried.

+++

Six months pass before GenCyc can take possession of the property. Too late for the hive, but they will gather whatever is left. Clean up the scene. An expensive setback, but only a setback. A financial hiccup in the larger scheme of things.

Jun is allowed to accompany the recovery team, but is not part of the group that enters the house in white hazmat suits. Marching stiffly back with the team, the project lead, pale and dazed-looking, only says, "Get another truck out here. An empty box truck. Let's...get it back to the lab."

It?

"'It?' What's it?" Jun's voice rises and cracks.

"The...the honeycomb. We can salvage the comb. Come on."

"Another truck?"

"It's a big comb."

Then, wordlessly, arms outstretched to guide him, his colleagues move to usher Jun back toward the vehicles. Away from the house.

"You're lying. What happened? Where's Josh?"

"He's not here. He must've--"

Jun breaks away from the others and runs. They call after him, urging him back. But he jumps up the porch steps, dashes through the caution tape, and pushes his way in through the off-kilter door.

The remaining bees buzz in drunken swoops through the heavy air. The floor is littered with the bodies of the others, most lying on their backs, their bodies curled upward and inward. They look and smell to Jun like rotten fruit. Sickly sweet, faintly fermented.

There is the hole in the floor where Josh fell through the rotten boards. Yawning like a hellmouth.

Jun's voice trembles as he calls out, "Josh?"

Over the sound of those last few bees, Jun can hear something below. The distinct sound of something breathing. A sort of...rustle. An unidentifiably wet sort of sound, as of something shifting or rolling over. Something heavy.

Jun fumbles for his flashlight. He kneels to get a better angle down into the basement.

At the sight of the thing that lies there, heaped up beside pillars of comb and groaning from the shock of the light, Jun screams. He does not remember turning to run out, or stumbling down the front steps. One moment he was peering down through the broken floor, the next he is writhing on his back outside, tended by a handful of fellow employees. Gasping Josh's name over and over and over.

In the years that follow, Jun will bolt awake whenever flashes of what he saw return to him in dreams. A heap of white translucent flesh. Softly segmented, pulsing gently. Sightless milky eyes. Vestigial limbs twitching against the bulk of its hideously elongated body. A grub, a human grub, a grub inflated to unthinkable size. Moaning with the familiar, distorted voice of a man.

+++

The PI and the others confer about how best to safely lift the thing from the basement and transfer it into the truck. Its growth has been tremendous in the intervening months, and it must weigh many, many hundreds of pounds.

The immovable thing that used to be Josh awaits its fate. Unsuspecting, unthinking. Aware only of its vast and growing hunger, and the cold seeping in through the cracked foundation, and the lonely silence left in the absence of its insistent and devoted servants.

[sanguinifex]

Ok but like, with current technology, we can actually change humanity. We have gene therapies now that can cure certain fatal illnesses like spinal muscular atrophy (SMA) a large percentage of the time (some people unfortunately have immune resistance to the therapy), which, even in its least severe form, usually leads to death from inability to breathe and associated infections in middle age. The most severe form, by contrast, kills the same way but in toddlers.

Most disabled people would like to see a world where many genetic diseases are typically fixed by gene therapies before or shortly after birth. There is no world where it’s a good thing for people to develop Tay-Sachs or type 1 diabetes or spondyloarthritis if they don’t have to. No reason not to edit out inherited cancers or ALS or Huntington’s disease if you can.

This does not mean that disability will stop existing. Many disabilities are polygenetic, meaning they arise from lots of genes interacting or aren’t strongly tied to any single or particular set of genes. For these, traditional pharmaceutical treatments for the symptoms are typically better. Examples include things like type 2 diabetes. Other diseases may be genetic, but mild enough that they’re easier to treat than cure, such as familial hypercholesteremia, which raises the risk of strokes but is easily treated with a very inexpensive daily pill. The lifetime cost of statin treatment would be far less than gene therapy, unless the affected person is getting personalized gene therapy for something else and the tech has advanced far enough that they can be like “while you’re here, we’ll also fix this,” which is unlikely to happen in this century because who on earth would develop a gene therapy for that when the retail, non-insurance cost of atorvastatin is like $10/month?

Also, accidents happen. Inevitably, people are going to get into car crashes and industrial accidents and something will prevent sewing the leg back on or regrowing it in at least some cases, ir maybe regrowth has too high a cancer risk, or whatever. Some people will have diseases so rare there aren’t enough cases to pin down which gene mutated in order to fix it. We still don’t really know how functional neurological disorders work, or what genes cause fibromyalgia or increase the risk of it. There will be underserved areas that don’t have access to the most advanced therapies, like how you can’t get an MRI if nowhere in your country/colony planet has an MRI machine, or people who refuse therapies because of religious reasons. There will probably always be wars. There will be people who just mysteriously don’t respond to therapies for whatever reason.

There are some disabilities that just make existing suck (or rapidly become impossible) simply by having them, and those we should make every effort to cure. There are others that are disabling mostly due to society’s lack of accommodation; these, we should accommodate. Others are a mix. Many people, like myself, have a mix; I want my ADHD accommodated, but I’d like my chronic pain to be banished to the 9th circle of hell.

Please learn the fucking difference.

Cheat code for writing disabled characters in sci-fi/fantasy without eliminating their disability:

Don't change humanity, change what's available to humanity.

i.e.: If your magic removes/fixes a defect or your sci-fi lets you select for traits at birth, that's changing humanity. That's altering a fundamental aspect that real humans live with, and distancing your fictional version of humanity from the real deal by cutting out a portion of it that your setting deems "undesirable."

If your magic/sci-fi aids a defect (like magic netting that acts as a brace, or a wheelchair with wheels that transform to fit the environment), then you're taking humanity as we know it and saying "wouldn't it be cool if we had these tools?"

Don't change what makes us human, change what humans can create.

Cheat Code 2: What kinds of aid to use to accommodate disability

Cheat Code 3: How to make your setting itself disability-friendly

[meggigoering]

📖September 20, 2023

🦈Continuing the topic about the creature with a claim to the mind of the AFK Alfa-VTB Systema, which gloriously entered itself into my life, killing my family members, and to which, as in a corporation of monsters, my children's socks were poured up (shares in my companies, my apartments, inheritance, cars, dogs, personal belongings, etc.), I want to express my human position on one important issue.

Sometimes I wonder if everything could have gone differently in my life, and unfortunately every time life gives me new evidence that I was not given to live my life differently, because of my origin. My origin sets the direction of my whole life, and I can’t live someone else’s life. Among my relatives, I think I'm very lucky that I'm still alive so long. My heredity is bad in only one thing - almost 100% guaranteed violent death. In everything else, I am very grateful to God for being born in my family and for learning about my pedigree. Do I regret what I've lost in these few years of struggle to save my own life and life of my dogs? The question is rhetorical. All my life I've lived on the principle of "refuse to get." There were more than enough examples when following this principle led me to stunning success. It's a kind of strategy on the contrary - if you do it like everyone else, you won't survive in the red ocean. I do not regret material things, in the end, having learned that all of them were flooded  mustard gas  - I want to laugh with all my heart at those who stole them. If you consider how much and what I've lost in terms of things in the dry residue, it's a lot, but it hurts me in a completely different way. Having an absolutely amazing family (of course I'm talking about real relatives, not Orekhovskaya gang’s bastards), I actually lost the opportunity to communicate with my relatives. All my direct ancestors, who transferred me such a cumulative stock of genes, with the help of which I actually survived this nightmare, they died already. You can buy a new car, repair a house, a computer, fix all material losses. The only thing I regret, which is irreversible, is what these Orekhovo-Cocosovo bastards and their bosses did - they deprived me of communication with my family while its members were alive. I will talk to my family members never. Can you imagine what do I feel? I lost the greatest unrecoverable value - human communication with my family while it’s members were alive. The second thing that hurts me a lot is that these scums poisoned my dogs. And finally, the third is the shame with which these scum covered my family, entering into our pedigrees seashore with fake passports and forged genetic tests, like this Orekhovskaya family of parents-tourists.

At some point, I stopped being afraid of physical death. I perceive it as an inevitability that overtakes every person in due time, and which for me means reuniting with my family, which I personally never knew because everyone except me died. What feelings did I feel when I fully learned my ancestry and origin? Quite simply - the desire not to disgrace my family and live my life with dignity in accordance with the principles that my family professed. They are expressed in two words - to serve the Fatherland. The only aspiration that drives me in my projects is not to drop the honor of my ancestors and live my life in such a way as to shamelessly write my name in the history of my family on a par with my direct ancestors: heroes who created great states and performed military and personal feats. For me, this is the most important motivation - to be a worthy representative of my dynasty. Everything else is secondary.

👩‍💻More stories are on my website:

https://pin.it/3QJeAgE

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#meggi #meggifromhouseofskjold #ceoboost #meggifromskjold #daughterofskjold #sisterofgoering #meggigoering #meggigöring #raevskayarepnina #annamariaserafimaraevskayarepnina #мэгги #мэггигёринг #раевскаярепнина #аннамариясерафимараевскаярепнина

[caliginousarchitect]

Vongola 10th generation squad (+Byakuran and Kyoko) based on @bonesetblues​‘s KHR/BNHA crossover curiosity kills the cat (but satisfaction brings it back)

