#thank you for not assuming i have the knowledge! that's really considerate!

[danmeichael]

Hi great art - fantastic art!! But sorry that’s not a clavicle 😭 clavicles are the collarbones aka the horizontal bones that run between the top of your chest and shoulder blade. (Think strapless shirt/dress??) I’m pretty sure those things on necks are just muscles or tendons?? But feel free to ignore this!!

i know the muscles on the neck aren't the clavicle, thank you for trying to make sure i wasn't misinformed though!

i think my caption paired with the drawing was misleading! i was referring to the space between his collarbones/clavicles (implied to be exposed, but covered by the panel of angy shen jiu) which i've seen referred to as the clavicle before (particularly in reference to jewelry)

the more anatomically correct term is apparently jugular notch (at least when referring to the skeleton), which is better imo so i guess i'll start referring to it as that!

[retiredteabag]

I believe Nanami has always been a gentleman.

Due to the climate that exists, it can be hard to assume the best of people, knowing this, its not impossible to understand that in your time being a classmate of the man, you had previously been led you to figure the opposite of Nanami Kento.

Of course, you simply could not avoid the blatant roll of eyes when Nanami would bend down to retrieve a fallen pencil for his female classmate. Or when he would place an intentional hand on firm objects to protect from the possibility of future harm. And it would be remiss to not add that you had seen the men in your shared classes sigh anytime Nanami would defend a predominantly feminist sentiment in classroom discussions.

By no fault of your own, you had started to believe the masses that would perpetuate the rumor of his “white knight" status.

This assumption that Nanami was simply trying to get into a girls pants. By being kind and gentle with them, and by being a patient, learned, listener.

This idea all came to a front one day while you were on the train ride home.

Overfilled and uncomfortable, you had never felt so unsafe on your commute home than you had in that moment.

Call it hyper vigilance, but you had the intuition to locate a problem before it occurred. And even before the man, now plastered to your side, had weaseled his way into your proximity, you could smell the poor intentions from a mile away.

Fear sprung through you as you felt his body press against your own, you had a million thoughts flood your brain.

Should you shout at him? Make a scene? Would he accuse you of overreacting? Or perhaps you should simply try to move… but where to? You felt so terribly trapped that you couldn’t withhold the gasp that left you at the sudden ripping loss of his unwanted touch.

A commanding voice, unafraid of accusation, rang through the train car.

“What the hell do you think you’re doing?!”

You recognized the tall blond man immediately. He was in your ethics and rhetoric classes, and was notorious for being a real gentleman.

The typical assumption was, that this was for his own personal gain.

And, of course, being nice and being kind are not the same. He, to your knowledge, was being nice, instead of the latter.

Back to the moment at hand though, Nanami’s grasp never faltered on the perpetrators wrist, in fact, your classmate seemed to tighten his fist.

“I said. What the hell. Do you think. You’re doing.”

Real anger resounded from his tone. And every negative emotion from the situation seemed to echo in your brain.

Time passed slowly, all too slowly, and yet, before you could really understand the situation, you had ushered yourself onto your platform after your transport had come to a stop. And somehow, your classmate was staring down at you, asking if you were alright.

“I’m fine.” You force out.

You shouldn’t have to feel grateful nothing worse happened, you shouldn’t feel glad you weren’t physically harmed.

“I’m sorry. This must have been awful…” Nanami runs a hand through his hair and in that moment, all of your vitriol forces itself onto him as he finishes, “May I walk you home?”

Fury at his character, at this act, at everything that had happened today boiled the words out of your mouth, “Oh, for heaven sake, I’m not going to fuck you.”

“W-what?”

To his credit, he looks properly appalled. Stepping a wide margin away from you.

“I’m-I’m sorry, no.” He stutters, clears his throat, “that’s not what I- of course not-“

And he looks genuine in his fear at the thought.

“Right.” You sigh, “Well, thanks for all that, but I need to get home.”

He seems to wage a war within himself, to offer to bring you home, or to leave this be.

After a moment of consideration, he decides on the latter of the options. Solely because he knows now that you must not think of him as a trustworthy or safe individual. And rather than angry at this thought, he is sad. Worried about your past, and determined to be a safe option for you.

“Please get home safe.” And later you will wonder how he remembered you when recalling how he spoke out your name before saying, “I really am sorry, about all of this.”

You had walked home that night jumpy and cold.

—

It wouldn’t take but a week for you to begin questioning his intentions again after you watch your classmate deliver bagged lunches for the homeless outside of campus when he thought nobody was around.

When you had witnessed his genuine argument with another “one of the bros” after disagreeing with them in class.

And when you saw him offer to tutor any and all classmates that felt they might need a little help.

And while you were analyzing his motives, he started to develop his understanding of where you were coming from- eventually deciding that his goal would be to prove to you that he never had any ill will, and instead, cares for you as a human. Not for what you could offer him.

You don’t know yet, but he always has been a gentleman.

[twstfanblog]

Hi, if requests are still open, I was wondering if you could do one with Sebek where the he and the reader/ yuu are just talking about books, and Sebek sorta forgets that we/ yuu aren't from twisted wonderland and asks us how we've never heard of some really popular book, before having to be reminded about that fact when reader/ yuu just gives him a look that say "I'm not from here," and just back tracking with an apology, because we all know he would apologise profusely for forgetting something like that, and just something really fluffy where the two of them are in the library in the town near the school on the weekend.

If not, that's totally okay. Have a good day/ night and drink some water.💚💚💚💚

Library Date

Sebek x Reader

While the NRC library was much bigger than the local library of Sage Town, it was still the perfect location for the prefect and Sebek's reading dates. Every third weekend, they would get dressed in casual clothing and take the long bus ride down the mountain. A quick walk around the downtown area, a trip to the boba shop, and ending in a reserved private reading room until the last bus back to NRC came.

They would spend hours in comfortable silence together, reading through their tall book piles. While Sebek was delighted by fictional scandals of lords and ladies, the prefect normally chose non-fiction or educational books about the world around them. Though, on this library date, Sebek had proposed they do a genre switch.

The book the prefect had picked was informational; an etiquette guide of various dining customs around the world. He's not sure when he would ever use the knowledge, but any and all information he gained as Malleus’s retainer was nothing but helpful. He looked up from the text, a smile on his face that quickly fell at seeing the prefect's expression.

"Dear? Are you okay?" He looked at the cover of the book in their hands, brows furrowed, "Do you not like it...?"

"I do. It's just...I guess I'm confused? I'm halfway through, but people keep getting introduced, and I have no idea who any of them are. Like, this ship just appeared, and everyone got super excited, and then the next chapter happened. And suddenly, this James character is there? Who is that?"

"..." Sebek's face pinches together, his expression befuddled, "Captain James Hook? The pirate captain who ferries travelers to the second star to the right? How do you not know about him? He's a well-known figure in children's literature!"

The prefect sat, blinking nonchalantly as Sebek went on and on about the disservice of their choices in reading material. They leaned back in their chair, hands folding in front of them as he entered into a passionate speech on the many bedtime stories about Captain James and his pirate-like adventures.

A librarian has leaned their head in, angrily shushing Sebek who nearly shushed back. It wasn't enough to stop his rant, but his voice lowered considerably.

Sighing, Sebek shook his head, "Honestly, dear, how do you not know of him? Even Silver and I were read his books in the remote lands of Briar Valley-"

"Sebek, what's the name of my hometown?"

"..." The half-fae pulled a confused look, but seeing how deadpanned his partner was he thought it over. The name of Yuu's hometown was simple to pronounce, yet hard to remember. The names of places from their world were so odd yet familiar that it-

...

The tips of Sebek's ears started to turn red. Taking a deep breath, he picked his book back up and hid his face within the pages, "...Sorry."

"It's ok."

"I forgot."

"I assumed as much."

"I shouldn't have yelled at you."

"No, you shouldn't have." The Prefect reached across the table, gently tucking their fingers between Sebek's iron grip and the book cover as a way to hold his hand, "But I forgive you because I love you."

Sebek's red face peaked from behind the book, a small, goofy smile spreading his lips, "Thank you..."

"Though, to be fair. We do have Captain Hook in my world too."

"Wait, what?"

[foldingfittedsheets]

so I've been following along with the mattress questions because my mattress is just about exactly 10 years old and sags SO BAD. It's deeply, deeply uncomfortable and all the things you've been saying to look for to replace, it has. I've already decided that when I start getting my paychecks this fall, the first thing I'm buying is a new mattress.

Are there any brands that sell $800-$1000 queen beds that you'd recommend? I get so overwhelmed with choice, so names to at least check out at the store would be useful.

Also, is it better to get a mattress topper earlier rather than later? Or should you wait until you notice problems with it to shell out for one?

(thank you so much, I had just resigned myself to sleeping bad forever, but this series of answers reminded me that I'm an Adult with Adult Money and can (eventually) buy myself a new one. and as I buy the new one, I WILL be buying a couple protectors)

Hmmnnngh. Okay. So here’s the thing. There’s a lot of really good queens in that price range. But taking a recommendation usually supersedes personal comfort, which is why almost all of these asks I deal in generalities rather than specifics. Also because bed names vary by retailer to be confusing because why not.

Just because I think a bed feels good doesn’t mean someone else won’t like something better, and I’ve seen a ton of folks who buy the bed a friend recommends even though their comfort is different. They return it later. So I am going to name names, but it’s very important that you take into consideration how the bed feels not just that I said it’s a good brand. We straight up don’t tell people what we sleep on for this reason because people will just buy that one assuming it’s the best.

