#jo's theory corner

[jolynejay]

Remember the theory on how ScaVio might potentially have impact on Legends Arceus and how the mainline series treats time travel? Yeah, scratch that in large parts.

BECAUSE THERE IS NO TIME MACHINE IN SCARLET AND VIOLET

The mysterious pokemon described in the Scarlet Book/ Violet Book... it makes "imagination" a "reality." The weird pokemon sketched in the book, the photos of the approximated paradox pokemon - they are all built on the imagination of the expedition team Heath was in. They are a reflection of what these people expected to find in the depths of the Paldean Crater. The Legendary Pokemon on the hexagonal layers is likely building not just pokemon but items, technology out of the Tera Crystals based on what the people in its vicinity imagine.

The team envisioned to find strange creatures. Fusions of legendary pokemon of Johto's legendary dogs, or Unova's Swords of Justice. In Scarlet, the expectation seems to have been to find prehistoric pokemon - preserved in the crator without human interference. In Violet, the expectation may have been shaped by the evolution of mankind and its technology - to find traces of a civilization far more advanced than our own with pokemon evolved to fit that image.

And the artist accompanying the expedition even skeched out some of the pokemon they thought they saw or dreamed up in a haze. And THOSE SKETCHES are what would later shape the imagination of the people entering the crator. The very documentation of the Area Zero shaped how humans would continue to perceive it. And it shaped Sada's and Turo's image of what the far past or the far future might look like. An "image" that would become "reality." (Even Arven mentions how farfetched the Books descriptions sound, and how his parents seemed to have basically made this fairytale real)

I cannot yet tell why the Crystalline Legendary mentioned in those books would do that, though. Maybe it was originally a defense mechanism that was supposed to keep stuff away. Let people and pokemon imagine their fears in order to protect itself. Something that failed over time as mankind advances in technology and science, so it switched strategies to keep itself save.

Maybe the Legendary is trying to lure people/pokemon/whatever to themself - like an anglerfish dangling light in the dark ocean depths, a promise of treasure greater than your wildest dreams.

Whatever the reason is, what we know for certain is that it worked on Sada/Turo.

And the legendary pokemon began more and more to shape and create from the specific reasearch the professors conducted.

In the end, the "time machine" they built is no time machine. It is a machine that makes imagination "reality" (possibly powered by the legendary pokemon in some capacity). Maybe the machine even got constructed by the crystal pokemon bc hallelujah how do you get that much construction done in a literal Made in Abyss eldritch mystery crater without all the world knowing what you are doing. Or heck maybe the machine did somehow get constructed, but it worked more like an amplifier for the Legendary Pokemon's powers.

Either way, it explains why people would not be able to "return" from the "future/past". because the future/past as Turo/Sada imagined it does not exist.

That also explains why the AI Professor crystallizes in the final fight - they are a crystalline construction of imagination. They are Sada/Turo's ideal work partner - a copy of themselves. Something that knows exactly how the Professor thinks and acts. And when the protag squad tries to shut down the machine the illusion begins to fall apart.

It also means the Tera Crystal constructions like the doppelgangers, Miraidon/Koraidon, and all the other paradox pokemon can gain actual awareness, emotion, and sentience.

They are all the Professors' "Paradise" because that is how they imagined the prehistoric past/ far future to be:

Wilderness untamed and existence optimized.

[jolynejay]

Like probably many people have already commented on the post there is a likelyhood that both Cogita and Volo are Celestica people - not descendents but immortal survivors. Which would fit extremely well with AZ (the immortal giant king from Kalos) and would establish a theme of immortal survivors of the ancient civilizations that have long since perished.

BUT I would like to add onto that:

First off, a bit of context: Sinjo/Hisui/Sinnoh as a region is based on Japan's Hokkaido. Mount Coronet is not - as many people I've talked to assume - based on Mount Fuji but rather the Mount Yotei (also nicknamed the Ezofuji for its resemblance to Fuji-yama). Added onto that base template of Hokkaido were elements of classical Ancient Greek architecture and mythology. (with a bit of spice from Latinate Rome)

What you will note is that Mount Youtei, and therefore Mount Coronet, is an still active volcano. And more than that, just look at all the calderas and craters scattered accross the region AND the island that is literally a volcano. Hisui is an active volcanic field. So, let's take a look at Old Verse 20 and Old Verse 2:

"Once it shone upon us all,

with all the warmth of welcome sun.

But now we weep, to grief we fall,

starved of light now it has gone.

And some they go, despair withal,

in search of it they reel and run.

They quit their hearths, abandon hall,

and leave our lands to be undone.

And when they're gone beyond recall,

this land will be a home to none.

This land will only ever be a home to Pokémon."

[...]

Oh you, who at the world’s far-off end dwell

I know your wish - it is my wish as well.

But ours are cold and endless winter days,

warmed only by memories locked away.

The end of the Celestica people as a civilisation was a volcanic eruption. An eruption so monumental, possibly of several vocanos simultaneously, that it caused the ash in the stratosphere to block out the sun and likely cause a lasting volcanic winter in turn.

Without sunlight the Celestica people leave the region in droves and they scatter accross the world. And as the poem says once all the original inhabitants have left and the few remaining people in Sinjo die, it will be only a “home to Pokemon.”

With all that out of the way, what I’d like to propose is that Cogita was part of the Celestica people in their prime. She was educated, learned the culture, the history, the religion and tales of heroes. Eloquent and well versed, she recorded what she learned and experienced in poems.

Volo, on the other hand, was born and raised at the tail end of the Celestica civilization. He grew up in a permant winter, bereft of sunlight. A place where even seeing another day was never a guarantee. All he knew was an abandoned land filled with empty towns and empty shrines. A cultre that was dying that he could not understand beyond what little his parents might have imparted of their faith. Silent statues of saviours and guardians staring down at him but not easing his torment. Hardship and suffering. Alone, and with no understanding of why he is suffering.

It’s obviously unknown by which means these two would have gained immortality. Maybe it was a boon, a blessing or a curse granted by Pokemon of Legends. Maybe it was the hubris of the Celestica people that turned one of them immortal while causing the chain of volcanic eruptions, similar to AZ and his Ultimate Weapon. 

Either way, Volo thinks himself Celestican, carrying their blood even when their civilisation was already in decline when he was born. But Cogita thought him to be a decendant - another claiming “the name not theirs to take” (Old Verse 5), not someone in the same situation as herself. 

It i quite the tragedy, isn’t it? To have the only two survivors of a civilization forever forced to go on living but unable to find comfort and kinship in one another because of their vastly different experiences. Although... I do find comfort in the hypothesis that Volo and Cogita go on to eventually become Cynthia and her grandmother. To believe that in time Volo will find an identity that fits him alone, as a woman that conducts research not for the The Great Unknowable (aka The Almighty Sinnoh aka Arceus) but for herself. And after traveling the world - expanding her views on the world and its history, taking time to appreciate living in all its facets - she returns to Sinnoh and finally finds a familial bond with Cogita. No longer alone. Neither of them.

Awaiting the day a certain soul finds their way to her, and to help them grow like they once helped her.

Spoilers warning

A theory of mine based on what I have seen. Cogita and Volo are not related but they both are descendants of the Celestica people. In my opinion, the clothes Volo wears at the end of the story are ancient Celestica clothes: they are similar to ancient Greek clothes, and Celestica people were used to build Greek-like temples. Both Cogita and Volo wear a drop-shaped pendant, the same of Cynthia. It must be an important symbol for the Celestica people. So, some of the Celestica people survived.

Was the destruction of the Celestica people at the origin of Volo’s torments?

