#same triangle shades deal

[bubbles-for-all-of-us]

Hi! So I'm currently re-reading acotar and honestly I forgot how much I love this series. Because you're such an amazing writer (and if you're taking acotar requests) i was wondering if you could write a little angsty love triangle involving Eris x reader x Azriel? She's Rhys little sister and has been pining over Azriel for years but he never gives her the time of day and because of this she develops a strong friend with Lucien (they both just want to be loved) and in swoops Eris. Or Rhys makes some sort of deal with Eris requiring her help. I'm not sure I'm just such a sucker for an angsty love triangle 🤍

It took me a hot minute so I apologize. I hope you will still enjoy it. 🤍✨

You look lonely - I can fix that

You loved him. Loved him so much that you were willing to tear yourself apart over and over and over again. Watching him fall and break himself over females that wanted nothing to do with him. Settling for a temporary glimpse of love when you were there offering him a lifetime of devotion. But it’s as if he was unseeing when it came to you. As if all of your gestures of love went right over Azriel’s head.

“I just want to be someone’s first chance”, he chuckled bitterly after an argument he had with Mor. “You are though”, you muttered, despite eyes looking up at the males clouding your eyes for decades. “Not like a friend to you, little one”, he smiled at you. Making the aching whole shape of him within your heart bleed all over again. “But you are”, you muttered. Silently begging him to see you. But all he did was brush the side of your face, “You’ll sweet but you don’t know what it means to love someone who doesn’t love you back”, his words sliced you open. But you pushed the emotion deeper within. Watching him step away from you.

Then in came Elain. You had tried to keep him away. Keep him away from the hellfire that was gonna swallow him if he chose the path that he was going down in. But that had only made his frustration pour out on you. “I’m trying to warn you because I care”, you screamed at him, bitter tears falling down your cheeks. “No one asked for your opinion on my love life”, Azriel bit back, “Stick to your tea parties and pretty dresses”. You wished you could cut him out of your system. Get rid of the flame of hope.

“Save some for me”, you flinch slightly. Dropping the bottle of bourbon on the grass before reaching back to pull the spilling bottle up. Lucien didn’t seem to mind. And you were too tipsy to care as you offered the bottle to him. “What are we drinking to?”, he sat down next to you, pulling a handkerchief before handing it to you. “Our fucked love life”, you sniffed, hating yourself for it. “Yeah, fuck them”, Lucien saluted before throwing his head back, “You and I, we are on the same boat sweetie”, he handed the bottle back to you. “Two outcasts of love”, you chuckled bitterly before taking another sip.

What you didn’t expect was to find such comfort in Lucien. You two had no mutual interest in being together. There was nothing between you romantically but the comfort of having a soul that called to the same pain was as if breathing again. So you stuck together. Going on hunting trips. Parties. Gatherings. Visiting each other in your homes. So it wasn’t that big of a surprise when Lucien asked you to accompany you to one of the celebrations that were happening in autumn.

That’s how you found yourself watching him make females swoop over the magic tricks he was casting. Not being able to suppress a light smile. Loving that his playful side was slowly coming back. “Mind if I join you”, that voice alone made a shiver run down your spine. And another one once you eyes too in a sign in front of you. In a deep shade of green stood none other than Eris. Lethal the beauty of this male was. “It pains me that my brother brought a lady of unmatched beauty with him but left her alone to play ancient tricks instead”, he stepped closer bringing a scent of pines and forest with him. “I don’t mind”, you shrugged, “I’m happy that he’s in a much brighter spirit”. Eris hummed at your words. Eyes never leaving you. “And are you?”, he asked, making your heart flutter, “Are you in brighter spirits?” You tried to open your mouth to say something. Anything. To smile. To brush off the ache that didn’t leave you. Eris reached out, brushing away a strand of your night black hair, “You look lonely, my love”, he muttered, “I can fix that”.

And to his promise Eris stayed true. And soon your time was occupied with him. And only him. He showed you Autumn. Brought you down his childhood trails. His dogs had been an immense part of your everyday walks. But all of that only mattered because he saw you. Not past you. But right through you. Into the depths of your soul. “I’m not a good man”, he muttered one night, fingers lazing and brushing over your exposed shoulder. “I don’t agree with that”, you shook your head. “That’s because you make me better. I don’t have the urge to bite when I’m with you”, he admitted, filling your heart up with so many emotions yet keeping all the scars from cracking open.

You bring him home after that. To your brother. To your family. Fueled by the same urge to show him your home. Part of it you loved dearly. Only joy was wiped off your face within a heartbeat. “What is he doing here?”, Azriel snarled, narrowing his eyes at Eris. “It’s my pleasure to see you once again”, Eris didn’t even miss a beat as his fox-like eyes followed Azriel. “I’m here because I’m courting this lovely woman”, he reached out for your hand before bringing it up to his lips. “That’s bullshit”, Azriel grunted, “Step away from him, Yn”, he ordered.

“No”, you breathed. Making Azriel frown even harder, “What do you mean no?” “I am seeing him. We’re together”, you watched all of the emotions fighting in Azriel’s eyes. From confusion. To anger. To hurt. “But…”, he muttered. “I got tired of waiting, Azriel”, you sighed, “I was ready and willing to give it all to you but you pushed me away, I was a child to you”, shrugging you looked up at him. “I can’t live like a second… no fuck that… tenth? Twentieth choice?”, “That’s not true”, he cut in, reaching out for you to be met with Eris’s firm hand, “Times up, bat. She’s my girl now. And I take pride in calling her mine”.

[lilac-5ky]

Roommates from Hell, pt.3 (Toji x Fem!Reader)

Chapter 3: Eat ✓ Pray ✕ Love ?

Chapter 2 | Chapter 4 | Story Masterlist | Masterlist | Requests

A/N: TOJI POV TOJI POV TOJI POV last chapter dedicated to the same day, I promise!

Warning: Sexual imagery and slight angst.

If Toji knew that the tradeoff for forfeiting his hold on you involved wearing an apron three sizes too small and one shade too pink, he could and certainly would have refused.

But Toji was never good at placing bets, let alone winning them, and when you handed him a bouquet of bushy carrots demanding they be diced-not sliced, he found himself wielding a knife of a different kind than the ones he’d been used to carrying.

Carrot peels, he came to realize, cling to fingers with more persistence than blood. His frequent visitations to the sink were timed with fleeting glances at the chirpy whirlwind that zoomed by him, your stare and grip too focused on beating a bowl of eggs into submission to pay heed to the butchered vegetables on his side of the counter or the enamored gleam that sparked in his eyes. Intentional and raw.

Before meeting you, he could count the times he’d eaten a homemade meal actually meant for him on the fingers of one hand. At the Zen’in household, whatever chewed up and spat out leftover remained of his parents or brother’s meals ended up on his plate. On a good day, there’d be a chunk of meat to sate his hunger, but on the bad days… Well, those definitely outnumbered the good ones.

Even the pesky whining guard dogs his uncle kept around had the privilege of stuffing their bellies with specially imported Scandinavian canned food. Not him. He didn’t know the taste of real food until you forced your way into his unordinary worthless life, making all the soggy french fries his intestine had suffered through in the name of waiting out your shift’s end worth it.

Without you, he would have starved a long time ago, both literally and figuratively, as the sight of you doing what you loved the most fed into his hungry eyes. You loved cooking and he loved watching you cook, and he couldn’t wait until the two of you cut down on excess subjects coming in between. He wanted the reason for your smile to be him, not some stupid free-range egg deal you’d gotten from the farmer’s market.

“You done with the carrots?”

Your question faded into a sour statement after facing the carnage of snipped carrot greens and what was left of their orange counterparts, closer to a pulp than a usable ingredient. You probably expected to hear an “I’m sorry,” or at least an “Oops,” but that was far from what he had in mind.

You look like a fucking housewife.

With your little apron -snatched straight from your workplace’s greasy kitchen- hugging your perfect waist perfectly. With your messy hair pulled in a meatball-shaped bun, a wooden chopstick piecing it together. With your feet defying their weary state from working overtime, just so he could enjoy himself a plate of warm food—

All those little things filled his scattered brain with all sorts of ideas. He could hoist you up so easily. Loop his arms around your hips and spin you round and round the tiny space, not a single complaint escaping your lips before they are made his. You’d be pressed flush between his body and the cabinets with nowhere to go, your thighs welcoming him with the spot he longed to call home, and only then would he let his mouth run off to describe the tantalizing details of all the fantasies he’d ever had watching you in that apron, the vilest of all that you one day wore it as his wife.

“Toji…?”

“Yeah?”

“Are you listening?”

“Yeah.”

Your fingers tapped at your sides, elbows angled into triangles, and nose scrunching up. Shit. He remembered your lips moving, though he had no real recollection of what you’d just said to him. More like asked of him, judging by your irritable tone.

He shook his head unceremoniously and tossed whatever edible of the carrots inside a bowl, scrapping the peels and leaves into the trash and then he gave it up for inspection. Had you scolded him, he might’ve pretended to care, but you didn’t. Instead, you juggled a handful of onions that he caught mid-air, and he prepped his knife for the second round of calamity.

This time he’d do good, Toji inaudibly promised. He’d show you just how good he was with his hands, even if the task was so menial a fourth grader could pull it off.

Soon enough, a mountain of flawlessly chopped onions, sliced mushrooms, and cubed ham stacked up on his cutting board, their executioner impatient to receive your seal of approval. You worked with your back against him, cold air tingling the short hair at the base of his neck whenever the refrigerator opened to reveal the next ingredient. Namely something in a bowl, something in a bottle, and something in a Tupperware container. That’s as far as he could tell, his view of you narrowed down to your skirt flowing in and out of his eye’s range.

But what his eyes failed to discern, his ears made out just fine, the somewhat familiar tune you hummed gaining lyrics in his brain. It wasn’t the worst song, and as far as Toji was concerned, he wasn’t the world’s worst singer either. He could pitch in right where the chorus began, though decided against it at the very last minute. His rougher voice would stifle rather than compliment your own.

And so, he let his chance at a duet be snatched, first by the oil sizzling in the pan, and then twice again by the exhaust hood’s mortifying buzz. The song changed to one he didn’t recognize, and he was left in the awkward spot of having absolutely nothing to do other than stare at your profile and scowl at the lack of acknowledgment.

You didn’t bat an eye when you reaped the seeds of his hard work— didn’t pay a single compliment before tossing them into the fire.

Stingy ass bitch. Words cost nothing to spare.

He decided to hold onto his childish grudge for a while longer and retired against the wall nearest to the stove, a light thud echoing from where his head hit the cabinet.

Toji did love watching you in your element, but at the same time, he was so terribly… bored. You bossed him around like a dog and lacked the common decency to throw him a damn bone. Worst of all? You ignored him. His little huffs and frowns and carrots— okay, maybe he did fuck up when it came to the carrots, but what was your excuse for giving him less attention than you gave that stupid pan?

Luckily, there were plenty of ways to turn this around, especially with how unguarded the curves of your waist and shoulder were, both perfect fits for his arms to wrap and chin to nuzzle. The rest would be history. You could call him a bastard and flip his dinner over his head (oh, what a terrible waste of ingredients) after he scratched that itch.

“Are you plotting my demise?” Your voice nipped a string of indecent thoughts right in the bud. “You’ve barely said two words since we started. Makes me think either there’s a cut-off tongue in here,” you pointed at the rice, giving it a thorough stir “or that you’re scheming my assassination.”

If only you knew, he smirked, drawing away from the wall.

“Who’d ever pay to assassinate ya?” rephrased to “Who’d ever wanna assassinate a B-tier waitress,” as if to mellow the sting of his first statement, both sounding equally hideous to your ears.

“Didn’t know waitresses have tiers,” your grip on the ladle tightened, voice gaining a sudden edge.

“Course they do, dummy. Waitresses who toss in extra ketchup packets automatically rise to C-tier. Then,” Toji grinned, “there are those who wear nothin’ under their little skirts and flaunt their asses over your face for extra tips— now, those are A-tier.”

He could tell you were holding back more than the groan you let out, two of your fingers hiking up your nose and pinching at the bridge.

“What about B-tier, mister diner-expert?” you faked a smile, teeth trembling beneath pursed lips.

It was so easy to get under your skin. Shame he couldn’t say the same about your panties.

“A mix of A and C. They give ya bonus ketchup and let their ‘assets’ dangle for free, but—��

The savory aroma of oyster sauce flooded his senses, distracting his thoughts and diverting his attention from the threat your ladle posed until it batted his hand away from the pan with a vicious swing.

“—Slap ya before you can whip out your wallet,” he growled.

“As if your wallet contains anything other than soapland cards and betting slips from ‘98.”

Green eyes darted to the ceiling, a soundless whistle between his puckered lips.

“You don’t have a wallet, do you?” you said as if it was the greatest revelation of the century.

“Don’t need one,” he glared.

You sighed. “There seem to be a lot of things you don’t need.” The ladle tapped against the pan’s side for the excess grains to drop. “Or at least things you claim you don’t.”

“Need? Nah. Want, though?” Toji quickly bounced back, mischief beaming in every aspect of his expression while he rubbed his palms together like some pesky housefly.

“I can think of a few, roomie.”

“Gonna keep it up with that nickname?” you tutted.

“Don’t like it?” You shook your head. “Alright, pitch in some ideas, ‘m all ears.”

“What kind of pretentious asswipe picks their own nickname?” You shoved past him to fetch another container from the fridge, a hint of green glinting underneath the transparent lid. Uh-oh.

“The kind who refuses what others call ‘em.” His neck craned forward as he propped himself against the counter.

The view was much better from that angle. He was able to notice details he previously missed, such as the drops that’d gathered on your forehead from working over heat for so long, how your lips twitched to find the perfect comeback, or the loose strand of hair that dangled dangerously close to his eyes, inspiring him to play with it like a cat mindlessly yanked on a ball of unraveled yarn.

“I have a name, you know.” You caught onto his staring and tucked the hair behind your ear. Tsk.

