#magical boys remain peak anime

[polishmothman]

magical boys posting this fine evening??? more likely than u think

[averageclawcodeenjoyer]

ANALYZING SPIDERVERSE BACKGROUNDS- PART TWO!!!!!!!!!

The insanity doesn't stop

This time, we're going to be looking at into the spiderverse, specifically this scene (sorry about the weird cut at the ending, I accidentally zoomed in/out lol)

Which I have gone through frame by frame..

For fun. You can see what he's doing for the most part, but I needed to share my thoughts on it.

(It's mostly me being a homosexual though... happy pride month)

ANYWAY

Nothing important here really I just think this little sequence of him drinking is cute. Also WHY IS THE CAN CLIPPING THROUGH HIS HAND THAT POOR GUY THAT CANNOT BE COMFORTABLE LMAO. Also what the hell is going on with his laptop who needs that many tabs open. Loving the laptop + PC combo. This boy uses so much electricity...

Awwwww look at him. He needed a little light because his blind ass couldn't see to write his invisible notes (Me too Ganke, me too. What are you writing about though why is it so important it has to be on paper and cannot simply remain a computer file? Are you doing homework.... at this hour?)

Also he has the same getting up/sitting down sequence!! I think that's cute too, and it's probably just the animators being lazy and not wanting to animate a billion different ways of sitting down, but, hear me out; OCD Ganke. Now, I don't know much about OCD, but I do know that people who have it tend to repeat the same behaviors/patterns every day for every single activity. This could also explain the three of the same hat thing he has going on. Now, that's just a silly little headcanon to play with, so don't take it too seriously.

Also, WHERE THE HELL IS HE GOING??? AS FAR AS IM AWARE, THERES OBLY ONE DOOR TO THEIR ROOM. THE DOOR TO THE HALLWAY.

Is his ass really getting up to go to the bathroom in the middle of the night (courtesy of his one billion energy drinks) amd leaving the fucking door OPEN?? BUDDY? YOUR ELECTRONICS ARE RIGHT THERE DIRECTLY IN SIGHT OF THE HALLWAY... AND YOUR ROOMMATE IS SLEEPING THERE.... WHAT ARE YOU DOING.

Hehehehehehehehe aww look at him putting his headphones on I wonder what he's listening to. Also who texted him it's like 12am rn. GO TO BED (He checks it twice. It's 15 close friends reminding him to go to bed. He responded "I'm asleep dw" to every single one)

Look at this EEPY FUCKIN GUY. OH he is so SLEEPY if ONLY there was SOMETHING he could DO ABOUT IT. Oh what's that? Put down the energy drink can and turn off my computer? What a ludicrous idea who would have ever come up with that. Pff. Psch. Apffttr. He looks like the bottom of a sting ray in that middle photo. Someone get this kid a break and also some fucking melatonin. And water. Stat. He's like a plant. Put him outside.

Oh, look, he's finally decided to ditch his uniform that he's been wearing all day and get into something more comfy. Not the hat tho. The hat stays on every second of his life. Oh well at least he's probably a lot more comfortable. And would you look at that hes.. still wearing..... his shoes. B.. buddy you... you know you can take those off right. It's okay I promise. You got this. Is he barefoot in those too. Is he still wearing the same damn pants from before.

ALSO HIS NOTEPAD MAGICALLY HAS WRITING ON IT NOW!!! SOMEBODY PLEASE DECODE THESE MYSTERIES!!! IM SO EVER VERY CURIOUS

Do you think that while making his cup o noodles in the microwave he was playing music too loud and forgot to hit the stop button before it beeped and he just... kinda froze.... and looked up at Miles (who is sleeping like a fucking bear during the peak months of winter in hibernation. Not even a fucking jet engine could wake that boy up) and then kinda just awkwardly resumes what he was doing. Because I do. I do.

(ALSO, this is the second time his phone lights up. He does check it, I'm just not including it for sake of space)

ALRIGHT APPROACHING THE END OF EVEEYRHING I CAN SQUEEZE OUT OF THIS SCENE!

What is he doing in that first Pic. Clearly whatever he wrote down was important, but, like, is his computer updating? Is he just checking to make sure he input something correctly? What is this boy doing somebody please give me a 2 hour movie or a 500 page novel just on him immediately thanks

He's finally taking a brain break and... relaxing by reading comics. Not sleeping, no. Oh god no. But looking at comics. This kid has autism you cannot convince me otherwise. Who does this if they don't have some form of neurodivergency. Please bonk him on the head cartoon style for me I love him.

Awww he cleans up some of the floor (stuffs it under his bed to be dealt with months later)! PLEASE, THOUGH, THE WAY HE FUXKING LOOKS UP AT MILES I CANNOT STAND HIM WHY DOES HE LOOK LIKE A CUTOUT THAT SOMEONE TRIED TO HORRIBLY PHOTOSHOP INTO A PICTURE HE DOESNT BELONG IN WHY DOES HE LOOK LILE HES FLOATING.

Also as you can tell by his million energy drinks and now empty and just juice cup o noodles, he doesn't clean up after himself ever. Maybe instead of buying a fourth computer, we invest in a trash can for your dorm. Hmmmm? Silly boy. I love it when they give teenagers teenager habits. Please give me more of this.

This may not be 100% accurate, but take a look at how many energy drinks he goes through in one night.

The first clip is at the beginning of the scene, where most of them are unopened while there are already still five open ones (I can't figure out how to get the best picture of how many drinks there really are here while making it a collage... anyway). Since we don't see the beginning of the night, we don't know how many drinks Ganke has had prior to now, or what the interval he drinks them at is.

At the end of the clip, there are an estimates 12 open drinks total. One on the floor, two(?) By his comic, six by the right side of his computer, plus three on the left side of his computer. That means he drank 6 energy drinks in the span of however many hours we watched him for.

Bro has a serious caffeine addiction and needs to be grounded from money. ALSO, HES DRINKING THEM WARM??? BRO..

And I know that they are energy drinks, because, well. One, just look at them. Two, how do we think Ganke manages to stay up all night doing God knows what for hours on end. We didn't even ever see him go to bed! He's still on his computer when Miles wakes up! Bro pulled an all nighter and for WHAT. BUDDY. And three: the design on the cup literally reads "ENRGY" bottom text "drink"

Dude

Bro

Water

Please.

Drink it.

Also them having part of their schedule on the wall is so cute too!! Do they share classes? How many? Also that says Ceramics. As per my first post of this series, if you look at the horribly lopsided bowl beside Ganke on the bed, that looks a lot like something someone who struggled in arts would create.

Who is that someone?

Well, it's not Miles. We've seen his art.

Is

Is it Ganke?

Ganke the nerd? The Ganke among the most gifted students at Visions? Ganke who pulls all nighters and picks for on his computer often?

Hell yeah. Give him pottery. He brings home lopsided mugs and bent in bowls and dented plates for them to use instead of buying their own dishware, and Miles is so supportive of it even through the kettle he was using had a hole and leaked boiling water all over his hands. He's doing his best, he's not good with crafts. Give him a break.

I love this and them so much. He's my guy. PLEASE BRING HIM OR 42 GANKE BACK IN BTSV SONY PLEASE I AM ON MY KNEES BEGGING FOR MORE GANKE CONTENT I CANNOT KEEP LIVING OFF OF SCRAPS LIKE THIS PLEASE!!!

Part One

Part 1.5

[acquired-stardust]

Game Spotlight #16: Yu-Gi-Oh! Dark Duel Stories (2000)

Just in time to celebrate its upcoming release as part of Yu-Gi-Oh! The Early Years compilation, Ash takes a look at the very first title in the series released in the west with Dark Duel Stories, a quirky little game that remains surprisingly playable to this day. Come take a quick look at the game to know what you're in for when The Early Years releases later this year!

Yu-Gi-Oh! is a series that Larsa and I have a lot of affection and nostalgia for. Once upon a time we were even avid players of the physical card game (Larsa to much greater competitive success than I), and we've kept up with the series in all its various forms for most of our lives now. Binging the notoriously campy and hilarious English dub of the anime together was one of the first things we did as a couple, and when we started Acquired-Stardust it was a no-brainer to create some content in tribute to the series. That content even went on to become some of our most popular posts, so the series holds a special place in our hearts as well as in the history of the blog.

It's a fascinating series that has taken on a lot of different forms throughout the years and you might be surprised to learn that the iconic physical card game, now mostly known for its incredibly long first-turn combo plays that determine who wins and loses before you're even able to do much playing, wasn't even the original hook of the series. Yu-Gi-Oh! began life as a manga by the late Kazuki Takahashi, the story of a high school boy possessed by an ancient spirit that would punish Domino City's many bullies and thugs through the power of Shadow Games, dishing out Twilight Zone-esque ironic punishments to them, with the signature card game the series is so synonymous with only being played a total of twice in the first 60 chapters before becoming the main focus with the Duelest Kingdom arc which the anime most western fans are familiar is based on. It was a shockingly dark and violent manga especially compared to the camp that the series is more well known for.

Just as well, the physical real-world card game itself has undergone radical shifts in mechanics and formats over the years since its 1999 introduction, and the result is a series that means something different to everyone. If you poll a hundred people, odds are they'll all have a different bit of the franchise as their favorite and consider a different era to be its peak. Larsa and I are personally most fond of the early years of the series, and so playing some of the video games set in that awkward 'wild west, anything goes' time when they were learning and experimenting with exactly what they wanted the card game to be was a pretty intriguing prospect.

And make no mistake about it - Yu-Gi-Oh! Dark Duel Stories is very much in that early feeling-out period. So early in fact it released a mere two days before the Playstation classic Forbidden Memories and eleven days after the debut of the physical card game in America. Dark Duel Stories may have been the first Yu-Gi-Oh! game released in the west, but it's actually the third game in a Gameboy-specific series of Yu-Gi-Oh! titles (and has had its name swapped with its predecessor - whereas Dark Duel Stories is the name of the second title in Japan, this game was originally titled Tri-Holy God Advent in Japan). This series follows what I'll be calling the Gameboy Format for the game for the purpose of this piece, and for the most part it faithfully recreates the base mechanics of the physical card game (which we're assuming you have at least some level of familiarity with, but if not actually playing Dark Duel Stories yourself is a fine way to learn) with a number of key differences.

The first important difference in the Gameboy Format is its de-emphasis, but not total elimination, of Effect Monsters, Traps and Magic cards. Decks consist of a mandatory total of 40 cards, each with their own cost and level limit associated with them. Monster cards will make up the bulk of decks due to their low costs compared to the very costly Magic and Trap cards, necessitating clever usage of the game's largely weak lineup of Monster cards. Facilitating this is the biggest key difference between the traditional physical card game and the Gameboy Format in the much larger emphasis it places on the elemental typing of Monster cards, more inspired by the original manga's version of the card game. Each monster card in the game has an element associated with it (a total of eleven elements exist in the game), with the elements following a rock-paper-scissors sort of mechanic not unlike Pokemon that sees elements strong against one another (such as Water being strong against Fire) be able to inflict increased damage on their opposing element. Unlike Pokemon however, Yu-Gi-Oh's Gameboy Format sees Monster cards of an element weak to its diametrically opposed element outright destroyed before inflicting any potential lifepoint damage to players.

While this can (and will) lead to asinine scenarios in which the iconic Blue Eyes White Dragon card is destroyed by the meager Kuriboh, it adds an interesting layer of strategy to the game that goes beyond simply loading decks with the most powerful cards obtainable. It also stands in stark contrast to the physical card game in which setting up unbeatable scenarios with very little counterplay outside of hyper-specific scenarios on the first turn has become a hallmark.

Another aspect of the Gameboy Format that differs from the physical card game is the lack of Polymerization, a Magic card that enables the fusion of Monsters into a new and more powerful creature. While the Polymerization card is missing the fusion mechanic itself remains, relegated to an entirely unexplained process in which the player can attempt to combine any two monsters to potentially result in a successful fusion with getting the formula incorrect resulting in the first card being replaced by the second. It's small touches like this and the unique elemental system that promote a lot of experimentation and make sure that every Monster card has a potential use regardless of how weak they are statistically.

Players are given a deck of cards to start with and tasked with defeating three tiers of opponents, all of whom being an iconic characters from the manga and anime, five times each. Defeating opponents will earn the player more cards and card parts (more on this in a moment), as well as raising the deck level and cost limitations imposed on the player slowly but surely. There are a total of 800 obtainable cards in the game which can also be acquired through the usage of the Password system that allows players to add one of each card to their collection through entering the corresponding password associated with them. The Password system also allows players to unlock the game's hidden bosses as well as enabling additional post-duel drops indefinitely.

The game's main hook is its allowing of the player to create custom cards through combination of obtained card parts, with players able to combine top and bottom halves of original Monster cards in all sorts of ways that change their attack and defense values, elements, names and appearances. It's a small gimmick that the player is not necessarily required to interact with by any means but does help immerse you in the series by allowing you to create your own unique signature cards.

The end result of Dark Duel Stories' gameplay loop and format is a game that is perfectly suited for its handheld platform in all the best and worst ways. Its small, almost bite-sized duels go by rather quickly and painlessly but obtaining cards without the use of Passwords is a grind-heavy experience that leaves the player completely at the mercy of random chance. The costs associated with constructing decks can feel stifling at first but forces you to engage with the game and appreciate some of its eccentricities like the elemental system, and makes finally being able to include higher-value cards feel like the major upgrade in power that it really is.

It's a perfect fit with the Gameboy Color that allows you to sink however much time you want into it, grinding away to raise your level and cost limits or obtain cards on long road trips or just spending a few minutes beating Joey Wheeler or Seto Kaiba one more time.

Another strong aspect of the game is its art, faithfully adapting 800 cards from the game's early era to the Gameboy Color with a lot of success. Opposing duelists are also particularly strongly adapted, including a lot of (but unfortunately not all) the iconic characters one would expect to find in the game in impressive detail all without an over-reliance on digitizing existing artwork from the manga's original artist. The beautiful pixel art splash screens after selecting an opponent hold up extremely well and have my vote for some of the best visuals on the platform.

Not quite as strong is the sound, with songs being inoffensive and not super memorable but certainly serviceable - you won't be muting the game to protect your ears or anything, but turning on your own music instead might help with some of the grind if you're wanting to invest bigger chunks of time into obtaining Dark Duel Stories' large amount of cards or raising the limits imposed on your deck.

A small touch I greatly appreciated was the lack of manual saving, with Dark Duel Stories featuring a reliable autosave that happens after every duel, making rematching or putting the game down both a painless experience. One particular annoyance is the lack of a search function in the card library, so it's helpful to keep a guide on hand to reference individual card numbers you might be looking for rather than having to scroll through 800 cards manually.

