#so yeah….I was not able to actually work on her goals most of the time…especially as the semester progressed

[seokshinedk]

Today was a bit of a rough day, but the most important part is that it is over & it’s time to move on

[alwritey-aphrodite]

here’s my submission for the fall coffee house put together by @goodwithcheese and @jolapeno - im not gonna lie i have no idea where this came from but its the longest thing ive written in literal months so enjoy!

Pairing: Frankie Morales x fem!reader

Word Count: 1.2k

Warnings: none :) except that i didn’t proofread lmao

You’ve always been a planner, always had goals for your future, dream boards and five year plans and a list of things to accomplish before you turned thirty. None of those ever included feeling so claustrophobic in what was supposed to be your dream job that you packed everything up and moved away and got a job at a coffee shop. Your life is far from terrible, and you’re quite happy with your choices, but you know if you were somehow able to tell past you where you would end up at twenty seven, she would have spit in your face.

The coffee shop you work at is wonderful, especially now that autumn is in full swing, because it’s almost absurdly cozy and warm. You’re able to wear whatever you want, craft playlists, design menu boards, and spend all day talking with regulars and newcomers alike. Even if it wasn’t where you imagined you would end up, you couldn’t be happier. Especially when an incredibly attractive single father starts to frequent during your shifts.

Isabel and Frankie Morales are nothing short of delightful. The pair of them are absurdly polite, which is especially adorable on the kindergartner, and Frankie is a generous tipper. Before, they had come in every Friday when he picked Isabel up from school for a cookie to split, but now that the weather has turned, they come in most days around two for hot chocolates. Most of the time they retreat to a booth, but on busy days, Frankie helps his daughter onto one of the high top stools along the counter before sitting down next to her, giving you the perfect opportunity to watch and listen to their conversations, still a little scared to actually speak to him beyond the small talk when you take their order.

Today, it’s raining, pouring really, and the shop is mostly empty, the students who normally hunker down for study marathons nowhere to be seen and even most of your regulars hadn’t bothered to show up, choosing to stay dry at home rather than brave the elements for their coffee fix. Your boredom grows with each hour that passes, but then the bell above the door rings to life, and Frankie and Isabel hurry inside, an umbrella trailing behind.

“It’s raining really hard,” Isabel says, trudging up to the counter and leaving her father behind to deal with shaking out the umbrella to keep it from dripping. Normally, she’s glued to her father’s side, but maybe she feels safer with the emptiness of the shop.

“Yeah it is,” you agree with the girl, trying not to laugh as she attempts to stretch herself tall enough to see you over the counter, and you compensate by leaning forward on your elbows, “I didn’t think you guys were going to show up.”

“We were already wet, what’s the worst that could happen,” Frankie says as he approaches the counter himself, umbrella sufficiently dry.

“And I really needed a treat,” Isabel adds, sounding so much like an adult trapped in a toddler’s body you can’t help the giggle that escapes you.

“Oh, yeah? What happened?”

“Don’t get her started,” Frankie mutters, and you laugh again, calming your giggles as Isabel clears her throat.

She launches into a story about recess and reading spots and lunch tables, and it’s hard to keep it all straight, but you nod along all the same, sympathizing with the exhaustion of being a little girl.

“That sounds rough,” you say when she finally finishes her story, and she nods sagely, causing you to fight against your giggles again, “how about I make you an extra special hot chocolate, hm? Would that help?”

“Yes please!” Isabel’s eyes light up, her little frown replaced with a gap-toothed grin.

“Same for you?” You ask Frankie, even though you know he’ll refuse.

“Just a black coffee for me, please.”

You ring them up for a small black coffee and a small regular hot chocolate, even though you give them both larges and you add flavoring and toppings to Isabel’s drink. Instead of slipping into one of the many open booths, they take a spot at the counter, and your heart expands to an impossibly large size. Handing over their drinks, you place a plate of cookies in front of them too. They’re all Halloween and fall themed, and you’d spent the better part of the afternoon decorating them with more care than necessary, simply because you had the time. Frankie starts to shake his head, but you’re one step ahead of him.

“Please, just take them. They’ll all go to waste otherwise, no one else is gonna come in.”

“You should take them, then,” he counters, not giving in.

“C’mon, I’ve eaten about ten of these bad boys today already, and I’ve got a box full of pastries set aside for when I leave. Take the damn cookies,” you’d normally never use that language with a customer, but it’s dead besides the two of them and you’re grinning so you don’t think he’ll take offense.

A smile blooms on his face even as he shakes his head at you, and he takes two cookies from the plate, one for himself and one for Isabel, who looks like the happiest girl in the world now that she has cookies to add to her ginormous hot chocolate.

It’s dark by the time they get ready to leave, and you feel a little awful, like you’ve kept them trapped with you when they could have a million things they needed to do all because you were a little bored.

“Thanks for keeping me company,” you say, a little sheepish as Frankie helps Isabel back into her raincoat, which is difficult because she refuses to part with the cookies you’d boxed up for them to take home.

“We should be thanking you, for the cookies and the company,” he counters, pausing in his struggle to smile at you. You smile back, but then Isabel is tugging on his sleeve and pulling him down to her level. She whispers at him, and they’re a little too far for you to hear, so you just busy yourself with wiping down the already spotless counter until Isabel clears her throat rather dramatically and you turn your attention back to the pair with a gentle smile.

“You know, these are a lot of cookies for only two people,” Frankie starts, and you’re getting ready to argue with him, thinking he’s trying to get out of taking them again when he continues, “maybe we should split them three ways? And we can make you hot chocolate for a change?”

It takes you a second to figure out what he means, but when he does, there’s no stopping the smile that overtakes you, and you’re so beyond happy you can’t even speak for a minute.

“I’ll be done here around six,” you reply once you can form words again, and Frankie’s smile is so gorgeous it threatens to eliminate that ability all over again, “if you’re not already sick of me.”

“I could never get sick of you,” he responds, and if you weren’t already a complete goner, you definitely are now.

[naddiesflower]

hi there, may i request hcs w dabi, aizawa & toga w a gn s/o whos very flirty and talkstive but when someone flirts back their brain just shuts down and they instantly become a flustered mess?🤭

*rises from the dead and drops this very very late*

Dabi

I feel like Dabi wouldn’t flirt back immediately 

But he wouldn’t outright ignore you

if anything he would entertain your flirting

You would flirt with him any chance you had

“Hey, aside from being good looking, what do you do for a living?”

This makes Dabi huff out a small laugh

“Oh you know, just some rookie villain stuff.”

There was one time you had decided to flirt with him while running away from some heroes

“Don’t you ever get tired from running through my mind all day?”

“What i’m tired of is these losers chasing us.”

One day Dabi decides to flirt back just because

You had said something (he wasn’t sure what cuz he would tune you out sometimes)

“You sure are chatty, im sure i can think of a better way we can put that mouth to use.”

……

Immediate brain short circuit

You suddenly don’t know how to function

Your stuttering is intelligible

And you can feel heat rising to your face

Dabi’s lazy smile stretches into a sinister one

“No way.”

ABORT ABORT ABORT

“Uh…well see you later Dabi-”

Oh wow and now there’s a hand planted to wall next to you

“Now hold up, where did all that bravado go?”

His face seems just a tad bit too close to yours

“My uh- the um you see, i ah-”

Dabi just busts out laughing after this

Which thankfully gives you the time to flee

You are no longer safe around this man anymore tho

It is now Dabi who is initiating the flirting

You shall now deal with the actions of your consequences

Aizawa

This guy i just know would not flirt back

It was you mostly flirting with the dumbest pick up lines

Aizawa mostly rolls his eyes

But you mostly flirt during hero work 

Cuz that’s when you bump into each other more often than not

And that’s when Aizawa doesn’t roll his eyes

But responds with variation of

“Focus!”

“We have no time for this.”

Or “must i be the one to face this type of torture?”

This goes on for the longest time

But you never tire from teasing Aizawa

Aizawa also doesn’t make any big fuss about trying to stop you

He kinda secretly looks forward to you bothering him

One day after taking down a villain he compliments you

“You did a great job taking down that villain, your form was especially great.”

Now mind you this was a small compliment

A very tame compliment 

You stop on the spot

You suddenly don’t know how to work your legs

Aizawa is confused

After a concerned Aizawa makes sure you’re okay

The rest of the day goes on normally

Though Aizawa does come to a conclusion that he tests out the next time you bump into each other

“Good job, you looked great out there.”

Oh man do your knees go weak and you’re a babbling fool at this point

“Oh uh, y-yeah, i mean- thanks…”

From now on when you try flirting with him, Aizawa fires back with actually pretty sweet compliments

Toga

You are in trouble with her from the start

Would immediately flirt back

But she doesn’t notice this cuz that’s just the way she is

If anything she’s the one who approaches you first and just starts complimenting you left and right

“Your eyes are so pretty!”

“Can I have some of your blood?”

Most people would be like wtf

But in your mind like 

“You want my blood?” 🥺👉👈

Obviously you don’t voice that out loud cuz you quite literally can’t

You kinda look like a fish out of water with the way ur trying to utter a single word out

You can almost never get a word out around her cuz she’s bubbly and just as talkative as you if not more

Which somehow leads to you making it a goal to at least not be a blabbering fool around her

It’s an ongoing challange that you can never seem to accomplish

The most you were able to get out around her was one (1) small compliment

Which didn’t phase you at first because you had genuinely meant it

“Ah, Himiko you have a really cute smile.”

She gets all starry eyes and blushy

But you don’t notice cuz you're mentally celebrating not acting a fool around her

However, that’s short-lived as soon as she wraps herself around your arms and drags you somewhere around the hideout while you’re mentally short circuiting

[thecousinsdangereux]

if i'm falling wrong [1/1]

notes: over on Twitter, moonyriot has been working on a multi-part journal from Ava's POV covering her time in Switzerland and beyond. She asked me if I wanted to join in on the fun and write a short one-shot to cover some of the events in part 6. (If you haven't seen any of her posts, here's the first one. They are incredible so definitely check them out.)

—

“The integrity of the upright guides them,” Ava reads, taking care to enunciate each word, “but the crookedness of the treacherous destroys them. That’s Proverbs 11:3, Beatrice.” 

