#like tbh I think the combat looks fun but it's not what I really wanted

[sailor-lunala]

yin nezha for ashes and rust (tpw pokemon au)

(i spent embarrassingly long on this but he looks SO fine so it was worth it. also i am veryyy sorry to both my ancestors and my chinese teacher for how terribly i wrote my characters, i really did try my best but stroke order and i do not get along - but it's nezha's name and all of his team members w/ their chinese names! pokemon names in chinese are kinda goofy tbh.)

anyways this fic is my child and you all should read it thank u <33 (it's basically just a rinezha pokemon au!)

...does anybody wanna hear about all of the details of the sinegard uniform for this au. no? maybe? perhaps under the cut? 👀

they have a casual uniform and a formal one, both are very much pictured in my head and in the fic's pinterest board but i doubt i'm gonna get a chance to draw them both properly

the casual one is more athletic-esque? think collared shirt, sweatpant-looking things, cute colorblock type sporty jacket. i can def picture it and i like it a lot. bc pokemon battling is a sport so it kinda makes sense to be sporty?

this is the formal uniform, obviously. suit jacket and tie with school colors and all that.

he has red chinese style buttons (like the silk buttons on a qipao?) on the collar for pledging combat (shoutout to the person who told me the combat armband was red when i asked because i forgot, this is why i needed to know)

the tassel w/ the dragon is a yin thing (they're pretentious af, what's new)

this was supposed to be nezha during the final battle of chapter 1 but i ran out of time (patience) to draw his gyarados and a background and all of that full scene stuff so... you can imagine ig?? but he (and everyone else) wears the formal uniform for the final graduation tournament

fun easter egg: he ranked 3rd in his graduating class

because kitay was 1st and rin was 2nd (obviously), kitay has the best grades and rin beat him in the final tournament so. oops. sorry nezha!

i really wanna (and should) draw rin like this but... idk i don't think it's gonna happen bc this one took SO long and i should probably prioritize actually writing chapter 5 and finishing the fic itself. oops. but maybe one day!! i really do want to!!

[zahra-hydris]

I'm actually really sad about the lack of world state reactivity.

it was such a cornerstone of the series: feeling like characters and the world evolved as you, the player, interacted with it (lived in it! over 15 years!). and it's not even - as i've seen some, including key devs, suggest - a question of making every single choice matter. the "throwaway" lines, simple war table missions, and codex entries still mattered! they still contributed to that feeling of a world that evolved with you.

and what really worries me is what this means for the returning characters. how can you have varric without the potential loss of hawke? how can you have morrigan* without the potential for kieran? is your inquisitor going to be even semi-recognisable? how is the well drinker choice not relevant? and, again, these don't necessarily need to have huge impacts? they can just be one off lines or codex entries or something that shows that this is a world that you've been a part of, these are people that you know and love.

idk there's just such a huge middle ground between 'every single choice needs to dramatically impact the plot/characterisation and that's just not feasible' and 'absolutely no reactivity to anything beyond three things'. the devs keep acting like there's not, but it's just bullshit. they managed it to a decent degree in inquisition, after all.

it's not necessarily a dealbreaker but idk i'm just sad about it.

*honestly starting to lean towards that theory that it's not actually morrigan but flemythal in her body

[damallarky]

What I Liked About Dragon Age: The Veilguard

I keep seeing extremely negetive comments about Veilguard, even nearly two months after the game has been released, and that is insane to me.

Now, I'll admit that I had my own gripes about the game. But I have decided that I am not going to focus soley on the negatives. That makes me and everyone around me angry and miserable and that is not why I am on Tumblr.com. I am here for the memes and to talk about Dragon Age man.

So, I have decided to be the change I want to see in the world and make a non-exhaustive list of all of the things that I LIKED about Veilguard.

The Companions: I loved them. I loved their story arcs. I think they were well-written and very Dragon Age-y. They reminded me of the DA:O crew in a good way. I also can see what Bioware meant when they talked about the found family vibes.

The Art Style: This art style is my favorite out of all of the Dragon Age games. I've always prefered a more styalized look, because it's fun but mostly because it ages SO MUCH BETTER than a more realistic style in video games. Games like Zelda, Fable, etc still look pretty good today because they all have a more styalized look. At least in my opinion.

The Animation: This could go along with the art style, but I wanted to make it a seperate category. The animation in Veilguard was fantastic. The facial expressions on the characters were so well done. Ghila'nain moved like a Little Nightmares character which was great. Characters actually held onto their mugs!

The Voice Acting: Every Bioware game I've ever played has fantastic voice acting though. *shrugs*

The Seige of Weisshaupt: Was an absolutley fantastic moment in the game. Having a terrifying face hover over you while you desperately try to fight your way through the hordes of Darkspawn? Being led to safety by some random, badass kid? Davrin killing a Darkspawn's cousin last week? Lucanis not being able to stab a cloud? Perfection.

Being Able to Pet All the Cats and Dogs (and Assan): This speaks for itself tbh.

The Ossuary: Dude, walking into that funky underwater prison and seeing a massive aquatic creature swim by you was such a neat moment. I really enjoyed that area. That's also where we get to meet Lucanis and Spite, so yay!

The Fade Fish Tank: For similar reasons to above. I just think fish are cool ok? I also spent a little more time than I probably should have watching the fish swim back and forth.

Photo Mode: I love when games have a photo mode and I LOVED Veilguard's photo mode. I also love all of the photos that the community have been taking.

The Combat: The combat was really fun. I don't remember having as much fun with combat in a Dragon Age game as I had with Veilguard. You can tell the team put a lot of time and effort into it and it shows.

The Fact That We Got a Game At All: Look. After ten years of development hell, I wouldn't have been surprised if the game got scrapped. Yet somehow, despite the odds, the team at Bioware managed to deliver a finished game despite the odds stacked against them. Is it perfect? No. But it's here and it's real and out there for us to either love it or hate it despite the many times Bioware could have thrown in the towel.

Feel free to add to this list or talk about the things you liked about the game in the replies section! I know Veilguard has it's issues. Don't let the bad get in the way of the good.

[ironunderstands]

Not a question, just very happy it's not just me loving IP3 (or trans Ratio for that matter). Yap away on both

Ugh I love them both so much

Most of my headcanons are when I find something to be better and/or more interesting than it is in canon, or something that’s a great extension of canon, and that’s exactly what trans Ratio is to me.

It takes his already present insecurities and squares them, as now the doctor has to contend with not just being a SMART enough man, but being a smart enough MAN, and adding that extra layer of misery and complexity is just so delightful.

By taking a character racked by self doubt and adding another layer to it, like Ratio being trans, you complicate his current insecurities and give new perspectives to look at them from.

Like in canon Ratio exercises so much because he wants to be the most perfect, best version of himself and has been doing it since a very young age (middle school).

But then you add him being trans to that, and suddenly he’s not just combating being perceived as not good enough, he’s combating being perceived entirely, attempting to try and get others to view him the way he really is, and attempting to live up to whatever masculine ideal that would push away his dysphoria, something prominent within his life from a young age.

I’ve kinda dived into this within my fics about it, but I like the idea that Ratio keeps this a secret from everyone- and I mean everyone. He already doesn’t live up to his own expectations of himself, so to have the rest of the galaxy find out that he doesn’t live up to their expectations of him either (ie being a cis man I mean you cannot tell me there aren’t like hundreds of people in universe begging for his uh- yeah), it would crush him.

I mean considering how guarded he is already, adding another thing to hide behind that alabaster mask would be fun, even if I think Ratio is likely at least a decade post-op + post-transition, so it’s not like he has to bind or anything, but the threat is still there. Especially considering his well known love of baths- imagine if he avoided the public baths at his home planet (considering how heavily Greek/Roman inspired Ratio is), and how that might affected him growing up, or just the tendency of shirtlessness in general.

There’s just a lot of possibilities and intricacies to it that makes me really like this particular headcanon, and it will always be canon in my heart haha. I have some more silly things behind it, like me wanting to give Aventio and Ratiopaz biological kids because it would be cute, or just the inherent joy of the big buff guy actually being the trans one rather than who you would expect it to be/who it’s stereotypically made as- Aventurine, as I like when characters have traits you don’t expect them to possess.

I also tend to dislike Aventurine being made ftm because he’s implied to be an SA survivor and rep for amab victims is already kinda abysmal so I don’t like taking it away, also I just think it’s boring tbh, at least for me it just doesn’t interest me.

