#I did a couple of different variations with different swords so this is not the only version of this print

[artharakka]

Variation on Swords I

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[reikorun]

KlubOutside Q&A 501-600 [Translation]

Translated by @reikorun

Q501.

2023.08.14

How old is Riruka? (At the time of the Lost Agent of the Shinigami arc.)

A501.

She's 15 years old.

Q502.

2023.08.14

Sensei, when drawing manga, do you pretend to be the central character at that moment, before drawing? Or do you always maintain an objective perspective? 

A502.

Rather than getting into the role of the character, I draw them as if they were right in front of me. When I try to fully embody a character, I feel that the range of the character narrows because there are limits to my own perception. 

Q503.

2023.08.21

Why is it called "Karakura Town"?

A503.

The name comes from the mental image of an empty body with a missing soul (in other words, a corpse). 

Q504.

2023.08.21

Among the Shinigami, there are some who hide the abilities of their own Zanpakutō, and there are some who remain silent about the fact that they can perform Bankai, but aren't there any rules that require them to declare this information?

A504.

Of course, they have an obligation to report on these things.

Q505.

2023.08.21

With respect to BLEACH, I get the impression that there are few explanations of the situation or a character's abilities which resemble a 'voice from above'. Is there something you're particular about with regard to this aspect? 

A505.

I feel like it kills the immersion so I make an effort to avoid using it. Though, I don't particularly dislike this aspect when it comes to reading.

Q506.

2023.08.28

I love the Visored! While there may be differences in the balance of mastery or ineptitude over the Zankensoki, strictly speaking, who is the strongest among those eight when it comes to battle? If the ability of the Zanpakutō is direct attack type, I somehow feel that the user may not have an aptitude for Kidō too, so I would be glad if you could also tell me who is the most adept at Kidō, putting aside Hacchi!

A506.

If we take "adept at Kidō" to mean "a wide range of Kidō variations can be used" then after Haachi, it's Rose. As for who the strongest is, that's hard to say because it depends on the conditions.

Q507.

2023.08.28

How did the Visored previously make a living? Also, Hiyori has a part-time job, but are Love and Hacchi working too?

A507.

Hacchi collaborates with Tessai to develop Kidō goods for use in the Soul Society. Love works part-time at a second hand clothes store.

Q508.

2023.08.28

What specific tasks does Kubo-sensei do when taking on the role of "supervisor" for things like Brave Souls, movies, anime, etc.? For things like Brave Souls, do you check and make corrections to the designs that have been submitted to you?

A508.

The degree of supervision varies depending on the case, and that's the way it is for Brave Souls too.

Q509.

2023.09.04

It was explained within the story that Zaraki Kenpachi took a sword from a Shinigami, but if the Shinigami who had their sword taken were still alive and had achieved Shikai and Bankai, would they end up having a similar ability to Zaraki's Nozarashi?

A509.

That wouldn't happen. Abilities can be overwritten prior to Shikai acquisition (and depending on the person, even after its acquisition).

Q510.

2023.09.04

Rukia and Renji are a working couple, but did Ichika go to nursery school or a daycare center when she was very young, prior to entering the Shin'ō Academy?

A510.

Even though they both took childcare leave, several nannies dispatched by the Kuchiki clan were always stationed at the Abarai residence.

Q511.

2023.09.04

Is the marriage rate low for the Captains and Vice-Captains of the Gotei 13? Are there any Captain class Shinigami we don't know about who are actually married?

A511.

There is no one among the current members. I feel like there aren't many among that lot who seem capable of maintaining a married life…. 

Q512.

2023.09.11

Previously, in response to a question about the names of Hollows, you answered that "there is a person in charge of naming them", but do they name each Hollow one by one? Or are these names only given to Hollows who have murdered Shinigami, or caused a great deal of damage to the Human World 

A512.

It's the latter. Other Hollows are assigned numbers and such based on what is captured. 

Q513.

2023.09.11

About Unagiya Kaoru, he is the son of Unagiya Ikumi and who else? My personal prediction is that it's Tsukishima-san! 

A513.

What a frightening prospect.

Q514.

2023.09.11

Are all the artwork which appear in Guidelines on KlubOutside drawn by Kubo-sensei while your assistants draw the background and other elements?

A514.

That's right. Characters, drawn lettering and effects are my job, while the background, motion lines and screentones are my assistant's job. I thought that if I continued drawing the motion lines by hand, I wouldn't be able to finish the whole piece so halfway through the series I decided to hand that over to my assistants.

Q515.

2023.09.18

It is mentioned that Urahara created his healing hot springs by imitating Kirinji's baths, but do these baths still remain in Soul Society? Or did he go to the Soul King Palace and analyze them?

A515.

A few still remain in a remote area of Rukongai.

Q516.

2023.09.18

Why does Bakudō #81. "Dankū" possess the anti-Hadō capability to "completely block Hadō numbered 89 and below"? Hadō is meant to be used by fellow Shinigami,  in other words, by allies, therefore the anti-Hadō capability is presumably based on the premise of defending against attacks from allies. I speculate that in the past, Shinigami who were skilled in Hadō numbered 89 and below had turned hostile, so Dankū was created as a countermeasure to that. 

A516.

That's a good guess.

Q517.

2023.09.18

Why does Orihime call Grimmjow "Grimmjow" but Ulquiorra "Ulquiorra-kun"?

A517.

That's because the atmosphere on their first meeting was not one where she was able to address Grimmjow with the -kun honorific. Though, I also think Ulquiorra is the same in that regard.

Q518.

2023.09.18

Please tell us the gender of Nianzol Weizol. 

A518.

You'll know when you hear his voice in the anime, but he's a man.

Q519.

2023.09.25

Are the attack methods which utilize Gintō and the Medallion chant used by Ebern all techniques which are classified as "Kirchenlied"? 

A519.

"Kirchenlied" is the equivalent of a Shinigami's "Kidō", therefore that is the case for most techniques which correspond to a spell.

Q520.

2023.09.25

Does Driscoll's Overkill become stronger based on the number of people killed from the time he received his Schrift to now? Or does the buff expire at the end of the battle or some other point? 

A520.

The buff is removed by sleeping, eating, or loss of consciousness.

Q521.

2023.09.25

Are there any characters among the BLEACH cast who wear perfume, or has an image of their scent been decided upon in Kubo-sensei's mind? Recently, perfumes and fragrances that capture the image of one's favorite character or idol have been released regardless of whether they are fictional or real, so I wonder if we'll get some released out of the BLEACH universe as well.

A521.

I've been asked quite frequently to release perfume, so I'm starting to think it might be nice to do so. I don't use perfumes but sometimes I'll buy them when I want the bottle….

Q522.

2023.10.02

Nimaiya Ōetsu makes the Asauchi, but did he create them with Shikai and Bankai in mind from the very outset? Or did he realize that the shape and properties of the swords changed with each individual as they used it, and that phenomenon was then given the name Shikai and Bankai by the Monk?

A522.

That is the correct order of events.

Q523.

2023.10.02

Shishigawara-kun's Fullbring "Jackpot Knuckle" has a characteristic where the probability of hitting the jackpot ends up decreasing with continuous use, but will the probability of a jackpot be restored once it has already been decreased? If it does, I would also like to know what the conditions are.

A523.

There is a gradual recovery from misfortune (taking damage, etc.) Full recovery occurs when crossing over to the next day at midnight. 

Q524.

2023.10.02

When did Hirako Shinji get his tongue pierced? It wasn't pierced during The Past arc, was it…?

A524.

I always forget to draw it, so I may not even include it anymore.

Q525.

2023.10.09

Is the hierarchy of strength for the Bambies: Liltotto > Giselle > Meninas > Bambi > Candice? 

A525.

If they engage in battle with Blut, then that's probably the order. If it's a bare-handed fight then it's: Liltotto → Meninas → Candice → Gigi → Bambi.

Q526.

2023.10.09

Vice-Captain Madarame comes from a distinguished family, but what about 3rd seat Ayasegawa? 

A526.

Yumichika was an abandoned child from Rukongai.

Q527.

2023.10.09

When I look at Rickenbacker, I get a buddy-like vibe and at the same time a faint sense of some maternal quality, but do Dragons even have things like gender?

A527.

They do. By the way, Rickenbacker is male.

Q528.

2023.10.16

The Kōtotsu was completely destroyed by Aizen, but after that, didn't any problems arise within the Dangai? Are there multiple Kōtotsu, or perhaps it was restored through a self-purification function or something?

A528.

It will be restored within the next seven days.

Q529.

2023.10.16

Urahara-san runs a small-time candy shop in the Human World, but is there some specific reason why he chose to open up a candy shop? 

A529.

It's because Kisuke thought that candy shops were the best in that he could open and close the shop as he pleases, and even if he stocks strange items, it's harder to suspect anything is out of the ordinary.

Q530.

2023.10.16

Will there not be a BLEACH themed pachinko machine released? I'm just allowing myself to imagine that the staging effects and so on would be so fun, LOL.

A530.

There are no such plans, but the staging aspect certainly sounds entertaining. ×[1]

Q531.

2023.10.23

When Ichigo wears his sword, he carries Zangetsu on his back, but how is it held in place?

A531.

The sash on the hilt is wrapped around the chain along with the blade.

Q532.

2023.10.23

Is Yukio unmarried in the Echoing Jaws of Hell arc?

A532.

He's unmarried. It doesn't seem very likely that he'll marry….

Q533.

2023.10.23

When I was looking at the art of BLEACH, I got the impression of ballet movements, like the way in which characters use the tips of their toes and the lower half of their bodies. Sensei, do you ever watch ballet?

A533.

I sometimes watch Lausanne on TV, but I'm not very familiar with it. If anything, I suppose the sharp-tongued humor is the thing that I find interesting to watch.

Q534.

2023.10.30

Kotetsu Kiyone and Kotsubaki Sentarō share the same birthday, are they twins related by blood?

A534.

They're unrelated, but every year, they were made to sit side-by-side by Ukitake and celebrate their birthdays together.

Q535.

2023.10.30

How do Arrancar acquire a Zanpakutō? Do their broken mask pieces transform into Zanpakutō after they become Arrancar?

A535.

I'll tell you because I don't particularly feel like drawing it, but the torn part of the mask becomes the sword. So you are correct.

Q536.

2023.10.30

During the Quincy invasion, Mayuri modified his room and clothes to make them glow so that they wouldn't cast shadows, but wouldn't a shadow be created in Nemu's cleavage if left like that? This is a serious question.

A536.

Now that you mention it, that's true…. I should have placed a glow stick or something between her breasts. 

Q537.

2023.11.06

How did you feel when BLEACH was parodied in Gintama?

A537.

When we first met, I was the one who told Sorachi-san "you can do whatever you want"…. Yet, he still apologized to me.

Q538.

2023.11.06

Is Hikifune Kirio-san's Tree of Life based on a similar principle to Kidō?

A538.

It's similar, but since it can only be used by one individual, I guess it's something closer to Ganju's Seppa….

Q539.

2023.11.06

Findorr Calius adjusted his own strength by breaking his mask, but is it also possible to restore his broken mask and strength back to their original state.

A539.

It's possible. Even if it's left alone, it will gradually return to its original state. It's kind of like an injury.

Q540.

2023.11.13

My prized possession is a copy of KaraBuri+ which I bought when I was in the 6th or 5th grade. Would you consider composing something like another official spin-off that is drawn in a light-hearted and humorous manner? I'd even like to see something similar to a Hueco Mundo version of KaraBuri!

A540.

If someone else were to draw something amusing, I'd also like to see it.

Q541.