“Boring,” he yawned.

“Did you just call my name boring?”

“Nah, called you boring, smarty pants.” Toji cocked his head. “Oops. Couldn’t help it.”

It was your turn to scowl, and he’d be damned if the way your fingers clutched onto the counter didn’t bring a stretch to his lips. More so than aspiring to be the one who made you smile, he took pride in being the only one who could annoy you to such great extents.

“Won’t be able to help if your tongue ends in your plate either,” you snarled.

The Tupperware opened to reveal a sea of disgusting green beads, confirming Toji’s worst fears as you stuffed your hand inside and began pouring them into the pan. Although he was nothing short of an omnivore, he never hid his distaste for the healthier nutrients of vegetables and legumes— peas included. You always tried to sneak them here and there, typically in his fried rice or curry, and every single time he’d leave the plate with enough pearls to string a necklace.

You were about to add in a second handful when the way his far more menacing green orbs drilled holes into your skull became apparent.

“Right—”

Your closed fist emptied the peas back into their container— or so would have happened, if it weren’t for the unforeseen snare around your wrist.

“What are you doin’ ?” Toji snapped.

“S-sorry,” you stuttered. “Forgot how much you hate that ‘stinky green shit’.”

“Well, they are stinky and green and taste like absolute horseshit,” he affirmed. “But you still like that shit, don’tcha?”

“I do, but-”

He dragged your hand above the fire, ushering your fingers open, while you stared at him in utter disbelief. “I’ll just spit ‘em out.”

A short breath hitched up your throat and you peeled your eyes off him, the words “How convenient” washed away once you escaped his grip and neared the sink, scrubbing your hands with soap and water.

Toji lingered around the stove a bit longer, sprinkling some more peas and a lot more ham into the pan to even things out. After all, ham was better than peas.

“And by the way,” he rubbed the greasiness against his apron. “There are better ways to shut me up.”

“Hmm?” you missed his voice under the running faucet. “What was that?”

“Said,” he moved closer, plucking the towel from the handle where it hang, and offering it to you with his most charming (read: sleazy) smile. “Could always shut me up yourself if ya wanted to.”

Reluctantly, you accepted the towel, your eyes narrowing in suspicion. He awaited your next outburst of “creative cursing” in about three seconds, but the longer you maintained eye contact, the thinner his patience wore. A million great things about you, but none of them made you any less of a pussy.

And he would have called you out on your one fatal flaw if a sequence of scenes in slow motion didn’t begin to unfold before his awestruck eyes: You beckoning him to come closer; Your slippers tipping forward and your fingers reaching out; A delicate stroke against the crown of his head, followed by another, and then another; Languid circles that didn’t comb so much as ruffled his hair; A tinge of oblivious red on his cheeks, and a conscious pink on yours; The affectionate warmth your voice basked in as you praised him, telling him he’d done well— and heavens, if he was asked what noble deed deserves such praise, he’d have no real answer to give.

And lastly, the shit-eating grin that plagued your lips as you seized victory. “See? Shut you up so easily.”

The part of him that urged to bite your hand in return for treating him like a damn puppy must have been neutered, considering the only conceivable thought that was left in his brain was to give you a reward befitting of a winner. An action more than a thought, and a reality more than imagery.

Without warning, his lips brushed over your skin, landing on your cheek in the gentlest way imaginable. Fleeting enough to convince him it didn’t register until he pulled away and saw your expression shift to that of a sore loser.

“W-what the h-hell was that?” you fumbled with your own words as if they were shoelaces bound together by some despicable bully— in that case, him.

And like every self-respecting bully, Toji enjoyed nothing more than watching his victims shudder. Your brows knitted and knees trembled at the slightest touch, making him wonder just what kind of reaction a kiss on the lips would elicit. Smirking at the notion, he knelt before you to lift the towel you’d dropped, and with a rapid flinch, he settled it on his shoulder.

“Warned ya.” He ignored your attempts at extracting further information as he walked over to the stove and pinched a pea straight from the pot, cringing as soon as it grazed his tongue.

“Stinky green shit.”

The next frame in your newly-assembled album of domestic bliss depicted a trope far too common for those familiar with 1950s movies. The spent husband who’d returned home after a tiresome day at work sprawling his limbs on the nearest kitchen chair available, fingers laced behind his head and biceps flexing in accordance, while the dutiful wife served him dinner with an extraordinarily loving smile carved on her dolled-up face. They’d sit together, laugh at how fortunate their one-dimensional lives were, and name each other “Honey”, if not “Dearest”. And of course, there would be pie for dessert!

But after the film had dried and all the smoke and mirrors were dispelled, what was left were the remnants of a reverie.

The only truth about the husband lay in how he’d spilled over your kitchen’s sole chair -the second of the set standing limp somewhere in the corner- and as for the wife, one could claim it was a honed habit, rather than blinded subservience that’d led her to the table with a most splendid dish in hand. This was as far as similarities went, for you were no husband and wife, and had no intention to break into chortles over your shared misfortunes. Besides, there was no cherry pie to justify such a crude act.

“About time.”

The last traces of pseudo-romanticism dispersed at the sight of Toji’s feet weighing down the table, the audacity in his tone tempting you to ask for a tip. This was no different than working overtime at Sakurai’s, except that old geezer, rotten as he were, always paid your extra hours. Toji, in all his unpredictability, wouldn’t waste the chance to suggest a tip of a different kind.

Casting his feet on the floor, Toji made room for you to drop his plate, and when you finally presented the finished product in all its glory —tomato-flavored fried rice tucked below a blanket of sheer gold and garnished with fine strings of ketchup— the small appreciative dimple etched on the left side of his lip felt like a privilege.

“Gonna keep loomin’ over my head like a vulture?” he gestured with his spoon.

You glanced at your own plate, and then at the broken down chair whose prayers to be fixed were never answered, and decided to dine alone in the living room. Some drama was bound to have its rerun on NHK, but before you could so much as round the table, an arm raised forward like a traffic barrier.

“There’s nowhere—”

“Here.” His other hand patted a seat on his thigh. “Don’t wanna kick ya out your own kitchen.”

“Are you serious?” You were doubtful of his invitation even as he dragged you onto his lap, your omurice all but growing wings and flying in the air.

“Dead serious,” he smirked, his knee parting your thighs while his non-dominant hand wrapped around your hip. “All nice and comfy, aren’t we?”

This is the opposite of nice and comfy, you meant to object.

You could feel everything. Every peak, every crevice, every bulging muscle of a body that was trained against its will to be hardened and rough, impenetrable to any weakness. And when you squirmed around to meet his gaze, they were the unreadable eyes of someone who’d played this game far too many times to keep count of his winnings— the bored eyes of someone who knew scoring another victory was merely a matter of minutes.

“You better not try anything weird, or I’m out,” you mumbled with less conviction than intended.

His thumb rubbed a languid circle against your hip bone as if to remind you of its presence. A battle of wits could go either way, but when it came down to raw physical strength, there was no slinking away unless he decided to let go first.

“Relax,” Toji assured with voice smooth as silk. “Just want us to eat together, that’s all.”

You had a hard time believing that was indeed all, and you were right not to, because no more than five bites into your ham-laden omurice, his knee bounced, and your legs were slung over his lap so effortlessly as though you’d moved them on your own. And in this new position, where his arm engulfed your waist from one end to the other and his fingers slyly cascaded down your skirt’s seams to brush against your bare skin— that was really all he did.

“We need new furniture,” you quavered.

“Nonsense,” he shrugged undisturbed, stuffing a spoonful in his mouth. “What did ya do with the money I gave ya?” he asked once he’d swallowed.

But you hadn’t.

“Hmph, Hmphight!” you grunted, quickly downing your bite with a chug of water. “Oh, right!” you rephrased. “Was gonna return what was left at lunch, but then you dropped the bomb on me and I forgot.”

“No need. Gave it so the kid spends it however he wants.”

“Kenzo is only eight, Toji. If I gave him the money, he’d spend it all on a mountain of cotton candy and umaibo. Got him a nice car-racing set and that was it.”

“Lame,” he sneered, your body involuntarily bending forward as he reached for his glass.

You were compelled to watch the rise and fall in his throat, lips glistening with clear droplets that dribbled to his chin. Some, he wiped with the back of his palm, while others, his tongue licked clean, and you silently wondered if there was a right and wrong way to do something this trivial, because if that was the case, then Toji’s way could only be right.

He made drinking water seem entrancing.

The next dive was imminent, but this time you were prepared. You curled closer to his chest and trusted in his arms that deliberately dipped lower than needed, cradling you even after he’d let go of his plate. You were pleased to find a single-digit number of peas remaining.

You are growing as a person, Zen’in Toji.

His gravelly voice snapped you from your thoughts. “Then, you keep the rest.”

“Well, we could use the rest to buy some extra furniture, such as a bed, a sofa, or… a chair,” you emphasized the last beat.

“Aren’t ya the sensible one?”

His fingers crept under your skirt to bestow a light squeeze on your thigh, a haughty smile spreading to his lips. It baffled you how he acted on every single impulse without hesitance. Just pure action and reaction. Zero contemplation whatsoever.

You interjected before he could get any funnier ideas and peeled his hand off— or at least dragged it to a less risque area of your body.

“And as the sensible one, I get to call the shots,” you declared. “We are goin’ tomorrow.”

A few murmurs of protest buzzed in your ears though none significant enough to defy you. He agreed to drive you wherever as long as you paid for gas, and it was fair, considering he was paying for everything else. And when you recited the list of chores around the house that were postponed due to either lack of height, strength, or sheer laziness, and he inaudibly acquiesced, you thought that this just might work.

“So, you’re crashing the couch tonight?”

No answer.

“Toji?”

“You smell nice,” he blurted seemingly out of the blue, with a strand of your hair wrapped around his forefinger and held near his nose.

“Not letting you use my shampoo,” you scoffed.

“That’s not what I meant, idiot.”

He released your hair with a not-so-gentle yank, coaxing a high-pitched squeal.

What an asshole.

“You’d smell nice too if you ever used something with fragrance,” you said.

“Suggestin’ I reek?” Toji glared.

Much to his dismay, a snort preceded your answer. “That’s not what I meant either, idiot. All I’m saying is you have no real smell. Every self-respecting playboy oughta ‘t least smell like cheap hotel and drugstore cologne, or smoke, or you know. Something sleazy that screams ‘I’ll hump and dump you.’”

His expression remained sour, almost defensive. You should’ve just taken the compliment. A grumpy Toji could turn insufferable in minutes.

“Hey, I-”

“Work calls for it,” He cocked his head. “Can’t be invisible if I leave a trail of peaches and jasmine back.”

“It’s gardenia, actually,” you smiled.

“Whatever,” he muttered.

Even as he faced away from you, his fingers refused to unlatch from your waist—and truthfully, you wouldn’t mind staying like this a while longer. On a typical Friday night, you’d be stuck in front of the TV with a cup of Nissin Noodles, too tired from your shift to consider going through your contacts for some cheap company, and too prideful to hit him up only to have some bimbo answer his phone instead. But he was there now and you felt relieved you didn’t have to stay awake in a cold bed, wondering what color handbag his newest conquest carried and whether it matched her five-inch heels— but most of all, you were relieved that bickering in his arms felt like the most natural thing in the world.

“You like your job, Toji?”

You brushed up a question you’d asked far too many times throughout the years and whose answer remained quizzically the same; “Dunno.”

“Don’t you ever want to quit?” you pressed on. “Shower yourself with an absurd amount of perfume, or go ‘round stomping your feet really loudly?”

“Are those supposed to be your arguments for me to quit?” His eyes rolled to the back of his skull while he leaned against his chair. “I’ll raise ya this. Easy cash and double-digit annual workload, versus however many hours you work at that rathole for breadcrumbs. That settles it?”

“Money has nothing to do with enjoyment,” you said.

His tongue clicked into a sharp sigh. “It’s the one thing I can do.”

“That’s not true. There’s plenty you can do!”

You punched his shoulder playfully, and he couldn’t be less thrilled to find what you’d come up with.

“You really showed those carrots who’s the boss," you chuckled. "And, you’re not half as bad as a human chair. Got a bright future ahead of you.”

“You want me to quit?”

His sudden question threw away whatever light-hearted atmosphere and tossed it in the trash, voice cutting with the sharpness of a hundred razors.

“It’s not my place to tell you whether you should or shouldn't quit, Toji.”

“I’ll quit if you ask me to.”

The silence felt… weird. Like a forced cliffhanger in the middle of an episode, your answer gaining more weight than it ought to. However long you postponed, the commercial break never came, and you were left staring into a pair of eyes that flickered back and forth between a state of narrowness and wideness. Of patience and demand. Of sincerity and uncertainty. Of trust and distrust.

Even for a second, he’d put his fate in your hands, and you held onto it so scarcely as if the wrong kind of shake would break it— would break him.

“I just don’t want you getting hurt,” you confessed, warmth spreading from your voice to where your fingers found purchase on his cheeks, soft thumbs rolling unhurriedly against flushed skin. Because you are precious to me.

“If you got another scar,” you continued “it’d be as if you are permanently frowning. Or,” You nudged the left corner of his mouth upward, “smiling.”

And what was about to come next, you should’ve been able to predict because all the signs were there— His absolute compliance and relish for the slow, kneading motions of your fingers; The intensity in his stare waning past heavy eyelids; The hand that moved higher up your back and the one that wrapped behind your neck to reel you in; His lips eagerly parting before they even had the chance to meet with yours.

The incoming storm gathered one dark cloud at a time, though it took the first drop of rain for you to heed the warnings of your bleary conscience.

“Don’t,” you whispered one breath away from sharing his.

Toji was all but disheartened, his eyes focusing solely on your mouth and ignoring what came out of it. “Let me kiss you.”

The softness in his tone kept you from turning around until the last minute, your aversion rousing spite in him. “I said, let me fucking kiss you.”