Trans Topaz is a whole other discussion, personally I think she’s mtnb, and more femme presenting (I’d make her use she/they in my fics it’s just pronoun swapping when writing polyamory is miserable and anybody who’s ever written it can attest to that 😭, it’s there in spirit I promise!)

I honestly don’t have deep reasons behind this one, it’s just pure vibes. Someone was like, “Topaz gives nonbinary” once on here and I’m like yeah, yeah she does 😭. She reminds me of Childe a lot and I also view him as nonbinary so she’s kinda in a similar boat.

I think she’s very motherly but like in the way Mother Nature is if that makes sense? Mother is mothering but she’s also a creature tm* and certified tax collecting humanity loving entity. Also I have a close friend who’s a trans woman and Topaz reminds me of her so like, bam ur trans now lol (hi Alice if ur seeing this).

As for Aventiopaz, I fear I’d need a whole other post dedicated to why I like them. You guys know why I like Aventio, Avenpaz also require a whole other yap session, and Ratiopaz is the best rarepair ever fight me. Generally I like it because it’s really sweet, the dynamic is hilarious, they are the power trio of all time, they have great gameplay synergy, and their designs complement each other a lot- being primary colors and all.

I also enjoy their individual unique relationships to the IPC and how that might affect their interactions with one another, both in canon and in my brain. Moreover the trio of coworkers who are well known around the office for a) getting the job done and b) being absolutely obnoxious around one another (in a good way) is incredibly fun and I enjoy the idea of all the shenanigans they would get up to.

Perhaps my next Aventiopaz fic would be them going on a mission together or something, as I definitely want to write another one, and also update my slideshow of the parents au, I’ve just been so busy and a bit unmotivated 😭 so hopefully I can get to that soon

[rennyrose]

Your wonderful art inspired me to look into Livio/Razlo as a character and I quickly discovered (from my research, anyway) that he's a rather well-written depiction of DID. Like, Razlo isn't just 💫Evil Livio💫, he's an alter that manifested to protect him during a really shitty time in his life. Usually multiple personalities in anime (and most media tbh) isn't done particularly well and it made me hesitant to get fully invested in him. But now I adore him and I'm gonna go figure out how to draw him myself. So, thank you for putting me on this little journey and keep up the good work 💕💕

(SPOILERS) Shiooooooot I appreciates that haha- he’s very fun to scrib yehhh

Razlo definitely isn’t evil but in my interpretation he’s definitely not a good person either- (if I could give him an alignment I’d say Chaotic Neutral haha) He’s all about starting and engaging in conflict and combat, and is incredibly obnoxious, rude and vulgar- in canon probably the only person who he truly loves/cares about is Livio and likely his primary motivations to do anything aside from his own interests with fighting is to appease Livio’s wants (which leads into some of my own headcannons on why that might not be the best thing ever but that isn’t the subject rn pfffffft)- but anyways yeah, Razlo’s not evil but he’s a real big fuckin asshole

For me since I don’t have DID and know very little about it and that the manga doesn’t clearly state what LR are I don’t really delve into that headcannon since it’s a fairly sensitive topic- how Razlo came to be and what LR’s dynamic is could be left up to all kinds of interpretations but I do agree that their dynamic isn’t the per usual fictional stereotype, and if DID is anyone’s interpretation of LR then hell’s yeah to that

I do think tho by following Livio’s example Razlo is more than capable of being somewhat decent in the moment

[freswoe]

i really don’t know how im feeling about the latest fhjy episode. sure, it was fun, the combat planning was great to watch and the battle map was awesome, but… story-wise? It wasn’t good. more than that, the preview for the next episode looks like it’ll mainly be just a battle episode, and that combination does Not make me feel optimistic about the ending of fhjy as a whole.

i think the thing that best sums up my confusion and disappointment with this episode is when Ally/Kristen shouts ‘For Lucy!’ and honestly… why? What about Lucy Frostblade - the kind girl whose major philosophy was that the world is cold so we have to keep each other warm, the foil to Porter’s house of conquest without mercy - suggests that she’d want the brutal murder of her friends without any attempt to talk to or redeem them? the entire season has stressed the doubt/conviction relationship - with the RGs representing wrathful conviction and the BKs representing doubt - and yet there’s zero doubt, zero room for understanding, when Fig’s first action as Wanda Chillda is to stress that she fucking hates ruben and wants to see him die. also, whatever the fuck was going on with ivy and fabian.

its just. this episode is the penultimate episode of the entire season, and if i was watching with no prior knowledge, id probably say it would be episode 13, 14 etc. a cool fight, but absolutely zero emotional resonance - just the Bad Kids going to town on yet another enemy. cool fights, cool planning, cool teamwork, but nothing really special about it.

i’ve seen some people saying not to take this so seriously, that it’s an dnd liveplay so of course the storytelling isn’t always gonna be Handcrafted To Perfection TM, but Fantasy High has a track record of some pretty amazing and thoughtful storytelling, and that’s what makes this episode kinda suck. There’s zero emotional resonance. The BKs clearly view the RGs as minibosses, annoying obstacles to defeat so they can focus on the main event, and that would be fine if that’s what the RGs were. But they’re not. We’ve learnt about them, we’ve seen how they were corrupted and groomed, we’ve seen how they really are just the Bad Kids who really went bad. They have narrative weight! They represent the mindless, wrathful conviction that the BKs are trying to stop, and for the BKs to slaughter them with that wrathful conviction (with no room for doubt or redemption at all) is… it’s not good.

don’t get me wrong, I get why (they’ve been awful to the BKs all season, cathartic last fight etc) but it still sucks narratively. like i can’t stress enough that the BKs are using the exact same tactics that they resented the RGs for to slaughter them. ruben says to fig that the BKs are killing his friends (despite their awful interparty relationships, they’re still his friends) and her response, instead of the understanding and kindness that fig (and, tbh, Emily) are known for is to cast ruben into literal fucking hell.

even oisin’s death was anticlimactic. gorgug’s kill on him was cool, but no nod to adaine? not even a mention of ‘you led my friend on and broke her heart so now i’ll break your heart?’ the broken heart thing was Right There and nothing happened. oisin died, a player was removed from the field, the battle went on. no emotional connection or resonance whatsoever.

i don’t know. from a narrative perspective, this episode was bad. all the nuance of the bad kids/rat grinders dynamic has been lost. the bad kids have become Exactly what the rat grinders said they were with apparently zero self-awareness on the matter. they shoot porter and jace and the RGs down with zingers and cool spells and don’t bother even trying to de-rage the rat grinders, and the result is an episode 19 which feels like a mid-season miniboss fight. they bring the same approach to fighting the RGs that they did to fighting the monsters in the Last Stand, which, y’know. not good.

the only way i can think that they might turn this around is if the BKs are shown to be influenced by rage/the RGs get brought back (still hating the BKs, but at least giving them the chance to try again), but I really don’t know at this point. just overall feeling very disappointed.

[ell-vellan]

A random collection of Veilguard Thoughts after completing the game, because I need to vent some feelings. spoilers below!

Firstly: I was going to love this game regardless. I came into it with the fewest amount of spoilers possible. I do love this game. I won't argue with anyone - if we have different opinions, that's fine! I won't tolerate hate, though.

This is my messy stream of consciousness, but let's start with the good stuff!

The Good:

-Gameplay was fun! Combat was fun and inventive, for someone who plays on Storyteller mode and tries to get through combat as fast as possible so I can get back to the story, it rarely aggravated me.

-The maps/puzzles are fun. They were usually easy enough to figure out on my own without looking it up, but just complex enough I felt smart when I got it. I like that the game almost always rewards you for looking around and exploring off the beaten path a bit.

-It felt like a spiritual successor to Mass Effect 2 in the way that you have to build your team up in order to save the world. I loved that.

-The griffons coming back is one of the best things in the Dragon Age universe ever, and I love that we could decide what to do with them. (But I'm kind of concerned that there's only 12, and they're...related? I feel like that's not enough individuals to grow the species back...)

-Letting us pet and hug Assan (with different animations!) over and over was one of the best things they ever did. Also, photo mode was a great idea.

-The little hints about Those Beyond The Sea we keep getting?! Dear God, I hope we get another game and get more lore. I'm dying to know. They've teased this for so long, I really, really wanna know what's up with this part of the world.

-i loved being able to choose our body proportions.

