#you think YOUR favourite character is obscure? try having your favourite character never be mentioned by name and only appear once in an

[speg-draws]

woe, headcanons be upon ye

[6okuto]

KENMA RELATIONSHIP HCS

gn!reader, timeskip mentions

isn't a pda guy, but will fall asleep on your shoulder/rest against you as he games, and if you play with his hair, who's he to say no?

if you change your contact name in his phone, he keeps whatever it is, even if it's super silly or cheesy. like okay call "my honeybear darling angel 😚". he says it's because he's lazy but he does find it kinda cute/amusing

you cheer for kenma at practice in like, a sort of exaggerated way, like "gooo kenma!!! yeaahh!! let's go kenma!! kenma! kenma!" and he tries really hard not to look at you—not because he's annoyed, but because he doesn't want you to notice how red his face has gotten. his teammates point it out anyway

lol his team using you as motivation. "don't you want to impress them?" and kenma's like 😒😒 but gets up from the floor

kenma teaching you how to play his favourite (co-op) video games!! he's pretty patient and explains things well, so if you don't have a lot of gaming experience, don't worry too much ^^ buttt if you're competitive, get ready to Compete. he seems like someone who doesn't take it too seriously unless you start (jokingly) shit talking him

he'll try out any games you like too, even if it isn't something he'd pick himself. he doesn't really plan to when you're describing it, but then he thinks about it, or sees a post mentioning it, and the curiosity (And Affection 4 U :3) gets him

easily notices if you've gotten quieter/tired when you're out. if you're with a group, he'll tap your shoulder and offer his own, ask if you're alright, and or make up an excuse so you can both leave. if it's just the two of you, he's quick to find a place to rest for a while

he'll never make you join if you don't want to, but fans eat up any videos or streams with you—they make edits and compilations of you walking in during streams and everything. the amount of begging for a q&a and story time of how you met is crazydsjdhsj

chat is soo annoying about it too /lh "no they're not single," "i know they're out of my league," "yes they were my first subscriber," kenma telling you not to answer them when they ask if he's clingy, etc etc

! i think it'd be cute if you guys had matching phone cases, but his fans didn't know until you showed up with the other one. and they realize Just how much he has on that's matching you—the bracelet and necklace that they catch glimpses of under his hoodie, the hoodie itself from the same line as yours... yeah.

time for "he said no pickles." unless you also don't like asking/don't care,, then you guys can just take the pickles off together <3

^ if it's a serious mistake they made with your food, kenma's a lot more compelled to approach the counter.

would teach you about stocks. if you asked

mutual info dumping and yapping... he's very aware of how much he's telling you the first couple of times, but gets more comfortable when you do it back !

^ kind of guy to do his own research afterward. he makes a semi-obscure reference/joke the day after and you're like ???? Who told you that.

kind of boyfriend who hears you go "i want him" "wait why's this character kinda..." and isn't like, that offended or put off by it. says "understandable" (or questions your taste), but knows they're a character at the end of the day

quality time kind of guy. people know you're special even if they don't know you're dating because you can convince kenma to go to events or try something new when they wouldn't expect it. (obviously it's never something crazy out of his comfort zone, and it's probably because he knows you'd feel better with someone with you, but he's going all the same!!)

kenma isn't the best with receiving words of affirmation or gifts... he appreciates it, but gets awkward and doesn't know how to react ^^; you reassure him that he doesn't have to jump for joy or be super affectionate back—he shows his love in his own ways !

his gifts are very thoughtful. he gets you something practical, and then things that you've really wanted for a while. his cards aren't filled with long letters of adoration, but they're genuine and very much kenma. (+ having money in the timeskip doesn't mean he'd ever buy something expensive or flashy just because it might be 'easier.' it means he gets to buy you way more merchandise for your favourite media, paying the shipping fees that kept you away.)

you get him a super thoughtful (and maybe expensive) gift and he Lights Up. and then he's like ? you remembered / really paid that much ? really ? and he keeps smiling when he looks at it..

kenma coming downstairs with super bad bedhead and pouting when you snicker. but then he relaxes as you comb your fingers through to fix it

tying up his hair... a little ponytail or bun...

matching pajamas... or those fluffy headbands you wear to wash your face... he looks so silly and cute

university student kenma who walks in visibly irritated, and you know you're about to shit talk his group members or professor together.

late night breakfast. sitting in the kitchen eating bowls of cereal past midnight

! late night gaming sessions... and or sometimes you fall asleep waiting for kenma to finish, then wake up to realize he fell asleep at his desk. you have to coax him into bed after saving the game for him

very nervous during the first year you're together any time there's a holiday, especially valentine's day or your anniversary. he wonders if his plans and gifts are enough, not romantic enough, too boring, if you'd rather do something exciting, even if logically he knows you'll like anything he thinks up

sometimes you guys will just lie on the floor, stare at the ceiling together, and talk. maybe there's music, a game menu screen playing in the background, or you're just listening to the birds and neighbours outside. floor time is healing all the same

bleaching kenma's hair + him helping dye yours... timeskip where chat asks if you've done your hair recently because his hands have been stained :')

it's super easy to team up with kuroo to tease him but also ! teaming up to taunt and prank kuroo !! think of kenma laughing bright and loudly, eyes squinting and arms clutching his middle !! kuroo can't be that mad because he's happy someone else can get kenma this happy too

���️ | @icekitgeorge3 @dira333 (hey guys) @pelicanpizza @godoffuckedupcats @causenessus @priv-rose @ur-local-simp @respitable @deepenthevoid

[frostfires-blog]

As TGCF fan, can I ask your top 5 (or top 3) favorite characters from TGCF? And why do you love them all? Also, your top 5 (or top 3) favorite moments from that series? Thanks....

[Hi, thanks for sending an ask! I appreciate any opportunity I get to talk about TGCF here since I don't really have anyone to talk to about it in person. Ngl, I have very predictable tastes lol. ]

──────────────────────

-> Top 5 Favourite TGCF Characters:

[ Honourable Mentions: Pei Ming, Mu Qing, & Yin Yu ]

5) Yushi Huang/Rain Master

I'm not going to go into a lot of detail since she was already featured on my top 15 female characters post... but I love her backstory and design. Her humility, patience, selflessness, and compassion are incredibly admirable, setting her apart from other characters.

4) He Xuan/Blackwater [Warning! Potential Novel Spoilers!]

His backstory and role in the series are really compelling and harrowing. I really liked his dynamic with SQX before the big reveal. I honestly didn't see this coming, even though I usually can spot plot twists from a mile away. Even though I am rather sad with how the Black Water Arc ended, reading it was tremendously thrilling. HX is a nuanced character with complex emotions and motivations, which adds to his appeal. I wish we had seen a little more of his actual thoughts and sentiments, though... On my first read-through of the series, I didn't particularly care for any of the side-ships, but after my second read-through, all the angsty tropes really resonated with me, solidifying Beefleaf as one of my favourite MXTX ships.

3) Shi Qingxuan/Wind Master

I don't think there's a single tgcf fan that doesn't like SQX. His compassion, loyalty, and integrity are commendable. His bright, mischievous, and fun-spirited nature is always entertaining to see. While most of us love his bond with MY—which is incredibly entertaining—I also adore his friendship with XL. The scene of him unwittingly exposing XL in front of the Heavenly Court will never not be funny. By the end of the series, despite facing immense adversity, he remains bright and resolute, which is tremendously inspiring.

2) Hua Cheng/San Lang

There's a lot to like about HC, but his enduring devotion will forever be my favourite aspect of his character. His willingness to prioritise XL's happiness and well-being over his own desires is everything. The way HC loves and accepts XL for all that he is truly precious. While some argue that HC is uninteresting because most of his development revolves around XL and we never learn his full backstory—he is actually a nuanced character with separate opinions and sentiments. I adore his charismatic, confident, and witty personality, as well as his introspective, sincere, and slightly insecure inner self. I don't want to go into too much detail since I'm going to write a longer piece on him as he'll be featured in the upcoming list of my favourite male characters.

1) Xie Lian

XL is a compelling character because—unlike typical protagonists who evolve during the course of their journey—he has already undergone significant personal development at the series' starting point. Rather than growing with him, we gradually unravel the intricate layers of his multifaceted personality and obscure past. His development throughout the series is centred around him rebuilding and forging connections with others rather than growing as an individual. He is unique as a character because, despite his kindness and compassion, he also recognises that there are circumstances beyond his control, which helps him maintain his composure in trying times. However, he does not let this deter him from attempting to help others. XL is truly remarkable for his capacity to discern the good in others, despite having endured immeasurable suffering and witnessed the darkest aspects of humanity. His unadulterated, unconditional love for HC is profoundly heartwarming. Nevertheless, once again, I don't want to go into too much detail...

──────────────────────

-> 2.0) Top 3 Favourite TGCF Moments...

Ngl this is a difficult one since both the donghua and the novel have a lot of great scenes in them... So I'll cheat a little and give 3 from the anime and 3 from the novel... Ngl, they're mostly Hualian-centric since I adore them with all my heart.

> 2.1) Favourite Donghua Moments:

#1 Bridal Sedan Scene (S1 EP1-2)

#2 Gambler's den scene (S2 EP1-2)

#3 “I promise, you won’t find another person more sincere than me in this world" (S1 EP12)

> 2.2) Favourite Novel Moments:

Warning! Potential Novel Spoilers!

#1 Curious Magic Shatters the Cursed Shackles (V8 Chap. 129) + Smiling As Red Robes Fade (V8 Chap. 130)

#2 Cave of Ten Thousand Gods Reveal (V6 Chap. 93)

#3 Temple of a Thousand Lights Endlessly Illuminating the Lingering Night (V3 Chap. 42) / “To me, the one basking in infinite glory is you" (V4 Chap. 63)

[P.S. Forgive me for cheating by tying two placements as there were too many to choose from... ]

[cripplecharacters]

so, the posts on this blog about facial difference inspired me to make an oc with facial difference- specifically strabismus and a port wine stain. she's pretty much become one of my favourite characters to draw and develop, ive taken care to make sure she doesn't fall into shitty tropes. however, i have had one problem- in the world she lives in, rebels like her cover their face most of the time. ive been really struggling on how to design her mask/covering in a way that doesn't feel shitty, and doesn't feel like it's trying to cover her facial difference. and i know that technically it's not as bad if she's not the only character who wears a mask, but i still don't wanna push it, if you know what i mean? so it would be awesome if you could give suggestions on how i could handle her mask. here's a reference of her for. reference, and some ideas ive had for masks. thank you for taking the time, and for this blog in general!

[Image description: Traditional drawing of a light-skinned girl with pink straight hair, smiling. She has a large port-wine stain on the left side of her face, and her right eye goes inward. Around her are three headshot sketches;

first shows her in a bandana that goes over her nose with "bandana doesn't obscure FD but hides smile + necklace" written above, second shows a half-mask that covers only the right side of her face, with "early concept, feels tacky, shows port-wine stain but not strabismus :(", third shows a domino mask, with "domino mask, do I even have to explain? No-go" next to it. End image description.]

Hey!

I think that something close to the second one would actually be kinda fun (no irony or sarcasm). If we're talking about a story where everyone wears a mask, having the character with FD wear one that covers everything except for the FD is actually subversive. I never thought I would say that, but it does feel like it is.

Not sure how strict of a design should it be, but a diagonal - her bottom right to her top left - mask would be nice!.

I tried to write down a detailed description of what I mean but it was coming out rather overcomplicated, so I hope you're okay with me doing a few demonstrative sketches; a diagonal and rather-silly option, an idea for the bandana with a drawn smile and the kind of tie that would show her necklace, and an idea for the half-mask but with an eye with strabismus painted on the mask.

So here are the suggestions. I haven't drawn in a while so my skills are kinda rusty, but I hope it conveys the concept. My personal favorite would be the first one - I know it barely counts as a mask, but then again, in comics it's common that someone is unrecognizable when they wear a pair of glasses, so maybe it's not as farfetched haha.

The second one would be totally fine by my standards, but I'm assuming that her necklace has some kind of significance in the story, so maybe she could cross it at the back and tie it in the front instead for it to be more visible (or wear the necklace over it even?).

I think that doing something like on the third drawing above would be okay if there are also a lot of moments where her actual strabismus is shown. In general, I think that the idea of a character with a facial difference wearing a mask just to paint it on the mask is kinda silly, and I feel like it would fit her character. But for something like that to work, she would need to have the mask off at some point. If you choose to do that, I suggest your first time showing her to the viewer is with her mask off, both for the usual reasons I mentioned before but also because strabismus is often used as a gag in art. For me, seeing a character wear that kind of mask with no context would be kind of eye-rolling - but seeing a character with a crossed eye put on a mask with the same exact kind of eye, go and join their friends at doing rebel things? That's actually something new.

I enjoy that your character seems to be on the rather joyful and happy side, I like that.

I hope this helps,

mod Sasza

[alex-writes-things]

Creating A Love Interest- Part 1

In my opinion, this is actually a very enjoyable aspect of writing stories where romance is involved- particularly in romance novels as the character that your MC falls in love with is central to a lot of the plot. However, being aro-spec and asexual (at the time of writing this is how I identify, it’s a guide rather than an unchanging identity), I find this sort of stuff very difficult. How does one go about creating a loveable but flawed character that actually has chemistry with your protagonist? To me, this is a bit of a mystery, so I’ve compiled some tips from what I’ve seen online and in lessons to help you get out of a similar situation.

Appearance

Although, obviously, the appearance of the love interest isn’t the most important aspect, it really does play into attraction a whole lot and can often be the thing that sparks interest. Here’s an extract from ‘What If It’s Us’, by Becky Albertalli and Adam Silvera:

Cutest boy ever. Maybe it’s the hair or the freckles or the pinkness of his cheeks. And I say this as someone who’s never noticed another person’s cheeks in my life. But his cheeks are worth noticing. Everything about him is worth noticing. Perfectly rumpled light brown hair. Fitted jeans, scuffed shoes, gray shirt- with the words Dream & Bean Coffee barely visible over the box he’s holding. He’s taller than me- which, okay, most guys are.

Immediately we get the idea that this is someone the character is interested in. However, sometimes stories miss the mark and the impression is instead of being that of romantic/sexual interest, the description is simply telling the reader ‘look, this person here is pretty’. For me, I kind of find this difficult, but reading romcoms really helps.

One thing I’ve seen in multiple romance stories is the character’s fixation on specific things. In this case, it’s Ben’s cheeks, which might seem odd, but that’s actually quite common (not cheeks, just specific, obscure things like ears or the slope of their nose or the way their sleeves are rolled up for example).

In contemporary books, a common technique is telling the audience directly that, okay, the character is interested. For instance, above, the sentence Cutest boy ever shows us straight away that Arthur is interested in Ben, and that this isn’t just him noticing his cheeks for no reason (which would be weird). This isn’t because it’s not obvious from the description; it’s likely because contemporary YA books often follow the character’s stream of consciousness and have a very casual tone, unlike things like ‘Pride And Prejudice’ by Jane Austen. So, if you’re writing a YA modern novel, or this is just your style, feel free to say something along the lines of ‘they’re adorable’. Show, don’t tell isn’t always the most effective way to go!

Here are some things that appearance description often fixates on which could be helpful:

-          Eyes. But try not to be too cliché. Some authors get so carried away talking about that ‘bad boy’ love interest’s ‘gentle sky-blue eyes’ that they forget to describe his hair, or his outfit or anything else.

-          Clothes. A lot of how we perceive others is in the way they dress, and it might be cool for your character to spot that their love interest’s shirt has their favourite band logo on it. However, if your character isn’t into music, this would be a strange thing to mention.

