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angelwishess · 2 months ago

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—⋆𐙚₊˚⊹ THEORY TIME : Crowley Summoned Yuu ?! ( ˶°ㅁ°) !!

Before I begin, I’d like to give credit to @cheshiresaf on TikTok for inspiring this theory! Seeing their thoughts on the matter made me want to dive into the topic myself and give my own thoughts and opinions on the matter !

Reminders, this is all just speculation ! I have no concrete proof of any of this being canon in the slightest ! This is just a theory to make some sense of things, or atleast try to.

This theory will be cut into two parts, one focusing on the Opening scene and the second focusing on the Prologue.

Without further ado, lets begin !

Ever since I first downloaded TWST, the opening scene always bothered me. It was never really the scene itself, it was the fact that it was never brought up in the game afterwards.

The closest thing we get to a character acknowledging what happened was Yuu mentioning to Crowley how they remember “Seeing a horse with a scary face” / “Passing through a dark forest” in the prologue.

But after that, its never really brought up again. I had always wondered, ‘Why?’

I waited, played through the game wondering if it would ever be mentioned— But it never was.

Eventually, even I forgot about it. But after seeing that theory on TikTok, my curiosity flared up again.

Now, I was finally able to redownload TWST since I recently just got a new phone. So, I paid much closer attention to the opening scene.

—₊˚⊹ Part One : The Opening “Mirror” Scene.

Ill be talking about these two shots of dialogue first. What interests me is the way Crowley is speaking. Although you can obviously tell it is Crowley, it isnt seem as playful nor as dramatic as he usually speaks. He spoke somewhat more seriously than usual here, and, it seems like hes speaking directly into the mirror— or, more specifically, he is speaking directly to us, as Yuu.

With no one else in the room, Crowley speaks without his dramatic flair, with no room for playfulness. He speaks directly into the dark mirror— speaks directly to the person behind it. The person he knows hes talking to. The one hes trying to summon.

The definition of “Benefactor” is a person who gives money or other help to a person or cause.

Though, its pretty well known that Yuu is always helping around NRC (whether by will or not) and Crowley is almost always the one to take advantage of this— I doubt that is what he is referring to.

No, Crowley knows something. This was all on purpose, Yuu coming to Twisted Wonderland, to Night Raven, it was all on purpose. Ill research more into Crowley later, but for now lets focus on whats being said in the opening scene.

He definetly has plans, and he knows Yuu has more capabilities than what is known so far.

What interested me the most, though, is the wording right after referring to us as his “esteemed benefactor”.

“My proud, beautiful flower of evil”. This one sentence truly had me thinking, because what did he mean by this?

Well, the only thing I could think of is the vague hint that Yuu is much, much more than they seem. When you think about it, Yuu is strange in many ways. Not only do they come from another universe entirely, they get dreams of the past which warn them of future events— directly parelleling Levan/Revan (Malleus’ father).

I wouldnt be surprised if it somehow turned out that Yuu has either had magic this entire time and it just being hidden from everyone in the cast (including themselves), or theyve been absorbing the magic of people around them after being exposed to so much magic, especially from the overblots.

What im thinking, is that the true nature of Yuu and their capabilities is yet to be revealed, and will “bloom”. Just like a proud flower. And, flowers need to be nurtured to bloom ever so beautifully, do they not? Who would be a better fit than Crowley?

Now, Crowley may be somewhat immature and unreliable— But that does not make him stupid, nor does that make him oblivious. Many of the staff respect him greatly, and its a no-brainer that he must be quite powerful. He definetly knows more than he leads on, hes extremely mysterious despite being the first character (after Grim,) to be introduced to us.

Its clear to me that he knows what hes doing. He has plans, whether for better or for worse, and i think its safe to say that those plans include Yuu in some way. Perhaps theyre the final piece of the puzzle Crowley so desperately needs. ← keep that in mind. Hes desperate.

(As for the “evil” part… Man idk leave me alone)

“O magic mirror, thy wisdom I entreat…”

Remember what i said earlier? About Crowley being desperate? Dire, even?

Well, the definition of Entreat is to plead with especially in order to persuade. ask someone earnestly or anxiously to do something.

He is earnestly, pleading the Dark Mirror for answers, for wisdom regarding the “Visage he seeks”.

“Reveal onto me the visage I seek…” Once more, this further proves that Crowley is speaking and seeking out someone specifically. He is seeking out the visage, the face and appearance of the benefactor he is requesting for.

“You, whose image the Dark Mirror did beckon forth…”

Here, Crowley once again speaks directly to us/Yuu. Later on in the Prologue, when the Dark Mirror states that no dorm could possibly suit us/Yuu because our soul is “empty and colorless” due to the lack of magic, Crowley objects, saying that its impossible for the Dark Mirror to summon a student without any magic, as the system has never once erred from the beginning of NRC being established.

(Crowley ure not slick i know what u are)

So, in NRC’s 100 years of being established, why would it’s seemingly very stable system of retrieving students fail? How would the Black Carraige retrieve a student from an entire different universe, putting aside the simple fact of Yuu not having magic? Well, its simple.

The Dark Mirror did not summon Yuu. Crowley did.

Crowley was the one to bring Yuu into this world. The Dark Mirror did not beckon forth Yuu for the sake of the school, rather it was because Crowley requested for it, for whatever reasons he has.

(Alright, now this is where i will be getting into some delusional territory but i will try to remain as logical as possbile pls have mercy on me ໒꒰ྀིっ⸝⸝⸝ ꒱ྀི১)

This scene has always bothered me. Not in like, an uncomfortable way— but ever since first downloading the game, I have always wondered what this scene meant.

“If your heart bids it, take the hand of the one reflected in the mirror.”

Although Crowley is obviously the one summoning us— it is not his hand extended out to us. Rather, it is one of the characters we meet later on. (The sleeves are quite obviously the ceremonial robes, too)

To take the hand of the one reflected into the mirror… Why is that? Why do we need to take someone’s hand? And, furthermore— the hand of a specific character? Though it is a clever way to introduce the cast of characters and give us our first card of our chosen character— why this way if it doesn’t have any significance in the game other than to serve as a “baby’s first card!” scene? We already have the later free gacha, so what was the point?

(I may be overthinking this guys someone help me)

Ive always been curious, since the game never seems to mention this part, and in none of the mangas they have never shown this, either. So, whats the purpose of it?

My guess is that Crowley himself cant summon us himself. Though Crowley must be powerful— summoning someone from an entirely different universe must be difficult, almost impossible seeing as this has probably never happened before.

See, no matter who you are or how poweful you are, I have no doubt summoning someone from a different universe is an incredibly strenuous feat that near no one average could ever do. To break past the bonds of reality, and peer into another, that is something that is beyond imaginiation.

So, what if us taking the hand of our chosen character was the last nail in the coffin for us? The last thing needed for us to be brought into Twisted Wonderland.

To establish a connection.

“If your heart bids it,” why else would you take the hand of a complete stranger? One that mysteriously appeared before you in an extremely strange situation, you can’t even see their face in this scene. Yet, we still take their hand. Why? I couldn’t think of any other explanation other than an already existing connection between us and the character that we chose. Why else would your heart tell you to trust?

Now, i have absolutely zero proof of this being true, its mostly just a little guess, a situation i like to daydream about but hey, its better than nothing.

Anyways, what if Crowley needed the assistance of one of the characters to finally bring us into Twisted Wonderland? Yes, as i mentioned before he is alone in the room when speaking to us— but perhaps theres some ‘magical’ explanation to the figures of our beloved characters standing before us and not Crowley himself, despite him actually being there.

My guess is, that Yuu and whoever they chose have a strange connection. And i dont exactly mean this as strictly romantic, it could be platonic or hell, even more than both of those bonds (maybe even hatred LMAO)— but im talking about a bond and a connection that somehow transcends the borders of realities and their universe itself. They would not be aware of this— neither would Yuu. But it is there. Perhaps its a kind of “soulmate” situation (once again, i do not mean this strictly romantically, you may interpret this however you please!!)

This furthers my suspicions that Yuu needs that connection with your chosen character in order to be brought into their world.

The sound of dragging chains could be somewhat like symbolism or a physical embodiment for Yuu being tied down to their original world. A last effort of their universe to keep them there, but yet Yuu fights against them and is “freed” from those chains after taking the hand of our chosen character.

Only when you take the hand of the character you chose are you able to start the game, both literally and figuratively. (I like to imagine the characters js pull Yuu in after they take their hand i think its funny HAHAHAHA)

The mirrors and coffins at NRC are used as gateways. But it seems Yuu is the only one who needed that extra help to actually be sent into NRC through said gateways. Yuu needs that law-defying, reality bending connection with one of the characters to be able to even step foot into their world. And honestly? I think its super cute HEHEHEE🤭 (fanfic writers, feel free to use this i live to serve content)

(Unfortunately, I have hit the photo limit here. So, I’ll have to settle for typing out all the dialog for the lasst few screenshots ! So please bare with me ૮꒰ྀི⊃⸝ ⸝ ⸝⊂꒱ྀིა !)

────୨ৎ────

“As flame reduces even the stars to ash

As ice seals away even time itself

As great trees swallow even the sky

Fear not the power of darkness.

Now— demonstrate your power.”

────୨ৎ────

In the next views of dialogue, Crowley is obviously foreshadowing to the kinds of magic the player will have to get used to during battle scenes— but what interests me is the very last part of the dialog. The last thing Crowley says before the mirror brightly flashes and the game sends us into our first battle against the overblot Grim.

“Now— demonstrate your power.”

Yuu is magicless, so what power could he be referring to? This could be taken both literally and figuratively, as “power” is not only strength, it can come in many forms, and Yuu has obviously shown to be quite cunning themself, and that could be considered a power.

But, what if Yuu DOES have powers, in a literal sense? What if that power has been secretly sleeping inside of Yuu this entire time, waiting for the right moment to burst forth and bloom like a flower? Their power could be much more than just being a peacemaker or a beast tamer, who knows?

────୨ৎ────

“To me. To them. To yourself.

The hour grows long and time is scarce.”

“Keep steady your grip, no matter what may come…”

────୨ৎ────

This final piece of dialog paired with the earlier “As ice seals away even time itself” statement from when Crowley was speaking of the elemental forms of magic, it really does feel like its hinting at a time loop.

Perhaps that is why Crowley had summoned them, and why he seems to not be even trying to look for a way to send them home. Not just because hes “lazy”, but he very well may have a plan for Yuu. He is purposefully trying to keep Yuu in NRC.

Maybe he is aware of this timeloop, and out of desperation seeks out the wisdom of the Dark Mirror, trying to find a way to put a stop to it— and who better than Yuu to be that final piece he needs? His dear, esteemed benefactor… His fair, beautiful flower ready to be extorted for whatever purpose he had summoned them for.

Nothing is a coincidence. Everything happens for a purpose, good or bad. And Yuu just happens to be in the middle of every messy situation that happens at NRC.

“For them”, who is “them”? The one whose hand we took? Or perhaps the friends we meet later on? Whatever i means, its obvious theres a certain danger lurking in the shadows that has not made itself known. Atleast, not yet. And for some odd reason, it is up to us to “show our power” and keep it from happening. (If it has something to do with Grim, maybe that “Beast Tamer” title was hinting to that all along lol)

“Time is scarce.” An absolutely chilling line that is never really explained. Time has always been an element that seemed infinite, yet in some cases thats still too little. Time is something no one can have enough of, no matter who they are. Yet what does it mean in this context? Why is our time running out, and furthermore what are we trying to prevent? For Crowley? For them, for our friends… And for us? I’m sure Crowley himself must know, if he didn’t why would he be asking the universe to bring him a helper so desperately?

“Keep steady tour grip, no matter what may come…” This, paired along with the earlier dialog of “Fear not the power of darkness,” could be foreshadowing the later overblots that we face in the game. Crowley knows that we will face hardships, and says to keep steady our grip. To not let the darkness consume us or our friends. To not fear the “darkness“. Crowley could be aware of the challenges we are to face, not even bothering to help in the midst of Riddle’s overblot (very responsible of you, Headmaster). Almost as if he expected it?

That is the final line of dialog from Crowley before the Prologue actually begins.

And now, speaking of the prologue, lets talk about some dialog from Crowley in the actual prologue!

—₊˚⊹ Part Two : The Prologue

“Ah, I’ve found you at last. Splendid.”

Crowley’s wording here, “I found you at last.” Is pretty sus, he speaks like hes been keeping out an eye for a specific someone. And the fact that he went out of his way to find Yuu is also pretty telling. After all, from what we know of Crowley its obvious that hes not the type to do that kind of thing. If Yuu was just any other student, Im sure Crowley wouldn’t have gone out of his way to look for them for the sake of the ceremony.

Furthermore, judging by his tone and expression, he doesn’t seem very surprised to find a student where they aren’t supposed to be. Yet he playfully mentions that most other students usually wait for him to open the lids of their caskets before running off. Making Yuu differ from the rest of the student body once more.

Later on in the prologue, we have the infamous “Deuce throwing Ace at the chandelier” scene. (I giggle everytime I hear Ace’s scream. Its so funny i cant)

When Crowley comes over and discovers that our little group had broken the chandelier and expels us, Ace tries to reason with Crowley saying that surely, he must be able to fix the chandelier himself with some fancy pants magic.

“Even magic has its limits.”

If Crowley can’t fix a magical chandelier without it having any circumstances— Then surely there must be some very… Specific conditions when summoning a person, let alone one from another universe.

Magic itself is limited in certain scenarios. Later on, Deuce mentions that if you can’t strongly visualize your magic, it isn’t going to happen.

Which must be why Crowley went to the Dark Mirror for wisdom. “Reveal onto me the visage I seek,”

It could be that Crowley himself didn’t exactly know what form or appearance his dear benefactor would take, and because of that could not properly ‘visualize’ who he is seeking out. Out of desperation, he seeks out the Dark Mirror for wisdom to finally be able to summon this benefactor he desires so greatly, and it just so happens Yuu fits that role perfectly.

After the fiasco at rhe Dwarfs’ Mine, Yuu, Grim, and the Adeuce duo all return back to NRC safely and recap the story of their little journey to Crowley in the privacy of his office where he promptly bursts into tears after.

He begins to ramble about how the students of NRC, as talented as they are, have egos bigger than mt. Everest and this is the first time in his decades of working at NRC where the students have finally joined hands to defeat a common foe.

“I am convinced that people like you are necessary for the future of this school.”

This line of dialog caught my interest greatly. Though he was already going on and on about how Yuu’s “mundanity” is great for the students of this school— for some reason this line simply seemed to stand out to me.

“People like you”? But, there has never been a magicless student at NRC before Yuu, atleast as far as we know. Could this possibly hint to the Yuuniverse? People like you being the countless of other Yuus that were summoned in a past timeline— perhaps each one restarting after the last Yuu fails, and Crowley summons another in an attempt to stop the constant loop of each timeline resetting after every calamity that falls upon NRC.

Perhaps Yuuken failed during Leona’s overblot, and that is why he’s replaced by Yuuka in the Savanaclaw manga volumes? Maybe Yuuka failed during Azul’s, then Yuuta was summoned forth? And then so on, so forth.

Perhaps that is why Crowley is so desperate. Continuing to try and summon the perfect benefactor, the right flower to nurture in hopes that they would survive and deal with each and every calamity accordingly, in order to stop the timeloop.

Why he doesn’t get off his lazy ass and help Yuu himself? Who knows, I’d like to give him the benefit of the doubt and say theres a completely understandable reason of him not helping the students hes supposed to be protecting— but then again, it is Crowley. You really never know with him.

Right after he accepts Grim and Yuu as students, he immediately foists upon another job for Yuu. Gifting them a Ghost Camera, which captures the Memories of the photos taken by the photographer.

The photographer and the subject are then considered “Soulbound”, which apparently just means that when the photographer and the subject’s bond deepens, the Memories captured in the photos come “jumping out”. Crowley says it enables the user to not only photograph the subject, but parts of their soul itself.

(I want to relate this to the part where we take the hand of our chosen character but i cant think of anything so …)

He then tells Yuu to take the camera, and make a record of their campus life. But why Yuu, specifically? And only Yuu? Surely, he could’ve given such an object to the Housewarden of each respective dorm— yet he gives it to Yuu and Yuu alone. As if he knows that they’d get involved in all sorts of trouble, face the unthinkable. And he brushes it off saying how much more convenient it would be instead of documenting everything himself, but how could he be so sure that Yuu would come across such events?

“As a prefect, consider it your duty to maintain a sharp eye on your surroundings and record them.”

Yuu and Yuu alone has been given full freedom to mettle in whichever dorm they see fit and “beast tame” them. They do not have the restriction of the Housewardens, where they only keep an eye strictly on their dorm and dorm mates. No, Yuu has been given full and complete freedom to keep an eye and ensure that everyone is in line regardless of their dorm due to Crowley’s blessing upon Yuu to do just that.

While Housewardens are only limited to their respective dorms, Yuu is allowed to discipline and punish whoever they see fit regardless of which dorm they belong to.

It is because Yuu is magicless that they alone have this privledge of overseeing every dorm— even being able to tell off the Housewardens themselves.

It is because Crowley has given them this role that Yuu is constantly faced with so many challenges from each dorm as a result of their meddling.

He pushes them to meddle in the business of other dorms, making it their “duty” as a prefect (A job that he forced unto them). In a way, this is isn’t just Crowley extorting Yuu into looking after the students instead of him despite it being his job and not theirs, perhaps it is him also trying to ‘nurture’ Yuu. Putting them into these situations, in hopes that they allow Yuu to unlock their true potential and stop the timeline from resetting.

It is because of their job as a prefect that they get into these situations. And it is because of this meddling that they face such challenges. Yet, they wouldn’t have had to if Crowley just didn’t appoint them as “Prefect”. (Well, I suppose Ace was the one that started it— but shh lets ignore that for now!)

Thats all the dialog that stuck out to me for the Prologue.

—₊˚⊹ Conclusion !

In conclusion, I think that Yuu was not brought to Twisted Wonderland by mistake, but on purpose by none other than Crowley himself.

Perhaps each character has their own “Yuu”, and that connection between a character and their Yuu was what enabled Crowley to bring them into their world.

With each Yuu failing at a calamity / overblot, the timeline resets and Crowley summons another Yuu to try again to stop the timeloop, hence the Yuuniverse.

