#reverse isekai loop

[meamiki]

some random reverse entry au [office + reverse isekai loop] drawings :thumbsup:

[mildly interested in this silly au? here is a link to scroll through for all the stuff i've made for it! i'll make a proper master post... someday.....]

[kikyoupdates]

For Tomorrow's Sake ⭑˚💫⭑ 𝑝𝑟𝑜𝑙𝑜𝑔𝑢𝑒

various!jjk x f!reader

reverse harem, isekai, jujutsu kaisen x fem!reader, slowburn

You never believed reincarnation was possible, least of all in the fictional world of Jujutsu Kaisen. However, from the moment you meet Gojo Satoru, it’s impossible to deny. Whether it’s a miracle or some kind of curse, you find yourself growing up alongside the strongest jujutsu sorcerer. Unfortunately, you know what the future holds in store. You know exactly what kind of tragedies await. Perhaps that’s why you were brought into this world. If it means saving people from a gruesome fate, you’ll gladly suffer in their place. You’ll do whatever it takes. All for the sake of a better tomorrow.

story masterlist | next

You’re surrounded by darkness. 

It feels like you’re trapped in some kind of void. You don’t understand what’s happening, but this vast expanse of nothingness stretches out farther than the eye can see. It feels like you can’t breathe. It feels like you’re being smothered, choked, trapped—and you’re desperate to break free. 

Ironically, the moment you have that thought, your prayers are answered. 

Suddenly, it’s not dark anymore. It takes a few moments for you to adjust to your surroundings, but there’s light, and images come into view. They’re nothing more than blurry shapes at first, but slowly, you’re able to make sense of them.

The silence is gone, too. It’s been replaced by the sound of something harsh, the likes of which grates at your ears and is impossibly loud. 

It’s the sound of a baby wailing. 

A group of people are staring down at you. Adults, all of them, and their expressions are unmistakably stern. You can’t seem to figure out what’s going on. The baby’s cries overwhelm your senses, and you desperately wish they would stop, but regretfully, they continue. 

One of the people scowls. 

“The child is born weak. Her cursed energy is scarce.” 

Strange. For some reason, they’re looking down at you as they utter those words. They clearly just said, the child. 

…are you that child? 

The wailing makes sense now. You’re a baby. A helpless little infant. All you can do is cry. You’re incapable of expressing yourself any other way—despite your best efforts to do so—and thus, your wails continue to fill the room, on a seemingly endless loop. 

“What a disappointment,” another person sighs. 

“She will serve no purpose. We may as well pass her onto a non-sorcerer family. It saves us the trouble of having to—” 

“No.”

Yet another person speaks up. It’s a woman, and although you can’t quite explain how you know, just by looking at her, it becomes clear. 

She is your mother. 

“My daughter will be raised here,” she insists, a glare crossing her brow. “I was forced into this life. Why should she have the kind of freedom that I was so unfairly denied? I don’t care if she’s weak. Put her to work. She can help out with menial errands, as a servant. It doesn’t matter. Do not let her leave.” 

Despite the fact that she is your biological mother, and you are her flesh and blood, her gaze is filled with nothing but hatred. She resents you, it seems, and while an ordinary baby wouldn’t be able to understand her words, for some reason, you do. 

All of these terms confuse you. Cursed energy, sorcerers… they make your brain itch. They evoke a strange sense of déjà vu, but you fail to comprehend why. Which only makes it that much more frustrating. 

Honestly, this scares you. It’s a scary feeling, to be so utterly helpless, but viscerally aware of what’s happening around you. You have the urge to run away from here, as fast as you possibly can, but your body is physically incapable of doing so.

Even though you escaped the darkness, you’re still trapped. 

Some time passes. 

You’re older now. You recently turned five years old. If nothing else, you’re thankful for the ability to be able to move normally. Having to live as an infant, while fully aware of everything around you, was absolute torture. It’s true that you didn’t have any responsibilities and you were able to lounge and sleep to your heart’s content, but still… ugh. You’re glad that uncomfortable period of your life is finally over with.

Although five years have passed, nothing particularly remarkable has happened. 

Your mother actively avoids you. She treats you coldly, and as far as you can remember, has never shown you any love. Your father, the head of the household, barely so much as glanced at you after you were born. You’re of no interest to him since you’re so weak. He’s had children with several other women apart from your mother, but your half-siblings have far more potential than you, and so, they ignore and look down on you the same way your parents do. 

The same goes for pretty much everyone else, too. No one ever pays attention to you, or comforts you when you’re sad, or lets you take a break when you’re tired. The second you started walking properly, they told you to help out with chores, and day in and day out, your weak, tiny little legs can hardly keep up. 

You suppose it could be worse. Nobody ever yells at you, or hurts you. Some children have the misfortune of being born into incredibly abusive homes. And while neglect is still a form of abuse, you always have a comfortable spot to sleep in at night, and several yummy, warm meals each day. 

You live in a big traditional Japanese-style home, along with many other people. Some of them are your close relatives, some of them are your distant relatives, and some are people that are unrelated to you but married into the family. There are also those who have been purely hired as workers, to help maintain the home, take care of cleaning, cooking, and so on and so forth. 

Anyways, there are lots of people here—most of whom are sorcerers. 

It’s been vaguely explained to you before. Sorcerers are those born with more cursed energy than most, and have the ability to see and fight cursed spirits. Apparently, cursed spirits are incredibly dangerous. They not only harm people, but can also kill them outright. Hence why sorcerers devote their lives to fighting them, in order to keep everyone else safe. 

You have to acknowledge, it’s a noble cause. Sorcerers actively risk their lives in order to fight curses. That’s the kind of family you’ve been born into. But since your cursed energy is so weak, it doesn’t sound like anyone has high hopes for you. Some people within your family occasionally go on missions to fight curses. They usually come back, but there have been a few instances where you’ve asked where certain people have disappeared to, only to be met with a cold, stone-faced expression in return. 

Death isn’t uncommon in this line of work. That’s why it’s probably for the best that you’re so weak. The stronger the sorcerer, the harder the missions they have to undertake. You would much rather stay home and do chores instead. You’re not strong enough to save anyone. You’re not strong enough to risk your life. And even after all this time, you have yet to see a cursed spirit with your own eyes. 

It’s okay if people ignore you. It’s okay if nobody thinks you have any worth. All you can do is make the most of the life you’ve been given. 

What you don’t yet realize, however, is that you’re destined for something much, much greater. 

One day, you’re sweeping outside the residence’s gates. The sky is clear, and the sun shines brightly overhead. Even though you’re not much older than five years old, people rarely concern themselves with you. They just give you chores to do, then let you be. It’s negligent, of course, since you’re still a young child, but you prefer it this way. You can appreciate the peace and quiet every now and then. Today, you even snuck out a popsicle, and you set your broom aside for a few moments as you unwrap your cold treat. 

Finally, it happens. For the first time since you were born.

A cursed spirit appears before you. 

Your eyes widen. Panicked and caught off guard by the frightening, unfamiliar sight, you stumble backwards, falling to the ground and dropping your popsicle. The curse is a gruesome-looking thing. It has several pairs of big, bulging eyes, a disturbingly wide mouth, with rows upon rows of jagged teeth. It’s bigger than you, too. You’re just a child. You have a tiny, weak frame, and right now, you’re so scared that you can’t even move. 

The cursed spirit approaches you, cackling in an ominous, distorted tone of voice. Tears well up into your eyes. You need to scream. You need to call out for help. Time and time again, you’ve been told that your cursed energy is weak. You’ve been told that you’re weak. Everyone views you as a hindrance. Pathetic. Dispensable. 

Doesn’t that mean… that you have no chance of winning against this thing? 

The cursed spirit lets out a shrill, high-pitched laugh and lunges towards you. It’s too close. You have no chance of escaping. Even if you’d called for help by now, nobody would have been able to get here in time. Even if you’d called for help…

Nobody would care if you died. 

You squeeze your eyes shut, preparing yourself for an onslaught of pain, which is sure to be unlike anything you’ve ever experienced. 

But the pain never comes.

When you open your eyes, the cursed spirit is gone. 

“...are you okay?” 

Someone is speaking to you. It takes a few moments for you to wipe away your tears and clear your blurry vision. You’re shaking from head to toe, unsure how you managed to survive, but once your gaze falls upon the boy now standing in front of you, suddenly, it all makes sense. 

Snow-white hair, paired with bright, piercing blue eyes. 

You don’t even need to wait for him to introduce himself. Already, you know who he is.

Gojo Satoru…? 

Just like that, it all comes back to you. His appearance sparks something inside your mind, and you’re hit with an abundance of knowledge, a wealth of information that was hiding beneath the surface until now. You remember everything. 

This isn’t the normal, ordinary world you believed it to be. 

This is the world of Jujutsu Kaisen. 

You wince. You must have had some kind of amnesia until now. It’s no wonder so many things sounded vaguely familiar, but you just couldn’t seem to place them. It makes sense now. It makes sense why you were so clearly aware of everything happening around you, despite being an infant. 

