#unclear where they learned that is how you deal with break ups

[sigery]

Sun: *crying*

Moon: Sun! What's wrong? Who did this?

Sun: *through tears* Bloodmoon

Moon: That fucker, don't worry I'll deal with h-

Sun: No, no, let me explain. Just give me a minute

Moon: *impatiently waits*

Sun: Okay so Bloodmoon saw me arguing with KC. Shush, don't interrupt me. Afterwards, Bloodmoon came to me and told me even if KC and I got divorced, I'd still be their dad.

Moon: Why were you crying then?

Sun: Happy tears. The ability to cry is weird. It was just super sweet of them to tell me that...

[azrielsshadows42]

A Court of Scales and Fire V

A/n: Sry about the wait, I had assessment after assessment plus 2 exams, then I had massive writer's block, but it is here, finally. Thank you all so much for your patience. This is also my submission for @erisweekofficial, day 7: free, I'm hoping this will help get my story out there. btw, you cannot read this as a stand alone it will not make sense.

Chapter 4 Character Moodboards

A/N: The dividers are made by @tsunami-of-tears , and comment 🐆 if you got the Kipo reference

Warnings: Swearing, No misogynistic Illyrian lords were harmed in the making of this chapter (unfortunately)

Both = Mind speak (Colour will vary depending on who is speaking)

Bold = Ancient Language

Italics = Thoughts

Word count: 3.2k (Excluding Recap)

Recap:

"Focus. I thought you said he's not your friend"

"He's not" I immediately replied with, saying it so fast I almost interrupted her. "If you're not friends, then why is he here?" I sighed deeply; this shit was not exactly my forte "He is the High Lord of Autumn, we made a deal with him a little while ago, and now we have an alliance" That was explained terribly, but it will have to do.

"What does he want now?" My eyes shot toward where the 'discussion' would surely be taking place, as if I could see through the walls, right to where Eris was standing and glare at him to make sure he didn't try anything stupid.

"No idea"

Rhysand's Pov

We sat there studying each other for a moment in silence. Ever since both ends of our bargain had been held up, Eris never visited the Night Court, he wasn't welcome here. Just because our courts were allies, for the benefit of the Autumn people, did not mean we suddenly liked each other, and it certainly gave him no authority to waltz into MY home, unannounced.

"What do you want, Eris?" My voice was cold, as it always was during official High Lord correspondence. His eyes regarded me with indifference, and he raised a goblet of wine to his lips, painfully slowly. I somehow had a feeling he did that just to grate on my nerves.

"I would have thought that brute of yours would have told you" He drawled. "While Under the Mountain, we were attacked by a witch who, as I understand is now under your roof, you wouldn't happen to know her, would you?" Eris took another slow drink from his glass, my eyes narrowed, sharp enough to cut through his mental barriers if I wanted. "Are you suggesting that I planted the female there?"

"Well, it is rather suspicious you learned of it and dispatched one of your dogs at the same time I did, especially considering how much farther the Night Court is from the place of incidence." His know-it-all tone annoyed me beyond belief, but I managed to speak my next words with the same cool indifference as the rest of this discussion. "We did not know her prior to the events of yesterday"

"Really? I could have sworn I heard her and your general talking earlier, they seemed pretty comfortable, has he tired of Nesta already? Typical of Illyrians." I failed to keep the rage out of my eyes, the anger out of my voice. "If there is nothing else you're here for, High Lord" The title was spat out like an insult "Then leave, now"

"Actually, Rhysand, there is" The words were spoken with a thoughtfulness that didn't match the fae speaking them. I did not say anything, did not deign him with a response, my silence was his invitation to elaborate.

"Recently my guards have found traces of people passing through Autumn with our regular traders, People I have not permitted, carrying with them something unfamiliar, and certainly not from any of the seven courts, nor the human lands as well as a mysterious break in the trees, perhaps your new little witch friend has something to do with it"

I considered that this might be true, though whether this female was a witch or if that was just another thing Eris assumed about her was unclear, although I also considered that these strange occurrences might be caused by the apparent weapon smuggler's Y/n told us of, in which case she is telling the truth, at least about this.

"We shall keep a close eye on her, in the meantime, she is innocent until proven guilty, and she is under the protection of the Night Court, so I believe it is time for you to take your leave" I stated it with finality in my voice that left no room for him to argue. The new Autumn High Lord huffs slightly in displeasure, but makes no retort, winnowing back to his Court without any further fuss, merely saying: "I will be back tomorrow".

I really hope I don't regret this.

The next morning - Y/n's Pov

It was early, the sun hadn't even crested over the mountain yet, Y/n was still in her guest silk night gown. She sat atop the massive bed, Everest in her lap. "Ok, granted, we haven't gotten anywhere with our mission" Her long leafy tail flicked a piece of lint off her knee, very pretentiously, in Y/n's opinion. "Told you." She would have retorted, but they both heard footsteps, judging by the length between each sound and how deep it was, she guessed it was Cassian. "Hide"

Y/n scrambled to the top and threw the linens over herself while Everest shrunk further to the size of a large mouse and crawled under the bed. The footsteps stopped right outside the door, then they were violently flung open. "Gooooood morning!" Cassian's booming voice sounded out into the room with a sing-song aspect to it. "Time to get up sleepy head" While yes, she was already awake, it was four-thirty in the morning, what the hell was he talking about?

"It's too early to be awake" came her grumbled response, she made sure her voice was deeper and slightly rasped. "You said you wanted to go to Illyria, right?" There was a pause in which she used to process what he had just said. "Really?" she questioned.

Cassian's grin brightened; he is way to energetic right now. What the hell does he put in his coffee, cause whatever it is, he needs to share, I need some of that too. "Really, but only if you get up now" His hazel eyes looked at me expectantly. I looked back at him, lips thinned. "Well are you going to leave so I can change?" That seemed to snap him out of it. "OH, right, right, yes, I'll leave" He bolted out, closing the door behind him.

Once they knew Cassian was out of earshot, Everest climbed back on to the bed giving Y/n the sassiest, most flat look a dragon could. "Illyria, really?" "What? I'm curious!" She rolled her emerald eyes.

"And what am I to do while you're out galivanting?" Y/n stood up from the bed, taking off her sleepwear and replacing it with her undergarments and armour. "Have you found a princess to torment yet?" Everest's head whirled around so fast she worried she might snap her own neck. "I will bite you." hissed Everest.

"Right, cause you've never bitten me before, I'll be in true agony, such unexpected pain" Y/n's words oozed sarcasm. Everest huffed, turned toward the open pavilion and flew out over Velaris, but not before throwing one last glare at Y/n, just for good measure.

Y/n put her hair up in a simple braided updo before exiting the bedroom. She grabs one of the sandwiches the house put on the table as she walked past and into the training room, where she assumed Cassian would be. Y/n was proven right when lo and behold, there stood the Night Courts general, next to their emissary, Mor. "Greetings, and salutations" she said cheerily, Cassian matched her energy while Mor appeared as if she would fall over any second. Someone clearly had not yet woken up. Y/n clapped my hands together "So, how are we getting there?"

"The lovely Morrigan will be winnowing us" Her eyes trailed the females tired form sceptically. "Does 'The Lovely Morrigan' know that?" Mor was now leaning almost all her body weight on Cassian. "Yeah, I asked her yesterday" She let out a grumble, opening her eyes a bit more while pushing off of Cassian. "You failed to mention that I needed to do it at four-thirty" He feigned confusion "Did I? Huh, must've slipped my mind, and technically, it's five now" This, unsurprisingly, didn't improve Mor's mood.

"Just get over here so I can go back to bed" They stepped closer to her, each putting a hand on her shoulder, the world warped, twisting and turning once more until they were on a snowy peak. The second they got there, Mor shook their hands off her, and winnowed back before they could thank her. It was not long after that the cold penetrated Y/n's armour. She shivered, and goose bumps rose on her skin under her sleeves.

"Not used to the cold?" She had been in plenty of cold places before, but usually Everest would be there to warm her up, always blocking the wind so she never felt it. "No, I'm fine with the cold, I just never knew this place warranted the use of igloos" Cassian laughed uproariously. "It's not that cold, if you want igloos, you'll find them in Winter" Y/n watched as their breath plumed out in front of them. "We'll agree to disagree"

Snow crunched ahead of them, Y/n could see three winged figures, one in front, the others trailing a few paces behind. She wasn't sure why, but she didn't like the vibe they gave off, and the middle one looked very punch-able. "Lord Devlon" Cassian said in greeting.

"Cassian" His eyes roamed over Y/n in distaste. "Have you brought another witch here?" She didn't know who this Devlon was talking about, or if Cassian had actually brought a witch here, but she decided if she was only going to be here once, then she'd have as much fun with it as she could.

"No, this time he got the witches mentor" Y/n grinned evilly at them. Panic flashed across Devlon's face, though he tried to conceal it. His companions however, made no such attempt. She could hear Cassian mutter under his breath saying "You and Nesta both" with an exasperated look and shook his head. Oh, so Nesta was the 'Witch' he'd brought last time, I should've guessed.

"She is here to learn, just like Nesta was" Devlon's eyes narrowed, his lips pursed and just a general air of supreme asshole about him. "No."

"We weren't asking" Cassian replies, with an edge to his voice. "I will not have you bring more disgrace to this camp" He sniped sharply. It was then, that Y/n stepped forward, her eyes dark, menace in every move she took. "Oh really, is that so?" To intimidate them, she started chanting in the ancient language of the dragon riders known as Draconic.

"Feta, Gouda, Chevre, Fromage"

The two lackies pulled their weapons as she made the marks around her eyes glow, Devlon's face revealed the fear he felt in that moment, even Cassian looked at her unsurely. "Stop, STOP IT THIS INSTANT" Y/n only chanted louder.

"FETA, GOUDA, CHEVRE, FROMAGE"

"Alright, alright, enough, you can train here, just stop your curses." The glowing faded and she plastered a sickly-sweet smile on her face watching Lord Devlon heave breath after breath. "Lovely, thank you so much for your generous hospitality"

Cassian's Pov

I was starting to think that maybe Eris wasn't entirely wrong about Y/n being a witch. I have never heard a language like that, and her face glowed, at least, some of it. And it has been officially confirmed that her and Nesta would get along swell. All she needs is a smut book in front of her and they're practically twins.

We walked through the camp, snow crunching beneath us, I could tell the cold was starting to get to her. I guided her past the buildings, pointing out certain shops, explaining anything she questioned. "Why was Devlon so pissy about me coming here? I mean, I get the whole 'No outsider's' thing, but it almost seemed personal.

"I'm not regarded very highly here, anyone I bring, he would immediately hate. I already brought Nesta here and she also said she was a witch, you can imagine how well that went over. And finally, you're another female I have brought to train, he doesn't want to lose more weapons. There is a superstition here that if a female touches a weapon, it will bring bad luck to the wielder" I winced, this was the part of Illyrian heritage I wished I could erase, it was silly, but mostly, I worried it would deter Y/n, make her want to leave.

To my surprise, she laughed. "Then my blades must be double cursed, they were forged by a female too" I couldn't help but chuckle at that. "They would lose their shit if you ever told them that"

We only stopped once we got to the furthest training ring in the camp, just in case she did anymore witch-stuff. "What exactly did you do back there?" Her brows pulled together in confusion, so I elaborated. "The chanting and the glowing eyes?"

"Oh, that was nothing" My eyes told her that was not enough of an answer. "I just said a bunch of words from a language we are taught when becoming trackers, and the marks on my face can glow when I tell them to, apparently it's got something to do with a survival tool that we no longer need, but still have the feature. If Lord misogyny is just gonna assume I'm a witch, I might as well have some fun with it."

As if Devlon didn't hate me enough, he gave me plenty of shit about bringing Nesta before even knowing she's not a witch. However there will be no way to convince him otherwise after that little stunt Y/n pulled.

"Are you ready for some real Illyrian training?" I asked as a challenge. She unsheathed her blades, spinning them around herself elaborately for show before crouching in a fighting stance, prepared to leap.