[redcherrykook]

── .˗ˏˋ ♡ ˎˊ˗ TENSION DEGREE 04

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College roomate!Jungkook x college roomate!reader- fwb 2 Lovers

Text messages of this chapter!

You find yourself having to share your room with a very sexually active medical science major who so happens to fancy you. Good thing he´s as charming and spontaneous as you, leading to many crazy parties and places you probably should not be hooking up at. When Jungkook started ignoring all his booty calls after accidentally calling someone by your name, unable to fuck away the thought of you, he knew he was cooked. Would he really leave his playboy antics for that sweet company of yours?

series- four!

content: mild slow burn- fwb2l, roomates, mutual pining, player jungkook that falls devoted to reader, cocky!JK, Confident!reader, psychology major reader, banter, parties, lots of smut (duh), only one bed trope, skinny dipping, roadtrip vibes

episode- warnings: sexual content (blowjob, making out, grabbing/groping, dirty talk), weed

Taglist: @khadeeeeej @ot7stansthings @whoa-jo @smoljjks @stvrlighytt @nono13bnd @jungshaking @junniesoleilkth @deepikhaprakash @rockstryoon @tatamicc @jjeonjjk7 @kookieandjoonberries @jcrl99 @httpjeonlicious @wnteraezz @aphrodyteeth @miniesjams32 @emojkoo @katie-tibo @user-190811 @massivebearharmony @hoseokteardrop @hoseoksluv89 @hoseoksluv90 @kooksdreamer

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"you sure you don´t wanna come?" Jungkook begs for the millionth time today,

He most definitely has a thing for pursuading you into his adventures,

Not that you mind anyways

Three days after the trip, 11:45 o'clock at night.

It felt like a delicious secret, knowing that you had him all to you,

.. you and his other girls.

To be fair, in these three days, there had only been the two of you

Not even chae knew, not yet

You'd tell her, tonight, for sure tonight.

Finally admitting that yes, the sexy roomate you wanna fuck maybe is worth it

To rewind, the last day spent at the beach house was fairly normal, that is, according to your standards

Packing, BBQing and acting like you haven't fucked your best friend and roomie which had been, surprisingly, easy.

No awkward waking up, no weird looks or air,

Just sexual tension that was easily resolved by quick make outs in the kitchen, right around the corner of your friends,

After the whole group had to hear yoongi getting his soul sucked out, even hoseok dropped trying to get in your pants.

Eunwoo was the only one that noticed something going on,

Giving you his number, for what ?

"Incase you wanna talk about that sexcapade you got going on, he can be annoying"

You accepted it, confused.

Right now, you're back in your little dorm, already having removed the smudged day make up and changed into comfy pjamas,

Hello kitty, obviously

"God you're lame" he sighs, rolling up a second blunt,

You join him by scoffing, pinching his cheek while walking by.

"Fine fine, okay"

He slips it into his cigarette case once he's done, grabbing a lighter from the microwave while you jiggle the car keys in your hands,

"Where is it exactly?" a simple question leaves your lips, still, it makes him chuckle.

His brilliant idea of the day was to go stargazing, then getting faded while talking about everything that came to mind.

You'd have to stay a long time, just to make the drive back.

He didn't mind, he said.

"I think its like a 25 min drive? Wanna get a snack too?"

Your head shakes, already stepping out the door with one foot,

"Would loveeee to be in the passenger seat though" you shout back, knowing that this battle has been your win from the start

-ˋˏ✄┈┈┈┈

"I should be studying the attachment theories of bowlby right now" you laugh, rolling down the warm grass,

Another gentle push finds your shoulder, Jungkook's firm body crashing right next to you,

"Nerd" he chuckles

The scenery above is something straight out of a movie, thumping noises of the bustling city, far, far removed

So faint, even the car engines are being overshadowed by rustling branches of huge trees,

Stood tall around the patches of grass, like the one you're resting on.

The sky is clear, deep ocean blue with hundreds of smaller and bigger, shining stars illuminating the atmosphere, making up for the suns absence

Jungkook's head turns sideways, his eyes scanning over your sharp side profile, wide eyes twinkling from the beautiful sight

He smiles, reaching into his cigarette case to take out the two blunts, along with his lighter

Once the smoke clouds your vision so does the herby smell,

"Give me a puff kook" you say, scooting closer to him

He takes another drag, exhaling the smoke into the air,

You rest your under arm propped up on the grass, head and lower body now sat up, while your legs still lay close,

Sticking out the blunt qnd lifting it to your lips, you lean in, placing them around the calming sensation of finally smoking weed again

"Feels good huh? Better than bowlby?" his slender fingers stretch to tuck a strand behind your ear,

"Mhm" you hum, puffing the smoke out once more, making him grin with yet another idea

"C'mere baby"

You scoff, leaning in nonetheless

He takes a long, deep drag, swallowing the thickened smoke to be locked in his throat,

His hands pulling your face by your jaw, making you lean over him

Getting the message, your lips collide with his, opening your plump lips slightly to recieve the smoke from his mouth into yours

You accept it, gladly inhaling the sweet herby calmness

"Good girl" he winks, smiling cockily while rubbing his thumb on your bottom lip

You push him by his chest, pressing him deeper into the grass

He pushes back, making you lay down next to him with a small groan

"You're so annoying" you grin anyways, unable to hide how you truly feel

It always feels like the world is a little quieter when you're with him,

Calmer, while also being a whole lot more exciting

"Want me to light the second one?"

Your head tilts to his, now it being your turn to watch his side profile while he gazes up to the hopeful stars,

"Nah, one is enough"

His head turns too, leaving a couple centimeteres between your heads,

Almost crashing when he does so,

The softness of his face is so evident up close, erasing him from the shackles of his obnoxious personality

In the best way imaginable, of course

"Hmm you're right, im already high and really horny" he says, a proud look going down your body, even in your hello kitty pyjama pants and the white tank top you're wearing,

Jungkook is going crazy, the burning desire under his skin to run his hands all over you is becoming harder and harder to ignore

Finding it entertaining, you climb on his hips, which makes his hands immediately occupy the softness of your comfy pants, feeling the impact of his palms on your hips through them

You'd never pass up an oppurtunity to touch him

"hm, you are? really?" you say innocently, the sound of your voice so alluring, so inviting

He sucks in a breath when your hands find their way creeping under his shirt, slowly tracing up his hardend ab muscles

"Fuck yeah i am" he mutters under his breath, increasingly getting worked up by your little teases, gesturing down his body with your eyes

Hands following suit by playing with his belt, his palms press inward on your hips, firmly caressing them while his growing bulge pushes into your hips from below,

The pressure feels so good, having him grow thick and heavy below your touches

All he can look at is you, your tits in perfect, squished view, your face all concentrated,

The mesmerizing scenery you drove for is getting outshined by two horny college students

"Wanna get your dick sucked jeon?"

the groan he lets out combined with the way his hand moves to wrap around your throat, pulling you down, should be answer enough,

However, the sparks only increase when his deep, teasing tone of voice turns slightly whiny,

"If you talk like that i'll cum baby, please" he says, biting the corner of his lip,

You moan, capturing him in a deep, messy kiss that leaves a string of saliva connecting you, tongues poking out slightly

"Sit up then, knees apart"

He follows suit immediately, barely regsitering what's going on around him

The throbbing of is hard cock is enough to do anything for a sweet release,

Besides, you could always make him forget where the two of you are, none of that mattered

"You look so sexy like this bunny" he mumbles, keeping the whiny desperation laced within his voice,

Eyes wandering over the way your back arches, how your forearms are pressed into the ground, that sweet look of anticipation making him lose his mind

One of your small, delicate hands wrapping around the base of his dick

You can't help but slap it against your lips and cheek a couple times, the reaction of his,

