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stedipace · 1 year ago

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"What if?" My Pitch for the Dreamcast 2

So after the bird app got bought by a rich moron, I got to thinking: what company would I impulsively buy if I had more money than common sense? I mean I wouldn't, I'd probably try and end world hunger or something but if there was anything left I'd just buy SEGA.

Like, for a laugh.

This started out as a design exercise for coming up with a launch title library but I got carried away...

So here's my plan:

The Actual Console

I think I'd like to honour VMU of the original Dreamcast and seeing Sony's recent announcements, we wouldn't be the only ones hopping on the Nintendo Switch Bandwagon.

The Actual console could stand to be a bit more powerful than the Switch but it doesn't have to be a top of the line behemoth. focus on making it fun, rather than powerful, thats how Nintendo sold a buttload this generation.

Launch Titles

Sonic Adventure 3

Ok, so right off the bat this one is a bit tricky.

Let me be clear: I LOVED Sonic The Hedgehog when I was a kid, but I'm sorry, I'm beginning to think there has never actually been a good Sonic game. Even my favourite ones haven't aged gracefully. Sonic Adventure 1 & 2 are a bit crap, I think we can all agree there. I love them games but the lack of polish on display, considering its SEGA's flagship title, is inexcusable. And since a SEGA console needs to ship with a "mainline" Sonic game (we've seen what happens when it doesn't), I say we go with Sonic Adventure 3 but maybe, like... good?

The idea of a 3D, momentum-based mascot platformer isn't a bad one. In fact, it's kind of a resurging genre in certain indie dev circles.

Twitter user @Cornf_Blue has been developing what looks like the best Sonic Adventure game Sonic Team never made. Actually, let's just hire this dude to run the project.

I'd also refer you to Spark The Electric Jester.

IT CAN BE DONE.

I'm not going to go into too much detail about my idea for SA3 cause I might do another "What If?" post specifically about that at some point but basically, here's the gist of it:

3 Playable Characters are Sonic, Tails & Knuckles

Stages connected by a hub world the player can explore as they like in SA1 but make it bigger and more open to exploration like Sonic Frontiers

3 Kinds of stages: Sonic "speedy" stages, Tails shooty mech stages and Knuckles treasure hunting stages like in SA2 (but keeping it to 3 characters instead of 6 so the team isn't spread itself thin and can focus on delivering quality over quantity).

Special challenge modes like Boss Rush, Speedrun mode etc..

In fact, just put in a bunch of speedrun-friendly features and modes.

Chao Garden! (but more on that later)

Power Stone 3

You need a big, fun multiplayer game in your launch titles and what's more fun than a 4 player fighting game with items and (kind of) platforming elements? It'd be fun to have a big co-op story mode and an online lobby system for multiplayer matches, but mostly, if you've got more than one kid and you're buying them a console for Christmas or whatever, this is the game you'll want to get with it.

Jet Set Radio: Legends of Tokyo-To

Another SEGA IP that started on the Dreamcast, this game was just a ton of fun. The game had a VERY distinct 1999/2000 timestamp on it and I think we're juuuust starting to see the nostalgia wave from that period swelling, so instead of going to the future like the game's sequel, it continues immediately after the plot of the first one. Get Hideki Naganuma, Cibo Matto, Guitar Vader and the rest of the gang back to do the soundtrack, keep the cool cel shading art style BUT make it an open-world game, having all of Tokyo-To available to roam around in, with different gangs controlling different territories, skating and tagging challenges, customizable art (players can make their own tags), and a faction system with rival NPCs (kind of like the nemesis system in those Lord of The Ring games but with graffiti instead of murdering). Heck, get the folks who did Bomb Rush Cyberfunk to make it.

Phantasy Star Online II

So it turns out this game already exists! And it's free to play! I didn't know that before I started making this post but honestly, that's perfect. If there's already a community of players, however small, that's already a lot of the legwork out of the way. Get some crossplay in there and you're set! Imagine getting the new console and your launch title but then, on the home menu, you see Phantasy Star Online II available to download for free! Old school players can enjoy the influx of new blood, revitalizing the game with a massive story event like new colonies being discovered or something, to explain the arrival of all the new players.

Crazy Taxi 3

YAHYAHYAHYAHYAH!

Everybody loves Crazy Taxi, there'd be something wrong with you if you didn't. Honestly, there's not much I'd do in terms of changing up the formula except maybe add a company management element to it, like you're trying to build a little taxi service where the main characters work. Upgrading cars, drumming up business and expanding to new areas. Just something to balance out the relentless fast-paced arcade gameplay. Online leaderboards for challenges and a local multiplayer with a versus mode (see who makes the most money) and a co-op mode (try to reach a set goal together) too, for good measure.

Bayonetta 4

Bayonetta isn't an OG Dreamcast title but IS currently an extremely successful franchise that would absolutely help sell some units on launch. I'm putting it in here because it's published by SEGA so I guess it's technically their IP? But it's also a Nintendo exclusive so I don't know how that would work. Platinum Games has a 4 contract deal with SEGA, but whatever, for this little exercise, pretend SEGA keeps the publishing rights to all their stuff as they move back into making consoles.

Virtua Tennis Pro

So we need a sports title in our launch library and I think it should be Vitrua Tennis. EA Sports games aren't exclusive anymore so you would eventually your FIFAs and whatnot, but it'd be nice to have a proper SEGA sports game again. For this one though, it would have a big, cinematic NBA 2K17 style where you're a rising young tennis star on your way to the top, singing deals, beating rivals etc... Get some competitive online multiplayer in there too of course.

Skies of Arcadia: Dusk

I've always loved the idea of Skies of Arcadia, a big, bright and colourful swashbuckling adventure, and you need one of those in your launch library, but I only played a little bit of the GameCube version unfortunately.

That doesn't matter cause I think I know exactly what to do with this one. Make a traditional RPG title, honouring the franchise's heritage BUT, since we now know how to make a fun pirate game thanks to Assasins's Creed IV: Black Flag, we add in the ship boarding/crew capturing mechanics from that game! So imagine you have the trusty, old-school dungeon crawling/battle systems when you get of your ship but you can get back in and sail through the skies, looting other airships and slowly building your fleet!

Chao Garden

Kinda like Nintendo Land but with Chaos!

Remember the Mii characters in Nintendo consoles? What if they were cute instead of creepy? Every console would have a Chao Garden where the player would create, customise and raise their own Chao. That Chao would also serve as the player's online avatar when connecting with friends and shopping in the SEGA store or whatever.

Players would be able to meet other Chaos, have them compete in minigames and lots more. Essentially the SA2 Chao garden but online. And of course, this would also connect to our Sonic Adventure 3 Chao Garden.

Obviously, this would extend to the console's portability function, like how the 3DS could actively search for the profiles when the user would walk around with it, letting you meet other Chaos!

Make a mobile app for it too so you can check in on your Chao.

These videos were massively helpful to me when writing this post:

youtube

#SEGA #Dreamcast #sega dreamcast #bayonetta #skies of arcadia #chao garden #Sonic Adventure #Dreamcast 2 #Dreamcast Mini #crazy taxi #Sonic Adventure 3 #power stone #Skies of Arcadia #Phantasy Star Online #jet set radio #launch titles #Chao Garden #sonic adventure 2 #chao

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lil-tachyon · 3 years ago

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do you have any advice on drawing mechs :)? your art is amazing!

Thanks for asking! I will preface this with the same piece of advice that I always give people: you get good at art by practicing. If you’re not consistently drawing and working on improving, you gotta get into the habit of that first. With that out of the way....

In terms of the actual drawing, you gotta be comfortable drawing lots of boxes and cylinders in perspective. That’s crucial for getting stuff like weapons and limbs looking good. The underlying structure of lots of mechanical things like mechs or other vehicles are often pretty basic and it’s the details you add on top that make them interesting. But make no mistake, you have to get the structure down first or else nothing’s going to look good. Here’s some examples from my own drawings where I’ve tried to point out the usage of very basic forms underlying everything else:

Now do you need to get out a ruler and protractor and plot out every single point of every geometrical figure exactly right, Scott Robertson style? Absolutely not (although it doesn’t hurt to be able to and I encourage you to try that as an exercise!) But you should be pretty comfortable drawing basic forms in perspective.

When you can do that, the next step is being able to actually design a mech from scratch and this is where it gets a bit harder but also where the fun really begins. Probably everyone has a different approach to this- I’m just gonna walk you through how I do it. Usually I have a vague idea for both the visual appearance and the “context” of a mech before I draw it and I develop both of these together because they both influence each other. By “context” I mean, “in what kind of world could this exist?” I think this is an important question to ask with mechs because in reality they probably don’t make much sense. In most applications, a wheeled or tracked vehicle would probably work better. And sometimes you just want to draw a cool robot and that’s it and the context doesn’t matter. But personally, I think I draw more interesting mechs when I think about what they’re built for and the world in which they exist. There’s sort of a “plausability spectrum” for mecha with somewhat realistic designs on one end and bonkers stuff on the other.

On the realistic end you have stuff that’s smaller, more compact. These might be deployed in places with rough terrain where a car won’t cut it. They’re probably not much bigger than a hardsuit and if they are, they’re probably quadrapedal or hexapedal for stability and weight distribution. For inspiration look to Simon Roy, Boston Dynamics, Maschinen Krieger, GitS, and real-world legged vehicles:

Past realism there’s a huge realm of mecha designs that I would call “plausible-in-context.” Mechs that are built more on rule-of-cool than practicality but have in-universe justifications and fit the setting. Star Wars, Lancer, Battletech, Gundam and honestly probably the vast majority of mech designs fit in here.

On the bonkers side you get it all. Stuff that’s definitely there to look cool before anything else or stuff with pretty noticeable fantasy elements. Gurren Lagann, Mony Pich’s stuff, Ghibli mechs, the work of Makoto Kobayashi, and Shining Force fit here.

Think about where your mech exists on the spectrum and come up with a little backstory for it. Is it a robotic pack mule accompanying spec ops teams into the mountains? Is it the emperor’s mechanotitan guard automaton from the ancient times? This the kind of stuff that influences how I draw a mech. Think about what it does, how that would impact how it looks visually, do thumbnails, work out the kinks and pretty soon you’ll find yourself with something you like. I use reference pretty liberally at this stage, either looking at art I like or real-world mechanical details, or weapon designs. Don’t be afraid to use any and all reference! You learn by studying others and the real world.

Once I’ve got the design pretty much figured out that’s when I finally work out the composition/posing of the final drawing and polish it off. Doing it this way takes me a while. I know people who can just draw cool mechs off the top of their head and that’s a totally valid way to do it as well! But this is the process that, right now, works pretty well for me.

Last little note- something I struggled with for a long time was making mechanical joints look good. My advice is to heavily reference other artists and see how they do it. Someone like Ryan Barry might go ham on the details and greebles:

Whereas monypich might cover lots of stuff up in smooth armor plating:

There are many, many different solutions. Use your judgement and don’t feel like you have to figure it out for yourself! It’s okay to take inspiration from others.

Hope this helps and please let me know if you have any other questions! Sorry for letting this sit in my inbox for a while but I wanted to try to write out a good answer.

#mecha #art tutorial #simon roy #monypich #cool ask

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ellemany · 2 years ago

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Chamber and Harbor: An Unnecessary comparison

Like, we are all giving up on Chamber at this point. I'm not judging, I'm also letting him go. I mean, we are all Andy changing toys here.

But, should we?

I'll make a comparison between our newest boys that no one asked for but we should think for reinforce our arguments that Harbor is better.

(There's NSFW at the end of the post, nothing specially explicit but it is still me being thirsty for boys that don't exists)

Design

Chamber

Stylish (I like it ok?), not practical

Idk if men need a tie for shooting someone. But, apparentely, Chamber needs it.

Cool Watch

Gold tattoos

Hair 7/10

Nice boobs

Bonus headcanon: He has an one side dimple

Harbor

Tactical clothes, more usuful for a shooting

Good colors

Literally, a Ben 10 watch and the Infinity Stones

His tattoos screams straight man at the gym

Hair 9/10 (good loose bun)

Interesting bíceps, I would like to study it better

Bonus Headcanon: He has the funny habit to play with his mustache when he is distracted

Agent Trailer

Chamber

8/10

I like how we kind of got what his skills are, but there's a whole mistery around him like "Is he frindly or an enemy? What's his story?"

