#maybe after this big rush if I'm still motivated to write

[risingshards]

Progress update on my big writing fall season extravaganza!

Rising Shards (includes Evy & Stella):

Chapters: 37 / 51 - 72.5%

Reborn in a Fantasy Game with My Rival:

Chapters: 20 / 30 - 66%

Word count goal: 34,578 / 45,000 - 76%

(RS word count not included because the Tapas contest has a specific word count in mind and my current RS document has a bunch of episodes in it so word count calculation is a bit tough)

I got a comment from one of my dear readers that expressed concern about me taking on a ton of writing and possibly burning out and that did make me pause and realize I can't push too hard even with the tight goal of Reborn/the Tapas contest. I have a big push over the next few weeks as the climax of this extra writing for the fall, and have two vacations from writing planned at the end of this month and the end of the year so that will hopefully help with any potential burnout.

It's kind of exciting to be in the home stretch of this; it was very recent I didn't think I'd be having any kind of new series out there, and now I'm about 2/3rds to 3/4ths of the way through depending on the metric. I was thinking I'd rewrite some fanfics but I've ended up mostly writing something totally new (some chapters were from prototypes of the project, it ended up taking more from my troubled Project ZERO than anything in a fanfics). Also shoutouts to my beloved bestie for letting me bounce ideas off of them and letting me know the fanfic idea was boring, it helped this project out greatly!!

I was worried RS would be difficult to keep up with, what with a sudden extra 45k words to deal with, but having a more work-y project makes RS feel super comforting. I've written some nice and soft chapters and any time I get to get back to the RS squad it's really healing for me. So I think taking on this challenge has been really good for me; I was having trouble with writing discipline and burnout for various reasons (mostly the huge depressive episode this year has been I think), but having something new like activated a lot in my brain and I feel like my creative juices are flowing.

For an example of that, last weekend I was having some break days (my like "omg i love my RS characters sm" posting and "WOW LET'S MAKE A NEW COVER FOR REBORN" cover-making were a result of me taking days off) and had some ideas for one of my other WIPs, Wolves of Hope and Stardust, which is me trying to repurpose the old drafts of Rising Shards when it was a fantasy adventure story, so different that I don't consider it a RS thing. With some elements (characters, chapters, concepts) I was gonna put in WOHAS ending up in Reborn, I was thinking about what to do with this thing now. I thought about making it about the generation before Zeta and be in the RS verse again, but there are some big issues there as the generation before Zeta are major villains in RS and not the like "Fun, wanna see them as protags," kind. The kind where I don't know if people would want more of them. I also don't know if a project I want to try to shop around for tradpub should have any ties to my other stuff; I feel like a publisher wouldn't want that (would they???) due to the complicated ownership of things. So I think it may be best to have that as its own universe not connected to anything. Reborn's in its own universe too, so it's kind of fun to write things that aren't part of a big crossover universe. Next steps for this one are to confirm some new names (for like the fifth time), and to do some world building. I'm reading a lot of fantasy books as of late for my book club and for friends that really want me to read some series, so I might look to those for inspiration for where to take this project next.

—Chiral

[pastel-peach-writes]

hello!! i love your writing, so may i ask? may you write about fem!reader x caitvi with a reader that does ballet? thank you!🌷🌷💋

Sure! I'm a ballet dancer myself so I'm happy to do this request!

En Pointe | CaitVi x Reader

╰┈➤ PLOT: Headcanons of CaitVi with a ballet dancer girlfriend!

╰┈➤ WARNINGS: No Spoilers(S2), She/Her Pronouns, Not Proofread, Suggestive Themes (Second to Last Paragraph)

⍣ ೋ Enjoy!⍣ ೋ

– As someone who's also physically active, Vi makes sure you're taking care of your body after long nights of rehearsal.

– She gives you supplements that help with muscle recovery, makes you protein shakes or smoothies that help you last throughout dress rehearsals or performances, etc.

– She also will invite you to work out with her when your teachers tell you that you need to work on conditioning or stamina.

– If you're running late to practice and your hair is a mess, Caitlyn will always be there to help you with it. Whether that's putting it in a ponytail so you can put it in a bun later or flat-out doing the bun for you while you prepare snacks and waters for class.

– Furthermore, the girls love to attend your rehearsals to watch you dance or to get familiar with your dance studio/school. Sometimes they come during late-night practices with dinner or during early morning practices so they can take you out for brunch later.

– When the time comes for pointe shoe fitting, trust that Lady Caitlyn and Vi are right there at your appointment. The two of them are astonished with how pointe shoes work and never knew how much care and preparation goes into them.

–––

"What do you mean you have to sew them yourself?" Vi asked after her first fitting with you, appalled to hear that the ribbons and elastic come separately.

"Some teachers and dancers prefer different styles of ribbon, elastic, cut, and placement so to make things easier on the pointe shoe makers, the dancers sew the shoes themselves," you informed Vi but Caitlyn was nearby taking notes.

–––

– On days when you forgot a certain pair of shoes or tights, one of the girls would rush home to grab them for you. Even if they were in the middle of work.

– And on the off chance that they can't leave work to help you out, Caitlyn either finds or hires someone to purchase a new pair of shoes for you and then deliver them to your location.

– Safe to say you have many pairs of canvas ballet shoes and even contemporary/jazz shoes if you dabble in those genres too.

– Upon supporting you through your practices and giving you motivation on hard days, Caitlyn and Vi are always there at your shows and performances with flowers or a stuffed animal if you don't like flowers.

– They've told their family and friends about the show too so you have at least two rows, or one really big row, of supporters at every one of your performances.

– Caitlyn would get her family, Jayce, Mel, maybe even Viktor while Vi gets her crew (Yes, including Vander, Mylo, and Claggor), and her sister to attend. Even some of the coworkers Vi got close to attend your shows sometimes.

– After every show, they make sure to feed you. So if you're in between shows, for instance you finished a morning show but you still have an afternoon and evening performance, they would quickly get you food from a nearby restaurant if craft services wasn't provided or good.

– If you only had one show that didn't cut too late into the night, they take you to whichever restaurant you want.

– It could be a restaurant you saw on the way to the venue that you wanted to try or your favorite one back home. Either way, you're getting fed and they're happy to pay for whatever you want.

– On days when practice was an absolute ass and your body was a mess and too sore to function, Caitlyn offers to draw you a warm bath while Vi offers to draw you an ice bath.

– Sometimes they get into petty arguments about which bath is better and what you truly need at the time but usually, they come to a decision on their own.

– After your bath, warm, ice, or both, a meal would already be ready for you and the bed open for your laying.

– If you were too tired to eat, one of them would feed you in bed while the other massaged your sore muscles and applied muscle repair cream.

– If you're one to enjoy adult activities, sometimes the massaging gets carried away. Especially if you're just in your towel. But trust, it's all consensual and if you're not in the mood for such activities, the girls don't even encourage it.

– Okay, that's all! Hope you guys enjoyed <3

WC: 732

[riniworld]

Can you please make a part 2 of the Heart Stealer? Its okah tho if you don't want to! It was just a really good story!

Have a nice day and don't forget to drink water!

heart stealer pt.2

yandere!crown prince oc (emperor) x maid!reader

warnings|| sexual harassment,blood,stabbing, swearing, very very rush at the end.

reference|| you,y/n, she/her.

a/n|| blame c.ai for this fic, i never imagined I'll write a sexual harassment in my life

++ I'm really happy that alot of people liked the previous part! and thank you for requesting,i never would have completed it without your motivation!

(p.1)

the past three days went awkwardly, everyone started to treat you not just better, but in a respect that started to feel uncomfortable, as well as your parents worried questions.

taron start to get more clingy,you admit that he's charming and getting his attention is everyone's dream, but he's showering you with expensive gifts that you wouldn't afford in your life, and that makes you feel...weird.

the coronation ceremony came,the traditional events was calm, the servants took this time to rest, but the afterward ball was chaotic,more than twelve servants was there just for serving drinks and you were on of them, who thoughts there was alot of nobles in the world?

taron was talking to a friend from his when he got bored and start looking around for anything to get him out of there,and that when his eyes fell on you as you were giving a drink to someone and smiling...smiling! for someone else! too close!, taron didn't hesitate nor did he think when he charged to your side, in an instant he's in front of you, gripping your arm tightly which caused the tray and the glasses on it to fall to the ground,and scratched your legs.

"what are you doing here?!,to my room!" taron shouted and made everyone look at you two.

"your majesty-" "now!." you pause looking at him with fear, he has never yelled at you not even when you come for the first time.

he grit his teeth in anger and dragged you out of the hall,leaving everyone in confusion.

he didn't care about the scandals nor the rumors that his action might cause, all he think about is taking you away from there, from anyone's watch.

"your majesty, may i know why are you angry at me? what have i done wrong?" you asked, raising your voice because of the pain his grip on your arm causing.

he didn't answer instead kept dragging you along with him, when you reached his room he throws you in,not in an enough force to knock you back, but enough to make you stumble on your feet, he closed the door aggressively behind him and glared at you, before you can utter a word he speak.

"what were you doing there?" he isn't shouting, but his tone holds anger that terrify you.

"i was-i was helping-" "who told you to help?!" he cut you off. "..what-i thought."

"you do not think!, should i carve it in your body?, you are MY maid, MY property, I am the only one who have the right to tell you what to do and where to work, and you are here just for me, your work is to serve me not anyone else!."

you press your lips together and look at the ground, knowing that throwing excuses is pointless, taron sigh in irritate, his eyes darts to your scratched legs and his heart stops,he steps closer to you taking your hands in his, guid you to his bed, sits you on it and takes some bandages from the drawer next to the bed as he kneel down in front of you.

"your majesty!" you put your hands on his shoulders making him glance at you "for the love of god! what are you doing?!"

"you talk alot." he says in annoyance,pushing your hands back,he took your shoes off and began treating the scratches, it wasn't anything big, maybe it bleed a few drops of blood but it's nothing gonna last more than two or three days,but still he was the reason of this, and for what? it wasn't your fault, you're just...naive, in a dangerous world, but you were lucky enough to fall in his hands.

after he finished, he stands up and but the bandage in it's place, you tried to stand up as well but he pushed you back down "you stay here." he said those three words and left you alone.

taron made his way to the throne room,to find it empty,his assistant comes to his side as soon as he enter.

"your majesty" he greets and bow "i thought it would be best to get everyone out of here.", taron nods and sits down on one of the tables" good, you did good." taron says as he sigh.

"by the way, you know that 'noble' that drinks too much, what was his name?" taron asked

"does your royal majesty mean Thomas Hezekiah?"

"yes, this, his name is so difficult."

"may i know why your majesty asks about him?."

"i have an idea....and it is crazy"

you were in the throne room cleaning it, while taron was reviewing papers, it's mostly about complaints from the folks, you think.

someone's knock on the door startled you, taron's assistant came in, he bowed before he speak "your majesty,the one you requested has arrived."

"let him in."

a man dressed in a fine clothes, and alot of gold, enters with a big grin on his face,the man bow his head.

"your majesty requested my present?" the man says.

taron move the papers to the side and gesture to the chair in front of him., when the man sits down, taron motion for you, you left everything in your hand and ran to his side.

"yes, your majesty?"

"hospitalities our guest as he deserves."

you bow your head to the two of them and walked out of the room.

"so, your majesty, may i know why you requested seeing me? not everyday an almighty emperor request seeing a simple noble as me."

"i want you to do me a thing....from your 'work' "

thomas raise an eyebrow "oho? the emperor has some issue?"

"yes or no?..no wait, you do not have a choice here, you will do it."

"i was not planning on refusing, but what will i gain from it?."

before taron could replay you entered pushing a cart that was full of all sort of drinks and sweets, thomas eyes was glued to you as you put the foods and drinks on the table.

"you must be new, i have not seen you around before." thomas says.

you look at taron before answering,seeing as his expressions is calm untill now "yes,i am new,mister.thomas, i believe?"

