#this is definitely a relatable one HAHAHAHA

[dindjarindiaries]

You Do It For Me

character: Din Djarin (The Mandalorian)

prompt: Staring at them and admiring them all day, hoping they won't notice (they definitely do)

main masterlist • prompt masterlist

"Hey." Din's voice is soft as he sets a hand on your shoulder. "Did you hear me?"

You blink a few times and force yourself to focus on his visor. Your mind is slow in processing his words. "Did I... oh, yeah, I'm sorry." You nod and tap the floating pod at your side. "We'll stay right here."

Din tilts his helmet. "Thank you." He gives your shoulder a gentle squeeze. "I won't be long."

You will your strength not to melt to the soil beneath you and offer a small smile instead. Din's visor lingers on you for only a moment before he turns and walks away, making his approach to the merchant he'd been in contact with before.

Your gaze remains on him, but not because you're worried. You haven't been able to let your eyes look upon anything else today except for him, and your mind's only encouraged it. The way he does anything, everything, threatens to make you forget how to stand on your own two feet.

Usually, you're better about hiding such admiration, but not every battle is easy to win—especially with a Mandalorian involved.

Right now, all he's doing is talking to the merchant, but even at this distance you can sense his business-like tone. His gloved hands are resting on his belt, his weight shifted onto one hip, taking a relaxed yet intimidating stance. His helmet tilts as he points at something the merchant has.

His hand then falls to his side and pulls into a tight fist. You're familiar with the strength of that grasp, having experienced it in ways that make your face flush in public.

It's simple, so simple, but the action is enough to send you into the most beautiful kind of spiral. It's a breathtaking cycle, and today, it's been endless. Everything he does sends your mind running in a podrace with no finish line.

You peel your gaze away only for a moment to check on Grogu. He's still asleep within the pod, making you smile as you close it once again. By the time you're looking back at Din, that quick moment of innocence is gone.

He's testing out a vibroblade, in need of something new after Moff Gideon's troopers took his on Mandalore. Din flips it over a few times in his gloved hand, nodding in satisfaction before he completes a few more skillful moves. You clasp your hands together behind your back and take a deep breath.

This man is going to be the end of you, but you couldn't ask for a sweeter demise.

Din closes out his deal and makes his way back towards you. His stride alone makes you shift your weight between your feet as you distract yourself by tending to Grogu once again. He's still asleep and as unbothered as ever.

"Thank you for your patience." Din's words are soft once again as his gloved hand finds your shoulder once again. He runs his thumb over it and nods. "Ready to go?"

You nod and bite your cheek. Din leads the way back to the ship, and you're more than happy to watch him do so. His beskar shines in the sunlight of this planet, making him stand out in the most perfect way. You curse to yourself under your breath and shake your head. You've been trying to be subtle, but he's making it difficult.

You're forced apart to follow him in your small ship back to Nevarro, and by the time you get there, it's already nightfall. Your trip for supplies had been enough to fill the day, and for you, it had certainly been eventful in its own way. You look forward to holding Din close and pretending your fond admiration hadn't happened as you seek your rest together.

But once Din puts Grogu to bed and joins you in the darkness of the bedroom, he foils your plans. "Did you see something you liked today?"

His question takes you aback. You stand up from where you'd been sitting on the edge of the bed, though it's nearly impossible to make out his figure in the dark haze of the room. "What do you mean? At the market? We got everything I wanted."

Din's gloved hands are gentle in finding your waist, as if he's giving you the chance to pull away. When you make no such move, he pulls you against him. "You know what I'm talking about."

You rest your hands upon his cuirass and shake your head in embarrassment. "Damn. I was really hoping you wouldn't notice."

Din chuckles and gives your waist a gentle squeeze before he lifts one hand to his helmet. "That's one thing I really enjoy about this helmet." Din's modulated voice is exchanged for his natural one as you hear the helmet hit the floor. "You had no idea I was doing the very same thing to you all day."

You raise your brow even as you smile at him. "And how am I supposed to believe you're not just saying that to make me feel better?"

Din brings himself close enough to you for his nose to brush against your own. "I'll give you proof." He keeps his own smirk hovering just above your own, giving you the invitation to make the final move.

You do so without hesitation, smiling even more against him as you begin to remember exactly why you've been stuck in such a sweet cycle of admiration.

[bakatenshii]

first of all hiiiiiiiiii angel so happy to see you on my tl second i've recently read a 50k words fic for tw harry potter with godawful pairing snape\dolores ambridge and i was lowkey moved. idk what to make of it

LYYYRRRR LYRRR IM PUNCHING WALLS TO GET TO U HELLOOOOO

i actually have 0 knowledge on any hp lore lemme google why this ship is cursed brb (ok i dont get it but if its villaIn/villain i am nodding and enabling u) JAHSOZOA LOWKEY MOVED MAKES ME CACKLE

[inhuman-obey-me]

Celestials and Saltiness: Lessons 48/49

HAHAHAHA of course while we had irl stuff going on and couldn't go through the lessons for a couple weeks, was when the Big Stuff drops. But we have caught up, and hoo boy, there is plenty to discuss. So let's discuss! Strap in, it's a long one.

(MAJOR spoilers for NB lesson 48/49 below the cut)

The Situation

Let's start with what's actually happening. Hey, remember when the devs decided Simeon is a human now as punishment over the whole stealing the Ring of Light situation? SURPRISE, they've decided he's becoming a demon after all! You know, like all of us fucking expected of what happens to angels when they are punished and fall? Yeah, that.

As it turns out, despite the whole "I'm human now" gradual reveal across two whole fucking seasons, they've now decided this has been going on since basically all the way back to his human world cafe days in OG Season 3 to say he was starting to become a demon even back then, or at least so Solomon theorizes. So...basically the entire length of his "human" punishment thus far. Cool, cool, we're sure that's totally not a retcon due to the devs realizing they wrote themselves into a corner. Definitely had a plan all along, that's why they bought themselves 2 seasons of Nightbringer time travel shenanigans of time before getting into this. Totally.

Anyway, setting aside the salt (for now), we are told that this demonic aura has been starting to appear whenever he feels deep emotions, somewhat similar to how power manifests for the brothers. Solomon tells us that it's because Simeon has a unique ability to access his latent power - which is an interesting little tidbit to note, as it implies that they took away his angel powers but he has his own inherent powers which he was just never able to access until now. We have long held the headcanon that God artificially limits angels' power, so it's very interesting to us to see that it may be suggesting something similar here.

On a related minor worldbuilding note, this does confirm the detail that celestial power has a distinctly opposite feeling than demonic power, meaning that their magic and powers are not neutral. And we also get an in-game reminder that demons do not like angels, so in this situation, it would be expected that an average demon might think an angel deserves to fall and want to torture/kill them if given the chance.

By the way, all of this is going on during the Science Fair Chemistry competition specifically, which is...an interesting parallel to say the least. Chemistry is the science concerned with matter -- including its composition, structure, and how it changes down to the molecular level. We've always been of the opinion that Simeon just turning into a human was odd as it's been established that demons and angels have different physiology in comparison to humans (like how Demonus can get both demons and angels drunk, but doesn't affect humans). Simeon turning into a demon with the absence of his angel powers makes sense.

Celestial Realm Reactions

Now, the consequences.

First, let's look at the political implications. Diavolo, Barbatos, and Lucifer know that this does not bode well for relations between the Realms. After all, what will the Celestial Realm think, having one of their own turning into a demon after they sent them to the Devildom for the exchange program? Especially considering everything that happened with Lucifer and the Great Celestial War, it would be very easy to point a finger at Diavolo and the Devildom for being a corrupting influence.

Lucifer also mentions that Simeon is currently not allowed through the gates into the Celestial Realm without first obtaining forgiveness. However, that status as a human is an ongoing punishment (think of a kid being grounded by parents), not a one-and-done thing, opening up an implication that this transformation is not necessarily intended to be permanent. That's also totally not a retcon, we're sure! If he turns into a demon, that challenges the supposed punishment and calls into question which realm actually has a claim to him -- in a situation where both answers would have precarious implications for Diavolo's peace plan.

So, that's the Celestial Realm as a whole, on a political level. But let's take a look at the individual angels we know too, shall we?

First, there's the big question mark of Michael. We know that he's the one who called Simeon back to the Celestial Realm about the Ring of Light, and we also know that he is in fact the one Simeon stole it from. However, Lucifer assumes Michael is planning to bring Simeon back to the Celestial Realm when he gets the chance, so it seems like he was not actually the one to decide on this punishment and may actually be working to end it. And interestingly, this would not be the first time Michael has acted on his own to seemingly try to cancel out a punishment from God -- as a reminder, he also went off to the Devildom disguised himself as Raphael to try to invite the brothers back at the end of NB Season 1!

Considering Lucifer's insistence that Father would never forgive him, plus his Cocytus punishment at the end of NB Season 2, it does seem like Michael probably didn't have permission from God to go inviting them back. If he's also looking to reverse Simeon's punishment, that would show a surprising rebelliousness from the top angel of the Celestial Realm! So it will be interesting to see how Michael's role in this whole situation unfolds.

Then, we have our sweet baby angel Luke -- who ends up crying himself to the point of passing out when he finds out. He's grown a lot since he first arrived to the Devildom, no longer thinking that all demons are inherently evil monsters -- but he's still very proud to be an angel. He loves Simeon dearly, as the one who has acted as a parental figure of sorts for him this entire time. Luke is adamant about protecting and helping Simeon in any way he can, even if he's not sure what can really be done.

However, this sets up quite the conflict for the poor boy. He was too young to know Lucifer and the other brothers at the time of the Great Celestial War, so this is his first time reckoning with an angel he's known personally becoming a demon. And on top of that, this began with the Celestial Realm's decision to punish Simeon for taking the Ring of Light -- saving MC and Lucifer, and stabilizing MC's "ring" to essentially save all of the Three Realms.

In other words, Simeon is becoming a demon now for saving everyone. So it begs the question -- will Luke, who has unquestioningly believed in the Celestial Realm until now, start seeing his home in a different light after all of this?

