#so why would you want to go to war or fight the devil or whatever the fuck like you literally don’t have to do that ���

[steviescrystals]

shifting content on tiktok is soooo funny to me like not even in an “omg this is so cringe” way it’s just genuinely fascinating… i see it on my fyp all the time and i’m not complaining bc i devour that shit every time

[galactic-rhea]

how do you think anakin (or your anakin) would take clovis? i found those episodes to be really ooc😭

Oh boy, I knew this day would come,,,the day in which someone asked me about these awful episodes, thanks user @songspirits now this conversation won't have to wait any longer NKLJnjfdf

To quote a friend of mine that only watched the movies when I told her the summary of the Clovis arc: "I think Anakin would've asked padme to held her wig instead while she personally goes to fight that guy, the anakin i know at least"

Jokes aside, I'll have to break this down on a few points because there's just,,,a lot going on in these episodes (to be clear I don't intend to change anyone's mind in the matter, since i already know many ppl believe these episodes to be good for anakin's ehh,,,going-evil characterization). This will get long.

So first of all: The very first episode where Clovis shows up is just alright, could've been done much better but seriously I don't have many issues with it.

The problem arises with the new ones in season 6. The why I feel Anakin is out character in these episodes is because his very, very well known and yet somehow missinterpreted flaw is that he reacts with extreme violence, especially when scared, scared not for himself but for someone he cares about.

So him reacting badly and going directly for a bloody fistfight against Clovis wasn't the problem of the episodes. It was how he treated Padmé. Like, literally telling her he would leave her in jail if she kept mentioning Clovis, lmao. Also the "You have no say on this" yadayada. I think the writer for these episodes was probably taking their confrontation at Mustafar as a reference point, which...No, that shouldn't have been the case bc in Mustafar that guy literally turned evil (literally!) and he had lost touch with reality. And also the stakes were higher. And also his anger was completely different there.

But, at the same time, if I play the devil's advocate, I can see some...eh, explanations there. For example he had recently lost Ahsoka and one of his men, the War was on the third year, and Padmé was decidely working with someone that already almost got her killed once, and she wasn't listening to him. They didn't even actually discussed the situation very well. And when Anakin says that "as your husband, I ask-" he turns around and is completelly unable to look at her in the eyes, so it could very well be that not even himself believed that, he was mostly throwing onto the table every single card he had. And one could argue that there's no way he didn't hear/notice/sense/ whatever that Padmé wasn't okay with that kiss.

But even then, the writers were clearly going for your very average possesive-sexist-angry-jealous- boyfriend, which isn't Anakin's problem, like I said, his problem is how deeply scared he is of Padmé being hurt. So Anakin's main concern shouldn't be that he's being cheated on, but that Padmé could be hurt, and they kinda touched on that but they failed at portraying that well, and I think it's because:

a) This episode shows us an extremelly common trope in shows with many episodes and many one-time-plots: The classic add-another-person-so-main-character-gets-jealous-. And almost always this type of episode gets us very ooc characterizations, no matter the show, because this society usually can't see any other reaction that isn't angry-possesive-violent jealousy. He also treats Padmé quite badly even before she decides to keep working with him, which is a no-no for me.

b) The shows forgets that Anakin does, actually, has a lot of faith and trust in Padmé's abilities. Yes, he worries, a lot, but he still is very confident on her being a more than capable person. He doesn't want to keep her in a cage or something, part of the reason he's so in love with her is because of how capable and intelligent she is. In ROTS is different because he quite literally had a prophetic vision that proved to be true before, and there's very little to do in this case, it had nothing to do with abilities or someone else. Also, if AOTC tells me anything, is that they're fairly talktative aka they communicate fairly well. Even in previous episodes we see that Padmé is great at communicating and discussing (look at how she reassured Ahsoka when Ahsoka was worried about her. Or that little bit where she's concerned about a party.); in this episode there was none of that until after Anakin almost kills a guy.

c) I think they simply, and flatly, just wanted to show Anakin being dangerous and darker and have Padmé concerned and all of that. And what better way to show a man becoming evil than being a jealous boyfriend. Isn't like Anakin has already murdered a lot of people, amirite. This is a bit of a problem with the simplification of a character. If they're bad or becoming evil, they also surely must be hyper jealous and possesive, there's no other way.

TO SUMMARIZE: I don't think Anakin was handled well, at all. Because the episodes were rellying on a very basic trope, which needed them to break the characters to fit the cookie cutter. However I can see some attempt at deepness there. It's like if it was the characters pretending to be more cartoonized version of themselves, if you know what I mean.

HOWEVER,,,,that said, the biggest sin for me isn't Anakin being OOC...IS HOW PADMÉ WAS TREATED.

They seriously had to put her into a sexual harassament plot, only for it all to be about how Anakin is evil (tm), and not have her respond at all? They really had her to put up with a creepy rapey dude just because.....What is even the narrative trying to tell us at all, that Anakin was actually was actually right, but overreacted? The plot is so contrived, Lmao.

She was the one that got harassed and yet she had no say on it, she's extremelly passive in the whole arc (which we all already know isn't Padmé's personality, even Anakin tends to follow the narrative in more passive way than she does). Then they also had to have her on the trope of "If a woman is going to be a spy, then she must use all her goods and being a femme fatale", and then they didn't even made her fatale. They could AT LEAST give us a moment of her reflecting about having been lowkey assaulted? No? Huh,okay.

Also, Padmé is actually very good at, let's say, handling Anakin. Or more like, reassuring him/discussing stuff with him, and I say this because of bits of the novels I have seen. She's more self-assured and confident, and experienced with social stuff, she's definitely not naive, and can stand her ground fairly easily, and she knew what type of guy was Clovis, so yeah, it's just...she was badly written here, she lost almost all of her agency. I'm not saying it was her fault or anything, or that it was her responsability to calm down her clown of a husband, but it goes against what we know Padmé is like.

Also apparently throwing himself onto the void was Clovis' apology for...almost getting her killed several times, kissing her without consent, being a creep and also using her as hostage. You know, so he's more of a deep character, I guess.

The good points for this arc though, are:

° Ol' Sheev doing what Sheev does best, and actually having some interesting stuff going on, they should've focused on that.

° They (miraculously) remembered a bit of Anakin's and Padmé's actual personalities, and when she told him to back off and that she needed a time, he accepted her desires to leave her alone and looked like a sad wet cat, like Anakin tends to look like. Also thank god they had Padmé's behaviour being nothing like the one of what you would expect from a victim of abusive relationships (Anakin was making his ooc scene and she just looked like 'bitch,what the hell has gotten into you', she had the audience's response, which is 'anakin? what?', which at least tells us this isn't Anakin's normal behaviour at all, i guess?)

° Obi-Wan and Anakin talking a little bit. Also Anakin's room had a poster of the Boonta's Eve race, he also had a little ship-toy, showing us that Luke really takes after his father, lol.

°...Idk what else to highlight from these episodes 😭😂 Did I already say Sheev's scheming? Uhhhh,well, uhh, idk, Padmé taking Clovis to the opera in an attempt to get info from him is kinda ...Ironic.

[st-whalefall]

I’m taking a big ol’ swing with this one so everyone please keep your limbs inside the vehicle until we reach our destination (let me cook)

So, what happened here? For this to go from-

Goofy ass grin <3

Summer: “Trust me..”

To this-

Raven: “The creatures of Grimm have a master named Salem. She can’t be stopped, she can’t be reasoned with, and she will not rest until humanity crumbles at her feet.”

Raven: To Ruby with disdain, “You sound just like your mother.”

Let me lay some of my cards on the table. I’m in the “Summer is still alive” camp and I got thoughts on: if Summer is still alive, why has she not been in Yang and Ruby’s life?

Not even a peep? For 14 years?

Something BIG had to have happened to her to keep her away from them.

Now, a lot of folks will go straight to where Ruby jumped to: Summer got Grimm hound-ed by Salem

But I think that’s takes a lot of agency away from Summer and the building revelation of her character and the purpose she serves in the narrative.

If Summer has been grimmified, I posit it was by her own doing, by choice. And her choice alone.

Qrow: “You’re special the same way your mom was…The creatures of Grimm were afraid of those silver eyed warriors.”

Salem: “Do you feel it? Don’t fight it girl. It can sense your trepidation. You must make it dread you.”

How does Salem illustrate the melding of Cinders flesh with the Grimm arm and mastery over it?

In the few instances we get, how are silver eyes described in their effect on Grimm? Obliteration, yes. Resistance to their influence? Possibly (see Ruby & the apathy). But command over them? Let’s explore that.

We are working with a pretty small dataset here, so you’ll forgive me for mostly drawing from Cinder for this (separate post I think the hound is a reanimated corpse and so different from true living hybrids like Cinder (& hypothetically Summer)).

Grimm evolve and Grimm hybrids, like Cinder, adapt.

From vol4 to vol8, Cinder’s Grimm arm grows. It spreads. And she becomes more comfortable with it as time progresses.

Cinders Grimm arm has become an integral part of her and, side note, I dislike theories that revolve her hypothetical redemption around her being purified of evil (Grimm) by silver eyes.

[But that’s just me, I want the monstrous to stay monstrous rather than erased or watered down for easy digestion. Let the monster stay a monster in its appearance and still be worthy of love, and so on and so forth.]

So, we come back to Summer Rose.

Summer confronted Salem, learned something earth shattering, destroyed Raven’s faith and trust in her, and did something that prevented her from returning to her daughters for more than a decade.

What did Summer do? Agency, we’re thinking strong choices here.

Choices that are radical but in line for a character with strong convictions, an alluded to pedestal she stands upon and all the complexes that comes with, perhaps a little self destructive, and a big heart. Big enough to sympathize with the devil and do something about it.

The thing that could be preventing Summer from returning home could be as simple as:

After she learned the truth about Oz’s shadow war, she joined Salem’s side, and won’t return until she’s seen it through to the end.

But I want to put some spice on there because what if:

After learning whatever it was Salem told Summer, that turned her world upside down, Summer looked down into the pools of black and took the plunge

To understand Salem on a molecular level

To be Grimm as Salem is Grimm

To be a world changer

In the world of Remnant, that’s what the Grimm are. A force of destructive change, like hurricanes and wildfires, they shape the world through calamity. Disaster doesn’t feel any one way about you, it just is. It is devastating, but it doesn’t hate you. And it doesn’t love you either.

So, what would that make Summer?

How do you think that’s changed her, fundamentally?

Bloody evolution indeed.

And that’s why she stayed away. Summer changed, and now she looks a little more on the outside how she feels on the inside. But to the rest of the world, she is something horrifying. Unspeakable.

She didn’t want to give her girls nightmares.

Yeah, Summer was the inspiration for the Hound, and Cinder’s Grimm arm. But not in the way Ruby thinks.

[shisekibo]

[Story Translation] Chapter Thirty Six - Butler's Rest

↫ previous story | story list | next story ↬

Division Leader:

“What the hell is going on here?!”

Ammon:

“On that note… Who the hell is that old man?”

Berrien:

“He’s the leader of the mercenaries who tried to attack us…”

Berrien:

“Apparently he has history with Bastien.”

Haures:

“You… The price to pay for hurting our friend isn’t cheap.”

Division Leader:

“H-hey...! At least spare my life! I'll do anything you want!"

Division Leader:

“I'm in deep with the nobles! You guys want something, just name it! I can get it for you."

Division Leader:

“I've got it! I can find out what the Sardies' weaknesses are. How about that?"

Haures:

"Was that supposed to win us over?"

Division Leader:

“S-shit...! Come on, Bastien! Help me out here!"

Division Leader:

“I'm sorry about what happened! So please... at least spare my life..."

Bastien:

“Don't make me laugh."

Bastien:

“I'll never forgive you."

Bastien:

“But I don't plan on hurting you. Not here, at least."

Division Leader:

“What?"

Bastien:

“You know, none of your group are actually dead."

Bastien:

“I didn't hit anyone where it actually matters. They're just knocked out."

Division Leader:

“But why...?"

Bastien:

"There's no point in me wasting my breath on you lowlives."

Bastien:

“I'm handing you all over to the Grosvenor guards."

Bastien:

“Have fun in the cellar for the rest of you life. And do some reflecting on how it's your own fault you're there."

