#like... I can find Reasons behind Specific Situations but that doesn't stop this from being a pattern across my entire life

[sunderwight]

Headcanon that Shen Yuan was hotter than Shen Qingqiu, actually.

Like yeah SQQ being a cultivator gave him a boost to enough attributes + being in a stallion novel where everyone is either unrealistic hot or dog's butt ugly got the Shen Qingqiu body extra points, and he wasn't bad looking to begin with. Plus not being ill is vastly more important to the new Shen Qingqiu than those extra hotness points (Without a Cure notwithstanding). But part of the reason why he's kind of like, meh, at least I'm not hideous or anything, is because Shen Yuan's original body was a knock out.

I also like him as chronically ill, and, as many people know, beauty standards and sustained suffering are not as incompatible as they should be. Shen Yuan was conventionally attractive in part because conventional beauty standards seem to want everyone slowly dying all the time. But even setting that aside, the man had flawless bone structure, an appealing figure, captivating eyes, and the kind of voice that stopped people in their tracks.

All of which was a contributing factor to his antisocial lifestyle, actually. Despite the fact that Shen Yuan does enjoy company and requires a certain baseline of social enrichment for his enclosure, his internalized homophobia and closeting did not play well with overtures from interested parties (regardless of gender). The only way to minimize the odds of him being asked out on dates was to essentially become a shut-in, especially since even Shen Yuan can only make so many excuses before he himself starts to notice that he's going to a lot of effort to avoid specifically that avenue of socialization. Far better to just remove himself from any risk of it, and then vocally lament that oh no he's just too much of a nerd to get anywhere with women!

Anyway this largely doesn't matter much outside of sheer comedy potential for any situation where SY gets his old body/life back. Like imagine a reveal scenario where the System is going to transport them back to their old lives.

Shang Qinghua: well bro I guess this is gonna be the ultimate test of love, right?

Shen Yuan: what do you mean?

Shang Qinghua: our husbands are gonna see what we looked like back before we were glorious cultivators! they're going to have to track us down in our mundane, kinda shitty pre-transmigration lives! it's gonna be at least a little embarrassing, right?

Shen Yuan: *gets his old body back*

Shang Qinghua, normal human with average looks: ...

Shen Yuan, exemplary 11/10: ?

Shang Qinghua: what. the fuck?? bro what the fuck why are you hot???

Shen Yuan: don't make it weird

Shang Qinghua: make it weird??? why were you sitting at home reading my shitty novel when you could have been out there building your own harem???

Shen Yuan: stop exaggerating

Shang Qinghua: oh my god you've always been like this. this is it, isn't it? it wasn't even brain damage from the transmigration or something--

Shen Yuan: hey

Shang Qinghua: --you've just always been completely unaware, haven't you? every time I wrote a beautiful woman who didn't know her own appeal you'd be jumping down my throat--

Shen Yuan: because that's a stupid trope--!

Shang Qinghua: --JUMPING DOWN MY THROAT EXACTLY LIKE THAT but this whole time THIS WHOLE TIME it wasn't even a glow-up issue, you've just been that, personified, yourself--

Shen Yuan: look I know I'm not ugly but I'm not I'm hardly that good-looking

Shang Qinghua: YOU ARE NEVER ALLOWED TO CRITICIZE THAT TROPE AGAIN! oh my god. how many broken hearts did you leave behind when you died?!

Shen Yuan: none, I wasn't even seeing anyone--

Shang Qinghua: yeah full offense but I am nottt taking your word for that. I bet you had a harem you didn't know about in this lifetime too. I bet you had a fan club, like an anime prince

Shen Yuan: *mumbling*

Shang Qinghua: what was that?

Shen Yuan: I said... only in high school...

Shang Qinghua: oh my god

Shen Yuan: it wasn't a big deal!

Shang Qinghua: *frantically trying to see if he can find any trace of it on the internet now*

[amethystfairy1]

Regarding the Iskall Situation...

I've received a lot of asks wondering about what my take is on it, and since I'd prefer to have it all taken care of in one swoop so we don't have to continue to focus on it, here's my stance on the subject.

A: Yes, I have seen the credible evidence from Kasszki, I read the doc they posted, and I feel awful for them and the other victims that they had to deal with this. I'm glad to hear that the Hermits and others were supportive of them and helped them handle this situation in as professional a manner as possible. I have also seen the credible information from False that Stress left for her own separate reasons.

B: I strongly denounce Iskall's behavior, and I have absolutely zero intention of supporting him as a creator ever again.

C: Please don't pester the creators or the victims. I said it in my initial response to this situation before we knew what had happened, but my opinion remains the same here. Any information we get from the Hermits is a privilege, not a right. Hermitcraft and it's associated fandoms are well known for being healthy, good spaces, and I'm proud to be a member of this community. Now our money is where our mouths are. Please don't feed into the rumor mill, please continue to support the Hermits as you always would and don't pry or demand more details from them. This is a very difficult situation for all of us, and I'm certain it's even worse for all of them. Please keep in mind the Hermits are all grown adults, many of them had professional careers before they joined Hermitcraft, and they are handling this in as professional a manner as they are able. I applaud them for that. As their fans, we need to do the same.

What are my plans for Iskall and Stress in TTSBC?

Understandably, I've received several asks about what I plan to do about Iskall and Stress's characters in TTSBC. I've answered them individually, but I just want to put this here as a one-stop spot for what my stance is so it's clear.

I've always been a 'character not content creator' author. My characters are just that, characters. Does that mean I can completely remove them from the creators upon which they are based? No, of course not. That's not how this works, either. So here's my plan moving forward.

The two stories that heavily feature Iskall in TTSBC, "Run with It' and "Carry me Home Tonight" will remain up. They are timestamped with their dates of posting which was long before any of this came out, and again, they are very clearly meant to be characters, not the creators.

Iskall will be removed from the TTSBC: Wiki, and I will not be writing any new content for his character.

Does that affect the plot of TTSBC? Yes, it does. I'm not going to pretend it doesn't, and those of you who have followed the series at length can likely see where the issues arise...but I'm an author, and I can pivot. I also have an awesome little team behind me of @silver-sunray, @boo-the-ahh, and @khoirkid who are helping me to make sure TTSBC carries on smoothly despite this unforeseen struggle.

Stress will not be removed from the TTSBC: Wiki. As I mentioned in an ask earlier, her role in the story is very minor, and I hadn't planned for her to have any other pieces to herself outside of Hermit-a-Day May anyway...so aside from specific instances where it might be necessary to mention her, she will not be making any more major appearances. This is mainly because I'm a Hermit/Traffic/Empires writer, and I plan to stick to that notion unless future events cause me to pivot otherwise.

Lastly, I would appreciate if we could avoid anymore asks about the situation. If there are any further updates I'm sure I'll find that out on my own, I'm very active in this fandom and I see things pretty quickly when they spread, so if any new things related to this situation spring up, while I greatly appreciate your concern for me and my work, please don't send it to my inbox or in DM.

I'm very saddened by this, as I'm sure many of you are. Hermitcraft and it's associated fandoms have been my safe space for many years, through some of the hardest moments of my life, and with the mess that MCYT has proven itself to be at times, it felt like we were untouchable here. But like Doc said, the Hermits are good, and they are strong. And as their fans and supporters, we need to be the same.

Be good, be strong, and let's make sure our lovely community continues to be the positive space it always has been.

-Amethyst

[kradogsrats]

I've been kind of hesitant to voice this analysis/theory because honestly even I find it hella depressing, but... here goes.

At the end of s6e5: "Moonless Night," we have this kind of cryptic sequence with Viren:

Now, this isn't exactly subtle. It starts with a callback to Aaravos's "the human mage, already tainted by darkness and destined to play right into my hands," line (and a nice Callum > fake pearl > real pearl > Viren cut sequence) and ends with the kind of spider-and-fly imagery you bust out when you want the audience to really get the point. This sequence tells us in no uncertain terms, Aaravos will inevitably use Viren again... at least one more time.

