#obviously it's not as good as the original

[theenbyofsongbirdsandsnakes]

Panem aka there’s a high chance I have to participate in a death match for the amusement of rich people. However I already have a detail plan on how I’d win the hunger games. It’s under the cut, warning violence and death are mentioned.

Assuming that I’m in the same games as katniss, let’s say I’m the afab tribute from eight because no one cares about that character. I get a high score in training and convince the career tributes to let me join their group as I’m skilled with swords and quarterstaffs, I’m also good at foraging.

One the games start I wait at the tree line for the blood bath to finish and forage while I do. Given the environment of the forest in the first game I have a high chance of finding mushrooms that I can recognize as being toxic. I then join up with the careers and appoint myself head of the food supply.

Then when it comes time to eat I feed them all toxic mushrooms and while they’re all slowly dying I choose to put them out of their misery. I take the supplies that will be of use to me and find a tree to hide in. Now only Katniss, Peeta, Rue, Thresh, and Foxface are left. Foxface dies the same way that she originally did and then the mutations are released. It’s likely that the mutations take out Thresh and Peeta.

The only other left are Rue and Katniss who obviously don’t want to kill each other. So they come looking for me, I would likely be hiding in a tree at this point and as soon as they walk under the tree I stab Katniss. I leave Rue to fend for herself but eventually some sort of disaster happens and she dies.

I win the hunger games.

You've been isekai'd into a fictional setting. Spin this wheel to find out which one.

[vladtoly]

Close Call

Dae-Ho x Female!Reader

Requested: Yes

Proofread: No

Word Count: 690

A/N: I need to preface this by saying I really loved Thanos' character and I simply portrayed him this way for the blurb. No hate for him, I swear! Also I did struggle a bit making Dae-ho the jealous type, so he may come off more protective than anything. Hope it's still good, thank you for requesting!

As the second game came to a close, you sat anxiously on your bunk, watching the entrance doors. Your boyfriend had been on a different team, though not by his own choice. Originally, you had been with his group, but when player 222 had come to them, revealing she was pregnant? You immediately gave up your spot. Dae-ho looked like he wanted to object and offer to leave instead, but you silence him with a simple side eye. Whatever group you were in, you’d assumed you would be fine, or at least hoped. And you were.

Now you were just worried about him.

“Senorita, excuse me. Mind if I join?”

You sighed as a weight landed on your mattress, the voice not waiting for your answer. Just a glance at your side revealed it to be Thanos. You hadn’t even been in his group, just sitting in the one behind his- but that didn’t stop him from turning around and dropping pick up lines constantly. It had almost been a relief when it was your group’s turn.

Shifting away, you kept your eyes on the entrance. “I do, actually, thanks.”

The man ignored your answer and made himself comfortable, man spreading and propping his arms behind him on the mattress. He seemed to know how to make any space crowded, all on his own.

“Don’t know why you’re looking at the door. All you need is right here,” he purred out, leaning his head closer to you.

“I’m waiting on my boyfriend. You can leave.” Your reply was short and sharp, hoping maybe obvious disinterest would make him leave. But you also doubted it.

The weight moved closer, and as soon as you felt a hand on your arm, your head finally snapped to look at him. “Do you know what ‘leave’ means?”

His face split into a goofy grin, obviously high off one of the pills you saw him pop earlier. “Well, I finally got you to look at me, didn’t I?”

Before you could respond, a hand grabbed Thanos’ hoodie and dragged him off the bed. When the owner of the hand came into view, you were more relieved to see Dae-ho. He was alive. Thank God.

“Why were you touching her?” he nearly yelled, his attention directed at Thanos.

Oh, right. You almost forgot about him.

Thanos just laughed, shoving himself out of your boyfriend’s grip. He brushed himself off as you quickly went to Dae-ho’s side.

“She looked lonely. I was just trying to help, you know?” Thanos leaned closer. “When you finally drop dead, then I’ll really help her.”

“You fucking bas-“Your words were cut off as Dae-ho lands a hard blow to his cheek.

Hobbling back, Thanos tried to lunge forward only to have the rest of your group step in front of him, making a wall. Your eyes were trained on him until a gentle hand touched your cheek, directing you to look away. As you turned, your eyes met with soft brown ones, wide with worry. “Hey, are you okay? What happened, what did he do?”

The sound of your boyfriend’s voice grounded you. You shook your head, wrapping your arms around his neck. “Nothing, he didn’t get the chance.”

His shoulders finally relaxed, resting his forehead on yours. “God, remind me to never leave you alone again.”

“Dae-ho, he was more of an annoyance than anything. He’s been doing shit like that all day.” You sighed out.

He groaned, tilting his head to look at the ceiling. “Trust me, I noticed.”

The words sank in. A small smirk began to form on your face. “Were you watching us earlier?”

“Kind of impossible not to. I wanted to check on you, and he also happens to be the loudest guy here. Makes it hard not to notice.” His eyes remained on the ceiling as he spoke.

Chuckling softly, you gently moved him back to look at you. “I’m okay. I’m right here and okay. Thank you for looking out for me.”

A deep sigh left him as he placed a firm kiss to your forehead, mumbling against the skin, “Someone has to.”

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

Squid Game headcannon/blurb requests are OPEN!

[the-overanalyst]

ok i gotta talk about how well the empty sekai vocaloids are written to enhance n25's story

empty miku takes a more active role in the main story than any of her alter egos. empty sekai was originally created with both the desire to disappear and the desire to be saved. miku embodies the latter, so she's the one who called kanade and the others to talk mafuyu down. her existence started out monotonous and lonely, but slowly filled up with good things, which mirrors mafuyu's journey.

rin's arrival signals that empty sekai no longer belongs to mafuyu alone. the members of n25 all share the same feelings to an extent. their connection causes the sekai to become less empty bit by bit. but isn't it interesting how that process began thanks to ena, mafuyu's polar opposite who gets along with her the least? ena uses the sekai for its original purpose--to escape from reality when she wants to disappear--so part of it becomes hers.

meiko, obviously, is a direct parallel for mizuki, always keeping her distance. so her time to shine was right along with mizuki's in this most recent arc. as mizuki gets to the point where she's willing to share her secret, meiko gets to the point where she's willing to get involved in the girls' problems. mizuki's first 4* in an ena event came with meiko's first feature in a non-mizuki event. and her character development is actually crazy, from "sometimes talking makes things worse" to being the one who gets mizuki to talk to ena. live laugh love empty meiko.

