#like theres something to be said about doing a certain character to the point where the line between fiction and reality becomes blurred

[djevelbl]

I'll never forget the day my mum asked me "hey so uh. why do you use he/him on your whatsapp channel??" and I had to elaborate beyond "I think it's fun"

[drabblejester]

I love your impression of Sampo!! Like yeah, he'd do This™ and That™ as according to your posts. Like, I think yours has the most simplest yet most accurate depiction of Sampo here!

Could I request Sampo, Gallagher, and Mr. Reca would do on their first date? Inspired from the other ask you did for 'overhearing the confession'

-G⭐

what VARIOUS HSR GUYS would do on your FIRST DATE!

requested by: G⭐️ !!

pairings: sampo, gallagher, and reca x gn!reader

content warnings: none!!!

comments: TYSM FOR THAT MY LIEGE.. i usually ‘dumb’ my sampo down actually bc theres no way i can fit all my thoughts on him into one little postHEEHE!!!

GALLAGHER:

he’d take you to his bar!! easy as that. it’s nothing grand or special, just his good ol bar. he serves you up a few drinks and you have a great time!

mostly, you guys talk. gossip about people, random tabloids you both found, fun facts about the other, etc. that’s also how you get to find out about misha and sleepie (and you adore both of them <3)

he’s much more gentle and warm towards you, quieting down his voice a bit so he isn’t that startling. he still has his drawl and everything, just in a lighter tone. in general it seems like he just got a bit younger!!

he jokes about you helping him out with the bar later, and you agree. so as a ‘second’ date, you guys get to work together! yippee! you get paid with free drinks and your first kiss with him <3

SAMPO:

you guys go visit some historical sites in belobog together!! he’s VERY knowledgable in them, and takes his time with you. you cruise through museums and even out in the cold, pointing at abandoned machinery and cool architecture

he absolutely talks more than you no matter how talkative you may be. partially out of ‘i want this date to go well and for them to see how cool i am’ and also out of ‘I AM SO NERVOUS RN’. thankfully he has a very engaging voice, and you love listening to him ramble :3

he tells a few tall tales in between, typical stories and fairytales that kids would like to hear. makes sense seeing as how he does talk with hook a lot.. and even at your age, they’re still fun and interesting! he’s an incredibly good storyteller

and at the end of the day, he wraps his dingy little jacket around your shoulders and takes you back to wherever he lives. he gives you a few snacks and the most delicious DIY hot chocolate ever before asking you SO many questions about how you thought of the date. you mumble something good before you fall asleep, which is enough for him <3

MR. RECA:

as he said before, he wants to cast you in the starring role of a romance movie with him as your lovely boyfriend. he makes PLENTY of jokes about it too, constantly rambling about how fun it’ll be. it counts as a first date i guess???

you two are an AMAZING duo together onstage and offstage!! his performance is amazing to the point where you actually feel like you’ve fallen for him impossibly more… the role he’s playing is a cheesy romantic ol guy, and AEONSS ABOVEE if you don’t treasure it

he lets you customize your role however you want! so you decide to simply play as yourself to max out your reca romance exposure. he plays along and switches the script around just for you, before going on set to dance around with you a while more

at the end of the day, both of you make lovely comments on your acting (although you weren’t really playing a character), laughing about certain moments in the scenes before he sends you home. and of course, he waits for you to enter your house before he leaves, just like his little gentleman role in the movie <3

i’m going to make some ramen my lieges do you want any

[mullermilkshake]

Meet the cast

Readers of the JJKYakuza! AU

EDIT: Forgot to say, this song has absolutely nothing to do with that time period but I love it and I think it suits the post :3

Yakuza!JJK men x Fem!readers.

Sukuna, Satoru, Suguru, Kento, Toji, Choso

Though each piece of writing I do is how the reader would like to read it, each one I write has naturally written themselves personalities though I’ve tried to be a little vague to keep immersion as linear as possible. I also keep it as second person because I just prefer writing that way.

Each reader is Fem!reader, but some shorts/ fics could be read as Afab! I will indicate where the reader is definitely Fem! The pronouns I use most of the time are She/Her. I purposely try and leave certain details to be as inclusive as I can.

I'll update as the characters write themselves and if there are any new non- platonic/platonic interests reveal themselves.

So, without further ado, I'm pleased to introduce to you properly, the readers of my JJK Yakuza AU.

Enjoy!

Sukuna's wife

You are determined, self assured and despite what Sukuna puts on display for the clan to see, you most definitely wear the pants in this marriage.

Sukuna just hates to admit it.

You have him inadvertently wrapped around your little finger. Your adaptability proves useful in the world of the Yakuza and took well to stepping up and being the Chairman’s wife after an impromptu marriage proposal.

It slipped from Sukuna's lips and he's never regretted asking you the way he did. He was almost speechless when you gave Nanami the answer to pass along and he was married to you within the month.

Determined is one way to put it. You aren’t indecisive and you know what you want in life to reach out and grab it.

One thing that turns Sukuna on every time is that glare you have when you are angry. Though you don't show it, it's an expression that verges on lustrous.

And Sukuna is addicted to it.

Satoru's girlfriend

You are timid at times but you're coming out of your shell each and every day. You make Satoru want to be a better man after all the fucked up shit he's done and continues to do.

So kind spirited, humble and charitable.

You care deeply for Satoru and it's sometimes hard for him to see that. He knows he's difficult to be with sometimes yet you never point his flaws out or put him down.

It's one of your perfect traits. Loving him unconditionally.

Yakuza life irks you at times and Satoru see's the worry that builds up behind your eyes, but again, you don't forbid him from his family or ask him to cut that part of him off.

Not many people would put up with the tomfoolery he brings to your front door.

But you do.

Suguru's wife.

'Behind each successful man, theres a woman holding him up.' This is something Suguru stands by and believes wholeheartedly.

You are fully aware of Suguru's involvement with the Yakuza and at times, you even actively encourage it. Being the person you are and how long you've known Suguru, you allow him to take care of what's needed to be done. Even hurting bad people so long there's a reason to do so.

Suguru's conscience is something you hold dear to your heart and have always made it clear that you don't want him losing his way.

That being said, you are one hell of a mama bear to the girls. Whenever, albeit on rare occasions when the girls are threatened, you don't wait for Suguru to deal with it.

You'd happily take on the entire Yakuza to keep his girls safe and Suguru is certain you'd win hands down too.

It's a dominant trait and at times it’s something that Suguru is scared of. Because you really are the one in charge and he loves that about you.

Kento's single (currently)

Though single, you have caught his eye and Kento wishes to speak to you in person. As someone who's bubbly and charming, you are incredibly elusive whenever Kento does his best to converse with you in person.

You have no idea he exists and how many times he's tried to speak with you. Something always gets in the way.

There's still so much of you that Kento wants to learn about and the only way he'll do that is to build up the courage and speak to you.

Kindness is something common in your vocabulary and you do it everyday with a smile.

What's your favourite movie, weather or season? How much do you enjoy to read that same book you have stuffed into your purse whenever he sees you reading in that coffee shop?

These are all things he wants to know, and eventually he'll get his wish just to hear your voice with his own hears again instead of on a monitor screen in his office.

Toji's girlfriend

Wow. You were more than everything Toji could have actually anticipated when he first met you.

You grew comfortable around him around the six month mark and now, Toji lives with you and watches you walk around the apartment naked just because you can.

Toji admires your confidence and the fact you don't question him wherever he goes. Clinginess is something he avoids and your independence is attractive.

Your personality is still yet to be fully developed with him, and that's because he isn't sure how you'll react when you eventually find out that he is involved with the Yakuza.

He has an suspicion that you might join the pieces together, but your independence stops you badgering him. So for now it's manageable.

Still, you'll find out sooner or later and Toji has no idea if you'll see him differently after learning his past and present.

Until then, he’ll have faith in your kindness.

Choso's dating

While everything is still new for Choso, you are still a breath of fresh air for him.

It's early days and there's much healing to be had with how your ex died. (Another Yakuza guy who was a massive dick.)

You love animals and seem to be the least judgemental person he's ever met. You never look at the scar across his face and look at him like he's an actual human being.

Unlike how Sukuna glares at him.

Your voice is soothing to his ears, someone who makes him feel safe as he finds his own identity in the Yakuza. You don't know he's Yakuza yet but Choso plans to come clean soon.

He's not sure how you'll react when he's sure you didn't know your ex was Yakuza either. Though based off of the pleasant warm aura you emit to brighten up any room, he prays you'll see that he's more than just someone involved in crime when he tries to actively avoid it.