2023.11.13

I have a question about Ayon and Orihime's abilities! After creating Ayon, if the arms of Apacci and the others were healed via Orihime's powers, could something like an 'Ayon duplication bug' occur? If the arms of the three individuals who create Ayon are restored through Orihime's abilities, would Ayon also disappear? It's just a hypothetical scenario, but I'm intrigued.

A541.

If the bodies of Apacci and co. can endure the rapid continuous regeneration process, a duplication bug is possible. 

Q542.

2023.11.13

I was curious about the differences in size between Minazuki's first appearance, published in volume 18, and the time they landed on Sōkyoku Hill, published in volume 21. Can Minazuki's size be changed at will? Or did they become smaller as a result of the lifesaving measures Unohana gave Hitsugaya and Hinamori at the Seijōtōkyorin? (*The enclave where the Central 46 reside.)

A542.

The size can vary considerably. The smallest size is around the size of a puppy.

Q543.

2023.11.20

I totally want the shoes that Rabu is wearing in the new artwork (color version) from the art exhibition. They're exceedingly stylish, are there any plans to turn them into merch in the future!!!!?

A543.

I love shoes, so I'd be happy if merchandise in the form of shoes that a character is seen wearing could be sold, but I wonder if that can happen.

Q544.

2023.11.20

Quilge Opie used Ransōtengai, but no other Quincy were seen utilizing this technique. Is this simply because Quilge Opie has both the talent and understanding, and has therefore mastered Ransōtengai?

A544.

That's right. Quilge is the combat instructor of the Sternritter, and Quilge's students can also be found among the current Wörtlich.

Q545.

2023.11.20

Gin's Bankai, Kamishini no Yari, had the ability to leave a piece of the sword within the body of his opponent, and then dissolve and break down cells with the poison inside the sword, but will the part that was lost through this process never return to its original state again just like other Bankai? Also, assuming it doesn't return, if this ability is used frequently, will the blade eventually be reduced to nothing meaning his Bankai is rendered unusable? 

A545.

The part left inside the body is made of poison, and since the poison is a secretion of the sword, it will return to its original state after a certain amount of time.

Q546.

2023.11.27

Each Division among the Gotei 13 has its own Squad Flower and a set meaning within Hanakotoba (*the Japanese language of flowers), but are there opportunities to study Hanakotoba as part of a Shinigami's cultivation at the Academy, for instance? (I was curious because there was a scene in chapter 323 where Kira talked about the 3rd Division's Squad Flower.)

A546.

They learn about the Squad Flowers, but Izuru seems to be well-acquainted with things like Hanakotoba in a general sense.

Q547.

2023.11.27

Are there any characters that you wanted to present as enemies even though they are allies, and are there any characters where the reverse is true?

A547.

There isn't any. Each character can only come to fit into their role because of the relationship they have with those around them. 

Q548.

2023.11.27

Before the establishment of the Shinigami Research and Development Institute, was there no research institution in Soul Society?

A548.

At one point, there was a group who, though unofficial, were close in that regard (in the sense that they created things). That group disappeared and there was a period of time where no similar organization existed. What was formally established after that is the Shinigami Research and Development Institute. Mayuri belonged to the first group. Senjumaru was their leader.

Q549.

2023.12.04

It is explained in the manga that Lloyd R, the younger brother, can imitate physical likeness and memories, but why is he able to use Yhwach's abilities and weapons? Please tell us if he inherited his elder brother's ability, or if Yhwach granted him some of his own power, or perhaps there is some other reason? 

A549.

Each Lloyd brother can either 'perfectly' copy memories, or 'perfectly' copy powers respectively, any aspect outside of that can be copied on a scale of 70-80%. This is because being able to copy only memories or only powers is of little use. 

Q550.

2023.12.04

Do you have a PS5?

A550.

I don't have one.

Q551.

2023.12.04

What are the future plans for the floor of the 9th Division barracks which Mayuri destroyed with his eye beam in the one-shot? Will Hisagi and Kensei pay for the repairs?

A551.

They'll submit the bill to the 12th Division, and if that does work, they'll submit the bill to the 1st Division, and if that still doesn't work, then one way or another Shūhei will probably end up paying for it.

Q552.

2023.12.11

Who is the President of the Shinigami Women's Association by the time of the Echoing Jaws of Hell arc? I think the President is Lisa and the Supervising Chairwoman is Isane….

A552.

The President is Rangiku and the Chairwoman is Yoruichi. By the way, Soifon calls herself Vice-Chairwoman without asking anyone.

Q553.

2023.12.11

Is the aspect of death governed by the Espada the same for different people, as long as they have the same number, like Harribel and Nelliel, for instance? If it's different, I'd like to know what it was for Nelliel when she was an Espada!

A553.

It's the same. Nelliel is also "sacrifice".

Q554.

2023.12.11

Q: Does sensei have an ability to sense the supernatural? 

Q: When I read Bleach for the first time, I allowed myself to think “the author definitely has a sixth sense!" But do you really?

A554.

I don't. But I've been told a few times "you must have a sixth sense, for sure!" But, I don't.

Q555.

2023.12.18

Thank you for the wonderful posters at the art exhibition. I bought both the A and B collection. If the posters will be expanded on in the future, will the designs from the Shibuya poster takeover be made into merch? It was super cool and I was walking around Shibuya at the time while becoming all the more proud that BLEACH is my favorite manga. If there is even the slightest possibility, please consider it...!!

A555.

I like those posters too, so I'm hoping they'll sell well in the FC.

Q556.

2023.12.18

Does the blade grow as a Zanpakutō develops? 

A556.

The length of an Asauchi does not change, however when Shikai is used it will change in accordance with its development.

Q557.

2023.12.18

Is there some special relationship between the Komamura family and the Shihōin clan in BLEACH given that they are dogs and cats?

A557.

"Komamura" is the surname given to him when he was taken in by Genryūsai, it is not associated with his family lineage.

Q558.

2023.12.25

Were Yumichika and Yachiru's hair ornaments (or other accessories) made by Ikkaku?

A558.

Yachiru's hair ornament is handcrafted by Ikkaku. Yumichika bought his accessories himself. 

Q559.

2023.12.25

Did Mizuiro's parents pay for his high school tuition? 

A559.

It was paid for with child-support payments from his father.

Q560.

2023.12.25

Does the position of Substitute Shinigami come without compensation? Do you gain some sort of reward? Ichigo is a high school student and doesn't seem the type to accept rewards as far as his personality is concerned, but I'm curious if there has ever been any offer of reward from the Gotei! I think other Shinigami fight while receiving a salary and incentives as part of their job, so I'd like to know how the Gotei's substitute positions are handled.

A560.

In the beginning, the position was without reward. After receiving the Substitute Badge, it's now come to be that a reward will be deposited within a Seireitei account. Ichigo hasn't been informed though.

Q561.

2024.01.01

Will sensei be eating osechi* during New Year's? (*Assortment of traditional New Year foods.)

A561.

I eat it every year. Currently, I'm in the process of searching for osechi that suits my tastes. After all, you only get one chance a year. If only we had a New Year holiday like three times a year.

Q562.

2024.01.01

When Don Kanonji first appeared, he was performing an exorcism at an abandoned hospital, was it Ishida who tried to stop Kanonji's exorcism at the beginning?

A562.

Yes.

Q563.

2024.01.01

I noticed something in the Echoing Jaws of Hell arc section of BLEACH EX. the "Taka" (*hawk) which came out with Rindō Atau's Zanpakutō ability was "Washi" (*eagle) in the rough draft, right? What was the reason for the change? Is it because the hawk seems faster…?

A563.

I believe this was because eagle in sign language is the same as hawk and was derived from hawk to begin with, and also because hawks have a stronger Japanese image. 

Q564.

2024.01.08

Ayon ended up being defeated both times in the story, but let's assume he wasn't defeated, would he continue to exist forever…? If so, that would be awfully frightening. I'm curious about what he got up to when summoned in the past!

A564.

After a short while, he will self-destruct, and not long after that, the arms of Apacci and the others will grow back.

Q565.

2024.01.08

Due to the actions of PePe Waccabrada, Shūhei and Byakuya fought each other, but Byakuya behaved as if he were trying to avoid hurting Shūhei as much as possible. Personally, I think that Byakuya before he met Ichigo would have killed Shūhei. It might be presumptuous of me to talk about Byakuya like I understand him, but as I read on, I feel that Byakuya's views and personality have changed. What do you think?

A565.

I think you're right.

Q566.

2024.01.08

What time does sensei wake up every morning?

A566.

I've been quite busy lately, so ten o'clock. I can't even watch Love It! in real time anymore….

Q567.

2024.01.15

Was it because her five older brothers had passed away that Soi Fon succeeded as the head of Fon family? Or is there some kind of custom where a woman always becomes the head in the Fon family like a "queen bee".

A567.

The strongest person in that generation becomes the head of the family, regardless of gender.

Q568.

2024.01.15

I would like to know the Shikai abilities of the three seated officers of the 3rd Division who were instantly killed by Bazz-B in volume 56!

A568.

Those abilities which never got a chance to be showcased are a secret because I may use them somewhere else.

Q569.

2024.01.15

Kubo-sensei, you mentioned that you draw illustrations on the larger iPad pro, so I also want to try an iPad for the first time, but looking back do you ever feel like… there is something about it that could have been done better? Additionally, I would like to hear about the types of brushes you use in Clip Studio Paint when line drawing and when adding color, and also how you divide your drawing into layers!!!!

A569.

I hope it becomes lighter. As for pens, I often use a pen called Kasure Kashi (*machine translated as “Casper pen” in Clip Studio) and for brushes I use one called Muk01. I separate the layers depending on my mood.

Q570.

2024.01.22

I would like to know the name of the technique that was used when Kirinji Tenjirō got behind Soi Fon. Although she's supposed to have top-class speed among the Gotei 13, Soi Fon couldn't read his movements at all, thinking "what was that move just now…!" Is this because the Hohō used by Kirinji Tenjirō was not "Shunpo"?

A570.

It's the same Shunpo. Shunpo consists of a three stage process: Joritsu, Bakkyaku and Shunpo. Tenjirō is incredibly skilled at the second stage, "Bakkyaku", which allows him to achieve unbelievable speeds. ×[2]

Q571.

2024.01.22

Can't Orihime heal Izuru's body?

A571.

She may be able to heal him, but Izuru probably likes it that way….

Q572.

2024.01.22

Did sensei have any involvement in selecting the songs and characters for Burikon: Bleach Concept Covers? Also, is there one in particular that you liked among the Burikon covers?

A572.

I wasn't involved at all, but I remember liking Mayuri and Nemu's part.

Q573.

2024.01.29

What material is the Substitute Shinigami Badge made of? I want to make one myself as perfectly as I possibly can, so please tell me what it would look like in reality! 

A573.

The Substitute's Badge is made of metal. Iron would be too heavy for something of that size, so maybe aluminum would be a closer fit…?

Q574.

2024.01.29

Does Ise Nanao wear glasses because her eyesight has deteriorated by reading too many books? Or is it that the Ise clan are by nature a family with poor eyesight?

A574.

It's a family with poor eyesight.

Q575.

2024.01.29

In volume 62, Urahara-san mentioned that the Quincy are "a race that have no 'antibodies' at all to defend against Hollows." However, Ishida Uryū was at the receiving end of Fornicarás's abilities during his battle with Szayelaporro, and he had his lower arm torn off by Ulquiorra. Was this at a level that is not applicable to the "erosion" that Urahara-san talks about? Or is Uryū special?

A575.

Uryū is special.

Q576.

2024.02.05

Why does Akon have horns on his head?

A576.

They're implants (transdermal implants).

Q577.