Somehow, you’ve been reincarnated. And into a fictional world, no less. 

You already died once. Back in the real world, as a teenager. There was a devastating earthquake, and you passed away, having suffocated under mounds of debris. You never knew that reincarnation was actually real. You always thought that even if people did reincarnate, they would lose all memories of their previous lives. 

You’re not sure how, or why, but by some miracle, all of the details of your past life have returned to you. 

“Are you okay?” Satoru asks again, frowning slightly. He’s only a child at this point. You’d say he’s about your age. Which means that only did you reincarnate into Jujutsu Kaisen, but you ended up in the same generation as none other than the strongest modern-day sorcerer. 

“I-I’m fine,” you nod. To be honest, you’re not really fine. You’re alive, but it feels like your head is spinning. This is a lot to process. Part of you can’t help but wonder if you’ve lost your damn mind. 

No, that wouldn’t make sense. You’ve been living in this world for several years now. It’s far too realistic, far too detailed to be a figment of your imagination, or some kind of long, drawn-out dream. 

This may not be the world you’re used to, but the fact that you’re here, living and breathing, means that it’s real. 

Which also means that all the horrible deaths that will occur are real, too.

Including Satoru’s. 

Your fists clench without you even realizing it. You’ve been told time and time again that you’re weak. You’ve been told that you’ll never amount to anything. But you’ve just discovered that you have a far greater weapon that you could ever have imagined. You have the kind of knowledge that could shake this world to its core. 

It’s not like you’re some kind of pretentious fool. What can someone like you do when faced with the likes of Sukuna? You shouldn’t get ahead of yourself. You shouldn’t get carried away. Even if you do your best to help, there’s no guarantee you’ll succeed. 

But… you’d like to at least try. 

Satoru stares at you for a few moments, just to make sure you’re actually alright, then he turns and starts walking away. He clearly only came here because he sensed the curse and knew someone was in trouble. Now that you’re safe, he has no more reason to stick around. 

He must not have been expecting you to chase after him, though.

“W-Wait!” 

You stumble, nearly tripping over your own feet as you call out to him. Satoru stops and turns towards you with a look of mild disinterest. 

“Yes?” he asks. 

“I just��� I wanted to thank you properly. For saving me. So, thank you. Thank you so much.” You pause, lowering your head for a moment, but when your gaze finally lifts, you’re grinning ear-to-ear. “I’m [Name]. What’s your name?” 

Of course, you already know the answer to that question, but the fact that you even asked makes Satoru falter. By now, just about every sorcerer should be able to tell who he is. The day of his birth forever changed the world of jujutsu. The renowned Six Eyes are recognized by all. People instinctively know who he is, without having even met him. He’s never even had to introduce himself.

Until now, for the very first time. 

“...Satoru. Gojo Satoru.”

Neither shock nor realization colors your features. Perhaps you really haven’t heard of him after all. Perhaps that’s why your smile just grows wider, brighter, seemingly without end. He wonders why you’re looking at him with gentleness and warmth, rather than the cold, muted admiration he’s so used to. 

Oddly enough, though, he doesn’t mind.

In fact, he finds himself smiling as well. 

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[quietplace26]

Streamer!MC, but au is based off this post. Thank you @arn9tails.

Long story short. Reverse isekai. Teyvet transporting to our world. Teyvat inhabitants being giants compared to earth humans. SIZE. DIFFERENCE.

So, Streamer!MC is a streamer who mostly streams Genshin Impact, but then this post happens, and bam! Suddenly Genshin Impact isn't a game anymore. The nations of Teyvat have suddenly appeared in the real world, and that meant the characters she spent blood, sweat, tears, and so much money on were most likely VERY real. The story she once played through actually happened.

It was an uncomfortable realization.

And don't even get her started on the fact of the sheer size difference regular humans and Teyvatians have... It's terrifying...

Streamer!MC immediately stops playing Genshin Impact after that, even posting a video explaining why. It wasn't right. This game wasn't a game anymore. This 'game' was pushing boundaries to a point where it could be considered creepy and revealing things the characters of Genshin impact would've most likely preferred kept secret.

So, no more Genshin Impact on her channel.

But on the Teyvetians side of things, I imagine them modernizing a little. Imagine each nation having the power of the internet and maybe a character stumbles across Streamer!MC and watches some of her Genshin content...

(Warning: OCness cause I'm horrible at writing characters in character. And Yandere elements.)

Zhongli.

You can't tell me he isn't irritated, if not enraged with having his cover blown by the earthlings and his retirement plan ruined.

But even so, Cloud Retainer was the one that told him about this... Internet thing, one day when they met up for tea.

Even going as far as to show him an odd contraption that she recreated from some earthling technology called a laptop.

Looks as useless and annoying as those little earthling devices called 'phones' that recently started popping up in all the nations...

She ends up giving him his own little contraption, and later that night, he let curiosity take over and messed around with it and stumbled across something called twitch, and a... Streamer? What in Celestia's name is that?

But then he sees the title 'My first experience with Genshin Impact!', and he knew what Genshin Impact was. Everyone in Teyvat knew. And most hated it or found it interesting.

Zhongli disliked it on principle as it blew his cover, but he was curious...

The earthling girl spoke a lot during the whole, uh, playthrough? He still didn't have much knowledge on this subject yet, but he watches the whole thing... the earthling had a nice voice...

He oddly felt annoyed as he heard her gush about how pretty Mondstadt was... she should see his nation; it was much more beautiful than that drunk bard's nation.

He ended up watching the next stream after the Mondstadt arc concluded and Liyue was introduced. And the utter smugness he felt he heard her amazement over how lovely his nation was, nearly threw him for a loop.

He can't help but wonder how she'd react is she saw Liyue for real.

And when he saw her reaction to seeing him for the first time in game? Oh, it was honestly precious. She wiggled around in her chair, giggling in an almost shy way as she listened to him talk in game. There even a blush on her cheeks!

After that, Zhongli ended up going through all of Streamer!MC's content. Which meant all of her Genshin content.

With each stream he learned more about her. little things, big things, Streamer!MC was an open book.

Don't even get him started when he saw you pull for him for the first time! Even though you were grumbling about money you kept pulling until you got him AND his weapon.

It was honestly somewhat ego boosting how she always had him on her team despite some of the more difficult matchups. And practically spoiling his game self with the best artifacts as well!

It... it was odd. Seeing someone he had not even met caring so much about him. In her eyes, he wasn't supposed to be real, but even then...

...He didn't dislike it.

But then he finally got to her last post. This one apparently posted sometime around when Teyvat landed on earth. The one where Streamer!MC explains that she would NOT be posting anymore Genshin Impact content because of Teyvat's unexpected arrival.

"It's not a game anymore! The characters of Genshin are real people! I'm not playing something that the 'characters' had no say in!"

The MC huffs in annoyance. "How would you guys feel if all your secrets were revealed in a video game, huh?"

And it goes on with another more recent post. Streamer!MC says she was retiring from Twitch to focus more on schooling.

Retiring? But... But that meant you wouldn't stream anymore, right? That he wouldn't be able to hear you voice anymore... right?

Zhongli. Did. Not. Like. That.

Suddenly, it hits him. He remembers hearing about... issues, the earthlings had recently. Issues dealing with kidnappings. He knew it was from traffickers, mostly treasure hoarders and the bored Fatui or two looking for some quick mora, but...

Hm... Maybe he should have a chat with Childe... That rascal was in Liyue at the moment and had been demanding him for a spar... Maybe Zhongli could offer him a contract? The Harbinger gets a fight, but only if he'll fetch him something... special.

"...Ugh, my head..."

Streamer!MC groans as she slowly sits up, feeling confused and little dizzy. Last thing she remembered was walking back to her apartment after a long day of college when she suddenly felt the ground start to shake and people screaming before she blacked out...

Once her vision clears, she realizes she was in... a cage? Well, to be more exact, a giant intricate birdcage, which automatically starts to make her panic. Even more so when she realizes she was in different clothing! (Just picture the Geo symbol on it)

Trying to calm herself, Streamer!MC tries to take note of her surroundings. In the birdcage, there was the softest of pillows and blankets, the most comfortable bed, a soft flooring that felt like she was walking on clouds... and oddly enough, Zhongli plushies of all sizes, all in his Exuvia form, tucked all around the birdcage.

There were also books, but most you've never heard of, and the ones you have... were ones you only heard about or saw only a few paragraphs while playing Genshin Impact.

Now feeling absolutely terrified, she stumbles over to the edge of the cave, grabbing at the bars and peeking outside. Outside lining the birdcage was flowers... flowers that looked like eerily like Glaze Lilies. A flower that couldn't be anywhere but in- Oh. Oh...

She finally notices her surroundings. The landscape before her looked exactly like a domain from Genshin Impact, particularly, the Domain of the Wayward Path, but so much bigger. But that couldn't be right. Why was she here?! How?!

"Oh. You're finally awake, little one."

Streamer!MC freezes at the voice. She knew that voice. Knew it very well. Slowly, she looks up... and sees a massive Zhongli staring into her birdcage, smiling that calm and mysterious smile she remembers from the game.

