#shes slaying her outfit and her enemies

[shiningclown69]

Not a fan of pink Stella BUT

If they had to go with pink, this was the outfit we deserved

[ha-youwish]

Rating the FFXV official minecraft skins

Of course ffxv has a fucking minecraft crossover, but since theres not really that many popular major characters they have made some.... interesting picks for this. let's take a look

the chocobros. the guys. yup. thats them. its hard to see gladio's nose so it kinda looks like his eyes are hella far from his mouth.

either way they all look gay as usual 10/10

ardyn's look here is a little less detailed than i'd want it to be. it doesnt capture the look of all the layers he wears (maybe it needs more contrast?). his mouth is so wide for what. also i want his hat. where is it.

give me the hat. 7.5/10

lots to talk about here. regis is looking pretty damn accurate. luna is a little bland, even with her normal clothes being white i feel like there could've been more detail. the rest of these capture the general vibe tho the level of detail is unequal smh. i like how cute iris's outfit is.

overall, luna 6/10, the rest 8/10.

i was lamenting the lack of tits on cindy but the wise @orangenuggets let me know its bc of the top surgery. 10/10

aranea, wedge, and biggs. i pretty much only remember aranea, and honestly there should be another version of her skin with the helmet that shit went hard. i like the hat on biggs, even though i had to double check which one he was oops. the helmet for wedge looks a little awkward it doesnt feel like he's a character here

10/10, for aranea and biggs, 7/10 for wedge

this is what i call the "why are you here" section. we have evil science guy, that one blond bitch who like immediately explodes and dies, the fucking nifflheim emperor, gilgamesh??? daemon ravus??? whoever the fuck this is???? why are you here. who wants to play as any of these guys except for like. ffxv minecraft roleplayers.

the skins are accurate i guess. 5/10

they decided to put some of the enemies from the game in here. as someone who hardly remembers any of them its similarly as "okay. why" to me as the last group. the tonberry is cute and kinda dinky looking. i really like the mindflayer design surprisingly... that def brings it up a point

overall 8/10 for these guys

MASCOTS YAY, these are all pretty cute and bulky, really gives off the costume feeling. the chocobo bigass beak is adorable i like it a lot 11/10

gentiana's design here actually goes way harder than i thought it would. she slays 20/10

now for the astrals! shiva is so blue. i need like 10 more of her thank you. 10/10

the god of being sososo mad at everyone. i think if there were more raised textures on the body it'd be cool ykwim? 9/10

its ramugh. if only you could remove the leg walking animation so he floats ominously. i suppose there's mods... 9/10

titan. his design was pretty simple already but somehow this doesnt look like him to me? am i crazy? 7/10

bahamut that stupid god that i hate. i hate how sick this looks. i hate him. 10/10

and last but not least.... the design that sucks the most......

LEVIATHAN. WHAT THAT THING. 10000000000000/10

i think the lesson to be learned here is that you can tell how good the original design is when you're forced to simplify it. and also dont make minecraft skins of an angry water snake thing.

[vhsc1ty]

thinking about lexi and her fashion sense... i think it'd be cool if her style evolves with her and reflects her state of mind (like it does w characters in euphoria) am i thinking about it too much ? maybe

obviously they don't have colour palettes or many canonical outfits other than ash's unfortunate wardrobe malfunctions ... i just thought it'd be fun and she seems interesting to style !!!!

yaaaa long rant under cut no images though im not that advanced ok my style analysis skills are so bad

anything im very unsure of is in small text

when she's dating ash it's probably very colourful and bold that contrast ash who i feel like would be in Depressing Mens Basics colours and not stand out as much... outdressing her bf but not in a way that is unique or anything (i feel like she definitely has a "uniform" / "formula" when making her everyday outfits)

nor do they complement each other at all . i think at good points in their relationship they do but closer to the start of mgfl they don't complement as much

lots of pinks . like pink is her confidence yes girl slayyyyy but i don't wanna restrict her to just pink but it's like a confidence colour... wears it to the movie audition and such

at the start of mgfl when they're in the diner she COULD be in something more coral pink / closer to yellow as an implication that she cheated w thaddeus (it's so far fetched but whatever) but idk . maybe that'd be a more ambient / environmental lighting thing where the light just doesn't seem right for her colours that'd probably make more sense

when she breaks up with ash she totally googles the aquarius colours . i think it's something like blue purple and white??? defo wears that in her yoga tiktoks and classes. for yoga stuff it's always matching sets like very put together putting on her "uniform" for the persona she puts on for her audience and also as a personal branding thing. also in light shades

uhhh when she goes to the clurbbb she's probably wearing something contrasting to dennys just to visually show they're enemies lol. maybe something darker like a dark red or black to reflect her true personality i dunno man. something not as lexi-like cause she's probably losing it internally. the outfit slays though

when she comes over to see ash for the last time ive always pictured a baby blue sun dress type thing. very cute and innocent and blue is a colour of trust and also her uhhh aquarius empath senses lol. also a closer colour to ash's colour palette that doesn't exist but i made up in my head that's full of blues and greys especially when he's depressed. maybe loses a bit of the glam makeup look too and goes for something a bit more toned down

probably has a pink cardigan over it when she gets in her car and cries her eyes out. using her usual fun confident colours from their relationship to comfort herself when she's feeling anything but

in season 2 it'd be cool to imagine her in more earth tones like greens and browns and beiges. gets more in touch with herself and yoga and yannah.... maybe in mid range shades between light and dark as she addresses what she's really like and finds the good in herself.

totally still slaying with the pink but she loses that uniform a little and branches out with other styles. maybe she goes crazy with patterns idk. maybe she leans into the 2000s more than 2020s i think that'd be so cute actually y2k style lexi i dunno

if she does get in a relationship i think she'll have a complementary or closer colour palette to the person she's with instead of sticking out as much as she did with ash. maybe they're slay like her or maybe that colour is green because like. ash is blue and thad is yellow and those make green and her relationship is reminiscent of both for them IDK I DIDNT THINK THIS FAR OKAY... just. yea

lexi she's so slay the worst person you'll never know. i suck at style and fashion but it never hurt to think about it. if mgfl were a show or movie it'd be nice to consider!!! she might be facetious but i feel like she wears her heart on her sleeve in the most literal sense lmao

[bluecaitjinx]

vampire jinx and warewolf / vampire slayer caitlyn?

i love this because i’m used to seeing vampire!caitlyn (which makes sense given her cape in s2act2).

but vampire jinx would be sooooo fun especially because i imagine her to be very kooky and silly. like a what we do in the shadows character. not taking a single thing seriously. (also imagine the eccentric outfits she would come up with).

fanart 1: https://x.com/rimri4mm/status/1876762937957703863?s=46&t=6XyYORDs_ReW59UnMyq_-g

fanart 2: https://x.com/the3am_/status/1875772638532165789?s=46&t=6XyYORDs_ReW59UnMyq_-g

vampire slayer caitlyn feels very fitting as she is an enforcer of the law. it’s the same game of cat and mouse that caitjinx usually plays, but with supernatural elements

c: “stay right where you are, you foul beast, and don’t. move. a muscle.”

j: “ah, the great kiramman heir, come to slay the vile villainess of piltover’s elite. and yet, despite drowning in coin, it seems you still couldn’t afford a uniform with proper… coverage.”

c: “y-you. you have no right-!”

j: “did i offend your delicate sensibilities? if all it takes to ruffle your feathers is a comment about your cleavage, then buckle up, sweetheart. we’ve only just begun.”

the endless angst possibilities, as well. jinx feeling like a monster (because in this case, she quite literally is one). caitlyn questioning everything she knows, all that she’s been taught to believe about vampires. discussion of morality, ethicality, and the “soul.” religious/catholic themes and motifs. and, of course, good ol’ enemies to lovers.

great au. mwah!

[puffyducks]

DCRC Week #31

Only 2 weeks into the semester and school is already beating my ass, but you know who always has my back? That's right baby. Paperinik. New. Adventures. Always there for me when nobody else is.

Anyways um today is PKNA #26: Time Flies which is a fun and normal adventure chapter with absolutely no existential commentary on the nature of art whatsoever.

GIANT ENEMY CRAB WHOOOO YEAH BABY THAT'S WHAT I'M TALKIN ABOUT

umm ACTUALLY mysterious disembodied voice, Donald is a little bitch so write that down

Shoutout to Malva I think her design is really cool and we love a bald woman they slays. Shoutout to bald women actually, just like in general.

DUDE LOOK they're flying through time... just like the cover art

Shoutout to Malva AGAIN for this outfit. Yas bitch slay!!!

their faces are killing me

Since Malva and Vlad are already traveling everywhere with such little regard for the timestream they should go show a Victorian child an iPhone and see if he dies from shock

YEAHHHH BIG FUCKING ROBOT DRAGON FIGHT YEAAHHHH 🔥🔥🔥

No Vlad is right here, PK and Lyla are doing time travel all wrong. You're supposed to dress up in silly little outfits :/

The 4 of them are so fucking goofy I'm kind of living for this set of characters tbh

AW HELL NAW WE IN THE LAND BEFORE TIME

Enjoying this pair of random Evronian workers who seem to be about as rundown as the rest of us

Goofy asf panel they're just like D:

heh... well then, LET'S. GET. DANGEROU- no wait that's the other guy

LYLA WITH MESSY HAIR RRRAAAHHHHH I love her

WoOAoaoOAoahhh PLOT TWIST!!! Is that DUCKLAS STYVESANT??? Remember? Remember him from Portrait of the Young Hero-

THAT'S RIGHT, WHAT YOU JUST READ FOR THE LAST 60 PAGES WAS ACTUALLY A SERIES OF AI GENERATED SLOP FROM THE YEAR 2255!!! FUCK YOU

Oh.