Division Leader:

“Sh-shit..."

-Some Time Later-

Haures:

“I've tied them all up."

Berrien:

“Thank you. Now we just have to wait until the guards come."

Boschi:

“I took a look around but I can't find Yuuhan and the others anywhere."

Berrien:

“I see..."

Haures:

“I never thought they'd be the ones to set a trap to try and kill us like this..."

Berrien:

“It looks like we need to have a thorough talk about how to deal with what happened here today..."

Haures:

“I assume we can take this as a declaration of war."

Berrien:

“But... I don't think it would be a good idea to take them up on that offer at this time."

Berrien:

“Our duty as Devil Butlers is to remove Angels from this earth. That's all."

Fennesz:

“I agree. There's no need for us to fight other humans."

Boschi:

“So we're just going to let them get one up on us?"

Fennesz:

“I didn't say that. But we need to be more careful."

Ammon:

“Calm now, Boschi."

Boschi:

“Tsk. Whatever."

Muu:

“It looks like things are getting complicated."

Choices:

“Humans shouldn't be fighting each other..." "We need to figure it out as peacefully as possible."

???:

“Gggh..."

Muu:

“Huh...? What was that noice...?

Boschi:

“Oi, who was that? Whose stomach's rumbling at a time like this?"

Lono:

“Sorry... I'm just gettin' a bit peckish..."

Bastien:

“Gggh..."

Haures:

“You too, Bastien...?"

Ammon:

"Haha. Looks like they're fine to me!"

Fennesz:

“Oh to be young. I can't believe you're hungry after what we just went through."

Haures:

“You're not even that old."

Ammon:

"Ahh. Now I'm getting hungry too. Let's all go home and eat some of Lono's delicious cooking."

Lono:

“That's a great idea, Ammon!"

Boschi:

“I need some meat. Oi, Lono. I could murder a steak right now."

Lono:

“Oh! Steak sounds like a great idea!"

Ammon:

"Boschi. When do you eat anything that's not meat? You need to eat your veg or you'll get sick."

Boschi:

“Huh? Why on earth would eating what I want make me sick?"

Haures:

“Boschi. You're just as childish as always."

Boschi:

“Who are you calling a child?"

Fennesz:

“Haures. I've never seen you eat fish before."

Haures:

“Oi, Fennesz...!"

Muu:

“Huh?! You're picky too, Mr. Haures?"

Choices:

“I'm shocked too." "Everyone has food they don't like."

Haures:

“I-I'll eat it if I have to! I just don't like it very much..."

Haures:

“Oi, Fennesz! Don't embarrass me in front of Master."

Fennesz:

“Sorry, sorry."

Lono:

“Right! Looks like I've got some cookin' to get to!"

Lono:

“Master, let me know if there's anything you want to eat!"

Lono:

“I'm a genius in the kitchen, after all. I'll make anything you want."

Choices:

“Don't push yourself too hard." "Are you sure you're okay?"

Lono:

“Don't worry! I'm completely fine! Look, not a scratch on me..."

Lono:

“Ouch..."

Muu:

“Mr. Lono! Are you sure you're okay?"

Berrien:

"Maybe you should wait to cook until after Lucas has taken a look at you."

Lono:

“That might be a good idea."

Lono:

"You're gonna help me out, right Bastien?"

Lono:

"You gotta work for your food."

Muu:

"Looks like he's back to his usual self."

Choices:

“Thank goodness." "I can relax now."

Berrien:

"Master, I'll prepare the carriage home. Please wait here for a moment."

Berrien:

"AH!!"

Berrien:

"Muu? What's the matter?"

Muu:

"Look! Over there!"

Berrien:

"Over where?"

Haures:

"Hey, that's..."

shuffle shuffle

Angel:

"Die. For life."

[burntblueberrywaffles]

the desperate anidala bitches shall rejoice, because i come offering a second rec list 😌 /lh

My Anidala/Vaderdala rec list! (part 2)

You can find the first rec list here!

sorry I took so long this got buried way down in my drafts but it's finally out 🫡

some of these are not complete so do check chapter count and pls dont yell at me asdfhgkjfh

Modern AUs

The Bet

Anakin's had a crush on Padmé since fourth grade, and after putting up with his pining for seven years, Obi-Wan and Ahsoka are finally stepping in and making a bet that he can't ask her to junior prom in the spring. Meanwhile, Padmé is realizing that Anakin isn't as annoying as she'd always thought. In fact, her feelings towards him are starting to go in quite the opposite direction...

Snow Place Like Home

For genre-typical convoluted reasons involving ill-timed blizzards, Padmé is forced to spend the holidays at Anakin's house. Anakin isn't as upset about his boss staying with him for Christmas as he probably should be.

Second Chances

When Luke Amidala and Leia Skywalker meet at summer camp, they're shocked to discover that they're long-lost twins. The logical next step? Getting their estranged parents back together.

I usually avoid Parent traps AU just because I dislike it as a setup, but when it comes to Anidala a bitch is desperate, and this was a cute and fun one, I really enjoyed it!

Lemon

“What other secret fantasies do I have that are glaring neon signs for you?” Anakin asks. “You’re conflicted,” Padmé says, “because on one hand you want to be a very good boy for me, but on the other you want to misbehave so I have a reason to punish you.” He blows out a plume of smoke and taps the ash off his cigarette. “You know, I really thought you were a nerd. I thought I'd have to be like, ‘Hey, how about you tie me up sometime.' Get you into this stuff little by little. But no, you’re diving right in like we met on a BDSM subreddit or something.” Or: Padmé has car problems. Thankfully she knows a good mechanic.

normally, I probably never would have checked out this fic, (mommy kink is just not my thing) but as previously stated, A BITCH WAS DESPERATE and you know what it actually slapped 😌

Rebound

Padmé Naberrie has just been broken up with. She wasn't prepared for a night out with her girls to find her a rebound. She certainly wasn't prepared for Anakin Skywalker.

Sith-Raised Anakin

the inevitable end of dancing with the devil

"Maybe it was too crass to compare the devil to such a creature—Lord Vader wasn’t the devil, he was worse." Senator Amidala was undoubtedly one of the most respected and adored public servants to walk the galaxy. Lord Vader was not. Vaderdala AU. Arranged Marriage AU

A Worthy Sacrifice

Chancellor Palpatine has dropped the act and decided to rule the galaxy openly as Darth Sidious. His reign wouldn’t be half as successful without his unhinged attack dog Darth Vader, a much rumoured warbringer who appears in black robes with a saber red as blood and brings even the strongest revolutionaries to their knees. Padmé is not only fighting for her home country but the freedom of the known regions and she is desperate to turn the tides of this war which is why she agrees to the deal Sidious offers her: A child with this favourite Sith Lord in exchange for her home: Naboo.

This is one of my favourite fics with this trope!

Pearl in My Head

Padmé's just starting her career as a Senator when she attracts some unwanted attention from the Emperor, who has decided on a very different role for her in the Empire. [empire already exists, arranged marriage/forced proximity au! loosely follows some aotc/rots events]

What Was I Made For?

Darth Vader was not a man made for love, but this was not love. Or, Basically, Padme and Vader are friends with benefits, but she's so nice to him that it makes him question his entire existence.

FOR YOUR LOVE (i’ll do whatever you want)

𝐬𝐨 𝐛𝐚𝐛𝐲, 𝐰𝐡𝐲 𝐝𝐨𝐧'𝐭 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐩𝐥𝐞𝐚𝐬𝐞 𝐦𝐞 𝐧𝐨𝐰? 𝐬𝐨 𝐛𝐚𝐛𝐲, 𝐰𝐡𝐲 𝐝𝐨𝐧'𝐭 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐩𝐥𝐞𝐚𝐬𝐞 𝐦𝐞 𝐧𝐨𝐰? 𝐢'𝐯𝐞 𝐠𝐨𝐭 ��𝐨 𝐦𝐮𝐜𝐡 𝐢 𝐜𝐚𝐧 𝐠𝐢𝐯𝐞 𝐭𝐨 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐲𝐞𝐚𝐡, 𝐢’𝐯𝐞 𝐠𝐨𝐭 𝐬𝐨 𝐦𝐮𝐜𝐡 𝐢 𝐜𝐚𝐧 𝐠𝐢𝐯𝐞 𝐭𝐨 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐲𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐥𝐨𝐯𝐞, 𝐢’𝐥𝐥 𝐝𝐨 𝐰𝐡𝐚𝐭𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐫 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐰𝐚𝐧𝐭 He gave her that devilish smirk of his. The one that had gotten her into this mess in the first place. “I’ll give you what you want.” OR, A rare moment of intimacy happens for Padmé and Anakin – whose relationship is strictly carnal.

I have yet to read the second chapter (will get on that when I get out of the snowbaird hole lol) but I really enjoyed the first one!

Vaderdala

love me, love me (like you used to do) 

In which Vader fails to capture his son, but gains a daughter, his wife, another pair of twins... and the past.

this fic was SO GOOD holy shit literally made me feral when i fiorst read it

Love Like Ghosts

There are very few people who know the location of the Rebel Alliance’s base on Naboo. Even fewer who know the names of any of the people who work there. So when Padmé gets up on a cold morning, the windows frosted and harsh wind rattling the doors of the large house that’s been the headquarters of the Alliance for nearly two decades, to see a package with her name on it sitting on the doorstep, her heart stops in her chest.

loved this fic but as a heads up it doesn't provide "they get back together" closure so be ready for that

news of old by @ineedausernamel829

Padme is a member of the rebel alliance. During a mission, her past relationships with darth Vader comes to light

No vaderdala interactions, but exploration of the relationship through Padme talking about it - It’s so so good

Sad Vaderdala hours

Imperial Socialite

In a timeline where Darth Vader doesn't face immolation and Padmé Amidala lives, their marriage continues in a form that is at once far more honest and deeply dysfunctional. Though Padmé tries to remain within the Imperial Senate, the trauma of her husband's betrayal--and the apparent deaths of her children--force her into early retirement. Too much of a liability to aid the emerging Rebel cause directly, Padmé seeks out new avenues of defying the Empire: by leveraging her connection to Vader to mess with the Imperial Elites of Coruscant.

it could be sweet

an interconnected collection of stories based on the idea of what would have happened if Padmé had lived. (aka me finally writing down my self-indulgent vaderdala daydreams aka me living my best life)

This series is so good in a "rip my heart out of my chest and steps on it" way

all joy sucked dry

Her husband had fallen, her life’s work had crumbled, and her own babies were strangers to her. But she didn’t even care, and that was the worst part. Or: Padme deals with postpartum depression, and Vader is ill-equipped to help her

Others

Across the Seas

Padmé Amidala - the daughter of the royal governor of Jamaica - never expected her life to be much more than it already was. Her routine is to dress in her finest clothes, put on a pretty face, and ensure she is presentable to not only the people but to the many men attempting to court her. However, Padmé's world is flipped around when pirates attack, and the young woman finds herself in the company of their fearsome, brash, (dashing) Captain. Initially sickened by the roughish man, Padmé will quickly learn there is so much more to the mysterious Captain Skywalker. A pirate's life for me

The pirate AU I didn’t know I needed. So good

Right & Wrong

After they watch a holoshow that portrays reprehensible content, Anakin unwittingly reveals the concerning way Chancellor Palpatine acts towards him. Padmé will not let anyone harm her husband — and she’ll make this Obi-Wan, the Jedi Council, and even the whole galaxy’s problem if she needs to.

when the grooming is actually adressed >>

cestrum nocturnum

Summer on Naboo, the Clone Wars have yet to begin, and Anakin is tasked with protecting Senator Amidala after an attempt is made on her life. It's too bad that every moment with her has him in agony, and every moment apart is even worse—especially after that night in the courtyard ... Or: Anakin spends a torturous time on Naboo in the company of the person he loves because he doesn't know how to tell her his true feelings.

