#than let him have stuff unique and special to him as a character

[undertheknightwing]

I can't be the only one who noticed this but they completely ripped "athlete" from Jon's character and honestly it's very disappointing

[tojisglazer]

As someone who’s obsessed with The Legend of Zelda herself, I felt like it was my duty to write this.

Kento Nanami is extremely obsessed with highly interested in the Legend of Zelda franchise. He’s been into it ever since he attended Jujustu High.

He owns every single Zelda game, every figure, and every piece of merch that Nintendo could possibly have. Gojo eventually found out and couldn’t resist teasing him, laughing as he called him a nerd, much to Kento’s annoyance.

When Kento first started dating you, he soon found out that you were pretty interested in the Legend of Zelda franchise, too. (Not as much as he was, you could never love it more than him.)

You even managed to show him the console you play the games on, and he couldn’t be more in love.

“Really?” His expression was a blank slate, but the subtle curiosity in his voice betrayed him.

“Yeah.. a bit nerdy, I know.” You let out a nervous laugh.

“No, not really,” He crossed his arms over his chest. “I.. just so happen to be interested in it as well.”

“Wait—are you serious?” Your lips curled up into a smile. “I didn’t think you’d be the guy who’d be interested in that kinda stuff.”

“I just like the story and how complex it is.” You saw his body ease up a bit as he spoke. “The characters in each game as well, they have a bit of a… ‘unique’ charm to them.”

“I like the fighting! But not too much of the puzzles.” You chimed in, sipping your coffee every now and then.

“The puzzles are fairly easy, maybe you should just try harder.” Kento teased, a rare smirk tugging at his lips.

“Oh yeah? Well maybe you should help me with them, since you’re such a smarty pants.” You challenged him and went to turn on your switch.

From that moment forward, you and Kento shared a special connection, spending weekends together rambling about your favorite game as if nothing else mattered.

Masterlist

[danieyells]

@2flowerz also asked for Lyca so

NOW WITH 100% MORE DOGGO LYCA. HE IS DEFINITELY A HUMAN AND NOT A WEREWOLF. He is trying very hard to be a human. I love him very much. . . .

Hello: (the first time the game is opened after that character is set as home screen NPC. Only happens once per day, unless the character is switched out and back.)

"...You again. Where're we going today?"

You've Got Mail: (whenever there's something in the inbox, usually Arena rewards)

"Hey, you got letters. Don't you have to read them? Oh, don't you know how?"

he understands if you can't read, man. neither can he.

Default: (requires no affinity, has no time constraints)

"You smell sweeter than usual today... Stop. Go away."

after learning that the pc is going to turn into the anomaly that cursed them any sort of 'you smell nicer than normal' feels like such a threat lmao

"You want to touch me? Fine. Ten seconds and that's it."

that is more than enough my good sir

"When I find Neros, I wanna prove I've been getting along with humans. Then he'll definitely let me live with him."

considering he related the term 'neglect play' to what Neros did to him. . .I'm not so sure. . .and if Neros was as old as he sounds like he was, I wonder if he's even still alive. . . .

"Hey! Moth-eaten Casanova! Where'd you go? I'm gonna show you my special move today."

"special move" in Japanese is 「必殺技」 or 'lethal move'/'killer technique', usually unique to a person or fighting style. Not sure if he wants to show Ed how cool he is or try and kill him lmao--

"This phone thingy they gave me keeps making noises and making me jump... Why do I gotta carry it everywhere? It's scary!"

Affinity 1: (between 5am and 11am)

"Mnn... Let me sleep... Don't touch me... Zzz..."

Affinity 2: (between 11am and 4pm)

"Laws, school regulations, anomalous law... Manners, morals, rules... How're you s'posed to remember all that?"

man i wish i could tell you. . .i've mostly got the morals in order, that's basically just 'don't do harm to others' when you get down to it. laws are about 50% 'don't do things that may endanger you or others' and 50% bullshit. the rest you're kinda on your own with.

Affinity 3: (between 4pm and 8pm)

"Urgh... My skin's crawling... Moon must be gettin' round soon..."

Affinity 4: (between 8pm and 5am)

"At first I was sad 'cause I got put in a different house to Suba, but all kinds of stuff happens here every day so it was fine."

awww he was sad because he doesn't get to see Subaru as often but he's not bored so it's alright! glad he's comfortable ;u;

Affinity 5: (between 8pm and 5am)

"H-Hey, don't come so close! Somethin' about your scent makes my stomach feel weird!"

WE'RE ONLY ON AFFINITY 5 DUDE YOU CAN'T BE CATCHING FEELINGS THIS EARLY it's probably because he's scared of girls or something lol

Affinity 6: (between 4pm and 8pm)

"I didn't do anything wrong! Those guys were saying mean stuff about me 'cause they thought I couldn't hear. All I did was yell at them."

I hate how they won't even let Lyca defend himself verbally. . . .

Affinity 7: (between 11am and 4pm)

"I don't mind classes. The teachers say cool stuff. Once I learn to read the textbooks and the notes and the blackboard it'll be perfect."

HE'S GONNA BE SUCH A GOOD STUDENT WHEN HE CAN READ???

Affinity 8: (between 4pm and 8pm)

"There was this big noise in our practical class and my ears popped out. Everyone ran away screaming. Damn it..."

wow they're cowards if the ears alone scared them. . .how're they supposed to deal with anomalies if that scared them!?

Affinity 9: (between 8pm and 5am)

"This? It's a picture book, duh. How come you don't know that when you're a human? I study with it before bed, everyone does it."

I wonder who made him a picture book of all the things he'd be learning as a first year to study with. . . . . .or maybe it's just a generic picture book lol

Affinity 10: (between 10pm and midnight)

"This blanket's not trash, it's just dirty. I can't sleep without it, so hands off."

he really loves that blanket huh. it must be one of the only things he had from his childhood or from being looked after by neros. . . .

Affinity 11: (between 5am and 11am)

"What's a "so-shul skill"?  That blond gigolo was talking about them. He said I don't have any. Is that a good thing?"

he's got social skills!! Just. . .not very human social skills!!!

Affinity 12: (between 11am and 4pm)

"I'm starving... I wanna eat Sho's food, but I can't order it without Suba... Wait, you can read, right?"

Lyca slowly realizing how many people he knows can actually read and thus can help him with placing orders for delicious foods--

Affinity 13: (between 4pm and 8pm)

"That moth-eaten Casanova's in his room all day so I tried to take him for a walk, but he locked his door and ignored me. The hell?!"

LYCA CONTINUES TO SCRATCH AT ED'S DOOR COME FOR WALKIES ED!!!!

Affinity 14: (between 5am and 11am)

"That stupid blond gigolo ran off with my blanket. I'm not done sleeping yet..."

tbf your blanket is filthy. . .and I get it, it's what you've got and it smells familiar but. . . .

Affinity 15: (between 5am and 11am)

"I can't get back to sleep... I'm gonna wake up that moth-eaten Casanova for a walk."

lyca is a dog scratching at your bedroom door with his leash in his mouth like 'yes it is time for walkies now rise human'

Affinity 16: (between 11am and 4pm)

"The teacher asked us to name an anomalous plant you can eat but when I did he said humans can't eat it. So what? I can, so I'm not wrong."

I AGREE WITH HIM HE SHOULD NOT GET THAT MARKED WRONG. if you only want a human applicable question say 'humans' not 'you.

Affinity 17: (between 10pm and midnight)

"In the last place I never knew what time it was and I pretty much just slept all day. Now I gotta get used to having a "roo-teen.""

Affinity 18: (between 8pm and 5am)

"I'm drawing. If I draw all the good stuff and bad stuff that happened every day I won't forget about it."

if he could write he'd keep a diary but since he can't write he's keeping a picture diary. . .and he's a really good artist according to his character story, so it's probably a pretty faithful recreation of whatever happened that day. i'd love to see his picture diary. . . .

Affinity 19: (between 10pm and midnight)

"Huh? The blood on my bed? ...It's nothing. Don't touch my stuff, you're gonna get your smell all over it!"

WHY IS THERE BLOOD IN YOUR BED, BUDDY. ARE YOU OKAY??? IF YOU ATE SOMETHING IN BED THAT'S FINE I JUST DON'T WANT YOU TO BE INJURED. . . .

Affinity 20: (between 5am and 11am)

"...Did you cry? Your scent is all squeezy. How come?"

smelling you sad makes him sad too so tell him why you're feeling sad and he can make the sad go away?

Affinity 21: (between 11am and 4pm)

"I wanna go to the cafeteria, but the teachers won't give me my pocket money. They said I'll get "spoiled." The hell does that mean?!"

GIVE HIM SOME MONEY SO HE CAN BUY FOOD???? HE NEEDS TO EAT????? HE'S BUSY WITH CLASS SO HE CAN'T GO ON MISSIONS YOU CAN'T JUST STARVE THE BOY????

Affinity 22: (between 4pm and 8pm)

"That moth-eaten Casanova told me humans like it if you ignore them sometimes. Something about playing hard to get? I'm gonna try it tomorrow."

I wonder if that has anything to do with Subaru's home screen chat where he wonders why Lyca hasn't messaged him back. . .he's trying to play hard to get because he thinks it'll make Subaru like him more. . . .

Affinity 23: (between 8pm and 5am)

"I'll stay here and be quiet at night, even when the moon's not round. 'Cause you're tired, aren't you? Go sleep."

even if he doesn't have to stay or even if he wants to make lots of noise, he'll stay and be quiet so it's easier for you to fall asleep. He won't be loud and you don't have to worry about him! so sleep tight!

Affinity 24: (between 10pm and midnight)

"Sleep here. Huh? Is there a law that says we can't sleep together? There's not, is there? Hurry up and lie down."

it's pretty much innocent. . .he just wants you close by. . .being able to smell you while he sleeps would probably make it easier to fall asleep. . .feel safe and familiar and everything. . . .

Affinity 25(max): (no time constraints)

"I'm gonna work hard... I'll gonna work so hard, they're gonna say I can live with humans forever..."

Lyca, despite being a werewolf, is a lot like Kaito in that he just wants to be a normal human. Except he never started as a normal human, so he has a bit further of a distance to go to become one. . .he's not a dog, he doesn't wanna be a pet or an animal or anything like that. He wants to be a person like everyone else. But it's hard when others reject him, and when everyone says they think he's too dangerous even when he hasn't done anything wrong. Other ghouls--other humans--do way worse stuff than he does, and yet he's still held to a higher standard. It's not fair. But he's working as hard as he can to catch up. . . .

Spring: (March-May) (between 5am and 11am)

"That blond gigolo tried to wash my blanket! He's never coming in my room again!"

he does not like spring cleaning--

(between 11am and 4pm)

"Lately there's flower smells everywhere, but sometimes there's one that kinda smells like you."

IT'S GONNA BE HILARIOUS IF THE ANOMALY THAT CURSED YOU HAPPENS TO LIVE IN OBSCUARY'S FOREST. . .LIKE YEAH IT'S JUST OUT THERE IT WAS ALWAYS ON CAMPUS IDK WHAT TO TELL YOU WE COULD'VE BEEN WORKING ON THIS CURE BEFORE YOU GOT IT.

(between 4pm and 8pm)

"Harurin kept nagging, so I went to the safari park. Not gonna lie...it was super fun."

I love that Lyca uses the nicknames Rui uses for some people lol and I bet he loved running around Jabberwock!!! All that fresh open air and the wildlife. . .he's a wolf at heart really and truly.

(between 8pm and 5am)

"Cherry blossom petals are super fun. They're like, whoosh, then they fall everywhere. I wish our house had some."

Summer: (June-August) (between 5am and 11am)

"Urgh... My head...it hurts... This? It's shaved ice. The blond gigolo told me to eat it so I don't get "heat eggs-aw-schun.""

oh buddy you're eating it too fast. . . . . .

(between 11am and 4pm)

"I was just in that moth-eaten Casanova's room and it was so cold I thought it was gonna snow! Is he secretly a yeti?"

okay it was only 63 degrees in there it wasn't THAT cold Lyca.

(between 4pm and 8pm)

"I'm gonna go practice swimming at Harurin's place. Can you do other stuff besides doggy paddle?"

I can't swim at all so. you are miles ahead of me my friend.

(between 8pm and 5am)

"I know I said I always wanted to do sparklers, but... you sure this's okay? I thought we're not s'posed to play with fire!"

canid instincts are kicking in--fire BAD and SCARY and DANGEROUS. ABORT MISSION.

Autumn: (September-November) (between 5am and 11am)

"I just tried to join in with some guys playing with a ball, but they said I don't know the rules and told me to go away."

THEN TEACH HIM THE RULES god they're such jerks around here.

(between 11am and 4pm)

"Blond Gigolo was makin' this massive fire near the garden just now. It smelled all burnt and sweet... Is that some kinda ritual?"

