#like she completely forgot that their entire world was almost destroyed

[mourambles]

FOR TOO LONG I HAVE BEEN AWAY…. AND FOR TOO LONG I HAVE NOT DRAWN THEM!!

My lovely friend Mayo ( @sunflawyer ILYYY) got me thinking about the sisters again!! I missed Peach 😭😭

Anywho, this time got me thinking about Celeste’s relationship with the other Mario characters… maybe a new romantic f/o on the horizon?? Lmk what yall think :]

ILY AND I MISSED YOU GUYSSS 💕💕💕

[dyns33]

Only wastelands part 2

Here's part 2 of my Cooper Howard x Reader ! I think it will be a story in 4 parts at the end, but I'm not sure yet.

Tags : @one-of-thewalkingdead @coolrobloxkid28 @thebumbqueen @rachmari @ilyvia @justme12200 @honeybunhottie @savanahc @gobbodoggo @bisasterbisexual @killingboredom @bonafideyapper @i-simp-for-mha-men @pixelatedprofilepic @ultimatreality @chattersstuff @harmfulb1tch @hellolettuce444 @miketastic25

If Y/N had to pay Cooper one compliment, it was that he had been a very good teacher.

Months passed, years, and she survived the apocalypse perfectly on her own.

To avoid trouble, she hid her pitboy and her gender under a large coat and a Ranger mask. Some people made fun of her, thinking she was doing this to protect herself from radiation. Everyone knew that West Tek's hardware, or any of Vault's partners, was crap.

Y/N knew it, and that was why she always had Radaway on her. Not at all in case she saw Cooper again and he needed some.

Three years without any news, doing everything to avoid attracting attention, and she hardly thought about him at all.

If she sometimes looked at the photo of him before his turning, with little Janey, it was only to remember that she should trust no one in this rotten world. Never again, she repeated to herself.

It was with this spirit that she almost killed Lucy when the young woman fell on her. Literally.

Y/N was standing in a crater, calm, silent, holding her sniper tightly, ready to shoot her future dinner, when the little vaultie had jumped to escape a yao guai.

Her instinct not being often wrong, she knew that it was more urgent to kill the bear than the imbecile who had thought that surprising a shooter was less dangerous than confronting a beast.

Even though she had a gun, was covered in blood, and one of her fingers was a different color, little Vault dweler looked harmless with her big, naive doe eyes.

It was obvious that she had been outside for a short time. A true miracle that she is still alive.

"Thank you, thank you very much !" she repeated with a huge smile, as if Y/N wasn't pointing her sniper at her. "You don't know the week I just had ! My father was kidnapped, I wanted to save him, but I discovered that he was a murderer who had bombed a city, and all the people I met tried to kill me, and…"

"Hey. I don't remember asking you to tell me about your life, vaultie."

"Oh, sorry ! It's just that I got lost. I was with someone heading to a place called New Vegas, but a big monster pulled him into a hole, then this thing attacked me. You seem nice, and I could use some help…"

"No."

“Wait. But wait !” the girl begged, following her as she went to carve the yao guai. Not the best meat, but she had just wasted five bullets for that, and the noise had either scared away the easy preys or attracted the attention of the dangerous ones.

Y/N vacillated between ignoring Lucy and threatening her, asking her to leave, but after exchanging names, the vaultie seemed to have decided that they were now best friends and should stay together.

No doubt taking her savior's silence as an invitation, she continued to talk about what had happened to her, between her meeting with a man named Maximus, and the inhumane treatment she had suffered at the hands of a mercenary.

Completely incoherent, she ended her story by explaining that she had abandoned her potential boyfriend to go on an adventure next to the guy who tortured her, with the aim of finding her dad and discovering who had destroyed the entire planet.

It was quite funny, because Lucy reminded her a bit of herself before. Y/N wondered if Cooper had seen her like that when they met, a lost and stupid thing.

At the same time, the girl's reasons for living were the same as the Ghoul. Find a family member and take revenge on Vault. Amusing. Maybe they would be very happy together.

If we forgot the fact that Lucy thought that no one should be killed, that everyone was nice, and mutual help was a fundamental notion, to start again. Ugh.

"So, some free advice, if you want to avoid having your tongue cut out, remember that it is not a good idea for a little vaultie who grew up in a palace to give big moral lessons to people who have been doing what they can to avoid dying for years, sometimes centuries."

"Why do you call me that ? You come from a vault too, right ? My pitboy picked up yours."

"Hang on. I am a victim of the cruelty of politicians and businessmen, betrayed by my own country and only alive by luck, or bad luck. You are a little vaultie. Now get away before I strangle you."

Lucy continued to follow her. And Y/N could have killed her, she really could have. This wasn't her first rodeo. She had killed a lot of people for less than that. But she didn't really want to.

Maybe she had been alone for too long. Maybe she felt sorry for this girl, like Cooper had felt sorry for her.

A deal was found. If Lucy could keep her mouth shut, then Y/N would help her find her friends so she could resume her main quest. Their paths would then part ways, and everyone would be happy.

Especially Y/N.

Because if she often talked about her dear Max, the little vaultie didn't seem so eager to find her survival partner. This was understandable, since he had tried to kill her several times, shooting her, cutting off her finger, using her as bait, and selling her.

Compared to this guy, Y/N was a saint, an angel from heaven, the perfect friend. When she offered the girl a bottle of non-irradiated water, she seemed about to ask her to marry her.

“You must be the only person in all the wastelands with good water !”

"It doesn't come cheap. But… I made a promise."

“My lovely traveling companion forced me to drink disgusting water and eat a man.”

"Charming."

Even though she seemed sweet and pure, Y/N continued to be wary of Lucy, sleeping with only one eye open and waiting for the moment when she would try to stab her in the back. First rule, don't trust anyone.

It had happened before. Never again.

Even after three years, the wound was still raw.

It was only when she saw the fear and regret in Lucy's eyes that Y/N restrained her action, yet ready to plant her blade the moment she had shown her the photo, taken out of her bag, asking her if it was her family.

Cooper hadn't been her family. He had been an asshole, who had manipulated her, who had made her believe that he loved her, and that she could love him, before abandoning her like a dog on the side of the road.

"Be careful with this Maximus. Men never change. He will take what he wants from you, and you will be hurt."

“He’s not like that.”

"I didn't think Coop was like that !" she shouted, really getting angry for the first time at Lucy, who jumped. "Yes, I loved him ! I trusted him ! It was stupid of me and I will never make that mistake again ! I hope he died in a hole, alone and in pain !"

"… Can I throw the photo away then ?"

“Give that back !” Y/N said quickly, snatching the only souvenir he had left from her hands and putting it safely in her pocket.

Lucy's sad smile indicated that she wouldn't have destroyed the photo. How sorry she was, for having gone through her things, and for having caused her pain by forcing her to talk about this man who had been so important. Also that she was happy, to see that despite her speeches, Y/N still cared for someone, even if she didn't want to.

She had never told anyone about it. It had been a long time since she had said his name, except when she woke up from a nightmare, in the middle of nowhere, calling for him like a child.

Lucy continued to smile, because for her, there must be another explanation for her precious Coop's behavior. She continued to call him Coop, even after Y/N threatened to make her eat her rotten finger.

"I know you don't like talking about him…"

“If you know that, shut up.” Y/N muttered as she continued walking towards New Vegas, trying to ignore the stream of words from the stupid vaultie, bingeing on romance novels and patriotic films.

"From the few things you agreed to share, Coop cared about you. He protected you, he taught you to defend yourself, he gave you a picture of his daughter. For me, this are proofs of love. Actions speak louder than words."

“He promised to come get me and I’m still waiting.”

"Wrong ! You left, you know how to hide perfectly, and you do everything to avoid him ! So, maybe he's been chasing you all this time and you don't know."

"What I do know is that the main clause of our deal was that you would stop talking so much, especially if it was to give such ridiculous and inappropriate advices."

They finally arrived at their destination after several weeks of walking. No sign of Lucy's friend on the way though. Perhaps he had died, or had not continued on his own.

It was clear that he wanted to use the daughter of vault 33 overseer to achieve his ends, and now that he had lost her, there was no point.

The city amazed the girl. It was the first real city she discovered, instead of those piles of ruins full of dust and vermin that were found in the four corners of the wastelands.

Her enthusiasm almost made Y/N laugh. A bit like how she had often made Cooper laugh without meaning to.

Damn, she needed to stop thinking about that bastard so often. Her mother was always saying that we manifest things through emotions and thoughts.

Her poor mother, long dead, but who had always been right.

As soon as her eyes landed on him, Y/N was crouched behind a wooden crate, watching Cooper Howard, fucking Cooper Howard, sitting near the casino, seemingly waiting for someone.

Seeing her, Lucy began to ask her what she was doing, her gaze following hers, and then the reaction was strange. Everything about this girl was strange anyway.

She started to smile.

Worse, she waved an arm at the Ghoul in greeting, opening her mouth to get his attention as she realized it wasn't enough, his cowboy hat falling over his face.

Y/N quickly grabbed her arm to pull her towards her, asking her what she was playing.

"It's the mean bounty hunter who accompanies me !" she replied happily, as if everything was normal.

For a moment, Y/N wondered if Lucy was making fun of her. If from the start, this was just a horrible joke against her, the continuation of a torture started in this seedy bar.

Then she told herself that if someone made fun of her, it was just fate.

Because she remembered that she had only described Cooper, continuing not to have any particular interest in his condition as a ghoul, and with her goodness as a jug, Lucy had not wanted to reduce him to his appearance either.

The difference was that he didn't give his name to his new pet.

“I knew you were an idiot, but not that much.”

"What ? Why ?" Lucy wondered, slightly offended and trying to free herself.

"You can't trust him. You already know that, why do you want to go back with him ? Look… I can help you find your father, okay ? Find Max. Whatever you want, but let's avoid this bastard and let's leave quickly."

"Golden rule. We said we would wait near the casino, he's there, I'm not leaving him."

With this serious look, the vault dweler would almost have looked frightening. Almost. It was mainly because it was obvious that it was impossible to reason with her that Y/N let her go, not waiting for her tirade about great friendship and the need to stay together to run as far as possible.

If Cooper noticed them, she didn't give him time to really see her, nor to catch up with her or shoot her.

Y/N didn’t turn around to check. Not because she was afraid of him chasing her. But because she was afraid that not only would he not pursue her, but she would also see him with Lucy.

Because even though he had tortured her, insulted her, threatened her… He was in front of the fucking casino waiting for this girl. And it really hurt.