While it's not a perfect game by any means, Dark Duel Stories remains a very fun and addictive time capsule of an era of the game now decades past and comes at an extremely early point in the existence of the physical card game and series at large. There's a lot of charm and a deceptive amount of depth to hook new and old players alike, and the gameplay remains smooth and fast all these years later despite obvious platform limitations.

It even allows players to link two Gameboy systems to duel or trade, though this will be less attractive a feature to people playing the game via emulation on PC which typically lacks the capabilities necessary for multiplayer functions. Original manga author Kazuki Takahashi constantly designed little games that appeared in the backs of compiled volumes of the manga, most often played with dice, and it's not surprising that he'd also come up with a very fun card game too even if this wasn't exactly the format we'd come to know in the years after the release of Dark Duel Stories.

A gem hidden among the stones, Yu-Gi-Oh! Dark Duel Stories is undoubtedly stardust.

-- Ash

[astrology-bf]

A Lost Boy

(CW: Contains Dawntrail Spoilers, Heavy Angst, Grieving)

When Thancred Waters had asked Koana what he envisaged life as Dawnservant to be like, the Second Promise had to give his answer some deep thought. He knew what he would like to do, of course, as Koana didn’t go a day without thinking of some plan or project to advance Tural. But the day to day experience of leadership was really not a thing he could conceptualize: he’d only second hand experience, watching Gulool Ja Ja operate Tuliyollal’s levers of power. There was crisis, there was calm, but above all else the pace seemed steady. And so that was his answer: steady. Steadiness with which progress would be facilitated.

Nothing about the present situation could be called ‘steady’, however, even if the immediate crisis had now passed.

He and Lamaty’i had bid farewell to the Warrior of Light as he ventured north with Erenville to see the latter’s mother up in Yyasulani, and Ifan had promised Koana that they’d spend a little time together upon his return. Koana had admittedly been looking forward to it, still utterly elated by a thrilling flight from Ul’dah to the Peaks of Gyr Abania culminating in Koana getting to both look and touch the ark at Nyunkrepf’s Hope. It had been something of a dream of his, albeit one of low priority, but still a dream that Ifan granted. It seemed like everything to do with him was magical, liable to turn completely upside down upon a moment’s notice. 

And it had: Gulool Ja Ja was dead by Zoraal Ja’s own hand, and the latter was defeated by Lamaty’i and her allies. The unknown party aiding Zoraal Ja, an animated echo of Queen Sphene of Alexandria, had brought a portion of the reflection where her realm existed to the Source in an attempt to drain its living aether to sustain the Endless souls within her charge. She too, had been defeated, by Ifan and Lamaty’i; but Alexandria remained rejoined, and now the task of integrating its inhabitants and technology into Etheirys loomed ahead. The crisis was now over, but the ground remained unsteady beneath Koana’s feet. He was just fortunate he had his sister and his allies, as he doubted that he could have managed even if he’d won the Rite of Succession…. Or perhaps he would have, as Ifan reassured him Thancred and Urianger would make sure that he was ready. Which they did, just not in the way Koana had expected.

The pair of them had disappeared again, likely to take their ease and celebrate a job well done. Ifan had remained in Tuliyollal, but he’d been busy catching up with G’raha Tia or in discussion with Y’shtola Rhul about the strange Mialla artifact he and Lamaty’i had been entrusted with by Sphene - not that Koana had much time to spare, himself, as he and his sister Dawnservant were fully occupied with dealing with the aftermath of what had happened. But they’d managed to find an afternoon for coffee and a brief discussion.

Ifan had seemed rather strained, to Koana’s eyes, as if he found his usual silliness a difficulty. It didn’t help that they’d mostly talked of Alexandria, as the Vow of Reason unable to repress his curiosity about the realm’s near-alien technology; and while Ifan had indulged and seemed interested in the more scholastic elements, it was clear to Koana that a lot of what he’d seen there had troubled the magician deeply. He spoke frankly to Koana, saying he felt electrope was dangerous and feared its presence in Etheirys. He’d also spoken with disgust of what the folk of Alexandria had done to Sphene: saying they violated a loving woman who gave her life for service, and turned her into a disgraceful parody so that they could have a fairy tale princess who would hold their hands. They hadn’t even bothered to give her shade the memory of what her favorite food was, and based on Sphene’s confusion at Lamaty’i’s asking it seemed not one person within Alexandria for several centuries had bothered asking Sphene if she was hungry - they only paid attention when she mothered them. And Ifan had admitted that he sympathized with Sphene, because he��d often felt similarly being Hydaelyn's champion.

Koana had been looking forward to spending time with Ifan, but after their discussion all he felt was worried.

He’d noticed Ifan’s scars that night where they’d first kissed. That was when he’d started wondering what it had taken for the Warrior of Light to get where he was, and the more he thought about it and the more he learned from Ifan of his past, the less he liked the sound of it. At Koana’s own age, he’d fought the Garlean Empire - faced Rhitahtyn sas Arvina, Livia sas Junius, and Gaius van Baelsar, defeating all of them in turn. He’d faced down the Ultima Weapon, and the Ascian Lahabrea., and won. He’d saved Ishgard from both Thordan and Nidhogg, helped liberate both Doma and Ala Mhigo and bested Zenos yae Galvus while the Prince was in a primal’s guise, no less. He’d traveled to another world, this ‘First’, which is how he and the other former Scions of the Seventh Dawn knew what they did. And then he’d returned, defeated Zodiark, and crossed the Sea of Stars to end the Final Days.

That was the narrative. But it omitted what Koana felt was important: how Ifan himself had felt about the whole affair. ‘Good and worthwhile’, he’d said, but that didn’t mean that it was painless, or that he was always happy. Based on their discussion, Koana felt that Ifan was in pain and struggling to be happy even with his partner present in Tuliyollal, and it worried him.

Koana wasn’t sure how to address it, though. Even if it wasn’t necessarily his business, Ifan had been there for him when he had struggled and it was only fair that Koana do the same. They were friends, after all. He considered seeking G’raha Tia out and mentioning the conversation to him, so that the archon could approach Ifan about it in a way he knew the Warrior of Light would like to be approached… but Koana wasn’t ready yet to have a one on one discussion with the Miqo’te, given that Ifan and Koana had been intimate and the latter was quite nervous as to G’raha’s reaction to it. That bit of apprehensiveness aside, it didn’t seem appropriate to Koana to go behind Ifan’s back like that.

He was pondering how best to approach Ifan as he walked along a hallway in the palace, a frown upon his face and his ears twitching faintly as he mused. As he passed by another hall that led onto a small balcony that overlooked the Skygate, he paused and sniffed the air - catching a familiar whiff that Koana now knew to be Ifan’s scent. Curious, he turned to follow it out to the balcony and saw the Warrior of Light himself upon it: seated on the railing, gazing out towards the Skygate and the bridge that led to Xak Tural where all the hells had broken loose.

Koana paused. Ifan hadn’t noticed him, apparently, and it seemed like he’d come up here to be alone. Perhaps he should just leave. 

But…

The Hhetsarro felt his lips twist. Then he steeled himself, and cleared his throat politely to announce his presence without startling Ifan.

“Hm?” hummed the magician as he glanced over one shoulder. He had a deadened look upon his face that made Koana’s tail fall lank. “Oh, Koana. Sorry. I didn’t see you there.” he stated, forcing a smile that didn’t reach his eyes. “Nice to see you.” he greeted.

“And you, my friend.” replied Koana, frowning visibly at the absence of the Hyur’s typical good cheer. He inhaled, trying to find some words to start with. “The view is pleasant, I trust?” he said, trying to repress the urge to bite down on his fist for opening with such a banal question.

Ifan nodded. “Aye. Am I allowed to be up here?” he asked, his eyes faintly beseeching.

Koana recoiled slightly and blinked sharply at the question. The notion that one of Tuliyollal’s saviors would need permission just to sit and watch the view seemed laughable… but it was more the fact that it was Ifan of all people asking that, as if he wasn’t confident. He’d never known the man as anything but brave and decisive. The Vow of Reason nodded, and gave a reassuring smile. “It is just a balcony. You are welcome here, whenever you wish.” he offered. Then he pursed his lips, ears falling slightly as he gave a worried frown.  “You seem distressed.” observed Koana.

The look that crossed his face was one that made Koana’s chest clench and his ears press nearly flat against his skull. Neither silly, nor serious… A lowering of both his eyebrows at the ends, a pained and barely present pout, and a slight recoiling of his head and neck. His gaze had shifted, too, off to the side and down. And for the first time since Koana had met him, he looked as young as he had read the Hyur was. 

Ifan pursed his lips, then shook his head. “Don’t worry about it, ‘tis fine.” he stated, quietly.

Koana shook his head, and swallowed as he stepped forward to lean upon the railing and meet Ifan’s eyes. He wasn’t any good at this… even when Lamaty’i had been troubled in their childhood, Koana had spoken to her as an older brother. Ifan was his equal and superior in many ways: it would be like trying to comfort Gulool Ja Ja. But Koana remembered what Thancred and Urianger had said, and spoke from the heart in hope that Ifan would understand.  “You have been a true friend to me, even when I have not deserved it. I wish to be here for you, Ifan. You can speak freely to me.” he said, as reassuringly as possible.

The Hyur glanced at him, and met his eyes. He swallowed. “I don’t want it to sound like I’m not happy for Krile.” he said, quietly.

One ear twitched briefly in confusion as to why Ifan should be distressed regarding Krile, but Koana simply nodded. “If you say you are, I will defend that. I still wish to hear your mind.” Koana reached one gloved hand over and placed it atop Ifan’s. Not squeezing, but offering the comfort.

There was a long and apprehensive silence before Ifan took Koana’s hand. He closed his eyes. “...They gave her up because they wanted her to have a decent chance. Because they loved her. ” he began, referring to Krile’s parents - or their Endless selves, which they’d encountered and bid farewell to in Living Memory. Ifan nodded after pausing, then continued. “I don’t doubt Lamaty’i’s natural parents loved her, too, and gave her up for similar reasons. Even ‘Raha… He lost his family, in Corvos, but they sent him away for his protection. But me?” He paused again, eyes opening and gazing into nothing. “I was left behind, like you. I don’t even know if it was for ‘necessity’, like with your folk… I am the Warrior of Light, so maybe there is some sort of secret story to it, but in all fairness… They probably just didn’t want me.” His voice had trailed to a whisper by the time he finished, lips barely closing all the way at the end of every sentence. Then a single, nearly silent, and completely mirthless huff escaped him. “Who would.” he muttered.

Koana stared at Ifan, ears standing upright in slight horror at the Hyur’s words. The man had friends, a loving partner, he was a skilled mage that got to see the world… And it seemed he genuinely believed that, after everything, he had no value. Suddenly Koana understood why Ifan asked permission just to sit. He understood, because he’d felt the same. Despite Gulool Ja Ja’s attentive parenting and Lamaty’i’s affection for her brother, Koana never managed to escape his tribe’s abandonment. That was what defined him - being left behind, and doing everything to make sure that no one ever would be after him. Magic left people behind, so he turned to technology. Tradition demanded that he be left behind, and so he turned to progress. It was a scar that was a part of him: a scar he shared with Ifan, it seemed like.

He swallowed, then moved to slide his arm around the Hyur’s waist. Whatever nervousness he felt at forwardness or impropriety took a backseat compared to how concerned he felt. “I would.” he said, reassuringly.

Ifan pursed his lips, then looked at Koana pleadingly. “If I were just Ifan Kaleid from Ul’dah, you wouldn’t know me. Nor would ‘Raha, or any of you. I’d just be a smart-arse adventurer, assuming I’d still be alive at all.” Then he caught himself, and gave a ragged sigh. He shook his head. “I’m sorry. Don’t mind me.” he apologized.

What could he say? Koana knew that there was nothing. If there was, he’d have said it to himself.  People had their reasons for not wanting children, loathsome as abandoning them was, and sometimes those reasons were distasteful. He wracked his brain for anything to say. Something he’d read, maybe? But then he remembered what Gulool Ja Ja had done for him when he’d been as uncertain, as had his archon friends. Reminded him just who he was. 

Koana took a breath, then gave Ifan a squeeze. “...I studied you, before you arrived. The Warrior of Light.” he admitted, pursing his lips a little bashfully. “ But it was not the person in those books that has been here for me, or shared his pain with me. That man is the one who has my care, G’raha Tia’s, and that of his friends. I know that in my heart, as sure as I came to know Lamaty’i was the right choice.“ It felt like the most graceless thing he’d ever uttered in his life, but it was what he truly felt.

Ifan looked at him with the same expression that he’d had on his face earlier. Then his lips twisted, eyes watering a little.  “...’Tis so stupid. I don’t know why it still hurts.” he mumbled, trying for his life to hold on to his composure.

Koana felt his glasses start to fog. He hadn’t had a minute to mourn his father properly, and now he couldn’t stop the tears. He reached up to remove them, wiping his eyes with one gloved hand, then looked up at Ifan with as reassuring a smile as he could muster. “It is senseless.” he agreed, ears falling flat and tail hanging lank. He felt the Hyur squeeze his hand, and when he looked at Ifan he saw the other man had tears upon his cheeks as well. “...I will stay here, with you, until you are ready. You will not be left behind, by any of us.” he promised.

The Warrior of Light bit his lower lip and leaned over to embrace the Vow of Reason, face pressed against the shoulder of his coat while Koana’s other arm came up and threaded around Ifan’s chest to hold him tightly.  “You too.” Ifan managed, voice thin and watery, his arms embracing Koana just as tightly as the Hhetsarro wept silently into his neck. “I’m here for you too.”

[nohrianseneschal]

Paradise Kiss: A Lesson on Dreams and Being Happy (heavy spoilers) Part 1

Thanks to this totally random tweet about anime endings, I'm reminded of an old shoujo manga flame of mine from the early 2000s: Paradise Kiss, nicknamed ParaKiss by its mangaka and fans. In stereotypical Ai Yazawa fashion (baddum tss), this manga revolves around a hopelessly flawed yet peak relatable girl undergoing the trials and tribulations of self-discovery. It just so happens that the setting takes place in a generic, average-sized town in Japan, and it just so happens that this town is home to an eclectic ensemble cast of aspiring fashionistas and designers. And it also just so happens that this cast is at a crossroads: their 3rd year in high school. Yukari was initially on the conventional path of graduating with top marks and entering into a prestigious university. By the time we get to the 2nd chapter of the manga, we see Yukari cast all her mother's dreams aside to become a model in the cutthroat fashion industry.

We begin with our protagonist Yukari, who is enrolled in an elite private high school. She spends her days studying for college entrance exams, but early on, we discover that her hard work is very extrinsically motivated. Specifically, her mother has had an iron-clad grip on her life, and if not for a chance encounter on the street, Yukari would've continued on in this way. Living without living. Doing things that don't make her happy or give her any meaning -- a shell for others' aspirations and desires.