Naboo smut 🤭

And that's it! if anyone has recommendations for a fic that isn't in either of my rec lists, please let me know! I am so so desperate I need my anidala fix

Since I was deep into the Star Wars hole and desperate, I’ve also been reading non-Anidala/non-Anidala centric fics about Darth Vader/Anakin/the Skywalker family, so I will be posting a rec list for that soon! (When i say soon it can mean anything from a day to months, my brain is not always great at tasks, if anyone wants to be notified when I do post it lmk and I’ll tag you ❤️)

[icycoldninja]

Helloo can i request dmc boys finding out their fem s/o has a twin brother (fraternal twins) Who is protective of her since they both don’t have their parents with em. Thank you if you do this 💖

Ooh this is fun! Hope you enjoy 💜

Sparda boys + V X Fem!Reader with a fraternal twin brother headcannons

¤ Dante ¤

-Couldnt believe his eyes when he met your brother for the first time. You said this was your twin? Why doesn't he look identical to you? It seems Dante doesn't understand that there are other types of twins in addition to identical ones.

-After introductions were made and misunderstandings cleared up, Dante decided that he really liked this guy. After all, it seemed they had a shared purpose: protecting you with their lives.

-Your brother and Dante get along quite nicely, occasionally going out for drinks or just being bros at home. At one point, Vergil got jealous because your brother seemed to be more of a brother to Dante than he was, so they dragged him along and, well, now you have 3 dudes hanging out in your house.

-Your brother likes him, too, considering they have a lot in common. It seems your relationship has his blessing.

-Dante doesn't want to bring your brother on devil hunting missions for fear of him getting hurt, but if he has combat training, Dante might reconsider.

-Who knows, in due time, your brother might end up becoming a stylish devil hunter too.

■ Vergil ■

-The moment he laid his eyes on your brother was the moment he declared war. It may have been nonverbal, but it was war all the same.

-Vergil was very possessive; perhaps even a bit clingy. He has abandonment issues bigger than his biceps, and therefore can't stomach the idea of someone else devoting his life to protecting you.

-While your brother is happy you have someone so dedicated to taking care of you, he doesn't like this guy's attitude, and how he's always so cold and dismissive towards him. Just what did he do to offend him?

-Whenever your brother tags along to your outings or tries to make an effort to get to know yojr boyfriend, Vergil is silent the entire time and only glares at him. It's unnerving.

-Your relationship has your brother's blessing, given that it seems healthy and happy enough, but both of you wish Vergil would put more of an effort into improving his relationship with your brother.

-All you can really do is hope Vergil warms up to him someday.

□ Nero □

-Ohh, Nero hates this bastard. He can't explain why, either, he just knows something's up with him. He doesn't care if he's your twin brother, older brother, younger brother, or distant cousin--he has this feeling that something's up.

-He hides his negative feelings very well though, putting on a grin and shaking your brother's hand with gusto.

-It's only when his grip gets a tad too tight when you and your brother realize at the same time that he isn't all that comfortable being around your twin.

-Your twin is understanding; for some people, making new friends is hard, but despite this, your brother still wants to try to get to know you. At the very least, he can make a good impression.

-Nero complains to you about this, but you convince him to at least give it a shot. Since Nero loves you and will do whatever you say, he relents.

-It takes a while, but Nero and your brother eventually find common ground, (you, and their love for you) and manage to get along rather well. All it really needed was some work.

● V ●

-Is very thankful that you have a brother to protect you, because he doesn't have the physical strength to do so himself.

-He makes an effort to get off on the right foot and is very friendly towards your twin. Even his familiars (particularly Shadow, but Griffon likes him too) have grown fond of him.

-He wishes there was more he could do with your brother besides sitting and talking but sadly, there isn't.

-Wants to train your brother to fight devils so he can take him on missions with the two of you, but, unfortunately, his skills are not teachable, so he turns to the guys Devil May Cry for help.

-Once your bro has spent enough time practicing on dummies in the backyard, he gets to tag along with you, and it's a lot of fun.

-Though neither of you know it, V is preparing your brother for the day V eventually must go away, so your brother is ready to take on more responsibilities, such as protecting you from devils and other monsters.

[olympiansowl]

I need people to stop this obsession with the fucking forced marriage plot between Miriel and Pharazon. Idk guys but it doesn’t really seem okay to me that they gave women power and all, and people are there like “but the forced marriage…” as if Miriel hasn’t been through enough shit already. Technically, they cannot adapt it since it’s a Silmarillion storyline and it isn’t on the books they have the rights to. Some people are looking more haters of Miriel than fans bc what do you mean you won’t complain about the treatment her character is getting? What do you mean that you will want a forced marriage plot but refuse to say to Amazon a simple “change her fate” ? And believe me, they can change her fate. They just did it with Galadriel, Durin III, Durin IV, Sauron and Elendil…

I don’t know if it’s a Brazilian thing, but when we don’t like things on shows, soap operas or whatever, we are vocal about it. And when we like a character, we make sure the people behind it knows about it. And it usually works for us. People used to care for what the audience thinks about something, there are shows out there that have the whole right to the books and yet change every single thing. Also, I’m pretty sure they care about what the audience thinks since this season was a mix between three plots from other characters in one of the show. They changed Durin’s death, which may cause the other Durin to also die next season. Durin III was supposed to die on third age and the balrog should be in Moria, as everyone pretty much knows by now. Galadriel was supposed to be a mother and Celeborn was supposed to be at Eregion. They changed fates. They placed a character that wasn’t on middle earth at second age to be there and have a whole different plot. Believe me, they can change Miriel’s fate. But for this to happen, her fans should at least be more vocal about the treatment she’s getting. Her scenes are being cut, she is always suffering, they don’t show her making the plans or the decisions…we have to guess everything. Like I’m sorry but we have characters that literally helped bring back the devil and even they had moments of happiness this season. And yes, I see it as a disrespect towards the character because I’ve seen this film before and I’m sure you guys have too. The female characters who’s always collecting trauma but they forget those traumas as if it never impacted her or as if she’s never been through it. And the character doesn’t stop suffering and doesn’t have a single happy moment in her life. We don’t see her saying anything more about her father and guys…she’s living on his tower. Pharazon made her live on the tower that her father died days before! The tower he spent the rest of his days (years actually since he lived 220 years) in grief over the city. How did it affect her? We don’t see why she decided to say behind, Cynthia had to clarify it. She had to clarify that the civil war isn’t over, that Miriel is going to fight back and that she algo gave the Narsil to Elendil to start a sort of revolution.

That being said, I am dying to know why the fans aren’t making much noise? Sorry, but you don’t change things like that by being quiet. “Oh I want her to kiss Elendil” yeah so either she survives and/or doesn’t marry Pharazon or they’re going to kiss on her last breath.

The series has little to do with the Silmarillion and even when we consider the books they have the right to, not even the timeline is being followed when we think about Numenor or the dwarves…and, as I said before, it’s all in the appendix. It’s no big deal to let her live.

“Oh but what about Elendil? How will he become King?”

Numenor will be swallowed by the sea. Miriel was the rightful heir to the throne of Numenor, not Arnor since Arnor is something that will be built after the fall of Numenor. If they keep her alive, it wouldn’t change the narrative because they would probably get married and rule together. His heir would still be Isildur because at the time pace the series is setting, it’s possible that we won’t even see the kingdoms in exile at their prime.

“Oh but what about children if they get married?”

We’re talking about a show that forgot the existence of Celebrian, who is the daughter of Galadriel and Celeborn, future wife of Elrond and mother of his children, to fit the narrative they constructed to Galadriel. It won’t be a big deal for Miriel to not have children since she never got one in the books that talk about her marriage (mostly forced, with one version that was willingly) to Pharazon. Also, they used the “well, it wasn’t stated that Gandalf wasn’t on middle earth during this time…” excuse so they can pretty much use the “it wasn’t stated that she died” considering that:

1 - It’s not on the appendix, not in lotr or hobbit.

2 - No body, no crime.

3 - They created a whole sea creature trial for that woman. They made an eagle appear on her coronation. Those eagles are known for saving people, as we can recall. And the sea creature pretty much saved her. So all of this and that girl can’t get out of this city alive? BE SO FR

And now, to finish this, I want y’all to reflect a little bit on which characters do you really like and if you really like the shipp? I mean, I’ve been a shipper since forever and when we like a couple, we usually want them to end up together and well. Do not use the “but it’s already on the books” because, guys…they literally killed off a character that was supposed to die in third age, made a very delightful dynamic between Galadriel/Halbrand (Sauron), erased her daughter, made some characters have the plot destined to their parents (Pharazon, Miriel, Elendil…) and they also created children for characters like Pharazon, who never had children, and Elendil got a daughter that he also never had. They made the gods answer Tar Palantir, made Galadriel help Sauron and be deceived by him, made Galadriel connected to the plot of Numenor and now you guys want to tell me that they cannot change her death? Like, if you guys like her character and this couple, y’all need to really show it to them. To go on the posts and say things about how amazing she is, how you wanted them to change her fate, how it would be amazing to see them (Miriel and Elendil) rule together in Arnor since they’re fighting to change Numenor’s fate and to save the people…it’s not a very difficult task. And I’m gonna say it as someone that has been a part of a lot of fandoms: they won’t change it if they don’t see a commotion. They changed this season to more “book accurate but not really” thing because of the haters. I’m pretty sure there’s this show that they changed the main couple to another because the fans wanted them to be together. And in the books, they didn’t end up together.

So yeah, fight and say something.

[minetteskvareninova]

How Would I Put This For My Non-Slovak Mutuals

Slovakia is going to have elections (premature, I should note, because Matovič is an idiot, see bellow) and by God I am stressed. Our options are as follows:

Progresívne Slovensko (Progressive Slovakia) - They are the, well, progressive party of the Slovak political spectrum. Which means they are the only fucking party that supports the LGBT movement with any consistency. Most of their other proposals are also relatively reasonable; they are interested in protecting the environment, want to improve the sorry state of Slovak healthcare, fight the corruption and so on. Their only two issues are the fact that their leader, Martin Šimečka, is a fucking nerd with the charisma of a wet noodle, and the fact that everyone, and I mean absolutely everyone, even people who theoretically should be on their side on account of not being bigoted Putin-loving dipshits, hates them for absolutely no reason. Well, except for their large preferences, probably. They are the most successful party, or second most successful (depends on how the elections pan out) after...

SMER - Sociálna demokracia (DIRECTION - Social Democracy; yes I know SMER is also short for something but I'm too lazy to look it up right now) - Hoo boy. These guys. How would I even start to explain the sheer amount of baggage these guys carry...? SMER has been in power in 2008-2012 and 2012-2020. And it was a fucking shitshow. Between massive corruption and widespread mismanagement of public resources, you can't help but wonder how the fuck did these people last one term, let alone three?! Don't let the Social Democracy thing in their name fool you, these people aren't really social democrats, they have no ideology beyond getting more votes and avoiding jail. Their leader is Róbert Fico, a literal antichrist whose corruption scandals would make for an exceptionally thick encyclopedia. This man is able to sell his soul to the devil for money and power, but since the devil seems kinda unavailable, he figured Putin is the next best (worst?) thing. His latest strategy for gaining more support is leaning into the fanatical Putin-loving, EU and human rights hating crowd, which in our country is depressingly large. Another memorable personality is Ľuboš Blaha, a tankie extraordinaire whose favourite meal is the sole of Volodya's boot and a steady diet of bathit conspiracies. Remember when Blaha engaged in casual atrocity denial around Bucha, because Pepperidge Farm and Minette's blog remember. https://www.tumblr.com/minetteskvareninova/680859499810177024/this-war-is-horrible-and-itself-would-be-enough

Hlas-SD (Voice-SD) - Most progressives in Slovakia have high hopes for these people. I don't. They are an offshoot of SMER, whose leader Peter Pellegrini has mostly held the line with Fico, but at least seems spineless enough to betray him if it happens to be advantageous enough. They don't really have any kind of concrete politics (most of their program is a vague "we'll make things better" kind of stuff), but at least they don't actively spread hate, so in that way they are able to climb over the low bar that is their mother party. Still, how are these people in the third place of every pre-election survey I will never know. I guess Pelle is just that sexy or whatever.