luka's self-proclaimed role is as the one who will shakes things up and bring change. she's not afraid to break something if it means learning how to put it back together better than before. in fact, she's pretty effective at this, being featured in events that correspond to mafuyu's biggest milestones: smiling for the first time and running away from home. to me, she's most interesting as a foil to meiko: action vs. inaction, reckless vs. careful.

len represents mafuyu's inner child. he was lost in sekai for an unknown amount of time, but when she finds him, she starts to remember what her childhood was really like. she remembers the way her mother guilt-tripped her for getting lost at pxl, that even then there was no warmth in their relationship. now, as her mother becomes set on stopping her from making music, mafuyu feels just as lost and afraid as len does.

and last but not least, kaito. a problematic fave perhaps, but also the true mvp of mafuyu's arc. he is an embodiment of rising stakes, of walls closing in and time running out. his first appearance is in the event where we see mafumom as the villain she is, and where she starts actively interfering with n25. he tells mafuyu the hard truth that she needed to hear: if she stays as she is, her true self will be destroyed. so of course, he terrifies her, but he's the one who gives her the push to save herself

[cheetabites]

☆彡 nasty pt 2 ˳༄꠶

character: park gyeong seok (player 246)

˳༄꠶ summary: six sfw and nsfw general relationship headcannons - this is regarding how his character would act outside of the games

sfw headcannons

★ originally, when you’d first gotten into a relationship with him he wasn’t as open. he felt as if he was a burden to you because of his inability to pay back the debt he owed from the medical bills. and ultimately, his inability to communicate due to his embarrassment and shame caused frustration on your part, but you’d later had gotten him to open up and tell you what was wrong

★ his love language is quality time and words of affirmation; he loves doing casual activities with you, like going for a walk in the park, going out shopping or for a movie, and cuddling with you at home. as for words of affirmation, he’d be the one to offer unexpected compliments or comfort when you feel insecure - but he enjoys it just as much when you decide to return the favor

★ him and his daughter still honor and visit his previous wife - although she passed away - and he really enjoys that you respect that fact; sometimes when you’re around and up for it, they’d include you in activities like switching out her flowers or when they’d just stay and update her on the things that’ve been happening

★ he’s not really a pet name person, so the only title he’d ever really refer to you by would be ‘jagiya’ - although if you two ever got married he would love referring you as his wife

★ mr gyeong seok is not apart of the cheating culture that is in korea; he finds it useless and a threat to his daughter and his sexual health, so you don’t have to worry about him every leaving you. if you ever broke up it would be mostly be out of mutual interest and concern

★ he’s an old fashioned man for sure; he’d always open doors for you, pay for dinner, secretly purchase items he’d see you eye whenever you’d go out together - he basically worships the ground you walk on. he’s also big on boundaries, both yours and his

nsfw headcannons

★ as i said before, this man is a switch. he loves both domming and subbing for his partner but it usually depends on what you want and how he’s feeling; if he’s domming he’s obviously a soft dom and while subbing, he makes sure to put on his good boy persona for you

★ he’s not really one for quickies unless he’s really pent up; he can’t really pick out the pleasure from it because having to rush really waters down the intimacy, which is something he needs to get off

★ voyerism is something that also enters the bedroom from time to time (all consensual.) he really likes watching you get yourself off, especially when you’re ‘unaware’ of him watching

★ when you both get intimate there’s usually no background noise / music. hearing you pant, whine or praise him while he’s fucking you is so hot for him

★ this man is all for body worship as well. he’d spend almost twenty minutes or so just kissing and rubbing your androgynous zones to get you ready for him; but god does it get you frustrated. you had to get on top a few times because you couldn’t stand how he was teasing you

★ he absolutely will put a baby in you once na-yeon gets better though, just be aware of that. and because he actually has children, he doesn’t really feel comfortable being called daddy when you have sex - you can always use other pet names though!

the end! i hope you enjoyed :D

[scandisim]

In The Family Way - A Medieval Pregnancy Kit For Pandasama's Realistic Childbirth Mod

I love a good historical gameplay, and I love Pandasama's Realistic Childbirth Mod. However, for obvious reasons that mod is heavily Modern Era™-coded. But I felt as though there were elements to the mod that could be adapted to my favorite kind of gameplay. This little kit is the result of that feeling. Find the items easily by searching for either [scandisim] or Pandasama in Build/Buy. Please keep in mind before reading any further that none of these work without the original mod by Pandasama, will not even show up in game without the original mod, and all credit for the mod goes to them!

Download Pandasama's Realistic Childbirth Mod here.

What's included:

 Ye Olde Birth Pool - BabyBoom Medieval Wooden Birth Pool

8 swatches (four wood, four stone)

$ 100

Ye Olde Yoga/Pregnancy Ball - Medieval Pregnancy Relief Ball

6 swatches (four hay/straw/grass, two fabric)

$ 50

Ye Olde Wooden Pregnancy Test - Medieval Pregnancy Test

Replaces the original pregnancy test with a wooden one with a bundle of wheat

Will be slightly green to emulate sprouting if positive

Debug item, but you can still find it if you have debug turned on

This is my first attempt at something like this, so do let me know if there are any issues. All mod related questions should obviously be run by Pandasama though. I have nothing to do with the original mod, I'm just a huge fan.

DOWNLOAD ON MY PATREON (Free)

[slbindery]

Rookie Moves by peu_a_peu for @sits-bound .

She posted the original bind I sent her, which was still cute, but I was worried wasn’t going to hold up over time because of some of the materials I was experimenting with. So this is a remake with the same typeset.

I made this version with Hollanders allure bookcloth in the color “canvas”. I made most of the htv design in canva, imported it into cricut, and then decided it was missing something so obviously I needed to add the cigarette.

“Of course Malfoy was the type to work out on holiday. Body fascist.

He set down a baguette he’d got on the way home. “How do you think I maintain my figure, magic?”

Cigarettes and mental illness, Harry almost said, but thought better of it. “Can’t say I’ve noticed your figure.”

The dust jacket and typeset art is all by @ectoheart

This fic is hilarious. I tried to cram as many quote highlights into this bind as I possibly could because there are just. so. many. good ones. I’ll edit the typeset eventually to add the other fics in Twenty Two Cards but for now it’s just Rookie Moves.

“What have you done,” Harry breathed.

Malfoy grinned, passing a hand over it from back to front. “I’m in a confusing new relationship, I acted out.”

“It’s so,” Harry said helplessly. “Short.”

“Yeah, that’s the point. I’m thinking of getting my ear pierced too so I really look gay.”

I would read this authors grocery lists if they let me.

And really wet, Harry discovered as, following an absurd little urge, he pulled Malfoy in and hugged him.

“Stop acting like you like me, it’s very manipulative,” Malfoy said.