Beatrice definitely knows, which is — Ava thinks — what makes it so funny. Or. Funny to her, at least. Maybe not so much for Beatrice, whose lips have flattened into a thin line that hides almost all of their pretty pink hue (a color Ava has taken a liking to in a way that definitely relates to how often she finds herself staring at Beatrice’s mouth). 

“It is better to promise nothing than to promise something and not be able to do it,” Ava continues, because she’s never been any good at knowing when to stop. “That’s Ecclesiastes. And — ooh, this is a good one — A person who promises a gift but doesn’t give it is like clouds and wind that bring no rain. That’s — ”

“Proverbs again, yes, thank you, Bible.com.” 

“It’s actually Biblereasons.com.” She shows off the screen of her phone, the one that she’s definitely supposed to be using sparingly (and never does). “But sure, I can go to your bible website of choice. Whatever you want. Pretty sure I’m still going to find the same answer, though. Honestly, I would’ve thought a nun would know that lying is bad. Not to brag, or anything, but I learned that one when I was like five, or something.” 

For reasons unknown, this pries Beatrice’s lips wide, dragging them out into a full smile, pink mouth and small indent at the corner appearing just as quickly as Ava’s pulse picks up, heart slamming up against the poor, battered walls of her chest. 

“How odd,” Beatrice begins, in a low drawl that means Ava’s in trouble (in so many ways). “Because I seem to recall you telling Hans, just yesterday morning, that you were allergic to apples. As a result, he traded pastries with you, leaving you with the chocolate eclair you’d been all but salivating over since you first noticed it in the break room. Given that I know that you were perfectly able to consume a slice of apple pie that the neighbors brought up last week, I am forced to conclude that — ”

“Okay, okay! Jesus. Pump the brakes, Miss Marple. I’m allowed to lie; I’m a dirty sinner or whatever. But you hold yourself to a higher standard, right?” (Unfortunately, Ava adds, but only mentally, because yeah.) “So when you said ‘Ava, if you’re able to best me in a mighty trial of combat, I will bequeath to you a single portrait wherein my lips are upturned in joyous felicitations’ or whatever, I took that as an oath, Bea. A serious, serious oath.” 

“One, I don’t sound like that. Two, no English person alive sounds like that. Why do you default to the Regency era when you’re trying to mock my accent?” 

By now, Beatrice’s smile has really started to crack open, showing off the slightest sliver of white behind those lips. It’d be unfair to say that this (the moment where Beatrice’s eyes crinkle with a laughter she most likely won’t release) is always Ava’s goal in any conversation she has with Beatrice, but maybe it is always an intended stop along the way, whatever the actual destination might be. 

(Other pitstops of note include: the cute scrunch of her nose whenever she’s focused on Ava alone, the half-tilt of her head whenever she’s considering something Ava’s said, the almost absentminded brush of her fingers along Ava’s forearm whenever she wants her to pay especially close attention. There’s a common theme here, but Ava’s well-aware of her own preoccupation, so it’s fine. Probably.)  

“Uh, because I’m paying you a huge compliment? Ungrateful much? Mr. Darcy is like… the hottest the British have ever been. Not that that’s hard because otherwise they kind of really suck, but I’m trying here, Bea, and you’re giving me nothing but attitude. And lies.”

Beatrice sighs. It’s cute enough that Ava nearly sighs too, longing bubbling up behind her lips.

“I told you I would smile for one of your pictures if you pinned me during training. It was implied you would do so without cheating.” 

With a tsk that doesn’t sound anything like the one Beatrice sometimes uses (a low sound from the back of her throat that always did very little to help Ava concentrate), Ava takes a half-step closer so that she might properly waggle a finger in Beatrice’s face. 

“I’m only doing what you taught me, Bea I thought I was supposed to use all the resources at my disposal?” 

Beatrice promptly bats the finger away. But that’s sort of the point. (Sometimes, it’s a little pathetic, the lengths Ava will go to make sure Beatrice is touching her at literally every possible opportunity, but Ava’s never really minded being a little pathetic for a good cause. And Beatrice is honestly never hard to bait, at least in this particular way.) 

“Ava, you bit me.” 

“Which was using all the resources at my disposal! Come on! If I’d been in a real fight, you would’ve called that innovative!” 

“Perhaps if you hadn’t used your — ” Delightfully, Beatrice takes a small, steadying breath before her next word, which, to Ava (who’s spent months studying Beatrice with the rigor of a staunch academic) is as much of a giveaway as one of her cute little blushes. “ — tongue.”

“I think the element of surprise would still work just fine,” she insists, but then Beatrice gives her a look, one that she knows won’t allow for any debate over the merits of licking her enemies, and she gives in nearly instantly. (Ava’s really only interested in using any part of her mouth on one person alone, anyway.) “But fine. Okay. Good note, teach.”

Winter has begun to fade from the air and, as they walk back towards their apartment in the meandering pace that has become their custom, Ava is pleased by this for two reasons. One: their neighbors — who bake enough that Ava’s convinced they’re working up to competing on one of those bafflingly polite baking shows — now leave their windows open, filling the air with the most delicious smells, noticeable even a block away from their home. And Two: Beatrice has taken to wearing short-sleeves again, which means that when she nudges Ava now (with a charmed little roll of her eyes), it’s bare skin against bare skin. 

In training, this is both a pleasure and a problem, because then it’s Beatrice’s shorts and Ava’s shirt being pushed up as Ava gets pinned to the ground and it’s the skin of Beatrice’s inner thigh against the skin of Ava’s hip and that’s a lot more than the casual brushes she’s gotten used to. Ava had long ago realized that any and all logical thought flies out the fucking window when faced with a muscular thigh, so really, it hadn’t been all that much of a surprise when it’d resulted in Ava doing something completely insane. 

Like taking Beatrice’s thumb into her mouth. And biting it. And maybe sucking a little. Honestly, it’s all a bit of a haze, because Beatrice had then made a noise that would most certainly be featured in Ava’s dreams for the next week or month or year, in the most mortifying (and sexy) way possible. 

And to be fair, it had worked in getting Ava out of the chokehold she otherwise would’ve probably happily died in. 

So there’s that.

“Something with chocolate today,” Beatrice comments, and Ava short-circuits for a second, thinking about chocolate and fingers and skin and the really incredible potential combination of the three, before she remembers the neighbors and the smell and the baking and feels her cheeks burn.

“Uh — yeah. Maybe they’ll have extra to share.” The windows on the first floor apartment are (of course) open as they approach, and Ava raises her voice just enough for it to carry through. She catches the intertwined laughter of the neighbors that results, and shoots Beatrice a wink that dispels some of the heat building within her, an emergency vent that she’s learned to rely on. 

“You’re shameless,” Beatrice says, in the exact way she always does whenever she doesn’t mean it (lips quirking at the corners). 

“And you’re welcome, when we end up getting brownies, or whatever they’re making.” 

The door to their building never unlocks easily, but it’s gotten worse as the temperatures have started to rise; Beatrice shoulders it open, muscles bunching in her back, and Ava does absolutely nothing to help, watching the flex of her shoulder blades under the tight, gray fabric. 

“You know me,” Beatrice says lightly, knocking the side of her sneakers against the bottom of the stairs before heading up (and Ava does know her, enough to wait patiently for her to complete this small ritual). “I’m always craving sweets.” 

“You are sometimes! Whenever you come home from a night shift, you break into my stash! And since you have a lot of those coming up, on account of you losing our bet…” 

Beatrice laughs, a soft huff that turns into an adorable little squeak when Ava shoves past her on the staircase and snatches the keys from her fingers, bursting through their apartment door with far less effort than Beatrice had needed below. 

“You’re not letting this one go, are you?” 

It’s probably response enough when she snatches her camera off of the kitchen table and points it at Beatrice as soon as she steps across the threshold, but even this (pretty impressive!) sneak attack fails. Beatrice is quick enough to throw a hand up before the snap, lowering it only when Ava does the same with the camera. She continues to eye her warily as she bends down to untie her shoes, only abating to cast a significant look in Ava’s direction, which persists until Ava kicks hers off far less elegantly.

“It’s one photo, Bea!” she grumbles, watching as Beatrice arranges their sneakers in a perfect little line. “Just… one smile. Let’s just get it out of the way, you know? Look up and … ”

Beatrice does look up. 

Ava has to give her that.

It’s the only warning she gets before Beatrice is standing and her fingers are wrapping around Ava’s wrist and she’s pressed flush against Ava’s front and well. Sure. That’s one way to get Ava to shut up. Probably the only way. Ava knows this about herself, but really can’t find any regret when it’s led her right here. 

“You cheated,” Beatrice murmurs lowly. “Why would I reward that?” 

Ava has a lot of thoughts around the concept of Beatrice rewarding her, and absolutely none of them are good. (Or, rather, they’re all extremely good. Very good. Far too good for her to be able to say out loud, those curling, irreverent thoughts that stick her tongue to the roof of her mouth and keep her up at night.) So it’s really out of mercy that she phases then — slipping out of Beatrice’s grip the only way she knows how that doesn’t involve cheap tricks — stepping back and lifting her camera again. 

What follows transpires a bit too quickly for Ava to track. 

She’s seen Beatrice fight in all sorts of situations — at full speed in back alley brawls and at half-tempo when leading her through a new form — but Ava’s pretty sure she’ll never see enough to lose the surprise that comes from being on the end of one of Beatrice’s first strikes. She’s in front of Ava and then she’s not; it’s really as simple (and terrifying) (and hot) as that. One moment, Ava has her camera ready, and then she’s facing a different direction entirely, her hand twisted behind her back, her camera falling from her grasp. Beatrice is fast here too, swooping down to catch it before it hits the floor, but this allows Ava to throw an elbow backwards, a hit that surely would have broken something in Beatrice’s face had it landed (but which Ava knows by now never will). 

“Double or nothing?” Ava pants, stumbling forward and twisting back around to face Beatrice, who’s gently placed the camera on the floor, carefully out of the way. 

“Two photos if you win and you take my night shifts for two weeks when you lose?” 