Crowley alone remembers every reset, perhaps not all of it which is why he has given Yuu the Ghost Camera in hopes that the Memories in the camera remain. But, he is aware that the timeline resets every time a Yuu fails— yet it is only a Yuu that can stop the calamities due to the mystery of their true nature.

Yuu is Crowley’s “esteemed benefactor”, the one summoned specifically to aid Crowley in his agenda, whatever it may be. Yuu was brought to NRC to assist him, and Crowley seeks to nurture Yuu until the time their true powers are revealed.

Crowley was desperate to summon Yuu. And it seems the worst is yet to come, and for that reason he summoned Yuu.

With Yuu’s mysterious background and even more mysterious ability to see the past through their dreams— Yuu must have some sort of secret power. The true nature of their being, perhaps they themselves have some sort of magic, or are destined for something great. Whatever it may be, Yuu is not a normal, everyday person. Though they are magicless, that does not make them average at all.

To summarize: With every calamity that falls upon NRC, the timeline resets to the night before the Opening Ceremony. Crowley, being the only one who retains any memory of every reset, desperately seeks out the Dark Mirror in search of wisdom, and a benefactor who can help him and the rest of NRC and finally end the loop. That benefactor being Yuu. Yet, because of the limits on magic— it is difficult to summon such a person, let alone the right one. Conveniently enough, there are a select few of students who have some sort of connection with the one Crowley may be looking for (ex. Yuuken paralleling Riddle, Yuuta paralleling Azul, ect.), and it is because of that law-defying connection that Crowley is able to summon each of their respective Yuu’s.

Yuu’s true abilities have not yet been revealed, and still remain veiled in mystery. But, Yuu may have powers of some sort, or a destiny that they are to fulfil. One greater than they can imagine.

— Phew! That was a lot, wasn’t it ? Sorry, I didn’t expect it to be so long ! (Thats what she said)

Anyways, if you’re still here and managed to make it to the end— Thank you so much for reading my little yap session !!! I appreciate it, and I’d love to hear your thoughts on the topic !

If I got anything wrong, please feel free to correct me! After all, I don’t have the best memory and I may be remembering things wrong. But once again, thank you so much for reading !

Don’t forget to drink water, and take care of yourself, pretty ! See you next time, bye-bye!~ ♡

#🎀! theory #twst wonderland #twst theory #twisted wonderland #but thats just a theory #a GAME THEORY !!!!#i think im losing it #twst #disney twst #twst yuu #twst crowley

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letmereadinpeace4 · 6 months ago

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Love Sea episode 1 Commentary

So yesterday the first episode of Love Sea was released. After watching it, I decided to put down my thoughts and impressions. Hopefully I can keep it up until the end of the drama.

First, a few things:

I have bought and read the Love Sea novel. I will try my best not to spoil anything, but this knowledge informs my perception and my commentary. I have also read Love Sand, which chronologically happens before Love Sea, and I will spoil minor plot points if I think they can help understand elements in the drama.

There will be no Mame hate in this post, or in any other posts.

With that out of the way, let’s start:

The drama opens by separately introducing the main characters. Masahamut is diving, checking and noting damages, while Tongrak is on his way to the island, wearing the most impractical travel outfit he could have possibly worn. We learn that his stay on the island was booked by Connor Warrington, a close friend of his.

The character introduction is pretty well done. Masahamut is set up as a character who deeply cares about the well-being of the island he lives on. He is shown interacting with his friend Palm (they are not biologically related, they are senior/junior) and we get an impression of someone who communicates well with others and has a joking, playful side to him. Meanwhile, Tongrak is shown alone, even as he talks with Connor, we do not hear his replies, so we get the sense of someone cut off from other people. His outfit is also very fancy, showing his financial comfort, but also wildly impractical, showing that he is not very down to earth.

To explain who the characters are in the Mame universe, Masahamut is the best friend of Khom, who is Type’s childhood friend (from Tharntype). Khom is dating Connor, who is close friend with Tongrak. Tongrak is also a novelist, and his novels have been adapted by the movie director Aphros, who is Prapai’s uncle and the director who inspired Sky after his breakdown (not going to lie, with all those connections, I am low-key surprised that the closest we ever got to incest was Tum and Tar’s relationship).

At the docks, Tongrak is not exactly impressed with the place he will be staying at. We have it confirmed that Connor booked his stay because Tongrak’s next novel will be about the ocean (Connor my beloved I love you so much you asshole). Masahamut meets Tongrak at the docks and decide to piss him off by speaking in a Southern accent and not driving an appropriate vehicle to transport his suitcases. After Tongrak blows a fuse, Masahamut cuts him off and borrows a cargo tricycle.

This develops the characters a bit further. Tongrak shows a rather childish side and a lack of control over his emotions, while Masahamut’s confidence and capacity to adapt is set up. We also see more of his playful, “troll” side. I also like how his popularity on the island is subtly shown by having him borrow a bike from someone with no issue whatsoever. People trust him!

Tongrak immediately calls Connor to complain and demands to go home, further showing his childish, needy side. We get to hear Connor, who is mostly amused. Meanwhile, Masahamut unloads Tongrak’s suitcases with an amused expression and grabs the phone to chat up with Connor.

For more explanation about Connor and Masahamut’s relationship, they met when Connor stayed at the island for the holiday. He met Khom, who was working as Masahamut’s assistant and as Connor’s guide, and Masahamut helped Connor in his pursuit of Khom (in exchange for monetary compensation. Truly a win/win situation for everyone involved).

I love how entertained Masahamut is with Tongrak’s prissiness. He doesn’t care or take it personally, just rolls with it and takes advantage of it to troll him.

Masahamut escorts Tongrak to his room, who immediately pushes him out and ignore his offer to be at his disposal if he needs anything.

Sidenote, but I love Tongrak raging against the suitcase and later at the blankets. It is so cute, childish and relatable at the same time. I have definitely “scolded” a zipper because it wouldn’t open or the printer because it had issues.

We cut to Mook, Tongrak’s assistant/secretary, who is looking very busy and overworked. She is so far the most relatable character in the drama for me, down with the messy hair. She is called by Vi, Tongrak’s best friend, who promises to keep her busy. I love her, she is such a troll! Also a cameo appearance by Ja, which is definitely great to see! Hope he’s been well!

We cut back to Tongrak as he goes to a bar, wearing a really awesome sheer shirt and enjoying the attention he gets. Palm is his waiter, and immediately start hyping up Masahamut. We get confirmation that Masahamut is really popular both with the residents and with the tourists. We also learn that he is bi, which is great! We always love to see bi representation.

Tongrak seems pissed both at the fact that Masahamut is popular and by the fact that people would assume he is attracted to him, which he is definitely not! One hundred percent not! Not a trace of attraction here! Who cares if Masahamut is handsome anyway? Not him that’s who! And his sulking has nothing to do with it.

Next morning, we get to see how much Masahamut is involved in his community. While it may seem a bit heavy-handed, I do like that this aspect of Masahamut is so strongly enforced. It gives him a lot more depth and shows his maturity.

This mature impression is immediately countered when we see that he has a double of Tongrak’s keys and didn’t tell him. He immediately takes on the caretaker role and as he cleans up the room, we learn that Connor paid Masahamut to serve as Tongrak’s caretaker/nanny/guide/sitter during his time on the island. Is it like some kind of gift reciprocity? Masahamut helped Connor date his best friend so Connor helps Masahamut get with his own friend? I also really like the comparison of Tongrak to a cat. It suits him so well. We also have it mentioned again that Tongrak is very lonely (initially, Connor filled that loneliness void, but once he started dating Khom, he could no longer give as much attention to Rak as he used to, hence why he is trying to find a solution.)

Connor wakes Tongrak up. Not going to lie I would punch him! Do not bother me before I had my tea and breakfast! As he tries to punch him Tongrak falls on the ground, giving Masahamut a perfect view of his body.

The “seduction” scene is really well-done. You can see the switch as Tongrak finds himself in a more familiar territory and tries to seduce Masahamut by removing his robe/shirt. He really seems to enjoy having power over Masahamut, especially since the latter has annoyed him so much. However while Masahamut is admirative, he does not lose his head and starts commenting on Tongrak’s lack of body hair. You can really see the switch back as Tongrak loses his confidence. Peat acted really well in that scene!

I love how offended Tongrak is by Masahamut’s lack of sexual interest. Poor kitty got his pride hurt! Speaking of which I also love how Masahamut speaks of Tongrak like a kitty he is taking care of.

Tongrak tries to provoke Masahamut by constantly asking for a different breakfast and being picky, to no success. I always enjoy seeing Tongrak’s bratty side, especially when his brattiness doesn’t work.

Masahamut is such a troll! I love him already!

Meanwhile, Tongrak has found out a way to get Masahamut to do what he wants (to some extent). He pays him to get him to speak in a Central dialect. It really sets well the economic difference between them. Tongrak has money to burn and Masahamut will do anything for money. I love how much he doesn’t care about being bought and getting money from his clients. Masahamut is there singing “Material Girl” and doesn’t care about what anyone thinks!

I love it any time Tongrak’s more vain side is shown. The way he jumps when Masahamut mentions wrinkles. Also he is supposed to be in his late twenties/early thirties.

Masahamut offers his sexual services and can obviously see that Tongrak is more interested than he lets on. “Even if you were the last man on Earth, I still wouldn’t want you”. Oh hey! I heard a cool girl named Elizabeth Bennet say the exact same thing. I wonder what happened to her….

We cut back to Mook rehearsing her speech to Vi to not have to work as her assistant. By the way I love her shirt! As she dares Vi to call her, she answers her prayers and does so! We get to see that Mook has an itemized list of how to deal with Vi! That is some thoroughness! Anyway Vi claims a light bulb in her room is busted and that Mook needs to come and change it. I see Vi subscribes to the “pulling her hair” strategy in courtship. Meanwhile Mook is getting more and more erratic and her faces are amazing! She looks offended, outraged and confused at the same time. Also I love how messy her hair is.

“I’m a frail lead actress who can’t do anything on her own” as she sits on the ladder she used to bust her own light bub to get her crush to come to her place! I love Vi she’s such a troll! Also does she have Mook’s picture? I can’t really see well.

In his room, Tongrak is having trouble writing the sex scene and we learn he needs to have sex or to hug someone to properly write sex scenes. It really is interesting that Tongrak needs an intense physical situation to describe a romantic sex scene, because it suggests that he cannot conceptualize the intensity of the emotions involved unless he experiences a “similar”, physical sensation. It really goes with him being lonely but also suggests he never truly offered his heart to anyone.

The next day, Tongrak is working on his novel, looking extremely cute with his round glasses, while Masahamut is waiting. He soon gets bored and starts reading what Tongrak is writing. I wonder if the sex scene he reads out is a random scene that was written especially for this or if it was taken from another of Mame’s novels. I cannot place it.

Anyway Masahamut is bored of it and takes Tongrak on a boat to show him around. I love how Masahamut gently scolds Tongrak and tells him to sit properly so that he doesn’t fall, causing Tongrak to sulk. It sets up their future dynamic. Also Masahamut don’t scold the kitty! He’s a city kitty and has never been on the sea before.

Tongrak is called by Mook and doesn’t hear her well. Yeah in the middle of the sea it is a lost cause. Masahamut decides to take a dive while Tongrak is on the phone, causing him to panic. I actually agree with Tongrak here! For safety reasons Masahamut should have warned him.

Tongrak freaks out and starts crying. Masahamut tries to reassure him by poiting out that he’s fine but is unsuccessful. I love how he takes the freak out seriously and only reaches to touch him after Tongrak has been unresponsive. Tongrak scolds him and Masahamut reaches out to hug him and apologize. I love the light little kiss on the forehead and how Tongrak slowly accepts Masahamut’s hug.

Afterwards, Tongrak is embarrassed about his crying episode (don’t worry baby it happens to the best of us) and plays the shy Victorian maiden when Masahamut moves to remove his shirt as if he didn’t wear a sheer shirt in public two days before. Masahamut offers to show him the good stuff, and just like Tongrak I was not thinking of clams when he said that! Again, I love how confident Masahamut is! He is aware of his charm and sees well the effect he has on Tongrak. The episode ends with them still on the roof of the boat.

Overall I really enjoyed this episode. It was a good set up for the characters and I love the atmosphere they created. I look forward to seeing more of it.

#love sea the series #tongrak x mahasamut #tongrak #masahamut #peat wasuthorn #fort thitipong #mame #thai bl #letmerantinpeace

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nimcoconut · 7 days ago

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the thing is, jegulus makes perfect sense to me genuinely. And I understand the gripes that people have with it, so i'm going to try and outline my thought process. i could talk about how good of a ship this is for HOURS.

• Regulus and James would have constantly been in each other's orbit at Hogwarts. Think about it. They're both on the Hogwarts quidditch teams (regardless of if jenes was a seeker or chaser ik it's up for debate) we all know how serious James Potter took quidditch. they would've been marking each other in games, taking notes of tactics etcetc. Plus with Sirius being James' best friend he would've been even more acutely aware of Regulus, like come on. If nothing else, then because of the arguments the black brothers would get into at hogwarts. And the stories Sirius would tell him in their first few years at Hogwarts, because hello, before Sirius went to Hogwarts who was his closest ally? who did he survive an abusive home life with? REGULUS. so james knew of him, DEFINITELY was introduced to him on the hogwarts express during second year (before slyhtherin sorting).

• James being Sirius' best friend and ultimately in Regulus' eyes, the person who replaced him as Sirius' best friend. He would've resented him, because before him and Sirius fell apart, they were all each other had and SUDDENLY sirius has this other rock, this but that he admires so much. You're telling me he wouldn't be raging at being replaced? On high alert of awareness, not only for his brother that he was steadily losing but on his best friend who replaced him???? the tension?? hello?? And once they got to know each other and he has that "oh so this is what he saw in you. oh wow" Moment??

•James potter, sunshine reincarnate, who believed in others even when it came to his own detriment would 100% try to save regulus. Believe he could. A lot of people say this doesn't fit James' character because he "wouldn't lie to his friends" But I think you guys are putting him in a box. I think he's just as capable of keeping a secret as anyone else. Especially when he thinks it's for a bigger purpose.

•I love the idea of a love greater than Regulus' loyalties to his families being what inspired him to take the horcrux. Like The symmetry of both Black brothers being guided by James into the light?? That his love saves them both in different ways?? How is it not the perfect ship.

Enemies to lovers, grumpy x sunshine, regulus falling first but james falling harder, the COMPLICATED nature of it. how much of this is vindictiveness towards sirius and trying to take something away from him, of reclaiming and how much is just pure admiration for someone so good and selfless? How much is this about James' saviour complex? You anti jegulus people are not seeing the bigger picture.

ALSO HOW IS IT ANY DIFFERENT TO DRARRY??? Its the PERFECT foil to drarry. Because this truly is a world where history repeats itself. Pressured into the dark arts by his family's expectations but couldn't stomach pushing through when it actually came down to it? And his beautiful sunshine boyfriend who embodies the GOOD in the world despite everything. Give me 10 more of it right now.

#jegulus #starchaser #james potter x regulus black #james potter #regulus black #harry potter #marauders era #marauders #i love them #drarry

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youryurigoddess · 10 months ago

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The stuff dreams are made of, or the interesting case of Anthony J. Crowley

We’ve talked a bit about Crowley’s trauma and his way of reclaiming the narrative in the past, but it’s time for some deep dive into the story he’s trying to tell. A story that meanders through the fabric of time and space, slightly changing with the human fashion trends, but slowly and surely bringing the demon closer to a certain angel like the red thread of fate.

1793

Some stories start in a garden, some even Before the Beginning, but this one starts with an Arrangement. Or, to be precise, a little bit after that.

See, most of the iterations of Crowley we saw throughout the history until then didn’t delve too deep into human cultural tropes. If anything, they were the inspirations behind more or less prominent biblical figures, maybe some nameless villains matching his demonic provenance and role assigned to him by his employers.

But in the hustle and bustle of the revolutionary Paris, Crowley emerges as a prototype of the Scarlet Pimpernel — a chivalrous Englishman who rescues aristocrats before they are sent to the guillotine. Stan Lee famously called him “the first character who could be called a superhero”.

Sir Percy Blakeney, the main character of the novel and the West End play under the same title, leads a double life. Appearing as nothing more than a wealthy fop, in reality he’s a formidable swordsman, a quick-thinking master of disguise and an escape artist. Even his own wife, Marguerite, has no idea.

Unfortunately Marguerite is being blackmailed with her brother’s life to find and expose the wanted Pimpernel. She regrets betraying her husband the moment she's forced to do it and spends the rest of the plot working to save him. She does, they make up, and return together to England.

In Aziraphale and Crowley’s case there was just a short stop for crêpes. But what seems to be an inspiration of a specific scene might as well come up later in the wider perspective of the show, so keep in mind those fragments of the musical’s libretto:

We all are caught in the middle

of one long treacherous riddle.

Can I trust you?

Should you trust me too?...

We shamble on through this hell

taking on more secrets to sell

'til there comes a day

when we sell our souls away.

We seek him here, we seek him there,

Those Frenchies seek him everywhere!

Is he in heaven? Is he in hell?

Where is that damn elusive Pimpernel!

1941

The London Blitz is when we see a full-fledged iteration of the superhero Crowley performing dashing and heroic deeds under the literal cover of darkness and air bomb smoke. In a bespoke double-breasted suit and a fedora — still free from the unfortunate modern connotations from the internet culture — he’s clearly channeling Humphrey Bogart as a private investigator Sam Spade in The Maltese Falcon (1941) now.

It all starts with a woman and a simple plan gone wrong: Spade’s partner is shot dead, just like the man he was supposed to be tailing upon the request of a mysterious Miss Wonderly. And when a very soft-looking, sweet-scented man named Joel Cairo appears in his office willing to pay a hefty price for a "black figure of a bird", Spade starts not only a new job, but also his own quest for truth.

On the surface, The Maltese Falcon ends happily: the killer gets caught, and the hero winds up with the Falcon. But Spade's victory is completely hollow. The Falcon itself, originally meant as a symbol of loyalty, transforms into a symbol of a corrupting, futile, and self-destructive greed that makes people betray their own loyalties.

The treasure is just a worthless forgery and he’s fallen in love with the criminal — one of the first femmes fatales on screen. Despite his feelings for her and a kiss, Spade gives her up and submits the statuette as evidence, describing it as "the stuff that dreams are made of".

