#they weren't exactly enemies or allies either

[fulltimecatwitch]

big fan of whatever Fringilla and Cahir had going on

[south-of-heaven]

Damian x Reader

Enemies to Lovers where they are forced to team up against Indi and Dexter and they ending up picking a win and kisses her out of the sudden

Spark || Damian Priest x Reader

Summary: Everyone knows you and Damian don't get along. When an unexpected line of events force the two of you to team up, you didn't expect sparks to fly like they did.

You had never gotten along with Damian Priest, to say the least. From the moment you crossed paths, there was an undeniable tension between you. Some would even go as far as to say that you were enemies, always finding yourselves on opposing sides in the wrestling ring.

However, fate had a funny way of bringing unlikely allies together. A mutual feud with Dexter Lumis and Indi Hartwell forced you and Damian to team up for a tag match against the formidable duo. The idea of working alongside someone you didn't get along with didn't exactly fill you with confidence, but you knew that you both had to put your differences aside to win.

As the match began, the intensity was palpable. It was a brutal and hard-fought battle, and the fact that you and Damian weren't on the best of terms didn't make things any easier. But despite the clashes and disagreements, you both managed to work surprisingly well together, feeding off each other's strengths and covering for each other's weaknesses.

As the match wore on, you could feel the adrenaline pumping through your veins, and it was clear that Damian was feeling the same way. The crowd was on their feet, and the energy in the arena was electrifying.

Then, in a shocking turn of events, you and Damian emerged victorious. The final bell rang, and you stood there, panting and trying to catch your breath, the adrenaline still coursing through your veins.

But what happened next completely took you by surprise. Without a moment's hesitation, Damian reached out and pulled you into a deep, passionate kiss. It was as if time stood still, and the world around you faded away. All that existed in that moment was the two of you.

Sparks flew, and it wasn't just the pyro from the arena. There was an undeniable chemistry between you that neither of you had anticipated. The tension that had always been there between you seemed to transform into something entirely different – something that left you both breathless and wanting more.

As the kiss ended, you both pulled back, looking into each other's eyes, stunned by the intensity of the moment. You could see the surprise mirrored in Damian's expression, but there was something more there – a glimmer of something deeper, something that neither of you had acknowledged until now.

"I... I don't know what just happened," you stammered, trying to make sense of it all.

Damian's eyes softened, his hand reaching to gently cup your cheek. "I don't either," he admitted, his voice filled with sincerity. "But I can't deny that there's something between us."

You took a deep breath, trying to process your emotions. "I've always thought we were enemies," you said, a hint of vulnerability creeping into your voice.

Damian gave you a small smile. "Maybe we were just too stubborn to see what was right in front of us," he said. "But now that I've kissed you, I don't think I can go back."

A mix of excitement and uncertainty swirled within you, but in that moment, you knew that you didn't want to go back either. There was something special between you and Damian, and you were both willing to explore where it could lead.

As the cheers of the crowd filled the air, you and Damian stood there, looking at each other with newfound understanding and affection. The path ahead might be uncertain, but one thing was clear – sparks had flown, and it was a feeling neither of you wanted to let go of.

[akystaracer22]

Okay, I honestly just want to say this but my siblings and I actually prefer Hyrule Warriors: Definitive Edition to Hyrule Warriors: Age of Calamity.

This will be purely about gameplay by the way, so no spoilers on the actual story of either games. I enjoyed both regardless.

Firstly, we both preferred how much more there was to do in HW compared to AoC, and playing the actual levels were a considerably more enjoyable experience. Keep in mind we played both games in two player mode, so that might impact our opinion.

In HW, I was often using Young Link in the levels, and I was my sibling's player two, while they used Link. In AoC, I played Mipha while my sibling played as primarily Revali when they could.

We both found AoC a much more stressful experience for us, and not in the good way. The missions often felt like a slog in some parts where we had to just be everywhere at once with little reprieve. The AI of the allies was also lacking in that nothing would happen if we weren't actively playing them. In HW, my siblings and I would sometimes be surprised by random keeps or outposts being taken or lost even though we weren't anywhere near there. It made the game feel more alive in a way AoC just wasn't.

We also had to struggle with an unexpected difficulty spike in AoC after the master sword was recovered. Suddenly Revali and Mipha weren't doing any damage despite us having a pretty decent level on them. Link also was suddenly taking out entire boss weak point with a couple strikes. It made my experience incredibly poor and made the game feel really unbalanced.

Finally, there's the upgrades for each character. I can only talk about Mipha compared to Young Link though so keep that in mind. In Hyrule Warriors, badges were the main way to get upgrades aside from weapons, and for me personally when playing Young Link the most important aspect was filling my magic and special attack bars as fast as possible to be in Fierce Deity mode as much as I physically can. With Mipha, the only option for upgrade aside from her attack gauge weapons and hearts was how many combos you have. In HW you can increase how fast you take keeps, increase how long your powerups last, increase how much damage you do to enemies with their guard up. There's just... more.

From what I've seen online it's not exactly a popular feeling, but I just think Hyrule Warrior's is a better game than Age of Calamity gameplay wise, for me at least. I felt like I was getting more from HW than AoC.

[mysticstarlightduck]

OC Interview Tag

Thank you so much for the tag, @mk-writes-stuff!!!

Rules: answer the questions as an OC

I'll go with Maryon from my WIP Of Starlight and Beasts for this one!

Are you named after anyone?

"I'm not exactly sure, if I'm being honest. I vaguely remember reading something about someone named 'Maryan' being a popular character in a beloved folk tale in the kingdom where I was born, so I think that could be where I got my name from. It's not like I can ask my biological family that, though. They've been dead since forever - maybe if the roads weren't so godsdamned riddled with bandits that wouldn't be so. But noo, the King of Tirawen has 'more pressing' matters, or so I've been told. Well he can shove those 'pressing matters' up his royal arse, nothing will ever be an excuse to neglect his citizens' needs - ! But I digress, do move on."

When was the last time you cried?

"Oh, that's a rather interesting question! I don't quite remember, if I'm being honest. It's not like I'm bottling up my feelings or anything like that - far from it. I just that I haven't had a reason to cry in a while. Things have been going pretty great. Despite the, you know, looming war that's on the brink of changing the continent forever and all."

Do you have kids?

"Goodness, no, there's far too many things I want to pursue before even thinking about having children. It's an endearing thought, sure, but certaintly not enough to be one of my top priorities within the next ten years or so."

Do you use sarcasm a lot?

"Only when I'm severely annoyed. I think that, while irony and sarcasm can surely add an interesting layer to any communication, there are more effective ways of making your words sting. Like speaking them while pointing a poison dagger to one's throat, for example! Just kidding. Or am I? (winks) We'll never know. But in all seriousness, I prefer keeping those kinds of confrontations to a minimum - being polite and kind often solves more disputes than rage, and those are words I try to live by."

What’s the first thing you notice about people?

"I'm quite perceptive - being the adoptive daughter of the most powerful spymaster in all of the Frosts has definetly given me an edge when it comes to reading people and deciphering their true intentions without even needing much effort on my part. People usually do all the hard work themelves - their choice of words and body language reads like an open book to me after just a simple conversation. So there's quite a lot I can notice about someone after first meeting them - but their intentions, feelings and morality are definetly the main ones."

What’s your eye colour?

"Dark forest green. Or so I'm told - Eidan, my boyfriend, can be quite the romantic. Either way, I rather like that color and I find his description of it to be very sweet!"

Scary movies or happy endings?

"I adore reading any kind of book, the more intriguing the story is the merrier! I usually don't have a strong preference as long as the tale is gripping enough to keep my attention focused after the first ten pages of the book and especially if there are deeper meanings to be found beyond just pretty words. If I had to choose, I would say a balanced mix of scariness and happiness in a story is ideal, though I do lean more towards the scary!"

Any special talents?

"Oh, many! I've been trained in the arts of espionage, dyplomacy and politics from a young age, and I've also learned quite a lot of fighting techniques, poison recipes, and languages! I'm also an expert knife thrower, and know how to survive in the wild. I know how to manipulate an enemy to fall into a trap I've laid out for them, just as I know how to persuade a potential ally to help with our cause, with just my words as my tools. Currently, I'm still working on learning how to cook without causing a potential fire in the castles, but I'm getting better at baking!!!"

Where were you born?

"I was born in one of the many provinces along the outskirst of the capital kingdom of Tirawen. My birth parents - from what vague childhood memories I can still remember - were very successful merchants. However, one of their many trips out of the kingdom's main road would prove to be our last - bandits, you see, as I mentioned before. A very tricky sort. I don't remember much of what transpired, if I'm being quite honest. What I can remember is being lost in the woods of the Frost for a while before being saved by the man who would go on to become my adoptive father, a spymaster otherwise known as the 'Serpent of the Frosts'. He took me, then a lost child of around five years of age, under his wing as his own child, and gave me a chance at the life I have today."

Do you have any pets?

"I have a 10 year old cat whom I named Sir Thurston who seems to love randomly appearing and disappearing at random places around the castles at will. I've also got twin pet snakes named Knack and Snap, one purple and the other white. And though they're highly venomous (and capable of breathing out ice shards like a dragon does fire) they've only ever bitten my enemies. They're also real cuddle buddies and very sweet if you give them something tasty to eat!"

What sort of sports do you play?