“Wait, I don’t like the if/when placement in that senten — ”

She barely ducks out of Beatrice’s grapple, cutting herself off mid-word to manage it, a little breathless already. It occurs to her that she’s definitely made a mistake here, looking up and finding Beatrice serious and focused, strands of her hair slipping out of the low bun that’s already started to loosen. Even in the warm light filtering through their apartment windows, Beatrice’s eyes look dark, and Ava spends a second too long suppressing a shiver at the sight. Which means, of course, she’s unable to avoid the next hit: a full tackle to the floor. Either Beatrice really doesn’t want Ava to take this photo or she really wants to get out of her night shifts, because she’s not going about this in the calm, measured way Ava is used to. (There’s a third option and it’s one Ava likes best; maybe Beatrice just really wants to pin Ava to the floor, to feel Ava underneath her, to feel Ava squirm against her front, fighting to get out of the hold. This is the option Ava relates to best and maybe it’s the one driving her now, putting her at a disadvantage just as significant as all the other ones.) 

Ava hits the ground hard, enough to knock air out of her lungs, but she’s saved, partially, by starting on a twist mid-air, mindful of how dangerous it’ll be if Beatrice gets her flat on her back. Not that Ava is opposed to this idea. Not on a normal day. Not even today, if only Beatrice would — 

“Good,” Beatrice says, breaking through Ava’s thoughts, though not in a way that is helpful at all. Beatrice most certainly notices the jerk of Ava’s hips the single word causes, but almost equally as certainly dismisses it as part of Ava’s attempts to break free. “But you over-rotated. Just slightly. See how I can use that to put you on your stomach?”

Always the instructor, Beatrice explains precisely how she’s going to best Ava before she actually does it; if Ava were better at this (if Beatrice were worse) this might actually be of some help in countering Beatrice’s efforts. Sadly, she’s not, so it isn’t. 

“Fuck,” Ava grunts, face pressed directly into the carpet of their bedroom. It’s honestly painful, the way Beatrice’s knee presses into the center of her back, but it’s a sort of pain that Ava’s come to find — over their months together — that she doesn’t especially mind or maybe even likes and maybe gets a fair amount of pleasure from and maybe thinks about it from time to time whenever she gets a moment alone and — yeah. Fuck is really the only word for it. 

“What now, Ava?” Finally, there’s a hint of the breathlessness in Beatrice’s voice: when she locks one of Ava’s arms behind her back, and Ava attempts to land some kind of backwards headbutt, pushing herself up off the floor with her free hand. “What’s your best option?” 

Beg you to have your way with me, doesn’t really seem like the response Beatrice is looking for, but Christ a girl can only take so much. And right about then, Ava knows she’s going to cheat (because it’s either cheat or blurt out something that will inevitably be extremely horny) but is it really cheating if there hadn’t been any rules put forth in the first place? 

She’s gotten better about controlling the Halo, so it barely gives off any light before she lifts onto one knee and throws herself backwards, phasing neatly through Beatrice’s front. The effort Beatrice had been using to hold her down works against her now, effectively swapping their positions as she falls forward, and Ava’s quick to use that momentum, reaching around to grab the front of Beatrice’s shirt so she’s flipped with the motion. Another (gentle) Halo blast lands Beatrice on her back, Ava straddling her hips and pinning both of her hands on either side of her head. 

“You didn’t say no Halo,” Ava says in a rush, as though the victory will be taken away instantly, as though she cares at all about some stupid bet instead of being on top of Beatrice whose eyes are wide and lovely, whose lips are parted and pink, whose chest is — not something Ava is looking at, thank you very much. Because she’s respectful, she can be respectful, she has to try to be respectful. 

“I didn’t,” Beatrice says finally and then fucking licks her lips, like God Himself has decided that Ava needs to be punched directly in the face with attractiveness or whatever and holy shit. 

Holy shit. 

“Then I — that means — uh — ” She releases one of Beatrice’s wrists like it’s burning, very much aware of the intensity of the gaze resting on her, and blindly roots around on the floor behind her until she finds the camera, resting just where Beatrice had left it. “I get to do this.” 

Her fumbling with the camera is hardly graceful, but honestly, the fact that she’s able to produce words at all is nothing short of a miracle, so she’ll take it. Her right hand is still wrapped around Beatrice’s left, fingers circling her wrist as she pins it to the floor, and she takes a picture of this first, holding her breath all the while. 

“For — uh — proof?” she offers, a little weakly, and Beatrice’s stare finally breaks, intensity replaced by something much softer, something that seeps into the corner of her eyes and mouth in equal measure. Ava’s struck by the sight as much as she is by anything else, and her grip relaxes enough that Beatrice can slip out of the hold, both hands drifting down until they come to rest just alongside either one of Ava’s knees. 

“Proof for who?” 

“What do you — proof for literally everyone, Bea; Hans, Camila, Lilith, Mother Superion, Jillian, the regulars at the bar, our neighbors, the lady who runs the bakery down the street, any random person I walk past for the next month. Hell, I might take out an ad in The Guardian, or something, are you kidding?” 

Beatrice laughs and it’s like a crack in the universe, or something equally and unequivocally earth-shattering. Lungs empty, air knocked fully out, Ava lifts her camera almost instinctively, only to find her view devastatingly obstructed, Beatrice’s arms flung over her face (the grin, still wide with laughter, barely peeking out from underneath). 

“Beatrice,” she groans (or maybe pouts).

“I’m sorry!” And she sounds it too, even through the smile, the half-giggles now petering out. “Truly. I’m not used to being photographed. I can’t think of a time it happened before you took up this hobby, not outside of unpleasant family photoshoots and the like.”

Ava’s heart flips painfully in her chest, but Beatrice is quick to soothe, fingers falling back down to brush against the outside of Ava’s leg, as though Ava’s the one in need of comfort.

“I’m not protesting, Ava. Just tell me what to do.” 

Photographs are meant to reproduce moments, memories, emotions, but Ava’s not sure the best photographer in the world, with hundreds of thousands of euros in equipment, would ever be able to fully capture Beatrice as she is now, fondness bleeding from the tips of her fingers, affection lighting the brown of her eyes, and love — or something an awful lot like it — bending her mouth, a bow pulled taut with an arrow that might be Ava herself, as inconceivable as the notion is. 

“Pretend the camera isn’t here,” Ava rasps, her breath hot (heated by all the things boiling inside of her now). “Just look at me.” 

Beatrice looks at her. 

Ava stops breathing. 

She takes the picture. The camera lowers. And Ava forgets about it entirely, object permanence completely obliterated by a force far stronger than something as trivial as human development.

Underneath her, seemingly content to be straddled, Beatrice looks calm, which isn’t unusual, because she almost always looks calm, so maybe it’s that she feels calm too. Like all the things Ava can always sense running through her at speeds only known to light have slowed down or disappeared entirely. The mission, her duties, her vows, her expectations, these things have washed away (temporarily but completely) until it’s only Beatrice left, staring at her lips. And Ava had thought she’d experienced wanting Beatrice in every way, but this one is new.

(She wants Beatrice like this: exactly herself, without anything else getting in the way.)

“Beatrice,” she says, a hitch in her voice breaking the name into three, distinct syllables. “I’m — ”

Cursed. Saved. Ruined. Blessed. Fucked. 

Ava’s not sure which word applies when the smoke alarm goes off downstairs.

It is not especially loud, or piercing, but it goes off and all of the easy calm flees from Beatrice’s eyes as she jerks upwards, back lifting off the floor until she’s close, closer than before, so close and it’s too much, maybe, or maybe Ava’s instincts are working against her (or for her?) because she falls back as soon as Beatrice completes the motion, balance disastrously (helpfully?) disrupted. 

Oh well, Ava thinks, as she lets herself fall back. Maybe a bit of brain damage would do her some good. 

Except that, of course, Beatrice catches her, a simple slip of her hand around Ava’s back, palm pressing to the middle of the Halo, shocks spreading out from the point of impact. 

“You’re what?” Beatrice asks, terribly quiet, as though she feels the air rearranging around them, molecules shifting back and forth between possibilities and outcomes. 

And if Beatrice were still calm, if everything else were still pushed away, if Beatrice was just Beatrice in that moment — just as she’d been so briefly before — it would not be a choice, what Ava did next. And maybe it isn’t one now either, but it’s in the opposite direction: pulling away rather than pushing forward (creating space rather than closing it). 

“I’m — just — I’m done. With the photos.” Decision made, breath returning, she shrugs, a little bashful now, the steady beep of the alarm and the laughter of their neighbors drifting up from below. “That wasn’t so bad, was it?”

Beatrice’s head tilts, a small crease forming in between her eyebrows. Some people want money or power or peace or the answers to the universe, but Ava thinks she would be content, if only she could know what Beatrice is thinking right now.

“No,” she murmurs. “Not so bad at all.”

[new-tella-us]

I have awoken with A N G S T

Okay so I couldn't figure out a good Sam angst but I did figure out a good universal angst!

So, as the asshole father he is, the Demon Lord decides to pull some mind fuckery using Aezera again but this time it's all of his sons in the human world. Also let's assume this is some sort of non-romance route but the boys stay or the harem route.

Now, this is ambitious. The Demon Lord is going to run Aezera's magic into the ground for this attempt and won't be able to pull this stunt again for a long time so he's gotta make this stick. He's going to put his sons through-

Wonderland Hell

Their perception of reality is twisted and warped into this alternate reality bringing out their worst fears and these dark versions of themselves that hunt them in their attempt to turn the actual boys into them.

Each world is themed: James is in a palace of slowly melting gold. Erik is in the ocean with the terrain being sharp and uninhabitable. Sam is in a forest with the greenery moving on their own and invading his space. Matthew is in a cave of crystals, their reflective surfaces showing a funhouse like set of reflections that distort what he looks like. Damien is in an empty greyed world like those placeholder games; only the paintings and mirrors are here -all reflecting some version of Damien- and they start to come to life like his clones.

The longer they are in this wonderland hell and the harder they fight, the deeper they fall into their father's trap. And what is the ultimate goal? To slowly take over his sons' minds to use them as puppets. If he changes their perception enough, he can get them to do whatever he wants. And to test that theory, he wants his sons to kill the owner of the house they stay in. He knows if they kill Mika, they'd snap. All of them. Plus it would just be funny to watch so, when Mika goes to check on the boys, he changes their perception of Mika. She now looks like the Demon Lord and they attack her with the same power they would use to fight their father.