Obyčajní ľudia a nezávislé osobnosti (Ordinary People And Independent Personalities) - They have been the ruling party since 2020 and much like with SMER, it was kind of a shitshow, just in a different way. Their leader Igor Matovič is less corrupt (mind you, not NOT corrupt) than Fico, but more than makes up for it by being kinda stupid and also a horrendous drama queen whose antics prematurely ended two cabinets, his and Heger's. Tenderly nicknamed "Matelko", he became known for his "atom bombs" of ideas, such as giving out prizes in a lottery that people join by getting vaccinated. Y'know, to increase vaccination rates during the height of COVID-19 pandemic. That's why this whole thing had to be televised, complete with "call to collect your prize" type of deal. For what it's worth, he at least made attempts to fight the corruption of the previous regime; he did it badly, as is his way, but nonetheless. "Independent personalities" here means a bunch of small parties that joined them in this election, because they would have no chance otherwise. They are a pretty diverse bunch, meaning their ranks include, among others, an infamous bigot and fanatical anti-abortion activist Anna Záborská, but they also made my bae Jaroslav Naď a defence minister, so that kinda balances it out. I wouldn't hate it if they managed to get into parliament, I'll tell you that much.

Slododa a Solidarita (Freedom and Solidarity) - Considering Matelko profiles himself as an anti-corruption crusader, you'd think Róbert Fico is his nemesis. You'd be wrong. Fico unfortunately loses that prestigious title to one Richard Sulík, leader of SaS, who is... Eh? Like, he's competent in the questions of economy and in general not in the worst tier of Slovak politicians, but also, he's as much of a libertarian as is possible in our part of the world (which si to say, he's not as bad as an average American libertarian, but still engages in, for example, casual climate change denial) and constantly feuds with Matelko. Again, I don't hate him, but we could do a lot better.

Kresťanskodemokratické hnutie (Christian-Democratic Movement) - They are surprisingly not as bigoted as their name would suggest, but that's because here in Slovakia we are used to levels of homophobia and transphobia that would boggle the mind of an average non-fundie American. They come off as relatively reasonable, but only because one can't help but compare them to Putin kissasses like SMER, SNS and Republika. Which brings us to...

Slovenská národná strana (Slovak National Party) - You know, Stupidest Slovak Politician is a tough contest, so my respect to anyone who is able to win it as decisively as Andrej Danko. This man is like Róbert Fico, if his spirit animal was a sheep instead of a fox (and I say it as someone who has experience with sheep, those motherfuckers are ungodly stupid). He simped for Putin before it was cool, when that particular fanclub was just him and Blaha. He doesn't seem to be able to speak his mother tongue and his constant malaproper speech is the source of many a meme. Which, yes, means that him getting into parliament would be pretty funny. On the other hand, all that fun would probably be somewhat spoiled by the fact that he's ALSO super corrupt, not to mention, y'know, conspiracy-spreading Putin simp and bigot. He also cites Viktor Orbán as his actual, honest-to-God role model. So, an all-around cool dude that I am very happy might be in the next parliament (if Fico wins the election, because naturally these two get on like a house on fire). /s

Republika (The Republic) - I can't believe SMER legit isn't the worst mainstream Slovak party, but I mean, at least they aren't actual neonazis? I mean, Republika does its best to hide their affiliations, but because their leader, Milan Uhrík, is in competition for the second stupidest Slovak politician (the first place, as stated, firmly belonging to Danko), they don't do a particularly good job of that. I mean, Republika is the product of a schism within ĽSNS, who were already infamous for their idiocy (besides, you know, barely disguised fascism), so figures. Milan Uhrík in particular is the man whose most important contributions to Slovak culture were sitting in the European Parliament doing fuck all (did I mention that like most bigots, he also shits on EU constantly?) and the "I am not a historian" meme. Basically, because of the blatant fascist sympathies of his party, including worshipping Jozef Tiso, he was asked to condemn the crimes of the First Slovak Republic (which was basically a Nazi puppet - yeah, Ukrainians aren't the only nation in this region with a shady past, go figure; not that it prevents some people, including Uhrík himself, from spreading the "denazification" bullshit). Uhrík's answer? "I am not a historian". Since then, he has been given several options to revise this opinion. He never took any of them. His agenda is also truly something to behold, like I've never read something as profoundly dumb as the pamphlets where they present it. They don't seem to be as successful as ĽSNS, but that's unfortunately because their schtick was stolen by SMER with the good chunk of their electorate. Still, SMER might actually take them into their coalition, because like goes with the like even if the "like" is bigotry, and lest we forget, there is no God.

Sme rodina (We Are Family) - *sigh* Do I have to? Okay. Sme rodina is yet another conservative party, completely unlike EVERY OTHER PARTY THAT EVER GAINED ANY TRACTION IN THIS COUNTRY PLEASE GET ME OUT OF HERE. Ahem. Its leader Boris Kollár is a businessman who gained something of a memetic status in Slovak showbusiness by being a massive whore and having a fuckton of illegitimate children (the current count is I think 12?). Something of a Slovak Herschel Walker. And just like Herschel Walker, he, the avowed conservative that he is, has been accused of paying for abortions of one of his ex-girlfriends. Which is just a reflection of this guy's general moral consistency. To put it simply, Boris is the biggest Slovak whore. If Fico asked him to join his coalition, you bet your ass he would. He also has associated with people involved in organized crime (just like Fico) and sexted a fifteen year old drug addict. Because, as their billboards state, Sme rodina "protects children". Needless to say, I can't fucking stand this dude just as a person; since he seems to want to be an Isekai hero, I hope he gets hit by a truck.

Demokrati (The Democrats) - They're fine. Their leader is our former short-term prime minister Eduard Heger, whose only flaws were being hopelessly naive and letting Matelko get away with shit he should not have gotten away with. Any people that might be OK with them already vote for Progresívne Slovensko, but maybe they will get enough votes to be eligible for parliament? Maybe??? Their chances aren't high to be honest, but what do you know, miracles do happen.

[jtophat]

My Ponyboy Curtis playlist because I love it, I listen to it quite frequently even when I’m not writing stuff involving him, and want to share it.

Fast Car- Tracy Chapman

Imagine- John Lennon

Dark Days- Punch Brothers

Mama Tried- Grateful Dead (The song is originally by Merle Haggard but I listen to the Grateful Dead version)

East Side of Sorrow- Zach Bryan

hope ur okay- Olivia Rodrigo

Renegades- X-Ambassadors

Everybody Wants To Rule The World- Tears For Fears

Boy In The Bubble- Alec Benjamin

Uptown Girl- Billy Joel

Everybody Knows- Sigrid

Friends In Low Places- Garth Brooks

Winter’s Come and Gone- Charles Wesley Godwin (Song originally by Gillian Welch but I feel like this version fits Ponyboy better)

teenage dream- Olivia Rodrigo

Youth- Daughter

Teenage Dirtbag- Wheatus

Friend of the Devil- Grateful Dead

You’re On Your Own Kid- Taylor Swift

Here Comes The Sun- The Beatles

Tomorrow Will Be Kinder- The Secret Sisters

My reason/analysis for each song is below:

Fast Car- I think the desperation for a better life but the cycle of how life can drag you down and make you live the same lives as the people is something that can relate to Pony. I feel like, deep down, he probably has a fear that things may not work out for him as well as people hope and that he may end up living the same kind of life as the rest of the people in his neighborhood which is why I also think it’s a great song to choose to have as the opener for the playlist. I know Luke Combs has a cover of this song and that it may be the more masculine take on it but I feel like the way Tracy Chapman sings it just has so much heart that it really works for Ponyboy. And plus, Tracy Chapman is my favorite artist so I had to go with her version.

Imagine- I think the song has a bit of a daydreamy kind of vibe that can represent how Ponyboy is described as having his head in the clouds. The song is also a call for peace and unity among people and asks them to imagine a world where what divides them no longer exists which is something that I can see Ponyboy longing for.

Dark Days- The song is about how love getting people through difficult times which is something that I think really works for the Curtis brothers because no matter what they love each other and will do whatever they can to help each other, especially after their parents die.

Mama Tried- I think the song works really well for the vibe of the gang as a whole even if it’s something that may directly relate to Ponyboy. And even if Ponyboy doesn’t get into much trouble I’m sure that he gets into more than his mother would have wanted for him (especially after goes on the run for Bob’s murder)

East Side of Sorrow- I think there is so much about the song that relate to so many people in the story but I’ll try to keep my analysis limited to Ponyboy. I think while when song talks about fighting a war that you don’t even know what your fighting for works well for the metaphorical war between the Greasers and the Socs in the books. It’s been going on long before Pony and will continue long after him and no matter what he will never fully understand it even though he too participates in it. “I lost friends in the August heat” I feel really relates to Johnny and Dally’s death, because it was probably about that time that the book takes place. And when the song talks about losing someone in the waiting room and that the doctor did all the could it really brings home the point about Johnny’s death. The song then mentions walking around the Tulsa streets while feeling fucked up which represent Pony’s depression after the death of Johnny and Dally and how he was aimlessly going through life. I also like how the song specifically refers to the east, and of course the Greasers live on the East side of Tulsa. The song then also talks about the sunrise as a symbol of optimism for the future and the sun imagery really works for Ponyboy. After all, sunrises can’t really be that different than sunsets for him.

hope ur okay- I feel like this is how Ponyboy will look back on the people he knew in Tulsa once he finally moves away. I also like how the song references a towhead blonde which is also similar to how Ponyboy describes Dally.

Renegades- I feel like this song really works for Johnny and Pony running away from Tulsa. Even though it’s a bit optimistic for the events in the book, I still feel like it also works for their friendship too.

Everybody Wants To Rule The World- I feel like Ponyboy would really dig the instrumentals of the song and the references to well, people wanting to rule the world works for the story in an odd way that I can’t quite explain. But the vibe of it just really works

Boy In The Bubble- I feel like the beginning of the song is really reminiscent of how Ponyboy and the rest of the gang will get jumped by Socs but in the end where it discusses the home life of the person who attacked the singer represents Ponyboy gaining an understanding of how things are rough all over Tulsa and that even Socs have problems

Uptown Girl- I feel like once Ponyboy starts liking girls (if he does even like girls because I’m not entirely convinced that boy is straight) he would mainly have a thing for Soc girls. The song is about a lower class boy wanting to get with an upper class girl which is what I can see for Ponyboy in the future.

Everybody Knows- The Greasers have the cards stacked against them and everybody knows this, especially Ponyboy.

Friends In Low Places- I was debating between this and Heathens but this won because it’s country (I feel like the gang would really like country music) and the friends in low places is an obvious reference to the gang. I also think that in a way it shows how Ponyboy is out of place in his classes because he’s a Greaser and there are a lot of Socs in them.

Winter’s Come and Gone- I love the outdoorsy vibe of the song and think that Pony would too. I also like the lyrics “so long now I’ve been out in the rain in snow” because I think it can work as a really interesting way of portraying the gangs struggles and how Ponyboy doesn’t feel like he entirely fits in.

teenage dream- Ponyboy really hates it when people refer to him as being a kid which is a sentiment that I think this song shares. I also think it has a slight desperation to be taken seriously which is something that I also think that Ponyboy relates to.

Youth- It only loosely relates but has lyrics like “if you’re still breathing your the lucky ones” which in a way works because it shows that even things are tough, as long as you’re still alive you’re pretty lucky. Because, as we see in the novel, Greasers tend to die young so those of them who still able to keep on living are pretty lucky.

Teenage Dirtbag- I feel like the title of song is probably a bit about how Ponyboy feels about himself. I also think that song relates a bit to teen who are bit more into counter culture/ may get into a bit more trouble which I think works really well with Ponyboy.

Friend of the Devil- From the title alone I think it works. Ponyboy is friends with a lot of troubled people, and some of them, like Dally, some people probably consider a bit devilish. The song as a whole may not perfectly work with Ponyboy but I feel like the vibe of it does

You’re On Your Own Kid- I feel like this is really a Ponyboy in twenty years looking back at his life/childhood kind of song. And also shows how at the end of the day, and even though the gang wants to help him, the only person who is truly looking out for him is himself. He’s not like the rest of the gang. He’s on his own.

Here Comes The Sun- The song has a really optimistic tone has promises of a better future. It also has a lot of sun imagery

Tomorrow Will Be Kinder: The song is hopeful for a future that is better than the present. I think that is the kind of sentiment that Ponyboy holds onto throughout life, especially during his childhood. I think if he doesn’t develop that kind of outlook he will probably be depressed for most of his life.

Some my analysis for this stuff is better than others and not all songs directly relate to Ponyboy, or even the gang/Greasers, but I think the vibe for each song works.