"Well, if these count as sport where you come from: swordfighting, archery, knife throwing, martial arts, tavern brawling (on occasion, but don't tell Father, haha), climbing random stuff so I can get to high places. If you count chess as a sport of sorts - though it is more of a competive, strategic tabletop game - I'm rather good at it!"

How tall are you?

"Shorter than most of my friends, or so it seems. Eidan especially. But no matter. Being smaller has its advantages too - it makes sneaking around easier and makes spooking my friends by randomly appearing behind them that much fun!"

What was your favourite subject in school?

"I had private tutors, other than my own adoptive father himself, so not exactly a school in the traditional sense of the word, but my favorite 'subjects' were politics, foreign ancient languages and botany (especially when it comes to rare plants and their effects). I also really like poetry, especially the ones from the fallen kingdom of Idraven - its very interesting to see how that society saw the world, though their demise never fails to bring me a strong sense of sorrow whenever I think about it for too long."

What is your dream job?

"Becoming a spymaster, like my adoptive father. Not only have I been trained for this since I was a child, but I also really look forward to being able to serve the land which took me in when I had nothing else in the world. Being a spymaster is a high honor in the Frosts, and nothing could fill me with more pride than being deemed worthy of serving our Queens and protecting the realm from behind the scenes."

Tagging (gently, no pressure) @eccaia, @cowboybrunch, @tabswrites, @littleladymab, @little-peril-stories, @oh-no-another-idea, @rickie-the-storyteller, @thepeculiarbird, @cabbojage, @the-ellia-west, @clairelsonao3, @crowandmoonwriting, @steh-lar-uh-nuhs, @winterandwords, @willtheweaver, @forthesanityofstorytellers, @gummybugg, @doublegoblin, @autumnalwalker, @moonandris and OPEN TAG

[jedifighterpilot2727]

Somebody That I Used to Know

Just a little fic that that's based on the canon dialogue that occurs between the female Dragonborn (Aria), and Serana after Serana has been cured of vampirism. Takes place after the defeat of Harkon when Serana and the dragonborn are seeing each other for the first time post cure.

It had been two months since Serana had left.

Aria had offered to go with her, but Serana had insisted that the journey was one she needed to make on her own.

In a way, Aria understood - becoming human again was a very personal decision. But on the other hand, she knew how traumatic the experience of becoming a daughter of Coldharbour was. Serana didn't talk about it often - or really at all - but Aria knew enough. Between the many books of Daedric lore that she'd read on her travels, and the vocal nightmares that she'd had to wake Serana up from, there wasn't much she couldn't piece together.

The knowledge had certainly made the task of killing Serana's father Harkon a lot easier. If she were being honest, she had sparred with a few trees the morning of the siege on the castle in hopes that the blade would be a little dull when it cut through his skin. She didn't really know if vampires felt pain the same way that humans did, but it made Aria feel better at least.

A small act of vengeance on behalf of her friend.

And that's why she'd offered to accompany Serana when she went to Falion to ask him about curing her vampirism.

- Not that Serana needed to be cured of vampirism, she'd more than proven herself as a friend and an ally, despite her . . . unconventional diet. It's not like she'd ever tried to feed off of Aria - pretty good restraint for a vampire who'd been locked in a crypt for over a thousand years. Besides, there were plenty of evil people who deserved to lose some of their blood. Hell, Aria had helped kill dozens of bandits and murderers; who was she to care if someone like Serana wanted a little snack first? -

But she'd wanted Serana to know that she wasn't alone anymore. That she had friends - that she had Aria. That it didn't matter if it was killing her undead father or helping her become human again, or living life as vampire if that's what Serana wanted - Aria was here for her. And Aria could be there for her from afar too, that's exactly what she'd done these past two months.

Once Serana had left to find Falion, Aria had returned to Whiterun to check in with the rest of the Companions. It had been too long since she'd seen her shield siblings, and she needed some good old fashioned skull bashing to take her mind off of things. She mostly picked up jobs with Farkas, finding he was the easiest to talk to since she'd been named Harbinger. It made no difference to him what title she held, he treated her just the same as he always did; like a beefy older brother who would tease her and smack her a little too hard on the shoulder but would definitely knock somebody's lights out if they dared to look at her the wrong way.

It was nice to not have to do any hard thinking and just work for a change, and her pockets weren't complaining either. Between the bounties and the loot they's stolen off bandits; Aria had enough money to spring for the expensive corkbulb bolts that she preferred for her crossbow. That's exactly why she and Farkas found themselves trudging through Dayspring canyon, headed for Fort Dawnguard.

"I still don't understand why you can't just use a greatsword." Farkas grumbles. "Eorlund makes those right at Skyforge, and you don't have to keep buying them, just sharpen it every now and then."

"It's a little hard to be sneaky when you're heaving a giant hunk of metal around and grunting like a boar. Haven't you ever noticed that you never really sneak up on any of our enemies?" Aria asks, squinting into the sunlight.

"Don't need to sneak up on people when I can just bash them with my giant hunk of metal." Farkas returns, and Aria can't really argue with him there.

"Well I like slicing through people just as much as you, but occasionally the situation calls for a little more finesse. Or at least distance." She crinkles her nose. "Weren't you glad for my crossbow when we had to take down that troll that smelled all the way from here to Riften?"

Farkas belly laughs.

"I'll give you that, even with your crossbow, Aela complained about us smelling bad for a week! Guess she forgets she smells like a wet dog."

"Funny how you can really smell it when you're no longer a werewolf, huh?"

"I'll say, no wonder I was getting funny looks around town for so many years."

"To be fair, you still don't smell great." Aria teases, and Farkas gives her a playful shove that's still strong enough to send her stumbling up the last of the steps to the fort.

"Watch it, shield sister."

They're both laughing as they make their way into the Fort, Farkas having been her a handful of times so that Aria could restock or so they could pick up intel on the remaining vampire covens.

Isran has really made progress with the place since the the last time they stopped by, everything's not quite as dusty and Aria doesn't feel the constant urge to sneeze like she usually does.

Sorine's workshop is somehow even more cluttered than normal, Dwemer scraps laying about in haphazard piles. Really, it was a wonder that Sorine got any work done at all.

Of course, Aria only exacerbates the problem, trading a few Dwemer trinkets she'd picked up along with some coin to refill her stockpile of crossbow bolts. She and Farkas chat with Sorine for a while - Sorine somehow roping them into checking out a Dwemer ruin halfway across Skyrim for some weapon schematics. When they finally say their goodbyes, Aria decides to have a look around the rest of the fort, see what else is new besides the lack of cobwebs. Only, she finds something, or someone, she isn't quite expecting.

Right there in the rotunda, sitting in the beams of the noon day sun without so much as a hat on, is Serana.

The sight stops Aria so abruptly that Farkas slams into her back.

"You alright?" Farkas asks, his hands reaching out to her shoulders to catch her before she hits the ground.

The commotion has drawn Serana's attention, and Aria meets her eyes across the room.

Serana's eyes no longer have their vampiristic glowy quality, but Aria still finds herself completely mesmerized.

"You alright?" Farkas repeats, and Aria tears her gaze away from Serana to look at him.

"Yeah, yeah." She pats his hand thats still on her shoulder in reassurance. "Just, uh wait here for a minute, okay?"

"I will remain on guard here." Farkas gives a mock salute, and Aria finds herself grateful once again at his ability to overlook things that most people would ask questions about.

Her eyes once again find Serana's as she makes her way to the bench along the wall where the other woman is sitting. She resists the urge to check her armor for grease and blood. - it's Serana - she reminds herself, she's seen you in way worse shape than this.

Still, one hand tugs on her sword belt to center it, and the other adjusts her helmet where the collision with Farkas had set it tilted. It was her old Imperial officer's helmet; Arias much preferred the hard hat's protection to that of a hood, unless she was trying to sneak around; plus, it usually got her brownie points with the local guards.

If Serana notices her preening, she doesn't mention it, though her lips do curl up in a smirk.

"There you are. I'm - I'm back."

Aria's heart stills and then takes off at a gallop when Serana speaks, and she hopes she isn't imagining the grateful sigh she hears in Serana's voice.

"I was wondering when I would see you again."

Wondering? More like you've spent every waking moment for the past two months trying not to wonder when you'd see her again.

"Here I am." Serana shrugs. "Human as ever."

"And you're good? Everything is good?"

Mouth insert foot. Aria shakes her head.

"The world is alive and so am I."

"That's good." Aria cringes inwardly. "I'm glad. I uh, I missed you."

"I missed you too."

They stare at each other for a long moment, and Aria wracks her brain for something - anything - to say. She'd spent over a year fighting by this woman's side, battling the living and unliving alike, and she can't think of a damn thing to say. All the hours spent in conversation about everything from the fate of the world to how the smell of flowers hadn't changed in the thousand years Serana had been underground.

All that and she has nothing.

"I should - uh - I should get going, I guess. Farkas is waiting."

"Ahh," Serana jerks her chin over Aria's shoulder at the man mentioned. "Is he the thug?"

"He's not a -" Aria begins heatedly, but she follows Serana's gaze to where Farkas is standing in the middle of the doorway with his arms crossed looking like - well, a thug. "He's a good friend." is what she settles for in the end.

A look she can't quite place flickers over Serana's face, but then it's gone.

"Right. Well, I'll let you get back to your friend then."

The words feel like a dismissal, and they hit Aria like a punch to the chest; a wave of emotion thats crests over her, leaving her floating and listless in the aftermath. Tears spring unbidden to her eyes, and she turns her head before Serana can see them.