Mika can only dodge as the dining room gets torn up from the fight but she knows that she can't dodge all five of them forever. She needs to find the root of the issue and FAST. She looks around the room and finally notices the mirror, the warped figure in it and how it laughs at the scene. She also notices the gemstone on the mirror glowing dimly. She knows she has to get to the mirror but she'll have to go through the boys first. She takes her chance and runs past each boy but (since this is still the Sam angst thing, he's gotta be prioritized) Sam manages to get one good hit on her. Yeah that arm is broken.

Nevertheless, she fights back the pain and breaks the crystal on the mirror. The magic fades from the boys' minds and they see the damage they've done. It's horrifying to look at the results. The room is torn to shreds, magic weapons are embedded in the floor and walls, and most terrifyingly, Mika is injured. Any semblance of denial they could conjure is shattered when Damien's mindreading reveals that they have been attacking her this entire time. And as a last nail in the coffin, the Demon Lord -salty at losing but seeing an opportunity- using the last remnant of his spell to tell his sons that this event was them going mad like him.

If this was targeted at anyone else all of them, James especially, would note that this isn't how madness works. Madness is more like a slowly growing mold, not an instant effect. But because of their own deep seeded fear of becoming their father, this was an effective way to mess with their psyche and make them unable to trust themselves or each other.

Meanwhile, despite being injured, Mika catches on to the mind fuckery that was going on here so she's, ironically, the only one who isn't concerned about the boys going mad. Instead she's concerned about the thing trying to control them.

[alevolpe]

Hi :) How are you? (This is going to be a lengthy ask lol)

You mentioned in one of your posts that you would like to see the relationship between the senshi and the normal everyday people and perhaps the humans turning against the Senshi.

What do you think about the enemy working with the human government to take down the Senshi to fulfill their goal of forming their empire or whatever and what your headcanon might predict of how it's all going to go down?

I wish the SM franchise would explore more with the outsiders perspective and relationship between the senshi's.

Hi! Sorry you've prob waited a while for this one, my bad.

But yeah, I've mentioned before that the public has an active and rocky relationship with the senshi.

It's a very mixed bag! But overall, to grossly generalize, most younger people are in favor of them and idolize them, while older people and parents tend to scrutinize and antagonise them.

They are unknown beings, who just pop in out of nowhere and at best cause property damage and at worst, well cause some casualties (in my hc, sometimes they fail and people die, it's unfortunate, but it's a reality they have to live with).

Say you're a parent your child turned into an otherworldly creature, a group of 'defenders' shows up and leads you away while promising you they'll try their best to save your child. Next thing you know, one of them walks to you with simply a bag of dust in their hands and a devastated expression, but no words spoken, and they leave.

This is what I see a few people experienced, parents, friends, siblings.. they can't really see past their own grief to understand that these saviors aren't just perfect immortal beings who can just decided who gets to live and who doesn't. They're human, like them, but not quite.

On the other hand, I see people adoring and respecting them, on the more superficial side cause they are superheroes and why wouldn't you idolize a person with super powers, furthermore on the more emotional side, people have been saved or have had other people saved by them. They're grateful and compassionate.

I can totally understand both sides, at the end of the day, people are scared of the unknown, you can't totally blame them for not trusting the senshi, no matter how many justice speeches they deliver.

Going more into the lore aspect, I don't really see the government working with the enemy, it's a neat idea, but I wouldn't really fit in my narrative.

I was thinking more along the lines of a subtle influence by the enemy. Pushing the public to hate the senshi more and more, to the point that they can't even show up by themselves without risking getting attacked by mobs for people.

After a particular deadly explosion, the public perception of them has hit an all time low, and the new enemy strives to dig that even deeper and deeper.

It starts with news articles after rumors and interviews, all these factors fueling a never-ending machine of paranoia. The senshi show up on missions like they always do, all of a sudden, stones get tossed, along with insults and threats. It gets so bad that they can't even transform without informing the others, they can't travel alone, they are just in a form of hiding, powerless to help people without putting themselves in massive danger.

Small note, but I think this situation in particular is very compelling. Seeing how differently the girls take on the issue of not being able to help the public cause the public does not want to be helped. Especially for Mina, she basically has to make the very hard decision of prioritizing the safety of her girls over the safety of innocent people and this could cause a lot of super interesting clashes within the group.

Going even further, it gets worse and now random girls start getting attacked and so forth. You kind of see what I'm getting at. This is the plot of one fo the seasons in my narrative.

It's not really government vs senshi, but the actual public is against them. I think it's very interesting, but I'm still very much in writing limbo, so that's how far I'll say about

Thank you for the ask! Hopefully this is the answer u were looking for.

[project-sekai-facts]

have you seen that theory about vbs not being the original owners of their sekai, and if so what are your thoughts about it?

i stared at this post for a few minutes wondering if you were talking about a post that was written by me and then i checked twitter and a post about RADder being the original owners popped up on my fyp so i'm assuming that's what you're talking about (also i realised that my post is. still in my drafts).

i go full pepe silvia under the cut. uh. sorry.

yeah anyway i do agree with that theory. kinda. The Street SEKAI is mentioned multiple times in the initial cards to have been around for a while, though this could be referring to the fact that SEKAI take time to grow before they manifest fully to the owners (think about School and Wonderland SEKAI, which probably took years to reveal themselves). But it could also imply that someone else contributed to the SEKAI before VBS. I actually talk about the theory briefly in that first linked post, so we'll continue from there.

so I don't think it was RADder. And yeah basically my only reason is that they're too old. MEIKO was released in 2006, considering the only date mentioned in the game is (Autumn) 2021, this is after An was born, when RADder was already pretty successful. Also we don't know enough about SEKAI physics to confirm this, but Miku seems to be more important than MEIKO so maybe space-time wasn't broken until 2007, and RADder is probably even more successful at that point because of the CDs they recorded when An was a baby.

the SEKAI just doesn't work in the time frame. What we know is that the Street SEKAI was formed by dreams and aspiration. Which is kinda the case for most SEKAI but Street SEKAI was more specifically formed by the passion its creators have for these dreams. and while RADder had big dreams to be top musicians in the world and was passionate about that, they were like realistically never gonna achieve that, but also they were at a point where they were doing very well and were very successful and on their way there. they didn't really need the help from Miku as much as VBS needs it.

Now the way Nagi talks about some things in Light Up the Fire definitely could be read a certain way, especially when she talks about passing on RADder's dream to the kids in the audience at RW, but I still don't think RADder being the original owners entirely works. Honestly the easiest point to argue for that claim is that the Street SEKAI has a very strong attachment to RAD WEEKEND, which on the one hand could be part of the fact that Taiga very clearly never moved past it and never fully processed the death of his sister, but it makes a lot more sense to be a trait tied to the people who aspire to surpass it. also MEIKO outright says that's why the attachment to RW is there in her initial 2*.

However,

I don't think it's entirely out of the question for some of the other side characters to have an influence over the Street SEKAI. As I've mentioned, the SEKAI has a strong attachment to RW, and all of them have the same goal of surpassing the event. Also the 4 older VSingers in the SEKAI (MEIKO, KAITO, Luka, Miku) all takes traits from the members of RADder. Which makes a lot of sense for the main mentor figures in the SEKAI to be based on the people that the kids look up to.

There is an argument to be made though that they gave up on their dreams to easily. In LUTF, Taiga decides to crush all their dreams and Tatsuya (+ his group), Arata and Kotaro all leave, like, they just give up while (an admittedly very shaken) VBS sticks with their dream.

Tatsuya and EVER leave because all this time they'd been just carrying on until they eventually saw victory, but after taking a beating from Taiga, they realised that there's some things that you won't be able to overcome and give up.

Arata leaves because even though he has skill, Taiga was able to get through to his weakness - Souma. Taiga realises that Arata has experienced a similar loss and grief to he did, and although Arata is trying to carry Souma's dream on his behalf, Taiga knows from experience that Arata is just clinging on to Souma's dream as a way of coping with his loss, rather than actually trying to uphold it (basically he calls him selfish). Arata isn't able to argue back, feels a lot of guilt over that, and leaves.

Kotaro is like. particularly interesting and also most eligible for Miku therapy. He's genuinely really scared and overwhelmed by Taiga's challenge, and gives a poor performance when he has to stand up to him, and straight up gets called shit and weak by Taiga and the audience. Dead serious. Afterwards he literally has a breakdown, calls himself an idiot for not being able to sing and then goes on about how he's shit at everything and apologises because should've given up ages ago because all he's ever done is drag everyone else down before literally running away and DAMN do I hope he gets development on that in the Toya event.

all things considered i'd honestly say that all of them to some degree could've contributed to the formation of the SEKAI, Souma included (honestly he seems the most passionate about it even though he was forced to give up). all of them were passionate about it but then there's always the fact that they all gave up really easily, although they were reluctant. that said, toya did the same thing in the main story so...

Although,

There's still an argument that the Street SEKAI was just formed by the four of VBS, and Kohane was just the final piece of the puzzle that made it reveal itself. Three passionate people who are wholeheartedly devoted to their dream and one ordinary girl who wants to do something that she can dedicate herself to and feel passionate about. inverse MMJ if you will. fate is probably canon in project sekai also like i've mentioned this a few times before so that could play a part in all this.

but come to think of it, the sekai doesn't even reveal itself to Akito and Toya until really late in the main story. supposedly they still heavily influenced it but that's a bit... odd? don't you think? like the only other times that happens is N25 and WxS, wherein the SEKAI was made by only one person and let the others in later, but this was a SEKAI that was supposedly made by all 4 of them. so if you think about it hard enough, could the street sekai maybe do that again?

Also,

Nagi is very important to the VBS story and lore despite the fact that she was very obviously written in much later in development. Going back to the fate thing, at RW she states that since RADder is over and she's over, she now has a new dream, that being that she wants the next generation to be inspired by what they achieved and carry on their legacy. While when she says that, she's talking about An and Akito in the audience at RW, it's stated multiple times that the "next generation" includes all of VBS, and all the side characters. so yeah, the fate thing. I doubt the game will ever do anything about it since they're side characters, but I think it can be argued that they contributed to the SEKAI a bit.

i wrote this in so many increments and in the wrong order and now it lacks any cohesion whatsoever and i have no idea what i'm even saying at this point and i think i sort of proved it and disproved it simultaneously but like. yeah. it's an alright theory. i have some thoughts on it.