As yet in the fic only Tsunayoshi and Byakuran have actual established cat forms, so I was like,,, WHEEEE Tsuna I did him as a cinnamon classic tabby longhair. Not actually doing him as a Norwegian Forest Cat, but I did base his facial structure on one a bit. (And it is quite funny to envision him going from being one of the smallest of his agemates to having a good kilo on them) Byakuran Longhair, high white spotting over lilac (with a carried point gene because even carried it can affect the eyes sometimes). Also wings. He came out kinda Eh sadly, I think Hayato Mediumhair blue silver spotted mackerel tabby. Something about him gave me spotted tabby vibes (and hey, kinda a shoutout to Uri), and I got to make his facial markings be a shourout to his glasses. Takeshi Shorthair black solid, very low white spotting. Homozygous for Japanese Bobtail (fun fact, Japanese Bobtail is a Partial Dominance gene- with only one JB gene, the cat has a shorter than normal kinked tail instead). I actually concluded that Bobtail was a very fun idea for Takeshi, because it’d make him a lot harder to read. You can’t really see the emotions the tail would convey if the tail is that short, after all; like how Takeshi generally gives off cheerful vibes all the time, shrouding his actual thoughts. Kyoya Black solid mediumhair, with very oriental-type build and head structure. Lambo Did him as a kitten because, well. him young. Gave him Laperm-type curled fur, since Lambo has fairly curly hair (he’d be medium or longhair, but, well, kittenfluff) and curled ears (to reference his lightning horns). Black solid with medium white spotting forming patches to reference his general cow theming. Chrome Blue solid shorthair (pale/light blue). Gave her some white hairs to indicate scars because,,, how, exactly, did she end up losing an eye and internal organs and not have scars? (even if the accident didn’t leave any somehow, surely there were medical proceedures at some point that would have?) Mukuro Blue solid mediumhair (dark blue). You know, I didn’t realise his other eye was blue until right now? (Although I’m a manga reader so) Also his Eye of Reincarnation is drawn in its third path, Path of Beasts, because I Thought It Was Funny. Ryohei Shorthair blue silver classic tabby with extreme ticking and rufousing, and a little white spotting. I actually have other incarnations of Ryohei. Still a bit iffy on how our attempt at his markings/colouration came out here. (alternate version that can’t be put here because of image limit is a red tabby with very high white spotting, with his red patches being in more unusual spots than you’d usually have, and slightly higher rufousing than Kyoko)

Kyoko Longhair red classic tabby with extreme ticking and less extreme rufousing than her brother, and low white spotting on her nose. (have an alternate version is the same but just, classic tabby instead of ticked classic tabby, but again, don’t have the image allowance to put that in this post) Other characters who we are considering doing: Xanxus- gives me real strong longhair/ medium-high rufousing / black classic tabby vibes. Probably built like a maine coon. Big beefy boy. Squalo- It’d be kinda funny to have him be a shorthair? Just because imagining how he’d flip out given the reason he has longhair is mildly amusing. Blue silver broken mackerel tabby to go for shark gill/scale vibes. Maybe some white spotting? Reborn- author of the fic thinking melanistic serval, me over here going “would a black savanna cat or a very small black cat be funnier?” Like, a savanna cat is 100% going to cause chaos, they’re leggy and they’re a hybrid breed that’s still using the rather unfortunate wild ancestors (unlike Bengals which are now a... what’s it called, a fixed breed? and no longer use their progenitor species) so the non-domestic genes are still very much there. A savanna is tall enough to open your doors easily. But on the other hand, having a tiny black thing doing all the same things despite the size IS very funny to think about. Expected vs unexpected chaos, I guess? those are the only other ones that really wandered through my mind while I was doing these, but maybe others will in time

[milkiane]

radio silence

pairings: fred weasley x fem!reader

warnings: character death, panic attacks, grief, mental breakdowns, tell me if i missed anything.

word count: 1676

note: AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAANGST for @love-peachh’s writing challenge

“hello there! you’ve reached fred and y/n weasley’s fellyto--”

“fred, it’s called a telephone,”

“--fellytone. unfortunately, we can’t come to the phone right now, so leave us a message after the beep!”

beep. beep. beep.

a long excruciating silence was the only thing surrounding your dark and gloomy room after that. you sighed, turning the dials to give it another call.

“hello there! you’ve reached fred and y/n weasley’s fellyto--”

“fred, it’s called a telephone,”

“--fellytone. unfortunately, we can’t come to the phone right now, so leave us a message after the beep!"

it doesn’t make any sense. nothing makes sense.

you should really change your answering machine, because it doesn’t make any sense anymore. it’s not fred and y/n weasley’s fellytone anymore. it’s just y/n weasley’s telephone now.

but it’s the only way you could hear his voice again.

you sniffed. click, click, click.

“hello there! you’ve reached fred and y/n weasley’s fellyto--”

“fred, it’s called a telephone,”

“--fellytone. unfortunately, we can’t come to the phone right now, so leave us a message after the beep!”

it’s been five months. five months without fred. five months without the light of your life.

it’s ridiculous, honestly. how you still haven’t moved on from what had happened.

fred always told you how he admired you for being strong. you knew that he would be disappointed if he was watching you right now, how the love of his life is nothing but a tiny ball of misery.

so you took a bath and cleaned yourself up, making sure to spray an extra amount of perfume that fred loves. loved.

you shook your head, walking towards your mirror. you plastered on a smile. because today is a brand new day, you aren’t going to walk around with your head down. you aren’t going to feel so blue today. for him.

one second.

two seconds.

three seconds.

it faltered away. clenching your jaw, you stared into your reflection.

how can you be such a selfish person? how can you still manage to smile when you’re alive and fred is not?

you took a shaky breath, placing a hand on the mirror. you touched it ever so lightly, letting your fingertips caress the cold surface before smashing the glass. you broke down, grabbing a fistful of your hair as you sobbed on the heap of the floors, shards of glass prickling your skin.

i’m sorry, freddie, maybe next time.

you brought the cups with you when you made your way towards the living room. one was a cup of coffee with the right amount of milk, and the other one was a cup of tea with a spoonful of honey and a cube of sugar.

you placed the cup of tea on the table’s coaster, making yourself comfortable on your couch.

you took a sip of your coffee, watching the steam of the unattended cup of tea slowly rise. looking around your silent house, your eyes stopped on the muggle radio fred had bought the time you went on a date in muggle london.

you set down your warm drink down on the coffee table. slowly dragging yourself towards the device. you held it in your hands, trying to turn it on as you sat back on the couch.

“and we'll build this love from the ground up,

for worse or for better,

and I will be all you need,”

you gasped, tears welling in your eyes the moment the music enveloped you. your hands shakily tried to turn off the radio.

of all the songs that could play, they chose to play your song. the song you and fred would always slow dance to.

when your trembling fiddles did nothing to stop the noise, you whimpered, dropping it on the carpeted floor. your hands immediately finding home by covering your ears, whispering a chorus of no’s and stop’s to yourself.

and as if sensing that you were in distress, george apparated in with a pop, inviting himself in for his usual visit.

he ran towards you immediately, trying to figure out what was triggering your attacks. you were already doing so well. you haven’t had any attacks or meltdowns for a few weeks now.

“what’s wrong, y/n?” george asked softly, pulling you into a hug.

“turn it off,” you whispered, “please turn it off.”

george looked around, his gaze falling onto the radio. truthfully, he didn’t know how it worked. it wasn’t like the old one his dad owned, so he just twisted and turned every button there is, consequently making the music grow louder than before.

you cried, frustration and anguish taking over you as you snatched it off his hands and threw it against the wall.

realizing what you did, you sobbed, rushing over the broken pieces, “no, no, i’m sorry,” you looked at the frozen man in your living room, “fix it george, please,”

snapping out of his state, he walked towards you, trying to remember the simple spell to repair the broken apparatus, “i-”

“george, please, i’m sorry,” you continued to weep beside him, tears still falling down stubbornly no matter how many times you’ve tried to wipe them away.

he sighed in exasperation, “give me a moment, y/n,”

once he remembered what the spell was, he immediately placed the radio away. george looked at you in sadness, fishing out the emergency draught.

“no, george,” you shook your head, retreating backward until your back was against the wall, “no, we don’t- i don’t need that anymore,”

george’s heart broke as he watched you gasp out for air, tears relentlessly falling down your cheeks, “shh, please don’t cry, y/n,”

he immediately tackled you on the floor, wrapping an arm around you to prevent you from thrashing around as he forced the draught down your throat.

george waited a few moments for you to calm down and let the potion do its work. he thought you were okay now, you were doing so well.

he sighed, carrying your body towards your bedroom.

george was seated on the sofa near your bed. fred thought it was necessary for the room, though it hasn’t really been used until now. he was reading one of your books when you woke up.

“it’s our anniversary today,” you murmured, your voice raspy from your breakdown and from just waking up. george looked at you, but your eyes were focused on the calendar affixed on the wall.

NOVEMBER 20th.

george stayed quiet, so you continued to speak, your words still being slurred from the effects of the potion, “i wish i could fix my calendar, y’know? because there’s no more freddie, meaning there’s no more anniversary.”

he sat beside you on the bed, letting you sob on his shoulder, offering silent company.

“i’m so exhausted, george,” you cried, clutching his sweater, “i can’t keep playing pretend. i can’t- i can’t,”

“shh, it’s alright,” truthfully, george doesn’t know what else to do, he doesn’t know what else to say, not when he’s going through the same pain you’re feeling.

“he’s always in my mind. i can see him everywhere. everything reminds me of him, and how it used to be and it hurts,” you cried, “it hurts and i just want the pain to stop, just make it stop, georgie,”

george was crying by now, his body shaking as he held yours, “i wish i could, y/n, i really do,”

when you were certain that george was already sleeping somewhat peacefully in the guest room, you sneaked out of your own with your blanket wrapped around you.

you turned the lamp on once you’ve reached the living room. sitting down, you composed yourself, trying to convince yourself that you wouldn’t cry again, for him.

with a last shaky breath, you grabbed the radio. you turned it on and gently lowered the volume.

settling it down on the mahogany coffee table, you steadied yourself on the couch, letting the smooth melody coming out from the device shroud you.

the lyrics of the familiar song going from one ear and out the other, tears yet again blurring your vision.

you and fred have been stuck in your kitchen, trying to bake a cake for molly. your flour-covered fingers tracing through each word of the recipe book, “hey fred, can you grab the-- ergh,”

fred laughed as he smeared the frosting on your nose.

you scoffed, dipping a finger in and smearing it from his nose down his lips. you smiled up at him, stepping onto your tiptoes as you gave his frosted lips a peck.

the both of you smiled through the kiss, “i guess the frosting is perfect now, no?”

“when we have a child, can we name them after constellations?” fred asked, still running his hand through your hair, “or at least their second name will be named after a constellation?”

you smiled, “of course, freddie,”

“after the war, we’ll start our own family,” he beamed, “i mean, we’ve got the house already. all we need now is our ginger babies.”

“are you sure they’ll be gingers?” you laughed, turning to look at your husband.

“us, weasleys, we’ve got the strongest genes, ‘course they’ll be gingers.” he boasted, flexing his arms to prove his point.

“we’re going to make it out here together, alright?” fred whispered, his forehead on yours, “we’ve got a whole new future out there waiting for us,”

“i love you, freddie,” you mumbled, pulling him into a kiss.