And while his hand moved patiently the first two times, it forcefully pushed you onto him the third, your last line of defense being your fingers as they were caught in the crossfire of his lips.

“We shouldn’t.”

“Why the hell not?” he hissed.

“Because…”

Because we can’t— an all-time classic.

Because we are friends— an excuse.

Because I don’t want to— a lie.

Because it won’t end at just a kiss— a truth.

And finally, the real reason; Because I love you.

Tears threaded your eyelashes, your vision of Toji turning watery, yet not blurry enough to drown the cadence of emotions in his eyes. Confusion, hurt, and anger. So much anger that it stifled all potential answers and seared your fingertips which were still attached to his lips, and as shallow as it sounds, you were ecstatic to find the one spot that was utterly soft in his slanted scar.

If a scar is evidence of pain, what is evidence of heartbreak? If scars are healed pain, what becomes of a pain that never heals?

Your thumbs slid across his jaw and returned to your sides, the lump in your throat dissolving into a broken sigh as you attempted to dismount from his lap.

“Because new rule: no kissing your roommate unless their life depends on it.”

“Like hell, I agreed to this,” Toji grunted, his grip -desperate now- bruising your waist.

Just when you thought your self-hatred reached its peak, you shoved his hands off your body and jolted up, legs slightly numb from balancing on his for so long.

“Agreed or not, my house, my rules. If you can’t respect that, there’s the door” you snapped, sending whatever desire might have sparked straight to the guillotine.

“So what’s it gonna be?”

His fingers wove through raven hair, his palm concealing the blown pupils as they reached their crescendo; fury.

A pang echoed against the hollow table, followed by the slight reverberation of the cutlery in the plates, his fist the sole culprit. He scoffed, muttering to himself something about blue balls and rules that were meant to be broken, profanities that could make even a sailor’s ears turn red spilling left and right until he gritted his teeth and locked in his final answer.

“Better brace yourself then, because I’m getting that kiss, be it in life, or in death.”

tags: @absoluteindulgence , @evansuvamp , @sarwhorius , @liluvtojineteyam

Anyone else, comment so I can tag your @.

[linkemon]

Logos, ethos and pathos (Kaveh x Reader x Alhaitham)

Friendly reminder that English is not my first language. You can check my Masterlists both in English and Polish here. Consider supporting me on Ko-fi. You can also check out my commissions if you're interested.

Other oneshots can be found here.

ʟᴏɢᴏs, ᴇᴛʜᴏs ᴀɴᴅ ᴘᴀᴛʜᴏs ᴀʀᴇ ᴘᴀʀᴛ ᴏғ ᴛʜᴇ ʀʜᴇᴛᴏʀɪᴄᴀʟ ᴛʀɪᴀɴɢʟᴇ ᴛʜᴀᴛ ɪʟʟᴜsᴛʀᴀᴛᴇs ᴛʜᴇ ᴄʜᴀʀᴀᴄᴛᴇʀɪsᴛɪᴄs ᴏғ ᴀ ɢᴏᴏᴅ sᴘᴇᴀᴋᴇʀ. ᴀʟʜᴀɪᴛʜᴀᴍ ᴡᴀs ɴᴇᴠᴇʀ ᴠᴇʀʏ ɢᴏᴏᴅ ᴀᴛ ᴇxᴘʀᴇssɪɴɢ ʜɪs ғᴇᴇʟɪɴɢs. ʜᴇ ᴅɪᴅɴ'ᴛ ᴛʜɪɴᴋ ᴛʜɪs ᴋɴᴏᴡʟᴇᴅɢᴇ ᴡᴏᴜʟᴅ ʜᴇʟᴘ ʜɪᴍ ɪɴ ᴀɴʏ ᴡᴀʏ. ᴀɴᴅ, ᴀʟᴛʜᴏᴜɢʜ ɪᴛ ᴡᴀs ʜᴀʀᴅ ғᴏʀ ʜɪᴍ ᴛᴏ ᴀᴅᴍɪᴛ ɪᴛ ɪɴ ʜɪɴᴅsɪɢʜᴛ, ᴋᴀᴠᴇʜ ᴡᴀs ᴅᴇғɪɴɪᴛᴇʟʏ ʙᴇᴛᴛᴇʀ ᴀᴛ ɪᴛ…

ᴀᴅᴅɪᴛɪᴏɴᴀʟ ɪɴғᴏʀᴍᴀᴛɪᴏɴ: 1. ᴏɴᴇsʜᴏᴛ ᴡᴀs ᴄʀᴇᴀᴛᴇᴅ ᴡʜᴇɴ ᴋᴀᴠᴇʜ ʜᴀᴅ ɴᴏᴛ ʏᴇᴛ ᴍᴀᴅᴇ ɪᴛ ᴛᴏ ɢᴇɴsʜɪɴ ᴀs ᴀ ᴘʟᴀʏᴀʙʟᴇ ᴄʜᴀʀᴀᴄᴛᴇʀ. ɪ ʀᴇʟɪᴇᴅ ᴏɴ ᴡʜᴀᴛ ᴡᴀs ᴋɴᴏᴡɴ ᴀɴᴅ ᴀʟsᴏ ᴏɴ ʟᴇᴀᴋs. ʜɪs ᴠᴇʀsɪᴏɴ ᴍᴀʏ ʙᴇ ᴅɪғғᴇʀᴇɴᴛ ғʀᴏᴍ ᴏɴᴇ ᴛʜᴀᴛ ᴡᴀs ʀᴇʟᴇᴀsᴇᴅ ɪɴ ᴛʜᴇ ɢᴀᴍᴇ.

Alhaitham read the same paragraph again. He didn't know why he needed a rhetorical triangle. Logos, ethos and pathos. Logos, ethos and pathos. Logos, ethos and pathos… He shook his head. His eyes scanned the text over and over, trying to make sense of it. What did he really need the ability to speak for? After all, he rarely spoke. It was tiring. And when he did say something, he was usually not understood anyway. Was it too late to fix it?

The man's attention was also constantly distracted by [Reader]. Underneath her bangs, he saw her smiling happily as she sipped her morning coffee. She fit the picture. Togehter with the chair placed in front of the house, the singing birds and the rays of sun illuminating her silhouette. The ring on her finger announced to everyone that she was in a relationship. Such view made him feel nostalgic. 

*** 

Alhaitham looked around. The sun was slowly setting over the horizon. From one of the highest points, under the shade of Great Tree, he could watch people finishing their day's work. Many people in Sumeru were rushing out of the bazaar to rejoin with their families. Where he sat, padisarahs grew thickly. Enough to hide him from the prying eyes of others, along with the slightly swaying grass. And he had had enough of these looks. Especially after his parents left, becoming the subject of gossip and leaving him with unwanted feeling of pity from strangers.

The boy pricked up his ears for a few seconds. In the distance, however, he could only hear the clattering and singing of several small birds held by a neighbour belonging to Amurta. The Dusk Birds didn't seem happy about living in cages, pecking furiously at the metal bars. 

It seemed that no one would come to his quiet corner today after all. Not that he was waiting for it. No way...

Alhaitham stroked the cover of the book in his hands. Gold letters embossed in a floral pattern immediately told him what he would be dealing with. He didn't even need to use Akasha to know that this was going to be the clichiest romance novel you could find in the library. Besides, even if he hadn't guessed, [Reader] would have told him about it a few seconds later. In a very loud and very annoying way, while forcing him to read another book when he left, like every week. So far she came every day. But now she hasn't appeared for a long time. 

And good. He finally had the peace he had wanted from the very beginning...

But did he really like it? 

When he told his grandmother about [Reader], she was happy. Even though she put knowledge on a pedestal and disregarded many other aspects of life, she still worried that her grandson lacked friends. After she took him away from the Academy when he announced that he was bored there all day, she was concerned about his lack of contact with his peers. She made several attempts to force him to integrate but most were unsuccessful. The children of neighbours and even friends from Kshahrewar, whom she invited, most often felt intimidated by young Alhaitham's knowledge or bored with his reluctance to participate in popular games. That's why she was very interested in the girl with whom he exchanged more than a few words. She really wanted to meet her but the boy refused to do so digging in his heels. All she could do was ask him to give her the baked goods, which she hoped would help make him a new friend. Which she wasn't wrong about because [Reader] stuffed almost everything ifrom the basket into herself, scattering crumbs around and repeating that Alhaitham's grandmother was a great cook. 

At first, the boy told himself that he tolerated [Reader's] presence because he didn't want to disappoint his grandmother. However, when she stopped peeking into his corner, he began to impatiently await her presence. 

— You're not coming today either, aren't you? — Alhaitham turned to his recently started reading of the translation of ancient manuscripts. For some reason it didn't seem particularly engaging today. 

— Are you waiting for someone? — A familiar voice said a few steps away from him. There was an offensive note in it. No doubt in response to his thought aloud. 

Alhaitham didn't take his eyes off the symbols on the page but he felt a kind of relief. 

— Certainly not on you. 

— Hmmm... If it's not on me, I guess I'll leave — saying this, she turned around. 

The boy knew it was just a game. He was aware of her looking out of the corner of her eye, waiting for his reaction. That's why he didn't speak, still reading. 

— I was joking! — [Reader] crossed her legs and sat down right in front of him. 

She looked none too pleased that he hadn't fallen for it but her thoughts quickly vanished when she saw the cover of the book she had lent him sticking out of her bag. 

— How did you like it? — She brought out the romance. 

She lay down unceremoniously on the grass, holding it over her face and turning random pages. 

— Why do you assume I like it? — Alhaitham still didn't take his eyes off the runes. — It was quite the opposite. 

The book fell onto [Reader's] face with a dramatic splat. There was no indication that she was going to pick it up. 

— Oh, come on! I can't believe you weren't hooked. There's literally everything here! Fantastic plot, great characters and emotions! — Came an emotional voice from behind the cover. 

— I don't like fantasy or romance. Moreover, the plot had at least a dozen holes and the characters made a lot of illogical decisions. None of their feelings matched mine — said Alhaitham.

That's how it was. He assumed that was probably not what the girl wanted to hear but telling the truth seemed like the right thing to do. 

— It wasn't THAT bad! — [Reader] suddenly stood upright. — People do different things and behave different when they are in love. Maybe you didn't like it because you haven't experienced a real romance yet? — she suggested. 

— I don't think that will ever happen — said the boy.

There was a moment of silence, broken only by the sounds of birds tapping on a nearby cage. The girl was eating another round of baked goods, wiping the jam from the zaytun peaches with her sleeve. Alhaitham gave her a quick glance every now and then. She looked like she was deep in thought about something. 

— You really didn't like anything about it? — she asked again after a long pause. 

He shook his head, reaching for one of the last rolls. He wasn't in the habit of lying but the look on [Reader's] face in the setting sun for some reason let him know he'd messed up. Her eyes lacked the previous enthusiasm. Usually the same thing happened to other people who tried to befriend him but it didn't bother him that much at the time. 

— I really liked it. — The girl clutched the book to her chest. — I thought you'd find something you liked and we could talk about it — she admitted, disappointed. 

Alhaitham wanted to add that they could talk about it even if the book didn't make a good impression on him. However, [Reader] changed the topic of conversation before he could put into words what he wanted to say. The conversation had taken a different turn and he no longer felt it appropriate to return to it. 

*** 

This wasn't the first time [Reader] had looked into Alhaitham's house. However, she had to admit that this time she felt like a thief. The host was not inside. She knocked tactfully but was aware that the only person who could answer was currently far away. 

Despite the sun shining overhead, the rain was pouring down mercilessly. The drops were getting thicker by the second. Everyone ran away from the street as fast as they could. Women tried to cover themselves with muslin scarves but it didn't help much. [Reader] got wetter and wetter, desperately searching for a spare key hidden in one of the flowerpots. At first she was amazed how someone with such a brilliant mind as her friend could calmly hide it there on a regular basis. As he himself said: "The darkest place is under the candle." And with this slogan on his lips, full of peace, he hid it where he always did.

A pleasant warmth spread over the woman's body as she crossed the threshold of the house. Her wet hair, no longer ruffled by the gusty wind, fell on her forehead. 

— Stop! 

[Reader] braked mid-step, brushing away the strands blocking her vision. Her eyes saw a blond man with a blue feather braided in his hair. From a distance, he reminded her of a bird. Whenever he moved, the materials surrounding his body danced. She could say the same about the jewelry decorating him. There was a frying pan in his hand. She didn't know if he was preparing dinner or if he had pulled it out especially to welcome the intruder. 

— Who are you? — the young man asked, pointing the frying pan at her accusingly. 

— I could ask you the same thing — [Reader] said, crossing her arms over her chest. — You must be Kaveh — she added after a moment. 

Judging by the fact that there were still streaks of coal on his cheek and that he had a pencil tucked behind his ear, it was easy to guess. 

The blonde followed the girl, clearly wanting to protest as she made herself comfortable in the living room. 

— For the love of Seven! Alhaitham will kill me — he muttered dissatisfied. 

— You'll be fine. I'm [Reader], Alhaitham's friend. I think Alhaitham would rather kill you for telling me to get out. — Saying this, she made herself comfortable on the green pillows. 

— Did he mention me to you? 

She nodded. 

— Only the worst things. — She laughed heartily. 

Her friend didn't tend to colour unless it was necessary. From the very beginning, however, she felt that the stories told about the eccentric architect were suspiciously negative. Alhaitham really didn't like him and it showed. 

— Then you're telling the truth — Kaveh said, setting the pan aside. 

He disappeared deeper into the apartment for a moment and returned with a towel and a cup of coffee. Maybe it wasn't a mixture like from Puspa Café but the smell spread throughout the entire room. 

— Thanks. — [Reader] gratefully accepted the hot brew.

Kaveh stared at her intensely.

— I will not disturb you. I'll run away as soon as it clears up — she promised, seeing him looking at her. 

— Ah... Stay as long as you want. That's not what I meant — he added when he realized that the girl had noticed that he was watching her. 

— So what's it about? 

— Be my muse! 