The way his eyes tense and his jaw clenches,

It's too good to pass up

A gobble of spit lands on his cock, you let it run down slowly, pumping him firmly until your thumb hits his tip,

"Mmh fuck" he moans, head already threatening to fall back, he's so enticed with the way you move, the way you look so innocent peering up at him though your lashes,

His moans intensify, turning into lower pitched groans once your tongue and lips wrap around his tip, focusing on building up the pressure,

"Please bunny, take it like the pretty girl you are, i need to feel you so bad" he mutters, reaching to stroke your cheek with one of his tattooed fingers,

You hum against his skin, letting yourself down on him,

He's big, so big you struggle to take him in with an open throat, gagging once all of him is stuffed inside your sweet mouth,

He moans loudly, gathering some of your hair in order to support the movements of your head, bumping up and down on his cock,

"That's it, good girl, you feel so good"

By now you're begining to notice his head had fallen back, eyes squeezed shut tightly from the overwhelming pleasure,

Feeling your tongue swirl around his dick, the way you gag and moan when his pushes become rougher,

He's never been like this before, so into it and lost in the feeling of being on the recieving end,

"Fuck - oh my god, that's it, mhmm, gag on my dick pretty, doin' so well"

The way his praises keep flowing out has your own slick running down your folds, complentary to the way drool is leaking from the corner of your mouth

From the way he twitches in your mouth, the rapidly approaching orgasm was undeniable,

"Gonna cum baby, want you to swallow every drop, understood?" he pants, opening his eyes to gaze down at your pretty face, fully occupied with his cock

You moan, letting him know you will

And when he does, with a couple last curses and pushes of your tangled hair in between his fingers,

Your eyes meet his, watching his face fall beautifully while simultaneously feeling hot ropes of cum spurting down your throat

You swallow, of course, showing him your empty mouth afterwards

"Mhm.. god.." he's still trying to catch his breath, "c'mere bunny"

You're on top of his thigh, practically in his lap, his hand having found the comfortability on your face once again,

Pecking your lips a few times, which makes you smile in return

"You give the best head, no joke"

You can´t help but laugh, thinking that his casual comment made you swell with pride, it´s comofrting, knowing that from the many girls,

maybe you are different,

maybe you could be?

A soft kiss is placed on his nose, you ruffle his hair too, almost as in taking revenge for how messed up you look because of him

"Well i sure hope so now that i have a birds nest in my hair" you giggle,

He rolls his eyes, hands tightening around the soft skin of your waist, sneakily having found their way under your clothes

"You're beautiful, shut up" he says, capturing you in a kiss once more,

It's becoming increasingly more difficult to pretend the heartbeat in your chest is regular, like the blush on your cheeks is as well

He doesn't make it any easier, not in the slightest

"Wanna know what im craving so bad right now"

"What?" You ask, playing with a few strands of his hair,

"Fast food, like a crazy bacon burger or somethin' " he replies, licking his lips to portray the severity of the situation,

a slight look of disappointment hitting your face,

he coos,

"Awhh what? wanted me to say your name?"

his exaggerated pout stirrs up annoyance in you,

"Well I gave you the best blowjob and get met with a burger craving"

Jungkook kisses you swiftly, lacing his fingers in your hair,

"I´ll make it up to you at home, i promise"

your lips curve into a small smile, now that you think about it, a burger does sound really good,

maybe that´s the weed in your system talking

"Let's go get it then, i'd kill for a burger"

He seems happy with your agreement, hoisting you up bridal style while talking,

"On it pretty" his hand moves down, quickly squeezing your ass, which makes you hit his back with another airy gasp,

The thought of being uncomfortable never crossing your mind,

Even if some other, pressing thoughts are developing far too loudly for your liking.

[bisexuallsokka]

jo. bestie. hi. i’m holding your hands and asking u to please if u want deal us all permanent psychic damage with “you’re just as beautiful as the day i lost you” (the httyd divorced zukka agenda has to continue and nobody can do it as well as u <3)

Sokka had spent the entire journey to the Fire Nation imagining himself being so overwhelmed with emotion at the sight of Zuko that, decorum be damned, he would run into his arms as soon as they made eye contact.

The sting of disappointment he felt when he realized that Zuko wasn't even there to greet him and Katara was enough to extinguish most of the excitement he had felt and make him second-guess everything about this trip. It was odd enough that after over a decade of being broken up they had rekindled their relationship over letters, what would it be like when they saw each other in person for the first time in years? Did they only know how to be in love again in theory? Was Zuko truly ready to leave the throne and his home in a few months and start a life with Sokka?

He's hiding out on some balcony that the two of them frequented in his Ambassador days, and he jumps when he hears the door open behind him. It's probably Katara telling him to stop moping, and he's about to tell her that he just needs a minute when he sees Zuko there, giving him a tentative smile.

"Hey," he says.

"Hi," Sokka says, the corner of his mouth twitching in amusement.

"Sorry about," Zuko gestures, and Sokka knows what he means.

"I get it. You're a busy guy," Sokka says.

That makes Zuko frown, and he walks over and takes a seat on the bench next to him. "Not too busy for you," he says. Which, historically, is kind of a lie, but Sokka appreciates the sentiment all the same. Especially since soon, they won't have to worry about the Fire Lord nonsense ever again.

Zuko seems to be thinking the same thing. "For what it's worth, it wasn't 'official business' keeping me away again," he clarifies. "Izumi was getting a little overwhelmed with everything going on to get ready for the party, and I spent longer in the garden with her than I realized. She's with Uncle, now."

Sokka softens at that, his doubts slowly starting to fade away. "That's understandable."

"Thanks for coming all the way here," Zuko says quickly. "It means a lot and it...it's really good to see you."

The sincerity in his tone is a little overwhelming. "Wouldn't miss it for the world," Sokka says, despite having missed the last ten or so of Zuko's birthday celebrations.

It makes Zuko smile, though, which Sokka relaxes at the sight of.

"You look good," Sokka says, smiling back.

"You look..." Zuko trails off, a strange expression on his face as he just keeps staring at Sokka.

"What?" Sokka asks suspiciously. "Is there something on my face?"

"You're just as beautiful as the day I lost you," Zuko says, so softly Sokka might have missed it had he not been hanging onto every word from those lips.

"I..." Sokka says, feeling speechless for once as heat rises in his cheeks. "That's...great, thank you."

As soon as the words leave his mouth he groans, putting his head in his hands as Zuko laughs loudly at him.

"You can't just say things like that," Sokka complains, even if he can't stop smiling.

"I can and I will, especially if that is the kind of reaction I can expect," Zuko teases. Sokka looks over at him and feels his cheeks flushing again at the soft look on Zuko's face.

Sokka takes a shaky breath, calling upon every ounce of bravery he's ever possessed to help him reach for Zuko's hand. "Twelve years?" he asks, giving it a squeeze.

"Twelve years," Zuko confirms, squeezing back. “It’s not that I haven’t seen you that whole time. I just…never let myself really look.”

Sokka nods. “You’re sure this is what you want?”

Zuko raises his eyebrow. "I've started packing."

Sokka rolls his eyes and shoves Zuko's shoulder with his own. "Oh, so romantic, run away with me just because you're already packing."

Zuko laughs again, and Sokka feels lightheaded. He's not going to get used to constantly hearing that sound anytime soon.

“I've had all this time to think about it, and my answer is still the same," Zuko tells him seriously. "This is best for the Fire Nation, best for us. Are you sure, though? Six year olds are pretty crazy.”

“Raising a kid with you?" Sokka asks. "That's all I've ever wanted. Craziness and all."

The way Zuko looks at Sokka erases any of the doubts, the questions, the worries Sokka had about this. About them. After the years of heartbreak and separation, Sokka knows that's behind them, and the future looks much brighter.