2024.02.05

Dordoni, Cirucci, Luppi and Chuhlhourne were all revived at the hands of Mayuri-sama, but while the former three had suture marks on their faces, Chuhlhourne is the only one who had suture marks on his abdomen, is this perhaps the benevolence of Mayuri-sama? 

A577.

I too looked at and thought "who knew Mayuri could be so kind!" 

Q578.

2024.02.05

In the scene where Ichigo is taught the Final Getsuga Tenshō by Tensa Zangetsu, Ichigo is told "you feared taking on this form in which your mind is suppressed by your own destructive impulses, and as a result you've even become incapable of properly Hollowfying." However, if he were able to Hollowfy properly, would he have been able to manifest the mask with horns that covered his entire face as shown in the battle against Ulquiorra?

A578.

If he were able to "properly" Hollowfy, then he would take on that form.

Q579.

2024.02.12

While in the Dangai, what mechanism did Ulquiorra use to show Orihime the situation in the Human World as images via Garganta?

A579.

There's no lore about this at all!! What kind of system is it!? Ulquiorra!!?

Q580.

2024.02.12

Among the spirits of her Shun Shun Rikka, the ability belonging to Orihime, Tsubaki is the only one who is rebellious towards his master. Is that a reaction stemming from Orihime's dislike of conflict and hurting others given her personality? Tsubaki is her only means of attack, but Orihime does not want to use him too actively. Deep down, she hesitates (fears) to attack her opponent, that is, she unconsciously rejects her means of attack, which contradicts the reason for Tsubaki's existence, and I thought for a moment that maybe he was irritated by that fact.

A580.

That's correct. How impressive, I didn't expect someone to read so deeply into Rikka like this. 

Q581.

2024.02.12

Regarding Orihime's ability, Shun Shun Rikka: Sōten Kisshun, it is weak at recovering Reiryoku because Sōten Kisshun is based on the rejection of events and Orihime rejects the form of a wounded individual, in other words, the underlying force is her desire to restore their condition to its original state, to make it out as though it never happened, could another reason be that it's difficult for her to recognize how much intangible Reiryoku needs to be recovered? Is it that Shun Shun Rikka's abilities come from Orihime's own feelings of rejection and denial, or to put it another way, does it stem from wanting things to be a certain way? 

A581.

You are more or less correct. The things that can be restored with Sōten Kisshun are, for the most part, what is visible to the eyes and what can be touched with the hands.

Q582.

2024.02.19

Kubo-sensei, is there a character in BLEACH that you consider to be closest to you in terms of your own personality? 

A582.

There isn't. No one that I draw resembles me!

Q583.

2024.02.19

When Kūkaku sends Ichigo to the Soul King Palace in the Thousand-Year Blood War arc, she appears to be aware of the connection between Ichigo and Isshin saying "even if it means making uncle sad." Did Kūkaku somehow sense this, or was there some interaction between her and the Shiba clan or Shinigami she was acquainted with in places that are not depicted within the story, after the situation with Aizen was resolved, for instance? 

A583.

Kūkaku has been aware of this through Ichigo's Reiatsu since the beginning (volume 9). That's why she let Ganju go with him. Of course, she also received a message from Kisuke at a later time.

Q584.

2024.02.19

The masks of Loly Aivirrne and Menoly Mallia appear to have a design that forms a pair with the left and right eyes, perhaps they are Arrancar with a relationship like that of twin sisters?

A584.

Although these two are not sisters, they have taken a sisterly vow and shaved down their masks in order to resemble each other.

Q585.

2024.02.26

I believe there are works which publish illustrations drawn by readers in the tankōbon of the manga. Bleach didn't have that, but is it that you have a certain preference towards your own tankōbon, Kubo-sensei?

A585.

As a child, I was the type of kid who thought "I didn't buy this to see drawings from readers" when looking at the illustration segment of the manga I used to read, so I didn't do it with my own manga. However, I have kept all the illustrations that were sent to me during the series.

Q586.

2024.02.26

The Captains of the Zero Division are each given one of the five cities atop the Zeroban Riden (*the disc-like structures which are their estates), but if the number of Zero Division captains increased, will a new Zeroban Riden be added? Or is the capacity for Captains limited to 5 individuals in accordance with the number of Zeroban Riden?

A586.

The upper limit is 5 people.

Q587.

2024.02.26

What does the "chain" in Tensa Zangetsu (*Heavenly Chain Slaying Moon) represent? Is it the Chain of Fate? 

A587.

"Tensa" means "to lock the heavens", and it's a chain used to link and secure two things together.

Q588.

2024.03.04

What material is the black part of Riruka's clothes made of?

A588.

It's stretch cotton.

Q589.

2024.03.04

I would like to know the nationality of the Sternritter!!!

A589.

In order to avoid a fixed nationality for the group as a whole, I name them in a way which appears to contain spellings from various regions.

Q590.

2024.03.04

In what way did Yamamoto and Unohana come to meet?

A590.

I might draw it someday, so it's a secret.

Q591.

2024.03.11

In his KaraBuri profile, it is noted that the food Hisagi dislikes is sea urchin, but where did he eat it? Or perhaps he came to dislike it because he was teased about the fact that his hairstyle resembles a sea urchin?

A591.

He ruined it for himself after eating the cheap sea urchin he could afford on his salary.

Q592.

2024.03.11

When Rangiku woke up from Hakufuku, she said "this sensation… it's Hakufuku…" I don't think there were many instances of fellow Shinigami fighting each other in Soul Society before Aizen's rebellion, so it seems unlikely she'd recognize the sensation of being put under Hakufuku. Could it be that she is acquainted with the feeling because Shinigami experience it during their time at the Shin'ō Academy in Kidō classes?

A592.

They experience this in class, but Rangiku also has the experience of falling victim to it. 

Q593.

2024.03.11

In the Thousand-Year Blood War arc, I believe Captain Komamura takes on a human-like form through the Humanization Technique, however, did he suddenly turn into a wolf after the battle because the technique's time limit had expired? Or is it because Captain Komamura himself was consumed by a desire for revenge? If the reason is the latter, is it correct to assume that as long as Komamura had maintained good intentions such as "protecting Soul Society", he wouldn't have turned into a wolf?

A593.

You are pretty much correct. The "Humanization Technique" is a technique that allows him to maintain a human form while withstanding his great-grandfather's curse. The moment the purpose of Humanization becomes a selfish desire, the curse is forcibly fulfilled, and one transforms into a beast.

Q594.

2024.03.18

No matter how many times I read the manga, I still don't quite understand the relationship between Nelliel and Nnoitra. I would like you to explain it in a way that even an idiot can understand. 

A594.

Even if you don't understand, it doesn't mean you're stupid. Just enjoy it when you do understand.

Q595.

2024.03.18

If "Qualkreis" is broadly classified as a Quincy tactic, could it also be considered one of the Kirchenlied? Please let me know if there is any lore around this.

A595.

"Qualkreis" is one of the Quincy spells. "Kirchenlied" is not a classification, but a "chant" for "Sankt Zwinger".

Q596.

2024.03.18

During the Decisive Battle of Karakura Town, is it because of an illusion created by Kyōka Suigetsu that Mashiro's mask broke away without her noticing the depletion of her own Reiatsu? 

A596.

It's because Mashiro is just that kind of person who would allow a slip-up like that to happen.

Q597.

2024.03.25

Izuru was quite cheerful during his student days, so why did his personality become gloomy?

A597.

Wait, he was cheerful…? Izuru has been gloomy since the minute he was born.

Q598.

2024.03.25

Captain Unohana named herself "Yachiru", but her current name "Retsu", is that originally her real name? Or is it that, after becoming "Yachiru", she named herself once again, this time to "Retsu"?

A598.

"Retsu" is the name given to her by her father.

Q599.

2024.03.25

After absorbing Ayon, Quilge's appearance steadily returns to its original form, but could this be because his Heiligenschein was destroyed by Ichigo, causing the abilities of his Vollständig to gradually wear off?

A599.

It's because his Heiligenschein was destroyed and thus his "Piskiel" collapsed. The essence of Quilge's "Piskiel" ability lies in the fact that he has the highest capacity for the capture and enslavement of Reishi among all Quincy.

Q600.

2024.04.01

I'm debating whether or not I should have my son take lessons in English conversation. Is sensei able to speak English? 

A600.

Since being able to speak English is an advantage, please allow him to learn it. I can't speak it myself, though.

Translation Footnotes:

×1. Staging in this context means staging of the frenzied screen/sound effects of the roulette for stirring up the gambling spirit of players.

×2. These are terms which appear to be coined by Kubo: 序立(じょりつ) - "Joritsu" means "opening stance". 抜脚(ばっきゃく) - "Bakkyaku" means "to draw out one's leg", and judging by the way we use 抜 in other terms, it alludes momentum that is created suddenly and rapidly by lifting or drawing out one's leg from the starting position. For example: the word Battōjutsu (抜刀術) - “the art of drawing out one's sword”, that is, getting the sword into action as quickly as possible in response to a sudden attack or some other situation which requires the rapid drawing of one's sword. I believe Bakkyaku is a similar concept except in the context of Hohō as opposed to swords. 

[literary-illuminati]

2025 Book Review #20 – Southern Bastards: Book Two by Jason Aaron and Jason Latour

This was my comic for the month, and a great way to technically do a bit of daily reading through a couple shitty weeks. The second and final volume of a the series, it’s composed of three reasonably distinct arcs across twelve issues. They don’t quite all cohere into a complete story with a satisfying ending – there are a lot of threads left hanging at the end, and some odd swerves from what seemed like it was being foreshadowed – but it comes pretty close. Overall finished it quite happy with the experience and only moderately annoyed there will almost certainly never be any more of it at this point.

Southern Bastards is about Craw County, Alabama. Craw County is a picturesque a slice of the rural south riven by poverty, drugs and violent crime, held tight in the iron grip of it’s uncrowned king, Coach Boss. He’s coached the high school football team for decades, and delivered a nearly unbroken string of championships and victories – and so won the people’s love and their tolerance of his other business. But after beating a man to death in public, and the suicide of his mentor and defensive coordinator, things are starting to slip through his fingers – and the homecoming game that all his legitimacy rests upon is getting closer every day.

There are several issues from a few different characters perspective, but this really is overwhelmingly Boss’ story – having completed it, the whole series is. Which is pretty surprising, given that the first arc positioned him as the antagonist, not the pro­. I started this entirely expected the book’s star to be Roberta, coming into town and getting vengeance for her father (the aforementioned man Boss beat to death in full view of half the town). Which is a plot thread, and the very end of the story positions it as hers going forward – but, well, the creative team never actually got around to going any further than they did, so her actual role is mostly just the sword (rifle) of justice sweeping in from the wings to close the final act. The meat of the story is the tragedy of Coach Boss, and of Craw County slipping through his fingers.

I am, in general, really extremely fond of the genre of ‘decline and fall of a tyrant’ no matter the specific contexts. The vicious cycle where signs of weakness or violent lashing out lead to doubts and conspiracies amongst their backers leading to even more violent lashing out until everything’s falling to pieces around them is just very aesthetically pleasing to me. This is not the only thing going on in the book, but it’s enough of it for me to thoroughly enjoy. The comic medium is used to good effect for this too, in terms of efficiently introducing a whole cast of memorable stakeholders and power brokers just to come back to each as Boss loses his grip on them.