[Reader] almost spit out her coffee. 

— Excu... excuse me? — she asked, trying to clear her throat. 

— I'm working on a new sculpture and I need some inspiration — Kaveh explained, digging through a drawer and taking out some paper. — Unless... as Alhaitham's friend, you have art sticked up your... 

Oh well. Kaveh expected this from the very beginning. Apart from his darshan, it was difficult to find people in Sumeru who had a special passion for artistic forms. Especially after the restrictions on public performances were tightened. People were leaning more towards applied art. 

[Reader] was the first person he openly asked for this form of help. Of course, he also drew inspiration from various people at the Academy but usually none of them knew about it. Moreover, his main education was in architecture. In his case, knowledge of plant and animal motifs was much more useful. And they didn't have much to say about whether they wanted to be someone's source of inspiration. 

— Not true! I'm ready! — [Reader] shook him violently by the shoulders. — Just tell me what to do! 

The architect's ruby eyes seemed to glow. His mind seemed to shift rapidly to another track. 

— So listen carefully. For the final exam, everyone has to prepare a sculpture inspired by any book. There is a scene I want to recreate when the main character runs in the rain to meet her lover. This is perfect because your hair is wet and… 

— You read cheap romance novels — [Reader] said, as if in disbelief. 

— I beg your pardon! - Kaveh huffed indignantly. — A book is a book... 

— No, you don't understand! — [Reader] interrupted him. — I also read them and many others like it. It's just that a lot of people around say that they are not worth much. 

— You mean Alhaitham? — The blond raised an eyebrow with theatrical contempt. 

— Not only him — she admitted, slightly embarrassed. — Sumeru is the city of wisdom. This is not everyone's definition of something worth devoting time to. 

In fact, that's exactly what happened. People in her darshan often told her that she should focus on something more useful. After all, as a woman of science she should be the example and read only serious literature. It is best to create equally serious publications and research on its basis so that the whole process can be repeated from the beginning with people who will come after her. 

With recent improvements in Akasha base libraries, the need for physical copies of books has decreased significantly. Not many new items were printed anymore. They tended to focus on small expenditures. Fortunately, the situation was saved by novels imported from Inazuma. Yae Publishing House was doing quite well and, to [Reader's] delight, it was quite accurate in her reading preferences. 

— Hmpf! I see such reading as satisfying human needs. Some people just need to read about magnificent events and feel emotions. There's nothing shameful about it. Now that we've established that, let's try sketching... 

*** 

[Reader] felt that this was how it would all end. That's why she waited in the now closed library under the cover of darkness. The only company she had was the pale moonlight streaming through the windows and a small candle placed on the table. 

The section with physical copies of books, access to which was restricted in the Akasha, was quite well guarded. Fortunately, the chief librarian also studied at Vahumana. She knew the girl very well. So, though apprehensively, she lent her the keys for the night, at the same time pointing out that if anything happened, she would blame [Reader] without hesitation. 

— Good evening — the student greeted Alhaitham wryly. 

Silver hair reflected streams of moonlight. He seemed to be an apparition in the night. Silent and elusive. At least so far. 

— [Reader], what are you doing here? — The boy glanced at her. 

— The more important question is, what are you doing in here? — She received no response. But she knew it well. 

— You can not do it. — [Reader] tried to keep up with her friend. 

She really hoped something had dawned on him when they talked that afternoon. Writing an interdisciplinary thesis was required in both Vahumana and Haravatat. As fate would have it, the instructors selected them together. She was pretty sure they just figured not many people could stand Alhaitham. She understood why. He could be aloof if he didn't like someone. She herself really liked the idea of cooperation. Until something else came into play beyond the project itself. 

— It's not theft, [Reader]. — The boy quickly jumped down to the floor below. 

Sometimes she wondered how he was so fit after spending half his life with his nose buried in books. The muscles probably didn't come from turning the pages but she had never seen him practice. 

— You know it's not about stealing! The thing is, they might throw them out… — She took a roundabout route downstairs. 

A few days ago, when a couple who also had to write a thesis came to them with a request, the girl couldn't believe what she heard. The professors specifically selected them with a topic that contrasted with their own. They expected that Alhaitham's work would, as usual, receive the highest scores and that they would be able to deliberately fail two students who were inconvenient to them. 

So, out of desperation, the poor people came to ask for [Reader] and her friend to put in just a little less effort than usual. All this so that they could still study at Akdemiya. They encountered extremely different attitudes. While the girl empathized with their situation and decided to help them somehow, Alhaitham said that if they are not able to impress the teacher with their work, then maybe studying is not for them. 

When Alhaitham proposed using information from the library's hard-to-access collections for her work, [Reader] protested. Any other time she probably wouldn't have had any problem with it. Now, however, it would be an additional advantage that would drastically reduce the chances of their rivals. She had no doubt that few people went so far as to sneak into the library illegally. If anything, it was usually done through acquaintance or with the help of bribery to obtain the keys. The two students probably did not have such opportunities. Meanwhile, her friend was doing it like a real thief, entering the library through who knows which entrance. 

— It's not their fault they're being picked on by professor — Alhaitham admitted, looking for a suitable shelf. — But that doesn't change the fact that if they were able to write a perfect paper, professors wouldn't be able to throw them out. 

— Why can't you cooperate with me? — asked the frustrated girl. 

— After all, we divided the research areas together. Each of us does our part. We work together, [Reader]. 

In an academic sense, that's what it was like. But that wasn't what she meant. 

— But... - she wanted to protest but gave up. 

What sense did that actually make? Alhaitham has been doing what he wanted since he was a child. If he had a vision in his head, he did everything he could to make it come true. His logical arguments were difficult to refute. She didn't stand a chance. 

— Wait a minute… — [Reader] snatched three thick volumes out of six out of his hand. — We don't need this at all. Sounds like something that... — In a split second, everything took on a new meaning. — You came here for them too? — she asked as her friend took the books back and headed for the exit. 

Alhaitham handled the armful of books with ease. There was a faint smile on his face. As if he was proud that she had finally deigned to understand his plan.

He didn't have to write a worse paper. It didn't make logical sense to suddenly pretend to be stupider than he was. He would also not rub the noses of mean professors whom he himself did not like. Instead, he was able to help two students to set their work to a higher standard. He won't do all the work for them but it should make their job a lot easier. If they put some effort into it, they should be able to do it. Besides, he read the first chapter and dared to claim that they really knew what it was about.

He didn't expect [Reader] to grab his arm as he was about to leave the library. 

— I'm glad you're helping them. I'm really happy but why couldn't you tell me that right away? I know you like working alone but we're a team now. Your plans, Alhaitham, are not so obscure that others cannot know them. — With that she walked back towards the moonlit table. 

*** 

— Remind me why you drag me out of bed at six in the morning. — [Reader] yawned loudly. 

She waddled half-consciously after Kaveh, who was bursting with too much energy in the morning for her liking. His blond hair reflected the glow of the sun just rising over Sumeru. He bounced with almost every step, showing his excitement. In his hand he held Mehrak that made robotic sounds from time to time. 

— You must see this! 

— Can't it wait a few hours?" — The girl moaned. 

— It can't — the architect said.

So they walked the city streets together. The cobblestones soon turned to packed earth. They went out to the outskirts of Sumer, at the roots of the GreatTree. 

— Ladies and gentlemen, maybe you would like to look at the key rings? — A child ran up to them. 

— We're not interested in… — [Reader] began. 

— Sure — Kaveh interjected. 

The girl gave him an accusing look. She didn't get up early in the morning so they could waste time shopping. They were just in a real hurry. She wanted to protest again but her words fell out of his companion's other ear. 

The architect began to look at the individual decorations with the air of an expert. They were carved from wood. Each depicted a different animal. The quality left a lot to be desired but the idea itself was charming. Meanwhile, the boy praised his goods, saying that the proceeds would be used to provide meals for hungry children. One piece for one dinner. 

— I'll take them all — Kaveh said, holding out his supply of mora. 

The girl just rolled her eyes and took Mehrak with her. She knew she couldn't reason with its owner. The suitcase made a welcome sound. The expression on the robotic face changed to happy. [Reader] saw a visualization of recent projects. One of them was a series of houses. It looked like it was quite an early stage of work. She usually saw already finished objects. 

— The one with the lion suits you — the girl said as Kaveh finished the transaction and began to put all the key rings into his suitcase. 

— I always knew I was the king — the boy said proudly. 

— I would say it's because of your uncombed mane but... 

— Ha! Just so you know, I got up and did my hair first thing in the morning! 

— Awww, Kaveh made himself more beautiful just for me — [Reader] said to Mehrak, who changed his reaction to the smiling face. 

In fact, that's exactly what happened. But she didn't need to know about it. He hasn't been sleeping very well lately. He was absorbed both in the work that Kshahrewar required of him and in his side projects. He found satisfaction in it but he had the impression that as soon as he closed his eyes, it was already another day.

When the idea of sharing the project with [Reader] occurred to him at night, he promised himself to wake up earlier to look at least a little better than the sleep-deprived version of himself after a few cups of his favourite coffee. He felt that a little longer and Enteka would really stop selling him the brewing mixture for fear of his health. 

— Kaveh... you know you've been cheated on? — [Reader]'s voice was gentle. As if she didn't quite know whether it was worth starting the topic. 

They set off along the beaten path again. The blonde nodded. That was the truth. In Sumeru, even health care was financed from above. The number of really hungry children was a tiny percentage. Unlike the other great nations of Teyvat where this was a bigger problem. On the other hand, he preferred to look like a fool. Even if the kid was lying, Kaveh doubted he would spend the money for a completely wrong purpose. He had seen him several times before. He always shared his toys with his neighbours' children. Marbles were often played on the streets and he was most often seen with them. He himself used to spend his days like this. Before the house was completely engulfed in flames and a series of misfortunes began to follow his family.

— Your heart is too good for this world — said [Reader].

— I'd rather have a too good heart than no heart at all — Kaveh replied. 

With these words, he took a keychain from his pocket. A tiny swan swayed on the end of a metal ring. [Reader] accepted it, looking at her feet. She felt stupid. Not only did he specially choose an art-related animal for her, which reminded her of their first meeting but he also did not hide it in Mehrak. He knew exactly from the beginning that he would give it to her. 

— [Reader]? 

— Hmmm? 

— It was a compliment to me. I am not angry at you. — Kaveh took the suitcase from her. 

— I know — she said.

But the truth was that she didn't know. She felt a tiny stone fall from her heart the moment he said that. Mainly because although to some (including Alhaitham) this constant faith in people seemed childishly naive, it impressed her. She really didn't want him to lose it. It was so embedded in him that it was contagious. And among so many people in the Academy, where competition pushed scientists to do various not-so-pleasant things, it was nice to have someone who spread exactly different, positive ideas. 

— We're here — Kaveh announced proudly. 

The girl looked around the area but there was nothing here but grass. And also a place that looked as if someone had previously demolished the area. 

— Is this your new construction?

— So you were already looking at the preliminary designs? A new center for children is to be built here. They were looking for people in Kshahrewar and I volunteered. Unfortunately, I was the only one. — The frustrated architect slowly exhaled through his nose. 

[Reader] looked back at the grass. Immediately afterwards, she remembered the swan keychain still in her hand. 

— Well... I don't know if I'll be able to lift all these timbers but the two of us can definitely do it — she said. 

— I'm an architect, not a builder — Kaveh replied. 

— Are you saying that I have to build this house myself?! — [Reader] panicked. 

In her darshan, no one taught about putting buildings together. Much less was any physical work done, apart from trips to the ruins in search of new sensations. 

— Of course not. Akademiya will send workers. I just have to do the project — Kaveh reassured her. — I thought that as someone from Vahumana, you probably already had some work with children. You'll have a better idea of what else I should add. 

— Yeah,this I can handle for sure.

That day, [Reader] was late for class. Just like the next one and for the next weeks. She knew that the professors in her darshan were not happy. Like Alhaitham, who scolded her that since she had decided to attend the Academy, she should at least show up there. But here she really learned by living example. She was doing something useful with her knowledge. It wasn't just monotonous typing of formulas and reading old books. She was doing something good. Together with Kaveh.

And when the finished house was finally officially opened and she saw the architect's smile among the children, she felt that it was worth it. 

*** 

— What do you want? — [Reader]'s unfriendly voice echoed throughout the vast room. 

The Grand Sage's office was well known to Alhaitham. The blue and yellow stained glass windows allowed a dull light to filter into the room. The rays fell most densely on the table covered with papers. This was probably the intention of the architects from Kshahrewar when they designed this room several hundred years ago. Show that work was its destiny and most important function. 

— I came to congratulate you. 

It was true. At least in part. Since the woman took up her new position, she rarely appeared at home. And if they did, it's usually very late and she just went to sleep. 

— There's nothing worth congratulating — she said. 

She seemed small next to the huge wooden chair. Tired eyes and a pile of documents indicated a lot of work. Both the one already done and the one that still awaited her. 

The furrow on the woman's forehead seemed to grow larger by the second. Her eyes avoided him like the plague.

— You're mad — Alhaitham said. 

— I have the right to do so. — [Reader] got up from the desk. 

— You're mad at me — he corrected himself. 

This wasn't the first time he'd seen her like this. But her anger was rarely directed at him. He was usually just an observer of these rare outbursts. Being the center of one of them was something completely different than usual. 

— Why? — he asked. 

— You are an intelligent man. You should know it. — [Reader] finally looked him in the eye. 

Alhaitham tried to remember the last time they had spoken normally. It seemed like it was recently. However, as he replayed the conversations they had had with each other in his head, he realized that most of them had taken place in the process of handing over her new responsibilities to the woman. The rest were mundane conversations related to living in the same house. And before all this, he himself was busy executing a plan to save the Archon of Sumeru. So the reason must have happened sometime during this period… 

— Is this about Nahida? 

[Reader] seemed surprised that he called the goddess by name. She was not yet used to her being called this way, even though the Archon asked her to do so personally. 