[tyrian-witch]

In This World of My Own | Chapter One: Something Normal For Once

(Steve Harrington x Fem!Reader)

Takes place in the fall of 1985, after the events of season 3 (aka Starcourt Mall fire womp womp), reader is graduating high school as it’s her last year.

*Reader is afab and goes by she/her pronouns, given last name (to be revealed*

A/N: This is my first time writing a fic on tumblr so I’m a little new to it, and this is also my first time writing a Stranger Things fic :P

Warnings: None that I know of (unless you count my crappy writing), semi-proof read, fluff question mark? Robin being a good wingman for Steve. Slow burn?? Oh and some minor swearing

Word count: don’t know, don’t care

masterlist

~~~

October, 1985

Fall is the superior season, and what better place to enjoy it than in the small town of Hawkins? Sure, it wasn’t perfect (nothing really is to be honest), and it had this eeriness to it, but it wasn’t that bad.

If anything, the beauty of fall made up for any lingering spookiness that might have lurked in the shadows, but it was fine!

You’ve heard rumours and conspiracy theories of aliens and other things when you moved to Hawkins 2 months ago, but you thought those rumours were silly.

You didn’t really pay any mind to it, simply because you thought it might be some sort of silly hoax or whatnot. Maybe, just maybe it could be possible, but at the same time time, who knows!

For now though, it was your time to enjoy the lovely autumn environment that currently surrounded you.

It was a cloudy Thursday afternoon in October, and as soon as school finishes at 3 o’clock, you gather your things and book it out of there.

You mount on your bike, but you weren’t really in a hurry given that your shift at the local coffee shop wasn’t for another thirty minutes and it wasn’t too far away either - you figure you could get there early anyways because why not? You had nothing better to do, you were pretty much caught up on everything.

On your way there, you take in the beauty of your environment and silently thank Mother Nature for it as you cruise by yourself along the road, all while the jaunty tune of Pink Shoelaces plays on your Walkman. You feel good.

~~~

It’s very slow today, there’s hardly any customers.

You think there’d be some people coming in, especially after school. Maybe that’s just you. The Hawkins Cafe is a cozy spot, just on the corner of Main Street. In a way, you were glad it wasn’t very crowded, but again, it was concerning if you were at work doing nothing. What would be the point? You’re still getting paid, but no customers to serve. Bummer.

To kill the time, you decided to tidy up your station.

You were working by yourself, but whoever was in your place last did not do a good job of keeping the space clean. You even found a big coffee leak under the coffee maker that was left unattended.

“The hell happened here?” you mutter. You lift it up and some of the liquid spreads on the counter. “Ah shit, what the fuck? Seriously, are you kidding me?”

As you begin wiping down the spill, the sound of the doorbell chimes, signalling that someone has entered.

“Just a second!” you call out.

You finish cleaning up, before turning around to see, not one, but two customers: a guy and a girl. The girl had short blonde hair and freckles, and the guy had brown hair, and by the way it was styled, you could tell he took pride in it. It looked so soft, you could just reach out and touch it.

Huh?

You put on your best customer service face and smile. Wiping your hands on your apron, you say “Hi, what can I get for you today?”

“Hi!” the girl says. “I’ll have an espresso, please.”

“Okay, can I get your name?”

“Robin” the girl says with a smile. “We have biology together.”

You look at her, squinting briefly. Then it hits you: “Oh, yeah that’s right. Robin Buckley?”

She nods, still smiling.

You turn to the guy and say: “And what can I get for you?”

“Oh uh, I’ll just have a black coffee with some milk and 2 sugars, please.”

You nod, jotting both their orders down. Looking back at him again you ask for his name.

“Steve,” he tells you, offering a friendly smile.

“Okay, one espresso and one black coffee with milk and two sugars coming up” you affirm, heading to your station.

Meanwhile, Robin and Steve were sitting at one of the tables, talking amongst themselves.

“Veronica canceled on me,” Steve says, almost dejectedly.

“And why would that be?” Robin asks.

He pulls a face and shrugs before running a hand through his hair. “I dunno.”

Robin lowers her voice. “I think the issue is that you try to hard to charm the ladies, you just… fling yourself at them,” she tells him, doing a flinging motion with her hands to demonstrate.

“For your information, Buckley, I was this close,” he pinches his index finger and thumb together, “to going on a date with her.”

“Then why did she cancel?” 

“She said she had a family emergency,” Steve says matter-of-factly.

Robin scoffs, rolling her eyes. “Family emergency? Yeah, right.”

“What?” Steve has a confused look. “What’s wrong with that?” he asks.

He receives a look of disbelief from his friend. “Oh my gosh- okay,” she says. “You do realize that a “‘family emergency’,” she air quotes, “is just an excuse to get out of stuff, like a date, right?” She goes on.

As she’s explaining this, you catch his attention as your making their beverages. He wonders about you. Come to think of it, you’re really pretty. Wait-

“Hello, are you listening?” Robin waves a hand in his face.

Before he could say anything, he sees you coming over and stops his staring you make your way to their table, drinks in hand. “Here you go, is there anything else you two would like? you ask.

“No, thank you” they politely tell you.

You smile. “All right then. Enjoy!” Turning on your heal, you resume your front-of-house duties at the counter, awaiting new customers.

Steve watches you while you work, taking sips of his drink. In the midst of enjoying the caffeine, Robin catches this. Her eyes light up, as if a switch just went on.

“You should ask her out” she tells him.

“Huh?

Robin briefly glances in your direction.

“No, I- there’s no way-”

“Why not?” she almost yells.

“I don’t- wanna scare her off,” he says in a hushed voice.

“You don’t have to scare her off, dingus. Have you ever thought about taking things slow? Just relax.” Robin swiftly gets up from her seat then, making her way to the counter.

“Nonononono wait! What are you doing?” Steve whispers through gritted teeth.”

Robin grins cheekily. “Getting you back in your game!”

Steve was worried you could hear their conversation this entire time, but you had put your Walkman back on since it seemed like it was going to be empty for a little while longer, meaning your service wasn’t needed.

Steve feels nervous about whatever Robin is planning. If she even blows his chance to go on a date with you, he doesn’t know how he’d handle it. He normally doesn’t get flustered or embarrassed often. But he sees you now. He recalls seeing you around before, yes, you were new, but he never really paid you any mind. But he sees you - what could he do? Scare the new girl away before she even had a chance to know him, and vice versa? No way.

He wants to learn how to take things slow and easy, and not to “fling” himself like Robin said. He’d at least like to properly get to know you first, to have a chance at that. Now that he’s finally gotten a break from having to fight monsters from another dimension, he actually has the time on his hands to do something normal for once; in this case, meeting you.

“Hi again!”

Through the corner of your eye, you see Robin at the counter and immediately take off your headphones. “Oh! Yes, what can I- what can I get for you?” you stammer.

Maybe it wasn’t a good idea to wear headphones. Whoops!

She sees the look of embarrassment on your face and reassures you. “Don’t worry, I won’t tell,” she winks. “I wanted to ask, you’re new here, right?”

“Mhm.” You nod.

“Have you been to Family Video?”

“No, I haven’t really got the chance to check out the stores here,” you say. “Why do you ask?”

She squeals in excitements “Oh! Perfect! When are you free?”

You shrug, thinking about it for a moment. “Tomorrow after my shift at 7, 7:30-ish, I guess?”

Robin, who continues to smile, taps the counter before heading back to sit with Steve. She points at you. “We will see you tomorrow then. Bye!”

She drags Steve from his chair, urging him that they were “gonna be late for work” followed by “hey, my coffee!”