Remember the eagle lectern? The eagle was believed to be flying highest in the sky and therefore closest to heaven, symbolizing the carrying of the word of God to the four corners of the world. Aziraphale in the 1941 church scene is the closest to Heaven we’ve seen him on Earth. Just look at him: dressed in a smart, well-fitted coat with peaked lapels, symbolizing his Heavenly allegiance, and doing good this time not as a work assignment, but of his own accord. Being the closest to Heaven means the furthest and most unattainable for a demon like Crowley.

The Maltese Falcon is a metaphor for unattainability — things out of reach to desire and fight for, although never truly possess. It’s “the stuff that dreams are made of”. But Crowley secured the original — made of gold and encrusted with jewels, but hiding its real value under black enamel — eerily reminiscent of the demon himself and the unending kindness behind his inappropriately tight black clothing.

Quoting Michael Ralph — the production mastermind behind Good Omens — from the S01E04 “Saturday Morning Funtime” DVD commentary, “We wanted to tip our hat to the Maltese Falcon as being a precious object that no-one thought really exists but it does”. So we can safely assume that Crowley can and will achieve his dream in the future.

1967

Do you know what else happens in 1941 in Scotland? Ian Fleming, a British naval intelligence agent, meets with the famous occultist Aleister Crowley and asks him to lead the interrogation of newly imprisoned Rudolf Hess — a leading member of the Nazi Party in Nazi Germany appointed Deputy Führer — given the two men’s shared enthusiasm for the occult.

This meeting has a significant impact on Fleming’s work as a writer; Aleister Crowley becomes the inspiration for his first villain Le Chiffre and creates a blueprint for most of the James Bond’s franchise ever since 1953, the publication date of the novel Casino Royale.

Meanwhile our Anthony J. Crowley believes in himself not being the villain he’s usually and sometimes forcefully painted as, but a superhero in disguise. The character of James Bond in particular inspires him so much that he buys petrol to get the limited You Only Live Twice (1967) window decals for his Bentley, dons his own tactical turtleneck, and sets off to organize a heist like no other. Sean Connery style.

Like a typical superhero, Crowley’s once again both saved and betrayed by his love interest. Aziraphale leaves him with a thermos of Holy Water, a faint smile, and a hope that they’ll soon match their speeds to meet halfway at the Ritz. The cancelled heist is not an ending, but a promise of a new beginning. And the fact that UK decriminalizes homosexual acts in the very same year is more than telling in this regard.

2019

An exceptional situation calls for exceptional solutions, and what’s more important than the impending Apocalypse? Demon Crowley does his best to put the arsenal of his 20th century film inspirations to good use.

"Ask yourself, do you feel lucky?" Crowley drawls, clearly imitating (although slightly misquoting) the titular Dirty Harry (1971). He’s hoping to be menacing and making the point of being the one on the right side of the law and history.

Some situations require more than quoting action heroes is not everything though. He knows what to do:

A jeep was heading purposefully towards the gate, and it looked as though it was crowded with people who were about to shout questions and fire guns and not worry about which order they did this in.

[Crowley] brightened up. This was more what you might call his area of competence.

He took his hands out of his pockets and he raised them like Bruce Lee and then he smiled like Lee Van Cleef.

'Ah,' he said, 'here comes transport.'

When in doubt, Crowley acts. He transforms into a combination of a stoic martial arts phenomenon and a sardonic, menacing character. His smile alone — even on Aziraphale’s angelic face, as seen in one of the final cut scenes — seems to be enough to ward off evil spirits, angels, and humans alike.

But we all know that even as breathtaking performances as those can’t protect anyone from the cogs of the Heavenly machine and its plans.

2023

No wonder that Crowley’s tactical turtleneck comes back in style after mere four years of retirement with a self-introduction “Former Demon, hated by Heaven, loathed by Hell. How will our hero cope?”. Something has changed during this time; he’s more mature now, not playing pretend by hiding behind the usual veneer of sarcasm and movie quotes anymore. Finally comfortable with the fact that this is his own story and there’s no need to become anyone else than himself.

The bookshop fire and the Heavenly trial still seem to haunt the demon in a way that makes him realize what all humans know: that every hero is his own biggest enemy. His ultimate dream might effortlessly change into his greatest nightmare any moment now, and the only thing he can do about it is hover in a two-minute distance from the epicenter of his feelings. But Crowley has no time to work on it when a new mission appears, to protect his angel from Gabriel and the combined powers of Heaven and Hell. Even if this — rather ostentatiously — is the last thing he wants to think about at the moment.

Crowley tries to plan ahead, while his story slowly warps into a different genre due to Aziraphale’s interruptions. He eventually changes back into his usual Henley shirt after agreeing to swap places and guarding the bookshop while the angel is off to Edinburgh, collecting more clues. Did he finish his personal quest off-screen? Did he just give up on it in the whirlwind of matchmaking shenanigans? Remains to be seen.

In the S2 finale our master of disguise in yet another turtleneck proves that he can successfully infiltrate even the universe’s back office. We don’t know where he drives off in the end, but one thing is certain — he’s got a plan. And a world (and his dream) to save, like a superhero he is.

#a turtleneck kind of day #crowley is a superhero #and a master spy #with a plan #good omens #good omens 2 #good omens meta #go2 meta #ineffable husbands #crowley #turtleneck crowley #yuri is doing her thing

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aranarumei · 8 months ago

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you listed gsnk as an option and my dopamine receptors lit up. What dyou think about mikorin and mayu

ask me about a ship and I’ll give my opinions + classify them as does / doesn’t make sense, does / doesn’t compel me

heyyy surprise for you. yeah i actually was cleaning up my notes app today and realized I'd answered this and never posted this lol. gonna start off with a does make sense, does compel me and continue under the cut.

okay. hear me out. for a period of time I genuinely believe mayumiko was the gsnk duo closest to being, like, romantic. in a sense. horikashi, nozachiyo, and wakaseo have sure got a lot of development since then (in ch 60, kashima avoids hori and we get a REALLY good moment out of it) but like. just one chapter before that, we have ch 59. one of my favorite chapters. and at that point, I feel like the main couples have had their setup and they're really fun and comedic, but there hasn't been much... advancement, in a sense?

and then we hit ch 59, where "mayumayu" (nozaki mayu, who's been conned into posing as a girl) and "mamiko" (mikoshiba mikoto, who's posing as a girl so that he's not a creepy guy commenting on mayumayu's blog, unwittingly using the name of the protagonist of let's love by nozaki umetarou under alias of yumeno sakiko without knowing that he's the inspiration for the character's personality) basically immediately hit it off over text. seriously, past the first couple of texts where there's a bunch of people commenting on it, all they say is that they'll instantly reply to any texts that come their way. what commences is a hell of texting, probably, but it is a LOT of texting that happens. and that's not something that can be empty! both mikoshiba and mayu seem worn out by the amount of time they spend on it, but they don't seem worn out by each other in the slightest, judging by the fact that in ch 89, not only is mikoshiba still regularly checking mayumayu's blog, he's getting texts with extra art and well-wishes for his exams! they talk to each other about their lives! and it's not something that exists only online, too... mayu and mikoshiba are genuinely and obviously good friends outside of their online identities.

I'm aware not everyone sees it that way, but like, to me, ch 59 was like the most outright romantic the series had gotten. so it's very special to me. so is mayumiko! mayumiko’s so fun because they’re both soooo cool and soooo uncool. but while the mayumiko situation is objectively hilarious, the way they're friends is like... surprisingly understated? it's just something that happens and it works for both of them, even when it seems like it shouldn't. like, let's be real, mikoshiba can be kind of annoying, and mayu can be kind of grating. despite that they end up being really comfortable with each other. like. no wonder they could keep up that texting chain. they just click in general.

so we meet mayu in ch 33, and in ch 37, mikoshiba runs into him, and they've got this fun chapter together where miyako both compares them to cats. then in ch 49, mayu gets mikoshiba to lend him his... questionable? sure. questionable manga. calls him mikoto-san. and it just kind of... happens, them being friends. since they both hang out at nozaki's place. it's neat. in ch 64, post-The Incident, mikoshiba's comfortable enough to ask mayu for help with working out. and mayu knows mikoshiba enough to shout out the specific name of the fake high school from one of the games mikoshiba likes (sure, it's a super popular galge, but that's a strange thing to know well! especially for a guy who's traditionally lazy about everything but judo)

then of course we get to the mayu chapters where he's just so. iconic. in ch 76, mikoshiba needs to bring a guy to the mixer and then after nozaki rejects him sakura's like, ask mayu, who's been on the floor this whole time. side note i think its cute that when mikoshiba asks mayu, he calls himself "mikoshiba-nii-san." and mayu rejects him at first (also using "mikoshiba-nii-san" lol), but he ends up going once he's told he doesn't have to do that much work. and then he grills a girl about her boyfriend bc she says he does judo. and then tries to get some guy's number because he's apparently strong. judo freak (affectionate). and then, of course, as mikoshiba's thinking that "ah, they totally think mayu likes guys, but i guess it's fine since he doesn't seem to care" and when he's surrounded by girls mayu jumps in and says "he's mine," just like nozaki's shoujo manga advice had told him to do. love that for them. in ch 81, though it's a pain, mayu goes along with the idea that all the stuff in the back room is his and not mikoshiba's (though maybe he thought it was more of a pain to explain) and when talking about dating sims, mayu says, "well, guys or girls, both are pretty similar." love that guy for real.

then, in one of the moments of all time that make me insane, in ch 94, seo's pinning mikoshiba, and suddenly goes, it's boring without waka (makes sense! he's normally the guy she pushes around like this) and mikoshiba's like. oh! that's right! I haven't gotten a souvenir for mayu yet! (makes... sense...? because. because he's getting PINNED??? and we KNOW that mikoshiba hasn't done judo with mayu because it happens for the first time in ch 135, where after some really nice moments, mikoshiba sheepishly asks if mayu wants to try throwing him around too. it's a weird expression of care and also the fact that they're still friends after this fact, considering the violence nozaki translates it as, is a testament to their friendship.)

also in the extras for that volume, we see mikoshiba got him a smartphone case, which sucks because mayu's got a flip phone (though it's better than the hairpin nozaki got mayu) but then when mayu figures out a use for that smartphone case, he runs to mikoshiba to give him the good news! 'cause mikoshiba was sulking before... they're fun.

i think I've already said this but they really are close. and i think mayu's kinda clingy. in ch 114 when kashima rei asks to talk to him again, he's like, "go through mikoto-san." in ch 128 we find out that mayu shows girls in his class photos of mikoshiba so they make sure he doesn't get caught napping. this begs the question: HOW did this arrangement exist in the first place? because there's no way I can think about it that doesn't involve mayu and mikoshiba being at some level of closeness. and there's no way mayu can get so many nice looking photos of mikoshiba without being close to him. and in that same fucking chapter when nozaki’s making posts for his blog and turns mikoshiba into a girl, people think that he and mayu are dating. like oh my god. even in gekkan shoujo nozaki-san, when the main cast is meant to be a bit older than the canon timeline, mikoshiba and mayu are hanging out together at nozaki's place. and when mikoshiba and nozaki are getting all chummy with miyoshi, mayu walks in and he's like. ah. a challenger emerges (because he presumably wants to be pampered instead). my point is that they're close they just hang out. it's comfortable, which says a lot for both of them.

in ch 59 mayu's friends are like. his type is 1) someone who's stronger than him at judo or 2) someone older who'd take care of him and. mikoshiba's not #1 but he is #2. those two can be pretty sweetly considerate actually. as we see mayu gets dragged into quite a bit of stuff and does it. in ch 101 he actually finishes up the chapter of let's love while everyone's fallen asleep. and in the vol 14 extras mikoshiba gifts a water plant to a guy he barely knows. just because. so I feel like they're both sweet people underneath it all. and extra fact about ch 59 i know you'll feel crazy about. kobayashi (the guy who actually runs the mayumayu blog) calls mayu maa-kun. i am not joking.

anyways to me mikoshiba and mayu are both this weird security to each other. mayu’s someone who doesn’t care abt social graces and mikoshiba’s someone who cares too much. but when they’re weird to each other it’s like they accept everything. and I just think. despite all of the mistaken identity drama it’s like. idk. they just like each other. they just get along well. and for mikoshiba who’s so awkward with girls, this works out well. also the way that in ch 144 his fav ever gacha character is this kind of gloomy and lazy girl… fascinating thing you’re being charmed by. what a taste you have.

so in the end despite all of the wild situations i think it’ll be simple. mikoshiba will think a little too much and mayu a little too little. but they've gotten along well for so long that I think this will go pretty well, too. it'll just be a feeling that grows kind of slowly until it works for the two of them.

#ask #ask game #sunluvclub #mayumiko #gsnk #kiri.txt #my god i said. so much didnt i #in this essay i will

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xuyaak · 1 month ago

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just came back from watching transformers one

OH MY FUCKINGHSHDISWJKSKWMSLW THAT WAS OHHH THAT WAS SOMETHING

(SPOILERS AHEAD LIKE I KNOW THAT MOST OF THE PEOPLE HAVE ALREADY WATCHED IT AND ONLY SLOWPOKES LIKE ME HAVENT BUT JUST IN CASE)

PaaleOEKSKWOWKAOWOWORIEEB I CANT CONTAIN MY EXCITEMENT. IT WAS BETTER MUCH FUCKING BETTER THAN I EXPECTED IT TO BE.

ohh i dont even know where to start… well i guess i should state the obvious: GRAPHICS ARE ABSOLUTELY GOAT. its not just about textures, colors and lighting (which are peak honestly i wanted to eat every single frame), but about… how do i say… the feeling of size, volume, construction. its hard to explain, but i think you’ll get what i mean - the way characters feel, the way environment feels, the way interactions between characters and between characters and environment feel. things feel REAL and this is. just fucking AWESOME.

but ofc good graphics can’t save the movie from being garbage. BUT THE PLOT CAN.

honestly, i did not expect the plot to be SO GOOD (especially considering that for the last decade the only transformers we’ve seen on big screens was bayverse… that isnt famous for deep story)

At first, this whole new vision of the great war’s origin is a HUGE breeze of fresh air (so huge its not just a breeze anymore ig). the whole story with war with quintessons, sentinel’s betrayal (ASSHOLE), and miners basically being cogless slaves… damn thats something. (also i especially liked the idea of starscream being a leader before megatron and talking to him as to somebody of lower position. and then fleeing. this mf just cant be the leader. anyway the whole higher guard thing is the topic for another talk)

but wait wait there is orion and d-16’ relationship. probably THE BEST thing in this movie. its oh its just… well, at first, these are probably versions of optimus and megatron that have the closest relationship in the whole franchise. and thats just simply because they start as equals: just two miners who are working together in the dangerous environment almost like slaves, and take care of each other. but their relationships are so tender, so caring… because they don’t really have anything besides their friendship ig? well ofc there are dreams of finding the matrix and taking iacon out of crisis so they don’t really have to work in the mines…. but, its all just dreams, the only real thing that they have right here and right now is each other.

but then came the power. oh yes it did. and you know what happened next. megatron chose revenge because HE was deceived. HIS whole life was a lie. bro doesn’t really think about other cybertronians as much as he cares about himself and oh god it shows. while optimus thought about the people and only then about himself. and thats the true reason behind their conflict, its not the question of violent/pacifistic way to achieve the goal, its about what matters to them.

and we could actually see that even before the team gets their cogs:

“did you do it for me?”

“no, i did it for us”

this “us” is not just they two, this “us” is the whole cast of miners. i mean considering just WHAT participation in this race meant for miners. they arent worthless slaves, they are capable of doing better than this! this is what orion wanted to show. both to his fellow miners and to regular cybertronians.

well im out of words for now. its clear as day that ill come back to tf one more than one more time. ive got really inspired and yes its going to last.

thank you if you actually read all of this. im so glad that somebody listened :3333

#transformers #transformers one #maccadam #xuyaak talks A LOT #if before i felt like falling into megop right now im in it from head to toes #please watch tf one if you havent yet #tf one #megatron #optimus prime #d 16 #orion pax

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sepublic · 1 month ago

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The Owl House and Fullmetal Alchemist

So let’s talk about how The Owl House’s parallels to Fullmetal Alchemist, how it may or may not take inspiration in certain aspects, etc. Dana Terrace mentioned once that Luz would love Arakawa’s art, and even without the confirmation that Dana herself is familiar, it’s pretty clear…

(And yes, I’m discussing the 2003 continuity because why not; Depending on when she got into FMA, it might’ve been Dana’s first exposure to the series even!)

We have a magic system that can be accomplished two ways; Either by drawing circles with patterns, or by using your hands. In FMA, the former is the norm, the latter the exception; In TOH, it’s the other way around, with our main character Luz having to rely on glyphs.

Luz and the Elrics lost a parent, but they have one who’s still alive that they have mixed feelings with, but ultimately reconnect with near the end of the series. The loss of that first parent motivates them, it’s what leads to the inciting incident, with the Elrics trying to bring their mother Trisha back to life only to lose an arm, a leg, and a body; Luz carries on her father’s final gift, and in her attempts to be true to herself as Manny taught her, she ends up being sent to Reality Check camp, with her mother Camila agreeing due to not being as brave.

The permanence of death is something for characters to struggle with; Multiple characters in both versions of Fullmetal Alchemist attempt to revive the dead for this reason, or prolong their own lives by ending the lives of others. The closest attempt to reviving the dead is in 2003, in the ambiguity of its Homunculi, who may or may not be the souls their creators attempted to bring back; And at the end of the series, the main protagonist is killed. But his brother Alphonse recognizes that his soul hasn’t yet passed an established threshold existing on a separate plane of existence, and is able to sacrifice mythical power he’s gained to bring Edward back to life, at the cost of himself passing the threshold.

Similarly, Luz also dies at the end of the series to protect the Collector; But because her soul hasn’t yet passed the established threshold that exists on another plane of existence, the Titan is able to use his power to bring her back to life, even as he himself passes the threshold. Luz dies as a lesson to the Collector in the limitations of their own power; Edward’s tragic encounter with Nina reminds him that for all his boasting of alchemists as the closest thing to God, alchemists are still mere mortals with limitations, which is a major factor into his main antagonist’s motives.

The Collector’s childish naivete extends to their lack of familiarity with death, and they eventually have to come to terms with it and other consequences as part of their character arc. The Collector is the youngest sibling of the Archivists, who themselves have a petty relationship with death; They seek to preserve all living things eternally via scrolls, but this state destroys their physical bodies, preserving only their souls. Any population that doesn’t go along with their plans of preservation are wiped out by the Archivists in retaliation.