[theygotbitchesinmedia]

okay so here is her review: https://arkadymartine.wordpress.com/2015/09/27/the-traitor-baru-cormorant-a-reviewresponse/

admittedly its from 2015- i haven't poked around to see how she may have changed how she feels about it, and i know she did blurb seth's recent scifi novel (Exordia), so there's no bad blood there or anything. it's also a positive review, in general- she ends with this sentence: "I highly, highly recommend this book; I have not thought so much about something I read in a long time."

i am also coming into this as someone who has read all of seth dickinson's work for the game destiny, where he was near-singlehandedly responsible for a good oh… 80% of the interesting women (& overall interesting concepts lol!) in the game, and his writing of one of those characters in particular as a complex and flawed character got him bullied viciously off of all social media. if you've tried to find his social media presence and havent found anything, that's why. so i mayhaps have a little more emotion in the game.

THAT SAID. here are some specific parts from her review i find really fucking annoying! and color the way i feel about Memory & Desolation, despite them being so incredibly targeted at me as a classics person AND someone who fucking loves the specific sub-genre of scifi her novels are.

"[Traitor] asks a question which I find compelling as a student of an empire and as a queer woman. That question is: what do we gain by complicity? What do we – we barbaroi, we women, we queer people, we imperialized – what do we get when we say yes? When we say yes I will hide my true nature? When we say yes I will subsume myself into the beautiful machine? When we say can we speak English? Or the literature I love just happens to be written by straight white men – and mean it, too, mean it with the kind of depthless love that a person can have for a text that speaks to them, which holds up a mirror to them?"

i dont think the use of the greek word for barbarian does anything here (she also keeps coming back to the greek term orthos in her review, which also pisses me off lol), i dont think empire is a "beautiful machine," and i don't think the invocation of identity politics is useful. like. i know she's a byzantine scholar but if your first association with empire is purely a finite Historical Empire instead of, like, modern US imperialism, or British colonialism, you are going into this discussion with a certain set of values and opinions! a set of values and opinions that let you call an empire a "beautiful machine" in all earnestness. this claim probably seems unsubstantiated and nitpicky now just from this excerpt but ill come back to it with more i promise. on the idpol front, she also says immediately after this that she does believe that straight people can and should write queer people, but that they should listen to queer people when they point out those errors. she then continues:

"But then, critique: there are two points on which I think Dickinson’s portrayal of a queer protagonist has faltered, and I think both of these errors arise from the fact that he isn’t part of – as far as I know at the time of writing this review – a queer community. Firstly, I disbelieve Baru’s awareness of her own desires… …For the first portion of the book, her queerness felt more like a character trait assigned to her for reason of plot than a naturally built part of her as a person… Secondly, I wonder where queer people in Falcrest are…"

theres more to these excerpts, but. i personally didnt find the depiction of baru's desire to be unrealistic, and also this was a review of Traitor, specifically, so where on earth would baru have heard about queer people in falcrest? and more importantly, why should we care so much about queer people in the imperial core? moreover i think the way seth does it with svir is very very well done, and illustrates the hypocrisy of empire in a way that does NOT seem like what martine is asking for here!!!

"Why am I invested? I myself am a student of empire. I’m a Byzantinist. My academic work is about empire and its seductions; it is the animating principle of my professional life. And: I am myself someone who loves order over disorder. Who looks for systems in all things. Who is comforted by structures; who is concerned deeply with propriety. But here’s my real criticism of this book: I don’t buy the seduction of the Masquerade. And I think if this book fails, it’s there: in that its empire is too easily read as undesirable. As profane, unethical, fundamentally wrong. It is really overtly evil." … "The Masquerade isn’t civilized. It’s civilization, but I don’t recognize it as civilized, and this is a problem with a constructed empire. An empire relies on itself as the definition of civilization – I would footnote here Ann Leckie’s Imperial Radch as a SFnal example of an empire which is built on this principle, and which, for this reader at least, achieves the facsimile. (But then my ancestors were not enslaved, we were exterminated; not annexed, but exiled. Perhaps I like the Radch better than the Masquerade because I can find a place for myself in it, and cannot imagine a place within the Masquerade someone like me would ever be safe –)"

and THIS. THIS RIGHT HERE IS MY BIGGEST PROBLEM. critiquing the masquerade as not "seductive" enough, calling it too evil to have people join it- how does someone miss the point THIS badly??? like. are you FUCKING serious??? how do you read a book about the immense violence of colonialism and your problem is that it is boohoo too violent for people to join willingly. google literally fucking anything the US has done ever!!! and the invocation of the concept of "civilized" as an objective quality, despite the recognition that the empire constructs what counts as "civilization" is so fucking unserious/simplistic/juvenile! why do you need to imagine yourself a place in the empire? in the imperial core specifically!

and i think this particular approach bleeds into her books. i read them at Least 2 years ago, so this is mostly vibes-based, and i will avoid spoilers.

there is such a focus on the allure of the imperial core, on the "beautiful machine" of the empire as she calls it. there is violence done, but it is abstracted away from the wealth of the imperial core. there are no economics there. the empire sees her independent station as a backwater, and there is some cultural tensions there, but there is no realistic violence and exploitation! it is not clear at all what maintains the empire, besides some abstract idea of trade. i also don't know what her Point is with the naming & language conventions, which are very clearly inspired in part by ancient Mayan- e.g. the empire and core planet are called Teixcalaan. and idk this may be reductive of me but i think if you are going to pull features from civilizations that have been colonized and use them to inspire fictional colonizing forces, you ARE saying something there! idk! and like, the ancient Mayan

and on the ~representation~ front, i also don't think she does a better job than seth tbqh!!! i felt like the characters getting together came out of nowhere and felt anticlimactic- there is also not the tension i think there should be with the main character being an ambassador-ish and the love interest being… idr. junior intelligence officer iirc? idk! and for all her critique of baru's desire for women not feeling "real" or present enough, i do not remember the main character in Memory having any real focus on it!

i enjoyed Memory just fine, but i don't think it says anything interesting or novel or even critical about empire, and i found her review of Traitor extremely shallow and useless, if very revealing about her own outlook on empire lol!!!

this has been at best Minorly proofread and edited but im not like, writing an academic essay on the matter and so i apologize for any inconsistencies.

oh man thanks for this this is really interesting. i went and read the whole thing and i agree a ton with your critique. i'm going to stick my thoughts below the cut because i went on for a bit here, in typical fashion.

i personally didnt find the depiction of baru's desire to be unrealistic, and also this was a review of Traitor, specifically, so where on earth would baru have heard about queer people in falcrest? and more importantly, why should we care so much about queer people in the imperial core?

NO BUT EXACTLY... for starters this is explicitly a novel about colonized people taking place in a colony where none of the major characters are from the empire. where, when, and how would we take the time to explore what queerness looks like for them and more importantly, like you've asked, why the hell should that be a priority for the narrative in this case.

in terms of 'i found this to be an unrealistic depiction of queer desire' 9/10 times i feel like what that means is 'i found this to be an unrelatable depiction' which is an entirely different critique. i know i'm working with two additional books worth of context that martine isn't working with here. but even taking into account just the characterization we have for baru in traitor i think this is suuuuch an unfair complaint. i'm gonna pull the entire quote she says about baru's sexuality here because i have additional specific gripes with it.

Firstly, I disbelieve Baru’s awareness of her own desires. In the first portion of the book, I do not ever feel the weight of Baru’s own awareness of her sexuality; there is an absence of carnality, a kind of intellectual version of lesbian desire which is, to me, inconsistent with the sort of desire I expect. Not until the introduction of Baru’s eventual lover Tain Hu do I get a sense of Baru as a woman who loves women. Further, considering how very much the Empire of Masks and Increastic philosophy criminalizes the sin of queer desire, I wish Baru had struggled more with the nature of her desire. For the first portion of the book, her queerness felt more like a character trait assigned to her for reason of plot than a naturally built part of her as a person. This markedly improved in the second half, where Baru notices women in a way she does not notice men.

For starters, it is insanely hypocritical to me to complain that her desire both isn't carnal enough and she processes it too intellectually, but that she isn't struggling enough with it. Baru intellectually processes things! That's her entire character from the getgo! She also has a difficult time conceptualizing other people as fully realized beings with their own agency. These character traits paired together don't make for a particularly passionate and carnal relationship to her sexuality. She is also, at her absolute oldest in this book, 21! (Or 22? I can't remember. I know she spends 3 years in aurdwynn) and has spent her entire youth being groomed to be a scholar. Of course detached intellectualism is her primary way of navigating all things. Why wouldn't it be?