You watch the scene unfold, finding it almost odd, like something you’d see in a comedy.

“Okay, weird. But okay,” you say to yourself. “…Oh well.”

~~~

“Dude, what the hell was that?” Steve asks exasperatedly.

He’s driving now to Family Video, with Robin in the passenger seat. She’s looking out the window, then faces him.

With raised eyebrows, she says, “Uh, you’re welcome?”

“Nuh-uh, not ‘you’re welcome,’ you didn’t have to do that for me! I could have done it myself. I would have.”

She only looks at him and laughs.

Noticing the look on her face l, he rolls his eyes. “Don’t look at me like that.”

“Like what?” She feigns innocence.

He shakes his head. “I would have done it.”

“Yeah, buuuuut you didn’t.”

Steve can only glare at her.

“Relax, lover boy. As your wingman, I just did you a huge favour.” She clicks her teeth and proudly points to herself. “You’re welcome.”

“Yeah, thanks” he sasses.

Let’s hope it’s different this time, he thinks.

~~~

Hope you enjoyed! :D

-M. ♉️

➤ next part

[jolynejay]

i. this is so good, i cannot fathom this, it makes brain go brrrrrr

ii. some unhinged stream of consciousness thoughts:

Guda is a single person. An absolutely normal, average person that has some special skills here and there, and that falls below average in other regards. They are all in all a zero - a fool - bumbling through the world trying to find their place in it.

Guda is zero and infinity all at once.

Guda is a single person, but also the potentiality of Every Single Person.

Guda isn't humanity.

Guda is humanity's hope.

Humanity's will to live, to fight on in the face of impossible odds. Facing pains and horrors and joys and grace.

Being unable to do much and change anything by themselves, but through even just the choice to stand up and fight inspiring -inviting- others to join them.

Even if the universe is go dark and loose it's brightest stars to doubt and despair, there remains a single, tiny speck of light. A little star that has not given up, still reaching out. And as long as it remains, people will reach out in turn to that person that still belives in humanity - with all that is good and all that is bad and all that is inbetween.

That person that still belives in heroes,no matter the path in life and death that those heroes have chosen.

A person that is a single person but also every person.

Unknown to death. Not known by life.

A hope at a future as humanity is. Change occuring naturally within humanity, not have change forced upon humanity from powers beyond. A hope to find a path all of their own by their own volition, even if that path will eventually lead to the inevitable end.

Not everlasting. Not eradicated. Not regressed. Not purely a dream of an ideal world.

Simply, moving forward. Simply, living.

And it is a blessing.

And it is a curse.

For living means conflict. For living means strive. For living means dying. For living means grieving.

But it also means compromise. And living means comradery. And living means healing. And living means the pursuit of happiness.

And Guda is all of that and more. Compassion and cruelty. A dream and a nightmare. A reality impacting dreams, and a dream impacting reality.

Guda is seeking heaven while decending into hell. Still hoping. Still holding on. For if even a single person reaches out, someone will take that hand. You just have to keep on living. You just have to keep going. You just have to keep hoping.

Guda is humanity's "what if?"

Guda is that which remains at the bottom of Pandora's box, even as its evils are unleashed upon humanity.

Guda is everybody and nobody.

Guda is every player of FGO and their own person.

Guda is hope.

Guda is Humanity's Last Master.

[-> from someone that started fgo recently, got through part 1 and is halfway through epic of remnant, while knowing quite a lot of spoilers (bc the way i consume media is very chaotic)]

Guda is like. Reverse unlimited blade works. Unknown to death nor known to life. But by god. These hands held many things. These hands held so many things.

[blakelysco-pilot]

23 for both of your pairings please!

Thank you for requesting this, sweet nonnie, and for being so patient while I got this done.

prompt from this list

18+ under the cut; minors DNI

Ev & Val

23. “Relax, I’ve got you.”

Breaths were harsh; deep inhales and sharp exhales, the nose of Just A Snappin fogged up as Val clung to Everett. Working her through her second, no, third orgasm of the night, he couldn’t help but admire the way she looked in the dim light, the moon giving just enough cover for him to see her, to appreciate her body laid out for him. His jacket was balled up under her head, her dark curls spilling over the green fabric as she gripped it with one hand, the other secured behind his neck. 

“I…Ev, I can’t…”

“Shh, you’re okay, I’m right here baby.”

He slowed his hips, his hands sliding up behind her back until he found enough leverage to pull her up, sitting her in his lap. Her arms wrapped around his neck tightly, her face buried in the crook of his shoulder. Her chest pressed against his he could feel her heart hammering against her ribs as she came down from her high. 

“Relax, I’ve got you.” He soothed. 

“Hmm, okay…” 

It took him a moment to realize she was crying, panic suddenly filling his chest at the thought of possibly hurting her.  Carefully, he tipped her face up from his shoulder, and his heart almost shattered at the sight of the tears pooling in the corners of her eyes, her red lips stretched into a smile. 

“Honey…”

“I don’t know why I’m crying,” A laugh punched from her chest, shaking her head vigorously. “It’s just, god, I’ve never felt like this before.”

“Neither have I…” He gently smoothed her hair back, hand cupping her jaw as he guided her mouth to his. “You’re it for me, Val.”

“Ev…”

“Want this with you forever, if you’ll have me.”

“Are you proposing?” She raised an eyebrow, fixing him with a look. 

“No, not yet. Just, giving you a heads up.” He grinned, shifting her in his lap, momentarily forgetting he was still buried inside of her. 

“Oh!” Her gasp filled the plane, and he grinned devilishly. 

“Think you can give me one more?”

“Oh baby, She kissed him deeply. “I can give you forever.”

Rosie & Jo

23. “Relax, I’ve got you.”

The room is suddenly entirely too warm, and he’s not sure when it started, but he can hear the pounding of his heart in his ears. Why is he so nervous? He served two tours, flew 52 missions, and made it out of Russia alive; this should not scare him and yet… Yet, it’s having Jo so close to where he’s dreamed of having her that’s causing his head to spin as if he had been drinking all night. Suddenly he was home and everything they had promised each other while he was gone was coming true. He had prepared for this in words, and in theory, for years it had been a romance between the pages. Now, the pages were gone. 

When they had gone out that night, they both knew where they had wanted the evening to go; now that he was down to his boxers, and she was standing in front of him in just her nightgown, the reality of it had him worrying. And he couldn’t figure out why. 

“Robbie?” Her voice sounded far away, but he knew she was close because he could feel her hands in his, her thumbs drawing gentle circles against his palms. 

“Hmm, I’m right here…”

“I know you’re here, honey, but you’re white as a sheet.”

“I am?”

“Yes, do you feel alright?”

“Yea, I feel alright, I promise.”

Her right hand slipped from his grasp and came up to cup his cheek, her thumb gently rubbing back and forth. Soothing him into a state of relaxation, and causing him to momentarily forget what had his head so foggy in the first place. He was responsible for making sure she enjoyed tonight, that she felt good, and most importantly that he didn’t hurt her. 

“Robbie, honey, are you sure you’re alright?”

“Yea, I just… no, I’m fine.”

“Come here,” gently, she tugged him to the bed, sitting down on the edge, she waited for hin to take a seat next to her. “Talk to me, what’s going on?”

“Aren’t you nervous?” He all but blurted out. 

“Of course I’m nervous!”

“Then how are you so calm?”

“Because I’m with you, and I trust you.”

“You trust me not to hurt you?”

“Robbie, I trust you with my life,” Jo smiled, giving his hand a gentle squeeze. “I know you would never intentionally hurt me. Is that what you’re worried about?”

“Yes…” He sighed. 

