#took me forever to write lmao

[oatmealdaydreams]

Polaris

Logan, my boy. He needs a f*cking hug.

Pairing: platonic Wrathloceit

Trigger/Content Warning: self-deprecation, suicidal thoughts & ideation, emetophobia (no actual vomit), sleep deprivation

Description: Logan is ignored, yet again, and the only one who checks on him is an unseen character. And perhaps a certain slithering truth-seeker as well.

Extra: this is a pairing of Logan, Janus, and Orange. Idk if there's already a name for it, so I'm just gonna call it Wrathloceit for now. This features my headcanon that Logan does feel things very deeply, but since he actively hides it or doesn't let most of it show (besides a few moments here and there), that it all manifests physically. It would make him sick, I think, to be constantly ignored like he is. All those icky feelings he swears he doesn't have? They all become physical and not in a good way.

[Masterlist] | ao3 link

[Read below the cut]

Once again, the core four Sides had a meeting to reason through another dilemma. To ease Thomas' worries. To sort out the best possible solution.

And once again, literal Logic was ignored and tossed aside like an old ragdoll.

Logan wasn't surprised. He won't let himself be. It's happened so many times before, it shouldn't be a surprise. He expected the probability of being disregarded again. A 30% chance of being listened to, a 70% chance of being glossed over. The majority always won, it seemed. He knew that.

So then why did he sit at his desk, head in his hands, thinking he should've just been louder?

If I am louder, will I be heard then? Would they finally heed my words? Would it make a difference?

No, maybe it wouldn't. Why would it ever make a difference, his volume levels? The decibels he spoke at? He stared at the work in front of him, sorted in piles and stacks. Charts, diagrams, schedules. A few footnotes of references. Cited papers. It all felt like a waste. He felt like a waste.

Or if I used better communicators? Referenced more slang to appeal to their interests? But I'm not that creative. I'm not one to actively make obvious puns. I'm not like them.

The truth hurt his chest. It burned his lungs. A self-pitiful fire licked at his brain, at his gut. He felt a twinge of nausea. He was never made to be like them. They all had a common understanding of something. Logan didn't.

If I'm not like them, perhaps I'm not worth being listened to. Perhaps talking is too much already.

Vague memories played in his mind. Memories of Roman calling him annoying, of Patton telling him to stop, of Virgil saying that he needed to listen. To listen to them, not him. Never him.

Will they ever hear me? Will they ever listen?

He doubted they would. That anyone would. Not even Janus or Remus, nor the elusive seventh Side. Why would they? Logan tried to rebut and 'throw a wrench' in Janus' plans. Remus was fighting with him to be listened to as well, and the eldritch devil was practically desperate. And Orange... Logan didn't know much about him, only that he had influence over repressed anger. Wrath and Jealousy. Dramatic outbursts.

Logan winced at the memory of his outburst at Remus.

I'm not worth it. This isn't worth it. They don't want me there. They did fine without me when Janus took my place. They don't need me there.

Literal Logic was unneeded, at least in his mind. Logan felt so isolated by the others. They rather him silenced than to hear his facts or research points. He missed back when Virgil and him had that debate. Back when Roman and him would geek out over specifics of video ideas, of how it would all work together. Back when Patton and him weren't so at odds, weren't seemingly polar opposites. When light blue wasn't as different as indigo.

But those times were gone, and they weren't coming back.

Perhaps I can succeed where Virgil failed. I'll be okay then. The others would be better off-

A sudden hand on his shoulder jolted him from his thoughts, and he slightly flinched. He looked over to his right, head now out of his hands. A yellow glove. Reptilian scales. Yellow.

Janus?

Janus stood beside him, with a gloved hand on his shoulder, wearing naked concern and worry on his face. He looked distressed. Despite that, he calmly set a cup of tea on Logan's desk. Warm steam came from it. It smelled of lavender and chamomile, the tiniest hint of sweet honey.

Logan was utterly confused. Why was Janus there? He hadn't thought a single lie. None of it was a falsehood. Nothing was so deceitful that he needed to be summoned.

"Tea is relaxing, and it is 2am," Janus spoke softly, in such a vulnerable way that it sounded caring.

Janus was caring, that's true. But caring towards Logan? He shouldn't be. No one was, no one would, no one should. It was an unspoken rule amongst the Sides, surely. Why else would they ignore his input?

Logan glanced at the clock on his wall. It was 2am, ticking closer to 2:30.

When did it get so late? The meeting was in the earlier afternoon. I haven't been in my room for that long, right?

If he'd been in his room for so long, then...

Then the others truly don't care for me. I knew it. Of course, they don't. Why would anyone?

But Janus was there.

Why is Janus here?

"Oh, sweetie. I know, it's going to be alright. The others are just assholes."

He thumbed away tears that fell down Logan's face, a hand now cupping his face instead of resting on his shoulder. Logan was facing opposite of his desk. Facing Janus, who knelt slightly to level with him. The smell of chamomile was still strong and drifting behind him.

Wait, tears? When did I start crying? I'm fine, I shouldn't be crying. Logic shouldn't cry. My function shouldn't be emotional. It isn't- it...

"Hey, focus on me. Don't drift over into your head again, okay?"

He was so gentle. His glove was soft against Logan's face. Warm. He leaned into the gesture, releasing a breath he didn't know he was holding. That is, before realizing and tensing up.

"Indigo, you'll be fine. You're safe with Yellow and I," another voice, uncharacteristically quiet and careful, echoed through the room.

Wait, who...?

Logan gave a questioning glance at Janus, causing him to give a comforting smile.

"It's just Orange, sweetie. Who insists on calling everyone by their colour," Janus glared playfully to the side, presumably where Orange stood.

"What? It's not like I'm calling names. I'm not f*cking Red-"

"Okay, I get it. Roman is a b*tch, we know."

Janus rolled his eyes, turning his attention back to Logan. His hand left the nerd's face, and he stood straight up. Orange eyes peeled out from the darker corners of the room, and out stepped the elusive arsonist.

Why would Orange be here? To cause another outburst? Make me more hated than I already am?

Logan's thoughts felt bitter, angry- upset. His eyes reflected that same hurt. Orange's eyes flashed for a second, and he gave a sympathetic look.

"You're not hated, you know. The others are f*cking brats, but they don't hate you. Especially not for showing emotion."

Logan raised a confused eyebrow. Orange shrugged.

"Green can hear icky, greenish thoughts. I can hear the angry and jealous ones. I'm sure Yellow can hear when you think a lie."

Janus nodded to confirm Orange's statement.

But I haven't thought a lie?

Janus frowned once he heard the echoing lie. Thoughts echoed, spoken words vibrated. It was weird, but that's how they sounded. The thing that bothered him was how sure Logan was. How much he believed what he thought. It made his heart sink as he recalled what exact thought had made him race over. Only to find a lost-looking Logic, a beautiful mind stuck in a self-deprecating loop.

'The others would be better off-' replayed in his mind. He knew the last part of what that thought would be.

'-without me.'

Janus wouldn't let him think that. And it seemed neither would Orange.

"Sweetie, you've been lying to yourself. You know you're important, right? And loved and wanted?"

Logan looked away from them both.

"Indie, you are. No one else can be you. All those greenish thoughts are lies, okay?"

Orange scanned his eyes for any budge, any sign he believed their words. There was none. He sighed as Logan crossed his arms stubbornly. How could they convince him?

Orange's eyes lit up as an idea sparked like a small flame in his head.

"You know how people always look up to the Northern Star? What was it called...?"

"Polaris?" Logan's first word since the meeting earlier that day.

His voice was soft and hoarse. He hadn't used it for a while. He was used to being cut off, anyway. His eyes sparkled with interest at the mention of a star.

"Yes, you're right. People love to stargaze and look for Polaris. It's a common activity," Janus picked up on the idea.

"Isn't it used for star maps? For sailors to find their way home? A guide, perhaps?"

"Yes, Polaris is often sought out as a landmark." Logan spoke again, his arms relaxing and becoming uncrossed.

Janus hummed, small smirk on his face.

"Then you are Polaris, Logan. We need you to guide us. You bring us back when we stray from the point," the cobra whispered gently.

"You're our landmark in the night sky, Indigo. Only you can do that," Orange out a hand on his fellow Side's shoulder, rubbing in a soothing way.

"I'm- But anyone could-"

"Hey, none of that. They aren't Logic, are they? That's you. And we love you for it."

Logan looked at Janus and Orange in utter disbelief, tears gathering again in his eyes.

"Indie, we love you. We're your friends, okay? No matter how little you may know me, I still care. We both will always care."

The logical Side opened his mouth to speak, but nothing but a wounded sound came out. A whimper. A whine. Tears rolled down his face.

"Oh, sweetie. I know it's hard right now, but we're here. If no one else, we are."

Logan shook his head vigorously, struggling to wrap his head around the truth. Everything as of recent was catching up with him. It made him feel nauseous to think of it as the truth. Guilt flooded his very bones. He wanted to believe them. He wanted to so badly. But he didn't deserve that.