[lyss-sketchbox]

Ok coming off anon because I'm trying to conquer the constant social anxiety lmao (same person who sent you Longass Thoughts on Natlan AQ) - SO YEAH personally I like Ei's character but foaming a bit at the mouth because I feel like my favorite parts of her character (namely she was NOT ready to be the archon when makoto kicked the bucket, she's got that good ol' warrior-weapon mindset knocking around in there- having her actually confront the ugly truth of the consequences of her actions was such a missed opportunity. it would've been SO good to see her actually get confronted personally without any sugarcoating. i think her learning to be less of a shitty archon would've been so much better then)

also like. im sure there were a lot of ways to improve Inazuma's story but personally i thought it would've been cooler if kokomi was a bit more. morally grey lmao. like willing to do not-so-nice things to fight god because that's what they're doing. mortals attempting to defy the god that holds dominion over their land (bc the electro archon isn't really Watatsumi's god specifically!! bc uh lmao ei killed him lol)

but yea for real in natlan every "serious problem" was severely undercut by "actually it's all good now" like "kachina is totally fine after being chased by the abyss in the afterlife, she was protected by the wayob so it's all good and she's also mentally ok" and it's like what. what are you talking about.

AND THE ARchON thing i feel like im the only one who has a gripe. tbf the story is not done yet BUT MY QUESTION IS CELESTIA ALLOWED A HUMAN (MULTIPLE EVEN) TO ASCend to the divine throne???? Like what??? IT feels like it runs counter to everything-

and like uh feels like we got really really far away from like. when you talk about the archon war in liyue it was a literal bloodbath. sacrifices upon sacrifices were made, the modern day liyue was built upon the corpses of friend and foe alike because there was no other choice. you couldn't abstain, you would die.

but in natlan???? no gods??? what???? im just losing it more than a bit over here that natlan is trying simultaneously to be a grim land of constant war but also sunshine friendship and rainbows.

at this point im prepared to be disappointed and just crossing my fingers the good writing comes back for snezhnaya's AQ bc if they fuck up snezhnaya i will literally never forgive them

Its all good man, youre so welcome to debate and talk off anon, we may disagree but never hate.

Im putting all my ramblings under cut since its gonna be as equally long and spoilery hdjsnsn

About Ei

I completely forgot about how Ei was originally a kagemusha, a weapon for her sister, her sister did all the archon work while Ei simply stood by her side. Its makes perfect sense that after the death of her sister, she would make very bad not thought out decisions and because she is an archon now, those bad decisions has really really bad aftermaths.

I personally do not have any gripes about her being basically clueless about the outside world. Grief manifests in different ways and locking yourself away and justifying it as a twisted way to gain enlightment of eternity the way your sister did, it can make sense. It is a consequence!! She is clueless of how to be an archon and what is going on in her nation, her SQ could have been used to show her trying to understand and emphatize with her people to be a better archon. NOT A REASON TO MAKE HER AN uwu sad defenseless waifu cant cook and doesnt know anything. Brother she fucking killed people and almost destroyed her nation.

About Kokomi

I like the idea of morally grey kokomi actually. It makes alot of sense. Kokomi and the watatsumi people might have some vishap descendance but they are still humans, even less so with visions. Theyre also lacking the supplies and expertise needed to continue a war with an entire nation and its archon. It would make sense that she would accept the fatuis help since they share the sentiment of 'getting to inazuma and its archon'.

But it was shown she wasnt even aware who the anonymous donor is, hell she wasnt aware people where using delusions until people starts dying. And for a girl who wrote an entire guide book with 100 different alternate plans, HOW DO YOU NOT SEE THIS COMING...............

About Natlan's system

Yeah they really brushed off the dying part and potentially being stuck in genshin limbo if you dont get out in time too casually. The tiny child you retrieved from limbo also is... very chill and not mentally scarred or anything, she wasnt putting up a brave face, she was simply unaffected?????? One on kachina's voiceovers is gonna talk about her death but im not friendship 4 with her yet. I hope it explains SOMETHING.

Yeah the first time i heard that the archon was human and has been replaced multiple times had me gawking too, i can excuse that Celestia has been strangely inactive FOR NOW.

I wanted to bring up how the hydro archon throne being broken and Neuvi regaining his sovernity didnt even call Celestia to action but GUESS WHAT??? I DONT KNOW IF NATLAN HAPPENED BEFORE OR AFTER FONTAINE BECAUSE THEY DECIDE TO LOWER THE REQUIREMENTS TO DO NATLAN AQ!!!!!!! But well if it happened after (since Neuvis end dialogue told us to go to Natlan next), well... Celestia isnt called either so theyve just been inactive for 500 years of Natlans weird system ig.

About the """Nation of War"""

Yeah man. Sacrifices and war was dealt better in liyue. Same as Natlan, it is a nation built of war. There was war in the past, sacrifices were made to built the liyue we know now. But the sacrifices in liyue was not brushed off or belittled, those sacrifices had meaning and the people of liyue hold very high regards for the fallen. In Natlan? Its treated like some sort of sick hunger games event, they made war into entertainment.

Oh but they need the tournaments to keep the natlan fire alive. THEN RUN A SEPERATE FUCKING TOURNEY?????? MAKE EVERYONE WHO HAS AN ANCIENT NAME HAVE PROPER TRAINING AND GO TO WAR IN ARMIES PROPER???? THIS SHIT DOESNT NEED TO BE ENTERTAINMENT AND YET YOU DID. Maybe the flames are small BECAUSE YOU PICK ONLY 5 PEOPLE EVERYTIME WHEN THERES LITERALLY NO REASON VETERANS LIKE KINICH AND MUALANI TO SIT IT OUT JUST BECAUSE THEY LOST.

Oh but the ode of resurrection only works on limited people THEN SEND OUT THE BEST PEOPLE THEN???????? MUALANI, A 3 TIMES VETERAN, LOST TO KACHINA. CLEARLY THE TOURNEYS ARENT RELIABLE TO PICK WHO TO SEND.

While i can understand that while Liyue is past war and Natlan is still in war, this is... not how people in war act. The entertainment the happiness the hospitality. Its not efforts to keep morale high its literally just... happy people, sometimes they get attacked by abyss monsters yeah cool but otherwise theyre completely happy just living like that. Thats why the Nation of War thing isnt working at all, these people are not how people STILL IN WAR act. Theres no anxiety no uncertainty no worry at all, not even a smidget. These people live like happy prospering people.

You know what happened to people tryna be happy prospering people while still in war in liyue? Havria.

I hope they bring back the high AR requirement for snezhnaya so snezhnaya can be chronologically correct. I hope they take snezhnaya seriously. I hope Natlan atleast wont pull an inazuma and tripped at the very end

NONE OF THAT POWER OF FRIENDSHIP BS EITHER I didnt believe it when mualani fucking knocked it over our heads over and over and over again and its not gonna work now.

[evelili]

I know it’s been ages since I sent one of these, I’ve been busy and I’m still busy so I don’t have time to read the full chapter BUT!! Here’s some of my thoughts and favorite lines from the beginning of this chapter. The Final Trial.

I really love how you write the memory sequences in this story. They all flow really well and don’t feel redundant!! The reveal of these memories twilight has hidden of Luna are so good!! God!! Her devastation when she realized she had forgotten someone as important as Celestia’s SISTER her AUNT is AMAZING!!

-

her hair pulled back into a ponytail, her legs bare below the knees of a ridiculous pink-and-purple skort that she’d have been mortified to wear past puberty—eight or nine, then, she decided. It’s probably summertime, too.

-

God this mental image is so cute!! I had to google what skorts are but yeah they definitely fit Twilight and her character, especially as a kid!!

-

Twilight waited for her younger self to voice the familiar retort she thought she’d known her entire life—magic isn’t real; magic doesn’t exist; magic is fictional and fantastical and lies. But instead of a rational dismissal she heard her voice ask something completely wrong instead:

“You’re really going to show me how?”

And Twilight didn’t hear anything else after that.

-

DAMNNN this sequence is so good!! The way twilights world is just DESTROYED by this is fantastic!!

-

“Well, I wanted to check in on the two of you.” The door swung further open, and suddenly Twilight was face-to-face with the Celestia of her childhood—younger by nearly a decade and yet still recognizable in almost every way. She hadn’t ever thought time had changed her mentor much, but the contrast between present and past was far more blatant when not viewed as a gradual shift. No laugh lines. No grey hairs. No ice in her eyes.

Just a Celestia whose very presence made Someone bristle in response.

-

This description of her is DEVASTATING. She’s both somehow unhappier and so much happier with Luna in her life. The way you write her is stunning and I’m loving the conflict between her wanting Luna to focus on the future and Luna who is focused on enjoying the present. It’s a very cool conflict and I love how you’re handling it!! Them both caring more about twilights emotions than each other’s is heartbreaking

-

It did—to both the Twilight of the present and the past. “Yeah,” she said quietly. “I get it.”

-

Fuck this line is FANTASTIC. The understanding twilight finds in her memories of Luna are fantastic and I’m very curious on how this will impact how she handles Nightmare going forward. Unfortunately I can’t read anymore tonight, but I love it so far!!

STOP THE CLOCK. I FORGOT THIS BANGER LINE: “You believe in magic, Twilight,” she said gently. “And so long as you do, that’s belief enough for me.” The way you write Luna and how much she and celestia both love twilight is DEVASTATING

(combined ur two asks together) WAHHHH thank u so much for the asks!!! and no worries abt taking ur time w the story, u only get to read once for the first time after all!

this chapter is definitely Up There in terms of how happy i am with how it turned out, im rlly glad u liking it so far! i dont know how much i can say without spoiling things, but a reminder to read on fimfic to get the Full Experience (epub missing images my nemesis), a rather important section will b missing otherwise!!

i think to me a big aspect of luna and celestia's relationship in the show that kinda got glossed over was that celestia may not have realized how her actions affected luna until too late. and, it's kind of the "road to hell with good intentions" thing, bc i dont think celestia is the bad guy (at least in tte) for believing that the best way to help someone is plan, prepare, try to think ahead and look forward, etc. but, this kind of mindset can clash with someone who, at that moment, finds the prospect of thinking about the future so impossible. writing from life helped a lot in this regard :)

also, completely unrelated but also related, have a meme :D and thanks again for reading!

[guilty-pleasures21]

Yooooooooouuuuuuuuuu!!!!!!! You SUCK!

Hope everyone managed to get a break this weekend. Just a few more days until the end if the year. You got this! 💪

0. The slow burn

Part 1 - the meet cute

Part 2 - the coffee mug

Part 3 - the spicy song

Part 4 - the absence

Part 5 - the watch/the sweet song

Part 6 - the backrub

Warnings: some mentions of reader having dirty thoughts, but nothing explicit. Also, I've censored some words just because of personal preference 😅.

Forgot to add the song!!!

----------------------------------------------------------

He'd stopped celebrating the victories a while back. Of course it had been exciting at first, being a superhero - hopping from dimension to dimension and showing up other heroes with his knowledge and powers. But ever since … ever since that first failure, when he'd destroyed an entire world for his own selfish means, it had become a duty - a repentance of sorts. Because even if he'd lost his little girl in that world, he had to believe that she still existed in other worlds, other versions of her going about their day, living life to the fullest. And she'd already had to give herself up for him - for that tiniest slice of happiness he'd stolen from her. So he'd give himself up too, every single day, for every version of her, even if she didn't know he existed.