"Ready"

Eris's Pov

I was back at the house of wind, to my surprise, it was Rhysand who had contacted me about a meeting today, saying he did indeed have information about who he suspects is behind the unauthorised traders. I walked into the room, eyes scanning for imperfections, I found none, they prepared well, I'd give them that. Both Rhysand and Feyre were sitting at an immaculately set table, finger foods plated beautifully dotted its surface.

I sat down opposite Rhysand, my hands had not even touched the table before a commotion was heard, voices and wingbeats. My heart jumped for some unexplained reason, and I beat it down because who gave it the right to start flapping around like a lovesick puppy?

The witch and general came in while talking to each other loudly, they were both covered in sweat. She was flushed and panting, her hair littered with fly a ways, but I struggled to redirect my gaze from her form. Her armour shined in a way those Illyrian leathers Cassian wore could only dream of ever comparing.

"I take it back, I wasn't ready" she spoke, panting heavily as she walks over to the couch and collapses on it. "Told you so" She rose her upper body on her elbows, turning to face him. "Hey, you try doing my work out without breaking a sweat, mine is a lot more cardio" Cassian's face scrunched up. "I'm good, thanks"

"Perhaps Y/n should join this meeting, as it is her mission to capture the people causing these disturbances, yes?" She perked up, raising herself higher and twisting her body to face us. "You've heard more about the weapons league?"

"I believe your weapon smugglers are the strange people mingling with Autumn's merchants" Her face brightened, the streaks of blue in her eyes coming to the forefront. There was something about the idea of working with her, of being closer that just pulled me in, I can't explain it, and I am finding that it won't be long before I can't fight it either. That could not happen, I will not develop... whatever this is for her, I need to stop it here and now.

"She is not from here, she can't possibly have a lot of information about them, there is no need for her to participate in this meeting, besides she seems..." My eyes trailed over her body with appreciation masked as disgust "...Occupied"

"On the contrary, these fae originally were causing trouble in her homelands and have stowed away here, she is more knowledgeable on this adversary than anyone we know." Rhysand interjected. I wanted to point out something else, something that would keep her away from this table and more importantly, away from me, but nothing came to mind, so I just tersely nodded my head, accepting her involvement.

"Alright, just give me a moment" The female got up off the couch, making her way to what he assumed was her guest bedroom limping a little. "Is she seriously postponing a meeting with two high lords and a High lady to primp?"

"You have no space to argue about primping, Eris" I knew that, and really, I was glad she was taking the time to get herself ready, unlike the brute who just sat down radiating heat like a second, very unwanted sun smelling of sweat and picking at some of the food laid out.

It isn't long before she returns with her hair down, still wet from the quick shower she took, her scent of caramel with a hint of pine invaded my nose and I couldn't help but notice how well it mixed with cinnamon and earth that I have. What is wrong with me?

Her hair swayed with her movements, blowing a more potent dose of her scent toward me, Y/n sat down beside me and started speaking about the contraband the fae were smuggling. I listened to every word but it went in one ear and out the other, all while I stared at her with intense focus. Before I knew it, everyone was looking at me, expecting some kind of input.

"Why are they in my lands?" I really hope that she hadn't already answered that. "I suspect it is because of the new power shift, there is always a certain acclimation time where mistakes are more easily made, therefore easier for them to work in, the fact that it is a straight line from Elethairia to Autumn is just a nice little convenience for them."

How dare they? How dare they think that just because I am in charge now, they could slip by undetected, I am not weak, and nothing happens in my court without me knowing. "I'd like access to your lands so I can track them down" Her voice broke through my rage, effectively gaining my attention.

"And how would this arrangement work?" Her eyes fixed on mine "I would go to Autumn from morning till evening, then return here until the job is done" I had no idea where my next words came from, they had not received approval from my brain before they were said, laid out for everyone to gawk at. "That's ridiculous, you'll stay in Autumn, track them down and then I shall assist in getting them back to Elethairia" I was seconds away from saying something truly stupid like getting you back to Elethairia, but luckily he wasn't that far gone.

I should have just agreed with the original proposal, that was what I was planning on, but my mouth had other plans, and I couldn't take my offer off the table now, otherwise I'd look like an indecisive buffoon. Instead, I said this:

"I shall await your answer" I then got up, thanked Rhysand and Feyre and winnowed back to Autumn, though a part of me longed to bring her with.

Only so she could get to work sooner and rid my lands of these weapon smugglers. No other reason. None. She would catch them, I'd get her back to her home and these frivolous feelings would end. I would continue to rule Autumn, she would do whatever she does, and our paths would never cross again. That is what I want.

Then why did the thought hurt so bad?

Tag list: @imma-too-many-fandoms @rcarbo1

Chapter 6

A/n: Hope you enjoyed, again, my sincerest apologies about the wait

[idonthaveacontract]

I think the main narrative purpose for Bob is to show the viewers that Don needed a million little special skills on top of a genuinely likeable personality to end up where he did without arousing suspicion. Bob always seems like he's clawing at it (self-help records!) even when it's going relatively well for him and obviously his charming mannerisms get a much more mixed response from the people around him. He also reverses the Don/Pete dynamic for Pete, trying to ingratiate himself the same way Pete does to Don in early seasons, but Pete actually gets to take the upper-hand with the secret this time instead of having it turned back on him. Now does Bob actually WANT Pete - imo yes, on top of choosing him as his mark. I think Pete kind of enjoys this and it also shows his growth in how he deals with learning these kinds of secrets. He stills uses it as blackmail as he had wanted to do with Don but in the much more sophisticated "keep him close because you never know how loyalty is born" way that Bert recommends to Don in season 1

There's also some level of contrasting the differing levels of crimes committed by Bob and Don - I think Bob is undeniably an actual con-artist although it's unclear if that's all he's doing it for (I think no, he would prefer to truly be situated in a high status job, that being said working in accounts at SCDP should have given him plenty of freedom to break away from his schemes with Manolo and he didn't, he cannot turn off the scrappy, hurt side of himself as well as Don) whereas Don actually is not and largely works for what he has, even though it's within the framework of stolen identity and valor

[temtamtom]

I’d love to hear if you have any headcanons around rome and his boys <3

Ouhh,,, I'm so normal about this family bro I swear,,,

I tend to flip-flop between making Rome their father or their grandfather. I usually go with the father route, but I do have AUs and storylines where he's their Nonno :)

(In addition to the point above, a plus-side of Rome being their dad is Romano gets to call him "Babbo". I also like calling him "Babbo Roma")

Romano looks the most like Rome. It's more apparent when you compare him to Rome's younger self when he didn't have as much muscle or stubble. I like to think they have a bust of his head in their shared apartment and, upon first glance, other nations often mistake it for a statue of Romano.

I mentioned this in a previous post but Romano and Rome share the same name. For the sake of simplicity, however, people usually call him Romulus.

Rome is 165 cm, Romano is also 165 cm, Feliciano is 170 cm, and Seborga is 178 cm. Romulus is very impressed with Sebby's height, and always compliments him on it. One of his favorite compliments is telling him he would make a great centurion with the right training (at which point the twins have to cut in and say no their baby brother will NOT be a soldier of any kind, thank you)

Rome is definitely very protective over his boys, which I'm sure is something their partners enjoy dealing with. I have fun imagining what his reaction would be to various partners/ships.

In the case of GerIta/ItaGer, I wouldn't be surprised if Romulus demanded Feliciano break up with Ludwig as soon as he found out he was German (as if Feliciano would listen) kdhfkj

I talked about this headcanon on my main blog (in Italian, though), but I'll bring it up here too. Rome usually spoke to his boys in some form of Latin, but he began learning Italian when Seborga joined the family. The kid was probably around 3-4 years old when Rome first met him and obviously didn't speak a lick of Latin.

Now onto some more serious stuff:

Rome lived past 476 AD. The last time Romano and Feliciano saw him was around 546, when Romulus sent them out of the city at the tail-end of a devastating siege on Rome during the Gothic Wars. They were separated to increase the chance of one child surviving- one heading north and the other heading south to their respective territories. Whether he survived past that is unclear to many nations. Some claim they spotted him in various places throughout Europe, a husk of the man he once was. Others believe he lived in hiding in the Byzantine Empire. No one is certain about what happened to him, and his ghost has a difficult time remembering what happened after the Gothic Wars.

This is deserving of its own more analytical/detailed post, but here are my two cents on what their relationship/dynamic looks like (in my mind). Though Rome loved his boys deeply, and the brothers loved him in return, life was not always peachy. There were certainly a lot of expectations put on their shoulders from a very young age. Rome had spent his entire life building an empire and a legacy, something he wanted to live on through his descendants, namely Romano. The firstborn, the fighter, and the one who commanded attention easily. The one who looked and acted the most like Rome did in his own youth. Under the right guidance, he could be shaped into a leader. However, this meant the boy was often scrutinized heavily by those around him and judged more harshly than his twin. He wasn't respected as his own person and was merely seen as an extension of his father/grandfather. Feliciano, on the other hand, was on the "weaker" and "softer" side. Rome adored him and coddled him, treated him more gently than Romano, but he didn't really respect him, if that makes any sense? So Feliciano felt the need to compete and one-up his brother to prove his own worth, even if it caused the brothers to start fighting (physical altercations were not uncommon). Romulus didn't seem to notice these issues. How could he when he was often away from home? In his eyes, his family was doing just fine. They seemed like two happy kids whenever he was around, and any fight that broke out between the twins was often chalked up to "brothers will be brothers"/"boys will be boys". These familial issues went completely unchecked for most of the boys' lives, and it wasn't until more modern times that they started to reflect on their childhood and its impact. Not all was doom and gloom in their childhoods ofc, but there were certainly quite a few issues. Like I said, this probably needs its own post kjfdgk

[contrasting-realities]

I cannot believe the amount of similarities that exist between Agate Lightvale/Bete Noire (Glitchtale) and Emperor Belos (The Owl House), it almost seems like they are two sides of the same coin.

First off, their motives: Both want to destroy another species to protect humanity (for Agate, this is the monsters, for Belos, it's the witches). Their preferred method of doing so is genocide, (Agate created Bete Noire, the main antagonist of Glitchtale season 2, to fufill her wishes, Belos took over the demon realm and attempted to kill all witches with the day of unity, a spell that would drain everyone of their magic).

Both also genuinely believed that they were doing the right thing, despite their own insanity (Belos's reluctance to hurt Luz and trying to reason with her, what Agate tells Bete to do when she created her "Bête Noire: That a civilization where the 2 races live together, is just a time bomb waiting to go off. Bête Noire: That we're doing good by speeding up the process.").

They also killed their siblings (Copper and Amber for Agate, Caleb for Belos) and proceeded to create magic constructs from said dead sibling and brainwash them (For Agate this was only Amber as Bete "Bête Noire: I didn't ask to be this way… Bête Noire: But it's what I am. And here we are trying to fulfill our purpose despite our doubts… Akumu: … Bête Noire: I know we don't have other choice, you don't need to remind me of that. Bête Noire: Plus, we've already started. There's no going back now. * We gotta make mom proud…", Belos created all the grimwalkers who fought for him as golden guards from Caleb's corpse).

Both appeared nice and innocent at first, only to reveal that they were evil (In Elsewhere and Elsewhen back when Belos was Philip, this is more complicated for Agate since she and Bete are kind of the same person due to sharing a soul and it's a bit unclear exactly how separate they are, but Bete seemed like a cheerful little girl at the start of season two, and pretending to be happy to see Copper once she got home after gaining fear magic) and also had a monstrous true form (Belos: https://static.wikia.nocookie.net/the-owl-house/images/6/64/Belos_Monster.png/revision/latest?cb=20230208074735 Bete/Agate: https://static.wikia.nocookie.net/glitchtale/images/2/2e/IMG_9455.PNG/revision/latest?cb=20180814194413).

They also committed acts that made them more like the species they wanted to exterminate while being blind to the irony (Agate created a Bete Noire, a spell construct made from magic, not unlike the monsters, and such a creature is distinctly inhuman, Belos learned magic, cut his ears to blend in with the witches and literally became their emperor).