“I could never hope to manipulate you,” Harry said against his skin.

“That’s just what you would say. To manipulate me.”

[yamumsyadadd]

the forgotten girl

originally posted on my old account. Trip loading twice weekly :)

Alexia’s pov 

“Ale please stay. Don’t leave me, please.” Hearing her beg for me not to leave her broke my heart. 

“I’ll be right back bebé, I’m just getting some water.” 

Alba and Mami were sitting on couch when it went out to the kitchen. 

“She asked me not to leave, so I’m going to go back in there. You should go home. Thank you for your help.” I set back off to Amelia’s room. The heart breaking scene of her curled into a ball, her eyes red and swollen, and the sound of sniffles through the air. 

I put her phone on charge and her water bottle on her bed side table, quickly making my way to the other side of the bed and climbing in. Pulling her into my arms and holding her until she fell asleep. After she had been asleep for half an hour, I messaged Keira and Lucy. Telling them I had Mil and asked them to come to her apartment. I didn’t know what to do. Im not good with my own emotions, and helping someone who is so deeply hurt is new to me. 

Keira Walsh: I’m here. Let me in please. 

Reluctantly, I got up, slowly in hopes to not wake Mil. The afternoon sun has lit up the apartment, it was bright and golden, a solemn contrast to the way Mils room felt. Opening the door, I was shocked to see someone else with Keira. Leah Williamson. 

“Hi Alexia.” The England captain shyly said. I opened the door further to let both women in. 

“Sorry, I thought it would be best to call Leah. She knows everything that happened with Milly and she got on the first flight here.” I nodded my head in understanding, that was smart in Keira’s behalf. 

“Is she asleep?” 

“Yeah. She was at the beach surfing and Mami bought us back here. She was just sitting in the shower with boiling water on her, she looked.” I had to take a second to compose myself, I would not be crying in front of Leah. “She looked broken.”

Keira and Leah just looked at each other. Sharing knowing looks and then Leah spoke up. 

“She said she loved you, right? That’s what caused this?” 

“Yes.” 

“I think we should all sit down. You need to hear this Alexia.” 

There were a few things in this world that make me anxious. Meeting my sisters new girlfriends, doing interviews in English, teenage boys and Amelia Higgins. 

“Okay so obviously you know the public details of what happened with Emily and her?” 

“Si” 

“Emily was going to end things. She had written down on a piece of paper everything she wanted to say. Basically consisted of that she was still in love with Mil. Mil was still her favourite person and that Mil was her soulmate, but Emily wasn’t hers.”

“Right? Okay?”

“Emily always knew that Mils heart didn’t completely belong to her. I think she hoped that over time it would change but it never did. Mil has always loved you.” 

I didn’t say anything. This was a lot to take in, her own friends telling me she has always loved me? What could’ve happened if I had said something earlier? Ended things with Jenni earlier? 

“Ale.” Keira grabbed my hands, taking my attention away from ripping my nails off. “She doesn’t want to love you because she’s scared. After being given the note, she blamed herself. Mil thinks she caused this. She doesn’t want anything to happen to you or to your family. If you truly love her like I think you do, you’ll need to let her come to you. There’s nothing more I want than to see you both happily together but that won’t happen unless she comes to you.” 

“I’ll wait for her. I don’t care how long it takes but I won’t leave her.” 

We didn’t talk after that, the sun started setting and they were talking about ordering food for dinner. 

“I think I’m going to go home. I think it’ll, uh, it’ll be better if I’m not here when she wakes up.” 

Before Leah or Keira could reply, Amelia yelled out from the bedroom.

“Alexia? Alexia? Fuck ale please come back. I need you to come back.” her voice broke, thinking I’d left her when she needed me the most. Running back into the room, I quickly climbed into the bed and pulled her into my chest. 

“No amor. I’m here. I’m not leaving you, okay? I’m here.” I felt her nod her head against my chest, then her tears slowly wet my shirt. I didn’t care about Keira or Leah in the lounge room, all I cared about was Amelia and making sure she felt safe and comfortable. 

Leah came in a short while later, letting me know she would be staying in the spare room and to yell out if either of us needed anything. As I lay there with Amelia’s head on my chest, her arms wrapped tightly around my waist, and mine around hers, the only thing I could think of is how I could get used to this feeling. Selfish I know but it’s the truth. 

By 9pm, the house was completely quiet and dark. Everyone was sleeping or enjoying the peaceful evening. 

As the sun came through Amelia’s bedroom curtains, I felt lighter. Slowly opening my eyes I noticed she wasn’t in the room, the side of the bed she slept in was cold, her phone was gone and her favourite hoodie and wetsuit that hung on the back of her door. She was surfing. Of course. Deciding now was the best time to leave and go back to my own house, I quickly made her bed, opened her bedroom window and got the bottles of water to put in the bin. 

I had forgotten Leah was there, Keira seemingly had come too. 

“Morning capi” Keira handed over coffee. 

“Gracias.” Inhaling the smell of coffee before taking the first sip. 

“Is she awake?” Leah jerked her head towards the door. 

“She’s surfing.” No one said anything for a moment. “I’m gonna go. I’ll see you later.” Turning quickly , before either could stop me. 

I sat in my car contemplating what to do, I thought about messaging Alba, but it was too complicated. Mapi was next, but again, complicated. The only person I truly wanted to talk to was Amelia. But I wasn’t sure if she wanted that. Despite the thoughts telling me to leave her alone, I made my way to the beach. Stopping to get her a coffee so she could have it when she got out. 

Since it was still early, it was easy to park and find her stuff. I made myself comfortable and waited. I didn’t have to wait too long because she had noticed me and started making her way back to the shore. 

“I got you a coffee. Caramel latte right?” I asked as I handed it to her. 

“Thanks Ale.” She sat down, closer to me than usual. 

Silence engulfed us. 

“So Leah’s here huh?” She said more as a question than a statement. 

“Yeah. She came last night. Keira rang her apparently and she got on the first flight.” 

“I don’t know how to do this Ale.” She whispered, I turned to look at her, confused. 

“Do what?” 

“Us. It was easier when I lived in England. I didn’t have to see you everyday, be close to you, listen to you laugh at something Mapi said or watch you with Vicky and Jana. I could watch you from a distance, love you from a distance. But now? Now I’m here and it’s almost too much. It’s so-“ 

“Overwhelming?” 

“Yeah.” 

“I feel the same way.” She rested her head on my shoulder, my arm wrapping around her shoulder. 

We stayed like that for a while. It was nice. But it wouldn’t last. 