Extra notes.

Zhongli keeps Streamer!MC hidden inside his own Adepti Abode.

Only the Adepti know about Streamer!MC. So even if she somehow escaped, an Adepti would quickly find her and bring her back to their lord.

But it isn't like she could get far with her tiny size.

Streamer!MC's birdcage is made of Cor Lapis.

Cloud Retainer was the one that managed to shrink everything in Streamer!MC's birdcage down to the earthling's size with one of her inventions. The bed, pillows, blankets, books, plushies, etc.

She also did Streamer!MC's clothes. As for how she got it on Streamer!MC, however... Let's say Adepti magic is very versatile.

The large amount of Exuvia plushies in Streamer!MC's cage was because Zhongli remembered a stream where she proudly showed off a plush of his Exuvia form she bought for herself, and recalled how she said she wished she could buy MORE.

Well, he was the God of Mora, so it wasn't hard to commission some special one of kind 'Rex Lapis' plush toys.

Zhongli doesn't refer to Streamer!MC as a pet. He actually gets very angry when Childe called her that after giving her to Zhongli as per their contract requested.

The 11th Harbinger gets the fight he wanted but it only lasts a few seconds before Zhongli yeets him into the harbor in a one hit KO.

After some time passes and Streamer!MC stops fighting back, Zhongli starts taking her out of her birdcage, holding her and carrying her around like a delicate gem.

He bonds with her by gifting her various gifts (Which Cloud Retainer than shrinks down). And always talks to her daily, as he recalls from her streams of how she loved his voice. So, he uses it to his advantage, slowly breaking down her fearful shell with soft words and more.

Also slowly teaches her to rely only on him. As all he wants is best for her. Especially since the world was quickly becoming a dangerous place with the more... vile, Teyvatians snatching earthlings up to trafficked as pets or worse.

But Streamer!MC wasn't a pet. No. She was something so, so much better...

"宝贝 (Bǎobèi), you shine as bright as a Cor Lapis but you are also as delicate as a Glaze Lily, if not more."

Streamer!MC lays curled up in the Ex-Archon's hands, looking oh so very tiny and fragile, and stares up at him with sleepy, but trusting eyes as Zhongli ran a finger down her back, slowly beckoning her back to sleep...

[littlewonders7]

Self-Aware Arcane ideas pt.1

_______________________

- I kind of realize that I haven’t exactly done or add anything for any self-aware scenarios for arcane as they were mainly based on isekai, and so here we are!!

- now I haven’t really thought much about it but I kind of think of a reverse isekai so instead y/n heading towards and being in arcane, cast tries to get to y/n world or gain some sort of connection/access to it. I mean I could have it where a different route on how y/n gets isekai to their world or have it where it’s both isekai and self-aware, but I feel as though it would be better to add some ideas if the arcane show gain sentients.

- I’m not entirely sure how I would I want for y/n being our lucky chosen one for their devices to have access to the world of arcane but I’m sure it would start small at first. I know normally you would have the usually setting of a storm ⛈️ hitting and magically that said storm would cause the devices to glitch and boom you get your starting point, but if I add it where the world the of arcane time loops got so much that something happen to glitch to our world, like a gem or something random that y/n finds and decides to take it home and add to their designs or decorations but by doing so causes the new form of link 🔗 without y/n knowledge. Think of it like a infection idk why but like you see with the arcane hex core how it kind of acts like ai or a hive-mind so perhaps whatever y/n picks up had some sort of hex like magic exposure that causes it to form the link. Now I don’t think it would be “evil” or bad but just a reason or helper to why arcane would soon become more self-aware.

- I am kind of thinking some ideas from I remember for those Genshin impact self-aware stories but mainly based on memories. I also wouldn’t really want any cult au but I kind of see it where y/n is a voice that characters that you see in the show can hear, mainly adding it where instead just the main cast but legit the characters that you can see in the show, maybe to add some random npc moments of wtf. Maybe y/n would gain some outside influence and interaction within the show by being able to move or hear things other cannot see so y/n can be more involved.

- the only problem I face with this idea is that arcane is a show, a series that doesn’t exactly have much control like you have in open world games or just games in general, but maybe I could have where that venom like hex item effect how y/n interacts with the show where they can interact and interfere with acts and scenes that were suppose to happen to get a better ending for all cast.

- I might add more but it is getting long so I’ll probably stop here for now!

[lynnlovesthestars]

The veil.- Intro

Astarion x OC ( @wisterialynn )

Genre: reverse isekai.

Synopsis: Astarion falls in love with whoever is hiding behind the veil, and it hits him so hard that he can't forget him. Not even when Lynn starts a new save.

AN: hello this is the prologue of the reverse isekai story I've been working on for a while.. It's supposed to be a lighthearted story, mostly fluff and crack, low on drama, but low-key healing since both oc and Astarion have plenty of trauma. Basically domestic ff.

Also I think I will add some of the renders I made of Lynn and Astarion as I publish the chapters since I have so many - and are so cute.

Taglist: @spacebarbarianweird @sessils @roguishcat

Lynn couldn't help it. When something caught his mind, it was hard to pull him away, so when a new game came out and he downloaded it, he knew he was up for sleepless nights.

It was a breath of fresh air in his monotonous and grey life. It had been ages since he allowed himself to feel something that was not sadness or anger. He sat in front of his screen and he came to life.

He didn't speak much in his day, neither with peers or family since he distanced himself from his roots, moving to a different town, focusing on his work, but once he was knees deep in his little and silly game? He'd comment, talk, sass even, he truly came out of his shell.

It was something Astarion had grown to adore, from the moment Lynn had first loaded his game, and Astarion felt something.. different. He felt out of place to say the least.

Gale blamed the necromancy of Thay, saying it probably connected him with something deeper, just like he was connected to his netherese orb, but Astarion knew it was something different.

And once he was freed of Cazador as well, he couldn't believe his ears.

Astarion could feel that connection becoming deeper, the veil between the two coming closer and thinner.

As he fell for his Tav, he couldn't help but fell harder for him. For his witty comments, his giggles at Astarion's compliment, his humming as he worked and forgot his side of the connection on- aka his PC.

Astarion had heard everything, every comment for the elf, every sob he let out in front of the screen, and god only knows what other sounds coming from Lynn.

Only when Lynn started his second run Astarion became gloomy. The attentions he was so used to receive shifted, Tavgliatelle- or whatever name he gave his character that time- was different, so focused on Karlach.

It didn't mean Astarion couldn't hear Lynn, how he still commented on Astarion, how despite everything he was trying to resist the urge to romance him again. Astarion understood it was just a loop, the more he'd spend time at camp, the more he'd trying and break free of the loop, the more he'd fall for the person at the other side of the screen.

He prayed.

He attempted magic.

He tried to find that small door that could lead him to his lover, until he did find it.

Lynn wanted to say he loved Astarion a normal amount, just like how you love your favourite character, but there was something different.

Astarion had touched him differently than any other, he felt his chest clench, hurt, for a bundle of pixels, he had empathized so much with him. Astarion understood Lynn and Lynn understood Astarion. And yet whatever his heart was hatching was meant to stay there, just within him and his head. In his daydreams and his sweetest nights.

"Lynn?" A rough hand gently pressed against his back as the figure hidden in the dark kneeled next to him. "Love, let's move to the bed" The voice cooed as he gently lifted Lynn from his chair, admiring for a moment his features while they were enlightened only by the light of the screen.

Astarion was glad his vampiric strength didn't get lost, as he carried the man to the bed.

He couldn't help but admire how he laid peacefully. The serious smirk he had when he was hunched over the desk, was replaced with a soft smile as if he knew who was gently sliding under the cotton sheet with him, as if he knew whose arms were wrapping around his middle, as if he knew who cradled him to his chest.

His soulmate.

-

Astarion's fingertips gently grazed the exposed back, the new feeling spreading all over his body as everything was so new, so real.

All his life no man or woman he had bedded or kissed awoke in him what the man in his grasp was doing without effort.

"My sweet sweet love" He whispered as he kissed the man's temple gently, trying his best not to stir him awake.

He had truly made it, he had crossed the veil that separated him from his love, and now he was laying against his chest, soundly asleep.

The sigh that escaped the other's lips said it all, how peaceful he felt despite being unaware. Astarion liked to imagine that Lynn was feeling safe in his grasp as if his body knew he was being held and protected by him.

-

The man stirred awake, his body aching from the day before, hissing as he tried to turn, while his body was stiff from sleep.

"There there, sunshine" Astarion cooed as he gently guided him back to lay in his arms. "You need rest"

"I do.." Lynn hummed as his hand gently reached for Astarion's cheek to rest there.

It took him a moment to realize he was not alone, tangled to the cold yet oddly familiar body.

"What the fuck" Lynn jumped up on his seat, rubbing the sleep away from his eyes, as if the Astarion laying in his bed was just a remainder of his dream, still stuck in the inside of his eyes.