The Collector’s story can also be compared to Wrath the Homunculus from 2003; Both are immortal child antagonists who stand out thanks to their magic. Both are manipulated by Belos and 2003 Envy (guys who murder their blonde brothers via stabbing), and are isolated to do so. They feel anger over being mistreated by parents and older sibling (figures), but ultimately just want companionship.

They have bittersweet endings; The Collector goes off into space, but still occasionally visits his mortal friends; Wrath goes off on his own, but occasionally interacts with Winry, and finally sacrifices his life to help Alphonse reunite with his own beloved family member, as Wrath gets the same in death.

But for all of the mixed feelings about death, immortality may not be so pleasant either; King Clawthorne is doomed to outlive everyone except for the Collector and Hooty, which means so many loved ones dying before his eyes. This is a fate Hohenheim dreads regarding his wife and children, and he manages to avoid this when he sacrifices the power behind his immortality to save the world, and die a mortal whose age finally catches up to him. This might be why the immortal Archivists preserve mortals as scrolls, though their reaction to those who refuse them is suspect…

EDalyn Clawthorne, EDward Elric; They’re main protagonists, with a color scheme consisting primarily of dark red, with gold, black, and white. They’re teen prodigies, although both lose their magical abilities in order to protect a loved one who stars right alongside them as a fellow main character. This is never restored, and they also lose their right arms due to being part of a deadly spell. They’re quite (in)famous and have a sibling. Of course, Edward works for the state; Eda is devoutly against it, a proud criminal.

There’s a running theme of disability, with Eda’s disability coming from the curse, which eventually drains her magic. It leaves her fatigued, is implied to be messing with her memories, and causes her to age more quickly. It even makes her transform into an Owl Beast, due to the curse coming from Eda being possessed by one. When the curse completely overtakes Eda, Lilith takes on half of it to allow Eda to regain her usual form, but her and Lilith lose their magic forever. In the context of a society comprised of witches, Luz is essentially disabled, as is Hunter; For Luz, glyphs are her magical prosthetic, as is Flapjack the Palisman familiar for Hunter.

Edward lost his arm and leg, Alphonse lost his body. Izumi lost some of her organs and regularly suffers from fainting and exhaustion, as well as vomiting blood. Lan Fan loses her arm. Automail is aesthetically cool, but it’s also a hassle and requires a months-long process to get used to, and even then you need a mechanic to maintain it. Ed has to return to said mechanic, his childhood friend Winry, multiple times, and suffers from his prosthetic overheating or nearly giving him frostbite, depending on the temperature.

Disability sucks; And it’s something you just have to learn to live with, in Eda’s case. She accepts her curse, she’s not interested in her mother Gwen’s attempts to cure it, which just make her feel ashamed of the curse and lead to a breakup with her lover Raine. In 2003, we see a man who lost his leg but doesn’t use Automail to replace it, explaining to the Elrics his decision, and being validated and respected for it by the narrative.

Ed and Eda’s disabilities are connected to a magical incident involving another being they constantly live with; This being lost their body, and their soul had to be bound to something else… For Ed, this is his brother Alphonse being bound to a suit of armor. For Eda, this is the Owl Beast having to be bound to her body, which is what the curse is; Technically a parasite draining her.

Despite this, Eda figures out a way to work with the Owl Beast, recognizing it’s also trapped with her. And you can see similarities between this dynamic and Ling Yao with Greed, a Homunculus who embodies his Father’s desires. Greed and the Owl Beast both manifest as red magic, linked to the main villain in some way; Father is the source of his childrens’ soul-fueled Philosopher’s Stones. Thanks to the Collector, Belos wields the same red magic as the Archivists who reduced the Owl Beast into a contained soul that can be melded with another living being and their body.

Ling accepts Greed’s red Philosopher’s Stone into his body, and the two form a friendship where they take turns. Ling’s body becomes superhuman like a Homunculus, complete with regenerative abilities, and the power to rearrange the carbon in his skin into an indestructible Ultimate Shield.

Likewise, Eda comes to a mutual agreement with the Owl Beast after befriending it, having to make concessions such as letting the creature take over her body to feed; In exchange, Eda is able to achieve a harpy form she has proper control over, granting her flight and enhanced strength and speed, as well as claws. It’s nowhere near what she could accomplish with the magic she’s still missing, and she still needs to take elixirs… But it helps.

Ed and Eda’s lineage can be traced to a blonde man who has a (blood) brother, the main antagonist of the series. While the antagonist chose evil, the brother chose to renounce this, leaving him behind to have a child with someone he fell in love with.

The antagonist is located at the center of the setting, within a giant fortress. Their lairs are filled with gears and haphazard pipes. Despite their appearances as elderly, long-haired humans, they have a true form; A viscous monster covered in eyes. During the final battle, they project giant versions of themselves atop their own fortress.

The villains also share a similar white, holy aesthetic, drawing upon the image of Christian patriarchal figures; One of them is canonically Christian, in fact. Both are motivated in different ways by some relationship to the idea of God, with Father wanting to become him, and Belos insisting he’s doing God’s holy work. They consider themselves as being born special, as having some aspect of God carried through them.

Despite their delusions, their narratives make it clear that they didn’t actually work or earn any of what they’ve accomplished; They’re nothing more than thieves piggybacking off of the efforts of others, glorified parasites who didn’t learn or mature at all. The Truth dismisses Father’s questions of what he should’ve done differently, responding that he clearly knew all along, he just ignored it; Similarly, Belos is shown to be aware deep down that he’s a treacherous hypocrite. And yet they both ignore these things, failing to self-reflect.

Their plans are similar, waiting for the eclipse so they can enact a Promised Day/Day of Unity. They’ve been working for centuries to do this, establishing a corrupt nation to do so, with all of its citizens and military unaware that they’re setting up their collective demise. There’s a spell circle cast, and it requires a group of skilled alchemists/witches to activate it; For FMA these are five alchemists who have seen the Truth. For TOH, these are the nine Coven Heads, witches powerful in one of the nine tracks.

(Belos definitely did a better job at this, having backup witches and replacing coven heads for fifty years; Father didn’t have any until a few years prior to the Promised Day, and just barely figured out the remaining three within that last year. The last one was prepared literal minutes before the eclipse.)

They both absorb the power of a God/Titan that is sort of God but not really, more on that later, to become all-powerful; But they are separated from that power. Their final moments are similar, insisting to someone else that they did nothing wrong, only to be met by unimpressed silence, angering them. They die reduced to a humiliated, pathetic little thing, because that’s what they are at their core. This all-powerful villain with the power of a god is brought down not by equivalent magic of any kind, but with a simple bare-fisted punch, or a stomp from a foot.

The villains run on the lives of countless innocent beings that they’ve consumed across the centuries, and without this energy, they die. The villains’ magic is arcane and red, defying the usual logic. At the center of their lair, they mess with the source of the setting’s magic, rendering it ineffective. Their evil began about 400 years prior to the start of the series, when they began consuming these innocent lives, and despite their good relationship with their brothers, pushed him away; This brother would set in motion the villain’s defeat via his child(ren).

The souls of the consumed are still alive, and attempt to fight back; In particular, Belos has a resemblance to Envy, an extension of Father’s personality. Their human appearances hide monstrous green forms; Belos’ is a result of the Palismen souls he devoured, whose faces emerge and writhe from the amalgam they’ve become, like how Envy’s true form has the souls of his Philosopher’s Stone emerging from the flesh. They both have the ability to parasitically control others, and this is displayed/discovered after they’ve been enormously injured, reduced to a tiny little thing. They eventually use the lives of others to reform their bodies, only to get knocked down once again, and die.

There’s a human they tormented and have captured before, attempted to make an accessory to their plans and were successful to a degree, and found glee in their guilt, smugly talking hot shit about how it doesn’t matter. But those humans get the last laugh; Envy and Belos share very similar scenes where after their source of power is disrupted by said human, Envy and Belos are reduced to just an upper half, dragging themselves along the ground as they rave angrily at the silent protagonists, insulted to be looked down upon and insisting they’re still better, as they reach out uselessly to the human that has soundly humiliated and defeated them.

Belos and Father/Envy both have a disdain for a species, thinking themselves superior, only to be done in by them and their collective bonds and relationships; The villain has nothing to him. The one thing he has are his Homunculi; Artificially-created beings who resemble humans and have pink eyes. But Belos’ Grimwalkers inevitably defy him, just as Greed defies Father. These rebellious children end up as friends to the protagonists. In the 2003 continuity, a Homunculus is specifically what happens when you try to bring a dead person back to life, only to get a flawed clone with some of the memories.

This is exactly what Grimwalkers are, with Hunter and his predecessors being attempted clones of Caleb; Belos is another example of a character who refuses to accept death, at least for the one person he ‘cares’ about. He also refuses to accept death for himself, feeding on Palismen to prolong his existence.

Going further into 2003, we should also compare Belos to its villain, Dante; While Father is an inhuman being, Dante started off human, just like Belos, and both represent the worst that humanity has to offer, the banality of evil. Dante manipulates others into creating the Philosopher’s Stone before stealing it from them, using it just to keep herself alive; But her soul is eventually reaching its limit, and the Philosopher’s Stone is not enough. This causes bodies she stole from others to decay at an increasingly rapid rate.

Similarly, Belos used Palismen souls to become immortal, but eventually his form turns into a slimy green monster, and while he uses more Palismen souls to revert himself back into a human, one can see how the curse has begun to creep into his human appearance. By the end of the series, he is permanently the curse monster, and can only imitate the façade of his human appearance, and for a brief while. He also ends up possessing the bodies of others to survive, and one of them, the last Grimwalker, decays rapidly from the attempt and falls apart.

Dante is the master of the Homunculi and created four of them, while helping the other three regain a more human appearance. She’s a master manipulator and gaslighter, just as Belos manipulates Hunter, but also all of the people around him. They’re raging hypocrites and cowards, their motives very human; Dante wants to live forever, while Belos craves the righteous power fantasy of being a witch hunter. They represent dead people who refuse to move on, with Belos especially representing conservative, white supremacist ideology furious over the changes of the modern era, and rejecting them to continue his crusades regardless.

This also gets us into a villain introduced after Dante in the 2003 continuity; Dietlinde Eckhart, a literal Nazi trying to help Hitler rise to power. Eckhart is knowledgeable about the magic of another world parallel to ours, the world that is the series’ main setting; Belos/Eckhart manipulate a young girl of color into accomplishing their plans of genocide. Eckhart is fearful of the other world beyond hers and its magic, seeing it as an inherent threat that must be destroyed; In her efforts, she becomes consumed by supernatural forces, mutating into a slimy, unrecognizable monster and is killed in this state. They both have long-ish hair of a similar color, and the slime that consumes them starts to cover their face in similar patterns…

For the main FMA continuity, there’s a juxtaposition in that a society of humans is revealed to be run by a non-human who hates humanity and thinks he’s better for not being like them; In TOH, a society of non-humans is revealed to be run by a human who hates non-humans and thinks he’s better for not being like them. Belos sees the witches and demons of another world as an inherent threat that must be destroyed. He’s also much more thematically intertwined with the state he leads; Father is ultimately his own apathetic entity, letting others run it for him.

Amestris is an imperialistic state, it’s fascism, it commits genocide against an ethnic minority of brown people; It’s racist. Belos comes from a real life historical context, a very racist one, just like Eckhart; He’s a Puritan from a 1600’s American colony, relying on the delusions of Evangelicalism as his motive, Satanic Panic dialed up to eleven. His attempted genocide and damage to the culture and environment of a world he’s colonized is just the obvious extension of what Puritans like him did in real life; Eckhart is a literal Nazi helping Hitler rise to power, and Hitler cited the American settlers’ genocide of Native Americans as inspiration.

FMA 2003 places more emphasis on the corruption and racism of the state, and it can be seen as a criticism of the U.S.’s War on Iraq during its release. The War on Iraq was supported by Evangelicals, many of whom support Zionism in the same region due to their Evangelical desires for the Rapture to occur, and they see the establishment of Israel as part of the ‘conditions’ for this Rapture to happen.

The Promised Day/Day of Unity are both Rapture events; In the case of FMA, there’s a group of high-ranking military humans who believe they’ll ascend above the rest when it occurs. For TOH, this is what’s believed by the witches and demons colonized by the coven regime. With Belos especially, his Day of Unity is unambiguously a play on the Rapture due to his real life, historical background and motives.

Amestris may be led by a Fuhrer, but it’s meant to be a conglomeration of multiple Western powers, and its name hearkens to America. When you combine this with 2003’s commentary and Belos’ blatant Christian colonialism -imposing his own understanding of how God works onto the local Titan- and representing how other Puritans like him are factors into everything wrong with the U.S…. You can see how both series criticize real-life white people.

This also gets me into another character, Raine Whispers; They bear a resemblance to Roy Mustang in some ways, as they’re both high-ranking government officials aware of how their state persecutes others. They’re both selected by the villain as a key factor into their genocidal rapture spell. They both seek to use their positions of power to challenge the government’s atrocities. They both joined it wide-eyed and idealistic, only to realize the truth.

Both of them realize that in addition to the inherent corruption, there’s also a conspiracy afoot within the government; Their attempts to interfere lead to them being captured. Mustang attempts to find someone like-minded in the friendly Raven, only to find out he’s a part of it and has led him like a lamb to the slaughter; Raine expects an enemy out of Darius and Eberwolf, who prevent themselves as loyalists, only to reveal they’re on the same side after all.

Nevertheless, being captured leads to both characters being allowed to continue their duties under government surveillance, due to their role in the genocidal spell. But they find clever, under the radar ways to coordinate with their fellow rebels without being seen. There’s a scene in which Raine burns a message from Darius in the leadup to the Day of Unity, just as Mustang does in the leadup to the Promised Day.

There’s hope; All of our disparate protagonists coming together, different subplots like Luz and her family, Hunter and the students of Hexside, and the CATTs. Everyone comes together to find a way to stop the genocidal spell, and/or ensure others survive it; Armstrong sends his parents outside of Amestris, while the staff and students of Hexside fortify the school and are able to avoid the Collector’s control later on.

Everyone comes together to stop the genocidal spell on this dangerous day, having to contend with the fact that a lot of the people they’re fighting don’t know any better, and they can’t convince them in reasonable time; But what other choice do they have? They’ll have to cause some damage and harm, including to those in the upper echelons of the state who don’t realize they’re not included. There’s a specific plan, although things don’t exactly pan out…

But while the genocidal spell activates, it’s ultimately reversed to prevent anyone from dying to it. This is accomplished thanks to someone who was duped by the villain into helping them get to this point; Hohenheim was manipulated into giving the Dwarf in the Flask half of Xerxes’ souls to become Father. But with the other half he was given, Hohenheim undid the Philosopher’s Stone comprised of Amestris’ souls… Likewise, the Collector was manipulated by Belos into giving him the draining spell, but after being freed by King, undid it.

Amidst the similarities of Raine and Roy, there are also the differences, such as in how they seek to challenge the government; Roy intends to become Fuhrer by legitimate processes so he can change the country using his power, and hopefully shift it to democracy. Raine is under no such illusions; They regularly break the law to protect the people who are being persecuted by the state, use their knowledge to interfere with operations, and incite the public to do the same by explaining the state’s corruption.

Likewise, they intend to remove the coven system completely, and replace it wholesale by assassinating Belos; We see them succeed in the epilogue when the system is now run by a council that they’re a part of, coven bindings are removed so magic can be practiced freely, there is no longer a fascist Us vs Them mentality, and prisons have been abolished and replaced with hospitals.

In addition to assassinating Belos, Raine is willing to use violence in general; When cornered by fellow coven heads Darius and Eberwolf, they attempt a spell alongside Eda to kill all four in the vicinity. What causes Raine to call it off isn’t the realization that Killing is Wrong, it’s the realization that Eda has kids back home that she’s leaving behind, and they care too much to let Eda go down this path out of self-destruction.

It’s later revealed that Darius and Eberwolf are a separate undercover cell, who kept up appearances to avoid being exposed (as seen when loyalist Kikimora shows up shortly afterwards). But in the end, the narrative does not admonish Raine for their willingness to kill government officials to protect the persecuted; Darius and Eberwolf were fine because they were already on the same side, but if not then killing them would have been fine. This is reiterated by Raine successfully helping defeat Belos in the end, and participating in a killing blow they announce personal satisfaction with.

(Also unlike Roy, Raine never killed anyone for the state, only going after people who they thought were a part of it, or even were. Their decision to go against the state was prompted quickly by realizing how witches were being branded and likely discreetly executed by others, whereas Roy became the biggest murderer of the Ishvalan Genocide and decided only then to change the system from within the system.)

This gets me to another comparison, and hear me out; Raine also bears some resemblance to Scar, particularly his 2003 counterpart. They have the brown skin, glasses, and lighter hair; They’re both willing to kill government officials and burn down the state, and they’re not admonished for it, validated even. Their ‘magic’ is associated with red. They fight to protect a group persecuted by the state.

In fact, Raine is like Scar in that they ARE a part of that group technically, because the state’s ultimate function is to murder all witches, and as a witch, they too have been colonized by the coven regime, and they’re inherently a target due to having been covenbound. The beliefs of wild witches, deemed part of the ‘Savage’ Ages by the coven system, is like how the Ishvalans’ own religion is demonized, and Raine is very much a wild witch by the end of the day.

So in this sense, you can see Raine Whispers as a strange blend of Roy Mustang and Scar; A violent freedom fighter whose pro-murder stance is never challenged because the narrative ultimately agrees with it, who gets to kill the dictator. They initially joined the state thinking it was just, only to quickly realize it persecutes innocents and that they themselves are a target of this larger genocide, and decided to change the government.

I also want to add that in the same finale where Raine helps kill Belos, our protagonist Luz asks the Titan if her wanting Belos dead makes Luz just as bad as Belos; The Titan laughs it off, essentially saying that the violence of the oppressed is NOT equal to the violence of the oppressor. Luz and co. are actually fighting to protect people who are at stake, against someone who is not protecting anything, only claiming to be in his fascist aggression.

Luz settles her moral quandary, shortly after opting to let a pleading Belos boil to death rather than save him; Belos claims this makes her evil for not wanting peace, and just as bad as those witches, whom humans like him are better than! Cue said witches stepping in, agreeing that they aren’t better than this, before taking petty, justified enjoyment in stomping Belos to death. As I’ve said, Raine is among them.