-I'm so thankful we got to make our Inquisitor and keep the same vallaslin and voice actor. I hate the outfit they gave them and how we had no choice in it, and I would have also preferred to have a choice in their prosthetic, but I'm grateful for what we did get. The missives from them were also a nice touch, and seeing the letter from the Inquisitor's love interest was SO HEALING. Tbh, in reality, I think the Inquisitor would have been involved WAY more, especially since the crossroads would have made travel basically instant across Thedas. But I get why Rook needed to stand on their own two feet.

-Morrigan/Mythal was a great touch. It made sense logically, there was character growth, and I'm glad Mythal wasn't gone entirely, but I wish we could know what's become of Kieran.

-All the VAs are so good. the world felt lush, magical, twisted, and fun, with just the right amount of tragedy and horror balanced with hope and love. Arlathan was gorgeous and tragic and horrific and I took SO MANY photos.

-we got more Dalish and more Qunlat words!!

-THE LORE. So many questions finally answered. I kind of thought we would learn that the Black City was actually the prison Solas made for the gods, but hey, maybe next time? I also still want to know if Andraste was real and more about the origins of elves as spirits, but alas...

-i loved the inventory system. I wish we could have sold equipment we didn't need instead of just the valuables, but it's a minor quibble. It was so much easier to manage, I didn't have to waste a bunch of time going through everything to find the best items for everyone

-ARCHON DORIAN PAVUS !! He was barely in the game which made me sad, but the fact that he was there at all and so glorious was wonderful. I wonder if people new to the game know or care about the significance of him being in charge of Tevinter, though, since we didn't even really get to have a conversation with him

About Solas:

I played thru DAI on release day. My first Inquisitor romanced him. When Everything Happened(tm) I was PISSED. I wanted revenge on Solas, I wanted to hunt him down. I've thought about him for 10 years, and now I am so wistful for more of him. I want to give him a hug. Moreover I want Lavellan to hug him.

Solas was INCREDIBLE in this. I loved, loved getting to see his memories firsthand - this was more than I'd hoped for - and the banter with Rook was one of the best parts of the game. Seeing him with hair - seeing him change into Fen'harel and fight a DRAGON? him helping us in the fade by baiting Elgar'nan and getting all bloody and beat up trying to help us, thinking he was going to trick us one final time? My wildest dreams came true. He was layered, he was complex, he was incredibly heroic and sympathetic and tortured and clever and absolutely ruthless. He was at turns heartbreakingly sincere and infuriatingly traitorous.

He showed a wide range of emotion; we got to see the real Solas, not the polite pretender of Inquisition. He was the shining star of the game for me. And he was sorely lacking.

We hardly got to speak to him!! It drove me nuts that we couldn't talk to him as much as our other companions. He literally knows the most about our enemies and how to defeat them. And we know he's probably planning some trickery in his lil mind prison. Why are we not checking on Solas at every chance we get?

Learning more about and speaking with Mythal? Chef's kiss. But I so, so wish that a romanced Inquisitor, along with Mythal's release of Solas, was what prompted Solas to realize there could be more to his life than rebellion and penance. He's betrayed everyone he's ever loved, and killed his closest friends, but he didn't kill her. Mythal represents his past, she's the origin of where it all went wrong - I wanted Solas to see a Lavellan that understands and forgives, even after everything, and that universal acceptance is the thing he needs to finally let go of trying to make up for what he's done. (It's fine, I'll just write a fanfic about it, whatever)

My Complaints:

-That we only can choose 3 possible variables for worldbuilding to keep from Inquisition. I think this the biggest, most egregious and disrespectful thing they did in the game, and I'm sure it's been talked about to death, but I'll just add that I hate it. I'll live with it - I'd rather they be vague than ret-con or kill off beloved characters off-screen - but still, what's the point of all of our previous choices if we don't get to see how they shape this world?

-The relationships felt SHALLOW. For a game that revolves around your companions, everything felt surface level. While I loved that almost every time you went to the Lighthouse, people were somewhere different and talking to each other, I HATED that Rook couldn't participate in their conversations. We only listened. I hate that we couldn't really ever initiate any long, deep conversations where we got to ask our companions strings of questions about themselves and their histories. I feel like I barely know Neve or Lucanis. I did like getting a bit more in depth with characters during their missions, but still...I feel like I barely know them, not the deep closeness I've felt with Dragon Age companions in the past. Nobody ever argues or disagrees with you, not really, just a couple times and it doesn't truly matter. I loved the companions. Their designs are so cool. I wanted to know everything about them and talk to them more. Why can't we ask Davrin about his vallaslin (it's obviously Ghilan'nain) and how he feels about it now that we are fighting her, especially if we're also an elf? And Bellara, why can't we ask about her tattoo and where her clan is and how she joined the Veil Jumpers? Why can't we ask Neve about her prosthetic? I loved the references to Inquisition in Harding's design, but since we couldn't import more than 3 things, she couldn't even talk about the Inquisition beyond the most vague things. Taash barely speaks at all. Emmrich has no life beyond the dead.

-The companions are so...one-note. Taash brings up being non-binary at every. single. quest, even though their adaari-ness and crossroads between being Qun and being Rivani was super interesting to me. (more on Taash in a minute.) Lucanis likes coffee. Davrin's personal quests mention "torlum" ad nauseum and the fact that Assan eats a lot. Bellara at least talks about other interests, but everyone else is so predictable. Even their banter doesn't seem to give them a lot of individual personality.

-the body models for female elves felt..a bit odd? My Rook always looked bow-legged. And do bras not exist in Thedas anymore? Lol

-The choice of who dies? HEART-WRENCHING. why was it between those two?! Why isn't the romance scene until AFTER this choice? Why doesn't the thing that happens with Harding and The Stone protect her (I thought it would!) and why don't we get any resolution to that if we lose her? I understand that Davrin was prepared to sacrifice himself as a Grey Warden, but making us lose Assan too...? Cruelty. That's what it is.

-I don't like that there are permanent deaths that happen regardless of our choices. That sucks. I know it's realistic, but this is a game, and I want my happily ever after for everyone, DAMN IT! The twist truly shook me, and I didn't see it coming. I didn't think I'd be caught by surprise and I was.

-The characterization of Rook is all over the place. I played an elven Rook with non-traditional vallaslin (figuring that the newer generation of Dalish Veil Jumpers might blend tradition with their new focus of exploring the Veil.) At various times, my Rook has said these things: "I didn't grow up with the Dalish." "I'm Dalish where it counts. "As a fellow Dalish--" WHICH IS IT? I'm in the most elfy faction, it's not even that I picked something unlikely for an elf with a face tattoo. I don't know what you have to do, what flags you have to trigger in the code, but the game still seems so confused about who our characters are. Pick a lane, Rook!

-While I'm on this subject: it would have been so nice to be able to know from the character creator what every kind of tattoo, body paint, and scar pattern went with what faction. And for the Dalish, which god matched to which vallaslin. It would have blown my mind in a good way if our choice of vallaslin came up in any way shape or form

-I would have loved if our race and faction actually like..mattered more. Walking around the Veil Jumper camp at the beginning and nobody talking to me except Strife and Irelin, that was so boring! Nobody recognizes you or asks how you've been. Just silence. Like everyone around you is a cardboard cutout. I expected more from Bioware.

-We got so much amazing lore in this game, and I'm really happy about it! But why did Bioware have to take the most marginalized group of people in Thedas, who were barely clinging to their own language and culture and freedom to begin with, and make everything bad that ever happened THEIR FAULT? What was the thought process there? That they used to have power but their leaders were in fact so terrible that they tore themselves apart and now live on the fringes of society? It makes it feel like the elves deserved their present fate, which is...pretty sucky. I'm glad they did not massacre the elves in this game as they have in the past, and that the elves didn't become even MORE the enemy by joining with the gods, but it really feels like the humans are only going to kill more elves in retribution for their gods almost ending the whole world. Also, related: nobody ever gives us sass about being an elf, not even in Minrathous, where elves are almost entirely slaves?!

-i know everything's changing with the lore stuff we typically know, but why did it seem that existing physically in the Fade is just no big deal anymore?

-at no point does Harding mention Varric dying? They don't have a funeral, a memorial? The Inquisitor says nothing, Morrigan says nothing? I know Solas messed with rook's mind, but even after...?

