#this might also have something to do with how it breaks a plot point in one of my aai2 fics

[poppitron360]

Theories/Predictions in no particular order:

That box has something important inside. I think you might’ve mentioned Jason’s sketches of Leo, so I suppose that could be it. I predict that that’ll be what made Leo realise he loved Jason Like That

Leo meets his mom in the underworld. There’s gonna have to be a reason why Leo couldn’t bring her back too, unless he does. Idk I��m fixated on EPIC the musical and the Underwold saga is my favourite so I’m picturing something like that.

Idk if this would happen but I really wanna see some Leo/Beckendorf interactions taking place. Maybe Jason got to talking with him in Elysium and they became friends but he’s sad because Beckendorf and Silena remind him so much of Leo and Piper.

Leo talks with Nico and/or Hazel about his underworld trip before going. I don’t know if Nico would be supportive, because he seemed pretty unhappy about Leo coming back from the dead, and he also had this whole thing in botl where he chose not to exchange Daedalus’ life for Bianca’s that everyone including Rick forgot about- but he also brought back Hazel just like how Leo brought back Jason, so…

But Nico posing the argument of “maybe death should not be messed with” might be interesting. Rick kinda tried to do that in canon but then half-arsed it

Going off on a tangent here, but that’s the interpretation that I personally choose to go with, with the whole “Leo coming back was the reason Jason died” thing. Not that he cheated the prophecy, just that he cheated death and Hades or the gods or the fates or whoever (my theory is Nemesis, who’s all about keeping balance) decided as punishment Jason would die- so any sort of repercussions for Leo bringing Jason back (effectively cheating death twice) would be interesting to explore, but I understand if that just makes Plot harder to Plot.

Also some Leo/Hazel interactions- especially after Leo giving up his life to stop Gaea just like Hazel did and being given a second chance (we were robbed of that in TOA). Hazel has experience from the other end of that as Nico basically Orpheus and Eurydice’d her himself.

I feel like Leo blaming himself for Jason’s death might all come spilling out in a big dramatic moment at some point. Either with Piper or Jason or both.

Idk if he’d tell Emmie and Jo about where he’s going but either way I don’t think they’d let him so it’d be interesting to see how you handle that.

Not really a prediction but just… canonically Jason was still in his school uniform when he died… just leaving that there.

Thanatos shows up. Idk how but I think it’d be cool if he shows up.

Once they get out of the underworld, Leo and Jason just start sobbing. Bonus points if that’s the first time they cry together. I hc Jason doesn’t cry very often, so any moments that he does could be very powerful. I’m thinking something along the lines of the book “Lord of The Flies” when they get rescued and all the kids just sort of break down crying, weeping for all of humanity. Something angsty like that.

““Jason was… well, he took it exactly like I expected him to. He was surprised, but he didn’t get angry or anything. He mostly seemed okay. Part of me wonders if maybe…” But whatever Piper had been thinking about, she seemed to decide it wasn’t important.” OOH PIPER’S GAYDAR WAS TINGLING WASN’T IT??

Feel free to use this as inspiration for anything (although I’m running the risk of Telling You How To Write Your Fic which I don’t wanna do). I realise some of this might be way off so I’ll be sitting here with my bingo card when the full fic is posted to see what comes up.

Also English is your THIRD language and your grammar in fics is still better than those to whom it’s their FIRST??!! I tip my hat to thee.

The choiceless hope in grief

Summary: Leo Valdez has lived and died for the gods. Their war has shaped his life since he was a baby. With Gaia defeated, he sort of hopes he can finally rest. He has friends and some semblance of home to return to for the first time since he was eight years old. Just this once, he allows himself to hope the good things might stick.

But the gods aren’t done with them just yet, by the time Leo finds his way back, Jason is gone.

This time, Leo decides he’s done just taking the Fates’ bullshit lying down. If getting his best friend back means striking a deal with the gods and venturing into the Underworld… well, it’s probably not even the most reckless thing he’s ever done.

The caveat of said deal? He has to trust Jason will follow him, or his self-doubt will doom them both.

And after the life he’s lived, Leo is so intricately familiar with self-doubt that he could probably trademark the word.

Or: The only possible way for Orpheus to succeed is if he learns to think of himself as a person worth loving.

Word Count for chapter 1: ~5k

Rating: Teen and Up

So! *claps hands together* I’ve been threatening you guys with my Orpheus Eurydice valgrace fic for a while! Technically I wanted to wait to post this until I’m completely done writing the fic, and I mostly intend to stick to that! I’m only posting this now because I have a minor surgery tomorrow and I’d rather be anxious about fic related things than about the surgery in question. So, take this chapter as a preview of sorts, more to come soon-ish but probably not immediately!

A couple of important notes before we start:

-TW for suicidal ideation. It’s less Leo actually wanting to die and more his canon behavior of “I’m doing something extremely reckless that might succeed but if it doesn’t, my death is an acceptable consequence”, paired with general grief related self-loathing, but if you think you’re not in the right headspace to read about that, come back when you are or at least tread carefully. This fic pics up at the end of The Burning Maze, so especially the beginning is pretty heavy on the grief stuff.

-Since ToA is vaguely canon to this fic, Leo and Calypso are technically dating in the beginning, but they don’t really interact positively as a couple (honestly they don’t interact that much in general) and break up pretty early on. Just be aware in advance that they’re still together for a little bit.

-Fic title is from Talk by Hozier which is maybe a painfully obvious pick but it was too perfect for me not to use it.

Chapter 1: Leo and Piper have an extended sleepover

It wasn’t a discussion between Leo and Piper whether or not to go to Jason’s funeral. They came to the decision that they wouldn’t silently—or as silently as one could come to an agreement when all parties involved were sobbing.

Maybe it should have been a discussion. There was a part of Leo that worried he’d regret this later—his refusal to take this chance to say goodbye and let himself grieve.

But Leo remembered his mother’s funeral. Remembered the way his aunt Rosa had looked at him like she knew his mother’s death had been his fault. Leo couldn’t stand the thought of people looking at him like that again.

He also didn’t remember his mother’s funeral bringing him any sense of closure or comfort. He’d stood at her grave, afterwards, just as desperate and afraid and utterly inconsolable as he’d been before the funeral, except it had suddenly felt sickeningly final. The wound it had torn in his soul had kept bleeding for years, and the scars would stay forever. He didn’t need any of Apollo’s shitty oracles to know Jason’s death would be exactly the same.

At this point, Leo was pretty sure his sanity was being held together by a combination of jokes and a truly questionable amount of duct tape.

Beyond all that, though, Camp Jupiter was a battlefield right now. It would continue to be a battlefield for the foreseeable future.

Leo wasn’t a coward. It wasn’t that he didn’t want to go back and help. But one of his best friends was already in a box, and there was no way in hell he’d risk the other.

With how tightly Piper was clinging to him, maybe she was thinking the same thing. 

For all his big talk about dragon escorts, Festus did most of the actual escorting on his own, occasionally torching what Leo hoped were monsters and not random public monuments. Leo, for his part, spent most of the journey crammed into the backseat of the car next to Piper, sandwiched between her and a bunch of moving boxes that seemed determined to flatten him into a Leo-shaped pancake whenever they took a sharp turn.

He’d spent so long thinking about seeing her and Jason again. 

He’d talked Calypso’s ear off about them the whole journey, to the point where it had clearly started to annoy her. He’d thought about various ridiculous entrances he could make, and the fact that he’d probably get yelled at, but he’d also thought about sitting together by the campfire, sharing nachos. He’d thought about Jason hugging him so fiercely that he couldn’t breathe, and Piper cussing him out while she held him, making him promise never to do anything that reckless again.

Now Piper was actually holding him, and Leo couldn’t feel anything. There was a numbness in his chest. He wasn’t sure he had it in him to ever feel happiness again. Hell, even if he did, what was the fucking point? Every time anything even remotely good happened in his life, it got ripped away from him again.

They didn’t talk a whole lot for most of the drive. They cried until it felt like they couldn’t anymore, clinging to each other like desperate children.

Even if they’d wanted to talk about what had happened, Piper’s dad was right there, and despite the Mist usually working overtime for them, having him overhear seemed like a gamble. Or, well, maybe that was what Leo told himself. Maybe he just wasn't sure he was ready to hear it all. He still felt like he couldn’t think. He was overwhelmed to hell and couldn’t stop fidgeting.

Several hours into the trip, his stomach started grumbling. Piper dug through the bag at her feet and offered him one of her PB&J sandwiches, but Leo couldn’t eat. He hadn’t skipped a meal in forever—he’d been homeless and unsure when he’d even get access to the next meal enough times that it had been all but tattooed into his skull that he couldn’t afford to—but he couldn’t even think about eating without feeling sick. He thought about Jason. He thought about the state he’d left Camp Jupiter in and the fact that they hadn’t even been able to give the dead their proper funeral rites.

Had Leo’s help made any difference at all? Had anything he’d done in his life changed things even slightly?

Leo knew the Fates had intended for it to be fire that fell—for him to burn in a bright, hot blaze and turn himself to charcoal. But he’d refused to stay dead like a good little pawn, and now Jason was gone, and it was all his fault.

He wasn’t sure how Piper could even look at him right now, but he was beyond grateful that she was holding onto him as tightly as she did. It was the only reason he didn’t fall to pieces completely. The cog at the heart of Leo’s machine had broken in a way that made it utterly beyond repair, and now it felt like a matter of time before the whole thing came apart. Piper holding him was the only reason his remaining pieces were still functioning. 

It should have been impossible for Leo to fall asleep under these circumstances, but he’d been traveling for hours and fighting before then and he’d cried out his remaining energy, so eventually, the world started to fade around him, reduced to just the sound of Piper’s breaths, until finally, those went, too.

~~~~

It would have been kinder, maybe, if Leo had dreamed up some shitty visions promising violent death and/or the end of the world. That would have been business as usual. 

Instead, he dreamed of his time on the Argo II—of one of those early nights when the different groups were still getting to know each other, having a brief moment to breathe between their ridiculous tasks and saving the world. 

It had seemed reasonable to catch each other up on what had happened on their end. Percy, Hazel and Frank had talked about rescuing Thanatos, and Piper, Jason and Leo had told them what had happened with Hera in turn. 

This would have been a boring intel conversation at best, seeing as Leo had been there for all of their part, but they’d grabbed snacks and sat on cushions on the floor and made it a whole bonding activity. Jason had been wedged between Piper and Leo, and they’d taken turns storytelling. 

And Jason had bragged. So much. But he hadn’t even had the decency to brag about himself like a normal human being. Instead, he’d talked about how capable Piper and Leo had been, somehow managing to make Leo sound like the coolest person he’d ever met. Which was ridiculous, considering he’d met everyone else on their team.

And sure, Leo made it sound like he thought he was amazing all the time, but he was exaggerating, which everyone, himself included, knew. 

Jason didn’t seem to have gotten the memo, though. He had one arm wrapped around Leo the whole evening, and he got all starry-eyed when he talked. 

“Leo took on three Cyclopes by himself. Three!”

“Dude, stop!” Leo had laughed, shaking his head. “I know I’m incredible and you’re blessed to be friends with me and stuff, but you weren’t even conscious for that part.”

“Still happened, though.” Jason had beamed at him. “You’re amazing, dude. I would have died about fifteen times on that mission if it hadn’t been for you. You guys should’ve seen him.”

It would have been easier if Leo had thought Jason was just trying to talk him up to the others to make them more willing to trust him after how badly he’d messed up in New Rome, but Jason wasn’t the type. He’d looked like he honestly believed every single word he was saying.

So, of course, Leo had refused to seriously deal with any of the things that made him feel.

“Sorry, Pipes, but I’m pretty sure your boyfriend is in love with me. It’s the fire powers, I’m afraid. I’m just too hot to resist,” Leo had joked instead, and Piper had untangled herself from Jason’s other side to throw Doritos at Leo, and everything had been right in the universe.

~~~~

Waking up from that, blearily blinking himself awake in the car full of moving boxes and remembering… that was a worse punch in the gut than waking up from most nightmares had been. And Leo should know. He’d had so many of those over the years that he was basically a certified nightmare expert at this point.

Leo wanted to go back in time and spend forever in that one evening, living it over and over and over again until the Fates or a temporal paradox or something eventually killed him. He wanted to hold on to what they’d been back then—the three of them together and happy and whole,back before they’d realized what the prophecy really meant. 

He wanted to stay wrapped in Jason’s arm and hear him laugh at whatever stupid joke Leo came up with while he and Piper threw snacks at each other like ten year olds. He wanted to believe he could actually be the person Jason was bragging about—this invincible hero that could do just about anything and saved people’s lives.

But Leo had never been that hero. Even his sacrifice had been the selfish decision of a coward who wasn’t ready to die just yet. Jason had been their Superman. The guy who could fly and threw lightning and saved people from falling to their deaths. Jason had been the hero. And ultimately, that had been what killed him.

Leo wasn’t exactly sure what he planned to do once they got to Oklahoma. He should have been heading back to the Waystation, to give Calypso the normal life he’d promised. But he wasn’t thinking about Calypso, or the Waystation, and the thought of a normal life had gone out of the window the second he’d seen the coffin. Besides, the Waystation would mean people asking questions, wanting to know about his mission and asking him to talk about his feelings, and he didn’t want that.

The only thing Leo really wanted to do right now was not think. 

By the time they got to the house, it was so late that cross-country dragon flight seemed inadvisable for visibility reasons alone, so Leo agreed to stay the night. Festus nuzzled him for a bit, got a fuel snack from the canister Leo had brought and then folded down into his million pound suitcase form for the night.

It took a little under two hours to carry all the boxes inside, which was an annoying amount of time to be carrying boxes but seemed like an absurdly short amount to move the contents of an entire life.

They spent some time in search of the necessities that needed to be unpacked, but the house was still furnished and also had running water and electricity as of a few days ago, so it wasn’t that bad.

While Piper went in search of some ancient camping gear so Leo wouldn’t have to sleep on the floor—this seemed silly to him, the floor was far from the worst place he’d ever slept—Leo asked Piper’s dad if he could help with dinner. 

Tristan looked relieved at his offer, actually. He’d been staring at the assorted vegetables with a slightly lost expression, trying to hack at one of the zucchinis with a butter knife. It seemed like he was trying to remember how cooking worked and had just discovered he had absolutely no idea. 

Considering how long he’d been an insanely rich guy with a personal cook, Leo guessed that actually might have been a pretty accurate read on the situation. 

“You might want to try a sharper knife,” Leo suggested, which made Piper’s dad look absolutely mortified. “Try not to chop off any of your fingers, though. I think Piper’s been traumatized enough for one week.”

The words were out of his mouth before Leo could think to stop them. Tristan didn’t laugh, but at least it didn’t seem like he’d be tossing Leo out of the house over this. Maybe he realized people sometimes said stupid shit when they were grieving. Maybe Piper had just warned him in advance that Leo was like this sometimes.

Tristan just went to find a different knife, which would have maybe been concerning if he hadn’t gone back to hacking at the vegetables a moment later.

“Well, at least this one is actually cutting through the zucchinis. That’s already an improvement.”

“Yeah, I’m basically a cooking expert,” Leo said with a grin, only half-joking. He went to peel and chop up the carrots, and was done with those and about half the mushrooms by the time the poor zucchini had been hacked to bits.

“You and Piper went to school together, right?” Tristan asked after a while of them quietly chopping vegetables for the casserole, trying to make sense of things with information he didn’t have and that, judging from past evidence, probably would have made his skull crack. “You and her and Jason.”

“Yeah. We went to Wilderness school together.” Leo winced, trying not to think too hard of Jason while also trying to remember the lies they’d already told Piper’s dad. At this rate, he was pretty worried his own skull would crack, too. “Then all three of us switched to a different school. Then I was gone for a while.”

Tristan nodded like this made perfect sense, though he mostly seemed lost in thought. That was a little rude, in Leo’s opinion. If he went through all that effort to remember their elaborate setup of lies, the least Piper’s dad could do was appreciate it!

“I’m glad you’re here now, with everything that’s happened. Piper was really upset when you left,” Tristan said, still with that faraway look in his eyes. “The last few months were hard for her. Between the move and the breakup, she really could have used a friend.”

Leo promptly lost all rights to make fun of Piper’s dad and his vegetable chopping skills because at the word ‘breakup’, the knife slipped and he nearly sliced off two of his fingers.

“Fuck! Ow!” he said eloquently, trying to avoid bleeding all over the cutting board in his attempt to get to the sink. “Jason and Piper broke up?”

The question sounded absurd even to his own ears. Why would Jason and Piper break up? They’d been happy together.

Surely, Piper’s dad had to be talking about something else.

To Leo’s shock, Tristan nodded.

“A while ago, yes,” he said, but he didn’t go into details—possibly because Leo was bleeding all over the sink. “We should bandage that. Do you think you need stitches?”

“No, the cuts aren’t that deep,” Leo decided, turning on the faucet and holding his bleeding hand under the stream of cold water. Maybe he should have been more concerned about the injury, but his mind was still whirring at the thought of his best friends breaking up. Unfortunately, the cold water stung like hell. He hissed with pain. “Sorry for making your kitchen look like a crime scene right after moving in. Usually, I at least have the decency to wait a day or two.”

Because the house was a small, cozy place and Leo had not had the decency to curse quietly, Piper appeared in the doorway a moment later, an alarmed expression on her face.

“What happened?”

“I’ve been bested by a stupid potato,” Leo cursed, holding up his bleeding hand and wiggling his fingers for emphasis. He figured out immediately that this was a mistake. “Ow.”

“Stop that, dumbass!” Piper cursed, moving to stand beside him. “Sink was the right call, but you need to use soap or the cuts could get infected. Dad, any chance we have gauze lying around somewhere?”

Tristan didn’t seem to question why his daughter had immediately jumped into emergency medical treatment mode. He just abandoned the cutting board and headed for the front door.

“Not exactly sure what box our regular medical supplies are in, but I’ll get the first aid kit from the car. I’ll be right back.”

“Do we have to do the soap?” Leo whined, because fuck, that stung, but Piper nodded with a scary expression on her face, so he complied. “How do you even know this stuff? Are we sure you’re not secretly an Apollo kid?”

“I know this stuff because I’m friends with a bunch of morons who have zero sense of self-preservation,” Piper cursed, gritting her teeth. “You shouldn’t be around knives when you’re this distracted.”

“I can usually cook just fine when I’m distracted. Your dad was the one who told me you and Jason broke up in the middle of this stupid potato,” Leo said defensively. “Is that the Mist messing with him?”

That was the only explanation his mind had supplied so far that made any sense to him.

Piper shook her head. “We really did break up. That was a few months ago.”

Leo felt his jaw hit the floor. 

“What the hell happened? You were together for ages. I thought- you always seemed so happy.”