Belos and Agate also contacted with god-like beings to obtain greater power (Agate gained her fear magic from HATE, an embodiment of pure hatred who wants to destroy the world, and Belos made a deal with the collector for a stronger and distinctly different kind of magic from anything else in the series, the collector being a childish god from the stars sealed inside a stone tablet).

Both are violent and manipulative, but to different extents. Belos is far more manipulative, by establishing a system that let him control the witches and creating a cult to gain authority over the demon realm, but still being abusive to his underlings and grimwalkers. Agate is far more violent and insane, as she killed both of her siblings because she lost a fight with her brother over whether or not to destroy the barrier and forced a rematch, and then Bete went on to destroy an entire city for the sake of killing the monsters. I can't find it but there's a comic which shows Bete finding Agate's corpse and Agate gaining control, this happened before Bete revealed her true form and there are still cases of her being manipulative afterwards, like tricking Toriel into her husband by using an illusion of his killings of human children (to break the barrier).

At the same time I noticed that their personalities are almost opposites, with Bete/Agate being far more violent and sadistic but not good at long term planning and just wanting to be feared, and Belos being a master-manipulator who is excellent at planning ahead, and being able to hide his hatred so well that no one noticed, while not being nearly as sadistic as Bete.

Either way this was really just a thought I had, tell me if I missed anything.

Edit: Just realized that both their siblings 'betrayed' them in some way. For Agate it was actual betrayal by Copper, who promised to lose the fight since his sister reasoned with him that releasing the monsters at that time would have been a bad idea, but he defeated her anyways. For Belos his brother 'betrayed' him by falling in love with and running off with a witch.

[purposelynana]

What Did I Watch: #33

This week, I watched it scrambled like a fucking egg. Happy Eid btw. International dates for Eras Tour is out. I'm dead.

Perhaps I'm too used with people in their 20's acted like they were in their 30's and it was total cringe-fest. Or people in their 30's tried to convince me they were still college students. (Yeah you see where this is going). I don't know about Thailand entertainment industry but one thing, somehow they just don't have fucking clue how to cast someone. But at least from casting division I could really tell, people behind Step By Step were in fact adults with working jobs. Not some kind of teenager getting paid for making fan fiction in visual media.

I came to an understanding that Step By Step will be slow as fuck. I think this was a deliberate move by Tee Bundit. Because you deal with a potential HR violation in which could turn into catastrophic effect to both Pat and Jeng's career. You just can't make them kiss by episode 5 and called it done. But this brought new potential disaster that I didn't see it coming in the first 8 episode. Clearly this show doesn't have a seasoned editor and most importantly, but rarely people mention it, a script supervisor.

Because it has unclear timeline, jumpy transitions between scenes, and weird storylines that didn't push the narrative. It felt like it has so many great scattered ideas but not one conjoined constructive story.

In the article above, it explained that script supervisor responsible to maintain the continuity of its script. There were just too many continuity errors and it's such a pity because it already has the idea and goal, yet the journey seemed taking us to too many places.

I could go on and on about how not having a script supervisor could potentially ruining a series. But Step by Step is not finish yet and fucking let's hope it could stick the landing. It's going to have a rough landing but fingers crossed. (I just saw the preview for ep 12, it is a rough landing indeed. Prove me wrong universe.)

Oh god this little show. What a gem.

I have so much heart and love for Our Dining Table. If this was person, I'm going to hug them until I'm shattered to pieces.

It was hard to be an adult, lonely as fuck, having family but not really felt their presence. I have so much love for this show and yet it doesn't feel enough.

I'm almost 30, and yes I'm fucking tired to just watch myself never get to be represented correctly. A lot of these actors are on the same age as me and yet the story seemed never going anywhere. High school students, college students, barely office romances, and damn even I couldn't even get period dramas without having to deal with censorship (dammit China). When you got older, you resent everything, you became critical with everything. Even I'm no longer consider My School President is that good after I praised it earlier this year. In the end, series that I deemed good is the one that I felt so much connection to it. My emotional investment has to be in all time high. Like what I felt towards this.

The scene that breaks me into million pieces. You just need one person to tell you, you have done enough.

Lastly, I want to talk La Pluie. I don't know where this show's going. I'm scared. Because it could turned out to be great or it could end up like anything else, standard. The whole shenanigans about soulmates, love and everything in between got me thinking. Soulmates is definitely, most certainly, not fate. It's constantly changing, depends on your situation, your willingness, and your effort.

The characters in here, they were learning that they couldn't treat soulmates as if it were fate. As if it something already defined by God.

It is not. So I could understand Lomfon weird reaction on his newfound illness. Because he heard Tai's voice during rain, Tai must be (undoubtedly) his soulmate. Dude sounded like a kid, who wants to know reasons behind everything. Somehow I could sympathize him a little bit more, if the actor knew how to enhance his emotions. It wasn't bad acting, but yeah it kinda dull time to time, to the point I was out when he's in the screen. But yeah it's pulp, what can I expect? People acted like their life depend on it?

[checkoutmybookshelf]

It's Fine to Be a Bad King

Ok, as a complete story, I adore Gabi Burton's duology. I also adored the first book quite a bit. I will be honest that as its own book, I was less enamored of the second one, but it wrapped the story BEAUTIFULLY, Saoirse and Hayes have amazing arcs, and there were a couple of moments that legitimately had me in tears. Let's talk Drown Me with Dreams.

There are SPOILERS below the break, so be warned!

Ok, so I cannot not start with how much I love that Hayes's entire arc is that good people often make bad kings. Especially when you're coming off a genuinely evil fae's reign and influence that had literally hundreds of years to spread poison, propaganda, and build systemic oppression into the very fabric of the kingdom. Add to that Hayes spending a stupid amount of his life doing the playboy thing instead of learning how to like...King...and it makes perfect freaking sense that he doesn't know what he's doing and a strong moral compass isn't enough to fix the damage the Larster did. Both Saoirse and the book itself are very clear that this isn't even Hayes's fault. Asking one person--whoever they are--to fix this is too much. It's unfair. It doesn't work. And for all Hayes's good intentions, he's absolutely not the right person to do this. It takes him a hot minute to get there, because when your dickhead mother and a ton of power-happy enforcers are telling you you're a bad king, not listening to them is a GOOD CALL. When the woman you love is telling you that though, that's harder to swallow. He eventually does though, and he makes the active choice to still help. He doesn't magically become an amazing leader out of nowhere. He doesn't abandon the work of dismantling systems of oppression. He instead acknowledges his strengths and weaknesses and actively works to improve where he will genuinely be the most useful.

This was AWESOME to watch, and I really do have to hand it to Hayes, because that is a hard arc to run. I also have to hand it to Burton, because she wrote it DAMN well.

Saoirse has a couple of amazing arcs, because she is still dealing with the aftermath of Hayes taking over the kingdom and what that means for her and her family, her former best friend threatening her little sister, and her deeply messy and unclear history and instincts. Like, when an entire kingdom has spent your entire life telling you you're a murder machine, it's gotta be unsettling as hell to then suddenly have everyone going "Yeah it's actually the exact opposite of that." And the thing that the book doesn't do, because there is no way to do it, is clarify the history of the sirens. Saoirse is the last. She will never ever know the real history and the real truth, but she can still move forward and still build something that feels good and right to her. And she can make life better for everyone in the process, which is a nice bonus.

I also adore that it's SUPER CLEAR that there is no Saoirse/Hayes/Carrick love triangle. Saoirse loves Hayes, and Carrick is her best friend. There isn't tension there, there isn't macho posturing, and there isn't angst about who Saoirse is going to end up with. It's going to be Hayes from page 1, the question is just how they're going to negotiate it. With Carrick, Saoirse is navigating how you repair a friendship that feels like it should have been shattered beyond all repair but...somehow isn't. And the fact that Carrick dies before Saoirse can verbalize her feelings about their friendship is tragic and heartbreaking and just a damn good tragedy. Saoirse and Carrick mourning together over the siren's scorched-earth homeland was one of the moments where I was genuinely crying, because you can't fix that, and you can't not carry that. All you can do is be in the feelings and learn how to carry it well. Saoirse could never have had that moments with Hayes, because he wouldn't have understood like Carrick did.

The second moment that had me full-on ugly crying was Rain speaking at Carrick's funeral. This little lady at 12 understood that feelings and circumstances can get TANGLED, but friendship is key. And dammit, the power of friendship is never not a wonderful thing. It was also really sweet that Saoirse's last gift to her best friend was marked graves for his parents, because while she couldn't do that for her people, she could for his.

Watching Saoirse create the new world she had promised Rain and reinventing herself into something she can like and be proud of was honestly wonderful. But I also appreciated that she made mistakes, and that she didn't cue into manipulations right away when they occurred. She's a siren and a soldier, not a politician, and the characterization there was excellent. It was consistent, it played to her strengths, and it made the geopolitics on either side of the Barrier feel genuinely complicated and twisty.

Overall, I think this was a super fun, wonderful duology that did some really interesting things with race, mythical creatures, politics, and identity. Definitely worth a read!

[badassbutterfly1987]

Ninja (2009), dir: Isaac Florentine

I have a lot of affection for this movie: it's not great, it has silly sound effects, a little goofy, went with CGI blood instead of squibs which looks bad, definite power rangers influence and not always in a good way; but I genuinely like the characters and their relationships with each other

we start with various characters at a dojo in Japan, we meet Casey (Scott Adkins) and Namiko Takeda (Mika Hijii) sparring and they definitely have crushes on each other, they're generally very cute but aren't acting on the obvious attraction yet

so Casey is obviously an American white guy, seemingly the only one at the dojo, and that's implied to be part of why another student Masazuka (Tsuyoshi Ihara) is so hostile

he intrudes into Casey's personal room around bedtime (while Casey is lost in thought looking at a photo of his mom) seemingly just to push his trauma buttons

"must suck not to have a heritage :) shame your mom abandoned you and your dad drank himself to death :)", it nearly provokes a fight but Sensei Takeda (Togo Igawa) scolds him

later they have a sparring match, it's a good showing but Casey notably struggles, it widely escalates and Masazuka tries to kill Casey, Sensei exiles him and everyone feels bad about it; it's not a bully getting kicked out to applause, it's a favored student with potential who has lost the family's trust

presumably months later, Masazuka has become an assassin for the Illuminati-esque Ring, he returns to the dojo mostly to threaten them about he's the only one who deserves to inherit the Yoroi Bitsu (a box of ninja gear that's culturally important), he's also here to stare threateningly at Casey, but comes off less "I'm going to happily murder you later" and more a come hither look

so Casey and Namiko are sent to New York with the YB to hide it in a museum for safekeeping, Casey's definitely focused on the task but him carrying the photo of his mom suggests he has a second motive, they then contact a an old friend of Sensei called Professor Garrison (Garrick Hagon)

they have a nice dinner with him and Prof asks how Casey ended up at the dojo, Casey proceeds to trauma dump to professor, "yeah my mom left me when I was 12 :) dad drove off a cliff :) a family friend dropped me off at the dojo so I'm perfectily fine", our boy definitely has unprocessed trauma

Masazuka slaughters those at the dojo (unclear how many), has the advantage with a high-tech ninja suit with infra-red vision, angry about Sensei rejecting him (definite parallel to Casey's history of abandonment), kills Sensei but realizes that YB has been moved, realizes location thru Namiko's phone messages

Casey goes to find mom, learns she died of a stroke months before; quietly comforted by Namiko, romantic undertone but interrupted by intruders who kill the professor

they get away and hide in motel, Namiko has quiet breakdown when she realizes her father is dead, they end up sharing a shower but it's more of a keeping warm/comfort than sexy, more trouble with police thinking they're suspects

next morning Casey panics when she isn't there, although just went down to coffee shop, another ambush, train fight, first kill, arrested by police

this is about where the film loses steam for me, the story still works okay but a little less gripping, also wish Namiko got a better showing because she struggles more in fights than Casey despite the beginning suggesting they were on equal footing

there's an interrogation where Namiko sticks to the cover story of visiting then running because they were scared of the attackers whereas Casey basically tells the truth about ninja assassins and isn't believed; Masazuka breaks into the precint, kills police and kidnaps Namiko

Casey tracks down the cult and calls Masazuka to make a deal, the Yoroi Bitsu in exchange for Namiko (she's willing to die to keep it hidden but he isn't)

final fight: meet at a construction site, Namiko freed when box is handed over, turns out box is empty because Casey decided to wear the gear instead, Namiko gets a good fight but poisoned and taken out of commision halfway through, Casey wins the fight and gets antidote for Namiko

ends with beheading Masazuka, interesting tone because it doesn't feel exultant, more like a grim necesity

final scene is Casey and Namiko at Sensei's grave before returning to the dojo, implied they're now a couple

[deanosaur666]

The Woodchipper 2

[Note: This story is a sequel to another short story, "The Woodchipper." This was revised 5/27/2024]

Amadeus opened his eyes. He looked down on the city. The world was faded and transparent, blurred, and unclear. He could see that the people glowed with life, shining like lights in the fog. He turned and saw Donnie and Clyde. Their forms were faded, without life. They were slowly circling upward, converging towards a hole in the sky.