-the fact that the romance scenes don't happen until after the deaths. So it's possible for your love interest to die before that? Cruelty. Also, weird places to hook up, right after I just found out someone I thought has been alive this whole time DIED AT THE BEGINNING, and another dear friend sacrificed themselves, and we aren't sad at all during this? I understand sex after loss is perfectly normal and I understand that. But at least for the scene I saw, there was no "celebration of being alive" feel, it felt...more lustful than loving? Just an abrupt tonal shift.

-it just...ends. there's the typical little wrap up slides, but they're, again, shallow. A few lines here and there. Apparently the whole of Thedas was nearly destroyed, and not a single country went unscathed, but it's all gonna be ok! The bit of hope was nice, but...I don't feel settled at all. And it seems like we won't get DLC? which...ugh. and they fired the writers, which, again, cruel. If they make another Dragon Age, I can't see it being truly Dragon Age without them.

-i decided to make Taash's whole deal and the Qun a separate post lol

All in all - so thankful we got this game, so thankful we got what we did, I'm still processing a lot of it, and the past 3 weeks of my life I have done little else but live inside this story, but I just really need to scream into the void now!!

[yanderelinkeduniverse]

Reader who makes plushies... That have literal bombs inside of them that they can throw on the battlefield

Imagine if one of Links accidentally sets it off

Jk jk, it’s just funny to see this ask when you have Klee from hit game Genshin Impact on pc, PlayStation, and mobile devices as your pfp.

Personally I actually really love the concept of characters with bombs that are hidden inside plush dolls, they’re always so fun and cute! Now as for a (y/n) with those dolls…

She is not gonna be using them as freely when the time comes.

At the start I think the Chain would actually be really chill with her primarily using bombs in combat, I mean as long as she can control where they go. In fact, they’d prefer her using bombs than using nothing at all since - and I mean this as politely as possible - if would not be good if they had member of the group basically be deadweight.

*side eyes canon (y/n) who is not a combatant in any capacity*

And in all fairness, I’m pretty sure everyone who’s played a Zelda game has accidentally blown themselves up with their own bombs at least one time. Realistically would that kind of injury be severe and heavily impact her relationship with the Chain? Of course, but since when have I stuck to realism?

(y/n) being a combatant from the get go would certainly impact the Chain’s view of her fighting later on when they start becoming obsessive, but I think they’d still go through a phase where they think (y/n) shouldn’t be using them at all when their concern for her safety reaches its peak.

I mean, if these guys can blow themselves up with their own bombs when those bombs are just a side item then what about when they’re someone’s main weapon? I heavily doubt this variant of the reader would be without some bandages from accidentally blowing herself up on occasion.

Those who become a little too paranoid for her safety, such as Four, Twilight, and probably Wild just from his own personal experiences accidentally setting off a remote bomb too close to himself or using a bomb arrow in the Eldin region, would argue that she’s safer without them than with them.

And while most of the others would be in agreement, the problem is…she’s had these bombs and this method of fighting since before she ever came to Hyrule. Who are they to say what she can and cannot do to defend herself with?

It’s a struggle between the overwhelming desire to keep her safe and the need to respect her as their superior, after all they are barely worthy to hold a candle to her.

So, a compromise is made.

They politely ask (y/n) if she can limit her bomb usage, perhaps using a bit of well meaning manipulation to say that their ears are more sensitive than hers and as such the sound of the bombs going off hurts their ears.

They don’t want to limit their darling, don’t want her to feel caged and like her wings are being clipped, but they also want her to be safe above all else.

And if there were ever a time when (y/n)’s style of combat proved to be more detrimental to her well-being than not then they wouldn’t hesitate to take those bombs away, even if she protests.

On a slightly happier note, the plushies themselves are something the Chain would coo over a lot!

Some might even try to give her inspiration for new ones to make, even if they aren’t bombs(they’d be happier if they weren’t bombs tbh). I’m sure Hyrule has a bunch of dolls that look like himself saved up and Wild’s got pictures of Riju’s sand seals, those would be adorable!

But yeah, a reader who utilizes bombs in combat would challenge the Chain’s dual desires to both respect (y/n) as their ultimate authority(not that she knows) and keep her safe. But as long as she properly uses them, then she’ll be fine.

For now.

[halfetirosie]

▼✧♦ "Enter this contest!" they said. "It'll be fun!" they said. ♦✧▼

(Exercise 21 - 24 React-os!)

1) WILSONNNN!!!!!

Yes, I know I already made this joke, but I don't care. (˶ᵔ ᵕ ᵔ˶)

Funny coincidence tho; Cast Away was actually playing on T.V a few days ago! I of course had to watch it---I realized I haven't actually watched it in probably over 8 years---and it's a good-ass movie, ya'll!!! If you ever get the chance to watch it, you should!!!!

I also think it's neat that Eiden has canonically seen Cast Away...Or at least, he's aware of its existence through memes.

2) Fuckin hell bro, Quincy is so endearing, I can't handle it!!!!

It's so Dad Energy™ to zonk out at the beach and get buried in the sand, tbh. ♡

And Eiden's really living up to his Little Devil nickname! 😈

3) Premium Sooley + 🐾 Cat Dad Dante 🐾 content!!!

⸜(｡˃ ᵕ ˂ )⸝♡♡♡♡♡♡

Dante: "Ha, look at you guys playing around! Pathetic!"

Dante: *Is literally playing with his cat*

Now watch, Dante's gonna claim this isn't "playing" but is just training Sooley to get used to the water---

PFFFT!!!! (≧∇≦) Called it!!!!

I mean, you do know it can be both playing and training, right, bub? 😅

He's such a prideful little stinker!!!! ♡♡♡♡♡

4) GUYS, IN THE AUDIO AT THIS PART

🚨🚨🚨DANTE LAUGHS!!!!!!🚨🚨🚨

*Obnoxious squealing*

*Swoons so hard I fall down the fucking stairs*

*static*

🎶 We are experiencing technical difficulties. Please wait for us to fix the problem. Thank you for your patience. 🎶

🎶🎶🎶

🎶🎶🎶

*static*

Dante is seriously having so much this event, and it's such a joy to see!!! This dude might have been borderline forced into participating, and he might be using "research" as an excuse, but this is the happiest we've seen him in, like, a long time!!!

No, seriously, think about it! The previous 3 event he featured in (Sunburst Fever, Blood Secret, and Desert of Dusk), Dante was busy with official business. They were pretty damn stressful for him.

But my mans has finally caught a break!!!

(⸝⸝o̴̶̷᷄ ◡ o̴̶̷̥᷅⸝⸝)

5) ASSIGNED DORITO AT BIRTH!!!! 🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣

I know that the lil' symbol is probably supposed to actually represent Dante's tattoos, but I'mma just pretend that they're his sharp-chin head on a Dorito body:

6) This can be interpreted in two ways---

Extremely horny

Extremely threatening

7) A WHOLE NEW MEANING TO THE WORD "LUMBERJACK"

(⊙ ㅁ ⊙)

BITCH BE FELLING TREES WITH HIS BARE HANDS!!!!

😱😱😱😱😱

Sometimes I kind of forget that Quincy has the potential to be really fuckin scary... He's so likable, but he could crush somebody's skull without even breaking a sweat...

8) I also kind of forget how excellent all of the clan members are in combat scenarios...

These dudes are literally sending lethal attacks back and forth, dealing with them all seamless.

On the one hand, it makes me proud of our bois, being so talented and all. But also, seeing them go all-out against each other is kind of a harsh reminder of how, at least in this respect, Eiden really is the odd one out...

9) Wait, did he have his tail out during this event????

THEN WHY DIDN'T THEY PUT IT IN HIS SSR?!?!?!

WHAT THE HELL, WE WERE ROBBED!!! 😡😡😡😡😡

10) Oh, come on! Really??? (◔_◔)

Did they really need to turn this into an "everybody wins" scenario???

Look, I love a happy ending as much as the next guy, and I know that the stakes of this event weren't exactly high. But this ain't a kids show that needs a squeaky-clean non-controversial ending. I want someone to win! Give us a clear winner!!!

Fuck it, I'll say it;

🔥 DANTE SHOULD'VE WON!!!! 🔥

I mean, COME ON!!! He absolutely crushed it this event!!! And he wanted to win more than anyone else, too!!!!

My dude finally had a mini-vacation for the first time in ages---LET HIM HAVE THIS!!!!!

DANTE GOT ROBBED!!!!!