I don't deserve this, I don't-

"Woah, hey. Logan, look at me. You're looking a little pale," Janus cupped his hands on Logan's face, examining him.

He looked pale, and possibly almost sickly. It was a little scary. Janus and Orange shared a brief glance of worry. His skin felt clammy and sticky. Sweaty. Like he was about to-

Logan's eyes slightly widened as the nausea crept up his throat. He swallowed harshly, not wanting to vomit. The very thought of throwing up sent spikes of fear throughout his body. His friends- he'd soon realize that they were his friends- watched him carefully.

Why do I feel like this right now, of all times? What... guilty? Sick? I feel like tearing my insides out.

He whimpered, wrapping his arms around his stomach. He leaned forward absentmindedly, resting his forehead on Janus' shoulder. Orange let go of him as he realized how nauseous he felt. He couldn't handle vomit either, it seemed. He scrunched his nose up at the idea.

Huh. Something in common with someone else, then? Interesting.

Janus embraced Logan, wrapping one arm around the nerd's shoulders to keep him steady against him. The back of a now-gloveless hand on his forehead. He hummed, thinking. He brought out another pair of arms, carding a hand through the sickly Side's hair. It distracted him, at least. Kept him from spiralling because of the nausea. A fourth hand summoned a thermometer, the kind that scanned temperature on your forehead.

Orange watched silently as Janus did what he knew to take care of Logan. Orange couldn't do much, anyway. Him and Logan shared the same fear. Vomit was disgusting.

"Feeling ill, sweetie?"

Logan nodded lightly, not wanting to move much. He melted in Janus' touch as he continued to card a hand through his hair. He didn't cry anymore. By then, he was far too tired and distracted to cry.

Janus retracted his hand from the nerd's forehead, replacing it with the thermometer. He snapped his fingers, and now the bare hand had a glove once again. After the device beeped and he took Logan's temperature, he carefully placed a kiss on the top of his head. He frowned as the thermometer proved Logan had a bit of a fever. He'd summoned away the device and sighed. All of the emotional turmoil swirling in his head literally made him sick. All the worrying and self-doubt, especially paired with not sleeping well. It was edging closer to 4am by now. Janus wasn't sure how Logan had managed to make himself this sick, but being constantly ignored clearly affected him.

Orange watched as Logan's eyes drooped in Janus' arms. He looked so f*cking exhausted. It worried him. How did he even make himself so sick? How come the others haven't noticed? Besides maybe Remus. He idly wondered why Green wasn't there right now, what with all those icky thoughts plaguing Logan. It didn't matter, though. Green would probably come by later, anyway. He cared for Logan as much as they did. How he wasn't already summoned was a mystery for another time.

Indigo needed help. He needed love. A reminder of his importance. Asking him how he felt so deeply about this wasn't a smart idea right now. Indigo felt a lot more than he liked to admit.

Neither asked about how it affected him in such a physical way. Logan's health was more important. He needed rest.

Janus hugged Logan with two arms now, a hand still carding through his hair. A fourth and final hand rubbed soothing circles on his back. The cobra placed another kiss to Logan's head, taking note of how he melted further into the affection.

"Orange, could you go fetch some of Remus' nausea tablets?"

Why would Remus have nausea medicine? Logan idly wondered.

"Yeah, yeah. I'll be back, Indie," Orange whispered a farewell softly to Logan.

Orange walked into the room's shadows, vanishing with a slight whoosh. Janus stayed, knowing Logan shouldn't be alone. Not when he felt so low and sick.

"It's not going to taste well, so maybe the tea will be of use."

Tea? The tea... oh. I forgot about that.

Logan felt shame heat his cheeks as he remembered the tea from earlier. It wasn't hot anymore, maybe a little warm. The smell of chamomile drifted into his senses. It was calming, at least. How did he forget about such an aroma? Losing yourself in your head does that, he guessed.

Janus noticed his embarrassment.

"It's alright, sweetie. I think we all forgot about it."

It wasn't much, but it eased Logan's shame. His face calmed down, now only a little pink instead of red.

Orange returned, walking out from the shadows yet again. He held a little tablet in his hand. He gave it to Logan, who held out a hand to take it.

"It's dissolvable. Put it under your tongue, and it should work," Orange explained.

Logan hummed, putting the tablet in his mouth as he was told. Just as Janus mentioned, it tasted awful. It made him want to throw up; the taste of rotten cherries didn't agree with him. He scrunched his face up as it dissolved.

Orange glanced at the forgotten tea, picking it up and cupping his hands around it. A vibrant flash in his eyes, and now the tea was steaming warm again. Hopefully not too hot for Logan to drink it.

"Here ya go, Indigo," Orange passed the tea over to Logan.

The nerd removed his other arm from his stomach, carefully taking the cup of tea. The smell was calming and relaxing, and certainly stronger now that it'd been heated up. The cup wasn't too hot; it didn't burn his hands. He took a cautious sip, sighing in relief at the soothing warmth sliding down his throat. It didn't hurt, so Orange must've done a good enough job at not boiling it.

After he drank most of it, the cup got set back on his desk. He'd forgotten about his work, the piles of charts and papers. He whined at it, not feeling up to work but hating how there was still work to be done. The other two notice, and Janus carefully lifted him up and away from his desk. He almost squeaked, not expecting to suddenly be in the air. Janus summoned one last pair of arms, using all six to hold and carry Logan. He slightly smiled as he felt the logical Side snuggle his face in the crook of his neck.

"Time for bed," Janus said before Logan couldn't even think of protesting.

Orange chuckled as Logan groaned in annoyance.

But the others- they need work done, don't they? Isn't that why I'm here, to produce results?

"Hey, you aren't all work, Logan. That's not your entire purpose," Janus calmly reminded him, hearing of the familiar lie of 'I am only valuable when I can produce something'.

Logan hummed as he was set down in the middle of his own bed. The pillows were comfy, and his space-themed blankets were so soft. He nearly passed out once his head hit his bed. He was still in his day clothes though, and it wouldn't be very comfortable to wake up in those. But he had no energy to snap himself into pajamas, or even his onesie.

Luckily, Orange caught on and snapped Logan into his signature unicorn onesie. It was blue and white, and so f*cking cozy. Logan melted into its familiar comfort, way too tired to care that other people were there. Janus smiled as he snapped himself in his own pajamas: grey sweatpants with a yellow snake design, a dual-headed snake that wrapped with his leg and rested its head near his hip; and a yellow sweater, decorated with tiny quotes of law and philosophy at the hem and on the edges of sleeves. The tiny quotes were in cursive, written in a darkish gold colour. Orange finally snapped himself in comfier clothes, mainly a pair of plain black pajama pants and a dark grey, long-sleeve shirt with orange accents. The orange accents were flame designs, from the hem to the middle of the shirt. The sleeve had a similar design to Janus', but instead of quotes, there were little flames at the edges of his sleeves.

"Do you mind if we stay, Polaris?" Janus asked gently, making sure Logan was comfortable.

Logan shook his head sleepily, exhaustion catching up with him. He didn't mind them staying; in fact, he preferred if they did. Not that he'd ever admit it, but the presence of people who genuinely care about you was a great way to chase the icky thoughts away. Not entirely chase them away, but close enough. Perhaps 'keeping them at bay for a little while' was more accurate. Either way, Logan wanted them to stay, both of them.

Logan didn't seem to catch the new nickname. If he did, he was far too drowsy to react to it.

Janus climbed in the bed, pulling back the covers so them three could settle in. He laid behind Logan, closest to the wall. He carefully put all pairs of his arms around the nerd's waist and torso, hugging him lightly from behind. Logan hummed contently, placing his hands on two of Janus'. A silent way of saying yes, this is okay. Yes, I am okay with this. Janus embraced him tighter, making sure he felt the love through his gesture. Logan did. He felt enough love from even just the cobra, so much that he nearly fell asleep.

But Orange still stood by the side of the bed, seemingly and oddly nervous. He wrung his wrist, thinking for a moment. He took Logan's glasses off his face before making a silent decision on something, setting the pair of lenses on a bedside table.

Oh, yeah. Glasses.

Now he couldn't see very well, but at least it was more comfy to fall asleep. Sleeping with glasses was ill-advised. And uncomfortable.

Janus noticed, raising an eyebrow from behind the astrophile as he rested his chin on the other's shoulder.

"Orange, sweetie? Are you okay?" he kept a soft voice, especially since he was near Logan's ear.

Orange simply nodded, sighing as he wrung his wrist again. Then he stopped himself, taking a quick breath.

"Just, um... I want to help Indie out, but I'm not great with touch. So..." Orange was uncharacteristically nervous, his voice slightly wavering as he confessed.

Neither am I. Most of the time.

A nice observation for Logan, to realize he had something in common with someone. Not so alone, then. Not as alone as he swore he was.

"That's okay. We can figure it out, sweetie. Come lay down."