“I know, but-” Piper broke off abruptly when her dad came back inside with the first aid kit. Demigod stuff, then?

Leo’s mind was racing. The breakup was a completely stupid thing to focus on, considering everything that had happened in the last few days. He knew that.

But it was easier to try and make sense of this than it was to try and make sense of the fact that Jason was gone and he’d never get to see him again.

“Is it alright if we do this somewhere else?” Piper asked her dad, taking the first aid kit from him.

“Of course. It might be easier to patch him up when you’re both sitting down, anyway.” He turned towards Leo. “Thank you for your help, but I think I can take it from here.”

Leo sent a silent prayer to whichever deity was responsible for protecting vegetables—Demeter, probably?—and gave what he hoped was an encouraging thumbs up with his uninjured hand before he followed Piper into the hallway to presumably be reprimanded some more.

~~~~ They ended up sitting on an old bed that looked like it had lived a long, miserable life and was excited for retirement, but the wooden frame thankfully didn’t break down under the weight of the new mattress or the additional weight of them sitting on said mattress. Piper explained that this had been her dad’s room when he’d lived here as a child, and that it would probably become her room now. Then she went very quiet and focused on bandaging his hand, clearly avoiding looking at him.

“It wasn’t because of me, was it?” Leo asked. The thought made him feel ill. “Please tell me it wasn’t something like, I don’t know, you two being unable to stand being around each other after what happened to me. I think I’d actually have to blow myself up again if it was.”

He tried to make it sound like a joke, but it didn’t feel like one at all. The thought that he'd managed to ruin his best friends’ relationship on top of everything else made it hard to breathe.

When Piper shook her head, it felt like a whole boulder was lifted off his shoulders.

“I actually think we would have broken up sooner if you hadn’t gone missing. We leaned on each other a lot after you disappeared. It wasn’t until we realized we wouldn’t find you and things started to settle down a little that I had time to think. And when I did…” Her voice went very quiet, and she still didn’t look up at him. “I realized I wasn’t happy in the relationship. I don’t think I ever was.”

“How did I not know that?” Leo wondered quietly. “I just… you two seemed happy to me. What kind of garbage best friend am I?”

Piper shook her head. “It isn’t your fault. I was telling myself I was happy for a long time. It’s almost- sometimes I wonder if I was charmspeaking myself. That maybe I kept saying I was in love with Jason until I convinced myself I actually was. And with Hera and my mom setting it up… I love-” her voice caught in her throat, and Leo felt like maybe he needed to throw up, “-loved Jason, but not like that.”

“Pipes, I’m really sorry.” Leo squeezed her shoulder. “That sounds like it was super hard for both of you.” Leo felt awful about the fact that he hadn’t even been around to comfort either of them, but it wasn’t like he could fix it now. It was just another item on Leo’s unending list of epic screwups he’d never be able to make up for.

“Jason was… well, he took it exactly like I expected him to. He was surprised, but he didn’t get angry or anything. He mostly seemed okay. Part of me wonders if maybe…” But whatever Piper had been thinking about, she seemed to decide it wasn’t important. “It was hard to get a proper read on him, and as nice as he was about it, things were still super awkward after. I'm terrified he died thinking I didn’t care about him.”

And then she was tearing up again, and Leo thought he would shatter if she cried. 

“He knew you cared,” he said as earnestly as he could manage, pulling Piper to his chest again. “You love way too annoyingly for him not to have known. Hell, even I know you love me, and we both know I’m a fucking nightmare when it comes to this stuff.”

“I missed you so much,” she whispered, wrapping her arms around his back like it was the easiest thing in the world.

“Oh, I’m about to make you regret saying that,” Leo said, forcing himself to smile. “I’ll bring it up each and every time you say you find something I do annoying.”

“You’re annoying as hell, but you’re still my best friend.” He could feel her tears dripping onto his shoulder, and he knew that would make him start up again too. “I don’t know how I’d do this without you.”

And well, passing away from dehydration after crying too much would be a really lame way to die the second time, but everything was just too much right now, so if that was how he went, Leo wasn’t sure anyone could blame him.

~~~~

For the next couple of weeks, Leo stayed.

Helping Piper and her dad unpack was the perfect way to keep himself occupied and not have to think. Usually, a mundane task like this probably would have driven Leo nuts. But right now, it was a bit of a godsend—if not literally, at least figuratively. Being productive was always so much easier when it was done in order to avoid something you wanted to do even less. There was a reason his spaces in the foster homes had only ever been tidy when he had exams coming up.

He helped cook, too, and Piper’s dad became increasingly less garbage at it the longer this went on—like muscle memory was finally kicking in after years of disuse.

It was mostly good—listening to Piper reminisce about trips she’d taken with her dad and where she’d gotten the weird variety of items she kept in her room. When they weren’t unpacking, Leo and Piper played video games or watched movies or explored the area. Twice, during the night, they took Festus on a little flight to a nearby fast food place. Finding a parking spot was a bit of a nightmare, unfortunately. Leo would submit a complaint about their inability to accommodate celestial bronze dragons the first chance he got.

The first time they tried hiking—Leo didn’t even like hiking, he’d spent enough time outside for several lifetimes, why did he do this to himself—they got hopelessly lost in the woods, and of course, due to demigod bullshit, neither of them had brought a phone, so Google Maps wasn’t an option. It was probably for the better. The last thing that situation needed on top of them being lost was a monster attack. 

They were already jokingly planning out their new life in the woods when, thankfully, a girl their age came to their rescue.

“A human being! Thank the gods. The squirrels weren’t talking to us,” Leo greeted her, which had Piper shout “Please ignore Leo!” loudly from the branches of the tree she’d been climbing.

The girl lifted her head, spotted Piper and promptly burst out laughing.

“What in the world are you doing up there?” 

“Trying to get a better vantage point,” Piper sighed, making her way back down the tree. “We’re hopelessly lost.”

“Well, nice to meet you, hopelessly lost. I’m Shel,” the girl said, still grinning. Leo decided immediately that he liked her.

Piper had almost made it back down when she somehow missed a branch and fell the rest of the way. In comedic movie fashion, Shel moved before Leo had the chance to and caught her mid-tumble. “That was a bit of a dramatic way to get my attention, but you’re cute, so I’ll allow it.”

“Oh yeah, Piper’s got a bit of a thing with falling for people that way,” Leo commented, and Piper gave him her most murderous look while she got back on her feet.

“You guys need help getting back?”

“Please, yes,” Piper said immediately. “It turns out we’re both garbage with maps.”

“Maybe you just need a tour guide next time,” Shel suggested, winking at Piper, whose face turned scarlet. Leo wasn’t even mad about being the third wheel for once. He’d give her so much shit about this later.

And he did. And then Piper properly came out to him—no label or anything, mostly as extremely confused but sure she liked girls, which also made a few additional pieces click into place regarding her breakup with Jason. She ended her anxiety-riddled explanation by thanking Leo for being so normal and annoying about all this. 

Which was how Leo realized he’d apparently never told Piper he was bi.

Or maybe he had, and it had gotten lost along with their other memories of Wilderness. Stupid memory-stealing babysitters.