As I said, a chance encounter brings her to the hole-in-the-wall atelier, which was an antique bar rennovated into an... well, atelier for fashionistas attending the local art school. Yukari has been scouted by one of the students to model for their upcoming fashion show in the school's Culture Festival. Although she vehemently opposes the idea at first, Yukari decides to model for them, after witnessing firsthand the extent of their conviction and earnestness of their efforts.

I am deliberately downplaying George's role in here, because I do think future readers should get to know George (the manga's romantic lead and 90s toxic boy) at their own pace and through Yukari's perspective. Describing him would remove some of the magic that is necessary to experience through Yukari's besotted eyes, and Yazawa does a great job staging the cognitive dissonance Yukari herself feels when she's around George. What you should know right away is that George is the de facto leader of the Atelier group and designer behind the label Paradise Kiss. It is his word that becomes the final voice in asking Yukari to model, and it is his intoxicating presence that drives her to join them.

All this to say, that there's a reason -- I think -- that ParaKiss, out of many other Shoujo or even Shounen romances of the 2000s, is still the only one being reprinted. Its 20th-anniversary edition was reprinted back in 2019. In the wake of Nana's permanent hiatus (Yazawa's more popular manga), ParaKiss's fandom is alive and well. More and more people are discovering it, thanks to the reductively short anime adaptation making its way to streaming services. The promise of a (very satisfying) conclusion provides a healing balm of sorts for deluded Nana fans, and the story in its entirety holds its own as a romance masterpiece. The art style, the fashion, the romance, and the writing are all top scorers, but something about ParaKiss remains startlingly unique despite more than 20 years passing us by. Very few shoujo manga dare to try what Yazawa has done with this story, and very few shoujo manga do it so seamlessly -- devoid of the mandatory witticisms and marvelizations so common in today's media. ParaKiss is honest. Brutally honest. Yukari's inner monologues and expressions anticipate what the audience is thinking, not because she's so clever but because we can all relate to her. We've all made that mistake we can't help making. We've all watched ourselves undergo the consequences of our stupid actions, with nothing but self-pity to help us weather the storm. And all of us have known the beauty of believing the world is full of limitless possibilities, and we've tasted the bittersweet revelation that limitations do exist, and that's okay.

In other words, you don't have to be an intellect to enjoy and feel the takeaways of ParaKiss. The mangaka isn't trying to wink and nudge you into believing you're a smart consumer, because Yukari's story (or perhaps, Yukari herself) speaks of a hurt deeper than narrative conflict. Her hurt comes from one's first love, whatever or whoever it may be. First love isn't always romance (although it's a huge part of Yukari's story in ParaKiss). First love is the feeling that everything is new and ripe for discovery. First love is the disappointment that this period of discovery is finite, but you're so much stronger and better for having gone through it, brief as it may be. That is Paradise for Yukari: first love as the Edenic coming-of-age journey she needed to become who she is meant to be.

Many fans and critics agree that Paradise Kiss is a story about one's first love, and how you can have an impactful romance without it ending into a happily ever after. Of course I agree with this take. George is the 2nd protagonist, no question. His presence, actions, and personality catalyze the journey of self-discovery that Yukari finds in her last year of high school.

That said, I don't think enough attention has been paid to the other first love Yukari goes through: the world of fashion. Indeed, the story begins and ends with Yukari's time in the fashion world - her first thrills of modeling and her final, bittersweet acceptance of its inevitable end. This part of the story is so underhanded yet profoundly philosophical, I'm surprised discussions of fashion have become afterthoughts in any serious commentary of ParaKiss.

It's worth noting that Yukari doesn't exactly have insecurities directly related to her physical appearance. It's probably the most unrelatable part of her. When people comment on her beauty, she doesn't deny it, but she doesn't affirm it. We're meant to see and understand Yukari's natural beauty as a fact of her life, like the color of her hair or her height. She even brags about being able to stay skinny no matter how much she eats, which is the closest I came to hating a shoujo protagonist to be honest. Rather, her feelings of self-inadequacy stem from her immaturity, lack of style, and overall lack of self-confidence. In other words, when she starts the story believing her crush on classmate Tokumori is hopeless, she reasons, "Tokumori won't go for girls like me." Yukari doesn't mean she's too ugly for him. She means she's too inferior; too stupid; too 'uncool' for someone she perceives as the ideal. Even when she swiftly moves on to George and sets her sights on him, Yukari's feelings of worthlessness influence her behavior and decisions in the relationship, ultimately affecting how George himself treats her.

If Yukari's psyche sounds incoherent, it is and it isn't. It's realistically incoherent. Women are socially conditioned to find themselves inadequate in some way, and that self-perception is ultimately dictated by how men receive and project it back. This is the genius of ParaKiss. Whether or not you relate, this facet of Yukari's personality is an apt observation on what it means to be a woman as a high schooler, and I don't think it's an accident that prior to meeting the ParaKiss fashion team, Yukari's self-worth came entirely from her mother. For Yukari, growing up and leaving the nest means learning your place in the world in relation to men, and perhaps that's why Yukari's first love is riddled with so much pain, beauty, and joy.

In this cut-out of a panel, Yukari finally asks herself the question that must be in the fore of everyone's minds: 'What am I to George?' What is she to the man she considers the most important to her? What are we in relation to men? It takes Yukari 6 months to figure out that she doesn't need George to answer the first part of that question. By the time the series ends, Yukari is able to ask the same question without George.

These romantic pitfalls and triumphs become more meaningful when you realize this occurs in the context of breaking out into the fashion industry. Similar to Eve in Milton's Paradise Lost, Yukari looks at a mirror and discovers herself. She falls in love with that image. She falls in love with what fashion (not George!) reflects back at her -- a confident, cool woman who can don all sorts of masks and clothes.

When she asks a veteran model for advice on how to walk the runway, the model cryptically replies, "Just tell yourself you're the most beautiful woman in the world." This is a hurdle for the likes of Yukari, whose low self-esteem has prevented her from truly being alive prior to the events of the story. When she does walk down that runway, fully confident and basking in the crowd's reaction to her beauty, Yukari finally understands what it means. Telling yourself you're the most beautiful woman in the world is akin to believing yourself a woman; akin to believing yourself a woman worth existing and hogging the spotlight, without a man to justify it. Yukari might have been wearing clothes that George designed, but one can argue that the dress would not exist without Yukari. Indeed, he designed it with her face and body in mind. Yukari herself inspires the art George believes he's creating, and Yukari herself embodies and imparts the meaning of that art for the audience when she walks down the runway.

Thanks to the fashion show and Yukari's success, George himself realizes he cannot design for ready-to-wear clothing lines. Yukari too discovers that modeling isn't something she can just do. It's something she can work hard at, succeed, fail, and still enjoy. Unlike the grind of studying endlessly for exams she'll never pass, Yukari finds fulfillment in trying and failing in the fashion industry, and this self-realization lets her redefine what it means to succeed and fail, as we all come to understand by the end of the manga.

Given that Ai Yazawa studied fashion, it's no surprise that clothing, design, and the industry's connections are all important for Yukari's coming-of-age. Modeling and wearing George's clothes aren't all butterflies and roses. As we later see by the end of the manga, fashion leaves Yukari feeling dehumanized at times, which Yukari outright states in an inner monologue by calling herself a 'doll.' The liberating potential of modeling becomes a prison, in the right context. When another woman -- particularly one who rejects modeling or being a man's muse and instead aims to be a designer herself -- enters George's life, Yukari feels helpless. The autonomy she gained by modeling bites back in a mocking display of her own shallow disregard for other women's agency. Indeed, she acts vile toward Kaori (the aspiring designer in question), solely because she's threatened by how George sees her as an equal. The potential of self-fulfillment comes crashing down when the implication here is that, as his muse and model, Yukari will never be his equal.

I'm going to take a second and point out how brilliant this brief love triangle is on the part of Ai Yazawa. We are so used to shoujo protagonists who are sweet, understanding, and unfailingly good. Yukari is a surprise, to say the least. She's not afraid to be mean and flaunt her beauty to intimidate her competition, and at the same time, she's not afraid to own up to her faults and wallow in self-pity when humbled. Although George is the intermediary in the love triangle, you can also see how the fashion industry itself pits women against each other. Yukari can't measure up to Kaori, the talented and mature designer with true compassion for her peers and classmates. The culture festival led Yukari to believe that she, as their model, takes center stage, but with the show over, her status as model reduces to her one of the many cogs that prop up designers' creativity and will. If God is the designer in this paradise, then Eve is just a shell of and for his designs, just as Yukari recedes to a doll when George no longer respects her. Life, it seems, is difficult for a fashion model who seeks to affirm her existence and purpose in a world that devalues such traits in the first place.

Spoilers: George and Yukari's relationship lasts only 6 months, but Yukari's relationship with fashion lasts much longer: 10 years. In the manga's epilogue, Yukari is nearing retirement, and she mentions 'plateauing' in her career as a model. Although as a teenager she aspired to be a world class super model, her work only takes her to other cities in Japan, and she is content to end less with a bang and more like a firm sense of dignity and pride at her work.

It's also no shocker that, rather than confirm her retirement, the manga ends with an announcement of her engagement and imminent marriage to her Tokumori, her high school crush and classmate. The last panels mock the sense that first loves are more powerful than the present love they experience (which is so amazing and Part 2 will be about that), and while these lighthearted panels tell us it's a joke, you can easily see how those words apply to Yukari's love affair with fashion.

Her crush and first love spur her to 10 years of a successful career. Perhaps she never realized her ambitions of modeling in the West, but she nevertheless finds and declares herself successful. This is what first love is. You might start out believing it needs to be 'happily ever after,' but you can end it and grow and realize that 'remembered ever after' is just as good, for the role it had in your life and your growth.

Yukari isn't just telling us the story of her first love with George. She's also telling us the story of how she fell in love with herself through fashion, and how her job as a model helped her live the many lives she otherwise would've never experienced if she had stayed on her mother's preplanned course.

Fashion isn't just about the clothes, the romance, or the glamorous lifestyles. Fashion is looking back and basking in being looked at. Fashion is making meaning out of how others perceive you, and fashion can be a cruel reminder that those meanings are already preordained and predetermined. Yukari doesn't necessarily fight against that. She embraces it all and learns from it.

I'm going to stop here, because I don't think an essay about ParaKiss and first love is complete without talking about George's own implied ending and Tokumori's constant presence in the beginning, middle, and end of Yukari's story. There's still so much to say, so I'll save it for Part 2. For now, let me conclude with the argument that Paradise Kiss is so unique in so many ways. It takes on the typical rhythms and beats of a shoujo manga, but it also embraces the flaws, ugliness, and messiness of love as it manifests in romance and fashion. You can't appreciate and love ParaKiss without understanding how Yazawa carefully crafts and packages a coming-of-age story into a seemingly typical love story. To use the jargon of the trade, we come into ParaKiss believing the firm and distinct boundary separating haute couture from ready-to-wear. Fashion is both, and to fall in love with it is beautiful.

[alexandriaisburning]

032: Tetris the Grand Master, or how Street Fighter and Japanese comedy changed Tetris forever

CANON FIRE is made possible by the generous contributions of readers like you. Support more writing like this on Patreon. Thank you!

When you think of Tetris you probably think of Game Boy Tetris, the NES World Championship, or maybe even Tetris DS. What you probably don't think of is Street Fighter, or Japanese comedy. But that's exactly the lineage that led to the creation of Tetris the Grand Master. 

TGM is now known for its ludicrous speeds and intense difficulty, but despite its reputation, it's also the origin of several features that would make Tetris easier to play, and a crucial step in the development of modern tetris. 

Let's rewind a bit. Before we talk TGM, we need to talk SEGA. While Nintendo's Tetris games hold the mindshare in here, SEGA's arcade Tetris set the standard in Japan. Key to this was the introduction of Lock Delay, a mechanic which gives you a few moments to continue moving the pieces after they've hit the stack (1). SEGA Tetris can feel stiff and archaic to people familiar with modern games, but additions like this made it the definitive game for a generation of Japanese arcade players. 

That was definitely the case for Ichiro Mihara, the now vice president of Arika, and producer on the Street Fighter EX series. Arika itself was founded Akira Nishitani--designer of Final Fight and Street Fighter 2--and Akira Yasuda, aka Akiman--key artist on several Capcom projects. 

This fighting game lineage definitely made it into Tetris the Grand Master, which initially began life as a competitive game intended to be a collaboration with manzai comedy duo Downtown. As part of Downtown no Gottsu Ee Kanji, a Japanese variety show starring the duo, they'd run a segment where they'd challenge guests to compete in a game of Tetris. Inspired by this, Mihara felt he could create a more competitively focused Tetris, and his team began work on a new title. (2)

Described as having a "Parappa style aesthetic" with 2D anime style characters in a 3D environment, the game featured high speed play and items you could use to interfere with your opponent. Seeing the difficulty in differentiating the game from similar titles, they pitched a collaboration to Downtown, but they received feedback from them that adding too much might complicate the simplicity that made Tetris work so well. 

Unfortunately, complications with the show's sponsor led to the end of the show, and the project was shelved soon after. Months later Mihara would return to the project, overwhelmed with desire to continue making a Tetris game. 

Mihara's aim was to surpass SEGA Tetris, which he saw as the current peak of the game. The focus on speed and precision remained from it's incarnation as a competitive game, but several additions made it more palatable for beginners as well. Thanks to feedback from one of the Arika office ladies, Tetris the Grand Master implemented a new Wall Kick system. Previously, if rotating near a wall would cause a piece to collide with it, rotation would be blocked, as if the wall had physically interfered with it. With the new rotation system, the piece could now "kick" off the wall, and be moved a unit over to make rotation possible. This also had the side effect of making advanced techniques like T-Spins easier to perform (3).

Wall Kicks, alongside the Initial Rotation System (allowing you to rotate pieces before they enter the play field), and the Temporary Landing System (aka the ghost piece, which shows a preview of where your piece will land), led to more intuitive play for beginners, and raised the skill ceiling for technical play.

Many of these features would be integrated into future titles, such as Capcom's own Disney themed versus title--Magical Tetris Challenge--which credits Arika for the use of the ghost piece. The Tetris Company integrated TGM's ideas into the Tetris Guidelines, a "minimum spec sheet" for licensed Tetris titles, allowing players to easily move between various iterations of the game. Nearly every Tetris since 2001 has used the guideline, making TGM a major contributor to the shape of Tetris over the last two decades.

Ironically, it seems that those same guidelines may have been what kept the series from wider exposure. Tetris the Absolute: The Grand Master 2, often considered the peak of the series, had several deviations from the standard, including the Sonic Drop, which behaves similar to Hard Drop, allowing you to drop them instantly to the stack, but move them for a moment before they lock into place. Combined with a locking soft drop, thus enabled techniques like the Zangi-move, where you drop a piece to the the bottom then slide and lock it into place, but doing a circular motion, not unlike the motion for doing Zangief's command grab in Street Fighter.