[txttletale]

curious abt how u listen to music now.. do you listen to instrumental music at all ? music in other languages ? do you prioritize lyricism over how the actual song sounds or do they factor equally into your enjoyment of a song ? also what kind of music/what artists do you primarily listen to ?

i mean obviously how the song sounds makes a big difference, the best lyrics in the world couldn't salvage a song that i don't get anything out of musically. but for me a song without lyrics i find good or at least interesting kind of ends up being forgettable -- for a song to be, like, something i actively like and think about and want to hear again, it needs that narrative/literary element for me. i very rarely listen to instrumental music unless i just need atmosphere or background noise -- the instrumental music i find myself getting attached to in the same way i do lyrical music is usually soundtrack stuff, so i feel like the original media serves that anchoring purpose that lyrics do for me...

[angelwishess]

Kyra’s Design & Symbolism

I just wanted to ramble about how I designed Kyra, and all of the tiny details behind why I did so! Hehe!!

Inspiration

First of all— Why did I base her on the Disney Princess Stereotype?

If you think about it, its honestly perfect. Someone thats based on the Disney Princess Stereotype, trapped in a school of villains and unable to escape??? Its hilariously perfect, and such a good way to poke fun at tropes. Shes quite literally the perfect “Damsel in Distress” , especially how shes always somehow involved in each and every overblot.

It was pretty interesting and fittingly cliche. It feeds into the whole “damnsel in distress, captured by the villlain!” Cliche, and it kind of pokes fun at the fact many stereotypical princesses in media usually find themselves in unsavory situations, and need to be “saved”.

I will continue to expand on this more— but I also wanted to make it obvious that Kyra does not belong at NRC.

I wanted to make sure she stands out somehow, just to make it obvious that Kyra does not belong here, and was never meant to be at NRC in the first place.

General Design

Like I said earlier, Kyra was designed with the goal to stand out. To make it obvious that she doesn’t belong at NRC at all, and be the complete opposite of most of the NRC cast.

Kyra is meant to oppose NRC itself. She goes against what NRC represents, and the student body itself as “villains”.

A magicless student in an academy for mages, a foolishly selfless and (mostly—) humble girl surrounded by prideful students, a representation of light in a place that is a place of darkness as the “Villains’ World”.

Kyra is meant to stand out not only as my technical “MC”, but also to represent and have her as a symbol for change at NRC. With her arrival to NRC, and through the events of the main storyline, Kyra obviously has an effect on everyone she meets, and somehow I wanted to make sure that when you see her, it was someone you’d never forget. Not just from her actions, but from how memorable she is in general.

Even her name, Kyra, was purposeful. Depending on what language you check, it has different meanings, but every one of them suit her perfectly.

In Greek, the origin language for her name, it means “Queen”, “Ruler”, “Lord” or “Lady”; yet in Japanese it can mean “Glittering” or “Shiny”.

And in many other languages, Kyra has other meanings.

“Sun”, “Far-Sighted” and “Throne” in Persian, “Beam of Light” in Sanskrit, “Leader Of The People”, “Beloved”, “The One People Look To” in Russian, and “Beloved”, “Precious”, “Valuable” in Turkish.

I could go into detail on how all of these meanings fit her perfectly, but this post would get too long HAHAHAH

While Kyra is meant to oppose the NRC cast in some way, she was specifically designed and written in a way to directly parallel Malleus. I will make a post talking about how and why, and when I do I’ll link it Here!!

In a nutshell: Kyra was designed with the intent of being a contrast to NRC itself. She was designed and written in a way that is meant to set her apart from the cast, not only as the technical “MC” as my Yuusona, but also because of what shes based on.

But !!! She is also meant to be a physical representation of change at NRC. Of new beginnings, and love.

Color Scheme

Besides Pink and White being my favorite colors (SHHH IGNORE THAT FACT FOR NOW!!) — Kyra’s color scheme is actually meant to parallel Malleus. Like I said before, they are direct parallels personality and lorewise, and I wanted to show their parallels even through their designs.

Black and White are obvious opposites; Pink and Green are also directly across from eachother in the color wheel!

Buut, its also meant to parallel Disney Villains in general! Like I mentioned before, she is meant to parallel NRC and, by extension, the student body. See, one of Disney’s favorite things to do for their villains is using a bright green when animating scenes with their villains.

Soo, it was just too perfect and fitting to pass up!

That, alongside the main color for NRC being black, gave me the perfect idea. It fits so well, as the symbolism of both the colors pink and white perfectly fit Kyra’s entire concept! Her color scheme is not only the opposite of Malleus’, but also the colors commonly used for Disney villains in general.

White being a famous symbol of purity and innocence, and hints to the naive, innocent, sheltered princess stereotype.

Pink being a famous symbol for femininity, love and compassion. It is also very affiliated with princesses.

Furthermore, white also symbolizes perfection, honesty and beginnings.

Uniform Design

Oh lawwdd here we go… *cracks knuckles*

Kyra’s uniform is, again, supposed to somehow represent how she doesn’t “belong” at NRC despite wearing the uniform. Its heavily customized, and also represents her love for fashion and her desire to express herself.

Kyra’s uniform is mainly inspired by two kinds of fashion. Lolita fashion and Himekaji fashion!

Her sleeves are inspired by Lolita fashion, while her cropped jacket, innershirt and skirt are all inspired by Himekaji, a Gyaru substyle!

Himekaji is actually her main inspiration, and I have a few different reasons! Though, one is just because it suits her perfectly, theres one other!

“Himekaji” when directly translated, is “Princess — Casual”. And Kyra IS a princess trying to act casual and hide her royal background. Its a funny little way to hint at something, but its a fun fact I love about Kyra hehe

Furthermore, both Lolita fashion and Gyaru fashion are alternative fashion styles meant to fight back against the usual beauty standard and societal norms! Both are styles meant to represent dressing up for fun and for yourself, and not for others.

Lolita Fashion~

Additionally, Japanese culture emphasises the importance of motherhood as a “sacred mission” and discourages women from pursuing a career as it distracts her from her main task of motherhood and running the family home.

Thus girls and women who wear Lolita are rejecting the societal expectation of low-importance careers and homemaking in favour of a fantasy in which they can “fulfill their own sense of princess-like aesthetic beauty” and avoid growing up in a more mundane world.

Lolita fashion appears to be a rejection of societal expectations in favour of a luxurious, responsibility-free life.

Hehe, get it? Kyra was told her whole life her only purpose in life was to be beautiful and get married. She lacked any sense of identity other than the one that was forced upon her— and now, she dons a sense of fashion that is deeply rooted in fighting against those exact same ideals!