— It wasn't right, Alhaitham.

— I don't understand. 

The man knew his capabilities. He knew perfectly well that he had fulfilled one of the riskiest plans that many people would never dare to do. He thought everything through and executed it with precision. 

But when it came to [Reader], he seemed to lose most of his skills. It was as if part of what he could normally read in people was hidden from his eyes. This wasn't usually a problem because she expressed most of her feelings right away. But now he had the impression that, although many considered him a wise person, he was a complete fool. 

— Oh, by the Seven! That's the problem! You never understand. And no matter how many times I wait for something to change, it's always the same! — The voice echoed, bouncing off the white marble. — Why didn't you tell me all this?

— You weren't required for the plan to succeed. 

"You weren't required for the plan to succeed" sounded better than "I didn't want you to be a part of it." Because he didn't want to. Not in such a risky venture. Everything could have fallen apart at any stage. It didn't matter how many times he calculated the probabilities and the possible paths he could take. Neither version satisfied him enough to want to involve her in all this. 

— You say it but you don't mean it. The Alhaitham I know always says what he thinks. Because he's honest — she added, poking her finger into the center of his chest. 

He knew she was waiting for him to confess. The truth. But for some reason the words couldn't leave his mouth. Because if he really said it, it would be as if his earlier words were a mistake. And he wasn't wrong.

— It's not that I had to be there. I probably wouldn't even be very useful. But it hurt me that you didn't want to share this whole secret with me. I trust you with so many things but you couldn't tell me that you were taking on the most dangerous task of your life? Anything would do. Even one sentence. No details. — She pursed her lips. — What if you have failed? Would I only hear about it if they put you in jail? When Azar would announce that you were dead because you had lost your mind? 

Alhaitham stood in the very center of the hall. He couldn't remember many times in his life when he truly felt guilty. Probably in his childhood, when he rarely did something to upset his grandmother. But now this unpleasant feeling had sprouted inside him. Biting somewhere around his heart.

— And then you came up with this nomination for Grand Sage as if nothing had happened... — [Reader] continued. 

— You could have refused... — he began. 

— Who says no to the goddess of Sumeru? Be serious. Besides, you asked me. And I could never say no to you. — The woman's eyes ran towards the open window, where she could hear the singing of the Dusk Birds. Night was falling over the city. 

There was silence. Terribly long.

— I apologize. 

Alhaitham wished his silver bangs were covering both of his pupils at the moment. Perhaps then he wouldn't have to see the disappointment in [Reader's] eyes. 

— Don't you have anything else to tell me?

The man looked at the pocket where the gift he had chosen throughout the afternoon was hidden. The ring, shimmering green, twinkled warningly in the darkness. This wasn't how it was supposed to turn out. He wanted to congratulate [Reader], leave it here andgo out. And then maybe he would be a step closer. To say the words that had been ringing in his head for some time. But now it seemed to him that the distance between them had increased dramatically. As if instead of a small gap, there was an abyss separating them that had not been there until recently. 

— I apologize. — With that words on his lips he left. 

*** 

— I'll end up in poverty on the streets — Kaveh said.

His imagination was already working at full speed. In his head, he created scenes in which he would walk out the door with only Mehrak at hand and a few things he could take with him. 

He saw the contemptuous looks of the people from the Academy. The same ones for whom he was their biggest rival in Kshahrewar. And also disappointed, those who were captivated by his magnum opus. After all, the famous Alcazarzaray palace was talked about throughout Sumeru and beyond. 

— It won't be like that at all. I know you're behind on your rent but Alhaitham won't throw you out. 

[Reader] knew well that these two lived together like a dog and a cat. They were complete opposites. However, despite their frequent quarrels, in the end they always somehow managed to find a common ground. And although this thread was often thin and frail, at least it existed. 

Her childhood friend would never do something like that. Or at least she wanted to believe so.

— If necessary, I'll lend you money or find an apartment, — the woman continued. 

The position of the Grand Sage should not be used for such purposes but she felt that the goddess of Sumeru would not be angry about it. Especially since she sometimes mentioned how much she appreciated the architect. If she found out that he might become homeless, she would definitely help him. 

— I do not agree! Kaveh put his head on the desk as if to shut out the conversation. 

— Why not? — [Reader] asked, surprised. 

— No particular reason — he finished sluggishly. 

The truth was that there was pride in Kaveh. Pride, an old friend he found difficult to silence. Whether it was when he announced in his year that he would become the best student, or when he announced that he would build a palace that would amaze Teyvat. The same friend was biting him now. Because the mere thought of [Reader] knowing about his problems made him feel bad. However, what hurt him more was the thought that she would be the one to give him a loan to get out of this trouble. This is not how it should be. He didn't want it to be like this. 

— How can I help you if you don't want me to? — The woman rubbed her temples. 

— I do not need help… 

[Reader] looked at the sketches scattered across the desk. Cups with half-drunk coffee rested on some of them, forming brown circles like stamps marking nights of work spent creating. She already knew this condition. Busyness was nothing new for the brilliant architect. But now it was worse than usual. 

The room was stuffy. Some dust had already collected on the shelves, the particles of which were now dancing in the glow of the rising sun. The bedding looked almost untouched. It probably hasn't been used much in recent days. 

— You don't need it at all. It's best to continue ruining your health. You're doing it again, Kaveh! — [Reader] shook her head in disbelief. 

— Ah yes! It's best to pick on me. You and Alhaitham are both the best at this! — The blonde jumped up abruptly from the chair. 

Maybe he was a little turned on. Lack of sleep and coffee were taking their toll. However, it was true that the two of them were always right there to reprimand him. Though, as he later said, maybe it was because no one else had stayed with him that long. 

— If you don't need help, that means you're overdramatic... 

These words set him like a rag to a bull. He knew they weren't said with any particular intention. But it was Alhaitham's favorite quip and it reminded him of how long he and [Reader] had known each other. 

— That's who I am. If you don't like it, we don't have to talk! 

The uttered sentence hung in the silence in the room for a second. Kaveh knew he could be short-tempered. He rarely regretted it. However, this was the moment when he really wanted to turn back time. For that tiny moment that seemed to make a difference in [Reader's] patience. 

— You're right. We don't have to — she said, grabbing the door handle. — I wish you would just trust me when I say everything will be fine. — She slammed the door. 

Kaveh ran a hand through his hair. As if it would help him in any way. He closed his eyes for a moment but only [Reader's] features appeared in his mind. Her accusatory but sad look. She meant well. She was worried about his health. And it was far from ideal. At least in recent days. Why was it so hard for him to admit she was right? 

The man put his hand to his chest. He felt his heart beating rapidly and laughed heartily. He was a poor art lover if he couldn't recognize the most common motifs in his life.

He shook his head and grabbed the first sheet of paper full of sketches. He had spent the last few days working on it but it didn't really matter at the moment. He reached the door, praying to the Goddess of Wisdom for his success. 

— [Reader]! [Reader], wait! — he cried, breathing heavily. 

He was never in good shape. Fortunately, the street wasn't crowded yet. Most merchants were just arriving with their goods to be able to arrange them later. 

The woman turned around with a surprised look on her face. 

— I thought we weren't talking anymore — she said sarcastically as Kaveh caught his breath. 

— Sorry. I didn't want to accept your help because... — There was a moment of silence. — Because... Oh, Seven! Why does it have to be so hard when I have to say it myself?! 

This was definitely unusual behavior. Because since [Reader] first met the blonde, she had never seen him speechless. 

— Because I was ashamed to accept help from someone I was madly in love with! — With these words he fell to his knees and reached into his pocket. 

Several people on the street looked around curiously and two merchants even whistled, cheering the man on. 

— Kaveh... what are you... don't be silly. — The panicked woman tried to pull him upright. — You're not going to propose to me here, aren't you?

Everything happened at breakneck speed. A few minutes ago they were still arguing. She definitely didn't expect this when she got out of bed this morning. 

— This isn't a proposal. For now. Because I'm not saying I will never... Just not now... — he added, regaining his former self-confidence. — This is my gift to you. With a vow to improve and a request for you to become my beloved muse. 

The ring he pulled out of his pants' pocket was made of paper. The same one that, as [Reader] recognized, was lying on the desk not long ago. How on earth did he come up with this? She had no idea. She had to admit it was cute though. 

— All right, all right. I'm just begging you, get up. People around us probably think that we have just become fiancées... — while saying this, she discreetly pointed to two clapping men, who were joined by a group of dancers and a random passer-by.

— It doesn't bother me... OUCH! Okay, I'm not saying anything! — He raised his hands to surrender. 

*** 

— I'll walk you to work in a minute — Kaveh said as he left the house. 

[Reader] closed the romance novel she was reading and placed it on the table. She drank the rest of her coffee as she got ready to leave for work. She said goodbye to the scribe as she headed down the street.

Alhaitham watched the couple leave, still trying to convince himself that he had to finish reading the book. After a while, however, he put his reading aside. Right next to the one [Reader] was reading earlier. 

Sometimes thoughts came to him. What if he were the architect now? But then he always thought that it would never work. Even though he wouldn't admit it out loud, Kaveh was better at something than him. In being a speaker. He was able to put into words what was in his head. No matter how many titles on rhetoric books Alhaitham read, he was unable to implement their concepts in his life. Logos, ethos and pathos were not on his side... 

[minijenn]

"True Leader" - Bill Cipher and White Diamond (non-paring)

White Diamond’s ship was empty, quiet, and cold like usual. That’s honestly, how she liked things. Nothing out of place, everything under her control… but, things were about to change.

“Come out, Bill. I know you are here” the white lady revealed with a sweet and delicate voice. If anyone with no context heard that, they would be sure she was kind and gentle… and they would be very wrong.

Finally, the yellow triangle became visible. Usually, when he did so, the area around him would lose color, and time would stop. However, White’s ship was already empty and filled with shades of gray and White.

“I came just like you asked, White? What do you want with me?” Bill asked, cleared not happy being there. That kind of behavior was unexpected coming from the guy that joked with all his potential clients. White was different…

“Is that any way to treat a partner?” she asked teasingly, with her same creepy smile of usual.

“Get to the point, White!” the triangle demanded, crossing his arms in anger. White didn’t seem completely satisfied, but didn’t lose composure.

“I just wanted to know how my dear Starlight is doing on earth?” the diamond asked dramatically, as if she was a caring mother.

“I though you and your… bleached mind powers allowed you to spy 24/7 into Quartzy and Rosebud’s lives” Bill stated, still unpolite. 

White approached him threateningly, making the triangle shiver in fear.

“Oh, but they do, Bill. But, well, it’s a bit hard keeping Blue, Yellow and Starlight in check at the same time, you know?” the diamond retorted. Although she seemed happy, she was clearly sending a message: ‘behave if you don’t want to face the consequences.

“Right…” he agreed, this time, being more polite. He already faced many beings on his life. Scientists, other Human Scientists, and all his henchmaniacs. But, none of them was compared to the gem matriarch. She had a lot more power than it seemed.

“Although, to be fair, I have to admit that the events on your… ‘Nightmare Realm’ were quite fascinating” she smiled, referring to the incident involving Stepper’s journal.

Bill felt a shiver down his spine. The deal involved Pink Diamond’s gem intact. And he almost shattered her in an attempt to stop Stepper.

“It was all…” Bill tried to defend himself, horrified at what could happen to him if White found out the truth. She, however, only made a sign for him to stay quiet.

“I knew it wouldn’t work. Your little ‘stealing the book’ act. You would have had to come up with something more creative. That’s why I didn’t call you immediately” she turned her back and walked a bit, going back to her usual spot at the ship.

“I hope that, next time, you will stay true to your word. Will you?” she questioned. Bill simply nodded, not wanting any more trouble with the gem.

“Good boy” White said, patting his head. Bill HATED being treated like that. But there wasn’t anything he could do. That gem was ruthless.  

“I need to go back to the Nightmare Real now! My pals need their ruler” the triangle said, trying to find an excuse to leave.

White diamond, however, gave a wicked laugh that shook her ship’s walls.

“A ‘ruler’? What makes yourself believe you are a ‘ruler’?” the gem snickered, making the triangle turn red.

“Well! I keep the Nightmare Realm in check! A beautifully chaotic check!” Bill shouted, finally losing his patience.

“‘In check’? You call that mess a place that is ‘in check’? Don’t make me laugh” White grinned.

“At least my peers have fun there! Unlike here! Which means, I am a better leader than you” the triangle tried to defend himself. The gem matriarch wasn’t affected by that… at all.

“A better leader? Well, I never burned my dimension and destroyed my own kind” White sassed, knowing where to hit.

“…what?” Bill puzzled, unable of guessing how the gem matriarch managed to find out about his past.

“Euclydia. Does it ring a bell to you?” the gem matriarch questioned. The triangle froze.

“Poor Bill. The first time you tried to take charge, you destroyed everyone that cared about you. It surely doesn’t make you seem like a good leader” White sassed, satisfied with the reaction she got.

“Shut up! I will be going now!” Bill yelled, tired of being reminded of his past.

“Oh, so soon? Came back again. I love your visits, dear” the gem matriarch teased, satisfied at all the nerves she hit.

“We are not FRIENDS!!” the triangle shouted, finally returning to his world. White started laughing again.

“Oh, Starlight, I wonder why you were so enchanted by such an inferior life form. I am excited to hear it ALL from you when you get back” she said, thinking about the youngest diamond, that was galaxies away…

  _____________________________________________________

Author’s Note: Okay, I don’t know if you accept people submitting our own UF inspired stories, but you speaking about Bill and White’s relationship, Billrose and all the other things gave me inspiration to write this.

It’s my first time writing for either Bill or White, but I am kind of satisfied with the result.

Anyway, sorry if I got to excited. Hope you liked it. Bye!

——

Oh man we’re back to UF fan submissions! This makes me so nostalgic! Great job with this btw loved how catty these two are to each other; very in line with how I imagined them interacting in UF2 lol

[thecolourfulkingdom]

More tinfoil hat theories! What's the deal with Sally Starlet?