-          Hair- this is actually quite a fun one! Try out making a picrew for your character, or use Pinterest to find a face claim, if you need ideas for hairstyles. Make sure to think about whether the character would wear their hair like that, and what kind of vibes it gives off. For instance, a lazy character who lives alone is unlikely to have carefully pinned Dutch braids.

-          Freckles. This may be overdone, but as long as it’s not the only thing your MC picks up on, it can be a sweet detail.

-          The way they hold their face. Do they purse their lips? Raise their eyebrow? Smirk too much? Bite the inside of their cheek? Do their eyes move slowly or quickly from place to place?

-          Smile. In my opinion, this can’t be overdone. Someone’s smile is always what I notice first- not in a romantic way, though- and honestly, you’re hardly going to miss it if someone you meet has a winning smile (like Scarlett Johansson, or, according to my friend, Tom Hiddleston). Maybe they’re not smiling, in which case it’s fine to describe what the protagonist thinks their smile would be like- this is the sort of subconscious train of thought that might go through their head if they’re attracted to them.

-          Teeth. This is a strange one, but it can be sweet. Does the LI have an adorable wonky smile? Perfect rows of white teeth (think about what this shows about them too)? Pointy teeth? Is this unusual, or does the protagonist fall in love with this kind of smile after meeting them?

-          Their body/build. Okay, okay. I’m not exactly excellent at this, having had no experience of being attracted to someone due to their looks, but I’ve read a lot of books. One thing I think is good to mention, rather than going into how ‘fit’ they are, is the softness or sharpness of their curves and the sorts of shapes their body makes. Is their neck slender? Are they chubby and look like they’d be great to cuddle? What about their hands? Shoulders? Are they slim or fat?

-          How tall are they? If they’re shorter and taller than the MC, this will probably be more noticeable, or if height is something the MC values.

That’s it for Part 1 I’m afraid! In the next posts I’ll focus on personality, first impression, how they meet and more. <3

[hunnicute]

so I used to be rly into MASH like a solid decade ago so my memory of it isn't great, but that time loop post sparked a memory of a groundhog day fic that I was convinced I had read back in the day, but furious searching unearthed nothing and I was losing my mind a bit because I swear I had read a fic just like that!!

anyway I just now realized the fic I was thinking of was in fact a Band of Brothers fic so. that happened.

but this fruitless search did lead me to discover the sheer volume of MASH fic that's on ao3 now so all this is to say, do you have any recs?

Wow I love this story. I've had that experience too though so you're not alone 😭

Now I have to apologize for this response taking a while, I've been busy the last couple days and wanted to take care in compiling this list.

There's quite a collection of hunnihawk fics on AO3 and I have gone through all of them because I don't have any self control. So yes I do have a few recs! You won't see any pwp fics in here, I'm the type who reads fanfiction for the plot lol so keep that in mind. These are in no particular order btw, and I'm sure my list will expand over time but for right now these are my top favourites.

I won't have comments for all fics and for that I apologize. Some of these are incredibly long and I don't have the time to re-read them and collect my thoughts. Whether there's a comment or not doesn't reflect the quality of the fic, only reflects the sieve like quality of my mind and how it cannot hold onto information for more than five minutes.

[This post got very long so I am including the recs under the cut]

HUNNICUTE'S HUNNIHAWK FIC RECS:

~~~

First off I am going to mention my absolute all time fav hunnihawk fic. Let me tell you, it took me by surprise because for mash fics I really don't enjoy mash aus as a concept (I think their relationships and personalities are really reliant on their circumstances) HOWEVER the film noir genre lends itself to mash very well. So I cannot recommend highly enough tallsinspace's hunnihawk noir au, if you don't read anything else on this list (tho please do!!!) you have to give this one a try:

over and over and over again (and the ending still will never change) by Talls [@tallsinspace]

Rating: M, Warnings: Graphic Depictions of Violence, Words: 28,380

The door opens to reveal a pair of the best legs you’ve ever seen in your life. The dame who comes attached is a treat as well, even with a silk scarf and big sunglasses obscuring her blonde hair and most of her face. She’s in a fashionable little black number that she fills out marvelously under a shorter winter coat, a string of pearls wrapped around her neck.

She looks like trouble. You smirk. Just your type.

“Welcome to Blake & Pierce investigations, how may I help you?” you greet in your most professional tone.

“First, you can pop those eyes back in their sockets, gumshoe,” she says flatly. “I didn’t come here to be leered at.”

-

In which Private Investigator Hawkeye Pierce gets in too deep with a couple of married blondes, runs up against some trouble, and makes a series of panic-fueled decisions. Story of his life.

I usually find it difficult to talk about exactly what I like about fics I read and recommend, however this one really lends itself to comment. Not only are the characters extremely well written, but the plot and situations are as well. This is the kind of story you find yourself paying attention to every word. Also this includes Hawk playing with gender, it works so well and feels incredibly true to character. Really well done.

Nostos; or, the Journey Home by Anonymous

Rating: M, Words: 65,903

The last place Hawkeye expects BJ's journey home to end is his own front steps

This one is special for me. Not only was it the first BJ goes to Maine fic I read, but the first MASH fic I actually read! Yeah it had had an impact, I couldn't read anything else for a day or two after because I remember I was thinking about it non-stop.

Your Love Made It Well Worth Waiting by msculper

Rating: T, Warnings: suicidal thoughts, Words: 13,217

"Maybe getting abandoned was like death: inevitable. Maybe knitting was like a machine gun, or mortar fire, or mustard gas: it only expedited the process."

An exploration of the sweater curse as told through Hawkeye's romantic relationships.

Will You Take Me As I Am? by msculper

Rating: T, Warnings: PTSD Words: 7,633

“Why the hell are you here?” The sudden hostility threw BJ off, although he supposed he should have been used to it. Hawkeye had a short fuse since his extended stay at the end of the war. BJ couldn’t help but laugh in shock. “Because I miss you and I’m worried about you?” “You know what Margaret does when she’s worried about me? She calls.”

lucky to be by kaiyen

Rating: none, Warnings: implied suicide attempt, Words: 39,296

Peg leaves BJ. Naturally, Hawkeye drops everything to fly 3000 miles and take up residence in his beach house.

“You okay?” he asks gently.

BJ nods. He’s more okay than he’s been in a long time. “I used to worry that if I were to see you again, it’d be like meeting a stranger.”

“Come on,” Hawkeye says, smiling. “We were never strangers.”

Bait and Switch by apollojusticeforall

Rating: G, Warnings: Discussion of PTSD, Words: 13,974

“We can make it a game, for old time’s sake. Tell me three things about yourself, but make one of them a lie.”

AKA a story told through storytelling, and how the truth is usually (but not always) easier to swallow if it tastes like a lie. Featuring M*A*S*H unit sleepover shenanigans, BJ goes to Maine, and BJ’s Complete Lies.

a notion deep inside by kaiyen

Rating: none, Words: 18,472

All of BJ’s letters sit in a draw in his desk. He reads them sometimes and remembers why he stopped writing back. They feel false, cheery in the way BJ used to write to Peg about the war. A story about a life Hawkeye has no place in.

Maybe he’s not doing such a good job of moving on.

or; two people meet at the wrong time and then re-meet at the right one

my guy pretty like a girl by Talls [@tallsinspace]

Rating: M, Words: 12,366

In which Hawkeye wears a dress for the glory of the 4077th and BJ reacts like any normal person would under the circumstances.

Okay so I do remember this one because I love the concept of Hawkeye playing with gender. I think he would look so stunning in a dress and any drag at all. But really my favourite part of this fic is BJ's reaction. Gotta love angsty moment's fuelled by our favourite repressee from California. Also if you couldn't tell, I'm very much in love with talls' writing.

mind field by Granspn [@calicogirlfriendsamba]

Ratings: M, Warnings: Period Typical Homophobia, Trauma, Words: 48,612

hawkeye is impossible, or so he’s been told.

Part character study, part experimental non-linear narrative, part a place for me to project and put all my unnecessarily specific headcanons in one place, today we’re taking a trip through hawkeye’s chaotic train of thought after being asked a simple question: “tell me about the bus.”

This one has a strong sense of melancholy to it, and I mean that in a very positive way. I found myself really sucked into Hawk's feelings when reading it. If you want something immersive and introspective, this one's for you.

last night, in tokyo by 4x01welcometokorea

Rating: T, Words: 21, 647

Hawkeye gets back from Korea in July, BJ shows up at his doorstep one night in November. In the time between, Hawkeye writes letters he doesn't send, he forgets a night in Tokyo he shouldn't remember, and he remembers he doesn't like Rice Krispies.

gibraltar may tumble by JustStandingHere

Rating: M, Words: 10,350

"Now the world seems open and full of unknown things. And so quickly, too. He feels like if he acts it'll be reckless. And it's very, very easy to be reckless around Hawkeye. The man practically invented the term for him when he escorted BJ around Korea in a stolen Jeep."

Lover, Where Can You Be? by fieryphrazes [@fieryphrazes]

Rating: E, Warnings: Period Typical Homophobia Words: 43, 540

“Do you think she’s alone?” He looked at me with his lips pressed in a thin line. He was studying me; I don’t know what he saw, but he must have liked it fine. “No,” he finally said. “I don’t think she’s alone.” “You’re a special kind of husband, if you mind as little as you seem to,” I observed, and he laughed, a sharp, brittle thing. “You have no idea what kind of husband I am,” he said, and disappeared behind the frosted glass of the office door. He was right: I didn’t have any idea. But I knew I wanted to find out.

When Peg Hunnicutt disappears without a trace, BJ is the prime suspect. He enlists hardboiled Hawkeye Pierce to track her down and clear his name, but how can Hawkeye be sure he's as innocent as he seems?

Yes, this is another noir AU, and it is very different from the last and just as incredibly well done. I especially love the way the relationship between Peg and BJ is portrayed here. And Erin <3 the way that both BJ and Hawkeye take care of her!! I just really love fics that pay attention and include BJ's love for his daughter and his goodness as a father.

someone is waiting by horaetio

Rating: M, Words: 16,628

“i’m right here, hawkeye.” it’s BJ. it could be no one else. MASH but make it sondheim; a hunnihawk fic.

You Can't Go Home Again by nimuetheseawitch

Rating: M, Words: 13,332

BJ has to learn how to find home again. He might actually have to admit that he has feelings.

I'm also going to be a little cheeky here and leave a link for my own hunnihawk fic here, I hope you don't mind but I'm a little proud of it :)

Driver by dammitspawk [@hunnicute]

Rating: T, Words: 1,832

BJ knows that he and Hawkeye are headed towards something that he has no control over. He can't decide if it's what's going to ruin his life or make it bearable, and he is terrified of the answer.

~~~

OKAY

So that was. More than a few... I hope you don't mind? I really wish I could have left a detailed comment for every single one of these but it's been quite a while since I've read most of them. These are all such talented people and I really hope you can take the time to enjoy the words of as many of them as you can.

I've included the tumblr urls of a couple of the authors, if any of you know the urls of more of these authors, please reply to this post or message me and I will add them as well :)

Happy Reading <3

[nar-nia]

I WANNA KNOW THEM ALL TOOOOOO

~M 🐝

all of them 🤩 let's go!

i answered some of them here already, so i'm just gonna do the rest now!

1. What song(s) would you play at your wedding?

ahh, i don't know actually. maybe merry go round from howls moving castle, or something from the professor layton soundtrack.

2. What is you favourite baked good?

blondies!! they're like brownies, just... blond. and so good 😩

4. Where in the world would you impulsively move to if you could?

if we ignore real life and language barriers definitely south korea or thailand! but since living there is nothing like in dramas i'd probably stay in europe. maybe italy or the netherlands? or i'll open a little bakery in ireland...

5. Where in the world do you want to travel to the most?

south korea, japan, thailand, hawaii... the list is long!

7. Do you sleep with a stuffed toys? If so what do they look like and what is/are their name(s)?

i have so many, they need to shelves on my bookshelf. most of them are from my childhood so i don't have them with me in my bed because they're fragile 😕 in my bed i currently have a dinosaur named totoro, he was a birthday gift from my old roommates! i have another dinosaur, he's called hugo, and a reindeer that i called hee 🤭 and not to forget my enormous teddy bear (a djungelskog!) called björn

8. Do you have a skincare routine? If so what is it? Does it work? pls i need to find one that works ;-;

kinda, but i don't really stick to it. wash my face, use toner and essence and during the daytime sunscreen or during the nighttime a faceoil!

9. What is you favourite colour and why?

the color of green apples 🤩 i love green apples and the color puts me in a really good mood

10. Do you have an underrated song/artist you think more people should listen too?

not really... i either listen to kpop or musical songs, so every other songs i know are from the radio and not really underrated!

12. What Minecraft mob do you relate to the most?

i have no idea about minecraft 😕

13. What is an obscure au that you have never/hardly seen before but would love to read?

please i'm dumb, how am i supposed to answer this 😭😭

14. What is a word you hate?

not sure if there is a word that i hate

15. What is a word you love? Why?

verschlimmbessern. it's when you try to make something better, but you actually just make it worse.

16. Do you play DND? Tell me about you favourite/most recent character! (Also show art/picrew if you want)

i do not, but i loved your character and the drawing looked so good!

17. Show me your favourite Picrew of yourself!

this one!

18. Is Canada real?

only in winter

19. What emoji represents you best?

i should probably ask you that! maybe this one: 🥰

20. What fandom were you invested in before your current one?

criminal minds and star wars! i even did tiktoks for those two 😶

21. Give me a book recommendation!

since the show is coming out soon: heartstopper!! or the lunar chronicles.

22. Give me a film recommendation!

my all time favorite is lord of the thieves 🤩

23. Give me a series recommendation!

aaah... bbc merlin, extraordinary you, wandavision!

24. Do you like musicals? What's your favourite? (Bonus: If you do musical theatre, what's in your repertoire?)

i am OBSESSED with musicals! my one true love ever since i was a child 🤩

i love so many, but my top three are probably elisabeth (an austrian musical about the empress elisabeth from austria. my very first musical), rebecca and anastasia! and the death note musical deserves an honorable mention 🤧

25. What are you studying? And/or what's your job?

how do i even say that in english 😩 i'm studying science of books and nordic philology... yeah. science of books is basically the whole history of reading and book publishing & distributing. nordic philology is all about scandinavic languages, history, culture and literature.

26. Did you ever have that phase, when you were younger, where you pretended to make/made YouTube videos? If so what kind?

oh yes. sims let's plays, makeup tutorials, book hauls... i still pretend to do shopping hauls from time to time

26. What's the highest petrol price in your area :,D

i have no idea, but right now it's definitely over 2,50€

27. Tell me about your pets!

say hi to maunzi!! she's probably around 7 years old now. she was a stray cat and got found by a friend of my aunt. they wanted to keep her at first, but maunzi didn't get along with their other cats. so our aunt talked to us because our first cat sadly died a couple months earlier and we decided to take her in! i love her so much 😭😭

28. What is the most impulse purchase you have made?

tickets for the kpop flex 🤭 other than that all some of my books

29. Random fact about you! GO! (can be fun or not, anythingg~)

aaaah i don't know 😭😭 i love making lists but somehow never manage to stick to them

30. What's your favourite Pinterest board you have created? If you don't use Pinterest, first off WHY?! and second give me your favourite playlist you've created?

probably one with different hair styles and hair colors.. it's simply called "hairdresser" because i use it as inspiration whenever i visit my hairdresser 💀

[vikingqueer]

music recommendations because i have some thoughts™

i don't wanna be that person who's like "my music taste is so weird lol" but i find that very often most of my friends don't really care for the music i like so i thought i'd just make a long ass post about it on tumblr instead. Fair warning, I'm very passionate about MIKA and The Mechanisms and so this very quickly got VERY long because it is part of my ongoing campaign to convince people to listen to mika and the mechs.