"and how old are you?."

"turning nineteen soon,sir"

"cut the talk, we have more important matters to talk about." taron says "y/n." he motion for you to come closer to him,you bow to his level "your majesty?"

"in the third drawer next to my bed you will find a dagger, bring it." taron whisper.

dread washes over you at that as you mutter "a-a dagger?"

"you heard, so go bring it." he demanded.

with a deep breath you walk quickly to taron's room, leaving the two to continue their talk.

"so y/n, is it?" thomas says.

"what do you want with it?" at this rate the irritation in taron's tone was clear.

"might be my prize, eh?" thomas grin widened.

"you will do it either way, but to keep good terms between us...i should agree."

"generous emperor, generous." thomas cooed "and like that, it is a deal."

you entred the room holding the dagger to your chest, before you can give it to taron he walks out of the room, pausing just before closing the door to give you a look.

you kept looking at the door for a minute before a voice jolts you out of your thoughts.

"well, dear, how about you come here?" thomas says

"pardon?" you say in confusion.

thomas stands up from his seat and walks to you trapping you between him and the door.

"you're such a beautiful lady, a shame to be wasted right?." his hands went to your waist,but you managed to push him away, not enough for him to fall down but enough to give you time to ooen the door and run away, unfortunately for you he pulls you back before you could take a step away, your head hit the ground hard but you could worry about that later when thomas climbed in top if you and closed the door with his feet.

"hard to get, it will be such joy to see you break." he says.

fear and panic filled you, where is taron? it's impossible for him to leave for him on purpose, when will he return?!

your mind stop when thomas buried his face in your neck, you couldn't think clearly when you stabbed him with taron's dagger on his back, you take it out when thomas screamed and roll away from you,he looked at you in anger "you little bitch!" he shout,you stabbed him again when he take a step closer to you, this time on his chest as he fell on the ground,motionless.

at the same time, taron was panicing in the other room,pacing around.

"what was i thinking, what if she was too scared to do it?! how can i be so sure??."

"please calm down your majesty, I'm sure it will go as you please." his assistant says.

"I will go check on her." taron say as he made his way to the door but before he can go out his assistant stopped him "your majesty, ten more minute, i am sure the plan will go as we want, let us wait." with a groan taron back up and sits back on a chair.

after exactly ten minute, taron charged to the throne room he pushed the door open harshly as he yell your name "Y/N!"

you were on your knees, beside a motionless thomas who's sinking in his blood, your eyes wide with terror as you kept looking at your hands.

taron kneels beside you, he put his arms around your shoulder "y/n, are you okay? look at me." he took your face in his hands making you look at him "are you hurt? nothing of that is your blood right? he did not touch you, did he?." he says quickly without taking a breath.

you nod slightly enough for him to notice, your eyes start tearing up.

taron let out a breath and hugs you "oh god." he helped you to stand up, he kept his arms around you as you two walk together, he stopped for a moment in front of his assistant "take this bastard out of here." he says.

taron lead you to his room, resting you on his bed, when you came to your senses you start crying and sttutering "your-your majesty-i-i do not-" your voice break in sobs.

taron hugs you again and shush you "shhh, it is okay, don't think about it, i am here, no one will be able to hurt you again, never"

a silent fell on the two of you, tarom kept holding you untill you calmed down a bit "we should take you out of here." he says all of a sudden.

"what-?" you say in a broken voice filled with confusion.

"I am sure he did not die,and when-"

"he did not die?!" you cut him off, knowing he didn't die make you ease a bit.

"no, he did not, thatwhat they told me, anyway, if he woke up, he will of course demand to hold a trial, and he will win if he did, before you say, yes i can, of course,prevents this from happening, but then everyone will think they can get away with what they do."

"but your majesty-i-i did not mean to do it, he-he.." before you can complete what you wanted to say he holds your face "i know, that is why I am taking you away, i have a mansion in the forest, I will take you there, you will live there, and i will make sure to have whatever is you need, i will visit you from time to time too." taron explain in a surprising gentle tone.

you didn't have a choice here, leaving your family will be hard, but staying will lead to either your death or trouble for everyone, or your parents death if you think it in another way, so you nod, accepting your fate.

taron smiles "forever mine, to see and to hold." was the only thing on his mind

after all no plan taron mad has ever faild.

"do not worry dear, you will be saver than ever."

have a nice day/night♡

[j0kers-light]

how would j react if reader was in a coma.... i read "just one check" (i think that was the name of the one about the bank robbery and reader getting shot?)

and i kinda want to see him feel sad and guilty. maybe readers in a coma for a week or two. i feel like j would be upset seeing her laying in a hospital bed with tons of iv's coming out of her. or and im not sure how he'd react to her being weak and confused when she wakes up. and you don’t have to write it if it’s too sad/dark 🫶 i just kinda love hospital soap operas so i thought of this 😂

His Lighthouse: Say Something (LedgerJoker x f!reader)

Say Something - Oneshot

Hey hi anon!!! 🖤✨

Phew this was an old request! I'm slowly getting back on schedule! Its never too dark of a request for me to write anon! I looooooooove dark content lol 🤭That being said, let's get into it! You requested sad and guilty Joker visiting bedside, you got it! It’s giving soap ops, like One Life to Live, vibes! I penned this on high off of period hormones and during the Super Bowl so buckle up and grab a tissue box! Joker is gonna be in his feels!! (and so was I)

Love you anon! Also, here’s the song inspo! 🖤✨

taglist:

@blackreaderatrisk @twinkledinkle @clemdango04 @l3ejm @tears-of-amber @what-an-angel @darthjokerisyourfather @thatsnoteii @dollster @cheetahspy @kaidennnnn @urdariingdoll @motivation-idontknowher @ins0mniac-whack @spaghettificationandpretzels @reneisance @alittlesmartcookie @ninacutebee16 @carydorse @jaysmentalspace

Let me know if you wish to be added to the official His Lighthouse taglist! Be alerted with any oneshots and the main story updates! 🖤✨

This was his fault. He deserved to be the one suffering not you.  

You did nothing in this life to warrant such a fate. Joker felt sick to his stomach being in your presence but at the same time, staying by your side was his penance. 

Even in a coma, Joker could argue that your beauty remained. Your colored skin, normally so rich and smooth, now gave off a mythical aura against the white hospital sheets. Your countenance was like an elfin or fae. All in all, you gave sleeping beauty a run for her title.  

Nurses and doctors bustled in one after the other to check your vitals as you slept on. Joker paid no mind. He was far too distracted by the constant beeping in your room. Everything was so loud; it quickly became a sensory overload. He flagged down a terrified nurse and demanded that she turn them off.  

“I... I can’t sir. Y/n needs them to survive.” That’s when Joker realized just how grave your injuries were.  

She took the time to point out each machine you were hooked up to and its function. Joker lost count after ten.  

He felt so small surrounded by all this tech. He knew nothing at all. For once, Joker had to trust someone to help him. He’d do anything to keep you alive and well. He already failed half of that promise, there was no more room for error. 

He wanted to grab ahold of your hand, but it looked so fragile lying on the hospital bed. Your nails were still manicured in your f/c and shape however your skin was pulled taunt so that three different IV lines could puncture your arm. The doctors had turned you into a pin cushion and Joker could only hope that you recovered from this. 

He had nothing but time to guilt trip himself into a downward spiral. He didn’t rescue you fast enough and this was the consequence.  

His enemies knew killing you would destroy the Prince of Crime once and for all and they nearly succeeded. Joker almost didn’t recognize you when he found you.  

Frost and the others assumed the worst, but they miraculously found a pulse and that was their cue to rush you to the nearest hospital. Joker didn’t care about the fallout— he walked straight through the front door with you in his arms, clown makeup and all.  

His sudden appearance caused panic, and no one dared to help until Dr. Sarai and her personal team arrived and wheeled you into an OR. Joker was then ushered into a safe room. He expected the staff to call Batman or the police, but they never did.  

He never understood why.  

Sarai broke it down plainly. “We don’t judge here. You didn’t see the desperation on yo’ face when ya brought Y/n in. How could we rip you away when it's obvious ya need to be ‘ere with her?” 

She guided Joker to a VIP room where he and his goons could visit freely without raising any suspicions. It was then Joker saw you for the first time all patched up. It was a shock to see how badly he failed at keeping you safe. Why did you of all people have to suffer like this?  

If he could transfer your pain to him, he’d do it in a heartbeat to rid you of this misery. For now, all he could do was watch over you helplessly. 

He grew to appreciate the steady beeps and hisses that filled your room. Each sound reported in real time that you were still alive. You were fighting to stay with him and he hoped you were giving it your all.  

Joker was still learning to love. If he lost you then he would never try again, for no one deserved to have his heart after you cherished it so. It belonged to you and you alone. You were the best warden in this prison called love and he never wanted to escape. He was just too addicted. 

An unexpected shrill noise brought him out of his thoughts. A crash team rushed through the sliding doors and carefully pushed him back.  

He didn’t have the time to be offended, “What’s going on?!” What were they doing to you? 

No one answered him as they talked amongst themselves; he didn’t understand a single word of their medical jargon, but he did catch, “Call a code!”  

He had seen enough tv dramas to know what that meant. A doctor voiced the trademark “clear!”, and everyone threw up their hands as he shocked you with paddles. The obnoxious beeping continued and then it hit Joker. 

The most important machine of them all. Your heart monitor. Joker memorized the rhythmic rises and falls as you breathed in your sleep. He could listen to your heart for the rest of his life. You were unable to talk but your heart spoke volumes.  

And now it was screaming out for help.  

“We’re losing her. We gotta get her into an OR.”  

It all happened so fast. One minute you were comatose in your room, the next they were pushing your bed down the hall into surgery. All that was left was the snake-like cords from the many machines you were previously hooked to. Joker was left in your room at a loss. 

It was far too quiet with you and your life’s music gone.  

Sarai found Joker still sitting in the bedside chair hours later. It didn’t appear that he moved an inch. The clown was mute, staring at the mess of cords on the floor. Sarai glanced at them briefly before clearing her throat.  

“Her lung collapsed again. We’ve managed to stabilize her but I gotta stress. It’s lookin’ like a temporary fix.” She flinched at the haunting green eyes staring at her. 

“WhaT. Does. That. Mean?” 

Great, he was already going through the stages of denial. How could she put this mildly? “It means... Y/n might not survive this.”  

He flung a rolling cart that was left behind into the wall. Its loud crash made Sarai jump. Somehow she remained composed. Joker wasn’t mad at her but at the situation. She had to keep that in mind with what would come next.  

He stormed over to her and growled, “Do not ever imply my Light might...” Joker’s throat closed up mid-sentence. He refused to say it aloud. “Y/n will be fine. She’s stronger than you think.” He noted.  

“I get that but let's face the facts. They moved her to the ICU so she could be on a ventilator.” 

“Great another machine.” Joker sighed.  

“That machine is breathing for her, Joker. If she loses any more oxygen to her brain, she’ll be a vegetable. No shocks or surgeries can fix dat.” Sarai waited until Joker locked eyes with her to drop the bomb. “She’ll be brain dead.” 

All was quiet as her words sank in. Joker didn’t expect forever with you, although he originally hoped for a few years at best. Time was never a given when this relationship first began.  

Joker was a wanted criminal and you, a famous citizen. It wasn’t destined to work out but the two of you made time. Living in the moment on borrowed time was enough, you were happy with J but now that happiness was being ripped away. 

He couldn’t think straight. The possibility of you dying hadn’t registered before but it became clear now. If only he been with you—kept you safe, then you would have never been abducted.  

This was all his fault.  

“I wanna see her.” He mumbled. Maybe seeing you again would help him make the right choice. At the most it would curb his sense of helplessness. Sitting around was doing nothing for his nerves.   

Sarai nodded and handed Joker a nurse uniform. “Y/n is on a different floor. Change into this 'n follow me.”  