Sealy, Serta, and Simmons all make great beds around that price point that I’ve had personal experience with. But as scary as it is the best thing to do is go into a store. The person is there to guide you around. You don’t need encyclopedic knowledge of beds, because it’s all about first how it feels to you. Their job is to help you navigate the showroom from there.

My personal process and what’s still taught in my company is to determine the comfort that fits you, then look at different styles in that comfort. Most folks are a medium-plush if you’re a side sleeper never go firm, ever, for real. Once you know how soft you like it you can compare A-B style between innerspring, hybrid, and foam.

Most people will have a strong preference for one of the three, and you won’t know before trying. Then you can narrow down from there. There’s probably only like six maybe seven beds you need to lay on to find the one!

Regarding the topper: no. Get a bed you like out the gate. When it sags, get a new bed. The ONLY time you will need a topper is if your bed is too hard on shoulders and hips and ideally you’re not buying that because you’ve just bought a super comfy amazing new mattress that’s perfect as is.

You need a thin waterproof protector and sheets and that’s it. Anytime you’re adding stuff like a topper or an extra pillow something is failing you and should get kicked to the curb.

[icarusbetide]

Since you are a purveyor of odd Hamilton takes... Came across this in American Military Biography (1830) by Amos Blanchard:

I had assumed the "orphan Alex" narrative was there from the start (and maybe this is just a very badly researched book), but that made me wonder when that actually became the default version of the story.

(Also how can you be an orphan with a living parent anyway...?)

I love my curated collection of odd Hamilton takes...some of them are printed out on a dart board so I can skewer them to hell along with the corresponding historian's picture but the ones I agree with are 100% accurate and concrete facts.

And thank you so much for sharing, this is really interesting! My first thought was maybe Blanchard was aware of Ann Mitchell, Hamilton's cousin. She lived in America for several years, may have been his major benefactor, and he singled her out in his final letters, entreating Betsey to treat her well.

From a quick search it seems unlikely she accompanied him (Allan McLane Hamilton thought they never met in America), but perhaps the knowledge of a maternal figure helping Ham was public at the time, and the author rolled with "mother"? I stumbled on a paper from 1952, "Alexander Hamilton: The Fact and Fiction of His Early Years" by Larson that addresses the popular myth that Hamilton received help from two friendly aunts; apparently there was an aunt Ann Lytton who died before all of this, separate from the actual helper: Ann Lytton Venton Mitchell, Hamilton's cousin. Not sure how far back that mixup goes, but maybe this author heard about this mother who was actually an aunt who was actually a cousin through the grapevine. Christ.

This did get me thinking about how I've never dug into Rachel's death because it seems like such a concrete incident. There is the 1768 probate court transaction available on founders online for anyone looking for easy access but now I'm having a second hand existential crisis. Maybe Hamilton was actually chilling with his very alive mother who is so confused rn.

I also assumed the orphan narrative thing was present from the start. From what I know, the "lacks good parentage, native land, and money" aspect was always subtly present (which is in itself honestly misleading, he was very privileged. but it makes sense since he's beefing with the elite who can use that relative disparity against him). but maybe the "all alone in the world with nobody to help him" aspect was not.

I'm considering the various examples of people being shady, like Jefferson writing that Ham is a man who "from the moment at which history can stoop to notice him, is a tissue of machinations against the liberty of the country which has not only recieved and given him bread, but heaped it’s honors on his head". This was a letter to Washington of all people, so maybe this indicates that there was some general understanding of Hamilton's background as lacking that allowed him to say all this even in consideration of his frustrations. Newspapers alluded to it. In 1800: "And you might find yourselves equally mistaken, in supposing, that the mode of your descent from a dubious father, in an English island would be no bar in this country to the pretensions to the Presidency."

So clearly there's some aspect of the lowborn narrative peeking through, but I think it would make sense for people to believe & say that he came from questionable, middling backgrounds, but still not see him as an orphan. His childhood wasn't happy or stable by any means, but he still had some support from family and benefactors going for him in America. And he never let go of his deadbeat dad for all the good that did him so he probably didn't refer to himself as an orphan. He didn't even like people thinking of him as lower-class, ("I have better pretensions than most of those who in this Country plume themselves on Ancestry") so I'm sure he didn't embrace the Charles Dickens characterization.

I dunno, maybe it's later historians who dug into Ham's insecurities, feelings of isolation expressed in certain letters, and his elusive background to complete the orphan narrative.

If anything, I suppose this further shows just how far back ambiguities about Hamilton's origins go. Blanchard also claims that Hamilton was born on St. Croix, and apparently there's some modern speculation that he wasn't even born on Nevis. 1830 isn't too far off from Hamilton's death; what book/person did Blanchard consult, if he even did, for this info? I also know that Adams referred to Hamilton as the "Scottish Creolian of Nevis", so Adams must've heard from a different source that Ham wasn't originally from St. Croix. So confusing.

But anyways, thank you so much for sharing this with me - I'm so bad at finding old resources, and I would've never learned that some doofus wrote about Hamilton with - gasp - a nondead parental figure.

Hope you're having a great day! :)

[koolades-world]

Hello! Congrats on 2k followers!!! I’ll be honest, with the way you write so beautifully I really assumed you might have had 5k if not more :0! But, I’m sure it’ll happen quickly without any of us noticing! Anyway! I was thinking of Satan x shy fem! MC who actually confesses to him!! I’m thinking that in one of Asmo’s Friday night games Asmo dares MC to kiss someone who she would date. So she bashfully gives Satan a soft cheek kiss and runs off to the planetarium. When she realises Satan’s presence near her, she spills her heart out using prompts 6 and 36! Prompt 6 to explain her initial attraction to him, and prompt 36 after listing out and explaining the things she loves about him (seeking knowledge, gentle nature, observant, considerate, you know it all!! :))! Sorry if it’s too long, you can cut out any details you don’t like or think are too tedious or completely change it to any other plot you like!

Have a lovely day/night!

thank you!! great to see you again :)) been working on your other request but i'm not sure when i'll have it ready haha

no worries about being too specific and whatnot, it helps me since I don’t actually need to come up with the idea on my own haha. the concept is very cute! you know me, I could rant about all the things I love about satan so actually that part might just be me speaking haha

asmo have friday game nights is SO real I think I may need to expand on that concept later. monopoly is 100% banned in that household, but we can save that fun stuff for later

enjoy <3

prompts 6 and 36 w/ Satan

Despite how busy the household might get during the week, Friday evenings were typically reserved for game nights, hosted and organized by Asmo. It started off as something small with just himself and you because they actually wanted to play games, Mammon because he was simply following you, and Levi because he saw an opportunity to show off. After that, it began to develop and take on a life of its own.

As more people joined, things needed to be more coordinated. Food had to be ordered or turns needed to be taken on who was making what, a schedule of what was going to be played had to be made, and even a seating schedule so nobody would argue over who got to sit next to you.

Tonight, the group would be playing something a little different. In all honesty, it seemed like the perfect game. It didn't require anything but the players themselves, and didn't have a limit to how many could play. Unfortunately, that game was the bane of your existence: truth or dare. You didn't have the heart to tell Asmo of all the horrors that games had brought you when you were younger. But, you'd never missed a game night and it wasn't about to start now. Who know, you might even enjoy it.

So, you took your seat in the circle against your better judgment. Today, you were seated between Satan and Diavolo. Diavolo was always very into the games, but sitting next to Satan made you nervous. Not because of his rage, but because of the effect of being near him had on you. After coming to the realization that you had a crush on him, being around him got so much harder, but you didn't want to disrupt the schedule. It was only one night, you thought you could power through it.

The night was a blur, and the only thing you could focus on was how close you were to Satan. You were squished next to him on the couch, and every time you touched, you felt almost stunned. You could only hoped nobody else noticed your suffering. Unfortunately for you, Asmo never missed that kind of thing and decided he was ready to be your matchmaker, if you'd take the chance.

"Mc! You haven't said anything yet. I'm honestly surprised nobody else has called on you yet. So, truth or dare?" Asmo's words shook you out of your stupor. You sat and thought for a moment about his question. He'd for sure use truth against you in some way, like asking who your favorite brother was. That would start a war. So, instead you opted for dare, hoping he'd just ask to use you as a living mannequin.

"Dare, I guess?" You nervously glanced around. You would have thought at this point you would've grown used to the stares of many eyes at once, but it still never failed to make you nervous.

"I dare you to give a kiss to somebody you would date. Preferably me." He puckered up. Of course you knew your answer, but did you have the courage? The easy way out would be giving Asmo the kiss, but that wouldn't be true to your heart. You could feel the gazes of the others trained on your every move, silently hoping you'll pick them.

"Uhm. Can I back out? Or at least can everybody close their eyes?" You couldn't meet anyone's eyes.

"You heard her. Close your eyes. The quicker you do, the quicker I get my kiss." Reluctantly, everyone in the room shut their eyes, the last being Satan himself. The two of you held inexplicable eye contact, as if he knew about the choice you were about to make before you did. After everyones' eyes were finally shut, you could feel yourself relax a little. But not enough to make it less stressful.

Finally ready to make your move, you got up from your spot and stood in the center of the circle. You stood in front of Satan, studying his features. You could spend hours looking at him. His long eyelashes, his bright blond hair, his full lips. But, you couldn't keep everyone waiting. With all the courage you could muster, you stepped forward, and planted a gentle kiss on his cheek. His eyes shot open and for a long moment, you stared at each other.

Suddenly, all the confidence you'd managed to gather vanished. Panicking, you ran out of the circle through a small gap between Levi and Mammon. You fled to the only place that brought you comfort: the planetarium. Once you were there, you sat down on the ground and looked up at the stars. Finding the constellations brought you comfort. Behind you, you heard the door to the planetarium open. You turned to the sound of the approaching footsteps and was greeted by the man you'd kissed under an hour ago.