Then there's the next-youngest angel, and the newest in the cast -- Raphael. We didn't see too much of him, but we get enough that it's clear he's not taking this news well either. It's assumed he was suddenly called to the Celestial Realm because of this development, though we don't know exactly what they say to him about it, and when he returns, he's in a daze. We see Mephistopheles being the one to actually first run into him and try to talk to him, but he is mainly met with a very out-of-it angel, and he then takes him out to have his family's special Demonus because it's clear Raphael is distressed. In another scene, we see Thirteen run into a now spaced-out Mephisto and he asks her a "hypothetical" -- what happens when an angel reaches their limit? Also, Solmare, are y'all setting up RaphaelxMephisto as a ship?

And then, of course, we have the angel of the hour -- or rather, ex-angel. And Simeon's reaction to this change is...not so bad, actually. It's one of understandable confusion but also a kind of near acceptance. We've always been convinced that the reason Simeon was demoted after the Celestial War was because he stayed neutral and refused to fight. And how Simeon discusses the past in Lesson 49 suggests similarly -- he has always had regrets over not joining Lucifer, because he couldn't. Now that it seems he is possibly turning into a demon, he can't help but wonder how things could have been different if he had.

He mentions how he feels less unsure about this than turning into a human, as he always did want to be closer to the brothers, and didn't like that he was different from them. In that sense, turning into a demon doesn't seem so bad to him -- though he also doesn't have control over these powers yet, so he needs to be careful. And, if you choose the "are you a bad boy at heart" option, he mentions that maybe his loyalty to the Celestial Realm is lacking -- pretty understandable, after all he's seen from them and all they've put him through...!

And Then There's the Shady Sorcerer...

Now, that's all complicated enough for that delicate, delicate balance between the Celestial Realm and the Devildom, but let's not forget there's one more realm in the "Three" Realms, with one very conspicuously powerful representative here in our cast.

And so, where is Solomon in all of this? Well, we know he placed a protection charm on Simeon to protect him when it was thought that he was a "defenseless" human, so that even if a lesser demon messed with him, they'd be in for a world of pain. He was also, it seems, the first one to notice Simeon starting to transform into a demon, but kept that information to himself until confronted about it. Lucifer opens up to us that he can't help but wonder if there's some kind of connection between the sorcerer's activities back in the human realm and Simeon's predicament, feeling some doubts even if it seems everyone relies on Solomon and trusts him. And after all, Lucifer would be a demon with a good reason to distrust Solomon, since the sorcerer has long been after a pact with him, even on top of all the many powerful pacts he already holds with others.

Lucifer brings up some of his concerns to Solomon by asking him why he's been going back and forth to the human world so much -- to which Solomon answers that's making some preparations for unlikely scenarios. He insists it's not important, but we wonder...

Back in OG Season 2, Solomon knew about MC's "ring" which was putting the Three Realms at risk, and he secretly swiped the Night Dagger from the Reaper's Cave as a potential solution. His top priority, as we've seen, has always been protecting humanity from the battling influences of the other two realms. We know that's also part of his mysterious deal with Nightbringer.

So what possible plans and preparations could Solomon be making, and for what unlikely scenarios? Another war? Another imbalance of power? We'll see what awaits with this whole new situation...

[cripplecharacters]

Do you think it’s ok as a person w/o psychosis to have jokes in a story that revolve around hallucinations? Not in a ‘that person is so crazy hahahaha’ way, more like the humour comes from the character being exasperated because their hallucinations aren’t realistic and are clearly fake to them, but they’re still seeing them and they’re fed up of it.

I partially wanted to include this so that the character’s hallucinations aren’t considered to be only just scary and evil (there are some moments in the story where the hallucinations are more intense because of the character being in a bad mental place, so I wanted to avoid showing hallucinations as only dark), and partially because one of their regular hallucinations revolves around seeing wild animals, and they don’t live in an area where the animals they typically see are common, so naturally they’d be out of place. Also, this idea for the jokes mostly came from the fact that I personally suffer from paranoia/intrusive thoughts, and get very exasperated when I know one of my thoughts is unrealistic, but I’m aware that my experiences are different from people with psychosis, so wanted to check in here. Thanks:3

Hello!

Yes, I think it definitely can be done in a way that's respectful. Psychosis is obviously serious and can be scary, but so are a lot of other things that people make jokes about. I have made jokes about some of my hallucinations and I know other people who do that as well.

I think I see where you're coming from with the idea, but I will say first that even the hallucinations that are extremely obviously fake (including to the person experiencing them at that time who is aware that it's not real) can still be very stressful and scary. To have myself as an example here, a few years ago I had a visual hallucination that was clearly out of place, essentially nonsense. I'm fairly good at recognizing when I'm hallucinating something and was able to tell "that's not there, it's literally fake". At that time I did actually make fun of it because Lol, saw Weird Thing, and it was kinda funny, but it doesn't mean I didn't also stare at it and had my heart rate go up a dangerous amount. Being scared in a situation with a clearly Strange Thing of that nature is an uncontrollable physical response I think (I'm presuming it's much less intense for people who hallucinate very frequently or at all times), kinda like getting a fake spider thrown at you - you know it's fake approximately 1 second after the fact and it can be funny, but your body is still going through some sort of response because for that 1 second it took you to figure that out you got scared.

This is a very long way to say that this is both a thing that your character could joke or be frustrated by ("Why do I still feel dizzy, it was literally just [XYZ]? What the fuck.") and that scary hallucination =/= hallucination you can't joke about. Some people will actually make fun of the more distressing ones because it can be a decent coping mechanism when you're scared. It can ease up the tension, especially if other people see you and don't know what to do (it's absolutely awkward).

My one advice on the type of jokes the character makes is to keep in mind how they relate to actual psychotic people. E.g., don't make a joke that has "you'd have to be stupid to not notice that something is a hallucination" as an objective conclusion because well, a lot of us can't tell. I suppose it could be different if the character is being self-deprecating and just insulting themselves, but if you're going that in-depth on the character I'd recommend working with a sensitivity reader.

Basically try to consider - is the character joking about themself and their hallucination, or are they just punching down psychotic people? Again, jokes on how "psychotic people be like" aren't sacred or fully off limits, but it's not really what I'd be looking for from an outsider author.

There's also I think room for showing hallucinations as strictly scary/dark (most, if not all of us have/had these), it's just to not have horror soundtrack playing during it. If (example) your character experienced the most movie-stereotypical "demons, blood, satanic activity" type hallucinations and was actually treated with sympathy, I wouldn't consider it to be demonization of psychosis. Sometimes it can be scary and ugly, but it doesn't make the person experiencing it an evil monster.

I hope this helps,

mod Sasza

[omghallucinations]

charts that made me go "oh boy": stray kids lee know

ok. well. i've been on a journey.

i was innocently inputting idols with known birth times into my astro software as i do and i put this guy in and said "oh... oh boy..." out loud so obviously i decided to do a write-up

i finished this write-up. realized i was bias wrecked all to hell. so. there u go. let this be a warning to you all. be careful whose chart you analyze because you could end up with a Problem!!

unrelated (related) i just love a sagittarius moon. my favorite moon there is. some people love a taurus moon, fair, valid (also lee know has his moon in the 2nd which is basically a layer of taurusy vibe) but i love a sagittarius moon most of all. those guys are crazy (affectionate). you cannot kill them in any way that matters. truly understand the inherent hilariousness of life... .. somehow can always see through the illusions of capitalism... i love them.

who is this anaretic degree ass

girl how many important degrees... do u need... ... i have two 29s and one 0 in my chart and i thought that was a lot...

lee know has both venus and neptune at 29 (and venus at 29.59 which is, wow old soul ready to get the hell off this lawn much?). the anaretic degree is the "fated degree"--it's like, your soul has just about mastered this energy and is about to take it somewhere else (bc the next degree is not 30, it's 0 of the next sign) so it's time for some TESTS. it's crises and gifts. often you're naturally good at this energy in whatever form that takes, but it's gonna fuck with you on and off throughout your life. more during the first half to be fair. especially with that 0 degree saturn, he'll probably be in way better shape after his saturn return.

venus at 29(.59?!?!) in libra -- ok i also have venus at 29 (.09!), so i can tell you that he never has to be single if he doesn't want to be, but it is not gonna go right for a long ass time and he's gonna be weird and intense about relationships and it will not feel good. he might think it is going right. he is wrong. get ready for some gifts but ALSO some crises with love and creativity and beauty and shit--especially with venus at home in libra and his scorpio rising. he's definitely captivating, and can probably bamboozle whoever he wants with his beauty and charm, but his crisis and urgency feeling in love is probably a Whole Lot both for him and for his partners. and it's in the 12th house like.. .. . oh boy honey. he's gonna hide his need for love and validation and his sensitivity so hard. also literally his relationships (and they'll probably be undefined for a long time) despite the fact that every one is gonna be so intense.

it's also opposite his 0 degree saturn????? girl!! and conjunct his sun also in the 12th... .. . . . well at least you are so beautiful and charming and generous, lee know, and everyone really likes you. i know u issues and tremendous sensitivity that you hide like crazy and probably a judgmental family member (who probably means well, unfortunately!) whose influence burdens u even now as u feel like there are somehow always Forces Working Against You for no reason! even tho u just gotta Believe In Yourself dot mp3.....

bright side! when he works through some of this stuff he's very likely gonna have a very solid and mature marriage and he already has sort of a maturity leg-up, thank u saturn in taurus and juno conjunct sun. eventually you will look back on the many unhinged texts you sent at 2am and laugh... . .. more than you already do, you sagittarius moon, you!!

neptune at 29 capricorn in the 3rd house -- hahahaha welcome to crises and gifts around dreams, illusions, secrets, delusions, etc. and make it capricorn: old soul vibes, anxiety, not gonna settle until later in life. in the 3rd house: dreams and illusions with gemini vibes, unending curiosity, brain running at 300 all day all night, so many Thoughts. hm. does he have adhd (inattentive subtype)???he's super creative and iconoclastic but he may be doing a lot of talking and not a lot of... doing. it's also a weird mood to have the fanciful dreams planet in the harsh reality sign, there's conflict inherent there. (oh lord, neptune is square venus and saturn with a 0 orb??? t-square??? bro??? lee know did ur parents or teachers or society crush ur dreams??? do you now crush your own dreams urself in advance to avoid disappointment??? do u think you can either have love or success and not both???)