I say it's cryptic because the eventual payoff is a lot more subtle, particularly since everything escalates so rapidly and is actually presented as a crazy, unexpected twist. Basically, there's no follow-up until s6e8: "We All Fall Down," where we have a highly specific series of events:

Sol Regem, under Phaaravos's direction, attacks Katolis

Viren decides to make the sacrifice of both doing dark magic again and losing his own life to protect the people from Sol Regem's fire

Viren successfully casts the spell and the people are protected

Phaaravos does this:

Once Viren has cast the spell (and is probably dying), Aaravos is pleased and ends Sol Regem's attack.

Aaravos needs three things to free himself: the pearl, the staff, and a sympathetic mage. He can't just possess Callum and free himself at the start of the season, because—whether that would work or not—he doesn't have the staff. He knows, however, that Viren is going back to Katolis, so he can influence Callum to switch the real and fake pearls. Then, when Viren arrives, the pearl and the staff are lined up... but Viren is no longer sympathetic (and possessing him wouldn't really do any good because like, come on... he's in prison).

The way that the attack on Katolis plays out gives him everything: the pearl and staff are abandoned in the chaos, leaving them free for Claudia. Viren, being dead, is also now unable to influence Claudia directly—not to mention that, despite what he told her in s6e1, he chose to do dark magic again.

There are several reasons that could be behind Phaaravos's smarmy little smirk there—either he's satisfied that the staff is in play and will be easily accessible to Claudia instead of buried under a castle's worth of rubble, or he's satisfied that Viren is going to die and that removes what could actually have been a very serious obstacle to Claudia's persistence, or... he's pleased that Viren has caved and done dark magic again, whether because that's leverage he can use with Claudia, or for a more insidious reason.

We can stop here, because "Aaravos uses Viren's loyalty to his family and Katolis to manipulate him to his death and to set up his daughter for digging herself deeper in aiding his own return" is honestly plenty of payoff as far as Aaravos "using" Viren a final time. BUT just to get a little tinfoil-hat, here:

How exactly are we supposed to understand the pearl got from the subterranean secret dark magic workspace to outside in the ground-level courtyard... except by Aaravos walking the dying Viren down there to bring it back out, then neatly arranging pearl, staff, and Dad's dead body in close proximity for Claudia's homecoming? Which is pretty fucking grim.

As a counterpoint, the one thing this series sometimes plays extremely fast and loose with is the space-time continuum: like, working out travel times? Good fucking luck—it takes exactly as long to get somewhere as the plot demands, regardless of distance, terrain, or mode of transportation. So "how did the pearl get into the courtyard" could just be one of those "how did Soren and Claudia get up the Cursed Caldera without Lujanne knowing"-situations where the answer is "it's fine, don't think about it."

Sure, the staff, pearl, and Viren's body are all suspiciously accessible, but we also don't have screentime for Terry and Claudia to do an extensive search of the rubble overlaid with sad music and intercut with flashbacks. Sometimes shit just has to be convenient so we can move along... but I'll probably still always kind of wonder.

[derangedanomaly]

Wait since we're asking about kinks now- what are all of the guys and the stars kinks? Do they have any lol? I'm genuinely curious

*rubs my hands together* This one's gonna be a ride. 😈🙏🏻

Nah- without jokes now lol. I need to cleanse myself after this lmao. DON'T READ IF YOU DON'T LIKE ANYTHING REGARDING SEX.

TW: NSFW CONTENT, READ AT YOUR OWN RISK!!

Chaos

I can imagine Chaos being a family kinda guy. Like, family probably means A LOT to him, so I can definitely see Chaos having a breeding kink. Something about his partner's belly being full, because he got them pregnant does a lot of things to him.

Chaos is never the type that chases for his own pleasure, I really think that he'd prioritize what you want, when it comes to having fun in the sheets. So I can see him doing fingering/blow job to his partner. He's the type of guy that loves to praise the shit out of you, but also playfully kinda degrade you. Like- he'd probably say something like, "Oh...your doing such a good job for me...what do you think would happen if the others found you drooling all over my cock? What would they think of you?" Followed by, "....Would you like to find out?"

Since Chaos is into having a family, I can see him also having a daddy kink. And along with this all, I can for some reason, also see him being into Katoptronphilia, which is a fascination with mirrors, or more specifically, watching yourself in a sexual situation. So I think that Chaos would make you watch yourself in the mirror, while fucking you from behind.

Nightmare

I've established before that Nightmare's into master kink, just calling him anything that gives him a sense of power is enough to get him hot. (Master, King, Sir,...)

But between all this, I can also see him being into Impact play, this involves hitting or being hit with an object in a safe and consensual way. Nightmare wants to feel that he's always in control. So he'd 100% whip you with a whip or just slap you anyhow. He'd probably also be pretty rough, just to show you that he's the one in control. Speaking of control... Orgasm control is also a thing he'd be SUPER into. But he's a giant asshole too, he'd be SO unfair when he'd use a vibrator or anything else on you. He WON'T let you taste that sweet sweet release at all. The only thing I'll say...is dirty talk. And he's really good at it too.. He could probably make you come just from his words alone.

Ace

Ace is pretty much a sub. It's pretty easy to drive him into submission, because he doesn't NEED to be the dominant one in a relationship. He's just happy he even has a partner to be honest. But I can see Ace being a sadist. Just you hurting him anyhow drives him nuts probably. Because he's the stronger one, he's the one that holds more power than you, so the feeling of you actually landing a hit on him has him weak.

Cuckolding is also a thing that he IMMENSLY gets off of. This a kink or a fetish is the act of being turned on by watching your partner get it on with someone else. He feels a little guilty about actually liking this, but he can't deny it.

Blade

Is anyone really surprised when I say that Blade's into knife play? Blade enjoys the thought of running his sharp, bloody knife along the curves of your glistening body. He also pretty much gets off of seeing you covered in blood. Really anything that's connected with blood or knives, he likes it. I do not recommend telling him that you're on your period. He'd eat you out if you did. Never probably stopping until you'd pass out. Even if someone would barge into the room, he WOULDN'T stop. Not at all.

Blade also degrades you VERY MUCH, he LOVES to tell you stuff that makes you embarrassed while he's pumping you from behind. He's also into Voyeurism, which is the sexual interest in or practice of watching other people engaged in intimate behaviors, such as undressing, sexual activity, or other actions of a private nature. He 100% hides somewhere in your room just to watch you get undressed. The thought of you not knowing he's there only makes him more and more hot.

Ted

Ted promised himself that he'd never engage in sexual intercourse ever again after the accident where he lost his virginity, so you would have to build a LOT of trust with him for him to do that with you. He's like- "Sex...?....Ew....."

But I can see Ted being very careful with you, treating you almost as if you were made from glass. After all, the last time he did go....rough.... VERY rough... he killed the woman. Shockingly. And he cares about you, he doesn't want to kill you with his ginormous size. :(

I think that Ted's the type of person to be VERY gentle and kind when having sex. As for the kinks, I don't really think he cares that much when it comes to it, because he'd do anything you ask him to do, except for the things that would hurt you in any way. He truly does NOT want to hurt you.

NOTE: I wanted to write the Star Sanses too- but It was SO much that I lost motivation to write any more. I'm so sorry!

[rikeijo]

Hi, I'd like to ask how fans in Japan have reacted to the movie cancellation and if you have any theories about the reasons behind the decision. I saw fans speculating that it was cancelled because of geopolitics (main character is Russian -> war, doping, anti-lgbtq laws etc.) and I think that would be really tone-deaf. A mostly finished movie doesn't get shelved without very good reasons.

Thank you so much for your translations. Hope you're okay over there!