By the time the sequel came out--Tetris the Grand Master 3: Terror Instinct--it was required to add a guideline compliant mode, and by Tetris the Grand Master ACE, the only game in the series made for a home console (4), the systems that made the series unique had been pushed more and more towards coming in line with the design of Guideline Tetris.

It's been speculated that the Tetris Company's reluctance to deviate from the guideline has kept the series from being re-released. Meanwhile, TGM has been developing a cult following internationally, gaining popularity among the Tetris community and building a larger awareness through demonstrations at events like Games Done Quick. 

It took until 2022, nearly 25 years after its original release, for Tetris the Grand Master finally received an official port (5) through the Arcade Archives series. That was followed up this year with a port of Tetris the Absolute, finally making these cult classics widely available. The reasons why it’s now possible remain unclear, but perhaps Arika’s work on Tetris 99, and the relaxing of the Tetris Guidelines for Tetris Effect’s competitive modes helped move the needle in showing there was space for alternative Tetris experiences. 

Whatever the reason, two major parts of Tetris history are finally available to a larger audience. Each is overflowing with technical nuances that I could never do justice, giving them a long term appeal that continues to this day. That's all before you get to the versus mode, which contains its own unique competitive ruleset. At the same time, their grading system gives you a tangible measure of improvement, and even casually remains an excellent way to strive towards improvement at Tetris. 

As someone who developed a fighting game mindset from Puyo Puyo Tetris, it's easy to see the spirit of fighting games flowing through it. That strange magic that compels you to strive towards greater mastery, to show off your skills, it's all there. The Grand Master is a name that speaks to great ambition, but given its legacy, it's more than earned it. 

Tetris the Grand Master and Tetris the Absolute Plus: The Grand Master 2 are currently available on Switch and PS4 through the Arcade Archives series. An arcade ROM to PSX conversion also exists for the first game.

---

Stack, the formal name for the collection of pieces already locked down.

This story comes from an interview series previously hosted on Arika's Japanese site. An archive of it is available here.

A T-Spin occurs when you rotate a T piece into a spot where it's locked on three sides, often used to clear a line.

TGM ACE was published on the Xbox 360, but only in Japan.

The game recieved an unofficial conversion to the Playstation, and obviously was available via arcade emulation.

[howlingdemon13]

If you're still up to talk about CV, may I ask your thoughts about the two Devil Forgemasters? <3

Oh yes my boys!!!!!!! My sad, angry boys!

This is equally as rambly, but ehhhhh it’s fiiiiiine!

Hector’s struggle with his own humanity and his process of distancing himself from it but then realizing it again is just ahhhhhh! Peak perfection.

To have the whole world against you for such a fundamental part of yourself (ties to dark magic /devil forging in this case) and being promised power and a fix-all by someone who has been there done that is so compelling as a story arc. I don’t know a single person who wouldn’t at least consider that - I feel like many of us have thought about it (though maybe not in that extreme). Then to finally escape only to have his first chance at happiness ripped from him makes my heart ache.

Going off of that, ultimately Dracula got his revenge in Rosaly’s death. Even when all that remained of Dracula was his curse, his influence over Isaac and turning him into a monster is a form of revenge for insubordination (intentional or not) that couldn’t be more twisted (and makes his pursuit of Isaac so desperate because, as far as he knows, the root cause of his wife’s death got pummeled into the ground by the person he was instructed to kill). Poor Hector really cannot catch a break.

That said, Hector’s acceptance of his humanity, his realization that he deserves love, and his nobility are why he’s in my top 5 CV characters. I’m also just a massive sucker for guys who are good with magic and animals. Sue me.

Isaac, Isaac, Isaac.

I love him. I love how twisted and cruel he is. He’s so over the top nutty that you can’t help but love him (and want to see him come out of everything and have a redemption arc). If we go by what Julia says when she meets Hector, I can see his rejection of his humanity and clinging to Dracula as a sort of coping mechanism for a terrible loss (which I assume would be family members). He sees Dracula as his only guidance and salvation and is so sure that he’s not just a tool for Drac’s war on humans that it’s really sad. He does have a tether to humanity in Julia, but ultimately rejects even that because Dracula manipulated him into thinking otherwise. And it’s just how he’s used and doomed by Dracula that makes me wish he was able to be redeemed. Obviously he wasn’t always the self-absorbed, vengeful gremlin he is in CoD and it’s adaptations. I firmly believe he was a kinder person with a normal amount of darkness and trauma and a brain that was just too susceptible to Dracula’s influence. And it’s the culmination of loss and manipulation that leads him to his own demise and I fully understand why Julia is so torn up about him. This is not the brother she knows and she just wants him back.

He’s tragic. Twisted, but tragic.

I just love them. They’re both perfect and compelling. They really are the perfect illustration of extremes.

[chryzure-archive]

HI MEM!! here’s a pass to go on a book rant (because i love when you’re a hater hehe… esp if we’re hating together >:)) AND AS FOR TRYSI ASKS… gimme some songs for them pre-breakup and post-breakup 😳😳 i expect ANGST!!

THANK YOU FOR THE RANT PASS, WE ALL KNOW WHAT I’M GOING TO RANT ABOUT THIS TIME… I’M SORRY, I HAVE OTHER BOOKS I COULD RANT ABOUT, BUT LET’S TALK ABOUT THE DISGRACE OF A SPIN-OFF SERIES THAT DID MY PRETTYBOY SOO DIRTY

re: evangeline being a shitty character. hoh boy. yikes. like, she was pumped straight out of “generic ya protagonist” factory with all the default settings and stephanie went “yes, this is good character building”. …. i’d be more interested in a shallow character. i said it in my previous tags, but there could at least be a somewhat interesting dynamic there. maybe it would be hilarious to stick jacks with a character boring as bricks!!!! ((this is why simeon and jacks make a very funny friendship dynamic)). maybe it would be cool to explore a character that’s shallow developing depth??? maybe we could have a character with, like, a legit backstory? but a) evangeline’s boring, and b) she’s just a poorly-written reader-insert, since stephanie wanted to appease the fangirls in love with this bitchy fate. sorry, but jacks wants a bitch <3 he needs a spitfire girl to keep him in his place <333 evangeline needs to go to her pre-calc class, she’s failing rn.

((related: still thinking of that one post i saw where somebody was like “stop saying evangeline is stupid and make bad decisions! she’s just feminine! say you hate women next time!” …… so naturally feminine women make bad decisions??? they’re stupid?????? is that what you’re saying??? also, like??? the original protagonists were highly feminine characters??? i’m so confused with how femininity MUST mean trad-wife, LIKE WHAT??? ? anyway, evangeline is a bad character, but not bc she’s feminine. it’s because she’s poorly written.)

OH YEAH, WHY THE FUCK WOULD YOU A) ADMIT TO NOT KNOWING HOW YOU WANT TO END THE SERIES, AND B) ADMIT THAT YOU PLOTTED THE SECOND NOVEL FROM JACKS’S POV AND DECIDED TO LEAVE EVANGELINE WAITING AROUND FOR HIM TO COME BACK WITH PLOT-RELAVENT DETAILS???shitty, boring writing, couldn’t figure out what to do, so we leave the protagonist in her perfect little cage because she’s a boring doll for jacks to toss around when he’s around. no, sorry—because even if evangeline were a doll, she would be a more interesting character. i mean it.

((side note: you can have a traditionally feminine character with pink hair actually do shit btw…. like luna rune is right there, getting shit done, and then she’s happy to settle down with simeon and have three kids. like, it makes sense for her character arc to be badass and travel through time, and then end up with a happy life at the end of it all…… it’s possible to write something where that’s fulfilling. god, it’s like stephanie wrote a random character and decided to slap jacks’s name on him so he could be attractive as a “villain”. he’s a sopping wet cat with the remains of his failed schemes scattered around him. ALSO, HE’S NOT MUSCULAR, HE CAN’T FIGHT, THERE’S NO WAY HE CAN SHOOT A FUCKING BOW AND ARROW.))

i’m DONE.

———

anyway.. trysi pre-breakup:

every little thing she does is magic by the police ((…PEAK HIGH SCHOOL TRYSI, I CRY))

only the good die young by billy joel ((i like thinking of chrysi pulling tris from his shell to this song… tris’s mom does NOT like chrysi, because chrysi gets him in a lot of trouble, so that’s what this song makes me think of :)) that said, tris’s dad LOVES chrysi for that exact reason LMAO))

kiss me you animal by burn the ballroom ((he sings this and then goes on a date with chrysi and is like “;;;;;;;;;;; hi…… can we… what if we… uhhh kiss?” “……..you remember those cleaning closets. why are you acting like this?” UMM…))

trysi post-breakup:

superstar by carpenters ….. IT’S FINE, THIS SONG DOESN’T KILL ME EVERY TIME.

always something there to remind me by naked eyes ((lyrically… it’s a bit upbeat for their breakup, but the lyrics are soooo tris going around and being reminded of their relationship. he loved her so much…))

more than a feeling by boston (again, lyrically, it fits?? but it’s a bit more upbeat than i think tris would listen to. THAT SAID, I LOVE THIS SONG TOO MUCH. YOU’RE STUCK WITH IT.)

i hope ur doing well (feat. colliding with mars) by savage ga$p, colliding with mars ((juno and i love to say that tris would make songs abt chrysi like this allll the time if his bandmates didn’t stop him. it’s so whiny <33 i think it’s hilarious))

i wanna know by tea ((OKAY, LIKE, I’M ACTUALLY SERIOUS ABOUT THIS ONE. I LOVE THE LYRICS AND THE VIBE. IT’S TRIS AND CHRYSI ABOUT EACH OTHER))

the killing kind by marianas trench ((particularly the way it sounds, but lyrics fit somewhat??? i loooove this song though hehe))

unrelated songs that make me think of tris:

night life by hello atlantic ((tris accidentally turned into a murderous vampire on one of his concert nights??? oh???? and chrysi now has to help him??? what a shame!))

sad (clap your hands) by young rising sons ((he’s my pathetic little babygirl, you must understand…))

coward by those who dream ((PEAK TRIS SONG, HE’S GOT SOOOO MUCH UNRESOLVED ANXIETY. DON’T WORRY ABOUT IT))

rot by dbmk ((idk, it makes me think of him… the idea that he’s rotten to the core appeals to me, like—i think he views himself that way!!! esp when he can’t control his magic and he hurts ppl because he gets easily distressed—but also, that he wants so much more, and it makes him feel like he’s rotten??? AAUGH.))

dream on by aerosmith ((mostly, i think he’d like this song in general. and he’d sound soooo pretty while singing it <33))

[fairytales-space]

Secrets of the Ancient Oak

In a far, far away kingdom, hidden in dense forests and high mountains, lived a small but very brave boy named Leo. Unlike other children in his village, Leo always dreamed of adventures and mysteries that lay beyond the horizon.

One evening, as the sun was setting behind the mountains, Leo noticed a strange glow in the forest. It emanated from an old oak tree that everyone called the Tree of Secrets. It was said that whoever could solve the secrets of the Tree would unlock the path to treasures hidden in an enchanted castle.

Without hesitation, Leo set off towards the Tree of Secrets. As soon as he approached it, the glow intensified, and an old map appeared before him. The map depicted mysterious symbols and directions. Thus began his great adventure.

The first riddle led Leo to a waterfall where he had to find a magic key hidden among the rocks. Overcoming many obstacles and solving several puzzles, he finally found the key. This key was supposed to open the gate to the next mystery.

Next, Leo's path led him through an enchanted forest, where he encountered talking animals and magical creatures. Here, he had to solve the riddles of a wise owl that guarded the passage to a mountain peak, on top of which stood an ancient castle.

When Leo reached the castle, he saw that the entrance was guarded by a huge stone dragon. The dragon came to life only at night and posed a single riddle to travelers. If they answered correctly, the dragon would let them in; if not, the path remained closed forever.

Leo gathered all his courage and approached the dragon. The dragon spoke in a thunderous voice: "What never returns, even if you wish for it dearly?" Leo thought for a moment and, remembering his grandfather's lessons, quietly replied, "Time."

The dragon nodded approvingly and slowly stepped aside, revealing the entrance to the castle. Inside the castle, Leo found ancient books and magical artifacts, as well as the treasures the legend spoke of. But the most valuable thing was the knowledge he gained. One of the books said that the true treasure was the wisdom and courage he acquired on this journey.

Leo returned to his village not only with treasures but also with new knowledge and experiences that made him a true hero in the eyes of the villagers. From then on, the village lived in peace and prosperity, for its inhabitants knew that secrets could lead to the most amazing discoveries if one had the courage to uncover them.

Thus, Leo's adventures became legendary, and his story was passed down from generation to generation, inspiring new adventurers and keepers of secrets.

[lonespektr]

SEPTEMBER 17TH HORROR WATCH

Eight or Silver (The Cursed) {2021}

The war of who when??

Trenches

Mustard gas

Tent surgery, limb bucket

Silver bullet in one dude 😮

35 years prior

Interior

Children fancy house

Not actually bathing whine wash room and you half nekkid splashing water hun if you don't puck up some SOAP atrocious hygiene number one most horrific element 🧼🧼🧼🧼🧼🧼🧼🧼

Creepa

Melt down coins

How you WASTIN silver

Not a grill??!!

With elongated canines with sigils??

Did you even get a gum/teeth mold

White people stealing roma land after not bathing 🧼🧼🧼🧼

Hire mercenaries to remove them from the land

Okay lots of short scenes

I really dislike shirt cut exposition scenes it's like a montage that's a homework assignment

I would literally rather read it, pick it up from context, or have longer scenes that FLOW

But just exposition CUT diff info CUT Another info dump scene CUT

I'ont like it

They running the Roma off

Burnt the lil camp

The laughing scenes sound like women WHIST

A woman is being carried off to be r*ped so that's a choice!??

There's only men having fun from tourment sooooo

Silver grill maker and grill receiver are caught

Gruesome literally hacked up man trussed him like a scarecrow

Woman is being buried alive

I WOULD appreciate the implication of white woman in this with the cut to them fancy in the house as in -this is all on their behalf

If not for the voiceover of women in joyus laughter while the men are committing the heinous

Tbd on these elements???

Magpies??

Young woman night mare

Undead scarecrow man now

New pathologist rolls into town, third shot of white boy training to be a colonizers

Magpies

He's digging now too

All the children having the same dream

In this instance sleep walking

He dreamed of both parties

Classic floating woman scene

Second eight for silver nursery reference

Apparently they have settlement banishment powers

The elders for id it?

Okay so all children have dreamed it

OKAY

Why would they bury it??

Whisper teeth curse?? Like the one ring type shit

Now he biting kids

BRUH you ignoring your children

They screaming and banging.

Boy bit wheezing, from???