He worn a similar outfit like this long ago so the disguise wasn’t an issue. It gave Joker access to walk alongside Dr. Sarai onto the ICU floor. There was a completely different atmosphere coming off the elevators. The dread was palpable and clung to his clothes.  

Joker could smell death that lingered in the air. He knew the smell all too well given his profession and it made his heart drop to his stomach, catching a whiff of it when he opened your door.  

You were knocking on death’s door and the cruel man was inviting you in.  

Joker pulled down his hospital mask and slowly crept towards your side. In the few hours he’d seen you last; you took a turn for the worse. 

It was going on two weeks that you been in the hospital, all of which you spent in a coma. There were countless surgeries and consultations and yet your health seemed to decline not improve. Maybe Sarai was right. He should probably entertain reality as painful as it will be.  

Joker came to a stop near your bedside to stare at your frail form. He knew from just one glance that you couldn’t survive for much longer. This wasn’t his Bunny anymore. All the light was sucked out of you and made you so small.  

“I’ll give ya some privacy.” Sarai said as she stepped out. She knew Joker needed to be alone with his grief. 

There couldn’t be any witnesses to what he was about to say.  

Pleading for someone to stay alive was such a foreign concept to him. Usually for him, it was the other way around, however Joker always found himself doing the unthinkable whenever it pertained to you.  

J cleared his throat before he began his dire plea.  

“Hey uh it’s meeee, Y/n. I dunno if you can hear me but I uhh.. Geez, I don’t know what to do without ya here. What I’d kill to have those pretty eyes of yours lookin’ my way. To hear your laugh. T-To feel your warm touch on mine..” Joker exhaled and looked up at the ceiling.  

He refused to cry. He did not cry yet a drop or two fell anyhow. If you were awake. the scene unfolding would be jaw dropping.  

Joker was a ruthless man with a matching reputation. None of that mattered as he spoke from the heart. 

“Uh, if you’re tired, t-that's okay, Y/n. Say the word and... d__n it, I’ll let ya go, okay?! I’ll swallow my pride. I can.. I can say goodbye when its time, but you gotta work with me doll. Give me a sign you’re ready and I’ll listen. But until then please... Fight. Stay alive.. stay w-with me, Y/n.” 

Joker choked up and backed away, suddenly unable to breathe.  

His hands were shaking and there was a ringing in his ears. J thought he was hearing one of your machines going off but your vitals were the same, sluggish but constant.  

It was just a panic attack that had him all discombobulated. You were okay (for now), but he was far from it.  

Why did he think you would hear him at his most vulnerable moment?   

This was nothing like the numerous tv show dramas where a heartfelt speech would instantly make the sick patient wake up. He was stupid for getting his hopes up and beyond weak for shedding tears for this. He got himself back under control and made himself comfortable on the room’s guest bed.  

He had to just hope that you would be okay. That’s all he could do.  

Funny how a week ago he couldn’t stand the noise your monitors made. But now? The slow beeps of your heart were his lullaby. 

The staccato pitfalls of your imminent demise roused him awake. Another team of personnel burst through the door, each one working on autopilot to get you back stable.  

You were crashing again. Another code. A shame that this became your version of normal.  

Could it be your lungs failing again or did Joker’s nightmare finally come true? Was this the sign he asked for last night? Was this your way of saying you were giving up? He honestly didn’t know.  

“No pulse! Charging to one hundred sixty joules!”  

Joker sat in the corner, resigning himself to this fate. That familiar bitter smell cloaked your room. You weren’t coming back after this.  

More beeping, more calls for procedures and useless equipment. There was so much commotion, he was forced to drown it all out in order to think straight.  

By no means was Joker a religious man yet in that moment, he closed his eyes and prayed to any high power who would listen.  

‘Please don’t take her from me. I thought I could let her go. I can’t. I just can’t.’  

Their attempts at keeping you alive went on and on for what seemed like forever until someone brave enough walked over to Joker’s hunched form to deliver the news.  

He appeared to be mumbling to himself, but she couldn’t be for certain. It made for a weird sight.  

“Um sir? We need your permission to..”  

So it was happening whether he was ready or not. So much for prayers. Joker wondered why he even bothered.  

He knew what they were asking for, yet he couldn’t help being bitter in his reply. “To whaT?” He snapped.  

The female nurse jumped at the frosty tone, “T-To pull the... um. We’ll give you some time alone.”  

She nodded at the others and in seconds the room was empty, save for you and Joker.  

Joker went to sleep fearing this moment would come. He thought he would have more time to prepare. He wasn’t ready to say goodbye, yet Fate was oh so cruel.  

The brief time that J spent with you skirted across his memory. He would never forget your eyes the first time he saw you. So bright and expressive. Your bravery and wit blew him away and your deep scars from your past humbled him. Joker had never met someone so resilient. You lived up to your nickname. 

You were his Light; always and forever.  

He would never forget your voice; how it felt in the hushed early mornings and intimate late nights, or your whimsical mind inspiring him to greatness. You changed him for the better in a fraction of a year.  

There were just too many memories to recap as he shuffled over to your body.  

Only a few vital machines were keeping you between life and death and they strained to complete their assigned workload. Even to the end, you were stubbornly fighting but it wasn’t enough to sustain you. 

Joker gently smoothed your hair back from your face. “M’sorry Y/n. I gotta let you go.” He rested his forehead against yours.  

You managed the unthinkable. You made The Joker cry.  

There was no time for theatrics, Joker spoke boldly and true.  

“You’re the only woman I’ll love. I will never choose another, I swear. I am so sorry that I couldn’t get to you. Please, Y/n. I’ll do anything just please.. don’t go.”  

For so many years Joker refused to be weak— he had a reputation to uphold, a symbol to represent; all of that meant nothing if you were gone. He would be nothing but a broken shell of a man.  

Joker cried as if his tears could bring you back.  

At first, he almost missed it. Maybe he was hallucinating in his time of grief— but then it happened again. 

A slight twitch. Coma patients didn’t move unless… 

J was pretty insane (he had papers to prove it) so he questioned if this was all a trick of his mind. Before he got his hopes up, he needed to be sure this was actually happening.  

And so you have him a sign.   

The back of your eyelids moved. The heart monitor picked up a sudden spike in activity.  

He felt your hand jerk. He saw your chest rise and fall. Joker felt as if he could breathe air again. He wasn’t crazy! This was actually happening! His life regained its purpose as more and more signs were recorded on your systems.  

And finally, the cusp of the performance; An explosion of alerts. Your heart was now beating too fast, the ventilator automatically turning off to let your lung take over.  

Joker couldn’t scream loud enough. “NURSE!” He mashed the call button as you struggled to wake fully. “C’mon Bunny, that’s it! Look. At. Me!”  

Two weeks he went without gazing into your gorgeous eyes. He could happily drown in them if only you would grace him with the sight. He didn’t have to wait much longer.  

Your colored eyes immediately met Joker’s expectant gaze. “Welcome back, my Light.” 

[hojiteaversion]

Why I Think RC Has Trouble Sticking Their Landings

(Or, a pantser talks about structure and DLS for like 8 paragraphs)

My short answer: Because these stories are first drafts

Longer answer: ⬇️

1) (Lack of) Developmental editing

RC's model has its authors write long stories 2-4 chapters at a time. As much as the authors might perfect these chapters, they have no way to change something later on if they realize a scene no longer matches the big picture. An author may revise and make a batch of 4 flawless chapters, but it still doesn't mean they will fit the story seamlessly.

Developmental editing, according to this article, "involves feedback on the big picture of a […] writing piece. A developmental editor will critique structural elements like the plot, characters, theme, and organization of ideas." They also say that this kind of editing is recommended after the first or second draft.

So this type of revision would help an author make sure every character has its place (too many LIs and uneven LI screentime could be fixed), that characterization is consistent, that the plot is clear and moving at a good pacing, etc.

In DLS, for example, things that might be revised after a developmental editing: Leo's introduction scenes not matching his characterization later on, the Leo/Vlad rivalry that seems a bit strange in hindsight, more prominent role and scenes for Sandra, a more consistent progression in Noe/Laia and Ezel/Laia routes, fairer distribution of LI scenes (🫠), Laia's character motivations, the plot mysteries might be revealed to the reader a bit earlier, etc.

But these stories are arguably first drafts that will never be revised holistically (like Choices stories are/used to be, as far as I'm aware), so problems that only become clear once you're further along might not be fixed satisfactorily (or at all).

What sort of problems? Well...

2) Structure, part I

So the visual novel medium is fairly recent, right? Choose Your Own Adventure stories have existed for a while, but, I'm pretty sure, not in the scale of RC stories. 3 seasons demand a lot of story. And the thing is, I'm not sure there is a lot of guidance out there regarding story structure for interactive stories? Not that I've found, at least.

This is a problem, I think, because even if these authors follow the existing material on story structure (Save the Cat, Hero's Journey, Classic 3 Act, Seven-Point Structure, etc.), they will have to do the work of adapting it for a visual novel that A) has 3 seasons as a default, and B) 3 seasons of more or less equal length.

Look, it absolutely can be done! But my point is, I think it's generally uncharted territory and requires a lot of problem-solving. It's not just figuring what must happen in this story for it to be satisfying, it's also deciding when each thing must happen in a way that fits the requirements of three seasons and their finales, which must all fit together, but also be individually exciting and balance setup and payoff. And there is no way to go back and fix it if you realize you messed up the pacing somewhere! Not to mention…

3) Structure, part II: Routes

Not only do they have to figure out plot and structure (without being able to revise the finished story as a whole), but they also need to figure out and balance at least 4 different dynamics. As in, when it gets established, how to keep those dynamics fresh even after they get together, and how to synchronize MC's development with that relationship and its milestones. And again, it's not like there is a manual or a right answer. You have to write and fix afterwards — except they can't 😀. So if an author realizes later on that x couple needed a scene earlier on, or that they rushed things, or any other problem, there is nothing to be done except maybe add more scenes that might stand out from whatever they're trying to correct.

A tiny example of this problem in DLS would be Leo and Laia telling Derya that they're dating, which is clearly a correction of the scene in 4x02 where Laia called him "a friend" because "[she] thought it went against local customs to make a show of pre-marital relationships". In 2019 Istanbul. It would just make more sense if she had just called him her boyfriend in the first place.

4) Authors

I'll admit I'm least informed about this one, but based on a few interviews I've read with the authors, it seems some of them have never written fiction or visual novels before…? I could be wrong! But! Imagine being new to this medium and having to figure all of that ⬆️ out, with the limitations that RC's model brings. I'm not sure how much training and/or assistance they get in this entire process. It just seems a lot for one person.

And I have no answers for any of this, by the way! I don't work there, I don't know how the company works or how it doesn't. This is just my tentative opinion based on my limited experience with writing. It's extremely hard, and I genuinely cannot imagine trying to do any of that ⬆️ in the first place, but especially if I had to get it right on the first try.

Every writing advice on Earth recommends multiple drafts on longform writing because it's impossible to make your story the best it can be on the first attempt. So I think the RC endings often being unsatisfying might be, mainly, a consequence of that.

[goldenkamuyhunting]

I wonder if you still will answer an ask / question. My ask is Do you personally think / feel there is some character that's like ended up a waste ( in term development ) or just.. didn't need to exist / continue into the next chapter at some point ? Like example, in your analysis Ogata should just died in vol 19 something like that I think.. I suddenly think like.. Vasily is a big waste or maybe he shouldn't continue to be Ogata's rival because I personally dont see it, sometimes i really think he's just like a fan service character ? Vasily went to take revenge on Ogata and go as for to Japan for that, that sound kinda romantic or something someone said that and i really dont see that ( I think Vasily fans gonna hate me ). I think Tsukishima & Koito prolly the same case at the end how they ended up breaking their loyalty to Tsurumi. I'm sorry if it's wrong the end of chapter kinda confuse me a lot.

Yes, I do still answer, even if sometimes I'm really slow about it.

Should I warn everyone that this isn't a Noda apprecciation post and that the back button in this case might be your best friend?