Amadeus yanked both of them out.

"Hey!" Clyde said,"What are you doing?"

"Yeah," Donnie said, "what's the deal Amadeus? I was about to pass on to an eternity of paradise in heaven."

"Yeah me too," Clyde said.

"Stop and think for a moment," Amadeus said, "we can't just let it end like this."

"What do you mean?" Donnie asked.

"Yeah," Clyde said, "I mean, this kind of is the end, after all. We all died, so it's time to pass on to our eternal reward."

Donnie said, "We deserve a rest after our hard lives, after all."

"If you went to heaven right now," Amadeus said, "you would experience an eternity of dissatisfaction. An eternity with just one regret itching at you. How could you rest like that?"

"What do you mean?" Donnie asked.

"For all of our lives," Amadeus said, "we've had every single thing we've desired. Nothing has ever been denied of us." He paused. "Until… that man denied us our desire to throw that baby into the woodchipper."

"Yeah," Clyde said, "I guess you're right. It would suck to go to heaven without ever having thrown a baby into a woodchipper."

"We will achieve this desire, despite our untimely demise." Amadeus said. "And if the Night Disassembler tries to deny us, we'll throw him into a woodchipper too!"

Darius Dirk watched the procession of school buses full of orphans pass by. The philanthropists of the city had pooled their money together to send all of these poor children on a field trip, to give them respite from their unfortunate lives. Darius pressed the red button. The charges he planted on the bridge exploded. The bridge collapsed, the rush hour traffic started pouring into the lake, towards their inevitable demise. The screams filled his ears as he walked away.

Darius Dirk was 13 months old. He was known as the most evil baby in the world. While he had yet to learn to speak, he possessed incredible abilities. The amount of tragedies he created was uncounted. He had been imprisoned many times, but could simply not be stopped. He was recognized by the broken chains that hung from his arms and legs, clanking as he toddled along.

And then an unseen force grasped Darius. He struggled and cried as it lifted him off the ground, taking him away.

Ozias Ozbek watched the footage on his television. He fidgeted with some screws in his hand as he watched the bridge collapse. It frustrated him. The bridge was breaking into large, sloppy chunks. It was inelegant. If he was to disassemble that bridge, he would have—

Ozzy's phone rang. He picked it up.

“Ozzy, it’s me, Betty!” The voice on the other end bawled. “Clementine has gone missing again! I don't know what to do!"

“Don't worry Betty, I'll find her again." Ozzy put down the phone.

She was the 203rd person to call him about a missing baby in the past few days. It seemed there was a pandemic of baby disappearances. And yet he had yet to find a single clue to the whereabouts of the babies.

The newscaster spoke from the television. "In other news, workers on the docks have been complaining of poor working conditions, claiming the noise of hundreds of crying babies and heavy machinery coming from the abandoned factory is hurting morale. The city has yet to investigate these complaints, claiming noise is a normal part of work."

"If I had 203 babies…" Ozzy thought, "where would I keep them?" He considered the screw in his hand. "That's it! I'd hide them in the abandoned factory! The sounds of heavy machinery and babies crying would drown out any sound made by the 203 babies. No one would suspect a thing."

Ozias threw open the closet. His mask and suit hung in the same spot. "What is it? I was sleeping, you know."

"It's time for you to get to work."

Amadeus tossed Darius onto the shelf next to Clementine. He was bound tightly. Clementine looked at him with a sad, knowing look.

"All right," Amadeus grinned, "that's the last baby in the whole city! Let's get back to chipping!"

Ozias approached the factory. He was clad in his mask and suit, taking the form of the Night Disassembler. The sounds of crying babies and heavy machinery grew louder. Ozzy began to feel a little uneasy. Something about this place felt almost sinister.

He climbed up the side and entered through a door on a balcony.

Inside, hundreds of screaming babies moved down conveyor belts, all converging and running into a single, huge woodchipper.

He would have to disassemble the woodchipper if he wanted to save the babies.

He jumped onto one of the conveyor belts. It was the fastest route to the woodchipper.

Suddenly a ghostly form materialized in front of him. Amadeus's visage appeared, grinning.

"The Night Disassembler!"Amadeus snarled. "You won't disassemble this scheme! These babies are destined for the woodchipper!"

"Don't get in my way." The Night Disassembler stepped forward, over a baby.

Amadeus's ghostly form grabbed The Night Disassembler and threw him down on his face.

"You can't disassemble a ghost!" Amadeus yelled. He grinned. "Donnie and Clyde passed on to heaven after the first batch of babies went through the woodchipper. But I won't be satisfied until every single baby has been chipped!"

The Night Disassembler pulled a screwdriver from his belt. "That seems a bit excessive."

Amadeus lifted The Night Disassembler off the ground.

"Who do you think you're fooling?" Amadeus grimaced. "This 'Night Disassembler' get-up is ridiculous. Everyone knows you're really just Ozias Ozbek, the local mechanic."

"Don't bring Ozias into this." The Night Disassembler said.

Amadeus pulled him closer. "You know, we're not so different. I know how you are. Whenever you see something beautiful or precious, you want to break it down into little pieces. So you should be able to sympathize with me."

"You're right." The Night Disassembler said.

The conveyor belt broke, and The Night Disassembler tumbled off it, onto the ground. Babies poured down onto him, burying him in a pile. He dug himself out of the pile. The woodchipper roared, just a few feet away.

"Damn it!" Amadeus yelled. "I can't believe you disassembled it while I wasn't looking!"

"You should pass on." The Night Disassembler said. "I imagine the woodchippers are much nicer in heaven." He started piling babies into a wheelbarrow. "I'm going to take these back to their homes."

"Stop!" Amadeus said. "Look at that baby in your hand."

Ozzy looked at the baby. He was bound tightly. Chains hung from his arms and legs. His countenance was twisted with hate.

"That's Darius Dirk," Amadeus said, "the most evil baby in the world. If you save him, he'll surely do more evil." He came close to Ozzy. "Do you really want to save this baby from the woodchipper?"

Ozzy considered the baby for a moment. "No." He tossed Darius into the woodchipper. And that was the end of Darius Dirk.

[fortune-maiden]

Finished the FFXIII Let’s Play :D

I played this game up until around Ch 10 (when the battle party unlocked) when it first came and had really loved the characters and the world, to the point where one of my big issues with the sequels (LR in particular) was throwing away the setting and the ending the FFXIII cast worked for. I’ve always had a soft spot for this game despite all of its criticisms and my own issues with it, particularly the gameplay.

Now, 13ish years later I’ve experienced the full story and OH HAVE MY OPINIONS CHANGED!

Still love the characters. This is a great cast with great dynamics and great development. Everything I loved about Ch 7 & 8 as a kid, I still love as an adult. Hell, I think I appreciate Ch 8 and Sazh & Vanille’s development even more as an adult. Watching their confrontation in Ch 8 made me tear up a little.

But the setting...

This story is very much style over substance. There are great ideas within it and visually it is gorgeous, but the pacing is a mess, the focus is unclear (ironic), and far too much info is hidden within the datalogs - datalogs which the LP didn’t cover sadly so I’m left to either go seek them out on my own or take the story at face value.

If the story doesn’t make sense at face value, there is a Problem.

And that Problem is - the world is empty. There are no towns, no NPCs to chat with, no little fetch quests that give you connections to the characters or show the various dynamics in the world. This game is a mess of proper nouns - fal’cie, sanctum, psicom, cavalry - Lightning has an epiphany at one point that the fal’cie treat humans as pets. Well good for you Light, but we have never seen any interactions between fal’cie and humanity. Is this a Score like situation where humanity is completely dependent on following their will to the point where it just flat out cannot function outside it? We’re told the fal’cie take care of humanity and leave them wanting for nothing - sure would be nice to see that from a character who was orphaned at a young age and forced to toughen up to survive. Where were these benevolent fal’cie for her? Where does NORA’s anti-government stance come from? Were they always rebellious or is that an immediate response to the Purge? Where did they get all the guns? Sazh is your typical everyman but one of the few characters to commentate on the dangers of believing everything your told without thinking critically. The story wants to set up a Man vs. Society conflict but doesn’t even bother to set up a society or a status quo before immediately breaking it.

And then there’s Pulse... the story tells us the conflict between Pulse & Cocoon is completely made up by the fal’cie, and the fear they’ve created is so great that Cocoon is (allegedly) willing to genocide its own populace to keep anything Pulse related out.

Except... there is literally no one left on Pulse.

Ch 11 gives us a chance to explore the world and gives some cute character moments to the party here and there... but no one comments on the complete lack of people?  Or that Oerba is literally full of cieth? Or how nothing has changed in the hundreds of years Fang & Vanille have been asleep (is this world in a technological stasis??? Then again Vanille’s pet robot is functional so...) Were Fang & Vanille already the last of their race back then?

Fang & Vanille are Pulse l’cie from Pulse - what was that like for them? What was life in Oerba like? How did they become l’cie in the first place? Given how the Sanctum reacts to Dajh, it feels like becoming Pulse l’cie for them would have been seen as a big deal back then in a good way. Heroes in the fight against Cocoon - who then got a taste of what it actually meant to be fal’cie tools and learned the Cocoon wasn’t their enemy. Where is all this history game? I’m not even sure the datalogs cover that.

(Just... how interesting would it have been if Pulse was built up as another society with their own customs and thoughts and then we get there and realize the fal’cie have wiped out all of humanity in their l’cie making factory and that was why it had to turn to making Cocoon residents into Pulse l’cie. Or if we met some groups who have renounced the fal’cie and have learned to survive on their own without relying on their bounties.)

(Although in fairness Cocoon would need to be developed as a society first to have something to compare against)

There is so much they could have done with their setting and the way the world informs our characters thoughts and ideas and they just... don’t. Outside of the main 6, we barely have any side characters, certainly none who leave much of a lasting impact. No real rivals to the group or recurring characters (Cid & Rosch exist I guess. Horribly underutilized. Jill is fun for all of the 3 scenes she gets)

I know XIII-2 will have some actual worldbuilding (I think? it’s been a while) but it’s really too little too late because it’s worldbuilding for a new status quo while we had never known the old one.

And it’s also sad because if Cocoon society really was kind of like Tales of the Abyss’ Score or some kind of Brave New World type of utopia - THOSE SETTINGS ARE FUN!

Also because I just want somewhere to complain about this - Ch 10 ends with Hope giving a really nice rallying speech about how determined he was and how they’re all in this together. Ch 11 starts with Hope losing all faith and worried that he’s a burden.

Both scenes are fantastic but I feel... like maybe... a few plot beats... are missing...

(This is also not the only time this happens. The characters have so little focus that they have to give each other these pep talks after every cutscene >.> Vanille & Fang also do this constantly over the last few chapters and it is frustrating.)

Also Lightning. For someone who is very much the face of the FFXIII series, she is... actually kind of a minor character overall in FFXIII. FFXIII is definitely more of an ensemble piece which is fine, but I was very surprised. She only feels like a leader very nominally. Certainly not someone I would consider with Savior potential (if anyone... that would be Hope probably. You could really see shades of his XIII-2 leader of humanity self towards the end).

But all in all I do still really like XIII and its ending and while I don’t have as much attachment to the setting this time, we’ll see how I feel about them throwing it away in the sequels ^^”

Next up XIII-2 which I remember enjoying quite a bit though I think people are harshest towards that one. But well... I like Serah and I like time travel stories.