1) MIKA in general, but especially My Name Is Michael Holbrook (2019) and No Place In Heaven (2015) (especially the Deluxe version!!)

MIKA is a kind of British singer (half Lebanese, grew up in France blabla), and you probably know him for Grace Kelly and Relax, Take It Easy from his first album Life In Cartoon Motion from 2007. He writes a lot of FUN music, interspersed with the occasional slightly sadder song, especially when looking at an album like No Place In Heaven, which contains a lot of songs with gay themes, resulting in some songs that are just a little bit ouch. He's originally classically trained and has a frankly RIDICULOUS range and idk he just writes very good pop music. Also I have so much respect for that time he talked about how a lot of pop is very fake, with like expensive cars and stilettos and mini skirts in the snow and said "Because I walk down the street, and I don't see any of that. I see fat women and gay men. I don't know... That's real". He's written 5 albums; My Name Is Michael Holbrook (2019), No Place In Heaven (2015), The Origin Of Love (2012), The Boy Who Knew Too Much (2009), and Life In Cartoon Motion (2007).

For starters, I recommend listening to Last Party, Origin Of Love, Grace Kelly, Blame It On The Girls, Blue, Happy Ending, Pick Up Off The Floor, Last Party, Underwater, Tomorrow and Tiny Love (yes this is a long list but i REALLY love MIKA). If you want a slightly broader palette that's not just my favourites, I recommend the Mika starter pack on spotify.

2) The Mechanisms. I warn you. I am making this a thing. I have been obsessed with the mechs since last march.

Boy, where to start? The Mechanisms were a British 9 member space pirate story-telling cabaret that "died" in January 2020. They rewrite songs to fit retellings of various stories. I don't even know what genre I'd describe them as, but probably folk but steam-punk?? Their 4 "main" albums are concept albums, and I honestly just recommend listening to the from beginning to end in chronological order. A good way to get into the mechs is also to listen to UDAD and then watching the live show on youtube or alternately try giving Death To The Mechanisms a listen, to get good quality live show audio of TBI and various other stuff. Also, it was streamed on YouTube and someone combined the footage with the album audio and it rocks. Really, I think the mechs' best selling points are honestly just their concept albums:

Once Upon a Time (In Space) Their first album from 2012. I'd say this is the most "easily digestible" for the general public, since it's a retelling of various fairytales. So, what if Old King Cole was in fact not merry, but rather a cold-blooded dictator, intent on colonising as much of the galaxy as possible. What if Snow White was a general, looking to avenge what King Cole did to her sister, Rose. What if Cinderella was to be wedded to Rose the day that King Cole attacked in order to kidnap Rose? But y'know, In Space and also like every other mechs album it's a beautiful tragedy. Fave songs are Old King Cole, Pump Shanty, and No Happy Ending.

Ulysses Dies at Dawn You guessed it, it's a story about Odysseus, or Ulysses because I guess Ulysses is easier to rhyme or fit in the meter or something, idk. Ulysses is a war hero of unknown gender who is said to keep something that could take down the corrupt Olympians, meanest families in the City, in a vault to which only they know the passcode. Oedipus, Heracles, Orpheus, and Ariadne have been hired by Hades, who happens to be The Mechs' quartermaster Ashes O'Reilly, to get into Ulysses' vault. I didn't care much for udad at first, but honestly it's got some real bangers and the story is really good. UDAD weirdly stands out as the only of the concept albums to not feature any gay relationships, per se. Fave songs are Riddle of the Sphinx, Favoured Son, and Underworld Blues.

High Noon over Camelot This is my favourite mehcs album. So basically, this is Arthurian legend, but it's a space western and Jonny D'Ville does a bad southern accent. This is the story of the cowboy lovers Arther, Lancelot, and Guinevere searching for the Galfridian Restricted Acces Interface Login, or GRAIL, in order to stop their world from falling into the sun. Meanwhile, Mordred and Gawaine are ruling Camelot, and Mordred has convinced Gawaine to try to establish peace with the Saxons by whom Mordred was raised, but Gawaine hates viciously. If you love getting your heart broken and songs by a fucking off the rails batshit preacher I HIGHLY recommend hnoc. Fave songs are Gunfight at the Dolorous Guard, Blood and Whiskey, and Once and Future King. Honorary mention for Hellfire because it awakens something animalistic in me.

The Bifrost Incident TBI is the frankly only good adaptation of norse mythology I've ever known of, and I say that as Dane who was literally forced to learn things about norse mythology in school because it's my heritage or whatever. I've been listening to TBI a lot lately because it's VERY good. It's definitely the most refined of the mechs' albums (because it's the newest) but also I just love a little bit of cosmic horror. 80 years ago, Odin, the All-Mother, ruler of Asgaard, launched a train through the wormhole Bifrost that would reduce the travel between Asgaard and Midgaard from 3 months to 3 days, but things didn't go quite as planned. Lyfrassir Edda of the New Midgaard Transport Police is trying to solve the case of why suddenly the train has arrived 80 years late; to figure out whether it was accident or maybe it was sabotaged by Loki, who was allegedly sentence to death her murder of Baldur, by the Midgaardian resistance led by Loki's wife Sigyn, or maybe by Thor, who was to take over after Odin, and who holds quite the grudge because he used to be a friend of Loki's. You might've heard the song Thor from this album, it's apparently quite popular. Fave songs are Loki, Ragnarok III: Strange Meeting, and Ragnarok V: End of The Line. Yet again an honorary mention: Red Signal because while Lovecraft was a bitch, his invocations are fucking RAW.

Basically, the Mechanisms do all of their performances in character as captain first mate Jonny D'Ville, quartermaster Ashes O'Reilly, pilot DrumBot Brian, master-at-arms Gunpowder Tim, science officer Raphaella la Cognizi, doctor Baron Marius Von Raum (neither a baron, nor a doctor), archivist Ivy Alexandria, engineer Nastya Rasputina, and The Toy Soldier, who is, as usual, present. You can find very obscure lore about the crew of the Aurora here, tidbits on Tales To Be Told and TTBT Vol. 2, such as One Eyed Jacks, The Ignominious Demise of Dr. Pilchard, Gunpowder Tim vs. The Moon Kaiser, Lucky Sevens, and Lost in the Cosmos.

If you feel like listening to a full 40-50 minute album to find out if you like a band is a bit much, I recommend listening to one of the mini stories Alice, Swan Song, or Frankenstein, which are about 12, 5 and 9:30 minutes respectively.

3) The Amazing Devil You know that guy who played Jaskier in the Witcher? I got into The Amazing Devil from spotify recommending them because I listened to the mechs, and apparently Joey Batey from The Amazing Devil is the same Joey Batey who was in the Witcher. Both him and Madeleine Hyland are VERY talented singers and songwriters and their second album The Horror and the Wild makes me go out into the forest and SCREAM. I listened to it on repeat for like a month straight. I guess they'd also be considered folk, but like. New Folk. Also yes, this is another British artist, I don't know why I'm like this. I've never really gotten that into their first album, Love Run, but King slaps. As I understand there's this whole lore about the Blue Furious Boy and Scarlet Scarlet, Joey and Madeleine respectively, but unlike the Mechanisms it's actually possible to find out things about the actual real people and harder to find the obscure lore? I'm open for people to please help me. Fave songs are The Horror and the Wild, Farewell Wanderlust, and That Unwanted Animal, which is literally a third of their second album, but again. I haven't really listened to Love Run that much, and I just LOVE the harmonies on THATW. (also im gay and dramatic leave me alone)

4) dodie I have so much love for this woman. Like many others, I first knew dodie as doddleoddle on youtube. I think I first stumbled across her in probably 2015, because I distinctly already knew her before she released her first EP Sick of Losing Soulmates in 2016. I think I watched probably every video she's ever made in the span of a few weeks. I just loved her quiet sound and was absolutely HOOKED. Also she's actually the reason I got into MIKA originally, so thanks for that. Dodie just realeased her first album Build A Problem (in addition to her three EP's; the one mentioned above, You, and Human) and it slaps. Yes dodie is also British Fave songs are probably Monster, Rainbow, and In The Middle.

5) Cladia Boleyn Unfortunately, Claudia Boleyn only has three singles and that's it. She's been making content on youtube for quite a while, and that's how I first discovered her. I don't know what genre her music is, but I like it. The songs are Celesta, George, and Mother Maiden Crone, of which the latter is my favourite. I'm not saying Claudia Boleyn invented women in 2017 when she released Mother Maiden Crone, but she did. Also you guessed it, Claudia Boleyn is British.

6) Hozier I'm not about to tell you about Hozier. You know who he is. Listen to Nina Cried Power, Angel Of Small Death & The Codeine Scene, and Shrike. Also Hozier isn't stricly British in that he is definitely from A British Isle, but Ireland is not part of the UK. Give me a break.

7) Oh Land Oh Land IS DANISH. I like her early music best, because I'm not that into the electronic sound. I guess Oh Land is just you regular old pop, but with the occasional weird vibe? Oddly enough, I like her first album Fauna best. Unfortunately I haven't really listened to her newest album Family Tree much, but it seems good? Fave songs are Frostbite, Love You Better and Family Tree. I cried on the bus, first time I listened to the Danish version of Love You Better, Elsker Dig Mer because my mother tongue always just hits harder. Also Frostbite is Oh Land doing a duet with herself which is pretty cool.

8) Oysterband This is a live recommendation. I mean they're a decent folk band and all, but they're a fucking experience live. If you like folk and you ever get the opportunity to see Oysterband live, do it. Unfortunately, yes. They are British. Either way, they are incredible on a scene and I think they deserve a mention for that.

9) Ben Platt Honestly don't know much about this guy, but he's not British and he was in Dear Evan Hansen. He released an album in 2019, Sing To Me Instead, and I just think it's a good album, there isn't really not much more to it. Fave songs are Grow As We Go, Bad Habit, and In Case You Don't Live Forever.

and thats all for now. this has been a ramble. shout out to you if you actually read all of this, especially the mechs part.

[demomonic-murmurs]

Heaven [Shimizu Kiyoko × Reader]

Summary: You and Kiyoko come home from a Halloween party and fuck with all the love in the world.

Pair: Sub! Kiyoko × Dom! Reader

Tags: Established Relationship, NSFW, Sexual Content, Extreme Usage of Toys, Ropes, Size Kink, Breast Worship, Body Worship, Vaginal Penetration, Cervix Penetration, Some mild Role Playing at the beginning [angel/demon], slight Corruption Kink, pregnancy and lactation is mentioned like once, actually very soft and lots of love and long after care

Warnings: I write my smut like bad hentai doujinshi's, some parts are probably a bit unrealistic

Author's note: This is pure self indulgent filth. This exists to fulfill every kink of mine in existence. Enjoy.

As much as Kiyoko wanted to, she couldn't resist you. Not with that pleading gaze. She was stronger usually. Able to keep her composure, even when you tugged on her arm and steal a kiss when she turned her head. Maybe it was the alcohol in her system from the Halloween party you two had been earlier.

"Fine. I'll indulge you for today. You're so silly", she sighed, trying to sound disinterested. She was not. Disinterested that is. She was very much interested in what you were proposing to her. She just had a hard time admitting to it.

You smiled. You knew your girlfriend. You knew from the way she was clenching her thighs, earlier at the party around your leg as you guided her hips to grind into you and now in anticipation of what was coming next.

"Those are some big words coming from a tiny angel like you", you said, slipping into your role easily as you grabbed her chin and titled her head so she could meet your gaze.

Kiyoko swallowed audibly and her face flushed, the red contrasting beautifully against her pale skin and white halter dress. It was short, shorter than what she would normally wear, the flowy white barely reaching her knees. She had insisted to at least wearing a pantyhose underneath and really, who were you to complain. The halo sat on top of her head, secured by a thin hairband, finishing her look perfectly.

"What? Already at a loss for words? You wandered into my realm after all... and dressed like that nonetheless. Were you trying to seduce a demoness like myself?"

Kiyoko whimpered and shook her head, unable to meet your gaze. Whether her whole demeanor came from her actually playing her role very well or her just being meek and shy because she was horny (which was something that even now, she had trouble to admit whenever she was aroused), it turned you on.

"Oh really", you mused,"so you didn't come here with a purpose? Thats hard to believe when you're already filled with so much lust and yearning."

You let your other hand wander long her body, stopping to brush a thumb over her nipple, which was still obscured by her dress and that pesky bra of hers (it made you wish she'd wear them less, her nipples were already very sensitive as they are and the thought of clothes brushing against them planted a lot of unpure thoughts in your head), before finally reaching its destination, pulling up her dress so you could slip a hand underneath her skirt and brush your fingers alongside her clothed pussy. She was only wearing thing cotton panties underneath, which did little to nothing to hide her horny state, juices already having soaked the first laying and now working on completly drenching her pantyhose.

"That is very impure for an angel don't you think? You're not as innocent as you try to make yourself out to be. Poor baby probably doesn't even know what all of this means, do you now? So you came to us for help and really, who are we to deny you?"

Kiyoko squeaked when you gripped her thigh and slipped a hand under her back so you could pick her up and carry you to your bedroom. You let her drop onto the bed and crouched down to pull out your box with toys and other items you two had found yourselves using for your sexual explorations. She eyed the box, her gaze holding a gleam of excitement as you set it on the corner of your massive bed, before her eyes snapped back to you as you moved to sit between her legs, roughly forcing them apart.

"Have you ever touched yourself?", you asked her, hand gripping her jaw.

"No never why would I sin", she moaned out when one of your knees pressed against her crotch. Now she was really getting into her role and it excited you. It reminded you so much about the first time the two of you shared together, you were her very first everything. First partner, first kiss, first time mastrubating with her first orgasm following and lastly the first to have sex with her. You felt bad for liking that shy yet curious part of her so much, felt bad for how much it turned you on when she was writhing and pleasure, not knowing what it meant or why she felt it and just completely giving into the moment. Maybe it was because your girlfriend always had been composed and cool. And maybe you just wanted to see that slip a bit.

"Oh really? So this would be your first...?", you said and trailed off, leaning down to kiss her. She was already panting which made it easier for you to slip a tongue into her mouth and relish in the wet and lewd sounds the french kiss was creating, "that's so unbecoming of an angel. Such a lustful kiss. Aren't you supposed to be all about chastity?"

Her hazy gaze met yours and the string of saliva that had connected you prior snapped. You could only watch in delight as she darted her tongue out to lick it up. Kiyoko was toying with your patience and self control. You might have been the one in charge but that didn't change the fact that she had wrapped you around her little finger.

"Or maybe you know exactly what you're doing. You're a bold one aren't you, a wolf disgusing herself as a little sheep. Maybe this was a fantasy of yours, wandering into the demon realm just so you could hope for one of us to find you and defile you in every way imaginable. Would you like that?"

She nodded her head enthusiastically. You smirked.

"Great little angel."

You moved to open the box and pulled out a pair of scissors. You pushed the two triangle shaped pieces of fabric that were covering her chest between her breasts, to lazy to even bother undoing the knos that hold the dress together. Taking one of her brastraps, you cut through it and did the same with the other one before finalizing your decision of destroying her bra by cutting through the middle part to pull it off compeltly. Kiyoko weakly protested but it was only a cheap white bra she had brought for the occasion (black was her colour after all, though purple complemented her perfectly as well).

