#the only time they do have a hand thing was during the retrieval arc

[bleachbleachbleach]

You've always been my go-to for all things Bleach lore and world-building! Do you think Shinigami all sleep in futons or beds? Or maybe it varies from character to character? We've seen the 4th division with beds in their wards, but I think every other character has slept in futons.

Haha, thank you! We do love a furniture deep-dive here, and people's headcanon speculations about shinigami life even more.

I started a list of any time we'd ever seen a character in some kind of bed (futon or frame), but it mostly just ended up being a long list of "_______ at the 4th," lol, so we'll see all those aside (almost all those aside). But canonically, there is a mixture! We see:

Hinamori in Aizen's futon

[Bleach 100]

Ukitake in his quarters

[Bleach e40]

Isane in her quarters

[Bleach 179]

Hisana at the Kuchiki house

[Bleach 179]

I think Rukia had a similar setup during the Bount Arc, as well.

Also, I'd like to note that for the record as I was retrieving *bed pictures* I got emotionally destroyed by my re-encounter with this panel. It is just SO deeply sad:

[Bleach 180]

The incredible, isolating vastness of the room, and the way the shadow cuts across the space. ToT <33333 It also reminds me of a really excellent meta piece done by afinepiece, where she analyzed the panels from Byakuya's story about Hisana and pointed out sections where the panel visuals might suggest Byakuya's memory/headspace more than physical reality. Her journal is deactivated but I know the reblog is on B3 somewhere! I'm inclined to go with that reading here, even though I also feel like the room probably just *looked like this* because every room in Soul Society is like this. (Maybe it's also for airflow, given her illness seemed partially respiratory and possibly contagious? ngl I'm basing this off that one anime elaboration scene and my co-blogger's post about Circus Hisana and Elephant TB).

In my mind Byakuya's convalescent setup was the same as Hisana's (is this the sad Seireitei equivalent of couples' outfits) but I was wrong:

[Bleach 180]

He's in a bed! But from the look of this building he's probably at the 4th and not at home. Put simply, this building is too brutish and workmanlike to be part of the Kuchiki complex:

[Bleach 180]

Hanatarou's quarters (implied)

[Bleach e259]

The tatami floor, layout, and big closet on the right-hand side seem to imply that Hanatarou uses a futon.

Abarai family quarters (implied)

[Bleach "No Breathes from Hell"]

This is probably not the only room in this house and they could put *anything* in those cabinets, but their sheer number and the style of the room suggests that this converts to a futon-filled bedroom, regardless of what might exist in other parts of the house.

Bonus 1: Renji in jail

[Bleach 118]

Is this at the 6th? Is this at the 4th? I always assumed the 6th, though obviously the 4th was involved. Idk, Byakuya left him on the ground. Maybe if you don't pick up your invalids the 4th just stashes them in their jail.

Bonus 2: Hitsugaya in Junrinan (non-shinigami, non-Seireitei)

[Bleach -16 (in between 286 and 287)]

These examples are pretty skewed in favor of futons, but if we think about this collection of characters, there is an overrepresentation of people who trend more traditional in terms of aesthetic, so they might not meaningfully represent the whole. Also, half the list is the same family.

We've seen a number of different offices and meeting rooms for each division, as well as some private residences, which have been a mix of Western and traditional styles in terms of the building itself and the furniture within it. Most of the offices seem to have Western furniture (or at least, the 10th, 6th, and 3rd), whereas Byakuya and Aizen, at least, seem to prefer the traditional at home.

Though, I don't know what this big-ass room is, but given its size and feeling of formal reception, this may well be the 5th's office?

[Bleach 100]

NB 1: I tried to look up what the office looks like under Shinji, but what is happening here:

[Bleach "No Breathes from Hell"]

NB 2: The 2nd also has traditional receiving rooms (used by both Yoruichi and Soi Fon, wherever the division between Shihouin and the 2nd is. But I assume Soi Fon's office is not the Shihouin Family Receiving room).

--

My feeling is that the differences are more regional/Division-based than personal preference-based, and *when*/by whom this design language was established depends on how much time and money the people in charge want to devote to furniture.

But that doesn't necessarily mean each Division is uniform, since we can see Isane and Hanatarou, both seated officers of the 4th, have different-style rooms! Maybe this is an effect of the 4th being an early bed adopter for their general professional purposes. Unohana is 100% a futon lady. I feel like Isane just accepted whatever was originally in the room, and that if there were no bed at all in the room she would sleep on the floor before asking to remodel. Does that mean a previous 4th VC wanted to modernize the VC quarters?

Was that previous 4th VC the original bedframe proselytizer, and got permission from Unohana to do up their quarters like a model home that gave examples of both types of room? Do Isane and Unohana live in an IKEA showroom?

What are the benefits of futons?

the room can be multi-use, a general common room by day and sleeping dorm by night

don't have to make a bunch of bedframes

Given what a big deal everyone makes out of transporting goods from the Living World, I feel like they probably make all their furniture and don't import particleboard from Nitori, so this would be expensive! Plus, given the amount of building reconstruction that needs to happen, I feel like there's probably a fairly small quota of wood released to civilians and/or divisions for non-essential use.

What are the benefits of bedframes?

BUNKBEDS

easier cleaning/long-term savings?

Yeah, you'd have to make the bedframes and have a whole separate common room, but having beds implies you've probably done away with the tatami in the room, since you're not really supposed to put heavy furniture on the mats. And I don't think in a barrack with heavy use you'd be able to rely on shinigami simply "being careful." Same logic as college dorms and their "IKEA, but completely indestructible" furniture.

So if you decide in the long-term that you don't want to do tatami maintenance/replacement and want wood furniture on wood floors, maybe the bed route is for you! ("You" here meaning "your division"!) At which point it'd be a matter of:

caring enough to do a cost/benefit analysis about this

whether or not you want to preserve the traditional aesthetic

whether you have the initial capital to invest in making the change

Some additional thoughts:

We know that at least a portion of the 2nd has heated floors, as financed by Oomaeda. I'm not a heated floors aficionado--though I stayed at an AirBnb once with a heated driveway--NUTS) but I feel like that would...not work with tatami? That over time the heat would dry them out too much and make them brittle? So maybe the 2nd has beds.

Despite the fact that the 10th office changes out their couch out a few times during the canon timeline, I feel like there's a 0% chance Hitsugaya has considered a bedding/architecture overhaul during his tenure at the 10th. He's spent the last 15 years developing a real filing system and an actual budget procedure. He didn't come in with extra money to put towards beds and the 46 doesn't generally approve that kind of line item. That's more of a "gift fund" expense.

Shinji is trying to get a Pod Hotel proposal approved, on the grounds that the idea would benefit more than just the 5th. They could implement it in the Tsumesho (Gotei WeWork)! And provide them in strategic outposts across Rukongai!

During what decade was the 11th briefly "HAMMOCK DIVISION" because it seemed like the cheapest, most low-maintenance option?

[ladygojooo]

The shadows stain the snow (but darling, I want you anyway)

Synopsis: Betrayal, duty, and death - these were the only things the world of jujutsu had ever given you for all that you toiled. A twin of one of the fallen, you left it all behind in the hopes of carving out a small bit of uneasy paradise for yourself.

You should have known it never was going to work.

Pairing: Satoru Gojo x reader

WC: 1.8k

Content: light angst, marriage proposal, marriage of convenience, soft!Gojo, fluffy ending, pre-Shibuya arc

A/N: raaaaah, I was so tired of having this in my drafts, and though I think it's utter trash, maybe one of y'all will like it, lol. Satoru Gojo, my beloved, the man that you are <3

There was white everywhere you looked.

Seven years after you left, and you still couldn’t think of anything but him when you saw the stupid color. At least the sky was covered in clouds today. Sure, it made you feel boxed in, but it certainly wasn’t blue.

You shut off the ignition in your car, not giving yourself time to prepare for the bitterly cold air that you’d step out into. If Japan hadn’t accustomed you to its winter lows, then the Yukon Territory certainly did the trick.

As you stepped out of the car, you watched with faint amusement as your exhales wafted up and away into the air around you. It was the one thing that brought you a bit of joy during the winter season - always reminded you of incense, for some reason.

The warmth of your home hit you all at once, and you couldn’t help the sigh that left your body as you unbuttoned your jacket and hung it up on the coat rack right beside the door. You could hear the ham and potato soup you’d frozen calling your name, and as soon as you shucked all our outerwear, it would be a matter of minutes before you could consume it. It was truly one of the best Western recipes you’d found while in Canada.

You walked into the kitchen and opened the freezer, humming with glee when you saw the frozen soup sitting near the front. So focused were you on pulling out a pot and opening the container that you failed to notice the 6’3” man in black sitting at your kitchen table.

“You have enough for me?”

Over the rush of your heartbeat, you didn’t even realize that you’d thrown a knife from the countertop until you saw it floating a few inches out from his heart.

Gojo laughed. “Oh come on, is that any way to greet an old friend? I’m starving after all this travelling!”

You had two options at this point. 

One - you hadn’t seen Gojo in ten years. You could laugh with him like no time had passed, get out a bigger pot and some more soup, and catch up over dinner.

Two - you could take all the hurt, anger, and fear you were experiencing at that very moment and put it to good use. Maybe you’d even be able to turn him out of your house. Freezing to death would do him some good.

You chose the second option.

“What are you doing here, Gojo?” You hissed, not turning back to the stovetop quite yet. You didn’t trust him not to get up in your business and try to steal some food.

“I’m here for a nice, homemade meal,” he grinned, grabbing the knife, kicking his feet up onto your kitchen table, and lifting his hands up to rest on the back of his head.

You threw a spoon on the countertop at him for doing so, uncaring that his infinity would keep it from reaching him. “I’m insulted that you think I’m that stupid. This isn’t some wellness check.”

Gojo sighed and settled into the chair some more as the spoon clanged to the floor, dragging out each second just because he could.

“We need you to come back,” he said. “We’re in need of more sorcerers, and you’re a special grade.”

You were already shaking your head as you answered, “Absolutely not. I’m retired.”

“You ran away.” The subtle accusation screamed loudly, even as you shrugged your shoulders.

“Semantics.” You waved it away with the bigger pot that you retrieved from under the counter. “Besides, what does it matter? Not once was I needed for missions. Surely the higher ups would have sent out a search party to bring me back if they really needed me.”

“And just who do you think kept the higher ups off your back?”

And oh, how the temperature dropped, even if his voice remained chipper. Your hand froze where it was about to turn on the gas.