OKAY SO. Obviously the biggest hit of this chapter comes at the very end, when it's revealed that the entire story we've been following wasn't actually real, and this whole time we've just been reading an episode of a TV show that was entirely computer-generated. Of course, this comic was still made by real artists, because the technology to AI generate photos didn't exist all the way back in 1999 (thank god).

Had I read this comic maybe 4, 5 years ago, I would've probably just been like "oh huh. that's neat." and moved on. But reading this story now, in the year 2025??? Holy shit dude. The accuracy with which they approach the topic of AI art in this story is lowkey terrifying. You're telling me that Ducklas fucking Styvesant can grasp the concept of why AI art would be wrong in the year 1999, and we somehow have people in MODERN DAY that can't grasp why people are against it? 😭

This is another one of those scenarios where you read sci-fi media from the past that's exploring some kind of existential threat, in this case the existence of entirely machine-generated "art", and it's explored as some kind of scary far off "what if" scenario, but yet again we're brought face to face with the fact that this is actually happening NOW. Like NOW now. This comic predicted that computer generated shows would be a newly emerging technology in 2255, that makes us almost 230 years ahead of schedule in the real world. AND I THINK THAT'S FUCKIN CRAZY!!!!

If we're gonna go the route of making all the sci-fi horrors of PKNA into real world things can we at least get an Uno first? I would much prefer him existing over the AI slop that's all over google images now, thanks xoxo.

Anyways to briefly wind down it's time for Lyla comic!!

Shoutout to Lyla for being in what I can only assume is robot therapy

BTW if my coworkers decided to invite themselves over to my house and expected ME to prepare a meal for them?? I'd literally kill everyone in that office.

I can't cook for shit and I even I knew that... also if Lyla wasn't a robot she would have severe burns all over her body right now so. Here's a quick PSA: don't microwave eggs, don't microwave water either, both will explode. Above all else, stay safe in the kitchen.

Anyways here are some shots of Lyla being cute because I think she looks great in this artstyle.

See you next week fellow book clubbers 🫡

[loweffortopinions]

Dragon Age: The Veilguard

Play Time: 70 hours and going because I like to hurt myself?

Platform: EA Pro Play 

Rating: 4/10

(Moved this Review from my other account because I can't mix art and text)

Environments 

I had a few oh, that’s pretty moments, but overall I found it hard to feel immersed. The cities are nice I guess and detailed, but they lack distinct, memorable qualities. 

A city like Minrathous has the potential to be an exciting showcase of magic woven into everyday life. Mages using spells to transport goods or to perform mundane tasks. I was also looking forward to see a clear divide between magic users and non-magic users, as previous games have implied that Minrathous is Ferelden in reverse. Instead, NPCs feel static, and there is nothing new or interesting done with the magic. For a place built up as legendary in previous games... Minrathous just doesn't deliver. Further, you only get to explore one district, so there is no contrast between richer and poorer areas. And Treviso? It's pretty... but I mostly remember pointy roofs and ziplines.

Character Design

Faces and hair are a big step up from previous games, and armors are varied and nice to look at. But it comes at the cost that it feels overdone, leaning into flashy, cartoony territory. I ran around in my starting armor for half the game because nothing really fit my character.

The companions suffer from this too to some extent. Darin’s open-chested armor seems impractical for a warrior, Neve, supposedly from Docktown, looks more like an aristocrat from Orlais than her background suggests. Bellara’s design is fine, but aside from her vallaslin, she doesn’t seem particularly Dalish. Emmerich and Harding look fine, especially in their camp outfits, which I prefer for most characters.

Combat and Gameplay 

I’ll be honest—I eventually turned the difficulty down to story mode just to get through the game. The combat didn’t do it for me: repetitive enemy hordes that seem randomly placed, limited abilities, and dodging and rolling mechanics that don’t feel very engaging.

Aside from a few setpieces and two boss fights, no encounter stood out. It’s not a particularly hard game, it just got tedious after a few hours.

Another complaint is that every class now feels overly magical. Since the lore around magic is such a key part of the series, this really rubbed me the wrong way. 

Story and World-Building 

Starting with the biggest issue: Veilguard’s main story is a weak.

In Inquisition, even if Corypheus wasn’t the most compelling villain, there was still a sense of growth as you built up your organization and connected with companions. In Veilguard, it feels like they stripped away what worked in previous games and just kept Corypheus. And the worst part? I miss Corypheus. At least he had a booming voice and some interesting lines. Veilguard has none of that.

The villains in this… honestly, where to start? Rather than feeling meaningful, they’re just names repeated so often it feels like the game worries I’ll forget them. Villains aside events unfold without much connection, leaving me questioning why things happen the way they do.

Why are we choosing these allies?

Why am I stuck doing busy work for them while the world is supposedly ending?

But who cares! It's not like your allies really matter. Rook is a one-man army after all. If we’d had them instead of the Hero of Ferelden, the Blight would’ve ended in Ostagar—and every named NPC would’ve survived, including whoever slay the Archdemon. 

Character and Companion Dynamics 

While presented as experts, they rarely get the chance to demonstrate their skills. Harding sometimes provides useful contacts, and Emmerich occasionally shows his abilities, but beyond that, companions often feel like tropes with minimal growth or depth.

For instance, one character is the “unwilling father,” but we never see him grapple with it genuinely—he just says it. Others are similarly shallow: the socially awkward “nerd,” the “noir detective” with a heavy burden, and the “tortured assassin” who doesn’t seem all that tortured. Insights rarely go deeper than quirks, like loving coffee or fish, which get mentioned repeatedly without further development. 

Previous games built strong, opinionated characters who added depth to the world, but here, companions are lacking. Banter is shallow, with little conflict or chemistry. I’ve never played a Dragon Age game where I wanted to skip side quests or companion quests, yet here, I actually did.

I honestly prefer Andromedas cast over this on. Never thought I'd say that but here we are.

Main Character and Roleplaying

Rook’s voice actor; I love em'... which only makes the limited dialogue options more frustrating. I tried to play Rook as a practical, no-nonsense character, but the writing kept steering me back to a softer, more agreeable tone.

If you’re aiming for a tougher or more forceful personality, you're out of luck. If you plan to play be prepared for Rook to come across as a diplomat. Further, you are forced to agree with everyone, and never get to question them or their motives.

So... maybe don't get this if you're into Baldurs Gate 3 and player agency?

Ending Words 

If you’re like me, and the highlights of previous games have been the banter, character depth, and exploring the world and lore, you’ll likely be disappointed. Honestly, I’d even recommend skipping it. Then again, I've seen people say the opposite. So what do I know?

No matter what you do, I’d suggest waiting for a sale. It’s not worth the full price. 

Extra shit

Combat and Gameplay 

There’s the matter of the quest marker, which gives you tunnel vision which distract you from the enviorments.

The loot feels out of place due to its flashy animation. I started skipping loot in certain areas because it felt inappropriate and slowed down the pacing.

You'll fast travel a lot. And I don't mean in a big open area. It's more of a design flaw: Fast Travel to the Lighthouse to talk to a companion. Fast travel to a location to start that companion's quest, walk to said spot to start the quest. Repeat 5 times.

Story and World-Building 

The ending to its credit, was nicely paced and visually strong. If the rest of the game had been more like that, it would’ve been a decent experience. 

The Shadow Dragons, the Crows, the Wardens—all these factions make sense to be here but do nothing meaningful for the story or the worldbuilding.

Even dramatic scenes lack memorable moments. For example, there is a prison escape that's visually pretty but otherwise lacks substance. The person you rescue has supposedly been there a year, but nothing about their appearance or behavior reflects this. There’s no memorable dialogue, nothing deeper—it’s all surface-level.

I personally think Bioware are cowards for only letting you side with an anti-slave organisation. Come on: This isn't the Teviner you've built towards for 3 games! *shakes fist*

[cryingpariah]

Pari, in honor of International Women's Day, would you perhaps like to share with me your favorite One Piece women and what you love about them?

(Jackie's one of my faves and I hope she's treating herself today!)

I LOVE TALKING ABOUT THE GIRLIES YES PLEASE!!

(I sincerely hope Shriek and all the gals on the Victoria Punk are getting waited on hand and foot/claw, it’s what they deserve!)

Honestly any of the gals that aren’t the worst are my faves 😗😗 but my top picks (in no particular order) are as follows:

- Nefertari Vivi: Damsel in distress? She’s the damsel CAUSING distress! Alabasta is one of the best arcs/sagas and Vivi is the heart behind all of it! Lover her defiance, feistiness, inability to shut her yap sometimes (🤣), everything about her is lovely! (Her and Jackie are spending IWD getting on Morgan's every last nerve and sipping tea)

- Nami: Our very first girlboss, we pledge allegiance to ye 🫡🫡!! She set the precedent for good female character writing in OP with her complexity and tragedy while also being a silly goofball! Has never not slayed an outfit nor an enemy!! Plus she’s one half of the ultimate best friends duo in the entire series with Usopp!!