Well, at least they got to hug about it now. 

~~~~

It was strange how normal some days felt when nothing would ever truly be normal again. When in every moment Leo and Piper spent together, the gaping hole that had been ripped into their trio was so blatantly obvious.

The benefit and problem of this friendship was that Leo and Piper were both experts at not talking about things they were struggling with. 

This wasn’t exactly news. From what little Leo did remember of Wilderness School, they’d spent months not talking about his mom, or about the fact that Piper’s dad kept canceling their weekend plans. They’d both known there were things left unsaid, but as long as they’d been able to cheer each other up, that hadn’t really mattered. It made sense, honestly. Put two people who hadn’t had a shoulder to cry on for ages in a room together and see what happens!

Right now, this meant they were expertly ignoring the box of belongings Piper had picked up from Jason’s school. It had been pushed so far under the bed during that first night that it was no longer visible, and neither of them made any effort to move it out of its new home since. They ignored the topic of Jason, period, until it inevitably hit them in the face again. 

It was mostly dumb shit that set them off. Piper automatically reaching for vanilla ice cream at the grocery store because it was Jason’s favorite—seriously, who in their right mind even liked vanilla ice cream?

Sometimes, Leo would make a joke and burst into tears instead of laughing because he knew it would have cracked Jason up. They found old photos unpacking. One time, Piper’s dad suggested they make tacos and they started simultaneously bawling their eyes out.

Leo had spent a long time exactly like this—pretending everything was normal and okay when it wasn’t either of those things until he inevitably broke down. Then he’d started to actually feel sort of okay whenever he was with Jason and Piper. Now, he was sure he would spend the rest of his life pretending.

His appetite was too used to being stuck in survival mode for him to bow to nausea for long, so he went back to eating properly after a few days. He still cried himself to sleep most nights. He kept dreaming about Jason. The memories wrapped themselves around him like a safety blanket that he knew would get ripped away again in the morning. He always woke up feeling empty. Sometimes, he wished he could just go to sleep and never wake up again.

But other than that, it was mostly good.

Then demigod communications went back up, and everything went to hell.

———

Chapter notes:

Fun fact! I originally planned for this chapter (as well as the next few chapters) to just be backstory in my head and for me to maybe do a flashback or two. Unfortunately for me, Piper McLean waltzed into the room and refused to leave.

I do actually think the fic works better this way, but it will take a second to get to the plot! Hopefully you’ll enjoy the whole journey :)

I may not be able to have Leo and Piper go to Jason’s funeral without seriously messing with the plot of Tyrant’s Tomb, but I could at least pick the most evil reason possible for them not to go!

Side note: I sort of forgot that Hedge and Mellie were supposed to be here according to TBM, but by the time I remembered I already had this chapter written out and, as someone who cannot be bothered to figure out how to write them, I decided to just leave it. ToA is vaguely canon to this universe, but only for the most part. Some details are inaccurate, and I think that’s okay.

Anyway, thank you so much for reading! Comments and reblogs super, super appreciated as always!!

List of people that at some point asked to be tagged when I post this: @poppitron360 @ginnyluna @keefessketchbook (feel free to comment if you want to get taken off or be put on the tag list for future chapters!)

[homunculus-argument]

Hey btw, if you're doing worldbuilding on something, and you're scared of writing ~unrealistic~ things into it out of fear that it'll sound lazy and ripped-out-of-your-ass, but you also don't want to do all the back-breaking research on coming up with depressingly boring, but practical and ~realistic~ solutions, have a rule:

Just give the thing two layers of explanation. One to explain the specific problem, and another one explaining the explanation. Have an example:

Plot hole 1: If the vampires can't stand daylight, why couldn't they just move around underground?

Solution 1: They can't go underground, the sewer system of the city is full of giant alligators who would eat them.

Well, that's a very quick and simple explanation, which sure opens up additional questions.

Plot hole 2: How and why the fuck are there alligators in the sewers? How do they survive, what do they eat down there when there's no vampires?

Solution 2: The nuns of the Underground Monastery feed and take care of them as a part of their sacred duties.

It takes exactly two layers to create an illusion that every question has an answer - that it's just turtles all the way down. And if you're lucky, you might even find that the second question's answer loops right back into the first one, filling up the plot hole entirely:

Plot hole 3: Who the fuck are the sewer nuns and what's their point and purpose?

Solution 3: The sewer nuns live underground in order to feed the alligators, in order to make sure that the vampires don't try to move around via the sewer system.

When you're just making things up, you don't need to have an answer for everything - just two layers is enough to create the illusion of infinite depth. Answer the question that looms behind the answer of the first question, and a normal reader won't bother to dig around for a 3rd question.

[neil-gaiman]

Hello,

please let me start by saying how much I adore all your works. The way you blend the supernatural godly with reality is just...it became my favourite type of fiction also thanks to your works.

There is something which I musk ask however since it's been bothering me, and I hope you will help me with this.

Dream says in his own words that he is quite sure his siblings knew what happened to him and didn't come to his aid.

Death also admits to knowing that she was the original target. Yet she also is angry at Dream for not coming to her when he started to struggle.

I don't get the feeling that Death wouldn't have helped if she could. So the only explanation I see is that she knew what hat happend but not where and how. Or was there something different preventing her from helping?

I really wish to understand this as I adore the dynamic between those two and I can't find a good explanation.

Thank you so much for being there for us and answering so patiently our questions.

I first answered this long ago, for Hy Bender in THE SANDMAN COMPANION, long out of print and I wish it wasn't.

Hy Bender: Speaking of things you're often asked, I know another one is, "When Burgess died, wasn't Death there to meet him? And if so, wouldn't she have found out at that point about the Sandman being imprisoned by Burgess?"

Neil Gaiman: Right, with the implication that this is a huge hole in the plot. But to my mind, Death knew about the Sandman being trapped as soon as it happened. Everyone in his family did. The reason the Endless didn't free him isn't because they weren't aware of the situation, but because they aren't a superteam; rushing to the rescue isn't what they're about. The Endless stick to hoeing their own farms. As personifications of things, they're not causative. They're barely reactive. Besides, even if the Endless had acted to break the Sandman out, he probably would've been angry at them for doing so. He definitely wouldn't have been anything approaching appreciative.

Bender: Why?

Gaiman: Mostly because he felt it was his responsibility to take care of himself.

The previous time he was rescued by one of his family, this was his response...

If he'd called on his family for help, then they might possibly have got involved. But even that's only a possibly.

[versadies]

CHAPTER THIRTEEN \\ CLOSURE (VERSADIES'S VERSION)

SYPNOSIS (of chapter). in which you're slowly getting better.

SYPNOSIS (of series). breaking up with your first love was heartbreaking, but not as heartbreaking as getting invited to his wedding after years of not seeing him. that is, until things seem to be easier when you encounter a certain guest, who could end up being more than just a blooming friend to you.

CHARACTERS. diluc ragnvindr, kamisato ayato, thoma (w/ gn!reader)

CONTENT. fluff/slight-angst, mentions of violence (almost getting hit/slapped), sh1nsuke 🤢🤢🤢, mentions of yelling, mentions of threats

PENPALS.  @scaraslover @saving-for-xiao @dawgimsohot @kazu-topia @chiruru @aqualesha @renamichii @mrkamisato @shenhesl0ver @serami00 @serenareiss @hiqhkey @emperatris-rinaka @bystander36 @irisxiel @ladycoleigh @034ven @dear-dairiess @owozi8 @hadesaedes @chiro-chiro-kun @hersscherofyatta @mariusvonhangme @yuzuricebun @hoshikistarlette @solaaresque @crowbird @lordbugs @flowersforayato @headintheclouddd @estelwrld @giyusimpsassemble @irethepotatosblog @moonlightaangel @alice0blog @shotosbrainrot @sniffoat @chihawari @mxsomn @kuni-kuzushii @jiminscarmex @mitsukii14 @nejibot @ylimeprive @sachispet @loreleis-world @sn-owo @starforecasts @someonetookmynamelmao @ceylestia @lychme @ymikkos @reallysporadicarcade @elychee @astrxlis @denkineptune @franini @sophisticatedleslie @thedivinepriestress @smashsubs @httpmitsuya @bl6o6dy @cottonkendi (visit this post if you’d like to be tagged!)

WORD COUNT. 6.4k words

LINKS. EVERMORE MASTERLIST \\ MAIN MASTERLIST \\ EVERMORE SURVEY

POST-SCRIPT. decided to make another version of this chapter after reading some of your messages about the original one. so there'll be two versions starting from chapters 13 to epilogue which is the original version (the storyline of reader and ----------) and the versadies's version (the storyline of reader and diluc w/o the plot twist happening). im sorry again for the disappointment, consider this as an apology gift.

– i know some might also get some reactions of this post's and versadies's version chapters' existence, but it's the only thing i believe i can do to make things up and to clear my head off so i hope you guys can understand.

ORIGINAL || PREVIOUS || NEXT

The next day after all has happened, Zhongli noticed how you seem to be… happier. 

You really weren’t lying when you told him last night that you and Diluc have been getting along pretty well, because you surely never seem to take your eyes off of your phone as you type out responses to your newly found friend the whole time in the hotel room. 

By the time you take your eyes off your phone is when you came out of the hotel room to do your activities for the day, such as eating breakfast, taking a stroll around the garden once more, visiting the convenience store once again, hanging out with a friend of yours by Good Hunter, and so on. 

The thing is, all of these had one thing in common. 

Besides a certain experience, you kept seeing a certain red-haired man to the point where it’s no longer a coincidence. Do you two just really have the same schedule or something? 

As you lined up for the buffet with your plate in hand, you were tempted to grab your phone and check if you received any message from a certain man, still smiling from enjoying your last conversation with him on the phone. 

It wasn’t until you hear someone clearing his throat behind you when you turn around from recognizing it, causing your eyes to brighten at the sight of the familiar man you’ve been talking to for the past hour earlier. 

“Diluc!” You greeted happily. 

“( Name ).” He greeted, also pleasantly surprised.

“I thought you were out for work already! Didn’t you mention you often go to Angel’s Share early?” You ask curiously. 

He nodded in response. “I do. Just not today it seems, I have something important to do today.” 

The two of you started picking your foods by the time the food is now displayed in front of you after taking a step forward, choosing what you want to eat for breakfast all the while chatting with Diluc – a major difference a few days ago when you and the man were suffering from the awkward silence between you two. 

Turns out, Diluc supposedly had a plus one, but the person wasn’t able to make it due to not having time, hence how he finds himself being alone. Today, however, is the day when the plus one visits the hotel just to greet the wedding couple and wish them well, who will be leaving tomorrow for their honeymoon. 

You’re curious to know who his plus one is, but you wouldn’t be surprised if it’s someone as important and highly regarded as him. 

Once you two finished picking your meal at the same time, you started heading towards where Zhongli is, who’s waiting for you to come at last. You paid no mind how Diluc is following you, perhaps he’s heading towards his table as well that’s in the same direction as yours. 

“You could sit with me and Zhongli if you want. You two seem to know each other back then before we visited your establishment.” You offered with a smile, carefully holding your plate in fear of dropping it. 

He shakes his head. “Oh I’ll be alright. Mr. Zhongli has visited Mondstadt back then a few times and would come by for a nice tea and brunch. Though, he tends to have his chatty friend with him whenever he does.” 

You can’t help but grin when he mentioned the chatty friend. “You mean Venti?” 

Diluc nodded. “Yes. That id– man usually comes around to drink a lot of alcohol. It’s a miracle he didn’t get any sickness from drinking so much.” 

You visibly imagine Venti drinking lots of alcohol, causing you to laugh at the thought. “Well I’m not surprised to hear that. He seems the kind to do that.” 

Before you knew it, you’re finally at your table, causing you to stop your tracks instantly and bid Diluc goodbye before sitting on your seat. If it weren’t for you noticing Zhongli waving at you as well as Diluc slowing down his walk, you would’ve not noticed the fact that you almost walked past your table from being distracted with your conversation.

“Let’s talk again next time. Enjoy your meal, Diluc.” You said as you watched Diluc giving you an acknowledged nod before walking away to where his table is. 

By the time Diluc is long far away, Zhongli decides to speak up after taking a sip of his tea. “You know, I was starting to think you were too busy being indecisive on your food, but I suppose I was wrong.” He said with amusement. 

You chuckled, picking up your eating utensils. “Consider yourself lucky that I wasn’t in the mood to eat seafood, lest I decide to tease you with it.” 

You feel satisfied seeing the cringe look on his face, grinning to yourself as you take a bite of your food. 

–

After eating breakfast, you and Zhongli went back to your hotel room and got ready for your first activity. While your friend is getting ready to work out in the gym, you decided to go visit the convenience store to buy some snacks. 

You wanted to try something new this time, so you decided to choose snacks that are from Mondstadt instead of Liyue or Inazuma. Of course, you wouldn’t forget the ones Zhongli wanted, particularly another certain drink. 

“It’s a non-alcoholic drink called Fruits of the Festival.” He says as he zips his bag that contains the things he needed for working out. “Venti recommended that we drink some now that there are a lot of them in stock for the celebration of the upcoming Weinlesefest festival.” 

With that in mind, perhaps you should’ve taken into consideration that the drink would possibly be out of stock soon , because by the time you encounter the aisle that supposedly contains the Fruits of the Festival, there was only one bottle left.

Just as you’re about to take the bottle, you didn’t notice how someone else was reaching out to it as well, causing your hand to touch his. 

Surprised, you look at the person who’s getting the same item as you, only to be even more surprised when you realize who it is. 

“...Diluc?” 

“( Name )?” 

You can’t help but let out a laugh, not believing that you will meet your friend again coincidentally. “Oh wow, I didn’t expect to see you here! Are you trying to get this one?” You asked, gesturing to the drink you’re still touching. 

He hums in agreement. “Don’t worry, I could always get the other one.” He said, about to let go until you immediately let go of it. 

“Ah no, no, no! It’s better if you take this one since it’s the last one. Consider it a payment for letting me have the grape juice last time.” You said with a laugh, gesturing to the man to take the drink.

He shakes his head, letting go of the drink. “It’s fine, you can take it. I wouldn’t want you to miss out tasting something such as the Fruits of the Festival.”

You refuse to get the drink. “Oh come on, it’s better if you’re the one who’ll get this.” 

“No, no. It’s fine.” 

“Just get it, Diluc.” 

“I prefer you getting it.”

“No you–”

Suddenly, someone else takes the drink in front of the two of you, causing you to flinch in surprise. 

“Brother Albedo! Is this blue drink the one you’re talking about?” A little girl with a red dress says before running towards where her brother is with the drink in hand, leaving you and Diluc stunned. 

“...”

“...”

You can’t help but laugh. “Oh man, this reminds me of what happened back then.” You said, remembering the way you and Diluc fell into the same situation and kept insisting on who’s taking the drink.

His lips twitch upward. “Likewise. We really have come a long way after that.” 

You nodded in agreement with a smile. “We have. Though it’s really a shame none of us got the drink. I’m sure they’ll restock soon.” 

“We can visit tomorrow if you’d like.” Diluc offers. “I’m sure my plus one will be asking to go visit the store to buy some together, you can join us.” 

You shake your head. “Ah, no need! I wouldn’t want to bother you catching up with whoever your plus one is. I’m sure I’ll eventually be able to try it when I hang out with my friend later.” 

He nods in understanding. “Very well then. I hope you’ll enjoy the drink. If you somehow weren’t able to drink it, you could always visit Angel’s Share. It’ll be available today or tomorrow.” 

Your eyes brighten, remembering the delightful establishment. Now that you think about it, you do miss their drinks there – so it wouldn’t exactly hurt to go there before you and Zhongli leave to the airport. “Alright, I’ll keep that in mind. Thanks again, Diluc.” 

“See you next time, ( Name ).” 

Then you two parted ways, unaware that next time is very much later. 

–

After coming back to the hotel from the convenience store, you were itching to go visit the garden after passing by the entrance. Perhaps it wouldn’t hurt to wait there for your friend instead of here when it’s time for you two to hang out.

Which is what led you to immediately get ready for your hangout once you finished unpacking the things you bought from the store.

“How do I look?” You ask Zhongli as you come out from the bathroom, now fully dressed for your brunch. “Do I look alright?” 

You watched as your friend looked away from his book, looking at your outfit carefully before nodding in confirmation with a smile. “Yes, you look great.” 

You sigh in relief, grabbing your bag from your bed to start packing up your things. “That’s good. What will you be doing while I’m gone?” 

Zhongli shrugs in response. “I don’t have any plans for today, but a walk around the garden would be nice later.” 

“Alright. I’ll be back in a while.” You said, checking your phone for any messages (from a certain man) before putting it inside your bag. 

“Have fun, ( Name ). Don’t forget to tell Diluc I said hi.” He said with a chuckle, remembering what you told him about the wine tycoon today. 

Your mouth opens agape. “Wow– Alright, whatever. Have fun too, Zhongli.” 

As you zip your bag closed after getting all the things you need, you immediately head towards the door. Maybe I should try taking pictures of some of the scenery, You thought to yourself. 

Fortunately the trip to the garden didn’t take long, and by the time you entered the hotel’s beautiful garden, you delightfully inhaled the fresh air. Thank Celestia it’s a good day today, you thought, looking around your surroundings. 

As you walk around the area trying to find a place to sit on, you bring out your phone to take a few pictures. You were so fascinated with how each flower looked amazing in the pictures you took – with the lightning and atmosphere bringing ethereal energy to your pictures.

While admiring the pictures you took, you didn’t notice a person walking towards the same direction as you, causing you to accidentally bump into them. 

“Ah, so sorry!” You said with a yelp, maintaining your balance. “I didn’t mean to bump into you–” Your eyes widens when you realize who you bump into. 

“The apologies are all mine, I should’ve watched where I was goin–” The red-haired man’s words slowly trail off when he hears your voice, now realizing who’s in front of him.

“..Diluc?” 

“( Name )?” 

You let out a laugh once more. “Oh wow, I can’t believe this! I’m starting to think this isn’t a coincidence now – since when have you started visiting the garden?” 

“Just now. I wanted to see what it looks like during the daytime. What brings you here as well?” 

“Ah, I wanted to take a stroll around the garden while waiting for my friend to come and pick me up so we can go have brunch. This place is really beautiful, isn’t it?” You replied, keeping your phone aside. 

He hums in agreement. “It is.” 

You then thought of something. “Wanna walk around the place together while I’m waiting for my friend?” You asked. 

“I don’t mind.” He said with a nod. 

And so, you two continued where you left off from last night in the garden, talking about Weinlesefest as you wait for your friend to come. 

Throughout the stroll, Diluc explained to you all the things you needed to know about the upcoming festival. Apparently, the Weinlesefest festival is more about making new wine as they invite their Archon to drink with everyone. So it makes sense that someone like Diluc, whose entire business and establishment is famous for the amazing wine, is currently thinking of something that could make good wine.

He also explained about what you could do if you participate in the festival, particularly visit Springvale and explore around the place since it’s where the festival will be held. Ah, just hearing all the things you could do and eat made you want to consider extending your stay, but alas, you think one week in one of your favorite regions is enough for you. Besides, even if you decide to extend your stay, only Celestia knows what would happen to you once you’re back to work. 

While you converse with your friend, you couldn’t help but notice the way he looks as though there’s something in his mind. You didn’t find the guts to ask him though, thinking you’re meddling into his business if you do so. Still, you’re a bit concerned that something bad happened and you want to at least help – it’s the least you can do for everything he did for you. 

Before you could bring up and ask what’s on his mind, you hear someone calling out your name. 

“ ( Name )! Over here!” Your eyes light up when you hear the familiar voice of your friend, causing you and Diluc to turn around and look at the person who’s calling you. 

“Thoma, there you are!” You greeted, walking towards the blonde-haired man who’s also walking towards you. “And here I thought you weren’t gonna show up any time soon, what took you so long?” 

Thoma spreads his arms wide as you give him a hug. “Aw man, I’m sorry for being late! I was busy helping Ayato out with preparing for his next trip, I didn’t notice that I was about to be late.” He explains. The two of you quickly separate each other from your hug. 

He looks at where Diluc is, causing him to stand up straight and offer the tycoon his hand. “Hello! You must be the infamous Diluc Ragnvindr. A pleasure to meet you!” He says with a smile. 

Diluc didn’t hesitate to shake Thoma’s hand, giving him an acknowledged nod. “Likewise. I would like to congratulate you for your efforts in this wedding, it’s truly amazing.” 

The blonde-haired man lets out a bashful laugh. “Oh you’re too kind, Mr. Ragnvindr! I hope I wasn’t bothering you two, did I?” 

You hesitantly look at Diluc, who remains the same expression as always, before looking back at your friend with a smile. “Ah not really. We were just talking about the Weinlesefest festival until we heard you.” 

“That’s good to hear. I’m a bit disappointed that I won't be able to experience the festival though.” Thoma lets out a sigh. “Oh well, there’s nothing we can do about it. Mind if I take ( Name ) away, Mr. Ragnvindr?” 

Diluc nodded in response. “Of course since that’s what ( Name ) is here for. I’ll see you next time once again, ( Name ).” 

You gave the red-haired man a grateful smile. “See you next time, Diluc. It was fun talking to you!” 

–

The purpose of your brunch with Thoma is simple. Catch up with one another, talk about the things you’ve missed in Inazuma while you talk about the things he missed in your trip. 

So why, why do you feel so bothered? 

Despite being able to listen to your dear friend and keep up with your conversation, your mind lingers on Diluc. You’re still worried about how he seems to be out of it back in the garden – is it perhaps because of how he needs to think of a new wine? 

“You know, I’m glad you and Ayato had spoken to one another about what happened back then.” Thoma confesses, causing you to be taken back by surprise. “I hope you won’t be offended with what I have to say but.. You look happier than before.” 

You raise your eyebrows from his words. Happier? 

“I… I didn’t notice that.” You replied, letting out a small laugh. “Am I really that happy because of how me and Ayato have resolved?” 

Thoma lets out a small laugh as well. “Well, that’s just my guess. Did something else happen that made you happier than that?” He asks. 

You took a second to think about it. It’s true that ever since you and Ayato have made up, everything's been going a bit well for you, but then again, it’s sort of weird how you’re a lot happier about it than normal. 

Is it… really just because of that? 

Seeing how you hesitated, Thoma’s eyes slightly widened in surprise. “Wait, did something actually happen?” 

You look away from Thoma, a bit flustered. “I-I really don’t know either!” 

“Really?”

“Yeah!” 

“Then… It’s not about someone, is it?” 

You begin to scratch the back of your head. “Well… I did become friends with Diluc…? That’s the only thing that happened besides what happened with Ayato.” You said, looking at your friend while you fiddled with your fingers. “He’s fun to talk to, I’ll admit. I had a lot of fun for the past few days thanks to him.” 

The blonde haired man nods in agreement. “I can tell. Every time I look at you during the bachelor and reception, you look like you’re having fun talking to him,” He then lets out a laugh. “It honestly reminded me of back then when you and Ayato were still pining for each other.” 

You look at him in confusion, still smiling. “Huh? What do you mean?” 

“Well for starters, it’s the way you’re looking and talking to him. You always pay attention to him and everything he says that you don’t focus on eating your food or your surroundings much. I was able to see you while I was hosting the bachelor party.” He explains. “...Of course, I’m sure you don’t see Mr. Ragnvindr that way, right?” 

You slowly glance down at your food, processing his words carefully. 

…Huh. 

You didn’t notice how Thoma’s face slightly fell from how you didn’t answer his question. “...You don’t see him that way, right?” He repeats. 

You want to answer yes, but something is holding you back. You don’t understand, you don’t really see Diluc that way right? You two are just friends – and yes, there were some moments between you two whereas your new friend made you feel… things – but that’s normal, right? 

This feeling… Isn’t surely the same as what you felt towards Ayato back then, right? 

Then again… When was the last time you had fallen in love? 

You wipe your now sweaty palms on your lap, starting to feel a bit conflicted from your thoughts and feelings. Even if you are in love with him, how could you even deal with it? How can you even face him knowing your feelings? What if you end up being heartbroken? 

But if you aren’t in love with him, why does that make you feel.. Unsatisfied? 

You can’t help but think about him, and you realize you’ve always been thinking about him for the past few days. He makes you happy, there’s never a dull moment with him besides when you two first interacted with one another, and he’s understanding and gentle. The gentle look he gives you as he respectfully treats you well makes you feel safe and comfortable. He treats you equally and you two always get along despite your differences. Not to mention how you always smile whenever you think of him, something that Zhongli had pointed out one time. You also couldn’t help but get excited at the thought of what’s to come for you and Diluc the next day. 

Seeing how the question turned the mood sour, Thoma instantly tries to think of a way to change topics. “It’s alright if you’re unsure, ( Name ).”

“No, no, it’s fine.” You quickly reassured your friend. “I just.. Didn’t realize it until you pointed it out.” 

“So.. you do love him, do you?” 

You stayed silent for a few seconds. “...He makes me feel things no one has made me feel for a long time.” 

Thoma nods slowly in understanding. “...I see. Then I hope you get something good out of it.” 

You smile gratefully. “Thank you. Though, I feel bad our conversation went this way, we were just laughing a few minutes ago.” 

He quickly lets out a small laugh. “Oh it’s no problem. At least you found something you didn’t know, right?” 

You nodded. “Yeah, thanks again, Thoma.” 

“Anything for you, ( Name ).” 

You decided to try and change the topic. “Wanna share Good Hunter’s newest dessert together?” 

Thoma nods with a smile. “Fine, but you better not finish everything in one go.” 

“Hey!” 

–

It took perhaps another hour before you and Thoma decided to get the bill and get out of the restaurant. Unfortunately, your friend won’t be able to join you in going back inside Goth Grand Hotel once he drops you off, telling you how he has some things to do for Ayato and Chisato before they go off to their honeymoon destination. 

As you enter the hotel lobby, you can’t help but think back about what Thoma told you. What would happen between you and Diluc? Will you still act the same as before, aware that your feelings for him are possibly more than platonic?

While thinking, you didn’t notice someone behind you heading towards you until you felt them harshly gripping onto one of your shoulders.

You turn around, wondering who on Earth would be so rude to do such a thing, only for your eyes to widen when you realize who it is. 

“Good afternoon, Mx. ( Last Name ).” Shinsuke greeted you with a smile that’s obviously fake. “I apologize for bothering you on this fine day,” A lie, “but I must request you to come with me somewhere more private.” 

You hesitated for a moment, knowing the risk if you said yes. But even so, who’s to say what could happen if you turn down his request? 

You look around the area, trying to look for someone who can notice your troubled situation and help you, only to unfortunately find no one around. If only you could’ve convinced Thoma to escort you back to your hotel room…

“...I suppose I could spare some time for a chat.” You said, trying to act calm. 

You suddenly feel an eerie presence looming behind you, causing you to glance at your back and see a few bodyguards standing behind you – as if to prevent you from running away. Unlike the ones who were stationed for the wedding events, these particular guards were foreign, with strange but somewhat familiar symbols on their brooches. You could tell they’re not like the bodyguards you’ve seen.

“Perfect.” Shinsuke comments, and you start to regret accepting his offer. “Come with me.” 

Without letting you reply at all, the man turns and starts walking, causing the bodyguards behind you to shove you in order for you to follow, leaving you no choice but to oblige. 

On your way, you hoped that you would at least encounter one of your friends, frantically glancing around the hotel lobby looking for a familiar face. Unfortunately, you finally arrived at what you assume is a private room. 

You’re going to be alone with Shinsuke and these scary bodyguards. 

“Before we can go in, I have one more thing to request of you.” Shinsuke spoke up before he could open the door. “Take your bag away and give it to one of the guards.” 

Your eyes widens, hesitantly looking at the bodyguards behind you, who all remain unfazed and emotionless. Slowly, you take out your bag from your body and pass it to one of the guards. 

“Don’t worry, they won’t open your bag and look through your things if that’s what you’re worried about.” Shinsuke said in a nice tone, as if that’s enough to reassure you in this situation. “Let’s go inside now.”

You feel fear crawling up on your spine as you enter the room, unsure of what’s going to happen to you. 

The room is a conference room, with multiple chairs surrounding one long table as one of them is situated by the end of it; you assume that chair is where he’ll be seated. 

“Go sit down here.” He says, pulling back a seat that’s right in the middle. “We have a few things to talk about, it won’t be long, don’t worry.” 

Swallowing down the lump in your throat, you carefully went to where the seat is, trying to contain your frantic breathing in order to hide your fear. The bodyguards that were following you both are situated outside.

By the time you sit down is when Shinsuke starts talking, not deciding to sit down on a chair. “Now that we’re in a more private area, let’s start talking, shall we?” 

You nodded slowly. “..Is there… A problem, Mr. Hiiragi?” You ask hesitantly. 

He laughs, starting to walk slowly around you. “Straight to the point, I like that.” He comments. “Yes, there is a problem, Mx. ( Last Name ).” 

Your breath hitches; he proceeds to explain more. “You see, this wedding is a very precious event to the Hiiragi Clan. Everyone thinks the lovely couple is perfect, like straight out of a fairytale, so I like to keep it that way.” You watch as he brushes one of the chairs as he walks by. Did he find out about you and Ayato? 

“So when someone reported to me that they caught sight of you walking back inside the bachelor party venue together with the bride – who didn’t bother hiding the fact that she was crying – I have to make sure all’s well.” He adds, and you mentally sigh in relief. 

His eyes then narrow. “I hope you understand where I’m coming from, and I fear that you might take the opportunity to taint the Hiiragi name and accuse that Chisato is unhappily married to Kamisato Ayato.” 

You shook your head frantically. “N-No, I wouldn’t dare to do such a thing to my friends.” 

“How should I know if you’re telling the truth? And before I knew it, the media would talk about how Chisato had unwillingly married the CEO of the Yashiro Company because of you and your schemes!” 

“I am telling the truth, Mr. Hiiragi! I wish nothing but happiness for the couple.” 

“As if that’s enough to do so.” He lets out a “tsk”, glaring down at you. “I have no choice but to get rid of you. Who knows when you will eventually risk tearing down my reputation!” 

You gasp aloud, immediately standing up from your seat. “Get rid of me?! But Mr. Hiiragi, that’s too much! I haven’t done anything ever since the bachelor party happened–”

“You dare to raise your voice on me!? Did you forget your place, or shall I remind you?!” He exclaims. You panic when he suddenly storms towards you, his hand slowly raises up to hit you. 

Suddenly, the door opens, causing the man to stop himself from hitting you and look at the intruder. 

“Was I interrupting something?”  

Your eyes brighten when you recognize the person’s voice, and you look at the intruder who’s standing by the doorway. 

“O-Oh, Mr. Ragnvindr!” Shinsuke spoke, his tone is now nice and kind unlike a few seconds ago. “What a lovely surprise. I was just having a special meeting with Mx. ( Last Name ) regarding the wedding–”

“I’m here to talk about your pesky bodyguards who aren’t doing their job right” Diluc spoke, his voice dark and cold – a big comparison to his gentle tone when he talks to you. “I was just passing by when they suddenly confronted me and dared to lay a hand on me for no reason.” 

You saw the way Shinsuke’s eyes widened, his eyebrows furrowing. “What?! How unprofessional of them! Where are they now?” 

Diluc opens the door wide. “You may check on them. I simply pulled self-defense since they tried to fight me. Had this happened to someone else, I fear an innocent person would get hurt by their recklessness.” He scolded Shinsuke, who hesitated from his offer to check on the bodyguards. 

The elder man glances at you, causing you to freeze up from his glare. “This isn’t over yet.” He mouths before looking back at the red-haired man. “I apologize sincerely on behalf of my bodyguards. I’ll make sure it won’t happen ever again.” 

“Good. Now leave.” 

Begrudgingly, Shinsuke heads out from the conference room. By the time the CEO is out of your sight, Diluc looks in your direction.

“Diluc.” You called.

His eyes softened. “( Name ).” 

He then gestures to you to come with him. “Come with me. Let’s get you out of here.” 

When you come out of the conference room with Diluc being by your side, you’re surprised to see the sight of Shinsuke standing over the bodyguards on the ground, some groaning out in pain while some were out cold. Just what did Diluc do to them? 

You dare not to question, grateful for saving you from what Shinsuke was planning to do to you. 

As soon as you two are somewhere where most people don’t come to in the lobby, you let out a breath you didn’t know you’re holding. 

“Are you alright?” Diluc asks worryingly, giving you your bag you didn’t know he was holding. “What happened back there?” 

You slowly grab your bag from him, avoiding his gaze. “I… I don’t know.. He just took me to that room and threatened me for something that happened in the bachelor party. I wouldn’t dare to do that to my friends.” You clench your teeth at the audacity the cruel CEO has. “I’m just grateful you were able to come by before something happened. How did you know I was there?” 

“I saw one of the guards holding your bag.” He answers honestly. “I recognized it was the one you were carrying when we were taking a stroll around the garden, so I had to investigate. Did they hurt you?” 

You shook your head. “Mr. Hiiragi was about to, but you made it in time before he could hurt me.” 

Diluc’s eyes slightly widened, before quickly narrowing his eyes at the thought that someone would dare to hurt you. “How dare he.. I knew he wasn’t good news.” 

“It’s fine… None of us could’ve predicted he would do something like this.” You mumbled. It was technically a lie, you knew someone like Shinsuke would do this, but you didn’t want your friend to be worried and angry. “Thank you for your help, Diluc. I owe you a lot.” 

“Anything for you.” He replied. He suddenly puts a hand on your shoulder in an attempt to comfort you, causing your heart to start beating fast while your cheeks begin to warm up from his words and gestures.  “You don’t owe me anything. Just… be more careful, I don’t want you to get hurt by someone as cruel and despicable as him.” 

You nodded slowly, your mouth twitching upwards. “I’ll try.” 

“Were you heading towards your room?” He asks, and you hum softly in response. “I could escort you back there if you’d like. Just in case Mr. Hiiragi dares to come to you again.” 

You shook your head. “Oh I don’t want to bother you since you’re waiting for your plus one. I think I can go back on my own.” 

“I insist. It would hurt me if something bad happens to you again when I could’ve helped you, and besides, I’m sure my plus one can wait and understand.” He insists. “Come.” 

“...Thank you again, Diluc.” You spoke softly before the two of you started heading towards the elevator area that’s across the hotel lobby from where you are.

The two of you didn’t say a word to one another while you’re walking, but you didn’t mind. You were still shaken up by what happened. Who knows when Shinsuke will try to bother you again? What if he comes to Liyue and ruins your life? 

“Will you be alright, ( Name )?” He suddenly asks, causing your worrisome thoughts to fade away from his voice. 

You look at him for a moment before nodding slowly. “I suppose so… I could just ask Zhongli or someone else to accompany me every time I go until I head to the airport in a few days.” 

You failed to notice the slight change of expression Diluc’s holding when you talked about going to the airport, your thoughts now drifted to what’s going to happen in a few days.

Now that you think about it, the day you’ll go back to Liyue is near, so that means you’ll be back to your life again. You’ll be back to your cozy and comfortable apartment that you missed instead of the luxurious hotel, you’ll be back to working all day instead of exploring around Mondstadt, 

You’ll be back without seeing Diluc ever again. 

Your heart ached at that thought. 

What will happen once you return? Will you and Diluc stop talking as if nothing happened? You didn’t want that to happen, you could care less if he doesn’t like you the way you do, wouldn’t it be sad if you two act like strangers—?

“When will you travel back to Liyue?” Diluc asks, causing your thoughts to be stopped abruptly from his voice as the two of you arrive at the elevator area.

You try to count the days you have left. 

“In 2 days perhaps. Maybe more if I could.” 

One of the elevators lets out a “ding!” noise as it opens for you and Diluc to come in. By the time you did, you found the urge to ask him a question. “Why did you ask?” 

Diluc clears his throat, feeling a bit embarrassed. “I just want to know so I could say goodbye to you in the airport.” 

Your eyes widen a bit and glance at his direction, did you hear that right? 

“That’s only if you don’t mind me coming, of course.” He clarifies quickly. “I understand if you don’t want me there.” 

“O-Oh don’t worry, I don’t mind.” You reassured him. “I just felt surprised since I didn’t think you wanted to since you could just say goodbye to me by the hotel lobby.” 

“That’s true,” He hums in agreement, “but I prefer saying goodbye to you in the airport before you go even though we’ll talk again once you’re back to your home.” 

Your eyes brightens from hearing that Diluc’s actually planning on chatting with you, now feeling rest assured that your friendship with him will go on. 

A smile grows on your face as you ignore the way your heart flutters. “That’s sweet of you, I’ll be looking forward to it then.” 

The two of you continue to converse with one another as the elevator finally arrives at your floor. It didn’t hit you that just conversing with him put your thoughts about Shinsuke away by the back of your mind. 

Now that you think about it, this day is just like the one a few days ago. It’s funny to think that you’d end up in this situation again, especially now that the both of you are more comfortable with each other. 

By the time you finally arrive at your hotel room, you hesitantly look at Diluc. “Thanks again for what you did, Diluc. I hope you’ll have fun with your plus one.” 

He nods in response. “It’s no problem. I hope you’ll be okay, I’ll see you again next time.”

You then brought out your hotel card and opened the room with it. Before you enter though, you look back at Diluc. 

“Goodbye, Diluc.” You said.

“Goodbye as well, ( Name ).”

Without another word, you enter the room, leaving Diluc now alone in the now empty hallways.

…He should head back before his plus one gets impatient.

Too late, he already is impatient. 

“And here I thought you completely ditched me because of how I took so long to get here.” Kaeya spoke up as soon as Diluc was in front of him from the elevator. “Aren’t you supposed to be an early bird? What took you so long anyway?” 

Diluc rolls his eyes. “It’s nothing. I simply had a talk with a friend of mine.” 

“Last time I remember, none of the guests were even your friends—” Kaeya stops himself when he realizes something. “Oho… I see now. You must’ve met up with that ( Name ) person, didn’t you?” He asks, a mischievous smirk is evident on his face.

Diluc furrows his eyebrows. “What? No, of course no—”

The blue-haired man pats the red-haired man’s shoulder. “I wish you the best. I hope you didn’t say anything that’s embarrassing to the Ragnvindr's name and I expect a proper introduction to whoever this ( Name ) is that seems to capture your interest.” 

“Don’t make me ban you from taking the wine in my estate.” 

“Am I not allowed to show my support in my dear sworn brother’s first experience in lo—?” 

“Let’s just go to Mr. and Mrs. Kamisato instead of wasting our time talking about this.” Diluc cuts him off before walking away from Kaeya, who’s still smirking. 

This is going to be fun, Kaeya muses before following the red-haired man. 

—

As you enter the room, you let out a sigh of relief, walking towards your bed and falling on it in exhaustion.

“Took you long enough.” Zhongli spoke up. “Let me guess, did you manage to encounter Mr. Ragnvindr once again?” 

You didn’t bother lifting your head up. “Oh don’t get me started.” You respond, your voice muffled from your face being covered. “Which one do you want to hear the most?”

ORIGINAL || PREVIOUS || NEXT

[astrangergivingthestrangewelcome]

It Should Have Been Jonathan: Why Swapping Jonathan and Mina's Roles for the Blood Ceremony Makes Dracula a Better Story Both Thematically and Plotwise

Bram Stoker did not write it this way, so swapping Jonathan in is not a headcanon, but rather an adaptational choice that adaptations like Murray Mysteries or fic writers (like me!) choose to make over and over again. Here's why you should engage with this premise.

(No spoilers for those caught up to October 3rd of Dracula Daily)

(non-graphic mention of rape, sexual assault, etc)

The Story As It Is: The Good Points

Jonathan um. Goes Through it this novel. If you hadn't noticed. Mina takes care of him a lot, and after the blood ceremony, Jonathan gets to take care of her. This is very sweet, and I do enjoy that both Mina and Jonathan take turns rather than Jonathan always needing help.

It's not like it's unrealistic. Dracula would totally retaliate against the men fighting against him by targeting Mina. He super would see this as very apt revenge, and he's definitely that brand of sexist that sees women as a prize.

This plot point goes out of its way to frame the actions of the men in excluding Mina as utterly disastrous, which is cool.

Mina as the Victim: What is it Accomplishing + How Did She Get There