“You knew where I was this whole time?” You whispered, voice shaky.

In lieu of an answer, the chair Gojo sat on skid across the floor, protesting the movement. His footsteps moved closer to you, each one sending your heartbeat skittering faster. You didn’t remember shutting your eyes.

“Look at me,” he murmured from right behind you.

You shook your head. “No.”

“Look at me,” he repeated, grabbing your shoulders and turning you around. Still, your eyes didn’t open.

“Gojo, you can’t-”

“Why did you leave?”

His insistent tone had you opening your eyes, only to find the bandana gone and cerulean blue staring back at you. Your heart, despite all the dates and failed relationships you’d had between then and now, fluttered just like it did back in high school. 

He was there, for the first time in a decade, he was there with you. You’d forgotten just how much you craved his attention, his presence, his very being until now.

You wouldn’t have the strength to leave a second time.

“Because my brother didn’t have the answers either.”

You felt him still, and for the briefest of moments, you thought the last thing you’d see would be a blinding purple. Hell hath no fury like a Gojo scorned, after all. You learned that shortly after the Sorcerer Killer’s death, when Suguru told you of the sheer power that Satoru unlocked.

“You know,” you whispered, eyes flitting down to the buttons on his shirt, “why I couldn’t have stayed.”

Gojo hummed. “You could have.”

“And where would that have left me, hm? Stuck between dangerous mission after dangerous mission or fearing when the higher ups would give me a fatal mission to finish me off? That’s not a life for anyone, never mind me.”

“And you don’t think I would have protected you?” He asked, the back of his knuckles brushing lightly over your cheek. Your breath stuttered, even as your eyes widened in disbelief.

“Gojo, we were barely adults! Between everything else going on, you couldn’t have shouldered my burdens.”

He chuckled. “You don’t think I’m strong enough, do you?”

You rolled your eyes and glossed over the parting words your brother left him with. “Satoru Gojo, I know your strength firsthand from our days in school, and I assume you’ve only improved since then. Don’t put words in my mouth.”

He smiled warmly at your free admission and let his thumb brush over your cheek. “Come back with me to train the next generation of sorcerers, and I promise you’ll be safe.”

“Have you not listened to anything I’ve said?” You moved your head back the slightest bit. It certainly wouldn’t surprise you if Gojo let your arguments for staying away go in one ear and out the other. 

The white haired man shook his head. “I’ve listened to everything you’ve said since stepping foot in the house. I just have solutions to each and every one of your protests.”

You moved to push him away, but with his infinity up, he still stood there, mere inches away. It was having an annoyingly dizzy effect on you, if you were being honest. It pissed you off.

“Oh, really? Pray tell, o wise one, how are you going to keep the higher ups from retaliating or marrying me off to some creep who only wants me for my technique?”

“By marrying me, of course.”

You sent him the most deadpan look you’ve ever conjured in your life, hoping that he wouldn’t catch the genuine shock that ran through your body. “That is the worst plan you’ve ever come up with. Absolutely not.”

He whined around the smile on his face. “It’s not! Think about it - you get protection from the higher ups through me, I get to bring you back to train the students, and based on how long it’s socially acceptable to wait to have children once married, we can work out a plan for divorce in plenty of time. After that, you can come right back here and live out your days in lonely solitude.”

“No, Gojo. I’m not coming back, what’s not clicking here?” You groaned in frustration, throwing your head back - anything to get away from his puppy eyes.

“One of the first years is Sukuna’s vessel.”

Your head whipped down to meet his gaze, eyes wide once again. “You’re kidding.”

“Nope!” Gojo chuckled. “Pretty great kid too. You’ll love him.”

The entire conversation was giving you whiplash to the extreme. Gojo showing up out of the blue, wanting you back at the school, offering to marry you to keep you from the higher ups, and now Sukuna, the feared King of Curses himself, was alive and trapped in an innocent boy.

The man really knew how to sweep you off your feet, you’d give him that much.

“Satoru, why do you really want me back?”

His lips slowly fell from a smile, and he backed away to look out the window to your right. Silence curled around you both, growing more suffocating by the second.

“Something big is coming,” he spoke lowly. “I don’t know what it is, but something tells me that it’s time to get my affairs in order. I-” He cut himself off with a harsh sigh and turned back to you once more. “I have my regrets, sure, but I don’t want you - not being with you - to be one of them.”

Your body moved of its own accord, letting an arm slip through his before resting your head against him. You breathed him in, sandalwood and bergamot and him in the best way possible. The fabric of his shirt brushed against your lips as you spoke.

“Can you really love me after all that’s happened? All this time?”

You missed the tender smile on his face. “I never stopped.”

Your breath shuddered as you buried yourself in his chest. After the betrayal from your brother, Satoru being ordered to kill him, the brutal argument you two had in Shoko’s morgue, all of it - you ran away to be free of the memories, the love strangling you every way you turned. You ran away because how could Satoru see you without seeing his best friend in your face? How could you face yourself in the mirror when all you saw was Suguru staring right back at you? How could anyone at Jujutsu High stand to be near you when all you were was a walking failure?

“And you’re sure you want me?”

“Well, it was either you or Utahime, so.”

You groaned and let your head drop to Gojo’s shoulder, slapping his arm a few times. “I hate you with a burning passion.”

“That’s the spirit!” He cheered, rubbing a hand up and down your back.

“You owe me so much kikufuku.”

“I’ll buy it all for you.”

“Satoru?”

“Yeah?”

“This honeymoon better be at the beach.”

“Done.”

[oshiawaseni]

My sibling, who is an anime only said they would not be surprised if BKDK became canon considering the depth of their relationship, their interactions, and their character development regarding each other ... despite how Bones added in Izuocha scenes and cut out some critical BKDK moments in most of the seasons so far... And, seeing how one-sided the "love" is between Izuocha, which I believe is deep admiration as of reading the manga- I have to say I agree.

Izuocha, is fine on the surface but is unhealthy. Izuku would not pay attention to Ochaco they he would need to if they were in a relationship. And Ochaco only saw "Hero Deku" rather than all of "Izuku", which would cause her to unknowingly encourage Izuku's reckless self-sacrificial behavior.

BKDK is different because not only they know each other beyond the surface level, but they also have their sights on each other and the mere presence of their partner inspires them to become better and stronger people at heart because they have genuine love for each other...

I honestly do not understand what is in the Dudebros' mind other the fact that they are lacking emotional intelligence and critical thinking... but I will just enjoy what they are missing. (Sorry for rambling...)

Hi anon! Sorry it took me a bit to get back to you (reason in tags). Let me just reply to your ramblings with some ramblings of my own :)

I actually really enjoyed Season 6. The only thing I faulted Bones for, was creating that jarring opening that made out like Ochaco was the hero of the retrieve vigilante Deku mission (which sadly only fueled izuochas more on mhatwt), when it was 1000% Katsuki's doing and there is one panel which proves this beyond a shadow of a doubt.

See this? Who is the one standing in front of Shoto and Tokoyami, addressing the whole class? It's Katsuki! Not Ochaco! She was seated with everyone else. This is why it's so frustrating when they say she was the reason Izuku was brought back to U.A. That arc was all about Katsuki's feelings for Izuku and wanting to return his smile.

He was even so worried he lost sleep over it, wondering where Izuku was, if he was okay… he must have stayed awake in bed, thinking and thinking about Izuku and how he could get him back. Katsuki was used to Izuku being by his side, and it was the first time Izuku had willingly left it. It provided him clarity about how important* Izuku was in his life, which only made him worry even more. (*see also: crucial, vital, imperative, watch me emotionally die slowly inside if you aren't around me anymore.)

Katsuki losing sleep, at a time Izuku was not sleeping was such a symbiotic soul mates power move Hori added in for flavour. I love it SOOO freaking much. There are no lengths this man won't go, to prove how in sync they are with each other, how much they need each other, the empathy they share with each other, even on a completely spiritual level where they share in each other's sufferings, *without even knowing it* such as right here, just like Katsuki wants to share all of Izuku's burdens so that he's not crushed by them.

But with that said, though Bones really dropped the ball on the opening (and 5 previous seasons...*ahem*), there were a lot of curious changes that happened in season 6 that I did love, like Izuku dropping the "tachi" in his sentence which turned his line into "He hurt the person I love…" (instead of people)

and as we saw more of these additional changes Bones made, it got us wondering, did Hori have some regrets with the manga that he was unhappy about and wanted their romance to be more obvious? Was it only natural to get anime viewers up to speed before season 7, because they were going to find out through manga spoilers that Katsuki and Izuku are actually in love? I'd like to think so.

Changes I remember off the top of my head:

Reaching out for little Izuku's hand during Katsuki Bakugou Rising

Katsuki waking up and thinking "Deku…" and remembering his Rising sacrifice and being still hurt from it.

Izuku waiting until he was in Katsuki's arms before he apologised, which made their words of "I'm sorry" and "I know" more intimate and personal to each other. Like Izuku needed Katsuki's forgiveness the most, and Katsuki needed to let Izuku feel that he understands him the most.

Izuku's little "Ka-..." (the English dub did not catch it but I know other dubs did) as he was passing out, which made the entire hug scene feel so much more romantic.

"I'm gonna say your name when I wake up" vs "I'm gonna say your name when I fall asleep." BkDk: Always on each other's minds. All the time.

And one of the most interesting changes of all…

So get this, Ochaco gets a hand hold grab in the opening which canon-wise holds about as much weight as an "illustration" … and in the actual anime content, she grabs his wrist area instead of his hand like in the manga. Making her hand hold IN THE CANON CONTENT so impersonal. Almost as if to make up for the horrible opening they made. Why this was done still remains a mystery to us today… but I hope it's because Horikoshi asked them to make Izuocha stop being seen like a couple, and more like the friends they are.

And then, about the "brothers" "friends" comments antis love to make about bkdk. Well yeah, they're coping. In fact, Hori has shied away from labeling them friends several times when he could have! "Midoriya-kun is our friend" says Iida - with multiple people from the class, including Ochaco, presented in the panel… and Katsuki is nowhere to be found.

Or like when sAFO called Katsuki "Izuku's closest person" (motto mo naka ga ii) where it would have been WAY more natural to call him "shinyu," aka, "best friend." But that's the thing, Hori runs away from calling them friends like it's the plague LMAO

Really makes you wonder… was sAFO (I'd rather just call it AFO at this point because it's his personality being dominant vs Katsuki) alluding to hidden romantic feelings Izuku hides for Katsuki that his secret gaydar quirk picked up? Could be. In a way, at the time it happened, it felt to me like Horikoshi himself was talking to us through him, telling us very explicitly, "You're damn right. They're gay."

