#maybe that doesnt make full sense and i need to think harder to communicate my feelings | Explore Tumblr posts and blogs

alkhale · 4 years ago

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Enough for Two (Tendou x Mute!Reader) Ko-fi request

So sorry but here come the waves of request that i have for you.if you cant write some it doesnt matter.I like being able to make requests but i especially want to support you. Can i get a Tendou x reader fic please?

If and when your commissions are open would you be open to writing about a Soulmates AU Reader/Satori Tendou or what ever AU/Non AU you want? If you have too much on your plate, then no worries I just really enjoy your writing!

Also found here on AO3 if it’s more convenient to read, please enjoy!

https://archiveofourown.org/works/24785287

---- ---- ----- -----

Sometimes people do things without reason to give themselves reason.

It’s a bit of a strange thought, but it’s really the only thing that makes sense to you in this situation right now at lease.

You watch your notebook go sailing across the hallway floor, sliding like a hockey puck until it smacks with finality against the opposite wall. You stare, still on your hands and knees from where you’d been about to pick it up and feel an incoming sigh well up in your lungs, hefty and full of power.

The sigh leaves your lips, nothing but a quiet, big gust of air. It does nothing compared to the racket of laughter filling the hall, shrill giggles that make you wonder if your own laugh sounds like that. You pray not.

In a perfect world, you imagine yourself turning your head to the trio of girls behind you—always in threes, isn’t it?—turning around to face their laughter with a disgusted frown and opening your mouth and spitting out, “ What the hell is your problem?” They’d probably turn white as ghosts and go screaming for the hills.

But the girls don’t go screaming for the hills. They continue to laugh and those words never leave your lips. They can’t, anyway, and your notebook is all the way at the other end of the hall since one of them sent it flying with a good kick. You remain there on your knees, staring after it for a long while before you turn back to the three girls.

They smile at you, bright, glossy sneers pulled over their lips.

You’re not really sure what it is but you think this is where you hypothesis comes into play—bullying doesn’t quite make sense, but at a school like Shiratorizawa where the students are rich and wonderful and have mostly met the hierarchy of needs necessary for a good life—they get bored. And when students are bored their minds wander, their hands wander, and their eyes wander too, all the way until they land on the girl who never says a word in the corner of their class they like to call a freak even though her problem isn’t freakish—it’s perfectly diagnosable.

When people get bored they sometimes need a reason to remind themselves they exist, even if there really is no reason for that at all.

“Oh, sorry,” the first one says, exactly the way they would in a drama—it’s a little amazing, actually. Maybe art imitates life more than you thought. “We didn’t see it there.”

“You shouldn’t just crawl on the floor like that,” another says. “What if someone tripped over you?”

“You look sad like that,” the last one says, pitifully. “Need some help?”

You gaze at them for a long moment, meeting their eyes in silence. They snicker, putting hands daintily over their mouths. They’re the annoying types who like to make sure their arm sleeves are folded up nice and neat so everyone can see the ink black words scrawled out on their skin, make sure it’s not hindered at all, bold and visible.

They start shooting each other looks. “Can you believe her?” they say to each other. “Look at her, oh my god. Is she for real?” and “Wow, this is so sad. We should stop.”

But they’re bored, so of course they’re not going to stop.

It’s useless, but you move your fingers anyways, aggressively shifting your hands in the air.

“ No, thanks. You can scram you pieces of shit. I’m tired of choking on your perfume. ”

It’s quite a hefty amount of words leaving your fingers. They take it as your way of feebly apologizing or saying something that fits their narrative and they giggle, turning on their heels and leaving you behind. This probably won’t be the last you see of them, not until graduation, but that’s fine.

It’s just one more year.

You wait until they disappear around the corner and finally stand up, brushing dust off your skirt and your knees. You stare at the floor for a few minutes, thinking up words and sentences in your head and using the memory of voices you like to imagine your own voice sounding just like that—telling them off and giving them a scare.

“W-What? You’re not mute? Oh my god!”

Yeah. You think, scoffing in silence at yourself. As if.

You feel a bit more resentful than usual even though this isn’t really anything new. They’ve done worse; tripping you in the halls or shoving you on their way to their desks. You’re just a picture perfect target in their pitifully cliche world to give them more meaning to their otherwise useless lives.

When you think of it in such a haughty manner, it does make you feel a bit better. Just a bit, because this still sucks.

You shake your head, reluctant to go get your notebook but knowing you need to do it anyway. You rub the etched, pale marking on your wrist for reassurance and start the long trek down the hall, keeping your eyes on the floor.

If it gets anymore annoying or anymore physical, you’ll bring it up to the teachers. You hate the thought of getting the staff involved but you’re not stupid enough to let them get bold enough to shove you down some stairs and risk your life. Who knew what the hell these pigeons were capable of? You’d just be the sad, bullied mute kid telling on the teachers but who cared?

No one.

Your stickered notebook pops up in your vision, grinning food stickers beaming back up at you. You blink, briefly terrified for a second before your head quickly snaps upwards.

His shocking red hair juts up in your field of vision first, followed by the easy, sneaky looking slant of his eyes and the almost perched little way his lips curve up into a tiny, peckish smile. Beside his face he throws up a giant peace sign with his two fingers.

“Hiyah,” he says, grinning cheekily at you. “This is yours, rrrrriiiiggghhhtt?”

He’s in your class, you realize, mind racing. Tendou, I think. He’s on the volleyball team and he sits two chairs behind you. You remember all this because you always collect the papers up at the front and see his name, messy and hurried. And he talks a lot too. He’s loud and laughs and teases people all the time in class—you watch him sometimes because you’re a bit jealous of how much he talks, how much he’s able to talk, shifting the tone of his voice in all these little creative ways, whether because he’s making fun of someone or just answering a question.

He feels like someone who really, really makes good use of his voice. Makes sure it's used, you mean. Doesn’t waste it.

You like that.

Tendou flaps the book once in front of you. You blink, quickly nodding and reaching out to take it.

He holds it up over his head, grinning down at you.

You stare up at him in disbelief, feeling your stomach sink.

Not him too. You knew he was notorious for being disliked amongst some of your peers—people tended to forget you were mute, not deaf—and he teased people however he liked. He was a generally tough nut to figure out no matter how you looked at it, but you never took him for a small time school bully either.

Disheartened, you wordlessly look up at him, frowning. Tendou continues to smile, holding your notebook over his head.

“Is that what you say to someone who helps you?” he says. “Nooooothing?”

I can’t. You mouth, pressing your hands to your mouth. I can’t. Sorry. You move your lips, exaggerating how you mouth the words. Thank you. Please give it back.

“Nope!” Tendou says. “Try again.”

He’s ridiculously tall. He really must be good at volleyball too. There’s no way you’re getting it with a measly jump. Your hand clenches into a fist at your side, your free hand twitching on instinct to sign out your words but you wordlessly try mouthing them at him again, feeling your frustration bubble up useless into your throat.

“Come on, I know you can do it,” Tendou says cheerfully. You clench your fist harder. His free hand moves sloppily in the air in front of you, waving his fingers in a lazy sort of manner that matches the easy look on his face, amused. “Try again!”

Wait a minute.

Your eyes quickly hone in on his free hand, staring at him in stunned disbelief. Tendou’s smile widens and he moves his hand again, shifting his fingers. With purpose. Not uselessly. You stare at Tendou’s hand, eyes growing round in shock. Your jaw drops and you look back at Tendou.

“Try,” Tendou signs and says, grinning like an imp, “Again!”

Your hands quickly move, “Thank you.”

Tendou drops your notebook right into yours hands, grinning. You stare, stunned and disbelieving, a part of you realizing he signs terribly—he must’ve just learned—and Tendou throws his hands behind his head with a whistle. “There ya go! You’re not so mute now, are ya!”

Your eyes shoot up to Tendou’s but he’s already turning, waving his hand at you and disappearing around the hall. “Bye bye (L/n)-chan!”

You’re still standing in the hallway like an idiot, staring at the spot where Tendou had been in disbelief.

Tendou, the loud, tall, bright red-head kid in your class, the same kid you never saw yourself ever communicating with, the same kid who was on your school’s top notch volleyball team, the same kid who made fun of people and scared others off and only hung out with his team—

Knew how to sign? A bit? Badly?

You blink, stunned.

Huh?

---- ---- -------

“Wow! This thing is practically empty!”

Your head shoots up in shock at the familiar voice, eyes going round as Tendou sits in the desk in front of you—it’s very much not his desk and you think you can see the bothered student at the front by the door, but his friends shoo him away from saying anything as Tendou continues to flip through your notebook. It’s nothing private—small questions to people or asking someone to hand you something when you couldn’t speak up or gesture. This notebook was the one you carted around to try and communicate with your classmates, hoping to start conversations and talk with them.

No one used it, so you didn’t either.

Tendou doesn’t look the slightest bit bothered, big and lanky and taking up all the space as he continues to flip through the notebook. He hums to himself, lips pursed in that funny little way of his until he gets to the empty pages.

You stare at him like some kind of exotic bird, a bit mystified by his presence.

“Say, (L/n)-chan,” Tendou says. “Isn’t this kind of sad? You even wrote Communication Notebook on this, but there’s not much communication going on, is there?”

You move your hands, signing, “ Not many people to talk to. It can’t be helped.”

Tendou’s eyes rapidly follow your hands and he squints, making a constipated face. You exhale quietly in amusement, signing again, slower, watching to see if he understands. Tendou’s face becomes unreadable and then he turns to you, lips pulled up into a massive, almost creepy grin.

“(L/n)-chan, how bold! Didya just say you like me?”

You shake your head. Tendou blows a loud horse sigh through his lips, flapping them. He’s clearly upset you didn’t make more of a show of the whole joke. Instead, you take your notebook from his willing hands and write. “Sorry. I was wondering if you knew how to sign. There aren’t many people to talk to so it can’t be helped.”

“Nah, it’s fine,” Tendou says, waving a hand. “I only learned a little to get your attention anyway. Makes sense~”

You stare at Tendou, stunned by his honesty.

“Aren’t ya bored of just sitting here all quiet?” Tendou asks.

You write, “I guess.”

“Ugh. I’d get bored. I like talking, you know? It fills up the silence real nice. You know what I mean?”

“ Yes. I like it when you talk too.”

“That was supposed to be a joke. I was kinda making fun of you. (L/n)-chan are ya not good at picking up jokes too? Or are you just flirting with me?”

“No. It’s just how I feel.”

“Haha, okay, you weirdo! Why don’t you teach me some more sign language then, hmm? I bet you’ll get awful tired writing in that all day and I’m a pretty quick study~”

You stare at Tendou, lowering your book and frowning at him. Tendou continues to grin, his little perched lip look, sneaky and unassuming as he waggles his brows at you. You sort of understand why your classmates call him creepy, but it’s mostly from his heights and mannerisms more than anything else. Otherwise, Tendou Satori is just… another teenage boy.

You pinch your fingers together into an okay sign, still marveling at the strange creature in front of you.

Tendou’s eyes drift absently to the pale mark on your wrist and he grins, holding up his fingers in a peace sign, using it like scissors to cut your okay sign in half.

You stare at him.

“Sheesh, can’t get any reaction out of you, can I? What a tough crowd!”

--- --- --- ---- ----

This is the first time you’ve ever had class with Tendou. It’s your first time properly “talking” to him too. You know him from the announcements, from the rumours that spread here and there about his unsettling ways and most importantly, you see him on the screens when your school calls the students together to watch the boys’ volleyball team dominate Sendai’s qualifiers all over again.

Outside of staring at him from time to time and appreciating the way he talks, that day two weeks ago now in the hallway is still the first time the two of you have ever properly interacted. The day after that he approached you in class and now everyday since—Tendou talks to you.

And he talks a lot too.

Between classes he talks to you, sidling up with his lanky, swaying body like some kind of cowboy from a foreign western. He perches over and sprawls across your desk like the two of you have been friends for years, talking about school, about class, about your classmates even or this and that, but he mostly talks about you, anime, or volleyball.

He walks you between classes since the two of you mostly share each one and he stands or crouches by your desk, talking and talking while you frantically scribble or take a few minutes each class period to try to teach him new phrases and words. He didn’t lie about being a quick study, but he’s still sloppy so it’s funny to watch.

This whole thing is a bit bewildering, to be honest. You don’t know what prompted Tendou Satori to start talking to you and make such an emblazoned effort, but maybe it’s for something similar to why those three girls like to pick on you. For no real reason at all.

You don’t really mind it, to be honest. Reason or not—he’s an entirely welcome presence, jokes, teasing, and strangeness—all of it.

“Did you like this week’s Jump ?”

“Yes,” you sign and then switch to writing. “The new chapter for Chainsaw Man was good. It made me sad though.”

“Wow, wow, (L/n)-chan you like the gorey stuff, huh?” Tendou muses, tapping your book. “Scary! I thought you’d like We Never Learn better or one of the other ones.”

“ Act-Age is good,” you write. “I’m invested. Which one do you follow? ”

“The classics! One Piece! My Hero! All the typical, easy to understand, not too complicated—I’m just kidding, don’t you think Denji’s an idiot?”

“ Yes, but I like him too. ”

“(L/n)-chan, don’t tell me that’s your type of guy,” Tendou gasps, looking scandalized. “Uneducated perverts?”

“ No, ” you sign and then write, “ I like guys that seem hard to understand but aren’t.”

“Ugh, that sounds like a headache!” Tendou flops entirely onto your desk and you raise your notebook to write. “I can only talk about Jump with you, Wakatoshi said he won’t read it until the end of the season for us! Can you believe him?”

“Yes. ”

“Traitor! (L/n)-chan, you beautiful traitor~ How cruel~”

You turn your notebook over so Tendou can read it. He squints up at you.

“Not that I mind, but Tendou, is there a reason why you started talking to me?”

“The golden question!” Tendou shouts, not even trying to sit up. You move your notebook so you can see his face and Tendou just grins back up at you, looking satisfied. “Does there have to be one?”

You shake your head. Tendou hums, content. “Perfect! We’re on the same page then.”