Also, good choice for a soundtrack

Don't you dare to look in my face and say that you didn't thought that he was hot as hell at the time

Harbor

7,5/10

"Alvida" *screams in fangirling*

Cool powers

Generic backstory but it works

Bonus: Both messed up with Brimstone in the time that they met 🥰

( If you're wondering, my 10/10 Agent Trailer is Neon's one )

Selection Screen

Chamber

6/10

Baby boy is trying too hard to look badass

Harbor

8/10

Straight out from Bollywood movie (but it's not Astra's selection screen so... No 10/10)

Chracteristics

So, in my opinion, Chamber looks skinny and has some pretty long legs (considering his art). While Harbor seems to be more muscular. I have a headcanon that even thought both practice swimming, Chamber is more into aerobic exercises (breathe control is essential to a good shooter and I think that his telephoter has a height limit) and Harbor is into anaerobic exercises (Ancient artefacts are rough to carry)

In short

Chamber is fast

Harbor is strong

Chamber's personality

Gun Nerd

Jokes like your uncle in Christmas

Egocentric

Show-off

Questionable flirting skills

Musical taste: 5/10 (at the beginning you try to like it but, after a few minutes, you start to question all your life choices)

Now, I must defend my older babyboy. He might be a faker, trying to earn everyone's trust just to probably stab us all in the back BUT when he get his pet gun and starts to having fun killing people it's so... Adorable. C'mon, sometimes a man just needs to be a kid with his toys to gain a girl's heart.

Oh yeah, He might be a genocide too, only a detail

Also, Chamber canonically can play the piano

Harbor's personality

History/Architecture nerd

Actual funny

Often uses "we", good at teamwork

Show-off

Some flirting skills, might work

Musical taste: 10/10 (I AM THE RAJAAAAAAAAAAAA)

I like how genuine he sounds in his voice lines, it's very cute

Headcanon that he plays the ukelele

Gameplay

Chamber

Aim is needed, not for me

Nerfed every time

RIP Marks

But it's cool to use Rendez-vous at the Range at least

His ult voice line is 🤌🤌🤌

"Wanna play...""NO I DON'T WANT TO PLAY LEAVE ME ALONE 😭😭😭😭"

Harbor

Very fun

Pretty abilities (Sorry Viper)

Bulletproof smoke and his wall are pretty op if used right

Still needs abilities and idk how to think propely in this game

Badass ult, regular voice line

"I suggest you move" "oh, such a gentleman, I will move for you"

Who's better in bed?

Chamber fucks, Harbor makes love

That's it, that's the argument

Also, friendly reminder that even by some reason French people are know as deeply romantic and more opened to new experiences, Indians that created the Kama Sutra

So yes Love can be made in any way

That's all, hope you liked it

#me kind of trying #valorant #valorant chamber #valorant harbor #seemed fun in my head #Spotify

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boldlyvoid · 3 years ago

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Intro and masterlist

✨about me ✨

this is a mature blog, I trust all minors to be responsible and avoid everything marked NSFW!

NSFW sideblog: @pervstash-spencer

Hi! my name is emily, I'm 23 she/they

Capricorn, bisexual, non-binary, autistic, and I have fibromyalgia ✌🏻 overall just a fun time y'know.

ao3

i love: supernatural, star trek, marvel movies, criminal minds, this is us and grey's anatomy !!

Accepting requests for Spencer Reid x Reader fics currently

all my tags are listed below if you want to see other posts about said fics, also here is my Spotify for the fics <3

Dad!spencer Masterlist

First times Masterlist**

all links to my fics below the cut!

Updated: July 28th, 2021

** for smut

~~ for angst

Spencer Reid x Reader fics

Hypothetically**~ Ao3 | Tumblr -- 27 chapters, complete. 89k

reader and Spencer were friends in kindergarten, she watched him grow up and explore the world while she was still trying to catch up to him. now that they work together, they fall in love incredibly fast.

friends to lovers, case of the week style story

touch me**~ Ao3 | Tumblr 5.8k

Spencer is incredibly touch-starved and hard on himself since coming home from prison. Luckily, the medical examiner in this small town is really good at reading people, and exactly what he needs.

amethyst you so much P1 Ao3 | Tumblr 6.4k

Spencer has had a crush on Y/N since she started working at the bau. She only ever works the night shift after a case, handling all the aftermath gracefully. one night, Spencer stays back and they strike up a conversation about rocks, causing their feelings to dig a little deeper.

of quartz i will P2** Ao3 | Tumblr 6K

after 2 years of dating, Spencer decides it's finally time to get Y/N something to match her Amethyst bracelet.

Amoreena**~ Ao3 | Tumblr Completed 83k

Heaven is a real place and it's located exactly 14.6 miles away from the FBI, Quantico Headquarters. Off behind a small park, under a fantastical willow tree surrounded by wildflowers, in every colour young minds can imagine.

Don't forget, heaven also comes with angels.

Seven* Tumblr WIP

Summary: Spencer’s been married to Y/N for 7 years now, they have 7 children together and each one is going through something different. Spencer’s always wanted to be the best dad, now he gets to figure out how to be.

the guy at the rock show Ao3 | Tumblr 5.6K

Y/N lost their parents when they were 17, finding a new home and solace in Penelope Garcia and taking the Garcia name. They're the top forensic specialist in D.C, in a band and they drive a motorcycle... not to mention they are madly in love with the cute doctor who works with their sister.

journey to Camelot** Ao3 | Tumblr 3.8K

When Penelope introduces Spencer to online games, he expects to be spending his nights alone. Yet, somehow every time he comes back from a bad case, he logs on to chat with the ever so lovely user FairlyGwen and getting a lot more than just a helpful tip from her.

Exploration** Ao3 | Tumblr 4.7K

request: season1/2 spencer walking in on reader while she's watching porn in their shared hotel room

Expedition** Tumblr 1.2K

Summary: there's a first time for everything... including joining the mile high club with your boyfriend on the work jet.

10 Days Ao3 | Tumblr 1.4K

it's spencer's first father's day and he's extremely emotional about the little love of his life that he's only just met. he spends the day with his baby, Edwin, and his wife, crying and happy about how wonderful new little lives are.

ain't it fun?** Ao3 | Tumblr Masterlist 11K

reader just needs an NA meeting before they have a meltdown, they end up with the best friend they could ever make.

I'm not kidding!** Tumblr 6K

Spencer keeps getting little notes from a secret admirer, they're nice and sweet at first as they tease him with their crush until she's sending him notes about all the dirty things she wants to do to him

Perfect Timing** Tumblr 1K

spencer and reader have been spending the last month together in the same hotel room during a pretty brutal case. tension has been rising and she's completely in love with him.

what happens when they both think the other won't be back for a while and they want to shower?

Redamancy** Tumblr 5.4K

the co-op librarian at the FBI Academy has been secretly crushing on the smartest agent in the Bureau, TA, Doctor Spencer Reid, and he's been crushing on her too.

Being Neighbourly** Tumblr 1.9K

Request: reader is Spencers neighbour and she can hear him masturbating every night that he's home how do you have her deal with that?

Professional Hair Dresser (Ph.D)** Tumblr 6.4K

summary: after Spencer's knee injury, he starts visiting a salon every week to get his hair washed

36 Questions to Fall in Love Tumblr 8K

Summary: When Derek bets Spencer that he cant make someone fall in love with him in a week, he doesn’t expect Spencer to marry the girl the next day

New Romantics** Tumblr 23k

Summary: She needs help studying for her Case Exercises at the Academy, He needs a date for the annual Banquet... they just so happen to be neighbours who aren't afraid to lend a helping hand, or in this case, a helping kiss.

Million Dollar Man** | Tumblr WIP 5k so far

summary: Spencer's therapist recommended he branch out and meet new people who don't want to talk about his work... she didn't expect him to sign up for a Sugar Daddy website.

Sugar, Honey, Ice Tea** | Y/N version | 1-4, 5-9, Epilogue 25.6k

Summary: Fix-it-fic: Dr. Y/L/N and Savannah Hayes have been best friends since their medical internship at Bethesda General. When she receives a frantic call that Derek's best friend is being transferred to the prison she works at, an unlikely friendship bubbles.

Eventually falling head over heels for the innocent man.

Warnings: Implied/Referenced Rape/Non-con, Prison, Prison Violence, Assault, Blood, Depression, Murder, Self-Hatred, Hurt Spencer Reid, Canon-Typical Violence, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder - PTSD, Drug Addiction, References to Drugs, Drug Use, Idiots in Love, Mutual Pining, Romantic Tension, Forbidden Love, Angst, Angst with a Happy Ending, Strangers to Lovers, Requited Love, Falling In Love, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Slow Burn, Eventual Smut, past abusive relationship, Implied/Referenced Sexual Assault

Spencer x Ethan

Ruin it.** Tumblr 5.4K

Summary: Spencer never had sleepovers as a kid, so now that he's an adult he's always sleeping over at Ethan's house, ad he'll take any excuse to crawl into bed beside him.

Warnings: mutual pining, love concessions, blowjobs, handjobs, anal sex (both top and bottom spencer in this), childhood friends to lovers

400 Celebration fics

Reid Me Tumblr 2.5K

Spencer has noticed a beautiful woman at a spirituality booth at the farmers market every Saturday for almost a whole year now. he finally asks her to give him a reading.

mystery of love Tumblr 700

Spencer surprises his wife with a trip to Italy.

Spy Kids Tumblr 900

Spencer and Y/N's kids think that they are secretly spies and request a mission story before bed.

a father's greatest weakness Tumblr 1K

Princess Y/N is betrothed to the Viking king in an effort by her father to keep the peace between their countries, he doesn't expect her to join in the fight to free Scottland.

Luke x Reader

Best Dad Ever 2.8K

Request: angst with a happy ending, reader and luke have been divorced for a few years but have a child, she tries and tries to fall out of love with him but he's around so often that she can't

Spencer x OC

Sugar Honey Ice Tea** Ao3 | WIP 9/10 chapters complete 25.6K

Fix-it-fic: Dr. Beth Pattinson and Savannah Hayes have been best friends since their medical internship at Bethesda General. When she receives a frantic call that Derek's best friend is being transferred to the prison she works at, an unlikely friendship bubbles.

Eventually falling head over heels for the innocent man.

Intro to Criminal Minds: Why They Did It Ao3 | Tumblr WIP 6K+

Spencer is teaching a 7-week seminar on the most interesting criminal cases, explaining their actions to understand why they took place. Only, not everyone in the audience is a student.

Criminal Minds x Mindhunter AU

Spencer x OC Peggy Carr

Franklin x Reader

Voulez-Vouz** | 3.2k

Summary: in a small town, everyone knows each other… or at least they think they do.

Warnings: porn with plot, smut, Dom reader, Sub!Perv!franklin, making out, teasing, face sitting, oral (female and male), hand jobs, overstimulation, prostate message, multiple orgasms, penetrative sex, unprotected sex, let me know if I forgot anything.

Chip x Reader

forever is the sweetest con** | 6.2K

Summary: Reader’s dad is a carpenter; sometimes he takes on apprentices and sometimes, if they’re lucky, they get his daughter’s number at the end of their training. Chip Taylor, however, hits the jackpot when her father invites him over for one of her homecooked meals.

Warnings: reader’s mom passed away, mentions of parental death, strangers to lovers, random acts of kindness, mutual pining, falling in love, steamy make-outs, oral sex (male and female receiving), fingering, penetrative sex, unprotected sex, creampie, dirty talk, sub!chip, food mentions, praise, love confessions.

Raymond x Reader

Alone Together ** | 2.4K

Summary: Raymond moves into a haunted house and ends up sleeping with the ghost who lives there... only he doesn't know that when you fuck a ghost you also become one.

Warnings: details of suicide and murder, blowjobs, pegging, bottom!raymond, top!reader, becoming a ghost, major character death.

Star Trek Masterlist

Star Wars fix it fic

Supernatural masterlist

thanks for all the love, as always,

-Emily <3

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shakespeareanwannabe · 4 years ago

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Best Laid Plans

Santiago ‘Pope’ Garcia x F!OC

Summary: A sequel to ‘Protective Instincts’. The last 7 and a half months have been a whirlwind, and part of Pope still can’t fathom the idea of being a father. But now that his kid is here? All bets are off. *Still based off of the wonderful headcanons by @darksideofclarke*

Warnings: Pregnancy fic (so, again, if you aren’t vibing with it, don’t read it), swearing, references to birth (it’s nothing graphic, just mentions of water breaking, contractions, and epidurals), references to breastfeeding

A/N: Hi everyone! I was blown away by the response to ‘Protective Instincts’, so I wrote a sequel that’s based off of part of one of clarke’s headcanons. This was so fun to write, and I’m really wanting to write more about Bex and Pope, and Pope and Frankie, and the baby, so I’m hoping you all enjoy this as much as you enjoyed the first one! If you want to be added to the tags, please let me know. I just used the tags list from ‘Protective Instincts’ for this one.