- Nico Robin: THEE weird girl representation!! Big old brain to think with, big old eyes to stare at you with blinking, big old mouth to say the most unsettling things! Was fighting for my life trying not to like her during the Miss All Sunday era but I couldn’t stop myself 😫😫!! Her DF is in my top 3 DF's I would want (though I do not have her gracefulness 😭😭)

- Carrot: My daughter #1! In a world where Vivi isn’t the final Strawhat I’d totally be cool with Carrot joining the party! Her arc from WCI to Wano was amazing and her bond with Pedro broke my heart every-time Toei decided to run that flashback back 😭😭! Without her we wouldn’t have gotten that iconic introduction to Sulong! I think about her art of the Strawhats almost daily!

- Charlotte Pudding: My daughter #2! Oh how she broke my heart during WCI😭😭 aND THEN SHE GOT NAPPED BY BLACKBEARD?? CAN MY GIRL CATCH A BREAK MY LORD?!? SHE'S LITERALLY JUST A GIRL!!! If/When Garp escapes/breaks out/is rescued he BETTER take Pudding with him!!

- Boa Hancock: so Pari fun fact, I was so excited to get to Impel Down because I wanted to see Ponytail Buggy that I watched the entirety of Amazon Lily in one day…which was a horrible mistake because I was crying so bad about Boa and her sister's backstory I couldn’t function. I didn’t dislike Boa beforehand but since then I have been a staunch Boa Hancock lover and defender. She has done nothing wrong ever and if she did they deserved it.

-Charlotte Brûlée: Just like me forreal. My brother (who was pushing me to get into One Piece for ages) told me there’d be a character who’s basically me in WCI and it's Brûlée! Very tall, very gangly, off-putting, says anything literally anytime, she couldn’t get more me if she tried! You could say…it was like…LOOKING IN A MIRROR!

[Honorable mentions because this could go on forever: Reiju, Stussy, Bonney, Ginny, Conis, Charlotte Lola and Chiffon, Shirahoshi, Otohime, Baby 5, Viola, Dadan.]

[3lephant-8ones]

ok, i've stated it before, and while yeah she slays with her severed huru fit im a lot more focused on the background people. a lot of them seem... frail? kind of starved? maybe they're just really lean though. also, naked tails. i wonder if varang's little collection is from her enemies or her own people. or both.

they seem to be dressed up in pretty elaborate outfits. maybe a representiation of spirits or animals local to their region? also the fire kinda surrounds them??? are they burning??

i'm really really interested in learning how jim wrote these people. and i guess more specifically how they ended up so distanced from eywa and the like

[furbygoblinxiv]

MASSIVE TOTK STORY SPOILERS

Made some quickly colored sketches based on my thoughts and playthrough of totk now that I've reached the end of the main story (in 65 hours over 10 days...)

Explaining in order of appearance and also delivering thoughts opinions and spoilers on most things:

So since Sonia gets got and Rauru self sacrifices, and also Zelda shares a blood connection with them, they had to have had kids by the time Zelda got there. And I imagine she spent alot of time with them, since so much happens in those memories, so I like to think the kids and her got along. And I also image that these kids gotta look wild based on being half Zonia half Hylian. Wild looking halfling children left orphaned by Ganondorf.

Zelda gets saved from dragon form at the end, hoorah, however I think she should have kept some of the more dragon like features. I swear I'm not a furry but I just really like funky character designs. Something something how its become part of her something something I need lore videos on it immediately. Also a little Link mashup outfit (my favorite so far, pairing a horn with normal clothing)

So the sage avatars are like physical beings, hence why enemies can shoot at them and why they vanish when in villages in order to not scare people ig. Which to me implies that when you complete a sage dungeon with other sage avatars out, that actual sage can see them. While this has plentiful comedic potential, I do think Riju would be the only one to actually question it though. Also, I call the avatars "my shadow clone goons" or just goons for short, since they do like all my fighting for me. I sit back and block and they do all the work. Extra shout out to Tulin, I think he's killed more dungeon bosses than I have. I didn't wanna spoil Mineru to people so I just collectively call them my Goon Squad.

I thought it was really sweet how Zelda seems to have gotten a chance at having caring parental figures in Sonia and Rauru. I also think it's funny that the closest equivalent that I think Link has is in Purah. Who, when I got all the memories (and thus knew of the imposter and the fate of Zelda) and got the master sword, Link just straight up didn't share any of this until AFTER he got Mineru. Like. Buddy. All these people are worried about Zelda but you SAW THE MEMORY of Ganondorf using a puppet Zelda, and the memory of Zelda becoming a dragon. Like. He just chooses to keep those to himself until someone else brings it up. Straight up iconic. You keep all your secrets to yourself, little man. But it's funny how Purah literally had a line like "You knew all of this?! When were you gonna tell me?!" Lol

I have a lot of thoughts on this game, both good and bad, about the story, lore, mechanics, ect that I may make a post about eventually. However I do know that I'll probably make art of like every single new character eventually bc I dearly love them all (I especially think Yona has a cute design)! Anyways slay fun game I love it I shall continue to play 9/10

[heyiwrotesomethings]

[ene(?)mies to loverS] {FEM demon slayer& assassin reader}

R used to me an assassin that only killed the guilty and protected the inoccent but they quit after becoming a demon slayer.

shinobu is kidnapped by a crazy dude in the middle of the night but the triplets and AOI find out in the morning from a note with the ransom money. They ask reader for help and track her down and turns out the dude that kidnapped her is in a team who kills demon slayers? So R kills the whole group and gets shin out of there. some fluffy stuff pls

idk it just came up sorRy if it's too specific.

thanks byee

Abducted

Shinobu Kochou x She/Her Reader

A/N: Tried putting these two together because they had the same major plot point. And I kind of hinted to past enemies, but they are in the lovers stage for the majority of the fic. Hope you enjoy, thanks for reading! Word Count: 3,335

(Y/n) woke up in bed alone, which was not at all unusual with how busy Shinobu was. What was unusual, was the commotion that had woken her up. In a flurry of footsteps and distressed noise, the butterfly girls came bursting through the door, Kanao frantically waving a piece of paper in (Y/n)’s face.

“Hm? What? What’s going on?” (Y/n) was having a hard time in her groggy state keeping up with everyone speaking over each other with such concerning urgency.

Aoi took the paper from Kanao’s hand and shushed everyone before reading the letter verbatim, voice shaking.

“We have captured the Hashira Kochou Shinobu. She put up quite a fight, to prove we have her, find enclosed a lock of her hair. If you wish to ever see her alive again, you will bring five-hundred-thousand yen and twenty children with Marechi blood to the summit of Natagumo Mountain before sunset tonight, or else!” Aoi flung the paper into (Y/n)’s lap, “Shinobu-sama has been abducted!”

“What?” (Y/n) picked up the letter and re-read it to herself, “This can’t be happening…” she adjusted her hold on the paper and felt something silky on the other side. She flipped the paper around and inhaled sharply when she saw the lock of purple and black hair tapped to the back. She crumpled the paper and bolted to her feet. In a few quick strides, she tore open the closet, throwing a high mobility outfit and an array of sharp and pointy weapons of varying sizes onto the bed.

“What are you doing?” Aoi asked, her and Kanao pulling the younger girls out of the way as (Y/n) continued to toss weapons out of the closet.

“I’m going to get Shinobu back.“ She answered monotonously, a chill ran through the other girls. It was a tone they hadn’t heard (Y/n) use in a very long time.

“How are you going to do that? You aren’t thinking about giving in to their demands, are you?” Aoi asked fretfully.

“Of course not. I won’t need to. Did you see that stupid little wax seal they used on the envelope? I’ve seen it before in my previous line of work. They are humans that work for demons. They provide the quality fodder, and in return they get protection, money, power… whatever they can get their hands on. But there are rare occasions like this where they think they can get more out of us than they could out of the demons they serve. I’ve dealt with people from their group before.”

“In your… old profession?”

“Yeah. Lots of people have lost their loved ones to that group over the years and came to me for justice. Safe to say, they don’t know who they’re messing with or they wouldn’t have even dared to send this letter.” (Y/n) turned to face the girls, eyes full of fire.

She dialed it back a bit when she saw them flinch backward and knelt before them all.

“I’m going to get her back, I promise.“

“I’ll go too.” Kanao spoke up.

“No Kanao, you’ll stay here with everyone else. This isn’t demon slaying. I don’t want to put you in a position where you may have to kill a human, no matter how much they might deserve it. Trust that I will do whatever it takes to bring Shinobu hole safe and sound. Stay here and take care of everyone while I’m gone. Can you do that for me?”

Kanao but the inside of her cheek, but nodded solemnly. (Y/n) squeezed her shoulder then got up and moved over to the bed to equip all of her weapons that she thought wouldn’t see they light of day again. Hopefully Shinobu wouldn’t be too cross with her for not throwing them out when she asked her to.

When the last knife was strapped down, she patted the head of each girl as she exited the room and then the mansion, disappearing quickly over the fence. She only had about ten hours before sunset, so she would need to get to Natagumo quickly to make it in time.

“Hang on, Shinobu. I’m on my way.”

***

Shinobu came to with a throbbing headache. She groaned and tried to cup her head with her hands, keyword tried. Her hands were tightly bound behind her back and upon further inspection, she found her legs to be tightly bound as well.

