#the idea of fortune having a past opponent who wants revenge

[thelazyhermits]

The fifteenth drabble covers prompt #17 - a hug where one muse stops the other from collapsing. This ended up becoming longer than I planned. Oops lol I hope y’all enjoy it! ^-^

Today is not your day. 

Once again, you encounter a villain attack while off campus. This time, instead of a shopping trip, you’re out with the Big Three because you were all planning on visiting Hadou’s favorite tea shop together.

Naturally, those plans go awry when your group stumbles upon a bank robbery in progress. Once they realize what’s going on, the third years all take action. 

The only upside of this situation is the fact that Togata actually chose to wear his hero costume underneath his regular clothes today. After hearing about how often your trips off campus go wrong, the blond decided he should be prepared just in case. As a result, none of the citizens will have to worry about seeing a naked Lemillion today. 

While the Big Three goes after the villains, you do your best to help the citizens evacuate. After a few minutes of this, your Quirk activates, showing you a worrisome vision.

In it, you see a tall, muscular woman with short orange hair around your age, possibly a few years older, attacking you, claiming her time for vengeance has come. At first, you’re confused, but then, some of your repressed memories resurface from the depths of your mind, providing some much needed clarity. 

She was an underground fighter who started her career as a child like you. Her stage name was Drain because her Quirk allowed her to drain the energy of anyone she touched with her hands. 

Drain was actually the top child fighter before you came along. Naturally, that changed after you defeated her. 

Apparently, Drain has held a grudge against you ever since you beat her since she was never able to regain her popularity after that match. She especially hated that you won when she was the more skilled fighter--which she was.

The only reason you were able to defeat her is because your Quirk allowed you to predict her movements and because you had way more stamina than her. No matter how much energy she drained from you, you kept fighting until she was too worn out to continue which, now that you think about, was pretty ironic. 

You were lucky that her Quirk only allows her to drain energy and not reuse it for herself. Otherwise, that fight would’ve ended a whole lot differently. 

Before your vision ends, Drain explains that she’s been watching you for some time now, waiting for the right moment to strike. She knew she wouldn’t be able to accomplish her goal as long as you had heroes protecting you, so she waited for the moment when you finally went somewhere alone. 

As soon as your Quirk deactivates, you take off into a sprint, knowing you have a limited amount of time before the events of your vision happen. In your vision, Drain was willing to attack anyone who got in her way, so you need to find an area free of civilians. 

After all, the last thing you want it for someone to get caught in the crossfire. As you’re running, you quickly pull out your gloves and put them on in preparation for the fight that’s to come.

A few minutes later, just as you run into a nearby, empty parking lot, you hear a familiar voice which makes you come to an abrupt halt. “Not so fast, Prophet! I won’t allow this perfect opportunity to go to waste! I will have my revenge!”

Immediately, you turn toward the owner of the familiar voice and see Drain running toward you. A scowl appears on your face as you activate your Quirk. “Get over it already! That was over ten years ago! I didn’t even want to be in that fight!”

An onslaught of punches and kicks are aimed at you as soon as she’s within reach. Thankfully, you’re able to dodge and block all of them thanks to your Quirk. 

Unfortunately, you’re unable to do anything about the effects of her Quirk. Every time her hands make contact with your skin, you feel some of your energy get drained. 

That’s one of the reasons why you put on the gloves, hoping the material would protect you from her Quirk since she needs skin-on-skin contact for it to work. Unfortunately, despite your best efforts to avoid it, she still manages to make contact with your skin, and to your dismay, you discover that her Quirk has gotten stronger since she was a kid, allowing her to drain even more energy each time her hands make contact with you.

She cackles, “I’m much stronger than I was before! I trained for all those years so I’d be ready for our rematch!”

A large smirk appears on her face. “You thought you could escape by running away from the underworld, but you were wrong. I was determined to get my revenge even if it meant having to hunt you down.”

You sigh as you move to wipe the sweat off your forehead. “A revenge obsessed stalker. Great. My luck can’t get much better than this.”

Now, you’re really regretting the fact that you went out today without restocking your supplies. If you had your sleeping gas bombs, this fight would’ve already been finished by now.

Although, to be honest, you prefer the idea of taking Drain out with your own strength rather than resorting to using sleeping gas. This just feels like a fight you need to resolve with just your fists. 

An annoyed scowl appears on your face immediately after you think that. Oh great. Now, you’re starting to sound like Rappa. You always knew he was a horrible influence.

Drain lunges forward with a yell, and with that, the fight resumes. Minutes fly by as the two of you exchange blow after blow, with your vitality steadily decreasing as time progresses. 

It gets progressively harder to dodge her attacks, resulting in you taking hits you’d normally be able to avoid, and you know your punches are getting weaker with each passing second. 

However, you refuse to back down. No matter how much of your energy she drains, you won’t stop fighting until you emerge as the victor. You will not let her win. 

Noticing this, Drain scowls, “You’re like a damn cockroach! Just surrender already, Prophet! It’s clear who the superior fighter is between us!”

At that moment, your Quirk reveals that the moment you’ve been waiting for has finally come. Because of her mounting frustration, the orange haired woman starts to get careless, resulting in you finally finding an opening which you’ve been looking for since the fight started. 

When she aims another punch at you, putting more force behind it than she should, you parry it which causes her to lose her balance. Before she can regain her footing, you rear your fist back and aim a punch for your opponent’s face, hitting her with enough force to knock her flat on her back. 

Once again, you find yourself mentally thanking Hastume for your gloves. If it weren’t for them, there’s no way you would’ve had enough power behind your punches to cause any damage because you’re so exhausted now. It took everything you had just to swing your fist at her for that last punch. 

Chest heaving from exertion, you deactivate your Quirk and immediately wince when your head begins to throb and the sunlight reaches your now sensitive eyes. You can’t say you’re too surprised about the pain of your headache considering how long you’ve been using your Quirk. You’re just glad you didn’t use it long enough to invoke a seizure.

Squinting, you direct your gaze toward Drain who appears to be unconscious thanks to the combination of your punch and her head hitting the hard concrete. Good. You’re completely spent thanks to her Quirk. If she was still able to fight, you would’ve been in trouble since you’re just barely able to stand right now.

Of course, as soon as you think that, your knees buckle, causing you to plummet toward the ground. As you brace yourself for the fall, you hear familiar voices calling out your name.

“Y/N-sensei!”

“Cryptid-sensei!”

Seconds later, a pair of arms catches you, preventing you from hitting the ground. When you look to see who the arms belong to, you see Togata frowning worriedly. “Sensei, are you alright? You look exhausted!”

Hadou quickly appears at your other side and brings her face close to yours. “What happened, Cryptid-sensei? Did you get in a fight? Was it with that lady over there? Who is she? Do you know her?”

As she peppers you with questions, all you can do is watch the blue haired girl with amused eyes. While this is happening, Amajiki comes to stand beside Togata, who’s still holding you in his arms.

The shorter boy dons a concerned frown when he sees your worn out appearance. “We should find an ambulance and get you checked out. Can you walk?”

You shake your head. “My opponent’s Quirk allows her to drain the energy of whoever she touches, so I’m totally spent. I’m too exhausted to do anything, including walking. You don’t need to get me an ambulance, though. What I really need is a nap.”

Togata grins, “In that case, how about you climb onto my back? I’ll carry you back to school, and we can just have Recovery Girl examine you.”

The corners of your lips curve upwards. “Sounds good to me. I take it the villains from the bank robbery have already been arrested?”

While Amajiki and Hadou help brace you, Togata crouches down in front of you, so you can climb onto his back. As this is happening, he replies, “Yep! We’ll pass the police on the way out and tell them about the lady you fought too. Was she a friend of the robbers?”

A groan passes your lips when you think of Drain. “I wish. She’s actually my revenge obsessed stalker.”

While Amajiki stares at you with wide eyes, Hadou tilts her head. “Was she stalking you for revenge? What did she want revenge for?”

You close your eyes as you rest your forehead against Togata’s back. “I beat her in a fight a while back, and she’s been wanting revenge ever since. Apparently, she’s been looking for me for awhile.”

Since you’ve never explained your past to Hadou, she’s the only one who doesn’t understand the hidden meaning behind your words. Amajiki and Togata, however, quickly realize what kind of situation you were in when you first met Drain. The blond tightens his grip on you in response to your words while a deep frown appears on his best friend’s face.

Thankfully, Hadou doesn’t get the chance to probe further about Drain since that’s when Tsukauchi and a few other officers arrive on the scene. Fortunately for you, Togata and Hadou quickly explain the situation to the police, so you don’t have to. 

For a brief moment, Tsukauchi meets your gaze, and when you see the hidden question in his eyes, you slowly nod your head, realizing he wants to know if Drain is somehow connected to your past. After you do that, he asks the other officers to apprehend the orange haired woman. 

No doubt he’ll have more questions for you later, but since he can tell how exhausted you are, the police detective allows the three of you to return to school. He even kindly offers a police car to give you all a ride home. 

After helping you into the back seat of the car, Togata chooses to sit up front with the police officer who’s driving and begins cheerfully chatting with him. Meanwhile, Hadou and Amajiki join you in the backseat and sit on either side of you.

While you do your best to remain awake, the exhaustion weighing heavily on you is just too strong to resist. After a few minutes of futile struggling, your eyes fall shut, and you finally give in to sleep’s enticing pull.

The last thing that registers in your tired mind is Amajiki making a startled sound after your head falls onto his shoulder. After that, sleep claims you, and you enter a deep, peaceful slumber.

[alovesongshewrote]

Almost A Thousand Years - Trollhunters/3Below | Hisirdoux Casperan

Plot:  You’ve known Hisirdoux Casperan for almost a thousand years.  You’ve hated him for almost a thousand years.  And for almost a thousand years, you’ve been cursed to feel each others pain.  But somewhere in that time, things changed.  [Hisirdoux Casperan x Mostly Gender Neutral but Probably Female Presenting Based on How Historical Men Treat Them!Reader]

Word Count:  1,445

Warnings: swearing i think?

A/N:  Last chapter before we’re back to wizards

Tags: @furblrwurblr​ @rainningdoom​ @fluffydmonkey @blondie0458​ @sitherin-mxschief

Back | Next

--

Jim Lake Jr.’s mom was really familiar.

Fortunately, she didn’t recognize you, even as you studied under her at the hospital and watched out for her son in your free time.

Protecting the Trollhunter was something you had stumbled into.

After your return from a place you’d rather not think about ever again, you found Arcadia.  A safe little town in California where you could hide for the time being.

Then the trolls found you.

It wasn’t your fault that you’d nearly killed Blinky.  He snuck up on you, and you were very jumpy.  Fortunately, you’d figured out that you weren’t under attack before you could do any real damage.  It wasn’t too long after that when you found out your new mentor’s son was the Trollhunter, protector of trollkind and slayer of Gumm-Gumms, wielder of the amulet created by your first mentor, Merlin.

This kid was in way over his head.  

You had to protect him.

So, you helped to teach him how to use a sword, how to fight and how to survive.  You helped his friend, Toby, to throw a decent punch and knock out a human opponent with pressure points.  You were a cool older sibling who they could talk to about the stress of the job.  And girls.  

When Claire joined the party, you helped her practice magic.  You helped her learn to control it. 

You were quite the gang.  One immortal, who everyone believed to be a college student, and three high schoolers in charge of kicking the darkness back to whence it came.  

You protected those kids and their troll dads.  You made excuses, forged notes, fought off Mr. Strickler, the whole nine yards.  Somehow, you’d avoided sharing your past with the prying teens.  They didn’t know you’d once been a Gumm-Gumm spy.  You were just a cool mage who hung around for fun.

That all came crashing down when Bular crawled out of the woodwork, revealed your identity, almost killed your friends, and got you in a chokehold for a solid two minutes.

Centuries of work were finally paying off, he would, at last, have his revenge!  He would regain his honour after being so shamefully defeated the last time he fought you.

Then Jim killed him.  Rip.  

You got your old sword back though.  That was nice.

The trollhunter may have saved your life and given you your sword back, but the damage was done.  You all avoided each other after that.

That was a lie, you were still looking out for these damn kids.  You owed it to Barbara, who had grown up to be a fantastic doctor and who still had a few plastic bones in a box in the attic.  She had been so kind and welcoming to you, you had to make sure her son came home every day.  It was a difficult task when said son was all too willing to yeet himself into the Darklands, but you managed for the most part.

And when you heard a voice that followed you for centuries talking to your kids, it was the Darklands all over again.  There was nothing you could do but watch.

You could have laughed at how much Jim hated Douxie.  The kid had no idea he was telling a centuries-old wizard to go back to where he came from.  You kept your eye on the conversation, waiting until it ended.  Then, with no other choice available to you, you followed after the wizard.

How Douxie had built himself a life in Arcadia without you knowing was incredible and you respected the hell out of him for it.  But you didn’t know if you loved it.  

You followed behind him, silent as the night.  And then you realised just what was happening.  You stopped and went home after that.

And when you got there you screamed.

You screamed, and threw a sword at the wall, and broke several plates because this wasn’t supposed to happen.  You weren’t supposed to see him again.  Now he was in danger, and it was your fault.

You didn’t leave your house for a few days.

Then the teachers at Jim’s school went nuts, and you figured you should get back in the field.  

You’d been monitoring Claire’s sudden illness from afar when he showed up again, this time a waiter at whatever restaurant this was.  At some point, Claire left, and came back, and was acting... weird.  Something was very wrong.

But that didn’t matter because there he was again.  It was like you couldn’t escape him.

It was an active struggle to keep yourself away.  Literally, an active struggle.

You’d tried to put it out of your mind, but the more you saw him, the more you remembered.  The things that took you hadn’t only tortured you, trying to turn you into their full-time servant, but they’d also put some kind of spell or curse on you.

It was after the third one left if you remembered correctly.  The remaining duo had been so angry, specifically at Merlin for some reason, so they put some kind of curse on you, forcing you to make attempts on Douxie’s life whenever he was in your general vicinity.  

Why they went after Douxie instead of Merlin himself you’d never know.  The wizard was an easier target while he slept, but nope.  They went for Douxie.

You were confused, angry, and hurt.  At both parties.  You had been tortured for ten years.  Had he not felt any of it?  Had he not cared enough to help you?  Or even stop your pain which he must’ve been feeling?  It felt like a betrayal of sorts.  He kissed you and then didn’t come for you when you were in danger.  Was that all he wanted?  

Even though you were upset by your apparent abandonment, you didn’t want Douxie dead.  This wasn’t the twelfth century anymore, and you had to admit to yourself, you were still in love with him.  You weren’t going to kill him.

So you clung to the roof, even after Douxie had left for the night.  You stayed in place until the sun rose, struggling not to go after him.  Eventually, you let go, moving on with your day, avoiding Hisirdoux Casperan to the best of your ability.

You actually did a decent job until the Eternal Night.

It was a pretty nasty battle, but you were handling it pretty well.

Or you were until you got yourself backed into a corner by yet another Gumm-Gumm calling you a traitor, probably facing certain death when someone struck the thing with a guitar.

“Casperan!?”

“(Y/N)!?  What are you doing here?”

“It doesn’t matter,” you said, crawling to your feet, trying to keep yourself from throwing the sword in your hand at Douxie’s head.

“I- you’re right.  Are you okay?”

“No, I-” your voice broke and you backed away further, “I’m not.  Get away from me,”

You ran before you could see the pain leak into Douxie’s eyes before you could see the heartbreak on his face.

Ten minutes later the fight was finished.

A little after that, Jim and Claire were off to New Jersey.

You stayed behind.

Why did you do that?  You asked yourself the same question.  Staying in Arcadia put Douxie in danger and forced you into close proximity with the man who’d left you for dead.  

But still, you stayed.

Maybe it was to protect Toby and Arrrgh, maybe it was because you liked your small apartment, maybe it was because you knew there was more trouble on the horizon.  Or maybe it was because you were still in love with that stupid wizard.

You lost a lot of sleep over it.  You saw his face in your sleep, thought of him when you practiced medicine.  Every time you woke up from a war-related nightmare, you remembered how comforting his presence was.  You remembered every hug he’d ever given you, the jokes he made, and that kiss.  You remembered that kiss.

All you had was memories because if you even looked at his face, you’d kill him.

You did your best to distract yourself.  You teamed up with Toby, Arrrgh, Steve, Eli and the Akiridions to stop an alien threat.  It still wasn’t enough.

And when the alien threat was gone, you felt pain all over your body.  It didn’t belong to you.  You weren’t too alarmed, usually, torture was worse than this, but it kinda felt like Douxie had been dragged down the street by something for six(teen) blocks.

You were about to mention it when your posse ran into a familiar familiar.

“Beware!  You, you!  Are in grave danger!”

“Archie?”

[yurimother]

LGBTQ Light Novel Review: Sexiled Vol. 2

I recently became distraught over the state of light novels when an English license of Buck Naked in Another World was announced (obviously, that is was the problem with isekai harems, too much PANTS). However, my sadness quickly turned to jubilation as I realized that I had the second volume of Sexiled loaded up and was able to throw myself into the phenomenal tale of women dismantling the patriarchy, obliterating misogynists with overpowered magic, and kissing. Ameko Kaeruda has penned another triumphant and empowering feminist power fantasy for all readers to enjoy.

The story begins shortly after the conclusion of the first volume. The all-girls adventuring party Lilium is now famous after their spectacular win at the sparring tournament and enjoys their elevated status, one of the perks of which is a VIP table at their favorite restaurant. They are also responsible for supervising lower-ranked parties on quests. Usually, this involves men underestimating Lilium, attempting to show off and protect them, and then needing to be saved by the girls.

Just like the first volume, Sexiled 2 takes the opportunity to tell a few short stories highlighting gender inequalities from the real world. One such story involves the team representing at negotiations and a duel on behalf of a young woman who, after going out with some friends, was drugged and then forced into an engagement. When the slimeball man laced her drink and proposed, she did not say no, which he took as agreement. This narrative is an allegory for sexual assault, with the man drugging her drink and then taking her lack of ability to say no as consent. Kaeruda changes this structure slightly to being a woman forced into engagement instead of unwanted contact, which is understandable; these are delicate topics.

The main villain and story arc take more of a central state role here than in the first volume, which saw the antagonist act in the background as a driving force for Tanya to seek her revenge. It starts when Lillium gets invited to the palace for a party, which includes a side plot about the disparity in men’s and women’s fashion and footwear culminating in Laplace, still acting under the pseudonym Stone Cold Stunner, kneeling to present Tanya with a ring (gay).

While at the palace, the girls learn of the court grand mage Maxwell. He has served for the past 300 years as a dominant force in the country, manipulating it to become a sexist society where women are mistreated and forced to conform to unfair standards, all to sate his inferiority complex. More importantly, Laplace confesses that he is her father, who abused and experimented on her for his gain. When some of Maxwell's misdeeds finally caught up to him, he framed and imprisoned her. However, encouraged by Tanya’s ability to stand up for herself (and the love shared between the two), Laplace is finally able to face him.

The second half of the book features the epic showdown between Lilium and Maxwell. It is satisfying and grand; however, I, unfortunately, had a few issues with it. For one, while the battle has an excellent flow and builds during it, there is not much time for Maxwell to be established as a complete and motivating adversary, making some of the payoffs feel unearned. It is also hard to track Maxwell’s motivations and various schemes, he is making an immortal bride army cloned after Laplace, but he also wants to use her blood to create immortality, and he is going to drain all the mana in the city FullMetal Alchemist style. There is just a bit too much coming at the reader too fast for it to stick.

Fortunately, there are plenty of aspects in this light novel deserving of love and praise. The humor is spot-on; it is outrageous, profane, and injected with just the right amount of meme culture. Laplace proclaiming, “We’re not in trouble yet! This isn’t even my final form… I still have 530,000 more phases to go!” is outrageous but also profoundly in character for the confident sorcerous. The most excellent bits of comedy always involves the absurd amount of power the women of Lilium have. Whether they are taking over a jail cell and redecorating it with posh furniture, sneaking a midnight snack from the emperor’s refrigerator, or punching the living mana out of some sexist pig, there is always such a sense of fun and adventure, not to mention female empowerment!

Another huge positive for this volume is that it expands outwards with a few more interesting side characters, such as the princess Arianora, who is a vital part of the grand battle with Maxwell. It even features a few male characters that are not complete evil bastards, one of my few complaints about the first volume. Tanya reflects on her surprise when she meets a man who is as inspired by Lilium as the many young women in the novel, saying, “Male or female, it doesn’t matter. The circumstances of your birth should never deter you from following your heart.” That sentiment is quality feminism, and I adore its inclusion.

Additionally, the returning minor characters get some more love in this volume. Nadine uses some of her secret assassin skills to dismantle opponents and sexist traditions with frightening speed. She has a few scenes devoted to her acting without Tanya or Laplace, making her a dynamic character for the occasional B storyline. Katherine Foxxi, a minor antagonist from the first volume who, after being shown kindness by Nadine and realizing her greatest desire is to help people, joins Lilium and frequently accompanies Nadine on her quests. This B team has some of the best moments in the novel, such as when Katherine chooses to fight Maxwell, giving Nadine the chance to slip away in a dramatic and thrilling sequence. However, there are too few moments when all four women work together at one task, which somewhat destroys the idea that they are one team of equals, especially considering how much more powerful Tanya and Laplace are from the others.

Volume 2 takes steps away from the possible love triangle I predicted in my review of Volume 1. While there were initially romantic inclinations between Nadine, Tanya, and Laplace, Kaeruda pulls back Nadine’s involvement with the two, leaving the magi-knight and sorceress most of the romantic moments. These scenes are never exessive or grotesque and usually consists of the two embracing or holding hands. While the characters make a few more sexual jibes and speak of kissing, deeper physical contact between characters is minimalized. This censorship is both an upside, as it allows for a greater focus on the plot, and a detriment, as characters are clearly romantically involved, but the reader is told this more than they are shown it. There are, however some choice nuggets of Yuri goodness such as the ring scene previously mentioned and Tanya inspiring Laplace to stand up against her abusive father. Of course, having too many sexual moments may undermine the point of Sexiled, so I ultimately applaud Kaeruda on the restraint.