"Mc. I thought I'd find you here." Satan sat beside you, following your gaze up to the sky. "I never thought you'd date me of all people." You looked at him from your peripheral vision.

"What make you say that?" You questioned him. To you, he was perfect.

"Well, I always just assumed you'd prefer my brothers' personalities. They all have something going for them, and I'm just me. I'm not as special." His expression didn't change.

"You don't sell yourself enough. You're smart, you're thoughtful, and you're a joy to be around, not to mention how handsome you are. You give me butterflies." You absolutely wouldn't stand for him putting himself down like that, even if it meant confessing in the process. You'd already kind of kicked that off to begin with, so the least you could do was follow though. "But, that's not all. You care about the people close to me. You followed me here, didn't you? That's one of the many things I love about you. You always know exactly what I need when I'm feeling down. You're sensible, you're always honest with me, you're witty, and you have a more mischievous side. You pay attention to detail and you're gentle. I have a hard time thinking about what I don't love about you. To me, you're perfect." At the point, Satan was was looking right at you. This time, you weren't afraid to make eye contact and you met his emerald eyes.

"I could list all the things I love about you, but we'd be here all night. If you give me time, I'll make a book for you. If that was a confession, I accept." He softly smiled at you. He was positively glowing with the compliments you gave him, yet he still seemed to doubt the reality of it all. His cheeks were a light pink, and he held his hand out to you. You took it with a newfound conviction.

"I think it was." You found yourself growing a little bashful again, but didn't let go or look away. You enjoyed the feeling of his hand in yours.

"We could go back to game night, or we could go out? I have this 24 hour cafe in mind I've been meaning to try. It could be our first date." He ran his thumb over your knuckles, pressing a tender kiss to the back of your hand that echoed the one you'd given him not too long ago.

"I'd like that." With a smile, you let him pull you to your feet. The way he smiled at you made you realize you wouldn't regret your decision to step out of your comfort zone.

[munamarvel13]

Okay okay, so I technically have two Nigerian Characters

One is Biracial

The other is the son of two immigrants

The story has a lot to do with Identity and Pdychology (The MC, the biracial one, is recovering from being a living weapon)

And the son of the immigrants, a Retired Therapist, becomes a Surrogate father figure to him

With that outline, I've Semi-finalized the Therapist's name

(The MC is more complicated bc he technically has 4 names, but I'll get to that later if you're interested, I really don't want to bother you, lol)

Idk though

Therapist's current name that I'm kinda attached to is Lucian Adeye

I love the name, btw. Lucian Adeye. A lot of Nigerian kids have english names and traditional middle/last names.

Nigerians often know about foreign terms and facts -typically American and British- and the fact that both characters have international roots, is perfect. Don't let other character explain every little detail to them; they will understand unless it's entirely new information necessary to the plot.

Though, Nigerians are often cynical and can be really judgey. We often criticize other cultures, though not in a stereotypically or bias way. More like we judge you guy's actions, concepts or what you normally do??? Like parenting or politics. Assuming your American, of course.

Despite our broad knowledge, we are kind of traditional and religious, since christianity and islam are dominant. They don't have to be like excessively religious. Maybe they say 'Jesus Christ!' when they have been jumped scared or say a quick prayer before doing something big. That sort of stuff. Family is everything; even in modern settings, extended families are involved. Respect for elders is also a big thing. There's a good chance that your characters may be the odd one out in their friend group lol.

We have bold, expressive and often dramatic ways of speaking. If your character(s) are confident, they might be like this in public. But a lot of Nigerian teens (assuming they are teens or young adults) tend to be different when they are at home and when in public. They are more like themselves among family but less among friends. Adults tend to speak their native language or Pidgin english when at home and more formally when in public or in your case, with his clients.

We like to show our style as well. Since your characters have international roots, you could do this in appearance rather than clothing style. Is the biracial one a girl? If so, let her have big hair, either worn naturally or in big cornrows or braids. For Lucian, he could have a fresh cut or a neat afro puff. Let him show his Nigerian-ness, even in a formal setting.

Also, FOOD. FOOD IS EVERYTHING. Jollof rice, puff-puff, amala, pounded yam. I will KILL for a scene when a Nigerian character from a foreign setting eats their traditional food.

I honestly loved venting like this and want to thank you for being so considerate enough to ask me this. You can ask as many questions as you like. My askbox needs to be fed!!!

[ronearoundblindly]

What do you think the most attractive non-physical thing a man can do is?

(Like, for me, it’s laughing at a witty joke I make or genuinely listening to what I’m talking about and taking my word for my knowledge without question. Low standards, i know)

Hnggggg, I'm a sucker for humor--I'm sure that comes as a great shock to all lol--but I had a super difficult time figuring out things that aren't really tied to physical expression as well. Sorry it's taken me so long to answer!

I've settled on something incredibly simple but all too rare: consideration.

Give me a man who actually thinks about you and your needs and you both enjoying life together any damn day. Perhaps I feel sooooo strongly about this because my most recent failed-relationship was devoid of consideration, especially by the end. Perhaps this is why I love (and love to write) Steve Rogers so much.

Steve's strategic mind makes him think things through, but he's also just...used to observing, noticing. He doesn't have to read minds, ya know. He doesn't have to know your exact mood without you saying anything and have fancy, romantic things planned. However, if you prefer some things certain ways, he physically does what works best for you.

If you want to eat a specific diet (or need to), he won't get a bunch of stuff you have to avoid and keep it in front of you. If you have a laundry list of errands to complete in a limited time together, he thoroughly plans an efficient way to do it all without overwhelming you.

This can be as simple as talking to you, just asking what you want or need or prefer, but over time, I'm positive Steve truly learns and remembers the tiniest details about you. I think he'd be proud of how well he knows you, how much he can anticipate, and how extensively he provides.

That's attractive to me. I want that.

Again, the consideration doesn't need to be at his own expense, and I'd actually love to be the one taking care of him just as often. I just hate when only one person is carrying the burden of forethought. I don't think it's fair to assume I'll remember and plan for everything alone. I believe a man should be able to take care of himself and manage his own life. He won't die without you, but you are welcome in his life.

That make sense?

Thank you for asking!

[moriohradiojanitorroom]

Hi, I stumbled across your blog and I'm really excited to try the match-up✨

Sorry if I write anything wrong, this is my first experience

I have always been told I am a very kind, caring and compassionate person. I think this is true, I always try to help people around me. I am also very optimistic and always try to think of the best. I am still a very shy, insecure and irascible person, but my bad moods pass quickly. If this helps you I am pisces and infp

Speaking of hobbies I really love my favorite manga and anime and cooking. Although some of my recipes sound suspicious but the dishes turn out really delicious. I can't imagine my life without music, I listen to it all the time. I think it's a bit funny, but I do know a lot of facts from many different fields

Oh, I'm afraid I've written too much. If something is unclear then please apologize, English is not my native language. Anyway thanks and good luck, looking forward to your reply💐

Hi there!!! Thanks so much for this request, I was really excited to fulfill it! And don’t worry about too much info or anything like that, this is great! This is also my first time writing a matchup so I hope it’s alright dkdnjsmd You didn’t specify an age or any preferences, so I’m gonna give you a canonically adult character & assume you don’t have a preference for other stuff, like gender or what part they’re from - if you’d like to resubmit with that in mind tho, that’s okay!

With all that in mind, here are some honourable mentions:

Noriaki Kakyoin was the first to come to mind when I read your request, but with the age thing in consideration, I decided to choose someone else.

After that, I considered Jonathan Joestar, Erina Pendleton, and Mohammad Avdol! Ultimately, though, I ended up choosing:

Robert E.O. Speedwagon!

Your positivity and kindness hooked the man in faster than he could even blink - we all know exactly how loyal he is and how quickly he can tell who deserves that loyalty. It only took him a few minutes to read that you’re one of those people.

He’s also pretty intrigued by how much you know. He likes to exchange little bits of knowledge and stories with you, especially after he’s done some travelling and has a wider expanse of knowledge. Even before that, though, he always keeps your words in mind - who knows, one day one of those facts might just save a life!

He also very well understands the difficulties of insecurity and hotheadedness, having faced them himself. He does his best to keep you grounded, and encourages you to leave your comfort zone now and then - it’s key to growth, after all - but he knows when to back off. He can be a little stubborn, especially if he’s enthusiastic, but in the end your comfort matters more. If you’d rather stay at home with him than go out and dance or something, that’s fine by him. Hell, with all the travelling he does, he may actually grow to prefer that more relaxed atmosphere.

On that topic, Speedwagon’s pretty good at reading people’s moods and actions. On top of knowing when he needs to let you chill, he also knows if/when he should make somebody else do the same. If he sees something or someone bothering you, he’s quick to swoop in and do whatever he can to settle the situation, whether that’s just to comfort some insecurities or get a particularly annoying person to back off. If he knows that you can handle it, though, he’ll take a backseat and play cheerleader. In fact, it makes him proud to see it.

Also, this man grew up on the most dangerous street in London. He’s no stranger to meals with some odd ingredients, and frankly, he’ll be even happier to learn how good they taste! He’s not the best cook himself, he’s the type of man who uses whatever he has on hand to try scraping together something reasonable, so a good meal will go straight to his heart.

For the sake of anime and manga, I’m gonna go ahead and pretend we’re a little more modern day for the next few. I feel like Speedwagon is more of a reading guy than a television guy. After a long day, he’ll to sit down and read with you, manga or not. He’ll watch a show too if you ask, but there’s something quite romantic about cuddling up and sharing a book that he feels can’t be matched by much else.