Hi, thank you for your ask!

Yeah, that's right! Most people assume it's because of politics. It would make sense if IceAdo problems haven't started loong before the War. Japanese fandom is very hostile to any controversies (as an example, YoI still has the reputation of being 'copyright infringement anime', because of background of that one scene that was aired almost 10 years ago), so the idea of anime that may be interpreted as praising the country, that attacked another country and in addition to that, their skaters are cheaters and were banned from competitions is just not something that sits well with a lot of otakus. Not even necessarily because they are so noble etc., but because it means that their beloved anime is an easy target for (difficult to dispute) hate from antis.

The movie, however, I'm 99% sure, was cancelled because of money. Not because of MAPPA, of course, they don't have the rights to cancel it - Otsuka CEO was whining about not having enough power in production committees in relatively recent interviews (funny how he even mentioned specifically YoI's situation, isn't it? here). The rights to YoI are owned by Avex Pictures, it's their trademark.

It's really very simple - in January of 2019, the teaser was released in Jp cinemas together with the TV series split into 3 parts. Even though they had merch with new illustration as a free gift for every person that bought the ticket, most screening were like 90% empty. VicYuu fujos celebrated that the teaser without their uke, Yuuri, flopped and feminine Victor movie will likely flop now (I'm not going to post a link to their online archive because it's cursed, but it's easy to find) - I mean literally, they celebrated. After the teaser, the production committee just stopped caring about the IP. It's possible that after that they still tired behind the scene to make it work somehow, but I've also seen rumors recently that Sayo run away from the production (with a nuance of 'she had enough and just disappeared on them').

Here you can read a Jp anime journalist's analysis of the possible reasons behind cancelling of shows like YoI, and he also points out that it's mainly just about saying goodbye to unprofitable IPs.

[the-blossica-fan]

Regulus, Kakania, Pavia, J, Kanjira, and Matilda are an unexpected group of people suspiciously good at evading capture. They might not run the fastest, but the instant you set someone on their tail, they are GONE. They could be enjoying an extremely rare moment of "outside the suitcase time," and someone says "shoot it's the cops," and they scatter, just completely book it. Doesn't matter that they've done nothing wrong.

Matilda specifically only runs because she's spent so much time with J and Kanjira that it's a learned instinct now, and she finds it extremely embarrassing.

Which means that during a game of tag in the suitcase, they manage to avoid getting caught the longest. Kakania gets caught when Isolde calls out to her and then gently lays her hand upon her face and whispers, "Tag, Doktor..." Regulus and Pavia get caught by the children, and they complain the entire time (they got cornered). J and Kanjira are the only reason Matilda lasts as long as she does because they prevent her crushes from distracting her. Mercuria does tag J, though, for his efforts. Kanjira gets tagged by Shamane and Matilda by either Anjo or Kaalaa (depending on which one she literally runs into as she looks back to Kanjira).

The flyers may have avoided ground tag, but air tag got fiercely competitive, and no one's sure who tagged who because they quickly devolved into doing air swoops, dives, and spins.

Sonetto: Matilda, why every time I say "the foundation security staff is coming", you disappear so suddenly?

Matilda: ...It's nothing

I love the idea that every time they go outside as a group and they catch a glimpse of a police officer they book it. Nobody knows where they went they just disappeared.

Especially Matilda, because she'd realize mid-run she's running with a bunch of other dumbasses when none have done something criminal or illegal. Yet.

"Uhm, why are we hiding behind the bushes?"

"Because... Well, isn't that a good question, small fry?"

"Gosh, I ran out of instinct! I have to go back before Ms Marcus gets too anxious"

"Ah? You mean all this running was for nothing?!"

"Bloody hell, couldn't we be more stupid!?"

"Well, I mean, I did take this necklace from a beautiful lady. But you not worry, It's nothing!"

"YOU WHAT"

They have found themselves in situations where they ended up in the same hideout just squished together, or sometimes they smartly go their separate ways. Vertin always has to go look for them with the help of some others. For her mental sanity, she prefers they hide together like sardines in a can.

As for the Tag game, it is utter chaos that should not be repeated

That Isolkania part though...

Isolde calls out for Kakania, who stops for a second in surprise and is greeted by the affectionate face belonging to that soothing voice. In an almost flirtatious way, Isolde places a hand on Kakania's cheek and runs it down to her shoulder, getting a little too close just to whisper "Tag, Doktor." And then continue walking to search for the next participant.

Meanwhile Kakania goes through the wildest gay panic ever as well as the 5 stages of grief at the same time.

J's sacrifice will never be forgotten. My boy got tagged by Mercuria just so that Matilda could stop being gay and run away, and Matilda ended up running directly into Anjo's waiting arms. Losers.

We're not going to talk about air tag because Lilya is such a competitive freak with her beloved. I'm talking about the broom.

[looniecartooni]

I know where you should stand in the bbu stuff.

On the side that doesn't support the devs. Because they blatantly lied.

Oh boy- my first anon saying stuff like this!

I understand where you stand on this matter. I did read through their document as well as all BronyFandont and what a couple other people had to say on the matter. While there is evidence and a lot to question about Gabe's choices that are indeed incredibly sus, the people who are making these accusations seem overly combative and dedicating quite a bit of their content to smearing Gabe's name.

So... I am mostly left with questions. On your guys' end I'd like to know- is the end goal of not supporting BBU or getting rid of Gabe in order to protect others from being affected by his actions? I know it's to not support a you-know-what, but is it also in support of his wife/ grooming victim Claire? To help her out of a dangerous situation she's in? A lot of claims BBU made with proof were that Claire claims it was her consensual choice to pursue Gabe and that her parents (more specifically her father) were emotionally abusive.

On the devs side of things, I'd like to know: aside from protecting your casting choices and possibly (according to something I read but may have misinterpreted), was there a reason you felt you needed to take the time to try and defend him? Is there a reason Gabe isn't trying to defend himself on the matter aside from the cease and desist to BronyFandont? The devs adamantly claim that they would never allow a child predator or abuser in their game and server, but also went above and beyond for their supposed lie, so a lot of things still seem muddled to me.

People who take the stance you are taking have many times been correct in their assertion (as with the case of Mr. Beast) but being a part of the BBU fandom for so long, it's hard to wrap my head around the fact this is even happening. I don't believe harassment of the fandom or devs is the necessary approach to finding justice in this case. I do somewhat agree with BronyFandont in the sense that maybe a lawyer should look at this case...?

A weird thing I noticed about Fandont (and maybe this is just my lack of Twitter knowledge) and they claim to be a person that calls out bad bronies, but all they have posts of are that Gabe is a horrible person and evidence they either found or twisted to prove it (supposedly) all in the past 3 years. When Gabe told them to stop, they sort of took a weird combative approach demanding that the case be taken to court. The devs are also of the assertion that Claire's dad uses throwaway accounts to discredit Gabe and a couple years ago we saw something like this happen with another Twitter user they claim to be a throwaway account. Brony claims that they aren't and that they only met her dad once at a con but also claims that they haven't noticed anything abusive aside from a "concerned father".

TLDR: There's evidence that can easily support the claim that Gabe is a predator and the devs taking the high ground on him not being a predator instead of himself is still confusing. However, people who are making claims (not Destiny to my knowledge- I know little to nothing about them and I am sorry for what happened to them) (I mostly mean BronyFandont) appear to be very combative and dead set on defaming Gabe. While they do bring up solid points, it seems odd they've dedicated most of their post history to specifically that. I think this whole thing needs a look from a lawyer or professional, unbiased opinion.

I had originally wanted not to say anything on the matter, but I do want clearer answers rather than the same arguments back and forth. I really like BBU as a game, story, concept- I love so much about it and I thought I could trust the people behind it. I still want to trust them, but I can understand why people are upset and hate Gabe. I want to weigh all the facts before I stand my ground.