Tendou nearly cracks the spine of his Jump that he leant to you, opening up the pages and holding it over both of your heads. You have to weasel awkwardly under his arm and crane your head to look up at what he’s looking at too, faces side by side and Tendou grins. “Now, what did you think about Promised Neverland’s finale?”

-- ---- ---- ---- ----- ----

You stare at your empty shoe locker in silence, frowning at the sight of it.

The shoes that were supposed to be there no longer are. You stare at it for a moment longer, glancing down to your school slippers and then silently turning over to the trashcan a few feet away. You gaze at it for a long time before walking over to it with your head held high, ignoring the outburst of giggles and feigned gasps of disgust as you come to stand in front of it.

You tuck your notebook into your bag, lifting the lid of the bin up. Some students look over in confusion and several make faces as you roll up your sleeves, spotting your shoes under a heap of lunch trash and papers. The snickers and giggles grow louder and louder, a waste of the sound you wish you could emit yourself.

“ Flying super Satori kiiiiiiiiick! ”

A long leg snaps into view before a foot promptly smashes into the trash bin, knocking it sideways and spilling trash into the shoe locker entryway. Students jump aside, shouting in disgust while you gape in disbelief, staring at the pile of trash before your head snaps over to the criminal, eyes bulging.

Tendou stays crouched on the floor, sticking his tongue out and throwing you a peace sign from where he sort of crab walks beside you like some kind of creep, uncaring in how the other students gape at him like an alien. “How was that? Pretty cool, right? Ten points?”

You stare at Tendou, mouth slack.

His hands swipe out and he snatches your dirty shoes, shooting up to his full height and nearly forcing you to jump back in surprise. He grins at you, wiggling his brows before he grandly turns on his heels, your shoes in one hand while he loudly shouts with the other, “Oh, my goodness! Who made this mess? Someone better clean it up before a teacher comes!”

“Hey!”

“Tendou, what the heck you crazy bastard? You’re the one who knocked it—”

“Sorry,” Tendou shouts in horrible English. “I don’t speak Japanese!”

“Tendou—”

Tendou snatches your hand with his free one, breaking out into a gleeful sprint. You hurry to keep up after his long, lunging legs, practically huffing in exertion while Tendou holds your dirty shoes and he tosses his head back and laughs and you stare at him in disbelief, throat constricting tightly as you leave the other students and noise behind.

The evening glow turns his hair fiery and redder. Tendou’s laugh seems almost insane and infectious at the same time. It makes you feel a little hysterical, chest growing tighter. You can’t hear anything else but your own pants and his racket of laughter.

He runs with you in tow all the way to the volleyball gym, right where the two of you normally part ways and he goes to practice and you go home.

Tendou tosses your shoes into the nearby watering sink with a flourish, twirling on his heel like he’s dancing for you and moving his lanky body in all sorts of funny ways before he tosses the spout on and watches the water pour over your shoes, humming.

You stare at his broad back. You stare at it for what feels like an eternity, panting heavily, shoulders and legs trembling because you don’t do sports like this monster of a young man in front of you. Tendou turns the water off and turns to you with a peckish grin, twirling a bandaged finger. “Out of breath already? You should get into better shape, (L/n)-chan!”

Tendou fishes your soaking shoes out from the trough, gives it a quick inspection before nodding, flapping them out with one hand while he casually continues speaking, “You know, now that I think about it, the name was a bit cheesy. Maybe something like, Flying Kick of Justice or maybe—”

You quietly hold your arms out in front of you, spreading them a bit. Tendou arches a brow, looking at you with his little impish smile.

You take a few meaningful steps forward. Tendou doesn’t move, staying still until your face collides with his chest and you wrap your arms around him. Tendou just continues to smile, looking amused while you raise your hands and sign above your head at him.

“Thank you.”

“Oh, (L/n)-chan,” Tendou sighs, but he throws one arm around you anyway, patting your head. “You’re so awkward. Lucky for you, I’m great at dealing with verbally stunted people. My best friend hardly speaks a word after all!”

The door to the volleyball gym slides open, revealing none other than the superstar himself—Ushijima Wakatoshi. Tendou blinks and you look over at the volleyball legend, blinking as well.

“Tendou,” Ushijima says. “Practice in two minutes.”

Without another word the door slides back shut. You stare at it while Tendou breaks out into laughter. “See! What did I tell you?”

--- ---- ---- ---- ---- ---

It’s three months into this—hanging out, getting to know each other, learning, communicating, becoming friends with Tendou Satori that you first notice.

You hadn’t meant to look in the first place since you didn’t think about soulmates and what-not often, but it just happened when Tendou was playing with your hair, trying to arrange it into a set of funky looking braids and you’d caught a glimpse at both his wrists.

You reach out, grabbing both of them in surprise. Tendou blinks over the top of your head, sitting cross-legged on your bed— “(L/n)-chan, invite me over! Let’s play some video games or read manga!” and he lets you pull his arms closer, quickly inspecting his wrists.

You blink rapidly, a little stunned. You look again and again to make sure what you were seeing wasn’t wrong and Tendou hums in amusement above you, letting you finish up until you finally look back at him, hands moving to sign, quick and clear.

“Tendou, you…” you pause, unable to finish moving your fingers.

“It’s blank! You’re not crazy, don’t worry,” Tendou says, finishing it for you. He proudly shows off his bare wrists and you stare at them a second longer before looking back to his face, brows creasing in worry. “Aw, don’t make that face, (L/n)-chan, you’ll get wrinkles!”

You know it’s possible, people not getting marks. Most people are all born with them—the first words your soulmate is supposed to say to you tattooed in simple ink onto your skin, always on your wrists, right there for anyone to see.

Tendou’s wrist are bare of any mark, not a single piece of ink in sight.

“I think you know better than anyone,” Tendou teases above you. “Words aren’t everything to a relationship, right~”

You smile at Tendou, but your chest still aches a little bit. Tendou’s strange, but he’s funny. He’s funny and kind. Very, very kind, even if he likes to act like he isn’t or seem worse than he really is. He deserves someone kind too, even if the statistics for actually meeting your soulmate are low.

You show Tendou your mark, a simple black V and nothing more. He stares at it, looking bewildered for once himself while you simply shrug back at him, holding up two fingers like a peace sign but as a V instead.

Tendou suddenly bursts into laughter. You stare at him, pouting in silence while he clutches his stomach, rolling around on your bed and wheezing.

“Well, (L/n)-chan, how about this,” Tendou says once his laughter dies down. “If you don’t like them, how about I take their place, hmm?”

You pretend to think it over for a bit. Tendou nudges your head with his foot and you swat it aside, turning over to him and pinching your fingers together in an okay sign.

“You’re so boring! Have more of a reaction, why don’t you? You know how hard I’m trying here?”

You smile at Tendou, chest full.

---- ---- ----- ----

Maybe it’s not always that people do things for no reason to find a reason themselves.

Maybe these people just aren’t reasonable to begin with.

“Guys, look at how creepy this is! She’s writing all over it like she’s talking to herself—yikes!”

You stare at the three tormentors, frozen in place for a moment as you watch them flip through your notebook, fuller then it’s ever been. You watch them, second after second ticking as they laugh and point to the stacked conversations, the doodles and jokes and the pages stuffed full of proof that you and Tendou have built something, something dearly precious over the course of this year—

Two of them look at you and laugh, watching you at the entrance of the classroom. The last one holds up your notebook, her glossy lips moving, and then her perfectly manicured nails start ripping one of the pages.

It’s Tendou’s page. It’s terribly unlucky or lucky she picked that one. He’s written all over it, trying to be quiet that day.

“(L/n)-chan do ya get sick of me talking? People say I talk too much all the time.”

“No. I like it.”

“Aw, you’re just flirting!”

“No, I really, really like it.”

“Hahaha, then maybe I’ll talk enough for the two of us, hmm?”

You feel it tear all the way down to your bones.

“What a freak!”

Something snaps.

They clearly don’t see it coming when you go flying across the classroom, lunging for the monster with your notebook. Her eyes go round in disbelief and then furious anger when your hands find hers, ripping the book from her grasp as she fights you for it, shouting and cursing. Her two cronies are quick, grabbing at your hands and trying to haul you back but your mouth is parted in a soundless, furious scream, flailing your fists and hitting, pulling and tugging at them as you scream and scream and scream even though no words come out.

One girl nearly slaps you but you duck and shove your foot into her stomach, knocking her back into a desk.

You shout at them. Shout and shout and shout and shout . You imagine the words cutting them in half. Imagine how they’d feel hearing the horrible things spat right back into their face—

She looks up at you, eyes red with rage and the other two thrust your hands down, stomping on your feet to try and hold you down while she raises her hand to strike again.

“All three of you are ugly pigs! Don’t you have anything better to do with your lives? Did all your parents ever teach you to do is bully the quiet kid? That’s terrible! You’re all horrible!”

The shrill, overly high-pitched voice catches all four of you off guard, staring at each other, stunned. The three girls share quick looks, looking startled out of their minds while your shoulders heave, ragged from the panting and soundless screaming. You don’t understand—

Firm, large hands suddenly grab you by your waist, hauling you up into the air and away from the other two girls. You quickly grab your skirt from flying up and whirl around, eyes round in disbelief when Tendou’s sleazy, easy grin meets your gaze, his eyes crinkled.

Your already quiet world quiets further, soft and silent as you stare at him and he gazes back at you for a second, assessing your disheveled form before he promptly sets you down onto your feet behind him like you’re some kind of toy. Tendou even takes a second to brush some dust off your shoulder, fixing your jacket with a happy little hum before he ruffles the top of your head and grins at you.

His eyes are crinkled at the corners, narrowed into dangerous slits. You freeze.

“Don’t worry,” Tendou chirps. “I’ll speak for both of us~”

He turns around with a flourish, blocking your view of the three girls and holding his hands out. “Sorry, ladies! I know you all might want a piece of her, but as her manager, I’ve got to be her translator and I believe my client says—oh, yes, yes, I hear you loud and clear! She says you’re all a bunch of useless bimbos with too much time on their hands!”

You gape at Tendou, clasping your hands over your mouth even though no words come out. The three girls look stunned and Tendou sweeps on in his fake, shrill voice, “Your perfume smells cheap and your nails are so last season—wow! Did you get enough sleep? Your pores are huge!”

“Asshole!” a girl shouts.

“Tendou, you freak!”

“Tendou, what do you think you’re—” one girl starts but Tendou thrusts a finger out, pointing it right at her face.

“And now this one’s from me! ” Tendou says in his own voice, a little huskier than you remember, a little firmer, clearer, and he grins devilishly at the three girls. “So listen up, hmm?”

Your classmates always complain if there’s anything about Tendou, it’s that he tends to come off as a bit scary sometimes.

You’d never really thought so until now.

“Find something better to do,” Tendou says cheerfully, eyes narrowed into dagger thin slits as he brings one threatening hand up into the air. He smiles, dripping malice, “Or you’re going to regret it, okay?”

One girl swallows, looking ready to argue despite her ashen face. The other two grab her hands, furiously shaking their heads as they drag her away from the two of you, shooting you and Tendou glares. “Freaks! Both of you!”

They run anyway though when Tendou arches a dangerous brow at them, tails between their legs. You stare at the empty classroom door in disbelief, not quite able to wrap your head around the entire exchange or how all of this happened in so little time—

“Hmph, they can’t appreciate art when they see it,” Tendou complains loudly, dragging your attention back to him. He picks up your fallen notebook, flipping through the pages and idly smoothing out creases. “Girls like that are never going to get a boyfriend, don’t worry, (L/n)-chan. You’re much cuter than they are~”

Tendou.

There’s something loud pounding in your head. Maybe it’s your heart. You’re not really sure what it is in the quietness of it all as Tendou calmly turns to you, holding out your notebook.

Tendou.

Your fingers twitch. You feel your fingers moving, spelling out his name. Your mouth parts, breathing.

Tendou, thank —

He brings up one hand, winking at you in an expression that doesn’t fit his face at all while he throws up a peace sign, the same one he always does, just like when the two of you first met.

“Our victory this time~ If they try it again, I’m not afraid to block them! I’ve got a mean—”

You freeze.

Victory?

You stare at Tendou’s peace sign.

Your brain short circuits for a second. Something like adrenaline starts to pump rapidly through your body and you gape in disbelief, turning your wrist around and staring at the large, bold V on your skin. Your parents always joked with you about the kind of situation you’d have to be in for the first word your soulmate ever said to you to be V , but what if it wasn’t a matter of saying it but—

Signing it?

You feel your heart almost stop. It kicks back into gear, loud like a set of drums. You quickly grab Tendou’s blank wrist, surprising him as he blinks curiously down at you. “Hmm? What’s gotten into you, (L/n)-chan—”

“Tendou!” you sign, cheeks flushing. “Tendou, this might sound crazy but—”

You grab your notebook, quickly flipping to a blank page and hurriedly writing onto it. Tendou blinks, looking playfully confused until you turn your page to him.

“I think we might be soulmates!”

Your heart threatens to burst out of your chest. Tendou stares at your page for what feels like eternity before he pushes it down with one long, bandaged finger. He grins at you over the top of your notebook, waggling his brows.

“(Y/n)-chan, are you trying to ask me out? You could’ve just said so~”

You toss your notebook to the desk, lunging at Tendou with your arms thrown wide, mouth parted in a soundless, desperate laugh and Tendou simply grins in that sneaky little way of his, looking as content as a cat as he wraps his arms around you anyway and hoists you up.

“Ara, was I found out?”

In your flurry you abruptly press your lips to Tendou's unable to contain your excitement or words, hands no longer enough. Tendou goes stiff, eyes round as saucers when you pull back and stare at him, beaming brightly and quickly signing. "You're so dumb!"

The top of Tendou's ears start to turn red. You stare at him in surprise, pressing a hand to your mouth.

"Tendou," you sign. "You're so honest."

"Bzzt! Wrong answer! Better kiss me again or I'll drop you."

Without hesitating you quickly duck your head in close and this time Tendou meets you have way with his cheeky grin, both your lips molding together in a kiss that floods with laughter, even though not a single sound escapes either of you.