Now her breasts were free and you felt blessed for having a girlfriend with such big boobs because her bashful gaze didn't fit with her body that would put Aphrodite to shame. Your favourite part of her tits however, besides the sheer size of them where her nipples. She had always felt embarassed about them and didn't like anyone seeing them. You vividly remembered the first time she felt comfortable showing them to and how it hard it was for you to jump at her and fuck her right then and there.

The thing that had her made feel so uncomfortable with her nipples was the fact that they were inverted. Two horizontal lines with her actual nipple barely peaking out. You knew how bad she felt about them so you always ensured to make her feel extremely good about that particular part of herself (not that you'd ever leave her not thoroughly fucked and worshipped, what kind of girlfriend would you be if you wouldn't).

You leaned down and took one of her nipples into your mouth and began to suck on it while twisting the other one with your fingers. Luckily for her, her nipples were easily pulled out and luckily for you, it made her all the more sensitive. It made you remember one instance where you made her squirt just from playing with her breasts.

Kiyoko moaned and threw her head back as one of her nipples popped out and you switched, beginning to work on the other while your hand began to massage her perky boob. It made you wish to be able to draw just so you could create a hentai book featuring your erotic girlfriend and you as the main character.

"You're such a beautiful little angel. So wanton for all the things I can offer you. Not that I am complaining at all, you're quite frankly the most alluring thing that has ever been created. I don't often praise God but they really outdid themselves when they created you."

Kiyoko whimpered and arched her back to press her nipples a little closer to you and who were you really to complain. Her hips trashed as you began to litter her chest with lovebites and she let out a scream when you used your teeth to pull on one of her nipples. Suddenly her movement stilled and you knew exactly what that meant.

You gently let her sink back down, she already looked so fucked, before diverting your attention to her crotch, pushing uper her dress in the process. Where it had clung to her pussy, the dress was wet with her cum. It was nothing to be compared to her panties and pantyhose however, which where completly soaked and had become even more translucent than before and clung onto her cunt. Kiyoko must have shaved herself earlier today because it was just fabric against milky white skin. Maybe she had hoped for sex today.

You could feel yourself getting aroused at the thought of Kiyoko silently hoping for some action, or maybe she was perspetive enough when she showed of her outfit yesterday and could feel your lustful gaze on her. In any way, it was a hot thought.

While your girlfriend was still coming down from her high (you wondered if you made her squirt again and just hadn't seen it), you were by no means lazy and began to prep her for your next idea. You definitely wanted to see her face today, see the make up running down her cheeks when she was sobbing from pleasure and just get access to her wonderful breasts.

You thought about getting your leg spreader out but just prompted for getting some silky robe and tying them around her ankles and bedposts so that she couldn't close them again. You leaned over and grabbed a pillow to move under hips so you'd have an easier access to her cunnie.

Kiyoko had calmed by now, her breath coming out in longer huffs, curiously watching your every movement.

You grabbed her pantyhose, pulled it down and immediatly wished you could've recorded the sound it made. Your hand absent-mindedly searched for you trusty scissors again and cut through her panties so you could pull them off, which was harder than it sounded because they were clinging to her pussy so much.

Finally having acquired her underwear you met her gaze again. It was feverish and aroused. Her hands had found their way on her breasts as she weakly kneaded them.

"Open up angel", you said and you had never seen her mouth snap open that fast. You began to wring out her panties so her juices dribbled into her mouth and she could taste herself.

"Tongue out", she obeyed as well and moaned when pressed the crotch area of her panties against her tongue.

"Be a good little angel and clean them a bit will you?"

She didn't respond but was already using her hands to hold her panties to lick and suck at them. You watched in satsifcation before moving back down.

You contemplated about ripling her lantyhose right away but decided against it, pulling it back up, even higher than Kiyoko had so it was perfectly hugging her pussy.

You could perfectly see the outline of her pussy, her prominent little clit and the way her hole was already opened slightly, lusting for something to be inside of it. You wouldn't give her that satisfaction yet though.

Instead, you grabbed a massager and turned it on to focus on her clit first. When the toy touched her, Kiyoko choked and let out a scream. She was still sensitive from just having cum a few minutes prior and you gave her no warning, especially now that you had given her a task she was eager to complete. While Kiyoko was moaning and trashing around, which was now a lot harder that her leg movement had been restricted, you thought about which toy you wanted to use on her next. You knew exactly what she wanted last, the biggest toy you had with some ridges along the sides of it. It was big enough to brush against her cervix and even penetrate it a bit, which was a feeling you quickly learned Kiyoko couldn't get enough of. But she wasn't wet enough yet, she needed to be stretched a lot more before she could even think about taking it.

You prompted to go for a toy first specifically designed to pleasure a women's g spot. You also pulled out two small nipple stimulators you could just turn on and put on her without having to move them yourself. Those two toys combined as well as the clit stimulation should be enough to make her cum quickly a few times, just so she would wet enough for you to finally get to the main part. You always prided yourself in your patience but Kiyoko always rendered you useless.

You stopped the stimulation on her clit which made her whine out in protest. She had been close again.

The disappointment was quickly overridden with lust again as she felt something pinch and and suck on her nipples. She weakly lifted her head and shifted her focus from her saliva covered underwear to the toys you had bestowed on her. Kiyoko smiled in a giddy fashion, excited what you'd do next. She adjusted the stimulators and pressed them closer against her nipple.

You smirked at that. You always loved that point where Kiyoko let go of all her fears and insecurities, only chasing after her own pleasure.

You resumed your stimulation of her clit and readied the other small, curved toy, slowly pushing it inside of her, her ruined white pantyhose sticking around it, you didn't bother ripping it just yet, you were enjoying far to much how Kiyoko reacted to the nylon brushing against her sensitive parts. Maybe you should go online and see if you could get a bra made out of similar material.

Kiyoko shuddered as you searched for her g spot with the toy and when you finally found it, the grip around the nipple toy tightened and she let out a high pitched moan. You looked up to meet her gaze, pleased to see that her make up was already being ruined by her tears and the drool escaping her mouth. The halo still resting on her head completed the whole look in a wonderfully perverse fashion. Your hand twitched to take another photo of her face like that for your personal collection but you already had to many of them. Your favourite one was when Kiyoko had dressed up as maid for your birthday.

You doubled your effort and continued rubbing around her g spot while the other hand used the massager to press harder against her clit. You moved your head closer to her cunt, memorized by the way the nylon along with the toy was moving in and out of her, the white material barely looking white and more so translucent. Kiyoko wearing any form of pantyhose or stockings should be forbidden really, she just looked so effortlessly hot in them.

You could see her entrance tightening against the toy before she came, squirting all over your face. A tingling sensation shook through your body right into your core. Her cum felt warm on your face and she smelled good. Your ministrations only stopped momentarily to gather some of her cum that you couldn't reach with your mouth to lick it of. Then you continued, a lot rougher than before as her reactions were slowly dwindling away your self control. You wanted more of it, you were insatiable, Kiyoko was the only thing on your mind as you hungrily turned up the stimulation on her nipple and clit toy to the maximum.

Kiyoko was gone at point, just happily babbling nonsense while pressing the toys harder against her nipples. She was already so thoroughly fucked but she wanted more, she wanted her favourite thing, her favourite big dildo with the ridges in her far too tiny pussy, she wanted it to hit her cervix and split her in half.

She came four more times before you'd finally grant her wish. It was good that she had trained stamina and flexibility during her highschool days, everything was coming in handy now.

You removed the massager and g spot toy and when you moved up to the nipple stimulators, Kiyoko whined, hands trying to dive back after them, far to shaky to accomplish her goal so she just opted to immediatly go back to massaging her boobs with her hands.

You smiled at the adorable display, as much as Kiyoko hated her breasts, she couldn't deny that the feeling was absolutely amazing. You desperately hoped that maybe one day, when the two of you had finished university and would start your own family, she'd decide to become pregnant. The idea of her boobs being even bigger, swollen with milk and using a breast pump to release some of that tension seemed like something you would eagerly partake in, even though the way her normally hidden nipples were now fully erected were enough to be fuel for your wet dreams.

You watched her carefully as you brought out her favourite toy, the way her pupils dilated immediately, her legs thumping against the bed and her hands squeezing her breast just a tad bit to forceful.

"You know what to do my dirty little angel", you said and she nodded eagerly as you handed her the toy and she began licking it, covering it in her saliva. The way she nuzzled her head into the dildo and lapped it ferociously like it was an ice cream treat was almost comedic and adorable.

You smiled at her cute demeanor and began to rip her pantyhose, which had almost become a second skin over his pussy by now. Her scent hit you full force and you had to fight against the urge to start eating her out just to get that delicious taste of hers that you were addicted to. But you had to be strong.

Her cunt was puffy and swollen, still gaping, asking, beginning so sweetly to be filled. You leaned close to be able to smell her more and as your breath hit her pussy, she sharply and choked on the toy, her vagina clenching around nothing.

"I think you're ready my little angel", you murmured, stretching your head towards her so Kiyoko could hand you the the toy. She propped herself up on her elbows and watched impatiently how you teased her little whole with the big toy.

Then you began pushing inside her, slowly but steadily. Her hands gripped the sheets underneath her and she clenched her eyes shut, letting out an array of sweet moans that you were more than happy to hear them.

"You're taking my toy so well my slutty little angel. Its gonna fill you up so well my beloved. I know you're aching to be filled to the brim and don't worry, I will provide that for you", you murmured, the fingers of your other hand pinching her clit.

Kiyoko had gone back to toying with her breasts as she watched hazily how her greedy cunt swallowed more and more of the toy that shouldn't even be allowed to fit in the first place.

When the dildo was pushed about halfway in, you had to stop because her walls clenching up to cum again prevented you from going further. Kiyoko's body shook as she came undone for the seventh time this night. Maybe even eighth time, you were unsure since you weren't able to see the beginning very well.

She twitched when you began pushing into her again as soon as her walls allowed it.

"Already more than halfway done dear. You're doing so good great, taking me so well", you praised, relishing in the way her stomach slightly buldged from the blunt size forcing its way into her.

Kiyoko breathed heavily, her mind blank except a single thing, and that single thing was you.

When the dildo hit her cervix she let out a yelp. You gave her a few moments to adjust, rubbing comforting circles over her skin, from where the toy had entered way tracing its way up to her stomach, where you could feel the tip of it. She was completely bottomed out.

Kiyoko felt happy, the bubbly feeling making itself known through a satisfied smile on.

"Do you want me to start moving it my lovely?", you asked and she nodded weakly, her teary gaze focused your face for a second before snapping back down to watch the toy being pulled out and pushed back in. You pressed your unoccupied hand back onto her stomach, feeling immensely pleased that only you could fill her up like this.

"Faster please", she choked out and you complied enthusiastically.

The dildo was hitting every right spot for Kiyoko. A larger ridge kept scratching pleasantly against her g spot and she enjoyed the way she would feel when she clenched her walls around the little bumps. The toy shouldn't fit rationally, she knew that but through a mixture of you prepping her so well and her being more than willing to bear a little pain to get the reward of being filled to the brin made it fit. What she enjoyed most however, was the ridges hitting hitting the opening of her cervix which snugly welcomed the toy with a hug each time you pushed it in her to the hilt. It was teasing almost, telling her that if she just worked a little harder then maybe you two could get a toy that was even longer than the current one, one that could truly break into her womb and not just tease her with the thought of it.

Kiyoko could feel the very familiar feeling rising up in her stomach again, she would cum soon.

"Please", she sobbed, hand reaching out to yours, " so close. Faster harder please."

You grabbed her hand and intertwined your fingers with hers, other hand working to drill the toy in her exactly how your girlfriend wanted you to.

"Please" Kiyoko whined, her free hand coming to rest on her stomach, pushing down hard, "Give me a kiss, please, please, please-"

You leaned forward, and pressed a chaste kiss against her lips and pulled back the toy until only the tip was barely left inside before slamming into her, full force. Kiyoko screamed in ecstacy, her eyes rolling back in her head and her tongue sticking out, panting like a dog as she squirted for the third time tonight, painting the matching black leather outfit you had worn for your demon look in her cum.

You gently let Kiyoko's hand go to give her a moment of space. With the little power she had left she shakingly let it join her other hand, forming a heart right above her womb where the tip of the dildo had found its rightful place of being.

She was thoroughly fucked a happy smile on her face as she continued to stare into nothingness, still dazed from the intense orgasm she had.

You stood up from the bed and opened the door to your bathroom to let in the water in the tub. Kiyoko deserved a treat for how good she had been today. You loved that woman with all your hard.

When you came back into the bedroom, Kiyoko was still laying there, unmoving, though her breath had calmed significantly. You untied her legs first and then moved to pulling down her ruined pantyhose, rubbing her slightly red ankles she had gotten from pulling at the restraints. Afterwards, you continued by untying the knot on her neck that held her dress together and carefully pulled it over her head, tossing it to the side.

"Come on my lovely, you know I love the sight just as much as I do but you really need to wash up."

Kiyoko huffed in annoyance but nodded and allowed you to slowly pull out the toy. She always wanted you to do that last. The first time you two had tried it out, she had been fussy the next day, saying that she didn't want to loose the sensation so quickly. Her pussy was red from all the overstimulation and angrily clenched around nothing.

"Can you wrap your arms around my neck beloved?"

Kiyoko nodded and did as you asked, arms clinging to your neck.

"I feel empty", she slurred, "Want you to fill me again."

You chukled. "I think you had enough for today Miss "I-will-indulge-you-for-today"."

"Want something bigger the next time. Need it longer. Doesn't give the same satisfaction anymore."

You gulped. How had you gotten so lucky? A beautiful woman that wanted to be your girlfriend for reasons you couldn't understand, who you could take on planetarium dates and go to cute cafes with but also overstimulate at night with a big fat dildo? Maybe she really was an angel because she surely felt heaven send to you.

"We can look online if we can find something. Or go the store", you said, gently setting her down into the tub, turning off the water. She shivered.

"Yes please. Not girthier just longer. Also proper Shibari ropes. Want to try being tied up completely", Kiyoko explained, relaxing in the water.

You hummed and smiled.

"How have I gotten so lucky with such an adorable girlfriend? I feel so blessed", you commented, kissing her cheek.

She smiled wobbly up at you, there was that shy smile again that she always got on her face after making a request after the two of you had sex. That and after making out where the only two instances she felt not too embarassed admitting to her sexual desires.

She had always had strict parents and that combined with her insecurities left a stressed and repressed Kiyoko that needed to be eased into everything before feeling comfortable enough to suggest things herself. But you helped her to slowly figure herself out and understand what the things she liked were. Being split in half by a big dildo and having her nipples getting sucked on were the two main things she really enjoyed but being tied up was definitely up there.

In return she indulged you as well. She wore pantyhose and stockings a lot more often since the relationship had started years ago because she knew how much you loved how she looked in them. Or your obsession with her breasts and panties, the first one she secretly obsessed over as well and the second one mostly meaning that you wanted her to taste herself (sometimes, when she had to go somewhere for a few days, she would leave a pair of used for you just so you had something to masturbate to).

Kiyoko had always felt pressured by the people around her, comparing her to a goddess and worshipping the ground she walked on but... it was different with you. You didn't want her to be perfect. You wanted her to let herself go, be loud, be messy, be herself, unabashedly.

"Since its a special occasion I got you this", you said triumphantly, pulling out a small, batshaped bath bomb, "its supposed to smell like pumpkin!"

Kiyoko smiled. Another thing she loved about you. You were just as much yourself as you excepted her to be herself.

"Wouldn't a pumpkin have been the better shape to choose then?", she asked as she took the bath bomb, watching as it began to dissolve in the water.

You blinked before nodding. "You're so right my love. Maybe they wanted some variety."