"Right. I'll see you around." Aria spins on her heel and crosses the large room back to where Farkas is waiting, brushing past him without speaking.

"Who was that?" his voice timbers out gently behind her, and she thanks the nine that she's at least she's managed to teach him to not always speak in a bellow.

"She's just - " Aria's voice cracks and the unshed tears blur her vision.

She doesn't know what she expected to happen when she saw Serana again, but it certainly wasn't that. That felt like a conversation with someone she barely knew - definitely not with someone she'd spend the better part of a year calling her best friend.

Serana's moved from the bench in the rotunda to a chair in the hall, and they've passed by no less than three times.

Damn Fort Dawnguard and its maze like layout.

"You ok?" Farkas asks, and she can hear the worry in his tone.

"Just, just get us out of this stupid place, would you? I swear the damn entrance keeps moving."

If Farkas has anything to say about that, he keeps it to himself; but he does take over the lead and Aria tucks in behind him, using him as a shield to block her from Serana's line of sight.

Once they've made it back outside, she swipes at her eyes, and Farkas gives her a studying look before tossing an arm around her shoulder and dragging her down the path that will lead them back to Jorrvaskr.

"You know I love you like a sister, but if you want to talk about whatever happened back there, you should probably wait and talk to Vilkas."

It's Arias turn to laugh, and she feels at least a little better.

It only lasts a moment though until she sees Serana once again in her mind's eye, and the weight of fallen hopes settles like lead in her stomach.

If only she could figure out what she'd been hoping for.

[krat395]

W.D. Gaster, the Best "Uncle" Ever Part 2 (Chapter 3)

The next level of virtual reality is here thanks to Gaster! :D With the capabilities of his special chamber (simulation chamber, hologram room, VR room, etc. whatever you want to call it), he was able to create a highly immersive fantasy-themed role-playing game for the kids to all play together. And while this game of Gaster's appears to be coming to a close, the fun that he and the kids are all having certainly doesn't have to end after said game is over. No siree! ;)

Undertale(c) Toby Fox.

******************************************

Chapter 1

Chapter 2

Chapter 4

Chapter 5

Chapter 6

Chapter 7

Chapter 8

Chapter 9

Chapter 10

Chapter 11

Chapter 12

******************************************

W.D. GASTER, THE BEST “UNCLE” EVER PART 2

Chapter 3: “Endgame”

Frisk, Chara, Asriel, and MK have all had a great deal of fun playing Gaster's game thus far. From Elmore and Terisa's castle all the way to the barbarian village, there wasn't a single dull moment. How could there be with a room capable of creating such immersive environments? But their adventure wasn't over yet. To complete their adventure, they needed to fight the evil sorcerer, Tesgar. And after devising a strategy with their new allies and the in-game versions of their real-life family members and friends, that's exactly what they did. And reaching Tesgar was no easy task. Because outside of his castle was an army of shape-shifting crystal creatures, the strongest enemies in the entire game besides Tesgar himself. If the kids had faced them on their own, they likely wouldn't have made it past the first barrier. So that's why they enlisted the help of basically every good-aligned character they encountered in the game up until that point, including the in-game versions of their real-life family members and friends. Only with an army of their very own would they stand a chance against Tesgar's crystal creatures; every single one of them, including a crystalline dragon they fought just before entering Tesgar's castle! It was Tesgar’s loyal pet and boy was it tough to take down, tougher than every enemy the kids encountered up until that point! They needed all the help they could get to destroy this dragon. And they destroyed it, but it cost them another use of the Sorcerer Gaster spell. That time it was casted by MK, the third kid to make use of the spell in the game. With Asriel, Chara, and MK's uses of the spell gone, Frisk was then the only kid capable of using the spell before the game’s end. And she used it, but not until first fighting her way through Tesgar's castle itself. In order to reach Tesgar himself in the highest room of his castle, the kids first needed to battle their way through corridors of more crystal creatures. The final stretch! And one that wasn't too terribly difficult due to the assistance of their new allies (including the in-game versions of their family and friends). With help from their new allies, the kids pushed their way through Tesgar's castle until finally reaching Tesgar himself in his crystalline lair. And they weren't alone when they reached him either! Just before Tesgar (who appeared as a tall crystalline man with crystal skin that repeatedly changed its color, a white sorcerer’s cloak, and no visible face when he was first encountered) sealed off the entrance to his lair, Cleric Toriel, Barbarian Asgore, Monk Sans, Warlock Papyrus, Paladin Undyne, Wizard Alphys, Ranger Blooky, Bard Mettaton, and Druid Muffet entered to assist the kids in battle. Thirteen against one! And the nine adults’ assistance was more than needed against Tesgar himself, for he was a very powerful sorcerer with an onslaught of magical powers!

Link to full chapter: W.D. Gaster, the Best Uncle Ever Part 2 (Ch 3) by nman1983 on DeviantArt

[pure-garbage]

Moniker For A Gastropod? Multiplying Enemies And Diminutive Allies!

Lana watched through the eyes of the transponder snails as a host of events played out across the island. There wasn't much that made sense to her. She saw enormous children being shepherded through the halls, steered carefully clear of a wide path of devastation that she recognized at once as Zoro's handiwork. The sight brought a little smile to her face.

"Not one for subtlety," she noted with some amusement.

She saw men outside struggling to gain entrance to the lab and watched with grit teeth as the situation grew ever more dire for her crew. In a hallway, one scene tore her attention away from all the others.

The swordsman who'd defeated her was getting his ass absolutely handed to him by a man wielding a bamboo shoot. Lana shuddered a little.

"Guess the smug bastard had a beating coming, but... how powerful is that other guy anyway?" she wondered. "His haki must be outrageously strong if he can handle that swordsman so easily."

She wouldn't have been able to tear her gaze away from the spectacle, but something else caught her attention.

"Zoro's not the only friend I have the lab right now," she realized, zeroing in on one snail's feed in particular. "Chopper? What's he doing in there? Mixing up some kind of medicine? Ugh, there's too much going on! None of it makes any sense because I have no idea what's going on... okay!"

She took a deep breath, hoping to calm her agitated thoughts and slow her racing heart.

"I need to focus. Luffy's been captured, my focus needs to be setting him free. That's the first goal. Obviously, duh."

She rose, releasing the influence of her power on the room around her and lifting the library Feng-sui. The footsteps she heard from outside were faint and far away. A quick peek back inside the mind the transponder snail informed her that no one was close.

"What a useful little slimy thing you are," Lana purred, stroking the snail's shell. She could feel its apprehension, yet unsoothed by the time they'd spent together. To be fair, Lana could only assume her trips inside its consciousness weren't exactly pleasant for the little creature. "Maybe I'll take you with me... would you like to come along with Auntie Lana and be her cute little eye-in-the-sky pet? Hmm? Good snail..."

She dashed through the halls, using the snail to find the blind spots of its comrades and avoid patrol groups. A quick peek across the other channels informed her that Luffy, Robin, Franky and the marines had all been tossed in a cage along with the power-holder swordsman. Zoro, meanwhile, was on the move. She slapped a palm to her face in consternation.

"How the hell did he get all the way to the other side of the lab so fast?! What's he trying to do anyway? Gah, I guess it would just be too convenient if we could meet up and he could help me defeat the two holding our crewmates... Do I have time to chase after him? There's no way I can take on the guy that beat up that swordsman with the fluffy hat. That would be suicide... but Zoro's just getting farther away by the minute! Damn it! I need a plan!"

Another straw hat caught her attention, streaking past a video feed in a furry blur. Chopper wasn't far away at all. In fact, he was currently making himself as small as possible, peeking around corners to keep an eye on Luffy and the others.

"Hm... Chopper, huh?" Lana mused. She changed direction and made a beeline for the gaggle of her crewmates. "He can't beat haki man either, but... with the right plan..."

Lana knew haki man was out of her league, but the lab was full of lesser minions that wouldn't pose her any challenge at all. On top of that, she knew the lab held more than just enemies.

"I can use their own stuff against them," she reasoned. She had one hand in her pocket, maintaining contact with her abducted transponder snail. She used it once more to search through channels, flipping her attention from one set of bestalked eyeballs to the next while she looked for the items that would help her rescue her crew.

"I should give you a name," she mused as she browsed through the differing fields of vision the snails had to offer. "Do... do you already have a name?"

The snail was deaf and mute, but it could feel the intent of her question. It responded with vague intent of its own. Lana got the feeling that it did not, in fact, have a name.

"Let's pick a name," she grinned while she flew through the halls. She had found what she was looking for. All she had to do now was get it. "How about... Reggie? Marie? Claus? Oh! Kipper!"

The snail offered nothing but dismay at the suggestions, so Lana kept cycling through the random names popping into her head, hoping to settle on one that her little pet would take a liking to.

________________________________________

'This is bad!'

Chopper watched the events unfolding around the corner from him with growing concern and alarm. He hadn't forgotten the reason he was in the lab to begin with, but he couldn't just walk away from his captive crew either.

"Psst! Pssst!"

"Huh?"

Lana summoned Chopper's attention from the end of the hall to avoid startling him. His eyes grew wide and he dashed over to her at once, all but knocking her off her feet with his enthusiasm.

"Lana! I'm so happy to see you! Where were you?! Everyone was so worried when we woke up and you weren't with us!"

He spoke in a whisper, but his tone was fervent.

"I'm fine, I got in a fight and it took me away," Lana explained briefly, dismissively.

"A fight?! When, after we were all gassed?!" Chopper asked with confusion as he tried to envision the progression of events. "Did you wake up before the rest of us?"