(between 4pm and 8pm)

"Finished my picture. That Romi guy who comes to the bar all the time said he wanted one, so it's for him."

Romeo does like fine things. This just goes to show how good of an artist Lyca is! I bet Romeo's gonna frame it and put it somewhere people can see lol or maybe just keep it in his room. . .that or he wants to see if he can get him to make a forgery and profit off poor Lyca--

(between 8pm and 5am)

"Moth-eaten Casanova said humans like looking at the moon... D'you get sad if you can't see it?"

Winter: (December-February) (between 5am and 11am)

"I'm gonna go play at that big ice castle after class! Huh? 'Cause playing in the snow's fun."

THE FROSTHEIMERS BETTER NOT GIVE HIM TROUBLE LET MY BOY RUN AND ROMP IN THE SNOW!!!!!!!

(between 11am and 4pm)

"Mm, I don't really feel the cold. Humans get warm when they run around too, don't they? Race you over there! "

he is having so much fun in the winter ;;;;; just running around and playing. . . .

(between 4pm and 8pm)

"My fingers have been gettin' all tingly and stiff and my hair's all crunchy! What's up with that? "

maybe playing in the snow a little too much lol--

(between 8pm and 5am)

"How d'you drink hot drinks so quick? They always burn my tongue... Huh? Dogs have sensitive tongues? I'm a wolf, not a dog..."

His birthday: (April 19th)

"Oh right, it's my birthday. Neros told me my mom wrote down the date."

Your birthday:

"It's your birthday, right? No, I only know 'cause that blond gigolo was yelling about it. ...Here's your present."

I bet he drew something really nice or found you something really cool ;3;

New Years: (January 1st)

"Hope you have a happy and prop...props... prosp...prospinous? new year... Damn it, I practiced that for ages..."

Valentine's Day: (February 14th)

"Oh, thanks. Professor Nicolas said I can't eat chocolate, so I'll give it to Casanova and Gigolo!"

why would you even risk giving him chocolate in the first place lmao. . .also in Japanese he says "I'll share with those two idiots" instead of "casanova and gigolo" lmao

White Day: (March 14th)

"This is for you. I dunno what kinda stuff human girls like, but Suba helped me pick it, so it's prob'ly fine."

Subaru knows girls' tastes is Lyca's logic I guess lmao Subaru is a lil on the femme side comparatively--

April Fool's Day: (April 1st)

"Why's everyone being so mean today?! Telling lies and laughing at me... They're all jerks...!"

please explain the day to him. . .people are mean enough to him as it is. . . .

Halloween: (October 31st)

"My ears and tail are out? I know, I'm doing it on purpose. The moth-eaten Casanova said it's okay today."

THE ONE DAY HE CAN BE HIMSELF IS HALLOWEEN BECAUSE NO ONE WILL THINK ANYTHING OF IT. . .they'll just think it's a cool costume or maybe a fox robe! And he'll get candy for it!!!

Christmas: (December 25th)

"Hey, look! When I got up this present was next to my pillow! Santa really came..."

WHO TAUGHT HIM ABOUT SANTA. . .AND WHY. . .then again Romeo said Santa's reindeer is real so. . .it probably isn't actually harmful to teach him about Santa since Santa's probably somewhat real here. . . .

Idle: (about 20 seconds without interacting with the game) (below 13 affinity)

"...I'm going for a walk."

(13 affinity and above)

"Hey, you alive? Huh, you're breathing so I guess so."

Absent: (logging in for the first time in 2 or more days?)

"How come you stopped coming? Do you hate me? It made my heart all squeezy, so don't do it again."

oh no sweetie. . .sometimes we just have to take care of things and disappear without wanting to. . .sometimes life gets in the way instead of finding away. . . . . . . .

JUST. . .SWEETEST OF SWEETHEARTS. HE'S SO CHILDISH AND ADORABLE AND SWEET AND GOOD. . .I WILL USE MY TEN SECONDS OF PETTING TIME WISELY. He really does try harder than anyone, he's so determined and I believe in him so much. I want my boy to be happy.

[br4inr0tx]

Here we go with another match, this time for 🐻 Anon!

Another note, yes I’ve been gone for like two months.. Halloween season is a busy season for me every year since my dumbass decided to become a scare actor. Even better, I got sick right after! Yay! Now I’m back, I’m going to go on a marathon and get all the matches in my inbox out of the way.

TW - Toxic Replationships, Forced Affection, Torture, Guns, and Knives.

Your Boyfriend to Death matchup is… REN HANA !!

• This may have been an obvious one, but I think Ren is the best for you!

• Ren’s type is generally alt people. Anyone into nerd culture regarding media series definitely catch his attention first. Seeing an artsy, pinky person like you immediately makes him have heart eyes for you. I guess you could say he just wants an anime looking bf/gf/partner. Since you fit in that category, you got him pretty easily!

• Hazzah! You’re taller than him! Don’t think he’ll let you get away with bullying him about it. He’s a little bit self conscious, and will most likely punish you with the shock collar for it.

• As I mentioned before, Ren is a sucker for cute things. Seeing anything cute, especially something from you, can pull on his heartstrings. If you wear any anime related stuff, or even those Japanese lolita dresses, he’s going head of heels.

• He loves putting you and/or helping you pick in certain outfit. As you’d expect he loves seeing you in anime character cosplays, or just anything cute. Seeing you in lingerie is a special treat.

• Now uh.. about the bear thing. He might get mad jealous because as a beastkin fox, he’s nothing close to a bear. He might get a little lowkey offended, but it’s probably him just being bratty. He’ll get over it.. maybe.

• Unfortunately for you, Ren likes bringing up and doing the things you hate and fear, just to provoke you when you’re not feeling your best. Those little reminders showing you he’s in control are his favorite.

• While he’s mostly cheery, Ren seems to have the ability to go from 0 to 100 REALLY quickly. Some people might consider him the nicest out of all the candidates in BTD, but I like to think he’s equally as dangerous as the rest of them.

• Ren is calm when listening to you, which is good, although most of the time when you seek advice he recommends killing. Please don’t listen to him, or else he might invite his friend Lawrence over for a little fun.

• He thinks you’re super creative! All of your art makes him mesmerized. His form of art comes in the form of snuff films mostly, but I think he has a decent hand at art too.

• Ren most likely listens to anime intros, or alt electronic pop music. Think MSI or And One. I can see him vibing with your music though!

• He gives you all the sweets in the world to fulfill your sweet tooth, unless you’re bad for him. In that case he forbids you from sweets.

• He tends to talk about how much he loves you a lot. Uniquely for him, I feel like he’s the most loving out of all the guys. You tend to be high maintenance, and need reassurance, he’s your guy to remind you all the time of his love.

• He forces you to be close to him a lot. He’s always touching you, not always in hugs and kisses. Even having his claws a little ways into your flesh gives him the power boost he needs.

• Oh.. you like being abused? You already know loves fulfilling all of your naughty desires, exactly how you want them. Beg and cry all you want, once you make any sign at him for him to start, there’s no off switch until he’s says done.

• Ren is a little clinging and teasing. Like a fox, he’s sneaky and isn’t always truthful. He’s a king of manipulation, but.. this is what you wanted. I’m sure you’ve told him yourself, and now? He’s NEVER letting you go.

[amethystarachnid]

omg could I please request 17- Holiday Baking Fiasco with Tony x Fem!Reader? We all know of Tony’s poor cooking skills (as exhibited by his burnt omelette 😭) so I think his determination to bake some Christmas cookies will lead to chaos and hilarity

CHRISTMAS COOKIES

⤷ ANTHONY “TONY” E. STARK

ᯓ★ Pairing: Anthony “Tony” E. Stark x fem!reader

ᯓ★ Genre: romance, fluff

ᯓ★ Request from: MARVEL Holiday special

ᯓ★ Story type: one shot

ᯓ★ Word count: 3.6k

ᯓ★ Summary: Tony and Y/n have been in a happy relationship for five years now and live together in Tony's penthouse, so y/n knows that Tony can't cook at all and is shocked when he tells her that he wants to bake some Christmas cookies, he insists on doing it alone but since she doesn't want him to burn down the house she gets him to at least let her supervise.

ᯓ★ TW(s): nothing

ᯓ★ My Masterlist

ᯓ★ MARVEL Holiday Special

ᯓ★ MARVEL Multiverse - choose an AU, pair it with your favorite character and make a request!

ᯓ★ Songs & Superheroes tales - The Game (to make a request, follow the rules on the link!)

ᯓ★ MARVEL Bingo

ᯓ★ English isn’t my first language

The warm glow of the morning sun spills through the sheer curtains, bathing Tony’s penthouse in a soft golden hue. The city below is alive with holiday cheer, but up here, it feels like the two of you are the only people in the world. The aroma of freshly brewed coffee wafts through the open space as you pad into the kitchen, rubbing the sleep from your eyes.

You find Tony already up, standing by the counter with a blueprint spread out in front of him. His hair is a delightful mess, sticking up in every direction like he’s been up for hours. Typical Tony. He’s dressed in red plaid pajama pants and a threadbare Black Sabbath tee that you’ve threatened to steal more times than you can count.

“Morning, genius,” you mumble, sliding your arms around his waist from behind. He leans back into your embrace, his body warm and familiar against yours.

“Morning, gorgeous,” he replies, his voice still husky from sleep. He turns his head to press a kiss to your temple before straightening up. There’s a glint in his eyes that you recognize—a dangerous mix of excitement and mischief.

“What’s going on in that head of yours?” you ask, suspicious.

“Funny you should ask,” he says, turning around to face you fully. “I’ve been thinking.”

“That’s never a good sign,” you tease, earning a smirk from him.

“Very funny. No, but seriously, I was thinking we should do something festive today. You know, Christmas stuff.”

Your eyebrows shoot up. Tony Stark, Mr. Too-Cool-for-Traditions, wants to do something festive? “Okay,” you say slowly. “Like what? Watch a Christmas movie? Decorate the tree?”

He shakes his head, the smirk widening into a full-blown grin. “Cookies.”

“Cookies?” you repeat, the word sounding foreign coming from his mouth.

“Yeah. You know, sugar, flour, chocolate chips... cookies. I think it’s time I flexed my culinary muscles.”

You stare at him, waiting for the punchline. When it doesn’t come, you burst out laughing. “Tony, you don’t have culinary muscles. You have exactly one recipe in your repertoire: ramen noodles in a coffee mug.”

“Not true!” he protests, crossing his arms. “I made that omelet that one time.”

“You mean the one that set off the smoke alarm?”

“That was a fluke,” he says, waving you off. “Anyway, I’m serious about this. I want to bake Christmas cookies, and I want to do it myself.”

The idea of Tony Stark baking anything, let alone something as delicate as cookies, is both hilarious and terrifying. You can already picture the chaos: flour everywhere, batter stuck to the ceiling, and possibly a small fire.

“Tony,” you start gently, “I love you, but you have a... unique relationship with the kitchen. Maybe we should do this together?”

“Nope,” he says, popping the “p” for emphasis. “This is my thing. I’m doing this solo.”

You cross your arms, fixing him with a stern look. “You’re not burning down my kitchen on Christmas Day.”

“Our kitchen,” he corrects, grinning like he’s already won.

“Fine, our kitchen. Point is, I’m not letting you turn it into ground zero for a sugar explosion. I’ll supervise.”

He groans, dragging a hand through his hair. “Y/N, come on. Where’s your Christmas spirit?”

“It’s alive and well, which is why I’m trying to save Christmas by keeping you from setting the penthouse on fire.”

He narrows his eyes at you, but there’s no malice there. “Fine,” he relents, throwing his hands up in surrender. “You can supervise. But no interfering unless I specifically ask for help. Deal?”

“Deal,” you say, though you both know you’ll probably break that rule within five minutes.

Tony heads to the pantry, pulling out ingredients with more enthusiasm than precision. “Alright, let’s do this. Where’s the cookbook?”

You snort. “Cookbook? You?”

“Okay, fine, I Googled a recipe last night,” he admits, pulling out his phone.

You settle onto one of the barstools, sipping your coffee as you watch him dive headfirst into the world of baking. He’s like a kid in a candy store, his usual cool demeanor replaced with genuine excitement.

“So, what kind of cookies are we making?” you ask.

“Chocolate chip, obviously,” he says, dumping a bag of flour onto the counter.

“Classic. Good choice.”

Tony starts measuring out ingredients, his tongue poking out in concentration. It’s adorable, really, watching him fumble his way through something so ordinary. You can’t help but smile as he mutters to himself, double-checking the recipe on his phone.

Things go smoothly at first—too smoothly. He measures the flour, sugar, and baking soda without incident, and for a moment, you think maybe this won’t be the disaster you were expecting.

But then he tries to crack an egg.

“Dammit!” he exclaims as half the shell ends up in the mixing bowl.

You bite back a laugh. “Need help?”