What's with her anyway? We have like +100500 theories on Wally, Home and Frank. But what about our favourite starwoman? Not enough speculations.

Let me bring you some tinfoil-y deliciousness.

Sally's colour is ORANGE as befitting, well, you know her being a literal Sun. But since Sun is also a Star it creates a strange duality.

Sun that is a star that is a performer? Oh my, dear Sally has many faces and wears many masks.

Sally's tarot card is obviously The Sun. Or is it? Let's see... The Sun is generally considered positive. It represents success, radiance, abundance, happiness, vitality, self-confidence and success. It represents good things and positive outcomes to current struggles. It also calls you to express yourself authentically.

The Sun in the upright position means: positivity, fun, warmth, success, vitality.

The Sun in the reversed position means : inner child, feeling down, overly optimistic.

Seemingly, the description fits Sally, right? But it's only a half of it. Our dear Sally may have a VERY different side to her.

But first, let's have a look at the Sally's house from Welcome Home page. It looks like a chest or even a toychest because of it's orange-yellow roof of a specific shape and like a theater stage with it's orange curtains with yellow star pattern at the same time. Oh and don't forget the red carpet in the from of it. if you look at the roof again, you will see a spotlight hanging above the "stage" part. Fancy!

But the most interesting element is the door. It sort of made into Sally's image - it has the same triangle yellow-orange elements styled like her hair around the dark orange doorframe.

The door itself has two door leafs. On both of each a side of a smiling face depicted. The Left one seems to represent the day - sky is bright cerulean with soft white clouds. Left half of the depicted face is bright yellow with red blush and orange eyelid.

Right door leaf represents night - sky is dark blue smoothly changing into the purple at the bottom with shiny yellow stars. The right half of the face is also cerulean but of different, cooler shade.

Sally of Many faces? Very well, it fits her like a performer, because changing faces that's what she does all the time.

Let's have look at The Moon card too.

The Moon. Th card itself is all about duality: two towers, two animals and one of them is tamed and the other is wild. The doubles are visible all over this card. Everything seems to echo the other, as if to allude to two possibilities. And let us not forget the fine line between conscious and unconscious...

On one hand, the Moon card can symbolize your imagination is taking the best of you. You are taking a path that you are unsure of, there could be danger lurking in the depths of the night. But the moon's light can bring you clarity and understanding . Allow your intuition to guide you through this darkness. But does Sally even possess an intuition? Good question.

Reversed Moon represent confusion and unhappiness - one wants to make progress, but isn't sure what is the right thing to do. They must deal with their anxiety and fears by overcoming them, for fears are like shadows in the dark.

I was wondering what if Wally's remark in the guestbook refer to Sally doing something that ruined their neighborhood? I mean, she already left her home once to get an audience. What if she grew bored with the small town such as Home and run away again.

Yeah, sounds what human starlets often do: ambitious young woman goes to conquer the big city. Swap big city with a human world and you will get a receipt for a disaster. Silly Sally could get entangled in the illusions of her stardom. How dangerous can it get? Given how innocent puppets are I would say, very fast.

So what did happen? Did Sally betray Wally and everyone else for fame? Dang... It would make sense why Wally dislike her.

Maybe there is more to it. I will keep digging.

Oh, also I was trying to get a better picture of her house yesterday and when I accidentally zoomed in...

And what the actual fuck is this?! Is that a skull?!!! And a worm/snail shadow from the bug post.

Sally, girl, you owe us an explanation.

[cyberneticlagomorph]

You don't know when you fell asleep or how but that's largely unimportant, what is important is the contents of your dream. For as long as you can remember, you've been having basically the same nightmare every night with the occasional slight variation.

A city in ruin, streets empty and weed-choked. There you were in the center of it all, surrounded by destruction that you could do nothing to stop. Not the end of the world, but the End-of-Everything, the Mother of all Cataclysms.

The sky turned into a green-gold mirror, broken, reflecting everything that ever was and everything that would ever be within shards of Dreams that fell like verdant rain and distorted the landscape around you as they crashed haphazardly to the ground like glass meteors, shattering on impact. 

Before you normally stood a Nameless Thing, many headed and serpentine. 

But not tonight.

Tonight you're somewhere different, somewhere neat and clean with smooth tables covered in half completed board games and mindless crayon scribbles barely confined to their papers.

Black walls and bowling alley carpet full of triangles and zigzags, no ceiling though, just void. A stranger sits perched on a nearby armchair, sipping tea and humming a familiar song under his breath.

His skin is a darker brown than yours, the top half of his face obscured by large circular purple shades, kinky-curly-bedhead-spikey yellow hair sticks out from underneath the brim of his top hat. Instead of a tie, a well behaved atlas moth sits at the hollow of his throat, the human eyes on its wings blinking wetly.

"Y'got a name kid?" Says the stranger without moving his mouth, he drops a handful of dream pearls into his cup and watches the spoon stir itself.

"... Jack." You glance around like a cornered animal looking for a way out before it has to resort to violence.

"Jack? You look more like a [nickname], can I call you [nickname]?" The stranger asks, taking a sip of his tea, a singular yellow eye glows at you from behind the lenses of his shades.

The sound [nickname] makes isn't a word, or really a sound? It's the absence of both, but hollowed out from... something both tangible and intangible so you're left hearing the shape of where something Was.

"No, and how the fuck are you doing that with your mouth?" Your skin itches like there's something underneath it.

He's suddenly in front of you now; floating a few feet off the ground, cane in his hands, cup hovering where he left it. The moth at his throat looks at you with something like pity, something like sorrow, and something like jealousy in its horrible eyes.

The stranger just smiles at your question, golden fangs and yellow stained teeth glistening with wetness that might be spit but probably isn't. "[Nickname] you of all people should know how I think."

"Who are you?" Your skin crawls, inside and out of the dream. Hackles raised as you edge away from the stranger without meaning to, he offers a hand to shake in a way that SHOULD have be friendly but most certainly was not.

"Most folks call me Bill, but you can call me Zilch, your friendly neighborhood oneriophage."

You look at his hand like it might jump off his wrist and bite you, Zilch waggles his fingers bonelessly and changes the colors of his claws as if that will tempt you into touching him.

"You're a Cipher."

"That I am! In fact I'm the resident Cipher of this misbegotten corner of the multiverse, nice to meetcha kid." He wiggles his fingers again.

"What do you want?"

"Bold of you to assume I want anything other than to stop by and say hi." Another smile

"You're a bad liar Zilch."

"Well... at least I CAN lie!"

"What do you want?" Your eyes narrow.

"I'm bored and you look fun to play with, so how's about I help you with your boy trouble?" Zilch waves his hand and a pixelated version of your husbeast idles on his palm before vanishing.

"I don't make deals with demons."

"I mean, you MARRIED a demon and marriage is very much a legally binding deal between two consenting individuals." Zilch gives you a Look over the rims of his shades. "You're cute and all, but I'm not planning on taking an arrow to the knee any time soon so let's just shake on it and get this over with."

"Let me clarify," your ears flick with annoyance. "I don't and WON'T make deals with YOU, any alts of you, or you adjacent entities."

Zilch pretends to swoon, growing another set of arms just to clutch them to his chest as if he'd been shot there. "Oh [nickname] you WOUND me! I'm not like those other Bills and deep down you know that..."

"Do I?" You say, deadpan.

"You do! I know you do! Believe me, I just wanna help." Zilch bats his luscious yellow lashes for emphasis. "Sometimes I wish someone could have shown up and miraculously saved my relationship like this, then maybe Sixer would still be with me." A single pitch black tear rolls down his cheek as he sniffles.

"I'll pass."

"C'mooooon, it doesn't have to be a full deal, how about just a little widdle pinkie promise?" Zilch holds out his hand again, pinkie extended and other fingers curled.

"I said no."

"D'aww, someone thinks they've got a choice." He tilts his head, the corners of his smile stretching so far they disappear into the corners of where his eyes should be. "I'm gonna give the people what they want, whether you like it or not." Zilch taps his cane once on the ground and the floor beneath you vanishes.

You reach up without meaning to, and Zilch grabs your hand as if trying to save you; your joined hands wreathed in blue flame, your skin melting away like wax, the metal beneath it starting to glow with the heat. Zilch takes off his shades with an extra hand and grins down at you, the entire right side of his face is made of teeth and eyes and abyss that chatters and whispers and cries.

"It's showtime!"

[chirpsythismorning]

The Hellflire Club Foreshadows Mike's Monologue (and More Than You Think...)

Several fans have noticed already that there are direct parallels between Mike's monologue in The Piggyback, with Eddie's monologue in The Hellfire Club.

While we've been grappling with all sorts of supernatural creatures over the course of Stranger Things' entire run, here Eddie is warning us about forced conformity and how that is the real monster.

This has also led fans to joke painfully about the fact that Max 'died' because forced conforming; that's what's killing the kids, aka Mike's whole speech to El wouldn't have happened the way it did in the first place, had him, Will and El not been trying so hard to be who they think they're supposed to be, instead of who they truly want to be.

However, what I want to add to this discourse, because I haven't seen anyone else acknowledge it (correct me if i'm wrong!?), is that this scene at lunch has two extras with whom Mike sits between, which are very likely meant to represent Will and El.

We've seen a lot of (love) triangle blocking used with these three before, often with Mike between the two. This screen-cap below has gotta be one of the most iconic and so I feel the need to mention it briefly:

What also makes this shot relevant as an example for this post, is the costume choice for Will and El here: the same shade of dark blue (hints of gray), and the fact that this doesn’t align with the colors/style they usually wear as individual characters. However, this was presumably one of the few times Will and El have genuinely interacted beyond supernatural happenings. And so now, with both of them standing on either side of Mike, after two seasons of him having only one of them beside him, and while the other was out of reach, what we're seeing is that these two are more or less two sides of the same coin. Whether Will and El are actually blood related (I'm like 75% sure they could be) remains to be seen. However Mike's bond between both of them individually is causing him to sort of be at war with himself (and his identity).

Now bear with me, because I know so many of you see theories/analysis involving set design/blocking/costumes and you just instantly check out and stop taking it seriously. But I can assure you, this is the real deal.

What follows, is so outrageously easy to overlook. And yet upon thinking about what it actually requires to film a scene, especially a scene like this with dozens of background extras, along with how this scene actually turned out, I'm going to explain why there are several factors which make me feel fairly confident about what these two specific extras represent.

To start things off, we know how this scene begins, with Eddie dramatically reading a Newsweek magazine:

"The Devil has come to America. Dungeons and Dragons, at first regarded as a harmless game of make-believe, now has both parents and psychologists concerned. Studies have linked violent behavior to the game, saying it promotes satanic worship, ritual sacrifice, sodomy, suicide, and even... Murder."

After they give us a short introduction to some of the faces of the Hellfire Club (notably Eddie), they cut to this point of view shot from Mike:

Here we are instantly introduced to the two extras that are going to dominate a majority of this scene outside of the main characters themselves, aka Willel...

note: interesting they don't include Mike in the shot for that specific sound bite below... almost as if he considers himself a freak for a different reason...

Yes, on the surface this scene is establishing that Mike and Dustin are finding a place in High School, as the freaks and geeks, but a place nonetheless.

Though, is that really all there is to it?

You'll see what I mean.

note: there's no meaning behind the circles touching here. i just wanted to acknowledge here that the El extra is visible at first, only for her to become hidden the moment that the Will extra becomes visible.

Now, this shot right here below is kind of iconic, because it's what made me realize that this girl extra here in the scarf represents El.

To provide a little more context, the Will extra next to Mike has already been picked up on by a decent amount of fans. I've even posted about it at least once. This guy definitely resembles Will at certain angles, to the point where he could arguably be a stand in/stunt double for scenes that don't require a close-up of him.

Also keeping in mind, this is a scene of the party in high school, in a D&D club. Assuming Will could have stayed in Hawkins and went to high school with the party, he would've more than likely been right here beside them. So that's what I initially got out of this scene and still partially do get out of it, regardless of these other observations I'm discussing here.

What's so fascinating about the Will extra though specifically, is that they avoid showing his face as much as possible, which is a unique choice that we're just not seeing be applied to the other extras in the frame. They even let us see the face of the guy across from the Will extra (blue/yellow striped shirt guy) multiple times, but apparently they really wanted to avoid showing this guys face (there are a few notable, but fleeting side profiles from an outside POV), almost to keep up this guise that we could imagine this is Will and hell, it could be him, bc it's pretty damn close.

However, upon recently rewatching this scene, I remember looking for other points when this Will extra might have been prominent, to see if I could find anything else.

And that's when I realized this girl in the scarf, directly blocks the Will extra at the most convenient time.

And that's when it hit me...

FORCED CONFORMING!!!!!!!

The following images below is when it really starts to get obvious that there was an intended direction going on here with the blocking of these two extras, in accordance with Mike's placement in the frame.

What sealed the deal for me, was noticing how the other extras surrounding them (excluding Willel), do not seem to be granted much importance in the continuity of this scene.

Continuity between shots is pretty essential to filmmaking. It's gotta be the main thing about film that just bugs me, which is that you can tell very visibly when a shot is followed by another shot, but from a separate take (has the capacity to ruin the illusion that this is real and not all fabricated).

For example, what I gather from the beginning of this following conversation, is that there were at the very least 2-3 takes done for these reaction shots of Dustin and Mike, and it's because the extras in the background give it away. Sometimes they're in the frame, sometimes they're not.

The Will and El extras provide a contrast to all the other extras, in that the continuity for their blocking in the frame is fairly spot on each time, equal to the standards of the main cast arguably. Meaning they had a mark and they had to stick with it.

Check this out:

side note: star wars reference (luke & leia??)

The most obvious thing that gives away the importance of these two extras, besides the blocking, is them both sporting an almost identical color in their costume. While the Will extra wears a maroon shirt, the El extra wears a scarf in that same color.

