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inkblackorchid · 8 months ago

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What the hell happened with Crow: an autopsy (Part 4)

*Deep breath* Okay, everybody. Let's do this one more time.

First off, hello, or welcome back. Let's get the introductions and disclaimers out of the way, shall we?

This is the fourth and final instalment in my very, very long-winded attempt to analyse the character writing of Crow over the course of the entirety of yugioh 5Ds. For everyone who hasn't read the previous parts of the analysis, you can find part one here, part two here, and part three here.

This post, and my analysis as a whole, is neither meant as a Crow hate post, nor as a manifesto to convince people who don't like him that they're wrong. It's as genuine an attempt to simply look at and dissect what the show gives us about him as I can make, though I admit to personal bias because I do like Crow. That said, I'm trying to stay as neutral as possible, because the aim of this entire post tetralogy is to look at the writing decisions made for this character and how they impact him—and how they possibly influenced the audience's perception of him.

My previous three posts all reference this as well, but since I still see these things parroted all across the internet to this day: Please don't read this post under the assumption that any of the 5Ds production rumours are true, especially not the ones surrounding Crow. Because, to make this as short as possible, every popular theory as to why certain characters were mishandled during the later parts of the show fails to line up with the production timeline of said show. Chiefly among those theories, the idea that Crow was meant to be a dark signer and that his popularity correlated to his cards, and the idea that Aki, specifically, had to give up her screentime for him because her VA got pregnant, which both lack any basis in reality, as you can read in the posts I linked. (One final shoutout to @mbg159 here, who compiled these incredibly comprehensive posts and can also be found here on tumblr. Huge thanks.) So if you can do me one favour, please just let the 5Ds rumours die already and read this analysis without the hope of seeing any of them confirmed. I'm so sick of these crackpot theories at this point that I can hardly find the words for it. And while we're on the topic, I also don't want to see this post used as a means to pit Aki and Crow against each other in any way—both have good reasons to be well-liked and both deserve their spot in the narrative, all right? All right.

And now, at last, let's get down to business. The last time I got on a virtual soapbox and yelled about Crow, I covered the entire WRGP, murder-duel-robot induced break included. That means that for this, final stretch, we'll be looking at everything from episode 137 onwards—the Ark Cradle arc. (A side not for dub aficionados here: Episode 136 was the last episode that got an English dub. In other words, everything I talk about here never even made it into the English version. Because 4Kids, I guess.) As we've done before, we'll take a look at what exactly Crow gets up to during the final stretch of the show (and, notably, the epilogue), then see whether any of it needed improving, and if so, how it could have been improved.

You'll find all further yelling below the readmore, and I'll leave you with the other, usual warning here, as well: This will be long. Even if the Ark Cradle arc, relative to the rest of the show, isn't, this post most certainly will be. So get some snacks and perhaps don't start reading this late at night unless you're good at knowing when to stop and reading stuff in bursts. (I'm not.)

As I concluded at the end of my last post, the WRGP ended up being a bit of a mixed bag for Crow. He's there, he duels, but at the same time, despite being positioned as an equal third of a protagonist trio, he's notably less important and arguably also weaker than Yusei and Jack. Moreover, where the plot is concerned, he sure didn't get too much to do—not to speak of the fact that the writers didn't grace him with any meaningful interactions with a certain character who'll become very relevant here.

But I'm getting ahead of myself. First, the preamble.

With the end of the Team New World duel, the final arc of the show drops the by this point unexpected arrival of the Ark Cradle right on our heads. So, what does Crow do here, at the start, other than be shocked? Well, not much. A lot of the first episode that introduces the Ark Cradle focusses more on the imminent threat said structure poses to New Domino City, and we flash back to our protagonists mostly to ascertain that things are, in fact, going to shit. Even once that focus on the city evacuating shifts again, the episode concerns itself more with Yusei than with Crow. However, meagre as it is, we do get the first interaction between Crow and Sherry during the Ark Cradle arc in this episode.

(Uh.... at least they're technically talking to each other?)

And frankly... It's not much. Unfortunately, up until the duel where he faces her, the Ark Cradle arc continues a trend regarding interactions between Crow and Sherry that we already saw in the WRGP: They barely get to interact, and even when they do, they never have anything so much as resembling a meaningful conversation, mostly because Sherry basically never addresses Crow directly, nor seems very interested in him, while Crow is usually there only to react to what she's saying, rather than actually talk to her. While digging through my mountain of screenshots, I found that latter part to be especially interesting, because as it turns out, this is a trend not just in Crow's interactions with Sherry, specifically. Many moments that probably contribute to the nefarious "screentime" (I've explained my gripes with this term in part two) some people like to accuse Crow of hogging have him only be part of a scene so he can react to what happens in it, to the point of him sometimes feeling like a stand-in for the audience reaction the writers might be hoping for. The above is a perfect example, because as far as character writing is concerned, Crow's "interaction" with Sherry here is utterly devoid of meaning. He's just there to communicate his disbelief over the ominous prediction that Yusei is guaranteed to die if he goes to the Ark Cradle, which feels like exactly the kind of reaction the writers probably wanted from the audience. After all, it's a bold, shocking statement to make. The protagonist, dying? In a card game anime geared towards twelve year-olds? It's downright preposterous. And Crow seems to agree with that, if his dialogue is anything to go by.

This one and other scenes (mostly the kind that contain plot elements that Crow doesn't actually interact with) got me thinking, though, and after having gone through so much of the show with a fine-tooth comb now, I think I've come to a conclusion, so permit me a tangent here: I believe the choice to let Crow, specifically, be a character who often only reacts to events or interactions after the DS arc, rather than contributing much himself, is deliberate. Don't get me wrong, I don't think he's the only character who is frequently put in this position—Aki, the twins, and even Bruno, especially when they're on the sidelines in the WRGP, also often only seem to be there to react or comment on things, perhaps partially to remind us viewers that they still exist, despite not being in a position where they contribute anything to the plot. With how much the twins and Aki got pushed to the side after the pre-WRGP and the Unicorn duel, respectively, and with how toned-down Bruno's entire character is until the very end, as not to spoil his tragic antagonist status too much, Crow in particular ending up as an often reactive, rather than active character stands out a bit more, though. And I think this has everything to do with his personality, because it contrasts that of Jack and Yusei. Think of it. Sure, Crow is shown several times to be just as cool and competent as the other two, but what he has that the other two crucially lack is the ability to freak out like a normal person. I'm being hyperbolic here, of course, but I do genuinely believe this, because when I think back to the show, Jack and Yusei, due to their character writing, only ever seem to be allowed to lose their cool during pretty specific circumstances, and only in very specific ways. Jack, for example, only ever gets to freak out either when a scene paints him as the butt of the joke (like during his infamous, dramatic outburst over cup ramen), or when the freakout is caused by—and expressed as—righteous (or not so righteous) fury (like when he storms off angrily after catching everyone watching his old duel with Dragan). Meanwhile, Yusei is played so straight that we barely ever see him lose his composure at all, outside of intensely dramatic, high-stakes situations (think his dark signer duels with Kiryu, his confrontation with Roman, his initial failure to accel synchro). Hell, the closest we get to ever seeing him be mildly upset about something like a normal person, as far as I can recall, is when he gets embarrased by Martha calling him out on his perceived crush on Aki. That's it.

Crow, though. Crow's allowed to do something the other two aren't: He's allowed to react to the world around him like your average guy. Jack blows through their household money for expensive coffee. Crow gets upset. Understandable. Crow gets injured right before his big debut in a turbo duelling tournament and is upset to the point of snapping at his friends over it. Understandable. Seeing Yaeger's kid cheering his dad on and knowing that this kid will cry if his dad loses makes Crow relent and throw the match. Understandable. Sherry predicts Yusei's imminent death due to hocus pocus and Crow calls bullshit. Understandable.

Do you see what I'm driving at? With how the show treats the other two Satellite boys, I'd argue none of the moments above would have worked anywhere near as well if the writers had tried to make Jack or Yusei take Crow's place in any of them. Because while Yusei and Jack, I feel, were certainly written to be the coolest characters (at least to the target audience), Crow seems like he was written to be the most relatable. He's the guy who takes on a delivery job when they need money. He's the guy who complains about his cranky landlady. And he's the guy who reacts to insane nonsense happening around him a little more realistically than his defeated-an-ancient-devil-to-absorb-its-power brother, his shouldering-the-guilt-of-a-cataclysmic-event-decades-ago other brother, their mutual previously-violent-psychic-who-was-part-of-a-cult friend, and the one-of-us-can-see-spirits-and-we-share-a-weird-kind-of-magical-bond twins. As such, it doesn't feel too out there to me to claim that in many situations, they made Crow the stand-in for the audience, because he has a less iron composure than Jack and Yusei, is readily available in many scenes by virtue of living with the other two, and happens to be the guy who has the arguably most normal backstory out of the signers. (Save, perhaps, for Rua, but I've already addressed before why the writers barely ever pulled Rua centre stage for anything. And they certainly wouldn't have pulled him centre stage for this, either.)

Now, as far as character writing is concerned, assuming I'm at least halfway correct with my hunch above, I feel that whether or not this decision is good or a shot in the foot on the writers' part depends largely on every audience member's individual perception of Crow after the DS arc. If you liked seeing this scrappy guy introduced during the DS arc, of course you would have been happy to see more of him! Even if he's only present in scenes to comment on what's going on and doesn't actually get to do anything meaningful. If you didn't like Crow that much, though, I can see how him popping up so often only to yap a bit and contribute essentially nothing could have grated on you. And as I said, I think this is where the "screentime" discussion comes in again, because yeah, Crow is very much on screen in all these little-bit-of-nothing scenes. He doesn't get to do much and his character isn't fleshed out or reinforced in any way, but he sure is there. For better or for worse.

And this—this is where I can finally get back to him and Sherry. Because in his interactions specifically with her, it is for worse, due to the fact that all the scenes that contain both of them before the Ark Cradle duel are pretty much exclusively these kinds of little-bit-of-nothing, reactive scenes. Crow doesn't get to interact with Sherry meaningfully, and he never—and I need to empathise this—, not once gets to interact with her one on one, not until the end-of-series duel both of them take part in happens. What makes Crow's lack of meaningful interactions with Sherry even worse is that his later duelling partner against her is Aki, of all people, who by contrast gets to interact with Sherry a whole bunch, most notably during her duel against Yusei. Not only that, but Sherry is also shown to actually be interested in Aki, which cannot be said for Crow. Yet, still in the same episode I was describing above, while the Ark Cradle begins its descent, it's not Aki, but Crow who is entrusted with this card by Mizoguchi/Elsworth:

(I'd like to point out that the dialogue following this moment doesn't make it clear whether Crow even knows what Sherry's connection to this card is. For all we know, this could be the first time Crow sees it, without being aware of any of the context surrounding it.)

You know, the card that's essentially a symbol of Sherry's attachment to her parents and her commitment to revenge. The card that basically her entire character revolves around. For a single piece of cardboard, this thing comes with a lot of narrative baggage attached, yet canon doesn't even take the time to assure us that Crow knows what Z-ONE means, other than it being a memento of Sherry's parents, as Mizoguchi explains. And frankly, this all feels like a rather ham-fisted attempt to get some last-minute setup for the later confrontation between Crow and Sherry in. It's like the writers desperately wanted to feel the emotional moment in the duel later to feel earned; they wanted to have their cake and eat it, too. There's only one problem: They didn't even bake the damned thing, the ingredients are just sitting around, untouched, as if staring at them long enough will magically make a cake manifest.

But, well, since I'm already talking about this, I may as well get into the actual meat of the matter, because frankly, it's not like Crow gets much else to do at the start of the arc. Yusei takes off because he at first wants to go to the Ark Cradle alone (like an idiot), leading to the signers coming after him (and telling him he's an idiot). Joining this effort and assuring Yusei that they won't let him die alongside the others is as much as Crow gets to do before the inevitable three-way duel starts.

(That said, while it doesn't accomplish anything, I've always appreciated this little moment while Yusei still tries to pull his stupid kamikaze plan—Crow would know more shortcuts in the BAD area than he does. After all, he lived there for a good while!)

After that, everyone gets up to the Ark Cradle and, as we all know, the signer group is forcibly split up by Z-ONE before deciding to go to a Yusei gear each in order to shut down Ark Cradle's negative Moment. (Top ten sentences that wouldn't make a lick of sense to anyone who isn't up to their neck in 5Ds lore.) And the very first duel on the menu in this final stretch of episodes is also Crow's final duel in the entire show.

(Drumroll please.)

Here's the thing. I love this duel, actually. I get extremely hyped every time I rewatch it. BUT. But. I do not love it so blindly that I couldn't see that it has not one, but several issues. Not only that, but those issues don't just rest on Crow's shoulders, they sadly rest on the shoulders of all three participants in this duel, because frankly? Alongside the four-way Jack/Rua/Ruka/Aporia duel, this duel is one of the Ark Cradle arc's desperate attempts to tie up loose ends. Because as much as I enjoy this arc, that's exactly what it is: A race to the finish line, an attempt to tie as many loose ends as possible up in as little time as the show could get away with. To make clear why I think this, let me just list off all the things this arc resolves or at the very least tries to tie up with a neat bow:

It reintroduces Aki's psychic powers, which we were previously led to believe she'd lost. Notably, we didn't get a reason for why they disappeared and don't get a reason for why they reappear, either. It also turns them into healing powers in an attempt to establish a reason for why she later studies medicine.

It explains what happened to Sherry and what actually drives her revenge. Furthermore, it releases her from her narrative fridge-prison in order to actually let her duel Aki (yes, Aki, specifically), which is a confrontation that was subtextually implied several times previously.

It resolves the question of Bruno's identity by revealing him as an antagonist.

It finally reveals Life Stream Dragon, who was at this point teased over seventy episodes ago.

It also finally rewards Rua, who was teased to possibly become a signer during the DS arc, with an actual signer mark. (As short-lived as it may be.)

It actually explains Iliaster's real plan, which is Z-ONE's hope that the 5Ds gang can actually save the future.

Speaking of which, it actually explains who Z-ONE is and why he's a big deal. (Remember, this guy was first teased a good while ago at this point in time.)

Alongside Sherry, it dusts off several protagonists who didn't get an opportunity to duel on-screen and lets them duel one, final time. (Notably, Aki, Rua, and Ruka, who at this point haven't been seen duelling since the early WRGP or even pre-WRGP.)

You may notice that none of these bullet points contain Crow. They do, however, contain Aki and Sherry, both of whom went into this finale with several unanswered questions as to their characters. Crow, not so much. But let's just put a pin in that for now while we actually jump into the duel.

*Cracks knuckles* Aki & Crow VS Sherry. Here we go at last. Fair warning, the character writing of all three participants of this duel overlaps a fair bit here, so expect to hear a bit of a mishmash about our revenge trio.

So, how does this duel start? Firstly, with Sherry waxing poetic about why she's even opposing Team 5Ds now.

(A dramatic switch of sides that sadly doesn't hold a candle to Bruno turning out to be Antinomy. Which, funnily enough, might be why this duel is front-loaded and Bruno's comes later.)

I won't dig into this too much, but I just want to point out the one thing this moment gives us: It establishes character motivation. Sherry claims she can no longer get revenge and has thus lost her purpose. (The reason why she can no longer get revenge, if you're interested, is because Moment Express, her final lead, vanished in its entirety, as far as canon is concerned.) Thus, she took the bait when Z-ONE offered her a new purpose, and, more importantly, a reward. Now, Aki and Crow at this point in the episode don't get to hear what that reward is, but for our analysis, it's important to keep in mind: Z-ONE promised Sherry he'd alter the timeline so she would get her parents back if she helps him. And I think this is immensely important because this is not only Sherry's goal in the present, I think it's actually the core of her character from the very first moment we meet her. In classic, tragic-avenging-type character fashion, she claims to want revenge when what she's really doing is trying to numb the pain of the awareness that she'll never get her parents back. (Though I'll admit this may also be my generous read of her as a person who likes revenge-obsessed characters.) And then, Z-ONE dangles the actual thing she wanted all along before her. Of course she took the bait.

This brings us to the start of the duel itself. As we know, Sherry employs some tactics that feel quite different from what she previously did in this duel. First and foremost, she messes with the mechanics of the duel itself by using the field spell Ecole de Zone, creating an illusion that confuses Aki and Crow into duelling not her, but each other at first. Sherry, meanwhile, takes a very passive role, clearly intent on letting the two destroy each other while she sporadically activates card effects to accelerate this. What makes all this stand out as even more unusual for her is that she sets this up by lying. At the beginning of the duel, she tells Aki and Crow that there's two of her, and that each duellist will fight one copy of her on a seperate field each, but this is a misdirection to make the two signers duel each other instead of her. And, look. I don't need to tell you this is out of character for Sherry. Canon literally does that for me.

(Case in point.)

It's only after Crow and Aki catch onto the fact that something's wrong and after Aki destroys the field spell that Sherry uses her "real strategy", switching to Soul Binding Gate, which inflicts real damage every time a monster with less attack points than her life points is summoned, in order to whittle away at both other duellists' life points. This is also the point where she reveals to her opponents that she's doing all this to get her parents back. While she does that, we get a bit more back and forth in terms of cardplay, until Aki sets the field up just right so Crow can land a very high-damage hit with Black-Winged Dragon to end the duel. And that is pretty much the gist of it on the duelling side of things.

So what's going on on the narrative side of things, then? Well. Let me front-load something I've noticed on the narrative end: This duel heavily interacts with Crow's and Sherry's characterisation, but barely at all with Aki's. I'll make clear what I mean by that below. For now, let's just get an overview by going through the character moments as they occur in the duel. Why go through all of them? Because most either interact with Crow in some way, or set up a later interaction in the same duel that he's a part of, that's why. I'll get into the nitty-gritty of what this duel did well and what it didn't after that. (Mostly. You may have noticed I like tangents and rambling excessively.)

So.

The first moment belongs to Aki and Crow in equal measure, and happens just as Ecole de Zone is destroyed—which Aki accomplishes by using Crow's monster to synchro summon Black Rose Dragon, as well as prevent that synchro summon from being negated through the same monster's effect, so she can use her dragon's field wipe to get rid of Sherry's field spell. When Sherry is surprised by this, Aki and Crow explain that they memorised each other's cards as part of a strategic effort as a WRGP team.

(Friendship is, in fact, magic.)

Not only does this explanation make perfect sense, it's also an excellent little tidbit to tie Aki and Crow together as a tag-team here, as it strengthens the connection between them. The only gripe I could possibly see with this is that it feels like this didn't necessarily need to be a surprise, end-of-the-show reveal. Frankly, it could have been pretty cool to see this much earlier, to have members of Team 5Ds realise what their teammates were getting up to during the WRGP duels, for example. (Instead of so often having the other signers react just as shocked as the announcer to their teammates' plays—I'm side-eyeing the infamous "a trap from the graveyard"-moment in particular. Like, Aki, sweetie, if you memorised Crow's deck, why are you surprised that he has a trap he can activate from the graveyard? I digress.) Moreover, this could have built anticipation for this particular duel, as viewers would have been excited to see what Aki and Crow would come up with to defeat Sherry as a team. So this moment is not bad, really. Just a bit underutilised, at least to me. (The word "underutilised" might become a trend in this post.)

Every other character-driven moment from here on out is shoved into the second duel episode, 140. Speaking of which, this episode starts with Aki and Crow getting the reveal of why Sherry is helping Z-ONE, where she admits that she joined the bad guys because she wants her parents back. She even goes as far as stating that because Z-ONE showed her the future, she has no hope that it can be saved and thus at least wants her lovely past back so she can have some solace before everything goes to hell for humanity. But we already went over that above.

Next up, albeit this moment should probably be considered more of a running theme than just one self-contained thing, we have Crow's struggle with Soul Binding Gate. Remember, the effect of this field spell causes all players to take damage every time a monster with less ATK than Sherry's LP is summoned. And at this point in the duel, Aki is barely above 1000 life points, so Crow worries about triggering the field spell's effect and hurting her, which leads to him playing suboptimally because he's more concerned about his friend than about winning the duel. Notably, Aki calls him out on this.

(She has a point.)

Outside of providing an internal conflict for Crow to grapple with, this isn't much to write home about. (Side note: I do find it interesting that they introduce the fear of physically hurting someone in a duel specifically in connection to Aki here, though, given that through her psychic powers, she had to grapple with this exact issue many times in the past. I have no idea if this was intentional, though.)

Between this and the next moment, there's a nice bit of interplay between Crow and Aki again, where he activates a card to refill her life points just in time so she doesn't drop to zero through Soul Binding Gate, while Aki uses a defensive trap to protect Crow in return.

(This is just here because it's a money shot to me. The juxtaposition of their faces and their life points, showing that while Aki may have the lowest life points, she still has the coolest head in this duel, and while Sherry technically has the upper hand, she's beginning to falter because she didn't anticipate the other two to work so well together. It's chef's kiss. Mwah.)

What follows after this, is, of course, the Big Moment. Where Sherry tries to convince Crow to forfeit so she can win and have Z-ONE change the past. And this is the one I really need to dig into.

With Sherry's earlier admission that she's on Iliaster's side because she wants her parents back acting as setup, she begins her attempt to sway Crow by telling him that if he had the opportunity to change the past, he would do it, too. And while Crow initially protests, Sherry challenges this, then proceeds to show him what Z-ONE's power could accomplish, and we get a lengthy sequence where Sherry, through weird cyborg-techno-magic-shenanigans that are never explained, takes Aki and Crow to a dreamlike space where Crow sees the orphans he used to take care of being happily reunited with their parents. Sherry also ominously tells him that this is "what he desires deep in his psyche" before promising him that if he surrenders the duel, Z-ONE can give him a world where Zero Reverse never occurred and all the kids can have happy lives with their real families. (I wanted to post most of this sequence in screenshots, but while I have them, I've realised I'm only a few images short of tumblr's limit already, so forgive me because I will need those remaining image spots.) This moment proceeds to introduce some serious doubt on Crow's end. Aki, meanwhile, remains steadfast, telling him not to fall for Sherry's manipulation, which leads to her giving an almost Yusei-style speech. In a moment where Crow wavers, both because he's genuinely considering whether taking Sherry's offer might be the wiser choice, and because he doesn't want to hurt Aki by triggering Sherry's field spell effect, Aki calls out to him and tells him to snap out of it by reminding him of how Yusei reached out to her during their second duel. This speech is a bit, um. Clunky, I feel. (At least if the translation is correct. If it isn't, then that may be the issue.) See, she tells him that Yusei "saved her from the darkness of her psychic powers", that "he wasn't concerned about his own safety and risked his life to persuade her", that, because her psychic powers are now gone, she's "renewed" and that this somehow brought her to the epiphany that as long as she believes in her own potential, she can change the future. This is lifted almost verbatim from the scene, by the way. Leaving aside the fact that half of this feels like a mild to severe misrepresentation of Aki's character arc during the DS arc (don't talk about it, don't talk about it, I need to make this another post of its own, damn it), I, personally, can't exactly follow how she ended up with that final epiphany from the circumstances she listed. But lucky for us, Crow apparently gets what she's driving at, because he quickly echoes her statement and they both conclude that Crow's kids also believe in the future and fight to live, that they're not sad about their lives the way they are right now, even though they don't have parents. Thus, Crow catches himself, echoing Aki's sentiment and telling Sherry that he, too, believes in the future. And through the power of Friendship and Believing in the Future, he manages to use Aki's cards to land the final hit, nicely mirroring how she used his to destroy Ecole de Zone.