Logan lightly nodded along with Janus' words, trying to show it was okay.

I'm like that, too, he wanted to say. Unless I initiate it or am just too tired to care. Like right now.

...you're like me.

A freeing warmth settled in Logan's chest.

He's like me.

Orange climbed into bed, pulling the covers over the three of them. Logan took a hand from Janus', holding it out to Orange.

Just hold my hand, was what it meant. Just holding my hand helps.

Orange seemed to understand, holding Logan's hand. The astrophile smiled sleepily at him, letting his eyes droop and close. He swiftly drifted off to sleep. Orange smirked contently, going to sleep as well. Janus gave a quick kiss to the forehead of each tired Side, finally resting himself.

They all slept through the night, and even through almost half the day. They watched over Logan after they all got up, getting him coffee and such. Reading with him. Helping him take a day off to recover from all the personal emotional turmoil. Listening to him talk, instead of ignoring him. Having a real conversation with him.

Logan ran into Remus a few days later, and they talked.

And Logan finally got what he deserved: people who listened to him, even if it meant facing those who didn't.

[choccy-milky]

the place me and my roommate were supposed to move into today was so disgusting and uninhabitable we just took our stuff and left and now we're gonna be staying at airbnbs and hotels until further notice/until we can find a new place hopefully quickly...........im in my homeless drifter era y'all!!!😍😍so if im not as active then thats why LMFAO

1 like = 1 prayer

[pooks]

part 7 of straw hat!ichiji and without further ado, we'll dive into the next one; Drum Island arc

Nami is sick

as Nami falls sick in a seemingly serious illness, Sanji is taking it harder because of trauma; he has seen Ichiji become seriously ill when they starved on the rock island with Zeff and he had thought he was gonna die.

Sanji has unresolved trauma when it comes to serious illnesses and Ichiji doesn't know how to fix the problem since he cares very little about his own wellbeing.

with Nami out of commission, Ichiji takes over the nagivating role temporarily. he proves to be very decent on it and uses Zeff's old logbook as his guide through the Grand Line. he notices that since the weather is becoming steadingly colder, they must be nearing a winter island.

everyone has different responses to Nami's illness; Luffy, Usopp and Sanji nearly panics while Vivi becomes worried and anxious. Zoro and Ichiji mostly takes the role as the rational ones.

Ichiji is starting to feel under the weather as well and he wonders if his physical body had a delayed reaction due to his modified genetics. he doesn't fall instantly ill like Nami did, but he becomes more fatigued, irritated and loses his appetite (although he forces himself to eat something).

to distract himself from Nami's sickness and his brother's bad moods, Sanji dotes on Nyansha, their new ship cat who can shift size at will. he likes how friendly and cuddly Nyansha is and thinks back at the Baratie. he remembers how he and Ichiji used to nag at Zeff to have a pet and were always refused because the Baratie was a sea-faring restaurant and he didn't want any animals fall into the water and drown.

Zoro notices that Ichiji isn't doing well and keep scratching his neck, so he asks if he's really fine. Ichiji waves off his concerns and just says "don't worry about it".

meeting Wapol and entering Drum Island

Vivi decides to set course for any island nearby in hopes to find a doctor for the sick Nami, instead of heading towards Alabasta. Ichiji has a brief conversation with her and informs her that while she's already burdened with the serious state of her land, she chose to save another's life and it's not something to scoff at. Vivi remarks that Ichiji seems to understand her better than anyone and wonders if he knows a lot about monarchy and diplomacy (given his prior knowledge of Alabasta and displaying dormant skills of leadership).

Ichiji goes still after that and answers "well, we all have skeletons in the closet, don't we? and no, i don't want to talk about it."

as he tends to do sometimes, Ichiji looks over the ocean and thinks about the brothers he left behind in Germa in favor for Sanji. he always regrets leaving them behind and being unable to bring all his little brothers with himself and he hopes that they're faring well, despite Germa being...Germa.

the peace isn't for long, as an unfamiliar pirate ship approaches the Merry and attacks them. through irritated, Ichiji fights along with Zoro, Luffy and Sanji, using the gun Zeff had given him and Sanji (the very one Sanji aimed at Miss All Sunday). they encounter Wapol, a Devil Fruit user and has eaten the Munch Munch fruit and eats exactly anything.

after attempting to eat the ship, Luffy fights him and sends him flying across the ocean. the pirates retreats, however.

Luffy attempts to cheer up Nami, but fails. it's a very hard day on the crew since no one has apparently been sick before (Sanji denies this, but Ichiji mutters a "lies" but disguises it into a cough). the next day, they're reaching a winter island, Drum Island, and drops their anchor there. but they're suddenly ambushed by its' hostile inhabitants.

Ichiji decides to try to reason with them along with Vivi, telling them that they have a sick person onboard and she needs aid. a villager, however, shoots at Vivi when Sanji was about to defend himself from the same shooting villager.

Luffy resolves the situation, after being briefly angered by the violence against his nakama (and being urged by Vivi to not chose violence as counter measure) and Dalton, the leader, and the villagers decides to help them.

Luffy, Sanji, Vivi, Usopp heads down to the village with Nami and leaves Zoro, Ichiji and Karoo onboard the Merry. before they leave, Sanji notices that his older brother has flushed cheeks, but Ichiji says it's because of the cold.

Sanji trails after Luffy, Usopp, Vivi and Nami, but not before looking behind himself at Ichiji.

Zoro is lost and Ichiji falls

after staying in the village for a while and finding out the nearest doctor, one Dr. Kureha, also known as "the witch", resides on a castle on top of a tall rock-like mountain, Luffy and Sanji heads there with Nami to cure her while Vivi & Usopp remains in the village with Dalton. Ichiji and Zoro standing guard on the ship, in case more enemies turned up.

Ichiji kept himself inside the galley when Zoro decided to train in the cold, since he felt less tolerant to the cold than usual and he wasn't in mood to deal with Zoro "unreasonable training montage". but he got suspicious when he heard a lack of "swordman noises" and when he went to check, he found both Zoro and Karoo missing.

Ichiji braves the cold surroundings of Drum Island, dressed warmly and yet, still freezing as if he had no outerwear. trying to locate the missing Zoro is like searching for a needle in a pile of hay, but Ichiji keeps trying.

his illness starts to process more aggressively, putting Ichiji's wellbeing at risk; his fever sky-rockets, he becomes weak and delirious, and soon, he's gotten himself lost as well. fortunately for him, a sled nears him and nearly runs him over; it's Dr. Kureha along with Chopper (in walk point).

Ichiji doesn't call her anything, but he asks her if she's seen "a green-haired, half-naked fool" somewhere. Kureha doesn't answer the question and instead, inquires about his own health since he looks like he's about to keel over. Ichiji decides to be honest and says that he isn't well, but it's the least of his problems since he needs to find his friend.

Ichiji doesn't get to say more before his strength is drained and he collapses in the snow, completely overtaken by his fever.

(Kureha and Chopper decides to bring him with them, as Ichiji will surely die from his fever or the cold if he stays outside)

reunited at the castle, an unbreakable bond of brothers

by the time Luffy, Sanji and Nami are safely inside the castle, they're in a horrible state; Luffy, exhausted from climbing the drum rock with his bare hands and carrying on his two crew mates, is suffering hypothermia. Nami is seriously ill, hovering between life and death and Sanji is critically injured with a broken spine and internal bleeding from the avalanche.

Chopper and Kureha treats them as the group is in a critical condition. Nami is the first one who comes around and the cause of her illness is revealed; Kestia, a poisonous tick from Little Garden causes a "five day sickness" that ends in death.

she also finds out that she isn't alone in the room she's staying in, she sees Ichiji in another bed and panics. it turns out that Ichiji was also bitten by a Kestia tick (flashback to the post-battle in Little Garden, when he slapped his neck from a "mosquito bite"). Kureha has discovered that Ichiji has a different metabolism than an ordinary human which is why his illness progressed slower than Nami. however, his intolerance to the cold and stress made his body enough weak for the Kestia bacteria to advance faster and more aggressively.

Chopper then runs into the room, being chased by Luffy and Sanji who mistook him for food source. however, Sanji stops when he sees his older brother seriously ill and becomes shocked, getting vivid flashback to his past.

we get a narrated flashback from Sanji's POV. he remembers the rock island they were stuck on, starving for 80+ days. during the five last days on the rock, Ichiji fell seriously ill due to eating lesser than Sanji, exhausting himself by collecting morning dew for his brother, enduring night watches and exposure from the sun. after they got saved by a passing ship, Ichiji was put under quarantine due to his illness being so serious along with starvation. he was ill for two months while Sanji and Zeff recovered. Sanji remembers watching his brother suffer from fever, chills, nausea, etc. he had never seen Ichiji weak ever in his life and the thought of Ichiji dying for his sake gave him nightmares and Sanji cried for every day, believing that his brother would surely die.

Sanji tears away from his narrated flashback, seeing Ichiji suffering in the same state and gets a trauma-induced panic attack. he breaks down crying, terrified that his brother is dying once again, blames himself for not seeing the signs and begs the unconscious Ichiji to not leave him alone.

before Kureha is about to hit Sanji's head for whining so much, Ichiji speaks up, revealing he's been awake the whole time

"Geez, you're still such a crybaby, Sanji..."

Sanji screams of grief and anger, hugging Ichiji and saying...something, but no one is able to understand what he's saying since he's crying and sobbing at the same time.

(foreshadowing to Sanji's "△✕~◑※◇♨*~✖✹" in water 7)

Ichiji is still running a fever and seemigly drifts off, but not before he managed to reassure his little brother and his captain (because let's face it, Luffy is freaking out at the thought of his nakama dying) that he'll be fine soon.

everyone thinks he's asleep because of his closed eyes, but he's conscious enough to hear Chopper's story when Kureha tells Sanji and Nami (while Luffy is off chasing the poor reindeer again to make him join his crew).

Wapol returns and the siege of Drum Castle

their luck runs short when Wapol makes a return to the castle, intending to "rule" Drum Island again (which would lead to more of the people's suffering). once again, Luffy fights Wapol but this time, it becomes personal when Wapol shoots at the jolly roger of the long passed Dr. Hiriluk, Chopper's mentor and adoptive father.

Luffy engages in full battle, enraged over how "fake pirates" like Wapol just shoots a jolly roger without a single respect.

inspired by Luffy, Chopper shows that he doesn't have just medical skills, but battle skills as well and joins the battle. Sanji attempted to join as well, but his back injury flares up, rendering him out of commission with Kureha guarding him.

while his two henchmen, fused into one, fights Chopper and Luffy gets distracted, Wapol sneaks into the castle. he stumbles onto Nami, who's already well enough to walk around thanks to Chopper and Kureha's wonder medicine.

the only difference here from canon is that Ichiji arrives in time, still feverish, and jumps at Wapol, pulling at his hair as the ex-king attacks her (which also gives Nami the perfect moment to steal the key from Wapol).

Nami manages to escape, but Wapol is now chasing Ichiji. the antibiotic remedy against his illness is progressing, but Ichiji is already exhausted and Wapol corners him, intending to kill him. Luffy finds them just in time and engages in one final battle before he emerges victorious, having punched Wapol across the next island with a Gum Gum Bazooka.

Dr. Hiriluks cherry blossom snow, Chopper joins the straw hats

with the antibiotic treatment finally taking effect for Ichiji (due to his fast metabolism) and Sanji is getting his back (painfully) fixed again, Luffy tries again and again to recruit Chopper to his crew

Nami attempts to negotiate with Kureha; she hands over the key if Kureha discharges her, Sanji and Ichiji. Ichiji, however, doesn't want Nami to do that since he wants she and Sanji to recover first (once again, he neglects to include himself) before heading to Alabasta. Kureha takes the key, but says they must stay in the castle...but also that there's a coat in the room and the guards aren't present. Nami takes it as a sign that they're free to go.

when Sanji's treatment is complete, Nami and Ichiji brings him as they go outside. Ichiji is nearly fully recovered at this point and is carrying Sanji on his back, who's still out of it from his treatment. Ichiji takes a moment to reflect on old memories and muses that he hasn't done this since they were kids.

barely some moments later, Chopper is joining them but Kureha is chasing after him with weapons, so the Straw Hats panics and decides to pack it to leave. Ichiji wastes no time getting into a sled, still carrying Sanji on his back. however, they get to witness something wonderous.

using Hiriluk's "cure for the country's cold heart", the straw hats and everyone else witnesses cherry blossoms falling onto the snowy island. Ichiji, with a now conscious Sanji leaning on his shoulder, remarks that he has never seen something so beautiful in his life and it's enough to almost bring tears.

with the perfect send-off to Chopper and having a ship doctor onboard, the straw hats sets sail for Alabasta

[imadhatt3r]

It's a late Friday evening in Midorijima, and that means that it's time for the weekly Benishigure meetup at the Black Needle. It's always a good opportunity to meet new members, get drunk, and have some fun with the other guys you'd usually miss due to conflicting schedules. Today's meeting is a bit more special- Aoba decided to join in, which he doesn't always do. He's the boss' boyfriend, but he's not officially a member himself- he has, however, gotten close to the gang in the time they've been together, so everyone just treats him like an honorary Benishigure, which both makes him happy, in a way, and annoys him to no end, given all the attention he recieves and the fact that he's a subject of never-ending jokes and bits (in a friendly way, of course).

Everyone's a bit drunk by now, laughing and toasting for anything that comes to their heads, no matter how small and insignificant. Koujaku is smoking a cigarette and sipping on his sake, taking it all in and quietly enjoying seeing the people he brought together. Aoba had a bit to drink too; He rarely does, but something tempted him to drink today- perhaps a desire to join in and fully enjoy the atmosphere was stronger than his usual convictions.

The conversation turns to relationships, as it always does at some point when a group of drunks congregates.

"Wait, how long have you two been together? Like, a year?" One of the Benishigures asks as he turns to Aoba and Koujaku. "That's pretty impressive, I gotta admit- it's probably the longest anyone stayed with Koujaku"

He barks a laugh, like he was suprised at how funny he found his own joke. Aoba looks at Koujaku with suspicion, but he only responds with a grin and a sly look in his eye- completely unmoving, cigarette still held in his teeth.

"You thought about tying the knot yet? I'm telling ya, if you managed to keep him around for a year, that means you gotta have something special going on."

"I doubt any shrine would be willing to do the ceremony for two guys." Aoba rolls his eyes. He's mostly trying to convince himself; Both he and Koujaku are respected in their local community, so he has no doubt that their potential union would be honored. He thinks that this whole "being in a relationship with a man" had sunken into his mind by now, but in moments like these, he really worries that he will never internalize it fully.

"Since when do you need a shrine?" The Benishigure snorts dismissively and waves his hand around with no grace at all; His eyes have a spark in them that already tells Aoba that he came up with something only a drunk could make up. "You're already with your friends and family, right...? And everyone's wasted on sake...? All we need now is for the lovebirds to smooch." He grins. "I can even be your official, if you want"

He raises his mug, beer and froth sloshing with his uncoordinated movements and begins to chant "KISS! KISS! KISS!", his yell echoing through the bar. All the other members at the table quickly abandon whatever they were talking about and join in, not knowing what they're cheering for, but knowing that it's paramount to see their leader and his boyfriend make out at the table this instant.

This unrest finally rouses Koujaku. He knows that Aoba doesn't enjoy being the center of attention, and especially not when he's being goaded into doing something by a bunch of rowdy, drunk dudes. He usually trusts his men to know when to cool it when it comes to teasing Aoba, but it seems like alcohol might've clouded their judgement.

He grabs his cigarette between his slender fingers and opens his mouth to speak. Before he manages to make a single sound, Aoba is pressing his lips against his, tasting the smoky flavor of the kiss. The room erupts in cheers, and the clinking of glasses and mugs raised in toast adds to his overwhelmed state.

In a way though, Koujaku is oddly gleeful about it all; He never expected to get married, or at least not like that- when he was younger, he'd probably imagine a serious, grim ceremony where he's forced to marry a girl he never saw before, one that was chosen by his father in order to strenghten their family's position in the criminal underword. Nowdays he has no family he could invite to such a ceremony, but the Benishigure are the closest thing he has, and he loves them like he would his own blood, so getting married while listening to their howls and cheers is probably how he'd like it to go anyway. As for Aoba... Being able to be around him in any capacity was a dream come true; Koujaku knew that he himself is never going anywhere anyway. But thinking about Aoba pledging his loyalty to him with such fervor, and in front of so many other people... He's just happy he's not a crying kind of drunk. Instead, he chooses to cup Aoba's head with his free hand, gently rustling the short, stiff hair right at his hairline.

On the next day, Aoba doesn't talk about the kiss, but when Koujaku tries to talk to him about it, he can see that Aoba remembers it all happening by the way he stammers, badly puts on a facade and downplays the whole event. Koujaku just laughs; He knows that Aoba needs to process it- he knows him well enough to know how he behaves after events like this, and Koujaku is, if nothing, a patient man. Besides, Aoba was always adorable when he was in that part of processing something, so he really doesn't mind.

Benishigure who are "in the know" sometimes call Aoba "bride" to mess with him, or ask Koujaku to say hi to his "wifey" from them. Mizuki finds out from them through rumors that the Black Needle hosted their very first wedding/reception when he happened to have a night off and he can't live that down. As for Aoba and Koujaku, they don't really consider themselves an officially married couple, but the bit is nicer to carry out than they thought- jokingly talking to eachother like an old married couple comes to them more naturally and is more fun than either has expected.

[ladespeinada]

only you, darling | syd x carmy with a dash of syd x luca. "I'm not saying they should get married, Jeffrey. I'm just saying, my girl could stand to have a little fun."