Willow is one of Luz’s friends, and a recurring element to her storyline is Willow allowing herself to be angry, allowing herself to call out people, be it bullies or even her own friends, to express displeasure with them, and this is how she can learn to stand up for herself. Eda outright says to her mother that she has a right to be upset over years of condescension over her disability. Scar’s mentor tells him his anger is valid, and will never not be; Victims have a right to be angry, and this goes hand in hand with having the right to go against abuse, which oppression is a large-scale version of.

The magic of both series comes from the land itself; Magic is a gift from the Titan, and Alchemy is powered by the kinetic energy of the Tectonic plates. There’s a mysterious portal with an eye on it, linked to the deity of the series; FMA’s portal houses God and is guarded by the Truth, while TOH’s portal uses the eye of the Titan. Like 2003, there are two parallel worlds that the portal can be used to traverse through; Our world, and another world where this magic is possible to begin with. Glyphs can’t be used in the human world, and in 2003, alchemy or the powers of the Homunculi are similarly inaccessible here.

On a meta note, there was once a fan theory that the Demon Realm had witch counterparts to those in the human world and vice-versa; This was prompted by an early design for Amity being one of Luz’s human classmates, as well as her mentioning an Augustus whose nickname Gus adopts, and of course the reveal of someone impersonating her. This was later established as a basilisk named Vee, and the theory was disproven. But in 2003, counterparts WERE a thing, with Alphonse Elric having Alfons Heiderich, Hughes having a Nazi counterpart I kid you not, and the human Pride was cloned from being real-life Fritz Lang.

(Speaking of Vee! We have a reptilian shapeshifter who can imitate humans and other beings; We also have Envy. See the resemblance?)

As aforementioned, TOH and FMA both have a space between worlds, used to cross between said worlds, as the threshold for death; Souls who go past the murkiness of the in-between are lost forever, while souls who pass the Gate are beyond even the power of the Philosopher’s Stone. With God not exactly being God, the afterlife is also left ambiguous; It’s eventually confirmed/heavily implied that Belos does not see the ghosts of his brother and the Grimwalkers, but is merely hallucinating. We don’t know what the afterlife in TOH is actually like, if there even is one.

And in 2003, it’s implied there is no afterlife, and all deceased souls simply become energy for Alchemy; At least on our world’s side. When Wrath the Homunculus dies, he has a vision of himself reuniting with the deceased Izumi, and the existence of the Homunculi adds to this uncertainty.

There’s a Theological rumination in both series; God in FMA is described by Father, who was born from it, to be the collective nervous system of the Earth and all of the living creatures that are part of it. It’s not really God in a conventional Christian sense, nor is Truth; It’s a deliberate mystery. Edward Elric is a devout atheist (despite having met his universe’s God) and brings it up to Rose, a member of Cornello’s cult who has an existential crisis after it’s exposed.

Father Cornello is the first villain of the series, an agent of the Homunculi and by extension Father, whose purpose is to create political instability that will justify the state’s violent, White Savior interference, and thus fulfill the third Blood Crest needed for the nationwide transmutation circle. He runs a cult and uses the red power of a fake Philosopher’s Stone given to him by Lust to rouse everyone into believing in him as a holy man, a bringer of miracles.

He’s a phony, but right after Lust disposes of him, she namedrops her Father; And with Father Cornello being his full title, there’s the obvious religious parallel. Then we see how Father (sans Cornello) is obsessed with God, and in the end these bookended villains, the first and final antagonists, are called ‘third-rate frauds’ by Edward Elric, who claims there’s no comparison between him and them.

You can see the comparison between Belos and Cornello, with Belos more explicitly being a figure of Christian colonialism; The Titan is worshipped by witches and demons, but also acknowledged as very dead and unable to speak or influence people. But Belos introduces the concept of Hell and Damnation to them, and treats the Titan as a higher deity similar to God; Not just for his own insincere purposes, but because his racist, colonial mind cannot grasp how another belief system works differently.

Rose has an existential crisis when everything is revealed, but eventually makes peace and finds a way to keep going. Similarly, we have the aforementioned Titan in TOH; It’s revealed that the Titan is just one of many, and that the Titans are just… people. They’re just people, very BIG people, but people nonetheless, and the show’s tritagonist King, Luz’s adopted little brother, is a juvenile Titan himself.

As King comes to terms with being the son of the Titan, he meets Steve, a former member of Belos’ cult who left and has his fair share of questions. Among them being the consideration that maybe even the Titan (God) doesn’t know what he wants, that Belos is putting words into someone else’s mouth, etc.

This is reiterated when Luz meets the (specifically, our) Titan, and sees firsthand that he really is Just Some Guy. So for FMA and TOH, there is a God of sorts, but not in the way as Christians would conceptualize it, which is intentional; Belos is canonically Christian, while Cornello and Father are meant to emulate Christians.

In 2003, it’s revealed Christianity used to exist in this universe, and that the city Dante came from practiced it; It also had witch trials that condemned innocents to die, with Dante and Hohenheim using these condemned lives as fodder for their Philosopher’s Stone experiments. Belos, as mentioned, is a historical witch hunter, with Gravesfield’s witch hunts meant to emulate the practices of another Puritan colony in the area, those of Salem…

Christianity is dead by the present, with Dante having outlived it; But she throws in cheeky references to it in how she names the Homunculi after the Seven Deadly Sins. At one point, she crucifies Lust as punishment, and the thing about Lust is that she was once a woman of color from a desert region (Remember 2003’s War on Iraq commentary?) brutalized by a predominantly white, America-inspired military as part of Evangelical delusion. But when she was remade, Lust turned out white, and is now a white figure being crucified…

Belos is also Christian, but much more devout than Dante (even if both are insincere by the end of the day); When he first began his genocidal plans, he had long brown hair, a beard, and blue eyes… As many have pointed out, in his youth, Philip Wittebane resembles the whitewashed depiction of Jesus Christ; And in the finale, he has the closest pose that a kids show can get away with to the crucifixion, as a symbol of his Messiah complex. The Puritans are the ancestors of the Evangelicals…

Of course, religion is not bad in these series; Scar and his fellow Ishvalans keep their religious faith. Scar has an existential crisis over his use of Alchemy, considering it heretical; His brother was a casual heretic, and his research into a Xingese form of Alchemy, dubbed Alkahestry, is revealed as the basis for Scar’s Alchemy. Scar decides to make an exception for his religion, applying Alkahestry to his other arm in order to give him a better chance at fighting.

At one point, Wrath denounces the Ishvalans’ religion, inviting God to strike him down in arrogance… When Scar fights him at the end, pure chance causes the sun, emerging from behind the eclipse, to reflect off of Wrath’s sword and blind him; It is an Act of God that gives the religious Scar the chance to use Alkahestry to tear off Wrath’s arms, causing him to bleed to death. And in the end, Scar gets to keep his religion.

Scar and his brother reconciling the use of Alkahestry with their religion seems to be a riff on Christians trying to reconcile their religion with science, with evolution, all of these things. But it could also be a historical reference to how a lot of scientists were Christians who saw no distinction, and believed their research to be a way of exploring God’s world, not countering his word; Gregor Mendel is the father of genetics and he was Christian.

FMA has a nuanced take on religion, not all bad or good, it really depends on how you engage with it because religious violence is just a veneer for the greed and cruelty of some. TOH agrees, pointing out that Belos’ use of Christianity is just to serve his own delusional hero complex, monster slaying fantasies, and hateful bigotry. Christianity in colonialism is an extension of colonialism, not the other way around.

You see this in the finale; The show makes a cheeky reference to Jesus Christ in how Luz dies to protect someone from Belos in the finale, before accepting the power of the Titan to come back to life and defeat him. Of course the Titan isn’t really God, Luz isn’t really Jesus; But when the Titan’s corpse is left in a pose mimicking Adam reaching out to God, it makes one reflect on Dana’s Catholic background.

So while she herself is no longer Christian, she seems interested in exploring Christianity as not all bad, as having a lot of good in it; She’s critiquing Evangelicalism and its punitive practices. But she seems to find respect in the healing, restorative aspects of Christianity; These sorts of disagreements are of course very Christian, if all of the denominations are anything to consider.

And this theme of Retributive vs Restorative justice isn’t just limited to the discussion of Christianity; Much of TOH is based in the idea of people who have been hurt or suffer, but choose to be better. It’s about not lashing out, but instead preventing others from suffering the same way you have, because suffering isn’t really good or healing or redemptive; You be better in spite of it, not because!

And you see this in how characters like Lilith or Amity become better people, not because of their suffering and loneliness that made them cruel, but because of the compassion of people like Luz reaching out to them. You see how they’re allowed to get better, and that while they are held accountable to the people they’ve hurt, they’re not supposed to be punished; Just given space to grow.

This also applies to Luz; The U.S. school system punished her a lot, but this did nothing to help Luz. And when she chooses to avoid its Reality Check camp, Luz finds healing in the Boiling Isles. When she feels guilt over being manipulated by Belos into giving him what he needed to take control of the isles and attempt genocide, Luz attempts to punish herself by staying in the human world, believing it was her selfishness that caused this.

But as with Eda, this does nothing but hurt herself, and hurt her loved ones who are isolated from Luz. Luz has to forgive herself, she has to heal, she has to resolve to do better and let herself be happy and even selfish at times.

The show beginning with Luz’s conflict with the school disciplinary system goes hand in hand with the introduction of the Boiling Isles’ Conformatorium, a harsh prison; And it’s later revealed both of these systems come from Puritanism. Puritanism/Evangelicalism is criticized for its emphasis on punishment, Belos focuses on the suffering of the crucifixion, while Luz represents the healing of the resurrection. As mentioned, prisons are abolished and replaced with hospitals.

FMA also has a similar sentiment; Multiple characters are Amestrian war criminals who helped commit genocide against the Ishvalan people. And in the end, they’re not allowed to wallow in self-pity, they don’t get the luxury of dying or killing themselves (not yet anyway); They’re held accountable, they’re expect to do the hard work of continuing to live, so they can give reparations to the Ishvalans, challenge their own system, and prevent more people from dying.

There’s a scene where Tim Marcoh, a doctor who feels guilt over using Ishvalan lives to create a Philosopher’s Stone, encounters Scar. He finds a brief relief in this, for a moment the shots frame him as a martyr bathed in white light, accepting holy judgment from Scar, who will absolve him…

And then it cuts to a very angry Scar, who is not a perfect, holy angel here to absolve Marcoh; He slams Marcoh against the cold hard concrete, knocking him down to reality and showing him to be the scared and pitiful man he actually is. And Scar demands answers, he demands help in his quest to help his own people. And so Marcoh doesn’t get to die, he has to live; He still loses his face to Scar as punishment, left hideous. But he’s expected to spend the rest of his life helping rebuild Ishval in repentance.

For TOH, it’s not nearly as terrible (since it’s a kids show) but it’s still there; Amity betrayed Willow, and while she had her reasons, while she really was stuck between a rock and a hard choice, she nevertheless owes it to Willow to be and do better for her, and that’s exactly what she does! Amity works to defend Willow and be a supportive friend again.

Hunter aided Belos, who devoured Palismen and endangered them; Now he carves Palismen and helps the Palistrom woods grow once more. Raine, Darius, and Eberwolf were all part of the coven system, but have since replaced it with a new one as they work to undo coven bindings, and eventually succeed. Alador used his technology for arms manufacturing, which contributed to the Day of Unity; His tech helps in undoing those aforementioned bindings.

Lilith was head of the Emperor’s Coven, but was ultimately a pencil pusher who never actually arrested any wild witches; Despite this, Lilith accepts that she’s complicit after seeing Eda almost be executed later that day, intending to use her position to prevent anything like this, in spite of her leigitimate fear of being killed by Belos. She’s ousted by Belos before she can ever do this, but Lilith ends up working with the rebellion to stop the Day of Unity, and genuinely offers to sacrifice her own life to sabotage the draining spell.

Lilith having guilt and needing to make up for it is also there; She accepts half of the curse to mitigate Eda’s due to being the one who inflicted it upon her, losing her own magic in the process. She brews a spying potion to apologize. And when Lilith offers to sacrifice herself against the draining spell, it’s also to spare Eda that burden, although Eda ultimately has to be the one. Despite having wasted most of her life, it isn’t over, there’s still plenty more years; It’s never too late for Lilith to begin anew with her mother Gwen, and find a new purpose and happiness.

FMA goes with the idea that it’s hard to live, it’s hard to keep going; Rose has no purpose but Ed tells her to keep going on her own two feet. Sloth, an extension of Father’s personality, finds constant agony in the work of living, and only finds peace in his final moments, knowing he’s about to die. Jerso and Zampano are resigned to having been transformed by the state into chimeras, but Alphonse encourages them not to give up and to keep trying.

In TOH’s final arc, it’s hard for Luz to forgive herself, to still want to keep going for her dream. She would rather punish herself and remain in depression over her guilt in being manipulated into giving Belos what he needed to create his regime and attempt genocide; But as her mother reiterates to Luz, she just needs to accept that mistakes are a difficult part of life, but that it’s still worth trying regardless.

As mentioned earlier, Raine does call off the murder-suicide against Darius and Eberwolf, not out of a moral quandary towards killing fascists, but because they realize Eda is essentially committing suicide; They see her photo of Luz and King, and pinpoint that Eda, feeling like she’s no longer needed in anyone’s life, has succumbed to despair. But these people still need her, Eda’s life matters too; Just as Al admonishes Ed for almost letting Scar kill him because Alphonse needs his older brother too.

The story does not end in Fullmetal Alchemist; The adventure keeps going with Ed and Al exploring two different directions of the world. Roy and his fellow war criminals are still working to change the government, with Arakawa even stating that she never did the conclusion to this, because the story is not about them, but about the Elrics. Jerso and Zampano journey with Alphonse to restore their bodies.

The Owl House also goes by this; Its ending shows there’s still plenty more work to be done in rebuilding the Boiling Isles, there’s still a looming threat out there in the Archivists. Dana herself said she doesn’t like the phrase Happily Ever After, in how it settles everything as perfectly settled and resolved.

Given both series involve a Rapture event, you can probably see the satire here; There is no great ending to life or history. Life keeps going, society keeps going, and you have to do your work to help yourself and others. You can’t just give up. Living is hard, but it’s worth it!

That also gets me into the aspect of working, of working with others, etc. Fullmetal Alchemist talks about Equivalent Exchange, and how to gain, you must sacrifice, and/or work for it. In 2003, this philosophy is deconstructed by Dante as libertarian bullshit (not that she’s any better), pointing to things like class inequality as her evidence. Despite this, 2003 believes in still trying, in still being kind to others, that sort of thing.

The main continuity builds off of this further; Ed and Al don’t get this type of Wake Up Call, but they come to the realization that you should still be gracious in general. Alphonse pitches a new Alchemical equation they’ve been coming up with; Where you take one, add one, and thus give two back. The idea is to give, to create more in the world, to be gracious. It’s not that people should just earn everything, that there’s a responsibility to be compassionate for its sake, and without any expectation of an equivalent return, if any.

Remember what I said about TOH, and how characters suffer but choose to be better and kinder? You can see this here; The show actually namedrops and criticizes capitalism via a literal pig who benefits from it, and in the character of Odalia (both of whom have their greed flourish under a coven system resembling America’s, started by the same settlers no less). People shouldn’t have to suffer, they shouldn’t have to work for and ‘earn’ things, sometimes you should give it to them anyway.

At the start of the series, Eda tells Luz that if she wants to achieve her dream, she needs to work for it; Similarly, Ed and Al have to work for their own dream as well.

But work isn’t just doing everything you can to accomplish a goal, because Father and Dante are villains for this, and they receive karmic fates. Belos is obsessed with his fantasy, to the point that he sacrifices his own brother for it, and dies pathetically, having wasted his entire life. Work is also about paying attention to the people around you, to the world around you; Giving back to it, giving back to them. It’s about uplifting the others around you, it’s about remembering the relationships you do have and maintaining them.

In 2003, there’s emphasis that the Elrics abandoned the relationships they already had with Winry and Pinako for their dream. For TOH, Luz can’t just have her head in the clouds all day, dreaming about fantasy; She needs to engage with the world around her, and only then can she achieve her dream. Her first spell comes from acknowledging that others and their dreams matter, too; The rest come from Luz paying attention to the literal world the Titan embodies.

Luz ultimately wants friends, she wants to reconnect with her mother and gets that. King realizes he doesn’t want power, he just wants friends; And in FMA this is what Greed, an extension of Father’s personality, comes to terms with before sacrificing himself to protect his friend Ling from Father, and allow Ed to deal the finishing blow.

So Work is a basic necessity; It’s not necessarily good, but it’s something you just have to deal with, like Life. But it can pay off in the end, and you can and should help others and spare them the Work, so they can also be happier at a lower cost; Give more to the world, ask not just what you can get from the world, but what you can give back.

Wanting things is not demonized, either; Too much is bad of course. But the appropriately-named Greed explains to Edward that everyone wants what they don’t have, and in the end, this willingness to dream and keep moving forward is important to growth and humanity. Likewise, Luz is allowed to want things, she thinks her problem is that she’s selfish, but her attempt to be ‘content’ with what she has just made her miserable. Sometimes you need to prioritize yourself, sometimes you need to reach out and find a better place, too!

And this is also important in challenging a corrupt system that tells you to be content; Even before the coven system is confirmed to be killing people, the narrative condemns it as needing to be changed anyway because of how it limits people. Luz and other kids in the Detention Track wanting to learn magic is good, them pursuing that leads to good change within their school.

As another similarity in how their stories end? Ed gets his arm back, Al regains his body, and they’re both surrounded by the many, many friends they’ve made, who earlier cheer on Ed when he defeats Father, an observation that gets Greed to admit this is what he really wanted. In the afterlife, Hohenheim is ecstatic to tell Trisha that their sons have made so many friends!

Luz’s story, the exact final moment and frame of the show, ends with her having made so many friends; Becoming a Chosen One was part of it, as was being a Good Witch. But this is the final note to end on, and we see the many relationships she’s surrounded herself with literally and figuratively, after the series began with her concerned mother asking Luz if she had any actual friends.