[quibbs126]

Oh yeah, I made this last night

I was complaining yesterday about how I can’t draw, and while I tried and failed to draw traditionally (I think I’ve been out of practice too long and I can’t adjust to the layout of it not being right in front of my face at the same angle, if that makes sense), I decided maybe I can try drawing these guys again

I’m pretty happy with how the main trio turned out in this redesign, I think I was able to give them all distinct looks

Cassidy got some changes, Rasmus pretty much stayed the same other than a permanent ponytail, and Rowan's hair got completely changed. Mostly because I wanted to make his hair have a more distinct shape

I still need to come up with new names for them though. Best I got is Rowan becomes Rusty, but I don’t know for the other two. All I know is that in another world, Cassidy would be Peppermint, or some other variation of mint

Anyways, a while ago I was considering changing the setting of the story to be cowboy themed. It was mostly because at the time, a Discord I was on was making a Cookie Run cowboy AU that I really like, but also because the story never had a clear time period setting. It was part modern day, part fantasy, and I never really got it to be consistent

Though the big problem is that I’m pretty unfamiliar with cowboys and how they operate. Which is ironic because I’ve been living in Texas for over a decade. But like, I’ve never been that interested in Westerns or that cowboy stuff, probably in part because I heavily dislike country music. So I don't really know much about the era other than Victorian times were also happening

I would also have to change some things around so that they fit in the time period, most importantly the whole situation with Rasmus and the others. I'm thinking maybe I can turn that from science experiment to witchcraft and have magic be more of a thing, since they are meant to have magic

I've given a little thought into how the story works now, like that these three got hired either to drive cattle to a certain area or keep watch of a ranch. I guess if they got to travel, then the former, but if I just want them to hang out, then the latter. Former's probably better though, since if I want to make an actual plot, there's your overarching goal

I think I need to do more research on the time period though, so I know what I'm doing. Though also this isn't going to be like, completely historically accurate. I mean these guys are fictional goat thing people with magic powers. I don't think something like the Civil War happened recently, and I'm not sure I want sexism to be a prevalent thing in the plot. And I think I also personally I need that reminder since sometimes I forget that I can give myself wiggle room

In that vein, the cattle are probably also semi fictional, or at least maybe they shouldn't be exactly the same as real cows. I don't know, I feel like it'd be really jarring to have normal cows alongside brightly colored goat people

Anyways I trailed off, back to the actual drawings

So because of the cowboy consideration, I tried to sketch out outfits they could wear. As well as body types (though they didn't turn out as varied as I'd like). Cassidy and Rasmus I think are fine, but Rowan might need more tweaking. I also need more cowboy refs, especially ones that aren't just costumes or AI pictures in Google Images

Then afterwards I decided to start sketching some of the other characters I've made up. Which just so happen to be the parents of the main characters. Who also have names because I came up with the naming scheme at that point

Top to bottom is Periwinkle, Basil and Silver

Of those three, I think Periwinkle turned out the best, but for one thing, she's been in my mind much longer than the other two, so I have a much clearer idea of what she's supposed to look like. And on top of that, I've actually drawn her before, so I know what to change. Basil and Silver are very much first drafts, and first drafts are usually not the best when it comes to designing new characters. No wonder redesigns of characters usually end up better than the original, since you have a base design where you already know what works and doesn't, as opposed to working from the ground up

And with Silver, I made it a point that he and his son don't look anything alike other than both having darker hair, so I quite literally had nothing to work with, unlike Basil or Perri

I'm also realizing that I've made a pattern with the parent designs, namely that all three of the main characters pretty much exclusively look similar to their moms. I suppose you can't tell much here, since Rasmus was born green but got changed via the experimentation, while I drew Silver, Rowan's dad that he looks nothing like, with the mom he does look like not being depicted. But yes, Cassidy and her bio mom are blue, Rasmus and Basil are green, and Rowan and his mom are red

Periwinkle and Cassidy are probably the two who look the most distinct from another, in part because they're two different shades of blue. Which is ironic because in my more recent working of this world, I made it a point that Perri's family has crazy strong genes, with everyone in the family (outside of marriage) is blue. I might have to take that out or just change how this works

I mean with Rowan, I don't really know how to change it, since his dad's family is all in the greyscale, so him being red would have to come from his mom. And with Rasmus, his parents are supposed to be green and red, with the idea that it's plausible that he could turn out brown, while in reality he was born green. But I mean I guess I could turn him a more yellow-ish green? I don't know, I'll figure it out

And uh yeah, I guess that's it. Not really anything that remarkable, but at least I drew something

[sheyri]

Ash needs a job

The last couple days had been hectic and chaotic, but now things were slowly falling into a routine. Callum spent most of his days with his brother, trying to reform the redguard. Ramsay was handling House affairs and continued her research whenever she had time to spare.

Ash... Ash was trying to figure out what he was supposed to do. He saw his partners on the weekends when they were home, and sometimes during the week. But in between that, there was just lots of empty time.

He had done some odd jobs around the house. It hadn't been in perfect shape when they bought it, there were some small things to repair and walls to paint. He could do that.

He had started a small herb garden in the back, planted some flowers as well. He'd gotten some more exotic plants for Ramsay, since all of hers had been blown up with Lancaster. Taking care of plants, and especially Ramsay's plants, was just something he'd gotten used to over the last year.

He had a license now, but he didn't really know what to do with it. It had always been his goal, but he'd never considered what would come after. It had always been so far out of reach. Sure, he used his alchemy for small things around the house and it was nice to do that without having to worry about being caught. But that wasn't really much, not really taking full use of what he could do.

Ash would've considered studying, but Lancaster was gone. Kensington was gone. Rebuilding would take time. The other colleges were already overrun by former Lancaster students who needed a place to continue their studies and graduate. He wouldn't be able to get in, especially not in the middle of the semester.