"I never passed out."

"What?!"

"Yeah, it's a crazy coincidence, but the gas they used to knock the crew out was derived from grey clover," Lana explained. "I've got a tolerance."

"Why would you have a tolerance to... oh."

Chopper's expansive medical knowledge lent him an understanding of what must have happened, albeit one that he didn't realize until a second later.

"Oh! That's right, I've read that grey clover is commonly used as a means of birth control in the West Blue. I uh... wow, yeah, I guess it would make sense for you to have a tolerance if you've been using it," he reasoned. His cheeks flushed slightly under his fur as he was filled with eagerness to move on from the topic. He noticed the sack Lana was dragging with her and seized the opportunity it presented. "Hey, uh... what's in the bag?"

"I'm so glad you asked," Lana replied with a grin. "This bag is full of stuff that's gonna help us free Luffy and the others."

"It is?"

"Yep. Now listen close. Here's the plan."

_______________________________________________

<== Previous Chapter

Next Chapter ==>

== First Chapter ==

[inland--empire]

0h? Wh0 1s that? 1 am k1nda cur10us n0w-Gaz

I think he called himself the Master? I dunno. He was a right cunt but Professor had something going on with him. Like they weren't exactly enemies but weren't friends either. But yeah he tried to kill a bunch of my old friends by allying with some cheetah people and he turned into a cat guy. Then he died.-Ace

[beatrice-otter]

This is not a new thing. Radfems have been allying with Consersvative Christians against sex stuff since the 80s at least.

See, one of the major beliefs of radical feminism from the very beginning was that sex with men was inherently degrading to women and exploitative. This was especially true of any sex act in which the woman gets penetrated. They weren't exactly thrilled about f/f sex, either, but they focused on the evils of m/f sex.

If you are a woman who think you enjoy sex with a man, you are either brainwashed or participating in your own exploitation or both. Worse, you are contributing to the continued oppression of women.

If you are a woman who makes a choice to have sex with a man for money you are also brainwashed, participating in your own exploitation, and contributing to the continued oppression of women. Sex workers might be pitied and "helped" out of their jobs, but the second any of them say anything other than "oh, thank you kind radfem for helping save me from evil men!" they become the enemy. The term SWERF (Sex-Worker Exclusive Radical Feminism) didn't get coined until, like, the 2000s, but that's because the vast majority of radical feminists were sex-worker-exclusive all along. It was the default position of radical feminism.

Under these beliefs, all pornography is inherently evil, because it's about the exploitation of women. (The idea of women having sex drives and either making or wanting to watch/read pornographic or erotic material was not considered ... and if it was, such women were either considered brainwashed by the patriarchy/only doing it because their man wanted them to, or participating in their own exploitation and the continued oppression of women.)

Long story short, if you look at who in the 1980s was actively against sex work and pornography, you get basically two categories of people: Conservative Christians, and Radical Feminists. So they allied. The radfems gave the Conservative Christians cover, so they could tell mainstream America "see! this position that's bad for women is actually good for women, these feminists say so!" And the radfems got a lot more power to act against pornography and sex work.

Thing is, though, when you look at "which group got more of what it wanted" the answer is hands-down the Conservative Christians.

Bro radfems are so funny what even is this lol

[bravevolunteer]

@horrorsuntold asked: 75 for the music meme // send me a number ( 1-130 ) and i'll explain why that song is in my muse's playlist!

75. Allies or Enemies - The Crane Wives

ha you got the sibling angst song lmao

seriously, i do associate this song with michael's feelings towards his siblings. he IS at fault for the animosity between himself and evan as well as the tension with elizabeth following evan's death, michael knows this and even if he is unable to acknowledge why to himself for awhile, there ARE a good handful of reasons why he was inclined to act this way. it does not excuse his bullying towards evan, but since it largely had to do with his personal emotions.... it didn't exactly get RID of the value michael had for him either. michael too often struggled to STOP himself from saying and doing things he did not truly mean, and he hurt both of them because of it.

"The words I speak are wildfires and weeds / They spread like some awful damn disease / I swear I didn’t mean what I said / I swear I didn’t mean it. / Now listen close, you owe me ears for dropping eaves / Forget it all, you caught me in a moment weak / Sometimes I just can’t help myself / Sometimes I can’t help myself at all"

i do firmly believe things weren't always terrible between them— there were MOMENTS where the hostility faded and the three of them got to act like normal siblings even just for a few minutes, where their love for each other was apparent, and michael reminisces on this with HEAVY regret for not treating evan better.

"Remember when I could tell you not to smile when you were mad? / And you would always crack / And we’d both be laughing in the end / Now you’re not so quick to forget"

the repetition of "are we allies or enemies?" and not wanting to continue fighting can canonically relate to his and elizabeth's relationship post '83 as well as any au where evan and liz don't die following their incidents. where michael is TRYING to make up for everything he's done but feels so guilty he doesn't think he deserves it and does not automatically stop making mistakes either. all he wants is to have what he pushed away, he just wants someone to think he's decent, but he won't let himself believe it, and he's struggling to figure out if mending their relationships is even possible.

[ceescedasticity]

to avoid writing an essay on someone else's post

To me the interesting thing about the Second Kinslaying is that while it was a war crime*, unlike the other two it wasn't a betrayal and it shouldn't have been a surprise.

[*: 'War crime' doesn't actually have an objective, universal, unchanging definition. A war crime in the commonly accepted modern definitions.]

The Noldor and the Lindar of Alqualondë were friends and no one expected things to go so badly. I think even Fëanor thought the worst case scenario was bullying the Lindar into giving up their ships, no bloodshed necessary. That was a betrayal and a surprise to everybody.

With the Third Kinslaying… It's more ambiguous, but the Fëanorians had been holding a defensive line for three decades and probably employing Sirion and/or Balar as 'behind the lines' for anyone who couldn't be on the front lines as well as supplies, because that's what was left. They weren't on speaking terms or working together exactly, but they were working in parallel. The Fëanorians had never attacked other Noldor before. And iirc Elwing didn't give a hard no to their letter — she stalled, said they had to negotiate with Eärendil and he wasn't there. So it was a surprise, and a betrayal of a (tacit and chilly) alliance.

But the Second Kinslaying—

Doriath and the Fëanorians were never allies. They were allies-in-law. And Thingol had solid reasons to refuse alliance — their attack on his brother's/his* people, their being generally rude and condescending-at-best, perhaps a not unreasonable perception of them as untrustworthy — but it was his refusal that meant they never became allies. (This got long, sorry.)

[*: Whether Thingol still considered himself king of all the Teleri is an interesting question but not relevant to this discussion.]

So they weren't allies, and after Dagor Bragollach Doriath demonstrated very clearly that they weren't allies by keeping its borders closed to Noldorin refugees. And Thingol was the one who chose to get Doriath involved with the Silmaril, claiming one when he had no right to* (and also arguably angling to use the Sons of Fëanor to get rid of Beren).

[*: No right by our standards. I… am not at all sure ownership of material goods not currently in one's possession is any more objective and absolute than war crimes are. I am not sure that's a universal paradigm in thinking about material goods. You may need to attach a certain amount of importance to material things before that makes sense.]

Of course then Celegorm and Curufin were the ones who chose to respond to this by being severely antagonizing. There were a lot of things they could have done to try to come up with a compromise — like, maybe, an agreement that Beren will give the Silmaril to Thingol and Thingol will immediately ransom it to the Fëanorians? Thingol probably would have refused, but they didn't try. And then attacking Beren and Lúthien in the wilderness has nothing to do with the Oath, it's just spite.

If Doriath didn't see the Fëanorians as definite enemies before that it certainly did after. And with Nargothrond also cutting ties (and Finrod in particular gone) the allies-in-law relationship was more remote.

Maedhros made a sincere attempt to bring them into the Union, to establish a proper alliance. But— He didn't offer to seriously punish C&C, much less extradite them. He offered "let's all pull together and fight Morgoth". Which he's doing anyway.

The possible benefit of Morgoth being defeated would be the same whether Thingol helped or not. The possible consequence of the Sons of Fëanor being more/still pissed at him was irrelevant behind the Girdle. So Thingol either (a) picked not associating with Evil A over fighting Evil B or (b) looked at the military situation with a cold clear eye and possible benefit of Melian's foresight and decided that they wouldn't win even with Doriath's help so why should he send his people to die pointlessly.

So they stay enemies.

After the Nirnaeth Arnoediad they are no longer allies-in-law (except possibly through Círdan, but no one ever listens to Círdan). (Gondolin really isn't allied with either of them.)

On top of that, there are several good arguments to be made that between the Nirnaeth and the Second Kinslaying, Celegorm had more power and influence among the Fëanorians than at any other time. Maedhros gambled everything on the Union and lost. Generally speaking military leaders who do that lose influence. (Plus, his mental state was likely… poorer than usual.) Celegorm has more reasons to hate Doriath (both good and bad), and less of a record of being conciliatory in general. He is not going to be trying to keep things calm.

They're definitely enemies and they all know it.

Fast forward through the loss of the Girdle (which the Fëanorians couldn't overcome) and Lúthien (who Celegorm was probably scared of). The Sons of Fëanor demand the Silmaril.

Of course Dior et al don't want to hand it over. There's the fact that Celegorm and Curufin were outrageously awful to Beren's parents — who just recently died, who he is grieving — and who wants to give them anything. And all of Doriath may be feeling a bit sunk-cost about the Silmaril. And, possibly, Silmaril+likely-cursed Nauglamír may be doing unfortunate things to people's judgment.