While I have minor grievances with many pieces of the light novel, the positives vastly outweighed the negatives. Unfortunately, there is one aspect of Sexiled that I cannot reconcile, the illustrations. The opening full-color pieces of artwork are adequate. Still, within the book, readers are too often greeted with atrocious sketches with inconsistent character appearances that often appear warped and stretched. Setting the poor quality artwork alongside Kaeruda’s fantastic script and Molly Lee’s excellent translation damns them that much harder, and so the illustrations detract significantly from the work.

Sexiled: My Party leader kicked Me Out, So I Teamed Up With a Mythical Sorceress! Volume 2 is another excellent and empowering female power fantasy. While it makes minor missteps in its pacing and artwork, the hilarious and thoughtful narrative will leave readers feeling emboldened and affirmed. This volume cements Sexiled as one of the greatest light novel series I have ever read and an absolute must-read for all fans of the medium, and frankly many of its detractors too.

Ratings: Story – 9 Characters – 9 Art  – 3 LGBTQ – 5 Sexual Content – 3 Final – 8

Review copy provided by J-Novel Club

Check out Sexiled Volume 2 digitally today: https://amzn.to/35ZObR2 (Affiliate Link)

[assassins-and-hidden-blades]

The Challenger Beats The Champion

Request: Hiya, since you mentioned you have no requests, I thought I'd suggest another I've been sitting on lately. I can imagine Jacob tricking Evie into a Fight Club (she thinks it's a barbaric form of entertainment) and the fighters patronise her into participating saying things like "it wouldn't feel right hittin' such a pretty little lass, anyway" - action ensues :)

A/N: Instead of Jacob tricking Evie, I did Jacob tricking the Reader, because let’s face it; we wanna be in every fic we can. This is also female!reader due to the intoxicating stench of the patriarchy, but I hope you enjoy it :D (I wanna try and make my fics more inclusive by specifying reader; if you want to request a male reader, then go ahead!

Requested by @marshmallow--3 :)

Jacob was pinned under you again.

“I said ‘no’.”

He let out a surprised scoff. “Why not?! You’ll win the crowd instantly!” You stood up, offering a hand to help him up. “It’s a barbaric form of entertainment! Evie agrees with me.”

“You don’t know what you’re missing, Love.” “I do; a load of pillocks beating each other to death--for fun! Doesn’t sound fun”

Jacob shrugged. “Suit yourself.”

He watched as you wiped the sweat off your face with a cloth. Your muscles rippled under your T-shirt, and he couldn’t help but admire how you can take down even the biggest brutes.

“Stop staring, Frye. Most women would freak out.” “But you aren’t like most women.”

You threw his cloth at his face, deterring him as your face heated up. “Shut up.”

He laughed at your shy smile, attempting to be hidden by your facade.

——————

You were busy maintaining your revolver when Jacob burst into your carriage, looking quite shaken up, clad in everything but his leather coat.

“Are you alright?” Standing up, you holstered your gun.

“Someone’s nicked my coat; it has everything in it.” He began pacing, dramatically pulling at his hair as he hides his face behind his hands.

“Show me where; I’ll help you find it.” At that, his face lit up, relieved.

“Thank you!” He grabbed your arm and dragged you out of the train and through the station, into the busy streets.

“How did your stuff get stolen in the first place?” you asked, briskly walking to keep up with Jacob’s worried pace.

“I don’t know; I had it there, and then when I turned around, it disappeared.”

As you walked, Jacob scoured the door numbers of each house, stopping in front of a door decorated with a wash of a subdued blue. “I think he went in here.”

“Well then, what are you waiting for?” “I haven’t got any weapons; don’t look at me!”

You sighed, rolling your eyes before you tested the knob. To your surprise, it opened. In a second, Jacob pushed you in and closed the door behind you, blocking your only way out. You turned around, about to tell him off, when you saw a Rook pass him his coat back. He grinned at you smugly.

“You’re a bastard.” “But I’m a charming bastard.”

“Yes,” you sighed. “Yes, you are.”

“Are you up for another round, Mister Frye?” An articulate voice snapped you back to the present, and you took a few moments to gauge your surroundings. It was a wide, busy room, filled with men of all backgrounds, most with beer in their hands, and some others shirtless and sweaty. The room had an awful stench of a mix with blood, sweat and probably results of uncontrollable bladders. The entrance stood at the top of a wide staircase, the bottom of which sat a boxing ring, where two opponents were fumbling around, blood pouring out of their mouths from a loss of teeth and where their cheeks have been torn open.

Jacob led you down the stairs. “Not today, Mister Topper; but my friend is.” You were not in the mood today, but as you opened your mouth to refuse, a brute of a man (who was lacking half his teeth) cut you off.

“Don’t waste your time on her, mate.” He clapped Topper on the back. “She’ll refuse; look at ‘er.” You were about to bite back, but he interrupted again. “Besides, wouldn’t feel right hitting such a... fragile lass anyway.”

Sensing your anger, Jacob dipped his head so his lips brushed against your ear. “My bet’s on you,” he breathed lowly, glaring at the man ahead of him.

You breathed. “I’d like to see you try, old man.” “You’re not leaving in one piece, you know that, right?” He sent you a sneer and puffed his chest out.

You shoved two fingers in his face, shredded your outer robes and weapons and heaved them into Jacob’s hands before heading to a corner of the ring. The man standing by looked nervous.

“What’s got your knickers in a twist?” You took a long strip of cloth from his hands and began to quickly wrap your hand.

“That old man is the undefeated champion, whether by being fair or cheating, that’s how it is. I fear that you’ve signed your own death warrant, madam.” “I’ll show him what a champion looks like.” You were about to reach for the other hand wrap when it was taken from the man’s hand. Jacob had taken it, and lightly grasped your free hand.

He began to wrap the cloth around your wrist. “Listen to me; this man is not someone to taunt.” You watched his hair fall in front of his face as you watched him intimately. His sleeves were rolled up to his elbows (coat still discarded and hat elsewhere), and you couldn’t help but stare at the way his locks framed his face as he concentrated wholly on his task.

His lips were moving, but you couldn’t really understand what was coming out.

“Y/N/N, are you listening to me?” His hazel eyes locked with yours, and you swore you could see some sort of emotion other than snark in them. It was more of a worry, or concern. You bet he didn’t want you to go up against this guy on your first visit.

“Yeah, yeah; don’t taunt him. Got it.”

He exhaled through his nose. “I’ll be watching.” Without warning, his lips pressed against your forehead and he was gone in a blink.

You never talked about your feelings toward Jacob; the relationship just grew into one of affection without either one objecting. And that’s how it was.

But you had a feeling that the day to talk had come.

The children that had been cleaning the ring scampered off, and a bell began to trill. “Good luck, madam,” the man beside you said. “Thanks.” You dipped between the ropes and hoped for the best.

“Good afternoon, fight club!” Robert Topper greeted the crowd, who responded with cheers. “Today, we have a new challenger!”

You caught Jacob leaning against a pillar, arms crossed, fully ready to jump in if needed (although he was still dressed). It was true; he was observing closely.

“Let the fighting commence!” Topper made a beeline for the ropes as soon as the bell rang out again. The brute swaggered forward, smug as all hell. “I’ll let the pretty lass have the first--”

Your fist collided with his nose instantly, and he stumbled slightly, eyes watering at the impact. “Don’t look at me like that.” You readied your stance. “You asked for it.”

Somewhere, Jacob facepalmed.

With a growl, the brute stormed you, arm flailing towards you. You caught it, twisted him around and kicked him in the back, sending him in the opposite direction.

The crowd began jeering at him, and you heard people placing bets on the ‘Wonder Woman’.

You smirked. “Surprise.” The crowd laughed, and the so called ‘Champion’ began to lose his patience, and lunged at you. You thought you dodged a punch, but it was a feint and instead a hook went straight for your ribs. You moved back to recover, but the brute tripped you and sent your head to the floor with a loud smack.

You made every effort to roll past his oncoming strikes, pulling on the ropes to haul yourself up quicker.

Time to break your arm, old man.

He went on the offensive again, and you caught his upper arm and twisted it over you until you heard the familiar crack, beat him in the ribs, before throwing him to the ground. You rested your foot on his back.

“To be honest, that was easier than I thought.”

You turned to the crowd, where you witnessed Jacob neatly jumping onto the platform behind the ropes. “Nice going, but get out of the ring quickly.”

“Why?”

“They might think you want another round.”

“No thanks.” You walked towards him and you were about to dip under the rope before a hand wrapped around your ankle and yanked it. Your hand grasped Jacob’s arm as you lost your balance. The brute you left dazed seemed to want revenge. “Fuck off, mate; we’re done here. No round two today.” The referee came over, forced him to release you, and you got away without further inconvenience.

“I think I owe you an apology.” A Rook came over to hand you your clothing. You thanked him and began dressing.

“Yeah, you sure do. Let’s not come back here. I told you; barbaric.”

“You’re not wrong after today.” Jacob help you unwrap your hands. “But does it comfort you to know that this is the most competitive fight club in London? And you just beat the champion?”

“That is something, I suppose.” You both headed to the exit. “Can I get some ice before we go? My ribs really hurt.”

“‘Course; though I thought you didn’t want to spend another second in this manhole?”

“Ah.” You looked around at the growing rowdiness. “Good idea.”

As you left into the streets, you couldn’t help but wonder. “So... you make any money?”

“You made a fortune, love. Check your pocket.” You dipped your hand into your coat pocket to feel a thick wad of paper.

You couldn’t help but grow a smug grin. “You secretly loved it.” Jacob nudged you.

“What? No!”

You refused to look at him. “No, I hated every second.”

“Uh-huh, whatever you say.”

You laughed, grabbing his hand, walking back to the train station.

[theangry-ace]

currently playing: Ken ga Kimi

update 5

time for our resident haraguro(?) boi, Sakyo. tbh I’m not looking forward for his route at all bc I am absolutely fucking scared of anything close to yan. my kokoro is not strong enough for them. but I do like Sakyo in the drama cds, especially the momoyo tsuzuri one. he’s like the most gentle boi with a tendency to tease Kayo or anyone else, whether or not that’s what he intended to do or not.

WARNING: THIS BOI BROKE ME PLS HELP

so our boi Sakyo has two kind of face; one, the ‘normal’, a bit formal and proper personality he showed to others. the other is the 100% enraged, I-will-kill-you-slowly-bc-I-wanna-enjoy-killing-you type of thing. he has a bit of an anger issue as well that he does exactly nothing to hide if ppl mentioned them. his purpose in life is only to exact the revenge of some oni who attacked and murdered his entire family. Sakyo mentioned in the common route that he didn’t trust (or don’t like) Enishi and Suzukake. I suppose he didn’t like ppl who didn’t seem to be dependable.

after the whole merry joyride to Sunpu, Sakyo went to some cave which was rumored to gather a heck load of oni trying to do... something? IDK. but they had already cleared the cave and was on the way to Edo. back in Edo, Kayo’s dad put up a banquet for the six samurai who had been protecting his precious baby girl but Sakyo didn’t manage to be present. he was instead busy in his pursuit for Zantetsu, one of the oni who killed entire family. but unfortunately, Sakyo walked right into a trap and was surrounded by oni and he got away with a terrible wound on his arm (I don’t remember which but he did say it’s no biggie bc he use his sword in another). it was night when Kayo saw Yanohiko, a neighboring kid, was wandering around saying he was getting some water for a wounded samurai. after Kayo realized it was Sakyo, she took him to her room and somehow managed to hide a whole person for a long time in her own fucking room without her dad even noticed!!! what the heck dad like i respect that u respect ur baby girl’s privacy but a wHOLE GROWN ASS PERSON!!! IN UR FUCKING HOUSE!!! FOR MANY DAYS!!!!

and so while living incognito in a girl’s room, Yanohiko came by as well to play with Sakyo. dude is actually not 24/7 angry or thinking about revenge. he is quite gentle with Yanohiko and taught the boy to write and play goma (spinning top?). there is one goddamn funny scene when Kayo’s dad suddenly wanna talk with her and there’s nowhere to hide Sakyo so she shoved him into her futon and get in with him with his goddamn face between her legs lol. STILL THE DAD DIDN’T FUCKING NOTICE???? welp. eventually Sakyo heard about Zantetsu going to enter the tourney that was going to take place and he took off without telling Kayo, leaving her having to lie to Yanohiko whenever the boy asked for him. she managed to find him later when he was trying to get his family’s treasured sword, Hotarumaru, to be fixed/sharpened by a famous fixer(?). he was refused, though, for obvious reason that Sakyo just wanted to kill with his sword.

Kayo shared this with Suzukake who had been supplying her with the medicine for Sakyo and my son said he, too, gonna join the tourney. so she and Suzukake went to the tourney together to see Sakyo. they heard about Zantetsu (lol Suzu called him ojisan) being a merciless opponent and got worried when later Sakyo was to fight him. Sakyo showed some... I think some kind of arrest warrant or written right for him to ask for a duel to the death, for killing his father, mother and elder sister?? or something?? but since Sakyo having his arm still injured and his sword not fixed, he lost the match terribly. Suzukake and Kayo wanna see him at the back room where he was taken but got refused bc Sakyo was ‘desecrating the holy tourney ground with his selfish need to exact his revenge’ or something. Sakyo was to be dumped into jail but Enishi came by and after some ‘talking’ (remember; he is actually some big shot in the Edo castle), he promised that he will make sure Sakyo will be taken care of and would not be in jail.

Kimi -nice end-

all thanks to strings pulled by Enishi, Sakyo is free from being jailed. he met Kayo to tell her everything about his tragic past. when he was a kid (8yo I think), he had a terrible fever and was bedridden. this coincidentally made him hidden from a murdering oni who came for the entire Sagihara family, who he explained was the descendant of those who forged the Five Heavenly Swords. I could not get why the Sagiharas were killed, but Sakyo survived thanks to his nurse maid and incidentally inherited his family’s heirloom, the Hotarumaru. from the age of 12, he strive to become a samurai and would eventually hunt every oni he could find, but because Sakyo was defeated by Zantetsu in the tourney, Sakyo didn’t feel like he is worthy of such pride of his family’s name. he left it in a cave and determined to carry on life no longer as a samurai. Kayo, after hearing all these, understands the whole dilemma the dude is in, but she told him it’s not reason enough to leave behind what was precious to the memory of his family. convinced by her words, Sakyo and Kayo made their way to the cave where he left Hotarumaru and retrieve it. when he unsheathe it then, glowing orbs of light filled the dark cave like a real firefly. Sakyo was so ashamed that he almost abandoned the sword there and from then vowed to always carry it with him as if he was carrying his family on his shoulders. Kayo later convinced the sword fixer/sharpener(?) person to fix Hotarumaru.

after getting his sword back, he told Kayo he couldn’t let Zantetsu’s sin towards his family to go free so he left her one night with a letter he told her to open if he never returned. while he went for his supposed one-on-one duel, Kayo just can’t sit still waiting for Sakyo to come back. she went to follow him but met Kei on the way of his patrol. buddy told her to stay home while he grab some of his pals to help Sakyo. those pals turned out to be the rest of them samurai who went to Sunpu the other day! thankfully for that, Sakyo was saved by an ambush planned by Zantetsu. Tsuzumi was there as well as he was threatened with Nanae’s life he didn’t cooperate. in the end, Zantetsu is finally dead and Sakyo could then rest easy the revenge he was living for has ended.

in the after story, Sakyo married Kayo with the five samurai buddies became her real bridal escort procession to Sakyo’s home country of Yamashiro.

Kimi -another nice end-

not that different than the previous ending, but Kayo was there with her naginata to help with Sakyo instead of staying home. fortunately, she arrived when Zantetsu got done dead. later there was news regarding Sakyo wanting to return back to his home country and probably will not coming back, and everyone knew about Kayo’s relationship with Sakyo. they all asked if she’s going with him, or why she’s unbothered about him going away, but baby girl really didn’t know how to react. sure, they’re lovers, but Sakyo never told her what he planned to do in the future, or whether or not that involved her at all.

Kayo held another feast for her samurai friends and also doubles as a farewell to Sakyo but the dude came late and has no idea why ppl giving him a farewell party. Kayo noticed him looking angry and restless seeing how close the other samurai dudes with her. Sakyo later couldn’t sit still anymore and pulled her to talk alone. there he told her he has no plan on going home aside from a short trip to visit his family’s grave, and that he planned to open up a free shrine school (kinda like a private but small informal school) for kids like Yanohiko who got orphaned and not privileged enough for a basic education. Sakyo and Kayo promised to marry each other soon.

Ken -too terrible what the heck end-

Kayo still tried to convince Sakyo from acting on his revenge against Zantetsu. Sakyo got annoyed and angry bc of this, that he assaulted Kayo to show how much of a terrible guy he is in actuality. he part ways with her and supposedly never to see her again, but he found himself led by a mysterious force to a cave where the whole shits of Asakura trying to reincarnate Tadanaga. there was nothing there but an ominous looking sword called the Muramasa. Sakyo took it after hearing a woman’s ghostly voice lamenting about her unborn child. he immediately thought the ghost to be his dead sister who had returned to the Sagihara family due to her getting pregnant and wanted to stay close to her parents during the whole pre-natal care.

however unknown to Sakyo, it was a malevolent evil spirit which was leading him to find Zantetsu to murder him. he got drunk with the pleasure to kill and didn’t stop at just one person. he managed to kill 10 ppl in one night at Yoshiwara alone, and he wasn’t stopping anytime soon. Kayo actually met with Sakyo before going on his murdering rampage and he told her he had thrown away his Hotarumaru in a lake bc the evil spirits in Muramasa told him to. there was no doubt that the madman who was killing people in the night was Sakyo, the man that she loved. she asked the help of her samurai friends to stop Sakyo but things got much worst when Yanohiko became his victim. the boy just wanted to show Sakyo his spinning top.

eventually they figured out about the evil sword and thought they’d better try to separate Sakyo from it or kill him entirely. they went to the lake where Kayo heard Sakyo said he dumped Hotarumaru, thinking if there’s any humanity left in him, he might want to reunited with his family’s heirloom. unfortunately, in his clouded mind, Sakyo heavily injured Kayo and she succumbed to the wound despite whatever Suzukake tried to do. Sakyo decided to kill himself in a cave with some kind of explosive.

they met in the afterlife and thought to cross the Sanzu river together to... Heaven? but the evil sword reminded Sakyo how much of a sin he had committed, and that he belongs to Hell. Kayo decided to fall to the endless abyss with Sakyo for eternity. this is a terrible ending I hate it.

Ken -just as terrible end-

Kayo managed to stop Sakyo from killing Yanohiko but the dude fled after realizing what he was trying to do. Kayo figured out that he needed to be reunited with Hotarumaru so she went to the lake where he dumped it. Sakyo was there, but he has already made up his mind that nothing he could do would ever atone his sins so he jumped into the lake. Kayo follow suit and they woke up in the afterlife. they tried to cross the Sanzu river but Sakyo stopped halfway saying there’s a lot of angry ppl on the other side, not gonna let him into Heaven. they were the innocent lives he had murdered before. Kayo, on the other hand, didn’t see the angry souls but instead heard some familiar voices calling for her. Sakyo guessed it must have been her loved ones in the living world. he told her to follow the voice and lived a happy life for his behalf. Kayo woke up again surrounded by her panicky dad and her friends. they told her she was floating by the lake, but Sakyo’s body was nowhere to be seen.

the epilogue has Kayo wanting to pay respect to Sakyo’s victim’s graves.

HOOOO BOY I SURE AS FUCK DIDN’T ENJOY THESE KEN ROUTES ONE BIT WHO THE FUCK WROTE THEM I WANT TO SUE FOR THE EMOTIONAL DAMAGES THEY DIDDDD!!! I’M BROKEN, YOU KNOW!!! THEY SHOULD HAVE AT LEAST HAVE ONE OF THEM WITH SAKYO IS ALIVE BUT HAD TO FACE HIS SINS I KNOW THAT’S NOT A BETTER END BUT AT LEAST BOI IS ALIVE AND KAYO DIDN’T HAVE TO BE SAD WHAT THE HECK THESE ARE TERRIBLE ENDINGS I HATE THEMMMMMMMMMMMM

*inhale, exhale*

well at least I like that in Sakyo’s four routes, the roles of the other samurai dudes are quite prominent. it’s nice to see the whole stupid scene with Tsuzu and Suzu arguing about the other stealing the food, Enishi teasing Saneaki that he can’t drink, also Kei the tsukkomi lol that was a nice scene.

FINALLY!!! now I get to my baby son, Suzukake!!!! I’ve actually half cleared his route before but didn’t see the ending yet. I SURE AS FLYING FUCKERY SHIT WILL NOT BE READY FOR THE ROUTE WHICH MY SON DIE!!!! probably I would skip it....

[recentanimenews]

OPINION: Hanesaki Quitting Badiminton is the Ultimate Ending for HANEBADO!

We’re approaching the final episode of HANEBADO!, with Hanesaki facing off against Nagisa in the national finals. Each character has a compelling personal conflict headed into the match: Nagisa is on a mission to defeat her past self, who lost hope and gave up against Hanesaki last year. Hanesaki wants to prove her excellence at badminton through victory, forcing Uchika to return so that she can exact her revenge by turning away from her mother. Now with a 1-1 match score, the stakes are as high as they can get. Nagisa has shown she’s truly stepped up her play, and Hanesaki has revealed her own hidden weapon for the final game.

  We’re definitely headed for an insane final episode and conclusion to the match, but I can’t help but think about what will come after the final point has been scored?

Neither necessarily has to win to find a resolution to their conflict. So long as she battles to the end, Nagisa can be satisfied she overcame her own weakness, even in defeat. Hanesaki’s own path to victory has been paved with tears of friends and enemies alike. In this case, "winning" could actually be the poorer outcome for her, as she could use her triumph to justify her past actions and continue to drive a wedge between herself and others. The penultimate episode’s conclusion, with her team stubbornly cheering her on despite her abuse, could mean that the opponents may each find happiness regardless of the outcome, but no matter who walks away with the medal, the greatest conclusion for Hanesaki may be walking away from badminton entirely.

First and foremost, I think this is an important outcome since Hanesaki finding joy in the game could go a long way toward justifying the actions taken by her mother in abandoning her for the sake of her sports career, and later, Elena's manipulation of Hanesaki into joining the team after she had quit the sport entirely. Uchika’s plan has already been shown to be an abject failure: Hanesaki won the championship last year in what was a completely joyless victory, ending with her quitting badminton. If not for Elena, Hanesaki would have completely divorced herself from the sport already, and potentially found something else that brought her joy.

The actions of both, taken in the name of Hanesaki’s tremendous potential at the game, have quite clearly had immense negative emotional consequences for her. One of the greatest narrative qualities about HANEBADO has been showing how ignoring someone's feelings to do what you believe is best for them is actually a terrible idea. Neither Uchika nor Elena took the time to ask Hanesaki what she wanted, instead taking liberties with the close relationships they had with her to force her behavior. Hanesaki has realized both of their motivations and grown to resent them for it: they violated her trust, and in Uchika’s case, sacrificed literal years of the most formative period of Hanesaki’s life. Turning the corner in the final episode would undo much of the work the anime has done to negatively frame their decisions.

Whether or not Hanesaki actually enjoys badminton is something of an open question at this point. She certainly enjoyed playing with her mother as a child but, even since her mother left her, she hasn’t once been shown to have had any fun playing. Her own issues with losing aside, victory doesn’t seem to bring her any joy beyond that which she has begun to engineer by exacting revenge on her opponents--the only two things that have motivated her to reach peak form were her mother and revenge. After investing your whole childhood into a game, if you still find you can’t enjoy it on its own merits, odds are you probably never will, no matter what new perspective you take on it. The aspects of the game that Hanesaki doesn’t like aren’t going to magically disappear, either--her opponents will likely continue to snipe after her even if she accepts the support of her team.

Odds are badminton just isn’t for her, and that’s perfectly fine.

  Some truly untouched ground in sports anime, typically cast with endlessly passionate athletes, are players who quit due to lack of motivation. Injuries and life circumstances can and have driven characters out of sports series in the past, but telling the story of a player who fall out of love with their game, or realized they never loved the game to begin with, is as valuable as it is revolutionary, especially in the case of a character like Hanesaki, who has displayed world-class talent at badminton. You can have the skill to conquer the world, but whether or not that amount of success is worth the investment of time and effort into something you're not passionate about is a personal decision. You only live once, and fame and fortune may not match up against pursuing another path you might be able enjoy on its own merits.

  Regardless of its conclusion, HANEBADO! has been one of my favorite rides of the past season. The quality of the animation, the focus on a less popular sport, and the female lead cast are all rare for sports series, especially in combination. Hanesaki’s turn made me especially glad I stuck with the series, since it’s focused on aspects of competition rarely covered by sports anime. No matter the outcome, I’m confident I’ll thoroughly enjoy the ending, but I think showing that sometimes the best way to win is not to play at all will make for a truly memorable standout ending that will be remembered for years to come.

---

Peter Fobian is an Associate Features Editor for Crunchyroll, author of Monthly Mangaka Spotlight, writer for Anime Academy, and contributor at Anime Feminist. You can follow him on Twitter @PeterFobian.

By: news+feed@crunchyroll.com

[aion-rsa]

Batwoman Season 2 Episode 7 Review: It’s Best You Stop Digging

https://ift.tt/eA8V8J

This Batwoman review contains spoilers.

Batwoman Season 2, Episode 7

Not to be on the nose, but Ryan is batshit right now. She is dying from the Kryptonite that pierced her skin the season premiere, and while her body slowly shuts down, she is hell bent on a final act of revenge. Dressed in the Batsuit, Ryan visits Angelique—who has apparently already moved on—to learn Ocean’s location, in order to find Alice. Instead of letting Mary attempt to treat her, or doing literally anything else in her potential final moments, she wants to spend her last waking hours killing Alice. Fortunately, when Ryan finds Alice she thinks better of it, and puts a tracker on her instead.

The season premiere of Batwoman gave us an open and shut explanation for Kate’s off-screen disappearance but reintroduced the idea of her as a currently-breathing person not soon after. As such, a lot of the story has centered around finding her. The past few episodes however have expanded that search for Kate into something bigger. And with Ryan’s impending death, the need to find Coryana and the Desert Rose has become as much about ensuring a future for Ryan as it is about bringing Kate back. I knew Ryan’s wound would be important and I’m glad that the writers used it to give her personal stakes in finding Coryana so that her story wouldn’t also have to revolve around Kate.

Similarly, I am very much enjoying the exploration of Alice’s past, even though some elements of the storytelling give me pause. When Tatiana comes to retrieve “Ocean’s” body, Alice captures her and demands answers about the missing parts of her memory. Tatiana regales Alice with the story of how she was found, how Safiyah had hoped to mold her, and how Alice and Ocean betrayed Safiyah by falling in love and planning to run away together—with the Desert Rose. As punishment for their betrayal, Safiyah enlists the help of Enigma, a hypnotist, who erases their memories.

The part of this particular story that irks me is the revelation that Safiyah essentially creates the Alice alter-ego. She tells Beth—and presumably repeats to Enigma—that she’s going to become the twisted version of the fairy tale she escaped into, and go back home to Gotham, build an army, get revenge… and do hoodrat shit, basically. This potentially takes away a lot of Alice’s agency, which feels like a particularly questionable choice given the character was held captive for a large chunk of their life. And that might be a deliberate choice, which reframes Alice as a victim in yet another way that will make her seemingly inevitable redemption all the more satisfying, but I have doubts whether writers have The Range.

What I like about this thought is that it gives Alice a reason to confront Safiyah that doesn’t revolve around Kate, even if Alice is still operating with the original goal in mind. Beth was wronged by Safiyah in multiple ways, having been manipulated and violated by her. When Kate is found, or whatever happens to resolve her story, there will still be reasons for Alice to pursue Safiyah. Batwoman is not just shifting the focus away from Kate Kane but giving characters motivations that are more singular and self-revolving. While we love a good old fashioned nemesis situation, Batwoman doesn’t need personal attachments to every villain she encounters, and every villain doesn’t have to have a specific gripe with Batwoman. Alice can do her thing independent of Kate or Ryan, and I hope the writers allow that.

One place where writers haven’t quite found their groove is with Jacob, Sophie, and The Crows. In some respects, they do seem to be moving beyond finding Kate, having now introduced Hamilton Dynamics as a formidable opponent out to get the Desert Rose for themselves. But in many ways, Jacob and Sophie feel stuck. Writers haven’t given them anything to care about outside of their jobs, in the broadest possible sense, and Kate. Unintentionally or not, writers haven’t made Mary feel like a real priority in Jake’s life and there is almost no purpose he serves other than to represent Authority in Gotham.

Likewise, Sophie only cares about Kate and being a Crow. There is a lot of potential for the character, especially if she were to take a more senior position in the organization alongside or maybe as a replacement for Jake. But as long as her feelings about Kate are unresolved, she remains stagnant. Sophie could lead the Crows into a new direction, which would align with what she tells Batwoman about trying to change the organization from the inside. She could be great, but she still feels tacked on, first to Kate and now to Jake. I really hope the writers make Sophie more central to the show and to her own narrative within it.

cnx.cmd.push(function() { cnx({ playerId: "106e33c0-3911-473c-b599-b1426db57530", }).render("0270c398a82f44f49c23c16122516796"); });

At the end of the episode, Alice is on her way to Coryana wearing a tracker that the Bat Team can follow. Whatever happens now, this feels like a definitive step towards closure of Kate’s story, and hopefully a focus shift away from her. Batwoman is making mostly solid choices, and telling stories I enjoy. I just hope that the characterizations stay consistent and the plot is kept in check while characters come into their own outside of their relationship to Kate Kane.

The post Batwoman Season 2 Episode 7 Review: It’s Best You Stop Digging appeared first on Den of Geek.

from Den of Geek https://ift.tt/3eCQCAt

[lazyaris]

[Naruto fanfic] Can’t Escape - Madara x Tobirama

Omake Chapter: Chunnin Exam (2)

https://archiveofourown.org/works/14186574/chapters/33694461

Below is the full view of this chapter. Anyway, this is just the omake as the main story is finished long time ago. 

"So... Where should we go first? "

One of the two kids asked as they looked around and tried to take in the views as much as they could. Although they knew Konoha is their daddies's home, they have never come here before and since they are in the future at this moment, everything became even more complicated. Still, they have to admit, Konoha is a beautiful village, no wonder their parents love it so much (Well, they knew Madara still have mix feeling about this place but sometimes he will tell them stories with such fondness...). After dropped them somewhere near the Senju Compound (they wondered why the compound is empty... Where is all the Senju?), the Tobirama Clone had disappear with a poof to give back the memory to his owner while the two kids stood there, tried to form a plan as fast as possible.

 "Hm..."

Akashi pondered at the thought as they were kinda lost at this moment. They didn't know anything about the village, so it was a hard question. They needed to know which way to go and how to get there, but without a map, that could be quite troublesome. Fortunately for them, a year ago, it had been discovered that Akashi is a Sensor like Tobirama, thus, he could at least use his ability to pinpoint their destination. Sure he still needed to learn a lot about his ability and how to control it, but at this moment, he could use it to pin point where most of the foreign charka came from (For example, their affinity is different from the rest of the ninjas here, so Akashi could at least figured out who is who). Since Tobirama had said that he wanted them to help and protect the village, Akashi supposed they should go and defense the hospital as well as the academy before go somewhere else since those two places are the most important one with little protection. With that in mind, the boy started moving with Katsuya right next to him, he told her his plan as they jumped through roof after roof, hoped that they were going to the right direction.

 "We should check out the Hospital and Academy first. Then we can try to check out one of the gates, I feel a lot of charka signature at the North gate."

"Sound good. We should speed up then, I want to test myself!"

 At this, Akashi rolled his eyes, he really couldn't understand how Katsuya loves fighting too much, just like Madara, yet, she always fights and argue with him, something about Tobirama belong to her, not his. Honestly, he had no idea where did those ideas come from, but he knew she was just messing with their parents anyway. Then again, Tobirama always tell him to ignore those two idiots and focus on study, something he gladly follows. Shrugged, he speeds up as Katsuya's wish and moved faster, wanted to finish the mission and perhaps got a chance to see just how strong he is at this moment.

Meanwhile, Katsuya was all excited, like Christmas came early because she finally gets to fight some bastards. She didn't seem to have any problem with his order or his lead, after all, she knew that between the two, Akashi is the brain and Katsuya doesn't mind follow his orders. Her job is to fight, so why should she care too much? At this moment, she wished to be stronger so she can protect her family, that's why she trains so hard and so eager to find a worthy enemy to test her skills. While it is truth that she tends to fight and argue with Madara, but she still loves her family with her whole heart, it just, she likes to provoke him. Why? Because he keeps taking Tobirama's attention away from them (Akashi and Katsuya), not only that, he often threw them out of the house with the training excuse. (Hm! She knew exactly why the bastard did that and that's why she always tries to prank him or get him in trouble, considered this as her way to pay him back, alright?)

Either way, Akashi and Katsuya both love their family a lot and right now they have something very important to do, protect their parents's home.

 "Let's the game begin."

.

.

.

A few minutes before, right after Madara unleashed his Gunbai, the Uchiha quickly dash toward Hashirama, even if he knew this probably wasn't the fight he wanted since Hashirama was being controlled and wasn't called back with his full strength (Orochimaru wasn't that stupid, he knew Hashirama could break out of his control if the man was summoned with his whole power). But hey, this actually quite perfect in his view. Madara still somewhat mad at Hashirama for the shit he did back there and since his friend was just an Edo, who recover again and again until the controller get defeated, it means he could use any jutsu he wanted and killed him without a care, right? The Senju already dead, it wasn't like his attack could make any different, so maybe he should try and get his revenge. Beside, Madara knew Tobirama wouldn't mind it that much, seeing Hashirama pretty much their enemy right now. With that in mind, Madara gladly took on Hashirama and became his opponent while Hiruzen was facing against Orochimaru. The Sandaime knew if he asked for it, his sensei - Tobirama would help him, but this was his fight, his responsibility because if he wasn't such a soft-heart back there, Orochimaru wouldn't able to escape and later come back to invade Konoha like this. It was his fault and he wanted to end it himself, even if it cost him his life (Hiruzen should know that like hell that was going to happen, seeing Tobirama was right there and ready to interfere any moment). Glanced between those two (idiots), Tobirama - who just received the memory from the clone and knew his kids are safe - could only shake his head and mind his own business. At this moment, the Nidaime focus his attention on the purple barrier and a way to release Hashirama from Orochimaru's control (but is it really like that? Madara was enjoying his game and Tobirama wasn't going to end it any time soon, even if it was Hashirama who Madara was screwing with). Still, Edo Tensei is such a dangerous jutsu, that's why he dropped it the moment he realized that, yet, he didn't think someone actually finished it. Sighed, Tobirama noted to himself that if they managed to go back to the past, he better visit Konoha and destroy everything that related to this jutsu.

 The fight went on and on, especial with Hashirama's Wood release and Orochimaru's Snake, it was amazing how the roof still haven't collapse and how Tobirama could shield himself from all those jutsu to focus on his own problem (The Nidaime pretty much is observing the barrier and something else, so yes, he is busy). The anbu outside just couldn't tear the eyes away from the fight as it was so amazing and they doubt they can see it again. Some of them have lived through war, through the Kyuubi attack, but none of them have seen something like that. They knew the Shodaime is strong, but this was still unbelievable and to think Hashirama wasn't summon back to life with his full strength, it made the anbu realized just how weak they are. How can they protect their village when they are this useless? Sure they couldn't use the Wood release like the Shodaime, but they should at least try and catch up his strength, even if just slightly. All of them vowed to train harder so they wouldn't ashamed their village and could protect Konoha better, so even if someone else decided to attack Konoha and attack their Hokage, they would able to protect everything instead of getting lock outside like this.

 At the same time, Orochimaru was having some difficult moment because even if Madara didn't interfere with Orochimaru and Hiruzen's fight, the battle between the Uchiha and the Shodaime still affect him in some way and it annoyed him to no end (Honestly, can those two use jutsu with close or medium range? Why must they keep using wide range attack? The Sannin questioned himself while keeping an eye on his ex-sensei). Both of Hashirama and Madara's attacks are wide range, thus, with so little space right now, it wasn't like the Sannin could do something, especial when his ex-sensei already summon the Monkey King - Enma to help him. He cursed his luck and jumped back, had enough of messing around with Hiruzen, he wanted to end it quickly and killed the old man (It was hard to explain, Hiruzen used to be someone he respected so much, it was the old man who acknowledge of him and taught him everything, but, it was also Hiruzen who turned his back to him. The sign was there, so clearly, yet no one bother to see it and in the end, the Sannin just snapped. He turned his back to them just like they did to him. This was his decision, this was his choice and he had no regret... He wanted to destroy everything, to destroy his past, to show them - the village and his sensei - they were wrong).

 Looked at Hiruzen, Orochimaru wondered why it hadn't happened yet. By this time, the Jinchuriki brat should have unleashed his biju already, the Sannin wondered what could possible disturb his plan. Sure the Nidaime and Madara showed up with two brats, but Orochimaru doubted those two could be the caused, powerful they may be but they still just some brats and they are no hero. His thought was soon disturbed as out of a nowhere, a raccoon made from sand with a red hair kid on its head suddenly appeared (The Sannin hid his disappointed as the Biju didn't appear in the village, but it didn't matter, at least, he hoped everything still according to the plan). Either way, the Biju will destroy the village!

 "You see now, Sensei? You and your village stand no chance!"

The snake smirked as he struck at his ex-sensei again, the man already panted by now, his age caught up with him and Orochimaru felt like success already in his hands. With the Biju and his own soldiers who was attacking at the North Gate, he believed this village is going to fall, or at least get damage quite a lot. Yet, the Sandaime didn't even seem to react to this, he smirked and held Enma in his hands, stopped Orochimaru's attack and destroyed it with his own. He maybe old, but he was far from weak. Meanwhile, Madara barely acknowledge of the Ichibi, after all, if things became too back, Tobirama could take over Hashirama while the Uchiha goes deal with the Biju. If he could control the Kyuubi, what stop him from doing that with the Ichibi? Tobirama may felt worry, but he believed in Konoha and in Hiruzen, he doubted Saru would allow this to happen without a plan. How unfortunately for the Snake, but it wasn't like Orochimaru aware of that, yes?

 "You're wrong, Orochimaru. This is why you could never understand Konoha's Will of Fire."

He began as he actually pushed Orochimaru to stumble back, heh, this old man still able to fight and give people a show, alright? "To me, Konoha isn't just an organisation. Every year there are a lot of ninjas born and raised in Konoha… They live, fight to protect this village and what is precious they would go to their death. Even if we are not related by blood, those of the village like these are, to me, my most precious, most important… family!" That's why, Hiruzen wasn't going to let Orochimaru win and Konoha wasn't going to get destroy. This was their home, the home of every Konoha's villagers and they were going to defense it with everything they have. Plus, with Madara and Tobirama here, the Sandaime believed Konoha to stand strong no matter what! Before Orochimaru could even react, a huge smoke appeared right next to Ichibi and when it disappeared, stood right there was Gamabunta and Hiruzen knew for sure the Ichibi wouldn't able to attack Konoha anymore.

 [Like father like son]

 He thought to himself as he looked at Orochimaru, Hiruzen wasted too much time already, he better stepped up in their fight and finished it, before things get out of control (something he can’t allow happening).

 "So... Are you going to fight? Or you are going to stand there all day, Orochimaru."

"Tsk! You will eat those words, sensei.”

 The Sannin snarled as he leaped forward again, ready for round two and this time, there was nothing to stop him from killing the Sandaime or at least that was what he thought. Orochimaru’s plan got disturbed as Hashirama used his Wood Style: Deep Forest Emergence jutsu and the roof soon covered in trees. No, it wasn't just trees, the roof had changed into a small forest and they knew if it wasn't due to the barrier, the forest could have been bigger. But even so, this was enough to cover the entire roof and the anbu could barely see what was happening. They weren't the only one who annoyed by this out turn though, as Tobirama saw what jutsu his brother had used, he narrowed his eyes and flashed to his student's side, grabbed the old man and moved behind Madara. Even without words, he already has an idea what jutsu his husband may use toward this, Tobirama supposed he should help him as those trees aren't that easy to get rid off. (Or maybe he just wanted to tease Hashirama because despite everything, it was Tobirama who stand beside Madara and not him – who is a known as the Uchiha’s best friend. Hm. Tobirama wasn’t going to admit he is jealous, but goddamn it, even if his anija married Mito, back there, Hashirama and Madara were still quite close to each other.)

 "Sensei?"

Hiruzen blinked as he was teleported next to his sensei and stood behind Madara. It just happened too fast, he was still thinking of a way to deal with the forest and Tobirama already grabbed him away. But he got no answer because his sensei had something more important to do right now. The Senju stepped forward, right next to Madara and flashed through hand seals at the same time as the Uchiha. Although the Senju's Infinity is Water, a strong one actually, but it didn't mean he couldn't use Jutsu in other Infinity. Just as Madara finished the last hand seal, Tobirama also finished his and together, they unleashed their jutsus upon Hashirama and Orochimaru, this wasn't the first time as the two tends to train together and enjoys combining their jutsu to create something even more powerful. To be honest, no matter which jutsu Madara used to combine with Tobirama, the white-hair Senju always knew exactly how much charka he needed to put into his jutsu to make sure it wouldn't accident destroy Madara's jutsu. This show just how well they worked together, as if they could actually understand each other’s thought without any words (Even if they argue a lot, there was no doubt about their feeling and their teamwork skill). But then again, it wasn't like he need to do that right now, if it was some other Fire Release Jutsu then yes, but this was Madara's favorite jutsu, also one of the strongest ever, so whatever Tobirama did, it would only increase the power of this jutsu.

 Outside the barrier, everyone's eyes became widen when they saw just what happened when Madara's jutsu - Fire Style: Majestic Destroyer Flame and Tobirama's jutsu - Wind Style: Gale Palm combined together. Although the Wind jutsu wasn't a high rank jutsu, under their Nidaime's control, it actually became quite dangerous and when it worked with the Fire jutsu, damn, that was so fucking deadly. They were left speechless and amazed with how well those two worked together. At this moment, all of them wondered if the rumour about how Tobirama hated and loathed the Uchiha was even truth. There was no words to describe the flame unleashed by Madara and Tobirama, they swore if their Nidaime didn't grab their Sandaime before this, no doubt he would be swallowed by it as well. Still, they wondered if it was enough to destroy the forest created by Hashirama or if it was strong enough to kill Orochimaru.

 As the smoke slowly faded away, everyone held in their breath as they waited for the outcome, but to their disappointed, Orochimaru still alive, even if just barely. Truth, the jutsu was dangerous and deadly, but Hashirama was there and even if he wasn't in his full strength, he was still no joke. His forest may get destroyed, but he still able to created a dome to protect both himself and Orochimaru, even if that didn't work well enough as the Shodaime needed to be reform and the Sannin was burned badly, who looked like shit himself. Still, they knew Orochimaru can just vomited himself and once again recover. They weren’t wrong though, because the Snake actually planned to do that until Tobirama sudden threw a kunai toward him and used the Shuriken Shadow Clone. Surprised by this sudden actions, Orochimaru jumped backward and was forced to stop himself from shedding his skin. No one saw the corner of Tobirama’s lips turned up for a small smirk except Madara and he knew exactly what his lover was planning. Chuckled to himself, the Uchiha quickly masked his charka so people will somewhat forget about his existence for now and with Tobirama’s sudden attack, his attempt worked. The Nidaime focus on his mark and disappeared just to appeared again right next to him and Hashirama - who still tried to recover from Madara's flame. Right now, the Sannin regretted it so much, he should have escape when Madara and Tobirama appeared, but no, his rage and his wished for revenge against the Sandaime had blind his eyes, thus, he got caught in such situation. He knew those two are strong, but this just so fucking insane! How could he forgot about Tobirama’s Flying thunder god?

 "Your game end here, child"

 Truth is, Tobirama has been working on a seal that could temporary bind Orochimaru to his current body and made him unable to shed his skin. Yes, throughout the fights, even if he stayed out of it, Tobirama still made sure to observe both of the battles as he planned to be their supporter, which had proven to be a good idea. After he saw the Sannin shed his time twice due to Hiruzen's attack, the Nidaime had kind of figured out he needed to stop that for a small moment in order to end the Snake's life. (Though, Tobirama believed this will be the end of Orochimaru, there was something off about him, but he just couldn’t tell what is it.)

To say the Sannin didn't expect this would be a lie, after all, Orochimaru knew just how powerful and smart Tobirama is, one of the reasons why he respected the man so much. Perhaps, in another world, where things could have been better, Orochimaru may get a chance to work with Tobirama and they could bring great things to Konoha, but in this time, this world, this was his fate, to die by the Nidaime’s hands. He wasn't afraid, because he knew he couldn't be killed, one or another way, Orochimaru would return to the living world with a perfect body instead of the Edo Tensei Jutsu like Hashirama right now. Time seem to slow down as the Nidaime hit the traitor with the seal, right that moment, Madara sudden showed up right next to Tobirama and the Snake, one last movement and the Sannin was gone. With how close Tobirama was, the Uchiha didn't use any jutsu, instead, he used his sword to chop off Orochimaru's head and Madara's Kenjutsu was actually quite good, just like his husband's skill. The chance to escape was too low and everyone could only watched as Madara ended the Snake’s life. It was such a shock that even after the Snake's head was cut off his body that no one could progress what just happened. Then as the information sank in, everyone looked at the Senju-Uchiha couple in admired, unable to imagine just how powerful they are. Looked at them, even after such battle, they didn't even seem exhausted, such power... But, right now the people have something more important to do than stood there and admired those two, they had won and their Hokage still alived! It was time to spread out and made sure the rest of the village was safe. But unknown to them, Orochimaru was far from gone, still, that was for another story, right now, they have a village to defend!

 "That's it?"

Madara asked, somewhat disappointed, to think someone like that traitor could give Konoha too much trouble, have the village became weak? Frowned at this thought, the Uchiha turned to glance at the old Hokage and Tobirama did the same, after he gave Hashirama a good bye as the older Senju broke free from Orochimaru's control and faded away.

"Saru?"

"Sensei... Madara-sama..."

The Sandaime wasn't stupid, he knew what the Senju-Uchiha couple wanted and he could only sighed. They are from the past and they were going to return any moment, so he couldn't tell them too much, but, the Hokage told them as much as he could. He couldn't burden anyone with this, but, Tobirama was different, his sensei was once a Hokage as well, Hiruzen knew Tobirama understand this and perhaps able to give him some advises. Though, beside that, he actually hoped that this may make the two returns to the village. To think Madara and Tobirama still alive after that time, although Hiruzen was a little sad because his sensei faked his death to leave the village with the Uchiha, part of him also happy because his sensei finally happy. He trusts Tobirama’s choice and all he ever wanted was to see him happy.

Right now, the village is safe, Naruto had defeated Ichibi and the rest was handle by the village's ninja, as well as the help from Akashi and Katsuya (Hiruzen guessed because if those two are train by Tobirama and Madara then they would be a big help for Konoha). So the Sandaime tried his best to tell them what is necessary, but the talk couldn't even last long, because just after a short moment, Hiruzen's eyes widen as he saw what was happening to his sensei and the Uchiha. They were fading away and the Sandaime knew this was the sign, whatever took them to the future is now returning them to their timeline. He still has so many things he wanted to ask, like, how did Tobirama and Madara survived their death, how did they have kids, why Tobirama never come back to Konoha, too many questions, but perhaps, there was only one question that truly matter.

 "Sensei, I--"

As Hiruzen spoke up and tried to grab Tobirama's hand, the Nidaime had already lifted up his hands to stop him. Tobirama knew what his student wanted to ask, a small smile found its way to his face as he looked at the Sandaime, dead in the eyes and said.

"I never regret my action, Saru... You have grown and become such a wonderful Hokage. I'm proud of you..."

That was everything Hiruzen wanted to hear, to be acknowledge by his sensei, to know that despite all of his mistake, he had successed and made his sensei proud. It was enough. But this wasn't the time for weakness, he wanted Tobirama to remeber him, to know he has grown as his sensei's hope, so he tried to smile, even if his old face was shaking and tearing up.

 "Sensei, thank you for everything!"

One last sentence and all he could saw was Nidaime's smiling face (and Madara's brooding face, probably jealous because Tobirama doesn't care about him right now due to Hiruzen). Then, they were no more...

 Somewhere else, to be more specific, at the North Gate, Akashi and Katsuya, who had just finished the last enemy and was standing side by side with Ibiki and the Ino-Shika-Cho Gang, noticed they were fading away as well. They knew, their time was up and they looked at the Konoha's ninja, grinned cheerfully at them. After showed up at the Hospital and Academy to help them, they have moved to Gate they first planned. At first, the Konoha Nin did wary of their sudden appearance, but after the two kids showed them just which side they are on, everything became much better and smoother. Katsuya actually surprised them when she actives her Sharingan and leaped forward to fight, while Akashi only rolled his eyes and summoned his clone to heal some injured ninja before jumped forward as well. Honestly, the Konoha Ninja just couldn’t tell where they came from and how came their skills seem so familiar. Some of them, like Shikaku, already realized the two kids probably an Senju and an Uchiha, but where have they been and how can they know about this invasion to show up and help? (Really, how many kids have white hair, red eyes, red tattoo on cheek and a strong Water infinity like their Nidaime anyway. What is the chance to see an alive Uchiha that isn’t crazy or have some stick in their ass? This day have become weirder and weirder, some of them wondered if this is real or just a dream.)

 As they continued fading, the ninja around them stopped and looked at them, only Shikaku sighed and shake head, mutter something about 'Troublesome'. Seem like the man already figured out something.

"Well... Seem like we are going to return home now."

Katsuya said as she wiped away the blood on her sword. It was fun, but she is tired as fuck. Still, she got what she wanted, to see just how strong she is comparing to those ninjas and what she needs to do to improve her skill. That could be done later, right now she just wanted to go home and rest. Though, who knew Konoha could be this fun? Maybe she should take some missions with Akashi and sneaks in Konoha when she returns to her time. By her side, Akashi panted heavily, unlike Katsuya, he wasn's such a stamina freak, the fight was so exhausted, but he enjoyed it nonetheless! He knew he needed to work even harder, because if this is the future, then he needed to be strong enough to protect his family.

 "Brats! Take care!"

Ibiki shouted to them, cut off the two’s thought, but they didn’t seem to care, only stood there and smiled at the Konoha’s shinobi and kunoichi as they continue disappearing. There was something off about those two, for example, all the Uchiha had been wiped out and they doubted their Nidaime even has a kid, but Ibiki knew he wouldn’t able to get any answer from them. They just showed up all of sudden, helped them and now slowly faded away, even an idiot could tell that those two didn't belong in this time, such a pity. But even so, he knew there was nothing to do. Although it was just only a short moment, the Konoha Nin already developed some liking toward those brats, because despite their ages, the two fought so well and respected them, unlike a certain Uchiha in the village, plus, they could saw their Will of Fire burn so bright!

"Of course we will." Akashi chuckled softly, also enjoyed those ninjas a lot, perhaps Konoha wasn't so bad. Oh wait, screw it, this was their daddies's home, of course it is amazing!

"So... Ja ne, everyone!!!"

 As the two kids completely faded out, this was their last words to them, but they knew this wasn't the time to stand there with wishing thought. Truth they had managed to defeat all the enemy, but they still have a lot of things to do, so narrowed his eyes, Ibiki barked out his order.

"Scatter! Check out the village and take all the wounded one to the hospital!"

"HAI!"

The ninja quickly followed his order, but they knew, today was a day none of them could forget because, today was the day Konoha showed the world just how powerful they are. They had survived against the Ichibi and against the two village (Sound and Sand)! Today is the day the rest of the world know that Konoha was still kicking strong and ready to take on them!

 Today.

Konoha shine!

 End.

[haillenarte]

dark knight quests, part i;

Here are translations from "Declaration of Blood,” the level 45 dark knight quest.

I meant to translate the DRK quests shortly after Heavensward’s launch, because the changes here are among the most extreme in the entire game, but honestly, I hate English Fray (Esteem) so much that I just kept putting it off. I can see why he appeals to certain people, but I just can’t stand him, so... he’s the reason this took so long.

It was also my intention to translate the entire Dark Knight questline, as I did for the lancer guild quests some time back (messily — I’ve half a mind to repost that because it’s so unpleasantly organized), but having to read English Fray’s lines is so painful that I cut my workload down to just the level 45 and 50 quests. This should be enough to give you a general idea of how different the JP and EN quests are, but if demand is high for it, maybe I’ll do the rest of the quests, too. Anyway, enjoy.

As a word of warning, these translations adhere very closely to the original text but are not entirely literal in several places. I could easily provide completely literal translations upon request, but in general I swapped things around to avoid the Japanese grammatical idiosyncrasies of phrases like “the you who X for Y and the me who Y for Z,” and so on and so forth. Additionally, there are several places where I would have liked to reword things for stylistic purposes, as I sometimes do, but here I chose to remain loyal to the text.

DECLARATION OF BLOOD 世界は仇なす "the world turns”

Literally "the world takes revenge," but I'm punning on "turn" as in "to turn on" and "to revolve"...

フレイ：また会えましたね。[PLAYER]。 前回の儀式で君に言ったこと、 あれから僕も、考え直してみたんです。 フレイ：君の護るべき「誰か」について、わかっていることは少ない。 これでは、ひとりのために他を切り捨てろなんて言われても、 腑に落ちるはずがありませんよね。 フレイ：だったら、やはり儀式を重ねて、 少しでも「声」の主について理解していくべきです。 フレイ：そして君が、何よりもそれを護りたいと思えたとき、 「誰か」と真に心が繋がり、正体が掴めるに違いありません。 ねえ、そうです、だから、諦めずに儀式を………… フレイ：…………っ。 すみません、最近少し、具合が悪くて……。 フレイ：でも大丈夫、ただの疲れです。 そんなことよりも、次なる儀式を行うために、 君の実力を見させてください。 フレイ：今回は、少し気分を変えましょうか。 低地ラノシアの「モラビー造船廠」で、お待ちしています……。

FRAY: So we meet again, [PLAYER]. I’ve spent some time thinking about what I told you during our last communion. FRAY: You know little of the people that you protect. Even when you cut down others for the sake of someone else*, you don’t fully comprehend the gravity of what you’re doing. FRAY: But if we continue performing these rites... eventually, you’ll come to understand the voice. FRAY: When you want to protect someone* more than anything else... you will connect with them so deeply that there will be no barriers between your heart and theirs. And... that is why... you must take your next communion... FRAY: ......Ugh... Forgive me. Lately, I... I haven’t been feeling well. FRAY: ...Don’t mind me. I’m just tired. More importantly... we ought to proceed with the next communion. For that, you’ll have to show me how you’ve progressed as a dark knight. FRAY: This time...Why don’t we change the mood up a little bit? I’ll be waiting for you at the Moraby Drydocks...

It’s been so long since I last did these quests that I don’t actually remember what Fray told you during your last communion. I’m guessing that it was something about how dark knights need to protect others, but that’s a wild stab in the dark.

* Note that he repeatedly uses the word “someone” in a way that is significant throughout the questline. I have done my best to preserve that particular quirk in this translation, but it sounds awkward at times because it’s a bit difficult to continually use the word “someone” given all the different contexts he uses it in.

LOCALIZATION Fray: ...I'm beginning to question your commitment, [PLAYER]. Fray: You haven't heard the voice since our last communion, which means you haven't taken my lessons to heart. Fray: You know I'm trying to help you, don't you? All of this is for YOUR benefit. Fray: You listen, but you don't understand — Fray: ...Never mind. Fray: You're the stubborn type. I know that. We'll just have to keep at it until you open your eyes. Fray: Moraby Drydocks. That's where we'll head next.

フレイ：[PLAYER]……。 君は、海を見て何を思い出しますか。 フレイ：誘っておいてなんですが、僕は海にいい印象がないんです。 前に話した、君に似た人との旅の最中、 恐ろしい体験をしたもので……。 フレイ：……あのころ、僕と彼はもうずいぶん遠くなっていて、 どんなに叫んでも、船に乗り込む彼を止められなかった。 船は僕らを乗せて、沖へ沖へと進んでいく……。 フレイ：まるで、自ら死ににいくようなものでした。 彼は、僕にとって唯一の護るべき人だったのに、 彼には、僕の言葉だけが届かなかった……だから僕は……

FRAY: [PLAYER]... What do you think of when you look at the ocean? FRAY: ...I realize I’m the one who invited you here, but the truth is, I don’t have any good memories of the sea. I mentioned this last time, but I once had a friend who was not unlike you... and I had a horrible experience with him here. FRAY: ...He pushed me away. No matter what I said, I couldn’t stop him from getting on that boat. And it took us so far, so far from shore... FRAY: We almost got ourselves killed. And even though he was the one person in the world I wanted to protect, he wouldn’t listen to me... But... even so, I...

LOCALIZATION Fray: ...Never much cared for the ocean, myself. Fray: That friend of mine─the one I told you about after our first communion. We came out here together, once. Fray: Long story short, we ended up doing something ridiculously foolish and were lucky to make it out alive. Fray: I tried to talk him out of it, but he just had to get on that damn boat...

？？？？：そこをどうにか、頼みますよォ～。 黒渦団は強いんでしょう？ 困ってる人を、助けてくれるんでしょう？ スティルンロナ甲曹長：で、ですからッ！ 黒渦団は、黒渦団の役目をもって、皆様に貢献しております。 盗まれた商品の奪還ならば、イエロージャケットに…… 強引な交易商人：ダメダメ、あいつらときたら、 忙しいとか言って、何でも後回しにするんです。 ほ～ら～、代わりにチョチョイとやってくださいよォ！ スティルンロナ甲曹長：あ、あなたは！ [PLAYER]様ではありませんか！

????: Please, I’m begging you! Aren’t Maelstrom officers supposed to be strong? Aren’t they supposed to help people in need?! STYRNLONA: Y-Yes, but the Maelstrom services Limsa’s needs in the collective. Matters such as stolen goods fall under the jurisdiction of the Yellowjackets... OVERBEARING MERCHANT: I already went to them! They said they were too busy — that my situation would have to wait! Come on now, have mercy — it’d be easy for someone like you! STYRNLONA: Wait — isn’t that [PLAYER]?

LOCALIZATION ???: Don't be like that, friend! Isn't the Maelstrom supposed to aid the smallfolk when they're in a spot of trouble? Styrnlona: So far as it is possible, yes, but...such matters fall within the purview of the Yellowjackets, and─ Merchant: And they told me to bugger off─can you believe that!? I'm begging you, Sergeant! Styrnlona: I... Wait. Is that you, [PLAYER]?

スティルンロナ甲曹長：蛮神「リヴァイアサン」討伐の件では、 大変お世話になりましたッ！ あなたの勇敢な戦いに、どれほどの民が救われたことか……。 強引な交易商人：ヒョエエ～～！？ もしかして、こちらさん、 蛮神殺しって噂の冒険者さんですかい！？ 強引な交易商人：こりゃあ、天の助け！ ねえ英雄さん、ワタクシ、すごく困ってるんですよォ。 強引な交易商人：というのも、こっすいキキルン族に、 商品を根こそぎ盗まれましてね？ このままじゃ、明日から路頭に迷うしか……ヨヨヨ……。 フレイ：……[PLAYER]。 この前僕が言ったこと、忘れてませんよね。 大事な目的があるのだから、余計な人助けはよせ、と。 フレイ：放っておいても、イエロージャケットなりが解決する件です。 それよりも君は、儀式をするために強敵を倒し…… 強引な交易商人：英雄さん、見捨てないでくださいよォ！ み～んなにタライ回されて、あたしか頼れないんですって！

STYRNLONA: Why, it is! Thank you for your service to Limsa Lominsa. I shudder to think of how many brave souls we might have lost if not for your triumphant victory over Leviathan... OVERBEARING MERCHANT: What?! Really?! This is the adventurer that goes around killing primals? OVERBEARING MERCHANT: Well, if this isn’t divine intervention! Come on, now, hero, hear me out! Listen, I’m in a real bind. OVERBEARING MERCHANT: Some filthy Qiqirn stole my wares, and if I don’t get them back soon, I’ll be forced to sleep in the streets! FRAY: ...[PLAYER]. You haven’t forgotten what I told you, have you? We’re here to perform our communion. We don’t need to get involved in this. FRAY: You don’t have to be the one to do this. The Yellowjackets will settle it eventually. We need to find worthy opponents for our ceremony...  OVERBEARING MERCHANT: Please, hero! Help me in my time of need! The Maelstrom and the Yellowjackets keep turning me away! You’re the only one that can save me!

LOCALIZATION Styrnlona: It is! The legend himself! Forgive me, sir, I never thanked you properly for your service to Limsa Lominsa. When I first heard Leviathan had been summoned, I feared that─ Merchant: Why, if it isn't that famous adventurer who's been killing primals left and right! Merchant: Truly, the Twelve must be watching over me, because you're just the man I need! Merchant: <sniffle> <sob> I...I am the victim of a terrible─nay, heinous crime! I was waylaid by Qiqirn bandits near the Salt Strand, who left me with naught more than the clothes on my back! Fray: ...And what makes you think I give a Qiqirn's arse about your troubles? Go and bother the Yellowjackets, like the sergeant said. Fray: I seek worthy prey, not a gang of rats. Merchant: How can you say such a thing, ser!? Without your help, I'm ruined!

→商品を取り返しに行く？ Will you reclaim his goods? What will you say?

→ ……わかった 強引な交易商人：ヒャアア～、それでこその英雄さんだ！ ヨッ！　いい男！ 強引な交易商人：ワタクシの荷物を盗んだキキルン族は、 ここいらの野盗キキルンどもの元締めみやいな奴でして、 そりゃあもう、手強いって噂です。

→ I understand. OVERBEARING MERCHANT: There, see! Now that’s a hero for you! You’re a good man, sir, a great man! OVERBEARING MERCHANT: So, about those Qiqirn bandits... I’ve heard rumors that their leader is fairly dangerous, but...

LOCALIZATION ► Fine, I'll help. Merchant: Spoken like a true hero! Merchant: So you know, the rank and file didn't seem so dangerous, but their leader was a mean-looking bastard... Merchant: But considering the foes you've faced in the past, he couldn't possibly pose a threat to you!

→ それはできない 強引な交易商人：まァまァ、つれないことをおっしゃらず。 今、そっちの覆面さんが、「強敵と戦いたい」ってなことを、 おっしゃいませんでしたか？ 強引な交易商人：幸いにも、ワタクシの荷物を盗んだキキルン族は、 ここいらの野盗キキルンどもの元締めみやいな奴でして、 そりゃあもう、手強いって噂されてるんですよォ！

→ I can’t help you. OVERBEARING MERCHANT: Now, sir, don’t say such heartless things! I’ve a proposal for you — your masked friend just said you were seeking worthy opponents, yes? OVERBEARING MERCHANT: Well, fortunately for you, the leader of that pack of rats is pretty tough! 

LOCALIZATION ► Not my problem. Merchant: W-Wait, just listen! You said you wanted worthy prey, yes!? Merchant: Their leader was a mean-looking bastard, at least two or three times the size of the others. It'd probably take a dozen men to bring him down!

強引な交易商人：奴らの根城は、南西の「ソルトストランド」！ いっちょ乗り込んで、キキルン族をなぎ倒し、 哀れな商人の荷物を取り戻してくださいませェ～！ フレイ：……こんなの、「暗黒騎士」の役目でもなんでもないよ。 僕も行くから、とっとと片付けましょう。

OVERBEARING MERCHANT: Those flea-ridden rats made camp at the Salt Strand. Please, help a poor merchant out! Get my wares back for me! FRAY: ...This has nothing to do with the dark knight’s oath. But if you must, I’ll go with you. We’ll clean this mess up quick.

LOCALIZATION Merchant: If it's a challenge you want, then there it is! Just you against him and his cronies! What say you, ser? Fray: Shut your mouth and wait here. I'll be back.

フレイ：この先が、キキルン族の根城です。 盗まれた商品も、そこにあるでしょう……。 フレイ：せめて、この戦いで、君の実力を見させてもらいます。 そうでもなければ、本当に君が戦う意味がない……。

FRAY: There’s the Qiqirn camp. The stolen goods are there, too. FRAY: Well, at least I’ll be able to see how your skills are coming along. Otherwise, there’d really be no point in doing this...

LOCALIZATION Fray: If this Qiqirn isn't everything he promised, I'll take it out of his hide... Fray: Let's make the most of this, [PLAYER]. No style, no guile, just chaos. Mark your limits, then push yourself beyond. Let the darkness guide you and set you free.

影身のフレイ：かなりの多勢ですね……。 盗人キキルンを倒してから、荷物を取り返しましょう……。 影身のフレイ：お見事です、あとは商品の回収だけだ。 [PLAYER]、お願いできますか……？ 影身のフレイ：その木箱に、商品が入っているようですね。 よし……これでどうにか………………ウッ……。

FRAY: There’s so many of them... Let’s clear them out and reclaim the stolen goods... FRAY: Well done. Now for the goods. [PLAYER], will you...? FRAY: They should be in that box. Yes... this will... <groan>

LOCALIZATION Fray: Weak...but plentiful. They may yet suffice... Fray: Heh...heh... Tenacious bastards... Right, then. The goods. Fray: Good. There's nothing left here for...for...

フレイ：ハァ……ハァ……ッ……。 商品は、取り返すことができましたね……。 君は、それを、あの商人に…………。 フレイ：僕は……すみません……疲れがまた…………。 あとから追っていきますから、先に戻っていてください……。 フレイ：ああ……エーテルが底をつく……。 このままじゃ……もう…………。

FRAY: Huff... huff... Well, the merchant’s wares are unharmed... Go on... take them to him. FRAY: Sorry... I’m... a bit... tired... Go back... without me... I’ll catch up... FRAY: Aah... my aether’s running dry... At this rate... I...

LOCALIZATION Fray: Heh...heh... You did well... Fray: All that's left...is to return the goods to their owner... Fray: ...Finish it... Finish what we started... Fray: The hard part is over... Now finish it...

強引な交易商人：おお、お待ちしておりましたよォ！ ワタクシの商品は！？ もちろん無事に取り返せましたよね！？ 強引な交易商人：これは確かに、キキルン族に盗まれたワタクシの商品！ ありがたや、ありがたや……！ さっそく、中身がそろっているか確認いたしますねェ！ 強引な交易商人：ハァ……。 こりゃ、ダメダメですなァ……。 強引な交易商人：箱の中身はそろっちゃいますが、 キキルンどもが汚い手で引っ掻き回したせいで、 どいつもこいつも、売り物になんてなりませんよォ……。 強引な交易商人：はてさて、困った……。 命の次に大事な商品がおじゃんとなった今、 ワタクシはどうして生きれば…………ハッ！ 強引な交易商人：そうだ、そうですよォ、英雄さん！ あなたなら、代わりに売れそうなもののひとつくらい、 ササッと用意できるんじゃないですか？ 強引な交易商人：猛獣の肉でも、遺跡に残された骨董品でもいい。 あっ、蛮神の一部なんてのはどうです！？ ワタクシ、こう見えて多様なお客を抱えておりまして……

OVERBEARING MERCHANT: Ah, I’ve been waiting for you! So, my wares? Did you take them back for me? OVERBEARING MERCHANT: Yes! These are the goods those ugly rats stole from me! Thank you, thank you! Now, let me just take a good look at them... OVERBEARING MERCHANT: ...Hmm... No, this won’t do at all... OVERBEARING MERCHANT: Everything is in one piece, yes, but... those worthless Qiqirn got their filthy little paws all over everything! I can’t possibly sell them like this! OVERBEARING MERCHANT: This is terrible! My wares are second only in importance to my life! How can I possibly go on living like this? I might as well be dead right now! Oh, I bemoan my fate! OVERBEARING MERCHANT: ...Wait, of course. Hero! Why not give me something of yours so that I can sell it in place of these soiled wares? OVERBEARING MERCHANT: What do you have on your person, hm? The meat of some fearsome creature, mayhap? Antique relics stolen from ancient ruins? Perhaps even... primal parts? Oh, I’d draw in so many customers with something rare like that...

LOCALIZATION Merchant: Ah, it's you! Were you able to catch up with those bandits? Merchant: Er, yes...that seems to be mine, but... Merchant: ...Llymlaen take me, I can't sell this! Merchant: Everything's soaked through with Qiqirn blood! What did you do─carve one open and leave him to bleed all over my wares!? Merchant: I'm ruined...utterly ruined. Merchant: Madam, I demand recompense for your reckless destruction of my property! Merchant: I am a reasonable man, so I will acknowledge that you are not wholly responsible. Fifty percent of the value should suffice.

フレイ：ふざけるなッ！！！！ フレイ：英雄、英雄って、都合よく肩書きで呼ぶな！ [PLAYER]だって人だ…… 戦えば傷つくし、傷がつけば痛いんだ。 フレイ：痛くて、苦しくて、嫌な思いだっていっぱいして、 それでもお前たちが頼るから、戦ってるんだよッ！ フレイ：今回だけじゃない…… あのときだって、そうだった。 大海嘯を操る蛮神を相手に、孤独な船上で戦わされたんだ！ フレイ：お前らはッ……お前らは、僕らを置いてどこへ行った！？ 選ばれた者しか戦えないって言葉を盾に、 どれだけ僕らを犠牲にしたッ！？ フレイ：お前らが、[PLAYER]を奪っていくんだ……。 だからいつまでも、彼は答えに辿りつけない。 本当の「暗黒騎士」になることができないんだ……ッ！

FRAY: Don’t you dare! FRAY: You dare call him “hero” one more time, wretch, and your tongue is mine! Don’t you understand [PLAYER] is just a man like you?! He has feelings! He has wounds of his own! He risked his life for you! FRAY: Did you think it was easy? It was difficult! It was painful! But because you asked, he went and fought for you! FRAY: It’s not just people like you... It’s everyone that made him get on that godsforsaken ship with that godsforsaken primal... FRAY: Where were you when we were fighting?! Hiding behind your words and your spinelessness, is that right? Pretending only the chosen one can fight for you? Do you even understand how much we’ve sacrificed? FRAY: You’re the ones who stole him from me... you’re the reason he can’t become a dark knight...!

LOCALIZATION Fray: Fifty percent? FIFTY PERCENT!? Fray: I slaughter a gang of Qiqirn bandits for your precious goods and this is the thanks I receive!? Fray: You spineless sack of shite. I kill your enemies. I fetch your things. I do what you people can't or won't do yourselves. Fray: You're helpless. Weak. All you do is want and need. Fray: I should've left you all to drown in Leviathan's tidal wave. At least then I would've been spared your constant bloody whining. Fray: Do not speak to me of this ever again.

強引な交易商人：ヒェェ、おっかない……！ 何が何だかわかりませんが、あんなに怒らなくたってェ！ スティルンロナ甲曹長：あの方、船上で蛮神と戦ったと言っていましたが…… もしや、あなたとおもに蛮神「リヴァイアサン」を退けた、 お仲間だったのでしょうか？ スティルンロナ甲曹長：だとしたら、気付かずに失礼いたしました。 蛮神を討つお役目、どれほど重責であったことでしょう……。

OVERBEARING MERCHANT: F-Forgive me, ser! I — I don’t entirely understand your rage, ser, but I want no part of it! STYRNLONA: That man... he spoke of boats and primals. Is he one of your friends from the fight against Leviathan? STYRNLONA: If so, I am sorry I did not give him my regards. I simply didn’t notice who he was. But he too bore the weight of the world on his shoulders in that battle...

LOCALIZATION Merchant: P-Pray forgive me my insolence, sir! Styrnlona: [PLAYER], sir, I... You have every right to be upset, but... Styrnlona: ...I think he understands, sir.

フレイ：ごめん、[PLAYER]……。 取り乱して、つい余計なことを言った。 フレイ：そうでなくとも、「暗黒騎士」の指導者らしいことは、 どんどんできなくなってきてるって、わかっています。 疑いますよね、僕のこと……。

FRAY: ...I’m sorry, [PLAYER]. I said too much. FRAY: I was only meant to be your mentor in the ways of the dark knight, but... It must be getting more and more difficult for you to trust me.

LOCALIZATION Fray: We can't keep doing this, [PLAYER]. You must see now what it's doing to us... What they're doing to us...These...these people...

→ 何と声をかける？ What will you say?

→ あの声の主は、本当に存在するのか？ フレイ：存在するよ……。 今だって、君が見つけてくれるのを待っているんです。 ……お願いだから、いないなんて、言わないで。 フレイ：でも、僕が嘘をついていたのも本当だ。 ……僕は、「声」の主が誰であるか知っています。 ただし、その答えを僕から教えることはできないんだ。 フレイ： 君自身が、あの「声」の主を…… 君にとっての最も「弱き者」を見つけなければ意味がない。 だから、ねえ……もう一度、儀式を…………。

→ The voice... does it truly exist? FRAY: It does. Even now, it waits for you to hear it. ...So, please... don’t say that you don’t believe in it. FRAY: ...I lied to you about one thing. I know who the voice belongs to. But I can’t tell you any more than that. FRAY: You won’t be able to hear the voice until you find the one person that you truly need to protect... So, please... Could we try the communion one more time...?

LOCALIZATION ► Never mind them. The voice is all that matters. Fray: Yes...yes, you are right. You must hearken to its words and discover your true calling. Fray: You are close, ─so very, very close... Fray: I wish I could tell you. I wish I could make you see. Fray: But all I can do is guide you on your journey...

→ 本当の暗黒騎士になれない？ フレイ：……君は、確かに「暗黒騎士」だ。 その身にまとった「暗黒」の力も、 鍛錬で身に着けてきた技も、偽物なんかじゃない……。 フレイ：でも、皇都で娘さんを助けにいくとき、 僕が語った「暗黒騎士の最初の課題」を覚えていますか？ フレイ：君はまだ、その課題を乗り越えていないんだ……。 僕が、君に「暗黒」の力を授けられる理由だって、 紐解けちゃいないでしょう……？ フレイ：すべては、あの「声」の主にたどり着けたらわかることです��� だから、ねえ……もう一度、儀式を…………。

→ Am I really able to become a dark knight? FRAY: ...You’re already a dark knight. At the very least, you fight with the power of darkness. That much is real.  FRAY: But do you remember what I told you when we saved that woman in Ishgard? The first oath of the dark knight? FRAY: ...You still haven’t overcome that first challenge. You still don’t understand the reason I’ve given you these powers. FRAY: Everything would become clear if only you could hear the voice...  So, please... Could we try the communion one more time...?

LOCALIZATION ► We don't need them to become a dark knight. Fray: Not entirely true, [PLAYER]. They have helped you to cultivate the darkness within, in a way. But their help is no longer needed. Fray: All that remains is to hearken to the voice─to grasp its words and discover your true calling. Fray: I wish I could tell you. I wish I could make you see. Fray: But all I can do is guide you on your journey...

→  怒ってくれて、ありがとう！ フレイ：…………っ！ あ、あたりまえじゃないですか……！ あんなの怒ります……今までだって、怒ってました……！ フレイ：僕に感謝を言うくらいなら、君が怒ればよかったんです。 そんなに誰にでも優しいから、 あの「声」の主だって、すねて出てこないんじゃないですか！？ フレイ：本当に、もう……君って人は…………。 「暗黒騎士」に向いているんだか、いないんだか……。 フレイ：……でも、そんな君だからこそ「声」の主を見つけてほしいんだ。 大事なことは何ひとつ明かせない、不誠実な僕ですが、 この気持ちだけは真実なんです……だから、儀式を…………。

→ Thank you for being angry on my behalf. FRAY: ......! That... that was just a normal reaction. Of course I was angry. Even now, I’m still angry at that man...! FRAY: Instead of thanking me, you ought to be angry on your own behalf. It’s because you’re too kind that you can’t hear the voice! FRAY: Gods... How is someone like you supposed to become a dark knight...? FRAY: ...But it’s exactly because you’re so kind that I want you to hear the voice. I might seem like a dishonest person because I can’t tell you any more than that, but... I promise you, that is the truth. So, please... the communion, if you would...

LOCALIZATION ► He deserved it. Every word. Fray: Hah...hahaha! Right you are, [PLAYER]! Right you are! Fray: Felt good, didn't it? Seeing that sniveling wretch tremble. I think he nearly pissed himself! Fray: You're finally starting to see them for what they are now, aren't you? Good, good. Fray: All that remains is to hearken to the voice─to grasp its words and discover your true calling...

？？？？：…………声が聞こえる。 誰かが助けを求める声だ……。 なんて……やかましいんだろう………。 ？？？？：彼らの声に、自分の声はかき消されてしまう……。 この痛みを……怒りを……悲しみを…… どうやったら伝えられる……？ ？？？？：…………ああ、そうだ。 自分の声でだめなら、他人の声を使えばいい……。 その声も届かないなら、同じ痛みをもって、伝えればいい……。 ？？？？：そうでしょう……？ 待っていて………………

????: ...I hear voices. I hear voices calling for help... They’re so loud... ????: Their voices drown mine out... My pain... my anger... my sadness... How can I convey them to you...? ????: ...Ah, of course. If this voice won’t work, then I just need someone else’s... And if that voice doesn’t work, then I’ll give you my pain... ????: Isn’t that right...? Wait for me...

LOCALIZATION ???: A chorus of voices cries out for a hero, and he comes. ???: He smiles. He nods. And he remains silent... ???: But he too has a voice... ???: I will be heard...

フレイ：ねえ…… [PLAYER NAME]…………。 フレイ：……「声」は聞こえたみたいですね。 フレイ：君が何を聞き、何を思ったかは、あえて問いません。 ただ、今度こそ、護るべき「誰か」のために、 すべてを捨てる覚悟ができたなら…… フレイ：英雄として築いた地位や名声、居場所を捨てても、 それを護りたいと思えたならば、 僕と一緒に、このエオルゼアを出てください。 フレイ：この地では、君はたったひとりを護る存在にはなれない。 離れてこそ……本当の「暗黒騎士」としての物語がはじまるんだ。 フレイ：……君を、いつもの場所で待っています。 ただ、僕にはあまり時間がないらしい……。 遠くない再会を願っていますよ。

FRAY: Now, wake... [PLAYER NAME]... FRAY: ...So, you finally heard the voice. FRAY: I will not ask you what you heard, or how you feel, or what you think.  But if you are prepared to throw it all away to protect only one person... FRAY: If you are prepared to discard your reputation and your name as a hero... prepared to leave everything behind... then leave Eorzea with me. FRAY: It’s impossible for you to swear yourself to only one person in a place like this. You won’t be able to become a dark knight unless you leave... FRAY: ...I’ll be waiting for you at our usual place. I... don’t have much time left... ...I hope we can reconvene soon.

LOCALIZATION Fray: ... Fray: ...You stand at the precipice, but do not fear the fall. Fray: Cast yourself into the abyss, and you shall soar above, free at last. Fray: There are other lands than these, ─lands where we are not known. Ask, and we shall quit this place forever. Fray: Only when you have renounced everything are you free to do anything. When we meet again, you will give us your answer.

[corpyburd]

ALL THE FUN OF THE FAYRE

“But Bennet ” hinted Rose “this was not my idea of a romantic Friday night date either.”

“Blewitts management insisted. For the next 2 weeks, if we are not on stage or in the theatre, we are to mingle with the crowds at the fun fayre. It has been an long standing agreement between the theatre management and theirs.”

“Do you not see the Blewitts posters? And the fayre posters adorn the walls outside the theatre.”

Bennet turned his head to see the Blewitts Theatre posters pasted to the boundary fence as they walked towards the main gate of the fun fayre with Rose on his arm.

Several burly showmen where checking the crowds as they entered at the turnstiles but nodded to Rose and Bennet who were let through a side gate.

“I see your stage reputation proceeds you, Madam” chuckled Bennet as he placed his hand over Rose’s which was on his arm.

“Oh I do believe so” countered Rose in her poshest theatrical voice as they walked through the crowd.

“So what shall it be first then Rose? The carousel, the flying swings or perhaps the helter skelter? Or shall we just stick to the side shows?”

“I think it would be better if we stick to the side shows, Bennet. We are more likely to meet Blewitt patrons there.”

“Rose ….. we’re …. not here to spy on them!” came Bennet’s alarmed reply.

“Of course not. We are to provide a familiar face and chat to our customers.” she said matter-of-factly.

And then whispered in his ear “and home for some supper of our own.”

He turned to her with the largest of grin on his face as they walked on. And only one week until they were married.

There was a lingering aroma of candyfloss, popcorn, toffee apples, candies and cakes.

“Well Rose, your choice? The Hall of Mirrors, The Rifle Range, Coconut shy, fortune teller or shall we venture to see Professor Voltini and Madam Electra?

“What about the Tunnel of L…….” but Rose never got to finished her answer as they were suddenly aware they had both walked into a group of young men and women with a fist fight at its centre.

“Hit him ‘arry, clobber the git!” screamed several of youths as they jostled and jeered someone in the middle.

“She’s nowt but a trollop” shouted Harry pointing at a girl. “A trollop. Ask Ned.”

A young man stood in front of a crying girl, wiping his bloodied nose on his shirt sleeve, his jacket on the ground. “Say that again …Harry …an’ al knock your bleeding head off!”

“And you Ned” he yelled pointing to the other “your nothing but Harry’s shanker.”

Even though Harry was young, he was over 6 feet tall and of heavy build. He swung several punches at his opponent, missing him. He was a quick lad, to quick for Harry so Ned and 2 others put a stop to that by grabbing him and landing several punches at the same time then tried to hold him down so that Harry could deliver his left hook.

“Oi, Oi, Oi.” shouted Bennet stepping in between Harry and the now restrained lad “This ain’t no fair fight.”

“Hop it Pops” sneered Ned “or you want to take his place?”

Bennet turned round towards Ned and glared at him making him uneasy. “Always a gobby one, isn’t there?”

“Mister” said the lad. “I can take a beating off these fairys any day. You needn’t get involved.” and with a deft push back he managed to crack Ned and his 2 friends heads together.

“How about we settle this like gentlemen? Or perhaps you all want to be thrown out? Why don’t you choose one of the side shows. Test of a real man’s strength?”

“Hah, gentlemen” growled Harry. “He ain’t gentlemen” pointing to the other lad.

He then stepped towards Bennet who could now smell cheap gin on his breath.

“The boxing booth is it gents?” Bennet replied sarcastically.

“Them fights are gaffed.” snorted Harry.

“Well let’s make it interesting. How about a wager then? And you pick the games?”

“But I ain’t got no money left” pleaded the young lad who was now free of his captors, picking up his jacket. “No problem son. Just you let me deal with that.“ assured Bennet.

Rose looked worried “Are you sure about this Bennet? He winked back at her.

"Harry what is it to be if not the boxing? The rifle range, the high striker, the punch ball or would you prefer the kiddies merry go round, coconut shy or the Punch and Judy show?”

Bennet could see Harry’s opponent smirking.

“The Tunnel of Love with Ned.” laughed the young man. And Harry bared his teeth and shook his fist at him.

“The High Striker ‘n Punch Ball. What’s the bet?

"Ten bob?” suggest Bennet and Harry and his gang nodded.

The small crowd moved to The High Striker as the showman shouted “Step right up folks. Test your strength. Come and sort out who are the men and who are the boys?”

Harry was to eager to be first and got Ned to pay for it. He lifted the hammer hit the target button sending the marker up which rang the bell.

“Hah” scoffed Harry, his arms outstretched in triumph. “Easy. Your turn now Pops.”

“Cheeky bugger.” muttered Bennet. He would make him pay for that.

Bennet handed his coat and jacket to Rose. Then lifted his hat in salute to the young ladies present. They giggled and he handed his hat to Rose. She held the hat in front of her face, stifling her titters, as she realised that Bennet was deliberately taking his time, making Harry wait, who was becoming more and more impatient.

He began to roll up his sleeves which exposed the tattoos on his arms. “Whoa. What’s that on his arm?"asked one of the girls.

"The Egyptian war goddess Sekhmet.” replied Rose and noticed that the girls were staring wide eyed at Bennet. Again Rose lifted Bennet’s hat to cover her smirks. Bennet went through his pockets pretending to look for money to pay for the go on the Striker.

Harry’s eyes narrowed in anger.

Bennet lifted the wooden hammer, feeling its balance. Like chopping wood he remembered and knew just where to stand. He struck the button so hard it shot up and the bell gave out a deafening clang.

“Want to try your luck again, sonny?” sassed Bennet.

Harry growled. “We’ll see how you fare on the punch ball, old man” and then grabbed one of his gang who passed him a bottle wrapped in a brown paper bag.

He took a swig of its contents, wiped his mouth and threw it back, then turned towards the punch ball machine, his gang following him.

He swayed slightly as he eyed up the punch bag then drew back his right arm and launched his fist. It missed the target. In fact he nearly fell head first into the the machine.

Ned and his 2 cronies ran forward to lift Harry up, who gave a dismissive look then pushed them aside.

This was too easy thought Bennet. He called over the young lad that had been set upon by Harry and his gang.

“Let’s see what you can do.” and he leaned towards the lad and whispered something in his ear. He smiled and nodded back at Bennet.

With a quick right hook he hit the punch ball sending the counter hand spinning round and round all the lights began to flash on the machine.

“Well done” shouted the showman “pick your prize” pointing to a side stall.

But this just sent Harry into a rage. He swung at the young man again but he was was ready for it and hit Harry in the stomach then knocked him out with right hook.

There was an uneasy silence then Harry’s cronies stepped forward looking to get some sort of revenge.

“I wouldn’t do that if I were you.” came a loud familiar voice.

“Don! …. I mean Sergeant Artherton.” added Rose.

Sergeant Artherton stood at the front of several burly gate men they had passed earlier on.

“They said there was trouble brewing and your name was mentioned Ben!”

The gang grabbed Harry and scarpered off out the gate promptly followed by the gate keepers.

“Well son” said Bennet “You’d better claim your prize since Harry has welched on his bet. I’m sure at least it’ll cheer up your sweetheart.”

“Thanks Mister.” said the young man and put out his hand to shake Bennet’s.

“But that’s not my sweetheart. That’s my sister!”

“You should take the chocolates or Turkish delights” interrupted Rose pointing the young man and his sister to the stall trying to cover Bennet’s embarrassment. He watched them with Rose.

“Do you know this lad Don?” gestured Bennet.

“Yes, he’s a local lad. Been in a few fights and skirmishes but nothing major. The family have had it rough though.”

Don turned to face Bennet. “I see that look in your eye Ben. I was thinking that too. Leman Street material?”

Both men watched Rose and the brother and sister come back with a box of Parsienne chocolates. Rose had bought bonbons.

“Pardon me, son.” enquired Bennet “I didn’t catch your name?”

“It’s Thatcher, Sir.”

“Francis Thatcher, but most folks call me Frank.”

[quietpagan]

What Falls and What Grows, ch. 8

"A weed is a plant that is not only in the wrong place, but intends to stay."

- Sara Stein

 Trollmarket was in an uproar, and Blinky was…stressed.

As trainer of the Trollhunter, he’d been hounded with questions, accusations, exclamations, and sarcastic mockery in the day following the fight, especially when Alexandra failed to appear. He knew she was injured, but even sticking her head out the door of the quarters and shouting ‘Fuck off!’ would have been better than her absence. The fact that she hadn’t been around after such a controversial fight possibly had ruined what little reputation she had gained.

He and AAARRRGGHH had ventured up to her room with medicines a few hours after the fight, having had trouble shaking off everyone who wanted to ‘congratulate’ Blinky on his rather unorthodox student. Nobody answered the door, so they dropped off what they’d brought and left. They’d learned not to barge into Alexandra’s room after her second morning in Trollmarket, when she nearly took Blinky’s head off when he came to wake her up for training.

Eventually, though, she emerged, looking half-dead but no less eager…

Perhaps ‘eager’ is the wrong word…

…Looking no less determined to continue her training. She was assaulted with both well-wishers and nay-sayers, but when asked about her final decision in the battle her answers more or less amounted to “Deal with it.”

As it was, she was too injured to attend physical training, so Blinky had her hidden in his library, stacks of his brother’s books up to her nose as he deliberately lectured her on the finer points of troll battle cultures around the world. She studiously took her notes, absorbing everything he told her even though she had flouted a good majority of the rules about honorable fighting. He was sure she’d even bitten Draal at one times.

Blinky peered at her over the top of a dusty tome.

She claimed that she had no idea where Draal was, but the entirety of Trollmarket had seen them leave together, and when she came to train or study she smelled like him. Given their mutual dislike, Blinky would be very surprised if they turned out to be lovers, but that didn’t mean that she wasn’t still keeping in contact with him.

Not that it mattered. Draal was dishonored, an outcast; his actions and whereabouts were inconsequential. The problem was that Alexandra was lying in the first place. And to her trainer!

Blinky knew that she knew that he was watching her. She had to know; Blinky had never been very good at being sneaky. But she never gave any sign that she was purposefully trying to act casual, or not cause suspicion. In fact she still did things or said things that gave Blinky question, not even trying to hide her peculiarities.  Like when she looked at him as if he was crazy when he suggested closing her wounds with molten metal. Did they not do anything in New Jersey?

Alexandra still hadn’t told him much about her past, but Blinky – as he suspected she knew – was observant, and he’d noticed her muttering in another language during the battle, but it wasn’t Trollish. He hadn’t been close enough to hear.

And her battle tactics!

Blinky gently put down his book and rubbed his hands against his eyes. If he got into thinking about her fighting styles he’d never stop. He had been so absorbed with everything Alexandra for the past week and a half he’d barely had time to think about anything else. Why was she lying? How much was she lying about? Were her oddities truly a product of New Jersey, or something else? He’d never met a more elusive Trollhunter, and the problem was that she genuinely didn’t seem like she was trying to hide anything; only when he dug into matters themselves did he uncover her insincerity, and it just made his head ache.

But a little part of him, the part that Vendel always groused about, was happy. He had uncovered a new mystery, and on such a high-profile subject! Which was exactly why Vendel wasn’t going to know about this. Alexandra was, by every appearance, harmless and dedicated to her destined task. She wasn’t gregarious by any means but the few who had come to her for help or advice had been treated courteously, and although she tended to swear like a demon she trained hard and oh great Deya he was doing it again.

AAARRRGGHH lifted his head when Blinky shuffled over and took a seat closer to his side, but otherwise stayed asleep. He loved to listen to Blinky teach almost as much as Blinky loved teaching, but he always slept better after a lecture and was more than happy to curl up and nap in Blinky’s library. AAARRRGGHH was Blinky’s solace and sanity, now more than ever. He was not nearly as concerned as his smaller friend about the mysteries of their new Trollhunter, and he was used to Blinky sniffing around conspiracies enough that it was old hat. Blinky used him as a sounding board and a retreat when he ran himself ragged over years of messy misunderstandings and paranoid precautions.

AAARRRGGHH practically radiated calmness and serenity; Blinky just sat and emptied his mind for a while, enjoying his friend’s presence and the quiet writing of Alexandra’s pen.

It was nice.

…

…But WHY did she spare Draal’s life if she deeply disliked him, and where had she learned how to fight well enough to defeat him? She had been trained by the troll, true, but he had never trained her like that! She was evading, dodging, almost dancing with him, which was almost the exact opposite of how Draal had been teaching her. It was smarter, in a battle with someone her size versus an opponent the size and strength of Draal, but her knowledge of those tactics indicated that she’d fought before. Against who? When? Where?

AAARRRGGHH gently pat him on the head then, sleepily murmuring,

“Thinking too much.”

Alexandra smiled at them over her book.

Blinky had long since gotten over being embarrassed by AAARRRGGHH. Everyone in Trollmarket knew he was tactile with Blinky; everyone knew he was significantly less than eloquent; everyone knew he had his good days and bad days, and sometimes just needed to be left alone. But Blinky couldn’t help but wonder how Alexandra perceived his massive friend; being from such a strange place (possibly), did she find AAARRRGGHH strange as well, or was she truly as accepting as she appeared?

“AAARRRGGHH’s right, you’re thinking too much,” she muttered. Blinky had the sudden, intrusive thought that she could read minds, but dismissed it almost immediately.

“I was merely wondering,” Blinky said quietly, “Where you learned to fight a larger opponent. You certainly handled Draal well.”

“Yes. Shame I don’t know where he is,” Alexandra replied. She was purposefully misunderstanding his statement in order to draw attention away from her fighting styles! She was hiding something!

“And I picked up a few things here and there. We’re not from the most muscular or battle-ready of clans, after all. Larger opponents are a fact of life.” …Ah. So she answers the question without giving away a single shred of personal information.

Blinky was dealing with a professional.

That was his first thought, anyway.

His second was: Let’s pit her against Bular.

She had no reaction, so she wasn’t reading his mind.

…Just in case.

 Alexandra was nearly ready to go find one of the other Changelings in Arcadia and say ‘Hey! I’m alive! Please take me back!’ if it meant that she could get away from Blinky. He was honestly worse than Stricklander when it came to questions and roundabout inquiries, and now he was beginning to just ask outright! She knew that he was suspicious of her and it was stressing her the fuck out, as if she needed another reason to be stressed.

Draal was still recovering in her room, she herself was only healed enough to wobble back and forth to the library, Blinky played Twenty Questions with her every day, half of Trollmarket thought she was an indecisive coward, and at some point soon she needed to go back upstairs to finish off her affairs and get more cat supplies.

It was not the best time for her trainer to be wondering about her. She was too injured to be able to fight her way out of Trollmarket, if he really discovered who she was. Hell, she was too injured to fight her way out of the library. Blinky could probably take her down now.

Fortunately, nobody really wanted anything from her. A few people had approached her in the library, asking for advice or to settle a dispute – not everyone in Trollmarket had been dissatisfied with the outcome of the match, as it turned out – but for the most part she was left alone. She had proven herself against a formidable opponent, and even though she’d flouted the rules she still won.

Vendel, actually, had seemed the most impressed with her, and she suspected that it was because he cared about Draal. He had cornered her on her way back to her quarters one day, to question her. He had not inquired about the idiot’s whereabouts, but simply asked if he was okay. Alex suspected that her ‘concerned grandparent’ impression actually had more root in truth than she had initially assumed. When she told him of Draal’s condition he took her to his quarters inside the Heartstone and gave her a small bag of simple but powerful medicines, and then refused to interact with her further. But he had been significantly less vitriolic than any other time she’d spoken to him, and she knew he was grateful for her having spared the asshole’s life.

Draal himself was taking his ‘banishment’ reasonably well, even though he was going stir-crazy and driving her to the limits of her patience. He actually was not that bad a roommate, but Alexandra valued her privacy, and until Draal healed she was deprived of it. It was a good thing that trolls didn’t have much of a stink, because he couldn’t even leave to use the baths, but Alex was ready to kick him out for just about any excuse. He scoffed at her when she stayed up reading and her only form of revenge was gotten in the evenings, when he was trying to sleep. Alexandra had had several lovers over her lifetime, but she suspected that Draal had almost none, and when she shifted on the nest he always woke up, clearly not as used to sharing a bed as she was. Alex made sure to always go to bed after Draal was already asleep, just to wake him up when she made herself the little spoon. More than once he’d grumpily shifted so that she’d had to sleep against his crystal-covered back, but it was worth it.

She found and read every song and saga about Kanjigar the Courageous, which was extremely depressing but a good way to both learn about what was expected from the Trollhunter and a fantastic way to annoy Draal, especially when she read them out loud. He couldn’t roar at her to shut her up, in case he was found, so they had several furious but silent fights; which – in their injured states – usually just consisted of slaps and elbowing the other off the nest.

 With the way her body reacted to troll medicine it took almost two weeks for her to get into semi-fighting state, and she spent the time studying, because troll history and culture was fascinating.

She had seen the multiple television screens of static in the market, but she hadn’t known that they actually acted as a sort of relaxant drug to trolls, enough that if one stared too long they would go into a daze. There was a species of troll that had sixty-six different words for ‘to snore’. There had been a human family called Sturges that assisted in the war against Gunmar and his army, acknowledged and honored in the annals of troll history. She learned that the origin story of Gunmar’s that she’d been fed as a child were not exactly true, but he had destroyed both his blood relatives and their records in order to make a cult around himself, and it was damned effective.

She studied biology and physiology as well. She learned about the subtle differentiations in color between males and females, which was handy because with trolls one couldn’t always tell just by shape or voice. There weren’t many trolls that could regenerate limbs, but apparently body modification was heavy in troll culture. Alexandra had noticed the carved tattoos, of course, but she was surprised that trolls would use gems, metal, and wood as well as everyday objects to alter their bodies. And she had no idea that she had seven stomachs. They were different than what humans thought of as stomachs, but still. Seven. She knew her troll form had two hearts, which always felt strange after a Change, but some of the information about her own biology was surprising. Apparently the reason she got so sick when she tried to be a vegetarian in the nineties was because some species of trolls actually died without meat in their diet. And trolls, apparently, did not sneeze. Something about how their nasal and respiratory passages were formed. Which was disturbing because Alexandra, in either form, could sneeze.

And she even found some info on Blinky and AAARRRGGHH. Apparently Blinky had gotten into a waiting-contest, of all things, with someone called Prothnurd the Persistent, which only ended after three years when Prothnurd keeled over and died. AAARRRGGHH was directly descended of the renowned warrior Johanna, who had ripped out Gunmar’s famous eye. He was also from a clan called the Krubera, located underneath the mountains between Russia and Georgia. The book she found said that although his clan reclaimed him, he didn’t remember anything from his original family. She didn’t dare ask AAARRRGGHH himself; she had a feeling that that was a question that would get her fewer odd looks and more banishment than she really wanted.

By the time she was in condition to go back to the Forge, she was avoiding Blinky and AAARRRGGHH. Not only because Blinky was getting suspicious of her, but because they wanted her to go upstairs. Which, to be fair, was something Alexandra was planning on doing anyway, but they wanted her to pick a fight with Bular.

She couldn’t even fathom why. Sure, she was charged with protecting the human world as well as trolls, but Bular couldn’t get into Trollmarket and there were absolutely no reports of a giant stone monster rampaging the streets of Arcadia, so what was the need to go up and find him? Were they actually expecting her to be able to kill him? Historically a battle between Bular and the Trollhunter – any Trollhunter – eventually ended with the Hunter dying – tragically, horrifically, and painfully.

Kanjigar, actually, was the only Hunter who hadn’t died during a fight. There was absolutely nothing Alexandra found encouraging about that.

Draal threw volume twenty-seven of A Brief Recapitulation of Troll-Lore at her face when she hesitated and hid in her room, calling her a coward. She remorselessly reminded him that his father had died after a fight with Gunmar’s son, which shut him up for five minutes before he began berating her again. Blinky and AAARRRGGHH didn’t dare enter her room, but they pestered her about it whenever she went out to get food.

Eventually, though, she had to give. Her cats were creating a good and proper stink, and she needed to terminate her lease and her job. Blinky allowed her one more day after she agreed, to finish healing. When she snuck out of her room again, her body was still sore and bruised, but it didn’t hurt to handle her sword or walk anymore. She took a detour around the Heartstone, for luck or good vibes or whatever it was that the giant crystal gave her. Blinky and AAARRRGGHH were busy with a gnome problem in the middle of the market and Alexandra made sure to give them a wide berth; she wanted to go up alone. If she came across Bular, she really didn’t want anyone to witness her death.

It was late morning when she emerged from Trollmarket for the second time in two weeks, and the sun felt so good that she had to stand and bask in it for a good moment, after having a very, very long look the underside of the bridge. She hadn’t expected a watcher out so soon – Bular and his minions couldn’t know she was a Changeling, so there was no reason that they knew of for her to be out during the day – but it never hurt to be careful.

Time passed so differently om Trollmarket; it was a pleasant, slow Saturday for the denizens above ground, a little later than Alexandra had anticipated. Things seemed to move faster in the sunlight, and Alex took an hour to walk the ten minute route from the bridge to her apartment, just watching.

Assembling the stuff from her apartment was both easy and difficult. Alex was more than practiced in packing up her entire life and hightailing it out of a town, but it was different this time. She wasn’t going to re-use her human things for the foreseeable future. She wasn’t just changing around her life this time, but abandoning it. The CLANK of the storage unit’s door closing seemed significantly more final that it had any right to be.

Alexandra rented her unit for another six months and spent the rest of the day resigning from her job at the bookshop and checking out books from the county library, knowing that she’d probably never take them back. Her back was laden with a heavy backpack filled with cat supplies and stolen books, as well as a handy little package from her apartment. Night had fallen by the time she got back to the park by the canal, as she planned; it wouldn’t look good if Blinky found out she went out and came back during the day.

She Changed in the shadow of a large elm tree, and smelled the goblin before she saw it.

Son of the bitch!

The rubbery, salty scent hit her mind like a brick to the face, and she summoned the sword before she even thought about her little package. The goblin tried to flee, but she dodged through the trees, landing a hit with the flat of her sword and sending it screaming into the canal.

It was still struggling away when she got down to it, amazingly unsplattered. A swift cut rendered it silent. She stayed perfectly still, listening for any others, for when there was one there were often many.

That’s when she heard the breathing.

He’s in the sewers. There was a grate right in the wall, not twenty feet from her. Bular was fucking watching her.

Alexandra dropped the sword and her backpack and tore for the side of the canal as the bars of the grate exploded outward, chunks of metal and concrete raining down at her from the right. She scrambled up the canal wall and dodged through the trees with the thundering of footsteps close, far too close behind her.

“Trollhunter!”

Oh, Lord, she had not anticipated this! Before she was even out of the park she was getting out of breath, a stitch in her side reminding her that she had broken ribs not even a week ago.

She hid behind a tractor-trailer on the edge of the park, and Bular knocked the cab over, just missing crushing her legs as she desperately got out of the way. As the trailer fell on its side she got her first glimpse of him, a steaming, jagged shadow with fiercely glowing eyes. She hadn’t seen those eyes in centuries, and it reminded her to keep hers until check, lest they glow in fear.

Alexandra scampered across the street and through a small alley, forcing Bular to run around the end of the street, and she kept running as she doubled back down another alley to the street she’d just come from. Bular’s frustrated roar echoed in her ears, lending her another turn of speed as she booked it toward the canal.

This is where being human might have been useful, she thought derisively, ducking into a roll down the side of the canal. Her stumpy little troll legs weren’t exactly useful for sprinting, which was extremely inconvenient.

A familiar yell rang over the concrete just as Bular threw a broken tree into the canal, roaring as he did.

“Master Alexandra!” “TROLLHUNTER!”

Alex was knocked aside by the flying tree and ended up with several nasty scratches and a twisted finger. She got back to her feet and summoned the armor, the glow of the sword fading from her eyes just as Bular landed in the canal. She was fifty feet from the opposite wall, where Blinky and AAARRRGGHH were silhouetted against the blue entrance to Trollmarket.

She was only a handwidth out of Bular’s range.

She kept two eyes on him and two on the surrounding areas, in case of an unexpected minion. The unusual input made her head ache, but she had to be aware of attacks from the side.

“Focus on your adversary, Master Alexandra,” shouted Blinky, reminding her that they had her back.

She looked him up and down, trying to find his weaknesses in a split second, but he was armored like nobody’s damn business. The only places she could see were his eyes, neck, and the skin beneath his arms; otherwise, there was nothing.

Bular swiped at her with a sword nearly the length of her body, forcing her to roll away. She came back up with a chunk of concrete in each lower hand and pelted him in the face, distracting him enough to throw the sword straight at his head. He had anticipated this, and the Daylight Sword glanced off his own blades, disappearing into the air with a fizzle of blue sparks. She was already pelting toward the others when one of his swords flew at her side, slicing her lower right forearm. She picked up the thrown sword and swung with it and a newly-summoned Daylight, ducking into Bular’s range as he swiftly caught up with her. He hadn’t expected an attack with his own sword and she got him under his arm, but he caught Daylight by the flat of its blade and wrenched it from her hands just as the other sword swung and fucking got stuck in his armored shoulders.

His kick sent her to her back, twenty feet away.

And only six feet away from her discarded backpack.

Alexandra hoped that Bular was in the mood to brag as she hastily dug through her backpack, watching with three eyes as he smirked and stomped over to her.

“I would have thought we’d meet sooner,” said Bular quietly. “It’s been too long since I’ve had a good kill.”

Yes, the evil villain monologue, Alexandra thought, desperately tossing through books and bags of cat food.

“I was washing my hair,” she muttered, aware that Blinky was screaming at her to abandon her backpack and get the fuck over to the portal.

Bular snorted.

“A sense of humor,” he said. “Useless.”

He looked over her, lying defenseless on the hard concrete, his fiery eyes roaming over her stubby legs, her four arms, and extended horns. She tried to look fierce, and knew that she failed.

“How many jokes do you truly believe you can make before your death?”

I’m so glad he likes to talk. Aha. Her hands found the little package, and she paused.

“I’ve only got one thing for you,” Alexandra said, her heart racing so much she almost felt nauseated. Bular, standing over her with two swords and three hundred pounds more, did not look intimidated.

“And that would be?” Alex smirked through her fear.

“A Saturday Night Special,” she said, and shot him in the right eye.

Bular screamed like a bull and stabbed at her, but his depth perception was compromised and she rolled out of the way, slicing at his exposed neck with Daylight as she picked up her backpack and booked it toward Blinky and AAARRRGGHH.

‘murica, fucker, she thought, just before her helmet saved her from being brained by a piece of rebar. She both heard and felt Bular chasing after her, so much swifter despite his heavier body, the reverberations of his feet and hands shaking through the concrete. AAARRRGGHH yelled a warning and she dodged to the left, avoiding another flying blade by inches. She shrugged her pack off and tossed it to AAARRRGGHH, who unceremoniously threw it through the portal, just before the thing apparently got bored of waiting and turned back into a solid wall.

Bular and Alexandra fell into their space as he tackled her from behind, breaking her nose on the concrete and forcing the two to scramble out of the way.

“I’ll drink your blood out of a goblet made from your skull!” Bular screamed, catching her head in one hand and smashing it against the ground. The helmet saved her again, but she could barely see from the sudden dizziness and double-vision and only managed to avoid being torn like poor Unkar the Unfortunate by taking another shot at Bular’s armored chest, which did not wound him so much as it lightly chipped the hard armor there. But it pissed him off, and she managed to sun-stain a good chunk of his left thigh before he kicked her away.

“Don’t be sore, Bular! I thought you wanted to be more like your father?”

A roar answered her. His now single eye looked as if it wanted to set her on fire, and she felt like it was succeeding. They circled each other, Alex trying to keep Blinky and AAARRRGGHH behind her as much as she could, and Alex could feel her older injuries acting up.

She was caught off guard when he lunged, not for her, but for the two trolls behind her, having correctly gauged them as Alexandra’s biggest weakness. His tail smashed into her hip as she turned, sending her to one knee, but she grabbed onto his belt and hauled herself atop his back. He lost his balance when she grabbed one of his horns and pulled, but he flung her off, charging for the undefended pair.

Blinky was only saved from immediate death by his friend, who blocked him and was flung against the wall of the canal by Bular’s massive forearm, chunks of concrete crashing down from the impact crater.

“Oh, this is not the way I imagined such a life as mine to end,” Blinky wailed in a panic, throwing up his arms as Bular aimed both swords at his head, but Alexandra flung herself between the two and the swords landed against Daylight with a ringing clash. She kicked behind her and shoved Blinky away, grabbing Bular’s swords and pulling her body forward until she was directly in his face, close enough to catch two fists against the stone-turned slice on the side of Bular’s neck, making him bellow and drop her.

She wasn’t fast enough to get completely out of his range, but her armor saved her from being sliced in two, and Blinky caught her when she fell backward with a wheeze.

“My many thanks, Alexandra,” he said hurriedly. “Perhaps now would be a good time to retreat!” Alex opened her mouth to reply but had to pull Blinky beneath her as Bular’s sword swept over their heads, taking a good slice out of the back of AAARRRGGHH’s shoulder as he ducked over them to cover them. Alex left him to look after Blinky and twirled under his arm, using her sword like a spear to try and drive Bular back.

But Bular was pissed the fuck off. She wasn’t sure if any Hunter had actually managed to land a hit as devastating as her bullet to the eye.

He stabbed at her at the same time that he got another hit on AAARRRGGHH, who, Alex noticed, was moving much more stiffly than before. He and Blinky were distractions; not only did she have to defend herself, but she had to protect them as well, and now one of them was injured.

Blinky, at least, was trying to help, scrambling back and forth to gather up pieces of fallen concrete and throwing them as hard as he could at Bular’s face. It actually was a decent distraction, and Alexandra managed to make the fucker back away a few feet by slicing at his back, forcing him to turn around to try and fight her.

AAARRRGGHH caught a boulder the size of his head before it could crush Alex, and then dropped it on the ground, instead of, oh, say, fucking throwing it!

“AAARRRGGHH, what the fuck? Give us a hand!”

“Pacifist!” he yelled, dodging to the side before a brick hit his shoulder.

“ARE YOU FUCKING KIDDING ME!”

What he’d said was enough to make Alex freeze, just long enough to trip when one of Bular’s blades slammed into her shin guards. The armor flashed blue, blinding everybody for an instant. When her vision came back, Bular’s sword was an inch in front of her face, and she screamed when it sliced across her nose and into her second left eye.

Oh, god, the pain was immense. She’d had sand and fists in her eyes before, but this was so fucking different. Bular’s laugh was nauseating as she tried to get past the shooting agony, but it was her eye and the sharp pain laced through her entire face. She swung her sword blindly and shot at where his vague, blurry shadow was, but the pain was so distracting that she missed both times. Arms grabbed hers and pulled her away, but they lost their grip when Bular snagged a claw inside her breastplate and pulled her away from the others. She lashed out desperately and elbowed him in the bleeding, glowing socket she had destroyed. The yellow glow of the portal turned to mist in her watering eyes as he dropped her painfully, and she pelted full-out to the wall. Alexandra slammed against Blinky, sending them both tumbling through the portal, and it closed up inches behind AAARRRGGHH’s tail, a bellow of rage following them until it echoed into nothingness.