Either way, skirting around this label for them is being done on purpose by Hori. Like his hidden way of saying "Yeah they might be acting a bit more like the best friends they were always meant to be as kids, but their feelings for each other are not 'friendly' AT ALL. Because platonic friendship is not where these two are headed." And there are STILL hidden feelings they haven't managed to say to each other yet! The content Horikoshi has been itching to draw for YEARS that he is finally getting to. All that soft bkdk romance we've been waiting for is coming SO SOON!!! and I am HERE for it anon! 🔥

2023 will forever be known as the year of BkDk canon... these are very exciting times. <3

[erumai-maadu]

(Slowly going back to my naruto era again…. Yay ) it’s so frustrating that Team Gai didn’t get to mourn completely. Like only Lee did and I get it that’s his rival and tenten that was her friend who also dealt with Lee and Gai ‘s shenanigans and Gai felt out of character when he told Lee like I get it but he never grieve after losing one of his students….

(muhahahaha come back to the pits with us mel. we have cookies!)

So much about Neji’s death was handled so badly, which explains the commonality of Neji Lives AUs. because EVERYONE knew that was bullshit.

So earlier I was watching an OSP Trope Talk (that series is a goldmine for writers btw everyone should go check it out) on fridging, and there were a few things that Red said which stuck out to me a lot.

Side note here: Neji wasn’t fridged, necessarily, but since fridging is a bad character death, Red was discussing a lot of character death tropes and how to write a good character death.

The main takeaway from the video is that a good character death feels like a conclusion to their arc somehow. Like even if it cuts off their life and their arc/future to some degree, things have wrapped up enough in their arc that the death feels correct or acceptable in some way. That clearly doesn’t happen here.

I think the reality is that Kishimoto designed Team Gai to be side characters, and killed Neji for emotional impact to Naruto and Hinata, as well as to set an example for how brutal the war was going to be. Nobody else died. It wasn’t a satisfying conclusion to his arc in any way, especially given that his whole narrative was about breaking free from the idea of the branch protecting the main family with their lives.

I think the arc of the Hyuuga clan was handled badly just in general but that’s a different (and related) conversation.

People can talk about “well it was Neji’s choice not because he had to” all they want. it just doesn’t feel satisfying. it’s a spit in the face to everything that Neji’s arc had worked up for till then.

Another thing is that a good character death has the characters around them grieve and be deeply affected by it.

Lee didn’t really grieve. He got to be sad, got to go “nooooo nejiiiiiii” and then never really mentioned it again. Naruto got a scene with Neji (that was longer than anything he got with HIS OWN TEAM RAHHH GRRR) and then was at the funeral.

The war was raging around them so one can argue they didn’t have the time to grieve. And honestly that could’ve been a very interesting thing. Forcing all of them to delay their grief because there’s a war going on, we’ll have to deal with this later, having them fight to stay focused on the task at hand, and the consequences of putting off that emotion.

Seeing something, anything that Lee and Tenten and Gai do to keep Neji in their minds. Even just them visiting his grave. Gai lost his father in a war and to lose a student, someone he probably saw as like a child to him, in a war would have been incredibly traumatic and hard for him.

Insane that in the manga there is literally no panel of Lee and Tenten at Neji’s funeral. We see team 10. but not Gai or Lee or Tenten. In the anime they’re there, so small condolences I guess.

Neji, like Shikamaru, is what I like to call a “main side character”. They are the side characters with a lot of screen/panel time and have these big and important narrative arcs that take up time and have an impact on the main character.

Lee, and Tenten especially are minor side characters who don’t get much. And Gai to some extent.

Lee gets his match against Gaara and his time during the chunin exams, and then beyond that I don’t believe we see much of him in a major narrative way. Even in the retrieval arc he’s mostly just there to show how strong Kimimaro is, rib Gaara a little about injuring him, and then sit there and ooh and aah while he summons enough sand to change the landscape.

Gai gets a bit of panel time as elite kickass jounin and Kakashi’s good friend, but still gets relegated to the side for Obito once he pops up. Madara vs Gai changed the culture the same way Lee dropping his weights did, and I think having Naruto bullshit no jutsu him back to life was…. A Choice. I got thoughts about that one too. I like that they did permanently disable him as a consequence, so his choice does have some narrative weight that others don’t. Gai gets a level of respect and dignity as a character but doesn’t really get an arc.

Tenten is the side character of all side characters. Doesn’t have a canonical last name, we know nothing about her, gets a fairly forgettable jutsu that you only really think about if you’re obsessed with her (diagnosis), and gets less screentime than Tsunade’s pet pig or Naruto’s sad boy hours swing. Her main traits come from anime filler arcs that only exist because some mfs on SP’s team LOVE team gai with all their hearts, and i adore them for this. But again, as a very minor character, she doesn’t get an arc or a focus or anything. and that’s fine, such is the nature of side characters, and such is my burden for getting obsessed with them so hard.

the point of all of this is that Tenten and Lee, and Gai to some extent, aren’t narratively important enough to bother getting panel time for grief. I think that’s why they didn’t get any sort of scene mourning Neji. I and the rest of the team gai fandom care more about Team Gai than Kishimoto ever did and that’s a little sad.

In the end it’s just bad writing, plain and simple. If Kishi needed Neji to die, there was a lot of narrative setup that he skipped in the process, and a lot of narrative afterward that would’ve helped justify the choice and make it actually satisfying.

Neji Lives AU for the win, as always.

[stupidrant]

Regarding Skjoldr, I personally would go as far as to say if he got more screen time or was a regular NPC in the actual gameplay he'd be no less compelling and popular than Atreus. He has a memorable design and knows how to appreciate people. Skjoldr expressed his gratitude and admiration of Angrboda helping everyone out - along with her wolves - after Ragnarok even before Atreus mentioned her to anyone when he came to (even though Atreus knew Angrboda almost got herself killed when she protected him and Kratos during the battle and then came back for them to show them the exit). I don't blame Atreus for being spaced out because he went through a lot himself (both emotionally and physically) and once he reunited with Angrboda he thanked her for saving them and gently held her hands (one of their many classical budding romance moments).

But in the next games it is important for Atreus to learn to acknowledge just how much Angrboda has done for him and his family, completely selflessly, with no benefit for herself, risking her life and health and, unlike him, having NO support system at all. Angrboda knew that according to the prophesies (that led to her parents' deaths, no less) she was not a part of Loki's story after Ironwood. Which meant there was a great chance she could have died during Ragnarok. But she went out there, fought by his side and saved Atreus and everyone anyway (again, knowing that doing so, even if she lives, might bring her no personal happiness because Atreus/Loki would still go off on his own and possibly forget about her).

My main concern with Skjoldr is him having a bigger role and becoming Thrud's love interest (I would like to see them together because narratively it makes sense even though I don't actively ship them; at least nowhere near as much as Atreboda) would attract the omnipresent trolls who would pit him and Atreus against each other in order to put down Atreus (like they do with Thrud and Angrboda). Trolls already treat Angrboda as Atreus's extension and hate her by association but, as I noted in my other reply, they still want Atreus to be a prize/reward for Thrud. It's only a matter of time before they shift the "reward" status to Skjoldr.

What concerns me even more is the developers themselves going that route with Skjoldr. Thrud is obviously set up to have a Valkyrie arc, especially after retrieving her father's hammer. Skjoldr, sadly, might end up being forced into the "disposable love interest/fridged partner" trope, possibly with his tragic death sparking rage/revenge arc for Thrud (maybe with Atreus/Angrboda helping Thrud overcome it and not succumb to it). So my hope is that the writers don't resort to this cliched and trite scenario and don't just write off his character.

I definitely can see atreus starting to voice more of his appreciation and support for angrboda as hes already done some of this already in rag. She deserves all the love for sure ❤️ i do think skjoldr will be a bit popular next game if they invest in him more since they might go the route of the story of the danish king marrying the valkyrie and i honestly hope they do 🥺

thats crazy you mentioned the whole thing of the fandom possibly going in that faux “love triangle” direction with AST bcuz i was thinking something else completely different but i will talk abt that another time. for now ill just say im very happy atreboda is a duo and NOT in a trio and i hope that continues on regarding their relationship lol

[watermelonsloth]

Shikamaru’s Sexism Could’ve Worked

I think everyone’s aware that all throughout part 1 Shikamaru was a raging misogynist, but a lot of people ignore it. It makes sense why; it’s an immediate character ruiner and the author couldn’t even be bothered to remember it when shippuden rolled around. On one hand, it’s funny to think that the implication of Shikamaru’s sexism dissipating over the time skip (a time skip that characters only matured over) is that sexism is something only the mentally equivalent of children have and you’re supposed to mature out of it. On the other hand, I see it as yet another missed opportunity.

Addressing the idea of biases is not only an interesting topic when it’s actually discussed, but it’s also in line with the series’s theme about understanding bringing people together. Yes, it’s funny to say bigotry is the result of immaturity, but it isn’t accurate. Bigotry is the result of the belief of a group of people is fundamentally different from you that ranges from simple biases that align with common stereotypes (like women being submissive, Jewish people being greedy, etc.) to believing a group isn’t human.

I don’t think Shikamaru is quite extreme enough to view women as nonhuman, but he doesn’t just have simple biases. Keep in mind that I mean the sort of everyday biases most people have when I say “simple biases”. They’re more expectations for how someone will act based on a group they’re a part of and they’re mostly subconscious. Bigotry is an extremely harsh term for it because it’s just ignorance. A person hasn’t interacted with a group much so they base their conclusions about that group on what they’ve heard from others or seen through media. Shikamaru isn’t just presumptuous, he makes judgments and condescends women based on their sex. I’d say he’s somewhere in the lower-middle range; he isn’t outright discriminatory, but he’s an asshole coworker who says some dumb shit.

So, what would I do with him? I’d give him an arc similar to the ones Sokka from ATLA and Louis from Beastars have. The character’s beliefs are challenged by a character/through a scene(Team Avatar get captured by the kyoshi warriors and Legoshi’s character respectively), then while still in a state of worldview confusion, they interact with people from the group they’re biased against which changes their perspective(Kyoshi warriors/Suki and the Shishigumi). I don’t want anything to think that I believe it’s the responsibility of the marginalized group to educate or walk ignorant people to a place of tolerance or understanding because it’s not, but I do believe that the only way you can view people as equals is by interacting with them as equals.