“i love you, too, darling,” he said, kissing your forehead before pulling away, “i’ll see you later,”

click, click, click.

radio silence. you sniffed, carefully setting down the device.

radio silence. the only deafening noise you could hear after turning off the radio.

radio silence. the only deafening noise you could hear in the house which was once filled with love and laughter.

radio silence. the only thing you’ve faced after losing the love of your life.

radio silence. because fred weasley brought all your happiness and lightheartedness with him when he… radio silence.

general taglist: @daltonacademia @inks-and-jinx @weasleyyy @oldschoolkiddo @accioweaslcy @inglourious-imagines @buckysbeloved @iwritesiriusly @fives-cup-of-coffee @just-here-to-escape-from-reality @band--psycho @marswilson24 @miraclesoflove @chokemepansy @spideyspixies @lolooo22 @justfangirlthingies @sw33tgirl @catching-the-train-to-hogwarts

golden trio taglist: @bromelain-blessednereid @oldschoolkiddo @sweetnspicysimp @cherie-draco @eunoniaa @acosmis-t @georgeweasleysbabe @gaycatlord-stuff @cedrics-grave @dracosgoodgirl @hufflepufflesbianthings @magicalxdaydream

[otnesse]

Pretty much agreed. After all, it's called a FAN Fiction, meaning loving the fictional work you're writing about is a key ingredient to writing stuff like that.

I know my fix fic for Beauty and the Beast by Disney, for example, would definitely try to be as close to classic (pre-Woolverton) Disney as possible, be closer to an actual adaptation of the Villeneuve/Beaumont Beauty and the Beast fairy tale, yet still having its old charm, rather than the more Dreamworks-esque version we got that was ham-fisted regarding radical feminism and barely even resembled the work it adapted at all, even regarding themes (on that note, I may have to write an entry explaining how the moral of true beauty coming from within and don't judge a book by its cover is one of the most abused morals in existence that always tended to be broken ultimately. It ought to be a good moral, but unfortunately, it has an annoying tendency to glorify ugliness as ideal while anyone who's even remotely conventionally attractive is villified in the worst manner possible. A similar problem existed with Shrek ultimately as well, especially in the sequels with Prince Charming. What a waste of a character. Could have gotten Phoebus from THOND by Disney in terms of characterization including Shrek and Charming actually becoming friends, or at least respectful to each other, but we got the cliched Mr. Wrong instead.).

I also intend to do a fix fic for Peace Walker that makes sure to align itself with canon up to that point (ie, I don't jettison canon like Kojima did willy-nilly in that game and later on. Even have some ideas for an actual way for Zero to start his fall WITHOUT him nearly framing Big Boss late in the game and tie it to Hot Coldman, and even have it follow up Gene's revelation in Portable Ops.), and even Metal Gear Solid V as well, one that gives dignity to all the characters and not basically be mouthpieces for political views by the creator.

And I have an AU planned where the Empire ruled unopposed in Star Wars, called Imperial Reigns, and in that case, while something of a radical departure, even that technically adhered to the spirit of Star Wars in so far as it being a direct response to George Lucas's repeated bragging about modeling the Rebels, the heroes, after communists like the Vietcong and the Empire on America, and also bragging about tricking American audiences. Of course, one of the biggest problems I'm facing is how to retain Vader's core character WITHOUT having him turn back to the light side. Unlike Woolverton and how she handled Maleficent, I FULLY intend to actually RESPECT Vader's characterization from canon. I'm also wondering how Luke and Leia will factor into all of this (Yoda and Obi-Wan I'm probably going to have them die out. Hey, can't have it be Imperial Reigns if they are still alive, can I?).

Fandom Problem #4050

i know this is a controversial take on Tumblr dot com but, sometimes I actually LIKE the canon, and would like to see more like it. Which is the reason WHY i participate in fandom in the first, too seek out fanworks by other people who ostensibly "like" the same thing as me, to expand on the canon.

But "fuck canon!" is the trendier thing so it's kinda bizarre to me how people resent canon so much that they take it apart and reassemble it it ways that don't even slightly resemble the canon. It's not always BAD it's just, "what does this even have to do with the original anymore?"

"What about This Thing, except in a completely different setting, with a completely different story, and characters that all look different and act different--" okay but that's no longer This Thing, it's A Completely Different Thing, and I just wanna find more like This Thing because I love This Thing so much, and thought I was looking for other people who also loved This Thing but instead they actually make a big show of how much they hate This Thing.

[lioma-gaming]

"Come for the story, stay for the monsters, Part 2" or: Why I find the MH Stories games to be so very average

And by "average", I mean "not good, but playable" compared to many other games I own. Allow me to eloborate:

MH:Stories The most obvious weak points of the first MH: Stories were its graphics and level design. Bland landscapes and creepy, featureless silhouettes where NPCs would spawn into being hinted at problematic hardware restrictions. In addition to that, many dungeons consisted of the same set of rooms. This applies to the procedurally generated monster nests, but even main dungeons had only some original rooms strewn into the mix.

Gameplay-wise, you could only obtain about 5 new monsters per area (unless you were in post-game), and it took forever until you were able to get any of the more well-designed monsters. Even the "Great Jaggi" or "Great Baggi" that are fairly unexciting in MH: Tri made a very late appearance. Not to mention that fan favorites like the Tigrex or (black) Nargacuga were only obtainable post game.

The story is predictable, but kind of ok, if you like Rathalos. As for me, I don't like Rathalos, and having this non-imaginatively named "Ratha" being fixed in the 6th slot of my party did not make me like him more. Also, the story promises you to get an Elder dragon, but doesn't deliver. Oh well.

On the other hand, however; the battles are actually fun. They work by a stone, scissors, paper principle - which is new and refreshing for a RPG. You have to memorize the opponent's pattern and act accordingly. Patterns can be pretty complex, but your defenses usually leave some room for trial and error. There is also a fantastic system that lets you transfer abilities from one monster to another to craft your favorite "Monstie" into an all-purpose warrior. In conclusion; there are many things to criticize, but the main gameplay element - the battles - as well as the ability to collect and befriend many of the fabulous Monster Hunter Monsters, make it a title that fans of Monster Hunter and RPGs are likely to enjoy. Others probably not so much.

MH:Stories 2 The sequel, using the Nintendo Switch as platform, did not suffer the same hardware restraints. Environments are bigger, more detailed and more lush. Unfortunately, however, the procedurally generated dungeons make a reappearance, too, and it feels like there are even more of them (or they are bigger, both of which is not good). There are more monsters to collect, along with new ones from MH: World and a greater number of obtainable Elder Dragons. It also doesn't take quite as long for fan favorites to appear as you progress the story.

Which takes us to ... the story. Despite the series' name, its story is certainly not its selling point. The story of MH:S2 is confusingly similar to that of its prequel, not just, but also because many characters from the prequel make a reappearance. They seemingly do not remember a "hero" from back then, but the new hero's grandfather would sort of fit that role. Was that an element scrapped at the last minute? We are also stuck again with a "cursed" Rathalos named "Ratha" (Seriously, they still could not think of anything better?) - which also locks into the 6th slot of the party for the story's duration.

So, can the battle system make up for it like in the prequel? Yes ... and no. There is still the "gene enhancement" system, battles still work the same way, are still fun, but the opponent's patterns are simpler and there is less room for error. This might be because you can take friends or NPCs with their monsters into battle with you - meaning they are potential targets as well. But your influence on these NPCs is very limited and they do not "predict" the opponent's pattern as effectively as you, meaning they might be less supportive and more of a hindrance sometimes.

In total, the first game had a lot of potential to improve, and while the sequel fixed some of those issues (visuals), it also added new ones (battles) while others grew worse (story) or remained unfixed (dungeons). Overall, it comes back down to the average: An enjoyable game for fans of Monster Hunter and RPGs, for others perhaps not so much.

[drabbles-of-writing]

That one Meet the Robinsons AU but I didn't want to spam you in DMs

Luz either after being on the Ilses for a while or just after she runs away from Eda, is confronted by a kid from the future (probably named Azura tbh) who looks scarily like her but with green hair (''recessive genes'') and slightly paler skin (almost as if you combined her skintone with someone very pale :) ) and from shenanigans gets roped into coming to the future with her and meeting the extended family (except for her other mom whose on a ''business trip'') Luz of course recognizes people in the family like Amity, the twins, the Troublemakers and Eda but doesn't let on that she does because time stuff. Why don't Amity and co recognize Luz? Idk the same reason they didn't recognize the kid in the actual movie, he was wearing a hat or something

They do realize eventually though and if you thought that was bad, Adult Luz comes home early and is like (◯Δ◯∥) and Adult Amity immediately rats their kid out like ''Look what your daughter did Luz, that's all you, that doesn't come from my side''

Future Luz: [in the garage] Amity, they're gone! Oh, this is terrible!

Future Amity: Oh, boy...

Future Eda: Well, she's home early!

Future Luz: Amity, where are you?! [runs out to the rest of her family] My staff is gone! [sees Luz] Oh, oh! [Luz waves awkwardly at her future self, who does the same thing, before looking questioningly at everyone else. Azura tries to make her escape, but Amity grabs her by the arm and points to her. Future Luz gives her an unimpressed look] Mm-hmm.

Azura: Ratted out by the old lady. Harsh.

god Meet the Robinsons was my JAM. this is further proof nobody should Ever offer me an au idea because I jump on it like a rabid dog

they've got like Everyone in the family. yes this includes the double track kids. and theres also the bonus of like some other people Luz doesn't quite recognize (either by way of she meets them Later or its other future kids) but even still they're somehow all familiar. Azura said "okay okay. I can fix this I just needed to get mom and we're Fine" unfortunately she realizes her aunt Willow was not being dramatic when she said younger Luz was full of terrible ideas and awe at anything that moves.

and Amity WOULD. she figures out who the new kid is and just has a deadpan look at her daughter like "honestly I really should have expected something like this would happen. thats on me" but when future Luz shows up she immediately goes "okay this was YOUR doing, this is all your side of the family"

also cue Luz going "yo everyones chill here??" cause theirs like no Belos and Eda and Lilith get along and theres no like. lingering fear or uncertainty. its wild

[gayestnerdsinfiction]

Pet Shenanigans

Jonathan had never been a good host. His grandmother would roll over in her grave if she knew just how awful he was at having other people in his home. The gene for Southern hospitality must have skipped a generation, because he was sorely lacking in that department. His cooking and cleaning skills were passable at best, and he saw little point in honing either. After all, he did not live with or for others. His home was his own, and he only bothered with the chores that he deemed necessary—and he deemed very few of them truly necessary.

