#nothing and no one i want more

[housederiva]

[hinamie]

I don't want to regret the way I lived

[akanemnon]

I don't like this place. It's turning everyone edgy and sad.

FIRST - PREVIOUS - NEXT

MASTERPOST (for the full series / FAQ / reference sheets)

[stromblessed]

Mizu, femininity, and fallen sparrows

In my last post about Mizu and Akemi, I feel like I came across as overly critical of Mizu given that Mizu is a woman who - in her own words - has to live as a man in order to go down the path of revenge.

If she is ever discovered to be female by the wrong person, she will not only be unable to complete her quest, but there's a good chance that she'll be arrested or killed.

So it makes complete sense for Mizu to distance herself as much as possible from any behavior that she feels like would make someone question her sex.

I felt so indignant toward Mizu on my first couple watchthroughs for this moment. Why couldn't Mizu bribe the woman and her child's way into the city too? If Mizu is presenting as a man, couldn't she claim to be the woman's escort?

However, this moment makes things pretty clear. Mizu knows all too well the plight of women in her society. She knows it so well that she cannot risk ever finding herself back in their position again. She helps in what little way she can - without drawing attention to herself.

Mizu is not a hero and she is not one to make of herself a martyr - she will not set herself on fire to keep others warm. There's room to argue that Mizu shouldn't prioritize her quest over people's lives, but given the collateral damage Mizu can live with in almost every episode of season 1, Mizu is simply not operating under that kind of morality at this point. ("You don't know what I've done to reach you," Mizu tells Fowler.)

And while I still feel like Mizu has an obvious and established blind spot when it comes to Akemi because of their differences in station, such that Mizu's judgment of Akemi and actions in episode 5 are the result of prejudice rather than the result of Mizu's caution, I also want to establish that Mizu is just as caged as Akemi is, despite her technically having more freedom while living as a man.

Mizu can hide her mixed race identity some of the time, and she can hide her sex almost all of the time, but being able to operate outside of her society's strict rules for women does not mean she cannot see their plight.

It does not mean she doesn't hurt for them.

Back to Mizu and collateral damage, remember that sparrow?

While Mizu is breaking into Boss Hamata's manse, she gets startled by a bird and kills it on reflex. She then cradles it in her hands - much more tenderly than we've seen Mizu treat almost anything up to this point in the season:

She then puts it in its nest, with its unhatched eggs. Almost like she's trying to make the death look natural. Or like an accident.

You see where I'm going with this.

When Mizu kills Kinuyo, Mizu lingers in the moment, holding the body tenderly:

And btw a lot of stuff about this show hit me hard, but this remains the biggest gut punch of them all for me, Mizu holding that poor girl's body close, GOD

When Mizu arranges the "scene of the crime," Kinuyo's body is delicate, birdlike. And Mizu is so shaken afterward that she gets sloppy. She's horrified at this kill to the point that she can't bring herself to take another innocent life - the boy who rats her out.

MIZU'S ONE MOMENT OF SOFTNESS AND MERCY, COMING ON THE HEELS OF HER NEEDING TO KILL A GIRL TO SPARE HER THE WORST FATE THAT THIS RIGID SOCIETY HAS TO OFFER WOMEN, AND TO SPARE A BROTHEL FULL OF INNOCENT WOMEN WHO ARE THE CASTOFFS OF SOCIETY, NEARLY RESULTS IN ALL OF THEIR DEATHS

No wonder Mizu is as stoic and cold as she is.

And no wonder Mizu has no patience for Akemi whatsoever right before the terrible reveal and the fight breaks out:

Speaking of Akemi - guess who else is compared to a bird!

The plumage is more colorful, a bit flashier. But a bird is a bird.

And, uh

Yeah.

I like to think that Mizu killing the sparrow is not only foreshadowing for what she must do to Kinuyo, but is also a representation of the choice she makes on Akemi's behalf. She decides to cage the bird because she believes the bird is "better off." Better off caged than... dead.

But because Mizu doesn't know Akemi or her situation, she of course doesn't realize that the bird is fated to die if it is caged and sent back home.

Mizu is clearly not happy, or pleased, or satisfied by allowing Akemi to be dragged back to her father:

But softness and mercy haven't gotten Mizu anywhere good, recently.

There is so much tragedy layered into Mizu's character, and it includes the things she has to witness and the choices she makes - or believes she has to make - involving women, when she herself can skirt around a lot of what her society throws at women. Although, I do believe that it comes at the cost of a part of Mizu's soul.

After all, I'm gonna be haunted for the rest of this show by Mizu's very first prayer in episode 1:

"LET" her die. Because as Ringo points out, she doesn't "know how" to die.