**********

Pope was a planner. Not as good as Tom, mind you, but he could plan an operation with the best of them. That was, after all, how he had convinced his closest friends to help him take down one of Colombia’s biggest and most dangerous narcos.

“Just look at my work on it.”

That was the phrase he used on all of them, but he had been banking on their loyalties as well. He had known going in that Benny would only need him. He had figured that a tiny twist of Catfish’s arm and Pope’s record of getting into deep shit when Frankie wasn’t around to stop him would be enough to encourage Catfish to join them. Will had needed Tom, Tom had needed Pope’s workup of the mission. Planning. Having a rough idea in your head of how people will react was a big part of planning an op and putting together a team.

Bex’s birth plan was viewed in the exact same light. He hadn’t been lying to her when he told her that whatever she wanted to do, they were going to do. If she had demanded that she give birth while standing on her head, Pope would have found a way to make that happen, doctors be damned. So, Pope made sure that her birth plan was as detailed as any highly classified military operation.

That document became like a Bible to Pope. He sat with Bex as she painstakingly went through every single option, checking off certain boxes and rolling her eyes at others.

“I swear to God, babe. If they try to show me the birth through a mirror, I might kick a nurse in the face,” she had laughed. Pope had laughed as well, knowing his sweet tempered girl would never do such a thing but also knowing that, when the time came, if someone tried to bring a mirror into the room when his girl hadn’t requested it, he would be raising hell on her behalf.

Of course, he knew that things never ran as smoothly as you planned. Colombia had been proof enough of that, but he held tight to the birth plan, taking comfort in the knowledge that, by knowing what it was Bex wanted, he would be able to do some small part in assisting her through her labor and delivery. Of course, he would stay in the room with her (just him and the medical staff, no friends or family would even know about the labor until at least 4 hours after the kid arrived) and let her squeeze his hand and yell at him if she needed to, but Pope was a man of action. He faced situations head on, guns blazing. This...this was one situation where he would be almost helpless, watching as his girl fought to bring their kid into the world.

The birth plan was his tether. Bex had outlined every single thing she wanted to happen before, during, and after the birth.

“Of course, if things go south, you tell them to fuck the plan and do whatever they need to do,” she had reiterated several times over the course of building and rebuilding their plan. And when Bex’s water broke at 1 p.m. that cold November afternoon, Pope knew within the span of her first contraction that he would indeed tell the medical staff to fuck the plan if there was even the slightest notion of something being wrong. He was not losing his girl or their baby due to his stubbornness in sticking to a plan.

Luckily, it went as smooth as it possibly could have gone. Nobody brought any mirrors into the room. She had been able to walk laps up and down the hallway to help herself along. Bex had caved around midnight and begged for an epidural, which Pope had been quick to sooth her about.

“Baby, you’ve been at this for almost 12 hours,” he had whispered into her sweaty hair, wiping a cool rag over her forehead as she squeezed his hand and tearfully whispered that she wanted the injection. “You’ve done everything you can naturally. The laps and the breathing and the exercises…Baby, I know Marines who would have given up and asked for pain meds hours ago,” he had laughed. “You’re fucking Wonder Woman, baby. I’m so proud of you.” He smiled and kissed her forehead as she gifted him with a tired but grateful smile. “Our kiddo is just being a little stubborn right now, okay?”

“T…takes after their daddy,” she chuckled breathily.

“God help us,” he laughed, pressing another kiss to her forehead as she winced, another contraction overtaking her body. Pope hit the Help button by her bed and waited for the nurse to come so they could inform her of the change in their plan.

Finally, at three o’clock in the morning, Liliana Esperanza Garcia was placed onto her mother’s chest with an angry cry. Pope stayed right by Rebecca’s side the entire time, having no interest in cutting the umbilical cord and the idea of catching his daughter as she was born was more than a little terrifying to the seasoned veteran, so he remained at his post at Bex’s bedside and cried alongside his two girls.

**********

Watching the sunrise through their hospital room window, Pope sat with his little girl pressed against his bare chest and thanked god that they had decided on a hospital that allowed fathers to do skin to skin contact with their kids while still at the hospital. He reveled in the feel of her tiny cheek pressed against his chest, right over his heart. The feel of her heartbeat hammering against his skin was addicting and soothing at the same time. He had never known peace like this.

Frankie had been right. Of course he had been, he nearly always was. Holding Lily in his arms somehow made up for Afghanistan, Iraq, Colombia, and every other fuck up in his life. This little thing in his arms that couldn’t function on her own, that wouldn’t be able to for a long time, had already done so much good. It would be months before she could even hold her own head up, but, somehow, she had managed to erase all the red in his ledger, simply by breathing.

Of course, her mother helped. Pope looked over at Bex, asleep in the hospital bed beside him. His warrior queen. She had given him this gift, put her body through unimaginable change and pain for their little family, and she had done it with a smile on her face (most of the time). He would never deserve her, but he was so damn glad that she somehow saw the best in him, that she chose him on a daily basis.

“Remember when I said we have to be good to Mamá?” he whispered, brushing his lips gently over Lily’s dark downy baby hair. “She worked so hard to bring you here. We’re always gonna owe her, mija.”

“Knock, knock,” a soft voice called from the sliding glass door of their private room. Pope looked up and smiled, laughing softly at the sight in front of him.

Benny was weighed down by what looked like seven or eight large stuffed animals, an “It’s a Girl” balloon flying over his head. Will stood next to him, a look of fond exasperation on his face as the balloon gently bonked him on the head, and a bouquet of white lilies in his hand. Frankie, the one who had knocked, was slightly in front of them both, a kind smile pulling at his lips as he took in the small family in front of him.

“Hey fellas,” he whispered, carefully pulling himself to his feet with one hand and nodding to them to come in, eyes never leaving his daughter. “This is Lily.”

“She’s beautiful, man,” Benny whispered, his eyes growing shiny.

“Congratulations, Pope,” Will echoed, gently clasping Pope’s shoulder.

“How’s Momma doing?” Frankie whispered, maneuvering himself to stand just over Pope’s right shoulder so he would have a good view of the sleeping baby girl.

“She’s a warrior, man,” Pope peered over his shoulder at his sleeping girlfriend, and every single one of the hardened soldiers could see the love and awe in their Lieutenant’s eyes. “Fuck, I don’t know how she did it.”

Frankie choked back a laugh. “You’re gonna want to watch that language now, Papá. Little ears and all that.”

“The swear jar will end up paying for her college tuition,” Benny jabbed, jostling with his armload when Will gave him a smack.

“Benny, you can put those on the table over there, man,” Pope told him. “Just be careful not to wake Bex.”

“Too late…” a soft warm voice announced, making Pope’s heart flutter.

“Hey baby,” he sighed happily, turning back and slowly walking over to sit on the edge of her bed. “How’d you sleep?”

“Not long enough,” she laughed as she held her arms out. Pope gently deposited their daughter in her mother’s safe embrace before shaking out his hands. He’d carried loads ten times her size, but something about the position made his wrists ache. “Hey princess,” she cooed, running a soft finger over their daughter’s chubby cheek. “How long was I out?”

“Just over an hour,” he smiled as he leaned down to press a kiss to her forehead before moving to the recliner to put his shirt back on. “Look who’s here.”

“Hey guys,” she smiled tiredly at them. “Forgive me for not getting up to hug you but…” she shrugged as she nodded down at the baby in her arms.

“Congratulations, Momma,” Frankie smiled as he swooped in to give her a kiss on the cheek. “Charlie figured you wouldn’t want to eat a crappy hospital breakfast, so…” he held up the cooler in his hands. “We made a little feast for you, if you’re up for it.”

Rebecca groaned. “Oh my god, tell me your waffles are in there.” At Frankie’s nod, she groaned again. “Ugh, I am so up for it, Frankie. Thank you! Just, uh…” she trailed off as she looked down at her hospital gown clad body. “I think I want to take a shower first if that’s okay?”

Pope swooped in to relieve her of Lily and Frankie helped her stand up.

“You need me? Or do you want me to call a nurse?” Pope asked.

“You stay here with Lily and the guys,” she decided. “I think I can handle it on my own but keep an ear out?” Pope nodded and she smiled as she kissed him on the cheek. “Will, could you pass me my—” Will already had her bag extended to her. She laughed. “Thanks.”

“Milady,” Benny extended an elbow to her and helped her shuffle across the floor to the ensuite bathroom.

She winked as she began to pull the door closed. “See you guys in an hour,” she joked.

“Take your time, baby,” Pope called, quickly adjusting to softly shush Lily as she whimpered.

“Can’t believe you’re a dad now, man,” Benny laughed as he took a seat on the edge of the bed. “Out of all of us, I never would’ve had you down as a family man. I mean, c’mon. The guy who slept with every informant he had now has a daughter? Karma’s gonna bite you on the ass, dude.”

Inwardly, Pope rolled his eyes. Sometimes it was easy to forget how much younger Benny was compared to the rest of them. He hadn’t been anxious to settle down when he was Ben’s age either, but now? He couldn’t imagine what his life would be like without waking up every morning next to Rebecca’s smiling face. And Lily? She was less than six hours hold, and she already had Santiago wrapped around her little finger.

“Things change, Benny,” Will calmly informed his little brother. “Now, what do you say we go get some drinks for everyone? See if we can scrounge up some actual coffee in this place?” Ben shrugged but nodded as Will approached the bathroom door and lightly tapped on it. “Hey Becca? We’re going to get something to drink. Do you want anything?”

“An orange juice would be great, thanks Will!” she called back before the sound of the shower turning on pervaded the room.

As Will guided Benny out of the room, he turned back and shot a wink at Pope, causing him to laugh. They all knew that Ben was a lot to handle, and Will had gotten good over the years at judging when one of his friends were about to pop his little brother one. For all the MMA training and fighting Benny did, he was kind of clueless when it came to the tempers of his friends.

Pope settled down on the edge of the mattress, unable to look away from Lily, even as Frankie sat down next to him.

“I just can’t stop looking at her, man,” he admitted softly.

“Take it all in, hermano,” Frankie grinned. “You’re gonna blink and she’s gonna be off to kindergarten.”

“Malo,” Pope muttered to him under his breath and Frankie laughed. He dragged his eyes away from his sleeping daughter to smile back at his best friend. “You want to hold her?”

Frankie blinked and raised a hand to scratch at the hair under his cap. “You sure?” he double-checked hesitantly.

Pope slowly and carefully placed the sleeping baby in Frankie’s arms. She snuffled for a brief moment before falling back asleep.

“Hola, corazon,” Frankie whispered, stroking a finger over her dark hair. Frankie looked up to meet Pope’s eyes, tears glimmering in both their eyes. “Shit Santi…” he breathed.

“I know…” The two men sat for a long moment in silence, Lily’s quiet breaths and the sound of the shower in the background washing over them. “I…I’m sorry I wasn’t here for you, Frankie,” Pope started quietly.

“Huh?” Frankie didn’t take his eyes off the baby.

“When Mateo was born…I shoulda been here,” Pope scratched at the back of his neck.

Frankie shook his head at Pope. “Bro, stop. You were in Colombia doing what you had to do. And you’re here now.”

Pope sighed. “I don’t think I coulda done this without you, Frankie,” he whispered. “Shit, I might’ve just kept driving that night. I coulda missed all of this. I could’ve missed her.” Pope reached out a finger and slowly stroked Lily’s fist until she opened her hand and weakly grasped his finger.

“You would’ve come back, man. Don’t kid yourself. You don’t leave jobs unfinished,” Frankie said simply because, to him, it was simple. You didn’t follow a man into war zone after war zone without getting to know every facet of their personality. Santiago Garcia never left a man behind, and never left a job undone. It’s why he was Frankie’s best friend. There was so much loyalty, so much trust, between the two of them.

Pope laughed. “Yeah, I guess you’re right. I’ve got the kid, now I’ve just gotta get the girl.”

Frankie watched as Pope dug into his jacket pocket, draped over the side of the recliner, and pulled out a navy-blue plush box. Cracking it open, Pope tilted the box towards Frankie so he could see the square amethyst jewel sitting in a simple gold band.

Gently, Frankie unfolded one arm from underneath Lily and gave Pope a shove before quickly resuming his position.

“When?”