11) Damn, poor Eiden! :(

Our boi was so close!!! I was really rooting for him!!! (I know I said Dante should've won, and I still think so; but if anyone else were to be the winner, it should've been Eiden. He really put a fuck-ton of effort into this event; gotta love an underdog!)

😂 Eiden really is being a great sport about this!

(And that was probably the funniest way of congratulating those three on their great performance in the competition.)

⚠️WARNING: GLOOMY COMMENTARY AHEAD!⚠️

But idk, man...

Maybe it's because I get way too immersed/empathetic when reading, but I feel way more sad about Eiden's loss than I probably should be.

Like, obviously, losing doesn't feel good. Nobody likes failure. And since Eiden is the protag, we're all sorta on his side by default.

I guess I boils down to what I said earlier; in comparison to the clan members, Eiden really is the odd one out. He doesn't even come close to their power; and even when he was trying his hardest in this competition, the odds were so insurmountable, there was no way he could ever win.

🤷 It just pokes at an inferiority complex that feels shitty.

🌸 End of report! 🌸

[aingeal98]

How do you think Tim and Cass would get along?

Which is the better sibling pair: Tim and Cass or Steph and Jason - WHY?

plz just give me fluffy Tim and Cass working together okay I have read exactly two (2) comics and I have watched SOME young Justice and I have read so many angst fics all I want is for these children to be happy

Sorry it's taken so long to answer this, I got carried away and kept rambling haha.

Tim and Cass in canon is so interesting because it starts out with Tim being Tim, more than a little wary and judgemental because of Cass's past. But he actually owns up to this, apologises for his biases, and asks Cass if they can be friends. And they are! Fresh blood is where they're front and center, and in batgirl volume 2 he's the one most supportive of her, along with being the one in the family to reach out to her after Bruce dies and the one she clearly is closest to in Gates of Gotham. But what really makes Tim and Cass for me are all the little moments in canon where they're Batgirl and Robin and they're not even the main focus of the story, but their sibling twin menace energy is off the charts.

Just little moments of their teamwork really cemented their bond for me. To me it's like... More than any other batgirl and robin duo these two should be almost creepily in sync. Batman says "Team assemble." and they drop down from their various hideyholes in the roof with perfect timing. They could be having a fight that very day and not a single criminal would know if from the way they bounce off each other in combat.

But as well as that, they've seen each other at some of the lowest points in their lives, and been there for each other. The loss of Steph, Tim's dad, Cass getting brainwashed by Slade, Bruce's death. They never had to be the first priority for each other to still end up on the list of people to take care of and I kind of love that. The reassurance that no matter what happens with all the other important relationships in your life, batgirl and robin will always have each other's backs, in whatever way they can.

For me, they're the better sibling pair to Steph and Jason because Tim and Cass do actually have a solid arc you can trace through comics, even despite editorial having it out for Cass at certain points. There are comics and storylines you can pick up and see them acting like siblings even before Cass was adopted.

Whereas with Steph and Jason it was all about the potential, and still kind of is tbh. It's about Bruce projecting Jason on Steph and Steph dying as a result, it's about both of them being familiar with taking care of an addict parent, it's about both of them knowing how much a loaf of bread costs, it's about how they were let down by people they trusted and how Bruce (thanks to the writers) puts both of them down to uplift Tim, it's about their attitude to killing and to criminals and how death changed both their perspectives permanently but in very different directions.

But the issue is that they started interacting during the new 52 where all of Steph's history had been erased and Jason had been defanged off screen into a batfam member. And then from rebirth onwards they suffer from a similar issue a lot of batfam relationships do, where instead of developing the bond the writers just go yeah this is how they interact now. How did they get close? How come they trust each other? Idk, it just happened.

And this is not unique at all to Jason and Steph nor does it stop me from enjoying their interactions, but it does put Cass and Tim on top for me.

And now, for more fun Cass and Tim panels from Red Robin, featuring Cass vs technology:

(OK the last one doesn't look fluffy but you gotta understand fake murdering each other is their favourite form of enrichment)

They're unhinged your honor.

Thanks for the ask!

[fereldanwench]

thoughts as i watch:

environments are gorgeous but we knew that'd be the case tbh. they were gorgeous in dai too

i dont feel strongly one way or the other about a more action-oriented combat approach, but i can see this being a controversial choice (although i would say even with dai's tactical cam, the series has been headed in this direction since da2)

still not sure how i feel about the style. the venatori are standing out to me especially--they looked eerie and unsettling in dai; i feel like the simpler design has definitely lost some presence here. it's not enough to make me not want to play or anything, but my criticisms of the trailer in this regard are more or less still standing

the demons were another thing i liked in DAI--i know some demons have been reworked across all the games, but the pride demon remained consistent and was iconic. i feel like it didn't need to be changed here

also not sure about the UI--it's very clean and well-designed but as with just about everything else from graphic design elements, it just doesnt evoke dragon age to me. minrathous is obviously very different from other thedosian locations we've seen--maybe the sleeker visuals there will help the UI feel more in place. but i still like a grungier da, personally

the first thing im gonna do when i recruit neve is get that goddamn graduation cap thing off her head lmao

definitely building some tension with varric and solas D:

approval system still in play, guessing that'll factor into romances

solas' teeth are really distracting me lmao did he get veneers

ooooooh what just popped outta the fade i actually dont want to know or speculate too hard dont tell me

didn't really get a sense of the protagonist, but that's not necessarily a bad thing if we're gonna be able to really customize and roleplay our own character. i did notice harding's comment about who he is and his skills--felt a little shoehorned as a way to let the player know "hey, your choices matter" but im not mad about it

it looks fun. it looks like a game i will enjoy. still not sure if it'll be a day one purchase, but all things considered given what has gone down at bioware since inquisition (since even before that really), this does look pretty polished

i'm going to be very restrictive on what else i willingly expose myself to between now and the release. i am interested in seeing the CC and i would like to see a little more about lucanis, maybe a little more combat from the other classes, but i think i've seen what i need to for now

[nerves-nebula]

Is there anything Splinter did to the others that even Leo at the time though was too far/didn't like?

Oh, plenty of things. I’ve mentioned a few things Leo regrets before that were BASICALLY entirely Splinter's fault (putting donnie in the corner, making the turtles spar until first blood, that kinda stuff) but Leo would be hard pressed to blame Splinter (at least at the time). Splinter’s kinda gotten in his head in a way where Leo automatically jumps to his dads defense because he understands his mindset so well, and he’s been fed all the excuses Splinter tells himself to justify his behavior. 

Also, Splinter has a habit of punishing the others to teach Leo a lesson. For example, if Leo slacks off in training, Splinter might fight one of his brothers as a demonstration. Everyone knows it's not a fair fight, but it’s not about everyone else, it's about LEO. The whole point is that if Leo slacks off and falls behind he’ll be even more outmatched in a REAL combat situation. Stuff like that makes it hard for Leo to blame Splinter, because in Leo’s mind it's HIS fault his brother’s getting hurt. 

THAT being said, there is one idea I’ve been batting around about Donnie (yeah he’s my favorite so unfortunately this is about him again.) 

So, I’ve been thinking, obviously Donnie wants attention and affection from adults, but plenty of kids do and not all of them are so easy to manipulate/so visibly desperate to get away. And while he is partially based on me and is a slight exaggeration of how easy it’d have been to groom me, I also want to give him some of his own reasons for things. Yknow, like a character haha. ANYWAY enough rambling, here’s the vague outline of what happened:

Around 6-7 years old, Donnie was really stepping into building things, right? Little, simplistic robots and wind up toys and stuff. It’s hard to do that using only tech that’s been dropped into the sewers, but he manages. This is before he discovers the hidden city, too, so his only source of supplies is the sewers. He’d scavenge all day for parts. It wasn’t exactly a safe hobby, but it was fun.

Well, once he needed a part that wasn’t easy to get. Something small, but specific (being vague cause idk shit about tech or building things tbh) and he, being a small child, decided to see if they had anything in the house that would work. He went around asking his brothers, then checked all the communal spaces (kitchen, dojo, living room, etc) and finally ended up finding something that would work! In Splinter’s room! While Splinter was away getting food!

Donnie, once again being a small child, was not subtle in his theft and left multiple signs that someone had been there. Splinter asked which one of them had been in his room, and after a tense interrogation, Leo pointed out that Donnie had been rummaging around the place looking for something so it was probably him. So, Donnie admitted what he’d done.