But those days were over, and Jonathan had to learn how to play well with others again. He had to figure out how to exist around the space that his partner took up, which was no easy feat. Having Edward at his home had certainly been an exercise in hospitality, as the man demanded such a high level of care and attention from nearly everyone he encountered. Edward forced him into a role that he didn’t know how to execute, forced him to perfect a skill he had never valued. Because that was how he operated. If something was unsatisfactory, he would tinker and test until the thing in question was performing suitably. And, at this moment, Jonathan was the thing that needed molding, fixing.

“Jonathan,” Edward said sharply, placing himself directly in the other man’s field of vision so he could not be ignored. He was holding one of his many green blazers in his hands, knuckles white as he gripped the fabric.

Jonathan looked up from the book he’d been reading quite contentedly, frowning. “Edward,” he replied, matching his tone. “Do you need something?”

“What I need,” he snapped, “is for you to keep those rats of yours away from my belongings.”

“I don’t have rats,” he said pointedly. “Are you referring to the birds I acquaint myself with?

“I refuse to refer to those things as birds.”

“And why not?”

“Birds are pretty. They sing. They eat little insects that threaten our gardens.”

“I’m still not seeing the issue,” Jonathan said, gaze returning to the open page in front of him. “I believe crows fit that criteria.”

“They don’t sing, they squawk,” Edward countered. “And they leave those coarse, disgusting feathers all over the place. And I know they would pluck my eyes right out of the socket if I let them near enough. You can’t convince me those beasts would ever be satisfied with a diet of fruit flies and seeds.”

“You know,” Jonathan began, closing his book with a soft thud, “it sounds to me like you’re being racist.”

“Crows are not a race, Jonathan,” he said. “Ergo, I cannot be racist against them.”

“Speciesist, then.”

“Jonathan, can you please be serious about this?”

“About what, Edward?” he asked, cocking an eyebrow. “You haven’t yet articulated what exactly the birds have done to inspire this diatribe.”

“Look!” he exclaimed, thrusting the green garment he was holding into Jonathan’s face. “Look what they did to my jacket!”

Indeed, several buttons had been plucked clean off the jacket, which was also sporting a few new threadbare spots. This explained the bright green threads that had been left lovingly on the windowsill for him. “Hm. Unfortunate,” he remarked flatly.

“That’s it?” Edward sputtered, his face turning its signature shade of red. “That’s all you have to say?”

“Well, I’m sorry, Edward, but they’re not exactly trained pets.” He shrugged. “Wild animals do wild things.”

“Don’t you see any issue with allowing wild animals into your home?”

“Well, I let you stay here, so—”

“God, you’re such a prick,” he huffed, cutting Jonathan off. “You snap your fingers and those vermin do whatever the fuck you want, and you can’t keep them from tearing up my clothes? You’ve got them bringing you stolen jewelry, for chrissakes!”

“I didn’t ask them to do that,” Jonathan retorted. “Anything they do for me is simply because I feed them and keep them clean. If that means I have inadvertently rewarded their behavior, then I suppose it’s just a simple feat of operant conditioning. But I’ve never taken any intentional measures to train them to do my bidding. Humans work better for that, I’ve found.”

“Well, could you please condition them so that they don’t attack the remainder of my wardrobe?” Edward asked tersely. “Is that possible, dear?”

Jonathan held his gaze, unfazed by Edward’s tone. “I’ll see what I can do,” was all he said in response.

Edward replied with an annoyed scoff, throwing the jacket down on an unoccupied armchair and storming out of the room. Jonathan returned to his book, having absolutely no intention of doing anything about this situation.

[jeongyunhoed]

A year after the events of Past-Present-Future, Lee Mirae, Choi San, and Jeong Yunho receive a mysterious envelope containing photos and notes about the deaths of several individuals. The deeper they go into the case, they find that the entertainment industry hides a very dark secret.

Group: ATEEZ Pairing: Yunho/OC Genres: It’s a little bit of: adventure, romance, mystery, crime, fantasy, action. Things to note: It also features mentions of other idols/artists: Junhong (Zelo), Dean, Chanyeol, Enhypen etc.

Superpowers AU if it wasn’t obvious as well.

T/W: Themes of death, violence, demons, cults, blood, use of weapons and/or firearms, use of drugs (both recreational and medical), implied/referenced assault, implied/referenced suicide

A/N: As I have previously been posting, here are the links to the origin stories / the first manifestation of powers of Seonghwa - Mingi - Wooyoung - Jongho for reference. 

Masterlist

Chapter 4

“We’re back,” Mirae pulled up in front of the Kang Entertainment building again. Hongjoong and Yunho leaned over to get a look at the building, seeing cars come and go from the driveways and parking lots. There were lights that were still on in several floors of the building, one of which was where Mirae had her little scuffle with the idols in the CEO’s office. 

“You think he’d be in his office by now?” San asked, scanning the building for any indication of a back entrance or at least a visible fire exit. 

“It’s hard to tell, especially with those fans standing by to look at people coming in and out,” Mirae muttered. “But we’ll have to try, I’m just not sure they’ll be fond of seeing me come back.” 

“We could go through the artists’ entrance at the back, that’s where those cars seem to be going when they come in,” Hongjoong pointed to the other driveway that seemed to be for executives that was hidden from view from the main entrance they were looking at. “It doesn’t seem like we’ll be getting out of there quietly though.” 

“We never really get out of things quietly,” Yunho pointed out. “But it’s worth a shot, we need to speak to the CEO.” 

The four of them began putting on the belts Junhong gave them and they got out of the car. They saw a black van leave the driveway, followed by the cheers and screams from the group of fans that were quickly following the van and leaving the building. “How convenient,” San said, as they crossed the street. 

They caught up with another black van pulling up the driveway, filled with suited men that stepped down. Mirae, San, Yunho, and Hongjoong slipped in the midst of the crowd, making it past the security guards in time before the doors closed. “This would be so much easier if Hyuk was with us,” Mirae mumbled as they separated from the crowd that was going into one conference room and into the company proper. She led them down the hall that was in the direction of the CEO’s office, stopping when they saw that no one was at the secretary’s desk. 

It gave Yunho an idea, noticing a shadowy part of the hall. “Come over here, I’ll get us in,” He said. Mirae held his hand, while San and Hongjoong’s hands were on his shoulders. They vanished and reappeared in the office himself. Before they could move, they saw that the CEO wasn’t alone. The secretary was standing by, including a few other men who seemed to be executives as well. 

“Well, this is awkward,” San muttered. 

“I guess you remember me?” Mirae looked at the CEO. 

“Cha Jihyun, was it? Or… Lee Mirae?” The CEO smirked, looking impressed. “My, my, I guess the rumors were true. Mutants in my company.” 

“Demons in yours,” Mirae countered. “We’ve got some questions to ask you, I hope you don’t mind taking some time to talk.” 

The CEO chuckled. “Unfortunately I don’t, but they would,” He gestured to the executives that were standing up. All of them were brandishing batons and guns, some of the batons emitted sparks of electricity. Mirae took her staff out, Yunho with his sai, San with his harpoon, and the blades slid out of Hongjoong’s sleeves. The office doors opened, and in came more men, part of the security team, all armed and ready to attack. 

“Definitely like the one in Sky Sushi,” San nodded and he jumped over the couch to knock one out with the handle of his harpoon, prompting everyone else to attack. He shot his harpoon at the CEO who was about to leave and his eyes glowed, making the blade that pierced through his leg stun the man, making him squirm on the floor. He quickly tied the rope that was connected to the blade to the nearest steel object or furniture he could find while kicking away a few that were about to attack him. 

“Let’s try not to kill anyone, try,” Mirae eyed Yunho and Hongjoong, who threw off the others that were coming from opposite directions. Her eyes and fingertips glowed as she hit several of the executives that were about to charge at her, one of them bringing her out of the office and breaking through the door. Mirae took out a deck of cards from her pocket, shuffling with a flourish that made the cards attack them, sending them flying in all directions and hitting walls with a slight crack. 

Hongjoong used the blades in his sleeves to block any hits from the batons. Noticing how both San and Yunho were slowly getting outnumbered, he sped through each of them, knocking the executives off their feet, further incapacitating them by slicing their ankles deep enough to wound without dismembering them. Sparks of electricity were left behind in his wake as he took on the rest of the executives. It felt as if everything slowed down for him, everything and everyone was slowed down to the point that they almost seemed frozen, even shards of glass and other objects were floating in mid-air. Realizing that this was part of what his powers now brought on, he fixed a few of the shards to attack the executives instead, keeping Yunho, San, and Mirae out of harm’s way even as he could see they were holding their own. 

In a second, everything appeared to return to its normal pace, the four of them left standing amongst all the bodies that were either incapacitated, unconscious, and for some, already dead. All of them had some blood stains from the fight, and Hongjoong’s sleeves were stained with red. The CEO remained squirming on the floor as the four of them huddled over him. “Are you going to talk now? Or are we going to go through this again?” Mirae bent down to ask him. 

“Never,” The CEO tried to spit in her face but she leaned away in time. 

“You better answer if I were you,” Yunho threatened. “What do you know about Min Junghwa? You were on that list of people she was planning to sue when she died.” 

The CEO cackled. “You honestly believe that? I did nothing to her. Her career was going nowhere, she would be nothing without me!” 

“Oh really? What did she have to do to make you convince everyone she’s as good an actress as you’d promote her to?” Mirae asked. She took out the small atomizer from the compartment in her belt and sprayed some of its contents onto his face. “Tell the truth.” 

The CEO’s expression went blank. “Yes I did, I did make a pass at her. It was the price she needed to pay in order to succeed. Women hardly make it big in this industry unless you were exceptionally beautiful. Min Junghwa wasn’t as beautiful, but she needed to convince me she was worth it…” He blurted out almost easily, as if in a trance. 

The four of them stared at him. “What does Madame Seo have to do with it?” Yunho asked this time. 

“Madame Seo knows everything about everyone who matters in this industry. She gives us protection in exchange for…” the man stopped talking. 

“What? In exchange for what?” Mirae asked again. 

“I am protected, she knows who you are,” The man was staring at her, his eyes glazed over. “principium est, et finis est initium, principium est, et finis est initium,” He said, chanting in his place. 