So... thank you for your ask. But next time you see me leave a comment on the matter in the tags, please assume that I do not want to talk about this. Thank you.

[beardedmrbean]

Hey Grunkle Nunya, I was wondering if you could explain to me how people are seeing Israel as the good guys in the Gaza situation, because I can only ever find Palestinian civilian body counts and blown up hospitals and stuff, and it honestly does look like a genocide from the standpoint of someone who generally doesn't research politics and conflict. I know the way I worded this looks like I'm being inflammatory but I mean it genuinely. What am I missing?

Asking anonymously because currently, asking questions about the Gaza conflict makes me either pro-genocide or anti-jew to the people with no critical thinking skills. I can't physically handle the toll of being accused of supporting genocide (Israeli or Palestinians) because of a mental disability I possess.

I apologize if this still sounds like bait, I am just poor with words and you are rich with knowledge.

It's war so everything gets muddy, especially with the body counts the gaza health ministry puts out.

I do not believe those at all, they put them out faster than should be possible even at the best of times, they also make no distinction between hamass militants and civilians so that's another issue with them.

We're going to make up a scenario here.

If you're looking for why Israel went in, imagine if New Jersey were another country, one that regularly sends people into the surrounding US states in order to kill Americans and generally sow chaos, and they've been doing it for 15-20 years with no sign of stopping at all ever or even dialing it back.

No real rhyme or reason to most of their attacks, occasionally they'll get pissed off about something or other and fire off a few thousand unguided rockets, just point the at the surrounding states light the fuse and hope they land somewhere where they kill people, no specific targets just anything they can hit and cause damage with and blaming the US when their own rockets fall back down on them.

Again doing this continually with no indication that it's ever going to stop or anything will convince them to tone it down.

Instead they do a coordinated invasion and just start killing everyone they see, which they went to Sesame Place right near the border with them and Pennsylvania instead of anywhere with any military value because the plan was to kill the most people they could while encountering the least possible resistance.

The US finally says, ok we're done with you and all of this and the organization behind most of the previous attacks and this current one which happens to also be the elected government of NJ is now in the crosshairs and we're going to keep shooting till they're gone one way or the other.

That would also be where Israel said we're done with you, hamass is going to cease to exist after we're done one way or the other.

So then it's full scale invasion time.

24 hour notice was given, saying this is where we are hitting, get out, 24 hours turned into several days, couple weeks I think, there were some air raids and strategic bombing and what not, a hamass rocket hit a hospital and Israel got blamed, the usual.

Obviously mistakes were made at times on both sides at the start and continue to be made, incredibly fluid thing wars are, things change on a dime.

And then we run into issues with the fact that hamass uses civilian buildings as weapons caches, staging grounds, command centers, pretty much anything you can thing a building would be useful for if you're fighting a war, which is a massive violation of international law as well as a war crime because they're hiding behind civilians.

From 2014

Great line toward the end

There is no indication that Israel deliberately targets civilians, as Hamas does. But

The argument is brought out that this kills civilians too, which yes it does, it shouldn't unless there's a misfire from one of the guided munitions in use by Israel, for one simple reason

Which they don't need to do, not if hamass has made the place into a valid military target by keeping rockets in the school.

They try at least.

In the first couple weeks before the ground invasion started there were reports coming out of gaza where the residents were saying that hamass had either taken the keys to their vehicles or disabled them making civilian evacuation that much more difficult, on foot and such kinda screws things up.

Allegedly threats were made to civilians as well.

As for the numbers, the side that's getting invaded is going to have more of those, as for the accuracy of those numbers, there's a reason why every news agency that cares even slightly about credibility includes 'according to the gaza health ministry' to the number.

As to the genocide question, there is no genocide, mass casualty attacks =/= as genocide and someone saying they'd like to wipe gaza off the map does not indicate a official government stance regardless of if the work for the government or not.

It's a war, innocent people die in war, it's a unfortunate reality of a even more unfortunate situation, especially if your on the side that's on the defensive folks in Israel have less to be worried about it's a lot harder for hamass to get to them, true at the best of times for hamass anyhow since it's not like they have a air force of any sort.

This whole thing did not need to happen, if it weren't for the fact that there's a group that has refused any reasonable offer and some that were incredibly slanted in their direction as well people at a music festival would have gone home when it was over and had great stories to tell.

Neither side is innocent, but at least for the one Israel complete and utter annihilation of everyone in Gaza isn't the goal, they just want hamass gone.

Not to say there aren't shitheads that want everyone in gaza gone in Israel and in the IDF, but that's not the stated goal of their mission.

If it was gaza city would look more like stalingrad after the nazis were done with it.

Choice of location is made purely because 99% of the area was razed, that is all so.

As for all the ceasefire stuff, the one they had going ended because hamass couldn't manage to keep their end of the deal up even though they were given several do overs, they just had to keep launching rockets and shooting civilians at bus stops.

No reason to think they would do anything different if another one were declared, they tend to be the ones that start off the shooting when it happens.

I don't know if I've made anything clearer for you or not, jumble of information and I've tried to leave politics and religion out of the whole thing setting it up as just 2 groups of people, and it's late so my brain is going a bit slow so I likely missed stuff.

When it's all over there's probably going to be enough war crimes to nitpick over on both sides.

I just hope there's also a lasting peace

[dykeinspaceofficial]

OK so first I'm gonna claim the 👻 emoji so people can blacklist my stuff specifically

Second. I've been replaying baldurs gate 3 and found out that worgs are intelligent & sentient. So how could I not come up with rape fantasies about a massive, intelligent, wolf-like monster.

Imagine you're a brand new adventurer. You're taking on lower level quests in a small village when you hear about a single wolf harassing nearby farms. You don't know much about wolves but you know its unusual for them to wander from their packs. Maybe it's sick or it got too old to keep up with the rest of its pack, but you thought that wolves cared for their pack members. It doesn't matter. Even a single wolf is a good challenge for a new adventurer, and the reward is decent, so you take the job.

You expected to find it easily. It's left plenty of tracks, there's fur where it's rubbed itself against trees. You hear footsteps around you but you don't see it. You start to get nervous, something isn't right here.

You turn around to leave when it pounces on you from behind. It's much larger than a normal wolf, which are more than large enough. It's easily got you pinned down. You quickly realise that it's a worg, not a wolf, when it starts laughing at you. It mocks you for thinking you could hunt it. It had been following you the entire time.

It could just eat you. It WANTS to eat you. But you're just too pathetic to enjoy as a meal, you didn't even try to fight. Wheb it destroys your gear and rips off your clothes, you start to dread a different type of humiliation.

It clumsily turns you onto your back before it presses its snout against your crotch. You don't try to fight back. You might still survive if you don't fight back. You hold back your cries when it pushes its rough tongue into your cunt. You grab hold of its fur, trying to keep as much control of the situation as you can. You can't stop yourself from clenching around its tongue. It's rough and it hurts, but it fills you up so well.

It doesn't keep it up though. It just wanted to prepare you, to get your cunt wet and stretched. You sob when it moves its body above you, lining its flared cock head against your hole. You scream when it pierces your cunt, you can feel its massive cock tearing up your insides. It slowly pushes all the way in until the head presses up against your cervix. You're relieved when it doesn't go further, you can tell its certainly big enough to force its way past.

You don't get to enjoy that brief relief for long though. It presses down on your body with all its weight when it starts pounding into you. It's much too fast than it should be for its weight, but it's still being careful to not damage you too much. Even when it seems to lose itself rutting your slick cunt, it doesn't pierce your cervix. It's body is pressed so tight on you that you can't breath without taking its smell, and it stinks so bad. You gag and choke, it's almost bad enough to distract you from your violation.