[dragonologist-writings]

Title: Ashes to Ashes Fandom: Pathfinder: Wrath of the Righteous Rating: T Status: One-Shot Main Characters: Knight-Commander Lilith de Marc, Wenduag Ships: Lilith/Wenduag Additional Notes: Grief, Bittersweet Ending, Devil Mythic Path Word Count: 2.9k Summary:

The Commander is dead, and Wenduag doesn't care. The Commander is dead, and Wenduag cares too much. The Commander is dead, but devils are tricky creatures, and maybe there's something to this 'true love's kiss' thing after all.

read below or here on ao3

The Knight-Commander’s chambers are exactly as she left them. She had always greatly valued her privacy, and even servants were forbidden from entering her quarters. Not that she would have needed the servants, anyway; the Commander had everything ordered and organized entirely to her liking, from the scrolls stacked neatly on her desk to the perfectly smoothed sheets on her bed to the shiny, polished mirror on her wall.

(Wenduag has always hated that calm sense of order, but she had loved being the single exception to her mistress’s rules. Such delight she had taken in tangling those bedsheets, in sweeping papers and trinkets off tables. But it is easier, in this moment, to remember the things she hates.)

Wenduag steps silently into the room, a bottle of booze hanging loosely in one hand as she surveys her surroundings. She’d thought Anevia or Irabeth, at least, would have gone through the Commander’s things by now. But no- the Commander probably left a stack of important documents for them in the war room just in case of this exact situation. Controlling and blunt to the very end.

Personally, Wenduag doesn’t see what the fuss is about. Why should they continue to follow the Commander’s orders now? She’s dead.

The booze burns in Wenduag’s throat as she takes a long drink, and the fire in her stomach helps to steel herself.

(She’d gone drinking with her mistress once, back in Alushinyrra. Before that she’d never seen her mistress imbibe more than a single serving of wine, but that night she went through glass after glass, desperate to drown out the furious whisperings of the aeon in her head.

“This place is all wrong”, she’d claimed, but Wenduag had disagreed.

“This place is perfect. Nothing like the Crusades. We could conquer it all, you and me. You would rule, and I would be your warlord. We would fight for ourselves and nothing else, and there’d be no dying in the name of love or loyalty or any of that nonsense.”

“You’re so full of shit.” Looking back, Wenduag still doesn’t know if it was the alcohol or the aeon or something else entirely, but in that moment her mistress’s face had held a rare, stark honesty. “It’s all nonsense, and we all die. But if I have to die, I damn well better be remembered for it. Isn’t that better than bleeding out in a gutter somewhere without a purpose?”

“Nah, I’ll just live forever. Dying for things is an uplander’s game,” Wenduag had told her, and maybe that was when she should have known.)

“They’re holding a memorial for you,” Wenduag says to the empty room.  She scoffs and takes another swig from her bottle. “You’re getting a statue, too. Right in the middle of the city. There’s going to be a ceremony and speeches and all that garbage. You’d be lapping it all up if you were here right now, you arrogant fool.”

She laughs to herself, short and harsh, and adds, “They’ll all be tripping over themselves trying to figure out how to describe you. I guess that’s the whole point of dying like a hero, huh? Nobody wants to call you out as the bastard that you were.”

(And she was, she really was. Wenduag had never minded- her mistress was strong and cunning and powerful, and a bleeding heart never did a person any good, anyway. The smart uplanders had been of like mind- they needed that power, whatever form it came in- but there were always whispers, whispers that the new Commander was harsh and cruel and cold.

Idiots, the lot of them. They had never seen her in the rush of battle, wreathed in flames and boiling over with righteous fury. They had never known her in the bedroom, all heat and passion and burning touches.

Whatever else Wenduag’s mistress had been, she was anything but cold.)

Wenduag’s booze is starting to run low. She takes another long drink and practically empties the bottle. “I’m not sticking around for all that. I got my fill of stuck-up uplander speeches when you were alive.” She wanders over to the desk, runs a finger across the dusty surface, and with one last swig finishes off he drink.

“But I guess you were good for one thing, at least. Us neathers got our land. We’re moving out tomorrow. The uplanders respect our strength now- and they recognize me as the neathers’ Queen.” Wenduag smiles and does her best to savor the triumph without lingering on the bitterness. “We’re going to make our own legacy, all for ourselves.”

(Just like we said we would, you and I, she almost adds.)

“So, you see, I don’t need you at all,” she says. “I’m strong enough on my own. I never needed you.”

Wenduag turns the empty bottle over in her hand. She doesn’t know why she came up here. The uplanders need to make their bottles bigger. Or their booze stronger. Either way, she should be out celebrating with the rest of her people. There’s nothing left for her in this empty, orderly room.

A blaze rises in Wenduag’s chest, and suddenly she cannot do this anymore. Her fist clenches around the bottle, and in one swift motion she whirls around and hurls it against the Commander’s bedroom wall with all her might.

“You lying bitch!”

Glass scatters across the stone floor, and the destruction satisfies something within Wenduag which the whiskey could not. Without pausing to think, she grabs the Commander’s desk and upends it, sending scrolls, ink bottles, and splintered wood spilling across the room.

“You said you would stay!”

She tears a tapestry from the wall, reveling in the loud ripping sound it makes as she wrenches it down and hurls it into the cold ashes of the fireplace.

“You promised!”

The mirror is next- that damned mirror that gave the Commander so many headaches, that showed her secrets which Wenduag could never understand. There has been nothing magical about it for some time now, but the Commander still kept it polished and pristine. Now Wenduag shatters it with her bare hand, barely noticing how the glass cuts into her skin.

“I hate you!” she shrieks. “You and your power and your purpose and your lies!”

She pulls the sheets from the bed, ready to rip them to shreds- but dammit, they still smell like her, and that scent is like a heavy weight dropped straight on Wenduag’s chest.

(She always smelled like smoke and ash and incense, even before she took the devil’s deal. Wenduag remembers the scent of her filling her lungs as they embraced, when Wenduag had cried and tried to hide it by burying her head in her mistress’s hair.

“I will never abandon you. I promise you that,” her mistress had whispered, and Wenduag knew even then it wasn’t a promise that could be kept, but she’d let herself believe it anyway.)

Her fury dies in her throat, and Wenduag collapses to the floor, the bedsheets still bundled in her hands. She holds them tightly, breathing in the only remnant left of her Commander, and her cut hand is bleeding through the linens-

(Blood on her hands and blood on her lips. “We are connected, now and forever.”)

-but Wenduag doesn’t care. The wound will scar over with time-

(Hands, soft and warm, tracing across her scars. “You’re beautiful, you know. You really are.”)

-and she will live. She will live through the pain and the shattered promises. She will be strong.

But for tonight, for the first time since the closing of the Worldwound-

(a rush of flame, a burst of light, a too-late protest already dying on her lips)

-Wenduag allows herself to break, just a little. She buries her head in the sheets that still smell like her and shakes with silent grief until a fitful sleep finally overwhelms her.

A rush of heat startles Wenduag awake. It takes a moment to orient herself through the remaining haze of drink and exhaustion, and for a moment she thinks it is the roaring fireplace which has disturbed her.

But then she blinks, and her vision clears, and the world shifts beneath her as she recognizes both the figure in front of her and the burning echo in her blood. The name falls from Wenduag’s lips in a desperate, disbelieving breath.

“Lilith.”

It’s impossible, but it’s true- Knight-Commander Lilith stands in front of the fireplace, looking as whole and real as she did just moments before she threw herself into the Worldwound. Her brow furrows slightly- an expression Wenduag knows all too well, the only indication of confusion or hesitation which ever manages to break through the Commander’s guarded exterior. It’s this small motion, so familiar that it aches, which convinces Wenduag this is no illusion or trick standing before her.

“Wenduag.” Her mistress’s voice is low, almost a whisper. “What are you…”

She trails off as she turns slowly to survey the room, and Wenduag can do nothing but drink in the sight of her. The Commander has appeared in her devil form- deep red skin, dark curved horns, eyes that glow like embers. She wears a simple gown, long and black, and her dark red hair falls in a long curtain down her back. All in all, she looks rather too proper and clean for a dead woman- but then, she would, wouldn’t she? Quietly, she takes in the chaos Wenduag has made of her room, turning in a slow circle until her eyes rest on Wenduag once more.

“Why, exactly, has a cyclone been unleashed upon my quarters?”

And just like that Wenduag unfreezes, as the Commander’s voice- haughty and demanding and unapologetically self-interested- breaks whatever spell her sudden appearance had cast upon Wenduag’s senses. She springs to her feet, anger burning away any other coherent thought.

“What are you doing here?!”

The Commander peers down at Wenduag, her voice even as she replies. “I would have thought you’d be happy to see me.”

“Happy to see you?” Wenduag repeats in a snarl. “No- no, you don’t get off that easy! Not after you went off and died and left me! You think you can do that, and then show up again like nothing happened?!”

Her accusation barely seems to faze the Commander, who looks down and smooths the fabric of her gown. She doesn’t even try to rush to her own defense, speaking up only when Wenduag pauses to take a breath. “I had to take care of some other things before I returned. Hell has its own set of rules, and you would not believe the bureaucracy-”

“The bureaucracy?”

And Wenduag can control her rage no longer. She launches herself forward, unsure of what she even intends to do but unable to stand by a moment longer. The Commander sidesteps out of the way, her movement alert and precise as always, but Wenduag is in too much of a rage to leave it at that.

They’ve done this type of dance before, although never quite like this. The Commander dodges Wenduag’s attack once more, twice more, and on the third charge finally stands still and allows Wenduag to grab her arms and pin her against the wall.

Wenduag wants to rip this woman limb from limb. She wants to hold her close and make her swear to never leave her side again. She wants to do both and everything else in between, but now that Lilith is only inches away, Wenduag can only stare. In the silence, her heart races, and she can feel their pulses running in time. Her mistress’s skin burns hot under her hands.

“I did what I had to do,” Lilith whispers, soft but firm. “And then I came back. I’m sorry it took so long. But I promised, didn’t I? I promised I wouldn’t leave you. I keep my promises, Wenduag.”

Wenduag’s hands tremble, her anger crumbling under that stare, and then it all breaks away and her arms tighten around Lilith once more, not in an attack but an embrace. She buries her head in Lilith’s chest and holds her tighter, closer, unwilling to ever let her go again. “I really do hate you sometimes, you know.”

The warmth around Wenduag increases as Lilith returns the embrace, resting her lips against Wenduag’s forehead. “I missed you, too.”

“It’s not really this easy, is it? That you can come back, just like that.”

“Not…exactly,” Lilith admits. “I had a contract, remember? I’m a true devil now. I have a place in Hell, and duties to go with it. I have a realm to rule, and I must return to it. But…”

“But what?”

Wenduag can feel Lilith’s lips curl into a self-satisfied smile. “But we have a contract, too, don’t we? I remember a certain something was promised to me before I went into battle.”

In spite of herself, Wenduag laughs.

(“Kiss for good luck?”

“Disgusting. But…I suppose you can have one kiss. But only when this is all over, and you come back to me.”

The promise feels like it was made ages and ages ago- hopeful words spoken on the precipice of danger, as if the promise could be enough to ward off death. How very Lilith to seize upon those paper-thin hopes and twist them into iron.

Had she known even then? Had she been formulating this all in her head? Wenduag can’t say for sure, but she remembers the victory in her smile as she took in Wenduag’s words. “Fine. It’s a deal.”)

“You slippery devil.”

“A promise is a promise. I held up my end of the bargain.” Lilith tilts her head to trace a line with her lips down to Wenduag’s jaw, pausing on the way to whisper, “But you still owe me that kiss.”

Wenduag’s breath catches as Lilith’s kisses continue down to her neck. Without thinking, she pulls the woman even closer than before, her hands seizing upon that long red hair, and everything else in the world is forgotten as they fall to the floor together. Death has not greatly changed Lilith; she is much as Wenduag remembers, save for the flames that have always lived under her skin which burn hotter now than ever before.

And Wenduag has never been so happy to burn.

Much, much later, when Wenduag and Lilith have finally exhausted themselves and simply lie nestled together in bed, the flames which have been burning lowly in the fireplace blaze high with renewed life. Lilith sighs, and a wave of dread hits Wenduag anew.

“You have to go back, don’t you?”