“No,” he says stubbornly, fishing out the shell fragments with a spoon. “I’ve got this.”

You watch as he moves on to the butter, which he apparently forgot to let soften. He stabs at it with a knife, muttering curses under his breath.

“Tony,” you say, trying to keep a straight face, “you’re supposed to let the butter soften before you mix it.”

“Didn’t know I was signing up for a science experiment,” he grumbles, tossing the cold butter into the bowl anyway.

Despite the hiccups, he manages to get all the ingredients into the bowl. Then comes the mixing.

“Okay, here we go,” he says, grabbing the electric mixer.

“Careful—” you start, but it’s too late.

The moment he turns it on, a cloud of flour erupts from the bowl, coating both him and the counter in a fine white dust.

For a moment, neither of you says anything. Then Tony looks up at you, his face covered in flour, and you lose it.

Your laughter echoes through the kitchen as Tony tries—and fails—to look indignant. “Glad you’re enjoying this,” he says dryly, though you can see the corners of his mouth twitching.

“I’m sorry,” you manage between giggles. “You just—”

“Look ridiculous?” he finishes for you.

“Pretty much.”

He grabs a handful of flour and flings it at you, catching you square in the chest.

“Oh, you’re gonna regret that,” you say, grabbing your own handful of flour.

The next thing you know, the kitchen has turned into a full-blown flour fight.

The flour fight ends with both of you sitting on the kitchen floor, laughing so hard your sides ache. Tony looks completely disheveled, his hair white with powder, his grin boyish and infectious. You’re sure you don’t look much better.

“I think,” Tony says between chuckles, “this is the part where I’d make a robot clean everything. Except today is supposed to be authentic, right?” He gestures dramatically, like that word alone explains the chaos he’s caused.

“Oh, authentic, huh?” you reply, brushing flour off your face. “Well, in authentic kitchens, people clean up their messes before they burn their cookies.”

Tony groans, tilting his head back like he’s considering giving up entirely. “Fine. Let’s clean. But for the record, that flour cloud? Totally added character to the kitchen.”

You roll your eyes but smile anyway, standing up and grabbing a towel. “Come on, Mr. Authentic. Let’s see how good you are with a sponge.”

Together, you set about tidying the mess. It’s... slow. Tony keeps getting distracted, like when he tries to use the flour-dusted mixing spoon as a microphone to belt out a horribly off-key rendition of “All I Want for Christmas Is You.” Or when he attempts to juggle the eggs and nearly drops all of them.

“Tony,” you warn, snatching the eggs from his hands, “focus. Or so help me, I’ll ban you from this kitchen for life.”

“Wouldn’t be the first time someone’s banned me from a lab,” he quips, but he grabs a dishcloth and starts wiping the counter.

It’s messy, chaotic, and far from efficient, but eventually, the kitchen is somewhat recognizable again. You tie the trash bag closed with a satisfied huff and glance at Tony, who’s leaning against the counter, arms crossed, a smudge of flour still on his cheek.

“Well,” you say, smirking, “I think that’s the closest you’ve ever come to doing housework.”

“I’d be offended if that wasn’t completely accurate,” he shoots back.

You laugh, but your amusement fades as you watch him glance at the bowl of half-mixed dough on the counter. His shoulders slump just slightly, his earlier bravado dimming.

“What’s wrong?” you ask, stepping closer.

He hesitates, running a hand through his hair. “Okay, I admit it. This whole baking thing... it’s harder than it looks.”

“Oh, really? I never would’ve guessed,” you tease lightly, nudging him with your elbow.

“Hey, cut me some slack. I’m a genius in most areas, but apparently, cookie dough is my kryptonite.” He sighs, turning to you with a sheepish smile. “I think I need a co-pilot. Someone to, you know, steer me away from the iceberg before I sink the whole ship.”

You arch an eyebrow. “So, you’re asking for my help?”

“I’m delegating,” he says quickly, holding up a finger. “There’s a difference. You’re not taking over; you’re just... preventing further disasters.”

“Uh-huh,” you say, crossing your arms. “And how many disasters are we talking here?”

“None. Zero. Zilch. I’ve got this,” he insists, but the look in his eyes is pleading.

You sigh, shaking your head. “Fine. But you still have to do most of the work. I’m just here to stop you from burning down the penthouse. Deal?”

“Deal.”

With your roles established, the two of you return to the mixing bowl. Tony picks up the electric mixer with exaggerated caution, holding it like it’s a live grenade.

“Okay,” you say, guiding him, “start slow. Just enough to combine the butter and sugar.”

He flips the switch, and for once, the mixer behaves. The butter and sugar begin to cream together, and Tony flashes you a triumphant grin.

“Look at that! I’m a natural,” he says smugly.

“Don’t get cocky,” you warn, though you can’t help but smile.

The next step is adding the eggs, and you’re extra vigilant this time. “Crack them into a separate bowl first,” you instruct, handing him a small bowl.

“Why? Afraid I’ll mess up again?” he asks, but he does as you say.

“Not afraid. Just prepared.”

The first egg cracks cleanly, and Tony gives you a mock bow. “See? No shell this time. I’m a changed man.”

“Congratulations. Now do it again.”

He rolls his eyes but complies, and soon the eggs are safely added to the dough. As the mixer whirs away, you glance at Tony, who’s watching the process with the same intensity he reserves for tinkering in his lab.

“You’re really taking this seriously, huh?” you say, leaning against the counter.

“Of course. It’s Christmas, and I wanted to do something special for you,” he says, his tone softer than usual.

Your heart warms at his words. “Tony...”

“Don’t get all mushy on me,” he interrupts, though his ears are turning red.

You laugh, but there’s a lump in your throat. Moments like these—where Tony lets his guard down and shows just how much he cares—are rare and precious.

“Alright, next step,” you say, clearing your throat to keep the emotion at bay. “Time for the dry ingredients.”

Tony grabs the bag of flour with newfound confidence, measuring it out carefully under your watchful eye.

“Not bad,” you say as he levels off the measuring cup.

“Not bad?” he repeats, feigning insult. “This is perfect. I deserve a medal for this level of precision.”

“Keep telling yourself that, Stark,” you reply, smirking.

Once the dry ingredients are added, it’s time to mix again. This time, the dough starts to come together, and Tony looks genuinely impressed with himself.

“Okay, I admit it,” he says, holding up a spoonful of dough. “This actually looks like cookie dough.”

“That’s because it is cookie dough,” you say with a laugh.

He tastes a bit, his eyes widening. “And it’s good! Damn, I might actually pull this off.”

“Don’t celebrate yet,” you warn, though you’re smiling.

The final step is adding the chocolate chips, and Tony insists on doing it by hand. He pours the chips into the bowl with dramatic flair, tossing in a few extra for good measure.

“Alright,” he says, clapping his hands together. “What’s next?”

“We chill the dough,” you reply, grabbing some plastic wrap.

“Chill it?”

“Yes, Tony. You can’t just bake it right away. The butter needs time to firm up, or the cookies will spread too much in the oven.”

He groans, dragging a hand down his face. “Why didn’t anyone tell me baking was this complicated?”

“You’re the one who wanted to do this solo,” you remind him, wrapping the dough and placing it in the fridge.

Tony sighs dramatically, leaning against the counter like he’s just run a marathon. “Fine. We chill the dough. But I’m taking a break. This baking stuff is exhausting.”

You chuckle, pulling him toward the living room. “Come on, Mr. Authentic. Let’s take a breather before round two.”

Settling onto the couch, Tony flops down beside you, his head resting on your shoulder. His earlier frustration has faded, replaced with that easy grin you know so well.

“So,” he says, looking up at you, “how am I doing so far?”

“Honestly? Not bad. You’re no Julia Child, but you’re better than I expected.”

He laughs. “High praise coming from you.”

“Don’t get used to it,” you reply, nudging him playfully.

The two of you sit in comfortable silence for a while, watching the snow fall outside the massive windows. The city below sparkles with holiday lights, and for a moment, everything feels perfect.

Tony breaks the silence, his voice soft. “Thanks for helping me. I know I’m a disaster in the kitchen, but... it means a lot.”

You smile, pressing a kiss to his temple. “You’re not a disaster. You’re just... a work in progress.”

“Gee, thanks,” he says, but there’s no bite in his words.

As the dough chills and the snow falls, you realize this might just be the best Christmas yet.

The dough chills long enough for Tony to grumble approximately twelve times. By the eighth complaint, you’re certain he’s just doing it to amuse himself. He’s sprawled across the couch like a man overcome by tragedy, one arm draped dramatically over his eyes.

“It’s been a year,” he moans.

You glance at your phone’s clock and laugh. “It’s been thirty-five minutes.”

“Exactly! Thirty-five minutes I’ll never get back. Do you know how many upgrades I could have made to the suit in that time? I could’ve redesigned an entire energy matrix!”

“Could you have made cookies?” you counter, smirking as you throw a pillow at him.

He catches it with ease, his reflexes as sharp as ever. “You’re mocking me, but when these cookies win a Nobel Prize for excellence in baking, I’ll remember this moment.”

“They’ll definitely give you a prize for patience,” you tease, motioning for him to get up. “Come on, it’s time.”

Tony perks up immediately, springing off the couch. “Finally! Let’s do this.”

Back in the kitchen, the dough feels firm and perfect beneath your fingers as you peel away the plastic wrap. Tony, on the other hand, is holding the baking sheet like it might explode in his hands.

“Uh, where do these live?” he asks, staring blankly at the cabinets.

“You’ve lived here for years, and you don’t know where the baking sheets are?” you say, crossing your arms.

“In my defense, I don’t bake. It’s not part of the Stark repertoire.”

You sigh, walk over, and pull the baking sheet from its drawer. Tony grins sheepishly, following you back to the counter.

The two of you start rolling the dough into balls, but Tony’s creations look less like cookies and more like abstract sculptures. Some are tiny, others are enormous. One is oddly triangular.

“Tony,” you say, biting back a laugh, “these cookies need to be the same size, or they’ll bake unevenly.”

“I’m going for a rustic vibe,” he says, holding up a lumpy dough ball with pride.

“Rustic or not, you’re about to have cookies baked on one side and raw on the other.”

“Fair point,” he says, flattening one of the larger blobs. “So, what’s the secret to the perfect cookie shape, Cookie Master?”

You smirk at the nickname. “Here, let me show you.”

Standing beside him, you reach for his hands and guide them, shaping the dough into a neat, even ball. His hands are warm beneath yours, and you can feel his eyes on you as you work.

“Hmm,” he murmurs.

“Hmm, what?” you ask, glancing up.

“Just wondering how much longer I can milk this helpless baker act before you realize I just wanted to get you this close.”

You roll your eyes, though your cheeks warm. “Tony Stark, are you flirting with me while rolling cookie dough?”

“Depends. Is it working?”

You try to keep a straight face, but his mischievous grin is infectious. “Less flirting, more rolling,” you say, though your tone is teasing.

Eventually, the cookies are prepped, and you watch as Tony carefully places them on the parchment-lined baking sheet. It’s almost endearing how focused he is, his tongue poking out slightly as he spaces each cookie with the precision of an engineer.

“Perfect,” he announces, stepping back to admire his handiwork.

“They actually look decent,” you admit.

“Decent?” He clutches his chest in mock offense. “You wound me, darling. These are works of art.”

“Alright, Michelangelo, put them in the oven before you throw out your back patting yourself.”

Tony slides the sheet into the preheated oven with surprising care, setting the timer with exaggerated flair.

“And now,” he says, turning to you with a triumphant smirk, “we wait. Again.”

“At least this time it’s only ten minutes,” you say, leaning against the counter.

“Ten minutes is still too long,” he replies, stepping closer. “You know what I think we should do while we wait?”

“What’s that?” you ask, arching an eyebrow.

He leans down, his lips brushing your ear as he whispers, “I think we should make better use of this kitchen.”

Your breath catches as his hands find your hips, pulling you flush against him. His voice is low and teasing, his breath warm against your skin.

“Tony,” you say, your voice barely a whisper, “the cookies—”

“Are on a timer,” he interrupts, his lips grazing the corner of your mouth. “We’ve got time.”

Before you can argue, his mouth claims yours in a kiss that’s slow and deliberate, the kind that makes your knees weak and your heart race. His hands slide up your sides, pulling you closer as he deepens the kiss, his tongue brushing against yours in a way that makes you forget everything else.

“Tony,” you murmur against his lips, your hands tangling in his hair.

“Hmm?” he hums, his lips trailing down to your jawline.

“I’m serious. If the cookies burn, you’ll never hear the end of it.”

He pulls back just enough to smirk at you, his eyes dark with mischief. “Fair point. But I’m holding you to this after they’re done.”

You laugh, breathless and flustered as you gently push him away. “Fine. Go sit down before you start something we can’t finish.”