His airway doesn't seem compromised.swelling infection?

Another jump cut dream

Who moves a sheet? She should have looked down or something

Vines??

Wtf

Lots of body horror

They literally let their children run off

Why is the biter normal and walking around??? Hello

He doesn't remember

Thirty pieces of silver

Now how YOU KNOW

Bruh u rippin the bible bruh

Teeth in the church

Ok the children are cursed cause they parents colonizers

U sure that's ed bro?

Is that barley?

Literally came by and ripped the hand off but it still works??

One down??

They brought the pathologist

Detective pathologist inspects the house and boards the windows

They making that lil girl ding

White entertaining habits are wild

She crying and the dad is mad at her

He's the only adult to dream (younger but absolutely an adult)

Bonus dream after digging

He dreamed mr scarecrow had his wife n kid

Wait now who did she ask was gon die??

His mobile old timey microscope is seeing molecules??

I have just googled and yes them old ass microscopes could see a blood cell 🤔🤷🏿‍♀️

My scincerest apologies to old ass microscopes

Mystery remains unanswered why would a wild animal break into a house?

I knew they were going to reverse that

Bro looking like the midnight mass vampire

Look the woman is useless and got attacked and fell and is screeching

Out the second floor

Rooted?

Cacooned

Odd ECOVAMPIRE

I appreciate the novelty

You get bit then you grow roots and get watered then cacooned

Now you are vampire

This mother fucker was listening outside the door waiting for somebody to say magic??

Peak WASP never talk about the problem proto WASP

Supress, deny, hide, disregard

He going hunting now

His fam got kit by the same curse back where??

He finally found the real body

A classic stick pit trap

Nice shot with the white trees

Birtch?

Already speared

Clearly humanoid bro

How do you get down there or back out after you pointy them sticks?

Not what's his face in a bit role

Bro what dod dragons rumor to look like back then

They not helping

He's a shit surgeon

There's the girl inside the body

Stil screaming

FIRST thing out his mouth is DON'T TELL

WASP SHIT

Hide it from your wife

It's body horror+ evo horror and jump cuts and the horror of colonialism

Bro just knock like a normal person why you gotta scare everybody

Them shiloh looking begals taking me out

Mam why are you out doing laundry we are on lock down

Raiding party this is your own fault

Another award winning screen that's what women do scream

And they of course cut to the laundry now dirty it's very women are useless

Like they can't even clean the laundry

What if when aren't like after thoughts in films

Maid made it, so now she van turn inside the home

Is this struggling class commentary will the poor kill the rich

Bro leave in the middle of the night???

Now you know the cost of greed

Bro you also can't stay in somebody house uninvited week maybe he meant in town

I'm bout to fall asleep I'm hella exhausted i hiked many miles today

Maid biting it

They usually bust out the winda though

Omg making coffee i thought he was making more silver bullets 🤣🤣

Maid bitin em

Fire

Maid shot

Lol i loved how genuinely awkward is was to light that torch on a run

Umm??.torch flir

Gas

Finally admitted he dreaming crazy

Torched himself in the lil barn without a word to family talking about tell Isabel, bro u could have said goodbye, it's not instant the shortest turn around time was like....six hours???

Wide Ave daughter are out of the house, the exact family ratio he used to have

[greatwesternway]

TTTE/DC 2015 - 2016

So among the mini choo choos, there are many DC Comics themed trains. And DC is a thing I also know about so how's about some thots on how apt these character match-ups are?

Thomas as Superman: Predictable, basic, obvious. I get why, but le sigh. They're both blue! They're both THE flagship character. *yawn*

Diesel as Batman: No, but I do like where their heads were at when they arrived at this. They're both black and also both duplicitous in their way. Batman's always been the odd man out in the Justice League by his own design, intentionally wouldn't become a full member until the big shit went down, so that's a neat parallel.

Diesel 10 as The Joker: Ignoring Thomas and the Magic Railroad (as I always do unless I caint) I think he's more of a Lex Luthor than a Joker. His machinations are much more deliberate, he's not just out to cause chaos, he has a particular intention and motivation. Would also accept Arsenal since they both have mechanical arms.

Millie as Harley Quinn: I think if anyone on the NWR was going to be Harley, it'd be Rebecca but she wasn't a character yet when this set came out.

Spencer as Cyborg: Obvious (they're both silver!), but I don't hate it. Could also go with S.T.R.I.P.E., Captain Atom, Steel. Mirror Master, if we wanted to make him a villain. Ooh, Gentleman Ghost woulda been clever!

Luke as Beast Boy: Love it! They're both green and small and Luke had that episode about making friends with that deer so they both have an affinity for animals.

Charlie as The Riddler: Love this too! They've both got purple in their color schemes and Charlie's jokes are always in a riddle format. Very good match.

Millie as Catwoman: Better match than Harley. Other good matches: Huntress, Star Sapphire, Black Canary.

Percy as Robin: I hate that it's true, but it is. Percy is peak sidekick. Remains to be seen which Robin though. Would Percy eventually turn into Nightwing or Red Hood? Suppose it depends on if we're talking T&F Percy or RWS Percy.

Emily as Wonder Woman: No. Emily's better as Hawkgirl. They both wear green and gold and they're both kind of a bitch. (Which is to say, Emily being a bitch like she was early on in her history would have been interesting and not : [] if there had been any other female characters (a Wonder Woman) to contrast that to).

Henry as Green Arrow: Obvious, but not as obvious as making him Green Lantern would have been. This might also be a joke about the real train also called Green Arrow. If it were my line of toy trains dressed as superheroes though, Henry would have been Metamoprho to play on the whole involuntarily being made into a weird frankenmonster thing.

Stephen as Sinestro: Fucking wild-ass match out of left field. I cannot fathom the logic of it and I suspect there is none. I kinda do love it for that, but I think if we're actually trying, Stephen is Shining Knight, a blast from the past who always wants to tell you about the time he fought Morgan le Fay. "'Tis a good story."

Thomas as Batman: No, but I get why if this is the sequel to the last set. Also they went with retro blue Batman instead of black to make it fit so points for that.

James as Flash: Perfect. Red, fast, James is similarly jokey when he has room to be, he's the one the other guys don't take seriously.

Salty as Aquaman: I mean, yeah. Obvious, but in a way unavoidable, I think.

Flynn as Firestorm: Flynn coulda been any fire hero, but Firestorm's deal is that he's actually two (or more) consciousnesses fused into one, with one guy controlling the body and the other(s) advising. So that's not a bad match for the guy who fights fires and can switch between rails and roads.

Spencer as Cyborg: See previous.

Thomas as Superman: See previous.

Flynn as Firestorm: See previous.

Sidney as The Penguin: Ehhh, yeah, okay, I guess if you want to go off the chubby face thing. Buuuut Solomun Grundy would be better! They both have memory problems. And Grundy's not strictly a villain per se so it kinda plays on the diesels being antagonists for a while, despite most of them being pretty cool guys.

Millie as Catwoman: See previous.

Paxton as Lex Luthor: Haha, no! Paxton might make a good Trickster though. Only falls in with the wrong crowd when he gets confused.

'Arry as Shazam: If there's a train who should be Shazam, it's probably Bill or Ben. Or maybe Phillip. As for 'Arry, how about Metallo?

Diesel 10 as The Joker: See previous.

Edward as Black Adam: Wild-ass choice without context, but now that'd I've posited Bill/Ben as Shazam... Edward is often put at odds with Bill and Ben and Black Adam is old and wise. And he's got a redemption arc going now so ???

Percy as Robin: See previous

Millie as Harley Quinn: See previous.

Ferdinand as Martian Manhunter: Maybe they were going for the isolation angle of being banished to Misty Island if you squint? Given that he was banished to Misty Island for being naughty though, Lobo might be a fun take on him.

Thomas as Batman: See previous.

Samson as Black Manta: Haha, I don't think so. Captain Atom perhaps, who chose (wrongly) to side with the US military over the Justice League when they went to rescue The Question from the government? Ooh, or - wild-ass take - General Eiling, who turned himself into a monster to prove some point about civilians being at the mercy of superheroes, beat the shit out of a bunch of non-super powered heroes, and then got tolt by a little old lady that he was the super-powered being they needed to be protected from. These guys both thought they knew; they didn't know.

Porter as Captain Cold: Not bad, since his deal is his sandboxes are kept up on his boiler to keep the sand warm and therefore dry in case his rails are wet or icy. Given that he's about sand, I think Hourman might have been a fun if tenuous leap too.

Victor as Hawkman: Eh. Not bad, but there's better options for him. Red Tornado would have been good, same color scheme and Red Tornado is also a relatively empathetic machine.

Emily as Poison Ivy: Not sultry enough. Daisy might be good for Poison Ivy.

Charlie as The Riddler: See previous.

Scruff as The Atom: I mean, he is small so I see where they were going with that. He could be a better Creeper though!

Rosie as Supergirl: I think Wonder Girl is a little more of a tomboy, but not by that much so whatev.

Spencer as Doomsday: Damn, that escalated, dint it? I mean, they are both gray so okay. You know, though. If you made Gordon Superman, then this makes a lot of sense.

Thomas as Bizarro: It's surprising and I'm into it! And it sort of follows. Like Bizarro, Thomas also often tries to imitate people he admires, thinking that he is their equal, but finds he cannot match their skills. Just ain't built for that.

Gator as Killer Croc: Obvious, but they had to do it, I suppose.

Diesel as Two-Face: Love it! No notes!

Diesel 10 as Solomon Grundy: I know I said this for Sidney, but fuck it, I like this too. Especially since it does play on the whole anti-villain thing that Grundy sometimes has going.

Troublesome Truck as Scarecrow: I feel the really apt thing to do would be to make Troublesome Trucks something that there are a legion of. Apokolips grunts or Cadmus guys or- Oh. Oh no! Troublesome Truck should have been Mr. Mxyzptlk!

Ben as Plastic Man: You know what, yeah! Plastic Man is a reformed burglar and a chucklefuck besides. I see where they were goin' with it. If you make Bill the Elongated Man, you can play with the whole "we don't need two stretchy guys" gag.

Rosie as Hawkgirl: Nope, that should a been Emily's.

[tokoyamisstuff]

Scandal Ch. 1 - Loki x Reader

Summary: After your child is born a Frost Giant, your husband accuses you of infidelitiy, unaware about his own heritage...

Warnings: Pregnancy, Childbirth, Angst, Mild Cussing

Noteable: Takes place before Thor 1, Asgardian Fem! Reader

Words: ~1800

I Story Masterlist I General Masterlist I

It was as if your anchestors wanted to deliver a warning, for Asgard had never faced a storm matching this fateful afternoon.

The thunder swallowed all of your screams and cries, every curse you spoke with each contraction as the baby made it’s way into this world. All this time, your precious husband would never leave your side, letting you squeeze his hand as much as you needed.

“Only a little bit more, my Lady!” the midwife shoutet from between your legs, her tone calm yet cheerful. “I can already see the head!”

“I’m right here. You’re doing wonderful, my petal.” Loki was softly petting your hair, pressing a wet kiss into your forehead. “You are incredibly strong, Y/N. And I love you so much!”

Remaining collected was using up all of his energy at that very moment, you knew that much. Yet not even the God of Lies could hide all the helplessness and excitement stirring in his head at that very moment.

Being with the Prince of Asgard was just like in a dream.

Once you get to know him, that troublesome arrogant lone wolf turned into a smart, caring - and especially charming - prince. And hel, Loki treated you like a Queen.

All this pain you were experiencing right now would ultimately lead to the greatest bliss imagineable - just like it was with Loki.

Oh, how dearly you had fought, suffered, yearned for him, only to be rewarded with heartbreak and frustration. In between his feverishly chase for the throne and his rivalry with Thor, there was just no room for a loving relationship to grow.

The crushing weight of thinking himself unworthy for affection had made him cold and bitter over the millenias, telling himself the comforting lie that he was above all, born for a glorious purpose.

For the God of Mischief, whose kinsmen had always made him feel out of place or under-appreciated, the process of trusting had always been one step forward, three steps back.

But through your compassion, and with a great deal of patience and understanding, you slowly but steadily melted the ice around the prince’s heart.

Because deep inside, you always knew that it was worth it.

And today would be the peak of your romance: Your child would forever remind the Odinson that he belonged somewhere - right here, with you.

“It’s a boy!”

“A heir?!” Loki exclaimed, smothering your face in kisses. “Well done!”

You smiled weakly at his excitement, in between choked sobs. All that your exhausted self was able to process was the fact that your child is born - and you already loved him beyond reason.

“Where is he?!” you whimpered, unable to realize how the air in the room had shifted - for when the midwife touched the infant, she began to scream in agony.

“What’s wrong?!” Loki’s eyes were narrowing at the midwife that almost dropped his newborn, detecting some sort of burn wound on her palm. Quickly, she had covered the boy in a towel, aware that if any harm came over that baby, she was to die at the God of Mischief’s hands.

A flash of lightning was brightening the whole room, which had only been flooded by dim candle light until now.

Another one of the midwife’s screeched in terror, almost stumbling as she frantically erscaped your bedchamber. The adrenaline from birth and worry about your child sharpened your senses, yet concentration was almost impossible.

Still, the words she was yelling as she ran down the hall send a shiver down your spine:

“It’s a monster.”

Your head was spinning as you rushed into an upright position, with two nurses pressing you onto the bed again. “Milady, you need to rest! It’s still too early!”

“What is wrong with my child?!?” you desperately screamed, kicking with your legs to free yourself from their hold. “Give it to me!”

Their expressions were too much to bear. Your head was spinning, seeing pity mixing up with disgust and anger in their eyes.

“Enough!” Loki finally broke his own silence, his mind having been occupied with all the horror scenarios one could think about.

Walking up to the midwife carrying the infant, he demanded seeing it. “Your highness, don’t-” yet the midwife’s beg was for naught.

Yes, everything will be alright. Loki will take care of it, like he always does. After all, he’s your savior, your hero, the love of your life...

Gently and insecure, your husband cradled the newborn in his arms - a sight to behold. And the baby’s strong cries assured you that it was at least alive.

However, as soon as he dared to unwrap the towel, revealing it’s face, Loki’s heartbeat completely stopped for a second. His trembling lip began to shake, mouth widely agape as he took in the child’s form.

For a brief moment, his mind was completely blank. All emotion dropped from his face before taking in a complete different demeanour.

“Wha-” you wouldn’t dare ending that sentence when your husband’s furious eyes met yours.

The air was so thick, you thought not even Thor’s hammer could break it. Clearly ritten on Loki’s usual unreadable face were so many emotions at once:

Aversion, fury, incredible sorrow...all directed towards you? The child?

Impossible.

Loki Odinson loved you more than anything in this world, this was the only thing you had always been sure he wasn’t lying about.