Kind of like another bird in this show:

[egophiliac]

he did it! 🐍 and it only took...uhhh...well, there probably could've been less punches, but why hold back!

PUNCHES FOR EVERYONE

[sysig]

Permission to headbutt: Granted (Patreon)

[copperpipes]

A wild signal appears

A wild bot appears

"You're my friend now, we're having soft tacos later!" *drags away giggling*

[maythedreadwolftakeyou]

Lucanis would abuse the eluvian network to get the freshest ripest fruits and vegetables from wherever they grow best every single week and he's so right for that

[bacchuschucklefuck]

soon it'll be dawn again

transcript under the cut ⏬

page 01

Fig: no way? - you're still up?

Riz: Wh– yes?

Riz: Why'd I not be.

page 02

Fig: I me~~ean - that took.

Fig: whole day.

Riz: Yeah?

Fig: 'm beat.

Riz: you should sleep.

page 03

Fig: nah. my guy's still up

Fig: I wanna hang out.

page 04

Riz: That's really nice.

Fig: Hah! - Nobody ever expects an Archdevil rockstar to be nice.

Riz: … yeah. - 's just budget work tho. (the stuff I'm working on) - I've heard it's boring.

page 05

Fig: yeah, but you do it…

Riz: It keeps things going, right? - Nothing happens if nobody sits down and - does the thing.

Fig: That's right… - though. Yeah.

page 06

Fig: sometimes it's someone else who - doesn't want the same thing to happen.

Riz: … - mm.

page 07

Riz (off screen): …It took me a long time to get that not everyone likes doing what I do. - 's probably because you guys are so nice– - or. - kind.

Riz (off screen): to anyone too, not just. - the people you /love/.

page 08

Riz: that's not how it is elsewhere. - The world's– not. hostile. - but 's not like it's kind.

Riz: So I'm doing as much as I can now… 

page 09

Fig: Hey.

Riz: ?

Fig: Go dig some dirt with me.

page 10

Riz: [blank speech bubble] - oh you meant like - actual dirt. (not incriminating information)

Fig: o yea.

Fig: there's clay in the backyard soil. - sometimes when I'm sun deficient or something I go touch dirt for a bit.

page 11

Fig: here u go

page 12

Riz: uh

Fig: now we make a thing! - 'm pretty good at freehanding a bowl.

Fig: I'll show u

page 13

Fig: just– yep, flatten that out as evenly as u can, then–! - actually ur nails'd be so good at cutting out the strip. [larger than usual space] wait. - wait. wait u can carve patterns with them! we HAVE to try

Riz: uh - What. do I carve?

Fig: anything!!!

page 14

Fig: and– yep just seal the inside uh. seam?

Fig: yep that works - okay time's up! all contestant hands up

Riz: [blank speech bubble] - okay - wh. what's next?

Fig: haha - watch this.

(sound effect text): FWOO—MP

page 15

Riz: WH– DON'T JUST DO THAT???

Fig: Now it's fired!

Riz: THAT WAS NOT SAFE

Fig: (actually it's just dry. if u add water rn it'll dissolve)

Fig: ok catch!

Riz: [blank speech bubble] - careful!!

Fig: dw no need haha

page 16

Riz (thought bubble): oh - it's warm…

Fig: now I want you to throw this.

page 17

Fig: u gotta do it - c'mon

page 18

Riz: wh– - It's like 3AM right now

Fig: oh it's not /fired/ fired it's not gonna make a loud noise

Riz: And then just? leave a pile out here?

Fig: pour water over it & it'll be gone I told u

Riz: but

page 19

Fig (off screen): RIz.

page 20

Fig: I've done all this before.

Fig: Can you trust that at least?

page 21

Riz: no, I– - I do. - I trust you.

page 23

Riz: okay what happens now

(sound effect text): glob

page 24

Fig: we do it again!

page 25

Riz: wh. [larger than usual space] What do you mean. (this clay's too wet also)

Fig: see! you're already learning

Fig: [blank speech bubble] - there are flows that are futile to fight. - The world changes.

Fig: Things change.

page 26

Fig: I've learned my lessons with "forevers". - But - as an artist

Fig: I can give you one thing: - You can always do it again.

page 27

Fig: most of everything depends on the rest of the world, - but this. - making new. - that's yours as long as you want it.

page 28

Fig: So?

page 29

Riz: Yeah. - Yeah! - let's make another one.