XIII-2 kind of reminds me of Xillia 2 in some ways :D

[prolearnersdrivingschool]

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[noweyesee]

Let’s talk about •••

••• Spirit Work

Pt.1/2

• Spirit Work 101

Spirit Work is a term that was coined very recently, mostly having an upsurge with the new age witchcraft in social medias - that is not to say that the practice of communicating with spirits is new, rather, that such a term can be used in an overgeneralized manner. That in turn leads to misinformation about the topic.

•• So, what is Spirit Work?

Broadly, it is seen as a witchcraft practice where a person uses their abilities to communicate with spirits - people who have passed, guides, ancestors and such. What the term doesn’t clarify is that there are a multitude of ways in doing that, from religious practices to self developed methods as well as the target audience of that spirit work.

Taking a look at the word spirit we find the first divergence of intent: those stated before all fall in the category of deceased human spirits; then we have those who through their animistic or similar beliefs include the spirits of animals and all beings (and “things”) who once lived. Then, we have another category, those that communicate with the otherworldly and nature centred beings that have passed (though most commonly those are still alive), such as the Fae. Others include communication with deities in this practice, and lastly, we have another modality of those that work with the essence of spirits, be they dead or alive - they are included for they too have soul. • This is the first break, and as such themes and different styles of practitioners can already be found, most commonly used are Mediums, Healers, Channelers, Communicators.

Outside of that, we have believers and followers of certain religions that also have this designated space for that type of communication, though I won’t go into detail for this, Norse Paganism, Spiritism and African Traditional and Descending Religions, are some of them.

••• So, no, it is not a bad thing that this practice has been disseminated and made accessible to all practitioners, witches, pagans and heathens out there - but one must always take a step back and analyze the information they have as well as the intent they will follow in this path.

Spirit Work is no game, it can have serious consequences and that should not discourage you to try - rather, encourage you to be attentive and take it seriously.

• What not to do

This here, at least for me (but feel free to add on or disagree, the beauty of the community are the different methods after all) - are some of the absolute don’ts when practicing Spirit Work, divided in two topics as there is a theoretical and a practical side to it.

• Theoretical

Don’t immediately go following any instructions, no matter if they explicitly are for summoning, inviting or channeling or just imply that it’ll make your communication with spirits easier.

Because: You need to be 100% aware of what exactly you are doing, though there are some good sources, it is always good to double and even triple check ingredients, intents and procedures before starting anything.

Don’t begin anything if you don’t have contingency plans and a way to clear a possible mess up.

Because: When doing this type of work, you are the only thing you have control of - spirits can be volatile, especially if you’re starting communication with ones you never had contact with before. Plan ahead and certify yourself that even if something goes out of what was expected you'll be able to deal with it.

• Practical

Don’t call forth anything that you have no idea what and who exactly it is.

Because: There are opportunistic spirits that excel in impersonating. If your intentions are unclear when channeling or inviting someone or something they can and will take the chance. Be clear about who you are working with.

Don’t be rude or insistent towards spirits.

Because: Spirits deserve respect, and as such, you won’t want to anger an immaterial being just because of impatience. Treat them as you would like to be treated. Being firm doesn’t mean being rude.

Don’t keep your sensitivity channel open, if you can.

Because: The Spirit World is everywhere, and it exists alongside our material World. When working with spirits you’ll see that there are moments you need to distance yourself otherwise the input will be constant. Learn how to control and lock your sensitivity as it is being developed to minimize bothersome encounters or overload of inputs.

Don’t do your Spirit Work in any place - reserve a specific place for it.

Because: Not only is this a sign of respect towards the spirits you’ll be communicating with, but it also makes it easier for you to control, cleanse and protect that environment.

•• How to

Preparation and Protection

After that many Dont´s, we finally go towards the Do´s. Let me get this right, I by nature am extremely paranoid, and due to that I find preparation and protection essential to control variables, be confident and to keep calm - like this, I don’t fear the unknown nor the uncontrollable because one way or another I'm ready for it.

Now, once again, these preparatory and protective steps will depend a lot on what method of Spirit Work you’re practicing, but some of them are pretty universal and these are the one’s I’ll be passing on to you.

• To Prepare

A spirit worker's body and spirit must always be clear, attentive and sensible. To prepare you must do whatever rituals pertain to your practice, that prepare you emotionally, psychologically and spiritually to deal and work with spirits.

This might include meditation, trance work, cleansing rituals and so on - this takes off the layer of mundane impressions that could marr your interpretation and leave you like a clean slate through which the Spirit’s voice can be clearly understood.

Your working space should also be clean on any influencing energies, organized and quiet enough (or loud enough depending on your vertent) for you to focus solely on the presence you’ll be working with.

I particularly find that asking for permission and guidance from my guides always makes this preparation process easier, as that is their realm and their ponctuations, advice and warnings are always welcome.

• Being Protected

There are three points of protection: Your Body (which is the conductor of your energy), Your Mind (which contains your Spirit - though not all beliefs follow this) and Your House (or de place you do your Spirit work).

These three should be duly protected and warded as you see fit before you start your spirit work. Methods for those vary as they can be easily found around the internet, in books and such. I wouldn’t be able to tell you which method of protection and warding you’ll prefer, which you’ll absolutely trust to work and which will be ideal to your specific target audience with spirit work but, one advice: Never share all ingredients nor steps of your protection and warding spells.

You may realize that I rarely, if ever, post spells. The answer is simple: any spell can be counteracted, especially if people know everything you used.

And trust me when I say that these protection and warding spells of your for Spirit Working are ones you wouldn’t like to be tampered with.

•••• 👁 ••••

For now that’s it, this post was very broad as I talked about general warnings and things of importance that precede the practice of Spirit Working. It’ll be a short series of posts, with only two.

The second one will be more action centered, most likely bigger with explanations of what to do in each case of spirit working. Till then, yeah?

-Lou

[punemy-spotted]

The Price You Pay

Pairing: Mob!Steve Rogers x Reader

Warnings: Non-con/Dub-con, mentions of murder, unclear timeline, blackmail, unprotected sex, fingering (F!receiving), smut, esoteric references to past abuse, manipulation, Dark!Fic

Words: 5.2k (holy fuck?)

Summary: You need his help. He names his price.

Notes: This is for @stargazingfangirl18 and her incredible 5K Soft!Dark Challenge and I can't believe I wrote over 5k words for a oneshot, making this the longest piece I've ever written. I took a blend of prompts: Mob!AU; “When I woke up this morning, I certainly didn’t think my day would end like this;” and “That’s a big favor you’re asking for, I think you need to make it worth my while.”

And this was intended to be a oneshot but now I can't stop thinking about it so thanks Siri, I think this is now a part of my WIPs too! Your work is amazing and I had a blast being able to take part in this!

As usual, my work is 18+ ONLY, Minors DO NOT INTERACT

You went to him first.

You went to him, handed them your business card and I want to speak to Steve Rogers.

Honestly they almost threw you out with an extra hole in your head but then the man of the hour walked right in.

So now you’re here. Now you’re here, sitting across a gorgeous dining table with a ten-course meal laid out and honestly you’re surprised they didn’t tie your wrists to the arms of the chair while you watch him eat and take in the look of those baby blue eyes scanning you over.

He even brought you non-alcoholic rosé, when you said you didn’t drink.

So.

So.

You wanted to talk to me?

Yeah, I do. Thought you’d just sit me in your office, have a consultation.

I like breaking bread with new friends. Have a nice dinner, get the wine flowing — of course, that’s not gonna loosen your tongue, but we’ll forgive it.

Oh. Cool, I like being forgiven.

He laughs at that one and the room, strumming with tension, snaps into amusement. So do you, cracking a half smile on dark red lips, before swallowing down the lump of anxiety threatening to break through and destroy everything. You need this. You need this and you can’t let anything — not your nervousness, not your morals, not him — stop you. You need this and it needs to be done and if this is what justice is in this fucking city then so be it.

Well, sweetness, you’ve got my attention. You want to talk business or pleasure?

That one makes you laugh, a little sharp and a little cruel, and the curling smirk on his face gets a little furrowed because he hears it too — pain.

It could be both, you say finally, picking up the glass of rosé-that-wasn’t, if your reputation is as real as they say it is.

He lifts a bite of cheesecake into his mouth and lets it melt on his tongue while he watches you, somewhere between impressed and incensed. You know the look — you saw it the last time he met you in court, but you weren’t there as allies then. Never thought you’d come to me, he admits finally, sounding halfway bemused at the idea, but you’re full of surprises, aren’t you, Counsel?

You wince, or maybe smirk, eyes on the man before you.

It’s a game, a dance, a ruse, and the woman you thought you were thirteen months ago when you put four of Steve Rogers’s best men in jail for fifteen years — fifteen years longer than any District Attorney had ever managed to do before you, and you were just the rookie they handed a shit case to — is leagues different from the woman you are now, seated prim and proper in the lion’s den.

You’re not innocent. That’s not been your game for years — this life doesn’t leave room for innocence, it tears at you, leaves you tired and broken and ill.

Your colleagues learned to fear him a long time ago, the man before you. Captain America, leading the city, the country, the world into a new era of high tech crime all under his thumb. It’s a pretty shiny shield, the one that sits behind him, but mirrors are black on the other side and his soul is dark as coal.

You’re not an angel yourself, and this deal with the Devil isn’t for anyone but you.

I need someone taken care of.

So you come to me? I thought you were a lady of morals, Counsel.

Certain kinds of morals.

You can see him smile, see the way he raises his glass, the glimmer of malice and amusement in his eyes. So tell me. What’s the name?

You give it.

He’s not in the city, your target, but he will be. A Judge, an activist, real tough-on-crime-sweet-on-justice type of shit. You don’t tell him the reasons why, because those are yours, but you tell him the name. You tell him he’s a problem, you tell him he’s dangerous, you tell him you’ll pay to have him taken care of, you tell him you don’t want to practice in front of that black, black robe.

And he smiles like the Devil he is, watches you with a grin and drinks his whiskey in one last shot before slamming it down, Real woman of the law, aren’t you?

You said that when we met the first time.

He’s a hunter, you can see it in his eyes. That lion’s mane might be tamed right now but it won’t be for long and you’re playing with wild animals. The eyes on you are ice and daggers, daring you to do the one thing everyone in the office has been begging you not to do.

(Drop the charges, Rookie, the case is just to get your face in front of the judge.)

You upped the charges.

(Rookie, you don’t know what you’re dealing with, there’s other cases.)

You subpoenaed his phone records.

(Rookie, don’t make me drag you off this case!)

You won.

You had no witnesses and a jury you had to drag in from god-knows-where after you proved, over and over again, that he’d paid off the cohort in the courtroom. Finding people with nothing to lose and a desire to do their civic duty wasn’t harder than you thought — it was exactly as impossible as you expected.

But you did it.

That’s what you do, isn’t it? Push and push and fight, claw your fingers at the ledge and pull yourself up, you pay for your crimes in your blood, sweat and tears you pay for the things you could have done then and didn’tdo.

You pay.

And sometimes, that payment bounces back.

And when it was all said and done, when the closing statements were delivered, when the Jury came back out and the Judge — hands shaking, mouth agape, eyes wide — read out the verdict no one expected, you… didn’t feel any better, did you? There was no justice for you in that room, just the searing glare of ice-blue eyes and the burning of your steel spine.

Real woman of the law, aren’t you?

First words he said to you, while the courtroom emptied out and you stood there, facing the man you’d just made an enemy of with your briefcase in your hand and your eyes aflame.

I did my job.

Did you? Is that what you think your job is?

My job is justice, unflinching and blind, Mr. Rogers. I don’t care how much power you have or how afraid you leave this city, I’m going to do my job.

You could always let justice turn a blind eye.

Yeah. I could, but that wouldn’t make this any fun, would it? Thank you for the win, Mr. Rogers — I’m sure I won’t get many more.

You leave him with a smile on his face and the scent of your perfume in his memories.

He leaves you with the pride of victory in your bones and a reminder that your strife could be worth it.