Pope shrugged. “I’ve had this stupid thing for months, man. But I didn’t want to give it to her then because I didn’t want her thinking it was just because she was pregnant. Part of me wants to give it to her now, but I don’t want her thinking it’s just because she just had my kid, you know?”

Frankie nodded sagely. “I get it.”

“Maybe in a couple of months?” Pope asked, looking between the engagement ring and his best friend.

“First date out without the kid could work,” Frankie agreed.

“Maybe Lily could spend some time with her godfather while her Mom and Dad go for dinner or something?” Frankie kept nodding. “Would you like that, Lily?” Pope murmured, leaning over his friend’s shoulder to speak to his little girl. “You want to spend some time with Tío Frankie?”

Frankie’s head shot up. “You mean…?” Pope chuckled, a smile pulling at his lips. “Dude, I was kidding about calling…You don’t have to…”

“Frankie…” Pope clasped his best friend’s shoulder. “There’s no one we trust more than you. Will you be Lily’s godfather?”

Pope watched as Frankie swallowed hard, his Adam’s apple bobbing as he stared down at the little girl in his arms as she began to fuss.

“Shh, corazon…” Frankie soothed, rocking her back and forth as he stood up to pace the room. “Tío Frankie has you.”

Santiago couldn’t help but smile. If someone had told him even five years ago that he would be at a hospital, just a few hours after his daughter was born, planning to propose to the mother of his child with the help of his best friend, retired Second Lieutenant Francisco ‘Catfish’ Morales, who was now a married man with a son and another kid on the way, he would have asked what kind of crack they were snorting and to point him in the direction of their drug dealer.

Guys like them didn’t get the happy endings. They got the beginnings of the fairy tale, the girl and the glory of returning home after war, but after the ‘Happily Ever After’, they got the nightmares and the divorces and the dual mortgages and the child support. They ended up like Tom, so deep in the trenches that they cave in and bury you.

At least, that’s what Pope thought when he signed on for private sector work in Colombia. He wasn’t ready to give up the thrill of the chase, the ‘good work’ he was doing, to face the shitshow that would inevitably be waiting for him at home. When Colombia had ended up being the shitshow, and Yovanna had seen right through him and sent him packing, he thought that was it. The end of his rope, the end of the line.

Moving closer to Frankie had been a godsend. Pope would always credit him with having literally saved his life. Getting to watch how Frankie handled it all, seeing him interact with Charlie and Mateo, standing next to him at the simple courthouse wedding. Frankie was living proof that life went on even when he didn’t have the flag on his shoulder anymore. Proof that ‘Happily Ever After’ didn’t have to fall flat. And, if Pope hadn’t moved close to Frankie, Charlie never would have gotten him the physiotherapy consult at her clinic, and he never would have met Bex. He never would have learned that guys like them could have happy endings, so long as they fought for them with as much vim and vigor that they fought every other battle of their lives with.

“Hey Papá,” Frankie called with a laugh, pulling Pope from his thoughts. He turned to see Frankie holding Lily out to him carefully as she started to cry.

He hurried to cradle his daughter against his chest, quietly humming to her in a feeble attempt to get her to settle. “Shh, baby girl. You’re okay. Papá’s here.”

Bex appeared in the bathroom doorway, her skin dewy from the shower and her hair thrown up out of her face. “I think she might be hungry, babe,” she called over their daughter’s cries. She walked over to get herself settled on the bed, wincing every few steps until she could lie back on the thin mattress, adjusting it so she could sit up.

“I’ll give you three some privacy,” Frankie muttered, clasping Pope’s shoulder in one hand and running his finger over Lily’s clenched fist with the other. “I’ll go see what the Millers found to drink. We’ll be back in a few.”

Pope nodded distractedly as his friend smiled warmly at Bex and left the room, closing the door with a soft click. He gently transferred Lily into her mother’s arms before perching on the edge of the mattress by Bex’s hip. “You want me to call the nurse?”

Bex nodded as she watched Lily nuzzle at her chest. “Yeah, they said they would bring the specialist in the first couple of times to make sure I’m doing this right.”

Pope kissed her temple as she pulled down the side of her baggy T-shirt in preparation of feeding their daughter. “You’re gonna do great, baby,” he whispered into her hair. “Wonder Woman, remember?”

She smiled softly at him as he pressed the Help button. “I love you,” she murmured.

“I love you more,” he replied with a soft look on his face as the nurse entered. It was a playful argument they had on a nearly weekly basis, but this time, Pope knew he had won. Pope knew he would always win at loving her more because, without her, he wouldn’t have any of this. And that filled his heart to bursting.

**********

“She’s so beautiful, Santi…” Bex whispered as she lovingly stroked her finger up and down their sleeping daughter’s arm.

All the tests had been run. Pope was over the moon to receive the news that both mother and child were healthy and strong. The small group of warriors had gorged themselves on the Morales’ world class waffles, bacon, and fruit salad before Frankie, Benny and Will had dismissed themselves from the hospital, all three promising to come and visit the following week once the new family was more settled. A nurse had come by every few hours to help teach Bex how to breastfeed, and teach Santi how to change a diaper, and teach them both how to swaddle. All things they had practiced in their parenting classes, but Pope appreciated the reminders. Especially since, the second he laid eyes on his baby girl, all the lessons flew out of his brain. Finally, a doctor paid them a visit and told them they would be free to go at the start of visiting hours the next day.

That had been twelve hours ago. Presently, the small family was bathed in the glow of the setting sun that was filtering in from the master bedroom window. Lily was asleep on the bed in between her parents, who were lying on their sides while holding hands above her head.

“She takes after her mother,” he smiled at her, glad to see he could still make her blush just over a year into their relationship.

“I hope she gets your hair,” she whispered back as she released his hand and reached out to card a hand through his short, thick curls. “I love your hair,” she sighed as she clasped his hand again.

“You want her going grey before she’s 40?” he teased. Bex shot him a playful glare. “I hope she gets your eyes.”

“…I hope she’s happy,” Bex breathed, tears pooling in her eyes.

Pope reached out and cradled her cheek in his hand, softly swiping at the falling tears with his thumb. “She will be, baby. Love her hard, show up, give a shit, and let her find her own path, right?” Bex nodded at him but the tears kept streaming. “Hey…” He stood and picked Lily up, carefully transferring her into the bassinet they had put in their room, before sliding back into bed and pulling his teary girlfriend into his arms. She quietly cried into his shoulder as he ran a soothing hand up and down her back. “You okay?” he asked gently as she finally pulled away, the grey cotton of his shirt stained black.

“Sorry,” she murmured contritely as she wiped at her cheeks. “Stupid hormones.”

“You didn’t answer my question, querido,” he observed.

Rebecca tilted her head back on his shoulder to look in his eyes. She gently ran her thumb over the laugh lines that crinkled in the corners of his eyes and sighed softly. “I feel okay, honestly Santi. My hormones are kind of all over the place, and my body feels like I was hit by a truck, but it’s not as bad as I thought it would be.”

Santiago shifted them so he was lying with his head on his pillow and she had her head on his chest. “As someone who has seen a guy after he got hit by a truck, I’d say that sounds pretty bad.”

She shrugged gently. “I mean, I won’t be doing it again for at least a couple of years, and I know I got lucky because some of the stories I read…” she shuddered lightly before meeting his eyes again. “But I feel better than I thought I would. Does that make sense?”

He nodded as she yawned. “Makes perfect sense, baby. Why don’t you try to get some sleep while Lily is down? We need to be up in about two hours to feed her.”

Rebecca smiled at him as she slid onto her own pillow, still facing him. “You really want to get up and watch me feed our daughter?”

“Mi alma,” he sighed, pulling her in to plant a tender, loving kiss on her lips before pulling back, pressing his forehead against hers. “I’ll get up for as many feedings, changes, crying fits that I can. I don’t want to miss a second of this.”

A bright smile pulled at her lips as tears pooled in her eyes again. “Damnit, Santi…” she laughed as she wiped her face with the hem of her shirt.

He pulled as close as he could and tangled their legs together. “I won’t apologize,” he declared, a soft smile on his face. “I love you so damn much, Rebecca. Te amo…te adoro…te quiero…te necesito…” Pope brushed a kiss against her temple, her forehead, her nose, and finally her lips in between each phrase.

Her eyes started to droop as a content grin graced her features. “I love you too, Santiago. More than any word in any language could ever express.”

He watched and listened as her breathing evened out and she drifted off. He couldn’t shake the pride from flowing through his veins as he listened to his two girls breathe in the fading light. He was never supposed to have this, but he would fight tooth and nail for anyone who tried to take it away.

**********

Tags list: @darksideofclarke, @writefightandflightclub, @eternallyvenus, @rae-rae-patcha

#santiago pope garcia x oc #santiago pope garcia #triple frontier #triple frontier fanfiction #oscar issac #frankie catfish morales #dad!pope #fanfic

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dokidokivisual · 4 years ago

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Gochiusa BLOOM episode 5 impressions

Previously: 4 - 3 - 2 - 1

Welcome to another installment of my Gochiusa BLOOM episode reviews. At the end of last episode Cocoa finds out about Chino’s intention to go to her school, so this episode opens with some sort of ceremony to celebrate this fact. Despite a reference to alcohol, this ceremony might seem innocent, but it actually has a dark connotation...

First off, Cocoa is asking if everyone is holding a sakazuki. Sakazuki is a special traditional sake cup, which was apparently so important that it even has its own kanji 盃. A real sakazuki is actually more like a saucer than a cup, and holds very little alcohol. The girls are holding regular coffee cups, while pretending they are sakazuki. But what is the importance of sakazuki here?

The hint comes from Chiya’s description of the ceremony: 義兄弟の盃 (gikyodai no sakazuki) which literally translates as “sake cup of sworn brothers”, though kyodai can be used for siblings of any gender. The origin of this type of ceremony lies in Chinese 14th century novel Romance of Three Kingdoms, where the so-called Oath of the Peach Garden has transpired between three major characters. However in modern times, this type of brotherhood ceremony is mainly used by organized crime syndicates known as yakuza. So what you’re supposed to be seeing in this scene is literally Chino being initiated into a gang. If you’re interested, here’s a video of gikyodai sakazuki ceremony of Yamaguchi-gumi, the largest yakuza organization.

The ceremony is interrupted by Aoyama Blue Mountain who somehow got behind the counter. Soon, Mate Rin comes in looking for her, but she’s already gone. Before this point I didn’t know yet what the part B of the episode will be about, but this intro definitely provides a hint about it. Rin also gives a business card to Chiya, but it’s a bit difficult to read. Thankfully, there’s a better shot of it later in the episode.

Cocoa remembers there’s a marathon tournament, and Chiya is horrified when she learns that it involves running. However Cocoa persuades her that as Chino’s recently sworn older sister and senior she should run the whole distance.

Chiya’s motivation for participation in marathon was changed compared to the manga, the chapter in question (vol.5 ch.7) opens with Cocoa and Chiya doing exercises during PE class (a scene sadly cut out from the anime) and has to deal with Chiya and Cocoa’s friendship bond. This is why Chiya wants to finish the race with Cocoa so badly.

Chiya starts training by herself to get ready for the marathon. The location where she trains (some sort of clearing being overlooked by a bridge) is quite interesting, as it also appears in season 1 episode 5 (where Cocoa and Chiya practice volleyball) and Sing For You OVA where Chino uses the same tire excercise as part of her special training.

Ironically Rize thinks one tire is “too far” for Chiya, but 5 tires is ok for Chino who was supposed to train her singing. Anyway it’s quite interesting how some locations in town stay consistent, I wonder if the staff has a detailed map of them.

Despite having muscle pain from training, Chiya shows her resolve to finish the race to Cocoa. In this speech she mentions the Whirlwind (旋風) from the title of the episode (”On that day I will make Ama Usa An whirlwind blow”). Interestingly, the title of this manga chapter 千の夜を走る風となる (”run 1000 nights to become the wind”) also mentions the wind.

Cocoa also wants to train, and justifies her ability to wake up early with a helpful diagram (which looks as if she’s born directly from bread). To be fair, her justification that bakers wake up early does make sense, and she didn’t seem to have a problem to wake up in time in Dear My Sister. However when staying in Rabbit House, she definitely tends to oversleep, which happened this time too.