For as beaten and bruised as she was, nothing hurt her more than having fallen into this damn trap. It had started out so harmlessly. A small child had come running to her for help, his mother supposedly sick. The young boy looked dirty and malnourished. Of course Shinobu didn’t give it a second thought before she let the boy lead her up the mountain. She was so used to fighting demons, that she had forgotten there were humans out there who were just as vile.

She had sensed something off when she followed the boy inside the dingy house. She felt a malicious presence behind her and swiftly pivoted on her feet, dodging the burly arms that had reached out to grab her. With a few precision strikes, he fell to the ground, only for six more to take his place. She got a few good punches in, as well as a few slices from the knives in her shoes, but with an ambush of this scale, with so little space to maneuver or time to think, she was overpowered and knocked unconscious.

“Well look who finally decided to wake up.”

Shinobu winced as her head was pulled up by her hair, but she refused to make any noise that would give her captors any satisfaction.

“You sure cut me up pretty bad, little brat.” The man pulled her head back further so she could see the bloody bandage wrapped around his head. The spot where his left eye would be was particularly saturated with blood. “It hurts like hell.”

“That’s what you get when you sneak up on people. You’re fortunate that’s all you endured.” Shinobu smiled sharply, her teeth pressed together tightly when the man sharply tugged her hair again.

“We sent a message off with that bird that was following you around. If anybody cares about you, they’ll be here with our demands by sundown. If they don’t, I’ll carve you up the same way you carved up me and my buddies before we serve you up to the boss on a silver platter.” He grinned wickedly and made a show of looking up at the sky through the trees, before looking back down at Shinobu smugly.

“Not much time left…”

He promptly let go of Shinobu’s hair and her head fell back to the ground. The man laughed uproariously and his buddies joined in, save for the young boy who had lured Shinobu frantically filling his face. The man kicked Shinobu’s bound legs out of his way before rejoining them at the fire for another bowl of stew.

Shinobu kept her breathing even. Panicking in this situation would do her no good. Besides, those fools all but signed their own death warrants by sending En back to the mansion with whatever poorly written scrap of paper they composed. She hadn’t a doubt in her mind that (Y/n) was well on her way.

Still, she’d be damned if she didn’t at least try to get herself out of this mess before then. She was a Hashira, she killed demons, she wasn’t going to let a group of meat-headed plain, human men continue to get the best of her. Shinobu carefully rubbed her feet together so as not to draw attention to herself and nearly scoffed.

For being so upset with her about her sharp retaliations, they sure didn’t think it necessary to take away her shoes. Idiots. Ever so quietly, she bent her knees as far as she could and carefully removed a shoe. It took a little time to maneuver it into a workable position, but she got the blade end wedged beneath the rope on her hands and began to saw at it, and no one was none the wiser, or so she thought.

A heavy foot came down on her hands and she couldn’t stop the yelp of pain that left her lips, drawing the attention of the men at the campfire.

“You idiots,” the new arrival sighed, a man with much nicer clothes than the rest, “while you were all eating and drinking like pigs, you almost let our guest escape. Need I remind you we are dealing with a Hashira here? What do you think would have happened if we let her escape, hm?”

“The- the boss would totally kill us. Thanks for catching on to that, Hyousuke.” One man whimpered.

“The boss?” Hyousuke tilted his head to the side as he took Shinobu’s shoes and tossed them into the bushes, “You think I’d ever tell the boss if we lost a quality catch like this? No… no, no, no,” his eyes steeled and his voice took on a more dangerous tone, “I would kill you all myself. He doesn’t have time to deal with you useless fools. He needs to become a Kizuki to continue keeping us safe and he’s not going to get there if you can’t take the time to do your damn job!”

“My, to speak of a demon so passionately, is it love?” Shinobu smiled sweetly, then added, “Gross.”

Hyousuke sneered down at her and put more of his weight on her wrists before easing up and turning his attention back to the campfire.

“Where’s the damn rope? I’ll need to re-tie her hands.”

“Uh, Masaru had it last.”

“Where is he?”

“He needed to relieve himself. Went out to the woods like… huh, maybe twenty minutes ago?”

Hyousuke stiffened, then snarled, “Well go find him, now!”

The men scampered into the forest, the young boy reluctantly went to follow, but Hyousuke called him back.

“Goro, you stay. I have a special job for you.” He presented the young boy with a knife and lead him to Shinobu, “This is a big job, boy. You do this well, and your stranding in the group will skyrocket, you understand. Meals everyday, new clothes, an actual bed, all will be yours. All you gotta do is watch this woman and if she tries to escape, you slash her tendons. If that doesn’t work, kill her. Got it?”

Goro shook under Hyousuke’s intense glare, but managed a nod.

“Good. This shouldn’t take long.” Hyousuke glared down at Shinobu, “Behave yourself if you want to live through this.”

Shinobu stayed silent, watching him disappear into the woods before returning her attention to Goro who looked at her with fearful eyes, knife tightly grasped within his hands. It was time Shinobu implement her best defense in this precarious moment, so she began to talk to the boy. Ever so slowly, his grip eased as Shinobu took an interest in his upbringing. Having never known his mother, nor really any experience talking to women, the kind way Shinobu spoke with him felt completely foreign.

A pained shout echoed through the forest, putting them both on edge again. The forest went quiet again, but only for a few moments before to more cries were heard.

“Goro-kun, stay calm.” Shinobu tried to ease the boy’s nerves, but he still looked as scare and desperate as a cornered animal. “If you cut the rope—”

Goro shakily held the knife to Shinobu’s throat, “Stop talking!” He commanded through sharp breaths just as another shout was heard in the distance, though much closer than the previous ones.

Shinobu took the risk to keep talking, “There could be a demon out there. I don’t want you to get hurt, Goro-kun. Please free me and give me my sword so I can protect you.”

Goro looked conflicted, switching his attention between Shinobu and the woods anxiously. He heard another shout and shut his eyes tightly, knife still uncomfortably close to Shinobu’s neck— until a rugged rock came sailing in and knocked the weapon out of his hand and into the bushes.

They both looked over in the direction the rock had come from to see a bloody figure emerge from the woods near the campfire, breathing heavily.

“A demon!” Goro shrieked, skittering back on his behind to put Shinobu between himself and ‘the demon’, but Shinobu was not all that concerned.

“None of that is your blood is it, (Y/n)?” She asked calmly as if she already new the answer.

“Of course not,” (Y/n) huffed, “I may have been persuaded into an early retirement, but I’m still as sharp as ever.” She smirked with pride, before seeing Shinobu’s frown and tacked on an apology at the end.

Once upon a time, (Y/n) and Shinobu hadn’t gotten along all that well and a lot of that stemmed from (Y/n)’s line of work as an assassin for hire. Well, it stemmed from (Y/n) having lied about being an assassin when they had first met. Shinobu found out after they had been dating for awhile and it was not pretty. They had broken up, but after a few months of being miserable without each other, (Y/n) decided to retire and ask Shinobu to take her back with the promise of no more secrets and things had been getting better since.

“Mhmm,” Shinobu hummed as (Y/n) came over to untie her, Goro too scared stiff to move, “I recall telling you to get rid off all those weapons.”

“I did. Well, I got rid of most of them. But, see how handy it is to keep a couple of classics around?”

“I suppose...” Shinobu released a relieved sigh when the last of the rope was cut and then sat up, finding herself engulfed in a tight hug as soon as she did so.

“I’m so glad you’re okay.” (Y/n)’s voice was muffled from having her face pressed into Shinobu, but she was heard just fine.

“Sorry to worry you.” Shinobu brought her arms around (Y/n)’s neck to return the hug, despite the blood.

It was really nice for a few moments until they heard a twig snap and looked up to see Goro sticking his hands into the bushes, looking for the knife Hyousuke left with him.

“Hey, kid, just stay put, okay?” (Y/n) put her hand out in warning.

“We aren’t going to hurt you, Goro-kun. Come down the mountain with us, and we will keep you safe.” Shinobu promised.

“I can’t let you go! If you go, Hyousuke-san will kill me!”

“No he won’t. Just look at me,” (Y/n) gestured to herself, “If I didn’t kill him on my way here, then I’ll kill him when he shows up. And if you’re worried about any demons either, Shinobu had it covered, right?”

“Definitely,” Shinobu answered a bit distractedly, her sword back home in her hands, “Help me find my shoes?”

“Sure.”

“Don’t come any closer or I’ll- I’ll—“

(Y/n) gently ruffled Goro’s hair, stunning him.

“You must be tired. What do you say, wanna get off of this dumb old mountain?” She softly asked.

“Stop! You’re Just trying to trick me like I tricked you!” He yelled, pointing a finger at Shinobu.

Shinobu smiled sympathetically and crouched down before the boy, “That was a pretty mean trick, wasn’t it? You feel bad about it, don’t you?”

Goro didn’t say anything, but fresh tears sprung from his eyes.

“Don’t worry, I’m not upset with you. It’s hard to be hungry and on your own. I promise if you come with us, you’ll never have to do anything like this again. We will keep you safe.” She held out her pinky and after a short explanation of what a pinky promise was, Goro cautiously wrapped his own pinky around Shinobu’s.

“Well, isn’t that sweet.”

Shinobu and (Y/n) pivoted, shielding Goro from the new arrival. Hyousuke had returned with a few of his men, armed and ready for a fight.