It feels like it's hours before you feel your womb being filled with hot, sticky cum. You recoil from the feeling as it fills you to the brim. You're glad for a second when it pulls out, that it didn't force its knot into you. But then it stands over you and spills the rest of its seed all over your body, covering you.

It tells you to do better next time as it leaves you broken on the ground. Some part of you realises that it isn't even breeding season, that it did this to you for no other reason than to humiliate you. Your cunt hurts too much to walk for a while, but when you're finally able to get up your realise that all your clothes are torn to shreds. You're going to have to walk back into town as you are.

SJFVIDBDKVKSJSKAO HOLY FUCK YES

(I mean, the nice thing about d&d and like… speak with animals… is… y’know what I’m actually gonna stop there—)

Anyway. Yes. Getting raped and tossed aside by a monster that was supposed to be an easy little adventure for a newbie and having to carry that shame around with you for the rest of your life 🥴 Jesus.

[cum-villain]

What's Takatenn?

🤭Okay, so. It's two characters from Idolish7, Kujou Takamasa and Kujou Tenn. Shared surname is due to adoption, but it's important to recognize they don't actually consider each other father and son. It's a facade, they're business partners. Kinky, but not in an incest way. Except legally ofc.

See, Kujou Takamasa used to be the manager of this one extremely popular idol, "Zero". But due to reasons not yet revealed in the plot, not known to us nor Kujou Takamasa himself, Zero disappeared. After this, Kujou kind of became... insane. He's obsessed with Zero, he wants to create an idol to replace Zero, he hates Zero for leaving him behind.

In order to create an idol, he's attempted to find and use other musicians, but after failures (including sending a guy to the hospital with a head injury in order to attempt to acquire the guy's partner), he's started a new method: Adopt children, and raise them to be idols since youth. There are 3 children we know of he's in some way acquired, one of whom he discarded. Another of those children is Kujou Tenn, formerly Nanase Tenn, who he acquired at age 14.

How he acquired Tenn was itself a business deal. Tenn's parents club was losing money, and his twin little brother was chronically ill, requiring hospital fees being payed. All in all, it was a sticky situation. It's honestly unclear right now whether the money situation was intentionally set up by Kujou Takamasa, but regardless of if it was purposeful or coincidence, Tenn agreed to be acquired by Kujou in exchange for his little brother's hospital fees being payed. From the very start, they've known full well they're using each other for their own ends. Purely business, nothing emotional, right?

Except, at some point in the 5 years of being business partners (Tenn is 19 when the show starts), it stopped being pure business for them. Kujou doesn't just want Tenn to be like Zero, he's terrified of Tenn specifically leaving him, and has expressed that multiple times in the show. He isn't just using Tenn coldly, he has a strong emotional dependency on him.

And it's similar for Tenn. He isn't just using Kujou, he genuinely wants to make his dreams come true. His brother's health came first at the start, but now, he's determined to overtake Riku and make Kujou's dreams come true. When Kujou has his breakdowns, Tenn is there to tuck him to bed, reassure him that his nightmare was just a nightmare. Of course, he recognizes that the person he's comforting is something of a monster, whose hurt several people around him, hurt him as well. But still, he wants to make that monster's dreams come true.

So, we have a relationship of two people who, in the beginning, were using to fulfill their dreams while thinking of other people they cared about, but now genuinely have a sort of... I wouldn't say they care for each other, that sounds more sweet than it is. But they have an odd codependency that they get some sort of happiness from.

Also. Let me just share one twitter screenshot before the next part.

There is??? An odd amount of sexual tension??? Like, its mostly in the third season, but, wow, their solo scenes are oddly steamy??? To be entirely honest those scenes were what opened my eyes, because how you can watch those scenes and think they aren't fucking boggles the mind. I need to rewatch to really explain it properly, but, gosh. The sexual tension was something.

Anyway. When I first saw the ship there was only one page on ao3, and theres no tag for it on tumblr. Except the one I'm about to make with this manifesto. One of these days I'm going to need to write for the ship myself, with how much I think about them.

I leave you with one more thing: A song that fits them well.

(Eng lyrics here)

[sokkastyles]

Hi,

Hope you are doing well.

Thank you for the answer to the previous query regarding TSR.

I saw some of the asks Azula stans sent you, and they made me laugh. Azula is not a good sister to Zuko. She has manipulated him. Heck, I feel that in the first half of book 3 when she warns Zuko about consequences of interacting with Iroh in prison, it feels manipulative to me, like she was reminding him she has power to stop him.

I feel that Zuko was living in fear till "Day of Black Sun", when he decides to leave and join the Gaang.

I would like your thoughts on this.

I think you already explained it pretty well, but what gets me when Azula stans to try to argue that she was a good sister, and that conversely Zuko was not a good brother, is that Azula absolutely wants Zuko to think he isn't a good brother. Something I said before that I see a lot in Azula and Zuko's relationship that is a telltale sign of an abusive relationship is that although Azula constantly acts like Zuko is so annoying or a burden on her, she absolutely enjoys reminding him of it, and will take every opportunity to tell him how stupid he is, but she absolutely enjoys proving she's smarter. In fact, she needs to reaffirm that she's smarter to maintain her worldview. She needs Zuko to be the failure for her to be the golden child, and is invested in making sure things stay that way. She's not a good sister and she doesn't want a good brother, she wants a scapegoat.

Also the thing about her warning him to stay away from Iroh is that not only is she the reason that Iroh is in prison, not only did she purposefully seperate Zuko from Iroh specifically because she could not get to Zuko as long as Iroh was protecting him, but remember that she went behind Zuko's back to lie to Ozai about him killing the Avatar and left Zuko to find that out from Ozai. This means that she is having conversations with Ozai that do not include Zuko, and she has her father's ear in a way Zuko does not.

When she warns him about talking to Iroh, she is subtly reminding him that she knows things that Ozai does not that might call his loyalty into question. She is reminding him that she controls the narrative that gets filtered back to Ozai, and that the goodwill of Zuko's existence in the Fire Nation is something she has the power to take away if she were to tell Ozai the truth. Just like how her lie is not intended to keep Zuko safe, but to set him up for a fall, she is letting Zuko know that his position is not safe and that one wrong move could result in something bad for him, so he better watch himself. And she does this because it increases the power she has over him, it benefits her that Zuko is confused and fearful because it means she can reaffirm that she is the superior sibling. It also means that she can keep Zuko dependent on her while insulting him for being dependent on her. It's hard to say she's looking out for her brother when she's calling him stupid all the time for a situation she had a hand in engineering.

[marcusrobertobaq]

There's a variation in Connor's orders logic that is quite funny.

Deal with the leader (Crossroads)

If Connor remain a machine and the leader escapes, the HUD gonna say the mission failed, but for some reason...

2. Neutralize the leader (Night of the Soul)

If Connor dies in HPR the mission doesn't fail, it stays "open" in a way even tho CL will have to send another Connor (same situation from Crossroads). Also still "open" if the scope is broken anyways.

I really don't get the logic here. Either both failed or neither of 'em really failed but there's something interesting in the logic that could be relevant...

Deal with the leader -> but he's supposed to TAKE THE LEADER ALIVE FROM THE SHIP.

This is an specification much like Amanda updating Connor's new mission and trapping him into the yes/no situation in the Bridge scene. Although she doesn't say anything besides taking the leader alive, Connor's mission switches to "Stop/Neutralize" the leader the moment they resist - and that's what he does (killing Markus).

Which is IN PRACTICE the same exact mission in Connor's Last Mission. Following this logic, for it to really fail in Crossroads would be "Stop/Neutralize" the leader BEFORE THEY ESCAPE FROM THE SHIP - and that's why it would fail instead of remain open cuz...