Luca visits The Bear.

Read the fic here.

---

(this was inspired by this post by @laryssamedeirss. brigadaaaaa fofinha, and i'm so sorry, girl, this was supposed to be a kind of fluffy diversion, and a lot shorter. but then it took on a life of its own, i don't even know, the writing playlist was v v emotional.)

[cloud-based-and-rainpilled]

One of the most fascinating aspects of Tom and Greg’s dynamic is Tom’s need of being needed, and Greg’s need of being taken care of; it’s ultimately why their dynamic ‘works.’

Tom’s brown nosing catch phrase is “I’m here to serve.” Tom secretly hates being ‘under’ someone, but he does want to be necessary and support someone, otherwise he wouldn’t have the “I need to serve” mindset anyway.

Shiv doesn’t need Tom and they both know it. Logan and others are adamant about her marrying ‘beneath’ him. Tom needs Shiv for his career and love. With him being a traditional man, this stings more as she is a woman. He can’t satisfy his prime directive of being at service with Shiv because she simply won’t accept it.

Greg is always looking for “mommy.” He has no support system from anyone in his family. He’s brilliant at floating around and laying low because his allegiance is “What can you do for me?” His prime directive is “I need protection, I need to be taken care of.” No one has ever protected him unconditionally except Tom.

Greg fills Tom’s need of taking care of someone while Tom fills Greg’s need of being taken care of. Ironically though, as their relationship develops, it becomes less of “Greg is a punching bag for Tom but sticks around out of necessity; Tom is unhinged and takes out his issues with Shiv on Greg,” and more of an unaddressed codependence.

Tom needs Greg at his most dangerous moments, whether he takes it out abusively or has a brief moment of vulnerability; he needs to be taken care of.

Greg takes care of Tom by being his attack dog. (There’s a post somewhere about how Greg takes care of Tom’s essential needs like food, sleep, emotional state, etc. that’s really excellent.) In return for Tom taking care of him, Greg takes care of Tom, even when it’s uncomfortable or unfair.

Seeing how most likely Tom’s job is doomed while Greg is safe, it’ll be interesting to see how their dynamic is affected with the official boss-assistant aspect gone.

Their dynamic is both highly volatile and disturbed and abusive, but also more loyal and caring and strong than most relationships in Succession, aside from Connor and Willa. It’s very sad and sweet all at once.

[luminique]

Hello, I'm the translator Anon. I know we don't have much information about the outside world, but I would like to know if you have any possible ideas for a Reader who is part of the Sons of Calydon and what role this Reader could play.

We see in the story that each one plays a role within the group, such as Lighter being a bodyguard and Burnice selling drinks. I tried to think of something for a Reader from the Sons of Calydon, but I couldn't think of anything, do you have any ideas?

HI TRANSLATOR ANON !! i remember someone else came up with reader who’s a mechanic and i LOVE that idea.

especially after what happened before the tour de inferno, you made a deal with the Sons of Calydon to not only supply them with top quality parts, but also repair and upgrade their bikes. all this outside of the hollow? that’s too good of a deal to pass up on.

in the beginning, they were a little suspicious. you didn’t seem to have any ties to bad biker gangs and your bike that you showed them used parts that could never be gotten so easily in the hollow. caesar decided to take your bike out for a spin (lighter watching like a hawk to make sure she doesn’t get hurt), and she was laughing and screaming. once she was back, she gave your hand a firm shake and immediately went on about what sort of upgrades she wanted with her bike.

from that day on, you became the official mechanic for the Sons of Calydon. your work was clean and your service was fast. other mechanics and repairmen would take a few days, you only needed 2 days. even if you took a bit of time on their bikes, you would give them the keys to your bike so that they could still ride around the outer ring if they needed to.

if anyone wants a longer post (mechanic reader x lighter perhaps?), i will be more than happy to write it out ! it might take some time because i know NOTHING about motor parts but i will try to write something good.

[greghatecrimes]

If I'm not around much the next couple days, it's just cause I'm absolutely exhausted from work + procedure. But I miss House and hanging out on here, so hopefully answering asks asap and more screencaps and rewatch this weekend :3 Maybe even some In the Dirt planning if I'm lucky

[offdensen]

missed that ask meme, curious about wonder! (also didn't know you wrote, just read your trek fics they are 😳🩵🩵🩵🩵)

aw, thank you! i really appreciate that :')

okay so wonder is an old project from when i first got into trek eight years ago. i barely wrote any of the actual fic, but the unfinished outline is over 7k words. it's a beast. i have no idea if i'll ever finish it lmao

there's this movie called this is war (2012) starring chris pine (all my feelings about aos and aos!kirk aside, i love cpine. what a guy) about two guys who are spies and end up competing each other for a lady. it's a romcom. it's not good. but!!! i thought the premise of jim and spock being undercover agents for starfleet intelligence and both falling for bones would be a fun sandbox to play in.

some key notes (this shit is long sorry):

jim and spock have worked together for two years; spock nearly always calls him sir, even when they're alone in private; they both have feelings for each other but. well. they're stupid

bones is still a medical doctor, of course. fresh on the heels of a divorce, he moves to a colony planet and works in one of the largest hospitals in the capital city, avicenna clinic and emergency center

this colony planet, nasir, is located near the border of the beta and alpha quadrants. there are three main cities on the northeastern continent with a string of rural settlements between them, with each main city named after medieval muslim astronomers (al-shatir in the north, al-haytham in the south, and the capital al-khwarizmi in the middle). this continent is largely humid with regular rainstorms and 65°F average temperatures year-round, making it suitable for growing fresh produce, the planet's main export

there is some weird political stuff happening in al-khwarizmi, which is why jim and spock are sent there on assignment; an agent-in-training chekov and long-time investigator scotty are working with them in tandom, but behind the scenes

uhura is a xenolinguist studying the influence of standard on non-human colonists' languages; she is in relationship with chapel, head nurse at avicenna; they are both some of bones' only friends in the colony

sulu is a botanist specializing in xenoagriculture, studying the efficacy of the planet's soil as well as a strange fungus that's been infecting some local crops

rand is a reporter for al-khwarizmi's local news station who's been trying to uncover the reason behind the abnormally high number of political representatives resigning from their positions

and some plot beats:

jim meets bones at a bar and is drawn to him immediately; they build a quick and easy rapport; "jim feels a little butterflies-in-the-stomach high as he watches leonard leave and he makes a mental note to come back to this bar tomorrow"

he later discovers that bones is the same doctor that spock sought after in his preparatory research, having made certain to find a skilled doctor with a xenobiology background in case their mission goes awry

spock requests an interview with bones before his scheduled physical upon discovering that jim in interested in him; they Do Not get along initially, but the physical appointment goes over much more smoothly and that's when spock is like "oh. i'm also fascinated by this man"

jim and spock establish three rules about pursuing bones: not discussing one another with bones, do not infringe on one another's wooing, and no sex. at this point there's no solid "this is polyamory" but rather a "winner-takes-all" deal

it's uhura and chapel that convince bones to deliberate polyamory with jim and spock; still abiding by their rules, they agree, still keeping their knowledge of the other a secret. i'm sure that won't cause any problems in the future :)

a lot of dates. oh my god they go on so many dates. mckirk at the arboretum and camping in tents and slow dancing in a park gazebo; spones at an art gallery and a vulcan restaurant and the aquarium. someone breaks one of their rules. whoops

while all of this is happening, there's an overarching plot regarding political intrigue, a possible homicide, and a plague. it's all very ambitious and probably the reason why i never got very far. maybe one day!

[boasamishipper]

writing patterns

rules: share the first line of your last ten published works or as many as you are able and see if there are any patterns!

tagged by the lovely @apartmentsmoke 😘

“I’ll be honest,” Leon informs the rival mariachi bands in front of his bench, “the fact you all got out of that fight without any serious injuries to yourselves or the others in the subway car is pretty…maraca-less.” (from Contributory Negligence, the fourth fic in my Judge Leon 'verse)

Degas woke to the sound of Jasper Briggs shouting at the top of his lungs, which wasn’t unusual. (from won't shake me loose, a pre-canon Degas&Briggs story)

The first time Harry thinks about sleeping with Dan, there’s a blizzard pounding at the windows of his apartment—a blizzard that would have, if not for the fire department, trapped Harry and the others in the courthouse all night with nothing but rough blankets, Twinkies, and Billie’s camp counselor songs. (from Code of Conduct, Harry's POV of the beginning of Judicial Impropriety)

Right about now, Peter really wishes he’d listened to his wife and spent the weekend cozied up at home. (from No Grave Can Hold My Body Down, a 9-1-1 AU where Bobby wakes up with no memory except Athena's name and struggles to find his way home)

Looking at the dishes covering every inch of the dining table, it’s hard to believe that they were all made by the same woman who once couldn’t even scramble eggs. (from Sweetheart Deal, the third fic in my Judge Leon 'verse)

“Look here, darlin’—” (from you should've heard those knocked-out jailbirds sing, my Carole/Goose first meeting fic)

The Hard Deck was packed to the back teeth the first night of the new TOPGUN session, and Hangman felt good. (from Bullseye, my Coyote/Hangman first meeting fic)

In ‘96, Dan left the district attorney’s office for one of the most prestigious law firms in New York. (from Alternative Dispute Resolution, the second fic in my Judge Leon 'verse)

The first time Dan sleeps with Harry, it’s an accident—which Dan knows would get him laughed right out of the courtroom in the case of The People v. Fielding, but it’s the truth, hand on the Bible, so help him God. (from Judicial Impropriety, my Night Court S4 AU fic where Dan and Harry make a bet to see how long they can keep their relationship under wraps)

“For the last time, Ms. Moore, I don’t know a thing about the new judge—” (from Trial de Novo, in which Harry's former foster son Leon becomes the new night court judge and goes looking for Harry, only to find Dan Fielding - Harry's widower - instead. First fic in the Judge Leon 'verse)

well for one i start fics with dialogue a lot less often than i thought i did ���� i tend towards longer sentences and aim to establish setting and pov right away (if not in the first sentence then over the first paragraph).

tagging @bornforastorm @lookforanewangle @maverickcalf @academicgangster and anyone else who wants to do this

[sambambucky]

‘nothing is cooler’ plsss

HIIIII thanks for askin!<3

soooo because people enjoyed if there was more, i started poking at the big 'ol draft it came from again.. its a punk!bucky x jock!sam au with Princes of the School and Only Gays stevetony, where i continue my bad habit of being overly invested in all the side characters. its all cringey angst with a happy ending.

a snippet for you:

“People talk too much,” Sam hisses back. “I don't want to end the school year with people whispering shit about me.” “Steve and Tony seem fine?” Bucky tries, because, what else can he say? No one will talk? Neither of them are that stupid. Tony and Steve are a constant topic of conversation, but they do seem okay. Happy, even. It’s because they have each other, Bucky thinks, they came out together, and they’re stronger together.  He could have that with Sam. They could be more than just, whatever this is they’re doing.  That is, if Sam even likes him like that, if the way he looks at him means anything. Bucky thinks it does. The way Sam makes him feel, even when they’re not pressed up against each other in the dark, might be worth anything they’re thrown up against. “We’re not them, okay? I –” Sam answers, and there's something in his voice that he’s heard a hundred times by now, a warning Bucky was ignoring. “Just say you don’t like me,” Bucky interrupts, not meaning to raise his voice, but not really able to stop lower it once he has, “just be honest with me for once. I don’t need you to lecture me about how I don’t fit into your neat little life plan, alright? If you don’t like me, you don’t like me. Just say – ” “I don’t like you,” Sam snaps.  It stings like a slap to the face. But he’s quick to pull it together, voice even and steady when he continues. And doesn’t that just say everything? Sam is wholly unaffected by this, by him, by them.  “Is that what you want? Everything is so easy to you,” Sam continues. “Well it’s not, for me. I have to think about the big picture, I have to think about how everything looks. So, if that’s not good enough for you, it’s – I don’t like you. I don’t wanna be with you. “It’s all or nothing, right? Are you happy? That what you wanted?” “Yeah,” Bucky lies, but his voice breaks around the edges of it, and god he is so fucking done with this. So sick of trying and having his efforts amount to nothing. “Thanks.” He puts his back to Sam and walks away, willing his eyes to stay dry until he makes it around the next corner.

from the WIP game!

[enlighten3d]

@thedndgoblinwholivesinyourwalls @thedndgoblinwholivesinyourwalls @thedndgoblinwholivesinyourwalls @thedndgoblinwholivesinyourwalls @thedndgoblinwholivesinyourwalls

LARKIEEE HI LARKIE I KNOW IVE TOLD YOU HAPPY BIRTHDAY ALREADY BUT HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!!! YOURE A WHOLE YEAR OLDER NOW!! WOAH!!!!!!! I HOPE YOU HAWV A GOOD YEAR AND WISH THEE HEALTH AND THE BEST OF LUCK WITH NEVER GETTING MURDERED BY ARTBLOCK AGAIN !!! okay thats a lot of caps sorry

anygays!!!!!! i have... i have a gift for you.... a poem about jadele... i think its very cool... i did make up some stuff for it but i think thats par for the course now

have !! jadele poem... hehe [: all i will tell you is that its janette pov, you can figure out the rest yourself [:

--- (its under the cut bcs its Long lmao) ---

I'm forced to wonder, if you regret it at all. If us ending up here has changed anything in your mind. I doubt it - I know for a fact it hasn't.

I know that that glint in your eyes - vicious, vindictive, violent, passionate in all the worst ways - it's the same as it's ever been. It couldn't ever be otherwise.

I search for that spot of regret in myself, sure to be blooming in/on my chest, encroaching on flesh and bone, replacing and ripping and rending. It's not there for me to find.

It settles; the knowledge - that this was inevitable, never less, never more - as I grab your hands, I pull you towards me.

I've found something else blooming there now, in the place that should belong to Regret. It burns, all-consuming, as it rips its way out of me, tearing spitefully as it blocks what I meant to say. I've found no part of me that wishes it were Regret.

I could label what is there as Hatred, as I could many things. It could be that look in your eyes, what love has bloomed into. It's just another thing to call what's been inside me all along.

I hold you tight, as you try to break away from me. There's no want in you, when I give you what you thought you wanted from me. I can't say I've missed the feeling of your lips on mine, after everything.

I share with you, what festers inside me. It's your fault, it's your fault (just as much as it is mine?). I think you deserve it.

It's simple, in the end, watching that which I have no name for other than Revenge, tear its way through you- through me- through us- You can't even leave now. It's worth it, in my eyes.

I smile, a bloody, broken, blasphemous thing, one last time, into your lips. I can't let you go either, now.

I let go.

It burns, and I can't even call it Revenge anymore. It's Pain, Pride, Power, Penance- blue. They're blue. I think they're pretty, these blue flowers. It's almost picturesque, the way they burst out of your eyes, through my skin, into your heart. I think my mother used to like these. I can almost call up a fading memory, of a vase of sapphire-blue flowers, standing proud on the dining table where we never ate. My mother wouldn't be - isn't - proud of me. She's right though, that they're pretty, even when they're covered in blood and gore and flesh and

I settle on a name for it. It's the End.

[drysauce]

Begging on my knees, may I ask for mr welt lore 🙏 thank you for feeding my silly little fictional crushes lol

there's so much to say where should i even start jshxhhd

(btw, it's obvious but. there will be honkai impact 3rd spoilers below)

so you know that welt is a playable character in star rail right, but i don't know if you know that many of star rail characters are alternate versions of characters from other hoyo game which is hi3 - like himeko, bronya and luocha for example. welt however, isn't like them, he's not just another welt existing in the star rail universe but he's THE EXACT SAME welt that exists in honkai impact AND that's why he's such an interesting guy

so let's start with the basics - his name isn't actually Welt Yang but Joachim Nokianvirtanen. he took that name later in his life, yang was his mother's surname and welt was a name inherited from a guy named Welt Joyce.

as for why he took the name from that guy: welt joyce was a herrscher, herrscher of reason to be precise (herrschers are very powerful entities with powers given by the force known as honkai) - he used to be a normal german boy human but after the honkai eruption in Berlin that took a huge ton of lives, a core made from the souls of people who died was formed inside him giving him the powers of a herrscher of reason

while generally herrschers are enemies of humanity, he was not - after losing past memories but NOT being against humans, he was taken in by an anti-honkai organization known as Schicksal (with Otto Apocalypse as its leader and overseer) and moved from labs to labs where he eventually met Frederica Nikola Tesla and Lieserl Albert Einstein (pic below. they might look young but those are only the looks, they're actually great minds with years of experience), two scientists that later became his acquaintances. around that time he also met joachim and his father

later on, the schicksal overseer otto and joyce had kind of an argument when joyce didn't want to agree to follow the overseer path with him because he grew to love humanity and otto was a guy who didn't mind doing the most messed up things you'd think of just to reach his goal. the conflict of interests leads to a fight, that results in otto's death (or rather one of the clones, long story)

