#there is no magic anymore do you understand

[toastedpotatoes]

"What's all this about?" asked someone behind him during a lull in his routine. Their voice carried the distinct lilt of the Folk (good) and an air of extreme exasperation (slightly less good).

Jal turned to face them, cooking implements still in his hands. "Finally—I mean, it would sure suck if—"

"I heard you the first time," said the newcomer, voice tired and dry as dead bark. "And we do understand sarcasm."

"Oh," he said. There went his plans. "Um. Take me anyway? Please?"

They stood facing him a long while, their expression reading visibly as why do I have to deal with this? even in the moonlight.

He must've got stuck with a dud or something. Weren't the Folk supposed to be... magic? Ethereal? Something greater than what amounted to little more than a sharp-eared person with lichen in their hair?

They sighed. "First of all, if you wanted us to take you, why did you bring iron?"

"Oh," Jal said for the second time. He looked down at the pots and pans. "I wanted to get your attention."

"Well, it worked. It also made an incredible racket. Put them away now."

He hesitated—he wasn't exactly eager to lay down his best defense against things like them—but this was his best chance at getting out of his life. He set them down outside the mushroom ring.

"Second," they continued, "why did you decide that the best time to do this was the middle of the night?"

This he had an answer for. "Well, you lot always dance in circles under the full moon, don't you? Figured now would be a good time."

They sighed again, muttered something about sky folk messing everything up, and said, "Not always."

Jal was getting impatient. The night was too chilly, he honestly should have been in the fey realms by now, and instead here he was getting interrogated by some house brownie. "So can you take me or not?"

"I can," they replied. "Doesn't mean I will. Why're you so eager to get abducted anyway?"

"Why's it matter?"

"It matters because I'm the one deciding if you get to go or not. And I'm being rightfully suspicious of the weirdly-excited-to-get-kidnapped human here."

He looked around for anything else he could do besides spill his life story to one of the Folk. There were still the pots and pans—if he could grab one quick enough—but they noticed him looking and their eyes flashed green in the moonlit dark and suddenly all the knots in the surrounding trees were blinking, watching, watching—

"I want a new life!" he cried, not missing how the trees snapped back to normal as soon as he spoke. "I want a fresh start! There's nothing left for me over there anyways. My home's evicted me, my friends've all left, and I can't face anyone there anymore, and—"

"You do realize that none of this necessitates banging bowls together in a mushroom circle, right?"

"They're not bowls, they're—never mind. Just—I can't stay here anymore."

They thought a moment. "Go back to bed."

"No!" He didn't even have a bed anymore. He didn't have anything left to lose. This was his only chance.

"Give me your name, and I'll take you."

Okay, maybe he had one thing left to lose.

"I'm not that dumb," he said, ignoring the highly doubtful look he received. He rifled through his pockets for—

"Thirty dollars?" he offered.

Their eyes narrowed at the bills he held out. "I don't need your money, and it wouldn't be enough anyhow."

"Thirty dollars and I don't leave all this iron in your precious forest."

They deliberated on this, periodically glaring at the lovely assortment of metal noisemakers he'd brought with him. "Fine. Deal. Pack up your clanking mess."

"Yes!" He gathered up his things and took their proffered hand, giddy enough that it was about five seconds before he realized they were leading him away from the mushroom ring, not into it.

"Wait," he said. "You said you'd take me."

"Never said where," they replied, calmly, and for a moment it felt like the trees had eyes again.

"Wait—but—where are we—"

"Relax," they said. "Just the nearest inn. You really need to go to bed." They picked a twig out of their hair. "And so do I, to be honest."

"OH BOY, IT WOULD SURE SUCK IF THE FAE TOOK ME!" cried the man banging pots and pans together in the middle of a mushroom circle.

[daycourtofficial]

Tell me I’m the only, only, only, only one - part six

Pairing: Eris x Azriel x reader | WC: 4.2k | warnings: general angst, mentions of dizziness and nausea

Summary: you wake up only to find out you were unconscious much longer than anticipated, leading to multiple needed confrontations

Author’s note: I’ve been a bit MIA lately 😅 just throwing this out in the void before going through my dms/inbox. I’m soooo excited for the next part

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You didn’t need to open your eyes to know how bad your head hurt. It felt impossibly heavy, practically glued to the pillow beneath you. You weren’t entirely sure your neck could hold up its weight anymore. You groaned, not really certain where you were. You combed through the last things you remembered, all of it a blur of blood and exhaustion, none of it clear.

“Do you want to tell me what’s been going on with you?”

A low female voice greeted you, receiving only a grunt in response. Thinking was hard and it only caused the throbbing in your head to worsen. You weren’t entirely sure who was talking to you or why, but you focused all of your energy trying to remember what happened.

All you could remember was blood and pain, a tiredness that you carried in your bones. There was arguing and arrows and Eris. Slowly more and more came back to you until you sat up, wincing at the sudden change, nearly nauseous from the movement.

“Azriel? How’s Azriel?” Your eyes cracked open to find your room around you, albeit slightly cleaner than when you had left it. The still room was a sharp contrast to how you felt inside. Nesta was sitting in a chair next to your bed, a book in her lap, a finger marking her place in it.

She didn’t look happy to see you, nor did she seem to care that you were awake.

“He’ll be fine, thanks to you it would seem.”

You groaned, falling back onto the bed. The suddenness was something you had not learned from when sitting up. Now the room was slightly spinning before you shut your eyes tight, hoping for some reprieve. You rubbed your eyes harshly until you saw stars.

“It would also seem like you almost burnt out saving him.”

Burnt out.

It was something they warned all healers, magic or not. There is a breaking point. A point of no return. It’s happened to many healers over the centuries, especially during times of war, when they don’t quite know their own limits.

Something all healers learn is the whereabouts of their magical limitations, where they need to stop before doing serious damage to themselves. All healers were taught not to place someone else’s life above your own. It’s drilled into your heads, one of the first rules of practicing the healing arts.

But you had done it. You had placed Azriel’s life above your own without even a second thought.

The pained look that was on Eris’s face was enough to keep you from crumbling from that realization.

For hours, you placed Azriel’s healing above yourself. You made the choice over and over again, choosing him over yourself. You made the right call. You would do it again. You could handle a broken bond, but not a dead one.

Maybe this one sided devotion was proof enough you were making the right decision.

“I’m sure you have a better understanding than I do of how stupid and reckless that is, and yet you still did it.” Nesta’s voice wasn’t the happy, soothing voices you usually hear patient’s families spoke with after they wake up. If you heard someone chastising a patient after waking, you’d chew their heads off. Instead, you stayed quiet, just watching Nesta as she continued on.

“For weeks now, I have sat idly by as you spiraled into self-destruction, but I can’t do so anymore.” Her voice cracked with each word, betraying the anger she was trying to inject into each word. “You are my friend, and I care so much about you. I’m worried about you.”

Her concern cracked at your heart. She crumpled into herself, bringing a hand up to her mouth. She looked uncomfortable, like her body had been glued to the chair and was finally unfolding itself from strange positions to find comfort.

“I’m fine, Nesta.” You were groggy, nauseous, and a bit heartbroken, but you’d be fine. Azriel was alive, you were going to be mateless, but you’d be fine.

Her eyebrows pinched together, a look of annoyance crossing over her features. You weren’t sure if it was over your words or interrupting her.

“I haven’t been there for you as I should. I thought you needed space, and now you’re here.” She spat out the last word, but you knew she wasn’t talking about being confined to your room.

“How long was I out?” You had to stop Nesta’s spiraling and get a handle on the situation. Madja wasn’t here to tell you what had happened, but surely you could parse out your state from a few questions Nesta should know the answers to.

“Four days.”

Nesta must be wrong. Surely there was no way you were incapacitated for four whole days. That was ridiculous. But you looked over Nesta, taking in the purple bags beneath her eyes, her hands fisting into the fabric of her wrinkled dress.

She wouldn’t lie about that.

“I didn’t mean to scare you.” And you hadn’t. You hadn’t thought of anyone except for Azriel and Eris for several hours, all of your attention on the two males. When you weren’t examining Azriel for his condition, your gaze would end up floating to wherever Eris was.

But now neither of them are here, just you and Nesta.

“You didn’t scare me. I was terrified. I thought you were gone, thought you wouldn’t wake up.”

“Nesta, it wasn’t that bad.”

“Wasn’t that bad?” She repeated your words with a venom that had you recoil, preparing yourself for the strike. “You were wailing in Cassian’s arms in the foyer. You were inconsolable until you passed out. Madja’s been here nearly every hour to check on you.”

Shit. If Madja was making hourly rounds, you were in worse shape than you thought. Hourly rounds meant you must have been practically knocking on death’s door.

“What happened out there? What happened when you were with Azriel and Eris?” Nesta was practically pleading, desperate for some kind of answer. She was like a dog, a scent stuck in her nose until she nosed her way to the truth. You wanted to break, tell her everything.

Until you’re struck by the memory of Eris’s hand, pushing through Azriel’s wings, finding you. How tight his grip was, he warm his skin had been.

“We were ambushed. Azriel took the brunt of it. We healed him and came straight back here.” You absentmindedly rubbed at your wrist

“But you were gone for hours. You should have winnowed back.”