Neutralize the leader -> but BEFORE THE UPRISING IS A SUCCESS

This is the logic behind Connor being able to fail/die in HPR and come back to kill Markus or North in the revolution. But there's something funny in all this:

Connor can face North and Markus only if it' REVOLUTION path (failed/Markus fighting);

In the DEMONSTRATION we don't play as Connor, he arrives later and what determines if he's successful or not is if Markus got killed by soldiers or not.

If Markus is ALIVE the mission gonna remain open during the speech, meaning the ghost specification BEFORE THE UPRISING IS A SUCCESS ain't relevant in Connor's mission

But there are another 2 points that could explain why one remains open and the other not even if they're the exact same thing with no ghost specifications being relevant:

There's a 1 day timeskip from Crossroads to Battle for Detroit.

In HPR, Connor knows the leader location and the % of where to find 'em, meaning he DIDN'T LOSE THE LEADER FROM SIGHT

In Crossroads the moment the leader escapes Connor DOESN'T KNOW WHERE THE LEADER IS and they could just dissapear forever and never be seen again but =! dead - being impossible for him to kill 'em. Would take days of tracking and that's why the mission gets closed as failed.

After the leader is found (declaration of war or declaration of protests) Amanda gives him the mission to neutralize the leader. But there's an inconsistency (in my head):

If u don't die in Crossroads (meaning Markus died) North becomes the leader. Amanda must have telepathy powers cuz she says North gonna take Detroit by force (revolution) to Connor in nov 10th 7:31PM. North only declares war PUBLICLY somewhere on nov 11th.

U can argue both the Church and Amanda Garden happens at the same time (nov 10th 7:31PM) which should be true in this timeline - but how tf does Amanda know about it the moment North make the speech (like we see if we play as deviant Connor)? Or her speech happens later and it's like viral content on internet? i thought deviants were more private

There's another point - if u died in Crossroads (meaning Markus is alive and can take DEMONSTRATION or REVOLUTION route if he wasn't outcast) Amanda NEVER mentions anything about what the androids are organizing, she only gives Connor the order to "Neutralize" the leader.

I'm missing something...

[yourtoradorasextendedwarranty]

This is what 12 layers of stupid looks like-

So

What's this about? This "person", used loosely here to point at the fact that the profile states "using AI to fact check people" despite a known history of machine learning (commonly incorrectly known as AI) is frequently incorrect as it uses human models to "fact check" and or find information. Like CNN, NYT, TYT, Reddit, etc. Or worse, Snopes. All of which publications and websites are leftist echo chambers and flat out liars.

I've expressly told this person because they are bad faith I will no longer respond to them. That and also because I'm not going to debate a chat bot. Except this person doesn't know me. At all. I CURRENTLY work corrections but it doesn't define me as a person. I'm also not a moron bleeding heart. But let me explain something specific here. There's 3 paragraphs of obtuse language here, trying to frame me as a person incapable of changing their mind.

What they don't know is that I studied psychology for 7 years. I've taken part in sit in sessions where I signed NDAs to not give identifiable info about people I listened to while they were in session with a trained psychologist. Meaning the informational take away, I can still discuss. People like "Evil Fact Checker" get off on appearing smart, except only really coming off as pedantic and pretentious.

I'm not, "Ridgid" as a rule. It's situation. Meaning, it's when needed. I've worked a lot of jobs, but here's something you SHOULD know. There are actually evil people in this world who are beyond redemption. People who honestly don't want to change. Who get a thrill from being awful. EFC here tries to liberal his way into a point as if I'm completely unmoving when fact is you don't understand the system until you see the inside of it. You don't understand the system and the people in it until you run in to save someone from bleeding out because they "looked at someone wrong". I've some tech jobs. I've done military. I've done security. I've some customer service and retail.

You don't know me. And you can be as arrogant as you like but if you think you can save everyone your a liar at worst and a ignorant idealist at best. Neither of which are good things. What's even funnier, is the fact you don't know WHERE I'm working. Nor how this place operates. And that's even made funnier still by the fact that not all prisons/jails operate the same.

Stop riding my stick. Seriously. You don't know me, and just because your leftists sources say shit doesn't mean they are correct. Often it's not. I change my mind all the time. But often it's based on fundamentally understanding a logic behind something. If it doesn't seem reasonable, I often won't take it to heart. Because why would I? Doesn't mean I don't consider other things at all. I always do.

But people like you don't consider that. You never do.

[jonesatheart]

Touch Averse

Some more plot exploration from the WIP containing Alleyway and Make It Stop. If this piece is included in the final version of this work it will likely come toward the end after both of the above mentioned posts, but they are not required for context here. That said, there is implied and allusions to past noncon.

April relaxed back against Casey's side, stretching her arm across his lap as she did so, and rest her hand on the outside of his thigh.

She glanced up when he took her hand by sliding his own underneath hers and squeezing it lightly.

"Casey?"

"Hm?"

"Are you comfortable like this?"

He frowned and glanced down at her. "Yeah, but I can move if you need more room or somethin'."

April smiled wryly at him. "You're already up against the arm of the couch so good luck with that. I meant with my arm on you." She squeezed his hand.

Casey glanced down at her arm rested across his legs. "I mean, I hadn't really thought about it. I guess so."

April nodded. "I just noticed that when I sit like this with you, you pick my hand up off your leg and I want to make sure I'm not making you uncomfortable or touching you in a way you don't like."

"Oh. I...guess I hadn't really noticed it," he chuckled, non committal.

"It's okay if it does," April assured. "I'm not going to be offended. You're allowed to tell me not to touch you in specific ways or even at all," she added when an uncertain look passed over his face. He pulled his feet from the table and April pulled her arm away to let him sit up more fully. "I don't want to put you through all that again."

"Guess I just...hadn't thought about it before."

April nodded. "That makes sense, that's what your brain used to protect you before."

Casey snorted. "Some protection. Feels more like I let myself be abused."

"The things our brains do, especially when it comes to things like trauma, don't always make sense, sweetie. When put into a new and scary situation, your brain froze and chose to wait out what was happening and maybe even went to fawn to prevent anything else bad happening to you. That's not your fault. Not wanting to think about it or talk about it is another way your brain tries to protect you. Like your body tuning out chronic pain in order to maintain functioning in life."

"That's not really a healthy thing to do," Casey noted.

"No, it's not," April agreed. "But sometimes it is what we have to do. And coping skills are things that can be learned and adapted. And while some are maladaptive, that doesn't make them useless. In moments of danger fawning and freezing have helped and protected you, and humans, especially autistic and traumatized ones are very good at picking out patterns, even if they're not always consciously aware of it. And when those patterns are seen even in the slightest way, the brain will fall back on what it knows works."

"That's why I never thought about the whole being touched thing." Casey sighed and rubbed his face with both hands. "I hate this," he murmured.

"I know, sweetheart, but being aware is what let's us start finding better things to cope and help us feel more comfortable existing in moments like this without relying on those fight or flight type responses."

"I don't even know where to start with that though," Casey complained.

"You're doing it right now," April encouraged. "You're having an incredibly vulnerable conversation with me and you're staying present and not just agreeing with everything I say. Anxiety being present doesn't inherently mean your doing something wrong."

"It helps I don't feel like I gotta worry about you gettin' mad at me."

"I'm really glad you feel safe with me. I feel safe with you too. I think that's a big reason of why we can have these conversations. Because as hard and scary and vulnerable as they are, we feel safe with each other."

"Bein' nervous or afraid isn't always bad though, right?"

"I think it depends on what's behind them and what they set off. But I don't think they're inherently bad, they just might need a little extra conversation."

Casey nodded.

"What are you thinking?"

"Thinking I kinda wanna try starting over. But actually pay attention this time."

"With my hand on your leg?"

Just another nod.

"Okay. We can absolutely do that. It is okay if you decide if you don't like it, though," April reminded as Casey leaned into the back of the couch. Once he was settled she nestled against his side again then rested her arm across his lap, resting her hand again on the outside of his thigh.