Rize and Chiya start training without her, and start playing shiritori to keep Chiya’s spirit up. Honestly this game appears in pretty much every anime ever, so should I even bother to explain the rules? Anyway, Rize names sweets that she supposedly overate, while Chiya names stuff that would be normally served at Ama Usa. However after saying いちご大福 (strawberry rice cake) she continues even though it’s Rize’s turn, saying 黒豆寒天 (black soybean jelly). This ends in “ん” (n) which is a losing turn in shiritori, since no Japanese words start with ん. Nevertheless, Chiya continues listing off Ama Usa desserts and eventually just switches to advertisement mode. Rize compares her to senden car which is a decorated truck that you can find driving around Japanese cities while blasting advertisements really loudly.

Rize introduces her stamp card here (which is an upgrade over her previous motivation techniques, such as the schedule in Dear My Sister), which gives Chiya an idea for an Ama Usa An stamp card. The reward for completing it is 90 minutes of all-you-can-drink piping hot oshiruko, which is a kind of soup made from red beans. The fact that it’s very hot was for some reason omitted from the official English subs, even though that’s what makes the deal especially ridiculous.

Cocoa still wants to train, so she asks Sharo to run with her. However when the morning comes she still can’t wake up on time. When Sharo talks about Chiya taking up jogging there is a montage of Chiya training with Rize, but at this moment Sharo doesn’t know that Chiya trains with Rize, which is why she gets jealous when it is revealed later.

Sharo’s orange phone with the dangling teacup charm was previously seen for example in season 2 episode 7. The exact model is “Kyocera Honey Bee 201K” and as you can see it’s accurately drawn down to the small details.

This is another repeatedly used Gochiusa outdoors location, seen for example in season 1 episode 6 when Cocoa and Tippy meet Aoyama, and in season 2 OP in the shot with Tippy, Anko and Wildgeese. This is where Rize wants to persuade Chiya to continue training, but Chiya isn’t having it. In the manga this is where Rize pulls out her stamp card (almost filled out) to persuade her, but in anime version we never see how many stamps she acquired.

The marathon starts and we see some of Cocoa’s classmates from the previous episode running by. As expected, Cocoa ended up being less fit than Chiya and had to hold on to Chiya’s twintails to keep up. The manga doesn’t actually show them finishing the race, so watching whether Chiya would be able to cross the finish line was quite suspenseful.

After the race, Sharo is disappointed at being left out, but Rize invites her for special training right away. Rize seems to be interested in some triathlon competition and tried to invite Chiya earlier, but Chiya was scared off by the mere name “triathlon”. A triathlon competition features running, cycling and swimming. Sharo is actually better than Rize at swimming (see season 1 episode 8) and perhaps Cocoa is the best at cycling.

We never see how these two trained, but in the manga there’s an additional illustration at page 65 of volume 5 which shows how it may looked like.

Now the “carefree breeze” part of the episode starts, and it’s based on volume 6 chapter 3, making it the first chapter from volume 6 to be animated. Even though there are 9 chapters between part A and part B of this episode, in retrospect it makes a lot of sense that they were put together. For one, they feature a lot of running. And there are a lot of outdoor locations. Such as the park where Cocoa and Chiya meet off-duty Aoyama.

You might recognize it as the same park where Cocoa meets Aoyama for the first time in season 1 episode 6. In season 2 episode 8, Cocoa and Chiya also walk through this park when returning from school.

Cocoa and Chiya think Aoyama is going on a date (this is more explicit in the manga) but it seems she doesn’t have anything to do and just dressed up nicely for the sake of it.

She wants to play tag, which in Japanese is called oni-gokko and oni (a demon) is the one who’s chasing the other players. The role of the demon is relegated to Mate Rin who comes to Rabbit House for the second time this episode to search for Aoyama. This time we get a better look at her business card.

The name of the publisher is Seironsha (生論社 - the first kanji is not visible here, but is visible in the manga). Usually publishing companies in Kirara series are parodies of Houbunsha but not this time. I couldn’t find the reason behind this name anywhere. There’s a word “Seiron” which means “sound reasoning” but it’s spelled with different kanji (正論). There’s also a publisher Rironsha (理論社) although it seems pretty obscure. Also a fun fact: Aoyama’s book Bakery Queen (seen in Dear My Sister OVA) had a different publisher 走兎舎 (”Soutosha”?) which means “running rabbit house”.

Rize, Chino and Rin form Shin-furimawasare-tai (“the new at-their-mercy corps”) which is a reference to season 2 episode 8, as well as a few character songs recorded by Rize, Chino and Sharo as Furimawasare-tai. It seems that Sharo is sidelined a lot in this episode...

Next there’s a montage of them unsuccessfully chasing Chiya, Cocoa and Aoyama, which shows off various locations in town. They are not necessarily just random spots. For example the stairs with the statue and the fountain are actually right next to each other, as can be seen in Dear My Sister.

Then they spot Aoyama riding a gondola (a somewhat fancier one than in the beginning of episode 3) and Tippy falls off Chino’s head. Which doesn’t happen nearly as often as you’d think it would. Last time (season 2 episode 6) it also involved boats...

Cocoa, Chiya and Aoyama make a pact to be caught together, but it falls apart rather quickly, as Cocoa gets lured by Chino. The scene of Cocoa being captured was quite expanded compared to the manga, with Chiya and Aoyama trying to discourage Cocoa from falling into the obvious trap, and then lamenting her “passing”.

Despite the earlier pact to be caught at once, Aoyama and Chiya split up and Rize ends up chasing Chiya. This is where the marathon chapter is referenced, as the teacher ends up chasing the student. Chiya was able to keep up for a while, but hits the dead-end and surrenders to Rize.

Meanwhile Cocoa, Chino and Rin go to some sort of fair, where Sharo finally appears, performing as Phantom Thief Lapin. Rin, being a fan of Lapin comes closer and discovers Aoyama already sitting there, who seems to like Sharo a bit too much...

I also wonder where did Tippy come from, because it didn’t seem like Aoyama carried him while running away earlier. Next we see the infamous rabbit carousel, which looks even weirder when CGI animated.

It’s evening now, but if you look back at Rize chasing Chiya scene it’s clear that the sun is already beginning to set by then, and the sky becomes darker in the Lapin scene. There are all sorts of colorful lights in the background, which creates a proper fairgrounds atmosphere.

The lighting gets even more fairytale-like as everyone gets on the carousel, with bokeh effect being created by all the lights at the fair. Interestingly, the word “bokeh” comes from Japanese where it means “blur”. This entire scene looks quite amazing with CGI and special effects blending in with 2d animation very well. I bet it used up more budget than the rest of the episode, but it was worth it.

One of the interesting shots here was this one, with Chiya riding alone and looking pensively at Rize and Sharo, which made me feel bad for her. At least in the manga version, Chiya was riding with Rin so she didn’t look as lonely.

Aoyama and Rin are reminiscing about their past, and there’s a flashback of Aoyama in high-school uniform thanking Master (Chino’s grandfather) for lending her a fountain pen (a callback to season 1 episode 9 where she loses this pen). Unbeknownst to her, Master is sitting right in her lap, as Tippy. Maybe if Aoyama kept track of when she hears Master’s voice and Tippy is around, she’d have figured it out by now...

Anyway, that was another great episode of Gochiusa BLOOM, and check in next week for my review of the next episode which is coming out this Saturday. Seems like it will have more rabbits than usual...

#gochuumon wa usagi desu ka?#is the order a rabbit?#gochiusa #review

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aquaticalay · 5 years ago

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Centurion .Chapter One.

Bucky Barnes x Reader

Sequel to For Something Greater (If you have not read this, click the link to the masterlist in my bio.)

Summary: (Y/n) is an active duty Navy SEAL Commander, the first and only woman to ever become a SEAL. After successfully stopping a genocide with the help of the Avengers, she becomes a bridge between the military and the earth's mightiest heroes. But even as her relationship with Bucky grows, she decides not to tell him about the nightmares and trauma that haunt her. Both their secrets begin to unravel when Bucky accidentally stumbles upon a piece of dangerous information about (Y/n) that she doesn't know about herself— something she must never find out about.

Genre: Action, Drama, Romance

Warning/s for the series: cursing, violence, death, eventual smut, PTSD.

Warning/s for the chapter: refenrence to sex and anxiety symptoms.

Word count: 2.5k

Note: The plot is heavily inspired by the song 'in the dark' by Bring Me The Horizon, and 'Mercy' by Muse. So yeah, go listen to it if you want to :))) I'll post a new chapter every two days.

Let me know if you want to be in the taglist

(Taglist will be reblogged)

TRIGGER WARNING! THIS SERIES REVOLVES AROUND POST-TRAUMATIC STRESS DISORDER. (Including, but not limited to: anxiety/panic attacks, extreme mood swings , nightmares, intrusive thoughts, insomnia, irritability, hypervigilance, and hyperarousal)

New York was crowded, as usual. It was a good thing you weren't headed into the buzzing crowd. You didn't have to deal with the subway odors that could sting until your head hurts, or being cramped in the middle 8 million people in the center of the city. You’re going upstate instead.

These days you tend to avoid crowds. Too many things can go wrong in a place with too many people.

You just got back from a month-long peacekeeping mission in South East Asia with your squadron. It was nothing out of the ordinary. In fact, it was quite dull in comparison to your usual military operations. There wasn't a single clash in the mission, and you were thankful for it. You really needed a break from the non-stop violence, both mentally and physically.

The rest of the white squadron went home to their families, getting all the rest and relaxation they could get before the next operation briefing.

And here you are, taking a flight to visit friends, and dying to meet your boyfriend. Meeting Bucky, however, was not the sole purpose of your visit to the Avenger's headquarters. You had a job to do as well.

As you drove inside the Avengers' HQ, you were greeted by FRIDAY, who allowed you into the facility.

You parked up front, exiting your vehicle and locking it with a push of a button.

Sam was the first one who greeted you, hands folded and waiting for you outside. Friday must have notified him of your arrival.

"Captain," you said in an almost teasing tone. You gave him a short hug and a pat on the back. He returned it with a smile. "Commander," he replied just as lightheartedly, a playful leap in his tone, "You're two days early. Buck told me you weren't coming back till' Friday."

You shrugged, a smile tugging on your lips at the mention of his name. "Things went better than originally planned," you told him, "Besides, I've got something for you."

The only person present in the common room besides you and Sam was Wanda, who was making chamomile tea on the kitchen counter. The smell of roasted leaves left a hint of sweet aroma in the air. It was a nice scent, a good change of pace from the primal earthly smell of the forests of Borneo. Neither she nor Sam looked tired at all, which lead you to believe there hadn't been any missions for them lately. You greeted her with a hug and a hello, as well as sitting down to catch up with them on the events that happened while you were away.

Sam told you Bucky was going for a run, and he'd be back soon. You don't mind waiting. You might not have all the time in the world, but you did have all the patience that you needed.

As you were telling them about your mission, you heard a familiar voice coming from the entrance.

"Sounds fun," Bucky commented. He smiled, drinking water from his bottle, his hair tied in an effortless bun. And when you say effortless, you meant he really didn't care what it looked like, as it was an utter mess. You were usually there to tidy up his messy hair. But when you weren't there, he can't seem to do it properly by himself. You had mentioned that a haircut would be more practical, and he said he'd think about it. He probably won't cut his hair unless it covered his entire face. You find yourself amused at the thought of that.

He was wearing a black shirt and some running shorts, a hint of moisture in his skin, only barely sweating from both the heat and the exercise. His demeanor was confident, but not cocky. He looked like he was in a good mood.

Of course he is. You're here.

You looked back, a grin on your face. "Someone went for a run without me," you mentioned playfully, raising your eyebrows.

You walked towards him, and when you got close enough, he pulled your waist closer to his.

With a lopsided grin, he let you lay a hand on his bicep and press a kiss to his lips. It was short, like an acknowledgement. That was enough for Bucky.

He looked into your eyes. Under the glinting excitement of meeting him, he noticed that you were exhausted. You had circles under your eyes. Though it didn't look too bad, he sensed that it had taken a toll on you.

Sam cleared his throat, making the two of you look his way. "Are you done, Romeo? Or do you want us out of the room?"

"Actually—" Bucky started to say, but you cut him off abruptly with a half-forced cough. He tilted his head in confusion. "We're done," you stated shortly giving him a look that said, later. A hint of softness gave depth to your pupil, and he trusted that later, he'd have more time with you.

Still, it was unlike you to act so rushed when you just got back. Last time you got back from a long mission, you had insisted to lazily stay in bed the whole day with him. He complied that day, and he was confident to say that day was spent well.

Right now, you seem restless, and this worried him.

You walked away from him half-heartedly. The reunion with Bucky wasn't one you had in mind, as it only flashed before your eyes.