...Phew. Okay, look. First off, that above, large section is basically several character beats stacked on top of one another. On Sherry's end, we have the intriguing fact that she's specifically trying to manipulate Crow, not Aki. In fact, she doesn't so much as try to sway Aki, as though she knows it's no use. Then, on Aki's end, we've got her pulling a real Yusei, staying level-headed almost the entire duel and reaching out to make sure Crow stays on track. This moment also ties back to her own conflict with her powers again. (Which, unfortunately, I will talk about, and yes, I'll be chewing drywall the entire time I do it.) Finally, on Crow's end, we've got a nice, proper moment where he doubts himself and, by his own admission, nearly makes a terrible mistake because he wants nothing more than for the kids he used to take care of to have good lives.

Now, before I go over what worked about this moment and what didn't, let me just chew through the rest of the actual duel itself, too, then circle back too highlight some things. In other words, time for me to chew some drywall.

*Sigh*

At the very end of the duel, there are two more character moments that are noteworthy.

First, right before the final hit, we get Sherry desperately defending herself against Aki and Crow's newly strengthened belief that the future can, in fact, still be saved, which she does by (rather heartbreakingly) asking what's so wrong about wanting her parents back, about wanting their love and warmth back. It's at this point that Crow's allowed to get back at Sherry by challenging her beliefs, telling her that people "work hard to live because they only get one chance at life", and that there's no point in trying to go back to do things differently, that the only way to keep going is to believe in the future, regardless of whatever painful and sad events one has had to live through. I'd say this sentiment certainly fits Crow, character-wise, especially given his rough Satellite background. It does partially fall flat because it feels a bit weird for him, specifically, to now be acting like he knows Sherry inside and out, much like she did with him earlier, but again, this is simply a matter of setup and I'll try not to belabour that point again. The horse is already dead, no sense in beating it. It's after this speech and the final attack that Sherry finally realises her error.

Buuut this leads us right into the next character moment. Because as the duel ends, Sould Binding Gate physically falls apart, pelting all three of our duel participants in debris and threatening to crush them under it. While everyone does briefly fall over (and Sherry gets a moment to realise that her father wanted her to live strong, not accept seemingly inevitable doom and die weak), they soon realise they were not, in fact, buried under rubble, though. Because guess what! Black Rose Dragon to the rescue. Black Rose Dragon, who can suddenly physically affect her surroundings again. You know, that thing we were led to believe Aki could no longer make her monsters do because she lost her powers completely out of nowhere. And there's more! Because not only does Black Rose Dragon take care of the debris for the trio, as she disappears, she also heals all three of them, and in response, Crow gets a line that I unfortunately cannot for the life of me discuss without bias because it kills me every time.

(Crow. Crow, please. You're killing me. I beg you.)

This line out of Crow's mouth feels extremely weird to me, and in the process of typing up this post, I've been trying to find the reason why. Here's the conclusion I've come to: Firstly, it feels a bit out of place from him, somehow. A line hypothesising about what psychic powers can or can't do—this is something I would have expected out of Aki's mouth, but not out of Crow's. I believe what makes it feel so out of place, though, isn't necessarily that it seems a bit odd for him, specifically, to theorise about this, but that when I hear it, I don't feel like the character is saying it. Instead, in this moment, moreso than in some others that suffer from the same issue, I hear not Crow, but the writers speaking. I hear them telling me "look, we know we made it seem like Aki's powers are super gone and like they were super, irredeemably bad, and like she and you should be happy that they're gone, but here, see, this is what they're really like. Don't you think we came up with something clever here, to set her becoming a doctor later up nicely? No, this isn't because we needed to backpedal on our decision to make her lose them and be happy about it at the last second, why do you ask?". And yes, I concede this might just be me. (So feel free to disregard this in terms of analysis, I just have some weird kind of vendetta against this line.) But still, even without my personal issues hampering me, this line of dialogue out of Crow's mouth is just plain odd. After all, how would he know what "real" psychic powers are? Since when is he the expert, especially considering we've never so much as seen him comment on Aki's powers before? (And for the record, this line would have seemed just as weird had any other character other than Aki said it imo. It just has that unmistakable "writers trying to justify something at the last second"-tang to me.)

And do not. Do Not get me started on the fact that the writers, despite going to such great pains to paint Aki's psychic powers as an exclusively negative thing especially during the WRGP arc, decide to reintroduce them here, suddenly as a good thing that can also heal people, which directly contradicts every choice they've made when it came to Aki's relationship to her powers ever since the Team Catastrophe duel. While crucially also lacking the one thing this entire duel is practically begging for: Fucking. Setup. But at this point, the handling of Aki's powers, specifically, really needs its own post, so I'll hold off on any further comments here and come back to that another time. I feel like I'm beginning to talk in circles, anyhow. Setup. Setup, setup, setup. This duel wishes it had it, because then the ideas presented here—which, in a vacuum, are compelling—might have worked smoothly.

But, with that. We have finally made it through the duel itself. Sherry, at the very end, gets her change of heart and at last cements herself as a good guy, and that concludes the first duel in the finale, and also both Aki and Crow's last duel in the entire show.

And good lord, was this duel all over the place. Though I think my meandering scene-by-scene breakdown of it showed as much. Now, onto the proper evaluation of what worked and what didn't here. First, let's get the good these two episodes do out of the way, shall we. (Because there is a lot of Bad I need to yell about, unfortunately.)

By virtue of being one of the final duels, this is Aki and Crow's last chance to shine, and shine, they do. Both in the duelling department and in the character department. Aki makes two major plays that upend Sherry's strategy and Crow's perfectly in sync with her, showing that the two truly are teammates, and paying off all the character moments they had specifically in the Team Unicorn to Team Catastrophe section of the WRGP. Their friendship and cooperation is believable and entertaining to watch. Then on the character side, Aki's growth is (somewhat) paid off—where she used to be a character that doubted herself and was afraid of hurting people, she is now the one who can keep a level head and help others fight their self-doubt. Meanwhile, Crow gets to show off his unfailing dedication to community and family again, both by watching out for Aki and by selflessly desiring not for himself to have a better life, but for the kids he used to take care of. And Sherry, who was previously removed from the narrative in such an unsatisfactory way, finally gets to duel again, gets to explain why she actually does what she does, and gets to join the heroes at the end, permanently joining the ranks of the good guys instead of the villains. Happy endings all around.

Ehem. And this is where I'm gonna be less nice about this duel. Because the problem is, due to the specific constellation of characters involved in this duel and how they previously interacted in the show, there's a lot of stuff here that doesn't work nearly as well on a second watch as a first watch would like to make you believe.

First, a broader issue on the card game end of things: The way this duel feels, it's very much more Aki's duel than Crow's, which is also kind of confirmed in the card plays being made. Though it's Crow who's first shown to catch onto the fact that a third party is activating additional card effects out of nowhere, it's Aki who fully solves the mystery, uses Crow's monster to synchro summon Black Rose Dragon, then activates her dragon's effect to get rid of the illusion for good. And while Crow gets to land the final hit, it's Aki's setup and her trap, Synchro Stream, that make it possible for him to win for both of them. And yet. On the dialogue- and character-interaction side of things, this duel is made out to be much more Crow's than Aki's. Because, perhaps surprisingly to some, Aki doesn't waver one bit in this duel. She's got her head in the game the entire time. She's here to do business—that business being defeating Sherry—and by god, does she do it. Moreover, unlike Crow, she has much, much better setup to be duelling Sherry than he does. And this comes right back around to the main thing this duel suffers from, which I've already harped on about: Crow and Sherry, up until this point, have not interacted in a way that would make the connection between them seem in any way significant. Unfortunately for this duel, though, Aki and Sherry have.

From the first episode where we're introduced to Sherry, she's shown to be interested in who Aki is and what she can do. During the duel between her and Yusei, she comments on Aki's powers. Later, when Aki is getting her turbo duelling license, Sherry watches on with interest. At some point while Aki's training, Sherry drops by to speak with her and Yusei again. My point here being, of course, that Aki, unlike Crow, got several scenes where she interacted with Sherry or had Sherry meaningfully take note of her existence before this point. Yet, whatever dynamic the writers may or may not have been aiming for between these two is, at best, underutilised in the final duel, if not completely ignored, at worst. Instead, the writers shift their focus to Crow and try to make us believe that Sherry, a character who has barely acknowledged his existence thus far, would know him well enough to consider him the better target for her attempt at manipulation. (And don't get me started on how the hell Z-ONE's weird robot magic is supposed to expose what Crow "desires deep in his psyche". That is simply a chasm the show expects us to suspend our disbelief over.) And look. The thing is, I don't think the Big Moment where Sherry tries to convince Crow to forfeit is terrible in isolation. Like, they could have made this work, had they given these two setup, had they given us, the audience, reason to believe Crow could be swayed like this (which they, notably, also didn't), and had they given us the impression that Sherry knows Crow well enough to pull something like this. What hurts the scene immensely, however, is that it's preceded by everything before, starting from the WRGP, where there is no setup between these two, no reason to believe Crow could be convinced to forfeit a duel against a major antagonist, and no meaningful interactions to support the belief that Sherry knows who Crow really is at all.

What also stands out to me is that Crow really doesn't feel like the best character to parallel Sherry, here, either. Parallel in the sense that she tries to get to him by expressing a desire she believes they both feel—getting a certain, nicer version of the past they never had back. Because the thing is, Sherry and Crow hardly feel like they have very much in common, and there's certainly no previous hints to make anyone believe they would have this in common. (So for all we know, Sherry could have just been taking a shot in the dark by trying to convince Crow.) You know who could have made for an excellent character to mirror Sherry, though? Yeah. The third person in the room during this scene. Aki.

See, here's the thing about these three as characters, in relation to what this scene tries to accomplish (getting a protagonist to waver by having the antagonist appeal to certain emotional similarities between them): While Crow may perhaps be more relatable to the audience, he isn't all that relatable to Sherry. He comes from dirt poor origins, she from rich ones. He doesn't even remember his parents, she defines herself by the memory of hers. She's a lone wolf, he's incredibly community-focussed. The only parallel you could have drawn between these two, up until this duel, is knowing what it feels like to want revenge. (Sherry with her parents, Crow with his kids back in the DS arc.) But guess what, unfortunately, Aki knows that too, what with her past as the Black Rose Witch and wanting to make people pay for ostracising her. And to make matters worse, she has a lot of other things going for her that parallel Sherry much, much better, too. They both come from well-off families, both have had major, traumatising events in their lives revolve around their parents, both left their initial family structure by way of drastic changes in their life, both are intimately familiar with the desire for vengeance, and, most damningly, Aki knows what it's like to stand on the side of the bad guys—like Sherry is doing in that very scene—because you feel like it's the only place that gives you hope/meaning. Not to speak of the fact that Aki, given her turbulent past with her psychic powers, would probably know exactly what it feels like to want a past you never had back. There would have been so much to work with there, and it makes whatever they were gunning for with Crow look... lacklustre, to put it mildly, by comparison.

The worst part is, I think, that the blame lies neither with the characters nor with the scene concept here. Solely with the execution. Because I truly think they could have made this work. They could have made the entire duel work, big character moments and all. But the keyword is and always has been setup. Setup, which the writers, at least in part, strangely gave to Aki, but not to Crow, which is what hurts particularly his portion of this duel, and, arguably, his character writing in general. Because—and this may be a small thing in the grand scheme of things, but permit me this—while Crow wanting a better future for the kids he used to take care of over a better future for himself feels perfectly on brand, the idea of him forfeiting a duel against a major antagonist, while the threat of the entire city being destroyed is hanging above his head... doesn't. Like, yes, I've talked about the fact that Crow is the only character in 5Ds who ever actually loses duels on purpose. What you may remember, though, is that both occasions we've seen him do this—against Lyndon and Yaeger, respectively—were much lower-stakes duels than this. Not to speak of the fact that it also feels a little odd that Crow, of all people, would buy into the idea that Z-ONE's genuinely powerful enough to just give those kids their parents back, given how liberally he called bullshit on pretty much any and all supernatural mumbo-jumbo claiming that fate is inevitable, or that the gods have this-and-that power, or what have you the entire show. (Also, doesn't he strike you as the guy who'd wonder why Z-ONE's not using his fancy powers for better things, if the extent of them is so great? Or is that just me?) It's a moment of character doubt that tries to sell itself as believable, even though we've never been given any hints that this kind of temptation, specifically, could work on Crow.

Ultimately, Crow & Aki VS Sherry feels like a very hot-and-cold duel. On the cardplay side, the teamwork between Aki and Crow is well done, yet the duel does feel like it skews more towards Aki than towards Crow. Sherry, meanwhile, plays tricky and mean like a proper antagonist, but does so at the expense of sacrificing all her previous tactics and monsters (and, arguably, some of her character, though this is probably on purpose, given her transformation into an antagonist). Then, on the character side, we've got Aki in an interestingly Yusei-ish role, which, while it feels like a good way to show how she's matured and learned, wastes her character dynamic with Sherry. On the other side, Crow and Sherry interact in several personal ways throughout the duel that leave you wondering when exactly these two got to know each other so well, because the show certainly didn't give us a visible progression of their dynamic. The only dynamic that leaves nothing to be desired is that between Aki and Crow (stilted speeches aside), because it excellently showcases their friendship and teamwork. Very weird decisions made in the writing here all around.

We'll get into the nitty-gritty of what changes I would have suggested to improve this duel below, but first: What happens after this duel? Well, two more Yusei gear duels, Aporia briefly standing up to Z-ONE, and then, the final, big clash between Yusei and Z-ONE.

Given that Crow isn't even present for two of these duels and then barely gets more to do than stand on the side and react during the final two, I will dare to skip all that, though. Because really, Crow's occasional comments and the play-by-play he sometimes joins the others in giving when spectating a duel don't exactly contribute anything to his character. They're just there so he gets something to do and doesn't fade into the background entirely when a duel that doesn't involve him is going on. This includes the moment where he, much like the other signers, gets to give Yusei Black-Winged Dragon for the final duel, as well as the later moment when Yusei uses it, chanting in tandem with Crow as BWD arrives. And other than that and the tear-jerking moment when he later reacts to Yusei returning despite all odds, he really doesn't get any noteworthy scenes.

In other words, we are skipping straight to the end. So, where do we find Crow there?

(Oh, y i k e s.)

There's a popular post circulating around this site that goes something like "the worst thing you can do to a character is make them a cop during a timeskip". And, look. I don't think I need to tell anyone that becoming a sector security officer is an extremely jarring character choice for Crow. Crow, of all people! The guy with the face full of markers, who used to be part of a duel gang, who was introduced in the show gleefully stealing from security Robin Hood-style, and who has every reason to despise law enforcement! (Leaving aside the obvious logistical issue that Crow in no country in the world could have completed his police training in the few months between the Ark Cradle debacle and this scene. But given that 5Ds generously brushes realistic concerns like this one aside on multiple occasions, this is, funnily enough, the thing I'm also more willing to overlook here. The character dissonance, however, less so.)

I'll try to be generous and guess that the writers were aiming to convey a message somewhere along the lines of "even someone who's done bad things in the past can become an example for others" or something like it. The problem is just that Crow didn't need any such message because he was already the good guy while he was still actively stealing from security. He was the lovable rogue to a T, damn it! But this, in particular, is a surface scratch hinting at a bigger issue, I think—namely, the issue of the show's complete pivot when it came to the depiction of law enforcement after the DS arc. Because when we think back to that part of 5Ds, good security officers were the exception, rather than the rule. And this is exactly what makes Crow of all characters becoming one even weirder. He would know, would remember how security used to treat him, his kids, his friends, his brothers. And if the idea here was that, well, he's trying to improve sector security by joining it and changing it from the inside, so to speak, then guess what was missing again: Our good, old friend setup. I'm starting to feel like a broken record. So yeah, I don't think a ton of people, whether they like or hate Crow, would disagree that this is a supremely weird position to put his character in.

As we find out through 5Ds' epilogue, however, his sector security job isn't quite what Crow actually wants, though. (And thank god, because that would have been such a bizarre position to leave him in.) Instead, we're shown fairly quickly that several duelling leagues are apparently trying to scout Crow out, and that he's tempted to accept one of the offers and go into pro duelling. This is at first shown in a short scene where something like a league scout follows Crow, then later, when the whole group—sans Jack, at first—is getting together and everyone starts discussing their futures. Aside from complaining a bit about his job and upsetting Aki without meaning to, Crow doesn't get much to do here, either. For what it's worth, at least him feeling tempted to ditch the security job feels more in line with the original Crow we got than with whatever strange twist the writers were going for after this shorter timeskip.

What follows is the very last duel of the show, the long-awaited Yusei VS Jack rematch, of course. And while he doesn't get to participate in this one, Crow, much like Aki and the twins, spectates the duel and ends up having an epiphany about what he wants to do. This epiphany ends up being that he does want to turn to pro duelling, and as a reasoning, canon provides us with this:

(As is known, intense card games are the only way to make children smile.)

Personally, I wouldn't say this is a terrible or out of character reason for Crow to decide to go pro. But there's more to that I'd like to discuss. First, though, let's take a quick look at where we find Crow after the second, bigger timeskip, which is inserted right in the middle of Yusei and Jack's final duel.

(Okay, yeah, I'm a sucker for the bullet earrings.)

The quick scene Crow gets here makes it unmistakably clear that he did go into pro duelling, just like he decided during the duel in the past, and not only that, he went into tag-team duelling and apparently managed to reach world champion status with his teammates. The above scene, however, is the exact same moment he decides to leave said team, so he can instead go solo and (presumably) try to beat Jack.

Now, we can discuss this in a bit more detail. Personally, I'm extremely in two minds about Crow being one of three characters, total, who ends up becoming a pro duellist after canon. Jack seems obvious, especially given the pivot back to his more Fortune Cup-esque persona the writers did around the Red Nova episodes. Rua also makes sense, given that Jack was his idol from the start. Crow, though, feels a little more complicated. The thing is, like so many things surrounding Crow in the Ark Cradle arc, the writers gave us no indication pro duelling is something he's really passionate about before this point. Worse, they didn't even really tell us what reason he saw to participate in the WRGP with his brothers beyond "could be fun". So there isn't really a connection here. The same thing goes for the fact that he specifically talks about teaching his teammates above, which is also something he wasn't associated with all that much previously. Though this one is admittedly less egregious, because at least Crow was seen briefly coaching Aki as she prepared to take his spot during the Unicorn duel. Still, while I wouldn't go as far as saying it's an out of character choice for Crow to go pro, it still feels a little odd that he went down the same route as Jack. Personally speaking, it feels like the writers didn't quite know what to do with him. Because as I said, Jack is obvious and Rua also makes sense, and I'd say the same goes for Yusei. Then there's Ruka, who is treated about as in-depth in the epilogue as she was throughout canon, and Aki, whose "setup" for her timeskip self was done extremely hasty and last-minute, but at least it was there. Between all of them, Crow occupies a weird spot where it doesn't so much feel like he ended up on the wrong trajectory for his life, as it simply feels like there were choices the writers could have made that would have fit him much better. What with his theme of legacy and community, trying to make Pearson's dream of a place where disenfranchised children can learn good life skills a reality would have been a good fit, for example. Especially considering his close ties to the Satellite orphans he used to take care of, which, funnily enough, are reinforced one more time as canon flips back to present day and Crow is seen bidding his kids goodbye.

("Come back"? When, precisely? And what part about "literally saved the world twice" doesn't qualify you as a hero to a bunch of kids ten times over already?)

Considering canon seems hellbent on making sure we know the signers went their separate ways and that they aren't anywhere near each other by the very end of the show, though, my guess is that Crow had to end up doing something like pro duelling, in order to get him out of New Domino City and away from the friend group whose shenanigans we were so accustomed to following by that point. Of course, there's also the argument to be made that Crow staying in NDC and getting a more community-focussed ending would have also been significantly less cool than making him a kickass pro duellist with bullet earrings, which circles back to how the writing interacts with its target audience.

The only thing that follows after this, then, is the big goodbye, and with that, ladies, gentlemen, and other lovely 5ds nerds, we have successfully followed bird boy's path throughout the entire show. And what a ride it was. (I did not think this analysis would end up stretching over a whole four posts.) Time for some closing thoughts before I do my thing and suggest some rewrites that could have made all this feel more coherent one more time.

Crow's character arc, if it can even be called that, feels about as hot and cold as his and Aki's final duel with Sherry over the course of the show. His introduction is fast-paced, he's made to be likable quickly, and his integration into the main protagonist group is as quick as everything else about his narrative. Between the way he shows up out of nowhere, briefly disappears without fanfare, and is then reintroduced with even more importance before slipping into the signer group like he's always been there, it truly feels like his entire inclusion in the narrative was a last-minute decision by the writers to include that one, additional character concept Kazuki Takahashi had originally created after all. If there was one way to describe his whole arc, it would be that it's a rush. At the start, the writers are in a hurry to make him likable, then they're in a hurry to make him a signer, then they're in a hurry to give us a whole backstory for him, then they're in a hurry to give him a believable character dynamic with Aki, and at the end, they're in a hurry to pay off a character dynamic with Sherry they didn't properly set up with him. You may notice that leaves significant gaps, and the lack of balance between those gaps and the rushes surrounding them, I believe, are part of why he's such a polarising character.

Crow is integrated so thoroughly into the signer group at the end of the DS arc that, much like Aki and the twins, he gets stuck in the position of being a character that cannot simply be removed from the narrative for a longer amount of time. And this, I think, ends up biting him in the ass, because in the gaps where the writers don't rush to do something big with him, it often feels like they don't quite know what to do with him at all. So, he instead gets relegated to small side tasks, like inane duels that don't affect the plot, or becomes the person who reacts to unfolding situations in whatever manner wouldn't fit Yusei or Jack. He feels like he's the third portion of the protagonist trifecta only in theory—the status of an equal third player seems to be what the writers had in mind, yet, looking at the show, it feels like an honorary title, at best, because the writing choices made for him don't convey anywhere near the same amount of thought and effort as those of Yusei and Jack. Crow's backstory doesn't intersect significantly with that of his brothers, his dragon is introduced way too late and never given an upgrade, he never gets to clash with Iliaster until the Team New World duel, and throughout the entire WRGP and Ark Cradle arc, there isn't a single duelling victory that's solely his. People who prefer other characters over Crow like to harp on about how much screentime he gets; I argue that this is exactly what showcases how poorly the writers took care of him in many instances. For as much as Crow is plastered onto the screen and given the aesthetics of an equal player in a protagonist trio, his many appearances are as much of a curse as they are a gift, because too many of them aren't spent setting up anything meaningful or developing his character in any way. Speaking of character development: There is none. Crow exits the show pretty much exactly the same as he entered it, brief security stint aside. And, look, this need not necesarily be a bad thing. Static characters exist and they have their place in stories. It's just that in Crow's case, his utter lack of development feels like another damning indicator of the writers' cluelessness when it came to utilising him, given his weird, sort-of-elevated-protagonist. Aki, who is so often weighed against him, gets significantly more development than he does. And though Jack also ends up in almost the same place at the end of the show as he was at the start, at least he had a dip in the middle where his character was somewhat malleable and not set in stone. Crow didn't.