"I think I figured it out, but ya can't look at me otherwise I'm gonna get stuck."

"I'm listening," April promised, keep her eyes on the coffee table.

"I don't think I mind ya hand there, but the whole arm feels like...too much. But I pick ya hand up so I can feel like I can move it when I need to move without makin' it a whole thing. The other thing is the whole...'feels good' phrase kinda...makes it feel...gross. The context it's usually in makes my insides squirm."

April pulled her arm back and rested her hand on Casey's knee nearest her. "Is this more comfortable?"

"I think so."

"Okay, thank you for telling me. I'll do my best to not do the other. Is asking if something is comfortable okay or do you want to come up with another way I can check in with you?"

"That one's okay. It sounds less..."

"Sexual?" April offered. She smiled at the grimace she was sure Casey was sporting. "It's okay. Honey, I am not going to mock you for being uncomfortable with those topics or themes."

"I feel stupid for it," he answered quietly.

April took a breath and decided to take a calculated risk. "You are more than welcome to tell me no, but I can I blunt about something for a second?"

"Is this one of those 'you know I love you, right?' kind of a things?"

April thougt for a moment. "Kind of. It is something that might be hard or a little uncomfortable to hear, but it's not exactly 'tough love' like the other is usually used for." She waited patiently for Casey to decide.

"Yeah, alright, lets hear it," he decided.

"Being sex averse in anyway will never make you less of a man. Especially not to me. I know society and stereotypes would tell you otherwise, but they don't care about you and they're wrong. They're so wrong. The expectations put on you aren't fair, the things that society would lead to believe you need to place your self-worth in a wrong. You are invaluable to me as you are. And being sex and touch averse can never take anything away from you."

"Thanks, April," Casey answers quietly.

"No matter what kind of relationship we have, even if we just stay here, I'm always going to care about you. That isn't something you're ever going to have to earn with me."

[lockpickingliar]

Honestly find this very interesting! I don't see a lot of content about DICE specifically after the killing game, exploring the grief of losing their leader. Very thought-provoking post!

At least among the canons explored on this blog, not every Kokichi even has a DICE, but among those who do, I imagine it's a very mixed bag. Some, like Cookie, died in the killing game, while others are in a simulation but are yet to return to their DICE. I know a lot of our Kokichis are also prone to the existential crisis of the game canon claiming that none of their memories are real, implying that DICE itself doesn't really exist. Harrowing stuff!

But that's specifically Kokichi's perspective, and I don't want to derail your focus on DICE in particular.

I agree it must have been a terrible experience, and while I see that you're lacking some context in that you haven't finished the game for yourself, the implications of the killing game participants in some way being there of their own volition is not lost on you. (Although some canons we have here explore killing games that were NOT on a volunteer basis, I will stick to game canon here.)

I like to explore the reasoning behind Kokichi's audition to the killing game in Talent-based universes, particularly because he has so much to lose (DICE). Kokichi's a pragmatic guy, and so something very serious must have driven him to joining the game in the first place. I imagine this reasoning would not be lost on DICE themselves, because they know their leader and they know he wouldn't just throw his life away for no reason when he has so many people who care about him. As rough as his joining would be, they wouldn't be able to deny that he had his reasons, and I feel like they would respect that (not to say that doesn't make the whole ordeal hurt any less).

They would ABSOLUTELY be offended by the rest of the cast's treatment of Kokichi, however. They know how Kokichi operates, so it's clear to them what he's doing and why, especially in the beginning before any deaths have even happened. He's trying to lighten the mood, he's goofing around, trying to keep everyone's mind off the gravity of the situation by treating it like a joke so that they don't fall too far into despair.

No one takes kindly to that, though, and write him off. That'd sting, I think, but at least seeing their leader operating as normal would bring some kind of solace. Maybe, they think, Kokichi will be able to come out of this unscathed.

Then the killings start.

Things go downhill VERY quickly, and Kokichi falls down this slippery slope of isolation and paranoia that DICE has never seen from him before. It'd take them all off-guard, I think, how he seems to flip like a switch. I know you're not familiar with anything past the first trial, but trust me when I say it's bad. It's really, really bad.

The deeper down the hole Kokichi falls, the less and less he looks like the leader they knew and loved.

That isn't to say they would stop believing in him, though! Quite the contrary, I think they'd be heartbroken to watch how easily Kokichi is broken down into a bundle of his worst neuroses until there was nothing left. They'd still see glimpses of the old him, in his desperation to end the killing game, his kindness towards the outcasts like Miu and Gonta, (granted THAT becomes a whole OTHER can of worms to break him down later, good god-) just tiny slivers of the leader they know and love slowly being overtaken by this monster of paranoia and cruel, cruel lies. It'd really hurt to watch.

And then at the end? After he was thoroughly broken down to the point of no return, shunned by the rest of the cast and forced into a role that DICE knows isn't the real him? Death. He's just gone. That was the last they ever saw of him, a complete mess and barely a shell of who he was. I genuinely don't know how they would be able to handle their leader--someone they cared about so much and knew so well--being bastardized and remembered by the world as the exact opposite of what they knew him to truly be.

And even in simulation verses, I agree with you that it wouldn't be any better. Kokichi is left fundamentally broken now. I don't think he'd even want to show his face to DICE again after everything he did. Even if they sought him out, he would try to turn them away. He doesn't deserve their respect anymore, even if they think he does, even if they know it was the circumstances and that their real leader is still there somewhere. He wouldn't see it that way at all. It doesn't matter.

Whether or not Kokichi Ouma lives or dies it doesn't matter, because that's not Kokichi Ouma, beloved leader of DICE anymore.

It's Kokichi Ouma, Ultimate Supreme Leader of Evil, cruel liar, failure, murderer.

And how is DICE supposed to save him from that?

I was scrolling YouTube this morning listening to music and watching videos to wake up as i always do and stumbled across a question. "What was the aftermath to DICE losing their leader to the game?" Now. I'm not super good at nuance and I'm quite bad with words but for reasons I can't really explain, my brain said this would be an interesting one to break down my thoughts on. Now, please mind, I haven't finished the game, and have barely touched chapter 2 because life likes getting in my way. Buuuut since this isn't a breakdown of DICE as a whole and just my thoughts on the aftereffects of losing their leader, figured it was worth a shot. I'm going to cover three scenarios I can see happening.

1. Was Kokichi the first member of DICE involved in the game?

2. Was he not the first?

3. Simulation vs Reality

Yeah. This might get a little long but I'm going to try to be concise as I can and expand later as needed.

For a little context on how I view DICE's makeup. They are a found family unit, most likely post tragedy or even late tragedy for some. Some could be related directly but I see it more as a "didn't fit in" or "lost family during the tragedy" or any other number of reasons. They all have their issues, sure, but they support each other in any way they can and love each other dearly. Their ages may range, from all being right around the same age within a few year range, to a few adults even being trusted enough to be within their ranks. Lies are a daily thing to them, being a way to joke and play or even say "I love you" without needing to say it directly. And for people who have been hurt? Not having to be as open and honest could be nice. For some members it could even be a safety blanket.

Now. Question 1. Was Kokichi the first DICE member in the game?

It's hard to say for certain. For all we know, he's not. Others could have gone in before him and been lost. DICE theoretically could have been bigger at one point, and there could have been loss for them prior, but I'll cover that in my next point. If he was the first, I can see it being a lot for DICE to have their leader away and be terrified for his safety.

Their leader is strong and clever. And the bestest one out there. Hands down. And that's not just because they're his subordinates. I can see this being a true belief to them. The rest of the class treatment towards Kokichi would probably hurt or even piss off some of DICE. His lies aren't hurtful, they're playful, or even guiding at times. DICE can see it, why can't Kokichi's classmates at least try? Do they not see that he isn't being cruel with them?

