#though do expect their poor treatment of those around them

[maideninorange]

How would Kuroji play Pikmin?

(Didn't see this at first, whoops!)

Kuroji would probably play any of the games in the most brutally efficient way possible. Any death toll is acceptable as long as it gets *insert object here* first. Red Pikmin take out fire hazard, yellow take out electric, and what do you mean there was a rock trap there?! Did ten just die?!

I think they would be very, very good at any of the games. They're a strategist playing a strategy game series, after all. But I do think they'd play it seeing the Pikmin as solely a means to an end unlike, say, Aoji.

And of course, sometimes frustrated by the occasional bits of incredible stupidity Pikmin will show. Who said these games were easy?

[manias-wordcount]

Cream of the Crop (Jinpachi Ego)

Kinktober 2024 Day Thirteen: Overstimulation

𝙒𝙖𝙣𝙩 𝙩𝙤 𝙧𝙚𝙖𝙙 𝙢𝙤𝙧𝙚? ⇒ 𝙈𝙖𝙨𝙩𝙚𝙧𝙡𝙞𝙨𝙩

𝙟𝙤𝙞𝙣 𝙢𝙮 𝙙𝙞𝙨𝙘𝙤𝙧𝙙 𝙨𝙚𝙧𝙫𝙚𝙧?

𝙗𝙪𝙮 𝙢𝙚 𝙖 𝙘𝙤𝙛𝙛𝙚𝙚?

You knew he would be too much for you. You knew he would be intense. Too excitable. Too adventurous. Too much. But you took a chance on him. You took a chance on yourself too. And look yourself now?

“I’m surprised. You’re lasting longer than I expected.”

You’re exactly where you thought you would be if you stayed with him.

“...im…impachi…” Your poor excuse of calling his name comes out of your mouth in a mess of slurred sounds and syllables. It’s one of the one things he didn’t do to you. He blindfolded you to keep your sensitivity heightened. He tied you up to keep you compliant in his treatment of you. But he didn’t gag you. He said he needed to hear directly from you when the moment called for it. He said he needed your responses in real time when he asked for them, and not a second later. Although that’s hard. That’s very, very hard considering everything that he has asked of you and subjected you so far. Not that he cares, of course. You doubt you would still be here if he was the sympathetic type anyway. “...Ji- Jin- Jinpa-”

You could hear him shuffling around the room. You could hear him writing in his notebook. You could hear him. But you couldn’t touch him. You couldn’t feel him. And he wouldn’t touch you. He said he had no need to. He said he was going to observe you today and that if you couldn’t handle that, he’d turn everything off and kick you out of his place the second you show any sign of disobedience. So close, yet so far. It almost felt lonely, the way he treated you. Cruel even. 

But you were never alone. You were never not in the state of being watched. You could sense his eyes on you. You could sense him watching carefully every time your hips jerked sporadically and every time your chest heaved up and down in an attempt to desperately and greedily fill your lungs with air. You could sense him watching intently as drool dribbles down your chin and neck and breasts as struggle to stay sane. Hell, you feel as though you could even feel when his eyes zero in on the dirtiest parts of your body as he watches your pussy grow creamier and creamier while doing its very best to survive the toy that was currently stuffed inside of it. 

All because he wanted to research how well you take what is given to you. All because he wanted to see exactly what he was working with. All because he wanted to bear witness to how far your limits can take you. Because he wanted a show. Because you are the show. 

Now, your wrists were bound to the headboard by a chain, hanging just above you and behind your head as you sat propped up. Although he was kind enough to ensure that the inside of the cuffs was lined with something more comfortable, that didn’t mean he wasn’t cruel to you in other places. One of those places being your legs. Though, you aren’t too surprised he did this to you. He hated your nasty habit of squeezing your legs shut and turning away from him whenever you started to feel too sensitive. So his solution for that was easy- by strapping you down with letter restraints that bound your ankle to your thigh and by keeping a careful watch to ensure that you weren’t doing anything that you weren’t supposed to do. That is to say, something he didn’t want you to do.

But perhaps the worst of it all was not the way he tied you up like some doll or toy to play with. Rather, it was his use of toys on you that had you cursing his name with every coherent thought you could muster.

He had used many on you throughout the duration of the night. He said he wanted to test your limits. He said he wanted to see how far you could take it. How far you could take what he gave you without crumbling to dust in front of him and breaking into the tiny, fragile thing he knows you truly are. But you haven’t succumbed to that feeling yet. You haven’t broken down just yet. Though at what cost, you’re not sure. After all, there’s a lot happening to you right now. A lot.

For starters, there were the beads. When he first brought you bad to his room and began ordering you to get undressed, one of the first things he did was bend you over and plug up your puckered hole with a pair of anal beads. You were expecting them, of course. You know Jinpachi likes to do just about everything with you- including lubing up a few toys and stuffing them inside your holes. But as the night progresses, the anal beads were pulled out and replaced time and time again. And each time, they were replaced with a size just slightly bigger than the last. He was training your body. But he was training it in the way that only he saw fit. Making things go faster and faster. Not allowing you to settle into a routine. Being proud that you could take a little rough treatment and still be his sloppy, brave little toy for the night. And currently, you’re sitting with a set of anal beads inside of you that just feels too big to ignore. So much so that every little shift of your hips has you practically whining from the sensation. Like it’s just too much.

Though, you imagined the vibrator on your clit helped keep you relaxed and arousal to not beg for mercy yet. 

Today, it’s a small vibrator. One of those little bullet-sized ones that Jinpachi always threatens to slip inside your panties if you don’t behave for him. Though you know it’s not his top choice. He always seemed to favor the ones shaped like wands. The ones he could pick up and control and tease you with himself were still remaining the perfect distance away to observe your body’s tolerance for pleasure. But he wanted something that would stay with all your shifting around. He wanted something that allowed him to be the perfect observer and not have to take on the role of the occasional participant whenever he needed to fix things up to be just perfect for him. So he taped it to your clit and keep it buzzing at a nice and low and constant setting that was just enough to keep you drooling, but enough to distract you from your true foe. The real monster.

The machine set up to continuously stuff your poor, abused cunt with a dildo whose size you thought you would never get used to. 

You didn’t get a chance to see it before he took away your sight. And you didn’t get a chance to feel it either before you found experiencing the permanent strain of your hands hanging over your head. But you know what the first few times felt like. You know how it felt going through the first few times it pushed passed your lower lips and filled you with an artificial thickness that just felt too unreal to be true. You know how much you cried out in those moments. How loud you got. How much you squirmed. But that didn’t stop the arm of the machine from pumping the dildo inside of you and dragging it up and down your warm, wet, sensitive walls at a consistent pace. That didn’t stop Jinpachi from occasionally making it slow that it felt like nothing only to suddenly change things up on you and make it go for so fast that it felt like it was trying to hammer away at your body from the inside out.

Because Jinpachi told you to take it. He told you that he doesn’t waste his time with quitters. He told you that he would never fuck you again if you didn’t push yourself to be perfect for him. He told you that you would never feel his cock inside you or even get the chance to touch or suck or lick it once more if you couldn’t take this.

And truthfully, if you were in a better state of mind, you might have considered backing out. But you weren’t in a better state of mind. You were just the girl who Jinpachi nurtured into being his. The girl who knew he was too much for her, yet decided to stick around anyway. The girl who just wanted him to love her. To be proud of her. So you took it like a champ. But that’s okay- because you’re his champ. You’re his. 

And that's all you wanted. That’s why you stuck around. That’s why you’ve endured all this day after day and night after night. That’s why you’ve endured him. Because you want to be great. Because you want to make him proud. Because you want to be his. For as long as possible. For as long as you can.

For as long as he doesn’t find someone else that’s better than you.

[metalomagnetic]

I am spiraling into Sirius being a father again.

His relationship with his sons and harry are so interesting to me. Because it seems to me they all want to be his favorite child , even Marvolo who seems to like his mother better.

And we see a lot of glimpses of them being a little jealous of each other. So this makes me wonder , does Orion sometimes resent Harry for being the "favorite". Because Sirius gives Harry a lot of special treatment even if he doesn't realize it himself.

I imagine it would get worse after Voldemort comes back and wants to kill Harry , so it would be logical for Sirius to get even more protective of Harry.

But hey , maybe i'm reaching a little too far because i love angst too much.

All the boys want to be Sirius' favourite, of course.

You didn't reach too far at all. That 'your precious Harry' Orion let out shows there is some resentment there. Orion loves Harry, but one has to be blind not to notice Sirius treats them differently.

And children are jealous, generally. Especially so young. Especially when there are already expectations on Orion's shoulders to be the perfect Black Heir, meanwhile Harry can do whatever he likes with little to no repercussion. Of course, here is not just Sirius that puts pressure on Orion, but the entire family.

On the other side, even if Harry isn't at all jealous that he doesn't get smacked around by Sirius, Walburga and Arcturus (RIP), he, too has some insecurities about the entire Black/non-Black thing. But Harry is not only older, more chill, but also Sirius' devotion to him helps a lot, so Harry isn't resentful of the other boys, just sometimes insecure.

Poor Marvolo has it the worst (in his head) because there's Harry the Golden Child, Orion the Heir, and now Helix the baby that captures more attention, so he feels he has to compete extra hard; though, he's more resentful of Orion, not Harry,

They do all love the other, but sometimes brothers do get like that, even in normal families, let alone the most noble and ancient House of Black.

I do think Lucius was right, and Sirius should have treated them all the same, but Sirius doesn't want to 'steal' James' place as father, even if it's a fool's errand, since James has no place in Harry's life. But, for James' memory, he tries to raise Harry how James would have raised him, once again, an impossible task, because Harry is surrounded by values James wouldn't have exposed Harry to, anyway.

It would have been better if Sirius was ready for children, and if he wasn't so traumatised when he took Harry and then practically had Orion and Marvolo back to back. He really wasn't ready for all that, but well Harry had to be taken care of, and then his lovely family pushed him into marriage and here we are.