I see it playing out like this:

The chunin exams stay the same with Shikamaru still beating Kin and Temari. The focus is establishing his character, his strengths and weaknesses in combat, and his dynamic with the other cast members.

Shikamaru gets a scene to show his opinion on Tsunade becoming the first female Hokage to expand on the assumptions he’s working under specifically (women only care about superficial and frivolous things, and they’re weak in combat).

During the Sasuke Retrieval arc, he gets his ass absolutely kicked by Tayuya and he’s saved by Temari, who says she arrived to help mend the relationship between Suna and Konoha. (Tayuya challenges his assumption that women are weak and Temari challenges the assumption that women are superficial.)

Over the training period/in shippuden, Shikamaru would further interact with the female cast (on screen) and have his biases challenged even more by characters like Sakura, Ino, Hinata, TenTen, Temari, and Tsunade furthering their skills and showing competency both in and out of combat.

This could culminate in something dramatic like a fight against a female villain (Konan, genderbent Hidan, or new villain) that he actually takes seriously or he could simply move past his ignorance.

I know that you can argue that all of this happened, but I’m not giving Kishimoto points for doing all of his good character writing/development off screen.

[sarcastic-sketches]

Kitsune!Anakin Asks

@shining-nebula2000 sent a handful of asks about the Kitsune Anakin AU that I got at work and just never got around to answering so now that my brain is firing again I can go through them:

Has Kitsune Anakin ever done that fox thing where they dive headfirst into snow to try and catch mice to eat

He has and it's on my list of things to draw! He does it occasionally to hunt but the main time he did it was to retrieve some of his men who got burried in an avalanche.

Does kitsune Anakin have the power to suck the life energy out of people by kissing them (I think that’s a power that kitsune and they have but fill free to fact check me)

I don't think I've come across the concept of Kitsune being able to drain life force (though my big encyclopedia for methological creatures is in storage rn orz) but that sure would complicate Anakin's life even further. They can imbue people with elongated lifespans though iirc and that's definitely something this AU works with. Anakin, hundreds of years old, along with his descendants and his entourage of masked guardians. Oddly enough, each mask matches the helmet markings of clones who used to follow him during the Clone Wars...

I have another ask for the kitsune Anakin AU How was the whole Jedi bombing thing go you know when the temperature gets five minutes so get sprayed by Baruss (I don’t think that’s how you spell her name) how would that change or would it stay the same?

You know, this is still one of the arcs I'm not sure how I want to proceed with. It would be easy to argue that Anakin's increased sense of smell would make this whole plot fall apart really easily - also this happens after Umbara so Anakin would remember the scent of a Jedi turning bad and recognise it on Bariss. Yet, again, this arc is important for character development reasons and having Anakin just fix it is a cop out. Maybe Anakin tries to persuade Ahsoka to hand herself in, like he does in canon, pointing out that she's only making herself look worse and when that fails? He decides to accompany her.

Ahsoka: Master, this is treason! Anakin: Nope. I'm supervising you. We both know you didn't do it, so I'm going to follow you as a witness to find evidence to prove you didn't. If I can do that at the same time as keeping on eye on you then all the better Ahsoka: Won't they just think you're in on it too? Anakin: It's my job to make sure my padawan stays out of trouble. As your Master, that's what I'm doing.

Even with support I imagine Ahsoka would still be severely shaken, since the Order has shown that it cannot provide the safety it once did for it's members if the Senate wills it otherwise. But Anakin would be far less reserved about straight up telling Ahsoka to chill out at Padme's for bit before she goes off on her journey of self discovery.

[rotworld]

I just finished Avici and I had to come over here to express how amazing it was. I'm usually not into romance fics but Sukuna/Reader stories usually get at least a second look from me because his canon character is just very hard to write a 'normal' romance for so any story seriously tackling that is worth trying imo, and I'm so glad I did!

The characterisation of Gojo and Sukuna are wonderful, you really delved deep into the darker side of these monstrously powerful sorcerers in the frankly grim world of jujutsu. I've seen a lot of fics make these two softer (especially Gojo) so your portrayal is like a splash of cold water on a hot day lol. I don't even particularly like Gojo honestly but stories that show his darker side kind of make me see his appeal, a little.

I gotta say normally I'm ambivalent towards smut and don't actively search for it, but it's such a core part of Avici that I feel it wouldn't really work as well without it. The flashbacks and slow reveal of what exactly the reader is and the twisted bond they have with Sukuna and later Gojo really add a sense of tension and like, dread? To the whole thing, which was lovely. I also read your director's cut bc I was so enthralled, I'm blown away by how much went into it!

If you're willing to weigh in, what do you personally imagine happens to the reader during the canon timeline?

answer is long and contains jjk manga spoilers. 

aaaaaaaaaa that makes me so happy!!! i started out with very little interest in gojo but sort of wrote myself into liking him lol working on avici made me realize how easy it is to draw comparisons between him and sukuna. the things i've come to like about him are mostly things that lend themselves well to angsty scenarios, characters who are messy like that are like catnip to me. as for how things would go for the reader, it’s mostly just more misery.

by the end of the shibuya arc, the reader is in the custody of kenjaku and uraume. as a result of the failed noh exorcism, they have a strong connection to gojo so they would’ve felt it when he was sealed. it would resemble what sukuna’s dormancy feels like, and i think it would leave them with some complicated feelings. maybe that would be enough for them to leave and start wandering in search of some other way to pass the time, or maybe they’d stay there waiting. either way, uraume finds and retrieves them. this would probably involve a fight. the reader by the end of avici isn’t the docile creature uraume remembers. sukuna probably had the foresight to warn them, since this is an outcome he anticipated and even wanted, but that wouldn’t make the reader any easier to deal with. they are, by design, the kind of curse that only someone like sukuna or gojo can safely handle. maybe kenjaku can help with the apprehension lol

for the most part, i don’t think the reader would be very active. they would stick with uraume and kenjaku because they know that’s where they need to be. they would be there to spectate the culling game, they would be there when sukuna reappears in a new host, and they would be there when gojo dies. that might be the thing that finally sets them off, since they were counting on gojo to win that fight. if we’re going into fully indulgent territory lol then the reader would be involved in the final battle against sukuna, however that turns out. that’s the natural conclusion of their arc and it would be poetic for him to die at not only the hands of the thing he created, but the collective remnants of the people he used and tortured in the past. and it would be fitting for the reader to follow him, as promised, into whatever kind of oblivion comes next for curses. 

i guess that’s a little bleak lol but that’s more or less how it was always going to be. there’s no end to this for the reader, they’re stuck with him for eternity because he made them that way. but maybe there’s some closure there at least.

[chaosnojutsu]

Ship ask game: Shikatema!

Ship it!

1. What made you ship it?

Tbh they were the first couple I was SURE of. A few key pieces of evidence come into play:

Re: “dad, what made you fall in love with someone like mom?” Saw that scene and my biggest takeaway was “cool, I know nothing about Shikamaru’s dad except he gets pegged.” That, combined with the rampant misogyny displayed by young Shikamaru, led me to believe that a powerhouse of a woman was gonna wind up with Shikamaru.

There’s a scene (which I believe is anime only) in which Ino bodyshames Choji and, to comfort his friend, Shikamaru’s brilliant response was something along the lines of “skinny girls like Ino aren’t even that cute, I like a girl with a little meat on her bones.” Heard that and my brain was like “okay, looking for a powerhouse woman who isn’t drawn with a 00 waist. shouldn’t be hard to find.”

Chunin exams. As SOON as they threw Temari in the ring with Shikamaru, I fell in love with them. Like, conceptually. I just knew that wasn’t going to be their only encounter. And then when Temari showed up during the Sasuke Retrieval Arc?? Game over, they were IT for me.

2. What are your favorite things about the ship?

I’m a (simp)le gal— the brainy characters have always drawn me to them. I love how evenly matched they are, and in areas where they aren’t matched, they complement each other so well.

And the (eventual) mutual respect… SHEESH. Temari pushes Shikamaru to be the best version of himself, and that leads to Shikamaru being one of the only characters worthy of commanding a soldier as powerful as her.

They make me laugh. Never once do either of them lose their composure until the other is around, which is downright adorable, but also sets up some iconic comedic moments (re: honeymoon shopping).

And the symbolism!! Okay Mr. “I just wanna be a cloud, floating wherever the breeze takes me.” I see you marrying the breeze herself! You think you’re sooo slick lmao.

3. Unpopular opinion?

Yeah I think they need more sweet & soft moments instead of being the “naggy/violent wife” trope every time they get an ounce of screen time together these days. And I especially don’t like the (fan) characterizations of Temari as an abuser.

Bonus round: They’d make excellent villains. I wouldn’t hate it at all if the canon storyline ever took that route (it won’t). Deeply in love, watching the world burn from the flames they sparked, hand in unlovable hand.

[night-heron-writes]

Fic Masterpost

Atla/Zutara fics:

The Complicated Way to Escape an Arranged Marriage [WIP] [ongoing] [Zutara]

Rating: Teen  

Warnings: none

Summary:

Katara is kidnapped from her wedding to Hahn after an ancient ritual designed to summon a dragon unexpectedly worked. Brought to a mysterious island, her only hope of escape is the other prisoner, Zuko, but there might be more to his story than he's telling her...

Quiet [oneshot] [completed] [Zutara]

Rating: Mature (for violence)

Warnings: none

Summary:

The eerie silence of the Last Agni Kai battle unnerves both Zuko and Katara, and they start to realize how important they are to each other.

But Azula doesn’t aim for Zuko. Before Katara can yell, Azula aims over Zuko’s shoulder.

Right at her.

Katara wants to scream, to cry, to do something, but she cannot move. She is frozen, watching the lightning arc towards her.

The Witches of Lake Laogai [oneshot] [completed] [Zutara]

Rating: Mature (for violence)

Warnings: Graphic Depictions of Violence, Major Character Death, Mentions of Rape/Non-con

Summary:

The Blue Spirit has his orders. He's supposed to retrieve a prisoner from the depths of Lake Laogai Maximum Security Prison. It should be simple: in and out in under an hour. But of course it's not that simple. It never is. He might know who he's here to collect, but nobody ever told him about the rest of the prisoners...

Series: Part 2 of ZK MC Week 2022

It Only Took A Kiss [oneshot] [completed] [Zutara]

Rating: Gen

Warnings: None

Summary:

Zuko knew that having his fortune told was a bad idea. He's been turned into a Fire Salamander and missed several very important diplomatic events. He just needs to figure out a way to get back to normal. Unfortunately for him, the only idea he can come up with involves the very ambassador he was supposed to meet with earlier...

Series: Part 1 of ZK MC Week 2022

A Humble Prayer [oneshot] [completed] [no pairing]

Rating: Gen

Warnings: None

Summary:

the day before his Agni Kai, Zuko pays a visit to the palace temple. The air was thick with insence and desperate prayers. Tomorrow would be his Agni Kai against the old general, and he had some things he wanted to say to the spirits first, on the off chance that he didn’t win. He walked slowly to the shrine in the front, keeping his focus straight ahead and trying to ignore the whispers he was sure surrounded him. By now everyone would know how he had shamed himself in the war room. He knew how it looked, the weak crown prince come crawling to the temple to beg Agni for a victory he wasn’t strong enough to earn on his own.

Fire Lilies and Friendly Interventions [oneshot] [completed] [Zutara]

Rating: Gen

Warnings: None

Summary:

Toph, Suki, and Ty Lee decide it's time to have a little chat with Katara about her feelings for one Fire Lord...

just like the ocean (under the moon) [WIP] [on hold] [Zutara]

Rating: Teen

Warnings: None

Summary:

Zuko Rokura and Katara Nataok did not get along. The two seniors at Ba Sing Se University’s world-renowned dance program had hated each other’s guts for years. Zuko couldn’t stand Katara because when it came to ballet, she was everything he was not. She was graceful, with fluid motions that belied years of practice. Ballet seemed as easy to her as breathing, but the thing that ticked him off most about her was not her formidable technical skill. Her artistry infuriated him, the way she knew exactly how to tilt her head or place her hands to convey the proper characterization for every piece. Of course, the death stares she sent his way didn’t help. Nor did the time he bowled her over during a particularly difficult across-the-floor combination. Who knew grand jetes could be so dangerous? The Ballet!Katara and Tap!Zuko AU that literally nobody asked for.

Series: Part 2 of Lea’s AUs

Never Planned On (someone like you) [WIP] [on hold] [Zutara]

Rating: Teen

Warnings: None

Summary:

In the slums of Caldera City, Katara is a newsie struggling to survive. Zuko is an up and coming reporter just getting started with his career. When the owner of the paper Katara sells for decides to exploit the Newsies for profit, will they take a stand? Or will they let Ozai stuff this crock of garbage down their throats? Formerly titled Absolute Power

Series: Part 1 of Lea’s AUs

Spy x Family fics:

So We Meet Again My Heartache [WIP] [ongoing] [TwiYor]

Rating: Teen

Warnings: None

Summary:

In an instant, Yor's life came crashing down around her. Her husband, dead. The life they had built together, shattered. For the second time in her life, she is left to pick up the pieces after a devastating loss and raise a young child alone.

   ~OR~

A study on grief and mourning, especially when things get complicated. What happens if you're mourning someone who isn't actually dead?

Series: Part 2 of Smile (though your heart is breaking)

Running through these promises to you (that i made & could not keep) [oneshot] [completed] [TwiYor]

Rating: Teen

Warnings: None

Summary:

With Operation Strix over, Loid Forger faked his death. He is once again Twilight only. Spies don't get to say goodbye, and everyone he came to love believes he is dead. (Except Frankie, and he's pissed.) But, nobody ever told him that his own funeral was a bad time to start having second thoughts. 

Series: Part 1 of Smile (though your heart is breaking)

Through Anya’s Eyes [oneshot] [completed] [TwiYor]

Rating: Gen

Warnings: None

Summary:

There are many benefits to being a telepath, but it also has its downsides. Anya is going crazy listening to her parents freak out about each other in their thoughts, so she decides to give them a push in the right direction.

Series:  Part 7 of TwiYor Week 2022

Peanut Butter and Jellyfish Sandwiches [oneshot] [completed] [TwiYor]

Rating:Gen

Warnings: None

Summary:

The Forger Family takes a trip to the aquarium OR Anya doesn't know much about fish at all, which leads to a very entertaining afternoon featuring Loid and Yor flirting via fish facts and getting flustered over nothing.

Series: Part 6 of TwiYor Week 2022

When You Put Your Arms Around Me (I Get A Fever That’s So Hard To Bear) [oneshot] [completed] [TwiYor]

Rating: Gen

Warnings: None

Summary:

Loid kisses Yor on the cheek on his way out the door. She's almost entirely certain that it was an accident. What happens next is most assuredly not. OR Yor decides to turn the tables on her husband.

Series: Part 5 of TwiYor Week 2022

To Kill A Spy...Or Not [oneshot] [completed] [TwiYor]

Rating: Teen

Warnings: None

Summary:

Twilight runs into the Thorn Princess on a mission. Each of them feels a strange sort of familiarity. But those feelings are unfounded, right? It's not like the closest people in their lives have secrets. Surely not...

Series: Part 4 of TwiYor Week 2022

Our Scars Do Not Define Us, My Dear [oneshot] [completed] [TwiYor]

Rating: Gen

Warnings: None

Summary:

Yor wonders about many things she suspects she'll never know the answers to. Loid bears burdens she doesn't understand, but that doesn't mean she won't be there for him anyway. Or, Everyone in the Forger family is traumatized. Yor knows this.

Series: Part 3 of TwiYor Week 2022

Floral Misunderstandings [oneshot] [completed] [TwiYor]

Rating: Gen

Warnings: None

Summary:

Yor brings home a bouquet of flowers for Anya's birthday, just like Loid asked her to. Only, there seems to have been a miscommunication.

Series: Part 2 of TwiYor Week 2022

You’d Be So Nice To Come Home To [oneshot] [completed] [TwiYor]

Rating: Gen

Warnings: None

Summary:

With Anya spending the night at Becky's, Yor and Loid enjoy a quiet night in.

Series: Part 1 of TwiYor Week 2022 

I’ll Be Seeing You [oneshot] [completed] [TwiYor]

Rating: Teen

Warnings: None

Summary:

And Yor Briar, well, Loid thought she was pretty much perfect. She was full of contradictions, poised and confident one moment and shy and somewhat awkward the next. Her piercing red gaze always seemed to bore right through him, and if he was a little less in control of himself he might dare to say he had a bit of a crush on her. Unfortunately, that rendered him almost completely useless when it came to talking to her, much less flirting with her.

Yor currently had 7 Stella Stars and 7 Tonitrus Bolts, which was a constant source of stress for Loid. The next award or demerit would decide her fate at Eden: Imperial Scholar or expulsion. The two of them were working very hard to ensure the former and prohibit the latter, hence the daily study sessions in the library. Midterms were coming up, and both Stellas and Tonitruses were on the line.

Serafina Series

Stay Bold, Ember [oneshot] [completed] [no pairing]

Rating: Gen

Warnings: None

Summary:

In the calm after the battle, Serafina takes a moment to mourn the loss of her little apprentice, Ember. 

Buddy Daddies

Temporary [oneshot] [completed] [qpr KazuRei]

Rating: Teen

Warnings: None

Summary:

This partnership was supposed to be temporary, just like any other. But years of "temporary" slowly melts into forever and Rei can't bring himself to mind it. Not even when a child shows up in the middle of a job, and not even when he knows Kazuki well enough to be certain this little girl will end up more involved than she should be. Maybe things don't have to be so temporary after all...

[knightprincess]

Forgive Me (Echo x Medic Reader) Part 21

Words: 1.7k Warning: None - Set during TBB Season 2 Finale Pronouns Used: She/Her (Use of Y/N)

"You said you needed help with something," worded Tech upon reaching Echo, finally regaining his stable balance after Omega's flying lesson over the sunny skies of Pabu. He readjusted his goggles slightly upon the Arc Trooper holding out a data stick filled with what remained of the imperial encrypted data from the prison ship he, Gregor, and a few others had retrieved Howzer from. 

"Where's (Y/N)?" questioned Omega, briefly looking around Echo to the ship he'd been piloting. "You said you'd bring her with you," she added, hope filling her golden eyes at finally meeting the famed medic. The one she had heard stories about from both Echo and her other brothers. Tech had a few videos of her, although he'd only shared the humorous ones. Hunter's mood seemed to lift, too, when someone mentioned the medic, whereas Wrecker could never stop the grin from appearing. 

"She on her own mission," sadly spoke Echo, the worry and dread he'd felt since they'd separated shimmering in his pale eyes, the fear he'd tried so hard to bury bubbling to the surface again. Although deep down, he questioned where his Snap was safest, on the run with Wolffe or within the imperial ranks as one of their specialized personnel, or maybe she would have been safer with the Batch there on Pabu. Out of the way and hidden. The latter two options posed a significant danger. The Empire had already shown its cruelty and willingness to dispose of those who failed or refused to do what was asked of them. However, being on the run wasn't much better, being constantly hunted and trying to survive in the ever-changing galaxy, the bounty hunters, and the lack of trust in everyone around. 

"You'll meet her someday," commented Tech, stepping back toward the Marauder to decrypt the information on the data stick. He could sense the urgency and felt the information would somehow link to Snap and her mission. Omega soon ran over to Lyana, a playful but happy smile on her lips, Wrecker nearby, ready to play the game of tag he'd promised them days prior. 

"How dangerous is Snap's mission?" asked Hunter upon the Arc Trooper joining him near the arched pillars. They watch the scene of Wrecker playing with the kids unfold before them. "I don't need enhanced senses to see you're afraid to lose her, Echo," added the sergeant, a shadow of a smirk appearing across his lips. 

"As part of Cody's plan, she joined the Imperial ranks and the Dark Trooper project," began Echo, trying his best to push down the fear bubbling again. Even more so as he remembered Rex's last words before he left for Pabu. "She had a tracking device disguised as a necklace to find the Advanced Science Division's secret facility. It stopped transmitting weeks ago; the last known location was Wabani. Intel from Senator Chuchi suggests she was on Daro for a short time before being moved elsewhere," he explained, feeling the familiar feeling of impending doom again. No matter how hard they fought to get information and fight against the Empire, The Imperials and the Empreror always seemed to be several steps ahead. 

"She'll be alright, Echo," started Hunter, placing a comforting hand on the Arc Trooper's shoulder. "She's a fighter. Stronger than most realize," added the Sargent, fondly recalling the past. The few times Snap had been on loan with them during the war. Despite her fragile appearance, she was anything but; easily getting each of them to submit to her, she'd read each as if they were an open book, even Crosshair. Like Omega, (Y/N) had picked up skills and learned from each—Tech more than most, who had taught her to fly confidently and a few other things. 