(i can fix him!! wait.)

lunar nodes at 29 (NN in Leo in the 10th, SN in Aquarius in the 4th) -- lol this plus his 29.59 venus, his soul is Ready to Move On from these lessons hahaha, luckily his career really reflects his soul growth shit--moving away from his comfort zone of being a semi-reclusive iconoclastic weirdo with depressive tendencies who stays at home and moving towards self expression, celebration of himself and creativity in his career/a public space. he is gonna have a lot of crises about this though, since the south node is still really important and you shouldn't abandon it, it's ur foundation. he's gonna have questions like what does "be yourself" even mean??? how public is too public? how private is too private? what if i Fail, Publicly??? what if i don't put myself out there enough???

(he probably does not put himself out there enough, because of the relationship between his nodes, saturn, venus and his 12th house sun--but he should!! fight for your opportunities king!!)

(if u do not already have a therapist, lee know, please... get a therapist... it will help u.... i swear....)

we're still not done with degrees for some reason

saturn at 0 degrees taurus in the 6th house: another #same, my saturn is also at 0 degrees!! ateez jongho is another one with a 0 degree saturn, it's a very strong aura no matter what. any planet at 0 is fresh and new and EXCITED TO BE THERE and depending on aspects etc it will almost always express the energy of the planet in that sign real... loud... and real... vibrantly... ... .. without much nuance... for better or worse. this doesn't have to be a straightforward manifestation of the sign, sometimes it's wonky, but either way it's just a lot of Pure Sign and Planet Energy.

saturn is a more outer planet, so normally the sign its in is more of a light flavor and the much more important thing is the aspects and the house its in. if saturn is at 0, scratch that whole sentence

saturn in taurus is really. really clear in lee know's personality, tbh even to someone who only knows him from his professional activities. like. startlingly. i see her. saturn is a force for maturity, lessons, responsibility, discipline, structure, practicality, actual real physical life not the idea of life, and in taurus it's going. home. bye. the taurus jumps out. he's not too fussed about how much attention he's getting, or how much center time, he never jumps in ego-first. in the sixth house of work daily life and virgo vibes he's just gonna do what he's gotta do and get it done. solid, mature, grounded, no celebrity disease in sight, really a nice counterpoint to the kinda manic romance he's got going on in the 12th that would unhinge him from reality in many ways if it weren't for saturn

sixth house also gives some health stuff, some virgo vibes, can be critical. he might have or have had some health probs, or he may have them in future if he isn't super careful

taurus in the sixth to me gives apartment rooftop garden, beloved pets (6th house is the small animals house :)), dependable cornerstone at work but leaves at 5pm sharp because he wants to GO HOME. he's not gonna do more than he has to do because that's #stupid and he's not #stupid. he's not lazy at all he uses exactly the amount of energy he needs to and no more, again, because he's not dumb. vibes. icon. comfort. ease. chilling out.

he probably can really cut you deep if he wants to (especially with his chart ruler being his super specific and critical virgo mars in the 10th), luckily he doesn't care enough most of the time

(being mean in a funny way does not count, because of his aforementioned sagittarius moon and various gemini/virgo influences, it's the way he expresses affection!)

party (?) in his first house

idk i think a lot of idols have stuff in their first house, more proportionally than most people, which makes sense for their whole...situation. anyway. his first house has:

scorpio mercury: fun!! anything in your first house is gonna color the rest of your chart, almost like another layer to your rising. for example ateez hongjoong and (g)idle soyeon are both capricorn risings with uranus and neptune in the first house, so they're not regular capricorn risings, they're capricorn-aquarius-pisces risings. with mercury in there lee know gets a fun gemini/virgo flavor to his life path/vibe. he's gonna be chattier, funnier, externally wittier than most scorpio risings, more similar to a gemini or virgo rising in that way. it really is his cross of Sexy Intense Head Bitch You Shouldn't Cross but also Head Silly Yapper. his mercury is widely conjunct his ascendant, so the gemini/virgo/communication focus comes across strongly.

he's smart and curious and can talk anyone into anything at any time. it's another thing in his chart that chills out the sort of. self-serious Drama of scorpio placements (she said, scorpio moonly). mercury is zany!! and can really think itself into all sorts of interesting places (anxiety vortex? deluluville? why not both???)

scorpio chiron: well ya can't have it all. he has some pain and wounds around his own identity and place in the world as well as his soul-need for independence and self-assertion. it's complicated for him to Be Himself and with scorpio he probably has some past life shit here (in addition to his many heavily karmic 29 degree placements, let's all say thank you god for giving him a sagittarius moon and mercury in the 1st house)

sagittarius pluto: power. magnetism. take the usual power of a scorpio rising and crank it up to 20. also he has a temper under the calm, methodical taurus saturn and also thinks he's right 100% of the time. and he has some deep feelings and can empathize with the suffering of others! most importantly his past life stuff has been rooted in the search for identity and place in the world and he finds unconscious security in independence and his ability to assert himself, probably extra complicated for his 29 degree libra venus who craves union with another! lol!

this is honestly only just scratching the surface (just like any chart interpretation) but i gotta stop!! unfortunately i've been bias wrecked by an astrological chart. embarrassing as hell!!

[teecupangel]

Ok- ok- F/GO x AC. Imagine Desmond Master of Chaldea and the other assassins are also servants. (All of them being assassin class ofc) it woulc be funny to see how some of the already existing servants would react to the other assassins. Jacob having mixed feelings on Jack the ripper and Altair and Jacques De Molay, Edward and the other pirate servants, etc. And Desmond thrown into being the Savior of humanity again, man deja vu.

Okay, so first things first… Altaïr would have never met Jacques de Molay because Jacques de Molay would be quite young when Altaïr died. (Edward, though, would have some very awkward questions for Anne and Mary and it would probably be easy for Jacob to ignore Jack the Ripper because of how different they are from the Jack he knew)

Second of all, my dear nonny, I barely played FGO but I did play the OG VN so…

The fact that you picked Desmond as a master and the other Assassins as servants only reminded me that part of the plot of the og visual novel is that servants take mana from their master by having sex XD

(technically, any kind of fluid would do but the VN used sex hahahaha)

Anyway, I think there’s something ‘fishy’ we can do about Desmond and his ‘exclusive’ servants because of one mystery:

is “The Old Man of the Mountain” (First Hassan) even human to begin with?

We could play with his connection to Desmond in some way, marking Desmond as a Master who cannot summon any new servants. He only has the new Assassin class servants who seemed… well… there’s definitely some question to the legitimacy of their creation.

Hell, one of them could even talk about how Desmond’s direct connection to the First Hassan is too ‘direct’ to be normal.

If the First Hassan is something more than human then Desmond could be a being created by him, hereby making him more or less the First Hassan’s son.

His servants would be the ‘protection’ his father gave him.

Desmond calls it all bullshit because (1) he has never met the First Hassan and (2) he highly doubts what may or may not be Hassan-i Sabbah is related to him.

But, of course, some servants would find this fascinating and want to learn more about Desmond and his servants.

And who more would be interested than Leonardo Da Vinci.

Who willingly took the image of Mona Lisa after being summoned XD

Enter Ezio Auditore’s “I am now questioning my sexuality in the middle of what amounts to an Afterlife Battle Encore” XD

[bunniehunn]

HELLO 🫵 I COME HERE TO REQUEST... a vilbeni and/or flamil yapping session abt their tropes, dynamic, whatever you want 🙏🙏 so that I can give you fitting songs HAHAHAHA

FINALLY FINALLLLYYYUYYYYYYY THANK YOU TARU………

I’m always kind of reluctant to talk about my ship dynamics unprompted, so WAHOO!

I think I’ll just talk abt Flamil rn bc my thoughts about Vilbeni is just soup in my brain

Flamil is definitely very complex. When I first decided the ship, I cemented Flori was a sort of parallel to Kalim. Wealthy/high status, someone kind who doesn’t seem like they fit in at NRC. But Flori has the awareness Kalim doesn’t, she sees Jamil, acknowledges and even relates to him. She holds a great amount of respect for him, even if she teases him sometimes. Jamil and Flori are parallels and contrasts at the same time. They’re both stuck in lives and positions they don’t want, yet drastically different. Jamil is trapped in his servitude and Flori is trapped in her own high status. Before they start their relationship, they become friends. Strangers to friends to lovers, I guess. Of course, Jamil wouldn’t refer to her as his friend out loud, but he can be surprisingly easy to read sometimes. A lot of the lying he does is to himself lol. Flori is generally more optimistic and definitely more extroverted than Jamil, she’s naturally sociable and friendly, which probably triggers some of his jealousy issues when she’s with other people… Jamil is pretty guarded but Flori is just one of those people who’s never going to stop trying to kick down that wall. And in the process she accidentally knocks her own down.

now hehe funny memes that are them

Anyways um sorry if this made no sense or didn’t help at all HAHA IM. BAD AT THIS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

my brain might brain later at some point but it’s ugdghshsh

[twopoppies]

Hi Gina!! First of all, I wanted to thank you and Daisie and everyone else here for the amazing Larry masterlist. I'm a new larrie myself, though I've been around the fandom since 2011 (tho not super closely) when WMYB MV was released. I was deep diving on receipts, and as per usual, I took it all in with a grain of salt and kept all my conclusions rational and unbiased. I just wanna add something you might consider a receipt, connecting to one of the tour receipts ones I’ve read on Daisie’s tags (I dove into both yours and Daisie’s tags lol). This isn't so big and new at all but I thought I'd add. Sorry in advance if I am too vague with this lol

A quick context: I had worked with small event productions here in my country, and had become pretty close with suppliers (tech, security, venue, etc). I got curious about an entry I read from your receipts tag which happened in an international tour here. Anyway, I am pretty close with our security supplier, and I thought I'd check if there were traces of them working with the boys. After a few google search, I saw them with Louis on a video during his tour here - confirming that at least for that show, they did work with Louis. He has been very open to me ever since we met, so when I DMed him about being involved in the show, he enthusiastically answered that they did all 1D-related ones in the country.