On top of that, though, I can see why Dior would say they had no right to it. First, there's the possible differing perspectives on legitimacy of remote ownership. Second, there's the argument that the Silmarils are semi-sentient and don't like the Sons of Fëanor anymore. Third, heck, Thingol's position was that he was king of all Beleriand, kings can demand exorbitant tribute sometimes.

I can see why they would choose not to give up the Silmaril, and I can't say they were definitely in the wrong. But they should have made that choice fully aware that it would result in invasion.

There are people who were probably shocked to hear there was another, deliberate kinslaying, who still hadn't expected the Fëanorians to sink that low. Probably some of the Fëanorians were shocked they were doing another kinslaying.

But no one in Doriath should have been shocked! They've been acting like another kinslaying was possible since they found out about the first one!

They weren't friends with the dwarves of Nogrod but they trusted them enough to have business arrangements within the Girdle, which was more than they ever trusted the Fëanorians. That went horribly wrong over the Silmaril, which the dwarves didn't even have any prior connection to.

Obviously the Fëanorians would attack.

So given that, and given that even without the Girdle Menegroth itself was extremely defensible — was built by dwarves, to be defensible — why was the Second Kinslaying a slaughter and not a siege? How did the Fëanorians get in the front door?

Someone screwed up badly.

(Or I suppose you could flip it around and say Dior let them in the front door because he was planning to give them the Silmaril after some grandstanding and telling them how much they sucked, but they didn't know that and attacked before he got that far. Or because he pissed them off. But there's no evidence for that.)

Backing up, from the Fëanorians' perspective, they/their lords have a right to the Silmaril — because Noldor (and dwarves and hobbits and probably Númenóreans) do believe in persistence of property ownership — and the Iathrim wouldn't spit on them if they were on fire, so even without C&C's particular grudge it's not… unthinkable. There's the "don't kill people" thing, but… they may be a bit, ha, deadened to death by now, after several disastrous losses. A lot of them probably had to kill Easterlings they thought were their allies. Death seems a bit cheaper now, probably.

But from a practical perspective they clearly did not put enough thought into how costly an attack would be, and of course it required just sort of… ignoring the ongoing Morgoth situation.

[coolkidslikecats]

night knuckles : peter parker

series : song titled writings.  part one. 

˚₊· ͟͟͞͞➳❥  night knuckles 

peter parker x male!reader <3

song: night knuckles by cavetown. 

.

pronouns: he/him, you/your/yours (yk) :)

warnings!: fluff! 🐑, slight angst, vulgar language, peters pov, lack of plot, mentions of blood and injury.

a/n: I’m going slow with my writing since I’m not used to writing longer and more descriptive things yet! this is just a warm-up but I still hope you enjoy it! (this could also be either platonic or romantic, it’s kinda a mix of both!)

summary: you’ve been waiting all day for peter to come back to his house so you guys could work on your science project. peter comes back with a few cuts and bruises which immediately makes you worry.

.

.

“are you sure?- I mean we could always do it another day... no rush, you know?” your calm voice said over the phone. a pang of guilt shot through peters chest, he wanted nothing more than to start and finish the science project that had been assigned to the both of you. with you.

but he was an avenger, he had to uphold his superhero duties no matter how bad he wanted to hang out with his friends. not that you knew that. he hated keeping secrets from you but it was only to keep you safe. spider-man will always have enemies who want to take what is his away from him. thus not telling you about his “double-life”.

peter quickly hopped down into an empty ally, still on the phone with you. putting you on speakerphone he started stripping down to just his boxers.

“no no! it's okay, I want to get it done today! ah!- opps-” he'd stumbled over his pants that were down to his ankles. he was panting as he struggled to get his clothes off and into his backpack as quick as he could.

“are you okay, dude? you sound like you're in a rush.” once peter finally got his clothes in his backpack and had started to put his suit on he snatched his phone up and put in on his shoulder and used his head to keep it in place.

“yeah- yeah I'm okay, I'm just...” he was tired and stressed, he yearned to go home and get his hair ruffled up by you as you plopped onto the couch with one of your many comics in hand. he just wanted to be a normal teenager for a day or two, he loved his job, what he does every day is his biggest reward. but he can't help but want to know how it feels to just be oblivious to death and destruction like most kids.

“...I’m just, I just need to be somewhere right now. I love you-” he slipped his mask on and started sprinting down the ally till he could get somewhere he could properly shoot a web. “-stay safe and stay at the apartment, I promise I'll be there soon, okay?”

he heard your soft chuckle through the phone, causing his face to flush under his mask. you sighed and he swore he could hear you say he was cute.

“I’ll hold that to you, darling, I love you too.” peters stomach erupted with a swarm of butterflies, he felt light-headed at the simple pet name you had used in turn of his name. it was time for him to end the call though because he could feel his grip on his phone loosening the more he hopped from building to building.

“byey/niloveyouanddontmessupmyroom!” he rushed out before abruptly ending the call.

on the other side of the phone, y/n smiled and muttered to himself, “time to mess up his room.”

.

.

hours went by and peter still hadn’t come home, you were beginning to get worried since he didn’t tell you exactly what he was up to. you trusted him to keep himself safe, he was smart so you knew he could get himself out of a situation.

but he was your best friend, your only friend, besides ned and mj, of course. you also weren't the worrying type, you were the calm friend in the friend group, always there to reassure everyone that everything was going to be okay. except when it came to peter, he always seemed to be getting himself into trouble, whether he was sneaking off randomly during class or just skipping it altogether, or making up excuses as to why he couldn't attend an event.

you were starting to become suspicious about his whereabouts, you knew it wasn't any of your business what he did in the shadows, but you were his best buddy. it hurt that he didn't open up to you about what was going on behind your back. you were the only one in the dark, mj and ned both seemed to brush it off or help convince people of his excuses, sharing knowing looks between each other. so they obviously knew something no one else did.

you sighed and shook those thoughts away, trying to focus back on your comic. it didn't matter where peter was, as long as he was safe.

but this time it doesn't seem like he was as safe as intended. the boy crashed through the open window in his bedroom, his suit nicked in some spaces, showing fresh-looking cuts and bruises through the open fabric. he ripped his mask off and tried to steady himself by leaning on his dresser.

your mouth dropped open in shock, your comic falling from your hands and onto your stomach. peter caught his breathe and ran a hand through his hair, moving it out of his face. he winced at the movement, he was sore from the mission.

“what the actual fuck.” you blurted out, causing peter to flinch, he whipped around to see you laying on his bed, head propped by a pillow as your wide eyes and slacked jaw stared at him in shock.

peters expression mirrored yours, he hadn't expected you to be in his room when he came back.

“y/n I-”

“holy shit you're spider-man-” you said flabbergasted, you looked him up and down, his suit looked way too good to be a costume, “I’m best friends with fucking spider-man! my balls just dropped, this is freaking insane!-”

peter rushed over to you, signaling for you to be quiet. you nodded obediently and stood up to look him over, just now noticing his rough appearance.

“okay, okay, I'm gonna clean you up-” peter shook his head, you rolled your eyes and grabbed your backpack, rummaging through it to find your small carry-on first aid kit. you grabbed his arm and forced him to sit on his bed so you could get better access to his cuts.

peter had been silent the whole time you were cleaning him up. he felt guilty for not telling you and that you had found out like this, but he was also scared for you, having his two other best friends in danger was enough, but now you? you were something else, you were his bud, his motivation. he couldn't just put you in danger.

“so I suppose I’m not supposed to tell anyone about this, right?” peter nodded and directed his eyes to the floor, hanging his head down low. you clicked your tongue and placed your index finger under his chin, lifting his head back up so you could dab a cut on his face with a warm, damp cloth.

you pursed your lips, still holding onto peters chin.

“look, peter, I'm not mad at you for not telling me, you know that right? I- I just want to let you know that I will always. always, be here for you, I'll always love you.” peters eyes welled up with tears, he immediately wrapped his arms around your middle and started sobbing, all of his stress and fear coming out through his cries.

your eyes went wide in surprise, you patted his head awkwardly, trying your best to comfort him.

“I’m so tired, y/n, and I'm scared, I don't want anything to happen to you, or ned, or mj. I'm so sorry for not telling you I just can't afford to lose you right now, if ever.” your breath hitched at his words, you've never heard him sound so vulnerable before, especially when it concerned you.

“dude, you- you don't have to worry about me, I might not be the strongest but I have hands- fists, I'm ready to deck someone if needed, you know?” you laughed making peter let out a small choked-up laugh. you placed both your hands on either side of the boys head, making him look up at you.

“this is so fucking cheesy, but, if you want we could watch a movie together after you take a shower? it- it’s just a suggestion so I don't kind if you don't want to.” peter smiled and nodded. his smile dropped though as he realized something.

“what about the project?” your smile widened before you hooked your arm around his neck, putting him in a loose headlock, you curled your fist together and gave him a noogie. peter shouted and tried to bat your hands away from his head.

“I already finished it since you were gone so long, spiderboy!” you laughed, even though this action hurt peters head and neck he still managed to blush at the close proximity of your body to his.

“now get in the shower so we can watch a movie.” you let go of him and push him into the bathroom, making him laugh.

“alright, alright, I’m going! you get to pick the movie.”

“of course I do, I have the best taste here.”

“right..”

he felt normal around you for once, his secret was finally out. now all he had to do was keep you safe.