Nodding, Jo stood from the bed and moved to stand in front of him. Taking his hands in hers, she pulled him up to his feet before wrapping him in her arms and fitting her lips over his. Her fingers carded through his mused curls, the pomade all but gone, until she reached the nape of his neck. Softly, she pulled back, her forehead resting against his as she caught her breath, his chest rising and falling in time with hers. 

Jo let her lips trail softly from his lips, up and across his cheek, until she reached his ear. Nipping at his earlobe gently, with a soft tug to the pliant flesh, she chose her next words carefully. She hoped that she could convey the message to him, so that he knew that tonight they would take care of each other. 

“Relax,” she whispered. “I’ve got you and you’ve got me. We’ll figure this out together.”

“Together…” Rosie smiled. 

[the-elusive-soleil]

Silm x Doctor Who: Curufin

Still later in the Long Peace, after Caranthir's and Ambarussa's adventures (that he has no knowledge of), Curufin is minding his own business in his workshop and gets abruptly vworped across time and space to a room he roughly recognizes as a workshop, but with absolutely no familiar equipment.

In fact, his initial assumption is that he's been yanked into some corner of Angband by foul magics, and that the old man over there is a thrall, albeit an unusually well-dressed one. He's not sure whether the man's shock and bemusement at seeing him is evidence for or against such a theory. The man - the Doctor, Three - claims that he was merely trying to fix his vehicle, but it malfunctioned, bringing Curufin there instead of bringing the vehicle and the Doctor somewhere else.

Curufin demands that the Doctor reverse the process immediately if he wants to prove he's not in Morgoth's service - he has work he needs to do, his wife and son and brothers need him. The Doctor tries, but whatever he was working with explodes and becomes inoperable. Curufin is stuck.

He rages at this, but the Doctor, having picked up meanwhile that Curufin is a man of science in his own right, makes him an offer: if Curufin helps him get the TARDIS working again, he'll take him back to Arda right away, and no one will even know he was gone because it's also a time machine.

Curufin is dubious about this, but it seems like his only option, especially once he discovers that he's in an entirely different world, and that this corner of it is controlled by a heavily armed and highly suspicious military force. So he agrees (and also resolves to study UNIT's weapons as much as he can, to try and recreate them to use on orcs once he gets home).

The Brigadier and most of UNIT are suspicious of Curufin, but tolerate him because the Doctor vouched for him. Jo doesn't particularly like him, because he doesn't particularly like her - he thinks she's silly and not all that bright and a bit useless, and doesn't get why the Doctor is as taken with her as he clearly is. Curufin's romantic taste tends to run to the "shared interests, intellectual equals" kind.

(The Doctor tells him that a) he's not interested in Jo like that [a clear lie], b) his last assistant was as close to an intellectual equal as he was likely to find while stuck on this planet, and it didn't go well, and c) Jo is kind and brave and loyal, and that's why he has her as an assistant and friend.)

Curufin slowly but surely learns temporal engineering, occasionally having to craft new Quenya words for the TARDIS to translate certain concepts to, and they make progress. The Doctor is impressed. He's less impressed with Curufin's forays into learning about modern weaponry, but Curufin just gets sneakier about it.

Oh, yes, and the Master is also lurking about every so often, and once or twice tries to tempt Curufin to his side with the promise of a quicker trip home in a working TARDIS. It's a well-crafted offer, for sure, but Curufin lies too much (even now in his pre-Nargothrond era) to not recognize it from someone else.

The Brigadier ends up liking Curufin a whole lot more when he applies his new knowlege to invent a type of gun that works on the next monster of the week. The Doctor is less of a fan. Curufin ends up making a deal with him - he won't make any more weapons (on Earth) if the Doctor will quit pining and confess to Jo already. He still doesn't get it about the two of them, but he's tired of them being so obviously, irritatingly nuts about each other and pretending not to be. (Also, though he'd never admit it, he's become grudgingly fond of them and wants them to be happy.)

Finally, finally, the TARDIS gets fixed, and the Doctor fulfils his promise to get Curufin back home. Jo comes along for the ride. Naturally, they end up making a few unplanned stops along the way and having adventures. But they do finally make it to Curufin's workshop, just minutes after he was pulled from it, and they say their goodbyes, and the Doctor and Jo take off.

The multi-Doctor incident doesn't happen, since Three is freed and no longer at the Time Lords' beck and call, and Jo does not run off and marry a Welshman. She lives out a long life of adventure before dying of old age, and sometime later the Doctor returns to UNIT to mourn - where he eventually meets Sarah Jane and standard plot resumes.

Curufin, back home, works on making new weapons, citing a "burst of inspiration". He can't quite recreate what UNIT had with what's available to him, but he comes up with some things that severely inconvenience Morgoth's forces.

It's still not quite enough to stop the Bragollach, to save his wife.

He and Celegorm and Celebrimbor and other Himlad survivors make it to Nargothrond. Curufin vows that if he ever meets the Doctor again, he'll make him take him back to save his wife. In the meantime, he and Celegorm try to shore up their position with smooth talking and Curufin's advanced weapons.

(TBC)

[themuse-if]

Hello~

~I have a little ask about the Rejected Rebels!!!~

(but you don't have to answer if you don't want to, I love your work and I would feel bad if I made you upset with my asks, I apologize in advance if that's the case 😥😓)

*How would Rebel Rejects react to the situation of an MC who has anxiety, and who, in the middle of a presentation (or something similar), ends up receiving several not-so-constructive comments from some people (being a bit threatening?), and kind of their anxiety starts to appear, causing Mc to leave the room and hide in a corner while he has an anxiety attack. How would they react to this, would they be surprised? Would they know what to do?

Sorry if this is a little personal for you (or other people), I went through a similar situation with a friend of mine once, I was super nervous, but everything worked out. And before you ask, yes, he let me write about it, and he also loves his work and the band🤩😋 !!

Hello Lovely!

Your so sweet! No need to feel sorry for any questions you may have. Everyone has challenges and they are such a natural part of life that of course they're a part of the stories we tell as well. And thank you for enjoying my work! I'll be excited to see what you and your friend think once the demo is out! (though that's still a ways away 😪)

Let's dive into your scenario! I'm picturing MC presenting on something in a music theory course, feeling good about what they have put together. That is until the peer review portion of the class and everyone starts harshly tearing down each of the points they made. Then MC runs out and through the building till they find an empty classroom to cry in alone. And action!

The Rebel Rejects: *rush into the room out of breath since they've been searching all over the building for MC*

De: *slowly walks over to MC and kneels beside them* Are you ok? I mean I know you're not ok, but do you need anything?

Jo: *sits down in the desk beside MC facing their body towards them* We get that, that was a lot, and we just want you to know that we are here for you. Everything you are feeling right now is completely valid.

Ro: *sits on Jo's lap* Whatever you need. If you want space, if you want to cry *in a mock whisper* if you want us knock out all their teeth.

De: *slaps Ro's knee* What the fuck Ro shut up! *struggles to keep a smile off their face* What Ro means to say is that we want you to know that we see you. As your friends we have your back completely.

Jo: Exactly. However you need to process that, nonsense that just went down, we'll stay with you if you want us to.

Ro: *their face softens* Yeah, what they said. So MC take your time, breathe. When you're ready tell us what you need, we're more than ready to listen.

Side note: If you're caught up on the RO profiles and interviews then you already know that Jo has had to deal with some emotional trauma do to where they were raised. Luckily De is very mature and emotionally intelligent and Ro is caring and always ready to stand beside their friends. Overtime Jo has learned a how to properly cope with and work through their emotions. Usually if they feel overwhelmed they'll take a moment to meditate, talk it through with their friends, or they'll just let it all out on the drums.