This is so simple yet sort of genius, because again, from what I understand, no one has noticed this, and so it's pretty epic once you finally do pick up on it.

The Will extra is almost always in the frame on Mike's right? The El extra is facing the the opposite direction as them (not on the same page), and wearing a scarf, which is there to represent the tentacle choking her during Mike's monologue...

This theory does take a turn for the hilarious, when at a later point Eddie starts monologuing again, while Dustin and Mike look at him fondly (w/ Mike in focus), the Willel extras are now nowhere to be found...

I think this choice was made to indicate that Mike's attraction to Eddie is based on the most basic type of attraction, while what he shares for Will and El is so much more complicated (and deep). When you're just experiencing everyday attraction, you're not thinking about your significant other or your hearts desire in that moment, because this moment is just a blip encounter that isn't going anywhere, it's attraction and that's all there is to it. Whereas what he feels truly for Will is true love, while what he feels truly for El is familial love. This tiny moment isn't about his conflict over his romantic feelings, it's about the fact that Mike is attracted to men.

And then what follows directly after this, is that little snippet of Eddie's monologue, which echoes Mike's monologue to El at the end of the season...

Oh and look who it is?! The El extra has made a reappearance, just in time!

This is one of the few times they made a point to have the El extra in the frame while the Will extra wasn't, which I also think is intentional because it could be a hint to how Mike's speech about falling in love with El the moment he saw her is a fabrication (copyright to be exact), and it also doesn't resemble the love that Mike has for Will, hence why he was almost entirely left out of those shots. (Also similar to Mike's monologue at the end of the season, where Will was in certain shots but not others, because the words did/didn't match Mike's feelings for Will at those points).

Lastly, we get a Gap (gay and proud) reference for Mike. And low and behold, the Will extra is making a reappearance, just in time!

I think what makes this scene easier to understand on a basic level, without making it too complicated for yourself, is comparing the implications that come with it, to the implications that came with Mike's monologue.

The choice to put Will in most of the shots, directly behind Mike as he professes his love to El, who is lying before him unable to look in his eyes or even respond, leads those truly paying attention, to the conclusion that this is not how you shoot a satisfying love confession. Therefore it can't be a genuine love confession.

Instead what this scene more so depicts is a character having a confession practically wrenched out of him. And because of all the other details happening over the course of this season and just the series overall, we can gather that Mike feels pressured to go through with this because he thinks he has no other choice.

They didn't beat the big bad this time, instead they lost. Because forced conforming, that's the real monster.

With only one season left, they're going to have to face the truth if they want to make it out alive this time (and happy!).

[alwayzraven]

Farewell Sengul! You will be sorely missed! I honestly thought you would at least be a part of the downfall of Akif Atakul but alas it wasn’t meant to be!

But honestly, I’ve got respect the actors for leaving even though I want them to stay until the finale! Imagine playing a grey-shaded complex character, where you could have multiple storylines in which we kept guessing the true intentions of, only to be reduced to love triangles, jealous of mother—laws and basically a caricature of your character! It’s quite insulting!

The repetitiveness of each episode where you have nothing new to add to and only a few episodes in a blue moon to show your acting skills isn’t what any of them signed up for!

They could be missing out in so many opportunities for other shows/movies because they could have be told, this is what we’re gonna to for your character and then not do nothing at all! Which is how I feel Onur left!

The university storyline could have given all the students creative stories but no!

And now with Yazgi leaving! I don’t blame her one bit! The messages she’s been receiving after Onur left can’t be doing any do for her mental health! So it’s better for her to leave and not deal with the stupid fans!

I wish every single one all the best! ❤️

*I’m sorry for the essay

I agree with everything you! The show had a very strong start and then it started going downhill after S2. The actors probably had high expectations but were disappointed when the same plot got repeated 100 times and the same things kept being written for their characters. I still don't get how Sengul left without them writing a farwell scene for her. I feel like Fadik suddenly stopped coming to set and they had no choice but to come up with a dumb excuse on the show 😂 I am curious how they are going to deal with her absence long term bc they can't keep on using the excuse that she went home bc her brother is getting engaged forever.

[spaceorphan18]

You mentioned you skip things you dislike, same, but I'm curious what plots you dislike the most?

Ha okay

To clarify from last night, though, I don't actually mind Comeback all that much (except Sue's story line is not in great taste at points) but it was getting late and I really wanted to watch BIOTA. Lol

Really, at this point - a lot of the things I dislike are a lot of trends -- such as the racism or fatphobia or just meanness that a lot of times permeated the show. There are also moments that just infuriate me -- such as Emma giving up her 'virginity' as a prize to Will for winning Nationals. Or the continued 'how to be a real man' rhetoric the show kept trying to shove down our throats. That stuff makes me want to throw things at the wall.

Here's a list of my least favorite story arcs in no order except, perhaps, chronological:

The Fake Baby - Season 1: I think over the years, I've gone a lot softer on Terri, and can recognize the satire the show was going for. But I still think the idea that Terri could fake a pregnancy for that long without Will noticing feels like a stretch and I've always found it a bit dumb.

Will/Emma/Ken/Terri Love Triangle - Season 1: It's not that it's bad -- Season 1 might have the tightest comedy in the show, I'm just bored by it because I really do not care about these characters. And Ken might be one of my least favorite characters during the entire run.

Will's Mid-Life Crisis - Season 2: It was clear that the show wasn't sure what to do with Will, especially after the pivot to focusing on the kids, and a majority of his stories in Season 2 weren't all that great.

All of it - Early Season 3: There's not much going on in eps 1-8 that I like - The First Time is an exception, and even within that episode there are things that I'm just like, ew, no. In case you're wondering - a run down of bad storylines in Early Season 3

Rachel v Mercedes which seemed like a cop out so they could feature Rachel still while trying to give Mercedes /something/ but while the concept of the Trouble Tones was fine, it's marred by the fact that Brittany and Santana are so mean during this time period

The Student Election - which I find frustrating, partially because it ties into the weird - Kurt is too gay to accomplish things stuff - but also partially I'm not a fan of how they showcased Brittany either. (I do like the unicorn concept, fwiw though)

Sue v Beiste for Cooter. Why was this a thing? Also - it's soured due to the fact that Cooter because a domestic abuser.

Finn disliking Blaine - because why not

Rory. Look, no shade at Damian McGinty. But Rory is easily the most boring and useless character on the show.

Santana's coming out - I think her development in Season 2 was great! The fact that this was botched so horribly is just frustrating. Santana is probably at her worst during this period - and her cruelty swept under the rug. Brittany is barely a part of the story line. And the whole thing becomes about Finn and how he's handling it more than what Santana's going through.

Puck/Quinn/Shelby - I hate it. I hate all of it. This is by far my least favorite story line in the show. I could make an entire separate post about how much I hate this story line.

Will and Emma - Season 3: It's not the worst, but Will's continued terrible decisions in relation to Emma are just frustratingly annoying -- such as his treatment of her about getting tenure and how he deals with her mental illness.

Sue's Pregnancy - Season 3: Why? Why was this a thing? It ultimately served no purpose and was mostly erased and not talked about after Robin was born.

Princess Rachel - late Season 3: Rachel was, annoyingly, handed everything on a silver platter because the writers felt like she deserved it after all of her 'suffering'. Props might be the worst - when Tina is brainwashed to say how wonderful and magical Rachel is and then they go stalk Carmen Tibideaux. (The Prom episode stuff is bad, too). But the worst part about all of it is that it came at the expense of Kurt - who got to fail so that Rachel could be lifted up.

Marley's Easting Disorder - Season 4: It was just poorly handled in general and 'resolved' by a Ryder making her feel better about herself. I just can't with it.

Marley/Ryder/Jake Triangle - Season 4 (and 5): It's just boring. And after all the love triangles and not great romances on the show it just wasn't that interesting.

Previously Unaired Christmas - bleh

Anything Vocal Adrenaline - Season 6: While I think I understand why there was so much VA -- it was a way to fill out the episodes. It was just too much.

Looking at the episode list, those are the big ones. There are minor things here and there, and definitely moments that make me want to throw things, too.

[ambroisebloodlines]

Raegan d'Ambroise

The beginning of my legacy. She's the matriarch of the d'Ambroise Bloodline.

Description

Raegan has dark skin of a cool tone, ashy blonde curly hair, and pale golden brown eyes.

She usually wears sweaters and baggy sweatpants in black, brown and yellow shades. She has a few tattoos, a butterfly on her chest, a flower on her right arm, and a wiccan symbol of a triangle and a circle on the back of her left wrist.

She's black, with a Welsh and French ancestry.

Gallery

Infanthood and Toddlerhood

Raegan never meet her parents or any relatives, she was left at the doors of the local orphanage in Copperdale, where she was raised by the nuns who run it.

She was a calm infant and independent toddler, which made it easier to take care of her compared to the other children in the orphanage. Raegan was particularly close to Nun Enydd, who she saw as a mother figure and with whom she remained close.

Traits as an Infant: Calm. Quirks: Early Riser \ Snuggly Sleeper \ Frequently Sneezes.

Traits as a Toddler: Independent. Quirks: Early Riser \ Loves books \ Wanderer

Despite she was a baby when she was left in the orphanage, no one adopted her, Enydd told her that it was due to strange things happening whenever Raegan cried or laughed, a light bulb flickering or a window shattering, which often scared away those that came to meet her during adoption meetings.

Childhood

When Raegan grew up to a child, she became aware of her situation and what this meant for her future: she had no one to take care of her once she became of age and inevitably had to leave the orphanage. So she started making plans from a young age, first she would study hard and get good grades in order to have the possibility to be accepted in a university, and eventually get a good job to accomplish her dream to buy a house she could call home.

Because Raegan was centered in school, she didn't make a lot of friends, which she didn't mind because she saw all the other children in the orphanage as her friends and family.

Teenhood

Once she became a teen, Raegan got a part-time job, knowing that there were just a few years left before she became of age and had to go into the real world as an independent adult. She worked as a barista and did a few odd jobs on the side, like babysitting and tutoring other students.

Half-way through high school, she meet a boy, whom she developed a crush on, but that quickly ended after she discovered he was a player, dating multiple girls at the same time, and partying almost every night. So she returned to focusing on her grades and saving money.

Young Adulthood

Early Young Adulthood

The time finally came. Regan was a young adult, ready for the university's entrance exam and to join the real world outside the orphanage.

San Myshuno

She moved to the big city, San Myshuno, where she rented a small apartment in the Fashion District, 1313 21 Chic Street, after she was accepted in the Physics department of the Foxbury Institute.

Soon after she finished unpacking, she had the first brush with the supernatural. The ghost of the previous tenant appeared, and while she struggled through university and part-time jobs to pay rent, she had to deal with a pestering ghost that haunted her, luckily she found peace in a new hobby: Painting, which to her surprise came natural to her, earning a few extra simoleons by selling it to art enthusiasts.

Because of her busy and haunted life, she didn't had time to date aside a few hangouts with cute guys or a hookup every other month.

After four intense and stressful years, she graduated with an Ordinary Physics Degree with Honors. Nun Enydd assisted Raegan's graduation and congratulated her for achieving the greatest step to achieve her dreams. Unfortunately, during the celebration, Enydd passed away from old age, happy and proud of what Raegan had achieved.

Moonwood Mill

The following year, after working for FutureSim Lab as a researcher, Raegan was assigned a new project that required her to travel to Moonwood Mill, a small town with barley enough residents to keep it from being a proper ghost town. There were mines full of metals and crystals that would be necessary for the Robotics Department of the FutureSim Lab.

The first few days Raegan worked hard, using the small Research Center of the town, studying and analyzing the materials found in the mines.

An unexpected encounter

One day, while collecting crystal from a mine, she meet Lou Howell, a weird guy who had the odd habit of sniffing the air around him, at first she found strange how Lou seemed to be always where she was, from the mines to the local bar, trying to strike a conversation with her.

After a few weeks of this push-and-pull, she gave in and went on a date with him, as friends, many, many times, finding him endearing and funny despite the occasional outburst of anger he displayed whenever people got too close to him, specially those very pale individuals who she saw only during the nighttime.

Eventually they started officially dating, for the first time in her life, Raegan experienced madly falling in love with someone, and Lou was completely devoted to her, seemingly in tune to her feelings and needs. Deciding she couldn't just leave at the end of her six months research project, Raegan requested to permanently stay in Moonwood Mill's Research Center, which was approved.

They moved in together, combining their savings and buying a small trailer. For a while she spent her days working, enjoying her time with Lou, and some others wondering why her wild boyfriend would be out until the sunrise most nights. But all was better when he suddenly proposed to her, after just one year living together, Raegan was elated and immediately said yes. During this time, she also found interesting books in the local library, discovering more about the supernatural world of the occults, beyond the common knowledge people have.

One night of summer, when the full moon was on its peak, Raegan discovered her fiancée's biggest secret: Lou was a werewolf.

Fueled by the moon, Lou lost control of his fury, and transformed in the middle of the night while he was sleeping, waking her up.

Raegan took this quite badly, running away despite Lou's attempts to explain he wouldn't hurt her and that he was still himself, which to Raegan sounded more like growls.

The next day she found the courage to go back to their small trailer, and she found him there, sleeping in their now destroyed bed. After he woke up, catching her scent, they talked, and talked, and then talked a bit more. Lou explained how he became a werewolf, and how she made him believe he could be a better man than the wild beast his former pack tried to shape him into.

It took a couple years, but Raegan eventually became comfortable around him, even finding endearing the young werewolf.

2. Windenburg

Half a year after her acceptance of Lou's nature and her growing knowledge of the supernatural world, she tied the knot and married Lou right before moving to Windenburg, where she discovered she was pregnant with their first child, Lyall.

Thanks to their combined efforts, they saved enough money to buy a house, that although it was small, the land around it was big enough to build and expand for their growing family.

After a lot of consideration, Raegan put her career on hold to raise Lyall; it was unknown if their baby was a werewolf or a human, since Lou was bitten and transformed into a werewolf, not born as one.