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"I never said I didn't have one. My soulmate just doesn't have much to say~"

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Bonus:

- Tendou gives you a whistle for when you go to his games. He always waits and then when his team scores or he blocks, a furious sound of tweets and whistles goes off, making everyone look up into the stands to find you, crazy-looking and furious waving your hands and blowing the whistle. Someone has to ask you to stop before it confuses the players. - Tendou collapses onto the floor, laughing so hard he starts to cry and Ushijima tells him he should give you a bell instead. "Bells are also soothing," he says. "Or a drum."

**** please don’t ever make fun of someone’s pores! I think I’d cry ;-;

#haikyuu #haikyuu reader insert #tendou satori #tendou x reader #haikyuu x reader #ko-fi requests #this ended up being more wholesome than i expected #but who cares #pls accept my meager offerings

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fmdjoosungarchive · 3 years ago

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restructuring task 1

+5 tracker points

1. assuming your muse has changed in some way, be it internally or as a result of a change of the external factors around them, how is your muse different? these can be as small as an opinion on a song they hadn’t released previously or as big as a major change in their background.

wc: 365

idk if i’ve said this on dash yet, but i’m treating new famed more or less like an au. in sung’s au, the defining change is that he was let go from gold star when he had his injury as a trainee. it was always my headcanon that they truly were close to cutting him loose anyway, so this is just the other side of that. he had his injury, got plastic surgery to try to appease them into keeping him, and they still let him go. when he went home his parents said alright u tried that now join the fam business n sung freaked bc he realized he doesnt want that for himself so he went to do smth he also hated, and joined the military. while there he still worked on his dance and vocals whenever he had a moment to do so, so that when he was discharged and started auditioning again, he wasn’t so rusty

he is a year younger in this world, just bc of quantum’s age range, not for any other reason. makes him a little less of a cradle robber in his relationship lol which, another change is that daisuke wouldn’t have been his first kiss, just first everything else

quantum is very different from old element and new element, but it’s very in line with what i liked about quicksilver (& has models from that) and he’s a leader! this is an idea ive toyed with a lot over the last three years tbh. at first i didn’t think sung suited a leader position, but he came to show me he’s just a different kind of leader. i liken him to jinki often in this regard. rather than lassoing members in, he supports them being however they are, and takes an intimate/emotional path to gaining their trust and leading them. and while he wasn’t suited for the full business life, what he learned from his father’s teachings helps him in dealing with the company as the group’s representative there (& he loves a good powerpoint presentation)

other timeline stuff for big events in his life are likely to shift but i’m not sure on specifics yet

2. what does your muse think of their company and their group?

wc: 260

as the child of a businessman, he’s never under the illusion that as a company entity, their first priority is their wellbeing. he knows that they are products, and that they’re treated as such. it’s a bit heavier with dimensions than gold star, since gold star makes a more active effort to pretend they care. however, once having accepted that, sung thinks himself and dimensions work well together. he does feel that for a company, they allow himself and his members to be a part of the creative process, as says their motto. he feels much more encouraged to write songs and choreograph under dimensions than he did under gold star, where it felt like he was constantly on his knees begging for the company to take him seriously

as for quantum, sung really loves what they’re about. he’s not a big fan of all (or most) of their songs, though he’s more loving towards a song written by another member even if it’s the same sound he dislikes, but he absolutely loves being focused on performance and concepts. his creative mind works very much on the basis of story and emotion that comes with it, and he feels like quantum’s concepts sometimes to often lean into his tastes. he’s always been a dancer first and foremost (god am i so glad to have his main dancer title back i MISSED u) so focusing on performance is v much up his alley, and his preferred style of dance is through storytelling. he feels the heart of dance is in that

3. is your muse on their first contract or their second? if they’ve renewed, what were their feelings around that at the time and what were their hopes for their second contract? if they haven’t renewed, what are their current thoughts on the end of their eventual first contract?

wc: 281

quantum’s on their first contract still, up for renewal in 2024. at the current moment, he would like to re-sign. however, unlike my others, his re-signing depends more heavily on the other members. if they were unhappy and wanted to leave, sung would want to follow suit, not because he can’t make his own decisions, but because if the reason the members want to leave is because of the company, not quantum, he’d want to try to help quantum continue to live. if that means all of the members leaving in order to rebrand under another company, so be it. he’d like to avoid lineup changes however he can, and ideally would like to be an idol for as long as possible

he himself feels alright about his treatment. he feels creatively stimulated, and appreciated for talents further than his face. if he were to try to negotiate different terms at their contract renewal, part of it would likely be wanting to give members a higher share of profits, especially on releases they’re creatively involved in. sung personally has no use for excessive money, but not all of his members have his background, and he feels more than just the money, it’s what’s fair. he’d also prefer to allow for more creative freedom. as a 7/8 year group by then, he’d think they should be allowed to take the reigns more heavily. and on his personal side of things, he would want dimensions to be more mindful of his schedule. sung enjoys working, but he’s only one person, who doesn’t want to be overworked. these are all just his current thoughts, though, and will probably change before contract renewal comes up

4. what are your muse’s goals and motivations?

wc: 294

his motivations to be ‘successful’ and/or achieve his goals are his family, namely being someone his nephew and niece can be proud of, and someone his parents can feel was worth letting go of. he feels closer to the latter than he did in old famed. his members motivate him to be a good leader, his desire to grow as a creator motivates him to write and choreograph

specific goals could be bigger like his desire for more public recognition. while quantum has a lot more recognition both in korea and abroad than element or quicksilver, sung wants the best for his group. he’d be happy if they stayed where they are with their loyal fandom, but he still aims for more

sung also wants to get better at standing up for himself. he’s best at standing up for others, because he can slap on a bit of bravado in order to help them out, but when it comes to himself, especially with his parents, he’s pretty awful at it

he’d also like to create more for quantum, and others. i/he have a goal for him to write a whole album for someone, so if anyone reads this far and could want sung writing for their muse, hit me up!

he’d like to get married and have children one day. that’s always been a dream of his, and while he knows his career doesn’t allow for that soon, it’s still on his docket

he wants to spend more time with his family, especially his nephew and niece. they’re so new to the world and learning everything, and sung wants to be a part of that. he doesnt want his part in their early lives to be ‘i don’t really remember seeing him back then’

5. what is one conflict, internal or external, that your muse is currently dealing with, has recently dealt with, or will need to deal with in the future?

wc: 291

at some point, this bitch is gonna have to admit he’s a homiesexual. in his previous version, it was a lot easier for him to ‘i pretend i do not see it’ when it came to that. sung’s very ignorant when it comes to the queer community in korea, so he’s not even really aware of terms beyond gay, maybe trans. but, terms aside, he always thought he was someone who liked women, and daisuke and a couple of others were just outliers. they were the Special ones outside of his jurisdiction that were just too good for him to not notice. aka he believed he was bi. and now, he still does, but i have less faith he’ll be able to hold that up until he dies like i did before, because he’s actually dated at least one woman before in this world. considering the plot has yet to be picked up, i don’t know the specifics, but i do think it’s harder to run away from when the way he treated a relationship with a woman and a relationship with a man were lightyears away from one another. it’s still possible for him to run away from the truth of the situation, but it’s also very possible that one day, his thoughts on it will shake, and everything will click into place (messily,, probably the messiest clicking ever) it would be a difficult thing for him to come to terms with, though i think it’s better for him in the longterm to truly know who he is, and why he acts the way he does, why he feels the way he does about women vs men. it’s also nice just to not live a lie, even if only privately

6. if your muse has established career claims, what are their thoughts on their career so far? if they do not, how do they feel about not having individual activities yet? what would they like to do in the future, if anything? if they don’t have ambitions for individual activities, explain why.

wc: 523

sung has a pretty filled history of individual activities. most are points claims with a focus on modelling, his radio, and music, though he’s dipped into pretty much ever facet of idoldom, some with more success than others. his ecp expenditures flesh that out a little more, and add a bit more realism, and/or make sense of the group changes. he had a one year modelling contract with the north face, and while official claims aren’t possible, i was inspired by a couple of things rowoon did with them. there was more of a push on an eco-friendly side of things, and there was a bit of dancing. playing into his group position with dancing i feel is fitting, but the eco friendly part i also feel could round out his image more as a good, kind boy who also can be sexy, whereas before, his earlier modelling claims focused a lot more on the sexy aspect, because it fit element and his trajectory there better. here, it makes him more dual sided from the beginning. north face is also just a nice, strong brand that i think is fitting for a pretty boi. i set it a bit after a year out from debut because i feel like that’s the most realistic, especially for a group like quantum that grew audience with each comeback

part of that first year being focusing only on the group ties into his creative claims as well! his first creative claim was with the bside love, lalala on the eternity ep. the nicest part of creative claims being unattached to positions is that all of sung’s claims are the songs in the discography most Him. so love lalala is very jazzy and smooth, and would have served as his first introduction to songwriting, as well as what made him interested in songwriting. then he was a choreographer on error, which is heavily story based, and about the members being a unit, and making beautiful pictures together. i hope to snag intro long journey and outro long journey from the beginning and end of the ateez sector, because they’re beautiful compositions that fit sung’s style, but also having him on both makes him feel like he’s a part of the concept’s creation in an intimate way, which fits with dms. then there’s aurora, which sung partially composed and partially choreographed. the choreography has contemporary flair to it, and the song is a flowing sound that matches that. then there’s partial production on sunrise, which i just love the robotic ass experimental production there, and comp for with u, which i believe ties back into sung’s rediscovering his love of piano. choreo for valkyrie is most similar to error in it’s pretty pictures way, and also has a bit of complex footwork, especially as its point dance, which is also p sung to want to include. and finally, some comp on stand by, which is like a mix of the appeal of aurora and with u methinks? listening to all of his written songs together i feel like really makes a picture of sung’s songwriting so i love that

#famedrstask1 #and the last q was me trying to keep it brief....... lol

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crackcrocs · 4 years ago

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DEATH WILL ONLY BE THE BEGINNING #9

This is to narcissistic mothers/ parents & anyone who is willing to understand.

(Written by me-for and through the lens of my dear friend, i wish you nothing but freedom from her chains. i wish you TLC)

Their ability to make everyone think they’re loving parents.

Their ability to make their kids believe that abuse is normal.

Their ability to make you believe you owe them everything.

Their ability to make themselves believe that they are right.

Their ability to turn the tables and make you believe that it was your fault.

All of this rings so true.

They do make you feel crazy; they suck the energy and ability to reason logically right out of you- and, by very nature of their narcissism, it never occurs to them that *they* might be the problem.

You can’t expect a relationship to happen with someone highly dysfunctional. how do you stoop down to the level of someone who aside from work & put all energy into keeping up an appearance can only abuse substance, speak to empty friends & post garbage.

In truth, I think the alcoholism is a symptom of her larger mental illness or narcissistic personality disorder- but it’s no excuse. Her parenting is unreliable, inconsistent, and unpredictable. There never is a sense of safety and consistency, allowing me to thrive.

I’m told to forgive & keep peace & ignore all your craziness. All the advice I've been getting on dealing with a narcissistic mother has been saying to avoid her as much as possible, or to try communicate & ‘keep peace’ as if I haven’t tried to communicate, as if I’m purposely singling her out from our already empty relationship. Well now I'm stuck at home all day, or every household or friend I bring over, she decides to involve. So much for distancing myself. The worst part is she isn't even doing it herself, she just sits around watching tv, having friends over & phoning everyone while Im expected to clean up after her and "contribute" to the family/ financially support my self for college.

- Yes, absolutely, I am the crazy one. You know what, I’m not even going to deny it, I probably have a ton of issues, most of them mental. But guess where they came from? Guess who made those problems worse and maybe even helped create them? No mom, you’re not to blame for everything or the “war in Iraq” as you so eloquently put it. But you are to blame for some it, at the very least. it’s time to take account & I will no longer be made to feel like the obligated for for an entitled narc.

I feel your claws sinking in less and less. You no longer have me in chains, I will break free from your emotional bondage even if it takes me seeming boring & silencing myself around you to not endure & tolerate your nonsense. Your words no longer fill me with despair like they once did.

This year long cold shoulder would have once filled me with anxiety but now all I feel is bliss. I no longer feel jealous when others talk about their seemingly perfect parents because I may not have that luxury but what I do have is a chance to be a "perfect parent" myself potentially one day. To be everything you couldn't and wouldn't somewhere far away and isolated from your poison.

I wonder how you feel... but I simply can’t understand or pretend to care anymore. I’m tired of putting energy into a source that doesn’t put out. When children don't talk to you unless prompted- it’s because there is nothing to be said after the plenty opportunities given to converse truly & openly.

No I don’t want to speak to your 9th friend on the phone today again about surface level things just to please you. No I don’t want to come socialise with your drunk friends & be spoken to like a child

When you have to tell yet another lie to yet another friend to mask the evidence of a broken home When you look in the mirror and only see insecurities When you realise there's no one around you and can't figure out why When you tear down someone close yet again, to feel good about yourself I wonder how you feel, I wonder if you feel, I wonder if you can...

my mom pushes me away but doesnt wanna let me leave. she doesn’t want to take into account that she pushed me to this extent. part of growth is being able to communicate your emotions properly. how can a whole 43 year old be unable to do so? I Vocalize when I’m not okay with something. Communication helps people avoid being uncomfortable, easily triggered, hostile, or passive aggressive with people. her communication is one sided and I’m the only one who gets to listen while she’s the only one who gets to talk, otherwise I’m ‘answering back’ or ‘telling a woman what to do’ even though I talk sense and out of respect in my responses or when I do try speak.

Worse yet I have to go BACK to the emotionally abusive situation that I basically fled.

What really bugs me is when you’ve given someone so many chances to do better and change. But then once you get tired of their antics, you try to move on and they continually try to reel you back in. Not even trying to change, but instead *trying* to reel you back in for their benefit. It’s unhealthy and traumatizing to say the least.