Alexandra lay where she fell, Blinky’s weight crushing her legs, a hand pressed against her lost eye. She ground her teeth to avoid moaning when AAARRRGGHH carefully lifted her and Blinky to their feet, and she dismissed the armor with a shake of her head. Actually, her whole body was shaking.

“What the fuck,” she groaned.

“An admirable effort,” said Blinky to her right, sounding as shaken as she did but still patting her on the shoulder.

“You struck a fierce blow,” he continued, with a hint of pride in his voice. “As well as several others. I believe I owe you my life.”

Several fast, bitter thoughts ran through her head them.

Yeah, you owe me a fucking eye.

Yeah, at least you tried to help.

Yeah, no thanks to AAARRRGGHH.

The last one stuck.

“Not one single book I found mentioned you didn’t fight,” Alexandra said, leaning her arm against the wall of the entrance cave and glaring at the immense troll in front of her. To his credit, he looked uncomfortable.

“Don’t fight…anymore,” AAARRRGGHH rumbled. Alex grimaced.

“I got that.”

Blinky dusted himself off and stood at AAARRRGGHH’s side, appearing both defensive and confused.

“My friend took a vow of peace just before the Battle of Killahead,” he said tightly, looking at Alex’s tense shoulders, the hands curling into fists. “Surely that is common knowledge, even in as strange a place as New Jersey.” “It’s not.”

“Ah. Well, this is why we have a Trollhunter,” Blinky said calmly, seamlessly falling into Education Mode. “AAARRRGGHH renounced the violent path ages a-“ “So, wait-“ Alexandra held up a hand and halted him. She closed her eyes and shook her head, trying to make sure she really understood what Blinky meant.

“So you’re saying…this…all of this could have been avoided is AAARRRGGHH were to fight?”

They looked at her like they had no clue why she sounded so mad.

She realized that they actually didn’t understand why she was so angry. Troll culture was so rooted in the glory in battle and fighting that she would never have considered a troll so respected to call himself a pacifist.

The use of the word stung her a little bit, because she had grown up in a society of pacifists. Unlike AAARRRGGHH, who seemed to simply refuse to participate in battle himself, her Quaker family had disagreed with all forms of violence, and it annoyed her to hear AAARRRGGHH, who sounded more hypocritical every second, putting himself in the same box as her former family.

Especially she was directly experiencing the repercussions of his decision.

“All twenty-six Trollhunters have been killed by Bular, all of them,” she hissed. “And this would never have happened if AAARRRGGHH had just got up off his ass and sent Bular back to the hellpit he spawned from centuries ago!”

“Master Alexandra…” Blinky looked back to his friend, an apology in his eyes. “…You do not understand – “

“I chose,” said AAARRRGGHH, quiet but firm. Alex peered at him over Blinky’s shoulder.

“To what? Sit back and let every Hunter be murdered in a war you could have ended half a millennia ago?!” “I chose,” AAARRRGGHH said, somewhat more forcefully.

“You’re not even a fucking pacifist!”

Alexandra angrily slashed her sword through the air, making the two lean away.

“A pacifist disagrees with violence completely; but you just sit back and let everybody else do the fighting, don’t you?” He turned away from her and she could see his shoulders shaking, his fists clenching before he moved them out of her sight, but she wanted him to take a hit; she wanted him to get angry.

Why should he be able to put aside his violent past? Why should he be allowed to disregard and be forgiven for his dark beginnings, the tortures and experiments that all of Gunmar’s stolen children were forced to suffer? He had been taken, he had been changed, but he walked freely and loved openly and was loved in return – whereas if she dared the Change, she’d be murdered on the spot.

Why should he be able to sit by and watch while she was chosen to fight in a battle he could have ended before she was even born, a battle that would most likely kill her, just as it had killed every single Trollhunter before her.

Blinky tried to stop her, and she dodged him. She didn’t know where she got the strength, but she shoved AAARRRGGHH on the arm hard enough to make him stumble sideways.

“I challenge you,” she spat, so angry that her voice shook. AAARRRGGHH stared at her in incredulity before turning his face away.

“Not fighting,” he rumbled.

“’No backing out of a challenge’,” she quoted at him, making his ears dip and his shoulders hunch. The armor was summoned with a thought and Alexandra punched him hard on the arm.

“Fight me!” she yelled. “NOT FIGHTING!”

AAARRRGGHH roared, slashing his arm a foot over her head and cracking the stone wall to her right, moving so suddenly that she didn’t even have time to flinch. Standing upright he loomed head, shoulders, and chest over her and she instinctively drew her sword, but when she found his eyes – almost directly over her head – her arms froze in horror.

They were jet black, the pupils like pinpricks encased in rings of a sickening green that was spread across his tattoos as well. She had only been a small child the last time she’d seen eyes like those, but they still numbed her to her core.

AAARRRGGHH’s entire body shook with heavy breath and the immense, visceral effort that he was taking not to crush her like a twig. For the first time Alexandra truly appreciated how terrifying a Gumm-Gumm AAARRRGGHH must have been, and what that really meant. How stark the differences were between the quiet, cheerful troll she was familiar with, and the enormous warrior raised in pain and violence. How much visible effort it took to hold that back.

He didn’t refuse to fight just for his own sake, Alexandra realized then, but for the safety of everyone he cared about. His past may have been over, but it was not gone. She understood, now, why everyone in Trollmarket was so gung-ho about AAARRRGGHH refusing to fight. If he truly lost himself again, there would be nothing to stop him and Bular from destroying everything. AAARRRGGHH’s presence in Deya’s army, his mere absence from Gunmar’s, had turned the tide of the war overnight – Alexandra could only imagine in horror what a force he could be if matched with the killer of Merlin’s Champions.

They stood locked, the frozen Changeling and the looming monster, until AAARRRGGHH slowly banished the anger, tears forming in his brightening eyes. Blinky, unafraid, laid two hands on his side and they seemed to melt the tension completely out of AAARRRGGHH’s body.

Alexandra had never been the subject of so shaming a glare, least not by someone who could do it with six eyes. Blinky’s face clearly told her to get the fuck away from his friend. She’d disrespected a trusted member of Trollmarket. He was shaking and in tears because of her.

Her quiet, whispered sorry was ignored. Alexandra watched them for a minute, deliberating on what she should do, before she picked up her battered, bloodied backpack and left the cave, the crystal staircase appearing at her feet. The blue glow of the crystals illuminated the two she left behind, and she could see AAARRRGGHH’s shoulders shaking before they disappeared from view.

The denizens of Trollmarket looked concerned at her beaten and bloodied appearance, but her face was dark enough that none of them bothered her. She dimly recognized that she wasn’t creating a very open or friendly reputation, but she felt pissed-off and guilty enough that it really didn’t matter, not then.

The door to her quarters opened quietly. Draal was asleep on the nest, one of her books on the musical culture of trolls across Europe open on his chest. Alex dropped her backpack on the floor. The cats scampered around her feet, and then retreated hastily to the bathroom when she yelled wordlessly and slammed her fists into the wall, cracking both it and her knuckles. Draal awoke with a startled yelp and stared helplessly as she punched and punched, losing herself to the rage and guilt, only stopping when the skin broke and glowed with the crystal-skin beneath.

Alex stood for a minute, breathing heavily, absently shaking the pain out of her hands. Draal shifted on the nest, and she cut her eyes to him. He froze, caught in her glare.

“Um. What has…?”

Alex took a deep breath, and straightened up.

“You’re healed enough,” she said, so quietly that he had to lean forward. “Please leave.” Draal stared at her for a moment, then gently peeled the book off his chest and placed it on the floor. Eyes not leaving hers, he stood and backed out of the door, closing it with a sullen thud.

By the time Alex settled down, alone in her bed for the first time in a week, she wished she hadn’t asked him to leave.

  A/N: I actually love AAARRRGGHH to pieces, he’s the most beautiful cinnamon roll ever, but my Alexandra is a little more hot-tempered than me. The show does actually imply, if not outright state, that the whole reason there’s a Trollhunter is because AAARRRGGHH no longer fights, implying that he’s the only one tough enough to actually kill Bular. I’d like to point out that – although Jim did the stabbing bit – AAARRRGGHH was the one to actually land the final blow on Bular.

Blinky also stated that he took his vow of peace directly after he changed sides, so he never fought for Deya; he just simply didn’t fight for Gunmar. And he still got Deya a victory, simply because he didn’t fight. How fucking powerful must someone be to be able to turn the tide of an entire war just by not fighting?

Alexandra is actually incorrect here. I don’t have any idea how many Trollhunters there have been, but a decent few of them lost their lives to Angor Rot, not Bular, but Alex doesn’t know that yet.

If you don’t think that Blinky would deliberately pit Alexandra against Bular you haven’t seen the first few episodes, because he outright shoved Jim into the Training Pit Of Death with the kid having no training, shot arrows and giant stone blades at him, and had absolutely no reaction to Jim and Toby’s first encounter with Bular other than you’re not dead yet, that’s good! Blinky is a stone-cold guy. Literally.

I got a lot of the culture and lore of trolls from del Toro’s book, from which the show was inspired. I wasn’t impressed with Jim or Claire in the book, but Blinky and ARRRGH!!! were fantastic and so was the writing. Some things are changed around, of course, but I wanted to make a reference or six to the book, because I really enjoyed it. Blinky was an absolute joy. Read the book just for Blinky.

Do you really think that at some point in four hundred years - in America – she wouldn’t have bought a gun?

Can also be found on fanfiction and AO3

[byunseoeun91-blog]

Famous Mothers Around The World in History

In honor of Mother's Day, here's a examine what seven famous historic mothers did for his or her sons and daughters.

Sara Kettlermay

If there's one regular for the duration of history, it's the close relationship among mothers and their kids. Though specific historical periods and instances cause exceptional actions, mothers will continually love, shield and combat for (and perhaps try and control) their offspring. In honor of mom's day, here's a take a look at what seven famous ancient mothers did for his or her sons and daughters.

Olympias

Olympias While it got here to her son, Alexander the outstanding, Olympias became a mother whose guide knew no bounds. Alexander turned into born in 356 b.C.E. To Olympias and Philip ii of Macedon, who'd married in element to bolster ties between Macedon and her home of Epicurus. While Philip, who practiced polygamy, later took a young Macedonian spouse, it changed into clear that a complete-blooded Macedonian heir may want to threaten Alexander's declare to the throne. After Philip changed into assassinated in 336 b.C.E., Olympias therefore came under suspicion for masterminding the killing (although there have been masses of different ability suspects). Whether or not or now not she was in the back of her husband's assassination, Olympias became in all likelihood responsible for the following loss of life of Philip's new spouse and infant.

Alexander succeeded his father and proceeded to increase the empire. As he did so, Olympias assisted her son by supplying advice about guidelines and people in his circle (as a snake charmer who may want to make reptiles do as she wished, politics ought to have been a bit of cake for her). The one aspect Olympias didn't do became accompany Alexander on his navy campaigns, but she likely wanted she had — if she'd been handy, perhaps her devotion could have prevented a 32-yr-vintage Alexander's untimely loss of life from malaria in 323 b.C.E.

Angelina Jolie

Angelina Jolie is a mixture of ability, motherhood and tremendous property. Jolie is a girl who considers her kids would be the most effective thing ever occurred to her and values her relationship. She understands the way to manage work and family and adores distinct components of life. Lately, a Vietnamese child named Pax Thien has been adopted by the couple and raised their family size.

Mother Lu

About 2,000 years in the past in china, at some point of the xin dynasty (nine–25 c.E.), mother Lu's son, who turned into a district legitimate, become charged with a minor offense after which performed by way of the district magistrate. Afterward, mother Lu channeled her dissatisfied in an surprising route: she raised a pressure that captured the Justice of the Peace in 17 c.E.; in retaliation for her son's loss of life, the person turned into beheaded.

Mother Lu died rapidly after getting her revenge. But, among the fighters she'd assembled went directly to combat the forces of the xin dynasty (this rebellion came to be called the pink eyebrows rise up because these opponents painted their brows red to try to appear like demons). Whilst the xin dynasty changed into brief-lived for lots reasons — its emperor, Wang Mang, became considered as a usurper; his reforms didn't bring about peasant help; and flooding of the yellow river caused food shortages and unrest — the electricity of mother Lu's fury at her son's loss of life also performed a component in its stop.

Anne Boleyn

Anne Boleyn Getting her head chopped off when her daughter, the future Elizabeth i, become most effective  years old, ensured that Anne Boleyn didn't have tons to do with the girl's upbringing. However Anne had already performed an critical factor for her daughter: because she'd controlled to marry Elizabeth's father, Henry viii, it became feasible for Elizabeth to sooner or later end up queen.

In 1526, the married Henry desired Anne to end up his mistress (a position several ladies, consisting of Anne's sister, had already filled). Anne vetoed the mistress concept, for this reason placing in motion a sequence of activities that would regulate English records: when the pope wouldn't annul Henry's marriage to Catherine of Aragon, England broke far from the catholic church and Henry dissolved the marriage himself. Henry then secretly wed a pregnant Anne in 1533, and Elizabeth changed into proclaimed a princess whilst she was born.

If Anne had just been some other mistress, Elizabeth would not had been blanketed in Henry's 0.33 act of succession (1544). Even though Elizabeth's more youthful half of-brother and older 1/2-sister might hold the English throne earlier than her, in 1558 she were given her threat thanks to her mother.

Sojourner Truth

1864 Sojourner reality gave beginning to her youngsters even as being held as a slave in NY. Though reality received her freedom in 1826, she become forced to depart her older youngsters at the back of (NY become in the procedure of regularly abolishing slavery, however humans born after July 4, 1799, had been required to complete a period of service before being freed). However, truth become bowled over while she found out that her 5-yr-antique son, peter, had been sent to an Alabama plantation. His sale turned into no longer most effective a moral outrage, however it was additionally illegal: New York's legal guidelines forbade the selling of a slave out of kingdom.

Notwithstanding the risks of speak-me out, truth insisted, "i will have my baby once more." she filed a grievance with the ulster county grand jury, then raised cash for an attorney. The man who'd bought peter had probably thought he'd break out with it — many slave owners in the big apple not noted the regulation because they wanted to get as a whole lot make the most of the humans they owned at the same time as they could. However fact's moves pressured the seller to convey her son again to the big apple.

In the spring of 1828, peter become back to his mom. He had scars from being whipped, crushed and kicked for the duration of his time in Alabama, however reality had saved him from an entire life of such mistreatment.

Clara Brown

Clara brown didn't have the posh of criminal action while she and her kids — Richard, Margaret and Eliza Jane — had been split up and bought in Kentucky in 1835. At the same time as nevertheless enslaved, brown learned of Margaret's dying, and that Richard were offered so normally there was no hint of him. Even after brown changed into freed in 1857, she wasn't capable of look for Eliza Jane, whose last recognized whereabouts have been in Kentucky — if brown didn't leave the kingdom within a year, she risked being enslaved over again. She therefore headed west and installed herself in Colorado.

The give up of the civil warfare made it viable for brown to adventure to Kentucky in October 1865 to search for her daughter. But despite speaking to ministers and different humans, she couldn't uncover Eliza Jane's course. Lamentably, brown wasn't the most effective one in this desperate scenario — at the time, many former slaves who'd been separated for years or even decades had been attempting to find each other with the help of newspaper commercials, churches and letters.

Brown again to Colorado, but her love for her daughter persevered. In 1882, she by some means found that Eliza Jane became in Iowa. Mother and daughter have been then able to reunite at closing.

Queen Victoria

Queen Victoria may also have had a country to rule, however that failed to keep her from trying to govern the lives of her offspring as nicely (her husband, prince Albert, once accused her of retaining "the fallacious perception the function of a mom is to be constantly correcting, scolding and ordering them about"). Even as all nine of her youngsters needed to address some interference — she failed to accept as true with the judgement of her inheritor, Bertie, and consequently wouldn't let him see cabinet and state papers — it changed into her youngest child, Beatrice, who skilled the greatest degree of manipulate.

A widowed Victoria failed to want Beatrice to go away her, so while the princess fell in love with and asked to marry prince Henry of batten-berg, her mother wasn't thrilled. The queen gave her daughter the silent treatment for months, speaking entirely via written observe. Victoria finally relented and allowed the marriage to take location in 1885, but she additionally demanded that the couple stay with her. Beatrice went in conjunction with this — after all, if your mother's also your queen and sovereign, it's tough to inform her "no."

And ultimately, Beatrice, Henry and Victoria had been satisfied dwelling collectively. In this situation, maybe mother did understand satisfactory.

Maria Von Trapp

Though a few of the details in the beloved musical the sound of music are incorrect, one element it receives proper is maria Von Trapp's love for the Von Trapp children. In reality, she agreed to Georg Von Trapp's marriage idea due to the fact in it he asked her to come to be his kid's 2d mom — she later admitted, "if he had only requested me to marry him i won't have stated yes." (maria did develop to love her husband.)

It became fortunate for the Von Trap's that maria married into their family in 1927. She managed to overcome their dire economic situation within the Thirties by getting them to soak up boarders, cut prices and start acting as a singing institution. After the Nazi birthday party came to strength, a pregnant maria helped her husband and their 9 youngsters — the seven Von Trapp children she'd followed, plus  children she'd given start to — go away Austria in 1938.

The actual-life maria became decided enough that she probably should've shepherded her own family over the alps, however the Von Trapps failed to observe the path depicted inside the film. Instead, using the excuse of a holiday, maria and her own family took a teach to Italy.

[ultrasfcb-blog]

Sebastian Vettel strikes first psychological blow in Lewis Hamilton battle

Sebastian Vettel strikes first psychological blow in Lewis Hamilton battle

Sebastian Vettel strikes first psychological blow in Lewis Hamilton battle

F1 driver Jolyon Palmer, who left Renault on the finish of 2017, joins the BBC crew this season to supply perception and evaluation from the viewpoint of the opponents.

One race down, 20 to go and the primary psychological blow has been struck within the battle between Mercedes’ Lewis Hamilton and Ferrari’s Sebastian Vettel.

Mercedes had the tempo in Melbourne. Hamilton did every little thing proper and had the Australian Grand Prix underneath management – but he didn’t win. And to make issues worse, his fundamental rival and fellow four-time world champion Vettel did.

It would damage for Hamilton. Having pushed an ideal weekend, to lose a race by issues outdoors of your management is a nightmare state of affairs.

As a driver, there are such a lot of questions you need to ask your crew to determine how issues went flawed – however in the end this one is especially right down to a stroke of unhealthy luck.

Positive, if Hamilton knew earlier that the gap to Vettel was too big, then he may need been in a position to push arduous and slender it a bit earlier earlier than the digital security automotive (VSC) was known as, however actually it was the VSC itself that determined this race.

For Vettel and Ferrari, this win will give them an enormous increase and an power for the remainder of the yr.

They seemed a bit off Mercedes and even Purple Bull at instances through the weekend, and Vettel by no means gave the impression to be on high of the automotive as he did so typically final yr, even qualifying behind his team-mate Kimi Raikkonen.

Ferrari had a trump card on this race, although, which was having two vehicles on the entrance versus the lone Mercedes of Hamilton. With the ability to break up the methods allowed them to throw extra warning to the wind and revenue from the eventual VSC.

Lewis Hamilton watches as Sebastian Vettel celebrates his victory in Melbourne

What subsequent?

So how does Hamilton react?

Over time we have seen all kinds of ups and downs for Hamilton and many various reactions following them. On Sunday after the race, past the preliminary disappointment of the defeat, he appeared constructive and prepared to study with the crew to verify it would not occur once more.

Briton Hamilton has matured lots through the years and has certainly develop into a stronger driver, more durable to beat than ever.

It was solely in 2016 when he had a tough, unfortunate run firstly of the season. After getting crushed within the season opener by Nico Rosberg, he proceeded to have a extremely unhealthy string of outcomes and ended the primary 4 rounds 43 factors behind his German team-mate, who would in the end go on to win the title.

It is essential Hamilton responds in one of the best ways attainable within the subsequent spherical in Bahrain – as a result of if this season goes something like that one, Vettel might be robust to catch.

Typically that is after we see Hamilton at his finest, although. He might be out to make amends.

The battle between him and Vettel acquired a bit extra private after tensions throughout Saturday’s information convention. Mercedes will study from their defeat. They will not take any possibilities in Bahrain and Hamilton can have the bit between his enamel, totally motivated for revenge.

Hamilton has each proper to really feel assured and his calmness outdoors the automotive on Sunday night was in all probability on account of the realisation that he does certainly have the quickest automotive of 2018 in the mean time – and by some margin.

A clear weekend in Bahrain and Ferrari’s lead may not final for lengthy.

Strain constructing on Bottas

Valtteri Bottas gave himself a mountain to climb in Melbourne after crashing in qualifying

A person in much more want of a robust race in Bahrain is Hamilton’s team-mate Valtteri Bottas. It’s no secret that Bottas wants a robust season this yr, having been given solely a one-year extension to his contract by Mercedes and sometimes struggling to get close to Hamilton’s stage of efficiency within the second half of final yr.

Melbourne proved to be a disastrous first spherical for Bottas and that early strain has now elevated drastically.

The Finn within the combine with the entrance group earlier than a heavy qualifying crash meant he would begin solely 15th, and his race was considerably underwhelming as he struggled to make inroads behind slower vehicles and ended up ending eighth.

Bottas’ strain will come from two areas.

Firstly from himself, as a result of all F1 drivers demand excessive performances of themselves. They’re very self-critical, even when it may not appear it from their ‘ebook of excuses’ interviews at instances!

Secondly there might be some strain constructing from inside Mercedes already.

This race was arguably misplaced as a result of Hamilton was combating a two pronged Ferrari assault with out his team-mate to accompany him on the entrance.

If Bottas may have been used to cowl off one of many Ferraris, Mercedes would have been in command of both scenario strategically and Ferrari would not have been in a position to play their trump card on the VSC.

It isn’t a pleasant feeling to depart the primary race of the season on the again foot. After months of coaching and preparation it isn’t solely extraordinarily disappointing however F1 is such a psychological sport that it provides to the strain and makes the subsequent race that little bit more durable.