No. What he had to do now was find a job. Something, just anything. He'd been idle for too long anyway.

~~~

“So, how was your week?”, Callum asked. He'd come home about half an hour ago and they'd just sat down with some tea, waiting for Ramsay.

Ash sighed, frustrated. “Annoying. And kind of exhausting”, he said.

“That bad? What have you been up to?”

“Not much, actually. I've been trying to find a job.”

“I take it you weren't successful?”

“You'd think there'd be plenty of jobs, lots to do. But with all the refugees from Kensington, there's just more demand than open jobs. And I waited too long to put myself out there.”

“That makes sense. But this also means this town is growing and new businesses will open, meaning more jobs. I'm sure you'll find something eventually.”

“Yeah. It's just frustrating.”

“What's frustrating?”, came a voice from the front door. Ash turned towards Ramsay to greet him. His hair was loose and a bit messy. Ash felt the sudden urge to brush it for him.

Ramsay got himself his own mug before joining the two of them in the living room. “So?”, he prompted.

“I can't find a job.”

“Why would you need a job?”

“Well, there's just not much to do for me while you're away and busy. Besides, I have to start earning some money again”, he mumbled.

“No, you don't.”

“What? Of course I do!”

“Why? I mean, it's fine if you want to, but we have more than enough money. In case you missed it, I'm kind of rich. And Callum has a steady income, too.”

“Yeah, but that's your money. I can't let you provide for me forever. I'm already living here without paying rent or anything.”

“Ash”, Callum said. “This is your home, too.”

“I know, but-”

“No but”, Ramsay cut him off. “You saved the world. You saved our lives. You shouldn't have financial worries.”

Ash remained silent. It made sense, what they said. But it just didn't feel right. He was just leeching off of them without contributing.

“I understand your worries, Ash. You don't get things for free, that's what you're thinking, isn't it?”

He shrugged, then nodded. “That's just not how the world works, is it? Can't get anywhere without money.”

“You're right, but that's not true in a relationship. A relationship isn't a transaction. Besides, you do give back. You care for us, you love us. And in a more material sense, you take care of the house while we're gone. You cook, which is something Ramsay could never do.” “Hey!”, Ramsay shot in. Callum ignored him. “We grew up in completely different circumstances, and I think we all need to understand that.”

“I guess you have a point”, Ash admitted. “Though that still doesn't solve my problem of too much spare time.”

“Don't you want to continue studying alchemy? Now that you can legally do so?”, Ramsay asked. Without waiting for an answer he went on. “I'll bring you some books, and the course material for my first years. Source knows you're still lacking some basics.” He sat down his mug and leaned over to Ash.

“Now shut up. Right now all we have to do is enjoy our weekend together”, Ramsay said and kissed him.

[jangmo-othewarrior]

DMC Questions Anon here!

Create a crossover! What is Devil May Cry crossing over with? How does it work? How do the characters from each world interact with the characters from the other?

Look, ya'll see my username, u know I'm gonna go with Pokémon.

specifically I'm thinking about pokemon naturally existing within the human realm, and demons are almost entirely separate from them. So all of the human characters have pokemon partners, with some exceptions.

All of the Spardas have a pseudo-legendary, and Dante specifically has Tyranitar. I wanted this line specifically because this species is known for causing a lot of damage, but have also been shown to be very sweet and protective if need be. It really fits Dante's 'don't come near me, I'm dangerous' mindset until Patty climbs all over it and it utterly adores her. It's also a hugger, so much so that Dante actively lets himself get poked to Hell because it looks sad.

As for Vergil, I'm going with the Salamence line. It's a very interesting line, having a goal-driven lizard eventually achieve that goal in the final stage. Vergil would have a hard time working with his partner, especially in 3 (where it would be a Bagon), because demons don't have pokemon partners. He leaves Bagon with Dante when he falls into Hell, thinking that the pokemon would not be able to survive there. It would stay with Dante for decades after that, until finally reuniting with Vergil as a Shelgon in DMC 5. It would take a bit, but it would eventually evolve after the boys got back from hell. Dante will forever lord the fact that his partner fully evolved before Vergil's (until Salamence smacks him with a Dragon Claw. Vergil approved.)

Nero would definitely have the Dragapult line! A dragon type (like Salamence) that has a large focus on family in its design whist also being completely unique from most other pseudos? Yeah, it's chock full of Nero vibes. The Dragapult evolution definitely only happened at the end of DMC 5, becuase the image of a Dragapult and DT Nero fighting with Silver Bullet in the bg is so fuckin sick. Also he was a Dreepy during DMC 4 and u need to know that he loved to sit on Nero's head or in his hoodie.

Patty next because propaganda. This one's up for grabs, but I think her first partner was a Dratini! Specifically one that kept showing up in the DMC office until Dante shoved it into Patty's arms. She's a Dragonair now, and often flies around the office just to annoy Dante. Also, shoutout to Patty for being the only human to get a pseudo because she's Dante's kid.

Trish didn't have a partner at first, since she was a demon. After going off on her own for a while, she ran into a Wattrel that kept using her motorcycle's wind to glide in the air. She found the little thing tenacious, and now there's a Kilowattrel half the size of Lady that perches in the DMC office rafters. It's high speed nature complements her fighting style rather well, along with the electricity.

Lady's partner is an extremely violent Scolipede. She really big and very venomous, so most regular people steer clear of her. She is also very tsundere, but actually doesn't mind when Dante or Trish are around. Lady takes great care of her, and often rides her in during jobs. Most people would tell you that's a horrible idea, but DMC employees are not normal people. Also Vergil was shot by one of her needles in DMC 3 when she was a Venipede, and now they are locked in a bitter rivalry. Lady thinks this is hilarious.

Nico is very happy with her Riolu partner, even if it was a gift from her dad when it was an egg. She doted on it very often, and even forced Rock to help her make a special egg warmer. When it did hatch, it quickly shared her interest in the art of metalworking and gunsmithing. Nowadays, he's Nico's assistant. He hasn't evolved yet, but Nico doesn't mind. He will when he's ready.

Kyrie's partner is a Sylveon, and a very caring one at that. Loves the kids, Kyrie, and Nero. Was an Eevee during DMC 4, and refused to leave Nero's side after Kyrie was kidnapped. Because of that, she is actually incredibly strong, so much so that Salamence was immediate put on edge when they met.

Some quick ones! Eva gave Sparda a Dieno when they met, and it was a very affectionate Hydregion during the boys' youth. Eva herself had a Alolan Ninetales, who was very protective of the boys and the baby pseudos. Both of these Pokemon are actually still alive in a rehabilitation center, although the boys don't know that rn. Morrison has an old Stoutland who can surprisingly handle battle quite well. Nina's partner is a very majestic and battle worn Kingdra, who is currently enjoying retirement. V did not have any pokemon, but he does talk about one he regrets leaving behind in the past....

And... that all their main partners! They actually have other pokemon as well, but these were just their first ones. As an example, Dante also has a Houndoom that he befriended in DMC 3 (as a Houndour) that knows a lot of bite moves. Why? King Cerberus rep for the mutual Coverage. Elemental coverage.

Thanks again DMC Questions anon! I really enjoyed this ask, even if I did flex my pokemon knowledge a bit please ask me questions I will write an essay to answer u-

[lunastars21]

Random ramblings of team hooligan because I can

Fang X Bark is a good ship I like it, fang has two hands he can date both bark and Corsen he’s a bisexual motherfucker.

If trip does become a member of team hooligan, her and bean have to have sibling vibes.

The Marvelous Queen is a big fan of gamma, the garage is filled with fucking gamma merch. Fang has to explain each time this isn’t his, it’s the queens.

I’ve seen many oc x fang art, and I am proud to be in that group. But what I’ve noticed is that most have the “talk shit at each other in affection “ route which I also love! But Corsen doesn’t work that way at all.

She spoils the shit outta fang.

This woman just FUELS his ego more. Helps in situations but good lord this idiot jerboa is gonna have the guts to launch him self off a cannon because of her, and bean would join him.

Bean technically has four dads. you got bin, his actual biological dad. Pin, his uncle, Fang the bad influence. And Bark, the good influence! Then you got Lucy, the marvelous Queen and Corsen being his mom figures, and trip being his potential sister! Bean’s got a big family! ^^

I imagine if the hooligans got a super form, fang would be able to summon a billion of corks, big or small, and launch them at his foes with the snap of his fingers! Bark would be able to use ice powers, summon giant icebergs and fire snowballs, maybe throw a giant snowman at enemies hell yeah lets get silly! And bean just summons a nuke, OH FUCK.

If anyone random flirts with fang, Corsen is getting out a fucking rocket launcher you better RUN.

I have a metal Fang by the way ( his names clang ), and he basically has the same goal as metal Sonic, get rid of fang. But he also has a crush on Corsen and calls her his gamer girl, fang and the marvelous Queen beat the shit out of him.

Unsure if I wanna make a metal bark or bean design and what they would be like.

Jet was caught by the authorities once and they showed him his wanted picture…wait..JET THE JERBOA THATS FUCKING FA-

I’d like a treasure team tango 2 please

Fang and Nic have a good relationship in my headcanon because fucking say so, I love positivity, I like some angst but positive makes me go BRRRRR

Metal Sonic is fucking lucky he was dealing with Amy, or fang would’ve beat the EVER LIVING SHIT OUT OF HIS CIRCUITS FOR TAKING HIS BOYS.

Bean angrily punching the wall because he missed the moment of fang caring about them, NEXT TIME FOR SURE

Honey the cat helping Corsen how to girl because she has no fucking clue what she’s doing.

Honey and Fang have a sibling like relationship, THEY are the ones that talk shit about each other but if some stranger talks shit about them they will FIGHT them.

The hooligans have appeared in honey’s magazine because she needs models for her clothes! plus they have her temporary protection so the authorities can’t get to them lol.

I headcanon that in the modern world, the hooligans become a band! All the music with lyrics that you hear throughout the games is just fucking team hooligan! Especially the music in frontiers, Female lyrics is either Corsen or honey, but most of the singing is done by fang, bark has the guitar, bean is on the drums, and the Queen is on keyboard. Some times fang gets the bloody piano out because I know you read Archie if you headcanon fang plays the piano! Lets go!

Fang is known for not only having bad luck, but also being very cartoony, Wild E. Coyote vibes he gives, but whenever Corsen is nearby, his luck increases, so you could say Corsen is his good luck charm.

Fang and bean get scared easily by anything horror related, bark usually has to be there with them to be the “emotional support teddy bear”

-

That’s all for now but you can drop your wholesome team hooligan headcanons too! I’d love to hear them, especially thanks to Sonic superstars for spiking up their popularity! Lets make sure team hooligan is never forgotten again! ^^

[exhale-bs]

Catch up: Chapter 2: July - Dec 2022

It was July 5th. I had just come back to the house I supervised. One of my residents (B) had just come back from a home visit. I was talking to my staff and she was saying I looked like a strong breeze would knock me over. She assured me she could handle the house and urged me to go home and get some rest. Typically, I would check in with all my residents, especially if they had just come back from a home visit, but this time I listened to my staff and went home. I had been home for about an hour (I lived about an hour away from the house I supervised) when I got the call. B had been found unresponsive in his room, paramedics were there working on him. I called our on call and informed them, made the call to B’s mother and went back to the house. Before I could arrive, my executive director called me to inform me that B did not make it. I arrived to the house to the wails of B’s mother in the kitchen and a house full of people. I stayed the night as my staff was traumatized from finding B and was up till 3 am consoling my other residents, talking to leadership and coming up with a plan for the coming days.

I ended up staying the rest of the week as my staff stated she could not return to the house. I couldn’t even allow myself to grieve as I wanted to be a touchstone of normality to my residents and my one remaining staff. I know all too well the dangers of suppressing my stuff, but wanted to make sure everyone else could move on and felt if I could just get through a few months it would be worth it for everyone involved.

What followed was the longest and one of the most intense depressive episodes in my experience. I was just going through the motions. I was struggling with derealization, which is already unsettling, but this lasted for MONTHS. My voice kept talking me, if I had just checked in with him I may have been able to do something, that he would have lived if I’d been less selfish and just checked on him before I left. That had I found him, my CPR skills would have been better and I could have saved him. I had urges to bash my head into the wall repeatedly just so I could feel something, to swerve of the road into a tree to prove everything was actually real, because NOTHING felt real to me. I wasn’t closed off about it either. I told my boss, other supervisors, the director, “I’m not ok! But I’m trying” I was still covering my house at least half the week, running the day program, and helping at the other house.