On that note, please forgive him ahead of time - if you do get him to sit down and watch your favourite shows, he will have a lot of commentary. He’s the type of guy who will interrupt a scene to enthusiastically declare something like, “So THAT’S why the bugger carries that chain around!”, or confoundedly question what a character thinks they’re doing. He’ll probably do this while reading too, just maybe not as often. He’s not trying to interrupt, he just gets excited - if you tell him to settle down, he’ll do his best to accommodate, but he might slip from time to time.

Also, (and this is another one of those modern day ones) depending on your music taste, he may or may not buy vinyls or discs of your favourite bands and try to get you to dance with him to them. He’ll probably suggest a concert at least once - something tells me that he’s the type to prefer live music.

Knowing that you’re passionate about something makes him passionate, too. He’ll try his best to look into your interests on his own time, and try to involve you in whatever he finds - maybe he asks an older lady he knows for interesting recipes to show you, or he scours a book store for a series he hasn’t heard you talk about yet. He’s doing his best to match your love for these things, even if they’re sometimes new to him.

Your bright outlook on life, your compassion, your love for the things you enjoy - they’re all astoundingly inspirational to this man. He may sometimes worry that you deserve better than an Ogre Street ex-thief, but by god, will he use all the motivation you give him to make a good life for you.

Okay - I think I might have rambled a bit there, but yeah, thank you so much for the request!! It’s the first one I’ve gotten anyways so I hope you’ll forgive all the babbling jehdjjfs

This was a ton of fun to write, and I hope that you’re happy with it!

[vitanithepure]

Ok, now your turn! :D What does Imogene think of her retinue?

Aaah, thank you for the ask and brace yourself for a long one because - oh, she has Thoughts™ 😂

Abelard is the designated grandpa. They agree on most things, and she dons her most shit-eating grin each time Abelard announces who she is. Also, they got this going on:

Idira is the coolest person on the ship, and that is even taking iceman into consideration. Just. So. Cool. Imogene adores her bravery, admires she had the guts to go her own way and against the world that hates her very existence.

Argenta can go space herself. She knows where the airlock is. Imogene has no idea why is she even part of her retinue if she disagrees with everything the Rogue Trader does and her solution to all world's problems is to burn it all down. No love between them, that's for sure.

Pasqal is the fount of knowledge and the right amount of religious calling for Imogene. Having been born on a Forge World she grew up surrounded by the Adeptus Mechanicus and their work. She shares a lot of respect and values with Pasqal and is absolutely fascinated by his pursuits. She would commit acts of unrestrained heresy if he asked her to, lol.

Iceman is scary. At first. Imogene quickly learns that her new status as a Rogue Trader gives her a lot of leeway when in comes to dealing with the agents of the Inquisition, including this particularly obvious snitch (as she believes) and she makes it a little game of sorts - how much can she annoy Heinrix until he turns around and leaves? Jokes on her, I guess, because at some point she realizes she wouldn't let him go even if he wanted to xD

Cassia is...uniqe. Imogene has no idea how to act around her. On one hand she seems to be insanely powerful. Influencing emotions of others? Third eye that could potentially kill just by looking into it? Or worse? All that in a frail, otherworldly body and a mind of a very cloistered young adult? On the other hand...she is so nice. So open and up for discussing things. So incredibly insightful for her age, Imogene went all in with her big sister mode.

(And below I'll go into companions you didn't mention yourself, so I assume you haven't met them. No big spoilers about them, just leaving you to decide if you wanna know who potentially is out there!)

Jae is wonderful. She's living her life, taking what comes in stride and never is content with what she already has. Imogene has a lot of fun with her, 10/10 friend and all around awful influence if you ask Abelard about their relationship :D Wonder for how long will that last, though...

Yrliet is...complicated. It's kind of like she took a trip to the zoo and found a mon-keigh named Imogene free from her enclosure and decided to see where she was running to. Imogene is stubborn though, and shortly after their meeting went "yeah, I'm gonna confuse her so much". Their relationship is uneasy because of all the outside influence barging in between them.

Ulfar didn't join Imogene, so... too bad buddy, have fun. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

Marazhai is...well, he is. But Imogene wishes he wasn't. Really regrets bringing him along. Probably things won't end well between them and I intend to headcanon this so hard xD

[teecupangel]

So it's obvious that God doesn't really exist but what if there's hell? But hell's more like hazbin hotel/helluva boss type of hell so all the assassins and templars just pile there or something so even in death they still have this war going on and they just keep coming back no matter how many times they die

Me seeing this ask preview while still half-asleep:

My brain apparently thinking we’re uneducated indios from the 1600s: O dios mio! Don’t let the friars hear you or you’ll be whipped!

Well, that woke me up. Thanks, nonny XD

Alright, let’s be clear, this is about how there is no non-Isu creator god in Assassin’s Creed… that we know of.

However…

If we take into consideration that, whenever someone talks about an omnipowerful god, they’re usually talking about the Judeo-Christian God, we do have an idea of which Isu this god is meant to represent in AC lore.

The Templars (historically made up of Christian knights and created by a Christian king) use the phrase “May the Father of Understanding Guide Us” a lot.

Now, the Father of Understanding we usually know is Tinia but the Capitoline Triad is more or less a title that get used frequently by the Isus, usually to talk about three specific Isu scientists that accomplished something great (and this gives the whole “Holy Trinity” a different connotation in AC Lore)

Another Capitoline Triad was in charge of Project Anthropos which created the humans. Among them is the Father of Understanding “Yaldabaoth”.

Now, you might be wondering: why are we picking Yaldabaoth and not the other two Isus?

Because all three of them are different names taken by the Demiurge, said to be the ‘god’ that created humanity but also limited their knowledge. (There’s the whole ‘Yaldabaoth is not the true god but a false god’ or ‘Yaldabaoth is the god of the old testament’ and other more ‘origins’ for Yaldabaoth so here, have a wiki link if you’d like to know more). Yaldabaoth is, in my experience, the most commonly used name among the three. Also, Father of Understanding of the Templars being Yaldabaoth would make more sense than picking the Sacred Voice or the Mother of Wisdom.

So, in the Lucifer (TV series) x AC crossover idea, I proposed Yaldabaoth as being a different Isu from the Judeo-Christian God to amp up the Isu drama but, for this one, we’ll just assume that Yaldabaoth is the basis of the Judeo-Christian God (because it’s a bit funny that the Templars would be ‘worshipping’ one called ‘false’)

Annnyywaaayy, your idea is there is a ‘hell’ and I think you don’t mean the whole Underworld-Elysium type of setup as the one in the Atlantis DLC of Odyssey.

I feel like the idea of ‘hell’ would work well to my idea of how Desmond is Zagreus’ Sage.

Not the premise itself but the idea of the Afterlife program:

What if the initial idea of the Afterlife is that humans were not meant to reproduce, that they were meant to die and then be revived in a younger body with all their memories intact, making it faster for them to return to work. Elysium houses the data of the exemplary slaves, the best of the crop. The others go to the other parts of the Afterlife (with Tartarus being the part where the data of the ‘defects’ go so they won’t be loaded again).

It was only a bit later that the Isus realized it takes too many resources to keep creating bodies based on human data (DNA) so the next batch of humans could reproduce.

Now, in this context, Tartarus would be the ‘hell’ and, what if, in this setup, the actions of both the Assassins and the Templars would count them as ‘defects’ because they certainly go against what the Isus think humans should be with their desire for free-will or total control (in the hands of humans, bah!).

And, you say eternal war?

Okay.

So I’m going to tip my hand here, those who read my fics last year would know last year, August had the highest fic post count mainly because:

A lot of shit went down in August in AC lore… mostly deaths. (Arno’s bday, Clay’s death, Juno’s death, Umar’s death, (most importantly) Altaïr’s death, etc)

My birthday is in August and I tend to do a Birthday special whenever I’m active which is really just “post more than usual on my birthday!”

I’m explaining this because I actually have an AC fic idea based on the premise of Xenoblade 3’s eternal war which I am hoping I would be able to write this August and this ask gives me the chance to talk about it. XD

So the idea was, there would be two main factions that kept on fighting one another, locked in an eternal war. Their entire life, all they know is that they’re meant to live for one year (yeah, not ten years, one year) then they will either die on the battlefield or they would be given the chance to meet their mentor and be ‘initiated’. But for them to live up to their final week, their cube must not be empty and the only way to fill it even just a little is by either killing enemy soldiers or letting the cube absorb important artifacts of their enemies. Both factions mainly used three-person cells but there are rumors of four-person spec ops teams.

So the plot was meant to start with a POV from Arno’s team which is composed of him, Evie, and Jacob. They get a mission to find some kind of artifact and they get sidetracked because they’re attacked by an enemy cell composed of Bayek, Eivor, and Kassandra who are presumably after the same artifact.

Their fight gets broken up by a comet-like thing crashing down near them and they assumed it’s the artifact they were after so they raced to get there first. When they get there, the artifact looked like… a pod?

Figures clad in robes and masks appeared all of a sudden with one of them stepping forward to say, “Do not be rash, father. It doesn’t have to end this way. Return what is rightfully ours and I will ensure that the Grand Masters’ punishment will be light.”

“I’m afraid I can’t do that.” A man’s voice comes out from underneath the pod and it opens to reveal some kind of small cockpit. A man with dirty blond hair stepped out of the pod together with what seemed to be some kind of coffin following him by floating behind him.

He touches the coffin just as the masked man says, “Father, don’t-!”