Anyway, bottomline, I tried to ask if it's true that Louis was here during Harry's concert because I've kind of heard it somewhere (being the receipt I read from Daisies' account). That’s when he got weirdly super silentl and left me on ‘seen’/‘read’ (which had never happened EVER before). I waited with the chat box open; he se seemed type after a few mins - and then stopped completely. When I realized he (c)wouldn't reply, I didn't push it and said he doesn't have to respond and that I respect if he’s bound by certain contracts. After that, he immediately replied, basically just saying "Thank you" (for understanding, essentially). We just chatted a bit more before ending the convo.

So I guess I'd say it somewhat solidifies that theory in my head because I personally know them, and if there's really something super big they cannot share at all, they WONT. I knew there was something because it was almost comical for me how he suddenly left me on ‘read’. So if it's not a big deal at all he would've shared because we've talked about other works they've done in the past (he was so enthusiastic and shared all the names of the shows they've done with 1D a few mins prior lol) - but when I specifically asked if Louis was with Harry here for his tour, he immediately closed off and stopped replying - and THEN thanked me when I said he didn’t have to reply lol (I didn’t ask anything else, just that exact wording, straightforwardly asking if L was there during H's show, and I didn’t phrase it in a playful or teasing way like I am implying there’s smth gossip-worthy between them I'm fishing out of him)

ANYWAY, I’m not even sure if this is worth posting but I needed someone to share it with and I thought it could be like a backup info for the future hahahaha I am trying to be vague because I do want to protect myself and my (in a way) source (?). But if you need any clarification from me - I’d be open to elaborate more in the dms (I’m rusty with tumblr so I hope I can navigate this properly lol)

Ofc, a part of me wish I could've gotten something, but I also respect them for staying quiet. And even if they did share something big, I might've had second thoughts on sharing bcs I was mainly asking it for my own sanity tbh, knowing that I knew who the security team was lol So I guess my point of sharing this with you is to basically share that the usual NDA thing with H&L, whether as a whole 1D unit before or as solos, is definitely enforced here. That the silence somewhat solidified my belief of other Larry receipts such as 1.) in relation to the Argentinian security confessions, and 2.) the receipts pointing out that those two fly together sometimes in the tours.

Idk if this is worth posting at all, but I just really needed to let it because I feel like I might be getting biased but also not (it was very fishy for me for sure lol). Thank you!

Hi, darling. No, it’s totally worth posting! I agree with you that it says something without saying anything. Are you able to tell me what year you were asking about? Or what country? I won’t post anything you don’t want public.

I’m really glad to hear that people take their NDAs seriously and even if it was from years ago they would still be professional about it.

Thank you so much for sharing this. If you think of anything else you can add, LMK. Or send me a DM. I’ll keep it private. 🩷

[xiefuyu]

Brother, I'm here.

-- Kurokawa Izana x little sister reader

🖤 — tokyo revengers

📝 — reader is a sister, second pov (you/your), light angst if you squint, not proofread

: a/n — this will be a mini series yey. and yes, let's ignore the reader's age and how she managed to take an airplane despite being a minor and not having a guardian. do minors need a guardian when traveling? yes but reader is independent asf hahahaha.

— PT. 1 / PT. 2/PT.3/PT.4/PT.5

You weren’t aware and neither was he.

Aware that you’re related; blood-related and all that. But the moment you found out that you have an older brother who was born in Japan along with the confession of your irresponsible father that he left him there, you started working for money. You didn’t have any stable financial support and you were just a kid who longed for affection.

For the affection of someone who you just found out that existed not even a year ago.

Now here you are, breathing in the air of Japan after years of saving up, fortunately, your father gave you some allowance, too, because passports and airplane tickets are not free. Nothing was ever free in this world to you. Not food, not clothes, and definitely not love.

That is why stepping to a new soil, you told yourself that you’ll look for the affection that you hoped you’ll get for free. Your broken Japanese was surprisingly warmly welcomed by the people, some even putting the effort of trying to speak English for you. It warmed your heart to be openly welcomed, to be looked at with admiration for the fact that you’re trying your best to navigate through a new vast land and sea.

You arrived at what you found out to be called Yokohama. And right before continuing your journey, you stopped at a cafe that got your attention and walked in, hoping to rest your legs that were nonstop walking. Glancing at your small notebook, you sighed, hands trembling slightly when you became aware that you don’t know a thing about your brother.

Just that you both have lilac eyes. 

You also knew that your brother had silver hair and you tried to paint his face. Try to see an amalgamation of unsure features aside from two things that you heard from your father.

You glance outside and see your reflection looking back at you. Will he recognize you just like how you feel you’ll recognize him without a fail even though it will be your first time seeing him? Will he be happy for the effort you put in just to meet him?

Will he acknowledge you? Accept you?

All of a sudden, you’re unsure of your decisions. It has just been a day, not even half, and you’re already reprimanding yourself for being selfish, being greedy, for something, for someone that isn’t even aware of your existence.

And yet, you found yourself outside the cafe, eyes darting everywhere hoping to find silver hair and lilac eyes.

After wandering through the unknown streets of Yokohama, you stopped, exhaustion seeping through your skin and bones as you sat down on a bench, hands gripping your head.

Minutes later, you decide to continue your search tomorrow and go to an inn that you saw earlier, praying that it will be better the next day.

Unsurprisingly, the next day was not any better like you prayed but you found yourself walking aimlessly through a new set of unfamiliar streets.

With a sigh, you bring yourself to the train station to go to Shibuya. You’ve heard good things about Shibuya and how it’s beautiful and full of lively things especially at night.

With that fun thought, you walk off from the train and breathes in heavily before starting your another hunt for your brother.

After wandering around without any destination in mind, you saw a group of boys wearing red jackets and you tilt your head in confusion. Is there an event or something? All of them are matching and you think it’s cute because all you know is that whenever people wear something that matches with each other, it’s because of their unity or maybe even love for each other.

Not that you have had any one to match clothes nor accessories with.

You didn’t mind them and simply walked past them, missing two different coloured eyes following you, wide and confused. You didn’t notice him commanding the others to call for someone and you didn’t notice him following you.

You looked so familiar to him. Too familiar that you left goosebumps in its wake. Was it your skin? Your aura that was naturally exuding confidence and commandment? 

Oh.

Oh.

It was your eyes.

Your eyes with their long lashes that met him when you decided to suddenly turn around and walk back to where you came from, blinking at him. 

It was your eyes. His eyes. So familiar and yet, such a stranger. Your eyes are a little bit dimmed yet it reminded him of how his friend’s own ones shone under the daylight. 

You both stared at each other before it was broken with the vibration of his phone and how you bowed lightly to him before proceeding with your journey. Something bloomed in his chest; happiness? Confusion? Familiarity?

It was funny, he thinks. You didn’t even know each other and yet, you’re forcing all these emotions to him. With a deep breath, he answers the phone and tells the person on the other end that he has something important to tell him.

Silence and Izana’s back was what answered Kakucho’s news and assumption. “You’re probably mistaken.” came his king’s answer after a few minutes of silence.

Wrong.

Kakucho wants to tell him that he’ll never make a mistake. How could he when all he wanted to do was run to you earlier and hug you because you look familiar? Because your eyes are undoubtedly from the same parent? How could he be wrong when he spent years admiring those same eyes even if they lost their shine? How could he when he noticed and just knew that you’re lost and looking for something, for someone?

“She has your eyes.” was what he settled with. Izana turns around and looks at him. “Shinichiro is my only sibling.” Kakucho freezes. 

Was telling him a wrong decision?

Is the bubbling decision in him to let you meet him will make him regret it?

He doesn’t know because all he knows is that you’re there looking for his king. You’re there and he knows, hopes, rather, that you’ll manage to mend Izana’s broken pieces that he collected and tried to put back together along their journey.

Without any response, he walks away and looks for you.

“What?” you asked, breathless and eyes wide. “I’m asking for your name.” the boy with different eye colour repeats. You don’t even know how he found you but you’re grateful that you’re in the middle of a crowded street so you can immediately call for help or run away in case he tries something funny. 

“Why?” you pry on, noticing how patient he is with you. He was beautiful, yes, but you’re not going to throw your name to a random boy you just met. “You look like someone I know.” your heart beats in your chest loudly, forcibly trying to come out and run towards the boy and shake him and tell him to bring it to whoever he is pertaining to.

Your mouth opens and closes, breathing in and out deeply to calm yourself down.

“Y/N. Kurokawa Y/N.”

You don’t know why. 

You’re confused but you found yourself kneeling in front of the scarred boy whose knees gave up after hearing your name. Relief. Was it truly a relief? It flooded his eyes and his body, respectfully and gently gripping your hands that failed to catch him.

He’s right.

He’s right and he hopes Izana will be happy if he brings you to him. So with a deep breath, he clutches your hands firmly and looks at you.

“I believe you’re looking for your brother, miss, and I know Kurokawa. Kurokawa Izana.”

A/N: uhm let's hope i become responsible enough to continue this without fail hehe

[my-castles-crumbling]

cas review of ttpd?

Ah yes! I am finally ready!

Cas's Review of TTPD that Two (2) People Asked For (so now you all get a fucking essay)

Literally, this is growing to be one of my favorite albums. Like...I appreciate Taylor most for her lyrics and I wrote down seven pages of them in my notebook of lyrics that fucking killed me. I feel like it's a more mature version of folklore, which is exactly what I was hoping for.

I really liked the promo for this album- the lyrics being spread, the phases of grief, the entire thing was so well-done. And the double album drop left me literally screaming.

I feel like the order of the songs on the album is also super well thought out. It really tells a story and I could feel her going through the phases, especially in the first half of the album.

I thought it was cool that she definitely took some risks in the album, but most of them landed 1000%. So many of the cool things done with the lyrics, melody, and tempo were amazing and kept me interested.

I'm gonna start by listing the more specific things I didn't like because there's only three:

In the song "Fresh Out The Slammer" during the outro, the change in beat was very jarring. I LOVED the rest of the song and it just ruined it for me

Florida!!! was...a choice. I get it. The concept of going away somewhere after a breakup to get over it is great. But Florida? Like...c'mon. Also "fuck me up Florida" made me cringe.