Mistakes were made.

Still, despite all that, they do have a loving family. All those children know they are loved fiercely. They just compete for the 'favourite' spot.

[serpentface]

Palo and Tigran standing casually in place to provide an outfit reference.

They are wearing the most typical day to day clothing for Galenii monks. This consists of three main parts:

-A simple, ankle-length sleeveless robe (white in initiate monks and black in the fully initiated). -A dark woolen cloak, which doubles as a blanket. This cloak is the foundational item of clothing throughout much of Imperial Wardin as a whole, and worn by all social classes. They tend to be cut shorter and highly decorative in the upper classes, serving only the practical purpose of shielding the arms from the sun. Poor laborers may wear only the cloak and a loincloth and nothing else. In the case of Galenii monks, it is standardized, simple, and dark blue-gray. -The sash. This is a very long scarf that is the primary visual signifier of a Galenii monk. Its open ends drape down the front side of the body and are tied at the chest. It is slung over the shoulders and hangs in a loop around the back. These sashes are dyed an expensive royal blue, indicating the significance and relative esteemed status of this religious order.

Additional elements:

-The sign of the horns: a small iron pin used to fasten the cloak. This is the symbol of the Lunar Face Of God (the specific aspect to which the Galenii are devoted, which is primarily associated with fertility and the cycles of sacrifice and rebirth). This is very common among monks but not standardized wear. Galenii priests wear the sign of the triple horns (though more commonly as an amulet).

-Ear piercings: Galenii monks and priests wear thick earrings of dark meteoric iron and stretch their earlobes. One is added to each ear for each year of the initiatory process. Palo is a year in, and Tigran is fully initiated and has five bands per ear. Body modification is exceptionally rare in Imperial Wardi culture, largely in relation to taboos surrounding body integrity. The exception here is done with great significance and care- these earrings can be made only with true meteoric iron, considered to be the blood of God Itself. Permanently marking their bodies with this metal signifies this priesthood's integral connection to maintaining the continual cycle of sacrifice/rebirth that is believed to keep God's domain stable, and binds them to this role.

-Sandals: usually very simple in construction. Monks are often expected to go barefoot, but the cities are quite dirty so most prefer to avoid this if possible.

-Ceremonial dagger: a sign of a fully initiated monk. It is curved and its sheath is decorated with a tuft of lion's mane (a signal of the Galenii order's close connection to the Odonii order). Most of its uses are ceremonial, but it will be periodically used to perform animal sacrifices. A smaller razor blade is kept in the home for personal bloodletting.

-Hair: Fully initiated monks shave their heads, while those in the process of initiation have relative freedom with hair dressing. Palo is wearing his hair in a single braid tucked around the front. Broadly speaking, braiding the hair is associated with female beauty standards throughout much of Imperial Wardin (though generally in two braids). There is no cultural convention Against men doing so, but it is regarded as mildly effeminate (particularly in the south and southeast).

-Lore Friendly Sunglasses: Palo has photosensitive epilepsy. No effective treatments for epilepsy exist in the setting (most 'treatments' in Imperial Wardin are alchemical in nature, ie: ambiguously helpful at best or literal poison at worst), but understanding of the Nature of epilepsy as a neurological disorder is relatively accurate, and the concept of photosensitivity is loosely understood (though not with great accuracy, it's assumed to be caused by light in General). Palo had this pair of (VERY expensive) sunglasses commissioned as a youth, which Do slightly reduce the frequency of his seizures. Devastatingly stylish as they may be, his glasses do not offer much visual clarity so he only wears them in bright conditions.

[itsnothingofinterest]

Oh wow so my hero is ending in five chapters, any idea what those five chapters will be? We know we have that new stranger and the todoroki household to deal with so what else could they cover?

Well there’s obviously a lot to go over, but I expect some things (todofam) to get a lot more focus and page space than others (Gentle and Nagant) so to focus my answers on, well, what I expect to be the focus:

One chapter (426) will be, as I think we all can tell, the Todoroki resolution. Talked about my expectations/ worries for that here.

Next (427) will probably feature Uraraka & whatever happened to Toga in some way. Although since Hori dosn't always treat her the best (I mean I do think her villain fight was the best, but I don’t believe that was on purpose), I wouldn't be surprised if her chapter shares page time with other student plot lines, whatever happened to Spinner and/or the heteromorph plotline, and other miscellaneous stuff like Gentle getting released from prison.

Mystery person I'll bet will probably actually be two chapters (428 & 429): a) because it's Midoriya's resolution and b) because it'd naturally need more time for that; introducing a new character and all, bit of backstory to explain why they were tied up in some house and had to cut themselves loose with with sissors. Especially if it goes the way I except; mystery guy's a poor jaded victim-villain on their way to becoming the next Tomura, but Deku will save them and it'll be presented as though that means society is now improved such that it won't fail any more future Tenko Shimuras. ...Even though a) that's a hard sell after murdering Tenko Shimura in the arc that was specifically representing how thing will go from now on and b) that idea entirely misses the point of Tenko Shimura's story. But even giving this two dedicated chapters, that's the best Deku can really do so...guess you've still just got to hope a hero's around to save you. If not; sucks to suck, good luck with villainy and/or dying.

And uh, last chapter (430 if all our math is right) will probably just be your standard fare “5 or so years later" chapter about everyone as pro heroes. Everything is great and fine and so much better for no real reason and they'll all live happily ever after for anyone still alive; The End.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Although if I may be spiteful; one thing I hope doesn’t get touched on is the quirk singularity doomsday plot line. Because as is, it still looks like the best case is for humanity to become an endangered species as soon as around the time of Class 1A’s eventual retirement (presumably their last decade or two spent dealing with panic over that). All because hero society refused to look where things are bad or inconvenient; and just when a solution, a treatment & cure to this condition was available to them anyway…Deku smashed it into dust because that’s the only way the little All Might clone could conceive of to beat the big bad villain.

And again, I know this is spiteful, but I rather like the idea of Deku murdering Tomura having such a serious consequence.

[hollowed-theory-hall]

Do you think Snape stopped being a bigot by the time canon rolled around or do you think he still thought of muggleborns as inferior but didn't act on it cause he was always around Dumbledore?

We know his love for Lily won't change anything, Lily herself points out how Snape's completely fine with calling every muggleborn but her a "mudblood" and even participated in bullying them. He sees Lily as an exception so there's no guarantee that even her death would change his views on the rest.

He probably never outright voices it because he's tied himself to Dumbledore, but that doesn't mean he can't still hold those bigoted views deep down.

His treatment and bullying of Hermione doesn't make him look good either. Yes, she's an overzealous know-it-all who annoyed Snape, but I wonder if that was simply it or if his bullying of her was motivated by blood prejudice as well.

As far as I remember, there's nothing in canon that proves Snape is still a bigot, but there's nothing that disproves it either. Thoughts?

Honestly we aren't really told anything about his opinions about muggleborns and muggles during the books. If I had to guess, I'd say his opinions didn't change much. Lily was always an exception, so I don't think her death would change his opinion on muggleborns as a whole.

We see this outlook with Slughorn too:

“Your mother was Muggle-born, of course. Couldn’t believe it when I found out. Thought she must have been pure-blood, she was so good.” “One of my best friends is Muggle-born,” said Harry, “and she’s the best in our year.” “Funny how that sometimes happens, isn’t it?” said Slughorn. “Not really,” said Harry coldly.

(HBP, 70)

He knows some muggleborns are brilliant and talented (like Lily and Hermione) but he considers them exceptions, not the common muggleborn. The perfect special muggleborn. The talented ones he cares about.

I think Snape is a little similar, if for completely different reasons. Slughorn looks down on muggleborns because of how unfamiliar with the muggle world he is. He's a pure-blood who was raised to think muggleborns have lower chances of being talented and exceptional.

Snape, on the other hand, has something very different going on in his head. I think he also has this tendency to look down on muggleborns, and he always had, but not for the same reason as Slughorn. In Snape's case, it comes from his hatred of muggles. Snape hates his father and the circumstances of his upbringing. He probably holds some resentment towards his mother for staying and raising him in a poor and abusive environment. And, it's not like Snape's mother was overly involved in his life either, he was allowed to just run around the streets alone since he was seven (or younger) and that was pretty much it.

Snape associated the muggle world with pain, humiliation, and neglect. And while the Wizarding World wasn't free of pain and humiliation, it was better. The Wizarding World came with magic, the ability to at least have a chance to defend himself, a chance at belonging (we Lucius except Snape into Slytherin easily when he arrives), and pride. Snape is an incredibly talented wizard and he knows it, and takes great pride in it.

So the wizard side of things was always the better one for him. The one he preferred to associate himself with (calling himself the "Half-Blood Prince" is an example of that). And I think his outlook on muggles and muggleborns is still somewhat colored by this even as an adult.

I think it did tone down since his youth, I don't think he's as extreme as he was when he joined the Death Eaters as a teenager, but I think he's still prejudiced against muggles and muggleborns (more muggles than muggleborns though), at least to a degree. I mean, these sorts of outlooks don't just change overnight. So, while I think Snape isn't advocating for muggleborns registration anymore, he still looks down on them and expects less of them, like, a subtler sort of prejudice.

I think Snape's bullying of Hermione is mostly for her know-it-all attitude, being friends with Harry, and being a Gryffindor (a whole different prejudice). But I think there is a little muggleborn prejudice in there too. I don't think it's the main issue he takes with her, but, like I said, it's unlikely he just completely got over it.

And, we see that looking down on muggles and muggleborns is pretty common in the wizarding world as I mentioned with Slughorn and while Dumbledore wouldn't be happy if Snape called muggleborns "mudbloods" he himself is just as prejudiced against muggles. He looks down on them like all of the wizarding world does, in subtler ways than the Death Eaters. So Snape probably wouldn't make an active effort to change his opinions. Even the Weasleys look down on muggles:

“Are they doctors?” he asked Ron quietly. “Doctors?” said Ron, looking startled. “Those Muggle nutters that cut people up? Nah, they’re Healers.”

(OotP, 484)

“Are all your family wizards?” asked Harry, who found Ron just as interesting as Ron found him. “Er — Yes, I think so,” said Ron. “I think Mom’s got a second cousin who’s an accountant, but we never talk about him.”

(PS, 73)

All wizards, even the more muggle-accepting ones are pretty prejudiced, it's that ingrained into their culture. So much so that Hermione stopped talking about her parents even to her friends, the Weasleys' squib cousin is never mentioned, and confounding or obliviating muggles is considered harmless even though we saw it can cause harm even to wizards (Lockheart). The wizarding world is a very prejudiced place even if you don't go around shouting slures. So I think Snape still holds this baseline level of looking down on muggles and muggleborns their whole world seems to practice, but he isn't advocating for their registration and death anymore either.

[assistantquail]

Well damn... (Adults) 2/2

 Male reader is left with no choice but to use a female avatar, not that he minds using it on the first place, to save their best friend's life.

Characters: Tonowari, Ronal, Quaritch

Pronouns: They/Them

Warnings: Cursing, injury, mentions of blood, simps, everyone is bi >:3, gender is a social construct, idk a thing about injuries or fighting, ooc

This is obviously an au, so be warned

Tonowari and Ronal are siblings

Quaritch is going through character development

Why? Because, I said so

(None of the ff images/gifs are mine)

Tonowari

This will be a hard and gruesome battle against the sky people. It is war, the moment they attacked their spirit brothers and sister. This is a serious period for the clan and he was focused on avenging those they have lost. But he never expected to be enamored by one of them, realizing this person is “the backup” the Toruk Makto mentioned. 

The moment you appeared, on the back of an ikran he is whipped.

“I see you” You gestured towards him and his sister Ronal. You were not surprised by Ronal's wariness with you, you are used to the treatment and stares. A light smile graced your lips, raising both of your hands up just like what the Sullys did when they first arrived.

“Y/N brother, I'm so glad to see you”  Jake went to your side, and both of your hands meet each other which resulted in a clap.

“You cannot get rid of me, that easily Sully” Your lips widened, showing off your fangs as you threw a grin.

Brother? You are clearly a female though? The poor man was confused but he chose to formally greet you, throwing the question to the back of his mind. He made eye contact with you, as you returned your attention to them.

“Greetings, I am Y/N L/N, I understand that this is no time and place for warming up to each other...” You held your head up high, never looking away from him as “But I would like to thank you for taking in my brother and his family, I owe you one”

Tonowari's brain just stopped functioning correctly when he heard your voice, so he was not able to process your words and just nodded dumbly (in Ronal's perspective).

“It is a pleasure that you will aid us in this battle”

“The pleasure is all mine, to be able to fight along with the mighty Olo'eyktan and people of the Metkayina” Ronal noticed how the tail of her brother kept swishing around in delight, as he listens to your words. She rolled her eyes at this, attempting to break you both apart before Tonowari does something stupid.

“We have no time for this, we must prepare now” She gestured for you to follow her, and you nodded at the Olo'eyktan before catching up to Ronal. Jake also nodded to Tonowari,

“We shall discuss strategies in a while, yes?” His body turned to face Jake but his eyes were kept on your back as you walked away, “Of course”

Jake noticed how his full attention was not on the conversation but he suspected it might be because of the stress. “Do not think too deeply about this matter, we will be able to have a higher chance of winning with my brother here”

There it is again with you being called brother, is this some sort of nickname? He did not want to ask unless he is certain that this is a comfortable topic to be asked with you in person.

“The tulkuns have been warned by the people, now we will reassess the situation to prevent anyone from losing” Tonowari regained his ability to think clearly again, taking this situation seriously.

══════⊹⊱❖⊰⊹══════ 

Tonowari was not able to have another glimpse of you until the battle horn was blown.

It was time, all the warriors gathered with their skimwings. That is when he saw you on your ikran, you had no time to bond with any of the creatures in the reef so you had to make do with what you had.

Your eyes were focused on the ships ahead, void of any emotions that were present when you first arrived. Your mouth was moving but he was not sure  what you were saying as you pressed something on your neck.

You were wearing your visor, a chest plate out of bones with sky blue paint on your face. In your hand was a bunch of weapons.  You also had a gun at bay, but it did not worry him.

What worried him was you and the people's safety.

The horn sounded again and you were immediately flying through the sky. The wind did not bother you a bit, as you heard from Jake that your nieces and nephews were missing in action. This ignited something in you, nobody messes with your family, not while you are still breathing.

Explosions and gunshots resounded as you threw grenades at the incoming fleets, you easily took down 3 ships in a short moment as you evaded their guns. Skillfully navigating through the air as your one-man army terrorizes the invaders.

You cursed as you did not see any sign of your loved ones, pressing the communicator on your neck to give Jake an update.

“Jake, the kids are not here, they must be on that ship at 3 o’clock”

“Roger that, once you’re done there, proceed to that ship” Jake was very worried, you can hear it in his voice as he tries to steel himself.

“I’ll be there in a heartbeat, cross my heart”

You shot down a few more boats as the army of the Metaykina arrived to see the damage you caused, it was messy to describe it nicely. Tonowari watched as you shot someone with an arrow, making them fall of the ship.

The rest of the warriors marveled at the sight, some of them fell in love with your bravery and skill. You noticed that they stopped for a while making you raise an eyebrow.

“Well, they are all yours brothers and sisters” Your voice woke them up from their thoughts, and charged at the ships.

Tonowari used his spear to eliminate the survivors who managed to escape from the flaming ships that are sinking. He noticed how someone was aiming for you and immediately impaled the man from fury, how dare he try to hurt you.

He turned back to you, your face wore a smirk while looking back at him. This made him gulp as Ao’nung looked at his uncle in bewilderment. Oh, this is great material, wait till Tsireya hears about this-

══════⊹⊱❖⊰⊹══════

You flew towards the ship where the kids were being kept, thankfully you were able to shoot down the enemies before they shot at the boys.

“Uncle Y/N!”

Neteyam called out to you with a relieved smile, they knew that you were strong and you will protect them.

“Thank Eywa, you skxawngs are alive” 

You informed Jake that you found the three boys and girl are safe. The five of you went to the shore, once you got off your ikran you pulled them into a hug.

After this heartfelt moment, you hit them all at the back of their heads, except the Metaykina girl.

“Seriously, you leave your parents’ sight for a few minutes and you almost got yourself killed! What were you all thinking!?”

You proceeded to scold them for five minutes while the girl which you now know as Tsireya watched. They feel ashamed of what they did, but they also know that you just care about them and what they did could have easily killed anyone.

Thankfully everyone was safe and no one died. Jake and Neytiri proceeded to do the same thing as you, hug the and scold them enough to never forget. 

Neytiri gasped when she saw your leg, “Y/N your leg! Let us treat it immediately”

“Oh shit, uncle Y/N” The kids started to fuss over you, which made you confused.

“Huh?” You look down to see blood soaking the sand underneath you then you felt the pain. “Yeah, maybe I should not have looked-”

Suddenly your feet were not touching the ground and you were met with a teal blue chest. Ocean eyes were staring into your golden ones, masked with worry.

“Olo'eyktan, what a surprise! But you need not carry me, I can walk by myself”

“No, you are injured, you must not take this situation lightly” The Sullys and Tsireya watched this interaction, they all had wide eyes while Lo’ak almost laughed at how grave Tonawari’s expression is. Jake is trying to not laugh out loud at your bewildered expression, he knows that your pride is at stake”

“This is not the first time I was shot nor a helpless girl, so please calm down”

“Absolutely not, this is not a request but an order as the Olo’eyktan”

“But I am not part of this-”

“No buts”

Oh, this will be a great show, they thought. They wondered how he will react once he finds out that you are actually a man.

(I will probably continue this story along with Tsu’tey’s? Should I? AYO)

Ronal

She despises your kind with all her heart but she also tries to treat you in a neutral manner with the urging of her brother and niece. She should find you annoying but she is aware of how you are trying your best to not be seen by her, this is how the walls around her heart crumble little by little. She does not know how an avatar works so imagine her reaction to finding out that you have been severely injured.

Ronal is a smart and badass woman, that's your first impression of her and you respect her attitude. In fact, you welcomed it with open arms. With this fact and attitude, she was deeply annoyed with you. A demon, you were always called, yet you remain unbothered with what surrounds you.

Despite your kind being small and fragile, they have caused so much irreparable damage to Pandora. A stain that must be removed at all costs.

You can easily be trampled on by their kind yet the half-bloods insist on sticking by your side. It must be because of your dirty blood inside them, which makes them protective over you.

As a sky person, you have always believed that you should not be with the Sullys even though you are Jake’s best friend. But they see you as family, heck even Neytiri cares for you! You know that you are not worthy of such compassion after what your kind has done.

Everyone begs to differ with your belief, they know that you are different from the ones that wreak havoc. So you put your utmost effort into fixing and improving the state of Pandora to correct the wrongdoings of what the others have done. 

When the Sullys had to leave the clan for their safety, they offered to bring you with them and you immediately tried to shake your head. “I am not certain that they will welcome someone like me, my avatar has not even healed since the unexpected raid”

“It does not matter, you are family to us, if they do not accept you then we will look for another clan” Jake and Neytiri placed their hand in your shoulder. It was already a big deal that they were leaving a place full of memories, yet they could not bear to make you separate from them.

══════⊹⊱❖⊰⊹══════

So that is how you arrived at this point. When Kiri almost drowned near the spirit tree, you were just as panicked as her parents and they called for Norm and the others. You know that the Tsahik will not like this, she will be furious at the sight of the machines being brought to the marui.