Mirae, Yunho, and Hongjoong stared at him while San looked confused. “The beginning is the end is the beginning,” She muttered. “principium est, et finis est initium,” She repeated. 

A chill ran down San’s spine as Yunho and Hongjoong also seemed to understand. The man kept chanting in his place. “If she knows who we are, she’ll either want us alive or dead, and I have a feeling she wants the latter,” San said. 

“What do we do now?” Yunho turned to them as they got up. “At least we know he’s guilty, what then?” 

“The only other thing we need to do, track down the four others, who’s next?” Mirae took out the pieces of paper with the notes from her pocket. “Yang Tan, Seoul City Journal CEO,” She read. “You think we should call it a night?” 

“Yeah, I think we should,” San nodded. “We’ve got all day tomorrow, and I don’t think they’ll budge anymore tonight.” 

They suddenly heard beeping coming from their belts. Yunho took his communicator out, the slim piece of matte black metal extending. “Hello?” 

“Yunho? Mirae? It’s me,” Junhong was on the other line. “Mingi and Wooyoung are here, their mutant genes have been activated. Ino says Seonghwa and Jongho may be waiting for you at the record store.” 

“Seonghwa? Jongho? Did it happen to them too?” Mirae stared at San. Hongjoong looked just as surprised. 

“Ino could sense that it has,” Junhong said. “Find anything from the CEO?” 

“Yeah, he’s guilty as charged, but we’ll call it a night for now, we’ll go home,” Mirae replied. 

“Wait, what about me?” Hongjoong suddenly asked. 

“I can take you back to the safehouse,” Yunho suggested. “Or you could run all the way there since you’re fast enough.” 

“I don’t know the way back, though.” 

“Alright, I’ll bring you back,” Yunho nodded, he kissed Mirae on the cheek. “I’ll see you later.” He turned off the lights and with Hongjoong, they vanished. 

San turned the lights back on, looking over at the man who was still staring at the ceiling, eyes glazed over yet chanting and muttering the same phrase. “What do we do with him?” He asked. 

Mirae shrugged, retracting her staff and with a swift hit to the head, knocked the man unconscious. “He’ll snap out of it in the morning, I guess.” 

~ 

Mirae and San arrived later that night, pulling up in front of the now-closed store for the day. “Both of them are here?” San turned to her. 

“That’s what Junhong said they would be. I can only imagine what kind of powers the two of them would have,” Mirae observed the store for a sign of anything unusual happening inside. “Keep your harpoon ready.” 

San reached into his belt, hand already poised to take his weapon out as they parked the car and quietly got down. The two of them went to the side entrance that led to her office that was also the back room. Mirae’s hand was already on her staff while holding what was left of her deck of cards in the other as they approached the door. They stopped when they saw a faint green glow from the inside and what looked like a large rip across the curtain. San quietly turned the knob and opened the door, the two of them ducking when an object was flying towards them, crashing against the threshold. 

“...Hey! It’s us!” Mirae called out, feeling for the light switch to turn it on. 

Seonghwa stood in his place near the couch, frozen. Jongho was seated in the corner, his expression pained and his sleeves bloody. “Mirae? It’s you!” Seonghwa breathed a sigh of relief. 

Before Mirae could answer, she was pinned against the wall by Jongho, who still looked like he was in pain yet there was some rage. “Did you cause this?! What’s happened to me?!” He said, his hands on her collar. San and Seonghwa quickly tried to pry him off but spikes began to appear from the holes and rips of his shirt and coat. 

“I didn’t do anything to you! This was going to happen!” Mirae dropped her staff and deck of cards, both hands on his wrists. “You hated the fact that I was a mutant, and now you are one too.” 

“Explain before I do this,” Jongho pulled back one hand, and she could see it was twisting and turning into a sharp point, aiming for her throat. 

“Get your hands off my sister,” San pointed his harpoon gun at his temple. “If you want answers, you get your hands off her now before I pull the trigger.” 

“Jongho, just stop,” Seonghwa said with an exasperated sigh. Jongho didn’t budge. “Stop it,” His hands began to glow as he tried to concentrate, the shorter male slowly moving away, as if getting pulled off of Mirae. Seonghwa tried to focus, feeling some resistance from Jongho until he pulled him away, almost sending him flying across the room and crashing onto the boxes near the file cabinet. 

Mirae slid to the floor, quickly picking up her staff and the deck of cards, San helping her up as they watched Jongho get up. “So, you’re a telekinetic too, huh?” She said to the taller. 

“Is that what this is?” Seonghwa said, the green glow from his hands fading. 

“Yeah, my best friend’s a telekinetic too. When did that happen?” She asked. 

“Hours ago. I was at a shooting gallery when it happened.” 

“What about him?” San gestured to Jongho, the spikes suddenly disappearing back into his body, making him groan. 

“Around the same time as I did, I guess,” Seonghwa shrugged. “But he’s probably on the run by now, he got on the bus to go here,” He added. 

“Did you kill people?” Mirae glanced at him. 

“A bunch of drunk dudes tried to pick a fight, and then it happened,” Jongho breathed, nearly staggering as he sat down on the nearest chair. “I swear, this is more painful than those missions we had.” 

“Coincidentally, Mingi and Wooyoung are also going through the same thing right now,” Mirae revealed. “Hongjoong’s activated this morning.” 

“So you mean we all...have powers?” Seonghwa stared at her. She nodded. “...Good thing I came here then, I remembered this was where you’d be. Where’s Yunho?” He asked. 

They heard someone appear in the dark breakroom. Mirae gestured to the room, and out of the shadows, Yunho appeared, stopping when he saw Seonghwa and Jongho. “Are you alright?” He looked at Mirae’s slightly ripped collar. San still looked especially wary of Jongho, gripping the handle of his harpoon gun tightly.  

“Yeah, I’m now wondering what to do with these two,” Mirae said. “If you two want to stay over, I think you can have the couch. Yunho’s couch is also free for one of you to stay in,” she suggested. 

“Wait, I think I have a better idea of where we can stay tonight,” San said. “We may as well all go back to the safehouse.” 

“That’s true. That way all of them are together and Junhong and Ino could better handle them. You two will want to train with Junhong, he knows what to do,” Mirae advised. 

“Oh right, he trained you back in the Center, didn’t he?” San turned to her, and she nodded. 

“We need to tell Junhong what we found out from the CEO too, he’ll probably have answers for us,” Mirae said. She turned to Yunho and sighed as she reached for his hand. “This is probably what Ino meant when he said unit.” 

Yunho chuckled. “Yeah, very much like old times.” 

~ 

Ino and Junhong looked at them with satisfied smiles, seeing all of them together including Mirae and San at the safehouse. Hongjoong, Seonghwa, Mingi, Jongho, and Wooyoung all seemed to be terrified at the realizations of their powers. Junhong looked especially fascinated as he wrote down notes on his clipboard. “The CEO of Kang Entertainment was muttering something in latin when we got around to questioning him,” Mirae explained, figuring to get to the point. “He said the beginning is the end is the beginning. It’s all he kept saying when we asked what Madame Seo wanted in return for her protection.” 

“You understood latin?” San looked surprised. 

“So do the rest of them. I figured it was one of the things programmed into us back at the sanitarium,” Mirae gestured to the boys, squeezing Yunho���s hand. 

“The beginning is the end is the beginning,” Ino tried to think. “It sounds like a mantra.” 

“I-I saw how those actresses died,” Wooyoung suddenly spoke. “They were killed by something that wasn’t human. It was like a creature. Blood, everywhere.” 

“So were those idols I fought in that agency, so were the clerks in Madame Seo’s fashion label,” Mirae said. 

“The only way we can put an end to this is to make Yeosang talk, to be honest. He’s the only connection we have to that woman, whatever she probably is,” Yunho looked frustrated. “He even drugged me for god’s sake.” 

“We can’t even reach Yeosang. That bastard’s way too guarded up at that tower of his,” San frowned. “He’s never going to talk. Not even if Mirae’s the one asking him.” 

“I won’t need to ask,” Mirae suddenly had an idea. “In fact, we don’t even need to ask him at all, it only takes one look from Wooyoung and we’ll have what we need.”

Wooyoung’s eyes widened at the mention of his name. “Eh?”

“You’re all we need,” Mirae said. “You only need to look at Yeosang to figure it out, get the information we need. That guy might not talk, but his memories won’t lie to us either.” 

“What about the rest of us?” Mingi asked, fingers fumbling with the lighter he was holding. 

“The rest of you will be with me, just so you can all figure out how to train your powers even just for a little bit,” Junhong chimed in. “At least if you can’t control it, Ino hyung would be here to help.” 

“It might be best if Seonghwa tagged along with the four of you too,” Ino turned to Mirae. “Something tells me he’ll be useful in interrogations, especially with what you’re trying to find.” 

She eyed the older male. “...What did you see? I know you saw something, what did you see?” 

Ino cleared his throat, unable to answer. Wooyoung looked at him. “You’re worried. About Mirae,” He said, sensing his feelings. “He’s worried about you, he’s worried about Yunho too, and San. That’s all I could get from him, his mind’s blocking me so I can’t sense anything else from him.” 

“Is something going to happen to us?” San asked curiously, finding it odd that Ino would be worried as he knew him to always be especially confident in the three of them. Ino was always vocal about his confidence in Mirae, but what Wooyoung said seemed to hint that something was wrong. 

Wooyoung turned to Ino again. “I can’t tell. It’s like he knows how to block that now too,” He said. 

“You’re getting the hang of your secondary powers already, yes I think that’s a secondary ability you have,” Junhong suddenly pointed out, and Wooyoung looked impressed with himself at the realization. “As for your shadow form, going with the three of them could be your practice.” 

“Go to that Yang Tan now, I see something already happening,” Ino broke his silence. 

“Alright then, we’re going,” Mirae nodded. 

“We’ll be in touch then,” San told them as they turned to leave, Wooyoung getting up to follow them, taking his katanas along with him. As the doors closed behind them, Junhong turned to the older male. 

“What did you see?” He asked, also alarmed by the lack of response from him earlier. 

“I saw pain, a lot of pain. For Mirae, for Yunho, for San,” Ino muttered. 

“Then why are you letting them go out there?” Junhong looked concerned. “Why are you sending them out there now?” 