The line in "I Hate It Here" about racists...god, I have two minds about it. I don't think there was winning with that one, and I think people are going to tear her apart for it without taking it in context. Like when you take it in the bigger picture of the song, it makes sense. But when you take it in just the few lines...it feels a bit like it's trivializing the fact that literal slavery existed during that time? So yeah. I go back and forth...

And now a song ranking and my feelings about some of the songs:

Guilty As Sin? - This song has been in my head ever since I heard it. It's perfect, it's everything.

I Can Do It With a Broken Heart - This is giving DBATC (favorite taylor song) vibes and I am so in love. It destroyed me.

Who's Afraid of Little Old Me? - This is an ANTHEM. This will be screamed in the shower. This is so powerful.

But Daddy I Love Him - This was just so nostalgic. Like it gave Fearless Taylor and I loved it so much. Also the jumpscare fucking SHOOK me.

So Long, London - This was like a companion to You're Losing Me and god, it was amazingly hurtful.

loml - I just love slow, sad Taylor. and the twist at the end? ugh

I Hate It Here - Questionable line aside, this song was 15/10 relatable as a fanfic reader/writer

imgonnagetyouback - I feel like this will be a single.

The Prophecy - ouch

The Alchemy - Awww, so cute!

I Look In People's Windows

I Can Fix Him (No Really I Can)

The Albatross

The Smallest Man Who Ever Lived - god she CAME for this man.

The Black Dog

Down Bad - I also feel like this will be a single

Fresh Out the Slammer

How Did It End?

My Boy Only Breaks His Favorite Toys

TTPD

Cassandra - hahahaha whoops, we're coming for Kim again?

thanK you aIMee - and again? that line about her mom was AMAZING

So High School - adorable

Chloe or Sam or Sophia or Marcus

Fortnight - she and Post Malone work so well together

The Bolter

The Manuscript

Peter

Robin

Clara Bow

Florida!!

What do you all think?

[louisisalarrie]

Harry’s lyric “I’m well aware I write too many songs about you” is the biggest Larry proof out there. If you think he’s written that about his past “girlfriends” who he spent a year to the day or less with, you don’t know him at all

I agree, it’s a major piece to the puzzle. If he was still writing songs about someone he loved, long term beautiful romantic songs, he wouldn’t be parading with a new girl every second day. It’s clear so many of those songs are about louis.

I particularly like the “I know that you’re scared because hearts get broken, I know that you’re scared because I’m so open” from Golden because I think that is so larry coded (and so many more lyrics for this song but I tend to not dig into song analysis on here). But relation to those specific lyrics, Harry is extremely open with dancing with flags, being ambiguous about his sexuality, saying cheeky very not straight things on stage, wearing very non masculine outfits, and I think it’s a comment about louis being more scared about coming out than H. I mean, it’s a massive deal to come out in this industry, particularly in their positions with their history,but Harry is 3/4 of the way there and has been for a while now. And louis might be a little more frightened bc of his stunts, image, etc., he hasn’t kind of stepped away from that image as much as Harry has. Not to say louis isn’t fighting to come out, whatsoever, but it’s a very strong lyric and that’s how I take it. Anyway, that’s probably been talked about and analysed a bunch. But yeah, that’s definitely one of my fave lines.

I actually saw a theory not too long ago that Harry wrote Chicago for louis, too. Like… ages ago. Not recently. And the lyrics would kind of line up on that situation with bbg. And if you think about it, you can definitely see the story. Not sure how much I agree with that theory as it’s a bit far fetched, but was interesting. Idk.

And I know a multitude of Harry’s love songs are in fact a little on the heartbroken/sad side, but there are many that are uplifting and full of hope. Golden is the perfect example of that, in my opinion. It’s about fighting hard for it. And like “loving you’s the antidote”?????? Come on hahahaha.

But re Falling, yes, hugely larry coded. Like Harry asking who he is now that he’s solo with a huge image shift, and is it truly him? What if he’s someone louis cares about and deeply misses, but Harry gets the feeling he won’t need him because louis is embarking on his own journey and again, im sure there are deeper and better posts about this song, but yeah. Idk. Harry’s house certainly sounded more hopeful and a bit less depressing, for the most part hehe. I think things are fine between them, truly.

Anyway this turned into something entirely off topic now sorry about that hahahah but yes, I agree with you! Those lyrics scream to me that it’s about someone long term. I wrote a similar lyric years ago about one person, and so it’s truly powerful and resonates a lot.

[remedyturtles]

YOUUUUUUUU

Yes, you. I adore you so much you have no idea. FUCK.

I love your latest oneshot about the boys "stare directly at the sun" and I'm going insane. I AM UNWELL. I could write a whole ass essay about how much I love it, how you've written the characters felt so authentic and how you've emotionally broke me in the worst places possible, I've read ROTTMNT fics before, but this one stood out being an alternate setting with character being HUMAN and living normal mundane lives. How much their lives differ from what we know in the OG series yet we can spot things that stayed the same.

I love how instead of being crime fighting Ninja's, while I know that's pretty badass, But these kinds of fics makes the characters feel real for me, there's not much human setting fics of the boys which I'm sad about, (kinda wish there's more) I could literally write my own fic about em but sadly I'm not built like ao3 authors with the time and energy to do so :(( which your fic touched me on a personal level, they are going through school problems, SPLINTER HERE BEING A GOOD PRESENT FATHER GAAAHHH and then having more access in mundane things it holds a special place in my heart omfg...🫶✨

And the fact Leo wants to be a doctor my heart goes out to him 😭😭😭 I'd like to ask what do the other brothers dream to become in the future? What careers they wanna do? I have a few guesses, but I truly wanna know it in your inverse human au you've cooked up with and totally cool if you ignore this part– I don't wanna take more of your time— buuuut I really wanna know more about your human au about the boys;

Are other canon characters still there?

How drastically did you change the world to make it more humanely normal for them?

Do Yokais still exist?

Will this just be a oneshot one time thing or can we expect more of the human verse of your world?

Oahskwbw anyways, thank you so much for existing and writing your beloved fics, I love your works sm you're literally one of my favorite ao3 authors, it's making my heart explode!! Pls do take care of yourself also!!!! <33

STOP you are far to kind to me omg

i am incredibly influenced by the fact that i've read 'problem child' by taizi approximately a MILLION times. also shoutout to 'teenage mutant ninja what now' by tangledinink and the related 'scotch gambit' by like_theletter. OH and of course 'running on low (all the way home) by gibbouslunation. if you've never read human au's before and liked mine, DEFINITELY check out these!!!

writing 'stare directly at the sun' was literally because i had this idea of leo not wanting to be a doctor anymore being like a HUGE red flag and essentially built a story around that hahahaha.

i have zero intent of writing more in this au (i wrote it in 11 days like a fever dream and now i am turning my attention back to firefight haha) but i will answer your questions regardless:

no idea if there's other canon characters. it is genuinely just the real world lol, so no yokai.

raph is currently in university for education to become a teacher, undecided for what age but probably younger. mikey has changed his big ambition at least once a year, anything from chef to professional gymnast to zookeeper. donnie is going to take engineering (to start, he wants to milk the education system for all it's worth so he may get multiple degrees) and he would be accepted at any school he applies to so he will choose whichever one accepts leo haha

cheers mate thank u for the kind words ;__;

[presidentheartbeat6]

The Temeraire Playlist...

Hi. Hello. I am here today to ramble on about the music I've got on my temeraire playlist.

My music taste is. Strange. Blame my dad.

GRAND NEW SPIN (GOLD CELESTE): Starting out strong with a song that reminds me of willzing. There are! A lot of these!!! On here. You have been forewarned.

Anyways I think this is from Tharkay's perspective. "A longing for things to begin" (Ok but pining Tharkay. methinks.) / "A place where truth is not a sin" (THEIR HOME!!!! POST CANON!!!!!!!!! yea guess what the truth part is I dare you. I'll give you a hint its their GAY LOVE)

MEDICINE (LOVING): Will Laurence.

"You felt for the words like the wings of a bird, riding the winds of a dark form you heard" (!!!!! TEMRER!!!!!!!!!) / "A voice speaking low, it said 'I swim the deep waters, dreams are my eyes, deeper than blue'" (this but.. Tharkay.. dreaming about blue eyes..)

And then the last few lines are. Laurence to Tharkay & Granby :,)

TWO FOR NERO (EVERYTHING EVERYTHING): Ok so I can't put an everything everything song and NOT talk about it. Fair warning I'm crazy insane about this song. Like wild. My blog name is actually based on the everything everything song called (you guessed it) president heartbeat.

Now this song. Starts out a little strange. You're like 'where are these guys going with this???' And then about halfway through. You get to. The Part. You'll see what I mean. Pllllss tell me what you think about this song I'm so curious if it's just a me thing or what.

Anyways... this song is soo. Will Laurence. But specifically it's Granby talking about him.

"We met inside a war zone" / "And you never tell me anything, you never tell me anything" (EARLY BOOKS LAURENCE POV, HIM & GRANBY WHEN HE'S STILL FIGURING OUT THE CORPS. HEAVY BREATHING.) / "I can't remember dates and times, and I'm sorry for the years I was a shipwreck boy" (Laurence POV amnesia arc. Yeha.) / "I'd rather dash myself up on the rocks, than see you waste away your day with clocks, in every corner of your parent's home" (amnesia arc granble POV gheaaauugh) / "And there's no world war coming in, all the reasons I've been worrying, just forget the parts you'll never need, all these things I'll tell you when you wake up" (SO FUCKED UP SO FUCKED UP SO FUCKED UP. hahahaha Point of View: Granby when his best friend loses all memory of him lol hahaha!!!!!!!! hahahahahahaha!!!!!!!!!!)

MAKE A CHIIIIIILD. AAA CHIIIILLDDDDD. AAAA FOOORREEEESTTTTT.

ok sorry I'm done. there are even MORE lyrics that relate to them in this song than the ones that I listed btw. some ODDLY specific ones too. I wish I could listen to this song for the first time again.

DRAGON EYES (ADRIANNE LENKER): no this is definitely not just on here cuz dragon is in the song name how dare you. anyways this song is sososoooo willzing.

Just think like ... tharkay's perspective..... "When the hot sand burns my feet, you have cool hands, you are sweet" / "As the coastline is shaped by the wind, as we make love and you're on my skin, you are changing me, you are changing me" / "I just want a place with you, I just want a place" (do I even need to say it?!!?? ok fine. their house. post canon.)