Tony sighs dramatically but obliges, dropping onto a barstool with a grin that promises he’s not done with you yet.

When the timer dings, Tony jumps up like a kid on Christmas morning, practically shoving you aside to pull the baking sheet from the oven.

“Careful! They’re hot,” you warn as he sets the tray on the counter.

He grabs a spatula to transfer the cookies to a cooling rack, his excitement contagious. “Look at these beauties,” he says, holding one up. “Golden brown. Perfectly round. It’s almost like I’m a natural.”

You laugh, nudging him playfully. “Let’s not get carried away.”

He bites into the cookie, his eyes widening. “Holy... These are amazing.”

You take a bite of your own, and the buttery, chocolatey goodness makes you hum in approval. “Okay, I’ll admit it. You did good.”

“Did good?” he repeats, feigning offense. “These cookies are a masterpiece. They should be in a museum.”

“They should be in your stomach,” you reply, grabbing another cookie.

The two of you sit at the counter, eating cookies straight off the cooling rack and laughing as you recount the day’s disasters.

“You know,” Tony says between bites, “this might be my best Christmas yet.”

“Better than the Christmas you bought yourself a private island?”

“Way better,” he says, his tone softening.

He reaches for your hand, his thumb brushing over your knuckles. “Thanks for putting up with me today. I know I can be a pain.”

You smile, leaning closer. “You’re not a pain. You’re just... a lot. But I like that about you.”

He grins, leaning in until his lips are just a breath away from yours. “Good. Because you’re stuck with me.”

Later that night, as the kitchen quiets and the city sparkles with holiday lights outside, you find yourself back in Tony’s arms. The cookies are long forgotten, replaced by soft kisses and whispered promises.

“Next year,” he murmurs, his lips brushing your ear, “we’re making a gingerbread house.”

You laugh, pressing a kiss to his cheek. “As long as you don’t burn it down.”

“Deal,” he replies, pulling you closer as the snow falls softly outside.

And in that moment, with his arms around you and the taste of chocolate still lingering, you know it’s the perfect Christmas.

[genshinemblem564]

Genshin Isekai Headcanons

These can be sagau, but they don't have to be.

• Xinyan is stoked that you love her music, and is excited when you offer to play her some music from your world, but she's confused by some of the lyrics. She understands metaphorical lyrics, like the person described in the song isn't actually a rocket, but some of them don't make sense or feel like they were added just to fill a void. Aside from that, she kinda wants to perform some of these songs, now if only she had some band members.

• Tartaglia doesn't have much to say about the guns of your world. The pyro and hydro fatui agents already use guns of some kind, and the cryo fatui agent uses, um. What would you call an ice based flamethrower? No, what he's interested in is the immense amount of new weapons that Teyvat doesn't have, or they probably do, and we just don't hear about them. Like chain blades, I don't know what else to call them, essentially a flail, but instead of a mace, it's blade. I would write something about axes, but I feel like saving that for my crossover series. A scythe is often seen as a special lance, but you tell him that it's much more complicated than that specifically pointing out the blade, and depending on your own skill, you give him a demonstration. He is way too excited to learn all of these new weapons, like a kid excited about a new toy, you can't help but smile.

• Baizhu is perplexed when he first prescribes medicine to you, as you give him a list of allergies, if any, and are more than willing to go through proper examination to learn how resistant your body is to certain toxins. He's even more surprised when you tell him that his unique practice is actually common in your world, so that's why you don't bat an eye at potentially poisonous ingredients.

• Bennett is rather surprised. When you hang out, his bad luck seems to go away. It's actually just you using a bit of foresight, like checking the date on a flyer before rushing to a sale that had already ended, but seeing that glimmer in his eyes, you decide to let his imagination roam.

• You and Cyno are reference lords. You two reference everything, Cyno, his favorite book or book series, and you, your favorite media source. Now, if only people actually understood them, and yes, you do quote Yu-Gi-Oh when playing Genius Invokation.

• If you're an artist, then you quickly catch Albedo's attention. When he sees your drawings, he is quick to ask what you used as a muse, and your answer will have great impact on his reaction. If you point to an object or animal, his response will be normal. If you draw from memory though, he is astounded, especially if what you drew was a scene of some kind, with people, animals, or what have you. Drawing all that from memory is incredible. If you say it's something you made up, he'll compare it to when he's commissioned for his own art.

• Depending on your own interests, you'll be interacting with several different characters. I can't think of anything in depth for these few, so here's a general basis. Barbara is relieved that you're so open to different views. She knows how cruel people can be when they're closed-minded, and she's happy to teach you about the Church of Favonius and Barbatos. Noelle was lamenting not being a knight yet, which led you to bring up the seven chivalric virtues. Yae Miko and Xingqiu are very interested in the stories of your world. Xingqiu hoping to learn more about your worlds code of chivalry, but he ends up learning about justice's different forms. Yae is simply searching for new inspiration. She often calls on you when her old nemesis, writers block, appears. Nahida takes interest in you right away, wanting to gain knowledge from your world, and you seem fun. She knows better than anyone how dangerous knowledge can be, so she asks you to omit potentially dangerous subjects.

• Mona was shocked when you said that you only wanted to know the bad stuff coming your way, not that she could help you, with you being an outworlder and all. When she asked why, you told her "It's best to be prepared for all the bad coming your way, and if you know all the good coming your way, it takes away from life's natural wonder." Which was promptly followed by you asking "Where did that come from?"

___________________________________________

I'm thinking making more of that last one, like " Characters reaction to reader who is randomly philosophical" might need to work on the title a bit. Also, as stated above, these can be sagau, but can also be normal isekai, so I'll use both tags so they can be found more easily

[tea-plantz]

could i rq general headcanons of yandere bill cipher? :-) have a wonderful day btw!!

Dude Bill is literally my fav Gravity Falls character, anyways here you go and thank you for the request!

They/them for the reader

!tw: mention of blood, violence, kidnapping, torture and typical yandere stuff, spoilers!

<Yandere Bill Cipher x Reader HCS>

Ok so first of all, Bill first stumbled upon you in a small, weird town called Gravity Falls.

You were walking around in the forest, looking at trees, picking up rocks, simply enjoying a warm summer day in the bizarre town.

Bill can’t really explain why, but you strangely seemed to have caught his attention, as he continued to watch you from afar.

You seemed rather interesting and Bill didn’t exactly have anything better to do than to follow this eye catching h/c human around.

———————————————————

After that little incident, Bill couldn’t get his mind off of you. He didn’t understand why though, you were just a mere human after all, and he was a literal demon! But there was just something special about your aroma, like you were pulling him in somehow. You just seemed so different, unique, pretty… weird huh?

Bill decided that he needed to know more about you, so that’s exactly what he did! For a few months he continued to stalk keep an eye on you, gathering some information about yourself. Nothing wrong with that, right? He was just looking out for you.

Over time, Bill’s obsession with you started to grow, and not in an healthy way. He found himself craving to talk to you, to make you smile and to kiss you…(how that works, I do not know:P)

The triangle finally decided that enough was enough. He NEEDED to have you.

After a little thinking, Bill decided that the most appropriate way to go about this would be to try and make a deal with you. It’s his specialty after all!

So one morning you woke up to find a… dorito person?? floating right above your head, staring straight at you. Had that thing… had it been watching you sleep?!

“Greetings, my lovely little muse!” The yellow thing said, while bowing down and tilting it’s hat in a formal way. “How are you, Y/n, doing on this beautiful morning? Would you like some rabbit teeth-“ “AAAAAAAAAAH”

Bill desperately tried to calm you down and tell you that he meant no harm. After a bit of a struggle, you finally calmed down and listened to what he had to say.

The demon offered you a deal that honestly seemed too good to be true. You would get whatever you wished for, and all he needed in return was just a small, little favor! Whether you choose to expected this deal or not is completely up to you.

If you expect, he would be thrilled! “Great! Just great, my little friend! Now, my dear, I just need an itsy bitsy little thing from you… you!”

If you declined, however, he would just have to resort to more drastic measures to get what he desires. Either way you’re coming with him, whether you like it or not.

——————————————————————————

Now that Bill finally has you, I feel like he’s actually going to treat you pretty decent! He’s a gentleman you know, and he knows how to treat you right.

He has a romantic side, constantly giving you gifts, telling you how precious you are, and he even plays the piano for you!

Don’t be fooled though, if you do get on his bad side he won’t hesitate to punish you.

Bill can be a bit of a sadist and his punishments are usually cruel and inhumane. However, I don’t think he’s gonna hurt you physically, like cutting limbs or torture, no. I feel like Bill, being the bizarre creature he is, is probably going to punish you by for example turning you’re legs into chicken legs! Basically anything strange or abnormal that would cause you distress. He probably enjoys it as well, seeing the look on your face as you scream and run around the room. “You’re gonna have to run faster then that toots! Ahahaha!”

The dorito man probably wouldn’t chain you up or something, unless he has to. He’ll let you walk around freely in his weird dimension, moreover, you probably wouldn’t even dare to try and escape either way , since Bill has stated various threats, and made it crystal clear that he or other creatures in his dimension will hurt you, or people you care about (y’know like in the show, with Dipper and Mabel? The “ini mini miny YOU” scene) if you leave him for too long.

When it comes to jealousy, I don’t think Bill would get that jealous, honestly. He knows you’re his, plus you wouldn’t really be able to leave anyway. Although, if anyone did look at you the wrong way, well… let’s just say he won’t hesitate to kill for you. The triangle would sometimes even bring you present to remind you that you belong to him and him alone, although the gifts could sometimes be a bit gory, if you get what I’m saying. Bill would someday want to rule over the galaxy, with you by his side. That’s his ultimate goal and fantasy.

I don’t really think this is the worst situation to get stuck in, I mean come on! He can literally get you whatever you want, just as long as you love him! With just a few dark moments here and there, I think Bill would actually be a pretty good significant other, even though he can be a bit possessive.

[xmochaccinox]

Kendratello: An Analysis

What’s up?

I wanted to do an analysis on this ship, and now I'm doing it!

If you are in the Rise Fandom and somehow you have never heard of it, Kendratello is basically a ship between Donnie and Kendra that’s slowly gaining popularity

For as long as I have been in the Rise fandom, I’ve been seeing this ship popping up more and more. By now, it’s almost impossible to meet someone who hasn't heard of the ship, and even though there’s not much content of it, there’s definitely more people who ship it than you think

However, despite the growing popularity, there are still a good chunk of people that hate it for various reasons

But how did it come to be? Where did the ship come from? Why is it so loved by some and hated by others? Well, I’m gonna answer all those questions and even share my own opinions on the ship!

But first a disclaimer!

This analysis is ONLY meant to describe why people like Kendratello or why they don’t like it! Any canon info I bring up will be provided in full context alongside descriptions of how Kendratello shippers may interprete said canon info in order to gain a better understanding of their perspective

Everything I say about the ship is mainly from what I know from the Kendratello content on Tumblr as I don't really use any other social media

I'll also mostly be focused on Kendra because most of the arguments against Kendratello has to do with her

This is NOT meant to be something to persuade or dissuade you from shipping Kendratello!

So let’s get started!

In order to begin, let’s introduce the lovely characters involved in this ship with a brief description

Donatello, also known as Donnie, is a softshell turtle and one of the middle children alongside his twin, Leo

Much like his other versions, Donnie works with tech, but what makes him more unique is that he displays a more mad-scientist-like attitude and has a huge theater kid persona

Kendra is one of the antagonists introduced during the first season. She’s the leader of a computer tech group called The Purple Dragons and specializes in working with computer software, hacking, and modifying

She and her group are basically trouble makers causing various kinds of chaos, to describe them incredibly briefly

So how do they meet?

Donnie and Kendra meet in the episode The Purple Jacket when Donnie sneaks into April’s school to help her with a project. It was there he first noticed the tech club. Well, not really the club, but more the jacket. He then immediately tries to join the club just to get his hands on said jacket by showing off his tech.

Kendra, seemingly impressed, allows Donnie to join and gives him Jason’s jacket. However, it’s revealed that the only reason why she let Donnie join was so she and her group could steal his tech in order to use them to rob various tech stores in order to then steal a code from some very important computer company. Of course Donnie and April stop them and get them arrested. The end

So that’s basically the beginning, now let's go over why someone wouldn't ship it

First thing to get it out of the way, you were ask why someone didn't ship Kendratello, then most of the time, they would say that it’s because of Kendra, so let’s talk about that!