He deactivated his mask as he walked into the control room, the darkness allowing him to finally let his senses relax. He strode towards the platform, catching a glimpse of X sitting in her chair, staring at the screen in front of her. She'd been guiding the mission this time, watching over them through the cameras he'd hacked into beforehand. It was always helpful to have someone able to see the bigger picture when a mission was going on. And she usually gave good guidance, coming up with strategies and ideas that had them catching even the most creative of anomalies. He'd normally bring her with him on the bigger missions though, the two of them communicating almost telepathically as they wrangled the worst villains of the bunch.

And then it was fun again, being a superhero, swinging around the city saving people. And, of course, the banter. He liked coming up with witty comments that only egged his opponents on even more - liked the way she'd always stop to laugh, her lips curling into that bright smile that had his own quirking at the ends. But, Dios, she had the humour of a retired librarian sometimes, coming up with horrible puns that made even their villains freeze in horror at her jokes. And that stupid phrase ‘Jinkies, Spiderman’. What the hell did that even mean?! She'd just whizzed through some explanation about another fictional superhero on her Earth - Batman, she'd said. And his sidekick too, some bird or another that she was obsessed with. She was so weird sometimes. But amusing, he allowed. 

     “Arañita,” he called out to her as he pulled himself up onto the platform. “Have you finished the mission report?”

He stood over her, hands on his hips as he waited. But she didn't respond. Just continued staring at the screen, chin on her palm as she hunched over the desk. He raised an eyebrow, confused, and looked over at the screen. She was watching the mission replay - there was him swinging across the frame before he tackled the Rhino - and seemed so completely absorbed by it that even her Spider senses had failed to alert her to his presence.

He leaned over her slightly, trying to get her to turn around and look at him, and that was when he heard it: the song playing through her earphones. And coño, it was dirty. So explicitly dirty that it had him clenching his fists and gritting his teeth against the heat rapidly building up under his collar. He inhaled slowly, trying to figure out how the absolute f*ck she could listen to something like that while … while watching him run across the screen. Ay, mierda, was she … was she thinking about him? While listening to those filthy lyrics? F*****ck. He reached forward and plucked one of her earphones out of her ear, startling her enough for her to finally swivel around to face him. He waited as she looked up at him, her lips parted in surprise, her eyes glazed over as they roved over him. She licked her lips as her gaze trailed over his torso, then swallowed hard when her eyes landed on his mouth. He clenched his jaw, trying to ignore the way his body seemed to heat up everywhere her eyes landed. Then, all of a sudden, she jumped out of her seat. 

     “Hooooolyyyyyy!” she whispered loudly, setting her other earphone down on the table. She peeked up at him from beneath her eyelashes nervously and he found himself clenching his fists again to stop from sucking in a breath. “Sorry! I was just … I just …”

     She gestured between him and the screen, trying to come up with an excuse. Then, suddenly, she curled into herself, squeezing her legs together as she avoided his gaze. “I have to go to the toilet!” 

     F*******ck. That smell? Coming off of her? The sweet scent that had her clenching her thighs together in a futile attempt to hide it from him? He ran his fingers through his hair, gripping the strands tightly as he ground his teeth together.

     “Miguel?” Lyla popped up in front of him, eyes wide with concern behind her heart-shaped glasses. “What's wrong? Your vitals are going through the roof!” ¡P*ta madre! What the f*ck was happening to him?! He set her earphone down on the table and leaned over the desk, taking a few deep breaths to calm himself down. He wasn't some teenager with raging hormones; he was a grown man who could get his emotions under control. He just needed to take a deep breath in, then a deep breath out. In, out.

    “I'm fine,” he assured Lyla, not feeling very fine at all. “I, uh … It's nothing. I'm fine.” Lyla narrowed her eyes at him, unconvinced. Then she flickered over to the surface of the table, investigating the cause for his sudden spike in testosterone. A pair of earphones were laid on the table, the distinct lavender colour making them as X's. She looked up at the computer and sifted through the different tabs, her eyes lighting up with surprise when she found what she'd been looking for. 

     “Oh!” It was a song. A song that, judging by the subject matter, would have had any man's testosterone levels spiking. She twisted her head to glance over at Miguel, a cheeky smile plastered over her holographic face. Then she disappeared, only to materialise right by his head this time. She folded her arms across her chest and gave him a knowing look. She opened her mouth to tease him, but he stopped her before she could continue.

     “Not a word,” he warned her, letting out a huff as he straightened up.

     “But-” 

     “Lyla.” 

     She sighed, annoyed by his constant attempts to foil her entertainment. It was just such a rare sight, seeing her boss so flustered - and by the seemingly innocent little X as well! Plus, it was an exciting change from all the Peter's and their Gwen Stacey's and their Mary Jane's they were always going to end up with anyway. 

     “Fine,” she conceded reluctantly, seeming to let the subject go. But then she returned to the desk, her attention focused on the screen as she scrolled through the rest of X's playlist. She grinned and looked up at Miguel, a devious expression on her face. “But I think you'd like the next one just as much.” 

     His eyes flickered over to the screen and he tensed his muscles to stop himself from groaning in frustration at the title. He reached forward, about to swipe Lyla off the table, but then X returned, landing on the platform beside him.

     “Miguel?” She fidgeted with her hands nervously as her gaze bounced between him and the floor. She tucked a strand of hair behind her ear before speaking again. “How, um … How was your mission?” 

     It was like his brain had stopped working as he looked down at her, so difficult was it to reconcile the shy and innocent X standing before him with the one who'd been undressing him with her eyes only moments earlier. What had she been thinking about, looking at him while listening to that song? Had she imagined his hands, gliding all over her as they lay in bed together? His name, falling from her lips as he pleased and pleasured her? His body, pressed up against hers, their bare skin siding against one another's as they- F*ck! He froze, horrified by the direction in which thoughts had been going. Ay, por Dios, he was so. F*cking. Screwed. His watch buzzed - again - letting him know that his heart rate had increased, the blood pounding through his veins in excitement at his thoughts. He hid his hands behind his back and took a step away from her, putting some distance between them. 

     “Uh, it was good,” he replied, casting around for something to say. He scratched the back of his head, his eyes landing on the unfinished mission report still open on her screen. “I can finish the mission report!” He moved to sit down, to take over and give his mind some other task to focus on, but she stopped him. 

     “It's fine.” X waved him off and settled back into her seat. “I can finish it. I'm almost done anyway.” She was most definitely nowhere near being done. He'd just looked so good! Taking on the Rhino with his deliciously sculpted physique, the smart retorts rolling off his tongue as he battled with the wicked villain. Oh God, she was so screwed. There was just no way - no way in hell - that he could ever like her like that. No one else had ever liked her before, so how could she possibly think that someone like him - smart and strong and so painfully handsome - could ever fall for someone like her? She shoved her feelings down, typing up everything she remembered without running through the recording for what was probably the hundredth time that night. 

     She'd … changed, somehow. She didn't seem like the same person who'd been listening to the song earlier. She seemed deflated now, disappointed. And he didn't like the way his stomach curdled at her unexpected change in energy. He hesitated, wanting to cheer her up, to see that smile back on her face again. But it terrified him, the thought of teasing her; of flirting with her and flustering her so that she'd be forced to pull her gaze away from his, her almond-shaped eyes peeking up at him from beneath her curly lashes as she stammered out a response. He cleared his throat, trying to keep his tone neutral as he spoke. “You … sure you were concentrating, arañita?” 

     She froze at his response - at the slight note of teasing in his voice. Had he heard? Oh God. Had he heard the filthy song she'd been listening to, her eyes following his every movement across the screen as she'd practically drooled over him? She swallowed carefully, then muttered under her breath, “a little too much, if anything.” 

     He pressed his lips together, trying not to laugh at the retort. And trying to ignore the way his heart fluttered at the thought that she might have found him attractive. He nodded, satisfied by her seemingly lifted spirits, and took another step away from her. “Bien, I'll … I'll leave you to it, then. Let me know when you're done?” 

     She nodded, not even noticing the deviation from his usual response: ‘let me know when you're done?’ Not the careless: ‘let me know when it's done.’ “Hasta mañana, Miguel.” 

     His lips twitched at her consistent efforts to replicate his manner of speech, to show him how much she cared about all the little things that made him up. “Hasta mañana, arañita.” 

[guesst]

MANHWA REC LIST PART 2

WAR OF THE PRINCESSES

i finished catching up to this like 2 minutes ago [EDIT: WROTE THAT THE DAY BEFORE YESTERDAYM NOW ITS 2 DAYS AGO] and i genuinely really liked this. for a manhua its amazing!! the plot is unique and keeps you guessing, the characters are entertaining and NOT cookie cutter cutouts of isekai tropes, theres been some interesting reveals and a lot of people in the comments were hating on ml but personally i found him super fun; hes very morally grey n has definite flaws but thats what makes him a good character to read about !! not to mention the main character herself is great. i hate that my bar for good manhwa/hwa characters has gone down to 'has more than 2 personality traits' but she is leaping over it for sure

PLEASE REPENT, YOUR GRACE!

i dont read yaoi i dont read bl. i have never ever read it . however the vibes were so strong that i had to go back and check the tags because.. if you read it... you will see. its so strong. it radiates. (all that aside i really like the relationship btn the mains i think its really fun. they may not be gay (????🤨🤨🤨🤔🤔) but its still highly enjoyable i love it)

THE BABY SAINT WANTS TO DESTROY THE WORLD!

ive read 2 chapters but i just think the 'evil character reincarmates into the pinnacle of goodness' trope is the funniest thing in the world. i have no clue if its going to be a generic collect the characters take over the world type of thing but i just think its funny and its the newest one ive read.

IT SEEMS I'VE TRANSMIGRATED SOMEWHERE

i have been waiting for aomethinf like this for SO LONG hahah the main character is so diddly darn confused the entire time cus in her past life shes read too much rofan etc and now cant figure out what novel shes trandmigrated into. regular manhwa reader fr,, anyway theres a strong case for second hand embarrassment in this one, especially in the first few chapters or so, but i genuinely really like this just cus its so self aware, it keeps poking fun at all the tropes and its a nice lighthearted read. also theres a decent amount of plot despite it all and OH I ALMOST FORGOT the male lead is an absolute 10 personalitywise i genuinely love him. hes here for drama and thats it its amazing. so yea id say tropey but Well Written super fun 👍👍👍

HIDING THE ARCHDUKE'S HUMILIATING HISTORY

i think this is the first manhwa ive read where the ml pisses himself in fear the first time he meets fl (theyre both children)(hes scared of something else not fl but still). anyway its nothing particularly unique but its pretty fun! its one of those novel isekai where mc reincarnates into a little kid and the structure makes it a sandwich which has been keeping me very invested. this isnt a very good advertisment but its a good way to pass the time i think. heres a nice reaction pic

SUSU, HAN

oh my god??? just binged this whole thign in one go. first of all ots complete, second of all i guess you can say tjis is a character study in manhwa form. there isnt a particular overarching antagomist, its the characters learning to grow and face their own personal issues. but its also a slice of life, and lighthearted family drama, and comedy. its not a rofan this time lol. also the sibling relationships in susu, han are so good !! and theres so many lovely platonic relationships too. i really really enjoyed it.