You were right with your theory, regrettably enough. She was furious at the sight of all these unknown objects placed around and attached to Kiri. Ronal flipped out, wearing a more stressed expression than what you usually see.

You were worried that she is having too many things on her plate and it is affecting her health, you prefer not seeing her get worked up. The reason why? It is unknown to you but it may be related to how similar she is to your little sister.

They both have their own ways to deal with things and the strong personality is nostalgic to you. But for some reason she shows hostility against you the most, she did not acknowledge Norm or the others even if they are unfamiliar.

When nothing was happening to your niece as she was still unconscious, Neytiri also burst out. She yelled at almost everyone to take the machines away as she pleaded to Ronal, for her daughter.

“Take those vile things away, I do not want to see any sky people or their crafts in front of me” Ronal seethed, you were scared but thankful that she will heal Kiri.

“Let us get these things out of here”

You made it your responsibility to speed up the process of taking all the machines back to the ship.

You decided to leave her sight so that she will not have other problems to deal with, a Tsahik is already a big enough responsibility. As you thought about her hardships, you decided to make some of her favorite snacks.

You have a very understanding personality, which is why almost everybody has no problem with sharing their problems with you. It is almost like an unconscious routine of yours, you will be observing a person that piques your interest and do small actions to lighten their responsibilities. It is not the first time you have done such a thing for Ronal.

“She must be busy at this time, I shall give her some snacks”

In fact, she knew that you are the one who leaves meals in the front of her marui when she is having a busy day. Without you knowing, she observes you as well, to make sure that you are no threat to her people. Every day, since you cannot join the others for the lessons, the reason is obvious.

You aid the rest of the Metaykina clan through sharing your knowledge and helping with the physical work. In the beginning, they are all wary of you and avoided you at all costs. Now, they are beginning to warm up to you because of your deeds.

Even Tonowari gives you invites to join them in a variety of activities, whether it be hunting or other things. But you would always excuse yourself, telling them that you will just slow them down and take away the fun while wearing that stupid smile of yours.

“Y/N I have heard stories from Jake Sully about your ingenious works, it would be an educational experience if you could join us in our hunt” “It is an honor of mine to be invited, but regretfully we might have to reschedule on another time” You made eye contact with her for a few seconds before returning your attention to her brother.

“My physique and skills cannot possibly be able to amount even 1/10th of your strength” You held your small hand to your chest in mock defeat.

When she found out that you actually spend time with her brother when she is not present, she felt annoyed calling you a coward in her head. Were you really that scared of her or did you just dislike her?

Ronal knows that it is none of the two, but she cannot help but think that way. Both of you would have never spoken to each other unless you passed by one another, though it is only you that greets her as she just looks at you.

══════⊹⊱❖⊰⊹══════

Those small actions of yours, she started to look forward to them. Tonowari even teased her about how she is having special treatment so that she can accept you. But she knows your personality despite not being close, so she smacked Tonowari's arm in annoyance. 

“Good morning Tonowari and Tsahik!” You chirped

You treat everyone the same way. 

 ══════⊹⊱❖⊰⊹══════

You were bleeding profusely, as your body gets washed up on the shore, Ronal's spirit sister was the one who brought you there and she felt dread creep in her stomach. She wanted to come near you but the sight of the Sullys immediately hovering around you made her freeze on her feet.

The people gathered around you so she went to her spirit sister and asked what happened.

“Ugh the RDA... They're here” She heard you choke out, you are in pain yet you still gave them a calming smile. Your arm is clutched around your injured leg as you tried to even out your breathing.

Her spirit sister told her all the events that took place, how she was almost shot by a ship but you took the bullet for her.

You were at the ocean because Lo'ak invited you to meet Payakan and so happened to also see what happened. She was thankful for what you have done but this meant war...

She watched as you were brought somewhere, Jake Sully told them to warn the others before any of their spirit sisters and brothers get hurt. Since her sister is already safe and sound, she decided to look for you before she heads out for the fight.

On the other side, you are currently surviving off painkillers as you trudged out of the marui while being scolded by Kiri.

“I have to help them my Kiri, I know how those demons work” You placed your hand on her head to ease her worries, “I mean I am a demon myself so I can handle myself”

When Ronal heard what you said, she felt some guilt for how you used humor to downplay the insults. But before she can get near you, a metal compartment was pulled out by the familiar dream walkers from before.

 ══════⊹⊱❖⊰⊹══════

She was you again during the battle, but you looked different. Your form is similar to the Omatikaya clan but instead of a male, your form is a female. She did not even have the chance to fully admire your features for the first time, since you both barely faced each other properly, because you have been shot again.

This time she did not show her usual attitude of indifference and scorn, but genuinely cared for you.

“Quickly, bring Y/N to the marui!” 

Your avatar is bleeding quickly and you are already pale from the blood loss. Your eyes weakly looked at her teary ones, her expression hurt you. Ronal was too busy trying to calm herself down that she only noticed that you were looking at her when she felt your hand shakily wipe her tears away.

“Do not be sad, I will be fine”

“You should swear, I hate liars”

“I swear, Ronal, I will be fine”

This is the first time she heard her name come from your mouth and it brought her a sweet feeling, she sniffled as you finally arrived at her marui.

Needless to say, you were really fine. When you passed out in your avatar form, you came back in your human form with that same stupid smile. And Ronal wanted to be pissed at the fact she cried for you but love overpowered her as she finally accepted how she sees you.

Quaritch

He is a new man and he is going through the journey of accepting his new body and new life. But there will always be his past trying to get him. At least you are there though, the co-parent of his human son and his closest acquaintance... Oh, Eywa please help him keep his thing down before you notice. And why does his boy keep staring at him with that smug look? 

The man has done a lot of evil things, everyone knows that which is why despite losing his memories, most of the Omaticaya clan avoids him like a disease.

“He is one of those who destroyed the Hometree...”

“Stay away from him at all costs, you do not know when you will be endangered...”

But not you, not Jake, not the kids, Neytiri is still wary but there has been some progress. All of you have an understanding that this takes time, not everyone has healed from the past.

For some reason, Quaritch seems to stick around you most of the time. But you guessed that it might be because you are human, which seems less of a threat than the Navis.

You and Quaritch do not speak to each other much if the teasing is not counted. You are busy with whatever you need to do while the man just sticks by your side whenever he finishes his lessons.

“Spider was right, you do speak as a 3-year-old” You commented at his Navi, trying not to laugh but your shoulders were betraying you.

He looked at you, with an offended expression. Trying to look angry as he towered over you.

“I can literally throw you with ease, mister” 

The man may never admit it but he had some fragments of human Quaritch about you, half of the time is how much he wants to kill you and the rest is about how he wishes you do not get yourself killed. Those are very conflicting feelings that confuse him, he seems to be developing something.

“Whatever you say, old man”

Seeing you take care of Spider, the child of human him makes him imagine something with you. It will only be a flash though before it gets thrown to the back of his head.

It took a lot of convincing... And bribes... And some threatening before the people finally started warming up to his presence.

“People say, find good people and leave the bad ones...

But I say, find the good in people and ignore the bad in them...

Because no one is perfect”

That is what you always like to say. 

Which makes him wonder how you are so positive after all the crazy things that happened.

Things were finally looking up for Quaritch and you are proud of what he has achieved.  He is now really one of the people, a new life has been given to him.

Until the RDA came back for revenge. They were hunting down him and Jake, it was a mess all over again. Spider was almost taken and if it was not for your appearance near the site.

They also knew about you, as Grace's prodigy who will be in charge of the project after her. So you had to come with them for the safety of the clan.

══════⊹⊱❖⊰⊹══════

You were all leaving tomorrow morning and there are approximately 18 hours left before the trip. With Jake and Neytiri, you decided to use your avatar again for the journey.

You have only used it a couple of times (during the battle where Jake became the Toruk Makto, when Neteyam, Lo'ak, Kiri and Tuk were born to babysit them) before deciding that you are better off with your human body for Spider who you treated as a son.

The group will head to Awa'atlu and seek Uturu there, the distance is huge so you will not be found so easily. Once the plan has been made, you exited their house first to excuse yourself and walk around one last time in your human body.

Your shoulders slumped as you disappeared from the two's sight, you knew that you were being overdramatic since you have only lived here for almost two decades while the others lived here their whole lives. They are surely the ones who are being hit the most by this news.

Quaritch noticed you when you walked past him with a dazed expression without saying anything. Without saying anything he followed you, walking behind you in silence.

He just watched as your legs brought you to a familiar site, looking around this is where you brought him before.

This place is secluded in the area and only you tend to be a usual inhabitant of this place, not considering the wildlife. You told him before that this is a great place to rest whenever you or he wants to just be alone and away from whatever is troubling you both.

You did not know how your feet brought you to this place, heck you did not even notice that you were unconsciously walking if you did not almost smack your face on a tree. A familiar tail wrapped around your waist preventing you from an accident.

“Woah there, if you just wanted me to touch you, you could have just asked” He purred, pulling you closer with his tail, “There is no need to play these mind games”

As you regained your senses, you sighed in relief when you saw that Quaritch saved you from possibly breaking your mask.

“That scared me, thank you for the save”

The corners of your lips perked up as you great fully nodded at him. You gently untangled yourself from his tail before slumping onto the ground. You did not notice how his whole body tensed because you were facing the ground.

Quaritch felt his whole body want to shiver when you touched him and he took deep breaths to relax his body before placing all his attention on you.

“You know, you can go do your thing now”

Your finger drew circles on the ground beside you as you held your knees to your chest, mumbling with a dry laugh.

“I am fine here, no wild animals will come out of nowhere if you are afraid that I will get myself killed”

Quaritch knows that he is no good at comforting others or being uplifting, but he can listen. So wearing his usual smirk, he sat beside you.

“Yeah right and for your information, my thing is annoying you

”You looked at him with a raised brow that says "really?” and finally showed him a small but real smile.

“I swear, you are like a tail sometimes” 

“I am the best tail that ever existed then”

There is the hint of human Quaritch that you are familiar with, that confident mindset, and how he holds himself.