In response, Splinter grabbed his arm, walked them o Donnie’s room and confiscated every single object Donnie had built. Toys, robots, the whole thing. He also confiscated any usable spare parts Donnie had been keeping as well, so that Donnie would have to start his search for parts all over again.

He never gave them back. No matter how much time passed, if Donnie brought it up Splinter would glare at him and basically shrug him off. Only Leo knows that Splinter destroyed them all, and sold anything useful. Which he only knows because Splinter revealed it to him in a very dismissive, flippant way years later. Leo’s never told his brothers, but Donnie’s figured there’s no way Splinter kept all his inventions. 

I think Splinter does similar things to the others, like tear up a comic Mikey’s reading during training, or take Raph’s food and give it to Leo as punishment for Raph stepping out of line, but this was probably the least justifiable and most cruel time he did something like that. Just destroying all of a child's hard work and possessions to prove a point.

I was gonna have him crush all of Donnie’s inventions in front of him but I think there’s a different kind of emotion I wanna explore here. The slow, painful realization that your dad walked with you to your room, told you to stand in the doorway, and then stole all your most important things from you. He picked them up carelessly, not minding if they broke in his arms, and you never saw them again. He’s not ever going to give them back, because he didn’t even KEEP what he stole from you. 

So yeah, no one was happy about that. They were pretty small, but it’s hard to forget something like that haha. Leo can still remember how hard and long Donnie sobbed once Splinter left :)

[haddonfieldwhore]

headfirst, fearless - will borgen

will borgen x reader (welcome to the party pt.2)

summary: you and will go on your first date

warnings: none i think but i’m not super happy with how this one turned out tbh

word count: 1.8k part one is here

your head wasn’t pounding nearly as much as you thought it would be when you woke up, and you smiled at the fact that the drunken haze hadn’t wiped the cute brunette from your memories. after having a shower and some breakfast, you got out your phone and texted will, as you promised matty you would.

you smiled at your phone as you texted will your address, and he replied saying he would pick you up at five that evening. it was 11 am now, giving you plenty of time to get ready.

you were excited to see will again, and thankful that you hadn’t been so drunk that you’d made a fool of yourself last night. at least if you did, it wasn’t enough to scare him away.

will texted you at exactly five o clock to say that he was waiting outside your place, and after one quick look in the mirror, you were out the door. you were wearing a simple outfit, just a warm sweater, your jacket, and some jeans, along with your winter boots and some gloves to combat the chill in the seattle winter air.

will was standing next to his car when you got outside and you greeted him with a smile as he opened the passenger door for you.

“thanks,” you smiled. “it’s really nice to see you again.”

“yeah, i had a lot of fun last night,” he agreed as he began to drive down the road. “i am looking forward to not being a drunken idiot in front of you today though,” he said with a laugh.

“you weren’t an idiot,” you laughed with him. “i was worried i was, so i guess we were both worried for no reason.”

“i guess so,” he smiled. at a red light, he took off his grey beanie to run his hands through his hair, before placing it back on his head.

“did you and the guys have fun celebrating last night?”

“yeah, we had a good time. matty was still barely awake when i left to pick you up.”

“you guys live together?” you asked, and he nodded.

“yeah, we have a house together next to yanni and his family’s. it’s nice being so close together.”

“that does sound nice,” you agreed.

you spent the short drive to the market getting to know eachother; mostly small stuff like where you were from originally, what kind of music you liked, what you did over the holidays.

the car pulled up outside the market, strings of thousands of lights decorating the trees, lampposts, and stalls for different shops.

“wow, it’s gorgeous.”

“yeah,” will smiled, thinking that as you looked at all the lights, you were still the prettiest thing there.

will held your hand as you walked through the thin layer of snow that coated the ground.

“i love the snow,” you smiled, watching as tiny snowflakes twirled through the air, falling from the sky and covered the roofs of each market stall. there were vendors selling baked goods, crafts, hot chocolate, and so much stuff that you couldn’t even see everything at once. there was even a small skating rink set up, not big enough for hockey, but large enough that people could comfortably skate around.

“what do you want to see first?” will asked.

•

your toes had gone quite cold after about two hours of walking around the market, and even the hot chocolate you’d bought only marginally helping fight off the chill of january.

you had bought a couple craft items, such as a handknit potholder from a sweet old lady, as well as some cookies that you and will shared while watching people skate around.

“do you know how to skate?” will asked, and you shook your head.

“no,” you said with a laugh. “i think i would hurt myself if i tried.”

“you said you trust me?” he asked, extending a hand to you as he stood up.

“yes, but we don’t have skates.”

“even easier then,” he smiled, leading you out into the ice. it thankfully wasn’t too slippery where you felt like you were going to fall down, but enough that you could easily shuffle around. will ‘skated’ backwards as he held onto both of your hands, making sure you didn’t slip. somehow, you knew if you fell he would catch you, and it took away any fear you had in that moment.

“i don’t know how you do this, never mind while trying to shoot the puck and not get hit.”

“practice,” he smiled. “it’s kind of like second nature to me at this point.”

after a few more minutes you felt a little more steady on your feet. still , you didn’t travel too far from the edge of the rink, and never let go of will. you couldn’t imagine the added difficulty of trying to balance on skates.

“you should come to a game sometime. the guys want to see you again almost as much as i did.”

“really?” you asked, and he nodded.

“yeah. just let me know and i can get you tickets,” will smiled. “and yeah, the guys think you’re great.”

“thanks! they seem really cool too.”

“they kept asking me when i was going to see you again,” he said, and the pink blush on his cheeks from the cold hid the slight embarrassment in his face.

“well you can tell them that we went out today. and i don’t know about you but i’m having a really good time,” you smiled, hoping he felt the same.

“me too,” he smiled, and you breathed a sigh of relief. “it is getting cold though, so it might be time for me to take you home.”

“okay,” you agreed, and he helped you off the ice. you walked hand in hand back to his car, rubbing you hands together once you got inside as you waited for him to start the engine.

“what is it?” you asked, his eyes lingering on your face with a smile as he waited for the windows to defrost.

“you have a snowflake on your cheek,” he said, and reached over to wipe it off your cheekbone with his thumb. his hand lingered on your face, and your heart sped up.

“you know all i could think about in the cab ride home last night was how much i wish i had kissed you,” you whispered, and his eyebrows raised raised.

“really?” he hummed. “that’s good to know,” he smiled. “do you want me to kiss you now?”

you nodded, and will leaned closer, gently pressing his lips to yours, the taste of hot chocolate on his tongue. you smiled as he pulled away, the kiss definitely worth the wait.

“i really wanted to kiss you last night too, just for the record.”

“good to know,” you repeated what he’d said, and he smiled before putting the car in gear and starting the drive back to your place.

it was only around 8:30 when you pulled up outside your place, and you didn’t want to say goodbye just yet.

“do you want to come in for a bit?” you asked, hoping it wasn’t too forward.

“sure,” he agreed thankfully, turning off the car and following after you up to your apartment.

his phone beeped in his pocket and he glanced at it with a laugh.

“matty’s asking where i am,” he smiled, and you laughed as you turned the kettle on in case either of you decided to make coffee or tea.

“you didnt tell him where you were going?” you asked, and he shook his head.

“no,” he said with a laugh. “i was worried he might try to tag along.” you laughed as you walked over to the couch and sat down.

“while i did like hanging out with your friends, it was nice to hang out just the two of us,” you admitted, and will walked over and sat down on the couch next to you.

“yeah, it was.” he watched as you shivered slightly. “are you still cold?”

“a little,” you grabbed a blanket from the basket next to you couch, but will pulled you gently into his side, wrapping his arms around you as you pulled the blanket over your laps.

“better?” he asked.

“yes, thank you,” you hummed as you snuggled into him.

“maybe i just wanted to steal the blanket from you,” he teased, as it now rested over his lap as well.

“well if that was the case you could’ve just asked,” you laughed, looking up at him.

will leaned down and pressed a sweet kiss to your lips, and then another on the tip of your nose.

“i’m kidding,” he smiled. “that’s just a bonus.” you hummed softly as you grabbed the remote and passed it to will, deciding on something to watch together.

about an hour into the movie, will looked down and noticed that you were asleep, and smiled to himself.

he sent matty a quick text saying that he wouldn’t be home, and not to wait up for him, before kissing the top of your head.

he ignored matty’s response, and took of his beanie, running a hand through his hair to smooth it out, before he reached over and shut off the lamp. the movement caused you to stir, and he smiled at you.