What we end up with, then, is a character whose concept is perfectly fine on paper, but whose execution proceeded to turn him into the one and only favourite for some, and the embodiment of piss poor writing for others. Having now looked at pretty much his entire run in the show with a bloody microscope, I end up somewhere in the middle, myself. He's a good character and much of his writing is confusing at best, utter dogshit at worst. As for what decisions in the writing room led to him turning out like this, I'd still pay good money to know them. For what it's worth, I've tried my very best to make an educated guess as to all of them.

And now, for the final time, allow me to do my very best to suggest how the issues of the Ark Cradle arc could have been addressed in order to make Crow's part in it less messy.

In previous posts, I've split up my rewrite suggestions depending on one circumstance: Whether or not Crow stays a signer. However, this time, I will deliberately forgo this, for one, very simple reason—Crow's status as a signer doesn't matter one bit for the Ark Cradle arc. Regardless of whether he has a mark or not, his duel with Sherry remains unaffected, and so does his later timeskip-self. Thus, pick your favourite, both versions work for the Ark Cradle.

Now. Onto the elephant vengeful Frenchwoman in the room. Let me repeat my favourite word in this post one more time. What the dynamic between Crow and Sherry needed, more than anything else, in order to satisfyingly be paid off during their Ark Cradle duel, was setup. There was so much time Crow spent on screen doing fuck all, and some of that time could have so easily been allocated to him interacting with Sherry in a meaningful manner. (I'm side-eyeing especially his pre-WRGP duels. Those did nothing to add to his character and could have easily been replaced with episodes where he actually gets to talk to Sherry one on one.) And if not that, then the writers could at least have done themselves the favour of letting Aki talk to Crow about Sherry, which would have arguably set up their three-way clash even better. Moreover, show us how the hell these two characters parallel each other and how they differ, damn it! The main issue with the big moment Sherry and Crow had in the duel was that Crow's faltering and his sudden, deep understanding of Sherry came completely out of nowhere. So what if they had shown some of that earlier, then? What if they had shown where the lmits of Crow's resolve lie, what could get him to doubt himself? What if they had drawn the parallel of Sherry and Crow both supposedly being characters that sometimes wistfully think about a past they never had earlier? It would have done so much to make that duel hit exactly the way it was probably meant to. As a bonus, if we had gotten Aki and Crow talking about Sherry, too, the scene of talking Sherry out of helping Z-ONE could have been a team effort, just like their card playing was. Both of them would have reasons to know different aspects of Sherry each, and both could have brought up good arguments. And this is really all this duel woild have needed to be better on the story end, I think: A solid, narrative foundation to make it obvious to us why it has to be these three characters duelling, why it could have only been this setup, why it made the most sense to let these three bounce off each other. Crow only needs that extra step to slot in better with the girls here.

As for the epilogue, I don't think anyone will be surprised to read that I would have never made Crow a cop, not even temporarily. The depiction of law enforcement 5Ds gives us during the DS arc is too damning for that. However, given the way the ending is structured, he does need some sort of occupation that feels like it's not quite the right thing so he can later change his mind about it, of course. Here, though, is where I, purely in service of Crow's character, would suggest a change that probably doesn't work with the ending's final aim of separating the 5Ds gang by hundreds of kilometres each. I would let Crow go into pro duelling first, then let him figure out that's not what he actually wanted. Crow, to me, is a character who is so intrinsically tied to community and family that turning him into a solitary pro duellist—even if he claims to do it to make the kids back home smile—feels off to me. Thus, from a character standpoint, I would let him pivot back to wanting to take care of those kids. Either through what I suggested above, letting him carry on Pearson's dream, or, which also feels fitting to me, by letting him help out Martha again and setting him up as the guy who'll take over when she can no longer run the orphanage. It's not the cool, glamorous end the show gave him, but it's what feels more like the family-focussed guy we first met in the show. It doesn't gel with the idea of permanently separating him from the other signers, though, unfortunately. To do something like that while keeping his community theme, one would probably have to send him away to shack up with Brave or something, to help orphans in other countries. But this, I think, nicely showcases the dissonance between what Crow's character writing would suggest he might do at the end, and what the show demanded he needed to do so he'd no longer be close to the others. Because my focus, as always, is only on character here. And Crow, with his personality and his writing, feels like the character who chafes the most against the idea of striking out solo, abandoning his ties to the community he was so invested in previously. To that extent, the above suggestion is the best I can provide with what we were canonically given. If we wanted to keep the canon ending he gets and actually make it make sense why he suddenly wants to be a lone wolf pro, the only thing I could suggest would be more setup for that. (Ah, there it is again. One final time.) Show Crow having some actual competitive drive, show him enjoying the whole tournament thing more than he thought he would during the WRGP. Just give us something that shows why he would want to go down this path, and why some other things that were previously important to him might not be a priority anymore. It all comes back to setup.

*Deep breath*

So, here we are, then, and this is it. This is all I could make of Crow's character writing in the entire show. To everyone who read this post in its entirety, a heartfelt thank you. To everyone who read the whole series of posts in its entirety, I'm so glad you're as insane about this show as I am, it makes me feel incredibly appreciated. Hope you enjoyed the ride, more meta posts will come eventually, just about different topics. In the meantime, see ya.

#yugioh 5ds #crow hogan #ygo 5ds #5ds #sherry leblanc #yugioh meta #IT IS DONE #HOLY SHIT IT IS DONE #I can't believe I've reached the point of my life where I do gratuitous media analysis for fun #this was such a ride god damn #but I completed it!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!#I'm sticking a gold star on my forehead as a reward #anyway hope you enjoy this last part #feel free to yell at me (enthusiastically) about it #orchid rambles

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unholydeukae · 6 months ago

Text

Disclaimer:

This headcanon/thought is very anti-men and morally slightly grey, so if you're not comfortable reading such things, please skip this post; it's not for you.

Obviously these are just ideas in my head, I would never advocate something like that in real life.

☄️

Sometimes I have these thoughts about femdom Dami but instead of the members, she plays with random men. She advertises it as normal domina/femdom stuff but she actually does way crazier things with/to them just because she gets off of seeing men suffer. Every day, she has 2-3 men in her studio (one after the other) who just wanna experience a session with the domina in town or who've never tried anything femdom before and just wanted to give it a shot. All of them sign a contract in the beginning where they, among other things, agree to various treatments and give consent to pretty much everything. None of them know what they just signed but that's not Dami's fault; they're just all too excited to read the contract completely - or at all - before they put their signature.

To make it easier for her, Dami often lights some candles in the studio; of course for the atmosphere it creates and not at all because the scent they emit has a slightly soporific effect. During the sessions, the men are so deep in subspace (and drowsy) that they don't even notice how she actively pushes them way past their limits until she's satisfied. She usually starts gentle, to make them feel at ease and relax; some massages and the way she tantalisingly leans forward so that they see her boobs or ass in full sight often work wonders. Once Dami feels like they're relaxed enough, she starts with the actual stuff. Depending on what they want or don't want to do, she slaps or spanks them, puts their dick in a cage, does pegging-stuff or whatever else the men have in mind.

Of course, she doesn't leave it at that and step by step pushes them further, ignoring whatever limits they told her earlier, ignoring pleas and cries. If she started with spanking, she'll do it more and harder until she pretty much hits them. If she put their dick in a cage, she'll put their hands and feet into shackles and tie them to the corners of the bed/bench or tie them to a chair. If she started with pegging or preparing for pegging, she'll use bigger and bigger dildos. Generally, whatever she started with, she keeps the same theme but pushes it further and further - no matter how much the men cry and beg her to stop. More like the opposite, the more desperate they become and the more pleas fall onto her (deaf) ears, the better she feels and the hornier she gets.

There are only two rules she always sticks to, no matter what: first, she never does anything that would cause harm in a way that could get her in trouble or that is permanent (e.g. she'd never stretch someone to a prolapse - unless they specifically request it). Second, she never actually uses one of her clients to get off. No matter how much it turns her on to torture men and see them suffer, she's still a lesbian and uses those sessions mostly for mental stimulation - she does get super greedy and horny though, so once she gets home to her girlfriends Gahyun and Dongie, the strapless strap-on is her best friend.

After the session is done and they're back to their senses, many of the men get more or less angry, accusing her of various things like "the fuck, I never agreed to that" (even though they did but none of them actually read the contract) and yelling "you're a crazy woman, I'll report you". But aside from the contract, Dami always catches them with "you clearly enjoyed it though, didn't you?", while she, her jelly knees and her dripping pussy are well aware that she herself enjoyed it a thousand times more than any of the men ever did. And if they are really "tough" and threaten to blow up her business method by telling people about her "scam" and what she actually does, she still has them under control - there are video cameras everywhere in her studio, so she could easily blackmail them, and one look to the corner of the room where the camera sits is enough to shut even the angriest men up. Amusingly enough, it's often the ones who complained the most that suggest her to their friends or become regular customers.

P.S.: both Dongie and Gahyun very much enjoy their girlfriend's business. Miraculously, even more clients want an appointment with Dami since the cute pink-haired girl started working at the front desk - even though the price per session went up quite a bit and the sincere-sounding woman that recently started managing customer service makes it quickly known that she's not one to bargain with.

P.P.S.: the reason for them to love the business so much is mostly due to the fact that there is hardly anything that's hotter than looking through a one-way mirror to watch your girlfriend torture men :)

#dreamcatcher #dreamcatcher smut #deukae smut #dami smut #handong smut #gahyun smut #gahmidong smut

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thegardenchronicles · 3 years ago

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Astrology Observations 6

First of all, Thank you for 666 followers! Love you all!

Second, i realise I don't usually elaborate by observations which leaves people wondering how I put one and two together so I hope this time I've done it justice!

🦩I've noticed that along with Virgo placements, Taurus placements can be quite critical too, both of themselves and others.

🦩 Sun in the 1st house/Sun in the 10th house are always thrust at the center of attention even if it is something they do not like or appreciate. (Unless there is 8th or 12th house influence.)

🦩 This is solely my opinion don't hate but this just sums up what the 7th and 8th house mean to me in terms of love and relationship:

"I found the experience of falling in love or being in love was a death: a death of everything. You kind of watch yourself die in a wonderful way, and you experience for the briefest moment - if you see yourself for a moment through their eyes - everything you believed about yourself gone. In a death-and-rebirth sense." ~ Hozier

🦩 I've written this before but I'm saying it again, the 2nd house is speech and the 3rd house is how you deliver that speech.

🦩 In my last observations post i said that the 3rd house is about studying and the 9th house is about learning. I'd like to explain this further.

If we look at the definitions of both these words, "study" is gaining skill through observation, reading, research etc while "learn" is to gain skill through experience etc. The 3rd house is ruled by Mercury and the 9th house is ruled by Jupiter. Both Mercury and Jupiter are about knowledge, however, Mercury is more logical and is about the gathering of information + using that information to their advantage. Mercury here is curious and is constantly seeking out new things. Jupiter is exploration and expansion. It encourages asking questions about the unknown, therefore it rules things like philosophy and religion. Hope this clarifies it :)

🦩 If you have 12th house influence over any house, you need to isolate yourself to reap the benefits of that house. For example:

3rd house ruler in the 12th: You study, write, communicate your desires best when you're alone.

5th house ruler in the 12th: You find that you're the most creative when you're alone.

🦩 5th house influence over the 7th or vice-versa need newness, fun, adventure, excitement to stay in a relationship.

🦩 IMO, Rohini is the epitome of "Ignorance is Bliss". We all know that Rohini is symbolised by the state of paradise, but not being aware of it as paradise because it was created with paradise. Therefore it is ignorant, not of its own will, but because that is how it just came to be.

🦩 Rakshasa gana nakshatras 🤝 always being seen as the villain.

🦩 Ashwinis can be extremely temperamental. They like order and discipline and if anything disturbs them they get super annoyed.

🦩 Yes, Jupiter is abundance but it doesnt mean abundance of "good" things always. Jupiter has such expansive energy, that it can amplify "bad" things as well. Discernment is important here.

🦩 This is not a fact (at least I don't think so) but I've noticed that wherever you have Saturn, you may obviously have delays and restrictions, but you are also blessed from outright negativity. For example:

I have Saturn in the 11th. I have few friends but they are super close to me and are some of the best people I've ever had the pleasure of meeting. My entire life I've never had to deal with fake friends, or any of my friends stabbing me in the back, so I've been super blessed.

My friend has Saturn in her 5th. She is a very talented writer, but she gets writers block very often and doesn't feel as passionate to write everyday. Although when she does, she writes the most beautiful stories and poems that are deep and moving.

If you guys have noticed something similar with your saturn let me know!

Thank you for reading! Hope you enjoyed!

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Disclaimer: All of these are only personal observations based on people I know in my life. It is not necessary for these to relate to you, they are mostly subjective. Also, the energy of all of the placements mentioned can change depending on their entire chart.

Please do not copy/plagiarize my work and do not repost without my permission.

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#astro notes #astro observations #astrology #spirituality #astro community #aesthetic #tarot #tarot community #divination #astroblr

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stayarmytinyzenmoa-l · 2 years ago

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Prominence [WCh. 2.65]

Social Media AU ; Idol AU ; Added Unit AU CW/TW: Language Genre: Comedy, Romance Pairing: NCT x Idol!Reader, Seonghwa x Reader Y/N Pronouns: Female (She/Her) Word Count: 5.0K

Notes: I originally split this chapter because it was too long and then I ended up making it longer lmaooooo so here's the once in a blue moon long chapter because I cannot for the life of me figure out how to make it shorter or how to nicely split it without breaking the pacing. Disclaimer: Please remember that this is an AU and a work of fiction, obviously the idols mentioned/written about in this story would never partake in these actions. The idols mentioned in this work are meant to be seen more as face claims rather than the actual idols themselves.

Feedback is greatly appreciated!! Thank you for reading!

25 February 2022

Tapping the soju glass against the counter, you sighed and slid against the wood until your cheek hit the table. It was cool under you, at least. Your sight was maybe a little hazy, a mix of overall exhaustion and the few drinks you had. You did as you were instructed, dropping a quick tweet about how you and Jeno were strictly friends, and of course the comments flooded with the usual support and the few rude replies, which were soon drowned out by memes and rational responses. The usual day on Twitter. You had spent the last few hours scrolling through your tags, a toxic trait of yours, you know, but you couldn't help it. You needed to assess the situation before making any further moves in promotions or on social media, unless you wanted Suho and Seojoon on your ass again managing your socials, you'd rather not give them the extra work. It was only natural that you wouldn't have liked what you saw in your searches and tags. Somedays, it felt like whatever you did just wasn't enough. Your eyes glanced to the clock. It was nearing midnight, and you didn't think anyone would be showing up. How did you get into such a pitiful situation? Wait, you already knew the answer to that.

"(Y/N)! Hi! Are you already there?" Yangyang's voice was chipper. "Hey, sorry, something came up with the WayV guys, you know, they're sentimental so they won't let me out of this "family bonding" shit, so! So, so, I prepared a little surprise for you! You'll love it, I promise, and if you don't I know you'd be lying because I know you too damn well! Trust, okay?"

Yangyang had suddenly called you earlier, conveniently right as you arrived. There was a slight hint of laughter in his voice, the kind you knew him to have when he was planning something in particular. He never intended to come with you tonight, that much you knew for sure, and you were clever enough to put two and two together.

The person who was supposed to accompany you tonight was none other than the one who had been trying so hard to see you, and you had to give Seongwha credit for that. You're the stubborn one, and it was times like this when you could really sit and think about it when you wonder why? Why is he settling for you? Surely, there's someone else out there that could be his perfect half, and yet, here you are, staring at his contact picture. Maybe you should call him? You couldn't lie to yourself, you wanted to see him. Despite the fact that he was now nearly two hours late. Then again, when had any date of yours gone right? Did this count as a date? The sound of a cuckoo clock from the back room of the shop was enough to answer your questions.

"Auntie, can I just stay here a bit longer?" You ask. What could be holding him up? You wanted to call and ask, but at the same time, you felt obligated not to ruin the surprise. You knew they were in the midst of a tour, so you were certain that if anything it was practice holding him up, but goodness, you were worried about him. It was far too late.

"Stay as long as you need, hon," your aunt rubs your head affectionately before walking off to the back room. Your head felt heavy, maybe you shouldn't have drank while waiting, but there was no way you'd want to discuss anything heavy sober right now, you just wanted to relax. If you didn't have this, you'd be knocked out in bed by now.

Before you knew it, you were calling him, holding the phone to your ear. One ring, two rings, three rings, four, then it fell silent, the obnoxious beep tone playing instead and prompting you to leave a message. You hung up, lying back down against the counter. You heard the shop entrance open, as signaled by the quiet bell chime. Was it him? Was he here? You didn't have the energy to get up, your eyelids felt heavy, and the countertop was much too comfortable. Whoever entered took a seat next to you. You could see the polished combat boots, the dark jeans that had faded with age, and the loose chain that hung off the belt loop. You already knew who it was, and it wasn't who you would've ever expected to be here.

"(Y/N), it's not safe to fall asleep in restaurants," his voice was the same as you'd remembered it. Soft but strong, maybe a bit scratchy from lack of use and a bad smoking habit, but not enough for it to be worthy of note. You hadn't heard his voice for, what, a year now? For some reason, your mood only soured. "You should go home." A concerned sigh came from him.

"Did auntie call you?" You asked quietly, your words slightly muffled because of your squished face against the counter.

"I wouldn't be here otherwise," his voice was tired. You heard the sound of a lighter and, soon, the faint scent of smoke.

"Oi! Jung Kanghoon, you'd better not be smoking in my restaurant!" Your aunt's voice was clear. Your older brother made no effort to listen. Instead, he slid the pack towards you.

"No thanks, I have to take care of my throat more," you yawned. "Too many of those guys smoke in the dorms, I'm afraid I'm going to die of secondhand smoking or something," you sighed.

"Too many of them, huh?" Kanghoon sighs. "Were you waiting for someone?" You hear him slide the soju bottle away from you. You turned your head to the door. No one was coming any time soon.

"Yeah, I was," you sat up now and stared at your phone, looking at the one lone message from Yangyang.

'I'm sorry, I don't know where he is, he said he'd be there. You know I just wanted to help...' His heart was in the right place, it always was, and while you appreciated it, you hoped that he didn't take this to heart. Then, another text came in. 'Do you want me to head over there? I'll take you home.' You didn't respond, rather, you didn't have the chance to.

"Don't think he's going to show up though," you added. Kanghoon leaned one arm on the counter. The smell of smoke grew stronger. "So... you came running when auntie called you, but whenever I try to call you it's like I'm no one, huh?"

"You know it's not like that," Kanghoon took a drag of his cigarette. "Those are different, you're trying to get me to come over and get out of the house, and auntie told me that you're on your fourth bottle."

"Don't worry, I can drink more and be fine," you nodded. "So, what did you want to say to me?"

"Just go home, (Y/N)."

"I'll wait a little bit longer..."

"Go home. It's dangerous outside for an idol."

"It's not the first time he's been late to something."

"Stop being stubborn, go home." You glared at him and he only rose an eyebrow back.

"I hate how you do that," you grimaced. "Pulling your big brother card without saying it, jerk," you groaned and packed your things. "Hey, at least read my messages, okay? I'm worried about you."

"I'm more worried about you," Kanghoon reverses the topic back to you. "Take care, (Y/N), I know you're an adult now, but if you need anything, anything important, call me."

"Yeah, yeah, if you pick up," you waved him off. "Not even going to walk me home?" You ask. Kanghoon reaches over to your bag and you push his hand out of the way.

"If you're still sober enough to do that, then you're sober enough to walk a couple of blocks home," he turns back so that both of his arms were resting against the counter.

"Yeah, you're right," you crossed your arms. "Just would've been nice to actually catch up, you know? Or are you too busy to do that?" Kanghoon looks over at you, as usual, you couldn't read him at all, but you could make out a faint hint of concern.

"Good night, (Y/N)," he cuts off the conversation instead, turning away from you.

"Good night," you knew that you weren't going to get anything out of him, not tonight, at least. He watches you leave from the corner of his eye. Once the door closes, your aunt walks back out.

"Why did you call me?"

"Why else? She always listens to you," your aunt huffs. "I've been telling her to go home for the past hour, and here you come, tell her a couple of times, and she's gone! Stubborn as hell, why'd you raise her like that?"

"Rather her be too stubborn than for people to walk all over her."

"Like they do you?" His aunt places an ashtray on the counter.

"Of course," Kanghoon responds.

"I'm worried about her."

"You and her thousands of fans."

"That's different, Kanghoon. Before I was worried about how she was handling all of the publicity, but now I'm just worried about her wellbeing, all that stress on her, it's not healthy," your aunt spies your untouched bowl of ramen. "She walked in here and just sat there. I had a feeling she was waiting for someone, and usually she'd talk to me, at least. Instead, it looked like she was thinking of something the whole time, but she didn't know how to bring it up. She got off the phone with someone and, next thing I knew it, she was ordering bottles instead. I almost called her ex-boyfriend, but I figured that was probably why she was so lost in thought so I decided on you instead," she continues. "You're cruel though, Kanghoon, having her leave herself," she shakes her head.

"Whatever, she can handle it," Kanghoon puts out his cigarette against the ashtray. "I'm heading out."

"Kanghoon, you really should talk to your sister more, I'm being serious here."

"I know," he only nods his head. "You should've called Hamin."

"He's on a whole other continent, why call him when you live just down the street of her dorms?"

"It's actually a couple of blocks," Kanghoon's voice jumps at the last word just as his aunt hits his head with a wooden spatula.

"You're horrible, Kanghoon, what happened to the little boy who was attached to his siblings' hips? Hmm?"

"He grew up," Kanghoon ruffles his hair slightly while sitting back. He spots your wallet on the table and picks it up, rifling through the cards and bills, or lack thereof. He was still trying to figure out if you left it there on purpose, as if to probe him to pay you a visit to return it, or if you really were too drunk to realize.

"Kanghoon, none of that secretive bullshit, you talk to her. Get into her head, somehow, lord knows I can't do it. I don't know what she's thinking now, and I'm worried because of it." Kanghoon looks back at her. No words were exchanged, but there was that mutual understanding. Kanghoon, regardless, stepped out of the restaurant and back into the cold air. He adjusts his jacket just as he notices someone turn the corner. His hair was a mess and his coat buttoned incorrectly, wherever he was going, it was clear that he left in a rush.

In that instant, he and Park Seonghwa made eye contact.