“From all the people I expected to betray me...” His voice was hoarse, as if the ache in his heart was wrapping around his throat. “Why did it have to be you?”

You could feel the horrendous aura, a wave of sadness and despair coming from your husband. Seeing him like this was like torture.

“What- what do you mean, darling-”

“Don’t fucking call me that, you harlot!” That was surely not the first time your lover had raised your voice against you - he could be a bit difficult at times, obviously.

But this time was different somehow. It sounded so...ultimate.

And the Loki you knew would never use such harsh words against you!

“Please, I beg of you...just let me see my baby!” Everything was just too much for you, almost to the point of passing out. 

And the man did as you pleaded, almost shoving the child into your arms. “There, have your bastard! And make sure to never show your filthy faces to me ever again!”

With that, he stormed out of the room, leaving you with those strange nurses looking at you like you’ve just commited an unforgiveable crime.

There was no use in overthinking this. He’ll come back like he always did. You can work this out, whatever it is - even if you are gonna be mad for a very long time, making such a fuss and then disappearing instead of taking care of you, the mother of his child.

Out of a whim, you decided to finally observe the little being you’ve been waiting for all those months.

A loud gasp escaped your mouth as you realized just why everyone was so worked up about that little boy. Yet the sound you made was solely surprised - not a hint of fear or rejection laced your voice.

It was a beautiful baby boy, little fists balled to the air as if he was searching for the warmth of his parents - though his skin was in the shade of a dark blue. When you dared running your hand over the deep lines and ridges on his body, the stinging pain of frostbite immediately stung your fingertips. His eyes snapped open, looking at you with black irises through red scleras.

You knew the meaning of this, even though you didn’t understand how this was possible: This child was a biological Frost Giant. A small one, but nonetheless.

A curse? Was someone trying to play your family dirty? No. If that was the case, the child wouldn’t also have actual powers together with the appearance.

Just how long have those tears been running down your cheeks in thick streams already? You wouldn’t know.

Only one thing came as clear as daylight to you: You loved this baby, more than anything in this world. And no matter the hardships that came along with it - you would protect him, no matter what!

“He’s magnificent...” you sniffled, pecking some quick kisses onto his small body before the cold could hurt you. “I love you so, so much...!”

Not minding the judging looks of the nurses, let alone wondering about the consequences, resolve was starting to give you new strenght.

The boy got a grasp on your finger, and instead of your skin freezing off as expected, your magic allowed him to the boy to finally disguise itself as one of you. How was this even possible? Well, this is probably the first time something like this ever happened, so no one could prepare you for what to expect with this child.

They all say that birth was an impactful event - but nothing could’ve prepared you for everything that you had to endure on this day.

Yet nothing could’ve stopped you from believing that this child was the greatest blessing that ever came over you.

Now you only had to convince your husband of that very fact...

“Y/N Y/L/N!” the guard wouldn’t even bother adressing you with your full title as his harsh voice woke you up. When had you drifted away into slumber anyway? You were probably way more worn out than you wanted to admit...

Your eyes immediately snapped open, heart skipping a beat until you saw that your son was still sleeping soundly right next to you. Stroking his cheek as he smiled up to you, it almost made you forget about that burdensome situation.

“Hey!” Protectingly, you were holding onto your child for dear life as the guard approached both of you. “I have an important message to deliver!”

You scowled, almost like an animal mother protecting their offsprings with baring teeth, even though you knew in that state you would be completely and utterly helpless. “Why now? What could be more important than the well-being of my child?”

The answer let your blood run cold:

“I am here to announce that Lady Y/N Y/L/N has to face a trial in front of the Allfather. The following crimes she is being accused of: Infidelity, collaboration with the enemy and trying to sneak one of them into our glorious kingdom.”

[castexpectopatronum]

Liquid Amber - Part III [Remus Lupin x Reader Imagine]

Summary: You had been crushing on Remus Lupin for an eternity when you finally decided to ask him out. However, things do not go as planned and you remain wondering just what exactly is going on with this boy.

notes: reupload because the original got deleated

trigger warnings: none

word count: 1.9k

Masterlist

What was Remus Lupin hiding?

The question was burning inside of you ever since your encounter in the corridor a few days ago. And even though you knew that it was none of your business, you still were determined to find out.

Concerning this matter, it was fortunate you fancied Remus as that made you far more observant of him. Whenever you could, you shot glances at him, during meals and classes, and paid special attention to his behaviour. You did notice that he seemed rather sick, he looked pale and peaky and he seemed to be growing weaker by each day.

Then, he disappeared. When you stepped into the Transfiguration classroom one day, already late, only to find his seat empty, a deep frown appeared on your face. His friends, James, Sirius and Peter, were there, but unusually quiet and had black shadows under their eyes. Peter even fell asleep during the lesson; his soft snores filled the classroom until Sirius nudged him with his ellbow causing Peter to almost fall from his chair. You observed them carefully while pretending to listen to Professor McGonagall’s lecture. Perhaps the Marauders had pulled off an all-nighter of some sort but that still didn’t explain Remus’ absence. Maybe he had a hangover – although you failed to imagine Remus as some kind of party animal.

Remembering how sickly he had looked the day before, you decided to check the Hospital Wing for him and bring Remus some chocolate bars from Honeyduke’s which you knew he loved.

However, when you entered the Hospital Wing, you found that it was already occupied. James, Sirius and Peter were huddled around a bed at the far corner of the room, hiding the person lying in it from your view. The expression upon their faces turned into one of surprise once they spotted you, mirroring your own.

“Sorry,” you said, taken aback by their presence – although now that you thought about it, you should have expected it. “I didn’t know you were here. I was just looking for Remus.”

The three of them exchanged looks, as if they knew something you didn’t, and stood up.

“No problem, we just wanted to leave, anyway,” Sirius said. Next moment, he groaned all of a sudden, leaving you to raise your eyebrows in surprise. James bent down to whisper something in Remus’ ear who looked rather alarmed. He replied something in a hushed voice but James simply gave him a crooked grin, patted him gently on the shoulder and barely gave Sirius and Peter the chance to say their goodbyes before he pushed them towards the door. Playing with your sleeves, you observed them with furrowed eyebrows.

“Y’know, if it’s not a good time, I can come back tomorrow or-”

“Nonsense, the time is perfect,” James interrupted.

“Just make sure to be gentle with him,” said Peter in a concerned voice. “He’s been through a lot.”

Your frown deepened. “What do you mean?”

“Just a nasty flu, tha’s all,” said Sirius quickly, shooting Peter a warning glance. “Nothing to worry about. Give it a few days and he’ll be as good as new.” He turned to his friends. “C’mon, we best be going.” They shot you one last glance and Peter flashed a smile, then the door closed behind them, the sound echoing in the room, leaving you and Remus alone in the Hospital Wing.

You turned around to him and chuckled nervously. “Well, that did not quite go as I expected.”

Remus didn’t laugh. He didn’t smile. He didn’t give any indication whatsoever that he was happy to see you. He simply stared at you, his eyes shining like liquid amber.

“What are you doing here?”

“I missed you in class today. Here.” You placed the chocolate bars on the nightstand next to his bed. “A little something to cheer you up. Thought you could use it.”

Remus nodded weakly. “Thank you,” he muttered and watched you sit down on a chair.

You smiled sheepishly. “So, the flu, eh?”

Remus shrugged and pulled the blanket up to his chin. “Happens to the best of us.”

You took in his appearence with furrowed eyebrows. Remus was whiter than the bedsheets, his face was hallow, and his eyes, usually so attentive and full of warmth, were now dull. Dark bags circling them, and he looked very thin and weak. You doubted he even had the strength to get up.

“How are you feeling?”

Remus turned his head away from you and looked up at the ceiling. “I’m fine.”

You cocked your head. “And Dumbledore isn’t two-hundred years old.”

The corner of his mouth twitched. “I don’t think he’s quite that old.”

“How would you know? Do you know when he was born?”

“No wizard gets that old.”

“I wouldn’t be surprised if Dumbledore did. The man is ancient.”

This finally evoqued a smile from him which you couldn’t help but return. But he remained silent.

“You don’t really have the flu, do you?”

Remus’ head spun around, and although he hid it quickly and put on a neutral expression, you did not miss the flash of panic in his eyes.

“Of course I have the flu. What else should I have?”

“Remus, you’re as white as a ghost. The flu is terrible but it doesn’t make you look as if you’re on the brink of death.”

The moment the words left your mouth, you knew you had hit a nerve. Remus’ jaw clenched and his eyes suddenly turned colder. He turned his head to stare at the ceiling, avoiding the worried yet piercing look in your eyes.

“It’s a nasty one.”

You snorted. “Sure. Don’t try and fool me, Remus. I know a flu when I see it and whatever it is that you have, it’s not that.”

He didn’t respond.

You sighed, regretting the harsh tone in your voice. “Listen, Remus... You don’t have to tell me what you have or why you get sick so often. But... I just want you to know that I’m there for you if you ever do want to talk about it. And whatever it is – I can’t imagine it could change my opinion on you.” You gave your best to give him an encouraging smile and stood up. “You should eat some chocolate. You’ll feel better afterwards.”

You knew he wouldn’t answer but still lingered for several moments to a least give him the opportunity to. When your conviction proved to be right, however, you gave him one last half-hearted smile and left the Hospital Wing.

A part of you had hoped that after this incident Remus and you would grow closer but instead Remus was more determined than ever to avoid you. Every time you passed him in the hallway, you felt a painful sting in your heart. However, the original issue of Remus refusing to go out with you became less and less important to you although your crush on him grew stronger by each day.

Your academic success was quite average but you weren’t stupid – to you there was no doubt that Remus’s illness was the cause of all this trouble, also considering he often looked pale and sickly. Every time you saw him looking particularly weak, your wish to help him grew even more urgent than before but you could only help him with his condition if you knew what it was – and trying to get Remus to open up about his sickness was about as effective as convincing James of writing a love letter to Snape.

It was two months of this slow torture and several stupid theories later that you realised Remus’s sickness was not only a frequent but also regular occurence. As far as you remembered, he seemed to be getting sick every once a month.

A deep frown appeared on your face and you turned around in your seat to look at Remus who was taking notes on Professor Flitwick’s words. His face was pale again with dark bags circling his eyes. A strange cut peaked out from under his shirt collor.

As if he had felt your intent gaze, Remus suddenly lifted his head. For one moment, is amber eyes burned into yours, then his intense expression turned into one of guilt and he quickly looked back down at his notes.

That day you merely picked at your food, your thoughts far away. Your friend watched in concern as you ripped a breadroll into tiny little pieces without eating any of it, staring absent-mindedly onto the wooden table.

“(Y/N), are you alright?”

Startled, you looked up, halting in your motion. “Yeah, I uh...” You hesitated, looking at the breah crumbs in your hand. “Actually, I still got something to do, uh...” Pushing your plate away, you stood up from the dining table, your friend watching you in confusion. “I’ll catch you up later,” you promised and left the Great Hall before your friend had even opened their mouth to protest.

The library was dead quiet as every student was at dinner which was very much to your liking. That way you could follow your suspicions without having to worry about anybody asking unwanted questions.

Pensively, you let your fingers brush over the back of the old books until you finally pulled one out, feeling the weight of it in your hands. You viewed the cover thoughtfully for a moment before you tucked it under your arm and continued to collect more books.

Half an hour later, you carried a great stash of books out of the library, carefully transporting them the long way to your common room as they didn’t all fit into your bag.

“What the hell is that?” your friend asked incredulously as you entered your dorm room and let the books fall onto your bed where they scattered all over your blanket.

“Books,” you answered.

Your friend raised their eyebrows. „Really,“ they said blankly. „Good thing you explained that, I had no idea.“ You threw them an half-annoyed, half-amused glance as they strolled over to your bedside and viewed the book titles.

“Magical Diseases and Epidemics,” they read aloud, “Dragon Pox or Measles? An Encyclopedia on Magical Maladies.” They raised their head to look at you, their eyebrows raised so high they almost disappeared in their hairline. “Are you sick?”

“No,” you said, shaking your head, and started stacking the books on the nightstand, pushing your friend aside as you did. “It’s ... a new hobby.”

“A hobby?”

“Yes. That’s what you call an enjoyable freetime activity.”

“I didn’t know purulent dragon pox were an enjoyable free time activity.”

You threw her an annoyed glance as you put another book on the growing stack. “It’s an interesting topic as I have realised.”

“And you had to skip dinner to get those books?”

“Yes,” you said, avoiding your friend’s eyes.

You knew they didn’t believe a single thing you said but thankfully, they didn’t further inquire. Instead, they rolled their eyes and let themselves fall onto their own bed. “I always knew you were weird,” they said. “Just make sure you don’t actually get sick. I don’t fancy getting dragon pox.”

“No one is going to get dragon pox,” you replied, but a small smile was tugging at your lips. The two of you walked down to your common room to do your homework which, although you had quite some trouble concentrating on, you hurried to finish, so you could get back to your books.

Remus Lupin had a problem and you were determined to find out what it was.

[embrassemoi]

Surrounded by the Moon and Stars ✷ 22

Pairings: Sirius B, Remus L, [F]Reader      CW: Language, angst, violence, blood A/N: thanks for all the comments/asks xx

Chap 22 Playlist

【 Masterlist: Previous Chapter | Next Chapter 】

Chapter 22: How I'm imaginin' You

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March 15th, 1976

It was just over ten past eleven when they called it a day.

“Night, Reg! I’ll see you later!” Y/N called. Regulus beamed, waving back before scurrying in the direction of the Slytherin common room. For the past week, she had brought him to the small hidden room by the library she found over the winter break. Red and green blankets clashed together on the old couch, pillows and candles, books and even his violin was there. It became their — or mostly his safe place.

She’s kept quiet about their secret meetings, mainly because Regulus seemed so skittish at the mention of other people and simply because he was a Slytherin. It put her into a tricky position considering not many Slytherins were like Regulus — they weren’t nice to those of her blood status. Besides, house rivalry was no joke and honestly, Y/N was confused. What did he mean that he couldn’t be seen with her?

The bitter cold began to subside as April neared. The full moon had risen, nearing its peak as she walked through the empty corridors, way past curfew. Distantly, she could hear footsteps becoming louder but made no move to hide once the student came into view with no prefect or Head Boy or Girl pass. That was until the hunched figure seemed to drift closer, coming into her direct line of view. Once they passed, the student knocked into shoulder roughly, making Y/N stagger back into the rough jagged wall.

Crinkles formed in her skin, frowning. They knocked into her purposely. The first thing she took notice of was their tie, a Slytherin. Of course. But when her eyes continued to drift up, she wasn’t surprised to see who it was: Snape.

“Watch where you’re going,” he says, a nasty leer on his face.

“You better watch yourself. Must be obsessed with me.”

“Is that a threat?” It wasn’t, not really, but Snape’s ego is a fragile, fickle thing.