[katsigian]

Why are fandom discord servers some of the most stress inducing places in the world like why is it when you post anything into any chat it feels like either a) you're purposely being ignored or b) you've pissed someone off just by speaking. And it's such a pain in the dick because if you want any sort of help with anything or want to be even a little bit apart of a community you have to be in these servers. While the whole time it feels like that one meme picture of all the girls sneering at the camera because you dared show your face in there

[chalkscrub]

study of the sinister scrumper

[riaki]

ky.....................................................

✮ messy sleeper - aki hayakawa

synopsis: being a messy sleeper is tough. you'd sometimes kick aki or even slap his face because of your constant movements. but aki doesn't mind though.

warnings: fluff, really short, self-indulgent because im a messy sleeper 🙇🏻‍♀️, ooc aki?? i think — wc: 508

notes: first aki fic i hope this was to every aki lovers liking (i had to ask my mutuals on twitter about his personality because i didn't want to mess his character up 😭) tagging @riaki and @kissxcore teehee

aki is a heavy sleeper. he could sleep through thunderstorms, loud tv noises, loud neighbors, basically anything. however, the only thing he could not sleep through was you. aki, who is quite literally a rock when sleeping, could only be awakened by you. no, this doesn’t mean the “aki, wake up. it’s already late.” — it means the you constantly kicking his leg or smacking his face with your flailing hands.

today was no different. aki was awoken by your flailing hands once again, but this time, the only difference is that the blanket is missing.

“ow-” aki mutters as he forces himself to open his eyes. he groans removing your hands from your face. you are still sound asleep despite hitting aki in the face. “not again…” he looks at the clock and sighs at how early it is (he finally got a day off and had decided to wake up late today but you had other plans).

aki places a hand over his eyes, trying to fall back asleep but he can’t. so, instead of trying to sleep again, he forces himself to wake up and prepare breakfast for the two of you. he slowly rises from the bed, careful to not wake up.

about five minutes after aki left the room, you woke up. rubbing your eyes, you looked around, wondering where aki went. you were instantly relieved when you could smell bacon and eggs coming from the kitchen. you sluggishly walk down the stairs, peeking into the kitchen. “aki, what’re you doing up so early? i thought you-” a yawn escaped your mouth. “i thought you wanted to sleep in today.”

“well, that was the plan. but you-” aki stops, not wanting you to feel bad. “i wanted to make breakfast for us.”

you smiled lazily, still sleepy. “aw, that’s sweet, aki.” you walk up to him and grabbed his hand, making his attention shift to you. “but i know when you’re lying. tell me.”

aki sighs. “you smacked me in the face while you were sleeping. again.”

you stayed silent before bursting into laughter, clutching your stomach. “oh my god-” you wiped the tears away from your eyes. “again? aki, i’m so sorry.” you didn’t really seem sorry in aki’s eyes, from the way you laughed so hard. “how did the blanket end up on the floor? no wonder i was freezing.”

“you think?” aki frowns, still confused as to how you’re even asking him that question. “you think i kicked the blanket off of the bed?”

“well, no. but it was worth the shot.” you gave aki a cheeky smile. “wanted to see if you’d take the blame for me.” you teasingly gave aki a boop on the nose, laughing at how aki’s face changed into disbelief.

“you-”

“bacon and eggs for breakfast! you just know what i’m craving for the day, do you?” you say, quickly cutting him off.

aki sighs in defeat, unable to say anything else as he looks at you basically gleaming with happiness, a smile on his face.

[puppyeared]

act 4 :(

@chipper-smol and i came to a realization

[xxplastic-cubexx]

oh noooo or whatever

bonus aka The Real Motive Behind This:

SURPRISE double bonus. textless ver of the first pic under the cut

[cubbihue]

Although Fairies appear humanoid in nature, they actually have a more pure form unseen by the naked eye. This is because Humans lack the ability to perceive anything beyond the fourth dimension. Given enough magic, a Fairy can manifest their true form onto all planes of existence.

This is usually not recommended, as seeing a Fairy's purest form can cause madness. A Fairy should only use their pure form when necessary, such as containing uncontrollable wishes, or high quantities of magic. Especially since there's heavy drawbacks and sacrifices to manifesting one's pure form.

Bitties Series: [Start] > [Previous] > [Next]

Instability: [Start] > [Previous] > [Next]

[bunnieswithknives]

(nature au) you said that while dale dislikes dev using a cane in the house he doesn’t really care too much, but what if dev used a cane in public? i can’t imagine dale would be okay with that at all. he’d be pissed, like confiscate the cane kind of pissed

Originally the gag here was just going to be Dev clinging onto his dads arm for dear life while he shivers like a chihuahua but he is just. So small.. I couldnt get it to look reasonable

Bonus: