#the forest banter is something I really look forward to writing!! how all the characters work together

[louroth]

That update!!! ✨Perfect✨

Also I love how MC and Id are technically insanely capable and sought after hunters, but literal children to each other.

I’m just imagining enemy forces (or possibly L but whose to say) spying on their hunting party to just find them literally throwing rocks at each other while shouting insults.

The imagery 😭 PERFECTION.

The whole team walking ahead while those two just bicker in the back, and the team feels really relieved about it because it's either this or over the top murder attempts ACME style.

Someone goes 'hey we haven't heard...fuck. Where are they?'

And Id and the hunter have been rolling down a hill in a scuffle and somehow ended up ahead of everyone 💀 I can see it.

[tiramegtoons]

Okay so last night i finished watching the entirety of Okage Shadow King and-

.... I dont even know where to start. this is unlike any game ive watched or played before. It felt so weird yet so enticing and half of the time i couldn't tell if my brain was rotting or there was just some real deep lore or hidden meaning in here Maybe both??? and it left a strange, creepy, yet longing and nostalgic feeling in the back of my head too.

Let me explain.

spoilers ahead!!!

okay so First of all, the visual style of the game looks awesome I loved the characters and the dynamics going on between the NPC's and especially the main characters. I loved enjoying the witty banter and arguing between Stan and Rosalyn the most. But also, why is Stan insulting and body shaming her so much SHE AINT EVEN FAT??? i LOOK AT HER MODEL AND IM LIKE BRUH

for some odd reason i still found it funny though. Some of the humor might've even been exaggerated to a degree as well(not sure if that was intentional). Even if the writing and dialogue was a bit lost in translation, maybe perhaps, it was still pretty good as a whole and it caught me by surprise.

As for the world and NPC's... something definitely felt off at the beginning and i guess thats what gave me the initial unsettling feeling. Everyone just seemed so bent on doing their own part like dude i couldn't even explain to you Our main protagonist, Ari, is just a wet pathetic little boy who lets everyone step on him/lh Damn, even his own family doesn't seem to care much for him as an individual person and doesn't consider that he has his own ambitions and it rubbed me in a weird way. and yet for some reason i was still hooked. and then came STANLEY HIHAT TRINIDAD THE FOURTEENTH(the 3d challenged flappy shadow)to sweep our poor little boy off his feet and make him his "slave"(adoptive son/j) so he can conquer the world bfhdgsdvhgdfbgdhjg which btw how could anyone take any "evil king" that seriously with a name like that? I LOVE IT. i really enjoyed him getting his ghostly ass handed to him by the NPC's it was hilarious. He was-without a shadow of a doubt(hehehehehe)- the best character. Also it's so funny how he claims to be an evil king but intentionally and unintentionally does good things? I love that trope with villians. Anywho getting off track a little, Another thing that struck out to me was the soundtrack. It's pretty unique, but at times can get pretty repetitive. The ones i enjoy a lot are -Forest of willkur(just really encompasses the feel of the entire game) -Evil King Battle and my favorite- -Addashi Desert(got me in a shimmy FR)

YEAAAAAAAAAA

anywho going back to repetitive things... Eeeeeee... the fighting mechanics are sure something(GOD WHY ARENT THE COMMANDS BEING CARRIED OUT ON TIME WH- IS THE GAME POSSESSED??? DID STAN POSSESS THE GAME???) Also why are there ghosts in broad daylight?? WHY ARE THERE SO MANY GHOSTSSSS) i get it, you do need to grind for items and XP in this game but it looks pretty tedious, especially deep grave pit... oh lordy dude there are literally eight floors in the cave its not a cave its the 7 circles of hell(plus front desk)/j I don't wanna dunk on this game but the fighting could use improvements. Back to the story... i like the melancholy turn it takes when princess Marlene was revealed to be a doll which made total sense when Stan found she had no soul, the reveal of Beiloune's true identity, and when Ari becomes totally ignored and forgotten by just about everyone and from that point going forward the game took a more serious turn... also why does Triste(which means sad in spanish and i see what they did there-)

... why does that remind me of the wasteland from Epic Mickey where other people who've been forgotten reside there... also the dark, odd vibe of both games kinda match too. Another thing, I'm not sure if anyone else had the same thoughts but did anyone else expect a twist where Ari would become the evil king??? i mean, if this was a supposed journey of our main character who is always reminded about how much of a pushover he is would've lead me to think that the buildup would lead to something like Beiloune making him all powerful and force him to fight against his friends. But the last chapter also surprised me with its own twist and im digging that too. but yeah just about everything was coming back together about why the world was and felt as it is. its always the butler isnt it? Also Stan's final form:

I CANT-

im sorry i can't take this seriously when he's just letting them hang out like that(his moobs)

... anywho that happened. As for any hidden meanings and morals I'll have to talk about that later cause my smooth brain still cannot grasp. And its just

SO MUCH

[atruththatyoudeny]

Happy 28th! I’ve read so many awesome fics this month! Make sure to check them all out. As always, all my love to all the authors in this fandom ♥

➻ don't want to fight you | starryharry | enemies to lovers - enemies to friends to lovers - pining - mutual pining - angst - fluff slow burn - no smut - 124k Louis hates that it’s familiar. He hates that sparring Harry is familiar because they train together. He hates that he even has to spar Harry at all, because Harry is good. Louis wonders what his life would be like if him and Harry didn’t hate each other. He can’t picture it, really. The incessant bickering that often turns into real arguing, the nasty looks, the eye rolls, the middle fingers. It all feels very necessary at this point. Or, the one where two fighters can also be lovers because routines are never permanent.

➻ we are ghosts amongst these hills | louisgaynkles | Soulmates - reincarnation - historical - slow burn - angst - fluff - 84k Harry spontaneously buys a house in Yorkshire because the universe, or fate, keeps leading him to it. What he didn’t know, is that his new house comes with a past that seems to be mysteriously tied to his own life. Before he knows it he finds himself travelling back in time, stuck in the middle of a century old love story. Featuring Louis as a farmer with a passion for gardening, Zayn as the heir to the local manor, Niall as a pub owner with a secret, and a truly underappreciated Liam. Based on Mariana by Susanna Kearsley

➻ through the wheatfields and the coastlines | thepolourryexpress | farms - cowboys - angst - implied/referenced homophobia - implied/referenced gun use - humor - smut - 53k “You’re not from around here, are ya?” Hot Cowboy asks, tracking his little lamb with his eyes. Louis frowns slightly, having thought he was doing pretty well at not sticking out like a sore thumb. It’s not like he’s not from around here — it’s not his first summer he’s spent at his grandparents'. But he supposes that the Manhattan city lifestyle that he’s used to is always going to shine through. “I’m visiting family for the summer,” Louis explains, cheeks a little pink. “Trying to get some work done without distractions.” Or, alternatively, the one where Louis needs inspiration, and a certain cowboy and his lamb are the perfect distraction.

➻ An Irrationally Strong Bond Between Two People | jishler | dystopia - friends to lovers - angst - first time - 18k Before The Advancement, most human lives and careers were plagued by irrationality and a lack of productivity. This was largely the symptom of what scientists refer to as “interpersonal passion,” which included two separate (though often conjointly occurring) phenomena: “love,” and “sex.” “Love” was a pre-Advancement word which referred to an irrationally strong bond between two people, which caused its sufferers to prioritise their fellow “lover,” as well as the integrity of the malignant bond itself, over vital things such as workplace productivity. Taken every two weeks in pill form, The Drug immediately removes interpersonal passion from the human psyche. Children’s friendships do not have the capacity to develop into full-fledged “love” since they are not yet adults. Every person over eighteen takes The Drug gladly, grateful that it allows them to be productive, clear-headed, and rational members of society. A few weeks before Louis’ eighteenth birthday, Harry and Louis fall in love. (Based on the book Louis writes in indiaalphawhiskey's Our Lives, Non-Fiction.)

➻ And When It's Time | larryftnoctrl | Soulmates - soulmate-identifying timers - 6k Louis wants a soulmate, Harry loves his free will. They don't exactly go hand in hand. Prompt: AU where you have a countdown on your wrist for when you're going to meet your soulmate and if you miss it the time will reset. Louis/Harry keep having awful luck and always are missing their time until one day they don't. Maybe the other one is scared/has anxiety about meeting their soulmate? Maybe one time they're in a relationship so they intentionally miss their time? Who knows! But they finally meet :D

➻ made for lovin' you | cuddlerlouis | a/b/o - enemies to lovers - hate to love - soulmates - hurt/comfort - angst - fluff smut - 53k “I’m in,” is all Louis receives. He blinks a few times, making sure he’s reading this right. “For real?” he asks, just to be a hundred percent sure. “Yes,” pops up. “How do you wanna pursue?” The alpha adds, like he’s on a special mission or something. “I’m gonna call us a cab to go to mine. Once I know it’s here, I’ll leave and join you there,” Louis explains. “I’ll text you to go around five minutes before it arrives, so it doesn’t look suspicious, and our friends don’t notice us leaving together.” “Noted.” So Louis does, and ten minutes later, he’s sat in the backseat of a cab, next to Harry Styles, the person he hates the most but unfortunately still finds attractive. They’re on their way to fuck in Louis’ flat. Splendid. - Or the one where a quick, horny decision ruins Louis’ summer plans, but may also lead to unexpected discoveries. Featuring the road trip of dreams, misunderstandings, and a bit of fate.

➻ deFENCEless | solvetheminourdreams | neighbors - enemies to lovers enemies to friends to lovers - gardening - fluff - humor - banter - no smut - 27k "I moved here first," Louis says with finality, crossing his arms over his chest. Harry shoots him an unimpressed look before leaning forward, leaving only a tiny gap between them. "Then get the fence first," he whispers, lips a mere inch or two away from Louis'. When Louis butts heads with his new neighbor who loves to garden a little too much, all he can do to protect his yard (and heart), is keep on building up his fence(s).

➻ Canyon Moon | delsicle | a/b/o - werewolf - soulmates - childhood friends - friends to lovers - arranged marriage - mutual pining - hurt/comfort - angst - 41k For as long as Louis has remembered, he has been promised to be mated to Harry, his best friend and the future pack alpha. But Louis’s heart belonged to the forest and to the hunt more than he could ever imagine it belonging to Harry. Then Harry’s father dies in a violent accident, and Louis’s future alpha disappears on the wind. An A/B/O Lion King AU

➻ only guilty of loving you | sweetrevenge | a/b/o - strangers to lovers - blind date - soulmates - fluff - angst - mutual pining - smut - 22k After Harry gets set up with his co-worker's alpha friend Louis, he's expecting some pleasant conversation, free dinner, and maybe a new friend. What he doesn't expect, however, is that Louis' arrival in his life begins a life of crime Harry never knew he had in him. A You've Got Mail!AU with a twist.