“hey,” he whispered. “uh, i told matty i was staying out because i don’t want to wake you, but if you want me to go that’s okay.”

“no, that’s okay. i want you to stay,” you stood up, grabbing wills hand and leading him in the direction of your room. “but this couch is terrible for sleeping.”

“bedroom on the first date?” he teased. and you pushed his chest lightly as you grabbed pyjamas from your dresser, finding and old grey t-shirt that would probably fit will as well and handing it to him.

“you’re lucky you’re cute, or i’d make you sleep on the couch for that.”

“sorry,” he raised his hands with a smile, and you went to the bathroom to get changed.

you came back out to see will sitting on the end of the bed, having changed into the shirt you gave him. you walked over and stopped in front of him, and will placed his hands on your hips, his fingertips gently brushing against your skin under them hem of your top. you leaned down to kiss him softly, and he smiled as you yawned slightly after pulling back.

“tired?” he asked, and you nodded, crawling into bed and pulling him down to lay next to you.

“come here,” you giggled as you pulled him into your arms, his legs tangling with yours beneath the blanket as he kissed you again.

“goodnight will,” you mumbled as you snuggled into him, your face resting on his shoulder as his arms wrapped around your waist. he hummed softly as you placed a kiss on his neck.

“goodnight,” he smiled.

disclaimer: all screenshots, events, and/or interactions depicted in this are a work of fiction. i have no association with any parties mentioned

[grimmweepers]

𝐊𝐈𝐖𝐈 𝐗 𝐍𝐀𝐌𝐈 ♡

left was a comm done by @/foreveryeta and the right was made from this picrew. both are after time-skip

˖◛⁺⑅ Name: Kiwi Fruit

˖◛⁺⑅ Pronouns: They/them

˖◛⁺⑅ Devil Fruit: Oto Oto no Mi (Sound Sound Fruit)

˖◛⁺⑅ Occupation: Musician/Combatant in Straw Hat Pirates

˖◛⁺⑅ Trivia: Joins the crew with Brook in Thriller Bark, has violin trauma (the scar on their face is from when a violin string snapped), always has to replace their guitar because they use it as a weapon, loves crop tops, they were so roughed up in Thriller Bark that when the crew found Kiwi, they thought Kiwi was a zombie and started screaming, their epithet is "Virtuoso Kiwi" because they can play just about anything

𝐖𝐡𝐲 𝐚𝐧 𝐎𝐂 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐧𝐨𝐭 𝐚 𝐬𝐞𝐥𝐟-𝐬𝐡𝐢𝐩?

One Piece is such a fun and whimsical little universe that I just wanted to get extra creative with my character. Most of my ocs are, in one way or another, an extension of myself so technically it can still be a self-ship! (Well that’s what I tell myself).

𝐌𝐨𝐫𝐞 𝐚𝐛𝐨𝐮𝐭 𝐊𝐢𝐰𝐢 (+ 𝐍𝐚𝐦𝐢):

Kiwi is very much a golden retriever— goofy, laid back, and always unapologetically themselves. They’re the type to crack a joke if things start feeling bleak and knows exactly how to lighten the mood. A gym bro at their core, Kiwi is also musically gifted, with their favourite instrument weapon being the guitar.

If for some reason they don’t like you, their easy going vibe can get real petty, real quick. It’s usually in the most ridiculous and harmless ways. As my friend once said, Kiwi is the type to send hate mail to anyone who has done you wrong. Nothing threatening but just bizarre.

When it comes to Nami, Kiwi is completely and utterly in love with her. Shark teeth and all. They adore her.

One of their favourite things to do together that isn’t sexual is just lounging around in the other’s lap, braiding or playing with each other’s hair. The crew can always tell if Nami’s just worked on Kiwi’s hair if it looks neater than usual (I headcannon their natural hair to be untamed and unruly).

They are slow burn, and don’t really get together until after time-skip. Nami fell first but Kiwi definitely fell harder. Nami tried to brush off her feelings at first but she couldn’t shake how Kiwi’s warmth kept pulling her in. What really messed with her head was not knowing if Kiwi’s extra kindness was just them being friendly like they are with everyone else or something more. Meanwhile, Kiwi was just as confused, thinking their feelings for Nami was completely platonic until they started noticing how their heart would race and their stomach would flip whenever she was around.

𝐊𝐢𝐰𝐢 + 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐂𝐫𝐞𝐰:

(Won’t be mentioning everyone)

Sick and tired of constantly unga-bunga smashing their guitars in battle, Franky eventually makes Kiwi a guitar that doubles as a weapon (the one in the comm).

Kiwi doesn’t feel jealous when Sanji simps over Nami. Tbh they kind of just go, “Yeah, I get it” and moves on. However, any time Sanji calls Zoro ‘mosshead’, Kiwi is usually in the back like, “Hey man, what the hell…”

Zoro and Kiwi bicker. A lot of push-up contests. But they’re more similar than they think. These two get called ‘two peas in a pod’ which makes it funnier because they’re both green.

Kiwi was like Robin’s feral dog in the beginning. Settling into the crew and getting to know everyone was a little chaotic because they literally had nothing to their name except the clothes on their back and a talking skeleton as a friend.

Brook is Kiwi’s first and proper friend. I won’t go into their lore right now but they feel as though they are indebted to Brook. Kiwi might not be alive because of him. They often duet for the crew.

𝐊𝐢𝐰𝐢𝐜𝐨𝐫𝐞:

(threatening Brook)

I reached my photo limit so I can’t show what pre-time skip Kiwi would have looked like hic hic

dividers by dollywons

[mimikoolover]

So I watched the Minimoni video just now, and 2 things:

1. I am sad that Namjoon prefers MUSE over Face. Mostly because imo Face is more interesting in concept, execution and lyrics. Oh well. Personal preference.

2. The concept for MUSE is, if I understood correctly, that all the emotions of happiness and excitement JM feels are somewhat temporary. Like a crush that just goes nowhere, it's built more on how your brain romanticises a person and less on who that person actually is. We get crushes on people based on a few minutes of interactions, but at some point that feeling fades. And to Jimin, that's kinda what his entire life feels like. As a GenZ (98), I relate soooooo hard to that. There's these moments of elation, when you do something fun, but soon enough real life kinda drags you down again. The future isn't that exciting to look at and hope kinda flies out the window. To be fair, for most of my generation that's based a lot in feelings of economic fear - sth Jimin doesn't experience- but I think he experiences a lot of other emotions that equate to sth similar. Especially since SK, like many other countries tbh, kind of seems to not take enough steps forward socially to combat all the issues created by the ruling classes of the last decades (aka Baepsae). Anyway.

These feelings of good moments and happiness being fleeting doesn't mean the moments or emotions in that moment were faked. But since it comes and goes, and the lows tend to get very low (also mental illness is a big part that doesn't get mentioned directly in MMM though Jimin has touched on it before), you tend to catastrophise a lot. It's like imposter syndrome for feelings of happiness.

As a separate closing thought: a lot has been made about Who as a song and how you'd fit it into Jikook. Or how it disproves Jimin being in a happy potentially queer relationship, but imo the MMM really highlights how the whole love and crush narrative of MUSE is just a big metaphor. It's not even about JK specifically, but I think it would do Jimin a huge disservice to assume that this album he has worked on for over a year just contains very surface level songs. Yeah, they are about love and yearning, but just like "Fake Love" or any song on the Love Yourself trilogy are about loving someone else on the surface, it essentially is an album about self-reflection. It can be both. Similarly, I find it insulting of people that they assume the "she" was forced on Jimin because he isn't in the credits of the song. As if they wouldn't have re-written the whole thing if it didn't fit Jimin's vision. Don't infantilize him just because it doesn't fit with our (yes, I'm a shipper) view of who Jimin loves.

"She" is a concept, a dream and not real. In that sense, "she" reminds me of Marlena - a female stand-in for inspiration and music as used by the Italian band Maneskin. But that's a reach. And I don't want to discount the literal layer of the song either. I personally don't believe Who is this big red stamp of "hey, I'm here, I'm not queer and looking for a woman to love, please call hit me up" others see it as. But that doesn't mean that it doesn't actually reflect how much Jimin is yearning for someone to love him how he wants to be loved.