However, your visit to the headquarters this time isn’t just to see Bucky. You had a message to deliver from the US military, specifically the special forces..

Everyone that you needed to listen was here, and it was better to get this over with sooner than later. You pick your bag up from the floor, rummaging with the contents inside until you manage to take out a single brown folder, a Navy symbol at the cover. You throw it on the table, where Sam and Wanda was sitting. You sat down on one of the stools, Bucky next to you.

Sam was the first to pick it up. When he flipped to the first page, he looked at you inquisitively, "A council?" He asked.

You nodded, "To overview relations between the avengers and the special forces," you explain.

"And you agree to this?" Wanda asked, taking a look at the files. You could hear her voice falter. There was a hint of distrust in her voice. You don't blame her. She, like most of the avengers, went through the complication that is the Sokovia accords. You knew they didn't do too well with any deals that involves the government, and if anything, the accord left a bad experience.

"I don't know yet," you admit, "All they told me is that this council won’t limit your movement. You're still in charge of your own actions and missions. The only difference is that you can call special operations for back up if needed, and we can do the same, too."

"Anything else?" Sam asked, waiting for more. You shook your head, wishing you had more information than a five-page summary file. ”That’s all they said to me," you told him, "Everything else is written there. You better read that carefully. Special Ops wants an answer by next week. You have Five days to decide if you agree to this council or not."

“What if we don’t agree?” Bucky asked.

“The Avengers and The Special Forces stays separate, and we’re not allowed to go on joint missions, or collaborate in any way anymore.”

Bucky wanted more details, but anyone with decent hearing could notice the hint of exhaustion in your voice, so he didn’t push you for more explanation.

It wasn't only the mission that drained every last bit of your energy. During the last few months, you worked hard on cleansing SEAL, tracking down every last trace of Hydra, sometimes being ten feet deep in investigations until 3 in the morning. On bad days, you can't even force yourself to sleep. Nightmares become more frequent. Your mind felt more noisy, descending into chaos. Even though the reports show that you've done what you set out to do, you can't help but feel more paranoid than you should.

This paranoia wasn't your alone. It also belonged to many special operations officers who were aware of the Hydra infiltration. This resulted in the proposition of the council.

Despite knowing and understanding firsthand where the idea of the council came from, you promised that you won’t decide where you stand until you hear reasoning from both the Avengers and the special forces.

You felt Bucky's metal arm gently placed on your knee. From the corner of your eye, you saw him glance at you. He didn't seem comfortable discussing about this. It makes sense, considering that he was a victim of the sokovia accords. He was trapped in the heart of conflict that tore the Avengers apart. He didn't want his family torn apart.

You placed your hand above his reassuringly, your thumb rubbing circles across the smooth metal.

"I don't like this," Bucky muttered, finally admitting his distress out loud. "The council, the deal. Feels all too familiar." He closed the door of his room behind him. You settled inside, dropping your backpack near his closet. Inside the bag was a few sets of clothes, enough to last you a few days. You took a shirt and sweatpants out for a change. Bucky moved closer to you, and you pressed a kiss to his collarbone in an attempt to comfort him. It felt like a flutter against his skin. "At least hear them out, okay?"

You pull back, looking into his eyes. He had a slight frown on his face. His steely orbs look ghostly pale, almost baby blue. The creases on his forehead ran deep, but the longer he looked at you, the softer the lines become.

He took a deep breath, his human arm caressing your cheeks. "I'm sorry," he told you, slowly closing the gap, "It's just a lot of bad blood."

You curled your mouth into a smile that helped Bucky ease his anxiety. It helped yours, too.

"I won't let anything bad happen to you, James," you promised, pressing your hand gently against his torso. He was convinced that your words were sincere, like every other promise that ever left your lips. The way you said his name was calming, almost therapeutic. It made him inevitably fall in love with you all over again.

"I know," he replied in a fragile whisper, the sound cracking in your ears. He didn't say it, but you knew he was promising the same to you.

Slowly, he placed his lips on yours, sharing a breath of air. It started slow, increasingly gaining momentum like coin dropping from a building, going faster and faster due to the heaving effects of gravity pulling it to the ground like he was pulling you into him. You find yourself helpless, melting into his arms. You were candle lit ablaze for too long, his cold arm taming your overbearing wildfire of a flame. He held you, tasting your tongue on his, moving ever so slightly so you don't break. His touch felt so desperate and longing, reflecting exactly what he felt after over thirty days apart.

He smiled into the gesture. A contagious move that you were addicted to.

You pulled away to catch a breath, but did not stop for long. Bucky pushed a strand of hair behind your ear affectionately before resuming the long-due kiss.

You dropped your fresh clothes to the ground, turning all your attention to him, like nothing else in the world mattered, or even existed. You carefully slid your hands under the fabric of his shirt, fingers caving into every curve that felt like connecting the pieces of a puzzle.

You longed for him. You missed his touch and his breath on yours. You missed his quirky habits and playful banter. It was hard for both of you to be away from each other, but you're willing to pull yourself together for this to work. Being a SEAL was a demanding job, and so was being an avenger. Both of you go on mission for weeks or months at a time, and there was always a possibility of not coming back alive. Every second you spend together counts, making up for lost time.That's why talk about the council can wait, it has to. As important as it seemed to be, it was a job-related stress that has been thumping in the back of your head for days and days on end, consuming your body. But right now, it wasn't that important. The man in front of you was important.

Besides, changing clothes could be done in other, less conventional ways.ways.

You woke up in cold sweat when you heard a sudden sound of ringing bells at five in the morning. You started breathing heavily, and it took a moment for you to calm down and realize it was the church bell ringtone you chose for your phone. Someone was calling you.

You've never appreciated whoever invented the silent mode more than you did now.

But you were a Navy SEAL. Even if you wanted to, you were not allowed to have your phone on silent.

Grumpily grogging awake, you propped yourself onto your elbow, yawning slightly.

You could see an interruption of Bucky's chest delicate rising and falling, his soft adorable snores turning into a hitched breath. Disturbed by the noisy bell sounds, he slowly opened his eyelids. "What?" He growled quietly, his words only barely coherent. He lifted his head a little in confusion.

You sat up, taking your phone. You pointed at it. "I have to take this," you explained, "It's work."

He nodded slightly, dropping his head back on to the soft pillow.

You saw the screen and read the caller ID: It was Diego Miller, one of the men in your squadron.

You pushed the blankets off of you as you hurriedly tiptoe to Bucky's balcony, so you could talk without disturbing Bucky's rest.

"Hello," you answered hoarsely, forcing your sleepy lips and tongue to form clear words.

"Commander," he greeted, "Are you in New York?"

"Yeah." You took a deep breath and rubbed your eyes, "What's going on?"

"We've got an emergency operation," he informed, his voice alert, "Command wants you here in four hours."

You looked at the time. "Give me five hours," you said.

He answered sternly, almost immediately, "Four hours," he repeated, "It's non-negotiable."

"What's so important about this?" You ask tiredly.

"It's Hydra."

You stop in your tracks. Your posture tensed, eyes suddenly narrowing into the horizon, "Oh."

"The Naval base in Brooklyn is arranging a sonic flight for you as we speak," he informed, "You need to go there now."

You took a deep breath, sudden determination overpowering the exhaustion of your body. If it was Hydra, you were more than willing to end this once and for all. "I'm on my way."

"One more thing," Miller mentioned, "Don't tell Barnes it's Hydra. This mission is confidential."

It was not something you would keep a secret from Bucky if you had the choice, but what Miller was telling you was an order from Command. You will not defy it. It will bring more harm to your position than good.

"Okay," you manage to say before finally closing the call.

You could hear the door slide behind you, Bucky lazily walking towards you. Without warning, he laid his forehead on your shoulder, bending down so he could hold your body close to his. He was wearing nothing but shorts, his skin prickly cold like an autumn breeze. His prosthetic arm was even colder, a similar temperature to freshly fallen snow.

"They want me in Seattle," you break the news to him, wishing you didn't have to. He hums in disappointment, nuzzling further into your neck, "when?"

"Now."

"Already?" Bucky dragged the words in disbelief, "but you only just got here."

You ran your fingers through his hair, massaging his scalp to give him a sense of reassurance. "It's an emergency."

"What emergency?"

"I don't know yet," you lied, remembering the orders. You felt a pang of guilt, but you have to ignore it for now.

You pushed his chin from your neck to look in his eyes, "I'll be back before you know it."

Bucky nods.

You don't want to let go, but you know you have to.

#bucky #bucky barnes #bucky barnes x reader #bucky barnes imagines #bucky barnes imagine #bucky barnes fanfic #bucky barnes fanfiction #bucky barnes series #bucky x reader #bucky imagines #bucky imagine #sebastian stan x reader #sebastian stan imagine #sebastian stan imagines #sebastian stan fanfiction #sebastian stan #bucky barnes fluff #bucky barnes smut

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just-like-playing-tag · 5 years ago

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Why is Ray a hufflepuff? I mean I'm not against it, that's what the quiz told me and I'm proud to be in the same house as him, but why?

Awww here it comes sweet anons! @bluelric @joy-in-gold-shadows seemed like you were interested?

Fun fact I had wrote this in July as a reply for this post but then it hit me "wait a personal opinion on what houses the trio would be sorted in is probably not what Op ment" and never resolved on posting it lol. I'm actually glad I finally have an occasion to share it!

As you will see (if you want to read it), as the first thing I proceeded excluding the houses that make the most common sorting for Ray.

We need to make a premise: even though here I tried to discuss what I believe to be the house that fits Ray the most, it's important to remember how Ray's personality and tendencies have been unavoidably influenced by him knowing the true nature of the world the children live in basically since he was born. Living with only one goal in head, that is to save Emma and Norman from shipment, has definitely precluded him from finding out what his true interests were. But it's always a fun exercise to think about what could have been of him if he got the chance to be born in a "normal" world.

Let's start from the point that I don't think Ray really fits in Ravenclaw. I understand him being really wise, that he's extremely smart and, at least in the first arc, he's always found reading, but then again we know he explained this behavior himself: when he said "I've never been interested in studying or reading", he admitted how he did all of that exclusively to improve his value. I believe the true core of the Ravenclaw house to be the unconditional love for learning and for wisdom in general, and I don't think Ray has ever shown tendencies of this kind. From how I see it, all of his intensive studying and researching where indicative of a disperate attempt to save his best friends, and had nothing to do with a personal passion or a spontaneous inclination to learn.

Now, I know that Slytherin seems the only house left for him but... Is it really the best fit for him thought?

Of course, we can take for granted he's cunning; he's also quite resourceful, thinking about how skilled he has been preparing the escape in its minimal details.

Moreover, we can attribute him traits of ambition for believing an escape was even possible (even though someone could argue that he wasn't really that ambitious, since he immediately abandoned the idea of escaping with everyone and didn't believe it was possible until the very end).

But even if these are traits he more or less owns, I don't think they're necessarily indicative of his personality? From how I see it, these make traits and abilities that he possesses, but aren't necessarily distinctive of who he is as a person and a defining trait of his personality and inclinations, and are actually in most cases dictated by the circumstances and by the context he grow up within.

And still, there are plenty of other Slytherin characteristics in my opinion he doesn't really own, like determination and leadership. Sis, between the Slytherin traits is also listed "self-preservation", that is probably the furthest thing from what Ray is.

So! I understand it being pretty much unheard of, but can we please take Hufflepuff in consideration as the house that fits Ray the most? I personally believe he has a lot in common with that house! His diligence is innegabile, it's evident by even just glancing at all the work he put into planning the escape. Even before the escape took place, he's always been a great hardworker, spending his whole (even though short) life constraining himself to sacrifice his childhood by spending almost all of it studying.

But what I think is more distinctive for him is... His loyalty towards his friends. How true he is to them. How he would do anything for them.

I don't know, it's just...I think that is the trait that distinguishes Ray the most. That's his primar characteristic. And it is: the love he holds for his friends. How dedicated he is to them. How loyal he is to them, and how he's willing to do anything for them and would never betray them.

And I'm not talking about his two best friends alone, but about his whole big family: we all know how little it took for him to get attached to them, and he constantly showed such consideration and devotion towards them! It's just a really big part of his personality, and I'd say it's an untranscendable trait to get who he is and what moves his actions.

Honestly I'm afraid I may just be exaggerating the one trait I love the most, but it seems quite right to me! Even though Slytherin probably fits Ray's aesthetic more lol.