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clementine-thedestroyer · 9 months ago

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Aroura Borealis - König x reader - Part 1

Series master post- Read on Ao3

This is a multichapter fic so just to clarify, not all of these tags apply to this chapter (in fact, almost none of them do) but I do want to give people a heads up of what they're getting into, especially because this is a lot darker than my usual writing.

Part 1, part 2, part 3, part 4, part 5, part 6, part 7

Warnings/Tags: Fem!reader, eldritch!König, kidnapping, manipulation, gaslighting, violence, minor character death, end of the world, apocalypse/post-apocalypse, potential dub/non con. Dead dove, do not eat. It may not seem like it now but you've been warned. Based on/inspired by the Lemon Demon song by the same name. Alt summery: your boyfriend turns out to be an immortal being beyond your possible comprehension, but all he really cares about is making sure you're safe through the end of the world. /j but not really.

“Let’s take a month-long impromptu vacation we can’t afford to the Canadian Northern Territories.” Your boyfriend said.

“It’ll be fun,” He said.

You shouldn’t have agreed to this. You should’ve raised more questions at König’s sudden insistence to take a holiday.

But no, you’d let him bring you out here. You’d let him pack way too much for this trip. You’d let him convince you that he had the money for it. You’d let him take you somewhere so remote that you had to fly in to the closest “town” (town being a strong word for the small collection of buildings he’d shown you on google maps) on a bush plane, just to get some guy König knew from the military who knew the area to drive you up to the place you’d be staying. You let him do all of it. You’d pushed past your unease and just tried to enjoy yourself for once. And for a brief moment, everything had been fine. König had been right, you were just being weird about it.

The area was beautiful. The town was the only civilization for miles, and it was situated on the northern bank of a large, frozen river and surrounded from all other directions by boreal forest and rising mountains.

The buildings were a charming hodgepodge of styles, sizes, and colors. The rural, unplanned community was so different from the cookie cutter suburbs and high density urban areas you were used to.

The ground was covered in dense layers of snow- packed down into makeshift trails where people would walk from building to building or towards the tree line. The wind whipped across the flat, icy plane of the river, gathering speed and picking up tiny bits of snow and ice so when it hit your skin, it felt like a thousand tiny pinpricks all at once.

The people you met were lovely too. There was a small general goods type store towards the center of the town that König had directed you to go wait and warm up in while he talked to the guy he’d known from up here, and the elderly couple who ran it were sweet as could be. You’d bought a few basics for dinner and a cheesy little souvenir keychain from them. Not necessarily because you needed it, but because the couple who ran the store were as sweet as could be.

You chatted with the woman as she rang up your items, telling her about how König had decided to bring the two of you up here and listening when she tells you how during the summer, the cabins on the mountain side are rented out regularly for vacations, but that she’d never seen the owner rent one out during the offseason.

“Strange young man, that one.” She mutters, shaking her head and looking out the window at the man talking with König before turning back to the small register and punching in the code for a can of chili. “He’s lived up here for god knows how long and I hardly see him. Never heard him say more than a few words or take off that mask and sunglasses either.”

You frown, watching the König and the man talk outside for a moment.

It wasn’t snowing at the moment- although the locals had assured you that you’d probably be sick of the snow by the time you left- and König and the other man stood stiffly facing each other. König had his hands stuffed deep in his pockets and wore a tense expression towards the other that didn’t quite fit the narrative of “old military friend” he’d given you. The other guy seemed much less on edge- as he was leaning against the side of the bed of what you assumed to be his truck with his arms crossed loosely over his chest. He was shorter than König and wore a fabric face mask, hat, and reflective sunglasses like the ones you’d see at outdoor stores like REI or Bass Pro Shop.

König was wearing a face covering of sorts too- as was typical for him. You knew that, on the field, he almost always wore a sniper hood (he liked to keep his work separate from you- he tried not to let you see him in full gear or anything of the sort, but as far as you were concerned, the “sniper hood” looked like an old T-shirt with eye holes). But in public, it was usually just a disposable face mask. The cold had given him an excuse to switch it up a bit though, and he’d taken to wearing a hat and scarf- with one of the scarve’s loops done loose enough that it could be lifted up and over his nose and ears to cover the bottom of his face.

The two painted a stark contrast, with König wearing carefully chosen sets of layers under his windbreaker and snow pants and looking like someone properly dressed for the weather, with the other man wearing a dark leather bomber style jacket over what looked like no more than a sweater underneath.

It reminded you a bit of when you’d see how people from warmer places would dress for the cold as opposed to people from those areas- and you’d never admit it to König, but you did find it a bit funny.

König’s friends have always been a bit odd. The face covering isn't the most out of place thing you’ve seen among them. König, himself in fact, could probably be considered a bit odd. You’ve always just chalked it up to his military career.

Once the woman had rang up your things, you bid her farewell with a smile and promised to stop by again before you headed back home.

König had made quite a fuss about your purchases when you came back out, asking why you took so long and insisting that the cabin would already have everything you needed in it, and that there was no need for “backup canned chili”, as he called it.

He had seemed nearly glued to your side that day, always keeping you close by with a protective hand somewhere on you or directing you exactly where to wait for him as he sorted out issues. Hence, you being told to wait inside the store.

After finishing with his lecture on the backup chili, König sighed and took your hand, telling you to come meet the friend he’d told you about.

He starts to lead you toward the man and his truck, and as you get closer, you can see a heavy duty set of snow chains in the vehicle’s tires. When you get close to the man, König stops, pulling you tight against his side by your waist, introducing the man to you as Horangi.

For a moment, the man was silent. Simply looking you up and down before turning his head back to König.

“This is her?” He asked, not giving you so much as a second look.

You can’t see it, but you hear the rustling of his clothes as König nods his head in response. The exchange filled you with a mix of embarrassment at being spoken about like you weren’t present and awkwardness at the palpable tension between König and Horiangi.

Another second of silence passes and Horiangi gives you another look before stuffing his hand in his pocket and pulling out his keys.

“Alright. Get in.” He says, apathy audible in his tone. He pushes himself upright from where he’d been leaning against the side of his truck and turns around, walking around toward the driver's side without another word or glance.

The whole exchange had struck you as odd, but König simply patted your back, directing you towards the passenger door.

“Sorry, Schatz. He doesn’t get out much.” He says, giving you an apologetic smile before opening the passenger door of the truck and folding down the passenger seat.

You hold back a groan at the sight of a jump seat, knowing that you’ll be stuck in the undoubtedly cramped back seat for however long the drive is. You weren’t quite sure where you were expecting to sit, as the truck only even had two doors- and König certainly wouldn’t be the one climbing into the back, but the sight of the tiny, low to the ground bench seat was enough to make your legs ache just thinking about it.

You step one foot up onto the floor of the truck, using it as a step so you can squeeze through the small space left by the folded down front seat to get into the back.

You try your best to do so gracefully and not fall face first into the back, but König resting his hand on your lower back to steady you (and not at all just so he could slide his hand down towards your ass) startles you and makes you lose your footing, leaving you to slide into the back and land on your knees with a soft “oof” sound.

You shot König a small glare, not missing the smirk he fails to keep hidden- even with the scarf covering half his face.

Once you’re situated in the backseat with your seat belt buckled and your backpack handed to you, König sits the front seat back up, and you find yourself crammed into a space that’s really only meant to hold children. Leg room as a concept is nonexistent. The seat is only half a foot or so off the truck floor and there’s barely enough room for you to sit with your feet flat.

The drive had been long and quiet, but not uncomfortably so. Horangi seemed comfortable to focus on driving, navigating the snow covered roads expertly even as they wound and doubled back on themselves, and you were happy to just enjoy the scenery, watching through the window as spruce, firs, and pine trees- all with their beaches sitting heavy from the weight of snow- pass by.

Your legs ached to be stretched after sitting in such an uncomfortable position and you’d found yourself beginning to doze off during the drive. Not quite falling asleep, but leaning your head against the window frame and letting your eyes glaze over. The flight had taken a toll on you - flights, actually. Plural. Because first there was one just to get to Yellowknife, then there was another on a bush plane to actually get to the area. And the jet lag was, frankly, a bitch.

You were jerked out of your daze when the truck stopped and König reached back, using the shoulder of the driver's seat to brace himself, and you felt his hand envelop your shoulder as he gently shook you awake.

“Schatz, we’re here.”

You let out a groan, sitting up and waiting for König to fold forward his seat so you could get out.

Horangi had opened his door and gotten out the moment the car stopped, jerking the parking brake up and putting the car in park before yanking out his keys and tossing them in the cup holder, not bothering to take them with him. You stared at the keys for a moment, brow furrowing.

It was easily explainable enough. You were in the middle of nowhere, there was likely no one but you three for miles. But even then, Horangi leaving his keys in his truck made you do a double take.

Most people would’ve slipped them in their pocket out of habit at least- but maybe your and König’s presence was simply disruptive. It was clear that Horangi either wasn’t in the mood for other people, or König calling them two “friends” had been a stretch… or maybe it was you. You wouldn’t blame him for not wanting to be a third wheel.

Regardless, you got the sense that Horangi wanted to get the two of you settled as fast as possible, even if for no reason other than to get you out of his hair.

When König folded the front passenger seat down, you first helped to hand forward the stuff that’d been put in the backseat with you for the drive before climbing out- nearly falling on your face in the process, courtesy the burning in your legs from the cramped space.

Outside of the truck, you caught your balance and looked around. Horangi was nowhere in sight and König was already moving away from the car, walking towards a narrow path that cut through the conifers. You took it as a sign to follow, reaching down to pick up two bags from where they sat in the snow.

The area where the road ended was densely wooded with spruces and firs, and the fluffy snow that blanketed the ground was undisturbed aside from your little trios’ footprints and the truck’s tire tracks.

It was cold, but König had apparently known what he was doing as far as getting winter gear for you, because the temperature was manageable, despite the wind burning your face whenever you made the mistake of looking into it.

You’d hardly had the chance to take two steps before the bags you were carrying were plucked out of your hands, making you jump and yelp as you turn to see Horangi beside you.

You hadn’t heard him approaching- a feat considering how loudly the snow would crunch as anyone walked across it. You stood frozen for a moment, watching as he took the bags from you with no more than a grunt.

“You startled me-“ you said, trying to keep a stutter from your voice. “I didn’t hear you coming.”

“People usually don’t.” Horangi says, not giving you another look or a chance to respond before he starts down the trail.

You’re left standing there, staring at the space Horangi had disappeared to. The odd response left you drawing a blank.

You were really starting to think he didn’t like you… either that, or maybe you still weren’t used to the weirdness that came with König’s friends.

#did you read those tags?#good #maybe read them again #fem!reader #könig x reader #könig #könig call of duty #könig x you #konig x reader #könig cod

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justanotherfanfolks · 1 year ago

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Guys saw this post and it set off the part of my brain where Cater Diamond lives rent free.

@krenenbaker you inspired this.

Gosh, I wanna throw Cater under a microscope.

Like he is such a fascinating character, it's so sad that people just see him as the "social media character." I remember a few months after I got the game I was reading through his vignettes and he was just setting off the gears in my head. Especially his Halloween vignette. I've talked about it before, but it gives us so much insight into Cater. How he doesn't like letting people in and keeps everyone at arms length, even Trey. When Trey was a Starsender, he wouldn't tell him his actual wish. And he was the same before when they got visited by a previous Starsender the year before. Trey knows there's something about him, but he is Trey "But That's None of My Business" Clover so he never pries. He's the closest to Cater, but maybe that's what makes Cater so wary. And how when his mandrake threatened to pull down the curtain, he shoved it back, he changed the subject. We also almost never get Cater by himself. He's always surrounded by people, always performing. And it's hard to tell what he's thinking because he's always brushing stuff aside with a smile on his face. But his Halloween vignette is one where we actually get to see some cracks in that, we actually get a peek into his brain. He's scared of getting too close to people because every time he lets someone in, he has to leave. He clearly cares about the people around him, but he has a track record that prevents him from showing too much of that. And by extension, we as an audience don't get to see too much of who he is behind closed doors. We know he puts on a show, he doesn't like showing when things get to him. When he mentions moving around a lot, he doesn't mention the struggle of it out loud. He says he likes Magicam for the casual connections and how it helps him keep in touch with old faces, but in his vignette when he actually gets messages from one of these faces he doesn't want to engage. In Silver's Halloween vignette he says his life has taught him to live in the moment. But it also taught him to not get comfortable, to keep walls up. He didn’t even tell his dorm something as simple as how he doesn't like sweets for years. Back on Halloween, he watches Diasomnia with something like envy. How they can be there for each other, be close. How they couldn't understand. Not knowing how someone there actually can understand.

Book 7 spoilers mentioned:

I also have a side tangent about him being multifaceted and always blending into what he expects people want. In Book 7, Cater is the only one we see truly struggling with the internships. Like, it is painfully relatable, I feel so called out. We go around the Juniors and see them feeling confident in their plans and here Cater is with his head on a desk feeling more confused and uncertain the more people he talks to. He's spent so much time following what other people want, putting on a show, he doesn't know where to go now. Let's not even mention how this is the moment he knew was coming for the past 3 years: that inevitable goodbye. I feel like Cater could be so interesting for the conflict going on in Diasomnia, but I'm not sure if they'll use him.

Tangent closing: I really like Cater. He's really well written and I don't think he gets enough respect on that front. He gets really good dialogue lines, but he also gets so much more. To me, he's one of the best characters in the game.

I've said it before and I'll say it again, the Cangst is real people.

#twisted wonderland #twst #cater diamond #the Cangst is Real #i swear someone says cater and I break down their door with a whiteboard and a marker in hand #almost put this under the original post but I wrote too much #i need to learn how to articulate my thoughts better #spreading the catergenda

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lalal-99 · 2 years ago

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Slumber Party {b.c.}

©April 2023 by lalal-99

Bang Chan x fem. original character x afab!reader | trope: threesome, start of a throuple relationship, best friends to lovers | word count: 9k

Synopsis: Chan, Ash, Y/N. The perfect trio. Spending so much time together, people usually mistook you for a throuple. Not that you were complaining. Your best friends were hot, your past sexual encounters with each of them the subject of most of your dreams. All it takes is one fateful night and a bunch of Tequila to finally make that dream a reality.

Warnings: explicit content | alcohol consumption | dni if your under 18

Note: I had this story idea a while ago but didn't think I was ready to write it how I wanted it. But then I thought, if I don't write it, then who will? Anyway, enjoy, and leave lots of feedback please :) This was inspired by Slumber Party by Ashnikko.

Taglist: @shincode @skzho @bubblelixie @flakywig @itsallaboutkey @avyskai @mekuiikore @joonghands @changbiddies0325 @knowleeknow @sensitiveandhungry @svintsandghosts @keellzzzz

Tumblr works on a reblog system. Please consider reblogging this post so that it can reach more people. Thank you :)

Please don't flag as mature or repost this story - Thank You!

A bottle of Tequila.

A bad-bitch playlist in the background.

Truth or Dare.

What else could a girls’ night need?

Maybe some more girls to play with, but you were perfectly content with just your best friend. She was everyone you needed for a good time anyways. Had been for years. Your girl, your soulmate, in the most platonic sense.

You met at university on the third day of your third year. After placing identical coffee orders at the store next to the library, you thought meeting each other that way was a coincidence. And when you found out that both of you were going to the same concert later that night and lived mere minutes apart, coincidence turned into destiny.

She started dating your childhood best friend Chan after you had introduced them at some party, though that didn’t terminate your friendship; if anything, it deepened it even further. It wasn’t just you and her who grew closer afterwards. All three of you started hanging out more; similar interests and life paths seemingly connected you for years after graduating.

Chan, Ash, Y/N. The perfect trio. Spending so much time together, people usually mistook you for a throuple.

None of you cared about how people portrayed you. You didn’t listen to the rumours on campus depicting all three of you in sexual scenarios. Perhaps it would have been different had you ever been in serious relationships. Considering all you ever got caught up in were mindless flings or the occasional one-night stand, the strictly platonic relationship with your two best friends was the closest thing you had to a romantic bond.

“What happened to that guy from Friday? Yeonjun? You seemed to get along well enough.”

That was truly an understatement. The man in question had talked to you for no more than 5 minutes before you stuck your tongue down his throat. He was cute and kind enough. Though other than his name and the address of his apartment, where you went, once you decided a club bathroom was too shabby even for you, you knew nothing about him.

“The usual. We went to his apartment. Did it like 4 times,” you answered, rolling around on your best friend’s mattress and stuffing your mouth full of chips.

“So, I can put the best-maid outfit back on the hanger?”

You laughed at Ash’s joke, shaking your head. “Might as well burn it while you’re at it.”

“Oh, come on! You’re gonna find someone eventually.”

It wasn’t so much a question of finding someone. You had plenty of options. Although you weren’t sure if you ever wanted to have more than a few nights with anyone. It got boring too quickly for you to stick to anyone for longer than a few months. By now, you weren’t sure you’d ever find someone you could be with forever.

Monogamy? More like Nonogamy.

“Honestly, I don’t think I’m made for this one person for the rest of my life thing. If I did, I’d probably be married to San by now.”

You and San had dated for a year – needless to say, the longest relationship you ever had. A few months prior, you had decided that being tied down wouldn’t do it for either of you. You had even tried an open relationship, though he seemed to get jealous more than he saw the advantage of the whole thing. So, back to square one, it was.

“Your turn,” you announced, turning to face your friend. “Truth or dare?”

“Dare.”

You thought for a second, taking another swig from the Tequila. You had shared about half of it, the alcohol finally taking over your mind. It made you more daring, the little amount of shyness you still felt around your best friend settling.

“You mentioned something spicy you purchased for your anniversary with Chan.” Ash nodded at your words, a smirk overtaking her face. “I dare you to show me!”

She bit her lip, embarrassed redness taking over her cheeks.

“You really want to see?”

“Come on now! I’m curious what he’s into.”

It took Ash longer than usual to get off the mattress before she stumbled to her dresser. She rummaged through the hangers, eventually pulling out a pastel pink bag. Holding it out, you took it, inspecting its content curiously.

The first item you pulled out was a white two-piece set of panties and bra, though neither of the parts was made of much fabric. The bra part was technically just two triangle-shaped cups with small cushions at the bottom, causing a push-up effect. A thick band connected the two pieces, reaching just above the belly button. Letting the panties run through your fingers, you noticed just how little material it was made of. And the lace was something else.

With wide eyes and a taunting look, you threw your best friend a smirk.

“Girl. He’s gonna go wild!”