➻ 'Til Everything Changes | lovelarry10 | a/b/o - older characters - brokend bond - loss - falling in love - fluff - implied mpreg - smut - 57k Harry’s nose twitched as he caught a scent on the breeze, one that sent a shudder through his whole body. His eyes closed subconsciously, and he lost himself in the heady scent, the vanilla top notes, and the more woody undertones, making every hair on Harry’s body stand on end. That was how Harry discovered this man was an Alpha. “Jaz, Harry, this is my Uncle Louis. Lou, this is my girlfriend Jasmine, and her dad Harry.” "Lovely to meet you,” Louis grinned, leaning in and kissing Jasmine’s cheek quickly, a respectful Alpha gesture. Harry held his breath as Louis stuck out a hand, taking it almost reluctantly, certain the Alpha would pick up on his own scent and the nerves flowing through it. “Hi, Harry.” “Hi,” Harry said, his voice low and raspy, still affected by Louis’ scent. “Nice to meet you.” ~~~~ Harry’s an Omega who has been alone for too long. Louis’ an Alpha who is scared to find love again. Thanks to the meddling of Harry’s teenage daughter and her boyfriend, the two seem destined to meet, and it might just change everything they thought they knew about their lives. Will they find what they didn’t realise they’ve always wanted in each other?

➻ Mind Over Matter (You Under Me) | youreyesonlarry | ice hockey - hurt/comfort - angst - fluff - major character injury - pining - unrequited love hospitalization - smut - 74k It’s dark outside when Harry finishes practice for the day. -------- Prompt 21: Harry stopped playing hockey (after 10 years of a professional career) because of a severe injury. The dream he worked so hard for vanished in the blink of an eye. His family insisted that he had to go to physical therapy, even if it only helped his health. Cue to personal assistant Louis, the most efficient and kind PA one could hire

➻ Rooms on Fire | softfonds | a/b/o - actors - famous/famous - friends with benefits - secret relationship - 34k Ten years ago, Louis helping Harry through a heat was the start of a romance that ended in heartbreak. Now, Harry's marriage is over thanks to his husband's very public infidelity, and Louis is fresh off a Golden Globe win. The last thing they both expect is to be cast in the same movie.

➻ Stumbling Into Your Arms | sunshineandthemoonlight | a/b/o - strangers to lovers - college/university - fluff - 7k Suddenly, Harry’s nose was brushing against Louis' neck, where his scent was overwhelming. Harry jerked his head to the side and took a deep breath of air, trying to clear his nose of Louis’ scent. ‘Don’t get slick, don’t get hard, don’t get slick’, he repeated to himself in his head, like a mantra. Louis and Harry are university students heading home for the holidays. Harry quickly becomes enraptured by the attractive alpha standing across from him in the train carriage, who has a heavenly scent and a gentle smile.

➻ Little by Little | nonsensedarling | mpreg - non traditional a/b/o - exploring sexuality - exploring secondary gender norms - gender identity strangers to friends to lovers - mutual pining - fluff - slow burn - 65k Harry Styles is an omega who works at the London Planetarium, has lived in the same flat for ages, and is happy enough on his own. When he gets home from his first (horrible) attempt at dating in years, a new pregnant neighbor knocks on his door after smelling his cooking. He and Louis quickly become close, but their friendship gets complicated when Harry begins questioning who he is and what he likes. Or Harry discovers figuring out who you are is more complicated than a potato metaphor.

[roguesandsaviors]

Big Daddy Request

Requested by the lovely @thefasstasticvoyage​ for Frank Grillo’s character Big Daddy in Wolf Warrior 2. We don’t get a name beyond that code name used. I debated giving him one but went with just code names instead. The request was “Am I your lockscreen?” “You weren’t supposed to see that.” I hope you like it! Thank you so much for sending in the request. This was a blast to write!

Things were slow, they had been for the last few weeks. It was unusual for DMRC to have no jobs but hey, occasionally governments could handle their own shit and those that wanted to throw coups could manage on their own. Guns for hire weren’t always needed. Most of the team was off on some well deserved R and R, whatever the hell that meant for them. Voodoo didn’t really care about what it meant, it didn’t interest her. They functioned well as a team, got shit done, got paid. But that was about the extent of her trust in most of them. There was only one person on the team that she could trust fully, enough to not be ready to slip her knife from the holster on her side and dig it into a neck. Mercenaries were mercenaries, contract killers that were focused solely on the next payday and whatever it took to get them there. Dyon wasn’t exactly a family but at least a tolerant combination of those personalities. Her inherent distrust for people in general was justified, especially with who she spent her time among.

She was sitting at a small table, coffee cup steaming beside her, mission reports and potential leads for some new jobs spread out in front of her. It was blissfully quiet in the building that functioned as their current headquarters, a rare occurrence with the personalities that resided within. She planned on taking full advantage. A small pile was building on the floor to her right, old mission reports that had already been reviewed for any potential lead or promise of some work that could be picked back up in the same region. That wasn’t something that they always went after, the situation could be plenty messy. Given how quiet it had been though, she thought that it was worth looking into. The newer leads held the majority of her attention, divided by level of difficulty, payments that could be gathered, and frankly a little of her personal bias on where she felt like heading off to next. 

She sipped her coffee, not budging an inch when the chair beside her scraped loudly against the floor. A small thud signaled that something had been dropped onto the table, pushing a few of the papers around with the force.

“Don’t think that qualifies as rest.” A small hum was the response to the soft tease, her eyes finally breaking from the file on a potential job in Columbia. They landed on the man who was staring at her, a cocky smile resting on his lips. He looked fully relaxed in the chair. For once, the holsters were missing. Setting the paper down, she turned her full attention to the leader of the team, a softer than usual smile coming to her face. 

“Well, it isn’t like I’m really doing anything but reading. And the last time I checked, reading definitely qualified as resting within our job descriptions,” she quipped back. The reward was a warm chuckle from the other. Big Daddy shook his head, clearly not ready to let the matter rest. Instead, he reached out to pluck up the paper that she had just been looking at. 

“Columbia, huh? Thinking we need a few beach days?” He looked back up at her, smile a promise of mischief. 

“Like you could step away long enough to have a few days off.” She rolled her eyes, though her tone continued to remain teasing. “Besides, when was the last time that you actually went to the beach for anything other than work?” 

“Fucking years,” he offered with a laugh. His tongue peeked out to wet his lips, the movement purposefully slow. “Have to say, it would be worth it to see your ass in a bikini.” She snorted, not at all surprised that he went with that train of thought since they were alone.

“That something you have spent some time thinking about?” She leaned forward a bit, resting her chin on her hand. The back and forth could be playful. That was what made this real rest for her. Any time that they could get where it was just them, she would take full advantage. 

“More than I probably should baby.” His actions mirrored her own, leaning in so that he was considerably closer than he had been moments before. "I mean you look fine in those BDU's, fine in anything. But damn, can make a man dream." 

"Well maybe you should take me to some nicer places then. Not like I can show off in the middle of Russia." She could if she really wanted to but the idea of freezing was not appealing. And it wasn’t like they were going to end up anywhere that had any of those lovely hot springs. Not that she was really complaining about it. Work was work and a payday was a payday. She was more content with what she had than an average woman would be. They both knew that but it didn’t stop the teasing. 

"Eh, well ya know," he started as he lowered his voice playfully. "Work tends to be a bitch. Rare off time and all. Boss is a real hard ass and rides us all. Makes it hard to take you nicer places." That was enough to bring a laugh out of her again. 

"Hm, he can be a dick."

"Has a good dick though. And you do ride him real nice." How he managed to make the comment with a straight face, all the confidence in the world was beyond her. Part of it was probably that he genuinely believed it. And she couldn't exactly shoot the idea down.

"You're ridiculous." He went to open his mouth to reply, a cocky comment clearly right at the tip of his tongue before his phone ended up buzzing. Both of their eyes were quickly drawn to the device that was on the table. His hand reached for it but before he could close around it, she was able to see the screen. It brought a wider smile to her face and this was not something he was going to live down for quite awhile.

"Am I your lock screen?" She hadn't even recognized the picture that was there but it was definitely of her. He snatched the phone up, checking the notification, stoutly refusing to look back to her. 

"You weren't supposed to see that." She wanted to know where and when the picture was taken. Clearly he had managed to snap one without anyone else knowing. She couldn't tell but it had looked like she had been ready to shoulder her gun, in a forest. That might have been the last job that they took out in Poland. Things had gone smooth, like clockwork, the job accomplished in next to no time without any wounds to come back and lick. The sort of job that they all loved. 

"And why wasn't I supposed to see that?" Big Daddy grumbled something that wasn't too intelligent and Voodoo decided that it wasn't worth pushing at the moment. Sure they had playful banter and a good physical relationship but what that was framed as wasn't exactly discussed. In the world that they lived in, relationships were a dangerous thing, feelings and attachments were a detriment. That hadn't stopped them from giving into the attraction. If anything though, that was a clear sign that perhaps his feelings ran just as deep as she was realizing hers were. And she was okay with that. 

"After the jobs finished, me and you take some time away from the rest of the team and get some beach time," he decided. Still, he hadn't looked up from his phone and she knew he was feeling a little embarrassed, hiding away from confronting it. The only thing he tended to shy away from. 

"Sounds perfect to me."

[the-goddess-of-mischief-writing]

꧁Midnight Masquerade꧂

Description; A masquerade becomes the perfect time for a monster to stalk its prey. But what if the heroine knows the villan?

Pairing: Pietro x reader

Rating: Mature

CHAPTER NO/ONESHOT: Oneshot

Word count; 3.230

Warnings; Kinda entering the thriller genre, a bit of fluff (?)

Author; @the-goddess-of-mischief-writing

A/N: So this is my little piece in @sdavid09 halloween's challenge and I had the prompts "Scooby Doo" and M.J's "Thriller". Though this isn't only an entry in the challenge, but also my way of introducing a new character I'm going to start writing for. I took a new and kinda differente approach with this fic, so this isn’t how I characteristically write and honestly I don't really now how it turned out. Maybe I'll do a part two or just leave it as this is, we'll see. Nevertheless, hope you enjoy this little work xx

MASTERLIST

Autumn. From where you came the season didn't bring much more than chilled temperatures that nipped at every part of your body, no matter how much or little clothes you wore for the time of year. The only thing differing it from the snowy winter though was the colours. Leaves painted in every colour between green and red, making the forest look as if it was on fire. The otherwise dull coloured buildings, speaking of an ill-favoured state, blended together with the third season of the year, as the smell of earth and heaviness of rain was present. 

Those scents reminded you of your home more than ever as you now walked through the mist coating the streets outside. Goosebumps spread across your body as the wind ruffled the leaves enough for them to fly. A curse left you as you hugged the coat closer around your body, damning the wind for penetrating your scant pieces of clothes for the season. As well as your friends, for the night stroll that you now needed to take.

"Miss, your costume is pretty", the tiny voice surprised you to a stop. As the masquerade mask covering your face also entered your outermost vision, you need to tilt your head downwards to find the owner of it. As soon as you did, you saw a little girl standing there, with illuminated wings and brightly coloured clothes. Her face was painted as well, but unlike yours which aimed to look somewhat regal, it accentuated the costume she was clad in.

"Oh, uhh thank you", you mumbled, unsure if the little girl heard you as another gust of wind fittingly blew by, although seemingly she did. With nothing but a giggle in return and a bright smile, she skipped away to catch up with her mother, who had stopped not far behind you as she noticed her daughter wasn't with her.

You followed the pair for a few seconds, unable to not notice a few dozen other people roaming the streets as well. It seemed that everyone below the age of fifteen was out and about in silly costumes, knocking on each door of the houses in the scary decorated neighbourhood.

The ghosts, mummies, fairies and other creatures and costumes were what reminded you that the outfit you felt was bothersome walking around in, looked unusually modest. Aside from the black lace mask covering your face, there wasn't much more which differed your outfit from any other party clothes.

You sighed, continuing forward to reach the new place your friends said they meet you at, while in the background hearing voices gleefully exclaiming trick or treat. Everything reminded you that here, autumn didn't only bring a change of season, but Halloween as well. You were not used to it, in fact, you had never experienced it until now.

"Hey Y/N!" Along with the call of your name, came the honking of a car and if you hadn't recognised the voice, the rapid sound would have helped you figure out that it was your friends.

"Oh stop it you pest!" You shouted back, laughter lacing your tone, at the man behind the wheel.

"Won't stop until you're in this car missy!" You openly laughed at the way Jake, from his position in the driver seat, leaned closer to the open window on the passenger side to holler at you.

"Can't you see I'm on my way", you answered, almost entering a jog to reach the car to stop his irritation of the whole neighbourhood.

Thanks to your hurried steps, you soon jumped in the backseat, though the person already sitting there didn't give you much time to close the door behind you before throwing themselves at you. Automatically you encircled them, naturally knowing who it was by their display.

"I see you went for the devil after all", you said, regarding the brunette opposite you as you parted. Noticing she matched her deep red glitter dress with devil horns, while a red mask covered her upper face.

"Seeing as we aren't going to the ordinary college party, I thought I could try a classic in a different style".

"Stop lying to yourself Lily, we all know you picked that dress because it made your butt look good", turning to meet you from the passenger seat was Emma, a short-haired blonde.

"And perhaps that's the second reason", Lily stated, though before any further comments could be made, you felt the jolt of the car as it jumped forward.

"Anyways, welcome to the Mystery Machine", Jake said excitedly, though you couldn't miss the blonde rolling her eyes at her boyfriend's comment.

"He's waited to say that since we began heading here", you chuckled at the way she said it, an act that only grew when she swatted his shoulder after a smart comment he made.

"Hey, hey! Don't hit the driver, right Y/N?" You glanced up to meet Jake's eyes in the rearview mirror.

"I want to arrive at our destination and survive, so perhaps don't hit the driver, which for further information, also is your boyfriend Em".

"If anything that gives me the right to", she said sarcastically, which made him make a pouty face and lean in to kiss her. With a giggle, one that made you smile at their exchange, she pushed his head away while saying eyes on the road.

Although the ride was anything but short, your company and their storytelling of previous Halloween's, made the journey pass quickly. Soon enough, you pulled up to the estate-like property, already filled with cars and people flowing through the entrance.

"Geez, they really went all out this year", Jake's eyes strayed from searching for a parking spot for a few seconds to eye the bustle outside. You heard Emma mutter a there, showcasing an empty lot for you to take which her partner immediately headed for.

"When don't they go all out", Lily shrugged before continuing " Though this year you made a valid effort to match the theme, compared to earlier", Lily gestured to the hair Jake had coloured green for the night and the black tailcoat he wore. The man addressed was momentarily busy parking the car, so he only hummed as recognition to her words, but if he gave any further affirmation once it rocked to a stop, you didn't know as you hurriedly opened the car door.

Once stepping out, your mouth dropped open, before a gleeful smile took over. You heard the chatter of people passing by and watched their choice of clothes, the cocktail-dress code for the masquerade impossible to miss.

"You look like an eager puppy", you hadn't noticed the rest stepping out of the vehicle, but Emma's word you heard. Turning around you saw how she had matched the Joker her boyfriend dressed as. Patch-work jumpsuit in black and red followed her body, mask a bit more excessive then both your own and Lily's, as her face was covered in a joker masquerade mask.

"Don't tease her Harley, I'm the Joker for the night", Jake had come up to draw her close to his side, half of his face hidden behind a grinning mask.

"With jokes like that, I'm going to dump you".

"I know you won't", he said, the banter between them continuing as they took the lead towards the house, you and Lily following behind them. You felt exhilaration starting to pump through your veins and your mask gliding up as you couldn't contain a smile. Your undivided attention made the man following you with his gaze, go unnoticed.

You felt how the dress stuck to your skin as you made your way out from the dancing crowd. Since you arrived, you and your friends had busied yourselves with drinking and dancing. Up until this moment you hadn't parted from each other, though the suffocating atmosphere now prompted you too. You excused yourself to get through the crowd, knowing the exit to the garden was on the other side of the mass.

It didn't take long until you got to the door and opened it, doing so you were met by a cold autumn gust. Although it was probably barely noticed by those inside, you felt it envelop you like a counterproductive blanket. The sensation made a shaky sigh escape you, a sound which was swallowed by the noise of the door closing. Hugging your form your eyes closed momentarily, taking in how your bodily temperature steadily lowered. Something about it was comforting, feeling how the hotness disappeared though never fading to freezing. Even though you could hear the music from inside, it was nice fleeing it and the crowds for a few moments.

Taking a deep breath, you slowly opened your eyes while tipping your head backwards, following the fog the exhale then created. Not until it dissipated fully, did you refocus to watch the night sky. It seemed to be close to midnight if the full moon shining brightly from above was any sign to tell from. It cast a cold glow over the garden you stood by yourself in, that was what you had thought at least.

It caught you off guard, heart jumping as you hastily switched to look towards the source of movement in your peripheral. Far to your right, at the end of the patio, a man stood, almost hidden in the shadows. It was his dark grey suit, with few other lighter details, that made him blend so well against the wall of the house, yet the thing deceiving him was his hair. Light, almost verging silver, became a beacon of his presence, nearly as much as the shining mask hiding the majority of his face. His gaze had been heavily set on you the whole time since you noticed his presence and only thanks to this, could you see what the piece shielding his face resembled, a wolf.

As your eyes flickered up to meet his eyes, a pair you couldn't see but feel, you started to feel how the cold grew palpable. It was if the temperature dropped several degrees and a creeping feeling begun to spread in your body. It was then, instead of just having his head turned to you, his whole body did. However, the swift motion didn't stop there, as he didn't waste a second before walking towards you.

You couldn't read it as threatening, yet the way he closed the space between you without saying anything made you unsure. The door you had exited through was still nothing but a step away, as you hadn't ventured further from it, but you were paralysed. Even though you wanted, you couldn't move, merely stare at the man who already had crossed the halfway point to reach you.

It was when he started passing the windows, the flickering lights from inside illuminated his features enough for you to see him clearer. He was tall and well built as he moved with grace, although at the same time it seemed to be a restrained speed. You noticed a stubble on the visible part of his jaw, yet before you reached his eyes, you blinked and when looking towards him again, your jaw dropped.

He was gone.

There was no trace of him even being there in the first place. You started to doubt your sanity while stepping forward. That was when you felt it, a hand on your shoulder. Frightened you jerked away from it, scream dying in your throat as it closed from the sheer panic wrecking throughout your body. However, instead of being met by a silver wolf, you saw a shocked devil.

"It looks like you've seen a ghost", your hand was still placed over your heart and you felt it race from the jump-scare you just got. A relived, albeit airy, chuckle left you seeing Lily stand there, eyebrows scrunched at your reaction.

"From how you appeared from nowhere, I might as well have done it", you tried joking. Earning a laugh told you that you succeeded.

"Well you disappeared, so I came looking for you", you smiled, ever the caretaking friend she was.

"I needed to cool down, too sweaty with the crowd inside".

"Understandable, but you better come inside again", she reached for your hand, about to make you follow her, but not before exclaiming "God women, your freezing!" You wanted to laugh at her outburst, although the uneasy feeling in your stomach of being watched irked you to look behind you instead. As expected, no one was there.

From that moment and onwards, you couldn't let go of what happened. The man had disappeared into thin air, something you couldn't find any explanation to. Though that was not everything, ever since then, you felt observed. The feeling of having a glare in the back of your neck never ceased, yet every time you turned, you couldn't find anyone looking your way. It made an uneasy feeling settle in your body, but you tried pushing it away, knowing your easily spooked mind most possibly played a part in the trick your brain now played on you.

You had since then also joined the dancing crowd, at the moment throwing your head backwards, singing along the lyrics. You moved along the bodies, eyes closed to delve into the sensation of letting go. Even though you hadn't touched a drink since returning inside, you had had a few glasses earlier. Not enough to lose your reason, but plenty for renewed energy to develop.

Suddenly you felt how someone bumped you, harsher than acceptable even for the setting you were in, to which your eyes shot open. You were to turn around and tell the person off, yet something else caught your eye. Through the crowd, you could see him again. Silver mask reflecting the neon lights, yet none reached his eyes. You blinked, but in the second people had moved in the way and he was gone.

"This can't be real", you shook your head, though it was then you felt the burning feeling of eyes on you once more. This time you didn't hesitate to start turning in a circle to find the onlooker and when you did your eyes widened.

You had turned the opposite way of how you originally stood, something which would've taken minutes to walk. No matter if you walked through the dancing crowd, or around it. Yet there he was. The quickening of your pulse wasn't noticeable, not until the music started to fade to give room for the pounding in your ears that was. As heads began clouding the vision of him again, you tried to peer around them, as well as standing on your toes. Still, you lost him a second time.

It felt like someone played with you by now or you were going insane. At that instance, as it was triggered by your thought, you felt your body stiffen and straighten. Your body was hot, but you felt a coldness spread from your core. You recognised where the feeling came from, horrified you slowly turned to look the way it came. His mask shone in the dark, yet you could see nothing besides from it, the rest of him drenched in darkness.

"This can't be real, this can't be real", you uttered to yourself while turning and exiting the crowd and continuing down one of the corridors.

You knew Halloween was the night of terror, but never had you thought you would end up in a thriller. There must be a reason for everything, you thought, yet you had no explanations of the events you had witnessed.

Continuing to move forward, you heard the music fade behind you and your steps echo filling the silencing space instead. The empty space resonated each of your heavy steps loudly, the thought almost stopped you. There was no way your heels would give away that deep and loud of a noise. Intensely you listened, noticing how the sound followed yours perfectly, hitting the ground with the pace of your soles, making it sound like a further echo of yours. But it wasn't, someone else walked behind you.

The growing panic quickly crossed the threshold of fear, making you bolt. You zoned out, only focusing on putting as much distance between you and whatever was behind you that was humanly possible. You didn't dare look back, only held your gaze fastened on the door of the toilet, which had been your original goal.

It felt like the distance never ceased then all of a sudden, your shoulder connected to de door, while hand turned the handle, making you crash trough it. You stagger into the polished room, still not forgetting the door was wide open behind you. With all your weight you threw yourself at it, fingers finding the lock as soon as it closed with an echoing bang.

Your breath had turned shallow, shaking att both in and exhale. In a futile attempt, you tried holding your breath to silence the sound of your breathing. You stared at the door, attempting to hear if whatever chased you still was outside or worse, trying to break in. You realised that if it succeeded, there was nowhere left to run. However, besides your ragged breaths, it was silent, almost to silent.

It was then the impossible happened, you felt a cold hand wrap around your wrist. A choked sound was the only possible noise able to leave you. Biting your lip, you tried to quite the cry that wanted to escape, as well as your tears which were threateningly close.

You prayed this was your imagination, but you knew it wasn't as you felt the one being behind you step closer. You didn't need to turn to feel the looming feeling, which made you insignificantly curl into yourself.

"Y/N", unprepared for the sound of a voice, a whimpered left you, while you covered into yourself further. Your fear clouded your thoughts and not until his voice had echoed in your head multiple times did you realise, you knew that voice.

Though fear still gripped you, you slowly turned, eyes wide as you saw the mass of a man now standing before you. It was impossible to see anything more than his form in the dark, so you reached behind you, fumbling to find the light switch. Flickering to life the sudden source of light blinded you momentarily, though as soon as your eyes had adjusted, you looked at him once more.

Though his mask still covered most of his features, the light revealed many traits you hadn't seen before. His hair, which you had thought was silver, was dark brown at the roots, matching the stubble covering his jaw. The blue of his eyes shone from the cuts in his mask, seemingly crinkled in the corners. That was when you recognised him.

You recognised those blue eyes which you had gazed into so many times before. Those blues that could shift from shining brightly, to dangerously opaque. The ones you had left when moving from Sokovia, from him.

It was like he was bound, thus as you reached towards him, he stood perfectly still. You found the laces to his mask easily and with a few tugs, the tie loosened and the disguise fell from his face, hitting the floor with an unbothered cling.

"Pietro"

Taglist; @flowerchild1216 @haven-in-writing @krystallynx​ @sdavid09​

[book-shish]

Just so you know (shikatema week 2020 - Day 2)

I have not written fanfics for a long time. I have ideas with different otps but I can’t find the time to write them but I have been in an infinite genjutsu with Shikamaru/Temari pairing during this quarantine so I decided to write for the #Shikatemaweek2020 with the prompt: Marriage

I don’t own Naruto or any of its characters

SUMMARY:  What happened to Shikamaru and Temari after Naruto and Hinata's wedding?

https://www.fanfiction.net/s/13625829/1/Just-so-you-know

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Just so you know

The festivities of Naruto and Hinata’s wedding is far from dying down. Temari sat silently alongside Shikamaru and his teammates as she observed the people around them. Gaara is with Rock Lee and Tenten talking about what not. Rock Lee is not much of a drinker so as Gaara so she doesn’t have to worry about her Kazekage brother. Then there is Kankuro with the rest of team 8, he is already drunk but it’s not the first time he is drinking with the Konoha nins. She knows her brother can handle himself.

The person beside her, however, was in deep thought but then he surprised her when he turned to her and spoke, "Would like to take a walk with me?"

 "Now? Hey are you already drunk Nara?"

 He just shook his head. Then looked at Ino as if relaying a message.

 He stood up and took her hand naturally as if it is already a habit.

 They went on a direction that is familiar to her.

 They arrived at the forest in the Nara compound at a serene evening. It calmed Temari a bit after a long joyful day. She is glad she can spend time with Shikamaru this way before she and her brothers get back to their village.

 It isn't the first time Shikamaru brought her there. But now it felt different…it felt different because they are not just friends anymore.

 They sat down at the porch in the shed they usually hangout. A familiar silence filled them for a few minutes. Temari spoke first, "What are you thinking Nara?"

 Enjoying the stillness the forest brings him, Shikamaru might be hundred steps ahead in his thoughts but today was different. It opened a lot of things to think about in that moment especially towards woman he is with, "I am thinking about today. I am just so happy for Naruto. He had been alone all his life and now he has Hinata," he finally replied.

"Yeah, that kid deserves all the happiness he has right. He goes on and on about being hokage. But, who would have thought marriage is one of the things Naruto would think about after the war huh? " She continued, "Naruto is unpredictable as ever. Really, how can someone feel that the person they are with is the person they want to spend their life forever?"

 Realizing her question, she awkwardly shifted. The moonlight radiates brightly so they can’t hide the blush on their faces. As she was about to place her hand in her lap, Shikamaru took it and look at her. This was all new to them but then the topic of marriage is not a subject either of them have not thought about.

 “When we were trapped in the infinite tsukuyomi what was your idea of a perfect world?” he asked her.

 Her brows knotted at his random question but then remembered the dream, “Well, I dreamed that my wonderful brothers needed me and my opinion matters to them. What about you?”

 He sighed. “Asuma and Kurenei sensei were tending to a crying baby. And my mom is as usual nagging at dad. Then I thought, marriage was troublesome. And someone agreed with me.”

 “Who was it?”

 “You.”

 “Me? So your perfect world is not getting marr- ”

 "No Tem”, he cut her off, “Temari it was when I realized something. Just so you know I am in this for a long haul. I know we had been in only a few dates but we have known each other for most of our lives. You are the only girl I would go the trouble to ask out or bring here. And I'm gonna work hard to be worthy of you. Although we live three days away but you know there is already a project between Konoha and Suna. And-"

 "Shika, its unusual of you to start rambling," she teased wanting to lighten up the predicament they are in. She did not hide the joy of hearing these from him and gave him that smile he fell in love with. "Are you asking for my hand in marriage now?"

 "Hhmm, not yet,” he looked down in their interlaced hands “I am just putting this out there because there might be long line suitors waiting for you in Suna.” He also teases, “Plus, I have to ask your brothers permission first you know…before asking you."

 "How very traditional you…." she grinned.  This kinds of continuous banter and comfortable conversations they have is the reason why they work well together.

 "We're both have important positions in our villages. And I don't want to be selfish asking of you this soon to..." he trailed off caressing her hands.

 "To move here in Konoha?" she asked as if reading his thoughts.

 "Well yeah. It’s going to be a drag eventually. I don't want to cause a political rift just because I want to marry and be with the woman I love."

 "Baka," she whispered.

 He chuckled hearing this, "And that's the response I get after saying I love you. How trouble-"

 Surprising him, she leaned up and quickly kissed him. "Baka, I love you too.” She looked at him seriously with her teal eyes and continued, “Just so you know I consider Konoha as my second home now and my brothers would understand whatever decisions I make. And their opinion is what only matters to me."

 The smile he only gives to her appears on his face as if he gotten the answer to a question he has not yet asked. Then he leaned forward and kissed her, this time properly. Knowing they are in the same page and their feelings are out in the open, they can face whatever things comes their way.

  A/N: There goes my first Shikatema fanfic. Are they OOC? Please review and let me know your feedback.

[sienna-writes]

Butterfly Blood // update 1

woo! first writing update on this WIP so far! (Finally!!). Since I don't want to include huge spoilers on this book, as I might one day end up publishing (who knows), I will be splitting these posts into chatting about my process, character development, edits etc. and then include extracts that aren't too spoilery! I think it'll be okay for the first sections of the book, especially as alot of the first few chapters is character building and imagery to set the scene, tone and atmosphere.

Also, the working title of "Bleeding Out" that I HATED with a PASSION is finally gone! My novel is now called Butterfly Blood based on a excerpt way in the future of the story. (Which I'm very excited to share c: )

I wrote the prologue after I’d finished the first chapter, to introduce the book and it’s mystery in a more captivating way than it had initially been introduced.

Frog finds himself underground in the middle of a forest with no knowledge of his surrounds, his past, or his identity. He clings to one certainty, that he is and was raised by frogs. (This book is a bit wack, just roll with it.)

As he crawls into the middle of the road, a truck starts hurtling toward him and careens off the road last minute. The driver drops down and searches for for Frog, but cannot find anyone.

There is no blood, no screaming, no mangled man wailing on the ground. Reluctantly, the driver withdraws from the dark and locks himself in the enclosed cabin of his truck, steadying his breathing.

As the exhaust sputters to life again, and tires tug against the initial friction of the gravel, the disappearance twists the driver’s thoughts.

His passenger clings with sticky tree frog palms to the trucks stomach; well-oiled organs huffing heat and fumes onto his face.

So this book actually began with a very horribly written chapter. The structure was a mess and for some reason I kept bombarding the reader with information about my main character Rowan and really pushing forward the idea that she’s an energetic person... Which was stiff and just poor writing, honestly. (Also, I've changed my ideas since about how I want to characterise her.) But out of the 3000 word (approx) start, there were salvageable aspects, and those went into the first chapter along with a lot more fleshing out of the scenes, setting and character. I also finally decided on a tense and perspective after being super inconsistent with it and unable to make my mind up.

But! We got there in the end, I just thought I’d share my struggle since writing is not a perfect process and there is a lot of rearranging, and sometimes it feels like pulling teeth.

The premise of this chapter is to set the scene of Blackerwick (a fictional, dreary british seaside town), introduce Rowan (our main character), and the complex relationship with her father, who has become insular over the past month before the story starts.

—excerpts;

A little world building and set up!

Everything about the sleepy town Rowan’s family had moved to is soaked in a distinct achromatic despondency. Inland residents slumped and slogged in their routines, never caring to change them, almost afraid of living. It had confused Rowan at first when she’d come here from Ireland at fourteen, how much the dull town contrasted its landscape. It seemed undeserving of such beauty; a tall mountain range to the left of Blackerwick, and beyond it a city; wide stretches of moors headed toward the forests, and beyond the forests—the ocean. It was as if all the world’s natural beauties had congregated here millions of years ago as the earth slid into place, waiting for settlers to enjoy it. They didn’t even seem to notice.

    Fading out of view behind her, a mangle of dark rooftops mesh amongst each other, a severe contrast to the pallidly painted house fronts, and chimneys slice into the sky, puffing endlessly on their pipes.

Hot air is exhaled from the horizon, tugging striking, unruly orange hair from her heavy ponytail as it whistles past her face. She closes her eyes peacefully against the feverish winds, her clothes buffeting and pounding as if fighting it off. Grinning, she leans toward the sea, trusting its breath to hold her weight.

In the course of this chapter Rowan has had an altercation with her teacher and gotten a detention, pushed through the forests toward the beach, and now is returning home. She rouses her dad’s attention by feigning a headache, because he doesn’t bother with her unless he sees she is in pain etc. Now for some quality mild gore!

    Turning, she leans in to hug him when she realises there’s blood gushing from her nose.

    “Oh shit! Shit, shit, shit! Not again!” Rowan scoops shaking hands to her nose, tacky blood spilling over her fingertips. “Dad, Dad!”

    He is already on it, tipping her head back into his cupped palm, holding tissues tightly to her nose. She wheezes and sputters, the world spinning as she lurches toward the sink, clinging to the draining board to keep her balance. Everything red, the four walls of the kitchen, red. Her blurring vision, red. Everything bleeding like her gums beneath grinding teeth as she bites down on the impulse to say something. She wants to scream, or throw up, head swimming as her world tilts upside down. Her skull rests in her father’s strong palm, a fleshy safety net.

Wash your mouth out with soap, ma’am. 

I was considering having Rowan not swear around her father, but her mother is pretty aggressive and her dad (Karmen) swears regularly, so it doesn’t seem too outrageous anymore. (I could never, my mum would flip).

When the bleeding slows finally, and her chin closes in on her neck again she notices her father’s shirt is covered with dried, grubby gore. It looks like he is bleeding out from a deep gash notched into his chest. His heart clawed savagely from its dwelling. 

Karmen being a worried dad is best dad;

     “You said not again.” He says finally, as she gathers herself, filling glass after glass with water and gulping hungrily, throat tilted toward the sky.

    “I’ve been getting more than usual recently.” She replies nonchalantly.

    “That’s shouldn’t be normal.” He says.

     Rowan shrugs, “I’ve always been prone to bleeding and bruising.” As if to defend herself or prove her case, she pulls down her jeans slightly, revealing a black contusion on her hip. It fades into swarthy purple and blue; a gradient discolouring her pale freckled skin; a deep ink blot, as if the flesh had been punctured with a fountain pen.

    Her dad hisses sharply. “How did you do that? I told you not to go into those woods anymore!”

Ok! Enough blood! I really made nosebleeds overly dramatic lol.

Anywho!

the first 2000 ish words of this chapter follow Frog (he's later named Mint), and let me tell you, his perspective came so naturally, and was such an interesting world view to write in. I'm not saying i like him, but I enjoy writing him for sure.

This chapter was initially 2100 words and I intended it to be a brief introduction of mint, but I merged it with the next one because I thought they joined together nicely. The other aspects of this chapter introduce more of the friend group (honestly the only relevent characters within this group are Damian and Jamie, the rest are low-key assholes) and set up later events.

—excerpts;

Mint is wandering in the forest, and hunting.

He slinks into step with the deer as it rises, shaking his head as it shakes its placid mane. Serenity slices the air in two.

     Frog strikes.

    The blade almost glitters in the air as it shoots toward the limpid animal’s vulnerable throat, veins pulsing beneath frosty, translucent fur. Incorporeal beast. A surreptitious streak in the night, headfirst, embedding with a gurgle and a coarse, barbaric scream. Deer’s aren't meant to sound like this. Like a human, like something capable of feeling and hurting. Frog wriggles the blade out of its fleshy sheath and exhales into a whistle. He looks gleefully at the drowned grass damp with blood. Gushing over his squirming toes.

      Its crown tumbles to the soil, antlers embedding deep into the foliage at Frogs feet. He sits beside Stag on the floor laden with pine needles--wreathing its glazed face like christ’s crown-- and strokes the un-bloodied fur of its forehead, holding its unblinking, waxy glare. Frog is the victor.

Frog/Mint is hunting! He kills a stag! Then he brutally dissects it;

      Peeling away at the thick membrane enshrouding Stag's skull, with tender interest, Frog carves muscle and fat from its head, pellucid and opaline, dropping the pale crumbs of carcass onto the ground. The deer’s dense ghost is not yet cold in his crimson tinted hands. 

Rowan feeling numb, because oh boy us writers like to see our characters in pain;

The water is scalding. Rowan breaks out in goose bumps. Catching her reflection in the rippling bathwater she almost doesn’t recognise herself. Flushed, pale cheeks. All sharp edges, cheekbones slicing beneath the eyes, graceful slanting nose scooping down into a slight point. Her lips protrude from her face, full and large, accommodating an easy smile. Rowan pulls her downturned lips into a small grin. The constructed happiness blurs in the water. Holding her breath, she leans into the baths hot grip, filling with her fiery hair.

    The silence smudges in her ears.

I also wrote some banter-y dialogues but I think I'll share them another time... After they've been edited.... a heck ton... There's an over exaggerated smoking description in this chap too but I've shared that before heh :)

I hope you enjoyed this LONG overdue chapter update! So far there are 7 chapters, so I have a lot of updating to catch up on! :)

I don’t have a tag list at the moment, but if you’re interested in this wip and want to be on it, then please send me an ask or a comment and I’ll add you :)

Tag list, ask to be added or removed;

@alicewestwater @elaz-ivero @coffeeandcalligraphy @hanwatchingmovies @sirfitzroys @chloeswords @nev-953

[lilietsblog]

You’re overthinking this a bit, I think? Missing the forest for the trees or something like that.

A twist is, first and foremost, a story development.

Whether or not people are surprised can be symptomatic of some things but first and foremost it has to be a good story development and that is the real job it has. If it’s a shitty twist, then it’s a shitty twist regardless of foreshadowing. Frankly, foreshadowing as such is already a misleading concept: sure, there can be some fun symbolic / prophetic phrasing stuff, but first and foremost you need to be writing a story where this is going to happen. Your character didn’t become a tomato when they looked in the mirror, they were a tomato the whole time, from the first line. (And there is presumably some sort of point to it beyond the shock value, or it’s not a good story de3velopment at all). The character unexpectedly betraying the party was always the kind of person who would betray them under these circumstances, and the world was always one where these circumstances were a possible development.

If you’re writing a twist that the audience reacts to with “oh god I hoped this wasn’t where this was going” then the problem is likely not in how expected or unexpected it is!

Cliches provoke the “eugh” reaction not by themselves, but when the writer uses them as a substitute for actual thought. When something happens not because the story’s internal logic inevitably leads to it but because “that’s what always happens” without actually understanding the origin and reasons behind it.

(I mean, sometimes people also just dislike stuff for personal reasons, but you as a writer cannot really prepare for that or take that into account in advance beyond choosing a target audience)

“I was looking forward to this twist but the way it played out leaned too much on the expectation that the audience would be surprised and not being surprised made it unsatisfying” 

Note how in this case the problem is not in what the twist is, it’s in it leaning on the expectation that the audience would be surprised. The problem is not that it’s too expected, it’s that the writer didn’t realize what they wrote! (and that it’s pretty expected acutally)

(This is actually a fairly common problem with novice writers, from my personal observations. They write things that are actually pretty commonplace and mundane for the genre like they’re shocking, surprising and earth-shattering revelations. Omaigod an adventuring party... BANTERS?! Etc. The cure to this is reading more books)

“I thought it might go in this direction but I was hoping it wouldn’t” 

This kind of sounds like a twist that would be shitty even if you genuinely weren’t expecting it.

making sure that watching the twist can be an enjoyable experience both for people who expected it and people who did not 

aka, it should be good writing:

- nice narration, tonally fitting, coherent and emotionally engaging;

- properly managed emotional tension;

- passable in-universe logic that keeps the suspension of disbelief intact.

This is what ensures  a development will be good whether it was surprising or not!

Like, the term “twist” itself is misleading here: what you want to write is a good story development. For every development there will be a portion of the audience that catches on and sees it coming and a portion of the audience that just wasn’t following that closely and was surprised instead. There isn’t a categorical difference between these two groups, and in any given story any given audience member will probably alternate between them in some proportion from development to development.

You just... don’t need to target one audience out of these two. Just make it good.

the more a twist resembles other twists from stories the audience is likely to have seen, the more likely they are to pick up on where it’s going, and the less likely they are to feel clever for picking up on it. that’s the idea behind certain common twists being considered cliches, where people might go “oh, it’s just this again”. 

Feeling clever for figuring something out is a nice bonus, but it’s never something your story should be relying on as its principal appeal unless you’re writing an actual textbook. Even in murder mysteries - I haven’t figured out a single one in my entire life, and I’ve still enjoyed the ones I’ve read for reasons such as “good character writing”, “emotionally charged plot” and so on.

If people go “oh it’s just this again” about a cliche, that means it wasn’t properly integrated in the story.