I hope people will be intuitive enough to figure it out on their own so without further ado let's dig into this.

Do I personally think / feel there is some character that's like ended up a waste ( in term development ) or just.. didn't need to exist / continue into the next chapter at some point ?

Oh yes. I feel quite a lot got wasted and this doesn't include just characters but also plot points actually.

Before someone will say something, I'll clear up a couple of things about what I mean.

First of all, this is my personal opinion. It's not The Truth. It's just how I feel.

Second, for me a story has to fit with Anton Chekhov's advice: If it's not essential, don't include it in the story. Especially, I'll add, if you want to write only 31 volumes and then you'll end up rushing things to fit everything in them.

So, let's start.

Let's cut from the story Sugimoto's feelings for Umeko which go nowhere and supposedly ended when Kikuta told him he should let Umeko go. He could be just in the story to help a friend's wife. After all that's why he's in the story in the anime, which completely cut Umeko's role and, anyway, it seems that's what Noda wanted since Sugimoto supposedly wanted to marry Umeko solely because Toraji told him so.

Q: Sugimoto’s main motivation to participate in the gold hunt was to heal Umeko, the girl who was his childhood friend and whom he loved. However, in the last chapter, he gives his share of the gold to Umeko’s son, since her eyes were already healed. Why did you do that?

Noda: If Umeko had not remarried and her eyes weren’t healed, the story would have needed a few more chapters, which, considering that it was post-climax, would have made it drag on needlessly.

The reason for that is Toraji told Sugimoto to get together with Umeko before dying, and he is not the kind of guy who could have ignored that and return to Hokkaido with Asirpa. [Noda’s interview for Yomiuri online paper]

Actually also let's cut her eye problems. Let's send Sugimoto to get money for Toraji's son, so he can go to school. If the whole thing with Umeko becomes a bother that needs to be solved offscreen without Sugimoto's intervention, let's just not include it.

The same goes for Ogata's feelings for his grandmother. We are told that Ogata didn't kill Tanigaki because he was a grandmother's boy and so he didn't want to murder Huci even though not killing Tanigaki causes him plenty of troubles and then... it turns out in an interview he probably poisoned his grandparents and they're no more discussed in the story.

Q17: Are Ogata’s grandparents still alive? If not, how did they die? Noda: They both disappeared before Ogata enlisted. There was half-eaten food left on the table. [Q&A section from the Golden Kamuy fanbook]

Honestly I would cut also Tanigaki's tragic backstory with his sister because... it goes nowhere in the end. He completely forgets he was meant to go back home and tell his father how his sister died, he actually goes back home because he has Inkarmat and Tsurumi is hunting him.

And since we're at it, let's cut the whole "Huci might die of worry for Asirpa", since Huci gets all better as soon as they hand her a baby.

Note that those plot points were all things I liked when I assumed they would go somewhere... instead they are just brushed off, forgotten or solved offscreen. They didn't really serve to the story, Ogata could have not killed Tanigaki because too many in the village saw him entering in Huci's house and might attack him if he were to shoot at her, and Tanigaki could have gone after Asirpa because she saved his life.

Then we've characters like Svetlana, who served zero purpose, Ogata and Vasily that were kept alive for no reason at all after Vol 19, the whole subplot with Central that went nowhere along with Wada's murder, since Tsurumi has the support of Yodogawa and could have gotten the weapons from him instead than doing it from behind Wada's back and then killing him.

To have Wilk include, among the tattooed convicts, a well known child murderer and who cares if that guy would go on murdering children once free (even though murdering children is generally considered one of the most disgusting crimes even by criminals) and his daughter is also a child, makes a huge disservice to Wilk as a supposedly good father.

Saving Tsurumi was unneeded, and the same goes for the whole Tsukishima-Koito-Tsurumi plot that goes nowhere.

Sofia shouldn't have known she had no part in Tsurumi's daughter's death if, afterward, she was meant to die thinking solely at how regretful she felt for it, and not at how her men died because she thought trying to fulfil Wilk and Kiro's dream was a good plan.

And since Jack the Ripper was clearly so poorly researched about, Noda could have just turned him into some Japanese mad slasher, no need to toss in the story another murderer who kills because he's a Christian with warped beliefs like Sekiya... and talking about warped belief and psychological problems already seen, we've Heita who has warped Ainu religion beliefs and hears voices like Edogai... okay, he's actually worse than Edogai but still close enough.

And what about the fake skins plot? Noda even forgot one of those fake skins at a certain point and solved the plot abruptly.

Ariko didn't need to 'die' to be resurrected short after and then STAY OUT OF THE STORY and not even help Asirpa, despite his father being the one who triggered the Ainu massacre falling for Tsurumi's manipulation. Not that the guy knows so this too was unneeded.

And actually the story would have probably benefitted by having Inkarmat die due to her wound and Ienaga be killed once she saved Sugimoto.

And should we dig into Tsukishima's tragic backstory which also go nowhere?

Or the rather terrible story of the raped white bear?

The extra story of the roasted little bird?

The whole "Wakayama was the one behind the skin in Barato" plot with annexed the whole "searching for the skins is useless" which gets forgotten with a shrug?

And let's not forget the whole Central plot that goes nowhere. Tsurumi knew already of the gold, Ogata got involved by Central for unclear reasons (why pick him?) and Kikuta got in the game too late and contributed too little all for Central to do basically nothing in the story.

And, since we're at it, the whole Noboribetsu thing was also handled poorly.

I guess I could add more but that's what came to my mind as of now. I fear it's already way too much...

Now, I've basically rushed up through everything and I realize this instead would need to be expanded to be more understandable, as some plot points/characters might seem of relevance... when actually could have been solved way more quickly and efficently... especially since at the end Noda rushed through the story because he wanted to end at vol 31.

If one has a set a specific volume for the ending he should do well his math and not add extra that merely dilute the story for no real purpose.

If it's not essential, don't include it in the story.

But whatever, if you or someone else now feels the need for clarifications of why some plot points/characters felt useless/didn't deserve to live that long, you can write me.

If you or someone else feel they actually were important, okay, that's your opinion, I'm not saying you've to change it, just don't try to change mine. I prefer not to argue about things I didn't like of GK, it makes happy no one and feels rather boring.

Sorry if this wasn't what you were hoping for and thank you for your ask!

[adickaboutspoons]

bad writing where? I don't think you know what bad writing is and I have doubts you understand the core of the characters.

Hi Nonnie! Girl, how ARE you? Because you seem to be taking it awfully personally that I am not enjoying this season as much as you are. To be perfectly clear, if you ARE, I'm DELIRIOUSLY happy for you! I wish I was too! I was SO looking forward to it! And even though I didn't care for some stuff here and there for the first half of the season, there was a LOT that I LOVED, and I was still holding out hope for the rest of the season! After the last 3 episodes, I am decidedly less optimistic. I'm glad to tell you exactly why, and At Great Length, because that's kind of just What I Do, but here's the thing... It's ok if you like a thing that other people don't. It doesn't reflect poorly on you as a person. You don't have to defend a thing that you like as though it was an extention of yourself. Also? You and I don't have to agree. There's room for interpretation. I have mine, but that doesn't make it Objective Truth. My positions are only as good as I can offer coherent, well-supported arguements to back them up. I like doing that. I think it's fun. You may still not be convinced. That's ok. I don't need you to agree with me. And, frankly, you don't even need to worry about other people agreeing with me. I am small potatoes. I have maybe two posts ever that have made it into the low thousands in terms of notes - not reblogs, but notes cumulative. Most of my original stuff don't even break triple digits. Believe me NO ONE is rushing to espouse the doctrine of spoondick llc. And that's fine. So I'm gonna go ahead and give you the benefit of the doubt that you're asking genuine questions and not just lashing out. But I'm also gonna put my answers below a cut. Because, frankly, you may not entirely agree with me, but you also may not be able to unsee some of the things I point out once I do, and I don't want to take your enjoyment of the show away from you.

So second claim first: that I don't understand the core of the characters. I mean... I have written quite a lot and at length about these characters and their motivations. I mean, each of those is a link to a different meta I've written, and it's not even close to all of them. Which reminds me - I need to update my pinned page. So while you may not agree with my interpretations, at the v. least, you can't argue that I haven't put SOME thought into the matter. With regard to bad writing, the qualifiers may vary from person to person, but to me, it mainly comes down to three interconnected things: Inconsistency, telling rather than showing, and contrivance. I feel that there have been a LOT of inconsistencies with the characters, both between seasons and just within season 2 itself. I'm an unapologetic Stede girlie and he IS the main character, so most of my big qualms are with how his character is being butchered handled.

How the are we supposed to square Stede "had multiple breakdowns over Nigel's accidental death and was so traumatized over everything with Chauncy that he walked back to Bridgetown in his bare feet" Bonnet with the man from last night who murdered Ned in cold blood, and then went on to casually set a man on fire and QUIP about it? It's one thing to butch up with a "how to pirate" montage, it's quite another to become a psychopath, completely unbothered by taking a human life.

And about butching up. While I would, and have, argued that a lot of Stede's insecurities in the first season stemmed from insufficient performance of masculinity, I would NOT say that it was because he wanted to BE more typically masc himself - but rather from the way he has been TREATED for being soft, and internalizing the distain and derision of his bullies. Rather, the whole central thesis to his approach to piracy is it's "traditionally a culture of abuse... And my thought is: why? And also, what if it weren’t like that?" He's flattered when Yi Sao clocks his energy as soft. So his mid-season pivot to needing to embrace these "traditional pirate" behaviors? Yeah - I'd say that's a pretty glaring inconsistency.

Speaking of Yi Sao, lets talk about his fight with her. Because Stede in the first season is consistently shown to be a master of improvisation and using his environment and people's underestimation of him to his advantage to overcome stronger and more skilled opponents. He sends Officer Show Daddy rowing back to the British ship with some impromptu mannequins to give the Revenge time to escape after Nigel's death. He uses distraction and supersition to get the upper hand on Izz during their first encounter. He bests Izzy again in the duel using gunpowder to the eyes when he's pinned, and then using what Ed taught him about taking a stab angling to have it happen against a mast he knew would cause Izzy's sword to break. This initially carries over to the second season with Stede using his lowly position in Towels to acclimate people to deeply inhaling the scent he adds to the towels, and later uses that to his advantage to knock out the guards and escape. So it might have been one thing if Stede was in his cups and mourning Ed's departure that led him to getting overly possessive of his remaining crew and pick a fight with Zheng as a parallel of the Art Exhibition scene from season 1, and getting his ass handed to him as a parallel to Mary's attempted murder/an expression of what a deep impact Ed leaving has made on him that his normal strategizing fails him, but instead, he's getting emotional support (from IZZY of all people) and doesn't even seem tipsy, so he's got no reason to fail so profoundly, and it's played as though Yi Sao is RIGHT about him being "a mediocre man who thinks he's exceptional" when he legit JUST bested her with fucking tea towels 4 episodes ago.

Another big inconsistency for me is Stede's attitude toward Ed, over the first half of the season especially. At the end of season 1, we have Stede irrevocably torching his life as a gentleman of leisure to the ground because Mary has helped him to realize that 1) no body's life in improve by him doggedly trying to insert himself into a life he never wanted or chose for himself, and 2) he and Ed are in love with one another, and he should got find Ed about that. Then we get Stede dragging his heels in the Republic of Pirates while he "earns enough money," but his convo with Blackbeard's wanted poster reveals that he's afraid Ed's life is better off without him. Which? Real Chauncy-coded take there (and also, really? When Stede KNOWS that Ed is weary of the pirate life, but the wanted poster and rumor mill suggest he's thrown himself into it full tilt?). I could understand being worried that Ed doesn't love him anymore because Stede broke his heart, but NOT that "his life is better." But still, Stede IS determined to get back to Ed - he's just nervous about what he'll find when he does. He won't stop talking about it to anyone and everyone. He even yeets himself overboard shouting for Ed when he hears that the Red Flag has come across the Revenge. And then he thinks that he's come too late - that Ed is dead. And he manages to forestall his grief over that long enough to effect an escape, but then goes to do his mourning in private. But wonder of wonders! Ed is still alive! Stede didn't lose him after all! Imagine the rapture within his heart! And then he lets Ed leave without so much as offering to come with, when Ed has barely recovered from 1) a coma, & 2) a suicide attempt. It just doesn't make any sense in any possible world.