Mina spends most of the novel taking care of the people Dracula's victimized. She is a force to be reckoned with, but as Stoker wrote her she is a very good sort of English woman, pious, obedient to the men, respectable, etc. etc. Although she and Lucy have very different characters, when Dracula targets them they serve the same role as good English women who are coming under attack by Dracula, an evil Eastern European man. In Lucy's case he literally kills her and in her place is a hot sexually impure corruption of the original person. Victorian nightmare fuel. In addition, there are all kinds of sexual non-con rape vibes to what he does to both Lucy and Mina. Hot forceful foreign men are invading England and targeting good women. That's the whole fear that Dracula represents.

This manifestation of xenophobia doesn't hold up at all. For me, it's always been the worst element of the novel. I don't find it compelling.

Something else you might have picked up from this update: martyr talk martyr talk martyr talk. While (trust me) Mina is still smart and still given a lot of agency by Stoker to break her own curse, after the blood ceremony, she suffers Very Piously. Like a hair's breadth away from publishing a video entitled "How To Suffer A Tormentor From Hell in A God Honoring Way" on her Youtube Channel.

I personally don't find this interesting. I don't think it holds up. I don't want to see Mina suffer like a Perfect Little Christian. I want to see her kick ass and take names.

In conclusion: the driving forces behind Mina's attack and trauma are at best uninspired and outdated, and there is a very nasty undercurrent of xenophobia and sexism there as well.

I don't love it. I'm either bored or actively turned off by what Stoker is trying to say.

Jonathan as the Victim: What Could It Accomplish?

Dracula choosing to attack Jonathan again would shift the narrative so that it becomes a story about an abuser who will Not Let Go. An abuser who follows across a continent. An abuser who waits until you've just started to recover from the first round of trauma and started to feel safe again to start an onslaught even more vicious and concerted than the last.

I think Stoker laid the groundwork for this twist to be more terrifying and compelling than for Mina to be targeted 2/3rds of the way through. Obviously Dracula is an abuser no matter what, but it so much more terrifying to me to think of him playing a long-term game of cat and mouse over like 6 months with one man, than it is to see him target Mina over the span of three days.

This is also in character for Dracula. I agree with the common interpretation that Dracula continued to target Lucy even when it got ridiculously difficult and dangerous to continue because he can't stand to lose a test of dominance.

If we carry that over to Jonathan there is absolutely no way that Dracula would be ok with learning Jonathan escaped and is recovering. He would Hate that. He would absolutely want to target Jonathan again.

So you remember "I too can love" "tonight is mine" the gaps in the journal? All that abuse that is hinted at and never explored? The same sort of sexual assault motifs that are so present in Lucy and Mina's attacks? The implication that Jonathan was fed on by Dracula? All these hints that Stoker doesn't do anything with or develop further? Well Making Jonathan the one who undergoes the blood ceremony gives us a very natural chance to discuss them again.

In conclusion: Jonathan's history with the Count makes him being the victim (again) a more compelling story. We've watched the Count slowly escalate aggression with him over the course of a novel, and this final attempt to literally claim Jonathan's soul and make him a thrall is the natural conclusion of that. To me those are some compelling stakes

Jonathan being Targeting Makes for Less Plotholes (and less Infuriatingly Sexist Plotpoints)

Not that Mina being excluded is unrealistic or unworthy of engaging with in the original novel but I find it to be such a drag

And actually to a certain point it is unrealistic to me because I think the decision to completely cut her off and stop talking to her about anything comes completely out of left field. Everyone was acting like she'd work with them in some capacity right up until Van Helsing says differently. I find that jarring.

Switching the target to Jonathan eliminates that plotpoint entirely, which I think is cool. Maybe Stoker never would have written Mina as one of the boys, but it's not the 19th century anymore and we can write Mina however we want. I think having a Mina that sticks up for herself and refuses to be excluded is neat.

But on what grounds would they choose to exclude Jonathan? Well I actually think that some obvious solutions present themselves.

Murray Mysteries goes the "Jonathan you have PTSD you shouldn't retraumatize yourself route" which works for them, since it's a 21st century retelling

But I actually think it could potentially make sense for Van Helsing to want to exclude Jonathan, and to need to be secretive about it.

So you know how in the canon Dracula gives Mina his blood partially because his intention was to make himself a spy? The plan was to use an unwitting Mina to his advantage but the polycule bursting in killed that idea.

Well if I were Van Helsing, I would immediately suspect that the Count had fucked with Jonathan at the castle. I mean it would make so much sense wouldn't it? Jonathan was there for two months, he could be compromised in so many different ways.

If Van Helsing had these suspicions, then it would be the natural next step to try and exclude Jonathan from the business as completely and utterly as possible under whatever flimsy excuses he can make up (and this man has been making up flimsy excuses for the whole novel so it's in character).

This adaptational change would lead into Jonathan getting attacked again very smoothly, except in this version, Van Helsing's reasoning has more grounds to it than just Sexism, so he would be not only a smarter character, but also one I'd want to punch less.

I think that makes for a stronger plot

Also it seems very natural to me that Jonathan wouldn't realize he'd been attacked again by Dracula. More natural than Mina not realizing. This man has been having PTSD nightmares and flashbacks about Count Dracula attacking him for the entire summer and early fall. Canonically his trauma made it difficult for him to separate dreams from reality in the past. He would just assume they were particularly nasty dreams.

This would also apply to Mina not noticing Jonathan was being fed on as well. She's used to him not looking well and having bad nights. It would not immediately be apparent to her that this was different that the usual.

In conclusion: Jonathan being the one who is attacked opens the door to other obvious plot changes that create a better story structurally.

Okay You've Convinced Me, I Want to Explore This

Listen to Murray Mysteries! Listen to Murray Mysteries if I haven't convinced you, it's really good and it's the only adaptation I know of that actually adapts the Polycule in a good way.

Read my series! I don't mean to self-promote but if you couldn't tell I feel incredibly strongly about this premise and I don't see people tapping into the potential so I've had to do it myself. Strange Wonders is a series of short stories that explore the plot of Dracula if this change had happened. The goal was to create something that mimicked Bram Stoker's tone and style as much as possible, while being the story I liked better in my head. The first in the series, Uncommon Horrors and Unnatural Hurts is Dracula Daily friendly, and the next in the series The Resilience of the Dawn will be Dracula Daily friendly by October 4th. I'm still updating as well although the story is technically complete and has a climax.

here some would stand between you and death by princ3ssf33t is a great little one-shot fic I've found that deals with the role reversal and features some stellar Jonmina

There is a Pleasure in the Pathless Woods by calliopes_pen is another epic reimagining where both the Harkers are targeted by Dracula

Your fic/art/content here!! Endless potential.

TL;DR

Having Jonathan undergo the blood ceremony instead of Mina makes for richer horror, stronger character arcs, less teethgrinding sexism, and less plotholes. The Dracula fandom should be exploring it more.

[thebibliosphere]

Do you have any thoughts about the 27 chapter method of writing or are there other ones you might recommend more? I’m extremely disorganized and indecisive when writing which is frustrating because I never actually end up making progress. An existing outline method to at least get all of my thoughts down and decide where the story will go (instead of 27 possibilities and nothing concrete) would be extremely helpful but I don’t want a very obvious cookie cutter type story if that makes sense

The 27-chapter method works well for some people, but I'm not a huge fan. It fucks with my ADHD too much because if I map something out and define it as having 27 chapters, then it's got to have 27 chapters, no more, no less. If I realize during the writing process that the plan isn't going to be executed the way I envisioned it, so help me, god, my brain will derail this entire thought train, and there will be no survivors.

It was a problem I frequently ran into when redrafting the first Hunger Pangs book, and my brain melted trying to assign chapters to things. I told my editors at one point, "I can't do this. Can you find where the chapter breaks should go?" and they very graciously took my walls of text and figured out where the chapter breaks should go because it's just not something my brain is good at doing. In fact, it was preventing me from actually writing.

(I suspect that's why I enjoyed the earlier Pratchett books so much. No chapters = no breaking my focus.)

It sounds to me like you're a natural pantser, not a plotter, but you're also (like me) the type of person who needs a liittttle bit of structure to help you keep flying by the seat of your pants or the momentum drops off, and you get bogged down in the wrong details.

The way I do this is to basically sit myself down and figure out the A to Z of the story, write down a list of things I Absolutely Want to Have Happen that I set into stone, and then kind of start listing things off like bullet points. Like this:

So top of my page is the starting goal, what do I want to have happen? I want my Blorbo to go on an adventure. Why? To... defeat the Evil Blorbo!

That is basically as simplistic as you can get. Some people don't need to get that simple, but sometimes setting it down on paper really helps, especially when you're prone to getting stuck in other details that don't progress the plot.

Next, I list out the core things I want to happen that are set in stone. So things like: -Blorbo's parent dies. -Blorbo meets the ragtag band of adventurers who teach them to survive. -Blorbo gets a sword that is integral to world-building. -Blorbo gets a scar as a sign of both the physical and psychological changes that have affected them. -Evil Blorbo gets their ass kicked.

Those things are set in stone like milestone markers and I will usually try to make them hit certain narrative beats for whatever genre I'm in, though not always. Sometimes a cool sword is just a cool sword.

Next, I move on to figuring out how I get to those points.

This is when I start writing the plot out as a laundry list:

PART ONE

Blorbo wakes up on the farm one day. It is a [descriptor] day. How does Blorbo feel about this?

Blorbo and their dad have a meaningful and deep conversation that will make the reader instantly hate you for killing him off in the next ten pages.

Blorbo meets up with their friends. Character building and perhaps some world-building ensues.

An EVENT of some sort happens, and CHAOS ensues.

PARENTAL FIGURE eats shit and dies.

Blorbo is thrust out into the world.

Blorbo on the road: shit is terrifying, and they really wish this adventure was happening to someone else.

And so on, so forth.

I make a point not to number any of these individual parts, as it helps me to move them around if I need to without feeling like I'm breaking up some set-in-stone order. If you want to try and break your list up into Parts to follow conventional story arcs, you can do that too.

But you can also leave that until the end if you like. As I said, I split my stuff up into chapters and parts during the editing phase.

There's no one right way to do this.

I also try to keep the list vague, as if I personally go into too much detail during the plotting stage, I lose interest in actually exploring the narrative details while writing. Because fuck me I guess.

Don't worry if the above is too vague for you. Nothing is stopping you from going back to those bullet points and expanding on them later if that works better for your creative needs.

The main goal right now is just getting from A to Z and listing out the steps so that you have a roadmap to find your way before you get distracted. It really is just sometimes helpful to say "Character does X" so you can move on and keep plotting until you have the vaguest of outlines which you can then expand on further if you want to.

After I've bullet-pointed my way from start to finish, I'll maybe go back and identify some areas in the story where I should be hitting certain genre beats, but otherwise, I'll just start writing and see what fits where.

Some people are likely screaming at how simplistic and undetailed that is, but again, everyone's creative process is different, and it's really just about playing around until you find that one that works for you.

I've tried just about every "how to write" guide out there, and in the end what works for me is a bastardized amalgamation of all of them.

I can't be a true panster, but nor can I be a detailed plotter.

I absolutely cannot think of things in strict chapter outlines or I will get overwhelmed. But breaking them up into parts is fine.

I also have to remind myself that sometimes when you are writing, a better solution will present itself and this does not mean the whole project needs to change/you need to start over.

The destination is still the same, and you will likely still hit many of the same points along the way. It's just now you might be taking a detour, and thankfully, you don't have to redraw the whole map. You can just follow the signs marked "diversion," which thankfully, you can also control because all of this is within you control.

Even when it doesn't feel like it.

I hope some of that is helpful. I'm still trying to work out how to explain how I do things in a clear manner. So I apologize if this isn't helpful 😅

[perpetual-stories]

Story Structures for your Next WIP

hello, hello. this post will be mostly for my notes. this is something I need in to be reminded of for my business, but it can also be very useful and beneficial for you guys as well.

everything in life has structure and storytelling is no different, so let’s dive right in :)

First off let’s just review what a story structure is :

a story is the backbone of the story, the skeleton if you will. It hold the entire story together.

the structure in which you choose your story will effectively determine how you create drama and depending on the structure you choose it should help you align your story and sequence it with the conflict, climax, and resolution.

1. Freytag's Pyramid

this first story structure i will be talking about was named after 19th century German novelist and playwright.

it is a five point structure that is based off classical Greek tragedies such as Sophocles, Aeschylus and Euripedes.

Freytag's Pyramid structure consists of:

Introduction: the status quo has been established and an inciting incident occurs.

Rise or rising action: the protagonist will search and try to achieve their goal, heightening the stakes,

Climax: the protagonist can no longer go back, the point of no return if you will.

Return or fall: after the climax of the story, tension builds and the story inevitably heads towards...

Catastrophe: the main character has reached their lowest point and their greatest fears have come into fruition.

this structure is used less and less nowadays in modern storytelling mainly due to readers lack of appetite for tragic narratives.

2. The Hero's Journey

the hero's journey is a very well known and popular form of storytelling.

it is very popular in modern stories such as Star Wars, and movies in the MCU.

although the hero's journey was inspired by Joseph Campbell's concept, a Disney executive Christopher Vogler has created a simplified version:

The Ordinary World: The hero's everyday routine and life is established.

The Call of Adventure: the inciting incident.

Refusal of the Call: the hero / protagonist is hesitant or reluctant to take on the challenges.

Meeting the Mentor: the hero meets someone who will help them and prepare them for the dangers ahead.

Crossing the First Threshold: first steps out of the comfort zone are taken.

Tests, Allie, Enemies: new challenges occur, and maybe new friends or enemies.

Approach to the Inmost Cave: hero approaches goal.

The Ordeal: the hero faces their biggest challenge.

Reward (Seizing the Sword): the hero manages to get ahold of what they were after.

The Road Back: they realize that their goal was not the final hurdle, but may have actually caused a bigger problem than before.

Resurrection: a final challenge, testing them on everything they've learned.

Return with the Elixir: after succeeding they return to their old life.

the hero's journey can be applied to any genre of fiction.

3. Three Act Structure:

this structure splits the story into the 'beginning, middle and end' but with in-depth components for each act.

Act 1: Setup:

exposition: the status quo or the ordinary life is established.

inciting incident: an event sets the whole story into motion.

plot point one: the main character decided to take on the challenge head on and she crosses the threshold and the story is now progressing forward.

Act 2: Confrontation:

rising action: the stakes are clearer and the hero has started to become familiar with the new world and begins to encounter enemies, allies and tests.

midpoint: an event that derails the protagonists mission.

plot point two: the hero is tested and fails, and begins to doubt themselves.

Act 3: Resolution:

pre-climax: the hero must chose between acting or failing.

climax: they fights against the antagonist or danger one last time, but will they succeed?

Denouement: loose ends are tied up and the reader discovers the consequences of the climax, and return to ordinary life.

4. Dan Harmon's Story Circle

it surprised me to know the creator of Rick and Morty had their own variation of Campbell's hero's journey.

the benefit of Harmon's approach is that is focuses on the main character's arc.

it makes sense that he has such a successful structure, after all the show has multiple seasons, five or six seasons? i don't know not a fan of the show.

the character is in their comfort zone: also known as the status quo or ordinary life.

they want something: this is a longing and it can be brought forth by an inciting incident.

the character enters and unfamiliar situation: they must take action and do something new to pursue what they want.

adapt to it: of course there are challenges, there is struggle and begin to succeed.

they get what they want: often a false victory.

a heavy price is paid: a realization of what they wanted isn't what they needed.

back to the good old ways: they return to their familiar situation yet with a new truth.

having changed: was it for the better or worse?

i might actually make a operate post going more in depth about dan harmon's story circle.

5. Fichtean Curve:

the fichtean curve places the main character in a series of obstacles in order to achieve their goal.

this structure encourages writers to write a story packed with tension and mini-crises to keep the reader engaged.

The Rising Action

the story must start with an inciting indecent.

then a series of crisis arise.

there are often four crises.

2. The Climax:

3. Falling Action

this type of story telling structure goes very well with flash-back structured story as well as in theatre.

6. Save the Cat Beat Sheet:

this is another variation of a three act structure created by screenwriter Blake Snyder, and is praised widely by champion storytellers.

Structure for Save the Cat is as follows: (the numbers in the brackets are for the number of pages required, assuming you're writing a 110 page screenplay)

Opening Image [1]: The first shot of the film. If you’re starting a novel, this would be an opening paragraph or scene that sucks readers into the world of your story.

Set-up [1-10]. Establishing the ‘ordinary world’ of your protagonist. What does he want? What is he missing out on?

Theme Stated [5]. During the setup, hint at what your story is really about — the truth that your protagonist will discover by the end.

Catalyst [12]. The inciting incident!

Debate [12-25]. The hero refuses the call to adventure. He tries to avoid the conflict before they are forced into action.

Break into Two [25]. The protagonist makes an active choice and the journey begins in earnest.

B Story [30]. A subplot kicks in. Often romantic in nature, the protagonist’s subplot should serve to highlight the theme.

The Promise of the Premise [30-55]. Often called the ‘fun and games’ stage, this is usually a highly entertaining section where the writer delivers the goods. If you promised an exciting detective story, we’d see the detective in action. If you promised a goofy story of people falling in love, let’s go on some charmingly awkward dates.

Midpoint [55]. A plot twist occurs that ups the stakes and makes the hero’s goal harder to achieve — or makes them focus on a new, more important goal.

Bad Guys Close In [55-75]. The tension ratchets up. The hero’s obstacles become greater, his plan falls apart, and he is on the back foot.

All is Lost [75]. The hero hits rock bottom. He loses everything he’s gained so far, and things are looking bleak. The hero is overpowered by the villain; a mentor dies; our lovebirds have an argument and break up.

Dark Night of the Soul [75-85-ish]. Having just lost everything, the hero shambles around the city in a minor-key musical montage before discovering some “new information” that reveals exactly what he needs to do if he wants to take another crack at success. (This new information is often delivered through the B-Story)

Break into Three [85]. Armed with this new information, our protagonist decides to try once more!

Finale [85-110]. The hero confronts the antagonist or whatever the source of the primary conflict is. The truth that eluded him at the start of the story (established in step three and accentuated by the B Story) is now clear, allowing him to resolve their story.

Final Image [110]. A final moment or scene that crystallizes how the character has changed. It’s a reflection, in some way, of the opening image.

(all information regarding the save the cat beat sheet was copy and pasted directly from reedsy!)

7. Seven Point Story Structure:

this structure encourages writers to start with the at the end, with the resolution, and work their way back to the starting point.

this structure is about dramatic changes from beginning to end

The Hook. Draw readers in by explaining the protagonist’s current situation. Their state of being at the beginning of the novel should be in direct contrast to what it will be at the end of the novel.