One day.

How do you plan to fill that pit, the one you tossed the corpses of your old self into? The one you let them claw up out of, to haunt you? Remind you?

You’re digging your own grave and you know it, but you won’t let Steven Grant Rogers be the first one to toss a handful of dirt over your corpse.

But now here you are.

In his dining room, enjoying dessert and some sort of after-meal coffee. In need of him…

This might almost have been a date, if not for the topic of conversation.

So. You want a Judge taken out. What if he’s already on my payroll?

Why would you keep a dead man in your pocket?

You like the sound of his laugh, and you don’t even have the excuse of wine to fall back on when it warms your core. Don’t admit it though, don’t say it aloud, don’t let him get an in. Be smart, cross your legs tighter, keep your eyes on the prize.

You’re so close to the finish line.

That’s a big favor you’re asking for, Counsel, I think you need to make it worth my while.

Worth your while?

I’m not a charity. And since you put the guy I usually use to handle these things behind bars for a few years—

You know I can get him out too.

That’s not payment, that’s putting things right.

You take a drink. Steady on, girl.

I’m leaving the DA’s office.

That stops him.

Oh that stops him good, and he looks fascinated. Interested. You’ve said something he can use as leverage and it’s not just about a job. That smirk on his face is smug and his eyes are darker and he has to know the impact that look has.

Can’t falter, don’t falter, don’t give in.

Am I allowed to ask why?

No.

You’ve done your research. You just don’t know why you’re thinking about it now. Steven Grant Rogers, “Captain America,” leader of a crime family that had too many names to stamp out, bolstered by a mad scientist, a military man through-and-through who turned New York into his own private base against whatever stood against his way.

Get in his good graces and you’re set for life. Get in his good graces and you’re safe, you’re protected, you’re good.

Get on his bad side and you only make that mistake once.

There are no second chances in this game, and here you are, asking for one.

So what? You leave the DA’s office, you leave yourself open to me — you think leaving New York is going to be the thing that stops me, Counsel?

No.

Then what?

Breathe. Steady.

I know you gave me that win on purpose — you could have taken out my last jury cohort. This isn’t about the four men… and you know I’ll get them out. This is something else, but I’m not here to ask about what or why.

He falters just briefly, like he’s surprised you knew, but the crack in his mask smooths itself over as soon as it forms and he’s back to watching you, nodding along in silence while you breathe and watch him and keep talking.

But even then. I got four of your guys in prison. And I know how your organization works — I subpoenaed the documents, remember? Your lawyers are good, but they’re not used to people asking the right questions. You want someone to seal up the cracks you need someone who actually knows what to look for.

You have more than his attention, you have his interest, and now he’s leaning in a little. Imperceptibly, but enough. Scanning over you from across the table, like he’s thinking how you managed to get so impertinent in the face of the likes of him but that’s the thing — when the only thing you have left to lose is your life, you’ll risk everything.

So what are you offering?

Breathe. Don’t. Stammer.

Myself.

The chair scrapes and suddenly there’s the clicking of guns, aimed and ready until his hand rises up and he stops them and he’s stalking towards you.

This is the lion’s den, sweetness.

The stakes are higher and you ought to be braver and he’s got your chin in his hand before you have a chance to react, dragging you to your feet. Do you know what you’re offering me, Counsel? Low and hissed and hungry, like those perfect teeth might be sinking into your throat in the next moment.

Oh, you have no idea.

You get me. On your payroll — you know. The offer you sent me a year ago.

You think it’s still open?

If it wasn’t, you wouldn’t have met with me.

The chuckle in your face makes your cheeks warm and you’re looking more flushed than you would like, the open shoulders of your dress suddenly feeling a lot more like a mistake the more you realize just what kind of meal he might make out of you tonight.

We might need to have a discussion about your workplace duties, Counsel.

You don’t notice the hand near your thigh until it’s too late, sliding up the soft fabric of your skirt until it’s squeezing your ass, until it’s jerking you towards him, until you’re pressed against his chest and the hand on your chin is now hooked around the back of your neck, thumb pushing your jaw until you’re forced to look at him. Won’t lie, when I woke up this morning, I certainly didn’t think my day would end like this, having your pretty little body in my arms,and you can look as indignant as you want but he’s got the upper hand and you only thought you were two steps ahead of him.

You think I haven’t thought about what it’d be like to put you in your place, Counsel? You’ve got a smart mouth — I wanna know what else it can do.

He doesn’t give you a chance to use that mouth to lash at him, lips sliding over yours, swallowing that indignant yelp with a punishing kiss. Nipping at the plushness of your lower lip until you open your mouth and yield to him with a sigh of reluctant surrender, let his tongue slide past that barrier for him to explore. He’s got his fingers wound through your hair, just a little too tight and whether the whimper in your chest is because of the pain or because of the want, he doesn’t care.

Knew you’d be sweet, Counsel… softly, when he pulls back to look at you, take a look at those love-swollen lips and your ruined lipstick, the pretty way you pant at him already, the heat burning your cheeks. Pay no attention to the slick warmth between your thighs, pay no attention to the way he makes you burn already, pay no attention to how your fingers have curled into the lapel of his coat to hold yourself steady, pay no attention to how you suddenly miss the pressure of his lips.

All that smart-talk and now you’re quiet, Counsel? F’I knew it just took a kiss to get you to shut up, I would’ve done that at trial, he’s purring in your ear, soft and sweet and you should push at his chest, so uncurl your fingers girl and push.

I didn’t say I was selling my body, there’s your harshness, and there he is, laughing at you again, the grip on your hair jerking your head back until you’re looking into those dagger-cold eyes again.

You don’t make the rules here, Counsel, I do, and you need me more than I need you. So if you want to make sure your Judge can’t start wreaking havoc on your career… you might want to get used to readjusting it for me. I promise I’ll make you feel nice, if you let me…

And if I don’t?

Then I take what I want and I don’t feel bad for not holding up my end of the bargain. Your choice, Counsel, you cum willingly and I’ll give you everything you want. Don’t, and it’ll hurt you more than it hurts me.

That’s not a threat, that’s a promise, and suddenly you’re more scared than you ever thought you’d be, wondering if you’ll need to sell another part of your soul to take him down after. How much of yourself will you put up as collateral to get justice for the wrongs you were never able to correct?

You’re afraid.

Oh sweetness, you’re afraid.

Here? Now?

No, Counsel, we’re gonna do this right, aren’t we? You wanna be in bed with me, I’ll take you to bed with me. Come on, say it. Say the word.

Say no. Say no, rail and fight, stamp your heels into the expensive leather of his shoes, jam your knee into the sensitive between his legs, scream and yell and tell him you will never let another man take advantage of you again to help you reach your goals. Do it. Do the thing you swore you would do the next time a man like him — men who think they can take anything from anyone, men who think they own the world and the women in it, men who think you aren’t strong enough to fight back — propositioned you just like this.

You’re selling your soul to get rid of a man just like this.

But that’s coiling heat in your core that wasn’t there the last time, was it? That’s want. That’s the realization that you like the way this predatory smile feels, that you like the way this one wants you. You’re not her, not scared and alone and helpless. You could fight back and run and maybe escape if you were lucky.

You could choose.

He’s let go of your hair to stroke your cheek with the backs of his fingers, soft and sweet, You gonna give me an answer, Counsel, or am I gonna have to take it?

Say something. Say no. Scream. Say no say no say no say— Yes.

It’s a whisper. A desperate, soft whisper. A helpless, lonely whisper. It’s enough.

He sweeps you around until you’re pressed with your back against his unyielding chest, feeling him flex with every movement, broad arm wrapped around your shoulders from the front. All of you are dismissed, and that’s when you remember there were others in the room with you. Others who just watched you concede to becoming Captain America’s newest plaything and the burn on your cheeks is more shame than lust. You pull at his arm briefly, futilely, earning a tighter hold for your efforts and a whispered don’t make me choke you, before you are half-walked, half-dragged out of the dining room.

The walk to his room is slow and agonizing as you’re pulled along, barely struggling but barely helping at the same time, tears sliding down your cheeks as you come to terms with what’s going to happen next — no one is going to save you tonight, no one’s going to interrupt and drag you out, this is your job and this is your place and here you are.

No one speaks. There’s no sound but the steady tap of your heels and his shoes on fine marble. Even your sobs are silent, even your breathing is muffled, until the stairs are traversed and the faintest click of a lock turning opens the door to the rest of your life.

You made a deal.

Time to pay.

Sit on the bed.

You move as if in a trance, and he watches your face, the hint of waterproof mascara failing to do its job, the smudged ruby red of your lipstick. Don’t give me that look, you knew what you were signing up for when you walked into this house, Counsel.

His hands are gentler than you’d expect, when he wipes away the streaks your tears leave down your pretty cheeks, coaxing you to look up at him, We’ll set ground rules later. Tonight? I wanna see if I can get that mouth of yours to beg for me.

It won’t, you snap without thinking, knifeblade sharp and cruel, ready for a fight again. He promised you that once, in a hiss you thought you’d misheard but no, you heard him just fine and now if he thinks he can quench your fire and have you pleading just because you sold your body for the prospect of revenge then he’s wrong.

Thing is, he laughs like that’s a challenge, and the hand holding your chin so gently is wrapped around your throat before you know it, silencing your voice with just the right application of pressure. I can do this all night, Counsel. Do you think you can last that long?

Fear. Anger. Indignation. You are fury made flesh and he is manipulating you with just the barest press of his palm and sliding over you, until you’re laid out there on soft sheets and he’s looming over you, splaying that big hand out and sliding it down your throat, over your chest, feeling the ruching of the fabric under his palm. You wrapped yourself up like a present for me, didn’t you sweetness?

The change in nickname isn’t lost on you but here you are, glaring up at him while he smiles so beatifically it leaves your blood boiling and your skin steadily warming. The rise and fall of your chest is hypnotic, every angry breath a swear you don’t utter, every inhale your protests dying in your throat. What can you say, what would you say, right now? There’s nothing that can change the way he looks at you, or the way his eyes flicker from ice to blue fire the more he takes stock of the pretty little thing he’s about to start sharing his bed with.

Fuck, you’re beautiful, that one shocks you, but not as much as the sudden rush of cold air when he tears the emerald green fabric of your dress down and reveals the soft swells of your breasts, nipples peaked from the sudden cold.

You don’t get much time to gasp, just something soft and strangled before he turns your voice to whimpers, wrapping lips around that pebbled tip and laving his tongue over sensitive flesh. Where are your words now, Counsel, while he threatens the softness of your chest with the scrape of his teeth, when he slides his hands over the round curve of your thighs and parts your legs so he can press himself between them, so he can press himselfagainst you? Where is the knife-dagger of your wit to protest each soft, suckling kiss to your skin, each press of his fingers like he could just squeeze his ownership of you into the plushness of your hips, into the sweet swell of your ass? What do you say to the dirty little thrust of his hips as he bucks with his own burning need, reminding you just how much this is for hispleasure as he will make it for yours.

You would, could, should push him off and instead what are you doing? Curling your fingers into the silk-smooth of his comforter, desperate to writhe out of your own skin away from the burning pressure between your thighs, the foreign, unfamiliar heat you suddenly feel like you might be craving.

Anyone ever touch you like this before me, Counsel?Warm breath splays across your skin when he questions you, eyes fixed on yours and he waits. Answer him, answer him, tell him he’s nothing, tell him you’ve had better, lie and destroy that ego, lie lie lie lie—

Nnnh—no.

He looks like you’ve just told him the best news of his life, eyes wide and blown with lust, Oh is that right? You’re saying no one’s ever touched you this good? Or just no one’s ever touched you at all?

You don’t have to answer. The furious blush on your cheeks? The way your eyes slide away from his? The way you writhe, trying to press your thighs together to relieve the pressure and finding the effort futile? If the man’s grin could get any wider, it would, right now. Oh sweetness, we’re going to have so much fun exploring your body together…

He pulls back just enough to take a look at you, already flushed and writhing and overwhelmed and if he could take a picture of this right now he would. He’ll save that for later though. Tonight? Tonight is just the two of you, and his hands are back to your skirt, pushing the tight fabric up over your round hips and revealing the lace of your panties… just before he rips them off, to the sound of your indignant yelp Steve!