Gyaru Fashion~

The term “Gyaru” In Japan is usually used to refer to young women who are cheerful, sociable, and willing to convey their feelings and emotions through actions such as adopting trendy fashions.

The fashion subculture was considered to be nonconformist and a rebelling against Japanese social and aesthetic standards during a time when women were expected to be housewives

Also!— Gyaru girls in particular, are often associated with a carefree and rebellious spirit, challenging traditional Japanese norms of appearance and behavior. This ties in very well with Kyra’s own views of living, and which is why I made her main style lean more towards Himekaji, yet still made sure that there are hints of lolita fashion in her outfits, too!

In short— both of the fashion cultures I took most inspiration for with Kyra’s style both were created with the intent to rebel against what was expected of women in society.

Its kind of silly, but I thought it’d be a really fun way of representing who Kyra is and even hinting parts of her backstory through her uniform!!

Coffin Symbol

Man I really need to remake this😭😭

You might be thinking— “A dove? Isn’t that kind of random??” And, yes, thats what I thought too at first.

But, the thing is, even if Kyra’s character began as being inspired by the Disney Princess Stereotype; Kyra herself has her own story. And if I gave her a symbol that resembled her background and status of royalty, that would just completely throw away her entire character.

While Kyra may be royalty, during the course of the storyline she is actively trying to get away from it. Of course, it will always be part of her, and you can’t erase the past. But she strives to be more than just her beauty, and more than just her status.

And so, I decided to give her a symbol that represented who she truly is perfectly. A symbol of who she is and what she believes in.

Birds in general are a famous symbol of freedom. Something that is vital to Kyra’s character development and beliefs.

But ! I decided on a dove specifically because it represented her own beliefs the best, but also her role in the main storyline.

The dove has always been a famous synbol connected to the heavens. But it is also a symbol of peace, inner tranquility, harmony, purity, as well as love and freedom.

Personally, have always seen doves as a symbol for a new, prosperous era. The dove is the perfect symbol for Kyra! Freedom, love, and rebirth is everything she values and believes to most.

Similarly, ever since coming to NRC she's brought with her a new era of renewal. Spreading love wherever she goes whether people realize it or not, her effect on others is undeniable!

Honestly, the reason I chose the dove is also because of the story from the Bible with Noah’s arc.

Genesis 8:6-12: After forty days Noah opened a window he had made in the ark and sent out a raven, and it kept flying back and forth until the water had dried up from the earth. Then he sent out a dove to see if the water had receded from the surface of the ground. But the dove could find nowhere to perch because there was water over all the surface of the earth; so it returned to Noah in the ark.

He reached out his hand and took the dove and brought it back to himself in the ark. He waited seven more days and again sent out the dove from the ark. When the dove returned to him in the evening, there in its beak was a freshly plucked olive leaf! Then Noah knew that the water had receded from the earth. He waited seven more days and sent the dove out again, but this time it did not return to him.

This story is why the dove in her symbol is specifically holding an olive branch! The dove being the symbol of the coming of a new era after a great disaster, isn’t it fitting?

Anyways— Another reason that I have is that, again, I wanted her to somehow act as a parallel/opposite to the NRC cast. While NRC is represented by a raven, I simply thought it’d be fitting for Kyra to be represented by a white bird.

Its also a way for me to once again poke fun at stereotypes. Ravens are commonly seen as bad omens and “evil” in media, while doves are much more praised and beloved and commonly related to the heavens.

Buut !!! There is more !!! Continuing on my raven - dove symbolism…

Ravens are often symbols of death, while Doves are symbols of rebirth.

If it wasnt obvious already, I really like it when there are parallels within themes and characters WHAHAHAHA

Kyra herself is going through a period of rebirth and renewal throughout the main storyline. She is slowly discovering herself and the life she wants to lead, thus beginning her new, personal journey of life.

While she helps others— they help her, too. Without even realizing it.

Kyra’s character development focuses on Freedom, Love (romantic, platonic, self-love and familial—), Rebirth/New beginnings, Inner peace, and Hope in spite of a terrible past. Remaining full of love and hope regardless of the situation, and slowly coming to terms with who she is as a person.

HOLYY YAAPP😭😭 I put in a little TOO much thought into Kyra’s silly self methinks… only for me to mostly post only crack about her LMFAOOO

@screamintoad since I yapped to u abt this before hehe …

[verdantwyrm]

forgive me if you've already talked about this at some point and i just missed it, but i remember a while ago you said something about the possibility of jimmy having assaulted curly as well, and i'm curious if you have any more thoughts on that? i'm particularly interested in if you have any thoughts about the autocannibalism segment, cause that's a segment of the game that really stuck out to me, especially on a second playthrough. i just can't get over how jimmy literally crawls around and out of the inside of curly's throat immediately before a scene where he forcefeeds him his own flesh to audio that sounds like muffled panting and choking.

No no you're all good, Anon. And you're right, I have talked about it previously but not as lengthy as I wanted to, originally because my thoughts were scattered but now that i've replayed it and discussed it with others, the actual concept of it all is really down to the three (possibly four, depending on which angle you're looking at) possible implications that Curly might have been assaulted sexually by Jimmy at some point (post-crash, obviously) so I will quickly sum up what I can to get my thoughts out

Cannibalism, what it traditionally represents in media, is an act of love, and sometimes even an allegory for sex. It's an act of taking something from someone, usually non-consensual in some way, through coercion or straight up torture. It's utterly and truly an extremely vulnerable state to be in, considering Curly's situation post-crash, he has no autonomy, he cannot say no, and we know that Jimmy is one to immediately switch up the moment weakness in shown with how he beats and degrades Curly everytime he gives him his medication, theres absolutely no hesitation to hurt him further and plus we only see Jimmy give Curly his medication like four times, what about every other time thats not shown? Since Jimmy would have been doing it the whole time "for" Anya, and shes so incredibly insistent on not being able to stand the sounds Curly makes, which in itself could be directly related to her own assault. The brutal act of forcing something into someone that do not want, nor consented to.

Cannibalism, traditionally, has an immense underlying theme about true vulnerability.

It's the act of giving yourself to someone but more importantly, taking something from someone and making it apart of yourself. To have them inside of you, to consume them wholly, to take and to make yours. And the fact that it's specifically Curly's flesh is what gets me, Jimmy could have done that to anyone else and served a similar purpose but it needed to be Curly. Because this isn't the first time he's taken something from Curly in a very similar state of vulnerability and lack thereof any real autonomy over the decision and unable to back out because of Jimmy's needy personality.

Which is what the scene of Jimmy at the birthday party claiming that what he's doing is not only something Curly "owes" to him and then to twist it back onto Curly like this was all some wrongdoing that he needs to almost beg for forgiveness for.