Plot Point 1. Whether it’s a person, an idea, an inciting incident, or something else — there should be a "Call to Adventure" of sorts that sets the narrative and character development in motion.

Pinch Point 1. Things can’t be all sunshine and roses for your protagonist. Something should go wrong here that applies pressure to the main character, forcing them to step up and solve the problem.

Midpoint. A “Turning Point” wherein the main character changes from a passive force to an active force in the story. Whatever the narrative’s main conflict is, the protagonist decides to start meeting it head-on.

Pinch Point 2. The second pinch point involves another blow to the protagonist — things go even more awry than they did during the first pinch point. This might involve the passing of a mentor, the failure of a plan, the reveal of a traitor, etc.

Plot Point 2. After the calamity of Pinch Point 2, the protagonist learns that they’ve actually had the key to solving the conflict the whole time.

Resolution. The story’s primary conflict is resolved — and the character goes through the final bit of development necessary to transform them from who they were at the start of the novel.

(all information regarding the seven point story structure was copy and pasted directly from reedsy!)

i decided to fit all of them in one post instead of making it a two part post.

i hope you all enjoy this post and feel free to comment or reblog which structure you use the most, or if you have your own you prefer to use! please share with me!

if you find this useful feel free to reblog on instagram and tag me at perpetualstories

Follow my tumblr and instagram for more writing and grammar tips and more!

[shysneeze]

omg what about robin with a gf who's a baddie? really pretty, likes to wear tight revealing clothes, but is also really feisty and gets into a lot of fights with other ppl (not robin, she's perfect in reader's eyes and could never do any wrong), lol probably rly popular and cheerleader or something, but she lets her guard down to be more soft and gentle around robin? kinda like a 'i hate everyone but you' trope from the reader's side? headcanons or fic either works lol, but i kinda feel like hcs

giggling and kicking my feet over this because i love this idea! decided to go with headcanon as i have no plot, just thoughts:

robin dating a badass!fem!reader:

warnings: swearing (like a lot), mentions of fighting, time period typical homophobia, kissing, reader referred to as girl once or twice 

i have a whole other thing on how you get together that might become a fic but it involves a breakfast club style detention…

anyway

you know this scene in brooklyn nine nine, rosa and the puppy? 

yeah, that’s the vibes of the relationship

she's a sarcastic little shit, and she's way too smart for her own good, and it should infuriate you, but she has this laugh that makes you feel all warm and fuzzy, and she's so effortlessly pretty that you could scream 

when you first start dating, you try to hold onto the cool persona you've perfected, but she's got you weak at the knees when she smiles at you 

and as soon as she realises this, she's laying it on thick 

she gives you sappy nicknames that you would threaten to beat anyone else up for calling you 

"sweetheart"  "pretty girl"  "softie" 

and you know she's teasing you but you've truly stopped caring 

you're mesmerised by her freckles, and they way she blushes when you you kiss them 

and you fucking love to kiss her okay? like its an addiction at this point 

her lips are perfect; they're soft, and they taste like cherry and if she would let you, you'd kiss them forever (sometimes just to stop her rambling - you love her, but man, it's a lot) 

teasing aside, robin is just as obsessed with you (hence the rambling) 

"god, you're so pretty- do you know how pretty you are? you're trying to kill me with that little skirt, aren't you? it's working though, i might combust-"  "robin, shut up and kiss me before i combust" 

you're fiercly protective of her 

you get into fights for her a lot - it drives robin close to sheer insanity 

she loves that you love her enough to defend her and she always patches you up, cleaning up any cuts, intentionally using little colourful plasters because you pretend to hate them, and kissing every bruise

 but she really hates seeing you hurt

“please don’t be mad at me” “i’m not mad i’m just-” “you better not say disappointed, buckley”

you obviously apologise for worrying her

you glare at people who give you dirty looks in public for holding hands etc

 but as much as you pretend you're above caring, it breaks your heart how society treats your relationship, because nothing about your love for robin is disgusting or wrong like those dirty looks try to tell you

 robins rubs up and down your back when you get like that, and kisses you over and over, reassuring you that it doesn't matter what anyone else thinks about the pair of you, that she loves you regardless 

(sorry, idk where that came from inside me, i'll move onto something happier now) 

steve hates you at first (and it's pretty mutual)

( robin accidentally lets slip that you're the little spoon and he has a fucking field day with that information )

but he can see how you melt when robin walks into a room, and he knows you're not breaking her heart anytime soon 

and so you develop the most reluctant, complex, friendship Robin has ever witnessed 

"harrington, tell robin she suits her hair like that, she doesn't believe me." "don't tell me what to do, shithead- but yeah, you look nice, rob."

 robin finds it exhausting but you both mean the world to her she she's just happy you've found common ground; making sure she knows how amazing she is

taglist: @woahhhfidget @sireeeeee @lovelyy-moonlight @starselle @robinsprker @flourelle @robinbuckleysgfreall @robinbuckleyluvr @lesbiihoenestt 

[pandapenguinnn]

MONKIE KID S3 SPECIAL SPOILERS BEWARE!!!

Mk is one of the most mysterious characters in this show, and eventho he my fav character, his mysterious lore scares me, ESPECALLY after his encounter with LBD./  Throughout the series, we’re given hints to every character’s origin. Every major plot-important character has a backstory or a HINT about their origin in some way, shape or form. (for example, Wukong, Macaque, Sandy, Pigsy, Tang, Mei, etc.) Mk mentions NOTHING about his origin, not even his own real name.  But we have been given NOTHING about Mk. We don't even truly know why he was able to lift and use the staff. (or, another side theory, he’s somehow related to Wukong.)  . . .

I have a theory (of course, you’re free to agree or disagree) that Mk and LBD are somehow connected. During the pilot special of season 1, when mk is near the staff, my sister @annoyed-galaxy​ points out that whispers could be heard saying “Monkey king’s staff” or something like that to mk, like coaxing him to pick it up. Like it was his destiny. You could say it was more to the viewer, or hell, even for dramatic effect. But seeing that LBD has whispering echoes around her, AND she manipulates alot of things behind the scenes, it isnt far-fetched.  Also, in certain episodes, Mk’s eyes flicker blue after meeting LBD. Though other characters have met her, and yes their eyes have turned blue. But only if they're being controlled by her or given her power. Mk has experienced neither, yet there are scenes where his eyes briefly flicker blue and he gets images of LBD in his head.  Not only that, out of everyone in the specials, she interacts with Mk the most. He always seemingly gets ‘hit’ with whispers and echos from her. Mk always subtly freaks out when he’s near her, and she speaks to him out of everyone. Even saying her final words to him. You’d think she’d have way more to say to Wukong, or hell, even Tang, who is OBVIOUSLY related to the great monk in some way, the same monk that sealed her away.  But no, she chose Mk. Out of all of them. Her final words to him sent a shiver down my spine. Its like she sees a portion of herself inside Mk. She sees Mk’s motives damn-near resemble hers. Its like she has a shard of herself in Mk, like how Mei has a piece of the Samadhi fire in her. She even says both of their paths, though have good and understandable intentions, have the same end: pain.  I think Mk and LBD are related somehow, connected. Mk’s calmness was also eerie during that final scene too. He stressed and panics so easily, and yet during this whole special, he was calm. Honestly, too calm imo. I feel like eventually Mk is gonna break, because through all he’s went through in the special, he kept hope. Usually, its admirable. But idk, his persona during these specials felt unsettling to see at some points. He sees this traumatic stuff happening, and yet he continues to keep it together. I feel like in season 4, at one point, Mk is gonna become something he isnt proud of at all, and might even have to make a choice that will change his view on everything. Or even unlock a new power only unique to him.  LBD was such an important villain, and it feels like she burrowed herself in the heart of Mk the most. This definitely isnt going to be the last time we see or hear about her. The next time we do, I worry its gonna be because of Mk.   Because honestly, Who is Mk? 

.

.

.

SO SORRY FOR THE LONG THREAD, JUST WANTED TO GET THESE THOUGHTS OUT!! 

[scummynami]

Hi can I request

Yandere Batman wonder woman and super Man x baby daughter reader separate

Like how how they dress her up to tack her to the Tower

And some bad guys break In and the reader is missing cue anger mama and papa's

And how they get there daughter back and how far they go

I don't think that they would take her to the tower, afraid the others might take interest in their baby. Anyone is a threat to their sacred (alr cramped) parenthood with darling little reader.

The confines of their home is more than enough. I also like to think that the reader is biologically their kid (not altogether like a throuple or smth, but like separately). Circumstances of how she came to existence may vary, though.

But I imagine their encounter with kidnapping would be just an odd bunch of scenarios.

For example imagine Mama Diana downstairs, trying to fight the enemies, while you're upstairs, skipping around your kidnappers — Lightning McQueen bed long abandoned — mumbling some half babbles (a result of too much excitement for little you) that they couldn't at all distinguish, only understanding the rare distinguishable sentences "Tooth Fairy is here" and questiones like "Where's Jack Frost?" "Will the Easter Bunny like me?".

You had just finished watching Rise of the Guardians, and your mind is still so fueled with the plot enough to make you delusional and make you think that you'll also be visited by the Sandy and the other characters.

Of course, you soon realise they aren't the characters from the movie, especially when you saw that none of them were stout and shining, no bunny ears poking from their tuffs of hair, and definitely no frost on her window.

So, you invited them to a tea party instead. And surprisingly enough, they accepted, probabaly still suffering the aftereffects of being in your little presence. At some point, Diana had beaten all the enemies and reached your room, only to see you serving tea to the confused grown adult men who wrre supposed to be gone by now, with you in a sack or something.

Fortunately, by the time the kidnappers realised what's happening, Diana had already knocked out the kidnappers. Silently thanking that you managed to distract them by doing the usual, though peculiar things you do. Like talking to Mr. Sty the Styracosaurus, colouring your colouring book while babbling, inviting strange people to your daily tea parties :))))

Diana would dress reader in fluffy cute clothing that's very comfortable and breathable. She would also ask you for what you think is cute, but after the five dinosaur onesies, she decided her word is more than enough.

But that was with Diana Prince. With Batman and Superman, it's a few ways different.

You live in a manor that looks like it's been around since the 1800s but believe me when I tell you that this manor is like a high tech safehouse. Bruce defo knows who goes in and out of his home for the full 24/7.

Honestly, the poor kidnappers wouldn't even be able to get pass the foyer before they find themselves captured by Batman himself. Just like that. And you wouldn't even know. Because why would he let you? When you can just be a kid and play around.

Bruce would dress reader in formal designer toddler attire, I'm not kidding. From accessories to skirts, this mans would have top tier brands lining up to make you custom clothes just to get in Bruce's good graces.

Superman however, gosh, that poor himbo. I seriously think he's the only one with a toddler who actually almost went with their kidnappers.

He's that one parent with the most scheming little toddler. I imagine the little kid would allow the kidnappers to kidnap her after setting a couple of conditions for her benefit. What papa won't know won't hurt him, right?

Unfortunately, Papa did know. He was just a few meters away, with two ice creams (now crushed into smithereens) in his hands, listening to you negotiate with your supposed kidnappers.

It would be an understatement to say that Clark was mad. No, he was fuming. Absolutely enraged to the point of almost going mental from not to the thought of his precious bean being kidnapped, no, but to the thought of his precious little bunny willingly follow men around.

So, don't be surprised when you see your papa shooting lasers out of his eyes, completely enraged and crying.

"Papa, those were my friends!"

"yOU WERE GOING TO LEAVE ME FOR SOME LOSERS WHO PROMISED YOU FAST FOOD!"

Clark would dress you up in random but comfortable clothes. But the very constant feature of your clothes would be the bunny accents/decorations. Even your accessories are bunny themed.

[dinitride-art]

Possessiongate and Will in S2- or Why Mike is Completely Fucked

AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA- OKAY so, I had the great idea to go into season two and try and see if there was anything similar about Will’s possession in relation to what we might be seeing with Mike- And oh my fucking god- you guys aren’t gonna believe this shit

First of fucking all, we’ve got ‘Loch Nora’. Y’know with the purple and yellow flowers there and just a few red ones (reocurring imagery for season 2 but I don’t have TIME for that in this post- it’ll be in the next one when I get to it I swear). Really similar to ‘Lenora’ and Mike’s flowers that he gave to El. This is also where Will has his second episode. 

Look at his left eye.

Look at this absolutely horrifying level of forethought. And subtle visual storytelling. And, no, it doesn’t even stop with just this.

Like even just in this one we see Will’s left eye get scary dark. Like, this was put in here before we even knew about Vecna or before the show introduced his lore into the canon. Like??????

Now, I’m putting Mike in here because how Mike is being lit in season two is exactly how Will is being lit in season four. It is literally so wild. They’ve literally traded places. AND it makes sense for them to be lit this way because they are each others ‘light’. In season four Max’s whole plan was to hide in the light and maybe the reason that Mike and Will are being lit like this

Is because they’re trying to hide in the light to fight off Vecna (/the mind flayer)- by looking to each other

And here to, it’s more subtle- but in their backgrounds are very different. Mike’s in front of the light while Will’s in front of the dark (and in front of a blue light so that’s a point for blue lights meaning possession). I’ve done nearly a 30 part analysis of lighting in season four so I’m not gonna include any more examples of Will being in the light but trust me. He is. Exactly like Mike is here.

In the car with Bob, while talking about standing up to whatever’s bothering Will- Will’s left eye is dark. Like, this is a consistent thing that’s happening whenever the Mind Flayer comes into play. It’s also seems to be a thing for Mike too in season four- which is where I FIRST noticed the possibility that a darkened left eye could indicate possession by Vecna. And now I’m checking season 2 and ohhh it’s breaking my brain. Snapping it like a little twig- like how Jonathan snapped steve’s face in that alley in season 1. 

This is just to add to the ‘Mike’s definitely being lit different in season 2′. This is consistently happening/it’s very intentional. And it’s paralleling season four so god damn hard.

Okay, so when Will stood up to the Mind Flayer- it didn’t go very well. Like, at all. But I wanted to note that this Upside Down is blue and in episode nine of season four the two colour themes are red and blue. This is just adding to the season 2 and 4 parallel list- because I think that they’re meant to parallel each other/relflect each other. I don’t for sure know why, but I’ve known that this has been happening with the plot for a few months. I have a hunch it’s got something to do with time and or the Upside Down just as like general themes-

BUT ENOUGH OF THAT. BAck to why Mike’s definitely (most likely-probably- I’m pretty sure on this one. But keeping a healthy margin of error) being possessed in season 4. Kids head is not full of rocks, just an evil man trying to steal his brain. It’s a much more forgivable offence.

There is a focus on Will’s eyes at the start of episode four. And we might be able to kinda start to see even here Will’s left eye darken/be in shadow.

AND THEN IT BEGINS.

This right here- look at his eye- look at it. I have been staring at it and I am on the floor. Who does this??? Who puts this much shit into the god damn foreshadowing?? The Duffers apparently, mad lads.

It’s a lot subtler here but you can still see the difference between Will’s right and left eye. His left eye bag is just slightly darker than the right. Well, not slightly, but it’s not really noticeable unless you’re looking for it.

This is episode five and there’s a few things that are scaring me here. First of all, that jaws poster in Will’s room. It was also there when Mike and Will were having their ‘best friends’ heart to heart- and honestly? A lot of the heart to hearts in season four are Will trying to comfort Mike. And by doing that they’re paralleling a lot of what happens with Mike and Will in season two. They’ve just traded spots. But that poster is in a different position in relation to Mike in season four. It’s directly behind him- like how it’s in line with Will if that makes sense? Who we’re meant to notice who it’s about has changed.

Also Will’s eye gets SCARY here. Like creepy af

It’s getting a lot clearer here what they’re doing with Will’s left eye but in a way that we wouldn’t of had the slightest chance of even knowing to look at it without season four. Without Vecna being introduced, there would be very little reason to look at Will’s (and Mike’s- fucking Mike. Jesus. I can’t.) left eye. 

A few other thing that season 2 Will and season 4 Mike have in common;

Black shoes with white laces.

Being really fucking out of it and confused.

Blue god damn lights. There’s a lot more of these that are probably better examples, like Mike from the Monologue and Will in the Upside Down during episodes where all the lights are blue- but I just didn’t want to go searching for them.

Believing the person they love about somethin that fucks them both over/doesn’t work or go as planned

So, Michael, your head is not filled with rocks. You’ve just been trying to fend off the evil man who is trying to take over your mind. Welp.

Babygirl you’re possessed.

[thranduel]

This may be a hot take but i think the way the Duffers and some actors talked about Mike's monologue was a bit insensitive. They know that Will, a traumatized gay child, had to push this confession and watched it with tears in his eyes, and yet nobody seemed to acknowledge this fact. I know that they probably do not want to spoil anything, but this is something that bothers me a bit. Any thoughts on that?

OH YES i completely agree!!

like i obviously i understand they can’t say anything major because of spoilers, and i get that they have to go along with the mike being in love with el storyline because that’s what the characters think and what the viewers are supposed to think at this point as well, but it’s very weird to me that no one mentions will AT ALL when talking about mike’s monologue when he is literally the reason it happened in the first place? like not even a “thank you will for making this happen”? not even acknowledging how strong mike and will’s relationship is (regardless of whether people see it as platonic or romantic), and how mike felt comfortable enough to talk to will about his insecurities and will instantly made him feel strong and loved by confessing his own love for him and giving him the painting that he made for him?? like no one even wants to acknowledge their relationship at all and how will is the person that inspired mike to say “i love you” and it’s so weird to me.

and seriously, if they wanted to make the monologue a big moment for mike and el and no one else, fine. but they never should’ve involved will and messed with his feelings. they never should’ve used him as a plot device to force another couple back together. they never should’ve confirmed he’s been in love with mike since the beginning if it was going to be unrequited. people have every right to be angry because it’s messed up, cruel and unnecessary. they could’ve easily avoided including will in this storyline but they didn’t. they could’ve given him another love interest and allowed him to be happy for once in his life, but they didn’t. and worse, they made him sit there and listen to the confession knowing how hard it would’ve been for him? and obviously in that moment he was worried for el’s safety too, i am not ignoring that at all. but he was also breaking inside while listening to the boy he’s loved for most of his life confess to someone else, and there’s no doubt about that. there was a specific shot where mike copies what will told him in the car (about being scared to lose someone and how bad it would hurt) and it shows will turning to look directly at mike with tears in his eyes right as he says this, emphasising how much it hurt to hear him say that. they knew exactly what they were doing here and it was intentional.

and maybe i’m just very defensive when it comes to will because he’s my comfort character and this whole storyline and his suffering hits hard but a little bit of gratitude would be nice after everything he’s sacrificed?? like he’s literally the reason why this relationship still exists. they were on the verge of a break up and pretty much realised it wasn’t working because they don’t communicate properly and can’t be themselves with each other, but then will lied in the van and mike thought he was talking about el.

will is the one that inspired mike, gave him strength and made him feel loved. it was his OWN feelings and his OWN painting that changed everything, but he used el’s name to disguise it. that’s the only reason why mike felt ready to confess to el, because he thought it was her feelings and that the painting was her idea when it WASN’T. it was all will.