They hear a hissing sound as air leaves the coffin as it slowly opens, revealing a sleeping young man. The young man gasped awake and grabbed his right hand tightly, coughing painfully. The blond man turned to face him and asked, “Do you remember who you are? Desmond?”

“Who…” The man called Desmond stared at him for a moment before he said, “I know you…”

“My name is Edward Ken-”

Bang!

Desmond’s eyes widened as blood splattered on his face and Edward fell on him before sliding down.

The masked man lowered the pistol he had fired as he said, “I had hoped it did not come to this, father.”

Desmond’s eyes widened as he recognized the voice.

“Haytham?”

(Yeah, I’m ending it there. I mean… I have more notes that includes what the fuck is actually going on but I guess this ask has been hijacked into a sneak peek on what you guys might get in August)

[not-poignant]

Not the same anon but your responses about Temsen have piqued my curiosity. How would you say TND Temsen differs from UtB Temsen?

And would UtB Temsen treat an omega partner differently to an alpha partner, in terms of aftercare or lack off? You said he treats alpha partners the way bad alphas treat omegas, so I'm assuming he wouldn't treat an omega partner like that (if he's ever had an omega partner in the past)?

In your mind, would Temsen have treated Efnisien the same as one of his alpha partners (rough, abruptly) or would he have been different and more considerate because of Efnisien's omega-like biology and trauma? Would Efnisien have even had a choice in the matter if Temsen decided to fuck him?

Also, apologies if these questions are annoying, there's no need to answer if you'd prefer not to. I just really enjoying hearing your thoughts and opinions on things

Hi anon!

These questions definitely aren't annoying! Thanks for answering them! I'm now going to ramble, you've enabled the beast :D :D

How would you say TND Temsen differs from UtB Temsen?

The biggest difference is that they're entirely different species, and in ways that pretty profoundly affect their behaviour.

Vench Temsen needs intimacy to live, and peak alpha Temsen can literally be killed by heartbreak. Those things create really disparate desires and needs. In that sense, how they orient to love and relationships is fundamentally different from each other, because what one needs and requires and enjoys, the other has a biological drive to avoid and be wary of.

We know from Gary, that most peak alphas avoid love, and in fact never bond with anyone at all, and that this isn't just choice-based, it's literally a biological drive to keep them safe and protected from the catastrophic results that can happen if they fall in love/bond and then have that bond rupture or break.

The ways they're similar are that they're both healers, they're both quite straightforward while being quite calculating, and they're both in possession of a lot more power than they often pretend to have. :D

But Vench Temsen is a lot softer (or as soft as he'll ever get) because he needs intimacy to live. I still think he sometimes comes across as a bit more detached and less warm than some of the other vench, and that we see him at his most comfortable and confident in his position as healer.

And would UtB Temsen treat an omega partner differently to an alpha partner, in terms of aftercare or lack off?

Underline the Black Temsen cannot sleep with omegas. Like, it's literally impossible for him, because he's not attracted to them in any way or form. He's never been aroused by, or attracted to omegas, or betas, and he exclusively - like Gary - sleeps with alphas. (Though I think Gary has been attracted to betas in the past, he just hasn't pursued it).

I can't imagine Temsen with an omega partner at all. For a start, omegas aren't fully coherent around him, and can't be fully lucid / aware all the time, especially once Temsen's pheromones go up. There are mild exceptions, but eventually an omega would essentially become brainwashed and just do what Temsen wanted. Temsen - aside from not being interested in omegas - would find that unattractive as well. He wants people who know what's happening to them, not people who are so mentally and physically affected by his pheromones (in a way he can't really control except through distance) that they lose that knowledge.

Most peak alphas aren't attracted to omegas - Augus is actually an outlier for this! Crielle also isn't. Every peak alpha we've ever met - bar one - has never been attracted to omegas.

In your mind, would Temsen have treated Efnisien the same as one of his alpha partners (rough, abruptly) or would he have been different and more considerate because of Efnisien's omega-like biology and trauma?

Temsen would have been businesslike about it. He would have seen it as discharging a medical need, like a procedure that he knows Efnisien won't enjoy but is necessary - sort of like when he knocks Efnisien out while Efnisien is screaming at him. I don't think Efnisien having omega biology would have changed that? It's just Temsen is very aware that Efnisien isn't a partner he'd choose for himself, he's someone who needs something medically, that an alpha companion isn't there to do.

He wouldn't have been intentionally rough or mean, but it would have been rape, and he likely would have used a combination of medication and his pheromones to make sure Efnisien was both unable to fight back properly, and semi-'consenting' to what was happening to him. Regarding the aftermath, I think he would have gone the 'you couldn't help it and I didn't give you a choice, that's very unfair, let's organise some therapy for you.' Sort of...caring but cold?

It likely would have exacerbated the infection he was experiencing and Temsen is fully aware that it could have killed him as a result, which is why he's kind of regretful about realising that about himself (i.e. that he would have done something that would have been the wrong thing to do, because he wouldn't have cared about Efnisien's consent).

Also Temsen wouldn't have wanted to really do it, so I don't think he'd be kind so much as 'I know this is something we both don't really want to do, let's get it over and done with, okay? I'll make it as easy as possible.'

I think Temsen likes Efnisien as a person, even as an alpha, but he doesn't want to bond with anyone. And that becomes extremely clear when people push for a closer connection to him. He keeps everyone at arm's length. Efnisien's first encounter with sex being with someone who deliberately keeps him emotionally at arm's length, who is calculating and manipulative, and who then is like, abrupt and straightforward about it... even if Temsen wasn't seeking to devastate or traumatise Efnisien, these things would be devastating and traumatising anyway.

I love Temsen as like... Efnisien's doctor. He's protective and does care for Efnisien, and has no problems with seeing Efnisien as an alpha, which is very affirming - especially in the no-nonsense way Temsen does things. But Temsen is not a good candidate to be a close friend, a companion, or a lover. When he stays in his category, he's amazing, when he branches out of that category, he can be very dangerous. I think this is also a big reason why Temsen also keeps to himself. He's not unaware of this.

Would Efnisien have even had a choice in the matter if Temsen decided to fuck him?

No. Zero chance. Temsen would have seen it as medically necessary (and to a degree, Efnisien did need medically necessary intervention that he didn't want. Including surgery.)

He was the one advising Gary all along to put his fingers inside of him, and Gary was the one who came up with the compromise of digging his fingers into Efnisien's back to try and access the rest of the lare membranes/veins this way instead. It was Gary who contradicted Temsen's advice and tried to find more appropriate workarounds that wouldn't be as traumatising to Efnisien.

I think Temsen actually lost patience with Gary's 'sensitivity' a few times, tbh. But Gary's method/s, while they didn't always work, and were sometimes complicated by Gary's own avoidance, were the best way to handle Efnisien as a person.

I love Temsen, in all his forms. I knew when he came into this story he'd be an absolute powerhouse. He pulls rank on Gary, which gives you an idea of how much power he holds - which really, compared to every other character we've met so far, is all of it. But that also makes him even less suited to things like love, relationships, intimacy etc. Not only that, he doesn't want or need it in order to be healthy.

Peak alphas can get all of their genuine needs met through the attainment and maintenance of power, and having control over others. Temsen isn't missing out on anything, his quality of life is actually pretty good!

[joylinda-hawks]

Recently I have not had enough time to delve into legal considerations. Actually, thanks to the excess of work, I want to distract myself from legal considerations. But I want to share some observations. I know that many people are irritated by the appearance of new photos on IG, to which the real ZZH lost access after August 13. Why do I think it is this date, since from that date ZZH could not use social media in his country, and secondly, he was not interested in publishing there, especially if he clearly said that he would appear publicly after regaining his good name. And public exhibition means not only physical presence, but also the publication of any photos. ZZH has a strong moral backbone and would probably not change his mind. I assume that apart from him, people from his company had access to the IG account and could easily change the account password without his knowledge. This is not unusual in the industry, especially if there is, for example, a conflict of interest between a specific person and his company. I know such situations from the point of view of resolving such disputes in court. Moreover, when browsing IG, there is clearly an inconsistency in the publication of posts and photos on this account before and after 8/13. It seems like completely different people do it. Photos appearing after 8/13 are a different matter. Many people accuse that if the photos are not real, why doesn't ZZH question it, demand their removal or demand that he regain access to his IG account. The answer is simple: a real ZZH is not interested in this. Since IG does not formally exist in CN, there is currently no basis for pursuing any claims related to false publications on IG or statements on YT. Only after regaining its good name in CN ZZH and its lawyers will they be able to take action against these platforms. Returning to the photos, you may be surprised, but I will say one thing, the public publication has one good side - it shows us a imposter and many people consider him to be ZZH. But no one, apart from ZZH's closest and trusted lawyers, knows what ZZH really looks like at the moment. ZZH is an actor, he knows how to change his appearance and with this knowledge and the fact that he definitely knows what an imposter looks like, he definitely tries to look completely different. And this gives him some freedom, he can go out, shop, go somewhere. And I can say that many ZSJ fans wouldn't recognize him if they met the real ZZH on the street. So I think that thanks to the actions of the fraudster gang, the real ZZH can peacefully lead his life away from the attention of the fraudster's fans and cooperate with lawyers to regain his good name.

[the-hilda-librarians-wife]

For every action, a reaction - Chapter 1 - Inertia

Pairing: Raven Scientist (Victoria Van Gale/The Raven Leader)

Summary: Taking a step back from our poetry nerds, this instalment focuses on academic research projects, less than legal shenanigans, and most importantly, two coworkers who are smart enough to be geniuses in their respective areas but apparently not enough to confess.

Over the span of two decades.

Seriously.