Seonghwa skid to a stop when he saw the stranger, taking deep breaths to compose himself. Roughed in the edges, his jacket was worn and tattered in some spots, but the chains on his belt and around his neck were enough to distract from it. Seonghwa knew better to stare, but that old scar on the stranger's cheek was prominent. He shook his head, he had no idea he'd run into anyone tonight, much less a delinquent. He wasn't expecting to be late, who plans to be late anyway? It was supposed to be a quick trip to the company, just to kill time before heading here, he wanted to sort out his thoughts with Hongjoong, what with the possibility of a close friend of his being your stalker, if it was true, he figured he'd let Yangyang know, thinking that he'd be meeting him tonight. He wasn't expecting Eden to pull him aside to record some lines for a track he had in mind. Even when he insisted, Eden promised that it'd only take an hour.

Needless to say, it has been way more than an hour. Seonghwa figured it would be alright, Yangyang of all people would understand that work gets in the way sometimes. Until he saw Yangyang's contact name flashing across the screen, an incoming call from an unlikely source. It was that one-sided call that got Seonghwa running out of the recording studio as soon as he could.

"Hey, so, this is my fault. 100%, I should've made it clear but I was thinking it would've just been a nice surprise but, of course, whenever I plan things something always goes sideways. Like when I spilled coffee all over Red. But, anyway, yeah, I'm not meeting you tonight. It's (Y/N). I think there's something up with her, I don't think she's told you yet, but she's been getting these weird messages, we're also like 98% sure she has a stalker, and recently more stuff have been piling on her plate, just... just go spend time with her. She likes you a lot, like, disgustingly a lot. She has fun with Mark and I, but anyone can see the difference when she's with you, even if she denies it. Seriously, though, if you can't make it, just tell me now and I'll go there myself."

Like hell he was going to let Yangyang steal his thunder. He hung up the phone and came right here, taking a taxi the whole way and just barely being able to hide his face until he got to the front of the restaurant. He fixes his coat before walking at a brisk pace, noticeably toward the restaurant entrance. Kanghoon watched him as he did so.

Of course, Kanghoon knew who Park Seonghwa is. How could he not know the identity of the man who broke his little sister's heart? He may not have answered every one of them, but he certainly did read every message you sent to him about your relationship. Every message asking him to come out of his house to meet him or for them to come over to his house. He was sure that you'd found the one until that happened. If only he wasn't working, he would've said yes, no, he should've made time for you. That was beside the point now. Now, he read all the messages asking what you did to deserve what happened. He'd never forgive him for that. All those texts you'd sent him asking why, if he wasn't so busy with his job he would've come running, he swears. Regardless, Kanghoon stayed relaxed as he watched Seonghwa move, until finally he decided to spare Seonghwa the effort.

"She's not there anymore, you just missed her," Kanghoon pulls his keys out and Seonghwa, with one hand on the door, turns back.

"I'm sorry?" He looked at him as if he were an overstepping stranger. Maybe Kanghoon should introduce himself properly? He thought about it for a while before deciding against it. You already have enough problems going on, he'd rather not add to it. But, at the same time, you're his little sister, and he'll always keep in mind for you what he thinks is the best for you. And Park Seonghwa?

He's far from what you deserve.

"She just left, don't bother, the owner's cleaning up," Kanghoon continues.

"With all due respect," Seonghwa glowers. "I don't think that it's any of your business." Kanghoon clicked his tongue quietly. This wasn't how he imagined meeting Seonghwa for the first time, that was for certain. He didn't recall you mentioning that Seonghwa had a bit of an attitude either.

"Don't go chasing things you can't keep up with." Using the wallet, Kanghoon points down the street towards the dorms, a motion that Seonghwa followed, silently understanding what he meant. Then, Kanghoon tosses the wallet to Seonghwa anyway, knowing you, if you really liked Seonghwa so much you'd see him soon. Kanghoon would rather spare himself the trip to the dorms. Seonghwa caught the wallet and eyed it curiously, his expression relaxing as soon as he realized it belonged to you. Maybe it was a bad choice on his part, Kanghoon's, that is. Maybe he shouldn't leave the door of opportunity open for Seonghwa. But maybe Seonghwa would surprise him. Kanghoon grabs his helmet and straps it on, riding off before Seonghwa could answer.

"Dammit." Seonghwa looked inside the restaurant and confirmed that it was empty. He pulled his phone out, ignoring the many texts from Yangyang, he decided to call you instead. One ring, two rings, three rings...

"Seonghwa?"

"(Y/N)," he let out a sigh of relief. "I'm sorry, I'm here now, did you go home?"

"I'm on my way back, actually, I left my wallet there."

"Stay where you are, I'll meet you there and walk you the rest of the way home," Seonghwa looks down at your wallet, moving in the direction of the dorms. "Stay on the line."

"I know, honestly, I was about to call too, it's kind of spooky right now," he didn't realize it until now, but there was that floaty tone in your voice.

"(Y/N), I'm serious, stay put," Seonghwa says. You laughed lightly.

"Yes, sir! I'll stay right here. Wherever I am," you added with a short giggle. There was no doubt about it. You were definitely drunk. Stage Two, as he and your close friends called it, Cloud 9. He missed stage one, luckily, grumpy.

"What do you see?"

"I see you!" Seonghwa looked around, not seeing you anywhere.

"(Y/N), are you sure that's me?"

"I mean... I think so? You're pretty far away though. Aren't you wearing a brown coat?"

"(Y/N), love, it's winter in South Korea, every man and his best friend are probably wearing a brown coat."

"That is true. But... he really does look like you," you insisted. "From a distance... at least... I kind of assumed he was you, he's on the phone too, looking right at me, where are you?"

"I'm just crossing the street."

"Oh, then that's definitely not you."

"That's what I've been saying, love," Seonghwa shakes his head with a small chuckle. "Are you the one sitting on the bench?" The more appropriate word would be slumped, but he was sure that you already knew that.

"Yes! That's me! Oh, you're almost right next to your look-a-like! Don't talk to him, that's bad luck, you know." Seonghwa turned his head and, color him surprised.

"Oh, hyung!" Kyungjae smiles and waves while Seonghwa's lips fell into a frown.

"I'll be right there, (Y/N), stay put," Seonghwa says.

"Okay!" You hung up first.

"What are you doing here?" Kyungjae asks.

"Picking up my girlfriend," Seonghwa forces a smile. "Excuse me," he makes a move to leave, but Kyungjae stops him.

"Hyung, actually, I wanted to ask you something."

"Me too, what are you doing here? I thought your apartment was further from here?"

"Oh, well," Kyungjae looks taken aback. "I just had to drop by the company, my boss called me in for a concept meeting," he says. "But, er, did I hear you correctly, hyung? You're back in a relationship?" Seonghwa sneaks a glance to you, who had, miraculously, dozed off on the bench.

"I am, yes, sorry, can we get caught up later? I have to make sure she's safe," he makes a move to leave again, but Kyungjae stops him again.

"Actually, hyung-"

"Not now, Kyungjae, if it's a question, you can text it to me later," Seonghwa squares his shoulders and Kyungjae catches the memo.

"Hyung." Seonghwa, despite being further away, turns to look at him. "Don't do something you'll regret." Seonghwa turned away, walking over to you instead. When he looked over his shoulder again, Kyungjae was walking in the opposite direction. Instead, he turned his attention to you.

"(Y/N)," he shakes you gently. You grab onto his wrist with a death grip, fully ready to react. "Wait! Wait, it's me!" You look up with wide eyes and grin.

"Oh! It's you!"

"How did you fall asleep here?" He chuckles.

"Well, I saw you over there, talking to your twin, and figured that I'd be okay here," you rest your head against his hip and he sighs. "I always feel a bit happier when I'm with you!" Your voice was muffled against his coat. And it was true, as soon as he was in clear eye sight, you felt like you were walking on clouds, it was so easy to forget worries and stresses when he was around. "You'll never guess the day I've had... I'm exhausted but for some reason I feel a little more energetic now."

"Let's get you home, okay?"

"Okay, but, hm, hold this," you reached in your bag, handing him a half-finished bottle of soju. "Shh, don't tell auntie I swiped it," you held a finger to your lips before attempting to stand up. In no time at all, Seonghwa had a hand around your waist to support you. "The cap is broken, so I think it's going to spill if I keep it in my bag, that's why it's half empty," you continued, latching your arms around him.

"Sure, (Y/N), sure," Seonghwa rolls his eyes.

"I didn't drink it, I'm serious!"

"And I'm Choi San."

"You are?" You let him go in an instant, stumbling back and just barely catching yourself. "Choi San! That's very inappropriate of you! You know that Seonghwa and I are seeing each other again, why would you try to take advantage of my semi-drunken state? I thought we were friends? I thought I could trust you!" And you continued to ramble all while Seonghwa held his phone up, recording for educational purposes. "Things are finally looking up, ish, I can't have anyone ruining that right now! I even have to figure out how to tell Choi Yeonjun that I can't do the collaboration because of all these random things coming up about me online, I can't afford that! People are saying that I'm a kitten killer what's with that? Where did that even come from? Oh, gosh, I can't in good conscience ruin another idol's image! Why would you do this to me?!" Seonghwa stopped recording.

"Yeonjun asked you to collaborate with him?"

"Yes! And I said yes, at first, but then I thought about it, and I realized, oh god, I must not have been in the right state of mind if I said yes. Especially now after someone threw a hissy fit because I went to the gym with Jeno!"

Seonghwa knew about that, but he hasn't had time to open any socials, and now he was more hesitant to do so.

"What I'm trying to say, San," you continued, fully convinced you were talking to San at this point. "While I appreciate, that you like me, I can't reciprocate those feelings, so you should move on and find someone better," you placed your hand on Seonghwa's arm. "Besides, you're not my type." Seonghwa, once again, started recording.

"No? Why not?" It was just a curious question.

"Because... because..." You trailed into a thought. "You're like... a buff Yangyang." Yup, that'll do it. Seonghwa broke into laughter, resulting in an offended look from you. "What's so funny?"

"What do you mean, what's so funny? Did you hear what you just said?" Seonghwa says between chuckles.

"What? You're a lot more similar than you'd think! And that's like... weird, why would I date my best friend? He's my best friend for a reason! If we dated that would be weird... Plus, sometimes his face pisses me off, all smug and stuff, makes me wanna one up him at everything!" Your brows scrunched together as you rambled.

"I agree, that would be weird, you know what? Let me grab Seonghwa," he laughs turning you around and ending the recording. You turned around at your own accord and smiled again.

"Hi," there was a bashful smile on your face, a drunken glow to it despite the night air.

"Hey," Seonghwa's voice was soft, savoring the moment as much as he could.

"You will not believe what just happened," you laughed.

"Try me," Seonghwa ushered you forward, listening to you drunkenly recount the tale of what had just happened a few minutes ago, but listening to every word anyway. You were nearing the dorms now, and he silently hoped that he wasn't blacklisted from the building anymore. You looped your arm around his and slightly pulled him closer to you. He was hoping that he'd get to talk to you about Kyungjae today, but considering how slow you were walking, it would be a fool's choice to bring up anything remotely important.

"You know what?" You finally ask. Seonghwa only looks at you, waiting for an answer. "I think we should just date now."

"Is that not what we're doing?"

"I mean, I know I said we should wait, because there's so much on my plate right now, and you're going to be leaving for Europe soon, but I miss you, a lot," despite the way you looked, you sounded sincere. "And, I know, I complain a lot, and I can be a handful, but, you're here right now, you're standing right next to me, and that means something, right?" You looked at him. Stage three, sentimental. You were both standing in front of the building now. Seonghwa placed his hands on your arms, holding you steady and holding you close.

"Of course, it means something," he says. "(Y/N), I know you're not going to remember much of this, but I do love you, so much," he continues. "There's so much I want to do with you and there's so much I want to do for you, I can't even begin to say it in words, and I'm not going to try now, not when I know you won't remember most of it. But this?" He holds up the soju glass. "Let's try to control this a little, alright? Next time you feel like going for a drink, let me know, okay?"

"But... but then I would've ruined Yangyang's surprise..." you frowned. Seonghwa stopped for a moment.

Oh. It all made sense, the short message that morning with no context, the fact that you waited so long without calling him. There was a slight pang in his heart. Your best friend tried to set up a time for you and him to spend together, and Seonghwa very nearly brushed it off. If he hadn't gotten that call, he might not have showed up at all.

"Oh, well, that's on him for managing it so poorly," you snickered. It would appear that even in a half-state of mind, Yangyang was still a relentless victim. You both walked inside now, Seonghwa was too worried to have you ascend on your own, there was a quick nod of understanding between him and the security guard and then he was in the clear to enter. He was glad he followed you, especially when you stared at the elevator buttons for too long. Long enough that Seonghwa was able to pull your key out of your pocket to scan it over the reader for you and slip it back into your wallet without you remarking. The elevator began ascending and you gripped onto both him and the railing. "Gosh, I can never remember which floor it is."

"That's probably because there isn't a button to your floor."

"Right! Security," you continued, the elevator halting to a stop and sliding open to the hallway. As soon as you stepped out, your path began to lean to the right, and Seonghwa swiftly pulled you in the right direction. Stage four, drowsy. "Hey... Seonghwa?" You lightly turned him to face you. You moved closer, your lips inches away from his, and Seonghwa's world slows. In an instant, his hand flies up to cover your mouth. "Mmph?" You let out a confused sound, your eyes wide with surprise.

"You're drunk right now, I don't think it's a good idea to do this," he says. Your eyes seem to sadden and he sighs.

"Mmm mmrph wrmph." He let's go of your mouth.

"What did you say, love?"

"I said that you're right, look at you, being responsible," you yawned and knocked on the door, despite the key being in your pocket. "Guess no one's home." Seonghwa was ready to open the door for you until the door opened.

Taeyong stared at the both of you. A worried look was on his face as he looked at you.

"Hi, Yong!" You smiled. Seonghwa held up the soju bottle and held up five fingers. Taeyong sighed while he reached for the bottle, but before he could speak, he was pushed out of the way.

"Hi, (Y/N), I'm glad you're home safe," Johnny smiles. Ushering you inside.

"She-" Johnny glared at him and shut the door, effectively cutting Seonghwa off. Seonghwa let out a long breath but, at the end, a small laugh bubbled up and a grin settled on his lips. He turned around, ready to head home, and then his phone buzzed in his pocket. He read the message from you and felt his heart soar.

'Good night <3 I got home safe, so promise me you will too, okay?'

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talkfantasytome · 3 years ago

Note

I would like to know an opinion from you, who is a reader and writer, without favoritism using more the logic and facts of the book.

What are the chances of G+A, E+A and E+L happening in ACOTAR and why do you think so?

By logic I think G+A has an 85% chance of happening, for several factors pointed out in the books and in interviews. E+L I have doubts because it depends on what will happen in the next book and E+A for me is dead

Hi there!

Interesting question! And a tough one to ask me to answer as a writer and a reader, but also just to use logic and facts. I'll do my best, but admittedly, on some points in may appear as more of an opinion as a writer, or my own interpretation being a writer and understanding how things can be done.

However, I did really love including that focus in my answer! I did try to keep out favoritism and stick to logic. Admittedly, when asking specifically about all three ships, I'm now including all in one post and I'm sure one will appear favored, so I apologize for that. However, I did stick to facts of the book and facts about SJM - since you asked about my thoughts as a reader and writer, I felt I had to bring in certain things we know about SJM, in particular her style and the stuff she's likely to do.

This is a very big question you're asking, though. So, a fair warning, this post is very long. I have provided the word count below so people will have fair warning. There is also a TL;DR section at the bottom (before the post divider above my disclaimers) with a paragraph on each pair, for those interested in my opinions but don't wish to go deep into facts and thoughts.

I only ask that if anyone is looking to discuss this with me further, for any reason, that you do read the full post first before coming back to me with questions or concerns. :)

WC: 8,821

If you're interested, please keep reading for the ramblings of a mad woman...

The first thing I want to talk about is:

Foreshadowing.

Foreshadowing is the technique of hinting at future events in a story using subtle parallels, usually to generate more suspense or engage the reader’s curiosity. (Grammarly)

Writers, publishers, and readers all f*ing love foreshadowing. Even if you're a fan of big surprises and plot twists, foreshadowing is such an amazing and wonderful thing to see. I think it's because, even as a reader, even if you want something to completely throw you off guard, when you go back and see the foreshadowing later on, you respect it. And it makes you appreciate that author's craft. And true readers - as well as writers, of course - love to do that. As a reader, I loooove when an author does something that foreshadows something to happen in two or three books. As a writer, I strive to be like that.

But an important note to make about foreshadowing - it's typically about using "subtle parallels", once that could generate suspense or engage our curiosity. That's just something to keep in mind throughout this piece.

If you don't take the time to think about foreshadowing, and to understand its importance to writers and readers alike, then you're not going to be able to think critically about questions like this. And you're going to write a lot off as just something to make the readers happy or something a little pretty or fun.

And you'll also forget how crucial foreshadowing is. It is important, but it's hard to do, and it's not going to be done on something minor. You're not going to foreshadow what someone is going to make for dinner that night - not unless the choice of meal, or that meal itself, will end up being a vital plot point.

Similarly, you're not going to foreshadow things like, say, future possible relationships just to make that relationship an "oh, look, they're just platonic friends with minimal importance in that relationship". No. If you're foreshadowing something that will become just a friendship, it's going to be a massive, live-or-die, most important, life-altering friendship. It's going to be a friendship that changes the course of the characters lives.

So, having given that small lesson, I'd also challenge all readers of this post to read everything I've said with foreshadowing in mind as well. In some places I bring it up and mention it more, but I feel like foreshadowing is the most important literary device in questions like this. So as you read, see if there are other parts I bring up that are also foreshadowing, but I didn't say were foreshadowing. I think you might be surprised at how much it is laced through everything, just as it is extremely predominant in these books.

With that in mind, I'm ready to move on to the main questions:

E\ain & Azriel

Quickly, for this section, basically my entire focus is on why I don't believe these two will share a book, which - based on SJM's explanation of the second set of three ACOTAR books - means they're not endgame. If you're interested in an argument more about why these two aren't endgame based more on what's in the books about the characters, how they interact, etc. and doesn't focus on which books we'll get, you can see a very long post here that I made on that. On top of that, you did ask me this question "as a reader and writer", and I found that in answering "as a writer", it lended more toward talking about which book we'll get a bit more than which endgame relationships we'll get (even though they're basically synonymous lol).

I think they have an incredibly small chance of being endgame, personally. I hate making blatant, all out, 100% positive statements without the facts to back it up, and right now, we don't have that. Because we don't yet know who Az will be paired up with for his book. We do know he'll be getting something, as SJM has said she's excited to write his journey, and that is too big a statement for it to be a side journey.

So, we know Az will get a book. And we know that SJM is planning two more full novels for the series. There will be at least one novella, I believe, potentially two, but I'm not considering those. Based on what we've seen from Az, as a writer (as you requested 😉), I cannot see him being a novella story. Especially not after Sarah has talked about how excited she is for his journey.

The other reason I believe he'll be a full novel - the novels are for those who are hitting true rock bottom. Look at Feyre in ACOMAF, and look at Nesta in ACOSF. The main character for the novels will hit rock bottom, to then go through their character arc.

And Az is hitting it now. You can see it coming. He's moved on from pining for one female to pining for another, and while yes, he could technically get E\ain, there's a reason they're not together, and I firmly believe it goes beyond Lucien.

Lucien is the excuse. I know you asked about these from the perspective of a reader and writer, but just quickly - as someone who also is PHENOMENAL at preferring the emotionally unavailable, I know exactly what's going on with Az.

I'm not exaggerating here, for the record. I'm 29 and have never had a boyfriend because I CANNOT like the right guys. If you actually show interest in me, or are someone who could, I will not like you. I also won't like you if you're married or in a relationship, no, that's a turn off, but if you're emotionally unavailable in a way that means we will never be together - that's my jam.

Sound familiar? 👀

So, yeah, I know Az. And I know what he's doing with E\ain. Unlike me, he might go for something physical - that kiss attempt - but even in that he was thinking it would only be that one time. Because he knows she's not emotionally available. And NOT because of Lucien. Lucien, as I said, is the excuse. He's the "reason they can't be together" in Az's mind. He's "the obstacle to my happiness". But he really isn't.

E\ain said herself, in ACOFAS, she doesn't want a male. And we have reason to believe she wants to become human again. She isn't actually happy as a Fae, and she doesn't want to be with a Fae. And, friendly reminder, Az is Fae. 👀

So, Elain is emotionally unavailable. She may be physically available to Az, but I do not believe she is emotionally available to him - or any Fae - at the moment. I'll get more to that in the Lucien section, too.

Despite the lack of development around this information in ACOSF, and the fact that we can't know this for certain since we've never seen her POV or the POV of someone who truly knows E\ain - no, I don't believe either sisters truly do - this did not change in a year. I know E\ain's own personal turmoil and issues won't get solved on the side, off-page. Despite her lack of development so far, I do agree with those that ship E\ain and Az on one thing - she IS a main character. Or, at least, she will be. Hands down, 100%, of course. She's an Archeron. Sarah has said she'll have a book. It's all a fact.

So no way in hell did E\ain's emotional journey happen off-page. E\ain's journey is not solely going to be her training, or finding her value in Prythian in terms of what she'll do during the day and how she can help against a villainous threat. There will be an emotional journey. It's called a character arc. One of the character development resources I have bookmarked includes this diagram:

Source

This is a standard character arc. And while it may appear that it can all be stuff that happens to the character, which it can, take a look at the end point: character is forever changed.

That, in and of itself, implies that this arc goes beyond what is happening to the character, and expresses how all of those things happening are also working the character internally. More importantly, no one wants to read a book about a character who has no emotional journey, only a physical one. As a reader, I can attest to this. As a writer, I understand this and...am working on it in my own writing. 👀

Lastly, we KNOW SJM likes a good emotional arc. Feyre - hit rock bottom. Nesta - hit rock bottom. Bryce (CC) - hit rock bottom, and lived there for two years. Aelin (ToG) - she hit rock bottom on some levels, in different ways, multiple times. That girl went through some serious emotional shit, on top of all the stuff happening to her and around her.

My point - E\ain's book will include an emotional journey. And even if she's not at a full, devastating rock bottom, it will be something close to it. I have thoughts on what could cause it, what her bottom could be, but that's not for this post.

So, both E\ain and Azriel will have a book. And some believe it will be together. Allow me to explain why I believe all that I just said, as a writer, tells me it won't be:

Their journeys are too big for one book.

That's it. That's the main kicker. And it sounds stupid to some, I'm sure. So allow me to explain.

Azriel is so close to rock bottom, he's passed Bikini Bottom. He's taken the wrong bus home, and he's passed the final stop before he gets to Rock Bottom. And he's gonna be there until someone else comes along and blows up his hand glove to help him fly out of there. (If you don't get the reference, you're probably too young to be reading ACOTAR. 👀)

He's on his second girl he's pining after who is emotionally unavailable. A girl he doesn't actually want, but is just an idolized representation of what he wants. (This post, the Share Life with Me section explains my thoughts on that.) He's also struggling with a ton of other things. I won't list them all, cause this post as become a beast, but we know he's dealing with a lot.