even when el was on the table choking, will had to push mike to say it. mike wouldn’t have been able to do any of this without will. and that’s not a spoiler, so i don’t understand why the cast, writers and other viewers can’t acknowledge it and show appreciation for will when talking about the monologue? and yeah, i know some people might say “it was mike and el’s moment”, but that’s the thing… the moment they decided to involve will in this storyline and confirm he’s been in love with mike since the beginning, it stopped being just about mike and el. they chose to put will in EVERY single mike and el scene (except their fight). they chose to make WILL be the reason that mike says “i love you”. el couldn’t even make him say it when she was crying and begging him to say it. she couldn’t make him say it when she was showing him affection and kissing him and sending him letters. he couldn’t even write the words “love, mike” on PAPER. but will’s OWN feelings and painting is what made mike finally able to say it. the writers are the ones that literally chose that. people aren’t mentioning will for no reason or ignoring mike and el’s moments or trying to invalidate them, but will has literally been shoved in this storyline and in all their scenes for a reason.

that’s why it feels really insulting when people ignore will and don’t appreciate him for this when he’s suffering so much and feels like he’ll never be loved back and that he’s a mistake for being gay. he was literally having a breakdown in that car because he sacrificed his own feelings just to help their relationship. THAT is how kind and selfless he is. after everything he’s suffered, he still puts people before him, and people still don’t want to acknowledge him or thank him? they say things like “mike’s love for el saved the day” (which is… kinda awkward because they didn’t win) and that the monologue was so “beautiful and genuine” (even though he was pressured into saying it and lied during most of it) and act like mike is such an amazing boyfriend for FINALLY saying it after years when will is the one that motivated him to say it in the first place?? and did people forget el literally had a breakdown because he couldn’t say it to her a face a few episodes earlier when she was practically begging him to? he made her cry and she felt like a monster and he didn’t do anything until that scene in the van with will.

if they wanted to make the monologue about mike and el, fine. if they wanted them to have a big forced love confession, fine. but they never should’ve involved will. it’s so simple. they could’ve easily avoided using him as a plot device because it’s so cruel and unnecessary. that’s why it really hurts when people compliment the monologue scene without mentioning will, even just a tiny bit of acknowledgment, because he’s the person who made it happen in the first place. it’s like he’s being ignored AGAIN, as always, while everyone else gets credit and gets to be happy in their relationship and hear what they’ve wanted to hear for so long, while will gets left with absolutely nothing. not even a “thank you”. he has been abused, bullied traumatised and suffered since he was a child and he still has nothing. it’s heartbreaking.

[khunvegas]

i basically just stole this ask from @gunsatthaphan​, partially because i’ve been wanting to make a post about it and after almost 3 years watching bls, i might as well. right? right. anyways.

Compilation of Bad Kisses in BLs (Part 1)

mind you, this is only for the ones i’ve seen. if i put every single bad kiss out there, this post would go on forever.

i strongly believe a kiss, whether is good or bad, can make or break a show and in my personal opinion, a lot of them fell off simply because of the fishy kisses. they are truly hard to watch, so much so that you have to look away because they are ugly and this is something we CAN and SHOULD blame both the actors and the company. sometimes, workshops are not enough.

i also believe that these actors shouldn’t play dumb. like, they HAVE to know there’s gonna be a kiss at some point. put in the work, pls.

LET’S GET IT

1. My Engineer (MekBoss)

at the time, i didn’t think it was that bad. i just thought they needed some work, a little bit of help because clearly it wasn’t that good either. now, i just see two walls kissing and we might not see these walls kissing ever again.

2. YYY (NottPun)

imagine watching this mess of a show, they promise you a kiss, and once you’re sure you’re gonna get it, they literally bring the sun out, block the view and that’s how the season ends. but honestly? the little i can see it’s still awful.

3. YYY 2 (NottPun)

well... there it is. no words.

4. 2gether (SarawaTine)

maturing is accepting the fact that 2gether had two straight bros playing these characters and that’s how they kissed and then the high five. it was a bad kiss, bestie. we were all just blinded by the pandemic and though this was high cinema.

5. SOTUS (ArthitKongpop)

i’m not afraid of the girlies still caught up on this show. this was a bad first kiss and i’m ready to die on this hill. granted, this was 2016, the actors were still iffy on playing queer characters, they were calling each other wife and the obsession with pink milk was at its peak. gmmtv had $5 and a dream and you could tell.

6. ‘Cause you are my boy/My Tee (TeeMork)

this was frankdrake’s first roles and you could tell. you could also tell that they were in the trenches because everything was bad with this show and i truly think it was a cry for help. they did the best they could with what they had but there was no way in hell they could save this show and honestly, i’m not surprised that their first kiss was like this. it goes well with the quality of the show.

7. Love By Chance (TinCan)

and it doesn’t get better after this. i’m gonna be the devil’s advocate, mean actually tried to make these kisses better but there was no helping with this couple. a mess.

8. Oxygen (SoloGui)

as far as first kisses go... yeah. granted, oxygen wasn’t really that good either but they could have salvage this show with a decent kiss. nothing. nada. it was a let down.

9. Make it right (FuseTee)

make it right paved the way for angle kisses.

now listen, i’m pretty sure boom and peak were 17 or something when they filmed this and back in the day, this was already too much. like, cheewin was pushing it by directing this show. still, it has to be on this list (it’s not like it hasn’t changed anyways. boom and peak would never EVER kiss. this was the closest we could get).

10. Where your eyes linger

i mean, come on. COME ON. i know this was like the first kbl and you know, they paved the way. give credit where credit is due and all that but LOOK. it’s bad. it was a good show, for the plot that it had and the limited time, it was good. BUT THE KISS WAS... it was a letdown. 

11. Gen Y (MarkKit)

how are you gonna be a senior in the industry and still kiss like this? kimcop are one of those settled ships that are hard to break and to ship with someone else. with that in mind, you would think they would do wonders. gen y was a dumpster fire and so were the kisses.

12. WISH YOU: Your melody in my heart

this is where you start to understand that it’s not about the production or how short kbls are and that’s why the kisses are so bad. no, it’s because workshops apparently don’t exist in korea and they put these men to kiss without practicing first. this is the product. this is what you get.

13. Color Rush

i know some of you call it the best kbl out there because the plot was different, which is true, but like... their lips are not even touching... so yeah. next.

14. Nobleman Ryu’s wedding

i’m pretty sure this was supposed to be an angle kiss and they changed their mind at the last minute and we got... this. i mean, compared to others in this list is not that bad but is it good? far from it. this was also the first period kbl we got and it was kind of forgettable too. it was very low budget and you could see it with the kiss

15. What Zabb Man

BOTH COUPLES because both of them were such a let down. i was here mainly because of the toxics from gen y and with the crazy tension they had going on, i thought they would go off. not even that. don’t even get me started on the main couple. the manipulation that went down between them UGH but i can’t even get a good kiss out of this mess anyways.

[miraculouscontent]

Hi, what’s this I’m hearing about Marinette’s trauma? I know of Chat Blanc and the various instances of the world embarrassing Marinette. But I see y’all talking about something to do with the ML bible? What trauma is y’all talking about?

I think it’d be nice to have all the details in one post, so yeah.

Essentially, the MLS5bible states that there’s a reason why Marinette stammers and gets freaked out so much around Adrien (page 4):

[B]ack in eighth grade, Marinette had a crush on Kim. But when she declared herself to him, she suffered a humiliation orchestrated by Chloe. Since then, she hasn’t been able to declare herself to anyone else, too afraid that she might experience the same nightmare again. Of course, she’s not aware of this until episode “Derision”.

Going to the synopsis of the mentioned episode, we can see exactly how bad they decide to make this problem for her (page 111):

Just as it seems like Marinette is finally about to have a normal date with Adrien, she strangely starts suffering from repeated panic attacks. She doesn’t understand why, and it’s starting to jeopardize her relationship with the one she [”””]loves[”””].

(yes I put those airquotes in because I won’t have that drivel on my blog without them)

So, they essentially brought in this plot point to “explain” her inability to be “normal” around Adrien. They also state that, even once she’s aware of this issue, it doesn’t particularly help her anyway (also page 4, literally right after the line I quoted there already):

But even once she knows about her problem, we’ll see that it doesn’t necessarily makes it any easier telling yourself that you love them!

(that’s a direct quote, by the way; the mistakes in it are actually in the bible)

Now, naturally the question then becomes “well, what’s the point of bringing in this plot point that has never been foreshadowed before, and did they really call it trauma?”

It’s explicitly called “trauma” here (page 41) where it describes what actually comes out of this whole thing:

When [Adrien] finds out that Chloe is the cause of Marinette’s trauma, which keeps her from telling Adrien how she feels, he tells Chloe that they will never be friends again.

So let me just break it down for you.

Marinette having crushed on Kim has never before been implied or stated.

The stammering Marinette does around Adrien is tied to actual trauma that’s now even giving her panic attacks.

Adrien “looking good” by telling Chloe that they’ll “never be friends again” (conveniently after he’s affected by Chloe’s actions since he has feelings for Marinette now and Marinette’s trauma is crippling their relationship) seems to be the main takeaway from this whole thing.

And last but not least, 4. This officially establishes that basically all of the jokes and humiliation Marinette has endured concerning Adrien (that the writers expected and intended for you to laugh at) was them mocking a girl who they are now admitting has trauma that caused these embarrassments for her in the first place.

TL;DR: It’s gross.

[star-anise]

My work generally, but especially transcribing recorded therapy sessions into text for my training, and learning about how to evaluate language for signs of trauma, taught me something valuable when it comes to writing: People relating their own raw trauma tend not to be good storytellers. 

It goes against the novelist’s entire art to depict a first recitation of trauma the way it happens, because we’re taught to make theme, content, style, and character arc cohere simultaneously, in exactly the way real trauma stories generally don’t the first few times..

One of the things that makes trauma traumatic is that it breaks down the brain’s basic ability to work together to process memories. Instead of being wholly integrated and understood by the whole system, traumatic memories tend to be fractured and partitioned. The ways that memories, emotions, language, and physical sensations work together tend to be a little broken. If you can come out of an experience with the ability to accurately and movingly describe what it was like so that other people understand you, you’re actually way less likely to be traumatized in the long run.

Thus, it’s often really hard for people to speak easily about trauma, especially the first few times. Researchers of trauma have found that talking about a traumatic subject tends to make people’s language disorganized--although someone may be eloquent on other topics, they often devolve into sentence fragments and abrupt shifts, floundering to find the words to express what they want to mean. Language often becomes vague and elliptical, or brutal and blunt. It often takes several attempts to express an idea or relate an event. Diction often parts ways with emotional content, so something emotionally devastating can be related as a funny joke, or something seemingly minor can be given a lot of weight and attention.

And as people speak, they’re often so busy controlling their own physical sensations that they aren’t giving a good “performance”--they might not coordinate their breathing enough to properly fuel their sentences; they might be overwrought; they might appear relaxed or preternaturally calm. (They may appear to be preternaturally calm but show physical signs of terror.) They often don’t appear like whatever the hell we think traumatized people “should” sound like.

Talking about traumatic experiences can be helpful precisely because it allows us to re-work those fragments of trauma back into a coherent whole. Writing can be especially helpful because it offers a halfway-point; you can re-integrate language and memory without having to physically control yourself enough to speak. It’s why therapists are such fans of journalling. However, it’s useful to remember that unless your character also tends to do a lot of internal processing and language rehearsal inside their head, the first time they talk about something deeply painful, it probably won’t read like prose, especially not deeply dramatic and emotional prose, and it probably won’t be convincing to a skeptical audience.

My experience is that we often have to learn how to “perform” victimhood and make our stories socially acceptable--to pick up culturally specific ways of talking about our experiences that aren’t natural outgrowths of trauma so much as they match what the people around us expect of trauma survivors.

I think some writers skip this over entirely because it can be a laborious process not conducive to a lively style and a fast-moving story. There are ways this can be worked around; the process of slowly constructing a coherent trauma narrative can be a plot all in itself. It can, in fact, make your work better. Just so long as you know how the process happens.

[blueteller]

TCF Summary Arc by Arc (Part 8/8)

Every TCF story arc in a nutshell

Volume 8: chapters 700-776

[< Previous] [Index] [Side Stories >]

Entering the Temple of the Sealed God *Rumors about Roan Kingdom's victory and Cale & Alberu's heroism spread across the continent* Cale: *pictures all of his friends watching as he stabs himself to kill the White Star* Cale: *chills* (Yeah no. I ain't doing that) Cale: …ok so for no particular reason, I'm going to enter the Temple alone Alberu, Choi Han, Eruhaben & Raon: Like HELL you are!!! What self-sacrificial scheme are you plotting THIS time!? The Ancient Powers: Heh, Cale's getting scolded! Cale: *playing dumb* Nothing! Alberu, Choi Han, Eruhaben & Raon: You're a lying liar who lies. We'll deal with you later Cale: …Mhm yeah ok (I'll just sneak in, then.) Let's interrogate the fake Hilsman then Fake Hilsman: So you definitely want to know about the Hunters, right? Cale: (No I don't!) Actually- Fake Hilsman: I think a Hunter has appeared Cale: F***! Fake Hilsman: As expected, you truly have the blood of the Thames! Let me tell you more exposition then Cale: *senses his slacker life fading away* (NoooOOO-!) Fake Hilsman: So they're allied with the Flynn Merchant Guild, Billos is on the run and probably going to die soon. Also Karin Orsena is on their side Cale: (…well s***) Fake Hilsman: *shows off his red hair* That's why I came here. I need your money. And you want more info on the Thames family, right? Cale: (He's probably Jour's brother or other close relative then) No thanks. I'll just ask my father Fake Hilsman: Wait, aren't you curious about-? Cale: Nope! *leaves* Alberu: Anyway, we've selected the team who will enter the Temple first. You're all going to give up and exit within 5 minutes, got it? *Cale, Choi Han, Mary, Rosalyn, Toonka & Clopeh step inside* Temple Doors: *shuts closed* *5 minutes pass* Everyone: (…Well f***)

The First Test Cale: Huh, I'm a ghost. And I'm in Harris Village? The Temple isn't letting me out for some reason… Wait, am I going to watch "The Birth of a Hero" timeline? This is bad- Choi Han: Huh, I'm back in Harris Village? Might as well try to protect it this time… Cale: Wait what *Meanwhile:* Rosalyn: Hm, something's clearly wrong here… Mary: Welp, time for a prison break I guess Toonka: LET'S GO FIND MY FRIEND!!! :D Clopeh: …WHAT DO YOU MEAN THERE'S NO CALE HENITUSE!? *outrage* Cale: What can I do if I'm stuck being invisible-? Cintanami: *rings* Cale: Huh? LSH: …You have a moment? Cale: Wait a minute, it's visible! IT WORKS!! *crazy laughter* I can destroy EVERYTHING with this!!! PJT: …is he crazy? LSH: Now Park Jin Tae, that's not a nice thing to say- Cale: *tries to take the Earth Ancient Power* Hm, I can't eat the rock, what a shame LSH: (…he may have a point, tho…) Choi Han & Rosalyn: Wait, we're in the same test?? Clopeh: *shows up dramatically on a wyvern* Yes, and Cale Henituse doesn't exist in this world. It's not a "Sadness" test… this must be "Despair" Choi Han & Rosalyn: Let's go rescue the children first *enter Raon's prison* Clopeh: *gets left behind because no one cares about him* 😂 Mary: *already there wrecking stuff* Wait, we're in the same test?? Rosalyn: Yeah, let's go get On and Hong now Choi Han: They should be right in the Henituse Territory slums… wait, why's the Man-Eating Tree white? Hong: A mister with a mask came by Choi Han: …so the White Star took Cale-nim's Shield?? Clopeh: That BASTARD!! How DARE he steal what belongs to the Legend!!! *fanboy rage mode on* *Meanwhile:* Cale: …What do you mean "God of Death says not to stop the Sealed God's game"?? Alberu: *connected through the Dark Tiger* …What do you mean you're a ghost??? Choi Han: Ok so the White Star will probably attack Harris Village soon- what the heck is that LSH: *through the Cintamani* Hi! Cale's standing next to you Choi Han: Excuse me? LSH: He says he's a ghost right now Choi Han: Excuse me?? KRS: *tags in* So I'll act as his transmittor for the time being Choi Han: Excuse me??? Cale: Ok so the real White Star isn't actually in the test, since I still got him sealed. Which means the White Star taking my Ancient Powers is the Sealed God's puppet. We probably have to defeat it to exit this test. Also Cale: …Btw, has anyone seen Toonka? *Elsewhere:* Toonka: *wrecks stuff* Hi! I'm looking for my friend Cale! Illusion!Alberu: …who the hell is "Cale"?? Illusion!Tasha: *panicking* Where's Mary?? *Cale & Co. blow up and/or destroy things counter: 40*

Wreaking Havoc in Illusion Reality Clopeh: *interrogating KRS* Wait, so Cale-nim is also a hero in your dimension?? KRS: …I guess-? Clopeh: I KNEW IT! The true legend can surpass time and space!! Even the gods cannot stop it!!! KRS: …He's even worse than Joo Ho Shik… Illusion!Tasha: *shows up* Mary why did you leave? Who is this Cale person? Clopeh: *reverent* He is someone who cannot be seen and is always watching over us! Illusion!Tasha: ??? Cale: … Cale's group: (That's… not wrong, but…) Illusion!Tasha: …you mean he's a god, or-? Clopeh: Even better!! Cale: *dying from embarrassment* Rosalyn: We need to go for now, but we'll meet your superior in 2 days Illusion!Tasha: …Okay then? Cale: Dammit. I wanted to take the Vitality of the Heart and the Fire of Destruction before the White Star, but looks like he beat us to it. Let's meet Eruhaben then *In the Capital:* Illusion!Taylor: Hello, your highness! We'd like to make a deal with you Illusion!Alberu: …and who are you? Illusion!White Star: I'm the person who'll bring alchemists into your kingdom Illusion!Alberu: (There's something fishy about this offer…) *Back with Cale's group:* Illusion!Eruhaben: …Who is this invisible person hiding like a rat Tiger!Alberu: That's my Dongsaeng Illusion!Eruhaben: So you're the people who brainwashed a young dragon huh? A guy with a white mask warned me about you Tiger!Alberu: Of course we didn't. We're actually- *can't say they're in a test or from another world* Huh. I guess that doesn't work Illusion!Eruhaben: Oh I see. You're from the Divine Race then? Tiger!Alberu: …sure, let's go with that *Cale mistaken for a divine entity counter: 2*

Illusion!Eruhaben: Anyway, the guy who warned me about you said his name was Cale Tiger!Alberu: What did he look like? Illusion!Eruhaben: Fancy Tiger!Alberu: …Dongsaeng I think he's wearing your face *Elsewhere:* Mary: *meets Cale!White Star and freaks out* *Back with Cale's group:* Tiger!Alberu: Anyway let's make sure that the Crown Prince doesn't do anything stupid Illusion!Alberu: *walks into his office* Tiger!Alberu: Hello Illusion!Alberu: …Huh? Who are you? Tiger!Alberu: I'm someone motivated by self-preservation Illusion!Alberu: Ha! Relatable Tiger!Alberu: Indeed. And that's a Dragon Illusion!Eruhaben: Hello. Illusion!Alberu: Huh?? Illusion!Eruhaben: Yeah I have no idea what's going on either. But he and that invisible Cale punk aren't from this world Illusion!Alberu: …you mean a god, or-? *Cale mistaken for a divine entity counter: 3*

Tiger!Alberu: Nevermind that. The White Star is planning to stab you in the back Illusion!Alberu: HUH??? Tiger!Alberu: Yeah those "alchemists" he wants to bring you are actually Black Mages working for the Empire Illusion!Alberu: … Illusion!Alberu: …I wanna smack that bastard in the back Cale: (Welcome aboard!) Illusion!Alberu: *sets up a trap for Cale!White Star* Cale's group: *ambush* Cale!White Star: *dramatically* How could you have betrayed me like this! Now you have revealed your true selves…! Cale's group: ??? (…what the heck is he talking about?) *Meanwhile, outside:* The Temple: *live-streaming Cale's group fighting "Cale"* Everyone: ??? Eruhaben: Wait, that's obviously fake Hannah: …But does everybody else know that? Cale's group: (Well f***) Hannah: Wait a second, who's that crouching there in the corner? Cale: *now visible thanks to the Cintanami* The Temple: *cuts the live-stream* God of Despair!White Star: …the hell! This is MY domain!! How dare that God of Death bastard interfere with MY test again!!! God of Despair!White Star: Anyway, I'm the first god who was originally a Hunter. The God of Death is no better than me btw. He totally killed his best friend God of Death: *through the Cintanami with radio static* Long time no see you bastard Cale: (Why are they dragging us into their rivalry drama…?) Yeah, I'm not interested. We're leaving *Epic combat sequence against the God of Despair* God of Despair: Time to cancel this test, I guess God of Death: Anyway, the rest of the tests will proceed as you were told by IronMa- I mean Ahn Roh Man Cale: Sounds great. Let's do this