"A lot of people struggle to put food on their plates. But that wasn’t enough. Right, Captain? The lowest rung of your ladder is our highest. Until it was all swept from under your feet. Life isn’t even worth living at the same level as us. But I forgive you. All of us do. I won’t give up on you, even like this. I believe in you."

Jimmy cuts off Curly's leg in one large hunk and then divides it between himself and the "others" at the table and then an extra slice for Curly. That's five individual pieces, which, at the end of the sequence and you carry Curly to the cryopod, you can see that all four pieces are gone from the table, and we know that Curly ate the fifth.

Jimmy took almost every single slice for himself, which he ate, and then forcibly fed Curly the fith slice multiple times, all while he is forced to sit and endure while Jimmy violates his body despite Curly's attempts at restraint. Curly has no autonomy, no voice, no human identity, everyone on the ship talks at him, talks about him, but never to him, he has been completely and utterly stripped of everything and Jimmy does not hesitate to abuse this, which makes me think that this isn't the first time he's done exactly this. And much like your comment about Jimmy literally climbing outside of Jimmy's throat and tongue, he's a louse. A tongue eating parasite.

To physically, emotionally and psychologically abuse Curly into a dark corner where he can barely defend himself, to let Jimmy walk all over him and still fawn at the opportunity to, to apologise for him and to attempt to meditate situations as best as he can to calm Jimmy down even at his own detriment, isolating himself, further removing himself from help or escape.

To again, further this idea, is the parallels between Curly and Anya's loss of autonomy. She can't bear to give Curly his pills due to him being in visible agony and her own trauma of forcing him to do something he very obviously doesn't want to endure, likely due to memories of her assault being triggered by both the act of forced insertion and the sounds produced by Curly during it. They both lost their voice, the ability to decide or speak on what is happening to them from the exact same man.

whether it's purely something symbolic or metaphorical, Anya and Curly are indistinguishable mirrors that reflect each other. They're too kind, too trusting, too forgiving, and the thing about rapists is that it's never just one time.

This thread isn't saying it's canon, it's literally just a crackheads analysis and theory... But hopefully that answers your question Anon! i've given this plenty of thought but struggle to articulate it properly!ヽ(・∀・)ﾉ

[uncanny-dedp00l]

The Homoerotic Imagery of the Honda Odyssey Fight in the film Deadpool and Wolverine: a comprehensive essay

The famous Honda Odyssey scene. It has gone sensational throughout fandom spaces for being a passionate fight scene between the movie's leads. Starting with an emotional monologue from Wolverine (filled with what can be taken as some projection, but that is another topic), and ending with a somewhat peace formed between the two. Of course, to most casual movie-goers watching, it was probably just another fight scene. However, to the trained fandom eye, it is much more.

The main thing that makes it more coded towards being a sex scene than merely an angry fight between buddies is the music. A good majority of the tracks in this film are love songs, and this one is no exception. Originally written for the film adaptation of *Grease*, it's about a girl transforming herself to win her love back and wanting him to "shape up" for her. This goes along with the film plot of Wolverine needing to "shape up" to help Deadpool save his world.

The other thing that leans for the sex allegory is the poses and positioning. Most obviously is where they are bent over the front of the car though the windshield, directly on top of each other. Also though is the angle where Deadpool is bent back out through the back windshield and snaps his arm back into place. There's lots of instances of being on top of each other and "exchanging bodily fluids" (in the form off blood). Somehow even more intense than being bent over the car is the small moment where Wolverine gives a small smile as blood splashes onto his face, clearly enjoying himself.

There are many who could say this is all coincidence or just queerbaiting jokes, but there are so many instances in this film of romantic subtext that at which point does it just become the main text of the film? While that is debate for another day, there is more than enough evidence for the Honda Odyssey fight to have been something more.

Finally, while the dialogue itself makes jokes about it, it's much deeper than that. The implications had to be there when writing, as there is no way this much homoeroticism can be entirely on accident. The extreme uses of sex tropes for the scene is the main reason, specifically the closing shot of the van rocking as blood sprays onto the sign saying "coexist." Deadpool and Wolverine quite certainly "coexisted" inside that car for sure. Additionally, at the very end of the film when introducing Blind Al to Dogpool, Deadpool says: "like an armadillo fucked a gremlin, angrily, in a bed of gonorrhea and didn't stop til the sun came up," which sounds a bit like what happened in the Odyssey.

[frankenfran]

PLEASE talk as much as you want about final fantasy. Since I already have 3 FF questions, I'll let you choose whatever you want to talk about most

1. I wanna hear what you don't like about XV and XVI (I only know the story of XVI and yeah it has. issues)

2. What do you think about the older 2D FFs?

3. I know there's an insane amount of spinoffs and side stories, so of them all, what do you think is a must-play for someone like me who wants to get more into the series? (I've only played most of tactics, and FF I Advance of all things)

oh goodness well, this probably won't be popular but since you asked... (under a read more because it's fucking long)

1.) as reductively as possible: too much of a focus on men. deeply misogynistic games. it feels like they're a response to the misogynistic backlash to ffxiii. yes ffxiii had plenty of problems but given the culture at the time (which obviously hasn't gotten much better) it kinda felt like a lot of people rejected it as soon as they saw a woman as the protag. the craziest part is she's basically just cloud post transition but mysteriously people think all those traits on a woman are irritating or cringe.

anyway, this is obviously just my own personal feeling but it feels like they went the opposite direction and decided there should be less women going forward. ffxiv is infamous for killing every important female character and ffxv is just a yaoi road trip with minimal female involvement. you'd certainly think there were no women in the game based on the fan art and, unsurprisingly, people loved that. i mean consider the reaction to ffx-2 vs. ffxv. they're both obviously very different games in a lot of ways but one of them is about boys going on an adventure together and the other is about girls doing the same. one of them is considered embarrassing and got tons of backlash from fans contemporarily for being too girly and the other was a huge hit with fans and loved even with its flaws. it's worth noting ffxv was also originally a ffxiii spinoff that became it's own thing so. that's also information.

ffxvi is even more egregious in some ways but ill admit a lot of those are mostly personal. it's fucking ugly and dull and i would not know it's a final fantasy game if it weren't for the ill fitting chocobos in some trailers. i know it's ironic for me to say that considering i praised ffix for looking unlike any other ff game but they went in the wrong direction. it's clearly inspired by prestige western fantasy slop like GoT and the witcher and unfortunately those are the exact things i do not want in fantasy. some people like that and that's fine but it's clearly not for me.