“I’m a mistress of Hell,” Lilith says by way of answer. “And you’re Queen of the neathers. We both have places to return to.” Her voice carries equal amounts of resolve and regret, and she traces a finger lightly along Wenduag’s cheek. “But I can come back again, if that’s what you want.”

Wenduag grabs Lilith’s hand and holds it in place. “I want you.”

“I’ll give you that. As much as I can.”

“For as long as we have.” It’s not exactly a happy ending, but Wenduag has never expected anything of the sort. This arrangement is far from perfect, but…maybe it can still be good. Maybe even good enough. “Don’t you forget, or I’ll claw my way to Hell and hunt you down myself.”

Lilith smiles- a rare, honest smile, and Wenduag tries to commit that look on her face to memory. “I know you will. But I do have to go, for now.” She glances towards the blazing fire, then back to Wenduag, and her honest smile sharpens into a taunting grin. “Do I get my kiss before I leave?”

Wenduag huffs and cranes her head away. “Hardly. You can collect your debt later.”

“There’ll be interest.”

“I can take that.”

“Deal.” Lilith brings Wenduag’s hands to her lips, pressing a soft kiss against her knuckles. Her teasing voice goes soft as she whispers, “Until next time. I love you.”

It’s not something they say often. Neither of them are made for love, and they know it. But they’ve found it anyway in this strange bond they share, this feeling between them that is twisted and burning and beautiful.

“And I love you,” Wenduag whispers back. She gives Lilith’s hand one last squeeze, then slowly lets her go.

And just like that, her mistress is gone again. The fireplace sits empty and cold, and Wenduag is alone in the sheets that still smell like smoke and ash and incense.

As tempting as it might be to lay there all day, Wenduag pulls herself from the bed and leaves the Commander’s room behind her. She has wasted enough time here; she must be returning to her people and her plans for the future. They are leaving soon, and they are going to make a new world and a new life for themselves. Wenduag will rule over them, and she will see that they achieve every ounce of greatness they deserve.

And wherever they settle down, Wenduag promises herself, she will ensure that throughout the day and for all hours of the night, the fireplace in her quarters will always be kept burning.

[jovesstudyroom]

In That Room (Chapter 1)

Ghost COD x Reader

Slow burn love not for sauce (though it still might take a little)

TW: Gore, violence, sexual stuff (later), and abuse/torture

Y/N is a former army recruit turned investigator trapped by a mysterious and weirdly fatherly war criminal, Morinda. You are locked in a room for three years, in a state of weakness. Task Force 141, with the help of others, breaks in to find Morinda and rescue their men. Ghost breaks down the door to your cell, finding you in chains...

The dark mud-cemented walls around were your home. Time passes so liberally without including you in its ticks. Your captors fail to give you enough food and water, a sick game of keeping you weak yet conscious enough to be used for whatever information they crave. Your hair sticks together in dirty bits, though Morinda would come in sometimes to brush it as you fought against your chains, well when you used to fight. His perfect captive-made daughter, Mira, seems to be your destiny now. Drops of water fall into a plastic bucket in a corner.

“One, two, three, four…”

Before, however long ago that was, you would pull your chains and let the metal bite into your wrists and ankles just to kick over that stupid red bucket. It’s a devil roommate you can’t ignore or stop. Now you count them in groups of four like a song. Your head aches with the beat. All a game from some unknown group. You lay on the floor facing up at an incandescent light that never falters overhead. No point in huddling in a corner. You just want to be free, to murder everybody in here. You imagine the sky, the stars and the moon; the sun on your skin. All you can do is close your eyes and dream… until he comes with more questions that won’t be answered. Why did they think you had all the answers? Electrocution is just a day in the sun now. Something that reminds you you’re alive, though one time your heart stopped. You came to with Morinda over your body, a devilish look of worry spread over his face, you were still his. Morinda never offers death. He “likes your face too much.” The face of his Mira. Your thumb and pointer fingers are bandaged, the nails growing only to be harvested again. Soon they’ll have to kill you.

"No one is coming, so please let them kill me."

The static of silence disperses into heavy footsteps. Maybe this visit… A dream of eternal peace washes over you in preparation. Gunshots. You quit counting. You quit coping. Fear ricochets through your brain like electricity, but you stay down. Eyes closed. Whatever is going down, you can at least be an easy target if lucky.

The sound of doors being busted down sounds around you in tandem with incoherent yelling from two men never heard before. Let them be killers, just killers.

Bang! Bang! Bang!

They reach your door. It falls inwards. Someone enters. Their grave footsteps crunch while more banging takes place down the hall.

“Come in Price,” a deep voice grumbles, softened by a British accent you can’t place.

“Found a prisoner, only female so far, looks about early to mid-twenties. (Y/H/C). Maybe, (Y/H).” The footsteps draw nearer. “Do we have any records?”

He speaks but you can’t comprehend. Everything in your mind is in a frantic fire while your body is useless. Nothing makes sense, you just repeat prayers for release.

Opening your eyes slightly, you are sure Death truly has come. A hulking skull-masked figure towers over you. His head and body are covered in thick fabric, armour, and a large tactical vest. Light shines in behind him. Sunlight.

“Finally,” you murmur. “One, two, three, four…” You keep on in whispers.

“Oh, so you’re alive then?” He looks over his shoulder before crouching down over you.

“I’ve been waiting for you,” you rasp and smile.

“That’s quite the compliment, darlin’. Do you have a name?”

“You should know. It took you enough time to find me on your list.”

“List?”

“If Death is a proper physical being, then what other stories are true?”

“Hell,” he sighs. “Call me Ghost. Just a guy here to get you out.” Ghost quickly brings out a knife from his waist and then grabs your hand, unscrewing the bolts that keep the metal clasped around your wrist. “You’re not dying yet.”

He moves on to the next hand as you speak. “You’re taking me outside? One, two, three, four…” The drips continue, and so do you.

“I’m taking you somewhere safe.”

“I want to be outside.” You want to live in the woods in a burrow under a tree, far away from any person.

“You will be. Now what’s your name?”

“Did you kill them all?” The man moves to your ankles.

“That I don’t know. I've answered your lot of questions, now your turn.”

“Mira…no…no.” What was it again? “Y-Y/N” Saying your name feels awkward, your mouth has lost the feel for it. “One, two, three, four…”

“Come in Price,” Ghost speaks into his earpiece.

“I’ve got a name, (Y/N). She’s in pretty rough shape.”

“Let’s get you up.” A firm arm, thick with tactical clothing, lifts so you sit up. He offers an arm, which you take slowly. Dense muscle gives good support. You can’t help but gaze at his face. Death trying to keep you alive after being so near all this time. Stark white eyes, surrounded by black paint dig into your own as he wraps his arm around your back. You both begin to hobble out… till you see that stupid red bucket. Something snaps in you, maybe reality. It feels animalistic and real. Maybe it’s what you’ve been keeping down so you didn’t fully lose your mind. However, you’re getting out now. You can act. The real world stood out there, and you- you were in here for an eternity being branded, ripped at, and groomed by a man and his overzealous posey. You push yourself away from the man, Death, and shriek.

Your knees crash down onto the cement, and the thin pants give you little help from scrapes. You grab the bucket and start thrashing it at the ground, water exploding.

“Fuck!” You scream and hit the bucket over and over into the ground. You wail like your mother must have when she heard of what happened to you. You wail like the first time you felt chains around your limbs. Crying and heaving till the bucket is nothing but shards of red plastic. Your hand seeks out the sharpest one, it comforts like nothing has in a long time. Quiet resumes in your countenance. You both just need to get out of here.

“Go Price.” Ghost pauses, listening to a short version of your folder they must have at base. “Two years? Fuckin' hell." He looks me up and down. "We are going to extract. I’ll leave the rest to the team. We’re pretty much done over here anyway. Over.”

A giggle escapes you as you go to leave the room. This has to all be some absurd dream. Two years? Ghost makes his way to you, grabbing your arm with his firm hand, but you shrug him off and lean against the wall.

“Listen to me, alright? I know you were trained in the army before going investigator, remember that training. Stay silent, you already caused enough racket to get us killed… and take my fucking arm.”

You grab it and hang on this time. You both go on quickly. Ghost holds his large M4 Carbine, checking corners. Gunshots ring out, but you keep going. The building has broken-class windows and is dusty with sand and wartime fallout. Footsteps your way. Ghost grunts as he pushes you into a side room, shutting off his radio. You two press behind an open door. Ghost towers over, arms on either side of you. You clutch your weapon. He smells like metal and sweat. People pass by, shouting in a language often heard, but never understood.

“Deep breaths,” Ghost whispers. You can see his eyes behind the mask, they are unnerving but calm. A deep breath is forced, in and out.

“One, two, three, four.”

“Move on,” his husky voice commands.

You leave the room and can’t help but look outside. Outside. It shines brightly like a mirage. You count your steps in four quietly. Ghost practically drags your broken body through the clay-coloured hallway. A flash of metal glints outside behind a broken-down car. You pull him down.

“What the-” Gunshots ring out from over us as you both kneel on the floor, looking both ways and at each other. “Quick eye.”

“Lucky,” you respond.

The two of you crouch-walk along the floor, a movement hard on your tired body. You pant, already exhausted. “Come on just a little way further,” he says.

Windowed walls end and it's a straight shot to the stairs. You go for it but are stopped by two men. Ghost quickly shoots one. The other man charges him, grabbing the barrel of his gun, and readying his own small pistol. It all happens quickly. You know that man’s face, clear in the background smiling while shocks rippled through your whole being. He doesn’t even pay you any regard now. Your hand tightens around the sharp piece of plastic from the bucket. This violence is quiet. You move swiftly from behind Ghost as he pushes the attacker off. You raise your arm and jump on him, toppling him to the ground. A bullet goes off from his gun. The large shard in your hand comes down and punctures his neck with all vengeful strength. The man's eyes go wide. He grabs at his throat while you remove the piece. Blood spurts out, spraying everywhere. You’re in shock for a short moment, but everything snaps back like an elastic band. Warm liquid runs over you as you wipe your mouth. Metal can’t help but be tasted.

“Jesus Christ.” Ghost stares at you. You wait for ostracization, but Ghost cuts the tension with: "I can’t judge too hard, you saved my skin… though I didn’t need it.”

“I need a fucking cigarette” You rasp while wiping your face. Why would you ever care what he thought? A wave of dizziness succumbs you as you collapse. The moment of adrenaline is starting to pass, and that last pounce took all you had.

“Common,” Ghost tries to pull you up. You try, but find your limbs in a state of cold sleep. You shake before collapsing again. Without a moment to waste, Ghost scoops you up in his arms. Your head rests against his bulky vest, vision slightly blurry. “Stay with me (Y/N).” The smell of him, of the earth you have almost reached is the only sense intact. You feel your body beat against his chest as he moves. Ghost rushes down the stairs to the entrance.

Light fills your vision, you didn’t even realize your eyes were closed until now. You see Ghost's concerned eyes look down at you before scanning the environment. “Keep your eyes open, sweetheart.” He ducks behind a car, breathing heavily now that he also has to carry you. Beyond him is a light blue-grey sky with sparse clouds. Dusk or dawn? you can’t tell yet. The wind picks up, it's fresh and cool. From there it’s a blur until you both meet up with an armoured jeep with a gunman on top. We made it, hopefully.

[possiblylando]

Chainsaw Man Chapter 131 'Early' Analysis.

Bit later than usual with this one cause- I didn't feel like writing it earlier- Feels like a cheep excuse but whatever.

It's really interesting seeing the contrast between the two confirmed Primordials. Darkness doesn't speak a language we can understand but it still speaks. It seemed like a hyper intelligent beast which acted on a type of intelligent impulse almost like majin buu. Who I could make an entire post talking about the intelligence and mentality of because of how people misunderstand him. But I'll not do that for now since this is about Chainsaw Man. However Falling completely juxtaposes Darkness because she's basically it's polar opposite. Not fear wise but personality and the way she conducts herself. This panel is the one that really cemented it in my mind because this is her showing the ability to reason. It's weird- She's weird right? She's brutal but not cruel. She's willing to let her previous rule slide because the situation has changed. She doesn't immediately kill the devil (WHO'S NAME WE NEVER LEARN GOD DAMN IT FUJIMOTO) because it didn't finish it's meal. Also their designs which I feel I've pointed out before but I don't wanna look back for if I did or if it was in a specific post.