"Found something," came Tech's voice over the coms, unusually void of emotions as if trying to hide how he felt about something. Hunter and Echo glanced at each other before their attention turned to Wrecker and the girls. Turning just in time to witness the human bulldozer trip over a tree root and fall while playfully chasing Omega and Lyana. The girl's laughter could be heard before Tech's message reached them. After which, it was as if the fun and laughter had been erased, as if they had never been in the first place. Replaced by cold seriousness as if the axe of execution hung in every shadow. 

The short walk to the Marauder was filled with silence, neither pairing speaking a word even when they joined a small group and met Tech aboard the ship. On the screen before Tech was a picture of an unknown man and the limited information known about him. On another screen were the old communication logs from the war; it was clear there was a reason for their old communications to be up. 

"Dr Royace Hemlock, head of the Advanced Science Division. It appears the clones Echo and co-rescued were being sent to him. All data regarding location had been erased; for all intents and purposes, he is a ghost," Tech started, a deep sigh escaping him. "I found a list of clones sent to him, and Crosshair is among them," he added, hearing the surprise lacing Wrecker's voice upon the question escaping his lips. Crosshair turned on the empire? "I checked our old coms as well. And found a message from him. Plan 88: The Seeker" 

"I have a bad feeling about this," worded Echo, feeling the heaviness set over his chest. Everything seemed to point to the Advanced Science Division, and Snap was now in the middle of the danger with the mystery doctor. "I'll contact Rex to see if more information can help us," he commented before walking toward the cockpit. He sensed the sudden wave of tension, the confusion regarding Crosshair. He could sense the oncoming disagreement regarding joining the fight, even temporarily. 

"Any word from Snap?" asked Echo once Rex had answered the call. Deep down, Echo already knew the answer but couldn't help hoping. "Or Wolffe?" he questioned, knowing Wolffe had also joined the ranks of the Empire intending to protect (Y/N), although it hadn't worked out that way. Instead, they'd been separated. Wolffe had been incorporated into the security bureau his knowledge and skills deemed worthy of a high position, and he'd been able to pass along valuable information. 

"Wolffe found intel of a meeting on Eriadu," started Rex, a sense of guilt about him as he was once again to deliver the news there had been no word from Snap, despite Gregor monitoring the coms and tracking device with the hope of finding something. "Tarkin and a select number of high-ranking imperials. Hemlock is one of them." 

"Send me the information," replied Echo without hesitation. Quickly devising a plan, if they could tag Hemlock's ship, they could track him back to the highly secret facility he was in charge of. With luck, they'd find Crosshair and (Y/N) there too. "It appears Crosshair turned on the empire, so he might be able to give us some more information if we can get him out," spoke the Arc Trooper once again, trying to bury the feelings bubbling up: fear, concern, dread, grief, and hopelessness. "Let me know if you hear from Snap," asked Echo before ending the call and rejoining the others, already knowing there would be no backup. Their numbers were already limited and stretched to the brink. 

"He's our brother, and we don't leave our own behind," commented Tech as Echo returned to the gathering. At least confirming the Arc Troopers' suspicion regarding a disagreement had been correct. Wrecker was clearly unsure how to feel or express his feelings. Crosshair had chosen the empire but now seemingly turned on them. Meanwhile, Hunter was suspicious, as if suspecting a trap. On the other hand, Omega and Tech were ready to launch a rescue mission to retrieve their brother from the jaws of the empire and uncertainty. 

"Rex's intel suggests Hemlock will be attending a meeting on Eriadu, Tarkin's fort," spoke Echo, almost spitting the last two words as if they were a vile poison. "If we go, we'll be going alone, no backup," he added, knowing there'd be no one to get them out if they ran into trouble. Like with Kamino the year prior and Skako Minor before that. Each time, they'd come close to losing everything, but by the luck of the maker, a Jedi, and AZ, they'd managed to get out on their own. 

"Any word from Snap?" asked Hunter, knowing he was outnumbered. The risk was great, but each was willing to take it to rescue Crosshair and help the uprising gain more valuable information. The Sargent knew if there was a chance to get ahold of (Y/N) as well, they might as well take it, even more so knowing the chance may not arise again for some time, if at all. 

"None. Even Rex is starting to get worried now," admitted Echo, suspecting the Captain regretted his decision to send Snap into the thick of things. She was a friend, and each had put her in harm's way, Snap herself included. "All we know is the facility is highly secure, nobody knows of its location, and imperials erase everything to do with it when under attack or caught," explained the Arc Trooper, pushing away the intruding thoughts of losing someone he cared for, a member of his family both those of Clone Force 99 and outside of it. 

"What are we waiting for? Let's go get Crosshair and (Y/N)," called Omega, walking off toward the cockpit, almost as if she was silently saying she would fly them to Eriadu if needed. With a nod of confirmation from Hunter, Tech followed to input the coordinates. Meanwhile, Echo tried to busy himself by preparing the kits and ensuring all had what was needed for the cruel terrain waiting for them. Hunter, on the other hand, re-read over the data they had on Hemlock and the illusive advanced science division, trying his hardest to push away and bury all the feelings something was about to go horribly wrong. He wanted Crosshair back, too, for his small family to be whole once more, but he found himself asking what the cost would be. Just as he questioned what the price of Echo and Rex's war would end up being? 

Series Masterlist

[nanayuz]

amethio - pendant / ball arc pt.1

very long post!!

we’ve already gotten introduced to so many characters in the first 6 episodes of pokémon horizons, and amethio is very much an interesting one. he’s the villain from the first episode and it’s been pretty clear. he has a lot of feelings and already has a rivalry with friede that he enjoys. well, not so much anymore.

amethio’s very mature and cold, he tries not to show even a sliver of emotion to people he doesn’t know if he can trust or not. barely even to the people he does trust, slight anger or a worried frown. even though zir and conia are under him, they still felt just a bit of that worry at the end of hz006, he has quite a few people who care about him.

we get introduced to him in hz001, when he goes to liko’s school with a letter in his hand. he’s been assigned on a mission to retrieve the pendant for master gibeon, his boss, but we don’t hear a word about that in the first three episodes. we’re supposed to guess this man is up to no good from the start, which liko does too. even if he asks to see her pendant, to ‘give it back to her grandmother’ she hides it. he follows her, she tries to run, but we realize just how powerful amethio and the explorers are.

just the three of them alone─ amethio, zir, and conia─ managed to completely cover school grounds during the night. yeah, there’s probably only about a quarter of the school’s population actually there, but they look everywhere for liko. and they do manage to find her. while zir and conia are a bit more ‘crazy’, out-of-their-minds battling liko, amethio stays calm even though he’s clearly angry. and he gets even more angry when he ends up developing a rivalry.

friede swoops down on his charizard as the explorers are still trying to steal the pendant. and now this weird charizard guy has business with her too? yeah, amethio’s pissed. he decides to battle friede using his ceruledge, even if liko’s running away, he has other things to worry about now. he battles, tries to land a psycho cut and misses, but it’s headed right towards liko. and that’s where his introduction ends.

in the first episode, amethio seems to be at his smartest, but his dumbest at the same time. his ‘disguise’ with the letter isn’t too great, but he knows how to get to liko even if he doesn’t know exactly where he is. seeing friede seemed to anger him, and this continues for the next five episodes until hz007, the first episode he doesn’t make a pysical appearance. amethio is a leader, even as a ‘teenager’, he has two people way older than him that he can still control. even if he’s seemingly evil, he doesn’t want to hurt people, he didn’t want the psycho cut from ceruledge to hit friede and soon hit liko. he wants to fight battles by having battles, not by using violence. but this episode leads right into the next.

in hz002, there appears to be a sphere of weird green hexagons all around liko. something saves her, some unknown pokémon saves her. suddenly, the green hexagons disappears, and as liko falls, friede hops back onto his charizard to stop her from hitting the floor. he tells amethio they can just.. continue the battle later. but amethio still follows. he gets on his corviknight as conia and zir get on their skarmory, and they see the brave asagi for the first time. amethio gets what he wants, he keeps following. even boarding the airship with his goons behind him.

liko expresses a ton of fear for the amethio gang, talking to mollie about how they just.. showed up at her school out of nowhere and started asking for the pendant. mollie sees them through the telescope and recognizes them as the explorers, which only makes liko more confused. amethio seems to be quite important in this organization, but we, the viewers, already established that. the rising volt tacklers head towards the storm, and even though tough, the explorers follow closely behind until they end up on the airship.

and then the best conversation in the series so far takes place. oh my god.

amethio instantly sees liko on the airship and walks towards her, zir and conia on either side of him. liko isn’t facing them, but she knows someone’s there. “why did you run?” “i don’t know.” “so, do you think you can trust them?” “i don’t know.” “that pendant... what was that shine?” “i don’t know.” “it seems you don’t know a lot of things.” “but... i do know one thing.” “oh?” “i can’t trust any of you.”

it establishes both of their characters even more, liko is confused and amethio is ambitious. they both have wants and different ways to get them, and the scene is powerful for both characters. amethio is clearly mature, though considerably younger than zir and conia and even some of the rvt, but liko can see through him. he doesn’t hurt her at all, or walk closer to her, or force her to turn around, but liko still knows there’s something up with him. it shows his immaturity under the cloak of maturity he seems to wear. he already has layers and layers to his character one-and-a-half episodes in. 

sprigatito jumps out at amethio, but conia catches it with her hand before it can land on his face. he’s clearly on a higher rank. still, amethio isn’t the one using violence. he says he was originally only after the pendant, but now knows liko needs to be there for the power to work. when amethio tells liko to come with them, she ends up standing up to go. he has his ways and he used them.

and friede flies in again, oh, friede. continuing to establish the rivalry with amethio. i know people want liko to be amethio’s rival, but friede being his rival works so perfect. completely different personalities and wants, but a lot of similarities. an urge to battle to protect the people they love─ or well, want─ with the ‘no violence’ policy, a lot of courage, even more. friede knows how to get to amethio and has been the only person outside of the explorers to get him to almost lose it. he knows how to toy around the way amethio does.

they finally introduce themselves to each other, sealing that rivalry that we see for the next few episodes. they both talk almost adult-like in the conversation that happens, amethio knows how to assert his dominance on some occasions and mask his feelings in others. they decide to continue the battle they had before to see what’ll happen next, but amethio feels even more played with when friede decides to use captain pikachu instead of charizard. they get under each other’s skin by talking calmly, one of my favorite things in some rivals.