I guess i should be glad your swinging moods and emotions taught me to manage mine from young. I should be glad that I had to teach myself not to care about what you said to me and what you thought about me. I should be overjoyed that the side effect was me not caring about what anyone said or thought and basically becoming an inert emotionless void. I should be thankful that I always look fine even when I’m in pain and feeling like death and I’m capable of putting up with things that would send any sane person off the edge.

relationships are so much healthier when the goal is to experience life together and not to try to make the person into who you want them to be or to make them do what you want them to do. In my case my mother has de masculated me over the years making me soft and obedient, for her own selfish gain of having a man worship her. she decided since she doesn’t have a man, or never managed to find someone stay at home that’s he truly connected to, she’s decided the man that’s going to worship her will be me- her son. Since I resemble my father who she was in love with, she will always talk bad on me as she resents my father for not wanting her.

through gaslighting me over the years, it’s become harder to speak up, I even feel embarrassed to tell my dad even though that’s probably the only thing that will make her open her eyes and get clean. my pot is boiling though. Independence is obviously healthy but when it gets to the point where i find it challenging to actually be able to even admit that i might need assistance in this situation, problems arise. And for what? Why I’m I protecting her image? I’ve been taught to & I’m a respectable young man who won’t take joy from her exposure, but I don’t take joy from preserving information & keeping it all inside to deal with myself. I’ve become so hard on myself and still pushing through-it’s not easy, people still expect me to be a super heroe all the time. I have a hard time opening up, allowing people to help me in whatever I’m doing. I hate even admitting I need help most times. I wish I’d been taught early what my mother learned late, thankfully I was observant, self taught & still willing to learn- thankfully I’m not a follower & I know right from wrong.

The worst part about looking at the future and trying to imagine it full of hope, light and emotional health is knowing that you'll always have the scars. Emotional abusers aren't supposed to leave scars but mine managed to. And in my mother's usual style it can even be passed off as unintentional. In my case it was actually supposed to a kind act which ended badly in the way that only events in my life can seem to end.

All the phone calls to your friends, you continuously fake talk about me on a nonexistent relationship. it’s sad how you need to phone 100 people in a day and can only hold the same surface level chats. I wonder if you can grip the fact that nobody ever wants to help you with anything. you’re lucky they even listen and you’re lucky they only know your side of the story every time. you’re a great potter & can mould situations.

It’s sad that if you sense the slightest hint that people do not approve of your estrangement and they are not going to be there for your nonsense, you stir the pot and involve and buss peoples names, further spinning your web of lies.

All the pity you came to relish over the years as single mother warrior extraordinaire would simply dry up. Any attempts to paint me, your only child in a negative light would seem simply monstrous if I exposed you, but I maintain respect, bite my tongue & hold my head up because my real mother figure taught me that.

But really you have to keep up the pretense to your friends, that I was an insubordinate, ungrateful bitch of a problem child and you were a glorious brave single mother at her wits end just trying to make things work. even with the mural I painted, you forced me to mention the single mother narrative; as if that had anything to do with my art piece. I mean how selfish can you be? the art peace was to represent Sheku Bayou & the BLM movement, I didn’t even want to put my real name- I wanted to put my instagram page associated with my art because business is business and personal is personal. but to toot your horn, I added a whole separate paragraph because you wanted your name to be connected to my art piece as though I’m some sort of celebrity and it was my claim to fame. the single mother narrative is bullshit, I know tonnes of single african parents that know how to step up when it’s time to be a mother, but that’s something you’ve never known how to do. I remember you drunk the day I came here and I will never forget the words ‘I will drink myself to death if I want to’ I don’t have sympathy anymore and I’m not a saviour, I have tried and tried through hiding alcohol, attempting to converse & get her to cut down; but you can only bring a horse to the water not to drink it. how is a teenager meant to know how to stop an alcoholic junkie? I’m her son you say? If she truly cared and wanted to fix up, I would be one thing to stop her I thought.

my mother is an alcoholic. an addict. she refuses to wear those labels, but this has far exceeded the occasional ‘binge’ ‘sesh’ or ‘Prosecco party’ .Throughout middle school and high school, I would guess that half or so of the days out of the year she spent in a wine haze. Even my constant begging her to stop drinking did not stop it. Pouring her wine down the drain or hiding it made her angry and transitioned to mental and phsyical abuse. She became increasingly angry and I aged and entered high school but she was always this way since I came really. It was during this time that I would lock the doors to my room and try to hide from her in there. I still barricade my room door to this day just for my own peace. Despite all the horrendous things she did, every once in a while she did give me money, and this gets dangled over my head RELENTLESSLY... as if money buys love.

I needed to get some outside reassurance that I'm sane. Thankfully now I know and all I can do is try stay in my lane, can’t argue with a supposed adult with a brain that resembles a wall or a child.

People who were emotionally abused have spent far too long defending themselves. Justifying their own feelings. Trying to make others see and understand what they went through is a task. Abusive parents are very good at manipulating. that’s why I have ceased contact with this toxic person, i do not owe anyone an explanation.Doesn’t matter if they are a family member or close family friend. Doesn’t matter if they are a friend or acquaintance of yours. I’ve learned just to be boring , save everything interesting and beautiful about myself for those who deserve it.

#LCZABIBU #deathwillonlybethebeginning

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botanyshitposts · 6 years ago

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what if i left my finger on a sundew for like a REALLY long time? would it be able digest my finger? can they do that? i did i quick google search and didnt find an answer so feel free to ignore this ask if you have to put any effort into it cause i didnt put much effort into finding the answer, but if you happen to know like off the top of your head and it isn't a bother then like yeah what would happen to my finger?

oh fucking boy are you into a treat bc u bet ur ass i know the answer to this and its not pretty like tw: the answer to carnivorous plants eating human flesh

okay, so in the carnivorous plant community there’s this botanist named barry rice. rice is a pretty significant figure, and has written some books, is the editor of the ICPS’ quarterly newsletter, has contributed to a considerable amount of research, and is overall a pretty respectable dude who still studies carnivorous plants and does lectures and stuff. he also runs a website called sarracenia.com, where he answers a lot of carnivorous plant questions ranging from simple care ones to advanced info.

back in 2005, Rice got athlete’s foot. he got like. really, really bad athlete’s foot, and when he finally got meds to get it under control, some dead skin had started peeling off. like, sizable chunks of flesh. so he did the reasonable thing and decided to test this to see if his venus fly traps would eat them.

now, venus fly traps can’t eat anything that doesn’t move- the stimulation of the struggling organism retriggers the hairs inside the traps to confirm to the plant that it’s snapped onto something, and the more movement it makes, the harder the plant seals the vacuum and the more digestive fluids are released. such is life. so Rice added small earwigs to 2 of the 4 samples (samples 2 and 3) to simulate movement (but all 4 ended up eating the samples regardless). being a scientist, he also scanned in the chunks pre-being eaten, and fed the chunks to not just one venus fly trap, but to a normal venus flytrap plus three other different varieties. he then waited. he assumed that the plants wouldn’t be able to eat the skin, as he assumed that it would be too hard for them to eat (skin callouses + his resident fungal ordeal).

when the traps finished digesting and opened a few weeks later, rice collected the carnage, scanned them in, and posted about his experiment on his website. what he found was that not only did the plants eat almost all of his toe chunks (i would estimate about 95% based on the images), but they also rejected some parts, which they had sucked all digestible nutrients out of. we see this kind of skeletonization in small animals that fall into carnivorous nepenthes pitchers, but it takes several months of them sitting in there to become fully digested, and in rice’s case, there wasn’t even any bones involved and it took comparatively significantly less time to do so. he then compared all four of them to their pre-digestion counterparts.

now, i won’t put the full on image of the before and after carnage in this post to protect the innocent, but for those interested, here’s the photo of the pre and post digested toe chunks. the “A” samples are before they went in, and the corresponding “B” samples are when they came out.

this is pretty interesting, because from what I can tell with my limited knowledge of human biology, it looks like the plants chose to eat away almost all the cartilage?? rice couldn’t seem to make any sense of the color change; to me it seems like they almost rejected any and all blood present in the skin capillaries (how much blood is in any part of ur body at once?? isn’t that like, a thing, where like there’s a small amount of blood touching all ur cells always?? did the plant just condense all of the trace amounts in those chunks and reject it??) but to me, that doesn’t make much sense; isn’t blood a pretty easily easily digested thing? like if you’re not an animal, you would think that that would be a pretty sweet and easy source of protein and stuff. Why would they reject that??

my other hypothesis on looking at that is that it rejected the super diseased portions. or maybe the toughest parts. maybe if it hadn’t finished its natural time-mediated cycle of digestion so soon, it would have finished digesting what was left over. maybe it had undesirable nutrients, or whatever reacted with the weak acid in the plants to produce a chemically indigestible product. idk, this is honestly an experiment i’d like to see replicated on a professional level, preferably with a pre and post examination of the chemical composition of the flesh, you know? and this doesnt even get into the differences in how the different varieties of venus fly trap ate the chunks; the first cultivar, a garden variety wild type, seemed to make the most dent in it, but also didn’t have a bug added. that being said, sample 4 also didn’t have a bug added, and had a similar digestion level to plants 2 and 3; this confirms for us that what was left over by the plants was, indeed, undigested toe chunk specifically. so why did the first variety eat the most? did it have a longer digestion period, or a stronger acid (being an unbred variety), or maybe it’s toe chunk had less of- uh, whatever the plants didn’t like?

i wish barry had included a chart of other aspects of the plants, like their age and the size/number of the traps and stuff, and information on the cultivars, the last time they had been fed, maybe an analysis of the digestive fluid of each, etc. basically a scientific paper. yeah, i wish rice had made this into a proper scientific paper.

so anyway. I’m not sure what would happen with sundews, as those are a distinctly different plant, but a similar mechanism would be needed; you would need to wiggle your finger occasionally to keep the plant convinced that it hadn’t made a mistake. it would probably take weeks, or months, but eventually it would either 1. eat what it could wrap itself around to the bone or 2. make at least a dent in the digestible meat of your finger. eventually it would stop eating and unravel, wether it was digested or not, because these are active traps we’re dealing with. maybe it would spit out/eat around parts that it didn’t like in the process. idk man if i ever actually come across the means to test this i promise i will report here on this blog first

rip botanist barry rice’s toe chunks 2005-2005

#this is really long but its really interesting #rice speculates in his blog post that he doubts a giant little shop of horrors-eque plant would be able to eat a full on human #because of the sheer scale of the enzymes that would be needed isn't possible by normal flytraps #if i was gonna feed a body to a plant i would actually personally go for pitcher plants #as those seem to eat the most in the whole 'plants eating animals' argument #asks #plont asks #carnivorous plants #cutoffkhakis

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actualbird · 7 years ago

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BIG LONG POST of bakunawa boy world building under the cut sponsored by the fucking star of an anon who sent me so many mcfucking incredible asks about this au world

ohhhhh gosh i love this so so much. language is a huge interest of mine and seeing this progression of it is FASCINATING. “fog” used as the term is so fitting because supernaturals, most probably werewolves, since theyre the most common, would describe the feeling not as a loss of control, but instead like things are just...a little harder to completely focus on. and when the focus slips, other older, more magical things ring out a bit clearer, and they would follow.

moonlust would ABSOLUTELY be deemed offensive because it implies not only the loss of control but like. the sexual tinge to it would make people >:(. the moon is a very important figure for many supernaturals and while it isnt worshiped, it’s definitely respected. that big rock in the sky takes care of us, do NOT say that to it. (possible meme: dont fuck the moon)

since only werewolves come up in my head when i think of creatures that shift at full moon, this term is totally used by literally anybody who is even remotely affected by the moon. sea spirits, harpies with owl blood, and of course the bakunawa. not everybody really agrees with the implications of moonfog though. there are a bunch of spns that describe the moon’s magic as something that makes everything even clearer (sea spns mostly).

for michael, he finally gets what moonfog means when he first manifests. it’s hard to think straight when the rumbling in your head is louder than ever.

i still cant get over “fogged” tho. it’s sounds close to fucked so “DONT TALK TO ME IM STILL FOGGED UP” hjskdfdsfsdhhh

:(((((( fuck i hate thinking about the ugly bits of any world but this is real shit.

guhhh i wanna disagree with the implication that spns go berserk and kill humans tho. only because if this were true, this world would probably be a lot more dystopian. i want things to be slightly okay so:

spns rarely ever go “berserk” these days and youre kinda a dick if you still believe spns are big scary monsters. i figure a lot of aggression existed back in ye olden days, because magic is powerful and passionate and righteous, but all those things remained while the aggression diluted. prolonged and generally peaceful co-existence with humans does that. that being said, HUMANS R STILL DICKS

there are always complaints coming from spns about human neighbors not following regulation, but theyre usually handwaved away if youre in a human majority community. if ur lucky, maybe the human will get told off. once in a blue moon, theyre fined. spns everywhere look into the camera like in the office.

same would go for basically...every thing that humans deem mundane and safe but are actually harmful for spns. the blanket statement is “how was i supposed to know that hurt them?” which is bs but also school’s would only really have a super basic intro to a handful of spn biology. spns are used to being the ones to have to adjust.

like a common for all spns is that conversation they have to have with every human friend about stuff that’s harmful for them. michael was a sweetheart explaining to jeremy because jeremy is awesome but everybody else? werewolves and vampires and the such kinda have it a little easier since their weaknesses are common knowledge but michael is Rare Boy. dragons hybrids are already uncommon the bakunawa? people cant even spell it right, much less know what sets michael off. he’s joked about having a business card. “hi im michael im a bakunawa and loud noises make me feel Very Afraid thanks for listening to my tedtalk” hkjhkjkhdd.

(while im on this thread, #JustSpnsThings is a hilarious hashtag that totally exists. you know kinda like #GrowingUpWithAWeirdName thing? something like that but it’s just spns screaming into the internet. “late for my 8am lecture because a coworker dropped a box of paperclips and i Had To Count Them All FML”)

i went a bit off topic here. uh. welp

ohhhh gosh i love this!!!! especially the bit where like. sometimes it doesnt work.

the thing with spns and magic is that both are very heavily tied to nature. while magic in technology has made huuuge leaps in the past century, no witch/sorcerer architect can find a way to build anything thsat truly makes a spn feel at home like the real thing. spns totally get this and since not all of them are fucking loaded, they just make trips to wherever they have to be.

post-manifestation, michael starts driving to the coastline. he’s not allowed to stay for too long though. and he’s not allowed to go alone.