I was getting sick of it, especially since the other supervisors in my department were not helping at my house or the program, or the other house. They were even asking for help at their houses from me. It all came to a head when my boss got a complaint from a parent that their son’s room was dirty. Now, we had just done a deep cleaning of the whole house as we were looking for a new resident to move into B’s room and had potential residents visiting with family. My boss met me outside and started laying into me about that room, when I said, I don’t think it was as bad as it was portrayed. She got pissed and marched into the house to inspect the room herself, only to find a clean room. “I guess you were actually able to get your staff to clean it since yesterday” she huffed. “Yeah, you saw the goals I wrote for him and know that yesterday was his cleaning day” I replied. She didn’t like that and started going off on everything she didn’t think I was doing and then said “I’m only upset because I give a shit and I don’t think anyone in this house gives a shit!”

Over a room that wasn’t perfect for a day.

After everything I’ve done and everything I put myself through.

After MONTHS of me saying that I wasn’t ok, that I wasn’t sure how much longer I could keep going the way I was.

She didn’t think I gave a shit.

I told her I needed to leave and someone would have to cover my house for a change. I wrote a strongly worded response in an email, let it all out and then contacted HR. I took some time and wrote out a proposal for a new position. Someone to help with retention of staff, something we needed because we just couldn’t keep anyone company wide.

I was turned down. But they did offer me a new position. To run the day program attached to our retirement center. They were in desperate need for supervisors out there as 3 turned in their notice at the same time. Red flag for sure, but they assured me that they were restructuring things out there to make it run better. They told me I only had to focus on the day program and I would have an 8-4 schedule unless it was my week for on call. Plus they would give me a $5,000 bonus for going out there and helping with the restructuring. I accepted.

(Continued later)

[just-another-star-47]

Hi!!💓🥹💓 for the ask game (especially for Lulu but you could do for any or ALL of your characters if you want!!)

6, 16, 23

Love, myokk🥹💓

(can’t send asks from sideblog)

Thank you for your ask you beautiful human beeing. 😁🥰💕

Alright, then let's start with

Luscinia

6: How do they deal with grief?

Lulu is horrible expressing her emotions verbally, but when it comes to hurtful emotions such as grief, anger, sadness.. she's not able to express or work through them at all. So for the most part she tries to distract or numb herself, until everything gets too much. Then she will flee, hide away in a dark corner, where nobody will find her and break down, crying until she's exhausted and able to move on again.

16: Their dreams

Freedom. Beeing free from the expections of her mother and society. As she was younger, she sometimes also wished to be free from the responsibility of taking care of her younger brother. But she always felt incredible guilty afterwards and hated herself for even having such thoughts.

23: How they act when they are sick

This is probably the only time Lulu will let someone take care of herself. ( and secretely enjoy it). But only, if she trusts that person. To everybody else, she will just repeat over and over again, that she's fine, even though she clearly isn't and get angry, if somebody dares to tell her what to do (get into bed, drink some tea..). So yeah, when you're not friends with her, she's a little annoying, grumpy patient that needs to be tied to the bed. When with friends, she's gently. Atleast until she gets bored or has to take some medicine. 😅

Corvus

Luscinias older brother

6: How do they deal with grief?

Just as his younger sister, Corvus never learned to deal with his hurtful emotions in a healthy way. So both of them use the same mechanic of distraction, but due to their different personalities, Corvus would be the one throwing himself into parties and surround himself with a lot of people. He also throws himself into work to not feel. When it becomes too much, he gets angry. He will never hurt anybody in this state or throw a tantrum, it's more a brooding and silent anger, that will often lead him into dangerous situations and irrational decisions.

16: Their dreams

That was actually hard to think about. Corvus has many ambitions, but dreams? Maybe, deep down, it's his dream to see Lulu truly happy? I think it's different from the goals he has in life, because he knows that he only can contribute to the happiness of his younger sister to a certain level. But it's something he wishes for.

23: How do they act, when sick?

Corvus is one of these annoying people that never really gets sick. 😅 He has a running nose for a few days and that's it. When it comes to beeing injured, he's a patient and polite man, who will take his medicine and do as he's been told obediently. 😅 When he has to be in bed too long, he'll gets quieter and isn't his charming self anymore, because he starts to feel useless and has no real oportunity to distract himself from hurtful feelings and thought, as he usually would do.

Accipiter

Luscinias cousin (I call him cousin, but it's their great, great, great grandparents that were siblings.. soo..😅)

6: How do they deal with grief?

Honestly. I'm not sure if Accipiter ever experienced deep grief. He doesn't get attached to people or animals easily and is in a position to get everything most things he wants (Out of the three he is also the only one not able to see Thestrals). Growing up spoilt, but with parental figures meeting atleast some of his emotional needs, he probably would be the one dealing with grief in the most healthy way. Talking to his uncle or friends. When he would be grieving for something he think he shouldn't be grieving for, he would be very fast to push this negative emotion onto others, though, making them feel as bad as he is.

16: Their dreams

To be seen and respected. Accipiter grew up in a household that linked worth with status and mistook fear as respect. So he constantly tries to be the best. (The true reason why he hates Sebastian)

23: How they act, when they are sick.

Did I mentioned, that he is spoiled? Yes? Because that's all you need to know. He will whine, he will pout, he will throw tantrums. Somebody has to stay at his bedside the entire time (and not 'just' a house elf..). If he's quiet, be aware, it's serious. 😅 You want him to eat something? You have to feed him. Demands chicken soup the entire time. Soo.. have fun..😂

At this point, I'm nearly able to write a family chronic.. 😅

[kooldewd123]

My New Year's resolution this year was to read more. I'm sure a lot of people around here can relate to this, but I was a massive reader as a child who started to fall off as I grew up. I barely read anything new at all throughout college and the latter half of high school. At the start of this year, I was suddenly hit with a massive urge to try and return to my roots again, and for probably the first time ever, I suddenly had a New Year's resolution I actually intended to follow through on. Still, I knew that my attention issues would make this hard for me unless I gave myself some sort of structure.

Enter Animorphs. Not only was this a beloved series from my childhood that I had been wanting to revisit for a long time, but it happened to fill my needs perfectly: with 54 mainline books total, I could easily pace myself at a book a week, and with each book only taking about an hour or so to read, it would be a nice, low-commitment way to ease myself back in. And for an added kick in the pants, I started a reread thread to hold myself accountable to.

Although revisiting the series that genuinely shaped me into the person I am today has been a magical experience, it was never the main goal. My hope in starting this project was that by weaning myself back in with a weekly diet of quick, digestible books, I would get myself back into the proper headspace of wanting to read more often. And now that we're nearly at the halfway point of the year, I'm so glad to be able to say:

It fucking worked.

Not counting Animorphs, I've read more books this year than I have since... probably middle school. And it's not just me going over the collection on my bookshelf, either - most of them have been entirely brand new to me, some of which I hadn't even heard of until I grabbed them off the bookstore shelf and thought "huh, that sounds neat." It's really thrown me back to childhood experiences and overall been a fantastic refresh of my mental state after stagnating a bit in some of my media-consumption habits. This has been a much longer preamble than I anticipated, but I wanted to make this post to go over the books I've read so far this year and some of my thoughts on them! So here we go, in no particular order:

Percy Jackson and the Olympians by Rick Riordan: This is the reason I said "most" of the books I read this year were new. The Riordanverse is my second favorite book series after Animorphs, and I've also been meaning to reread it at some point as well. The Disney+ series earlier this year really gave me a strong urge to revisit the books, but I wanted to wait until after the show was over so it didn't skew my expectations too much. And, yeah. It's been just as great a series as I remember. I've only finished up through Battle of the Labyrinth so far, but I want to go through the whole Riordanverse eventually. HoO are some of my most-read books ever, and ToA has been itching at the back of my mind for months. The Kane Chronicles and Magnus Chase never captured my interest as well as the Greco-Roman stuff, but I'm excited to take another look at them and see if my feelings have changed.

Loki's Ring by Stina Leicht: A space captain travels to a mysterious pathogen-infected planet to save her AI daughter... is what the blurb on the back of the book says. Truthfully, I think the marketing on this one is a bit misleading. I picked it up expecting to get a sci-fi mystery thriller set on a spooky planet, but what I got instead was a more political piece about the crew trying to negotiate between all the different parties laying claim to the planet. It's not a bad book by any means, but just not something that appealed to me personally and I couldn't help but feel a bit burned by the description.

American Gods by Neil Gaiman: I've heard a lot about Gaiman's work, and about this book especially, so this was one of the books I was most excited to start reading. And there was a lot I enjoyed here: Shadow was an interesting protagonist, I loved this take on modern gods, and Gaiman's interpretation of Americana as a concept was fascinating. But for some reason... I dunno, this one was just a slog to get through for me, despite how much I felt like I should have loved it. I hate to admit it after how highly I've heard him recommended, but I think Gaiman's writing style might just not be my thing. I'd be willing to give him another shot if I was in the right mood (the idea of checking out Sandman has crossed my mind a couple of times), but sad to say I probably won't be delving into his works like I was hoping to. One of the biggest disappointments I've had with a piece of media in a long time.

Eye of the Sh*t Storm (The Frost Files #3) by Jackson Ford: Now this one was a surprise in the complete opposite direction. I grabbed this one on a whim, completely missing the fact that it was the third book in a series. The Frost Files follows the adventures of Teagan Frost, a reluctant government agent working in Los Angeles with psychokinetic abilities (or as the book puts it, the ability to move sh*t with her mind). The opening to this book nearly lost me, leaning into some drug humor that's not really my taste, but what followed was a frantically fun adventure with zany humor, strong tensions, and characters that bounced off each other perfectly. I was sold on the series pretty quickly, but by the time I decided I wanted to read the other books, I was already too invested in this one to stop. I have the first book ready on my shelf to read at some point, but I need to search some local bookstores for #2 and #4 first so I can read the whole thing straight through.

The Hunger Games Trilogy by Suzanne Collins: Can you believe I've never actually read these books before? For some reason, my mom took a super hard stance against these books in particular and never let me read them, and when my dad told me she was being stupid and gave me the entire trilogy himself, I just... put them on my bookshelf and never actually got around to reading them. I admit I was a bit worried going in. I don't often enjoy romance in stories, especially since figuring out I'm aro, and these books have a reputation for kickstarting the entirely overdone dystopian YA love triangle trope. I was very pleasantly surprised, then, that the romance wasn't actually as major a part of the story as I expected, and the extent to which it was used was entirely in service of the story's themes and message. In that vein, one of the most interesting parts of these books to me was being able to see the origin point of so many tropes of the genre. It's clear why this trilogy is a masterpiece, and finally being able to take it all in illuminated all the ways that Collins inspired the YA writers that came after her. Katniss is a remarkable protagonist, and the story resonated in ways that are even clearer to me now than they would have been to me if I had read it back then. I feel like I got a surprising amount out of these books. I downloaded the movies to compare, but never worked up the motivation to actually start watching them.

Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury: At one point, I decided to try and go back to some books I read in school to see what I would get out of them now that I'm more educated on the subject matter they're tackling. I was actually looking for 1984, but couldn't find it (I guess Barnes & Noble must have gotten rid of those look-up computers during COVID or something so I was basically just wandering around blindly trying to figure it out myself) and ended up with Fahrenheit 451 instead. So how did I feel about this one? Weirdly ambivalent. Censorship and the preservation of information are two of the issues I'm most concerned with in the world today, but for some reason this book just did absolutely nothing for me and I can't really say why. Nothing about it really stuck in my brain the way I expected it to. I did eventually find 1984 and Animal Farm, so hopefully those ones give me more to think about. I actually never even read Animal Farm in school, so that'll be a new one for me.