It’s rather odd that this comic made me more acutely aware of how much cultural context for it I’m missing than most of the works in actual translation I’ve read this year have. Specifically, football: the book fairly directly portrays it as the real popular religion of Alabama, nigh-universally adhered to and zealously defended against all blasphemy and disrespect. Like a medieval king on the battlefield, the glorious victories Boss deliveries against various hated regional rivals is enough to legitimize his power and forgive all his other faults – and like a medieval king, repeated defeats are the surest sign that he’s lost favour and it’s time for the knives to come out. I would assume this is caricature for satirical effect, but damn if the letters columns aren’t full to bursting with variations on ‘just like where I grew up.’

There are quite a number of letters talking about how nuanced and sympathetic a portrayal of similar places Craw County is which I admit is deeply confusing to me. From an outsider’s perspective the whole place reads exactly like it was created by two guys who fucking hated where they grew up, got out the first chance they could, and now are deriving a great deal of catharsis letting every bit of venom flow into their art. From their authors notes this does not actually seem to be the case, and I’ll trust their honesty there – I’m just entirely incapable of recognizing whatever charm and nuance the place possesses that the book is trying to convey.

To my eye at least, the place seems like a very vividly described tar pit – one where having a chance to escape on a football scholarship to some big city university is liable to get your leg broken with a tire iron to remind you about the virtues of loyalty to your home. Endemically, ubiquitously racist and homophobic – violently, too, but that’s nothing special, violence is just one of the default ways any sort of dispute gets resolved. The one bank owns half the town, the mayor is a decrepit old man whose wife is doing an Edith Wilson thing ‘helping’ him with his job, and the only industries of note are crime and football.

As I said, the ending of the final arc more or less works as a conclusion to the whole story, but there are definitely some hanging threads that irritate more than others. The subplot with the banker and the sheriff – their history and their would-be emergence as the new powers ruling the two after Boss’s dealt with – has enough their to fit if you squint about, but there’s clearly some missing backstory and a final climax and denouncement. Which chafes slightly given how much page count is spent on them, but hardly major. The more gothic, supernatural elements lurking in the background of the whole piece – exemplified by the half-dead child hospitalized by Coach Boss’s thugs in the first arc leaving his bed and gathering an ever-grow pack of snarling hounds of vengeance literally in the background of the last several issues – never getting any resolution is more vexing. Such is the danger of serially published entertainment I suppose.

All in all, interesting different from the story I expected opening the second volume, and compelling reading. If you read the first arcs and liked them, I entirely recommend keeping with the second book. And if you like comics but don’t care for super heroes, or like grimy crime stories and tragedies in the ‘men destroyed by the same traits which made them who they are in the first place’ mode I heartily recommend starting with issue one if you’ve never given it a try.

[genopaint]

Been in a big Axel the Alligator mood lately so I redesigned some characters the last couple days and even introduced a new villain!!

Here's some of the notes I included about them all from twitter :) it's below the readmore

To go along with the new Axel the Alligator arts I did a bit ago, I figured I should draw the No-Name Grunt again! I gave them a bit of a make over from last time

Most notably their suits are now purple to match Camilla the Chameleon's, since they are her henchmen after all!

If you don't recall, these are basically Axel's goomba. The basic bottom of the barrel enemy the main characters fight. They're all a part of Camilla's seemingly never ending gang. They all follow her every order because they're obsessed with her, but she can't even be bothered to remember their names. Thus, the No-Names. Instead, they're each given a numbered belt and she just calls them by their number.

There's TONS of No-Names, that's why there's even color variations for the grunts you encounter. But there's even different classes of No-Names.

Like bruisers, fliers, stuff like that. However, I want to redesign them a bit more cause I wasn't 100% on their old designs. SO you'll have to wait and see if I bother with them. But you get the idea, the grunt kind of represents the whole army of underlings anyway.

Oh, and of course... No-Name 10,000. The super special ultra rare No-Name encounter. When you defeat it, it drops TONS of gold and exp!

Also some really quick sketches for some of the other No-Name classes with this suit redesign. I think it's cute they're all kind of matching but now I worry maybe they're not unique enough? Before their suits were all different colors... idk... Much to think about...

It's gonna be a WHILE before I get to make an Axel the Alligator game so I'll keep thinking on it lol

And of course there's probably gonna be a lot of No-Name enemy types it all just depends on what I would want / need for each game I suppose lol.

They're like Badniks, they reuse a lot of old ones but new ones or variants could show up wherever it's needed

----

And of course, where there's No-Names, there's the No-Name generals! Similarly, Camilla doesn't care to remember their names. But they're juuuuust important enough to be allowed to command her underlings when she's off doing more important things.

Uno the Uromastyx is Camilla's original #1 super fan, and as such is the leader of the generals. He's a bit stuck up and loves to wave the fact he's #1 in the others faces.

Dos the Daboia is a bit of a loser and is ALWAYS panicking. He's constantly worried his suit is too blue.

And Tres the Tree Lizard is a chaotic girl who loves explosives. She's constantly building bombs to create chaos. Whenever the No-Names use explosives, they're probably her creations.

They're the ultimate undying loyalists to Camilla, and they all HATE Carnage and Behemoth because the trio was there first and yet Camilla makes Carnage and Behemoth her right hand men. Out ranking even the No-Name generals.

But of course, Uno, Dos, and Tres stand no chance at ever beating either of them. Even if they gang up on them.

----

Two more Axel the Alligator characters! Sol the Saurus I've shown before and has a shiny new redesign. But Ceaser the Ceratops is his brand-spanking-new rival!! Pretty neat!

These two existed from before the meteorite came... What on earth are they doing in present day???

Sol fights with a giant sword that builds energy as its swung, and Ceaser fights with a giant shield that builds energy as its hit. They used to be allies but that was a long long long time ago

Also I'm not 100% on Ceaser's design or name so don't be surprised if I touch it up

Also here's an updated height chart with the No-Names and these dinosaurs. Again it's not 100% accurate but it gives an idea (Behemoth IS taller than Dos it's just a bad pose I promise)

also a comparison with some short guys in front of the dinosaurs :)

My concept is that Axel characters don't really stop growing as they age (which I believe real reptiles do the same thing?) so since these dinosaurs are from ancient times they'd have grown a CRAZY amount in the mean time. idk

[undertheopensky]

Curious about the different studies in Red 👀

Asdfgh I was so excited by this ask that I got up and walked arouind the house without even thinking about it -

Okay so! First you need to know that the Variations on a Theme series - which the Studies in Red are a part of - features Vio being stuck in a time loop where he tries to make the chips in Four Swords Plus fall in a way where everyone lives.

In the first Study in Red, Vio dies towards the end of a loop, and Red - knowing that something had been wrong with him - wishes he could have helped, somehow. And soon finds himself waking up back in the Sanctuary again as if they'd just pulled the Four Sword, and Shadow is there, and Vio is there, and maybe maybe maybe he can fix it this time -

It was supposed to just be a tragic oneshot where Red remembered one loop and did his best to help but they failed a requirement and then Red forgot in the next one and never remembered again, but, uh. Red kind of took over as leader from Green? And kicked ass at it??? So much so that I got indecisive about where to take things because holy shit it was SO GOOD -

A snippet:

Red strikes. With the flat of his sword he swats Blue – lightly – on the ear, then swings and clips Green’s backside too. Both of them yelp and stop to stare at him. “You call yourselves heroes,” Red hisses. “You’ve come across a scene you don’t understand – a disaster, a battle, the aftermath of a raid – and there’s someone in front of you trying to tell you what happened. Trying to give you information that could be useful, or just looking for help. Instead, you’re fighting amongst yourselves about who should be the leader. You should be ashamed of yourselves.”

Crimson was a version where LU happens some time shortly after a winning loop. The Colours are less than pleased to be dropped into a new adventure so fast.

Vermilion was an alternate LU intro where the Chain comes across the Colours trying to sneak out of their Hyrule and offers to escort them to somewhere safe.

Scarlet is ANOTHER alternate LU intro where the winning loop happened a couple of years ago - the four have settled in as individuals, and Vio has recovered from his experiences some.

Since Scarlet is my favourite (and most developed), have another snippet:

"Don’t worry, you’re not special,” Red says casually. "Vio hasn’t spoken in years." He feels a bit guilty at the stricken looks on their faces, but not much. He’s learned to be cutting, if it means defending his brothers. “Vivi,” he adds, "I love having you hanging out, but you know you don’t have to stay down here if the customers are annoying the shit out of you, right?” Pointedly, Vio turns his eyes back to his book, and doesn’t move. “Okay. You let me know if they’re bothering you and I’ll kick them out.” Vio tucks himself more firmly into his chair. Red turns back to the men and pastes a smile on his face. "So! What are you in for today?"

[bethanydelleman]

Thanks for the tag @firawren & @glassslippers-n-cowboyboots

1. How many works do you have on AO3? 45

2. What's your total AO3 word count? 208,023. And that's a bit surprising because a bunch of my longer fics are only on AHA or my website.

3. What fandoms do you write for? Mostly Jane Austen, all novels, Elizabeth Gaskell (Wives & Daughters), and Anne Bronte (The Tenant of Wildfell Hall). I have also technically written Oscar Wilde and My Happy Marriage, but those were very transformative.

I also have written some fics based on Kdramas, mostly for Alchemy of Souls.

4. What are your top 5 fics by kudos?

A Ride to Netherfield - Jane breaks her leg on the way to Netherfield and must stay for a month. Short one-shot (6k) and the first Pride & Prejudice variation I wrote.

Of Every Elizabeth - short and sweet Pride & Prejudice fluff, Darcy has nicknames for the plethora of Elizabeth's he's met over the course of his life (it was a super common name at the time)

Carry Me! - three vignettes of Jang Uk and Cho Yeong from Alchemy of Souls after they are married

The Fourth Bennet Sister - long fic (30k words), Pride & Prejudice variation where Kitty Bennet becomes aware that she is in a novel. She desperately tries to protect her sisters from harm.

All's Fair in Love and War - short Pride & Prejudice variation. Mrs. Bennet has weaponized compromise, men live in constant fear of being forced to marry.

5. Do you respond to comments? Yep. Every time.

6. What is the fic you wrote with the angstiest ending? Umm.... I'm not good at writing angst. I don't like characters to suffer for too long.

7. What’s the fic you wrote with the happiest ending? All of them?

8. Do you get hate on fics? Yes, because I dared to write Mr. Darcy marrying Anne Elliot. People get more angry about that for some reason than Elizabeth Bennet marrying Captain Wentworth in the same fic. Someone even told me Darcy would rather "throw himself off of Pemberley" rather than marry anyone other than Elizabeth. (Fic is called One Week Late)

9. Do you write smut? If so, what kind? I have written smut a few times, it's pretty vanilla because I am pretty vanilla. I was reading Victorian erotica when I wrote my longest one, A Little Before Their Marriage (Jane & Bingley fic).

10. Do you write crossovers? What’s the craziest one you’ve written? I constantly write crossovers, my first published novel is a massive crossover, Prideful & Persuaded. One of my fun shorts is Fall on the Sword, where every canonically single woman in Austen's novels decides if they want to try for the recently divorced Mr. Rushworth.

11. Have you ever had a fic stolen? Not as far as I know.

12. Have you ever had a fic translated? No, though someone did translate one of my meta posts from Tumblr. That was cool.

13. Have you ever co-written a fic before? Yes, The Marriage Contest with Branch Cloudsky and two with Amelia Marie Logan, Poor Caroline and Inferior Connections. All Pride & Prejudice fics, all funny. (You need an AO3 account for that one, the other two are on my personal website)

14. What’s your all time favourite ship? Catherine Morland & Henry Tilney. They are the only Austen couple I cannot bear to break up.

15. What’s a WIP you want to finish but doubt you ever will? I am writing a queer retelling of Emma called "Different Ways of Being in Love", where Jane Fairfax and Emma were lovers as teenagers, Jane is bi, Emma is a lesbian, and Mr. Knightley is ace, but I got stuck on the middle part. Someday hopefully!