You let out an amused huff before looking at the grass again, drawing random shapes. Silence enveloped the area, it was a comfortable one, to be honest.

Quaritch kept his eyes on you, enjoying the sound of nature as you both sat close to each other. He could feel the heat radiating from your body.

“An ikran for your thoughts?”

“Well...”

You ended up telling him about the plan of leaving the clan, you were expecting him to react negatively to this news because everything was finally great until now.

Hesitantly, you took a peak at his expression to see how he is looking straight into you, there is no emotion on his face that is negative. In fact, he looks relaxed like you just told him about your day.

“Why are you looking at me like that? Did you expect me to react like a child?”

He was met with silence making him open his mouth in shock.

“Really!?”

══════⊹⊱❖⊰⊹══════

This was the morning when the group will be leaving the clan, Quaritch woke up earlier than expected. He did not get out of his bed and just stared at the ceiling, thinking of how you hung out yesterday.

You told him about your thoughts and how you feel guilty about the whole thing. It was unreasonable since nobody would have thought that this will happen.

A shuffle sounded at the doorway and there stood the little human, human him made. The two of them have a friendly relationship, almost acting like a father and son but they have not reached that part of reconciliation yet, in your words.

“Thinking about a special someone, Quaritch?”

Spider grinned at him, crossing his arms over his chest as he leaned on the door frame.

“Who let you in here? I'm pretty sure this is a crime”

The man rolled his eyes as he sat up, not throwing the subject away which Spider noticed but decided not to comment on that.

“Oh calm yourself old man, I came here since you were not getting out at your usual time. We gotta go soon”

Since Spider cannot bind with an ikran since his avatar body is still in the construction phase, he will be flying with Lo'ak. You with him, Tuk with Jake, and the rest on their own.

══════⊹⊱❖⊰⊹══════

To this day, Quaritch cannot help but laugh at the fact Jake named his ikran “Bob" out of the billions of names available.

Everyone gathered at the meeting place except you and Lo'ak, it was almost time but no one except Quaritch is wondering where you are.

He tried to distract himself by tending to his Ikran, making sure that he is ready for the long flight. His ears twitched at the faint but familiar footsteps tapping from afar.

“There they are, took you long enough” Jake's voice has a hint of laughter but Quaritch still didn't turn around.

“Sorry about that, it took me a while to get a hang of this body again” An unfamiliar female voice came from the direction where you are supposed to come from. He whipped his head in your direction and it took his strength to not open his mouth in shock.

“Y/N?”

From the corner of his eyes, he saw Spider nudge Kiri with that same smirk of his. You told him before that Spider's smirk is really similar to his, you will never tell him how that smirk makes you feel inside though.

“Cat got your tongue, Miles?” Your hand is placed on your hip, above your small waist insinuating your curves as you threw him a smirk.

His voice got caught in his throat, making him look like a fish as he opened and closed his mouth.

At this sight, the family on the side who has been forgotten in this two-person world are whispering bets.

“I bet a whole month of chores that he's falling in love” - Lo'ak

“That is not possible because he already is in love. Have you been blind?” - Kiri

“I also suspect that Quaritch may be blind at his feelings, so is Y/N” - Neteyam

“Now kids, you should not be discussing this behind their backs” Neytiri went on between her children with a smile, at least the is something positive blooming in this trip “But I bet that Quaritch wants to mate with them more, now”

“Neytiri?!” Jake looked at his wife in disbelief, this was something he did not expect of her.

Back to your side.

“Just kidding, no need to take that seriously”

Extra:

Quaritch felt like hell, your arms are wrapped around him and he can feel your chest on his back. This was a test of self-control, you got worried with how tense he is.

"Are you feeling okay? Do you want me to ride with Neteyam instead? That is alright with me" Your breath hit his neck and he took a sharp inhale.

"No way, you are stuck with me the whole journey"

I will be posting the female reader version of this part tomorrow

Up next: Oh my Eywa- (Teens) ft. Neteyam, Lo’ak, and Kiri [1/2]

Previous work/s:

Well damn... (Adults) 1/2 ft. Jake, Neytiri, and Tsu’tey [Male reader ver.]

Well damn... (Adults) 1/2 ft. Jake, Neytiri, and Tsu’tey [Female reader ver.]

[fromtenthousandfeet]

What is it gonna take for HYBE to give Jimin the support he deserves? Will it ever even happen? Because I'm tired of feeling so miserable all the time. I even wanna delete all my socials and just find something else in my life to fixate on. I feel terrible for feeling this way because it's like I'm abandoning Jimin (even if I'll still be streaming his music). I'm tired of all of this, it's not good for my mental health at all.

All this corruption and evil simply can't keep winning like this, can it? Are we just supposed to make peace with JK being BTS' "break out star"? Really? I naïvely thought that they'd abandon their sinister plans after seeing how poorly he's been performing in comparison to the crazy amount of push they've been giving him. What the hell is going on at that company?

Anon,

I'm sharing with you this poor quality video of Michael Jackson calling out Tommy Mottola and Sony because it's worth remembering that record labels using and abusing their artists is the rule, not the exception. Not even The King of Pop was immune.

At around 3:20, MJ mentions that he "owes" the label two more songs and then he's a free agent. He says he writes about 120 songs per album, so he'll just pick two songs he's got hanging around and then he's done.

I bring this up because I suspect Jimin might be doing something similar. Having as few solo songs under Big Hit as possible is smart, because he likely won't own the rights to his own music if/when he leaves. The less they own, the better. Writing and recording two albums at once was efficient. Also, by keeping his marketing budget (ads, playlist placement, music videos, etc.) as small as possible, he'll keep more of the album sales and streaming revenue. All those expensive marketing costs are deducted from an artist's earnings, so best to keep them at a minimum if the plan is to make the most money possible. Between the writing credits, lower marketing budget, and the high profile brand ambassador deals Jimin's got, I feel like he's positioning himself to create his own company or label. This is my hope even if I have zero proof.

The way FACE went down really bothered me. I knew the company was behind Jimin's sabotage immediately and it drove me crazy that it took so long for others to catch up. But look at the response to MUSE. Jimin really does have an army of dedicated fans who are calling out the company's (intentional) incompetence 24/7. In reality, it's fun to watch PJMs catch the company and create a stink. It's almost like a game. Don't take it too seriously. Plus, in the long run, who cares about charts? The quality of the music itself is far more important.

Once again I've droned on way too long, but hear me out. I think HYBE/BH is investing so heavily in JK because they have to. BTS isn't going to last forever, and if Jimin leaves, they've lost a huge revenue source. But please trust me when I say they have an uphill battle before them because JK doesn't currently have the artistry or charisma to enthrall the west the way Jimin does. Don't expect them to abandon ship anytime soon, though. And if he does make it big, so be it.

I really wish BTS fans, or at least PJMs, didn't feel so much hate for Min Hee Jin because there's a lot to learn about Bang Si-hyuk and HYBE when you follow the whole ADOR saga. There are some astute NewJeans fans out there who've sized up Bang PD so well and their observations help explain Jimin's treatment by the company. He breaks people down (the idols, staff, and fans) using the "death by a thousand cuts" method. Endless small transgressions and slights, that individually appear like no big deal and are therefore not taken seriously by the media or fans, but collectively are detrimental to careers and one's mental health.

You know what? If Jimin announced he's leaving the music industry after military service, I would say congratulations and thank you for all the amazing music and performances during your BTS and solo career. Have a wonderful life! While I don't think he'll do that, it's worth remembering that none of this is all that serious. Enjoy his music. Take a break from social media, because in the real world nobody cares about this stuff.

Anon, did you make to the end of this long post? Way to use the umlaut on naïvely!

[bethanydelleman]

I had to leave a Facebook book-club group discussing Emma, because when I pointed out that Emma defends Jane Fairfax's beauty, the response was that it was actually evil. No, I just didn't understand. Emma liked that Frank was insulting Jane.

Huh? This is the quote (and yes I read around it too for any hint of sarcasm or meanness):

“Ill, very ill—that is, if a young lady can ever be allowed to look ill. But the expression is hardly admissible, Mrs. Weston, is it? Ladies can never look ill. And, seriously, Miss Fairfax is naturally so pale, as almost always to give the appearance of ill health.—A most deplorable want of complexion.” Emma would not agree to this, and began a warm defence of Miss Fairfax’s complexion. “It was certainly never brilliant, but she would not allow it to have a sickly hue in general; and there was a softness and delicacy in her skin which gave peculiar elegance to the character of her face.”

Where is her being mean? Frank said Jane looked sickly and Emma could not abide it, she defends Jane and even uses a big compliment (for her) "elegant". Emma very much admires elegance and it is a word she uses constantly with Jane. Emma sincerely admires Jane's looks and her elegance.

Which really makes this a "I hate Emma so everything she does must be evil" thing. And I can't take it anymore! She has good traits, otherwise she wouldn't be redeemable! Why must people make her good parts bad? While Emma does complain about Jane's reserve, she does not insult her to anyone. She even tells Harriet Jane is a better pianoforte player:

“Oh! if I could but play as well as you and Miss Fairfax!” [H] “Don’t class us together, Harriet. My playing is no more like her’s, than a lamp is like sunshine.” [Emma] “Oh! dear—I think you play the best of the two. I think you play quite as well as she does. I am sure I had much rather hear you. Every body last night said how well you played.” “Those who knew any thing about it, must have felt the difference. The truth is, Harriet, that my playing is just good enough to be praised, but Jane Fairfax’s is much beyond it.”

Emma may like being told she's superior, but she does not tear other's down to feel better.

And then her charity, a lot of people take this part as sarcsm:

That is NOT this:

They were now approaching the cottage, and all idle topics were superseded. Emma was very compassionate; and the distresses of the poor were as sure of relief from her personal attention and kindness, her counsel and her patience, as from her purse. She understood their ways, could allow for their ignorance and their temptations, had no romantic expectations of extraordinary virtue from those for whom education had done so little; entered into their troubles with ready sympathy, and always gave her assistance with as much intelligence as good-will.