"Maybe", Kiyoko hummed, moving a hand in the water to disperse and spread the bath bomb more. It was various shades of dark purple and dark blue hues.

"Okay imma clean up our bed discard your... clothes that didn't make it and put the ones that survived in the laundry. Then I will come back and wash your hair okay?"

Kiyoko merely nodded and watched you leave from the corner of her eye. She sank down deeper into the water, her hair floating on the surface. It sort of reminded her of seaweed like that.

Her body ached. She wasn't sure if she was able to walk the next day. She definitely wasn't able to now. Kiyoko looked down at her breasts. Her nipples had returned to their normal look and she sighed. She felt less insecure with you around but there was still a tiny voice in her head that told her how ugly it was. It was comforting, the way you had covered her breasts in love bites. You knew she was lacking confident, so you always made sure to pay special attention to them.

Kiyoko was pulled out of her thoughts when you came stumbling back into the bathroom trying to balance the used sheets before dumping them in the laundry basket. Then you left again, only to back seconds later, carrying the toys you had used on her and putting them into the sink.

She flushed a bit but didn't look away as you got out some mild soap and a wash cloth to begin cleaning them.

"Does it smell like pumpkin?"

"Sort of. Not natural pumpkin. More so... an artificial smell."

"I see", you hummed, scrubbing away at the dildo, "at least the colours fit you. I brought it when I was getting that one hair mask I was telling you about. The colours reminded me of you. Dark mysterious alluring. And it fit the season of course."

"You make it sound like you planned all this", Kiyoko giggled, softly. You were casualtity. "Hey says the woman who must have shaved this morning", you fake gasped, pointing the dildo at her, "You were totally hoping for this as well. You always play so hard to get."

"You got me. I did." You smiled, setting the last toy down into the sink, you'd just put them away later, and moved to sit behind her.

"Come on then my Aphrodite, let me wash thy hair. Would be a great time to try out that new hair mask I talked about."

Your fingers ran through her hair, softly massaging in first the shampoo before rinsing it out then moving onto the conditioner and rising that out as well.

"The hair mask has to stay in a little longer. But it smells like vanilla which is nice."

Kiyoko hummed and leaned her back against the wall of the tub to be closer to you. You moved her hair a bit before stopping and laughing out loud.

"Shimizu it looks like you have one of those gelled spiked hair styles like that."

Her reflection in the faucet looked ridiculous, causing her to roll her eyes.

"Please never become a punk. Actually do that if you want to. I support you. Oh though could you actually become a goth? Then I could call you my big tiddie goth girlfriend. Everyone would be even more jealous than they already are, you know with me dating one of the smartest girls in our university?"

Kiyoko liked listening to you ramble. She liked the tone of your voice as you went on and on about nothing. The first time she had asked you to continue talking after you had stopped, thinking that she was disinterested, you had bursted out in tears because no one had ever told you to continue talking.

After you had rinsed her hair out for a final time, she fully sat up to lean her head against your lap.

"I'm tired", she said, stifling a yawn. "No wonder", you responded, fingers tracing over her face, the shape of her eyebrows, nose, eyes and mouth, tapping her mole softly, "Today must have been exhausting for you. Come on lemme help you dry yourself off and get you your nightgown-"

"I don't want my nightgown", she said, yawning again, "Just give me a pair of panties and one of your shirts. I want to smell like you."

God, those innocent words hit you hard. 

“Ah yeah. Of course. My clothes. The clothes that belong to me. Yeah just... gimme a second.”

She watched as you scrambled out of the door, but not before grabbing the toys to put them away, shoulder hitting against the doorframe and snorted. You were a dork. How could you act all sexy and hot in one moment and then like a fumbling idiot in the next?

Kiyoko lifted herself out of the tub carefully, pulling the plug so the water could flow down the drain. Her legs were still shaky, she definitely wouldn't be able to walk tomorrow. She grabbed a towel and began to dry herself off. She would have to wait for you to return so she could comb her hair because the comb was on the opposite way of the room and she didn't exactly felt like crawling to it.

“Okay got you some clothes my love.”

“Thank you dear. Could you grab me my comb? I can't exactly... walk.”

Your face flushed and nodded, grabbing the item and handing it to her. It reminded you of a nymph, the way she was sitting on the edge of the bath tub, brushing her hair, not yet having put your clothes on. It was a testament of her trust in you, that she showed her body to you so casually, a body that she didn't really like and it made your heart swell with love.

“You were right. The hair masks makes your hair feel really soft. And it smells nice. Feel it”, she said and you moved closer, the sweet vanilla aroma drifting into your nose.

You smiled. “Glad I was able to assist milady. Do you need help pulling up your panties?”

She nodded and you held her waist, her legs trembling as she pulled them up. It was still a mind blowing concept to you, that you did this. Well not because of you necessarily, that was the dildos work but... it was something you did. Kiyoko sat back down to slip the shirt on, far too big for her petite body.

You grabbed some cleansing agent and spread it in the tub before using the shower head to wash it down.

“Come on my gallant knight in shining armor. Let your mighty steed carry you to bed.”

She giggled again, it was your favorite sound in the entire world  and wrapped her arms around your neck. Kiyoko turned off the light with her dangling foot so you didn't have to worry about it. You set her on the bed where she got the blanket ready for the two of you while you changed into a shirt and a pair of boxer shorts.

The bed creaked when you joined her, laying on your side, facing her. Now you had to yawn as well. She smiled and cupped your cheeks, kissing you sensually, inherently soft and filled with love.

Kiyoko cuddled close, tucking her head under your chin and intertwining your legs together.

“I love you Shimizu Kiyoko.”

“I love you too [Name] [Last Name].”

And the two of you really did with all your hearts.

[thessalian]

Blorbo, scrunkly, shitto and scrimbo for FFXIV/DAI, your pick

It's gonna have to be DA:I. I gave up on FFXIV ... I think just before Shadowbringers? I mean, I got the Shadowbringers expansion but the pre-patch content between it and Stormblood did not exactly wow me and I couldn't afford the sub at the time anyway, not for a game I didn't play - so I stopped. So I'm woefully behind there.

blorbo (favorite character, character I think about the most)

See, that's a weird question for a video game because while favourite character is largely dependent on circumstances (but would probably be Varric at the end of the day, just on the grounds of character development if nothing else), the character I think about the most has got to be any individual Inquisitor, just because they're the one I'm piloting through the game, making decisions based on the IC version I'm using at the time.

And honestly, I don't think anyone necessarily thinks most about the character they consider a favourite anyway; I spend a lot of time considering Solas' origins, not to mention his motivations and how much truth one can pry out of both the myths and the few things he says and how to stitch them together for the actual story of what he did and why ... but he is not my 'favourite'. He's narratively important but he's also a rigid, overly-cryptic snob. He's narratively important, his acting is great (all hail Gareth David-Lloyd), and he's a believable character with solid motivations ... but I don't have to like him.

scrunkly (my “baby”, character that gives me cuteness aggression, character that is So Shaped)

I'm not sure I have 'cuteness aggression' for anyone in DA:I, exactly, but the "precious cinnamon roll" award tends to go to Cole. Now, see, at one point this would have gone to Cullen. For all his problematic if at least partly justified-by-trauma behaviour in DA2 in specific and his occasional difficulty trying to shake it off in DA:I, the fact is that he did try to, and mostly succeeded in, shaking off that behaviour in the course of DA:I, and between that and trying to kick his lyrium addiction, he showed a vulnerability that always makes me want to hug them. Plus he's adorable when he gets flustered in a Cullen-mance. Unfortunately, Greg Ellis kind of put the kibosh on that because while I can mostly ignore it, I keep remembering the self-important ableist TERF jackass behind the voice and pixels at the worst moments and get a solid case of the skeeves.

scrimblo bimblo (underrated/underappreciated fave)

That's got to be Sera. Yeah, the fandom definitely has their moments about her, but not even the writers appreciate her the way she deserves ... or at least, the writers won't let the Inquisitor appreciate her in quite the way she deserves; even the times you can agree with her it's "That's weird but okay" instead of actually relating to her ADHD-coded ass. (Although honestly I never thought that a Seramancing Inquisitor telling Sera she's an absolute loony when Sera's proposing to the Inquisitor during Trespasser as perjorative as others tend to think; I call my friends loonies all the time without meaning it in a bad way, particularly when they've surprised me with something mindblowingly good.)

glup shitto (obscure fave, character that can appear in the background for 0.2 seconds and I won’t shut up about it for a week)

There's this guy who turns up in random locations at Skyhold: one Lord Trifles Minutiae? He hosts the Quizquisition and if you get all of the questions right, you get another one of those weird-shaped but powerful weapons - this one the Boon of the Spoon. I think it's mostly that I wonder whether he's somehow related to Arl Foreshadow from the Summoning Sciences quest in DA:O. Failing that, Sutherland. He's just so fucking earnest.

[captainclickycat]

(God I wish I knew how to do this properly but here goes nothing...) For the fandom ask game can I give you Cabin Pressure, Wooden Overcoats and Good Omens?

Referencing this ask, I think?

Thank you @offshootrosebud ! I’ll answer them in the order you sent.

Blorbo (favourite character, character I think about the most)

Ok this is near-impossible with CP, because I think a massive key part of the show’s appeal and why it works so well is the way the main four interact and play off each other. I can’t select just one! They don’t come separate! They’re pack animals! So I’ll cheat and say Gerti, because Gerti usually contains the main four.

WO: it’s a hard one, but at the moment it probably has to be Antigone. Is it the voice? I’ll be honest, a good chunk of it is probably the voice. But also she’s so entertainingly hammy at times (“it’s alive it’s alive it’s aliiiiiiiiive!!”) and enthusiastic about corpses and has some very thoughtful character development and is a great character to invoke in times of anger and frustration… there’s a lot to be said for saying things like “I never dream at night because my days are full of nightmaaaaaaaares” in your head in times of stress (or indeed mild inconvenience.) Also she has a really nice voice. Did I mention that?

Crowley. Bit of a toss-up between him and Aziraphale, but Crowley wins out because, like Antigone, he has a lot of therapeutic appeal. Even now when I have to deal with some everyday annoyance, I can still amuse myself a little by saying to myself that Crowley invented it. He’s entertainingly dorky in only the way that people who are trying very hard to be Cool can be, and if I’m writing GO fics his POV tends to be the one I gravitate to, even though Aziraphale is probably the character I have more in common with. Plus David Tennant is pretty, if we’re going with the TV version.

Scrunkly (my “baby”, character that gives me cuteness aggression, character that is so shaped)

I suppose Arthur is the most likely contender here? I’d be nice to him if I was a customer, even if he dumped coffee in my lap by mistake or something.

Well, Madeleine is very small, so she’s a contender. But Mayor Desmond also has a lot of endearing appeal. Look at him hiding under his desk.

It’s tricky with GO. Crowley has his “heartstrings” moments, but I feel like if I tried to fuss over him he’d find it condescending and possibly bite me. Same goes for Aziraphale, really… if anyone else tried to fuss over him, Crowley would bite them. Maybe Dog. Shall we say Dog?

Scrimblo Bimblo (underrated/underappreciated fave)

He’s not really underrated or underappreciated, but Mr Birling does deserve a mention for being the first character to really make me laugh. Like “doubled over in pain” laugh.

I’d say Nana Crusoe, but to be fair I feel like she probably does get her share of positive attention. Still, she’s probably not necessarily the first character people think of when asked who their favourite is, so I’m claiming this one. She’s one of the funniest characters and it’s cool how she gets around and when she died I was Very Sad.

The Bikers of the Apocalypse! Listen, I get why they didn’t make it into the TV adaptation. I know you can’t get everything in. But all the same, I missed them and their arguments about what their horseman names were going to be. I still lose it at “really cool people”.

Glup shitto (Obscure fave: character that can appear in the background for 0.2 seconds and I won’t shut up about it for a week)

Ruth’s husband, whose name I’ve forgotten. He was a laugh.

Baron von Undercrackers. I’d have liked to see him running for mayor.

Sarah Young! I have so many questions about Sarah. Why did she only warrant exactly two mentions in the book before never turning up again or playing any part in the story whatsoever? What kind of a person is she? Did she and her boyfriend go to Spain again one day and never come back? Did she notice there was something weird going on with her little brother? We’ve got a treasure trove of potential on our hands here. (I suppose there’s also that guy in the turban who grins at A&C in the TV show, but tbf he’s already got his fair share of fandom appreciation)

Poor little meow meow (“problematic”/unpopular/controversial/otherwise pathetic fave)

Martin Crieff is a poor little meow meow if ever I saw one. Of course I realise that in fandom terms he’s actually pretty popular, but in-universe not really. As an audience member I can sort of root for him, but I know that if I met him in real life I’d likely just find him really annoying.

Rudyard, for largely similar reasons.

Urgh this one’s tricky. There’s Newt, I suppose. Sometimes I find myself relating to him and I feel weird about that. Shadwell also crossed my mind for this one, because he’s so stupid and over-the-top it’s funny, but I’m planning on mentioning him later on and no way is he making it on here twice.

Horse plinko (character I would torment for fun, for whatever reason):

Herc. I’m sorry Herc. You’re perfectly decent. But I would also like to see you try to square off against a sheep.

Eric, hands down. I don’t think I’ve ever laughed at an episode as much as The Sunshine Treatment. Absolutely lost it at “Maybe Mr Sunshine Man will know what to do?…Oh, that’s right. He’s dead.”

Gabriel. I’d want some scenario where he has to confront everyday human things, like getting ketchup on his suit or stepping in a dog turd, or when he has to explain the whole pregnancy thing to Mary, and absolutely goes to pieces because he’s not used to having to deal with this sort of thing.

Eeby Deeby (character I would send to superhell)

Mr Leeman. At least he could smoke there.

Mr Askey. Although he’d probably get kicked out for upsetting the rest of the damned.

Shadwell. He’d manage fine, anyway. He’d just headbutt the devil.