(or they’re snobbish dumbasses who really should put down the book and find another one, which is also a common happening. Shoutout to the “ugh, good ending, such a cliche, I really wish they’d done a twist where a rock fell at the last moment and killed everyone” crowd)

if a story wants to use those kinds of twists while targeting a broader audience, it should probably find a way of making sure the reveal scene will have some way to stay enjoyable to people who don’t really experience it as a twist at all 

Just... make it good. A good scene on its own merit. Cinematic, believable, engrossing. None of that requires it being surprising.

Honestly I really just think the obsession with “twists” is the cancer of writing advice. It’s putting the cart so far before the horse, the horse has no chance of catching up even in full gallop.

Good plotwist effect on audience :

"Wait, that explains everything!"

"Of course! Why did I not see that!"

"A-ha! I knew it!"

Bad plotwist effect :

"Wait, what?"

"...that makes no sense."

[pamy92]

Attack音体感2 (SNK Live Orchestra & Reading event) - Event report

Attended the Attack on Taikan 2 Shingeki no Kyojin event which was held at the Tokyo International Forum yesterday (evening show)! Click below to read more! 

Like almost all seiyuu events, the reception area was decorated with flower stands for the seiyuus (and their characters) as well as present boxes for the performers! Of course I dropped my own Singapore-merlion fan letter to my favourite seiyuus and composer.

Ono Daisuke seemed to be a hot favourite for this event, he had 4 flower stands sent to him and Erwin Smith, and his present box was filled to the brim! The rest of the cast had one or two flower stands each

I was running a slight fever from my cold so I could not really focus much on the content that night. The Japanese-used was pretty advanced and my brain was only working at half-capacity. 

The reading event is a completely original script, the timeline based around the last episode of season 2. The stage is set with the 28-member string orchestra in the middle, a cardboard cabin hut on the left of the stage, some forest foliage at the right of the stage. The backdrop is a starry-night sky with a big-screen to recap the anime as the orchestra performed. The theatre had some trippy state-of-the-art laser effects which they kept using. It is pretty but got really annoying after a few songs. I feel that the first event had a better stage than the second event. There wasn’t much space and no stunt-people pretending to fight Titans on-stage. 

(Music set-list courtesy from Twitter)

The gang (Eren, Mikasa, Sasha, Jean, Conny, Historia and Armin) with Commander Erwin camping out in the wilderness during nightfall, as well as Berholt, Ymir and Reiner also hiding out far away from the soldiers in the forest. 

The event started with song 1 (see picture above) and the screen recapping the very first attack from the Colossal Titan in season 1. By the way, Hiroyuki Sawano is sexy af when playing on the digital baby grand piano! <3 

We next had the Eren, Mikasa, Sasha, Jean, Conny, Historia and Armin come out to do a light banter of the events that happened, and that Christa wanted everyone to call her Historia from now on, that she is proud to use her real name. Sasha, Conny and Historia went to bed because they were all tired (and poor Sasha did not get extra food so they all went to bed hungry).

I think we then had another song performance (#2). 

Next, main characters did individual/group soliloquies (I believe in order, at least to my memory). 

Mikasa: About how she hated that she could not save Hannes and Eren had to go through so much, being kidnapped and all. She wants to be stronger, so she can protect Eren. 

(Music break from the live orchestra with season 1 & 2 visuals)

Armin: Armin pondered about the motives of Reiner and Bertolt, mentioning that they were all friends and they wouldn’t be traitors to humanity. He believes something is not right and will be waiting to see what happens next. 

(Music break from the live orchestra with season 1 & 2 visuals)

Eren: Eren was cursing Berholt and Reiner throughout his whole soliloquy haha, calling them vermin and traitors, and that he will never forgive them. He also remembered how Berholt caused his mother’s death by kicking down the wall. More on this during Kaji Yuki’s thank you speeches! 

(Music break from the live orchestra with season 1 visuals of Eren’s mom being eaten)

Berholt, Ymir and Reiner: Berholt and Reiner spoke of how they should be wary of Ymir, that they can’t trust her yet. Ymir echoed the same sentiments. She then gave no fucks and decided to sleep while the two continued talking about what they have done, and their goal to return home with Eren. 

(Music break from the live orchestra & 2 visuals)

Christa/Historia & Ymir: Recap to some past scene in season 1, both talked about their trust and friendship during an outfield training. This was before Ymir revealed her Titan form to Christa. 

(Music break from the live orchestra 1 & 2 visuals)

Erwin: The narrator mentioned that Erwin just finished his meeting with Levi and Hanji about the latest developments, and that the Commander could not sleep. Erwin then started his soliloquy about the two recruits’ betrayal and how they need Eren’s help at all cost to take the two down, and learn more about the Titans. 

(Music break from the live orchestra 1 & 2 visuals)

Daybreak comes and Eren, Mikasa, Sasha, Conny, Jean, Historia and Armin take the stage, talking about how they didn’t really sleep well. Erwin joins them as they packed to leave the campsite. We had a nice treat of hearing a pre-recorded voice of Levi (Kamiya Hiroshi) telling them to not dilly-dally and move out. 

The cast on-stage took a long bow to signal the end of the event. They all then came out to thank the audience, with Kaji Yuki as the emcee. The cast mentioned that the tension is very high in this event as the story is pretty serious, and they were very nervous. They then did some light teasing to lighten the mood. 

Kaji-san also revealed the new compilation movie (which we watched the trailer and we could buy advanced tickets upon exit from the theatre). The movie will come with original files and one of the artwork is a secret, and the seiyuus got to see the artwork while teasing us about it. Kaji Yuki then made the announcement of season 3 with the teaser poster and the cast joked about Eren’s six-pack abs and guessing whose legs those belong to. 

The cast also talked about how their costumes affected the mood of the script, they were all dressed in black. But they joked that their stylist chose their outfits, and that they didn’t choose to turn all up dressed in black. 

Next, we had the cast do individual thank you speeches. Kaji called out Hiroyuki Sawano to do his speech and he came out from the wings to chat for a bit before disappearing back-stage again. 

I am just gonna write down my favourite bits of the thank you speeches..

First, Ono Daisuke. Oh man, he was so cute! He mentioned that he was really nervous as he had to do his serifu (lines) alone, and added it would be better if Levi was there with him. The crowd started shrieking hahahahah. 

Hashizume Tomohisa (Berholt) then pretended to be angry at Kaji Yuki because he kept calling them vermin and traitors. When Kaji Yuki called him name for the thank you speech, he was quiet. 

Kaji Yuki: “Tomohisa-san, did you fall asleep? I didn’t hear a single word from you at all...”

Tomohisa: : “No...I’ve been called a vermin and a traitor the whole night. Imagine how I feel....”

And Kaji Yuki was like “..I didn’t say it! Eren did! Eren!!” It was so funny!! Hosoya Yoshimasa glared at Kaji before breaking out into a smile and saying “Thank you all for coming today...the typhoon is coming but...” in the most new-anchor voice ever! Cue audience laughter! 

At the end of the event, Kaji Yuki mentioned that last year he led the salute but this year is special because the Commander is around! 

Kaji Yuki: “Ono Daisuke-danchou!” (Commander Ono Daisuke)

Ono Daisuke: “Yes, OnoD.” (marches like a dork to stand beside Kaji Yuki)

Kaji Yuki: “OnoD? Is that your SNS name?”

Ono Daisuke: “No, Ono Danchou. OnoD.” (loooool) 

Kaji Yuki and OnoD then demonstrated the salute. The right arm raised with the fist to the heart, the left arm crossed to the back. 

Ono Daisuke then yelled out “All you members of the Survey Corps....from now on, to Shingeki no Kyojin, ...DEDICATE YOUR HEART.” 

OnoD yelled out shinzou wo sasageyo without the microphone and I could hear it from all the way to the back where I was seated. IT WAS SO SURREAL! 

The audience then did the salute together with a resounding “HAH!” in reply. 

All in all, the event was a little too serious as compared to the MBS Anime Fes 2017. This year’s event seemed to be on a lower budget as compared to last year....perhaps it is due to the stage. I was also disappointed that they didn’t get Gemie to perform Ymir’s theme song Call of Silence. :( But I had fun, that is what matters! I will be watching the film in 2018 once it is out in theatres and am looking forward to the Kuroshitsuji live-viewing event next Sunday! 

[athyrabunlord]

Tryst at Twilight

A/N: well this came out of nowhere at midnight. A lil writing exercise bliplet for the 2223 AU, just to sorta show the general sense of the setting and characters. Words: 1,352 Ships: Kanadia, some cameos at the end

She burst out from deep within the lake, sending rippling waves across its surface. Growling, she revelled in the sensation of countless beads of water trickling down her skin, leaving trails of biting cold as they met with the night’s air.

Dark violet eyes snapped open, the round pupils narrowing slightly at the sight of the full Moon bearing down upon her form with authority but gentleness as well.

Kanan grinned.

It was at times like this that she understood why the Wolves from the distant Forest loved howling to the Moon. What better way to proclaim their exultation, to sing their praises for the world to hear?

She breathed deeply, the Moon’s ancient power rendering her both vulnerable yet invincible with its intimate embrace, much like how a lover would.

“Even knowing water is one of your affinities, it still amazes me to see a Felid frolicking in the water.”

The speaker’s rich voice carried a hint of amusement. Ears perked, Kanan tilted her head and deliberately used her tail to flick water in the shore’s direction. “How you wound me, Milady, that you would compare my actions to that of a wee Cub. Diving is the preferable term.”

“A wee Cub, is that not what you are?” An elegant eyebrow rose in jest while delectable lips quirked as Kanan splashed more water at her. “You just proved my point.”

“I’m more than happy to prove you otherwise, my queen.” Chuckling, Kanan nimbly leaped ashore, a predatory growl rumbling in her chest now. Her gaze roamed hungrily over the Phoenix’s nude form, allured by the deliberate placement of wings that drove her imagination wild in spite of knowing just what lied beneath the beautiful scarlet.

Likewise, Dia’s jewel-like emerald eyes seemed to be caressing her muscular figure, the appreciative way they flickered from her striped arms and traced each and every single one of her scars. Contrary to popular belief, Kanan was not proud or her scars, but she wasn’t ashamed either. She simply didn’t care. She didn’t care about much, really, as long as things happened at her pace and stayed within her control.

If not, well, she’d just make it so.

She was just an illegitimate spawn of the King’s many affairs, a body guard to keep the true successor safe. Chika was her main reason in life, though she genuinely felt this way and not because of their father’s decree. She would do anything for her half-sister, anything within her ability to do so. The King was old, and there was only so much he could do to rein in her rebellious nature.