“Eris winnowed us somewhere. He was in bad shape, so I fixed him. How’s Azriel?” You needed to know more about his condition. Nesta said he’d be fine, but did that include any long term effects? How much had your healing helped him?

“He’s resting, but he’ll be fine.” She crossed her arms, her fingers tapping on her arm, not telling you much more than she already had. You were sure this was her punishing you, by leaving you in the dark on Azriel.

“If he wasn’t fine after you nearly killed yourself to save him, I’d resuscitate both of you to kill you myself.” You hadn’t realized you forgot to respond until she chastised you.

“Nesta-“

“You both were gone for hours. It was supposed to be quick. None of us realized until Rhysand couldn’t get through to either of you.”

You blinked, surprised at that. Eris must have had some form of protection put around the cabin that stopped Rhysand.

Interesting.

“And now you’re telling me next to nothing.”

“I just woke up. I can hardly recall it all myself, okay?” A lie. You remembered all of it clearly. The splintering wood, having to carefully remove the arrowheads, all of the blood gushing from him, Eris’s quick remarks.

“Did you fuck him?” The question was quick and unexpected, and you nearly snapped your neck with how quickly you looked at her.

“Who, Eris?” She didn’t move, didn’t give away any slight movement. Still as a statue as yiur heart began beating faster.

“Yes, Eris. You reek of him these days. I won’t tell the others, but I need to know.” His name on her tongue sent a rush through your body, your jaw ticking in annoyance.

“Yes Nesta, I fucked him while Az was bleeding out.” The barb was quick on your tongue, this conversation raising your heckles and irritating you more than anything. Nesta’s eyes hardened for a flash, a mischievous glint in them before she softened ever so slightly, her voice turning from admonishing to conspiratorial in a manner of seconds.

“Do you think he’s a selfless lover?”

“No.” The response was too quick, too ready on the forefront of your mind, something that didn’t go unnoticed by your friend. “I imagine he’s selfish in every aspect of his life.”

“So you imagine it?”

“Nesta.” Her name was sharp from your mouth, a knife slicing across the room. She took a more defensive stance, approaching your bed. A knowing smirk overtook her features for just a moment before it quickly contorted into one of concern and annoyance.

“Mother’s sake, tell me something, anything.” Nesta was pleading at this point, uncaring at the vulnerability and guilt she was sure was all over her face.

“I can’t.”

“You can tell me anything. Are you in danger?”

“No.”

“Well, I don’t know! You’re avoiding everyone, you're being self destructive, you’re spending a lot of time with Eris of all fae. What am I supposed to think?” She was pacing now, her footfalls back and forth across your floor, an anxious rhythm that only dug the secret deeper and deeper inside of you.

“Nesta, I can’t tell you.”

“I’m not accepting that.”

“What?” Her concern was shifting into nosiness. You clenched your hands in frustration, nails digging into skin harsh enough to leave marks.

“It’s not good enough.”

Rage was coiling inside of you, a ferocity nipping at your fingertips begging to be let out. You had to swallow down a growl from slipping out, the territorial feeling nearly consuming you.

You had to stall her. Get her out of here before you exploded before her.

“Give me a month to figure things out. I’ll be honest with you then.”

“A week.” You sighed through your nose. Of course Nesta was going to barter with you. Your left hand felt warm. A small trickle of blood was about to stain your sheets, no doubt.

“Two weeks.”

She looked to the window, her face blank as she thought over your offer. She was taking this almost too seriously, as if it were hostage negotiations or preparing for war.

“Fine. Fourteen days from now you’re telling me everything.” She pointed a long finger at you, the agreement weighing the air down. You felt a shift in the room, uncertain of the magical perimeters of your verbal agreement.

You released your hand, grabbing the pillow behind you. You didn’t care about the blood as you held the soft material to your face and screamed.

-

Members of the Inner Circle trickled in throughout the day, each one wanting to see for themselves you were awake and had all your faculties about you. It was sweet, but by the time you had seen Cassian and his boisterous laugh, your head was pounding so hard it made the soft lights in your room appear blinding.

Feyre had come in a few hours after Cassian, boxes loaded in her arms as she came into your room. You were a bit groggy, having just woken from a nap in the hopes it would tampen your migraine.

It half worked.

“What is all that?”

The boxes shuffled in Feyre’s arms, ringing and tingling with each step.

“Well, I wanted to bring some jewelry to look over for the gala in a few weeks.” You had completely forgotten about it, had forgotten that one of the days you were incapacitated was a scheduled day for you, Feyre, and Mor to go dress shopping.

“Thanks, Fey. Sorry for missing-” she shushed you, not letting you finish your apology. She spread the boxes across your bed, gently lifting the lid of each one to reveal exquisite necklace after exquisite necklace. Each one contained more vibrant jewels, shinier than the last.

The eight boxes practically blinded you with the light coming in. Feyre noticed the squint in your eye and quickly closed the curtains.

“They're gorgeous, but I haven’t even picked a dress.”

“Maybe you could pick a dress after you pick the jewels. Black goes with everything, so..” she trailed off, sitting in the seat next to you, her back straight. She watched you eagerly, her eyes flitting between you and the pile of jewels before you.

“Are you wearing any of these?”

“No - Rhys surprised me with some onyx pearls. Want them on full display.” She reached a hand up to her throat, as if feeling for the necklace. It was pretty easy to figure out exactly what Feyre meant - skin, and lots of it, on display. She was much quicker to adapt to fae views on modesty than you had anticipated.

“Oh, well in that case.” You sat up a bit straighter, moving slowly to avoid as much pain as possible. Each necklace must have been worth a pile of gold marks.

A few of them looked quite similar - chunky gemstones of varying colors set in different metals. One necklace did catch your eye. You kept looking over to it, the other ones looking dull and lifeless in comparison. Deep red stones perfectly set to resemble Night Court jasmines. The dark red nearly looked black until the light hit it, refracting rays of red. The stones branched out, weaving around the neck to create multiple flowers connected by leaves.

You couldn’t stop looking at the necklace, your hand gently rubbing across it.

“Do you like that one?”

Feyre had a knowing look as she watched you, but you didn't turn to see it.

“Yes. I do.”

-

A few more visitors came and went - Madja (again), Rhysand, Mor. Each one not the shadowsinger you wanted to see. Maybe it was better to wait. Build your strength up a bit before shattering your heart.

Rhysand and Mor could both tell your head wasn’t with them. Rhys accepted it, leaving you to your thoughts, but Mor lingered, her never ending stories an attempt at distracting you. The attempt half worked - at least now only every other thought was about Azriel.

But most of the other ones were about Eris.

Your friends tried to help clear your mind, but all your thoughts whirled and swirled with fire and shadow, bright and vibrant colors immediately snuffed out by the darkness.

Everyone told you Azriel was fine. But where was he? You felt unsettled, unable to truly concentrate without seeing him.

You glanced over to your bedside table, the book on broken mating bonds practically laughing at your turmoil.

You went over what to expect again, trying to see if you can recall all the symptoms and long term side effects of the broken bond, repeating them to yourself like a mantra.

-

It wasn’t until the next day you saw Azriel. He had gently knocked on the door before coming in, each movement slow and unsure, as if approaching a wild animal.

“I had heard rumors you were awake. Wanted to check for myself.” He stood with the door to his back, as far away as possible from you. One hand on the knob, but his body was angled right at you.

You couldn’t think of anything to say, only stare at him outright.

Azriel looked beautiful, like always, but he carried a tiredness with him. His wings weren’t as high as they usually stood, his shoulders were caved in a bit. His shadows were slithering in every direction, all trying to reach you, but held back by some invisible tether.

He looked miserable.

“If you don’t want me here, I can go.” Azriel’s voice was soft, an echo in the dark woods late at night. A salvation or a new fear.

“Have you visited while I was asleep?” You didn’t want to tell him how much you wanted him here, how much you still thought of him.

So what if you were going to stretch out the last few minutes of your bond.

“Madja wouldn’t let me. She had Cassian and Mor practically guarding the door day and night to ensure I stayed put until completely recovered.” He scoffed as he said it, as if he were nothing more than an animal incapable of decisive thought.

Or they didn’t think he was the coward he had been for the past few weeks. They thought him capable of seeing you.

And yet here he was. Despite his self-loathing, his inability to make a decision, to speak, to do anything his mates need him to.

He wanted to be the male his mates needed.

“I wanted-“ he began, searching the room for his next words, as if they would be written out on your wardrobe or the painting behind your head. He tightened his hand into a fist, the scars nearly turning white as he looked at you head on.

“I wanted to thank you.”

“Don’t thank me. It’s my job.”

“It’s not your job to nearly die saving me.”

“I would have done it for anyone else.” The second the words left your lips, you knew Azriel wouldn’t believe them. He always knew when you were lying somehow, as if the mating bond gave him some unfair advantage to your heart and motivations.

Azriel only nodded, not fighting you on the lie. You watched him suspiciously, watched his chest rising and falling, subconsciously counting his breaths.

“Are you tired?”

He looked anguished, like he carried a deep hunger and no meal was enough to sustain him, let alone nourish him.

“No.”

“Nesta said you needed more rest.”

“Nesta lies when it suits her.”

An awkward silence settled over the two of you, weighing you down further into the bed. You took a deep breath, propping yourself up on your elbows until you reached a sitting position. You knew what you had to do, what you had to say. It wouldn’t get easier the longer this went on. Azriel moved to your side, moving pillows to give you a proper cushion and to help prop you up.

“We should talk, Az.” He looked over you, the pillows abandoned as all of his attention was focused on you. You held your hands in your lap, wringing them for every ounce of courage they contained to get through this conversation. Your stomach churned with dread, the thread around your heart trying to stop you from saying what you had to.

“When you were injured, because of me, I decided it’s not fair to you or me to keep dragging this out. We should end things.” You looked at your hands, proud you had gotten the words out without stuttering or breaking. You swallowed harshly, your throat dry, but you couldn’t bring yourself to reach for the water on your nightstand.

Quiet surrounded you, a stillness you hadn’t expected from this conversation. There were no shouts or sobs, no frustration sitting in your chest. No relief or songs of praise at being free.

Just silence. Like you had made him incapable of thought or feeling with those words.

“Is that what you want? Or is that what you think I want?” His words startled you, and you finally looked up to find a layer of rage coating his face. He had come closer while you were looking elsewhere, finally being in the room, allowing himself in the narrative.

Finally taking charge.

“Isn’t it? What’s the point in having a mate who doesn’t want you?” Your words had an immediate effect on him, the male before you rubbing his hands on his face. One of his shadows hooks around his fingers, trying to pry them away, to make him seen. Another one swirls his ear, and you can’t discern it, but you hear a light buzzing from it.

He sits in the chair next to your bed before quickly getting back up and grabbing one of your clammy hands.

“I have not been good to you or Eris. This is hard, okay? No one has ever had this happen and I didn’t want either of you hurt.”

You scoffed, trying to pull your hand away, but he held it tighter. The textured grooves of his skin were more prominent as he held you. “Bit late for that.”

“Please. Please, give me more time. Give me a chance. Maybe we can figure something out, some kind of arrangement.” He was desperate, a pleading voice you had never heard from him. Was this how criminals of the Night Court looked to him, pleading at the ends of their lives for just one more chance?

“An arrangement?”

“I don’t know, okay? I’m not sure what to do when I have two mates who I care about who also hate each other and they both currently hate me.” He paused, chest heaving. His hazel eyes looked so lost, so unsure. “Not to mention someone out there knows about us or about us being out there. I haven’t been able to figure it out, haven’t been able to figure any of this out.”

The end of his sentence tapered off into his spymaster voice. A tone full of obsession and getting to the root of things, a dogged voice of determination.

“Please, let me take care of you. If not as your mate, as your friend. I care so deeply about you and you are where all my thoughts have been the past few days.”

“What of Eris?” Azriel used to recoil at the mention of his other mate, his name so foreign on your tongue. Now he showed no change, almost happy to hear it.

“He’s popped in now and then. He’s angry with me for getting hurt.” The mention of it sent you back there. A large, heavy body nearly crushing you in an effort to save you. Hoe you had felt him slump into you, his body giving out, unable to hold himself up any longer.

“Is he upset you shielded me?”

“Eris would be more upset if I shielded him. Autumn males are incredibly proud creatures.”

“As proud as Illyrians?” Your question brought a smirk to his lips, a twitch you knew he couldn’t suppress. You hadn’t seen it in a few weeks, but it felt more like a lifetime since you had a chance to see anything other than impassiveness or pain on his face.

“Almost.” He chuckled, lighthearted and free. A rarity you didn’t take for granted. His smile melted, a more serious, solemn expression overtaking his face. His hazel eyes were a shade full of desperation you knew a little too well.

“Give me time. Please. I’ll handle Eris. Just don’t - don’t reject the bond if you have an ounce of hope this could work. That’s not a sadness I wish to see you carry.”

“Why are you talking to me about this now? You’ve been avoiding this for weeks, Az.”

“I was afraid. I thought if I acknowledged it, I'd be hurting Eris. But I hurt both of you anyway. And I need-” the words die on his tongue, an awkward pause as he searches for the right words without being too vulnerable. “I need to- I needed to.. I don’t know how to do this. To be the male you both need. But I’m here now. I’m here.”

“Are you here because you have to be?”

“No. I want to be here. Let me be here. Let me try.”

Something about him cracked you open inside. In the weeks of this turmoil, the constant push and pull, the uncertainty, Azriel hadn’t looked so open, so vulnerable, so pained. If you spent long enough, you were sure you could map out every regret on his face.

Two roads laid before you. To end it all now, cut off any further heartache. Or you could try, allow Azriel time to figure something out.

He cared for you, you knew that deep inside of you.

With each passing second, your earlier resolve to end things became weaker and weaker, your heart winning the argument with your mind. Perhaps Nesta was right: you were self-destructing. Or was it the mating bond, so loudly swirling in your chest, determined to see itself recognized, even if it meant leading you overboard into frigid waters?

“You may stay. One condition.”

Azriel’s face relaxed, but he still seemed to carry the weight of the world on his shoulders, your words only lifting a few pounds off the load.

“You can’t leave at any inconvenient time, can’t just leave or shut me out because things get hard. I am your mate, and if you don’t treat me as an equal, or someone of importance… I’m gone.”

“Of course.” A light tingle gripped you again, less powerful than the magic that had floated around during your deal with Nesta. This time it was more like a light wind disturbing settled dust, spreading it across the both of you. Azriel’s skin almost brightened with the promise, breathing new life into him.

It suited him.

Only, only one taglist: @ssmay123 @scarsandallaz @meritxellao @saltedcoffeescotch @2ooopenbook @wintersquirrel @manicmanuscription @wavegirl @thisishwrworld @tempermentalbookworm @romantasyreader28 @marina468 @i-know-i-can @rcarbo1 @lifesdisasters @tele86 @ireneisbored @yazzzmints @azysmate @bsenpai @curiosandcourioser @elisha-chloe @yasmin-oviedo @that-one-little-soybean @azrielslittledove @stormieandateacup @anon1227 @phoenix666stuff @asahinasstuff @acourtofbatboydreams @anainkandpaper @mother-above @sunshinedayz19 @bibliophilr @famousprincesscollector @calamislunafox @dnfhascorruptedme @blightyblinders @l11lll1th @cabbageisdead @love-over-fears @paintedbyshadows @azzydaddy @kbear8863 @luxlingbabe @the-sweet-psycho @whyucloudingmymind @lets-talk-about-xyz @slytherin-pen @krowiathemythologynerd @ailoda @fourthwing4ever @anehempel

[sapphiresaphics]

9 lies about Arcane Season 2 you probably believe.

1. Jinx got magically fixed. <-No, she didn’t. What happened was that during season 1 her narrative conflict was between being Powder or Jinx. Every time she had a psychotic episode it was around this issue and the ending dinner party was about this same thing. In the end her conflict was resolved. She is Jinx. She sits in the Jinx chair to drive this point home. So she starts season 2 with a lot more clarity than she had in season 1 because her inner turmoil has been resolved. Her psychotic episodes aren’t gone, they just don’t bubble to the surface as much anymore because she has a NEW arc to focus on.

2. Caitlyn gassed all of Zaun <-No, she didn’t. Piltover was planning on a full scale invasion of Zaun, and Caitlyn convinced them that this was a terrible idea that would kill innocent people in the crossfire. Her idea was a tactical attack against the chem barons themselves and anyone loyal to Silco to get rid of Shimmer. She deliberately uses the pipes to change where the Grey is flowing and pump it into specific targeted areas and she and her team travel INSIDE the pipes to get there and do surprise attacks. Key point is that the Grey is not just flowing anywhere, she’s controlling where it’s going and doing everything in her power to NOT let it affect the average citizens of Zaun. The equivalent of a tear gas attack. Ethically and morally wrong, yes, but not “gassing all of Zaun.”

3. The writers forgot about the classism divide. <-No they didn’t. The classism issues extend all the way to the end of the show. In fact, after Jinx’s attack on the council it gets WORSE as Piltover cracks down on Zaun. We see Zaun oppressed horribly in season 2. This is not framed a a good thing. We see Jayce beg Zaun to help them even after everything they did to Zaun. This is framed as arrogance and is stated in the show that it is unfair. We see that after the war Zaun gets a seat on the counsel, but little progress is made towards fixing the classism divide. This is framed as a bandaid solution and you are not supposed to be happy about it. The show ending without resolving the conflict does not mean they forgot the conflict. It’s actually a statement. Because the theme of the show is the cycle of violence. You are meant to see the end of the show and understand that because they didn’t do more to fix the problem, this cycle of violence will continue.

4. Vander and Silco knowing who the kids are undermines their characters and is a retcon. <-No it does not and no it isn’t. Vander knew who the kids were. If he didn’t he wouldn’t be able to silently tell them where their dead parents were. And if the kids didn’t know Vander, they wouldn’t approach a giant hulking brute beating someone up in the aftermath of a battle. Likewise, Silco knows who the kids are because he literally has his goons following them on their botched job and uses the knowledge of who the kids are with to get back at Vander. When Silco approaches Powder he asks her “where is your sister?” which wouldn’t make sense if he didn’t know who they were. This is all established within the first few minutes of the series. Showing in Season 2 that Vander and Silco knew the kids isn’t a retcon, it’s just adding more context to information we already knew.

5. The Grey gives people cancer! <-No… but also kinda yes? See the problem with this is that we actually don’t know how the grey works. Vander, Silco, Sevika and others of Zaun all worked in the mines. They experienced the Grey on a constant basis and they never developed any negative symptoms. Additionally we are shown that while immediate effects are negative, those effects clear up after a while. But we also know that the Kiramman family built the vent system to pump out the toxic gases because it was affecting Zaun citizens in bad ways, and we know that Viktor is suffering from some form of ailment as a result of the toxic air. The grey is more akin to being tear gas. Immediately bad, clears up after a while, but detrimental to your health if longterm exposed. And being crippled like Viktor exasperates things. So technically yes, the grey does make you terminally sick… BUT that is not a universal experience, does not happen to people only exposed to the grey for short periods of time, and is made worse if you’re sick.

6. Shimmer is Zaun’s only form of medicine! <-This is absolutely NOT true. Zaun is huge. It’s at least the size of Piltover if not bigger. They have doctors. They have medicine. The reason Huck says doctors are “a little hard to come by” is because Vi and Caitlyn were literally in the slums where access to those things aren’t easy to get to. And just because a potion’s expert exists doesn’t mean that Shimmer is a good alternative to normal medicine. Quite the opposite, actually as we see that shimmer is a highly addictive drug. And while it can heal people, that comes at a cost. It was a risky move on Caitlyn’s part to give this shimmer infused concoction to Vi, but it was their only choice at the time. You should not use this incident as a rule that shimmer is good for Zaun in any way.

7. Caitlyn never apologizes or gets punished for her actions. <-This is such a bizarre criticism to me because she DOES apologize, just not with words. She acknowledges with Vi that she knows what she did was wrong. She admits to Jinx that hating her made her hate herself (that’s called a regret btw). And to prove her love for Vi, she lets Vi free Jinx and lets her anger of Jinx go. She puts Sevika on the council in her stead, she fights for Zaun and Piltover against Ambessa in the war, and she loses an eye in the process. I do not know how you watch any of that and think Caitlyn doesn’t feel regret and remorse for what she did or try to make amends for it.

8. Vi should’ve gone after Jinx because she knew she was suicidal. <-This is another misconception about Vi. She doesn’t know jinx is suicidal. She doesn’t even know how Jinx’s psychosis affects her. In their first interaction as adults, Vi doesn’t understand Jinx is talking to her hallucinations. At the dinner party scene Vi accidentally triggers Jinx into a panic attack. When Vi frees Jinx from the cell where Jinx is sad Isha died in an explosion she says Jinx should use her “explosive potential for good.” That’s not something you say to someone who just lost a kid in an explosion. And when Jinx saves her in the finale, she says “guess you shouldn’t have come back, eh?” Vi doesn’t grasp how bad Jinx is mentally. She doesn’t recognize that she’s suicidal. Additionally, finding Jinx has been the one thing NO ONE in this show has been able to do. Vi and Caitlyn spent weeks trying to find her together. And Caitlyn spent at least a couple months after failing to find her too. When Jinx leaves, you’re not finding her again no matter how much you want to. If Jinx wants to be found, Jinx will let YOU know. So Vi, locked in a prison cell, isn’t going to find Jinx even if she wanted to after being freed by Caitlyn. There’s a war coming, there’s no time to hunt for Jinx. That wasn’t going to happen.

9. Vi dying in the explosion changing things between Piltover and Zaun makes no sense in the AU. <-So this is a misconception. Vi dying isn’t the ONLY reason things changed. For starters, in the main timeline when the explosion goes off, Vi and her gang manage to escape the enforcers with loot they stole. Piltover sees that as Zaun attacking Piltover in a terrorist attack. In the AU, however, the kids don’t get away. They don’t end up stealing from Piltover. It’s framed as Zaun kids blown up by an irresponsible Piltover scientist. The blame is shifted from Zaun to Piltover and THAT is the beginning catalyst for improving tensions between the cities. On top of that, Heimerdinger from the main timeline arrives a few years later because of the anomaly. Thanks to his time with Ekko, he uses that time to steer the two cities towards even more cooperation and peace. Heimerdinger says as much when Ekko asks him what he’s been doing for the past 3 years. Finally, the AU exists for the narrative reason that it’s showing Ekko what he needs to be fighting for and showing us what could be IF the two cities work together. It is intentionally much more idealistic.

[crk-kr-to-en]

EN:

At the Peak of Truth, Despair Not

KR:

진리의 꼭대기에 올라선 자여, 좌절하지 말지어다!

He who stands at the pinnacle of truth, do not despair!

Another vers: Do not be discouraged, O one who has ascended to the summit of truth!

"자자, 곧 2부 강연이 시작됩니다~! 다들 자리에 앉으세요!!"

고즈넉하지만 오래된 역사를 자랑하는 조그마한 광장에 울려 퍼지는 경쾌한 목소리! 화려한 모자를 쓰고서 우유 왕관 칼라와 와플콘을 닮은 금빛 소매를 멋드러지게 흔들며 강론을 펼치는 이가 여기에 있다.

옹기종기 모인 쿠키들의 중심에서 장대한 연대기를 막힘없이 읊다가도, 이해하기 어려운 철학을 갓난쟁이 쿠키도 알아들을 수 있을 만큼 쉽게 풀어 설명하는 수수께끼의 쿠키.

이야기를 듣기 위해 광장을 찾는 쿠키들은 존경심을 담아 그를 진리의 현자라고 불렀다.

처음부터 이 자리에 존재했다는 듯 유유히 나타나 기꺼이

"Okay, the second part of the lecture will start soon~! Everyone, please take your seats!!" A lively voice echoes through a small square that boasts a quiet but long history! Here is someone giving a lecture while wearing a fancy hat, a milk crown collar, and golden sleeves that resemble waffle cones. A mysterious cookie who can recite a grand chronicle without hesitation at the center of a huddle of cookies, and explain difficult philosophies in a way that even a newborn cookie can understand. The cookies who came to the square to hear his story respectfully called him the Sage of Truth. He appeared leisurely as if he had been here from the beginning and was happy to be there.

.

처음부터 이 자리에 존재했다는 듯 유유히 나타나 기꺼이 가르침을 베푸는 이를 향한 호기심 또한 뒤따랐으니. 누군가는 그가 마법 학당의 교수일 것이라 말했고, 누군가는 저명한 도서관의 사서라고 말하기도 했다.

마침내 질문하기를 두려워하지 않는 한 쿠키가 현자가 거쳐 온 곳을 묻자, 그는 평소처럼 과장된 몸짓으로 하늘을 가리켰다.

"아주 높아서 발 디딜 곳 없이 좁은 자리에서 왔다네!"

단 한번도 이해하지 못할 답을 주지 않았던 현자의 아리송한 대답. 그제야 쿠키들은 현자가 자신에 대한 이야기를 단 한번도 하지 않았다는 것을 기억해 냈다. 유쾌하지만 속내를 알 수 없는 현명한 친구가 계속 머물러주기를 바라며 쿠키들은 더 이상 그의 이야기를 묻지 않기로 약속했다.

There was also curiosity towards the person who appeared leisurely as if he had been there from the beginning and willingly offered to teach. Some said he was a professor at the magic school, while others said he was a librarian at a prominent library. Finally, when a cookie, not afraid to ask questions, asked where the Sage had come from, he pointed to the sky with his usual exaggerated gestures. "I came from a very high place with no place to stand!" The wise man's puzzling answer, which never gave an answer that was incomprehensible. Only then did the cookies remember that the wise man had never told them anything about himself. Hoping that their cheerful but mysterious wise friend would stay, the cookies promised not to ask about his story anymore.

.

평소와 같이 현자의 말을 듣기 위해 광장에 모여들었던 쿠키들이 모두 집으로 돌아간 특별하지 않은 하루. 그러나 소리 없이 내려앉은 땅거미와 함께 현자를 찾아온 손님이 있었다.

칠흑처럼 긴 망토를 입고 커다란 모자가 드리우는 그림자 밑으로 표정을 숨긴 손님은 아무런 말 없이 그저 현자를 바라볼 뿐이었다. 현자는 그의 뒤에 넘실대는 절망의 그림자를 눈치챘지만 누구에게나 그러하였듯 유쾌하고 친절하게 말을 건넸다.

"처음 보는 친구 같은데... 오늘 강연은 끝났으니 내일 다시 찾아주겠어?"

It was an ordinary day where all the cookies who had gathered in the square to listen to the wise man's words went home. However, there was a guest who came to visit the sage along with the silently descending twilight. The guest, wearing a long, pitch-black cloak and hiding his expression beneath the shadow cast by his large hat, simply stared at the sage without saying a word. The sage noticed the shadow of despair looming behind him, but spoke to him cheerfully and kindly, as he did to everyone else. "I don't think I have met you before, my friend... Today's lecture is over, so will you come see me again tomorrow?"

.

돌아가 주기를 고상하게 돌려 말했으나, 어두운 손님 또한 뜻을 굽히지 않았다.

"쿠키들에게 진리를 전하는 것을 멈추세요."