Elizabeth soon perceived, that though this great lady was not in the commission of the peace for the county, she was a most active magistrate in her own parish, the minutest concerns of which were carried to her by Mr. Collins; and whenever any of the cottagers were disposed to be quarrelsome, discontented, or too poor, she sallied forth into the village to settle their differences, silence their complaints, and scold them into harmony and plenty. (Pride & Prejudice, Ch 30)

With Lady Catherine, there is no mention of compassion, money, kindness, or sympathy. NONE. Lady Catherine is coming to tell people they spend too much money on avocado toast. Emma is giving them money, kindness, and soup. These are not the same! Emma's charity is actually a good thing, it is part of why she is the heroine. Look at her treatment of Miss Taylor! Do you think Lady Catherine treats Mrs. Jenkinson as a friend? WE KNOW SHE DOESN'T!

Yes, Emma is snobby in her charity, but she's also filthy rich and living in a classist system. It was also her actual job. I doubt anyone in that house felt that she was condescending (in the modern use of that word). She was doing her duty and doing it well.

It just feels so unfair. Emma cannot have a single good feature, for some reason literally EVERYTHING she does MUST be evil/tainted/self-centered. Give me a break.

(I also left once because people would not stop calling Mary Crawford a succubus/siren/seductress.)

[atropalugosi]

i am very sleep deprived so apologies if this is jumbled or if anything doesn't make sense, but i have been thinking about this all day and needed to say it out loud

Yes yes Bela is a strong, workaholic Roman Emperor, but ignoring that and getting to the heart (lol) of her, the part that cares too much, that feels things so fully it cannibalizes her, she is Ophelia. A deeply tragic and beautiful character that we cannot help but be drawn to, perhaps because of the tragedy of her. This is obviously not a completely clean cut comparison of characters, there are just as many differences between them as there are similarities, but I still think there is enough to warrant a comparison at all.

Perhaps my personal biggest comparison between the two is the fact that both women, while having agency within their own stories, are TREATED as though they do not by those around them. Hamlet, Laertes, and Polonius all treat Ophelia as though she is a tool to be used for their own gains, and the same can very easily be said of how Miranda AND Alcina interact with Bela. If she is not on the council, putting in more work than any sane person should, staying under lock and key where they can always know she's being a good little pawn, then she is being belittled by her mother who holds no room for mistakes and disappointments from her daughters, or actively threatened and gaslit by Miranda for being "hysterical". At no point is Bela ever allowed to simply be herself without it backfiring on her in some way, and so she begrudgingly complies because at least it keeps her sisters safe.

My second argument for Bela being an Ophelia comparison is her heart itself. Ophelia is SO full of love and devotion, both for her family and for Hamlet, and characters within the play are forever shaming her for this. Bela is so full of heart "she would burn down cities for those she loves" and that is precisely why Miranda curses her to not feel at all. Both characters are expected to be loving and devoted to the people they are closest to, but the SECOND that love can be misconstrued or used against them, they shut the girls out, they rage against the love they have, they make the girls into villains they are not. Hamlet verbally abuses Ophelia when he believes she is spying on him for her family in order to push her away, and Miranda actively takes away Bela's ability to feel and act out against her will when she starts to be too free thinking and caring of others.

My third and atm final thought on the matter because my brain is running on fumes is that they are comparisons for their perceived "madness". Ophelia has FOREVER been regarded as a bit of a loon despite historical context as well as her treatment throughout the play providing exactly a perfect look at why she decides to end her life. And poor Bela, distancing herself from everyone and everything, working herself near to death, and slowly killing herself in a more passive way, not even of her own accord, but simply because she has no other choice in the matter. They're looked at by the surrounding characters in their stories as though they are hysterical and completely out of it for their perfectly understandable reactions to traumatic events that directly affect their livelihoods.

I don't know how to do a closing statement at the moment, so just hope you enjoyed the read and I will probably be back with another part to this soon

[inasbdtblogrealnoscam]

🩵

While I wait for the poll results, have my NU Highest OC, Jim! The first image is her true form, and the other is her Mobian form.

This silly little goober spawned from a notebook doodle, which is where most of my halfway decent ideas come from, to be honest.

Her lore is included below, if you wanna read that. Also, sadly she is NOT canon to Bad Dream Timelines. Tragic, I know.

Jim (full name Jay-Ida-Moro) is one of the numerous Highests. They're actually on the younger side, being "only" 1000-something years old. Due to this, they didn't have time to get tainted by Chaos Energy or the manipulation and exploitation of the Demons. Despite still being quite powerful, they are only a regular Highest (not an Elite), thus only having abilities on a very weak multiversal power level, making her one of the weakest Highests to date. Her relatively young age makes others not take her as seriously.

Initially not assigned to any universes due to being "too immature", Jim assisted other Highests in their duties. She developed a strong appeciation for mortals, studying them with immense interest as much as she could (in the allowed reigns, at least). While her work mostly consisted of status reports, she savoured every moment she was allowed to directly intervene in the fate of a universe. Easily impressionable, she quickly adapted to the ins and outs of multiversal balance.

After Exetior's rebellion and subsequent banishment, Mobius was left without an overseer. Its erasure was considered, but it was determined too early for such a decision. Someone had to be in charge of it, though. And since Jim was looking promising, especially when contrasting her obedience, devotion and eagerness to follow orders to the recent events, it was decided this could be a good test of "the young one" 's capabilities.

For the next 400 years, Jim was in charge of overseeing Mobius. Determined to genuinely do right by the Mobians, she took every measure possible to ensure the safety of that universe. This also included descending down to fix any major wrongdoings that could threathen the balance. However, as good-intentioned as she was, she wasn't exactly knowledgeable in... any regard about Mobian life. With how indiscriminate her treatment looked like to an outsider, Jim seemed moreso a force of nature than anything else. After all, the Highests operated on a different set of morality, it was to be expected. Countless individuals eradicated, countless more cursed with immortality. And yet, she was not a tyrant. Quite the opposite, in fact. When contrasted against other, older Highests, Jim was incredibly merciful to the inhabitants of Mobius.

She honestly adored the citizens of that little world. But in no way did she treat them like peers. A more accurate comparison would be a child watching over their ant colony set, vegetable garden or video game pet collection. She sincerely loved them, she wanted the best for them, she’d try her best for them (this is a key difference between her and Mobius’s previous assigned overseer. While Jim would try to appeal to and persuade the other Highests to not erase her beloved world, they would not rebel against the final decision in either scenario. They’d just assume that it’s for the best.), but she did not respect them. This became painfully obvious, and reached its peak around 150 years ago. A young hedgehog had just lost their best friend. Driven by incredible desperation and grief, they prayed to the heavens for many weeks on end. Those pleas managed to reach Jim, and she was more than touched. Not wanting the poor boy to suffer anymore, she quickly made him another friend. Identical to the previous, if not better… so why were they still upset?

The hedgehog spoke towards the heavenly benefactor with resentment. Accusing her of insensitivity. Of mockery. That they were truly out of touch with the world they were supposed to protect. Confused, Jim inquired. She gave him what he wanted, why is he upset? As it turns out, you can’t just throw someone an identical clone of their dead loved one and expect them to just go back to normal life as if nothing ever happened. Even though that’s exactly how the Highests handled their possessions.

Since that event, Jim became determined to understand the Mobians. Taking every legal excuse to descend down, she used a flawed Mobian form made by herself to „blend in” (somewhat unsuccessfully). However, her plans were soon cut short. Unexpectedly to everyone, Exetior had broken out of hell. And this time, he brought backup. In face of the war, Jim tried her damn best to keep Mobius unaffected. But it was a futile task. After all, that one tiny world was the reason this war even started. It wasn’t that she hated the idea of someone else overlooking the planet. No, she’d be fine with it. A little bit sad, but ultimately, it wouldn’t really matter that much to her. It was moreso about the method. No matter what pretty words the information was wrapped with, it was still ultimately wrong to her. This is not allowed. This is harmful. No matter how it’s explained, this is causing harm to Mobians in its plainest form. And she didn’t want to allow it. Even if this was the former overseer of this universe, he wasn’t one anymore. This was one of the Demons. The very kind of entities she was meant to shield this poor world from.

But, of course, the intent and the result are two different things. And when you pair a lonely young Highest lacking combat experience with a vengeful Elite-Highest-turned-Arch-Demon supported by an enormous number of forces, you can only imagine who won in this scenario. After Jim (understandably) failed to stop the genocides and demonizations, another person was assigned to deal with it (that one being Stitch-lite but like that doesn’t even matter). However, in the mayhem that the sudden war waged by Exetior caused, Jim was never discharged from protecting Mobius. And that meant she still had duty to fulfill. A world to protect. And as long as even one person was still alive, she’d keep fighting.

Jim is… hard to describe in terms of morality. It’s easy to wedge her somewhere when compared to other Highests, but she really can’t be described in Mobian terms. To her, time is meaningless, death is meaningless, and people can be easily replaced. And, despite her percieved interest and genuine care for the world she was assigned to, Jim isn’t willing to fully commit to it either. That’s not something she can be blamed her for, though. It’s only natural for an immortal, eternal entity to percieve such matters differently than mortals. Ultimately, though, Jim can be described as moreso good than evil in most cases. It’s just a case of „Blue-and-Orange morality” – the standards of „correct” and „wrong” are entirely different. Not in the „definitely wrong, but unable to see it” way, moreso „doing right by a moral standard we cannot comprehend.”

She's also kind of a Stitch-Lite fangirl (Jim doesn't know of the Elite Highest's wrongful actions, and even if she did, she believes the Elites to be infallible in their judgement). Her "hairdo" is supposed to somewhat resemble that.