16. What are your writing strengths? I'm told I write some pretty hilarious farces. I am told I do characterization well, which is my main goal when writing fan fiction. I try to stick as close to canon as possible.

17. What are your writing weaknesses? I don't write enough filler or develop things well enough. I like writing action.

18. Thoughts on writing dialogue in another language in fic? I would possibly try my hand at French, but probably never. I also have a lot of trouble reading accented speech (looking at you Wuthering Heights), so I'd probably never write it.

19. First fandom you wrote for? I am fairly certain I started writing a fix-it fic for Nineteen Eighty-Four after I read it in high school. Not sure I would be able to locate it but it did exist. The first since I started writing again was a sequel to Pride & Prejudice.

20. Favourite fic you’ve written? Probably Unfairly Caught (my other published work) or The Fourth Bennet Sister. I NEEDED to write a Mansfield Park fic because I hate the ending, so it fixed my dissatisfied feelings. My goal is to edit The Fourth Bennet Sister and get it published sometime this year.

@wurzelbertzwerg, @kehlana-wolhamonao3 and @bad-at-names-and-faces

[ivoryminitower]

Echoes of Home: 50 - Tsu'na ("May")

Echoes of Home: FFXIV AU OC – WoLs on Earth

Mrs. Hobbes met me at the library at 11:00.  She says it is on her way to "church".  I have not seen an Earth temple yet.  I should visit one some time.

Before she left I asked her if the library had anything on the Allagan Empire.  She had not heard of it; I suppose it was only in Eorzea.  But when I mentioned they made advances in magic and technology, she showed me the Fantasy section.  It has books with pictures on the front of people with swords, dragons, imps, odd-looking elezen and, often, something large looming in the background.  It is also considered fiction.  This tells me something of how magic is thought of in Earth.

I had taken off my coat and beret when I got there.  Mrs. Hobbes' eyes did twitch from time to time, but mostly stayed on my face.  Perhaps for her I am a person who likes books more than a person who has not-hyur ears.  Perhaps this is what is needed…to be seen as a person who does things rather than a person who is things.

Husband and I got together and picked up the eastbound bus to get pizza.  We passed two shopping centers that had signs saying "PIZZA", but Husband did not suggest we get off until he saw a sign that said "Pizza Hut".

It was a hut, if a hut can be made of bricks with tall glass windows.  Husband ordered two pizzas, one with sausage and onions and the other with mushrooms and "pepperoni".  Pepperoni looks like slices of sausage, while the sausage on the pizza looked like ground meat.

Neither used flatbread like what Husband made in Limsa.  One was a puffier kind of bread; Husband called it "hand-tossed".  It was easier to bite and chew, though it also tended to bend easily if one picked up a slice.

The other, called "pan", used a spongier kind of bread, and that sponge seemed to be filled with oil.  Seeing how it was stiffer around the side as well as the bottom, I guessed it was indeed cooked in a pan.  The oil made it both more and less filling than the hand-tossed.  It did not feel like I was filled with bread, but rather filled with oil.

"This is 'real' pizza?"

"A couple kinds.  There's variations on the theme, the crust, the toppings…"

"Which one is correct?"

"Whichever one people like eating."

"It is very different from what you made."

"I was improvising.  I didn't have this kind of cheese or crust.  So what do you think?"

I pointed at the hand-tossed.  "I like the bread with stuff on it, but I get tired of the bread by itself."

"Yeah, there's people that leave the outer crust.  How about the pan?"

"Very…oily."

"Some people consider that a feature."

"People like this?"

"Very popular in much of the world."

"People in Wyatt would buy it?"

"We could open an entire restaurant that served just pizza.  If we could open a restaurant.  And sell that much without worrying about taxes.  And health inspections."

"Which is why we use the diner."

"Right.  The Hartmans get to worry about all that."

"So you want a pizza recipe with holes in it to fill with…"

"Toppings, yes.  Maybe seasoning."

I peeled a pepperoni off of a slice and looked at it.  "I do not know how to make this."

"We can work on it.  Buy it in the meantime."

I chewed the pepperoni, trying to guess what it was made of.  Meat, and peppers, and I think vinegar.  Another research item.

We had much pizza left after eating, which Husband said was normal…that "leftover pizza is a thing."  I took the hand-tossed box; he seemed happy with the pan.

We found a quiet place to Return from.  Husband wanted to sleep in the afternoon, since he would be up late following Sam, so he headed to the house.  I switched to Ninja, Stealthed, and went to May's store.

The store closed at 3:00 on Sunday, but May stayed inside a while sorting boxes and moving things to shelves.  I went around the store to see if there was another door and found what Husband calls a "pickup truck" parked near one in the back.  Many people in town have them.  May might need it for the boxes.

I did not know how to get into it, and there was not much space inside, so I climbed into the back and waited.  May came out after a while, got in the front of the truck and drove.  Riding in the back of the truck was not as comfortable as Myra Stillwater's car, since there was no padding and I needed to hold on to the sides so I would not tumble as May drove.

She stopped at a house with two mailboxes, rather than one like the Hartman home.  She went around to the side of the house and up some stairs to a door.  I had to get close to her to get through the door as she opened it, but she did not notice me.

There were letters on a small table near the door.  The name on one was "Resident", on another was "May Fergusen", and on another was "Mrs. May Fergusen".  The home was not large, but I did not see a sign of Mr. Fergusen.

I saw cats.  May's home is full of cats.  Cats made of glass, cats made of stone, cats made of clay, pillows shaped like cats, pictures of cats on the walls, and one actual cat.  I thought at first it was another pillow until it opened its eyes and looked at me.  May petted it as she walked by it and called it "Snuggles".

I do not think Snuggles likes me.  It watched me as I moved through the room.  Though I could not tell if Snuggles likes May either, but it did get off the couch and go to the kitchen when May put food out.

There were some pictures on the wall that were not cats.  One showed May looking younger with a taller man, one showed May with a tall boy, one showed the man and the boy, and two more showed the boy doing what looked like sports.

I looked around the home and only found signs of May living there.  I did not see clothing for a taller man or a shorter boy.  So May Fergusen lived alone in a home full of cats.  I do not know how long she had lived that way, though it was a small home, part of a house, so Mr. Fergusen and their son had likely not been with her since she moved in.

Perhaps, when May heard about my ears, what she wanted to find in me was a cat she could talk to, a "cat person".  But unlike all the cats she had at home, including the actual cat, I was angry with her.  Now she is afraid of an angry cat who comes into her store.  I am a cat that does not want to be petted.  If she thought of me as an angry person she might have acted differently.

I am not a cat, and I will not be one for May.  Some miqo'te did act like cats, meowing and purring and making fish jokes.  I never understood why.  Perhaps they found it funny, or thought not-miqo'te liked it.  But I will not be something I am not, even in this world where I need to not be something I am.

I left when May went to take a bath.  I worried I would need to keep Snuggles from leaving, but it was happy (if it was happy at all) to not move other than to watch me.

I got outside, Returned, switched to Earth normal and walked to the diner.  Husband was not there when I arrived, so I sat at the counter and read for a while.  When he arrived, I asked him about Snuggles staring at me.

"Cat teevee."

"Teevee?"

"Television.  You got a cat that spends a lot of its life inside the same place, never sees anything new, until you come along.  The cat stares at you because you're the most interesting thing in the room.  Probably doesn't mean anything more than that.  Except apparently Stealth doesn't work on cats."

"Would it have attacked me?"

"Sounds like it's too sedentary to work up an interest.  Maybe if you were small and running around under its nose."  He frowned.  "Now I wonder about dogs.  Stealth kept us from getting attacked in Eorzea, but dogs are a different kind of territorial.  We might have to experiment."

We ate dinner and got to work.  I removed my beret and coat to see if things would be like in the Pit.  Working at the register, people only saw my ears at first, and tried not to stare.  Later, when Husband went out to watch Sam, and I was cleaning tables, I walked past people with my tail visible.  No one said anything, and I was relieved no one tried to touch it.  But the room did get quieter.

I am not my ears and tail.  I need to make people know that.

[rhymeswithmeg]

OKay it isn't like an exact 1:1 but I felt pretty epic with my wool cape anyway! two people I talked to knew the show but didn't immediately recognize my costume as kit and there's definitely some things I would do differently/better if I had more time/money/energy.

in the process of putting this costume together i also figured out that kit has a couple variations of what she's wearing throughout the series. i based my costume mostly off of the vibes and this picture of the exhibit when willow was first released.

anyway, here's how i did it! in case this is helpful for anyone :D be forewarned, i've never done anything like this before as a costume and i haven't really read much about costuming, this is just what worked for me. i got everything second-hand, but none of the stuff is too hard to come by.

my favorite thing - the top! what i got was the Express Silky V-neck Ruched top. i LOVE the sleeves and the neckline is exactly right and this is totally something i can wear for all kinds of stuff in the future so i'm super excited about that.

2. the cloak was definitely my second favorite part of the costume because of the DRAMA. i was lucky enough to find a big sheet of navy blue wool at the thrift store, so i bought some fabric dye and dyed it black to match kit's cloak.

my cloak was definitely way bigger than kit's (mine was 60" by 90" and i'd estimate hers was like 40" by 70") but I just couldn't bring myself to cut up such a great piece of wool more than i needed (i guess that's the fiber craft enthusiast in me). to make the neck hole, i measured a foot out from the long edge in the middle and cut a hole with a diameter of 4.5" which i found was just big enough to squeeze my head through with the give in the fabric.

i think my next steps for this would be to cut the wool to the right size and line it, especially near the neckline because wool is itchy!

3. not pictured above but also pretty cool is this leather shacket-type thing. unbeknownst to me, leather (both faux and real) in sizeable quantities is pretty expensive - which makes sense in the scheme of things, but not really for this project.

4. the belt/waist cincher thing was surprisingly hard to find. and i still didn't get it quite right! this one was pretty close i think, but i wish i could find something closer. i guess i'll just have to pick up leatherworking before next year!

5. the crystal necklace! i think it's canonically jade (for obvious jade claymore-related reasons), but i just found this green one and it turned out really cute! i definitely want to learn how to make this kind of stuff because it looks so fun.

6. for pants, i just wore my black ripstop pants because they're the same texture as whatever kit has on in the show and they're also pretty comfy. i can't find the brand or tag but i think they're just black scrubs.

7. boots - if i had brown riding boots, that would have been perfect, but i did have different brown leather boots that did the job! i think boot toppers might be in order next time, but i ran out of time. i have these boots and i love them so much! not an ad, but like - they're waterproof and they make me feel like a boss bitch when i'm walking down the street so that's definitely something.

8. and then literally to top it all off, i went to the hairdressers and showed her these pictures and she was able to get my hair pretty close to how ruby's is in the show!

more costume reference photos but they're not that good because for some reason i forgot screenshots existed??

so yeah! hopefully you enjoyed- i definitely did!!

it does make me wonder-- there are big parts of the show where kit doesn't have her cloak or her sword or her bow & quiver and then she just randomly has them again? maybe i'm just not putting the pieces together or maybe it's ~magic~ oooh

i did the same thing last year for one of nancy wheeler's Stranger Things outfits so lmk if you want to see more of this. if not, i might just post it anyway because it's my blog <3

gonna be kit tanthalos for halloween and it's going to be sick so stay tuned

me in like a week:

[shy-urban-hobbit]

Hi! If I can ask for another I would love to get 29. pet names from the Soft™ fic prompt meme with Lambert/Aiden, thank you <3 I love your writing 💕

Aaaaw!! Thank you so much!!! And thank you for the prompt!