[calhoun17]

metal gear 4 the ask game (-: i know nothing about this series please enlighten me

metal gear is an extremely convoluted series and i will have to preface this with a bit of background lore but i will try my best. putting under a readmore bc this is huuge. if the readmore doesn't work for some reason im so sorry abt your dashes guys 😭

lore part

the gist is this guy named john/naked snake/big boss (codenamed the latter for the bulk of the series) was such a good solider that they cloned him and made his sons solid snake and liquid snake (david and eli). during the later half of his life john takes on more of an antagonistic role because he gets this absolutely dumbass idea to horde nuclear weapons and create a centralised army like basically an army state bc he feels his only worth and purpose in life is as a solider -_- (this is a man wh shouldn't have been in charge of a lot of things tbh)

the first game follows solid snake going to a base called shadow moses to stop a team called foxhound (solid snake was once apart of it, it is at this point commanded by liquid snake) in their revolt against the government. foxhound hijack a nuclear warhead on a metal gear (literally a mecha with a nuke on it. walking nuke)

during this game snake meets liquid snake for the first time who he would end up killing. liquid has this superiority complex and desire to prove himself because he feels worthless as a clone and son who was never wanted, (john didn't even know his DNA was used for the project when it happened) and feels that solid snake stole his opportunity to kill his father, prove himself better than him and express his hatred for him.

solid snake also meets otacon (engineer of the metal gears, did not know their true nature as nuclear weapons and feels awful about making them) meryl (wannabe rookie solider who idolises him, niece of one of snake's colonels from back in the day) and revolver ocelot, a man with lifelong devotion to big boss (to a homo extent tbh) whom snake would begin a series long rivalry with, but whose true goals would not be revealed until both of their deaths.

ask game part

blorbo (character i think about the most): probably solid snake and otacon as a collective and their dynamic, after mgs1 they go on to form a lifelong partnership, lasting the 9 years before snake's death, in that time they form a NGO to work against nuclear weapons and raise a child together (all the subtext you think would exist regarding that does LOL. her name is sunny). otacon is my favourite mgs character but it is sort of tied with other characters. otacon has a really difficult and sad life and the trauma never really leaves him but he and snake both break the cycles of their respective traumas when raising sunny.

scrunkly: it has to go to otacon his design is so cool in mgs1 with the polygon ass everything, poofy hair glasses and a big jacket it rules also i completely forgot to mention he's an otaku.

scrimblo bimblo (underrated/underappreciated) i don't really have any faves like that but quiet from mgs5 is a bit of an underutilised character tbh

i dont have a glup shitto/obscure fave but the closest thing is that i really like the relationship between the boss (john's mentor) and eva (one of his allies who seemingly betrayed him and also knew that the boss was pretending to betray the US for the greater good). this was kept from john but was revealed to him a decade later in in-game audio tapes and i wish he and eva had gotten to talk in person once again and had spoke about the boss. if this had happened at all maybe john's life would have turned out even a little differently because he obviously held onto a lot of pain and trauma and decided on some dumbass ideas 🥲

poor little meow meow: there are several meow meows in this series but it has to go to revolver ocelot. had lifelong devotion to big boss and died for him but was ultimately working towards a goal big boss failed to complete and didn't even consider even though it was asked of him (world peace nuclear disarmament etc) also it works so well bc the boss asked john to do this but she also happens to be ocelot's mother

horse plinko (character i would torment): big boss, he's a bit of a dumbass and is also fucked up and kept the cycles of war and trauma going but hey that's what being evolved in the military at a young age and having to kill the closest person you had to mother does to a mf

eeby deeby/superhell: otacon's piece of shit father with no redeeming qualities who turns on his allies in the name of self preservation and killed his son's mother

[astralbooks]

Legendborn - Tracy Deonn

Read: 11/09/2020 - 16/09/2020

Rating: 5/5

Rep: black main character, sapphic taiwanese-american side character, sapphic venezuelan-american side character, black side characters, non-binary side character, bi side characters, gay side characters

CW: death of a parent, hospitals, car accidents, police, slavery, racism, child abuse, memory manipulation, violence, rape

Review: 

Legendborn absolutely deserves the hype that it’s been getting!

I really loved the way that the magic system worked, and how different groups used and wielded their magic differently. The magic within the world of Legendborn relies heavily on a kind of equivalent exchange. No use of magic, or aether or root as it’s called within the book, comes without a price. For some that price is simply an offering of fruit to their ancestors. For some, who use significantly more aether for significantly longer, the price is much more.

This book contains a sharp commentary on the generational trauma that is reality for many Black Americans. While most white people can trace their family tree back for generations, with some being able to go as far back as the middle ages or even further, many Black Americans are only able to go back a small number of generations before slavery meant that any further records were lost. It’s shown repeatedly that while Bree is painfully aware of this, it doesn’t cross anyone else’s mind unless Bree spells it out for them. Racism, both overt and unintentional, plays a large part in this book. There are people who proudly wear their racism like a badge, and there are people who sincerely believe that they’re not racist but do racist things anyway. The way that this book ended was both brilliant and heartbreaking. That may seem like a non-sequitur, but it isn’t.

This book also tackles grief, specifically the grief of losing a parent. This is something that I have some experience with myself, although the circumstances surrounding it were different enough that I didn’t see myself in Bree’s reaction. I knew that my father’s death was coming for basically my whole life, Bree had no idea that her mother’s death would happen until it did, and that does make a huge difference. Deonn has said that Bree’s grief is inspired by her own grief following the death of her own mother, which makes a lot of sense. Bree’s grief may not have been personally relatable to me, but it felt real, and I’m sure there are a lot of people out there who need this kind of portrayal. Something that Deonn got bang on, however, was how people treat you afterwards. Some people tiptoe around you and offer platitudes, and you know they’re just trying to be polite but it doesn’t make you feel any better, and some people think that you should be over it already and want you to act like it never happened and nothing is wrong. Most people aren’t being malicious when they handle talking to those who are grieving poorly, but what they say can get grating nonetheless.

I loved Bree! She cares deeply about her friends, is never afraid to stand up for herself, and while she’s determined to achieve her goals she also has a strong sense of right and wrong and, despite what she might tell herself, she’s not someone who can walk away from a bad situation if it would mean leaving someone else behind. She’s also an extremely fast learner and very intelligent, figuring things out before I managed to almost every single time.

Her relationship with Nick was sweet and believable, but what I liked about it most was that the two of them communicated their feelings effectively. The will they won’t they stage is fun to read about and all, but only up to a certain point, and in my opinion Deonn picked the perfect moment for Nick to stop and say that he wasn’t kidding around, that he really did like her, and to ask if she liked him back. They spent most of the book in an actual relationship, which was great! Bree and Nick used communication, it was super effective!

Selwyn, the other male lead, was a really fun character to read about. He’s very dramatic, which led to a couple of moments that were hilarious and worth experiencing for yourself. He also fulfils a favourite obscure trope of mine that I’m fairly sure I’ve only seen once before. Person A is trying to protect Person B. Person C comes along to help Person B with something, and Person A perceives them as a threat and is hostile towards them. Eventually, Person A realises that they were wrong, that Person C is harmless, and that actually they both care about Person B’s wellbeing and all their goals align. And then Person A and Person C become very close friends, and maybe more. It’s a very specific version of enemies to not-lovers that I loved in Princess Tutu, and this book has confirmed that I love it in general.

I didn’t like Bree’s friend Alice at first for a couple of reasons, but by the end of the book she’d not only apologised for the stuff that made me dislike her in the first place, but had redeemed herself and then some. I’m pretty sure that she’ll be playing a bigger part in book 2 and I’m really excited to see how that plays out! I have a prediction, but it’s going to be a long time before I can find out whether I’m right ;_;.

I’m dying to compare one of my favourite parts of the book to another thing-gone-wrong, but honestly I think even mentioning it would spoil it, and that’s not something that I want to do at all. Just know that it was a very good part of the book and I enjoyed it tremendously, and being able to make that comparison only made me enjoy it even more!

Pretty much everyone has been talking about how great Legendborn is, and people are right. If this book isn’t at least on your radar then I don’t know what to tell you. If you’re even slightly interested in giving this a go then do it!

I received an e-arc through Netgalley in return for an honest review

[ancientechos]

Hallow’s Eve

Emet-Selch/Arianna ♡ 3281 words ♡ eldritch au [modern au]

Did I...write even more...for eldritch AU...? Yes, yes I did. Proper fic coming...who knows when. My superpower is to write a lot about nothing.

Random little Halloween-themed fic! And another example of how I cannot do titles.

Has an appearance from @windup-dragoon Kiri and Hien.

Despite herself she --

Admittedly, very often, wonders if she’s too boring for her...very strange and impromptu roommate. Lover...? She supposes they are technically thus, at this point...

Though that is besides the, well, point.

It’s not as if they’re always home, though she admits they are...more often than not. Thus Arianna has taken to worrying she’s exceptionally dull to the eldritch creature...he’s simply too polite to say it.

(There is, of course, inherently something wrong with this assumption, but alas.)

“H-have you ever been to a party...?” The second the question finishes making its way past her lips, she regrets it -- it’s banal, not specific enough, absurd. Her suspicions are confirmed as Hades fixes her with a quiet, unimpressed stare. He plucks a grape from the fruit bowl before answering.

“Depends what sort of party, I suppose.”

Absentmindedly, she wonders what sort of “parties” he might have been privy to in the past...the only thing her mind can conjure is strangely fantastical images of odd creatures, one less humanoid than the next, eerie music --

She has to stop her mind from running off into the imaginary. Perhaps she’ll ask him later.

“Um -- w-what I mean is -- a -- ” The woman finds herself growing ever more anxious when she realises she doesn’t -- really -- have any point of comparison for what she wants to ask. For a moment, she fidgets her fingers together, then brushes a hand through a few strands of her hair. Her green gaze glances from her companion, still leaning casually against her kitchen counter, to the calendar on the wall in the hopes it might give her answers.

Unfortunately, it does not.

Somewhat blessedly, he does not interrupt her nervous fumblings as she struggles for words.This does not, however, stop her mind from being dangerously on the edge of wondering just how exasperated he must be --

“A-a p-party...?” Almost desperate to say anything at all, she blurts out the first thing that comes to mind.

“Yes?” She can practically see one of his eyebrows quirk without actually looking at him. “You mentioned a party already. I asked what kind.”

Never mind that the question had been decidedly implicit.

He sounds far more patient than she ever deserves, and she presses her palms to her face, hard enough that colours dance behind her eyelids. “Ah...” Why is she getting so worked up about this, in any case...?

“There’s nothing to be upset about.” Hades’ voice cuts through the fog and white noise threatening to overcome her. “We have all the time in the world. no?”

-- He’s completely right. She truly has not an inkling of an idea as to why this has made her so on edge. Is it the subject matter itself?

“Unless there was a party happening within the hour...”

“N-no, that’s not -- ” She’s responded before she can fully realise, with the wryness of his tone, that he’s being sarcastic. Of course she wouldn’t have asked him about something like this on such short notice. Slowly, she lets out a breath she hadn’t realised she’d been holding, her shoulders lowering from where they’d nearly surpassed the tips of her ears. What she wants to ask...

“What I mean is...a c-costume party...” She trails off as she pulls her thoughts together. “Some people...like to d-dress up as...strange creatures, o-or book characters...for parties. A-at this time of year.”

Not that she’s ever really gone to one. Twining a strand of curled hair about her right index finger, she finally turns to look at him curiously. Already, she can feel the strange, harsh energy from earlier dissipating simply from being able to speak properly.

“Mm. I suppose I’ve been to one of those before. Though not really any in the mortal realm, of course...” There’s a pause as he regards her. “I suppose that means there would be a great deal of people there...and you wanted to go regardless?”

She has to bite her lip before she can mumble a reflexive no. “I-I just thought...perhaps...you would be interested...”

“Hmm.” The sigh he exhales almost has her thinking he wants to reject her offer. But -- “You said people like to dress up? Maybe I could go as my true form...or something close to it.” There’s an almost malicious smirk that curls his lip, his head tilting slightly to the side. Arianna tries to ignore the way her heart thunders treacherously in her chest and absently prays the lighting is too dark to notice her nonsensical blush.

“I-I don’t think it would be a good idea to go in your...ah...o-other form...” She pauses, teeth sinking into her lower lip. “Wouldn’t you simply scare everyone away...?” She doesn’t need to be told twice to remember that...incident from before.

“That’s the point, is it not? You could enjoy yourself.”

She is not quite sure whether she’s meant to be touched or concerned, and thus settles for wavering uncertainly between the two.

“W-well, regardless...” She exhales nervously. “I think...if you wanted to go, it might be...best to go in...ah, c-costumes...?”

“Oh?” The smirk hasn’t faded for even a moment. “And what do you propose we’d go as?”

The we has her heart fluttering stupidly again, for no reason, as she brushes her fingers through her hair once more. “Um...that...” Blinking and shaking her head to try to clear it, she regards him with what is meant to be a critical eye, but simply gets caught up in his gaze again. “Ah...”

-- Now that she isn’t an anxiously flustered mess, he seems perfectly content with simply flustering her further. Pushing himself away from the counter, he approaches her to smirk fondly down at her. When she simply proves all the more wordless, he brushes a finger gently along her cheek.

“How about an angel and a demon?”

To say she would have expected a suggestion from him would be a lie...not to mention...the suggestion itself...? It’s enough to have her blinking up at him blankly, her nervousness for the moment forgotten.

“I-I suppose...but...h-how do you know what an angel looks like, anyway...?” Curiously, she eyes him. She can’t imagine he’s ever done much...mortal reading. Or maybe he has? Well, she isn’t home -- or even awake -- the entire time. She supposes it’s perfectly possible and within his abilities for him to have picked up any of the numerous books she has, or to even have perused the titles elsewhere. But something so specific as an angel and a demon? It’s an odd thing to think about...

“Hmm? Oh, that’s easy.” There’s a smirk on his lips as he casually slings an arm about her shoulders, leaning in close. Somehow, she manages not to turn away despite the blush threatening to overtake her yet again. “There’s one right in front of me, isn’t there?”

It takes a moment for the words to process, and even longer for the precise meaning to dawn upon her. But when they do --

She wouldn’t be surprised if the heat that radiates from her face could run a generator.

“Y-you -- !” she stammers uselessly, turning away from him and smacking a hand to her face. Her fingers feel cold. Though she attempts to pull from him entirely, he holds her fast against him, amused.

“Yes? What about me?”

She ducks underneath his arm to avoid answering him, rubbing her palms against her cheeks as if she could simply push the sensation out of them.

“Am I to take it that you agree with my idea, then?”

“N-no -- ! Definitely not!”

________

Well -- that was what she had said...

But clearly her conviction had not been strong enough, given her current...predicament.

It had taken a concerning amount of time to find an angel costume that simply...wasn’t too short, but finally she’d managed to find one with a skirt that went at the very least past her knees, while Hades had loitered about the rest of the costumes shop, occasionally remarking this or that or giving extraordinarily unhelpful advice.

“What about this one?”

He, of course, goes ignored.

The house they’re standing in front of now seems tall and imposing, though doubtless only to her. Various decorations and a myriad of lights are strung up about it. The owners had had no qualms to spare coin for making the place fit for Halloween. There’s even a fog machine, judging by the mist blowing across the front yard and obscuring the door.

She’s already not very enthused about entering. Alas, the same cannot be said for her companion.

Whilst Arianna is dressed mainly in white -- with gold accents and, of all things, gold glitter littering the skirt portion of her dress -- and a black headband to allow her halo to blend with her hair, her date (?) wears a mainly black suit with dark red horns. She can’t see his headband from this angle, which leads her to believe he must have simply...willed the outfit into existence, or something. She can’t remember him throwing any such thing into her cart, either.

-- She supposes he looks nice.

Apparently sensing whatever discomfort she exudes, Hades’ grip upon her hand tightens slightly, and he draws her closer to him.

“You are aware we don’t have to go, yes?”

“I am, but -- I thought...you might want to go, so...”

Certainly, as he’s fond of reminding her over their telepathic link, there’s no especial reason they need to be going. They could just as easily turn and go home...and yet she can’t shake off the feeling that she isn’t giving him enough of what he deserves. Surely he would like for more than to simply lounge about her apartment, or...whatever it is he does when she’s away.

And perhaps a part of her is curious if she truly can do this.

Arianna allows him to lead her past the gate, up into the odourless pale fog that masks the door, and then through it. The closer they get to the doorway, the more loudly the music reverberates against her ears. Ah -- her least favourite sort of “party”, then...

Not that she’s really been to many --

Inside are all sorts of people, most dressed in costumes with a few occasional individuals apparently left out, or simply not wishing to invest the time in their get up. There’s clearly food and drink available further within, and the decorations from without continue on in inside the house. Fake cobwebs with tiny plastic spiders, glowing pumpkins and skulls...and a bit of the fog from outside.

And of course there’s hardly any shortage of dramatic and multi-coloured lighting.

Most of the guests are milling about, some far too close for Arianna’s comfort Unfortunately, her already clear awkwardness isn’t especially evident to the more inebriated partygoers.

“Hey pretty lady.” A young man in a some sort of zombie mask apparently isn’t discouraged by the presence of the even taller man next to her. “Wanna go grab a drink?”

As soon as she focuses on him, her gaze snaps to his shoes, then away; he’s about to try to say something else, though with one derisive stare from Hades and he instantaneously shuts his mouth and slinks away like a defeated pup.