현자 역시 순순히 그의 말을 따르지 않았다.

"그렇게 해야 하는 이유는?"

되돌아온 질문에 무표정하던 입가가 일그러지고 수수께끼의 손님이 현자에게 다가섰다. 현자는 그제야 불청객의 얼굴을 확인할 수 있었다.

현자는 놀라움과 감탄을 담아 연극에 오른 배우처럼 과장된 인사를 건넸다.

"진리의 은둔자께서 찾아오시다니. 황송하여 몸 둘 바를 모르겠군요."

He made a polite remark to the dark guest, telling him to go back, but the dark guest did not budge. "Stop telling cookies the truth." The Sage also did not follow his words obediently. “Why should I?” The expressionless lips contorted at the question returned, and the mysterious guest approached the Sage. Only then was the Sage able to confirm the face of the intruder. The Sage gave an exaggerated greeting, like an actor on a play, filled with surprise and admiration. "The Hermit of Truth has come to see me. I am so embarrassed and at a loss as to where to put myself."

.

동시에 현자의 반짝이는 외알 안경에는 호기심과 의문 또한 비쳤다.

"진리의 꼭대기를 지키고 서서 절대 내려오지 않는다 들었는데... 이 미천한 학자에게 무슨 용건이 있으셨을까?"

진리의 은둔자의 두 눈에는 비통함이 맺혔다.

"다 알고 있으면서 되묻지 말아요. 당신 또한 진리의 꼭대기를 확인했다면... 그 무엇도 기다리고 있지 않다는 것을 알고 있잖아요."

현자는 과장되게 손뼉을 쳤다.

"아하~ 우리의 은둔자 님께서 꼭대기를 내려오지 않았던 이유를 드~디~어~ 알겠네! 진리를 구하는 쿠키들이 조금이라도 깨달음에 가까워지려고 하면 가차 없이 밀어내던 이유도!"

At the same time, curiosity and questions were also reflected in the Sage's sparkling monocle. "I heard that he stands at the top of the truth and never comes down... What could he possibly want from this lowly scholar?" The eyes of the Hermit of Truth were filled with sorrow. "Don't ask questions when you already know everything. If you have confirmed the peak of truth... you know that nothing is waiting for you." The Sage clapped his hands exaggeratedly. "Aha~ I finally understand why our hermit never came down from the top! And why he mercilessly pushed away any truth-seeking cookies who tried to get even a little closer to enlightenment!"

.

현자는 은둔자의 확인을 구하듯 고개를 비스듬히 기울였다.

"나는 또 어떤 욕심쟁이가 진리를 독차지하려나 했는데~ 그저 진리 앞에 좌절하는 쿠키가 없기를 바랐던 것뿐이었으렷다?"

은둔자는 굳이 대꾸하지 않았다. 오히려 잔인한 진실을 알고 있음에도 알게 모르게 쿠키들을 진리의 길로 이끄는 현자를 이해할 수 없었기 때문에.

"나 역시 아무것도 없는 그 꼭대기에서 마주한 끔찍한 진실... 모두를 구할 진리는 없다는 사실에 이끈 마음속 목소리를 수천 번, 수만 번 원망했지!"

은둔자 역시 거쳐온 수천 번, 수만 번의 원망을 누르지 못하고 절규하듯 되물었다.

"그렇다면 더더욱 왜...!"

The Sage tilted his head as if seeking the hermit's confirmation. "I was wondering if there was another greedy person who wanted to monopolize the truth~ I just hoped that no cookie would be frustrated in front of the truth?" The Hermit did not bother to respond. Rather, he could not understand the Sage who was leading the cookies to the path of truth without knowing it, even though he knew the cruel truth. "I too faced the terrible truth at the top of nothing... I cursed the voice in my heart thousands, tens of thousands of times, that led me to the fact that there is no truth that can save everyone!" The Hermit, unable to suppress the thousands and tens of thousands of resentments he had experienced, asked again in a screaming voice. "Then even more so, why...!"

.

현자는 다른 쿠키들에게 그러했던 것처럼, 하늘을 가리켰다. "완벽한 진리는 없지만... 불완전하더라도 자신만의 진리를 걸어갈 가능성마저 부인할 수는 없지 않겠어?"

그리고 그 만의 과장되고 우아한 움직임으로 두 손을 펼쳐 보였다. "어쩌면 다른 쿠키들이 고난을 겪지 않게 하겠다는 은둔자 님의 진리처럼 말이야."

은둔자는 현자의 말에 대답하지 않았다. 그러나 현자는 은둔자의 대답을 알고 있었다.

기나긴 밤이 지나 언제나처럼 광장에는 아침이 찾아왔고, 현자는 새로운 강론을 시작했다. 그림자를 닮았던 불청객이 다녀갔음에도 광장은 여느 때와 달리 평온했으나...

현자는 들을 수 있었다. 세상 곳곳에서 진리를 찾아 가장 높고, 좁은 곳으로 향하는 쿠키들의 발걸음 소리를.

The Sage pointed to the sky, as he had done to the other cookies. "There is no perfect truth... but can't we deny the possibility of walking our own truth, even if it is imperfect?" And with his own exaggerated and elegant movement, he spread out both his hands. "Perhaps it is like the truth of the Hermit who will not let other cookies suffer." The Hermit did not answer the Sage's words, but the Sage knew the hermit's answer. After a long night, morning came to the square as usual, and the Sage began a new lecture. Despite the visit of the shadowy intruder, the square was unusually peaceful... The Sage could hear the footsteps of the cookies heading to the highest and narrowest places in search of truth all over the world.

"Wise man" and "Sage" are interchangeable. (Too lazy to change them all lmao)

My favorite details that are Parallels to Canon

His actions are described as "exaggerated."

"tilted his head" referenced to Beast!Smilk's Curious Sprite.

"Pointed to the sky" is something he does in game when he's talking while seated.

Kr Sage!Smilk calling himself "lowly scholar" to parallel Kr Beast!Smilk calling himself "lowly jester" (Also with En with "humble jester" and "humble scholar")

"his own exaggerated and elegant movement, he spread out both his hands." is a reference to Beast!Smilk's Happy Sprite. (And I imagine it's also not creepy lol.)

En under the cut!

.

"Quiet, quiet! Our lecture will resume shortly! Please take your seats in a timely fashion!"

A sonorous voice filled the old, quaint square. The voice belonged to a peculiar Cookie dressed in white and gold. Surrounded by a crowd of spectators, this mysterious Cookie now stood in the center of the square. He had just finished reciting an epic poem and was now explaining a convoluted philosophical concept to a freshly-baked flock, wide-eyed with wonder.

"The Sage of Truth," they called him.

It almost seemed as if the Sage of Truth had always stood in that spot, sharing truths and teachings with anyone interested. With time, more and more Cookies came to listen to the Sage. Some said he was a professor of magic, others claimed he was an archivist, until an eager disciple decided to put an end to this dispute with a question. As always, the Sage welcomed the query with a graceful gesture.

Pointing upwards, he uttered, "I hail from a peak so tall and narrow, it pierced the firmament itself!"

His confounding reply caught everyone by surprise. Only then did the disciples realize that never once had the Sage spoken about himself. Yet, they wished for the lectures to continue and chose never to pry again.

Another day, another fascinating lecture came to a close. The sky above began to tinge with red and Cookies headed back to their homes when a stranger entered the square.

The visitor was draped in a dark cloak and donned an enormous hat that cast a shadow over his face. The Cookie stood there without saying a word and watched the Sage. The silence was broken by the Sage’s courteous greeting, his eyes having already discerned the shadow of despair hanging over the guest.

"I don't believe I've seen you here before, my friend...! Alas, today's lecture is over. Care to come back on the morrow?"

Yet, the dark visitor paid no heed to his words.

"Stop teaching about the Truth."

"Why must I?" inquired the Sage.

The guest only grinned in reply and stepped closer. For the first time, a ray of light illuminated his face, and the Sage of Truth exclaimed delightedly.

"Aaahh, if it isn't the Truthless Recluse himself. To what do I owe such a pleasure?"

His monocle glistened with genuine curiosity.

"It is said that the Truthless Recluse never descends from the Peak of Truth... How may this humble scholar be of service to you?"

The Recluse's eyes brimmed with sorrow.

"Stop pretending. You know all too well that there is nothing at the Peak of Truth."

The Sage clapped his hands.

"Eureka! At last, the answer to the age-old question is found! Why the Recluse never leaves his beloved peak vacant! Why every Cookie who neared true enlightenment was inevitably pushed back from the ascension they so craved!"

He tilted his head, expecting a confirmation. "All this time, my best hypothesis was that the Peak of Truth had been seized for good by some petty curmudgeon. Do you mean to say you sought only to protect seekers from disappointment?"

The Recluse did not bother to deny the Sage's words for he loathed the Sage for guiding Cookies right into the maw of the cruel Truth.

"I, too, once made the same mistake, and for that, faced despair upon the Peak... There was no Truth expecting me. No Truth to save us all. And I cursed myself hundreds, thousands of times over for my folly."

And all his sorrow and despair surged forth in a single question.

"Why do you persist?!"