though amethio battles hard, friede battles harder, until liko decides to step in. she wants to take control of the battles, and ends up using leafage with sprigatito. at amethio. i’ve seen someone call it ‘bloom doom leafage’─ i think that’s an appropriate term for what happens. the wind ends up blowing the move away, sprigatito going along with it. well, right until amethio takes it when it’s about to fall off the edge. and that’s where this episode ends. amethio is shown as a villain right away, no twists or anything. i think this was a good idea, a good contrast to how team rocket ended; complete twist villains with a lot of story but not a lot of evil. though tr were also introduced as villains, it quickly became clear they weren’t all that evil. amethio seems ‘not all that evil’ in a completely different way.

going onto hz003, amethio just took sprigatito hostage. no cheating tactics or anything, he just.. ended up with it. we learn right away that friede’s already went to go find the explorers, they know he’s gonna come back with more information. friede’s just as smart as amethio is, and they know he may be one of the only people outside the explorers to see under his facade so well in their first meeting. liko has too, but she isn’t nearly as mature and strong as friede is shown to be.

the first time we see amethio in this episode is with conia, glaring at her playing with sprigatito. he doesn’t like playing around, especially when there’s serious business to do. he handles things professionally, and doesn’t see a real use for sprigatito. amethio gets a call, we find out this is from zir, who’s found the airship and placed a tracking device on it.

conia went on a shopping spree of things for sprigatito, rockruff recognizes the scent on her, liko and friede follow after she runs away. amethio tells her to lure them to the destination they’ve been at, and she does exactly that. it’s been nice seeing amethio not directly interact with the rvt, but it’s time to change that.

liko instantly pulls out her pendant and asks amethio if giving it to him will make him give back sprigatito, and there’s already tension in the room. friede tries to calm them both down, asking amethio for yet another battle. 3rd episode, 3rd battle, yeah, they gotta be rivals. out of every character in this show, other than the main protagonists, these two are the most ‘equals’. friede even called amethio his ‘other half’ in a magazine, i’m pretty sure. friede asks if amethio’s just scared he’ll lose this battle, and this is the first time we see him get angry.

part 2.

[rottmnt-hc]

Reversed Unnamed AU

(no it's still not named)

Cherry (or subject four) was raised by Draxum.

He successfully aged her to be older but something happened with the spell

(Hamato Luck/Protection)

The oldest she can look is fifteen, but can pass as older as per canon.

Thanks to the spell going weird, her size can vary between milestones.

Draxum implanted a cloaking brooch in her chest in the shape of a diamond.

Her Ninpo only activated when Draxum went to far in his training.

Constantly being told that warriors didn't need opinions but needed to follow orders.

He has given her toys just to break them when he isn't pleased with her performance.

He is aware and feels guilty about how he treats her but he feels its for the greater good.

Draxum planned on giving her a room full of stuffed creatures since she loved those toys the best.

Overall good fighter

When she meets the boys+April, she is immediately in awe of them.

After retrieving Draxum, Cherry (Subject Four) decided as the youngest she has to protect her dum dum older brothers. Especially the blue one since he's most likely to be leader.

Draxum is not amused with this decision but doesn't stop her, especially since the boys are curious about her as well.

The fish and ladders episode is where they find out about Lou Jitsu and Cherry being related biologically.

Despite her jumping off a roof for Leo, Donnie is the one she mind melds with the most.

First time was to help them out of a situation, after that it's bad accidents that don't get addressed until before the first Shredder fight

Cherry ends up with the Hamato clan while Draxum ends up with The Foot.

She had to unlearn a lot of things

Her siblings helped her and teach her how to be a kid

In turn, she trains them to fight

Splinter is not pleased with this but he lets it happen

Cherry actually gets Splinter to train, through play.

The youngest is actually good at magic and tries to teach her brothers but she is more of a hands on teacher.

She gets them to season two power by the time Shredder first appears.

Casey is still gonna be part of the Hamato clan

Still sisters your honor

Casey and Cherry Both don't know what to do with a normal life now.

During Draxum's redemption arc, Cherry hesitantly approaches him

Draxum gives her a stuffed frog which she takes wearily.

It'll take years for her to build back trust with Draxum but Mikey will help.

Leo still holds a grudge, and Cherry keeps Sir Frogsworth in his room cause he'd definitely protect him with his life.

Cherry only has the stuffed frog whenever Draxum isn't around, unless she forgets or extremely tired.

Casey and Cherry have matching fox pajamas, tails and ears involved. (Think Minecraft foxes orange and artic)

Big Mama is an enigma to Cherry, but she likes the food.

After Big Mama has a "redemption arc?", Cherry will refer to her as Mama

[primamchorus]

SKG Shorts :: Unstained

Written during a transition for one of our FC RPs to help me set the stage for one of the arcs we were ending to push forward with a new one.

--

After having gathered the information she needed, Jaydin has a chat with one of her Knights' allies. Does she live in denial? Does she know who she is? Perhaps not, but at least she is willing to ask herself those questions. Even if the answer she may come to teases that feeling of fear.

Word Count: 1,981

------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Stress and the gravity of what had transpired there at the Frozen Star tavern hung around Jaydin’s neck like a stone that weighed a tonze, threatening to asphyxiate her. Her hands shook as she washed and scrubbed them of the blood that stained them. An elezen man with a stern expression on his face watched, his arms folded over his chest as he leaned against the entryway to the bar’s kitchen.

“One might be inclined to believe ye enjoy what ye’ve been doing, wot with the frequencies o’ the lad’s screams o’ pain,” the elezen said, reaching down into his apron and pulling out a steel cigar case and retrieving one of the cigars inside. The sound of a match being struck sounded, and then the scent of an earthy citrus smoke wafted within the limited space.

“I implore you not to get the wrong idea, Gregoire,” Jaydin replied, her voice holding some semblance of indignance. “I do what I feel I must if it means protecting my Knights and people. I derive no pleasure in causing pain and suffering unto others.”

“Could ‘ave fooled me,” Gregoire said, offering a small shrug as he took a drag from his cigar. He exhaled slowly, the scent of the smoke becoming more pungent in the air, and continued: “It gets hard ‘aving to cover for ye when the lad is disturbin’ me patrons. Can’t bring the lad to a proper chirurgeon in time, so we ‘ave one of our own that employs more traditional methods… shite like that gets ‘ard to maintain.”

“If it pleases you, I suppose we can use the Dzemael Darkhold for our future business?” Jaydin asked, wiping her hands with a washcloth. Blood stained even the cloth -- the bits Jaydin could not entirely remove from her hands without scrubbing her hands deeper. “I’m sure the voidsent that plague its labyrinthian corridors will be happier to deal with any trouble that we may come across. Or perhaps the threat of gold lung from Aurum Vale?”

“What’s it matter?”

“It doesn’t. Both places would see the quarry dead for their actions levied against mine and my own. I would rather draw out answers as best as I can.” Jaydin put the cloth down at the side of the washbasin that she had been using. “I didn’t want to have to do what I did to get any answers I wanted.”

“Ye’d use the Dzemael property fer yer own needs?” Gregoire ignored parts of the conversation and seemed almost amused by the idea as a small chuckle blew past his lips. “Yer either a whit on the reckless an' daft side, or ye really ‘ave friends in high places that don’t mind turnin’ a blind eye to yers and yer comrades’ shenanigans.”

Jaydin could really only give a shrug at the comment. There were plenty of things she was willing to do so long as it meant she had a place to do it away from prying eyes, or it could shake any noses off hers or other Knights’ tails. Myrddin’s wealth and status could really only pull so many strings without it coming off as odd or suspicious after some time. After all, Ul’dah’s wealthy had a way of not exactly being the most discreet of people at the end of everything.

Turning away from Gregoire and placing both of her hands at either side of the basin, the rogue stayed silent. Her mind raced a malm a minute with a lot of her considerations. She hated discussions similar to this. Each time felt like a trick, or just a test of moral integrity that she started to doubt herself on as time went on.

“Stained red, stained red…” Jaydin spoke, her voice quiet. “If it’s me or them, let them be dead.”

“What’s that?” Gregoire asked, squinting at the Hyuran woman a moment. He let out another exhale of smoke, tapping the ash off to the side of him.

“A creed, I guess you could call it. A selfish one, mind…” Jaydin explained as she looked off to the side. Her eyes scanned over labels of bottles that were stored away on the shelves in the small room that she stood in as she contemplated how to continue with her thoughts. “Ul’dah was never a friendly place to street rats -- if you’re not born wealthy, or with something that makes you valuable to someone, you’re left to rot. So… there was this group I used to be with. ‘Stained red, stained red’, they would start -- the words meaning the blood either on our hands or someone else’s. ‘If it’s me or them, let them be dead.’”

Jaydin’s shoulders heaved with another shrug as she recollected the phrase.

“Survival of one’s self and their own was important. Perhaps I had run with the wrong people at the time,” Jaydin said. “But after some time… losing people close to me, I decided that… ‘stained red, stained red… if it’s me or them, I’d rather be dead’ had a tone to it that I’d rather have taken on.”

Silence lingered, only the sound of the embers eating away at Gregoire’s cigar became audible when he took another long drag of it. He tapped it again, shaking loose the ash before exhaling and looking at Jaydin with a steeled gaze. After a couple seconds, he finally said: “but ye’ve killed the lad. Doesn’t quite sound like you live by your words.”

“A threat to those I consider my family is a threat I don’t take lightly.” The automatic response was made almost as if it were a simple matter in that respect. Even if the look in Jaydin’s eyes told a different story on that matter. “I didn’t like what I had to do. My hands have been long stained red, this I am aware of. If it’s my family or him, I’d rather him dead.”

Was it a reassurance to Gregoire, or herself? Jaydin was not quite sure any longer. Perhaps it was both at that moment.

All the rogue really knew was that she would do anything to keep her family -- her Knights -- alive. Sure, there was maybe some expectation that everyone knew what they were getting into when they accepted the invitation to become a Knight, but that mattered little to how Jaydin ultimately felt about each and every one of them after some time. Even if she did not express it well.

“Regardless, someone supplied the Hound with the device containing this ‘Black Rose’ substance. I’ll need eyes and ears that can find any leads on a ‘Master White’ -- someone that apparently has some ties to the Syndicate. Let me know if you find anything of interest, Gregoire. I’ll be contacting some old friends in Ul’dah to see if they can keep an eye on any of the associates to the Syndicate, or just the Syndicate itself.” Jaydin’s brow furrowed as she considered what she knew of the Syndicate when she lived in Ul’dah as well.