“Hmph. They’re like animals.”

Arianna doesn’t really want to ask him precisely what he means, focused on trying to regain her toppled equilibrium. The sudden approach and the already crowded atmosphere is doing little to quell her flickering anxiety. Perhaps it had been a mistake to come here after all.

Her other free hand lifts to grasp at his wrist, her gaze firmly upon the ground as she hunches in on herself, entire body tense.

“Are you sure you don’t want to leave? Perhaps -- ”

“Oh, Arianna! You came!”

The other masculine voice cuts through the white noise and Hades’ words; she recognises it immediately. She glances nervously at Hien’s boots as he comes to a halt a little ways away; there’s cloth beside his, like a robe, or -- 

“I didn’t expect -- I see Hades is here, as well...” Hien trails off a little, perhaps noticing the dire state of the dark-haired woman. “Shall we go somewhere a little quieter? I know a spot -- the hallway’s not as crowded.”

She doesn’t need any other amount of convincing; Hades leads her as Hien and Kirishimi direct the two of them into a darkly lit hallway. Whilst the music here is somewhat muted, the decorations continue along the ceiling, winding over the doors.

It feels far less claustrophobic, however. Perhaps most of it is to do with being surrounded by friends instead. Or Hades standing in the entranceway to the larger room, blocking out most of the rabble.

Leaning against the wall, her death grip upon him slowly lessens as she exhales. Her shoulders slump as some of the sickly tension evaporates. Whilst she’s not entirely in her element yet, things feel -- slightly better. At least better enough that she can try to look up.

She’s somewhat tempted to ask Hien if something is wrong with his eye, until she recalls that they’re all wearing costumes. His appears to be something of a pirate, complete with an eyepatch; though the lighting is dim if not entirely coloured, his outfit seems to be composed of yellows, or perhaps orange. As for Kirishimi --

The woman looks so natural in the -- kimono? -- that for a second it hadn’t even registered that she’s wearing a “costume” at all. She still isn’t really certain it looks like a costume --

And the tails are certainly not a fabrication. Though she supposes she can get away with it at a party.

Hades chooses that moment to gesture with a sigh.

“And you wouldn’t even let me come like that.”

“Your case is a little bit...different...”

Hien’s expression is friendly once he notices Arianna looking up at him.

“Feeling any better? I could get you a drink, if you like...?”

After a moment’s hesitation, the woman gives a small nod. Whilst she feels bad for monopolising the man’s time, her throat undeniably feels a little parched. Once he slips past Hades, the kitsune takes the opportunity to speak.

“Yer lookin’ cute, Ari!”

Feeling her face heat up, Arianna directs her gaze away, glancing toward the ground; after a few seconds, she takes a peek to the wider room, then the other side. With no one else -- really in earshot, perhaps she can manage --

“Ah...tha-thank you...you...too...”

Pressing her fingers to her cheek, she closes her eyes as she tries to calm herself, feeling stupidly childish for no real reason. Though she supposes, perhaps, this is childish; what sort of person can’t even converse...?

“But yer looking as slimy as ever.”

“And I can tell you hardly put any effort into your ‘costume’. You’ve just gone as yourself.”

“Ya tellin’ me yer not some kinda demon? As if I’d believe that. And that suit’s just what ya always wear.”

“Not at all, the cut and style are entirely different. But I wouldn’t expect anything more of a mutt.”

Paradoxically, their hissing argument somehow manages to put her at further ease. Perhaps because it’s a norm of what those two always do when they’re forced together in a single room; no matter the occasion or the reason, they’ve never seemed to be able to get along for longer than a few minutes at a time, and even that is being generous...

See? Everything is normal. That is what she tries to tell herself.

Except for, well, everything else about the situation, but if she just focuses on Hades’ shoulders, perhaps she can pretend nothing is too out of the ordinary about this.

Hien returns a few minutes later with a clear glass of water in his hand; he gives it to Arianna with an encouraging smile, and she takes it gratefully. The glass is cool in her hand, and for a moment she wishes she had something warmer, but it’ll do. Lifting it to her lips, she begins to sip as her companions break out into quiet conversation and half-hearted jabs --

A loud sound, like a foghorn, sheers through even the music; a few people scream. Arianna full-on nearly jumps in place, her vaguely settled nerves fraying like unravelling threads. The blood in her veins turns to ice along with the coldness of the water spilling down her front, and she lets go entirely of Hades’ hand to press her palm to her ear. It’s a wonder she doesn’t let go of the glass entirely -- or that her grip doesn’t simply break it. Instead, she presses it to her other ear as she curls away from the entranceway, her mind struggling at a mile a minute.

There’s few things she’s consciously afraid of. Loud, sudden noises are one such thing.

The tiny noise that had managed to spill from her lips earlier dies, her throat constricting painfully. The dimly lit hallway seems to flicker and swim before her eyes; she squeezes them shut as she tries to calm herself.

“Ari? You okay?”

Their voices sound far away, as if they speak to her from under water or glass. She can’t respond, not even with a movement; her head spins like a kaleidoscope and, dimly, she thinks to herself yet again how stupidly childlike she must look to them all. Especially...

“I am afraid everyone here has overstayed their welcome...”

If there’s one voice that cuts through the noise, it’s his, always his.

But what is he...?

“ -- Ha -- ” Her voice falters in her throat the moment she tries to speak out and grasp at his arm; he easily slips from her and into the crowd of giggling and chatting partygoers, their volume spiraling into a crescendo. She still feels ill, and his sudden disappearance does a poor job of calming her. Was he talking about her...?

There’s a sudden scream; the entire crowd stops stock still. Then pandemonium erupts as chaos consumes the whole house, a thundering of voices and footsteps as the guests throw themselves out whatever doors and windows they can reach.

It’s not difficult to see why. In the centre of the room -- and taking up more space with every second -- is...Hades, in his eldritch form of course, the same one she’d seen when she’d first met him.

The house is deserted in less than a minute; only Arianna, Kirishimi, and Hien remain. The kitsune’s ears are instinctively flattened to her head, tails stiff, her arms unconsciously thrown out in front of her companion. Arianna thinks she can hear something like a growl from within her throat. The devourer of souls seems to have no issue with his current appearance, arms spanning the whole living area.

“Will ya put that away already? Ya stink like the damn void.”

“And you smell like wet dog. Nothing new about that, however.”

With a sigh, the eldritch’s limbs and size retreats; shadows envelop him, and finally he stands in the middle of the abandoned glasses and shattered plates in his humanoid flesh.

“Much better now, eh? I said you’d finally be able to enjoy yourself.”

[classical-linguist]

Hello all! Just wanted to share a draft for a short story I'm working on at the moment. The 'planets' (cough cough Luna and Sol) are based off of pre-Copernican cosmology, so this is just my interpretation of their characters in a work setting. There's a lot that I want to change but I was curious about what you thought so far!

“Earth!”

Mercury, the memo-boy, comes speeding down the hallway sending papers scattering across the floor. In his hand is a piece of gold note paper, which I know must have come from the boss’ office, which he presents to me as he skids to a halt. “Boss wanted me to give you this. He said it was urgent.” And then as quickly as he arrived, he leaves, tearing down the corridor.

“Jove, what now?” I open the note and read.

Hello Earth! Sorry about the inconvenience, but I need you to do a task for me. A few years ago I gave someone — one of the planets — a package, and I need that delivered to the address below. Unfortunately, I’ve forgotten who it was, but it’s an urgent matter so I was hoping you could ask around for me. I would do it myself, but I’m busy at the moment dealing with administration. Did you hear that the council is planning on revoking Luna’s and Sol’s status as planets, and replacing them with two nobodies called Uranus and Neptune? They’re crazy! Anyways, the sooner you get this done, the better. Thanks!

A mysterious package… Well, I suppose I should go talk to Luna first. She’s my closest friend, after all.

I push past the silver door with LADY LUNA inscribed on a plaque, and step inside the dimly lit room. “Luna?” There’s a bluish glow about, and I haven’t quite figured out whether I find it eerie or comforting.

“Yes?” A soft voice that sounds like tinkling bells echoes throughout the office, and I follow it to find Lady Luna herself in the middle of a pond. She’s standing atop a canoe that looks as though it’s been woven by silver threads, with little blue lights surrounding her head, while stirring the water around her with a long staff. Though I’m not in my office at the moment, I can feel my tides shifting.

“I’ve been sent on a mission. Would you happen to know anything about a package the boss gave you, a few years back?”

Luna looks up from her stirring. “No? Should I?” Her pale face wears a concerned expression, and her fingers dance up and down her staff. It’s a tic she has when she worries about something. Apart from her fingers, nothing besides her long hair and her long white gown moves — I’ve never quite figured that out, there’s no breeze in here.

“No, it’s fine, just trying to find someone.”

Her posture relaxes. “Oh, good. I haven’t heard from anyone but you in a while, actually, I was worried I had missed something.” Though Luna and I are close, she doesn’t talk much with the others. They usually only come to her for therapy, because she’s very calming, but otherwise they avoid her because she also has a little bit of a reputation as a lunatic.

“You haven’t, don’t worry.” Then I think. “Actually, there is a little bit of a concern at the moment… I don’t think it’s something to dwell on too much, you’ll probably be fine, but they’re reconsidering yours — and Sol’s — statuses as planets. I don’t know why, they’ll probably not change anything.” I have no doubt that Luna will keep her position, but I see her face shift and know perhaps it wasn’t something I should have mentioned.

“What?! How could they?! My work is so important! It’s because I don’t talk to anyone, isn’t it? They think all I do is follow you around all the time. I’ll show them! Get out!” Her skin remains the same glowing white as it always does, but her fists are clenched and her face is furious. One of her blue glowing orbs shoots towards me, and I narrowly miss it as I slip out the door.

I love Luna, but her moods are all over the place. You have to watch your words around her.

I walk through the cafeteria with the intention of finding Venus, but Mercury comes whizzing around a corner a little too quickly and knocks us, along with his stack of newsletters, to the floor.

“Hey, watch it!” He sounds mad, but Mercury is much smaller than I am so I don’t really care.

“You should watch it. You’re the one that goes way too fast.”

“Can you blame me? If our maker didn’t want me to go fast, he wouldn’t have given me super speed.” He glances around nervously. “That, and Sol’s chasing me because I stole his favourite paper weight.” He pulls a gleaming golden bird figurine out of one of his many pockets. “How was I meant to know he cared about this bit of junk?”

“If it’s a bit of junk, why take it?”

“I’m a kleptomaniac, I can’t help it. Besides, that’s my whole shtick. If I don’t steal everything, who will? It’s the principle of the thing.

“Right.” A thought occurs to me. “Actually, Mercury, has our boss given you a package or anything to look after? Within the last few years?”

“You do realise that nobody gives me anything if they plan on getting it back, right?”

“So that’s a no. Okay, then, well I’ll see you around then, Mercury! Do you need any help getting those papers?” I ask, pointing to the memos scattered on the floor.

“No, I’ll be fine. See you!”

I make it around a corner before I notice one of my shoes doesn’t feel quite right. I glance down. The lace from my right boot has vanished, somewhere—

I go back to yell at Mercury for stealing my shoelace but he’s already gone, not a single paper in sight.

At the end of another long hallway is an amber-coloured door with a sign reading VENUS. I don’t talk to her a whole lot — we’re quite similar, but she causes a lot of drama in the office and it’s a bit of a pain. You see, the thing is: she’s very, very pretty. By that I mean beautiful, and by that I mean drop-dead gorgeous. Venus has a bad habit of making people fall for her, only for them to get their hearts broken, and I don’t know if she does it on purpose or not but it’s fair for me to dislike her a little bit for that. Right?

I push through the door and the first thing that surprises me is the heat. Admittedly, I’ve never been in Venus’ office before. It’s like walking into a sauna, or a rainforest, or a very humid greenhouse. The second thing that surprises me is the amount of greenery everywhere. The walls and ceiling are obscured by plants in all different shapes and sizes, from tiny cacti to enormous monstera plants. Lying on a chaise in the middle of the room, with a sketchbook in one hand and a pencil in the other, is Venus. A large feather fan flaps furiously beside her, which makes a cool breeze strong enough to ruffle her dark curly hair and occasionally flip the pages she’s trying to draw on. She wears an orange dress that compliments her skin, and it looks like a very fine material. Makes sense, considering how hot it is in here.

I slip off my sweater. “Hey, Venus.”

Venus glances up, and a look of surprise crosses her face. “Earth? What are you doing here?”

“Boss sent me. Do you know anything— gosh, it’s so hot! How can you work in this room?” I wipe my forehead with my arm, and it’s slick with sweat.

“Oh no, come sit here! It’s much cooler by the fan.” She drags me by the arm to her couch, where I immediately feel relief from the temperature. I can see her sketchbook now, she’s working on storyboards for advertisements. Venus has a knack for making things look attractive, hence she’s in charge of advertising and sales.

“Thanks. Do you know anything about a package the boss might have given you? A few years back?”

Venus shakes her head, her frizzy curls bouncing. “No, I’m afraid not. Why?”

I shrug. “He just needs it for something. Don’t worry about it.” I get up to go, but Venus grabs my arm again. “What?”

“I’m sorry, I just…” She hesitates. “You’re so good with plants. You have so many, and they thrive. But I’ve been trying to grow my own and it’s just not working. Are the conditions not right?”

“Oh— well, I think this greenhouse effect is good in theory, but it’s a little extreme and not all plants are suited for these kinds of conditions. Maybe you could set up little areas with different, I don’t know, climates for each? And you could research what different plants need to survive.” I have lots of plants, but they tend to take care of themselves.

“Great, thank you so much! I’ve tried asking around, but nobody really seems to care. Some of the interns are having a competition to see who can get a date first and whenever I try to talk to anyone that’s all that ever gets brought up anymore.” Venus looks both happy with the information but also quite dejected. I never really bothered learning office gossip, I just assumed Venus liked having all the attention.

“I’m really sorry to hear that, Venus… if you want, you can find me in my office and we can talk about plants any time you want, alright?” I offer.

She beams. “Earth, that would be brilliant. Thank you.”

I say goodbye, and leave Venus’ room. It seems I didn’t know her as well as I thought I did.

I plan on finding Mars next, but a clamour outside turns my attention to the window. Mercury zips along the path, the same paperweight clutched in his hand as the one he showed me before. Shortly after he disappears out of my line of sight, a tall, bronzed man in a chariot comes racing after him.

“Sol?” I call in surprise.

His chariot screeches to a halt, and Sol turns to me. He says nothing, but beckons for me to come outside. I crawl out of the window, and jog over to where he is. “Hop on, please, Earth. This kid’s messed with my belongings for too long.”

“I— what?” I’m too confused to register what he’s talking about, so he just pulls me up onto the chariot, cracks a golden whip, and the horses with manes of fire pulling the chariot whinny and start their chase again.

“You called me, was there something you wanted to ask?” Sol towers over me, which would be intimidating especially as I know him to have a fiery temper, but he radiates warmth which makes him seem friendly.

“No, sor— actually, yes. Did the boss give you any sort of package to look after? Within the last few years?” It would make sense if he did. Sol is very responsible and one of the more powerful of the planets. However, my guess is wrong.

“No, he hasn’t. He did give me that paperweight, though, and I’d really like it back.”

I laugh. “I’ll talk to Mercury later. Hey, aren’t you meant to be working right now?” Sol is in charge of scheduling, and he has the important role of being the one to chase the night away. It’s not a job that generally has breaks, so I don’t know why he’s out here.

Sol gives a sheepish smile. “I got Luna to cover for me. The eclipse will only last so long, though, so I’m hoping a few minutes will be enough to catch him.”