[f0point5]

Is anybody else kind of uncomfortable with how confidently people talk about Max's and Jos' relationship? Like... we don't know 99% of it, Max is clearly fine with his dad, Jos is kind of an ass but also VERY FIRMLY in Max's corner, and given how his early years were in the sport, Max definitely needed that? So ppl talking about how awful and horrible Jos is and how Max should cut him off.... idk it seems so invasive to me, Max is a grown ass man, he's got his own support system, if he decides he wants his dad in his life why not? I'll still side-eye Jos but at the end of the day idk enough about the kind of environment they grew up and lived in to rlly judge

Yes, but I’m also uncomfortable with how confidently people talk about driver’s personal lives in general. It’s pretty wild 😂

People are very comfortable throwing out all kinds of words and theories in regards to people they don’t know, and they love to infantilise grown men. At the end of the day, who even asked y’all? Definitely not Max. It’s bizarre that people think Jos, who has a good relationship with his children and his ex wife, needs all this discussion like he’s the boogeyman. I assure you that whole family does not care about the psychological diagnosis of some chick on Twitter calling him a narcissist.

[palepersonaturtle]

DWY review

As much as I love this show and our main couple I think I really have to talk  the issues I had with it so that I can be at peace with myself and then go back to enjoying it with its flaws. Please guys if you have thoroughly enjoyed this show and the plot then do not read this.

This show, imo had so much potential to become one of the greatest hits of all time for me with its innovative idea of spell books, characters and brilliant actors and yet they ruined it with the inconsistency of the characters and undeveloped plot.

Episode 1& 2 review

The good-

-Okay I love their first meet it is symbolic and that was a killer opening for me. The cinematography, bgm were spot on…perfect amount of spooky fantasy vibe. Also the introduction of characters was great. Jang shinyu tapping her foot with his to see if she is dead or alive gave of his cold, stern aura. Hong jo’s humourous dialogue showed us her loneliness and her knack for dramas I mean watching dramas is the only wayout from her lonelinss

-The introduction of red hand was awesome. And I have read some theories from k-fans about the details that scene had. So it was perfectly done.

- Something I very much enjoyed was the banter between our main couple. Like it wasnt silly it had logic and humour and that made their chemistry one of the best for me.

- I liked how they portrayed Hongjo’s loneliness. She had no friends, family, relatives to talk. Her situation was compelling.

-The whole spell book revelation part was done excellently.

-Also the plot development for these two episode was really good.

The bad-

I have to say this the editing for first two episodes sucked. The aprupt scene transitions and scene placement made my head hurt.

Changes that should have been made-

-They actually made the use of the evil gardener in a very lousy way when he could have been a more compeling villain who is connected to our lead couple in the past. They could have shown us that it was his fate to get the main couple together while being the bad guy because of his past life karma.

- There are various questions like why did hongjo got transferred to the city hall. And I think that first scene where we are shown her handling a complaint would have been a perfect example for her and the evil gardener to meet indirectly and start his obsession for her since he recognizes her from his past so that he would have been able to get her to transfer to the city hall by using black magic or using his connections which could have been revealed later in the series. Because that transfer of hong jo was so abrupt it didn’t make any sense to me.

-Now onto Shinyu’s curse I think it would have been far more better if they had shown us him having blurry dreams about jang mujin killing aengcho on that snowy mountain rather than dreams of his past life love story in the first episode. Because the main point is him suffering from a curse where the gist is him killing aengcho the love of his life.

Also the explanation for his curse and illness should have been done cohesively rather than spreading it in parts throughout the first two episodes.

Relationships-

1)  Shinyu and Hongjo-

As I said earlier I love their banter. You can see the sparks but it is still platonic and I love that. And even though they are destined I am glad that the writers actually worked to build their relationship.

Shinyu is cold,stern,rude and hongjo gives him back equally.

And that scene where he saves her from the the drunkard was an ice breaker for hongjo imo to trust shinyu and be comfortable with him especially physically. Like her hitting his shoulder playfully, cornering him in the office lobby are some of the examples.

Also he was very much attracted to her subconsciously okay.

Now coming onto the bad side of their relationship- For like one and half episode shinyu was written perfectly but then his character started showing inconsistency.

That scene where he told hong jo to accept nayeon’s apology was so ooc of him. Like he is shown as a competent lawyer and he should know better than anyone else that no one is obliged to forgive the person who has inflicted hurt on them and like what was his intention to do that. Imo he should have just shut up.

Look I get that he is a flawed character. But I also believe that a cold,stern, rude character could also be written as a green flag he needn’t always be a red flag.

Onto the next scene, where he hurted hongjo  that was not ooc for there was atleast some intention for him. I get that he was jealous  of  jaekyeong and he used the information he got from his gf to be an asshole. But the fact that he says, “I just said what I saw” I was like dude you are a lawyer you shouldnt just judge someone with what you see. Though he felt  bad about what he said afterwards, he never apologized and that for me is a bad character development.

2) Shinyu and nayeon

Like many people I also think that shinyu wasn’t in love with nayeon but I also think that their relationship wasn’t political. From what I have read from nayeon’s char intro, she met shinyu in his law firm while she was there for renovation work and fell in love with him and after that chased him and then they started dating. I think shinyu liked and cared about her enough to get married with her. I mean he seems distant with her but he is also polite and humble with her. Maybe the constant nagging of his father had prompted him to get in a relationship so that his father can shut up.

3) Shinyu’s parents(sorry i dont remember their names)

This side story could have been made more compelling but they failed it awfully.

If they wanted to reprimand verbal abuse then they should have ended it with a divorce or should have made sure that his father repent and grovel at his wife’s feet for like 10 episodes before that reconcillation happened.

Or they could have simply shown a couple who is drifting apart having a midlife crisis since they got married early and how they overcome it eventually.

Or they could have simply been an affectionate and passionate couple where a father is worried about his son being alone when he is sick and wants him to get married asap to have someone take care of him(which is also selfish but later they could have redeemed him)

4) Other side charcters-

I may be in the minority but I really didn’t care about Ms Ma amd Mr gong’s relationship like why does she have to get into a relationship when she doesn’t want to. But I love Ms Ma as a character.

And those coworkers of hongjo were annoying af. Yes I get that the writers wanted to show Hong jo as an outcast to us but they could have handled it better.

Also I like Gidong I wish they could have given him more screen time and his own story line.

Overall, these two episodes were more of a plot building for me. I had fun yet i was bored at times.

[jolynejay]

I think Ch. 7/4 may have just given us both Crowley's identity as well as the identity of his "dear esteemed benefactor"

Obvs. Spoilers Ahead in this analysis and speculative hypothesis (which will link the prologue to the current events in Ch. 7):

This moment is the moment that sent me down this rabbit hole:

General Lilia essentially calling Lady Malenore Briar Country's "most evil" princess.

I went over the prologue again semi-recently to see if the knowledge we have gathered since the start of the game recontextulizes some things. And while the purpose of the analysis then was different, what I did take special note of was that Crowley is speaking to a different but very specific person. To quote the man himself (from the English version):

"Ah, my dear esteemed benefactor...

My proud, beautiful flower of evil.

You are truly the fairiest one of all."

The way Crowley addresses this person is very interesting because it at once seems very subservient and almost intimate.

But what is even more interesting is the original Japanese phrasing. I will go through the lines one by one to point out the notable details:

ああ‥‥‥愛しい我が君

"愛しい" (itoshii) is generally used to describe something that is lovely, dear. "我が君" (waga kimi) is generally understood to mean "my lord/ruler/master". The translation as "my dear esteemed benefactor" is... alright, though it does seem to detract a bit from the portrayal of this person as someone that has a lot of power over Crowley.