The first trial would probably be hard for all of them to watch, and lead to a whole slew of emotions; anticipation (to see how their leader will handle it and take control), sadness, fear, hope, frustration, disgust, mild mocking at Akamatsu-chan's sad attempt to lie, any number of things. And the first investigation probably more so. Kokichi seems the kind to me who'd want to protect even those he doesn't know well, and I can see both Amami and Akamatsu's death hitting him hard. No killing. It was their one rule. So having to watch their leader deal with it again and again can not have been easy for any of DICE, especially Kokichi. And I can't imagine it got easier the further in they got. Every trial, every cruel remark to Kokichi was probably hard on all of them. Watching someone you love be beaten down again and again can't be easy after all.

But what if he wasn't the first DICE member to be part of the killing game? What if he was the second, or even third to be dragged into it? Is it possible he'd lost members of his found family to the bears and game? Was his motivation to join for revenge? Or an attempt to make it all stop permanently so no one else has to lose loved ones? To show how messed up it all was? Who knows. I personally subscribe to this thought process, but that is neither here nor there right now.

If he wasn't the first, it makes more sense to me why he'd join. I know the game seems to want you to believe at the start that none of them are there by their own choice but that just feels.... wrong to me I guess? Like it's not entirely the truth at the very least. My best guess is some of the kids are there for a reason, but I won't pretend to know why. I'm sure DICE discussed it, but I know if it was me, I would have fought tooth and nail to keep him from having to experience that, even if he had his own reasons, and I'm sure he'd do the same. But loss and grief can be hard and make you do stupid things sometimes.

If it was discussed as something he needed to do, it probably wasn't something easy for DICE. It would have been a last resort for any of them, and left them all a little broken that they even needed to consider sending another of their own to the slaughter, especially their dear Ultimate Supreme Leader.

Now, if Kokichi made the call on his own though and left during the night or with no warning after school or something, DICE would have woken up in quite the panic, wondering where they're beloved leader had gone until they found a note or saw the roster for the upcoming game? This could have multiple effects, from the entirety of DICE shattering and separating to being forced to helplessly watch their dear leader play a game none of the wanted involved in. And if he failed and it was all for naught? How would that effect his subordinates? Had he considered that? The effect of watching another person they loved being destroyed by that damn game. No. Wouldn't feel like that in the moment. I don't think they'd resent him, but I do think they'd be hurt beyond belief, left to flounder without any direction, maybe even leading to further bloodshed to the group trying to finish what he'd started..... or a desperate grab to understand why, or save the little family they had left before that's gone forever too and they're alone.

But if it was just a simulation it would be okay wouldn't it? Not like anyone actually died. Let me make this perfectly clear. NO IT WOULD NOT. I honestly think it could be worse than actual death in game for them.

Kokichi and anyone else in DICE who'd been through the game would probably be traumatized beyond reason, maybe even scared to even hide behind their own lies because it had just caused them so much pain in the game. And that could just lead to them bottling it all up until they'd break. Or it could lead to hiding even more heavily behind lies or whatever that member's coping mechanism is, maybe even unintentionally hurting themselves and further DICE as a result. Either way. Not a good outcome.

As for Kokichi, I can see it leading to DICE constantly worrying for him. Wondering if his lies are truly kind or if he's hiding behind a cruel lie thinking it's kind. It's not hard to do. People do it all the time without realizing, so who's to say that someone who excels at it could fool himself into it? And if he can pass it off, what is it doing to him and DICE in return?

[melanieryssel]

Genshin's characters as your tour guide | P1

Character: Scaramouche, Venti, Alhaitham

Setting: Basically, now you're in Teyvat. It doesn't matter how you got here, it's totally up to your imagination. You could be a Vision wielder, born in Teyvat, or you could be a God!Creator who got shifted to this land. Anh on your journey to seven nations, you will meet up with other characters who will be your traveling companion.

A/n: I'm a new writer so I would love it if you guys leave me comments on how I can improve my writing. Also, this is a series so I plan on doing a lot of other characters too, let me know who you want me to do next. Finally, sorry in advance for any spelling or grammar mistakes.

Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3

Scaramouche/Wanderer

He somewhat reluctantly agreed to go with you. He thinks this whole situation is just so annoying. In fact, it's only because of the God of Wisdom who had actively and persistently encouraged him to make new friends that Scaramouche is now tagging along with you.

Your travel doesn't have a specific destination. He just takes you anywhere you want to and if you don't have a list of places you want to visit, you guys would probably end up wandering around Sumeru.

Your relationship gradually improves as he finds your presence comforting and calming. He would introduce the scenery to you with such a sarcastic voice like pointing out the landscape flaws or assuming you're boring or weird to enjoy what you see. However, you only laugh it off when Scaramouche is being Scaramouche because you know he secretly likes the scenery as well.

Would intentionally use his skill and makes you struggle to catch up with him. Especially when you have to move from mountain to mountain, he would definitely pretend to forget you and fly off alone until you loudly call his name out of frustration. He might shame you a bit or maybe a lot for being slow but he would still come back and pick you up then carry you in bridal style while flying.

Let's hope it's not going to rain because your intention to touch his hat is clear on your face on the whole journey from the beginning, so Scaramouche won't lend you his hat if it rains. Maybe he will find a leaf for you to use instead. 

Venti

Unlike Scaramouche, Venti seems immensely enthusiastic about the idea right when you ask him to be your tour guide. This man loves Mondstat to his bones and can't wait any more minutes to show you all the beauty of his nation and people.

You and Venti would ride on the strongest yet calming wind to travel on the sky of Mondstat. He would randomly speed up or make you guys freely fall for a moment only to tease you. Venti will give you a bunch of Celilia as an apology after.

Venti will definitely bring you to Starnatch Cliff. 

Then, he walks you to Mondstat City and eagerly introduces you to his acquaintances. Venti takes his responsibility as your tour guide very seriously. He would tell you the history of this land, the folktale behind a flower, and recite a poet to you. He would also take you to Good Hunter shop when it's time to eat something. You guys enjoy the food thoroughly, ordering a variety of dishes, and only stop when you find out he doesn't have any mora...

"I thought you treat me?" You say

"Ehe" 

Unfortunately, you have no mora as well. You feel deeply guilty but Venti is way faster than you so he just grabs your hand and escapes. Before you can say anything, Venti already comes up with a plan that could help you have enough mora to pay for the meal.

And that's the reason why you two end up performing on the street right now. Luckily, Master Diluc passes by so he did offer to help pay for you, you only, and not Venti.

Alhaitham

Alhaitham is not the type to easily display his feelings so you are not sure what he thinks of this idea. He asks you where you want to visit and because you don't have any specific places in your mind so you say he can decide where to go. Hardly did you know, this won't lead to anything good.

Undoubtedly, he will take you to Sumeru Akademia. First, you really enjoy visiting such a majestic building. However, he starts to talk about different Darshans in the Akademia, the history of Sumeru, the well-known or impactful research in the library... As much as you love how passionate he looks while talking, it slowly becomes too much for you.

So you think you should ask him to bring you somewhere else. Surprisingly to Alhaitham, you say you want to visit his house. He doesn't get why you want to go there but doesn't oppose the idea at all since he finds you actually charming and kind. When you guys arrive, you see Kaveh there working on his thesis. Kaveh takes your visiting as a sign from the Universe to have a break from his work, but right after when Kaveh and you greet each other, Alhaitham says "It's enough, let's go somewhere else."

For the rest of the day, you two go to many gorgeous locations. Before saying good night, as he walks you to your hostel in Sumeru city, he says to you: "You aren't interested in what I talked in the Akademia right? Maybe Kaveh could be a more suitable tour guide since you guys' personalities share similarities." You freak out for real and then try to reassure him that it's not true and you actually really like the academic research he introduced.

"Really? Okay, then let's come back to Akademia library tomorrow, I can explain that research to you."