(the thing about the real thing sometimes is that the magic is so strong, you might not be able to say no to whatever it might say. the sea doesnt know how to stop calling its children. the magic doesnt know how to reel itself back.

so spns have to be the ones to adjust.)

//BIG EYES EMOJI!!!!

hrmh okay so this is def a case to case basis. generally, after the confusion of the first shift/manifestation, spns would slowly get used to it. kinda like riding a bike: once you learn it, you cant unlearn it (i think. i never learned how to ride a bike, but thats what people say so).

ive referenced in previous discussions that spns with a shifted form find that part of them selves like a separate aspect in their head that they can hear/understand. in sunny’s bakunawa fic, Sleepsong, this is illustrated beautifully:

There was a voice in his head, grumpy and rumbly, telling him he should pull back. Too cold, too cold. Michael had ignored it, of course, because he’s seven years old, he can make his own decisions thank you very much

and this is like. That’s It. going off of this, when shifted, it’s more of the former!! spns are their usual self, but that spn aspect in their head is louder or holds more control. up to the person themselves on whether or not theyll follow it.

post-manifestation, it would take maybe two or three more full moons for michael to completely get a hang of the fog and not be a loopy mess. when he starts practicing shifting outside of the full moons (where he either involuntary shifts or feels the Great Need To Be Shifted), the instincts are a little bit more dulled since he’s the one in control and making choices. i hope that makes sense kjhkfjdhkfsd

wb!anon thank you so much for sending all of this in!! this was so much fun and your brain is a STAR!!!

#@ followers on mobile: im so sorry #discussion here is mostly worldbuilding/au setting but michael pops up a bunch cuz i love him #bakunawa boy #i miss this au a lot....i cant wait to slam dunk forest so i can go back and write continuation fics //longing sigh

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comicteaparty · 6 years ago

Text

July 5th, 2018 CTP Archive

The archive for the Comic Tea Party chat that occurred on July 5th, 2018, from 5PM - 7PM PDT. The chat focused on Cunning Fire by Kaz Rowe.

Featured Comment:

Chat:

✨🐱 RebelVampire 🐱✨

COMIC TEA PARTY START!

Good day everyone~! This week’s Comic Tea Party is now officially beginning~! Today we are discussing Cunning Fire by Kaz Rowe~! (http://cunningfire.com/) For those new or in need of a reminder, discussions about the comic are freeform, so please feel free to bring up whatever you wish. However, every 30 minutes I will be dropping in a discussion question to help those who would like a prompt. These questions are totally OPTIONAL to answer, and you can pay them no mind if you wish. If you miss out on any though, they’ll be pinned for the duration of the chat once they’re posted~! Remember, constructive criticism is allowed, but the primary focus here is to have fun and appreciate the amazing comics that the community makes~! As a bonus, each chat a top comment will be picked and featured in the archives and on an ad for CTP! All that being said, let’s get started and have a great discussion!

QUESTION 1. What is your favorite scene in the comic so far and why?

snuffysam

I liked the scene where Akiva and Blair go through the first few levels of the astral plane

It was cool introducing the different environments, and that scene gave us "i need to make a harder challenge"

✨🐱 RebelVampire 🐱✨

i felt so bad for that first level guardian. XD just trying to make some nifty puzzles but nope, everyone just comes and solves them and moves along

i think my fave scene is when they charged the crystal. not only were the visuals really stunning, but im glad there was an element of danger to it. i think that really painted a distinct picture that no, being a witch is kind of dangerous

snuffysam

yeah, i liked the idea that if you mess up with that channeling, you could be hit by lightning

turned out ok in the end, because they needed smaller crystals. but the danger was there

MathTans the Pun 👑Prince👑

So, I liked when Akiva and Darcy first met, and the latter remarked how "literally none of that is your business" but they still kind of got along... and so I shipped them only to see in the author's comment that it could end up being canon.

snuffysam

i can see that. the ship has a lot of potential

MathTans the Pun 👑Prince👑

Though the astral plane stuff was neat too. Poor tearful Guardian 1, I guess anyone who makes it to him kind of has a sense of things already.

A lot of things seem dangerous, Akiva's just blindly charging in (though not totally blindly, as they're trying to help her).

✨🐱 RebelVampire 🐱✨

haha i feel the akiva darcy ship is pretty obvious. would be surprised if it doesnt happen because the two have a really strong connection. or at least akiva is really insistent on being a creepy porch stalker

MathTans the Pun 👑Prince👑

Just gotta get past that whole Bahram spoiling it thing.

snuffysam

and a creepy window stalker

MathTans the Pun 👑Prince👑

Akiva, into the architecture, heh.

✨🐱 RebelVampire 🐱✨

i like how the danger kind of gradually increases for akiva. in that they dont throw her into the most dangerous stuff from the get go. i feel like theyre working their way up so she doesnt panic

MathTans the Pun 👑Prince👑

Though you know me and my yuri ships.

snuffysam

yeah it really is kind of like getting experience points and leveling up

MathTans the Pun 👑Prince👑

Rebel - Yeah, that's a good point. And they seem to have judged where she's at too, like that remark in the graveyard about how she'd have already been thrown out if there was problems.

"This isn't like a video game!"

snuffysam

it is totally like a video game though, lol.

✨🐱 RebelVampire 🐱✨

another scene that i really enjoyed was when akiva and blair talked on the balcony. mostly because i felt like that scene had some really great atmosphere.

MathTans the Pun 👑Prince👑

Yeah, I hope that builds up to something more, and learning about Darcy's past.

Related, I find the cast page really interesting... their witch cards, with certain "spoiler" information blacked out.

snuffysam

the balcony scene reminded me - one thing i really like is how the characters' clothes change

MathTans the Pun 👑Prince👑

I hadn't even really remarked on that. Good one.

✨🐱 RebelVampire 🐱✨

i was actually really sad there was so much good info on that cast page cause i wanted to include some of that stuff in the questions but decided against it since it wasnt in the story itself. XD

i really enjoy how the characters have their own individual styles for clothing

MathTans the Pun 👑Prince👑

Heh. The evil date, "121613".

Actually... this takes place in 2016. And Darcy's pact was 3 years ago. Coincidence? O.o

Some people (witches?) must have up and died in mid-December that year...

snuffysam

rio's had a pact for 3 years too, according to her card

✨🐱 RebelVampire 🐱✨

well the cast page does say eden is one of 4 survivors. and cant have survivors unless ppl dun died

MathTans the Pun 👑Prince👑

Maybe they were just sent to astral jail or something.

Like the hellhounds.

snuffysam

though i would point out that eden wasn't registered until after december 16th 2013

MathTans the Pun 👑Prince👑

OH. Nice catch. That is interesting. Maybe the incident is what drove him to witchcraft.

I like how Akiva was born on Halloween.

Also that Blair's overdue for renewal.

✨🐱 RebelVampire 🐱✨

that or it could mean the council didnt know about eden and he was doing underground witch stuff. and then the incident is what made them aware of those ppl

MathTans the Pun 👑Prince👑

The incident was SORT of in the story too... that side story with the online message boards.

Rebel: Good point.

Gotta have the licence to practice magic.

I also liked the side comic following up on the "favour" that was owed, using the library. Including the use of gloves to handle old documents, well portrayed.

There's a whole big backstory here we're only just starting to see.

snuffysam

yeah it really feels like there's a lot to this world we haven't seen yet

✨🐱 RebelVampire 🐱✨

QUESTION 2. The comic has plenty of mysteries surrounding our protagonist Akiva. First off, why do you think Azrael spared Akiva’s life as a baby? Or, in other words, what exactly did Akiva do that upset the balance that was mentioned a few times? We also learn that one of Akiva’s brothers died under unknown circumstances. What do you think happened to the brother? Was it an accident, self-inflicted, or somehow supernatural? Do you believe the brother’s death has something to do with Akiva’s strained relationship with her family? Lastly, though we know Akiva is a Death Witch, we have yet to see the full extent of her powers. As a Death Witch, what do you think Akiva will be able to do? Do you think she’ll adjust to her powers, or will they scare her and cause emotional trauma?

snuffysam

azrael was just in that halloween spirit

MathTans the Pun 👑Prince👑

Her brother had to die because she lived. Will she want to bring him back? Not sure about that.

Maybe he lives on inside her. As a female. Who can resuscitate on the third astral plane.

snuffysam

maybe there can only be a certain number of death witches in the world, and akiva's birth somehow caused one to die?

MathTans the Pun 👑Prince👑

Because the big twist is, they're not actually related... Akiva's father is actually Bahram, or something. (edited)

✨🐱 RebelVampire 🐱✨

maybe. as for upsetting the balance i assume that akiva did something she wasnt supposed to do. and for a baby that could mean maybe she wasnt even supposed to live long enough to be born? albeit there is that one scene with azrael where he wishes the old lady good luck in the next life. so assuming reincarnation is a thing, maybe akiva's balance upsetting has more to do with who she was before than who she is now.

MathTans the Pun 👑Prince👑

Hm, not sure I buy that there's a quota.

Or who she will become?

snuffysam

azrael said that she DID upset the balance, not that she WILL, so i don't think it's that

the next life could refer to just the afterlife. but it could be reincarnation?

MathTans the Pun 👑Prince👑

That's fair. I wonder if it's like the balance between our world and the astral one then... was she only "born" in one place...?

snuffysam

are you saying everyone is supposed to have an earthly form and an astral form, and that azrael had to spare her because she didn't have an astral form?

MathTans the Pun 👑Prince👑

I'm not sure what I'm saying, but let's go with that.

Maybe that Alex girl has the answers. (Am I getting the name right? The prior Death Witch.)

snuffysam

i think it was alexa?

✨🐱 RebelVampire 🐱✨

yes alex is correct. alexis if you want to go non nickname

snuffysam

ah yes

yeah i think she knows what's going on with azrael more than anyone else

MathTans the Pun 👑Prince👑

I'll take any chance at a name I can get. ^^;

Except if she has the potion, why hasn't she spoken to him already? Is it that she needs a noble excuse?

✨🐱 RebelVampire 🐱✨

she could still know something. albeit shes still far from getting the potion. shes only on the 5th floor and there are 13 floors

so thats many to go

im really curious about whether each time they go to a new floor if their progress saves or if theyre bumped back to the beginning

cause if its the latter that makes sense for why getting to azrael is hard

since akiva passed out on what, floor 3?

snuffysam

i think you always have to start at floor 1. the reason you can ever make it further is because you train up to not lose so much energy.

MathTans the Pun 👑Prince👑

They must go back through, because that person said that Darcy had gone through level 2 quickly. Owing to her experience.

✨🐱 RebelVampire 🐱✨

ah thats true!

i forgot about the mention of darcy

welp

good luck to akiva

in regards to akiva's bro, maybe she hugged him and sucked the life out of him

just like how she murdered that flower for a moment

snuffysam

oh dang that would certainly cause some strained relations

MathTans the Pun 👑Prince👑

Actually, I'm pretty sure that the Darcy scene we saw near the start (with the crystals) took place in the midst of Part 4, like it was sort of a "flash forward" and then we went back to follow Akiva's path.

snuffysam

maybe? i figured it was just one of the many tries.

MathTans the Pun 👑Prince👑

Hmm, Seth seemed to know it was coming though? Because he left that note. But I suppose it could explain about her regaining that ability (or rather just lost the power to turn it off).

I suppose it could be too. I've no proof.

✨🐱 RebelVampire 🐱✨

maybe bahram killed him O_O cause lets just blame bahram for everything

this sounds like a great plan

MathTans the Pun 👑Prince👑

yis.

snuffysam

there are plenty of other evil entities out there!

probably

✨🐱 RebelVampire 🐱✨

i assume the strained relationship is actually just cause she predicted it. cause ppl tend to like to blame others when somebody dies.

maybe this is one of her powers as a death witch

she can see ppl's dates of death

MathTans the Pun 👑Prince👑

Oh, that could be too. Or maybe she could have predicted it, but said nothing, because of suppressing it?

Though I guess that wouldn't make sense with her family.

Unless she told them about her ability when she was young maybe.

snuffysam

have we seen her predict deaths a long time in advance? we know she sees azrael show up and follow people around a few minutes before they die...

we know she told them about seeing ghosts when she was young, and they didn't believe her

MathTans the Pun 👑Prince👑

Ahhhh. (Except Seth, maybe? I don't recall.)

✨🐱 RebelVampire 🐱✨

i dont think she specified it was a few minutes before? i think she just said soon and soon can mean a few minutes or it could mean a few hours (or a few days if you want to stretch it). and since azrael is technically just projecting himself its not like hes going to be worried about appointment keeping. cause theoretically he can just project himself however many times he needs.

wait

now i wonder how azrael knows when to get ppl

cause he didnt get that one girl who inadvertantly got akiva arrested

and if shes seen other ghosts

snuffysam

i feel like ghosts come back from the astral plane under certain circumstances? don't know what those would be though

✨🐱 RebelVampire 🐱✨

well that one chick with akiva was most likely murdered so i could see how that leaves unfinished business.

MathTans the Pun 👑Prince👑

Maybe there's only certain people who are special enough.

Back to the original question, I don't think the Death Witch thing will cause any more emotional trauma than Akiva already has. ^.^

✨🐱 RebelVampire 🐱✨

i think it could but i think itd depend on the what. i think itll take something super major. like somebody dying.