Baru primary motivation is to save taranoke, she wants to save the taranoki way of life, and part of that way of life includes an acceptance of nonhetero nonmonogamous relationships. Sure, a different character arc may have involved baru actually internalizing and then having to break free of the trappings of race, gender, and sexuality that the empire tries to impose upon its citizens. but that's not baru and acting like this is a writing flaw rather than a character choice is insane to me.

There's absolutely no reason for Baru to lie awake at night pontificating about how wrong and dirty of her it is to want to have sex with women because we are never lead to believe even for a minute that Baru puts any emotional weight in incrasticism. She doesn't conceptualize it as sinful she conceptualizes it as illegal!

And "Not until the introduction of Baru’s eventual lover Tain Hu do I get a sense of Baru as a woman who loves women. " is killing me in particular because like. Yeah. Tain Hu is baru's first love. thats the point. But beyond that this is just not being able to see anything other than what she's looking for because i think the chapters covering baru's childhood make it pretty clear that her feelings for aminata and cousin lao (im not double checking the name but im pretty sure it was this) are deep and strong. the fact that they're not as explicitly and straightforwardly romantic and sexual as her relationship with tain hu doesn't change that, and in fact, points to baru's struggle with/development of her sexuality that she claims was somehow missing in this book.

like i just simply can't see anything here but someone who is seeing an emotional landscape they can't relate to and assuming that means it's flawed writing. skill issue frankly.

She's also fucking insane for acting like the masquerade is too cartoonishly evil to be appealing. once again im going to post her full quote here because i think its important to see

its empire is too easily read as undesirable. As profane, unethical, fundamentally wrong. It is really overtly evil. It punishes sexual “deviants” with mutilation and death. It murders children callously. It inflicts plague and withholds vaccines. It lobotomizes its own emperors for the sake of convincing its populace that the emperor is just. Most of all, the Masquerade is a eugenicist empire: it is explicitly founded on not purity of bloodline but on purification of bloodline, on making people useful to it. It makes people: it breeds them carefully, it indoctrinates them through schools, it uses drugs and operant conditioning to transform their minds and make them into automata tools. It commits every atrocity that a modern Western reader recognizes as abhorrent. This is a problem. It is a problem because we are asked, as readers, to believe that there are reasons besides blackmail that a person would willingly become an agent of the Masquerade. We are asked to imagine that the Masquerade is a beautiful machine.

for starters. "It commits every atrocity that a modern Western reader recognizes as abhorrent." MODERN WESTERN EMPIRES DID, AND OCCASIONALLY STILL DO, MOST OF THESE THINGS!!! THIS IS US! WHAT ARE YOU TALKING ABOUT!!! I FEEL INSANE!!!!

I think the book makes it more than explicitly clear why the empire is appealing??? it has all of the capital???? its building schools and sewage systems and importing food and goods and teaching reading and writing??? baru's own internal narrative often shows her own strife at the fact that the empire has made genuinely incredible scientific advancements that offer significant improvements in quality of life to many, many people. martine actually acknowledges this in the next paragraph of her review, and then brushes it away as not being good enough. why? what about that doesn't convince you?

she is seeming to hugely ignore the fact that in the case of aurdwynn specifically, the bureaucracy of the empire is coming in to unseat feudal aristocracy! what the masquerade offers may not be particularly tempting to most of that ruling class, but its economic opportunities are more then believably appealing to the common people. i think this is made pretty clear when baru's ploy to use the fiat bank to make loans to the aurdwynni people and basically lessen the massive tax burdens from the duchies wins her huge favor with the public.

and frankly even for the ruling class the potential economic benefits are massive too if you're willing to participate in the empire properly. yes the empire doesn't have Moral appeal. it doesn't fucking have to. it owns pretty much every economy outside of the oriati mbo. the fact that that's not enough for her is as you've pointed out really really showing her biases and blind spots. 'no reason besides blackmail' MONEY!!!! MONEY! IT'S MONEY! THIS IS A BOOK ABOUT ACCOUNTING! HOW DID YOU MISS THAT!!!

and the invocation of the concept of "civilized" as an objective quality, despite the recognition that the empire constructs what counts as "civilization" is so fucking unserious/simplistic/juvenile! why do you need to imagine yourself a place in the empire? in the imperial core specifically!

And this is really it for me too, yeah. It's gross. It's absolutely gross. "An empire isn't believably appealing unless I, personally, find it appealing" there are people alive who are eugenicists, who love community policing, who believe in race science. the masquerade is an empire for them. the thing about empires is that they are only actually empowering for an incredibly small subset of people, and the fact that You, Specifically, Arkady Martine can't imagine being one of those people in this instance doesn't make it not believable. This is a shatteringly individualist way of engaging with a work.

As for your points about the way she handles empire in her own book obviously i can't have anything to say there because i haven't read it yet, but i do absolutely agree with you on this bit:

and idk this may be reductive of me but i think if you are going to pull features from civilizations that have been colonized and use them to inspire fictional colonizing forces, you ARE saying something there! idk! and like, the ancient Mayan

1000% i don't think this is reductive of you. whether or not you're consciously saying anything is one question but it's a choice that absolutely doesn't exist in a vacuum. out of curiosity i googled her to see if she was of mayan descent or anything and maybe she chose that due to some personal ties to the subject matter but she doesn't seem to be. which of course i don't think means she can't or shouldn't draw any inspiration from there but i do think all of these sorts of choices are meaningful

i don't really have much to say here to round off a conclusion but. wow. deeply deeply telling review that does not particularly make me want to read anything she has written beyond this.

[quins-makeshift-menagerie]

Im curious about how pokeballs work in your world building!

Things like:

•Can only humans use pokeballs?

•Do the pokeballs register info too or only store the pokemon?

•Whats on the inside of pokeballs in your world? Both tech wise and what the pokemon experiences?

Theres more I could ask but ill leave it at that. Love your characters and story so far!

-🍀

What a FASCINATING question ⭐️ 0 ⭐️

Humans and Pokemon can use pokeballs. Use being a loose term here, which I’ll elaborate on next. Most wild pokemon probably don’t have a positive view enough to want to though

They do both! It’s how Joyce can monitor Fuji when he’s alway. I haven’t worked out how it keeps tract of this information honestly. Maybe something like how we chip animals? Like a harmless lil thing that sends vital info to the registered trainer, and keeps a code for which pokeball the pokemon is registered to, which is why other balls wouldn’t work on a caught pokemon. Unless their ball is destroyed or they’re officially released, then I imagine the information is deleted 🤔 The chip would still probably stay active but be in a sort of dormant state. Could be removed I’m sure but like I said it’d be harmless. That being said one would have to be registered to properly use a pokeball but I imagine the vast majority of people are, even in cases where the pokemon aren’t for battle and are just companions. I imagine this registration probably isn’t official until the newly caught Pokémon’s first visit to the center so there would be a brief period of them being in “limbo” where while they have a ball they aren’t registered to the trainer just yet and can still be caught by another. A small fault in the system that pouches are thieves probably take advantage of when it comes to new trainers

Further elaboration on the first point! This means Pokémon wouldn’t be able to use a ball to its full capacity that isn’t already registered to a specific Pokemon. A wild Pokemon could play with a lost ball and accidentally get “caught” but assuming they can get out they can walk away with no real consequence aside from probably being a bit frazzled.

Zeus briefly touched on what it’s like, describing it similarly to being within the system. I’m currently unsure when it comes to tech wise but I’ll do my best to elaborate further on what Zeus meant. While I imagine a Pokemon inside a ball is most likely at least partially comatose, they’d also experience a lucid dream of sorts. They’re aware it’s a dream, but most don’t really have a reason to fight it considering at some point or another they begin to view a pokeball as their “room” in a way. It’s a safe space. Not saying there aren’t cases of Pokemon busting out, we’ve seen that loads of times, but I imagine those are specific conditions. I imagine this is a huge problem with psychic type trainers, but it’s also pretty common with a Pokemon that doesn’t see their trainer as “worthy”(think in game when higher level Pokemon won’t listen if you don’t have a certain number badges), Pokemon of various strong temperaments, or Pokemon that are in pokeballs that aren’t strong enough to contain them(yeah you can brag about catching that legendary in a standard Pokeball but if it didn’t enter willingly you’re gonna have a problem for the rest of your time having it)

Aaaaah apologies if I rambled and went off track, but I hope I answered your questions ^^;;;

[taki118]

Yakuza Fiance ep 12 Manga Comparison

It's the season finale overall it was good but there were definitely some good character bits they cute. I hope this convinces some of you to read the manga, its really good and the anime can't really compare, theres also extras and somethings I haven't touched on cause they weren't relevant in my eyes. Anyway everything different under the cut. As always I'm using scans cause I'm lazy.