29 - Pet names. Lambert's pretty sure coming up with a pet name for your ex best friend/ current boyfriend shouldn't be this difficult.

Nobody told Lambert thinking up a suitable pet name was this God's damned difficult. Granted, he wasn’t sure that Aiden was into that sappy shit but Lambert had never had a romantic partner before and he wanted to have at least something to fall back on so he wouldn’t panic and call Aiden something either inappropriate or insulting (looking back, the slap that whore had dealt him that time had been completely justified). He wasn’t overthinking this, he was just trying to be prepared. Shut up.

His family were easy. Either call them what they were, or something that pissed them off. Geralt was “Pretty Boy’ when Lambert wanted to annoy him, same as he was “Lambchop” when Geralt or Eskel wanted to get a rise out of him. Ciri was “Girl” or “Kid”, sometimes “Brat” (affectionate) depending on what mischief she decided to pull that day.

Aiden had been easy too, when they were still just friends and the same rules applied or they'd just call each other increasingly random shit just to see who could make the other laugh first. Now, Lambert wanted something different. Something special just between the two of them – that’s what couples did, right?

He couldn’t exactly just call Aiden “Cat” as that’s what everyone on The Path and everyone else in the Keep used for him (and most of the time that had been intended as an insult until the other Wolves actually got to know him). He’d contemplated just sticking to the classics, but Jaskier had low-key ruined that for him by casually calling everyone some variation of “Love” or “Darling” or “Sweetheart” (or some sickening combination of all three if he was drunk and your name was Geralt), Aiden included.  He sighed as he looked over the sheet of paper in front of him absolutely covered with rejected possibilities (which he must remember to burn later). Alright, so maybe he was overthinking this.

Lambert didn’t bother trying to hide his grin as he continued cleaning the blade of his sword with a soft rag, half of his attention on Aiden. The Cat’s mending lay abandoned as he perched on the edge of his chair, eagerly following the small blob of light reflecting off the blade and onto the wall, his fingers and legs twitching as if he were resisting the urge to pounce, Lambert was pretty sure his pupils were also dilated. He couldn’t resist.

He sniggered to himself as he purposefully jiggled the blade, making the light bounce around erratically.

“Kitten.” Lambert huffed to himself affectionately as he watched Aiden’s whole body weave from side to side trying to track it.

“Hmm? Yeah, Puppy?”

Shit. Of course Lambert would forget now that he wasn’t the only one in the room with enhanced hearing. But then his brain caught up to Aiden’s reply.

“Puppy?”

“Well, it’s only fair if you’re calling me Kitten.” Aiden said with a fond smile. He vacated his own seat and took Lambert’s sword, resting it against the wall before plopping down into the others lap and purring when the Wolf wrapped an arm around his waist, “I won’t if it bothers you though.”

Lambert mulled it over. Everything was screaming at him that he should find it patronising. He just knew that if any of his brothers tried it, they’d be finding themselves nursing at least one bruise. when Aiden said it though...

He shrugged, “I don’t hate it.”

 Aiden’s smile turned slightly predatory, “Want to see how long it takes me to make you whimper like one?”

Lambert didn’t get a chance to answer before Aiden’s mouth was on his, the Cats purrs increasing in volume as Lambert kissed back with a groan.

His Kitten was going to kill him, but what a way to go.

[vivacissimx]

Hello! How do you think Jon would react when he is told the truth about his parentage? Who do you think will tell him? And how do you think his feelings regarding Ned would change? Have a lovely day!

I think it's a foregone conclusion at this point that Jon is going to learn about his parentage at some point, there are a lot of theories regarding the specifics but personally I'd be very surprised if he learned it from anyone other than Howland Reed.

Couple reasons however I think it's fair & important to note that Jon always had a father. Ned Stark raised him & while Jon's evolving feelings on him/Northern politics in general diverge from the complete admiration he once had for Ned, it's not a rejection of Eddard Stark the Father. Jon's growing empathy for other peoples (whether across class or regional lines within the Night's Watch itself to the wildlings to women) includes an empathy for Ned--this allows him to take the best of what Ned taught him and yet make decisions that Ned would not have made. He's understanding of the difficult positions his dad has been in and perhaps even the sacrifices made. When he doesn't go South to join Robb, when he rejects Stannis' offer, it's a symbolic break from Starkhood although the love for his family remains.

No, Jon's never lacked a father. He's always wanted a mother.

This is where Howland Reed ties in, he's just so connected to Jon's origin story--not only present but involved in Lyanna's moment as the Knight of the Laughing Tree, present at the Tower of Joy when Lyanna makes Ned promise to care for Jon (presumably). Howland told stories of Lyanna & Harrenhal to his children who tell them to Bran. Howland, interestingly, spent a whole season with the green men on the Isle of Faces in the God's Eye by Harrenhal, which is a winky nudgey type of thing because the mythos of that region is rich in Old Gods/Stark/Targaryen connections. Ex. Rhaegar & Lyanna ofc, Daemon Targaryen's 13 slashes in the Harrenhal weirwood that bleed in spring, Addam Velaryon's supposed audience with the green men before sacrificing himself for Rhaenyra's cause, Rhaena Targaryen the ghost of Harrenhal➡Arya Stark the ghost of Harrenhal, Nymeria's wolfpack in the area, proximity to the Trident & the Inn of the Kneeling Man where Torrhen supposedly bent the knee to Aegon the Conqueror, Dark Sister the sword being lost beneath the water for a generation (Dark Sister in the current timeline likely being lost beyond the Wall).

Howland is also the one of the guys Robb sent a letter to legitimizing Jon & naming him the heir. Yes I know Jon rejected being named a Stark at Stannis' hands but Robb is very different to Stannis. Howland's children are lost beyond the Wall. GRRM has said we're getting Howland at some point. I believe it's for the purpose of telling Jon about R+L=J.

I'd predict that knowing about Lyanna is what will really affect Jon, given that a) he's been shown to admire women who remind him of Arya & Arya/Lyanna parallels are weaved throughout the books, b) that she did genuinely love him, she didn't abandon him, and c) Ned Stark loved him as a son by choice rather than simply being a stain on his honor.

Jon reacts to many a thing with frustration, by internalizing his feelings and being stubborn but he feels & loves deeply. Empathy and affection motivate him. Hearing some variation of this:

"I was with her when she died," Ned reminded the king. "She wanted to come home, to rest beside Brandon and Father." He could hear her still at times. Promise me, she had cried, in a room that smelled of blood and roses. Promise me, Ned. The fever had taken her strength and her voice had been faint as a whisper, but when he gave her his word, the fear had gone out of his sister's eyes. Ned remembered the way she had smiled then, how tightly her fingers had clutched his as she gave up her hold on life, the rose petals spilling from her palm, dead and black. After that he remembered nothing. They had found him still holding her body, silent with grief. The little crannogman, Howland Reed, had taken her hand from his. Ned could recall none of it.

[AGOT, Eddard I]

How can this not hurt!! It has to. It would rip me apart! It also heals though. Jon isn't the petulant teenager he started the series as, he's harder and he's made sacrifices too. ADWD Jon willing to throw any honor he might have had to the wind, to remain a bastard, to break his vows, for the sake of what he loves & considers bigger than himself. How do you think Jon will feel to learn that the people who made him who he is were faced with similar impossible circumstances, that they paid the highest prices & the only way to mourn/celebrate their lives is to rejoice in the fact that he, himself, is still alive??? It's torture but it's also so beautiful because it's something he's always wanted. Never thought he would get.

It's a personal revelation, is what I'm getting at, a bittersweetness. I believe there's a relief in knowing. Freedom in understanding. I do see moments of resentment creeping in (Jon is a human being bro) but ultimately he will make peace with this & that it will help him to accept love more easily from others (something he has difficulty doing).

About Ned... this is kind of another question, there is a grappling to be had if he links up with Daenerys about the Rhaegar/Ned picture. They're coming from opposite ends of the bridge on this one. Here is where I think the classic coming of age trope of 'realizing your parents/idols are people too' will happen. Ultimately this duo has to succeed where their predecessors failed, right? Doing that means leaving behind a lot of baggage, no matter how justified your personal attachment to them is

I want Jon to be able to say "I made the best decisions I could. Nobody else did it for me. Thank you to everyone who influenced me & taught me something, I hold you close to my heart and I've got it from here." That's ideally the place Jon learning about his parents brings him closer to, for me as a Jon Snow Enjoyer.

& if you want more I humbly offer the fic I wrote about this very identity reveal 🥰

[noctusfury]

Archeological Find of the Century! || The Cave Runes on Dragon’s Edge (RTTE/HTTYD)

So, as you can probably guess, I'm going to be getting into the "Ancient" Sword and the Runes that are found inscribed on both the sword AND on the wall.

(I edited the screenshots so you, the viewer, can have a clear view of these pictures since the originals were in bad lighting.)

I was re-watching "Follow the Leader" (S3E3) when I saw the scene where Fishlegs discovers the sword and the script on the wall and became greatly intrigued. For some strange reason, I never really wondered until now about what the translation was, and if anyone had translated it (like what they did with Dagur's arm). However, after doing some research, I was surprised that nobody seemed to either notice the runes or come up with the idea of translating them.

So, with Noctus being Noctus doing what Noctus does best, he sets out to investigate and does some research! Research, research, research! One of the one ten things you get to know about me is that I LOVE to research and learn stuff. If I don't know something, I go research it until I do.

So, I once again re-watched the episode, this time making sure to do it on the computer so that I could snip various shots and angles with certain scenes directly showing the runes on the sword and wall. Then I went on Ribbet (a popular *and free* photo editor site) to spruce up the photos and lighten them up, since they were in a dark cave and with low lighting. I did the best I could without distorting the photos themselves, making sure that I tried to highlight the runes so I could see them clearly.

Once I did that, I then went to Pinterest to search for some Nordic Rune charts so that I could use them to help decipher and translate the runes on the sword and on the wall. I ended up downloading a few since they varied and there were different variations. Not counting the time spent on photo editing and looking for the right shots to snip (which took me the whole day), it took me about an hour or two to search for the right ones.

Fortunately, the runes on the sword and on the wall contained the same message, so, with the help of the charts, the brighter and clearer photos, and the sword (or certain parts of it), I was able to translate the entire message. Some runes were difficult to define due to the rough surface and the bad lighting in some areas (not to mention rock erosion and fading of some of the runes), but I was able to make them out perfectly. 

All-in-all, the whole project took me just about the whole day. And the translating took me about a couple of hours, mostly to double- and triple-check to make sure I missed nothing. The end result was this:

(If you wish to use this picture, please make sure to give me the credit and the shout-out.)

I do have to say, though, that it was moderately challenging. Not too much so, but enough. Some words like "shields" and "shafts" were split (as you can see in the top right corner of the message), so it took a few ticks to notice the actual words once I got the letters themselves translated.

Then the word "splint" caused me to scratch my head for a bit; unlike the two words, this one wasn't split awkwardly. So I decided to take some literary historian liberties and assumed that since we're dealing with shafts (as in arrows), it would be "splintered," rather than "splint," which seemed to fit with the rest of the script so far.

So after spending an hour or two translating, I ended up with this:

"With swords brandished, shields will be shattered; shafts will be splint(ered)..."

Makes sense, right? Sounds like a reference to a Saga or a Skaldic poem or even some sort of rune-enchantment to enhance the sword's abilities in battle (historically, Vikings did this quite a bit; they were weird like that.) Something totally and completely logical and practical.

But then, I come across THIS last part of the message, and this is what it looked like AFTER translation:

"...whd we wind we wewebofda."