Also fun fact, her favourite food (in terms of texture and taste, as Highests don't require sustenance from it) is french-style hot dogs.

[musicallisto]

and also happy birthday!!!

sending in a 🐚 + i’m bi, I like reading, writing, gaming and yoga, turn ons include pet names and receiving the princess treatment, turns offs include not sticking up for me and being messy

my fandoms from your list are bridgerton and red dead redemption💗💗

thanks so much for running this event it is soooo fun!!!<3

ohhh princess treatment, you say... let me introduce you to the absolute kings of making you feel like you are the very center of the world...

please... you know it had to be him. not only because I'm a strong supporter of the way you write him and think you are the authority on anything arthur morgan related, but also and most importantly because have you seen the way he tends his horse? how gently he talks to her when he strokes her mane? i'm thinking soooo many thoughts and none of them pure

not only that, but he is generally so caring (especially high honor!arthur, who's my personal canon interpretation of him) with those he loves and even strangers who sense the goodness in him. that energy would definitely translate into any romantic relationship, even though he'll need to get over a lot of self-doubt and self-esteem issues to make it work

in a modern AU you'd get him into yoga for sure. i can only imagine how tired and sore all those muscles are from all the hiking around the woods and fixing up stuff in your farmhouse and cutting up wood and—he needs a break, but not one where he feels too idle and therefore like he's wasting time, and especially not one where he can't be surrounded by nature. which is how you convince him to give yoga a try, on a fine dewy morning in your frontyard

he thinks it's a little stupid at first—"how's all that twistin' and bendin' supposed to make me feel better?"—but you're really persuasive and he doesn't mind the sight of you in your yoga clothes either, to be honest

he'd find it really relaxing and a surprisingly effective way to connect with nature and his surroundings, but he'd still groan a little for good measure because he doesn't want to admit you were right too easily. that, and also the poor man is NOT flexible and he is struggling.

pet names!!!!! so!!!! many!!!! pet names!!!! "darlin'" this and "sweetheart" that. "honey" and "princess" and "GOOD GIRL"?!?!,!?,,?? in that deep, southern voice of his? i need to lie down.

of course he'd stick up for you anytime you need it, and even when you don't. he pledges his loyalty to the people he loves, to the bitter end, so he'll always always defend you, even when you're a little bit wrong, lmao, but that's only because he's a beloved himbo and he thinks you're always right and so smart

also this is a little bonus—I considered mary-beth as well, because i think you too would be so so cute and actual real life ladies together &lt;3

ılı.lıllılı.ıllı.

now, if princess treatment had a name and a face... it would certainly bear a striking resemblance to that of benedict bridgerton.

the man is literally so smitten with you, there's nothing he wouldn't do to prove the depth of his affections. expect every grand gesture you've read about in the books; bouquets of your favorite flowers and countless portraits and blazing handwritten letters slipped into the secrecy of your gloved hand at balls.

anthony wonders why his younger brother looks so... miles away, like his whole being rather than just his head is in the clouds (more so than usual), and also why the family's expenses have skyrocketed all of a sudden... but violet discourages him from badgering benedict about it, because she's too elated that he's finally found a lady to seriously court, lol

since you're so well-read, and therefore spirited and quick, as well as artistic and creative, your conversations with benedict are as stimulating as they are witty... and that's not mentioning your correspondence. you could send each other letters back and forth every single day, were it not for decorum: it's already quite scandalous that an unwedded lord and lady are writing to each other personally, you're supposed to at least entertain your other suitors into thinking they have the ghost of a chance with you. which they don't, because it's clear as snow no one compares to benedict's bohemian soul.

it's true, however, that benedict can be quite... messy, asjdfjab, and he's thankful that it's him who visits you and not the other way around because he would Not want you to see the mess that is his studio. but you give him an incentive to start tidying up a little more! because you deserve only the best &lt;3

literally prince charming incarnate with the perfect dash of mystery and edginess to keep you on your toes. what else do I need to say

[anonymousbeefriendfanfics]

Trick or Treat with Casimir? 🎃👻

You have been... Treated!

Trick or treat here! Please come again, there's plenty of treats to go around!

Casimir has no clue what Halloween is, poor thing. There's a good chance he might be familiar with a similar concept of some variety, but Halloween as we know it? Not a clue.

So, of course, when you explain it to him, he's very curious and excited to learn more! He wants to know everything. I hope you like Halloween, because now he's looking at you like you're an expert with that adorable glimmer in his eyes he gets when he's excited, so buckle up!

You're gonna end up giving him the Full Halloween Treatment. It begins, of course, after your lecture on what exactly Halloween is, with decorating! It's time to leave a very impatient Casimir for an hour or so while you run to the nearest dollar/discount store and raid their Halloween section for all sorts of goodies. And oh, if you thought he was excited before? The way his eyes light up when you come in with your arms overflowing with bags is nothing short of delightful.

You've brought him everything you could find and think of. You have colorful lights in the shapes of pumpkins and cats and bats (plus a string of regular orange lights for him to potentially destroy while trying to figure out how they work), you've got all sorts of decorations, you've got pumpkins! And beyond all of that, you've also grabbed some other supplies, 'cause it's time to get crafty!

With your guidance and assistance, you carve a pumpkin or three together, because what's a classic Halloween without a jack-o'-lantern? This is actually one of the older traditions, so Casimir might be somewhat familiar with carving large vegetables and putting a candle inside of them, but even so, he definitely hasn't had a chance to do it in ages. He loves working with his hands, so he definitely enjoys the chance to make something with you, and after a bit of a learning curve, his pumpkin-carving skills are simply incredible. He's got a knack for intricate details and remarkably steady hands with all the time he spends working on clocks. The little flickering LED candle light you pop in the pumpkin fascinates him, too.

Speaking of making things, back to crafts! You've gotten all of those DIY fall craft kits you could get your hands on, because he obviously never experienced them as a kid. You guide him through painting and glueing and decorating all sorts of things, from little scarecrows to mini foam pumpkins and paper bats and all sorts of things! He's never been happier. I think Casimir would absolutely adore making things with those he loves, especially his very favorite person~

After all of the crafting festivities are done, it's time for other traditions. You tell him about Trick-or-treating, and while you can't exactly take him out to experience it, you help him put together a costume (or perhaps the House provides them for you both, if you ask nicely?) I think he would love dressing up - it's unusual, and he might feel a touch awkward at first, but he'll get over it soon enough and enjoy himself. I'm not sure what he'd be - a werewolf is a bit too mean, but Vampire Casimir? Sign me up! You definitely eat candy together too, even if he doesn't quite get the trick-or-treating fun.

If you ask very very nicely and do some extra chores, the House might just be willing to put on a haunted house for you! It configures itself into a little maze with dim lighting and a spooky atmosphere, has random 'monsters' pop out at you randomly, accompanied by the growls and screams you might expect! Casimir doesn't let go of your hand the entire time, partially because he's more scared than he wants to let on, partially because he wants to protect you - and partially to ground himself so he doesn't lose control of his emotions and shift accidentally.

I don't think he would like scary movies, though. He's fascinated by the way they work, sure, but... I feel like he would prefer more lighthearted films. Maybe a little spooky, but nothing too scary - in addition to not liking the gore and murder of it all because it reminds him of being a 'monster' himself, he's always paranoid that he'll get too spooked by a jump scare and lose control.

All in all though Casimir quickly becomes obsessed with Halloween, and you've never seen him so delighted!

Writing Masterlist 🐝 Requests Open!  Tag List 🐝 

[paladin-of-nerd-fandom65]

You’re welcome for the asks, got some more for you :)

1: do they give each other piggy back rides?

2: how often do they hang out besides at school? Everyday, once a week, etc

3: when Jake performs a wedgie on a goon does he pull the waistband up or pulls the part of the underwear underneath the butt up? Also I can see him pulling the underwear down causing Chris to cover his eyes XD

4: do they plus mar’i have any mental issues besides PTSD? Like OCD, autism, etc…

5: what was Chris’s relationship like with Jon & Kon when he first joined the family?

6: what’s their favorite thing to do in December?

1. Oh most certainly they will, especially after long missions and patrol nights should either of them be exhausted. Despite Jake’s insistence and the few exceptions he’s been able to, majority of the time, Chris is the one carrying Jake like that. Jake doesn’t mind it too much though, he’s quite used to it and if anything it’s as comfortable as when his Big Sis and Uncle Tim(my) piggyback carry him

2. About Every Once a week, mainly at their respective central city parks if crime rates are relatively slow or maybe even if they have their allowances saved up, at their local theme park packed with massive roller coasters, arcade games and snack stalls. Usually they go there for testing new dares in said roller coasters or if new rides are built and open. Plus also, numerous ride photos they post later online because it’s always fun to look out how much either they freak out or even not when in a coaster train going at 75 mph down 189 ft.

3. He always aims for the waistband as he has the strength to successfully lift the crook with even a single arm without any fabric being ripped apart. Plus while that sounds funny, even Jake knows a bit better than going that far with pantsing crooks. That’s more or less actually something Lian as Speedy would do with her arrows, courtesy of being trained be her dad.

4. As explained, Chris can reasonably be diagnosed with C-PTSD and Anxiety Disorder due to his past with his birth Father and all the horrors he had bare witnessed to even prior to meeting Clark.

Now as for Mar’i, she herself has so far not displayed major symptoms of mental disorders but is nonetheless researching on the subject so she can properly understand to the best of her abilities how it works and what are the best treatments when those conditions are active, so that she can be a comforting presence for a prison suffering a mental breakdown.

Then there’s Jake. Prior to his duel with Zsasz, he already exhibited some symptoms of social anxiety, especially prominent almost every single start of a school year which has new teachers, new potential classmates to meet, new expectations and an overall feeling of a differing crowds to try blending into from before, making it difficult for him to feel like he fits in.