You’re going to call me Captain, sweetness, we’re not close enough to use my name just yet.

No. No you’re not, and he’s not sure you’ll ever be — he rather likes the idea of hearing you whimper out his title when he gets you desperate and wanting.

He touches, slow and steady, watching you try to jerk away and tutting at you when you do, fingers at your delicate nerves like an assault on your pleasure. Bite your lip, bite back the moans, whine at him like he’s wounded you, You’re so wet, sweetness, you’re so desperate for me aren’t you, as he palms his cock to relieve the pressure on himself. You’re going to beg before he does and he’s patient, he’ll last the night.

St-stop it, it’s too— he shushes you ahtahtaht and rests his free hand on your mound, holding you down so his probing, inspecting fingers can take stock of the velveteen plushness of your delicate cunt. It’s too much, too much and you want to scream the moment he presses one finger into you, already overwhelmed, already so tightly wound the barest touches are unraveling you steadily.

You’re such a pretty thing, all desperate and needy, sweetness. You wanna cum already, don’t you? So busy, never gave anyone the chance to fuck that stuck-up bitch right out of you, did they? It’s almost pitying, isn’t it, the way he talks, hums at you while you’re reduced to a whining, whimpering mess so soon, so desperate for the release he’s on the edge of denying you, feeling you flexing around his finger and then the second leaping jolt of your body when another joins the inspection. Taking careful stock of the pretty cunt he owns now, and he’s careful to curl his fingers just right as he seeks the spot to hammer just to get you to scream.

You don’t, not yet, but that’s okay too, because he sees the way you take desperate hold of the sheets, the way your eyes roll backwards just slightly, the way you strain against his heavy hand to arch your back. Gotta tell you, sweetness, I imagined you under me a thousand and one ways but this one, right now? Tops the list. You ready to beg for me?

Do it. Do it and end your pleasurable torment. Do it and be released from the pressure, the coiling want. Surrender to him. Let him have you.

The white hot rush of your orgasm is not unexpected to him, his curling, cruel fingers having found the sweetness of your g-spot, but — you, too busy climbing the ranks to think of your own pleasure, too busy demanding your due from an unjust world explore your own warmth beyond that of a memory of a college hookup you would rather forget — you left breathless and wanton in the heat of the explosion he draws out of you, mewling something desperate and pleading against your own will and the song of it fills his ears like it’s all he’s ever wanted. There it is, and I thought we’d be here all night. A thumb flickers over the nerves at your entrance and you practically jump, something between a yelp and a moan escaping your lips.

First one’s just a treat, sweetness. Now on, you cum when I say you do, understand?

You nod.

Oh you nod, and you are lost, here and now. Sensitive and broken and there is so little of that steel spine here, writhing in his sheets and ohyou don’t know the things you do to him.

Think you can go again, sweetness? He’s purring, smug, twisting fingers stretching you slowly, muttering under his breath about how fucking tight you are around his fingers, how good you’re going to feel for him, and the smugness on his face is slowly fading into a dark consternation, brows furrowed like he’s somehow angry at you for being plush and delicate and fuckable.

You’re almost begging him to stop, and yet the pressure is building again, the twisting, coiling heat that leaves you breathless and mewling and he looks like he might be trying to immortalize this moment forever. Say it, sweetness. Say you need me. Beg me for my cock.

That’s it.

That’s what you need to, you need to beg, you need to give in. No more fighting, no more arguing no more —

Please…

Please what, sweetness, come on now. You got a way with words. The snarl is so barely contained.

Please, Captain, please just…

What do you need, sweetness? The fingers are relentless, the buzz in your nerves is overwhelming, you can barely even hear yourself talk, much less him.

Please just fuck me, Captain, I need your cock! It’s hurried and it’s crude and it’s desperate and it’s exactly what he wants as just another wall crumbles and you fall off your pedestal right into his arms.

He’s barely able to resist the buck of his hips, the need to be inside you, the knowledge that you are soft and velvet and you could be all over his senses just like this.

When did he free his cock? You don’t know, you just know it’s practically salvation when he sinks into you, when he fills you like you’ve been desperate for and Oh sweetness…pours from his lips just as you hiss out something like praise right back at him.

You’re so full and he’s so gentle, at first, like you’re made of crystal in his arms, like the slow shifting of his hips might have you shattering underneath him if he’s not careful. Cradling you, even, sliding your legs around his narrow hips as he leans in and takes a hungry kiss from your wanting, whimpering mouth.

Love this look on you, all wrapped around me, whispered low and slow into your ear, sweetness you have no idea how good you look…

Melt into those compliments, melt into him, because the way he’s holding you is divine and you can feel him so deep in you it’s making your head spin. When did your arms end up around him? When did you start clinging to him like an anchor, start winding your fingers through his hair, start leaving the marks of your nails on his back to the sound of his own needy groaning?

He noses your cheek and leaves a mark of ownership on your neck with hungry lips, knowing you’ll bruise a beautiful flower right over your pulsebeat and continuing the steady assault on your nerves, cunt-first.

Harder. Faster. More.

And oh, sweetness, you do shatter.

You shatter all around him, you shatter into something divine and rapturous, full of him and filled with him and he cums so deep inside you as you do, still fucking you through your joined climax, hips rutting and breath hitching and nearly furious at you for the way his vision whites out too, the way he feels like he can Never get enough and so he hisses that at you like an accusation while his thoughts reorient back to reality, back to smugness, back to the control you took from him while he tried to strip you of yours.

In the end, as he pulls away from you and sinks to the side of you, watching your sweet expression as you return to the reality of your new situation, he is satisfied… thoroughly.

Oh yeah, I think we can make this a working relationship, Counsel.

[blowingoffsteam2]

I love all of your takes, they are so very good! Since you're talking about the drifting of Riku and Kairi's friendship right now, do you have any thoughts on the scene towards the end of KH2 after he reunites with her when they find Sora and co and she says the line, "he's hopeless without us!"? Riku says nothing back. That line always bothered me. It bothers me that all of Sora's friends tease him this way, and I know it's deliberate, and I know its deliberate that Riku is the only one who believes in him wholeheartedly, and you might've already talked about this, but I have trouble getting my thoughts in order. It seems relevant to the current posts tho, so I was just curious.

It just seems like, as someone who is desperate to share a paupu with Sora, Kairi lacks an awful lot of faith in him? Or is just so tied down to the thought of him still being the lazy teen we were introduced to in the first game taking a nap on the beach, further highlighting just how much time has passed and how much he's been thru without her, as has Riku, she just doesn't want to see it. Her refusal to grow up is concerning.

-harley

Personally I don’t think it’s that she lacks faith in him. It’s more the second option you mentioned I think- that she is stuck on this past image of Sora as the lazy boy sleeping on the beach. She truly doesn’t really know how much he has changed and doesn’t want to see it even when given the option to communicate with him via the gummiphone or sending her letters. She feels more comfortable talking to her imagined version of Sora...and I think that says a lot about how much they have drifted as well. That line in kh2 I think is just her trying to have that sassy energy she had in kh1 towards Sora. To her it’s just the dynamic they used to have so it seems harmless. I think her becoming more reserved around Sora is just partially her realizing that he isn’t the same lazy boy on the beach and she doesn’t know how to deal with that. Hence, the letters. Anyway, maybe her training with Aqua will be the start of something new. Of her letting go of the past somewhat and learning who she is outside of the context of Sora. I’m not holding my breath for great development but it’s a nice thought.

Riku on the other hand puts Sora on a pedestal in a different way- believes in Sora almost to the point where he views Sora as indestructible. Sora can overcome anything. And he’s not exactly wrong to believe that but it also made him somewhat blind to how much Sora’s self esteem had been degrading. After all, Sora has accomplished so much, saved so many people including Riku himself, he’s Riku’s light- how could Sora value his own strength so little? It isn’t until Sora’s breakdown in the Keyblade Graveyard that he realizes how little Sora thinks of himself. It’s unclear if Riku even remembers that though, so he may be forced to witness it again either through a flashback or another situation where Sora breaks down again. Because lord knows that issue still hasn’t been taken care of.

[eri-cheri]

Now that we have reached the last chapter of the year. It is time to do a 2020 roll call of what I like to call, “State of the Shippers”:

1. IzuOcha. Status: Placated.

-IzuOcha’s could celebrate several cute tidbits throughout the year. Mini moments as they say.

Anime Highlights: The OVA’s came in clutch with moments for shippers all around and IzuOcha is no exception. We got a cute tidbit where Izuku and Ochako bumped into each other and were flustered.

Manga Highlights: Christmas kept on giving to this fandom as the AM doll Izuku gave Ochako made many appearances. A cute fist bump between the two was also exchanged and Mina was right there bouncing with y’all.

Heroes Rising: Izuku super man carried Ochako to safety. And was Angy she was injured. Fans could enjoy the small Lois Lane moment.

Troubling Signs?: Ochako said “I would like to be excluded from this narrative” when it comes to her feelings for Deku. She’s a hero damnit! So if they are in for something, probably won’t be while they are still in school.

II. DabiHawks. Status: Yikes.

- Dabi and Hawk’s very public breakup set this fandom in disarray but also kind of disayay?

Anime Highlights: None yet. This fandom was cruelly cock blocked by Bones. Sorry DabiHawks stans.

Manga Highlights: Where to begin, my goodness. With these fans, I guess the good and the bad is a plus in this homoerotic double agent relationship. We have the notion that Dabi may have known Hawks when they were kids, which may be a positive? Hori sure loves his childhood friends. Other than that. The GIRLS WERE FIGHTIN’. Hawks is now permanently scarred by Dabi and I don’t think it was kinky folks. Tokoyami inserted himself in the middle to White Knight Hawks, Dabi broke up with him via YT expose and overall, shippers could anguish in the absolute MESS that this ship endured this year. But I’m sure that’s part of the appeal. So...yay?

Heroes Rising: They were both in it.

Troubling Signs?: The entire relationship is a troubling sign which again, is part of the appeal. Maybe Hawks will cuddle up with Dabi’s father after the war. That’s troubling! Speaking of...

III. EndHawks. Status: Yearning and Burning.

-If there’s one thing Endeavor couldn’t stop worrying about, it was his hot (in more ways than one) new side piece who probably should have looked at the fine print when signing a contract to be a recurring guest star on “Keeping up with the Todoroki’s”.

Anime Highlights: A fateful meeting finally in high definition for all our eyes to see! Hawks’s unwavering support of his biggest hero was endearing to watch and their shenanigans together spurred the anime onlies to finally jump on the biggest May-December ship in the series.

Manga Highlights: Endeavor’s admiration and concern for Hawks seeped through the pages as we entered our most exciting arc in the manga yet. Fate split these two up yet entwined their downfall together. And that Fate’s name was Dabi...or should I say ⚫️⚫️⚫️⚫️⚫️ or should I just say Touya!

Heroes Rising: “Don’t bite my head off, Endeavor.” Geez, can you flirt a little less loud Hawks?

Troubling Signs?: They say never meet your heroes and Hawks is in for a rude awakening. We shall see just how deep his admiration runs or if Endeavor’s past will split our dynamic duo up for good.

IV: TodoDeku. Status: “Precious”

-Shoto’s “Midoriya is in Danger” radar was highlighted in both manga and anime. 4th User’s quirk, who?

Anime Highlights: “Midoriya hasn’t returned yet.” “Where’s Midoriya?” “Midoriya! Grab my hand!” “Have some of my Soba Midoriya.” Shoto gets it. His emotional support friend is a danger magnet. TodoDeku’s also enjoyed tiny tidbits in the OVA such as a hand grabbing scene. Gotta hold tight to those crumbs.

Manga Highlights: Two Words. “Precious Friend.” Deku comes in w/o arms or legs fighting for Shoto and Shoto’s honor. These two spent the entire year worried sick about each other, and going against all odds to save each other. Precious Friends indeed. TDDK fans ate.

Heroes Rising: Shoto kicks some dog ass and then faints thinking of Deku (and Bakugo but shh. Let the shippers rejoice.) On the bright side, we have a 3rd movie coming featuring “The Three Musketeers” so shippers of TdDk can HOLD TIGHT to what’s to come.