I'm not joking. It LITERALLY says this. And this is AFTER THREE HOURS of re-checking FIVE times or more, on top of editing the photos even MORE in order and studying them meticulously and looking at EACH and EVERY rune and comparing it with the charts to make sure that I didn't make any mistakes. I didn't. This is REALLY what it says. Even if some of the P-shaped runes (which translate into "w" in English) were actually thorn "ᚦ" runes (pronounced as a sharp "th" sound, like "with" or "Thor"), and if some of the faded runes weren't what I assumed to be, the results would barely be any different than what I currently have.

I've even tried brightening and clarifying this particular picture of the sword in a hope of having a more definite view of the runes, only to be disappointed.

As you can see, the lower right quarter of the sword, where the runes that I am looking for are located, isn't clear enough for me to decipher, forcing me to depend on the runes carved on the wall. If you guys are able to make this more discernable and clear-cut, please let me know. But I'm not holding my breath; I'm fairly confident of my translation at this point.

"...whd we wind we wewebofda."

Now, I'm pretty sure you're laughing at this point from the sheer absurdity of the sentence (to be honest, I am, too). It can't be helped. It IS absurd. In fact, it sounds like something Snotlout would say after getting struck by lightning. And it seems contradictory that 2/3s of the message makes sense while the rest of it is in inconceivable gibberish babble! It boggles the gray cells to no end!

My Theory(ies):

Okay, so I have a few theories as to why this babble exists.

1) Whoever wrote this was drunk or buzzed,

2) Whoever wrote this was becoming senile,

3) Whoever wrote this was dying and was losing control of his ability to coordinate words,

4) DreamWorks either can't write or is trolling us big time!

(If you have any theories, give a shout!)

Whatever the case, it bugs the tar out of me. But I'm just going to let it go and just ignore that this last part exists. That's the beautiful thing with taking literary and creative liberties and having an imagination: you can come up with whatever best suits the story — so long as it makes sense, that is.

Conclusion:

So in conclusion, this is basically what the translation is in its entirety!

My theory is that the runes and sword could’ve belonged to the Twins’ uncle. Or this could’ve been even older, belonging to one of the Hamishes, or even Grimbeard or one of the first two Hiccups. Or perhaps some Viking whom we don’t know of.

However, this was bugging me the whole time, and I refuse to admit defeat, nor will I allow this translation to remain like this. Thus, I had already taken the liberty of creating several versions of this translation according to my discretion. You may choose which translation you prefer, or you can make your own. ^_^

Here ya are! Don’t they look so much better!! I think so!! ^_^

And if you're curious as to what rune charts I used, I'll happily give you them.

(Please keep in mind that letters such as "J", "C", "W", and a few others do not exist in the Old Norse language. Many of these letters are modern and didn't come up until the 1600-1800s. If you see them on these charts, they're more for guidance for modern users.)

In total, this project took me about 1-1/2 to 2 days to work on this — mostly having to do with research and editing pictures than actual translating. That in itself took about a half-day at most.

What about you? What do you think the real translation is?

Thank you for reading this article. My first one, in fact, for this book! Started with a BANG! I hope that you enjoyed it and that it was a blessing for you. Regardless if you ever had a curiosity about what these runes said or not, I hope that this now satisfies it and that you can leave this page with a new knowledge that can increase your love for this amazing Fandom.

Long Live the Night!

— Noctus Fury

[lightcreators]

Distance  remained,  uncertain.  Trust  wasn't  lacking  this  time,  but  hesitation  continued  to  paralyze  him.  If  he  touched  something  he  had  been  craving,  will  be  allowed  to  coming  back  inside  an  world  when  he  had  none  ?  If  he  was  touching  that  dream,  doesn't  he  pulled  too  much  emotional  responsabilities  upon  an  stranger,  in  which  that  affectionate  gesture  would  lowered  down  usual  locks  he  pulled  to  himself  ?  Simply  gentleness  gaze  was  returned,  remaining  observant,  without  doing  the  first  move.  Already  embracing  how  different  it  was  that  usual.  A  childish  smile  quickly  came  to  his  face.  He  mainly  ate  McDonalds  (  beyond  being  the  favorite  offering  to  the  spirits  )  so  it  had  become  his  favorite  brand,  and  the  first  modern  thing  he  had  enjoyed  knowing.  ❝  I'm  almost  addicted  to  it,  but  since  that's  what  I  mainly  feed  on.  ❞  He  grinned  almost  automatically,  when  there  was  no  particular  shame  to  express  it  that  manner.  With  an  single  look,  an  understanding  could  be  made  eating  wasn't  his  priority,  that  he  hadn't  slept  for  ages,  and  that  he  badly  needed  a  prolonged  sun  cure  that  he  wasn't  likely  to  take.  The  days  came  and  went  in  strange  variations  depending  on  what  he  found  to  do.  Since  there  has  been  an  absence  towards  what  he  has  been  confessed,  he  didn't  digged  that  topic.  Breathing  every  wound  coming  from  his  heart  and  his  soul  generated  that  disastrous  physical  appareance  to  begin  with,  in  which  he  forgotten  even  the  time  of  before.  He  felt  he  belonged  to  himself  through  this  skull  ring,  in  sensation  of  his  sword,  if  he  didn't  feel  his  body,  it  didn't  matter.  Infantile  features  transformed  inside  slight  brightness  at  the  mention  was  she  was  perceiving  was  good  ---  reproach  or  disgust  or  rejection  or  all  three  at  once  was  what  he  expected.  His  gaze  that  was  too  dark  to  bear,  his  appearance  that  gave  the  impression  that  he  wasn't  of  this  world,  there  were  few  people  who  could  just  look  at  him,  and  find  some  beauty.  ❝  I  am  delighted that you think so !  ❞

How  she  bounced  back  towards  his  next  sentences  generated  an  kind  of  confused  look.  Since  he  was  coming  from  bottomless  of  obscurity  in  which  ever  his  father  would  commenting  his  reactions  from  his  observer  spot,  metaphors  exposed  associated  the  darkness  he  was  coming  from  below  the  eart  to  the  resident  of  the  sky.  Everything  from  the  daylight  was  associated  to  the  sunlight,  or  the  huge  influence  of  the  sun,  as  his  own  thoughts  could  ponder,  and  mixing  together  about  how  much  he  wanted  the  sun  back,  how  much  he  wanted  accepting  that  sunlight  could  embrace  him  someday.  Nevertheless,  sooner  contradiction  of  her  sentence  resonated.  In  middle  of  his  troubled  face,  he  did  noticed  she  made  the  first  he  had  refused  to  take,  closing  closeness,  but  in  which  there  was  no  impression  to  be  threatened.  When  her  hands  embracing  him  inside  that  close  embrace  he  remained  inert  for  an  couple  of  seconds,  the  contradiction,  the  paradox  was  something  he  had  to  emotionally  and  intellectually  proccesing.  Not  offering  sunlight,  and  yet,  perceiving  behind  his  eyes  what  he  needed,  not  made  of  sun  beams  but  yet  offering  the  sun  ---  how  his  brain  could  even  understand  that  emotionally  ?  He  nodded  slowly  as  immediate  betrayal  would  came,  hiding  his  face  in  his  shoulder,  and  feeling  like  a  child  for  a  very  long  time.  Way  he  held  on  revealed  how  he  no  longer  had  maternal  hands  to  give  him  such  emotion,  despite  the  fact  that  his  gaze  wanted  same  from  his  father. Nevertheless,  he  tried  not  to  think  about  it,  and  to  temporarily  close  his  eyes,  without  venturing  into  his  soul  accordingly,  but  having  that  wariness  had,  not  wanting  to  be  hurt.  ❝  It's  been  a  long  time  since  I  had  a  hug,  it  feels  good.  ❞ 

She feels the distance between them, a chasm less travelled and Judith wonders if she is allowed to draw him closer. ⸻ Maybe not. Judith thinks, when he maintains his distance from her. At least for now.

❛❛ Ah yes, the joys for chicken nuggets. ❜❜ It's small, but any spark of joy must be cherished, as for the others? She makes no mention of it, a lost love and the ache in between, because there's that too, when you deeply love, the wound is just as cavernous, but what does she know about love and loss? These are things foreign to her. ❛❛ I only see good things. ❜❜ Judith says. Amongst his messy hair and paled complexation, even as his eyes is dreary and tired, there is only good things. Like finding a treasure where you least expect it.

⸻ ❛❛ And besides. ❜❜ She turns to him fully, closes the gap, because Judith was never one for patience anyway, her friendship heavy handed, a heavy weight, but sincere nonetheless. ❛❛ I am not offering sunlight nor am I made out of sun beams. ❜❜

And without warning, she takes him into his arms, a tight embrace, holding him still for as long as he doesn't pull away. ❛❛ You just look like you needed a hug, is all. You don't need to think too deeply about it. ❜❜ Maybe it's just as simple as that ? A stranger offering some semblance of comfort, sometimes random meetings are silly that way.

[thewapolls]

So a weird quirk is that, in April of 1996 the arcade fighter, Soul Edge was first released. In it the enduring franchise long protag Siegfried was introduced, and in the Bad End of his story mode, he is possessed by the malicious supernatural sword, The Soul Edge, and in epilogue becomes the new nightmarish wielder of the cursed blade(s). And in his ending cutscene he is seen in a corrupted suit of armor. That armor is itself a variation on his Player2 alternate skin in the game, and is also a secret playable character that can be unlocked: "Siegfried!"

Then the Original Wild Arms came out December of that same year (1996) and this(↑) is what the villain "Ziekfried" looked like... No big deal, totally dissimilar. But note his neat fleshy spear with the big bulging eye...

So, then in 1998, Soul Calibur debuted Nightmare's first official design as a distinct character. I feel like the obvious angle was that he was supposed to be wearing black armor, but the metalic sheen and associated artwork kinda gave the impression it was blue, notable because later redesigns would lean into the blue armor much more explicitly.

Like in Soul Calibur II in July of 2002...

But in Wild Arms 3, which came out in March 2002, "Ziekfried" returns with this new redesign. And like????

So, in the same year the initial Soul Edge featured a grotesque fusion of flesh and metal but no eye at all; and a variation on Siegfried with red corrupted armor and the GramZamber was introduced in Wild Arms, with a similar gruesome bio-metal look, and a broad blade and singular eye; and Ziekfried here has blue armor with a sweeping backwards crest/horn.

And a few years later we get Nightmare with a forward horn on his helmet, a giant claw hand, and the first instance of the Soul Edge with a big honkin' eyeball, just like Ziek's GramZamber.

Another couple years and once again, in the same year, we get both new Nightmare with now distinctly blue armor, and Ziekfriend[sic] returns with a new forward facing horn helmet, a big claw arm, and an admittedly less organic looking GramZamber.

I don't actually have a point I'm getting at here. I went to dig up some details and quickly found that the things I thought would sort of slide into place as I went, didn't. A lot of things got misremembered in my head, and I sort of assumed the original Soul Edge had the eye. I assumed original Nightmare had more obviously blue armor. I thought a few of these games came out in different years than they did, and in a different order... So, is there a link between these two characters? It doesn't appear to be the case. But, like, at a glance it feels like there should've been something there, right?