#Yes take an awful cringy edit #I did it solely for fun and wasn't intended to post it #but my sister said it was cute so...#To anon 2 I hope this is matches what you had in mind!#Also random descriptions of that kind are my favourite thing they're adorable thank you #And anon 1 compliments for sharing Ray's house!#My sister is an Hufflepuff too #Actually have you got any guesses on what house I'm in?#tpn ray #tpn #the promised neverland #tpn hogwarts au #people asks me stuff #I said this was an essay on why Ray is an Hufflepuff #But I've spent most of it talking about the other houses so...#Let's call it “considerations on what house fits Ray the most”#It's funny how I still had that one post drafted #In case you had been wondering yes I have lot of posts drafted #I may have added a paragraph or two or three #but oh I really can't shut up

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hannahstarshade · 4 years ago

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Pride month has come and gone, but we are still here

Gif credit: @bisexualdonatello

I don’t talk about it very often (mostly because I am not officially out) but I’m bisexual. I am attracted to those who identify as my own gender (female) and those who identify as an opposing gender. It has taken a few years of rationalizing and actually sitting with myself to come to accept this. In fact, very recently I had contemplated the legitimacy of my sexuality again. This is due to a few things: I have never had a relationship of any kind, I live in a conservative community, and I am still learning about the terminology and culture that comes from the LGBTQA+ community as a whole. Popular media—visual media specifically—has been a great influence in this regard. The older I got, the more access I had. The more access I had, the more I was able to learn. I grew to have a better understanding of the world around me and could explain how and why the media I consumed resonated with me personally. It took a while, but this is how I got here:

Bi Awakening (Film)

It was the late 00′s when I saw Van Helsing for the first time. I was immediately hooked. It has all the things I loved and still love to this day: monsters, a gothic aesthetic, an anti-hero with a heart of gold, bad-ass women who are immaculately dressed and fight hard, and a tragic ending. I had always been interested in Hugh Jackman ever since I watched him play Wolverine in the X-Men films. This character was what did it for me. Van Helsing was brave yet troubled. He had a knack for fighting evil and finding good where others couldn’t see it. This is a character I would daydream about going on long adventures around the world with. After watching the movie several times, my eyes also followed Anna Valerious, played by Kate Beckinsale. She was determined and a fighter through and through. Her skills and her dedication to her family drew me in. I wanted to hug her and fight monsters by her side. Oh, and did I mention they were both highly attractive? Because they are, just look at them, oh my gosh!! I took a while, but I finally admitted to myself that I like both men and women. Despite never acting on these feelings, I felt content with the conclusion I’d come to. This went on for a few years. It wasn’t until this year that I started questioning it all again.

Bi Confusion (YouTube)

I’ve watched my fair share of ContraPoints videos. In her video Shame, Natalie explains how she came to the conclusion that she is a lesbian. Throughout the video she explains how she was in a heterosexual relationship that, while loving and nice, was not fulfilling. She brings up the topic of compulsory heterosexuality, the feelings some women experience due to the norms of our society. I went in search of the “Am I a Lesbian” article mentioned in the video and read through the whole thing in one sitting. I came away from it feeling like I had unlocked some secret. Maybe I had been confused and conditioned all this time. Often my fantasies with women are more detailed and complex than my fantasies with men. That must mean I'd been avoiding one and embracing the other, right? And since I’ve never been in any kind of relationship, maybe I’d just been conditioned to include men in the equation from the start and couldn’t let it go? I had been entertaining a man I’d met online and had felt the relationship was forced on my end. Maybe I’m just not into men? After much consideration, I decided to give the lesbian label a try. That sounds horrible in retrospect, but I did it. I said the word to myself in private. I thought about spending my life pursuing only women. I excluding men from my fantasies. That didn’t last long. It just didn’t fit me. I learned through that exercise that my feelings for one gender don’t outweigh my feelings for another gender. The reason my fantasies vary is because of limited experience, not lack of interest. The reason I cut things off with the guy I’d been speaking with wasn’t because I was a lesbian, but because we just worked better as friends. I wasn’t a lesbian. I had just overthought my feelings. I’m attracted to people, not just their genders.

Bi Confirmation (Video Games)

My first exposure to Resident Evil was through several LP’s on YouTube. I have managed to play through a few games myself, though. The past few years have been really good for the Resident Evil franchise, the most noteworthy additions being the remake editions of Resident Evil 2 & 3. Leon’s a bad-ass super cop who just wants to do the right thing. Claire is an amazing person who cares so much about the people closest to her. Jill’s the most OP character in Resident Evil and just wants to save the world. Carlos is a genuinely good guy who wants to help. These people are heroic, bad-ass, and hot? Excuse me, I need a minute...Basically, I want to be these characters and be with them. I can confidently say that I am bisexual. There are other fictional characters I can point to that I would say affirm my sexuality—Casey Jones and April O’Neil from TMNT, Diana Prince and Steve Trevor from Wonder Woman, Markus from Detroit: Become Human, Harley Quinn from Birds of Prey—but Resident Evil has the most characters I love in a single franchise. When I was questioning my sexuality, I looked at these video game characters I had come to like and realized there was no denying myself. It’s okay to like both. Both is good.

Bi Acceptance (TikTok)

In conclusion, sexuality is weird. You might think you’re a young straight when all of a sudden you realize you find both a dashing monster hunter and a beautiful cursed princess attractive. Then, years later, you might watch a YouTube video that has you questioning yourself all over again, only to realize you are who you though you were after playing a game about fighting zombies. Basically, visual media helped me discover myself. But that’s not the end of it. I’ve found myself on TikTok a lot since the pandemic started. It’s nice seeing people in the LGBTQA+ community having fun and making the most of a shitty situation. I rediscovered Sarah Schauer, which was a nice surprise. Come to find out, she’s bisexual too. Seeing this community band together in times like these has been a heartening experience. So many positive vibes. There may be people out there who say you should only like one or another, or that being in a heterosexual relationship diminishes your sexuality, but those people are wrong. The bottom line is that you cannot tailor how you feel to fit the expectations of others. This post is kind of weird and out of nowhere, and a little very self centered, but I had to get this off my chest. This will likely never be read by anyone. However, if you are reading this and you have had a similarly weird experience, know that you are not alone. You may have just realized your feelings, you may have known for a long time, or you may still be trying to figure things out. That’s okay. Your feelings are valid. Your experience is valid. You are valid.

TL;DR Whenever I am questioning my sexuality I remember Resident Evil and I am at peace. Also through all this I’ve learned I have a type: bad-ass hero with a kind heart.

#bisexual #bisexuality #bi pride #pride #lgbtqa+#personal #fandom #van helsing #contrapoints #resident evil #hannah speaks

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monty-makes · 5 years ago

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🌸Oh wow!! You do matchups??? That's so exciting, could I please get one for Ikevamp? I'll mark my asks with a flower on top xx I'm female, bi, Capricorn, ENFP with short hair, undercut, green eyes and slighty tanned skin. My biggest insecurity is that I'm very muscular and I have big shoulders and a flat chest, which is because I'm a professional swimmer. Im very athletic in general, I also pole dance, box and lift. This unfortunately makes me very exhausted and sleep deprived :')

There’s no need to THANK ME for tolerating you, love– you sound like a genuinely fantastic and interesting person!~ In fact, thank YOU for the request @zazax42!

And YES, matchups are now open! This is a new thing I’m trying out, testing the waters, and it’s a good writing and psychoanalysis exercise! So if anyone else wants a matchup, just send me your info and a preferred game if you wish(OP did a PERFECT job, the more detail the better!), and I’ll get on it!

Without further ado, onto the matchup! (ﾉ◕ヮ◕)ﾉ*:･ﾟ✧

I would match you with..

The Ingenious Leonardo Da Vinci!

When it comes to multifaceted, Leonardo is your man. The two of you share many similarities, and your combined amount of playfulness and talent makes you a formidable dynamic duo.

The first thing that draws Leonardo to you is how little of an affect his teasing has on you. Admittedly, he’s even rather taken aback the first time you give him a taste of his own medicine when it comes to his flirting and taunts.

Not to mention, Leonardo’s known for his extensive work and analysis in the field of human anatomy. He not only appreciates, but adores the definition of your muscle tone, considering it a work of art unmatched in beauty. which it is, by the way. He’s also as perceptive as they come, so you even if you don’t mention your insecurity, and even if you try to hide it, Leonardo will pick up on it. As opposed to directly confronting you, however, he’ll reassure you in a more understated way, dropping you endless subtle complements on your physique in that lovely Italian accent of his. Not to mention, he’ll notice if you haven’t been sleeping, and he’ll force you to take a quick nap with him, so you end up more well rested than usual whenever you’re with him.

However, over time, the more time you two spend together, and the more he discovers about you, the more fascinated he becomes. Leonardo has had thousands of years to hone his crafts and master many fields– however, you, a human, in your short lifespan thus far, have so many different interests and sides to you, and are already learning your third language? Very impressive, to say the least.

While Leonardo may be the quintessential renaissance man, the definition of polymath, you’re quite the polymath yourself, and much like him, you’re just as full of surprises. You’ll find yourself locked in a very serious, educated discussion about the psychology of the human mind, and the next, whisked off on some spontaneous adventure. As far as furthering your studies and talents goes, drawing, music, math, politics, AND psychology are all under Leonardo’s list of talents. And he’s happy to help you or teach you in any way you ask him.

However, the thing that endears you the most to Leonardo is your kindness and want to help others. When out about the town, or even around the mansion, the two of you both have an aura about you that makes people comfortable around you, and makes them willing to share their problems with you, which together, you’re able to help far more efficiently, whether the problem is technical OR emotional. He’s met so many people in his life, seen so many different personalities interacting, and even still, you manage to fascinate him every day.

Other Options Include: Isaac Newton - Your fun loving and teasing nature intimidates and flusters him at first, but eventually he sees your acceptance and grows more comfortable around you. An opposites attract dynamic.

Arthur Conan Doyle - You two are almost always locked in a game of back and forth, cat and mouse, each competing to fluster the other, and always failing.

I hope you enjoyed! (●´ω｀●) Feel free to send in another request!

#ikemen vampire #matchups #ikevamp matchup #otome matchups

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cant-blink · 5 years ago

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@ckret2 replied: Have you written a post yet on why their species claims planets as their territory, destroys them, and then moves on?

Thanks for being the first to respond to my request! :D Sorry this took a bit longer than I’d like, it’s been chillin’ in my Drafts with some other posts that I feel don’t meet my quality standards just yet (lol jk I have no standards). This is all over the place and probably more than a little ramble-y, so brace yourselves XD

I have made a post on territorial behavior, but it doesn’t actually touch on why they do what they do. This is a topic I have contemplated on-and-off for, but never made a consensus on which canon to go for.

What is established in my stories already is that Ghidorah destroys planets because it’s instinct to them. They hatched with this instinct, it’s not something they ever questioned on doing. They just DEW ET because it feels nice to indulge this impulse, like they’re doing what they’re supposed to do and fulfilling a purpose they seem built for. It’s fun and satisfying to them, thus encouraging them to continue following that instinct! Like the joy a cat has while hunting; they take pleasure in exercising what they’re built to do and so they’ll continue doing it even if they aren’t hungry, up until they get bored! Except Ghidorah doesn’t get bored of it, likely due to how much time it takes to get from planet-to-planet, star-to-star.

The territorial behavior they display towards each other is instinct as well. When there’s another Ghidorah trying to snatch their planet, they feel an angry impulse towards them. Like how I imagine any solitary animal feels when an intruder appears in their territory. As dragons, Ghidorah are a very prideful species and that pride has them refuse to share the destruction of a planet with another of their kind. It’s like insulting their abilities and taking away the pleasure of knowing they brought an entire planet to its knees single-handedly. That feeling of power is something desired in all three heads and it’s less power if you’re not doing ALL of the destruction. Also, if they allow another Ghidorah in on the party, that Ghidorah is taking away fun THEY could be having! They want the whole planet as their playground, not half of it, so this other Ghidorah can go f-themselves on a DIFFERENT planet!

And from a story-writing angle, we don’t need Ghidorah being a social creature swarming planets in an unstoppable army. Territorial behavior seems like a perfect excuse to avoid that level of pure OP-ness!

But instinct isn’t good enough for me in this post. This post isn’t nearly long enough! WHY does that instinct exist?