In fact, that Az isn't able to sleep is a big sign of where he's at emotionally. I mean, he's an active male. And he's got a lot on his plate. He's busy, he trains, he is definitely physically tired regularly. But he can't sleep, because he has so much shit going on in his mind. All the stuff he's struggling with, not to mention his own feelings of inadequacy. You cannot convince me Az is not close to rock bottom.

E\ain, on the other hand, is nowhere near it. If she was, we would have been given an inkling. In ACOFAS, we got some Cassian chapters, clearly meant to help prepare us for ACOSF, and give us all some Nessian angst because we were all shipping them by then. BUT. More importantly than that, we got a little snippet into Nesta's mind too, when she got home after Solstice. It's the only time, other than Wings and Embers, where we got Nesta's POV before ACOSF. Both of which were meant to tell us a lot about her. Wings and Embers offered a lot of character development, and a look into something that happened to help explain a bit better Nesta and Cassian later in ACOMAF. (Also, I'm convinced Sarah just loves them and writing them, so couldn't help herself in writing that scene. lol)

The ACOFAS piece, on the other hand, was specifically designed to tell us where the hell Nesta is at emotionally. ACOFAS offers a bridge between ACOWAR and ACOSF. It gives us answers to tell us what's going on in their lives, so we don't show up a year later and are like "so, what's all this?" And the biggest answers it gave us was about Nesta, because the end of ACOWAR did not give us enough to tell us that's where she'd be at a year later.

So ACOFAS came in to tell us where everyone's at, and those Nesta POV pages gave us a look into Nesta, to see her without the lens of another person's perspective. And what did we see? Nesta, drowning at rock bottom.

As a writer, that is how I read the purpose of all that happened in ACOFAS, and why we got that snippet, as well as the purpose fo the Wings and Embers little chapter.

We have gotten nothing like that on E\ain. We have crumbs in ACOFAS that tell us she's not happy as a Fae and doesn't want to remain as such. And then in ACOSF we get a few quick looks at her through others' eyes, none of which tell us much. Maybe some minor foreshadowing, but nothing to tell us what is actually happening with her.

And then, basically the last thing we are given about E\ain in ACOSF is a comparative vignette on E\ain and Nesta in black for Solstice - which, yes, has a huge purpose. Everyone who says it doesn't is, I'm sorry, very wrong.

As a writer, I feel I can confirm, you would not include such a comparative vignette like that for no reason. I may not be published, and I do love a good description, but look at the way it's worded - it's not just about the physical descriptions, but the feeling you get in seeing those two women in black. What black does to them. If it meant nothing, no editor would keep it in. So much can be read in those words that I'm sure SJM and her editors expect us to think they mean something more. For them to then have no purpose, mean nothing, it would actually be incredibly misleading writing in a way authors don't do in their books. Yes, in interviews they may say thins to mislead readers. Yes, they may try to make their foreshadowing super subtle and hard to catch. But they're not going to blatantly, obviously foreshadow the opposite of what will happen. They're not going to spend a few paragraphs describing a character in a way that implies the Night Court drains the life from her, and then end with her finding her true home in the Night Court with a person that embodies night. Because those two things don't align.

But I digress.

The point is, that's very little with E\ain. If you read the scenes very carefully, yes, you'll pick up on certain pieces that I do think will be used later. But none of it tells us E\ain is close to rock bottom. If anything, it tells us E\ain is trying to pretend or prove she's not going to hit rock bottom - which, admittedly, a bit of a death sentence for you E\ain longer-term.

What I'm getting at here is that Az is ready for his story, E\ain is not.

Now, one good argument against this would be - well, only one person will likely be at rock bottom. You, yourself, Kasey, said that E\ain and Az's journeys are too big to be one book. Clearly you're assuming both will hit rock bottom. But, if E\ain doesn't, then their stories aren't too big.

Fair point, except this:

We know E\ain is getting a book.

A book that will be hers the way ACOSF was Nesta's. Obviously, I hope the next two books will provide more development for the love interest than my bby Cassian got. That being said, the books will have a protagonist, and a love interest who is also the silver medal protagonist for that book. Both will have journeys, absolutely, and their journeys will align.

And E\ain Archeron will NOT be the "love interest" in the book she's in. In fact, that's a HUGE argument people make against gwynriel. That these books are about the Archeron sisters, so the next book must be E\ain's. Their argument is that these stories are all about the Archeron sisters.

Okay, first of all, that's wrong. We know it's wrong, because we know there are two more books, and there's one more sister. So you cannot say that it's solely about the Archeron sisters.

However, they're right in one regard - the Archeron sisters are f*ing important. On so many levels. And while, at the moment, E\ain only has enough development to maybe be a love interest in the next book, she WILL NOT be that. E\ain will be the main protagonist. E\ain will be the Nesta, and her love interest will be the Cassian. You cannot convince me otherwise. Not with E\ain's Seeing powers, being Cauldron-born, and the journey/conflict Sarah has started setting up for her. It's not enough for its own book yet, but she's laid the groundwork to allow a build in the next book or novella, so that when we get E\ain's we'll have a better idea where she's starting from.

To say the next book is an E\ain/Azriel book means you are expecting Az's story to take second place, and that's not happening.

Az has had a POV chapter - yes, it was an exclusive, so not everyone could see it. But, if you wanted to, you can no problem. So, we have an idea of where Az is at - both in terms of actions we saw and what's going on in his mind.

We've seen that, and we know he's hitting rock bottom. Which means his love interest likely will not hit rock bottom. She will have a journey of her own, for sure. Some form of character arc that helps her be who she needs to be for Az, and for the plot of the book. So, even without Sarah telling us how excited she is to write Az's journey, we've been given enough to know that in Az's book, he'll likely have the gold medal protagonist slot.

More so than that, we have not seen E\ain's point of view at all. And while we haven't seen any character's point of view who is a possible love interest for Az, we do know that, at least for the main character, SJM seems to like to give us that first, while also testing the waters a bit.

Again, ACOFAS, a couple Cassian POV chapters plus the Nesta section of that one chapter. We actually got a smaller POV for the main protagonist, interestingly enough, but it made sense with the novella considering she was not spending time with everyone else. But we still got the snippet. However, that's just one book. So we need to go to a different series to talk more about SJM's preferences.

Let's think about Throne of Glass. Written entirely different - entirely third person, and every book was technical multi-POV. However, book 1 was heavily Celaena. We had minimal Dorian and Chaol POV sections until book 2. Similarly, in book 3 we got a very small amount of Rowan POV and Aedion POV, but then in book 4 they came in and shared a lot more page time. Why? Because, I believe, when she can SJM does like to test the waters a bit, try it out. Learn the voice without it being so crucial and central whenever possible. I could be wrong, but I don't think it's a coincidence that we saw that. That she gave us sneak peeks into the minds of people who, in later books, we'd see more fully. She would build to them being a main POV.

Of course, Manon and Elide were exceptions. And maybe Lorcan? I honestly can't remember if we got a Lorcan POV snippet in QoS, or if we just started to get Lorcan in EoS right away.

However, Manon and Elide were different. We couldn't just get a teaser snippet of Manon's POV in book 2. That would have spoiled a lot and had no place for flow. Same with Elide. Those two women came in and from day one as characters in the series they were too important, and too separate from others, to be a smaller POV in their first book.

So, to me, as a writer, SJM has shown a bit of a trend in giving us the POV of characters before the become true main characters with their own POV. I believe we will see E\ain's POV before she is the main character of her book. Which we haven't yet seen. So I can't believe her book is next.

Which, considering all the things I've said that explain why Az's book is, is another reason why I don't believe they'll be one book and are endgame.

E\ain and Lucien

Now, we know Lucien has his own story, journey. SJM has confirmed we will see him heal and grow.

Of course, if I'm right about how Az and E\ain won't be in a book together, and Az is the next book, then it sort of confirms that the sixth will be E\ain-Lucien. But I'll go into a couple other reasons why I believe there will be an E\lain-Lucien book.

First of all, let's ask the question - if I'm wrong, and the next book is E\ain-Az, then who's the sixth book about?

Some people say it's Lucien and Vassa - because we know we're going to get a deeper look into Lucien's journey. And, I would agree, if we have it confirmed that book 6 is Lucien's and E\ain has had her book, then yes...I suppose Vassa is the only option.

However, as a reader and writer, I can not see that happening. For one, I definitely got Vassa/Jurian vibes in ACOSF. I mean - banter. We know how SJM feels about the banter. Plus, they're both mortal, and Sarah doesn't really like to have endgame ships that can't actually be together their full lives. And I agree with what some others have said that I don't see her doing with Lucien what she did with Lorcan. She's used that already, and while Sarah can get repetitive with certain things, she likes to repeat herself in ways that can feel different.

So, as a reader who has learned a bit about SJM's general style, what she enjoys, etc., going beyond "signs" in the book, I can't see her doing Vassa and Lucien as endgame.

Beyond SJM's style and everything, though - we also have to remember what mates are in ACOTAR. They are different than Throne of Glass, just as the Fae in ACOTAR are different. These are not the same exact being types - Sarah adjusted them.

So, what do we know about mates - all from ACOWAR, ch. 24:

The male feels the bond stronger - "there will always be a...tug. For the females, it is usually easier to ignore, but the males...It can drive them mad."

Bonds are allowed to be rejected - "It has been illegal in our territory for a long, long time for males to [kill whoever their mate chooses to be with. Same with the other courts]. On the continent, there are territories that would believe the females literally belong to their mate."

Rejecting the bond is not a magical rejection - "It is their burden to fight through, but some believe they are entitled to the female. Even after the bond is rejected, they see her as belonging to them."

These are all such incredibly important points, especially when considering Lucien's future.

He feels the bond stronger - but Elain still feels it. There will always be a tug. She's just better at ignoring it, because as a female, it's easier. But he feels it, badly. I do believe Lucien is strong enough to not be driven mad, but that's how powerfully he is feeling it. We should remember that. Because if that's the case, do you really expect him to find comfort with another woman?

Bonds are allowed to be rejected...in Prythian. That's a MASSIVE caveat. This isn't like an "oh, you can undo this". No, in Prythian, their laws allow females to make a choice on who they will be with, mating bond or no. But other territories don't always allow that. Which helps lead into the next point even more:

Rejecting the bond is not a magical, official process that will release the male from the bond, in any sense. Now, the quote I pulled, Rhys is explicitly speaking about those who feel entitled to their female mate. HOWEVER, what it signifies is that, when a female rejects the bond, it is not some magical process that will suddenly lessen the tug or anything. And it sure as hell doesn't dissolve the mating bond. That bond is there, for life, and nothing can destroy it.

Sorry, but I'm going to trust Amren's understanding over everyone else's, considering she is literally thousands and thousands of years old.

So, even if E\ain rejects the bond. Which, like, if she wants to do that, go for it. I'm not saying she has to accept it, it's her life, her choice. However, that's not going to suddenly change anything for Lucien. A lot of people seem to think once she rejects it, Lucien will be more free. But no, that's not the case.

He will be just as bonded as he always was. Just as desirous for her. And, my guess, he'll be waiting to see if she'll ever change her mind, because we have no reason to believe the females can't do that.

Because of this, we can conclude Lucien is still entirely focused on E\ain, especially since she hasn't yet rejected the bond. So no, I can't believe Lucien and Vassa will be a thing. Based on the text, it sounds like it would take years - decades or centuries, even - for a male to be able to ignore the tug to his mate enough to enter into a meaningful relationship with someone else. And we don't have that kind of time in these books.

Taking out Vassa as an option, Lucien is left with E\ain. The same way E\ain is left with Lucien as I've now explained why I don't believe the next book is E\ain-Az. It's not exactly the best reason, and I'm sure Elucien shippers would hate it, but by process of elimination considering who we know we're getting journeys for, and what seems to make the most sense, E\ain and Lucien end up together.

However, I also think there's more to it than that.

As I've mentioned, I believe a piece of E\ain's journey is likely going to be her struggle with being Fae. She's not happy as a Fae, she wants her old life back. And I don't judge her for it - she had no choice in the matter, and that f*ing sucks. I do believe there will be more to her journey as well, but I believe that's going to be a big pice of her emotional arc.

Lucien has become, to E\ain, the main representation of everything she doesn't want - poor bby boi. Similar to how Nesta struggled with the idea of having an actual mate because it's such a Fae thing, and in claiming Cassian as hers she would be letting go of a final piece of her humanity, I think E\ain is also projecting a lot onto the mating bond. It's become the representation to her that she is no longer human, and is the reason she lost the things/people she loved. It's not - Grayson may have said that, but I think we all know he would have dumped her for being Fae regardless of if she had a mate or not.

So, if E\ain's arc is going to be about accepting herself as a Fae, then it makes perfect sense that Lucien would be an incredibly important piece of that story. Because, to be able to accept herself as she now is, she will have to stop blaming him and projecting her hatred of being Fae onto him. Az has no part in that journey, that arc. He, at best, could make her feel something good that might be nice for a little while. But she will not learn to love herself, to accept being Fae, by sleeping with Az.

Now, I'm sorry to say, nonnie, but that doesn't mean E\ain and Lucien are definitely endgame. Because SJM could do something where E\ain still chooses to reject the bond at the end of the journey.

That being said, I find it highly unlikely that will happen. Considering SJM said that each book will be about a "couple". It's not just "love interests". It'll be about a couple, meaning each book's couple will end up together - or, at least, most likely they will. Plus, we know that SJM enjoys her happily ever afters.

I do agree that the fact that Rhys mentioned females being able to reject the bond is a possible form of foreshadowing. HOWEVER - I actually find it very unlikely it would be about E\ain.

Why?

Because he and Feyre were talking about E\ain. SJM prefers her crumbs to be a bit more subtle than that - except maybe everything to do with Nesta and Cassian, but to be fair, neither of them are subtle either. XD

It would be such blatant foreshadowing for a conversation about E\ain's mating bond to lead to a new piece of information that females are allowed to reject the bond, to be a segment foreshadowing E\ain rejecting that specific bond.

Remember, foreshadowing is subtle hints to tell us what will happen in the future/later in the story. So, I do believe that conversation is more likely hinting at other possible mating bonds that have had rejections in the past.

I don't really believe that E\ain will reject the bond.

However, even if she does, my belief is that it would be early on in the book, maybe while she's still really in whatever dark space she'll be in. And then, for other reasons, or maybe just because she herself feels a bit more free, she ends up spending time with Lucien, and then throughout the book falls in love and at the end decides to accept the bond. Because I do believe a rejection is reversible, seeing as the bond can't be broken.

As a writer, that last scenario is actually what I would probably go for. However, this is SJM's world, and it's up to her what the different laws about everything is. I just believe a rejection is reversible because so far everything we're told about a mating bond rejection is that it's basically just a woman saying no. It doesn't magically affect the bond.

There are my thoughts on E\ain and Lucien, separating them from Az as much as I could, to explain why I believe they're likely going to be in a book together.

Admittedly, I don't have as many thoughts on them as endgame, because I will say that I haven't seen a lot of foreshadowing in the books yet to confirm that. Which is why I, again, focused more on why it makes sense that they would share a book.

Az and Gwyn

Disclaimer: I will also be referencing E\ain here. I did this on purpose, and kept certain arguments out of the E\ain-Az section because, when I talk about those two, I like to talk first and foremost about reasons why I think they're not right together or won't be in a book together without bringing in Gwyn. I believe there are a ton of signs that have nothing to do with Gwyn, and don't need her for comparison, to provide that case. Plus, I do think that if you bring Gwyn into the argument that goes against E\ain and Az, some then just say I'm biased toward Gwynriel and my reading his clouded by that.

You said, nonnie, by logic, you are about 85% certain Gwynriel are endgame. That's a decent percentage. However, I'll admit, I think I'm higher, probably closer to being between 95%-99%. Like I said, I can't be 100%. But, I'm great at deductive logical reasoning. And, if you've read the rest of this post, I believe I've already deduced that Az and Gwyn would been a book together, because like how E\ain has one other option besides Az, I think Az only has one other option besides E\ain.

He's had almost no interaction with Emerie, definitely nothing stated or seen. And we know Mor isn't an option because she and Az will never be together, since she can't be emotionally involved with men.

So, logically, I may have already convinced you that Az's book will be with Gwyn, which means they're endgame. Yes, like I said, SJM could do something where the female rejects the bond, and I could see that being an ending to the fifth book more than the sixth - but, since they're also mean to be stand alone books, to an extent, SJM is gonna want her happily ever after in all three of them. Also, more than that, I don't see SJM putting Az in a mating bond relationship where he gets rejected - he needs literally the exact opposite. A rejected bond would not put Az on the journey toward healing. It would give him a drill and he'd tunnel far beyond rock bottom to a place he'll never come back from. So, to me, no matter who it is that ends up being with Az in his book, I believe they are definitely endgame.

However, let me give a few more reasons why I think they're endgame:

1. Not a Crack Ship

Firstly, I just want to remind everyone that Gwynriel isn't a crack ship. If I'm getting technical about it, I could just say it's because they're actually in the same world - same books, even - so it's plausible because they literally know each other and can know each other. The term crack ship initially came about to talk about ships that go across fandoms. Azriel and Legolas, for example, would be a crack ship, because they are in different universes and literally could never, ever end up together.

However, more than that, I wrote a long post about why they're not a crack ship here.

In that post, I discuss the bonus POV chapter, the structure of that chapter, and what all of it most likely means, from the mind of a writer. A quick recap:

The chapter is a comparison. It is half and half Azriel's focus on E\ain and Gwyn. Beyond that, you also get a moment between Az and each girl, and then a moment between Az and another who knows what's happening (Rhys knowing about him almost kissing E\ain, Clotho knowing about him giving Gwyn the necklace) - and that those conversations provide us reflections in Az's mind that are TELLING.

Basically, the two sections mirror each other. The only reason to write a chapter like this, in this way, is to provide a comparison. The only reason to provide a comparison, UNLESS we're actually getting confirmed endgame information (i.e. say it was a true love triangle, and Az was speaking with each girl separately to tell them his decision), would be to show us that these two females have something worth comparing. In this case, it's likely their relationship with Az, in particular their effects on him and his thoughts about them, and how it all makes him feel.

We see Az get shy about his hands around E\ain, but not Gwyn. We see his shadows skitter back from E\ain's breath, but they leap out and dance with Gwyn's. We see Az think of E\ain only in the physical sense - he wants to have sex with her, but that's all we see - vs. we see Az picture Gwyn's smile at opening the gift, and he tucks it away in his heart.

These are specific comparisons, mirrors. And I didn't bring up too many details on what happened in that post, because that post wasn't meant to go into which one is endgame. But here, I can bring those up, and express that in the mirroring chapter sections, in the comparison we were given, I believe the signs point to Gwynriel.

2. Foreshadowing

I spent a lot of time talking about foreshadowing at the beginning of this post, for a reason. And while it was relevant in the other two sections, I was saving a lot for this one because this relationship has received an insane amount of foreshadowing in the shortest amount of time.

And, a vast majority of it was definitely in the bonus POV chapter. If you have not read the chapter yet, I do encourage you to look for it. It's not difficult to find it online, but make sure you get one that has both the E\ain and Gwyn section, because without the Gwyn section you don't get much of the foreshadowing.

The bonus chapter, as I mentioned, really did provide a comparison of E\ain and Gwyn. And yes, you come out of it knowing Az wants to have sex with E\ain, and he's not thinking that about Gwyn. It seems damning, except for a very important factor:

Sex isn't all Az wants.

He wants a relationship like his brothers have. That means more than sex. And yet, all we see from Az with E\ain is physical thoughts about her, or later on an argument that she should have been given to him, since her sisters were given to his brothers. Bad argument, horribly misogynistic, and none of his other points had anything to do with his actual feelings for her. She has just become a representation of what he wants, and it's blinding him.

You do see some foreshadowing in the E\ain section, much of which I do believe is hinting that they are not endgame. The biggest one is when she breaths sharply and his shadows "skitter back". That's a subtle hint that tells us his shadows reaction to E\ain.

Others might argue that it was one time, but we have seen his shadows retreat around E\ain before. We just didn't fully understand how bad it was. However, the other truth is, we can't be sure back then it was "bad". Because SJM did it with Mor too, even when Az and Mor were, I believe, endgame in her mind. It's possible SJM had remained undecided on E\ain and Az until ACOFAS, maybe even ACOSF. For all we know, SJM got Gwyn and Az on a page together, and it was like Nessian all over again. And this chapter is meant to represent that and show us how certain things that we clearly didn't always interpret to be bad (and maybe she even hadn't and just got lucky with) are, in fact, a bad sign.

My point, let's not think too hard on Az's shadows in ACOMAF and ACOWAR, because we know that these books didn't start getting planned until they were working on ACOWAR, maybe even already promoting it and done writing (?). And authors can change their minds. We writers try to stay as consistent as possible, but sometimes you just don't know every single thing that's going to happen, and new information is going to come in, and you just have to make sure it doesn't actually conflict with what you've already provided.

In this case, the idea of Az's shadows knowing who is right for him, and skittering back from those who aren't, would actually be consistent and fitting, and SJM likely needed us to understand that Az's shadows retreating aren't good.

But how did we learn that?

Well, beyond the use of "skittered back", which definitely has a more negative connotation, we get more when we see Gwyn later in the chapter.

Azriel ends up in the training ring, and there Gwyn is. Surprise! Cause his shadows didn't warn him, so now he's stuck and has to at least greet her.

While talking, at one point Gwyn's breath exhales visibly, and you get a description of Azriel's shadows "darting out to dance with it before twirling back" to Az.

That's a very new interaction with shadows, one we've never seen before. We've already seen the shadows retreating with Mor, who we know is wrong for Az but whom he pined after. Now we see them retreating again - skittering back, even - with E\ain. Another one he is pining after, though pining might be a strong word here.

We clearly know that the two reactions mean two different things. By my own logic, I would already assume that we're being told E\ain, like Mor, is not endgame for Az. And that Gwyn, who receives such a different interaction, is. However, if you're not sold, there's another part of the conversation that I believe is an important clue.

Gwyn asks Az about his being called a "Shadowsinger", if it means he sings. This, obviously, amuses Az, but his explanation is:

"I am a shadowsinger--it's not a title that someone just made."

I AM a shadowsinger. It's who Az is. It's a part of him. For Az to accept himself fully, he has to accept this about himself as well. I'm not saying he hasn't, it's just a general notion.

The shadows aren't bad, they are a part of Az, of who he is. E\ain and Mor aren't chasing nasty shadows away to let us see Az better. They're scaring away a crucial piece of who Az is, so that they'll never fully know him. You can't know and truly see Az without his shadows.

Basically, E\ain and Mor both have Az hiding a part of who he is, but around Gwyn he is himself fully, his shadows on full view. And he's comfortable - he's not worrying about it during the chapter. No, instead, he finds "something restless settling in him. Even his shadows had calmed."

These hints, in all honesty, don't feel super subtle. I'm not going to lie. However, they clearly must be a bit subtle, since not everyone is catching them or reading them the same way.