.

.

a/n: sorry it was rushed at the end! I really just finally wanted to finish a writing so I had something to post! hope you enjoyed!

[schattenmagier]

" Huh, I see. It does also sound kinda boooring. At least to me! "

Well, it also isn't like she had ever been to a wedding. Lilli had seen them on TV of course! But it was usually in movies, and there was always something exciting happening. Like... villains or monsters or whatever crashing the party, or a murder happening on the party... Yeah, she is watching that kind of movies.

The vigilante then let out a chuckle, though wasn't exactly sure what he meant with his joke about 'office politics'. She also didn't went to ask.

" To late~ "

She lilted, before the cellphone is taken from her hand, and she shoves another big piece of sushi into her mouth. Actually, Schatten had not expected for him to actually give her his number. Perhaps they were basically on a neutral ground with each other. While she wouldn't exactly say they were allies, they sure weren't enemies either. And the Agency wasn't on her target list so... This was fine.

" Oh, I vould never! I am more someone vho prefers to text anyway~♥ Ah, and please don't take it personal vhen I von't answer zhe phone either sometimes~ Might be a bit busy too once in a vhile! Heh~ "

Not only with her job as barkeeper but also at other things as vigilante. She can't really pick up the phone when she goes around to beat up a few people to gain information.

" But, knowing you at least a little now, I vould guess and say you ain't much up for phonecalls either, eh~? "

The woman then takes her phone back, to save the contact... But then she hesitates, and a mischievous smirk appears on her face... Just to raise her phone again, and open the camera app.

" Smile for zhe cam, Anti~ I need a contact picture for you~ "

"Hey, free food is free food. Even if I have to watch two people I barely know make goo-goo eyes at each other." He actually doesn't mind it all that much. However all the talk of spending a future together and what-not that one is usually subjected to at weddings often made him feel.......alienated?

"Pffft, I wish they were marrying each other more often." Antares took another bite of his food in between talking. "Would probably be better than all the -," he made a vague little hand gesture here, "- office politics."

He was just joking here too, of course. As long as it didn't effect him personally, he didn't really care what his coworkers were up to as long as they were still alive and kicking.

"I was just kidding about the number..." Antares sighed. It seemed too late to take his words back though. The vigilante who was sitting opposite of him was already typing something into her cellphone. "Whatever. Give it here."

He took the phone and entered his work number. He supposed an unaffiliated contact wouldn't hurt. He doesn't have the full picture on what Schatten was actually capable of but rumors of who she have taken down around town did sound promising. Not to mention the fact that Agency HR had taken interest in her.

"Now don't go calling me all the time though. I'm a busy man."

He returns the phone to her. Of course, he didn't even try to snoop. That would just be in bad form when he's sitting right across her and eating right out of her wallet.

[starmagnets]

Spellcasting styles is such a fun thing to talk about when it comes to my headcanoning of characters because with some characters it's a really good window into how they were trained (or weren't, in Mags' case) and sometimes it's just like, wow, you literally have no idea the sort of power you wield do you.

So anyways I'd like to talk about spellcasting and how it affects my interpretations of some characters. This is a long one and delves into a lot of my personal headcanons involving both characters and how magic functions, so buckle up.

First of all, magic. It's something in the kirbyverse, which, in my interpretation, makes up souls and powers bodies, and the excess can be channeled into what is commonly known as magic or spells.

Everybody has some sort of magic in them. Some, like Magolor, have more than others. Some, like Susie or Bandee, have less and can only use it to channel elements into their weapons.

Depending on the amounts of energy one's soul generates, some may even let it off while they're sleeping if it goes unused, like how Magolor floats in his sleep if he doesn't cast a lot of spells in some of my writing.

Now that that's out of the way. Let's get into the character stuff.

Magolor, like most halcandrans and jambandrans, has a lot of magic in him. Practically overflowing with the energy it needs to make magic. And he's been pretty decent with it his whole life, having learned some of the simpler spells as early as seven despite being entirely self-taught since his father didn't know magic. His body was tough enough to keep up with it as far as non-offensive spells, but he's not properly trained. He doesn't know the technique or the form that goes with it. He only knows that rifts are a good hiding place and that he's got a surprisingly good handle on a number of elements. Not the strongest caster before the crown, well, y'know, but he's capable of holding his own in a fight and can fire off some pretty powerful spells before needing a break to recharge. A bit spammy with the magic orbs, but it's how he learned to fight and he's sticking to it.

Marx didn't know any spells outside of mirror tricks before he made his wish, though he, like Magolor, has quite a lot of magic in him, doubly so once he'd gotten some powerful magitech in him. He knew the basics of a healing spell, but when a dreamlander healing spell requires hands to cast, there's only so much he could do. Then he's got magic. Powerful stuff, too. He's on top of the world! Unfortunately, like Magolor, he has no idea where to start with form or technique. He'll spam the craziest spells he's got, along with some mirror tricks he'd picked up. He's just having the time of his life, man. He does get some sense of technique by the time Star Allies rolls around, but he's pretty similar to Mags in that he knows his way of fighting and he's gonna stick to his teleport spams and black holes, as sick as they make him feel.

Taranza, unlike Mags and Marx, was properly trained. He grew up learning the basics of puppetry and how that applied to his own magic, as well as knowing the basics of spellcraft itself (see: queen's phantom). He views casting similarly to swordfighting. Tactics and timing are key to winning, and spamming spells the way his friends do is not the way to win in the slightest, no matter how many times he might lose in practice matches. It's important to him that the art of magic is kept just that, an art. Even if he is a little envious of the way his friends can just whip spell after spell at enemies like it's nothing.

Zan Partizanne is an interesting case. She had a lot of magic in her, yes, but she didn't know how to control it, and her mother's way of teaching it wasn't exactly intuitive to Zan, either. This lead to her basically being a walking plasma ball. Touch her at this stage in her life and you'll receive an unintentional shock, at best. This lead to some... Disastrous consequences, and eventually to her discovering that she needed a spellcasting focus (which her partisan would become) to properly control her magic. She has a surprisingly similar casting style to Magolor once she can control her magic, though much more electricity-focused, rather than Magolor's rift and multi-element blasting "technique."

Francisca and Flamberge were also very much introduced to their magic via Hyness, but, unlike Zan, they didn't necessarily need a casting focus to control it. They just needed to learn the basics of magic and how to use it. Their focuses are more of a failsafe should anything go wrong. And wrong they go.

Hyness is similar to Magolor in that he was mostly self-taught post civilization split. He did learn quite a lot of basics and spellcraft as a young sorcerer, but beyond that? He taught himself the majority of the actual spells he knows and uses on a regular basis. He's a lot less spammy than Magolor, but definitely has a less careful fighting style than Taranza, acting as a sort of happy medium on the casting style spectrum.

Susie, and other non-element granters (except DMK, more on him in a minute) do have magic. It's just that their souls don't generate the same amounts of energy as other characters do. This leads to them not being able to cast elaborate or wide-ranging spells. They can, however, elementally enchant weapons, such as swords, spears, even blasters and mechs if they know how! It's a process and a learning experience, but once they've got it down, it's easy to incorporate into one's fighting style.

Now onto Dark Meta Knight and other reflections of characters. Even generally "nonmagical" characters do have "magical" reflections. Mirror magic, while relatively uncommon in the non-mirror world, is something most, if not all, reflections at least are aware of, if not able to perform with relative ease. These tricks can be enhanced by elemental enchantments (see DMK's mirror-influenced moves), but they're also magical all on their own. Most reflections don't incorporate such magic into their fighting styles, but it is noteworthy nonetheless with characters such as DMK actively using mirror magic in his moveset.

Anyways that's all thank you for listening to my endless ramblings about magic and how training or lack thereof can affect how one uses it.

[cheesy-mak]

Finally got the motivation to do this! Makanendez oneshot (probably unless requested for more) coming through your way!

Title: "Cigarettes and War."

Trope//Prompt: Rivals to lovers(?)

Characters: Vladimir Makarov/Raul Menendez

I actually wrote about this in my notebook a bit ago, may take some bits from that. First time writing a fic on Tumblr! (Also, forgive me if Menendez or Makarov is a bit or ENTIRELY OOC, I still need to watch through a good majority of BO2 and get used to writing Mak :'') )

Also, he has a room of his own that's nicely protected, but not in the beginning of this fic >:)

Menendez woke up, and strangely, it wasn't to the sight of the light shining through his window in the early morning. In fact, he instead woke up to darkness. The only light luminating his room was from the moon outside. This wasn't normal. He never woke up this late in the night. He doesn't even know what time it is, but considering how groggy he feels, he knows it hasn't been 2 hours since he slept.

He knew something was off. And he knew that off feeling he had wasn't good. He looked out the window of his room and wondered what woke him up, perhaps the noise of a bird hitting the glass of his window woke him up? That can't be, that'd be stupid. Though he has heard that you could wake up if someone you don't know is around you. He sighed and groaned, staring up at his ceiling for a moment before slowly getting up from his bed, unsure on what to do.

It was then that he smelled the scent of smoke. The type of smoke you get from cigarettes. It was the scent of freshly lit cigarettes, and he could see the smoke from outside on his balcony through the window. Someone was on his balcony. But how can that be? His home was strongly protected, how could his men let someone climb up? Unless, that someone took down his men. Shit, so someone is on his balcony, and the men who were protecting his home were dead. Just great.