anyway, iirc the writers from ffxiv worked on this and from what ive seen it shows in the worst ways. these are the writers who couldn't introduce a woman without killing her off so already off to a bad start but. it's punching above its weight class. it's trying so hard to be a epic grizzly dark fantasy but it just falls so flat. they say fuck all the time in the same way that one dmc game everyone hated did. im sure there's some amount of nuance that gets lost in translation but the only woman in the amount of the game i saw was, quite literally, an evil screeching harpy manipulator. which is not like, something im against obviously as a lover of women but for that to be the only woman in the first like. 10+ hours of the game? come the fuck on. maybe it gets better i honestly don't know. and i don't think i ever will because what i saw of that game was so immensely disappointing that im not sure ill ever bother.

i have plenty more i could say about both games but ive said soooo much already and honestly i can't imagine the misogyny website would particularly enjoy even more of my "misandry" lmfao. in short:

2.) i really enjoy the older 2D final fantasies but ive only really played a chunk of ffvi and the original ff. some day ill definitely give them a go! i feel like the ff fan equivalent of a zoomer for loving almost everything from ffvi onwards and not having much to say about the older ones but. the biggest barrier for me is the same one i have with the older dragon quests. they're not particularly hard or anything but they expect you to grind. a whole lot. if i was a kid and my only game was ffiii id be on that grind but it's a bit harder as an adult who can like. just do anything else. i even like grinding and getting into that flow state but i haven't been as much in the mood for it these days, or if i have it's been for different games. ill definitely get around to them eventually though. young immortal mindset as ive said before. watching my gf try and play through them did sort of make me want to give it a spin even with her furping.

3.) honestly you're already off to a good start! tactics is well beloved for a reason and it's probably the most recommended spinoff. id also highly recommend tactics advance. it's not as like, dark and serious as tactics but the style and gameplay and story are all executed nearly flawlessly. it's a favourite of our beloved princess nettlebloom and that's reason enough! definitely finish tactics first though. hmm... if you play ffxii and also enjoyed tactics advance then give FFXII: revenant wings a try! it's a weird RTS type game but it's in the style of tactics advance and very cute. definitely not for everyone though.

it's really far from essential but if you can somehow manage to organise enough people for it i highly recommend giving crystal chronicles a try. it's really fun with other people and it's close to ffix stylistically so im a big fan. maybe try dissidia if you want a silly fighting game? kebs seemed to enjoy stranger of paradise quite a bit and it seems like mindless action game fun so maybe give that a look if it interests you. honestly the spin-offs cover such a wide range of genre and quality that it's almost hard to have cohesive opinions on them lol. but i hope that helps in any way!

thank you for asking though and sorry for the wall of text! i genuinely suck at being concise and getting my points across but hopefully you could decode some of this madness lol

[cryptids-lair-of-hyperfixations]

sampo theory — amphoreus.

did anybody else notice that back during "mr cold feet's pop-up shop", the transition screen had references to greek lore?

i'm sure i'm not the only person who noticed, but i've been doing a lot of thinking about it ever since that event happened. what does it mean, beyond pointing towards amphoreus?

no detail is too small when it comes to this game. it has to mean something... and while i'm aware that there is a very good chance that i'm wrong about this one, i had a thought earlier that i just want to share somewhere.

"Take it easy, Icarus" — this is very curious to me. we are all obviously aware of the story of icarus, the boy who flew too close to the sun. so... what's it doing in a sampo-centric event? well, there are a few things i can think of. "icarus" could easily be referring to a number of characters, but because this is a greek mythos and we're about to depart to a greek-inspired planet... well, i have to assume our "icarus" is an amphoreus character. so what kinds of things could be considered as flying too close to the sun? maybe something like... disrespecting the gods?

"This must be a trap created..." — this one we cannot really see the full quote. created by who? well, there's no easy answer. greek lore is full of tricksters and traps... but i think it's fair to say that the most well-known trick is the trojan horse. it's the one you're probably gonna think of when you think about this kind of thing. but is that what's being pointed to here, or are we referencing another trap? if so... was sampo tricked? was our fox outfoxed?

"Diogenes' Utopia" — the name of an ingame achievement, namely one underneath the "moment of joy" category; the one directly related to aha the elation. so on top of being a reference to a greek philosopher, a founder of cynicism no less, here it's some kind of meta reference to aha.

okay, that's my thoughts on the quotes themselves. but i had a different thought earlier... namely the first point. while we don't know much about the amphoreus characters thus far, the little bit of information we know about anaxa is that he is a scholar who disrespects the gods.

if we want to say that disrespecting the gods is flying too close to the sun... is anaxa our icarus? if this is the case, why would he be pointed at in a sampo-centric event?

perhaps they have some kind of connection. we obviously know sampo isn't a jarilo-vi native. it's not that far of a stretch to think he's at least visited amphoreus at some point, although i doubt he's originally from there. (i still don't know where i think sampo is from. likely somewhere we haven't heard of yet, i still think kalevala is a red herring.)

i think that's enough rambling from me now. there's a 90% chance i'm wrong about the anaxa part of this, but i just want to get the brain worms out.

[cynical-canidae]

Okay, sorry (I'm not at all), but someone was appreciating the outfits of Viktor's commune on Twitter, and it reminded me I just have a whole lot of thoughts.

But I just love love love love them because essentially?? Looks aside (though they are stunningly gorgeous), these outfits—specifically being wrapped in blankets—sort of represent these individuals at their base/"pure" humanity.

But if you think about it, for most people, even in fictional settings/media, a blanket is your very first "outfit." It is your very first armor to brave this big, big world. Then and there at your birth, you are at your absolute most vulnerable. It's you BEFORE all of the wrong of the world (prejudice, disease, harm, death, etc.) has any chance to affect/shape you. From then on, they—this life, this world, this society—all will take every chance they can get to leave its fingerprints all over you. But in that moment, coddled by a blanket, you are a bare canvas of whatever your genes have ordered. Which is why I say "pure/base humanity."

And RAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA if this does not perfectly encapsulate the commune's (Viktor's) mindset at this point??

I want to first preface this by saying. No. OBVIOUSLY the commune was not 10000% all good. Loss of self and autonomy and free will are Not good things. 🧍‍♂️🧍‍♂️ (As these things makes us ourselves. Yes, though their bodies move, this is essentially murdering these people.) This is the core principle of which original game Viktor and Jayce disagreed and ultimately separated upon/got Viktor expelled. However, one of the MAIN themes of Arcane is how we can do very horrible things with good intentions. We know that this happens to be Viktor's. Clearly not probably one of the best methods of trying to bring this about, but what I'm saying is that not a single soul can argue that everything/the aftermath was done out of malice/an "evil" plan. TL;DR: No, the commune was not perfect like some people for some reason?? were convinced (looking at all of you with the 🚫 Jayce pfps after Act 2 lol). However, no way can someone genuinely say that it meant Viktor was evil because of all of it. Ok, preface over.