"Good morning to you too, darling" Astarion chuckled as he gently caressed him. "I suppose that's human's way of saying 'oh my god Astarion, it's so nice to finally hold you" He teased as if sitting in Lynn's bedroom was normal, as if he didn't come from a game, but simply from his window.

"You can't be-" Lynn placed his hand on Astarion's cheek, trying to gauge at reality, only to be met with the cold skin again.

"I very much am, love" The vampire nodded smirking proudly as he brushed back his hair with his fingers.

"I'm still dreaming, that's it" The human couldn't help but shake his head in disbelief, as if that could erase the pungent smell of bergamot that suddenly enveloped his room.

"No, you are awake" Astarion quipped smiling and itching to move closer to shut him up with his lips.

"Astarion you are not real" Lynn said out loud, spelling each word slowly.

"I'm clearly here aren't I" He asked raising an eyebrow.

"Astarion don't be an idiot" Lynn shook his head one step away from facepalming himself.

"What if you are the one not real" Astarion clapped his hands together as if that was his gotcha moment.

"Don't start this" the human, still skeptical crossed his arms together, yet before he could completely close them, Astarion grasped at his wrist and bit the soft flesh.

The sweet taste of his blood awoke something in him, the way it slowly went down his throat thick and warm, made him dizzy but most of all left him breathless for the other man.

"That felt real" Lynn sighed as he pulled away his wrist, massaging where Astarion's lips were a second prior. That was real.

Astarion laid back for a moment, trying his best to contain the euphoria spilling from his every pore, he had a taste of divinity. Completely different from the taste of blood he was used to.

The way it ran through his body, it was real.

"I was trapped in that thing, god knows for how long, I am just a poor vampire in need of a cuddle" He admitted as he caught his breath and opened his arms to invite Lynn in.

"That's it I'm going out of my mind"

Astarion groaned. "IM GOING OUT OF MY MIND CAUSE YOU HAVE NOT HUGGED ME YET"

[waterloggedsoliloquy]

i have a graphic novel outline for:

-a reverse isekai where a catgirl from a video game is transported into the body of her player, a depressed college age guy with DID

-a pulpy scooby doo style mystery about a monster attacking a paleontological dig site, and the grad student lesbians trying to stop it

-a magical girl time loop yuri with sicely and anthea

-a story about a girl who is struggling with being taken seriously and finds out she can talk to bugs

-a survivor of a nuclear apocalypse steps out of her bunker to find out the world has been overgrown by a massive garden of rhododendrons

[basilpaste]

Heyya Basil.

This isn't an anti-honesty game question (I am being sincer about this)

If a fanfiction about a Madoka x ISaT crossover where one party was dropped into the other's world, which do you think would be more intreging? The Quintent in Dormont, or the Saviors in Kamihama? Also, Sif and Homura are both aware of each others looping and fun times occur from that fact.

awawa like i mentioned i havent admittedly finished all of madoka. i fear. (i WILL get to it eventually. there is just a curse on my brain) but from what i remember i think. dropping the saviors of vaugarde into madokas world wold be REALLY REALLY interesting. in part because of how important colour symbolism is?? and. like if the saviors cant see colour how thatd intersect with things.

and also because i think reverse isekais are always fun. put that traveler from a world that doesnt have Computers into a significantly more modern setting im sure thatll be fine and good forever heart emoji.

and also... ough to homuras loops and siffrins loops happen simultaneously? does one loop back if the other does or is their flow of time different despite both mutually existing in and aware of looping time? because thats REALLY fun considering how much longer homuras loops are. but either way i always think the 'i know what you are' of two timeloopers interacting is a blast :}

[makethosenarratorsfight]

UNRELIABLE NARRATORS; SIDE B

Haruaki Fusaishi Propagnda:

He often hides facts or even entire events from the audience - he casually mentions a recent breakup a few times, and it isn't until late in the game it's revealed that his ex is a character we've already met, and they refused to acknowledge each other out of spite. He also rarely talks about his personal life, not revealing his profession until the very end - or that "Haruaki Fusaishi" is a pen name, and we'll never learn his real one.

Lee Hakhyun Propaganda:

He. Well, for one thing, he doesn’t even have all the facts about himself, let alone the world he’s isekai’d into (actual isekai, this time, not the reverse-isekai of ORV); there’s a giant-ass spoiler about him that provides a disturbing amount of context for everything he did that came before its reveal, which he himself doesn’t exactly remember. At all. Otherwise, though, he’s very much coloured by his biases in a manner close enough to rival Kim Dokja himself. ORV: Side Story is essentially acting as the SEQUEL to ORV rather than actual, technical side stories, but is named that way to fit its meta themes regarding stories and narratives. It is currently ongoing with the overall chapter count estimated to be around 300 chapters in the future, so there’s not as much proof as there could be - but considering what’s already happened so far, it is… Very much expected that this guy is going to blindside us again in the future.

in honor of tumblr user lee hakhyun. i haven’t actually read the side stories but i’ve read the summaries and I BELIEVE IT. pleasee

[twstyuna]

@britishassistant Twisted Wonderland Masterlist (8/14/24)

Credit to @britishassistant and rightful anons and artists

Villainous Paranoiac AU | Supervillain AU Main | Supervillain AU AUs | AU Crossover Posts | Assorted AUs | General Credit List

Reverse Isekai AU

Yuu is from a fictional media, one that Vil happens to be starring a role in an adaption of and which Idia knows.

1 | 1.5 | 2

Notes

Note after 1.5

Thaumaturgy

His Dark Materials

Arknights

Apocalypse!Yuu

Epithet Erased

Soul Searching (Is Harder if you have Different Maps)

Riddle (meeting timer) - Yuu (heartbeat match)

Leona (dream sharing) - Yuu (first words)

Azul (injury sharing) - Yuu (dream sharing) [snippet] | full |

Bonus Scene

Sampler [Jamil, Vil, Idia, Malleus]

D20 NeverAfter x Twst Crossover

A narrative breaks and time loops and Yuu and their allies try to get keep things on track as every try leaves the world darker than the last.

TW: Body Horror. Malleyuu. Yandere malleyuu at that.

1

Notes

1 | 2

Fate/Stay Night

DND

Origin Stories (Don't Get More Convoluted Than This)

Baldur's Gate

The Letter Kills (unless we do first)

1 | 2

Night Raven Allegations

Setting the Tempo

Overture

Notes

Night Raven Mercenary Group

Based on the tags, how Malleus has green eyes and sleep powers

Who would the companions approve of?

Compiler Note:

I tried to collect everything but I am only human. Please message me if a link leads somewhere it shouldn't or if I missed credit somewhere.

[anthyies]

esha i have a request. what is orv about? give me a sales pitch tell me why you are so bonkers insane about it ♥

HIII RIMI 🥹 Um. It’s a 551 chapter long webnovel. actually i’m just gonna link this post because im kind of massively bad at explaining it. it’s like. what if you were just some guy* who was the only reader of this very long kinda shitty webnovel, and as you read the last chapter the supernatural apocalyptic events in the novel start to happen in real life. and also, crucially, the protagonist of the novel time loops after his death, and when the reverse isekai happens, it’s ostensibly his third time loop. this is the basic premise. the thing about orv is it’s kind of difficult to explain why i love it without massive spoilers. but essentially it’s about the bond between the reader and the protagonist and the writer. it’s about loving a story it’s about stories being people and people being stories it’s three layers of narratives wrapped in a trenchcoat that is also a narrative. it has really fascinating worldbuilding that is all about the narrative/thematic purpose of things. it has a plot that just keeps escalating in stakes and never gets boring and i literally could not put it down. it has the worlds most unreliable narrator (and some really fun/devastating stuff with pov changes. it’s the omniscient reader’s viewpoint:]). it has incredible characters (and incredible women 👍 i started orv because my friend pitched jung heewon to me… it has women who wield the sword of judgement and are the king of no killing’s executioner. it has girls who meet their future self, forced into being a catastrophic harbinger of destruction. it has girls who had to kill their best friends to survive. it has women who say i guess i’ll just have to be the villain again and who do things for the people they love that are absolutely devastating to think about both selfish and incredibly selfless). it has incredible relationships between characters. it’s about there being an incommunicable wall separating you from other people but it’s still worth writing on the wall:). by the ending it has recontextualized the beginning so thoroughly you cannot be normal about it ever again. It’s good 👍

[kikyoupdates]

Indebted ⭑˚🥀⭑ 𝑟𝑒𝑠𝑡𝑎𝑟𝑡

yandere!ocs x f!reader

yandere, reverse harem, yandere reverse harem, original characters x fem!reader, slowburn, isekai

Following your mother’s recent passing, you are visited by a group of men claiming that your father abandoned all his debt and obligations, leaving you to take his place.

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The car ride was unsurprisingly tense. You were crammed inside the same vehicle as Ryu, with his broad shoulders pressed up against yours in the back seat. He’d said that he intended for you to work and pay off your father’s debt, but you wouldn’t be surprised if he changed his mind and decided to kill you instead.

And yet he still had the nerve to try and make small talk with you.