IN OUR BEDROOM AFTER THE WAR (STARS): dare I say Tharkay Laurence Granby friendship.........

"It's us, yes, we're back again, here to see you through, 'til the days end" (YEAH. YEAH. GRANBY AND THARKAY @ LAURENCE.) / "She's gone, she left before you woke, as you ate last night, neither of you spoke" (beautiful awkward early day willzing) / "And if you lost it all, and you lost it, well we'll still be there when your war is over" (AGAIN!!! THEM AT LAURENCE!!)

TO GO HOME (M. WARD): GRANBY & LITTLE>???>?>?>? finally a song NOT about Laurence. except this could probably still be about Laurence if u squint.

"Sailing on a sinking ship, into the sunset in day" (poor granble forced onto all those many. long. boat voyages LOL) / "To think I'll have to give it all up someday" (just thinking Abt how they'd never be able to get legally married and even if they do stay together how they'd live their lives in constant fear of being found out) / "And if I ever treated you mean, you know that it was only because, I'm sorry, I couldn't have you for my own"

IN THE AEROPLANE OVER THE SEA (NEUTRAL MILK HOTEL): Tharkay song :3

"What a beautiful face, I have found in this place, that is circling all 'round the sun" (Tharkay inner monologue whenever he sees Laurence) / "What a beautiful dream, that could flash on the screen in the blink of an eye and be gone from me" (the dangers of Laurence dying in the line of duty, etc, etc) "And one day we will die, and our ashes will fly from the aeroplane over the sea" (thinking about temeraire spreading their ashes lol lol lol I am laughing so hard rn hahahahaha. spreading them TOGETHER I might add. United even in death) "With one you loved so long ago, now he don't even know his name" (*whispers* amnesia laure- *gunshots*)

SIMULATION SWARM (BIG THIEF): Mmmm yum yum I love this song. It sort of gives me Granby & Laurence vibes.

"O my stars, winged creatures, gathering in silken height" (TEEEMMMERAIIRE! sorry I have to.) / "with the drone of fluorescence, flicker, fever, fill the form" (just thinking about Laurence watching over Granby one of the many times he's seriously injured. siiigh.) / "And you could be my brother, once again fall asleep with our backs against each other" / "I'd fly to you tomorrow, I'm not fighting in this war, I wanna drop my arms and take your arms and walk you to the shore"

TOUGH LOVE (FLYTE, LAURA MARLING): auhgguhgh more willzing feelings. just thinking about their adjustment period after fighting in the war where they're both trying to learn how to Be Normal about being in love. thisssss ssoonnggg gives me Tharkay POV vibes.

"I've been trying to hurt you, I've been holding you tight" (the ultimate paradox, pushing away those you love because you're afraid of it, and being so desperately in love you can't fully make yourself do it.) / "I've been learning to love you, am I doing it right?" / "How are you still breathing, with my hands all over your heart?" (I think that while Laurence is still eons from normal, once he comes to terms with it he's a lot... MORE normal about their romance than Tharkay. Laurence trusts him completely and it is. a little disturbing to Tharkay, perhaps)

THE SMOKE (THE SMILE): ohohohoho. this is a fucking PHENOMENAL song.

"It begs me, while I'm sleeping, I desire a second chance, I set myself on fire" (oh YEEESSSS post treason Laurence yum yum yum) / "Wakes me from my sleep, smoke wakes me from" (MUST I EVEN SAY IT. THARKAY RESCUE MOMENT.)

TRIPOLI (PINBACK): I'm too lazy to make an animatic. but if I WERE going to. it would probably be to this song.

"You know what's gonna happen, you know what's gonna happen, he's gonna go down, and he's gonna come back again" (Tharkay somehow miraculously returning to Laurence over and over and over again. soulmates. attracted to each other but also like LITERALLY physically attracted to each other in a magnet way. idk. SOMETHING.)

FORTRESS (PINBACK): THE EGG HUNTTTTTTT!!! HUNT FOR EGG!!!!! DESERT!!!!!!!!!! LAURENCE THARKAY GRANBY BONDING!!!!!!!!

"You and a test of will, too many fallen, too many failed, nobody move, nobody move" (EGG HUNT111 and. bunyips) / "You and I, uneasy, livid" (OOAUGHHQ!! I just think yk like. being stuck out their in the elements day in and day out. all those horrible conditions. and again, the fucking bunyips. so many stressors.... them all being anxious and snappy with each other... angst soooso good...) / "Stop, it's too late, I'm feeling frustrated, I see no sign of fortress, I see no fortress" (looking for water, looking for the egg, looking to catch a FUCKING break for once) / "Another delay, too many hassles, where do we go? How do we follow?"

WILD WEST (GREGORY AND THE HAWK): I love Gregory and the hawk ssoooososososoooooooooooo much. SSOOOSOSOSOOOOO MUCH. I have sooo many of her songs on my aubreyad playlist... yeehhaANYWAYS this song is. soo. Laurence coded.

"Flightless skies, the fear, the doom, it's no surprise" / "Realize there's no sense in losing your mind before your time, in order not to worry, you write the words down, but it's a fools game" (AMNESIA ARC AMNESIA ARC AMNESIA ARC) / "Rise young sun, you're a tireless one, and you'll be back burning when the morning comes" (LAURENCE LAURENCE LAURENCE)

GET NUMB TO IT! (FRIKO): hahhakjdshnjsh would it be mean to say. John Granby. poor baby darling.

"Tip toe out from the backdoor down to the basement, where your funny faces always made me frown" (sneaking into littles' room...) / "And when I'm down, I'll dance in a fever cold and calm, with a sewn on smile and feet swollen and numb" (poor guy :( the granble <3) / "And it doesn't get better, it just gets twice as bad" (JHBKJNKJNKJN. yeah. he literally Cannot Catch a Break bruh.)

OOKAYY!!!!! thank you for reading WOW congrats if you got all the way to the bottom :DDDDDDD listen to one of these songs and tell me when you think :)))!!!!!!

If anyone ever wants to talk music with me literally ever...... pls. I am so here.

[chibimui]

The Apothecary Diaries LN4 Thoughts: Prologue-ch4

(Previous LN: Vol 1 - Vol 2 - Vol 3)

We have started LN4!!! I don't really remember the first half of this novel that much so re-reading it again has been interesting.

I don't have much to say as an intro, so let's just get into it!

(Warning: Continues major spoilers for anything beyond the anime and all the way up until recent WN chapters)

Prologue/Chapter 1 - Bath

Reading the prologue with context, I realize LN4 is very much the "Loulan" book, like how LN3 was the "Jinshi" book and LN2 was the "Maomao" book. Which is interesting considering Loulan disappears after this volume. She's not actually a main character, and yet she gets a book essentially dedicated to her. It opens with her and it basically ends with her - and it's ultimately a tragedy too.

Even within the first chapter in the bathhouse, Shisui/Loulan is the one that really helps Xiaolan get the connection that nets her a job after the leaves the rear palace, even though Maomao is who she initially asks. Her presence will be a constant throughout this novel and I'm interested in picking it out as we go through it.

On that topic of Maomao...

It's so sweet how seriously Maomao thinks about a way to help Xiaolan. Specifically giving Xiaolan a good connection - one where she will be happy, treated well, and safe from danger (the last one is what knocks Jinshi off the list). This sentiment also gets brought up in recent WN chapters too except it's expanded to Maomao not even wanting Xiaolan that closely connected to her, which makes me kind of sad :( I'm still here waving my "make Xiaolan one of Maomao's ladies-in-waiting in the future plz" flag.

It's especially interesting because Maomao probably still doesn't really think of Xiaolan as a "friend" in her mind, but the way she treats her? She's so sweet on her, washing her hair, buying her gifts etc. Yes, this is a sign that Maomao is the most unreliable narrator, but if she truly didn't think Xiaolan was a friend it really makes you wonder how unbelievably generous Maomao would be to someone she does consider a friend (apparently the answer is get willingly get kidnapped by them LOL). All of this to say - as per usual - I love Maomao and Xiaolan T-T.

Maomao's autism kicking in real hard here =P

All. The. Hints. About. Shisui!!! This is how you do clue dropping in a mystery series to make re-reading it fun! It's so good because all the details about Shisui is just simple character building to a first time reader, but once you have context you realize all these character details double as clues. All the details we learn about Shisui are important to the narrative - not just "fun facts".

It's actually so funny seeing Maomao this rattled. To be fair, if I accidentally fell on someone and grabbed their dick when I assumed they didn't have one, and then belatedly realized I was low-key giving them a handjob, I also would have a hard time forgetting the moment too. Mostly because ew?

For shipper reasons though, I choose to believe there's another reason Maomao has a hard time forgetting the "splendid" frog she happened to get a handful of :)

Chapter 2 - Seki-u

Maomao having a hard time with their names is relatable. Also, thank you story for confirming that Maomao is still 18 at this part of the story AND that Gyokuyou herself is 20--which, when you think about it, oh my gosh she is young (but definitely raises my opinion of her intelligence at such an age).

At some point I really want to make a comprehensive timeline of the series.

No deep thoughts, i just found this moment funny. Once again - yes, I am aware I have the humor of a twelve year old boy. I do think in Japanese it was a bit more funny because in Japanese Maomao and Xiaolan are more like "Ooooooh =O". Hahahaha.

Someone save Lishu please, this poor girl.

The part I highlighted stood out to me when I switch from JP to ENG. Not because the translation is wrong, but I found in the Japanese Maomao's thoughts felt a bit more personal--like you really got a sense she found Kanan's fear of her quite hurtful. I will elaborate on this. But first.

SOMEONE SAVE THIS GIRL

Okay to elaborate on point #2. In Japanese you can often omit subject markers so it's a lot easier to play around with the text to dive deeper into character thoughts/feelings even when the novel is written from a 3rd person POV. Due to the omission of a clear subject, there are times when the text is structured in such a way that it feels like you are basically reading Maomao's direct thoughts without any clear indication that you are (like how in English you might put thoughts into italics). This is one of those moments. In Japanese, with the way the sentence is structured, it really reads like Maomao is directly thinking "It'd be nice if you didn't think of me as a monster..." which... =(

Anyway, moving on.