But ah, this rendezvous, this delicious liaison, has been spiraling out of her control since day one. She hated to relinquish control yet the sweetness of this forbidden fruit kept her instincts sated, to just submit to her desires for the lovely Avian heiress. The world would not look kindly upon their union, not just due to their respective stations but of their kind. The thrill of having to hide their relationship made her blood boil, again and again.

It was fucking addictive.

“Had enough ogling, silly cat?” Dia shifted to stretch, her nakedness revealed further as her wings unfurled around her lithe form.

Usually the Phoenix was stubborn to the extreme about proper decorum, that every single gesture had its consequence. However, under the privacy of twilight and Kanan’s gaze, she didn’t feel the need to maintain that facade. It wasn’t as if Dia wasn’t abashed, but rather it was more because she did not see the reason to feel so.

After all, they belonged to each other. What was more to hide, to be embarrassed about?

Kanan languidly licked her fang. “Why, you enjoy what you see too, don’t you?”

“Perhaps.”  

Grinning, the Tigress proceeded to shake herself dry. Dia rolled her eyes, an automatic heat barrier instantly evaporating the water that flew at her direction.

“Are you a dog or a cat?”

“I’m whatever you wish me to be, Milady.”

Dia coolly swept a strand of hair behind her neck, and Kanan couldn’t help the throaty croons escaping her mouth at the beguiling gesture. Sometimes she wondered if her lover was even aware of her own actions.

“Is my heat too much for you, that you had to resort to cooling down in the lake, in the middle of the night?”

Kanan chuckled huskily. “You do more than make me hot, my queen.” She got down on one knee and leaned so close until their noses were mere centimeters apart, her eyes blazing with lust. “You burn me.”

Dia held her gaze, her voice flat. “You are mine.”

It was a statement, a claim, a fact.

Grinning toothily again, Kanan nuzzled the bite mark on her lover’s neck, crooning. “As are you, all of you.”

Her back hit the grass a moment later, its rough texture and Dia’s soft and supple skin creating a pleasant sensation that made her itch for something wild. The coolness from the dive had long dissipated, scorched away by the exquisite woman straddling her.

Dia was far from docile. Oh no, this Phoenix truly is the queen, the Ruler of Fire and Conqueror of Sky.

Kanan smirked. How she almost enjoyed being thoroughly conquered. Almost.

“You are mine,” Dia repeated, a hint of smile tugging at the corner of her lips as she whimsically brushed her fingers over the contours of the Tigress’ abdominal muscles. Upon Kanan’s hitched snarl, Dia grinded against her and pressed her down before she could try to sit up.

“Bad kitty.”

Kanan’s eyes glazed over in desire as she gripped Dia’s thighs hard, and growled gutturally upon seeing Dia in the same state. Their lips met in a violent crash and soon a familiar fiery darkness consumed her thoughts.

To taste.

To bury herself within her lover’s warmth.

To thoroughly claim this queen inside and out.

The sun has yet risen.

Their night was far from over.

0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0

“Stop shivering, it’s not that bad.”

In spite of her gruff demeanor, the black Unicorn took off her heavy coat and draped it gently around the wine-haired woman. Alas, due to their affinity, the clothes only made the unfortunate Faery even colder.

Frowning, Riko flicked her finger at Yoshiko’s direction, conjuring a pink petal to flutter across the black Unicorn’s nose. The resulting sneeze promptly froze the petal and caused it to shatter upon her sandals.

“Hey! I was trying to be nice!”

The white Unicorn laughed at their banter, only to choke a moment later when another petal slapped across her open mouth.

“You two are incorrigible.”

At this, the Unicorn twosome smirked and each slung an arm around the Faery’s shoulder, making her shudder in annoyance. “What can we say? We’re what we are, and this is simply…” They leaned close and whispered playfully into her ear.

“Ji ♡ Mo ♡ Ai ♡ ”

They giggled even more at Riko’s unimpressed glare.

“Stop messing around.”

You smiled, power spiraling around her arm until a frozen sculpture of flower formed in her palm. “We’re not messing around, right, partner?”

Yoshiko folded her arms, tossing her head back with flair. “We’re always serious. You need to lighten up more, Lily.”

The Faery sighed, a hint of concern in her exasperated tone. “You two haven’t forgotten why we’re traveling through the Great Plains, have you?”

The Unicorns shared a look, the humor gone from their expression. “Don’t worry, Riko-chan, we’ve promised to help you locate your two sisters,” You said coolly, “it’s the other mission that I do not look forward to.”

Yoshiko scoffed. “Yeah, those geezers from the Council, must be going senile. Why would a diplomatic trip benefit our Tribe? We’ve never gotten along with the Avians or those barbaric Felids. Although, I’ve heard things about the lil’ Phoenix princess.”

At her partner’s grin, You found herself grinning too. “And I’m intrigued by the sheltered successor for the Tigers. I wonder what she’s like.”

Riko sighed again as the pair randomly began to sing a cheesy song about summer and whatnot.

Could this trip get any longer?

[showingthroughtome]

7: june 23rd

Instead of taking it as a joke, Jess replies with genuine, flirty inquiry, “Really? You could stop Carly?”

Harry raises his shoulders, and humbly gestures, “Maybe.”

“Alright.” She agrees, crossing her arms and challenges him. The ball is in his court so now it isn’t up to her  which direction things go - if only for this one situation.

read below - mibba - story page - word count: 1482

Neither Harry nor Jess end up going through with their little sabotaging plans. On a very basic level, it turns out that they don’t really dislike camping, or the woods. They’ve always loved being outdoors, getting into little adventures in the park where they can feed the ducks, going down one of the trails that lead them into a forested area, only to have them both running back to their moms to get checked for ticks an hour later. The only differences between that and camping are that they're there much longer and they have to check for their own ticks. Which, they don't mind enough to want to go home - definitely not more than they liked being with their friends, recklessly drinking alcohol they had to get their older siblings to buy.  

By the third and final night, Jessica has mastered the art of finding the perfect wood to make a lasting camp fire. It may be too early to determine, but she feels like an expert in the area, bragging about it as she walks back to the campsite with Ben and Carly flanking her sides.

She's swinging a hefty stick around, boasting, “I mean, look at this. This will burn all night if we let it.”

“It’ll be ash in an hour and a half.” Ben holds up his hands, shielding himself from the stick.

“I give it an hour.” Carly, equally unamused, catches it and pulls it from Jessica’s hands.

Ben leans forward to look around her to Carly. “Are we making this a bet?”

“Guys! You’re not very encouraging of my skills!” Jess reaches to retrieve her find, coming up unsuccessful mostly because she is short, but also because Carly is extremely tall.

“Hey, you gotta leave her alone. It’s not her fault she only can reach five feet off the ground.” Harry shouts from beside their fire.

Jessica had been so preoccupied by her stick that she hadn’t even realized they were approaching the rest of their friends - what was she? A dog?

She looks between Harry and Carly who are now having a small stare down - Carly’s hand is still in the air and another one is keeping Jess away from her goal. Harry’s expression is one of playful business while Carly’s face reads pure joy. Harry lifts a finger, pointing sternly.

“Ugh, fine.” Carly lowers her arm and hands over the sturdy piece of wood. “It’s kind of sad to literally hold things over your head.”

Jess nods, sarcastically agreeing. “Yeah, I get it. Kind of like how it is to see you try to find something that is actually flammable.”

As soon as the words are out of her mouth, she takes off into a jog to hide behind a snickering Niall and Harry. Niall holds up one of the skewers him and Harry had been putting hotdogs on and aims it in the direction Jessica had come from. When looking back, she finds out that Carly hasn’t even taken a step towards her yet.

“Chill. I’m not gonna attack you.” Carly claims, hands on hip, playing innocent though everyone knows that's never been true.

Ben comes to her side, throws an arm around her neck and grimaces, “Babe, you do know pranks in the night are the same as attacks?”

“Yeah! Pranks at night especially count as attacks.” Jessica peers around Harry's shoulder, emphasizing her point. If Carly is going to retaliate, she would much rather it happen when one of her senses isn’t fucked any further than it usually is. Jess squeezes Harry’s upper arm so he’ll make his stance on her side known.

“Especially.” He nods, and then points his skewer more directly with the most unalarming frown ever.

“Thanks.” Jess huffs.

Carly drops her few pieces of firewood on the pile and throws up her hands in defeat. “Seriously guys. I can take a joke now without getting angry. You’ll see.”

She swings her arm around Ben’s waist and then the two take a seat on a sleeping bag laid out over the dirt.

“Ben, watch your girl.” Jessica pleads, winking at Carly when they make eye contact and becomingly slightly alarmed when Carly doesn’t return one, seeming actually, a little bit pissed indeed.

Jessica shudders at the thought. She places her firewood right in the flame that’s still lightly burning from the one they started for lunch. Soon enough, it’ll be big enough to roast their dinner.

“Do you think I should worry about that?” She asks the boys even though she knows Carly wont do anything that will actually harm her, perhaps something like a demonic symbol drawn on her forehead in permanent ink or sticking her hand in a cup of warm water so she’ll pee her pants like an anxious eight year old.

“I would be.” Niall shakes his head in grief, remembering, “Last time I joked on Carly, she told every girl that I brought into the apartment that I was a crier.”

“No.” Harry slaps his forehead with pity for his friend, shaking his curls and laughing. “That is undesirable.”

“Dude.” Jessica deflates for the guy, only imagining how awkward the follow up conversation could be to that. No offense, but who wants to hear how emotional someone is at first contact with a friend?

“Ehh, that’s okay.” Niall pats the hand Harry had placed on his shoulder comfortingly. “I did get her back. Apparently she doesn’t like honey more than shaving cream. Weird.” Niall smirks, leaving his friends to think about that as he backs away to do something else.

Harry and Jessica grin at the possibilities then face each other, shaking their heads in regret for the roommates who just signed a lease for another whole year.

“They’ll kill each other.” Jessica jokes in delight at her friend's expense.

“They think they’re actually on a prank show.” Harry agrees with a nod. He swats a bug that flies for his face and then returns more seriously, obviously worried for his best friend, “But, seriously, stay alert. I think she spotted a bee hive earlier.”

“Oh my god, Harry. Shut up.” She pushes him with all her might, heart beating faster at the teasing. With all of her friends making jokes about it, the only thing that keeps her from panicking is the thought - she can take a joke now. Carly isn’t fifteen anymore. She can take one little joke now.