Snape stands taller, his shoulders squaring to appear intimidating but it does nothing but make Y/N’s lip curl up before suppressing it.

“Seems like it to you.”

Seething, his skin becomes an angry blotchy pink. Greasy hair never mattered to her, some people even rocked it but on Snape — anything on him seemed to irk her. His hair seems to stick to his face and an intrusive thought wiggles in and suddenly, she wants to ring it out — see if enough grease would come out so she could cook with it.

But, she readjusted her vision, observing the tight grip he has on his and that he managed to draw without her noticing. On instinct, Y/N slips her out too, her other hand ready to use wandless magic.

She remembers a long time ago, her mother always told her to never start a fight, but to finish it. She guesses that there wasn’t another other option but to listen.

“You’re foul — wretched trollop —” “What did you just call me?!”

Snape jabs a nasty finger into her shoulder before she slaps it down, hard. “You heard me, trollop. Things were so much better when you weren’t around.” His voice drops low, dripping in venom.

“Could say the same thing. I wonder if Lily knows the way you treat women when she isn’t around.” Y/N dangles the threat above his head for leverage. “I bet she would be in for a real shock if I told her.”

There was an ugly pause.

Snape’s nose flares and she would have backed down but since she hadn’t gotten to defend herself last time around Lily, there was no way she wasn’t going to this time.

Snape steps closer in a challenging manner. Eyes burned strong in detest that she even feels it. His hand trembles, going white from how hard he’s gripping his wand. A wild look crosses; he looks feral — like a rabid dog foaming at the mouth.

A spell is already forming on his tongue before she raises her wand, throwing up a shielding spell she learned. A bright blue sheet, in the shape of an invisible dome explodes from the tip of her wand just as Snape shoots a spell. The curse is powerful, making her knees buckle. It was at that moment she realized that maybe she should’ve just walked away. Y/N was good at defensive charms — great — but not at offence charms and clearly, they were among Snape’s specialties.

As shoots another spell, Y/N focuses and puts all of her concentration into the shielding charm — so strong that it pushes Snape back roughly and an item from his pocket slips out, plummeting to the floor. In strong silver letters that made her skin raise with goosebumps, it read: The Dark Arts. The overpowering sensation of revulsion and outrage fuels her, beginning to shake.

“You’re a fucking freak,” she blurts.

It touched a nerve. “Watch it, you dirty little mudbl —”

Most people (and Y/N would include herself with them) like to think of themselves as rational beings; civil, thoughtful, just, benevolent, humane. However, when things ripped at the seams without a given warning, people — we — are no better than wild animals. Even if you don’t know it, there’s an animal inside all of us, waiting to pounce and protect.

Without a beat, filled with pure adrenaline, hate and shock, the protective spell fell and Y/N stormed up to him, drawing her entire arm back as her fist curled into a ball. In a flurry, she delivered a sharp blow as hard as she could in the nose.

There was a loud cracking sound that ricocheted through the corridor, simultaneously, thick blood gushed out of Snape’s nose like a waterfall. It sprayed all over their robes, the ground and covered her hand.

She winced in pain, flicking her wrist a few times, noting the skin splitting around her knuckles deeply. Her ears rang like a whirling fan, radio static, a hissing radiator as Snape stumbled back, a hand shooting up to stop the bleeding. His eyes were filled with tears.

“Call… me that again…” her breathing was ragging and voice shaky, “And we’ll see what else happens.” Before Snape could retaliate, Y/N spun around and dashed off to the Gryffindor common room.

Her footsteps echoed around as she felt her eyes sting with tears but made sure to squeeze her eyes shut. Out of all people, she wasn’t going to cry because of Snape.

She wasn’t a mu — a mudl — she wasn’t that. She was more than that word.

She needed to tell Lily.

Tears were replaced with anger. There wasn’t a single coherent thought that seemed to force its way out.

Before the Fat Lady had time to ask for the password, Y/N shouted it out, nearly ripping the portrait door off. The force resulted in a large — BANG! — then slammed shut and Y/N distantly heard the portrait yell.

She took a deep breath, bending over while a hand clutched her knee. Distracted, it caused her to miss the familiar boy sitting on the opposite side of the room who stood up.

Her fist began to ache once the shock slowly wore off. A quiet, dejected groan slipped out as she stared at her clothes. She must’ve looked insane.

The sound of the wooden floorboards creaked and Y/N peered up. There, dressed in all black clothing was Sirius, staring at her bewildered. His eyes scanned her entire body, noticing the rusty blood staining her white blouse and hand.

“What the fuck are you looking at?” She gritted out defensively. She wasn’t in the mood to be anywhere near Sirius, let alone hear another insult. Without the ability to think rationally, Y/N wondered if she’d had the restraint to not punch him if he said something idiotic.

Sirius’ brow raised, not expecting that response but didn’t bite back. “I — Merlin — what happened to you? Are you okay?”

Y/N rolled her eyes, attempting to shield herself and moved towards the stairs. “Like you care.”

“I don’t,” he counters quickly. But he sighed, gravitating towards her and lightly grasped her elbow. Y/N turns around harshly, ripping away from him.

“Who do you think you are? Don’t touch me!”

Sirius’ hands raised, signalling submission; similar to a prey to its predator. “I’m not going to hurt you and I’m certainly not going to let you bleed everywhere! Come, sit — I’ll patch you up.”

She eyed him warily, then closed her eyes. Y/N’s chest rose in irregular intervals, weighing out the pros and cons.

She’s heard that he’s gotten into fights and probably wasn’t lying about knowing how to patch up wounds.

He’s an asshole.

He didn’t like her.

She didn’t trust him

Why would he want to help her?

But the stinging sensation flooded in again. Y/N desperately sought to gauge for any underlying motive but Sirius was unreadable. If anything, his grey quartz eyes weren’t as hardened; more blue bleed in, looking brighter — her heart gave a little thump.

With a nod, Sirius gave a weak smile and led her to the couch closest to the fireplace for light. He told her to stay put, took his jacket, threw it on the couch opposite, then ran up to his dorm and grabbed a medical kit along with a bowl and cloth. Rushing back, Sirius set down his supplies and with a flick of his wand, the bowl was instantly filled with water, his hands sparkling clean.

Body angled to face her while sitting, Sirius gently took her hand and submerged the cloth in water, ringing it out, then diligently worked to clean off the blood.

Why didn’t he just use magic? He wouldn’t have to touch her then…

She burned more from his touch than the wounds themselves. When it came to James or Remus, there wasn’t anything that made her skin tingle or spike in sudden shyness when she touched them. But whenever Sirius was just near, she felt her heart speed up, palms start to sweat and brain go completely blank.

They sat in silence. Every now and then, Sirius would glance up. Only when he had a disinfectant, he flicked his hair out of his face, seeming to be in deep thought and spoke;

“What happened?”

Y/N remained quiet, a faraway look now settled in her eyes. There wasn’t a doubt in her mind that she broke Snape’s nose. She’s seen what broken noses looked like — she grew up colouring nose and sinus anatomical charts in the O.R gallery while she waited for her mom to finish surgery. She was in deep, deep trouble if Snape were to rattle. Detention, house points, expulsion — a possible criminal assault charge.

Shit.

“Hey, Y/N.” He placed a hand on her knee, the cool metal of his rings seeped through her stockings. That caught her attention. That was the first time he’d ever said her first name. His voice was soft — the softest he’d ever spoken to her before. “It’s okay, you don’t need to tell me but I promise I won’t tell a soul. Not even Potter or Evans. It’ll be our little secret.”

She breathed, “I… um —” She stopped and Sirius gave an encouraging squeeze. “Snape, he… he called me a you-know-what and I…” The rest was self-explanatory.

Sirius’s body became stiff. There was a subtle change in his micro-expressions as his jaw tensed, sharpening his features even more. His eyes, which burned with a fiery rage contrasted greatly as he cradled her hand as if she were made out of glass. Sirius huffed, mumbling out ‘thank you for telling me’ and proceeding to clean the wounds. She winced as the cotton pad touched her knuckles, her free hand clutching onto his shirt.

“I know this part’s shit. I’m sorry, sorry…”

She bit down on her bottom lip to prevent pained noises from slipping out. Sirius applied a light magical cream that helps reduce scarring and wrapped gauze around her hand; holding it in place with a magical seal that made it into a light cast. He added a few magical seals along with waterproof charms.

“There.”

She marvelled at his work, he did an amazing job and whatever he did, her pain reduced drastically. “Thank you.”

“Don’t thank me…” His voice trailed off, a small smile appearing, “Anyone that hates Snviellus is… okay in my books. And what are co-parents for?” He tries to joke. At this, Y/N perks up, a sharp exhale of air forced its way from her lungs; emulating a half-light-hearted scoff.

But soon their smiles disappeared and something strange flashed in Sirius’ eyes. Suddenly, the air around them shifted, becoming tense and enclosed.

Sirius was oddly close to her — since when did they become that close?

Her heart pounded wildly in her ribcage and Y/N wondered if he could hear it over the crackling fire. He’s so close that she could feel his breath fanning her skin. She registered his thumb grazing over the bandage. The warm colour from the fire illuminated his face, different from his usual cool-toned skin. His face looked sharp, more refined than usual. He looked enchanting, so regal and otherworldly without trying to — like a painting.

Sirius opened his mouth to say something but he trails off, leaning closer. His hand trailed up, touching her arm lightly and moved to cup her cheek delicately. The entire time, his eyes trained on her for any glimmer of irritability or discomfort. His thumb began to stroke her skin and she lent into it. It’s large and warm and his touch feels so, so fucking good.

Sirius chooses his next words with caution. “Can I?” He murmurs but the question is clear — louder than any screaming match she had with him. His lips are millimetres away from hers.

In times like these, that Gryffindor bravery was nonexistent.

Y/N’s mind is vacant, internally freaking out but still manages to choke out, “Yes.”

Frozen in place, his eyes flicker from her eyes, then lips, and back to her eyes. He tilts her head back slightly using his hand before it travels to the back of her neck and leans in. But, there’s something in Sirius that hesitates.

The hesitation is too long because a voice could be heard from beyond the portrait and the sound of it swinging open causes them to break apart. She misses the contact already. Sirius stands hastily, wand swishing to clean up the mess around them in a daze. A beautiful blush settles on his face; a hand runs through his hair, rings catching the low light and widens the gap between them. He put his jacket back on.

Y/N’s brain hadn’t caught up yet. Too much happened too quickly. 

“Pads? Where have you’ve been? The moo —” the moment he sees her, his voice draws out, “— ooooony! Moony! He’s waiting for us. Whiskers! Ugh — h-hey!”

Peter fucking Pettigrew, in the flesh.

She makes sure to hide her hand and bloodied shirt from him. “Evening, Pete.”

Sirius coughs awkwardly and clears his throat, Peter doesn’t look suspicious. “Yeah, ugh — right. Sorry,” he takes a pause, eyes drifting momentarily to her and back to Peter, “Was busy with our Puffskein. Let’s go.”

“Night, L/N!” Peter acknowledges. He even sends finger guns.

Y/N is left stunned, watching Sirius leave. The door clicks and her body slackens.

In a haze, she padded into her dorm: quiet and dark, everyone fast asleep. She took a very cold shower, changed into her pyjamas, brushed her teeth and threw out her bloodied robes. Then, she pulls back the curtains around her bed. A floating candle burned brightly as Lily was there, writing in her journal.

“What took you so long?!” Lily chirped, sliding over to give her more room to slip in. Letting the drapes fall shut behind, she hummed in response.

“Puffskein. Oats.” She’ll talk to Lily about Snape another day — that is if Dumbledore doesn’t expel her.

Y/N rolled over to her side, facing away from Lily. The cool pillow did nothing to help chill her heated skin. It’s like she can feel the ghost of Sirius’ fingers graze her cheek still.

Lily babbled — something about Dorcas and Mary inviting them to skate one last time before the ice melted. But it all went in one ear and out the other.

God, she thought, mad at the realization. There was no point in denying it anymore; she’d been doing so for months and clearly, it was fruitless. I like Sirius Black. I really, really like Sirius Black.

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She didn’t get a wink of sleep. Her mind reeled the entire night, replacing the scenarios again and again, analyzing everything he said, his actions — that look on his face. All she thought about was Sirius: his eyes, his smile, his hair, his skin, his hands, his fucking lips — Argh! Sirius was the personification of Firewhiskey and all she wanted to do was drink more of him — and they hadn’t even kissed!

Sirius is arrogant, rude, cold, cat-called her — insulted her! A part of her felt disgusted — disgust how her heart raced wherever the mere thought of him appeared in her mind. Disgusted how her heart leaped whenever he was near. Out of all people, why him?!

She fucking hated Peter Pettigrew right now — or loved him, she wasn’t sure. Maybe he saved her from making a terrible mistake.

Okay, okay! First things first, she had to stop thinking about him! She forced herself to think about something else: Charms — Professor Flitwick — Peter’s grandma in her ‘purple knickers’ — Slughorn — Slughorn in his underwear — yes, that certainly stopped any more lewd thoughts. Her mind and body were at war.

“Rise n’shine, darlings!” Marlene sang in a high-pitched Victorian accent as she tripped the blinds back. Y/N peeked out from the small gap in her curtains, watching Marlene tiredly. Everyone groaned, Dorcas even threw a pillow at her. Y/N, unaffected, blinked and perched herself against the headboard, yawning. “Wake up! Wake up! WAKE UP!”

“Marls…” Dorcas groaned. She rubbed her eyes and squinted at the clock that hung above their large window, quickly collapsing into bed and dove under the covers. “It’s six in the morning…”

Marlene hopped over and ripped off Lily’s covers only to realize she was with her. She skipped her way over, ripping the drapes back and jumped into her bed. Toulouse hissed, jumping off before Marlene snuggled up to Lily, proding her cheek.

She gave Y/N a once over, “Morning sugar.”

She continued to poke Lily who forced her eyes open, trying to swat at her. Lily flipped over, moving over to Y/N. Marlene rolled her eyes, but a hurt pang flashed her face before she covered it up. Instead, she bellowed, taking hold of Lily’s shoulders and shook.

“EVANS! EVANS — YOU TOO L/N, WAKE UP NOW!”

“McKinnon! What do you want?!”

She gave a triumphant smirk. “Quidditch! It’s Gryffindor versus Hufflepuff today!”

Marlene was already decked out in her tracksuit, ready to go on a jog around the castle with the rest of the Gryffindor team. Once everyone woke up, they all gave her one of many pep talks and ushered her off.

The morning was slow for everyone but Y/N. Her thoughts drifted away from Sirius, only to think about the next worst thing possible; Snape.

Damn… she had to tell Lily, but how? ‘Hey, Petals! One of your friends — if not your best friend, called me, a Muggleborn — which if you forgot, you are too —the cruellest word there is! And he was caught with a book about The Dark Arts!’