Chapter 3 - The Dancing Ghost

Once again, speaking of Maomao's kindness - I think it's really sweet that even though she absolutely does not believe in ghosts, she very much wanted to figure out this mystery and help Lishu out.

WE SEE YOU MAOMAO. WE SEE YOU.

I think this is one of those moments where everyone including the reader probably had their jaw on the floor - I know I certainly did at this moment. Like. SIR. SIIIIIR YOU DO NOT TOUCH THE GOODS! NO TOUCHY! Gaoshun was probably a step away from having an aneurysm, while Gyokuyou was probably trying hard not to kick her feet up in the air in excitement.

Also - I just want to say Jinshi's proclamation here is such a good piece of translation into English. In Japanese all Jinshi says is 「いえ、”返して”ですよ。この猫猫を」 (ie, "kaeshite" desu yo, kono maomao wo). Which - if I were to do a very direct and literal translation reads as: "No. I mean return [her]. This Maomao".

There are no exclamation marks because Jinshi is supposed to be polite, courteous and a gentleman - he does not raise his voice, however the bluntness of his speech in Japanese, and the way he abruptly drops Maomao's name really emphasizes the impact of his statement. It's his mic drop moment. And I think the English translation captured all of this perfectly with "this girl right here! Maomao!" to emphasize the "kono Maomao wo" part.

Someone save Maomao this time. Poor girl. I cannot wait to see this scene in the anime because it will probably be hilarious. I can already imagine Aoi Yuki saying the "It was the frog's fault" T-T" part in Maomao's sad pleading chibi voice. Hahaha.

Onto the first actual "case" of this novel!

I think it's interesting that Maomao initially has the observation that it didn't seem necessary for Jinshi to personally accompany her. Fair assessment considering... I realize, Jinshi rarely ever directly accompanies Maomao to solve a case. I think the last time would have been with Consort Lihua, and usually he shows up after it's been made clear something is wrong.

This time though he accompanies Maomao because he is doing his own job - Jinshi is taking this opportunity to catch Lishu's ladies-in-waiting in the act of treating their mistress poorly and properly put them in their place.

Maomao is clearly quite unhappy with Jinshi right now considering she just compared him to a fish head, and then starting thinking about chopping his frog off. Which is mildly hilarious considering last novel she was running around trying to figure out if she could make a medicine that could grow his frog back. Make up your mind Maomao, do you want it or not?

The actual mystery itself wasn't bad. As usual, Maomao solves it quickly and cleverly. I do think it's interesting how many of the mysteries in the past two novels keep hinting at the sewer system in the palace. Interesting.... veeeeeery interesting. Also, as with anything related to Lishu, the conclusion is... just kind of sad really. This poor girl really was born under an unlucky star.

Another moment I am looking forward to in the anime. As a timid person myself, it's always gratifying to see someone like Lishu try to stand up for themself.

The mystery aside though, I feel like the most interesting part of this chapter really is Jinshi's behaviour when he actually needs to use his authority to get something done. I think this is also the first time Maomao ever sees Jinshi in this manner, and I think it's interesting that this happens in the novel where we eventually learn Jinshi's true status.

I just... love the emphasis on how much of an act this is for Jinshi and how good he is at it. The emphasis on his smile, on the politeness of his speech, all of it is fake. It also stands out to me that this is the only time that Maomao actually comments on Jinshi being scary - not in the cave, not later in LN5 - Jinshi is never scary to her even when he's angry, because at least he's being himself. When he's wearing his mask in this way though? Using it to assert authority? That's when she actually thinks "Oh, this guy is scary".

Chapter 4 - The Rumored Eunuch

I love how despite Maomao's desire to try and forget the frog, she can't stop herself from finally, actually, questioning what the hell is going on. Maomao, if you had paid juuuuuust a bit more attention to your lodgings during the summer retreat, I think you'd be able to connect the dots much faster (although I can kind of see why she wouldn't immediately jump to "He's the crown prince in disguise!" because you wouldn't assume a prince would choose to debase himself as a pretend eunuch).

Gaoshun is so tired you guys. Someone save him.

Also - this is the first chapter where we learn that there are, indeed, factions in court and Lakan is part of none of them. We also learn a bit about how he took over the La clan!

Honestly, I kind of miss this Lakan. The goofy doting dad is amusing and all, but we know that Lakan can be absolutely ruthless. He basically wouldn't stop pestering Jinshi for the entirety of LN2 before Maomao stepped in. I want to see more of cunning, scary af, willing to BREAK A WALL in the name of his daughter Lakan again.

I know in this paragraph they're talking about all the new eunuchs, but the fact that Suirei was actually able to blend in with a crowd of slaves that had likely been beaten regularly is just... so sad. I mean, she was probably treated barely better than a slave anyway, but man.

To end this - I think it's really sweet that Jinshi recognizes Xiaolan in this moment, and even remembers her to this day in the WN, specifically because she's one of Maomao's friends. Part of it is probably because it's his job to pay attention to everyone in the rear palace and their connections, but I think it's sweet that he specifically remembers Xiaolan for being Maomao's friend. <3 He pays atteeeeentiooooon.

And that's it for today! A quite like the start to this light novel - it's nice and chill, and a nice breather from the events at the end of LN3. A soft reset. I can see why I didn't really remember a lot of it though. The pacing and calmness of it definitely contrasts from what is going to happen in a few chapters.

We still have a few more chapters until Maomao's little adventure though and I'll cover those next post. Until next time :D

[atopearth]

Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney Part 7 - Dual Destinies (AA5) Episodes 4-5

Episode 4 - The Cosmic Turnabout

The bandage over Apollo's eye is actually pretty hot, I like it hahahaha. LMAO when Blackquill joked that the silver box was the judge's coffin and he ran away😂😂 Considering how serious Apollo and Blackquill were, I didn't expect the joke which makes it even funnier hahahaha. Anyway, I assume Clay is Apollo's best friend? Oh and Apollo's eye was injured before this trial? I wonder what happened.. I don't see why the proposition of the victim still being alive but unconscious at the point in the security video completely baseless. There's a possibility and there's nothing from the prosecution to show that he's definitely dead already other than the fact that "people would have seen if he stabbed him in the lounge". Maybe unlikely but not enough to prove that he's 100% dead. Rather than why the body was moved, I want to know more about why the choice of murder weapon would be a stabbing. Even assuming he stabbed him first and planned to detonate the bomb in the lounge later to destroy the body, isn't that way too risky and how did he plan to escape unscathed from a bomb? Run to the bomb shelter? I wonder if the truth is that the one who was actually unconscious and carried out was Starbuck considering his anxiety and everything. And yep! It took a while for them to come to that conclusion. I'm really happy about Athena's addition to the agency though, I think her bright personality fits in well especially since Phoenix and Apollo have been a bit more down these days.

I think it's quite sweet that both Apollo and Clay encourage themselves and others by saying I'm fine or you're fine hahaha. Lmao at how cooperative Fulbright is, but the funniest thing was offering snacks and his subordinate's neck rubs as well😂😂 Ponco the robot is pretty cute. The Space Museum is pretty cool to have a replica rocket that's the same size as the real thing! If the launch pads etc can be moved, I assume that's how Clay was able to escape with Starbuck and now I'm very sceptical about the security footage🧐 Aura Blackquill?? Is she Simon Blackquill's sister?? I guess the whole incident with Blackquill being labelled as a murderer and being related to Athena's past happened at this Cosmo centre too. Aura is definitely quite the character with how much she seems to hate everyone and everything except robots. I was wondering what was that jacket Apollo was wearing. It's Clay's jacket that was given to those involved in the HAT project! It's so sad to think about Clay because he sounds like a really great guy with just as big dreams as Apollo's and I can really feel Apollo's pain. Young Apollo and Clay are so cute. Apollo was there for Clay when he was sad, Clay was there for Apollo when he doubted his path as a lawyer. It's so sad that Apollo won't get to talk with him anymore and encourage each other anymore. Losing a friend is terrible. Cosmos really is a chronic liar lmao. If we are to believe his words, did the killer escape through the trash chute?😂 I knew the Space Museum would be important but I didn't think that what the astronauts escaped from was actually the Space Museum and now actually Launch Pad 1, that was surprising haha. Considering the mood necklace/widget thing that looks to be on the lighter, it was obvious that Athena was going to be labelled as the killer but now I'm wondering if Aura is the killer...? Anyway, I didn't expect the episodes to be linked so I guess on to the next to see the conclusion!

Episode 5 - Turnabout for Tomorrow

Lmao at Trucy throwing a knife at Cosmos' scooter to stop him from running away. I assume the staff member who died seven years ago was the one in the photo with all of them that we haven't seen around but I wonder what happened to pin Blackquill as the culprit🧐 I guess it wouldn't make sense for Aura to be the culprit if her brother has been pinned as the murderer etc lol. I didn't expect Athena to have lived at the Space Centre, I thought she just visited alot when she was young. So it was Athena's mother who was murdered, I'm surprised Athena was strong enough to step foot into this place considering everything that happened. I'm not sure how I feel about Aura and Apollo but I kinda like that dark toxic feel they give off when they're together hahahaha. I definitely didn't expect to see Pearl, and an older and more mature one at that! She looks pretty good in 3D! OMG, no wonder why Aura was so mad and said she'd find her own way, Blackquill's execution is tomorrow?! I thought it was going to be another appeal or something OMG. LOL when Clonco grew horns as an evil Clonco hahahah. Robots revolting against humans and taking hostages in the space centre is definitely wild. OMG Edgeworth!! Memories!! Wow, Athena's earring's stone is from a real moon rock? That's cool! I think her mother loved her but it's sad that Athena wasn't able to feel it. I didn't realise that Athena wanted to save Blackquill and prove his innocence because she heard the voice of his heart seven years ago and knew all along that he wasn't the killer. I actually really like that they're doing the unofficial retrial at the blown up courtroom, definitely fitting.