Kendra is a bully. She uses others for her own benefit and causes mischief for her own entertainment, which can range from annoying yet harmless pranks to her getting people hurt

After she stole Donnie’s stuff and he got her arrested, Kendra retaliated by making Donnie think he’s just playing a normal video game when in reality, he’s controlling a giant robot that almost smashed his brothers, and then tries to do so herself when that fails for the sake of seeing Donnie’s reaction

She also convinced Shelldon (Donnie’s robotic companion who was feeling low when they encountered due to an argument he and Donnie had) into participating a deadly race known for causing many drones to get dismantled just to win her the Shadow Transmitter and then yelled at him and ditched him when he failed

And these are only things she did to Donnie. She also yells at and gets physically violent with Jason, and while she does see Jeremy more as an equal, she still snaps at him and shoves him around

She's sadistic, she's cruel. There’s a 50-50 chance that either she’s aware of how bad she is and doesn't care or sees nothing wrong with anything that she does. And judging by how done April seems towards her, and the way Jeremy barely reacts to anything she does, I’m gonna assume that Kendra’s been like this for a while

And yeah, she’s an antagonist, so no shit she’s awful

However, if we wanna play the Canon game, then canonically, Donnie altered his brothers’ minds to make them smarter, he gave Leo a shock collar as a present to “correct” his behavior, he chained up Sheldon as punishment for giving him attitude, and he almost destroyed a town just to prove he’s right

The only difference between the two is that

Donnie did feel remorse for all of them and tried to fix it to the best of his ability. Kendra on the other hand doesn't really show all that much remorse for what she does and has full intentions of doing it again if she ever gets the opportunity (and she has, multiple times)

I am purposefully leaving what Donnie did out somewhat of context just to make him look as bad as Kendra (specifically their intentions behind their actions)

(And just to get it out of the way, Jeremy and Jason are both just as bad as Kendra. Even though Kendra, for the most part, treats them like trash as well, they still willingly go along with what she wants)

However, there are others who don’t ship it because Kendra reminds them of someone in real life and it makes them uncomfortable

Now, I just wanna say that if you feel uncomfortable with Kendratello due to this, I completely understand

I also want to say that even if you don’t know anyone that Kendra makes you think of, it’s still okay to be uncomfortable with the ship. You do not need a reason why to not like a ship, and if anyone has a problem with that, that’s on them

So with that in mind, it’s completely understandable why anyone would dislike the ship. Based on the evidence, they would be an extremely toxic relationship. You’d have to be absolutely INSANE to even think this is a good ship, right?

Well… Here’s the thing

Like most ships in existence, you gotta have the art of interpretation and shutting off the canon brain, especially when it comes to Kendra

Sure, there are still some things that makes Kendra, Kendra, like her working with tech, her being super smart, her going by a purple theme, and sometimes she’s still a menace (depending on the story)

And the other thing you need to know is that Kendra, just like all the other non-important villains in Rise, is pretty much a one-dimensional character. Her character is literally just a bully who’s the leader of a tech club that's constantly after devices that can hack any computer. Other than a few things, we barely know that much about Kendra, so there’s room for people to add their own personal headcanons and stuff

And it's not like Kendra is going to be evil 24/7, which gives people a change to give Kendra more traits to be more than just that as well exploring the potential reasons she is the way she is

Basically what happens 90% of the time is that most of Kendra’s negative traits are turned into positive ones. For example, take the fact that she's manipulative, arrogant, insensitive, bossy, and aloof, and turn them into charismatic, confident, honest, assertive, and reserved. These are all words that have different associations, but they basically mean the same thing

And Kendra is usually either

Given some kind of tragic backstory (usually revolving around her parents getting a divorce)

Given a redemption arc

Given more likable traits

Most of or all of the above

There’s also a good chance that the Kendratello story someone is sharing either takes place after the series or it takes place in an AU, so of course the characters are going to be a little/very different. Although sometimes you'll find stories that take place before or during the series. Many people have their own ideas on how Kendratello would go. Though usually what I talked about above is often the formula used. You just gotta find the right story, or make your own story of how you think Donnie and Kendra would fall in love and eventually get together!

And keeping with the themes Rise has of being lighthearted, it’s pretty fun and hilarious to imagine those two bickering one minute and then making out the next. It’s pretty easy to see a bit of a slow-burn enemies to lovers where Kendra and Donnie both slowly realize that oh no, they’re totally into each other, but won’t say anything because of their pride and all that. So there’s the drama, the tension, the idea of will they, won’t they?

Plus, come on, lots of us love a good Enemies To Lovers story with some Slow Burn on the side

And imagine those two going on a date by committing various crimes and half the city is destroyed because of them and then they watch the news talking about what they did while cuddling and holding their new pet cat that they randomly got at some point

Overall, most of the time the story is about two messed up individuals who end up finding peace with each other. They feel like they're the only ones that can understand each other, and they hate it, but at the same time, they don't mind

However, that’s just one side of the ship

I said it in another post I made, but if we look at the ship through another viewpoint, the side that leans more towards the toxic side of the ship, then Kendra is the embodiment of Donnie’s deepest fears and insecurities

The biggest thing people tend to overlook about Donnie is that he cares very much about being useful to the people he loves. It’s why he behaved the way he did in Witch Town, because he’s terrified that if magic can do what he does but better, then no one will need him anymore

Meanwhile Kendra is someone who will very much jump at a chance to take advantage of anything that will benefit her, especially if it has anything to do with Donnie

Donnie is the provider, and Kendra is the exploiter

Those two are perfect for each other in the worst way possible and horrible for each other in the best way possible

And I will mention too that are things that happen in canon that people interpret to be Kendratello moments, or they say could be used as evidence for Kendratello

Kendra blowing a kiss to Donnie (The Purple Jacket: She does this before attempting to leave Donnie to deal with his tech turning against him (which she hacked) to go rob the world bank)

Donnie saying that “Cute but mean” is his type (War and Pizza: He says this while getting stomped on by a tomato animatronic, saying, “Oh you’re so cute, but so mean! Why do I always go for your type?!” before proceeding to electrocute it)

Donnie and Kendra flirt whenever they interact (purely interpretation)

Donnie wanting to join the Purple Dragons because he has a crush on Kendra (also purely interpretation)

Now my thoughts on the actual ship? Eh, it’s complex

I see them as a Doomed to Fail type. They would most likely end up in some kind of a codependent relationship because of their biggest flaws, and I can see the official break up being extremely messy on both sides (since I 100% see them taking several “breaks”). Then after a couple years, things are back to normal, with Donnie and Kendra being rivals, only this time they have a respect for each other and they even help each other out if the other person needs it. And even though they still have some feelings for each other, they choose to remain as exes because they don’t want to risk falling back into old habits

On the other hand, I’m frankly tired of the whole, “Bad Person’s Not Actually Bad, They’re Just Misunderstood And Need Someone Who Understands Them” thing

And before anyone tries telling me about Kendra dealing with her parents having a divorce

We don’t know what exactly happened during the divorce between her parents. There’s no cookie cutter reaction to how a teenager would react to their parents having a divorce no matter how well or badly it's handled

The only time Kendra ever brought up the implications that her parents are divorced was when Jason failed to get the Shadow Transmitter. She told him that she wished her father never married his mother, which implies the only reason why Jason is part of the Purple Dragons is because he’s her step-brother. So basically she’s telling him that if she could kick him out then she would

Now, I’m not saying Kendra’s dad and stepmom are the perfect parents, because clearly they’re not with what I’ve mentioned so far, but still

And don't get me wrong, I'm on team Purple Dragons Get A Redemption Arc, I just see it happening more in a way where they become anti-heroes because they got bored of going after the same goal over and over again

Alright, those are all of my opinions

So, overall, do you have to ship Kendratello? No

Is it one of the more complex ships? Oh yeah

Did me rewatching every single scene Kendra is in over and over again in order to describe how she is in canon make it really hard to make this whole thing without being biased? Most definitely

But really, the reason why people ship Kendratello? It’s just for fun!

I know some people in every fandom tend to take shipping and their head canons way too seriously for some reason, but here? It’s genuinely just for fun

That’s all I have to say, but hopefully you now know more about it! Again, if you don’t ship it cause it makes you uncomfortable, that’s okay! But it doesn't give you an excuse to harass those that do. If it bothers you so bad, then the block button is right there. People have their own ideas of how the ship would go and their own reasons why they like it

If you got any questions or something to say, don’t hesitate to send them my way. I can’t guarantee that I’ll get to all of them, but I’ll do my best!

[maxwell-grant]

Playing Princess Peach: Showtime got me the Mario brainvurms again so I wanna ramble a bit: As much as I adore and put a lot of stock into Wario and Waluigi's dynamic (and as much as Waluigi's my favorite character), I actually don't think Waluigi should be in the Wario games. Particularly Ware, but that also goes for Land in case that ever comes back from the grave. And it's not because of anything wrong or lacking with Waluigi as a character, quite the opposite: I think a lot of what defines him, what makes him interesting in different ways than Wario, actually makes him a terrible fit for Wario's narrative real state. Not an issue when they're together filling in a necessary dynamic in Mario territory, but it gets trickier when Wario's supposed to be the lead in an actual story.

In regards to Land, the central appeal of Wario Land is in the fact that you can play as Wario. I'd said as much before that, generally speaking, where as Mario is altered to fit his games, Wario's games are built to fit him. As much as WL did to flesh out Wario as a character, the core concept for Wario Land 1, and every subsequent game, comes back to the idea that you are playing a bigger, nastier Mario, who can't run as fast or jump as high, but is stronger and full of stranger surprises, so he engages with different kinds of obstacle courses and yyou have to figure out what he can and can't do to solve them. Every alteration made to the Wario Land series over the years, not just in relation to the Super Mario Land platformers it spun out of, was built around turning Wario's existing traits into gameplay mechanics.

He is a bully and a brute and thus you shoulder bash your way through problems, his propensity for comedic slapstick turned into full blown immortality and the source of his power-ups, he is far more interested in sniffing for gold than actually saving anyone so his adventures are less linear, your endgoal is to get the biggest treasures possible, his thieving bastard explorer nature eventually allowed for a timed Indiana Jones boulder escape at every level, Shake It lets you literally shake down enemies for cash, etc. The one time they took the opposite route and really altered Wario to fit a pre-ordained gimmick was in Master of Disguise, and soundtrack aside there's some good reasons why that one's so unpopular it's not even considered a Wario Land game.

All of these are traits that are built to fit Wario, and mainly Wario, and you could argue that these by extension apply to Waluigi because of his traits that overlap with Wario's, and for sure the spin-offs demonstrate that Waluigi does tag along on Wario's treasure hunts sometimes, but if we concede this and add Waluigi as a Player 2, then: A: What is so great and unique about Wario, if other characters can also do all the absurd things he does? And B: What is so great and weird about Waluigi, if all he's doing is just the stuff Wario already does?

The Mario platformers don't really have this issue with Luigi not just because Luigi as the Player 2 is grandfathered in, but because mechanically speaking Luigi isn't very different from Mario, and because the gameplay mechanics for Mario platformers are nowhere near as specialized as Wario's is. Everybody runs and jumps and collects power-ups and does the same things Mario does, that's why the Toads and the princesses can jump in on it just fine. Wario sharing the glory of being Wario is just not what Wario does, and it's Waluigi's thing even less. With everyman all-ages Mario, everyone's invited to join in the fun, but when the whole point is you reveling in "you get to play as Wario!", WHERE BEING BAD IS GOOD AND GREED IS GOOD HEHEHEHEHEH, you really lose a lot of the appeal turning it into "you get to play as Wario, and another guy (or even more) who can also do the things Wario does, turns out Wario's willing to share I guess". Even working in a different set of paths and solutions per level so Wario and Waluigi could solve problems differently would just be splitting levels by half of the work and half of the fun.

For comparison's sake, Pizza Tower has a second playable character in the form of The Noise, a rival who is opposite to Peppino personality-wise. Despite having more or less the same proportions (and in prior builds playing identically to Peppino), in order to accomodate his personality that is also his main selling point, he plays in a different manner through levels that weren't designed around him (not different enough that it excludes co-op though), and so he actually breaks the game, and that is in fact worked into everything he does: Pretty much the main running gag through The Noise Update is that he is brazenly cheating and easily clearing through the things Peppino worked so hard to beat "fairly", and that he is a piece of shit with no emotional stakes in what he's doing, turning every hardship or battle into a joke.

Pizza Tower is just as much built around Peppino's character as Wario Land is (which is part of why the game became faster and more stressful, and thus played increasingly less and less like Wario Land over every subsequent build up until release), and it was only ever going to accomodate the Noise's personality by either designing new levels (and thus a new game) around him, or going all the way on him breaking the existing ones and occupying an opposite role to Peppino's, which fits him. Again, you could argue this dirty cheater angle fits Waluigi. The problem is, again, redundancy, and it not fitting Wario Land. Gameplay-wise, Wario is already breaking and even cheating through levels to clear them, he is already flipping the middle finger to traditional Mario-style platforming the way The Noise is doing to Peppino's playstyle. And story-wise, Wario doesn't let himself be outdone, he is not getting upstaged from his own adventures. Peppino doesn't WANT to be in his own adventures, that's why the game plays him for pathos and The Noise gets played for pure satire. They get to do completely different things in a way I'm not sure you could do with Wario and Waluigi without significantly overhauling the way Wario Land works, and at that point, why bother.