To kill time during Lyall's naps, she started painting again, pleased that she still had that artistic touch, she challenged herself to make each painting more intricate and detailed than the last one, selling them to museums and private collectors, who described her art as bewitchingly beautiful, adding more to their savings. So did the garden she grew after remembering the encounter Lou had with a vampire the night he was bitten, she wanted to brew healing potions for him, Raegan had no magic of her own, but she could still use the magical properties of ingredients to achieve it. Some herbs and fruits, she used, and others were sold to spellcasters or other portioners like her.

Updates pending...

Trivia

[mathandsciencearshdeep]

Name Arshdeep Kaur

Math and Science 320

Professor name: Tamara Faires

A) Choose one of the Stations from the workshop. Discuss how this experience supports the Engineering design process/steps (see class notes). Provide details and examples for each step.

The Table  Challenge is my preferred option. For me, this is a really difficult approach. I'm going to go over a few of the engineering design phases below.

What is the problem: I had to create a home, tree, boat, and the initial letter of my name in just ten minutes, which made the task difficult.

Brainstorm idea: I came up with a lot of ideas for this task by using my imagination. For instance, I use different colors and blocks for various tasks.

Design/Invent: shapes and blocks come in extremely useful. In the first exercise, for instance, I loved using blocks to write my name in various colors.

Build/create: I constructed a home. I use a triangle and two, for instance, similar blocks. My house's main door is made out of several blocks.

Test and evaluate: I keep notice of and analyze my home to see whether the blocks are flawed in any way. For the main entrance, for instance, I first used just two blocks and placed them nearby, but after testing and evaluating, I used four blocks—two of each—which seems well.

Redesign or modify a design: I changed my mind and utilized different building blocks to create a person.

Share solutions with others: When I exchange ideas with other people, they advise me not to use the same color blocks. It appears attractive if you use different shade blocks.

B) Justify the age group for this experience (experience you have chosen in 1. A). Use references to support your response.

The table challenge is suitable for students in school. I chose school-age children for a variety of reasons, one of which considering that they are capable of understanding how to complete the task in less time, especially with a 10-minute time limitation. School-agers may use their imagination to come up with creative ways to use blocks, even if they are not all the same size. School-agers can use their hand-eye coordination and problem-solving abilities to complete their task. School-age children use their finger and hand-eye coordination. However, infants and toddlers cannot use such skills. They cannot apply creativity and balance. It's a complicated task that they are unable to understand how to deal with the complex time, therefore they get frustrated.

 2. Choose your favorite station (activity) from Workshop #4 and explain why. How did the experience help support your understanding of the Engineering Design Process (one example)?

I enjoy completing the Playdough button challenge the most. This is a really enjoyable activity. This task requires both finger dexterity and hand-eye coordination in addition to imagination. The engineering design process has been integrated into this task.

What is the problem: Establishing a balance for a high building is the primary challenge.  for instance, I used buttons of varying sizes, thus it was difficult for me to maintain balance because there was more of a risk of falling.

Brainstorm Idea: I started by selecting large buttons to build a 20-meter tower. However, after determining that the height was 12 cm, I switched to smaller buttons first and large after.

Design/Invent: I came up with a plan for a straightforward tower structure that helps in meeting requirements.

Build, create: I construct a tower after a few attempts. 

Test and evaluate: it is important to identify the point of weakness first. I then measure the height, and it falls from 20 cm.

Redesign or modify a design: To meet my requirements, I discovered that it is crucial to divide the large and little buttons while building a tower because doing so saves time when creating a tall structure.

Share solutions with others: I just asked others to come join in and give advice so that I could finish the task. 

[modcrnspirits]

Goro "Guy" Mochizuki

Info:

Face: Andrew Koji Age: looks like 37, more or less three millenniums Occupation: Special Forces that deal with supernatural Gift: Immortal / Vessel / Manipulation of shadows (can use them to teleport and create weapons) / His godly powers vary with the moon phases and he is more powerful on the full moon and prone to evil deeds on the new moon. Sexuality: Omni Position: Versatile, bottom-leaning Family: Father: Tsukuyomi & a long-forgotten mortal Gods Connection: Tsukuyomi & his guardian, Yoshitsune (Ken Watanabe)

Body Type:

Cock Size: 5.5 inches (14 cm) Cock Shape: No curves, it is not so long but thick Type: Uncut Balls and Pubes: Dark-trimmed pubes Ass: Tight firm ass, round cheeks, no hair Tattoos: The Sons of a Paramour tattoo: a simple circle around the belly button, unlike the one from the fathers, this tattoo looks to be made of special silver ink, almost invisible when not active. When active, it glows the same golden shade as their fathers. Body type: Lean but well taken care of, with muscle lines showing, Body hair: Almost no hair. A little bit under the armpits. Special attributes: On fertile moments (especially with gods of gods' vessels, his ass produces a natural lubricant, that the gods call "honey". /During m-pregs, there are natural transformations (bigger belly, bigger tits, etc) / When possessed by his Father, he grows a little bit in dimension

History:

Hidden for centuries by his Father's godly powers, Guy ended up involved with Cian after he was almost killed by some demons that were after his father. Guy is not as divine as his father, but since he has divine blood, he also serves as his father's vessel in the mortal world. But most of the days, he is just Guy. As a man, he works for an international organization that keeps humanity safe from the gods' whims and the demons' twisted desires.

Guy is generally a very calm and peaceful one, but when the New Moon comes, he can become quite unpredictable, for good but most of the time, for bad. Because of that, his father awakens the spirit of a very powerful warrior, Yoshitsune, who protects Guy. Nowadays, both Yoshitsune and Cian do that.

Guy's relationship with his father is also unstable. While his father does everything to protect Guy, he also uses Guy's body as a vessel for his divine presence. Even though he fights that presence, his father still comes and takes him when needed.

Cian and Guy love each other. The doctor can help soothe the effects of the new moon. Yoshitsune sometimes joins the lovers in a sort of romantic triangle, but they don't consider it a three-way couple.

In bed:

he likes breeding, bondage, worship, exhibitionism and voyeursim, tentacles and toys, knotting (he can knot), werewolves, fisting, watersports etc.

[redr0sewrites]

ok heres a very very very detailed analysis on all of my character design choices i made on my human bill design for no reason except i sent this to my friend and she encouraged me to post it sooooo.... here we go

ok so this photo implies that either A) bill wears really long gloves and boots all the time B) his arms and legs changed color as he grew C) they changed color when he destroyed his dimension and accidentally gained cosmic power. i thought it would be cool to implement this fact by giving his human design vitiligo to show the fact that his skin is literally two different colors (i personally think the theory is B cuz when ford blew that hole into his hat (which is also black) it was a part of him wnd therefore skin so i think his skin just changed over time). i also added in the vitiligo on his face to represent the brick pattern thats seen on him. idk i genuinely felt like he should have some sort of face markings to represent that. i also wanted to make him verryyyy gender non comforming. in the book of bill it states that his gender is quite literally triangle, so i feel like he wouldn't really fall into the same gender norms as humans and would end up looking very androgynous simply bc he would not care about looking masculine or feminine and you cant misgender him anyway bc his gender is incomprehendable. i also didnt want to give him a lot of eurocentric features cuz ive seen so many human bill designs that are kinda copy n paste white twink and while it is a good design i wanted him to be more "him" or what he would like. i felt like giving him a sharper nose and jawline would help attribute to his character and also to the sharp angles of his triangular form. i genuinely just wanted him to look beautiful, but not in an average every day person conventional way, moreso in an ancient deity, model, once in a lifetime person type of way. i wanted him to look beautiful in the intimidating way not the cute way. the hair was honestly just for sillies and their wasn't a LOT of thought behind it- again, i went with the adrogynous themes and gave him sort of a scaramouche bowl cut mullet but a little more wolf cut-y. yellow is obviously his color, but since black is also so prevalent in his character design i wanted to keep that theme going and make his roots + the bottom black. the roots symbolize his hat, while the bottom symbolizes his arms and legs. finally, the blue streak was kind of me wanting to incorporate his powers into his character design, and i thought it would be cool if the blue part of his hair glowed when he used his powers too. also his eyes are blue for similar reasons, and also because his eyes turned blue when he offered a deal to gideon(? or someone else can't remember). the entire theory behind his color scheme is obviously sticking to his original one, but also incorporating more blues to clash with the yellows because he's a very conflicted character. he so desperately wants to come off as like this emotionless and chaotic entity when in reality he has weaknesses and feelings and regrets, and his biggest flaw is his own simultaneous ego and insecurity. on this is not a website dotcom (i think, im like 99% sure i saw a ss of this) his listed weakness is himself, along with his favorite thing being himself, which kind of conveys what i was trying to convey with his colors. i felt like a lot of clashing would fit his character and make him sort of "pop" if that makes sense. blue snd yellow are stark opposites the same way his personality is very oppositional to himself and it just felt right. i also included the scar he gained when stan beat him in his mind, and i made that a darker blue not to represent his powers, but to represent his loss and also to be a contrast to the orange i used to shade (the bright blue contrasts the yellow, the dark blue contrasts the orange) to kind of show his weird angstyness afte his loss and sooort of death. i didn't want the scar to be as bright bc obviously its not a source of his power or connected to that in any way, but it still serves as a permanent reminder. i ALSO stopped the outer lineart at his scar to make it look like he was "shattered," to show his crumbling and cracked mental state within the theraprism

some bill/billford sketches from when i was on the plane yesterday (including my human!bill design :)

tumblr butchered the quality :/

[greenlanterncrops]

in a scale from 1 to 100, how terrified are you that the hbomax show in which guy is being described as "hyperpatriotic mass of masculinity, but likeable" is written by marc guggenheim, of arrow fame? because i'm around 1000000000000000x

oh man lol

i only just found out about the casting and who was making the show like 5 minutes ago and my knee-jerk reaction was just oh, no.

i hate to judge things like this before they come out and hold out hope that things will be good until proven shitty, but given how long and ugly a track record guggenheim has with things like this, it’s hard not to be, let’s just say, a little nervous. somewhere around a 60/100. maybe an 85 if i think too much about it

i want to wait for more news to come out before come down too hard on it, but based on the dc cw shows of his i’ve seen, i’m just wondering which main character will have all their interesting characteristics from the comics stripped from them and slapped onto a random new sibling character for no reason

[klvrgavin]

Okay i like hades very much but the colors and sounds when you get to the theseus fight just murder me every time

[wolffenstien]

It's interesting, I think this seems to be a case of a writer acting like a bigger zelda expert than they actually are. Clearly, they wanted to discuss the lack of the triforce playing a role in breath of the wild and tears of the kingdom, which is fine. But most of what they reference as evidence wrong, but close enough to pass for most audiences.

You are correct that it was the Triforce of Wisdom that was split in the original game, not the whole triforce. In that game, Ganon already had the Triforce of Power and Zelda wanted to prevent him from getting the Wisdom one as well. The Triforce of Courage had not yet been conceived, and they were called Triforces because of their triangle shape (which is why the old cartoon is a power struggle over the 2 triforces)

So, the author is right that the original conception of the triforce in the first game differs from later lore that expanded upon. Additionally, most marketing material (and the guide) refers to the triforce of wisdom as "the triforce" only specifying when also identifying the triforce of power. So the author is incorrect, but I can see how they reached their conclusions.

You are correct the "Hero of Time" title only belongs to the Link for Ocarina of Time, and Majora's Mask. Nintendo has also said that the Hero's Shade in Twilight Princess, who teaches sword moves to that game's Link (the Hero of Twilight) special sword moves is the same Hero of Time from Ocarina of Time/Majora's Mask. The thing is, most people outside the fandom struggle with the "its a different Link every other game" concept, and the only "Hero of ..." title that's broken out of the fandom circle into the mainstream is the Hero of Time title. So if you know a Link is the Hero of Time, and you don't know there's different Links, you might conclude that every game features the Hero of Time.

Another thing the author gets wrong is they assert that every game before BotW and TotK feature the triforce. Link's Awakening doesn't, Majora's Mask doesn't, the four swords and minsih cap don't, I don't Phantom hourglass, spirit tracks, or even triforce heroes feature the triforce beyond it just being a symbol. Which is what BotW and Totk use it as. Destroying the authors point here. But all of these games weren't as mainstream as the games that feature the triforce in a larger role.

My conclusion is that the author is a casual. And I don't even mean that in a derogatory way. It's ok to be a casual fan of stuff. What's disappointing is to see incorrect facts like this being asserted in an article and used as evidence.

I can't say if the author is fully to blame for not taking the time to fact check, or if GameRant is pushing too hard for quick content and not giving their authors time to fact check. But it is indicative of a problem.

It should also be said tho, that the point of the article is just to generate discussion about the future revalance of the Triforce in the series, which it still manages to do despite the falsehoods.

And ultimately this article about zelda, the use of falsehoods and misconceptions as evidence is a much bigger deal in reports and articles about current events and politics, but let this be a reminder: Just because it's published doesn't mean it's true

From https://gamerant.com/zelda-tears-kingdom-no-triforce-gone-why/

Funny how the article mentions the three pieces of the Triforce, yet it omits one teensy, weensy important little detail from the first game: THE TRIFORCE THAT LINK ASSEMBLED IN THAT GAME WAS THE TRIFORCE OF WISDOM. The incarnation of Princess Zelda in that game knew Ganon was on his way to her and knew she stood no chance against him. So, to make sure to delay his victory as long as possible she herself splits the Triforce of Wisdom into 8 separate units. Kind of think of it like that scene in Thor: Ragnarok (just add Ganon, Zelda and Link in the respective parts):

Not to mention, correct me if I'm wrong; but, not every version of Link is called The Hero of Time. Specifically, the one referred to as such is the incarnation from Ocarina of Time (and debatably Majora's Mask as they are the same incarnation). Just as how the Link from The Wind Waker is known as the Hero of Winds or the incarnation from Twilight Princess is known as the Hero of Twilight.