First up we lost this cute bit with Inamori

The anime looses out on a lot of cute moments with the side characters.

Ok so I do like the little visual gag they added of the high speed recap of the things Yoshino could be mad about in the anime

Its kinda like getting a glimpse into Kirishimas head, its a good gag.

In his call to Tsubaki we miss this little flashback on the return trip

Which adds more context to why he thought she wasn't upset.

Ok so we loose another cute domestic moment with the two

As he explains why he though the food might work to make her happy.

And we get some side character content

the guys are trying to make him feel better

The manga gives a little more of Yoshino rationale

It helps to follow more naturally into her telling him to not get other involved.

We also loose out on a pretty funny gag

Seeing things from Yoshino's POV really hits home how over the top he was being.

We also loose out on the explanation of Yoshinos wardrobe

(the fan translation means her grandpas friends)

Did you ever think her outfits were inconsistent? this is why

So the anime actually kinda softens Yoshino's childhood, she says people said things behind her back but she had some friends until middle school

But the manga makes no mention of friends at all. I suppose you could infer that "Lived normally" implies she had some but I think that fact she doesn't mention having any until Shoma is an important aspect to Yoshino. It's something she and Kirishima share in that they were lonely kids who didn't really realize how lonely they were.

I also need ya'll to know Kirishima blushes WAY more in the manga

Like I haven't really been noting it but its very consistent (Like the lose of goofy Shoma faces) but I wanted to point it out here cause I think it takes some of the edge away from the scene making it softer in the manga

also Yoshino blushes here

again I think it adds to tension in the scene and its a loss we dont get that in the anime. But this is what I mean when I say the anime can't compare to the manga in ways I can't really show. Cause shadows, framing and expressions are often very different and give a different feeling.

Anyway there are a few small details taken from the call with Shoma but I think this one is the greatest loss

It really adds to their dynamic to have Shoma scold her for once and for Yoshino to bite back.

So this is actually the introduction of Azuma he shows up in the anime much earlier in a frankly unneeded added scene in the anime. I can't for sure say which is better but I do think his scene here is more threatening, and better paced in the manga.

But also this is a rare moment where the anime is actually being more subtle than the manga

so good on you anime for adding suspense.

So the post credits scene is actually an extra but is very well done in animation except for two things

For one the scene isn't interrupted by Shoma on his bike which fyi makes the third added scene of Shoma with his bike literally the only time you see him on the bike in the manga is when shit goes down in Osaka. I swear someone on the team is a motorcycle fan or the studio made a deal with Suzuki for a certain amount of screen time.

Anyway we loose the cute ending of the bit rather than just fading to white we get

Yoshino happily eating the cake despite it being ruined.

I'll probably post more meta's and think pieces on the series from here out.

[the-s1lly-corner]

You points

I'd like to hear some of your general headcanons for itward! Any and all headcanons you can think of >:)

General Itward hcs!

I got too silly guys

This is gonna be long so buckleup

Side note, my silly little goofy baking marathon has begun, so requests are REALLY gonna slow down today and tomorrow and likely Tuesday as well

I current have multiple pies in the oven as we speak <\3 (note from the future i was typing for so long the first batch of pies finished and the second group just got put in)

My bodies gonna hate me for this but imma get paid (yaaaay!!!!)

Love to think that itward is self sufficient. He grows his own stuff and scavenges for any metal parts he needs what whatever (his ship, a project, ect)

As such he also builds and maintains his own stuff; the ship is the most obvious thing! But I like to think nearly everything in the ship itself was either made by him or found abandoned !

Its canon that he loves forks, both stated in the character sheet thing KMG posted as well as the copious amounts of forks decorating the main area of his ship! I mean he literally has a wall covered in forks! I can easily see him having even more forks stashed away somewhere

Torn between headcannoning him to just have them in a jumbled heap in a drawer somewhere... and headcannoning that he sorts them by size, material, color, and style... both seem so in character for him.. hmm..

I can say for certain that he has a box somewhere full of random stuff hes collected and it's not at all neat and organized. Rocks, gears, bolts, sticks, glass vials, jewels, and so on! The "oo pretty I think I'll keep this and use it for later (never uses it for later)" mindset! I like calling those lil trinket boxes "crow boxes"

"The one many children talk about", as said by the man himself. So fran and the twins arent the only ones who have interacted with him... dad of dozens of children

I was gonna go somewhere with that previous point but I genuinely forgot what I was gonna say

Has made stuffed animals and dolls at least once for all of his kids. And yes, that includes Clara and Mia, at least before they tried to kill him... reluctantly makes bunnies for kids who ask

Speaking of bunnies, since it's been proven that itward wasnt bluffing or lying about his fear of them (KMG made a post showing off a type of Kamala that basically makes you addicted to their candy, making you eat them til your guts explode) (which... is horrifying and makes me wonder, did itward see that happen to someone? Perhaps one of his kids? A friend? Or did he not and the concept just scares him so much?) It's a little funny that itward has a bunny plushie on his ship

Sad hc but I like to think it belonged to one of his past children and as much as hes afraid of it he doesnt have the heart to give it away

While we're on the topic of sad stuff, I dont think itward can shed tears. So in place of them, his bones start to rattle a little

While I also headcannon that his bones rattle when hes nervous or flustered, and perhaps on the rare occasion that hes angry, it does happen when hes sad enough

Okay no more sad, I like to think his hat steams when he gets real excited about something or embarrassed. The top of it just. Pops open and theres the steam billowing out

I dunno I think it suits him and his aesthetic...

Stole this idea from someone else but he can purr; it's mostly involuntary imo and if you listen close enough you can hear his bones vibrating and clacking against one another

His eyes glow in the dark! Not too bright, it's fairly dim, but it's enough for him to see around and for you to see where he is in a dark room!

Creaky bones. He is OLD! probably VERY OLD! So it would make sense his bones click and make noise thanks to the general age.. wear and tear you know? Especially prominent in his spine and ankles

Has a habit of clacking his teeth/jaw when speaking, as well as when hes just. Not doing anything

Prone to fiddling with his rings (!! Will get to that in a second!) As well as the accessories on his coat; and sometimes, even his hat!

Okay the rings! I like to hc that itward makes his own accessories too ! That includes the gems and chains on his coat (heck, hes probably made his own clothes!) And I like to hc that he sometimes wears rings !

Sometimes sells his stuff; more likely to sell shoes and clothing, as well as his machines and services! Sure he mostly lives off stuff hes found or grew, but theres some stuff that he cant just find or grow.. plus its generally a good idea to have some money somewhere

I'm pretty sure hes good friends with palontras and ziar (given him and palontras work together to help Fran and the painting of ziar in itwards ship) but I also like to think he is friends with the wizard and cogwind!

Mostly because I wish we got more stuff for both of them... also him and cogwind can bond over their interests!

Does not stay in one place for long, given that KMGs labels him as a wanderer, but assuming he keeps Fran around to raise her I think he anchors down to one place... well not ANCHOR but like, cutting down on traveling at least a bit, especially in the beginning so fran can fully come to terms with everything shes learned (the truth of her parents death, the grieving process, learning she may or may not be part of something larger if memory serves me right, it's been a while since I played the game, as well as being shot.. like yeah she was healed physically but like imagine how shes gonna feel when that fact she was shot mentally sinks in) ... cant have her bouncing between different realities and the spaces in between them constantly

Ponders

Listens to Antonios (giant old ant dude) old music, I think! Probably has a bunch of old vynlls laying around somewhere

Frequently has to clean his hands, especially his fingers since hes always working on SOMETHING, he doesnt wanna walk around with gunk in the grooves of his fingers. Very yucky very gross and very un-gentleman..ly...

I keep trying to wrap this post up but I keep remembering hcs/coming up with new ones

Anyways COMMITS to the bit when hes playing a game with Fran, or really any kid hes looking over. Tea party? Hes gonna bust out his very best manners. Yes he will wear a tiara if its offered to him. It will go over his hat, of course. Playing doctor? Oh he'll moan n cry about how sick hes feeling, please help him! Ect ect, things like that!

Sometimes makes shadow puppets and tells stories. Both in the form of little shadow theatres, but sometimes he will use his own hands and project the shadows onto the wall!