Somebody has to do something. Before all their students lose their minds.

Updates weekly.

Notes: Hey, you guys! Welcome to another part in the Carpe Diem series. This one diverges a bit from the previous content (as you may have guessed from the lack of latin motto title), but it was still planned alongside the other fics in the verse and was intended to be part of the story all along. I'd strongly reccomend reading the previous instalments in the verse before getting to this, however, in case sketchbook is not your jam, I guess I should just say that this is an University AU and release you into the wild. Hope you have fun, because I sure had a blast writing it!

You hear those cries for help? Yeah, I currently have @waddles-ex-machina locked in my basement. Only gonna let her out if I hear you all guys saying 'thank you, waddles'. Takes a real trooper to proof read this thing, let me tell you. Brb gotta go check if she's doing well inside the lil cage (which is to say, once more, thank you so much, waddles. you're a true angel <3)

Read it on ao3: (Carpe Diem verse) (This chapter)

When Victoria first came to the University of Trolberg, she was full of energy and eager to prove herself. The university had accepted her for their doctorate program, during which she’d also be an assistant professor to the Weather Sciences undergrads, and she couldn’t wait to spread the knowledge she’d acquired (and to get even more in the process).

The project she was working on wasn't exactly revolutionary; she’d get there, eventually, there was still time. But it was something that made her heart beat faster, so she was sure she’d end up doing a better job than all those stuffy professors who walked around like the world had done them a disservice by existing. Victoria was excited by the knowledge and the possibilities, and she was sure that that was the right path.

Before the school year even began, she found herself treading through the campus grounds, holding in her hands a device she’d helped build. Her current research was on the effect aerosols had on the weather, so she’d decided that measuring the concentrations of those particles in the area she’d be studying for the next couple of years would be helpful.

One thing she hadn’t taken into consideration, however, was the fact that for her being focused meant losing any notion of time. And space. And reality. And, well, anything that would be useful to her in an unfamiliar, open field. But that was just life, wasn’t it?

She’d been in the middle of gently hitting her device, since its panel had started showing readings that were most certainly not true, when an all too familiar rumble filled the air. Victoria should have realised this was coming, it was her job, goddamnit, but she’d been too immersed in walking around with her measuring machine and writing its readings down to notice the things that really mattered: the static in the atmosphere, the humidity, the clouds closing in and blocking the sunlight.

The price for her misstep came in the form of heavy drops of cold water. Knowing that rain was only the first step, and that soon lightning would likely follow, Victoria began running away as fast as she could. At some point during her walking, she’d entered a forest that she assumed was where the Biology people did their field work, and among the trees she had remained. If she wanted to survive much longer, though, she would have to change that immediately.

Victoria barely felt the weight of her backpack as she jumped over fallen tree branches and dodged puddles of mud. What was truly bothering her were her clothes; the feeling of wet clothes sticking to her skin drove her insane, making her wonder how wise it was to stop running and take them all off. In the end she decided that risking death by lightning or by pneumonia wasn’t worth it, but spent her entire marathon cursing the water that dripped from her clothes and down her legs, soaking her socks inside her galoches. As soon as she was safe, she promised herself she’d fling them far, far away.

Strands of black hair stuck to her forehead, but she didn’t have the time to stop and tie them back, even if they drove her as insane as her clothes. She needed to get out of there, if lightning began and hit one of the trees near her, she was a dead woman.

Or at least a really angry and hurt one.

When finally the limit of the forest came into sight, Victoria almost laughed in victory; she only didn’t do so because she realised that what came next was an open field, and if any rays decided to fall in the general vicinity, she’d certainly be taken for target. There really was no way to win.

Breathing heavily, she stopped running when she reached the border of the forest. Water and wind clouded her vision and made her eyes sting, and with the part of her brain that hadn’t been overcome by adrenaline and sent into survival mode she thought that it would have been much smarter of her to have turned back the way she came when the rain started, instead of running further into the unknown. But there was no turning back now.

There was a scream in the distance.

With the gale ricocheting all around her, it was a wonder she even heard it, and a miracle she didn’t assume that it was coming from inside her own mind. But another second of attention made her recognize the scream for what it was.

An offer of help.

“Over here!” The voice shouted. “A few more metres! There’s shelter!”

Fuck it. Victoria thought. I’m gonna die anyway, it might as well be in the hands of a stranger in the woods. I hope they make a true crime podcast about me.

So she ran. And when she was close enough that the curtain of falling water didn’t stop her from seeing it, a small cottage showed itself to her with all the grandiosity of an oasis in the desert.

Almost as soon as she was on the porch, a towel was put over her shoulders. She was told to take off her boots and go inside the house, where the person who had shouted after her, a woman with a kind smile and short brown hair made her sit in front of the fire to warm herself. 

She was safe. That same woman would later on give her a warm change of clothes and a mug of tea, and tell her she’d only been able to see her because of the light coming from her device, which had not resisted the run through the open field. That would lead them to talk about Victoria’s project, which would in return spark a conversation about the woman’s job, and lead them to the realisation that they worked for the same university now, and would be kind of like coworkers once classes began.

And that was the first time Victoria met Birgitta Bloom.

………

The first time the Earth Sciences department organised a joint lecture and invited both of them to be in it, it had seemed like a happy coincidence. It had still been early on in the semester, but the head of the department had found it best to offer that presentation as soon as possible; conclusions about climate change became more worrying by the second, after all. At that point, they had already become friendly acquaintances, waving and smiling at each other whenever they crossed paths in a corridor and following each other on facebook, however little they both used it.

It was by doing so, in fact, that Victoria had found out that the cottage she’d met Birgitta in was her own, and part of the land she and a couple of other sponsors had bought in order to keep it for conservation. It was a budding project, but a noble one in Victoria’s opinion, and the only thing that surprised her about it was that apparently during her foray she’d left the campus’ grounds without even noticing. She only hoped there hadn’t been any fences she’d jumped over, because otherwise she’d really need to worry about her lack of attention to her surroundings.

Excited about having been invited to take part in something like that, Victoria had found Birgitta in her office and invited her over for coffee at her apartment, so that they could plan their lesson properly.

That was a normal thing that coworkers did on a strictly professional scope, right?

Not having had a car, or any loved ones living in Trolberg when she moved there for her doctorate, Victoria hadn’t seen the point in renting a place in town. Instead, she lived in an apartment complex that was just outside of campus, like most students who were there to continue their education after their masters degree.

They took the ten minute walk there together, shooting ideas for the lecture at each other. She kept worrying she’d run out of things to say, and then the silence between them would be awkward, but it hadn’t been the case. It seemed like the more they talked, the more they had to discuss with each other.

Her apartment wasn’t at all impressive, especially not now that she hadn’t even bothered to finish taking all of her possessions out of their cardboard boxes and into their new designated places. Victoria had figured she’d spend most of her time in the campus, so she had only rented a one bedroom with a living room and a small kitchen. Knowing her working habits, she might as well have rented a bedroom on its own, but Helper needed a bit more space to lounge around. 

In the end, it was him who first caught Birgitta’s attention when they arrived. They had been talking about how it would be good to open their lecture giving the audience an update on recent studies and findings and then move on to a discussion, when Victoria opened the front door and they were put face to face with a scruffy orange cat, licking its own side.

“Oh, how adorable!” Birgitta squealed at the first sight of it, making him startle and look up at her. “Is it yours?”

Victoria closed the door behind them and blinked as her coworker crouched down to let her cat sniff her hand. 

“Well, it is my house. Would be a little awkward if he wasn’t, really.”

“What’s his name?” The cat already was pressing his head against her hand, earning a gentle caress to his pale fur. Old age was beginning to come for the poor dear. 

“Helper.” She stood by her side in the middle of her living room, watching as her cat, who barely ever let anyone other than her come close, purred in delight with Birgitta’s attention.

“Oh, and does he help you with anything?”

“He knocks my stuff over, so there’s that.”

Birgitta’s chuckle was melodic and gentle, which was fortunate. If her laughter was the loud type that sounded like something breaking, Victoria would probably still try to get it out of her, but she wouldn’t enjoy her success as much.

This sound, however? She could hear that for the rest of her life with no complaints. And little did she know at that time, but that was precisely what she would have to do.

…......

Fifteen years later

“You’re distracted today, professor.” The girl said, sipping at her coffee while looking at her with curious eyes. “More than usual, at least. Did anything happen?”

With a weary sigh, Victoria let her spine slide down the back of the bench they were sitting at, making her posture look more like a shrimp’s than that person’s. It was a cold winter morning; Christmas break was only a couple of weeks away, and Victoria was eagerly looking forward to it. Not for Christmas in itself, but to get an escape from the nightmare circus that was her life in that University. She hugged her knee length white coat, which looked almost like a cold weather version of the lab coat she was always in, tighter around herself as if that could protect her from that student’s penetrating stare.

“Don’t worry about me, kid. I’m fine.”

The lift of her brows was enough to tell Victoria that she didn’t believe her for a moment.

“Listen, you don’t have to tell me.” She said, toying with a ring on her finger with one hand and holding her paper cup with the other, fingers stiff due to the cold. “But you’ve seen me vulnerable and you’ve helped. I just want you to know you can trust me to do the same.”

It was hard to not trust her, given all the maturity and strength she’d shown since they met, but surely there were boundaries that had to be respected in a relationship between professor and alumni. It had been a weird day, that. She’d been in the library, looking for a book one of her students had asked her about, and heard some sniffing from a nearby shelf. Somehow, she’d ended up at the cafeteria, trying her best to console someone who was barely more than a teenager, and definitely not Victoria’s problem.