THE TALE OF GOLDILUCK, THE BLACK KITTEN

WHOLESOME !!! WHOLESOME WHOLESOME WHOLESOME absolutely adorable, centres around a black cat that gets adopted by a young noble in ancient? old? korea. so so cite, read to soothe your heart

olay ive hit the image limit again. would yall like more

[art-blogge]

FGO/PM Mirror-World

Master Candidate number 48. The young man stood in the hallway of Chaldea, almost pouting, having been kicked out of orientation by the Ms. Director. He'd barely gotten to meet one of the other candidates before passing out, and he was being punished for it. That wasn't how things were supposed to go for his first day, but something about it also felt oddly right. The Flow, as he called it, called for him to go elsewhere. The other candidate- What was their name? Dante?- Had suggested he go lay down for a while with a sneer, so he may as well. He could always catch up on the orientation later.

He'd barely gotten to meet Doctor Garnet before alarms blared. Central Command had caught fire, and the Doctor had already run off. Then and there, the young candidate decided to go with him. The Flow be damned. People needed help!

There! In the rubble, Dante's body!

He tried his best to push it off of them, but it was no use. Their head was probably crushed, but they were still moving. As the computer continued to read off scripts, he grabbed Dante's hand. He could at least be there for them, even as everything went black.

--

He heard a clock in his ear, yet didn't. He heard words, but no voice.

<"Wake up! Do I use the official title?? Master Vergilius?? Wake up before I kill you!">

That woke him up quickly.

"What?"

Dante had a bright red clock for a head with flames completely dissimilar to the fires surrounding them. He forgot what they looked like before, but it wasn't that! The ticking was new, too.

<"Uhm. Sorry, I don't know where that came from!">

They rubbed their neck and turned their entire head to look at the ground. They hadn't been in combat garb earlier… Just lab gear. And were they being… Nicer than before?

<"Please work with me! We have threats coming in!">

--

According to Dante, they had fused with a Servant at the last moment, but they didn't recall much prior to that. In exchange for their memory, they'd been granted the power of a Servant. Servants needed a Master to survive, and they'd chosen him for their Master.

Him, a Master… A real, proper Master! The things he could change as a Master were countless, to say the least!

--

They survived, and he was the last Master alive. The fate of the City was on him, now. Him, and the rest of the staff. Doctor Garnet was promoted to Temporary Director, there being almost no one else alive. Despite his cowardice and inexperience, he had the makings of a good leader.

There was Caster Lapis, who he hadn't met before this point. She was brutally honest with him, and he liked that. She was now Second-in-Command, despite being a Servant.

And then there was Dante, who had been following him around like a lost puppy since they'd gotten back. There was nothing anyone was able to do about the memory loss- That'd been their own decision- But they seemed to retain faculties just fine despite the clock.

The Flow didn't stop. It would be followed until it ended.

----

"We're going to settle this now, Dragon Witch!" Ruler Faust cried.

"Shut up! Let's fight!" yelled Faust Alter, "Will despair win, or will hope win? Will murderous intent win, or will pity win? Let's see if you can surpass me, Me who gave up everything!"

Hope would win, of course. Vergilius was certain of that, and Dante resolutely stood by his side. They would win. The Flow continued on."

----

Are you going to stand in my way?" the opposition named Jia Huan calmly asked, staring Vergilius straight in the eyes.

"That's why we're here."

"I'll stand in your way as well," the still-living Hong Lu agreed, brandishing his spear. "The world is brimming with beauty. Flowers, songs, jade, love… And you'd destroy it all? Isn't that wasteful?"

Dante was still by his side, chained shield at the ready. They would win. The Flow continued on.

----

The enemy mage, the crazed Captain Ahab, had overwritten her last crewmate with the Identity of a Demon, and it now towered over them all with its hundreds of eyes on it's pallid body. Queequeg was no more, replaced with the monstrosity of the sea.

"If it can be hit, it can be defeated!," Captain Ishmael (Rider) declared, reloading her pistol. She could see it's heart, and she knew that it was her true target- Not the pathetic mage that summoned it.

"Come, Dante! This is our last battle together!"

She clapped her free hand on Dante's armored shoulder, a wide grin on her face.

"This is it! Be brave! Laugh those fears away! "

"Let's go, Dante!" Vergilius announced, pointing at their enemies.

<"Yes, Master! Commencing correction!">

They would win. The Flow continued on.

----

"Something is manifesting!" Dr. Garnet warned, "Something" is coming! It's an unknown phenomenon! Not a Servant manifestation! Unknown? No, it's actually more like a Rayshift? But that's impossible. Only we have that technology!"

Next to Vergilius, Dante shivered despite their coat.

<"Senpai, something's wrong here. I can't detect anything, but I'm freezing.">

Before them, the true enemy approached, wrapped in shadow. Vergil's companions of the Singularity all flinched away… And moments later, a branch had beheaded the nearest one.

Beside them, Saber Gregor cried out and threw himself at the manifestation that had named itself "Solomon". A single entity swatted him aside as easily as one would a fly.

"The only one that interests me here is the one with the clock," Solomon stated plainly. "Out of respect for your pure heart, I'll only bring four of them here with me. Show me everything you can do."

They wouldn't win, but they would survive. The Flow continued on.

----

"Let's get it started," the Effloresced man stated, his scythe at the ready.

"You don't intend to hand over the Bough, do you?" Assassin Yi Sang asked, already knowing the answer. His knife was already prepared for combat.

"Of course not. It's time to harvest the rewards I've rightfully earned. The past will be replaced."

Vergilius didn't need to be told that this was the final battle of the Singularity. Beside him, Dante stood as always.

<"Let's go, Vergil! Bring us victory again!">

They would win. The Flow continued on.

----

"I have this duty to stop you!" yelled out Heathcliff, brandishing the sword that would soon end his life. "As the Heathcliff that will end this accursed cycle! You won't take my Catherine from me, you fake deity twat!"

The opposing Catherine in white simply tilted her head as if she didn't understand. She didn't understand why Heathcliff had tears running down his face, or why she was being opposed. This was for everyone, wasn't it?

"Give me your final orders, Sir Vergilius! Let us end this. No one else should have to go through this."

Vergil looked at the ground briefly, then back to Heathcliff. Neither of them knew that Heathcliff would become a Servant after this by the will of the river deity, but this had to be done.

"If that's what you want to do, we're with you."

<"I'll do anything to help you, my Heathcliff!"> Dante chimed in, holding the burnt Holy Bough like a weapon, <"Our final enemy here is Ever'y Catherine! Let's finish correcting this mansion, Master!">

They would win. The Flow continued on.

----

"From the fiery abyss, I come, and only death do I bring. My name is Ryoshu, and you will be part of my canvas."

"I can't believe this!," Dr. Garnet chimed in from communications, pushing Lapis off screen entirely, "It's able to be killed now! Now, now! Vergilius, now is the time!"

"We've found the weakness!" Lapis announced offscreen, "It's the head! That Abnormality's weak point is in it's head!

"And now that she knows that she is mortal, she is fleeing," Grand Caster Meursault added, the tiniest smile gracing his usually stone-cold face. "Now is the time. This is the last chance we get. The storm is closing in. We can speak later. Prepare to fight."

<"Of course, Sir! This is the final battle of the Seventh Singularity! This is for all our friends who believed in us, and for King Outis! Let's do whatever's necessary to defeat that ALEPH!">

"Of course!"

On the sidelines, Mistress Rodion had finally regained control over her icy underworld. She willingly gave full permission to fight for the first, and possibly last time. Humanity would survive this.

They would win. The Flow continued on.

----

"Be careful, Vergilius! He's right in front of you!" crowed Lapis over the comms, panicked.

"I know," Vergilius responded, watching the false Solomon approach. "Solomon", true name Jumsoon, slowly strode up to him despite the failure of his lab, fully Distorted.

"We've both lost everything here," Vergilius plainly stated, holding Dante's shield at the ready. Garnet had sacrificed himself moments before to foil Hermann's plot, and Dante had been incinerated saving Vergilius' life. He barely had any reason to want to go on, but failing to would be a waste of the sacrifices.

"Everything here has been a waste, yes," Jumsoon agreed, his tail irritibly flicking about.

"I am all that remains here. There's nothing left but for one of us to be hung on the portrait wall, and the other to live. …My sworn enemy. My hatred. My destiny. I want you to witness this. This brief moment is now my story. This brief but precious time has given the creature called Jumsoon true life."

With all he wanted said, Jumsoon Effloresced.

--

Of course he won, and the Flow directed Vergilius to the Rayshift point. He wasn't going to make it-

<"Master, take my hand!!">

They both survived. They had won, and yet… The Flow did not stop.

--

Oh. OH.

--

With one success, a new threat emerged, wiping all progress and the City with it. The only survivors were "The Red-Gaze" Vergilius, Shielder Dante, and a few crew members. All Servants had been wiped away. Lapis had been killed in combat.

She'd predicted this and left a clone of herself to act in her stead, codenamed Charon. Charon's job was to drive New Chaldea's transportation- Named the Mephistopheles by Faust- to clear this new threat.

"This drags," Lancer Rodion complained from her seat, filing her axe.

<"HOW ARE YOU HERE?!"> Dante screamed, jumping so high that they nearly escaped their bandages.

"A bunch of us are," Rodion laughed, gesturing to the door at the back.

As Vergilius threw it open, a bunch of Servants they'd befriended poured out and ganged around him.

"Sir Vergilius! Tis fortunate to see you again!" yelled the Lancer Don Quixote of the second Sub-Singularity. She was so loud he couldn't hear anyone else.

<"You guys made it!!"> Dante cheerfully rang over her, and the Servants started to gang them instead.

Vergilius sighed in relief. Not everything was lost yet. It had come very close, but there was still some hope. They would win. The Flow continued on.

----

It was so, so hard. Millions of people killed just to restore the City they knew. The deaths were on Vergilius' hands. It didn't feel worth it to be a Grand Master with a title anymore. He never wanted this, but the Flow never stopped. He had to, they all had to Sin to get back the world they knew.

Next to him as always, Dante rested their head against his shoulder. They didn't need to speak. Vergilius knew what they were going to say. That they could do it. That everything would be right in the end.

Vergilius was so, so jaded compared to when he'd started, and yet… He knew they were right. It would end eventually. The Flow hadn't stopped, so they would win. They would survive, no matter what.