Very good at coming up with stories on the fly

Also very very good at comforting people, I think. Hes been around for a while and he just OOZES comfort

So if you have a nightmare or struggle with anxiety, itward wont let you just suffer and be scared, hes gonna do what suits you best to calm down; distractions, holding, taking, quiet, grounding, ect ect ect anything you need

[littlebluentebook]

Alastor x Reader pt.6

A/N Oh my goodness! I didn't expect the story to get this much attention! Im going to do some sort of second story where Alastor and the reader are in hell. If theres no objections I'll also feature some helluva boss characters (just to advance the plot!)

I am very sorry for not updating! I went out of town, nearly broke my hip, got sick, and started a new job all in the last 2 weeks. I should be able to post once every three days now :)

Thank you to everyone reading the story! I love sharing my ideas and feel free to reach out if there are any stories you want to see!

TW-Animal Blood(?)

Chapter 7

You woke up in Alastor's arms. It wasn't on purpose! You both had agreed to split the bed, pride getting in the others way. Apparently, somewhere in the night you each reached for the other. Not minding the extra warmth, you fell back asleep. There was no point in moving away; you liked him, he was comfy, and kept you warm. The second time you woke up, the sun was bright and the bed was empty. Worried you checked the clock to make sure you hadn't overslept to open the shop. You had forty five minutes to get the store open. Not as much time as you would have liked, but also not anything too out of your range.

"Ah! My sleeping beauty, glad you're now awake!" a voice said from the doorway. Alastor? You thought he had left. "Come now! I have made us breakfast."

Alastor could cook. Breakfast tasted like it was picked up from a five star restaurant on the more expensive side of town. Over breakfast he told you that he was unable to leave such a beautiful person alone and you needed the rest from the previous night. He actually didn't leave you at all that day.

He sat talking with you in your shop keeping well mannered company. Alastor would never admit it, but he absolutely loved listening to you talk. He spent so much time talking on the radio it was nice to finally be listening to others. He never really cared for sewing but asked you questions about how you did certain things and complimenting your stitch work. He also would assist you while you worked; measuring, flipping things right side outing grabbing fabric as needed. He liked feeling useful to you and watching you work on something you were passionate about.

:Thank you so much for your help today Allie."

"Allie?" He tilted his head like a puppy hearing 'no' for the first time.

"Yeah! Like a nickname," you beamed at him. Alastor mulled the name over in his head before deciding it was okay when it rolled off your tongue and into his ears. No one else could ever be allowed to call him Allie aside from you.

"Hmmmm. Alright" He was at a loss for a nickname truly just wanting to call you his. "Why don't we go and fetch ourselves dinner. I know the most exquisite place!"

"that would be lovely!" Your demeanor was much calmer than your racing thoughts. First, Alastor had stayed the night and made breakfast. Secondly he spent the entire day with you. And now he wanted to take you to dinner! You felt like a romance character from the books you had read and heard stories of.

He had helped you close the shop, took your arm in his (it was the only way you two ever walked together) and he led the way to the restaurant.

It was a nice place with candles and flowers on the table. There was a live band playing softly to entertain guests as they dined.

Alastor was sweet and kind with you, he made excellent recommendations about what drinks to try and meals to order. You both split a cake together for dessert. The night was wonderful, absolutely perfect! The only thing that there you off was the way in which Alastor ordered his steak.

"Alastor!" you had whisper-yelled "that cow is so undercooked I can still hear it moo-ing in the fields. Do we need to have the waiter take it back for just a moment longer?"

"Haha oh no darling! I just enjoy my cut of meat like this. It holds so much more flavor!" You gave him a quizzical look swearing you had just seen blood dark as your wine pool on the plate.

When your night had come to an end, Alastor had walked you home and kissed your cheek. It had left you red and blushing thinking about it as you slept.

The next morning you had awoken ready to start your chores. You folded the blanket and pajamas that Alastor had borrowed and cleared a drawer for the items to reside in. Today you had a new activity you hadn't done in years.

You walked down the stairs leading to your shop and to the circular display table at the center of your shop. Grabbing the wilted flowers and vase you got to work and put them in your oven to dry them out. You loved keeping gifts, flowers were beautiful but difficult to keep but you made it work.

The entire day you were all that was on Alastor mind. He simply could not get enough of you despite spending the entire day together before. He was talking to his mother about the feeling and how he had never experienced it, unsure of what to do he was searching for advice. His mother was not helping the situation, she merely laughed at him. "Oh Al, why don't'cha go onna date together and court the poor thing!" What if you didn't like him back? What if he made a total fool of himself. His mother could sense his worries, "well whoever can put up with ya for a full day definelty doesn't not like you." She pinched his cheeks and went back to cooking for the both of them

[suffarustuffaru]

What are your least favorite ships? Not counting Subaru x one of the minors (i sadly have seen some around)

whew...... least favorite ships..... now thats a bold question HAH and i may have some. ah. Bold answers hah.

im generally pretty open to most ships, its just a matter of like. either i already liked the ship / was really into the ship or im more neutral about it and you just gotta convince me why i should at least give it a shot or be like "this could be good in certain circumstances". i dont usually care if a ship is toxic or "problematic" per say bc 1. this is rezero and sooo so many ships in this show arent 100% healthy lbr and 2. i will like a ship if its like. complex, and if theres problematic stuff, then its done for a reason - like it's not just there willy nilly. but thats just my personal feelings on it yep!! :o fiction is different from real life and all that.

more under the cut!!

that being said like. you know, kinda like you said - the obvious answers would be like subaru x any minors and just any sort of incest ships bc like. i do not see the point of it. that and you know, like a lot of people, i tend to avoid these sorts of ships with 99.999% of fandoms im in. i aint here for incest or shipping adults with minors. and i know theres like fandoms like game of thrones where this sort of thing IS relevant in the story, but with rezero - like it just is not relevant here and adds nothing unless youre into that. i do get that fictional stuff is different from real life and its not necessarily an indication of someone's character. i also definitely know this bc ive cowritten a gluttony if selfcest fic for this fandom as a very extreme crack treated seriously story hahh. but yeah like. ships between family and adult x minor are Not For Me in this fandom. i dont feel like it adds anything to the story and its also like Really out of character.

granted, i cant really say much on that bc ive written and posted selfcest for this fandom but like. in my defense, i did way too much research for that fic (..............i researched a lot of psychology stuff) and also gluttonybaru is Canonically Not Normal about subaru. the more you think about gluttonybaru the worse he gets HAH. like. dude has canonically kissed subaru via emilia's book of the dead....................

but obviously ofc i do not condone any of this ^^^^ in real life.

anyway on a lighter note!! im not a huge fan of most ships between subaru and *insert a female side character here*. like im not a big fan of like. subaru x anastasia, subaru x priscilla, subaru x elsa, subaru x yorna, subaru x pandora, like... the list can get kinda long bc people in this fandom in certain english spaces like to ship him with like any girl ever, it feels like sometimes. it gets to the point where sometimes i feel like subaru is just the self-insert to be shipped with women that people have the hots for.

like with most content about these sorts of ships, its hard for me to see much point to it - and there IS potential there. there is almost always potential in so many different tropes and ships, and theres some cool fanart in this fandom with these ships!! but you know, i hear about people suggesting ideas with these ships or writing fic about these ships and its just not my cup of tea bc it really sacrifices the characterization of all these women. and elsa is like already sexualized enough okay and its almost never nuanced and taking into account her backstory :( like i could be convinced to ship these ships with like idk 20k to 200k words of relationship and character development, but as it stands i personally really dont like them hah ;-;;; and also priscilla is clearly more into women okay (she canonically talks about how men are only allowed to fantasize about her and nothing more or she'll cut off their heads!!) and anastasia seems more into like julius and priscilla so like. HAH.

subaru x crusch is not something im a big fan of but im pretty open to it hah, i just havent seen much fancontent about them that really piques my interest :,)

anyway i also just. dont like the idea of taking a gay subaru ship and genderbending only one of them due to homophobia. and ill emphasize and underline that last part - due to homophobia - bc ive seen really good genderbend subaru content in this fandom where subarus afab and shipped with like julius or reinhard or something and there was clear effort and passion put into it!! and i do think its interesting thinking about how genderbend aus would affect this sort of thing for sure <3 i really really enjoy seeing the well made genderbend aus in this fandom!!