Mercedes reveal the brand new W09

Bottas will flip as much as Bahrain and instantly face questions on his efficiency and whether or not he can presumably up his sport. The longer this goes on, the more durable the questions develop into and the extra the strain will increase.

This time final yr, I got here off the again of an especially robust opening race myself – and for the next week you’re left caught together with your ideas and don’t have any speedy likelihood to redeem your self.

Most drivers will keep out in Australia, or at the very least the southern hemisphere, to calm down earlier than heading to the subsequent spherical in Bahrain. The time distinction messes with you in case you come dwelling and head again out once more to the subsequent race, and Australia is a pleasant place to discover and prepare within the sunshine as effectively.

Nevertheless it will also be fairly a lonely time as a driver. You might be a part of a crew, however the actuality is that as quickly as you allow the observe your private crew shrinks to simply your self and your coach, and possibly if you’re fortunate an additional individual or two in your entourage.

The crew publicly help you after all, however they are not more likely to be speaking by the human facet of it and providing you with confidence again in your week off. This can be a battle a driver has to face with himself.

Bottas could effectively have a niggling little bit of self-doubt creeping in and it’s vitally essential now for him to bounce again with a strong show in Bahrain – not just for the Mercedes crew however for himself as effectively.

On this scenario, the earlier you placed on a very good show the faster the strain goes away.

The Finn is an excellent driver; he’s simply paired with one who I believe is the quickest in trendy instances. It is a robust ask to match Hamilton, however Bottas wants to indicate at the very least some help to the four-time world champion within the coming rounds.

Not solely drivers really feel strain

Haas seemed set for a incredible begin to the F1 season earlier than each vehicles needed to retire throughout the area of three laps

Strain and self-doubt do not restrict themselves to the drivers. They may even be affecting the two mechanics whose pit stop blunders cost the Haas team a possible best-ever fourth and fifth-place end in Melbourne.

I really feel so sorry for the fellows at Haas, and significantly the 2 guys who’re culpable. They need to really feel like the burden of the world is on their shoulders proper now after costing the crew crucial factors so early with a basic mistake. However, like something, one of the best ways for them and all of the crew to bounce again is to profit from alternatives in Bahrain.

Drivers Romain Grosjean and Kevin Magnussen might be feeling aggrieved there as effectively – however F1 is a crew sport.

There are many instances the place the automotive and pit stops have labored completely just for the driving force to make a mistake. The reverse can occur as effectively.

It was very mature of the drivers to not cross the blame in any respect. And Grosjean, who has been on the crew since its conception, was seen consoling the mechanic within the paddock after the incident. The drivers know these guys could be the important thing to a very good season on the observe with the arduous work they put in off it.

So, as we head to the desert in Bahrain there are numerous psychological questions going through the F1 world. These are simply those now we have chosen to deal with as a result of they’re the most important tales – however there might be comparable, if much less excessive, conditions at groups up and down the pit lane, relying on how Melbourne went for them.

Usually if you give Mercedes a prod, they arrive again combating. Each Hamilton and Bottas should do this in Bahrain if they’re to wipe the grins off Ferrari’s faces.

Melbourne could not have instructed us every little thing about F1 in 2018 but, but it surely has definitely set us up for a very good season.

ultras FC Barcelona - https://ultrasfcb.com/formula1/1845/

#Barcelona

[willreadforbooze]

The Gentleman Bastard Series by Scott Lynch The Lies of Locke Lamora Red Seas Under Red Skies Republic of Thieves What I drank prior: It's Doctor night, I had a bunch of beers. Watched the season finale and cried a lot. Spoiler-free Overview: How do i begin to explain this series. The Gentleman Bastards are a group of theives who plan elaborate schemes and then get themselves into so serious shit. Their fellow thieves start disappearing, the King Thief is getting scared by this person called the Grey King. He's taken responsibility for the disappeared folk. Locke gets wound up into this mystery and blackmailed into being directly involved. ALSO, we get to see the origin story of the orphan Locke and how he became a Gentleman Bastard by being taken under the wing of a Priest of the Thieves, Father Chains. I obviously can't go into more Spoiler-free Thoughts: These books are brilliantly bound. Each has its own plot arc but there's an overarching plot that spans all three books. Its intricate, well planned, well thought out, well developed, and just beautiful. Characters: I really enjoy these characters. Locke, Jean, the Sansa boys, and Bug make an excellent team of thieves. A well-oiled machine set to steal fortunes from the city's nobility. Capa Barsavi is a benevolent but also vicious ruler of the underworld. And the Grey King/Bondsmagi are worthy opponents. They are all well developed characters with unique arcs and growth. However, notice how there are no women I mentioned? That's because there are no women MCs in the first book. Other problematic shit happens to women in this series which I will vent about in the spoilers. Just know there is problematic content but its not indigestable. In fact, I still love it regardles.. Plot: THe plot builds on itself and is intricate and well written. Locke is one of those #alwaysonestepahead characters and its executed perfectly. They try and continue the scheme while also dealing with a Bondsmage, a magician who can basically make you do anything by knowing your True Name (reminds me of Eragon). Also, the back story is very well done. I was as invested in the past as i was in the "present." Spoilerssssss Alrighty. So I really loved these books. I loved Calo and Galdo they are my favorite, and I actually cried when they died in book 1. I loved the mystery and the scheming and the Big Bad Bondsmagi. I adored how no matter what, Locke just couldn't get out of trouble lol. Book 1: YO! Why are all the women plot devices? The twin girls were the sisters of the Grey King? Had to die. The daughter of Capa Barsavi? Had to die for the revenge arc. This mystery woman Locke is in love with? Doesn't show up. The wife of the noble they're duping? Stupid. All the other women? Hookers. ALL except one. She's the fucking villain. And not even a formidible one. However, I really did love this book. It took twists that I was not expecting. The Grey King is VICIOUS. Fucking Vicious. I also really loved the Barsavi carpet story. Like, who thinks of that shit? The mystery of it all was so good. It was unpredictable and I loved it. Book 2: I really liked the original scheme in this one and I wanted it to work so badly. How cool was it to cheat at that alcohol game with a powder?? Because they knew their opponent was a gluttonous person (also a woman). Also, the guy who poison's them? What an actual dick. But I like the sailing aspect. The Captain (a woman who lives to see the end of the book thank god) is awesome. The First Mate (a woman who again DOESN'T live to see the end of the book) is a brilliant partner for Jean. Poor Jean. He's usper smart but you've got Locke who's just determined to be a martyr or die for whatever reason. Locke bothered me at the end of this book. Also you have to have a cat and a woman on the boat or its bad luck? Brilliant. Book 3: I have so many thoughts on this book. Firstly, I HATE Sabetha. Hate her. With a firey passion of ten thousand suns. What a shit woman. She's #damaged which makes her #untrusting and #cruel. Uh, did she, or did she not, have the same upbrining as Locke? She came from the same place. Sure, she was raised with men/boys, but girl, calm your tits. I also hate the Bondsmagi Patience. I'm supposed to, but I really just want more than one woman I like who lives. Please? Thirdly, I loved the game in this haha. It was so relevant considering we just had an election that had weird results. The pranks were super cute. The fact tthey could put aside their love for eachother (which is another thing i disliked - but only because it involved Sabetha) both romantically and platonically, and have it out? How neat is that. Also, this mystery that's scaring the Magi? Color me interested. Spoilers So.... can anyone tell me when book 4 is coming? I can't find it on the internet? I need it right now. Rating: 4/5 Shots What to pair it with: A great light beer. Like you keep drinking them thinking you're good and then all of a sudden you're hammered and you have no idea why. COMMENT DOWN BELOW: What did you think of Sabetha? Do you enjoy a heist story when you know the plan or when it surprises you? Until next time, we remain forever drunkenly yours, Sam PS. Also, if you haven't signed up for #Booziebookathon 2017 on July 22, see our announcement post here.

http://willreadforbooze.blogspot.com/2017/07/the-gentleman-bastards-series-by-scott.html

[newstfionline]

Trump defied the polls, press and pundits to win White House

By Michael Goodwin, New York Post, January 22, 2017

Two images bookend the most remarkable political contest of modern times. In the first, Donald Trump rides an escalator down to the lobby of Trump Tower to announce his fanciful campaign for president. In the second, Election Night maps on television screens flash red as 30 states fall like dominoes into Trump’s column.

Just 17 months elapsed between those unforgettable moments, yet that span stands as an epoch unto itself in the history of America. We were eyewitnesses to a revolution, a rising up of people who felt shunned, betrayed and left behind. They called themselves “deplorables and irredeemables,” turning Hillary Clinton’s slurs into a rallying cry as they threw off the yoke of the old political order and trusted the nation to a true outsider.

Donald John Trump is the most unlikely revolutionary ever to stalk western civilization. He built buildings and a personal fortune, then nearly lost it all before rising again by making his name synonymous with wealth and success.

His life was his brand and it was more grandiloquent than any opera. He was a playboy, a serial seducer and the incarnation of a new and sometimes vulgar Gilded Age.

His marriages, divorces and high jinks were catnip for newshounds. He was tailor-made for TV and became a household name with his signature line, “You’re fired!”

He was a rich celebrity who had it all, but it wasn’t enough. He had the chutzpah to dream he could spin his star power into political gold.

For his daring, he was mocked and made the butt of endless jokes, especially about his hair. Perhaps their laughter blinded the savants, for they missed the birth of a phenomenon. A clue that foreshadowed the ultimate outcome was hiding in plain sight, yet few saw it.

From the moment Trump stepped off that escalator in June of 2015 to join the race, producers at television news programs realized that the more they turned their cameras on him, the more viewers they got.

So that’s what they did, and in a flash, Trump’s rallies were bursting at the seams as thousands showed up when other candidates were lucky to draw hundreds.

The scoffers, including nearly every major news organization and all the pooh-bahs of Washington, consoled themselves by thinking it was a bread-and-circus act, that people were turning out just to gawk at a rich buffoon.

They reassured each other that when the voting started, the unwashed rabble would come to their senses and Trump would crash and burn like a cheap hot-air balloon. Then they, the all-knowing elite, would go about their business of anointing a respectable Republican who would dutifully lose the general election to Clinton. That’s the way the world worked.

That mistake would be forgivable if it were a one-off. But it was just the start of the establishment’s failure to understand what was happening in the huge swath of America that stretched beyond the Beltway and between the urbanized coasts.

To this day, most of the professional scoffers still write off Trump’s stunning upset as the revenge of an angry white working class stewing in hate. Journalists who bother to sojourn to red-state hinterlands approach his supporters as if they are visiting the zoo.

Trump knew his audience from the start. Just as his genius for selling his brand made him rich, his genius for reading the electorate made him president.

He was all brass bands and bare knuckles and exactly what Republicans and many independents wanted. He didn’t take crap from anyone and said what those voters were thinking about jobs, trade, immigration and so much more.

His slogan, Make America Great Again, was so in-your-face that there was no mistaking its meaning. It was nationalist and populist, and the fact that those ideas offended the tender sensibilities of the political and media elite was a bonus. Trump’s no-bulls–t approach struck a deep chord in the hearts of Americans who felt abandoned by both political parties and their government.

Their patience and their bank accounts were exhausted. From the horrors of 9/11 to the quagmire in Iraq to the economic collapse in 2008, George W. Bush’s presidency was a demoralizing slog. Then came eight years of Barack Obama’s lectures, apology tours and liberal overreach. As ObamaCare and other stifling impositions slammed the door on the American Dream, many citizens were equally furious at Republicans in Congress for failing to fight back.

None of them was fooled by happy-talk statistics about jobs when the economy they lived in still dragged along the bottom. Throw in the nightmares spawned by the medieval butchery of the Islamic State, including a spate of homeland slaughters, and a huge slice of the electorate was primed to put someone very, very different in the Oval Office.

Alas, smooth sailing is not in Trump’s DNA. He had--and has--a knack for going too far, and his embrace of the claim that Obama was born in Africa, and thus ineligible to be president, threatened to derail him until he formally backed down. That misbegotten venture remains an open wound to many African-Americans who see it as a racial attack on the first black president.

But it is also true that Trump is “an equal-opportunity offender,” as his daughter Ivanka once said. In that and other ways, he evokes memories of another pot-stirring New Yorker, the late Ed Koch. In fact, Koch might have been thinking of Trump as well as himself when he wrote, “I’m not the type to get ulcers, I give them.”

Trump’s gift for the zinger insult--”Little Marco” and “Lyin’ Ted”--found its ripest target in Jeb Bush. “Low energy” fit like a glove, and the former front-runner wilted.

Yet Trump looked like he had another gift, too: an ability to snatch defeat from the jaws of victory. Again and again, he would build momentum, only to throw a banana peel in his way, or have one surface from the past. The tape where he boasted that he would walk up to women and “grab them by the pu–y” nearly sank him because there was no denying his own words.

That was the low point of a pattern that would play out right up to Election Day. Indeed, it hasn’t fully stopped yet.

The transition is being defined by angry Tweet storms as Trump punches down the likes of actress Meryl Streep. To the extent that they mean anything, polls show him losing ground during a period when presidents-elect mostly expand their popularity.

It’s the Trump way and we’d better get used to it. He is who he is, authentic to a fault.

But his critics, especially those whose heads are exploding over his election, should also remember this: His upside is enormous. His fierce determination to succeed now stands to benefit the nation.

Trump, though he certainly can be headstrong, is also willing to change course when he has to. And don’t forget his incredible stamina, which helped him beat Hillary Clinton by outworking her down the stretch.

Trump was tested by the fire of a brutal campaign and was on the receiving end of an unprecedented barrage. It was one thing for the slings and arrows to come from his opponent and the White House, quite another for the media to conspire against him. The powerful confederacy against him made his triumph all the more amazing.

Still, it is worth repeating that while he is president No. 45, he is the first to have had neither government nor military experience. That seems risky and it is a virtual certainty that he will be tested early and often, both at home and abroad.

Already, the boycott of his inauguration by sour-grapes Democrats breaks new ground in disrespect and dangerously sows seeds of disunion. Who knows what challenges China, Iran, Russia and the Islamic State will present.

Besides, it’s not as if Barack Obama leaves Washington and the world in splendid shape, so there’s no shortage of existing difficulties. History, if it’s honest, cannot treat Obama kindly.

Now it’s time to look forward. Donald Trump is the new sheriff in town and, like Sinatra, he did it his way. Say a prayer for him and the exceptional nation he leads.

[ultrasfcb-blog]

Sebastian Vettel strikes first psychological blow in Lewis Hamilton battle

Sebastian Vettel strikes first psychological blow in Lewis Hamilton battle

Sebastian Vettel strikes first psychological blow in Lewis Hamilton battle

F1 driver Jolyon Palmer, who left Renault on the finish of 2017, joins the BBC crew this season to supply perception and evaluation from the viewpoint of the opponents.

One race down, 20 to go and the primary psychological blow has been struck within the battle between Mercedes’ Lewis Hamilton and Ferrari’s Sebastian Vettel.

Mercedes had the tempo in Melbourne. Hamilton did every little thing proper and had the Australian Grand Prix underneath management – but he didn’t win. And to make issues worse, his fundamental rival and fellow four-time world champion Vettel did.

It would damage for Hamilton. Having pushed an ideal weekend, to lose a race by issues outdoors of your management is a nightmare state of affairs.

As a driver, there are such a lot of questions you need to ask your crew to determine how issues went flawed – however in the end this one is especially right down to a stroke of unhealthy luck.

Positive, if Hamilton knew earlier that the gap to Vettel was too big, then he may need been in a position to push arduous and slender it a bit earlier earlier than the digital security automotive (VSC) was known as, however actually it was the VSC itself that determined this race.

For Vettel and Ferrari, this win will give them an enormous increase and an power for the remainder of the yr.

They seemed a bit off Mercedes and even Purple Bull at instances through the weekend, and Vettel by no means gave the impression to be on high of the automotive as he did so typically final yr, even qualifying behind his team-mate Kimi Raikkonen.

Ferrari had a trump card on this race, although, which was having two vehicles on the entrance versus the lone Mercedes of Hamilton. With the ability to break up the methods allowed them to throw extra warning to the wind and revenue from the eventual VSC.

Lewis Hamilton watches as Sebastian Vettel celebrates his victory in Melbourne

What subsequent?

So how does Hamilton react?

Over time we have seen all kinds of ups and downs for Hamilton and many various reactions following them. On Sunday after the race, past the preliminary disappointment of the defeat, he appeared constructive and prepared to study with the crew to verify it would not occur once more.

Briton Hamilton has matured lots through the years and has certainly develop into a stronger driver, more durable to beat than ever.

It was solely in 2016 when he had a tough, unfortunate run firstly of the season. After getting crushed within the season opener by Nico Rosberg, he proceeded to have a extremely unhealthy string of outcomes and ended the primary 4 rounds 43 factors behind his German team-mate, who would in the end go on to win the title.

It is essential Hamilton responds in one of the best ways attainable within the subsequent spherical in Bahrain – as a result of if this season goes something like that one, Vettel might be robust to catch.

Typically that is after we see Hamilton at his finest, although. He might be out to make amends.

The battle between him and Vettel acquired a bit extra private after tensions throughout Saturday’s information convention. Mercedes will study from their defeat. They will not take any possibilities in Bahrain and Hamilton can have the bit between his enamel, totally motivated for revenge.

Hamilton has each proper to really feel assured and his calmness outdoors the automotive on Sunday night was in all probability on account of the realisation that he does certainly have the quickest automotive of 2018 in the mean time – and by some margin.

A clear weekend in Bahrain and Ferrari’s lead may not final for lengthy.

Strain constructing on Bottas

Valtteri Bottas gave himself a mountain to climb in Melbourne after crashing in qualifying

A person in much more want of a robust race in Bahrain is Hamilton’s team-mate Valtteri Bottas. It’s no secret that Bottas wants a robust season this yr, having been given solely a one-year extension to his contract by Mercedes and sometimes struggling to get close to Hamilton’s stage of efficiency within the second half of final yr.

Melbourne proved to be a disastrous first spherical for Bottas and that early strain has now elevated drastically.

The Finn within the combine with the entrance group earlier than a heavy qualifying crash meant he would begin solely 15th, and his race was considerably underwhelming as he struggled to make inroads behind slower vehicles and ended up ending eighth.

Bottas’ strain will come from two areas.

Firstly from himself, as a result of all F1 drivers demand excessive performances of themselves. They’re very self-critical, even when it may not appear it from their ‘ebook of excuses’ interviews at instances!

Secondly there might be some strain constructing from inside Mercedes already.

This race was arguably misplaced as a result of Hamilton was combating a two pronged Ferrari assault with out his team-mate to accompany him on the entrance.

If Bottas may have been used to cowl off one of many Ferraris, Mercedes would have been in command of both scenario strategically and Ferrari would not have been in a position to play their trump card on the VSC.

It isn’t a pleasant feeling to depart the primary race of the season on the again foot. After months of coaching and preparation it isn’t solely extraordinarily disappointing however F1 is such a psychological sport that it provides to the strain and makes the subsequent race that little bit more durable.

Mercedes reveal the brand new W09

Bottas will flip as much as Bahrain and instantly face questions on his efficiency and whether or not he can presumably up his sport. The longer this goes on, the more durable the questions develop into and the extra the strain will increase.

This time final yr, I got here off the again of an especially robust opening race myself – and for the next week you’re left caught together with your ideas and don’t have any speedy likelihood to redeem your self.

Most drivers will keep out in Australia, or at the very least the southern hemisphere, to calm down earlier than heading to the subsequent spherical in Bahrain. The time distinction messes with you in case you come dwelling and head again out once more to the subsequent race, and Australia is a pleasant place to discover and prepare within the sunshine as effectively.

Nevertheless it will also be fairly a lonely time as a driver. You might be a part of a crew, however the actuality is that as quickly as you allow the observe your private crew shrinks to simply your self and your coach, and possibly if you’re fortunate an additional individual or two in your entourage.

The crew publicly help you after all, however they are not more likely to be speaking by the human facet of it and providing you with confidence again in your week off. This can be a battle a driver has to face with himself.

Bottas could effectively have a niggling little bit of self-doubt creeping in and it’s vitally essential now for him to bounce again with a strong show in Bahrain – not just for the Mercedes crew however for himself as effectively.

On this scenario, the earlier you placed on a very good show the faster the strain goes away.

The Finn is an excellent driver; he’s simply paired with one who I believe is the quickest in trendy instances. It is a robust ask to match Hamilton, however Bottas wants to indicate at the very least some help to the four-time world champion within the coming rounds.

Not solely drivers really feel strain

Haas seemed set for a incredible begin to the F1 season earlier than each vehicles needed to retire throughout the area of three laps

Strain and self-doubt do not restrict themselves to the drivers. They may even be affecting the two mechanics whose pit stop blunders cost the Haas team a possible best-ever fourth and fifth-place end in Melbourne.

I really feel so sorry for the fellows at Haas, and significantly the 2 guys who’re culpable. They need to really feel like the burden of the world is on their shoulders proper now after costing the crew crucial factors so early with a basic mistake. However, like something, one of the best ways for them and all of the crew to bounce again is to profit from alternatives in Bahrain.

Drivers Romain Grosjean and Kevin Magnussen might be feeling aggrieved there as effectively – however F1 is a crew sport.

There are many instances the place the automotive and pit stops have labored completely just for the driving force to make a mistake. The reverse can occur as effectively.

It was very mature of the drivers to not cross the blame in any respect. And Grosjean, who has been on the crew since its conception, was seen consoling the mechanic within the paddock after the incident. The drivers know these guys could be the important thing to a very good season on the observe with the arduous work they put in off it.

So, as we head to the desert in Bahrain there are numerous psychological questions going through the F1 world. These are simply those now we have chosen to deal with as a result of they’re the most important tales – however there might be comparable, if much less excessive, conditions at groups up and down the pit lane, relying on how Melbourne went for them.

Usually if you give Mercedes a prod, they arrive again combating. Each Hamilton and Bottas should do this in Bahrain if they’re to wipe the grins off Ferrari’s faces.

Melbourne could not have instructed us every little thing about F1 in 2018 but, but it surely has definitely set us up for a very good season.

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