[heyclickadee]

I've had this sitting in my drafts for a few days and just forgot to post it. Anyway! Thoughts on "Entombed" (sorry, this got long): 

1. There's an ancient mechanical creature hidden under a mountain on an uncharted world activated by a mysterious crystal and implied to have razed its entire planet. Why? How does this technology work? Is the mechanical creature alive or sentient in some way? What is it about the crystal that activates the creature? Is this just technology, or is it force weirdness, or both? Why did somebody (potentially the Zeffo) build a planet destroying giraffe of terror? Why was it in the mountain? Did someone hide it there? Did the engineer who designed it base its appearance off of a real animal? Did it hide itself? I have questions.

2. I had to watch this one twice to decide what I thought. I enjoyed it the first time, but I was so thrown by how completely different it was than what I was expecting that I had to give it another shot. Second time around? I loved it. Sometimes Star Wars is profound and serious. Sometimes it's silly Indiana Jones shenanigans in space, and I love it for that.

3. I'll talk about the whole "filler" discussion lower down, but one of the throughlines that's been carried through to this episode from the very beginning of the season is the idea of these characters exploring life outside Kamino, the army, and even the "hunker down and survive" mode they were all in last season, along with the choices they are or could be making as individuals regarding what kind of lives they want to live. Echo, for example, wants to go back to being a soldier, but this time in a fight against the empire; Crosshair is still choosing to be a soldier (for now), and he's miserable about it but having to live with the choice he made to stay; Tech's gotten to explore a bit of what he wants and likes through the riot racing episode but, more than that, he's being presented with the idea that the galaxy is broader and deeper than he considered and that he maybe has more to offer it than just what he was designed to offer; Wrecker...honestly needs an episode where he's in focus because he seems to be the most content of any of them and I'm not sure what Wrecker wants, besides being with the people he loves; and then this week was Omega's (and sort of but not quite) Hunter's turn. I'm an adult, so I tend to focus on the adult characters, but Omega's such a good character and it's great that she's also getting a chance to explore what kind of person she wants to be. This is the second episode we've seen that really focuses on her being a bit of an adrenaline junky with an interest in treasure hunting. And given what Romar said to her about how happiness is worth all the treasure in the galaxy, that's probably going to be a theme for her this season, and I'm curious to see where it goes.

4. Theres. An inexplicable megazord. Just. Out there. On a dead planet.

5.  Hunter's...Hunter's not okay. And not even in just a "tired dad" sense, I mean that Hunter's probably been crying under his helmet since "Aftermath" and that he's getting to the point where he can't hide how bone-tired and sad he actually is. It's almost shocking going back and watching the first half of season one and comparing Hunter there to how he's been in his season so far, because he was so much more open back then. He was exploring options, asking questions, trying to find a new life for all of them, and came across as pretty confident in his decisions, but after the one-two-three punch of encountering Crosshair on Bracca, getting shot by Cad Bane, and losing Omega? The man shuts down. And he only shut down more after what happened with Crosshair on Kamino. I actually suspect that Hunter agrees more with Echo about what they should be doing than he lets on, even taking his opinion that Omega shouldn't be forced into become a soldier the way they were into account. He's not happy about what they're doing, he doesn't like going on dangerous missions for someone else, and he really only got involved with Cid because they were broke and desperate and because she kind of blackmailed them into doing it, but he keeps digging his heels in and refusing to move. It seems like he feels like he's a failure as a leader, a brother, and maybe even as a father, because he hasn't really been proactively leading the group since episode nine of last season. He isn't really making decisions about what they should or shouldn't do--he's mostly letting other people decide on their missions and then letting them guilt, blackmail, or push him into it because he's so scared of making a decision that get's another one of them hurt or results in them losing another person the way they lost Crosshair (or worse) that he's mentally and emotionally paralyzed AND emotionally isolating himself from everyone else. And that paralysis is starting--more than starting--to cause friction on the team, and I'm curious to see how that's going to affect the story moving forward.

6. Seriously, someone get this beautiful bandana man some therapy.

7. Likewise, the vibe between Echo and Hunter this episode was interesting. As much as they're (at least outwardly) disagreeing on what their next steps should be, there doesn't seem to be any animosity between them, at least not yet.  All those silently exchanged glances? They disagree, but they trust each other, and I kind of think they both think that they other one is going to come around to their point of view. Eventually.

8. Omega is me if someone sets me loose on a scavanger hunt.

9. They gave me the space archaeology (kind of) and I am VIBRATING

10. I WISH archaeology was this fun. I spent an entire season walking surveys up in Wyoming, and did I ever come across a map to an ancient mecha-beast? No. No I did not. (I kid, real life archaeology is very fun and I have absolutely cried about lithic debitage and fingerprints on potsherds because someone it means someone lived and breathed and died and that stuff might seem boring but it's evidence of a human life and that's beautiful.)

11. Phee! All hail our pirate queen!

12. Phee is fun and her fashion sense is impeccable. And she has a sword. She's got a vibro-cutlass. Or something like unto a sword. But in space. And regardless of how anyone interprets them, I really liked the scenes with her and Tech at the beginning (characters being a bit snarky towards each other? I'm going to have fun), and Omega imprinting on her like a little baby duck was adorable. It's similar to the vibe Ezra had with Hondo, but where Ezra was a bit of a little shit (and I mean that affectionately) with a tendency to give Hondo chances he knew Hondo didn't deserve because he thought Hondo was a fun dude to have around (and maybe because he saw in Hondo a lot of the kind of person he would have turned into if the ghost crew hadn't picked him up and given him a chance), Omega's just all starry eyes with Phee. Is Phee trustworthy? Probably not. Is she fun for now? Oh yeah.

13. It would be hilarious if Phee turned out to be a former jedi who worked in the archives but left the order well before the war or order 66 because she wanted to go treasure hunting. This is the crackiest of crack theories and I do not expect it to happen. But it would be funny.

14. I loved how into the treasure hunt Tech started to get. Asking questions? About the puzzles? Doing his own investigation on the age of the site? Yes.

15. "I suspect that this is not, in fact, a treasure vault," as the aforementioned inexplicable megazord shambles to life once again proving that Tech, with his deadpan one-liners, is the funniest damn character on this show.  

16. Not much Echo this episode, which was a little disappointing, but I liked what little we got. Hopefully there's more in the next one!

17. There's a MAP to an TECHNOLOGICAL MONSTER that PREDATES THE REPUBLIC just OUT in SPACE and I am HERE FOR IT.

18. I didn't think it was possible to make something that vaguely resembles an ankylosaur look scary. I've been corrected. I'm glad Wrecker was able to throw the ankylosaur from hell out the window. (But also I feel a little sorry for it). 

19. Mel??? Running from the death ray??? And not making it??? Corbett and Rau I AM IN YOUR WALLS WHAT THE HELL??? But no, actually, that was a pretty good way to up tension without taking out one of the regular characters.

20. So...I'm not saying that spite is low-key a good motivator, but spite might low-key be a good motivator. I'll just leave it at that.

21. No one calls the clone characters by their names. I didn't think this was anything at first, but the more of this season I see, the more I think it definitely is. No one who isn't a clone addresses a clone by their name. And it's not just the villianous or morally ambiguous non-clone characters, no one does it. Not Phee, who has a couple different nicknames for everyone in the batch (including Tech, even though she asked what his name was), not Cid, not Rampart, not even Romar, and Romar was definitely a good guy. The only exception was the announcer and the crowd using Tech's name in "Faster," because that's the name he gave when he signed up (and there's a pretty good chance no one suspected he was a clone) and even then the announcer had to comment on how weird it was and questioned whether or not that was even a name. It's an interesting trend and is probably playing into the idea of how clones were viewed by most of the galaxy during the war--basically as non-people--but I also want to see where it goes before I come down on any hard conclusions. Apart from the overall trend, I do think that every character we're meeting is doing it for a different reason. Rampart pointedly calls clones by their CT numbers as a sign of disrespect. They are not people to him and he doesn't care if they know that. Cid? I think it's so she doesn't get attached. She doesn't want to like them too much. It might be the same for Phee, buuuuuut I'm not sure. And then with Romar...I kind of wonder if he kept calling Tech "Ace" partly because he didn't realize that Tech's name was Tech. Same with the announcer in "Faster" scratching his head over "Tech" being a name. Romar could have thought that "Tech" was a codename or a squad designation, because...I mean...clone names are unusual. Even within the galaxy far far away with the exceedingly silly names, clone names are often etymologically weird. And every person in the batch is named after their job. It'd be like going to the store and finding out that the person loading the shelves is just named "Stocker." And--hey, sad thought about clones--I kind of wonder if most people in the galaxy just assumed that clones didn't have names. After all, they're manufactured people, people who didn't--from what people could tell from the outside--have families. Who would name them? is probably what a lot of people who didn't know the clones would ask. The only people who called the clones by their names were the jedi and other clones; now the jedi are gone and most of the clones aren't in a position to even use their own names right now.

22. I just made myself sad about clones.

23. I LOVED the look of...well, of everything in this episode. It honestly felt like half the purpose of this one was to allow the art and effects teams to flex and flex they did.  

24. This whole episode is like if someone decided that Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade, Castle in the Sky, Atlantis: The Lost Empire, and Godzilla: King of Monsters were the same movie, and I appreciate that energy. 

25. I love that the batch's reaction at the end was basically just, "Well. That just happened." I need Crosshair to come back so they can tell him this story. Them just saying, "While you were off with the Empire we were awakening the ancient horrors," and him jokingly threatening to leave again because there's no way he's believing that this happened.

26. What is the kingdom of Elweys? I need it. I need to know. (For real, though, I'm actually glad that none of the crazy ancient technology stuff in this episode was explained. It gives the GFFA a bit of temporal depth that it doesn't always have and I'm here for it.)

27. Regarding the filler discussion: Not every story has to be serialized. It's okay for some shows to just be a series of putting characters in different combinations and scenarios and seeing what they do. In fact, that used to be the norm. For decades. That was how television worked. It's only in the last decade or so that serialized television has become more of a regular thing. 

Furthermore, there's a spectrum of ways to serialize something. On one end of that spectrum you have your eight-hour movies--things like Kenobi and Moon Knight, where pretty much every episode begins where the previous episode ended, and where no episode is complete without the overall structure of the entire show. On the other end of that spectrum you have your tentpole episode shows--think something like the first season of the Ducktales reboot--where you can mostly watch the episodes in any order you want because most of the episodes are the characters getting into various shenanigans while most of the plot is reserved for big event episodes, usually mid-season or season finales. And then elsewhere on that spectrum you'll have shows that are written a little more like a novel. Every single episode or chapter will have its own story, its own miniature inciting incident, rising action, climax, falling action, and its own mix of plot, character development, and worldbuilding (sometimes focusing a little more on one than the others), but the successive episodes or chapters build up to an overarching story and overall structure, and it can be hard to see how or what that overarching story is until you get to the end of the whole story. That's what The Bad Batch is. It's that kind of serialized story. 