but i see other people suggesting fic ideas or making fics sometimes where its like fem subaru x male side character or like now-fem side character x subaru but it like its only clearly done bc some people just cant ship a gay ship, they gotta make it straight and then not put effort into thinking how this would change more things. and the female character in the duo now is Especially terribly out of character :(( the homophobia is just so so irritating to me. i go on the fic reddit thread sometimes and i see stuff like. i think once i saw a thread about someone requesting ottosuba and someone else immediately went "oh, with femotto right!!" like. ...... please. they are a gay ship :,,,))))))) let them be gay Sometimes at least!! maybe we can genderbend both of them sometimes??? :,)))

also on a less serious note HAH ok like..... ok hear me out, dont kill me for saying this either, but - fredotto. frederica and otto. and - ok dont get me wrong, i think theyd be really really interesting for multiple reasons, right. and ive seen some cute fancontent on them that i liked a lot!! so i really do think they have lots of potential!! like theres the obvious "otto had a crush on a cat as a child and frederica's a cat demihuman", then theres the other obvious fact of otto and frederica being connected via garfiel being their brother/brother figure, and also like personality/temperament wise they could bounce off of each other in interesting ways but like.

the thing with fredotto is that i feel like in english fandom its treated as the "more likely" otto ship to happen, at times. which is Absurd to me after studying otto's lore way too hard bc not only is this dude just way too obsessed with subaru (like regardless of whether you view it as platonic or romantic or not, ottos like Down Bad either way LMAO i just dont see him having eyes for anyone else at this rate)... but also otto OPENLY ADMITS that he'd be bad in a relationship with a woman. like im really sorry but frederica would probably be Too Good for him. and he would Know That.

otto………. can you specify what “the most important thing” is. like do you mean ONLY your career or—

anyway so its like. you want me to believe that otto "i could never be in a relationship with a woman as i am now" suwen. could date a woman????? right now???? i dont think so LMAOO. like i would feel BAD shipping a woman with otto bc barely anyone deserves otto, ok. idk you might be going "suffaru arent you kinda mean to otto" but like being an otto fan also means being his biggest hater and dude is just super super cringe. and even if he had a crush, the chances of him voicing it is Probably Low.

like ships like fredotto, again, need like idk maybe like a few thousand words of development At Least on both ends, bc frederica?? we barely know anything about her at the moment, so its Really hard to approach a ship like this in an in-depth manner right now. like id love to explore fredotto!! id love to learn more about frederica!! id love to go crazy with this ship!! but yeah its definitely kinda hard bc we barely know anything on frederica :< :( and yeah once again. i think shes too good for otto. i think almost every woman is too good for otto. if youre shipping a woman especially with otto you gotta jump through hoops to Really convince me on this HAH. bc i think shipping him with men is just gonna lead to two different possibilities (codependency. and/or otto trying to femme fatale his way through life 👍)

yeah anyway jokes aside. fredotto at worst feels like just a case of pairing the spares and like Clearly they must only be in a straight ship or something HAH.... like i would love to read/write extensive relationship development on them though ;-;;; they got good potential, youd just have to put in the work for me to Believe that they could happen ;-;;;; but most fredotto english fic content atm is just them already being a Thing in the background like ;-;;; this would Not Happen from either of them without development!!!

also i have some fredotto tumblr posts floating around with what i Think would be fun to do with their dynamic…. idk where they are rn hah but yep i think they got potential :,) !!

anyway HAH i hope you did not mind reading about my least favorite ships in this fandom bc this is everything thats coming to my mind now 👍

[fictionfixations]

LMAO ZEN (doesnt it happen for everyones routes though? i havent done like another story yet tho)

anyway before i get into talking about jumin (as the route im on rn) i wanted to wonder

yknow how certain things happen but only on someones route?

like zen has the echo girl thing, idk what yoosung has i forgor but i think jaehee had that one project??? that got her interested in like coffee stuff? jumin has the arranged marriage?? and seven has like. well. the hacker stuff.

but it never gets mentioned on someone elses route ? i dont think? i feel like itd be more cooler if it was all happening at once as like little references (but either something they can handle or cant handle outside of the route. just like maybe a vague mention of trouble to interest the player in that route, while still making sense from like a timeline standpoint???)

like. people doing things but its not because youre the one pushing it towards that. i like that more. and im curious how chaotic itd be

anyway

JUMIN. (disclaimer: I dont like him)

WARNING i start venting in this post. theres only one mention of a triggering thing (which is warned before the actual vent part but i dont want to put here to bring the mood down more cause in all honesty im over it. im just kind of projecting.)

i think ive said before how i can understand the liking of possessive partners

but. okay maybe its just that i dont like jumin as much as the others but. this is kinda way too much. or maybe its that i value my own independence a whole lot or maybe its because i really dont like the thing with his cat (and i LIKE cats. so giving me a character who likes cats and making me not like them??? ahgeiudhf)

like 'dont leave or ill go insane and make your face known everywhere so i can find you again' like the fuck no w h y CAN I LEAVE

I want to leave i dont care if i get the bad ending get me out of here 😭 (actually i think the bad ending mightve been if we encouraged being compared to like his cat and like. was willing to stay forever.)

e w NO like CHILL

maybe. im. being too extreme. and im just too on edge. but like. can you not. i am not your property?? i am not an object??

now LISTEN i understand marking. like like yknow biting and so and so as like a claim over your partner. and now that? thats hot and i like that. but thats ONLY for the bedroom there comes a point where too much of a thing is a bad thing

ALSO we've known each other how many days has it been. eight?? WE've known each other EIGHT days dont be horny bonk

g o o d . this is good.

STOP. dont talk like you know whats best for a person. like its some thing that'll happen, not a what if.

AGHHHHHHHHHHHHHH. now if he was being more weird id say go home but hes. OKAY. ish. now. like hes trying. and anyway getting him to not do it takes time. and also this is a game of romance fantasies where creepy shit gets played off as kinky or something. (not a jab towards mysme its just the kind of thing its trying to do which can result in uncomfortable parts if you take off your rose-tinted glasses of wOAH ROmANCE. its expected since ppl think certain things are hot when in reality its kind of very not that great)

…CAN I GO HOME???? like BRUH im not gonna accept you just cause you do so and so

why does this feel like a 'nice guy'. maybe this is my bad because this is making me really want to leave buth gdiuhfuih

trigger warning. i vent. mention of kermit sewer slide but nothing actual.

ive been pushing the 'stay here to help jumin feel more calm' but. i do also need to prioritize my own well being and my well being is not happy here rn 😭 (on a serious note though while its important to be there for your partner, its NOT a good thing to give everything to make sure your partners okay, because y'all are equals and as you help them stand they need to help you stand too or you'll collapse under all that and it really wont be a good time. im telling you its very draining. and why i promote the idea of get your shit together before you get with someone because there comes a point where you can be too dependent on your partner which isnt good for you or for them [and they can feel hesitant to express their feelings because they dont want to hurt you, or hesitant to do anything too stressful because theyre like that support pillar for them, and they dont want to do anything that causes otherwise because they dont want their partner to get hurt. it can also mean they go along with what the other wants even if they dont really want to because they dont want to hurt them. am i projecting? ithink im projecting. cause like. ive been there. and honestly i think it kind of fucked me up cause there was like a power imbalance in that one was significantly more fragile and vulnerable then the other, which made me feel like i should be going along with it because i didnt want them to be hurt when they didnt have anyone else they could rely on but me. [i tried to get them to make more friends cause relying on a single person is very unhealthy but no dice] but that also meant that they didnt respect my boundaries or respect me when i say no and instead just gave off excuses to make me change my mind or made me feel like i had to do what they wanted or theyd deliberately hurt themself. so.. it was a lot. anyway it really fucked me up cause i felt like i was in the wrong for not going along with it. blah blah blah. we split. i genuinely have no idea if it was true or not but they'd started saying things to make me feel bad and just not a fun time at all. they were probably in a really dark time in their life but im gonna be honest. i dont know in what scenario its okay to go 'im gonna kermit sewer slide if you dont [blah blah blah]'. so yknow. and this is not really the same but it still feels the same in walking all over boundaries and lines and is especially why i do not like this character a bit. yay trauma.])

i might actually get a bad ending because i. really dont like this.