“Damn, I really thought I had taken care of all of you.” (Y/n) groaned in annoyance. “Must’ve been shaking in the bushes as I walked by. Did you think of you regrouped, you’d be able to take me?”

“Hy- Hyousuke! I know this woman, she’s a demon with human blood, an assassin! She’s stolen lives from out faction before.”

“Demon with human blood seems a bit over dramatic,” she scoffed, “But also so, so hypocritical when you consider all you have done to give yourselves a cozy life.”

“Goro, get over here.” Hyousuke ordered through gritted teeth.

“He’s not going anywhere with you.” Shinobu denied, “It’s in your best interest if you let us pass.”

“I cannot return to him empty handed.” Hyousuke pulled a gun from his clothes, “I’ll just have to kill all three—“

In the blink of an eye, (Y/n) and Shinobu were on him. Shinobu’s sword pierced his hand and he dropped the gun in pain. (Y/n) instinctively went in for the kill. Hyousuke staggered before falling into the dirt, whatever was left of the small group scattered and fled into the woods. (Y/n) made a move to go after them, but Shinobu held her wrist.

“I think that they got the message.” She said.

“But they’re going to go back to whatever demon their friendly with and start up all over again with someone less fortunate.”

“En is following them. She’ll report the location back to Oyakata-sama and he will decide how to proceed from there. You already have more blood on your hands than I would like. Besides,” she whispered, flicking her eyes over to Goro, “You’re scaring him.”

“Alright, fine. I guess as long as it gets taken care of eventually, I don’t really care.” (Y/n) went to run her neck, but caught sight of the blood and just clasped her hands behind her back instead. “I’m sorry you had to see that, Goro-kun.”

“I’ve seen worse.” He mumbled quietly, shrugging his shoulders. Shinobu and (Y/n)’s hearts went out to him.

“We’re gonna work like hell so you don’t have to see anything like that ever again.” (Y/n) promised.

“You’ll be safe with us.” Shinobu reached out her hand as an invitation, “Come on, let’s go home.”

Goro hesitated, but he did take her hand.

“Hold my hand too?” (Y/n) batted her eyelashes and held out her bloody hand.

Shinobu’s eyes flickered to (Y/n)’s hand, then back up to her face, “Maybe another time, dear.” The hug they shared earlier was all the blood she wanted to deal with at the moment.

“Booooo.”

“You know what you can do though? Help me find my shoes. It’s a long way down the mountain, and I’d rather not be without them.”

“Yeah, yeah okay. I heard you the first time you asked.”

***

“I really needed that!” (Y/n) flopped onto the bed, her damp head landing in Shinobu’s lap, squeaky clean, “I almost forgot how itchy dried blood is.”

“Such pleasant words you are saying.” Shinobu replied with sarcasm. She put a bookmark between the pages of her book to mark where she had left off and put it aside to give her full attention, absently running her fingers across (Y/n)’s cheeks.

“I know. So is Goro-kun all settled in?”

“As much as he can be, but he’s in good hands. Naho, Sumi and Kiyo are excited to have someone younger than them around and surprisingly he seemed to latch onto Gotou-san quickly. I’m sure everything will get better in due time.”

“That’s good.” (Y/n) yawned and put her hands over Shinobu’s to keep them on her face. “And how are you feeling?”

“It was an unfortunate situation to find myself in, but I’m fine, really. I knew you would come.”

(Y/n) pulled one of Shinobu’s hands to her lips so she could plant a kiss against her palm. “If you ever feel not fine about it, I’ll be here for you then too.”

“I know,” Shinobu smiled warmly and hunched inward to return the kiss, “Thank you.”

[violettathepiratequeen]

March 20th, 2025

Hello there, gentle viewers! Welcome back to Buffy Slays, where I’ll be going through all 144 episodes of BtVS over the course of a year, highlighting as many of the GOOD moments, lines, character choices, worldbuilding moments, etc. etc. as I think people will have the patience to read. 

So, here we go! 

Season 1, Episode 7, “Angel.”

Buffy discovers Angel’s true identity and learns about his Gypsy curse. (Pulled from Disney+.)

If you're reading along and haven't finished the show, consider this your Spoiler Warning for discussion of future episodes and major plot points in any and all of these posts.

Episode Number: #7 Episode Ranking: #103 out of 144. Writer: David Greenwalt

Top 5 Quotes:

“When you become a vampire, the demon takes your body, but it doesn’t get your soul. That’s gone.” –-Angel

“I’ve killed a lot of vampires. I’ve never hated one before.” —Buffy

“Well, you weren’t here from midnight until six researching it.” “No, I was sleeping.” —Giles and Willow

“You know what the saddest thing in the world is?” “Bad hair on top of that outfit?” —Darla and Buffy

“And then I’m going home for some major moping.” —Buffy

How “Angel” Slays:

The Master says he’s going to send “The Three” after Buffy, and we see a group of three smoking biker guys in frame before three vampires come up behind them. It’s a quick visual joke that doesn't have to be explained and doesn't need to be lingered on, and I love those kinds of jokes! And this show is still subverting expectations, haha, it hasn’t forgotten that it does that.

Buffy fighting The Three, who are meant to be these amazing warriors, but who will die upon failure. So clearly they’ve never failed before, until Buffy. But I love that while Buffy struggles, and needs Angel’s help to escape,, she is neither afraid of fighting them, nor completely at a loss. She’s still a new Slayer, nowhere near as skilled and powerful as she will be in seasons to come, but she’s still talented enough at what she does to keep herself alive, even against powerful adversaries.

Xander and Cordelia’s bickering. Which I think is great because I love their romance more than I ever loved Xander and Anya’s, even though I know I’m in the minority with that. But it’s always a battle of wits between the two, a classic enemies-to-lovers story, the Joker and the Queen, and even though Buffy and Willow also dislike Cordelia and poke fun at her every chance they get, Xander and Cordy seem to go out of their way to put the other down, in verbal sparring matches that never have a clear winner. And I love that it’s being set up already in these brief scenes.

The fact that Buffy tells her friends everything this early on. She tells them about her feelings for Angel, she tells him that she had Angel over and he slept all night in her room, she tells them she kissed him and he’s actually a vampire, she tells him she thought he read her diary which was embarrassing, she tells them he was good to her and that she’s having trouble grappling with the idea of killing him. And in none of these instances is it implied that they pressured her and dragged it out of her. She loves her little squad of Willow and Xander and Giles; she trusts them, and they back her up, even though they have their own opinions, and she wants to confide in them about everything.

Giles puts out a “Library closed for filing, please come back later” sign in front of the library doors when he spars with Buffy. As if there is ANY chance in the world they’ll be interrupted. As if this meeting is somehow more secret than any others. It’s just such a funny and endearing Giles moment, and Buffy and Giles sparring with the quarterstaff is also pretty great. Giles in his pads, Buffy with none… and the way he’s ready to accept her request of training with the crossbow once she knocks him down.

Buffy is cocky and confident about her abilities with the quarterstaff… but not without reason. It’s annoying and frustrating to see a protagonist think so highly of themselves and then be shown their faults, because then we have to sympathize with their arrogance. But Buffy… she may have a lot of faith in herself, but only in the areas where she’s proven to be correct. There are plenty of times when she doubts her own abilities, but when she’s sure she’s right, she’s is. She knows her strengths, and it’s satisfying and beautiful to see.

Angel’s vampire secret being revealed early on. I think at this point it’s still ambiguous because he hasn’t been around much, but all signs are certainly pointing to something like this. If they’d drawn it out longer it would have been an eye-roll moment to learn that he’s a vampire, but this is a perfect point in both the season and his relationship with Buffy to bring it up. And then deal with it.

Buffy struggles a lot with the question of whether to kill Angel or not. She knows he’s a vampire, and she knows what she’s been taught about them. Her job, objectively, is to stake him. Her reasons for wanting to spare him aren’t due to her feelings, but due to the fact that she’s only ever seen him helping her and looking out for her. She hasn’t seen him do anything she would need to kill him for. All bets are off when she thinks he put her mom in the hospital, but even then, once he tries to defend himself and claims that he’s got a soul making him good now, she gives him the chance to prove it. As the Slayer, she can’t go around questioning the moral actions of every single vampire and demon she comes across, so she slays. But not ONCE in this show does a demon come to her with pleas of being harmless that she doesn’t spare.

Joyce is a much stronger character in this episode than we’ve seen so far. She’s hospitable to Buffy’s “friend” Darla who she’s never met. She’s polite and gracious to Angel when she sees him in her house, but very firmly implies that Buffy is not to have a boy over, especially this late, especially when she’s alone in the house, especially one she doesn’t know. She’s concerned about Darla even though she herself is in the hospital, and she commends Giles for going above and beyond the call of duty as a school librarian.

Angel’s actor is also much better in this episode than in the past. And Angel helps Buffy out against The Three, he openly admits that he likes her and wants to kiss her, he wrestles with the temptation of feeding off Joyce… but ultimately resists, he’s honest with Buffy about the curse when she asks, and gives her the opportunity to kill him if she wants.

Buffy’s friends continue to be supportive, even if they’re wary of the vampire thing. Giles doesn’t tell Buffy to kill Angel; he helps her research the guy, but leaves the decision to her. Willow openly encourages Buffy’s feelings, even if they’re for a guy she can’t have, and is the one to tell her that Darla bit Joyce, and Angel didn’t. Xander assures Buffy that Joyce being bitten isn’t her fault, even though they all think it’s Angel who did it. And all three of them come to the hospital with Buffy, starting a long-standing tradition of doing so.