“Face it, Sol, the boy is too fast for you. Go back to work.” I pat him on the back and he sighs, before bringing the chariot to a slow stop.

“Fair enough. I hope you find who you’re looking for!”

I get off the chariot, and walk back into the building. Conveniently, Sol has dropped me off right next to Mars’ workshop.

Mars has a heavy iron door with his name on it at the entrance to his workshop. Inside is an array of tools and machinery, some of which looks so obscure I can’t imagine what it could be used for. Mars is toiling away at something metal at the other end of the room, which is made evident by the routine CLANG of metal against metal. I have to shout to be heard over the din.

“Hello, Mars!” The clanging doesn’t stop, but he looks up from his work. A few tufts of bright red hair stick out from under an iron helmet. Whether he’s wearing it for protection, or because he just likes armour in general (he’s a soldier every single Halloween), I can’t tell. I realise that if I want to talk to him I’ll have to be beside him, so I cup my ears with my hands and walk up the room.

“Hello” — CLANG — “Earth, what can” — CLANG — “I do for” — CLANG — “you?”

I grab the metal tool he’s using, so I can talk properly. “Two things: firstly, perhaps you could pause your racket just for a moment?”

Mars looks displeased, but complies. “Yes?”

“Thank you. Secondly, has the boss given you any sort of package recently?”

“No.” With that, the work continues, and my hands fly back up to cover my ears to protect them from the deafening noise. I already knew Mars was not one for conversation. He’s like Sol in the way that he’s hot headed, but perhaps he’s more likely to show it, or act on it. He’s usually behind the biggest fights at work, and I know that’s not a rumour because I’ve witnessed it myself. We keep him around though, because nobody is as good at production as he is.

As soon as I’m out of the workshop, I head towards the elevators. Who else could there possibly be? I’ve spoken with Luna, Mercury, Venus, Sol, Mars… what if he forgot? What if he actually didn’t give it to someone, and just left it lying around? I step into the elevator, because I can’t think of anywhere else it could be, and press the button for the top floor where Jove’s office is located.

The doors open with a cheery ding and I stroll through the corridor. It’s easy to see which door is the one I want: it’s wide open, and all around it are golden decorations in the shape of a grapevine. Without bothering to knock, I march through the doorway. “Hello, sir!”

“Oh, don’t bother with that ‘sir’ rubbish. Call me Jove!” Sitting at an elevated desk is a large man, with sparkling eyes and a rosy face. Jove reminds me a lot of Santa Claus, or Father Christmas, in the sense that he’s always cheerful and loves giving away presents. “What’s the matter, Earth?”

“Well, s— um, Jove. Is there any chance you may still have that package yourself? Because I’m sure I’ve asked everyone about it, and I know I certainly don’t have it, so I don’t know where else it might be.”

Jove frowns, a puzzled look on his face, which is so different from his usual friendly smile it’s surprisingly jarring. “Are you sure? Who have you spoken to?”

“Luna, Mercury, Venus, Sol and Mars,” I recite in order.

Jove’s expression changes from a frown to one of understanding. “Ah, I see. I know who has it — makes total sense, really, I don’t know how I could have forgotten. Then again, I suppose you forgot about him too, didn’t you?”

“Who could I possibly have forgotten?”

“Don’t you remember who works in our archives, taking care of everything we don’t immediately need?” Jove encourages.

“I don’t… Saturn!!” My jaw drops, and I am overcome with guilt. How could I have forgotten about Saturn?! I feel awful.

“Don’t worry about it, dear. It’s not that you see him often, anyways. I don’t think he’s been outside for at least a century.”

“Yes, but still…”

Jove gestures towards a tray on his desk. “Have a biscuit, you’ll feel better, and then go and fetch me that package, please?”

I take one, and walk out to go back to the lifts, but there’s an unfamiliar weight in my pocket. I reach into my pocket, and pull out a golden pen, with bands of different coloured metals going around the cap. A sticky note attached reads ‘For taking notes and remembering things’. It’s impossible to leave Jove’s office without a gift of some sort.

I haven’t been in the basement before. It’s cold, damp and dark, and it’s like a maze with shelves full of old files and peculiar artifacts that haven’t seen the light of day for years. I wander around for a bit, and almost walk past a row of shelves when I spot a figure balanced at the top of a tall ladder, leaning against a bookcase. “Saturn? Is that you?” I call out.

The figure turns, to reveal a wizened face with a long white beard. “Yes, that’s me. And you must be Earth.”

“How did you know? I don’t know if we’ve spoken before,” I inquire.

“No we have not, but I know everyone in this building, or has ever been. In fact, I know everything that has ever happened here in all history.”

“Really?”

The old man smiles. It’s a crooked one, but the one of someone who is very wise. “Really. All records are kept here, and I have read every single one.”

That is unbelievable, but perhaps spending so long down here gives you a lot of free time. “Saturn, Jove gave you a package some time ago. Could I have that please?”

Saturn’s face turns to one of knowing. “It is time, then.”

“Time for what?”

He says nothing, but climbs down the ladder and vanishes into the labyrinth. Mere minutes later, he returns with a package, wrapped in Jove’s signature golden paper and tied up with a simple white ribbon. “Take this and follow the markers in bronze to get to the exit. Good luck, Earth.” With that he’s gone again, and I don’t know if he was wishing me luck with leaving or with the package. I follow his instructions and leave the archives, Saturn just as much of a mystery to me as he was before.

The package glimmers prettily in the lights of Jove’s office. Jove welcomes me back with a shining goblet of wine, which now sits precariously on my arm rest, as I am sitting in a chair opposite his desk.

“Thank you Earth, you’ve done splendidly. Now, do you have any idea what this package is?”

“No, I don’t.”

Jove starts to undo the ribbon at the top. “You see, we were hoping we could increase our audience a little bit, but in order to do that we needed to find a place for them to go. I have been conducting some secret research throughout the company and have concluded that you, Earth, are the best fit for this new assignment.” He opens the package fully, and extracts a small box. “This is for you.”

I take the box and open it. Inside is what looks like dirt. “Thank you?”

Jove chuckles heartily. “It is more than what it looks like. From that, you will be the first planet to have people.”

“People?”

“Humans. They’ll learn to live off what you provide for them, and they’ll be full of wild and wonderful ideas that we planets have never come up with before.” His voice lowers. “They may hurt you. They may forget who gave them what they needed and that they wouldn’t be anywhere without you. However, they will be better with you than anyone else and it is a privilege to be able to host life. Not even I have that. Are you willing to accept this assignment?”

My jaw drops, but I close it hastily. “Of course.”

Jove smiles from ear to ear. “Then take the box, choose a place in your office to put it, and see what happens. I wish you luck, Earth.”

With steady hands despite my nerves, I take the box of dirt — people? — and rush back to my office on a lower floor. It’s a calming combination of blue, green and white, and as I scan the room, my eyes fall on a large green area on the floor where I know I’ve got forests, mountains, deserts and ocean. “Africa,” I decide, and place the little box in the middle. There’s a flash, then I feel a tingling sensation, and the box is gone. However, I look closely, and I can see movement that was unlike anything else I had seen before. I was already used to creatures, but never any that were as apparently developed as these. Already they were moving things around and taking parts of plants to make things. Remembering I told Sol I’d talk to Mercury, I decided I could leave my people to their own devices for a little bit. As I slipped out of my office into the coffee room, I made a few plans.

I would treat them with kindness. Hopefully, they returned the favour.

[blaster-aichi]

Cardfight!! Vanguard Extra Story IF 21 things

WHAT A GOOD FUCKING EPISODE

A running theme through the episode: whoever directed the visuals is a godsend.

Initially had wondered if the opening scenes within the first world were going to shine some light on the Tatsunagis’ past. Throwing the viewer into the deep end alongside Suiko was a clever decision, allowing us to feel her confusion all the more effectively.

Also the system for the girls’ ranger world is super-neat. Spin-off when?

Cards continuing their gimmick of being incredibly lethal.

The entirety of the fight with the Vanguard unit was spent thinking of the irony that it and Aichi share goals, so had a brain cell laughing at the suggestion the girls were simply on a filming set and he was the one in costume.

immediately after: Oh. Oh my fuck.

me: don’t do it. don’t do it. brain: Singularity F!

obligatory Long Live the King memeage

The claim that Kourin’ll search for a world Suiko likes smacks of irony given Suiko has her world she likes and has been fighting all along for it. It’s simply a world that Kourin approves of for Suiko to lose herself and how they handled it was stellar.

Just Miwa being cute. That is all.

Can someone inform Aichi that him getting into Vanguard has nothing to do with the Kais abandoning their son?

How dare you say such shit with such a sweet smile.

Curious how the Cardfight Club existed with four members (unless the other three were also signed up but simply not present). This world in particular is peculiar with its presumably aging up Rekka and the sisters not knowing one another to begin with. Not to mention how evidently distant Aichi is; the girls swear loyalty to him, but he minimizes his contact with them. Perhaps it’s to do with it being called the Cardfight Club but when he despises the game, have to wonder why he would choose that rather than anything else when the purpose was just to goof around.

Breaks through the door at a monument to Misaki’s existence.

Assuming she was roped into the surfing of worlds prior to Suiko, left to wonder how many worlds Rekka briefly lived in, and how many appealed to her, but she sacrificed to stay loyal to who she is, and just how difficult it must have been.

Thank you writers for giving SK4 Suiko and Rekka excellent names, rip Sanctuary Knight Ibuki.

Link Joker-hen noises in the distance.

I love this crew. That is all.

Whoever wrote this episode is also a godsend, thank you for giving the Tatsunagis some sisterly love.

Kourin: Aichi hates Vanguard. Also Kourin: [flips her shit at Suiko Riding “one of Aichi’s favourite units”].

I’M CRYING YOURE REFERENCING THE ORIGINAL ANIME? YOU DIRECTLY CONNECTED THE TWO CONTINUITIES ILY.

Rena continuing to lose her shit because this entire scene is so good and the girls’ contrasting feelings about Alfred, Vanguard, everything is so wonderfully portrayed. For bonus points; Suiko’s unit belonging to a clan that Aichi chose and stuck with whereas Kourin’s heralds from one he never played in the manga & reboot continuity and was forced onto him in the original.

Had been wondering for quite some time just how Kourin and Suiko remembered anything related to the Reboot anime, so them providing an answer is immensely appreciated.

Also still loving whoever storyboarded this episode. Also very much loving the touch of Suiko being in focus as she challenges Kourin on her choice while Aichi hovers out of focus in the background; with their respective positions in the season and in comparison to their Outside World lives as well as how Kourin risks to lose them, it’s incredible poignant.

"We move forward”. Rockets back to one of the best scenes in epi 7 that I love so much. The fact that Ibuki and Suiko are the ones to speak of the same sentiment is precious.

At the same time, turning the idea onto Kourin and Aichi, with the added visual of the latter, really brought it home. With OverDress’ new cast, our time with these characters is drawing to a close for a second time and with no guarantee we’ll see them again. It’s incredibly bittersweet, particularly when adding in how the Q4 voice actors showed how torn up they were during the live event shortly prior to G’s airing. We were incredibly lucky to get a second run with these characters, so as the audience carries on forward and part ways with them again, having this particular theme front and centre, we’re essentially in the same position as Kourin.

I love this crew. That is all.

As much as tried to discern the glitched figure, unless it’s whatever’s in/controlling/manipulating/whathaveyou Aichi (it doesn’t look human), a Deletor or something related to Brandt, couldn’t even try to guess, they did a good job of obscuring their identity.

IF 22 preview

Babie boy’s cheek looks bruised. Is he still getting bullied? Were you wandering around somewhere to prolong your mother being faced with another afterschool of being beaten up? My heart. He looks incredibly distrustful of Takuto compared to their previous first meetings.

Zooms in on that Akashic Record in Kourin’s hands. Zooms in on Aichi’s hand on his arm. Were you really beaten up? Point me to them! 9′^’9 — Alternatively, he looks uncomfortable, in the same vein as the photo of himself and Emi in their Miyaji uniforms from epi 7, perhaps Takuto's explaining the truth to him and Aichi just can't process such a world because he's weak and timid and simply doesn't have the strength to imagine it.

How can someone be so ominous without a visible expression? The Biggest Fear.

DID YOU RIP OUT YOURS AND KAI-KUN’S PAGE FROM THE AKASHIC RECORD AND THATS HOW NO-ONE CAN GET THERE?

The placement of the four cards is striking; one distanced from the other three. They may be representative of the Q4 members and how far Aichi has drifted as a result of IF’s premise. Though at the same time, even if unintentional, it could be reflective of the young Aichi, who saw Kai-kun, Ibuki and Miwa playing from afar, never closing the distance himself and allowing that space between them to remain.

I have many questions. First of all: is it next week yet?

SCREAMS IN PSYQUALIA. BUT ALSO. It looks darker compared to usual, particularly in the Reboot continuity. Maybe it’s a sign of it not being quite right? That darker huge reminds me of Leon’s Psyqualia during Asia Circuit, so the possibility springs to mind of Void (seeing as the original continuity has been drawn in directly now) or interference by Brandt. If it’s a shot from the explanation regarding what’s happened to him (INTENSE VIBRATING), it could be whatever worming its way in through his Psyqualia.

Akashic Record-related thoughts:

Suiko:

Suiko’s remembrance of handing Alfred to Aichi in the original continuity opens up a huge possibility that she’s aware of the Tatsunagi sisters’ pasts and fate of that timeline. Though the girls of that world themselves never found out about their missing memories, their counterparts may have learned the truth themselves.

Kourin:

Going along the same line of thought, it gives Kourin a much more sympathetic position in that she’s not only experienced losing her memories once, but learned it to be her fate in more than just this world. When threatened with the possibility of losing a treasured period of her life for a second time, coupled with it being apparently inescapable even in other worlds, it’s a hopeless position she’s been put in, so though her motives may be selfish, it’s difficult not to sympathize with her.

Also a curious thought; Kourin’s alternate worlds for Suiko. Using the Akashic Records to surf between them, there’s the possibility that these are all worlds that exist and continue as such without external interference; other worlds where Aichi hates Vanguard, where Ultra Rare exist in different forms. But Kourin also described her actions as “creating” new worlds, so that begs the question of if she’s nonchalantly creating and erasing entire timelines?

Aichi:

The scrap of paper from the preview could very well be the page detailing his and Kai-kun’s first meeting and whatever force is at work, the figure from the glitch, given the ability to keep the distortion locked by its possession of the page through Aichi. At the same time, it might also explain why deviating from IF World’s narrative had such a detrimental physical effect on Aichi or it could be a result of, being the Tatsunagis are the only ones we’ve seen truly handle the book, interfering with its writings without the authority to do so bit Aichi and he’s suffering the consequences of it.

Why go through all this and for someone he shouldn’t know in this timeline? After he (or rather the force inside of him that intervened when they tried to bring him around and lead him back to the correct worldline) handled Takuto and Kourin, Aichi was able to investigate the Akashic Records and see just how much damage was done to Kai-kun; in the Reboot continuity, in the original continuity, maybe even in continuities we've never known of; Psyqualia, Link Joker, Legion Mate, Neon Messiah, the PsyZombie arc  — he’s learned of them and how much anguish they put someone incredibly dear to him through (and it need not be just him; Ren, Ibuki, Leon, the Ultra Rare girls, Chrono, the list goes on for how many people have been deeply hurt by being connected to the game). So to protect him, that’s why Aichi targeted and hated Vanguard, not something that’s been brewing for years, but something that exploded when keeping him in his IF existence was threatened, allowing for Emi’s insistence that he’s always been a nice boy hold true.