I also have a big problem with Mr. "Talk it through as a crew" running away from Lucius when he finally started opening up about the traumtic things he's lived through since he got shoved overboard. I've seen some posts suggesting Stede isn't doesn't prioritize or seem to care much about his crew, but that's just demonstrably not true? His first concern on awakening from being gut-stabbed was about his crew. He apologized when he lost his temper about the fuckery (Never heard an apology, Roach? Really?) and incorperated all of their ideas into the final product. Before he bought the treasure map, he inquired and found out there were no oranges for sale in St. Augustine due to a blight. Stede let Olu crash on his couch instead of having him bunk down with the rest of the crew because they were the charter members of the "my crush just left me for their old life" club and misery loves company. Even in the new season, he set aside his grief over Ed until he made sure his crew - INCLUDING the ones he thought were the ones who MURDERED THE LOVE OF HIS LIFE - were safe. So Stede running away from Lucius in his moment of unburdening himself? And it being played for COMEDY? Is not only antithetical to the established character, but to the central thesis of change being effected by the application of loving support that (I THOUGHT) was central to the whole show.

With Ed, it's mostly better, but even he doesn't escape unscathed. I'm absolutely baffled by the suggestion in episode 5 that Ed doesn't know how to be quiet and sit with his feelings when we see him: 1) stimming quietly with his silk after the "donkey" comment until Stede invited him to open up 2) stimming quietly with his silk after the French Boat Party 3) staring broodingly out to sea after the doggy heaven convo 4) isolating himself in the tub after his kraken meltdown 5) quietly sitting and folding socks 6) pillow fort isolation pod 7) standing quiet and alone after the Izzy confrontation, and apparently not seeing anyone until that night 8) stimming with silk before giving Lucius impromptu late night swimming lessons 9) playing with his dollies 10) cry alone in his room multiple times And maybe it's just that Fang doesn't see those times, because, for the most part, Ed self-isolates when he's feeling particularly emotionally vulnerable. But the show frames it as though Fang is correct? Especially in the after-credits scene where we're listening to Ed's non-stop internal monologue as he fails to sit quietly?

There's more with other characters, but, like I said, the categories are overlapping and inform one another, so I'd like to pivot to Tell-Don't-Show. Because whooo boy is there a lot of it going on. The most glaring one to me is Izzy's whole arc. I've seen a lot of people talking about extending unearned grace and how it's for the healing of the crew, not for Izzy, and that the crew are showing that they've embraced the loving support model they experienced under Stede's tenure as captain. But that doesn't change the fact that Izzy was SUCH a dick that even human-ray-of-sunshine-OLU was rooting for Stede to stab him in the duel, and by the end of last season Izzy sold them out to the English and did such a shit job at captaining that the crew (of which Fang and Frenchie were a part) unanimously voted to throw him overboard bound hand-and-foot. SOMETHING must have happened in the interim to move the needle from "gleefully ready to murder him" to "giving him hugs and unconditional positive regard therapy". But whatever it was happened entirely off-camera. We're just being asked to go along with it. And, to me, that's just bad, lazy writing.

The rest of his arc isn't much better, and highlights more of those inconsistencies. Last season, Izzy was openly dismissive and derisive about sharing feelings - it was one of his driving motivations at taking down Ed and inducing the Krakening. And now he seems to have taken the season-1-Lucius role of being the ship's emotional intelligence? Offering coping advice to Lucius. Suggesting to Ed that he should talk his feelings through. Giving support to Stede after Ed left him (again). Where would he even have accrued that skillset? I'm not saying that it's impossible for him to have changed with the loving support of his crew and in the wake of an identity crisis when he has to figure out who he is if not Blackbeard's right-hand man. What I'm saying is that very little of the actual changes happened on camera. And THAT'S what I have a problem with.

Similarly, I have a problem with the whole Yi Sao-Olu-Jim-Archie relationship tangle. Olu didn't even seem to realize Yi Sao was flirting with him until she said as much. I think he was flattered by the attention, and not averse to the idea, but that's not the same thing as being into her in return. And then, when it's relevant to the plot, we're meant to just trust that he's been secretly pining this whole time? Compare to when Jim left - before they'd even kissed. Olu spent his time mooning over the railing, telling everyone how much he missed JIm, getting drunk, and giving away his room. Since he left Yi Sao, there's been not a single word about missing her, not a moment where he even looks slightly broody. We HAVE seen him bonding with Jim and Archie. Hunkering down against the curse on the same bed as Jim and Archie. Dancing with Jim and Archie. Do you see how this LOOKS like the show is possibly moving in a throuple direction? And then we suddenly get Olu saying out of nowhere that he misses Yi Sao, Jim playing matchmaker for them, and Olu announcing that he's going to leave the revenge to be with Yi Sao. Bye, I guess. And this level of Telling-Not-Showing and inconsistency smacks of Contrivance. And Contrivance really feels like the engine that is driving most of the season to me. It looks an awful lot like the writers had an end-goal in mind, and worked backwards to get there, and along the way did all the hand-waving they had to in order to get where they wanted. Gotta have Stede & Zheng team up against Ricky for an Epic Beach Battle that pits Pirates against The Crown, but why would she want him - especially if she thinks he's "a mediocre man who thinks he's exceptional"?

Oh, what if she loses all her ships because Ricky blew them all up with the world's most contrived bombs?

But why wasn't she on the ship?

Well she was beating Stede's ass at the time.

Why was she beating his ass?

Because he picked a fight with her because he was drunk and she was poaching his crew?

Why are some of Stede's crew willing to leave him even though they were literally ride-or-die even when he was trying to find the guy that marooned them?

Oh, Olu's been in love with Yi Sao this whole time, but, like, never fucking mentioned it, just trust us.

Why was he drunk - Stede thinks drinking 'til you puke isn't fun, remember?

Oh, he is getting plied with drinks because all the pirates love him now.

Why do all the pirates love Stede now?

Because he killed some Big Name Pirate.

Stede? "I'm having a bit of a hard time adjusting to being a mur... mur... murderer?" Stede? Are you sure?

Yeah. He's totally butch now.

....How?

He trained on how to be a pirate with Izzy.

Izzy. The guy that conspired with the British specifically to murder Stede Bonnet? Why?

Ed said he needed to work on his "mean voice" and be more dom assertive.

Why would Ed ever say that? He loves that Stede is out there doing things like no one else.

Because Stede doesn't feel like a captain.

Even though he's calling all-hands meetings and mediating crew grievences and rescuing his crew and no one is challenging his authority or even questioning whether his devotion to his boyfriend is possibly compromising his ability to do his job?

...Yes?

But why Izzy? Stede hates Izzy. Izzy hates Stede. Surely these are universal constants.

Izzy's nice now. He's been rehabilitated by the love of the crew.

...How?

Jingly keys.

[league-of-blorbos]

Hi, I write fanfiction sometimes but my biggest issue is that I'm very slow at it and I always end up leaving my half finished drafts to rot and never get posted. But I started writing this Heartsteel Yone fic in like 2 sittings and I really wanna try and finish it since I like the direction it's going.

It's mainly about my transfem Yone headcanon and them struggling with both dysphoria and the music industry, and maybe lead it into some Aluyone content since I love that ship in this au. While what I have is just set up for how Yone first met the band, I would LOVE any feedback on stuff I could improve or just some motivation to help me finish this draft.

(One last note, I'm referring to Yone with he/him so far but the pronouns will change later in the story as Yone sorts their gender out more)

Yone had very strict parents growing up. He knew it ultimately came from a place of love, but sometimes it was like they kept raising their expectations for him as soon as he started to get close to meeting them. When most looked at the two brothers, they would never guess Yone was the only one their parents had to constantly pull back in line while they never seemed too concerned about what his brother, Yasuo, was doing. Maybe it was because Yone always did better in school as a kid and had more potential in their eyes, or their parents had just long given up on trying to keep their younger son in check when he was always on the move. Whatever the case was, it felt like Yone’s parents wanted a say in everything he did, from trying to push him towards a more “respectable” career than music, to not allowing him to to buy the more gaudy and revealing clothes that he admired. It took so much convincing to even grow his hair out long and dye it, his mother telling Yone how handsome he looked with short hair, or his dad warning him that others would think he’s a woman. Of course, they relented after Yasuo also started growing his hair out to support his brother. 

Needless to say, Yone was relieved when he finally built up enough money from gigs to move out, and was able to have a bit more freedom in his self-expression. He wasn’t even completely sure why having long hair or pretty outfits meant so much to him, he just knew it somehow felt natural when he brushed his fingers through his long locks, felt his ponytail swishing behind his back, or how clothes that brought out his slender figure made him stare at himself in the mirror for a little longer than usual. 

But Yone didn’t have the time to question these little things as his career quickly took off, and a lot of those familiar restrictions from Yone’s childhood started to return. Now he was stuck where the people he’d DJ for had specific requests for what to play, and he’d gotten big enough to have agents and managers that kept him from straying too far from the mainstream sound. On top of that, Yone still cared for his parent’s approval to a degree, even if he didn’t live under their roof, and didn’t want to squander any big opportunities just because he felt a little constrained. 

But as the bar everyone expected him to meet flew higher and higher, Yone felt all the restrictions growing tighter and tighter, weighing him down more and more. He felt he had barely any time and absolutely no energy to work on any passion projects, the actual experimental and groundbreaking music that got him into the scene in the first place. His frustration reached a breaking point after a particularly tiring show. The equipment kept acting up despite there being no issues during setup, Yone kept having to play the same few songs over and over, and the set had to be cut early after a drunk fan rushed the stage and tried to get handsy with him. Yone was on his way home, feeling irritated, violated, and just so fucking exhausted. 

The very last thing Yone wanted to do when he got back to his flat was argue with a stuck up manager over the phone who insisted he should’ve continued the show after the crazed fan was dealt with. With Yone’s mind not in the best headspace and absolutely sick of never getting to do things his way, he finally lost his cool and got into a shouting match with the agent that went well into the night. When he hung up, tears were streaming down Yone’s cheeks, and he couldn’t tell if they were from all the yelling or if they were from the relief of getting everything off his chest right at the people who, at this point, felt like they were just there to make things worse.

The relief was short lived, as the agent had quit the next morning, leaving Yone with no one to help him manage the business side of his job. 

Yone felt at his lowest possible point. Maybe his parents were right that this wasn’t the path he should’ve taken, and that he should’ve just stuck with his robotics classes. But that all changed one night, it was a rare night when both he and Yasuo had time to meet up and just chill together like they used to. Of course, with both of them being DJs, the siblings naturally talked about music often, and while discussing up-and-coming artists, Yasuo brought up a duo trying to start a group; their names were Sett and K’Sante. 

[svfttachi]

gratefulness // gojo s.

wc — 1.9k

type — gojo s. x fem!reader

tw — slight spoilers for jjk (really only for those who don't know about gojo & geto's friendship), mentions of suguru (;-;), emotional moments

✎ in a little gojo brainrot rn. season 2 really hurt so much, and i heard it only gets worse so... i'm just going to write instead to help myself and others who feel the same. i kinda love gojo so much again, especially when i was writing this. also, sorry for being so inactive sometimes, school started up again and it's already causing problems for me, mentally, but i hope you enjoy, nonetheless! <3

◃ to jjk writings

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SPARKLING, BLUE EYES HIDDEN BEHIND HIS SUNGLASSES PEER AT YOU FROM THE LIVING ROOM.