(Also, don't even get me started on the tragedy of how the world made Viktor, a disabled man, believe that the solution was to change himself and not ?? making the world more accommodating/educating people. That's for another time and I'm supposed to be talking about BLANKETS djksfnosfjskm.)

ANYWAYS, like Viktor himself says in Act 2:

"The reason for our failures in the commune. The doctor was right. It's inescapable. Humanity. Our very essence. Our emotions... Rage. Compassion. Hate. Two sides of the same coin. Inextricably bound."

Humanity has a ton of good to offer the world and each other. The commune was born out of Viktor's genuine empathy and desire for people to live free from all of the downsides of the human condition and the things that come with it. The commune was an attempt to separate the good side of the coin from the bad side. Which is why I say that their outfits, simply blankets wrapped around them like their "pure" selves (birth), perfectly encapsulates the commune's/Viktor's mindset at this point in time. He was convinced that he could find a way to have only the good. It also meant everyone was put to the same "level"/showed a sense of equality, which was another thing Viktor was trying to do. (I.E. Uniforms are VERY big in Piltover. Certain clothes mean STATUS. Even Salo, a former councilman, being in the same robes as everyone else is a good example of bringing everyone to the same playing field.)

Also, since I cannot help but note on it. My fellow religious trauma girlies were also very tuned into just how biblical Act 2 was in general (Jesus Viktor jokes, you will always be famous). I could make an entire essay on all of THOSE parallels, but on the topic of clothing: Adam and Eve only adorned "clothes" out of shame/self-consciousness once the biblical version of Pandora's box had been opened, releasing all of the bad (sin) into the world. This point in time of humanity before the apple is exactly akin to what Viktor was trying to achieve. (He even had a damn greenhouse omg like that's literally the Garden of Eden?? 😭😭) So while Fortiche/Riot definitely wouldn't have been able to have the members of the commune all naked without getting bumped up a couple ratings, it definitely makes sense that they would wear/appear as the next thing closest to that. Huzzah!! Blankets!! 🤌🤌

I also very much appreciate it because it makes the transition of Viktor's mindset changing very stark as well, going from "most" human (blanket) to least human (machine). I have been rationalizing these two differing points in my head kinda as:

[Commune/Act 2]

"I must save humanity from the world"

(Mentally, you have to equate bad things to the world if you believe you can have humanity without it)

VS.

[Arcane Herald/Act 3]

"I must save humanity from itself"

(Inarguable, as this is the canonical current state of new game Viktor. Also can be seen like "the world from humanity.")

Anyways, I'm crazy. 🧎‍♂️🧎‍♂️ Thanks for reading.

[mammoth-clangen]

I just wanted to say that you've greatly inspired me to start working on my own clangen comic!! I'm TERRIBLE at drawing cats, so when I first started reading clangen comics I figured I would never make one. But yours was the first one I read that wasn't based off "cats" per se. After I read yours I sought out more clangen comics that didn't feature cats, and I finally started my own!! @scaleclan-clangen (I'm still not very good at drawing in general, but better dragons than cats haha). Obviously you don't have to respond, but if you do choose to, then I would love to hear any tips that you may have!

Oh dragon clangen that's so neat! 🐉

I'm definitely not the first to use non-cats for a clangen, so i can take 0 credit for that cx Even before I started there was at least a few around using other species (pigeons, wof dragons and chickens off the top of my head), I think there's even one using inanimate objects out there!

I've done a few comic/clangen tip asks but as for art advice, it's tricky because it's mostly the same old "practice always" cx

For dragons specifically I can give one bit of personal advice which is: References are great even if you're drawing a made up animal!

Find a living creature with similar anatomy even just in one area (wings/legs/head/etc) and boom, references! I originally learned to draw almost exclusively from my silly original species so this does work I promise cx

Something I always say is "if you used a reference and it still looks wrong, it is". Which is to say, use references but don't marry yourself to them, go with what looks right! Usually I find a couple of similar ones and draw from both, rather than replicating one completely. When I'm drawing a particularly in-depth pose (such as Poppy hunting in Moon 8) I often try to find a video of the moments surrounding it, to get a better idea of movement. Also the line of action is your friend and it's Not just relevant in animation, it will also make your still drawings hold more motion c:

When learning a new species, or a particularly hard pose, I'll often doodledump loosely from a reference then put that reference right next to the doodle to compare where I went off.

This way you get a better feel for shapes than you would from tracing (which isn't The Devil, but should be used sparingly), and better proportions than just loose referencing c:

don't try to work out who the characters are i intentionally anonymised them rjhrfh

[apollos-boyfriend]

i think a reason i like the cmercenary confrontation so much is because cpurpled is right in every way. and it just really highlights what’s simultaneously one of my favorite things about him and one of the most infuriating ones—he’s an over-confident arrogant asshole who flies too close to the sun. but also. he’s an over-confident arrogant asshole who can genuinely back up his claims

punz tries to belittle him by saying there’s no way purpled could hurt them, but it doesn’t phase him. purpled’s confident that he could beat punz in a fight, and he’s likely right—punz was a good fighter, sure, but purpled easily outskilled him in agility

punz tries to pull the dream card—obviously, he’s the most feared person on the server—but it doesn’t work. purpled only insults dream, calling him a coward for not being there himself, to which punz can only utter out a weak retort

punz tries to get the upper hand by saying they’ve been investigating quackity, but all they have to show for it is the “reveal” that slime is quackity’s biggest weakness. yeah, no shit, purpled found that out literally on day 1

punz insists purpled needs their help, but purpled continuously insists he doesn’t need anyone’s input. and he’s likely right. his original plan seems to have been killing slime in front of quackity again, which would’ve accomplished everything he wanted—to make quackity hurt the way he hurt when he lost his UFO. he emphasizes he could physically kill quackity at any point (not a flex, honestly, a fruit fly could), but it’s not what he wants, truly. and i do think he could’ve done it. if dream and punz didn’t get involved, didn’t create this whole scheme to “brainwash” slime, purpled could’ve easily found another way to trap quackity and kill slime in front of him once more

but!!!! despite it all. purpled needs to prove his superiority. he needs to be in control, and above all else, needs to be a dramatic little bitch. so he goes along with it anyways, even though he knows he doesn’t need to. because he can’t help himself. because what is an icarus that doesn’t turn towards the sun.