I personally lean towards it being a natural evolution of their kind (You do the experiment-by-evil-aliens angle on their origin so well, I feel I can’t tread on that lol). Perhaps their species were birthed from creatures who are naturally territorial on the planet they originated from and this territorial behavior carried over into present-day. But space is so vast and most of it is so empty. It lacks any clear borders and that empty space holds nothing desirable, it would be a waste to guard it. But planets do have that tangible border that they can mark and chase others from and are the real treasures that Ghidorah seek. It’s more efficient to set up territory one planet at a time long enough to have their fun little power-trip before moving on to another.

Perhaps their instinct for destruction is to eliminate future threats and competition that may spring forth if they allowed another species to go space-faring.

Their evil nature? That certainly contributes to why they want planetary destruction as well. But how can their evil nature be species-wide if I’m going the natural route? There’s a big set-back to this option. There’re plenty of violent animals in the natural world capable of terrible cruelty, and some individuals of certain species like humans and dolphins take sadistic pleasure in it, but can any of them be considered evil on a species-wide level? Perhaps our specific Ghidorah is unusually sadistic, psychotic, and violent even among their own kind. Yes, they all have destructive instincts to destroy any life-form outside their own species that they come across, but perhaps our trio of bois takes it to a whole new level? I’ve stated before that our trio refuses pregnancy and its limitations so much that they will resort to killing their potential mate if they have to, should they be on the losing end of their ritualized courtship battle. This is not a usual occurrence among their kind (lest they meet with extinction). Perhaps they’re a bit of an anomaly and maybe there’s even some Ghidorah out there that can ignore their destructive instincts and become a force for good? *Looks at GMK’s Ghidorah*

…..

Granted, THAT Ghidorah was never meant to be a Ghidorah in the first place, hence the amount of OOC, so I dunno if I should even acknowledge its existence…

I don’t think I will. Ghidorah’s asshole-ness is so intense, it’s on a genetic level! There! That’s how it’ll be on the ‘natural route’. Natural evil.

Alternatively to this natural route, supernatural elements aren’t anything new in Godzilla. So this opens my second theory that Ghidorah’s species are of a more supernatural origin and that can give reason behind why they go around destroying shit. Ghidorah is often described as evil incarnate. The devil symbolism in the monsterverse with Ghidorah is very prominent throughout the movie. Not saying Ghidorah is the devil, but they clearly want to convey their demonic nature as being unnatural. Like how Mothra is practically a deity with reincarnation, and transferring power, and somehow influencing an entire lineage of chinese-female-twin-humans that each have a special, implied telepathic, connection to her and everything (try to tell me that happens naturally lol), Ghidorah and their species was perhaps made by the same supernatural forces that created Mothra specifically to cause the destruction of other lifeforms. Balance the good with evil.

Either way, like how even parasites have their purpose on earth, maybe Ghidorah’s destructive actions serve a purpose on a grand scale. Perhaps the destructive actions of Ghidorah is like the universe’s way of hitting the reset button on individual planets. Like how a wildfire destroys life wherever it goes, but in its wake, allows for a clean slate, for NEW possibilities to spring forth. Like how an erupting volcano can create a new island.

Ghidorah is a mass extinction event in the form of a living creature, wiping out life and leaving planets desolate, but in doing so, allowing new life to potentially start over in a new environment. They don’t stick around to know the hidden good in their evil, and yeah it sucks for those on the receiving end of this mass extinction, but the old has to make way for the new.

Oh, and Ghidorah’s just an asshole. That works too.

Anyway, nothing’s set in stone yet, hence why this is all over the place and got somewhat off-topic. My decision to make Ghidorah a species rather than a single individual was something I’ve contemplated on for a while but finally made official while writing ‘Brother, my Brother’. Aka, it was a recent decision. Therefore, I’m still working out the fine details and if anyone has suggestions, I’m always open for listening! I’m also still open to topic-requests for more Ghidorah/Rodorah post, so whatever you guys feel like asking, shoot it to meh! :D

#godzilla #king of the monsters #kotm #ghidorah #king ghidorah #this is all over the place #i apologize #reply #ckret2

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curestardust · 5 years ago

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if you want: great comedy / fun characters / weirldy specific information about muscles and working out / mostly episodical

Honestly, I added this anime as a joke. I saw something about a girl with a muscle fetish and I thought that was the funniest shit I’ve ever read so I was prepared for some mediocre ecchi-fest that could entertain me between the more serious anime and then had my plot twist of the century. This anime...is actually pretty good...?

Especially in the more recent years we’ve seen the arrival of anime that focus on subjects the writer was obviously VERY enthusiastic and knowledgeable about. I’ve started calling all of these “sports anime” which makes no sense cause “Hataraku Saibou” also falls into this category but nevermind that. Luckily, “Dumbbell Nan Kilo Moteru?” is actually a sports anime about working out. Now the writer is either a “macho man” or Akemi, the muscle fetish girl, is basically their self-insert which is absolutely hilarious to think about.

The anime immediately sets the atmosphere with its addictive and hilarius OP and ED. I don’t skip OPs and EDs but I don’t always watch them. That wasn’t the case here. I didn’t click out a single time and if I could speak Japanese this fast I’d have probably been singing along every single time. Honestly, even if you’re not planning to watch this anime, at least watch the OP and the ED because they’re amazing. Oh, and the OST is pretty nice too.

There isn’t much of a plot. Akemi and Hibiki, who wants to lose some weight, join the newly opened Silverman Gym where they meet Machio-san, their trainer. Machio-san is an show stealer of a character. He is obsessed with working out and knows everything there is to know about it and what to do to work on a specific muscle group. His obsession is striking poses where his clothes rip apart, revealing the body of a bodybuilder while his head stays the same ikemen style.

The stories are more episodical and rely on the hilarity of the situations and the chemistry of the characters. Our main 2 are later joined by other characters with their distinct personalities who bounce off of each other in a really entertaining way. The jokes are well-timed, they know exactly when to switch artstyles or what angles to show to make everything as funny as possible.

The workout info isn’t something I can skip either. Quite a few exercises, both that require gym equipment and some that don’t, are explained in great detail, mentioning what muscle groups you’re training specifically and how to do them properly. It also speaks about how to eat properly and little tid-bits here and there. Oh, this is also where the ecchi is. At the end of the explanations there is usually a suggestive pic of one of the characters but it honestly felt like the studio was like “Listen, we get it, you love dudes with big muscles but the thirsty otakus need something or they won’t watch our anime!!”

A little nit-pick would be that they don’t really show people of multiple sizes. I really appreciated that Hibiki was consistently drawn with a little bit more fat than the others.

But, yeah, this anime was a surprise but a welcome one. If you’re looking for some comedy and would like some initiative to start working out, here’s the perfect anime for you.

[8/10] (x)

Recommend: HELL Yeah! | Yes | Eh??? | Nope | This anime killed my parents

#dusty reviews #Dumbbell Nan Kilo Moteru?#Dumbbell Nan Kilo Moteru #How heavy are the dumbbells you lift?#How heavy are the dumbbells you lift

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chiptunecookie · 5 years ago

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11/11/11 Tag Game

Thanks to @michaelbjorkwrites for the tag. I can’t find the original list, so I’m going to answer the same questions.

1. Do you have a favorite OC?

I have two that I can’t decide between. There’s Saphren, a severely OP OC that I’ve developed over many years of writing snippets both mentally and digitally. Saphren is an anthropomorphic canine with ridiculous cosmic powers who is in love with a mortal cursed with immunity to all forms of decay, including time. She’s actually a Guardian of many of my fictional worlds, something like an anti-Galactus but slightly more ridiculously powerful. However, she can only exercise said powers when she’s abiding by the Universal Law of Balance, and correcting said balance. So, if she can’t actually super-fight, she knows she messed up somewhere. Second is Samma Dawn, a Witch-Kin servant of Goddess Emelis, the First Mother (basically my Gaia stand-in for a world I’ve been developing called Minera). Samma can commune with flora and fauna, make bonds with both and even manipulate them directly if necessary. Samma is dutiful, somewhat aloof and often puts Nature above all else, leaving a bitter taste for many who meet him, but he is honest, and does care deeply for other peoples who take the time to understand his values and choices.

2. Which WIP has changed the most? Why?

Probably my most recent one concerning a retelling of a popular fairy tale, because I’m just not sure how to start it, what exactly I want to say about it, and I’ve been stuck in outline phase for a dog’s age because of college.

3. Do you enjoy worldbuilding? Do you consider yourself good at it?

Without a doubt I love WorldBuilding (TM). Worldbuilding is probably my favorite part of the big picture. As for good at it?.. I’m confident in my ability to spitball a believable world. When it comes time for details, like religions or culture, I’m someone who tends to take less inspiration from specific things, and I just look at broad categories. Like, I’ll look at a bunch of cultures that hold some specific animal(s) sacred and find similarities to build off of, rather than make a direct/potential analogue with ten different details and a new name.

4. Have you ever made a conlang/fictional language for a WIP?

Yes and no. I made a cipher language with translation rules, which ended up being far too specific and I kept losing track of how to substitute my vowels... So I didn’t get far. It was a fun experiment, and I was inspired to do it by StarFox Adventure’s cipher.

5. Do you like to keep faceclaims of your OCs? Do you find them online or draw them yourself?

Technically yes... I have a very vivid idea of what Saphren looks like, because I simply associate an old Furcadia (uwu bois) portrait from my favorite map to her face. As for Samma, I’ve never had him drawn, and I cannot draw myself, so his face is very close to mine in my head, but if I described it, it’d be so different in your own that I don’t really think it’s terribly important.

6. Has anyone ever made any fanfic or fan art for you?

No, no. I haven’t posted anything worth it, to be fair.

7. Who is your writing buddy/confidant you always come to about your work?

Probably my wife. She usually reads everything I write before anyone else. As for the process itself, I’ve been very private about stuff that either isn’t finished or is just literally fanfiction of my own that I write as a self-indulgence because sometimes I want to go to a magical horse world without war and politics.

8. Big or small cast?

Medium. I prefer to have a cast of five to seven. Some people say seven is big, but I think nine and up is big, personally. Now, I usually split this up into Big P(rotagonist), Direct Support (1-2 aka sidekicks), Main Party (Includes previous, 2-5), Narrative Support (2-4 depends on many things, and can change members), and Just For This Scene (because we pass people every day that contribute but never become important).

9. Were any of your characters inspired by others you saw or read about?

Saphren’s love interest mentioned above, Lord Harken, is based on the Dunedain from Middle Earth as far as his lore is concerned; he came from a medieval world originally, but since he’s immune to decay, he got to watch it develop into a space-faring one, and eventually got a ship of his own. I had a character somewhat based on Inuyasha at one point, though he wasn’t a demon originally. His name is Taka, or at least that’s what he calls himself as even I can’t remember if that’s his real name or not. His younger brother was killed in a mercenary raid of their village. The two were orphans even before this, so Taka was furious, walked to the gates of Hell and even beat one of Hell’s jailors at a chance game for his brother’s soul. Dimone, the Demon Avatar of Wrath, took notice and told Taka that if he would eat a Pale Apple from the tree within Lucifer’s Crater, he could always protect his brother. Taka did so, and was cursed with a dark seed that basically turned him into a killing machine any time his brother was threatened, Taka got angry, or someone did something immoral and Taka found out about it. Dimone tricked Taka into being a soul harvester, essentially. He gets better, but his journey was not a happy one. His brother outgrew him and died peacefully, and Taka’s one comfort was that his brother always understood and stood by Taka, so at least neither was truly alone.

10. Favorite trope(s)?

So many... World of Cardboard Speeches are something I love. Even Evil Has Standards usually makes for some interesting depth or hilarious bits. Our (Insert thing here) Is/Are Different is one of my favorites. Crouching Moron/Hidden Badass is so much fun to play with. I think the crowning trope for me though is probably Refusal of The Call. It’s almost cliche these days, but it’s not just yet because there’s also so many Jumped At The Call stories/games that when the “Hero” is just like, “Nah, I’m good” I always want to see what circumstances arise that either light the fire or changes the course. It’s great when done well.

11. How do you waste time not writing?

Minecraft, but at the same time, Minecraft has inspired me so much. The open world becomes a story in and of itself for me personally. Minecraft inspired me to create the world of Minera, and Minera is based on Minecraft as an environment with many of my favorite mods being the basis for the rest of the world; its magic, its peoples, its history, everything. I absolutely adore the game and everything it has given me, done for me, and in some dark places in my life kept me from doing.

Tag list: @naiive-and-starry-eyed @enlightenedrobot @promptdumpster @linkedsoul @leopard-prompts @givethispromptatry @kiramartinauthor @writing-prompt-s @writeroftheprompts

#tag game #writing #writeblr #tropes

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