QUESTION 3. Not long after Akiva joins Keter, she finds out that Keter had a Death Witch who vanished. Why do you think the last Death Witch, Alexis, left Keter? Was it based on selfish motivations, or could it have been something that Keter did? Does it have something to do with whatever happened between Alexis and Riley (and what do you think happened between them in the first place)? If Alexis left Keter, why is she still trying to reach Azrael with such determination? Lastly, do you believe Alexis and Akiva will meet, and if so, how might that affect Akiva’s perception of Keter?

snuffysam

i think the others were just pushing alexis too hard

MathTans the Pun 👑Prince👑

I suspect they'll meet on the Astral. Could be rocky.

snuffysam

yeah i imagine they'll run into each other on the astral plane somewhere

MathTans the Pun 👑Prince👑

Maybe they were doing more than pushing too hard, maybe they were pushing her in a couple directions at once. Which was why she couldn't handle the relationship side of things too.

snuffysam

possibly

is it possible that alexis is trying to make the elixir for some personal reason?

MathTans the Pun 👑Prince👑

She might have left in a rush, she left her stuff. (Though I guess if she had to steal the elixer on the way out, that makes sense.)

I think that's almost a definite, yeah.

snuffysam

like, someone she knows who died or is dying?

✨🐱 RebelVampire 🐱✨

i could go a few ways. on the one hand i could see it that she was pushed too hard. cause i feel like theyre already doing that with akiva. cause even if akiva is a natural, akiva is also still a beginner. and they already have her jumping into the astral and that seems a bit soonish to me. so in a sense i do feel like keter probably drove her to it

but on the otherhand, maybe theres something alexis knows that we dont

like some secret she discovered

snuffysam

maybe there's something shady going on with rio?

MathTans the Pun 👑Prince👑

I feel like already died, otherwise she'd have been putting pressure on herself too, but there could be something to that.

Alexis knows who puts cream in their coffee.

✨🐱 RebelVampire 🐱✨

something shady with rio, or perhaps it has something to do with azrael. cause azrael did use to be human (iirc). that could have something to do with it.

and i assume theyre all there to revive different ppl tbh

so either that elixir has multiple uses

or after they get it theyre going to fight it out about who gets to use it

snuffysam

some people want to sell the elixir for money, probably

✨🐱 RebelVampire 🐱✨

maybe. i dont feel any of the charas would. riley and quinn seem involved for research. but i think blair, eden, and darcy are pretty heavily implied to want the elixir for the life giving part of it.

idk about rio

rio might just want moneys

MathTans the Pun 👑Prince👑

OH. Hmmm, will Akiva become the new Azrael? Is that her destiny? Because I'd forgotten about the human thing.

Maybe Alexis wants the Elixer just to spite the others.

snuffysam

maybe all the guardians were once humans, and death witches are created in case they need more?

MathTans the Pun 👑Prince👑

Maybe Death Witches are all potential successors, it's a question of whether they pass certain tests.

snuffysam

yeah, that's what i'm thinking

✨🐱 RebelVampire 🐱✨

maybe natural death witches at least

MathTans the Pun 👑Prince👑

Yes, no artificial Death Witch sweeteners. Sorry, Darcy.

snuffysam

only death witches who make it to azrael are allowed to become the next azrael, for example

do we know of anyone who has truly pulled off being an artificial death witch?

✨🐱 RebelVampire 🐱✨

no tho its implied they exist. i just assume natural ones are way stronger and have a huge advantage

and are more likely to actually make it to azrael

MathTans the Pun 👑Prince👑

Was that guy in the other coven, the one who used his powers for healing, a natural one?

✨🐱 RebelVampire 🐱✨

i dont recall if they mentioned

nope

hes a natural

MathTans the Pun 👑Prince👑

Me neither. I guess they can't change covens once they decide?

Oh, good find.

✨🐱 RebelVampire 🐱✨

i actually clicked on the first page right from the get go

i lucked the heck out on that one

and idk i feel like they could change covens

just usually dont

snuffysam

you can quit covens, nothing stopping you from joining another one

MathTans the Pun 👑Prince👑

Why not just offer him better benefits then, to join them? Like dental? (Eden seems to have a good dental plan...)

snuffysam

its just kind of a jerk move unless you had serious personal problems with your previous coven

✨🐱 RebelVampire 🐱✨

i dont think avery would be a good choice cause even he says he sticks mostly to healing.

so ive had a thought. what if alexis doesnt come back to keter because she felt so pressured to succeed that she stayed in astral too long and lost her connection to her physical body

MathTans the Pun 👑Prince👑

Fair enough.

Oh, huh... do you think they're trying to get the Elixcer to help Eden out? Because he seems to have the vampiric tendencies, with the teeth and not going outside.

Maybe that's why Alexis cut and run.

snuffysam

maybe? but if she lost the connection to her physical body, how did she steal their progress?

✨🐱 RebelVampire 🐱✨

well i mean she stole their progress, ran away, hid, but can no longer come back to them even if she wanted

so lost the connection after she ran away i mean

snuffysam

ah, ok

✨🐱 RebelVampire 🐱✨

thats why she hasnt really talked to them or so i feel is implied

MathTans the Pun 👑Prince👑

Ah, I see... that's possible. You'd think someone would have found a body though?

✨🐱 RebelVampire 🐱✨

not if she hid super good O_O

but that was just my pulled out of the hat theory

MathTans the Pun 👑Prince👑

Maybe she needs the Elixer to get back inside her body.

snuffysam

that would suck if the elixir only has one use then, lol. lose your body trying to make the elixir, and now you need the elixir to get back.

MathTans the Pun 👑Prince👑

Maybe it simply raises all the dead.

It's like "Death Note" in reverse.

✨🐱 RebelVampire 🐱✨

im not sure azrael would consider that for the greater good

but on the point of the greater good i wonder how theyre going to frame it to convince azrael of that

snuffysam

depends who they're planning on using it on

darcy said that it's definitely not going to work if you're just in it for the money or the challenge, and i agree with her there

but if it's to cure a vampire who could potentially save dozens of lives with his potions? that might work

MathTans the Pun 👑Prince👑

Everyone's life insurance premiums will go down?

✨🐱 RebelVampire 🐱✨

i wonder what darcy wants then that she considers her goal more worthy

MathTans the Pun 👑Prince👑

I dunno, but she is DRIVEN. To experience pain whenever someone touches you? That's a sacrifice.

Also rains a bit on the ship, sadly.

Will need to cover her in saran wrap. Not sure if into that.

✨🐱 RebelVampire 🐱✨

QUESTION 4. Besides Akiva, there are plenty of other characters with mysteries upon mysteries. Between Keter and Darcy, what do you believe everyone’s motivation is to create the Elixir of Life? Why do you believe Darcy would go so far as to contract with Bahram, who seems to be bad? Further, what is Azrael’s relationship with Bahram? As for Keter, what do you think is going on with Eden since he has to visit the doctor frequently? As Blair was avoidant of the question, why do you think she became a Hedge Witch? So the question doesn’t become too long, are there any other theories regarding the characters or their pasts, whether those mentioned or some of the others like Rio and Quinn?

MathTans the Pun 👑Prince👑

Nice little segue I gave there.

Again, I figure Eden's somehow vampiric. Could be from another pact, like Darcy's? Can't go outside versus can't be touched?

snuffysam

pacts seem to cause downsides like that. i wonder what rio's condition is, since she apparently made a pact?

✨🐱 RebelVampire 🐱✨

idk. wish we had more info about pacts.

cause with darcy i assumed it was just a bahram thing

and i mean bahram looks evil

probably smells evil

but then in the astral blair gets kind of snippy cause that other witch also had a pact

MathTans the Pun 👑Prince👑

Rio used to be taller, perhaps.

✨🐱 RebelVampire 🐱✨

so if theres a huge stigma whats even the benefit

MathTans the Pun 👑Prince👑

Someone to chill with on Sunday evenings?

snuffysam

yeah, what sort of power do demons or whatever actually give you? and can you break off a pact if it isn't working out?

MathTans the Pun 👑Prince👑

Maybe if you give them someone else to pact with?

✨🐱 RebelVampire 🐱✨

like for that matter what do the spirit demon things get. cause bahram at least must be after something

is this a selling of the soul sort of thing O_O

MathTans the Pun 👑Prince👑

He gets someone to nag, I suppose.

snuffysam

he gets to cause someone pain

MathTans the Pun 👑Prince👑

Just want to say, I like Quinn. Maybe in part because she reminds me a lot of a character in one of my stories, but also the whole idea of being a Sea Witch who doesn't like water feels like an interesting take.

✨🐱 RebelVampire 🐱✨

im more interested by the fact her cast card says she used to be a former council apprentice

cause i want to know what happened there

did she leave

did they kick her out

MathTans the Pun 👑Prince👑

Oh, that's interesting. Maybe was rejected due to the not liking water thing?

✨🐱 RebelVampire 🐱✨

yeah that could be. also could be she left on her own. maybe after the incident

MathTans the Pun 👑Prince👑

Or spread too much gossip?

✨🐱 RebelVampire 🐱✨

i also just want to point out that avery mentions that he and his boyfriend also have been doing witchcraft for 3 years

so there seems to be a theme of everyone getting into witchcraft around the time of this mysterious incident

snuffysam

a lot of 3 years stuff, yeah. a lot of new witches came about in december 2013.

✨🐱 RebelVampire 🐱✨

so either a lot of ppl died or maybe a lot of people became aware they could be witches.

MathTans the Pun 👑Prince👑

Maybe that's when the first Elixcer got out. So they need this second one to fix the damage that one caused.

Also, I cannot for the life of me spell elixer. I think I've gone through 5 variations this chat.

snuffysam

it's elixir

MathTans the Pun 👑Prince👑

Well done.

snuffysam

maybe there was a big witch fight in a public place? somewhere where a lot of people would have found out about witches, and that's why their numbers grew?

MathTans the Pun 👑Prince👑

But then why wouldn't Akiva have heard about it? (Wait, when did Seth pass on again?)

✨🐱 RebelVampire 🐱✨

im not sure the story mentioned a when on that

MathTans the Pun 👑Prince👑

Could be there's a connection then.

Maybe THAT'S why Akiva's senses got turned back on. Seth dying was just a coincidence.

Or it's totally related, because he was dating Alexis in secret.

snuffysam

yeah it's hard to think of an event that enough people would have heard of where there would be an influx of new witches, but not enough where akiva or her family & friends would have heard of it

✨🐱 RebelVampire 🐱✨

may need more data on the event in question.

so if we assume eden is a vampire, do you think the other survivors have been left in the same state?

MathTans the Pun 👑Prince👑

Doesn't seem to be a vampire who needs blood, at least? Maybe he was one of the lucky ones.

Or the others are werewolves instead.

One thing I want to squeeze in here - I find it neat that some of the word balloons have these little loops in them at times. (On the part that goes from mouth to words.) I thought that was a nice little touch, not something I've really seen.

snuffysam

yeah i really like how the shape of the word balloons' tails is influenced by the character and the emotions of the scene

MathTans the Pun 👑Prince👑

Nice art details.

✨🐱 RebelVampire 🐱✨

COMIC TEA PARTY END!

Unfortunately, the scheduled Comic Tea Party time is now up~! Thank you everyone so much for reading and joining this week’s chat~! We want to give a special thank you to Kaz Rowe, as well, for making Cunning Fire and volunteering it for our reading queue. If you liked the comic, please be sure to support Kaz Rowe’s efforts however you’re able to. All that being said, if you would like to continue discussing this week’s comic, we highly encourage you to do so~!

For next week, Comic Tea Party will focus on The Guide to a Healthy Relationship by Dani. Please note the comic is fairly mature, including both mature subject matter and mild nudity. As always, please use the next several days to read as much of the comic as you would like. We hope to see you next Thursday on July 12th from 5PM to 7PM PDT for the chat~! Until then, happy reading~! Comic: https://tapas.io/series/TGtaHR

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beckettmoba468-blog · 6 years ago

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KRATOM: THE BITING PLANT WHICH MIGHT AID OPIOID ADDICTS-- IN THE EVENT THAT THE DEA DOES NOT BAN IT

The young girl up in East Greenwich, Rhode Island. It is a small community, upscale and charmingly New England. Heroin was very readily available there, and extremely great.

By age 15, Campellone was a everyday user. She stopped going to school, stopped doing much of anything besides scoring drugs, doing drugs, stealing stuff, offering things, scoring more drugs, doing more drugs. "This was the start of the New England heroin epidemic," she says. "Everyone I knew was overdosing, dying, lives breaking down, people contracting illness from sharing needles."

That experience was mirrored around the nation. In 2014, overdoses from heroin or prescription opioids eliminated 30,000 people-- four times as many than in 1999. Today, 3,900 brand-new people start utilizing prescription opioids for non-medical functions every day. Almost 600 start taking heroin. The yearly health and social expenses of the prescription opioid crisis in America? $55 billion.

Campellone kicked her practice at 19-- with rehabilitation, suboxone, and a lot of willpower-- and moved out west, to the San Francisco Bay Area. Her co-workers and managers presented her to a myriad of plant-based items, amongst them a tart-tasting leaf called kratom. It was likewise a decent pain reliever, so she 'd take it when she was harmed, or on her menstrual cycle.

And, on 2 celebrations, she utilized it to help with the withdrawal signs following heroin regressions. "Nothing actually feels excellent when you're withdrawing from heroin, so no matter what you're taking, you're still in pain and it's pretty unbearable," says Campellone. Kratom assisted some.

Campellone never requires a prescription to get kratom. And when she does not take it, she doesn't crave it like she longed for heroin. She was amazed when, on August 30, the DEA revealed that it was pursuing an emergency scheduling of mitragynine and 7-hydroxymitragynine, the active alkaloids in kratom.

The DEA Takes an Exception to Kratom

Biologically, kratom acts enough like an opioid that DEA considers it a risk to public safety. The firm planned to utilize a regulative mechanism called emergency situation scheduling to place it in the same restrictive classification as marijuana, heroin, and lsd . This classification, Schedule I, is scheduled for exactly what the DEA thinks about the most unsafe drugs-- those with no redeeming medical value, and a high capacity for abuse.

Before they settled the scheduling, something surprising happened. An advocacy group called the American Kratom Association (yes, AKA) raised $400,000 from its impassioned membership-- impressive for a not-for-profit that usually raises $80,000 a year-- to pay for lobbyists and legal representatives , who got Congress on their side.