And yet, here they were. They had each other’s phone numbers and now frequently met for coffee around campus. After all, what was Victoria losing with that? Even after all those years at the university, she hadn’t made any true friends, and that student seemed like the sort of person who also didn’t have the easiest of rides connecting to people. 

Especially not now that her reputation had been trashed, she supposed.

In the end, she decided that no matter how unprofessional it was, it would do no harm, so why keep avoiding it? She’d already found herself in a spot where she was in love with the same woman for over a decade and the only person she felt comfortable enough to open her heart to was a disgraced English and History student, so it wasn’t like things could possibly get worse at that point. Or at least, she preferred to believe they couldn’t.

“Ugh. You win.” She groaned, as if she hadn’t been dying to talk the subject over with someone. “The person I like is single again. She broke up with her boyfriend - they were only together for a couple of months, really - and before I came to meet you she found me and gave me the news. She was smiling. What the hell does it mean when someone tells you they’re single while smiling?”

Kaisa gave her a level look after checking that there was no coffee left in her cup. “Listen, I am far from being an expert. But my mother made me sit through enough romcoms that I think it’s safe to say she wants you to ask her out.”

“It’s not like that between us.” Victoria rolled her eyes. “It can’t be like that. We basically work together, imagine the mess if we got together and the even bigger mess if we fell apart!”

“Don’t you think that that’s a problem for… future Victoria?” Kaisa answered, hoping that it was the right thing to say. In all honesty, she could see the merit in that logic of Victoria’s. Not risking it was definitely safer, and you sure as hell wouldn’t catch her doing something silly like ‘confessing feelings’ anywhere in the near future. But the girl found that she was much better at helping people when she gave the advice she imagined Tildy would give, instead of her own.

“Well, yeah, but future Victoria would be pissed if I let her take the fall. Besides, I don’t even know if she likes women!”

“Show me a picture.”

Victoria blinked at her. “Pardon?”

“Yeah, show me a picture. I want to know what she looks like.”

Sure, why not, Victoria thought even as she picked up her cellphone in her pocket. It’s not like we’re both professors at the institution where she studies. How badly could this end?

After a brief moment of fumbling with her gloves before she managed to unlock her phone, she opened Birgitta's profile on Instagram, and handed it into Kaisa’s waiting hands.

“I hate this website.” Victoria grumbled, shifting uncomfortably in her seat. “No idea how to use it.”

Without looking up, Kaisa answered. “And yet, you have an account.”

“Yes, well-” She failed to keep herself in check and began bouncing a leg. “It’s the one she’s the most active in currently.”

“Aw, that is cute.” Still scrolling through the profile, Kaisa had been too immersed in looking at the pictures to remember to put any intonation in her sentence, but Victoria appreciated the sentiment even if it was delivered in a monotone. “I’ll give it to you, I hate it as well. Can’t see the point in it.”

“Even for stalking crushes?” Victoria snorted.

“Oh, I don’t think I have to worry about there being any cottagecore lesbians in my future.”

“What the-” She stopped bouncing her leg as she turned to the girl, who was still scrolling. “What the fuck is a cottagecore?”

“It’s this.” Kaisa looked up and met her eyes for long enough to assure herself that the professor could see her pointing at the screen. “This is a cottagecore. She’s gay, by the way.”

Victoria opened her mouth. No sound came out, but a puff of smoke came from it. From the moment she’d met Kaisa, the girl had acted a lot more insecure than what the professor would consider healthy. And yet, here she was, sounding like a judge issuing a verdict.

“But she had a boyfriend.”

“I’m using ‘gay’ as an umbrella term” Kaisa rolled her eyes, like she was the professor talking to an uneducated interlocutor. “And she has a pixie cut. There’s just no other explanation.”

With her elbows resting against her knees and rubbing her temples, the scientist sighed. “Listen, I know that this may be the case for your generation, and if it is, all the power to you guys, but there are some truly nasty people my age with pixie cuts, you know?”

“Well, yeah, but she leads a conservation land trust, so she’s clearly not a Karen. Gay is the only other option.”

Victoria opted against asking who Karen was and why she was bad, and turned to look at Kaisa again. The girl was looking at her with one corner of her mouth lifted up. Either it was an attempt at a compassionate smile, or the girl was restraining herself from laughing at her. Victoria decided that both were equally probable as she was handed her cell phone again.

“Don’t stress about it. I’m sure everything will work out in its due time.”

“You sound like one of those generic gift cards.”

“Isn’t that how comforting people works?”

It was, Victoria supposed. But next time she’d probably rather Kaisa be direct with her and just tell her what she was thinking. There were enough cheesy gift cards in the world, Kaisa didn’t need to pose as one of them. Something told Van Gale that the girl probably felt the same.

“Anyway. Thank you for listening, even if this was stupid. See, this is why I love your generation. I don’t even have to worry about you being a bigot before coming out.”

The look Kaisa gave her made her wonder if she had inadvertently committed a hate crime, or if she had been wrong and Kaisa had been just waiting for the conversation to end to commit a hate crime herself.

“Holy shit.” The student whispered, bringing her hands to her mouth as her eyebrows drew closer. “Van Gale, I know the first thing we need to fix in your life.”

“And that is…?”

“Your abysmal fucking gaydar.”

………

One year later

Edmund felt lost in his life. After having graduated in Biology, there seemed to be so many possible roads ahead of him that there might as well be none. Did he have the patience to go into teaching? The focus to go into research? The drive to go into field work? If anyone knew, it certainly wasn’t him. So he did what anyone whose only certainty was not wanting to move back in with their parents did.

He decided to get another level of education.

I’m his defence, it wasn’t just because he was unsure of what to do next. He had an actual passion for Conservation Ecology, and since one of his favourite professors had noticed it and offered to advise him for his thesis and somehow get him a scholarship if he did a Masters, he really didn’t see a reason not to.

Besides, someone needed to stay in the house to look after his little cousin.

Professor Bloom was, in his opinion, a genius. And a very productive one, at that. You could shoot her whatever question you wanted to about local wildlife and she’d answer without a second’s wait, on top of putting her money where her mouth was and guiding several projects, all of which Edmund had read all about while deciding if getting this degree was a good idea. 

His heart almost jumped to his throat when the door to her office opened and the woman herself found him standing in the corridor. He’d had contact with her while graduating, of course; if she hadn’t noticed his interest, he never would have bagged the offer she gave him. But it was one thing to be in projects she led in the university, and another entirely to have private tutorings on the subject she mastered.

He was coming to realise he was maybe a bit of a fanboy.

With a warm smile, professor Bloom opened the door wider and invited him in. There was a desk at the centre of the office, and behind it a glass window. By the desk, there were two chairs that had been angled somewhere between facing each other and facing the table. 

“I just want to make it crystal clear I won’t be putting any pressure on you.” The woman began as she took a seat in one of them, leaving him no choice but to do the same. She eyed him with kindness and curiosity, making him feel a little like he was one of the critters she studied. Considering she was one of the best in her field, that probably meant something good for him. “Now, I imagine you have already given some thought about what your thesis will be, or have some options to explore. May we discuss them?”

He had, thank God, been able to bring some material for discussion, and he said as much as he opened his backpack to grab his laptop. It had been hard to settle down on one topic to concentrate his studies on during his Masters, so he had found it best to bring all of his ideas to his first tutoring, so that professor Bloom could tell him which would be the most useful ones. And which ones the university would be able to provide for, as well.

Just as he was opening his word document, however, there was a knock on the door, and the person on the other side didn’t bother waiting for a ‘come in’ to show herself.

“Birgitta, I got it!” Exclaimed a tall, slim woman as she opened the door. Professor Bloom, who had been patiently waiting for Edmund to present her his ideas, immediately turned her attention to the newcomer. “The project got approved- oh, sorry, I didn’t realise this wasn’t a good time.”

He managed to not allow himself to feel guilty for being in a professor’s office for an appointment at the time of the day he had specifically been invited to be there, but it wasn’t by a lot. The woman looked so crestfallen to notice him there that Edmund felt like he had done something wrong.

“Oh, that is wonderful!” Professor Bloom got up and walked closer to the woman holding out both hands to gently hold her arms. “Don’t worry, that’s just one of my students. I’m going to help him right now but maybe later we can meet up. I’d love to hear more.”

“Oh, there’s nothing much to say, really.” There was now an embarrassed blush tinting her cheeks, and she lowered her gaze to the ground. “I just received the news that they want me to carry on with the research and wanted to share it with you. It’s no big deal.”

“It is a big deal. It’s amazing. But I won’t push you about it. Send me a text if you want to share something else, okay?”

“Okay.”

Both of them looked like they had deflated considerably as the door was closed and the professor returned to her former seat next to him. Had that been his presence’s fault? It had seemed like it but at the same time, Edmund was reasonably sure that they had managed to downscale their conversation themselves.

“Sorry, mr. Pearson.” Professor Bloom said, eyes still glued to the door. “That was professor Van Gale. I imagine you’ll have some contact with her now that you’re in Conservation. Where were we?”

Even as they went back to the matter at hand, there was still a wistful haze in Birgitta’s eyes, one that Edmund recognized for what it was.

Oh no.

It was going to be a long couple of years.

.........

Two years later

If a body is at rest or moving at a constant speed in a straight line, it will remain at rest or keep moving in a straight line at constant speed unless it is acted upon by a force. Edmund knew so, because his need for money to sustain himself in college had driven him to work in a professor’s project that involved a lot more physics than he would ever have liked to work with. Technically, he was working in the environmental and zoological parts of Ahlberg’s project, but the admission exam had required him to study some of the cornerstones for the engineering that was also involved in it.