“Oh, I suppose I should apologize for how sudden our visit was,” he commented offhandedly. “I am sorry for your loss. You must still be in the process of grieving, but life goes on, as they say.”

His tone was dripping with insincerity, and you had every right to want to knee him in the balls, but you also had no desire to accelerate your death. So, you stayed quiet. Avoided eye contact, avoided his questions. You just stayed as still as possible and tried to keep from breaking down.

After a little while, the car parked right outside your apartment. You couldn’t even pretend to act surprised. They’d looked into your family’s background and tracked down the location of the funeral; it went without saying that they had an idea of where you lived too.

Well, not for much longer, by the sounds of it.

“Pack a few belongings, and then leave your keys with one of my men,” Ryu instructed. His dark eyes narrowed. “And don’t even think about trying to run away. You don’t want to find out what happens when you test my patience.”

You nodded briskly. Two of his subordinates followed you up to your apartment and waited as you grabbed some clothes, your laptop, and a few other valuables. You didn’t want to drag this out too long. Ryu had already hinted that he wasn’t a particularly patient guy.

Once you were finished and had everything packed up in two suitcases, you looked back over your shoulder. It was a small, cheap one-bedroom place, but you’d been living here for a while now. Leaving so suddenly just didn’t feel natural. Well, not that any part of this arrangement was natural to begin with.

One of the men extended his hand out. “Give me the keys,” he ordered. “We’ll make sure the lease is settled.”

“What are you going to do? My contract isn’t up yet.”

“None of your business. All you need to do is listen up and keep your mouth shut. If the boss says to do something, you do it.”

They didn’t seem to care much for your company. Then again, you hadn’t really expected for a group of yakuza to be all that friendly.

Keeping your gaze low to the ground, you stepped out of the apartment, dragging your luggage behind you. They loaded all your belongings into the trunk, and then you were back in the car again, right by Ryu’s side. Much to your immense dismay.

“All good?” he asked.

You nodded.

“What, are you mute all of a sudden? When I speak to you, you’d better answer properly.”

“Everything’s good,” you affirmed, swallowing uncomfortably. Ryu stared at you for a few moments before eventually scoffing in your face. You didn’t really know what he expected. Your mother had just recently died, and you were scared for your life. It was taking all your strength not to cry in front of these people again.

The drive took a while. You had no clue where you were heading, but it wouldn’t have made a difference anyways. Ryu’s lackeys had taken the liberty of confiscating your cell phone, so you couldn’t call for help even if you were willing to take the risk. Ironically, the most frustrating part in all of this was not that you were being taken against your will, but that your father’s words from all those years ago were playing in your mind on a loop.

“Those men are going to take care of us. Once I become a fully-fledged member, things will turn around.”

What a fucking joke. In the end, he couldn’t even commit to the group he’d chosen to abandon his own family for. He’d messed everything up and destroyed your life in the process. He wasn’t even around anymore, and he was still ruining things for you.

Your expression shifted into a scowl without you even realizing it. Beside you, Ryu let out an amused chuckle.

“There’s finally some life in your eyes,” he hummed. “You look upset, sweetheart. Are you upset with me?”

“No. Not with you.”

“Really?”

“You’re only taking care of business,” you reluctantly admitted. “I know it isn’t personal. It’s just about money. And I… don’t have any money to give you.”

His lips curled into a smile. “Who are you upset with, then?”

“My father. He was a terrible person back when I knew him, and it seems like that still hasn’t changed.”

“It looks like that’s something we can agree on. It’s good for you to have someone to direct your anger towards. Anger, resentment—those are all things that will make you stronger. But don’t direct those emotions towards me,” he warned. “Never towards me.”

You pressed your lips together. You hadn’t exactly been completely honest. You did resent him, but he was a criminal to begin with, so you couldn’t expect for him to do the sane, rational thing. It didn’t matter how you felt about him, anyways. He was the leader of a group of dangerous, violent individuals. You didn’t stand a chance against any of them.

The trip dragged on, to the point that you were starting to feel quite groggy. All of the adrenaline that had kept you going until now had just about run out. It was late in the night, and you were exhausted. You just wanted to lay down and sleep, wherever that may be.  

“We’re here,” Ryu finally said. “Get out of the car.”

You did as you were told. The area didn’t look too familiar, but you tried not to panic immediately. You were in front of a large, traditional-style home. It was possibly one of the biggest you’d ever seen.

“Are we still in Yokohama?” you asked.

“What did I say about asking questions?” one of the men snapped.

“Yes, we are,” Ryu mercifully answered. “It’s a ways off from your old apartment, but we haven’t left the city. Come on. Let’s go inside.”

You grabbed your suitcases out of the trunk and followed behind him. It would be your first time staying in a traditional home. Most of your friends had gone on vacation to seaside inns and hot springs, but you’d never had the money growing up to take any trips like that. If nothing else, you would at least get to see what you’d been missing out on. Disregarding the fact that you’d basically just been kidnapped.

It looked even bigger inside than on the outside, and you could already predict that you would be getting lost trying to navigate the long hallways and countless sliding doors.

“In here,” Ryu gestured, sliding one of the larger doors open. He looked back over his shoulder, addressing his subordinates. “Wait around for a while longer. I need to deal with her first.”

“Yes, sir.”

He patted you on the lower back and roughly pushed you inside the room. You yelped a bit, nearly tripping over your own feet. Ryu slid the door to a close behind him.

It was just the two of you now. Granted, the place was very big, but you didn’t much like the idea of being left alone with him. At least in front of the rest of his group, you could tell he was acting out the part of a leader. Now… there was something eerily sinister about his expression. You didn’t like it one bit.

“This will be your room,” he said. “Mine is right next to yours. There’s still some stuff I need to clean out, but it should be more than big enough. Any concerns?”

You shook your head. “No. You’re right, this is plenty of space for one person. Thank you.”

“Thank you?” he repeated, laughing a bit. “You’re thanking me? After I basically told you that you have no choice but to work for me in order to pay off a debt that isn’t even yours in the first place?”

“I just meant… thank you for giving me this room. It’s a nice room. I’ve never had such a big place all to myself before.”

“Hm. Well, it’s certainly easier than having you struggle and try to make things needlessly difficult. We still need to figure out how exactly you’ll be earning my money back, though.”

“I have two part-time jobs,” you perked up. “It’s not a lot, but once I pay off my loans, I should be able to send you my earnings.”

Ryu stared at you in disbelief. “Seriously? You think two measly jobs that a university student qualifies for are going to be anywhere near enough to cover your debt?”

“I-I’m not sure. How much did he steal?”

“You don’t want to know, doll. I can guarantee it’ll only freak you out even more.” He brought his hand to his chin, dark eyes scanning you over from top to bottom. “Well… come to think of it, you’re very cute. You have a pretty face, and your figure is also nice, from what I can see in that dress. I’m sure there are plenty of people out there who’d be willing to pay a nice sum to get better acquainted with your body.”

At first, you were dumbstruck, but the gravity of his words quickly set in.

You stared at him in horror. “Y-You want to pimp me out?”

“I’m considering it. Granted, it may be somewhat of a hassle given your lack of experience, but we could have someone show you the ropes. Get you settled in real nice.”

“No!” you cried out, easily the loudest you’d spoken since being kidnapped. You thought of your mother, who was still fresh in her grave. If she was watching over you from a better place right now, her poor heart would break to see you selling your body out. “Please,” you begged, dropping to your knees before him. “Anything but that. I’ll work as many jobs as you need—I’ll go without sleep, without rest. Just please… please don’t make me do that.”

Ryu stared down at you, eyes filled with mirth. “You can be really adorable at times, you know that? Look at you, already so docile and submissive. That’s a good selling point. The customers will like that.”

“Please,” you cried, “please don’t make me…”

“You seem to be forgetting something. It’s not for you to decide. From this moment onwards, I own your life. You can either do as I say, or I kill you.”

“I would rather die,” you told him defiantly. And you meant those words. You were no stranger to hard work, sleep deprivation, struggling not to buckle under all the stress. But this? You weren’t going to cling to your life only to live on in humiliation. You would rather go out with your dignity still intact.

Ryu gave you an unimpressed look. “You say that now, but that’s only because you haven’t looked death in the eyes yet. You don’t know the pain of torture, the fear of fading into nothingness. So, don’t get smart with me. Whatever you do, it’s my call, not yours.”

You dug your fingers into the fabric of your dress. You felt so small before him, so insignificant. Even more so when you were kneeling. It was true that you knew nothing of the world of the yakuza. But even as misinformed as you were, you weren’t completely ignorant. You saw full well the cruelty in Ryu’s black eyes. That wasn’t the look of a man—it was the look of a beast, a predator hunting for its next kill.

You were nothing to him. Absolutely nothing. He could kill you in a heartbeat and forget you’d ever existed the very next day.

“Relax,” he said, crouching down before you. He reached his hand out towards your head, and you involuntarily flinched, but held your ground. Ryu smiled coldly, running his fingers through your hair. “I still haven’t decided what I’m going to do. If you work hard, maybe you’ll change my mind. As long as you obey, I have no reason to hurt you.”