Piles of paper surround the white haired high school teacher who was sitting on the floor behind the wooden coffee table in your quaint home. Purple tinted sunglasses distorted the colors he was seeing, but he was still able to make out that you were wearing one of his hoodies along with your baggy, plaid pajama pants. Bright orangey rays light up the inside of the home, signaling an early morning.

Luckily, the weekend had started, so neither you nor your husband were in a rush to head to work, allowing you to partake in your comfortable morning routines. The sound of the coffee maker clicked rhythmically, and the scent of the freshly brewed beverage swirled in the air, captivating your husband from the other room. “Can you brew me a cup, too?” he called out, capturing your attention.

Looking up from your phone, you were finally able to notice how his eyes danced across your facial features. It wasn’t entirely unnatural to get some attention from your husband, but the sight of the enormous pile of paper sitting around him was enough to decipher that he was using this as an excuse to not work.

Setting your phone down on the counter beside you, you walked over to the living room with your arms crossed over your chest. One look down at the papers had the white haired, blue eyed man scratching the back of his head nervously. “If I make you a cup, then you have to finish your work. You’ve delayed this long enough, Satoru,” you responded, tilting your head to the side. Satoru sighed, letting his head hang low, “Fine… I’ll finish sorting these out.”

As a little form of reassurance and motivation, you walked closer to your husband and knelt down to his level. Your soft, pinkish lips pressed gently against his smooth cheek. When you pull away and stand up, you feel your hand being held by his own, not too tightly either. “I want more… wait, need not want,” Satoru mumbled, trying to intertwine your fingers together. “Hmm… maybe after you’re done, I’ll think about it,” you suggested, letting go of his hand.

You could hear him whine a soft no on your way back to the kitchen. Satoru slouched forward and began working a little bit after you left him here, “Three sugars, please, hun.” Shaking your head with a smile printed on your lips, you reached for the container that held the sugar cubes, “I know, ‘Toru. I still don’t see how you can drink it this sweet.”

“It’s an acquired taste, Y/N. You wouldn’t understand,” Satoru teases as he’s sorting the mounds of papers in front of him. A light giggle left your mouth as you prepared both of your cups of coffee, entirely different from one another.

As you headed towards Satoru with each cup of coffee in your hands, you overheard clattering sounds coming from upstairs. Next, two pairs of footsteps grew louder the closer they got to you, one sounding more rushed than the other. A head of pink hair appeared, and the boy performed an amazing flip to land on the floor right in front of the stairs. He threw his hands out into the air accompanying a big smile on his olive-toned face. Eventually, another boy joined him, still sluggish from the previous night’s restful slumber.

“Ha! I beat you down here, Fushiguro!” the pink haired boy shouted, pointing at his friend. Megumi scratched his head, trying to make sense of where the sudden competition arose from. “I wasn’t racing you,” he mumbled, “Good morning, Y/N… Gojo.”

Satoru was unfazed by the sudden increase in the volume of sounds within the house, but you… well it amused you, so you had to watch it unfold. A laugh came from you, and soon, you added, “Good morning, boys. Satoru’s working on some work, but your breakfast is on the table.”

The three of you split ways with the boys going towards the kitchen whilst you go towards the living room. Satoru looks up at the increase in your presence. You sat down next to Satoru, handing him his cup of coffee. “Thank you, babe,” Satoru whispered, taking a sip of the coffee, “Ah, just perfect.” Satoru placed his coffee cup on the table in front of him and went back to reorganizing the pile which has significantly shrunk in size.

Your eyes glanced up and toward the kitchen table where Megumi and Yuuji sat. Between the two of them, it was clear to tell their type of personality. One was actively telling stories using his hands to exaggerate bits and pieces of it while the other one passively listened as he ate his breakfast. It definitely reminded you of another particular duo from your teenage years with one half of it sitting beside you and the other half… long gone and hidden in the shadows.

Occasionally, you’d start to think about those good days when everything was about hanging out, going on missions, and goofing around. However, after the events that occurred shortly after that one mission, you rarely let your mind go back to that time. The thought of it was enough to bring tears to your eyes, and Satoru was quick to notice it.

“Hey, hey, what’s wrong?” he asked, turning to fully face you with hands placed on your crossed legs. A slightly chuckle coughed out in the midst of your tears, and a sleeve came up to rub them away. Satoru’s usual sharp, piercing eyes had softened at your crying face. “It’s nothing. I… I just miss Suguru sometimes, and seeing Yuuji and Megumi reminds me of you and him,” you replied, shaking your head at the reason that seemed silly to you.

Satoru didn’t have to look at his student and the boy he took in to understand the connection. He saw it in those boys everyday he is with them, and only the mission and training that he assigns to them is enough to shield his mind from those rough memories of his best friend. His hand gently massaged your leg as a sign of comfort, and it slowly helped to ease the string of emotions you were experiencing.

“They are really good at doing that, aren’t they?” Satoru joked, flashing a smile at you. A sigh left your mouth when the tears stopped flowing freely, and your gaze met Satoru’s. “I just… wish we could have helped him back then. Maybe then, Suguru would be here helping you with your workload or telling the boys stories, too,” you said, staring at the remaining amount of coffee in your cup.

Satoru carefully sat behind you and wrapped his arms loosely around your neck and shoulders, resting his chin on your head. He took the coffee cup from your hand and set it next to his own cup, allowing you to comfortably relax with your back against his chest. Your head rested against Satoru’s neck, and your red-shot, tear filled eyes looked up at him.

“I think about that day all that time, too, and how Suguru could be here if I was just a little more attentive as to what was going on,” Satoru whispered, locking eyes with yours through the purple shades resting upon the bridge of his nose. He let his cheek rest against the side of your head, slightly tightening his hold on you as he continued, “But… I try not to think about the mistakes I made in the past, and rather to focus on what I can fix here in the present. Suguru will always be with us in our hearts, no matter what. I’ve learned that through all of the pain from his exit we should be more grateful for those we still have and the opportunities we are given everyday.”

You reached your hand up to softly hold his cheek as his eyes met yours once again. “Satoru, I’ll always be grateful for you because without you, I don’t know where I’d be in life,” you said, smiling at the love of your life. “Please, Y/N, I don’t know who I’d be without you. To be honest, Suguru always said that you’re too good for me, but my heart still clung onto you,” Satoru responded, placing a hand over your own hand.

Your hands fell from one another, but Satoru kept his arms around you from behind as laughter got closer to the living room. The both of you watched as Megumi and Yuuji entered the living room still going on about something that happened whilst they were in the town the other day. Satoru unhooked his arms from around you and got up, swiftly grabbing his empty coffee cup and your cup with the ice cold remnants that you weren’t going to finish. He walked up to the boys, ruffling Megumi’s hair playfully as he glared at the older man. “Get dressed you two. We’re going to Tokyo,” was all Satoru said as he walked past the boys to clean up the coffee cups.

Your eyes had widened ever so slightly at the sudden announcement, but your feelings about going outside weren't as heightened as a certain pink haired boy. Yuuji started shaking Megumi’s shoulders back and forth while simultaneously shouting Tokyo loudly into the air before disappearing up the stairs. Megumi tore his eyes off of the usually excited Yuuji to glance over at you, his mother figure. It didn’t take long for him to take a seat in front of you with his legs crossed and shoulders slightly slouched.

“You look like you have been crying,” Megumi stated in a low, worried tone. He took note of the puffiness surrounding your bottom eyelids along with the redness that overtook the whites of your eyes. A sigh left your mouth as a hand came to gently lay on his shoulder. “I’m okay, Megs. Don’t worry. Now, go get changed,” you replied. As much as you like being transparent about your feelings and emotions, it wasn’t worth ruining the little bits of Megumi that he was holding onto so dearly already. The poor child has been through enough without needing a reason as to why his personality and friendship with Yuuji brought tears to your eyes.

“Are you sure? You told me that I shouldn’t keep my thoughts to myself if they were bothering me, so… why are you?” Megumi asked, brows furrowing with confusion. A chuckle left your mouth because you were, indeed, contradicting yourself about what you taught Megumi way back when. “Just missing somebody… an old friend, is all. I’m grateful that Satoru found you that day, Megs. You have been one of the best things in not only my life but in Satoru’s life, too. So, that’s why I told you not to worry. I’ll always have a reason to smile with this little family of ours,” you said with a heartfelt smile, “Now, go get ready.”

Megumi took a second to really allow your words to settle into his mind before giving you a small nod. He got up as told and walked away to get ready for the day ahead of him. You stared at the stairway even after Megumi left you, leaving you oblivious to the man who teleported to sit next to you. Arms slung around your shoulder once more, bringing you close to your husband, but it didn’t faze you one bit since you were used to these antics.

“Let’s go get ready, too. Shall we?”

“We shall.”

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navigation ✧. ┊ rules

[postalninja]

Fic Author Q&A

Tagged by @cicaklah - thanks babe! (sorry if my answers end up vague or unsatisfying, it's past midnight and i would be in bed if there wasn't a music festival currently happening outside my window - I"m not exactly at my best lol)

1. Why do you write fanfic?

It started from the desire to make fictional characters kiss, which is still a large part of why I do it, so let's go with that.

2. Which of your posted stories do you think about the most, even though the story is “finished”?

I don't really know - I tend to think about a lot of my stories pretty often after they're finished, I'm not sure that there is a specific one I fixate on. They all get a bit of time in my brain, and i tend to go and re-read stuff too.

3. If you could give yourself fic advice from when you first started writing fic, what would that advice be?

S l o w d o w n. Don't be afraid of big word counts, it'll take as many words as it takes, and rushing toward the finish line will just make the pacing suffer. Make room for the moments in between, let the story breathe.

4. What’s your relationship to fic stats?

Lately I've found that not looking at them in too much detail is better. Over the summer I found myself looking at my stats for validation, and of course, not finding it there. But the problem is in my head, not on the stats page. So they are just numbers that are there, and if I need to check something specific, then that's a useful thing to have.

5. Is there a pairing or scenario or friendship you miss writing? If so, why? If not, why not?

I've really fallen off of writing for Hitman over the past couple of years, with only one short ficlet as a recent offering. It's one of the fandoms were my muse has been fleeting, but the fandom is so wonderful that I miss being a more active participant in it.

6. What motivates you to write?

Lately I have a pretty hard time writing without having clear inspiration, so that's the most surefire motivation is just being struck by an idea that grabs me and won't let go until I get it down on the page. But that sort of inspiration is hard to come by, so I haven't been writing very much in its absence.

7. Why do you write for the fandom(s) that you write for?

In most cases it's because I have a ship I'm obsessed with, and if not that than just general love for the game (it's almost always a game, let's not kid ourselves) and the characters. It's hard for me to write for a fandom unless I'm at least a little bit unhealthily obsessed with it.

8. If you’re stuck writing a WIP, what do you do?

Normally I will take a break, and some of those breaks have turned out longer than others... I have a few unfinished wips that are an albatross around my neck, and I'm not sure how to go about finishing them.

9. What do you wish people knew about comments?

They are all an author wants! We want to hear about what you liked and why, and given the chance we would talk your ear off about our fics, so don't ever feel like you're bothering an author by commenting something nice on their fic, we are looking for that engagement and validation.

10. Maybe there’s a question you wish had been on here. What’s that question (and answer)?

What's something you've been excited about/feeling good about recently with your writing? One thing I will mention is that a few days ago I went back and read a bunch of free writing exercises I did for a class last semester that i hadn't looked at since - I had completely forgotten about most of them, but when I read them again the majority of them were so good! It kind of bolstered my confidence that I had that kind of quality output from 10-minute warmups where I wasn't thinking too hard. Like, even though I haven't written much lately, I still know how to write!!

Not tagging anyone specific, just whoever want to do it because I am too tired to think and decide :)

[lizadale]

MISS! I Cast *Fluff Attack* as retaliation to your tripple angst attack. You got me to 2/21 hp like damn. /j

Fr though, poor sad clown, i hope he dies stuck in a glue trap.

So. I got the motivation to write for the Polterpup speaks fic C:

{“This is what you ate?”