“You think so?” Ash questioned as she pulled out the second set, turning towards her mirror and holding it to her body. It was almost an exact replica of the garments in your hands, though the colour was more of a rosé tone.

“I know so,” you assured her, watching her twirl before looking at you through the mirror.

Maybe you shouldn’t have, but with her big doe eyes staring at you, you couldn’t help imagining her wrapped in the item. Biting the inside of your cheek, you felt heat arise inside your body, soon reaching your collarbones and neck.

Before you could think again, you had already opened your mouth, “Wanna try them on?”

“Only if-” Ash turned to you, expression bright as if she had waited for you to suggest a fashion-show sorta thing, “Only if you try the other.”

You nodded with a smile, agreeing with her suggestion. “Sure, why not?”

Bottom lip wandering between her teeth, you tried ignoring the rush of blood running through your body as she pulled her shirt over her head, exposing her perfectly shaped breasts to you. It took everything in you to hide how quickly your mouth started watering. There was no doubt in your mind that her boobs would fit your hands perfectly.

Dang, that alcohol was a backstabbing bitch.

Taking off your shirt, you slid the bra over your chest, fixing it in the back with a skilled movement.

Next were the panties, both of you sliding into them simultaneously, all while watching each other out of the corner of your eyes. Knowing your best friend was as excited about it as you were, was soothing. Even if her reason was far less selfish than yours.

At least as far as you could tell.

“I think yours came with garters,” Ash suddenly remembered, scrambling through her drawer again before pulling out the two strings of fabric. She threw them at you with a chuckle, watching you as you swiftly slid them up your naked thighs. They sat slightly too tight, though you figured it was intentional, so they would stay up. “Fuck, you look amazing!”

“Ditto.”

You watched each other for a few seconds, your eyes wandering over her chest to her stomach and legs. The rosé colour of the panties and bra perfectly accentuated her skin tone and innocent face. She looked straight out of a Playboy. Or Playgirl, for that matter. Any gender would find her attractive; you were sure of it and felt it in your veins.

Ash noticed your fixed gaze, turning around with just a hint of pink on her cheeks. Your tongue clicked at that, tasting a hint of mutual arousal in the current situation. Perhaps that was more wishful thinking than reality, so you decided to test your theory.

As she watched herself in the mirror, hands wandering over her naked skin, you crawled across the mattress before taking a seat at the end of it.

“Do you remember Jisung-ie’s 21st birthday party?”

Her eyes found yours through the mirror, tongue running over her bottom lip as she nodded. “How could I forget?”

“Well, we weren’t exactly sober. Some might say we were too hammered to know what we were doing.”

“I wasn’t.” Agreeing with her, you let your gaze wander over her butt to her ponytail. She looked stunning, beautiful, and anything in between. Tasty. You quickly pushed that objectifying thought back, not letting it mess with your head too much. “Were you?”

“Not enough to not know what I was doing. Or want it, anyways.”

Silence fell upon you, covering you in a thick veil of mutual uncertainty. This wasn’t exactly how you had expected the night to progress, though you didn’t hate the excitement in your body. It was like playing with fire while surrounded by gasoline. A small move could have been enough to set the situation alight.

“Truth or dare,” Ash spoke up after a while, tip-toeing towards you as she sat onto her mattress. Mere centimetres separated you, your chest flushed by the proximity of naked skin.

“What?”

“It’s your turn. Truth or dare?”

You pondered for a second before answering, “Truth.”

The smile tucking at the corners of her mouth made your heart leave out several beats. She looked so innocent in the pink tone of her ‘clothing’, exciting you like you had barely been before.

“Who’s a better lover? Chan or me?”

Eyes widening at her question, you swallowed hard in realisation. She knew. Chan had told her, and now she knew. This revelation caused a handful of questions to arise. Like, how long had she known? Why wasn’t she jealous? And did the thought of you with her boyfriend excite her as much as it did you?

“He-” With a dry throat, you barely got a word out, your tone scratchy. You quickly grabbed the bottle, chugging down a burning mouthful as you pondered how to phrase your thoughts delicately. “He told you?”

“Nuh-uh,” she replied, leaning back against her arms. “My question first.”

You and Chan had happened years back. You were both 18, horny, and virgins long enough to finally want to get it over with. So, being best friends since kindergarten, it only made sense to do it together. Seeing as you trusted one another and had an open enough relationship to be able to talk about it. Express your thoughts and walk the other through what you liked.

It was a rather uncomfortable memory. Neither of you knew what you were doing. You had tried blowing Chan – though unsuccessfully so – as you accidentally bit him. And he had taken forever to finish you off. Not to say that you didn’t in the end. You had never regretted sleeping with him, though it had made your friendship somewhat awkward for some time.

Ash and you, that was a whole other thing. Both of you had experience, though never with another woman. It had happened at Jisung’s birthday party after everyone else had gone home. The two of you had shared a bed, or rather a couch, intoxication driving you to eventually confess to having fantasised about being with the same sex. All it took was the right person to come along to help you explore your sexuality.

Naturally, you had ended up exploring each other. And you had found so much pleasure in each other that it followed you wherever you went for months. You had been just as inexperienced as with Chan, though more realistic about your abilities.

Both memories you thought about occasionally, finding pleasure in either of them. Still, having been with no other woman since then, despite finding just as much arousal in that part of your sexuality, Ash had found her way into your inner eye many more times.

“I don’t-”

You were cut off by the beauty before you, “Yes, you do!”

“Fine,” you gave in, finger playing with the string around your thigh, “I guess being with you was somewhat more exciting. But that had nothing to do with either of you doing better. You both had convincing arguments.”

“Interesting.”

Before Ash could reply to your revelation, you spoke up again, “Your turn. Truth or dare?”

“Truth.”

“How did Chan react? When you told him about us, I mean.”

You imagined your best guy friend to become somewhat jealous upon hearing about his best girl friend and his girlfriend having had any sexual experience with each other. Even though it had happened months before the two of them eventually got together, you imagined he would be somewhat uncomfortable with that thought. Especially since you had been very open about finding out about your bisexuality.

“He almost burst when I told him.” You nodded understandingly, seeing him having a whole tantrum. He wasn’t the easiest to anger, but this must have enraged him. “He also nutted super hard when we had sex later that day.”

Your eyes widened upon hearing those words, “He did?”

That Chan hadn’t been as mad as you had expected him to be filled you with more unanswered questions. Why didn’t he hate the thought of his girlfriend being with his best friend? Was he aroused by the two of you together? Or had his fantasy gone wild, thinking about you doing his girlfriend in front of him – possibly alongside him?

“You’re his best friend, you already had sex with him, and you’re beautiful. There’s no way he didn’t think about all of us together after I told him.” That only proved your suggestion.

“And that doesn’t make you uncomfortable?”

“Are you kidding me?” The disbelief on her face contradicted any hesitation she had felt before. As though what you had suggested was unbelievable. “I’m the first one to hop in on a potential threesome. You and Chan in one bed with me? Sounds like heaven, if you ask me.”

Your eyes met, your chest rising with every deep breath you took after her revelation.

It was pure respect for Chan stopping you from listening to your heart at that moment. And maybe some fear of what a possible night with your two best friends would do to your friendship.

You found both of them extremely hot. That wasn’t the problem. Nor was your willingness to spend a night with them. This constellation sounded like the one thing that could answer all your questions. Most importantly, your suspicion that monogamy might not be for you. The ticket out of the boredom you felt whenever you slept with someone more than a handful of times. But you also understood it could terminate your strong bond with Chan and Ash on the spot.

Your heart wanted this; it wanted the possibility of an epiphany. Disclosing if this sort of thing was endgame for you. But your brain didn’t budge, telling you it was a mistake. It told you it was wrong even when Ash leaned in, nose brushing against yours. It begged you not to connect your lips as your eyes were drawn to them.

“Say something, Y/N.”

When Ash had found the confidence to look at you this way, eyes eating you up, running down your body and back to your own, you couldn’t tell. She seemed much more reserved and nervous when you first put on that see-through set of lingerie.

Not much of that hesitation was left now.

“What about Chan?”

A smirk played on her lips as she widened the distance, grabbing her phone from behind her. You couldn’t control your gaze wandering down the length of her half-naked body, watching her spine arch as she sat back up, holding the item up.

“He’s only one call away. Probably gaming with Minho, two apartments down.”

It seemed like a blessing and a curse that Chan’s best friend lived right next door. And the thought of calling him was tempting, almost as much as the plumpness of Ash’s lips, curling up into a smirk before wandering between her teeth. Her eagerness was overwhelming, the curve of her ass begging you to grab it, that your brain malfunctioned for merely one second.

You eventually found yourself nodding at her question. Intentionally or not wasn’t a question that concerned you right now.

Her gaze left you, your eyes focused on her as she started typing before setting her phone onto the bedsheet between you. Raising her eyebrows, she nodded towards the screen as you followed her.

Ash had typed mere three words, check marks turning blue after a few seconds, confirming that Chan had read them.

Whatever his thoughts were, there was no turning back now. Either he approved, or he didn’t. And all that because of three words that sounded almost too easy.

10:23 PM: Eating out Y/N – Ash

So easy, but also easily explainable if Chan didn’t like the thought. Ash could tell him she had missed one word, and the text would be soon forgotten. Eating out with Y/N. Easy enough.

Nevertheless, the words excited you to the point you swore your heart almost gave out. Just the thought of Ash’s lips on you sent your heart into overdrive, your breathing shallow as you awaited an answer from Chan.

Your eyes fixed on the phone as though you’d miss his answer if you blinked. You didn’t want to miss the reply for anything, the sound coming from the front door only a minute after she had sent the text making both your heads snap towards the bedroom door.

Mere seconds later, the door was thrown open. An out of breath Chan searched the room and found the two of you sitting in the bed. The same bed they had shared many nights before.

When he scanned the two of you, the position you were in and the clothes you wore, it finally dawned on you that this scene was less simply explainable. You were wearing lingerie, almost naked, and you felt the tension; In the literal and the metaphorical sense.

Chan took a few more moments to speak up, throat dry from… anticipation. Maybe? Hopefully?

“You- Wow!”

Looking between the two of you, Chan became aware of how close you were seated to each other. His gaze lingered on your exposed chest for a few seconds before finally being dragged away and towards his girlfriend, swallowing.

“You texted me.” Finally calming down as he understood, nothing had happened yet, he searched her frame for an answer. For all he knew, Ash could have mistakenly written him. Though, from his expression, you knew he wished for something else. That she meant it. Wanted it.

“I did?” Ash played innocent, hand coming to your thigh, running over the skin and causing goosebumps as you shivered. “What about?”

“You were-” Cutting himself off, Chan looked at you. “I didn’t misread that, did I?”

He took his phone out of his pocket, checking the text she had sent him. A grin spread on her lips as she watched his confused face, searching hers for an answer.

“Oh, yes. I guess I did write you.” Fingers running further up your thighs in deep thought, you bit your tongue not to moan at the mere touch. It felt like your skin was on fire, burning your body and the moment into your brain. “Y/N and I were talking. Do you remember what happened at Jisung’s 21st birthday party? When Y/N and I slept on his pull-out?”

“I- I do,” Chan answered quicker than you had expected, revealing that he had thought of the same thing within the past few minutes.

“And remember when I told you about it? How you almost busted at the mere thought?” Swallowing hard, Chan looked at you for a second, debating whether to answer before doing so anyway. This moment was too tempting for him to deny the embarrassing effect your one night with Ash had on him. He was only a man, nodding once he figured that agreeing would give him more than it would take. “Do you want that fantasy to become reality?”

“I- I-” You had never seen Chan stutter so much in the almost 20 years you knew him. He must have really been anxious about this. Or for this to happen, maybe? “Y/N?”

“Oh, Y/N’s perfectly fine with it. Aren’t you, baby?”

Catching Ash’s sight, you nodded, taking a deep breath when she leaned in, eyes on your lips before she finally closed the space after what had felt like hours. You closed your eyes, enjoying the feeling of her lips against your own, her sweet taste mixed with the Tequila as intoxicating as can be.

As she moved against you, her hand came to your neck to keep you steady, your heart palpitating out of rhythm. She must have felt it at your neck, the vein pounding against her fingers, so she drew away, throwing you a questioning look. You understood she was asking you if you were still with her, so you became active and closed the gap again. Your own hand met her shoulder as you pulled her towards you.

The moan from Chan took you out of the moment, a stupid grin on both your faces as you looked over at him. It was unmistakable that he didn’t know what to do; what his role in this scene was. So you moved apart, patting the space between you.

With both of you still clad in that dang lingerie, the whole scene could have been straight out of a porno movie. One of the good ones, with years’ worth of plot.

Chan closed the door behind himself, muscle memory taking over as his brain couldn’t be trusted. He took the spot between you, hands unsteady as he looked from one side to the other.

“Babe?”

“Huh?” Ash chuckled at his intense reaction speed, hand coming to his cheek to get him to focus. Chan was on edge, tipping over any second if one of you were to make the wrong – or in this case, right – move. So much was clear.

“Relax, okay?” He nodded, though from his fingers anxiously fiddling in his lap, you knew he’d need more confirmation than that.

Ash seemed to get Chan just as well, leaning in and planting her lips onto his. You noticed Chan relaxing on impact, hands now stilling their erratic movement.

You watched them kiss for a few seconds, your hand coming to his thigh as Ash dragged it there. She wanted you to join the fun, guiding your fingers along the thick muscle. Her action was met with gratitude, as you otherwise wouldn’t have participated at all.

After a few moments of intimacy between the couple, Ash pulled Chan off her, tilting his head towards you by his chin. He took the hint, inching in closer, his eyes drawn to your lips before they finally tumbled upon meeting. You did, too, a breathy sigh leaving your mouth as though his kiss breathed energy back into you.

Ash’s grip on your hand didn’t falter as she interlaced your fingers with hers, running higher up his leg. Soon enough, your hands met the visible tent in his sweatpants, softly running over the length of it. Memories of his size came flooding back as you touched him, having caused you some discomfort the first time you had been with him. Been with anyone.

Years ago, when you had lost your virginity to the same man you were presently palming, he had been so careful not to hurt you. Today, you knew you could take him better. You had been with many men since then, your body learning to adjust to someone his size. Excitement filled you as you imagined showing him how much you had learned over the years.

You noticed Ash peppering Chan’s neck with kisses while guiding your hands around him, setting the pace and pressure. He seemed to like it, moaning and whimpering into your mouth whenever you stroked him a little harsher. It didn’t surprise you to learn that he liked it rough.

When he pulled away from you after what had felt like minutes, his cheeks were tinted an innocent pink, a smile spreading over his face to his eyes.

“Can you-” Sobbing at one particularly harsh stroke, he collected himself before looking back at his girlfriend, “Can you kiss again?”

Smiling at you, Ash’s second hand came to your chin, pulling you in. Your lips met right before his eyes, a whine escaping him at the combined stimulation from his view and your hands on him. You couldn’t help thinking this must have been even better than any of his fantasies. For you, it was anyways.

Ash nibbled at your bottom lip, pulling on it every few seconds to catch your gaze with a wink. She was so enticing – almost toxically so – you could barely take your eyes off her. If Chan hadn’t been here, capturing just as much of your attention, you would have been all over her already.

When she threw a side-eyed look at her boyfriend, your eyes finally left her, a smirk dancing over her features as your tangled hands ran up his body, pushing him to lay flat on the mattress.

“Y/N, baby, why don’t you give him a little show? Show him some of what you learned since the last time.”

Call it telepathy, but you instantly understood what she was referring to. Chan must have told her about the awkward experience when you had tried sucking him off all those years ago. Being best friends for years, she had also heard how well those particular skills had developed. Not that you had a reputation for giving good blowjobs, but you had certainly been given your fair share of compliments over the years. You didn’t know when, but you must have let that information slip to her at some point.

Dragging Chan’s shirt over his head, Ash exposed his chest to you, all your movements stopping in their tracks.

Now, he had been well-built back then. He had always had a swimmer’s body through and through. It startled you at 18 and did the same to you today.

Your eyes followed Ash’s fingers as she let them glide down his shoulders, between his pectoral muscles and down to his abs. That dang six-pack – or rather eight-pack – he barely let show under other circumstances. On the occasional pool day, sure. But you had always been around other people then. You couldn’t have possibly admired his body for what it was then.

Chan’s body was handcrafted by the Gods and hours at the gym. A dangerous combination you hadn’t seen elsewhere. Chan and Ash together were a true sight to see, eyes locking as her fingers raked over his naked skin. And you were the one at the receiving end of it. Whatever reason that was for.

It took you a moment to comprehend that – yes, this was really happening – for you to travel back to the present. Getting off the bed and settling between Chan’s thighs, your fingers experimentally circled his abs, memorising their respective shape and location for future reference. Chan gasped at the coldness of your fingers, eyes finding yours once they ran further down, teasing the hem of his sweatpants. Lust filled her every fibre as you didn’t mind Ash following your every move. If anything, it spurred you on further. You now had an audience other than Chan, who was at the receiving end of your attack.

“Fuck, you look so pretty like that, baby.”

Ash’s words made you smile, pride filling your motions. If you wanted to show them your abilities before, you were dying to have them watch you now.

Delicately, you dragged down his sweats with help from the man himself, taking your sweet time in undressing him.

Even through the fabric of his boxer briefs, Chan looked painfully hard. Keeping your eyes locked with his, you put your lips against his right thigh, agonisingly slowly dragging them further up. You left a wet trail of saliva on his skin, hands following your mouth until you reached his briefs.

“Fuck me,” Chan groaned, throwing his head back against his girlfriend when you licked a stripe up his length over the fabric. Ash pulled his head up, positioning it against her chest.

“Keep your eyes on her, babe. She’s doing you a favour here. Might as well honour her properly.”

You ignored her words meant for someone else, instead letting your fingers reach under the last piece of Chan’s clothing. Giving him an innocent smile with your lip wandering between your teeth, you finally rid him of the constraint, cock slapping against his stomach once freed.

It was right then that this moment finally reached your brain. You finally understood what was happening. You were having sex. Your two best friends and you. And if you weren’t doing it now, you were about to. So close, you could almost taste him. Taste her. Their combined atmosphere.

The air was thick, like a veil hanging over your mind. It was hot, too. So hot your bodies were coated in sweat despite having done almost nothing. Nothing but kiss them. Your best friends. The two people that should have been the most platonic of relationships you had.

Still, you were kissing them like you wanted them. Needed them. And you did.