To that, the Sage only pointed upwards and said, "Alas, the Truth is imperfect by design... and yet, one must not turn away from the light of one's own Truth."

And with a welcoming gesture, he added,

"Not unlike yourself whose Truth is to protect others from anguish."

The Recluse never answered. The Sage knew the answer anyway.

A long night passed and a new day dawned.

Yesterday's guest was long gone, and the square was as peaceful as it could be...

But the Sage could hear them. The footsteps of many seekers, stepping forth towards the Truth.

[bluephoenixprincess]

Courting Tournament: Spicynoodles edition~<3

and now to outline for you all here, the premise of a Courting Tournament fic i plan on Actually Writing.

So, its post Season 5, and for the moment at least, MKs hero life has slipped back into the comfortable rhythm of jobber demons causing trouble and MK stopping them, as many weak or low level demons get emboldened by the powerboost from the Pillar Stones.

But then things start getting weird. Slowly but surely the Various Demon attackers get less and less focused on whatever Mayhem or theivery or whatever they were up to and start focusing more and more on MK himself. Not in a "defeat you for glory way" either, in a much more uncomfortable way.

And if that werent bad enough, MK finds himself slipping into his Monkey form more and more often, thankfully without emotional distress or uncontrollable power outbursts, but it just keeps happening and MK still isnt very used to the form to begin with.

Mk being Mk of course tries to hide slash ignore these issues until he cant anymore. Culminating in a fight with a stronger than average demon who get MK on the back foot for a hot second and starts saying some very uncomfortable things about how he cant wait to take MK home and make him his little wife/husband/mate.

MK hearing that immediately goes monkey mode, puts that guy through several walls, and flies off to FFM to find out what the hell is going on.

And Like, MK knows about courtnapping, the basics at least, that demon tradition considers whisking away prospective mates and showing them how well you can protect them and provide for them the height of romance. A little weird but hey, humans have had some weird romance traditions as well.

But the realization that all the demons he's been fighting want to courtnap HIM? combined with the weird stuff going on with his monkey form? MK cant deal with this.

By the time he gets to Wukongs house he's crying and stuck in his monkey form with no idea what to do about everything. Wukong immediately bundles his successor onto the couch and, after a glass of water and some comforting fur grooming, manages to get out of him whats wrong.

Needless to say Wukong is Concerned and a bit miffed that MK didnt tell him or anyone else what was going on. But concern and caring for his crying student whos clearly stressed the fuck out now, lecturing later.

With his eyes of truth and maybe a magic test of some sort, Wukong discerns the cause of all the nonsense.

MKs body has Reached the demonic state of full maturity, which most notably includes the core of his magic fully maturing. Because of this, not only is he more or less stuck in Monkey form for awhile, but every demon for miles around can feel vibrant energy coming off him in waves.

And they want a peice of that.

So, Regardless of how widespread the knowledge of Sun Wukongs successor (and basically heir) was before, its spread to all corners of demon scociety now. And just like his mentor before him poor MK is getting swarmed.

MK is understandably upset by these revelations and may or may not start hyperventilating while trying to play it off and insist he can totally handle it. Wukong decides to call in the rest of the Monkie Kid Crew to come up with a plan.of action. Cause while MK could probably handle most of his suitors, he shouldnt have to.

Some explaining, arguing and tea brewing later the whole crew is gathered in Wukongs house, Mk cuddled up between Mei and Tang.

Options are gone through and discarded, letting MK just deal with them as they come is out. Wukong offers MK to stay on Flower Fruit mountain till the suitors get the hint and leave him be since thats what he ultimately did, but when asked how long that could take Wukong makes an uncomfortable noise and avoids eyecontact as he remembers it took over a century. So... no.

Eventually Wukong Sighs and brings up a solution he knows can deal with these types of situations, at least for awhile, If they Hold a Courting Tournament for MK, they can deal with all of his suitors at once and turn what could be months of headache into a couple weeks at most.

Theres a lot of yelling and explaining, and Wukong ultimately puts the decision in MKs hands. Mk thinks long an hard but ultimately decides a couple weeks/few days of being a spectacle is preferable to who knows how long of being harrassed.

"*sigh* Lets do the tournament thing"

~●~●~●~●~●~●~●~

So wheres Red Son in all this? At some big fancy Demon gala/festival thing with his parents, bored out of his mind and surrounded by people he mostly dislikes. As is typical for such gatherings.

He and his parents are there to shmooze, make alliances and work on properly reestablishing the Demon Bull Families influence in Demon high society.

Redson, after having one to many snide comments made his way about his families repeated defeats at the hands of Wukongs successor, is hiding in a corner sipping a drink waiting for the night to be over.

And definitely not thinking about how much he'd rather be hanging out with the Dragon Girl and Noodle Boy, especially Noodle boy.

Until the host of the event calls the whole rooms attention to make a big announcement. That theyve just recieved a messenger from Flower Fruit Mountain. The mere mention sends a stir through the crowd, the Monkey kinds been basically a reculse for the last several centuries so him sending out a message is big.

And it is big. As the announcement, to this gathering and all of the three realms, is that Wukong and company will be holding a Courting Tournament, no not for the Monkey king again, but for his Successor.

Red Son Drops his glass and cant even begin to care when it shatters on the floor.

~○~▪︎~○~▪︎~○~

Back with Monkie Kid Gang plans are being made.

Mei all but insists on being MKs Champion. And While MK is worried she might get hurt, Wukong swears to him that he as host will enforce Strict Rules to prevent such things.

Thus, the stage is set. I'll come back to this, but since i plan to write this as a full fic, i dont want yo spoil too much.

[starlightswordfight]

tagging for spoilers even though this is pretty early on and it's been out for like forever JUST in case BUT

something I think about a lot is the fact that laios's leg did heal all the way post-reattachment after the initial battle with the red dragon. because yk Healing Magic Okay ❤️ Yay ❤️❤️

and maybe this is just me but I would've loved to see there maybe be more long-term complications from that? that'd definitely cause a LOT of problems with future combat in the series so I understand why that wasn't really explored but it would have been so interesting to me to see how you'd navigate a situation like that!! and you also so rarely see physically disabled characters in fantasy at all so that'd be really cool !!!

and ALSO leg reattachments while successful often enough do still come with long-term problems. impaired mobility being the most glaring one

like give him nerve pain at the Very Least. pins and needles, numbness on flare up days that can't really be explained because my leg is literally healed so What Is The Problem. sometimes it just gives out for no reason

it could work so well thematically, too, with that concept of coming back different. just applied from a completely different angle; instead of the chimera, it's carrying disability with you that you didn't have before. phantom pain from a removal that didn't ever stay removed. sitting with that and learning to live with what you've got now instead of running back repeatedly to what was. suffering the consequences of an injury that healing magic cannot work around because the injury does not exist anymore

[sailorblossoms-rankane]

The first tag: you gotta consider that with Kuno that ship has sailed.

Among the first things we learn about Ryoga is that he has beef with Ranma – it takes a bit for him to fall for Akane, and the way it goes down completely blindsides Ranma (which is why he doesn't stop Akane from kissing p-chan that first time, but when kid Ryoga starts fantasizing about bathing with Akane, Ranma has enough time to react, so he fucks him up, for example) but every time Ryoga wants to confess to Akane 1. Ranma already knows Ryoga has feelings for her and what he's trying to do while she doesn't 2. the sucker keeps stuttering or making dramatic pauses or generally moving in a way that gives Ranma plenty of time to move or teleport beside him to stop it...

In Kuno's case, he's publicly showing he has feelings for Akane before we even learn his name. Akane knows Kuno likes her before she even meets Ranma because Kuno has decided to make it her problem. When Ranma first goes to school with her, he's basically learning everything he can about her world and taking notes, and Kuno essentially declares feelings for Akane before Ranma has a chance to fully understand what's going on.

Ranma watched Akane fight half the school and didn't intervene. Kuno merely challenges her and Ranma is immediately by her side, despite her showing no signs of needing any intervention, because Kuno threw a romantic little flower (the rose) while challenging her. Ranma saw the flower, Akane's popularity finally sinking in, and he's right there making his presence know (and ending up redirecting the challenge towards himself)

In fact: one of the gags with Kuno is that he's making a move before you even know what's happening. It's not just that Kuno is too unserious to pay much attention to (though he is) but that his clownery is too fast, even for Ranma. You can't stop Kuno – all you can do is be annoyed and wonder how come this motherfucker has got you again, leaving you with no choice but to step on him or sent his ass flying. He's usually managing to show up or making a move when you least expect it.

Part of his character is also to let him say something dramatic. Sometimes this is specifically designed to piss Ranma off (as in, you need to let him talk to piss Ranma off, while with Ryoga his intentions are enough to get the job done and again, Akane doesn't know how he feels) he doesn't just try to jump Akane here, which would have been enough to stop him, he also has to remark "she's not with Ranma anymore"

You also have instances like this, where Ranma is being an insufferable little bitch on purpose, pretending he's gonna leave Akane behind "to suffer" and he's still not letting Kuno get anywhere near her (this can filler under the second tag, as Ranma indeed doesn't let any guy get too close... Kuno is torture but even though Ranma is trying to mess with her, he would never mess with that... the old show fumbles this btw, it has scenes of Kuno trying shit while Ranma just watches and/or pretends to not care or doesn't even notice lmfao)

Sometimes you can even see how Kuno managing to make a move or get in Akane's space before Ranma can stop him (or before Akane herself can react) is something that legit pisses him off.