“Yes.” Luigi Picked up the can that were still on the floor, a tripping hazard Dimentio said when he saw it, then he went to a free counter and opened it “Not a single drop left, that’s impressive.”

“Thank you.”

“We could see the other’s of the same brand?” Luigi asked

“Yeah but it could’ve been just this one can too.”

“True but if we don’t want a talking we best not rule out any possibility” “It could just pass too.” Luigi said, moving back to the shelf.

“It keeps sassing me, I’m not tanking any chances.” Dimentio hissed

“If you say so.”

---

"Good Morning!" They greeted Mario on the gardens, everything is dormant and it's beautiful. He widened his eyes but he knelt to pet them.

"Hello Doggy!"

"How are you? did you have breakfast? I didn't. You still have the best jerky treats?"

After they showed Luigi where they eat the most delicious treat. Dimentio was still very confused and asked for them to stay away from the kitchens for the time being. "Who knows what will happen if you eat anything else you shouldn't?" He argued when the pup asked about the scraps.

"Sure do, " He said reaching for his pocket, he barely pulled the package out of it when Luigi jumped down from somewhere screaming "No, Bro Wait!!" then there was Dimentio's jingle.

"Huh?" Mario stopped midway through opening it, they could sniff it's tastiness too…

"As you can hear, Polterpup can talk now." Dimentio told.

"Yes and…?"

"Apparently, it's because they ate something weird," Luigi continues for him. "And I'm afraid of what will happen if something else mix to it."

"Like the children's book series?"

"i guess?" "the what now?" Luigi and Dimentio said at the same time. They looked at each other and Dimentio gestured for him to continue.

"I don't know if it was a abc soup it ate, but something like it definitely happened"

"Can you tell me the title of the book for later research?"

"Dio, do you even read children books?"

"It became relevant."

"I mean if you want it, but there's nothing-"

"Are they always like that?" Mario said with amusement in his voice.

"Most of the time, they stopped doing it for important things now though, that's how they say "i love you" i think." The puppy says while watching, they see Mario placing a hand on his chin as to contemplate their thoughts.

"You are very smart", he says after a minute.

"Yes! I'm a smart puppy!" They say. "Smart puppy gets treats?" they do their best pleading eyes

"No." Both Luigi and Dimentio stop their thing to say it to them.

"Aw…"

Mario gets down to their level and ask "Hey Puppy can you do me a favor?"

"I can!" Maybe helpful pups gets treats? that they don’t say out loud, hopefully.

"Go to the Peach and ask her to come to the garden"

"Okay!" They say and rush towards the castle, then they stop and go back "Wait, who's the Peach?"

Mario tilts his head "You don't know?"

"No, I've heard of her before but i don't know anybody named Peach "

"But weren't you playing with her and Toadette yesterday? The girl with the crown?"

"The Princess? She got two names?" they said with an air of wonder.

"Yeah, people call her Princess Peach most of the time"

"So those koopas weren't talking about The Princess and Peach yesterday?"

"The castle guard?"

"No. they were outside trying to get in but not by the doors. Dimentio told I couldn't scare the toads, so i scared them instead until you called me to play." They tell "I had to bite the big one to scare him though. but I won't tell anyone because good pups aren't supposed to bite."

"Bro, you'll stay until the weekend, right?" Mario turns to Luigi with a hopefull look.

"Sorry, I've already thawed tomorrow's roast." Luigi said "Also it's Dio's choosing how we're spending this holiday you know he gets fussy around parties."

"Dump him."

"Is everyone in this castle out to ruin my patience" Dimentio grumbles "I'm right here!" Luigi makes the funny holding in laughter face before dragging him out by his forearm “You are not going to like the day I lose it, I swear.” He Says when he’s almost out of earshot.}

Don't worry Puppy nobody knows you bit the Big Koopa ;)

i had to stop here because i couldn't stop snickering, i almost woke up my nephew twice, hope you're having a good day ^-^

(formated the pc and lost the little guy T-T)

JFISDLK "Dump him." i mean it's a sound solution...

also there's something very in-character about Mario encountering a talking dog and just shrugging. it is the mushroom kingdom after all

[storm-driver]

ending of ff16 discussion below, pls do not click if you wanna avoid spoilers <3

I think FFXVI has a lot of potential, but it does fall quite short of the mark in some places. I do think the places where it excels far surpasses that, but maybe I'm able to turn a blind eye way easier than other's.

First and foremost, Jill Warrick is a potentially really good character, who unfortunately isn't given the same amount of love as other side characters in the game. Even characters like Gav and Byron were given more, despite Byron being introduced in the second half of the game, and Gav wasn't even a party main-stay.

Giving her some more moments to show off her prowess as Shiva's Dominant could've gone a long way. More independence from the Crystals' Curse, so to speak. I understand that the idea is Jill is on her last legs regarding the curse, but I really think they should've brushed that over, for the sake of her character.

Secondly, the arc with Barnabas was undercooked and rushed. Execution was weak compared to a similar scenario in FFXIV, where the main antagonist of Stormblood has the sole purpose of being the main character's rival. If the first fight against Barnabas was player-controlled and took place far sooner in the story, I'd be more inclined to buy into it.

Not only that, but the Barnabas arc is very isolated, compared to a lot of the other arcs in the game, most notably Kupka. Barnabas should've been presented a little earlier, or at least, his arc should've been quite a bit longer if it was going to take up the last quarter of the game.

I'm somewhat alright with Barnabas being the segway into Ultima as the main antagonist, but at the same time, it feels rather cheap to not given Barnabas his own full-fledged motivations and character arc, like we saw with Benedikta and Kupka. It's a minor writing thing I didn't personally enjoy, but at the same time, it was fun watching him snap out of his Ultima trance and become a beast at the very end of his fight.

The final segment of the game, I feel could've been made stronger if Ultima was a bit more discovered as a threat. Yeah, he was the god we had to kill, but we knew so little about him until the final 10% of the game. And at that point, he had finally become an acting force. I feel that's too late into the game for something like that to be happening, but maybe that's just me again.

The ending overall? I feel it could've used some more oversight. Joshua's death was expected, though I'm sad to see it was simply because of the Ultima shard. I don't think that writing his death via that shard was a good move, solely because it didn't feel like him keeping that shard in check had done anything at all, considering how much of an acting force Ultima had been anyways.

I understand the ending was also open-ended regarding Clive's ultimate (haha) fate, but I do wish there had been some more finality. Especially because of the red star Metia fading at the end, and Jill and Torgal crying as if he had definitely died. Me personally, it'd be nice to see Clive just walking back to the Hideaway, his arm turned to stone because of his overuse of magic, but still alive in spite of his fate. I feel THAT would've definitely made the ending better, just seeing that guarantee that he'd truly said "fuck you" to his destiny.

I also understand that the ending is open-ended for that exact reason, so I can guess what happens after without giving me something definitive. But I still would've appreciated if they'd just said if he died or not, outright. I don't enjoy ambiguity that much when the most likely thing is despair, 'cause then I just get my hopes up, just to get them crushed again.

Another small thing I disliked was the pacing started to get wonky at times, versus others where it was taken nice and slow. The segments in the game where you sorta had a dungeon to traverse before a big event were nice, to build up hype towards the big thing. These started to appear very seldomly, and it started to make the game feel like we were moving a mile a minute.

I feel the definitive proof that this worked is in the fight to Titan. And not just Titan as an eikon, but half-primed Hugo Kupka. I feel that was done SO fucking well and I really would've loved to see it again with Barnabas. Having the siege of Rosaria and Clive and Hugo affirming their hatred for each other was sick, especially because you just KNEW there was an eikon fighting waiting for you at the end of the arc, if Sleipnir hadn't stepped in.

Then having the follow-up at Drake's Fang, another lil' dungeon where you finally get to Kupka and he's just going insane, so fucking well done and I loved that rivalry so much.

Compare that entire arc to the end of the game, where you go through a dungeon in Waloed essentially, and the ending just ends up being a dramatic lore dump with a sorta final-boss fight. Meanwhile, the actual final boss doesn't have any pre-emptive dungeon, it's just a cutscene fight before the real fight starts.

Not only that, but chucking in about 14 sidequests right before that final boss and the game trying to pad out this rushed ending really made me realise how unfinalized this section of the game had been. Was it terrible? Not at all, but it wasn't the same quality as the rest of the game had been. Which is a damn shame, 'cause everything pre-Barnabas was god-tier and it's what I want to remember this game for the most.

For the positive side of things, I am very glad that I played this game, because I think I'm gonna feel the lasting impact it had on me for years, even if the ending didn't hit the way I wanted.

Clive Rosfield still stands out to me as one of the best RPG protagonists I've seen in a VERY long time. He's a strong man, unwittingly cruel in his actions, but he owns them, accepts them, and betters himself for his crimes. He is unafraid to cry and shed tears over his anguish, but he wears his sins on his sleeves and fights in spite of his destiny. The first section with him truly accepting his status as the Infernal Eikon, as Ifrit, was some of the best visual story-telling I've ever seen. The presentation was phenomenal, the music was heavenly, and Ben Starr did a phenomenal job as Clive. I sincerely hope Clive ends up setting a standard for protagonists in the future, because I genuinely do believe he's one of the best.

The character designs in this game were all great and enjoyable, and everyone was written in an amazing way. I think follow-up for Clive is definitely tied between Joshua Rosfield and Dion Lesage. I think Joshua has a similar issue to Jill, where he just wasn't used enough in the latter half of the story, but he was sorta written into the ending inherently because of his status as the Phoenix, and Clive's brother. Which is a shame that Jill didn't have that same impact.

Either way, those two were amazing characters that I loved ever since their first appearances. I have a particularly soft spot for Joshua because I can remember the prologue of the game so vividly, with Joshua desperately trying to fight off Ifrit while "Away" is blasting in the background. The choreography of the fight is great, the music is phenomenal, and you really wanna root for Joshua. It makes his appearance later in the game feel like he truly survived devastation and he's working hard to make sure no one suffers a similar fate.

Dion is fantastic, not only as some very nice LGBT representation, but also because he's just really fucking badass? The tragedy of having to witness his own kingdom become a slave to Ultima's wills, all because his father is being manipulated. And he, as a soldier, is being told to follow orders. It's saddening, but you can absolutely understand why he feels trapped. Which makes the moment of his father's murder, the accidental spear that was meant for the child, all the worse to witness. You truly understand why he was caught in his despair and enraged to the point of priming into Bahamut.

I have a lot of thoughts that I might say more on later, but as a final note, the gameplay was phenomenal. The music was god-tier. The eikon fights especially. Titan and Bahamut are easily some of the best stand-outs the game has to offer, but the fights against Typhoon, Garuda, Infernal Ifrit, and even Ultima's final form are incredibly fun. You really do feel like a massive ravaging beast that has a god's power at your hands. It's great, and I genuinely hope more RPGs take pages out of this book. Seriously, the only reason I didn't like the Odin fight was because it lacked this battle system, THAT'S how good it is.

[obsolete-stars-if]

13th Sept 2023 Progress Update

I hear you all. Your pleas are reaching me. Your cries are entering my ears. When I close my eyes at night, I can see you crying, Yes I am in your walls, no I'm not gonna pay rent. Unsurprisingly, uhm… I'm not done with the update yet. So I thought a progress update was my best shot before you all hunt me down. (Yes, I'm being overdramatic. No, nobody asked for a progress update.)

Stuff I've done:

6 out of the 10 branches are fully done.

Not including the end scene, where you all return to the same place so I can end the demo.

But that'll be quick

90% of the code is finished, aka all the base code is done, and only choices/options still need to be implemented (which will be done while writing)

I would say I'm about 70 - 75% done?

I also switched to a new app to code and write in, and it's been motivating me more

Stuff that needs doing:

Obviously the 4,5 scenes

Grammar and spell check

There is a lot of code in this chapter and I will manually playtest some of it since it wouldn't show up in quick tests as errors, but logically they are errors.