The Sadness Test Cale: *sees LSH & CJS's funeral* Cale: Good thing I've started to heal from my trauma. I need to do my best from here on (Me: 😭) *Meanwhile, the others:* Rosalyn: *gets stuck in the Sloth test for a bit* Choi Han: *out-stubborns the Failure test* Clopeh: *gets to the Failure test first* Mary: *gets to the Indignity test first* Toonka: *exits the tests* Also Toonka: *realizes he's the only one who left* …aw, dammit!

The Sloth Test Cale: Huh, I'm in high-school. I wonder why-? Choi Jung Gun: *casually walks into the library* Cale: (…WTF.) Cale: …hi Sunbae. What are you doing? Illusion!CJG: Just writing a guidebook. Cale: (…He's totally writing "The Birth of a Hero" right now isn't he) Cale: I'm joining the book club now Illusion!CJG: …Okay then? Cale: *scamming mode on* Illusion!CJG: Uhhh, for no particular reason I'm going to a Sword Arts exhibition. And maybe a movie production later. Would you like to come along? (How terrible of a fate he must have been suffering…) Cale: *acting clueless* Sure! (He's totally setting me up to meet Choi Jung Soo and Lee Soo Hyuk ahead of time… Can he see the future or fate or something?) Also Cale: (So yeah, this tests makes you want to forget reality, but I have Record, b****. I'm just staying for a bit to loot info out of CJG) Cale: So I dreamed something about the name "Nelan Barrow" and "the White Star", what's that all about? Illusion!CJG: (…WTF) Cale: You're totally from a different dimension, aren't you. Maybe a god? Illusion!CJG: *cringe* Ugh, do not lump me together with those bastards. (That motherf***ing God of Death…) I'm in the "maybe someday" category. Also gods can't die, but they can retire Cale: …can they? 🤔 (Me: And so began's Cale's journey to Goodhood in order to achieve his Slacker Life… 🤣) Illusion!CJG: Anyway, there's a Hunter targeting you because you've been marked by the God of Death. They can modify memories btw. But they can't know whether you're a Tribulator or not before they kill you and use Hunter's Eye on you Cale: (…I knew it. The White Star impacted me with his curse when he reincarnated and stole my body.) Cale: …Sunbae. Am I bait? Illusion!CJG: Yup. But don't worry, you won't die Cale: (That's not very reassuring… He looks crazy. Also, I have a feeling something went wrong-) Jung Yi-Rang & Park So Jin: *crash into their car* Cale: *uses his Shield* Illusion!CJG: *shaken* …Noonim? *Epic combat sequence against the Hunters* Park So Jin: Ha, you pathetic Wanderer bastard will never defeat out patriarch! Kill me! Jung Yi-Rang: *kills her* Take this offering of Karma… [Jung Yi-Rang Fled the Battle!] Illusion!CJG: Well f***. Cale: That power of yours which cuts through things. Can I have it? Illusion!CJG: Nope Cale: (And yet you give it to LSH in the future for some reason…) Cale: *starts disappearing* Anyway, this isn't even real. This is just an illusion Illusion!CJG: !!! Illusion!CJG: *spills last-second exposition* Find the Red-Blood Family! Cale: Ok, bye (Me: REMEMBER, REALITY IS AN ILLUSION THE UNIVERSE IS A HOLOGRAM BUY GOLD BYEEEEEE!) *Cale coughs blood and/or faints counter: 28*

The Indignity Test The Temple: Error. Unable to determine fitting Failure test for the target. Cale: Oh, that's good right-? The Temple: Proceed to double the difficulty Cale: (Well f***) The Temple: Optimization complete. Indignity test version 1.5 is now starting Cale: Wait wha- Cale: *wakes up as Venion's lackey* The heck is-? Cale: *wakes up as a palace attendant* -going on? Oh, I see. A double daylight-nighttime possession deal, huh. And at different points in the timeline, too- Teen!Alberu: *neglected* Cale: Welp. Time to overturn the palace I guess Chief of Staff: (…why do I hear boss music?) 3-year-old!Raon: *about to be tortured by Venion* Cale: …Yeah, how about no. *paralyzes Venion and frees 3-year-old!Raon* Also Cale: *cheerfully* Destroy everything!! Venion's guards: Are you crazy!? Cale: Yup! Venion's guards & 3-year-old!Raon: ??? Cale: Destroy me too! I hate being in this body so go ahead! (…As long as Raon doesn't feel guilty over it, it's all fine) 3-year-old!Raon: *knocks him out & kidnaps him instead* Cale: *Surprised Pikachu Face* Also Cale: *comes to the secret underground place* Younger!Zed: …Who are you?? Cale: (Wait a minute, Zed is only pretending not to pay attention to his son – he's totally being neglectful on purpose! He must know about the Dark Elves too) Cale: …you're going to kill me now, aren't you? Younger!Zed: Yes, but actually no Cale: Wait wha- Younger!Zed: You're not a Hunter, right Cale: (…WTF. Why does Zed know about the Hunters?) Younger!Zed: *knocks him out & kidnaps him too* *Cale gets knocked out counter: 2* *Cale & Co. blow up and/or destroy things counter: 41*

*Elsewhere:* Choi Han: *feeds kid!KRS in his Indignity test because he's too skinny* (Me: 😭😭😭) Choi Han: Hm, I should also beat up his uncle while I'm at it… (Me: 👏 Well done, Choi Han my darling) *Meanwhile* Cale: *wakes up to see 3-year-old!Raon's carnage* Cale: …wow *impressed* 3-year-old!Raon: *back to his Tsundere ways* What are you looking at?? *gives him fruit* (But it's not like I care about the Terrible Bastard or anything, b-baka!) Cale: Knock me out again and take me to the Forest of Darkness. I kind of go crazy when the sun comes up 3-year-old!Raon: ??? (…aren't you already crazy??) 3-year-old!Raon: *does it anyway* *Cale gets knocked out counter: 3*

Teen!Alberu: *comes to rescue Cale* Cale: *casually praises him* Good job. Now, tie me up again Teen!Alberu: ??? (…he's crazy, isn't he) F***. Cale: Your highness, language Teen!Alberu: (Why does he even care?!) Cale: Your highness, you know you can't take responsibility for this, right? Teen!Alberu: *frees him anyway* Cale: Ok, I'll just show you something first. Oh, I know you're a Dark Elf btw Teen!Alberu: Wait wha- Cale: It doesn't matter anyway. You see, this place holds all the answers about the Crossman- Younger!Zed: *interrupts* Cale: (Ha! I knew he was watching) Cale: One more thing – don't trust the king or me, just trust yourself. You're already a good person Teen!Alberu: *gets knocked out* Younger!Zed: Who ARE you?? Cale: *scamming mode on* Actually I'm a Wanderer Younger!Zed: Seems legit *Cale mistaken for a divine entity counter: 4*

Cale: Anyway I don't have much time, so listen up Younger!Zed: Wait wha- Cale: Don't mess with the kid, he doesn't know anything so leave him alone you piece of s***. The Hunters used the Crossman Household as a puppet, didn't they. Where are the Red-Bloods? Younger!Zed: … Cale: …So you do know. (I can get the answers back in my world then) Younger!Zed: …! Cale: Thanks for the confirmation, bye! The Temple: Test 50% complete. Cale: *wakes up in the Forest of Darkness* Younger!Choi Han & 3-year-old!Raon: *fighting* 3-year-old!Raon: The Terrible Bastard is awake! Younger!Choi Han: *shocked* It's a real person…! Cale: *playing dumb* Yeah, and who are you? Why are you in the Forst of Darkness? A knight from the Harris Village which is located nearby? Younger!Choi Han: *walks away to clear his head* 3-year-old!Raon: Why did you tell me to bring you here? There's nothing for you here Cale: No, but it's a good place for you. Also, that you and that guy can keep each other company 3-year-old!Raon: *shocked* …what about you? Cale: Why ask such an obvious question? Of course I'll leave. Why keep a crazy guy like me around? (No way am I leaving Raon alone with Venion's lackey back in charge) 3-year-old!Raon: … 3-year-old!Raon: *intimidation mode* You WILL work for me, you Terrible Bastard!! *actual meaning: (Don't leave me alone…! 🥺)* Cale: …O-okay. I'm hungry 3-year-old!Raon: *brings him fruit again* Younger!Choi Han: *brings him a monster corpse* Cale: … (…Raon's is better, but A for effort, I guess) Cale: Good job, Choi Han 3-year-old!Raon: *jealous mode on* Cale: (…what's with him??) Younger!Choi Han & 3-year-old!Raon: *learn to get along like two feral puppies* Cale: Right, so first life lesson – money is the best Cale: *brings them to Super Rock villa* (Huh, I wonder why the Super Rock isn't here…) Anyway, let's go shopping! *laughs in Rich* Also Cale: *buys everything for the other two and nothing for himself* Younger!Choi Han & 3-year-old!Raon: ??? 3-year-old!Raon: Choi Han… isn't that guy is a bit weird…? Younger!Choi Han: *no less confused*…uhuh… Cale: So now all you guys need is learn to read and write- 3-year-old!Raon: NOPE! We can't learn, it's too hard. (Once he's done teaching us he'll leave!!) Isn't that right, Choi Han? Younger!Choi Han: That's. Right. Reading. Is. Hard Cale: … (Those punks…) Venion: *shows up randomly* Cale: You're still alive? What a shame. Venion: Who the hell do you think you are!! Cale: The person who has all kinds of blackmail on you. Venion: (…well s***) Cale: If you kill me your siblings will get all the info on your weaknesses. Now scram Venion: *leaves* Younger!Choi Han: …but didn't you send those documents to his siblings already? Cale: Yup, I sure did. Remember to hand that note to Taylor once he shows up. *to 3-year-old!Raon* Did you see that? That guy is terrified of you 3-year-old!Raon: … Cale: You got all this stuff and a home and company. Isn't that enough? 3-year-old!Raon: …human, who are you? Cale: …I'm Cale. The Temple: Test complete! Cale: Ok, I'll be leaving now 3-year-old!Raon: WAIT!! Give me a name first!! Cale: (A name…? Should I-? But I promised Raon that this name would be only for him…) …Dodam Miru. Let's go with that. Bye Younger!Choi Han & Dodam: Bye… (Me: Whyyyyyy, why am I crying…? 😭)

The Wrath Test Clopeh: Nothing can stand in my way-! The Temple: Now, behold the Wrath test where Cale's group is all in jail and you're not one of them. Clopeh: (Well f***) *Elsewhere:* The Temple: Oh, you have suffered so much, I feel so bad. I have developed sentience over time, so you can totally trust me Cale: Uhuh. *doesn't buy the sudden sympathy at all* The Temple: So why don't you think about all the things that make you angry the most? I'll make sure not to include them Cale: Sure The Temple: ...SIKE! I'm actually making those things into your Wrath test Cale: *scams the system by thinking of mundane things like children being picky about veggies* Ahhh, this is the best The children: Btw human, when we're going to pray? Cale: …pray? The children: To the White Star and the God of Despair! Cale: (Holy s***) *realizes this is the reality where the White Star has won* Cale: (…Well f***. This does make me pretty angry) Sayeru: Time to deliver the sacrifices for the 50th celebration! Cale: (Welp. Time for a s*** show I guess) Cale: *calls in everyone still alive in this reality* Come watch. Everybody: (…yeah, Young Master Cale's going to cause a s*** show alright) Sayeru: Behave, Cale Henituse, or Raon will be next on the list Cale: (So you have chosen… death) Cale: …Why of COURSE! I am being so sincere right now! We can't have the sacrifices for to the celebration delivered in such terrible conditions! Sayeru: Wait wha- Cale: Only the best carriages for everyone! And keep them well-fed, too! Where's your SINCERITY!! Sayeru: But- Cale: Tsk tsk. Are you too poor to manage even that much? Should I make a donation? Sayeru: … Sayeru: (This annoying bastard… But I guess it's fine as long as he delivers them) Alberu: *starts a speech under duress* We have gathered here today- Cale: *tears apart the rock wall in Puzzle City* Alberu: -to watch Cale Henituse destroy everything I guess – OPEN THE GATES!!! Every ally of Cale under the sun: *rebels at the same time* White Star's allies: Wait wha- Cale's group: *has an epic combat sequence against the White Star's forces* The White Star: Cale Henituse, even with your plate complete, you're still weaker than me! Cale: That's true. But, I have a rock The White Star: Wait wha- Cale: *smacks him with a rock in the back of the head* The Ancient Powers: HECK YEAH, CALE! BEAT HIM UP!!! Cale: *keeps hitting him* THAT'S FOR MY SLACKER LIFE, YOU BASTARD!!! Cale's group: *watch Cale beating up the White Star with a pebble while bleeding all over the place* Cale's group: …..Uhhh……. Cale: (Ahhh, that's better. Finally I got it out of my system) God of Despair: Hey, you wanna chat? Cale: What do you want? God of Despair: You're so impressive, you totally finished all the tests first! Why don't you use Embrace on me and take me out of this Temple? Then I'll tell you everything about the Hunters- Cale: No thanks. (…how nice of him to tell me exactly what NOT to do. Moron) *Meanwhile* Clopeh: *already out and setting up cameras* *Cale coughs blood and/or faints counter: 29* *Cale & Co. blow up and/or destroy things counter: 42*

Death of the White Star *Outside the Temple:* The Temple: *live-streaming* Cale's group: Phew, Cale made it out safely! …wait a minute, what… what's he doing with that dagger-? *Meanwhile:* Cale: (Huh, it seems I'm alone… and my body is in great shape! Perfect. Let's deal with the White Star first) God of Despair: *shoots death beams at Cale* Cale: …you motherf-! *uses one beam to release the White Star* White Star: *shows up, dazed* Cale: smiling* Did you rest well? White Star: Wait wha- Cale: *attacks* White Star: *defends* (I gotta run away, I gotta-!) Cale: *uses the Annual Rings of Life* (Ah, there's the warped ring. Ugh it's so ugly) Clopeh: *fanatic vibes intensify* Cale: *finally notices him* (…the hell!? That motherf***ing son of a b**** god!! I KNEW he lied to me!!!) Also Cale: (…oh well, whatever. This surely won't bite me in the a** later) White Star: *surrounds Cale with elemental attacks* Cale: *uses instant for .5 second to stab himself with the dagger then the White Star* White Star: *finally dies* Cale: This is the end. The Ancient Powers: Hooray! Your body's becoming healthier! [World Tree Dagger Health Upgrade acquired!] Cale: (Phew. Good thing nobody saw that beside Clopeh!) *Outside the Temple* Everyone: *horrified* The children: …What's going on?? Alberu & Eruhaben: *covering the children's eyes* (…crazy bastard…) Deruth: *faints* Choi Han & Mary: *literally arrived right in that moment* (WTF???) Choi Han: *on the verge of a breakdown* What did I just see?? Rosalyn: *the only one late to the party* …what happened? Cale: … Cale: (Well f***) *Cale coughs blood and/or faints counter: 30 (Achievement Unlocked: Surviving Cardiac Stab Wound!)* *Cale & Co. blow up and/or destroy things counter: 43*

Defeating the God of Despair White Star: *starts turning to dust and releases his Ancient Powers* Cale: Um, uhhh- the Ancient Powers! Yeah, let's focus on that. I'm taking those Cale's group: …we WILL talk about this later Cale: *chills* God of Despair: *death beams part 2* Cale's group: Oh no you don't!! *blocks them* God of Despair: *shakes the Temple* Cale: Motherf-! *stumbles* Choi Han: *angrily* I KNEW IT!!! Cale: (…Damn it, even with the Health Upgrade my body is still weak and useless!) The Ancient Powers: Cale, honey… build up some muscle back, would you?? Mary: I sense dead mana from two of the Ancient Powers Cale: (…wait, wasn't there supposed to be just one?? Nevermind) *uses Embrace to seal them in White Star's mask* Cale: Clopeh, throw the diary! Clopeh: *throws it* [Wood Ancient Power: Annual Rings of Life (2/2), acquired!] *Cale's Ancient Power counter: 9* Jour: Nice job, Cale. Wanna become the patriarch of the House of Thames-? Cale: (I'm a little busy right now!!!) God of Despair: *shakes the Temple again* Cale: *falls into Clopeh's arms* Clopeh: ✨Are you okay? I recorded everything, Cale-nim!✨ Cale: … *wants to smack him* God of Despair: *reaches out with creepy arms like the Gate of Truth from FMA* Cale's group: *blocks them again* Eruhaben: *suddenly bursts his huge Dragon head through the wall* …well that was easier than I expected. Hi Cale, we saw the whole heart stabbing thing. You okay? Don't worry the kids didn't see it Cale: (Well f***) God of Death's Book: *suddenly heats up in Cale's pocket* God of Death: Hey Cale, that orb which was live-streaming everything is going to explode soon and destroy the whole city. Also, use this book to Embrace the Sealed God Cale: Got it. Everyone! That orb is going to explode! Alberu: We're on it. Everyone's ready to cast a large shield Cale: …? *surprised* Alberu: You're not the only one who prepares for things in advance, you know. Also, don't ever do that again. That's an order Cale: *starts Embrace tug-o-war between the God of Despair and the God of Death* Cale: *shaking* (…f***! Hurry the f*** up!!) Raon! Bring your mom here! [Cale used Super Rock's power! It's Super Effective!] The Ancient Power: (…WTF, what kind of drugs did the World Tree give this kid?? Is he turning Immortal or something???) God of Despair: *gets sealed for good* Cale: …well f***. The orb is still here The orb: *explodes* Raon: *the Black Castle shows up in the sky* Human! I brought mommy! Everybody: *blocks and defends until they're all fainting and coughing blood* Cale: …Why would they-? The Ancient Powers: Finish that sentence. We dare you Cale: … Super Rock: Rolf. It's Karma~! Btw, the Temple is yours now *Cale's Ancient Power counter: 16+* *Cale coughs blood and/or faints – Final counter: 31*! *Cale & Co. blow up and/or destroy things counter: 44*! (Me: Congratulations – you're an absolute madman!! I hope you're proud of yourself)

The Aftermath Puzzle City: *cheers for not getting destroyed* Alberu: Alright, Cale. Time to faint Cale: Wait, what? But I'm fine- Alberu: We don't have time. Choi Han Choi Han: *taps Cale's knee lightly* Cale: *falls* Toonka: *rushing in* FRIEND, NOOOO-! Cale: (Oh I get it now. Fainting it is!) *fakes fainting* Alberu: Coming through! The Commander is in critical condition!! Everybody: …Oh no! Poor Young Master Cale!! Deruth: My son! *hugs Cale on Choi Han's back* Also Deruth: *whispers* I know you're faking. Sit tight and never do that again, or I'll make you the next Duke Cale: *trembles in fear* (What?? Whaaaaat???) Deruth: *smug* (I knew this would work) Ron: Young Master, lay down. King Zed wants to talk to you, but let's ignore him Cale: But- Ron: LAY. DOWN. Rosalyn: *shows up* Cale, Eruhaben's dying Cale: …looks like I can't lay down after all *leaves* Ron: *to Zed* It would seem it is impossible to speak with the Young Master. (Beacuse he isn't here, lol) Choi Han: *obsesses over getting stronger as always* The children: *tackle Cale* Cale: *doesn't fall* The children: …huh, it seems you're actually fine?? Cale: So Eruhaben, remember how the healing jar wouldn't fill with water for you because you didn't want to live longer? Check again Eruhaben: *sees the jar full with water now* …well s***. Cale: Now… DRINK UP, B****! *crazy-eyed* or I'll force your mouth open and pour it all in! Eruhaben: … Eruhaben: *drinks all the water until he chokes and coughs blood* Mila: Wow, you're a young Dragon again! Good for you *Meanwhile* Alberu: Hello, father. Have some tea. I know you like it a lot *Both Know He Doesn't Actually Like It* Zed: …sure, that sounds lovely. *sits down* …So, is this about you being salty that I didn't go to see you first? Alberu: *sarcastically* What? No! Whatever gave you that impression! Zed: Are you worried about me acting out against you? Alberu: Pfff. As if you could right now Zed: So how about you taking the throne as soon as possible? Alberu: …why? Zed: I'll be leaving for a while Alberu: Where to? Zed: …A hunting trip, I guess. I'll write to you once a year Alberu: Once every three months. I'm not such an uncaring bastard like you. Zed: …very well. Have your coronation in spring then. I'm off to catch a rat *leaves* Alberu: (…his Sword Master should have noticed my Dark Elves spies… so he must have known about me all along.) Alberu: ...Well s***.

Setting Up TCF Part 2 Zed: Hello Commander Henituse. Cale: …Hello. (What does he want? He's acting strange) Zed: So your father is scary when he's angry, but he's right. I'm going to handle my own issues now. That is, the House of Duke Orsena. Cale: …Orsena? Zed: Yeah, the "hunting dog" that I raised. I'm personally chasing after the Hunters and I don't share my prey. That's why under no circumstances you will get involved in any of it, you hear me? You definitely don't need to know anything more about this. Cale: (What a relief!) …Sure. As long as no one touches any of my people Zed: Sounds good to me (...and I'm sure we're not going to regret not handing you this crucial exposition at this very moment!) *And Then We All Knew, Cale Would Soon Get Involved* Basen: Uh, Hyung…? I've got some bad news Cale: What is it? Basen: The fake Hilsman broke out. Also looted your room and stole your money Cale: … Cale: THAT MOTHER***ER!! MY RETIREMENT FUND!!! *rage mode on* God of Death: *through the Book* Yo, Cale! The Cintanami broke, so I'll be sending you a replacement. Wanna become a Saint-? Cale: -YEET! Basen: Oh, and everybody wants to give you a medal Cale: WELL F*** THEM Basen: *satisfied* Of course, Hyung *Elsewhere:* Foreign politicians: About that medal of honor- Clopeh: *interrupts* How DARE you. A mere medal?? For MY Legend??? Disgraceful! Foreign politicians: Uh- Clopeh: He saved all of your a**es and all you want to reward him with is a cheap "well-done" sticker!? Foreign politicians: But- Alberu: *walks in* Funny – discussing Roan Kingdom affairs in the Roan Kingdom, without a single Roan Kingdom representative present? How very odd Foreign politicians: *awkward* *Meanwhile:* God of Death's Book: *slaps Cale in the face* *Cale gets knocked out counter: 4*

Cale: …where-? God of Death: Yo! Nice to see you face to face, I wanted to chat for a bit Cale: …WTF. Why do you look so hot?? (This bastard doesn't deserve such a nice face!!) God of Death: R-really? Haha… so anyway, you sure you don't want to be a Saint-? Cale: Like hell God of Death: O-okay *looks away intimidated* Cale: So why am I here? Do I have to fight the Hunters next? God of Death: That depends on- *CRACK!* …damn censorship. Anyway, you earned some merits because you helped seal the God of Despair properly, so here's your reward Cale: What is it? God of Death: Choi Jung Gun is doing well- Cale: I don't care about that guy God of Death: -and so is Choi Jung Soo Cale: …and? God of Death: And Lee Soo Hyuk's reincarnated in your world now Cale: Wait what God of Death: Yeah, he helped me out with some things and he gave you Embrace, so he's earned some merits too Cale: The team leader… is going to… be born in the world I'm living in? (Me: Cale, baby… 😭😭😭) God of Death: Yeah, and he gets to remember his past life as reward Cale: …ok, but what about the others? What rewards do they get God of Death: Oh would you look at that, we've ran out of time! Cale: Wait wha- *wakes up* (…that motherf***ing God of Death!) God of Death's Book: *turns into LSH tracker* "Endable" Cale: (Great, now I know where to find him!) *Elsewhere:* God of Death's Bishop: Your highness! We must see the Commander! Alberu: …why-? God of Death's Bishop: The God of Death has bestowed a Divine Item upon our Church! It's specifically for Cale Henituse!! We must hold a grand ceremony to celebrate this momentous occasion!!! Alberu: (…Well f***) *Meanwhile:* Cale: *lowers the Temple to the ground with Super Rock* Alberu: Ok, so everybody is safe and healing. You're going to rest now? (Or maybe look for the guy who stole your money-?) Cale: I'm going to Endable now Alberu: Wait, what? You should just rest. What the hell are you going to- Cale: Your highness. I'm going to rest Alberu: *in disbelief* …You?? When??? Cale: *speechless* Hong: Billos is here! He looks starved and he's dying of poison! Cale: (…Well f***) Billos: Young Master… please… destroy… the Flynn Guild…! Cale: … Cale: Welp. Time to burn a place to the ground, I guess

End Volume 8.

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