“Because they don’t have much time,” Ino replied quietly, looking down as if trying to process his visions. “The faster they move, the sooner we’ll have done good. Which is also why we must start training them immediately, they will need the four of them, they’re a unit.” 

“Unit? Are we going to be a unit?” Hongjoong looked confused. 

“Yes, it’s something I’ve begun thinking about ever since we brought the five of you in here. We know Mirae, Hyuk, and Chanyeol have been doing this much longer, but I figure it’s time for Mirae to lead again. No doubt Hyuk will find like-minded people to lead, as will Chanyeol,” Ino said quietly. 

“Ah, very much like old times then. Hongjoong would be her second-in-command,” Seonghwa pointed out. 

“Yes, to borrow a page from the people who turned all of you into the people you are now. Everything is leading up to this moment, the dangers of the world are beginning to surface, human and non-human,” Ino explained. 

“You’re talking like your father,” Junhong looked like he had grown six heads. “We all know what happened when your father tried something like that. The Seoul attack happened, your father dying happened.” 

“The Seoul-” Mingi gaped, almost dropping his lighter. “The Seoul attack?! That was all over the news at the time.” 

“Yeah, Mirae, Hyuk, and Chanyeol are the last surviving members of the group that saved the country, perhaps the world. We were there with them,” Ino revealed. “If we’re not careful, and if they don’t move quickly, something similar to the Seoul attack will be happening in a span of days.” 

“Alright then, what do we do?” Hongjoong got up. 

“The four of you, go with Junhong, he will run some tests for the four of you, Wooyoung’s will be done when they arrive,” Ino went to his office and closed the door behind him. 

Junhong sighed. “The four of you will have to come with me to the lab. I’m not getting paid enough for this, honestly,” He shook his head, leading them into the other room. 

“You get paid for this?” Mingi asked as they followed him into a white room. 

“Yeah, Ino hyung’s the only son of Professor Inhwan Jang, prize-winning scientist and occult enthusiast,” Junhong explained as if like clockwork. “Also one of those anonymous billionaires.” 

~ 

With some help from Junhong, Mirae, San, Yunho, and Wooyoung were driving down the village close to where the restaurant Sky Sushi was. “It’s almost too predictable knowing that Yang Tan lives in this village,” Mirae said, looking on at the quiet roads and mansions lining the subdivision. “I’m surprised Sky Sushi’s open too.” 

“Yeosang owns that restaurant, of course he’s going to reopen it,” San kept a lookout from the passenger seat. “Didn’t take him that long to get rid of all the blood and dust from the last time we were there.” 

“It has been a year,” Yunho muttered, leaning over in his seat behind Mirae. 

Wooyoung watched them. “So, the three of you have been doing this since the last time we met, huh?” He asked. 

“Well this is the first time in a year that we’re doing this again,” Yunho pointed out. “We’ve got day jobs.” 

The shorter male looked intrigued but chose to say nothing more. Mirae checked her phone for the address again and pulled up in front of the house that seemed to indicate that the CEO himself was around. “We’re here,” She said. 

Wooyoung looked up at the windows, sensing an unusual presence yet he couldn’t figure out what it was. It was exactly like the visions he had from watching the news. “Yang Tan’s in there,” He said, staring at the windows at the back that appeared to be dimly lit. 

“Then let’s go,” Mirae got out of the car, the three men following suit. 

[theotherackerman]

The Rubble or Our Sins?

COPYRIGHT DISCLAIMER: Any recognizable elements belong to Attack on Titan.

CHAPTER FIVE: if you trust me, hands up

Mikasa’s fist almost came in contact with Annie’s face.

The Female Titan Shifter managed to duck away from Mikasa’s fist before it made contact.

Annie aimed for Mikasa’s stomach but Mikasa caught Annie’s hand.

They were still equally matched.

Annie held up her hand that had a cut from her ring. Mikasa released Annie’s hand.

“I’ll do it,” Annie replied as she took a step back.

“What the fuck are you doing here?” Connie asked as he crossed his arms across his chest.

“He asked for my help,” Annie said as she pointed at Armin.

Armin just held his hands up.

“I didn’t know you could hear me,” Armin replied.

“Unfortunately. Between you and Hitch, I heard a lot of things. You asked for my help, now I’m here. So what do you want from me?” Annie asked as she lowered her hand.

“So all this time, you could have just escaped whenever you wanted to?” Jean scoffed.

“The Female Titan has the ability to take on other characteristics of the other titans. Marley had a good time experimenting on me with different titan serums,” Annie explained. “But it wasn’t me that broke out. It was just….this feeling…….this warmth……..then my eyes opened….I don’t…..I can’t explain it. Now what do you want from me?”

Armin lowered his hands.

There was a snort of snoring that came from Sasha as she turned over on the ground.

“I wish I wasn’t drunk right now,” Connie muttered before sitting down on the ground. “You know you did a lot of fucked up things. Your whole…..whatever…” Connie leaned back against the log.

“Very well put,” Jean scoffed.

“Fuck off,” Connie said as he kicked Jean’s foot.

“I don’t trust her,” Mikasa said.

“Neither do I,” Ymir added.

“You’re one to talk, Jaw Titan,” Annie said as she stared at Ymir.

“At least I’m not a monster killing innocent people.”

“Marcel was innocent," Annie scoffed.

"Fuck that. I was in titan form. I had no idea what your little friend was. Weren't you coming here to kill us all anyway? I don't call that innocent."  Ymir took a step closer to Annie.

"If I came home, I'd be a hero. I'd be honored. My father would finally be proud of me! I'd be a good person!"

"Then take the Founding Titan and go home. He's standing right there," Ymir pointed to Eren.

Mikasa backed up until her entire body was shielding Eren. "You'll go through me first."

"I'm not here to fight! He came to me! He asked for my help and somehow, that broke me from the crystal. The only thing I know that can do that is the Founding Titan so what are you all doing?" Annie questioned.

The rest of the group looked at one another.

"We never activated the Founding Titan. Not sense...when was the last time?" Ymir asked.

"Historia triggered some memories from it but before that, I used it to kill the Smiling Titan. That's the only time," Eren explained.

"You didn't free me?" Annie asked Eren.

He shook his head.

"Then what did?" Annie asked.

"Exactly I want to know," Levi said from the doorway of the cabin. "It's late. Get in here."

The Squad nodded.

Ymir, Mikasa, Armin, Eren, and Annie made no moves to go inside.

Sasha was hoisted up between Jean and Connie. They carried her into the cabin.

Ymir moved next. She scooped Historia up and carried her inside.

That left Armin, Eren, Mikasa, and Annie outside.

Mikasa stayed on her guard.

"What do you need my help with?" Annie asked.

"Marley is going to come after us. We need another Titan on our side. Annie, you asked me if I thought you were a good person. I think….I think you're like us. You're caught in the middle of all this. Being good, it's all relative. I...I…" the words Armin wanted to say wouldn't come out.

Annie turned away from them.

She pointed off into the distance.

"My dad is there. He's waiting for my return. I just…..I just want him back. I want him to be proud of me."

"They're going to kill all of us, Annie. It might not be today or tomorrow but the rest of the world, they hate us."

"I hate us too," Annie confessed.

Mikasa's hands balled into fists.

"I don't want to fight anymore. I'm tired. I just want to live a peaceful life with my dad."

"You can't have that if Marley attacks. First its Paradis. What happens after they wipe us off the map? Who's next? They'll turn against those in the interment zone. Then once you've served your purpose, they'll turn on you. This won't end with us, Annie. Not until we fight back," Armin explained.

Annie looked away from him and then back down.

"I want to talk to you privately," Annie replied.

Mikasa raised an eyebrow.

Armin nodded, telling Mikasa it was okay.

Eren and Mikasa then walked inside. There was no doubt in Armin's mind that both of them would be watching.

"Why did you visit me so much? Why didn't you just let them feed me to someone?"

"Oh. I..uhh...you heard what Hitch said to me, didn't you?"

Annie nodded.

"I thought it was obvious. I thought it had been since the cadet core. It's why your betrayal hurt so bad." Armin sat down on the log.

Annie sat down beside him. "Oh."

"Yeah…"

They both looked back towards the cabin.

"I can tell you what I know but I won't fight. Not anymore. And if you see my dad…."

"We'll save him. But you can't keep any secrets."

Annie nodded.

"There's an extra room in…."

"I'll take my chances out here."

"If we're supposed to trust you, you have to trust us." Armin stood and started walking towards the cabin.

"Wait, Armin."

He stopped walking and turned back to face Annie.

"Why did you come and see me so much?"

"I told you. Do you really not get it?"

"I don't."

There was this odd silence between the two of them.

Armin held out his hand towards her.

Annie stared at it.

"I couldn't kill you. When I saw it was you under the cloak, I couldn't do it. The thought of harming you, it made my insides feel like they were tangled up. I felt sick. Then when you looked at me like I was a monster…."

"I've killed innocents too."

"Not as many as I have. All in the name of something I don't even believe in."

Armin didn't say anything. He took a step closer to her, his hand still stretched out towards her.

She stared back at his hand again before looking at his face.

Their eyes seemed to lock on one another as Annie took his hand and got to her feet.

They walked into the cabin.

It was no surprise to either of them that Levi, Mikasa, Eren, and Hange seemed to be waiting for them.

Levi just stared at Annie.

“I’ll take the first watch. Room in the back there doesn’t have a window. If you make one wrong move, I’ll feel no guilt about removing your head from your shoulders,” Levi replied as he placed one of his swords on the table.

Annie nodded. “You’re titan experiments. The Ackerman line, in case you were wondering. We thought you were all dead. You were meant to protect the king.”

Mikasa was startled. Her hand slipped into Eren’s.

“And why would I believe anything you have to say?” Levi asked as he sat down at the table.

“You don’t have to. I was a Warrior. I spent months being educated on what I was going to face over here.”

“What do you know about the War Hammer?” Levi asked.

“So they successfully isolated a titan gene?” Hange asked.

Levi looked over at Hange. Now is not the time, Levi thought.

I know but I’ve been working my whole life towards this. Don’t kill her before I know more about it, Hange thought.

“I don’t know how they did it. They didn’t share that much with us. Zeke would know more. He was the War Chief. As for the War Hammer, the Tybur family was royalty practically. They have a large estate. I don’t know who wields it. There’s a few members. Willy Tybur, I’ve seen him around a lot. His father...I can’t remember his name but he told us about the vow King made to renounce war. I think Willy has a sister too. I don’t know who wields it. It’s powerful. It won the Great Titan War.”