“It’s hard to believe that we’d ‘ave issues with ‘em,” Gregoire sounded mildly surprised. “What with the death of Teledji Adeledji. Though, I suppose there’s always concerns regarding Lord Lolorito Nanarito.”

“Yes, I agree…” Jaydin murmured in response. “Regardless, though, I’m not sure why the Syndicate would be interested in the production and use of Black Rose in any way. Unless they intend to incite civil war among Eorzea.”

Jaydin paused, her face betraying any hint of resolve in her words. Frowning, she continued, “I wouldn’t believe that to be the case. That would be foolish in the wake of our united efforts against the Garlean threat. There’s no benefit to anyone within the Syndicate unless there was a member that held a seat that was also a Garlean operative, but the seats are for Ul’dah’s wealthiest with the exception of General Aldynn, who got in within his own merit. Though I suppose his seat is free now, given his return to Ala Mhigo.”

Another bout of silence hung in the air before Gregoire suggested: “... lest the lad was havin’ one last gaff at ye. Insultin’ yer intelligence till the last. Given yer knowledge on the state of affairs in Ul’dah, ‘owever… I s’pose ye ‘ave yer own thoughts and pursuits that dictated that information enough.”

“It’s possible that he believed what he told me. If he has no knowledge of the Syndicate and how it operates, he could have been led astray. Given his nature, though, you may be onto something. Regardless, we do have a name, and we’ll have to look into it to see if it yields any significant results whilst staying vigilant in our efforts.” The subtle doubt in Jaydin’s voice was audible to her, much as it pained her to even admit in some small portion.

Jaydin’s chest and shoulders heaved with a sigh. There was still the matter of what Iwa reported she had seen as well the night that they had started interrogations on the Hound. Pursing her lips and weighing her options, she looked back to Gregoire and said to him, “make sure that you keep your eyes open around the area for anything suspicious. There’s no telling what that person was up to -- the one that one of my Knights reported seeing when we came to question the captive.”

“Aye… me lads an’ lasses around the area ain’t no strangers to keepin’ our wits about us. My people up within the Haillenarte and Fortemps guard ‘ave been notified to keep their eyes peeled. Though since the incident wit’ the heretics some while back before the end o’ the war, they’ve certainly been more on their toes when it comes to passing merchants an’ traders.”

Nodding in acknowledgement to what Gregoire said to her, Jaydin took in a breath -- woody, citrusy cigar smoke scents and all -- and then exhaled slowly. She had least had things to look into, and that was more than she would have gotten had she allowed the Hound to take his own life like he had twice before already. That she had been able to prevent this was a mercy in and of itself when it came to getting any information that they required.

The search continued, and would for as long as it needed.

“Well, if ye got no more business bein’ back ‘ere…” Gregoire said, breaking the silence as he took another couple puffs of his cigar. “Why don’t we get on back into the bar itself. I’ll get ye a drink. If yer really true to yer word on what ye said, ye probably need it, aye?”

“... A drink would be great, actually…” Jaydin replied, feeling a momentary wave of relief.

The bar was pretty much empty save for a single knight dressed in the colors for House Haillenarte who nursed a flagon of whatever was left of their ale. When Jaydin sat down at the bar counter, she pinched the bridge of her nose before moving her fingers to rub her eyes. As she kept her eyes closed even afterward, she could hear Gregoire pulling a glass out and putting it on the countertop before hearing him take a couple bottles to get the glass filled.

Finally looking at the glass as Gregoire was done getting it put together, she offered a small ‘thanks’ before taking it and inspecting it before drinking it. It was a creamy blend -- sweetened with honey, though packing a hard punch and burn to stave off the Coerthan cold at the end of its delight.

“Mm…” Jaydin gave a small sound of approval. “What do you call this, Gregoire?”

“Doesn’t ‘ave a name,” Gregoire said with a slight grunt. “But if ye want one, I dare say I’d call it an Unstained Hand.”

A moment after processing this, Jaydin gave an amused scoff behind an annoyed facade before continuing to drink the beverage.

[constancevonnuvelle]

A look of surprise takes over the former nobles face for a moment. It was an obvious question to ask when discussing books, but admittedly she had not put much thought into it beforehand, and as such was caught a bit embarrassingly off-guard.

“Favorite? Why… of course I do!” Her smile returns, a cover for the rapidly turning gears in her mind. She must have a favorite, it’s only logical! Perhaps the main character? No, no. That’s too basic. The grumpy mentor? No, she does like that cat, although she definitely cannot say that’s her favorite. The love interest? Wait, why is she even considering that one? That cat is incredibly annoying. 

“Hm… oh! Personally, I quite enjoy both the personality and story of Sootfur.” Sootfur. The little kitten who had a promising future as a renowned warrior, only for a tragic accident to take it all away in a single instant. Rather than give into despair, however, the cat worked hard and changed her course. The life promised to her may have been torn away and was impossible to retrieve, but she made the most of it, becoming renowned in a different field. 

Constance will not admit to having cried during her character arc, and she definitely did NOT, but… it may or may not have gotten pretty close. “I found myself miles more invested in her than a majority of others whilst reading, despite her unfortunate status as a fairly minor background character when in comparison to others.” She sighed at that. Sootfur deserved more of the spotlight. Devastating. 

“I suppose you are correct in your supposing. I believe I remember having read that working too much has negative health effects, although I have yet to experience such things… I… think?” Has she? She can’t remember anything like that happening. Then again, she struggles to remember a lot of things. …Is that one of the side effects…?? …Nah, couldn’t be.

Snapping out of her prior thoughts, Constance finds them only replaced with more drastic one at the professor’s question. “Oh. Indeed, I have, however I do not have much beyond her appearance and name at the moment with only the beginnings of any sort of personality. I had believed it meant creating a character as though it was one within the original source material… Although… Perhaps…” Constance brings a hand up to her hair and spins a curl as she thinks, ideas for spells already filling her mind. Creating life itself is obviously off the table for moral reasons, maybe an illusion of a talking cat controllable by? Yes!

“Professor, you have just given me a grand idea! Ahaha! The power of stories made real!” Constance claps her hands excitedly, the idea already expanding in her mind. “I could create a spell to bring the cats of ones own creation to reality for a time! But just my cat alone would not be close to a revelation near enough to be anything of note…” 

Constance hums in thought pacing back and forth a few steps before lighting up with an idea, slamming her hands down on the table. “Professor! What say you to creating a cat yourself? For my spell or not, I do believe you would find it most enjoyable!”

Meowing is Academic

constancevonnuvelle​:

“What do I like? Ahaha! The better question would certainly be what is there NOT to like?” In truth, she only picked up the books at all because there was a cat on the cover. She’s not typically one to read fiction books these days, something in the back of her mind always bugging her whenever she isn’t working and forcing her to read another textbook. 

Yet, something about a story told from the perspective of a sweet little cat enabled her to force the voice to the side for a while. That’s a good enough reason for herself, but not something she would admit out loud. That would be very embarrassing. What isn’t embarrassing is giving a half hour presentation about a talking cat book made for children! Obviously. 

“Indeed, the clans and overall premise are most undoubtedly the main draw of the series as a whole, but there is so much more to appreciate! The unique personality and roles of every cat, the impeccable descriptions of each territory’s landscape, the action! It is practically a fountain of creativity!” Constance makes wide gestures with her hands as she speaks, almost as though she was giving a sales pitch, her mind creating a longer and longer speech as her thoughts bounce around like an unspecified logo that will never make it to the corner. 

“Such creativity is a needed spark of inspiration of something new! Unfortunately, the material is admittedly lacking in anything that could inspire a spell worthy of restoring my house, beyond perhaps one to summon cats…” A spell that has been attempted, and one that… did not end as intended. Constance can’t help but for a moment at the distant memory. “N-Never mind that. There are plenty of other things that could come forth from what the books inspire! I’ve heard creating your own cat is rather popular. Have you attempted such a thing yourself, Professor?”

It was unusual for Byleth to see one so excited over a book, especially a fiction one. It was the sort of behaviour she might expect from someone like Lindhart discovering some new crest lore but less so the normally reserve ashen wolf student. 

Byleth herself had only chosen the book on a whim on her previous visit to the Monastery’s library. The design of the cover had intrigued her with the fierce looking feline stalking its way though some long grass. Besides, she’d always had a soft spot for cats as many of the Academy’s furry residents could attest. Their mutual love of fish certainly helped when making friends!

“That’s true! Every good story requires a hook but from there they can go anywhere, which these books do so well. There’s so much to the world building … it’s very well thought out. I’d wouldn’t be surprised to learn that its actually how cat society operates.” Byleth tells Constance. “Do you have a favourite cat? Or do you just love all of them?” 

Both student and professor were becoming more animated as the discussion developed further. “There’s nothing wrong with taking a break from studying for some light reading I suppose. And you never know, people might pay a lot for a spell to summon cats which could increase the prestige of your house” Byleth felt slightly hypocritical offering such advice aware she’d felt equally guilty reading fiction over working on her lesson plans or combat training. There was an argument that the combat in the books could spark ideas for new moves but it was a weak argument at best. 

”I can’t say I have heard of this practise.” Byleth admitted. Maybe shed kept her enjoyment of this book series too secret. “Is that creating a character in the book or an actual cat?” She suspected it was the former but then again stranger things had happened. ” Have you created one”

[amaranthdahlia]

so hori is practically known for his big affinity with hands and the way it conveys emotions and a story and all the jazz

and its interesting to me that.... you'd think the supposed "canon couple" would have atleast a bit of those deep hand symbolism stuff, as hori LOVES implenting it in anyway he can in any arc. (with shigaraki, eri, yoichi, and more, as its shown THROUGHOUT the series)

but they dont. at all.

bkdk on the other hand (lol)...... bro, a huge part of their story is literally the slow burn of them taking eachothers hand, what the fuck.

deku is/was insecure about bkg never taking his hand, and was rejected once again

while bakugou regrets how he rejected deku's hand later on, and wished he done it differently (literally got a whole ass VOLUME COVER about it.)

and once they actually do, it symbolises that they finally understood eachother. accepted eachother. and united as equals. no feelings of inferiority, no misunderstandings, no miscommunication, not anymore.

but, this is only between the two rivals of the series, so why oh why doesnt the "endgame couple" have any hand symbolism, (while we are being completely aware that Hori loves spreading his hand symbolism agenda in terms of deep feelings and such) in their story whatsoever?

hm.