The Arc of a Scythe Trilogy by Neal Shusterman: I'd heard this trilogy come up a couple of times before as the big new YA series. For the uninitiated, these books take place in a utopian future where all of humanity's problems have been solved: crime, poverty, corruption, racism, disease, even death itself. The only arbiters of death left in the world are Scythes, an order tasked with taking the lives of others in order to maintain the value of life and curb overpopulation. And let me tell you, this series is absolutely a new favorite of mine. I brought these with me on a road trip and chewed through Thunderhead, The Toll, and Gleanings on the bus in a way I didn't even realize I was capable of anymore. The world is well fleshed out in an incredibly elegant way, with boundaries loose enough to provide for amazing twists yet firm enough to still provide stakes. The differing philosophies the Scythes each have on death and duty in a post-mortal world are an absolute delight to see unfold. And the story plays its cards excellently, slipping in details at just the right moment for them to slide under your radar before suddenly exploding into prominence. Thunderhead and The Toll in particular use the medium of text in much more interesting ways than anything else I've read recently, leading to some amazing scenes I couldn't stop myself from flipping back to and reading all over again. I'm gonna be thinking about this series for a long time, and I really hope we get another companion book like Gleanings as an excuse to take another plunge back into this world.

Lore by Alexandra Bracken: Every seven years, the Olympian gods are turned mortal for a single week, and anyone who manages to kill them takes their power. if i had a nickel for every book on this list about gods in the modern world- I haven't really gotten that far in this book so far, so it's only here as an honorable mention. It hasn't hooked me yet, but I feel like I'm only just starting to get out of the intro section and into the action, so there's plenty of time still left for it to pick up. Plus, I got distracted with life stuff and couldn't give it my full focus for a while, so I'm probably not giving it as fair a chance as I should.

It's been fun reading them, it's been fun talking about them, and here's hoping I can keep having fun with them in the future.

[atopearth]

Shall we Date? Wizardess Heart Part 39 - Randy March Sequel

Finally the true last post of this game haha! I'm still shocked that I never played this hahaha. Anyway, Randy playfully getting the heroine to feed him cookies and then licking her fingers omgg loll! I love Taffy, he's so funny and cute. It's sad that Randy has to experience disappointment after disappointment after every concoction he makes hoping it would heal the real Randy's petrification doesn't end up working. But it's sweet that both him and the heroine are quite positive alongside Taffy! Honestly, I've always enjoyed Amelia and the heroine's relationship, they're so cute and funny. Maybe she can't solve the heroine's problems, but she's always there to hear her out and I think that's great. I have to agree that travelling on giant Taffy is the best thing ever.

Every time the heroine laments about what she'll do after graduating, it makes me feel so down because it's a problem I've been thinking about for more than 10 years and I still don't know what I want to do with my life haha. But seeing her actually have a dream but just be afraid that she's not capable makes me feel happier for her, because she has a goal, she's just not sure if she can do it, but really, with her skills, her hard work and Randy's support and encouragement, there's no way she can't. I'm glad she was finally able to tell him that she loves him though, Randy looked so happy. It must be so difficult for him to face the real Randy and his parents again. He caused them to "lose" their child all these years.. Randy's mother being so understanding is so heartbreaking. Taffy being the real Randy's familiar is unsurprising I guess, but it's actually really sweet to know that Taffy was a stuffed toy he had since childhood, and that the first thing he did when the real Randy could use magic was to bring Taffy to life. As someone who also really loves my stuffed toys, I can understand those sentiments of truly cherishing something you've had with you for a long time. I'm glad Taffy also feels the same and loves the real Randy just as much. I agree with the heroine that Serge never felt like he was "pretending" to be Randy, at most, it would be how he was influenced by Randy and changed because of him.

Lmao at Klaus saying the old Serge was a difficult guy to be around and that Randy was acting like that now, and then Sigurd says he's the last person that should be saying that considering how difficult he is🤣 I love how Taffy came out of nowhere to save the day haha, it's not a Randy route without Taffy, they're a team forever! I agree that Randy needs to make an Anywhere Phone so that he can always talk to Taffy even if they separate from each other (since Taffy will probably go with the real Randy), and it was so sweet to see Taffy call him Serge😭 The heroine deciding to transfer to Queensblade for the magic creature medicine course was really cool! I love how decisive she is towards her goals. It's sad that she's leaving everyone and going to school somewhere else but I'm happy for the heroine, and I loved her answer that yeah trying your best doesn't mean you'll definitely achieve your goals but giving up is a different story. If you love something, you should work your hardest towards it. Maybe it won't work out but it's better than regretting you didn't try. I loved how everything she learnt revolved around Randy and through each other they both grew as people, it's crazy to see how much the heroine has grown and how much more confident she is.

I can't believe the heroine was planning to leave without telling anyone! I understand her perspective but it's just so cruel to deny people the chance to say goodbye to her. I'm glad Elias busted her haha. Honestly, I didn't think I'd get emotional especially when it's obvious, but when Randy dripped a bit of the potion on the petrified cloth to check if it works before he used it on the real Randy, I couldn't help but want to cry seeing it work. Randy has gone through so many failures, suffered so much guilt throughout the years that seeing everything finally work out made me so happy for him. I was so happy for them when Randy woke up and was able to talk to the people he loved, but extremely sad to see him go back into a comatose state, I felt very sad for Serge. I'm very glad we got to see the real Randy wake up eventually and properly and get to see Serge and the heroine's child but omg, I understand why they call her Candy but noooo, that name is so silly hahaha. I'm still happy though because it's nice to know how happy they are.

Overall, I'm really sad to really say goodbye to Wizardess Heart for real now because just playing this route again made me remember how much I loved Randy and all the guys. Sure, not every route was great but that's to be expected with so many LIs and stories, but I definitely enjoyed them all enough that I'll remember them all fondly. In terms of the sequel itself, I really enjoyed seeing Randy's dream come true, and I really enjoyed the dilemma of whether Taffy would go back with real Randy and stuff like that. I liked seeing them struggle with their difficulties in seeing the real Randy and Serge doing his best to achieve his goal. But I guess what I enjoyed most was seeing the heroine grow so much that she had decided to move to Queensblade to fulfill her dream even if it meant she had to leave all her friends behind. I love her bravery and strength, and I love the support she and Serge give to each other as partners. It felt really heartwarming to watch over them and I'm really happy that I got to finish the game watching over how happy they are. However, I do have to say, I think all the guys deserved a sequel so I'm sad that the others never got that, but yeah oh well, I will definitely miss this game and would always recommend it for mobile otome players haha, it might feel dated but the stories are very heartwarming.

[piduai]

I saw that you tagged sugi with "character assassination of the decade" and i couldn't agree more, crazy how shogun ass arc felt like the absolute peak of gntm and especially sugi's character and then everything afterward fell completely flat thanks to that nonsensical uts*ro twist. it's not even that i hate the idea of shoyo being evil before becoming a schoolteacher (in fact i think most ppl predicted he was connected to the naraku back in 2k13 lol), but why say "akshually he's alive all along" the literal arc after you reveal his dramatic death?? so much wasted potential because of that failure of a final boss and so many characters suffered as a result bc they weren't allowed further character development - i'm particularly pissed as a fan of zura, nobume, kagura (why is she still stuck to ginsan's side by the end instead of following her dream of being a space hunter) and the kiheitai

honestly i still remember reading the end of shogun ass arc when it came out, and i think bansai says "shinsuke's eyes were firmly focused on something" and how much hope it gave me... like the potential of zura + sugi working together to put the final nail in the coffin for the bakufu (zura by aiming for a legitimate place in a new govt and sugi with more underhanded methods lmao.. i still think kiheitai should've become high-grade bounty hunters at the end of the series), or the reveal of a bond btwn nobume and sugi since sasaki was working so closely with him. but instead that godawful "everyone vs aliens + dead guy who's actually alive" shonen cliche final battle happened. in fact i think it actively undermines the themes of the series bc until then i thought the true enemy isn't necessarily the amanto but the corruption and greed that existed in the so-called samurai country long before the amanto even arrived, and the goal was to figure out how to adapt to this new world and change yourself along the way.... but i guess the actual message was just "foreigners bad" which is way more reactionary than i expected lol. the gintaman in my head ended around ch 525, maybe ch 540 at the latest, after that it's all my delusions

yeah it definitely peaked there, chapter 519 to be specific. after that it started steadily going downhill until it decided to sprint just to land in shounen hell. excruciatingly long-winded spiritual successor to beelzebub. utsuro as a whole was very messy and nonsensical, and yeah as you said that reveal being IMMEDIATELY after it was established that hacking his sorry head off ruined the trio's lives and relationships with each other was just... umm... okay... it's also funny that shoyo was like a separate identity from utsuro altogether he was able to summon and suppress so when the guys met the evil guy with the same face as their angstily and unwillingly murdered teacher they were like Well there's aliens at play. not our guy not buying it. bye. dude??? that thang has put you to sleep once, man up and be sad about it. but god forbid there's any kind of actually complex conflict or anyone is ever guilty of anything. tbh i don't remember shit after shogun assassination i just remember this whole thing being structurally underwhelming and feeling cheap.

yeah takasugi's eye was focused on something. it was focused on gintoki 😋 everything needs to be focused on gintoki all the time. takasugi's long-winded angst and anger need to shift focus from his love towards sensei to his bond with gintoki. zura's entire deal whatever it was needed to center gintoki and his interests. shinpachi and kagura needed to forfeit all of their initial plans and embrace arrested development forever because yorozuya means family means they need to blow the power of friendship up gintoki's ass 24/7. every single female of any species needs to have a cute little crush on gintoki and he needs to be the main character for every rando he meets, changing their lives forever through his imposing presence. other characters can not have any conflict or development or agenda that doesn't center or at least heavily involve gintoki. and also nobody is allowed to have any rapport with each other independently of gintoki. never forget about the specialest little boy in the universe, if he doesn't get to give at least 5 boring pompous speeches per chapter or have a few epic one-liners everyone working on this franchise will need to immediately kill themselves (specified in their employment contracts in bold). also if you have anything less than enthusiastic to say about this you're a cretin who is too dumb to understand that any story that doesn't revolve around its main character always with no breaks is worthless and that doing exactly that is the epitome of genius writing btw.

takasugi's character assassination felt particularly asinine because for 80% of the story he's being menacing without much screen time and his personal drama is mostly hinted at, then he gets lots of focus in shogun assassination and it culminates in the plot twist flashback, after which he dedicates all his efforts to being overtly sad for gintoki and suffering more than jesus, and then he's killed off without any resolution. AND THEN HE'S REBORN AS SOME UGLY ASS BABY. like he can't get any dignity or integrity even in death lmao but it's ok i still love him bc as mentioned above gintama ended on chapter 519...

yeah i still think it might be not that deep but like it starts off as foreigners are the enemy and they came here to destroy our beautiful country so we have to stay resilient against their harassment. then it transcends to this country has always had its own rot and we the righteous and lovable riff-raffs will bring justice to it in the name of the moon, the country itself doesn't matter, we just want to protect our loved ones against anything that threatens them. and then it goes back to foreigners are evil and we'll actually go and kick their asses on their own territory even. to protect this country. alright!