On https://www.wired.com/2016/11/kratom-bitter-plant-help-opioid-addicts-dea-doesnt-ban September 30, representatives both liberal and conservative -- from Orrin Hatch to Bernie Sanders-- penned a letter to the DEA. "Given the long reported history of kratom use, combined with the public's sentiment that it is a safe option to prescription opioids, our company believe utilizing the routine review procedure would provide for a much-needed discussion amongst all stakeholders," they composed.

It worked. The DEA raised the notification of emergency scheduling, and opened a public remark duration till December 1. When was the last time the DEA withdrawed anything? "This is uncommon," says Gantt Galloway, a Bay Area pharmacologist concentrating on treatments for addictive drugs. Galloway might not remember another circumstances when the DEA reacted to public outcry like this.

Since this writing, those remarks number almost 11,000. They are from: individuals who use kratom to ease chronic pain or endometriosis or gout; people who use kratom to deal with depression or wean off opioids or alcohol; individuals who said it conserved their life. "It does not allow you to leave your problems," says Susan Ash, founder of the AKA, who utilized kratom to treat discomfort and leave an dependency to prescription opioids. "It instead has you face them full on because it doesn't numb your brain at all, and it doesn't make you feel stoned like medical cannabis does. But it's efficient on so many things, like discomfort and anxiety and depression."

That promise is part of the issue. Scientists know almost absolutely nothing about kratom-- how its substances operate in performance, exactly what it can actually treat, how addictive it might be, what counts as a safe dose. And certainly not enough to back up all the life-altering claims extolled in public remarks, and by the many kratom users we spoke with. In the absence of good science and the smallest tip of regulation, Ash and potentially millions of other users are winging it. And should the DEA follow through on its pledge to schedule kratom, these individuals will become bad guys overnight.

For Ash, that's totally undesirable. "I want the future to appear like this is your next coffee," she states. "I 'd like it to be offered in Starbucks. I'm not even joking."

An Herb Wades Into an Opioid Crisis

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Kratom is not an opioid-- actually, it remains in the coffee family-- however its active particles bind to the very same neuronal receptors as opioids like heroin, codeine, oxycodone, and morphine . Normally, those drugs provide users a feeling of euphoria and dull their discomfort-- that's why David *, a former boarding school instructor, began using prescription opioids to treat his discomfort from ski injuries. He became addicted, and when his prescriptions went out, he changed to heroin. "I ended up being a high functioning user," he says. "My addiction was never ever discovered at my place of work, although I do believe my behavior ended up being more unpredictable."

When David ultimately devoted himself to rehab, his physicians weaned him off heroin utilizing suboxone, a mix of two drugs-- buprenorphine, a partial opioid that quenches the body's chemical thirst, and naltrexone, which obstructs any blissful opioid feelings. But suboxone can give users signs of withdrawal, not to point out a dulled sense of truth. And users like David can still find ways to abuse it. "Dependence on that was various from heroin, and it ended up being easier to take more suboxone to a higher high, or selling it to score heroin again," he states.

Since this writing, though, David has been tidy for 18 months-- success that he attributes to kratom. Given that it binds to the same receptors as opioids, kratom users report comparable blissful and pain-killing impacts, but they're muted. After other 12 action recovering addicts introduced David to the plant, it helped him rebuild his life-- he did ultimately lose that boarding school teaching task-- and handle the physical pain that got him hooked on opioids to begin with.

Because it mirrors opioids in other ways, the issue is that kratom is likewise addictive. David and a number of other users we spoke with said kratom is routine forming, to some degree, though one survey in Southeast Asia found that for people utilizing it to kick an opioid addiction, the dependence is far less most likely to interrupt their lives. "When I take kratom, that addicting part of me kicks in and it becomes regular," says Jeffrey *, another former opioid addict.

There is no doubt, however, that kratom is less hazardous than opioids-- even take-home synthetics like suboxone. "The two primary alkaloids in kratom, 7-hydroxy and mitragynine , appear to have a low ceiling for breathing anxiety," says pharmacologist Jack Henningfield of the Johns Hopkins School of Medicine, who with the consulting company Pinney Associates has actually recommended the AKA on kratom scheduling.

In its preliminary notice of emergency scheduling for kratom, the DEA did link the drug to 15 deaths in between 2014 and 2016. Folks utilizing kratom https://www.drugs.com/illicit/kratom.html to wean themselves off opioids may still be taking those opioids.

And some deaths could be attributed to contamination: Because kratom isn't really strictly managed, bad stars can and do lace the plant with real opioids, like the extremely effective artificial opioid fentanyl. "You can just think of, 'Oh you got pain? Well, we've got a unique kratom product,'" Henningfield says. "Maybe it has fentanyl in it. That's frightening." Clearly, the plant requires some sort of policy. The concern is whether the DEA's scheduling is the best kind.

Regulative Wranglings

The FDA might assist avoid contamination-related deaths by strictly regulating kratom as a supplement, as opposed to the DEA scheduling it as a drug. "FDA has a great deal of authority to in fact help customers know that exactly what they're purchasing is exactly what is identified, and have at least some level of assurance," Henningfield says. "It's not near the drug requirement, but it's far better than something that's illegally marketed."

"The decision to permanently arrange any drug is not a DEA unilateral decision," states Steve Bell, a DEA representative. The FDA approved the drug in 2002, and the Department of Health and Human Services recommended that the DEA put it in Schedule III, which the DEA accepted.

Arrange I, however, is an entirely different rodeo. If the DEA locations kratom here, nobody can touch the things. Present users, ought to they continue to utilize, will be forced to even sketchier sources. And scientists will have a harder time learning how kratom works, and supporting, or refuting, the claims users make with hard data. (Consider cannabis, also a Schedule I drug. Science has a dearth of data on it because getting authorizations to study the drug is an exercise in bureaucratic madness.).

All that research costs loan. Which is kratom's dilemma: The DEA wishes to set up the drug because they believe it may pose a danger to public health, but the only way to verify (or refute) the DEA's worries is with more research study-- which will be beside difficult should the DEA follow through on its promise to schedule.

Among the couple of scientists studying kratom is the University of Florida's Oliver Grundmann, who is finishing up an online study of almost 10,000 users. And the data ( initial, though Grundmann plans to release a paper in the coming months) reveals a various profile of kratom users than you 'd get out of an " illegal" recreational drug.

Not rather the party drug group. And the public comments on the DEA's scheduling notice reflect that population. Numerous of those folks are utilizing kratom to either wean themselves off prescription opioids or use the drug alone to deal with pain.

Still, that's self-medication using a item that might be polluted. "The industry has to come together," states Susan Ash of the AKA. "There's no chance the FDA is going to feel comfy not seeing this as a arranged illegal drug without a dedication from the industry that there will appertain procedures put in location." Better labeling, for example, would be a start.

Grundmann states he comprehends the DEA's inspiration. "They do not wish to have another drug out there that could potentially contribute to the already devastating opioid epidemic that some communities are experiencing," he states. "But on the other side, we also have to think about that the 4 to 5 million estimated users of kratom may face a health crisis of their own if kratom becomes scheduled.".

Anecdotes and Evidence.

Ariana Campellone takes her kratom with coconut milk and protein powder. Then, she blends, watering down with water to take the lumps out of the mix. By itself, the things tastes horrible. Like oversteeped tea, or a mouthful of peat. She believes the contrast to coffee is a bit overstated. "Coffee offers me a noticeable spike and high, and can feel when I'm boiling down," she says.

The DEA's public comment duration closes tomorrow. The agency says it will consider those comments alongside the FDA's medical and clinical evaluation prior to proceeding to schedule. The FDA did not respond in time to comment on this story.

However, if the DEA follows through on its previous intent to schedule, Campellone states she'll still continue to use kratom. "Just like individuals have actually continued to use cannabis where it's not legal," she says. In useful terms, it means getting ahold of kratom would probably get more personally risky and costly . Those costs, those risks-- those inconveniences-- may not deserve it to some kratom users. And after that the not-so-small neighborhood of recovering opioid addicts lose something readily available, and possibly quite excellent.

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isaacathom · 6 years ago

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like, if i were to basically redo it to just be a fun fantasy romp - id take it back to its original sort of time setting rather than having it be urban fantasy. Finley died in an expedition about 10 years earlier, making Crystal and Akian into orphans. theyve basically been living with the D’Lore’s since then, so Akian and Chase being really fucking close makes complete sense (and was likely why they started living wit the d’lores in the first place). in that last decade, like 5 yearsago or so, SKye joins the family after the whole uhhhhh Sorix/Naten situation. my poor boys. so crystal and skye already know each other. they arent super close, mostly because skye’s a moody lil bitch sometimes, but they know each other and are passing friends. crystal works with the d’lore’s apothecary, since the d’lores are like, biiiiiiiig boys. mayors or some shit. big boys. not a king, tho. well, actually, maybe? that could be interesting. or perhaps like a pricipality sorta deal. ill think about it.

since the d’lores are royalty here, kidnapping Akian and Chase (the crown prince boy and his gf) makes complete sense. theyre a perfect ransom and way tohold the entire city/region hostage. its a crisis. skye and crystal, who are really pissed about it, decide to take proactive action. which brings them into contact with Violet, who runs a small library with her “aunt”, Dawn. Violet helps them find some information about some of the weird shit the two reported seeing before their sibs were kidnapped, and gives them a shit ton of advice on what they could do. because violet is the best.

smth smth happens, they come into contact with Will, who is an expedition man just like Finley, and also the guy with th complex relationship with Skye. the three manage to convince Will to take them along into his second trip into a portal he’s discovered north of the town, because violet thinks it’ll have useful info and then begs to come along to see it. sothe 4 go in. suhbitch, its the heaven realm, and here they meet Skye’s mother, Alexa, who has still been dead for 200 years because, lets be clear, Skye’s dad fucked a ghost. fucking crazy. fantasy is wild. and she helps give them some pointers. maybe suggests they head to Quartai, which is the Big Boy Kingdom. a probably more overtly magical/religious place, more info on Ryaris and shit, stuff like that.

the 4 go there. then im not sure how stuff resolves from there. they probably still end up heading to the southern isles, which is an even more Big Magic place that has all these portals. in between then, violet seems to disappear, following an(other) encounter with Princess Alara, angry wind mage of the hour. which isnt great? but thats because Violet realised something was off about Alara (in a way specific to Violet) and she went out alone after the others went to sleep to find her and demand answers, and then, well, shit escalates.

they finally get to the fire realm and find the castle. before they can sneak inside, Alara catches them and promptly kidnaps Crystal, under the rationale that, well, Crystal is actually quartaian royalty, she’ll be a good ransom as well! :) skye and will (and i guess ash if hes just floating around, i dont Know)get tossed in the jail cell with chase and akian. Violet, who has now assumed the position of Princess fucking uhhhhh she has a name. fuck. T- Tacha??? yea ok whatever. Princess Violet’s out here, trying desperately to avoid the consequences of abandoning the group and trying not to get seen by any of them. but after overhearing her mum and sister interrogating Crystal about shit (and probably revealing Crystal’s heritage at that time, tho idk how id tie that shit in proper) Violet decides to stop being a coward. easily talks her way into the jail, frees everyone, get them all their stuff back, and make arrangements with some sympathetic guards that escort the exhausted Chase and Akian to a portal that will plop them out near-ish to the capital city, where they will be quickly found. bonus points if one of the guards, being a local to the area, offers to then personally escort them to the palace and hand them over. if yes, then violet likely gives him something that is proof of divine intervention (like, a symbol that cannot be manufactured by a human? and that is proof that Ryaris was involved and has returned them, smth like that, idk)

then the three of them work together to free crystal from Alara, who is acting as the primary antagonist. Ryaris is getting cold feet like noones fucking business, which is why she hasnt made a single appearance apart from kidnapping the two at the start. Alara’s filled in the rest, in part because Alara can pass for human (shes more a demigod than a minor goddess, in contrast to Violet), and because Alara was a LOT more into the plan from the start. probably using some info they gathered in Quartai or in theheaven world (it definitely has a name, i dont remember it) to convince Alara that, well, no, Dalace is absolutely fucking lying to you, stop it. which is easier than you would think, because Dalace’s lies were revealed the instant Violet returned home.