Post Zsasz, though no doubt he exhibits symptoms of PTSD, haunted in his mind more so by the gruesome marks and wounds those poor orphans in that orphanage he investigate were left in, no doubt in his mind in betting that they actively suffered being their lives end. The fact many of those slain orphans were around his age range with 8 years at youngest and 12 at oldest, he feels a sense of survivor’s guilt and shame in that he feels he could’ve saved them had he only known. Couple that with how sadistic, cruel and diabolical Zsasz himself was in their duel with each thrust, swipe and twisting of that blade onto his then powerless self at that very duel, he perfectly then understood what those orphans had felt and likely would’ve died the same exact way had it not been for the timely intervention of his allies that moment (whether it be Chris in the revised version or his family in the original version as seen in my fic ‘Broken Wings’).

5. With Jon, the then 4 year old was curious and quickly ecstatic of having a big brother to be around, like having a brand new friend. Chris was very first was a tad nervous around Jon, afraid to hurt or scare him away with his background and where he came from. But over the course of the first few weeks of staying over, Chris started clicking with Jon all too easily as they bonded with numerous brotherly things they did together, helped along by Clark being there for the both.

Then there’s Conner, who first emerged at least in the timeline around when Chris and Jon were 7 and 5 respectively in the aftermath of the emergence and defeat of Doomsday (Clark himself actually survived this encounter but he was left in critical condition and taken to a hospital. However the press had claimed of Superman being killed in the process and Clark had lost his powers for a good while. It was in the period between this Doomsday encounter and Clark’s powers being restored did Conner, Steel, Eradicator and Cyborg Superman arise to fill in for his role).

Conner had thought of Chris like someone that embodies the awkward nature of his relationship with Clark, in that Clark was so quick to take in this unrelated child yet with him there seems being some sort of rift from the get go. Conner can understand where that rift comes from but it still annoyed him a bit. He didn’t wanna break Chris and Jon’s hearts though so he accepts looking over them whenever Clark, Lois and Kara were extra busy.

During these times they stay with him, mainly at Martha and Pa’s place at Smallville, he finds a sort of kinship with the boys. The fact they look up to him as a big superhero and are awe of his own tales of hero work while being all the cool certainly helps. Sure he twitches every time they refer to him as ‘Superboy’ instead of ‘Superman’ but it’s the thought and appreciation that truly counts. It’s about weeks of doing this and having the bond firmly in place when Conner begins to think of maybe….making these two as cool as him one day, as he’ll show them the right way of being a superhero.

6. Since both Hamilton County and Bludhaven can get a good amount of snow fall and frozen lakes that are available for skating, making snow angels, building snow replicas of Haley and Krypto and even some hockey on said frozen lakes with their siblings are what I envision Chris and Jake doing in December, let alone the winter

[lavenoon]

Guh Taking Flight was so good I can’t even. Seeing how different the dynamic was at verses where it ends was just- like dang. Robin seeing Dusk go through the same things they did as a rookie and having a choice to either let him suffer like they did or intervene. YES ROBIN BREAK THE CYCLE EVEN IF YOURE PISSED. The defending scene was definitely different than what I thought. Props to Robin for being a great shot I guess. Poor Dusk was just standing there like 😳. I doubt he was expecting that. Ugh and then their little chat. It hurt my heart. Seeing him so upset just- ah! Robin’s little inner dialogue of ‘plus nobody likes you’ it just makes me so sad! Like I know it’s supposed to but just seeing it come back again and again…man. There’s so much more that I want to say but my dinners sitting in the microwave and I’m starving. SO, long story short- awesome chapter, awesome writing, you’re amazing, have a good day and take care of yourself

Ahaha yes, it was a lot of fun depicting the start of their dynamic, since before I had mostly dabbled in the more established "rivalry" slash friendship later on in the timeline! (and then of course, everything post reveal!) Getting to really pry into Robin's mind and show why they are the way they are, why in any timeline the senior agents are just rougher around the edges and struggle to trust, that was a lot of fun!

The defending scene definitely changed from how I originally depicted it here - though I will simply say that that post can just be a different instance. With my non-chronological approach, a few concepts just end up different, and I knew it would mean a lot more if Robin already had to confront that fear of losing their rank, is confronting it, and still chooses to defend Dusk. Because it's the right thing to do.

Because no one did it for them.

They're not without their scars, and they isolated themself to avoid rejection and now, with Dusk and the honestly fun interactions, they suddenly have to face the fact that isolation may be better than rejection, but they're lonely and they very much enjoy being around people if those people don't treat them like a joke.

Dusk doesn't know everything going on in Robin's mind - or he wouldn't have asked. But he saw their reaction when he asked if they gave up on fun, he saw the sticker, and he realizes that they went through years of this treatment alone. He's not happy about it, and he's not about to make huge concessions - he's a sarcastic little fuck when he asks them to explain! But he does see their struggle for what it is, and appreciates their company, so he does indulge, he does go back to "bothering" them, riling them up and making them laugh.

And thus a rivalry is born, now that both are star ranked agents!

[drowned-debris]

@dotflowweek Day 5: Machine Effect, Machine Nation, Restlessness

Honestly, she envies the girl across the room from her. In all of Sabitsuki’s time here, she’s never seen her take more than five minutes to fall asleep. Does she just have a really comfortable bed? There shouldn’t be any difference between the ones they were assigned, though she wouldn’t put it past the doc to secretly play favourites with his patients.

Maybe the girl is just like that? She’s seen her doze in other places before— once, she even began to nod off in the middle of tinkering with one of those weird little contraptions she seems to love. Being able to sleep that easily seems like a blessing and a curse to Sabitsuki; on one hand, it’d be nice to never worry about sleepless nights, but on the other… accidentally taking a nap in the wrong spot would be practically begging to have a prank pulled on her. Maybe it’s just the way her childhood was, but being as vigilant and aware as possible is important to her.

Then again, maybe Sabitsuki is the odd one out. She doesn’t really have a frame of reference for this— it would make sense if she had more difficulty sleeping than everybody else, especially after her recent… modifications. It took her a day or so just to get used to walking around; the struggle of adjusting to her new limbs could very well be affecting her sleep cycle. A girl two doors down from her room was the first to get the replacements— she helped Sabitsuki adapt to her own, but there was only so much she could do to smooth the transition. Some things just have to happen slowly over time. She’ll get used to them eventually.

But until then, she’ll just have to put up with being uncomfortable. Sabitsuki sighs, and pushes her blanket off of her. The room is dark and dead quiet, save for the steady breaths of the girl in the other bed.

Carefully, she swings her robotic legs over to the left, and slowly places the ends down onto the floor. Despite having had these for a few days now, she’ll never stop being surprised by just how silent they are, how smoothly they move. She was expecting some awful, clunky machines with constant mechanical whirring, but… externally, the difference in function is barely discernible.

Slipping out of bed, she heads over to the door, making sure not to wake the sleeping girl. She isn’t entirely sure where she’s gonna go— getting some fresh air isn’t an option, not in this town. Still, maybe spending a few minutes outside the hospital will do her some good. Technically, she’s not allowed to leave without permission; seeing a goddamn cyborg walk out of a hospital might frighten passersby, after all. But it’s late, and nobody ever really walks through these parts anyway. Worst case scenario, some poor soul coming back from a night shift at the Sugar Hole sees her and has nightmares for weeks.

She quietly opens the sliding doors and steps outside. Just as expected— no one around, not a single sign of life. Figures.

The air here is stale and unwelcoming. Sabitsuki absently wonders whether they could have given her body an internal air filtration machine or something, but quickly shakes off the thought. While she has to admit that would be cool, she wants to stay as human as possible. She’s here for treatment, not for body modification.

She leans against the dirty white wall of the hospital behind her and sighs. This place is as dreary as ever. At least it’s safe, though; she heard a couple of patients were being stalked before they came here, but the hospital being so hidden and out-of-the-way put an immediate end to those problems. It won’t do them much good if they keep rusting away, but it helps.

Sabitsuki yawns. Looks like she’s finally starting to feel tired. Taking that as her cue to go back inside, she stands up straight and steps towards the door.

…And barely avoids bumping headfirst into someone.

Instinctively, she jumps back, trying to keep a safe distance while also identifying the intruder. The other person does so too, and that’s when Sabitsuki recognises her. It’s that girl she shares a room with, the one who should be asleep right now.

“Oh, it’s you…” she says, uncertain. “...Uh, can I help you?”

The girl scratches the back of her neck awkwardly. “Well, um, I wanted to ask you about something.”

“Me?” This is odd. The two have barely interacted— they don’t even know each other’s names. What could she want with Sabitsuki?

“Yeah! I was just, um, just curious about something…” She takes a deep breath, then, with much more confidence and conviction than before, exclaims “What’s it like having robot limbs!?”

“Huh?”

“Ah, it just… it’s really interesting to me, is all!” Her eyes are sparkling. It’s obvious that she’s passionate about this. Her gaze is fixed on the mechanical limbs. Sabitsuki isn’t sure how to feel about being objectified by this wannabe inventor, so she coughs uncomfortably.

The girl’s expression turns sheepish. “Oh, I mean… you don’t have to answer if you don’t want to. Sorry…”

She considers it for a second. While she worries it might set a precedent of being questioned about this for a long time, she can tell the other girl doesn’t mean any harm by it. And she’s been wanting to make at least one friend here for a while now— this might be her chance.

“No, it’s fine. Why don’t we go back to our room and chat?”

She beams. “Thank you! I promise I won’t pry too much, haha.”

The two of them approach the sliding doors and open them, leaving the unwelcoming atmosphere of the alleyway behind. As they walk back through the receptionist lobby, the girl turns to her once again.

“So… what’s your name?”

“I go by Sabitsuki.”

“That’s a cool sounding name! Mine is pretty boring compared to that, honestly.” “Oh, really? What’s yours?”

“Oreko!”

Sabitsuki offers her a reassuring smile —rare to see from a girl like her— and speaks.

“I like that name. It’s… how should I put this? It sounds warm. Comforting. Y’know?”