“Ymir told us something similar about their power,” Hange commented.

“So that part must be true,” Armin added.

“I don’t…..Armin promised me my father. I want my father to remain safe. I’ll tell you whatever you want, in exchange for my father.”

Levi and Hange looked at one another.

One man, that’s not asking for a lot, Hange thought.

You’re right, Levi thought.

“Fine, we won’t hurt your father and if there is a chance we can grab him, then we’ll bring him here. Once we iron out the details. Now go to sleep,” Levi said as he sat down at the table. He began polishing his sword.

“I’ll show you your room, Annie,” Armin said.

Mikasa and Eren shared a look.

Eren and Mikasa followed Armin and Annie down the hall. Eren and Mikasa let go of one another’s hand.

“Goodnight,” Mikasa said as she opened her door.

“Goodnight,” Eren replied as he watched her disappear inside her room.

Eren waited for Armin to come back.

“Mikasa and I are together,” Eren blurted out.

Armin raised an eyebrow at him, though Eren couldn’t see it in the dark room.

There was silence for a moment.

“Finally,” Armin said before he sat down on his bed. “I was tired of being stuck in the middle of you two.” 

“Wait, you knew?” Eren asked.

“Well, yeah. I couldn’t tell either of you because I couldn’t betray the other’s trust. You don’t know how frustrating it was for me.”

“I’ve only got a few years left but she wants that.”

“Of course, she does. Annie only has a few years left too but I want them too.”

“So you finally confessed that?”

“Yeah, well….I don’t know what’s going to happen there.”

“Mikasa thinks we’ll be able to fix this.”

“Can’t make it any worse, now can we?”

“I guess you’re right there,” Eren remarked.

The two of them drifted off to sleep much easier than had in a long time.

[sebastianshaw]

RP meme from "Chapter Four: Aspects and Renown" in The World of Darkness Ratkin Breedbook

"What you can actually do is far more important."

"The experience is little more than a challenging contract to prove one’s mettle."

"Not everyone can stand so much isolation and seclusion."

"Along the way, they work whatever scams and schemes they can to survive."

"After all, mavericks are known just as much for their quick wits as their stealth and subterfuge."

"Some do this to escape lives they cannot stand; others quest for ideals they may never achieve."

"If there’s a great place nearby to find food, adventure, or perils that threaten the young, a wise scout or spy will find them quickly."

"Relationships on the road are temporary and superficial."

" A scout or wanderer who hasn’t seen an old friend or lover in years immediately picks up the relationship exactly where it left off."

"Each year, they move from city to city, use and discard temp jobs like old clothes, and evolve a series of personas for different situations."

"Not all of them are impoverished and homeless; as long as you know where to find crash space, you’re never really helpless."

"They are fascinated by places inhabited by other creatures, especially humans."

"Some are smart enough to emulate the people they live near; others come up with bizarre explanations to explain human activity."

"Instead of a straightforward military report on the strength of predators in the area, the data must be condensed into a format even a small child could understand."

"When problems with the physical world grow too great, it’s tempting to just vanish into the ephemeral realms for a while."

"These alternate identities aren’t very flashy, just the sort of quiet identity that no one questions."

"It can also draw attention from police officers, irate merchants, and hostile humans."

"This isn’t my world. I just hide in it. If you’re looking for a place to run, talk to me."

"This isn’t my world. I just hide in it."

"If you’re looking for a place to run, talk to me."

"Seers are the keepers of ancient secrets."

"A human is still a human, and can never be trusted."

"Just because they’re victims doesn’t mean they’re virtuous; they’ll still rip you off when you least expect it."

"They seek wisdom the human race has discarded or left behind."

"They make their lairs in areas where the police fear to go, where the only law in both physical and spirit worlds is survival."

"Her body remains in the physical world; her spirit watches what transpires around it in the spirit world."

"You worry about fighting what you can see. I’ll worry about fighting what you can’t see."

"If they feel strongly enough, they will enforce their beliefs as they best see fit."

"Unfortunately, when passing judgment on their own kind, they have restraints placed on their activities."

"These harsh practices have millennia of precedent."

"They reason that it’s better to have a few small, secure ratholes to hide your equipment and yourself than to go to the trouble of defending a larger turf."

"Many secretly enjoy “pronouncing sentence” on anyone who offends them thoroughly enough."

" Justice is far more important. . . and unfortunately, far more subjective."

"Most know they can’t change the world by openly practicing violence; if anything, they’ve got to be really secretive about their revenge."

"Epic carnage is best left to less sophisticated creatures."

"The threat of one of the local politicians getting killed is usually enough to dissuade them from disagreeing any further."

"They do not disguise themselves when pursuing an assassination, as they will not apologize for what they do best."

"We had a contract. You broke it. Now I’m going to make your life a living hell."

"When rage flows freely, violence reigns."

"Some have the wisdom to choose their battles carefully; others don’t care who dies when battle lust seizes them."

"Peace is nothing more than a temporary cessation of the ways of war."

"Developing martial skill involves far more than just killing things — sometimes it involves crippling them, weakening them, or demoralizing them.

"These soldiers don’t just slay; they also use their knowledge of chaos to confuse their enemies, striking in the night when madness reigns."

"All of them pride themselves on discipline and composure. . . until rage overwhelms reason."

"Warriors of both sexes are mildly insecure, and feel the need to show off their martial prowess."

"What? Just because you’ve got an army surplus jacket and a pipe bomb, that makes you a man?"

"Any fool can pull a trigger."

"Saving the world requires true warriors."

"Technology isn’t evil, after all. It’s just in the wrong paws."

"Many are convinced that if they don’t watch their actions carefully, someone from a local laboratory will capture them and experiment on them to find out why they’re so smart."

"Wherever technology thrives, these rats will move in to scavenge it."

"Humans have a fetish about continually acquiring more stuff, newer stuff and cutting-edge state-of-the-art tech."

"The struggle begins with fierce discussions about technological innovations, and rapidly breaks down into name calling and slander."

"Two machines enter; one machine leaves."

"Whether they tinker with ancient computers or rusting cars, they have an insatiable need to fix anything that’s considered unsalvageable."

"Sometimes, she’ll spend the whole day collecting knickknacks just to see what she can build out of them that evening."

"Genius has its price."

"Each one has a physiological trait that identifies him as the gene freak he is."

"Dark powers tutor them in forgotten arts of destruction."

"He’ll be deposed by forces he’s summoned up, but can’t put down."

"Turn your head and cough. Oooh! I’ve never seen it that color before."

"Not all of them are swashbuckling heroes, but all of them are delusional about their origins and their heroic prowess."

"The conflict of egos can become so intense that bystanders get hurt from the fallout."

"Dueling etiquette demands satisfaction."

"Anyone who hears this tale will swear that it is true."

"My good sir, adventure is my middle name!"

"What? You don't believe me?"

"Keep her pointed in the right direction, and she’ll masterfully eliminate your enemies."

"If you’re not careful, she’ll blow up right in your face."

"Any place populated by the desperate, frustrated or down-and-out is another good choice — not only does it make for a good place to hide, but it has its share of potential allies seeking vengeance. . . or potential victims at which to vent your anger."

"They’ll need a really powerful common enemy to unite them; otherwise, each will suspect the other of conspiracy."

"Many come from criminal backgrounds, broken homes, abject poverty or the sort of banal borderline existence that breeds cynicism and contempt for just about everyone."

"Each one has a surprising degree of truth to it."

"It controls all forces of order."

"The balance of the world will not be restored until we destroy everything that smells of stasis, stability or the status quo."

"Hey, nobody saw me do anything. Besides, he had it coming. . . he pissed me off. What? You talking to me? You talking to me?"

"Hey, nobody saw me do anything. Besides, he had it coming. . . he pissed me off."

"Hey, nobody saw me do anything."

"Besides, he had it coming. . . he pissed me off."

"What? You talking to me? You talking to me?"

"You want a piece of me?"

"Chant the creed, kid, and learn. . ."

"I shall seek revenge against those who prey upon my kind."

"I will survive so that I may breed."

"I must respect strength and exploit weakness."

"I shall grow stronger through conflict."

"I will learn from the mysteries of the spirit world."

"I will revel in the visions the spirits grant me."

"I shall nurture, instruct and aid the young."

"I will trust my own kind before I trust outsiders."

"When someone is responsible for injustice, I will make sure someone pays."

"Legality is a subjective concept at best."

"Fighting to survive is difficult enough."

"What else could heal the world?"

"They’re doomed to self-destruct."

"The day that the buildings come crashing down, I’ll dance in the streets."

"Survival comes first."

"Mankind’s days are numbered."

"The strong breed. The weak die. Does that sound harsh? That’s evolution."

"Instinct will tell you when to kill, so follow it."

"We need an army to overwhelm our enemies."

"I still do not know if this is wise."

"If only the strong breed, then you must prove your strength before you can reproduce."

"Don’t be some addle-witted wharf rat who breeds with any half-dead body in the sewers. You, soldier, are the paragon of your race."

"Such egotism!"

"That is nature's way."

"That is nature’s way. If the population of creatures in any one area is too high, a few can be killed or a great number will starve."

“Property is relative. If I can take it, it’s mine. If you can’t defend it, you don’t deserve to have it."

"They buy far more than they need, go to great lengths to defend what they have, and insist that they have the right to determine who owns what."

"If you own more than you can carry, you’re wasting what others can use."

"Betray others before you betray your own kind."

"We’re running into the world together, kid, so we’ve got

to stick together. You ready to go? Um. . . you first. . .”

"You ready to go? Um. . . you first. . .”

"We’re running into the world together, kid, so we’ve got

to stick together."

"I just feel this rage in my blood that’s been there since the dawn of time. And I just feel like acting on it."

"Show me your true face, and it’s my call whether I want to slash it off."

[kantaria3]

BNHA 301 small analysis

It’s nice to see some more context to the Todoroki family, I always felt that there was more to the story.