(fun fact! ^ this line is also part of welt yang's ultimate line in hsr, just differently worded)

the thing joyce is holding here is one of divine keys (very strong weapon, long story) known as the star of eden which is the signature weapon of the herrscher of reason. otto was using a divine key as well (called void archives) and before his defeat, he used the key to attack the city where they currently were with the intention to completely destroy it. joyce managed to stop that but 1. star of eden was destroyed and 2. it costed him his life. while he was dying he gave the herrscher core to young joachim who was nearby alongside with the name welt - and so joachim became the second herrscher of reason

later on with tesla and einstein he split from schicksal and formed another organization known as anti-entropy (which was also dedicated to fighting honkai but without human experiments and all that jazz) and recreated star of eden

in year 2000 took place the second honkai eruption, there's a manga telling the whole story how it went, but to keep it short, schicksal and anti-entropy allied and were fighting sirin, the herrscher of the void. the two herrschers faced each other in a fight, welt using his herrscher of reason powers created a whole army or mechs and artillery showing sirin that the humanity can and will fight against her and honkai

there was no victor, sirin was knocked down and when welt was about to finish her off with the star of eden, otto apocalypse intervened, destroyed the divine key and stopped welt (he really couldn't allow things to go the way everyone wanted even once)

later the fight was moved to the moon where sirin made her base and from where kept on challenging humanity. schicksal and anti-entropy had the talk™️ which resulted in the decision that welt will go fight on the moon but he'll take one of otto's agents to collect rock samples that could be used to create new kind of weapons

to go and fight there, anti-entropy started creating a giant mech - arahato (two quick fun facts! 1. in hsr welt has arahato on his phone case 2. to earn money anti-entropy launched an anime series about it at some point lol)

on the moon welt creates yet another star of eden and occupies sirin's attention, while siegfried (the man from schicksal that was sent on the mission and who also was hi3 mc's father) who was piloting arahato could take moon rock samples for the scientists. however for siegfried to leave safely, welt had to directly face sirin and was eventually defeated (star of eden destroyed again), near the end he was planning to detonate his core to destroy both himself and sirin, but she manage to steal it before that happened, leaving welt's body to disintegrate

obviously he didn't actually die, he put his personality inside the core at the very last moment with the souls that already were there. he survives there this way until the end of the whole eruption, and after it ended, the retrieved core fragments returned to anti-entropy and after next 10 years core repairs itself and welt gets back the physical body. that costs him a lot of energy and power though, he isn't able to be the leader anymore. anti-entropy was taken over by force in that time by cocolia, who was running and orphanage and. who also made a few clones of welt joyce

-> next events are described in the manga called alien space, it's about both the events of when welt came back to life and is a direct prequel to hsr telling what happened years later, i won't describe it in detail because maybe you'd like to read it yourself - but if not i'll gladly talk about that too in another ask or message<3 it's mainly about welt and (hi3) himeko (and void archives too, who after otto apocalypse's death took a body of one of his clones)

next should be the events in the sea of quanta (empty space among bubbles with different universes, long story) - during the expedition, he gets separated from einstein and gets stuck there until a girl named Bronya Zaychik enters it to find her beloved Seele who was also stuck there for a few years (long story, another manga). a lot of things happened, bronya encountered welt who took kind of a position of the guardian of the sea and began testing the girl in various scenarios. after she passed all the tests he decided to make her the successor of his herrscher core, thanks to which bronya was later able to rescue seele and all three of them escaped from the sea of quanta. soon after that he became her mentor in mastering the herrscher of reason powers (there's more to bronya as the herrscher which also has relations to welt but. i haven't got there yet in the main story so i have to stop here lol)

next there's a timeskip to a post honkai odyssey - it's a spin off/time skip story from hi3, featuring, aside from the main cast, welt, his son - joffrey (one of joyce's clones that he and most likely tesla (there's a line that might suggest she became his partner later on) together adopted), and void archives. i saw leaks that parts of it that are relevant to hsr might appear in an upcoming hangout mission for luocha (the guy who's a hsr version of otto) so if you're planning to play hsr you'll see it yourself and i won't be spoiling you the fun here<3

^ it's also related to the timeskip events from the alien space manga

afterwards welt ends up in the hsr universe and is trailblazing together with the astral express crew and finally becomes a playable character

^ another fun fact! in his splash are you can see void archives in the back, welt joyce on the right and tesla with einstein on the left

ok and that should be all i think? if you have any thoughs or questions feel free to ask here in the comments or in a separate ask or on discord however you prefer and i'll gladly elaborate even more

also special mention to unfortunately not canon part of the welt lore from the hoyofest videos in which he and two other powerful leaders became idols because they were broke and needed money:

[ficoandleo]

LEO, drop a Halloween costume try on stream and my life will be yours 🗣🗣🗣🔥🔥🔥

Well you'd better have your wish prepared for when you sell your soul to the little demon because Leo is live on TikTok, WickTok, and YouTube! "🎃Halloween Costume Try-On Stream!❤️‍🩹" Pretend I posted this on Halloween and not literally the next day!

Since he's streaming from his phone Leo does try and give it a minute to let the stream load and populate for all the earliest viewers, humming along to the royalty free, slightly spooky, lo-fi music he had playing in the background while wiggling around in a little half dance in front of his tripod.

"Hey, everyone! It's me!" Leo greets with a chipper wave of both hands. He laughed a little, shaking his head. "I think it'd be way more weird if it weren't me. Why do we always. . .anyways, hi!! Happy Halloween!"

The stream of comments and hearts increased, greeting him, and wishing him a happy Halloween. On Youtube he got a few Super Chats too, which he thanked the senders for. Everyone who paid a certain amount and above got their name read out, too.

"Soooo Halloween, right? I always do a little costumed stream with Sho-chan and we'd go around street parties or like we went to a zombie run two years ago that was super fun--and I hate running! Sho was carrying me by the end of that stream."

Newer viewers or people who missed it commented in amusement, some asking if anyone had a recording or highlights. A few people who had been there for the stream said that Leo got drunk on top of running from zombies and they were surprised at how much he could drink for such a small guy.

"But here in Darkwick apparently they do like an American Halloween thing. So there's kind of trick-or-treating? And I've never been trick-or-treating because we don't do that here in Japan! So I'm kinda excited to trick-or -treat and I was like. . .well, I need to have a really good costume for my first time trick-or-treating! And I ordered a bunch and they didn't get here until, like, last night because shipping stuff to Darkwick is a fucking nightmare?"

Several Darkwick students in chat agreed that it was a pain to order things to be delivered to the island. You'd think such an elite school wouldn't have these problems. Some people mentioned sending things to Leo and asking if they'd arrived yet, or saying that it took an unexpectedly long time for things to be delivered on their trackers as well.

"Yeah. . .sorry about that guys. I'm talking to them about seeing if there's a way I could, I dunno, pay extra to get some kind of faster processing for stuff people send me but. . .mail doesn't really work like that. You guys haven't been sending me perishable food or anything, right? You know better than that. Anyway.

"Everything gets here like yesterday afternoon and I'm like 'that's way too late for a whole stream,' so I decided I'd just do one this afternoon. And I wanted to do a trick-or-treating stream for you guys but the way my data works here it's hard to stream if I'm not somewhere with access to wifi. So I'm probably just gonna record it and edit it down for a VoD. Sorry!"

Everyone understands at least and tells him that they'll be looking forward to the VoD. Someone said they'd be handing out candy at their House and they hoped Leo would drop by.

"Oh! So trick-or-treating, for anyone who doesn't know, is like. Normally you go door-to-door and say 'trick or treat!' and get candy. And if you don't get candy you can play a trick. But since Darkwick's only got the dorms and the main buildings and some shops and a restaurant or two that's kinda lame, right? You'd run out of places real quick.

"So you go to different dorm rooms and trick-or-treat. And some people trick-or-treat, like, individually? Like they go up to people and say 'trick or treat' and it's kinda considered fair game. But also it's also totally fair game to be tricked instead of given a treat! It seems like a way smaller kind of event than what you might normally see in Shibuya but there's also only, like, a thousand people here. So it makes sense not to have a huge event. Especially since there's normally a school festival--they call it Samhain because they want it to have a fancy name--around now. But it got delayed."

Then Leo claps his hands and steps back from the camera a little. "But that's enough chatting! I bought a bunch of costumes to try out! I match with Sho every year, but he didn't wanna try on his costume with me and just said to bring it to him when I choose mine so. . .sorry, no Halloween Sho live this year. But I'll make sure he goes trick-or-treating with me so you can see what he gets to wear too. So! Let's check out my costume options!! Obviously I can't, y'know, change on stream but I'll step off-screen and you can entertain yourselves for a couple minutes while I get dressed! Be right back!"

With that explanation out the way, Leo waved and stepped off screen. Behind him his bean bag chairs had been given Halloween themed covers, a pumpkin, a ghost, and a skull--Monster, the red teddy bear he likes, is sat on the skull off to the side, and some of the chat greets him excitedly. He left a screen on his wall playing a little video of a chibi of him dressed in previous years' Halloween costumes popping up around the words "HAPPY HALLOWEEN"--one of the chibis was also with Sho, in a girl's costume that matched Leo's as always. Regular viewers would recognize the chibis as having had been redressed versions of the ones that played during other streams where he tries on clothes or puts together outfits. The artist was credited beneath the text.