“I guess I could sleep in your tent with you to make sure nothing bad happens.” He offers with a smile, eyes on her red vinyl tent set up right next to his yellow one. Even though it wasn’t planned, every one of them brought their own two person tent, figuring they’d share with someone who forgot their own. Since it was their first camping trip, they all chalked it up to a rookie mistake and enjoyed the breathing room as they slept through those warm summer nights.

It would be a lie to say that she didn’t think about maybe sleeping in the same tent with Harry and what that would do. Would it make things awkward? Would it speed things up? Would it leave them in this limbo?

Instead of taking it as a joke, Jess replies with genuine, flirty inquiry, “Really? You could stop Carly?”

Harry raises his shoulders, and humbly gestures, “Maybe.”

“Alright.” She agrees, crossing her arms and challenges him. The ball is in his court so now it isn’t up to her  which direction things go - if only for this one situation.

“Cause I’ve been thinkin’ ‘bout forever. Oooh.” Nat, coming out of the woods to the right of them, sings, dancing with grooving shoulders as she croons, “Or do you not think so far ahead?”

She stops right next to them, interrupting their not so innocent, flirty banter entirely.

“That is the ultimate shower song… or I guess, slightly-gross-lake-water-hair-washing song.” She exhales and thinks, “Definitely the more accurate title.”

Then she looks between them and cracks a smile, breaking character of Obnoxious Camping Nat.

“Nat, I love you with my entire soul.” Jess claims in her most serious tone, covering her heart and throwing her arm around her fellow short person. With all her attention on Nat, together they walk to a sleeping bag and prepare a hotdog. Once Nat is sat down, she sees that the fire was left to dwindle under the care of her friends so she gets right back up and complains the whole time she stokes the fire.

For the rest of the night, over red cups and shot glasses, Jess catches Harry’s eyes more than a few times. And at the end of the night, she zips her tent up with tipsy fingers, comfortable to be alone because Carly had complained about being tired for a while before she crashed hard hours ago.

authors note:

hiii! im personally not that happy with this chapter. i feel like its not the strongest one ive ever written. imma let you guys who actually read my notes in on a secret: i write a lot of this story while high. i mean, thats when the story came to me so why not? lol a lot of the time that works out for me but idk about this one. this just seems a little choppy. choppy stoned lauren came out and idk how to fix it (or maybe i am just accepting it for what it is lolol??) hopefully you can stay with me for the next one. because man oh man, we are building up to something!

please please please let me know what you think!!!!!!!!

thank you so so so much to @what-comes-from-within for betaing this for me as she does everything i put out these days, she is the bees knees <3

thank you so much for reading!

- lauren

[pengiesama]

what do you call a penguin with berseria who has two thumbs and is playing it more

me

did i do that joke right

(we’re getting into real big spoiler territory for berseria so proceed with caution)

while on a pointless plot detour to get medicine for the pirate ship, we learn via Magilou planning on forcing Bienfu to drink her medicine for her that, if malakhim drink medicine or potions, whatever they drank also affects their bonded exorcist. thus, when Mikleo drank the aphrodisiac potion, it hit Sorey too. and now you know.

Laphi compares having a person as a vessel to being carried around in a box. and now you know.

the Videl and Laphi friendship is a cute little sidequest. i'm glad Laphi's found someone to nerd out about history and archaeology with. just tough it out for a few millennia and you'll have Sorey and Mikleo as your new nerd fathers.

i never liked that magic gun nonsense in Zestiria and kind of rolled my eyes at it being back here. at being forward here? prequel grammar. it being a gun is just so incongruous to the setting, and not in a good way -- i know it's brought up that it's such a "mysterious-looking thing" but it's just a big clunky glock with some shit taped on it. plus, its powers are so vaguely-defined that it's essentially a deus ex machina fix-it button for a whole bunch of random shit. it makes you more powerful when you shoot yourself in the head with it, also it de-brainwashes malakhim when you shoot them with it, also it dispels illusions when you shoot them, also if you tell a seraphim to climb in and be ammo you can kill god and it kills the seraph except when it doesn't and that was never a concern, what are you talking about. so yeah not happy that it's back

they did explain how zaveid got it, though, and gave a little backstory on him -- he used to be a brainwashed slave malakhim, and when he was sent by the Abbey to assassinate Aifreid, Aifreid shot him with that gun (which he picked up while pillaging a faraway land) and it debrainwashed him. because reasons. then Aifreid entrusted him with it to keep it out of the Abbey's hands when he was captured. so thrilling.

i really miss the cute character banter in the enemy book from Zestiria -- each and every enemy had its own unique commentary by the party. Berseria's enemy book is completely vanilla; just enemy stats.

one of the many other things i miss from Zestiria is that there's literally no reason to ever stay at inns unless the plot forces you. that's something i've always grappled with in RPGs in general -- why bother ever staying at inns when you've got healing spells, healing items, or healing save points? Zestiria's forced integration of inns into the skit system definitely wasn't without its flaws, but it at least made me visit them.

berseria: a whole story quest abt finding someone who can read the ancient tongue even a little sorey: i taught it to myself at age 8 lol

the ancient tongue is also known as "Ancient Avarost"; it's very complicated with a grammar structure that revolves around swapping words around on the page and trying to figure out things in context. thus it is all the more impressive that Sorey taught it to himself, reading AND writing AND speaking, fluently, at age 8

what is with all the misspellings in skit dialogue and in speech bubbles. what even is QA. we just don't know.

Grimorh is soooooo far superior to Bienfu as the token "cute mascot" party member it's not even funny. she's an elegant old lady scholar Normin who tutors Laphi and constantly takes potshots at every party member when they're being annoying. kill+skin Bienfu and replace him entirely with Grimorh.

Laphi asks Magilou about the books on her belt, she immediately starts sexually harassing him and essentially forces him to lift and look up her skirt. please kill the skit writer.

i really love the discussion and closer look at the elemental lords/Empyreans! Zestiria didn't have much on them (for good reason, as worship of the elemental Empyreans was basically extinct even in Berseria's time), but in Berseria we visited a whole seaside culture and temple dedicated to the worship of Amenoch, the water Empyrean. they explain that they attribute the typhoons that temporarily routed the mainland's takeover of their land to Amenoch's doing.

Amenoch's temple is so pretty! it's underwater with lovely waterfalls and the bow crest everywhere! but it's a water dungeon so, as is a proud gaming tradition, it is a pain in the ass without a guide!

there are so many child sacrifices in this universe. like, so many. there have been at least three in this game alone, not even counting Zestiria's track record.

it wouldn't be a Tales game without an 8-year-old girl in fetish wear. who constantly shrieks and cries and talks in cutesy baby words while the camera zooms in on her exposed chest and crotch. fucking vomit.

Laphi has harnessed the power to alter the flow of time and uses it on petty shit like fighting rogue wildlife. sweet baby.

writing out the dealio on the plot for my own reference and for anyone interested. the Empyreans are the four elemental seraphim lords mentioned in Zestiria. there is a fifth Empyrean known as the Nameless Empyrean, or Innominat. he is an ancient dragon Empyrean with eight heads, and eats malevolence. the elemental Empyreans oppose him. malevolence, as we know from Zestiria, is naturally generated by humans at all times simply because they experience emotion, and eventually turns them into monsters. this is not common knowledge in Berseria, and is in fact a secret that the malakhim have deliberately hidden from humanity, as they fear it would make everyone lose their shit. it is taboo to speak of it and Eizen only eventually explained after the party ganged up on him about it. because humans don't know about malevolence, they assume the "daemonblight" is a mysterious curse/sickness; instead of humans simply falling to their own negative emotions. malakhim are not capable of generating malevolence unless they've already turned into dragons, and it is highly toxic to them. the earthpulse is essentially the lifestream from FF7 -- it's the churning energy of the planet, and is where all naturally-born malakhim come from. there are leypoints around the planet where the earthpulse is especially strong, and magically-sensitive people and civilizations in the past have built temples and structures on top of them to honor the malakhim/Empyreans as gods. the eight heads of Innominat are known as therions, a subtype of daemon -- Innominat chooses people/animal/things to turn into therions, based on their reciprocity to his power. if a therion is killed, a random individual gets immediately transformed into a new one to take its place. the Abbey's plan to awaken Innominat revolves around plonking therions on top of earthpulse leypoints to absorb malevolence from the surrounding citizens. the therions pass the malevolence on to Innominat, who will eventually awake once he's fully fed. removing the therion from the earthpulse point stops the feeding frenzy, but the disruption in the flow of malevolence will almost immediately make all humans in the surrounding area succumb and turn into daemons. so far, we have three of eight therions: Velvet herself, a bug we found in the forest, and that obnoxious half-naked eight-year-old. yes, i'm serious, this is the destructive force we're up against. we're currently looking for the others to stop Innominat's awakening (which i'm sure we'll fail to prevent, and i hope the eight-year-old dies or puts on some fucking clothes jesus christ bamco), Laphi has the ability to search for them through his compass. once Innominat's feeding tubes are cut off, i assume we trek on back to the Abbey's clubhouse to let Laphi knife fight him again. Laphi got him to a standstill last time and i've been stuffing herbs in his mouth since then so i think we'll do fine. 

[curiousconstellations]

I'm glad that you said you're easy to please because that is going to make making your present all the more fun! Just so I have something to go off of, what is it that you like about cs? Are there any tropes or AUs that you love and can't get enough of? or something that you haven't seen in the fandom but really want to see? -Your CS Secret Santa

 Ahh okay, so on a surface level I really loved the chemistryand banter between CS in the beginning, but I think the thing that really madetheir relationship special to me was the realistic slow burn progress theymade. I loved that in a show about fairy tales and true love happening prettyquickly, there was a core relationship that grew out of trust and friendship,especially because it was Emma’s, who was the ‘real world’ character that wefollowed into the magical world.

I love that Killian has always been upfront about how hefeels, but respected Emma’s walls enough to let her get there herself first,especially because she’s the one that initiated the first kiss, first date, sayingILY, moving in and even prematurely saying yes to his proposal lol Anyways I could write an essay on them so I’ll stop now!

 So I know these tropes have been done to death but some of my favourites are friends or enemies to lovers, bed/room sharing, fake dating and secret relationships. I like pretty much any modern AU/Canon/Enchanted Forest etc setting, except maybe college settings because it’s too close to my own life lol

Hope that helps, I’m looking forward to reading whatever you have in store for me!