You were full-on glaring at him now, no longer trying to hide your animosity. He chuckled, clearly amused at your little show of defiance.

“Unpack your things and try to get some sleep. Tomorrow, I’ll show around our main office.”

He turned away from you, and you felt a small sense of relief knowing that he was finally about to leave you alone. He didn’t leave, though. At least, not right away. His eyes scanned the corner of the room before he reached over and withdrew what looked to be a yukata.

Without warning, he began changing out of his suit. Your eyes widened, and you hurried to avert your gaze. He probably didn’t even care. As far as he was concerned, you were just an object to him, not a real human being. Still, you waited for some sort of signal that he was done changing, but that signal never came.

Cautiously, you peered back over your shoulder, just in time to see him pulling the yukata up over his shoulders. His back was exposed for a few moments, long enough for you to make a very big, discernible tattoo. It was a dragon, in black and green ink, coiled around itself as if it were dancing through the air. Bright dashes of crimson stood out amidst the dark ink, snaking around the dragon’s body and burning as vividly as a flame.

Ryu tightened the belt of his yukata and stepped out of the room without another word.

The next morning, Ryu stayed true to his words and brought you along to the group’s offices.

As members of an organized crime syndicate, you’d always known that the yakuza didn’t really bother with hiding from the public. If anything, it was a thing of pride for them to display their organization’s identity on nameplates outside the buildings. They skirted on the wrong side of the law, but were able to get by through their connections and the sense of fear they instilled in the authorities.

Still, you were surprised to find out just how normal everything looked.

The offices were no different than what you would see in any ordinary corporate building. Dressed in their suits and working at desks, they almost gave off the air of your day-to-day salarymen. Of course, you knew better than that. You couldn’t say for certainty, but you had a strong feeling that the majority of the members had killed someone before.

Everyone bowed as they greeted Ryu. You had to admit that the respect he commandeered was impressive. He walked with a quiet, strong sense of confidence. You could tell by looking around the room. No one would ever think of opposing him.

Except for your shithead of a dad, apparently.

Ryu eventually stopped in front of a desk. “Here we are. Yuki. I’m putting you in charge of [Name] for now. Show her around the place and teach her how to file all the paperwork. And make sure she doesn’t get any funny ideas. I don’t need another headache to deal with.”

The young man he’d just addressed stood up in a hurry. “Of course, boss. I’ll take care of her.”

“Good. Get to work.”

Ryu walked away, heading to what appeared to be his own private office near the back. You were relieved to know that he wouldn’t be supervising you himself. It felt you could finally breathe again.

“You’re [Name], right?” the man said. He turned towards you and extended his hand out, smiling pleasantly. “I’m Yuki. Maeno Yuki. It’s nice to have you on board.”

He looked to be around your age, much more boyish than the majority of the members. He had wavy golden hair that was practically shining, and pretty emerald eyes. You knew first impressions could be deceiving, but for now, he was definitely much more welcoming than the scary, buff middle-aged men that were all glaring you down.

He looked normal. You liked normal.

You shook Yuki’s hand and forced a smile. “It’s nice to meet you. I’ll do my best to keep up.”

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More chapters are available on Quotev or Wattpad!

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💞 main masterlist ♡ character appearances

[versegm]

Also gimme the deets on Theatre AU!!

Oh BOY this is gonna be a long one. I am incapable of making a normal modern au i NEED these bitches to be freaks in some way I literally can't help it.

The cape Castoria finds is meant to be Saber's cape! The relationship between Castoria & anime girl king arthur would be way too long to explain in thsi post, but they're connected so I figured it would make a cute easter egg.

I considered having Castoria freeload below the deck instead, because I've personally never played in a theater that had storage rooms above deck, but I really wanted to keep the Phantom Of The Opera vibe so I just went fuck it.

Love my girl Castoria who is a paranoid little rat constantly looking for the closest escape route <3

I have no idea how to write Oberon I just imitated Herlock's speech pattern and crossed my fingers

Gray is in fact a different Fate character! the tl;dr of Gray is that she's a regular-ass human, but unfortunately she was born in a weird arthuriana cult, which lead to her body slowly turning into that of king arthur. She has issues with her face a lot because like, if your face shifted to become that of a perfect stranger wouldn't that be fucked up. Coincidentally, Castoria also has king arthur's face, though for arguably less angsty reasons.

The Night of Wallachia is another nasuverse character (technically from Melty Blood rather than any fate work tho.) I will redirect you to Lance's post as to whomst this man is though because I have yet to play Melty Blood myself.

Moly is a plant from Homer's Odysseus btw

Deep fucking sigh I fucking wish. I fucking wish we had more stories about the aftermath of isekai adventures, my man. I want to know what's it like to see someone with medieval wartime reflexes who just refuses to talk about shit. Anyways the entire Guda subplot is just me not being normal about isekais, as per usual.

So this scene was originally a lot longer, with Guda tricking Castoria into giving a lot more personal information (exact date of birth, last name) and ending with them taking a group selfie- all info they can use later on to forge her ID. But it was kinda boring so I just went the "Guda forges papers by winging it and she can't call them out on it without admitting that her own living situation is garbage" route.

Didn't put nearly as much foreshadowing as I would have liked, but it's meant to be a hint of "hey maybe Castoria straight-up created Oberon, cuz how else would he know so much about her?"

Castoria is so fucking gender.

You probably saw me posting about it, but Guda's canon age in fgo is kinda nebulous. At the beginning of the game they are definitely "below the drinking age," but it's mentioned/implied a couple times later on that no one knows how old they are now (I think Vritra? Has a voice line along the lines of "oh you don't drink because you don't know how old you are so you're just being safe by assuming it's below 21? ok") What time travel and time loops and being locked outside of time does to a mf.

The Guda-Castoria-Oberon banter is a fucking joy to write. Bitches who keep teaming up to dunk on the third one.

This bit was inspired by my sister, who has collected all six of her chairs on the streets.

SO FUNNY STORY. I didn't actually ship Castoria/Oberon going in. But like. There was no reason for me not to include them having weird sexual tension, especially considering I was gonna do that with GudaCas and ObeGuda. So I was like whatever I'll keep it ambiguous but I'm not closing any doors. And then like a fool I tricked myself into liking it. I literally never fucking learn.

Ultra mega shout out to my cosplayer friend for their extensive knowledge of how to make fantasy armor.

The Luik festival is in fact a real-life music festival.

Lance was the one to point out that in a way the theater au is a role reversal from canon. In canon, Castoria and Oberon are both painfully aware of what they are and what they need to do, while Guda is increasingly unsure as to what they want and why they want it. Meanwhile here Oberon and Castoria are desperately grasping at any hint as to what is wrong with them, while Guda is crystal-clear on their singular goal of "I need to get the fuck out of here."

I keep forgetting that sexual attraction is a thing so I tried to pay attention to it for once. Hope I didn't overdo it.

Something something you have to let go of your past or you will only end up hurting the people who are in your life now.

When you learn that your friend has been on a path of self-destruction and you are directly to blame bottom text.

I think I already said it, but my original outline was for the three of them to have incredibly violent sex post fight, and then an extra chapter of "mh. Perhaps we should talk about things actually." I remember I wanted the dialogue to go along those lines:

Guda: ok so maybe we should talk about things actually

Oberon: not talking about things worked just fine for us until now

Castoria: it literally did not

Oberon: cranky because hatesex is so much better than regular sex aren't you

Castoria: I wouldn't know, only ever had one of those two

Guda: wait, shit, was that your first time? Oh my fucking god. what the fuck. let me give you an actual proper kiss instead of whatever the fuck this was. Oberon, you kiss her too.

I rewatched a bit of lb6 for unrelated reasons recently and I'd. Completely forgotten that when they reunite with Mash at the end of part one they do in fact act like that.

Quote from the lesson of the moth!

Wanted to make it reminiscent of their first meetings, with Guda also dragging them through a door.

So yeah, that's my self indulgence! I had a lot of fun writing it :) I love... isekais.