They're completely different but they share motifs between eachother. I'll go through some of those cause I didn't actually put them together until I was writing this so I feel it's an observation that you guys also might want to hear. 1. They both have several extra arms. 2. They both have dismembered heads as apart of their body. 3. Their arms are double jointed. (Shown Below)

I feel these are going to be reoccurring themes throughout most (maybe even all) of the primordial devils we see. Additionally this isn't a full on pattern but it seems like a Primordial appears roughly every 60 chapters. Darkness first appeared in 65, Falling first appeared in 122 (Full appearance in 123). Back to the chapter itself.

I find it interesting that Falling begins to bleed more profusely when she gets upset. Based on what I've previously said and what we saw at the end of the chapter it's possible her degree over this overworld vessel lessens and thus it's bleeding begins to worsen when she grows upset. Like it requires a degree of concentration to keep together. Which I think is interesting but will likely not be the key to winning any singular fight. Falling nukes the UNNAMED DEVIL and we get the weirdest scene in awhile.

This scene answers 1 question. Yet it raises several more. So let's lightning round it. 1. Why did falling take orders from Famine? 2. Why did her vessel turn into a weird shrunken doll? 3. Uh- Actually no thats- Thats it. Huh. So less questions than I thought and more like just one question. Huh. well key things. I think this is what Falling's truest hell form (Like Darkness) looks like.

It would fit more with the primordial sort of warped appearance we've seen before. It's also the form she appeared in 122 and the beginning of 123 as. So I feel pretty confident in that assumption.

The silly girl is back.

Fucking smugass dickhead smirk she's so fucking good

So this is- Weird right? Nayuta definitely has the ability to identify other Horsemen since she was able to sniff out Famine instantly. So she must know about Asa and Yoru in some vague sense. I guess having that confirmation also sorta shifts that end of chapter reveal. Yeah remember "Thief." it probably wasn't just about Denji having a girlfriend but Nayuta not wanting another Horseman to steal Denji from her. Also it's interesting that aside from War (Maybe), All the horsemen we've seen up until this point have been somewhat benevolent. Ah- Maybe not- Okay lemme rephrase. They've been on the side of humanity. Makima despite being- Makima, She was still trying to aid humanity in her own twisted way. Now Famine is trying to save humanity from the apocalypse in her own twisted way. It's possible that Yoru wants nuclear weapons so she can save humanity from destruction- In her own twisted way. And lemme also make this prediction now. The final horseman will also be trying to save humanity in their own twisted way. (I'm still not making a claim on what the final horseman could be I've elaborated on it in the past if you're a true fan of these you'll know the basic gist Tl;Dr there have been several 4th horsemen in history depending on the source).

This was pretty funny honestly. Nayuta's arm is drawn sorta weird which is abit distracting cause it's the only thing I can stare at now that I've seen it. It doesn't really detract and it's a weekly manga so I can't really complain that much either. Also that girl in the back the one with white hair reminds me of Snake Girl from part 1.

No shot they're actually related in anyway tho- This chapter actually only has low quality faces in the final school drawing so no need to compile them this week. So instead Nayuta silly compilation.

She really is just Power if she wasn't Racist. Okay- Listen- We don't have confirmation that Nayuta isn't racist. But she would have to pick that up herself since I doubt Denji would teach her to be racist because Denji isn't racist.

[bottlepiecemuses]

One Piece Shows Even If You Topple The Celestial Dragons There Could Be Other Types Of Tyrants To Take Their Place

As One Piece shows in the series, the world is under a dictatorship that is run by a tyrannical king who is hinted to be hundreds of years old and hides in the shadows so no one really knows that there is really a true ruler with puppet agents following his orders. All under the rule of Imu through the world government we see systematic oppression and authoritarian practices seen as normal by the people of the world or weakly excused as a price to pay to have any sort of peace. And the emphasis in the story is that this is an unfair system and that one day they will finally topple. However, despite all of this I do think there is another theme that comes with how tyranny stinks.

It's the fact that who can replace a corrupt system if it was finally out of power. When you look at the pirate side you see many figures like Kaido and Big Mom who are offered as an alternative authority for people who seek protection. Despite the fact they themselves are in conflict with the world government, it doesn't mean they would bring the dawn to the world and end the darkness.

First we have Big Mom who espouses equality and peace among all people and lets her subjects eat in a land of plenty. However, despite her claims of being a kind, just ruler the reality is more bittersweet on the surface. Big Mom at heart is an overgrown child who never truly grew up and as a result she has a self-centered view of things where everything she does is good and those who don't obey her are bad. As a result, she endorses ruthless methods to get people to comply what she wants like forcing them join her tea parties or have a loved one killed. Or the fact that those who try to leave her crew have to give up their life or appendage like the case with Pedro. There is the most galling fact that she makes the population give a portion of their lifespan to fuel the homies that litter the land or make them be exiled. It's really is a deal with the devil where everything seems grand on surface, but it's really shitty underneath the surface. It has the face of kindness but the hands of a tyrant that strangles you if you don't do what you claim. It's barely better than what the world currently has where the world nobles are overgrown royal brats who demand everyone cater to their needs and never return the favor.

Interesting enough Kaido as well speaks about equality and merit for all based on strength. Unlike Big Mom, he doesn't emphasize peace but war and thinks it's the true equalizer and endorses anarchism. However, as seen in Wano this also leads to a form of tyranny through might makes right. Those who are stronger can easily overpower those who are weaker. This as as a result leads to just as much of a world of bullies like the World Nobles who trample everyone they think as inferior and exploit those who can't fight back. It would be just another world where the weak have no voice and they will always be trampled by the ruling class. In this case, it would be the warrior class instead of the noble class who wouldn't act any different. The world would know no peace and everyone would be fear for their lives like in Wano under his 20 year rule. It is why he doesn't become the new joyboy because he becomes another tyrant that stamp on the freedoms of others while saying he is bringing up equality.

And that is where Luffy comes into the picture because unlike those other two he's actually someone who liberates whoever he goes without conditions or drawbacks. Even though Luffy never intended to be a hero, he always manages to still make the world a better place because when he sees injustice he knows and emphasizes with the suffering people go through. He might not do it out of selfless heroism but he does show gratefulness by returning a small favor by liberating them from whatever oppressor a new friend is under. Luffy ultimately is the perfect counterpart to those who would be just as bad as the government if they were truly in charge. It is for that reason he's the new Joyboy because he understands the importance of freedom and that someone who doesn't undrestand that is no different than the world government.

[kobeniliker]

HI HELLO HOLY HECK THE. NEW CHAINSAW MAN CHAPTER!!! (122)

I wrote a lot of stuff (long post) and there are major spoilers for the new chapters! The actual analysis/commentary/screaming abt the new chapter is under the cutoff.

Aside from the confirmation of Yoshida knowing more things that he probably shouldn’t, there’s a LOT of other stuff to go through. I am increasingly surprised by the biblical symbolism in csm! here's where my years of being forced to attend catholic school and bible study can really shine, lmao.

Let’s start with this:

Nostradamus was a real dude! (Wikipedia page for more info)

He lived in France around the 16th century, and he did write predictions of future events.

The prediction referenced in the new chapter IS one of his predictions, but it is not the full prediction!!!

The full prophecy is this:

“ The year one thousand nine ninety-nine seven month

From the sky shall come a great King of terror,

[Shall be] revived the great King of Angoulmois.

Before and after, Mars [shall] reign as chance will have it.

(Century X, No. 72) “

I don’t know about the fourth line, but the last line. “Mars shall reign”. Mars in Roman mythology is associated with war, literally being the god of war, and Mars generally has a connection to war in western culture. 

And Asa Mitaka just so happens to meet/be the host of the War Devil. 

It’s unclear exactly why Yoru wants to revive nuclear weapons devil. Likely because their revival would make Yoru more powerful, but Yoru seems very childish and immature, so I think it’s also possible that she and Nuclear Weapons were possibly friends? Since devils do seem to tolerate/desire relationships, as seen with Angel Devil and his village, and Quanxi’s fiend girlfriends. A lot of fiends seem to want and seek out relationships with others, platonic/familial/romantic, whatever (Power, Violence, Beam). There are also some that don’t, as in they just do not care (Prinzi) or are only interested in murder and crime (Also Power and Beam, but only before their character arcs). There are also those that want relationships but cannot have them, as seen with Makima and Pochita. Interesting! Could be a reach on my part, but there is definitely something odd about the timing of the prophecy and Yoru deciding to come to Earth and reveal herself to Asa.

Yoru does not seem like a very capable ruler, which is also somewhat weird if this prophecy is to be fulfilled. She will rule “before and after”, but while right now is presumably ‘before’, Yoru has basically been stuck to a depressed high school girl. Yoru does have power and we have seen her fight before, she seems to love fighting. But in this chapter she runs away.

Not very leader-like in my opinion! However. She also literally has a giant ruler sword at the moment. 

I mean. Technically I guess you could say she is ruling?? The whole prophecy is really weird, and could have a lot of meaning in the context of chainsaw man. But I’m going to move on from that for now!

Yoshida Hirofumi, my beloved! Knowing things he shouldn’t and being in places he has no business being! He knew about Famine Devil, but it also seems that Fami didn’t really keep her identity a secret anyways. He knows she’s a powerful horseman devil, and he’s taking her out to eat at a cafe, once again paying for everything she orders. 

How does he have so much money? How did he know she was the Famine Devil? It’s possible he is just a weird dude. Love that for him! 

But how did he know about the prophecy? About the experiment with the prisoners and the Future Devil? He seems to be working with public safety now, but why tell Denji he has a private organization? In any case, the prophecy seems to have some merit, and Fami does know some things about it. He asked, and Fami told him. He did threaten her, but why would a powerful horseman devil be afraid of some highschooler with an octopus devil contract? 

We can’t see her face, but we know she isn’t lying. We know because Asa is there at the apartments, and there is a powerful devil that just appeared there, so powerful that Yoru refused to fight it.

As for this devil, we know it is a primal fear, but not its name. Did the chainsaw devil eat her and her name is forgotten? Or is it just a purposeful omission? In any case, I think there are a few likely possibilities for the name this devil has.

This devil is presumably the first of the “The other seven” who will die this week. In the bible, there are a lot of apocalyptic sevens! We have:

The 7 bowls

The 7 seals

The 7 trumpets

I don’t think it’s the trumpets or bowls, but a case can be made for the seals. The breaking of one seal causes the appearance of the next. Interestingly, the first four seals represent the four horsemen. The first seal releases the horseman of conquest. (Sound familiar?)

Next is war, then famine, then death. This could be the death devil? She does have the power to make people kill themselves, so it would make sense and explain why Yoru was afraid of her. It could also be sacrifice or apocalypse, but personally I think Death makes the most sense.

The fifth and sixth seals cause various people to die and natural disasters. The seventh seal triggers silence, in preparation for the sounding of the 7 trumpets. In summary, the first three trumpets cause bad stuff to fall to earth and poison 1/3rd of all seawater and freshwater, as well as burning up 1/3rd of trees and all green grass. The fourth trumpet causes complete darkness, by getting rid of the sun, moon, and stars. 

The next three trumpets are also known as the three woes.

The fifth trumpet causes a star to fall and opens a bottomless pit with a key it has been given, which releases these weird bug lion monsters instructed to torment (but not kill) all who do not follow God.

The sixth trumpet causes four angels to descend, leading a large battalion of soldiers whose lion-snake-horse steeds carry plagues that kill 1/3rd of humanity.

The seventh trumpet causes loud voices in the heavens to praise God.

I think the “King of Terror” the prophecy refers to will be Chainsaw Man, or maybe just Pochita/The Chainsaw Devil in his full form. I also think that his presence will somehow result in the devils being released from Hell, and Chainsaw Man becomes God or something. I do not know! It certainly seems ominous though!

This is all I can piece together for now, a lot of this stuff could be wrong, but the parallels are certainly interesting! 

My thoughts in summary:

The prophecy mentioned is real and will happen (in chainsaw man)

Yoru/The War devil will gain a lot of power

Alternatively she will become some sort of leader, or maybe her role will have something to do with literal rulers…?