I think Jikook is real because of how they behave around each other, and from how they talk about each other. Even the latest mention in MMM, how they (and Yoongi, poor 3rd wheel) spend hours talking about music and singing screams "and they spend the rest of their lives living together, historians call them very good friends" to me. But I won't be upset if it turns out, they did have relationships for years with other people. I won't make up theories and stories to invalidate whoever they end up spending the rest of their life with - we're not larries. Even if I find GCF Tokyo and Saipan, Rosebowl, the regular carrying and the 7000 other instances very hard to contextualise in a hetero way.

Sorry for the essay but I was kind of getting sick of all the sides currently out and about, both the antis and shippers need to chill out.

I really enjoyed reading your thoughts so thank you for sharing!

see I think for jimin muse as an album perhaps was more about his journey going through creating it, it was a labour of love and something he made from scratch with a team of people. it was probably a real challenge too and it seems like he went through a lot of growth creating this album. I think it's quite hard to judge the 'real' meaning of songs to jimin and everyone having their opinions is valid but as you said we would all do well chilling out😂for me this time it almost seems like the 'concepts' behind the songs are not as deep as maybe face was but the entire process of creating muse was more meaningful to jimin.

[olderthannetfic]

Escapade Dance Party 2023 Writeup 3/3

Second Half

Jaskier has no more fucks to give by Gondolin AMV

Obviously, having just shown the other Witcher, I had to open with the more familiar one.

Vids under 2 minutes also aren't actually danceable no matter the tempo, so this makes a good upbeat intro to a section.

Grandmaster of Troublemaking (The Untamed) by NKZephyr Edits

I love the enthusiasm and goofiness of this vid.

Goncharov (1973) | Read the description! by Etoile

Come on, we had to have Goncharov!

TBH, there were other vids, but basically none of them were danceable.

【HIStory3-圈套】On a daily by Nerjaveika

Trapped's moment seems to have passed, but the combination of great use of text and this fun song made this one a perfect fit.

Ego | AMV | Mo dao zu shi & Heaven Official's Blessing (CC Lyrics) by Nitisha Donghua Productions

I was more looking for Heaven Official's Blessing alone, but most of the options I was finding weren't really danceable. I love this song and was looking for a vid to it anyway.

trouble in my head | lan jue & zhang ping | a league of nobleman by Victoria

I have no clue what this is. I probably found it in the sidebar while searching something else, but it's such a pretty vid.

История Бай Ци (AU, Bai Qi/Shen Zui) by Kemriko

What is this? Who knows. I liked it, and it was m/m, so people got to watch it.

BTS Jhope • Gasolina• |FMV|• by kookie taex

In a concession to how many people the previous song would inevitably chase from the dance floor, I wanted to follow it with something much more booty-shaking. I fucking love Gasolina and am always looking for more vids to it. Tragically, a lot of English-speaking vidding fandom has No Taste and does not vid this kind of music.

Yes, this is a vertical vid of J-Hope dancing to Daddy Yankee. No regrets!

Мания Хирото by Fausthaus

Ah, my favorite source of vids: Russian fandom combats. Are they on AO3? Yes. Have English speakers gone anywhere near their vast stores of battshit content? No, absolutely not.

No one at the con, including me, knows anything about this fandom. Too bad. The music is great, and I wanted to dance to it.

Отступники by fandom Vampires of Central Russia 2021

This is another fandom I spotted in the fandom combats. The vid is shorter than I'd normally show, but I wanted to showcase this interesting vampire fandom that I didn't think most people at Escapade had heard of yet.

Sex and Violence by bironic

Another one breaking my rules. Nandermo was a must-have for a vampire-themed year, but mockumentaries are shot like ass on purpose, and that makes them hard to vid, so my options were limited. Bironic's always a sure thing, if not exactly obscure to an Escapade audience.

Sadly, the embed seems to be dead at the moment.

Sex Drive by Franzeska

Yes, I will always play my own vids when I need to fill a hole in a playlist.

Night Watch was such a passion of mine for a while and the source of my ill-fated attempt to learn Russian. I always meant to go back and add text to this vid to echo the weird subtitles they did for the movie, but I never got around to it. Oh well.

【盾冬衍生】no body no crime 黑暗爽文利刃出鞘兰森/我们一直住在城堡里表哥 by 蜜桃奶霉包

Batshit AUs are my favorite. When I found this, I knew I had to inflict it on everyone.

The Hunger - Say Yes To Heaven by themaybatatter

I had a long list of vampire fandoms, most of which I never did find a vid for, but The Hunger was at the absolute top of my list. After scouring the internet, this was the only arguably danceable vid I could come up with and one of the few in general. What the hell, internet? What the hell?!

“你不了解你的妻子，我吻过她” by 没饭呲了

This would be a lot more danceable if it weren't quite so plastered with show audio… but too bad. As usual, sufficiently horny femslash gets an automatic pass. Everyone swayed vaguely on the edges of the dance floor staring, so I still consider it a success.

【巍澜】这可是极限拉扯的鼻祖！！！ by 甜飞惹

Guardian is another fandom where I'm spoiled for choice, but the Chinese vidders do like to include an awful lot of dialogue. This vid stood out for great dance party music and no audio clips.

Morpheus & Hob | The Night We Met by WolfPhoenixWriter

A lot of people were into Sandman this year. I liked this vid for making me feel a lot of feelings despite never having seen the show and barely remembering the comic.

It's a bit slow dance for Escapade, but I loved the emotion in the song too much to not include it.

Boyfriend | FMV | Yan Wei X Xu YouYi by Nitisha Donghua Productions

I guess this was my horny femslash year.

Lee Soo Hyuk - Gwi (Scholar Who Walks the Night) Savage by Serendipity

What's this? Dunno, but it's got a vampire and this great song.

The Monster by frayadjacent

This one was pure self-indulgence on my part. It was made for a con by a vidder everybody knows, but the vidder felt it required too many content warnings and didn't send it in the end. I, however, reserve the end of the dance party to show more content warnings-heavy things if I feel like it. I despise how fandom has turned into a "compromise" where anything that reaches into my soul is never on the table while pabulum always is. Fuck that. I am the arbiter of what's normal.

This vid lit me up in places I'd forgotten.

Ahs Hotel :| Tear you Apart by xxxxxx

This song was used in the show and there are a billion vids to it, but this one is far better than the others aside from how it just cuts off.

AHS isn't a fandom most at the con are in, but I just had to include its vampire season.

A Shot for the Pain by Franzeska

I honestly did go looking for other Penny Dreadful vids. Sadly, the selection was not impressive, and most of it was not to anything danceable, let alone goth club-appropriate music.

【拔杯|暗黑慎入】你是我奇怪的瘾症 by 两只阿夏跑不快

I've seen a lot of Hannibal vids. Almost all of them are gross. Few are as interestingly edited as this one.

Twilight Zone by hmmyeahokay

Okay, this one is a massive blast from the past. Do people outside of Highlander fandom even remember this bad 2001 movie?

I loved the song, and I appreciated that there was a black lead. That and vampires trump the fact that it's a het vid (ish).

Supernatural ►Cry Little Sister by Gwen

I scoured Youtube for vids to this song. I thought this was a particularly interesting take out of the extensive genre of horror set to Cry Little Sister. (No, seriously, it's a genre.)

【荣耀向我俯首｜kinnporsche】没长出恋爱脑前的少爷们怎么能错过这首BGM by 旧城与笙Zz

Kinnporsche hit big this year. I wanted a really fantastic vid that people hadn't seen. I love that this one is by a Chinese vidder (probably) to a French song.

Sadly no longer online, probably for being of a horny BL series and posted on a Chinese site

Kingdom come by fandom ATEEZ 2022

Okay, ATEEZ isn't a big fandom at the con, but this vid is some sort of kink AU, and I'm always weak for that. It's also to a Taylor song everybody loves.

Last of the Real Ones by colls

I cheated again and included a well-known vidder, but do you know how hard it is to find stormpilot vids? Kylux has like eight billion genius animatics and fan art vids. Finnpoe? Bupkis!

I don't know if people still care about this part of Star Wars, but all of the Bandom trash immediately rushed the dance floor when the song started playing.

louis & lestat | take my breath away (interview with the vampire) by ScribbledDreaming

I have ended with this song before, with finnpoe in fact, so that's a little in-joke for myself.

What better way to end the vampire party than the new IWTV and the most over-the-top vid I could find?