That being said, I definitely do want there to be a way Wario and Waluigi could star in a platformer together, it would be a dream for me. But I don't think that's going to work for Wario Land, and not doing Wario Land runs the risk of doing Master of Disguise again so, it'd take a lot of work. I want to say there is at least a possibility of making it work, which is definitely not an argument I'd make for Waluigi joining the WarioWare cast.

The thing about how WarioWare's cast works, and how it manages to keep Wario recognizably Wario even in a drastically different role than the one he occupies in Mario spin-offs and Wario Land alike, is a very simple but effective dynamic: Wario is the boss, and everyone else is your friend/co-worker. Wario is the ringmaster, and the circus freaks need your help to keep the show afloat. Wario is Michael Scott/J Jonah Jameson, and you're in the Dunder Mifflin/Daily Bugle trenches with everyone else.

All of the WarioWare characters are lovable weirdos, it comes with the question of "what kind of person would not just be friends with, but willingly work for Wario?". They are weird, they are dorks, they are (mostly) nice, they (mostly) get along, but above all, they are accomodating. Of their weirdness, of your weirdness, even of their boss' weirdness. Their goal is to guide you through the challenges and fun and encourage you to succeed. They do all the hard work in making these games fun to play. They are directly, proportionately opposite to how much of an dynamic jerk Wario is, and that's why Wario gets to keep on doing Wario things.

He gets to cause problems and lead the gang into trouble, he gets be mean, he gets to hijack proceedings and directly insult and mess with the player, he gets to be the villain, he gets to be the butt of the joke, he gets to crash and fail. The Ware crew gets to be people you come to know and relate to and love, while he gets to be the GOTTA WIIIIN guy. It's a fine balance and a very good deal on their end.

It also has no room whatsoever for Waluigi, anti-social party crasher conniving drama queen extraordinaire, in anything other than a cameo or a one-off antagonistic competition with them. He isn't going to take Wario, or anyone's place, and his dynamic with Wario in the spin-offs just doesn't translate to Wario's role in WarioWare. And he belongs even less in the WarioWare crew (especially with characters like Jimmy T and Crygor, who have significant overlapping traits with Waluigi already), he is just not made for playing nice with others like that. It's not that he can't, his player interactions can be remarkably non-antagonistic and chill even, but it's not his thing.

He is Waluigi, as they reiterate in every bio, he is dastardly and mean and also a tryhard loser who "thinks" he's Luigi's rival more so than he actually is, and who doesn't seem to get along with anyone other than Wario, in fact he barely plays nice with Wario a lot of the time, they're partners in crime first and foremost and are depicting bickering over spoils when they work together. He'd just break the balance that makes this cast dynamic work so well without offering anything in return, and would be worse off for it. If anything Waluigi should be the last person to work for WarioWare, it has nothing to do with what he's about and the dude knows firsthand how little Wario intends to pay anyone ever. You could get stuff out of playing him as a rival trying to muscle in their gigs, or beat Jimmy T on the dance floor, and even that's stretching a bit.

I think the biggest problem comes down to the fact that the main thing with Waluigi, much like Wario, IS his outsized personality and the role it offers him, and with how Wario's games are precision-built around him and him alone as the center, putting Waluigi in those is dooming him to get sucked into Wario's orbit in roles that just don't work for him and dillute the chief appeal of putting Waluigi in stuff. Even if he's already secondary to Wario in the spin-offs, in there they fill in a niche together, two halves of one idiot, Camelot's favorite boys and all that, that you can't carry over when Wario has bigger things to do than just play along and be a nuisance to Mario.

I was very happy with Princess Peach: Showtime in part because of how committed it was to the idea of putting Peach and Peach alone in the spotlight, with NO Mario elements whatsoever tagging along for the ride. There is not a single trace of Mario or Bowser anywhere, the Toads leave at the opening cutscene and don't come back until the post-credits when their only role is to give her crown back. The game is just Peach going on adventures, righting wrongs and trying new personas and putting on a show with the people she's saving.

It's short, sweet, it's kind of a baby game and it has to be for the target audience, and it doesn't seem to be super popular in general but I'm glad it sold well, I'd like for Nintendo to make more games like it. It got me to like Peach more than I ever have before, and it got me feeling very good about the fact that this exists at all. Seems like there really has been a creative renaissance for Mario over the past years. Not that I ever expect it to happen anymore, but I always dreamed of Waluigi getting to have something like this, although I'll say that Peach's was a very long time coming (especially given the failure of Super Princess Peach) and I'm glad this premise was made with her. I never thought it'd happen and that makes the former dream seem, y'know, a little less impossible. Maybe.

Semi-unrelated but I am also extremely glad that Madame Grape exists, definitely a character I'd like to see return to occupy a position akin to King Boo or just go-karting with the others. And by no means was this intentional, but I definitely get a kick out of the fact that the villain in Showtime is an overlooked purple-clad drama queen who creates and leads a group literally called "Sour Grapes", who wants to claim her role in a world of happy shining people who don't APPRECIATE her work unless she makes them, who wants to plaster her face and name and colors everywhere, and who is incredibly invested in making Peach her nemesis and foil, even though this story was supposed to be about Peach taking a break for a change and Grape is very far from being the worst thing Peach has to deal with on a regular basis. Just reminded me of another guy who tried to hypnotize "the rhythmless masses" with sweet dance moves once.

[demphix]

hhi please talk about this ... you get me i think

Hi sorry this took so long I got my brain rewired and hijacked by Ceroba again. Anyways. Ralsei. That fuckin freak goat

Where do I even start? I could go the route of his design and how inconsistently he (and uniquely him as opposed to a more wide-spread lack of consistency) is portrayed both in and out of game and why I find that interesting, but I should probably do that separately.

Because I'm really here to ramble about him as a character, and what sides of him tend to be forgotten and ignored.

Most of the fandom that I've seen sorta reduces Ralsei down to what he is on the surface, a walking plushie who wants to make everyone happy, and while I understand WHY it's so common, it leaves me really unsatisfied with how he's presented in the fandom. He's more than that, he's not just the toy he tries to act as.

And I emphasize the "act as" there, because it's important to note how often he does this. He (and the game) gives you a million offers to hug him, if not that he'll talk about baking a cake for you, or you'll get to call him cute, ect.. Little acts of comfort he'll lean on a lot. On top of that, he'll always encourage you and Susie to be pacifists in Chapter 1 no matter what you do. Keep this in mind.

The next thing I wanna mention is his whole deal with "purpose." He's introduced by reading off a prophecy to you, and his whole conflict with Susie in Chapter 1 is trying to get her to be a hero with him and Kris for the sake of said prophecy. Later on he states that Darkners exist to serve Lightners and make them happy, and adds that it's supposedly the only way they can feel fulfilled. In Chapter 2, he objects to learning S-ACT and R-ACT because that's supposed to be Kris's special talent. There's probably more examples I'm blanking on at the moment, but those stick out to me the most here.

On top of all that, he really lets you walk all over him (sometimes literally). You mentioned before how he goes "If you want to hit me, that's okay, too!" and like. Yeah that's kind of the perfect summary of it he really did just Say That. What's wrong with you goatboy why are you like that???

Expanding on that more, despite encouraging pacifism he's perfectly compliant in letting you attack everyone and making him do it too; yet he still snaps (or as close as he can get to snapping right now) at Susie for doing the exact same thing. It's weird. He's fine when Kris does it, but when Susie does it's a problem? Why? He even suggests fighting as a way to get stronger in Chapter 2 (though I suppose that is at least after him being nice to King backfired on everyone).

It all fascinates me. It feels like he's trying to stick to a script while also letting you completely disregard it. He wants to be cute and lovable and wants to bring people comfort, but the only way he ever tries to comfort others is through hugs and baking or giving them a nice spot in his castle. Ironically for his thing with ACTing, he doesn't really "talk" about issues often.

Which leads me to his identity, Kris, the Player, and the way those may intersect.

Let's start off with Kris and the Player. A lot of what Ralsei gives you leeway on really feels like stuff for the player's enjoyment. He'll let you do things he doesn't want Susie to (fighting in Chapter 1, choosing who goes with who, ACTing, ect..) and use him for it when needed. He's famously VERY quick to disregard any meaning Spamton NEO's fight could have had and (again) relies on using himself as a plushie or making some cake or whatever to comfort Kris instead (which doesn't even work). I also like to note how he responds to any negative or silent choices from you in the Acid Tunnel of Love scene. He turns away from the camera (away from the player before turning opposite to Kris) in the first choice before going "ahahaha just kidding!! sarcasm!!! haaahhahahahaha!!!!, and in the second he fumbles on his words and tries to pass it off as "you-like" to be silent.

He also pans us over to Susie's POV in both chapters, and with the "So that's why..." at the end of both, it feels like he was trying to explain something to Kris during it??? Additionally: Weird Route. Do you remember the 1 in 20 chance he stares at the camera during the scene where he should be panning us over to Susie's POV? He just looks right at us. It has a unique sprite but it's disguised in name and appearance to look like an in-between frame from his dance animation at the start of Chapter 2. What the fuck does that mean. Huh. Why.

Oh also the him blushing easter-egg only happens when he and Kris's sprites overlap to a point where he'd be touching the sprite of the soul when made visible. Which sure is something I think

So like. Bro knows about us right . Am I crazy I think he knows. I feel like he's too focused on following the prophecy and being liked by us to not right?? Bro wants to play the role he was given in his script even if its uncomfortable or painful and panics when it doesn't go how it should too often right am I stupid or am I on to something please help me

Ok fuckin. Last bit. I'm gonna try to be quick I am tired.

Why He Goat

He resembles Kris's family, his name is an anagram of Asriel, you know the drill. I'm not so concerned with the "why" of that (I think he's the horned headband Kris wore as a kid, and his resemblance to the Boss Monsters is reflective of how that item represents Kris wanting to resemble their family), I wanna see how that ties into his identity. He states he doesn't know what being "ralsei-like" even means, and. Yeah that's probably adding a lot to it. It's also probably making how affectionate he tries to be very uncomfortable for Kris (almost like he's going despite that because they weren't originally who he was being this way towards Ooo Vessel Allusion Ooo).

I don't know how to wrap this up uhhh

I think Ralsei is more than the uwu babygirl fluffball this fandom makes him, he's a character with depth. He puts on a persona to be perfect for the player because that's his "purpose." It's his role in the story to teach you and do whatever you want while keeping the plot moving as it should. He cares, but he doesn't know how to comfort because he doesn't know how any of this works (like how he talks about friendship in the Acid Tunnel).

He tries to be perfect, but deep down he's still just. The lonely prince the prophecy needs.

[dreamchaserguild]

We recently backed a project on Kickstarter and I wanted to ramble about that.

(This is not paid promotion and I have no association with the team making this project. This is just me gushing about something I think is cool.)

I grew up playing Heroscape. This game was my childhood. If you don't know what Heroscape is, here you go:

It was a simple tactical minis tabletop battle game where you make a team of different heroes with their own unique abilities. But what really sold this game was the landscape you could build yourself.

I used to have a table that sat out on our front porch that was filled with Herocape stuff as I constructed and deconstructed and reconstructed my maps.

And I didn't just have the starter set you see above. (Above is actually several starter sets. You don't get quite that many pieces from one box. I'm guessing it's three starter sets since there are six ruins, and Heroscape only came with two.) No. I had the ice set, the volcano set, the castle set, a Marvel set. The second starter set with swampy environment.

Heroscape was an amazing part of my childhood. Then Hasbro let it die.

They tried to revive it in the form of Arena of the Planeswalkers, a knock-off with a flat cardboard battlefield. But it got cancelled after two expansions. They're going to try again, but I have no faith that they'll stick with the Heroscape revival.

Which brings us to SOURCE.

SOURCE is a hex system made by indie-developers who themselves were Heroscape fans and inspired by Heroscape. Rather than connecting at the sides like Heroscape, the SOURCE tiles are held together by edges as you can see here. (I sure hope they don't mind me lifting the images from their kickstarter.)

A disadvantage to this is that you lose some of the modularity in being able to build in any shape you want. The advantage though is that it allows for terrain to easily be added and removed throughout gameplay.

(They're also working on special grip mats for those who just really want to build in any shape they want without being confined to shapes of the edges.)

And in my opinion, the detail looks way better than Heroscape ever did. Just compare the lava tiles above to Heroscape's:

There's no contest.

The SOURCE hexes aren't just the same thing in different colors. They're actual works of art.

And I'm not saying this to put Heroscape down. Like I said, it was my childhood and was fantastic for its time.

The game on the Kickstarter, Timestrike, is very similar to Heroscape. But with so much more stacked onto Heroscape's foundation.