Its apparent that the marriage between Enji and Rei was messed up and wasn’t normal due to being an arranged marriage. Even though it was arranged and Rei only did it to please her family it’s obvious that they attempted to make it work, even though the marriage itself was jacked up in it’s origin’s

The marriage was clear, have a child that can surpass All Might. Poor Touya unfortunately got pushed aside when it became clear that his body just wasn’t compatible with his quirk. I thought it was nice to see that Enji wasn’t the only one to make mistakes as a parent to Touya. Obviously he is still a bad father and could have had a healthy relationship if he just have up that BS about having a mixed quirk baby. I’m not trying to blame Rei and act like everything is her fault, NO WAY. But I found it interesting to see that she also pushed aside Touya as she focused on having more children in order to fulfill her part of the agreement marriage and to have him stop hurting himself. Obviously none of this would have had to happen if Enji decided to not marry for a quirk, but I like that we see that there is more to the Todoroki family. Specifically Rei and her own viewpoint of what happened, that she also had troubles in providing support to Touya, And she wants to fix that, I mean let’s be honest Rei comes from a prestigious family with a strong bloodline(I mean look at her kids and their compositions, their quirks and features, hair, eyes, body, etc, its obviously that her genes are super strong) and if the story was different she would have had Enji whipped for her. She is obviously quite strong. 

Something else that was interesting was Touya and his descent into villainy. And that due to not getting the proper care he became “crazy”, he got pushed aside and felt as if he were nothing because his father who drove home the idea of surpassing All Might suddenly ignored and left him behind. As if his existence had no meaning anymore. 

Here we see his first act of wrath, where he attempts to harm Shouto with his flames, which could seriously injure or kill him. 

He tries to kill him just to hurt Enji, and was going to let Natsu die as well as long as it hurt endeavor. 

He is in a lot of emotional/mental distress due to never getting the care he needed to make himself feel validated. 

This however, along with all the other panels of him has me thinking that you can’t blame all of his actions on Endeavor. He admitted to killing over 30 people, and that Endeavor drove him to killing them. But I don’t think you can blame that on Endeavor, no one told you to go kill them you chose to do this by yourself. I understand wanting to lash out over frustrations but Touya just kept on killing and will kill even more due to his involvement in the league. This stems from his home life, but I think there comes a point where you can’t blame your actions on other people anymore.

It’s just like any other serial killer or Psychopath or Sociopath, how do we draw the line between their past and their future actions. There are plenty of serial killers who were abused and had terrible past’s which led them to start killing or do other heinous acts, but at a certain point you can’t keep using the past to justify your actions.

[strangeandforlornbooks]

best books with morally ambiguous narrators!

all y’all’s problematic faves and villains! :) also included are third person narrators but in books with morally ambiguous leads/themes 

Sci-fi

Scythe by Neal Shusterman: in a future free from pain, disease, and war, people can live forever. ‘scythes’ are given the power to decide who lives and who dies to preserve the balance. sad and kinda gives of hunger games vibes, if you like that.

Neuromancer by William Gibson: basically invented the cyberpunk genre. strange and removed protagonists. (a team of computer hackers have to face off against an evil AI). you kind of dislike everyone and suddenly you’re crying over them. one of those trippy sci-fi classics.

The Sirens of Titan by Kurt Vonnegut: very beautiful and very very sad (same author as slaughterhouse five). the richest man in america has to face a martian invasion. more about free will and bad people doing good things than a plot that makes any kind of sense.

The Man in the High Castle by Philip K Dick: set in an alternate universe where the germans and japanese won world war two. not really like the tv show at all- it’s not an action story, and there’s not really the hope to somehow fix the world that drives a lot of dystopia stories. instead its about how people survive and connect to one another in a hopeless society.

The Scorpion Rules by Erin Bow: a supercomputer convinces the leaders of the world to keep the peace for hundreds of years by taking their children hostage and obliterating any city that disobeys. what happens to the hostage protagonists when war seems inevitable? lots of morally fraught decisions and characters slowly losing their identity. (plus a fun lesbian romance)

Cryptonomicon by Neal Stephenson: a brilliant mathematician and a dedicated marine fight to keep the ultra secret in world war two. fifty years later,  a tech company discovers what remains of their story. one of the most memorable sequences in the book is a japanese soldier slowly becoming disillusioned with his nation and horrified by the war even as he continues to fight.

Blade Runner by Philip K. Dick: another one of those sci-fi classics that’s not at all like the movie. there is a bounty hunter for robots, though, as well as a weird religion that probably is referencing catholicism and a decaying society with a shortage of pets. kind of a trip.

Wilder Girls by Rory Power: girls trapped in a boarding school on an isolated island must face a creeping rot that affects the animals and plants on the island as well as their own bodies. the protagonists will do anything to survive and keep each other safe. very tense (and bonus lesbian romance whoo)

The Fifth Season by N K Jemisin: three women are gifted with the ability to control the earth’s energy in a world where those who can do so are forced into hiding or slavery. some veryyyy dark choices here but lots of strong female characters.

Historical Fiction

Fingersmith by Sarah Waters: two victorian lesbians fall in love as they plot to betray each other in horrific ways. lots of plot twists, plucky thieves, gothic settings, and a great romance.

Quo Vadis by Henryk Sienkiwicz: a powerful roman soldier in the time of Nero plots to kidnap a young woman after he falls in love with her, only to learn more about the mysterious christian religion she follows. very melodramatic but some terrific prose. 

All the Light We Cannot See by Anthony Doerr: a blind girl in France and a brilliant German boy recruited by the military struggle through the chaos of the second world war. ends with a bang (iykyk.) very sad, reads like poetry.

Boxers by Gene Luen Yang: graphic novel reveals the story of a young boy fighting in the boxer rebellion in early twentieth century china. the sequel, saints, is also excellent. beautifully and sympathetically shows the protagonist’s descent into evil- the reader really understands each step along the way.

Fantasy

Three Dark Crowns by Kendare Blake: three triplets separated at birth, each with their own magical powers, have to fight to the death to gain the throne. lots of fun honestly

Six of Crows and Crooked Kingdom by Leigh Bardugo: everyone in these books is highly problematic but you love them all anyway. a ragtag game of criminals plan a heist on a magical fortress. some terrific tragic back stories, repressed feelings, and revenge schemes.

The Dark Tower series by Stephen King: idk how to describe these frankly but if you can put up with King’s appalling writing of female characters they’re pretty interesting. fantasy epic about saving the world/universe, sort of. cowboys and prophecies and overlapping dimensions and drug addicts galore.

The Amulet of Samarkand by Jonathan Stroud: lots of fun! a twelve year old decides to summon a demon for his cute lil revenge scheme. sarcastic demon narrator. lighthearted until s*** gets real suddenly.

Elegy and Swansong by Vale Aida: fantasy epic with machiavellian lesbians and enemies to lovers to enemies to ??? to lovers. charming and exciting and lovely characters.

The False Prince by Jennifer Nielsen: an orphan boy must compete with a few others for the chance to impersonate a dead prince. really dark but very tense and exciting and good twists.

The Grace of Kings by Ken Liu: fantasy epic. heroes overthrow an evil empire and then struggle as the revolution dissolves into warring factions. interesting world building and three dimensional characters, even if they only have a small part.

Circe by Madeline Miller: the story behind the witch who turns men into pigs in the odyssey. madeline miller really said, i just used my classics degree to write a beautiful gay love story and now im going to write a powerful feminist retelling because i can. queen. an amazing and satisfying book that kills me a lil bit because of the two lines referencing the song of achilles.

Heartless by Marissa Meyer: the tragic backstory for the queen of hearts in alice in wonderland. a little predictable but very fun with a compelling protagonist

A Song of Ice and Fire (Game of Thrones) by George RR Martin: ok I know we all hate GRRM and rightfully so but admittedly these books do have some great characters and great scenes. they deserve better than GRRM though. also he will probably never finish the books anyway....

A Series of Unfortunate Events by Lemony Snicket: not really fantasy but not really anything else either. plucky, intelligent, and kind children fight off evil plots for thirteen books until suddenly you realize the world is not nearly as black and white as you thought. 

Classics

Rebecca by Daphne du Maurier: gothic romance!! a new wife is curious about the mysterious death of her predecessor in a creepy old house in the British countryside...good twists and lovely prose.

A Separate Peace by John Knowles: not really morally ambiguous but one awful decision suddenly has awful consequences and certain people are haunted by guilt forever.... really really really beautiful and really really really sad. boys in a boarding school grow up together under the shadow of world war two.

Anna Karenina by Leo Tolstoy: while imperial russia slowly decays a beautiful young woman begins a destructive affair. a long book. very russian. the ending is incredibly tense and well written.

Lord of the Flies by William Golding: I think you know the plot to this one. the prose is better than you remember and the last scene is always exciting.

And Then There Were None by Agatha Christie: one by one, the guests on an island are slowly picked off. one of Christie’s darkest mysteries- no happy ending here! very tense and great twists.

Contemporary

The Secret History by Donna Tartt: inspired the whole dark academia aesthetic. college students get a little too into ancient greece and it does not end very well. lovely prose but I found the characters unlikable.

Honorable Mentions

The Dublin Saga by Edward Rutherford: has literally a billion protagonists, but some of them are morally ambiguous ig? follows a few families stories’ from the 400s ad to irish independence in the 20s. beautifully captures the weight and movement of irish history.

Artemis Fowl by Eoin Colfer: how morally ambiguous can you be if you’re, like, eleven? a lot if you’re a criminal genius who wants to kidnap a fairy for your evil-ish plan apparently!

Redemption by Leon Uris: literally my favorite novel ever. the sequel to Trinity but can stand alone. various irish families struggle through the horrors of world war one. the hero isn’t really morally ambiguous, but the main theme of the novel is extremely bad people suddenly questioning their choices and eventually redeeming themselves. sweeping themes of love, screwed up families, redemption, and patriotism.

The Lymond Chronicles and House of Niccolo by Dorothy Dunnett: heroes redeem themselves/try to get rich/try to save their country in early renaissance Europe. if I actually knew what happened in these books I'm sure it would be morally ambiguous but its too confusing for me. in each book you spend at least a third convinced the protagonist is evil, though. lots of exciting sword fights, tragic romances, plot twists, and kicking english butt.

Bonus: Protagonist is less morally ambiguous and more very screwed up and sad all the time

The Goldfinch by Donna Tartt: you know this one bc its quoted in all those quote compilations. basically the story of how one horrible event traumatizes a young man and how he develops a connection to a painting. really really really good.

Never Let Me Go by Kazuo Ishiguro: hard to describe but strange... not an action novel or a dystopia really but sort of along those lines. very hopeless.