Set up more code and pray to the indentation gods to have mercy on my soul

How long do I think this will take to finish? If I don't get hit with a sudden energy boost and finish it tonight? (highly unlikely) Not this week. I won't be home during the weekend, so maybe next week? Or the week after. Somewhere around the end of September. Do not hold me accountable tho. Maybe I'll finish it tomorrow. I don't have control over me, my body finishes the update whenever it wants to.

Nerd stats: The current update is about 700 lines, 2.5k and added about 10 minutes of reading time.

Rambling under the cut

Realistically, when you play the update it's not going to seem like a lot because it will only be practically 4 branches you play, but depending on the order you chose to do these things, you can get up to 3 different scenes, and very likely will miss certain scenes that require you to do stuff in a certain order. I really hope this adds a ton of replayability to the update, it's been kicking my goddamn ass.

There are no consequences for missing scenes, dw. I just refused to only settle for one set possible scene per branch, like in Chapter 2, Don't get me wrong Chapter 2 is fine, but it's not what I wanted for this update. I wanted to include more dynamic movement of the characters, and I think I've done an okay job at it so far. I am not sure if this will be something I will do more often, esp it slows me down a lot, but now that I've almost finished it, there isn't as much dread about it as before. I genuinely laid in bed and didn't want to open my laptop and continue, BCS I was dreading the code and all the extra writing. I've done a good job at cutting a lot of the extra writing down with smart tempvars, ifs and gotos, it did add a bunch of code, but I think it has saved me a lot of headaches. Maybe once I get quicker at coding, this will be something I'll do more often.

I bit off a lot with the update and how I wanted it to work, and it has been a big challenge for me so far. I love the general option to go off and just explore, that's why I included it in the last two chapters. Having the replayability of all those different branches and scenes is something that I want to keep doing and adding to the game. But I am unsure of how much I can add before I feel like I am updating too slowly and start rushing the scenes, or not adding enough and making it feel too restricted in my opinion. But that will be something I will figure out over time.

I hope that when I finish the update, you will enjoy all the new content, find the different branches and scenes, and see how they play out for your MC. I'm a bit scared that it might not be as fun to play as I hoped, but that's a bridge I'll cross when I get there.

So…. yeah.

[bellatrixnightshade]

My brutally honest review of Fall

I would rate it around 7/10 and 4 stars after thinking clearly from that awful reading hangover.

Since I would like to end on a positive note, let's start with the bad:

Negative: -the Neverland/Peter Pan storyline was just not for me. That space could have been used for a lot more than that. It belongs in a novella more than a Prequel novel tbh. I didn't care about Pan being School Master, although I did find it interesting that the previous School Masters were Pans. Honestly, the page time should have been given to Midas, my beloved, but that's a topic for another day

_Botic Lesso . Why. Why was he here. Soman could have written a short story about Lady Lesso and her past at this point. I can't believe she's from the same family as him. Botic should have died instead of Midas. I was so pissed that this character lived and the other didn't. You are King of mermaids? I don't care. Peter Boy? I don't care. Heck, Rufius, a very minor character, grabbed my interest more than Antibiotics Lasso.

-Midas' death left a bad taste in my mouth and I skip this part of the story every time I reread it. He should have stayed alive and become the greedy king of the myths when he was older. I also cannot completely forgive Rafal for doing what he did, but at least he didn't pretend to be more than he actually was. I hated how Rhian treated him too. I hated how both of them treated him, and he should get an apology in the afterlife. Both twins were in the wrong. (Yet my toxic trait is shipping Mifal but oh well.)

-no James and Rafal closure? Okay, let's say James wanted to move on. Couldn't they at least talk first? I agree they would be better as friends. But I just didn't feel like even their friendship was developed in Fall. And also, James did make fun of Kyma and I dislike the bully boy getting the girl in a rushed manner. Did he even apologize?

-The eye color thingy wasn't essential to Soman's plot twist at all. You can still replace someone and have the same eye color together? They're twins?

-The infamous plot twist. Look, I don't hate it. I think it could work in the main series even if it was a second thought. But the way it was done was so sloppy and cartoonish at times, and not very believable.

Under this, the characters of the twins were icky. Was this even Soman's writing? There was so much potential with the opposite alignment and it was thrown away for what? I could read this in a first grade book, thank you very much.

Why does Rafal still have to call himself pure good? He might have been born that way, but he obviously forfeited that "state of grace" (as a way of saying it) by his free choices. It could've added to his identity crisis if maybe he had a hard time returning to Goodness because he believes he's too far gone. And even when he does try to be good again, it's just a start. Not "pure Goodness" especially not when you used someone right before that. So I liked Rafal’s identity crisis but it just fell down in the end. I also think perhaps Rafal could break away from a fatalistic view of life. He doesn't HAVE to be pure good or evil. He can make his own choices and be his own person, with his faults and good things. GREAT lesson there, but it was tossed out.

Rhian's Evil-- okay. This had so much potential. But no, Rhian had to throw a kindergarten tantrum and kill Rafal. Rhian's character deserves better, and I'm saying this as a person who didn’t like him instantly in Rise. Rhian was reduced to nothing but BIG BAD VILLAIN LOOK AT ME MWAHAHAHA.

Rhian could have been motivated by more complex things, or have a more complex character, like someone who can NEVER see he's wrong, because he always sees himself as good. Maybe narcissistic and self obsessed but unaware, and still human. Or jealousy of Rafal and who Rafal is. Rhian had a million different personalities it was painful to read.

-The prequels should have been one large book or a spin off trilogy. The duology thing could have been part of the problem, especially with storyline pacing and rushed plot. Also, cut off the Neverland thing from the stories.

ANTICLIMAX. That ending. That "battle." Very anticlimactic, which pissed me off since I waited months only to get that.

The Good:

-no obnoxious purple prose. The writing was clear and fun, so that's a plus.

-Midas and Rufius

-some cute Rafal and Rhian moments

-The cover

-Marialena piqued my interest.

-the story itself wasn't bad, and it was still sad and emotional. I liked the messages it tried to show, and I can say it definitely isn't a story I would forget.

This is just my opinion and I'm not bashing Soman. This is my opinion, and I love it. I don't prefer it over Rise, nor do I prefer Rise over this. I like them both for different things. I also used slightly stronger language than I usually do, so that doesn't mean I talk like that 24/7 lol.

[juliamaximoff]

જ⁀➴ about me (if u even care) !

júlia but you can call me juju or lia! (there's julinha too, it's like in the diminutive, like patootie you know?)

18 years old, she/her, brazilian 🇧🇷, scorpio, birthday in november 2nd (yes, in the day of the dead lol), infp-t, i'm 5'5".

♬ — favorite song of the moment (i'm addicted): slim pickins by sabrina carpenter.

hobbies — play video games, sleeping (it counts?😭), writing (only fanfics), editing images (usually for fanfics/fandoms), drawing (i'm very good at it but stopped doing that months ago, i lost the motivation), dancing, roller skating.

artists & actors — bts, evan peters (really? you don't say), pedro pascal, james mcavoy, tom hiddleston, neil newbon, weeekly, bibi.

movies & series — brave, coraline, good omens, grinch (2000), hairspray, mamma mia (2008), httyd 2 (i love all the movies), helluva boss, moon knight, neko no ongaeshi, princess and the frog, rise of the guardians, rush hour 1 & 2, spy x family, steven universe (all), thor 3, wandavision, zootopia.

video games — minecraft, roblox, amour sucré, the sims 3/4/2, stardew valley, bayonetta 1 & 2 (i still didn't played the 3rd one and i refuse to watch gameplays about it!), baldur's gate 3, ori and the will of the wisps, overwatch 2, league of legends, honkai: star rail, tomb raider (2013).

fave characters (in general) — peter/pietro maximoff (quicksilver), wanda maximoff, loki, deadpool, spider-man (tom holland's is my fave), aziraphale, stolas, astarion, garnet, jing yuan.

fandoms (that i still in) — bts, evan peters, pedro pascal, marvel movies and series (i didn't read the hqs, so i think would be cool to explain), honkai: star rail.

if you want to know more about me, don't hesitate to jump in my inbox to chat!this could make my day! 👋✨️

›› random facts/info under the cut.

random facts/info — 01. actually i'm learning english beig self-taught! since kid i play video games and needed to use the google translator to talk to people or understand the games, it turns out i naturally keep memorising every word. so then being a teenager and interacting with fandoms, fanfics and music... it just got better. so now i am just risking it typing (sometimes i use the google translator ngl. but have times that i type an entire paragraph without any mistakes!!! 🥰) aaand rightnow i can watch movies and videos without dubbing, but sometimes i still need english subtitles to compreheend some words.

02. i went with my mother to the BTS concert on may 25 in 2019, when they returned to brazil after 3 years, it seems silly but it was very difficult for a big k-pop group to step foot in a stadium here in brazil at that time. i consider that one of the best days of my life. ♡

03. my mom took my dad and i to ccxp 2022 in december 2nd, and only later did i find out that the day after we went (december 3rd), pedro pascal was there, in my country and state, in the comic con... this was shortly before i started being a fan of his. 🥲 it's not a super cool fact maybe, but i like to remember and laugh about it a little because i see how only destiny (and money, obviously) didn't let this happen😭 (i'm delusional, you don't say)

[tvrningout-a]

so this is from an ask on my previous blog! for context, chiyo becomes a manga artist after a few years at college ( she thinks she's gonna teach and then!! pursues her passion as she should uvu ), and she does really well tbh! this hc dives a little into the specifics of her as a mangaka.

what are her favourite topics to write and make art about?

i'd say chiyo loves to write about topics like mental health, learning to love oneself, loss -- internal struggles that cause harm even if it isn't always visible. it's not just satisfying to watch her characters overcome these sorts of obstacles, but she also hopes that by portraying a healthy way to deal with these issues, she'll help people do the same. not everyone has a grandmother or parents to help guide them, but what do people often turn to? stories, be it for the escapism or seeing a character go through the very thing they're going through.

you'll also notice with chiyo's work that she does something studio ghibli often does -- she adds moments that let the readers breathe! she enjoys drawing intricate scenery that might take up a few panels or a whole page and taking time to focus on the beauty of the characters' environment bc it gives her an excuse to just have fun drawing and honestly!! she finds it to be necessary a lot of the time. the protagonists just went through a big fight, maybe lost someone? she'll let them and the audience breathe as she depicts the toll their fight took upon their environment, or how the sun still rises despite what might have happened. she never rushes through, especially when something big happens in the story.

what do you imagine her drawing style to be like?

i'm thinking!! her biggest influences art-wise would have been studio ghibli, a variety of shounen manga like n.aruto, b.leach, etc. and a touch of shoujo manga like f.ruits b.asket! so chiyo's art style tries to mash bits and pieces of these together, giving you very pretty environments and character designs she ends up cursing herself for bc yes they're pretty, but they take forever to draw :' ) but it's nice bc while chiyo has a preference for writing/drawing shounen manga, she does like to dabble in shoujo, so she just! draws as usual rather than switching stuff up.

i'm not sure if this is making much sense adfg but basically? take the more accurate/detailed body proportions of shounen manga but the prettiness of shoujo and you have chiyo's art style!

does she have any routines when she starts working on a new piece or is in the process of doing so?

chiyo's routine is wake up, leisurely go about her morning and enjoy it before turning on some tunes and sitting down and working till her brain hits a stopping point! she does try to give herself little breaks so she doesn't give herself hand cramps ( they're the worst ), but she mainly tries to draw as much as she can in a day, and more often than she'd like to admit, in a night. sometimes her inspiration or motivation doesn't hit until it's 10 o'clock, and chiyo can't break her rhythm once it starts for fear of losing it the next day.

if she hits a bad writer's/art block, chiyo will break routine and go on a walk, touch base with friends and family -- anything to get her brain out of its funk! pretty often it happens if she isn't stimulating herself enough, so doing something different, seeing people she cares about, and indulging in new media will usually do the trick.