[cospinol]

...actually this spring’s isekai pickings were a little bit better than usual, not even one 2/10 on my list! isenido just barely scraped by by sparing/pseudo-redeeming touma at the last second, but his plotline was SUCH a downer it made me despise the protagonist enough to knock the whole show down to a 3 when otherwise i’d have at least considered it for a low 4, accrued mainly from the excellent little romance with leviathan (of course her screentime is minimal and the rest of the harem is especially worthless to make up for it) (also, touma’s goofy yandere antics are genuinely a treat, but if i think about them for too long i remember that he literally actually did nothing wrong and my spirit of righteous vengeance starts thinking maybe this shit is a 2 after all). though i will soon have forgotten everything abt this show except for its wonderful myanimelist synopsis

i can’t find a single other website that uses the phrase ‘isekai-normie’, all respect to the mad genius mal editor responsible. the double-isekai aspect is almost so stupid it’s worth talking about but it’s also not even in the damn show, the classmates he got isekai’d with do not even appear in the fucking plot, so i won’t waste more space in this post on it

anyways i was expecting to dole out more 3s this season but everything else managed to accrue enough random charm points to scrape by; fundamentally i’m most affected by tone and this particular set all trended towards the genuinely fluffy and forgiving, which is shocking considering yuusha ga shinda is on this list but i’m a sap so i loved the bullshit reverse body-swap resolution and was even kind of rooting for touka and yuna’s deeply stupid romance by the finale. tensei kizoku is probably the meanest of the bunch but it made up for it in other ways (first and foremost: wataru hatano catboy ojisan. the character he voiced in yuusha ga shinda was also the highlight of that show lol, a seasonal throughline), mostly literally by having great design sense and introducing a whole cast’s worth of new characters every single episode so even though the main harem was another viciously terrible one we essentially ended up spending no time with them at all, i’d mercifully completely forgotten about the elf girl by the time she popped in in the finale

on the flip-side of this is that ‘uncommonly garbage set of love interests’ is the other throughline of the season for some reason, with iseleve being the other main offender, but in that case it’s offset by obvious Main Girl Who Will Win kaori being more than charming enough to balance out the rest of them. i was disappointed that there were so many irritants and distractions in the real-world part of the plot because yuuya using his video game hacks to win at crane games and getting coerced into becoming a fashion model is WAY more interesting than any of the generic isekai antics on the other side of the door (it’s so pathetic it loops around to deeply compelling at points), though i ended up liking the latter half well enough too once the evil onii-sama plot made it to the redemption arc portion. it’s too brief to really write home about or to bump this show up to a 5 but it did remind me pleasantly of a speed-run version of seikoku no dragonar’s prince julius plot, which will always be the gold standard for those (don’t @ me)

and that leaves isesuma Season Two as the only one on the list i haven’t talked about yet but it’s an outlier that i feel like i have to treat a little differently just because it’s very funny as a case study; when the first season aired in 2017 it was genuinely the worst thing i’d ever seen and i didn’t hesitate to give it a 2/10, while this season felt pretty much as average as one of these can get, and there’s no doubt in my mind that they are of pretty much the exact same quality. the only thing that really stood out this season was how little of a shit touya gives about his harem, even with him being a clueless/reluctant-type protagonist i remember the previous season actually attempting to build (even being mostly dedicated to building...?) romance arcs with the sisters in particular but this season girls he’s JUST met just get added to the fiancé roster *by the other girls* without even consulting him and the show doesn’t even play it as a joke. the mal synopsis for this one presents the harem as the main hook but the only time touya seems to care about anything in this entire season is the mecha engineering plotline, if you close your eyes you can pretend it really is still summer 2017 and you’re watching knight’s & magic..................... anyways it still just barely snags a 4 by actually putting in the white-haired catboy rival (i guess he isn’t actually a catboy but i spent all of s1′s intro thinking he was so that’s ingrained as fact for me) who was in all of s1′s damn intro but did not appear in the show at any point. he’s here now!!!!

also, i did drop katsukami at episode 4. self-respect moments

[teisougyakutenfan]

Teisou Gyakuten Sekai adjacent works

Here I'll try to catalogue everything I've found that's similar to Amahara's The World of Moral Reversal, starting with Amahara's own works:

Teisou Gyakuten Sekai (doujinshi) ★★★★★ As far as I know, this is what popularised the trope. It has 6 chapters with scratchy art, good characterisation and interesting worldbuilding.

Teisou Gyakuten Sekai

Teisou Gyakuten Sekai zoku hen

Teisou Gyakuten Sekai Konyoku Onsen

Teisou Gyakuten Sekai Shirouto Shojo Onna Kyoushi

Teisou Gyakuten Sekai Shoujo Kari

Teisou Gyakuten Sekai Kawashima-san to no Hibi

Teisou Gyakuten Sekai (manga) ★★★★★ "SFW" (ecchi) adaptation with a different artist that further explores the setting and is full of Japanese pop-culture references that I don't understand but are helpfully explained in the translator's notes.

There's also a JAV adaptation: MIMK-040 ★★☆☆☆

If you like Amahara's works, then you should also check out his highly acclaimed manga/anime Ishuzoku Reviewers/Interspecies Reviewers. He also has a few other doujinshi chapters you might enjoy.

Manga

Dungeon Tou de Yadoya wo Yarou! Souzou Mahou wo Moratta Ore no Hosoude Hanjouki ★★★☆☆ Isekai guy runs an Inn for female adventurers on an island. Teisou Gyakuten Sekai no Doutei Henkyou Ryoushu Kishi ★★☆☆☆ A medieval fantasy isekai where the protagonist is a rare male knight. The manga is slow to update, but maybe the LN is worth checking out.

Teisou Gyakuten Isekai de Sukebe na Bijo-tachi ni Kakomare nagara Boukensha Seikatsu ★☆☆☆☆ Only 3 chapters at the time of writing so time may prove my rating to be harsh.

Doujinshi

Teisou Gyakuten Abekobe Banashi ★★★★☆ A Girls und Panzer doujinshi with 4 chapters, plainly showing its inspiration and having fun with the GuP cast.

[Mugen Mousou] Teisou Gyakuten Abekobe Banashi

[Mugen Mousou] Teisou Gyakuten Abekobe Banashi 2

[Mugen Mousou] Teisou Gyakuten Abekobe Banashi 3

[Mugen Mousou] Teisou Gyakuten Abekobe Banashi 4

Teisou Gyakuten Goudou ★★★★☆ Horny chicks on a train can't believe their luck when they run in to [a totally regular guy from our world]. Basic, but one of the most fapworthy entries on this list.

Teisou Gyakuten no Hero Academia ★★★☆☆ A long BNHA/MHA doujinshi by Oekaki Kaki. The reverse chastity trope is pretty thin here; it's just an excuse for the author to draw sex and blowjob scenes with all the characters, one after another like he's filling out his harem pokédex.

Teisou Gainen Gyakuten ★★★★☆ An image set by Oekaki Kaki with MHA and Konosuba characters.

Ichikawa-san no Bitch Life Ichikawa from the reverse world has travelled to our world. I can't read Japanese but she sure looks like she's having fun!

Gender Ratio stuff

A subgenre featuring worlds with a skewed gender ratio.

Parallel Paradise ★★★★☆ I thought I'd be dropping this isekai as soon as I hit the first intensely over-the-top sex scene, but I pressed on to find a surprisingly competent fantasy story underneath, and quickly read through 200+ chapters.

A Parallel World With a 1:39 Male to Female Ratio Is Unexpectedly Normal ★★★★★ Spoiler alert: it's not normal. This one is hilarious - it's so ridiculous that any bad writing loops back around to further the comedy. There's also an NSFW parallel version.

Umarekawattara Teisou Gyakuten Sekai ★★★☆☆ Only 9 chapters at the time of writing, and nothing original, but it's serviceable. Clearly taking some notes from the above.

Danjohi 1:5 no Sekai demo Futsu ni Ikirareru to Omotta? ~ Geki Juu Kanjou na Kanojotachi ga Mujikaku Danshi ni Honrousaretara ★★★★☆ Only 5 chapters so far but this one is cute and sweet. I'll be keeping an eye on it.

Saoya Haramase-ya Teisou Gyakuten Sekai de wa Itsu demo? Doko demo? Yari Houdai!! ★☆☆☆☆ 60 page doujinshi. There's some worldbuilding here, but also a number of things that turn me off, and writing that feels stupid even by hentai standards.

Fanfiction and Erotica

There are a fair few pieces on AO3 and fanfiction.net, but I want to draw particular attention to the prolific author "Chastity" or "ChastityQM" who is the master of this genre.

Being Sophia Hess's Slut In A World of Reversed Sexual Morality ★★★★☆ A Worm fanfiction. I'd never heard of Worm before reading this, but it was still a great read with a little bit of wiki assistance.

Superheroine-Seducing Accountant ★★★★★ Original work in which the author again has fun with superpowers. Highly recommended.

If you have any suggestions to add to the list, please send me a DM/ask.

[azebraslife]

A Zebra Reads: I Refuse to Be Your Enemy! (Kanata Satsuki)

Lately, I've been reading J-Novel Heart titles that are available in my library's collection, and it so happens that the vast majority of these titles are otome isekai and/or villainess reincarnation stories.

Rather than drawing from an otome game, I Refuse to Be Your Enemy! (Watashi wa Teki ni Narimasen!) draws from a tactical RPG game of the likes of Fire Emblem or Langrisser, which drew me to the book's premise considering I have more experience playing these types of games than otome. Of course, this does absolutely nothing to stop the novel from being a reverse harem (and on the flip side, the endgame pairing is extremely obvious by the covers).

For a 6-volume series, this was a very quick read (took me about 1 week to finish the whole thing, spending maybe 3.5 hours per book). An extra 10 short stories were published in the web novel version as an expansion of the light novel's ending, which aren't critical for the plot but made me wish there was more development.