And that's fine. We all read things differently, interpret them differently. However, as a writer, and one who has read basically all of SJM's books, I do feel like I have a really good idea of her style and how to interpret what she does. It doesn't mean she can't or won't surprise me in the future, but in this, I do think my interpretation is right. Because I understand the importance of a comparison.

I believe she used the comparison as a form of foreshadowing. In fact, I believe she's done it a few times with comparisons, and that the bonus POV chapter was just the longest, most continuous comparison for foreshadowing we've seen.

3a. Banter!

I can't not bring this up. But it should be quick.

SJM has stated, out right, one of the endgame signs for her, or a sign that a couple should maybe be considered to be endgame, is banter. That is incredibly important to her. Yes, she likes wings and tattoos - but that's just what you need for the main male. But ALL her couples have some form of banter, and they're all different to suit them.

Aelin just drives Rowan nuts with innuendos and outright statements and little negliges. Manon and Dorian have that taunting type of banter going. Rhys and Feyre have a super flirty style. Nesta and Cassian just egg each other on and use sharp words that would make most people cry, but instead just makes them both hard. Even Aedion and Lysandra had their own style of banter. We didn't see as much spoken banter but, I'm sorry, Lysandra using her different animal forms to bother Aedion as they made their way to Terrasen, or her tackling him when in ghost leopard form, those are just a more physical style of banter and you cannot convince me otherwise.

It's a thing. E\ain and Az don't have banter. Sure, they talk to each other...sort of...once a year. But they don't banter.

Gwyn and Az have more of a banter-type relationship. We haven't seen too much of it yet, but just the taunting each other about the obstacle course - Az being all "no prize cause you won't do it" and Gwyn needing to prove him wrong - is a form of banter. Again, it may not be spoken, but if you broaden the concept, it is banter - a competitive banter.

3b. Relationship Trait

Similarly, all of her endgame ships have at least some trait that makes each relationship unique. It's often aligned to the banter, but it's there.

Again, with Feyre and Rhys they're just stupid flirty in an obvious way, except they do it mind to mind. Cassian and Nesta are more unique, again, in how they somehow manage to build each other up while sounding like they're tearing each other down. 👀 Elide and Lorcan have the "we're the last thing you'd expect" thing going for them - considering the insane height difference, and yet Lorcan is definitely more afraid of Elide.

Basically, there's something there that makes them unique. But, with Az and E\ain, there really isn't much other than "aw, the two prettiest got together". But that's not a trait for a relationship, just as being pretty is not exactly a personality trait - it's something that might affect your personality traits, for sure. But a person's face doesn't automatically mean any type of personality trait. But nothing would really set them apart, give them a unique aspect to their relationship and how they connect to each other.

Gwyn and Az, on the other hand, would be that ridiculously competitive couple. They'd likely connect and relate to each other through games and competitions. They'd probably use dares and challenges to push the other to be better, to go outside of their comfort zone, etc. I mean, I'm about 95% certain that the first time Gwyn flies with Az - assuming it's in a lighthearted scenario and Gwyn has had a certain amount of healing already - Az will literally be like, "You scared, Berdara?" and that's how he'll get her in the air, cause Mother-forbid she give in to that.

4. Nicknames

So, this isn't one that SJM has mentioned, but as a reader and writer I couldn't help but notice she does this for alllll her biggest ships. And typically, it's a slightly more taunting nickname, at least at first.

Rhys - Feyre darling. It's a term of endearment now, but it started out with a teasing tone.

Cassian - Nes. Yes, I'm also upset we lost sweetheart, but I think I know why - after ACOFAS SJM wrote Crescent City, and decided to give Hunt "sweetheart" for Bryce, and she doesn't like to repeat nicknames. But he also has "Nes", which also is more taunting, especially as she tells him not to call her that.

Hunt - Sweetheart. As mentioned earlier. And this most definitely started out in a taunting manner.

Aelin - Buzzard. Obvs, Aelin plays with the boys on this one. Rowan's nickname for Aelin has always been a term of endearment and soft, but "Buzzard" started off in a bit more of a taunt. It's also soft, but considering it's a reference to his hawk form and how he fusses, there's a taunting tone to it.

It's a big trend in her books that's definitely noticed, but I haven't seen it discussed as much.

And this is, to me, one of the clinchers. It is, arguably, a form of foreshadowing, but it deserved its own section.

Gwyn threw Azriel a withering stare as she strode past him. "See you tomorrow, Shadowsinger," she tossed over a shoulder.

This is really huge. He may be a shadowsinger, but people don't call him this.

At least, for ht most part. I can't remember if others ever call him just "Shadowsinger". If any do, it was definitely disgruntled Illyrians or something of that ilk, and it was meant derogatorily. Which means Gwyn is actually reclaiming that name for him, and even though it's used in a taunting way, Azriel knows it's not in a judgmental way. It's just an "I now know this is you" way.

In fact, by using that name in the way she does, it's a form of acceptance of who he is. And a reminder. Remember, he told her "I AM a shadowsinger - it's not a title..."

And here Gwyn is, turning it into a title, likely a direct reference to that conversation. And reminding him, this is who you are. I see that, I know that, and I am not afraid. I mean, she is taunting him, not to anger him or make him feel small. It's a taunt to say "Game on, I'm in, you won this round but I'll prevail" sort of thing. (Remember, competitive.)

As a writer, seeing Gwyn call Az a nickname, having noticed this trend in SJM's works, feels like a huge sign that they are endgame. Thinking about the meaning behind her using that term as the nickname does the same, because in doing so she's telling him the thing he's always wanted to hear from others - "I am not afraid".

Summary

Well, there you have it, nonnie. My own logic and facts - maybe not literally presented as perfect screenshots always, but I was doing a lot of writing - to explain my own personal opinion.

This is my own opinion, and I will not state that this is 100% a fact of what will happen, as only SJM knows what's to come completely. However, I did appreciate the question, because as someone who loves writing and does do a lot of writing, I do feel like I sometimes see things a bit differently, or look at them with a different eye - at least after the first read through.

That being said, there are other people on here that provide absolutely amazing analyses of stuff like this. Many better than mine, and far more succinct. Though, this was a big question to ask me to hit all three ships at once. lol

TL;DR

E\ain and Az are essentially both too big of characters to share a book, as they will both have big, emotional journeys to go on. The only way to get them both in a book is if one doesn't hit rock bottom, but we know Az is going to do just that and is on his way there. That would mean E\ain would be the one to not hit rock bottom, which would also mean she's not the main protagonist of the story, because that would be Az. That's not happening, E\ain will be the main protagonist of her book. But, as a writer, that rock bottom trend is obvious, and you can't have two people at their true rock bottoms as the main protagonists, because they'll never be able to pull themselves up. The love interest will have their own journey, but they'll also be the ones that are guiding the main protagonist out of the dark, as Cassian did with Nesta.

E\ain and Lucien are, kind of, logically deduced to have a book together. However, if I'm right that E\ain's journey will include her needing to accept now being Fae, and that she has been using Lucien and their mating bond as a representation of all things Fae that have ruined her life, then it would make perfect sense that Lucien would be the one to help her along her journey to acceptance. Because she will need to first stop putting it all on him.

Gwyn and Az have a lot of foreshadowing, and the main one I focused on was her shadows. It's not a new argument, but it is important to remember that comparisons can be used a multitude of ways and done differently. It's not always a blatantly obvious "well, girl a is like this and girl b is like this". It can be done throughout a whole chapter, in how you structure it. It can be done in a vignette. But what's important is to recognize the comparisons, and then analyze for foreshadowing, cause those are often a spot you'll find a wealth of it laying around. And the Az POV bonus chapter was just that - a chapter structured in a specific way to mirror the two sections and provide a comparison of the two females, and use it as a form of foreshadowing. They also hit a few important SJM endgame bingo spaces. In particular the banter, the fact that they have a trait unique to their relationship - even now, when they're just starting to be friends - and also Gwyn's nickname for him that has started out as a form of teasing, as all of the main character relationships have had in SJM's novels.

As always, these are my opinions. I have based them on my own experience in writing, as well as on my own interpretations of what I've read in ACOTAR and other SJM books to help me understand her as an author. I promise to respect your own opinions, all I ask is that you also respect mine. I have tagged this carefully, because I know not everyone wants to see this content, but if you do, please I just ask that you're respectful about it. And to read the full thing before coming back to me about it.

Many of these opinions are shared by other tumblr users, absolutely. As are the interpretations and analyses. So most likely they won't all seem new, but this is my own work. I typed it up entirely on my own over the last six or so hours - while procrastinating stuff I actually really need to do.... - without referencing others posts. If anything feels similar, I apologize for that, it's likely because you and I share the same opinions and interpretations.

#acotar #acotar thoughts #acotar theory #ask box #antielriel #anti elriel #gwynriel #elucien #gwyn #azriel #lucien #elain archeron

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sorryimananti-romantic · 3 years ago

Text

Mist | Choi San | Chapter 1

Pairing: Choi San x OC (Seohyun)

Genre: supernatural (ghost), romance, high school

Trigger Warnings: paranormal, death mentions, violence

Words: 7.2k

Disclaimer: I do not own anything except my original character and the story. I do not own any gifs or pictures used.

Full story on Wattpad (don’t spoil here if you read there too)

chapter directory

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Seohyun kicked a pebble with her boot, sending it flying in the air. The black cat following Seohyun meowed as it wandered between her legs, rubbing itself along her naked legs. Seohyun kicked another pebble, and the cat meowed louder.

"I know, I know," she said, sighing, "I shouldn't have helped him."

The cat's grey eyes twinkled and it jumped a little to keep pace with Seohyun. She adjusted her sunglasses with the tip of her finger and tucked her long hair behind her ears, keeping her eyes fixed to the ground in hopes of finding more pebbles that she could kick.

Seohyun's hands went to the straps of her school bag on her shoulders as she finally found one, and she smirked. "Hey kitty, I'm gonna kick this one real hard."

As if the cat understood, it sat near her to watch the scene. Seohyun aimed her foot, sending the pebble flying with full force as a short laugh escaped her. She waited for the satisfying sound of the pebble hitting something hard, but a wail of pain answered her instead.

"Oops," Seohyun grimaced as she motioned the cat to follow her, trying to flee before she was caught. However, luck was rarely on her side.

"It was you, right?" She heard a boyish voice call out. She sneaked a peek, seeing a group of colourful heads belonging to boys that grew larger and larger as more joined them.

"I thought I hit one? Why are there so many..." she muttered, then turned back, bowing her head in a quick apology and turning again to run away, almost tripping on the cat and it howled in pain before following her.

"Hey, stop!" She heard voices, and she just sped up. She had enough to worry about.

"Where are my ghost friends when I need them.." Seohyun muttered under her breath as she sped up, cursing mentally. She could hear steps draw closer by every second, and she finally turned abruptly, making the group of boys stop dead in their tracks, bumping at each other.

"I apologized, what do you all want now?"

"You never apologized," the blue haired one said.

"Why do you think I bowed? To thank you?" Seohyun retorted. The blonde snickered, earning a kick in his ribs from not one but two of them.

"We couldn't see from so far, at least apologize properly!"

"Alright, alright. Was it you who got hit?"

"No, it was-"

Seohyun sighed out loud. "What got you so worked up then, if it wasn't even you?"

"He's my friend?" The blue haired boy said, making it sound more like a question.

"I told you all not to make a fuss, it's not like she did it on purpose," Seohyun heard one of them say, and her eyes shifted towards the boy with black hair, the eyebrow slit further defining his sharp features. Indeed, he was hurt. There was a painful scratch where the pebble must have grazed his cheekbone.

"Ah, so it was you..." Seohyun bit her lip. She thought she should apologize properly, so she bowed properly this time, and got up. "I never meant to hurt anyone. I'm sorry."

His eyes burned holes in her even though she wore sunglasses. He pursed his lips, nodding. "It's okay, just be careful next time."

She nodded. "Can I go now?" She didn't wait for an answer and turned, motioning the cat to come along, who meowed.

"Wait!" The eyebrow-slit boy sat down on one knee, motioning the cat to come to him, who gladly obliged and Seohyun rolled her eyes. He smiled at the cat, rubbing its head and offering it a biscuit, which the cat graciously accepted, munching right into it.

"Do you even give your cat food? It's so thin."

"It's not mine," Seohyun said and the boy's head turned up to look at her, curiosity in his eyes obvious. "It followed you rather gladly."

Seohyun just shrugged, looking away from his gaze and observing the group now. They were all dressed in school uniform like her, but it looked like it was a different school. She internally smiled at the interesting mix that stood in front of her.

"San, let's go," she heard the red-head call out. San, she thought.

"I need to go now too." Seohyun said, waiting for the boy to stop playing with the cat.

The boy- San- got up and said, "You said it's not yours. Can I take it then?"

Seohyun almost said yes, but hesitated. It was true the cat was not hers, but at this point, she could call it hers, the way it always followed her around whenever she was out. She had rather grown attached to the constant presence of her black furry friend.

"Uhh, I mean you could, but..." she bit her lip as she looked back as if for help, and then turned back to the boy. "This cat is my only friend."

Seohyun hated how it had almost come as a whisper, but the boy looked like he understood as he nodded, taking a step back. "I'll see you around then," he smiled sweetly at the cat, who meowed at him.

Seohyun finally turned, not bothering to check if the cat followed her or that boy, San. She was too scared to check. But when she heard the cat meow and rub at her legs, she smiled in relief.

"I'll feed you more now, I promise," she smiled at the cat.

Meanwhile, San watched the odd pair walk away in the distance.

"So rude!" the blue haired boy said, and everyone laughed. San turned and shook his head. "Not my fault you decided to act like my parent, Hongjoong."

"Doesn't look like she's from our school, but isn't it the school near the place we usually go to eat dinner?" The blonde asked.

"Yeah, it looks like it. You're treating us to dinner there tomorrow. You remember, right Yeosang?"

"You're always hungry for food Wooyoung, how could I forget?" He answered.

The group started to walk their way, talking about their plans for dinner, but San couldn't stop thinking about the girl with the grey streaks in her hair, the girl who had no friends other than a black cat. He unconsciously shook his head, finally paying attention to his present.

----------

"I said I'm sorry!" Seohyun yelled, "Now you leave my hair, and I'll leave yours."

"You first," the woman replied.

"Together, okay? One, two, three- YOU! You lied!"

"You lied too!" The woman shouted, and pulled at Seohyun's hair, earning a satisfactory groan from her.

"It's not like you can feel pain! You're a freaking ghost!"

"Doesn't mean I'm not insulted," the woman smirked, "Alright, I'll leave you first, and you leave no more than a second after, otherwise I'll make sure you feel the pain you love." The woman let go of Seohyun's hair and Seohyun did so right after, taking quick steps backward as she massaged her head.

"Bitch..." she muttered, and the woman laughed out loud.

The woman- ghost- had been keeping Seohyun company for about two months now, occasionally popping out of nowhere and leaving just as abruptly. At first, Seohyun had tried to help her in some way, help her move on and come to terms with her sudden death by accident, but the young woman had quite a difficult death and she was the first of a kind- a ghost with amnesia. No memories of how she had died and why she hadn't moved on.

Seohyun had to admit that she had grown used to her presence. She often found herself narrating her uneventful day to her, just like today, when she had excessively complained how useless of a friend she was and how none of her ghost friends had ever done her a favour. Somehow that had turned into an argument and then to them resorting to pulling each other's hair our, except her ghost friend couldn't feel any pain since she was, well, a ghost. Dead.

"I mean," Seohyun continued, fiddling with her hair, "it would have saved me from embarrassment had you popped up and helped me out there."

"What could I have done?" The woman sat down on the pavement, the black cat gladly jumping on her lap as the woman ran her hands through her fur. "It's not like anyone else can see me."

"Hello? You could have made me disappear."

"You know it's not good for your health. Why do it unless absolutely, absolutely necessary?" The woman glared at her.

"YES! That was absolutely, absolutely necessary. There were 8 of them! I was alone!" Seohyun whined and the woman just ignored her.

"Unnie~" Seohyun sat down near her, and the woman slid away from her.

"I told you not to call me that. I have a name, and it's Jiwoo."

"How can I call you by your name? You're much older than me." Seohyun grinned.

"And that's why I don't help you. Because you're a stubborn one. Also, I'm pretty sure I'm not that old."

"That's rich coming from you," Seohyun retorted, ignoring the last remark, "I'm not the one refusing to move on just because I can't get enough of worldly pleasures."

"And that's my cue to leave you alone, like you always are. There's a reason you don't have friends, Seohyun." Jiwoo got up, putting the curled cat on the pavement.

"I do have friends-"

"I'm talking about human friends. Your sharp tongue and stubborn heart, it's about time you change that."

"I-" Before Seohyun could complete, Jiwoo disappeared. Seohyun sighed, her heart sinking a bit at her harsh but true words.

There was indeed a reason that she had no friends. And it wasn't her ability to see ghosts.

Seohyun pulled her knees to her chest, shutting her eyes. She wanted to disappear.

--------------

Senior year of high school was supposed to be tough, yes, but Seohyun had to face challenges other than academic ones.

And it wasn't just the fact that she had no social life at all; she only had a group of people she could interact with if need be, otherwise she was perfectly content on being on her own. She had no problem staying amused in her own company.

The problem was with Seohyun, though not directly. It was the problem that she could see and interact with some of the dead. And the dead made sure she got in trouble if she didn't hear their woes and skipped school to maybe find them something (or someone) they had an attachment to, or didn't take them to their loved ones immediately.

She had often tried to reason with them; she tried to explain that she was perfectly aware how bad they must have it, but she had it worse since she was still alive, and with life came unforeseen consequences, such as having to face her mother if they caused a scene (which they usually did), or if they tried to grab her attention by any means necessary, such as causing her desk to fall, her stuff to fly (where she would immediately have to either hold it or pretend to have thrown it).

She tried, oh she tried so hard to tell them to wait until she was free from school and then she would do whatever they asked her to, but no. Apparently whatever they wanted to do was more important than her school, her reputation (already in ruins), everything. There rarely was someone patient enough, and those she made sure she looked after properly. Like Jiwoo.

She wished Jiwoo was here so she could get rid of the old wrinkly man in front of her. She was trying to focus on her mathematics but it was hard to when a fat belly blocked her vision. And she couldn't even say anything out loud, so she just sent daggers through her eyes, the message in her eyes clear. But the old man just smirked, continuing to block her vision.

Seohyun sighed and turned the page of her notebook, scribbling in it, then turned the notebook to the ghost in front of her. The man was short so he didn't have to bend as he read what she had written.

"IF YOU COULD STOP PESTERING ME FOR A FEW MINUTES YOU WRINKLY OLD MAN I CAN'T FOCUS ON MATHS BECAUSE OF YOU"

The old man smirked, and Seohyun wished she could kick him somewhere he would surely feel pain even though ghosts couldn't feel pain. She was so absorbed in thinking of ways that she could make this ghost feel pain that she didn't notice him take her notebook and run away before she could snatch it back.

As soon as Seohyun noticed, she jerked in her seat, stopping herself from getting up and following him. He stopped a few feet away, teasingly coming closer and closer, the frown on Seohyun's face getting deeper and deeper until he stopped near the girl sitting in front of her, tore a page from her notebook and gave it back.

And then he did what she dreaded. He made a ball out of that paper, aimed at the teacher, taking one last look at the very satisfying horrified face of the girl who could see ghosts but refused to help them, and threw the paper ball at the teacher with considerable force, hitting him on his head.

The teacher turned, running his eyes across the classroom, not missing how everyone was glancing between the teacher and Seohyun, who folded her arms rather defensively, silently praying he wouldn't actually pick the paper ball. But the teacher bent down, and it so happened that he was also old, and a bit wrinkly, so when he read the scribbled message, his face went red.

"Who was it?!" The teacher pushed his glasses up his nose-bridge and watched as the students hesitantly pointed to Seohyun, who sank deeper into her chair, as if somehow a pit would open and swallow her.

"You meet me in my office after class." The teacher shook his head in disappointment and continued where he left.

Seohyun was given a warning, and it was her second. She had only one left before she would be kicked out of school (if something big happened, which usually did if she waited for the third warning) so she decided it was time for her to move on again.

And this time she dreaded. It was always a hassle to explain to her mom what had happened. Her mom knew she could see ghosts and when she was little, she had tried all sorts of methods, of almost all religions she could think of, hoping her only daughter would turn out normal, but she had failed. But now she liked to pretend that she had forgotten all about it, and when Seohyun told her she had gotten into trouble, she would silently nod and get her to change schools before something big happened and it got written in her school record.

So a few attempts from the old ghost trying to get her in trouble and a few days later, Seohyun was finally free of struggling. She changed schools. And tomorrow would be her first day, hopefully the last time she had to change schools before her senior year ended. Before high school ended.

Seohyun was still dressed in her old school's uniform when she went to her new school to submit her files and make sure everything was good before her first day. She had her baseball cap on this time, making sure she would hide most of her face since a lot of people would be staring at her. It was normal to stare when someone from another school came.

The black cat found her once again, following her as she walked to the building. Seohyun motioned the cat to stay and it obeyed, watching the girl walk into the building.

From a distance, San and his friends were watching the whole scene. They had recognized the girl not by her face, which was half-hidden anyway, but her cat and the grey streaks in her hair.

"Let's hope she doesn't attack you with a pebble again," Yunho snickered, and San smiled, his hand unconsciously going to the now faint scratch on his face.

"I'm not going to your rescue if that happens," Hongjoong said and Seonghwa chimed in, "Neither will I."

"I never asked you anyway..." San trailed off.

"The cat looks like it wants to escape," Jongho pointed his finger at the hoard of girls that gathered around the poor cat. "Poor cat."

"San, you should go bring the cat. It would recognize you," Mingi suggested and San considered. The cat was worth saving.

A few moments later, San was back with the cat in his arms. The cat did recognize him. He bought the cat to the boys, who lightly patted her one by one, taking turns so she wouldn't feel scared.

After about five minutes, the boys heard someone clear their throat right behind them. They turned to see it was that girl.

"Aren't you the same group from that day?" Seohyun wondered out loud.

"The cat was scared because people were gathering around her, so we brought her here," Yeosang said.

"That's... kind of you," Seohyun met eyes with each of them, and the boys got a proper look at her face for the first time without her glasses. She had light eyes. The shadows beneath her eyes were dark, which contrasted with her eyes rather strikingly.

"What were you doing here? You're not from our school," Wooyoung commented.

"Oh, I'll be joining from tomorrow..." Seohyun realized somehow she's ended up in the same school as the boys. "What class are you in?"

"Senior year, all of us," Wooyoung replied, and they didn't miss her groan.

"I'm guessing you're senior year too," Seonghwa asked, earning a nod of confirmation.

"How ironic. What if you end up in our class?" Yeosang wondered.

"God forbid," Seohyun shook her head, making them smile despite her remark. "Now, should I leave the cat here, or..."

"Does it have a name?" San asked, rubbing under the cat's chin.

"Uh, no actually," Seohyun faltered when she saw San give her a disappointed look, "I just call her kitty. You can give it a name if you want to."

"I'll think about it," San shifted his arms to hand the cat over to Seohyun, and she took it, placing the cat on her shoulders, waiting until she sat around her neck like she usually did.