The one interesting exception (as in, manages to confess while Ranma doesn't magically show up to stop it) is Shinnosuke, but that's another post and different circumstances

ranma’s jealousy is so serious he won’t even let another guy have a chance to confess to akane. bro will teleport to stop it if necessary

[rosy-crow]

I really need to see Sephiroth and Hojo speak to each other one fucking time. Their dynamic is never shown via verbal interchanges.

But they’re father and son. The anticipation is making me crazy.

Now, I say this…and yet, I think their indirect relationship is so fascinating…the way they speak to and through each other.

We have “Sephiroth, you’ve grown stronger” from Hojo in Before Crisis and “On to the next test Sephiroth. I want to see how you work in a team,” most recently in First Soldier and “Sephiroth, you’ve really done it this time,” from Hojo in The Last Order.

Only two of these lines are spoken to Sephiroth in person. He is silent both times.

The rest is Hojo talking ABOUT Sephiroth.

Talking about following him, observing him, copying him, breeding him, recreating him, exploiting him.

The rest is Hojo obsessing, which culminates in the wild question he throws out before his death:

“What will Sephiroth think when he finds out I’m his father?!!”

Meanwhile, the closest we get to Sephiroth addressing Hojo directly is “I see now Hojo….but doing this will never put you on the same level as Professor Gast,” in the OG, and “Hojo, you’re really something,” in Rebirth.

The rest is Sephiroth QUOTING Hojo. He can quote him perfectly.

“It’s an affront to science!”

“We don’t use unscientific terms like “mysterious power! It shouldn’t even be called magic!!”

“No matter how logically you explain something, there will always be people who don’t understand because they have a different view of the world.”

Seph mimics Hojo’s body language. He shares his laugh. He is the only SOLDIER allowed to speak to the Professor. He says that Hojo has always told him the opposite of “Relax, don’t push yourself. Rest.” He references Hojo’s terminology, explaining why SOLDIERs that are led by emotion are “second-rate.”

Sephiroth grows up….and he speaks disdainfully of the old scientist. He lashes out in disgust over his experiments. He hates Hojo and looks down on him. He doesn’t quote him with any level of respect anymore. Hojo is a bad memory. He would be fine to let the man die in Crisis Core.

Still no direct conversations between them on-screen.

And YET—

Sephiroth had visions of Hojo in Nibelheim. He saw him laughing. He had memories of Hojo causing him pain in an AU trip to Nibelheim.

Hojo had countless samples of Sephiroth’s DNA in tanks in the Shinra Manor labs.

Even after losing his mind, Sephiroth knew Hojo well enough to comment on how the scientist would be mortified if he knew about Cloud being a successful experiment after being labelled a failure.

Hojo tried to blast his son with mako energy to “help” him further ascend into godhood.

Sephiroth killed everyone in Shinra’s labs and didn’t stop until he reached the executive floor just above, where he killed the president. He didn’t kill Hojo.

Hojo felt inferior to Gast. Sephiroth put Gast on a pedestal in comparison to Hojo. Hojo murdered Gast. Sephiroth wonders many years later why Gast died.

Hojo erased Lucrecia, but Sephiroth looked for her all his life. Hojo won in the end by leading him to Jenova instead.

Sephiroth didn’t talk about his father. He laughed the question off.

Hojo knew exactly what Sephiroth used to wash his hair. He knew how and where he would sneak to goof off with his friends. He sold this private information to strangers.

Sephiroth wore a photo-necklace that Hojo gave him. The photo was of Sephiroth’s real mother. Hojo’s wife. Lucrecia. Hojo told his son she was Jenova.

Hojo declared that as long as he lived, so would Sephiroth.

Sephiroth has saved Hojo under orders.

Hojo risked his entire life to make Sephiroth stronger in the end.

[defendingtheowlhouse]

a criticism i have towards THO is that Amity could have been better. I think her backstory is not compelling and her relationship with her mother was less interesting than the one she has with her siblings (especialy since her mother is just Audrey Bourgeois from mlb but with magic). I think her being a bully makes her very dislikable considering the fact she didn't have to bully Willow and that her behaviout towards Luz is just bad and weird since she's the only one who's mean like that of we ignore Bosha and Skara (they didn't matter fr) and she realy doesn't get confronted about it. Her being good at everything makes her quite annoying too. She's able to fight Hunter who is a trained soldier or smth (not saying she can't be strong but that shows favouritism to me. Atleast the fight was entertaining) One thing that negates that a bit is her social ackwardness(i guess) when she misunderstands Luz at the lake wich shows relationships is the one thing she's not good at but actualy wants. But i still think she could have been better. I was just dispointed with her character when i first started the show. People promised me Catra done right and i got a school bully who goes soft because of "kawaii silly human"😭 also she was better with green hair.

I get this, I found her a little boring sometimes too, but our feelings towards characters do not determine their quality.

Now onto the actual arguments: "she didn't have to bully willow and that her behaviour to luz is just bad" no character has to do anything, if her arc didn't start out like this she'd be a different character with different themes.

"She doesn't get confronted about it" while she isn't confronted in a yelling angry way often, she is still confronted. In covention, she reveals her insecurities, helping us understand her motivations and reasoning, her veiws are then confronted by Luz, teaching amity others struggle in the same way she does, eventually accepting that she was wrong and undoing her mistake by undoing the everlasting oath and admitting that luz has the ability to succeed. In lost in language she confronts herself showing her reflectfullness, admitting she hasn't been the friendliest witch either and promising to work on herself and finally in understanding willow she is repeatedly told off by characters like eda and inner willow before (again) explaing her motivations and promising to do better, even then there are still consequences and she still has to work to fix her mistake inner willow calls her attempt "a start" showing us the consequences of her actions towards willow are still there, even after a sorry.

This is in my opinion is a strength, not a weakness, she reflects and chooses to get better, she isn't yelled at or handheld until she does what's right, furthermore it fits into the shows themes of restorative justice, reflecting and choosing to undo your mistakes. It's not focused on retribution or making anyone suffer for what they've done but instead to try and fix the mess made, apologising, undoing the oath, fixing willow's mindscape and making an effort to fix their relationship are all restorative justice.

She isn't "good at everything". in fact, she is the weakest out of her willow and gus. Willow and Gus are exceptionally skilled with multiple episodes focused on their talent while amity "fought her way to the top" she may have been top student but that's never shown as meaning anymore than pretty good for a secondary schooler. This is a show about taking down the government, and we are asked to suspend our disbelief. She needed to win for the plot, so she barely scraped a win. The protagonists needed titan blood, so they got some of the titan blood. In this show background, teenagers are taking down trained, powerful officials with ease.

Another thing mentioned is comparisons to other characters. If you go in thinking a character will be like another character and go a certain way, prepare to be disappointed by the odds of that not happening. For odalia being like that one other person is because she's rich, cruel, and not that deep. Odalia isn't praised for her depth. She isn't a particularly interesting villain because she is made to be a fun one which is subjective and therefore difficult to determine quality

Thank you for coming to me with this discussion, and thanks for your civility (especially after the incident) I hope you have a nice day!

[camelspit]

visibly clenching my jaw and shaking with rage. why are all the newer barbie movies trash.

[innocentcurse]

Dorothy listened quietly, trying to steady her nerves as Copper spoke, but it was hard to focus on his words when everything inside her was screaming. The thought of Elias being in danger, of the people she cared about being caught up in something she couldn’t control, it was all too much. His attempt to reassure her was appreciated, but it didn’t completely stifle the rising panic in her chest. She could hear his words, but the fear gnawing at her mind made it hard to let them sink in.

As he squeezed her hand, his touch was warm, grounding, but the weight of everything she feared made her feel like she was sinking deeper with every passing second. Copper’s words about safety being an illusion hit her hard, though she could understand the logic behind them. She had always known that safety wasn’t guaranteed, that danger could appear from anywhere, but to hear it so plainly made it feel more real, more terrifying. Dorothy herself had spent so much time running from the danger that she had been through in the past, and a part of her, admittedly, felt cheated out of the safe and happy life that she felt as though she had worked hard to deserve for herself. She let out a defeated sigh at the thought.

The sad smile Copper gave her only made her heart ache more. She could tell he didn’t feel any better than she did, no matter how much he tried to reassure the two of them. "You are helping, Copper," she said quietly, shaking her head at his self-criticism. "Even if you don’t know what to do right now... I think just being here, talking about it, it makes me realise that I'm not alone in experiencing it all, and I think that's extremely important," she looked at him, her eyes still brimming with unshed tears. "I also think that you're right," she finally circled back to his comments about how safety never really existed in Cardinal Hill. "I think we're all just trying to hold on to that feeling, even if it was founded on nothing. It's the best we can do."

Her voice faltered slightly as the magnitude of the situation hit her again. This wasn’t just about her or Copper anymore, it was about everyone in Cardinal Hill, everyone she cared about. If dark magic had its sights set on them... Dorothy wasn’t sure if there was anything they could do to stop it. But she wouldn’t give up, not without a fight. As hopeless as she felt about the entire situation, the fire inside of her burned brighter than ever, the motivation to do as much as she could to help re-igniting.