Part of Dalace’s plan to escape from her imprisonment is to have Ryaris (and her daughter, tho that was a later addition) force a whole bunch of humans into constructing and using portals, which would weaken the seal and also give Dalace more power. then she can break out and wreak havoc. her end of the deal is that, once restored to full power and free, she would bring back Evelyn and Violet. Evelyn being Ryaris’ human wife, who died like 5-6 years prior to the start of the story, and which was actually caused by Dalace in order to force Ryaris’ hand. but that conceit was that Violet and Ryaris were both dead. But Violet is here, perfectly fine, and with 0 trace of any magical interference. Violet was been alive the entire time, just out of Ryaris’ sight and in a different place than where Alara ended up going undercover. essentially a stroke of bad luck.

so, yknow. Violet has overheard Ryaris talking to Dalace, and has already found out about the fact that her revival had been promised. so its like, ‘what proof do you have???’ ‘well, im here, arent i?’ ‘:|||||’ if its then additional that, after violet left the party, the other three found out that Dalace doesn’t have the ability to revive, and that revival as a skill would require the death of Losa (light goddess and just general death lady), they can use that too. combine forces. violet uses her knowledge of the agreement, and the others use their acquired knowledge of the limits of magic. bam. maybe even some prior history, like ‘the stories say that Dalace went mad because everything died in her care. if she could revive the dead, surely this wouldnt have been an issue?’ ‘..... fuck youre right’. i mean they almost definitely have to fight her too because Alara’s a bit of a pain in the ass. people probably almost die. hardcore.

everyone chills out, they go convince ryaris to maybe chill. thats very easy because ryaris literally just wanted to settle down with her wife and two children before shit got messy (and i mean, Same). very easy to convince her off the mess train. but, of course, she’s already done a lot of the damage. the ransom for Akian and Chase has been active for like, at LEAST a week, possibly even more, she’s already reaped a solid chunk and started making good on her promise to Dalace. so the damage has been done. Dalace will get out soon. so they decide like, ok, lets fix it. time to go like, punch her in the face.

and then they beat dalace or reseal her or something. im not sure? dalace’s issues with the world are so deeply seated, her anger so much a part of her, that you cant really turn her good again. and to kill her would be nigh impossible and extremely disastrous. so really its like. do we trap her again but More this time, do we force the gods to actually intervene this time instead of acting through Champions? its rough. a godly intervention would only work if the group had been to each of the realms, because then they’d have met or affected each god in some way. but theyve only been to light and fire worlds. any more than that and it just gets like..... convoluted...... it was the original idea but idk. smaller main cast, makes even less sense. going to the worlds of each of their patrons makes SOME sense??? which then means id need to add a trip to the earth world (perhaps this is where they go from the southern isles. since they dont have a fire portal. and then they lose violet in earht world?). which then only leaves out the water and wind worlds. but the wind goddess is explicitly on Ryaris’ side, having freed Ryaris from her own constraints after a Whole Bunch of Shenanigans. so they dont actually need to convince the wind goddess, Xen i think, to support ryaris. Caliyo, the water goddess, is a little harder to finagle. she doesnt really agree with Ryaris for what i hope are Obvious reasons. in theory keeping Ash as a member of the party would potentially fix that, since he’s an active and practicing water magician prior to meeting the cast, and it’d be fair to guess that she might have a hand in that?in the community he’s from. sort of a mini water realm? Caliyo could also possibly be convincedby like, Losa and....Elra? earth lady. to just maybe think about just fucking talking to Dalace, for fucking once. its been fucking millenia,just talk to her and maybe youll convince her to stop being a shit. idk. Dalace is complicated? and a pain in the butt.

like, if Ash remains part of the squad (which does skew the cast 2:3 male, and 1:3 male when Violet leaves, which Pisses me Off) he can act as throughline to Caliyo. i dont see why not. his community is very much magical. buuuttt you could also potentially get around having him be in the party by having the same connection be present in the Southern Isles, which is a separate magical community that hides away from the continent. and if you think about it, how would you hide an island? other than straight up illusions.mist! caliyo is a perfect patron for the southern isles, thus removing Ash from the story as well in a clean 1 2. which also removes the dragons, which is.... a shame, definitely. big fan of them. but it also makes some sense to remove super overt magic stuff, if people are supposed to believe is superstition or extremely rare. a northern tribe that rely on dragons doesnt gel with that. they can still exist, i guess, but as a completely separate entity. though that does then raise the question of how the party of 4 get from Quartai to the southern isles. in SB, they flew there on the backs of some of Ash’ dragons, which also allowed them to cross the fucking sea between the isles and the coast. unless theres a secret way? like, hey, a secret bridge. use the portals to return back to the capital city, tie up some loose ends (employment and ‘WHERE THE /FUCK/ HAVE YOU BEEN?’ sorts of ends) before heading south to the coast and then trying to find the path across. Skye or will would be good for that, though Violet is also a stellar candidate due to the sheer magnitude of her magic. she’s basically a minor deity. its crazy. it depends on like, narrative usefulness? i guess? like, violet was the one who put them on the path to realise the kidnapper was Divine in some way, and put them in contact with Will. Will got them into fucking Heaven Light World, which got them to quartai, where they were able to get more info (or maybe even skip quartai altogether, tho thats smth else to deal with). so at this stage, crystal and skye’s sole contributions have been to kick the whole thing off. at best, skye mightve suggested they go to a smaller library than the Royal one, since, well, theyre already known to the royal one and the librarian likely tells them to stop bothering everyone and go back home (stay safe from kidnappers, etc). so Skye finding the path to the island, with all that light boy goodness, might work? crystals skillset can then come in handy when they travel to earth world, since she’s an earth mage. she can learn magic and possibly even learn about her heritage there. smth smth. depends how long theyre there.

idk. you can probably remove quartai from the mix altogether??? and have them go straight from Light World to heading south of the capital. does sorta remove the quartai buildup though? with the whole ‘youre the descendant of a runaway prince’ thing. since it justified crystal being removed from the group and likely the first person to find out about violet being a god, which can then feed to like. Shit. theres no other reason to separate out crystal and not, say, Skye. crystal and skye hold identical levels of relevance to thespecific kingdom theyre from. theyre commoners. crystal is in slightly higher regard because akian is practically a princess and even before that her family were good friends with the royals (because, yknow, Finley is a runaway prince who sought refuge in a neighbouring kingdom, lol). skye is just like, some guy, even though he lives in the palace too. theyre just commoners in high esteem of the king. so like, if you were going to separate Crystal out from the group for that, you should also take out Skye, which means in practice youre just chucking Will in a dungeon on his own. which just seems rude. the boy has suffered enough.

the idea was that bringing Crystal into Quartai, a place she has never been but that her father had once promised to take her to (which i can set up). and that by placing her in that environment, maybe even engineering a scenario where she is taken to the royal library (which i guess is like, a public library run by the royals? i dont know) and is spotted by Alara, who has been living in Quartai for the last year or so to gather intel. and, by the nature of how it is, theres royal paintings on the wall showing the late queen, Crystal’s grandmother, and theres an immediate visual connection. Crystal looks just like her dad. someone else (or alara, if it works) might even comment on her being new to quartai with a sort of ‘are you sure youve never been to quartai before? you look like you’d fit right in’ and it couldbe assumed as a personality thing. especially if in terms of personality, crystal doesnt appear to mesh with quartaian society at all. and if the line is by a character with no humour. which means Alara would actually be a perfect fit. it would be a genuine question and observation - Crystal looks Quartaian, whatever that means. while in quartai, they find out its connected to the earth goddess Elra, which helps convince them that they should maybe ask Elra for advice, since she seems like a goddess who has a lot of input and would know about goings on. crystal is then revealed to be an earth mage later (either southern isles or in the earth realm itself) which is like an Ooh boy. you could possibly hammer it further home by, if they DO meet Elra, her confusing Crystal for quartaian royalty. either by assuming she’s a specific Queen (her grandmother) or just a general ‘oh, youre a princess of quartai, then?’ ‘w- no?’ ‘oh? my apologies’. though if elra is going to notice any lineage she’s going to recognize the tall white haired youngster with piercing eyes and an overwhelming magical aura is the daughter of the goddess of fire. so. might distract her?i think it would be too on the nose for Elra to straight up call her out.

though i could definitely make Crystal not looking local a thing? because she’s not. culturally she is, but both of her parents are full blooded quartaians who fled across the border because Keiran (correctly) anticipated that him marrying a commoner wouldnt go down well. Akian and Crystal both look quartaian. but they also look nothing like Will, who is from another demographic also not native to the kingdom. but his demographic is more prevalent, like there are far larger communities of them. Akian and Crystal just look out of place. Skye technically has a sort of otherworldly quality, but thats partly because his dad fucked a ghost. i cant get over that. but he still looks local enough, because he looks like his mum! and aside from being a ghost of sorts, she was from that kingdom, just 200 years in the past. so theres been drift, and he does look slightly off relative to everyone else, but to an extent you can assume thats just an individual thing. especially since his family is unknown. Akian and Crystal’s parents are known. their apperance is familiar. and that appearance is distinctly foreign. theres no real PROBLEM with that, because theyre good friends with the royal family and have been living in or near them for their whole lives, but its notably. their specific complexion, hair colour, and eye colour? not common ‘round these parts. that sorta thing? could work??? especially if relations with quartai are sorta weird. like..... we’re cool....... but also dont move here? with the exception of Kieran, because the implication is that he’d been a lot friendlier than his mother (and his cousin) and when he comes knocking on the door going ‘listen man i just fled the country can i crash on your couch with my girlfriend for a few days’ the kings like ‘yea dude go ahead. you can explain tomorrow at breakfast. just us’ ‘thanks dude i really appreciate it’. maybe its a quartaian thing. not big fans on these guys. so they just stay in their place and dont leave much. people from this kingdom can come to quartai, sure....... you cant STAY for that long, but you can come visit.......... sure.

which, if quartai is kinda.... i guess just straight up racist??? xenophobic? one or both. if quartai is straight up racist, than crystal’s appearance as a fullblooded quartaian would be quite notable! because its like, oh, youre a local! wait, y- youre NOT a local????? what the fuck do you mean youre not a local????? from - from sp- ok. sure. alright whatever you say lady. move the fuck along then. people see this ragtag group with this one quartaian lady and assume, oh, a local with some friends from out of town. well, if thats the company they want to keep, sure. cause it looks almost correct. it almost makes sense. but then you hear her speak, in a distinctly non-quartaian accent, and its like ‘hold on a sec’ but then she’ll say some words with a quartaian twang, relating to adventure, and you have No idea how to process that. what. its wild. doesnt come across in raw text but, you know.

im sure i can roughly justify going o quartai. theyre a generally more spiritual kingdom, with prominent reverence in a specific goddess who is tied in with the geography and economy (Elra), and the royal family are supposedly her descendants on some level. theyd have more specific information about the gods, the history of their involvement in the world, some shit about Dalace (not in depth, tho, just that she took over at one point and it was a Bad time). it depends how much info they can get from light realm? i mean, they arent REALLY supposed to say much. they arent even really supposed to interact with the living. which does make you go 0>0 at Alexa. hot damn. willing to break big rules for some living dick. legendary.

i mean i feel like its better if they DO go to quartai, because it allows them to encounter Alara, who has basically bribed and conned her way into a position of power through some whack shit and has integrated into the community to get some of the Juicy Information. they can meet her in a safe environment and find that she’s weird, they can learn a bit about shit, crystal being quartaian can be emphasised in a sort of coy way (im a shit writer sooo it probably wouldnt read very coy lol) and there can even be some foreshadowing for Violet’s position as minor fire deity. since thats almost definitely what catches alara’s attention. a tall, light haired individual with burning green eyes and an implaceable aura? fascinating. but when Violet doesn’t catch any of Alara’s references (to like, the gods and shit), Alara assumes she’s mistaken and perhaps she’s just sensing a strange combined aura. its not till later in the earth realm, when they meet as protagonist vs antagonist, that she realizes no, she was right on the money the first time. because at this point in the story, the main cast have actually started using magic, and theyve already found that Violet’s use of magic is effortless. and with their magic unlocked, so to speak, violet’s aura is fucking incredible. none of the others can see it, with the possibly exception of either Will or Skye, depending which way dark/light fall re: seeing shit. but Alara is an incredibly well practiced mage and demigoddess, and she knows how to see it, and violet’s is intense. its unmistakeable. alara isnt 100% sure what if she recognizes the aura, for the simply fact that violet disappeared when they were 9 and alara hadnt learnt to see/feel aura at the time. but she thinks she knows what it means. shes confident that violet is some demigod. which god? unclear. until Violet throws a fireball at her and tells her to fuck off.

the only other possible ways for violet to be a fire demigod and NOT being the daughter of Ryaris, are for her to be the daughter of Xen (goddess of wind) OR be a distant descendant of Ryaris via her mortal parent, who is also her mother, and which might overrule the godly disciple of the godly parent. the latter is nigh impossible because Ryaris has only had two children to her knowledge, unless she blacked out during 200 years exile and accidentally boned down. she’s pretty sure she didnt, though. not that thats a topic that comes up, exactly. but ryaris only has two kids. Alara has no children, and Violet is not the right age to be the daughter of Alara’s sister. she is, however, the approximate age to BE Alara’s sister. so is sheactually, or is it cosmic coincidence that two demigods (the fire/wind twins and someone else) were born around the same time? who knows! alara has no idea. violet doesnt have a damn clue either. ita rough.

uhhh this got very lost VERY fast. uhhh tl;dr return the story to its original full fantasy setting (not urban/modern fantasy). akian is the girlfriend to the prince of a kingdom, with crystal being her sister. skye being in a weird state of being commoner but living with royalty, just like crystal. akian and the prince are kidnapped by Ryaris in order to force the kingdom into an awful ransom agreement whereby they will do a bunch of suspicious shit. crystal and skye believe they saw part of the kidnapping take place, and attempt to get information. after a bunch of the royal staff tell them to stop worrying and go home, they go find a non-royal library run by Dawn and her ‘niece’ Violet, who help them find some info. Violet, being very much in the know, hooks them up with Will, an adventurer and cartographer who is planning a visit to a portal he located north of the city. after a lot of negotiating/arguing, Will agrees to let the three of them come along, and off they go. a whole bunch of shit happens, involving a trip to neighbouring kingdom Quartai, where Crystal is treated strangely in relation to the party and they first meet Alara, posing as a foreign noble who takes an immediate interest in Violet.

more shit, they end up in some hidden magic isles south of the continent, which then leads them to the earth realm, where they seek an audience with the goddess of earth Elra, on how they can get an audience with Ryaris, goddess of fire, and most likely the kidnapper. more shit. alara appears again and they have a brief confrontation. that night, violet disappears. after failing to find her, they resolve to press onwards (leaving fucking missing persons signs all over this foreign land and even informing Elra about it). go to fire realm, get captured by Alara, who separates out Crystal in order to interrogate her about her lineage to confirm a suspicion she has that Crystal is long lost quartaian royalty (si). violet is brought in to help, much to their mutual distress, and then alara kicks violet out for just doing an awful job of forcing crystal to talk.violet then breaks everyone else out of jail, sends Akian and the prince home with some guards she trusts to take them back safely, and then they go rescue Crystal. final showdown with Alara. convince alara that Dalace, goddess of darkness, has been lying out her fucking ass the entire time and cant do anything she promised. alara reluctantly agrees to confront Ryaris about it. Ryaris admits thats all true and that she knew from the start Dalace was a lying piece of shit, but, i mean...... yknow....... your wife dies and you havent seen your daughter in over a decade........ white lies are nice. also alara was the one who got sucked in. its complicated.

then they go ‘aight time to fuck with dalace’ and then i have no idea. probably all the goddesses (who theyve met throughout the story) come and tell dalace to stop being a cunt? roll credits.

#story blogging #echo child #long post #well whoops #thats uhhhhh8 hours of fun #i didnt mean for that to happen but i wasmultitasking and just sorta..... kept plugging away i guess

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