He sighed once more in annoyance. "Could've came here in the morning, when I'm not trying to sleep," he angrily grumbled as he looked in his drawer and grabbed his pistol which he prepared if a situation like this were to ever happen. He checked the magazine and luckily it was fully reloaded.

He slowly stood up from his bed and sneakily went to his balcony door which was closed. He braced himself and slowly opened the door and quickly rushed in and pointed the gun at where he thought the intruder would be. "You have to be more sneakier than this, I could see the smoke from inside."

He thought it was some stranger that decided to try and kill him, or an American soldier who thought it was great to have a smoke break right outside of his room, but since he was still mostly groggy, he didn't realize it was someone he fought with for a long time.

"Menendez.. It's been such a while since we've met. When was it, on the battlefield?"

He took a moment to process who he was talking to, and his eyes widened as he realized who it was. It was his enemy, his rival. They weren't exactly enemies but they weren't allies either, they talked through radios and phones a lot for enemies, but most conversations were full of insults, threats and a sprinkle of anger.

"..Makarov?- Vladimir Makarov.. What is someone like you doing here?!-" He kept his guard up as the russian warcriminal in front of him smoked a bit more before dropping the cigarette bud and crushing it under his shoe. "I came here, to you, to ask you something. And also," he looks down below from the balcony and under them laid the bodies of his men and also a rope that hung down and was hooked to the edge of said balcony. "I knocked out your men to get up here, was really easy."

"Not surprised someone like you could take them out easily, and I heard you want to ask something. Ask, or in ten seconds you're dead!" Menendez commanded, his gun still up and pointed towards Makarov. The other stayed calm and leaned against the railing, as he looked out to the view. "I feel like we should, stop fighting. I've heard of what your little army is fighting for, you want revenge for what they've done, to you, and to your sister." Menendez's brows furrowed, he was easily losing his patience. "Get on with it, don't try to delay your fate."

"I'm not, Raul! What I want to say is.. I want to help you. I want to help you grow your army, make your plan known to the world and get others to help you, either willingly or not." Makarov then turned to Menendez, his back leaned against the railing as his green and blue eyes shone lightly as it reflected the moonlight.

Menendez was surprised, he didn't know if it was the pleasant type or not. He couldn't believe him, not yet. "How can I believe you? You could be trying to kill me!" Makarov's expression looked a little upset when he said that. "Please trust me. You've heard of my work, haven't you? I can do you wonders.." Makarov said, silently panicking inside since it looks like Menendez is tired of his shit.

Menendez thought for a bit before then putting his pistol down to show that he doesn't wish to be aggressive. He was then proposed with a choice, to recruit Makarov into his army or to not. He can kill him right now and there. He then made a final choice, to recruit Makarov. "Fine, but you will only be helping me. Anything funny and you're dead, you hear me?" Makarov smiled softly, seemed like he was pretty happy.

"So, can I stay here? I'm too tired to go back."

"Of course you are, and there's a guest bedroom downstairs, just sleep in there for now I guess.." Menendez went back into his room as Makarov followed behind him to go downstairs from his room. "So, goodnight? I'll see you in the morning and hope that none of your men come in and kill me in my sleep." Makarov simply left his room and closed the door, now Menendez was alone again. He sighed and flopped onto his bed and curled up in his blanket. "..How the fuck did I even get here, how did this happen." He asked himself, just tired of everything. He quickly dozed off, questioning how he's going to explain to Cordis Die in the morning.

A/N : I'm sorry if this is pretty short, I kinda lost the motivation close to the end. I hope you like this though! May write more in the future.

[gladerwolfstarkimagines]

Tea Shop Part Three: Zuko x female reader imagine series

You struggle to come to terms with the reality Lee is Zuko and can’t get your head around the idea...until a dangerous close encourter shows you how fire nation Zuko really is.

Part One here

Part Two here

Part four here

You felt like a naive idiot. You always prided yourself on being more objective than an average air nomad, more realistic, but you'd believe Zuko was good and he betrayed his uncle and tried to kill Aang. You felt utterly bewildered and couldn’t believe the person you knew would do all those things. You made Sokka tell you all about their encounters with Zuko, every single detail, to try and get it into your head that the tea merchant you knew didn’t exist. Everything Sokka told you sounded insane but you knew it was the truth so begrudgingly you started accepting it. You were starting to see Zuko as an enemy instead of an ally and then all that work went out the window when you came face to face with him again.

The gang had landed on a secluded part of an island with a nice lake so everyone was swimming and relaxing but you didn’t want to just lie around, you wanted to explore. So you convinced Sokka to come with you for a walk into town and the two of you set off. When you heard there was beach you’re excitment peaked and Sokka relaxed his rule on staying out of sight figuring nobody here would recognise either of you. Sokka stopped to look at bags by the beach front and you walked onto the beach happily. You stood in the sand enjoying the warmth when suddenly a beach ball came flying towards you. You batted it away without thinking and sent it flying down the beach. "Great job genius" a voice called and you turned to see a very angry looking fire nation girl. "That was my ball and now you've catapulted it half way down the beach". "Sorry but it was that or get in the face so..." you joked but the girl didn’t find you funny. "Go get it" she said stiffly and something about her tone pissed you off "no" you said simply "it’s your ball". The girl went to step closer to you when her friends walked over too and a boy pulled her away from you. You mouth opened in suprise to see it was Lee or more accurately Zuko. It had only been a few months since you’d last seen him but he looked so different. His hair was longer, he was in fire nation clothes and he looked changed...he looked good. You could tell it was definitely him by how panicked he looked, which also suprised you. Was he really scared because he thought you'd reveal what he did and who he was to his friends? Surely they knew he was the prince? Then you realised he wasn't worried about himself he was worried about you. "Azula leave it" he called standing infront of her and you realised who this was. The gang had told you all about the deadly fire nation trio and sure enough you recognised the other two girls from their descriptions. The pale girl didn’t even seem to be paying attention but the pretty brunette looked at Azula worried. "This peasant disrespected me i won’t leave it" Azula snapped as Ty lee frowned "it’s okay Azula, those boys are bringing the ball back to us anyway" she smiled "they’re so nice". "Exactly so let’s just go" Zuko said and you saw Azula frown at him, you were guessing he wasn’t usually an advocate for the average person. You felt his sister scanning you and knew you had to get out of this situation right now but had no idea how. "Come on" Zuko called but Azula shook her head "no". Zuko groaned "for god sake Azula what’s your problem! Leave her alone". Azula tensed "why are you so protective of this girl zuzu?" she asked and you saw Mai look up at that and stare at you too. "I’m not" Zuko babbled "i’m just sick of your temper, why start fights with a stranger for no good reason!". Azula frowned as if she hadn’t even heard Zuko "you seem familiar" she said "have we met before?". You frowned "i...i’ve never seen you before in my life" you replied trying not to touch the burn on your arm like you always did when you were nervous. She hummed still staring at you and you waited for her to realise who you were. "I’m sick of this come on lets just go" Zuko sighed and he led Mai away. "Azula come on" he called and Ty lee tugged her arm. "Fine" Azula sighed and let them drag her away. You watched them go, facinated. So this was the real Lee then? You watched him, staring at the back of his head trying to find something, a look, a subtle nod, anything that told you he was still Lee...but Zuko seemed determined not to look back at all and he walked away like he didn’t know or care about you at all.

You came to your senses after they left and rushed away from the beach, running back up to the stalls and out of sight. You breathed heavily as what could’ve happened to you sunk in and jumped when Sokka appeared next to you. "Hey, did you get what you wanted?". "What?" you asked confused. "The beach? Is it nice?". "No it’s way too crowded lets head back" you stammered and Sokka shrugged "okay". You weren’t sure why you didn’t tell Sokka what had happened. Part of you didn't say anything because you weren't sure how to feel. You hadn't been angry when you saw Zuko more sad and confused. You’d felt embarassed he ignored you even if he had to do it given the company he was in. Another part of you didn’t say anything because you didn’t want the others to persue Zuko even if he was part of the fire nation and that thought embarassed you even more. You were very confused and so just stayed quiet as you walked further and further away from the beach.

All day you ruminated over your decision not to tell the others and even with ground between you, you couldn’t get what happened out of your head. You wanted to ask Zuko why he’d helped you on the beach, shouldn’t he hate you now? Especially given your air nomad identity or was he different to the rest of his nation? Giving up on sleep you decided to go for a walk and pretended you didn’t have an exact location in mind. You knew it was stupid and risky but you headed back to the beach and arrived quickly. It was empty and you sat down slightly disappointed. You knew Zuko wouldn’t still be there but you had to check. You sighed wondering what you’d even have said to him and were suddenly glad he wasn’t here. You didn’t know if you’d be angry at him or happy to see him, so him not being here made things a lot easier for you.

"You must have a death wish coming back here" someone called and you knew who it was.