[jovenshires]

here are some fun lil hints about the universe iwks is set in:

this setting is something i have directly experienced (though not in a long time)

i have used the english to latin function in google translate more than once while plotting this out

i have multiple charts mapping out where the characters are standing in certain scenes

said this before but ive never read an au like this organically in the wild (although i sought some out before i started writing this fic). idk if there's ever been a smosh take on this but i highly doubt it bc its just that niche

i explore a LOT of different dynamics in this fic but i think theres a very good reason to do so here

this is loosely based on some spencer lore he's dropped a couple times but i don't think any of us have ever spoken about AND a video he was in

i made an accidental reference to the suite life of zack and cody while writing this and its too late to change it

this au is a combination of two other aus that are slightly broader but still both also niche

i told my best friend what the plot is and she laughed at me and said "this makes sense for you"

and some other additional thoughts:

every minor character in this my absolute beloved im insane about all of them (specifically jeremy. oh my fucking god cannot wait for you all to meet my nuanced jeremy take)

i have added a special lil detail in the background of this fic Just for mauricio and im giving brownie points to the first person who points it out

(there are also a couple other extra lil easter eggs in here... references to other fics... bonus shoutouts to other smosh affiliates/collaborators... we'll play a lil game of search and find)

every dynamic between Every character is so intricate in this and i genuinely cannot fit all of it into one fic especially not w spencer "unreliable narrator" agnew at the helm so youll just have to wait for the lil ficlet sequel ! <3

[dootmoon]

Some thoughts on Ex Astris

Okay so the TL;DR is: Go play it if you're someone who is mainly motivated by gameplay, it's one of the most enjoyable games i've played in like 10 years (im not kidding). the story is not bad, but it's very poorly told and leaves a lot to be desired. I should also warn that i'll probably spoil a couple of things, mainly on the gameplay side (because yes, I do believe some encounters are better if you dont know the gimmick).

Where do I even start, I only watched like 2 trailers before playting, i had 0 idea of what i was getting into, all i really knew about the game was that it was a full game release by the AK guys and that it was a turn based rpg. I legitimately bought it out of morbid curiosity, I was not expecting to find my favorite jrpg in a literal decade.

I'll go over what I liked the most and then explain the couple of issues I have with the game, it might sound like i loved it (which i did) but it's far from perfect and i think there's room for improvement. I think the combat is the real deal in this title, for those unfamiliar with it: it's a classic turn based jrpg but it has layers. The main 3 mechanics that make it stand out from other games is that each turn you have AP (action points) which limit what you can do each turn, however you can directly manipulate them with a combo system that gives you back AP. The second one is a parry system, during the enemy turn you can directly parry their attacks, you have 2 colors for parrying, both colors have different properties and there's certain attacks that can only be parried with the respective color. And lastly, theres a stagger bar, similar to FFXIII or posture bar in sekiro, although i think it's more akin to stagger in FFXIII. Once you break said bar you can enter hyper time for a few seconds where you have unlimited AP so you can combo them for massive damage. The combo system is very enjoyable, you will be blindly experimenting your combos for optimal damage each time you unlock new moves in the skill trees. Theres a very satisfying feeling to landing a big combo on an enemy that feels like it was entirely something you came up with. This sadly comes with a downside, once you figure out your big damage combos, there's not much of a reason to try anything different. It doesnt mean it stops being enjoyable but this is a wall most of games with combo systems have. Now the parry system, while it's fun, it sadly makes the game too easy. Sure theres enemies that will mix their timings to throw you off and a couple of unparriable attacks. But really, if you get good there's no reason to ever get hit. "But what about the unblockables?" yeah about that... Theres really just 3 enemies in the game that had them, and 2 of them were bosses, which you get a hard counter to the unblockable in the first boss that has it. I wish the game had more ways to work around you to make it more challenging. The only time the game REALLY tries to fuck you up is the final boss (this is a good thing) however it was still too easy. She really just makes the screen black and white and makes you parry based on the icon, then she makes you parry based on the color of the attack. This was sick and i wish there were more moments like this in the game. Now the dungeons were great, they feel like they belong in an older 3d zelda game. Sadly they dont get too crazy on the gimmicks, they were just box puzzles where you have to move them in the correct spots or point lasers to certain switches. Apparently this game has plans for DLCs so if theres something i wish upon to get explored more it would be this in particular. The rest of the game is the towns and the sidequests inside them, they're very usual stuff for a jrpg so you know what to expect, i cant elaborate much on it. Overall I think the game is meant to be replayed, by the end you're only able to fully build 3 characters out of 5 party members, sidequests expire and there's a bunch of stuff to mess around to make a playthrough different from the last one. The game changes a lot when you already know how it works or what really happens in the story.

Now the elephant in the room, the story: Yeah it's kinda just there, it's very poorly told. However it's HG and i can tell there was a lot of thought put into the wold building, it's very well made. It's just a shame that i could barely care about anything happening in it, even though I was kinda invested by the final hours i dont think that excuses the really bad storytelling. However starting my second playthrough is when I noticed it was indeed meant to be replayed. There's a bunch of stuff that feels so incredibly cryptic or really make no sense, once you go over it already having context it all makes sense and you just go like "oooh so that was they were talking about". I'm not excusing bad writing though, this is bad, but at least the story feels better on a second playthrough. Anyways, i'm kinda upset this was a mobile game, maybe if it wasnt, 10 people would've played it instead of just 5. I cant stress enough how this is a phone game that is way better than most of modern jrpgs in the market. it's like the devs went back and asked themselves what was the main appeal of the genre and what they thought made them fun to them and made an entire game around it. This is probably gonna be the biggest surprise of the entire year for me and i'm gonna have brainrot about this game for a while.

[the-blaze-empress]

galacticlance -> the-blaze-empress

Hello and welcome! this is my blog!!

I am Teg or Milo, and mostly I write fics! I also cosplay, and very occasionally do art! and i regularly go insane about my interests

they/crow/he, adult, philza notice x1

said interests can vary, but mostly what you'll find is some combination of the following: - emerald duo - philza - tears of the kingdom - hermitcraft - pissa

i also just post random shit unapologetically so have fun with that!

Some useful things

links: ao3, cosplay instagram, twitch, my fics tag

my inbox is always open! please talk to me

i block liberally

mutuals feel free to ask for discord!

i Dont Do sideblogs its all here baybe if theres smth u dont like block the tag (tag list below)

banner + blinkie credit in alt text

Tagging system and notes under the cut

yes I know it's insane that's the point <3

-> !! all of the following are susceptible to change !! <-

i don't generally tag for content/trigger warnings, bar unreality (#unreality), unless it is my own post (even then it's not guaranteed). if there is something you really absolutely need me to tag, ask, but no promises sorry.

i try to tag spoilers for things but again im not very good at it. generally the tag for that is #[thing] spoilers

Important(ish) tags:

#gremlin hoard <3 - favourite things #ah shit wheres the thing - things i want to come back to later #original thoughts in their natural habitat - original posts

#wisdom be uponeth ye - asks #reverse sphynx - ask games

#my fic - my fics generally i tag posts relating to certain fics with their title or abbreviation (eg #Small Gods or #tmatimry) #my art - my art. there is not very much of it THERE IS INCREASINGLY MORE OF IT NOW!! #if the men find out we can shapeshift they'll call the church - my cosplay

MCYT tags:

#deaths malewife - philza #hardcoreza - hc!phil and such related things #queerza - q!phil #tha scrunkle <3 - c!phil #oh! phil! - o!phil

#giant woman - kristin #biggy piggy - technoblade #my favourite war criminals - emerald duo

#toob - tubbo #enderboyo - c!ranboo #boy repellent - cc!ranboo #c!beeduo in gay love - beeduo (sometimes michael)

#theyre fambily ur honour - sbi #Definitely A Book Club - syndicate

#go piss girl - pissa #wettest cat ever - missa #mi sobrina - tallulah #potato boy - chayanne #sunnymorning! - sunny #eGGIEs - qsmp eggs in general #disaster love polygon - anyone from q!phil's polycule. who is in that polycule? it changes and is completely up to my interpretation

#dsm5 i meant dsm5 - dsmp #i learnt coding for this - osmp #hoimycraf - hermitcraft #mantequilla de cacahuetes - qsmp #scott smajor jumpscare - miscellaneous hermit adjacent mcyt #cubitos in law - miscellaneous philza adjacent mcyt #into the cubosphere - other miscellaneous mcyt

tags for other interests:

#minceraft - general minecraft content #im more of a cube tism kind of guy myself - my own minecraft content

#lelda of zelda - anything loz related

#womens wrongs - arcane #you abandoned me for hot dilfs - vanco

#cerveza cristal - DND related. usually my own characters. usually flykk. please talk to me about flykk

#insert spiderverse tag here - into the spiderverse

#fucked up littol scrimblo - bishop's knifetrick watson

everything else:

#i cant cook - food/recipes

#if i had to see this then so do you - things i totally think you should see /lh

#add it to the mixing pot - cool worldbuilding ideas

[autumnfangirler]

4, 29 + 43 for the OC ask? c:

evening gabe!!! thank you for the asks!