They do of course both reference the Siegfried/Sigurd of the real world Volsung Saga. But its not like he had blue armor, a helmet with a big horn, or a blade with an eyeball on it, so it isn't as if that shared reference accounts for anything ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

[the-rogue-dragon]

𝐒𝐄𝐍𝐒𝐄 𝐀𝐍𝐃 𝐎𝐓𝐇𝐄𝐑 𝐒𝐏𝐄𝐂𝐈𝐅𝐈𝐂 𝐇𝐄𝐀𝐃𝐂𝐀𝐍𝐎𝐍𝐒

WHAT DOES YOUR MUSE SMELL LIKE ? I’ve spoken about this previously in a specific post, but for the purpose of answering this question, Daemon smells like old books (vanilla), ashes (incense) and roasted meat (leather being tanned over a flame)

WHAT DO YOUR MUSE’S HANDS FEEL LIKE ? One would argue that for a man who is a Knight - a warrior - skilled in war as he is in other less bloody aspects of his life, that his hands would be rough to the touch and even calloused. But in truth they are not, he takes care of his hands, as he does the rest of his body, and thus his hands are quite soft to the touch.

WHAT DOES YOUR MUSE USUALLY EAT IN A DAY ? Is wine considered food? Despite the joke, Daemon eats quite well, his meals go from all sort of variations depending on which part of Westeros or Essos he finds himself in. He’s not one to eat more than needed. His weakness are sweets.

DOES YOUR MUSE HAVE A GOOD SINGING VOICE ?   As a matter of fact yes, he does. He doesn’t sings often, but he hums when he’s on his own. He did sang to his children (biological or not) when they were kids. He prefers to sing in High Valyrian.

DOES YOUR MUSE HAVE ANY BAD HABITS OR NERVOUS TICKS ? Beyond his mental illnesses that I will not list as either bad habits or nervous ticks, because they are not, he does has some things one could consider bad habits. He is stubborn, and quick to anger. Most of the time he would prefer walk out of the room than have a fight (heated discussion) with someone, depending on who that person is. He rolls his eyes when annoyed by someone. As he doesn’t normally knows what to do with his hands, they are usually found resting over the hilt of his sword.

WHAT DOES YOUR MUSE USUALLY LOOK LIKE / WEAR ?  He usually can be found wearing the colors of his House, deciding on black for the most of it, with some hints of red here and there. His hair is usually tied in half a ponytail, to keep it from falling over his face / eyes. 

IS YOUR MUSE AFFECTIONATE  ? HOW SO ?  He can be, but it’s not shown as most people would expect. Daemon doesn’t necessary hugs people - except his children (again, all of them even those who are not biologically his). He shows his affection by headbutting people (softly pressing his forehead to theirs, their shoulder or stomach in case of pregnant women) The headbutt it’s by far his most notorious way of showing affection, as he does the same with his dragon, whom he pets. Caresses are another way of showing affection. However he will never express such affection with words.

WHAT POSITION DOES YOUR MUSE SLEEP IN ? He turns a lot on his sleep so one would find him in different positions through the night. He does prefer to sleep on his sides, it is how he lies down ready to sleep. However, he often ends on his stomach, not too much on his back but it can happen if drunk, or if someone is using his chest to sleep.

COULD YOU HEAR YOUR MUSE IN THE HALLWAY FROM ANOTHER ROOM ? No. He’s quite stealthy in his moves, it serves him well to listen behind doors - or walls - which he had done a couple of times, not too often, but sometimes he indulges on such behavior if needed. This stealthiness becomes even more important in the alternative universe where he survives, and trains in Asshai, making him almost like a ninja.

Tagged by: @adversitybloomed

Tagging: @mccndancer @xx--ofmanythoughts--xx @bcbliophile @bronzebtch @fallesto (Viserys) @notenoughmuses @percentstardust @misstantabismuses @withouthonor​ @dragynfire​

[pennstateuniversitypress]

Q&A with Stephanie Porras

The author of The First Viral Images: Maerten de Vos, Antwerp Print, and the Early Modern Globe discusses St. Michael the Archangel and how the internet and art from 1600 aren't so different.

Why use the internet to explain artworks made around 1600?

The whole idea for the book started with an offhand comment made at a conference–the idea of a meme going viral was at first a kind of off-the-cuff analogy to this print (St. Michael the Archangel, the book's central case study) that seemed to be copied just about everywhere around 1600. For those of us who spend too much time on the internet, it made sense: a meme gets copied, adapted, reshared, and circulated, creating new variations, combining with other memes, and becoming divorced from its original context. But when I started to think about it, this flippant remark hit on a few things I was particularly interested in–namely, how do new image technologies (in this case, print, or today’s memes) adapt and change as they move between communities of viewers? Reading media studies scholars’ work on internet culture gave me a vocabulary and a framework to analyze the movement of early modern prints–it made me think about gatekeepers and infrastructures of print media and made me question art-historical notions of artistic agency. Now of course, there are lots of ways the sharing of memes on the internet differs from the sixteenth-century circulation of printed images–things happen so quickly now, there is a dematerialization of artistic labor, and the infrastructure of the web is complex in ways that differ from the transoceanic trade of the early modern period. But this analogy helped me see this vast, in some ways undocumented process–the concerted export of printed imagery across the globe by colonial, missionary, and commercial agents, prints that were then copied and recirculated by a whole range of local actors–in a new and hopefully productive way.

Why did you choose these case studies?

My central case study, St. Michael the Archangel, is just a straight-up weird image. This archangel almost always has a sword, but here he doesn’t; he carries a martyr’s palm and has this strange, open, upraised hand. Frankly, this made variants of this image easy to spot. The 1581 painting hangs only a few miles from where one of the later Filipino ivory variants is now held, in Central Mexico, and I think that juxtaposition really compelled me. I started collecting them; for a while, every time I gave a paper it felt like someone in the audience knew another version (in Quito, in Cusco, in Valencia). So I started with that one iconographic image and within a year or two had a sizeable corpus. I am sure there are more out there–in fact, while the book was in press I was able to finally get to Portugal and see a couple more!

So I had this one iconographic image, but I wanted it to speak to a wider phenomenon. So I decided to also include the Evangelicae historiae imagines because it is the most copied thing in the early modern world, and, it turns out, many of the same folks were involved in both projects. Many talented and diligent scholars have done the work of locating and describing a lot of the Imagines copies, so I was able to focus on how the St. Michael images anticipated this kind of movement, arguing that the Jesuits knew and exploited the viral potential of print.

How did this print (the St. Michael, published in Antwerp) end up in Manila?

Well, the print had to be smuggled out of Antwerp first, probably overland with a Flemish book publisher who had ties in Spain. Then it was likely sold in Seville before being taken by missionaries or merchants to New Spain. Once landing in Veracruz, the print would have been taken overland, via Mexico City, to Acapulco before making the 100-day sea voyage to Manila in the cargo of a priest or trader. There are a lot of unknowns in this itinerary, but we do have letters from Jesuit priests thanking their brethren in Seville for sending prints to them. But the better answer is to read my book (particularly the chapter on Manila)!

The First Viral Images: Maerten de Vos, Antwerp Print, and the Early Modern Globe is now available from Penn State University Press. Find more information and order the book here: https://www.psupress.org/books/titles/978-0-271-09283-6.html. Save 30% with discount code NR23.

[halfangelhavoc]

I got introduced to this game by a close friend who's absolutely infatuated with it. Their favorite game, they said, and for years that was the verdict, and finally I decided to sit down and give it a whirl a couple weeks ago. I didn't know what to expect, because they wanted everything about the game to be a first-time experience for me, but it's turned out to be this brilliant little...I'd almost call it an arcade mode Mega Man? Sort of? I'll gush about it more below the cut, but to keep things blunt: good music, good gameplay, seriously underrated little platform-shooter gem that I think deserves more love than it's got so far (7 years later it's only got 201 reviews on Steam).

Beating enemies lets you use their powers, and there's a lot of different powers to borrow. Split shots, homing shots, bouncing shots, remote grenades, lightning bolts, and a lot more besides - but then you get to combine abilities, up to three at a time, to make them more powerful? It's actually really impressive how many different abilities there are in the game, and how so many of them, when combined, become completely different. "Quick" can be a rapid-fire machine gun of bullets...or it can be a sword if you combine it with the right move, and the sword can be augmented even further by getting a third ability on top of it. AND THEN!! There's a WHOLE SECOND CHARACTER who uses those abilities ENTIRELY differently, projecting them through a physical pop-up window in ways that change the function of the window as much as the function of what it's shooting (one roots it in place and makes it pull double-duty as a shield, one sticks it to the nearest wall/ceiling and fires from there, one moves it in the direction opposite the way you're moving; list goes on), and THEY get two-power combinations that are actually different depending on which power is leading which (electricity+split and split+electricity have different results), and BASICALLY just from a gameplay standpoint it is ABSURD the amount of effort that got put into the mechanics.

The world it's set in is, I'd say, overflowing with creativity; character designs range from "familiar with a curious twist" (Boki, the protagonist shown above, is a cat...with crystalline paws that let her kick through sufficiently soft surfaces) to "downright bizarre" (one of the characters in the larger-scale universe that the lead artist often draws bits about is a slime critter with three legs, a massive lower body that doubles as their mouth, and a three-pronged tail that I think serves as an additional eye????), and there's six or seven different worlds in the setting that are clearly the product of "something cool sprang to the creator's mind and she had to expand upon it". (The afterlife is shrouded in a fog comprised of the souls that found rest, and it - the afterlife - is a planet all its own, with a halo around it.) There's robots, there's necromancers, there's slimefolks, there's dragons, there's jellyfish gals; it's a very wacky setting and I absolutely love how much of it feels based on "the artist must've thought this was a cool idea and ran with it".

And! The music! Is just glorious! There's a different song for every stage (not every level, mind; stages are broken up into anywhere from seven to twelve different levels), and every song has two or three different variations depending on combat intensity (no combat -> combat -> boss fight), and there's additional instruments that pop in based on power-ups (invincibility) and remaining health (past a certain threshold it puts this very Pokemon-ish alarm sound over top of the melody, but it always sticks to the melody, so instead of feeling intrusive it just feels a little more intense). ONE person did the soundtrack!! ONE!!

AND!! AND!!!! There's a hard mode to the game, to both sides of the game, that not only continues both stories, but actually feels like a really good hard mode. It never feels unfair, it feels like Level 1 Hard picks up abooout where Level 12 Normal leaves off as far as difficulty goes - it's a direct extension of the game, remixing level designs and boss fights to play with expectations in ways that make you have to think through encounters. You can play the base game by just going guns-blazing and not lending much thought to what you're doing or why, but hard mode feels like a proper test for how much of the game you were actually picking up on the way - now you do have to ask yourself what the plan is, why it's the plan, and what your exit strategy is if things start going south, and it just...it feels like a really, genuinely natural transition between difficulties. I'm not really one for hard modes in games, but Copy Kitty's got me earnestly rethinking that.

And it was made by, for the most part, two people over seven years???????

.....I could keep gushing, because goooddddd it's a fantastic hidden gem. It really is, the music's a treat, the characters are a joy, the world the artist's come up with is honestly fascinating, and it's just plain fun between its bright visuals (almost too much visual stimulation, but oooonly almost; it feels better to play than it does to look at, I think), the fast-paced gameplay, the characterization (Boki and her uncle Savant are both precious in their own respects), and the sense of humor, of all things; this is a game that knows when to spice up "serious level, serious level, serious level" with a fun puzzle here, a room full of very silly enemies there...it keeps you on your toes in ways that never feel too gimmicky. Everything works, it's just that sometimes it works in ways that get a smile, a laugh, an "oh my god what am I playing" (but the good kind!!)

just. aaaaghhhh agahrhrhgrkgrrrrgrbark bark bark bark I was enchanted by this game and I didn't think I would be and if you've read this far, one, thank you, two, go give it a try it's 15 bucks and even I, as a harsh critic on the topic of game prices, even for indie games - even I think it's got enough in it to make it worth those 15 bucks if it can get its hooks in you.

throws music from a cool game I've been playing lately at you