Buffy’s “I’ve killed a lot of vampires. I’ve never hated one before,” line. Meaning that even if she’s going out and slaying demons all the time, it’s not an action born out of hate, aggression, anger, or anything but a sense of duty, of saving lives, and making the world a better place. And it’s such a simple thing, but truly major thing for her character that isn’t talked about enough. She’s one of the best Slayers who ever lived, yet she doesn’t hate the things she kills. There will be many other characters in this show who hunt demons and vampires out of hatred, and they will be nowhere near as skilled or successful (or morally good) as Buffy.

The soul lore. A vitally important theme for both shows. The idea that the soul is what goes when someone becomes a vampire, and with it their conscience, their moral compass, their human intolerance for pain and evil. Because every human has one… the difference between each human is how strong it is, and how much it’s listened to. And the difference between each vampire is how much or little the soul left behind. But the point is that the presence of their human soul elevates the vampire, giving them an aspect of pure humanity that had previously been lost. The soul is important. The soul is a distinction. The soul makes them more than what they were before. This is what the show sets up, and what my opinion is after having watched both shows, and it’s just crazy that it all started right here in this episode! It’s also established that Angel was cursed with his. He didn’t exactly go looking for it. And while obviously he doesn’t think about this at the time… curses have a way of getting broken, and that’s just common knowledge.

Buffy tries to tell herself and Angel that they can’t work out, because they’re a vampire and a Slayer. And of course she changes her mind later on, but the fact that she’s trying to do what she thinks is the right thing, and also that this is something she really believes, are both important aspects in her history and character.

The Darla Lore:

Darla is staked in this episode… but it is not the end for her. It continues to be so funny to me that no one, not Julie Benz or Joss Whedon or anybody had the faintest idea that she would go on to have one of the longest-running arcs on Angel, with a rich and complicated backstory, and continuing regular story even after she dusts here. Not everything matches up perfectly to what is revealed in this episode and season, but it comes pretty damn close. Things that are implied or stated here that will be fleshed out in Darla’s time on Angel:

Darla has been the Master’s favorite, for 400 years

Darla sired Angel, and loved him, and is still stinging at the fact that he doesn’t love her like he used to now that he’s got a soul

The last time Angel saw Darla, she was wearing a kimono

Darla knows about the curse. She knows as much about it as Angel does, which is not all that much, other than how he got it and what it means for him now

It’s been a very long time since Angel and Darla were together

They used to ravage the world together, for several generations, and Angel was the most diabolical vampire

Darla tries to tell Angel that he’s still the same vampire he always was, soul or no

She still wants him back. She wants him to come home and be evil with her again

In her mind, it is the worst, most heartbreaking betrayal that he was able to stake her

“Ours is a Forbidden Love”:

A reminder that this is my low-key crack!conspiracy theory of Angel and Willow’s romance, haha, so don’t get too upset about it, this is just for fun! And because I secretly wanted them to be a couple.

This episode doesn’t have too much, granted. But Willow gushing about Buffy’s feelings for Angle is just a little too sus not to mention. Not that she isn’t always a supportive best friend, especially when Buffy is in love. But she lights up when Buffy talks about him. She brings Angel up even when Buffy won’t, for two episodes in a row now. She gets all dreamy and wistful when Buffy describes her kiss to him, and the way he was a perfect gentleman when he spent the night in her room. She babbles about the story of Buffy thinking Angel read her diary, but didn’t, but then he loved her anyway, remembering every single detail of the scene as if she was there. She also clears Angel’s name to Buffy, shouting across the Bronze in the middle of a gunfight that Darla is the one who attacked Joyce.

She would NEVER take a guy that Buffy is interested in, but damn it if she’s not just a little bit in love with Angel, too. 

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

And that’s a wrap on Episode 7! Thank you so much for reading this far!

Previous: “The Pack.”

Next up: “I, Robot… You, Jane.” 

(Credit for GIFs in this post: @detectivedawnsummers)

[auxiliarydetective]

CONGRATULATIONS ON HITTING TWO HUNDRED EVIE!! for the mind palace thingy, can I have any One Piece oc of your choice + 8?? also feel free to ramble about that even as much (or as little) you like!! remind me to think of a nickname for you and congratulations again on hitting the milestone!! -🍂

It's finally done!!! I'm so sorry, this took ages. I was battling executive dysfunction and had to write an essay for university. But I promise, the wait is worth it. Or at least I hope it is ^^"

So, the canon event I picked... isn't... actually... canon. It's the final battle of Film Gold! Why...? Uh... leather. Yeah, that’s... That's actually it. Look at the Straw Hats' outfits, they look so freaking cool! And occasionally hot

So, without further ado...

Base is still by by Hevis-Swan

Behold! Fashion! If you know the reason for the final battle, you also know why Cora has to show up with maximum slay. It was a real challenge to figure out a way to make the outfit both fit the leather theme and make it still feel like Cora, because she's generally more the type for softer, flowier outfits. But she's also the type for fashion, and you can't tell me that she wouldn't jump at the opportunity to go full-on leather and fishnets and a good amount of sex appeal. If the latter doesn't work on her enemy, it still definitely works on Sanji and Zoro, which means more protection for her, because they would not let anyone hurt her.

Look below the cut for Zoro and Sanji's outfits for reference and to see what's below Cora's jacket and half skirt (it's spicy). If you want, I'll also write some ramblings on the scene(s) that this outfit is for! Just let me know :)

Taglist: @starcrossedjedis @oneirataxia-girl @daughter-of-melpomene @bravelittleflower @supermarine-silvally - let me know if you’d like to be added or removed!

[sailtomarina]

Don't be rude

It was her first true outing in months since The Breakup of All Breakups, a.k.a. the amicable separation of Hermione Granger and Ron Weasley. She hadn’t allowed herself a moment of respite since that awful day and the many awful days that followed as possessions were split, home addresses were changed, and friends divided up as if they, too, were goods rather than nuanced human beings. 

The choosing of sides by the Weasleys and the Potters and the Longbottoms wasn’t expected given the peaceful nature of their split, but a natural movement of pieces as priorities overlapped. Of course Ginny celebrated her brother’s first day as co-owner of Weasleys’ Wizard Wheezes rather than Hermione’s birthday— Harry was her husband and he logically went the same way. However, Neville never neglected Hermione’s special day, gifting her a new potted plant each year, and since he married Pansy Parkinson, that meant Hermione had made an unlikely friend with her former enemy, one who had softened considerably under her husband’s unyielding warmth and caregiving.

Friendship with Pansy meant a great deal of new realities for Hermione: a trending closet, regular visits to the hair salon and spa, frequent work lunches at the next up-and-coming restaurant, and a refusal to let wallowing breakupees lie for longer than strictly appropriate. 

Hermione’s time of mourning was over. Pansy’s evening of frivolity had arrived.

Look like a million galleons 

Grab the attention of every single available person, as well as the taken ones

Drink at least one alcoholic beverage per venue

Dance with at least one person

Take one kiss before the night is finished

“Pansy, this list is ridiculous.” Hermione stared at the parchment. The third was the only plausible item, as all the others were far beyond her natural capabilities.

“Are you wearing the outfit I put out?” came a voice from the kitchen.

“Yes, but—”

“And did you do your hair and makeup the way I showed you?”

“Yes, that, too—”

“Then the first one is already done.” Pansy popped into her bedroom at last, nodding her approval at the sight of Hermione where she stood in front of the mirror. “Perfect. You’re going to knock them all dead.”

“I don’t want them dead. That defeats the purpose entirely.” Hermione glanced back and forth between Pansy and the mirror, a dubious expression on her face. Her tamed curls did look fantastic, and her eyes particularly beguiling with her emphasized lashes. So that just left…

“How much was this outfit?” The two-piece affair included a dark green velvet mini skirt that hugged her rump, while the black halter top exposed her midriff, shoulders, and the entirety of her back. 

“Tsk, tsk, don’t be rude, Granger. You don’t just ask the cost of a gift like that.”

“That’s how corrupt politicians are bought.”

“Are you a politician?”

“…I could be.”

“Yes, well, until that day, accept my gift and slay like the bad witch that you are. Let’s go!” And with a snap of her fingers, Pansy was off to the Floo. She didn’t look behind her to see if Hermione followed—she knew the witch thrived off of praise and clear directions. 

Hermione followed her because she was a bad, bad witch, and she did want to slay tonight and every night after. She deserved it.

Hermione neglected to confirm in all her preparation for frivolity the location and audience of their destination. What welcomed her upon her toss of powder and seemingly innocent pronouncement of “The End of the Rainbow” was a club. Not a nice, familiar pub. Not a classy restaurant. The premier magic club, complete with tangible rainbow pathways connecting the levels instead of stairs. Their Floo dropped them right in the main entrance next to several other fireplaces, a transportation zone that rivaled the Ministry’s. This decision wasn’t for show, but necessity, as The End of the Rainbow was the largest nightclub of its kind in existence, housing several smaller, unique clubs within its grandiose structure, each one with its own theme and branding.

“I think I’m going to be sick.”