Lmao at Aura being too busy confining hostages to give testimony😂 I'm starting to think my theory that the robot killed Athena's mother isn't too far off now🫣 I'm not sure why Phoenix isn't presenting the evidence that since Metis's heart was beating after the "hug" from Athena, that couldn't have been the murder scene because the autopsy report said death was instantaneous and right through the heart?? So, all this time, Blackquill really was protecting Athena and was willing to die on her behalf and take the fact that he saw her covered in blood next to her mother's dead body and the katana on the ground as she said there's something wrong with her mother and that she'll take her apart to fix her?? That is definitely something he wouldn't be able to say. I really admire him though, to have sat in jail for seven years for this secret to protect Athena and be ready to be executed for something he didn't even do just because he wanted her to be safe. I was thinking why did Metis's jacket have a cut in her jacket that's not in the heart but I see it's because Athena stabbed the real culprit who wore it pretending to be Metis! I was wondering when Apollo was going to appear so it's nice to see him arrive! I have to say the police were quite careless if they didn't check security footage of others at 2pm in that corridor if the time of death was between a certain time until 3pm. Guess they really were that desperate to end this trial as soon as possible with everything that went on, which imo is more of a representation of the dark age of the law than anything else. The fact that the government had such sway to not only force Cosmos to not be able to cancel his launch in the current case but also push the case seven years ago to a verdict asap, that is the true flaw of the court system here for me.

Although I'm not sure if I agree with Apollo's way of doing things right now, I do think we might as well get Clay's case done as well since they're all here hahaha. The poor hostages though! I actually feel bad for Apollo that his bracelet was reacting the whole time he was investigating with Athena so he knew there was something wrong with everything she was saying all that time and had to end up dealing with it all with an eye patch bandage so he wouldn't be able to perceive it. That must have been hard on him. I agree with Apollo in this aspect though. It's difficult for him to continue trusting and blindly believing in her when he has seen all these evidence, so the best way to dispel all his doubt is for it to be all out in the open for Phoenix to counter so that Apollo can fully believe in Athena's innocence. I like that. I'm glad Edgeworth raised it because I found it pretty crazy and unbelievable for the culprit to leap from the Space Museum to the emergency ladder hahahah.

I find it difficult to believe that Fulbright is the spy and killer, he was such a genuine guy who seemed to really care for Blackquill when he was letting his emotions take over. Apollo is so earnest, it was obvious he was going to ask Athena to punch him for thinking and doing what he did hahaha, he's such a silly but straightforward and kind boy. I'm so happy Blackquill had the chance to properly thank Aura for how much she cared about him. Her methods were obviously wrong, but she was desperate and she loved him so much she couldn't watch him get executed like that so I support and love her haha. I'm sorry for ever thinking that Aura was the killer haha! The lighter actually being a gun was pretty cool! I think it's pretty sweet to see both Blackquill and Athena work together using their knowledge in psychology which is probably iffy but this is an AA game so we've seen more crazy stuff hahahha. But yeah I didn't expect Fulbright's exaggerated emotions and gestures to all be a ruse because I just thought it was the typical AA thing and thought it was pretty funny lol! I find it really sweet how in the end it was Metis's love for Athena through that moon rock earring that helped them get through to convicting this fake Fulbright.

Special episode - Turnabout Reclaimed

Lmao at the orca being a suspect and therefore their client for this episode hahahha. I'm just imagining Blackquill saying he's going to prove the killer whale's guilt in court and I just think that's so funny🤣🤣 I was thinking getting killed by a bag of coins was wild so it's definitely much more understandable that the victim died from falling lol. Aww Rifle the penguin has a daughter called Sniper lmao. The little penguin chick is so cute. I love the animations of it moving around Dr Crab's hair because that's where she lives lmao. LOL when the judge was disappointed that Phoenix didn't choose to cross-examine the orca hahahahaa. I didn't expect the body to be in the skull rock but as Phoenix says, alot of things do make much more sense with that hahaha. I guess I should have expected it when Orla kept head-butting it but I always thought it was hiding behind the rock or something and didn't expect it to be big enough to put a body inside. It was obvious that Rimes was the killer from the start and that he was Azura's boyfriend who hated the orca because it killed Azura a year ago but I didn't expect his transformation haha! LMAO at actually questioning Orla and all she says is fweet😂😂 Lmao at the dissing of Phoenix Wright testimony hahahahaa. I definitely didn't expect to like DePlume especially with her first impression of seeming to only care about getting a good story, but seeing how she pursues for the truth in her own respect and works to truly change lives, I think she's a pretty cool lady and definitely deserves her popularity haha! I definitely didn't expect two Ora's because that shocked me hahaha, I'm also glad the first one was not put down because Azura's death wasn't her fault. As for Rimes, I feel like everyone forgave him too easily even though he didn't kill Shipley but I'll acknowledge that he never intended on hurting anyone except the orca. Honestly, not bad as a DLC case but very long haha! The highlight was definitely the cross-examination of Orla because the fweets were hilarious alongside everyone's comments😂

Overall, DD was definitely a better game than AJ but still had its flaws. My favourite cases in order from favourite to least favourite would be 4 & 5 are the same since they're related, then 3, 1 and then 2. I honestly think Monstrous Turnabout was really weak and tedious because everything in terms of the case itself and the characters were lacking imo. I actually really liked Lorent but I feel like he was wasted there with silly motives, weak reason to kill and really forced everything?? Otherwise, Jinxie was kinda cute? Tonate was the highlight of the first case and I enjoyed the bomb thing. Turnabout Academy was not bad because I actually really enjoyed the trio's friendship and I liked the case itself except I still think the statue thing was rather forced lol. And the means to an end and dark age of the law really really needed to be toned down, otherwise I enjoyed everything else and thought it was pretty interesting. I still think the funniest part was when everyone thought there was no way Robin was a guy, Blackquill's shock was hilarious hahahha. As usual, the last case was the best but I have to say the spy thing really disappointed me in terms of the reveal and execution. I think it was pretty random and I find it such a waste of Fulbright and it really felt like they couldn't find a proper culprit to pin it on and chose him lol. I actually enjoyed his and Blackquill's relationship throughout the game so it was especially disappointing. My favourite part was definitely realising that Blackquill really was trying to protect Athena all this time and was ready to die for it, and I also loved Aura's love for her brother. I also really enjoyed Apollo's conviction in wanting to find a way to fully trust Athena and he chose to believe in Phoenix to do it because he couldn't. The only other thing I felt sad about was Clay's death literally being so insubstantial in terms of the case itself? It felt like such a waste of his life and that makes me sad. They barely delved into him as a character even though he's Apollo's best friend and then his death and what he did when died was so small to the case itself, it was disappointing. But otherwise, DD had great music and I definitely enjoy Apollo's theme soo much! I also really like Athena and Apollo now hahaha. I'm kinda sad Trucy and Klavier have been kicked to the curb (especially with those ugly character sprites) but I think Pearl's addition is very cute.

[our-aroace-experience]

ok so here's my ace/arospec story

ace:

i learned about being ace

oh i don't know

12 years old maybe

i searched it up after reading about it online

"aroace definition"

it went something like

"being both aromantic and asexual"

i searched up

"aromantic"

"asexual"

at first i thought it was a bit strange

i hadn't learned yet

to distinguish

between romantic attraction and sexual attraction

because i didn't know

people actually wanted sex

people actually saw someone and went

"wow"

"i want to fuck them"

i had a crush on a childhood friend of mine

at the time

(a guy. i am a girl.)

i'd always assumed i was cishet

grew up in a conservative christian household

slightly offtopic but honestly my parents were great

not stereotypical conservative christians

both allies

they had friends who were trans and gay

i'd checked out queer media from the library

and they were fine with it

anyway

back to the story

so since i had a crush on the opposite gender

i assumed ofc

i was cishet

well ofc i wasn't into sex, i was just a kid

but at age 13

almost 14

i was alone

in a hotel room, no parents, on instagram

that's the only time i could get that

late night phone time

when i didn't have parents around

i found @i.put.the.ace.in.disgrace on instagram

scrolled through every fucking post

on their account

and on the #asexual tag

i related to those posts

like

a lot

a suspicious amount for someone supposedly allo

even though i was just a kid

yeah maybe i'd grow into it

maybe i'd feel attraction one day

but not now

and who the hell was going to tell me

what i could or couldn't identify as

so i tried out the ace label

spent hours and hours

wondering if it was right

if i was really ace

if i wasn't too young

but going back to being allo felt wrong

so i decided to keep the label

the first person i came out to

was an online friend

they were so amazing and supportive of it

i love them so much for that

they said i'd been on their gaydar for a while

(a message i still think about

when wondering if i'm really ace)

felt sick the next day

i'd always been an ally

supported my queer friends

arospec aspec trans homosexual i supported them all

but it made me sick

to think about me

myself

being queer

it was sort of rough

but i got through it

later

came out to my friend and her mom

they were cool about it

i knew i'd be safe

they weren't ecstatic or super happy

but they accepted me

"cool"

that's what they said i remember it

i was a hot mess that day too

stuttered over all my words when trying to come out

and they still accepted me

i love them

later

i decided to hint at my identity to my mom

talked about not liking sex

i checked out a few ace books

from the library

my mom took me aside

i don't remember her exact words

it went something like

"it's natural to be curious

but you can't be ace at 14

you're not trying to be

are you?"

ofc

i managed to convince her i was allo

had to be more careful then

arospec:

i'd only had one crush.

one crush who i'd liked as a friend first.

you see where this is going, don't you?

well

i didn't

i'd heard that aces had not very many crushes

so i assumed i was just Really Really Asexual

and i couldn't be aro hahahaha

i'd been in love before!

aros cannot be in love!

oh by golly i was wrong

i started questioning

(only one crush?

my friends are all over their crushes

plural

and i've only had one??

maybe i'm not as allo as i thought)

i debated over gray-aro and demi-aro

picked demi

it described my experience more accurately

came out to aforementioned friend

then aforementioned online friend

they were chill about it

(fucking love them)

then i 3d printed a black ring

and a white ring

ace

and aro

and this is maybe the best part of the whole experience

i had friends who were stereotypical conservative christian

queerphobic

they complimented my aro and ace rings

and so did my mom

and that made me really happy for some reason

shit that was a long ask im sorry

thank you for sharing! i hope your mum comes around to you being aroace one day

also side note: this reads like a poem it’s so well written!