And--just a last thought--if we're going to say that an episode is filler and doesn't contribute to the plot, we've got to one, consider that maybe story is more than plot, and two, ask ourselves what the "plot" actually is. Anyway, this is just me being a little bit salty, but the unending "filler" discourse whenever The Bad Batch isn't Crosshair's Agony Half-Hour got old last season, and this will probably be the last thing I say about it. (Also, this is just me and my two cents, so take it with a grain of salt). 

28. Jumping off of that, this kind of episode does make me suspect that we are getting at least a third season, because it feels like the writers are taking their time taking us we're they're going. I am more than okay with this.

29. DID I MENTION THE INEXPLICABLE MEGAZORD???

[rotationalsymmetry]

Sorry for not offering my reactions in the moment, I got too immersed in the story to want to post about it. Golden enclave spoilers to (almost) end of ch 15.

I am morbidly thrilled that the thing casually mentioned once at the start of A Deadly Education came back around and it turns out that the entire senior class getting wiped out by malificers was either entirely made up or more complicated than that. So evil. Ay.

And that thing where at first we were presented with Orion as shining conventional hero and El as trying hard to not be a conventional villain, as it seems like the entire world expects her to be, and it turns out it's the other way around, Orion was created from unspeakable acts and El was the balance to that.

It's a lot to take in. And it also doesn't change the fact that El's childhood (which she's still in, she's 17, she's presumably turning 18 in December or so) sucked.

And...I wasn't sure how the prophesy thing was going to be handled, but "this is the only way she didn't get you" works as well as anything I guess. It's not even about "you had to suffer so that you didn't die", it's "you had to suffer because otherwise it would have been unspeakably bad for the world." Oof. I mean, it's horrible, but at least it's consistent in tone with the rest of the series. (Also this is one of the points where the book seems strongly in dialog with Harry Potter to me. I do like her mother's love protecting her because her mother lived more than Harry's mother's love protecting him through her death.) (there is a similar..."this sucks for me but it's for the greater good and I wasn't given a choice but also I'm choosing this anyways.) (side note, JKR very much did not invent the concept of the magical school, there other magical schools in fiction before that including a wizard school in a wizard of earthsea. The idea that wizards have to study to become wizards is kind of baked into the wizard archetype. There's also non-wizard fantasy schools: Talia goes to school in the Arrows of the Queen trilogy, and Song of the Lioness Quartet has some kind of extended training thing iirc. It's not a huge stretch to put a school into fantasy stories aimed at an audience that is going to school. Anyways I think the scholomance is in dialog with Harry Potter but I think it would be a stretch to say it's like, primarily bouncing off of it or anything.) (appropriately, there's no quidditch analog.)

I completely forgot what I was talking about.

Anyways. I probably feel more pleased with myself than I should be that I saw the "destroying a maw-mouth destroys the enclave" thing coming.

I really hope someone is letting El's mum know what's going on, because again, I'm pretty sure El isn't.

And I do enjoy that El went to Maharashtra, she was so sure she'd beaten the prophesy and so ready to rub her great grandmother's face in it. Intense dramatic irony.

[a-court-of-moonlight-and-ire]

I re-read my post about chapters 22-30 and I realized that theres so much I just fully forgot to mention, mostly relating to the inner circle so heres a quick summary of my thoughts about each ic member now that Im about halfway through the book and have spent some time with them. To briefly recap my previous thoughts, I think their group dynamic is insanely uncomfortable because of how apparent their hierarchy is and also none of them seem to actually like each other all that much

Amren

I dont dislike her in the sense that I dont dislike her personality or the basic concept of her character, but I do hate that shes in the inner circle at all. Like, whats this eldritch creature trapped in a body thats not her own doing hanging out with all these boring people ass people FOR 500 YEARS dude, if I had to spend 500 years with Rhysand I would destroy the entire night court regardless of whether or not I had Amren-levels of power. Like, why on earth would she be satisfied playing second fiddle to Rhysand and living in an APARTMENT in his stupid °•~City of Starlight~•° when shes supposed to be like a billion years old and a thousand times more powerful than him. I feel like itd be interesting to explore that but I know that we really dont from watching cari can read's summaries, so she just ends up being a character thats supposed to be interesting because shes so mysterious but is actually so shrouded in intrigue that it turns around and she just becomes boring again

Mor

When I first met her I said that something about her bothered me but I couldnt put my finger on what it was, but that I still kinda liked her because she atleast annoyed Rhysand. She really hasnt annoyed Rhys in any way since her and Feyres first meeting so I like her less because of that and also because shes mostly just boring to me at the moment. I think another reason why I dont particularly like her is that she feels so intrinsically tied to the misogyny of this world that just suddenly materialized in this book and its really annoying, I would like to avoid that subplot as much as possible. She basically just exists to give Feyre a female friend at the Night Court and to show her that you can totally girlboss your way out of a misogynistic system! But you cant dismantle the system because uhhhhhhhh. change is like a glacier because its slow

Also, shes obviously meant to parallel Ianthe, like shes supposed to be the better version of her, but I cant even imagine her and Feyre making out sloppy style toxic yuri edition so I cant really see her as any kind of improvement. sorry

Cassian

One of my least favourite character types is Fratbro But You Put Him In A Fantasy Setting so Im not the biggest fan of this guy ngl. The one redeeming quality he has is that hes very obviously crushing on all of his friends bisexual style, especially Rhys and Azriel. Its almost a little sad but mostly its just very funny. Like whyd you wanna take their clothes at the illyrian camps so badly huh? You like seeing pretty boys squirm around naked?

Unfortunately, I know that hes gonna end up with Nesta and that hes not even gonna treat her well, my guy is gonna go from being gay because he likes men to being gay because he hates women and I am not looking forward to it

Speaking of Nessian, a lot of sjm critical anti nessian people say that Nesta and Cassian used to be so good and so genuinely romantic in ACOWAR and that their relationship got completely ruined in ACOSF and. I mean, granted they dont ever talk about Cassian behaviour towards Nesta during the meeting at her house in ACOMAF but I hated the way he was just so angry at her on Feyre's behalf when she wasnt even that mad herself, she just felt weird and bad. Of course, I havent read ACOWAR yet and I might change my mind in the future but right now, I'll just say it doesnt surprise me that Cassian would laugh at Nesta falling down the stairs

Azriel

My favourite guy!!! Out of this bunch I mean. My favourite guy in the entire ACOTAR series is probably Lucien, but if we're just talking about the jokers from the Night Court, then this guy is my favorite

I really wasnt expecting much from him, I thought he would have absolutely no personality from what Ive heard other people say about him, but hes basically exactly what I want in an edgy traumatized shadow boi. Ive talked about this before but I really dislike Rhysand and part of that is that I normally really like the archetype of the tortured edgy love interest with shadow powers but he makes it so goddamn annoying by being so flirty and cocky I just want to see him dead. But Azriel is quiet so he doesnt bothr me and also theres some intrigue about his backstory and the extend of his powes but he feels like a solid enough character that he doesnt become boring to me like Amren

I will say though, theres something particularly uncomfortable about watching anyone from the inner circle interact with him and vice versa, I think its because he seems like he doesnt actually like them more than anything else. Ive said this in a previous post, I think Cassian wants to be in a relationship good friends with him and he seems to think they have some good sunshine guy/grumpy guy banter going on but to me it just seems like Azriel genuinely dislikes him. And then he obviously doesnt trust Amren and I feel like hes in love with Mor and has been for a really long time but doesnt actually like her, I honestly feel like hes just sticking by Rhysand because he feels like he owes him and because it gives him an excuse to be close to his crush

Yknow, that I think about it maybe thats why I like him so much. I dont like the Inner Circle, he doesnt like the Inner Circle, thats a relatable king right there

[wind-becomes-lightning]

Meet me in the Woods (8)

Sora Sarutobi is a sheltered child, set safe with parents, classmates and clan, wanting for nothing. He is nobody, living through more terrible things in the first six years of is life than others do in a lifetime. When they meet by accident, Sora’s life is changed forever.

Forgot to upload a reminder here on tumblr because it usually gets absolutely no notes anyway, but I updated this fic a few days ago. Sorry as always for the insane length.

Grown up Sora looks like this (click)

Yamato | Tenzou / OC

9972 words

8. Crossing paths

The rebuilding of Konoha continued on, even with the war over, and Sora returned back into the place where her office had previously been, though the rooms had been slightly altered. They were now a little bigger than they had been before and she sort of assumed that this was due to the Hokage’s understanding that what she was doing was now more necessary than ever. The best thing that had come out of the war were the technological advancements that now were used in daily life. The intel division had built a virtual machine to store amounts of data on what they were calling a computer and now the general public could also buy the prototype of it for personal use. Sora, though massively in debt still from her days living without a real job, still jumped on the opportunity to buy such a device. Finally she didn’t have to store everything on scrolls again and do so much handwriting. That really was a gift. So she spent the first weeks after the war meeting new clients and old, her schedule now full to the brim and if she wasn’t doing that she was copying her old files onto the electrical device so she had an easier time cataloguing them. This way no matter what happened to Konoha next she would always be able to find them again, well, unless someone decided to destroy this computer in particular, but that seemed so unlikely to Sora. The topic of conversation in her sessions was more often than not the Tsukuyomi dream. A deep rooted wish had been uncovered for almost all people in the world except for a handful, and it said a lot about the person she was working with. Some readily talked about what they had dreamed about and how it made them feel, some held back and closed off completely. Seeing a dead loved one back alive and happy, like Sora had, was not something unusual. The entire world was going through a collective trauma.

////

The days seemed long and heavy and endless. Yamato functioned as he was needed to, helping the village rebuild as he had the days after it had been blasted to pieces. He felt empty and hated every time wood sprung from his fingers into the world. It was almost like another person was doing the deeds he was clearly doing. He also hated showering again. Sound of water had always reminded him of his time in the tube, the constant ebbing and flowing of it making him nervous and insecure, but he had successfully become better at accepting showers over his years outside of Root. Now, with everything, his fear of water had come back tenfold, added by the constant anxiety he felt when he heard the sound of trees moving and wood cracking. It was like all the issues he had had through his life were suddenly right there again, ready to sabotage his every step to try to get better.

[Read more on AO3]

[citadelredlightdistrict]

Gwen Takes Control (Part 1)

Ever since Ben had found the Omnitrix, the whole summer had changed for Gwen. Initially it was for the better really, things were more exciting, they fought aliens, mad scientists, it was amazing! Sure, Ben was still a dweeb, but what was new right? After a while though she found herself starting to feel like the *other* grandchild. Soon enough everything was seemingly about Ben. It was Ben's watch, Ben was the hero, it was becoming Ben's summer. Then though, things seemed like they were going to even out, she found this awesome amulet! It made her the luckiest girl in the world, and she became Lucky Girl! A hero to rival the great Ben 10! But it wasn't to last. Soon enough to save Ben and his stupid watch, she'd had to destroy that amulet and even more. She'd had to sacrifice everything, just because Ben had to be a hero. It wasn't all bad though, now she had a spellbook, straight from the crazy wizard and witch that had almost taken over the world. And she was finding more than a few spells that would help to turn this whole summer around.