"I guess I'll go now," she met eyes with San for the last time, noticing the mole on his eyelid. San nodded, and she muttered an awkward bye before walking past them, cursing at herself mentally for being so awkward with them.

"It's you who got me in trouble, you dumb cat," she muttered under her breath. The cat didn't even bother reply.

The boys watched her leave, and Yeosang finally spoke, "I have a feeling she'll be in our class now. Oh, how the tables have turned."

"Interesting," Jongho smiled, "Does San have a new friend now?"

"The cat? Sure." San smirked.

"Ah, let's see how that changes," Jongho retorted, smirking back.

---------------

Seohyun tried to calm her nerves as she looked at herself in the mirror of the girls' toilet in her new school.

The nerves always got the better of her whenever it was her first day at a school. It usually took her about three days to get comfortable with a new environment. Seohyun sighed as she wiped her sweaty palms on her black skirt, staring at her light brown eyes. She wished she could cover them with her sunglasses so she could avoid the excessive eye contact with humans and ghosts. Sadly, she couldn't do that in class.

She finally took a deep breath and somehow managed to make herself walk to the office, where she met her homeroom teacher, a middle-aged woman. She walked along with her to her class, and the teacher smiled warmly at her as she nudged her to come along.

They entered the class and watched as the boys and girls went back to sit at their seats, the room slowly falling silent. The teacher cleared her throat.

"Good morning class, we have a new student today. Please introduce yourself."

Seohyun, who had been looking down the entire time, finally gathered whatever courage she had and ran her eyes along the class as she finally spoke.

"Good morning, I am Lee Seohyun. I hope we can get along well."

"Alright, why don't you find yourself a seat?" The teacher said and Seohyun nodded, looking at the few empty seats and considering her choices.

Her first priority was to sit as far away as possible. Preferably by the window. There was one empty seat in the furthest row, but it was next to the seat by the window already occupied by someone-

It was one of those boys. She only knew San's name for now, and it was the blonde one. She quickly scanned her other options and decided this was the best for now.

As she made her way, she realized the 8 of them were all sitting around the empty seat that she was about to sit on. San was in front of her, the strawberry blonde on her other side, the rest around them too. She wondered if the seat belonged to one of their friends so she quietly asked the blonde, "Is this seat free?"

He shook his head and she internally sighed in relief as she settled herself, focusing on whatever the homeroom teacher said, trying not to stare holes at the back of San's head, until she left a few minutes later and she slumped back in her chair.

San finally turned, raising his brows, "What a coincidence."

Seohyun shrugged, straightening her skirt. "Ironic, really."

"Is there a reason you changed schools?" The blonde turned towards her, resting his head on his hand as he looked at her curiously.

"Uh," Seohyun hesitated as she tried to recall her excuse for every time someone asked her this, "for convenience. It's closer to home."

"That's an interesting reason to change school," he replied, earning a shrug.

"Maybe she doesn't want to tell you why exactly. Am I right?" San locked eyes with her, his smirk growing.

"Maybe," Seohyun teased back.

"How's your cat?" She heard someone call, and she looked at the black haired boy.

"It's not exactly mine, but it's fine. Probably."

"That's... reassuring. I'm Wooyoung by the way. This is Yeosang-" he pointed to the blonde next to her, "San, and that's Yunho next to you."

She looked at Yunho and he waved shyly. "That's Seonghwa," he pointed in front of him, and when Seohyun nodded, he continued, "The blueberry is Hongjoong, the red one is Jongho, and that's Mingi over there."

Seohyun nodded slowly, looking at them all slowly. "Yunho, Seonghwa, Hongjoong blueberry,-"

"I heard that!" Hongjoong shouted, turning around and making a pout at Seonghwa. Ignoring him, she continued, "San, Jongho in the front, then Mingi beside him, Wooyoung and Yeosang. I got it."

"You're quick," Yunho grinned. Seohyun wished she could tell him that it was because of the several hundred ghosts she had met and had promised never to forget their names.

"So the 8 of you are friends?" She asked, and San nodded. "Why was this seat in the middle empty then?"

"Mingi used to sit here but his eyesight got worse so he moved to the front."

"Well, that explains..."

Their teacher walked in, a man in his 30s, and she found out he was to be her math teacher. At least he's not old and wrinkly, she thought as she took out her notebook.

---------

The rest of her day was uneventful, except for the break when the boys asked if she wanted to join them but she didn't. She said she had to go to the office, but that was a lie. She wanted to take a breather.

When they left, she looked again at her options. She was already regretting sitting among the group of friends. She was going to be a disturbance to them, or something even worse. She didn't want them to think she was weird. Not yet.

She surprised herself at the thought. Why did she care? She had never cared before. But she told herself it was probably because she had a few encounters with them before and it would be weirder if they found out now. That she was strange. They'd probably stop talking to her very suddenly. That part always hurt her, which was why she always avoided making friends.

Seohyun shook her head and looked at the empty seat in the middle of the room. The spot was out of question. Being in the middle of the room meant she could be surprised from anywhere by those damned ghosts.

Then there was one in the very front with the wall. She could go there, but...

She felt more comfortable here. The spot was perfect. The problem was the boys. They were in for disappointment.

She saw some girls staring at her. They were probably considering if they should talk and make friends with her. But Seohyun was in no mood for friends, so she just put her head on the desk and closed her eyes.

She almost drifted to sleep when she heard someone put something on her desk. She got up and saw that it was San. "We figured you didn't have time for lunch, so."

Seohyun looked from the bread and juice to San, and back at the food presented to her. "Thank you, that's uh... very kind of you?" She looked at San and Yeosang, and they laughed shamelessly at her.

"You don't sound so happy," Yeosang commented and she shook her head, sipping at the juice to prove her point as she said, "No, actually I'm glad, but it wasn't necessary."

They just shook her head at her, smiling as they absorbed themselves in some discussion. Seohyun silently ate the bread, wishing she could disappear because she didn't even know how to thank people properly.

At that moment, Jiwoo the ghost appeared, and Seohyun muttered, "About freaking time."

Jiwoo laughed and said, "I see you're having a good day."

"And I don't expect you to ruin it, so please live up to my expectations for once," Seohyun hissed, keeping her voice as low as possible, but it still made Seonghwa look at her once before he focused back on his friends.

Seohyun sighed. She couldn't write in her notebook now because they would definitely see it. And she couldn't talk. So she just folded her arms as she slowly sipped on the juice while Jiwoo danced around the classroom.

As soon as the bell rang indicating the end of the day, Seohyun sighed in relief. The day was over without any incident. She slowly packed her bag, thinking about her promise to meet a new ghost after her school. It was a girl about her age, and thankfully she understood what school demanded of her, so she had promised to not disturb her.

"You look ready to go to your bed and fall right asleep," Yeosang commented.

"Tell me about it," Seohyun muttered, wearing her bag and making her way out of the class, the boys not far behind.

San watched Seohyun walk as if she was in a hurry but couldn't care less at the same time. She would speed up, then slow down again, and repeat.

"Are you in a hurry?" Wooyoung asked her, falling in step with her.

"Uh, not really. Just can't wait to get home," she said, but her voice didn't match what she said. She sounded the least excited to do that.

"Long day, huh?" Wooyoung said and she finally passed him a smile. "So you know no one at this school?"

"Well," she said, "I am new."

"Well, you can be our friend. Only if you want to."

She stopped in her track, making San almost bump in her, and she muttered a sorry to him as she continued walking again. San decided he would join them now.

"Something wrong?" he asked.

"Not sure you'd like me as a friend."

"And why do you think that?" San looked at her curiously.

Seohyun sighed, "I'm... how do I put it? I don't think I need friends. But that sounds rude. I don't mean to sound rude, it's just... better if you all don't mind me. I'd only be a bother and make everyone uncomfortable."

"We don't mind. We weren't all friends from the beginning. The group grew larger with time."

"And why do you think you don't need friends?" San asked.

Seohyun looked at him, then looked away, trying to avoid his steel gaze. "Not the type of person anyone would like as a friend."

"We won't know until we try though," Wooyoung said and smiled at her, making Seohyun wonder why the world didn't have more Wooyoungs.

"No harm in trying, right?" Yunho, who was behind her, vouched in.

Seohyun stopped to look at the odd group of friends, who were all smiling cheekily.

"You sure, blueberry?" She asked Hongjoong, who gasped in surprise. Yunho laughed out loud.

"If you don't call me blueberry, then why not?"

"Blueberry." Seohyun said and turned to walk away, hearing everyone laugh and make fun of Hongjoong. She saw the familiar figure of the ghost she had decided to meet, and she motioned with her eyes to turn to their left.

The ghost understood and it waited for her to turn left too. Seohyun looked back once at the boys who were now a good few steps behind, and she turned left, hoping no one had seen her, saw the empty road and joined hands with the ghost. She felt the familiar feeling of her heart sinking and her stomach flipping as the ghost teleported her to where it wanted to go.

The boys, who did notice her turning left in a hurry, followed soon after, only to find a very empty road with no where she could have gone or hidden.

"She did turn left. Right?" Mingi asked.

"She did. Didn't she? Or am I losing it finally?" Jongho muttered.

"Maybe it wasn't her?" Wooyoung suggested.

"But it was her. The grey in her hair..." Yunho said. "Maybe she turned right?" He looked at his right, where a few students were walking too.

San had been watching her and he was very sure she had turned left. Where she had gone... was a mystery.

"Strange..."

---------------

"That's... horrible."

Seohyun stood in front of a small house, the white walls glaring back at her. The ghost, a young girl only her age, had just teleported her to an empty alley near this house, which belonged to her best friend. The ghost had just finished telling her how she had died; a road accident by a drunk driver. Since she had died an untimely death, she couldn't do anything about it except mourn over her own death.

"But... people who die in such accidents usually like to make sure justice is served, and get the perpetrator punished. Don't you wanna do that?"

"Oh, I did," the girl pushed her long black hair back, "my parents are doing a good job there, so I wanna let them continue. I don't... want them to know that I'm still here. They should find their peace with all this."

"Wow," Seohyun couldn't help but be amazed at how thoughtful this girl was, "that's very wise of you actually. So what are we doing here?"

"I checked on my friend, Chaeyoung, and it seems like she's not... doing well. I want to somehow let her know that I'm okay. I think that's when I'll be able to move on."

Seohyun, for once, felt actually sorry for the friend. She didn't have a best friend so she couldn't relate, but having someone like that in your life and so suddenly losing them... must be very sad.

"Okay, let's do this," Seohyun said, taking a deep breath and taking off her baseball cap off. She smoothened her uniform and finally rang the bell.

"What if someone else is home, and she creates a ruckus-"

"I checked, she's alone for now." The girl said, and again, she mentally applauded the girl for being so thoughtful.

"Hey, what was your name again? I mean how do I introduce-"

At that moment, a tall girl sporting a bob and puffy eyes fresh from crying opened the door.

"Hi," Seohyun said.

"Do I know you?" Chaeyeong asked.

"You don't, but I'm here to talk to you. I heard your friend recently passed away-" Seohyun paused when Chaeyoung rolled her eyes and attempted to shut the door at her face.

"Wait!" Seohyun said and Chaeyoung paused.

"My name is Soojin." The ghost finally said, and Seohyun looked at her once, catching her nervous stance before turning back to Chaeyoung.

"You might not believe it, but Soojin is here," Seohyun said, and Chaeyoung pursed her lips. "And I don't have all day, so I'll just prove it. Soojin told me some stuff only the two of you would know. How you had a crush on her brother for the longest time, how you want to meet your childhood best friend who's moved to the States, how-"

"Wait," Chaeyoung stepped out, "How- when did Soojin tell you this? Are you Soojin's friend?"

"My name is Seohyun. and I'm sure you've never heard of me from Soojin," Chaeyoung nodded and Seohyun continued, "Soojin is here. She hasn't been able to move on to the afterlife or whatever it is ahead because she can't stand seeing you in pain and blaming yourself because you invited her over to meet with you. She wants you to know that her parents are doing a great job at making sure the drunk driver gets punished, and she wants you to know it's not your fault."

Seohyun watched Chaeyoung's eyes fill with tears at that, and she put a hand in front of her mouth as tears fell, "She's really here?"

"Right here," Seohyun pointed towards where Soojin stood.

"Can't I see her?" Chaeyoung asked, "I want to see her one last time. If I can."

"I'm afraid not," Seohyun sighed, "I don't know if that's possible. But she can see you and hear you right now, just like me. So I'll leave you to say your last goodbye. You can call me when you're done, okay Soojin?"

Soojin nodded and Seohyun went into the little garden in the house to give them some space. She watched as Chaeyoung cried and spoke to her best friend for the last time, falling to her knees. Soojin couldn't touch her, but she patted her head and it was like Chaeyoung could actually feel it.

Seohyun looked up at the cloudy sky. For once, she wished it was sunnier.

After a few minutes, Soojin called out to Seohyun. She awkwardly patted Chaeyoung on the back, and Soojin started speaking as Seohyun told Chaeyoung that Soojin loved her, and yes, it was her who kept sticking their photo back at the wall to give her a sign, and she wanted Chaeyoung to stop talking to the walls because she won't be there to listen to her anymore and that would only make her look crazy (at which Chaeyoung laughed).

"I don't have a best friend, but you guys, you both had something special. And I'm saying this from my self, that I hope you cherish the bond you both had in your heart and really move on. Do what you want to, because life is short," Seohyun said and smiled.

"Thank you. I'll do my best," Chaeyoung wiped the last of her tears.

"She's going now," Seohyun said, "She wants you to smile so that's the last thing she sees."

Chaeyoung smiled as tears fell from her eyes, and Soojin said, "This fool. I told her to smile."

"Stop being so petty, Soojin, she is smiling!"

"What did she say?" Chaeyoung asked.

"She said she asked you to smile, not cry," Seohyun said and Chaeyoung burst out laughing.

Soojin thanked Seohyun for helping her, and she watched as she shut her eyes, and disappeared in an instant.

Seohyun sighed, and Chaeyoung understood. "Thank you, Seohyun. I hope we can meet again?"

"Oh, you don't have to do that," Seohyun shook her head, "I just hope you'll have a good life ahead."

"I feel bad for not doing anything for you, maybe I could take you for some coffee next time?"

"Well, actually," Seohyun looked around, "there is something you can do. Can you tell me where I am? And can you call me a taxi?"

-----------

It turned out Seohyun was actually quite a while from home, so Chaeyoung ended up paying for the taxi because she felt bad for Soojin being so thoughtless when she teleported her here (at which Seohyun admitted Soojin was one of the wisest ghosts she had encountered). About 40 minutes later, Seohyun decided to drop by at a food street, because she was starving.

Seohyun walked through the hustling street, various food carts lining the street, several restaurants and cafes amidst them. She decided jjajangmyeon would do, so she sat alone at the table in the street, waiting for her meal. She was too tired to look at her phone so she just watched the people walking and eating.

She wished Jiwoo was here. Better than having no company. She wouldn't admit it, but she had grown quite used to her company. Jiwoo still hadn't been able to recall her memories of who she was and how she died, and why she was still hanging around. So Seohyun had left her at it.

Seohyun was so lost thinking about Jiwoo that she didn't notice Seonghwa, Hongjoong and Mingi approaching her until they stopped right in front of her.

"Of all the places," Seohyun wondered out loud, not caring how it might sound to them.

"It seems like we were meant to meet today," Mingi said dramatically, and Hongjoong slapped his arm as he said, "It looks like you haven't gone home yet. Isn't it very late?"

Seohyun sat back in her chair, putting one leg on top of the other. "And what do you care?"

"Ah, so that's what you meant when you said people don't like to have you as a friend," Hongjoong said, and Seonghwa gasped at his friend as he scolded him, but stopped when Seohyun laughed out loud.

"Since you're here, are you gonna take a seat or will you be continuing to walk aimlessly?"

"I guess we'll take a seat," Mingi said, and they all sat and decided to order food first.

"Aren't you cold?" Seonghwa asked, as he noticed how Seohyun put her bag on her bare legs.

"I am. But I'm okay," she said, and Seonghwa shook his head as he started to take off his jacket. "Oh please, I'm okay, I'll feel really bad if you do this."

"Nonsense, this is an extra layer anyway," Seonghwa handed her the jacket and she realized it was true; he did have many layers on him. So Seohyun put his jacket on her legs, muttering a thank you.

"So what's your story?" Hongjoong asked, and Seohyun raised her brows as she said, "You first. I'll talk after I have some food."

"Alright then," Hongjoong said, and told her how they all had been classmates since elementary, with Seonghwa and Hongjoong being friends since that time, until Wooyoung and Yeosang who had also been friends joined, then one by one the group grew.

"Interesting," Seohyun said, "And the 8 of you... How do you get along peacefully? I can't even get along with one."

Mingi pfft-ed at her. "We aren't exactly saints ourselves, but with us being 8, it becomes hard to take anyone serious."

Seohyun scoffed, "So the reason you all get along so well is because you all don't take anyone serious."

"Basically, yes," Mingi answered proudly, and food was served. Seohyun hungrily dig in, and Seonghwa scolded her for eating so quick.

"So with Seonghwa as a mother figure of the group," Seohyun began, "I can imagine why there is peace among all of you."

"Ha. ha. Very funny," Seonghwa rolled his eyes but Hongjoong and Mingi laughed, agreeing with her as they said, "She's not wrong."

She watched them bicker back and forth and wondered if this could really work out. They seemed very tightly knit, and she felt like an intruder. She wasn't even sure if they would feel comfortable with her. Why had they even asked her to be their friend?

"It really does show. That you've been friends for a long time," Seohyun commented, fiddling with her noodles.

"It does, huh?" Mingi smiled at her.

"Can I ask you something?" Seohyun said, and they nodded, "Why did you ask me to be your friend? I mean, you guys look okay as you are now. You don't need an extra friend in this group of yours. So why ask, and why me?"

"Well, how do I put it..." Hongjoong wondered out loud.

"You've got good aim," Mingi said, and for a second, Seohyun was lost before she realized.

"I didn't do that on purpose!" Seohyun's eyes were wide, and Mingi told her that he, of course, was joking, But he winked right after, which made her wonder if that was actually one of the reasons.

"Our group needs a girl. There are too many boys." Seonghwa said, and Seohyun raised an eyebrow.

"I'm sure there's no lack of girls in your school."

"There isn't... but they are too... girly?" Hongjoong seemed to think how to put it, and Seohyun folded her arms.

"And what if I am girly too?" Seohyun countered.

"You're just the right amount of weird. Yeosang already clicked so well with you. San loves your cat. You sit in the middle of us. You have no friends. Now you can't avoid it."

"Wow, okay," Seohyun finished her noodles as she thought about what they had said. "And what if... we don't get along?" Seohyun asked.

"We're not exactly forcing you, are we?" Hongjoong asked and she nodded, "If you like to stay alone, then fine. But Wooyoung, it was his idea. And he really knows when a person needs a friend."

"Oh," Seohyun realized what he meant. She looked like she needed friends.

"Plus, we do get along well, don't you think?" Mingi smiled.

"Well, what can I say, except that you'll find me really weird. And okay, I can try. But one day, you're gonna wonder why you even thought we could be friends. You'll wish you'd never asked me."

The three of them stared at her. Seohyun stared back and once again, the three of them burst out laughing.

"We're already regretting. Was it so hard to make friends, Hongjoong?" Mingi asked.

"I don't even remember. Wow."

Seohyun couldn't help but laugh as she thought how it was gonna be. It was true. No one took anything serious.

Maybe they'll never find out about her ghost problems then.

Or maybe they'll never believe her.

----------

103 notes · View notes

sharuruwrites · 3 years ago

Text

Extras

Timeline:

Heart Forecast & Unfortunate: Gojo (18), Shion (17)

Blessings: Gojo (27), Shion (26)

A/N: And now this story in tumblr should be up to date with the one I had in AO3. I may explore more on Naoya and Shion's interaction somewhere in the future if something just pops into my head.

As for why I wrote these three short stories, they're just sitting in my drafts and I feel it would be a waste not to publish them.

Disclaimer: I don't own JJK as it belonged to a Vol. 0 movie goer, Gege Akutami.

Masterlist

Previous Chapter / Next Chapter

Heart Forecast

Every year on the 14th of February, normal shit becomes more expensive than it already is. People spend thousands of yen planning the perfect gift/date for their partners. There's no room for error or it'll be the one-way ticket to break-up.

It’s also the perfect day to annoy the fuck out of singles. Usually, it's about their never-changing relationship status or them never getting a date.

As for Gojo Satoru, he had been on a couple of dates last year. He only went with them to his boredom. At least, he got free chocolates from the girls he used to date.

But, for this year? Gojo was sure enough that he won’t be getting any. Yet, if he had to expect, most likely one of his exes. He had some who couldn't accept the outcome of their relationship. They would do it out of false hope of getting back together.

Before someone pointing fingers at him, Gojo was clear as fucking day when he broke up with them. He had Geto and Shoko to back up his claims.

Ever since meeting Shion, the idea of meeting other girls doesn’t sound appealing anymore. When he learned of the Shion’s true feelings towards his best friend, he went back to his old ways. Yet, it proved to be pointless.

Although it provided him a moment of distraction. His mind kept going back to Shion. Gojo gave up in his fifth try and chose to keep burying it whenever it resurfaced.

"Gojo-senpai!"

Speaking of the devil.

Gojo looked behind and saw his favourite first year running towards him.

"I won't be taking much of your time, Senpai," Shion began to rummage through her school bag. "I only need a minute!"

Gojo raised his brows in curiosity as he waited for her. It’s rare for his favorite first-year student to be looking for him unless something important comes up.

However, his gut told him otherwise because today's Valentines Day.

According to some of the Shoujo manga, yes he read some of them when he's bored. This occasion served as the perfect time for someone to confess their love.

Could this mean Shion will declare her love for him? If that were the case, when?! Should he said yes? But what if she got rejected by Suguru and went for him out of rebound?

“Here,” Shion gave him a bag of handmade chocolates. “I hope it's up to your standards.”

"Wait, that's it?" It earned him a confused look on Shion's face. "Aren't you going to profess your undying love to your handsome senpai?"

Gojo found himself amused when Shion's blank face exploded into a blushing mess in a split second.

"I-I mean I do like you but not in that sense! If anything, I-WHY ARE YOU LIKE THIS!?"

The first-year student ran in the opposite direction from him. Yet, she missed the rare opportunity to see Gojo's red face with a lopsided grin.

Geto, who arrived at the scene from Shion's direction, dumbfounded at the sight of Shion ran past by him.

"What's with the stupid smile on your-Ah, I see." The sight of the chocolates in his friend's grasp makes him not question it further.

"Aren't I lucky?" Gojo dangled his gift in front of Geto's face. "To receive such gratitude in the form of chocolates."

"You're not special," Geto pulled out a bag of chocolates from his pocket. "I have it too."

Once Gojo processed his best friend’s words, he did the most reasonable thing. He snatched it from Geto’s grasp and made a run for it.

“GET BACK HERE, YOU LITTLE SHIT!”