Troubling Signs?: Shoto still doesn’t know about OFA and he’s gonna have LOTS of questions after this arc. Will Deku finally tell him? If not, it could make or break the ship.

V. TodoBaku. Status: “Shining through the city with a little funk and soul.”

-Who knew the greatest comedy duo we needed was Shoto and his hot headed “friend” or not friend? It still remains unclear to Shoto. Regardless, these two had a fun year.

Anime Highlights: “I wanna see your cute face”, disco dancing, and more fun in the provisional license training. Plus the OVA added some cute moments between the two such as Bakugo staying behind to save Todoroki during a dangerous excercise and his adorable plan neatly animated for us. I’d say TodoBaku’s really were resurgent and energized this year!

Manga Highlights: Shoto, that is not how you properly Catch a Kacchan, I’m sorry. But at least you did it you mad lad. As with Deku, Shoto spent the year worried sick about Bakugo. While the anime let us have our fun, these two were suffering in the manga.

Heroes Rising: Again, Shoto put a dog down and then fainted with Bakugo on his mind (and Deku but we ignore that. Shush.) TodoBaku’s have the 3rd movie to look forward to which is bound to have some amazing content!

Troubling Signs?: They have a lot of trauma to deal with. And a lot of Deku to worry about. I also imagine Shoto will be hurt about being left out of the OFA secret. We shall see what 2021 has to offer.

VI. KiriMina. Status: Unbreakable.

-Changing your hairstyle to match the gal who inspired you in middle school? Sorry y’all but if Mina were a guy, I’d say that’s gay af.

Anime Highlights: We got that backstory Bois. Red Riot’s origin might as well make him be called Pink Riot. Again with Hori and the childhood friends though I wouldn’t exactly call them friends. They just went to the same middle school but Kirishima was highly influenced by Mina’s Chivalrous spirit! A ship is born!

Manga Highlights: The influence is mutual! Mina creates a move based on Kirishima’s unbreakable and we all let out a collective “awwww”. Also in the war arc, we got Kirishima making sure Mina’s chivalrous spirit shines through right into Gigantomachia’s mouth! KiriMina may just be the unsung MVP’s of this arc.

Heroes Rising: They were in it.

Troubling Signs?: I can’t think of a single one. KiriMina’s can enjoy a peaceful sailing.

VII: KiriBaku. Status: Crumb Collectors.

-2020 was an uneventful year for KiriBaku but Bones made sure there were crumbs aplenty! Thank God for OVA’s!

Anime Highlights: KiriBaku’s did thrive in one episode! Kirishima reflects on the sludge incident and evolves his quirk based on inspiring words from Bakugo! Hooray! KiriBaku’s can thrive in their blossoming friendship. The OVA also has Kirishima (and Kaminari but shh) once again following Bakugo’s lead when it comes to the training excercise. How can you not? He’s so manly!

Manga Highlights: Not gonna lie. There is nothing much here this year. I did find a teeny tiny flake in Aizawa’s flashback. Kirishima and Bakugo are sitting next to each other. Oh! And at the hot pot gathering, Bakugo sits next to Kirishima! Eat your crumbs KiriBaku’s! There’s always next year!

Heroes Rising: Kirishima hangs with a lazy Bakugo and delivers the most hilarious line in the whole movie. “Silly Bakugo, there won’t be villains here!” Hahah... Silly Bakugo. Oh you~ KiriBaku’s can inhale the fact that those two sure love to hover around each other!

Troubling Signs?: With great crumbs come little responsiblity. No trouble if there’s no content! 🤔

VIII: KamiJirou. Status: Singing their hearts out 🎶

-If there’s any ship that’s coming close to canonization, I think this is it, folks! “Think of the person most important to you!” Can’t argue with Midnight!

Anime Highlights: Kaminari does non stop encouraging of Jirou and her hobbies! He works super hard to learn guitar for her sake! We love a king who can encourage his queen!

Manga Highlights: Kaminari thinks of the most important person to him and surprise! It’s Jirou! All of the feels can commence.

Heroes Rising: They were in it!

Troubling Signs?: Kaminari does love his women. And men. Kaminari overall is a huge flirt. But Jirou appears to have his heart strings. ❤️

IX: BakuDeku. Status: Rising. 👑

-Alternative Statuses include Winning, Thriving, Soaring. It’s just been non stop content this year. 2020 is truly the year for BakuDeku. The shippers can rejoice.

Anime Highlights: Three words. Be. My. Cane. The OVA’s helped fan the flames of the BkDk hearts with a surprise! Deku tops! Not only that, we got a lovely shoulder tap of encouragement in the canon material. While in season 4, Deku’s primary focus was Eri. Bakugo and Deku still had their moments to be hella gay.

Manga Highlights: Where do I even begin? I guess we’ll just cut to the chase with Bakugo Katsuki: Rising. We finally saw Bakugo’s true feelings manifest for Deku and if getting stabbed for him isn’t the ultimate showing of love, then idk what is. BakuDeku’s rounded out the year with the Volume 29 cover AND the volume 29 cover drafts to eat at our heart strings. Overall, their relationship got the spotlight in the manga this year. And we’re bound to start 2021 with a dramatic confrontation. Hand holding seems to be the key with these two and it didn’t stop with Heroes Rising...speaking of.

Heroes Rising: The entire movie. Like....yeah. That’s it. [OP, your bias is showing. You have to be SPECIFIC.] {But random criticizer in my head, if I lay out the entire plot of the movie, my post will be too long} [OP....] UGHHHH Okay okay. The POPSICLE MELTING. THE HAND HOLDING. THE CHARACTER DESIGNS OF WHAT MIGHT AS WELL BE THEIR LOVE CHILDREN. Did I mention? “It’s fine if it’s you?” CAUSE YEAH. Oh and All Might randomly officiating their wedding in their heads like idk. Isn’t it just simpler if I say the whole movie??!

Troubling Signs?: Well these two’s relationship is extremely delicate and while it has non stop soared this year, Deku might not take too kindly to Bakugo almost dying for him. Will they stop pushing each other away? Time will tell.

That’s all for this year folks! Happy Shipping and good luck to everyone next year!

[legendofzoodles]

LU/LOZ Theory

The Master Sword’s Criteria

My theory is that Fi adjusts her criteria based off the previous hero. She may be a powerful entity serving the Goddess, but she isn’t all knowing. She is shown in SS to be somewhat robotic and acts very logically with little consideration for pesky things like emotions. I think she’d collect data on the previous heroes and use it to judge the next ones.

Disclaimer: I have no idea what the deal is with Legend and where he fits with all this. If you know, pls let me know in the comments. I didn’t include the others because I was relatively sure they don’t use the Master Sword in their respective adventures.

~~~

Here’s a break down of the requirements needed to wield the Master Sword for each era:

Sky: No conditions needed. No trials needed to unlock its full power. Kept the sword until retirement (probably).

Time: Needed to be an adult and was thus put in a forces coma. No trials needed to unlock its full power. Unclear whether or not he could have kept it, but there was no way he ever wanted to find out.

Twilight: No conditions needed- well, he needed to be human, but the sword removed the curse for him. No trials needed to unlock its full power. Had to put the sword back (did Time hurt her feelings or something?).

Wind: (strange case because it may not have been the same sword) No conditions needed. No trials needed to unlock its full power (I think). Had to put the sword back.

Warriors: No conditions needed. No trials needed to unlock its full power. Had to put the sword back.

Wild: I assume that there were no conditions needed and no trials needed to unlock its full power, since that’s how it was in AoC. 100 years later, he had a condition to meet, 2 sets of trials to unlock its full power and increase his own. Had to keep a hold of the sword because the job wasn’t done...yet.

That was a silly oversimplification and I might have gotten some stuff wrong, but I thought it was interesting to point out. For some reason, there are subtle changes in the conditions each hero has to meet in order to wield the Master Sword from one era to the next. Of course, in reality that’s to service each game’s unique story, but I wanna theorize a reason in the context of their reality.

So, Sky did pretty well as the hero, yet Fi made Time’s life hell by making him wait 7 years before he could wield the sword. I’m not going to say that decision reflects badly on Sky exactly...but I’m also not not going to hint it. Just putting it out there. 

As I said in my Hero of Time Character Analysis I believe she did this to protect him. Since her previous master was almost an adult and that worked great, she assumed that it would be best for Time to also be an adult when he faces Ganondorf.

That ended horribly, ‘saving’ only 1/3 realities and completely screwing over her master’s life. I’m willing to bet that after Time went back in time, the Master Sword remembered everything like he did, and thus made the rules much more lenient for Twilight. By which I mean there were no rules Twilight had to follow. Like, Fi didn’t set a trial where the reward would be breaking the dark curse, the sword just ejected the crystal out of him. To be fair, she didn’t really need to set any trials if you think about it, because Time was training him throughout the journey. 

Well, here was the statue puzzle wolfie and Midna had to do, but I don’t think Fi put those stone guards up to it. And if she did then yikes, did she think wolf boy had a negative IQ or something?

On the other side of the timeline we got Wind. His case is a bit iffy because I’m pretty sure that his version of the Master Sword is a different one, since Time took it back with him, so the original may not even exist in Wind’s era. But assuming that they are either the same or connected in some way, Fi learned from Time that kids are stronger than they look and allowed Wind to wield the Master Sword despite being like 12. Which went well because that tiny pirate stabbed the ancient evil in the head and turned him into stone. Nice. 

The approach Fi used for Wind and Twilight went great, so when Warriors rolled around, she did the same thing and didn’t set any significant boundaries (I assume that he comes after both the adult and child timelines, merging them together. Headcanon for another day). Fi had been observing him up since he found her in Skyloft and I feel like there must have been a connection between the Master Sword of Warriors’ era and Fi. He was in a near perfect position to take up the blade and it all went really well until it didn’t. By which I mean the tiny issue of his overconfidence almost getting him killed. 

But there’s no way Fi could have predicted that, none of her previous masters had acted like that and until that point he’d been a brilliant soldier and leader. It was a slip up that he quickly recovered from. 

Still, there’s not much you can do to prevent that. That being said, going into Wild’s era, it is mentioned that the Master Sword is directly connected to the hero’s lifeline. In other words, I think that in order to better understand her next master Fi made it so that she would be better able to see into the hero’s heart as well as to better draw from his strength- maybe that’s something she picked up from Time and Twilight. 

The Wild from 100 years ago must have passed the vibe check and that went...awful. It was disastrous. In fact, I don’t think the Calamity could have gone any worse. Literally everything that could go wrong, went wrong. And Fi must have known that very little of it was Wild’s fault.

After sleeping 100 years, Fi made it so that Wild had to prove himself three times:

Korok Trials

13 hearts

Trial of the Sword

She also locked away the true Master Sword’s destructive power for specifically malice born/infused enemies- i.e. the ones that almost took her master’s life. 

I believe she did this to make sure that he was 110% ready to face Ganon. He was doing it all alone and thus needed to be as strong as 5 armies to even stand a chance (unless you’re a speedrunner). I also think she did it to make sure he was still as proficient as his old self. Perhaps after 100 years their connection had faded a little and thus Fi overcompensated by rigorously preparing him, so that what happened 100 years ago didn’t happen again.

It wasn’t to spite him or make him feel inferior, although I can see why it would feel that way. In LU he feels that way. Which is sad, someone give him a hug, he’s not a failure!

~~~

Thanks for reading!

Btw, I find it interesting that Fi only spoke directly to Sky with no prompting, only to completely ghost the other heroes. Perhaps she was extra attentive of Sky because he was the first reincarnation and a lot was riding on him.

So Fi went full helicopter mum mode to make sure he’d be ok. When (mostly) everything went great she could hide away in the sword, allowing her to use more energy into increasing the power of the sword. However, she was always available to talk to if the hero sought her out. All the others apart from Wild, and Legend (I guess?) had a travel companion and so had no need to reach out to her.

For character analyses see links here:

Hero of the Sky, Hero of Time, Hero of Twilight, Hero of the Wild, Hero of Warriors

Masterlist