You turned and there Zuko was walking towards you slowly. The first emotion you felt wasn't anger, he'd come back here too, just like you. "I could say the same for you" you smirked and Zuko sat down next to you. You sat beside one another in silence both of you suprised and confused by the situation you were in. "Why are you here?" he asked suddenly. "I thought you might come back here so i did" you said embarassed and he shook his head "no here on the island! Are you following us? Y/n they can’t know you’re here...if my sister knew who you were she'd....". "Pft i can handle some fire" you tried to joke but Zuko shook his head "no y/n, Azula is the best fire bender i’ve ever seen, you can’t take her and you can’t let her take you". You swallowed, you’d only been joking about handling Azula, you knew she was dangerous but hearing Zuko tell you that... "We’re not here because we’re following you" you said softly "we stopped off here and i wanted to see the beach, it was chance bumping into you i swear". Zuko looked at you and nodded "i believe you, it was just...odd". You nodded and watched him out of the corner of your eye. He looked conflicted, happy but not happy, sad but not sad. "How are you?" you couldn’t help asking "how is it being back home?". "Weird" Zuko replied "it’s changed so much...i’ve changed". “Tell me about it, the last I knew you were a tea merchant not a prince”. Zuko smiled slightly “I imagine it was a lot to take in?”. You nodded “it was but it explained a lot...your spoiled attitude for one”. Zuko smirked and you laughed. This was nice and all but you couldn’t just sit around ignoring the elephant in the room. "Why did you do it?" you couldn’t help asking and felt Zuko tense, the atmosphere now uncomfortable. "I know i don’t know you well and I know Lee isn’t really you but I still can't understand why you'd betray your uncle? Why you'd side with your sister after all she’s done? You just don’t seem like that type of person". Silence settled and stretched on for so long you got ready to leave but finally Zuko spoke. "You’re right, you don’t know me". You met his eye and saw nothing but anger and hate there. You looked away scolded and shook your head feeling deflated "back to that again huh? Back to hating each other?". "Well obviously! we’re on opposing sides y/n, what did you think was going to happen once you joined the avatar? We’re not friends". You laughed in utter surprise "ow so if i didn’t join the avatar it would've been different?" you asked "stop trying to blame me because you feel guilty for the choices you made". "You were always too prying and self rightous for your own good" he snapped “you know nothing! You’re just some waitress I worked with, you don’t know anything about me”. "Wow and there’s the fire nation prince" you smirked patronisingly "don’t know how you did such a good job hiding him before now" and stood up. "I saved you as a courtesy" Zuko called after you, his voice getting louder the further you walked "the next time i won’t". His announcement made you so mad you shook with anger. He was really threatening you for calling him out on betraying his family? He thought not letting his sister attack you owed praise? "Good" you yelled back "i don’t need anything from you. Have fun in your cursed life traitor". 

Zuko’s POV

Your words hit Zuko like a strike and he glared after you burning holes in your back until you disappeared around a corner. Even though you’d gone Zuko’s anger didn’t and he angrily sent a jet of fire up into the air with a yell. Zuko sat down on the cold bench and shivered. “What’s wrong with you now?” someone asked making Zuko jump. He turned to see Azula coming towards him and looked around to make sure there was no sign you’d been here. Azula seemed relaxed so she obviously hadn’t seen you but Zuko couldn’t believe how lucky he got, if Azula had been slightly earlier or you stayed any longer...it didn’t bare thinking about. “Hello? Does that scar effect your hearing?”. “No” Zuko snapped and sighed. His temper had been bad recently and was getting worse, that’s why he’d blown up so easily. He hadn’t meant to yell at you, he’d been happy to see you and he did...had seen you as a friend. But that was certainly all ruined now he’d yelled at you. That thought made Zuko even more depressed, which he didn’t think was possible. He supposed it was best you hate him though, he was the traitor prince, he’d betrayed his uncle who only ever wanted to help him. This way he wouldn’t be able to betray you too. 

1 month later

You’d regretted what you’d said to Zuko as soon as your anger feded but you were still hurt at what he’d said about you. You weren’t friends and you never were...

You decided that was the final straw and set out to make Zuko’s words a reality. Slowly you managed to lose thought of Zuko, even during the invasion of the fire nation palace you didn’t worry about seeing him, you knew now where your loyalties lied and it wasn’t with Zuko. You were done with him and getting to be okay with that.

So after finally working all that out, when you got a visitor at the western air temple you were angry to say the least. "It’s not..." you frowned looking at the figure but it was. Zuko...and he was smiling too. "Hello Zuko here" he called waving, appearing to be as calm as ever. The others all armed themselves but you just glared. Zuko looked at you all and glanced at you last. He looked down at the intenseness of your glare and you felt proud. "What do you want here?" Aang asked. Zuko explained he wanted to join you and you snorted "seriously? Now the great prince wants to grace us with his presence?" you asked. Zuko looked at you "y/n...i’m sorry for hurting you, all of you” he said looking at everyone again "what i did was wrong and i ask you to consider forgiving me". "No" you said simply "so thank you for coming but goodbye". Zuko rolled his eyes "y/n just let me explain...". "Explain what?" you asked "how you double crossed Mushi? How you hinted i’d be next?". Zuko went quiet and lowered his head. Aang touched your arm and you took that as a sign to calm down. “We can never trust you and we’ll never let you join us” Aang took over and you nodded. Zuko’s face crumpled in defeat and you sighed in relief. You watched, glaring, until Zuko walked out of sight and went inside the temple “well done Aang” you commented. "Man i thought air nomads were all peaceful" Sokka frowned. "Well guess i’m more earth nation then" you shrugged "if i see him again i’ll catapult him from this mountain". “Why are you so angry at him?” Toph asked suddenly and you laughed “you’re joking right?”. “No I get you feel betrayed but you were furious with him I could tell by your emotions and what did you mean when you said he threatenned you?”. “Yeah you never told us he did that in Ba Sing Sei” Sokka nodded and you frowned. “He didn’t threaten me per se and it wasn’t in Ba Sing Sei. I spoke to Zuko a few weeks ago". "What!" they all cried. Sokka launched in a lecture, Katara questioned you on safety, Toph called you insane while you just blushed. "This is exactly why i didn’t tell you!" you cried "i knew the risk but we were at the beach and he’d already stopped his sister from attacking me earlier that day so i figured....". "What" Sokka yelled and you sighed and just started from the very beginning. You finished your explanation and Sokka nodded. "I get why you’re angry at him" Sokka agreed and you sighed in relief. "Yeah because of what he said to me...". "No because you guys basically broke up". "What! We did not" you spluttered "we were never dating! That’s ridiculous" and stormed away angrily.

After a fitful night of sleep you woke up to the news Toph was gone. She’d seemed pretty sympathetic to Zuko yesterday so you weren’t suprised when she returned and announced she’d visit Zuko...and he’d burnt her. You helped carry her to the fountain and managed not to gloat that you were right but Toph sensed it. “I can feel you smirking” she commented. You frowned “I’m sorry you got hurt but I did tell you...”. “I may’ve been wrong but you’re letting your feelings cloud your judgement” Toph commented. You gaped “no i’m not!” and Katara frowned “guys....” when an explosion rocked the whole temple. Sparky sparky boom man was back, the assassin hired to kill you, and you all sought cover when suddenly the attacks ceased. “Zuko” Aang commented and you sighed, apparently Zuko was determined to prove his worth. Watching Aang’s reaction you felt anger, you knew what would happen. Zuko would save the day and that would win the gang over, they didn’t have as strong grudges as you.

Sure enough after the attack they let Zuko approach and listened to him. Aang vouched for him but then turned to all of you for your opinions. Aang looked at eveyone, they all met his eye apart from you. Toph and Sokka agreed, Katara hesitated but she agreed too. Finally Aang turned to you  "Y/n" he said softly "will you agree to let Zuko stay?". You looked past Aang to Zuko and resisted the urge to glare. "Y/n" Aang said softly "please, i need a firebender teacher and i really think it should be him". You stared at Aang, those big brown eyes wearing you down, and sighed. You had to do what was right, Aang needed this and he was one of the last members of your nation, you couldn’t be selfish. You nodded your head stiffly “if you say you need him then okay”. Aang grinned at you before turning back to Zuko “okay you can join us”. Those words made your skin crawl and you stormed away.  

It was awkward to say the least having Zuko around, all of you were reluctant to approach him but Sokka seemed to be having fun with it. As night approached Zuko asked where his room was and Sokka said he’d show him. Zuko nodded and Sokka siddled up beside you “want to show Zuko to his room yourself?" Sokka asked "so you can memorise the location". You smacked Sokka over the head in reply and he led Zuko away without another comment but had apparently put the idea in Zuko’s head.

You were laid on your bed glaring at the ceiling too angry to sleep when there was a knock on your door. You sat up cautiously and the door opened to reveal Zuko. "Hi" he said timidly and you stood up "what do you want?". Zuko blushed "i think we need to talk, privately...about what happened on ember island". "What is there to discuss? You never considered me a friend, you rejected me and left". Zuko frowned "y/n...it wasn’t like that". "Wasn’t it?" you asked and Zuko frowned "well it was but y/n i’m sorry! The things i said to you were awful but i didn’t mean them! I lashed out at you because it was you, because you make me want to be a better person, that’s why i hurt you". "Ow wow that makes it so much better thank you" you said mockingly and Zuko frowned "no, you know i didn’t mean it like that". "Well i’m sorry i didn’t take you yelling at me the right way Zuko, did i misinterpret you calling me nosy and self rightous and saying you never liked me too? Or how you saving me was just a such a nice gesture". Zuko groaned "why aren’t you listening i just said I didn’t mean any of that!". "Well i find that hard to believe" you glared "you don’t get to come here and apologise and have me forgive you, i’m angry at you". "Really you did a good job hiding that" Zuko retorted and you glared. "Get out of my room i don’t want to talk to you, ever”" you yelled and Zuko nodded "fine!" and stormed away. He slammed the door and the whole temple shook. You let out a cry of frustration and collapsed onto your bed. Zuko joining the group was going to make things complicated.

----

Next part is the last one!!!