"I can't see the chat, so don't say anything my mods would have to get on you for! I mean it~♥" Leo called from where he was changing out of sight. The chats proceeded to fill mostly with silly, non-punishable words or promises to be good among the usual chatter and cries that Leo was 'gone forever,' although a handful of people did get timed out or have messages deleted. He'd considered borrowing Romeo's fox robe and just buying accessories for each costume rather than getting whole costumes, but there was something less fun about that. Besides then he would have the hidden zipper on the back and someone could ruin his time by unzipping him. So his time spent changing was all realistic.

"Okay! Were you guys good? Did you behave for me~?" Leo's voice again came from off screen to herald his coming return. He also chimed in a shout out and thank you to the artist of his background graphic before he stepped back in sight, jangling gently with every step.

His first costume was grim reaper inspired, and he specified where he got every piece of the outfit from the hooded cloak to the red-tipped metal ribcage 'vest' around his torso and the matching clawed hand bone gloves going up his arms into his sleeves. Beneath the 'vest' his black shirt was nearly skin tight with gaps in it that opened to his pale tummy following the shape of the vertebrae in his spine, tucked into plain black pants. The belt took the role of the bones instead, chains looping into the shape of hip bones and dangling leg bones, bound behind his slim hips and legs by black-painted chain that blended in to the rest of the outfit.

"I could not find matching shoes that didn't look tacky to me." So he went with plain black boots with buckles, tapping them with his simple scythe. "Or a cool-looking scythe that wasn't plastic. So I'm not sure about this one! It feels, I dunno, incomplete. I really like the top and the ribcage though--I was thinking I could wear the glove bones as like a bracelet and rings instead, though. What do you guys think? Sho-chan would get like a little torn up white dress and some powdery makeup for the ghostly look, maybe we could get his hair in his face. . .and I got manacles and a chain for his ankles so it's like I'm leading him to the afterlife, y'know? I'd probably throw on some makeup too--give my face a skeletal look."

He posed a little bit, trying to read the stream of comments as they came in, although they were coming in pretty fast. He went on a little bit about the way it fit and felt, and complained some about the chains looking cool but getting a little tired of the clanging noise.

"Why do I always make Sho-chan crossdress? Because it's funny? And he looks good like that." He shrugged, closing the bottom of the loose cloak over his legs to see if maybe he could get away with having it partially closed. "Also let's be real, I'm not making him do anything. Sho's like twice my size. I can't make that guy do anything he doesn't wanna do.

"I did kinda think about crossdressing this year?" He says in response to another comment he kind of sees go past. "But no matter how I look at it it's just kind of boring if I do it. I mean I look like a guy who'd crossdress, right? Obviously I'd look good but that's not really the point, right?"

Understandably quite a few people disagreed and would have loved to see him in a skirt or a dress, or even a particularly feminine pair of shorts, something frilly or something sexy, even if it wasn't particularly Halloween themed. . .he smiled in amusement and ignored those comments. Maybe if he lost his next bet with Sho. For a while he continued to respond to some comments that he could catch and respond to superchats as well, and showed off parts of the reaper costume.

"Okay, gimme a few to try on the next one! Be back soon!"

This continued on for a while with Leo showing off a variety of costumes, some from popular media especially from this year, some from classic media or media that he liked, some his own takes on something more generic. He sources each piece, mentioned what he would do for his makeup in each one and how he would dress Sho to match, what he liked about each, and what didn't vibe with him. He conducted it very similarly to how he did other outfit streams, chatting with viewers in between everything, always kinder and sweeter with his words than he was in real life, laughing and smiling, but so skilled with his acting that he never seemed unnatural.

"Okay, okay! Last one! Be right back!"

Leo once again left the camera, stretching before getting to work changing out of his newest costume and into the final one. "This one's a bit more exposed and honestly I originally wasn't gonna bother with it because I was like 'it's autumn, it's gonna be cold!' but it's actually cozy enough today that I was like. . .maybe I can get away with this. It's not like exposed exposed where I might be considered indecent or something, and it's got a jacket so if I get cold I can just close it."

After a few minutes of fussing Leo returns in a somewhat simpler costume than his last ones.

"Honestly the thigh-high boots are gonna take some breaking in to be comfortable walking around in, so I was kinda thinking I could swap them out for like. Chaps?" He explained, turning around to show his back. "Cuz I have chaps. They're a couple shades lighter than the shorts. I'll show you the chaps in a minute."

The chat is moving a little too fast to read. The simple, platform, black thigh high boots are buckled closed with a line of metal clips and leave a few inches of Leo's upper-thigh exposed before the legs of the matching colored shorts end to keep his modesty. They hug his hips well enough that the studded belt is wholly unnecessary for anything but securing the inverted pentagram harness over his torso at the bottom. His torso is otherwise bare save for the oversized leather jacket hanging more off of his arms than his shoulders and a pair of somewhat low hanging chains. Without his shirt quite a few of his viewers are learning his navel and nipples are pierced. Around his neck, along with his headphones as usual, is a choker in which he's clipped his yellow Vagastrom broach.

"Honestly it's a lot of black and grey and silver." He turns around again, showing the way his wings and tail, also decorated with chains, originate from somewhere under the jacket and have some sort of wiring in them allowing him to reposition them slightly. He reached up to adjust the pair of ring-decorated horns on his head too. "I usually do more monochrome colors but it feels like too much? I kinda wanted some gold accents but it made me think too much of my house uniform. Oh, and the jacket was made by--"

He read off the name of the fan who'd sent him the jacket, repositioning it so the design on the back was visible--his own name, in a spraypainted design, the O stylized as a heart. He faced forward again. The chat hadn't slowed down by much. He had to catch up on donations--one asked if he was wearing pointed teeth, and he pulled his lips aside to show them off. Another reminded him that he mentioned possibly wearing chaps instead of the boots and he said they were right before running off to swap the boots for another pair that slightly resembled hooves the way they poked out from under the chaps.

"So for makeup I was mostly thinking I'd just make the bases of the horns blend in more. Maybe try and put some kind of marking on my stomach? That'll be hard to do myself so I might see if Romi-sama will do it for me. . . ." He ran his fingers above the hem of his shorts and around his belly button to show around where he wanted the marking. "But also maybe it'd be too busy. What do you guys think? Oh and I wanted to do, like, claw nails or rings too. I was thinking gradient dying my fingers but I don't want the color to get stuck. . . ."

Reading the chat was probably not possible at its current speed. Leo caught that people were vying for the boots or the chaps, suggestions that he wear something beneath the top harness and not just go topless, people who preferred a previous costume. . .he fiddled with the tail again, wrapping it around his leg then bending his leg at the knee to see if it'd be comfortable to walk that way. He continued to give special attention to superchats and donations with comments, as they were the only thing he could really read.

"Oh, Sho? I can't choose between a nun costume and a succubus for him to match me. I'll see what we decide on when we go out. . .probably have to go with the nun since his outfit probably wouldn't cover enough and we might end up in trouble." Leo muses, pausing while eying the camera. "Aaand as I say that he's texting me."

Leo comes closer to the camera, checking his texts with his lips parted in focus, inadvertantly showing his false fangs. The comments enjoy this closeup as much as one would expect. "Yep, he's on his way back. And I've got clothes all over my room! Okay, I've gotta clean this up and start getting ready! Sorry I gotta cut it like this, guys! I'll make up for it with a longer stream another time, okay?"

Leo starts to go over his stream schedule for the coming week and gives an estimate for when the trick-or-treating video will be out, although he admits he doesn't know how long they'll be out or just how much will be worth sharing in the first place so editing it down could take more or less time. He thanks his top donors and his chat mods, and everybody for coming and supporting him, and he tells the others at Darkwick he hopes he'll see them when he and Sho go out.

Finally, he signs out as he always does, smiling brightly and making a heart with his fingers, telling his viewers he loves them and will see them again soon.

[birb--birb]

Savrin de Riva, spellblade crow and certified Short King

[chaosrealm]

This is the OC fairy 🌼🧚‍♀️ When you get this in your ask box, please tell us three facts or trivia about one of your OCs, then pass it on to someone else 🩷 Let's learn about each other's OCs! 💛💐 (no pressure to do this if you'd rather not!)

Aella

After repeated uses of her powers, Aella will be fatigued and spend days in bed. Someone (usually Reiko or General Shao) will have to help her out of bed and into a shower.

Has lifted Reiko before, can and will do it again! When she needs a workout, she'll do squats with him on her shoulders and he'll do the same with her.

For the brief time she was pregnant, she struggled to get any of her armor to fit, so she just said "screw it" and finally gave in to wearing loose, flowy dresses instead.

More under the cut!

Wesley

She's always wearing a cowboy hat when she's not in her power armor. But she's never wearing it for long, because either Danse or Maxson make it a point to remove it and put it on their own head. (Iykyk)

If her southern accent is made fun of, she will just stop speaking. Imagine getting silently stared at by the Sentinel of the Brotherhood in a full set of T-60 armor, while she's holding a Gatlin Laser. Time to run maybe?

When she isn't helping out the Brotherhood, she pitches in and helps around Sanctuary, and does her own side project of rebuilding the Red Rocket truck stop!