After some time Max got a call from an old friend needing his help, in a hurry he had to leave Gwen and Ben alone for a few days, leaving Gwen in charge. By the time he returned, Gwen will have already done all she needs to put Ben in his place. Gwen: "Alright Ben, you heard Grandpa, I'm in charge. And you know what? I think it's time I taught you some humility." Ben looks up at her from his game, raising an eyebrow at her with an arrogant grin. Ben: "Yeah? And how do you plan to do that? In case you forgot, I've got the coolest watch in the universe, I'm a hero for crying out loud!" Gwen rolls her eyes and walking over to him she simply pushes her pants down and lets her massive cock flop out and smack him in the face. Stunned Ben just sits there looking at the nearly 8" cock resting on his face. Gwen: "With this~. Oh and before I forget." She reaches down while he's still stunned and grabs the Omnitrix casting a spell as she does to form a shield around it so he can't try to change into an alien. At this Ben does finally snap out of it and yells as he stands up, backing away from Gwen . Ben: "W-what the Hell!? Gwen, how do you- I mean, you've got a-a..." He blushes brightly as he struggles to make sense of all this, Gwen just laughs as she hits him with another spell, blasting his clothes off while setting her plan in action. Gwen: "A dick? Yeah, and you've got a pussy. Now how about you be a good slut and get on your knees, it's time you put that mouth to some good use for once~." Ben yelled in shock as the blast hit him, tearing his clothes off and leaving him naked, and his body completely changed. His hair and overall build was largely the same, but he had small buds on his chest where his breasts were now growing, roughly the size of Gwen's, and rather than a penis and balls he had a pussy just like Gwen had said. Ben: "What the-!? N-no, no this can't be real!" He tried to fumble with the watch, fighting against Gwen's magic as he did, but Gwen shortly had him pinned against the wall. Gwen: "Well if you're not going to get on your knees, then I suppose I can go in dry. But it might hurt a little, feel free to scream by the way. It's not like there's anyone around to help you~." With Ben still trying to activate the Omnitrix Gwen reaches down, and lifts up his legs, and drops him on her cock. She goes in dry and raw, letting gravity force him all the way down on her cock, until she was pressed firmly against his/her womb. Gwen: "Ahh~! Oh fuck, now that's what I'm talking about! Mmm, I can't believe this is what guys get to experience for sex, ha! Too bad you'll never know what this feels like now, how about you Ben? Is it as good for you as it is me?" She couldn't help but to laugh as she watched Ben scream in pain, squirming on her cock as she held tightly onto her arms. Ben's eyes going wide in shock, pain and pleasure as he felt an entirely foreign feeling, in a body he was entirely unfamiliar with.

[breezeinmonochromenight]

Thank you for answering my question, I asked about MGS3 eye opinion. To be honest I completely forgot about that scene when typing up the question. From what I remember (which is probably incorrect) The Boss seemed to hesitate and didn’t seem very interested in fulfilling Volgins request. She even seemed bothered when Snake was being tortured.

If I may ask please, if The Boss did as Volgin asked and stabbed his eye instead of Ocelot accidentally shooting it, do you think it would have made any difference to the game’s story? In my opinion, I can see Ocelot still getting a thrill out of torture from watching Volgin. Many thanks again.

I’M AN IDIOT DIDN’T HIT POST ON THIS I AM SO SORRY.

This gets long and rambling so I’m just gonna hit you with the TL;DR first lol: It’s not a great idea to have The Boss do anything super questionable because nearly everything in Metal Gear Solid after Snake Eater ties back to her beliefs and people like Big Boss’ and Zero’s interpretations and attempted implementations of them. It’s harder to sell the weight of The Boss’ words and the amount influence they have on the world/the characters to the audience if her character contradicts her beliefs and you don’t at least respect her.

Ahdhsjdjdr I’m actually glad you mentioned The Boss’ hesitation — I don’t think you’re wrong and I feel the same way. She literally looks to EVA, who shakes her head ‘no’ in response. I think that’s part of why EVA almost blew her cover. The entire point was to prove her loyalty or break her (“You made him a soldier, now you will unmake him.”) do she’d out herself and fail her mission.

She seemed bothered by Snake getting tortured because she was bothered. This is a man she’s known and trained and bonded with since he was 15. She’s a mentor and mother figure to him and most likely saw him as a surrogate son (esp. since her real son was taken away). That’s why Volgin wants her to do it. It’s the ultimate loyalty test.

In regards to changing the story if she intentionally blinds Snake (even partially):

- Ocelot could still develop a torture fetish as long as he’s present, sure, but Snake/Big Boss’ mentality later in life is based entirely off of his love for The Boss and his desire to carry out (his interpretation of) her Will. He’s (understandably) demoralized and angry that the U.S. government essentially threw her life and legacy away to save their own skin and are (literally) shaking his hand for pulling the trigger. If she’s so dedicated to a pretty literal suicide mission the she intentionally blinds the closest thing she’s ever had to a son just to prove a fake allegiance to complete that mission, it calls both her character and Snake’s extreme dedication to carrying out his interpretation of her Will into question and hurts the narrative overall.

The Boss’s Will influenced nearly everything that happens after Snake Eater in some way, and what she was tasked to do was really extreme and intimate act and would to do way more damage psychologically than breaking bones or just inflicting pain ever could.

So it becomes really hard to accept that her words really hold so much sway for so long with so many powerful people and see her as this patriotic martyr if she goes through with it. Like. The Boss specifically wanted to live on in memories being seen as a woman/person first and a soldier second — to be remembered for who she was and not what she did. This would be an incredibly hard to sell for a character you’ve seen gouge someone’s eye(s) out just to prove a(n ultimately bullshit) point. Her hesitation lends to this.

(Solid Snake being the true inheritor/correct interpreter of The Boss’ Will is also made a little less meaningful if her words don’t mean shit lol but that’s another discussion for another time lol.)

It’s also important to point out that Snake loses his eye from being grazed/muzzle burn. The cornea and the lens of his eye were ruptured and destroyed — awful for sure, but not as decommissioning or fatal as actually being shot/stabbed/gouged or smth. This is significant because MGSV retconned that Skull Face and his XOF unit were in the background during the entirety of MGS3 as an invisible ally to ensure that Snake is successful no matter what — it’s why both missions play out like a movie and Snake survives and succeeds despite absolutely fucking insane odds and circumstances. Had the torture gotten way too far out of hand, there’s a good chance they would have (somehow) stepped in. So. Just something to consider when thinking about “what ifs…” here lol.

(On the flipside tho, if Snake had lost his respect for The Boss and felt betrayed, there’s the potential avoiding the creation of a war economy and preventing a lot of what happens after Snake Eater. But there’s also the chance that type of betrayal could have just caused a full Big Boss villain arc right out of the gate. 🤔)

[tsuki-sennin]

The Delicious Party has reached its delicious last course! With the wicked master of the Bundoru Gang Godatz having revealed himself, our heroines face insurmountable odds in the face of all the world's finest cuisine coming under his total control! Can our beloved Pretty Cure power through the strength and experience of a man who has been fighting his entire life? Walking the path of heaven, ruling over us a- oh wait, wrong series. Get your happi- no... I have been watching Fresh lately though, it's very good. ...A lot of glittering things to eat? Yeah, close enough I guess.

Spoilers, I guess...

-Bundoru Bundoru!

-"Cook Fighter Imperial Guard Captain Fennel is dead. Godatz-sama shall rule in his place!"

-Gotta love Toei's commitment to keeping these extremely upbeat and happy intros no matter the cause. ...I'd call it optimism, but considering it's Toei...

-Guess ol' CooKing had his head screwed on right after all.

-I can definitely see how he corrupted Narshe and Seccy, and this authority figure we (in-universe) all trusted and never would've suspected in a million years genuinely seeming to think nothing of all the lives and happy memories he's ruined for his petty-ass revenge definitely adds to the... weirdly dark subtext I somehow keep talking myself into finding.

-Oh shit, he's summoned.

-Fridge.

-Oh goddamn, they brought out the guitar.

-Oh thank you Papa Monpei.

-Oh shoot, go Mari-chan!

-Medicine time.

-Kokone lying there like that kinda reminds me of how a dog a friend of mine had would sleep. Ran's clearly no worse for wear if she can smile like that. And I guess Amane's a side-sleeper, like me? Good job Takumicchi.

-Oh shit, Mari-chan got whips!

-Oh hi Seccy, I almost forgot you were there for a second.

-Evil!

-"Power... is meant to be used."

-Godatz is the kind of goofy ahh villain to say "It should've been me!" at a wedding.

-Oh, you can... whip around gotcha! ...actually I think we did that last episode.

-I can't get over how terrifyingly they're presenting a goddamn fridge.

-Pretty Cured.

-Oh noooooo, Daaaad!

-RANCHI, TAKUMICCHI'S DAD GOT SHOT THANK THEM LATER

-Nothing a quick snack can't prepare us for!

-Oh shit, going all out from the start!

-Can't get over Finale's run.

-Goddamn, that's a lotta damage!

-Delicious victory.

-Oh, that poor Pipis still trapped.

-Seccy with the steel chair!

-Oh, he gone!

-He gone too!

-She gone!

-They all gone!

-Well Seccy, I'd hate to say it, but... well, you've been completely cast aside.

-Finale looks down upon you in pity.

-Spicy, Todoroki is a brilliant man, but I don't know if he's like a combat medic.

-Hooray!

-That is a really cute sweater, holy crap.

-Takumicchi's a big boy, he can handle himself, Monpei-san.

-Hello, Amai-kaichou!

-Good job, Ranchi.

-Completely lost in her own self-loathing, she took to Godatz's will. You're a rather tragic woman, huh Seccy?

-Have I ever told you how proud I am of you, Amane? Because I really am.

-Even within his exile... Monpei-san never stopped loving his home, huh? :(

-Fuck Godatz, all my homies hate Godatz.

-Black-Pep has vanished.

-Thank you Mari-chan, we'll see to it that Precious makes Godatz piss teeth and spit blood.

-"Join me, and together we can rule the galaxy as father and son!"

-Daga kotowaru.

-"You really are your father's son, huh?"

-Oh fuck, Precious!

-That's our Prince Rosemary!

-I mean... you're right Yuin, but-

-Takumi's about to go

-Friends who ate at the same table!

-Oh.

-He down.

-"Oops. Looks like you lost."

-"Believe what you want about my Master's wishes and my character you overgrown fox kit. All that did was grind down your beloved Black Pepper to dust."

-Goddamn, we're getting destroyed.

-Kome Kome!

-Man...

-It feels like yesterday when Gentle was merely making some innocent restaurant goers' food taste kinda crappy. Now we have a man with a god complex rampaging through our kitchen like a bull in a china shop.