She would tell her, but not today, or at least until after the Quidditch game.

As Y/N got ready for the day, everyone noticed the bandage around her hand (which she lied and made an excuse using Oats), then headed down for breakfast. The Gryffindor team was huddled around Marlene and James. Mary and Alice sat close, giving her a small wave.

Downing coffee after coffee, the caffeine strangely made her sleepier as she listened to James and Marlene’s agonizing rambles. Lazily flicking through sections of the Daily Prophet, she waited for a letter from her mother. None — again. Until a hand came out of nowhere, snatching the paper from her grasp, leaving Y/N to huff out.

She didn’t even need to look up to know who it was. “Mornin’ Professor,” she mumbled, reaching over to grab it from him.

“You look like you’ve been shagging the whomping willow,” Remus jokes, shaking his head with a smile.

At this, Mary leans in and whispers into her ear, “Didn’t we suggest Remus —” “Or Black? Not a tree!” Marlene adds.

She ignored them but felt her stomach drop at the mention of Sirius. Remus wore his gold oversized glasses today. His curls were tousled, eyes slightly bloodshot and he seemed to be sluggish that morning. She scooted over making room as he took a seat next to her. She grinned back, “You look like shit too, Lupin.”

Remus’ smile turned brighter.

James floated two plates to them, filled with their favourite foods while Y/N poured Remus a mug of coffee, dumping an ungodly amount of sugar in, handing it to him. From all the times they brought coffee or tea for each other, whether that be for study groups, lounging in the common room or walking past the kitchens while heading to class, they knew how they liked their beverages by heart.

He flashed a tired smile, humming as he took a sip. Their dating rumours hadn’t calmed down yet, so when a couple of students passed by, looking between them enviously, they both side-eyed each other humorously.

“We’re such catches,” she whispered to him.

“Abso-bloody-lutely — hey!” He randomly cuts in, pointing to her bandaged hand, “We’re matching.”

He raised his hand, showing a couple of his fingers taped together before a long bandage was wrapped around his palm and travelled down his wrist, disappearing beyond his red sweater.

Y/N mused at it before grabbing a quill from Marlene who’d been sketching out the Quidditch pitch and dipped it into an inkpot, handing it to Remus.

His head tilted, “Hmm?”

“Sign mine and I’ll sign yours?”

His long calloused fingers took the quill from her, doodling on the white bandage gently. He drew Dumbledore with pom-poms, cheering for the upcoming Quidditch game, along with a smiley face, his initials and a couple magical creatures. Then passed the quill back, placing his bandage hand on the table and flicked open the Daily Prophet. A few splotches of ink splattered around as she drew The Beatles on broomsticks, all chasing a Golden Snitch. She also drew Remus as David Bowie’s cover as Aladdin Sane, using his scars to make the lightning bolt and quickly signed her name.

Lily and Peter had come in, taking a seat and Y/N had become hyper-aware of Sirius sitting down directly across from her. Both of them stiffened and she continued to avoid his gaze as she drew on Remus.

“We’re going to be fine, it’s only Hufflepuff.”

“Nope, Hufflepuffs know how to get shit done,” Peter says, his mouth stuffed with food. “Never underestimate them — what the fuck?!”

Everyone in the Great Hall collectively held a breath, looking up at the Slytherin table. Lily’s eyes almost bugged out in rage, her ears becoming red as she got up and walked over.

It was Snape, but it wasn’t his nose that caught people’s attention. No — his nose was fine — he must’ve gone to the hospital wing that night.

“What happened to him! Ahah!” Peter cried out, “He looks like my house elf!”

There, Snape stood completely bald with no eyebrows and wearing Gryffindor robes.

Y/N slapped a hand to her mouth, desperately trying to calm her shrieking laughter but couldn’t. She and Remus lent on each other, trying to not tip over the hall bench. Everyone whopped loudly, James even whistled.

But as everyone was occupied with the sight, the person who she expected to be howling in laughter that most definitely should’ve been was Sirius. He simply drank from his goblet, his eyes peered over to her with a knowing look and bowed his head ever so slightly and looked away.

Oh.

Ohhh.

She was left with more unanswered questions than ever.

[thedragonnerd]

Rayaari headcanon - let's get magical with a Hogwarts AU

(suggested by the lovely @tigerlillyruiz !)

As a diplomat, Benja's new job posting brings him and Raya to the UK. She's frustrated by the move, trying to persuade him that she can continue to live at home, and simply portkey in to see him on the weekends rather than go to a British boarding school. But he insists she is too young to be living in a different country, and so she must accompany him.

Therefore, Raya attends Hogwarts with great reluctance and annoyance. She's the only new sixth year, and watches in horror as the House 'sorting process' takes place in front of the entire school. Once the tiny first years and small handful of second to fifth years have had their turn, she hears a prim voice call out her name, and shuffles slowly up to the stool.

Once the hat is dropped unceremoniously onto her head, she hears a small voice in her ear. 'I can see a lot of potential here...you would thrive in any of the Houses. Loyal to your loved ones, an eagerness for knowledge, ambitious in your success, brave in your heart.'

Raya thinks fondly of the few times she's gotten into scraps with boys her age who had dared insult her friends, and thinks that bravery could suit her quite well. 'That's not quite the bravery I was referring to,' says the voice in an amused voice. 'But very well, you will find yourself in...GRYFFINDOR!'

Raya finds both her new Housemates and the rest of the people in her year agreeable enough, but it is difficult to fit in, when most people have literally grown up together. However, several Gryffindors do manage to include her in some 'back to school' illicit parties.

A week into being at Hogwarts, Raya walks into the library, and her gaze ends up falling across a table in the far corner. 'Oh wow,' she thinks, observing one of the prettiest girls she's ever seen sitting there. And then: 'oh shit.' Raya ends up demonstrating just how brave her heart can be by walking up to the table, clearing her throat awkwardly, and then introducing herself to this mysterious girl.

Namaari turns out to be a Ravenclaw from the same year; they even share some classes on the timetable, although Namaari admits to sitting at the back of the class, so Raya's never managed to notice her before. She's surprised to find Namaari's mother Virana is a diplomat also, although Namaari has been at Hogwarts for so many years that she speaks English with a well-practiced accent.

They become close friends instantly. Raya likes to send little charmed messages during class, with funny doodles on them. Sometimes they succeed in eliciting a chuckle from Namaari, who will then duck her head to hide from the teacher.

Raya eventually has a wider group of friends made up of students from all the houses, and occasionally they sneak around the castle after dark, mainly because they're wanting to hang out in each other's common rooms. Namaari is one of Ravenclaw's prefects, and Raya's friends quickly learn to push Raya to the front of the group whenever she catches them in the corridors after curfew. Namaari can't help but let them off with a warning whenever she sees Raya's puppy eyes.

Raya's favourite subject is Defence Against the Dark Arts, although she also enjoys Potions - she's done years of helping her Ba with his brewing hobby. Namaari loves Transfiguration, the technicality and preciseness of the subject suiting her well; her favourite however is Care of Magical Creatures, since she absolutely adores every animal she meets.

Raya was one of the star athletes in Quidditch at her old school. Everyone assumes she would play seeker, being petite in build and fast at moving. But she is an excellent beater, finding it a thrill to move aggressively, and cathartic to be able to hit the bludgers as hard as possible. She tries for the Gryffindor team, and they are happy to accept her.

Namaari has no interest in sports, but will be in the stands at every one of Raya's games, cheering her on even if she's battling Ravenclaw.

Whenever Raya finds herself in the infirmary from a Quidditch injury, Namaari will join her for meals, for homework, and for any other spare time. She even sneaks in after hours sometimes, to nap next to Raya, knowing her friend hates to sleep alone.

When Namaari finds herself in the infirmary from an injury during her extracurricular work with magical creatures, Raya freaks out, unused to being on the other side. Instead of sneaking in, she's allowed to just remain, causing too much of a headache for the nurse otherwise.

In seventh year, Raya lives up to her brave heart, and confesses to Namaari that she likes her more than just as a friend. Namaari is relieved - she's been trying to drop hints for weeks, to see if Raya felt the same.

When they graduate, Namaari goes to work at a prestigious dragon sanctuary in Vietnam. Raya follows her there, refusing to be separated by portkey, and joins one of the top Quidditch teams.

After fifteen years of being at the peak of her career as a beater, she retires (to Namaari's relief, considering the number of injuries she's had), and focuses on training the next generation.

The young children are already in awe at being mentored by a world-famous Quidditch player; they are even more impressed when they see Coach Raya's dragon-expert wife turn up, her arms muscled and covered in scars.

Raya avoids telling them that most of the scars are from Namaari's bad habit of being accidentally injured whenever she gets too close and affectionate with injured dragons.

[twisted-stories]

The slave from auction

Just thinking about the chains and my mind went to some places…

Anyway here’s a little dabble about the first meeting

My first time putting my idea into actual writing

Hope I did okay

You just happen to stumble in the back storage of what appears to be a big auction building. Curiously you decided to peak at all the items they had. There were many exotic caged animals from different parts of the world, magical artifacts, grimoires and tomes along with priceless jewels of all different shapes and sizes. Some as big as your head!

As you wandered around trying to find the exit you see a big cage with a red sheet on top of it. Curious of what’s inside you move the sheet aside to peak inside.

Only to gasp back in horror.

There was a dark skinned young man, who from the looks of it appears to be around your age. His body was in poor condition. He had bruises everywhere, on his arms and legs, maybe even more that you weren’t able to see.

This wasn’t just a normal auction.

It was a black auction…

The cage door was apparently left unlocked, maybe one of the workers forgot to lock it.

You quickly rush in order to check his condition.

His long dark hair was all messy, he probably hasn’t had a bath for a while. He had chains restraining his arms and ankles and had dried up blood on them, probably from attempted escapes. He was restrained into a position with his arms above his head, forcing him to his knees and was gagged.

Your heart broke at the horrible sight.

You couldn’t even being to imagine all the pain he went through at the hands of these despicable people.

You gently place a hand on his cheek just as his eyes snapped open. If it weren’t for the restraints he would have for sure lunged at you. His eyes held hatred and resentment at you as you both stared each other down.

You placed you hands out in front of you as you stammered out. “C-calm down. I-I’m not here to hurt you!”

The boy seemed to look confused and calmed down a bit, but remained guarded as he stared at you. His dark eyes observing your every move. You hesitantly began moving closer to him before you beards foot steps coming this way. You panicked as you quickly hid behind some boxes close by.

A worker came walking by, carrying some food, stopping in front of the cage the boy is in.

“Hey you it’s time for you to eat!” The worker called out to the boy.

The boy didn’t even look up at him. Which pissed the man off.

The man grabbed the boy roughly by the hair, yanking him to face him. “I’M TALKING TO YOU!! LOOK AT ME WHEN I’M TALKING TO YOU!!”

The boy glared at the worker which caused him to begin kicking the boy. “Tch! Who do you think you are to glare at me like that!! Huh?!” He kicked the boy even more. “Know your place you slave!!!”

You closed you eyes. This was too painful to watch. You should probably leave while you have the chance m, but your conscious couldn’t bear the guilt of leaving the boy here when you know you could have done something.

While the guard was busy beating the boy you noticed a pair of keys dangling on his belt. You grabbed the nearest blunt object, took a deep breath and quietly crept behind the man and with as much force as you can you swung the object to the back of the man’s skull. Effectively knocking him flat out. You immediately went for the keys and quickly went to unlock the chain restraints on the boy. Once you unchained his wrists he immediately fell into your arms. He was bleeding badly from getting beat. He needed immediate medical attention.

With as much strength as you can you wrapped your arm around the boy and quickly began making a break for it.

• • • •

The worker must have woken up and noticed the boy was missing because the next thing you knew there were workers with weapons looking for you guys. You hid yourselves in one of the many rooms somewhere on the third floor, blocking the door with all the furniture and boxes you found. Once you were sure the door was secure you immediately went to tend to the boy. You found some water and tore a piece of you cloak off to clean the blood and filth off his face.

As his face became more cleaner you began to notice how handsome his features are. While admiring his face he shot up and lunged at you. Pinning you to the floor. His eyes widen as in recognition.

“You…” He removed himself off you. “Your that girl from earlier.”

“Oh god even his voice is attractive!!”

“Why did you help me!” The boy narrowed his eyes at you. “Are you with these bastards!”

“N-NO!! You got it all wrong, I’m not affiliated with the auction! I just happened to accidentally wander in and then…saw you…and well…” You began twiddling you thumbs. “It didn’t feel right to just leave you…”

The boy’s eyes widened in surprise at your statement. He furrowed his brows. “You…what’s your name?”

His question caught you off guard. “Huh? Oh, my name is [Name]…”

The boy stared at you with an unreadable expression. “[Name] huh…”

The way he said your name kinda made you flush in embarrassment. “If you don’t mind me asking, but…can you please tell me your name?” You shyly asked.

The boy just looked at you, deciding on weather to tell you or not. After a moment of hesitation he finally decided to give you his name.

“My name is Ja-“

*BANG!!! BANG!!!* “We found ‘em!!!”

He was cut off by some of the black auction workers banging on the door.

“Oh no they found us!!” You begin panicking. “What do we do!!” You tried to thing of a plan to escape. You could maybe try to fight them off but you didn’t know how many workers were on the otherside.

You tried looking for a means to escape but there was no way out except through the door or the window. And the barricade you made isn’t going to hold them back for long.

You were both sitting ducks.

While trying to think of a plan, you didn’t notice the boy snaking his arms around you. Lifting you up and throwing you over his shoulders and opened the window. “W-wait! Hold on! YOU DO REALIZE WERE ON THIRD FLOOR!!”

He wasn’t fazed and simply said. “Hold on tight.”

The auction workers finally broke through the barricade just as the boy jumped out the window with you in his arms. You screamed as he landed on the roof of a nearby building. And began running away, jumping from rooftop to rooftop as fast as he can while the auction works could just stare in utter shock. Contemplating on what to say to their boss that one of the auction items ran off.

After you guys know they you aren’t being followed you stopped behind a building. He was still bleeding and needed a doctor.”

“We need to get you medical attention quickly!!” You quickly dragged him to the nearest clinic you found.

You began banging on the door. “Excuse me!!” The door opened to find a man with a white coat, the doctor of the clinic.

The doctor looked worried. “My dear your covered in blood!”

“It’s not mine! My friend he’s-“ You turned around only to see that the dark haired boy was gone.

Your sudden silence worried the doctor. “Young lady, are you alright?”

“He…he was just here…”

“Pardon?”

You snapped out of your trance, feeling embarrassed from making a scene. “I…I think I just hit my head and need some rest.”

• • • •

The doctor offered you to rest here for the night but you kindly refused since you already caused them enough trouble and began walking back to your home.

Little did you know a figure was watching you from afar, before disappearing into the night.