4. A character you rarely talk about?

on tumblr or irl??? because those are Very different answers. actually wait i just realized thats definitely a lie because i remembered my beloved little guys, matthew, maria, and miguel. thats three characters but theyre a set pair to me so! their story is set in an urban fantasy world, and the three of them are siblings. matthew (the youngest) inherited his parents company that specializes in combining magic and tech for advancements. maria, the middle child, broke off from the family business after an argument when she was about 15 years old. she started running her own plant shop after that, a very small one that has no interest in growing bigger. then theres miguel, who ran away from his family at 17 and was completely missing until he reappeared at 26 bloodied on marias doorstep. i Love their concept dearly, honestly the only reason i havent talked about them at all is bcs i just,,, dont know what to say?? i havent really gotten anything about them figured out other than their designs and the vague blurb of their plot. i might revisit them though, theyre a lot of fun.

29. Which one of your OCs would go investigate an abandoned house at night without telling anyone they’re going?

tumelo literally does this exact thing at some point. and its over a Jacket 💀 shes one of my characters for the ttrpg "the urban legend club", a paranormal investigator whos intimate knowledge of the paranormal (to the point she seems almost familiar with it, hmmm wonder what thats about) helps aid the rest of the club in solving various mysteries that crop up. shes also the founder of the club! tumelo isnt impulsive, per se, but she Is stubborn as hell, and once she gets a whiff of a mystery shes going after it. at the point in time where she sneaks into the abandoned building, she had been prescribed bedrest by her very worried moms and club members because she passed out after the first investigation everybody did as a team. after hearing everybodys accounts of what happened, though, she formed a theory about the strange happenings going on in there and snuck out to confirm her suspicions herself. she was Right, but she couldnr even prove it, so uh. rip girl lmfaooo 😭

43. Do you have any certain type when you create your OCs? Do you tend to favour some certain traits or looks? It’s time to confess

i am almost Certain that there is, i just cannot for the life of me figure out what. actually wait. in a lot of my original stories, the characters i tend to go the most insane over usually have this Big Bad Secret that pivots the way every other character sees them in the future. its really fun for me personally, i think, to play around with a character dancing around something, and to see what sort of tells (if at all) a character has that gives away the secret that slip under other characters radars. i also really love seeing the fallout in a) the reveal of the secret, and b) the fact that a character has been hiding said secret from them the entire time. it adds so much spice to how said character interacts with everybody later on. as for traits, i do love me a little shit smooth talker. also i like it when a character has, in some shape or form, genuinely been cruel, harmful, or otherwise "evil" (for lack of better word), regardless of their very same capacity to do good. very funky, i love it dearly.

oh wait actually one more trait that they all share: none of them have last names. bcs fuck that what do you Mean i have to come up with another name????? after i already did the first??????? cruel and evil.

questions from here!

[teruthecreator]

for the character ask meme i feel you have enough of a history with this man for me to request, if you would like: lancaster?

RUBS MY HANDS TOGETHER HOOOOOOOO BOY

Sexuality Headcanon:

gay (i think this is canon?)

Gender Headcanon:

man we dont got time to think about this because of the Everything but i think he could rock some he/she swag in another life

A ship I have with said character:

HARLAAAAAAAAAAAAAANC OH MY GOD THEY MAKE ME INSANE. THEIR DIVORCE NOT-DIVORCE IS GOING TO DRIVE ME UP A WALL. literally like just their canon dynamic makes me insane like. not to get too into spoilers bc theres friends who arent caught up but just like the Everything going on between them post -3 incident is like. GOD. the ep where they actually talk some of it out had me literally cheering and clapping around my house like i was watching a football game. literally they are so IGOR coded it PAINS ME. YOU GOTTA LISTEN TO IGOR MAN SO YOU CAN SEE MY VISION BUT THE VISIONS THERE THE IGORISMS ARE THERE AND THEY KILL ME. i will literally push all my wips aside to write the one bed fic i swear to fucking god

A BROTP I have with said character:

LANCASTER AND LOVE MAKE ME A LITTLE CRAZY OKAY. JUST. OHHHHHHHHHHHHH OHHHH THEIR BOND. the fact that they start so opposite and love not really wanting to trust him or talk to him to like. TO LIKE HER ACTIVELY SEEKING HIM OUT AND MISSING HIM AND WANTING TO SPEND TIME WITH HIM. IT JUST MAKES ME DIE MAN IT MAKES ME WANNA DIE. the dnd ep really gets me bc she trusts him so much, even when he did That, and it really goes to show how much her opinion on him has changed. the fact that she’s the only one to humanize him in the beginning of his -3 imprisonment is everything to me THEY MEAN EVERYTHING TO ME YOUR OFFICER

A NOTP I have with said character:

i have yet to peek into the fandom for this podcast but if i see a single person shipping lanc w d-1 i will start throwing tables at heads

A random headcanon:

okay so i’ve been thinking A LOT about what lancaster’s favorite redbull flavor would be. because there are a lot of fucking flavors of redbull and he isn’t just drinking the regular redbull bc Why Would You Do That so like. i’ve had to use my EXTENSIVE knowledge of redbull flavors—as a redbull connoisseur myself—to decide what flavor screams Orion Lancaster Findusalive. and i THINK i have the results of my findings. i think his absolute FAVORITE would be peach-nectarine because it’s really sweet (like INSANELY SWEET) and heavy on the peach flavoring to the point that i don’t even think the nectarine is in there. and idk he just seems like a peach guy to me. i think second favorite is probably watermelon bc it is objectively The Best redbull flavor on the market and he would be a fucking fool not to like it. and then third favorite would probably be something like blueberry or juneberry (the two are almost identical in flavor to me). those are my findings as the certified Redbull Guy

General Opinion over said character:

he makes me want to EAT DRYWALL. GODDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDD i genuinely dont think theres anything else i can say other than that. there are so many layers to him and so much going on i knew from the MOMENT i started that he would be a character that stuck out to me. and the more i hear from him the more i am certain of this. this is a certified ollieguy to me but make no mistake he is also a michguy. not as much as klein but close!!!! very close. my little onion <3

[decepti-thots]

Theres something super fascinating about the whole thing with springer and tarantulas, springer being literally created bc tarantulas wanted to make a 'child' but being a race which doesnt have children. Tarantulas avoid the pitfall most human parents fall into of not respecting their child autonomy. The idea of tarantulas loving and respecting who his child is enough that his own personal feelings (wanting to raise/teach ostaros) are put by the waysaid and he does leave Springer to live his own life and doesnt change go into the past and change anything. Damn. It's not the kinda story you can write with human characters and while I dont like a lot of idw stuff I really enjoy tarantulas' and Springer's whole thing

It's SO interesting to me anon, you have activated my trap card by bringing it up, LMAO. I think the element of it being taken one step out of context by virtue of them coming from a culture that doesn't have a conception of it in-fiction really does give it this extra bit of almost. Narrative elasticity? Stories about parenthood and being a parent or being a child are so locked into these really deep underlying assumptions baked into whatever culture they're being written in. You can go along with them or go against them or interrogate them but at the end of the day you typically do have to have characters who engage with them, when you're writing human characters. They have to be immersed in those things like fish in water.

Whereas a story like Sins and Wrequiem can have those characters engage with basically the same concepts but one layer removed. They don't exist in a world where they have diagetic pre-existing ideas about it, or social expectations to agree with or reject, or any of that. It's there in the story, but the characters have a little more leeway, and it opens the whole thing up a little. I've said before that one thing I really like about Sins is that at no point is there a sense of Springer being inherently obligated to any of these people he's finding out he has unasked for ties to. It's refreshingly free of the 'family is family no matter what' subtext. (I like Prowl trying to tell Springer we'll talk about this after and Springer flatly putting a stop to that very much.) And there's room too to see how certain things can suddenly feel sort of different when taken out of a context where they're just expected... that whole sense of finding out about the idea you 'have parents' as almost a little bit part of the horror, because the idea of having ties to people you have no control over reads differently in that context.

And then with Tarantulas you have this story that is very sad and really tied up in questions of autonomy full stop- Tarantulas' story in Sins and then Wrequiem is at base one about someone who loses all agency violently and then tries to turn the tables equally violently. So for the end to turn on how much and how willingly he affords it to Springer works very neatly. It's just. REALLY good. I love it, I could talk about the family-as-horror reading forever, honestly.