Characters have move, range, attack and defense like Heroscape. You have the six-sided dice where three sides are swords and two are shields. Only now there is a special lucky sword and a lucky shield. These aren't relevant for most characters, but some characters will have abilities where they'll gain some bonus on lucky rolls.

If that's not enough, there's also a Contest mechanic where you can push another player's figure. This is great if someone is on a ledge and you want to cause them fall damage, or if you just want to steal the high ground from them to increase your attack.

You can also mine materials, build roads with the materials you mined, and go fishing for buffs. (Literally. You can stand near water and try to fish. If you succeed, you take a card from the fishing deck.)

There are wild monsters you can try to tame. There are even large figures you can mount and ride. See this guy:

That's a base on his back for you to place a smaller miniature on and ride him around!

The game is centered around not just beating each other, but also fighting a boss called a Sentience with space for three figures on its back.

(Note: the Gorilla Brute is not part of this first set, and will likely come with a future expansion.)

The sentience takes full advantage of the destructible terrain, leveling any space he lands on.

And they're tossing in solo and co-op rules for people who don't want to fight each other and just want to fight the boss alone, or to team up to fight the boss.

Oh! And it comes with STACKABLE WALLS!

That's a small thing, but it's a cool thing. (Okay, this is technically a stretch goal for $200,000 that they haven't put on the official Kickstarter, but $200K feels likely to me.)

The creators also seem genuinely committed to making this a reality and keeping it going for a long time, with talk of several expansions in the pipeline, introducing more playable characters, more rideable Brutes, and more bosses which will each have their own abilities and their own solo/co-op modes.

And possibly boats.

That's a picture of a prototype boat that can fit three figures and will NOT be included in this Kickstarter. But it is planned for a future expansion.

I don't know if the boats will come to fruition. I don't know if they'll look like that when they are released or if they'll look completely different by then since that would be a long way off.

But I appreciate knowing that there are plans to make this a long-term investment. I'm not worried that the creators will give up on SOURCE and Timestrike like Hasbro did Heroscape and Arena of the Planeswalkers.

And it's not just Timestrike. The SOURCE terrain can be purchased on its own and the SOURCE system is intended to be used for a variety of games by different creators. And it's already naturally compatible with Heroscape, Arena of the Planeswalkers, Battletech and other hex-based games.

I am incredibly excited and hopeful for the future of this project!

Here's the Kickstarter for anyone who wants to see more of this.

And here's a video review going over the Timestrike rules and how it plays:

[just-some-guy-joust]

Just Some Guy OC Tourney - Side A: Round 2

Rules:

do NOT be mean to anyone or any characters in these polls. you MUST clarify if you are joking/teasing or you will be blocked. if you are someone who entered an oc into this and you are mean to other contestants you will be disqualified

do NOT claim a character doesn't deserve to be here. yes including your own. be nice

if you are posting propaganda you have to @ tag us, including if your propaganda is in the reblogs. it is difficult to tell when something is or isn't propaganda. anything not tagging us will likely be missed

please don't hesitate to let me know if i messed something up!

have fun, hype each other up <3 thank you

Wally Rosette | He/him | @hershelchocolateart

Wally Rosette is a 15-year-old kid who was chosen (and then kidnapped) to attend the Elite Villainous International Learning facility. This position, however, is solely because his parents were world-famous villains. Wally himself has no interest in the business, and is often described as the sweetest person any of the cast has ever met. He spends most of his time in the background, helping out faculty and students with their homework or various tasks, and only ever becoming relevant when homework *is* the plot of the week. Wally is just a kind kid who knows better than to get involved in the plot and loves his friends so so so so so so so fucking much it's unreal

Promos: https://toyhou.se/8256045.wally-rosette <-wallys toyhouse profile! https://www.webtoons.com/en/canvas/the-villain-school/list?title_no=97541 <-the comic he's in (discontinued because I'm doing a different one - it is 6/40 chapters with a planned remake Somewhere in the distant future)

~

Adan Botello | He/him | @rainecloud020604

Adan is a highschooler who is just looking to pass class, go home and play Minecraft. He doesn't want to be unique or special any more than he is, maybe being a Minecraft YouTuber would be awesome but that's all he wants out of life. No matter what is thrown at him he tends to run away from it, like a fantasy world trying to claim he's a prince, he wants nothing to do with it. He just wants to be a normal kid, graduate high school and play Minecraft. He's also got transgender and autistic swag

Promos: https://toyhou.se/17322997.adan-botello check out the comic featuring Adan on this blog @a-tale-in-a-bottle

~

Full images and descriptions under the cut!

THIS IS MY VERY FAVORITE BABY BOY So Wally is a sweet kid, but because his parents were world-famous, he never really got a choice in who they raised him to be. This resulted in him having a BUNCH of self-worth issues that he tries to deal with on the side because he doesn't want to get his friends involved. He has two (2) major points in the plot (OUT OF 40 CHAPTERS)- one plot point where he ignores the main antagonist to get a boyfriend instead, and one where his entire arc finally culminates in "Wally Learns How To Say No To People." Outside of that, he does NOTHING regarding the main plot and is a C plot character at best. He is simply involved and there in the background because I love him so much and he is my precious little baby boy and yeah sure maybe I loved him so much I made 27 alternate universe versions of him that all have plot relevance in all my stuff but *this* wally is simply a boy and he is blue and he is lovely and I would kill and cry for him every day

Despite the fact all he desires to be is just some guy the universe keeps trying to make him more than some guy. He's supposed to be a hero, a prince, but he keeps running from the idea of it so much he ends up in another world entirely and all he wants is to go home and be normal, all he wants! He's not looking to save his sister, she can save herself she's strong. He just wants to go home :( that's all he really wants in life and he's getting really tired of the universe saying otherwise

[kitthenameless]

I finished my weird NPC run!

I gotta be honest, I had fun doing this, but I was ready for it to be over after a while, so I focused on the main quests in Act 3. But they did also solve a murder, beat down Lorroakan, save Minsc, save Volo, and make Barcus the new Ironhand leader. They unfortunately did not save most of the Gondians, but they tried. Those two fights and the lead up the brain were a mess, but the rest went really well and were less of a mess than they usually are for me. (I know Balanced with five characters would be a cakewalk for many players, but I suck at this game lol, and I prefer roleplaying with spells, weapons, etc. over perfect builds.)

In the end, they defeated the brain and all met up again for the party. I let Jaheira, Halsin, and Minsc join the group and stay at the tavern, so they were at the party too. Zevlor and Tiefling Tav are now a happily engaged couple. Abdirak, Kar'niss, and Half-Drow Tav are a happy little throuple. My two tavs probably wouldn't have become friends in normal circumstances, but they went through a lot together and were there for each other. They couldn't save everyone, and some of them still have their own personal struggles, but a happy ending overall!

Also, if it's still working with Patch 7, I just wanted to recommend the "Recruit Any NPC" mod, if you wanna do something different to switch up your gameplay. It lets you clone characters so you can choose a class and level them up, but you still get their special abilities, attacks, etc., which was really cool. (I made Abdirak a cleric and had him use his unique Loviatar weapons for most of the game just for fun, even though they weren't the best. I made Kar'niss a ranger/druid for his hunting skills and web/poison, but he mostly used his own unique claw attacks anyway. I made Zevlor an Oath of Devotion paladin because I'm unclear on whether he's actually an oathbreaker, and necromantic stuff doesn't suit him.) Anyway, a lot of fun just for a silly, headcanon-y run!

Mods: Pretty Boys Head Presets by cedastarions. Viking Hairstyle by badwitch69. Yennefer's wardrobe by Bububull. Robes and Armor of the Absolute by Syrchalis. Weeviljester's Ethereal Heads. Ghouls Customization Compendium - Custom Heads Horns and Beards. Alternate Tiefling Tails by samplevi. Sorry if I've forgotten any, I have so many that sometimes I don't even remember what's a mod or what's vanilla.

[explodingsilver]

Book review: Nightbane by Alex Aster

Lightlark…2!

I’ve already made my thoughts on the first book quite clear (read that review first if you haven’t already; I don’t feel like rehashing all the context), and were I a bit more sensible, I would have stayed away from its sequel. I am, however, somewhat of a literary masochist, so of course I borrowed this from Hoopla the day it was released (November 7th, not too long ago). Very pleased that I was able to write this review much faster than the first one, though this review is shorter, at only 2,100 words long. Was the experience worth it? I don’t know, you tell me.

(There are spoilers ahead, on the off chance that you care)

The plot and style

After the events of the first book, Isla is trying to learn her several powers as well as get a hold of this “leading two different realms” thing while trying to move on from getting betrayed by four different people she used to love. At a celebration for a Wildling holiday (in which no Wildlings other than herself are in attendance), Grim magically crashes the party from afar and announces that the Nightshade army will destroy Lightlark in thirty days. The other realms start preparing for the invasion, and Isla tries to recover all her lost memories of being with Grim in hope that they will reveal what his goal is and how to stop him, especially after receiving a prophetic vision of him standing in the ruins of a village he destroyed with his powers.

Put simply, if the plot of the first book is split between “Isla and Celeste search for a MacGuffin” and “Isla and Oro search for a different MacGuffin”, this book is split between “Isla and Oro do basic defense building stuff” and “Isla remembers the time she and Grim searched for a third MacGuffin”. There’s also a subplot about a rebel group trying to capture Isla, but this is inconsequential and could’ve been dropped entirely.

It feels like there was an attempt to address some of the criticism of the first book, but not nearly enough of an attempt. On the one hand, metaphor usage has improved to the point where it actually feels like it was written by a human being and not a neural network (no throbbing and raw glaciers this time around), the book acknowledges that no longer having a power no one else had in the first place is less bad than having a maximum lifespan of 25, and Isla realizes that Grim let her win the duel in the first book and that she did not win against a 500+ year old army general on the strength of her own skill. On the other hand, it does not address questions like “how does Starling society even function if none of them ever live to 26?” or “if Oro always knows when someone is lying, why didn’t he call bullshit the moment Celeste said ‘Hi, my name is Celeste’?”

Speaking of that last thing: I didn’t mention it in my review of the first book because it didn’t really feel relevant to anything, but each ruler has a ‘flair’, a special power that is unique to them. Oro’s is that he can always tell when someone is lying. Grim’s is that he can teleport. This book reveals that Isla’s is that she is immune to curses. Glad to finally have an answer to one of my biggest questions of the first book (checks notes) 75% of the way through the second one, when this explanation should’ve been given the moment we learned the original stated reason does not apply.

Wildling elixir and its (lack of) consequences

Much of this book centers around the presence of the Wildling elixir from the first book, a potion that is super effective at healing wounds. As you might imagine, this kills a lot of the tension. Used in conjunction with Isla’s magical teleportation device, “teleport away, use Wildling elixir, teleport back” becomes an easy way to recover when the characters get their flesh ripped apart. And indeed, they do this all the time! The book tries to nerf this strategy by stating that the elixir is rare due to the flower used to make it being rare, but 1) this is at odds with Isla’s very liberal use of it, and 2) aren’t the Wildlings the “make flowers grow instantly” people? Why can’t they just use those powers on it like they do for every other plant?

There was a bit of potential for an interesting theme with these flowers: Isla eventually learns that while the Wildlings use them to make the healing elixir, the Nightshades use those exact same flowers to make the titular nightbane, which is basically fantasy heroin. I was intrigued by this motif (I like it when things have a dual nature like that), but unfortunately this doesn’t really go anywhere, other than some vague gesturing at “wow, just like Isla”. Speaking of Isla…

Isla

This time around, Isla is clearly traumatized by the events of the last book, trusts very few people, and is aware that she is in over her head with leading two realms full of subjects she barely knows while also being the king’s unofficial consort. Not a bad start for a character arc, but in effect, she has gone from naive and impulsive to naive, impulsive, and guilty about those things while making little effort to amend them. It feels like her attitude towards leadership is basically “I’m allowed to call myself a bad leader but nobody is allowed to agree with me on that.”

Much of Isla’s internal conflict in this book is based around her Nightshade heritage on her father's side. She is convinced that there is an inherently evil part of her because her father was from the Inherently Evil Realm. This may not come as a surprise, but I do not like when stories have such a thing as an Inherently Evil Realm. Not only does Nightshade fill this role, but the book never even gestures at pushing back against Isla’s conviction that her heritage taints her, and in fact ends up affirming it.

This book really told me to my face that Isla is the first person in millennia to have both Wildling and Nightshade powers. I do not buy that even for a moment. Maybe my disbelief is because the series discarded the “only one realm’s power set per person, even if their parents are from different realms” thing in the same book it was introduced, and I would expect there to be Wildling/Nightshade couples way more often than once per few millennia. But no, that highly plausible thing can’t happen because then Isla won’t be the most special person currently alive!

The other characters

Sadly, the rest of the cast did not improve, and in some instances, got worse.