Overall, while I'm not well versed in otome isekai whatsoever, the novel probably falls under "standard fare." It hooked me enough to get through all 6 volumes, but I can't really say the narrative craft was really outstanding or had anything particularly worth rereading like Ascendance of a Bookworm or Log Horizon, two other isekai I've found memorable. While the battle scenes are engaging enough, Satsuki's specialty is romance, and the story gets far enough to wrap up the immediate plotline and tell us how the two main leads get hitched before ending. In a way, I think this was for the best, even if there were several interesting ideas that I wish were fleshed out more.

[Spoilers for the entire series under the cut.]

The Reincarnation Time-Loop

One of the interesting ideas is only brought up in the last two volumes plus a web novel side story: The feedback loop going on between the Farzia world and ours (the past life of Kiara, the main character).

The web novel reveals that Cain, one of the love interests, was reincarnated into our world after dying in an alternate Farzia timeline. He reincarnated into our world and developed the tactical RPG Farzia: Kingdom at War based on his past life's memories. His cousin, Chisato, plays the game and carries memories of it into her new life as Kiara, which in turn gets read by the Thorn Princess, a spellcaster and character in the RPG who has the power to travel back into the past. In her attempts to save Reggie (the main love interest) for reasons of her own, the Thorn Princess awakens Kiara's past-life memories to change Farzia's fate, causing a stable feedback loop as reincarnated!Cain came from one of the timelines spawned from the Thorn Princess' meddling.

In more adept hands, I think this premise could have been used to greater effect than it was -- it ultimately exists largely to explain the Thorn Princess' enigmatic actions in Volume 1 as well as Kiara's dreams of alternate timelines. That said, a story which fleshes out this premise would also probably need to be much longer, and I don't think Satsuki has the writing chops for a longer story than what we got.

Speaking of a longer story, the novel's climax is the liberation of Farzia from the Kingdom of Llewyne, but it actually ends with a somewhat bizarre inverse in media res during Farzia's invasion of Llewyne. And by that I mean, we're offhandedly told that a) the invasion happens, and b) Reggie sends Kiara home halfway through the invasion because Kiara became pregnant. That's the third-to-last paragraph before the series ends, for that matter. We don't know the actual conclusion of that war, but given the kind of series it is, the reader can assume there's a happily-ever-after ending despite, y'know, all the wars they're getting into.

The Love Interests

Considering this is a reverse harem series, I suppose I should review the three love interests. We have:

Reggie (Reginald), the prince of Farzia and a posthumous character in the game. His early support and protection of Kiara, and their common past struggles with abusive families, leads the two to become close early on, and the vast majority of Kiara's actions and mindset throughout the series are in the interest of preventing Reggie's death at all costs. Despite this, and Reggie's blatant favoritism and affection towards her, Kiara fails to recognize their mutual affection for most of the series.

Cain Wentworth, a knight for House Evrard (from which the main character of game!Farzia, Alan, hails). Cain serves as an elder brother figure for Alan and Reggie, and becomes Kiara's protector after seeing her dedication towards becoming a spellcaster. As the sole survivor of his family following a previous Llewyne invasion, he holds a deep-rooted hatred towards Lleweynians and becomes darkly infatuated with Kiara not only as a person, but in her destructive potential as a spellcaster. He eventually gives up on his feelings after realizing that she's gone for Reggie, which I felt was kinda anticlimactic and deserved more development. (I always like these kinds of dark/ulterior-motive love interests in theory. In practice, they often bore or annoy me, so maybe Satsuki's judgement is better than mine.)

Isaac, the King of Salekhard, who is helping Llewyne's invasion of Farzia as part of his scheme to shake off Llewyne's influence over his own nation. He initially befriends Kiara while under the guise of a merchant, hoping to kidnap her and weaken Farzia's forces, but falls in love with her because... it's a reverse harem series. There really wasn't any reason for it other than being a genre staple. He had more chemistry with Gina, a side character, via exposition (although it didn't work out because she's in love with his older brother instead). But at least "poor, unappreciated Isaac" (in his own words) helped push Kiara into realizing the nature of her own feelings for Reggie.

As mentioned towards the start of the review, despite having 3 love interests, Reggie is front-and-center of all 6 volume covers (Cain appears on the first 2, and Isaac only on the 5th). So there was really no guessing who would win out in the end, and more the question of how Kiara and Reggie would get hooked up.

The Side Characters

The side characters in this series were quite enjoyable. While fairly expansive, the characters were utilized evenly enough that I never lost track of who was whom. (Although it helped that the story often reintroduced characters with each volume, too. Is this a staple of romance light novels? Holmes of Kyoto did the same thing.)

Horace is the most prominent side character thanks to being connected to Kiara as her mentor-turned-clay-doll following his assassination. Despite often getting a laugh at Kiara's expense during her romantic escapades, the two end up in a genuine familial dynamic and Horace provides useful insight and musings in the field of magical tactics.

Alan is the another major side character, given that he's the main character of game!Farzia and technically has royal blood in him. After learning that Alan successfully takes his place in the alternate timeline, Reggie grows less concerned about his life, much to the consternation of the rest of the cast. While initially distrustful of Kiara's claims about having memories of her past life, he comes to believe her and becomes something of a brother to Kiara. While he's spared of the love interest treatment, that instead means he's subjected to his two closest friends (Reggie and Cain) becoming infatuated with Kiara instead. He's markedly unenthusiastic about this realization.

Gina, Girsch, and their three frostfoxes show up in Volume 2 as Salekhardian mercenaries who are fed up with Llewyne's mistreatment of Farzian civilians. After fighting against their supposed cause, the three lend their services to the Farzian military instead, dispensing a great deal of practical advice and emotional support for Kiara. Gina turns out to have a closer link to Isaac than her mercenary life might suggest, and the frostfoxes are honestly some of the MVPs of the Farzia-Llewyne war. Despite being unable to talk, the three frostfoxes are given plenty of character of their own, which was a nice touch.

Emmeline appears in Volume 3 and, while playing a lesser role compared to other side characters, stood out in her accomplishments. Inspired by Kiara's courage, Emmeline shed her destiny as a docile future wife to become an action girl in her own right, masterminding the House of Delphion's strategy for coming out of the war intact regardless of which side won, a feat which earns her Reggie's respect. Like Gina, Emmeline provides emotional support for Kiara and helps her get back in touch with her original motivations. The web novel side stories reveal that Alan and Emmeline decide to get engaged for political reasons shortly before the war's end, which apparently turns out pretty well for them.

The Thorn Princess appears in one scene in Volume 1, then doesn't make any major appearances until Volume 5, and finally becomes a major supporting character in Volume 6. Her history wraps up many of the loose ends from the earlier volumes and explains why the story changed from the game version in the ways that it did. That said, the cascade of reveals felt somewhat rushed, especially when the antagonists (almost all of whom have some ties to the Thorn Princess) were barely fleshed out themselves.

Lord Enister, AKA Grandpa Cane, is a goat-riding old general equipping a cane as his weapon. Yes, you heard me right. He was rather OP in game!Farzia and had his own fanbase, which leads Kiara to recognize him instantly when he appears to bolster Farzia's forces. Despite receiving little focus over the course of the story, he is a vital ally on the battlefield and makes it all the way to the end, even serving as the usher for Reggie and Kiara's wedding. (Yes, he rode his goat for that, too.)

The Villains and Worldbuilding

There are three major villains (Viscount Credias, Earl Patriciel, Queen Marianne) and none of them are particularly fleshed out. While each of their motivations and desires are elaborated on in some degrees, there is no attempt to make any of them likeable or sympathetic. I would say that the story is weaker for it, but I'm well aware that a story like this is all about the developing relationships between the main character and her love interests, not the villains.

Isaac and his entourage, despite being antagonists for the first 5 volumes, are given a more sympathetic plight and end up joining Farzia after throwing their fight to free themselves from Llewyne's control. However, it's clear that they're going to have some internal troubles after the war, and the narrative kinda shrugs at it and goes "It'll work itself out, hopefully" at the end.

The worldbuilding is rather weak as well. While we get enough to serve the story's purposes (namely, knowing who's going where during the war), we're in a world of magical creatures and we learn of all of four different monsters. Heck, I don't even think Queen Marianne's bird gets a name of its own. There are a few other surrounding nations mentioned, some of which help Farzia, but they're barely given any elaboration. Magic and its properties are also left an enigma and exist as little more than a plot device.

As someone who loves worldbuilding, this was something of a disappointment, but again -- not the kind of story which usually gets into the nitty-gritty details. It would have to be something along the scope of Ascendance of a Bookworm to get that much detail, and that is a much longer series than this one.

Zebra's Final Impressions: Enjoyable for what it's meant to be, which is a reverse harem isekai. It's not a terribly deep story rife with foreshadowing, plot twists, and scheming, but the ride itself is enjoyable as a comfy read. (Well, as comfy as a war story with blood and gore can be.)

[meamiki]

ways to wear a coat ft a reverse entry au siffrin

(also i am referring to the modern office / reverse isekai loop au as the reverse entry au moving forward)

(it is a clever wordplay that encapsulates both ideas i promise)

bonus:

silly tiny bonus for those who click read more ADFSAFASAS