“Oh, no, no, no, honey, it’s much too soon for that.” Pansy’s sharp bob didn’t sway an inch as she executed a swift step and twist, handily swinging Hermione 180 degrees away from the fireplace and out towards the colorful atrium to stand beneath a board floating on literal clouds.

“Pansy.”

“Granger.”

“Please tell me those aren’t actually leprechauns with pots of gold over there.” The men in question cackled as they sifted coins through their fingers, winking at passerby as if tempting them to try and take their treasure. She remembered how Ron reacted to the reality of their illusions at the World Cup.

“If it bothers you, then don’t look. Just read the board and let me know what interests you.”

There seemed to be a venue for every fantasy: standard-variety muggle clubs, a unicorn forest for witches only, a Hogwarts Graduate School where “students” had the choice of being re-sorted into their dream house, and even Alexandria’s Library for bibliophiles like herself. Her hand gravitated towards the latter.

“Hermione!”

Daydreams of ancient scrolls and men in togas (unrealistic, but it was a fantasy after all) screeched to a halt at the call of one of her dearest friends. Luna pounced on her to deliver a hug surprisingly strong for a woman so slight.

“No!” Pansy dodged the girl’s attempt to grab her next, squeaking as she backed up into the arms of her old friend and Luna’s latest flame. “Blaise!” Luna took advantage of her beau’s positioning to sandwich Pansy in with an enthusiastic squeeze.

“Hey, Pansy. Granger. Happy birthday.”

She might not know Blaise Zabini very well yet, but she did enjoy the way in which he played off of Luna’s energy. “Thank you. I take it Pansy invited you along to witness my torment?”

“Of course she did.”

Her stomach once again dropped at the sound of the third voice, equally evocative as it was aggravating.

“Malfoy.” As Hermione’s eyes settled on his form, leaning far too casually against a pillar, his arms crossed against his stomach, she cursed Pansy, the entire Malfoy line, Salazar Slytherin, and Merlin himself for his presence. No man should possess such physical form, as if stolen from Adonis himself–those shoulders, that waist, his ass (Circe, help her), those quidditch thighs, a face fitting of the son of a woman named Narcissa…and that hair. Her housemates used to make fun of his sleek, pale locks in school, ermine-like in quality, but now all she wanted to do was fist it while riding him to exhaustion. 

“Earth to Granger.”

“Hm?” She was caught in his gaze, as cloudy as they were confusing every time she looked into them.

“Her-mi-o-ne.”

This time, the use of her given name zapped her into movement. She missed the smirk that crossed Malfoy’s face as she swung around to respond to Pansy who wore a disturbingly delighted expression.

“Have you decided where you’d like to start the night?”

“You have to promise not to laugh.”

“The library, I take it?” he drawled from behind her. 

Hermione refused to look at him again. “Precisely.”

“Well, it is your birthday and we are here to entertain.”

Before Hermione could lead the charge, Pansy darted forward, looping her arms into Blaise and Luna’s and leaving the remaining two behind.

Damn her.

“Shall we?” 

He stood very close, elbow extended. It would be rude of her to ignore it, and Pansy did already tell her to not be rude.

She took his arm.

“Not too fast? These heels are ridiculous.” Hermione waved her free hand at the death traps on her feet.

“Of course, though they do make your arse look fantastic.” He grinned at the blush that swarmed up her neck and onto her cheeks. “How much do you want to bet there isn’t a single tome in their supposed library you haven’t read?”

“Pfffffft, that’s too easy.”

Walking and talking with Draco Malfoy felt as natural as breathing, if Hermione were to be truthful to herself. He led her effortlessly up the curve of the rainbow towards the towering columns. She imagined this as an actual date, rather than the machinations of a Slytherin graduate to help her recover from heartbreak. They halted just under the archway, monolithic faces peering sightlessly down on them.

“What should we bet on, then?”

He’d turned her to face him, arm relaxing to curl his fingers along her arm before dropping to his side. She stared into his chest, mere centimeters from her nose–he smelled of bergamot, rosemary, and sandalwood. Inhaling deeply, she similarly gathered her courage and looked up.

“How about whether or not I’ll tick off every item on Pansy’s to-do list?”

He searched her eyes, the barest hint of a smile playing on his lips, before responding. “And what’s on this list?”

She broke eye contact to reach into her purse for the parchment, which she handed over silently. The hint turned into reality as he laughed fully, an unfettered sound she rarely heard but now wished to hear every day.

“I’ll bet on you fulfilling this list,” he said at last, wiping tears away from his eyes and still chuckling to himself.

“And what do you demand if you lose?”

He glanced upward at the club they still had yet to fully enter, before turning his warm smile back on her. “How about unlimited access to the Malfoy family library?  Forever.”

Good Godric. Even after the Ministry gutted their library after the war, there were still priceless treasures to uncover within its walls. Hermione had seen the records noted by the cursebreakers; she knew she could spend a lifetime studying the tomes within and still not put a dent in the full knowledge available.

“...and if you win?”

She wanted him to lose. She needed him to lose. Nothing else could match open-ended entrance to the Malfoy library.

“One date.”

She blinked. Opened her mouth, then shut it again without speaking. Hermione looked for what had to be a joke, but came up with nothing but genuine want in his gaze. She didn’t move as he brought one hand up to brush against her jaw. He leaned in slowly, so slowly, until his lips just hovered above hers without quite touching.

“What do you say?”

She answered him by bringing her own hand up, fisting that perfect hair just like she had always wanted, and pulling him down to close the distance between them.

That was item 5 complete–the rest of the list now seemed trivial. What had she been worrying about this whole time? Hermione’s heart swelled within her chest, beating in defiance of her seeming heartbreak as if to say, “I am here. I am wanting.”

They parted their connection with a gasp and it was several seconds before Hermione found the presence of mind to answer his question.

A couple weeks later as they snogged against bookshelves in Draco’s ancestral home, Hermione finally said yes to revealing their relationship to their loved ones. Pansy was insufferable in her gloating. It didn’t matter who won or who lost, because in the end, they each got what they wanted, which was, of course, each other.

WC 1879 I got into this prompt far more than I expected when I first started it late last night. I might be convinced to extend it into something more substantial if there's any interest :)

[itsmearia]

New(ish) to Arknights

Arknights once again has a firm hold of my brain after Magic the Gathering took it over for a few weeks. Which means it's time for me to gush about another random character that I love.

This is Erato.

First and foremost her character design is <3 <3 <3

She's based off a secretary bird. If you don't know what a secretary bird is here's a picture. I love these things. Look at it! Then look at her! Perfect! Ahhhh

She is so cute. The way her hair mimics the feathers on the head of a secretary bird. The color palette on her outfit and how her nails match. The outfit itself screams elegance and her shoes are killer. The flowers in her hair. The giant harp she has to lull enemies to sleep, which I'll talk about momentarily. Everything about her design slays and makes me happy.

Gameplay wise I find her super fun. Her entire thing is telling enemies that they will go to sleep and then she will put them to sleep permanently. Her s1 puts enemies to sleep for 5 seconds and then her talent lets her shoot sleeping enemies in the face while ignoring 50% of their defense. The s2 is an atk and atsp increase which thanks to her talent also targets sleeping enemies and ignores their defense. If you have other operators that can put enemies to sleep then this skill sounds excellent but I don't – at least that I'm aware of - so I always use s1.

Her range is also enormous! She can attack 13 different tiles but none of them are the row right in front of her so it takes me a second to find the best place to put her.

Even her character itself rules. I'm not the most up to date on Arknights lore – I'm still rather new compared to most people - but from what I've gathered this woman wanted to meet her hometown hero, met her hero, thought her hero actually kinda sucked as a person, said screw it I'd be a better role model than they are, and then just did that. What a legend.

Is Erato meta? Nah probably not. Not like I'd know but I never hear anyone talk about her so I doubt it. Do you need to build her? Nah. She's fun to use cause sleep is neat and her talent/s1 combo lets her delete something once in a while but she's not carrying the squad or anything. I love her anyways though. Character, design, and fun to play? A+ in my book then.

[m00nz-artpad]

May I stand unshaken

Amid, amidst a crashing world

Did I hear a thunder?

Did I hear you break?

I can't quite remember

Just what guided me this way

Arthur had tried to make Olivia go with John and get back to her family, who were already making their way back to Canada, but she couldn't just leave him. He was weak and leaving him now would certainly lead to his death sentence.

So Olivia stayed, and she fought. She took down more enemies in that final fight than Arthur did due to her still being perfectly in her prime but Micah had gotten the best of her and thrown her off the cliff onto the ledge below. She tried to climb back up but she was still fighting off whoever remained until Micah and Arthur fell onto the ledge.

Liv helped Arthur fight but he still succumbed to his tuberculosis and the injuries that Micah had given him and she was ready to finally kill Micah but Dutch shot her in the back mutliple times and she collapsed.

After coming to, she found Arthur trying to drag himself to the rocks and she aided him in doing so, holding him as he took his final breaths and watching the sunset with him. At that very moment; she promised to herself to kill both Micah and Dutch for what they'd done.

sketch

I apologize for disappearing again, but I promise it's not without reason. I'm actually currently working on the fic for this crossover au, so I'll finally have more. I'm also going to be posting some 2000's RDR2!Olivia soon because I jist love putting her in slay little outfits. Plus her relationship with her younger stepsister Melanie would be so totally different due to the trauma she's received from her experiences in the Van der Linde gang.