Oro going from "world weary, distant king" to "official love interest" has unfortunately sanded down all his interesting aspects, and everything I liked about his character in the first book now takes a backseat to being overly protective of Isla and making stock Love Interests threats to kill anyone who hurts her. I swear, he turned so generic that some of his lines were indistinguishable from something Grim would say. But hey, if nothing else, he at least didn’t get character assassinated like I was sure he would!

While Grim actually does stuff in this book, he still has no personality traits other than what's included in the Sexy Villain Starter Pack. Like, it actually upsets me that he's such an absolute nothing of a character. Everything about him begins and ends with “what if the villain…was sexy?”, and there are about a morbillion stories out there that provide more interesting answers to this question. You’d think focusing on him this much would be the perfect opportunity to give him any unique traits at all, but Aster certainly did not take that opportunity, nor did she ever answer the question of why he likes Isla, despite the sheer number of pages dedicated to their relationship.

As for everyone else? Azul, our beloved token gay black man who runs his realm like a democracy, still receives woefully little page time. Cleo, the bitchy ruler who hates Isla for no reason, receives even less, but at least we get to hear about her dead son, I guess. Ella, Isla's Starling assistant, is mentioned so rarely I wonder if Aster forgot she exists. There are also several new average citizen characters introduced, but none of them are remotely interesting. They're all defined solely by whether or not they're on Isla's side. It says something when the best new character is Isla's new animal companion (a panther named Lynx, who rules because he does not give a shit about Isla).

The chili pepper emoji, as the TikTokers call it

Because I must do as the book did and address the topic of sex before I get to the final important bits.

This book is much hornier than the first one, but in a way that makes large parts of it feel like one of those dreams where you're trying to have sex with someone but your attempts keep getting interrupted. I regret that I did not count the number of times Isla was about to fuck someone and then got denied for some reason or another.

There are three times she actually succeeds, and luckily these scenes do not read like they were written by Sarah J. Maas, despite her obvious influence on everything else. This doesn't seem like much of a compliment, but this series needs all the W’s it can get. That's not to say everything is fine, though. There's one scene that's obviously using all the "first time" stuff for characterization, and I can't help but feel this would be more effective had they not already slept together a few short chapters beforehand? Like c’mon, all you had to do was switch the order of those two scenes.

The ending

Shortly before the Nightshade army is set to storm the island and destroy it, Isla learns Grim’s (and Cleo’s) real motivation for doing so: there’s a portal on the island leading to another world, one in which the original founders of Lightlark came from before making Lightlark in the image of the world they left. Grim and Cleo want to open that portal and reach the other world, which will just so happen to destroy the island. They’re not actually trying to kill everyone for the evulz. Isla, in her naivety, accidentally opens it for them before they even arrive.

During the final battle, while trying to steal Grim's powers so she can kill him and save Lightlark, Isla finally remembers the last two important memories: 1) she and Grim actually got married right before he memory-wiped her, and 2) what she thought was a prophetic vision of him killing an entire village was actually a memory of her doing so. Convinced that she'll accidentally kill Oro if she stays with him, she agrees to go with Grim, whom she just realized she is still in love with, in exchange for a promise that he'll withdraw the attack.

I cannot remember the last time I had this strong of an "are you fucking kidding me" reaction to the end of a book. But after some thinking, I decided that it actually makes for some great tragedy material. “Traumatized woman with a supportive partner becomes convinced that she’s too horrible to be with him and goes back to her terrible husband” would make for a good story if this was a more grounded book written by anyone else. Alas, this concept just had to be tackled here.

I also naively thought that because the deal was for two books, that means this would be a duology. But it feels like there will be a third book, and I'm hoping there is, not out of any desire for more (unsure how much more I can take), but because it would be straight-up authorial malpractice to end the series on that note.

Conclusion

This honestly wasn’t quite as bad as the first book, but the problems that persisted outweighed the ones that got fixed, and the severe case of Middle Book Syndrome certainly did not help its case. It’s a very small improvement stylistically, but when the nicest things I can say about it are “there were some concepts that could’ve made for an interesting story in the hands of a better author” and “the sex scenes aren’t atrocious” and “the cat is kinda cool”, then I feel justified in calling it terrible overall. It’s a good thing that Lightlark…3! is presumably a long ways away, because I will need all that time to recover from having read this.

[marta-bee]

More Aldarion & Erendis time. I want to take a step back from all the fun character-drama between our titular leads and talk a bit about the political situation. It's definitely turning how I think of the Numenor story on its head, but in a good way.

I've always thought of Numenoreans as prideful men who saw themselves as better than other men, their natural rulers, etc. Very imperial stuff. Very prideful generally, and pride goeth before, etc. Their thinking they could bring Sauron as a captive into their own land. The very questioning of mannish mortality. It's what did them in in the end.

A&E is set in a much earlier time though. Aldarion is only five generations removed from Elros, and was only born about 250 years after Elros died. And for the most part they're unconcenred with the wider world. You see this in Meneldur's pushing Aldarion to remain in Numenor and not go adventuring abroad, long before he married Erendis or even began courting her. His first duty was to love and know his own land, and for the people of Numenor to know him. It feels isolationist, but I don't take it in the modern Trumpian sense or even the America staying out of WWI while Europe bled and died sense. There's this idea that the Numenoreans have been given a gift of peace and having enough, and it's their job to live in that and let it heal their national soul.

Gil-Galad sends Tar-Meneldur a letter that changes that.

Ereinion Gil-galad son of Fingon to Tar-Meneldur of the line of Eärendil, greeting: the Valar keep you and may no shadow fall upon the Isle of Kings. Long I have owed you thanks, for you have so many times sent to me your son Anardil Aldarion: the greatest Elf-friend that now is among Men, as I deem. At this time I ask your pardon, if I have detained him overlong in my service; for I had great need of the knowledge of Men and their tongues which he alone possesses. He has dared many perils to bring me counsel. Of my need he will speak to you; yet he does not guess how great it is, being young and full of hope. Therefore I write this for the eyes of the King of Númenórë only. A new shadow arises in the East. It is no tyranny of evil Men, as your son believes; but a servant of Morgoth is stirring, and evil things wake again. Each year it gains in strength, for most Men are ripe to its purpose. Not far off is the day, I judge, when it will become too great for the Eldar unaided to withstand. Therefore whenever I behold a tall ship of the Kings of Men, my heart is eased. And now I make bold to seek your help. If you have any strength of Men to spare, lend it to me, I beg.

Should they keep living in peace, content in their little island's safety, or should they start preparing for war? And Meneldur knows he can't decide, abdicates the throne, and lets Aldarion step in.

It's a good impulse, to help, but it's borne out of a morally rotten premise. This is Sauron, of course everyone should help. But to think that the Numenorean uniquely are able to help, and that the men of Middle-earth are incapable of resisting Sauron sticks in my craw. It sets up the Numenoreans as having a natural nobility somehow missing from other men. Where what Glorfindel should be doing is recognize the potential for good in the humans not yet caught under Sauron.

Perhaps he's doing that too, or at least trying to. But the point is, I don't think the Numenoreans get to see that. They think they're specially responsible for resisting Sauron, which makes them special and other men almost chattel.

As an American, I'm feeling more than a bit seen, and not in a good way.

As a Tolkien fan, I'm a bit uncomfortable with how much I suspect Tolkien accepted this. It's not a stretch to imagine him viewing the English as the protectors and saviors of all those grubby men who could not be trusted to govern themselves. (Talking about Africans, Asians, and all sort of then-British colonies here.) I need to think about whether the rest of the Numenor story is a critique of that idea; whether this belief in their own superiority and their being central to fighting against Sauron was a subtle kind of pride that led to their fall or whether he thought of that later pride as something else entirely.

I like thinking they're connected because it makes for a better story. But I'm not sure if it's what Tolkien meant here. I know if he meant Gil-Galad's assessment to be genuine, I don't like that.

[isleofair]

9 people you'd like to get to know better

I was tagged by @realmoftenderness: thank you so much! 😍🩷 Apparently this has evolved lately, and I love this new version 😁

3 non romantic duos

1 - Pao-Lin and Nathan

AKA the Tiger & Bunny Gender Team. Their dynamic is impeccable: Pao-Lin as the kid who's trying to work with a gender that doesn't fit quite right, and Nathan as the established queer adult who shows her, even just by being there, that the possibilities of who you can be are endless. And yet, not only do they have a peer-to-peer friendship and equal respect for each other as heroes; but when Nathan, who seems so strong and solid in who they are, is actually made vulnerable by all the hurt she's experienced because of her queerness, Pao-Lin is the one who saves her, by pointing out just how wonderful Nathan is because of their different, unique identity.

I have so many feelings about them, and I wish the show had let them interact with each other and explore their shared themes and experiences way more than it did. Luckily, as you can see above, we have Ueda and Yoshida's manga firmly on our side. 💛💖

2 - Data and Geordie

Data was possibly my first main Blorbo, decades before the word Blorbo came to be. And his friendship with Geordie, while being one of the main tenets of both their characters, still, IMO, never got all the credit it deserved; particularly in regard to Geordie's feelings about the many, many time we (almost and then not almost 😭) lose Data, when other people's reactions are often put more in the forefront. Part of that was due to Geordie's status as a more secondary character, sure; but in part it was, perhaps, by virtue of their relationship's own nature. Their frendship is already established; it is more obvious and natural than the laws of physics the Enterprise keeps bending on its adventures; it simply, well, is. The other characters had to learn to understand and love Data; Geordie, apparently, simply accepted him and loved him before the very start. (Insert heavy-handed symbolism here about the blind character easily seeing past someone's surface; the show sure never shied away from it.) And this meant... a lot to me. 💛

(I have not yet seen the last season of Picard, but a glimpse of a headline makes me think I might need to say: please, no spoilers?)

3 - The Doctor and Donna

(Spoilers for the 60th Anniversary specials here, turn away if you need to. They're only one year old, after all. 😅)

You know that post that says these two are the biggest win ever for fictional queerplatonic relationships? (This one, btw.) Yeah, all of that and then more. Donna doesn't give the Doctor heart-eyes, she does not follow him blindly; she yells at him, throws things at his head, and then runs not behind him, but right at his side, with her eyes firmly wide open. The Doctor calls her the most important woman in the whole wide universe, and he means it. At one point, they become one single being, and it is glorious. They would have gone on together forever; them having to lose each other broke me (and probably them) far more than all the other separations in the show could. 💔

Imagine, then, my utter, endless delight when, after almost fourteen years, the 60th Anniversary specials not only reunited these two, but actually gave them a fully happy ending in which the Doctor (well, Tennant's version, anyway) joins Donna's amazing family, parks his TARDIS in their backyard, and just hangs out with them forever and ever, amen (shut up, time is all just wibbly-wobbly stuff, in the end). 💖💖💖

A ship that might surprise others

I'll be honest: I sat here for literally hours trying to think of a ship of mine that might be surprising (and that wasn't, like, stuff from 20 or more years ago that is really too cringe for me to want to bring it up now). I usually like pretty obvious ships, with the gamut of my tastes mostly running along the incredibly wide spectrum of "fluffy friends to lovers" to "snarky friends to lovers". 😅

So in the end I decided to go with something that has actually caused surprise to several people before, not so much because of the ship, but because I even knew about the show at all: Ray/Fraser in Due South 😂 (Apparently Canadians think that only Canadians know this show? But a) Italian TV will air almost anything, and b) the language of classic slash shows is universal. 😁)

Okay, maybe you might be surprised to know that the answer to "but which Ray, though?!?" is actually "Both". I am not a veteran of the Ray Wars; I existed in my little safe corner of "I discovered this fandom a couple of years after the show finished airing, and I just chilled at the edges of it, watching bootleg VHS tapes and reading fic on LiveJournal".

(You can't tell me that Fraser wasn't madly in love with both of them, anyway. It's just fact, as far as I'm concerned.)

Last song: Nightingale by Demi Lovato.

Last film: Pretty sure it was Onward, which I watched with my siblings and enjoyed a fair bit (which was definitely helped by the fact that I did not see/recognize who was voicing Barley until the movie was over).

Currently reading: I just finished (re-)reading Kimi Ni Todoke and it's as utterly sweet and delightful as I remembered. (I do not think I got to chapter 63 on my original readthrough, though, because I did NOT remember it also shattering my heart like that. 😭)

Currently watching: The Ranma 1/2 remake.

Currently consuming: Nothing. I should probably have some dinner.

Currently craving: a lot of extra energy to work on my T&B Secret Santa and the Advent Calendar! 💪💚

I am tagging (with zero pressure, as always!) @nicoroni, @imaginatorofthings, @seaofolives, @youngerfrankenstein, @hearjessroar, @zimithrus, @saltedpin, @thekuraning, @horikoshi-secret-ao3-account, and anyone else who would like to play! 😁🩷