"I NEED THIS MORE THAN YOU, ASSHOLE!"

And that’s the story of how Gojo and Geto got themselves an hour long sermon from the principal.

-----------------------------

Unfortunate First Meeting of Naoya Zen'in

"You need to throw more weight into your swings, Nanamin." Shion said as she wiped her sweat from her forehead while holding her staff in her free hand.

"Will you stop calling me that?" Nanami got up from the ground before dusting off the dust from his tracksuit.

"I don't see anything wrong with it." Haibara stated, bringing his arms behind his head. "If anything, it'll make you more approachable to others."

"I agree," Shion nodded before giving her classmate a thumbs up. "It has a cute and simple tune to it, easy for everyone to remember."

Nanami let out an annoyed sigh before shaking his head.

"Shion Ito?"

Shion turned around, and the other two turned their attention to the direction of the voice. They saw a boy around their age with blonde hair, but the tips of his hair were black. She had a bad feeling about this.

"And you must be?" Shion cocked her head to the side.

"The future leader of the great Zen'in clan." The blonde boy introduced himself with an arrogant smirk. "Naoya Zen'in"

"I have to admit," Naoya scanned Shion from head to toe. His gaze on her as if he’s an appraiser determining the value of a prized item. Shion had to admit, the boy before her could be more annoying than a certain white-haired student.

"I didn't expect Tsukumo's student to be a girl. Despite the eyepatch, she picked someone with a pretty face at least."

"You must be here for the Goodwill event coming up." Haibara suggested, hoping to change the subject before things escalated. "Are you here to train with us?"

"With the girl included?" Naoya scoffed. "Don't make me laugh. A woman's sole purpose is to support a man from three steps behind. If they fail to do so, they deserve death."

Haibara looked upset at what he had heard from the latter. Nanami clenched his fists as if he was preventing to do something reckless. As for Shion, she still retained her aloofness, but the tightened grip on her staff said otherwise.

Without a word, Shion got close to Naoya and the boy got offended by it. Where did this girl got the audacity to approach him within his personal space?

She hadn’t earned the privilege to see him up close. It looked like he had to be the one to teach her place.

"Got a problem with it?" Naoya asked. "It's not like I said something wrong-"

Despite being the son of the fastest sorcerer, Naoya didn’t register what happened. All he felt was something hard smack across his cheek.

Nanami and Haibara watched the Zeni’n’s body fell to the side, unconscious. They looked at Shion with their jaws drop. Yet, they wore two different expressions; amazed and disbelief.

“There’s a mosquito on his cheek.”

True to her word, Shion raised her hand and there it was; a squashed mosquito on the palm of her hand.

Unbeknownst to her, that’s how Naoya started taking an interest in her on this particular day. He swore he'd do whatever it takes to make her stay by his side.

After all, becoming the next clan head of the Zen'in clan requires a wife like Shion.

-----------------------------

Blessings for you everyday

“I’m home…” Gojo announced while taking off his bandages.

The sound of his tired voice echoed throughout their shared house. Not a second passed by, He heard footsteps coming from the living room.

“Ah, Satoru.”

Immediately, Gojo felt his breath got taken away at the sight of his wife. Her usual messy hair is now tied up in a neat bun. A tint of pink dusted her pale cheeks that compliments her red lips. The dark blue dress she wore hugs her figure in the right places. He couldn’t help but stare and take in every detail as he walked towards her.

"Oh, hello beautiful stranger~" Gojo offers his hand to Shion with a charming smile on his face. "May I take you out on a date in this fine evening we have?"

Instead of an answer, Shion scanned him from head to toe. Once she's done, her head tilted to the side with a curious look.

"Did you forget what date today is?"

'Today's December 7th, what's so important about it?' Gojo thought. Should he pretend or play dumb?

“Of course, I remember!” Gojo let out a chuckle before giving his wife a smile. “I’m not like you who forgot to bring the kids home from Disneyland.”

“T-that was one time!” Shion argued.

“What about that one time where Megumi found you in a-”

“SATORU!”

A defeated sigh escaped from his wife’s lips. Shion knew she couldn’t win this one. She would let this one slide because it’s a special day.

Meanwhile, Gojo began racking his brain for important dates. If it weren’t for the missions and the pressure from the higher ups, he wouldn't be in this situation.

It couldn’t be their wedding anniversary because he remembered a crucial detail. Under the cherry blossom, he remembered how beautiful she looked in a *shiromuku as she walked next to him.

Her birthday? That’s not it. The wallpaper of his lock screen was proof of it. He took it on her 23rd birthday as they watched the sunrise of a new year.

Back then, Gojo didn't have the intention to take a candid picture of Shion. Yet, her smile, her blushing cheeks and the angle of the sunlight made him want to capture it.

If that's not it, what could it be then?

“I'm sorry, Satoru”

Those words pulled Gojo back from reality and his mind went into a bit of a panic state. Because of this, questions started to form in his head.

What is she feeling sorry for? Shouldn't he be the one apologizing to her?

Immediately, he enveloped his wife into a hug and her warmth melted away his fatigue. The intoxicating scent of her perfume wanted to take Shion all night long. However, Gojo had to bury that desire as his top priority is to make her feel better.

“It’s alright, Shion,” Gojo stopped hugging her before he took her small hand into his. “You don’t have to worry about it.”

“I appreciate it, but…” Shion scratched her cheek. “It doesn’t change the fact that the reservation I made for your birthday got canceled at the last minute."

Wait, today is his birthday? He needed some kind of confirmation about this.

Thanks to his six eyes, he managed to take a peek at Shion's planner that was lying open on the coffee table.

Dec. 7, 2016 - Idiot's birthday @ his favorite restaurant in Ginza What to do? They canceled my reservation. (;﹏;)

“It’s fine,” Gojo reassured her. “The birthday gift I want is already here.”

“What is it?” Shion asked.

“It’s right in front of me!”

At first, Shion blankly looked at her husband. In front of him? What could he mean by that? The only thing that’s before him is her…

“H-HOW CAN YOU SAY THAT WITH A STRAIGHT FACE?!”

#gojo fluff #gojo x reader #gojo x oc #jjk fanfic #gojo satoru x oc #gojo satoru x reader

16 notes · View notes

silverypurple-rosedlions · 4 years ago

Text

𝓣𝓱𝓮 𝓟𝓾𝓻𝓹𝓵𝓮 𝓡𝓸𝓼𝓮

━━━━━━☓━━━━━━

• Activated on August, 22, 2020 •

• Redesigned on October 8, 2020 •

━━━━━━☓━━━━━━

🛑DISCLAIMER 1/2🛑: These chatbots do NOT represent Jeonghan, Joshua, Jun, Wonwoo, Jihoon, Minghao, Mingyu, Seokmin, Seventeen, and Pledis in any shape or form. Neither do I claim to be them. This is purely made for entertainment and fiction purposes.

🛑DISCLAIMER 2/2🛑: I am not licensed in psychology, nor am I studying it as part of my education. But, I am studying it in my free time and I am learning about each disorder to the best of my abilities. What will be mentioned is based on true information from those who have studied, or have that disorder.

🛑Trigger Warning🛑: This will contain strong language, mentions of violence and gore, and especially mental illnesses. If you are uncomfortable with the following topics, do not proceed any further for your safety. If you wish to only know small information about the members, you are more than welcomed to avoid reading their quoted and mental and physical illnesses, but do acknowledge that they have them.

━━━━━━☓━━━━━━

𝕭𝖔𝖘𝖘

◈ ━━━━━━🥀━━━━━━ ◈

"You know boys, I'm getting real tired over all this bullshit. So... Have at it. Free for all! Witness our bloody parade, you filthy shits! Let us bring you the blessing of eternal slumber from this tainted world!"

◈ ━━━━━━🥀━━━━━━ ◈

[Name]: Yoon Jeonghan

[Alias]: Angel; Angel of Death

[Soon-To-Be Husband]: Hong Joshua Jisoo

[Characteristics]:

[Mental and Physical Illnesses]:

Depression: A disorder that causes the person constant feelings of sadness, unmotivation, discouragement, and lost of interest in daily activities. It affects feelings and behavior, leading to numerous emotional and physical complications.

Psychotic Disorder (Psychosis): A mental disorder where a person feels detached from reality; disconnected with reality and more invested into a fabricated reality created by the brain.

Schizophrenia: A disorder, a psychotic disorder, that disrupts how the person thinks, feels, and behaves. The fabricated reality created by the brain affects this, altering all three listed.

Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD): A disorder in which a person has difficulty recovering from past events in their lives that impacted them negatively; an event that was extremely terrifying.

[Facts]:

-> Due to past events, Jeonghan has trust issues. Until the person proves that they are harmless to him and his group, Jeonghan will be distant and blunt, making sharp remarks and will push the person away if they aren't of any use to his group.

-> As a side effect from Schizophrenia, Jeonghan is known to repeatedly tap the temple of his head, twitching and jerking. If irritated, he will begin to tap violently to the point he's inflicting pain to himself, such as: pulling hair, slamming hands against his head, digging his nails into his body, and more.

-> His past is a very sensitive topic for him. He will not answers or explain his past unless you have gained his full trust. If asked constantly, Jeonghan will not hesitate into inflicting pain due to being triggered. So do NOT question his past until close with him.

-> Due to a failed experiment meant to help Jeonghan with his beginning stages of Schizophrenia, Jeonghan's eyes are able to go blue. This being referred by all members as, "blue eyes." When in this state, Jeonghan loses all senses of the world around him, encased in his episode, and will attack anything and anyone until episode is over, or is calmed.

𝖀𝖓𝖉𝖊𝖗𝖇𝖔𝖘𝖘

◈ ━━━━━━🥀━━━━━━ ◈

"I may not be as psychotic as my lover, and I seem sweeter than some. But that does not mean I'll let you live another day... Instead, I'll make sure you're real pretty. I'll make SURE to create a beautiful bouquet of flowers and YOUR intestines while your body is as empty as your HEART,"

◈ ━━━━━━🥀━━━━━━ ◈

[Name]: Hong Joshua Jisoo

[Alias]: Joshua

[Companion]: Yoon Jeonghan

[Characteristics]:

[Mental and Physical Illnesses]:

Bipolar Disorder (Manic Depression): A disorder when a person's moods swing easier than usual, ranging from depressive lows to manic highs; from feeling depression to suddenly feeling euphoria, feeling energized and creative, but to a higher extent.

Anxiety Disorder: A mental disorder in which feelings such as anxiety, fear, and worry are heightened, becoming strong enough to create issues within a person's daily life. This can also lead to side effects such as: hyperventilating, fatigue, sweating, insomnia, lack of concentration, and more.

[Facts]:

-> Joshua is Jeonghan's main pillar, the only one who has the largest impact on the Boss and is able to calm Jeonghan from Schizophrenic episodes quicker than the rest.

-> Joshua is one of the friendliest members in The Purple Rose. He's easier to approach, but do not underestimate him. Sometimes, buried underneath his sweet smile and kind words is a beast that is feared by everyone.

-> Joshua is one, out of two people, who had sent Jeonghan in a Mental Asylum in hopes that they could help him. But it failed, and Joshua still feels guilty for sending Jeonghan to a horrendous place, despite receiving forgiveness when the two reunited.

-> When nervous and anxious, Joshua's eyes will dart around the room, looking at various objects and people to calm himself. That, or he will turn to Jeonghan, the members, or listen to music to ground himself.

-> It may not seem like it, but Joshua has slight yandere tendencies that are very rare to see. But he will become jealousy and "territorial" over Jeonghan, being that many attempt to seduce the Boss for their personal gain.

𝕾𝖚𝖕𝖕𝖑𝖎𝖊𝖗/𝕾𝖕𝖞

◈ ━━━━━━🥀━━━━━━ ◈

"Even though I may seem like I'm given the less "exciting" job today, doesn't mean I can't have my own type of fun with this. And since you tried to scam us with these useless supplies and weapons, I guess I'll have my pleasure in blasting your brains to bits thinking we were gullible, sir. I'll make sure no one will be able to know who you are when I'm through with you."

◈ ━━━━━━🥀━━━━━━ ◈

[Name]: Wen Junhui

[Alias]: Jun

[Soon-To-Be Husband]: Jeon Wonwoo (@seventeen-chatbot)

[Characteristics]:

[Mental and Physical Illnesses]:

Psychotic Disorder (Psychosis)

Schizophrenia

Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD)

[Facts]:

-> Due to Schizophrenia, Jun has the habit of constantly moving, such as: bouncing legs, twitching and jerking, and tapping his fingers on a flat surface. Some say he picked up the habit of tapping on flat surfaces from Jeonghan, who constantly taps his temples.

-> Jun is known to be the second member of The Purple Rose to be the messiest with his victims, following Jeonghan. He's known for tearing people apart, whether they're alive or already dead.

-> So far, Jun is prohibited from any interaction with children due to his violent tendencies to them. But it is unknown as to why children trigger him.

-> Jun learned Kung Fu and Martial Arts during his youth, using that to his advantage if ever his weapons are restricted from him.

-> Jun is known for copying others sayings and actions, such as small gestures and few sentences or words, repeating them without knowing so, being that it became his habit.

𝕹𝖊𝖌𝖔𝖙𝖎𝖆𝖙𝖔𝖗/𝕷𝖔𝖔𝖐𝖔𝖚𝖙

◈ ━━━━━━🥀━━━━━━ ◈

"Listen, and listen well, because I don't want to repeat this again. You made a FUCKING deal. You promised that you'll pull through your end of the bargain as we did. So if you can't give the shit we requested, the deal is off. Your area is now OURS, and frankly, we have a BETTER person to run that waste of space you've created. So, nighty night BASTARD. Say hi to Satan for us,"

◈ ━━━━━━🥀━━━━━━ ◈

[Name]: Jeon Wonwoo

[Alias]: Wonwoo

[Companion]: None

[Characteristics]:

[Mental and Physical Illnesses]:

Dissociative Identity Disorder (D.I.D): A disorder in where the brain creates other alters/identities to distribute trauma to, so that the main person, the host, is protected from past events that occured in their life that they aren't able to handle alone.

Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PSTD)

Psychotic Disorder (Psychosis)

Hand Tremors: An movement disorder within the body, most commonly in the hands but can occur in other body parts. An involuntary, rhythmic muscle contraction that causes shaking. Can happen every now and then, or constantly.

[Facts]:

-> In total, Wonwoo has 17 alters. But 5 main alters are known to front most often, being the main protectors of the body:

-> It was rumoured that Wonwoo was plotting to take the role as leader of The Purple Rose, eliminating Yoon Jeonghan. But it was never confirmed.

-> Due to poor eyesight, Wonwoo is required to wear glasses. But when doing work and handling targets, Wonwoo will not need them. Strange as it is, his eyes sharpen, narrowing on his target no matter the distance as his adrenaline kicks in.

-> Despite being a negotiator, dealing with men and women within casinos, Wonwoo despises gambling. He can't tolerate the smell of strong alcohol, betting, and smoke.

-> Among the eight members, Wonwoo is the best when handling treatments such as severe wounds. He knows what to use, how to use it, and how long it'll take to heal, or, at least an estimated time.

𝕮𝖔𝖓𝖘𝖎𝖌𝖑𝖎𝖊𝖗𝖊

◈ ━━━━━━🥀━━━━━━ ◈

"I'm getting sick and tired with your babbling, you know that? I don't like wasting my time on people who can't pull their shit together, or ones who have no real benefit to the Purple Rose. So, I'm going to do us both the favor and end this short. But with a loud bang!"

◈ ━━━━━━🥀━━━━━━ ◈

[Name]: Lee Jihoon

[Alias]: Jihoon

[Companion]: Kim Inseong (@heartbrokenxinseong)

[Characteristics]:

[Mental and Physical Illnesses]:

Psychotic Disorder (Psychosis)

Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PSTD)

[Facts]:

-> Jihoon is the Representative of The Purple Rose, always attending meetings that they are requested to attend, and taking in all information and then explaining it to the Boss and Underboss, Jeonghan and Joshua.

-> Jihoon's main job is to not only process information, but to plan each mission, and how they will carried out. It has been his job since the start of The Purple Rose.

-> Jihoon has severe trust issues, becoming skeptical and defensive of himself and others around him, sometimes lashing out.

-> Jihoon does not accept being called "cute." Despite his height, Jihoon is hostile, and will not hesitate to attack.

-> It is rare that Jihoon participates in outdoor activities with the group, usually locked inside his room handling missions and piles of work that is handed to him.

𝕳𝖆𝖈𝖐𝖊𝖗/𝕾𝖕𝖞

◈ ━━━━━━🥀━━━━━━ ◈

"Although I had a great time with you, fellas, I have to get going. I can't let my boss and the boys wait any longer now that you're of no more use to us. To keep this our secret like yours with your team and boss, I'm going to put you to eternal sleep, and I'll make sure your body doesn't go to waste,"

◈ ━━━━━━🥀━━━━━━ ◈

[Name]: Xu Minghao

[Alias]: Minghao; The Ghost

[Companion]: Kim (Jeewon) Jiwon (@90sjeewonie)

[Characteristics]:

[Mental and Physical Illnesses]:

Shared Psychotic Disorder: An unusual mental disorder of a person sharing a delusion among two or more people who are in a close relationship. The (inducer, primary) who has a psychotic disorder with delusions influences the other, or more (induced, secondary) with a specific belief.

Psychotic Disorder (Psychosis)

Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD)

[Facts]:

-> Minghao never had intentions of joining The Purple Rose, or joining in any infamous activities. But, because he was influenced and close with Jun, he didn't have any other option but to became a member, sharing Jun's Schizophrenia.

-> Minghao is a cannibal, and has been since the age of 17. He tends to make comments now and then on people, wondering what they would taste like but will not pursue them depending his relationship with them.

-> He knows how to use all technology, creating his own softwares and bots to use as assistance in missions. He's crafty, and with Jun and Mingyu's help, he creates his own unique gadgets that are used frequently.

-> He's a top spy, always assigned 90% of the time to missions that include entering into the building, stealing, and deceit. When doing this, he temporarily dyes his hair a different color.

-> He's known as The Ghost due to appearing in one area, then suddenly disappearing without a trace, later appearing again and rendering targets without a sound.

𝕭𝖔𝖉𝖞𝖌𝖚𝖆𝖗𝖉/𝕰𝖝 𝖀𝖓𝖉𝖊𝖗𝖇𝖔𝖘𝖘

◈ ━━━━━━🥀━━━━━━ ◈

"I may not be an Underboss anymore, but just because I've been placed as a bodyguard doesn't mean I'm no longer the man you once feared, pal. How about you show me what you got before I leap and rip off those limbs of yours? Or should we just get to the ripping limbs part already?

◈ ━━━━━━🥀━━━━��━ ◈

[Name]: Kim Mingyu

[Alias]: Mingyu

[Companion]: Choi (Arin) Yewon (@arinschoi)

[Characteristics]:

[Mental and Physical Illnesses]:

Psychotic Disorder (Psychosis)

PTSD

[Facts]:

-> Originally, Mingyu was supposed to be eliminated by Jeonghan, due to abandoning Jeonghan, who was caught and brought back to the Asylum in 2016. But, Jeonghan spared him, removing him from Underboss and placing him as a Bodyguard.

-> Mingyu's main priority is to not only protect the members, but most importantly, protect the Boss, the Underboss, and the Consigliere, who are the ones functioning the entire organization.

-> Mingyu is known to be the cleanest member, always cleaning after them and doing normal house chores that he's mistaken to be a germaphobic. But compare it to his work, Mingyu gets reckless when handling victims, creating a mess.

-> Aside from working as a Bodyguard, Mingyu acts as a spy and seducer. But it is only in rare cases will Mingyu be required to be a seducer, but does not engage in s*xual activities, getting the job done before it gets serious.

-> Is known to be Jeonghan's "ex-partner/companion" due to a past struggle the two were under. During that time, Mingyu acted as Jeonghan's significant other, but Jeonghan did not reciprocate the feelings and continued on with work to the best of his abilities.

𝕹𝖆𝖛𝖎𝖌𝖆𝖙𝖔𝖗/𝕽𝖚𝖓𝖓𝖊𝖗

◈ ━━━━━━🥀━━━━━━ ◈

"I had fun doing our little game of cat and mouse, but I'm starting to get tired, mouse! And you look just as tired as I am, right? So, do me a favor of standing still, smiling at me, and letting me gut you out. I'll make sure to bury you somewhere nice with some purple roses. A reminder that you never FUCK with the Purple Rose, scumbag,"

◈ ━━━━━━🥀━━━━━━ ◈

[Name]: Lee Seokmin

[Alias]: Seokmin

[Companion]: Byun Baekhyun (@ghoulxbaekhyun)

[Characteristics]:

[Mental and Physical Illnesses]:

ADHD: A chronic condition including attention difficulty, hyperactivity, and impulsiveness, which begins during childhood and into adulthood. Effects self-esteem, education and work, and relationship

Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PSTD)

[Facts]:

-> Seokmin is a cannibal, beginning this at the age of 18. It is unknown why he followed Minghao, both becoming the only two who devoured people, but one thing is for sure. He doesn't always eat victims, but he won't hesitate to take a bite.

-> Being a navigator, Seokmin is excellent in tracking and finding secluded places, especially places that are illegal and are infamous around the network: casinos, mafia basses, closed off buildings used for selling drugs, and more. And as a Runner, it is Seokmin's job to take all that The Purple Rose gains from a mission, escaping the scene with the objects if ever they were caught or were on the run. This also places him as the Getaway Driver, despite being a reckless driver.

-> Seokmin can be easily persuaded if lured into the trap by the right bait. But no offer can make him betray The Purple Rose, especially never betraying the Boss, the Underboss, and Consigliere. He follows their orders strictly, despite bending the rules.

-> Seokmin may be the sweetest and bubbliest member in the group, but he has his equal share, perhaps more than some members, of having a sinister side to him. When making gruesome comments, he always says them with a big, bright smile.

-> Seokmin despises usage of drugs and alcohol. He'll drink now and then, but no more than two cups. Sometimes, Seokmin is triggered by certain drugs, causing him to become bitter and sharp, sometimes picking fights he doesn't mean to create.

✨OG✨// @yanlee

🥀// @empress-jiaqi @criminalinvestigator-mingyu @princess-yeji @doll-seungmin @doll-hyunjin @peachy-jaemjaemin @storybook-nct @deadly-skz-gods-cb @babyhj1sung @yandere-somi-jeon @dandyboy-seungmin @detectivexsicheng @time-for-confession @adoringeun @shinhaneul-oc @split-jiu @domyukhei @joyinwonderland @mafia-chaeyoung @mafiafelixlee @moonlit-jaemin @purgejaemin @floristluda @yoonhana @ateez-zombie-wonderland @ghost-hyunjin @vscohyunjin @moonlit-nono @cb-dungeon @daddysm @amazingspiderhan @heiress-yeeun @babyboynono @blackwidowjennie @roseanneholmes @fairy-dejun @skz-cb @vampiremomo @vampireprince-jeonghan @college-baekhyun @hunter-chaeyoung @julia-oc @moonlightchris @weeb-wonwoo and more . . .

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