What I'd like to note though is that since Japanese is a very context dependent language this line might also be read a very different way: if "kimi" was used in the context that Crowley knows this person very well, being allowed to address them directly like this... then the line could also be read as Crowley calling this person "My beloved." There is still the underlying power dynamic underneath but it is more finely tuned and something that reminds me more of a pair of royals.

This would certainly not be the first way for someone to understand this line but subtext and double meanings can reveal a lot.

気高く麗しい悪の華

Notable here is mainly that Crowley is using a lot of archaic words to describe the person he is speaking to (e.g. using the kanji "華" instead of the modern "花" - both pronounced "hana," meaning flower). This may indicate that this person is of a people whose culture does not move as fast as the rest of the world's - still bound to old ways of speaking and thinking.

貴女こそが世界で一番美しい

Now, this last line is spicy. The English version of this line is pretty gender neutral after all - the fairest of them all. But what the original line makes very explicit is that Crowley is talking to/about a woman.

"貴女" (anata) - not "貴方" (anata), not "我が君" (waga kimi) but "貴女"

Crowley is addressing a noble woman directly in a manner that implies they are of equal standing. Like a husband addressing his wife.

Now let's circle back to that conversation Lilia, Silver, Sebek and co. are having about Malenore for a minute.

Because what Lilia also calls Malenore is this:

Malenore is the only daughter to Queen Maleficia and she the ruling Lady of "Wild Rose Castle" (野ばら城). Which is known to Silver only as "Black Scale Castle" (黒鱗城).

In other words, Malenore is one of the most powerful noble women in the Twisted Wonderland, she is strongly associated with with Wild Roses/ Briar Roses, and on top of that described as the "most evil" princess by her own general (whether in jest or not is of little consequence).

And this description should ring very familiar after going over Crowley's introductory monolog. A noble, beautiful "Flower of Evil" as it were.

But if that is the truth, then the familiar way Crowley addresses Malenore can only mean that Crowley's true identity is Malenore's husband. Who else would be allowed to speak to her im such an intimate and familiar manner.

Malenore's husband whose status hasn't actually been confirmed, other than he is missing in some capacity. And while I have seen a many transcriptions of his name, no one seems to have gotten it right yet:

"竜眠公レヴァーン"

The Sleeping Dragon Lord Raven

And what is the associated animal of our dear Night Raven's headmaster?

A crow.

A corvid.

A raven.

Crowley did always had something of the mad hatter to him, didn't he? And he might just have something with a raven and a writing desk..

After all, a raven is nevar the same front to back as back to front.

And thus, at the end, we have the lost parents of a little dragon, summoning a human with no magical ability to this Twisted Wonderland - a human that cannot be influenced by blot.

Curious, curious...

Curious indeed...

[hamyilton]

I saw these tags and thought, I could say something more about that.

So, the following points and claims come from my experience within the F1 fandom, specifically the fanfiction community, which I have been reading and writing for over two years now. My hypothesis, or theory, is that one of the big reasons why the fandom characterization of Max is so skewed is because of the fanfic that was enormously popular called "fool's gold".

This fanfic established so many stereotypes and characterizations that have perservered to this day, including lestappen and the more broad treatment of Max. This fanfic presented Max as this traumatized victim who can do absolutely no wrong, while pitting him against Lewis who was written as this super villain who had the foresight to plot all these villainous plans in order to win championships and gain power. This fanfic played on many of the ideas from the 2021 season like painting the 2021 British GP crash between Hamilton and Verstappen as somehow pre-mediated (even going as far as feeding into the fictitious accounts that Max was severely hospitalized after the crash despite that being a routine procedure that happens whenever a certain G-force is registered) which, to anyone familiar with the rhetoric around that race, is remembered as a talking point over why Lewis was the most dangerous driver ever. Like, remember when Christian Horner said that no one can overtake at Copse Corner despite all the years of successful overtakes at that corner?

Anyway, this fanfic absolved Max of any aggression and problematic behavior in the 2021 season and instead created a false narrative that Max was a victim despite being in the faster car for most of the season, and all the racist shit he said, and also set up lestappen as this type of end-all ship that was destined to happen. Unsuspecting readers or people that did not watch the 2021 season could easily accept this as fact and thought Lewis was this uncaring person, a representative of the old "conservative" guard, instead of being the one person trying to improve F1 and make it better.

Also, as a side note, can I just say how wild it is that so many people have just accepted or internalized the idea that Max was abused, despite literally no evidence to prove this?? People have simply speculated that he was, based on a few comments and jokes he made, and now it's an entire tag on AO3. Like, even if he was mistreated by Jos, don't you think it's widely disrespectful to speculate on this and make this his entire characterization?? The entire basis of Max's character in "Fool's gold" is that he's this poor victim of Jos and all of his evil actions can be excused because of it, but like, wtf?? I'm sorry, but when does abuse excuse racism and ableism? Although I probs couldn't prove this definitively, I'm sure the popularity of "fool's gold" most likely caused many more lestappen fics to be written based on other authors being inspired and trying to ride on the popularity of the ship.

To summarize, certain fanfics were almost certainly responsible for the popular fandom characterizations of Max and people don't seem to realize these are based on speculation rather than fact. The poor treatment of Lewis in that work makes me quite uncomfortable, as he is clearly portrayed as a villain and against progress and making the only Black driver in your fanfic some kind of arch-villain feels particularly shitty.

[amakumos]

yun amakumos i come with my hypothesis about who the vb anon is and slash or who runs cupid corner 🤪✌️

okay so my first guess for the owner of cc is eunchae : doesn't make sense but it also does to me ?? i remember jake saying in ch two that the owner/s of ss is/are scary and eunchae is ,,,, well . very violently interested in everything . she's onto rikiyn agenda everyday so i might just as well claim that she could be vb anon and taki's with her in this plan ??? not backing up the last part, it's a blind guess but idk im heavy on eunchae being the owner,,, but again if she was the owner, she's know who vb anon is ,,,, in short ai dee kay 😎

second guess : harua. I KNOW U MENTIONED HOW HARUA AND YN TALKED FOR LIKE TWO SECS but i cant ignore how the vb anon also mentioned that they talked to yn and that too in the same chapter,,, u r messing with Us .

third and final guess and im confident with this one : jo . okay first of all my guy texts once in two chapters and it's almost never when the cc acc posts confessions unlike others who're basically housing in the comments ,,,,, and then he only texted when riki asked the boys ab the confession ???? maybe im reading too much but the guilty always backs themselves up with claims ‼️ ‼️ ‼️ jo my eyes are on You. OH AND HE'S ON VB TEAM, HE WANTS TO GET TO KNOW YN BETTER, THEY BARELY TALK IT MAKES SENSE ,,,, feeling very detective rn im sending this to riki as we speak asking him to team up with me

i will cb with more as the chapters are released but for now my money is on mr jojo siwa from jojo's bizzare adventure ✌️🤘 also i read formula of love yesterday idr if i've read it alr but it's cute . i hate it bc i had to spend chem w boring ass guy who asked me for electronic configurations . no help at All.

VBALL ANON BEING JO?? that is the first time i have heard that theory . and eunchae being cupids corner seems to be pretty popular Hmmm😅😅 i cannot confirm or deny but i Like ur theories !!!

[sapphire-writes]

The door creaks open. There's the sound of a lightbulb going on and off. There is the sound of nails scratching on the wall. there in the corner our most beloved Jo is snickering to herself, swinging back and forth. There are ripped pages thrown across the floor. Fire and Blood.

"Hey there precious pookie. How are you doing?"

"The theories! The damned theories!", she whispers harshly.

We love her all the same!

HELP IM SCREAMING 😭😭😭😭

literally me rn trying to connect dots