-The Recipe-Bon. It seems a little off-beat to fear a cookbook meant to bring the fine art of cuisine to life with gladness and rejuvenation, but Fennel's cold-hearted ambition has turned it into a tome with the power to subjugate. Standing as the sole master of the Bundoru and bearing the overwhelming power of the Special Delicioustone, Godatz would starve the world to feed his ego. Worse, Yui Nagomi, Cure Precious, has entered a state of despair that coincided with Kome-Kome's newfound weakness. With even brave Takumi heavily injured, what shall become of the world with food everywhere having suddenly vanished? Will Secretoru realize the depths of Godatz's cruelty? Will Yui recover from her defeat? Has the kindness in Master Ginger's teachings truly vanished from Fennel's heart?

-I mean I wouldn't know. I didn't write this show.

[sabrondabrainrot]

I forgot Sun beef with Lunar! I think they DO have a lot of tensions that they think is water under the bridge but it's actually not. My mind paired them as an interesting fight match just cause they're both extremely close, but intwined with the enemy energies. Lunar's destiny is aligned with the Astrals and star power while Sun's destiny seems to be slowly slotting into dark star energy. You though, reminded me of the fact Lunar, while working under Eclipse, brought out sides of Sun we've never really seen before. They're like two different oils. They can blend together until they're almost indistinguishable but when set ablaze burn brighter then even a gasoline fire. I bet if those two ever do argue nothing would survive.

I also just want to see Earth fight. She's actually so strong emotionally and physically. She's a badass! I'll never forget how she was so afraid but still bodied Bloodmoon to save Lunar. Then when she overrode all safety protocols to destroy Bloodmoon for good when they started torturing Monty? Mwah. Earth is so sweet and nice but she's so much more then a sister, girlfriend, and therapist.

I just was thinking Earth and Solar teaming up to fight Nexus would be so interesting? Because Nexus brings out a really mean side of Earth (I love it, only siblings can bring out that much anger and petty) but Nexus I think deep down is a liar liar pants on fire and won't truly commit to actually hurting Earth. (I theorize the star power burns was a complete accident on his part) Solar being there would be so fun too cause I think he's also such a baddie. He's the only person with real experience in exterminating a deranged Moon so it'd be really interesting how the entire interaction could play out.

Earth becoming a bit more selfish in the story is so good too though because honestly in the world of tsbs and tsams etc it's just...there's literally no merit in being selfless and kind. It only gets you beaten down. Earth's kindness needs to be protected by a strong exterior. sometimes being selfish is the kindest thing you can do to yourself.

You know what I need to see in the show?

I need to see that if Sun will end up working for villains - for whatever reason no matter forced or whatever else - I need Moon to fight for Sun..

Cause Moon used to run away when things got too much.. when he and Sun couldn't get along..

But how he said himself he'd tie Sun if he became emotionless suddenly.. I believe that this time Moon would go to Sun.. he wouldn't leave him..

He'd be there for him just like he supposed to..

I don't know what will happen.. but I'm sure that Sun and Moon will be fine..

I also hope that Nexus could be with them..

I'm trusting the process..

Whatever tragedy will happen I'm sure that Sun and Moon will remain..

[zivazivc]

Pinocchio AU

Okay people want the explanation for this comic so here it goes. It’s long and complicated and MESSED UP because of course it is, this is me. I’m going to write in points because my small tired brain can’t handle good english atm but basically to sum up the Adrien was a sentimonster theory or Pinocchio AU as I like to call it:

Young married Emilie and Gabriel can’t have kids. Gabriel reluctantly accepts this fate and even brings up adoption as a possibility once, but Emilie doesn’t want to hear any of that. She’s a bit of a Marinette in the sense that she pictures this romanticized ideal life for herself and a child—her flesh and blood—HAS to be in it.

They keep trying to get a baby while other young families Emilie knows keep growing. She feels left out and hurt and depressed, then her newlywed twin sister announces she’s expecting a baby too and something within Emilie just unhinges.

She eventually lies to some of her friends, who she was out for coffee with, that she’s pregnant too. She mostly does it just to see their reaction and feel what it would be like but it quickly spirals out of control where she just starts pretending she’s pregnant until you can’t even tell if she believes it herself.

Gabriel is confused at first because he hears the news second hand (a friend/family member congratulating him) so he’s apprehensive when he approaches his wife but she convinces him that they really are getting a baby and Gabriel is ecstatic.

It’s only later at a doctor’s check up that Gabriel learns that she indeed is not pregnant. The doctor even speaks to him alone explaining that his wife is in denial and that he should make sure she goes to see a psychiatrist, something she definitely wouldn’t do alone.

Gabriel is unsuccessful with that because he’s not entirely persistent, doesn’t want to be the guy with the crazy wife having to tell everyone she lied about being pregnant, and hopelessly believes she’ll just get over it eventually.

That is until her “pregnancy is near due”—her sister already had Félix in England a few months ago—and he stumbles on her transformed with her peacock miraculous (they already have both of them) creating a sentimonster newborn.

They have a huge fight about it but because Emilie refuses to destroy it, won’t tell Gabriel where the amok is, and Gabriel can’t just hurt the baby with his hands, Emilie just… wins. Fucked up, yeah?

Now she tried creating kids before this one, using her imagination to try and blend her and Gabriel’s looks but it just wasn’t working. So she decided to copy of photos of baby Félix because he already looked almost like a copy of his mother, and Amélie and Emilie already looked alike so it’s not so weird?—is what her mind was telling her.

She didn’t dare alter his looks but she decided to give the baby Gabriel’s eye color to include the “father” in some way. (Yes in that comic I made I gave Adrien a mix of green and gray but that was mainly to get the point across to the perceptive readers)

Now we got Adrien, a normal baby boy to the whole world except for Gabriel who’s forced into his wife’s fantasy through social expectations.

Why are we only at this point and this post is already so long AAAAAAAA!!!

Adrien physically basically grows in a way where Emilie just keeps changing his appearance to match what Félix looked like a few months prior.

Mentally he’s like a robot just taking in information without really needing to learn it. So Emilie decides when he says his first word, she decides when he learns to walk,… He knows how to walk, he just wasn’t given the command to do so yet.

But even so he does develop a personality over time, just slower, because unlike a normal child who’s always testing his boundaries, how far they’re allowed to go until they’re in real trouble, Adrien just can’t misbehave. At all.

But he does have his favorite foods and favorite toys, and jokes that make him laugh the most. The problem is just that Emilie could just decide that his favorite food is strawberries and he’d just start acting accordingly, rewiring his belief. 

He also isn’t allowed to argue or be mean to others which is why Félix thinks he’s a goody two-shoes weirdo while Chloé the brat adores him.

This behavior isn’t so hard to hide with a toddler who’s fickle but it’s harder and harder as the kid grows. Which is why the family becomes very secluded over time.

Gabriel always keeps distance with his “son”. He’s not Dad, he’s Father, he doesn’t do hugs and cuddles, he doesn’t say I love you. But Adrien knows he loves him because his mom told him so and he loves him back unconditionally because Mom said that’s what families do.

Now even though Gabriel is traumatized by this whole ordeal and knowing Adrien “isn’t real” freaks him out he does soften a bit over time. I’m going to give an awful example but like someone who hates cats softening for a cat that their partner/roommate decided to get/had from before. Continuing with this example: But still becoming appalled when the cat starts acting odd/unusually.

Okay I think you get the gist. Let’s move on…

Emilie loves her son more and more as he grows and his sentimonster behaviours start bothering her more and more too. She hates being reminded that he’s not a real boy by people mentioning he looks young for his age because Emilie forgot to make him grow for a while. She hates when he does everything like he’s told. She hates that he has no real friends because they’re afraid to expose him to the outside too much and without supervision. She hates to think about his future.

Her desire for him to be real keeps growing and is what drives her to search for a solution in the miraculous spellbook.

She cracks the script after years, when Adrien is nearly a teen, and finds a way to transfer the creators soul into a sentimonster.

It’s a long process that takes time and while she falls ill to everyone around her, Adrien becomes more real.

Gabriel starts realizing what’s happening when he notices Adrien hesitate for a second when he’s playing a video game and Gabriel wants him to do something, groan when he gets bothered watching TV, huff, complain, have slightly opposing opinions to his and Emilie’s, when he argues with his mother when she tells him she’s feeling fine; when he notices his son’s eyes are greener. Or is it all in his head?

He confronts his wife too late, when she’s extremely ill already, her normally vibrant eyes dulled match Adrien’s bluish gray, and he pieces together in his head what she’s doing.

Before Gabriel could properly think what to do to stop the love of his life from turning into a lifeless doll, in a fit of panic he tries to take her wedding band (where he knows Adrien’s amok is) to get rid of Adrien instead, but is unsuccessful in getting it off her so he snatches her peacock brooch instead (which she needs to complete the spell obvs) and breaks it. (Heyoo! broken peacock miraculous. things are coming together)

Because the spell was almost complete anyway it’s Emilie who falls unconscious. But she doesn’t disappear because she’s not a real sentimonster, she just becomes dormant like one.

This is the point in the story where Gabriel makes it seem like Emilie ran away or something like that—basically disappear. Now he’s living knowing he has an almost sentimonster wife in the basement, knowing he almost killed his son (or her), and having to care for a son that suddenly became much more alive, questioning, arguing, angry, screaming, not accepting, crying, grieving, staring at him with Emilie’s eyes.

Instead of becoming a real parent, Gabriel shuts him out.

Soon Adrien evolves desires for socializing, company, getting away from the suffocating home which eventually leads to him going to a public school.

He slowly starts to live life freely without the restrictions that were put around his thoughts.

Gabriel has an even stranger relationship with Adrien now because he still loves him in a way but also holds resentment toward him. But mostly he sees him as something valuable.

The show happens here…  And now finally we get to the comic…

Gabriel gets a hold of the ladybug and black cat miraculouses. (There’s no epic fight in his lair as you see there’s no Ladybug in the comic but that’s not really important)

What’s important is that Gabriel had deciphered the miraculous spellbook with the help of Emilie’s notes and had decided to use the unification’s “wish” power to awaken Emilie.

He’s aware he’ll need to sacrifice something for the wish to come true and he’s certain Adrien should be enough because the soul inside him is literally the one thing Emilie is missing.

✨Adrien (poor boy just lost his miraculous) is taken to Gabriel’s lair, where he finds out his father is Hawk Moth, sees his mother, learns he’s a sentimonster, and that he’s going to become a sacrifice ✨

Of course the last part is not what happens. It’s Gabriel who ends up being sacrificed.

I can’t decide if Gabriel ends up sacrificing himself because he changed his mind in the last moment while Adrien was screaming for him to stop, OR  because he didn’t love Adrien enough for him to be considered an equal exchange for his wife… O.O

But anyhow…

Emilie wakes up with Gabriel’s soul within her (hence the bluish gray eyes in the comic).

Adrien is traumatized for life.

This took me hours to write… I knew there was a reason why I didn’t want to do it. I hope I didn’t forget anything and my brain made sense of it all

Well there you have it, peeps. The Pinocchio AU. It’s as messed up as my sleep schedule. Good night.