Upon seeing the way that Dorothy reacted to him telling her about the tarot cards, Copper knew she at least got the impression he was trying to make. A moment later though he felt guilty, so he quickly told Dorothy, “It’s sometimes hard to interpret them though. What seems bad might not be, and a lot about self-readings is colored by inner thoughts. It’s harder to look at the cards objectively.” Still, Copper thought they were pretty clear that things were not great right now. He felt badly though about scaring Dorothy, but Copper reminded himself that she was already scared. He was too. Everything he’d said, she’d already been thinking - well except for the part about his tarot reading. And the longer they talked, the more unsettled the air around them became, and Copper felt his heart beating harder in his chest now. Looking across the table at Dorothy, Copper just grabbed her hand gently, trying to offer her a reassuring smile. But that was hard when he didn’t feel very reassured himself. “I know it’s scary,” Copper told Dorothy. “Trust me, I really know. But we’ll get through it. We’re strong.” And Copper didn’t mean because they were witches. At least in his case, life had made him resilient, and he felt like the same was true of Dorothy. However, Copper didn’t really know what they were going to do. 

After giving Dorothy’s hand another squeeze, Copper just smiled sadly at her. “Here’s the thing, Dorothy,” he started, not sure if this would make things better or worse. “Safety is kind of an illusion. Cardinal Hill is not a safe space. It never has been. Nowhere is. That’s just something we tell ourselves to feel better until something comes along that shatters that illusion. I thought I was safe back in Maine. I thought I was safe in my house…in my bedroom. But I wasn’t. So I guess maybe I’m lucky that I never felt safe here; it’s been less of a shock.” When he was done, Copper looked a Dorothy and couldn’t help but laugh, admitting, “That was about the least comforting thing I could have said, isn’t it?” More seriously, he explained, “I guess what I’m trying to say is we didn’t lose our safety, we just lost the façade of it. The truth is we never really had it to begin with, and we’ve been okay until now. Well…kind of.”  Sighing, he shook his head, saying, “I don’t feel like I’m helping.”

[chillinglikeashilling]

I do think that it's important for Evan to understand that just because his friend don't express it in the way he does (or desperately tries not to) it doesn't mean that they don't love and miss him just as much as he misses them.

Evan said that he learned after love (his friends) came into his life, that the rest of life is still very much a thing you have to deal with and now he's seen someone dealing with it.

Jammer loves the Pilot Program and he loves his mom and sisters and all of the other teams he's part of, but the logistics of life get in the way of that. So he's thinking of ways to change his life to accommodate that love.

Now Jammer doesn't handle that perfectly because no one does really (god I want to see the convo in the next episode so bad) but he's acknowledged the problem and then moved towards fixing it.

I understand why Evan is the way he is but I do think that (for perfectly understandable reasons) he can be very unaware of the others feelings and motivations. In the same way he was doing a disservice to Sam, he's doing the same disservice to Jammer by deciding on his own that they are being 'kind' rather than 'loving'.

Jammer obviously isn't coming at the thing with the same intesity as Evan is but they both have the same silly day dream of just getting to be with their loved ones forever. That's a very understandable, very common want.

[cable-salamdr]

Wolfcat is sooooo funky to me esp now that it’s confirmed that Sora and Jordana were in school together and drifted apart. I don’t really see them as toxic yuri anymore and more as Jordana somewhat-joining the ninja and they are both confused as fuck about one another. Just exhausted from life and scared of AND for the other person. They have so many issues to fix between each other and themselves, and if it takes them like 10 years to actually get together then I am completely okay with that. No more toxic yuri only weary yuri now.

[necrotic-nephilim]

Any ships you don’t like in the batfam fandom that is popular?

OOOH this is such a fun question because I have quite a few

StephCass - i'll be honest this is one of those ships where the fandom ruined it for me. because 2000s StephCass is an elite dynamic, they care for each other so deeply. but the fandom has been intent on defanging and purifying this ship. i don't know *why* but StephCass seems most popular with the anti-Batcest crowd who get very mad if you compare it to ships they deem Batcest. i have an entire meta commentary on this in my drafts I'll likely never post discussing why the only reason StephCass gets the pass for not being Batcest ties directly into misogyny (because the women of the Batfam need to exist as love interests first, not family members so Steph was never going to truly get to exist as a "full" Batfam member so long as she could remain a viable love interest for Tim, and the same can apply to Babs, Helena, and even Cass in some cases) and that just sours me to it. like if i want yuri in Batfam i think there are far more interesting/fucked up ships for Steph like Babs/Steph or Helena/Steph. and when it comes to what i'd actually like to see in canon, i don't want to see Steph relegated to love interest of a Batfamily member, even if it's queer. let her date and exist outside of Gotham the way every other Batfam member gets to, DC *please*.

Bruce/Selina - i can't fully articulate why this ship isn't my thing, it just isn't. i think i just can't conceivably agree with Selina letting go of so many of her fundamental morals and beliefs for the sake of a man, even one she loves such as Bruce. ironically, i think that's one of the few things Gotham War got right about these two. the only canon love interest i like for Bruce is Zatanna and i mourn we'll never get much of that.

JayRoy - i will admit when i was newer to DC the first comics i picked up for Jason were all New-52 and i shipped this. but now that i'm a pre-Flashpoint truther and i've actually read well-written Roy Harper comics, i only see the flaws in this ship. ngl if ppl were actually fun and interesting with it, playing with the idea of Roy knowing Jason as Robin and still seeing him as just Dick's little brother who's gone a little mental, it *could* be fun. but this Red Hood & the Outlaws (2011) and Red Hood/Arsenal (2015) dynamic *butchers* the fuck out of Roy and strips him of everything interesting. and even as a Batfamily stan, my number one pet peeve is when other DC characters get *butchered* in a Batfamily character's book just for the sake of propping up the Bat as some kind of savior. free Roy Harper from this mans.

Bruce/Oliver - we could be here all day if i listed all the Bruce ships i don't like, but i figure this one has to be included. because oh my god either the people shipping this *really* don't understand Oliver Queen or they just hate his ass because why would you subject Oliver to this man. he can't *stand* Bruce. i really hate the popular BruOliie shipping dynamic of like "oh they were boarding school besties" because if you want that, you *should* like Bruce/Zatanna, not these two. Oliver just always gets butchered in these fics and i won't stand for it.

Tim/Bernard - the ESSAYS i could write on this ship and why i dislike it. the fucking *fear* DC (and most popular media tbh) has with depicting queer relationships as anything other than totally perfect and cute for fear of accusations of homophobia has stripped this ship of *any* real grit. Bernard is a non-character in Tim Drake: Robin, he exists to cheer Tim on and prop him up and just be The Boyfriend. we occasionally get glimpses of an interesting character with really interesting trauma and nothing is *done* with it bc at the end of the day, Tim and Bernard must be perfect and cute. what's fun about Tim is he is the *worst* boyfriend alive. that boy is *ass* at dating. all of his relationships are rich with conflict and yet the moment he dates a guy suddenly all of his flaws vanish? i hate it. i mourn what this could've been if we kept messy Tim Drake and had a Bernard who was actually informed by his trauma. DC please let gays be messy again. also of all of Tim's 90s/00s friends to bring back as a love interest, Bernard Dowd was just a *bizarre* fucking choice. Sebastian Ives was *right* there come on now.

Any Crossover Ship - look if crossovers are your cup of tea i'm happy for you but oh my god if i have to see that little green ghost boy or that ladybug girl in the Batfam one more time i think i may explode. i have a lot of thoughts on *why* i think specifically Danny Phantom and Miraculous Ladybug get crossed over as often as they do with the Batfam, but i don't think anyone wants to year that. my only exception to this is Jason/Bucky Barnes, but it *has* to be comics!Bucky. like. Judd Winick's Jason and Ed Brubaker's Bucky would hatefuck and that i wish to see it. any other crossover ship (especially the Peter Parker ones that seem to be rising in popularity) just do *not* do it for me.

honestly besides that i don't think i dislike many ships. (aside from being super opinionated on Bruce ships, but that's mostly bc ppl will use him to butcher the character they ship him with) there are some ships i'm neutral to because i simply do not know enough to have an opinion (like Dick/Wally). i guess the only Batcest ship i'm not particular to is Bruce/Damian, but I wouldn't say that one is popular nor would i say i dislike it, just that it's not my cup of tea. most Batcest ships click for me in one way or another because i like their Weird dnyamics. i guess i could also say i dislike most ships that have come out of Young Justice (tv) because. oh my *god* why were those group of characters put together on a team. it's baffling. but even then it's not disliking those ships, it's moreso disliking that show's depiction of those characters so. everything is really dependant on the canon context for me!

[tothepointofinsanity]

I know by now that I have a "type" to the characters I like in media, so it wouldn't be that outrageous for me to say that Sayaka feels bpd-coded.

[tassium]

I'm just so mad and upset and SO SAD.

I purposefully collect four things:

US pennies and other interesting coins

Enamel pins

Polyhedral dice

Rubiks cubes

Packing for this move was the last time I saw anything on that list except the rubiks cubes.