The point was, he now had all those laws and formulas lodged in some corner of his mind, even if they barely had a chance to get out.

This was one of those chances.

It was a climate change panel, because of course it was. Every year they had at least one of those in the university, with attendance being mandatory for some courses and open to all. The annoying thing was - besides the nerve-wrecking statistics and new climate studies, that is - that every time, the same two professors were called. Sometimes there were other guests called to the round table to bring more sides to the discussion, but no matter what, professor Bloom and professor Van Gale were always there. And from older students, he had come to learn that it had been like this for as long as anyone could remember.

And they were always wrecks.

A big part of Edmund thought that the fact that they had sustained feelings for each other for so long was truly adorable. Anyone who had the slightest contact with either would be able to see how much they cared for each other. But there was a time and a place for longing glances and blushing when caught looking at your crush, and a lecture hall filled with university students, with a power point presentation on the climate crisis behind yourself was not it.

When the discussion ended and they were all free to go, Edmund tried to look around for Gerda, who he had come into the lecture with, only to find her staring fixedly at the professors. They were struggling to walk past the door frame, since they seemed to be stuck in an endless loop of ‘after you’. Not bearing to witness that for too long, they both gave each other a look that clearly asked ‘are you also seeing this shit?’, even though they both had lessons with professor Bloom and had, in fact, seen this sort of shit more times than they could count.

When they began their Masters, they used to keep the last page of their notebook to count how many times she’d bring up professor Van Gale, or how many times they’d behold any suspiciously yearning action from her. It used to be fun.

It wasn’t funny anymore.

With a sigh, Edmund put his backpack on his shoulders again, and made way for the exit with his friend in tow.

They would keep at that for eternity, if they were allowed to. Someone would have to be the external force.

[valer203]

Chapter 6-The Garden of Eden

It wasn't very visible behind all the fire but now that the chaos has subsided the duo saw the beauty of nature in the Gardener's gigantic greenhouse if it could even be called that. Multitudes of trees full of fruits, fields of different beautiful flowers, even some crops growing in certain places. This place could be a home for dozens of people. Even some birds and some other animals decided to use it as a quiet and peaceful shelter. -Wow…that's absolutely breathtaking. Feels like a…Garden of Eden.-Detective was the first to snap out of his awe. -Oh well thank you. I'm glad you like it. I've been enchancing my garden from the moment i got my new…Gift as you said. Well right after i managed to fend of the horde at least. I even got some roots to feed the Garden from the nearest river and other places. In moderation of course. Don't be afraid to pick and eat the fruits by the way. I made sure they are edible. -Oh thank you. That's very considerate of you.-Detective immediatelly took one apple (at least it looked like an apple), thought a bit and then took the second and offered one to the Shadow.-You want some? -Oh…yeah thank you.-The Shadow was still in a bit of a shock. -Sooo i see your Gift is controlling organic matter. -Well i didn't try flesh because i'm not really knowledgable in that field but yeah pretty much i guess. -Interesting. I got what i like to call the All-Seeing Eye. I perceive everything in perfect detail and it seems i can even look into the past! Imagine that! We figured that out quite literally just before we've heard the explosion. -Huh that's quite specific. I assume you are…some kind of detective? -Bingo. It's my passion. It seems all the people with certain passions in different fields got Gifts that fit to them while the others…you know. -Yeah it's a tragedy. So many people turned into monsters in a flash. -Yeah it happened too fast. Like it was planned or something. I hope i get to figure it out someday. -I'm sure you will.-The Gardener gently pet him on his head like he wasn't a grown man but an aspiring growing child. The Detective was surprised but welcomed it since there was no ill intent and honestly speaking it was pretty comfy. -Oh and the little Shadow over there got darkness manipulation…we think. With my time seeing revelation i'm not sure these gifts are that simple anymore. -You seriously gonna call me like that in front of the others? -Yeah it's a cute nickname. Cute like you are sometimes. I like it. I think it fits you.-The Shadow got a bit red hearing such blatant compliments without filters. -S-stop saying such things you weirdo! I swear it feels like you don't know how to keep quiet about anything. The Gardener chuckled in delight-Aww you are both so cute it makes me wanna hug you. You don't mind? -Yayy huggies! -Are you a child or something? -Eh we are all children. Some just don't accept it yet. And afterall what's so bad in hugs? It's just good time with no downsides.-Said the Detective already in the Gardener's embrace.-Come ooon you'll like it. And don't try to hide your red face i can still see it. -Fine! As long as it makes you shut up.-The Shadow awkwardly accepted the lovely hugs from the Gardener. -Not that bad eh? -I guess it's sigh not that bad.-The Shadow relaxed. Her breathing calmed down and in a half a minute she…was out cold sleeping like a baby in the motherly embrace of the Gardener. -Wow i haven't seen anyone fall asleep that fast. She must have stressed quite a lot or maybe there's another reason. Doesn't matter for now. She's adorable like that isn't she huh?-The Detective whispered to not wake her up. -Mhm she is indeed. -Can we stay in your garden for now? -Of course make yourself at home. I'll look out for her. -Thank you very much. The Detective stayed a bit watching the cute scene and then gone on to look around the place not forgetting to take back the journal first. (Part 2 will be Detective's journal entry about all that happened from his perspective. It's kind of repeating stuff already written in the story but i feel like it should be there)

[khali-pap]

Thinking of the idea of Su Xing and Ganondorf having a child, a daughter of course. Ramblingggg hopefully no one will read it butme

Which I lowkey think should never happen 💔 but also I can't imagine it as something they would want, at least not yet but even so.

It's gonna be quite the strange combination, both Ganondorf and Su Xing are deemed to be born unique and have been raised in classes above or at least strongly separate from everybody else.

Ganondorf being the only male Gerudo (in my head he is trans so this was realized in his childhood) and Su Xing being deemed to harbor a superior level of spirituality, enough so he is raised in a divine excorcist's class since youth.

You see what I'm saying, they aren't ever really kids, especially Su Xing I imagine, and they don't even recognize how these things uniquely effects them at least especially in the consideration of how it can negatively effect their hypoethtical daughter.

Though a unique status other than royalty may not be consciously upheld, and they may desire a comfortable life for her, the effects of this may still fall where she is a bit dissociated from everyone else in society as well unintentionally.

Okay this is becoming a Su Xing ramble cuz I have thoughts on Ganondorf and he has a one child is the whole villages child mind but further from that I dont want the opps on me

I can imagine Su Xing personally won't raise her like how he was raised, at least he will consciously decide this, maybe because he doesn't deem her to have the spiritual requirements for it, as simple as that. Plus, it ain't so fun, I can see him quite hesitant to teach her the arts of excorcism in general. Just raising her to have a general respect for the dead and how to honour them on a superficial level.

I think he will show her his more blacksmithing and diplomatic side more in general.

His expectations for her would that she live leisurely and slowly, and that she doesn't neglect her studies.

With Ganondorf and Su Xing combined, what they value and such, I can see her becoming a scholar, perhaps an astronomer where the philosphy is knowledge is power. She would be a very valuable tactician in terms of war especially and is artfully skilled in trickery.

Though Su Xing hopes she lives leisurely, Ganondorf emphasizes the importance of airence and strength of royalty.

Also one bane aspect I think why Su Xing thus the both of them generally would not have a child is just cause Su Xing is more strongly against it, I mean, he has murdered hundreds of his own disciples in the past the moment one of them used his teachings against him, and murdered his spiritual siblings when they didn't agree into taking back the knowledge they bestowed upon, basically erasing the entire excorcist class of those who were and could be, those who held his knowledge.

To have a child would mean to have a disciple, and he has no trust in even his own kin, so he generally is against the idea of it.

But perhaps he doesnt feel THAT strongly, perhaps it is a fear but he is confident as he is old, if a child is desired for whatever reason, and he has to raise one, I think he'd be close yet distant.

Like he would act more like a mentor and I think he would assume the worse first, the idea that this child will someday betray him so he changes how he mentors based around that. Like again he's never had any parents nay was he even raised in a normal social manner, he was raised to interact with the dead and that was it, his own spiritual siblings I doubt they were that close anyways in that class so they are just the same as strangers to peers.

So though he would be gentle and outwardly loving, and thanks to Gerudo influences he sees the importance of a social life, he still keeps a hand of expectance for the worst. Perhaps he doesn't even hold resentment for this unfair assumption, he just thinks it is meant to happen so he thinks he shouldn't blame the person for a destiny out of their control.

I think he would grow a fond and soft heart though, this child would be of the flesh and blood of Ganondorf and himself, which would mean she is a bit of Agua Zhu'er itself, ironic since she may never know Agua Zhu'er like he did, yet he hopes to raise her with an understanding on how important this place is to him, and thus them. Perhaps they can share this together, a yearning for Agua Zhu'er. Which is kinda a fanon place myself idgaf about giving context.

This is a lot of rambling but to summarize, he acts as a lazy mentor in life, he wants her to live leisurely and have a huge respect for the dead,

he's not exactly close close and in terms of emotion, that is something that needs more of Ganondorf's guidance since Su Xing's age leads him to not even notice the weight of people's feelings early enough,

unless he sees them as dead souls which is an idea Ganondorf may exasperately try to use to get Su Xing more understand the nature of their daughter, to see guiding and raising her as a less conventional way of guiding her soul to the dead, except more of through life.

He doesn't share or teach her the excorcist arts as she doesn't have the requirements to be part of that class, to his relief honestly but either way, he wants to keep that class dead and gone, especially when it would be his knowledge they feed off from.

Basically a sort of keep your enemies close way y'know. He has a genuine love though as she would be a part of Agua Zhu'er.