This moment would go down in your personal history – the story of your life, if you will – as your sexual awakening.

The first taste of Chan made you moan. An overall saltiness covered his shaft, his pre-cum coating him and his boxer briefs. Chan groaned when you touched him, finally touched him, where he had needed you most. The first true relief he got from his overall arousal made him long for more of both of you.

Ash was right there with you, hands on him, mouth sucking on his neck while her eyes were focused on you. Her gaze burned into the top of your head as you licked all over him, from base to tip, coaxing him to tell you what he wanted. You needed to hear it from him, her, anyone, really. Ash seemed to understand your longing for approval.

“Tell her what you want her to do, babe.”

Honestly, in the one or two times your mind had wandered to this moment – imagining a dimension in which you were with them rather than by their side – you hadn’t imagined Ash to take over control as she did now.

She wasn’t the most open person, her upbringing of always having to behave prim and proper sending a tint to her cheeks every time someone even mentioned something slightly raunchy. The woman watching you sucking her boyfriend off, urging him to talk to you while you did, was someone else. She seemed like a different person, curiosity getting the best of her.

“Please, Y/N.” Chan was begging, digits coming to your cheeks as he ran his thumb across your jaw. “Make me feel good. Take me in. All of me.”

And all of him, you took.

After years of training, blowing almost every man you had been with, you knew just what to do to make him see stars. You moved slowly but purposefully, coaxing him to his release as though this was a competition. As though you wanted to break some record.

“Fuck-” Chan cursed, hands tangling in your hair as he guided you around his length. As much as you let him, that was.

You wouldn’t let him take over completely, some of the control staying on your side as you didn’t let it go. Didn’t want to let it go.

You wanted him to go crazy, and giving him control would stop you from providing one crucial part of the experience. The suspense. The not knowing where you’d go next. When you’d wrap lips around his head, sucking. Or when you’d deep throat him, hollowing your cheeks around him.

You did all that but tried surprising him with a rhythm. A pattern, driven by no more than your imagination. As much a surprise to you as to him. Whatever felt right at that moment, always overwatched by his girlfriend, providing hints on what to do, guiding you through some of it as she knew what he liked. How to make him feral.

You had no doubt that she knew what he liked and how he preferred it. Her words stirred you on – harder, kitten licks, take more, less – having you obey wherever she led you. Like she was in control over your mind even more than you were. And that, she was. She was in control and dominant, but not exclusively so. That became very clear, her mind slipping when Chan put his hand around her neck, squeezing some while running his lips over Ash’s neck.

This whole thing seemed crazy, straight out of a porno. You sucking off Chan while he peppered his girlfriend with sexual advances. Some might have become jealous of how she and not you were on the receiving end of his touches. She deserved to participate every bit as much as you. Maybe even more, for letting you, another woman, pleasure her boyfriend. Her best friend, but a woman, nonetheless.

Swallowing around Chan’s length, you felt his thighs tense below your digits. He was close, so much was evident. Though Ash seemed to have other plans than letting you finish him off.

She pulled you off him and towards herself, knees leaving the ground as your lips met in a heated kiss. This kiss, other than the ones before, was filled with less caution. She wanted you, wanted to feel you, cherish you, have as much of you as Chan had.

“Fuck, you’re so hot.” Whoever Chan was referring to, it didn’t matter. It was probably the two of you together, making out heatedly above him, giving him a sight for months.

Ash sucked on your lip, almost drawing blood from how needy she was for you.

“Let me taste you.” As though you had read her mind.

She guided you onto the bed, laying you beside her boyfriend, higher up towards the headboard. Chan was never far, following you like a lost puppy, hoping for a front-row seat to the show.

Smiling at you, Ash crawled over your body, towering above you as though she was so much bigger than you. Right now, she seemed to be anyways. She leaned in to peck your lips, slowly trailing her path down your neck. Kissing over the junction of neck and face, you rolled your head back against the mattress, eyes closed at her overpowering movements.

Your skin was on fire, burning to your flesh wherever she touched you. Her lips were on your chest, hands on your waist, and one of her legs between yours, so your whole body was going up in flames below her. When she slipped further down your frame, lips suddenly circling to your hipbones, you thought your soul evaded you.

Slowly dipping her hands below your garters, letting them snap against your skin in short, piercing stings, you noticed Chan watching the scene before him. You grabbed his hands, bringing them to your upper body, for the first time touching him without Ash’s supervision.

You felt Ash’s tongue over your navel as you guided Chan’s hands to cup your breasts. He seemed unsure, gaze searching for Ash to get her approval, though she was occupied otherwise. So, he merely laid himself beside you, on his side, for better access to you. With one hand still on your breast, fumbling with the straps, he connected his mouth with yours.

You hummed in his mouth as the combined touches quickly drove you crazy. When Ash pulled your – or rather her – panties to the side, licking a slow stripe up your folds, you stopped in your tracks.

Most of your previous partners had known how to go down on you well enough. They had understood the main anatomy of it all. Where to lick, what to prod. Still, none of them had ever understood it as well as Ash seemed to. The last, previously only time you had been together, you had gone down on her. Had you known just how skilled she was at it, you would have asked for retaliation then and there.

With Chan’s fingers circling your nipples and Ash’s mouth on your clit, sucking lightly before kitten-licking over it, you would not last long. So much was clear. It also didn’t help that they communicated with each other, driving you to insanity in unison. They synched their every movement, providing you with so much constant and unfaltering pleasure that all you could do was lay there and let them.

Your body was trembling already, kissing Chan becoming more of an inactive action. How could you have properly kissed him back when they were working wonders on you?

When Ash’s fingers came into play, knocking against your entrance, it became too much.

You threw your head against the mattress, a low growl escaping your lips as Chan moved in, kissing over your chest. His lips engulfed your nipples in a warm, wet hug as his girlfriend continued to lick you in a perfect rhythm, your heart palpitations adapting instantly.

“Fuck!” Seemingly, the only word that was left in your foggy brain.

Usually, you directed your partners, telling them what to do and how to better their performance. None of it was necessary, as both of them just knew. Knew what you liked. Knew how you liked it. Knew your body like their own. That’s what it felt like, at least. Like all of you were on the same page, written in the very same font.

Soon enough, Ash found your spot, rubbing her digits against it to the beat of your heart. It filled you with a need for release. You had been trying to hold back on moaning, unsure how much their walls could take before they’d get complaints. Though, with the amount of pleasure coursing through you, you couldn’t control your sounds anymore.

Groans tumbled over your lips, muffled only by Chan’s mouth on yours.

“You sound so good. Music to my ears.”

His confession somewhat went by you as too much else was on your mind to focus on and properly take it in.

“I think she’s close,” Chan warned his girlfriend, who gave your clit one last kiss before withdrawing. Your mind cleared of the fog, eyes hazily opening while looking down at your two partners. “Welcome back, baby.”

You smiled at Chan and the nickname they had chosen for you, running your hands over your face as you tried to regain composure.

“This is a good angle on you.” Ash grinned up at you, chin moist from your arousal, so she wiped it off.

“I would like to note that this is better than any of my dreams.” Another confession from Chan you didn’t know how to react to, though you didn’t need to act on it. Ash took over, pushing her boyfriend onto his back to lie flat against the mattress.

“Are you ready for the grand finale?”

Whatever she had in mind, her expression told you it would be good.

“Y/N, why don’t you take a seat?” Nodding towards Chan, you quickly understood her intention, cheeks reddening as you crawled over to him. Ash gave you a hand as you positioned yourself over Chan’s length, under constant supervision of the man himself, before guiding you onto him.

It took you a couple of seconds to fit all of him, carefully moving as you adapted to his size. It had been a while since you had anyone close to it, so they patiently waited for you to be comfortable.

Pressing a kiss to your lips, Ash pulled you off once you gave her the go, pushing Chan back into you until he bottomed out. He hit spots inside you no one had ever done before; it almost felt like he was right there, tip kissing your cervix. Without the comforting kisses from Ash, you probably would have given up already.

After about a minute of riding him, slow and steadily guided by Ash’s delicate fingers, you had gotten entirely used to Chan. Smiling warmly at you, Ash gave you one last kiss before letting go of you.

She tongued over Chan’s abs, licking her way up his beautiful body. You could tell from the way his Adam’s apple bobbed that he was overwhelmed by the joined stimulation from the two of you. Somehow, knowing he wasn’t doing any better than you made you feel better about yourself. It reminded you that all of you were in this together; them just as much virgins to this as you.

As you slowly bobbed on Chan, steadying yourself by his hips, Ash finally landed at his face, planting a heated kiss onto his lips, their tongues slipping into each other’s mouths. The sinfulness of it all urged you to move faster as you leaned forward to feel his pelvis rub against your clit.

You couldn’t believe there could be more stimulation for your arousal, though you figured you were wrong once Ash took a seat on Chan’s face. Her excited gaze met yours as she sank onto his waiting tongue, moaning when he moved it against her. Holding herself up on his torso, Ash was close enough to kiss you, moaning into your mouth when her boyfriend’s hands wrapped around her thighs, pulling her closer. How he wasn’t suffocating was a mystery.

You brought one hand to Ash’s breasts, pulling the cups of her bra down and playing with them as she was brought closer and closer to her release. She seemed to close in on her impending orgasm unbelievably fast, considering she hadn’t been as involved in your ministrations previously. Until now, she had taken a guiding role, comparable to the narrator of your favourite erotic novel. No doubt, the dominance slipped out of her grip as she was stimulated beyond belief by hands and tongues all over her body.

Wriggling her hand from underneath her, she let it wander up your arm towards your neck, pulling you closer to kiss you deeper.

The occasional moan escaped her plump lips as you tasted her strawberry lipgloss mixed with your juices. When Chan’s tongue hit a particular speed, lapping at his girlfriend like a man starved, Ash lost her cool, throwing her head back into her neck. You seized the opportunity to connect your mouth to her neck, sucking at the tender flesh.

“Fuck…”

Now it was her turn to be overwhelmed, her body spasming under the touch of your hands and lips. Chan didn’t let go yet, forcing her to remain on his greedy tongue as she was the first to tip over the edge. Overstimulation set in soon enough, her pleading eyes rolling back as you kissed her, swallowing her moans as best as you could.

Her eyes turned black as she nearly choked on the pain and pleasure, the view threatening to burn into your brain for eternity. Never had you seen someone so sinister, no porn actress or actor able to fake an orgasm so mesmerising. Your movements slowed down to take in hers, both your hands coming to her chest to twist at her nipples, bare breasts laying heavy in your hands. That Chan hadn’t stilled his ministrations yet told you that there was some understanding between them; overstimulation an usual part of their sex life.

You were more than willing to participate, leaning forward to take one of her nipples between your lips. You rolled it softly, tongue prodding at its stiffness before giving the other the same attention.

Ash, still trembling on top of Chan’s tongue, kept her hands at the back of your neck, drawing you in closer. It was then that you understood how Chan could handle such little airflow. Having a beauty just like Ash as the reason for your lack of oxygen seemed like the best way to go out; death was more than acceptable if it was to cause her pleasure. Her wanting and longing for constant pressure on all her vital body parts.

When a second orgasm hit her not soon after the first one, you weren’t surprised. It had been inevitable with how well you cared for her, touching her most delicate spots everywhere, all at once. A whine escaped her as the overstimulation eventually became too much, pulling you off her chest and herself off her boyfriend.

Looking down at Chan, you shared a smile of pride, patiently waiting for Ash to come down at her own speed.

“Fuck. Me.”

The words out of your best friend’s mouth made both you and Chan chuckle.

“You want to go again? Fine by me.”

“God, no.” Ash quickly answered, swatting Chan’s hands away when he tried pulling her back down. She rolled off him easily, taking another few seconds to catch her breath as her eyes met yours. “Let’s focus on you again.”

Ash noticed you had stopped moving, still seated on Chan’s lap and your hands running silently over his abs. Moving her boyfriend back a few centimetres, he finally reached the headboard, placing himself against it. When Ash positioned herself behind you, hands on your hips, she began guiding you on top of him.

In this new position, Chan reached even deeper parts of you, if that was even possible. The added pleasure from Ash’s second hand, grazing over your nipples, brought you right back to the orgasm that had previously been so reachable. Chan’s fingers met hers at your hip, sharing their task to move you over his length.

“Do you feel him? Reaching so deep you almost suffocate?”

Ash’s words were met with a wordless whimper, your head thrown against her shoulder. Her lips came to your neck, sucking at the flesh as all their attention was drawn to you. Chan himself appeared to close in on his release. Still, his eyes were focused on your body, his second hand coming to your clit and softly rubbing into it. It only pushed you closer to the edge, all this stimulation from the two most attractive people you had ever met.

When Chan started kissing the other side of your neck, his tongue lapping at your skin as his plump lips wrapped around your vein, your movements became sloppier.

“So close,” was all you could say before they sped up, together pushing you over the edge.

You spasmed on top of Chan, abs tightening and loosening as your thighs contracted beneath their hands. The crumbling of your walls sent Chan over the edge seconds later, his seed filling you. Deliciously and warm.

You had never been to heaven before, but this was damn close to what you expected it to be like. The level of satisfaction filling your body, reaching into the deepest parts of your bones, seemed unattainable; the mere concept of how it felt better than any dream, any fantasy you could have ever come up with.

A dazed “Fuck” left all of you collectively as your eyes searched the ceiling for leverage. Your mind was hazy, sight still blurry as you came down from your high. Chan and Ash weren’t doing any better spread out wordlessly beside you – Chan in between his girlfriend and you.

When your eyes finally slowed down, features forming faces again, your head turned to the couple beside you. Ash had her head on Chan’s chest as they took deep breaths, almost in unison. Watching them seemed so intimate. Almost too much so, both their eyes closed as they bathed in the afterglow. You wanted to give them a moment, so you sat up, missing how Chan was reaching out for you to pull you against him.

His release dribbled out of you and into your – or rather Ash’s – panties as you got up, mumbling something about getting some drinks before hurrying out of the room.

Once you reached the kitchen, you searched their fridge for cold water bottles. It was when you closed the fridge door that you finally caught a glimpse of yourself in the reflection of the digital screen.

Your makeup was smudged, your eyes heavy, and your stomach dropping at the settling reality the first moment your head cleared. That’s when your thoughts began racing a never-ending marathon, your pupils following an invisible line from left to right in your reflection.

You had just had sex with your best friends. You had just had the best sex ever with your best friends. You had just had the best sex ever with your best friends, and things would definitely be different now. And what if it wasn’t good different? What if your dynamic had just now changed so much that you’d lost them? What if they regretted it? What if they didn’t like you like that – the way you liked them?

Because you did. You liked them. And not how other people liked their best friends. You liked them as you had never liked anyone before. Some people would have probably called it love, though you had never truly felt love for anyone before. Or at least that’s how it felt right this moment. Because if you had loved all the people before them, then what was this? What stronger bond was there than love?

Chan and Ash made you feel like no San, no Yeonjun, and no Soyeon had ever made you feel. It had taken years and multiple sexual encounters – with Chan and Ash separately, other people in between, and both together just now – to recognise that. You had never liked anyone like that before. And you couldn’t imagine ever liking anyone like that in the future.

You shook your head to snap yourself out of this because, no. You couldn’t overthink this. Not when they were in the next room, still coming down from what had happened. It wasn’t as though you could take it back, anyways. It had happened, and the only thing you could do was move on. However you were supposed to do that, you hadn’t quite figured out yet.

“Here you go.”

Entering the bedroom after a minute, you sat on the mattress, handing one of the two bottles to Chan before taking a sip from your own. That sip was about half the bottle, the previous physical activity seemingly more exhausting than it had shown first.

“Thanks,” Ash thanked you when Chan handed her the bottle after gulping down his own half of it.

Silence took over the room as the three of you calmed your breathing to its usual rhythm.

Unsurprisingly, Ash was the first to cut the silence, having been the main instigator for everything that had happened within the past hour, “So… That happened.”

“Sure did,” Chan agreed, eyes meeting Ash’s as they fell into giggles. You didn’t know what to make of this, so you stayed silent, watching them in confusion and adoration. “Fuck, that actually happened. I can’t believe it.”

Looking at you, he reached out to pull you closer. This time, you let him.

“How are you feeling? You’re unusually quiet.”

“I’m-” you trailed off, hand on your hip causing goosebumps to rise all over your stomach. “Good. Still a little dizzy, to be honest.”

“Yeah, this was a lot.” Ash smiled at you, her fingers trailing over Chan’s abs absentmindedly. “So, Chan and I have been talking.”

Ash’s eyes met Chan’s as he nodded in encouragement.

“We – Chan and I – feel like something is missing between us. We’ve been feeling like this for a while, actually. But we never quite figured it out before just now.” Smirking while her gaze met you, Ash’s cheeks turned a shade of crimson. “We believe we’ve found it. In you.”

“You figured that out in the minute I was gone to get water?”

It was a half-joke, her words baffling you. The swarm of bees in your stomach only made you giddier, your body shivering as the impact of Ash’s words got to you. They wanted you, too.

“No, silly.” Ash chuckled, her hand coming to meet your waist. “We’ve been talking for a while. A few months, maybe. We joked about inviting a third party into our relationship before, but we didn’t really assume it would lead anywhere. As I said, we only just figured out that’s what we want.”

Chan’s head turned to you, heart palpitating against his chest under your palm.

“If that’s what you want, of course. You can totally think about it first if you like. Or you can say ‘no’ right away. Just-” A sigh left Chan’s lips as he let himself breathe through his nervousness. “We really, really like you.”

“You do?” you questioned in disbelief, all the worrying from before ejected from your mind, carried by the bees that went berserk at his words.

“Yes. I’ve sort of been in love with you since that night at Jisung’s.”

Ash’s confession knocked the air right out of your lungs.

“And I’ve loved you since we met in kindergarten. So, I guess that means I win?”

And just then, you considered yourself braindead.

Hearing how long they’ve felt this way about you made your heart swell, your arteries burst and rendered your body practically useless. They had loved you for years. Felt this way about you for years. And you, well, if you were being completely honest with yourself, had loved them like this for about the same time. You just hadn’t identified the feeling correctly until now.

But that hardly mattered. Because, as you sat on their bed after having had the best experience of your life, laughing at Chan’s words, your heart and mind numb from how much you wanted to be with them, nothing else mattered anymore. Because you had found your place, and you wouldn’t give up your seat at that table for as long as you still had power over yourself.

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