Yoshida is WEIRD!!!!!!!!! (nothing new there)

Fami gave him the information he wanted despite having (seemingly) no reason to do so other than being threatened by Yoshida

Fami didn’t even TRY to mess with Yoshida, but she was perfectly fine manipulating Asa and Yoru/The War Devil

The devil in the apartments is (probably) the Death Devil

Apocalypse time!

[droppingartintotheinfinite]

watched the first episode of the live action atla adaptation and took notes:

-what is this opening. who are these people. am i expected to care about this random earth kingdom man because i really don’t

-opening fight is kinda meh :/

-sozin looks weirdly… nice? like he has “harmless old man” vibes. i don’t actually dislike this casting choice i think there’s a lot of potential to having him look friendly and approachable even as he does war crimes

-seriously did someone in the writer’s room watch rogue one before coming in and then go like “HEY I KNOW WHAT WE SHOULD ADD” WHAT is this plot doing here

-where is katara’s opening narration. like i get they aren’t adapting one to one but that’s such a loss. the opening cutscene from the original series was so good

-WHERE THE FUCK IS THE GAANG SERIOUSLY. WHY ARE WE STARTING WITH RANDOM EARTH KINGDOM MAN AND SOZIN

-all of these people are so fucking sweaty what is this

-sozin’s outfit is appropriately fuckable

-“my sights… are set… higher… because… it is… our time…” “[screaming]” wow very emo

-KATARA IS HERE!! MY BEST GIRL

-why did they change the narration. this is objectively worse.

-oh no this isn’t katara is it… dang :(

-air temple looking neat. why are we here tho. where are katara and sokka

-why is everyone watching aang jumping around like he’s a fucking celebrity. have they never seen an airbender before in the fucking air temple

-at least they say aang’s name right. step up from shamalalalam or whatever his name is. of course that bar is so low the devil declared it a tripping hazard, so

-these people do NOT talk like actual humans. have these writers never had to write natural exposition before

-genuinely what was the point of that first scene. WHAT does it add

-“when yangchen died the next avatar was born into the water tribe” what, does aang not know this. my fucking god this exposition is shit

-aang didn’t know he was the avatar?? and then didn’t immediately get an ego about it when gyatso told him??? who is this and what did you do with my BOY

-the acting isn’t bad but the lines are so shit it’s hard to tell

-aang is NOT sufficiently goofy

-appa’s kind of ugly :(

-TEAM ROCKET’S BLASTING OFF AGAIN (<— my unfiltered reaction to sozin going jetpack mode)

-unnecessary airbender fight scene. i think this is literally just here to look cool and honestly? 6/10

-aang just fuckin… wandered off? instead of willfully running away? bro you can’t take my boy’s agency like this

-i want a video of appa’s va making those noises into the mic. come on netflix do it it’ll be funny

-WHY is everything so WET all the time

-20 minutes in and i have yet to see the south pole. literally none of this is necessary to the story. you could cut all of it and nothing would change

-HERE SHE IS. FINALLY. IT’S HER

-no funny boat scene with sokka? insert no bitches megamind here

-oh they still have a boat scene. unfortunately it sucks ass

-WHERE IS PISSED OFF KATARA DECIMATING AN ICEBERG BY ACCIDENT

-seriously. they’re removing all the good scenes to fit more unnecessary action and/or melodrama filler in

-shitty zuko cameo

-WHAT is that scar. why is it so small. did he fall and get a scrape on his face? looks more like a scab than anything. 2/10

-baffling why the iceberg even reacted to katara when she’s apparently so fucking incapable she can’t even lift a water orb. they’re massacring my girl

-why does sokka want to leave this random child to die

-kanna!

-“it can’t be… this… is an airbender…..” i am rolling my fucking eyes

-iffy on this iroh so far but i’ll reserve judgement

-tumblr was right. zuko’s actor is absolutely putting his whole pussy into this. he can have rights

-how are NONE of these jokes landing. even the ones they directly crib from the original just… lose all impact

-why is kanna saying the intro dialogue randomly with no prompting. seriously these writers are SO. FUCKING. SHIT

-every emotional beat in this comes off more wooden than a fucking tree

-seriously. everything i could say about this just boils down to the wooden writing, unnecessary and poorly executed exposition, the action scenes shoehorned in for no discernible reason, inability to create any impact from anything ever, and the removal of all the good scenes from the original in favor of more unnecessary poorly written TRASH

-oh one more thing actually

-AANG TEACHES KATARA TO WATERBEND. GET OUT??

-basically

-they took all the good stuff out to fit in more melodrama and action, but their writing (and directing. and acting) is too shitty to actually sell said drama and their fight scenes are mid at best

-3/10

[blackhakumen]

Mini Fanfic #1186: Jailhouse Bros. (Tekken 8)

5:34 p.m. at Urban Square's Police Station.......

'Sound of a Cell Closing Shut'

Jin: (Sighs While Sitting on One Side of the Long Seat He's Sharing with Hwoarang) I knew I should've kept riding by and ignore you when I still had the chance.....

Hwoarang,: (Lounging Around on the Other Side of the Seat) Don't be such a drama queen, Kazama. I always ended up coming here more times than I can even try to count. You'll get used to your stay eventually.

Jin: (Rolls his Eyes) With you as my cell mate, my doubts are measurable

Hwoarang: (Glares at his Rival) Hey, I am treat to be around! At least compared to your smart ass.

Jin: (Raises an Eyebrow) Is that so? Then, why would a "Treat" like you, go out of your way to help me during the war?

Hwoarang: (Scoffs While Crossing his Arms Together and Turning Away) Isn't it obvious? You were literally the one and only key we have to save the world from pure chaos, so it's no brainer for any of us that we decided to work with you. It seems like you needed the help too considering how out of it you've been feeling lately.

Jin: ('Sigh') You're not completely wrong with that observation. Despite everything, It's honestly a miracle that I was able to pull through till the very end. I don't even think I'd still be here right now if weren't for you and everyone else's help, so.....(Smiles at Hwoarang a Bit) Thanks for that. Truly.

Hwoarang: (Lazily Waves at Jin) Yeah, whatever. Speaking of which.....(Slowly Turns Back to his Rival) How are you feeling now after you fought your old man alone? You didn't really......you know.....

Jin: No. I spared him. Risky move on my part, but I'd rather not continue the cycle of trying to kill one another any longer, no matter how much he deserves it. But on the bright side, neither of us have the Devil Gene anymore, so he probably won't do much other than trying to punch me really hard.

Hwoarang: (Snickers a Bit) I bet he ain't happy about that one bit-

A loud scream of a very long "NOOOO!" Is suddenly heard from outside echoing inside the very police station, ringing both of the boy's ears.

Hwoarang: ............('Clicks Teeth') Case in point. We're never gonna hear the end of it, are we?

Jin: (Rolls his Eyes) Considering how vengefully insane he is, I doubt we'll hear the last from him anytime soon. (Takes a Bit of a Deep Breath) But it's fine. I'll be ready to take on as many times as he wants to fight. I'm through running away from my problems.

Hwoarang: (Simply Nodded with a Small Smile on his Face) Good. (Starts Smirking Now) I'd hate to kick your grumpy ass again.

Jin: (Scoffs While Smirking Back at Hwoarang) Again? Last I checked, I've beaten you twice already. In the ring and on the road.

Hwoarang: Okay, first off, you only gotten lucky on that fight. Let's not sit here and forget that I was molly whopping your ass in the first half of the match, okay? And second, like fucking hell did you beat me in that race! I was on the lead ever since the very moment we started and you know it!

Jin: What I know is that I had far more of a chance of winning it all than you could ever hoped of accomplishing.

Hwoarang: (Went Back to Glaring at Jin) Careful, Kazama. We may be cooped up in this small cell, but you ain't too far off from another kicking session.

Jin: You're more than welcome to try. I'll dodge every. Single. One.

?????: Alright, that's enough outta you two for the night.

The duo turns to see the officer waking by their cell along with an older man with dreads, walking with a cane.

Officer: 'Specially now that you have this gentleman gracious enough to bail both your hides outta here.

Jin: (Instantly Recognizes the Old Man Along with Hwoarang) It's you.

Hwoarang: Old Man Smith!?

Leroy: In the flesh. I ain't the only one here to get you out though.

Leroy's puppy, Sugar, happily sticks her head out on the left side of the cell, letting out a bark, while the person carrying her, Xiaoyu, slowly sticks her head out as well. And yeah......she does NOT look happy in the slightest.

Hwoarang: (Stares at Xiao's Glare Towards him and Jin)............('Clicks Teeth') You know, I don't really mind staying in here for a bit longer actually-(Starts Walking Back ti his Seat)

Jin: (Immediately Grabs Hwoarang by the Back of Gi Collar Before Dragging him Out of the Cell) Come on, before she comes over and kill you in there.

Hwoarang: GAH- Hey!

Moments Later Outside of the Station.......

Xiaoyu: (Walking Out of the Police While Scolding her Two Boys with Her) ('Groans') I can't believe you two! We JUST ended a whole wide war against G Corp and yet here you guys are getting yourselves arrested over a dumb motorcycle race!

Jin: In my defense....(Points at Hwoarang Next to Him) He's the one who challenged me to race him in the first place.

Hwoarang: (Comically Glares at Jin) Oh, so we're snitching now then!? (Angrily Points at Jin) You accepted the damn challenge!

Jin: True. But I wasn't the one trying to kick me in the middle of the road.

Hwoarang: Well, maybe if you weren't hogging my space, I wouldn't hafta kick that much- (Felt Someone Slapping him on the Arm) ('Smack') Ow! (Turns to Xiaoyu) Why did you hit me?

Xiaoyu: (Pouts at Hwoarang) Because, Hwo, you can't go around kicking people you like in public. Especially if one of them happens to be our very own boyfriend!~

Jin: And here I thought you loved me.

Hwoarang: (Turns Back to Jin) Oh shut your trap already, Kazama! You know damn well I still love your ass to pieces! (Turns Away While Pouting and Blushing a Little) You just get on my nerves sometimes.....(Points at Xiaoyu) Same goes for you too, shortie!

Xiaoyu: (Smirks a Bit) Quit getting yourself and Jin into so much trouble and maybe I'll consider getting off of your case for the rest of the year.

Jin: Don't bother, Xiao. (Smirks as Well) Knowing him, it'll only last a few weeks until he ends up back in the slammer.

Xiaoyu: Nah. I'd give him four days tops at most.

Hwoarang: (Comically Glares at His Boyfriend) Hey, have some faith in me at least, you assholes!!

Xiaoyu: Bit what kinda partners we'd be if we didn't give you little hard time?~

Hwoarang: Normal ones maybe!!

Leroy: (Chuckles Lightly While Walking Sugar on a Leash) Those two never gave you an ounce of break, huh boy?

Hwoarang: (Groans While Facepalming Himself) Ohhhh you don't even know the half of it.....But hey, gramps?

Leroy: (Turns to Hwoarang) Hm?

Hwoarang: How's Master been doing in hospital? If you don't me asking.

Leroy: Baek's doing just as fine as he always been. 'Kept asking about you a lot these days, said you need to visit him more. I didn't tell 'em about you getting locked up today, so you don't have to worry on that front.

Hwoarang: ('Sighs in Relief') Thanks, gramps.... The last thing I wanna do is make him have another heart attack.

Xiaoyu: (Starts Gushing Up Over her and Jin's Boyfriend) Awwww~ You're still worried about your dad, Hwo?~

Jin: Guess the Street Punk really does have a heart after all.

Hwoarang: ('Scoffs') Oh piss off. I've always had a heart.

Jin: Then why don't you show it off that often?

Hwoarang: Cuz unlike you nerds, I have an actual reputation to maintain.

Leroy: (Raises an Eyebrow) Of being a hoodlum?

Hwoarang: (Forms a Cocky Smirk) The Strongest Hoodlum that ever lives.

Jin: (Gives Hwoarang a Deadpinned Look Along with Everyone Else) Right....

Xiaoyu: You're impossible sometimes.

Leroy: No wonder why your old man been stressing over you....

Sugar: ('Whimpers')

Hwoarang: (Comically Glares at Everyone) Again! Piss off, all of you!!

@cyber-wildcat

@ma-lemons

@caleb13frede

@albion-93