This part of the story will never not make me want to cry. Not only because Arthur tried to be better in the end and find his redemption, but also because Olivia lost one of the most important people in her life and she was only able to comfort him in his final moments.

I actually contemplated what lyrics to use for this post, because I always associated Somewhere Only We Know (the Lily Allen version) more fitting for Olivia and Arthur's relationship, but I decided on Unshaken by D'Angelo because it's the longer version of Crash of Worlds. It also feels so fitting for both Arthur and Olivia.

Also I know the colored version isn't exactly the best. I don't actually enjoy doing lineart or color in traditional but I wanted to at least try it. Plus I just wanted a reason to color Olivia's golden hazel eyes because they're so pretty.

[ladystrallan]

Once Upon a Time season 6B thoughts

I’m rewatching OUAT and I wanted to share some of my opinions on each season!

- Ooh Ruth pulling the knife

- I was wondering for a second where snow was

- I forgot she was cursed

- Dad???

- “If I wanted advice I doubt I’d take it from a pirate” low blow

- Omg the coin

- “That demon box” not the alarm clock

- Robin coming back is so stupid I can’t believe it

- Hook is going to propose!!!

- The ring is not that fabulous though

- Daddy issues David

- His lucky coin :(

- Yikes Robin

- Aw he did the deal pro bono :(

- Rumple… what a softie

- “The hearts of my enemies” why do you still have those???

- I don’t even care that they’re kissing this is just stupid

- Not them spinning around

- Pleasure Island!!!

- Omg Pinocchio

- “I’m also your father” ok strange man I’ve never met

- Knife fight

- Sad moment for David

- Great acting though

- Awww this is cute

- Omg hook killed david’s dad!!!

- Noooo this is not good

- ‘The first ogres war’ so there’s multiple???

- They need to trip them or something

- Not the wilhelm scream lol

- Slayyyyyy Rumple

- Ogre war redemption arc

- No bae :(

- #bullying

- Rumple :(

- Bae I thought you wanted him to be good

- Giving mixed signals here

- Omg he memory erased him so he wouldn’t turn dark

- Awwww this is so cute

- They’re engaged!

- I am so sick of the EQ just go away

- “I sleep in hay! … which is on dirt” lol

- Oh no

- Emma is really good at finding out things before hook can tell her

- Not the ring coming off…

- I bet the arrow is gonna point at her

- They’re going to sword fight???

- I knew it

- Are they just twins now or what?

- This is stupid

- I thought Regina couldn’t use that wand

- Plot hole alert

- I completely forgot about this

- Oh no

- Gideon no

- Can they not stop the submarine once it goes?

- Kraken hunting time!

- Aladdin and jasmine are back!

- Did he just make him into a sceptre???

- No one remembers achmed I guess

- CGI is looking a little rough

- What is this outfit Regina???

- Ariel! Love her

- That magic carpet cgi… bad

- Drunk snow lol

- Omg it was Jafar!

- “I can see my hovel from here” why does everyone have a hovel in this show???

- Awwwww captainswan

- Of course it was Gideon

- Ok kill the black fairy is not a bad thing to do

- Not the minor miners

- Ooh spooky intro

- Slay

- Nothing beats a good left hook

- “I’m your real mother” okay grandma (literally)

- Is rumbelle back together???

- Yasssss

- Omg Henry is possessed

- “Let’s get my pirate back” awwwww

- Omg I hate this ugly cgi spider

- Nooooo it was Roderick

- Omg not Isaac

- He’s so creepy

- Gideon what the fuck

- Ooh the lost boys are back

- Lots of returning people this season

- I wish hades would return :(

- Rumple slayyyyy

- Why do her guards look like they’re from Star Wars?

- Nooooo she killed Roderick

- “This is on you, Gideon. And my boot.” Good line

- Omg she has his heart

- “Dark one junior” lol

- PTA meeting is getting intense

- RUMBELLE

- Omg she got through!!!

- She has such Coraline other mother vibes

- Lol peace out loser

- Omg tiger lily

- Omg underworld reference??? The flower growing in the crack

- Nice to see long hair rumple again

- Emma’s name was his curse break thingy!!!

- They’re going to burn him at the stake???

- Awwwww this is so cute

- Slay Leroy

- Get a room

- Omg they’re all asleep

- Oh good not for long

- Ooh zelena in the recap

- “Why don’t you practice on my axe” omg

- This is the tin man I know it

- Ooh you’re looking for trouble touching zelena’s baby

- Yikes captainswan keep it PG

- “Am I interrupting something?” Omg

- Omg is that the bassinet that Zelena was abandoned in?

- We love a girlboss that takes things into her own hands

- “I sacrificed hades for you” that was a mistake

- But seriously Regina is not one bit grateful for what Zelena did for her, give up her true love to save her life

- At a time when Regina had Henry and was friends with the Charmings and Zelena had no one

- And Regina even BLAMES her for Robin’s death

- Robin had it coming but that’s another thing

- Snow’s date with Whale…

- Slay zelena

- Like a lion could take her… let’s be real

- “Go back to Oz” LOW BLOW

- That was so unwarranted

- Maybe if you guys weren’t so awful to Zelena then she wouldn’t fall into those traps

- That is so selfless to give up her magic to help everyone

- She is amazing

- That apology is long overdue

- Omg not Malcom

- That pathetic little man

- Baby rumple!

- The perfect name? How did you end up with Rumplestiltskin?

- Omg Rumple was supposed to be the saviour! (I remembered that)

- Rumple smash!

- At least there was no glass involved

- OMG ITS THE BLACK FAIRY!!!

- AND GIDEON!!!

- Where did Regina get a green car?

- ZELENA HIT HER WITH THE CAR

- SLAYYYYYY

- Zelena 1, black fairy 0

- Twist!!!

- She is the evil omg

- “I need my power” Rumple really had no chance

- Nooo he named him that because he hated him

- Something is suspicious

- Awwww he asked Henry to be his best man

- I knew rumple was up to something

- Why is he doing this???

- I love this episode!

- I know a lot of people don’t like it but I think it makes so much sense for this show to have a musical episode

- Like the Disney movies are musicals

- And the songs slap

- Ooh slay intro

- Omg it’s just so good!!!

- Everyone is amazing but josh dallas has a great voice

- Ooh that neck brake choreo

- I’m not a Regina fan but I have to admit she slayed

- Lana did a great job

- “You’ve come to say goodbye” nooooo

- This is so sad

- Killian’s song might be my second favourite

- It just fits him so well and Colin slayed

- Poison dart!!!

- They should have brought Hades back for this episode

- Greg was in the obc of Assassins

- Rumple should have gotten a song tbh

- Zelena slays so hard!!!

- Wicked always wins is the best song

- Although they should have made a wicked reference

- Rebecca Mader is so awesome

- Rumple why are you being evil???

- It is a little silly that their plan is just sing at her

- Not Henry tossing the book

- That was kinda funny

- Slayyyy

- I love how her song is the OUAT theme

- Captainswan is so cute

- Their vows!!!

- I love happy beginning such a good closing number

- This is so beautiful

- “The black fairy’s curse, it’s here!” Slay Leroy we love an iconic line

- Awwww season 1 recap

- You know what I miss?

- THERE IS A TOWN IN MAINE

- Omg this is older Henry

- Oooh curse again

- Archie: Henry, I think you’re crazy

- Not Emma in the mental hospital

- Not Fiona being the new mayor!!!

- How many sons is she going to try and kidnap???

- Gold & Sons that’s kinda cute

- Lost their mother??? What happened to belle???

- Pull ups in the mental hospital lol

- I love a good hook and david team up

- “We fought for our love and we won” awwwww

- “She said she was going to the store and she never came back” noooo

- Deadbeat belle…

- Omg not the EQ

- Awwww he called Killian his son

- “Hmmm. Merlot” LOL

- A dragon… is that maleficent?

- NOT THE BADLY PHOTOSHOPPED PICTURES OF BELLE TRAVELLING

- I CANT OMG

- Rumple please tell me you don’t believe this

- Not the falling video

- Omg no don’t burn the book

- I can’t believe she did that

- “Hello there, mummy” KILLIAN

- Omg that is so funny

- She came back!!!

- Slayyy rumple

- Noooo tempting him with Bae

- “All magic comes with a price” slayyyyy

- Omg dead

- Lol slay Henry

- “Some honeymoon, huh?” Lol I love them

- Omg charming swearing now you know it’s serious

- Not his dark one self convincing him

- Yasssss Rumple character development

- Noooo he resisted but it didn’t work

- Wtf

- Omg gideon is a baby again

- A little weird but ok

- Awwwww rumbelle

- Of course Robin proposed gotta do that fan service

- And in the tackiest way too

- OMG RUMBELLE

- THEY ARE ADORABLE

- Awww this is so cute

- Everyone got their happy ending

- Honestly a perfect finale

- Idk if I’m gonna watch season 7 because I remember hating it and this is such a perfect ending

How I feel about the characters this season

Love: Zelena, Emma, Hook

Like: Rumple, Belle, David, Jasmine, Ariel

Neutral: Henry, Snow, Gideon, Fiona (she’s camp idk), Aladdin, Regina

Dislike:

Hate:

I honestly can’t hate anyone this season

Season rating: 9/10

Not my favourite season but actually a really solid ending to an amazing show. Some of it was dumb but a lot of it was awesome. I loved the musical episode and the finale! Tbh it should have ended here.